Venky's Blog

2008-03-24T22:56:00.007-04:00

I did two things this past weekend that I am proud of. Sometime back, I canceled my dish network account and returned all their equipment. However, I received a bill from Dish Network for $105.75 which were fraudulent charges claiming I hadn't returned the equipment. After spending several hours speaking to customer service agents without luck, I had had enough. Through the help of Consumerist.com and some googling, I found the email address of the Charles Ergen, the CEO of echostar (the company that owns dish network) and wrote him an email and copied the customer service department on it. I sent the email yesterday evening at about 5pm. This is the email I wrote to him:-

"Mr. Ergen,

I have been trying to resolve a billing issue with Dish Network for a while now and wanted to write to you since I have received poor customer service.

In September 2006, I became a dish network subscriber through a local retailer in Detroit. I had initially ordered a DVR, but when the technician came to install it, he only had a regular receiver and set that up. He asked me the go to a local dish network warehouse and exchange the receiver for a DVR. I did that within 24 hours and I thought everything was fine. In the first month I received a bill for the DVR. In November 2007, I canceled my Dish connection and returned my equipment. However, Dish sent me a bill for $105.75 for equipment charges. After a few phone calls to Dish Network, I was told it was for the original receiver I returned. Dish never took that out of my account. When I told them I had exchanged that for the DVR, they told me that was a transaction between me and my retailer and that I had to call her and have her send the receiver back to Dish.

I then called my retailer and she agreed with me that I had returned the receiver and that she will send a note to Dish. She told me Dish shouldn't be charging me for the receiver as the receiver belonged to the retailer and that it was a transaction between me and the retailer. She tells me she sent a note to Dish asking them to remove the charges from my account. However that hasn't happened and I received a letter from a collection company attempting to collect the charges. Every time I speak to Dish network, they ask me to speak to the retailer and when I speak to the retailer, she wants me to speak to Dish network. Incidentally, for the 14 months that I had service, the Dish receiver never showed up in my account or my bills. The thing I don't understand is me getting played between the retailer and Dish. My understanding was that the retailers represented Dish Network, but apparently Dish doesn't consider the retailers a part of themselves even though the retailers sell their products and services and use Dish Network's name.

My Dish Network account number is ****. The service address was ****. The name and address of the Dish Network retailer is ****.

After spending several hours on the phone with the retailer and Dish network, I am just really frustrated. I would really appreciate it if you could ensure that this issue gets resolved. I can be reached at this email address or at the phone number below if you would like to discuss. I am even willing to get on a conference call with the retailer and Dish Network to get this resolved.

Thank you,"

Guess what happened? At around 10am today morning, I got this email from a guy called Matt Kliewer from the executive communications office

"Venky,

I will go ahead and remove the charge from the account. We will have our retailer service department get in contact with the retailer. I apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused you.

Thank you

Matt Kliewer

Executive Communications

Echostar Satellite LLC"

Oh! boy, wasn't I happy to see the charges removed. I was getting ready to file a complaint at the better business bureau and at uscp.org. The charges still show up in my online account, but I am assuming they will be removed soon.

Second, I usually get my shirts dry cleaned. I really like the convenience of not having to wash or iron them. However one pet peeve of mine is the annoying wire hangers that come with the dry cleaned shirts. Most people just throw them away, but my dry cleaner gets them back and recycles them. The "green" person in me wanted to take them back to the dry cleaners and have them re-use it. However one problem with that was after a year of throwing the hangars in the corner of my bedroom they were all tangled up and looked something like this

I am proud to say I sacrificed a significant portion of Sunday afternoon to (save the planet) untangle the hangers and made them look something like this

and eventually like this.

They are all packed up in a green whole foods bag (made of recycled paper) ready to be returned to the dry cleaners where along with their friends they will live happily ever after, bearing the burden of freshly dry cleaned shirts in their slender shoulders.

So those were the two things I did this past weekend that i am proud of :) - Comments?

P.S> I know I don't have to color green text in green, but i thought that created a nice visual effect!

Life in these US

2008-03-05T00:11:00.004-05:00

When I was in my 9th grade, my aunt and uncle visited us in Chennai from Bombay. They had just returned back to India after spending 6 months in the US with their children. That night, lured by the cheap Sanford mechanical pencils, papermate pens (no offense to anyone, I get those now when I go back home. For some reason they seem to have an appeal back home) and Snicker bars, I decided I was going to go to the U.S for my M.S. In fact after seeing my aunt's family picture in front of the Niagara falls, I couldn't wait any longer.

While I was in college, this longing was further emphasized, especially listening to the stories from our seniors in the U.S. The stories were almost always about long road trips, visiting exotic places and being able to buy fancy gadgets and gizmos. Money ofcourse was a big part behind my motivation to come to the U.S. I wanted to drive nice cars and wear designer clothes etc., However a bigger aspect was also freedom. Being able to be with friends and do a lot of fun things with them and not to have to worry about Money....that sounded like paradise.

Anyway, fast forward 5 years and here I am in the heart of Chicago. I have missed all my best friends weddings (SVCE and UK). I speak to my friends once in a while and in some cases have no idea what's happening in their lives. I have no idea or sense of festivals I used to enjoy and look forward to. During festivals I care about (Diwali, Pongal etc.,) I have to work. When I have holidays (Christmas, Independence day etc.,) I don't really care about or relate to those festivals (if you want to call them that). I speak to my folks back home at the most once a week. So anyway, you get the picture...

Its not that I don't enjoy the things I came here to buy and relish. It is a pleasure to hear my 3.0 liter engine in my BMW, roar to life every morning. Its great to live in the city of Chicago, which is a melting pot of so many different cultures. Above all, seeing a paycheck every other Friday sure puts a smile on my face. I have to admit this country has been good to me. I was able to spend a considerable amount of time in Europe and see the old country, travel and work on challenging projects in the U.S., all as a part of my work.

However, on moments like this, I question if it was/is worth it. I wanted the nice things to share with my friends and family. After all its whom you are with that makes all the difference, not where you are or what you have. My college was in the middle of no where and the nearest half decent theater was a good hour away. Yet those were the 4 best years of my life. I guess where I am getting at is what is the cost incurred for these economic gains and other things that at times seem so superficial? I wonder if in an attempt to find the AC first class compartment, I am missing the entire train.

Or all this could be just a part of growing up. As you start working your responsibilities increase and there just isn't enough time to spend with friends anymore. The little free time that you have, you want to spend it in solitude rather than speak on the phone. Either case, this SUCKS!

Chicago GSB...here I come!

2008-02-09T21:31:00.001-05:00

Yes! I managed to get admitted into the University of Chicago's Graduate school of Business. The last 4 months have been a slog, with GMAT preps, essays etc. It feels good to have an admit.

I hope this will jump start my business blog (I highly doubt it). For those who are new or have no idea about the world of Business schools, you probably don't care. However, here are a few fun facts about the University of Chicago (The admit gives me bragging rights).

In 2007, It was ranked number 1 business school in the U.S. by Businessweek and number 1 in the world by the Economist, even ahead of IIM-A for career guidance.
The University of Chicago has the most number of Nobel Laureates than any other school in the world
Milton Friedman taught in the University of Chicago and considered it his home. (Do I need to say more?)

Oh! I forgot to mention, Steven Levitt (of Freakonomics fame) is a professor at the University of Chicago. Ok, I rest my case!

I am looking forward to a valuable learning experience.

Only in France!!

2008-02-03T02:42:00.001-05:00

In how many countries can a President get away with divorcing his wife one month after taking office, publicly dating and chasing around a young model (with a long, well documented modeling career often with little or no clothes)?

NY times reports that the couple got married recently. I also found this article amusing (Warning! I wouldn't open it at work!!).

I wonder if this happened with the U.S. President or the Indian Prime Minister, what kind of reaction it would generate!

Winter begins!

2007-12-01T15:27:00.001-05:00

And so the snowfall starts in Chicago. The next 4 months will be pure torture!

Picture taken from my 19th floor apartment in Chicago. The bottom of the picture shows the snow accumulation on my window sill.

Ridiculous!

2007-11-27T01:30:00.000-05:00

I read this article today and was pretty shocked to say the least! I have been fairly indifferent to the presidential race so far, but find it atrocious to hear a fore runner speak this way of a leading candidate, not to mention former first lady (He referred to Ms Clinton with the B* word). I wonder how many votes McCain is going to lose because of that. May be not much considering he didn't have a lot of supporters to begin with.

Website registration images

2007-11-10T19:47:00.001-05:00

I know the text in image form which you have to enter while registering into sites is a security feature which is meant to protect the user and the site from unwanted spam and tons of random automatic subscriptions. But I have been noting that recently the text in these images is so crypted, I can barely read it. I was trying to register to a site today and after the 4th time of entering the wrong text I'd had enough. To make matters worse, I had to re-enter my email address and password every time I entered the wrong text. Attached below is a sample image. May be somebody can look at it and guess what the text is, because honest to god, I had a hard time figuring it out.

Finally at the 5th attempt I managed to get in!

The post about my other post!

2007-10-23T22:17:00.000-04:00

If ever there gets published a book on Blog etiquette, then writing a post on a blog, publicizing a post that you wrote on your other blog would not be in that list. Yet I am going to do exactly that. The dilemma I face is, I just listened to a podcast which I felt compelled to blog about. Since the subject is about Business and Management (B&M), I wrote about it in my B&M blog (duh!). However, since this was a post I was excited about and felt that there was true value in the post, I wanted as many people as possible to read it and since more people read this blog than the other blog, I felt compelled to write about the other post here. One wouldn't have to do this if there are a 1000 people reading your every post. But considering the fact that I can count the number of people reading my more "popular" blog with one hand, a little extra publicity, I figured will not kill me.

Basically all I am saying is, go read this post.

AG's Memoirs

2007-09-25T09:56:00.000-04:00

This past weekend, I picked up a copy of the Alan Greenspan's memoir, "The Age of Turbulence" after I had read a lot of good things about it. I expected this to be a dry tale of an economist's experiences as the Fed Chairman, who led the country through a series of booms and recessions and ofcourse 9/11. Surprisingly though the book has so far been great fun to read and although I am through only 100 of the 500 pages, I am already looking forward to completing the book.

The book is split in to two major parts, one has to deal with AG's life and experiences and the second part is his take on the way things are proceeding in the global economy and what he predicts will happen.

Even The Economist had good things to say about the book...

“The Age of Turbulence” is a dull title, tending to confirm one's fears, and that risible subtitle, “Adventures in a New World”, is fooling nobody. Yet, despite everything, the book turns out to be first-rate. It engages on different levels: it is intelligent in a way that few popular books on economics manage or even try to be; and, wonder of wonders, it is a good read. No doubt, Mr Greenspan had help with the writing: he acknowledges Peter Petre, a talented co-writer, as a collaborator. For this one can only be grateful. Who would have guessed that 500 pages in Mr Greenspan's company could slip by so easily?"

Being a long time The Economist reader, I can assure you they don't say such good things about books, especially economics books very often. Check it out. Btw, the book is on sale, 30% off at Borders.

A little Apple for everyone!!

2007-09-06T01:40:00.001-04:00

Check out the new goodies from Apple...their new range of Ipods. I love Steve Jobs and his keynote addresses. They are awesome and seriously cool. Period.

I already have an Ipod, but am seriously tempted to buy the new Ipod touch.

signing off from my MacBook...(you get an idea about how much I like Apple products!

1st Anniversary

2007-08-26T01:46:00.000-04:00

Exactly 1 year ago, this day, I drove my BMW out of Erhard BMW Farmington Hills dealer. As cliched as it sounds, its amazing how fast time passes. Anyway the good thing is my beamer feels just as good to drive today as it did the first time I test drove it. The car and its fabulous engineering still amaze me and I look forward to driving this vehicle for many more years to come. The saying goes, "Once a BMW driver, always a BMW driver" and unless something really bad happens (I hope not), that's saying is going to be true in my case.

The bad thing is, I got my first ticket yesterday :( Attached below are a couple of pictures...again taken from my cellphone, so excuse the poor quality.

2007-08-21T21:29:00.001-04:00

It pisses me off everytime I read something like this. When will this freaking genocide in the name of war against terror end? What a ridiculous waste of human lives, resources and money!!

Good Stuff

2007-08-08T23:02:00.001-04:00

I thought I was too old to be drooling at bikini clad women in magazines. I just thought I had grown over it, yet every now and then a magazine comes up with a set of pictures which manage to capture both my attention and my imagination.

Jessica Biel's pictures in the July 2007 GQ is one of those rare few pictures. I find them sensual and artistic and definitely worth checking out.

Btw, I got a 18 speed mountain bike couple of weeks back. It kinda reminds me of my school days when I used to bike 6 Km one way to school everyday. Also it works out great helping me avoid the Chicago traffic and parking hassles. Attached is a picture below. It was taken with my cellphone, so bear the poor quality.

Virginia Tech Shootings

2007-04-16T23:34:00.001-04:00

I am totally appalled and stunned by the Virginia Tech shootings. I have been thinking about what the motive of the guy who opened fire was. What beats me is how could somebody just go and shoot 32 innocent students? I mean seriously...I have been very very pissed before...and some people have irritated me so much that I have wanted to shoot them down, but again I fail to see what the logic is behind shooting 3 dozen could be.

Having graduated from college recently, I am just totally shocked. In the 3 years I was in UK, not once, even in the wildest of dreams did I imagine something like this could happen. My heart felt condolence to the victims and students of Vtech. Also I am scared this is going to become the "Universities 9/11"  and that universities are going to incorporate  a whole bunch of new security measures which in the name of protecting the students, makes life hell for people. Kind of like what 9/11 did to frequent flyers.

New Blog!

2007-03-28T21:17:00.001-04:00

In the last 8 months, I have been more and more interested in Business and Management. Ofcourse reading a whole bunch of different blogs and business and economics related magazines has helped in giving me a better understanding of the concepts which has furthered my interest on these topics. Along those lines, I just recently started writing a new blog called Amateur thoughts on Business and Management. (http://thescienceofmanagement.blogspot.com) So head on over there and share your thoughts and comments with me on my writings and viewpoints.

I still plan on continuing to write this blog. This is going to be more for my rants and other things not related to Business or Management. On the other blog, I will be discussing interesting articles I read, my thoughts and views on current happenings. (currently I am thinking about writing a post about the Blackstone IPO)

In essence what I am saying is that, Amateur thoughts on Business and Management is going to be the official website of the brand "me".

Food for Thought

2007-03-25T03:07:00.001-04:00

I read this in a bookstore couple of days back. Fast Company has published a book containing the best articles it has published in the last 10 years. This article was featured in that book and it caught my attention.

I found the article interesting. If nothing it it will give you some thing to think about this weekend.

Photos..

2007-01-25T05:16:00.000-05:00

Sometime thinking about Photography, I feel digital cameras and cheap SD cards are the worst things that could have happened to my photography skills. I often find myself to be a clicker...anytime I am at any place which is half decent and I have a camera in my hand, I go click! click! click! I think well...what do I have to lose? I have a 1 gig card, which can hold like a million photos (actually close to 400) and I always travel with my laptop, so at the end of the day I can transfer my pictures and start all over again. So essentially at the end of the trip, I have over 500 pictures (almost always) and yet I am not satisfied with most of them.

Recently though, I have been concentrating quite a bit on taking good pictures in the night with manual settings in my camera. They take longer to take, you need more patience and they look beautiful if they come out well. I figured this is a good way to slow myself down. Also typically I need to rest my camera somewhere (I don't travel with a tripod as I find it too painful to carry) to take pictures without blurring them, so again on the whole I tend to spend more time analyzing the shot, trying different angles etc., I was in London this past weekend and here are a couple of pictures I took that I was rather proud of. I recommend you see it full size to be able to fully appreciate the colors and the light.

Parliament from the east bank of Thames

The London eye from the west bank of Thames, right outside Westminster underground station.

Digital Camera Tips

2007-01-05T10:52:00.000-05:00

Thinking about buying a new digital camera? The flickr camera finder is a great way to find good digital cameras. It has a listing of the most popular cameras used to take pictures uploaded in flickr along with other data such as number of photos uploaded, camera details, photos uploaded yesterday etc., If you have a particular camera in mind you can look up data for that particular camera along with its price range. The best part is at the bottom you get images that were taken using a particular camera that appeared in Explore. What a great way to see the kind of pictures that the camera you are planning to buy is capable of capturing. It is so much better than seeing the standard flower image that appears in most camera manufacturer's websites.

I was surprised to see that my Canon SD450 is the 7th most popular Canon camera and the most popular point and shoot digital camera (6th is Canon SD400 which is a point and shoot as well, but basically just the previous version of the SD450). Flickr rocks...there is no arguing that!!

