Without friends and family around, NY Eve is just another evening at home.
It would be depressing if I was in Mumbai and sitting at home, even in Baltimore or in the Bay area, maybe. But in LA it aint even depressing.
Sunday, December 31, 2006
In defense of capitalism
A zinger of a last para in an article from 'The Economist'.
"To find the market system wanting because it does not bring joy as well as growth is to place too heavy a burden on it. Capitalism can make you well off. And it also leaves you free to be as unhappy as you choose. To ask any more of it would be asking too much. "
"To find the market system wanting because it does not bring joy as well as growth is to place too heavy a burden on it. Capitalism can make you well off. And it also leaves you free to be as unhappy as you choose. To ask any more of it would be asking too much. "
Friday, December 29, 2006
Why is a man paid well?
This has been a question that has made many a man go sleepless.
Why does Mr. Jones or Mr. Chen or Mr. Patel next door make more money than I do? Why does that guy, in my jnr. college, whom we all used to think of as the dumbest ass that walked the corridors make more money than I do? I was smarter than him. I should be making more money and having an easier and more comfortable life. But thats not the case!
All he does is spends time counting money...money made without personal effort or any considerable intelligence.
What exactly makes some men more money than others?
Money is a fickle lover. Entices some who had never much thought of it and yet makes its lovers and worshippers pine away for years.
Being more analytical minded (and a consulting type) I had to plot it on a graph...hopefully without the z axis, which would have been more realistic.
So, taking the principle of parsimon(e)y into consideration, let's say money coming to a man (or woman) is directly related to the risk the person is taking and the value he/she is adding.
Sure, in consultant speak, the word value is thrown around more often than anything else.
What does value mean?
In my mind I think I'm clear about the concept and let me put it through to you.
Value is the difference ONE sip of water makes to a parched person compared to the difference it makes to someone who has just had a few pints of the colourless, wet stuff.
Therein lies the essence of value, especially when you can do it for a hell of a lot of people.
What exactly is risk?
Risk is going outdoors in the rainy season without an umbrella in your finest clothes.
Sometimes you have access to a weather report or look at the sky and make a judgment call. Sometimes you don't. What you decide to do depends on your appetite for risk.
But the biggest adjustment here, is adjusting for luck. Lot of individualists don't believe in luck. I do. Why some oil rich sheiks are rich because of oil, something they dont really have a role to play in, can't be explained by risk or value. Why your neighbor won the $75 M lotto while you still live in a trailer home isn't explained by risk or value. It's just good ol darned luck and there ain't a darned sight you can do about that.
OK So let's try to look at the spread of values in the risk/value v/s return graph.
Let's walk through a few random examples of professions that are known to make more (or less) money and their risk value profiles.
1) Doctors- Heck I am one (or was one). Kinda natural that this be the first profile examined.
These guys put in donkey's years getting a degree. Especially, in this day and age you can get into med school wanting to be a cardiologist and come out become a gynecologist or a radiation oncologist or just a pill pushing primary care guy.
You might love the heart but might end up being a nut specialist (that makes you either a psychiatrist or a urologist- take your pick)
So there is a lot of risk, will you get the specialty you like, will you get a lucrative specalty? Will you get a specialty education at all? Or would you be left licking the leftovers at the bottom of the pecking order?
Doctors, make a big chunk of money, in any society because they do take risks...but even more so because they add value.
They actually go about the business of trying to understand the most complicated machine ever, the human body. And then they tinker with it when it is messed up and in ill health and restore your health and vigor.
That's value as value comes.
Ne'er is there been more joy than in robust health.
I believe it is this value, more than the risk, that makes many doctors the kind of returns that we see and hear about.
Even within this group, the ones who work with the riskiest areas, the heart and brain make more money.
Surgeons more than physicians is also based on a very similar risk as well as value proposition.
2) Finance professionals
Now these are the guys that make the big fat pay checks.
In this profession, risk (and risk analysis) is king. More the risk, more the return.
The riskiest of the lot- bond traders, commodity traders, derivatives chaps, leveraged buyout gangs are the guys that make the biggest bucks in this kettle.
They work a good 16 hr day, burn their soul taking risks constantly on trades and either make (or lose) a lot of money. A few others are number crunching machines with a lot of brain horse power. I have seen a few complex risk models and to be truthfully it made me feel woozy in the head looking at it...leave alone trying to make one of my own and make it work!
On the other hand, your friendly neighborhood equity analyst doesn't make as much money while the hedge fund guy does.
This is all risk play and the value is the returns they bring to their investors.
Take the example of the fund managers for the world's largest endowement fund. The Harvard alumni endowement fund. Some $20+ BILLION fund. Most folks, with that kind of money, can make it grow fairly well.
But the Aetna gang seems to make it grow really well and make double digit million packages (or so we heard) as compensation. Lot of people are not very happy. How can managers of a non profit fund make so much money. But the simple fact remains that even after their big fat pay checks, the managers still make better returns for the fund compared to other investors.
Go figure.
3) Businessmen
Whether you sell marriage type ghagra cholis at Manish market or duty free imported smuggled maal at Heera Panna or have a confectioners business or are a high end chip manufacturer, chances are that you make way more money than the avg salaried Joe-Shmoe.
Businessmen take risk-risk of failure of the enterprise, risk of slow downs, risk of increased costs or competition, risk of supply chain issues, risk of labor issues, risk of regulatory and licensing issues, risk of a few hundred thousand different issues that come with handling a P&L.
Businessmen also add value.
They bring products to customers and competition to the market place, which are both lofty achievements in a capitalist set up.
They bring bread to our table, newspaper to our loos, chips with salsa and chips in our computers. They create every single thing we use all through the day, all through our life. From the humblest match box to the mightiest gadgets are made by these risk taking entrepreneurs and old businesses.
4) Government office babu
This 35 hour working, 90 mins lunch break taking, life long one job guy is for me the ultimate symbol of the risk averse man. A fair bit of these guys have no significant expectations from life, save two square meals a day for self and family. Sure, they would love more, and therein lies the reason for the unchecked corruption in the sclerotic babudom but when return for risk and effort is considered, your friendly neighborhood babu wants it as low risk as it comes.
Even better when the Govt provides subsidized housing, an office car with a flashing red light on the top, so their family can use it like a family car, a few more freebies maybe and a foreign junket thrown in, squares it up nicely.
Add to this the fact that the job and its accompanying perks near lifelong.
In short you have a situation of fairly low risk low value high returns. No wonder then that the Civil services are so widely sought after.
5) Joe-Shmoe pen pusher
When this is a 'not so empowered' person...I think it's just life. But when I see an empowered person mired in a 'going nowhere' slow job it rouses the worst of my emotions. Especially when the person is doing the job out of his own free will.
Sure sure I respect the individual freedom that our system bestows upon us to make choices but what I end up not respecting is the choice the person made.
The choice (and its attendant drivers) go against my core values of ambition, individualism, achievement and contribution.
For all the BS people will peddle to you about work life balance and 'there are lot of good people out there'...here's the secret lt out of the bag. There arent enough good people to go around. Good people who would make a significant difference.
They say "With great power comes great responsibility".
If you are smart and have the requisite tools and you decide to cool your heels because you like the slow life...I tend to see it as an abdication of responsibility.
This is the low risk low value low return scenario.
It is a sad story of our society that many people wallow in this category for want of effort or that of ambition.
At the end of the day a lot is unsaid and undiscussed.
A matter for a book maybe.
Why does one person become a Steve Jobs? and another person doesnt?
Why does one bright idea become Google but another idea doesnt?
How are some people able to monetize those ideas and some people cant get a penny for their thoughts?
Why does Mr. Jones or Mr. Chen or Mr. Patel next door make more money than I do? Why does that guy, in my jnr. college, whom we all used to think of as the dumbest ass that walked the corridors make more money than I do? I was smarter than him. I should be making more money and having an easier and more comfortable life. But thats not the case!
All he does is spends time counting money...money made without personal effort or any considerable intelligence.
What exactly makes some men more money than others?
Money is a fickle lover. Entices some who had never much thought of it and yet makes its lovers and worshippers pine away for years.
Being more analytical minded (and a consulting type) I had to plot it on a graph...hopefully without the z axis, which would have been more realistic.
So, taking the principle of parsimon(e)y into consideration, let's say money coming to a man (or woman) is directly related to the risk the person is taking and the value he/she is adding.
Sure, in consultant speak, the word value is thrown around more often than anything else.
What does value mean?
In my mind I think I'm clear about the concept and let me put it through to you.
Value is the difference ONE sip of water makes to a parched person compared to the difference it makes to someone who has just had a few pints of the colourless, wet stuff.
Therein lies the essence of value, especially when you can do it for a hell of a lot of people.
What exactly is risk?
Risk is going outdoors in the rainy season without an umbrella in your finest clothes.
Sometimes you have access to a weather report or look at the sky and make a judgment call. Sometimes you don't. What you decide to do depends on your appetite for risk.
But the biggest adjustment here, is adjusting for luck. Lot of individualists don't believe in luck. I do. Why some oil rich sheiks are rich because of oil, something they dont really have a role to play in, can't be explained by risk or value. Why your neighbor won the $75 M lotto while you still live in a trailer home isn't explained by risk or value. It's just good ol darned luck and there ain't a darned sight you can do about that.
OK So let's try to look at the spread of values in the risk/value v/s return graph.
Let's walk through a few random examples of professions that are known to make more (or less) money and their risk value profiles.
1) Doctors- Heck I am one (or was one). Kinda natural that this be the first profile examined.
These guys put in donkey's years getting a degree. Especially, in this day and age you can get into med school wanting to be a cardiologist and come out become a gynecologist or a radiation oncologist or just a pill pushing primary care guy.
You might love the heart but might end up being a nut specialist (that makes you either a psychiatrist or a urologist- take your pick)
So there is a lot of risk, will you get the specialty you like, will you get a lucrative specalty? Will you get a specialty education at all? Or would you be left licking the leftovers at the bottom of the pecking order?
Doctors, make a big chunk of money, in any society because they do take risks...but even more so because they add value.
They actually go about the business of trying to understand the most complicated machine ever, the human body. And then they tinker with it when it is messed up and in ill health and restore your health and vigor.
That's value as value comes.
Ne'er is there been more joy than in robust health.
I believe it is this value, more than the risk, that makes many doctors the kind of returns that we see and hear about.
Even within this group, the ones who work with the riskiest areas, the heart and brain make more money.
Surgeons more than physicians is also based on a very similar risk as well as value proposition.
2) Finance professionals
Now these are the guys that make the big fat pay checks.
In this profession, risk (and risk analysis) is king. More the risk, more the return.
The riskiest of the lot- bond traders, commodity traders, derivatives chaps, leveraged buyout gangs are the guys that make the biggest bucks in this kettle.
They work a good 16 hr day, burn their soul taking risks constantly on trades and either make (or lose) a lot of money. A few others are number crunching machines with a lot of brain horse power. I have seen a few complex risk models and to be truthfully it made me feel woozy in the head looking at it...leave alone trying to make one of my own and make it work!
