Saturday, December 11, 2004
Friday, December 10, 2004
Hildegard of Bingen
I, the fiery light of divine wisdom,
I ignite the beauty of the plains,
I sparkle the waters.
I burn the sun and the moon and the stars,
With wisdom I order all rightly.
I adorn the earth.
I am the breeze that nurtures all things green.
I am the rain coming from the dew
That causes the grasses to laugh
With the joy of life.
I call forth tears, the aroma of holy work.
I am the yearning for good.
-Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
I ignite the beauty of the plains,
I sparkle the waters.
I burn the sun and the moon and the stars,
With wisdom I order all rightly.
I adorn the earth.
I am the breeze that nurtures all things green.
I am the rain coming from the dew
That causes the grasses to laugh
With the joy of life.
I call forth tears, the aroma of holy work.
I am the yearning for good.
-Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
For the first time in my life
For the first time in my life, in Bangalore, I did the inevitable....
He gazed into my eyes
and felt my throat
He listened to my heart
and felt my breath
He stared at my ears
and shone light into my nose
Finally he declared, "Nothing much of value
Not to worry or fret"
"Why, oh why?!" I ask,
"To prescribe" is all he said!
The story of my late night visit to the hospital.
He gazed into my eyes
and felt my throat
He listened to my heart
and felt my breath
He stared at my ears
and shone light into my nose
Finally he declared, "Nothing much of value
Not to worry or fret"
"Why, oh why?!" I ask,
"To prescribe" is all he said!
The story of my late night visit to the hospital.
Friday, November 12, 2004
Lighting the Lamp!
Have you ever wondered how these guys, the guests of honour and other ppl, who are called to light the lamp (Kuthuvilaku) to inaugurate a function feel? Well, neither have I, until recently! For those unaware/semi-aware lot, its usually customary, especially in South India, to start a big function or an event by lighting the Kuthuvilaku. It is considered very auspicious and is said to usher in good luck and success to the event. Usually, there are five sides to this lamp and five people will be called to light it. And many a times, lots of funny things happen in these occasions, like the organisers forgetting to switch off the fan right above the lamp so that the GOH keep trying to light the lamp, to no avail!!!
I have sat in many such functions and watched from the back seats the important personalities beaming and grinning from ear to ear, murmuring with each other while doing this deed. And I used to think, 'hmm they must be talking something important.' But, let me tell you, never, ever, in my dreams did I want to be on the stage and do this deed. I swear!
But destiny decided otherwise on a very nice day. There I was, one of the invited guests (in case you think it was just fluke), sitting nicely and relaxing, just like any guest would do. I was preparing myself to sit through the hour long inaugural ceremony, trying to supress a yawn (It was four o clock ripe in the afternoon) when I heard the MC announce and invite the GOH to formally inaugurate the event by lighting the lamp. I took my hands from their comfortable resting position on my bag (one of my little idiosyncrasy, my bag :) )ready to clap to death (another thing I love, clapping!) when my friend suddenly nudged me and said "Go" in a loud whisper.
"Aree, whats the matter with this fellow? This is the most important moment and he is not even ashamed to shout 'Go'! By the way Go where?....." thought me.
And then it dawned, very slowly. Usually, I dont really pay attention to what the MCs sprout. I am content to just sit and relax but since am not deaf, what they say gets in- a little slowly. And this time, it did even more slowly - "May we invite Ms. VJ, one of our student guests to come on stage and light the lamp along with GOHs.....?" Oh, My god!! OH MY GOD But God was on stage and he seemed in no mood to relieve me of this duty. I ran, not really, to the stage and joined the GOHs to do my part. And then, and then I knew. I knew what the GOHs murmur to each other in such occasion. They decide how to light the lamp, who will light which face of the lamp and just generally give tips on getting the flame to burn nicely. Oh ya, believe me.
I had a great time, though :)
I have sat in many such functions and watched from the back seats the important personalities beaming and grinning from ear to ear, murmuring with each other while doing this deed. And I used to think, 'hmm they must be talking something important.' But, let me tell you, never, ever, in my dreams did I want to be on the stage and do this deed. I swear!
But destiny decided otherwise on a very nice day. There I was, one of the invited guests (in case you think it was just fluke), sitting nicely and relaxing, just like any guest would do. I was preparing myself to sit through the hour long inaugural ceremony, trying to supress a yawn (It was four o clock ripe in the afternoon) when I heard the MC announce and invite the GOH to formally inaugurate the event by lighting the lamp. I took my hands from their comfortable resting position on my bag (one of my little idiosyncrasy, my bag :) )ready to clap to death (another thing I love, clapping!) when my friend suddenly nudged me and said "Go" in a loud whisper.
"Aree, whats the matter with this fellow? This is the most important moment and he is not even ashamed to shout 'Go'! By the way Go where?....." thought me.
And then it dawned, very slowly. Usually, I dont really pay attention to what the MCs sprout. I am content to just sit and relax but since am not deaf, what they say gets in- a little slowly. And this time, it did even more slowly - "May we invite Ms. VJ, one of our student guests to come on stage and light the lamp along with GOHs.....?" Oh, My god!! OH MY GOD But God was on stage and he seemed in no mood to relieve me of this duty. I ran, not really, to the stage and joined the GOHs to do my part. And then, and then I knew. I knew what the GOHs murmur to each other in such occasion. They decide how to light the lamp, who will light which face of the lamp and just generally give tips on getting the flame to burn nicely. Oh ya, believe me.
I had a great time, though :)
Monday, November 1, 2004
Faith and Reason
Faith and reason, sisters and soul mates
One for the heart and the other for the mind
One Foundation of all religions and the
Other the source of all philosophical thought
They are my only companions
Day in and day out
They walk with me and guide me
They are my only friends
When everything that I ever thought was mine
Was lost and I had to start over again
They were there carrying my spirit along
My source of inspiration
My reason of being
I owe them this life and more
Thank you for being here
By Lakshmi Sarathy, closet writer extraordinaire
One for the heart and the other for the mind
One Foundation of all religions and the
Other the source of all philosophical thought
They are my only companions
Day in and day out
They walk with me and guide me
They are my only friends
When everything that I ever thought was mine
Was lost and I had to start over again
They were there carrying my spirit along
My source of inspiration
My reason of being
I owe them this life and more
Thank you for being here
By Lakshmi Sarathy, closet writer extraordinaire
The ten office commandments
1. If it rings, put it on hold.
2. If it clunks, call the repairman.
3. If it whistles, ignore it.
4. If it's a friend, stop work and chat.
5. If it's the boss, look busy.
6. If it talks, take notes.
7. If it's handwritten, type it.
8. If it's typed, copy it.
9. If it's copied, file it.
10. If it's Friday, forget it!
I agree!! :))
2. If it clunks, call the repairman.
3. If it whistles, ignore it.
4. If it's a friend, stop work and chat.
5. If it's the boss, look busy.
6. If it talks, take notes.
7. If it's handwritten, type it.
8. If it's typed, copy it.
9. If it's copied, file it.
10. If it's Friday, forget it!
I agree!! :))
Friday, October 29, 2004
Compliments
Today I got one of the best compliments ever :) Oh ya!
I had gone shopping with one of my friends for her Diwali dress (I am her chief style consultant hahaha!) and as usual I dragged her to my fav store in Chennai- Naidu Hall. While we were waiting for the bill, I saw this cute little girl who was talking a mile with her grandma, attracting a lot of attention. We moved closer to her too. Imagine my surprise when the kid turned towards me, looked me up and down, and glancing down shyly, gestured with her hand that I look 'super'! And then she went on to ask her grandma whether she looks like me? And the grandma said "oh ya you do, as pretty as akka." My day was made :)
I had gone shopping with one of my friends for her Diwali dress (I am her chief style consultant hahaha!) and as usual I dragged her to my fav store in Chennai- Naidu Hall. While we were waiting for the bill, I saw this cute little girl who was talking a mile with her grandma, attracting a lot of attention. We moved closer to her too. Imagine my surprise when the kid turned towards me, looked me up and down, and glancing down shyly, gestured with her hand that I look 'super'! And then she went on to ask her grandma whether she looks like me? And the grandma said "oh ya you do, as pretty as akka." My day was made :)
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Blogging contest
IIM B is running a blogging contest as part of Vista 2004. It will be on till Nov 5 and bloggers need to write on the topic "Innovating at the Frontier". Rs. 3000 at stake!!
Monday, October 18, 2004
No wonder I call Bangalore dumb
Will you believe me if I tell you that the Garden city does not stock dolls?
Ok, Dolls of the right kind?
Ok, Ok, Dolls that are miniature and plenty to find elsewhere in the country?
Well, you better believe it.
When Navaratri started, the first thing we kids did (ya, I still think of myself as a kid!! haha! can you believe that?) was build up ideas on construting a park. For those unelightened souls on Tamil culture, we tams keep something called a golu every navaratri- A golu is an exhibition of dolls arranged in steps- and one of most the nicest things that makes golu famous among kids (Apart from sundal- now how do I describe sundal? and dressing up in diff avatars!) is the park thing. As the word suggests, a park is a park...hmm...thats not much help is it?!
Well, we haul in some soil from the garden, put some seeds (and hope they sprout on time before the visitors start coming in), then we arrange some animals and humans all over so that the set up looks like a park! oof! Thats better!