(Attached below is a snapshot of my camera details from flickr)

New Year Resolutions

2007-01-01T08:16:00.000-05:00

Despite being in a world of increased ease in communication, I feel I am distancing myself more and more from my friends. Especially in the last few months I often find myself not feeling like talking to anybody and being contended just sitting home with a book or a DVD. Clearly I know this has to change. My friends define who I am and I wouldn't have an identity without them. Starting 2007, I am going to make a increased effort to keep in touch with my friends. Close friends more often through email and phone and maybe even more personal visits (when possible), the next level through emails and the rest through Orkut scraps.
I am going to pursue Happiness. I want to fully realize the joy of giving. I want to share more than I am willing to. I want to help develop, motivate the people I work with and share the knowledge I have with them (in a non bragging way!) This doesn't mean letting everybody else go before me, it means I want to grow, but want to make sure the people I work with grow with me. I might not be qualified to do this, but I am going to do the little bit I can. If there is something I can do to help somebody, I know I should, I will. Of course most of this is just plain good Karma, something I believe in more than in religion.
In the spirit of continuous improvement (of ourselves), I think we have to be more critical of ourselves and forgiving of others. Sadly most of us (I am probably first on that list) are currently more critical of others and forgiving of ourselves. The funny thing is I realized this while driving in India on this trip. People swear and curse others for aggressive, rash driving yet they drive the same way and think its alright. I guess its human tendency..if something happens to us we think its misfortune, if the same thing happens to somebody else we think they deserve it.
Environment - I don't think the world is coming to an end, but however that shouldn't be a reason for inaction on our part to try and preserve our environment for the coming generations. Last year I switched all the bulbs in my house to energy saving lights and started re-cycling PET and Glass bottles. I know its nothing radical, but still is a small thing I can do. I hope to continue along those lines this year.
Read more....finish a book every 2 weeks. Knowledge is power and there is no better way to gain knowledge than to read books.

Some of this might sound silly, some way too cheesy, but everyone of these are things that I have put a lot of thought into and believe in throughly.

As 2007 starts, I welcome the new year with passion, exuberance, smile and more importantly an open mind and hope that whatever happens, good or bad, I learn valuable lessons from them and improvise.

Have a stupendous and sensational new year!!

Gill Adarsh Days...

2006-12-26T13:26:00.000-05:00

Today I felt like I was taken back in Time as I visited my old apartment and school. I happened to be in the neighbourhood of the apartments where I lived from 1989 through 1995, from my 3rd through 8th grade. And since my apartment was at a stone's throw from the school I studied in, I also visited my school (Gill Adarsh M.H.S.S., Roypettah, Chennai)

Its amazing how fast time passes. Looking at the balcony of my old apartment from the street, it felt like only yesterday I was running around in the balcony as a little kid, trying to fly the kites I made or throwing stones at my neighbors whom I used to hate. The school was even more memorable. I was delighted to see that the tree under which I used to play cricket after school till my mother picked me up was still there. I even managed to sneak into the school (much to the annoyance of the security person who strictly warned me against going in) and see my 6th, 7th and 8th standard classrooms. Since the school was closed, I was able to go into the classrooms and think about those days when I studied there. I was reminded of the time I was asked to kneel down because my classteacher caught me singing and dancing in the class. And also the time the whole class burst out laughing at me because I entered the class after using the restroom with my fly wide open.

Those days will never come back again, yet those memories will last a lifetime. Partly because I secretly wish (well...not a secret anymore!!) I could be a kid again. Those days were delightfully simple. There was no pressure to perform, no board exams..nothing. Life was all about going to school, coming back and playing and yeah..may be doing some homework. I was soo blisfully ingnorantly happy. Not that I am not Happy now, but back then I was Happy in a way that I didn't know what sorrow was...and there is something tremendrously light about that feeling. I know I can never be like that again. My only other regret is since I wasn't planning on the trip, I didn't have a camera handy to snap a few pictures. :-(

btw, Gill Adarsh is the best school ever...I loved every bit of it!!

Information Vs Noise

2006-12-26T13:15:00.000-05:00

Everywhere I see, I keep hearing about Information overload and Information explosion powered mainly by what has now come to be called web 2.0. But truth be told, I really question this claim.

I think this is a case where noise has been confused with information. Most of what I find easily available in the internet is noise. Useless pieces of information or one's opinions and thoughts that typically does not come out of data or research. What is worse is that writers typically tend to be polarized and write strongly for or against a cause. Readers typically tend to either strongly agree or disagree with the writer, in any case causing rampant publicity for the writer. It's what I call the "Rush Limbaugh" effect. His listeners either absolutely love him (because they are conservative?) or just can't stand him, yet listen to him just to get enraged (or laugh) by the ridiculous things he has to say. Good solid information is sadly difficult to come by or you have to pay for it.

My claims aren't totally unsubstantiated either. I read (or subscribe) to about 80 blogs in my google reader, in areas ranging from Lean Manufacturing, productivity improvement, management etc., Yet most of the posts have minimal valuable information. Lean Manufacturing blogs are typically a consultant's sales pitch about how successful he/she have been in implementing lean with their clients. Their star lean companies being their clients. There is another lean blog which is apparently famous, but essentially talks about nothing but how bad outsourcing is. Granted outsourcing is not a very lean practice, yet in some cases it makes economic sense and is worth doing. To say all outsourcing is wrong is naive. Then there are some productivity improvement blogs that are really pretty silly. I am not saying all blogs are useless. Certainly there are some blogs that I read without fail.

As far as news goes, new websites like Digg etc., are great start ups but have a long way to go before they mature. Currently its a little community of geeks. Submit a story to Digg with amazing and firefox in the heading and there is a 75% probability that it will appear in the front page. (But then again, may be they are not meant to be what I want them to be...so could be my bad!!)

I have eventually realized that good old published magazines and journals are the best sources of valuable information that can be trusted. They will safely guarantee you know what you need to know without excess information overload. Three months into starting the economist subscription, I have realized why it is the most read magazine on world news and economics by business and political leaders world over. Business Week and Harvard Business Review give you all the happenings in the business world and long term business trends and Management fundamentals you need to know about. Fast Company gives you interesting snippets of information on creativity, design and emerging trends. Men's Health gives you everything you need to know about what, and what not to eat, health info and fashion. Besides there is something about reading from a printed piece of paper that reading of a LCD screen just cannot suffice.

India Trip

2006-12-13T11:04:00.000-05:00

Quite a few of my friends often ask me, why I go back to India every year? Many of them visit may be once every 2 or 3 years. Truth be told, going back to India every year has been a major financial drain on me. After all, with as expensive as flight tickets are these days, especially during the peak season and the gifts you buy, you start seeing a significant hole in your savings. What more? considering you want to maximize the time you spend back home, you use your entire vacation on the trip. Atleast for me, my routine goes something like this...January 2 to December 15, work! work! work!...don't take a single day of vacation. December 15 - January 1, go back to India and blow up your entire year's savings and vacation in one trip. (If wasn't for this trip to India, in my home in the place of my old sony boob tube would be a new 50 inch plasma and a few hundred dollars more in my savings)

So again why go every year? I think the answer to that lies in they way you think and the way you have been brought up. To me, no matter how many countries I visit, my number one choice for a vacation destination will be Chennai, India. I grew up in that town and for the most part know the "In's and Out's" of it. Especially in late december (Marghazi Masam) Chennai offers a multitude of things which charms me to no end. The early morning Bhakti music concert played in each street with cheap LOUD speakers, the beautiful sunshine with 80 degrees temperature which is such a great escape from the rain and 45 degrees it is in Detroit right now, the classical music season with various artists performing and the canteens outside the music sabhas serving fresh dosas and coffee and so on. Most importantly the joy of meeting and spending time with my family and old friends, to play home cricket with my 3 year old nephew, to take my mom out to ice creams, to go to my old saloon and get a head massage (Rs 50 for a long 1/2 hour massage - cheap isn't it?), to walk, sit, relax in Marina/Besant nagar beach, to enjoy the Rs 10 Masala Kadalai at the beach. I love to go to Satyam and see young college kids bunk class to watch a matinee, reminds me of time I used to do it and the 4 golden years I spent in college.

Having spent pretty much all of my life in India in Chennai, I think a part of who I am is because of the things I learnt, in and from the city. So nothing relaxes, invigorates and recharges me like my trips back home. And I can't think of a better way to start a new year than to have a cup of filter coffee (Hungover from New year's party??..may be!) and some hot mom cooked breakfast, watching "puthanda sigapu Nizahichi" in Sun/Moon/Mars TV. And all this more than justifies the trip (to me atleast)....

General Thoughts!

2006-12-11T00:55:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, my colleague, a fellow Indian and a six sigma master black belt came closest to defining Hinduism in a way that engineers, esp. six sigma trained ones can understand and appreciate. Here is his philosophy, which I totally agree with.

He said "All people are created with a Cp equivalent to two (Indicates Six Sigma capability). Our Ppk (Indication of actual performace level) is much lower though. So essentially Hinduism says if you can raise your Ppk to Cp levels, then you become god". Beautiful eh?
----

As an engineer, one of the things that immensely fascinates me are commercial jets. Especially Boeing 747's with the 2 engines on either wing. Seriously, one of the reasons I never get really tired of long layovers is because I could just sit in a coffee shop with a view of the runway and just watch flights take off and land all day.

All this week I was in Chicago. Our facility there is about 10 minutes drive from O'Hare Airport, which is one of the busiest in the world. During general commute I had to drive a bunch of times south on I294, on the part just adjacent to O'Hare. The freeway runs perpendicular to the 2 main runways in O'Hare, about 0.5 miles away from where the runway starts. As a result when you drive south, you can see huge (and small) planes, dip down really low, with its nose tipped up, wheels down and at a very low straight line speed getting ready to land. Its just such a beautiful sight. Infact today, much to the annoyance of my colleague, I almost ran into the car in front of me, gaping at a American Airlines, Boeing 747 touch ground.

To many, planes are annoying noisy necessities of modern life. To me they are generations of ingenuity, engineering excellence and man's (and woman's) persistence to attempt and do what normally seems impossible!
----

I can't remember how long it has been since I saw a Hindi or a Tamil movie and came out of the cinema thinking Wow!!, that was a super cool movie. Its kinda sad that the supposedly second biggest movie industry in the world seems to be running out of ideas and creativity to keep its audience captivated. Especially ones like me with very low standards...seriously, I pretty much watch almost every movie unless my friends hit me with a hammer and ask me not to watch that movie.

So despite the warning of my friends (wish I was better at learning from other's mistakes or atleast my own mistakes), I spent $10 today and watched Dhoom II in a theatre. What can I say about the movie?...besides sometime after the interval, I got tired of watching Bipasha Basu and Aishwarya Rai's scantily dressed, tanned ~~breas~~ ~~cleavage~~ bodies. Okay I didn't get tired of watching them, but would have preferred if there was a storyline or something interesting in the movie. On the whole it was a pitiful waste of 10 bucks and 3 hours of my valuable Sunday evening time.

Creativity - where we get our ass kicked!

2006-12-03T17:14:00.001-05:00

Since I haven't been traveling a lot the last 3 months, its given me a chance to do some creative stuff, like cooking, decorating my apartment etc. Now first and foremost, I am by no means any good in either of these, but I'd like to be good and am working towards that. I have gotten a lot better than I was 3 months ago, thanks to watching hours of HGTV and food channel.

In general, I would like to think of myself as being creative. Creative not in the sense that I can cook amazing dishes or paint. But creative in the sense that I often times can think of things to do which are in general different from what others would think of doing. However, after carefully thinking on the topic of creativity, I am convinced that what separates very creative people from the rest is attention to detail. I have to admit, I suck at it. Here is why I think so. If you were to watch any creative program (redoing you home or a cooking show, architectural show..anything) often times its the minute details, things I wouldn't even think about which would make the big difference. In my mind its analogous to the difference in the print quality of a 8X10 picture printed out of a 640X480 image and a 8X10 picture printed out of a 5000X4000 image. They both probably tell the same story and show the same thing, yet the latter does it much better than the former.

I hate gender based generalizations, which say men are like this and women are like that etc., for the same reason I hate it when people say "Men can never understand women". I truly believe every person is different and has a different story to tell. Which is why generalizations typically don't work. Men will never understand women. But I believe if they listen well enough, they can understand "a woman". And when they meet another woman, its a totally different story and they have to start from scratch again. I have not, in my whole life met 2 women who are very similar. But before I digress too much, where I was going with this was that, One safe gender based generalization I think I can make is that, women are much better at paying attention to detail than men are. You put randomly selected, 100 men and 100 women in a room, and I could bet my next paycheck that the cumulative creative genius of the women will be more than that of the men. Sure many would argue that there are more men in creative positions like architecture and cooking etc., than women. However that ignores the fact that only a fraction of women compared to men work, hence I would say that is an invalid argument. Also I am talking about average people here, not professionally educated people.

Another thing that proves my point is that women are much better at remembering anniversaries, birthdays etc., and all finer details men typically tend to forget.

Bottomline...

In a nutshell, I am saying

1) Overall quality of creative genius greatly depends on a person's ability to sense finer details in any form of art. This ability enables the person to adjust and improve the finer details thus creating an overall better experience for people enjoying the art.

2) Women (IMO) tend to be much better at scanning and figuring out the finer details than men.

3) Therefore all other things being equal, women tend to be better at creating, capturing and refining art.

No, I am not sexist. No I am not trying to get Brownie points from women for this post. These are merely my observations based on the experience of working with and having friends, among men and women. Truth be told, I only know a handful of women well and they all exhibit the characteristics I mentioned above. If you disagree with me, let me know.

Girls with Blackberry

2006-11-21T18:22:00.000-05:00

Yesterday while I was at the Y, trying my level best to push the 80 pounds off my chest for the 9th time at the chest press, I saw this chick right across me, to my left running on the thread mill. She was running fairly fast, around 7.5. She was slim, had a great body, but was ordinary looking. She had her headphones on, with her Ipod inside her tracks. Ahem...yes Inside her tracks, she must have had some kind of a pocket or something on the inner side of her tracks, on the front side (near the tie string) where she kept her Ipod (Lucky Ipod!!)

Anyway no big deal, I was about to get back to my workout when all of a sudden, out of no where, she took out her Blackberry and started going through her messages. So here she was, all sweaty and stuff, running at 7.5, listening to music and with her right hand, using the scroll button to go through her email. Its like she was in a zone of her own, she didn't care what others were doing or thinking about her. And that, I though was incredibly cool. All other things equal, I would kill to have a girlfriend like that! (As time passes by and I get older...I would kill to have a girlfriend. Period.)

So I added "Girls with Blackberry" to my list of fetishes.

Happy Thanksgiving

2006-11-20T20:11:00.000-05:00

I read this great post from Tom Peters today. Tom Peters is one of the management guru's whose presentations, books and blog I follow religiously. His is one of the blogs that never goes unread in my reader among the 80 odd blogs I try to follow everyday.

I truly believe in what Tom teaches. For as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to come to United States, because I have always had this image of U.S. being the land of dreams where I could make it big and be immensely successful. A country where it wouldn't matter who I am or where I am from, and the only thing that would matter would be my Passion (always capital P:)) and performance.

Everytime I hear about a foreign born (Outside U.S.) person make it big through their own startup or become the CEO/COO of a great/large corporation, it puts a smile in my face. It reinforces my belief that in 20-30 years if I am not where I want to be, I have nobody else to blame but myself...but hopefully I won't have to.

Here is another one of Tom's recent posts I enjoyed.

P.S> For those who don't know Tom Peters (God..which world do you live in?) he is a 63 year old management guru and author of the famous book In search of excellence. Check out his blog, where you can also download some of his presentations.

Amores Perros and Embrassing Childhood

2006-11-18T02:42:00.001-05:00

On a friend's recommendation, I rented out Amores Perros and am seeing it right now. I have to admit its one of the goriest, sad and melancholic movies I have seen in a long time. Its essentially stories of three different people coming together with an accident. Although it is supposed to be a critically acclaimed movie taken by a debutant director and not even badly taken, it just isn't my kind of movie. I have to admit, it has left a bad taste, got my mood down and made it a lousy start to a weekend.

On a lighter note, today while cooking I was reminded of a silly and embrassing incident that happened while I was in school. It must have happened when I was in third or fourth grade. I hung out with a bunch of great guys, but most of them were really rich, you know the kind that give each student a dairy milk for their birthday, while the rest of the class gave coffee bite (if you grew up in India, you would know what I am talking about). So I liked to show off whenever I could. So one day, I manage to steal a pair of shades my mom's brother had given her and bring it to school to show it off to my friends. The plan was perfect, I would take it school without my mother's knowledge, brag about it the whole day and then put it back in the evening and my mom wouldn't even know about it.

Everything was working as per plan, I went to school early that day so I could start bragging. Since I had dropped the shades earlier, I went on about how these shades were unbreakable and then dropped it on the floor to show it to my friends.

(Amores Perros, just got over....what a freaking relief!)

At that point one of my friends said, how much force can it withstand, to which I said, any amount. (If only I knew when to shutup!) I then got on top of a desk and flung the shades with as much force as I could muster in the floor. Guess what happened? The shades cracked...

Well...the rest of the day was hell. Not only did I look ridiculously stupid in front of my friends, I also had a heck of a lot of explaining to do to my mom, who fortunately or unfortunately is not fooled very easily.

Thinking back now, I had a childhood filled with so many embrassing events, mostly brought upon me by myself that I am not surprised that I no longer get embrassed that easily.

Oh well!! Have a good weekend

btw, Go Blue - Hopefully Michigan kicks Ohio State's ass tommorow. You know how excited I have been about this game...I blogged about it a month back in this post.

A little Trick

2006-11-15T23:40:00.001-05:00

I came across this key board shortcut in a tech journal. I was surprised that I didn't know this earlier.

"This shortcut is probably the most useful of all. It
involves using the Shift key when selecting long lists or text
passages.

Let's
say you want to select a section of this newsletter
covering several paragraphs. The way most users would do this
would be to left mouse click at the start, hold the mouse button
down and then move the mouse curser to the end of the text to be
selected.

That's
fine but if the text covers more than one screen it can
get tricky. Here's a much better way.

First,
left click at the start of the text and release the mouse
button. Then scroll down to the end of the text and left click
again while holding down Shift key. All the text in between will
be selected.

Try
it now on this newsletter. Neat eh?

The
same technique works well when selecting items on a list."

