When I was twelve years old, I began listening to heavy metal music and experimenting with nicotine sticks. My parents thought I would turn out to be a junkie and amount to nothing. When I was sixteen years old, I finished my nine month diploma course in computer from a local institute. Then, I began teaching the usual package which was Word Perfect, Lotus and dBase. Nowadays it's Microsoft Word, Excel and Access. But those were the days when even learning MS-DOS and being able to type simple commands made you feel like you were as good as Bill Gates.
As I became a 'Sir' instead of just another teenager with long hair and baggy pants, my parents thought that I would one day turn out to be a computer genius. Then came the SLC results and I somehow managed to pass in first division. There were only two of us who passed the exams in my neighborhood. That happens when the rest of the lads worship Guns N' Roses and only chant their songs as bhajans instead of hitting the books. The other 'first division' guy is now a psychiatrist and I need to fix an appointment with him to get some counseling.
I wanted to study Arts instead of the usual 'first division' equals to studying science crap. I joined Patan Multiple Campus because it was a ten minute walk from my home. I never went to Patan but instead hung out at Tri-Chandra because their canteen had good pakodas and tea, and of course, a basketball court.
After a year of attending Tri Chandra even though I was not a student there, I decided to go to Singapore to study computer science. I joined a private school that offered Diploma in Computer Studies and you could move to the UK and join B.Sc Second Year after finishing the Diploma. Singapore was a new environment for people like me who are used to spitting and throwing chips and chocolate wrappers on the street. You could do neither of those.
I had to wait a year to get entry to the usual night life scene. Once you are eighteen, you are eligible to drink alcohol and have some fun. But if you have too much fun and harm others or public property then you are likely to get caned and fined a certain amount. Well, I never had to pay the fine or got caned because I did not do anything stupid that would get me into trouble.
You were not allowed to work while under student visa in Singapore. But nevertheless, a friend of mine hooked me up with a temp agency. I was sent to a public school library after their closing hours and asked to scan the books and enter the titles. The pay was okay. I could afford a can of beer and a plate of chicken fried rice.
I went to work after 4 pm when my classes were done at the computer school. I worked like a robot during the first few days. I did my job well. Then, I got tired of scanning the barcode and entering the title. I scanned the barcodes but started coming up with creative titles instead of the ones that were on the books. I would like to apologize to the school today for coming up with book titles that had something to do with Nepal such as 'How to Find a Yeti and Not Die'.
After my 'Singaporean' education was over, I came back home. My sister was studying in US then. She sent me a magazine 'George' founded by John F. Kennedy Jr. My sister knew that I was obsessed with John and Jackie since the fifth grade. There was a book on United States President in my school library. Ronald Reagan was the President then but the book had been published during the Presidency of Jimmy Carter. I stole the book and took it home.
Well, the 'George' thing inspired me to publish my own magazine. I was only 19 then. I gathered my friends, the same folks whose arms were pricked with pointy stones and sharp sticks back in the days, and shared my idea. Some of them wanted to come out with a heavy metal magazine or something that was about real teens than the 'Wave' thing. Yes, Wave was a big thing back then. Nobody missed an issue. Some for the lyrics and posters and some to just make sure that they were cool because they read 'Wave'.
It was time to run around looking for advertisers. A friend of mine came from a very well-to-do family. He was a rich bloke. His uncles owned big businesses around town. We went to meet this uncle and instead of promising to help young folks like us, he went on a rant for an hour. He advised us to go on a holiday to Darjeeling. Have fun and then apply for colleges abroad instead of starting a magazine. He didn't even offer us a 'Coke' or a cup of tea.
After six months of running around, I finally published my newspaper. Yes, I could not get enough funds to publish a magazine so had to be content with a 12 page newspaper. It was single color except the front page which had the title in 'Red'. I had named the newspaper 'Hybrid'. It ran for two issues and folded because I ran out of funds. My parents had funded the whole thing in hopes that one day I would become a great publisher and give the major dailies a run for their money.
Well, the dream faded away and I applied for Student Visa to the US. The guy in the Embassy didn't ask me any questions. He went through my papers. He told me my visa request was approved. I was going to America. I was going to meet Drew Barrymore and go to New York City to watch David Letterman live. So, I stacked my unsold newspapers in a big tin box only to be opened after my return from the States.
kalumaila99@gmail.com
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