Some people even build zoos and tripati hills and other strange things!!
Coming to the Bangalore city part... We didn't have miniature humans at home to put in the park as this is the first time the household has agreed to allow a park. As you may guess, this wouldn't do at all! A park without miniature humans? Noway! So VJ did what anyone would have done- promised everyone at home, including the adults, that she will be back in one hour with plenty of humans and some nice park things like swings, see-saws and stuff.
Off she went to the nearest fancy store and in a nice attempt at Kanada asked if they had any 'chikade people dolls'? What is the reply? A wierd look and pointing at a girl doll that is 20 times bigger than what she had in mind! Ok, maybe this shop doesn't know about golu and hence doesn't stock dolls. No probs, there are a million other places right? No! Ninth block? - wierd look, a sarcastic comment at her language! Fourth block?- a little more understanding but still a horizontal head nod!
Maybe it will be with some balloonwalas? The dolls are still 10 times bigger! Here and there she went, combing Bangaluru for some miniature plastic park stuff but poor thing, she had only a sore throat and an aching leg left at the end of the day! And the promise of one hour stretched into three before she finally accepted defeat and went back home!
Back home in dear old Chennai, we used to get this for 5o paise and 1 rupee with almost all road side shops littering near the Parthasarathy temple. And the stuff were so so 'park' But now...cha!
No wonder I call Bangalore dumb!!
Ok, Dolls of the right kind?
Ok, Ok, Dolls that are miniature and plenty to find elsewhere in the country?
Well, you better believe it.
When Navaratri started, the first thing we kids did (ya, I still think of myself as a kid!! haha! can you believe that?) was build up ideas on construting a park. For those unelightened souls on Tamil culture, we tams keep something called a golu every navaratri- A golu is an exhibition of dolls arranged in steps- and one of most the nicest things that makes golu famous among kids (Apart from sundal- now how do I describe sundal? and dressing up in diff avatars!) is the park thing. As the word suggests, a park is a park...hmm...thats not much help is it?!
Well, we haul in some soil from the garden, put some seeds (and hope they sprout on time before the visitors start coming in), then we arrange some animals and humans all over so that the set up looks like a park! oof! Thats better!
Some people even build zoos and tripati hills and other strange things!!
Coming to the Bangalore city part... We didn't have miniature humans at home to put in the park as this is the first time the household has agreed to allow a park. As you may guess, this wouldn't do at all! A park without miniature humans? Noway! So VJ did what anyone would have done- promised everyone at home, including the adults, that she will be back in one hour with plenty of humans and some nice park things like swings, see-saws and stuff.
Off she went to the nearest fancy store and in a nice attempt at Kanada asked if they had any 'chikade people dolls'? What is the reply? A wierd look and pointing at a girl doll that is 20 times bigger than what she had in mind! Ok, maybe this shop doesn't know about golu and hence doesn't stock dolls. No probs, there are a million other places right? No! Ninth block? - wierd look, a sarcastic comment at her language! Fourth block?- a little more understanding but still a horizontal head nod!
Maybe it will be with some balloonwalas? The dolls are still 10 times bigger! Here and there she went, combing Bangaluru for some miniature plastic park stuff but poor thing, she had only a sore throat and an aching leg left at the end of the day! And the promise of one hour stretched into three before she finally accepted defeat and went back home!
Back home in dear old Chennai, we used to get this for 5o paise and 1 rupee with almost all road side shops littering near the Parthasarathy temple. And the stuff were so so 'park' But now...cha!
No wonder I call Bangalore dumb!!
Thursday, October 7, 2004
Off to IIT bombay for a quick visit
Am off to IIT bombay for a quick visit!! Cant wait to go to Fashion street ;) Seeya!
Monday, October 4, 2004
Bannerghatta Road
Anyone who has ever lived in Bangalore for a decent bit of time would know that the Bannerghatta Raod is the worst road they would ever come across in their life, leave alone in Bangalore, but the entire world! When I moved into the campus some one and half years ago, this road was not so bad- it was tolerable! But as my aunt puts it, it has reached such a state now that it has become an option to facilitate difficult deliveries! (of the birth of babies kind!)
Some hope was born three months back though, when the authorities (whoever they are- some say its the highway dept, some say its the BDA, some even say the companies in the road have a signed a contract to maintain the road..) undertook some intense activity- and a new road was built almost overnight (not quiet!) over some of the baddest stretch. As you may guess, things are back to normal today- worse as usual! And when it rains, the road becomes a true Hellway!!
1It is really pathetic that none of the big organizations that have housed their offices in this big road has taken any initiative to get it repaired- there is Honeywell, IIM, Accenture, HSBC and a few others.
But I care, because I have vested interest in the well being of this much neglected poor thingie! After all, my college is ten minutes away and none of my friends volunteer to drop me home because they are simply too afraid of taking up the Bannerghatta Road Adventure!
So, things being the way they are, I was not very surprised when the citizens of the road took it upon themselves to set things right this morning. Stones were thrown, vehicles stopped, people threatened, shops were forced to close their shutters, the traffic police terrorized and Action was demanded!
Traffic was disrupted almost for the entire first half of the day- "You either build the road or forget the road, no vehicle shall pass" was the unsaid slogan along with "Govindo, Gopalo" to heave the heavy stones to the middle of the road! Some of the few enterprising exchange students of IIM were kind enought to pitch in and help the locals too :) and they did get to shoot cute pics of Indian life for return!
My piece of contribution?
You authorities better sit up and take notice soon or we shall do this every morning - "concerned citizen of the BR"
Some hope was born three months back though, when the authorities (whoever they are- some say its the highway dept, some say its the BDA, some even say the companies in the road have a signed a contract to maintain the road..) undertook some intense activity- and a new road was built almost overnight (not quiet!) over some of the baddest stretch. As you may guess, things are back to normal today- worse as usual! And when it rains, the road becomes a true Hellway!!
1It is really pathetic that none of the big organizations that have housed their offices in this big road has taken any initiative to get it repaired- there is Honeywell, IIM, Accenture, HSBC and a few others.
But I care, because I have vested interest in the well being of this much neglected poor thingie! After all, my college is ten minutes away and none of my friends volunteer to drop me home because they are simply too afraid of taking up the Bannerghatta Road Adventure!
So, things being the way they are, I was not very surprised when the citizens of the road took it upon themselves to set things right this morning. Stones were thrown, vehicles stopped, people threatened, shops were forced to close their shutters, the traffic police terrorized and Action was demanded!
Traffic was disrupted almost for the entire first half of the day- "You either build the road or forget the road, no vehicle shall pass" was the unsaid slogan along with "Govindo, Gopalo" to heave the heavy stones to the middle of the road! Some of the few enterprising exchange students of IIM were kind enought to pitch in and help the locals too :) and they did get to shoot cute pics of Indian life for return!
My piece of contribution?
You authorities better sit up and take notice soon or we shall do this every morning - "concerned citizen of the BR"
Sunday, October 3, 2004
Camels
Two camels (a mother and a baby) were lazing around, when suddenly baby camel said.
Baby: "mother, mother, can I ask you some question?"
Mother: "sure! why son, is there something bothering you?"
Baby: "why do camel have humps?"
Mother: "well son, we are desert animals, we need the humps to store water and we are known to survive without water."
Baby: "okay, then why are our legs long and our feet rounded."
"Son, obviously they are meant for walking in the desert. You know with these legs I can move around the desert better than anyone", said the mother proudly.
Baby: "okay, said baby camel. "then why are our eye lashes long? Sometimes it is bothering my sight." said baby camel.
Mother: "my son, those long thick eye lashes are your protective cover. They help to protect your eyes from the desert sand and wind." Said mother camel with eyes brimming with pride.
Baby: "I see. So the hump is to store water when we are in the desert, the legs are for walking through the desert and these eye lashes protects my eyes from the desert. Then what the hell are we doing here in a zoo???
The Moral of the Story : Skills, Knowledge, Abilities and Experience are only useful if the management gives opportunity!!
Baby: "mother, mother, can I ask you some question?"
Mother: "sure! why son, is there something bothering you?"
Baby: "why do camel have humps?"
Mother: "well son, we are desert animals, we need the humps to store water and we are known to survive without water."
Baby: "okay, then why are our legs long and our feet rounded."
"Son, obviously they are meant for walking in the desert. You know with these legs I can move around the desert better than anyone", said the mother proudly.
Baby: "okay, said baby camel. "then why are our eye lashes long? Sometimes it is bothering my sight." said baby camel.
Mother: "my son, those long thick eye lashes are your protective cover. They help to protect your eyes from the desert sand and wind." Said mother camel with eyes brimming with pride.
Baby: "I see. So the hump is to store water when we are in the desert, the legs are for walking through the desert and these eye lashes protects my eyes from the desert. Then what the hell are we doing here in a zoo???
The Moral of the Story : Skills, Knowledge, Abilities and Experience are only useful if the management gives opportunity!!
Friday, October 1, 2004
That was a long long gap
Ok, that was a long long gap!! And it was no deep slumber!! Rather an unexplainable coma!! hahaha!! Shall come back soon ... ;)
By the way, I love my new site design, dont you?
By the way, I love my new site design, dont you?
Thursday, July 22, 2004
Civilization, you have nothing going for you!