On the other hand, your friendly neighborhood equity analyst doesn't make as much money while the hedge fund guy does.
This is all risk play and the value is the returns they bring to their investors.
Take the example of the fund managers for the world's largest endowement fund. The Harvard alumni endowement fund. Some $20+ BILLION fund. Most folks, with that kind of money, can make it grow fairly well.
But the Aetna gang seems to make it grow really well and make double digit million packages (or so we heard) as compensation. Lot of people are not very happy. How can managers of a non profit fund make so much money. But the simple fact remains that even after their big fat pay checks, the managers still make better returns for the fund compared to other investors.
Go figure.
3) Businessmen
Whether you sell marriage type ghagra cholis at Manish market or duty free imported smuggled maal at Heera Panna or have a confectioners business or are a high end chip manufacturer, chances are that you make way more money than the avg salaried Joe-Shmoe.
Businessmen take risk-risk of failure of the enterprise, risk of slow downs, risk of increased costs or competition, risk of supply chain issues, risk of labor issues, risk of regulatory and licensing issues, risk of a few hundred thousand different issues that come with handling a P&L.
Businessmen also add value.
They bring products to customers and competition to the market place, which are both lofty achievements in a capitalist set up.
They bring bread to our table, newspaper to our loos, chips with salsa and chips in our computers. They create every single thing we use all through the day, all through our life. From the humblest match box to the mightiest gadgets are made by these risk taking entrepreneurs and old businesses.
4) Government office babu
This 35 hour working, 90 mins lunch break taking, life long one job guy is for me the ultimate symbol of the risk averse man. A fair bit of these guys have no significant expectations from life, save two square meals a day for self and family. Sure, they would love more, and therein lies the reason for the unchecked corruption in the sclerotic babudom but when return for risk and effort is considered, your friendly neighborhood babu wants it as low risk as it comes.
Even better when the Govt provides subsidized housing, an office car with a flashing red light on the top, so their family can use it like a family car, a few more freebies maybe and a foreign junket thrown in, squares it up nicely.
Add to this the fact that the job and its accompanying perks near lifelong.
In short you have a situation of fairly low risk low value high returns. No wonder then that the Civil services are so widely sought after.
5) Joe-Shmoe pen pusher
When this is a 'not so empowered' person...I think it's just life. But when I see an empowered person mired in a 'going nowhere' slow job it rouses the worst of my emotions. Especially when the person is doing the job out of his own free will.
Sure sure I respect the individual freedom that our system bestows upon us to make choices but what I end up not respecting is the choice the person made.
The choice (and its attendant drivers) go against my core values of ambition, individualism, achievement and contribution.
For all the BS people will peddle to you about work life balance and 'there are lot of good people out there'...here's the secret lt out of the bag. There arent enough good people to go around. Good people who would make a significant difference.
They say "With great power comes great responsibility".
If you are smart and have the requisite tools and you decide to cool your heels because you like the slow life...I tend to see it as an abdication of responsibility.
This is the low risk low value low return scenario.
It is a sad story of our society that many people wallow in this category for want of effort or that of ambition.
At the end of the day a lot is unsaid and undiscussed.
A matter for a book maybe.
Why does one person become a Steve Jobs? and another person doesnt?
Why does one bright idea become Google but another idea doesnt?
How are some people able to monetize those ideas and some people cant get a penny for their thoughts?
Monday, December 25, 2006
The Lexus and the Olive tree
In one line:
One of the best books I have ever read.
Tom Friedman is a genius at using simple examples from life to make a relevant point- even in the complex world of globalization.
I don't always like his habit of "I like to call this phenomenon....". It tags things in too simplistic a manner but he makes up for this by making a ton of very relevant points, which are insightful and instructive in one go.
Lexus and the Olive tree is a simple portrayal of the tug of war that many countries are now facing- culture vs scientific/economic progress. These two need not be, and are not, mutually exclusive but one does come at a significant cost to the other.
Socialism/communism vs capitalism may be likened to two trains.
The former has many people at the control...the direction governed by the intentions of its drivers/motormen. There is no scheduled destination though the hypothetical destination is some Paradise on Earth. There is no specified departure time nor an ETA. "Need to go" will get you a ticket on this train...and the "can pay"s would pay for those who "need to go but can't pay".
The train hardly ever gets to the destination. Hence the passengers are destined to go wherever the motorman pleases to go and hope to God he/they know what they are doing.
In this train there is no luxury or first class car or even a sleeper compartment. The only luxury car is the motorman's cabin.
Everything is "standing only" with no bells and whistle.
And a window seat doesnt count for much since the windows are bolted shut, lest the passenger see outside and figure they are going nowhere...or worse they see the capitalist train.
Capitalism, on the other hand, is a train with no motorman. There is no one in control. But it is a luxury train, mind you. It is run, in large measure by the whims and desires of its passengers. This again, has no specified destination. It's joy is in its journey. And it tries to go through the prettiest, nicest locations possible. But not all locations have tracks on which this train can run well (or in some places run at all).
This train doesn't come within miles of such places.
This train has tons of bay windows, luxury dining cars and parlors...but every joy has a price. There is a second class and even a third class for passengers who can't (or wont) pay the premium price. "Need to go" has to tango with cash (pun intended) to get you a ticket here.
From this train you can see the socialist/communist train, a relic of the past, gasping in the distance.
The appeal of the book also comes from the fact that it is not a rabid proponent of unchecked globalization and evil capitalism.
It talks more of a better, more desirable system- capitalism with a social and global conscience. Of keeping cultures alive. Of allowing uniqueness its right to survive. Of protecting our environment. Of helping neo-capitalists get onto the fast moving capitalist train. Of creating safety nets for those who take the risk and fall. Of empowering those left far behind...so they may be able to board this train as well.
This train will pass through an olive groove and all olive tree huggers, eventually, would have to board this train. How they do it and how they pay for the ticket is the million dollar question.
One of the best books I have ever read.
Tom Friedman is a genius at using simple examples from life to make a relevant point- even in the complex world of globalization.
I don't always like his habit of "I like to call this phenomenon....". It tags things in too simplistic a manner but he makes up for this by making a ton of very relevant points, which are insightful and instructive in one go.
Lexus and the Olive tree is a simple portrayal of the tug of war that many countries are now facing- culture vs scientific/economic progress. These two need not be, and are not, mutually exclusive but one does come at a significant cost to the other.
Socialism/communism vs capitalism may be likened to two trains.
The former has many people at the control...the direction governed by the intentions of its drivers/motormen. There is no scheduled destination though the hypothetical destination is some Paradise on Earth. There is no specified departure time nor an ETA. "Need to go" will get you a ticket on this train...and the "can pay"s would pay for those who "need to go but can't pay".
The train hardly ever gets to the destination. Hence the passengers are destined to go wherever the motorman pleases to go and hope to God he/they know what they are doing.
In this train there is no luxury or first class car or even a sleeper compartment. The only luxury car is the motorman's cabin.
Everything is "standing only" with no bells and whistle.
And a window seat doesnt count for much since the windows are bolted shut, lest the passenger see outside and figure they are going nowhere...or worse they see the capitalist train.
Capitalism, on the other hand, is a train with no motorman. There is no one in control. But it is a luxury train, mind you. It is run, in large measure by the whims and desires of its passengers. This again, has no specified destination. It's joy is in its journey. And it tries to go through the prettiest, nicest locations possible. But not all locations have tracks on which this train can run well (or in some places run at all).
This train doesn't come within miles of such places.
This train has tons of bay windows, luxury dining cars and parlors...but every joy has a price. There is a second class and even a third class for passengers who can't (or wont) pay the premium price. "Need to go" has to tango with cash (pun intended) to get you a ticket here.
From this train you can see the socialist/communist train, a relic of the past, gasping in the distance.
The appeal of the book also comes from the fact that it is not a rabid proponent of unchecked globalization and evil capitalism.
It talks more of a better, more desirable system- capitalism with a social and global conscience. Of keeping cultures alive. Of allowing uniqueness its right to survive. Of protecting our environment. Of helping neo-capitalists get onto the fast moving capitalist train. Of creating safety nets for those who take the risk and fall. Of empowering those left far behind...so they may be able to board this train as well.
This train will pass through an olive groove and all olive tree huggers, eventually, would have to board this train. How they do it and how they pay for the ticket is the million dollar question.
Sunday, December 24, 2006
The quarter that was- prelude
As per a fairly new start I do quarterly analyses of where my long term plan is headed. A long term plan that should, really, be updated, renewed, refreshed every year.
When I was out job hunting I had to dwell on the constant question : What is your long term plan?
I feel I have at least a blurry vision of that long term plan. If it works, I'd be a visionary. If not, I'd be the bright kid o the block that didn't quite deliver.
Before, I digress widely, the time is here in a few days when I do some introspecting on the quarter that was, assess developmental needs, set goals and prioritize for the quarter and year to come.
But I have a feeling this year is going to come off as a winner.
The last quarter has zoomed by in a blur of late nights in the office working and some weekends spent having some cool fun.
I never did this kind of analysis...the more laidback folks would think this is stretching a good thing a tad bit too much. But I have come to see someone's point of view. Life span is finite and the years of strength and vigor more so. These are the years that make us or break us. If we don't optimize their use it's as good (or bad) as a lifetime lost.
Sure, most folks do SOME informal analysis after a few pegs: What the f%$k am I doing with my life? Where is all this leading to?
But this is not half as good as doing it on paper...and possibly with a live person who can act as a sounding board.
When I was out job hunting I had to dwell on the constant question : What is your long term plan?
I feel I have at least a blurry vision of that long term plan. If it works, I'd be a visionary. If not, I'd be the bright kid o the block that didn't quite deliver.
Before, I digress widely, the time is here in a few days when I do some introspecting on the quarter that was, assess developmental needs, set goals and prioritize for the quarter and year to come.
But I have a feeling this year is going to come off as a winner.
The last quarter has zoomed by in a blur of late nights in the office working and some weekends spent having some cool fun.
I never did this kind of analysis...the more laidback folks would think this is stretching a good thing a tad bit too much. But I have come to see someone's point of view. Life span is finite and the years of strength and vigor more so. These are the years that make us or break us. If we don't optimize their use it's as good (or bad) as a lifetime lost.
Sure, most folks do SOME informal analysis after a few pegs: What the f%$k am I doing with my life? Where is all this leading to?
But this is not half as good as doing it on paper...and possibly with a live person who can act as a sounding board.
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Snow boarding
Started the transition from the sad, poor student to the joie de vivre kind...in very material terms-splurge and enjoy.
Yesterday, very atypical of me, I decided to go snow boarding, on the spur of the moment.
I like spur of the moment stuff, just havent done that so much lately. So kinda felt doing doing it, but it HURTS.
This was my first experience snow boarding...the first time I was in fairly heavy snowfall in Calif (i.e. I havnt been to Tahoe) and it was hella fun. Took quite a few falls, though I think I got a fair hang of starting up and of moving fast but braking was the problem.
