I can see snow falling down through the windows. I am at my new office, we moved here a few days back. It is very picturesque around here. I had a 3 month performance review today and was happy to see that I was meeting or exceeding expectations on most issues.
The last week or so has been rather dull. No specific reason but I didn't seem to be motivated for a lot of things. Probably I am thinking a little too hard on my career goals/options as I have always feared complacency. I should remeber though, as one of my earlier blogs said such analysis can only hamper growth and being action oriented and having short term goals is more fruitful.
I am getting involved in a couple of clubs around here and thankfully, that is opening up new acquaintances.
I had ordered a few books on amazon nearly a month back and I still haven't received them.. They have a very poor shipping policy if you opt for their "super-saver" shipping.
Thursday, February 03, 2005
Monday, January 24, 2005
Homecoming ? :)
Today was a grtt day ! Had lots of snow around and it felt like I was back to buffalo times :). Went out in the afternoon to downtown and walked around in the snow with a star bucks coffee and my ipod playing favorite knopfler songs..... Wow! Felt like bliss!
My laptop is back and running :).. Have lots of organizing to do with my mails, address books, software updates etc..etc.
When I am listening to songs, I really wonder how beautifully they r written: concise yet so powerful, not at all verbose but packed with so much of meaning and depth. When I am introspecting on different issues I have so many things to say, so many opinions, so many views, yet.. when I sit down to write a blog I find myself short of words. Either I will be uninspired to write or I dont find the right words to express my thoughts. I should get over this sooner or later.. life is short and thr r a lot more things still left unsaid and undone.
Had a chance to chat with one of my old friends after nearly a couple of years. Was a great feeling because she has always been a great friend ! She is married now and in US and hopefully can keep in touch with her more often.
Current Music: Tu mere paas bhi hain (Lata and Hariharan in Satya)
My laptop is back and running :).. Have lots of organizing to do with my mails, address books, software updates etc..etc.
When I am listening to songs, I really wonder how beautifully they r written: concise yet so powerful, not at all verbose but packed with so much of meaning and depth. When I am introspecting on different issues I have so many things to say, so many opinions, so many views, yet.. when I sit down to write a blog I find myself short of words. Either I will be uninspired to write or I dont find the right words to express my thoughts. I should get over this sooner or later.. life is short and thr r a lot more things still left unsaid and undone.
Had a chance to chat with one of my old friends after nearly a couple of years. Was a great feeling because she has always been a great friend ! She is married now and in US and hopefully can keep in touch with her more often.
Current Music: Tu mere paas bhi hain (Lata and Hariharan in Satya)
Friday, January 14, 2005
Millionaire Tips !!
I am no fan of ET, but found this one readable today. This article lists 10 ways of how millionaires think,
Optimist -
• They are born optimists. They even look at the adversities with a positive side.
Learn from mistakes -
• They're uncritical of their mistakes. Nothing disturbs them. They become wiser with each mistake.
Action-oriented -
• They take action. They don't get locked in analysis-paralysis.
• Make hay while the sun shines -
• They listen for opportunity not for what's wrong or why something didn't work.
Master plan -
• They have written down their financial & personal goals. They know where they are going and what they want.
Create wealth -
• They have no guilt about being filthy rich. They feel they deserve the money they make.
Savvy investors -
• They know that more risk generates more income. They usually save 15-20% of their yearly income.
Enjoy life -
• They do what they love & make money at it. They know their goal in life. And work towards it daily.
Have good friends -
• They surround themselves with people who believe in them and support their goals. You'll never find them with a pessimist.
If atall I want to become one (I am not a capitalist, u see ;)), I know now that I got to do these things for sure :)
1. Be positive. I have definitely improved a lot from what I was, but there is a lot of room for improvement.
2. Be action oriented than brooding over the past. Stop my analyzing over lost things, why things went wrong, what I could have done better etc and be more focused on what I need to achieve and how I can get there.
On a happier front, one of my "bestest" buddies has got an admit from Yale for MBA! He is still thinking if he can afford it. 150k is not a joke! I truly wish he makes it though!
Every time I look in the mirror
All these lines on my face getting clearer
The past is gone
It goes by, like dusk to dawn
Isn't that the way
Everybody's got their dues in life to pay
...........
............
Sing with me, sing for the year
sing for the laughter, sing for the tear
sing with me, if it's just for today
Maybe tomorrow, the good Lord will take you away
Current Music:
Dream On: Aerosmith
Optimist -
• They are born optimists. They even look at the adversities with a positive side.