I can see myself using this keyboard shortcut quite a bit. Pretty neat right? Here is the complete list of all keyboard shortcuts.

Alright Tschüss! now

Performancing for Firefox

2006-11-15T17:21:00.001-05:00

If you actually read this post, then check out Performancing for Firefox which is a great way you can blog directly from your browser. This combined with Firefox 2.0 built in spell check means, no more stupid spelling mistakes in your posts. Nice way to be able to post directly from your browser, especially useful if you are at work, like I am right now. Another way is to use Google Docs Spreadsheets, if you post to Blogger. I am not sure about other blogs.

If you don't see this post, well then performancing doesn't work very well with blogger beta. Also in any case I dont see how you can add tags to your post from performancing. Of course there is always a tiny bit of possibility that I screwed up and didn't do something right

Adios

CorrectionS

I just figured out, you can add labels to your post. You do that under the categories section in performancing. Also this works, since I just saw the the post had been posted to my blog with the labels.

Performancing Rocks!!

Putty Beach - Central Coast, NSW, Australia

2006-11-07T15:32:00.001-05:00

Putty Beach - Central Coast, NSW, Australia
Originally uploaded by `Bobesh.

Saw this picture in interestingness in Flickr today. two things came to my mind..

1) I need to travel to Australia. I have seen a lot of pictures of beautiful beaches and the coastline there and I am throughly convinced its a neat place to visit

2) Why the hell can't I take pictures like these? I mean even if I were in the exact same beach at the exact same spot at the exact sametime, somehow I feel the picture I would have taken probably wouldnt have been this good and definitely wouldnt have made it to the interestingness page! Something I need to work on...

Later then...

Europe Series 2 - Cologne, Germany

2006-10-29T23:21:00.000-05:00

The first weekend I was in Germany, me and my colleague (Karthik) went to Cologne (Koln). A fairly large sized city, located on the banks of the river Rhine about an hour's drive from where we were staying. The first thing people notice, as they enter Cologne is the magnificient, huge Cathedral, called the Dom. We went there on a sunny and bright saturday and the weather was just perfect. Since we wanted to visit the Dom, we had to drive around for about 30 minutes till we found a parking tower we could park at. The Dom is located right at the city enter and has a ton of shopping and food joints around it, hence it is almost always tough to find a good parking spot in the area. Having been in Germany for a week now, me and my Karthik were dying for some spicy Indian food. The first thing we did was to find an Indian restraunt and eat lunch. The food was ok, far from good and nothing memorable.

Then we started walked to the Dom. The cathedral is just so imposing and intimidating when you stand close to it. It almost reminded me of a Dragon's castle. The kind that lets fire out of its mouth..like in Shrek! We went in, and it was peaceful and quiet, contrary to the noise and chaos outside. Me and Karthik then went started climbing the 509 steps to get to the top of the building. Karthik gave up half way, but I managed to climb all the way to the top with breaks. The view from top was certainly not breathtaking, but was beautiful all the same. It is always nice to get on top of buildings in Europe and enjoy the views as the architecture is so different and much more ornate than the concrete jungles you see in the States.

After hanging out around the city center for a few hours we started heading back to Wuppertal. We also had a cup of coffee in one of the famous side walk cafe's Europe is soo famous for. One of the things I love about Europe is its laid back culture. Its just so relaxing to see people and families sitting in the sidewalks, enjoying a cup of coffee and just chatting. Although there are side walk cafe's cafes in the States, you just dont get the same feel you get in Europe.

One the way back, while I was driving my car from the parking lot, I made a sharp turn and caused coniderable dents to my car when I made contact with the wall. I obviously was not yet used to the cramped tight parking spaces and ramps of the European parking towers. I since then noticed, Cologne is especially notorious for that. During one of our trips to Cologne sometime later, we once had to close our side view mirrors so they would not make contact with the mirrors of the car parked adjacent to ours.

All in all, looking back now, that trip to Cologne was a great experience. I guess I was lucky that my company paid the 750 Euros deductible for damages I caused to the car. I made several more trips to Cologne after that. Cologne is one of those cities that becomes more fascinating and interesting, the more times you visit.

If you ever happened to go to Cologne, dont forget to try the food and beer at the Peters Brauhaus. Its phenomenal.

Attached below are some pictures...

Thats a picture of the Dom and the railway bridge over the river Rhine. Right beside the railway tracks there is a small pedestrian area where you can walk.

This is a picture of me on the bridge (the one above), with the Dom in the background.

That's a picture of me having a cup of coffee at a sidewalk cafe.

(Europe Series...to be continued)

Europe Series 1 - German Engineering

2006-10-24T23:57:00.000-04:00

Roughly 1 year ago (10/23/2005) to be exact, I set my foot for the first time on German Soil. The next 10 months were almost magical where I travelled extensively to Europe and also within Europe. Those 10 months will always be considered as one of the most enjoyable moments in my life. All the Germans I worked with were fabulous people. During this time I developed a great sense of respect and admiration for German Engineering. Sure many would claim it is over engineering and I agree. I saw a lot of machines in Germany which werent really needed and didnt serve the people it was designed for in the most effective manner. But what impressed me the most was not just the quality of the work, but passion most men (Not being sexist here, I worked mostly with men...so I dont really know about the women) had for Engineering. Starting from the maintenance guy at the plant, I worked out of. Once we were talking about this idea for a project which had a little bit of engineering involved and I saw this guy who generally has great inertia get all excited about this. Couple of hours later he came to my office with a bunch of AutoCAD plots with potential engineering solutions. All this was on a Saturday and anybody who has been to Europen atleast once knows how hard it is to get Europeans to work in the weekends.

I am an engineer and I am passionate about my work, so nothing wins my admiration more than seeing people being really passionate and proud about their engineering. Thus I changed my mind from a Lexus 330RX, owning which, I had dreamt of for 5 years preceding my trips to Germany, and got a Germany manufactured BMW 330i.

There are many such small stories that happened during my trips to Europe that are deeply embedded in my thoughts and memories of the place. I am going to attempt to write and share some of those in the upcoming months.

I am attaching the very first picture I took in Europe and Germany. It isnt a great picture. My colleague took it and its a picture of the Autobahn A1, while we were driving from Wuppertal to Koln. The car in the picture is the rental car from National I had for almost 2 months, a diesel Opel Vectra.

(Picture taken on 10/29/2005, 11.14 am Local Time)

Michigan Rocks!!

2006-10-21T19:11:00.000-04:00

Its an exciting time to be in Detroit...its been a phenomenal time for sports in Michigan. I moved into Michigan and look at what happened? My favorite college football team Michigan Wolverines has been kicking ass having won all games so far this season. It started the season ranked number 16 and has risen upto No. 2 only behind Ohio State. What's more important is having beat Iowa today, it pretty much got a easy run till it meets Ohio State in November. What a game that will be? For folks who dont follow college football, $50 Ohio State Vs Michigan game tickets are selling for over 1000 bucks a piece on eBay right now. They probably will be well over 1500-2000 bucks a piece by Nov. 18 (gameday).

But it all doesnt end there...the Detroit Tigers are in the world series after 22 years. The first game is going to start in about 40 minutes and I am watching the pre game show right now. The game is being played at the Co-America park here in Detroit and the whole city is excited about it!

With the NBA season starting pretty soon hopefully the Pistons will kick ass as well.

Go Blue, Go Wolverines, Go Tigers and Go Pistons!

My Feeds

2006-10-21T14:26:00.000-04:00

Due to popular demand, I have uploaded the exported xml file of my google reader feeds here. You can download it and import it on to your RSS reader if you want to.

While we are on the topic, this site localhostr lets you upload any file upto a size of 20MB and gives you the link to share it. I can see it being really useful if you want to share a file in your blog or something like that. The best part is no registration required. I wouldnt trust it with security related files or as the only source of back up though.

TGIF - This week's Best Blog Posts

2006-10-21T03:04:00.000-04:00

Its been a long week and I am finally glad its Friday. I have been travelling the past two weekends and its been amazing fun, but yet somehow I no longer have the zest and enthusiasm I once had about going out on the weekends. The idea of freaking out in the weekends and then going back into the week and putting in 60 hours of work sounds cool, but just not practical. It takes its toll on your body and towards the end of the week this week, after almost 20 days of continuous work (travelling in the weekends and going places is fun, but still work for your body) I was almost braindead. I have decided the next 2 days is just to myself, I will watch movies, maybe even grab a book and thats it.

Here are some interasting posts I read this week

I was inspired and invigorated by this post. This is the video of Steve Jobs addressing a bunch of Stanford Graduates. As a matter of fact I printed Stay Hungry...Stay Foolish in a 11X17 paper and stuck it in my cubicle. You can search in You Tube and find the full video is you want.
This post in collective genius about how to deal with the situation if you feel stuck (in life in general). Its not rocket science, but a simple concise post to give you a jolt and wake you up.
I attended a webinar conducted by David Allen where he talks about how to Get things done and how Mind Mapping Software (Mindjet in this case) can help with GTD. You can register here and view the webinar. Mindjet is a paid software, but googling Mind Mapping Software will give you an open source program which is free. Its got almost all the functionality, but just doesnt look as cool!
This software when downloaded and installed apparently lets you watch any channel for free. I still have tried it out, but appears in Lifehacker. I plan on trying it out over the weekend and seeing if I can get any cricket matches.

Alright...thats it for this week. Its 3.30am in the morning and I am ready to hit the sack...(Promised myself earlier that I will post before I goto bed) So guys,

Happy Diwali, may the festival of lights brighten up your life a little bit more and have a great weekend.

P.S> I was half asleep when I wrote this so excuse my typos and grammatical errors if any. I will correct them the first thing in the morning.

Information Overload

2006-10-17T21:17:00.000-04:00

For the longest time now, I have been feeling guilty about not reading a lot and also having a lot of books I bought sitting in my bookshelf without having been consumed (Large WIP - Extreme Muda!!). So last week one day I actually sat down and mapped out all the books that I currently have and differentiated them into the following

Books I want to read, but still havent bought (my Amazon.com wishlist)
Books I have already bought, but still havent completely read

Books that I have started reading
Books that I am yet to start reading

Attached below is the map. I used a mind mapping software to do this and I have to admit, ever since I started using the software, it has given a lot of clarity to my thinking and has made it easier to lay out things in an orderly fashion.

After having done the whole thing, I just realized how consumed I am with just my blogs and journals that I hardly get the time to read anything else. Besides I have what I call a "reading threshold". I cannot read casually. Typically I concentrate immensely when I am reading something, so after 2-3 hours of reading a day, I am already worn out and can take it no longer!

However if Marissa Mayer can work 18 hours a day (see here) and Indra Nooyi thinks there is no substitution to hardwork (see here, second para of second page), then may be I am just not there yet! I am sure I will get there though as long as I stay Hungry. Stay Foolish!

Life come at you fast

2006-10-10T22:32:00.000-04:00

Sign 1
I got back from work today and picked up my mail as usual and was stunned to find the November’s edition of the ~~Playboy~~ Manufacturing Engineering journal in my mail box. Not that I am not subscribed to it, but its just that I still haven’t even started reading the October edition and here I already have the November issue. It kinda gave me a sense of how fast time really flies by. Every Monday I wake up sighing and swearing about having to work 5 more long days, but before I realize it, its already the weekend. It reminded me of the “life comes at you fast” commercial, hence the name of the post

Sign 2
Earlier today @ work Novell in my work laptop asked me to change my password. (Thanks to Sarbanes-Oxley I have to remember long complicated passwords and in 2 months forget it and make another one and remember that one & so on…but that’s another post). I had just about gotten used to the old one and it struck on me today that its already been 2 months since I made that one. So here we go again!

Sign 3
I become poorer by a significant amount of money today as I had to write a check to my travel agent for my flight tickets to India this December. Not that I am not excited about the trip, but most of the details of my last trip and still fresh in my memory and it kinda seems like a whole year (almost) passed by pretty quickly!

Moral of the Story
Stop whining and enjoy life, because if you don’t, pretty soon you will be whining about having spent your entire life whining!! Its might not be that credible coming from me, but its true!

Cool Workplaces

2006-10-09T23:22:00.000-04:00

I came across this article today which talks about 10 seriously cool workplaces and also documents it with pictures. Pixar and the Red Bull slide (Picture attached below) between different levels were my personal favorite. I was pretty amazed by the creativity tht exists among some of the workforce. Unfortunately I am stuck in a typical dull grey cubicle and that does not help my creativity at all (and there are other reasons too)

I think thats one of the advantages of working in a software company, I some how love the jeans and tshirt, come when you want and work when you want, liberal, work hard-party hard typically Californian culture. It one aspect of the Silicon valley which sometimes makes me wish I was in the computers field.

Poetry

2006-10-08T18:44:00.000-04:00

I came across this website Poetiv this week. It has a ton of good poems from a lot of famous poets. I am not much into poetry (writing or reading), but I was glad to find my favorite poem.."Stopping by woods on a snowy evening" by Robert Frost. The poem goes like this..

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it's queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there's some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep

Of all the poems which I read in school, i.e. of all the poems which were imposed upon me by the Tamil Nadu State board of education, this sonnet some how just stayed in my mind. I guess it is because I was able to picturise this clearly unlike any other poem. Also because I think the message in the poem is so clear and simple. I have been thinking reading something like this will be great inspiration and motivation way to start a day or a week.

Photography..

2006-10-05T12:53:00.000-04:00

I took this picture of the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy from the Rialto bridge with my canon SD450 in manual mode, with a large aperture opening and long time of exposure. The part I like the most is the reflections in the water and also the light color in the sky since this was taken right around sunset. I think this is one of the best pictures I have taken in my life..atleast certainly the one I am most proud.

2006-10-04T23:44:00.000-04:00

What can I say...in the last 2 months I went from a world trotting happy bachelor to a regular single desi guy who goes to work in the morning, comes back in the evening, cooks eats...watches TV and goes to bed! I am still not sure if the change is for good or bad...initially it felt great, not having to live off a suitcase, being able to come back home to a more familar setting rather than a hotel room etc., Yet in the last 2 weeks I have somehow been missing the crazy life I used to live, the fun of travelling, seeing new places, meeting different kinds of people, trying out different cuisines, wine and beer.. etc.,

Somethings have definitely changed for the good though...I have moved to Farmington Hills, Michigan, a fairly plush suburb of Detroit from Fort Wayne, IN. It certainly feels great to live in a big city especially with a ton of Indian stores around, Udipi hotel within 5 miles from my house etc., It certainly is a great releif and much better than Fort Wayne, IN. Attached below are some pictures of my new apartment, which I spent a lot of time working on and decorating (another new found passion along with cooking and decorating somehow sounds more panzy than it really is;))

Well I also bought a new car...well new for me but actually a used car. I bought a 2003 BMW 330i...its still brand new considering it only had 28000 miles on it when I bought it...besides that car was love at first sight...I saw the car at the lot of the first dealer I went to, really liked it, negotiated the price but the dealer refused to come down on the price. Then I walked out and saw and drove a whole bunch of other bimmers, didnt really like any..atleast not as much as I liked this one, so went back to the dealer re-negotiated and finally settled for a price. I have been in love with it since then...its got all the German over engineering and the gizmos which would scare most people, but as an engineer myself I love it! Well needless to say, I made my first payment couple of weeks back and felt a little sick..However here are a few pictures...

Well...thats my life in the past 2 months in a nutshell...lot of stuff happening, some exciting but mostly its just been regular and monotonous...thats about it for now!

From the United Kingdom Part II

2006-06-12T15:41:00.000-04:00

Writing from the Manchester Airport, waiting at the gate for my flight to Dusseldorf which leaves at 6.55pm (current time 6.35pm). Manchester is soo much up north close to the artic sea that during summer, there is sunlight here from 3.00am in the morining to 11pm in the night. I was just thinking the other day, one can really golf at 4am in the morning if they want to.

This afternoon I walked around Manchester city center. It looked like a neat city, lotsa life, lotsa good loking women. Even UK seem to have some of the European Liberalism, which I love about Europe. I also saw the giant screen installed in the city center. The whole place is just filled with world cup fever and it feels great to be right here in the center of this world cup fever. Ok...my flights boarding now...gotta go. Also check out the pictures I am posting that I took in Manchester..cheers now (In true English style)!!

Btw, I just recently started using google desktop on my laptop and its worked great soo far. Especially the google calendar with the provision to take notes which help me write down notes during different times of the day. The notes get saved automatically so there is no pain of having to save the notes, name the file blah blah. I am writing this very post using that application.

The oldest Bar in Manchester (or so the sign claimed)

English Flags being sold in the city center, part of WC 2006 fever. A local newspaper said about 1 million flags have been sold, which is pretty high for a population of 60 million.

A fountain in the city center which the kids were using to cool off in the heat. I just stuck to the Lager.

A giant television screen installed in the city center for viewing the world cup matches. You can see some people lazing in the sun in front of the screen. This was the day the world cup started.

From the United Kingdom

2006-06-07T13:08:00.000-04:00

One of the things beautiful things about being in England is the availability of decent if not good Indian food everywhere. Couple of days back we (me and 2 of my co-workers) ate in this Indian Restraunt and my 2 American Co-workers thought the food was great. Being an Indian myself I was proud to hear that. Besides the restraunt we went to, unlike other Indian restraunts outside of India had excellent service and a waiter who took the time to explain some of the intricacies of Indian food to my co-workers. On the whole it was great. Then yesterday we went to this little english bar which serves food and there I was readeing the menu...it had a bunch of steaks, potatoes etc and finally at the very bottom there was something I couldnt beleive - Home made curry served with Chapathis and Rice. It surprises me that the UK people have taken to Indian food in a really big way. Infact a English guy at the plant was telling me that currently, curry is more common in the UK than Fich and Chips. So Yahooo!! to Indian food. I have had great fun at UK soo far. The people seem really friendly, the food's great, I get treated like royalty in the company (thanks to the 2 VP's I am travelling with), the beer (both lager and Ale) tastes great. Well! what else can I ask for?