I find the entire idea of civilization, governments, rules, etc etc totally atrocious and disgusting......
Wednesday, July 7, 2004
Save Water
I could not resist posting this cute little fellow here!!
The endorsement goes "Save Water."
"Oh God Please ask Mummy to Save water ........"
The endorsement goes "Save Water."
"Oh God Please ask Mummy to Save water ........"
Thursday, July 1, 2004
Guestbook
This is for the last entry in my Guestbook by Senthil
I live, therefore I'm my body! I think, therefore I'm my mind! I feel, therefore I'm my heart! I know, therefore I'm my soul! But I still ask myself...Who am I? My quest in life...I wonder... There is one thing that I do not agree , "I know, there I'm my soul!" . If you know its knowledge, not soul. Do you mean to say if "I know" what is a computer, then I am my soul? may be poetic but not logical, "I do not know" how to take criticism, so i am not my soul :).
Well, Senthil, by knowledge I do not mean the wordly/material knowledge that you are talking about. I mean self enlightenment, I mean Karmic knowledge, I mean knowledge that I am not my body, mind or heart, I mean the knowledge that I am my soul......Like that...Get my drift?
Enough funda for now, uh? LoL
I live, therefore I'm my body! I think, therefore I'm my mind! I feel, therefore I'm my heart! I know, therefore I'm my soul! But I still ask myself...Who am I? My quest in life...I wonder... There is one thing that I do not agree , "I know, there I'm my soul!" . If you know its knowledge, not soul. Do you mean to say if "I know" what is a computer, then I am my soul? may be poetic but not logical, "I do not know" how to take criticism, so i am not my soul :).
Well, Senthil, by knowledge I do not mean the wordly/material knowledge that you are talking about. I mean self enlightenment, I mean Karmic knowledge, I mean knowledge that I am not my body, mind or heart, I mean the knowledge that I am my soul......Like that...Get my drift?
Enough funda for now, uh? LoL
Tuesday, June 22, 2004
Unsuspected Moments in Life
It was one of the most ordinary moment in my life. In fact I wouldn't even have remembered it, ever, if not for the call that I made. I was busy at the computer, my fingers racing with each other over the alphabets. There was hot and sweet coffee standing beside the monitor, tempting me to taste one of the simplest pleasures of life. And my mobile phone kept buzzing with a sudden influx of messages from friends, who all happened to remember me at the same instance. And there I was, thinking Life cant get any better and preparing to write an amusing anecdote about reading newspapers......
Sometimes, everything before your eyes appear perfect. There is a bright shining sun in the sky, a kissing cool breeze, a soothing green expanse of Earth......all of them portraying a richness of life that you cannot but feel happy about. But something, somewhere is just not right...in the farthest and deepest corner of your cerebrum, a niggling thought makes its presence known. And that's when you realise, there are other people out there whose world may not be as perfect as yours. The moment of decision is on you...Are you going to find out what this thought is about and thus spoil the perfect moment or...? You lift the phone and dial the number reluctantly...
Life is not normal everyday stuff at the other end. The extreme sorrow and pain that only Death is capable of leaving behind is evident from the sounds. I'm not talking about the sobbing, neither am I referring to the noise usually associated with a death ceremony. Rather, it was the sound of quietness. A sound that comes when people realise nothing can be done. The fact has been accepted...Life has to go on...
"What happened? She died...It was an accident...How cruel? Can't God have been more kind?...Yes, she could have been more careful...Who is going to take care of the sweet kids that she has helped bring into this world?...Oh, My God, Can life get any more worse?..."
Typical reactions when Death creeps in a family (or bangs them on the head, as in this case) don't you agree? But why? No, am not questioning the Death as such, I have come to aceept that but the reactions after that? Why? How long will this pain last, stay alive? Life does proceed, and at an amazingly fast rate at that.
I have been a witness to Death once before in my life, at very close quarters. At that time, I did feel the pain, the helplessness of the people left behind...the seemingly totally hopeless situation that descended on the family. But today, I see the very same people going about their life as normally as anyone else does. I see them happy, I see them having fun and I think...So it didn't make any difference after all did it? Do not mistake me, am not saying all those reactions earlier were a sham...Yes, maybe the pain still lingers in their heart...But Life did return to normal didn't it?
So what do u actully miss when some one dies? I think its more of a case of the security that you associated with that person, the reassurance that all is well in your life, the collateral to share your pain, the immunity or shield against the bad things in life and finally the freedom that let you escape from realising the fickleness of Life.
Here is a poem on Death that I found on the Internet...I do not know the author but it did seem like a nice poem...
Sometimes, everything before your eyes appear perfect. There is a bright shining sun in the sky, a kissing cool breeze, a soothing green expanse of Earth......all of them portraying a richness of life that you cannot but feel happy about. But something, somewhere is just not right...in the farthest and deepest corner of your cerebrum, a niggling thought makes its presence known. And that's when you realise, there are other people out there whose world may not be as perfect as yours. The moment of decision is on you...Are you going to find out what this thought is about and thus spoil the perfect moment or...? You lift the phone and dial the number reluctantly...
Life is not normal everyday stuff at the other end. The extreme sorrow and pain that only Death is capable of leaving behind is evident from the sounds. I'm not talking about the sobbing, neither am I referring to the noise usually associated with a death ceremony. Rather, it was the sound of quietness. A sound that comes when people realise nothing can be done. The fact has been accepted...Life has to go on...
"What happened? She died...It was an accident...How cruel? Can't God have been more kind?...Yes, she could have been more careful...Who is going to take care of the sweet kids that she has helped bring into this world?...Oh, My God, Can life get any more worse?..."
Typical reactions when Death creeps in a family (or bangs them on the head, as in this case) don't you agree? But why? No, am not questioning the Death as such, I have come to aceept that but the reactions after that? Why? How long will this pain last, stay alive? Life does proceed, and at an amazingly fast rate at that.
I have been a witness to Death once before in my life, at very close quarters. At that time, I did feel the pain, the helplessness of the people left behind...the seemingly totally hopeless situation that descended on the family. But today, I see the very same people going about their life as normally as anyone else does. I see them happy, I see them having fun and I think...So it didn't make any difference after all did it? Do not mistake me, am not saying all those reactions earlier were a sham...Yes, maybe the pain still lingers in their heart...But Life did return to normal didn't it?
So what do u actully miss when some one dies? I think its more of a case of the security that you associated with that person, the reassurance that all is well in your life, the collateral to share your pain, the immunity or shield against the bad things in life and finally the freedom that let you escape from realising the fickleness of Life.
Here is a poem on Death that I found on the Internet...I do not know the author but it did seem like a nice poem...
Friday, June 18, 2004
Why do people read newspapers?
Have you ever wondered why you should read newspaper? I have got .... (will continue later!)
Tuesday, June 15, 2004
Keeping my fingers crossed!
What is the only haven for a person who doesn't have a computer/laptop to store all her files? Files starting from the unimportant (?!) forward images to very important (?!) project files? The only thing that could be done is store those files online..and hence I opened a few accounts with diff email services and even went so far as to maintain multiple copies of all my files just in case some server crashes!!
But with the birth of gmail (and thanks to my blogging habit!), I got a brand new gmail account with 1000 MB data space....I uploaded all my files immediately but hear this............Gmail is not opening in the Last few hours!! Am going mad..all my proj files are in there and if the server has crashed (as one stupid friend of mine suggested!) God save me!!
Another news is that Yahoo has upgraded its service and is now offering 100 MB free space!! Wow..when the cats are fighting, the mice can have a play..hehehehe!!!
But with the birth of gmail (and thanks to my blogging habit!), I got a brand new gmail account with 1000 MB data space....I uploaded all my files immediately but hear this............Gmail is not opening in the Last few hours!! Am going mad..all my proj files are in there and if the server has crashed (as one stupid friend of mine suggested!) God save me!!
Another news is that Yahoo has upgraded its service and is now offering 100 MB free space!! Wow..when the cats are fighting, the mice can have a play..hehehehe!!!
Saturday, June 12, 2004
After a long time
After a long time, I have opened my blog entry to write something on my own. The reasons for staying away were many- am doing my summers, the company is keeping me busy..so on and so forth! But the past few days, I took a break from all of them and decided to do what I love doing the best- plant some saplings!
The joy that is born out of realising that you have facilitated the growth of a new life on this Earth is truly addictive. Just like how a mother would feel after she gives birth to her child, or how a potter would feel after he finishes moulding a pot, or maybe how a child would feel happy seeing the pride on his parents' face after he does something great... All these may seem very very inconsequential if you look at it from a bigger perpective but when you watch those trees grow and in turn give birth to many more, you feel a real sense of achievement.
But today, more than my mere involvement were called into action..but sadly I was helpless. One of the trees near my house had grown really tall and was producing seeds like crazy which fell all over our driveway and created a mess daily... the decision in the household was easy to make...cut the buggin tree!! And I had to watch it being axed down, an inch at a time....Each blow to the tree's trunk made me question my morals and ethics and reasoning.....!!
Why do ppl want just those trees and plants that bears beautiful flowers or give you tasty fruits? Why do ppl want just low maintainance plants in their life?
Aren't trees living things too? Shouldn't their life be respected too?
If they have life, are we right in eating them? What does Hindu Dharma and other religions preach? That you shall not cause harm to other living things right? Then how do we survive?!!!
