Musings of a mysterious mind

Control

2010-09-19T09:02:00.000+05:30

Life, it seems, is a constant battle over what we cannot control. We battle our emotions and our tendencies. Judgment is often, at the losing end of the battle, at times. But, after that bitter defeat, you do come out with a little bit of gumption and a new found will. That's all what is needed to rule yourself, again. So, I believe.

Accountability

2010-06-21T05:49:00.001+05:30

I have been living in the US for more than a year now. While I can be tempted to compare and rant about the development and infrastructure differences between the US and my home country, there were a few subtle experiences that really inspired me during my stay. The public utilities systems here show a remarkable level of accountability and transparency.

Recently, I received a letter from the water distribution board mentioning that tests indicated proof of bacteria in the public water supply. The letter insisted that the species of bacteria found were not really harmful in most cases. For instances where that could pose a health problem, remedies were provided. The letter ended mentioning that the system was committed to quality and would take adequate measures so that this wouldn’t happen again. It mentioned that the letter, which was communicated to all residents in the town, was to be transparent in their service and governance.

The utilities company responsible for electricity provides information about the sources of power in the state, provides a graph showing your consumption for the past 12 months, comparing that with the average household consumption and also mentions why the unit charge is more during certain months and less during others. To top it all, every bill provides valuable tips on saving power specific to the season you are in, information about go-green initiatives and how consumers could be a part of this as well.

These were two examples where organizations showed a great deal of transparency and accountability. These not only instill a sense of confidence in their customers, but also pride for many. If you look at it, these are not hard measures to undertake as an organization. In many ways, these principles are somewhat missing in the utilities system (run by the government) back home. I personally think these principles come before any major overhaul in the utilities system.

Accountability doesn’t stop with organizations. We have our own share of responsibility, and accountability. For instance, we must try our best to help recycling. Here, in the US, and in many other countries, people consciously separate out paper, plastics and other garbage. It is also important to separate out non-biodegradable stuff and materials that are bio-hazards (like battery cells etc). Unfortunately, this measures are not religiously taken in India, and garbage disposal is not given as much importance as it should be. The situation is exacerbated by the fact that we have more than a billion people living in the country, with really, really high population density. Recycling is just one of the many things we civilians should be accountable for. More importantly, we must be aware of the fact that we are accountable for many things – we simply seem to forget them by putting ourselves in a shell, blaming the government and organizations, instead of ourselves.

Elevating your game

2010-02-01T01:52:00.001+05:30

A thought, one afternoon, took me back sixteen years in time.

I was in high school, and that time, cricket was my passion, my only one. I was the captain of a team of school kids from nearby villages. We weren’t that particularly good a team, partly because most of the team were just beginning to play real games. We were mostly fifth or sixth graders. Unlike in a town or a city, we didn’t really have many teams to chose from, as opposition. There was this team from our neighboring village who kept egging us for a match. We barely had six players in our team. The other problem was that the neighboring team were a bunch of high school and college going guys. Their average age was at least five years more than ours. Better yet, each player was good in a certain discipline – bowling, batting or both. Basically, we were minnows compared to them. And yeah, they were a full eleven member team.

The prospect of a match was uniquely exciting. There was a feeling of certainty that we would be thrashed. But yet, somewhere inside, I felt they could be beaten. It was an unreasonable, yet nagging thought. Perhaps, it was the kind of feeling the captain of the Bangladesh cricket team has before playing Australia.

My team had to be complete for the match. I requested a few friends and classmates from neighboring villages to join us. They agreed, and we were now eleven. Adequate head count was far from being ready though. When we got together to discuss and prepare, we all settled with the idea that we had to prepare enough to avoid an utterly humiliating defeat. The idea was to perform enough to give an impression that we went down fighting.

That evening, a couple of weeks before the big day, self and Guru, my cousin, and a good friend of mine, had a seeming boyish talk. There was no reason to, but we talked about winning. We went on, and on, and kept laughing about it. That Saturday, the sun had set and it was getting dark. We decided to have a good day of practice the next day and signed off.

That night, I couldn’t stop thinking about the idea of winning. I was pacing up and down in my front yard thinking about what it would really take to beat them. We really had only three players matching the level of each of the players in our opposition. I had a seemingly ludicrous thought that if each of us gave 200% and each member of the other team gave 50% or less, out of sheer complacency, we could win. Funny, you might chuckle off, but I was dead serious in thought then. I slept with the thought that we had to find some ways of elevating our game to a different level, to be able to realize my amazing theory.

The next day at practice, Guru mentioned that he had the same thought the night before. So, we began practice with that very goal - raising the level of game. How to achieve that, we didn’t have a clue. I believed it was all about practicing, and practicing hard. I firmed it up in my mind that I had to work on each of my skills – my fielding had be to sharper, my range of batting shots had to improve, and my bowling had to be darn accurate. Guru, for some reason, thought all this was not needed. He just believed in just being himself and going for it. When we practiced, I gave 200%. All of a sudden my game was so better. My bowling was particularly unplayable, and I had a great all-round performance. The extent of my determination and focus at that time were indescribable. I seemed to be all set and prepared. So, I thought. I was to be proved otherwise.

Guru, on the other hand was quite miserable in practice. He seemed to be tense, but believed that things would simply come together on the day of the match. Guru was our best player, and I had nothing but hope that he would deliver. Little did I know, what he would transform into.

The day of the match is something I cannot forget. There was tension as much as there was excitement. We were to play an away game. When we reached the playground, an improvised valley between hills, the confidence I exuded in practice was starting to diminish. I was nervous now, and my feet were trembling. Guru, on the other hand was quite the opposite. The jitteriness that he had during practice was non-existent. He was ready for war.

