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A Day in the Life

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Karan Bopal ​

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I wake in the morning glad not like P-Diddy.

I thank whoever you pray to, God, Aliens …… etc. that I am here to slog through another day in this vortex of chaos that we call life.  Sounds like the start of Prince’s “Let’s go Crazy”.

 

I get out of bed with some enthusiasm whilst groaning as my body is not the temple it used to be.  I go to the ensuite (yes, I am that posh even in the East End of Glasvegas) and do my morning constitutional; whilst moaning that young people are always on their phones, whilst I am sitting on my phone on my throne. I check my emails from my agent and refuse all the filming, acting, voiceover, modelling jobs as I can’t manage them at the moment and do a full time job.

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I brush my teeth and go for my shower; I have my Uniform ready to put on for my work.  I dream of winning the lottery more than I think about sex, Lamborghinis, Formula 1 and Versace now!! I am so jealous of the people in my village whom are walking their dogs and going to the local shop; that I can see from my bedroom window as they are lucky retired bastards and I have to go to smelly work.  I go down to see my Parents, whom I reside with.  Father is usually watching Cheers and knows every word of the script, Mum is making my sandwiches for my work-Yes you read that right.  I am a lucky guy coming from a typical/Not typical Indian Sikh family.  I have breakfast(cup of cha and cereal) then grab my fresh lunch, make my bed, grab my jacket, open the gates & garage then drive my immaculate car to work moaning in my head that I wish I was retired or a lottery winner; so I would not have to this morning commute every day hating people, traffic worrying about my car being parked where I can’t see it.  I worry about these things you see especially when my cars are usually in heated, secure garages sleeping!! Cue my OCD for cleaning.

 

I get to work in a surgical cancer ward at a very famous NHS Glasgow hospital and douse myself in aftershave then paint my smile on and deal with the public who are “soles of arse”.  My ward has 6 bed male, female and single rooms for 36 patients.  The noise of the machines keeping people alive and phones, general hustle and bustle endure.  I walk into the ladies’ room, average age 70 and say “morning girls”.  Oh son I have not been called a girl since the war. I use humour a lot in my job and life to get me through the day.  It is a mask that I have to wear to keep people away from my personal space.  These people will gossip and make stuff about me anyway.  They don’t know me, I have had it my whole life. Although people think they know you, no one really gets to know the real me. I am happy when cleaning and being immaculate, in body, in my home or car.  That’s me in a nutshell. I have been surrounding by anger my whole life from society and the older I get I realise it stems from jealously and lack of ambition on other’s-not from me.  We can’t all be 6 foot 5 Versace clad wearing models, I get told. The dichotomy of this is so ironic in my daily life. I am happy for people-honestly I wish them no ill.

 

I finish my shift and contemplate on all aspects of micro racism that I have experienced in my NHS role then drive to the gym or go for a swim, wishing I won the lottery so I could swim every morning when it was quiet and I did not have to go to smelly work. i.e. to be like those people I see when I am getting dressed out of my window who are retired. Do I wish my life away all the time, no.  I am very grateful for the engineering/Project manager career I had before I smashed my spine. I do have 2 degrees and a Masters I’ll have you know as well as nice eyebrows and teeth.

 

I get home and have dinner with my folks and make my phone calls and generally clean.  Weekend comes and I clean, garden, see family and friends and clean some more.  PS all I do is clean due to my OCD and have triggers for the abuse that I faced growing up in the East End of Glasveages.  My escape from this is when I became a diversification model being the tallest Indian model in the country at 6 foot 5.  Not bad for a guy who has been labelled ugly throughout his whole life by society and put down daily. This escape happens when I am on movie sets with the lovely Kavita whom I relate with as she shares the same enthusiasm for doing something different whereby you can be someone.

 

Is this really the person you are or do we have to hide throughout the daily ritual of eat, work, sleep repeat, Who knows? Life is a quandary at time to contemplate.  I listen to music, watch films, dream of going into space and clean my cars daily.  Life is what you make it.  I overcompensate that one day my Mum or Dad won’t be here, so this is why I decided to stay at home as I don’t want to have regrets by saying to myself, “I wish I spent more time with them.” Remember where I work, I hear this daily from family members who have loved ones in the hospital bed, who always say I wish, I wish, I wish. I lost so many family members and I miss them all.  We are a big Indian family who all get on, who own 7 beautiful homes next to door to each other in a private street.  Hence the upkeep and I am always cleaning etc. I am known for hoovering my Avenue and yes you read that right after brushing it.  I even clean outside the church next door.  I don’t have to, I choose to.  It’s all about the red pill and the blue pill (huge Matrix fan as well as all movies),  Back to escapism again from the mundane life we all lead. It’s your choices to do what you want to do.

 

I was never an Angel growing up, I try make amends by living a good life, being nice to everyone I see, I do not carry hate in my soul, I always indicate in my car, even if there is no one around and if I don’t- I think something bad will happen. I do good and I live my life by the moral compass of Atonement and Karma.  If there is something that people would say what is Big K like, they would say he picks up nails and screws every day from the street.  He can’t walk past them.  That is me saving you from a puncture whereby you could be needing your car to get to the hospital to say good bye to a loved one.  Now I hope you see how my brain works.  I do little things to help others and that is what I love.  It is the little things that make the biggest difference, We should all live a selfless life and respect and love what we have now, not tomorrow, not yesterday but now.

So what is like to be me in my daily life, It is as good as being you and it is as bad as being you.

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We are all brothers and sisters on this 3rd rock so let’s get through this thing we call life!