I stood answerless long after the tree was cut and the wood was sawed completely........and realised these questions were not just about trees and plants but life in its entirety.....Are we right in doing the things that we do???????
The joy that is born out of realising that you have facilitated the growth of a new life on this Earth is truly addictive. Just like how a mother would feel after she gives birth to her child, or how a potter would feel after he finishes moulding a pot, or maybe how a child would feel happy seeing the pride on his parents' face after he does something great... All these may seem very very inconsequential if you look at it from a bigger perpective but when you watch those trees grow and in turn give birth to many more, you feel a real sense of achievement.
But today, more than my mere involvement were called into action..but sadly I was helpless. One of the trees near my house had grown really tall and was producing seeds like crazy which fell all over our driveway and created a mess daily... the decision in the household was easy to make...cut the buggin tree!! And I had to watch it being axed down, an inch at a time....Each blow to the tree's trunk made me question my morals and ethics and reasoning.....!!
Why do ppl want just those trees and plants that bears beautiful flowers or give you tasty fruits? Why do ppl want just low maintainance plants in their life?
Aren't trees living things too? Shouldn't their life be respected too?
If they have life, are we right in eating them? What does Hindu Dharma and other religions preach? That you shall not cause harm to other living things right? Then how do we survive?!!!
I stood answerless long after the tree was cut and the wood was sawed completely........and realised these questions were not just about trees and plants but life in its entirety.....Are we right in doing the things that we do???????
Friday, June 11, 2004
Be a light unto yourself
When Buddha was on his death bed he noticed his young disciple Anan was weeping.
‘Why are you weeping, Anan?’ he asked.
‘Because the light of the world is about to be extinguished and we will be in darkness.’
The Buddha summoned up all his remaining energy and spoke what were to be his final words on earth:
‘Anan, Anan, be a light unto yourself.’”
‘Why are you weeping, Anan?’ he asked.
‘Because the light of the world is about to be extinguished and we will be in darkness.’
The Buddha summoned up all his remaining energy and spoke what were to be his final words on earth:
‘Anan, Anan, be a light unto yourself.’”
Thursday, June 3, 2004
A Zen Poem
A man traveling across a field encountered a tiger. He fled, the tiger after him. Coming to a precipice, he caught hold of the root of a wild vine and swung himself over the edge.
The tiger sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the man looked down to where, far below, another tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the vine sustained him.
Two mice, one white and one black, little by little started to gnaw away the vine. The man then saw a luscious strawberry near him. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the strawberry with the other.
How sweet it tasted.
Zen Poem
The tiger sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the man looked down to where, far below, another tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the vine sustained him.
Two mice, one white and one black, little by little started to gnaw away the vine. The man then saw a luscious strawberry near him. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the strawberry with the other.
How sweet it tasted.
Zen Poem
Wednesday, May 26, 2004
Born in India
"Mrs. (Sonia) Gandhi, an Italian-born woman raised a Roman Catholic, is making way for a Sikh prime minister, Manmohan Singh, who will be sworn in by a Muslim president, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam" - in a nation which is predominantly Hindu." as appeared in one of the New York Times article! Makes one feel really good about being born in India.
Monday, May 24, 2004
How would a HR guy write a love letter
I know my blog is full of HR stuff but I just couldn't resist posting this one....though I maybe being very disloyal to my own profession!!
How would a HR guy write a love letter!
Dearest Ms Juliet,
I am very happy to inform you that I have fallen in Love with you since the 14th of October (Saturday). With reference to the meeting held between us on the13th of Oct. at 1500 hrs, I would like to present myself as a prospective lover.
Our love affair would be on probation for a period of three months and depending on compatibility, would be made permanent. Of course, upon completion of probation, there will be continuous on the job training and performance appraisal schemes leading up to promotion from lover to spouse.
The expenses incurred for coffee and entertainment would initially be shared equally between us. Later, x-udd on your performance, I might take up a larger share of the expenses. However I am broadminded enough to be taken care of, on your expense account.
I request you to kindly respond within 30 days of receiving this letter, failing which, this offer would be canceled without further notice and I shall be considering someone else.
I would be happy, if you could forward this letter to your sister, if you do not wish to take up this offer.
Wish you all the best!
Thanking you in anticipation,
Yours sincerely,
Romeo
HR Manager.
How would a HR guy write a love letter!
Dearest Ms Juliet,
I am very happy to inform you that I have fallen in Love with you since the 14th of October (Saturday). With reference to the meeting held between us on the13th of Oct. at 1500 hrs, I would like to present myself as a prospective lover.
Our love affair would be on probation for a period of three months and depending on compatibility, would be made permanent. Of course, upon completion of probation, there will be continuous on the job training and performance appraisal schemes leading up to promotion from lover to spouse.
The expenses incurred for coffee and entertainment would initially be shared equally between us. Later, x-udd on your performance, I might take up a larger share of the expenses. However I am broadminded enough to be taken care of, on your expense account.
I request you to kindly respond within 30 days of receiving this letter, failing which, this offer would be canceled without further notice and I shall be considering someone else.
I would be happy, if you could forward this letter to your sister, if you do not wish to take up this offer.
Wish you all the best!
Thanking you in anticipation,
Yours sincerely,
Romeo
HR Manager.
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
Thank you destiny!
A girl i met in my class,
who walked home with me everyday,
who always had a special smile for me,
with whom i didnt have to talk to b understood
She understood all of me,
it was never abt being friends,
more abt being soul mates,
to finish each other's sentences and thoughts,
have the same dreams and ambitions
We were different and our destinies too
but together it felt like we were two halves,
always attracted to b together
Thank you destiny!
Am honoured!
who walked home with me everyday,
who always had a special smile for me,
with whom i didnt have to talk to b understood
She understood all of me,
it was never abt being friends,
more abt being soul mates,
to finish each other's sentences and thoughts,
have the same dreams and ambitions
We were different and our destinies too
but together it felt like we were two halves,
always attracted to b together
Thank you destiny!
Am honoured!
Tuesday, May 11, 2004
Going home!
When my company guide agreed to give me a day off to go home over the weekend, my joy knew no bounds! Its been quite a while since I went home to my nest and this weekend was supposed to be the kind that would rejuvenate and show me a whole new meaning of life. And in spite of not getting a confirmed ticket back to Bang, I took a big risk and boarded the Brindavan on Friday afternoon. What can I say? Two days of sun, sand and summer fun with family and friends were enough food for my soul to last a little lifetime :)
But what I hadn't anticipated was the TN elections to be scheduled on Monday (It happens when you just pretend to read the ET over coffee!) The moment I stepped out of the Central station, there were red and black flags all over. In fact I even saw quite a few kids carrying some (like they pin it on Independence day!) on the road! The autos were as usual blaring some music with lots of 'katchi' (party) members falling out of it.....the realisation dawned then...I was witnessing the last day of campaigning in Chennai and that Mrs. Congress leader had come to the city for a last minute inspiration to the public! To say that the favor was leaning towards the DMK-Congress alliance would be an understatement! Everyone I asked were very vehement about their choice of vote!
When everyone is excited around you, how can you keep your own adrenalin down? Especially when this happens to be your first ever chance to vote? That too, when you can influence the next government at the center!! Naturally, as soon as I reached home, the first thing I did was searh for my voter's ID card (I was very prompt in getting one as soon as I turned 18 though it did come to me only after I turned 20!!) I was waiting for Monday to come and that first mark on my index finger. What I hadnt foreseen was my name missing from the list! After all, I have a valid voter's id and I know for sure it was entered in the voters list last time they came around asking.
You see, my parents had shifted houses in the last year and well, logically our voting constituency should also change along with the change in Ration card right? Or atleast it should remain in the list of the last constituency right?! There I was, fresh at seven in the morning, having slept over at a friend's place, ready in front of the gate of my voting booth in my previous constituency (my parents had warned me our names were not there in the new place's list so I concluded it must still be in the old one) to make a difference and exercise my civil right for the first time. What do I find? Oh what do I find? My name is there alright but its stuck out!
"What does that mean?" I ask the PO and get a promt reply..
"Probably, the person had expired!"
"Excuse me?! Thats me and last time I checked I am very much alive!"
"Oh, well then you must have shifted right?"
"Yes, but my name is not there in that list?!!! but very much here though stuck so can I proceed to vote?"
"Sorry you can't"
"Do you mean to say that though I have a valid voter's id, my stuck name on the list and no duplicate appearing elsewhere in another list, I still cant press the EVM?"
"Thats right madam, but dont worry, there will be a state assembly election very soon..you can vote then..........."
"what the ****! who wants to vote then! I may not even be alive and it may again be stuck out....#*#$*#$*#*%~#$%@%"
You can guess my state of mind afterwards! All my adrenalin wasted :((
But what I hadn't anticipated was the TN elections to be scheduled on Monday (It happens when you just pretend to read the ET over coffee!) The moment I stepped out of the Central station, there were red and black flags all over. In fact I even saw quite a few kids carrying some (like they pin it on Independence day!) on the road! The autos were as usual blaring some music with lots of 'katchi' (party) members falling out of it.....the realisation dawned then...I was witnessing the last day of campaigning in Chennai and that Mrs. Congress leader had come to the city for a last minute inspiration to the public! To say that the favor was leaning towards the DMK-Congress alliance would be an understatement! Everyone I asked were very vehement about their choice of vote!