The first exchange of looks was intimidating for us. They were bigger than us, looked unforgiving, and seemed to be all set to make mincemeat of us.

We won the toss, elected to field and I took to the first over. I was darn nervous for the first ball, but the first ball happened to be a beauty. That took some tension off and gave me tremendous confidence. I knew those guys would be complacent and I cashed on it. I scalped four important wickets, and the they were bundled off for a reasonable small score. But still, that was a tall order for our team, because we had only three batsmen, effectively. We lost the one of them in the very first over – a shaky start. It was all up to me and Guru to take us all the way home.

What happened that day is something I can never forget. It was the day I saw Guru like never before. He single handedly destroyed the opposition. Though I didn't go all the way, I shared a good little partnership with Guru and we sailed home. Guru had just shown an example of how one could really elevate one’s game when required. Even to this day, every one of us (and our opposition) vividly remember that game.

Sixteen years have gone, and in the present day, I look back to glean some lessons. I am constantly faced with similar uphill tasks in work and personal life. Perhaps, even today, I do the mistake of focusing more on skills alone. For short periods of time, you will need to push the envelope of conventional thinking and situation handling. That is what makes you accomplish certain important victories and specific goals. Of course, this level cannot be sustained for long as you would burn out. But nonetheless, you need to help yourself elevate the game, when needed.

Being in a Dream

2009-10-22T08:22:00.004+05:30

The patch of time when you are transitioning from a dream to harsh reality is harsher than the reality itself. You are better off being in the state of blissful unawareness.

A random musing on 'Leadership'

2009-09-23T08:18:00.004+05:30

I have come to an unexplainable conclusion that one cant really pen what true leadership is, or learn from literature or countless workshops. One's pursuit of what leadership is all about is, in my opinion, as arduous as an expedition to discover the human soul.

When you come across a true leader, you will know, and you will learn leadership without being taught. A few weeks, days or just minutes of being in the influence of one would condense reams of literature collected over centuries to a small speck of insight, and wonder that sits in the forefront of your mind.

You will realize then, that you are blessed.

The Joy of Driving

2009-08-24T06:58:00.002+05:30

Even as a child, being behind the steering wheel gave me a lot of unexplainable joy –be it my dad’s green Ambassador, or my own toy peddle car. When I started to drive, I ceased to believe it was just about transportation. My first car, a used Maruti, was more than just a car to me. While behind the wheel, I wanted to think I was not just driving, but becoming – becoming the car itself. Every time, I hit a pothole hard, I cursed myself. I tried hard to hear to the hum of the engine to understand how the car was feeling. My car’s health seemed no less important than my own.

I am in the US now, and my stay here has been joyful, attributed to the time I have spent behind the wheel. I am really happy to be in New England. You can see some of the best scenic byways here. The sheer joy of driving through winding roads, through mountains and valleys is second to none. Twisty hill climbs are followed by descents to open valleys. The wind plays music, the foliage play to the tune and the brook glitters in the tender sun. Your eyes fail to completely comprehend the resplendent scenery painted in front of it.

But then, there is a problem. My heart goes into a conflict of sorts. Should I tune into the heartbeat of the engine, or should I feel the wind in my hair? The thought of being perfectly between the road markers fights with the feeling of flying through the valley with lofty spirits. I am not sure if I need to play music in the car, or tune into the piston station. Perhaps, this conflict makes the drive more desirable. Perhaps.

Byways, is where I saw the real passion for the road - groups of riders in their thunderous cruisers, with no care of what was happening in the world beyond the road’s shoulders. I could relate their joy to the what Pirsig described in his profound masterpiece. I would be there, someday.

Well, my passion for driving still doesn’t make me a good driver. I am human, after all. So, this is where the flow experience comes to play - striking the right balance between the rules of the road, and roar of the engine. More miles, is what I need.

Displacement

2009-08-13T09:40:00.001+05:30

Spring was coming to a close in New England; summer was knocking on the door. I was in my apartment looking outside the window. There were white fluffs, each as large as a palm of a hand, flying in the brisk wind. Seeds they were, in their millions. So dense was the air, that it appeared like a heavy snowfall.

For many plants and trees, dispersion of the seeds by means such has the wind is critical. Without this displacement from the parent, sprouting, and hence the continuation of life wouldn’t be possible.

“Displacement” was the thought that stuck on to my mind, that instant. As I thought, I realized that I was displaced myself - from the comforts of my hometown, my folks, my friends and my home. As much as it is painful to leave these behind, it is important to do so. It is displacement that makes you better, both in your career and your life. The further you put yourself away from the comfort zone, the better you would learn to adapt, and thrive.

Displacement was what I needed. Now that I have it, life beckons, again.

The First Center of Excellence

2009-03-19T10:21:00.000+05:30

If you ask any young kid in my country what she wants to be when she grew up, you wouldn’t be surprised if the kid mentioned the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Kalpana Chawla, Dr. Kalaam and so on. And why not be, these individuals are role models in their respective fields. They are looked upon as gods who exhibit certain qualities that captivate a young mind. They set the benchmarks for achievement, for excellence.

As much as this is a good thing that kids can differentiate the best from the rest, I sometimes feel saddened that the chosen role model is not from within your own family. When was the last time you heard a kid saying "I want to be a great engineer like Papa when I grow up", or "I want to be a great Doctor like Mama". This could be attributed to the parent deliberately belittling their jobs in the eyes of their kid, so that the kid aspires to be something which the parent thinks is more superior. Well, if that is the case, then the parent is inadvertently infusing discrimination in the mind of the kid - a lack of dignity of labor. This is not a small problem.

