No Hidden Depths

2009-12-11T13:50:00.000-08:00

Mahni chanchin leh ngaihtuahna "sawi chhuah vak" hi ka peih zawng ani tawh lo e.

/Not interested in 'this' blogging thing anymore, it was good while it lasted...Hohoho! I guess it was just a fad :)

So dear visitor,

Merry Christmas!!

Best

Strange Woman

2009-05-21T10:35:00.000-07:00

R came down with a few bunch of his friends this Tuesday. - as wifey isn't here, so my house is kind of a 'hang-out' place for them, I don't mind. After finishing the beer that R brought, we went out for a drive to play pool, all the way to Salt Lake. As the manager put it "..the only club/bar in calcutta where you can smoke and drink."

Oh well.

Once there, our friend Scott (we just jokingly call him that, he's Indian) got engaged with a group of ladies from Xaviers, who more than welcomed him. As he's one of us who isn't married, we just let him be. From the look of his face, I knew he was irritated with the blaring bollywood music in the background and all I could see was him shouting at her ears.

A few minutes later, they parted, and he came and joined me.

Scott: "Strange woman..."

Me: "What happened?"

Scott: "Well, I asked her where she was from and she said 'THE US'...some NRI crap, you know. Well Jimmy., just to have my own trip, I asked her 'what part of India is that?' and she kind of looked at me funnily and said South India"

Me: Okay

/I had a good laugh nonetheless

Turning 32...it IS special

2009-05-16T13:12:00.002-07:00

Spent most of the night alone. Went to a club with R, played pool with his boring friend...Talked to Nepali Raja and Captain - All that 'Nepali' could tell me was about the @#$% that's happening in Kathmandu - yeah, his Dad was a Mayor in Kathmandu.

"Why the fuck did you allow those elite 'shit' in Kathmandu exploit those folks in the villages?"

"Jimmy, I don't want to talk about that now. Just call me in this @#$% number..ok?"

Lots of developments:

Rupen is married - LOL (Love you bro, miss your company a lot! - the authentic Mizo stuff is still on the way) :D

An announcement: As Insi put it, this would 'probably' be the last birthday that I 'might' celebrate as a non-parent. Yeah right, Ateii's pregnant.

Missed the presence of Dad and Ateii a lot on this 32nd birthday.

For Dad (from Kolkata)

...

HOME

2009-05-04T22:10:00.001-07:00

This happens - always! I come back from a vacation/holiday, enter my apartment, and I end up asking, "Is this home? Is this where I belong?" Whenever I go for my vacations - that could be going back to saddi dilli, or going to a place called 'home' in Aizawl. Since 1999, I've been moving around - Delhi, Pune, Chandigarh, Chennai, now Kolkata. Yeah, Microsoft - Beijing was another call. All I end up asking myself is "Where do I belong?"

What is HOME? Where is it? Am I a Delhiite? Is my home in a place called Mizoram? Thanks to someone, I happened to hear of a THING called Third Culture Kids. Am I one? I think so. I'm just a misfit everywhere, be it Delhi, Mizoram or Pune. Gosh, I shudder at the thought of having my kid being as confused as I am.

Off topic blabber - I go home on vacation to our good ol' house in Rohini or say Aizawl. My thoughts meander at one thing - the cobbler is still there, the barber has a new 'machine', the 'General store' owner who used to some cheap Deo(s) now sells 'parfums', and the errant and loud Dilli neighbour is still there. Nothing, NOTHING has changed but what have I noticed is, I have changed and it is ME who has changed. I look at the place differently . I look at all of it so differently. Gypsy for life?

WTF, we are celibate???

2009-03-13T22:22:00.000-07:00

I come home after a ****d up skype meeting with L (U.K) , P (Hungary) , H (Romania) and R (U.S) - R is the guy who's the big boss. My ******g 40 page proposal for the documentation process was rejected.

So I reach home...

Wifey: "My dear chu a hah em?"

Jimmy: *grumble* *grumble*

Jimmy: *takes off his shirt, settles down, opens the laptop and continues the skype meeting* as MomNomNom-in-law , wifey, and Becky watch "THE" Animal Planet.

Few seconds later...

Wifey: "Would you mind telling the folks at your blog that 'IT' didn't happen?"

Jimmy: "You mean, I tell them that we don't have sex?"

Love you dearness! :))

'Hnek ang aw!'

2009-02-15T09:48:00.000-08:00

Well, that Mizo language title translates in English to "Let's punch it/him/her!" It's a stress-relieving activity, seriously. Last night when wifey and I laid in bed staring and surveying the ceiling, we talked about 'punching' something/someone!. You know, just 'take it out'.. well, we ended up having sex - bahahaha!

We are all made to think that sex-based relationships are taboo and non-seasoned. Yeah, things do get stale in the fridge very 'soon'. More on this crap later. Yeah, in the mean fucking time, punch that thing, mormons!

2009-02-05T18:37:00.000-08:00

Rest in peace dear, I'll miss you. I hope you are happy with the coffin that I designed for you. I'm sorry that I had to let you go. We shared so many things together and you know that no one knows me more than you do *sniff* /s

Welcome, dearest. You better keep up with my ol' friend above.

The curious case of why I disappeared....

2009-01-17T12:35:00.001-08:00

EDIT: Yeah, I love sarcasm and if you don't get it...I'd suggest that you move on to another blog.

The curious case of why I disappeared....To be honest, I changed my blog's password when I was with a friend and high on ‘Sula’ mixed with 'Obama knows what' - not a good thing to do, seriously. And then felt that blogging is such a ‘loser’ thing to do, you know, it’s only lonely people who have no friends, no social life - yeah, it's people like these who blog *grins*.

Luck gave me a chance when I was sober and I was able to answer that "Favorite teacher in school" question correctly, so here I am - hoping that Google won't ask me such *tough* questions again.

After that infatuated move to a ****'d up place called Chennai, I'm in a 'better' ****'d up place called Kolkata, life is full circle now!

Let's summarize 2008 - you know, New Year, New thoughts, plans for 2009, a time to reminisce etc etc

Atei and I met in March, 2008 . We clicked and 'connected' instantly – yeah reader, it was INSTANT - *Damn, I love folks who use ALL CAPS!* (and BOLD it)
I proposed three weeks after meeting her. (My now) MomNomNom-in-law called me to the drawing room and asked, “Why do you want to marry her?” (the MOST unpredictable question I have heard till date) "Ateii hi natinge i neih duh?" As you might have noticed, it wasn’t the usual “Why should I hire you?
With the kind of gestures that I made to MomNomNom-in-law, no MomNomNom would hire me.
Work/office etc: got a room with a view, as in, no more cubicles – gaak! I hate cubicles!
Social life in Kolkata: Robin is here and so is Chhangte. We don’t get to meet much, but they have given me IMMENSE support and helped out a lot when I first moved in to this place. Yeah, these guys have a family and are married. What I mean is, I can’t mingle with "you" bachelors and bachelorettes who are interested in strippers, blogging...you know, stuff'(s)' that "Unmarried people do"…*GRIN*
Wife’s miscarriage: The incident hit us hard! To summarize my feelings, all I wanted to do was pick up that kid who’s out there on the street and bring him home (or at times, take/kidnap Robin's daughter or Chhangte's son)
2009 and the years ahead? Haven’t thought about it. Though I do have plans of winning a lottery - Obama tells me "Yes, you Can!"

2008-12-24T13:38:00.000-08:00

"Christmas Chocolates at my desk, Merry Christmas everyone! :)"

One by one they cAme

Well, that's how yesterday started.... December. 24th.

Update: 25th December is here - Merry Christmas, dear visitor...

2008-03-07T04:56:00.000-08:00

Where the hell have you been?
Chennai, still here.

I have:

a. Got a brand new job
b. Been promoted (I'll keep that short)
c. Bought a guitar
d. Experienced a psychotic break**, highlighted by uncontrollable fits of drinking alcohol, followed usually by quiet weeping. Still drinking (LOSER!)
e. All of the above

Stay tuned, will try to update more often!

2008-02-11T21:06:00.000-08:00

Small update...this blog is still alive :D

2007-11-30T14:09:00.000-08:00

Captain, has changed
Abdi, my Ethiopian friend has changed,

Chandigarh's 'rose garden' is not what it used to be,
Well, you won't find that famous
"Black Rose" here anymore,

Driving around Chandigarh at 1AM has changed,
It was different a year ago

Changes happen,
That I deal with,
Friends who are changing,
Old friends with a new attitude

jimmy or nohiddendepths?

2007-11-20T09:51:00.000-08:00

I'm freakingly @#@$-ng confused! "What name/nick do I use to comment on this blog?"

Tonight, I wanted to comment on a blog as nohiddendepths and then the thought that the person might not recognize me, I ended up commenting as jimmy, with a link to lawrkhawm.com. Crazy eh! Seriously, I'm starting to get the feeling that I might be the first case of an identity crisees in the blog world.

Now, there was a time when I had this little blog and a place where I could rant about my daily chores/'frustru' incidents, which was 'relaxed' and OK. And then one day, I suddenly have this crazy idea of creating a site. Yeah! now that I think of it, it was CRAZY, rather IDIOTIC-that's lazy jimmy speaking for you.

Well, the whole point of this post is that the next time you see a 'jimmy' with a link to lawrkhawm.com, know that it is ME, yes, your good ol' nohiddendepths/jimmy.

Looks like I already have 3 identities in the blog world - the real life Jimmy that you know in (as a) person, and well, these two online identities, jimmy and nohiddendepths :P

2007-11-04T11:03:00.000-08:00

My love.. Love.. Love.. Mwah Mwah Mwah... Will call you at ****

As old as I am, I shouldn't be taking that too seriously, but hey,

I'm *cough-cough-ing* too loudly?

*jimmy shows his palmS to the monitor*

2007-10-26T12:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, so who's an asshole or a bitch?