Result- a bruised knee, torn tracks, and painfully stretched muscles...but all in all it was fun.
The drive to Mountain High was hella long, the 10 being really crowded on a weekend close to the holiday season. But it was like being back in college, a drive with desi music, stopping for hot chocolate, snow near LA (how sweet is that?).. I think I'm going to snowboard more...especially if and when I ever move to San Fran and go to Tahoe.
Also got to do a quick detour via Claremont, saw the old place that I have mixed feelings for. Met Senman and his family and his new house. He definitely looks happy there.
Got my carton and quite a bit of stuff from there.
So I'm stocked and ready for a long stay here. Sadly my TT racket wasnt in the carton :(
Wonder where I left the Excalibur.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Suspension of disbelief
Suspension of disbelief, more recently known as 'Manna of Mahim' is not a new phenomenon.
Some 10 yrs ago when I was in high school or possibly junior college someone figured out that Lord (this is to refer to a God not to a member of the Brit aristocracy) Ganesha idols were drinking milk. Go figure. Mind you. This wasn't limited to illiterate, simple minded folk. You are talking doctors, engineers, lawyers, architects here. You get the picture!
So picture this: Friday night. Three friends sitting in a flat, sipping beer and munching on some finger food, waiting for the delivery boy from a decent local restaurant to deliver food. An order placed at 11 pm comes in nearly at 12:45 am!
When asked about the reason for the delay the boy said, rather animatedly, that the sea water had turned sweet. That's great. I mean...so many ideas spring to mind. You could bottle and sell the miracle water, you have a sea of inventory of sweet water (literally) when the world wide stock of fresh water dies out...figure out the $$ you could make there. The potential for 'miracle tourism'. The opportunities are endless. But I'm missing the point of the excuse here.
But we digress.
Some fisherman realized he had a lousy catch for the day and decided to taste the water. Hmmm not that salty. Heck, it tastes SWEET. Thats it. Th e sea water is sweet. His kid sister backs up his assertion. Cool enough.
'Not educated but smart person' thinks "Hmmm something weird here. Sea water tasting sweet is not regular. I should contact the police or some municipal corp person...they will call in some big guy science man who will figure out WHY it is sweet...or less salty".
Your friendly neighborhood uneducated Indian, Muslim or Hindu or whatever think "Oh my God. God has done this. This is his blessing. He has made the water sweet...a miracle...to wash my sins."
Sweetheart, first thing...that's a LOT of sin to wash. Also, if you have seen the water at the beach at Mahim, Mumbai lately...it's going to take God starting from scratch so it looks like what sea water is supposed to look like. Turning sea water sweet is not on the list of his priorities. He might start with cleaning the trash that you throw in it every single day.so people like me dont think they are going to get gastro just looking at the water. He already got you the miracle, the sea, and you fucked it up biatch.
For those not in the know and thinking, what's this man blabbing about here:
Mahim is a part of Central/West Central Mumbai...pretty unnervingly close to the armpit of Mumbai-Dharavi. At Mahim causeway a river, the Mithi (literally meaning 'sweet', talk about irony), full of industrial effluents and toxic waste flows into the sea. At many different points in Mahim, sewage, whether treated or raw, flows into the sea. To add to this, inhabitants of illegal dwellings and shanties in and around the beach crap their asses out on the beach every single day. Excrement, which is carried to sea by the high tide.
Let go off the breath if you have held it too long, for the revelation of the butler being the culprit is at hand.
It is this water, that people had thought had turned sweet.
From 7:30 pm onwards on Friday, 5000 people from the Mahim dargah 'mostly from a minority community' held up traffic as they jumped into the sea for a taste of 'shifa' (not too hard to figure out what that is).
Scientists reached the spot and tried to take samples...they couldnt make it to the sea front due to the number of devotees. Something about Science being held back by religion and God's creatures. I accept that our current knowledge of science doesnt explain everything...and for this reason we can only think that there is something greater...but this suspension of disbelief is pushing 'something greater' to ridiculous limits.
Think of incidents...terminally ill old people or mentally challenged or physically challenged young kids being given this fucked up water...as miracle cure...talk about adding insult to injury.
The Lord Mayor of the city jumped joyously into the sea...and came out saying that it was nothing short of a miracle. Errr isnt there some law that prohibits the First (or second or third ) citizen of a city like Mumbai from acting like an idiot and setting a BAD example for other citizens to follow?
Evidently not, for in India NOT being able to suspend disbelief in the name of God is the bigger crime.
A scientific mind, tempered by some ethical and even 'larger than thou' considerations makes for an ideal recipe. A hard core scientific mind comes next. An idiot mind with no thoughts of science...only looking for divine intervention...is the most evil and dangerous of all.
In this our education system has failed us.
No God is coming to wash your sins darling...you better learn to wash it yourself.
Some 10 yrs ago when I was in high school or possibly junior college someone figured out that Lord (this is to refer to a God not to a member of the Brit aristocracy) Ganesha idols were drinking milk. Go figure. Mind you. This wasn't limited to illiterate, simple minded folk. You are talking doctors, engineers, lawyers, architects here. You get the picture!
So picture this: Friday night. Three friends sitting in a flat, sipping beer and munching on some finger food, waiting for the delivery boy from a decent local restaurant to deliver food. An order placed at 11 pm comes in nearly at 12:45 am!
When asked about the reason for the delay the boy said, rather animatedly, that the sea water had turned sweet. That's great. I mean...so many ideas spring to mind. You could bottle and sell the miracle water, you have a sea of inventory of sweet water (literally) when the world wide stock of fresh water dies out...figure out the $$ you could make there. The potential for 'miracle tourism'. The opportunities are endless. But I'm missing the point of the excuse here.
But we digress.
Some fisherman realized he had a lousy catch for the day and decided to taste the water. Hmmm not that salty. Heck, it tastes SWEET. Thats it. Th e sea water is sweet. His kid sister backs up his assertion. Cool enough.
'Not educated but smart person' thinks "Hmmm something weird here. Sea water tasting sweet is not regular. I should contact the police or some municipal corp person...they will call in some big guy science man who will figure out WHY it is sweet...or less salty".
Your friendly neighborhood uneducated Indian, Muslim or Hindu or whatever think "Oh my God. God has done this. This is his blessing. He has made the water sweet...a miracle...to wash my sins."
Sweetheart, first thing...that's a LOT of sin to wash. Also, if you have seen the water at the beach at Mahim, Mumbai lately...it's going to take God starting from scratch so it looks like what sea water is supposed to look like. Turning sea water sweet is not on the list of his priorities. He might start with cleaning the trash that you throw in it every single day.so people like me dont think they are going to get gastro just looking at the water. He already got you the miracle, the sea, and you fucked it up biatch.
For those not in the know and thinking, what's this man blabbing about here:
Mahim is a part of Central/West Central Mumbai...pretty unnervingly close to the armpit of Mumbai-Dharavi. At Mahim causeway a river, the Mithi (literally meaning 'sweet', talk about irony), full of industrial effluents and toxic waste flows into the sea. At many different points in Mahim, sewage, whether treated or raw, flows into the sea. To add to this, inhabitants of illegal dwellings and shanties in and around the beach crap their asses out on the beach every single day. Excrement, which is carried to sea by the high tide.
Let go off the breath if you have held it too long, for the revelation of the butler being the culprit is at hand.
It is this water, that people had thought had turned sweet.
From 7:30 pm onwards on Friday, 5000 people from the Mahim dargah 'mostly from a minority community' held up traffic as they jumped into the sea for a taste of 'shifa' (not too hard to figure out what that is).
Scientists reached the spot and tried to take samples...they couldnt make it to the sea front due to the number of devotees. Something about Science being held back by religion and God's creatures. I accept that our current knowledge of science doesnt explain everything...and for this reason we can only think that there is something greater...but this suspension of disbelief is pushing 'something greater' to ridiculous limits.
Think of incidents...terminally ill old people or mentally challenged or physically challenged young kids being given this fucked up water...as miracle cure...talk about adding insult to injury.
The Lord Mayor of the city jumped joyously into the sea...and came out saying that it was nothing short of a miracle. Errr isnt there some law that prohibits the First (or second or third ) citizen of a city like Mumbai from acting like an idiot and setting a BAD example for other citizens to follow?
Evidently not, for in India NOT being able to suspend disbelief in the name of God is the bigger crime.
A scientific mind, tempered by some ethical and even 'larger than thou' considerations makes for an ideal recipe. A hard core scientific mind comes next. An idiot mind with no thoughts of science...only looking for divine intervention...is the most evil and dangerous of all.
In this our education system has failed us.
No God is coming to wash your sins darling...you better learn to wash it yourself.
Friday, August 04, 2006
A Lazy Week in the Laidback city
For the amount I gush about Mumbai and heckle Pune there is an undeniable truth. Pune weather beats Mumbai's hands down..and its not a small difference for a person like me. I am extremely sensitive to the combination of heat and humidity. People sweat, I leak like a faucet.
Overall good fun though stayed indoors, at home, for way too long.
Beered frequently, watched a movie, finished a chapter and half and overall was pretty relaxed. Too relaxed. Rained way to hard in Pune in the initial part.
Overall good fun though stayed indoors, at home, for way too long.
Beered frequently, watched a movie, finished a chapter and half and overall was pretty relaxed. Too relaxed. Rained way to hard in Pune in the initial part.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Aftermath of a few parties
So this was when I was in India in Dec 04...had a few parties at home. And in a week I had more empty 750 ml beer bottles than I needed at the time. So I asked my good friend across from my flat to deal with them and while he was sitting, decently high, I lined them up in his living room.
And took a pic for old times sake.
I can still see Ro's expression when he heard this was a net collection of a few days bottles. LOL
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
Random update XLVI
Can a recent writer really suffer from 'writer's block'?
This important chapter seems to be dragging on. It feels like I'm typing all day but when I look at the amount of material I have come up with it...it aint much. Sigh...
An entire 250-300 pg novel. Man...its going to be like a marathon. Just hope I complete it.
LEave you with a few jokes from Snatch
1) Turkish: Fuck me, hold tight. What's that?
Tommy: It's me belt, Turkish.
Turkish: No, Tommy. There's a gun in your trousers. What's a gun doing in your trousers?
Tommy: It's for protection.
Turkish: Protection from what? "Zee Germans"? What's to stop it from blowing your bollocks off every time you sit down?
2) Customs official: Anything to declare?
Avi: Yeah. Don't go to England.
This important chapter seems to be dragging on. It feels like I'm typing all day but when I look at the amount of material I have come up with it...it aint much. Sigh...
An entire 250-300 pg novel. Man...its going to be like a marathon. Just hope I complete it.
LEave you with a few jokes from Snatch
1) Turkish: Fuck me, hold tight. What's that?
Tommy: It's me belt, Turkish.
Turkish: No, Tommy. There's a gun in your trousers. What's a gun doing in your trousers?
Tommy: It's for protection.