P.S> I am typing this in my Google Desktop, tiny Daily notes taker widget that comes with the calendar widget, so bear with the lack of formatting or the spelling mistakes!!

Do you like her legs ?

2006-05-08T14:59:00.000-04:00

Do you like my legs ?
Originally uploaded by arnaudmuller.

I was just browsing through flickr and saw this picture and needless to say was totally mesmerised by it. I figured I can do a favor to my blog's few patrons by posting this in my blog. After all you do put up with a lot of crap I write.

The girl who posted this pic asks "what do you prefer this time?... my legs or the beach ? :)". My answer to her would be, this time like every other time I prefer her legs. Beach is nice...but nothing compares to her legs (and body).

Do check out the entire photostream.

Happy Drooling!!

Firefox and retarded browsers

2006-04-23T21:23:00.000-04:00

Check this video out and if it doesnt make you laugh, Ill buy you a drink!!

If you havent already...get Firefox today!!

Phony doctor gives free breast exams (Reuters)

2006-04-23T21:11:00.000-04:00

I read this today and was laughing all by myself for 5 minutes. I think this is hilarious, but I have to agree with the the author of Eyebeam reBlog, this man is pure genius!!

Phony doctor gives free breast exams (Reuters): "Reuters - A 76-year-old man claiming to be a doctor went door-to-door in a Florida neighborhood offering free breast exams, and was charged with sexually assaulting two women who accepted the offer, police said on Thursday.

ok I know this has nothing to do with art or tech, but this is hilarious. This guy is kind of a genius. A scary looking, icky genius, but a genius nonetheless. --SZ

Originally from Yahoo! News - Oddly Enough, ReBlogged by sonia zjawinski on Apr 20, 2006 at 11:02 PM "

Welcome to web 2.0

2006-04-22T17:05:00.000-04:00

If you are a relatively ignorant person like me, who is trying to keep up with changes in technology, you must have heard the buzz about web 2.0 and wondered, what the hell was it all about? Atleast for the past 2 weeks I have been hearing a lot about web 2.0 and how cool it is blah..blah..blah. So anyways I decided to use some of my time to google it and actually did find some good stuff. If you want to know more about this then I highly recommend that you go here and check this article out. Its a long 5 page article so if you dont have the time, the picture attached below will give you a quick brief understanding about web 2.0

What I really liked in the description below was it says Web 2.0 is "an attitude, not a technology". Pretty cool eh?

Btw, I just realised today that I am a power web 2.0 user, so may be I am not that ignorant after all!!

How to fold a shirt

2006-04-19T16:57:00.000-04:00

I saw this video yesterday and it totally blew my mind! After seeing it for about 7 times I still wasnt sure how the lady pulled this off. May be it is just way too simple for my engineering mind. Check it out, I am sure it will cut you a considerable amount of time to fold your clothes.

Driving in India

2006-04-19T04:17:00.000-04:00

I found this video mentioned on Slashdot today (Embeded below). After being in the United States for while, it looks really scarry. I can't beleive I once used to drive in these streets under this very similar conditions, that too a stick shift, Maruthi 800 with lousy brakes. Pretty wild.

However such experience does help, now in Germany, I drive a Audi A6, 3.5 liter V6, 6 speed stick with a top speed of 230 Kmph (I have tested the top speed!!) and am able to truly, sincerely appreciate the engineering of both the Audi and also the Autobahns here.

Ok, That's enough bragging for the time being, Check out the video!

Btw, I just submited the video to Digg.com, got digg it here

The Firefox Bus

2006-04-18T07:38:00.000-04:00

I saw this in the front page of Digg.com today and wanted to share it with everybody. Being from India myself, its quite common to see such work on buses and trucks and I dont have one bit of a doubt that its real and not photoshopped!! Check it out below

"While coming from Mysore, we suddenly saw a big Firefox logo pasted on a bus. We stopped the car and and stopped the bus which was about to leave and took these photographs. I wonder if the artist knew where the logo came from"

read more | digg story

Notetaking

2006-04-17T06:09:00.000-04:00

This is an article I read about notetaking on Lifehacker which I thought was pretty neat and could be quite useful. I usually attend a lot of meetings and I think using a mix of these various options will help me organize things better. So check out the article! Its here

Btw if you are wondering whats with the different colors, well I was going through some of the presentations made my Tom Peters, a management Guru and just saw how his presentations had these really different bright colors, contrasting backgrounds and really every other slide was in a different color. I have never sat through one of his presentations, so I dont know of the colors mean anything or if they are just to keep the audience engaged, but I thought that was effective way to mix things up and keep the audience guessing. You can check out one of his presentations here. So I figured, I could make use of this cool technique too, in the worst case even of nobody reads my blog, it will atleast look good at a glance (I think!!)

Ciao

To Read

2006-04-14T18:29:00.000-04:00

I know I have been boring everybody with a ton of tech blogs, but for some reason, I have just been totally hooked on the tech stuff recently and have really enjoyed blogging about things to glory!! Again, yesterday I found this and just couldnt restrain blogging about it. I wanted to write about this site earlier, but as usual procrastinated....

Anyways I read about this site yesterday where you can go, register your email address and then it will give you a bookmarklet, which you can place in your bookmarks toolbar (I did!). What this does is whenever you find something interesting, it will email the page to you when you hit the bookmarklet. This whole process takes less than 3 secs.

I was really excited to see something like this, as I read a lot of Lean Enterprise and other business blogs, some of which have really interesting articles, I would like to save and use later for preparation of work related training materials, quoting examples etc., This seems like something that would just work great for stuff like that, where in I can email it to my gmail account and have it forever.

To organize things better, this is what I did in my gmail account. I setup a filter which automatically filters the emails sent via this bookmarklet and automatically labels it. This is how you can do it. This is really pretty simple but for the benefit of the people who dont know this....

First hit settings in you gmail account and then goto labels. I created a label called "to read". Upon using the bookmarklet a couple of times I realised that the email was always sent from toread@info.cc, so I setup the following

Then hit next to finish setting up the filter. I checked the skip inbox button, so the mails get archived automatically and whenever have the time, i can goto the to read label and read the articles. (see below). Then check apply label and select whichever label you want applied (to read in the example below)

Just hit update the filter now and you will be all set. Whenever you find a article you want to read, just hit the bookmarklet and you will have it under your to read label. I can see this being a great advantage especially if you use outlook express or thunderbird, where you can download all your mails and read it in a plane or something like that. So this way, you can still use an internet based rss reader, but by emailing articles you like to yourself, review them at you own leisure later.

Ciao and a Happy Tamil New year's Day and Happy Easter to all!

Imagify your name

2006-04-13T19:11:00.000-04:00

I came across this site which searches flickr's letters pictures and shows your name (or whatever you type in) as a bunch of letter images. if you dont like what you see, you can click on the letter and it will replace that with another image (for the same letter ofcourse)

As you can see above, my name in images. What I thought was interesting though was that, the very first time I submitted my name, the K in my name was shown with the K from Starbucks Coffee. Anybody who has spoken to me for 10 minutes know that I survive because of starbucks coffee and am a walking, talkin commercial for the company.

I think this might be a cool and really easy way to post your email address or other information online, so people can view it and you can avoid getting spam mails.

By the way, I first read about this article in Lifehacker

It's about time

2006-04-13T15:42:00.000-04:00

Finally!! Google introduces Google Calendar. Sucker that I am for google products, I might soon find myself using this calendar.

The only thing that concerns me though is that, I am not very excited about the idea of the whole world seeing my social events calendar, which is well EMPTY!!!!!

A new calendar will now tell me the same thing the whole world tells me - "Get a life"

By the way, a quick update, I just played around with G Calendar a little bit and it is pretty cool. I am not really a calendar person outside of work, for which I guess I will have to continue using sloppy RAM sucking Lotus Notes.

It's about time: "Posted by Carl Sjogreen, Product Manager

We're all busy people. Whether it's work or play, school or family, every day is filled with stuff that takes time. Keeping track of schedules isn't easy, and frankly we haven't been too happy with the tools available. So we invite you to try Google Calendar -- a tool that simplifies keeping track of events, special occasions, and appointments -- whether they’re on your own agenda or on the calendars of contacts who opt to share their schedules with you.

First, we tried to make it fast and easy. You can add events just by clicking and entering one line of simple event information. No muss, no fuss, no cumbersome forms to fill out. And it’s integrated with Gmail so you can add events mentioned in messages to your calendar with just one click.

Second, we wanted to make sure you could use it to see all the events in your world. It’s drop-dead simple to see calendars from your friends and family, or calendars you find with the built-in calendar search tool, right "

Some great pictures

2006-04-13T07:48:00.000-04:00

ITAL0356
Originally uploaded by Paulvision.

I was generally surfing flickr today and came across this great set of pictures taken by Paulvision. This is just one picture, to view the entire set of 48 of his/her best pictures click here

I would highly recommend it if you have some time or if good photography excites you!

Juhu beach

2006-04-12T00:14:00.000-04:00

juhu beach
Originally uploaded by vego007.

College was fun. Especially days like this when we bunked college and went swimming all day in a beach, eating lotsa "parotas" with the free kurma along the east coast road followed by a movie in prarthana

This picture was taken in Juhu beach (there is a beach along the east coast road called Juhu Beach) on one of those typical days.

Video Wallpaper

2006-04-11T22:23:00.000-04:00

Okayyyy then, here is a post that is fully written by me and even the video was shot by me...Now how often does that happen?

Some time back I was playing around with Youtube and came across this video about how to set a video you are watching as a desktop background. I thought that was fascinating and have really been using that feature in VLC player since then. Often times we find that there are videos that we just have to watch continuously (Like Shakira'a Hips dont lie - see below)

Here is a tutorial on how to do this:-

Now between Youtube and Google Video, there is pretty much everything I want to watch. It has almost all music videos, home videos and even some tamil and hindi comedy clips. However to play these in the background you need to download them to your hardrive. This is how you do it.

First copy the URL of the particular video, see example from you tube below (Circled in Red)

Then goto KeepVid and paste the URL. Click the tab above to indicate if its a Google Video or You Tube etc., and then hit download. It will then give you the option to right click and save as.
See below:-

Once you have done this now open up the file and follow instructions in the video below. btw, this video was shot at 3.30 in the morning in my hotel room. I coulnt go back to sleep after I woke up thristy in the middle of the night, so bear with me, I might sound drugged!

I just recently became a member of Youtube and have decided I am going to try and post a video blog once a week. After all its a lot easier and quicker than having to write about stuff and also I think does a much better job of communicating and also keeping the attention of the audience. Besides more importantly it suits my procrastinating, lazy self better. What the heck...after this tutorial, you can even set my video blog as your desktop background!!

FON: WiFi everywhere!

2006-04-10T06:05:00.000-04:00

This is a really interesting piece of information. I can see the logic behind this. For some reason, I have recently become soo addicted to the internet that, if I dont have high speed access for a day, i feel like I have lost my left hand!

Cheap, affordable wireless for everybody...thats where Ill put my money!

FON: WiFi everywhere!: "$25 for a WiFi Router... Free access to the other people with 'Fon' routers, and the ISPs are happy because they get $2/day from outsiders. It's like Nycwireless, but without pissing off those who footed the bill for the pipes. --AM

Originally posted by agmilmoe from del.icio.us/agmilmoe, ReBlogged by agmilmoe on Apr 8, 2006 at 05:18 PM "

Shakira's Hips dont lie

2006-04-09T14:01:00.000-04:00

This is a new Shakira single called Hips dont lie. For some reason, I am totally mesmerised by this song and the video. I have watched it some 200 times and still want to keep watching it.

I am soo fascinated by this I even wrote a poem on this subject..it goes like this

Shakira Shakira
your lips dont lie,
when you sing your hips dont lie
cause watching your hips
gives me kicks

watching your video,
better than doing Sudoku
makes me go mad
and want to dance like
"gorillas gone wild"

Shakira Shakira
you are like Keer(a) (Poetic license: Keer in Hindi)
reading this might make you sigh
but remember
I am high

Shakira Shakira
her hips dont lie
check this out and You'll know
my lips dont lie!

P.S> One Sunday alone in a hotel room means lots of You tube and Google video..its become such a integral part of my browsing and it feels like to best thing since sliced bread.

Good Video!

2006-04-09T02:31:00.000-04:00

Here is a video we call can learn from...
I just really liked the theme of the video..which is "Never grow up". Check it out. It shows Ronaldinho playing soccer while he was a kid!

I have had similar talks with some of my friends over wheather we tend to perform better if we dont know the consequences of our actions. What do you guys think??

P.S> btw I just reached Germany and just had one of the best flights I have had in a long time! more about that later

Only in the United States

2006-04-06T22:47:00.000-04:00

I saw this in CNN today. Although I dont care much for Bush's Leadership, there is some truth to what Bush says as far as tapping phone lines goes. However the point I wanted to make with this blog was that, one thing that I trully appreciate about the United States is the freedom of speech. In how many countries can journalists, leave alone ordinary civilians question the political leaders and tell their leaders that they ought to be ashamed of themselves in front of the whole world and get away with it?

May be this is in part a reason that fuels the "American Dream". God bless America

Productivity tips from Bill Gates - How He Works

2006-04-05T23:25:00.000-04:00

Check this out..This is how Bill Gates works...The only really cool thing I thought were the 3 big ass monitors. For a long time now I have been wanting to won one of those babies...hopefully someday in the near future, Ill have enough money to justify spending $400 on one of those. Unfortunately I am a little poor compared to Bill!

Productivity tips from Bill Gates - How He Works: "At Fortune, Bill Gates talks about his workflow and his organization system. On top of his marketing stuff on his products, he talks about couple of key things that involves in his daily work life. Here are some key points: Paperless. Email is the first communication medium Uses email filtering to drop down the number of incoming emails [...]
"

Reuse water with a toilet seat sink

2006-04-05T23:22:00.000-04:00

Check this out...I thought it was a pretty cool idea. Especially where I grew up, in Chennai we had a lot of water scarcity and this sure beats having to wait for hours in a line to get couple of "kodums" of water.

Reuse water with a toilet seat sink: "

The Cool Tools weblog points out the Toilet Lid Sink, a topper for your toilet tank that first makes the water it uses to flush available for you to wash your hands.

With each flush of your commode, clean water that would otherwise go straight down the toilet is first routed up through a chrome gooseneck spigot to dispense pure water for hand washing. The Toilet Lid Sink installs easily without tools, is attractive for any bathroom and is a great space saver. Shuts off automatically. Porcelain-like white plastic replaces your existing tank top and adjusts to fit standard toilets up to 8in wide and 18-22in long. Built-in soap dish.

It looks a little goofy, and I imagine the toilet seat gets in the way of your washing your hands, but being a total sucker for water conservation methods that don't involve not flushing (yeek), I'm impressed. The Toilet Lid Sink'll set you back 90 bucks.
Toilet Lid Sink [Real Goods via Cool Tools]
Comment on this post
Related: MacGyver Tip: Make sandals from an old tire
Related: Safely lay to rest your old computer

"

Vegetarian diet for weight loss

2006-04-04T09:20:00.000-04:00

Check this out...Just what I have always been preaching!!

Vegetarian diet for weight loss: "David Pescovitz: A new scientific report suggests that a vegetarian or vegan diet is an effective way to lose weight. From a press release about the report, published in Nutrition Reviews:

Vegetarian populations tend to be slimmer than meat-eaters, and they experience lower rates of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and other life-threatening conditions linked to overweight and obesity. The new review, compiling data from 87 previous studies, shows the weight-loss effect does not depend on exercise or calorie-counting, and it occurs at a rate of approximately 1 pound per week...

'There is evidence that a vegan diet causes an increased calorie burn after meals, meaning plant-based foods are being used more efficiently as fuel for the body, as opposed to being stored as fat,' says (researcher Dr. Neal) Barnard. Insulin sensitivity is increased by a vegan diet, allowing nutrients to more rapidly enter the cells of the body to be converted to heat rather than to fat. Link

"

Of Sambhars and buckets

2006-03-28T08:46:00.000-05:00

Reading this article certainly made my mouth water...especially since I was kinda hungry when I read it.

Of Sambhars and buckets: "Lavanya:

When Rathna Cafe, the famous Triplicane based eatery, opened a branch in T Nagar several months ago, it created a flutter in my family. Suddenly the usually calm elders of the family all got excited. It appeared that every one of them had a story to share - about fluffy hot idlis served with piping hot sambhar ('fusht klash' theriyuma <=> It was first class you know), delicious vadai dipped in sambhar, pongal dripping in ghee and accompanied by sambhar and so on. I noticed that sambhar kept recurring in all their stories.

Not one to let go of an opportunity to know, I asked the eldest to tell me more. He said that Rathna Cafe used to serve unlimited sambhar, the then equivalent of bottomless Coke, along with every South Indian tiffin item. And then came the icing, 'the server walked around with the sambhar bucket and he poured it out on our leaf with a steel mug' added Grandpa. Steel mug and sambhar in a bucket? Since I had never managed a visit to the original Rathna Cafe, I decided that the new one in T Nagar had to be visited and the sight of the bottomless sambhar matched with the one in my imagination.

Continued reading Of Sambhars and buckets...