Learn from mistakes -
• They're uncritical of their mistakes. Nothing disturbs them. They become wiser with each mistake.
Action-oriented -
• They take action. They don't get locked in analysis-paralysis.
• Make hay while the sun shines -
• They listen for opportunity not for what's wrong or why something didn't work.
Master plan -
• They have written down their financial & personal goals. They know where they are going and what they want.
Create wealth -
• They have no guilt about being filthy rich. They feel they deserve the money they make.
Savvy investors -
• They know that more risk generates more income. They usually save 15-20% of their yearly income.
Enjoy life -
• They do what they love & make money at it. They know their goal in life. And work towards it daily.
Have good friends -
• They surround themselves with people who believe in them and support their goals. You'll never find them with a pessimist.
If atall I want to become one (I am not a capitalist, u see ;)), I know now that I got to do these things for sure :)
1. Be positive. I have definitely improved a lot from what I was, but there is a lot of room for improvement.
2. Be action oriented than brooding over the past. Stop my analyzing over lost things, why things went wrong, what I could have done better etc and be more focused on what I need to achieve and how I can get there.
On a happier front, one of my "bestest" buddies has got an admit from Yale for MBA! He is still thinking if he can afford it. 150k is not a joke! I truly wish he makes it though!
Every time I look in the mirror
All these lines on my face getting clearer
The past is gone
It goes by, like dusk to dawn
Isn't that the way
Everybody's got their dues in life to pay
...........
............
Sing with me, sing for the year
sing for the laughter, sing for the tear
sing with me, if it's just for today
Maybe tomorrow, the good Lord will take you away
Current Music:
Dream On: Aerosmith
Monday, November 15, 2004
Full Circle
The election fever is over and the results were no different than what I had predicted in my last blog.
Thanks to my BIL(Bro-In-Law), I have been meeting a few ppl in DC.
I have been fortunate to meet one of Bangalore's most admired IAS(civil services) officer Mr. Jairaj on previous two weekends. He was Bangalore city commisioner under SM Krishna and was phenomenally succesful in bringing out sweeping changes into the city. He is currently on an assignment in the World Bank here in DC.
Mr. Jairaj is an amazingly simple and humble person. He is a Delhi school of economics graduate and with degrees from Princeton and Harvard!! The humor he brings during his conversations is something to be experienced. As he spoke about his experiences as an IAS officer and the differences that he could bring about into the system I was often getting nostalgic. As a seventh grade student and even later during my high school, I was extremely passionate about clearing my civil service exams. I had collected nearly 60-70 interviews with IAS toppers.. I used to religiously read every issue of CSR. By 8th standard I had decided what my main subjects and optional subjects were going to be when I take up the exam!! But somehow the zest didnt last long enough for various reasons. I started getting attracted to the IITs(which I never made) when my sisters got in there and then ofcourse the IT boom took off and took most of us! Looking back now, I regret many a times that getting into traditional engineering and then IT shouldnt have been my first choice at all, It was rather a blind decision.
Today we had been to a Diwali gathering. I met two MBAs, one from Wharton and the other from Harvard. Both are IAS officers working at World Bank. One of them has worked under Naidu and the other has a Masters from IISc before getting into civil services. What I found as a paradox was, interacting with such people gives you confidence on one hand for a few reasons and on the other hand it also serves as a reality check.
A few years back I used to regularly listen to music for around 20 hrs per day. It had reached a limit. Then it had drastically reduced over the last couple of years. I am getting back to the groove. I have been having short bursts of intense listening :). As I am writing this I am listening to a classical ghazal from Mehdi Hassan, the rendering is supreme..
The place where we had been to on diwali, There was a guy around my age. I think his name was Uday. He has been brought to US from India to be of help with household work. All of us probably must have had an eye contact with him maybe once or twice during the entire evening. He would have never been to colleges, never driven around in cars ... and he will probably never be able to rise in his stature during his entire life...... and he is only one among several million others back home.
Current Music:
Kesariya Balam Padharo Maro Desh
Mehdi Hassan
Thanks to my BIL(Bro-In-Law), I have been meeting a few ppl in DC.
I have been fortunate to meet one of Bangalore's most admired IAS(civil services) officer Mr. Jairaj on previous two weekends. He was Bangalore city commisioner under SM Krishna and was phenomenally succesful in bringing out sweeping changes into the city. He is currently on an assignment in the World Bank here in DC.
