On "Going to the mattresses"

You know i was feelin a lot blue...and needed to go to the mattresses badly.

But then I had sublime thoughts about the need to ""go to the mattresses"" (Korea Sojourn).

So thoughts spill over to the interesting times ahead.

My mind says oh not again and yippee at the same time (Can you imagine that ? ).

Well there are some reasons for the yin & yang.

And as I can hardly make time to meet old friends or do the household chores over the weekend.

I feel my day job sucks me into a hole i can never get out of!

Yep...Maybe u caught me cribbing yet again....[ do i hear "spare me the details"....well u pretty much got the details by now :) ]

Hmmm what then are the solutions ?

I practice strumming my guitar.

Watch some Movies and crash for tonite!

Use my bike to office on the Morrow ( pain in the neck i swear!)

my fellow blog readers ;-)I am gonna bang boom crash into bed any instant now.

& SOOOOO Good Bye n Guten Nacht!

The Coconut Vendor & My Impressions of Guilt

Impressions of Guilt or is it a guilt Trip ?

Today being sunday. I got up on a laidback morning. I was supposed to take Dad to one of the far off places around bangalore.

I was not in a hurry. My bike was in a good condition as i Vroomed it into action. Papa was comfortable in the pillion seat. We got into one of the one-way lanes while wading thru the Sunday Traffic.
I always observe the minuest of things for a possible source of trouble while riding. Its a habit picked up are having one nasty accident(which was no fault of mine, i swear)

As i navigated the blind kerb into the one-way lane. I saw this elderly coconut vendor who had stocked his Cycle with around 30 coconuts.

I never thought he would do a volte face' that instant.

But yes the next instant he had turned a full circle and was bang in my way. Since I always maintain distance and some leeway I could veer away my bike.

But I hit or I was hit by the cycle on my knee. which made me slightly imbalanced. This was bcoz we were surrounded by a lot of the Sunday Traffic which in any indian city can be overwhelming. So my balancing skills were put to a severe caustic test.

And on the other side the coconut vendor who was around 60years of age had lost his balance. balancing 30 coconuts laden cycle can be a daunting task. I could not stop my bike that very instant. Yet it was more a guilt trip i wanted to avoid.

It was not at all my mistake but then I could not face the old man who was after all out to make a living on a sluggish Sunday Morning.

I am reminded of Schubert's song.

I see a man who stares upwards
And wrings his hands from the force of his pain.
I shudder when I see his face.
The moon reveals myself to me.

Many times i think was i in error ?Was I unseeing ? what i ought to have seen !
My mind has jammed - was almost ajar. I felt the pressure of every breath

Somewhere was I cavalier ?
It is at these times That I find myself in a complete lack of Focus!

the Impression of guilt has turned to an expression of my guilt via this blog.

Am i Forgiven ?

~P

[QOTM] May

Between theory and practice, some talk as if they were two – making
a separation and difference between them. Yet wise men know that
both can be gained in applying oneself whole-heartedly to one.
- Bhagavad-Gıta 5:4

Short-sighted programming can fail to improve the quality of life. It
can reduce it, causing economic loss or even physical harm. In a few
extreme cases, bad programming practice can lead to death.
P. J. Plauger,
Computer Language, Dec. 1990

Daabi Daabi si shayari :(

Daabi Daabi si shayari :( for a change

Dorahe par khada hai Musafir

Chourahe par dikh rahi hain Manzil

Lagta hain dastak de rahi hain Zindagi

Lekin Na jaane kyun

Ajib si kashish aur kashmakash

Aey khayali Ayeenay Mere

Dikha de muzhe meri sahi Safar

~P

Battery :: better Safe than Sorry!

I met up some friends of mine working with IT services companies at a Good Friends Wedding.

table talk turned towards work and workplace.
Topics of chito chat included Quality and the extreme near paranoid emphasis on processes at these home grown IT Majors {Satyam/Infosys/TCS}.
My friend(manager@Infosys) explained to me how the processes at Infosys are so good that

• It simply cannot be bypassed.
• It can detect variances and process in-efficiences quite early
• Makes each and everything accountable to the decimal.

He says the over-emphasis is a strain on the employee but iz a sure-winner in any projects success. I tend to agree as some hazards can be really bad.... read below

I recollect this story about faulty Batteries in Laptops being replaced by companies.
In this case Acer which was selling Laptops with Sony Batteries recalled its laptop batteries due to suspicions of Faulty batteries.


Acer announced on Wednesday(25/04/2007) it would be recalling close to 27,000 of its Sony-made lithium-ion laptop batteries.
Taiwan-based Acer said that while none of the known incidents involved its own laptop models, the company will still be working with the agency to conduct the voluntary recall.

When asked why Acer had announced its recall months after its competitors had announced theirs, an Acer spokesman said that the company had been working with the USCPSC and Sony since the recall was announced.

"All parties felt it was better to be safe than sorry," the Acer spokesman said, acknowledging that it took the company months to come to that decision.



Acer follows Laptop makers Dell, Lenovo, Apple, Toshiba and others in this recall which is due to suspicions of faulty batteries in laptops having sony battery overheating and catching fire.

Since Sony is japanese and a rich company it can afford a recall. Though its name takes a battering due to the bad battery episode.

In hindsight it appears that processes are the key to survival of companies in this days of cut-throat competition. A slight glitch and the company image suffers. So the increased emphasis of IT majors on good and robust processes is a well thought of measure by Indian Companies to show "Zero Defect" results to its clients scattered across the globe.

Though india have a long way to get successful products or companies like Apple, Sony, Samsung. It sure is gearing up towards the same in the right way.
Now all it needs is a good product which will be revolutionary and ground breaking in the market . I mean the Overseas market.
Cmon India dikha do!!!
Innovative aur Successful products bana do !!!