The other, seemingly subtle reason could be that the parent is not exhibiting those qualities which the child looks upon as exemplary. To the parent, it's like a performance appraisal gone too badly. This is perhaps a grim reminder that the parent might not after all, be doing justice to her job, her responsibilities.

I believe one of the biggest achievements you can have in your life is to be a role model for your own kid. To get there, one would need to reach a level of sustained performance and peerless excellence in the eyes of your own kin. The first center of excellence you would need to be a part of is your own home.

Frugality

2009-03-15T13:58:00.000+05:30

It is a point of time when birthdays and anniversaries can be remembered by checking which major bank or financial institution collapsed on that day. The newspapers don’t seem to have enough of pay cuts and layoffs. To top it all, the communication from the corporate houses are sober, at best.

People who have seen it all have many a quote to share - "It's too good a crisis to waste", "Wherever there are adversities, there are tremendous opportunities" and so on. What does this all mean to each one of us? Is it just for the senior management and leadership teams to think what to make of this situation? I guess not - it starts with every individual.

I believe it starts with frugality. The best analogy is the survival of wildlife in African plains in the thick of summer, after months of lush green abundance in the rainy season. As summer moves in, food gets scarce, water scarcer. The wildlife has evolved to deal with it - animals slowly switch to frugal mode. They expend lesser energy, conserve water content in the body and they survive, and survive well.

Professionals in this harsh economic climate would need to evolve traits which helps them survive well. For us, being frugal doesn’t just entail reducing spending. It is not just about saving fuel, water, electricity or paper. It is also about avoiding the wastage of one of most important resources - time. A conscious effort to achieve more with lesser time goes a long way in making one deal with adversity. It means being in a state of constant hurriedness to deliver. Time, at this hour, is more than money.

I always think about the recession as the "Deluge", and it takes great amount of preparedness and differentiability from a professional to get on to the "Ark", not just to survive, but to survive and excel.

To go beyond

2008-12-25T17:42:00.000+05:30

It is half past five on a December evening. The sun is already set to plunge down into the horizon. As I drive into the 'Tech Park' I work in, I see a slew of people walking briskly while talking on their cell phones. They don visible ID cards and carry compact bag packs - a trait of engineers of my kind these days. They carry smiles on their faces; they are visibly relieved. Perhaps, they are more than happy, and eager to go home to their families.

I am driving at a snail's pace, negotiating an endless array of speed breakers. As I slowly go past the scores of seemingly young people, mostly in their twenties, my mind bubbles up a thought - there is a hell of a lot of potential everywhere! Imagine every one growing beyond basic engineering, and the values of offshore delivery. Imagine one and all to think beyond their set result areas. Imagine everyone blazing a trail of success and unique accomplishments. I can barely imagine the landscape then.

These ten seconds of temporal digression clearly accentuates one thing - Dreaming. Perhaps, it isn't as difficult to live that dream and dare to go beyond.

Solitude pays a visit

2008-10-27T10:26:00.002+05:30

The sun is a few hours away from setting; it’s bright all around. The sky is clear, but for a few fleeting clouds. The colors, a rich blend of yellow, red, brown and green, are all around. The sight is pretty, to say the least. I am tempted to walk around, as always. I take a few steps, but the cold wind pierces through my skin; my sweater seems no good. A chilled cold drink can in my hand does not make sense. Birds chirp and fly around, just the way back home. I see high speed traffic at a distance; I don’t hear it. A few yards from me, the American flag and the Ohio state flag next to it flutter in the strong wind. The wind seems to be playful with the fallen foliage, displacing them everywhere.

A friend from the past comes to give me company. We travel back and forth in time, and memories bring smiles. It feels like old times, when time moved fast, but life went slow. The feeling isn’t all that bad. I then walk back to where I belong.

The Zone

2008-06-08T18:47:00.000+05:30

A humble perimeter of office space housing a handful of mavericks, separated by disposition, bracketed by merriment, disbanded from chaos and disconnected from time - a place on earth we fondly called Ramlal Zone, then.

Success: My Explication

2007-06-14T10:17:00.000+05:30

Success in life, to me, is only a measure of how much of a difference you bring to people’s lives. Anything else is just a mindless exaltation resulting from mere fulfillment of material interests. Awards, recognition or fame don’t mean anything either.

Very shallow thought perhaps, but I like to think that way.

The Gift - II

2007-06-14T10:09:00.000+05:30

A realization of lack of virtues is a gift. The beckoning that follows is fruitful.

Being Unconventional

2007-04-25T13:19:00.000+05:30

It’s ironical and woeful that to do good to society and mankind at large, you need to be ‘unconventional’. It seems to me that traits like undivided attention, unwavering focus, unrestrained enthusiasm and unconditional commitment, the ones needed to make a significant difference are not imbibed by default.

That way, existence within this macrocosm is meaningless; un-belonging beckons.

The Quest

2007-03-17T14:37:00.000+05:30

Courage awakened, arose an unrelenting will
To smile at life, and the pain it may spill
Pride marched forward, despair lay conquered;
The person in the mirror is whom I had discovered.

The Smile

2007-02-18T00:39:00.000+05:30

In a disarray was my mind
Restless my heart chose to be
Then it dawned upon myself
It was your smile that was killing me.

The Circle of Happiness

2007-01-27T23:31:00.000+05:30

Try out this simple test. Draw a circle on a sheet of paper. Within it write down everything that you think makes you happy. Anything at all, small or big – fame, money, car, jewels, gadgets, or even just coffee. If you are not able to fit in everything into the circle you have drawn, draw a bigger circle, and repeat this exercise till you have a circle that fully envelopes all the things that make you happy, joyful. So, how big is your circle of happiness?