Ans 1: a person who says something, but does something else.
Ans 2: A person who does something and says something else.

....I equate that to 'Integration/Differentiation' sometimes

Yeah, nobody likes a hypocrite....are you one?
PS: Comments NOT solicited, just...uhhh...THINK about it..K :)

2007-10-22T09:48:00.000-07:00

My friends....
Some are now husbands,
and some are now wives,
Some are now busy friends,
While some are faithful sons,
And if you're a friend,
I don't think we'll start a conversation with a dumb...
"How's life?"

2007-10-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

So after that debacle in that interview in Noida, Delhi, I was escorted back to the domestic airport in Delhi (the flight was 'luckily' delayed by an hour). Captain reached the place...chit chatted for about an hour, and well...
"Ya, what time is it now?"
We felt we had sat long enough on the parking lot...
"5:30"
"They said it was rescheduled at 6:30, right?"
"Ya..."
"...let's go and check out the timings again..."
I've missed a lot of buses, trains, and for that matter *expensive* flights.
However much I enjoyed my talk with Captain that day, and the thought of leaving the conversation..I didn't want to MISS this flight that was gonna take me HOME-to Chennai!
*Yeah, that's what I felt, i just wanted to get back here. Or maybe I just wanted to leave Delhi*
Things aren't rescheduled when you wish they were. And nor was the flight.
I asked for a hug, and as always, Captain didn't find that necessary.
"Oh, cut that shit!" *o' chhod yaar...*
"You're looking good today, OK. And yes, you will get the job. We're gonna put up in Noida together...OK. "
"Yeah, let's see... :) ...thanks man!
"...take care buddy...OK, don't worry too much"
Waved a bit, and I was off.
Loitered around in the airport, looked around for a place to smoke and ended up smoking 2-3 ciggys...thanks to a CISF guy who told me 'where' I could smoke.
The flight was not bad...
Entered the flight, asked the stewardess for a Combiflam or a Paracetamol of some sorts and a shawl. And the rest, was the usual circus.
Other than that, that 2 hours talk I had with Captain sufficed as a vacation, actually.

hey JIMMY! what happened to you?

2007-10-12T13:44:00.001-07:00

Nothing really....

"Hi Jimmy, this is XYZ calling from ABC. Where have you reached?"

"Hi XYZ, I'm good! I'm in Chennai. Thanks for calling up, I've got the tickets and I'll reach there tomorrow as scheduled."

'Ok'

10 minutes pass. An hour passes.

"Hi Jimmy, XYZ here. Today is the 26th! your ticket was booked for today."

"No, I thought TOMORROW was the 26th"

"Oh God, your ticket was booked for today. The cab driver also called and he said he didn't find you at the airport"

"But..but, like you said, I 'just' thought that my interview was scheduled for Thursday"

"Jimmy, the ticket was booked for today. Oh well, I'll tell my manager about it. Don't worry, we'll take care of it. Tell asdf (my going to be boss) that you couldn't come because you were sick, else I'll have to pay for the tickets *she says that with a smile*:

"Thanks XYZ, its my fault that I didn't take care of the day and date. I just thought that I had to come there on a Thursday"

"No, that's my fault. I was telling you all the time that it was Thursday, when the 26th was actually a Wednesday" "....and I'll be able to convince my manager. I'll book your flight for tomorrow morning, same time?"

"Oh nevermind. But thanks a lot, I guess I haven't made a very good impression."

"No, I'll talk to my manager about it. All the best"

Well, my ticket was booked...and all I did was wait 4 hours to see the HR guy and well, I didn't get the job...

Highlight: G was in gurgaon and well, having told him about my plans/outcome, he came by to see me off. Luckily, my return flight was delayed for an hour and well, we caught up with things in Chandigarh :)

I thought I missed Delhi, but I don't think that I miss it that badly :)

2007-10-04T13:37:00.000-07:00

Life hasn't changed much. And no, its not about calvin or hobbes.

get up calvin i'm not going to call you again
i bet
you're going to miss the bus now get out of bed
you don't know the answer then sit down
hey twinky want to see if there's an afterlife
no you can't go play until you finish your homework
just eat your food you don't need to play with it
stop stalling in get in the bathtub
no you can't stay up a little longer go to bed
have a good night's sleep tomorrow's another big day
sighhhh

2007-07-09T09:10:00.000-07:00

Arrr, no blogging for a long time now. Jimmy has been busy, damn busy! guess how?
So, there's this site that I've been working on for a longgg time. Damn, its not easy maintaining a site. The site's called lawrkhawm.com (roughly translated, lawrkhawm means, a 'collection' in Mizo). Its based on digg and uses pligg (an open source thingy). So everyday, for the last few months, I scour the Web looking for news related to Mizoram and update the site. Sometimes, its not always Mizoram related but trust me, it sure takes a lot of time trying to find content that users of your site would want to vote or comment to.
Thanks to the users and some online friends like calliopia, the site is kept updated. So here's what has been happening lately:-

I'm starting to think if coming to Chennai was the wisest move. (grins, someone is going to laugh at me like anything!)
I miss home (Delhi), tired of this 'Bandit' life, moving around India, one job after the other. Want to be at home with family and be of some USE to the family.
Working for a start-up and product company is SURELY different, give it a try, you'll feel the pulse of it (e.g. salaries being credited on the 5th of a month)
Went to a highway (and a beach) they call "East Coast Road". Loved it, you'll forget marina or Gandhi beach once you're there.
Avoided watching Sivaji on the hall for my own selfish reasons (regret it now, should have watched it)
Its really cool when the Technical head (40+, US returned, knows binaries and embedded systems.... etc etc) of your company keeps asking you about "when are you getting a guitar?" He's a Tamil, loves the guitar and music, and reminded me of nanz.

There, that's all I have, Tenti isn't online these days but should've talked to her when she was. N**T has the most brilliant (and 'hatke') minds working for them, believe me.
And here's hoping that life's treating you damn well. Tinkertoon, WhenTF are you gonna call up???

2007-06-17T09:27:00.000-07:00

I miss a place, the smell, and an aura that I can only smell-Dilli!

2007-05-11T01:25:00.000-07:00

Well, last November was the first time I ever saw an ocean in my life. More than being an overwhelming experience, it was humbling .
As I sat and watched the waves hit the shores, I could hear the ocean mocking me.

"Look at me and look at yourself. Look how insignificant you are."

I kept quiet, looked at the ships on the horizon and all i could think of was,

"I know"

"Do you know what I can do"

"A tsunami?"

"I let you know that there are somethings left and that you are allowed to dream."

Keep Walking

2007-03-29T13:27:00.000-07:00

Yes, I'm in Chennai - nanz's city...
For the first time in my professional career, I'm making this MOVE because of someone I have given my heart to...

Consider this:
"There are plenty of jobs in Bang'ore, hyd, NCR - Delhi, why chennai?"
"Well, my partner *dot dot dot*... she's working with ABC airlines, so.......that's why...."
It was more of a discussion than an interview...

so here I am...

I'll miss Chandigarh for reasons that I only know....Illusions stopping over with Amit and uttering that "you are living LARGE". Now LARGE and BIG might sound complimentary. But then, as tinkertoon put it, "its all relative" ....

Illusions, nanz, mojo, I'm missing you...I miss working with you!

So, here are the highlights of my first day in City Chennai...sounds abrupt, but then:-

Silently prayed when the flight landed
"Reported" to her
Called up Dad
Sent an SMS to Captain (he won't like me saying that I miss him etc, but I WAS missing him :)
"Reported" to her (again),
Reach this place called nanganallur (where I've been sneakily...visiting her since last September), went online, commented a thing or two,
Called up KK (Hyderabad), Aashish(bangalore), AABDI(Chandigarh, one African guy I TRUST), TLUANGA (my friend and brotha),
Finally CAPTAIN (who didn't find it necessary).
Oh, Nepal "naresh" also called up from Kathmandu (Well, he's finally going for that DJ'ngineering course in Copenhagen :)

Oh btw, this is how I look these days :D

2007-02-13T12:55:00.000-08:00

In life you do things because you have to, sometimes you do things because you want to, and then there are things that you do for love.

It’s already Valentine’s day and the one thing that I give a heads-up to my girlfriend is her tolerating my fart’ing’. I don’t give the stinking and loud fart that most guys do, but its a cute fart-you know the ones with a poot sound. Now you must be wondering how can a fart be Cute? well, that’s how she describes my fart as.

“It’s cute because its similar to the sound when our kitty sneezes” *sigh, you have to give it to women*

Prior to meeting her, I never knew I farted. It seems that after a few minutes I go off to sleep, I go poot.

“Honey, don’t worry. It’s barely audible!”

Time passed and one Valentine’s Day, she couldn’t bear it anymore and well, we had a fight about it.

“Fuck you and your farting!”

“Well, fuck you too!”

“I’m going to sleep”

“So am I”

“Stay in the other room”

“and you stay right here”

“Fine”

“HaHa”

“Now what?”

“I love you”

“I love you too”

A kiss on the lips, a hug, a nose rub and she curls up on the bed.

“Goodnight love, Happy Valentine’s Day”

“Love you too…Happy Valentine’s Day”

Thirty minutes pass.

Poot!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that was the best Valentine post I could come up with

It’s not you that chooses whom to love, its love that chooses you : )

Life sure gets complicated when you're in love.

Love, I'm just joking...

2007-01-13T02:42:00.000-08:00

2007 is here...Doh!

So the second week of 2007 is already here...hmmmm *strokes his Chinki beard like pai mei did*

The boldest thought I have had so far: 2007 is going to be a great year! *lights up a cigarette and says "bull$#1t"*

And for those of you who forwarded the forwarded sms I forwarded you on New Year's Eve, you are as unoriginal as me.

