The 200th Post

It is a great feeling to reach major milestones on the way to achieving a major goal that you’ve set for yourself. In these two days I have crossed two major milestones. The day before, I finished typing the hundredth page of my manuscript (which runs into 400 pages!) and it felt great. Today I cross another milestone with this post which is the 200th post on this blog. I have fifty more to go to reach the self-imposed target of 250 posts by the time this blog is one.

When I started typing the manuscript finally after about a month’s break, I began slowly, doing one page a day on an average. It took me forty five days to type the first fifty pages. Then in the next eight days I was able to type the next fifty pages and reach hundred. I am able to type about six pages a day which I plan to push up to eight or ten pages a day. I plan to complete typing the entire manuscript by the end of July, which is my deadline. So it is a rush for the next fifty odd days typing the remaining three hundred pages.

In addition to typing the manuscript there is the post to be done every day. The previous fifty posts have been a great learning experience. I have discovered that it is not so easy to write a post daily. But I also discovered that I am able to do it though the quality of writing has suffered a little. I have managed to write on a variety of subjects and issues. But the greatest satisfaction has been from the several wonderful people who have left comments and those keep in touch with me. There have been amazing happenings which I will write about when the blog turns one. It has been a humbling experience to find that a handful of people read the blog regularly. Though the hit count isn’t much I am not unduly worried about it.

The Rewards
Since I have set myself rewards on reaching milestones I picked up a nice Luxor brand notebook for seventy rupees. It comes with a free Papermate ball point pen. The notebook is similar to the one I am currently using- the Bilt Matrix notebook which is almost filled up. This was the reward for the typing achievement.

Then, as a reward for the 200 posts I picked up a book at a bookstore in Abids. The book I found can be called a great find. It is the ‘Vintage Book of Indian Writing’ which features writings of almost all Indian writers. The book is edited by Salman Rushdie and Elizabeth West. I got this whopper of a book (it is like a brick) for a hundred and fifty rupees. Now I can say I have the works of all Indian writers in English.