Most typically, our circle of happiness is unimaginably large – so large that perhaps, you wouldn’t be able to draw that on a sheet of paper. It is not so hard to deduce that the larger the circle, the more difficult it is to be happy. Therefore, the perfect state of happiness – no circle at all. It is when you don’t need anything to be happy; you are happy because you just choose to be. Perhaps, this is the state that is documented as the “transcendental state” in our religious texts.

So, let me go back to my circle of happiness and help see it shrink by the day - a lot of work to do here.

In true Christmas Spirit

2006-12-27T07:33:00.002+05:30

Our lives always yearn for priceless moments - moments of bliss, joy or of accomplishment. Well, the seemingly unfathomable act of singing carols on the busy Brigade road was definitely one of them!
While most passersby were thoroughly amused, some of them joint us in chorus, and that was a fantastic feeling of oneness. This flagged the beginning of a very special Christmas to us!

Powered by some great wine and the best fruit cake you could ever imagine, we visited several of our friends and family that day, singing carols all along. It is quite hard to put in words the warmth of the people we met and the spirit of unity amongst us.

Needless to say, this was the best Christmas I have ever had.

A memorable adventure

2006-12-27T07:33:00.001+05:30

On a weekend that was longer than usual, we, a bunch of four weary software professionals, yearning to get off our bums, decided to head off to the majestic western ghats – destination Hebri. Every moment of that weekend was enthralling to say the very least. Be it driving through the dense, mystic Malnad woods while playing enrapturing music, or meeting fear in the eye – socializing with the loathsome leeches in their thousands, and riding the violent rapids of the Sita river. Blessed were we to see Jog in its crowning glory – a sight that made our lives worth. While the nation celebrated independence, so did our spirit. The elusive joy was simply bountiful.

Context: Reminiscing the Hebri & Jog trip - unmistakably, the best trip of my life.

Isms of an Arranged Matrimony

2006-12-21T15:01:00.000+05:30

There is no dearth of meaningless isms in today’s societal practices. The institution of an arranged matrimony is no exception to this. It looks like years of education and a lifetime of poring over holy texts have no effect on people’s understanding of the true value of human relationships. Marriage seems to be a marketplace to satisfy material needs - an obligatory give and take. Often times, the guy and the girl are simply left out of the whole equation (how ironical). I can’t see where love and trust are placed in this whole setup. People are measured on how much they earn, or what their stars & planets look like, instead of understanding what they are capable of achieving in life. Virtuousness is out of people’s sight.

How disconcerting is it to be a part of a society where this is the order of the day? I sincerely hope all this is just a bad dream.

Abstraction

2006-11-19T16:47:00.000+05:30

Life is all about creating and dealing with abstractions. Most typically, you are mangled mesh of desires, dreams, and ambitions; but to the world, you are a great friend, son or husband. So, its fair to say that life is an illusion.

Time

2006-11-18T16:16:00.000+05:30

Time is your worst foe. Ironically yet, the best healer.

A meaningful whole

2006-11-04T02:04:00.000+05:30

At Sangam, our abode, I head the Gastronomy Centre of Excellence (also called Culinary Competency Centre), where our constant endeavor is to take cookery beyond basic survival needs, and to derive continuous flow experiences out of the fine art of cooking. Ingenuity fuels most of our creations, hunger is a mere bystander.

Sangam Noodles^TM is the latest feather on our cap. (For the academically interested, this is a marriage of Top Ramen curry, Maggi Sambhar, and Atta noodles respectively)
Tried and tested, satisfaction guaranteed.

Other GCoE Fellows:
Chaatu - Resident Prof, mentor and certification authority
Venks - Effectively uses GSM & Bluetooth technologies for cooking, practices Agile methods. Also the force behind our trademark name.
Satheesh – The silent maestro, efficient inventory management, hygiene expert.

The Sangam Noodles^TM Metaphor: Unrelated moments in life combine to form a meaningful, enjoyable whole.

Being a link in the chain

2006-10-02T16:49:00.000+05:30

I guess tagging is a sort of a “manual virus”. But, it is a good thing and I am up to it.

1. Are you happy/satisfied with your blog with its content and look?Does your family know about your blog?

My blog layout and styling is very simple and I like it that way. Content – well that is a sophisticated collection of sundry musings, which largely may not make much sense. Again, I like it that way.

My parents are thankfully oblivious of terms like blogging or coding. There are happy to just know that I work on a computer.

2. Do you feel embarrassed to let your friends know about your blog or you just consider it as a private thing?

I think a “Private Blog” is an oxymoron. I guess the very idea of blogging is to vent out the categorical nonsense in your head. If you have a blog, I think you should be proud of it.

3. Did blogs cause positive changes in your thoughts?

Not thus far, I guess. But, it is a good thing to read your own archive and muse over your thought process in retrospect.

4. Do you only open the blogs of those who comment on your blog or you love to go and discover more by yourself?

I usually don’t go about discovering new blogs. Sometimes, I do read the blogs of those who have left some interesting comments.

5. What does visitors counter mean to you? Do you care about putting it in your blog?

It used to; not anymore. Watching my blog traffic used to give a kind of a kick. These days, my interest in those numbers is comparable to my interest in world history. I do have a counter on my blog - only because it is free!

6. Did you try to imagine your fellow bloggers and give them real pictures?

Not really - I don’t think I use my blog as a social networking medium. All my fellow bloggers are good friends of mine.

7. Do you think there is a real benefit for blogging?

Well yes. These days, Blogging is used for such things like relief activities, raising funds etc. Blogging has morphed into a very powerful medium of communication. My blog, however, consistently continues to be quite useless that way.