I wished you a happy new year when 2006 started and I will wish a happy new year when 2007 ends. BTW, If you thought that the SMS I sent you didn't have any thoughts behind it, you are very wrong! :)

BTW, here's 2007 as I see it:-

Baghdad will continue to be on the news (was that supposed to be "in "?)...a bomb blast here, a bomb blast there....(I'm political, but too lazy to do anything about it)
Bombay will be flooded again (mawhahahaha)
We will have some "manufactured artist(s)/band(s)" that your teenage sis and my sis will go crazy for
Bush will deploy something something bomb or some 2000000000000000000000 troops in some country
Bollywood actors... e.g. John Abraham will appear in a "special" Chi"rs"tmas Program" where your 5 year old kid might ask him who his first crush was. As an actor, he'll "blush" and talk about how \a girl rejected him in college...and of course, we'll be watching this crap with our family
Amar Singh and Shahrukh khan (Amita bacahn?) will "play" (khelenge... as in celebrate) Holi together
Jimmy will have his own share of goof-ups - on the job and off the job
Jimmy will cross his 30's
One of my friend is surely going to bite the dust...(I mean, get married)

Homer! where TF are you? I need inputs for this blog! (Oh, the simpsons movie will be released this year...phew! some relief at least...)

My first week of 2007:-

My heat convector is "still" working
I am still calling friends/relatives after 11 PM, to ask them how THEY are doing and how i AM doing (alcohol makes you do "wonders"!)

I've realized that my new flat/room sucks.
I'm listening Hindi songs again (someone takes the credit for this one)
I hum "Kal ho Na ho" when I look at her picture
I've realized that drinking isn't what it used to be - "its not your cup of tea!" that's what my soul tells me
"This is not what MSTP says", some lady in my office.

2007, here I am, I'm the man on the scene! *pulls down his pants and shows his ..."

Happy New Year! YAY!!

If you thought I was depressed when I wrote this blog, you empathise well, me thinks

2007-01-08T01:01:00.000-08:00

Black is a song that pretty much sums up my state of mind these days. Copying and pasting the lyrics as is from the Net. If only singers could write and emote songs as well as Eddie Vedder does. I love the part where he says, "We belong together" and the last stanza is what hits me the most.
PS from a fan: "Eddie had written the song for his girlfriend :)"

Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay
Were laid spread out before me as her body once did.
All five horizons revolved around her soul
As the earth to the sun
Now the air I tasted and breathed has taken a turn

Ooh, I know she gave me all that she wore
And now my bitter hands chafe beneath the clouds
Of what was everything.
Oh, the pictures have all been washed in black, tattooed everything...

I take a walk outside
I'm surrounded by some kids at play
I can feel their laughter, so why do I sear?
Oh, and twisted thoughts that spin round my head
I'm spinning, oh, I'm spinning
How quick the sun can drop away

And now my bitter hands cradle broken glass
Of what was everything?
All the pictures have all been washed in black, tattooed everything...

All the love gone bad turned my world to black
Tattooed all I see, all that I am, all I'll be... yeah...
Uh huh... uh huh... ooh...

I know someday you'll have a beautiful life,
I know you'll be a sun in somebody else's sky, but why
Why, why can't it be, why can't it be mine

2006-11-13T09:18:00.000-08:00

Been a month since I blogged. So here's what has been happening lately.

Became close friends with an Ethiopian (Abd) - to be honest, my first impression was that Abd was a "Wise Man"
Thanks to Abd, got to party in a place he called "Sector-13" of Chandigarh
Been working/partying, working/partying, working/partying
G and I are totally out of touch (the distance factor coming into play, yet again
Nishant was back in City Beautiful
Gave shelter for three days to some "Homeless" friends ('twas the landlady, not their fault they say :D
Conceded that "I have a habit that I'm not really proud of..."

2006-10-20T01:39:00.000-07:00

Coincidence, fate or destiny?

I had never planned to come here (in city beautiful:) nor had I planned to go to Poona. More than coincidences I have always been a believer of fate or something of what you call destiny. In college, Sam used to tell me this thing - "You are the maker of your own destiny". I could never convince Sam that destiny is what drives me and has/will take me to places where I never thought I would be.

So here I am Sam, with a story. Trying to convince you once again, as to why I believe in destiny :)

One night the film-maker Rui Guerra, was talking with his friends in a house in the interior of Mozambique. The country was at war, and so everything - from petrol to electric light - was In short supply.

To pass the time they started talking about what they would like to eat. Each of them described his or her favorite food; and when it came to Rui's turn, he said: 'I'd like to eat an apple', knowing that, because of rationing, it was impossible to find any fruit at all.

At that precise moment, they heard a noise, and a beautiful, shiny apple rolled into the room and stopped in front of him!

Later, Rui discovered that one of the girls who live there had gone out to buy some fruit in the black market. As she came up the stairs, she tripped and fell, the bag of apples she had bought split open, and one of the apple had rolled into the room.

Sam, if you say that's mere coincidence, that would be a very poor word to explain this story.

2006-09-29T03:49:00.000-07:00

A few more hrs and this week will be "officially" over! Phew, the weekend is finally here.

Quotes of the week:-

"Bad news guys! I've left the keys of the gate in Captain's car and the landlady has locked it!"
"Sorry Jimmy, I thought it was my phone. Will come and give it as soon as i'm back in Chandigarh" (not S's fault actually, we both use an 1100)
"Jimmy-a chu i ngaihawm dawn hle mai", said Fela, the night before he left for Delhi. Jimmy,
you'll be really missed!
"Why are you leaving this place?"
"Uncle ka mood kharab hoga, varna aunty to aapko apne beta jaisa dekhti hain!" said my maid. Uncle (landlord) must be in a bad mood, that's why - Aunty sees you as her own son - (Don't kid me lady!)

List of things to do this weekend:-

Get a hair cut (first priority)
Go with Captain to the construction site where he's getting some work done
Ask landlady if Uncle Really wants me to leave
If landlady (Aunty) says Uncle really meant it, then "Things to do" No. 2 is scrapped!

Been limping the whole week 'cause of a minor fracture. My feet have been hurting like hell. I'm going to drink the pain away with Cap'n and R at Aerizzona.

The Last Ride Together

2006-09-26T12:18:00.000-07:00

Cap'n asked me to search for this poem last Weekend. Well, we read it aloud (with some guests around :P )

Cap'n told me that it was written by some *Robert*
Robert Browning - (1812–1889), it turned out to be!

Yep! 'twas written a long time ago!

I finally concluded with Cap'n that we aren't good in *PURE* English!

BTW, this poem talks about the "last ride" that the poet wishes to have (with his Woman) before it's "time to go" for him (Cap'n told me that the poet is dying!)
-----------------------------------

*COPIED AND "shamelessly" PASTED*

-----------------------------------

I SAID—Then, dearest, since ’tis so,
Since now at length my fate I know,
Since nothing all my love avails,
Since all, my life seem’d meant for, fails,

Since this was written and needs must be— 5
My whole heart rises up to bless
Your name in pride and thankfulness!
Take back the hope you gave,—I claim
Only a memory of the same,
—And this beside, if you will not blame; 10
Your leave for one more last ride with me.

My mistress bent that brow of hers,
Those deep dark eyes where pride demurs
When pity would be softening through,
Fix’d me a breathing-while or two 15
With life or death in the balance: right!
The blood replenish’d me again;
My last thought was at least not vain:
I and my mistress, side by side
Shall be together, breathe and ride, 20
So, one day more am I deified.
Who knows but the world may end to-night?

Hush! if you saw some western cloud
All billowy-bosom’d, over-bow’d
By many benedictions—sun’s 25
And moon’s and evening-star’s at once—
And so, you, looking and loving best,
Conscious grew, your passion drew
Cloud, sunset, moonrise, star-shine too,
Down on you, near and yet more near, 30
Till flesh must fade for heaven was here!—
Thus learnt she and linger’d—joy and fear!
Thus lay she a moment on my breast.

Then we began to ride. My soul
Smooth’d itself out, a long-cramp’d scroll 35
Freshening and fluttering in the wind.
Past hopes already lay behind.
What need to strive with a life awry?
Had I said that, had I done this,
So might I gain, so might I miss. 40
Might she have loved me? just as well
She might have hated, who can tell!
Where had I been now if the worst befell?
And here we are riding, she and I.

Fail I alone, in words and deeds? 45
Why, all men strive and who succeeds?
We rode; it seem’d my spirit flew,
Saw other regions, cities new,
As the world rush’d by on either side.
I thought,—All labour, yet no less 50
Bear up beneath their unsuccess.
Look at the end of work, contrast
The petty done, the undone vast,
This present of theirs with the hopeful past!
I hoped she would love me; here we ride. 55

What hand and brain went ever pair’d?
What heart alike conceived and dared?
What act proved all its thought had been?
What will but felt the fleshly screen?
We ride and I see her bosom heave. 60
There’s many a crown for who can reach.
Ten lines, a statesman’s life in each!
The flag stuck on a heap of bones,
A soldier’s doing! what atones?
They scratch his name on the Abbey-stones. 65
My riding is better, by their leave.

What does it all mean, poet? Well,
Your brains beat into rhythm, you tell
What we felt only; you express’d
You hold things beautiful the best, 70
And pace them in rhyme so, side by side.
’Tis something, nay ’tis much: but then,
Have you yourself what’s best for men?
Are you—poor, sick, old ere your time—
Nearer one whit your own sublime 75
Than we who never have turn’d a rhyme?
Sing, riding’s a joy! For me, I ride.

And you, great sculptor—so, you gave
A score of years to Art, her slave,
And that’s your Venus, whence we turn 80
To yonder girl that fords the burn!
You acquiesce, and shall I repine?
What, man of music, you grown gray
With notes and nothing else to say,
Is this your sole praise from a friend, 85
‘Greatly his opera’s strains intend,
Put in music we know how fashions end!’
I gave my youth: but we ride, in fine.