Turkish: Protection from what? "Zee Germans"? What's to stop it from blowing your bollocks off every time you sit down?
2) Customs official: Anything to declare?
Avi: Yeah. Don't go to England.
Thursday, June 01, 2006
The power of work out
Most friends in India assume I must still be working out. They don't remember the last time I wasn't a workout fanatic. Most folks I know in Calif haven't seen a time when I didn't look like the Hindenburg, about to tragically crash.
Blame it on access issues.
This sounds like a line classically out a "Health sector reform in Niger" text at J Hop Health Systems.
"Transportation forms an additional barrier to access to healthcare facilities. Due to the centripetal distribution of health centers and resources, those bereft of transportation at the periphery also remain bereft of healthcare provisions. Hence, such a situation might require one of two possible solutions:....."
That, in a nutcase (or is it nutshell) was me. An inaccessible gym further aggravated by a severe paucity of time crippled by an almost Germanisque imbibation of beer led to me looking like a 70 yr old Raj or Shammi Kapoor.
But now that I am in the good Bay with weights and a trendy tread mill at home....I'm back in action. Watching my diet like a hawk...turned down a mouth watering slice of pizza in favor of penang tuna (is that sacrifice or what). Hardly put in more than 1200 calories per day and burn way more with long weights and/or aerobic work out. Feeling the fat melt away, and seeing the cut sleeve, bike riding, bandana-ed Yatz emerge out of a shroud of fat.
Watch out ye all...one of these days I might actually get snapped and put up a recent pic.
Yay yipee yay!
Blame it on access issues.
This sounds like a line classically out a "Health sector reform in Niger" text at J Hop Health Systems.
"Transportation forms an additional barrier to access to healthcare facilities. Due to the centripetal distribution of health centers and resources, those bereft of transportation at the periphery also remain bereft of healthcare provisions. Hence, such a situation might require one of two possible solutions:....."
That, in a nutcase (or is it nutshell) was me. An inaccessible gym further aggravated by a severe paucity of time crippled by an almost Germanisque imbibation of beer led to me looking like a 70 yr old Raj or Shammi Kapoor.
But now that I am in the good Bay with weights and a trendy tread mill at home....I'm back in action. Watching my diet like a hawk...turned down a mouth watering slice of pizza in favor of penang tuna (is that sacrifice or what). Hardly put in more than 1200 calories per day and burn way more with long weights and/or aerobic work out. Feeling the fat melt away, and seeing the cut sleeve, bike riding, bandana-ed Yatz emerge out of a shroud of fat.
Watch out ye all...one of these days I might actually get snapped and put up a recent pic.
Yay yipee yay!
Sunday, May 28, 2006
A beautiful day in SF
To get down to the day. Got out of the house by 9 am and were in the city, with its tricky one-ways by around 9:45 am. Surprisingly, we seemed to be the first gang at the designated spot though others had arrived before us.
The first tour lasted from 10 am to 11:30 am and was about the Gold Rush in 1848-49. The Gold Rush, for all practical reasons, built San Francisco and gave it the personality it has today. A city of opportunities for the risk takers and opportunity seekers.
Dave was a pretty interesting speaker, though he had an intriguing habit of spacing out in the middle of his monologue. I guess I'd need to take pics of Dave from the AK man.
We walked around looking at some of the spots where commerce had set up, including the offices of the Pony Express, the first mint, the center of the city from whence it has sprung, etc.
I'd elaborate on individual components some other day (heck, maybe even tomorrow)
After we were let off at 11:30 it was a short walk to Chinatown and some decent dimsum place. It was more 'homely' and not quite as good as Ton King at Geary, where we ended up in the Spring break for a nice hearty, sumptuous dimsum lunch.
After lunch, we drove over to the City Hall to our second walking tour...the earthquake of 1906. This is the centennial year...so it is kinda special for the city. The lady was in a typical Victorian dress and a hand made bonnet. Walked around the City Hall and some of the streets and alleys in the vicinity. She showed us where the "ham and eggs" fire had begun and approached the area between Market st and Van Ness. Also went through the Public library to see some remarkable old photographs.
One of the highlights of the day was seeing this beautiful vintage car and one of the most expensive ones at that- a 1937 Rolls Royce Phantom III. The chauffeur told me it was the first '100 miles an hr' car. Ain't it a beauty?
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Rang De Basanti
Here is a disclaimer (especially for those who don't know me)- By nature I detest violent approaches to enforce my world view. I didn't really like the approach RDB youth had taken. I don't think killing someone is a solution to anything.
Now I can write further.
The "no excuses" speech in the end made me look at RDB differently. As I read about the reservation firefights I feel a silent rage churning inside me. A lot of factors fuel this rage:
1) Political aspirations and sheer greed of individuals like Arjun Singh can threaten to lay waste a large country like India. It is Macbethian characters like him that are the bane of Indian existence. How many dead bodies of hard-working, smart Indians will he tread over before he stops?
2) The apparent abdication by my ex-idol Manmohan Singh. I revered him for his intelligence and his actions. I was happy that an intellectual of his calibre had decided to get his hands dirty in Indian politics. But now as I see him refusing to acknowledge the anti-reservations protests I am left despondent. He has followed a policy of minimum resistance to his baiters and minimum visibility to those who seek his true views.
Did even Hamlet ever face Dr. Singh's dilemma?
3) The refusal of other parties to join in the anti-reservation debate...no one wants to sit on a gun powder keg, light up a match and see their political prospects blown sky high.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ToI
Meanwhile, BJP leader Sushma Swaraj beat a hasty retreat from AIIMS after the students asked her to take a clear stand on the reservation issue. Once they realised that no response was coming, they started shouting slogans and forced her to leave the venue.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
4) The lack of willingness on the part of regular, working or studying joes to come out into the street and to join in protests against this shameless act on the part of the government. It mystifies me, infuriates me to wonder...do these guys have no sense of social obligation and an obligation to their future generations? Their refusal to participate may be representative of their declining faith in the system, their personal lack of belief in the strength of their voice and in general a "chalta hai" attitude. Until John Doe becomes a social activist, no good can accrue.
Yet there is hope, I heard engineers are joining in and a batch of accountants joined in the protests in Delhi.
But all this begs a few questions...
1) Why have only doctors been the active participants in this crusade? Aren't MBAs, engineers, accountants or other occupations going to be hit by this piece of legislation?
2) Moreover, on the longer time scale...medical residents, engineers don't have unlimited time being only social activists. Their primary duty is an onerous and time-consuming duty whereas people like Arjun Singh, in the twilight of their life and career, looking back on a life ill-spent, have ample time to claim their one last moment in the spotlight, damn the cost. How do we keep the movement going without compromising our work life?
This certainly isn't going to be a 10-day fest affair. This monster is going to have to be battled longer and stronger.
People like Arjun Singh can push their agenda forward in the firm knowledge of the pacifist nature of people like us...we don't set buses on fire or lynch a minister. He needs to see that we can't be taken for granted and that if he is back to his bull shit...we will raise our voice...loudly!
All it takes for Evil to succeed is for a few good men to do nothing.
Rang De Basanti!
Now I can write further.
The "no excuses" speech in the end made me look at RDB differently. As I read about the reservation firefights I feel a silent rage churning inside me. A lot of factors fuel this rage:
1) Political aspirations and sheer greed of individuals like Arjun Singh can threaten to lay waste a large country like India. It is Macbethian characters like him that are the bane of Indian existence. How many dead bodies of hard-working, smart Indians will he tread over before he stops?
2) The apparent abdication by my ex-idol Manmohan Singh. I revered him for his intelligence and his actions. I was happy that an intellectual of his calibre had decided to get his hands dirty in Indian politics. But now as I see him refusing to acknowledge the anti-reservations protests I am left despondent. He has followed a policy of minimum resistance to his baiters and minimum visibility to those who seek his true views.
Did even Hamlet ever face Dr. Singh's dilemma?
3) The refusal of other parties to join in the anti-reservation debate...no one wants to sit on a gun powder keg, light up a match and see their political prospects blown sky high.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ToI
Meanwhile, BJP leader Sushma Swaraj beat a hasty retreat from AIIMS after the students asked her to take a clear stand on the reservation issue. Once they realised that no response was coming, they started shouting slogans and forced her to leave the venue.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
4) The lack of willingness on the part of regular, working or studying joes to come out into the street and to join in protests against this shameless act on the part of the government. It mystifies me, infuriates me to wonder...do these guys have no sense of social obligation and an obligation to their future generations? Their refusal to participate may be representative of their declining faith in the system, their personal lack of belief in the strength of their voice and in general a "chalta hai" attitude. Until John Doe becomes a social activist, no good can accrue.
Yet there is hope, I heard engineers are joining in and a batch of accountants joined in the protests in Delhi.
But all this begs a few questions...
1) Why have only doctors been the active participants in this crusade? Aren't MBAs, engineers, accountants or other occupations going to be hit by this piece of legislation?
2) Moreover, on the longer time scale...medical residents, engineers don't have unlimited time being only social activists. Their primary duty is an onerous and time-consuming duty whereas people like Arjun Singh, in the twilight of their life and career, looking back on a life ill-spent, have ample time to claim their one last moment in the spotlight, damn the cost. How do we keep the movement going without compromising our work life?
This certainly isn't going to be a 10-day fest affair. This monster is going to have to be battled longer and stronger.
People like Arjun Singh can push their agenda forward in the firm knowledge of the pacifist nature of people like us...we don't set buses on fire or lynch a minister. He needs to see that we can't be taken for granted and that if he is back to his bull shit...we will raise our voice...loudly!
All it takes for Evil to succeed is for a few good men to do nothing.
Rang De Basanti!
Reservation saga continues
I have been following the reservation debate in India and it is disgusting what self-serving individuals like Arjun Singh will do for a few votes and to get close to the feet of his "Most Favored Master" in Delhi.
All these protests, all this divisive shit so one guy can further his political ambitions?
Truly disgusting! Are one man's political ambitions enough to endanger the fragile cohesion in a billion strong country? Evidently they are...and his political masters do nothing to rein him in or chuck him out.
Rather than increasing total number of seats in central institutions Manmohan Singh and Sonia should show their commitment by throwing out dolts like Arjun Singh flat and square on his ass.
No data is collected or currently available to understand the socio-economic performance of OBCs in Indian society. It is a self defeating assumption that if the title OBC is associated then he/she must be badly off. Most of the OBC seats seem to be taken not by the poor and worthy but by the "creamy layer" of OBC strata. Such individuals might have taken benefit of such lax reservations for generations on end. There is no mechanism to stop such individuals, who have gained from the system once, to stop mooching off the mammaries of the welfare state again and again.
Certainly, you can see the rationale why many of the truly SC/ST/ VJNTs need some reservations...cut the pie by class or caste and they seem to come out the losers in society. They do need a helping hand...but the helping hand needs to be in the shape of empowerment and not in the shape of alms or crutches.