8. Do you think that bloggers society is isolated from real world or interacts with events?

I don’t think so. As internet is getting more & more pervasive, Blogging is slowing getting weaved into the fabric of our lives, very much like e-mail, or mobile phones today.

9. Does criticism annoy you or do you feel it's a normal thing?

I suppose not. On the contrary, it is welcome. It would broaden my perspectives I guess.

10. Do you fear some political blogs and avoid them?

Not really. Albeit political, some blogs could be very interesting (or amusing)!

11. Did you get shocked by the arrest of some bloggers?

I was surprised to know that. But again, this fact underscores the power of the blogging medium.

12. Did you think about what will happen to your blog after you die?

Nopes. My blog would just be one my worthless legacies.

13. What do you like to hear? What's the song you might like to put a link to in your blog?

This is a very difficult question. I listen to almost every type of music. Well, if I really have to pick up one, I would choose Metallica's One.

I am passing the tag I got from Mr.Mitra to Asha and Neel.

The Mission Statement Generator that you always yearned

2006-08-21T22:41:00.000+05:30

In order to position your bleeding edge technology solution developed for rapidly evolving and ruthlessly competent global markets, and which seamlessly aligns Businesses to IT, that which harnesses synergistic and agile global delivery models to authoritatively reduce the total cost of ownership and dramatically improve the overall return of investment, the Dilbert’s Mission Statement Generator might just be the right tool you need.

Arranged or Love?

2006-08-16T11:59:00.000+05:30

“A love marriage sees a relationship getting promoted to matrimony, whereas an arranged one promotes matrimony to a relationship.”

This is what an un-authoritative me would come up with if asked to express the difference between two marriage forms in an un-sophisticated one liner.

Democracy

2006-07-16T12:58:00.000+05:30

Everyone asserts that Democracy is powerful, but isn’t it just hapless if all that power starts, and ends within the confines of a ballot box?

Perhaps, democracy should infer transparency, but I guess it doesn’t work that way.

I have utterly failed to understand the very fabric of the system. Ignorance is bliss, isn't it?

Men, in a Nutshell

2006-07-10T03:01:00.000+05:30

Men are fairly simple forms of carbon. Half of our life goes into sleeping, and the other half into fantasizing about women. Somewhere in between, we discover gravity, or invent an electric bulb.

The Saint

2006-05-01T22:42:00.000+05:30

I have been witnessing miracles of late.

Miracle 1: I lost my camera at Taj Mahal (of all places), but found it at the CISF control room. Many thanks to the CISF - their service was exemplary.
Miracle 2: My Air Deccan flight was rescheduled to start half an hour early.
Miracle 3: Roads at Koramangala, Bangalore (including the (in)famous 80 Feet Road) are getting asphalted.

Having witnessed Three Miracles in quick succession now, am I ready for beatification?

Discovery of the North!

2006-05-01T22:32:00.000+05:30

SA got married in Gwalior recently. Being there also gave me the "North India” experience that I always yearned. So, here’s the executive summary of the same.

The real trip started at Delhi, where I went aboard India’s fastest and best train – Bhopal Shataabdi (We are getting there!) to Gwalior. At Gwalior, the Baraat and the wedding happened with full tradition, as one would expect. The same day, I happened to see the fort and the Royal Palace – great places to visit. Among hundreds of other things, the palace also shows a clear picture why the Bengal Tiger is now endangered in India. I wonder whether the kings thought tigers multiplied like rats, and hence hunted them on a daily basis - not impressive. That aside, one thing that did impress me thoroughly at Gwalior was the Tempo – the public transport of choice. Complete with all aesthetics, the tempo really looked like a Rhinoceros beetle on three wheels – awesome. What more, the tempo works like a convertible too.

The next day, I set out to Agra in MP state government bus. The bus started off with me and a handful of other folks, and everything looked great. By the time I reached Agra though, the bus had at least 150. Agra was the place my pocket started to get lighter by the second. Every person I met and talked too – the hotel guy, the travels guy, the driver, the “Special Petha” guy, the handloom guy, the N number of guides at Agra – all happened to rip me off in text-book style (this went all the way to the Delhi Airport actually¹). Notwithstanding, the trip to follow was a memorable one.

Agra and Fatehpur Sikri are places you must visit. Not just for the monuments, but also for the Pethas and special Sarees made by convicts from Banana peels and Bamboo stumps (strange, but true). After quick rounds of Fatehpur Sikri and Agra fort, it was time for the crème de la crème – The Taj. Although a solo trip to the Taj Mahal was not a very romantic proposition, it was a very rewarding experience nonetheless. To many a symbol of eternal love, the Taj truly is an example of superlative engineering combined with exquisite artwork. While couples from all over the world huddled together for a snap with the Taj in the backdrop – the ultimate souvenir, I went around doing one “Self Patel” shot after the other, which also seemed to amuse many. The sunset at Taj pulled down the curtains of my eventful UP/MP trip – something I won’t forget in a hurry.

[1] Guys, money is not everything in life. Tourism is holy – Make India shine!

Footloose

2006-03-07T22:09:00.000+05:30

If your momma didn’t tell you already, India is a drop-dead beautiful place.

CTRL+ALT+DEL your mind, pick up your bag pack and get lost. Tried and tested, complete satisfaction guaranteed.

Context : Reminiscing the wonderful trips to Calcutta, Darjeeling, Pondy & Melukote in the recent past. More beckons

Thou are safe!

2006-01-04T01:59:00.000+05:30

The thought of a bomb going off near you when you are in a marketplace runs an icy chill down your spine. The spontaneous “Not Me” thought becalms you, while you remain oblivious of the possibility of being hit by a meteor the very next moment.