Who knows what’s fit for us? Had fate
Proposed bliss here should sublimate 90
My being—had I sign’d the bond—
Still one must lead some life beyond,
Have a bliss to die with, dim-descried.
This foot once planted on the goal,
This glory-garland round my soul, 95
Could I descry such? Try and test!
I sink back shuddering from the quest
Earth being so good, would heaven seem best?
Now, heaven and she are beyond this ride.

And yet—she has not spoke so long! 100
What if heaven be that, fair and strong
At life’s best, with our eyes upturn’d
Whither life’s flower is first discern’d,
We, fix’d so, ever should so abide?
What if we still ride on, we two 105
With life for ever old yet new,
Changed not in kind but in degree,
The instant made eternity,—
And heaven just prove that I and she
Ride, ride together, for ever ride?

Will Power

2006-09-19T10:54:00.000-07:00

Happened to read this today. Hilarious!

It's good to have a weak will power, it keeps the hope alive...

Life never stops

2006-08-31T12:54:00.000-07:00

However philosophical you may get, but (and oh! what a bit but) always take chances while you can and always should.

Mirror, Mirror on the wall

2006-08-21T14:39:00.000-07:00

"Ok! can you look at yourself in the mirror and say that you don't LIE and that you don't PRETEND?"

Copied this quote from Rupen actually! Thanks Rupen :o)

Jon Stewart on Crossfire

2006-08-18T07:52:00.000-07:00

Man, Jon Stewart has got to be the best thing that has happened to television, at least for my generation. Wikipedia tells me that Crossfire-the show hosted on CNN-was pulled off a few weeks after this show with Jon Stewart. Just look at the way he ripped those two guys off!
I really loved the part where he says "...i've talked with my friends about this show with my friends, who mentioned this show as being bad...its not so much as it is bad as it is hurting America!"

From Wikipedia about Crossfire:

"I went to this place, Crossfire, which is a nuanced public debate show named after the stray bullets that strike and kill innocent bystanders during a gang fight. .. And they were very mad, because apparently, when you invite someone on a show called Crossfire and you express an opinion, they...they don't care for that...I told them that I thought their show was hurting America and they came back at me pretty good, they said I wasn't being funny. I then said, 'I know that, but tomorrow I will go back to being funny, and your show will still blow.'"

In case the video takes time to load. Just press the pause button, get on with your work and watch it when the video is fully or halfway loaded.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSDUQoM8G1k

Katie "Holmes"

2006-08-07T14:01:00.000-07:00

We met in a restaurant around dinner time. 'twas the place and time when/where you had those "Poona University" students stop by to grab their "non-homemade" dinner. As usual, I ended up placing an order for "Pomfret Fish".

As I savoured the fish and rice, SHE gave a hungry and helpless obligatory "meow".

That was Katie. A tiny, skinny, and orphan kitten. I looked at her, and gave that "oh! so cute!" smile. Finally, I smeared some pieces of the fish with my fingers and dropped them on the floor. As with all cats, she gave those casual meows as she ate, probably appreciating my gesture, and savouring the food. She was trying her best to chew the fish and I knew that she didn't have any teeth, but I guess the hunger took over. As I finished my dinner, I saw her sitting by my chair and my benevolence and instinct took over. Yes, I took her home with me.

Here's Katie playing with a "brown-colored" grasshopper :o)

She was with me for about 4 months-till the day I left Poona.

I'm not in Poona anymore, but I've been told that she still gives that shrill :meow: :meow: whenever she hears the sound of my room's door opening. :o(
I never thought that i'd love or for that matter, "like" a cat!

Hope she's doing well.

But a question still lingers, "Why was I scared to take her with me when I left Poona?"

Miss you Katie! :o)

My first MTV video

2006-08-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

Out of a sudden desire, decided to watch the Don't Cry music video that I had purchased some three/four years back when I was in Mizoram. It was nostalgia at its best, as Don't Cry was the first music video that I got to watch on MTV and I can vouch for the fact that Guns n Roses were a band that made many of my (non-North Eastern) friends love rock n roll or for that matter, Heavy Metal.

Before MTV, I know most of my "non-North Eastern" friends, here in Delhi knew three bands (Umm, let's say artists).

Madonna
Michael Jackson
Wham!

Speaking of nostalgia,

What song/video makes you nostalgic?
What was the first video that you saw on MTV?

Political lessons

2006-07-27T08:13:00.000-07:00

Our politician is nearing his retirement age and proudly feels that he has told his dear son the tricks of the trade. But then there still is this final lesson his son must learn.

So our politician asks his son to climb to the terrace. Son reaches the terrace, looks down at his father with a curious look.

"Now what?" he thinks

To the son's surprise, Father asks him to jump from the terrace.

"Bapu! are you crazy?"
"Just jump! don't you trust your own father? Don't you know what I'm doing?"
"Bapu! I'm not going to do this. This is too much!"
"If you don't jump, the ticket for that constituency isn't yours. PERIOD! And do you think that I won't help if anything happens to you?"

Son thinks, lifts himself and takes the plunge.
Politician father moves away, lets his son fall on the hard ground.

"Bapu! why did you do that? I trusted you?" son asks

"And you trusted a politician?"

My Blog...

2006-07-22T15:17:00.000-07:00

... is screwed up!
Just like my life!

Is that what you wanted to say?

2006-07-14T20:33:00.000-07:00

Big Company, an office that looks like a 5-Star hotel, and Coffee similar to the one you get in that so-called "Coffee Day" or "Barrista" joints. I love that Coffee house in Kamla nagar though (Delhi University).

Fresher joins this Big Company. A week passes, a month, and then a quarter. Fresher is "Khool", is intelligent, Boss calls him, "He can really do things and I love the way he charges up people around him". But-and oh! what a big but, he's "stupid" (I still think he was immature...), wears that Hare Rama, Hare Krishna T-shirt, sports a hair longer than Nuno Bettencourt, and oh, he sometimes looked like a BackPacker.

One day, Fresher reaches office, opens the door of his glass house office, presses the button of that elevator, waits, enters the elevator with a serious, executive-looking fellow. Executive-looking fellow presses the button of the elevator, the "Automatic" door of the elevator closes. First Floor, Second Floor, about to reach Third Floor...

Executive-looking fellow looks at our Fresher, his hairdo and finally speaks out.

"Do you work for Me?"

Kasol, Manikaran and villages like Kalga...

2006-07-05T12:50:00.000-07:00

Oh well, this happened some 2 weeks back.
"So are we going?", I sms Gaurav at 2 AM
"Yes we are" he replied.
Our plan was to leave at 4 in the morning, so we could pick up Samar on the way, who would be waiting for us in Jalandhar.

I've always liked trips that have an uncertainty surrounding them. So Gaurav gets up at 7 in the morning and calls up.
"Yes, Jimmy have you guys got up?"
"What time is it?"
"Brother! its 7 now, I'm reaching there in another 10 minutes. You guys get ready. Ok?"

Nothing is really far in Chandigarh and well, Gaurav did reach my place within 10 mins.
Nishant and I do our packing (well, kind of :P)

It was a 10 hr drive to Kasol about which I won't talk at length.

Kasol was our first stop-A 10 hour drive from this place. A typical north-indian hill station-hills, rivers, pahadi folks, some fancy hotels promising you an experience of a home away from home. Hey I thought came here to get away?

What struck me most about Kasol was the presense of Israeli hotels and restaurants. Israeli breakfast, Israeli dinner, hotels name Israeli Hotel, and restaurants named Rasta Restarant. Another surprising thing was that most of the billboards were also written in Hebrew.

So we booked a hotel-Deep Forest was the name, cleaned up ourselves (kind of :P) and sat for dinner and drinks on the hotel lounge. I faintly remember that there was this World Cup match being played on the big screen (Tunisia was playing some team :P) and a song called G**nd Mara de was playing on the background-it was in the tune of a Bhajan song.

I surveyed the area and ended up sitting with an Israeli couple who asked me where I came from.
"Mizoram yada yada..."
"Oh Mizoram, isn't that the place where there was this talk about the Manashe tribe?"
"Oh well, that's speculation, not every Mizo believes it though"
"Its funny, you know. We come here to get away from the violence of our country and there are guys in your tribe who wanna go there?"

Next stop- Manikaran and Kalga... :o)

The man who fell asleep

2006-07-02T09:35:00.000-07:00

So here's the URL:-

http://www.themanwhofellasleep.com/invisibilia.html

If you're into art, illustration, and photography, do visit this site. What this fellow does is replace people in real-life photographs with illustrations. It may seem like a simple idea, but yes, the results are cool.

Hello, strangers of the internet. This page is a gallery of pictures. The pictures are simple enough: the people in the photos have been digitally removed and replaced with drawings. Yeah, I know: anyone can trace a drawing. But so what? I am doing it, and you're not. You're sitting at home doing nothing. Or maybe you're surfing the web at work. I don't know. I'm not psychic.

Maybe the pictures illustrate the idea that we all want to remove ourselves from life, and replace ourselves with fictional, self-created versions of ourself. We want to fictionalise our own existence, and impose order and narrative where there is none.

:o)

Quentin Tarantino and other geniuses

2006-06-08T22:25:00.000-07:00

Watched Kill Bill II for the umpteenth time last night and I wondered why Qeuntin Tarantino has never won an Oscar? I guess he always has had the wrong luck of making films at the same year when sell-able and blockbuster movies are released. Take for example the year when Pulp Fiction was pitted against Forrest Gump? Now that's unlucky.

I guess he will just go down in History as another great director who never won an Oscar. Another genius is Oliver Stone and his trippy movies. His Natural Born Killers is still my all time favorite and Oh! the soundtrack of the movie rocked! The album was produced by none other than another genius-Trent Reznor -the one man band called Nine Inch Nails and a person with whom I proudly share my birthday-17 May.

Here's my favorite part of Kill Bill Vol 2, where Bill shoots the Bride using a dart filled with what he called, the "Infallible Truth Serum".

Bill: As you know......l'm quite keen on comic books. Especially the ones about superheroes. I find the whole mythology surrounding superheroes fascinating.