Reservations by themselves are not very wrong...but doling it out on the basis of caste certainly is. And it is obviously the politicians pandering to the whims and fancies of their caste based vote banks. If reservations have to be fair in nature they need to be based on class or socio economic ability. There are many "higher caste" individuals who have as less a say in the system as some of the SC/STs yet there is no effective mechanism to give them a helping hand yet a rich OBC kid, who goes to school in a chauffeur-driven car can take advantage of reservations, albeit with the small irritance of having to produce a "No creamy layer" certificate.
In India's corruption riddled system, such a document is easily procured.
Further, increasing seats to accomodate new reservations so that the total no. of open merit seats are not reduced is not a sustainable activity. Every seat is tied not only to costs but also to resources a student needs to actually learn something- instructor-to- student ratio, hostel facilities, class rooms, laboratory and computing resources, patient beds (for medical education) are all vital factors.
Randomly increasing seats will only serve in diluting the learning potential for all involved.
Also it will bring out more graduates with the strong credentials (IIT, IIM) but not the skill sets. This will further result in the brand name of these institutions being tarnished...brand name not only in the marketing sense but the true underlying competency assumed to be associated with graduates of these institutions.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ahmedabad: The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad “cannot increase the number of seats at this juncture”. Institute director Bakul Dholakia said, “It had its plate full.’’ While the Centre has been talking about an increase in intake of students in elite institutes to ensure that general category remained unaffected while implementing the reservation for OBCs, IIM-A feels it is already brimming. “IIM-A has been on a massive expansion drive. From 180 PGP students in 2002, it has in creased its strength to 280 during its 2006 intake, including 30 students in the agri-business management programme. By 2007, the total intake will be 400, including the oneyear executive MBA programme, PGPX, that will increase its intake from the present 60 to 120,’’ said Dholakia. “In 2007, there will be about 800 students on the IIM-A campus, with 500 students in the first and second year post-graduate programme, 60 students in the ABM programme, 120 in the PGPX programme and about 80 in the doctoral programme. Apart from these, there are participants in the numerous management development programmes for executives that range between one week and a month,’’ said Dholakia. “We require hostel facility to accommodate each students studying in the institute. We have plans to start a management course for bureaucrats with the intake of about 50,’’ he added.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
India has no shortage of political Shylocks who will go out of their way to extract their pound of flesh...but there is only so much flesh that a golden-egg-laying-goose has. After 10 Arjun Singhs have doled out 75-80-85% reservations in Parliament, higher level professional education, private sector and public sector jobs...what next?
What will these vultures gnaw, tear and bite at next?
There will be no more freebie left to give out.
But this would have effectively killed merit in the system. At the end of the day you need merit and knowledge to run an enterprise in a global setting, you need merit to understand a medical condition and treat it, you need merit and knowledge to build a 22.5 km bridge through the sea.
The reservation may get you into the seat that is responsible for all these actions...but do I want someone who got 51% in his final medical test and got admission to a Surgical residency on reservation operating on me?
I don't think so. I don't really care if the person was disadvantaged, my life is at stake and I'm not thinking of social equality and opportunity here. i'd be thinking of finding someone who can save my life..I have a feeling so does Arjun Singh. But Arjun Singh with either his horded or inherited wealth can afford to fly off to the US or UK for medical treatment...most of us can't!
Without being casteist just look at the difference between protests by pro- and anti- reservation groups.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ToI 20 May 2006
In Patna, more than a hundred pro-quota agitators marched towards the Dak Bungalow crossing around noon, accusing the media of being biased against them. Two antiriot vehicles and policemen followed them. The protesters went on the rampage and damaged about a dozen cars, including those parked outside The Times of India building. At the Dak Bungalow crossing, they clashed with mediapersons and TV crew, alleging that the media and police were “hand-in-glove’’.
In Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, a candlelight march taken out to protest the reservation policy on Friday night turned ugly when a scuffle erupted between students supporting the quota and those opposing it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the other hand protests against reservations have been uniformly civil across the country.
As far as I know there has been no instance of any violent activity by anti-reservations protestors.
More on this later...
All these protests, all this divisive shit so one guy can further his political ambitions?
Truly disgusting! Are one man's political ambitions enough to endanger the fragile cohesion in a billion strong country? Evidently they are...and his political masters do nothing to rein him in or chuck him out.
Rather than increasing total number of seats in central institutions Manmohan Singh and Sonia should show their commitment by throwing out dolts like Arjun Singh flat and square on his ass.
No data is collected or currently available to understand the socio-economic performance of OBCs in Indian society. It is a self defeating assumption that if the title OBC is associated then he/she must be badly off. Most of the OBC seats seem to be taken not by the poor and worthy but by the "creamy layer" of OBC strata. Such individuals might have taken benefit of such lax reservations for generations on end. There is no mechanism to stop such individuals, who have gained from the system once, to stop mooching off the mammaries of the welfare state again and again.
Certainly, you can see the rationale why many of the truly SC/ST/ VJNTs need some reservations...cut the pie by class or caste and they seem to come out the losers in society. They do need a helping hand...but the helping hand needs to be in the shape of empowerment and not in the shape of alms or crutches.
Reservations by themselves are not very wrong...but doling it out on the basis of caste certainly is. And it is obviously the politicians pandering to the whims and fancies of their caste based vote banks. If reservations have to be fair in nature they need to be based on class or socio economic ability. There are many "higher caste" individuals who have as less a say in the system as some of the SC/STs yet there is no effective mechanism to give them a helping hand yet a rich OBC kid, who goes to school in a chauffeur-driven car can take advantage of reservations, albeit with the small irritance of having to produce a "No creamy layer" certificate.
In India's corruption riddled system, such a document is easily procured.
Further, increasing seats to accomodate new reservations so that the total no. of open merit seats are not reduced is not a sustainable activity. Every seat is tied not only to costs but also to resources a student needs to actually learn something- instructor-to- student ratio, hostel facilities, class rooms, laboratory and computing resources, patient beds (for medical education) are all vital factors.
Randomly increasing seats will only serve in diluting the learning potential for all involved.
Also it will bring out more graduates with the strong credentials (IIT, IIM) but not the skill sets. This will further result in the brand name of these institutions being tarnished...brand name not only in the marketing sense but the true underlying competency assumed to be associated with graduates of these institutions.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ahmedabad: The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad “cannot increase the number of seats at this juncture”. Institute director Bakul Dholakia said, “It had its plate full.’’ While the Centre has been talking about an increase in intake of students in elite institutes to ensure that general category remained unaffected while implementing the reservation for OBCs, IIM-A feels it is already brimming. “IIM-A has been on a massive expansion drive. From 180 PGP students in 2002, it has in creased its strength to 280 during its 2006 intake, including 30 students in the agri-business management programme. By 2007, the total intake will be 400, including the oneyear executive MBA programme, PGPX, that will increase its intake from the present 60 to 120,’’ said Dholakia. “In 2007, there will be about 800 students on the IIM-A campus, with 500 students in the first and second year post-graduate programme, 60 students in the ABM programme, 120 in the PGPX programme and about 80 in the doctoral programme. Apart from these, there are participants in the numerous management development programmes for executives that range between one week and a month,’’ said Dholakia. “We require hostel facility to accommodate each students studying in the institute. We have plans to start a management course for bureaucrats with the intake of about 50,’’ he added.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
India has no shortage of political Shylocks who will go out of their way to extract their pound of flesh...but there is only so much flesh that a golden-egg-laying-goose has. After 10 Arjun Singhs have doled out 75-80-85% reservations in Parliament, higher level professional education, private sector and public sector jobs...what next?
What will these vultures gnaw, tear and bite at next?
There will be no more freebie left to give out.
But this would have effectively killed merit in the system. At the end of the day you need merit and knowledge to run an enterprise in a global setting, you need merit to understand a medical condition and treat it, you need merit and knowledge to build a 22.5 km bridge through the sea.
The reservation may get you into the seat that is responsible for all these actions...but do I want someone who got 51% in his final medical test and got admission to a Surgical residency on reservation operating on me?
I don't think so. I don't really care if the person was disadvantaged, my life is at stake and I'm not thinking of social equality and opportunity here. i'd be thinking of finding someone who can save my life..I have a feeling so does Arjun Singh. But Arjun Singh with either his horded or inherited wealth can afford to fly off to the US or UK for medical treatment...most of us can't!
Without being casteist just look at the difference between protests by pro- and anti- reservation groups.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ToI 20 May 2006
In Patna, more than a hundred pro-quota agitators marched towards the Dak Bungalow crossing around noon, accusing the media of being biased against them. Two antiriot vehicles and policemen followed them. The protesters went on the rampage and damaged about a dozen cars, including those parked outside The Times of India building. At the Dak Bungalow crossing, they clashed with mediapersons and TV crew, alleging that the media and police were “hand-in-glove’’.
In Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, a candlelight march taken out to protest the reservation policy on Friday night turned ugly when a scuffle erupted between students supporting the quota and those opposing it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
On the other hand protests against reservations have been uniformly civil across the country.
As far as I know there has been no instance of any violent activity by anti-reservations protestors.
More on this later...
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Graduation- A few random thoughts
I need to figure out why I write so many "random thoughts" on my blog.
Maybe so I don't need to structure them? Hmmm Plausible enough.
The graduation ceremony was decent fun. No family in sight but not their fault :)
Stan gave a terrific speech...one of the best commencement speakers I have heard. Ginger Graham, CEO of Amylin, was a pretty good speaker- succinct and interesting. Compared to the person last year, well she stood head and shoulders above him.
Overall, the ceremony was short, sweet and painless. Usually I hate long drawn out ceremonies, especially the ending ones.
Lotsa pictures were being snapped...I had mine with a select handful who even wanted a pic with me. Kinda felt lost in the crowd surging with families, friends and what have yous. At the end of the program I felt what I felt at Orientation and through most of the program...a misfit!
I got a bunch of knowledge and experience here...but as far as social life and friends were concerned...it was a bullet in the head, a death kneel.
Maybe so I don't need to structure them? Hmmm Plausible enough.
The graduation ceremony was decent fun. No family in sight but not their fault :)
Stan gave a terrific speech...one of the best commencement speakers I have heard. Ginger Graham, CEO of Amylin, was a pretty good speaker- succinct and interesting. Compared to the person last year, well she stood head and shoulders above him.
Overall, the ceremony was short, sweet and painless. Usually I hate long drawn out ceremonies, especially the ending ones.
Lotsa pictures were being snapped...I had mine with a select handful who even wanted a pic with me. Kinda felt lost in the crowd surging with families, friends and what have yous. At the end of the program I felt what I felt at Orientation and through most of the program...a misfit!
I got a bunch of knowledge and experience here...but as far as social life and friends were concerned...it was a bullet in the head, a death kneel.
Friday, May 12, 2006
Masters No. 2- (Click) DONE
Thought it would never get over.
Funny...it did.
More on what I am thinking ...after all "Cognito ergo sum".
Funny...it did.
More on what I am thinking ...after all "Cognito ergo sum".
