Today, although didnt manage to go at 7 (as advised by the wise auto driver), i reach the office by arnd 9. i very confidently go towards the second level when the security stops me and asks me to join the queue. i tell him that i am applying for my minor son and he replies " ellam ore queue dhan..poi line la vaama"- imagine my reaction when i heard this!! i retort telling him that i was told there is a separte line for minors and he says"queue la vaama ..apram paathukalam". frustrated and irritated, messaged DH , abusing the system and the security guys.. i wait for abt 15 mins and when my turn comes, thankfully, he lets me join the spl queue and find myself standing behind some 50 odd uncles and aunts and young moms/ dads like me!! cursing my luck for the second consecutive day, i grudgingly wait. suddenly the young dad b4 me asks if i have attached Annexure I with the application...now wat? i think..i cooly reply with a no and he tells me that i need to attach one..i decide not to pay heed to his advice and continue to wait. suddenly, the PO tells the elderly man near the counter"last one year bank statement oda vaanga"..OMG!! i dont have tat- immediately ask DH to mail to my dad so that he can send it thru his office boy!! happy that i managed to act on time, i continue my tapas!! suddenly it struck me that i didnt have a photocopy of my passport!! inform the dad behind me and rush to the shop inside the complex and stand in queue behind another 10 ppl!! finally managed to finish the whole ordeal in 10 mins and rush to my post, after explaining to all the oldies behind me that i was already in queue and had stepped out to take a photocopy. some 45 mins later, when i am just 2 ppl away from the counter, i fervently pray to the almighty, offering him a coconut, if all goes well!! my hands literally shook when i got all my papers ready!! have neverbeen so nervous in my whole life..the PO looks at my papers and asks "where is the minor declaration certificate" while i give him a blank look, he explains that i need to attach a doc available in the ground floor. i nod resignedly and then he asks for something else, which i cant even remember now..he tells to get all the docs ready and come later..totally defeated and dejected, i come out and search for the vendor who sells those papers..after some running around, finally locate him underneath the staircase( no exaggeration) and he very patiently explains what to do..by then, my senses have returned and i smartly note down everything.
now i have to get all those docs ready and again visit the RPO next week. Simply dreading it!! Wish me luck
j
P. S. the bank statement was on its way when i was out of the RPO. another disaster!
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
My date with the RPO-1
Well, here goes my account of how i lost my accumulated leave on something that is nothing but a nightmare!!
yday had been to the Regional Passport Office(RPO) to apply for a passport for jeetu. I had filled the form online and was pretty much sure that i had all the necessary papers. I had applied it in tatkaal, thinking it would be a hassle- free process!! how wrong i was!! the day started like this- i take my son to my parents' place to leave him with them while i stand in the sweltering hot sun to submit the application; but turned out that he too was destined to visit the RPO. After getting jeetu' s thumb impression on all the annexures, i am almost ready to go, when i decide to call my friend to check if the minor applicant is also required at the office. She cautions me to take him along just in case the PO decides to meet my son. So in the next few mins, my mom dresses him up while i pack his things(diaper, water etc etc). and who else but my mom to babysit him while i wait for my turn? so she too gets ready in a hurry and we are off to the office in an auto. on arrival, the auto drives makes a very casual remark "passport office ku poi ivalo late aa vareenga? inge ella morning 7 o' clock vandhu q la nikkanum ma"- tat comment was enuf to trigger my anxiety. but my application stated that my appt( or so its called) was at 11 15 am and we were there by arnd 10 30. i decided to pardon the auto driver for his ignorance (how stupid of me). we arrive at the first floor and are told to wait in the queue meant for tatkaal applications..we patiently wait for sometime. suddenly my mom raises this doubt" DD aa cash aa?" i confidently reply"cash" amma: "but all arnd ppl are carrying DD. so better check".- another call to the trusted friend and turned out that they accept only DDs for tatkaal applications!! off i run to the nearest bank and to my luck, another queue to get a DD!! managed to return in 15 mins and thankfully, the queue hadnt moved much..we continue our wait.. we reach the next floor by arnd 12 15. the security at the entrance looks at my application and asks "minor applicant aa madam?" i say a yes with some trepidation and he cooly replies " there is a separate queue for senior citizens and minor applicants madam. you should have come here. counter closed". i try to explain that i was not aware of such a thing and there was no notice anywhere informing the same and he replies in that same self assured tone " ground floor la board irukku madam..poi parunga..come tomorrow morning at 8 30. you wil be the first". amma and i try to stand there pretending not to hear his last comment and desperately try to figure out a way to join the queue. amma, in the meanwhile, calls one of her friends who happens to work there to see if she can help us and to our immense luck, she is on leave and resting at home!! :( after some 10 mins, we decide to return the next day at crack of dawn so that this whole thing can be wrapped up and forgotten!! how i wish!!