Take my favorite superhero, Superman.

Not a great comic book. Not particularly well-drawn.
Mmm.
But the mythology...
The mythology is not only great, it is unique.

The Bride: How long does this shit take to go into effect?

Bill: About two minutes. Just long enough for me to finish my point. Now, a staple of the superhero mythology is, there's the superhero and there's the alter ego.
Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When that character wakes up in the morning, he's Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic Superman stands alone.

Superman didn't become Superman. Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he's Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red "S" - that's the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears - the glasses, the business suit - that's the costume. That's the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us.

And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He's weak......he's unsure of himself...he's a coward. Clark Kent is Superman's critique on the whole human race.
Sorta like Beatrix Kiddo and Mrs. Tommy Plimpton.

You would've worn the costume of Arlene Plimpton. But you were born Beatrix Kiddo. And every morning when you woke up, you'd still be Beatrix Kiddo. Oh, you can... take the needle out.

The Bride: Are you calling me a superhero?

Bill: I'm calling you a killer, A natural born killer.

Now, can anyone better such a thoughtful and intelligent script?

Dreamt of a strange thing last night

2006-05-25T02:11:00.000-07:00

Man! I had one of the weirdest dreams last night. Can't recollect much of it, but here are some of the most interesting or memorable part/s
The situation: I was getting married.
No, not to one woman but to three women. And it had to be finished within a day. :p
As I was through with the ceremonies of the first wedding, which happened on the third floor of our house in Rohini, I descended the flight of steps and notice that there was a Bar cum Restaurant on the ground floor. It was quite similar to Rodeo's and I take her to the restarant and the feasts begin.
Oh! she looked beautiful. God only knows why she was wearing a bright red saree when the wedding ceremonies were conducted in christian fashion.
Can't remember much of what happened after that.
Suddenly, the dream transported me to another place. A place as surreal as Dali's paintings. Here I have my second wedding. Can't recollect the face of that woman, but I do remember her bright skin and big blue eyes. Oh, i forgot, she was wearing a burqa and she was very similar to that lady in Lucky Ali's video-can't recollect the song as of now.
As I try to lift her burqa and caress her hair, I have an itch in my neck and "Whoa! wake up Jimmy, you were dreaming." I wake up slowly, and wearily reach for my mobile and notice that it's only three in the morning.
"Some dream that was...", I thought with a smile.
I thought of firing up a cigarette and recollect the wonderful and surreal dream. But then, reality reminded me something.
"There's a client call tomorrow. Try to get some more sleep, you have to reach the office at eight."

Loneliness

2006-05-15T22:03:00.000-07:00

Loneliness: a disposition toward being alone. One of the main reasons I left Poona was because the city was killing me. Everyday, I would come back from office, and then a question would hit my head-what next? Wash my clothes? nope, i had a dhobi at hand. Cook? No, I didn't have a kitchen. So what was the easiest way to kill time? "Booze Jimmy, go get a booze" I could hear the little devil on my left shoulder tell me that.

It was so easy to just go out to a cheap pub, pick up a drink and get sloshed out. Or at times, pick up alcohol and when the sense of loneliness hit me, I would end up calling up friends at home, or brothers, and at times calling up my online friends who hardly even knew me. What would I talk about? nothing important, just nonsensical blabber.

Now that I'm in Chandigarh, Delhi is just a 5-hour drive away and with a senior from college being a localite here, it has never been better. A few days back, Cecci was giong back to the US and we had a small discussion on loneliness and how it had it all of us. Cecci started the talk with his 2-year experience in Cyprus. He would talk about how his drinking habit almost killed him and about the time-pass escorts from Morocco and Lebanon. Captain talked about his 1 year stint in Paris where everyone would talk in French and how his french colleagues would suddenly change their posture when he joined them for a cup of coffee.

Could be continued... :D

The Govt. Contract

2006-05-09T02:13:00.000-07:00

A, B, and C finally get a break. After building contacts and through the influence of some people, they are awarded a govt contract.
But there's a catch.
ABC's firm-let us now call them govt contractors-will finish the work in 6 months and will give 1/6th of the "govt-sanctioned" money to X, a govt officer, who will then award the contract to A, B, and C's firm.
Work starts and 6 months later, some progress is made.
So, ABC request the govt that a part of the payment be released as some progress has been made and there are salaries and bills to pay.
After a number of visits to X's office and some chit chats over a cup of "Sarkari office" tea, X-the govt officer- finally agrees to release 2/6th of the payment.
One year into the project, ABC's firm is still not paid any extra penny. The firm isn't going anywhere and 'A' decides to pick up a 9 to 5 job, leaves the firm, and tells B and C that he can't go on.
Some 8 months later, A and B meet each other at a friend's wedding.
To his surprise, B tells A that there were no other payments made.
"A, you don't know the number of visits C and I made to X's office. All I can tell you is that X and his secretary took the rest of the unbilled amount, theives!"
Because A and his friends were part of a corrupt deal, they knew they couldn't do anything about it.
So here are some questions:

Should A, B, and C have agreed to do the project at all?
Was B right in calling the officer a theif?

Sitting in my cubicle...

2006-04-28T01:16:00.000-07:00

Sitting in my cubicle
I realize I have an entry to make
I try to find an inspiration
Or come up with an idea

I know not of what to think
Then it dawned on me
How hard it is
To find ideas for a blog
When you are sitting in the office

That has got to be one of the silliest poems.
Have a wonderful weekend!

Johari Window

2006-04-21T07:24:00.000-07:00

Well, this is one tool that Jimmy has never come across. Tool? ok, call it a method if you will. Jimmy is told that it/this is named after its inventors-Joe and Harry. Simple eh?
Turns out that this thing/method/tool is used as a tool to help people or a team-as they say in Jimmy's corporate world-understand each other better.
If you're interested and want to know more, Click here.
So Boss informs the team that he would be explaining this thing/tool/concept in the next Knowledge Sharing session. And so it happened.
Boss comfortably leans back in his chair and proudly opens up the powerpoint presentation on Johari Window. After a lonnnnggg presentation, Boss asks each person attending the session to jot down some questions and write down their answers. Of course, it had to be secret.
So here are the questions:

What is your favorite color?
What is your favorite food?
What makes you angry?
What makes you sad?
What makes you happy?

Each person in the session is asked to guess what the other person might have written. The purpose of the exercise was to make out,"Do you really know the person you're working with?". Jimmy was lucky as usual. He is asked to guess his Boss' answers and well, he gets it all wrong. :(

Boss' favorite color? Green and NOT Blue. Jimmy had guessed blue because Boss was wearing a Navy blue shirt that day.
Boss' favorite food? Dal Makhani NOT Chicken Manchurian
What makes Boss happy? Watching children play and NOT a project delivered on time. "Hmmm, he does have a heart!", Jimmy thinks.
What makes Boss sad? Seeing beggars on the road and not Poverty. Jimmy was close.
What makes you angry? Inefficienct people and NOT someone unpunctual

After the session, Jimmy thinks if he can get it all correct for, say his girlfriend? all he can do is guess, guess, and make more guesses.

What about you?

Some mails really make or break your day!

2006-04-20T01:09:00.000-07:00

My writing/authoring debut happened about three and half years back and this is one incident that happened when one of the books that I had authored was supposed to be shipped to the client.
Believe me, if its a delivery date, Goof-ups are bound to happen!
So here's a portion of the mail I received around four in the afternoon. A mail that really made me wish I wasn't in office!

Jimmy,

You have shown carelessness and immense irresponsibilily in going through the comments and fixes that I have suggested. You have left about 10 comments unfixed. What do you want me to do with these? We have already had two rounds of reviews and this is how you plan to ship the document? I refuse to go through this document.

Regards,
ABC

Of course, this lady had CC'd this mail to my Boss. It still beats me as to why she added "regards".
Before I could explain my reason for not fixing the comments, Boss had already shot a mail!

Guys,

What is happening? We cannot afford such mistakes at this stage. You are all aware that we have to ship the documents today. Please take ownership of your individual documents/books-they have to be ZERO-DEFECT and in PERFECT condition. Jimmy, get in touch with ABC and fix/clarify the comments at the earliest. No one is going home till your documents are ready.

Regards,
Boss

So I go over to ABC's workstation and tell her my reason for not fixing the comments. My explanation? what she had suggested was technically incorrect!
It's a different thing that Boss and me were in the office till One in the Morning!!

I guess I have made some progress over the years and three years and some months later, this is a mail I get from a our client in the US - a lady who has been very supportive.
These are the kind of mails that really make your day!!

Please! I'm not showing off!

Hi Jimmy,

...Are you interested in Editor work? My plan is to have support people for each role. Since you learned the styles so quickly and are such an excellent Writer, I think making you an Assistant Editor makes sense. (I hope the “assistant” does not insult you.).
As a .Net Writer, do you find the Java 4.8 training useful? Is it starting to make sense? I know the whole team appreciates your good work, and no one more than me.

Regards...

If you are in an industry where the activity of conveying information is through mails, mails, and more mails, I guess you'll understand what I mean.