Comments (0)

Comments on this Entry:"

Also Chennai recently has become a well deserved addition to the list of cities which are metro blogged. Mumbai and Chennai are the only 2 cities in India that are there in the list of over 30 cities worldwide that are metroblogged.

check out the Chennai blog at http://chennai.metblogs.com

Writing – Just do it!

2006-03-28T05:49:00.000-05:00

I have been reading a lot of blogs lately and I noticed there is a lot of writing talent out there. Yet I am sure tere must be a handful of them, like me who are amatuer writers...Here is something I founf that might help you.

Writing – Just do it!: "I used to be an English teacher and the most dreaded task that I could assign my students was to write a short essay. Perhaps that fear is a product of our technological environment where the art of writing to introduce or share an idea has given way to terse or coded phone messages, [...]
"

Really Cool!!

2006-03-26T05:28:00.000-05:00

A few weeks back, I was in an ice cream store in Berlin when a family with 3 toddlers walked into the store. Although I don't know for sure, it seemed to me like there was this guy, his 3 kids and his old parents. There wasnt a woman, outside of the grandmoter in the gathering so the guy, acting like a good father which most men are, was trying his level best to keep his children well behaved yet not be rude to them.

Among the children, who were actually quite well behaved, there was this little girl who was just outright adorable. She had a nice round face, pink cheeks and big expressive eyes. You'd have to be a serial killer or something like that if you could restrain smiling when you look at the girl in the face. Initially she came in and was generally yapping to her father and her grandparents (assumed!) and pointing at things etc., It was all in German so didnt really understand what she was saying.

But then, the moment her dad handed her the vanilla ice cream, a cone which she insisted on and even refused to hold a cup underneath the ice cream to prevent the ice cream from dripping all over her, she was out of this world! I mean literally for the next 15 minutes, I was just sitting there watching her eat, while she had totally tuned herself out of everything. She was holding the ice cream 6 inches from her face and it didnt matter what her dad or her grandparents were saying or what was happening around her. It didnt matter that the television she was earlier pointing to was playing cartoons now, she was focusing on her ice cream and nothing was going to take her attention away from it. Finally after she finished the ice cream, with some ice cream still on her nose, she looked up at her dad and smiled.

That definitely was one of the most beautiful things I have seen in my life. I was sitting there wondering, when was the last time anything at all, leave alone a 2 euro ice cream, captured and held my absolute attention for soo long. If I was her father, I'd be a bad one as I will be buying her ice creams all the time just so I could watch her eat it!

That really was pretty cool!!

Mornings are beautiful....as long as you can sleep through them!

2006-03-26T04:44:00.000-05:00

All over Europe, they switched to the British Summer time today, causing everybody in Europe to lose an hour of sleep. (although it makes little difference to me). Here is an article on BBC which says, wheather you are a morning person or an evening person is dependent upon your biological clock and there is nothing you can do to change it.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4838644.stm

That's fine, I am not a morning person and have never been all my life. I can stay up all night, but once I hit the bed, I am not waking up until a considerable amount of time has passed. I somehow find it more difficult to wake up at 4 am in the morning than to run a 10 mile marathon, not that I have done either of it!!

But then, I read an article about the characteristics of CEO's which appeared on Fortune sometime back, which says all of them are morning people or atleast they start their day early in the morning. Its a pretty neat article, check it out at

http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/02/news/newsmakers/howiwork_fortune_032006/index.htm

Does this mean I will never become a CEO in my life??

Bloglines - Toyota's Achilles Heel

2006-03-25T12:26:00.000-05:00

Bloglines user Venky (venkster@gmail.com) has sent this item to you, with the following personal message:

All you Lean folks out there, check this article out and let me know what you think about it.

btw, I dont necessarily agree or disagree with the article, so don't shoot the messenger.

Evolving Excellence
Thoughts on lean enterprise leadership from the editors of Superfactory

Toyota's Achilles Heel

By Bill Waddell

A remarkable article about Toyota appeared in the CNN site yesterday that exposes Toyota's Achilles heel - the ignorance of racism. It also raises some serious doubt about their vaunted "Respect for People" principle.

The point of the article is that Toyota is having management staffing problems. They do not have enough qualified Japanese staff to control their growth - almost all of which is occurring outside of Japan. Despite 75% of their personnel being from other countries, and having had a U.S. sales presence for almost 50 years and a manufacturing presence for over 20 years, all 26 Toyota board members are Japanese. All of the senior decision makers at headquarters are Japanese, as well.

Mitsuo Kinoshita, the guy in charge of Toyota HR, says, "Getting overseas staff to share our views on management and quality is very difficult." Really? That is either self-delusion or a tribute to incredibly poor training if 20 years of U.S. manufacturing has not produced anyone who understands Toyota's views on management and quality. Or it could be that the Toyota management mind is such that, at the end of the day, they cannot ever come to accept the notion that a non-Japanese can be their managerial equivalent.

Their 'Japanese only' headquarters culture is a self-fulfilling prophecy. They point out that employee turnover at non-Japanese plants is much higher than it is in the land of the rising sun, which means "a 20-year track record means a lot more for a Japanese plant than factories elsewhere." With that excuse for refusing to allow non-Japanese folks into the inner circle, it seems to be a safe bet that good people will continue to leave Toyota, keeping the turnover rate churning. Staff turnover is an accurate measure of long term management performance and, by their own admission, Toyota is not doing well. It is self-serving of them to write this off to American culture.

Why would a smart, hard working non-Japanese man or woman stay with Toyota for very long when (1) there is a glass ceiling limiting the chances for promotion, and (2) there is good money to be made taking those skills to other companies or out on the consulting trail?

Mr. Kinoshita says that Toyota's insistence on micro-managing and controlling everything from Japan is because, "We're afraid of slipping, so we can't help but interfere." How much respect does that show for people? It seems to me that the cornerstone of respect is trust, and trust for anyone non-Japanese seems hard to come by at Toyota.

Even Taichi Ohno and Shigeo Shingo were deluded by national pride into downplaying their own contributions. So much of their writing was couched in terms of how Japanese look at things and do things - attributing much of the Toyota Production System to this unique Japanese outlook and value system - yet very, very few Japanese companies have duplicated Toyota. Toyota founder, Sakichi Toyoda, was every bit the racist Henry Ford was and could be just as cruel in his opinions about the West as Ford was when it came to the 'International Jew'. That proud, but ignorant, value system does not seem to have completely evolved out of Toyota.

In a post a few days ago, I included a quote by Massaki Imai, founder of the Kaizen Institute and vaunted TPS guru, where he said, "Japanese companies developed a very effective system of management, particularly in the manufacturing sectors, and the rest of the world has much to learn from these practices." I beg to differ, Mr. Imai. "Japanese companies" did not develop "a very effective system of management" - Toyota did. They are simply one Japanese company that was built by some very intelligent and capable individuals. The fact that they were Japanese was not the reason for their success. If it were, Japan would not be losing manufacturing jobs at a rate greater than the U.S., and there would not be such a thriving market for lean consultants in Japan.

Toyota says they are stepping up to the problem by establishing training and education facilities in Japan, the U.S., Thailand and England to develop capable managers. That strikes me as a worthwhile endeavor, but not one that will solve the problem. If 20 years of demonstrated performance results by some very capable American managers in Toyota plants is not enough to convince the boys in Toyota City that someone who is not Japanese is qualified for advancement, then a sheepskin from Toyota U is not going to do it.

In Rebirth of American Industry, I demonstrated how forty years of business success blinded GM and Ford to the flaws in their management system. They were so sure of the 'rightness' of their model, they were incapable of recognizing and adopting improvements from external sources - namely Toyota. Toyota is doomed to follow the same course if they do not develop the intellectual and moral integrity needed to take off their racial blinders.

Vacation

2006-03-20T16:37:00.000-05:00

I wish I could be on vacation forever.

2006-03-20T05:42:00.000-05:00

My Inner Hero - Warrior!

I'm courageous, straightforward, and charismatic. I'm a born leader, but I'm also not afraid to face danger on my own. Nothing stands between me and victory... nothing that lives to tell the tale, anyway. If you need someone to charge into battle for you, call on me.

How about you? Click here to find your own inner hero.

This is what i got as a review about myself..just dont know if this is just plain bullshit or actually means something...but at the moment it doesnt hurt to brag..does it?

Congratulations!

Hello, Warrior.

Character Stats:

Rogue (14)
Warrior (23)
Wizard (11)
Paladin (6)

Your Profile:

You're tough, courageous, and up to your eyebrows in chutzpah. If you're still in school, your teachers probably talk a lot about your "potential." If you work, your boss calls you a "pro-active self-starter," whatever that means. You don't shy away from hard work, that's for sure. When it comes to leisure, you'd rather be out hiking or biking or snowboarding than sitting around watching TV or reading a book. You care about your health, and have strong opinions.

Above all, you're a man/woman of action and a born leader. You see obstacles as challenges and hardship as an opportunity to build your character (and your muscles). You're not afraid of conflict - in fact, you're not afraid of much of anything. You tend to dive into things headfirst and sort out the consequences later.

Your Mission:

You were put on this earth to lead others. They will follow you, because they are bowled over by your forceful personality, your charisma, and your willingness to do what they're afraid to do. You are the one who has to make things happen, because everyone else is too afraid of rocking the boat.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to Start Something. Something small, or something big. Start a club at your school. Propose a new project to your boss. Invent a new family tradition. Start a small business. Start SOMETHING.

And don't dally about it. We WILL be checking up on you.

A Warning:

Try to remember: it's not all about you. Yes, people tend to do what you say, but don't abuse that power. Don't be a bully, even if you feel like the weaklings really deserve it. Have a Paladin teach you how to "make nice" when necessary. You have the potential to become a great leader, but only if you curb your tendency to be thoughtless, egocentric, and well, sometimes just plain rude.

And by the way, just because you don't understand something, that doesn't mean it's "stupid." Get a Wizard to figure things out for you instead of just giving up when your attention span runs out.

Fashion

2006-03-12T05:57:00.000-05:00

I am convinced fashion should be a mandatory 0 credit course in college in India. Everytime I fly out of or into the United States, the flights are filled with a bunch of desis wearing well...interesting clothes, like for example dark brown trousers with light brown dress shirt and sneakers with black socks. Then ofcourse there always are the people (me including!!) who fly into the united States in summer wearing a jacket, expecting it to be freezing!!

The point I am trying to make is that India is rapidly growing into a superpower and its highly skilled abundant workforce is increasingly seen as a great positive. What all this means is that we are going to have more and more Indians work in different parts of the world. While its our performance that really counts, first impressions do matter and looking sharp and fashionable can't definitely hurt us. Also being sensitive to the culture of the place and genuinely trying to understand it and trying the local costumes will only make us more amicable and win us friends and fans world over. After all when was the last time we got pissed at a western woman for wearing a saree ? (which btw I still think is the most elegant yet sexiest costume a woman can wear)

I know people who know me or seen me atleast once are probably wondering who I am to be talking about fashion, being a pathetic dresser myself? The problem I have with fashion is

1) I was born color blind and still am color blind...so no matter how much I try, I dont see crimson or turquoise or olive, I see the world in red, blue or green and my knowledge is limited to the 12 basic colors you get in a pack of crayons. (I did really try...check out http://www.yaelf.com/colour.shtml) So if somebody tells me crimson will look good with ivory black...sure but first of all how does crimson and ivory black look like? you get the point?

2) Being an Engineer, it troubles me if something doesnt follow rules and can't be defined by algorithms and basic laws..and fashion is a fitting example of something that just doesnt follow any rules..Infact I always hear..to be fashionable you got to first break all rules and yet somehow when I break all rules...I look pretty disgusting!! And where rules do apply I follow them painstakingly...like the color of your socks should be the same as the color of your trousers, the color of your belt should match the color of your shoes, wide big ass buckle belt for jeans and dressier belts for trousers etc.,

Guess again that's where a course could have helped. I can vow if there was something like that 99% of college students wouldnt have missed a single class....it would have become like the "mid-day meal" for many college students to get to class.

Peel potatoes quicker!!

2006-03-06T10:47:00.000-05:00

For all those people, like me out there who cook everyday and love potatoes, check this video out. It tells you how to peel a boiled potato in one step.

http://www.zonalibre.org/blog/roge/archives/090899.html

As true Lean enterprise enthusiast, I am a sucker for efficiency, be it on the shopfloor or elsewhere...

btw...you can thank me for the video through my amazon.com wishlist!!

Just Whining!!

2006-02-27T04:57:00.000-05:00

As I am flying at about 40000 feet over the atlantic ocean, and its my worst flights I have taken in a long time. Here is the scene...

First of all I havent slept in a long time!! Knowing I will be flying tonite, I decided to sleep very little last night, hoping that would make me very tired and put me to sleep in the flight. So i was screwing around last night doing nothing productive and started packing at 12pm today for my flight at 4.15pm...blah...blah. Anyways that was all fine as, I did finish packing and made it alright to the Airport in time.

I check in my bags and the delta agent tells me sir, you are 4 lbs over...do you want to take out 4 lbs or pay the $25 fee. Needless to say I was shocked as all I had checked in was 1 bag and I knew the free baggage allowance was 2 bags of 50 lbs each. Then she clarified saying my bag weighed 54lbs and I have to remove 4 lbs. she said you can check in another bag if you want but we can't let you check in this 54 lbs bag. Reluctantly I removed 4 lbs from my check in luggage and put it in my hand luggage and still didnt understand what the big deal was all about though!!

And then I walk to the security check. I am not even going to get into that because, if you flown into or out of an airport in the United States you probably already know how big a hassle it is. Its the part of the war on terrorism, which attacks poor tax paying civilians esp. ppl travelling frequently on business, who pay for the war on terrorism in the first place. Anyways to make a long story short, within the security clearence area which is about 20 Sq. Ft, I was asked for my boarding pass 3 times by 3 different people. I am convinced now that 25% of the American workforce works in Airport Security.

Everything went smooth after that till I was about to board the flight to Paris from Cincinnati. I walk to the gate late (I was drinking Starbucks coffee, ate a Banana nut muffin and "parag pathyfying" the flights) only to realize the flight is going to be full and that there are no more exit row or bulk head seats available. so I am stuck in Zone 5 in an aisle (Thankfully) seat for 8 long hours.

Anyways all that was about 6 hours back..the reason I am writing this blog now is because..well i can't go to sleep. My master plan of being awake last night worked well because I am feeling very sleepy now...however I just don't seem to be able to find a position I can goto sleep in. I first tried to sit back and relax, but then there is a kid sitting right behind me who is screaming her guts off. I then put the tray out and tried to rest my head on it. after getting over the initial discomfort of squeezing in my big belly in so i could put head in the tray, while sitting in my coach seat, I realized the guy sitting in front of me seemed to get a kick out of moving his seat front and back every 30 seconds. Meanwhile thankfully the kid behind me stopped crying and started playing. Her game was to kick my seat with both her legs as fast as possible. All along we were running into soo much turbulence that the seat belt sign was on throughout and so I couldnt even walk out. i dont mean to be a whining S.O.B but thats not all! There is this guy sitting next to me or in my neighbourhood, who is farting like crazy. And I am not talking about mild farts here....I am talking about farts, that if left out of the plane will drill considerable sized holes in the ozone layer. So to protect the environment and save the world I decided to bear it all.

Atleast the journey has taught me of 2 things

1) Get to the gate early, beg, borrow or steal but somehow manage to get an exit row seat or a bulk head seat. Its worth waiting in the gate for an hour.

2) Stop being a cheap bastard and get those noise cancelling headphones. I am still not rich enough to buy the Bose headphones for $250 but I know Sony has some for under $50. I might just have to get that.

Btw did I mention about how the flight attendent threw an empty water bottle on me and refused to ask/give me something to drink while serving the 2 guys sitting next to me? Guess its just one of those days or nights.....whatever!!

I guess the screwed up Paris CDG airport is just exactly what I need after a miserable flight and over 24 hours without sleep....oh well!!

A new gadget and my entertainment center!!

2006-01-15T16:54:00.000-05:00

Hey! I like toys, expensive toys that can make noise, move, works with battery or A.C power. I just recently got a new gadget which I consider the best gadget of 2005 (which is why i bought it!!), and magazines like PC World, Men's Health rate it as one of the top 10 gadgets of 2005. Its called a slingbox, and what it does is stream you television online. you ofcourse should have broadband connection and also a router (wired/wireless)but then you probably already have these two!! All that you need to do is to connect the slingbox to you DVR/Cablebox/Cable and also plug in a ethernet cable to the slingbox and connect the other end to you cable modem and you are all set on the hardware side!!

The slingbox comes with a slingplayer, which you install in your laptop, and you have to setup the router and the slingbox for remote viewing (basic port fowarding etc., child's play for anybody who uses bit torrents to...well you know what!!). and that's it!! watch your TV from anywhere in the world!! The slingbox also comes with IR guns, which acts as an universal remote and enables you to control you DVR from remote location. You can even set up new recordings, watch already recorded programs off your DVR etc. It essentially is advanced signal processing which enables online streaming. Also there isnt any subscription fees, once you buy the Slingbox you are all set!!

For those of you who already havent guessed it, my long term plans with the Slingbox? set it up in my house in India, and then I can watch all the cricket matches, MTV, Channel V, Sun TV, Surya TV (Midnight Masala ;), Kahani ghar ghar ki etc., all over here (or anywhere else in the world) and i dont have to pay a dime for it...pretty cool eh?? My entertainment center is however now a mess though with all the complex connections. There are a zillion cables running around my house to service my DVR, DVD Recorder, Home Theater, Slingbox, Cable Modem and Router. Check out below a picture of my entertainment center (well, I built it from scratch) and also my connections of AV devices!!