When everyone is excited around you, how can you keep your own adrenalin down? Especially when this happens to be your first ever chance to vote? That too, when you can influence the next government at the center!! Naturally, as soon as I reached home, the first thing I did was searh for my voter's ID card (I was very prompt in getting one as soon as I turned 18 though it did come to me only after I turned 20!!) I was waiting for Monday to come and that first mark on my index finger. What I hadnt foreseen was my name missing from the list! After all, I have a valid voter's id and I know for sure it was entered in the voters list last time they came around asking.
You see, my parents had shifted houses in the last year and well, logically our voting constituency should also change along with the change in Ration card right? Or atleast it should remain in the list of the last constituency right?! There I was, fresh at seven in the morning, having slept over at a friend's place, ready in front of the gate of my voting booth in my previous constituency (my parents had warned me our names were not there in the new place's list so I concluded it must still be in the old one) to make a difference and exercise my civil right for the first time. What do I find? Oh what do I find? My name is there alright but its stuck out!
"What does that mean?" I ask the PO and get a promt reply..
"Probably, the person had expired!"
"Excuse me?! Thats me and last time I checked I am very much alive!"
"Oh, well then you must have shifted right?"
"Yes, but my name is not there in that list?!!! but very much here though stuck so can I proceed to vote?"
"Sorry you can't"
"Do you mean to say that though I have a valid voter's id, my stuck name on the list and no duplicate appearing elsewhere in another list, I still cant press the EVM?"
"Thats right madam, but dont worry, there will be a state assembly election very soon..you can vote then..........."
"what the ****! who wants to vote then! I may not even be alive and it may again be stuck out....#*#$*#$*#*%~#$%@%"
You can guess my state of mind afterwards! All my adrenalin wasted :((
Thursday, May 6, 2004
Bubble of life
I thought about it...long and hard! Yes, I did! It was a very tough decision, especially when it seems like everything else is shouting "I am more important, you better pay attention to me..." And when you are caught up in the bubble of life, things seem to be happening outside....like a woman caught inside a huge bubble, am watching it happening out there...I know it should affect me, after all, its my life right? But this vacuum......? "Life is passing me by, am not bothered though"
Like a rishi immersed in tapas for a hundred years, I have grown defences around me...not ant hills but something more liquid that's tempting me to move out......Is it worth it?
Like a rishi immersed in tapas for a hundred years, I have grown defences around me...not ant hills but something more liquid that's tempting me to move out......Is it worth it?
Saturday, April 10, 2004
Casual on Fridays
WHAT DO YOU WEAR AS CASUAL ON FRIDAYS??? This one is hilarious!
Week 1 – Memo No. 1
Effective this week, the Company is adopting Fridays as Casual Day. Employees are free to dress in the Casual attire of their choice
Week 3 – Memo No. 2
Spandex or leather micro – miniskirts are not appropriate attire for Casual Day. Neither are string ties, ornate belt buckles or moccasins.
Week 6 – Memo No. 3
Casual Day refers to dress only, not attitude. When planning Friday’s wardrobe, remember image is a key to our success.
Week 8 – Memo No. 4
A seminar on how to dress for Casual Day will be held at 4 p.m. Friday in the cafeteria. A fashion show will follow. Attendance is mandatory.
Week 9 – Memo No. 5
As an outgrowth of Friday’s seminar, a 14-member Casual Day Task Force has been appointed to prepare guidelines for proper Casual Day dress
Week 14 - Memo No. 6
The Casual Day Task Force has now completed a 30 – page manual entitled “Relaxing Dress Without Relaxing Company Standards”. A copy has been distributed to every employee. Please review the chapter “You Are What You Wear” and consult the “home casual” versus “business Casual” checklist before leaving for work each Friday. If you have doubts about the appropriateness of an item of clothing, contact your CDTF representative before 7 a.m. on Friday.
Week 18 – Memo No. 7
Our Employee Assistant Plan (EAP) has now been expanded to provide support for psychological counseling for employees who may be having difficulty adjusting to Casual Day.
Week 20 – Memo No. 8
Due to budget cuts in the HR Department, we are no longer able to effectively support or manage Casual Day. Casual Day will be discontinued, effective immediately.
Week 1 – Memo No. 1
Effective this week, the Company is adopting Fridays as Casual Day. Employees are free to dress in the Casual attire of their choice
Week 3 – Memo No. 2
Spandex or leather micro – miniskirts are not appropriate attire for Casual Day. Neither are string ties, ornate belt buckles or moccasins.
Week 6 – Memo No. 3
Casual Day refers to dress only, not attitude. When planning Friday’s wardrobe, remember image is a key to our success.
Week 8 – Memo No. 4
A seminar on how to dress for Casual Day will be held at 4 p.m. Friday in the cafeteria. A fashion show will follow. Attendance is mandatory.
Week 9 – Memo No. 5
As an outgrowth of Friday’s seminar, a 14-member Casual Day Task Force has been appointed to prepare guidelines for proper Casual Day dress
Week 14 - Memo No. 6
The Casual Day Task Force has now completed a 30 – page manual entitled “Relaxing Dress Without Relaxing Company Standards”. A copy has been distributed to every employee. Please review the chapter “You Are What You Wear” and consult the “home casual” versus “business Casual” checklist before leaving for work each Friday. If you have doubts about the appropriateness of an item of clothing, contact your CDTF representative before 7 a.m. on Friday.
Week 18 – Memo No. 7
Our Employee Assistant Plan (EAP) has now been expanded to provide support for psychological counseling for employees who may be having difficulty adjusting to Casual Day.
Week 20 – Memo No. 8
Due to budget cuts in the HR Department, we are no longer able to effectively support or manage Casual Day. Casual Day will be discontinued, effective immediately.
Friday, April 2, 2004
Great summer project
After a long drawn process of waiting for the best offer, refusing to compromise, and an almost 'break-down', I am finally back in form and even have a great summer project on hand to boot! Those of you who have read the earlier posts on my dilemma about going for stipend or the company name, here's some news- I managed to get them both!! Hooray! For the next four months, I will be officially working for the Big Blue in their ITPL campus! Is life going to be fun or what? And to quote my friend's words "...find urself a guy to settle down with at bb...life will bcome perfect!! :).... "
Oh! Ya! ;)
Oh! Ya! ;)
I have this crazy habit
I have this crazy habit! Every once in a while I have an intense urge to rearrange things and if for some reason I am not able to do that, I just cant bear to look at those things ever again! One such urge was to decorate and redecorate my room back in Chennai! I used to source all 'kinds' of posters and would delight in changing the entire look of the room by just adding or taking away a few pics. But sadly, after shifting here, my hands are tied! Nothing to call my very own and tamper with......so today morning when I got up and felt the urge, I knew what to do- Rearrange my blog! Ya....notice those links? They have been shifted right! Actually, I wanted to do a drastic redesign but do not have much patience now! So this has to suffice! One need satisfied!
Friday, March 26, 2004
Spring is in the Air
All those who are in Bangalore, did you look up into the sky recently? If not, its time you did! For all those towering trees that looked the same the last few months, have burst into a melange of beautiful colors. Especially, in the roads near Jayanagar and Lalbagh. Whereever you look, you would be sure to spot those violet beauties! And there's something about such a 'fertile blooming' (for want of a better description!!) that makes you stop and think "Life is beautiful after all!" For a person who had a commited "beach is my life!" attitude, Bangalore sure has changed me!
Wednesday, March 24, 2004
Wheel of Fortune
Here is something that came up in my Tarot reading.... I find this absolutely true- just stuck a chord in me today. Reflect on it!
Wheel of Fortune
The central theme of what is traditionally called the Wheel of Fortune is cyclical change. The Wheel keeps on rolling, churning events in a ceaseless progression of ups and downs, either way freeing us from the past. No one can escape its cyclical action, which can feel somewhat terrifying -- no matter whether we are rising or falling. When one is balanced on top there is a moment of crystal clarity, but the only part of the Wheel not going up and down is the hub, which is your eternal Self, the Source of Freedom.
Every one of us will occupy all the points on the wheel at one point or another. The cycle of the wheel is its lesson -- and we can learn to take comfort in it (as we do when we celebrate our birthday). If you don't like the look of things right now, just wait -- things will change. Of course, if you do like the look of things right now, enjoy it while it lasts, because that will change too!
Courtesy:Tarot.com
The central theme of what is traditionally called the Wheel of Fortune is cyclical change. The Wheel keeps on rolling, churning events in a ceaseless progression of ups and downs, either way freeing us from the past. No one can escape its cyclical action, which can feel somewhat terrifying -- no matter whether we are rising or falling. When one is balanced on top there is a moment of crystal clarity, but the only part of the Wheel not going up and down is the hub, which is your eternal Self, the Source of Freedom.
Every one of us will occupy all the points on the wheel at one point or another. The cycle of the wheel is its lesson -- and we can learn to take comfort in it (as we do when we celebrate our birthday). If you don't like the look of things right now, just wait -- things will change. Of course, if you do like the look of things right now, enjoy it while it lasts, because that will change too!
Courtesy:Tarot.com
Saturday, March 20, 2004
Yepee...it's over!