Saturday, April 29, 2006
Spring springs upon us
Spring is here and the days are full of a spectacular riot of colors, of pretty flowers, of trees turning green again, of birds chirping and nature in its magnificence showing off why it thinks God chose southern California as its most adored home.
This is a shot of flowers in my front yard. Do tell me what you think about the amateur photographic effort.
Friday, April 28, 2006
Indrayani comes of age
This is a very interesting picture I saw in the Times of India today.
So for those not in the know Mumbai is the financial capital of India and Pune is another biggish, growing town nearly 160 km (100 miles) from mumbai.
Now many people live in Pune either because the real estate is cheaper or simply because the entire family loves Pune and hates Mumbai...and yet some of these guys work in south Bombay.
This entails a DAILY commute in excess of 200 miles. These aint the kind of people who have cars so they have a monthly pass for the passenger trains from Mumbai to Pune.
The routine usually begins when they leave home at 4:30 or 5 am to go to Pune station, catch a train to go to Bombay, which takes between 3.5-4 hrs. Then they catch a commuter bus outside the main station (CST/VT) in Mumbai and get to their office. Now this is only the beginning of the work day.
Later, they leave office at 4:30-5, catch the same bus back to the station, a 3.5-4 hr train journey back to Pune and then a rickshaw ride back home.
Life is one long travel and they meet people in the train more than the people either at home or in the office. Strong friendships are forged and the journeymen learn to treat the train as a home away from home. People would usually sit in grps either playing cards, singing songs, reading or even having alcohol together. There is a very strong insider sentiment and they wont usually allow a non member to sit with them in the passholders compartment.
So recently, when one of the trains celebrated its 18th anniversary, its daily travellers ordered this huge cake to celebrate the 18th birthday of this train.
Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Vacuous thoughts-I
Music: Dola re dola
Probably one of the best of the Indian dance n song routines...goose bumps are a certainty when you see Ash and Madhuri dance to this number.
Today has been busy...though not as crazy.
The wine club was fun yesterday. The Egg and the Freund got some good wines which hit me pretty hard considering I didnt have a bite to eat all day. The movie was...ummm...different. "Dogville" is quite unlike any movie you'd see.
I'm not sure I'm ready for that kind of offbeat movie yet. I'm your regular desi dude...give me a B'n'B with its Kajra re over a Dogville any day.
This evening is going to be bhajiya and cutting. Figures my friends and my roomie are a happy lot. Little wonder that people who can cook are generally a well loved grp...the demand supply equation kinda guarantees that.
I'm totally psyched about the novel idea and have decided to write a few pages everyday.
Probably one of the best of the Indian dance n song routines...goose bumps are a certainty when you see Ash and Madhuri dance to this number.
Today has been busy...though not as crazy.
The wine club was fun yesterday. The Egg and the Freund got some good wines which hit me pretty hard considering I didnt have a bite to eat all day. The movie was...ummm...different. "Dogville" is quite unlike any movie you'd see.
I'm not sure I'm ready for that kind of offbeat movie yet. I'm your regular desi dude...give me a B'n'B with its Kajra re over a Dogville any day.
This evening is going to be bhajiya and cutting. Figures my friends and my roomie are a happy lot. Little wonder that people who can cook are generally a well loved grp...the demand supply equation kinda guarantees that.
I'm totally psyched about the novel idea and have decided to write a few pages everyday.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Of senioritis
Havent we all experienced that phase in our life when we are about to graduate from a program, finished most of the tests and quizzes...some stuff remains to be done but it is exceptionally hard to drive oneself to get it done.
I'm at that juncture, especially with a job offer and some off-time in sight...kinda finding it pretty tough to get the final edits on some papers done. The motivation has taken a dip.
I'm kinda a Type-A, Type-B personality hybrid...usually very driven and ambitious but give me some time to chill out and I readily become a nice laidback Type-B. I'm just afraid of the Type-A side not kicking in. So I try not to relax too much.
Let's see...this too shall pass.
Got this huge interest of writing a novel. Social commentary garbed in a humor narrative is my favorite genre. Let's see if I can make this work. Buy a copy when it gets published ;)
I'm at that juncture, especially with a job offer and some off-time in sight...kinda finding it pretty tough to get the final edits on some papers done. The motivation has taken a dip.
I'm kinda a Type-A, Type-B personality hybrid...usually very driven and ambitious but give me some time to chill out and I readily become a nice laidback Type-B. I'm just afraid of the Type-A side not kicking in. So I try not to relax too much.
Let's see...this too shall pass.
Got this huge interest of writing a novel. Social commentary garbed in a humor narrative is my favorite genre. Let's see if I can make this work. Buy a copy when it gets published ;)
Monday, April 24, 2006
"The world has no right to change so fast"
(13:56:56) yatingadgil: i heard three buddhes within a narrow space getting &^%$in hitched(13:57:18) yatingadgil: chaila..i realize that my "single friends" grp is going to take a SIGNIFICANT hit
(13:58:28) sameerds: heheheheehehehehehe
(13:58:35) sameerds: that is true, my friend
(13:59:21) yatingadgil: im getting old and tired of making new friends:(
(13:59:39) yatingadgil: and those that are married...you cant become"new friends" with if ur single
(14:00:08) yatingadgil: it just doesnt work...its like TWO people haveto think ur not completely crazy for it to go from stage "acquaintance"to "friends"
(14:00:17) sameerds: get married, then!
(14:00:41) yatingadgil: dude im like luke...i wont let the dark side overpower me
(14:00:49) yatingadgil: to hell with han!
(14:01:30) sameerds: aah ... so whatever you are too afraid to get involved in, that is defined as the dark side, is it?
(14:02:04) yatingadgil: well that is generally true...but not relevant for this situation
(14:02:43) yatingadgil: i need to find a dedicated "going to remain single" grp to make friends(14:03:00) sameerds: hehee .... this should be of interest to you, then
(14:03:08) yatingadgil: what
(14:03:15) sameerds: hold on
(14:03:40) sameerds: (friend's blog addy revealing news of his upcoming engagement)
(14:06:10) yatingadgil: i am shocked!
(14:06:15) yatingadgil: $%^$ *^*% &#^ &*%&* &^%$
(14:06:47) yatingadgil: the world has no right to change so fast:((
(14:06:58) sameerds: hehehehehehehehe
(14:07:25) yatingadgil: him too?
(14:07:38) yatingadgil: abh usko ladki kaha mil gayi?
(13:58:28) sameerds: heheheheehehehehehe
(13:58:35) sameerds: that is true, my friend
(13:59:21) yatingadgil: im getting old and tired of making new friends:(
(13:59:39) yatingadgil: and those that are married...you cant become"new friends" with if ur single
(14:00:08) yatingadgil: it just doesnt work...its like TWO people haveto think ur not completely crazy for it to go from stage "acquaintance"to "friends"
(14:00:17) sameerds: get married, then!
(14:00:41) yatingadgil: dude im like luke...i wont let the dark side overpower me
(14:00:49) yatingadgil: to hell with han!
(14:01:30) sameerds: aah ... so whatever you are too afraid to get involved in, that is defined as the dark side, is it?
(14:02:04) yatingadgil: well that is generally true...but not relevant for this situation
(14:02:43) yatingadgil: i need to find a dedicated "going to remain single" grp to make friends(14:03:00) sameerds: hehee .... this should be of interest to you, then
(14:03:08) yatingadgil: what
(14:03:15) sameerds: hold on
(14:03:40) sameerds: (friend's blog addy revealing news of his upcoming engagement)
(14:06:10) yatingadgil: i am shocked!
(14:06:15) yatingadgil: $%^$ *^*% &#^ &*%&* &^%$
(14:06:47) yatingadgil: the world has no right to change so fast:((
(14:06:58) sameerds: hehehehehehehehe
(14:07:25) yatingadgil: him too?
(14:07:38) yatingadgil: abh usko ladki kaha mil gayi?
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Long time no blog
Last few days have been crazy with a mix of lot of work and some relaxed moments. The consulting offer has been pretty attractive with the one lil sorrow bout geography. But overall I'm enthusiastic bout the offer.
Also, I'm seeing some greenbacks come to me...via my work with a few folks.
Today has been a weird day. but aint it always.
Maybe later tonight I should spend some time and write something nice on this blog...just needed to update it some.
Also, I'm seeing some greenbacks come to me...via my work with a few folks.
Today has been a weird day. but aint it always.
Maybe later tonight I should spend some time and write something nice on this blog...just needed to update it some.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
Post spring break
The spring break was wonderful. I usually embark on a break thinking it is going to be MY time...when I would be able to put my past and present in perspective and look to what I want from my future. And, as usual, I end up vegging out doing nothing in terms of constructive thinking. Though I need add my main man, AK, helped me sort out things in my head.
Overall, it was a decent 9-10 days...began with a quiet Thursday. Went onto a hectic Friday with an interview, a job offer and a party on the back of one another. Saturday was some guests at home and chilling with a few beers Rashmi maushi got for me.
Rest of the week was a whirl of rain and relaxing, good conversation with BM, some work and generally goofing around. I can see that I'd be completely unproductive as a family guy. Thank God I'm single!
Helped BM around the house as she went on her "Revamp 2820" campaign, threw away a bunch of stuff and bought a bunch of stuff...net net the house remains crowded.
Friday the main man AK came back from India...got back a bunch of goodies...especially lot of pics. The Bbay place has turned out fab...the effort and $$s show! The Pune houses are looking good as usual. Hmmm might be interesting to figure how the flight back to Inde might look like.
Coming back was kinda crazy as the rain peaked the day I was leaving and the flight was delayed by a good 2 hrs.
Big takeaways from the spring break:
1) Watched a few movies
2) Got to read a good book
3) Realized the Mac makes for a good pic viewing experience but sucks as far as personal computer use is concerned.
4) A rain interrupted break need not always be bad
5) A break REALLY breaks the momentum for split type A/ type B personality people
Overall, it was a decent 9-10 days...began with a quiet Thursday. Went onto a hectic Friday with an interview, a job offer and a party on the back of one another. Saturday was some guests at home and chilling with a few beers Rashmi maushi got for me.
Rest of the week was a whirl of rain and relaxing, good conversation with BM, some work and generally goofing around. I can see that I'd be completely unproductive as a family guy. Thank God I'm single!
Helped BM around the house as she went on her "Revamp 2820" campaign, threw away a bunch of stuff and bought a bunch of stuff...net net the house remains crowded.
Friday the main man AK came back from India...got back a bunch of goodies...especially lot of pics. The Bbay place has turned out fab...the effort and $$s show! The Pune houses are looking good as usual. Hmmm might be interesting to figure how the flight back to Inde might look like.
Coming back was kinda crazy as the rain peaked the day I was leaving and the flight was delayed by a good 2 hrs.
Big takeaways from the spring break:
1) Watched a few movies
2) Got to read a good book
3) Realized the Mac makes for a good pic viewing experience but sucks as far as personal computer use is concerned.