My Childhood friends

2006-04-19T00:25:00.000-07:00

My childhood friends. It's almost 11 years since I left that neighborhood and I don't think I'll ever meet them again.
These are names with which their parents/relative lovingly called them. :o)

Sonoo: A Xavier-ian, fat kid, and the bully of the neighbourhood. Sometimes it was his gang asking us to leave the badminton court, so they can play or sitting in the corner of the court and deliberately irritating us by making fun of our game or at times refusing to give back our Cricket ball if it fell into his garden. Its a different thing that by 10th grade we were good friends. We once had some of his dad's Scotch during our 10th grade board exams. That was my first taste of alcohol actually.
Teetoo: A Xavier-ian, quite dark, and later moved on to IIT-D. The most intelligent amongst us. "The lights of your room were switched ON till 2 AM, what were you studying?"-See what I mean?
Kannoo: Another Xavier-ian, skinny kid and not very bright. I remember opening a comics and novel rental store in our garage during our summer holidays. :o)
Tikkoo: DIP'site (DPS). Intelligent and a great athlete. I still recall the days when we would run off to Chhatrasal stadium for our tennis games. God! I was obsessed with this game.
Tilloo: A Bihari and a Modern'ite (Modern School). On Sundays he would be shouting at the top of his voice with Tikkoo, "Jimmy!! come fast and don't forget to bring the bat and wickets along!!"
Cheekoo: Tilloo's younger brother. He was five years younger than all of us. It still puts a smile in my face when I think of him trying to imitate Azhar or say Merv Hughes.
Ranju: My schoolmate and my idol at school. I think he was 4 yrs my senior and was the captain of our football team. My only source of Archies and DC comics.
Vaibhav: St Columbus kid who helped me out during a science project. I think we called it "Plant water detector".
Sonoo: The only daughter of a Punjabi family, and 2 years our senior. “Bee-ji says I can’t come out and play. I have to behave and act like a grown up” :o)
Binu: The only person I'm in touch with. A friend from school and though he didn't live in our neighborhood, but he'd always come over during weekends for a game of football or say, cricket. Can't believe that we were friends from 3rd grade all the way to 12th.

This Hna Nghet Syndrome

2006-04-12T05:48:00.000-07:00

It was a nice evening at the local Redi market and I was at a local dhaba ordering my daily dose of mutton chow. As I listened to the clatter of the cook, I noticed two Mizo students approaching the dhaba. As they sat and gave their orders, I realized that I had been introduced to these students before and exchanged the usual pleasantries with them. These boys knew that I am working and out of curiosity, one of the boys asked me where my office was and what the nature of my job is. I usually avoid talking shop outside the office, but since I was asked and as they seemed to be genuinely interested, I talked about my job, the profile and where I worked. From my part I tried to make the conversation as interesting as possible. "Maybe they are really interested", I thought.

And then it hit me like a needle in the head when one of them asked, "Hna nghet ami?", as in "Is it a permanent job?". I felt like asking the young man what he meant by a permanent job. It's a different matter that I didn't.

I knew what he meant. The question took me back to the 80's when we were encouraged to seek a permanent job. Their explanation of a permanent job? Well, it was government officer's job, a 9 to 5 one. Which from what I remember involved going to office, coming back, pick up the tabs at the end of the month and watch life as it passes by. The permanent job syndrome, as I call it, sounded so pleasant and was so much ingrained in my head that it even stopped me from taking many risks in life. Of course, it's a different story now.

It's almost 16 years after India opened its markets to the world-what amazed me was the fact that our young man was not aware of the changes taking place around the world that he lives-no discourtesy meant to anyone here. What also surprised me was the fact that, in today's globalized world, he was looking for a permanent job. Consider googling "Permanent Job". As of yesterday, the first link of the search result was this headline from the Washington Post- "Permanent Job Proves An Elusive Dream". The question that came to my mind was whether parents/relatives/teachers back home, as in Mizoram, are still encouraging our kids, and each other to look for a permanent job?

It's a whole different world from what we had in the 1980's and it's saddening that kids/students, like the one I just met, are being told, if not taught, to get that "permanent job". These days its all about being competitive and delivering something for what you are paid.

I'll sum up my thoughts by quoting two people I really admire.
Thomas Friedman, author of the best seller-The Worlds is Flat, wrote it this way:
"Girls, when I was growing up, my parents used to say to me, 'Tom, finish your dinner—people in China and India are starving.' My advice to you is: Girls, finish your homework—people in China and India are starving for your jobs."

"... we took/have taken away jobs from them (Americans/Europeans) and if your skills aren't up to the market or if you fail to upgrade your skills on a recurring basis, it's going to the Chinese. You think you have the English advantage? think again, English is a compulsory subject in China now! And believe me they will catch up with India in another seven years, if not earlier. If you are not prepared, you jobs are going there..."

You don't get ahead by standing still.

I love...

2006-04-10T05:47:00.000-07:00

I love food,
I love going to the hills,
I love watching people in love,
I love my work.. to an extent actually!
I love being able to go home during the weekends,
I love her!

How To: Add a Flickr Slideshow to your blog

2006-04-07T02:22:00.000-07:00

Since a technically illiterate person (a.k.a Sandman) has been bugging me to share it , so here is the code!

Ok!, first things first.

Open a Flickr account, which I presume you already have.
Then, copy and paste the code below in your blog entry. You will have to replace the user_id=XXXXXXXX@XXX with your account at Flickr.
Use this form to find your Flickr id.

In case you have questions, you may post it in the comments section.

BTW, the code isn't mine.

Cheers and have fun with it!

'L I T T L E' Things

2006-04-02T22:25:00.000-07:00

I love this. Forwarded by a distant relative sister of mine. It's about how some people survived 9/11. Its strange how destiny works!! Whatever happens to us in our daily lives, there is always a reason for it. Can't verify the authenticity, but then its a nice read!
The 'L I T T L E' Things

As you might know, the head of a company survived 9/11 because his son started kindergarten.
Another fellow was alive because it was his turn to bring donuts.
One woman was late because her alarm clock didn't go off in time.
One was late because of being stuck on the NJ Turnpike because of an auto accident.
One of them missed his bus.
One spilled food on her clothes and had to take time to change.
Ones car wouldn't start.
One went back to answer the telephone.
One had a child that dawdled and didn't get ready as soon as he should have.
One couldn't get a taxi.
The one that struck me was the man who put on a new pair of shoes that morning, took the various means to get to work but before he got there, he developed a blister on his foot. He stopped at a drugstore to buy a Band-Aid. That is why he is alive today.

Now when I am stuck in traffic, miss an elevator, turn back to answer a ringing telephone... all the little things that annoy me. I think to myself, this is exactly where God wants me to be at this very moment.. Next time your morning seems to be going wrong, the children are slow getting dressed, you can't seem to find the car keys, you hit every traffic light, don't get mad or frustrated; God is at work watching over you....

Nice read eh? :o)

Adding a Flickr! slideshow to your blog

2006-03-27T22:02:00.000-08:00

Found out a great way to add a Flickr slideshow to your blog. Sharing a few of my Flickr favorites.
Cool! isn't it?
Disclaimer: These are not my own pictures.
Pssst: to view the other pictures in the slideshow, move your mouse over the frame :o)

Joke: Men v/s Women, let the battle begin :D

2006-03-23T22:27:00.000-08:00

Don’t scroll down if you're not into dirty jokes. Please! No offence meant to any gender in particular...

First, for the ladies:
At a****ail party, one woman said to another, "Aren't you wearing your wedding ring on the wrong finger?" "Yes, I am. I married the wrong man."
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A woman inserted an ad in the classifieds: "Husband Wanted" Next day she received a hundred letters. They all said the same thing: "You can have mine."
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When a man steals your husband, there is no better revenge than to let her keep him. Then there was a woman who said, "I never knew what real happiness was until I got married, and by then, it was too late."
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A Woman's Prayer Dear Lord, I pray for Wisdom, to understand a man, to love and to forgive him, and for Patience, for his moods. Because, Lord, if I pray for strength, I'll just beat him to death. Q: Why do they give female names to natural disasters? A: When they come on to you, they are all wet and wild. When they leave, your house is gone, your car is gone, your dog is gone.
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And now, for the men!
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If a man says something in the woods and no woman hears him, is he still wrong?
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Brittany was on her deathbed with her husband Adam at her side. "Honey, I need to make a confession." whimpered Brittany groggily, "I slept with your brother, your cousin, and your father. “Its okay, Sweetie. I know” replied Adam as he wiped the tears from Brittany's cheek, "Why do you think I poisoned you?"
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It's not that married men live longer than single men. When you’re married it just SEEMS a lot longer.
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Q: Why do women fake orgasms? A: They think we care.
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How do you make a woman have an orgasm?? Who cares?
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There is a blond woman walking down the street with a pig under her arm. Suddenly a man stops her and asks where she won that. The pig replied I won her at the fair.
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Why do women always watch porns through the end? They are waiting for the wedding to occur.
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A plane is about to crash and there's only the pilot and an air hostess aboard. The air hostess runs into the cockpit and whilst she's ripping off her shirt she says "Make me feel like a woman before I die" and the pilot replies whilst taking off his shirt "iron this then" ...

Know your Impact on Others

2006-03-22T04:35:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a better day at work. Today was quite different. 'twas one of those "Did Nothing" days. I feel guilty and at times, restless when I'm not productive or say not doing any work when I'm in the office. So you can say that I can sometimes get away with this:

To put it straight, I really didn't feel very good about it. I've been hired and am being paid to work. But to do away with my guilt, I guess I have a good explanation.

I wanted some topics to be removed from the user manual and had sent a mail to our client if she approves of it. Sadly, there was no reply from her end and my guess was that it was partly because she has been too busy.

My deadline is this Friday and whether I like it or not, I will have to complete it :o(

Sometimes people just don't think, or realise their impact on others.

Sunday Morning

2006-03-20T01:13:00.000-08:00

Sunday, 8:30 AM, and my Nokia goes *BEEP* *BEEP*...*BEEP* *BEEP*.
A small vibration, and Voila! a new message!

"hi jimmy how r

thngs? got your num

from your bro wen

i ws in del. M

in Dubai dese days,

really miss u and

our Wonder Years

:) - Love Binu"

'twas a message and a contact from Binu after a gap of 7 years. Won't talk about who or what Binu is but he was there throughout my "Wonder Years". My first crush at school - Nija *sigh*, those fights with our seniors for snatching our TT table during lunch, or those silly jokes, like "Monal Salhotra".
I replied to his message with a smile and with a feeling of being someone special. :)
A few 10 minutes later, Shuksi calls up!! I knew it was Saturday night in his part of the world and well, 3AM. :D
Here's what the highligh of our talk was-"Gödel's Incompleteness Theorem". Its basically about a theorem demonstrated by the Czech-born mathematician Kurt Gödel in 1931.