j
yday had been to the Regional Passport Office(RPO) to apply for a passport for jeetu. I had filled the form online and was pretty much sure that i had all the necessary papers. I had applied it in tatkaal, thinking it would be a hassle- free process!! how wrong i was!! the day started like this- i take my son to my parents' place to leave him with them while i stand in the sweltering hot sun to submit the application; but turned out that he too was destined to visit the RPO. After getting jeetu' s thumb impression on all the annexures, i am almost ready to go, when i decide to call my friend to check if the minor applicant is also required at the office. She cautions me to take him along just in case the PO decides to meet my son. So in the next few mins, my mom dresses him up while i pack his things(diaper, water etc etc). and who else but my mom to babysit him while i wait for my turn? so she too gets ready in a hurry and we are off to the office in an auto. on arrival, the auto drives makes a very casual remark "passport office ku poi ivalo late aa vareenga? inge ella morning 7 o' clock vandhu q la nikkanum ma"- tat comment was enuf to trigger my anxiety. but my application stated that my appt( or so its called) was at 11 15 am and we were there by arnd 10 30. i decided to pardon the auto driver for his ignorance (how stupid of me). we arrive at the first floor and are told to wait in the queue meant for tatkaal applications..we patiently wait for sometime. suddenly my mom raises this doubt" DD aa cash aa?" i confidently reply"cash" amma: "but all arnd ppl are carrying DD. so better check".- another call to the trusted friend and turned out that they accept only DDs for tatkaal applications!! off i run to the nearest bank and to my luck, another queue to get a DD!! managed to return in 15 mins and thankfully, the queue hadnt moved much..we continue our wait.. we reach the next floor by arnd 12 15. the security at the entrance looks at my application and asks "minor applicant aa madam?" i say a yes with some trepidation and he cooly replies " there is a separate queue for senior citizens and minor applicants madam. you should have come here. counter closed". i try to explain that i was not aware of such a thing and there was no notice anywhere informing the same and he replies in that same self assured tone " ground floor la board irukku madam..poi parunga..come tomorrow morning at 8 30. you wil be the first". amma and i try to stand there pretending not to hear his last comment and desperately try to figure out a way to join the queue. amma, in the meanwhile, calls one of her friends who happens to work there to see if she can help us and to our immense luck, she is on leave and resting at home!! :( after some 10 mins, we decide to return the next day at crack of dawn so that this whole thing can be wrapped up and forgotten!! how i wish!!
j
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
mylapore maniac
well guess tats how my husband would have thought about me!! he keeps asking me "wats so gr8 about mylapore"...well is there a short and sweet answer to tat question? i dont think so...
for someone who has not lived in mylapore, its quite difficult to fathom why its so popular and special? the locality is a city by itself! it has a life of its own, which i dont think any other area can boast of...well parry's may be known for its busy business activities and besant nagar for its hep and happening joints but somehow mylapore is different..guess its the perfect blend of both the tradition and the contemporary tat makes it unique..on the one hand, you have the temples and ancient shops ( they were started even b4 my grandmom was born!) that sell everything from books to dosai kallus to kumkums to appalams!! am sure ambika applams and srividya kumkum have travelled far and wide than anybody living in tat locality! on the other hand, you also have the pizza joints and cafes tat are a true reflection of today' s world!!
well, i can go on and on about mylapore but i guess enuf has been written this much loved and famed place in chennai..how else do you explain a group started by and for mylaporeans in almost every social networking site? this post was simply meant to show my love for the place!!
case rested.
j
for someone who has not lived in mylapore, its quite difficult to fathom why its so popular and special? the locality is a city by itself! it has a life of its own, which i dont think any other area can boast of...well parry's may be known for its busy business activities and besant nagar for its hep and happening joints but somehow mylapore is different..guess its the perfect blend of both the tradition and the contemporary tat makes it unique..on the one hand, you have the temples and ancient shops ( they were started even b4 my grandmom was born!) that sell everything from books to dosai kallus to kumkums to appalams!! am sure ambika applams and srividya kumkum have travelled far and wide than anybody living in tat locality! on the other hand, you also have the pizza joints and cafes tat are a true reflection of today' s world!!
well, i can go on and on about mylapore but i guess enuf has been written this much loved and famed place in chennai..how else do you explain a group started by and for mylaporeans in almost every social networking site? this post was simply meant to show my love for the place!!
case rested.
j
where do i start?
hmmm... well wat else do i say? this whole idea of blogging has been in my mind for quite some time now but somehow just could not work up the motivation to start one..not sure whether it was lack of time or simply because i didnt know where to start!! well, there goes my title for the first post!!
just a teeny weeny bit abt myself....a self- proclaimed hard core chennaiite...or to be more specific mylaporean..maybe i shud have named by blog mylaporemaami.blogspot.com!! :-) am sure someone else has already taken the not so glamorous title!! schooled in the same area and attended college in an adjacent one!! married and went a few miles(!!) away from mylapore but now living close by though not IN mylapore!! (psst..hope my hubby and inlaws dont ever read this!)
am a working mom..have a one and half year old, cute, adorable and extremely smart son!!
wat else? guess have written enuf to call it a post!! so tats it for now!!
j
just a teeny weeny bit abt myself....a self- proclaimed hard core chennaiite...or to be more specific mylaporean..maybe i shud have named by blog mylaporemaami.blogspot.com!! :-) am sure someone else has already taken the not so glamorous title!! schooled in the same area and attended college in an adjacent one!! married and went a few miles(!!) away from mylapore but now living close by though not IN mylapore!! (psst..hope my hubby and inlaws dont ever read this!)
am a working mom..have a one and half year old, cute, adorable and extremely smart son!!
wat else? guess have written enuf to call it a post!! so tats it for now!!
j
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