Roommates.....

You have to be lucky to get good roommates. Back in India, when you are looking around trying to find somebody acceptable, someone you can share a room with, there's a thin chance of landing someone you like. Naturally, the inclination is to look for people from your region, fellows who speak your language, those who drink (or don't), vegetarians (or non-vegetarians), smoking (or non-smoking) public. Yahoo groups is the favorite place for roommate-forming. Ads with titles that go, "Non-smoking, vegetarian, clean roommate required" are common. What's more, these are the ones that get maximum responses. I guess nobody likes to associate themselves, by choice, with drunkards, smokers and "un-clean" roommates. Fair enough!

I don't know what criteria I applied to choose roomates. They are drunkards, smokers and certainly aren't clean. Yet, I consider myself lucky! I have seen so many people shifting with new people, so many leases not renewed, sacred bonds broken and promises dashed. After a year, I still cannot imagine anybody else I want to live with (opposite sex not included. Ofcourse!). Nilesh, Bhat and Pratheek. It was pure luck, me finding them. Pratheek was from mechanical and we got together first. There were only three mech guys coming to my university and I'm glad one of 'em is living with me. I don't even remember how I contacted nilesh or how he contacted me. The last thing I remember is us talking on Yahoo messenger. Once we got there, Pratheek already had an apartment reserved for us. All we needed was a fourth roommate. Bhat needed roommates. And the rest is history.

Pratheek a.k.a Pat a.k.a Patrick has many hidden talents. One of them is how he hides all his talents. He is a secret rock star, if ever there can be such a thing. He plays bass guitar for a band we don't know. We also don't know where they play or when he practices. All we know is that he just bought an expensive bass guitar and an animal of a drive unit. He also has comical tendencies albeit only when he is drunk. His 'performances' can be found on youtube. Bhat is the official chicken maker of our house. He is also the official chicken eater (of NC State). He can eat chicken to the point when small feathers begin to appear under his arms. An insomniac and a trackmania maniac, Bhat is also known for his dislike for the outdoors. He once came to the beach in a sweatshirt and jeans and stayed in that sweatshirt and jeans till we left. He certainly gave those bikini-clad chicks something to think about! Finally, Nilesh. We don't know much about him since he is more asleep than awake. He needs his 18 hours everyday (No, seriously!). Indeed, he made a name for himself at NC State by snoring full throttle in a crowded computer lab. Nilesh is an acclaimed cricketer, an accomplished cook, and a willing companion for any outdoor activity whenever he is awake.

Well, there you are. The four of us have made Gorman our home. It ain't the cleanest, but it certainly is the coolest! I wonder what happened to all those non-smoking, clean people. From what I've seen recently, they'd swap for Gorman anyday!