Mr. Jairaj is an amazingly simple and humble person. He is a Delhi school of economics graduate and with degrees from Princeton and Harvard!! The humor he brings during his conversations is something to be experienced. As he spoke about his experiences as an IAS officer and the differences that he could bring about into the system I was often getting nostalgic. As a seventh grade student and even later during my high school, I was extremely passionate about clearing my civil service exams. I had collected nearly 60-70 interviews with IAS toppers.. I used to religiously read every issue of CSR. By 8th standard I had decided what my main subjects and optional subjects were going to be when I take up the exam!! But somehow the zest didnt last long enough for various reasons. I started getting attracted to the IITs(which I never made) when my sisters got in there and then ofcourse the IT boom took off and took most of us! Looking back now, I regret many a times that getting into traditional engineering and then IT shouldnt have been my first choice at all, It was rather a blind decision.
Today we had been to a Diwali gathering. I met two MBAs, one from Wharton and the other from Harvard. Both are IAS officers working at World Bank. One of them has worked under Naidu and the other has a Masters from IISc before getting into civil services. What I found as a paradox was, interacting with such people gives you confidence on one hand for a few reasons and on the other hand it also serves as a reality check.
A few years back I used to regularly listen to music for around 20 hrs per day. It had reached a limit. Then it had drastically reduced over the last couple of years. I am getting back to the groove. I have been having short bursts of intense listening :). As I am writing this I am listening to a classical ghazal from Mehdi Hassan, the rendering is supreme..
The place where we had been to on diwali, There was a guy around my age. I think his name was Uday. He has been brought to US from India to be of help with household work. All of us probably must have had an eye contact with him maybe once or twice during the entire evening. He would have never been to colleges, never driven around in cars ... and he will probably never be able to rise in his stature during his entire life...... and he is only one among several million others back home.
Current Music:
Kesariya Balam Padharo Maro Desh
Mehdi Hassan
Sunday, October 31, 2004
Historic Moments
Hermann Goering: Naturally the common people don't want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America, nor in Germany. That is understood. But after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country. quote verified at snopes.com
Herman Goering was no philosophist, He was a close aide of Hitler but in the above quote makes a very important observation. This was recorded during an interview in a US prison cell after World war II. A tyrant himself probably being completely dejected made the philosopher inside him speak. This has particularly a lot of relevance at this crucial juncture which I believe could go down as one of the most important moments to define the way this nation is headed to.
After a brief hiatus, I am back :). Being in DC for the last two months I have been watching the election campaigns very closely, I can surely say that I have been "at the right place at the right time" :). I have been watching all the presidential debates, vice presidential debate, the republican national convention (the democratic convention was over by the time I was here), the Bill O Reilly, Al Franken shows very religiously. Surprisingly the media here in the US seems to have very biased opinions unlike in India. I almost started hating programs on Fox: Almost every show host was campaigning for the republican party.
Being from the world's largest democracy myself and having enjoyed freedom and liberty that it brings, one unfortunate thing about it is the inability of the majority to assess the things right and even more the inability of contestants to reach across all sections of the society. Well, I should say the Republicans have done their homework pretty good, but it is going to be the Kerry's , the Vajpayee's (I am not trying to compare the two here) to figure out where they went wrong and if they did at all. Anyways let me not predict the results when the american media is expecting it to be resolved in courts !!
Keeping aside the global affairs ;), the last two months have helped me analyze my strengths and weaknesses to some extent and in reflecting the past. After a fairly persistent search for my job, I landed with two job offers. Both are reasonably small companies here in the DC region. I did start with one before I got the second and decided to switch over for a couple of reasons. I would be starting from Monday..
Current Music: Imagine by John Lennon
Herman Goering was no philosophist, He was a close aide of Hitler but in the above quote makes a very important observation. This was recorded during an interview in a US prison cell after World war II. A tyrant himself probably being completely dejected made the philosopher inside him speak. This has particularly a lot of relevance at this crucial juncture which I believe could go down as one of the most important moments to define the way this nation is headed to.
After a brief hiatus, I am back :). Being in DC for the last two months I have been watching the election campaigns very closely, I can surely say that I have been "at the right place at the right time" :). I have been watching all the presidential debates, vice presidential debate, the republican national convention (the democratic convention was over by the time I was here), the Bill O Reilly, Al Franken shows very religiously. Surprisingly the media here in the US seems to have very biased opinions unlike in India. I almost started hating programs on Fox: Almost every show host was campaigning for the republican party.