4) A rain interrupted break need not always be bad
5) A break REALLY breaks the momentum for split type A/ type B personality people
Wednesday, March 15, 2006
Knotty boys- the complaints of a single guy
Your friend is getting married! Happy or sad...or something in between?
If Wonder Years talks about first falling in love (and then falling in love quite a few times later on) and American Pie talks about, ummm the pie using years, Dil Chahta Hai takes off where American Pie ends. Where DCH ends is where my current post begins. When your friends are done courting (i.e. the first few days when friends around were not only OK or welcome but also sought after because they gave you the excuse and alibi to meet the "object of desire").
An interesting anecdote from personal experience: SPG is by far one of the most fertile ground for "guy meet girl" kinda scenarios. My grp did the usual stuff ppl my age did...talk life, talk school, cars, sport, women and ah yes...ogle at any PYT that passed by. We were officially nerds , so the PYTs did not hang out with us. Some day during my first MBBS the scenario changed and my main man AG seemed to attract many women to our grp. We had a nucleus of 4-5 guys and women and some guys came on n off. Interestingly, 2-3 guys got married to women who came into our grp.
One day I saw an exceedingly handsome woman with my main man. Seeing their comfort with each other I assumed she might be a cousin. Later I realized " he liked liked her"!! Can you imagine that?
I almost certainly felt cheated! At least with one of your best friends you can expect to be involved from the phase of "I like her...should I talk to her or maybe not".
To be told FYI can most certainly be looked on as being cheated out of an important experience. Having said that VS was another good main man. He let me experience the process! It is kinda fun.
You know how you have built a boat out of a good sheet of paper and its raining heavily. You know the boat is a work of art but at the end of the day its destiny is to float away...
Friendship is like that. At 12, at 20 even at 24 your friendships keep you going. They nourish your soul and strengthen your heart. How any relationship can be better than a good friendship is still beyond me...it is a work of art, I say! Yet, its destiny is to be cast away. Some relationships break the boat's contact with the shore...some come out stronger!
The marriage of the first of your closest friends is usually a traumatic experience. It's like sharing a part of your soul with someone you don't know...possibly with someone you never grow to like. If the "other person" hurts your friend...you hate her/him for that. If she makes your friend so happy that your own contribution is marginal (at best)...you can take that badly as well.
An ideal, yet very infrequently encountered situation, where the couple bonds with a special friend so they can truthfully say "We may be a couple and can't share certain things with you...but you have a special place in our joys that even we cant take away".
Once the world knows (read: guy's n girl's parents) the alibis and excuses can be dispensed with. Then, suddenly, the friends are no longer welcome. Heck, if was welcome I wouldnt want to be around a couple newly in love...the crap they talk brings on waves of nausea and revulsion for me. Here's a couple, that met recently, trying to figure what they are going to name their kid or what kind of house they would buy first up. The topic might be normal to the surface but the interaction (where is the soap...helps me deal with the nausea).
Its weird as mush to the power infinity.
As the wedding approaches friends are welcome again...tis the season for communal joy and festivities...not merely of twosomes.
After marriage...now thats a topic all unto itself. I hope to write over this in some depth on a long dreary rainy afternoon.
The topic to explore here (and some more later) is: Where does the "friend" die or fade off and where does the "lover" or "relationship man" arise from? Was it always there in him, like a seed waiting to strike root and grow or is it actually the love of a woman drawing water from stone?
There seems to be more proof for the first hypothesis. But you never saw it! You never knew your friends had it in them to neglect many friendship for the love of one woman. The same person who called you out of the med school library for an arbit game of ping pong or the friend who made you go on a bike ride for gas and ended up driving 25 km in wild rain to have THAT perfect cutting chai in Nerul...is no more. The spontaneity is dead! and what lives of it is reserved for the spouse. Is this innate behavior or do we do this because we see others around us (parents, older siblings, aunts n uncles) do it?
Why is spontaneity with friends the cost of the love of a woman? Does the woman seek this sacrifice of spontaneity as her "pound of flesh" or is this (even more scarily) the way your friend prefers it?
Sam asked a good question: So after all this venting...errr...is this good or bad "friend" to "lover" transition". The answer is contextual...whose point of view are we looking from.
It's obviously good for the woman and possibly for the guy (though the jury is still out on that one). You won't hear these groans and complaints from married men "friends"...for some/most parts the "friend" inside them is replaced by the relationship man. They dont miss it. They can also identify with it. You will hear single friends cry for a boat that floated away too far, out of sight but not out of mind.
Reminds me of this "not so related to the topic" line from Wyatt Earp
Character: Why you doing this for Wyatt? You know its dangerous...you can get killed!
Doc: Cuz Wyatt's my good friend
Character: Heck, I got lotsa good friends!
Doc: I don't...
If Wonder Years talks about first falling in love (and then falling in love quite a few times later on) and American Pie talks about, ummm the pie using years, Dil Chahta Hai takes off where American Pie ends. Where DCH ends is where my current post begins. When your friends are done courting (i.e. the first few days when friends around were not only OK or welcome but also sought after because they gave you the excuse and alibi to meet the "object of desire").
An interesting anecdote from personal experience: SPG is by far one of the most fertile ground for "guy meet girl" kinda scenarios. My grp did the usual stuff ppl my age did...talk life, talk school, cars, sport, women and ah yes...ogle at any PYT that passed by. We were officially nerds , so the PYTs did not hang out with us. Some day during my first MBBS the scenario changed and my main man AG seemed to attract many women to our grp. We had a nucleus of 4-5 guys and women and some guys came on n off. Interestingly, 2-3 guys got married to women who came into our grp.
One day I saw an exceedingly handsome woman with my main man. Seeing their comfort with each other I assumed she might be a cousin. Later I realized " he liked liked her"!! Can you imagine that?
I almost certainly felt cheated! At least with one of your best friends you can expect to be involved from the phase of "I like her...should I talk to her or maybe not".
To be told FYI can most certainly be looked on as being cheated out of an important experience. Having said that VS was another good main man. He let me experience the process! It is kinda fun.
You know how you have built a boat out of a good sheet of paper and its raining heavily. You know the boat is a work of art but at the end of the day its destiny is to float away...
Friendship is like that. At 12, at 20 even at 24 your friendships keep you going. They nourish your soul and strengthen your heart. How any relationship can be better than a good friendship is still beyond me...it is a work of art, I say! Yet, its destiny is to be cast away. Some relationships break the boat's contact with the shore...some come out stronger!
The marriage of the first of your closest friends is usually a traumatic experience. It's like sharing a part of your soul with someone you don't know...possibly with someone you never grow to like. If the "other person" hurts your friend...you hate her/him for that. If she makes your friend so happy that your own contribution is marginal (at best)...you can take that badly as well.
An ideal, yet very infrequently encountered situation, where the couple bonds with a special friend so they can truthfully say "We may be a couple and can't share certain things with you...but you have a special place in our joys that even we cant take away".
Once the world knows (read: guy's n girl's parents) the alibis and excuses can be dispensed with. Then, suddenly, the friends are no longer welcome. Heck, if was welcome I wouldnt want to be around a couple newly in love...the crap they talk brings on waves of nausea and revulsion for me. Here's a couple, that met recently, trying to figure what they are going to name their kid or what kind of house they would buy first up. The topic might be normal to the surface but the interaction (where is the soap...helps me deal with the nausea).
Its weird as mush to the power infinity.
As the wedding approaches friends are welcome again...tis the season for communal joy and festivities...not merely of twosomes.
After marriage...now thats a topic all unto itself. I hope to write over this in some depth on a long dreary rainy afternoon.
The topic to explore here (and some more later) is: Where does the "friend" die or fade off and where does the "lover" or "relationship man" arise from? Was it always there in him, like a seed waiting to strike root and grow or is it actually the love of a woman drawing water from stone?
There seems to be more proof for the first hypothesis. But you never saw it! You never knew your friends had it in them to neglect many friendship for the love of one woman. The same person who called you out of the med school library for an arbit game of ping pong or the friend who made you go on a bike ride for gas and ended up driving 25 km in wild rain to have THAT perfect cutting chai in Nerul...is no more. The spontaneity is dead! and what lives of it is reserved for the spouse. Is this innate behavior or do we do this because we see others around us (parents, older siblings, aunts n uncles) do it?
Why is spontaneity with friends the cost of the love of a woman? Does the woman seek this sacrifice of spontaneity as her "pound of flesh" or is this (even more scarily) the way your friend prefers it?
Sam asked a good question: So after all this venting...errr...is this good or bad "friend" to "lover" transition". The answer is contextual...whose point of view are we looking from.
It's obviously good for the woman and possibly for the guy (though the jury is still out on that one). You won't hear these groans and complaints from married men "friends"...for some/most parts the "friend" inside them is replaced by the relationship man. They dont miss it. They can also identify with it. You will hear single friends cry for a boat that floated away too far, out of sight but not out of mind.
Reminds me of this "not so related to the topic" line from Wyatt Earp
Character: Why you doing this for Wyatt? You know its dangerous...you can get killed!
Doc: Cuz Wyatt's my good friend
Character: Heck, I got lotsa good friends!
Doc: I don't...
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Drops of rain
What relevance does the title have to what I am going to write?
Absolutely nothing!
Just that I couldnt think of a title that was better than this one (talk about poverty of ideas huh)
Random thought 1: Time flies by really fast!
I thought I blogged a few days back...I looked at the post date and realized the last post is 8-9 days old (that might as well have been in the Triassic Age).
What have the last few days been like?
Not special...with the feeling fo dread enveloping me like a shroud...at the thought that my Business plan wasnt going to well (or wasnt moving at ALL).
But, now, I have a few interviews in the bag...some real biggies!
By tomorrow the B plan will be a broken arrow...out of my control. All we can do is hope for the presentation to be a winner. Otherwise 5 external VCs and Jon and Molly...yikes! Our asses are going to be crisp toast.
I fly out to the Bay area in a few days for an interview. Should be fun!
AND spring break comes up.
Let's see what the next couple of weeks and months have to bring up in life.
Random thought 2: We are too optimistic that a foreseen joy would gives us more joy (than it really would) and feel a foreseen/unforeseen hit would hurt us more (than it really would).
Is there really a solution to this problem. I'm guessing we could be really happy people if we figure this one out.
Random thought 3: Its raining cats and dogs here in Southern Calif.
So, as you can imagine, there are lots of cats and dogs around...those that landed well are running around...those that had a crash landing...well I dont need to say more, you can imagine.
Random thought 4: I have a craving for some food right now.
The problem is...I dont know which one. Maybe it is a good paratha...or is it a juicy burger. Hmmm maybe that nice big chunky burrito up in the Bay area. Or maybe chaat.
I give up!
Absolutely nothing!
Just that I couldnt think of a title that was better than this one (talk about poverty of ideas huh)
Random thought 1: Time flies by really fast!
I thought I blogged a few days back...I looked at the post date and realized the last post is 8-9 days old (that might as well have been in the Triassic Age).
What have the last few days been like?