I salute the strength of the human spirit.

Curing Blue With Purple

2005-11-27T12:22:00.000+05:30

A wicked world and a wearisome week invariably drive you to the haze. Instantly, the world inverts - a friendly fraternity and a healing aura all around. The Sultans of Rock soothe your ears and comfort your drudged mind. As spirits descend, spirits ascend. A thoroughly cured thyself are now ready for the world.

An ode to Purple Haze - our second home.

Being Normal

2005-10-29T22:55:00.000+05:30

My sundry insight of the day:
It normal to be weird, but weird to be normal. Most of life’s effort goes in trying to be normal, which is weird.

When it rains, it pours!

2005-07-31T15:09:00.000+05:30

Earlier, I had mentioned that leaving the premises of the great city we live in can be rewarding in many ways. So, we packed our bags and headed towards the land of rains – Malnad.

Not many things in this wide world can comprehensively pacify SC’s intergalactic musings, VH’s tantrums, SA’s never-ending stints of slumber, SM’s notes on Anthropology and world history and my ramblings on technology. All we could do was sit and watch the barrage from the skies. But enterprising as we always were, we decided to go footloose.

On one ordinary Sunday morning, there we were, far away from the world, dancing in the rain.

Behold!

2005-07-31T14:46:00.000+05:30

Good is the experience of traveling in Singapore’s MRT. Even better is the experience of traveling on India’s Railbus.

The Railbus gives you a “view of things” like no other. Strongly recommended; irony unintended.

Gifted

2005-06-05T13:01:00.000+05:30

God's greatest gift to me - I am ordinary. The rest of my life now beckons.

The City Beyond

2005-06-05T11:03:00.000+05:30

Bangalore is a great city. You are always in a force field here, which pushes you to think how you could change the world, and that's good. And while you are at it, the heavens open in true appreciation.

If you are a Bangalorian, I think you should be proud.

A Celebration

2005-05-21T18:53:00.000+05:30

The other weekend, was a special one to Bangalore and to some of us, who sacrificed the luxury of a Sunday and instead, run for a cause. The event was the Lipton India Marathon – celebration run; a modest distance of 7 seven kilometers. Seven may appear too small a number and many experts might round it off to zero. But hey, convert that to feet and multiply it by a load factor derived from the unforgiving Bangalore heat, and then divide that by your fitness index - you’ll know what I’m saying.

Well, yes I managed to complete the distance (else, I wouldn’t have blogged about it). Fifty minutes, heavy breathing, puffing and panting, sore everything, a barely visible finish line and then, I was proud. So was a surprised SA, so was SC, so were everyone.

I recollect the Servo ad where Kumble preaches – “You must break all barriers, you must push every limit”. I guess we all did just that. Sweat was sweet and tiredness enriching. The fruits of hard work were an enormous sense of accomplishment and fervor.

Now, how do I deal with the rest of my life?

Me in Singapore

2005-05-08T01:39:00.000+05:30

Okay, it was a long time since I rambled here – had just another attack of lethargy. I cured it partially by traveling to Singapore. I was there to attend the Asia MVP Regional Summit 2005. A big thank you to MS for organizing the whole thing and for the sponsorships.

When you travel abroad for the first time, to a foreign city, you invariably end up comparing it with our very own Bangalore. I was no exception. I was tempted to put all those down into a neat, tabular report, but for the benefit of the low bandwidth subscribers of my arbitrary musings, I am refraining from that.

Here are few reflections from Singapore anyways: Singapore is a ‘fine’ city to say the least. You are fined for anything and everything, and in multiples of 500 Singapore dollars. ‘Trespassers will be shot dead’, said one of the boards. Otherwise, it’s a great city. Highly disciplined crowd, technology is all over, great zoo, fantastic bird park to mention a few. And yes – a mind-blowing Airport.

I did enjoy all the time I spent there, especially those walks at Marina Square, beside the bay, late in the night.

I’ll collect some more thoughts a little later.

Simplification

2005-04-11T12:03:00.000+05:30

Making things complicated is simple, but simplifying them complicated.

As much as this holds for software design, it does for life too.

Here we go!

2005-03-22T15:38:00.000+05:30

An otherwise dozy afternoon gets good, thanks to (free) tools like these. This is my first post done through W.Bloggar . All major blogging engines like Blogger, .Text etc are supported.

Njoi Maadi !

Success Explicated

2005-03-09T22:25:00.000+05:30

Two fantastic quotes on 'Success' I thought were worth quoting here:

The sign on the door to success says, 'PUSH'.

Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.

Source: Unknown

F1: New regulations on full 'Throttle'

2005-03-07T15:30:00.000+05:30

Let me go back in time and regurgitate what I had to say about F1 about a year ago:

"99% of the people who are asked this question - What is Formula 1 all about?, would typically answer this way: A sport where cars go round and round the same track without any meaning or purpose. This, at the glance, may seem to be the way it is, but real F1 purists agree that sport is just a small part of F1. The real essence of F1 is all about the research, engineering and technology involved in getting those mean machines to the circuit. F1 is like a test bed for putting the components of a car through the most gruesome tests. F1 is the path through which the latest and the greatest components or features make it into normal road cars that you and me drive everyday."

Therefore, anybody who blindly asserted that F1 is just a mere sport would be subject to extreme flak from me for sure. But of late, strange things seem to be happening in the F1 scene, which has caught me wrong-footed. The recent domination by Ferrari perhaps has left FIA thinking about the seemingly ludicrous ways of equalizing competition. You can get all the gory details here.