Ok, Alright.......Thats over and done with! Am talking about the first academic year! Yepee....All my exams are over and now I can relax for a while!! But sadly, I will not be going home to dear Chennai for my one week holiday because I still haven't got a confirmed summer project :( Well..its entirely a mistake of my mine, I accept! Know the saying that goes something like "Dont put your eggs in one basket"? Look where it had got me..........
Thursday, March 11, 2004
My first year of management studies is coming to an END!
Oof...That was two days of intense competition, nice food, some learning and great networking! Yep, attending management fests has become an habit with me and man, oh! man, are they fun or what? And my chief aim is that before I finish my MBA, I should have seen all the major places in India (My college is generous enough to spend everything for us!) and maybe some outside Bharath too? (I can hope, right?!)
The whole fiasco started off innocently enough- I was never the "I attend all inter-collegiate/school fests" during my undergraduation or school but after taking up my PG, I has this crazy idea to write a paper atleast once in my life- u know, try to put all those so called original ideas on paper?! and Bingo, the very first month, XIMB came out with a paper contest on HR- my fav subject to give gyan on! I did not have it in me to let the opportunity pass but what do I know about HR except the fact that it is supposed to be my favorite subject? But what is the Internet for? So there we went (I pulled in a partner!) trying to write and rewrite essays, and had a really difficult time coming up with a model on our own!!
But alls well ends well! And surprises of surprises, our paper got selected and we were asked to come all the way to Bhubaneshwar- an all expense paid trip! Hooray!! And after that, it was trip after trip for me- Indore, Coimbatore, Hosur and a dozen colleges in Bangalore(ok, thats a bit of an exaggeration in the last part!) and it was really an heaven sent favor for a person who had never stepped out of her hometown! But sadly, I could not go to the place I most wanted to- IIM Lucknow- we had an exam! :(
So, my agenda for the next academic year is very well planned out- Another trip to Indore (Thats the All India Management fest), Lucknow, Calcutta, Bombay (which college in Bombay? Hmm?), Delhi and ofcourse Jamshedpur!!
The whole fiasco started off innocently enough- I was never the "I attend all inter-collegiate/school fests" during my undergraduation or school but after taking up my PG, I has this crazy idea to write a paper atleast once in my life- u know, try to put all those so called original ideas on paper?! and Bingo, the very first month, XIMB came out with a paper contest on HR- my fav subject to give gyan on! I did not have it in me to let the opportunity pass but what do I know about HR except the fact that it is supposed to be my favorite subject? But what is the Internet for? So there we went (I pulled in a partner!) trying to write and rewrite essays, and had a really difficult time coming up with a model on our own!!
But alls well ends well! And surprises of surprises, our paper got selected and we were asked to come all the way to Bhubaneshwar- an all expense paid trip! Hooray!! And after that, it was trip after trip for me- Indore, Coimbatore, Hosur and a dozen colleges in Bangalore(ok, thats a bit of an exaggeration in the last part!) and it was really an heaven sent favor for a person who had never stepped out of her hometown! But sadly, I could not go to the place I most wanted to- IIM Lucknow- we had an exam! :(
So, my agenda for the next academic year is very well planned out- Another trip to Indore (Thats the All India Management fest), Lucknow, Calcutta, Bombay (which college in Bombay? Hmm?), Delhi and ofcourse Jamshedpur!!
Wednesday, March 3, 2004
Funny!
Heres something funny I got in a forwarded mail! It attempts to liken mythology characters to present day terms! Enjoy!
Brahma Systems Installation
Vishnu Systems Support
Lakshmi Finance and Accounts consultant
Shiva DBA (Crash Specialist)
Ganesh Documentation Specialist
Narada Data transfer
Brihaspathi Chief Information Officer
Yama Reorganization Consultant
Chitragupta Personal Records
Apsaras Downloadable Viruses
Devas Y2K Programmers
Surya Solaris Administrator
Rakshasas In house Hackers
Ram Hardware Support - Single user specialist
Ravan Internet Explorer - WWW
Kumbhakarnan Zombie Process
Lakshman Support Software and Backup
Hanuman RS6000
Baali Windows 98
Sugreeva Win 95
Angadh Win 3.1
Jambhavan DOS
Jatayu Firewall
Vishwamitra Sr. Manager Projects
Valmiki Technical Writer (Ramayana Sign off document)
Krishna SDLC ( Sudarshan Development Life Cycle )
Hastinapur Silicon Valley
Dharmaraj Yudhishthira ISO Consultant (SEI Top CMM level )
Arjun Lead Programmer (all companies are vying for him)
Abhimanyu Trainee Programmer
Draupadi Web Server - Free Access (Five Users)
Bhima MAIN FRAME
Nakul System Architect
Sahadev Gartener Reporter
Duryodhan Microsoft Product Written in VB
Dhrutarashtra MS Visual C++
Gandhari Dreamweaver
Sanjay OLTP (online transaction process)
Shakuni Bill Gates
Karna Contract programmer
Shikandi Steve Jobbs
100 Kauravas Microsoft Service Packs and patches
Brahma Systems Installation
Vishnu Systems Support
Lakshmi Finance and Accounts consultant
Shiva DBA (Crash Specialist)
Ganesh Documentation Specialist
Narada Data transfer
Brihaspathi Chief Information Officer
Yama Reorganization Consultant
Chitragupta Personal Records
Apsaras Downloadable Viruses
Devas Y2K Programmers
Surya Solaris Administrator
Rakshasas In house Hackers
Ram Hardware Support - Single user specialist
Ravan Internet Explorer - WWW
Kumbhakarnan Zombie Process
Lakshman Support Software and Backup
Hanuman RS6000
Baali Windows 98
Sugreeva Win 95
Angadh Win 3.1
Jambhavan DOS
Jatayu Firewall
Vishwamitra Sr. Manager Projects
Valmiki Technical Writer (Ramayana Sign off document)
Krishna SDLC ( Sudarshan Development Life Cycle )
Hastinapur Silicon Valley
Dharmaraj Yudhishthira ISO Consultant (SEI Top CMM level )
Arjun Lead Programmer (all companies are vying for him)
Abhimanyu Trainee Programmer
Draupadi Web Server - Free Access (Five Users)
Bhima MAIN FRAME
Nakul System Architect
Sahadev Gartener Reporter
Duryodhan Microsoft Product Written in VB
Dhrutarashtra MS Visual C++
Gandhari Dreamweaver
Sanjay OLTP (online transaction process)
Shakuni Bill Gates
Karna Contract programmer
Shikandi Steve Jobbs
100 Kauravas Microsoft Service Packs and patches
Tuesday, March 2, 2004
The Beer Game
We have a paper called "Supply Chain Management" this term which is pretty much a repeat of last term's "Operations Management"! Or so we thought! So, I for one, never used to pay much attention in SCM classes, save for the time when the prof comes up with questions for us to answer! Then my supreme need to assert myself as an OM expert (I was the topper last term! and it was my favorite subject too!) would come to the fore and my mouth will go blabbering! And if by fluke, some part of my sentence matched the answer, the Prof was always kind enough to never call attention to the other words! But today,I totally, badly got stumped!
Bright and raring to go this morning, I sat down before the computer and decided to give the Beer game a shot and test my real life SCM knowledge! And Lo and Behold, how the mighty fall!
Well, for the unaware few, beer game is a simulation designed by the MIT Sloan School of Management, to portray a real life imitation of the chaos that often reins in a badly managed supply chain. You would be required to take on the role of either the supplier, retailer, manufacturer or the distributor. And just like in real life, you get to decide the number of goods you want to produce or pass on to satisfy the customer orders! And there are ofcourse unfulfilled orders and stockout costs! The bullwhip effect would naturally come into effect too!(Dont have much patience to explain what the hell is a bullwhip effect! Sorry!)
I tried my hand at this online version of the game, one Near Beer Game by Forio, a company that produces simulation software. The aim of the game is to get your chain balanced at the shortest time possible in 50 weeks, given that customer order fluctuates at first and remains constant thereafter. My first attempt ended at 17 weeks, a pretty bad time frame! The next was not much better at 10 weeks (Not when my friend got it to balance at 4 weeks after just two trials!) and my last was 5 weeks before my intersest waned out! I kept at it one more time though and finally got it to balance at 4! Bad record for someone who hopes to top SCM this term!
Bright and raring to go this morning, I sat down before the computer and decided to give the Beer game a shot and test my real life SCM knowledge! And Lo and Behold, how the mighty fall!
Well, for the unaware few, beer game is a simulation designed by the MIT Sloan School of Management, to portray a real life imitation of the chaos that often reins in a badly managed supply chain. You would be required to take on the role of either the supplier, retailer, manufacturer or the distributor. And just like in real life, you get to decide the number of goods you want to produce or pass on to satisfy the customer orders! And there are ofcourse unfulfilled orders and stockout costs! The bullwhip effect would naturally come into effect too!(Dont have much patience to explain what the hell is a bullwhip effect! Sorry!)
I tried my hand at this online version of the game, one Near Beer Game by Forio, a company that produces simulation software. The aim of the game is to get your chain balanced at the shortest time possible in 50 weeks, given that customer order fluctuates at first and remains constant thereafter. My first attempt ended at 17 weeks, a pretty bad time frame! The next was not much better at 10 weeks (Not when my friend got it to balance at 4 weeks after just two trials!) and my last was 5 weeks before my intersest waned out! I kept at it one more time though and finally got it to balance at 4! Bad record for someone who hopes to top SCM this term!