Being from the world's largest democracy myself and having enjoyed freedom and liberty that it brings, one unfortunate thing about it is the inability of the majority to assess the things right and even more the inability of contestants to reach across all sections of the society. Well, I should say the Republicans have done their homework pretty good, but it is going to be the Kerry's , the Vajpayee's (I am not trying to compare the two here) to figure out where they went wrong and if they did at all. Anyways let me not predict the results when the american media is expecting it to be resolved in courts !!
Keeping aside the global affairs ;), the last two months have helped me analyze my strengths and weaknesses to some extent and in reflecting the past. After a fairly persistent search for my job, I landed with two job offers. Both are reasonably small companies here in the DC region. I did start with one before I got the second and decided to switch over for a couple of reasons. I would be starting from Monday..
Current Music: Imagine by John Lennon
Friday, August 20, 2004
Lonely as I am ...
Sometimes I feel
Like my only friend
Is the city I live in
The city of angels
Lonely as I am
Together we cry
I drive on her streets
'Cause she's my companion
I walk through her hills
'Cause she knows who I am
She sees my good deeds
And she kisses me windy
I never worry
Now that is a lie
I don't ever want to feel
Like I did that day
Take me to the place I love
Take me all the way
It's hard to believe
That there's nobody out there
It's hard to believe
That I'm all alone
At least I have her love
The city she loves me
Lonely as I am
Together we cry
I don't ever want to feel
Like I did that day
Take me to the place I love
Take me all that way
Under the bridge downtown
Is where I drew some blood
Under the bridge downtown
I could not get enough
Under the bridge downtown
Forgot about my love
Under the bridge downtown
I gave my life away
Current Music: Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Like my only friend
Is the city I live in
The city of angels
Lonely as I am
Together we cry
I drive on her streets
'Cause she's my companion
I walk through her hills
'Cause she knows who I am
She sees my good deeds
And she kisses me windy
I never worry
Now that is a lie
I don't ever want to feel
Like I did that day
Take me to the place I love
Take me all the way
It's hard to believe
That there's nobody out there
It's hard to believe
That I'm all alone
At least I have her love
The city she loves me
Lonely as I am
Together we cry
I don't ever want to feel
Like I did that day
Take me to the place I love
Take me all that way
Under the bridge downtown
Is where I drew some blood
Under the bridge downtown
I could not get enough
Under the bridge downtown
Forgot about my love
Under the bridge downtown
I gave my life away
Current Music: Red Hot Chilli Peppers
Sunday, July 18, 2004
Ardh Satya...
Ek palde mein napunsakta, doosre palde mein paurush, aur theek tarazu ke kaante par, ardh satya …
This is a line from one of my favorite movies, Ardh Satya(Half-Truth). Om Puri plays a sub-inspector in Mumbai, who carries several emotional scars from the past and fights alone against the scum of the society.. it is a truely provocative and challenging movie.. If there was an equivalent in hollywood though with a much different storyline, it would be my other favorite, Taxi Driver. This one is a chilling character study of a man struggling to come to terms with the environment he lives in, brilliantly portrayed by Robert De Niro.
"I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant."-- Martin Luther King
Gandhi's My experiments with truth: One facet of the book that has inspired me always is the great man's courage to speak the truth. He is least worried whether his "mahatma" image in a country of billion and many more followers across the world would get tarnished if he spoke the truth. When he speaks about his inability to resist his carnal lust even at the critical hour of his father's death or his temptations in his struggle to follow true brahmacharya there is no "ardh-satya".
As I see and grow in life, what stuns me in my experiences is how people try to distance from truth shying away from reality. Neither am I a mahatma, nor a cop fighting politicians or a person exposed to brothels, but these characters seem to have etched an indelible mark on my mind.
Current Music: Sachchi baat kahi thi maine: Jagjith Singh in Face to Face
This is a line from one of my favorite movies, Ardh Satya(Half-Truth). Om Puri plays a sub-inspector in Mumbai, who carries several emotional scars from the past and fights alone against the scum of the society.. it is a truely provocative and challenging movie.. If there was an equivalent in hollywood though with a much different storyline, it would be my other favorite, Taxi Driver. This one is a chilling character study of a man struggling to come to terms with the environment he lives in, brilliantly portrayed by Robert De Niro.