Not special...with the feeling fo dread enveloping me like a shroud...at the thought that my Business plan wasnt going to well (or wasnt moving at ALL).
But, now, I have a few interviews in the bag...some real biggies!
By tomorrow the B plan will be a broken arrow...out of my control. All we can do is hope for the presentation to be a winner. Otherwise 5 external VCs and Jon and Molly...yikes! Our asses are going to be crisp toast.
I fly out to the Bay area in a few days for an interview. Should be fun!
AND spring break comes up.
Let's see what the next couple of weeks and months have to bring up in life.
Random thought 2: We are too optimistic that a foreseen joy would gives us more joy (than it really would) and feel a foreseen/unforeseen hit would hurt us more (than it really would).
Is there really a solution to this problem. I'm guessing we could be really happy people if we figure this one out.
Random thought 3: Its raining cats and dogs here in Southern Calif.
So, as you can imagine, there are lots of cats and dogs around...those that landed well are running around...those that had a crash landing...well I dont need to say more, you can imagine.
Random thought 4: I have a craving for some food right now.
The problem is...I dont know which one. Maybe it is a good paratha...or is it a juicy burger. Hmmm maybe that nice big chunky burrito up in the Bay area. Or maybe chaat.
I give up!
Monday, February 20, 2006
Sick as a dawg
Post- party downs I have heard of. But this is hitting ridiculous depths.
The bug is vicious...I think it has something to do with all the antibiotics people in the US ingest leading to weirdly distorted bugs. I guess that doesnt hold true if its a virus...but whatever it is, sure sucks!
Missed the wine tasting session with the wine grp...but ended up going for the Woody Allen movie. As usual, he was funny, but I wasnt upto any humor (MAN! I must be sick).
Going home early today...hopefully tomorrow, by the time I wake up, the bug might have packed bag baggage and sleeping gear and left for good. Got lotsa work to do.
The bug is vicious...I think it has something to do with all the antibiotics people in the US ingest leading to weirdly distorted bugs. I guess that doesnt hold true if its a virus...but whatever it is, sure sucks!
Missed the wine tasting session with the wine grp...but ended up going for the Woody Allen movie. As usual, he was funny, but I wasnt upto any humor (MAN! I must be sick).
Going home early today...hopefully tomorrow, by the time I wake up, the bug might have packed bag baggage and sleeping gear and left for good. Got lotsa work to do.
A great weekend
So I was over in Diamond Bar Friday evening for Widster's party and then the entire gang proceeded to Anaheim for some family mayhem...and how!
Friday: AM to PM was a chaotic time with lot of work on my report still to get done though I had spent the better part of the night getting it in shape. Had to miss the Clin Pharm lecture for that.
Got into the term sheet negotiation...and that was a bitch!
Vic can be a nut case...but Friday was ridiculous. Not only had the gang come unprepared they had no specific position they were defending. Everything was because "I think so".
So we ended up giving them equity but getting a stranglehold on control. Not sure I liked the company at all...but what the heck!
Ran over home to prep...got into my (by now) favorite silk shirt and jacket. Got my bag ready. Archu maushi's billing guy, Venkat gave me a ride after what seemed an entire eternity. Officer killing delayed proceedings for some time. And it was already 8:00 pm for a party beginning 7:30pm. I'm usually not late...but really cant help it when I have no control over the proceedings whatsoever.
The party was fun cuz of the cousin gang. The guests might just be restrained...but there was an element of (how should I put it) formality. Quite unlike the New Years party, which had no pretenses...most everybody was their real self.
Needless to say, after 31st Dec memories I did not dance...the Diamond Bar residents and Archu maushi's friends dont know they were saved by an act of omission.
We stayed up late that night...all of us and had a great time chatting up and basically being 10 yrs old...which, incidentally, is my mental age when I'm with my younger cousins.
Sat: Kinda did not dawn as early and bright as I would have liked it. Got up kinda late but there was good food to be had with pots of incredible tea and you know thats what an ideal Saturday morning is like.
General messing around followed the food.
Ro wanted to go to Sandigo...we held back cuz it was our good maushi n kaka's 19th wedding anniversary. That evening promised to be sad cuz the gang decided to go to movies and I dont really like going to movies unless something exceptional is showing (which it want).
Luckily, they decided to change the plan to go for a long walk...and so we did. A nice 3-4 mile long walk! I moved around initially with the cousin gang talking up bull and then with the maushi gang listening to them talk about some of the maushis and our trip back in Inde (note: none of it was malicious).
Back from the walk, got read yto go for din din...its a wonder what a long walk can do to your appetite. Went to Benihana...my first experience with Hibachi or Teppan yaki style cooking. It was interesting for sure. Big Ro piled onto my Saporro (as expected). Came back to another late night...slept at 3 am only to wake up 7:30 am. Got packed and left for Claremont by 9:30 or 10 am. Oh ya, gotta mention the breakfast...I had possibly one of the best omlettes I had ever had. It was simply incredible!
Today was a down day...just chilling and finished the report by 1 am and sent it out.
Tomorrow, will be the beginning of another interesting week.
Friday: AM to PM was a chaotic time with lot of work on my report still to get done though I had spent the better part of the night getting it in shape. Had to miss the Clin Pharm lecture for that.
Got into the term sheet negotiation...and that was a bitch!
Vic can be a nut case...but Friday was ridiculous. Not only had the gang come unprepared they had no specific position they were defending. Everything was because "I think so".
So we ended up giving them equity but getting a stranglehold on control. Not sure I liked the company at all...but what the heck!
Ran over home to prep...got into my (by now) favorite silk shirt and jacket. Got my bag ready. Archu maushi's billing guy, Venkat gave me a ride after what seemed an entire eternity. Officer killing delayed proceedings for some time. And it was already 8:00 pm for a party beginning 7:30pm. I'm usually not late...but really cant help it when I have no control over the proceedings whatsoever.
The party was fun cuz of the cousin gang. The guests might just be restrained...but there was an element of (how should I put it) formality. Quite unlike the New Years party, which had no pretenses...most everybody was their real self.
Needless to say, after 31st Dec memories I did not dance...the Diamond Bar residents and Archu maushi's friends dont know they were saved by an act of omission.
We stayed up late that night...all of us and had a great time chatting up and basically being 10 yrs old...which, incidentally, is my mental age when I'm with my younger cousins.
Sat: Kinda did not dawn as early and bright as I would have liked it. Got up kinda late but there was good food to be had with pots of incredible tea and you know thats what an ideal Saturday morning is like.
General messing around followed the food.
Ro wanted to go to Sandigo...we held back cuz it was our good maushi n kaka's 19th wedding anniversary. That evening promised to be sad cuz the gang decided to go to movies and I dont really like going to movies unless something exceptional is showing (which it want).
Luckily, they decided to change the plan to go for a long walk...and so we did. A nice 3-4 mile long walk! I moved around initially with the cousin gang talking up bull and then with the maushi gang listening to them talk about some of the maushis and our trip back in Inde (note: none of it was malicious).
Back from the walk, got read yto go for din din...its a wonder what a long walk can do to your appetite. Went to Benihana...my first experience with Hibachi or Teppan yaki style cooking. It was interesting for sure. Big Ro piled onto my Saporro (as expected). Came back to another late night...slept at 3 am only to wake up 7:30 am. Got packed and left for Claremont by 9:30 or 10 am. Oh ya, gotta mention the breakfast...I had possibly one of the best omlettes I had ever had. It was simply incredible!
Today was a down day...just chilling and finished the report by 1 am and sent it out.
Tomorrow, will be the beginning of another interesting week.
Thursday, February 16, 2006
Crazy busy days
MAN! We need to petition God to increase the no. of hrs in a day. I mean, sure, 24 hrs were OK when people slept around for 10 yrs in neanderthal land and era and WORK meant chasing a deer down for food, or setting up a trap for some other small animal or simply just picking fruit from trees.
Heck, it even worked in a socialist era when you went to work by 9 and before you knew it, were home by 5-6 pm.
But capitalism is a different kettle of fish! If I wake up at 8 and get to school I already feel like I have wasted the day...and this is when I'm in school till...ummm...2 am. So in the interest of development and achievement, God needs to make a ...yes! 30 hr day. Now that could rock!
Well, today is going to be working on the report for my super interesting consulting gig...helps that it is with a VC firm. Tomorrow evening is off to Diamond bar and thence to Anaheim Hills. Tomorrow is going to rock! Hopefully.
Let me leave you with a nice pic of the spectacular view from my gramps place in Pune...can ya believe it, this is in the heart of the city.
Heck, it even worked in a socialist era when you went to work by 9 and before you knew it, were home by 5-6 pm.
But capitalism is a different kettle of fish! If I wake up at 8 and get to school I already feel like I have wasted the day...and this is when I'm in school till...ummm...2 am. So in the interest of development and achievement, God needs to make a ...yes! 30 hr day. Now that could rock!
Well, today is going to be working on the report for my super interesting consulting gig...helps that it is with a VC firm. Tomorrow evening is off to Diamond bar and thence to Anaheim Hills. Tomorrow is going to rock! Hopefully.
Let me leave you with a nice pic of the spectacular view from my gramps place in Pune...can ya believe it, this is in the heart of the city.
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Another day
Do you experience one of those times when every day seems like the one before it...and the one before it...on and on.
Today just has got to be one of those days.
Is this passage of empty, unspectacular days normal? Do we just expect too much out of every day?
The more I think about it, I am convinced we increasingly expect more from life...every second, every day, every year. A moment of pause makes us uneasy and anxious. A sense of depression prevails in such situation. "Carpe diem" goes the rally...seize the day!
Is it really necessary to seize the day? Can we let the day seize us and still go with the flow without feeling the sense of depression prevail over us?
Today just has got to be one of those days.
Is this passage of empty, unspectacular days normal? Do we just expect too much out of every day?
The more I think about it, I am convinced we increasingly expect more from life...every second, every day, every year. A moment of pause makes us uneasy and anxious. A sense of depression prevails in such situation. "Carpe diem" goes the rally...seize the day!
Is it really necessary to seize the day? Can we let the day seize us and still go with the flow without feeling the sense of depression prevail over us?
Monday, February 13, 2006
Blog-on it
OK so I used to blog on n off before I went to India for the break. Came back into a completely chaotic schedule and...as always...a good thing stopped, albeit temporarily.
So I come back to the blog spot, a rejuvenated man...back to tell my tale. Heck, I must have one of the most boring lives around So Cal. WTF!
I come to school around 9-10 am and end up here until....ummmm...2-3 am.
With a life like that, what can you really experience to shove into a blog, HUH huh huh?
Let's take a shot though!
Go off home for a bite and then some random memories from ze Injun trip.
So I come back to the blog spot, a rejuvenated man...back to tell my tale. Heck, I must have one of the most boring lives around So Cal. WTF!
I come to school around 9-10 am and end up here until....ummmm...2-3 am.
With a life like that, what can you really experience to shove into a blog, HUH huh huh?
Let's take a shot though!
Go off home for a bite and then some random memories from ze Injun trip.
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