Wednesday, February 25, 2004
Caught up in Life
This must have been the longest break I took in my Blogging history- Both updating my blog as well as reading others! It completely slipped my mind until Kris asked whats happening with me! And then I remembered!! Oh, ya...I have a blog and once upon a time, I used to be quite addicted to updating it daily! ;)
Looking back at the past few weeks, I wonder what was really happening? I mean, blogging was the one activity that kept my foot firmly anchored to the ground. And writing had always helped me keep my perspective, so you can guess what state I must have been floating in when I was not blogging. That could be another reason why I chose to blog in the first place- Whats recorded in words gets recorded in my mind too and when its not, then a sort of selective amnesia happens!
Today, I suddenly, mentally, woke up (apart from the tortorous physical waking up!) and looked around! and realised that I had lots of work pending! My summers, my project, my business, my personal agenda, my blog redesign!! oooooofff......so much!
Looking back at the past few weeks, I wonder what was really happening? I mean, blogging was the one activity that kept my foot firmly anchored to the ground. And writing had always helped me keep my perspective, so you can guess what state I must have been floating in when I was not blogging. That could be another reason why I chose to blog in the first place- Whats recorded in words gets recorded in my mind too and when its not, then a sort of selective amnesia happens!
Today, I suddenly, mentally, woke up (apart from the tortorous physical waking up!) and looked around! and realised that I had lots of work pending! My summers, my project, my business, my personal agenda, my blog redesign!! oooooofff......so much!
Wednesday, February 11, 2004
Monday, February 2, 2004
Love gives us a fairy tale
"Once in awhile, Right in the middle of an ordinary life, Love gives us a fairy tale..."
Friday, January 30, 2004
I had been missing a LOT of things!
This morning, while I was floating in an ether world of exams and summers, content to sadistiscally drown myself in the misery of missing my friends at home, cribbing about the dull life in Bangalore and wishing life could bring some happiness, I was suddenly and forcibly brought down to Earth. The first catalyst was "Business Law", the most toughest paper to crack this term, what with trying to remember all sections and sub sections. But strangely enough, I came out of the exam hall, all smiles and twinkle. The next being of course that exams are getting over soon and an even stranger anticipation of things to come! And this is what felt like a club on the head. As if someone was shouting "Look around!" And look I did and to my consternation realised that I had been missing a LOT of things!
"How can someone live in the campus and still be unaware of whats happening around?" you ask? well....It was not so much as not aware of it but more of not being aware of what it is! Ya! UnMaad 2004, the all-India inter-collegiate festival organized by IIMB in January every year is all set to unfold today. Fortunately, my uncle has consented to get me a pass for the Euphoria Indian Nite tonight! The fest also promises a hoard of events from collage to personality contests and the final 'Crescendo' will be by the band Parikrama on Feb 1. Let me see if can get some of the guys here to go along and participate with me.......
PS: oh ya! do have a look at the story by "Team Dhakkan - The Lid" of XIMB, the winners of the Tale Spin UnMaad Online contest. Its absolutely mind blowing :))
"How can someone live in the campus and still be unaware of whats happening around?" you ask? well....It was not so much as not aware of it but more of not being aware of what it is! Ya! UnMaad 2004, the all-India inter-collegiate festival organized by IIMB in January every year is all set to unfold today. Fortunately, my uncle has consented to get me a pass for the Euphoria Indian Nite tonight! The fest also promises a hoard of events from collage to personality contests and the final 'Crescendo' will be by the band Parikrama on Feb 1. Let me see if can get some of the guys here to go along and participate with me.......
PS: oh ya! do have a look at the story by "Team Dhakkan - The Lid" of XIMB, the winners of the Tale Spin UnMaad Online contest. Its absolutely mind blowing :))
Thursday, January 29, 2004
Life has got a new meaning
"Every time something out there in the world makes us feel a certain way, it's because some particular bits of our brains are being tickled by it"
Will continue later...someone special has come online! Life has got a new meaning afterall!
Will continue later...someone special has come online! Life has got a new meaning afterall!
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
An argumentative person
My mid-term exams have gone for a huge toss! Guess why? My parents had come down for a visit and poof... there went my eagerness to be the topper of the class. From the day I heard that they were planning for a trip down to Bang, my excitement knew no bounds. I mean, how much can a phone or letter compensate for talking directly to your dear ones? uh? So, there I was, all pepped up and ready to receive them. But as it happened, unlike in the movies, as often happens in real life, there was no "I am extraordinarily happy now that I have seen you" running towards my mom and pop. No jumping up and down with joy either. In fact, I was not even aware that my parents had arrived until after five minutes when I heard their much familiar voices in the living room. I was playing Set (a game played with makeshift cards by creative children ;) ) and was at the point of winning against three other under ten kids when my aunt came rushing in.
And in a sing-song voice proceeded to shout "enna, amma appa vandadu kuda theriyama inga irruka?" ("What? you are not even aware of your parents arrival is it?" or something like that!) So of course, there were loads of relatives buzzing in the living room that day and we didn't get even a single moment alone till my parents were ready to leave. And as fate would have it, it gave me a foul temper and matching mouth yesterday- I was left staring at their departing auto seething with anger at myself for being such an argumentative person!
Naturally I cant sleep now! My conscious is going crazy knocking my head! So a trip to good old Chennai is soon imminent!
And in a sing-song voice proceeded to shout "enna, amma appa vandadu kuda theriyama inga irruka?" ("What? you are not even aware of your parents arrival is it?" or something like that!) So of course, there were loads of relatives buzzing in the living room that day and we didn't get even a single moment alone till my parents were ready to leave. And as fate would have it, it gave me a foul temper and matching mouth yesterday- I was left staring at their departing auto seething with anger at myself for being such an argumentative person!
Naturally I cant sleep now! My conscious is going crazy knocking my head! So a trip to good old Chennai is soon imminent!
Tuesday, January 27, 2004
Wednesday, January 21, 2004
Bangalore is not all its cracked up to be
Bangalore is not all its cracked up to be! or so says Economic Times in this article on best paying cities. Against common belief, salary in Bang is 12.5 per cent lower than the cross city-average. In other words, Bangalore ranks way below Mumbai and Kolkata, the highest paying cities in India, even after adjusting for cost of living differences!
Behaving properly in class?!!
For the first time in my life, I got caught for not behaving properly in class! You see, I had to submit this assignment (which was due yesterday) urgently to the HR lecturer in the afternoon and was busy writing during the Law class. For this express purpose, I had strategically selected a seat in the room- not too much in the back, yet not too near to the prof, somewhere where the oblivion of the crowd would conceal me well. But fate had decreed otherwise :( Today's class was afterall a presentation by some of the students or so I thought! But the result of my eagerness to get more marks in internals in HR has resulted in negative internal marks in Law!
When I think about the gall of the professor.....Yeeeeeee.......I see red! My God! I accept that was not an action suitable for a MBA student and yes I accept I need to pay attention to my classmates presenting but, but do I really deserve negative marks? I mean no marks would be so much more better. At the end, I had no other option other than to go and ask the prof to give me Zero and not below! What a laugh!
When I think about the gall of the professor.....Yeeeeeee.......I see red! My God! I accept that was not an action suitable for a MBA student and yes I accept I need to pay attention to my classmates presenting but, but do I really deserve negative marks? I mean no marks would be so much more better. At the end, I had no other option other than to go and ask the prof to give me Zero and not below! What a laugh!
Tuesday, January 20, 2004
Virumandi
I saw the latest Kamalhassan starrer and directed movie "Virumandi" yesterday! A wonderful film, though it was a little hard to follow all the dialogues keenly! The result of 20 years of breeding in great Chennai! :))
Expectations
Expectations play an important role in the interpretation of information, as information is screened by known experience and images, distorting the new and unique aspects of what is in view. Situational awareness is also limited by the profound emotional makeup of individuals, and the process of unlearning requires discipline to override the pervasiveness of ego, fear, and self confidence. And the limitations and distortions related to ego and over confidence are the worst challenges to accurate judgment and decision making.
More than things outside our control, things that are very much within our reach are the ones which affect us the most! I learnt it the hard way today! After a long time, about 10 years, I got to play treasure hunt again. It was one of my favorite games when I was a kid and even after this long, I got a mighty adrenalin surge when I heard that we have been shortlisted for the third round, the treasure hunt. It was wonderful running around the huge MCC campus looking for hidden clues and at the same time unscrambling the phrases given to us. Unfortunately, we got chucked out at the end of it by a mere five points! And this taught me a very big lesson today.
Why should you always expect the task given to you to be the "hardest and toughest"? Why do we subconsciously assume that "nothing will be easy?" Why do we get stuck in one way once we chose that as the one? Shouldn't we accept that our decision was after all wrong and change, whatever face loss we may get, before it is too late?