Essentially, cars this year would be slower, a lot slower, thanks to the new aerodynamic regulations. Moreover, the new qualifying and race rules will leave the teams taking a conservative strategy. Of course, teams would find their own ways to claw back those last ounces of performance from the cars, but why have such constraining rules in the first place ? If cars get faster every year, so will there be advancements in safety features. In fact, F1 technicians would probate that an F1 car, in its all glory, would still be lot safer than a normal road car. So why not let raw performance drive the spirit of F1?

I think its high time for FIA to revisit what I think is the real philosophy of F1 (which is pushing all limits), rather than thinking of making this a fair sport. If you love F1 and are at unrest due to the new regulations of FIA, please do drop in your comments!

The Godforsaken

2005-02-23T22:02:00.000+05:30

I am lost in no man's land with no soul around; I am a hapless castaway. This little world seems like an endless universe. Every moment, anxiety cuts open a deeper wound. Hope has estranged me for a while now.

As I look towards the heavens above in utter desperation, I hear a reassuring voice - "Net is up!". Everything reverts to normalcy instantly. I am home.

Love, or is it?

2005-02-14T13:30:00.000+05:30

Valentine's day is here. Love is in the air, everywhere. Perfect.

Some Afterthoughts

Love seems to be like those vested stock options that go on a locking period for a year, and you exercise all those options on a single day - Valentine's Day. Love goes on a virtual hibernation for a year, but comes back to life with flying colors on Valentine's day.

Looking at how the expressions of love and feelings are manifested on this day, it appears as if Valentine's is a day of re-assurance more than anything else - "I 'still' love you" or "Nothing's gonna 'change' my love for you", and the like. Or perhaps, leave your valentine totally dumbstruck by proving that your love for that person is much more than the person ever dreamt of - buy a card, a teddy or a balloon whose size approximately equals the 'quantified' version of your love. Love seems to be commoditized, commercialized.

Now, some more tangential thoughts. Love is more than about balloons of white and red or those mammoth-sized cards. I understand that Valentine's day, perhaps, is a day of lovers, but
it could be one of love, the scope of which need not be limited to your heart plus that of a special person of yours. Love could be manifested as goodwill for humanity, or compassion for those who have craved for love for their entire lives. Valentine's day could be a day of total selflessness; a day where a smile on your face translates to thousand others.

Happy Valentine's day!

Enrapturing Music

2005-02-04T13:18:00.000+05:30

An atemporal joy wraps you as you listen to it. You feel enslaved by a certain force that takes over you, a force that results in unexplainable bodily manifestations while your mind lies on a different plane altogether dumbfounded, awestruck, flabbergasted, call it what you may.

I just made a desperate, yet futile attempt to really explain the bliss of listening to Drupad, a form of Hindustani classical music. Self was blessed the other day at Dharwad, when I was privileged to listen to Gundecha brothers, live. It is really, really sad though, that this form of music is marching towards extinction. I suppose, this is too traditional an art form, that fails to pervade through the masses, perhaps in commercial ways like other forms of music.

Music, hit my senses again, this time at Bangalore when I attended a Shakti concert, live. This was the first time that I got to listen to Zakir Hussein and U.Srinivas, unrivalled maestros in their own right. I was truly amazed by improvisations that Zakir could do on a Tabla. Equally flummoxing was the way V. Selva Ganesh played the Kanjira, where he made it sound like a
Mrudangam, an African drum of sorts and more.

Probably, this is too obscure a media to express the genii of these artists, or I am just running short of expression here. Experience it yourself, and you would understand exactly what I mean.

Say hello to the Sangam Turtles!

2005-02-02T17:43:00.000+05:30

From the left:

SC : Cooks Daal and Jeera Aloo like a dream. Lead Cook. More about SC here.
VH: Coffee specialist, Manager - Public Relations.
MG (Me) : The toaster guy, Lead - Breakfast Services.
SA : Sleeps. Cuts vegetables. Director - Inventory Management.
SM: Reads. Principal Consultant - Photography. Lead - Egg and Tea services

Additional Info & Context:
Sangam - The name of the house we live in!
Turtles - All of us hung out at Amma's, sporting turtle-necks brought by VH from Germany -:)

PS: Posted entry is v1.0 Beta. Post likely to accrue content over time.

'Hello World' of Dosa making

2005-01-24T17:39:00.000+05:30

Cautiously dropped an unmeasured amount of batter on the non-stick pan. Apprehensively spread the same in a slow, slow, circular motion. A few spoonfuls of oil for taste. A few tense moments later, my first Dosa was ready.

It didn't stop there. A few minutes later, Souvik and myself confidently tried out a French Dosa (Dosa with half-boiled egg, name inspired from 'French Toast'). An egg was lost in the process and the yolk of the second egg almost slipped out of the pan. But that was OK. The end result was commendable though!

All dosa adventures for that day ended with our very own gastronomy maestro, Vasant preparing a delectable Om Dosa (Omlet Dosa). Fantabulous stuff as we celebrated Asha and Vasant's tenth wedding anniversary.

Have a look at my first dosa! (Note: Batter was prepared earlier by Asha)

A Dollar of a different kind

2005-01-19T18:02:00.000+05:30

Donald Knuth, an A.M Turing awardee and one of the most respected computer scientists, recognized for his seminal work - The Art of Computer Programming, has a lighter side to his esteemed image. Don gives away as a reward, to those who find mistakes in his works, 256 pennies. While you are wondering what the significance of that odd looking number really is, the geeky souls would be happy to prompt that it makes a hexadecimal dollar!

Also, follow this link for more info.

