Sunday, July 15, 2007

This conversation is over

Most of us have talked to ourselves at one point in time or the other. But not many would have experienced talking to themselves with 15 people in the CC field. Hi, I’m Sayesha and this is the story of how my plan got sabotaged.

Almost a decade ago, a lost freshie was sitting in the university canteen when she spotted a senior of hers mourning the loss of his mobile phone. They got into a scintillating conversation about lost mobile phones, which somehow led to a great friendship that survived the years.

Recently, the lost freshie heard some breaking news from the senior R and his wife A, and freaked out. The Bhai, on the other hand, was pleased as hell at the possibility of yet another franchise. Anyway, this email was promptly sent out.


Date: 9 July 2007 (Monday)
From: Sayesha
To: Buncha people

Hi people,

As you know, our favourite mallus are leaving sunny Singapore for (dubious?) Dubai. Viv and I are planning a surprise farewell party for them this weekend, most probably on saturday night at our place. We'd like to invite you to bid them farewell in style. I don't have everyone's email ids, so please feel free to invite anyone else whom they're close to.

I'm also planning to do up a slideshow with old photos and sabo-ing captions, so if you have any old (and preferably, ridiculous) photos of the two of them, please send them over asap. Sorry for the late notice, but I found out only this morning to my utter horror that they may be leaving as early as mid-next week!!

I will follow-up with another email as soon as I find whether they're free on saturday or sunday evening (depends on when the movers will be coming to err.. move their stuff.)

Hope everyone can make it! Do let me know, please! :)

And needless to say (but I'll still say it), if you bump into them somewhere before the weekend, shhhhhhhhh! :P

Cheers!
Sayesha

The response to the email (via sms, calls and emails) was tremendous, and her email was forwarded on to more people. And that’s when something happened…

Date: 10 July 2007 (Tuesday)
From: Sayesha
To: Buncha people

Hi everyone,

Thanks for the awesome response to my email. However, the latest is that our two mallus have pulled a fast one on us! Word is that unaware of what's cooking here, they may be trying to arrange a get-together of their own somewhere outside on Friday!!!! *PANIC ATTACK*

In order to avoid a "Hello again! Didn't we just see you like yesterday?" kinda situation for all of us, we have to do something. Is it possible for you guys to stall his get-together to sunday so that we can carry on with saturday's "surprise party" (after which they may choose to have or not have the sunday thingie, depending on how much of us they can take)? I don't know if he has contacted any of you guys or any plans have been made, but do let us all know what's happening.

In the hopeful case of us carrying on with our saturday plans, I'm thinking of getting everyone in by 7.00 pm, and getting them in by 7.30 pm. I think a pot luck party would be fun. But please don't stress too much about what to bring, cos that's immaterial. Just bring anything. If you really can't think of what to bring, get ice-cream or alcohol and juices, or disposable cutlery. But do let me know what you're bringing so that we don't end up with a mountain of plastic spoons and forks and no food to eat with them! :P

Cheers!
Sayesha

Meanwhile, R sent an email out to the very same buncha people asking them to meet for dinner at a mallu place! Needless to say, intervention was needed again.


Date: 11 July 2007 (Wednesday)

From: Sayesha
To: Buncha people

Hi people,

It's me again. (I'd be surprised if you haven't put my name on your junk mail filter by now.) Sorry for the third email in succession, but I thought I should send an email in case you're wondering what to do about R's email about meeting on Friday night. (No wonder there is total silence on that thread, poor guy must be heart-broken by now, thinking no one wants to see him before he leaves.) And now he's brought in the senti mallu food angle too, so we can't go ahead and do the whole "turn-him-down-on-Friday and surprise-him-on-saturday" thingie. Sheesh!

Okay lah, so we just go ahead and meet him on Friday, and if you guys are still keen (or if friday's attendance is not too large), we can continue with saturday's plan.

SIGHHHH!!! :(
Sayesha

After we returned from Friday's dinner, Viv was checking his email and to my horror, since he did not have the emails that were sent to me as a 'Reply' instead of a 'Reply all' to everyone, the thread really looked like I had just been talking to myself. So I figured there had to be a grand finale. An email to say "This conversation is over!"

Date: 13 July 2007 (Friday)
From: Sayesha
To: Buncha people

Hi people,

Continuing the insanity of talking to myself on this thread, it is time to formally announce the cancellation of tomorrow's surprise party, seeing as to how most of the people in this thread already met the mallus tonight. I'm so heart-broken. I'd actually designed a 'How much do you know 'em?' quiz to have at the party, with embarrassing questions from his past which only people who were close to him would know (and win the grand Ferrero Rocher prize). And that's not all. I printed 20 copies of the quiz. May the trees and the office printer forgive me.

Amen.
Sayesha

Okay fine, so surprises don’t hit twice. And even though I think that “It’s the thought that counts” is a crappy concept introduced by lazy procrastinators who can’t put together a half-decent party or a gift, I’ll say something just as crappy.

At least I tried.


Farewell, my friends, and do the Bhai proud in the land of legal tax evasion!



12 comments:

Priya said...

after ages.. me first! yoo hoo :)

..p..

V said...

Change the title...in the feed, reads like ur farewell post.

Claim gold.

SAS God said...

bhai. koi nahi. post padkar meri aankhon mein aanshun aa gaye.

Bivas said...

hehehehehe... ;-)
I know whats it like to send mails to a buncha ppl...i send out mails to some 30 odd ppl everyday and thr really are very few responses...but the efforts worth it :-)

Sid said...

Legal Tax Evasion...that a nice one...;)

The Soul of Alec Smart said...

Sad! :( I know, the "At least I tried" consolation is not enough. Well, I have messed up exactly the other way round. When applying for a course that was offered to a group of about 200 people, I replied in a very short and smart "Interested" to all of them, while the mail was supposed to be sent to only the sender!!! Needless to say, the replies were as cheeky as "In whom?", "Be specific", "Really?" and yeah, "Stop spamming." :(

Unknown said...

Now I know why the blog has been silent these past few days :) Looks like there are more to add on people who have moved away..

Iday said...

Aah - in a week when i'm busy attending farewell lunches myself, bhai writes a post abt it :)

It is okay bhai. Cliched though it might sound, i would STILL say "It is the thought that counts" :)

Unknown said...

hehehhe. That was fun!
As for the surprise, I do really agree with 'its the thought that counts', tho if the thought materializes, its the best thing to happen :)

And I also agree with.. at least you tried and you tried hard :)

Enigma said...

hmm... happens often with me too... and at a time it jus got so regular (i mean talking to myself in group mails) that i stopped mailing my group altogether!!! But I must say, its fun to plan surprises for friends!

:)
Cheeku

Tejal said...

hehe..awesome Bhai! although it dint work but think of it this way.. next tym someone leaves, u kno exactly wat to do ;)
Btw, Me has jus given farewell to a close fren n another one leaves next week :(( i hate this tym of the year :((

tin-di-maan said...

hahaha funnnnyy :D well at least u wont do this next time :)