This is what you need to know about the entertainment center I built....

Total cost for lumber $60
Capital equipment $25
screws and fastners, glue, paint etc., - $20

Value, satisfaction, Pride I get looking at it and the aesthetics of the entertainment center - Priceless!!

There are some things money can buy, but for cooler things you need to talk to me!!

P.S> If you are wondering why the entertainment center is multi colored...well I ran out of paint, and all that was left were the yellow and black colors...and i thought...well what the heck!! after all it was never meant to be a contemporary piece of art anyway!!

Well these are the connections of the AV and computer devices in my house!! check it out!

Oru Vellai Kazhuthi-in Diary!!

2006-01-01T14:30:00.000-05:00

Its been an interesting 3 months...definitely the peak of my business travel. Although on one hand there were tons of 60 hour weeks and working saturdays...there was also lots of fun associated with all the travelling, meeting different people, learning a little bit of a new language and ofcourse a vacation to Chennai, India.

I have been to 3 different contienents (North America, Europe, Asia), 4 different countries(U.S.A, Germany, France, India..I almost made it to Netherlands too!!) and numerous cities and countless restraunts in those numerous cities in the last 3 months. Travel is always associated with interesting incidents and I have had my share too. There have been numerous incidents which i had thought about blogging, but never really found the time. For example the time when I bit the fork, causing my gums to hurt for 2 whole weeks, while I was having an arguement with a colleague of mine over a business dinner or the the time, when I slip and fell in a bathtub and landed on my jaw in a hotel room in Paris.

People tell me I am lucky to have a job like this, I get to travel and meet different people, stay in nice hotels, visit different places...they often miss the big picture which is...along with travelling comes a problems, boredom and lonliness. For eg:- for the last 3 months I have been literally living of a suitcase. I definetely dont remember how my wardrobe looks and vagely remember how my apartment looks. I havent met some of my best friends for months despite the fact that they live only a couple of hundred miles away. I missed my best friend for 6 years's graduation ceremony. I havent watched my favorite program on television in the last 3 months and suddenly all the travelling doesnt sound that glamorous...does it?

As a new year dawns, I am first of all thankful to God, not just because I have a job but also because I have a job that I absolutely love. I realize that the new year brings about a lot of oppurtunities, along with a lot more travel, long flights and boring hotel rooms...but hey...I am 23 and single, If i dont do it now.....when will I? after all there is a career to be made...

Finally I thank god for the biggest gifts he gave me...the ability to be without worrying about problems till they actually appear & for my lazy dumbness, which prevents me from thinking about anything unless I absolutely have to. As long as I have these (flaws) qualities, I can lead (an)a (in)sane life (however you want to look at it!!!).

Chennai Pattinam!!

2006-01-01T13:40:00.000-05:00

Any trip to Chennai is always wonderful. The city to me has an unrestrainable charm. I think thats interesting because thats typically an opinion only people who grew up in Chennai have. Most people who visit Chennai view it as a place with haphazard traffic, lotsa road work, numerous temples and a conservative city. Yet despite having visited a lot of other big cities in the world, I love Chennai because i have memories associated with the city's every nook and corner. I grew up roaming in its streets, eating the delicious roadside food it offers (popularly known as "kazh-izundhi Bhavan"), spending my evenings with my friends in Besant Nagar beach eating masala Kadalai.

Yes like any other self respecting college student I bunked college and went to satyam to catch a flick and then to Spencer's plaza. I enjoy the Nair Kadai Tea and the Babu Kadai food (Yes I went to SVCE). Ill stop now...this blog is not about food, its about the memories I have from every corner of the city. Like for example the time I bunked college and travelled from Sriperumbudur to Mount Road Devi Paradise theater, taking 3 different buses to watch Minnale with 15 others, The time when the 15 of us bunked college and went on a drive on ECR and then to Juhu beach to swim the whole day and to lay on the beach under the sun, followed by the first day first show of the movie "Kannathil Mutham Ittai" in Prarthana drive In theater.

I guess you should have got the point by now..which is

1) I used to bunk college a lot...which explains the dismal attendance record I had

2) I love Chennai and I always will, it might grow and become like Chicago one day, or might get a lot worse...it might be the most condervative city in the world or the most liberal...no matter what happens I will always enjoy my trip to the city.

its been a couple of years...

2005-07-27T20:52:00.000-05:00

Tiday - 7/27/05...its been exactly 2 years since I came here to the United States. In these two years I have learnt a lot, matured quite a bit, found a job(I hope i still have it when i go back from school!!) made little money...spent tons of cash...met some great people..have had a crush..learnt a little bit about a new culture...etc. etc., the list goes on. But however this blog is not about my life here...its is actually about the dreams and aspirations I had when I came here. Yesterday I was talking to a bunch of my friends and somehow they reminded me of my Statement of Purpose that I sent here to the University of Kentucky with my application packet. My SOP is the only thing I have really written in my life (besides meaningless blogs) and also the one I spent over 2 months writing and refining. Check it out!!

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
________________________________________

I have a dream....said Martin Luther King Jr.

Not only in the context of the America of the 60's but also in today's context, this statement does convey a powerful meaning. For, dreams are what great achievements are made of. To me, dreams have always meant a lot. Be it the dream of owning that first remote-controlled car or succeeding in my engineering class, dreams have constantly paved the path for me in the pursuit of my goals. Right from my younger days, mechanics and machinery have fascinated me. The sheer power they produce have both intimidated and excited me. Little surprise that I decided that this was where my future was.

It's often said that success is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration. To me that 1% inspiration has always been my father. He started AMCON, a small industrial consultancy firm in 1982 (an offshoot of a company called IBCON Pvt. Ltd, started in 1940’s by an American, John Moore and developed into one of the leading Industrial Engineering consulting firm in India till 1982) and through sheer hard work and determination, transformed the firm into one of the leading consultancy firms in India. His success has left an indelible mark on my will to succeed too. With the 30 years of experience he has in Industrial Management, he has also been a source of immense knowledge to me in my endeavors.

The seeds to my future were sown in school where my obvious subject choices were Physics, Mathematics and Computer Science. These subjects not only provided me a strong foundation in engineering, but also furthered my interests in this field. As a logical follow-up, I took up Mechanical Engineering as my major in the Undergraduate course. I was fortunate in getting admission into one of the leading colleges in South India, namely Sri Venkateswara College of Engineering where I had the right environment to learn. The college attracts some of the brightest students and my classmates have been the greatest strength in my development through joint participation in seminars, organizing programs in college etc. During the course, I was exposed to subjects like Basic Engineering, Production Technology and Workshop, which gave me a lot of insight into present day manufacturing technology. I also took up Non-traditional Machining and Fluid Power control as my electives as I believe that these subjects have become an integral part of today's industrial scenario. During my third year, I developed a great interest in the field of Operations Research, a subject in which I am currently crediting. Subjects like Inventory Control, Job Scheduling, Assignment and Simulation have made me realize the immense potential this field has in store for the betterment of our industry. My natural flair for mathematics coupled with the fascination towards Operations Research and Manufacturing has made me choose Manufacturing Engineering, a subject that I believe gives me a phenomenal opportunity to pursue my interests in both fields.
To put my theoretical skills to good use, I took up industrial training at TAFE, a leading automobile manufacturer in India. As part of the training, I presented a project report on 'Cellular Manufacturing and Cost Control'. This project not only gave me an excellent opportunity to apply my theoretical knowledge but also introduced me to the concepts of cellular manufacturing and other Japanese concepts like 5S and Six Sigma. This project on cost control taught me the importance of waste management, made me think of ways to reduce cycle time and introduced me to concepts like 'Just in time' to cut unnecessary inventory. A number of my suggestions towards cost control were also implemented by the company. The most rewarding experience during the training was that it gave me an opportunity to observe closely the 'nature of work' of an Manufacturing engineer. Being a part of this setup, which was my future too, I knew I would love the challenge. And it indeed was!

I have always believed that my strength lies in my ability to think persistently about pressing problems till I come up with a plausible solution. The problem of depleting oil resources and rising pollution levels has made me realize the importance of Hybrid Vehicle technology. To this end, I presented a design paper on series Hybrid Vehicle Technology. This paper was very well received and the icing on the cake was the grant of US $2500 that I was awarded to make the Hybrid Vehicle. This indeed was a dream come true! This enormous success has not only reassured the faith that I have on myself but also instilled in me the confidence that "I can make a difference".

Just as the USA ranks highest in the list of countries, your university ranks among the best in the list of universities. During the course of my research about American Universities, the literature that I read about the department of Manufacturing Engineering in your university explains the clear thrust in my field of interest. It would indeed be a privilege to be an integral part of this highly acclaimed course in your prestigious university.

At this juncture, I would like to put forth my request to be considered for admission with financial assistance for the Master of Science program offered by the department of Manufacturing and Systems Engineering at your esteemed university. I can assure you that if I am admitted for the course, I will put forth my best efforts and ensure mutual progress.

When Martin Luther said those famous words, it reflected the stuff dreamers are made of - They see things not as they are, but as they will be! I am a dreamer and I am a doer. For a doer is one who makes what will be, what is! Every person's attitude determines his altitude and I am not afraid of heights!!

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

Like most other SOP's I agree mine is a little exaggerated...but I can vouch most of it is true..and I still am in the pursuit of the heights I want to reach. This ladies and gentlemen is what I hope to do with my life!!

Laxmi!!

2005-07-20T22:03:00.000-05:00

Folks,

Disclaimer: I know you dont come to my blog expecting to read something sensible. I shall fully live upto my reputation.

I wanted to let you guys know about something that has fascinated me and lotsa other guys the past 2 days here in Lexington. Yes thats my new RC car "Laxmi" For those who think I am mentally deranged and that Remote Controlled cars are for kids under 10 leave now!!

I am attaching pics of "Laxmi". Its a 4WD vehicle.

Aint it beautiful? I have already influenced a bunch of guys here and they are going to get similar RC cars and we plan on making a track and racing..wont that be awesome?

As for me...I am busy planning how I am gonna buy the "all new more powerful than ever 2006 Laxmi". Check out http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LG3210&P=1 for details...its got a hefty price tag though...a whooping $400
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I wonder how some people find going to the mall soo appealing? I need to go to the mall to get some stuff and have basically been procrastinating the visit for about a week now. The thought of going to a place seeing all the things I want to buy but cant afford to buy just doesnt sound to me like a very appealing thing to do!!

ok time to go and exercise;)

Lessons to learn!

2005-06-07T20:47:00.000-05:00

I am not a big fan of fowards and am especially against passing off fowards as blogs. However the following is a foward my friend sent me which due to some odd reason I had the patience to read through and kinda liked it!

I Hope you like it too!!

Cleaning Lady.
-----------------------------------------

During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz.
I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions
until I read the last one: "What is the first name of the woman who
cleans the school?" Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the
cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her
50s, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the last
question blank.

Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would
count toward our quiz grade. "Absolutely," said the professor. "In
your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve
your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say "hello".
I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.

Always remember those who serve.
--------------------------------------------------------------

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10 -year-old
boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass
of water in front of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?" he asked.

"Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled is hand out
of his pocket and studied the coins in it. "Well, how much is a plain
dish of ice cream?" he inquired. By now more people were waiting for a
table and the waitress was growing impatient. "Thirty-five cents," she
brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins. "I'll have

The plain ice cream," he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put
the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream,
paid the cashier and left. When the waitress came back, she began to
cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty
dish, were two nickels and five pennies. You see, he couldn't have the sundae,
because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip.

Giving When it Counts.
-------------------------------------------------

Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to
know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare & serious
disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood
transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same
disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness.
The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked
the little boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister. I
saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and
saying, "Yes I'll do it if it will save her." As the transfusion
progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all
did, seeing the color returning to her cheek. Then his
face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and
asked with a trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away?".

Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought
he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood in order to save her.

En Vazhkai!!

2005-04-26T22:46:00.000-05:00

While I am sitting here having my horrible dinner (Toast with eggs and Kroger Instant Chunky vegetable soup) I was thinking I must have been like a horrible mafia guy who wrote all his fortune to the homeless when he died. wondering why? read on...

This post is a conversation between me and rational public who would ask logical questions to my frustrated replies...

(Conversation begins…)

Venky: As I got home from work at 6.30 today evening and opened up my personal emails, I saw this email from this lady in OIA asking me for a set of documents for my CPT. She is annoying stupid bone headed ***** **** **** (beep beep beep!!!)

Public: relax..whats the big deal? just give her the documents and get done with it!!

Venky: Ohhh....yeah? I wish it was that simple. I live in Fort Wayne, IN a 4 hour drive from Lexington. So its not like i can take a couple of hours lunch and go meet her on a weekday.

Public: I understand but you are still wrong scolding her because she is just doing her job. There are rules and procedures which need to be followed and she is just doing her job well...

Venky: is she really? so why didnt she tell me about these documents when couple of weeks back i took 2 days off and spent an hour in her office going through what i was giving her and asking her a million times if that was all she needed. why didnt she tell me about this then?

Public: Ohhh...I see what you are saying now. Yeah shit happens sometimes!! just what is she asking for?

Venky:
1) A letter from my DGS which I gave her when i was there. No idea why she needs another letter stating the exact same thing again
2) Official Transcripts..which take 2 days to be processed and posted and so I wouldnt receive it till Monday and I will have to send it back to her immediately. My CPT expires next Friday and I dont know how I am going to sort this thing out. Btw FYI my transcripts will go from UK to me in Fort Wayne, and then immediately back to UK. And before you ask NO, UK cant send it directly to the other department..c'mon they cant make it any easier for the students...that just isnt how UK works!!
3) I have to be registered for Summer and Fall. I have to take courses for which I cant register myself and the request has to go from my prof. to the department secretary. Sending paper work to our dept. secretary is like throwing a stone in quicksand...get it?

Public: Holy cow!! looks like you are in deep shit!! Hmmm you know the best thing to do is to take your mind off this for a while. Take it easy man...go hang out with your friends...

Venky: Thanks for reminding me...I have no friends in Fort Wayne..

Public: What about roomies? go spend some time with them..

Venky: Jackass...no roomies either...I live by myself.

Public: WHAT??? You are kinda decently sociable why dont you have friends in Ft. Wayne yet?

Venky: Ohh well I work like 12 hours a day and there is little time left after that to socialize!!

Public: Hmm thats alrite...atleast since you put in soo many hours you might get a full time job in the company!!

Venky: hehe last week the company told me that wasnt an option. The big 3 automakers who account to over 90% of our sales had to have soft sales while I am in the job market. so what happens? my boss tells me "Venky..You are just the kind of person we would like in our company and I have heard nothing but good things about you but unfortunately we cant offer you a position at this time"

Public: dude you still have good friends in Lexington...call them up and talk to them! It will make you feel better

Venky: Well yeah...I could do that but the signal inside my house sucks....

Public: ohh plss...what a sad excuse!! go outside and talk!!

Venky: I would if I lived somewhere else...not in this crazy city where its 50 degree s and snows in May. Id freeze to death!!

Public: Change your cellphone service provider...

Venky: I already did...I had a sprint before and since my reception was bad changed to Tmobile paying $150 in early termination fees only to find that Tmobile is worse. My friends now blame me for the bad service like its my fault!!

Public: Hmmmm...I assume you dont have a girlfriend either...

Venky: You think I'd be talking to you if I did?

Public: Hmmm man I really feel sorry for you...Ill hang out with you for a while...

Venky: Thanks man...I appreciate your understanding but I dont need your sympathy. Anyways its already 11.30 pm and since i need to be at work by 7 am tommorow
(like any other day), I need to get up by 5.30am and so need to get to bed now!

Public: Goodluck dude...just hang in there....

Venky: You bet I will!!

(Conversation ends..)

The above conversation explains why I might have been a cruel Mafia who killed lotsa ppl in my last birth.

The only good thing about my life right now is my family and friends...they give me the fuel to go on!!(Explains why I might have given my fortune to the homeless!!) Must have definitely done something good in my previous birth to have this. On the whole I feel like I'm running a 100,000m hurdle race...you jump over one only to find another one smiling at you with sarcasm!!

Whatever!!!!!!

am I shallow?

2005-04-25T19:49:00.000-05:00

I have been noticing an increasing number of blogs with heavy philosophical content and/or about feelings ppl have towards other ppl, things or just situations. I once thought i was a very spiritual, philosophical person. I once beleived I could find solutions to questions that has been challenging manking for years. I have since then changed quite a bit. I have found my solutions to problems and for the ones i couldnt i have simply ignored them and got on with my life. I like the way I am now though...it kinda helps me live the carefree life i live right now.

The point I am trying to make is somehow being this way kinda prevents me from fully appreciating things people write about...so everytime I read something even mildly "senti" I go like "ohh yeah ok...total crap". Its probably just me...I agree its nothing much to brag about!!

Oru Kelvi.....

2005-04-24T02:07:00.000-05:00

Hey guys,
I have a question...
Say you once upon a time you shared a very good relationship (friend) with a person and that person over a period of time has changed for better or for worse but you still like the person the way you always have...
And if due to the lack of time you hardly get to talk to the person...
what is the future of this relationship? Has something like this ever happened to you?
(P.S: I know this doesnt sound like me...but I need help as I am not sure what to do!!)

Shanthi...Shanthi!!

2005-04-22T21:56:00.000-05:00

I am watching this documentary on CNN about the 1995 Oklahoma city bombing and it got me started into thinking about the world we live in right now. Its soo painful to see affected people talking about how their lives changed after this happened.