"I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant."-- Martin Luther King
Gandhi's My experiments with truth: One facet of the book that has inspired me always is the great man's courage to speak the truth. He is least worried whether his "mahatma" image in a country of billion and many more followers across the world would get tarnished if he spoke the truth. When he speaks about his inability to resist his carnal lust even at the critical hour of his father's death or his temptations in his struggle to follow true brahmacharya there is no "ardh-satya".
As I see and grow in life, what stuns me in my experiences is how people try to distance from truth shying away from reality. Neither am I a mahatma, nor a cop fighting politicians or a person exposed to brothels, but these characters seem to have etched an indelible mark on my mind.
Current Music: Sachchi baat kahi thi maine: Jagjith Singh in Face to Face
Saturday, July 17, 2004
Office in the corner of a coffee shop !
I have been spending my days at starbucks. This has a lovely ambience, some really cool jazz music, and the aura of coffee all around, though I can afford a cup of coffee once in a couple of days :)... I have completed all my course work, defended my thesis a couple of weeks back, so thr is no reason really to go to school..
A lot of students like me do their work here, and especially for a music and coffee craze like me this is heaven ! Add to this, I can use my new laptop which has wireless connectivity :) .... ooohh...is this what they call heaven ;). there is this corner in the shop, where i sit regularly.. and the guy who works here said with a smile when i came in: Ur office is waiting for you, Sir :))
Well, I cant afford this luxury for long, my graduation date is set for sep 1st and I have to find a job soon :)...
Current Music: Naguva Nayana Madhura Mouna...
A lot of students like me do their work here, and especially for a music and coffee craze like me this is heaven ! Add to this, I can use my new laptop which has wireless connectivity :) .... ooohh...is this what they call heaven ;). there is this corner in the shop, where i sit regularly.. and the guy who works here said with a smile when i came in: Ur office is waiting for you, Sir :))
Well, I cant afford this luxury for long, my graduation date is set for sep 1st and I have to find a job soon :)...
Current Music: Naguva Nayana Madhura Mouna...
Thursday, July 15, 2004
An umpteenth interest
I am an avid thinker..atleast so I proclaim :) .. Ever since I was in my high school, I used to write on things, I strongly felt about.. But most of them were in notebooks that were lost, or in drafts folder of my e-mail boxes which I had to delete as there was no gmail then :) .. I took up blogging a few months ago when I first saw sharat doing it, but then somehow gave up in the middle like any one of my umpteen interests- a true gemini that I am... Here is one more attempt, but I am vowing this time again that this is a more focused and sincere attempt ;)
"If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing" --Benjamin Franklin
If I were to choose any two professions that I would love to spend all my life without any regret, it would be being a writer or a film-maker, Both of them offer so much of freedom for expression and a powerful platform for creativity and in reaching out to people.
Today, I have been feeling very lonely :( , not that I feel otherwise a lot of other times :)) ... If I think about it I only have a handful of people I know around me to talk to or share things with.. It has been nearly two years since I came to the US for my studies.. Though I have gained a lot academically, I would have loved to have more friends by now.. Not that I am a total introvert, but there are a lot of other factors for that.. and ofcourse people are busier here than anywhere else :) .. Come to think of it, I miss my home town, bangalore a lot.. I definitely miss my family, friends and everyone there but I do miss the place as well :( .. I remember when I was there this time for my vacation, I used to go to streets and places on my bike without any real reason, just to get a glimpse of it and a feel for the place where I spent most of my life...ofcourse 23 yrs is not a short period of time....
More later .....
Current Music: Chod Aaye Hum Woh Galiyan - Maachis
"If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading or do things worth the writing" --Benjamin Franklin
If I were to choose any two professions that I would love to spend all my life without any regret, it would be being a writer or a film-maker, Both of them offer so much of freedom for expression and a powerful platform for creativity and in reaching out to people.
Today, I have been feeling very lonely :( , not that I feel otherwise a lot of other times :)) ... If I think about it I only have a handful of people I know around me to talk to or share things with.. It has been nearly two years since I came to the US for my studies.. Though I have gained a lot academically, I would have loved to have more friends by now.. Not that I am a total introvert, but there are a lot of other factors for that.. and ofcourse people are busier here than anywhere else :) .. Come to think of it, I miss my home town, bangalore a lot.. I definitely miss my family, friends and everyone there but I do miss the place as well :( .. I remember when I was there this time for my vacation, I used to go to streets and places on my bike without any real reason, just to get a glimpse of it and a feel for the place where I spent most of my life...ofcourse 23 yrs is not a short period of time....
More later .....
Current Music: Chod Aaye Hum Woh Galiyan - Maachis
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