Resolutions

2005-01-03T19:49:00.000+05:30

Leave work on Friday in a total mess, make merry on the weekend and wait for Monday morning to make a new resolution that you would work more effectively that week & clear up all the mess that you piled the week before. I was just wondering whether this is any different from making a resolution on new year's day that you would do better in the year that has just turned up?

On second thoughts, maybe this ritualized resolution making isn't that demeaning after all. It is, at least, better than hoping (unless the resolution has the word 'hope'). What do you think ?

Disclaimer:
Highly subjective post!

Reflections from 2004

2005-01-02T21:22:00.000+05:30

Every new year starts no differently. It starts with a mixed bag full of hope - a hope to forget the bad times of the past year in a hurry and for better times to come, a hope for continued success and contentment, a hope for profound sanity in the world, and a hope to hope no more.

2004 was a year that saw me travelling quite a bit to break the monotony of daily life; a year that saw me making first-time trips to Mangalore, Goa, Hampi, Chennai and Dharwad ; with more than beautiful memories to cherish, with unforgettable experiences to stay. It was a year that saw me tangled between needs and wants, aspirations and reality; a year that saw me shift jobs for the first time.

2004 saw me demanding more from myself and I am happy about it.

Nature

2004-12-28T14:02:00.000+05:30

Nature gives to man, gentle reminders of what its fury can look like.
Dear mankind, don’t mess with nature.

An experiment in the spirit of science

2004-12-28T13:52:00.000+05:30

Not so long ago,

Experiment : Vodka + Worcestershire Sauce* + Tomato Juice + Chocolate + Red Wine
Catalyst : Vodka + Orange Juice
Guinea Pig : Me
Effect : Me**
Side-Effects : This blog entry

Research Team: Asha, Swapnil & Myself

* Ask Asha for more details
** A chemical warzone

Afternoon Music

2004-12-21T20:33:00.000+05:30

The sleek, delta-winged LCA does a real low fly-by, creating an earth-shattering sound. Invigorating music to the ears. "Go back to sleep", whispers the spook and I lie unaffected hence.

The Twilight Break

2004-12-06T17:30:00.000+05:30

Sometimes I think, during our best times at work, productivity varies exponentially with the number of breaks you take. During not-so-good times, the variance may be linear. Sometimes, nothing can vary your state of misery; you simply stick around like those fat-leaden Sea lions during winter, doing nothing. Well, this was not what I wanted to talk about actually. Let me describe that small break of ten minutes, during twilight, which I think is one of the best parts of my day.

Its winter and the sun goes down in a hurry, setting the stage for a long, cold night ahead. As the night slowly sets in, the western sky flaunts resplendent shades of red. But, that is not what I am interested in; I turn towards the East, towards the rear side of my office building, which opens into a vast area of barren, uninhabited land, extending all the way to the Bangalore Airport, a few miles away. The airport area forms the horizon, the place where miles of darkness ends abruptly. The bright halogen lamps seem to twinkle, possibly due to the refraction through the polluted evening air. The cold evening breeze creates gentle ripples on a lake, which lies in the vicinity of the airport, thereby reflecting a wavering image of yellow lights. While I gaze at this picturesque sight, airplanes take off, airplanes land.

"Beautiful", I say to myself and get back to work.

The Spirit of Community

2004-11-29T21:12:00.000+05:30

This Saturday was a unusual day for me; a day filled with a rare blend of excitement, anxiousness and vivid memories of a not so distant past. It was to be a day of special significance for me, as a software professional. I had been invited to give a presentation on the fundamentals of .NET, as a part of the inauguration of the RVCE .NET User Group. As we reached the gates of RVCE on Saturday, old memories started to unfold. Coming to the place where I graduated from after many years, also added to the level of excitement. Something I least expected at the event was to be called upon the stage as a "Dignitary". I know, and you know, that I don’t deserve that kind of respect, just yet ! The event then started in a traditional way, with Lamp Lighting and invocation. It was really encouraging to see such a huge crowd for the inauguration, thereby exceeding all our expectations.

I had delivered sessions in the past, but to peer professionals. Presenting it to a set of enthusiastic students, willing to jump on to the .NET technology bandwagon, was a totally different ball game. Adding the fact that I was an RVCE alumnus, probably added a bit more to the pressure. It was the first time that I had given a presentation to students. Not too long ago, I was in their place and hence, I did have a idea of what the level of expectation would be like. I had prepared more on the way the session was structured rather than the content itself, knowing that most of the crowd would be new to .NET. But, during the course of the presentation, I veered off into depths and probably lost the audience in the process. Nonetheless, it was a great learning avenue for me and I definitely would be looking forward to more such opportunities and to contribute to the growing .NET community.

I would like to end this note by mentioning why I think community is important, not just to a professional, but also to a student. Community is all about sharing knowledge selflessly. It is about building a strong network of people, perhaps beyond the premises of an individual's organization or institution, and which could cut across geographical boundaries too. Community also adds a new dimension to your image of a professional or student - it helps broaden your perspectives on things, be it technology, problem solving, etc.

Community has definitely changed the way I look at technology, for the good, and perhaps fuelled what I really aspire to become. I wouldn’t say I have been a exuberant image in the community thus far, but I shall always try to give the best I can.

Bye Rediff, Hello Blogger !

2004-11-29T15:34:00.000+05:30

A new day, another new blog. This time, its blogger. I was contemplating on bidding adieu to Rediff for quite a while now and finally decided to make the transition on a sunny Monday afternoon while being half awake. As I am enjoying typing out this entry in a cool wysiwyg HTML editor, at the same time, I am feeling a bit uncomfortable to leave behind an old friend, whose birthday, we celebrated just the other day. Goodbye Rediff, I will miss you.