It also got me thinking about some really disturbing incidents that have happened recently in Florida. Infact this has been something I have been thinking about for a while. If I was a parent bringing up my children in FL i would be a little scared considering the fact that there has been about 2 kids who have been kidnapped and killed in a matter of a month. I was wondering god forbid..what I will do if something like that happens to me?

Simple...Ill take a gun and shoot the bastard who dares to mess with my family down!! I will let him/her live but make sure I cause some serious permanent damage s/he will remember the rest of his/her life. I am educated and beleive in the law but then there also times when i think the law does not do justice to some mentally sick people...esp the ones who mess with children. It will be "A time to Kill" (You'd know what I am talking about if you have read the John Grisham novel)
Besides I really care for my close family (like the most of you!!) and anybody who dares to cause harm any of them will pay for it dearly!!
All I need in this world is Peace...Am I asking for too much?

Btw what a coincidence...they are playing "A time to Kill" on Cinemax. Looks like even the gods agree with me!

On a lighter note....ISA elections are coming up and I am going to vote for Ramji. I think he is sincere and has worked hard for ISA and other associations.
Vote for Ramji!!

Ready to mingle..but still will be Single!!

2005-04-21T21:12:00.000-05:00

Oru vazhiya naanum therumba blogging world vandhutaen!

I was thinking about this yesterday when i was posting my previous blog and also when i was talking to my ex-roomies after that!!

When I was in college I sure had fun but didnt think it was spectacular. Yedho college ponnaen, canteen and babu kadai le saptaen, pasangal and on rare occasions (when i got lucky!) ponnugala odu class cut adichu padathikku ponnaen, yedhavdhu ponnu patha pudichu vechu kadala pottaen. Yepovadhu weekend vandhu friend vettu ku poi night stay panni konjum diffrent (OH) spirits try panninaen...ille ille friends try panninanga naan summa coke kudichaen (India le diet coke kadaikaradhu kashtam!) appidiye soolite pogalam.
Ippo enna sola varain na despite doing all this i didnt realize how much fun i was having till i came to the US. Appo thaan yennaku thonithu.."aaahaaaa adhu inbam ada nu"
Seri ippo Lexington le thaan summa irundhaen a? andha oor seriyana pattikadu nu thetikutae college le senjathe senjaen..enna kadala pattum podale...ille ille thapa nenaikathaenga..thirundha ella ille...ponnu yedhuvum mattale!!
Seri ippo Fort Wayne vandhum adhuve seiyaraen and appadiye friends kitte ellam polambaraen..dei ponnu yedhavum mata mataengudhu ne..
Seri enough of tamil what I am trying to say is perhaps after i get married i will realize the arumai if bachelor life...esp. after you have started earning.

So I have made up my mind that I am going to enjoy my single life!! after all our ancestors fought 200 years for freedom and it will be a shame to waste it!! (yen logic sahikale nu yennaku theriyum!) The more I think the more I am convinced that I am single because I choose to be!!

The Humble Beginings!!

2005-04-20T20:46:00.000-05:00

Attention: K refers to Kay (http://srkartik.blogspot.com) and V refers to Freeyavedu (http://freeyavedu.blogspot.com)

Naan Vandhu appidye reel reverse le suthi Ill take you guys back to July 27th 2003.

It was a warm sunny (Sun)day in Lexington, KY. At around 7pm United Airways flight from Chicago landed in Lexington. Among all the passengers there was this guy who had just flown into what would be his home for the next 1.5 years. Alone and for the first time in these crazy states, looking odd with a fall jacket in summer he was scanning the Lexington airport looking for an Indian face. He had just then in that flight met an American for the first time in his life.

Athu vera yaarum ille....naane thaan!

The American was talking about some road in Lexington which went round the city and he was telling me how amused he was by that. I had no idea then what he was talking about but thinking about it now I think he was talking about the new circle road!

One lean (Both literal and Figurative) tall guy approached me and asked if i was "Venkatesh Gopalan"...yes I said giving him a formal handshake. He introduced himself as Parthi (the guy who was supposed to pick me up) and so we grabbed my bags and head out. The drive to the apartment was kinda long. It felt good to listen to Ilayaraja hits in the car..something i didnt expect to in the USA. So we reached this apartment
(805 Press Avenue, #1) dumped my bags and went to another apartment. There were around 10 guys in that apartment vetty a chatting and ootifying each other. In that apartment I met (after about 12 hours) a guy from my college, my to be roomie for the next 1.5 years. Soon we just got dropped back to out apartment. Parthi seemed very nice as he was talking to us, advicing us on what and what not to do and also brought us some essential commodities. He said he will come back the next day and take us to Walmart!

The next day we got up at 2pm. Still dazed, confused and jet lagged we quickly brushed and showered (I remember i had to take a cold shower because the heater wasnt working) and went to the nearby Dairy Queen to have brunch. I went there and wasnt sure what to order and everything looked expensive (remember the formula?....Price = $value X 50). Hot dogs were the cheapest and so I had a hot dog and a coffee. It was the only time in my life i had a hot dog (Yuck!!!!!!) the coffee i remember was horrible besides being black. I wasnt sure if i was supposed to drink it like that!

We then went back home and Parthi showed up as promised and took us to Walmart. I was amazed being in Walmart...it was huge and my jaws literally dropped to the floor. I know i sound naive but hey...those were my reactions and I am not ashamed to admit it! we got lotsa stuff groceries, sleeping bag etc etc.

The next few days were spent in a boring and useless way. Me and V (my roomie) basically spent the whole day in Youngs library, listening to Kadhal Kondaen and Boys songs...talking about the good old college days and friends. We were I should say in a way in the low point of out lives..No family nearby, no jobs or assistantships, New ppl all around and no friends and above everything alone. There were are soo many funny cooking incidents that if i start getting into them i can go on forever!

Soon lotsa ppl came and all were living nearby. Our other 2 roomates came along to. I made a trip to St Louis to meet my cousin just before school started. Fall semester went by fast and we were all busy and worked hard because the system was new to us.
I still remember the heated discussions we had about going out to eat and about the amount we had to allocate from our tight budgets for eating out. It was generally a once in a month thing. Our rare visits in Sunday to Kashmere, the Indian restraunt nearby which serves the lousiest Indian food. That was the time when every penny counted and varumai hurt us real bad.
I remember discussing hours and hours about how we were gonna pay tuition for the next semester, about the India trip we dreamed about! Just soo many memories.

There were also times when we had soo much fun. Like the times when me and all my roomies just kept jumping on the spring matress we had picked up from the road. The time when we used to make fun my roomie R's English and his very active love affairs.
(K and V...remember "I think we are in Love!!"). Ofcourse K's activities deserve some mention too...his active presence in any place where there were more then 3 Desi girls togeather. His fall 2003 romances deserve a entire Mills and Boons novel and cant be all covered as a part of a blog.

The first snowfall and our playing and tripping in it. The wasted december break when all we did was to download movies and watch them. Well I can go on writing about soo soo many small incidents and moments I shared with my roommates which was soo much fun but I'll leave some for V and K to write!!!

I left Lexington in January 2005 to start my internship here in Fort Wayne. Both my roomies are graduating in May. V is leaving Lexington on the 28th of April to Madison to start his job. K is joining Lexmark in the first week of May. Thinking about it now, we all have come such a long way from where we once were. No matter where I go I know i will always remember the humble beginings and fun I had. I think i will remember them because I had the best roommates anybody can ever have and they are also my best friends. I think its because of them and other friends i have that i miss Lexington soo much and go back there everytime I get a chance!

Thanks K and V! You guys are the best!!

Weekdays....my weak days!

2005-04-19T21:31:00.000-05:00

Scene 1 - Friday Evening
I'm all happy and excited about having 2 days off. I am thinking about how I am going to get lotsa sleep and complete 2 million things i need to do.
As the evening proceeds...i either goto to a club nearby of rent a movie and watch it with a couple of beers ooops i mean diet coke!

Saturday Morning...i get up sometime after noon. Have a looooooong hot shower and a brunch. Piss the evening off just going to some place in Fort Wayne.

Sunday Morning....Thats the day when the morning blues start. The day goes by fast and by the time i do my laundry and get my groceries...its time to get to bed.

Then comes the 5 worst days of the week. The fight starts at 5.30 am in the morning between me and my alarm clock...i finally manage to get up around 5.45am...rush rush and get to work by 7am. Work just goes on and on and its probably 5-5.30pm before i leave my office. I goto the Y from there and workout. Finally come back home at 8pm just in time to eat something and crash into bed. So do the other days go

Now all of you must be wondering why i am writing about my daily schedule...the point i am trying to make is life had just become soo monotonous and busy and feels like a never ending struggle with time. After serious thought i have come to the conclusion that if we want to have a super duper career we have to scrifice social life or if we have to have a great life then i guess we must be just content being where we are and not worry much about having a great career.

I guess thats one more of nature's balances...you work hard..make more money but wont find time to spend it the way you want to or we can just work our 40 hours per week and have the time but no money to do all that we want to.

Either way...independent of if we are happy or not..we are always a little discontent!

Its my beleif that its this discontention that makes us want to take that extra step...step after step!

Workout ku oru O podu!

2005-04-17T01:22:00.000-05:00

Working out is great for the body. It keeps you fit, helps you live longer, takes that extra flab off, gives you better sleep in the night etc. Recently I read ppl who workout are also likely to be more confident about themselves and their body.

No I am not planning on opening a health club anytime soon.

But I think the best thing about working out is that it makes you feel less guilty about eating whatever you want to eat.

Ok point made...ill now get back to my coffee ice cream with chocolate sauce!

Freedom!!

2005-04-13T22:50:00.000-05:00

What is Freedom? What first comes to your mind when I mention freedom?

The thing that comes to my mind is driving down a freeway in a mountainous road by the sea (Like the one they show in Basic Instinct) on a warm sunny 75 degree day! The car being a convertible (Any vehicle...its not abt the car..but a manual shift with a v8 Motor wouldnt hurt) with the roof down.

No worries...No thoughts, relationships, work, responsibilities to hold me down. The hours, selfish as it sounds I live just for myself. It cant be a vacation as vacations are always timed..when you know you will be back to routine in a week or a month it kinda takes the fun away. I am not talking about going at 100 mph..its not about the speed or the adrenaline rush either. Just me, myself and the music made by the wind brushing through my face!

This is how I define Freedom!!

2005-04-03T19:43:00.000-05:00

The thing about watching sad movies is its puts one's life in perspective. My friends have been raving about the movie BLACK for a while now and i have been avoiding watching the movie because i heard the story and i knew it was one of those emotional movies i wouldnt really enjoy watching. But anywyas yesterday i had nothing better to do and my friend gave me the cd so i decided to watch it. And now after watching it i have to admit it is a really well made movie. I am not generally an emotional person and if i was moved by the movie i have to admit its pretty damn well taken. I think my life sucks but its when i watch movies like this that I realize life isnt really bad after all. And as for what i took from the movie...if a guy can teach a stubborn little girl who cant see or hear how to read and write (brail ofcourse) and get her a B.A degree then i definitely can tranform my company into Lean. I guess ill start the week with that in mind!!
Earlier in the week I went and joined the YMCA near my house. This particular Y has a gym, Climbing wall, TT tables, Pool Tables, Videao Games, Basketball court, Swimming pool, Whirlpool, Sauna and also some aerobics classes. I worked out after a looong time on Friday and boy...every muscle in my body hurts now!! When i was leaving the Y friday evening there was this sheet of paper lyinig near my car door...i picked it up to see if i had dropped something and i coulnt beleive what i saw...it was the bank statement of one Amy...it had her Bank Account number, Address, Full name and bank balance. I pretty much had all the information i needed to get online and use her bank account to buy myself something i wanted. I had to tear the paper and dispose it off for Amy.
k then later!

General Ramblings!!

2005-03-26T16:27:00.000-05:00

while I am waiting here in Ann Arbor, MI for lunch which my friend is preparing i thought i might as well use this time constructively to write a blog. My friend is making chappathi and Channa for me and refused to let me help her...and i have to admit i didnt insist. Its been a good weekend soo far..I relaxed and got lotsa sleep thrusday night. Friday morning (technically afternoon)I went and opened a bank account. After a quick lunch followed by Tira Misu for dessert i head out to Ann Arbor from Fort Wayne. I stopped on the way and bought myself a Tshirt and then continued driving. The traffic on I94 was horrible...i finally reached here at 9pm and me and my friend head out for dinner. Since my friend S has absolutely no sense of direction whatsoever we had to navigate around with my map and we finally reached this Thai place 10 minutes after it closed. So from there we drove around town in search of this Italian restraunt called Macaroni Grill. Fortunately I have a decent sense of direction else we would have never found the place. After a hearty dinner which i have to admit was delicious we got back home and were talking for a while.

I got up at 12.30pm today..my friend had to go for some swimming classes in the morning so she didnt mind me sleeping. After a quick breakfast of eggs and toast which my friend made for me we head out state street Starbucks to grab a coffee and then to Meijers to do grocery shopping for my friend. Now i know that sounds really boring and it was but then i unfortunately didnt have an option and was told i wouldnt get any lunch if i didnt drive her there. Shopping with S is not fun!! when it comes to shopping S is a typical girl! So after a couple of hours of grocery shopping we got back home.

Ok i think lunch is ready and it smells good and I better not let her see this if i want any lunch

later...

Pround to be a ME

2005-03-19T22:26:00.000-05:00

I am proud to say i can pretty much fix most common electrical, automotive and to an extent plumbing problems too. So while i was working on my car today i was thinking what really made me the way I am today?

I guess my parents had a lot to do with this. everytime something used to break in my house my dad always encouraged me to open it up and see what was wrong. I know he always did unless it was something very complicated. I remember all the time i used to get chided by my dad for not fixing thins at home which should have gotten fixed. Sure i do remember half a dozen electric shocks and also all the time i opened something up and didnt know how to put it back but hey..i did manage to fix things most of the time.

My college and my Mechanical Engineering degree certainly had a lot to do with things. I am confident about opening any kind of machinery or circuitry up because I pretty much know how they work atleast the basic principle. I guess its kinda similar to how a good cook can taste something and say what ingriedients were used to make the dish. Yup...the more i think abt it the more convinced I am that getting a ME degree was the best thing that could have happened to me..its kinda where a man belongs. The working around big machines, red hot metals....hmmmm satisfying!!

And above everything it just the way I am. fixing things and see them work well after i service them gives me satisfaction..makes me feel like an engineer. it is pretty cool..and I am proud abt all the things i can do..
OK i figured I have bragged enough..time to get back to my haynes car manual and see whats wrong with the EVAP system in my car!
Adios!

The Angel every guy is looking for!!

2005-03-14T02:42:00.000-05:00

I have been out of the blogging world for a while now..but Im here blogging at 2.40am on a monday morning not because Im not sleepy (I am very sleepy!!) not because Im Jobless (I need to get to work at 8.30am tommorow morning and I just got back from work at 2am) but because I just saw something which moved me so much i couldnt refrain myself from writing abt it..even this late in the night.

Yes..I am talking about Ashley Smith the woman Brian Nichols took hostage of before turning himself into the police. I just saw her interview on cnn and i have to agree i have never been as moved by a TV interview of a person i dont know as i was today. The way Ms. Smith handled the situation i think is not just uncommon but is also beyond humanity..she surely is "an angel sent by god" as Brian Nichols put it. I think its just mind blowing how she did not run away when she had 3 or 4 chances to because she thought Brian Nichols might hurt somebody else, how she didnt kill him when she had a chance to esp. considering what she has gone through in life. (Her husband was stabbed to death and died in her arms) I think for somebody to talk a person, who killed about 4 ppl, into turning himself to the cops and even offering to do something for her in her house, in a matter of 24 hours is AWESOME..Its soo Unreal and kinda makes me beleive in God and fate.

Ashley Smith, I bow down to you. Women like you make guys like me realize how wonderful women really are. Strong but sweet, Independent but not Inconsiderate, Cool yet caring, Bold but Vulnerable you sure are one hell of a woman! In my eyes, in America's eyes and I am sure in anyone who sees your interview's eyes you are a true Hero. I just hope that someday I will be lucky enough to find a wonderful woman like you and be the best husband to a terrific woman like you!!

I rest my case!!!

Myths and facts about Desi folks in America

2005-03-08T21:27:00.000-05:00

1)Myth:
All men in the United States are great cooks and cook everyday/ regularly.
Fact:
Cant be far from the truth. I am a very ordinary cook, havent cooked in 3 weeks now and ever since i moved into an apartment and started living by myself I have probably cooked 3 times.no slef respecting bachelor would!! In the United States with a freezer and a microwave you can eat almost any cuisine from any part of the world you want to!!
however when it comes to women its an altogeather diffrent story...the time i spend watching tbs, cnn....a bunch of girls i know spend it cooking..no complaints though..after all i hope i am lucky enough to marry one such girl who can cook good food for me!!

2) Myth
Indian women in the United states are a mixture of Aishwarya Rai, Kalpana Chawla, shilpa shetty etc. but at the same time are also as sweet as the women in the Soaps...you know a desi Ally McBeal!!
Truth!!
Nooooo wayy!! Indian women here in the United States for the most part are at the best ordinary looking. Some of them shower just once in a while (Kay and I.V you know whom I am talking abt!!)to keep the aroma which reminds everybody of their presence around a mile radius. I'd have to agree though that most of them are sweet atleast to an extent and as long as you are smart enough...not only to say the right things but more importantly refrain from saying the wrong things. SOme of them are really smart, Independent and there are others who claim they are!!
However the kind who piss me off the most are the kind who cant stand one touch of vulgarity, who would look at you like you just did the most disgusting thing in the world when you tell them something naughty. In a world where it an accepted fact that even the queen has 2 legs it women like these who i think spoil the reputation of Indians in the world and esp here in the United States. ok since i think i have deviated quite a bit from the topic i started writing about i think ill stop here..but before i finish just one more type..the type who think the only reason a guy talks to a girl is because he wants to have sex with her..I dont know how they manage to convince themselves of that esp. after looking at themselves in the mirror for as long as they do!!!