Shamelessly pasting some of the contents from that website:-

..Kurt Gödel demonstrated that within any given branch of mathematics, there would always be some propositions that couldn't be proven either true or false using the rules and axioms ... of that mathematical branch itself.

Gödel's Theorem has been used to argue that a computer can never be as smart as a human being because the extent of its knowledge is limited by a fixed set of axioms, whereas people can discover unexpected truths ... It plays a part in modern linguistic theories, which emphasize the power of language to come up with new ways to express ideas. And it has been taken to imply that you'll never entirely understand yourself, since your mind, like any other closed system, can only be sure of what it knows about itself by relying on what it knows about itself.

What this says is that, in mathematics, there's always a true and a false. But beyond that there is this thing called incompleteness, which in a layman's term says that there are things that go beyond the usual "true or false".. and that there's are things that are neither true or false!
Go there, its a nice read and even if you're not a mathematician, you'd still find it interesting..."http://www.miskatonic.org/godel.html"

Thanks for calling Shux!
Love ya and come back soon. Captain Saab and me eagerly await your return. ;o) hope you had a Gute Nacht!
Some Sunday Morning it was! :o)

A relatively temporary state of feeling

2006-03-14T02:05:00.000-08:00

I was out for a ciggy break and well, I could feel that gentle wind hit my face and small droplets of rain. Its been drizzling since yesterday and the weather is what I must say-Perfect. Not for some folks here in the office though, what with some Holi celebrations having been planned in the office premises and I guess there won't be much celebrations today. Maybe indoors but not outdoors, that's for sure!
Anyways, I more then welcomed the weather and would love to go to Delhi tomorrow. But then Sukhna Lake it will be! A friend has promised to get me some Bhang and just chill out at Sukhna lake. I'll be taking this derivative of cannabis, I don't know, maybe after 4 years.
Just read this line about Bhang:
"It is inevitable that temperaments should be found to whom the quickening spirit of Bhang is the spirit of freedom and knowledge"

BTW, Tomorrow's some holiday for a festival and I hated being at work today!

Chandigarh: The experience so far!

2006-03-13T02:58:00.000-08:00

Just completed a month here in Chandigarh and the experience has been quite mixed. Finding a good room wasn't tough but the conditions laid out by most house owners were hard to comply with. No smoking, no drinking, no girls, and some conditions like, no entering the house after a certain time. Coming from Mizoram and having Asian looks, I was at times mistaken for a 'Nepali' and well, Sikhs don't have a very high opinion for "Nepalese" people.
Finally managed to find a good house but then as luck had it, the landlady saw me smoking in the balcony. And to add to that, we had a beer party at my new place with my friends here.
So, there was this nice talk that the landlady had with me the following day.
"Beta, you can always go to the park and smoke. And we don't have any problems with you partying with your friends here, just that, don't have drinks in the house, there are so many pubs and bars in Chandigarh!" Sweet lady she is.
Anyways, I'll be moving out from this place on the 15th of this month. My colleague is leaving his place and I'll be taking over the house from him by end-of-day, tomorrow. Its in sector 16 and is quite decent.
"You'll have your own entrance and the landlord doesn't bother you much. But don't tell them that you smoke. Mind you, no Sikh family will give their house for rent if you tell them that!" was the warning from my friend.
He added, "For that, there's sector-15".
Well, sector-15 is where most of the students studying in Punjab University live. I wanted to take a flat here, what with most of my fellow Mizos putting up in that area.
Captain Saab - a localite and a senior in college - has already expressed his desire to share a flat with me. I guess I won't be putting up in sector-16 for long. Let's see how things work out.

This new template

2006-03-07T01:05:00.000-08:00

Ya, just love it.
Slick and neat! that's all I can say. The old template was boring me as hell and just didn't find any other templates that suit me on Blogger/Blogspot. :o) What do you think? Bad choice/Good choice? ;o)

Groveling and being an Indian

2006-01-29T08:47:00.000-08:00

Finally, the interviewer asks, "So would like to work with us?"
Candidate: Yes sir!
Interviewer: We don't use Sir and Madam here. We just call each other by their first names.
Candidate: Fine.
Candidate joins the company, months pass and the VP calls for a meeting and takes a seat. One couldn't help but notice his coughing.
Same interviewer: Sir! would you like to have some water?

If there were an Olympics on groveling, Indians would surely take the top slot. It just comes naturally to most Indians. My guess is that this probably has to do with the influence of British education.
So yesterday I happened to watch this archived interview of Sonia Gandhi with Barkha Dutt on Star News. As the interview proceeded, Barkha's body language clearly showed that Sonia Gandhi had awed her. One could notice "Ma'm" almost come out of her mouth. I bet she did utter the words backstage :p. Ok Ok! I really respect Barkha Dutt as a journalist but falling flat like that was something that was hard to digest.
When it comes to Vision 2010 (whatever that means!), groveling is something we Indians could do away with.

Joke of the day: Viagra Overdose- Don't try it!!

2006-01-26T07:58:00.000-08:00

There was this sexually frustrated woman who went to her doctor complaining about her love life, telling the doctor that her husband isn't so much into sex anymore. He prescribed some viagra and told her to put 1 in his morning coffee and report to him the next day.
The woman did as instructed and went back to the doctors the next day. "It was wonderful we made love for over an hour, what would happen if I gave him 3?". The doctor told her he wasn;t sure but to try it anyways and report to him the next day.
The woman again did as instructed and reported to the doctors. "Wow, I can't believe it, we made love all night long, he hasn't touched me like that in years. What would happen if I gave him 5?" The doctor told her he wasn't sure but to try it anyways and report to him the next day.
The woman gave her husband half the bottle and went to the doctor's office again the following day grinning ear to ear. "Last night was the most amazing evening ever. We hade love into the morning... I can barely move...wow! What would happen if I gave him the rest of the bottle?" The doctor told her he wasn't sure but to try it anyways and report to him the next day.
A few weeks go by and the doctor hasn't heard from the woman, when a young boy comes into his office asking the doctor if he was the one who gave his mommy those pills, when the doctor told the child yes and asked how was working out for her, he said "my mom's dead, my sisters pregant, my ass hurts and my dad has cornered the cat saying "here kitty kitty kitty..!"

Joke of the day: I didn't know your dad was a pharmacist!

2006-01-19T03:38:00.000-08:00

A young man goes into a pharmacy and asks the pharmacist: "Hello, could you give me condom. My girlfriend has invited me for dinner and I think she is expecting something from me!"
The pharmacist gives him the condom; and as the young man is going out, he returns and tells him: "Give me another condom because my girlfriend's sister is very cute too. She always crosses her legs in a provocative manner when she sees me and I think she expects something from me too." The pharmacist gives him a second condom;And as the boy is leaving he turns back and says: After all, give me one more condom because my girlfriend's mom is still pretty cute and when she sees me she always makes allusions... and since she invited me for dinner, I think she is expecting something from me!!
During dinner, the young man is sitting with his girlfriend on his left, the sister on his right and the mom facing him.
When the dad gets there, the boy lowers his head and starts praying: "Dear Lord, bless thisdinner... thank you for all you give us!!!"
A minute later the boy is still praying: "Thank you Lord for your kindness..." Ten minutes go on and the boy is still praying, keeping his head down.
The others look at each other surprised and his girlfriend even more than the others. She gets close to the boy and tells him in his ear: "I didn't know you were so religious!!!"
The boy replies:"I didn't know your dad was a pharmacist!!!"

Joke of the day: The perfect day-For Her and For Him

2006-01-17T03:38:00.000-08:00

THE PERFECT DAY - FOR HER
8:30 Weigh in 2kg lighter than yesterday
8:45 Breakfast in bed - Freshly squeezed orange juice and croissants; open presents - expensive jewellery chosen by thoughtful partner
9:15 Soothing hot bath with frangipani bath oil
10:00 Light workout at club with handsome, funny personal trainer
10:30 Facial, manicure, shampoo condition, blow dry
12:00 Lunch with best friend at fashionable outdoor cafe
12:45 Catch sight of boyfriend's ex and notices she has gained 7kg
13:00 Shopping with friends, unlimited credit
15:00 Nap
16:00 3 dozen roses delivered by florist - card is from secret admirer <--- I love this one
16:15 Light work out at club, followed by massage from strong but gentle hunk who says he rarely gets to work on such a perfect body
17:30 Choose outfit from expensive designer wardrobe, parade before full length mirror
19:30 Candle lit dinner for two followed by dancing, with compliments received from other diners/dancers
22:00 Hot shower [alone]
22:50 Carried to bed...[Freshly ironed, crisp, new, white linen]
23:00 Pillow talk, light touching and cuddling
23:15 Fall asleep in his big strong arms <--- LMAO this last one killed

THE PERFECT DAY - FOR HIM
6:00 Alarm
6:15 Blow job
6:30 Massive satisfying dump while reading the sports section
7:00 Breakfast - rump steak and eggs, coffee and toast, all cooked by naked buxom wench
7:30 Limo arrives
7:45 Several Whiskeys en-route to airport
9:15 Flight in personal Lear Jet
9:30 Limo to Riverside Oaks Golf Club [Blow job en-route]
9:45 Play front nine [2 under]
11:45 Lunch - Pie, chips and gravy, 3 lagers and a bottle of Dom Perignon
12:15 Blow job
12:30 Play back nine [4 under]
14:15 Limo back to airport
14:30 Fly to Monte Carlo
15:30 Late afternoon fishing excursion with all female crew [all nude]
16:30 Land world record Marlin [1234lbs] on light tackle
17:00 Fly home - massage and hand job by naked Elle McPherson
18:45 Shit, shower, shave
19:00 Watch news - Brad Pitt assassinated; marajuana and porn legalised
19:30 Dinner - Lobster appetisers, Dom Perignon, big juicy fillet steak followed by Ice cream served on a pair of tits
21:00 Napoleon Brandy and Cohuna cigar in front of wall size TV as you watch Match of the Day
21:30 Sex with three women [all with lesbian tendencies]
23:00 Massage and Jacuzzi with tasty pizza snacks and cleansing ale
23:30 Night cap blow job
23 :45 In bed alone
23:50 A 12 second fart which changes note 4 times and forces the dog to leave the room
=======================================
Hey! I'm teachable and always looking to improve myself...

