To (Try To) Do List

Many of you know that my last year in Delhi was less than ideal. Some of the problems I experienced will no longer exist for me in my second year, simply because of the new location (goodbye pollution and heat!). I'm sure there will be new problems (cold, oh so very cold, and no indoor heating), but I really want to do a better job at making the most out of my time in India the second time around. Therefore, I have devised a list of tasks that will hopefully help me make this year a great one:

1. Make a bigger effort to meet people. This was my biggest struggle in Delhi. I just didn't know how to meet people! I don't think this necessarily has to do with Delhi; I think this is just a problem that many people have when they transition from student to working life or move to a new city. So how am I going to do this? Well, um, I actually still don't know how to meet new people, but I'm going to try the following things:

• Take a hobby class.The YWCA in Shimla offers several classes, including cooking and Bollywood dancing. Because who says I can't spontaneously break out into an extended song-and-dance while cooking up some palak paneer?
  
• Join a club or team. Maybe there is a hiking or book club that I can join. Or, since Shimla has an ice rink in the winter, it could be fun to join a women's ice hockey team. Apparently "ex pats [sic] from the Canadian and Russian consulates in Mumbai and Delhi have been playing the game in Ladakh,"according to the Ice Hockey Association of India, so I don't see why this American expat can't play the game in Shimla! Because who says I can't compete with a bunch of Canadians and Russians who picked up their first hockey stick 30 seconds out of the womb?
  
• Volunteer. I actually need some help coming up with volunteering ideas (I'm admittedly fairly terrible with this), but maybe I could do something with environmental cleanup or helping slum kids or something equally cheesy. Or I could do what I do best: teach geography and basketball to monks at the local Buddhist monastery. Because who says monks can't be taught about the inability to drive between South Asia and North America due to the existence of oceans while acquiring the ability to drive to the hoop?
  
• Or, if all of the above fails: put an ad in the Matrimonials. Because what Indian man doesn't want a "23-year-old girl with fair complexion, American citizenship, and a degree from a prestigious foreign university, caste no bar"?
  

So why didn't I do any of those things in Delhi? Well, honestly, I had tried. I spent hours looking for a hobby class with times that worked, for a club or volunteering opportunity I would be interested in. Unfortunately, everything (clubs, classes, volunteer activities) usually met/occurred during work hours or on weekends--and I was unwilling to make any commitments on weekends so that I could use them to travel. Well, this year I'm working 6-day weeks and having only Sunday off doesn't give me enough time to make weekend trips. Thus this year I have no qualms about making commitments! (Yes, you could say I had the wrong priorities last year. You could say that. But remember how much Delhi's pollution sucks, and then you'll remember why I felt the need to escape.)

2. Actually study Hindi. Sure, I took Hindi lessons. Sure, I even (occasionally) did my homework. But honestly? I was a slacker. And in Delhi, it's fairly easy to rely on English. So this year, I want to make sure I put aside a little bit of time every evening to study Hindi. No, really. I'm serious. I want to be approaching proficient by the end of my year.

3. Take a hike. I am going to be in the mountains, so why not take advantage of this? I'm hoping to do hikes as often as possible (dare I say every Sunday? no, I probably shouldn't dare).

You know what's great about these kinds of lists? They make me feel good about myself--when I make them. But you know what isn't so great about these kinds of lists? They make me feel crappy about myself--when I fail to actually follow through with them. And, of course, that's inevitable. This list is a classic example of productive-things-I-intend-to-do-but-then-never-end-up-doing-because-a-rerun-of-Friends-is-on-TV-or-an-actual-friend-is-on-Gchat. I could try to adopt Sareeta's life point system, but I don't think I really want to keep track of my "points" on a daily basis (plus we all know I'd forget anyway).

So, do you have any ideas for how I can make the most out of my time in Shimla? Let me know in the comments or through email (though I can't promise that Friends won't be playing on Star World or Zee Cafe). Thanks!

In support of my previous post...

...this is the first article that came up when I searched "Shimla" in Google News:

53 diarrhea cases reported in Shimla

Shit: proven.

Renaming the blog: "Shit, Sweat, Bribe"?

Obviously I renamed the blog simply by crossing out "Delhi" and writing "Shimla." But perhaps I should get more creative. What do you think of Shit, Sweat, Bribe: One Woman's Search for... Something?... in India? (This mocks the bestseller book "Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India, and Indonesia.") I promise the leading picture wouldn't be as graphic as the title.

...but I can't promise that my stories won't be too graphic. ;) (Hey, I've actually been pretty good about keeping this blog clean. I didn't even write about my bout of dengue fever!)

emilyinshimla: שנה ב / साल दो / Year 2 in India!

I just accepted a new job in India! A different job than the one alluded to in a previous post. That first job fell through, but luckily I found another one! This means I'm officially embarking on שנה ב / Shana Bet ("Year 2" in Hebrew; what some Jews call an American Jew's second year in Israel, usually between high school and college) (I guess it would be more appropriate if I said Year 2 in Hindi: साल दो / Saal Do).

I will return to India in early September to work in Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh and the former summer capital of British India (so yeah, it's pretty colonial). It's a town of ~160,000 people at ~7,000 feet in the Himalayas. Sure it's not the village I've been dreaming of, but at least it's not 16 million people like Delhi! [Anyone else notice that I always live somewhere with a population of 16 * 10^n? 16 * 10^0 households in Gangzur, 16 * 10^6 people in Delhi, 16 * 10^4 people in Shimla.] [Actually I'm not 100% sure on the numbers in Delhi and Shimla; the populations seem to vary by source.] I'm hoping to do some field work in villages, so hopefully I will get some rural experience.

"A" marks the spot of Shimla - thanks Google Maps!

I might change my blog a bit (new title, new picture, new color scheme), but I will keep the same URL so it's easier for everyone to keep following. So stay tuned to emilyindelhi.blogspot.com!

See you back on the subcontinent in September!