If you folks can think of anything else...do add your comments.

Women..dont take it personally...Happy Woman's Day..I probably would'nt be here if they were no women in the world!!
...
...
...
So what atleast the other men in the world would have lived happily..;)

No offence gals...just kidding...you know I Love you all!!

college kids!!!

2005-02-08T16:18:00.000-05:00

I am not sure if i should feel sorry for my juniors in college and other folks going to college now in Chennai or feel J looking at them.
When i went back to India this time there were just 10-12 channels being telecast if you dont have a set top box (most dont) out of which none were worth watching! there was no Mtv, channel V, Sony etc. shat do college going kids do without these channels? As far as i can remember all i did in college with the exception of the 2 weeks during the exams was to watch TV, talk to my friends about the programs i saw on TV over the phone and then chat online about the conversation in the night till like 12-1 am and then start fresh all over again the next day. so the question is what do they talk about now?
Another thing is in college I did what i wanted to...period. If i didnt like a prof. i didnt like him/her and i just didnt give a damn. If i didnt feel like attaneding a class i didnt simply because i didnt have to explain to anybody...no internals no shit like that + i got my bachelor's degree from Madras University (SVCE) and if you know a few tricks you can be assured of a decent score although there was always a degree of uncertainity. I understand thats not how it works now....and for some reason anna university seems to be bent on screwing their students.

But then on the other hand with the current economic boom in India it looks like all you need is a B.E degree to get a software job with a starting pay of over 200,000 /year. in the good'ol times when I graduated on campus jobs didnt come that easy esp. with the kind of reputation SVCE had with companies coming oncampus...thanks to my seniors for that!!
Internet/Phones and cell phones have become dirt cheap now and i think thats pretty cool. it would have saved me the severe tirade i used to get from my dad once every 2 months when the phone bill was sent home!! I still can remember the days when i used to go out on the evening of the day the bill was sent just to avoid my dad!! sounds petty now bit then i used to get seriously screwed for this!!
Above everything i envy college kids because they are in college...the one place Id give anything to be in..amongst my friends...acting irresponsibly, bunking classes just having fun. how cool was that?
I guess ill keep talking about my college days even after i turn 80...i am foreever ready to relive them.....ofcourse such is the great college i went to...Sri Venkateswara college of Engg(SVCE)!!!

India Trip...a detailed account!!

2005-02-08T16:14:00.000-05:00

quite contrary to what i had mentioned before this is my first blog from India and i have been here for three weeks already. I just have been generally lazy and my dialup connection speed hasnt really inspired me to write either. However suddenly a thought struck me yesterday...this is the vacation i had been dreaming about ever since i got to the U.S and blogging is the only way i can save the memories of the good times i have been having here. tommorow, it will exactly be 3 weeks since i got here and i feel like i really havent done 25% of the work i wanted to do over here. 3 weeks just went in a jiffy and all i did was eating and sleeping. When i get back to the US the one thing i probably wouldnt regret not doing is eating as for the last 3 weeks i have been literally stuffing myself with as much food as i possibly can. Infact suffering from indigestion and an upset stomach twice in 3 weeks is itself an indication enough of how much i have been eating, esp. considering the fact that i generally have an iron stomach.

I decided i am going to try and remember what i did since i got here
12/6/04 - got home at around 10.00am...had a delicious bf of dosa and south Indian filter coffee..didnt do anything much...just chilled out in the house...gave everybody their gifts. had a terribly upset stomach.

12/7/04 - didnt do anything worth mentioning...Sindu was sick and so she bunked office.

12/8/04 - went to Landmark and bought books and cds. Had chat from a store in spencers and also punjabi samosa from food world. Spencers has changed quite a bit and the 3rd phase is awesome.

12/9/04 - went back to Landmark to return a book as i realized the same book was available in half.com at about 1/2 its price. Arthi dropped home from work in the evening and was chatting with her for a while. Mohan chittappa and Vinod also dropped by to see me.

12/10/04 - went to ritchie street to buy adapters. much to my surprise i really didnt like the place with its crowd. Sadly the same street where i could spend hours drooling at the goodies and gizmos it had to offer was now annoying. I had originally planned on spending 2-3 hours there but just got my stuff and left the place in under an hour. While driving back home i drove via marina and was filled with mixed emotions. Just too many memories associated with the damn beach.

12/11/04 - went with Appa, Amma, Sindu, Ramesh, Ani, Mohan Chittappa, Usha Chitti and vinod to Mansukhs. Had some 2-3 rounds of chat followed by basundi for dessert. hmmmm....good stuff!!!

12/12/04 - Went out with Balaji to spencers and then later to the beach and then at 7 pm for oceans 12 followed by dinner at Karaikudi....had delicious south Indian Parotta with i think Egg curry. Also had some chat in Spencers followed by Masala Kadalai in Marina beach.

12/13/04 - went to Ayush for a full body ayurvedic massage on my Mom and Sisters insistence. It was comforting and cool. Got myself and amma ice cream from Movenpick on my way back home. Earlier in the day i went out with amma and bought sandals for myself.

12/14/04 - Went with amma to Vivek's in Vadapalani to check out A/C and Washing Machines...bad service. Then went to Sri Krishna Sweets to buy Mysurpa. From there we drove to sindu's office, picked her and Datta up and then Lunched at Aanghan a new restraunt opened up behind Gangothri in Cathedral Road. Had Panneer Tikka which was truly out of the world. Later after lunch we had ice creams in Gangothri and dropped Sindu and Datta off in their office and drove to spencers. Just roamed about and finally had coffee from java city. Came back home and relaxed.

12/15/04 - Went with amma to Rathna stores and I bought her a new cooker and some other stuff. I also bought a belt in Globus. We then went to Chips and Chats and had some chat. I bought a flower bouquet and we drove back home. After a while i then went to Adyar for Arthi's Engagement. The engagement was boring for me as i knew nobody except Arthi. I then went to Besant Nagar beach and walked along the shore for 45 Minutes and then drove back home.

12/16/04 - I cant remember what i did but i doubt it was anything special. I think i went to Just casuals and bought a shorts and a shirt. then went to Kellys and Dropped sindu off and played with Ani for a while.

12/17/04 - Went and picked up a Van Huesen Shirt...some sale was on. Later was wondering if i should have? Went to Mussafir movie...night show...ok movie...typical masala..Sameera reddy looked smoking hot though.

12/18/04 - Took Amma and Ani to Ayyapa poojai in Mylapore. On the way back a stupid Jackass bike guy smashed his bike into my car that was then stationary causing a huge dent in my rear bumper. I was begining to wonder if i should be driving in India. In the evening i went with Appa to rathna stores and then later we all excluding Ramesh went for dinner to Dhaba..ok food and nice ambience but too pricey though!!

12/19/04 - Lunch at Mohan Chittappa's place. It was delicious and filling. Janaki Periammai, Athimbar and Thathi came to our place in the evening. They have bought a new Maruthi 800.

12/20/04 - Sindu bunked office. we did some major suthifying!! Went to Spencers where i bought a pair of formal Arrow trousers, and couple of cotton shirts. Had some chat from Shri Mithai in the 3rd Phase. We then came back home..had Lunch and left again and i bought a pair of formal Woodland Shoes and also leather sandals.

12/21/04 - Went to Naturals, a upscale beauty salon where a haircut costs 200 bucks!! My sis had a coupon for 300 bucks so i got a shave for 50 bucks and a Olive oil Head
Massage for the rest of the money. came out starving and ate lotsa stuff from foodworld. In the afternoon i gave the car for service. got back the car later in the night with the dent been taken care off and also the best part with the A/C working..and working well.

12/22/04 - pretty dull day till the evening. the Evening was horrible. Sindu was supposed to leave and just before we left home to Kellys appa thought Ani had fever. We went to kellys and Mummy took Ani to the Doctor just to avoid risks. I was playing around with the camcorder to see if i can connect it to the computer. Ani started crying because mummy took him to the hospital and after crying really loudly non stop for about 40 minutes...he just stopped and passed out...jeez!! all of us got the shock of our lives and we rushed him to the doctor. the doctor wrapped a wet towel around him and after about 5 minutes he regained conciousness. we rushed him to child trust hospital. I drove the the hospital and i have to admit never before in my life have i been as scared to drive as i was that day. Finally well we later came to know what happened to him was whats called a febrile seizure and is a relatively common occurence in children when there temperature shoots up and it seems it happens in about 3-5% of the children (looked up at it online).

12/23/04 - Left to the hospital early in the morning with coffee. Ani was ok. his fever hadnt subsided though. I spent the whole day in the hospital. i was there till about 9.30pm.

12/24/04 - did pretty much the same thing like the previous day. spent almost the whole day in the hospital, reading "are you afraid of the dark" by Sidney Sheldon.

12/25/04 - was there in the hospital till the evening. In the night went to China Town with balaji. China Town had a great great ambience and was kinda pricey too. I treated Balaji for my internship. Then went to sathyam and saw Swades. Good movie. I thought it was very well made though the first half was kinda slow. I just love the songs in the movie. met Mayee in the cinema.

12/26/04 - Horrible day!! I woke up with a severe headache, backache and also an upset stomach. My dad woke me up saying there were tremors. My friend who had stayed over in my house told me he had woken up because he felt the bed shake. It was not until a few hours later that i realized the seriousness of the issue. Like my BIL said the irony of the situation was that thousands of them had been washed away by the killer Tsunami waves just 3 miles away from my house and i didnt even realize it had happened. I heard the Marina beach is a ghastly site...i still havent had the guts to visit the place not because i am scared the tsunami will hit again but then because there are just too many sweet memories associated with the beach and i dont want to look at the beach in any other way than i have imagined it to be. Ajay and Vijay came home in the evening and we were chatting for a while.

12/27/04 - Felt much better but since the back ache persisted i decided against taking the bike. SInce my dad had taken the car i took an Auto to Spencers where i met up with Arun. Ajay Kumar & vijay in typical desi style came late. We went around for a while and Vijay bought a pair of Jeans. From there we went to Satyam and I saw Swades again.

12/31/04

I tired to post all that I had written earlier in India but then the connection sucked so I couldn’t! This being the last day of the year has been pretty good soo far. The A/C arrived promptly today morning and early noon guys from Samsung came and installed the A/C. Now all that remains to be done is to install the A/C power socket. I will be leaving in a few minutes to drop Sindu off in the doctors place (Andal…her new found pediatrician for Ani) and to go and collect my altered trousers from Lifestyle. As of now I plan on going for dinner with Ajay and Vijay to Savera tonite unless we make other plans at home. I guess that’s it for the moment…..signing off now.

to be continued......

Ciao Ag Comm!!!

2004-12-02T14:49:00.000-05:00

I know...I know...you guys must be thinking I am crazy to be writing a new blog when i havent completed my previous one...but then today happens to be a day of rather mixed emotions!!

This is the last blog i am writing from my office (current office!!) using the slow Dell Precision 330 with just 256 MB of RAM. I was thinking abt it today and i cant beleive its been 6 months since i joined this job...time just flies by soo fast...it feels like i just started yesterday. Its been a wonderful job though and i got to work with some gr88 ppl, not to mention all the new applications I learnt. Thinking abt it I learnt to use Photoshop, Illustrator, Flash, Dreamweaver and frontpage.

Well...Well..I have really enjoyed working here and will miss working here. Those long pro-democratic party conversations with shamick (prior to and also after the elections)...bugging Subha in her office, covering for Jonuse at her desk while she's gone...short walks via the medical center parking structure to Starbucks, esp. letching at those sexy automobiles parked there...i guess are some of the priceless moments ill probably never get back!

But what the heck? thats life and you got to move on...after all I survived leaving SVCE...this cant be very difficult!!

my friends...they are the best!!!!

2004-12-01T15:48:00.000-05:00

For sometime now i have been thinking about writing atleast the names of all my friends who have influenced me and are to an extent the reason behind i am where I am today. If there is one thing i cant complain about in my life it would be my friends....they have always been there for me when i have wanted them etc..etc. (u know...all that kinda senti stuff) So i decided the least i can do is to mention them and write their names in my blog. I know there are a zillion people who have helped me and since its impossible to write all their names down i am just gonna write down all the names i can think of now..if by any chance you think i have left your name out please understand that i have had a loon week, very little sleep last night, stressful 2 weeks before this one and excuse me!! Starting from school....
School - Gill Adarsh
- Sachin
- V.R Harish
- Geetha...(my first real friend i guess...i met her in 1st or 2nd grade and were the worst of enemies..i once was soo pissed with her that i threw her lunch out..she complained to the teacher and i had to share my lunch with her..but we eventually hit it off i guess and were the best of friends till 8th grade and the i totally lost touch with her till the magical reunion 8 years after, in her college. thanks to Padmavathy who got me her info...She now works for CTS in Chennai and we chat regularly)
- Suman
- Megha
- Lavanya
- Vasanthi (She was one hard working kid...my mom used to teach her and i hated her then because i used to get compared with her all the time..she eventually got into medical school i heard)
- Prasanna (graduated from purdue recently...great guy..and neighbour..we went for cricket coaching togeather..both of us loved the 1.25 rasna in shanthi cool bar!)
- There was this one guy i cant recollect his name now but anyways he wasnt a gr88 friend of mine but both of us shared a common passion which was to repair and restore fountain pens..i remember my hands were always stained with diffrent colors of ink during my 5th grade and i was never satisfied with the way my pen wrote and always used to take the nib and the feeder apartto try and make it work better. I learnt a lot abt pens from this guy!!
- Abdul - my key competitor in my 8th grade..i guess he eventually did better than me in acads but then i was the opening batsman for the under 13 team in my school, volunteer to make sure student leave the school in the evening without pushing each other etc. I remember I was an volunteer and so i used to leave class 15 mins early every evening and also used to come to class 15 minutes late every morning. that was such an awesome time...i did well in acads...played a lot of cricket, was a volunteer so got to bunk class, was in the best school ever and didnt really care abt chicks !!!

- Pavithra - we used to sit togeather in 5th grade and join erasers and sharpners in line and make a train out of it. She was a brilliant kid and as usual i was carefree abt studies
- Iqbal Ahmed - he was my kite buddy..we used to do a lot of stuff togeather like stealing other's food, flying kites,play hockey, oor suthaling (yes i started back then in school). I remember once when we made a lot full of manja and applied it to the thread and made some excellent manja thread. I used to absolutely love flying kites back then!!

Balalok M.H.S.S

G Balaji - Awesome guy...my best friend...i can write pages just abt hima nd the stuff we have done togeather...he currently works for TCS and also has a gf now which his parents know off. He might get engaged in less than a year. i must have roames almost all the major streets of madras with this guy. I guess in less than a week ill start doing it again!!
Ajay Kumar - nice guy and kinda senti too. we also went to college togeather. and i guess i hanged out with him countless number of times. we used to do combine studies for our exams.
Vijay - Nice guy works for TCS now. we went to the same college, he was in IT though!

hmmm like i mentioned i have a long list of gr88 friends and and currently running out of time to finish this so ill leave it at this for the time being and will continue tommorow. Please dont forget to check in tommorow....it will have my friends from SVCE and UK.
God my friends....they make me love my life!!

Guess who's back????? back again....

2004-11-30T16:06:00.000-05:00

been a looong time since i wrote...actually about a month..but in between my Indiana trip, Thanksgiving shopping, Pittsburg visit, thanksgiving shopping, arrangements for my internship, thanksgiving shopping there was little time to write. There are many things i have been wanting to write about though like doing 110 mph in a 2004 Ford Taurus, driving from cincinnati to Lexington (80 miles) in a record 50 minutes, driving for 4.5 hours (250 miles) at one stretch, shopping for over 100 bucks in one evening...all for clothes for myself etc.

Anyways just for the record (the entire town already seems to be knowing!!) I got an internship with Contech SPX and Ill be starting in January, around 24th. The plant i will primarily be working in is in Auburn, IN which is about 25 miles north of Fort Wayne. It looks like i will be living in Fort Wayne (either alone or with a roomie with a room for myself in any case)

I advanced my trip to India since i got the internship (cost me an extra 200 bucks!!) and so I am off U.S soil this saturday (12/4) and plan on getting back on 1/16/2005.
still got lotsa stuff to buy to take home. I am still not sure what I am going to buy Ani, my 1 year old nephew. When he was born I told my sister I am going totally pamper him and buy him all that he wants and so i need to go get him something...(I am a man of my word you see;))

Guess thats it for now...will write more often here after esp. since i am going to be India and most of the folks who read my blog happen to live in the United States..I shall totally absolutely burn it in to them...you didnt think i am going to let go an oppurtunity like this..did you???

Cya then!!

Folks at UK - FYI

2004-10-29T15:18:00.000-05:00

Starbucks Cafe in UK clinic sells its delicious Pastries, Sandwiches and Salads for just a dollar on Friday evenings after 3pm. When I went there today i saw the steep price cut and treated myself a delicious creme filled chocolate muffin...ohh boyyyyy it was awesome..and that coming from a "not exactly chocolate fanatic" means something doesnt it?
Well i did the basic research and found out that since UK Clinic Starbucks is closed in the weekends...they try to sell the stuff off because they cant anyways sell it the following Monday...thus the price cut!
So just go treat yourself!!