Now you are wondering why I am raving about all this for losing in a simple treasure hunt? Because we thought our last clue would be the toughest and associated all kinds of answers with it other than the obvious, which of course happened to be the very one! :(
More than things outside our control, things that are very much within our reach are the ones which affect us the most! I learnt it the hard way today! After a long time, about 10 years, I got to play treasure hunt again. It was one of my favorite games when I was a kid and even after this long, I got a mighty adrenalin surge when I heard that we have been shortlisted for the third round, the treasure hunt. It was wonderful running around the huge MCC campus looking for hidden clues and at the same time unscrambling the phrases given to us. Unfortunately, we got chucked out at the end of it by a mere five points! And this taught me a very big lesson today.
Why should you always expect the task given to you to be the "hardest and toughest"? Why do we subconsciously assume that "nothing will be easy?" Why do we get stuck in one way once we chose that as the one? Shouldn't we accept that our decision was after all wrong and change, whatever face loss we may get, before it is too late?
Now you are wondering why I am raving about all this for losing in a simple treasure hunt? Because we thought our last clue would be the toughest and associated all kinds of answers with it other than the obvious, which of course happened to be the very one! :(
Sunday, January 18, 2004
When will I learn to shut up?
Some of the questions that has been haunting my mind for sometime now...
Was Chess invented in India?
What is the difference between a theory and a theorem?
How likely is it that the BPO sector will go the same way as the Dot Com?
Why is there so much inter office politics... The need for constant one upmanship?
Why is HR thought to be the easiest subject to crack?
When is the next Harry Potter book coming out?
When is the ONGC public offer coming up?
When is the next international HR meet?
When will my soon-to-be mentor reply to my mail?
When will I learn to shut up?
Was Chess invented in India?
What is the difference between a theory and a theorem?
How likely is it that the BPO sector will go the same way as the Dot Com?
Why is there so much inter office politics... The need for constant one upmanship?
Why is HR thought to be the easiest subject to crack?
When is the next Harry Potter book coming out?
When is the ONGC public offer coming up?
When is the next international HR meet?
When will my soon-to-be mentor reply to my mail?
When will I learn to shut up?
Tuesday, January 13, 2004
Monday, January 12, 2004
Forgotten hobbies
I always loved to paint as a kid, though I was not too good at drawing perfect imitations! So I decided "modern art" was the one for me and went as far as hanging my "first pieces"all around the house! Then puberty stuck and pooff.......
Now I am thinking of taking them up again! Who knows? Maybe I can create my own masterpiece? But before that, I've got one beautiful artwork on its way flying across cities for me! Yep, Anita's painting for me is ready! I had a sneek peek at it and it is fantastic- blue flowers(my favorite color) sprinkled with white ones. Soon I shall be the proud owner of a painting for the first time in my life!
Wow, blogging does pay, in its own way!! ;) Does it rhyme?
Now I am thinking of taking them up again! Who knows? Maybe I can create my own masterpiece? But before that, I've got one beautiful artwork on its way flying across cities for me! Yep, Anita's painting for me is ready! I had a sneek peek at it and it is fantastic- blue flowers(my favorite color) sprinkled with white ones. Soon I shall be the proud owner of a painting for the first time in my life!
Wow, blogging does pay, in its own way!! ;) Does it rhyme?
Saturday, January 10, 2004
The war gene
Did you think war is an exclusive human-created mechanism to gain superiority? Think again! According to a new study, the cause for human tendency to participate in and initiate violence is because of our shared ancestory with the Chimpanzees. As you would be aware, Chimpanzees are supposed to be 'peaceful apes' minding their own business, not aggressive creatures which passed us our "gene for war"!
But detailed observations have found that, in contradiction to above, chimpanzees are and can be violently aggressive and will not hesitate to kill their companions when competing for food or mate. And guys? One absolutely hilarious thing about this is that, only male chimpanzees and their descendant male human counterparts have this "gene"!This theory, which has been named the "Demonic Male Hypothesis", explains how human males and chimps share a tendency to be aggressive due to their huge number of shared attributes ranging from 98.5 per cent of the DNA to their hunting ability.
"We are the result of millions of years of evolution since our common ancestor and chimps must have evolved considerably, too. So how can you compare these two species based on their behavior now? For all you know, the chimps may have developed this character later... " is that what you are asking? Well...Study on to know the counter arguments on why this "war gene" theory should not be accepted!
But detailed observations have found that, in contradiction to above, chimpanzees are and can be violently aggressive and will not hesitate to kill their companions when competing for food or mate. And guys? One absolutely hilarious thing about this is that, only male chimpanzees and their descendant male human counterparts have this "gene"!This theory, which has been named the "Demonic Male Hypothesis", explains how human males and chimps share a tendency to be aggressive due to their huge number of shared attributes ranging from 98.5 per cent of the DNA to their hunting ability.
"We are the result of millions of years of evolution since our common ancestor and chimps must have evolved considerably, too. So how can you compare these two species based on their behavior now? For all you know, the chimps may have developed this character later... " is that what you are asking? Well...Study on to know the counter arguments on why this "war gene" theory should not be accepted!
Thursday, January 8, 2004
Tamil computer terms
What do u think is "Previous" in Tamil? Whats "Do you want to delete selected item"? Now dont go attempting to come up with pure Tamil words when you can have much more fun reading the Tanglish Madras version of all Computer terms (LOL)!!!!
For those who know Tamil, this is a real treat! Be prepared to roll around the floor and laugh :))
Open = thora naina
Close = pothiko
Print Preview = paathu printadi
View = looku vudu
Cut = vetu - kuthu
Paste = ottu
Paste Special = nalla echcha thottu ottu
File = failu
Save = vechukko
Save as = Aiye ipdi vechukko
Save All = alaathium vechukko
Find = thedu
Find Again = inoru thaba thedu
Move = jaga vaangu
Zoom = persa kaatu
Zoom Out = velilavanthu persa kaatu
New = pucchu
Old = palsu
Replace = itha thooki athle podu athe thooki ithle podu
Run = odu naina
Execute = kollu
Delete = keesidu
Tools = spanneru
Toolsbar = spanner setu
Exit = odra dei
Compress = amukipodu
Scrollbar = inge angae aladathey
Next = appaala
Previous = munaagati
Trash bin = kuppai thotti
Drag & hold = nallaa ilthu pudi
Double click = rendu dhabaa
Do you want to delete selected item? = Maiyalume thukirava?
Do you want to move selected item? = Maiyalume kadasidava?
Do you want to save selected item? = Maiyalume vachukkava?
Abort, Retry, Ignore = Ishtam illati uttudu
Yes,No,Cancel = ippa innaa sollikeere nee
General protection fault = Allam Gali
Access denied = Kai veche, keesiduven
Unrecoverable error = Bada bejaruma
Operation illegal = Bemali...Savugrakki...Kasmalam
The source, by the way, is Sree Lakshmi. Go Girl!
For those who know Tamil, this is a real treat! Be prepared to roll around the floor and laugh :))
Open = thora naina
Close = pothiko
Print Preview = paathu printadi
View = looku vudu
Cut = vetu - kuthu
Paste = ottu
Paste Special = nalla echcha thottu ottu
File = failu
Save = vechukko
Save as = Aiye ipdi vechukko
Save All = alaathium vechukko
Find = thedu
Find Again = inoru thaba thedu
Move = jaga vaangu
Zoom = persa kaatu
Zoom Out = velilavanthu persa kaatu
New = pucchu
Old = palsu
Replace = itha thooki athle podu athe thooki ithle podu
Run = odu naina
Execute = kollu
Delete = keesidu
Tools = spanneru
Toolsbar = spanner setu
Exit = odra dei
Compress = amukipodu
Scrollbar = inge angae aladathey
Next = appaala
Previous = munaagati
Trash bin = kuppai thotti
Drag & hold = nallaa ilthu pudi
Double click = rendu dhabaa
Do you want to delete selected item? = Maiyalume thukirava?
Do you want to move selected item? = Maiyalume kadasidava?
Do you want to save selected item? = Maiyalume vachukkava?
Abort, Retry, Ignore = Ishtam illati uttudu
Yes,No,Cancel = ippa innaa sollikeere nee
General protection fault = Allam Gali
Access denied = Kai veche, keesiduven
Unrecoverable error = Bada bejaruma
Operation illegal = Bemali...Savugrakki...Kasmalam
The source, by the way, is Sree Lakshmi. Go Girl!
Tuesday, January 6, 2004
Oh well
Government slashes business school fees by 80%. Can there be any better news than this today? Only am sure that my college would be clever enough to say that this does not apply to those students who joined before this regulation came into act! (whenever it materialises!)
Three cheers to all these clever people in the world!!!
Three cheers to all these clever people in the world!!!
Ask for a slight drizzle, end up with a torrent!
What is that saying? When you ask for a slight drizzle, you end up with a torrent? well...I am sure it must be something along those lines!
Who wanted to be busy?
Who aksed for an extra source of income?
Who wanted a part time job?
Who wanted a prestigious project with a big company?
Me! Me! Me!
And who is ruing all that? Me! Me! Me!
PS: Happy New Year guys! (can anyone beat me by wishing any more later than this?)
Who wanted to be busy?
Who aksed for an extra source of income?
Who wanted a part time job?
Who wanted a prestigious project with a big company?
Me! Me! Me!
And who is ruing all that? Me! Me! Me!
PS: Happy New Year guys! (can anyone beat me by wishing any more later than this?)
Sunday, January 4, 2004
Buddhism
A sudden intense interest in Buddhism........
 | You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection. |
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