Joke of the day: Charlie's Wife

2006-01-16T03:41:00.000-08:00

This has to be one of the best jokes I have read in a long time
===============================================================
In a mental institution a nurse walks into a room and sees a patient acting like he's driving a car.
The nurse asks him, "Charlie, what are you doing?" Charlie replied, "Driving to Chicago!"
The nurse wishes him a good trip and leaves the room.

The next day the nurse enters Charlie's room just as he stops driving his imaginary car and asks, "Well Charlie, how are you doing?" Charlie says, "I just got into Chicago." "Great," replied the nurse.
The nurse leaves Charlie's room and goes across the hall into Bob's room, and finds Bob sitting on his bed furiously pleasuring himself!
Shocked, she asks, "Bob, what are you doing?"

Bob says, "I'm screwing Charlie's wife while he's in Chicago!"

Good to know tip...

2006-01-10T05:19:00.000-08:00

Received this today. Can't verify the authenticity, if you can do post your comments on this one.
PS: Applies only in India... ;o)

I was talking with a lawyer friend of mine. We were discussing the law and women’s rights. She told me about this incident in Pune - a young girl was raped by a man posing as a plain clothes officer; he asked her to come to the police station when she and her male friend didn't have a driver’s license to show. He sent the boy off to get his license and asked the girl to accompany him to the police station. Took her instead to an isolated area where the horrendous crime was committed.
In fact, the law clearly states that between 6 pm and 6am, a woman has the right to REFUSE to go to the Police Station, even if an arrest warrant has been issued against her. It is a procedural issue that a woman can be arrested between 6pm and 6 am, ONLY if she is arrested by a woman officer and taken to an ALL WOMEN police station. And if she is arrested by a male officer, it has to be proven that a woman officer was on duty at the time of arrest.
It is good for us to know our rights. To what extent it comes of use remains to be seen in any situation. But as they say, knowledge is power. Just thought I’d share this with you. I did not know this and I’m sure a lot of us don’t? Please be informed.
And guys please forward it to your girlfriends.

Bach Gaye!!

2006-01-04T05:51:00.000-08:00

Jan 02: Reached today morning at 5am and was back to the usual grind. Was in office by 10:30 am and guess what? 87 unread mails!! It takes me about an hour to skim through the mails. I easily marked the irrelevant ones-some from the sysads ppl, some announcements from the HR dept-as Mark As Read without even looking at them. And then I read a mail from Boss that just makes my day!!

Hi Jimmy,
Going by the issues you have covered, I think, you have done a very good job.....
ABCD: Please understand from Jimmy the second part of the feedback. You may be able to enhance your writing style.

Well, that was a review I had done before I left for my christmas hols. This review was at the back of my mind even when I was in Delhi and I was awaiting the feedback..
Phew!! my first day of office in the new year and no goof-ups...Bach Gaye!!

Action Reaction!!

2005-12-12T23:07:00.000-08:00

The Action...

"The smoking zone is the open space next to the coffee machine on every floor. People who don't smoke are forced to be passive smokers. Can we separate out the smoking zone? Can the open space of a particular floor be termed as smoking zone?"

A Reaction

"Terrace!! Build your stamina as you smoke!! "

The Ultimate Reaction!

"Smoking will be permitted only in the Small Balconies (Floor 1 to 6) on the river side of the Hall. Please do not bring your Tea/Coffee Mugs to these Balconies."

Outsourced Slaves

2005-12-12T00:14:00.000-08:00

Throughout History India has been conquered, ruled, and exploited. The Mughals, the Shah's and then the British came, ruled us and left us as paupers. After independence, we begged and went with our begging bowl to an organization called the World Bank. We all think that things have improved after globalization, but then I think otherwise and I think we are still going back to slavery. But this time, its a little different.

The British first came under the guise of a company and said that they were here for trade. We know the histroy, they started ruling us and maybe, because of fear and of the might of their military, they ruled us and many other countries. Yep! the same thing is happening again but the difference is that now we are slaves of our own greed - money.

The Brits took raw materials from India as it was in abundance and that it was cheap. They forced us to get these raw materials. Of course we were paid which was peanuts. These raw materials were turned into a finished product and were sold in other parts of world and in India.

The scene is similar today, except that the mode is different and the words are polite - I would include "Company Processes" here. So what is it? Well, it's outsourcing! what we have here is us writing pieces of a big Story, without understanding the big picture. And then we have some smart "white" guy who outsources a job, puts all the pieces together, makes a product and sells it to the world.

We are given the work that they would rather give it to a servant, while they spend their time/resources in thinking about new ideas and products. Who implements these ideas? its us of course! a third world country who get a third of what they would have paid to some one of their own kind. For a piece of work which a High School pass out will do in US, an Indian has to be an Engineer. An american can work from 9 to 5, but you are expected to work as long as you can be stretched. What would have been the point of outsourcing, they may ask.

We are deep in the trap now. Yep! its the greed of money and we will continue to be slaves!!

Rahul

2005-12-04T07:42:00.000-08:00

Circa 1995: It’s a lazy afternoon of august and I was stretching myself in the balcony when I see him. Baseball cap, curly hair, glasses, sagging baggy pants, an oversized T-shirt, a cigarette in the left hand, and walking away without a care in the world. "Oh! so that’s the new guy", I think as I take another drag of tobacco. He disappeared in behind the walls of the Flats that we were living in. The construction in our New Campus was in full swing and as our hostel was still not complete so we *fach-chas* (as in college freshmen) were put up in flats that were supposed to be occupied by lecturers when the new campus was complete. I was supposed to go home for the weekend but I cancelled it. Too lazy to travel some 15 Kilometers just to eat Home Food.

I have never been very good in mathematics, so I decided to go on with practicing some problems (Engineering Mathematics-that was the subject! BLEH!!). The day went by and it was dark very soon.

I was reading a book when there was a knock in my room. A neighbor with whom I hardly talked to enters the room with the new fellow I had seen in the afternoon. "Hi Jimmy, this is Rahul." we shook hands and I offer them a seat.

"Jimmy, Rahul is going home tomorrow and he needs some money", my neighbor said.

“Just wondering if you could lend him some money" he continued

"No probs! How much?”

"Around 500 bucks"

"Just hold on"

I reach for my purse in the table and hand the money money to Rahul.

I didn’t hesitate one bit to give the money nor thought of how weird the situation was! Today my thoughts would have been like “Here is a neighbour I hardly talk to and he’s introducing me to some guy I have never met and someone who’s asking me to lend him money!!” or “something’s not really right here!!” blah blah blah…all the things that growing up does to you and me!! Time-how it changes you!!

"Thanks!!" Rahul said as I handed him the money.

I noticed Rahul was looking around the room, looking at Axl Rose's poster and a collage that I had made of models from a lifestyle magazine. He looked at my ashtray which I had made from an empty can of a deodorant. Rahul held it and talked for the first time…"Innovative!!" that was all he said!!

"Where are you from?" he asks me. "I'm from Mizoram and you?" "Cal"....as he looked around the room!

Yeah! That year I followed him to cal (Calcutta) with Robin and it turned out to be the best Christmas and New Year I have ever had. Well, we ended up being best buddies and he still gives a lot of load to these grey cells whenever Christmas approaches!!

Strange, but Christmas rocks in Cal!-that’s a personal exp actually :p

RIP Rahul…WISH you were here. (dot dot dot)

My Best Friend! Our Best Friend!!

Stop thinking about what you need - start thinking about you want! - Rahul

Interaction with a new boss!!

2005-12-01T02:06:00.000-08:00

My personal session with our new Biz Unit head:

Boss: Hi Jimmy, how are you? *with a smile*
Me: Great!! *the First Lie*
Boss: What did you do this morning?
Me: Brushed my teeth, took a shower, had my breakfast, came to office.
Boss: And what was the first thing you did in the office?
Me: I checked my mails, opened the documents I was working on yesterday...*This wasn't a Lie!!*
Boss: So tell me, how can I make things better for you?
Me: Well, I'm happy here. My mentor has been really been helpful. The teammates are co-operative...blah blah blah...Again! ALL LIES!!
Boss: Anything in particular you are annoyed about or any person in particular?
Me: No, I share a good rapport with everyone in the team. No person in particular. *Actually the previous person he interacted with had bitched a lot about my mentor...heh heh-office politics again!!*
Boss: How can I help you and make things better for you?
Now, I felt this question was genuine...
Me: Well, I'm currently ahead of schedule and the review comments have been good *I just had to add this word!*. I was wondering if it will be possible to grant me leave during the X-mas season...not more than 7 days...
Heh heh...saw him pick up his pen and make a note!!

Boss: Well, Jimmy it has been nice talking to you, I want to keep these interactions with the team on a fortnightly basis..blah blah blah...
I just left the room with a hand in my pocket and grinning about the lies I just spoke!!

Colleague: Kya Hua? (What happened?)
Me: Nothing much, and I narrated the interaction.
Colleague: Ya ya...the same silly things!

We had a hearty laugh and got back to work!!
Why do companies keep these silly interactions when nothing really comes out of it? Just let me do my work folks, that's what you hired me for!!

What I received in my inbox this Friday...

2005-08-18T00:10:00.000-07:00

One small request, no offence meant,
During the client interaction over the next week, please ensure that you have some mint after your smoke.

Just to avoid discomfort. :)

I'm sure you'll not mind but take this request positively.

Of course, I didn't mind. And well, I thanked the person for telling me beforehand.
What would you have done?