~P

Picture Perfect n Made for Each Other....

Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek look radiant and a Perfect pair.

Aishwarya [believe me] looks like a Deity(Devi) with all the gold and ornaments.

Abhishek with his unkempt beard looks bit stranded :( and out of place !

For once it appears Ash is marrying a Daku out of fear :) . But They actually make a good pair and are Picture Perfect Couple.

I wish them a Happy and Prosperous Married Life !!

Thisz kinda Harbinger of times for the Bacchans

• Time for the Big B to retire
• Small B to settle down and
• Make way for the Junior B
• Who will be Handsome and Beautiful
• Talented Actor and Monolithic Personality like a greek God :)

Only Time will tell whether we will have a Junior Ash or a Junior B ;-)

!P

Spotted : Satan @ the World Bank

paul wolfowitz w/girlfriend shaha riza

And Guess what he wears Prada ;-)
And the funniest of all he says He iz the Monk who sold his Ferrari to 'Save the World' LOL

Yep.... I am referring to the President of the World Bank.
Who has been caught napping with his pants down.
He sure has given a new meaning ( or is it Dimension?? ) to the word 'Raise'.
He apparently got his Galfriend a raise which was more than double the stipulated by Bank rules.
What on earth called for such out of turn and above average Favouritism ? It is said that she was his love interest.
Makes it a case of Satanic Raises ;-) indeed.
And yet Mr. Wolfowitz in his true wolf style says he is sorry about such things and pleads "Not Guilty" How Satanly behaviour I must say...! It appears "The World is not Flat" it sure has its sharp curves !!!!

From the archives of Murray Waas

Wolfowitz, who as Deputy Secretary of Defense was considered an architect of the U.S. war with Iraq, disclosed to bank board members that he had a romantic relationship with a senior bank communications officer, Shaha Riza, shortly after he was nominated to head the World Bank. Bank regulations disallow bank employees from supervising spouses or romantic partners, but Wolfowitz reportedly attempted to circumvent the rules so he would be able to continue to work with Riza.

Informed by the bank's ethics officers that that would not be allowable, the problem appeared solved when Riza was detailed to work at the State Department's public diplomacy office in September 2005--even though her salary was still to be paid by the World Bank.

Before she was detailed over to the State Department, Riza was earning $132,660, according to the bank's payroll records obtained by the Governmental Accountability Project. Had the bank's board adhered to its ordinary rules, as Riza was shifted over to the State Department, she should have only been eligible for a raise of about $20,000.
Instead she was given a raise of $47,340, whereupon her salary became $180,000. Then last year, she received yet another raise which brought her salary to $193,950. That salary increase not only meant that Riza earned more than Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice,
but apparently made her the single highest paid State Department official.

~P

My Saturdays n Sundays

just points out my lethargy and lazygoose nature on these two special days of the week :)

Saturdays and Sundays....

-:) P

Nord marries Sud...

Nord Marries the Sud
Jus kidding...in Germany and France

• Nord = North
• Sud = South

(pardon the german...itz just me ;-) )

I am going to touch upon a sensitive issue now ;-).

I am referring to the marriage of Aishwarya Rai to Abhishek Bacchan .

The big fat wedding to me is a marriage of the most eligible north indian to the most eligible sout indian. North indians usually are fair skinned people vis-a-vis the South indians. In my career I have worked with and come across people from North,South,West,East India. While all are obviously attached to their birth place. Some people are honest in their opinion.

In my personal experience only north indians are always critical of the Beauty of South Indians.

South indians are generally thought of as the dark skinned and called the "Madrasi s"

Well to be frank south indians are dark majorly due to the severe climate in those regions.

But fairness has nothing to do with beauty right ?. Kerala, TN, karnataka have their good share of fair skinned people. This "Madrasi" labelling is foolishness.

S indians are also labelled ugly...which is going a bit too far...South indians are smart, suave and many also are fair skinned which is contrary to the belief of the north indians.

The marriage of Aishwarya and Abhishek just proves this point beyond doubt.
That south indians are also equally beautiful and fair. After all Ash was the ms. World :)
With the new cocktail of culture and mixture of different regionalities in Bangalore....10/15 years down the line we might have a bangalore species of indians who will be the true indians. It will be an explosive mixture maybe of the sud and the nord ;) .

~P

Adding Injury to Insult

The Virginia Tech shooting is like adding Injury to insult met some time before.

The korean student massacred 33 ppl thanks to the thriving gun culture in the USA. Obviously this was a differennt kind of hate crime. Maybe Insult followed injury. This appears to be the most plausible reason.

It seems nothing was learnt from the Columbine High shooting. I had downloaded the video which was available on Bearshare. It was a spine-chillin experience...the boys brandishing the guns terrorised and killed their mates in high school.

They sure were kids who had lost their mind and wanted to show friends they were Natural Born Killers.

Speaking of Natural Born Killers I believe all the countries have their share of juvenile deliquents. Its just that the American Politicians are run by these Armament factories which make sure no one ever does any legislation on guncontrol.

While the American companies might thrive the younger generations suffer at the hands of the politicians. I think there is blood on each US politicians hands.

I saw virtually the same things which i saw after the 9/11 .

The US politicians and mayors said at the time of crisis we should all stand togather at the toime of the crisis. None of them think of the Whys and the Wherefores...

They solve the wrong problem...

Controlled gun sales can eliminate such crimes of insanity against humanity.

But US Armament lobby calls the shots in the WhiteHouse it appears...

Thankfully india is not touched by this malaise yet.

Yet again Memorial ceremony features the Bush family condoning exactly the way they did during 9/11 .

Don't know how long the American people are going to take this political crap !

They should enforce strict regulations on buying sale usage of guns. Obviously the politicians wud not be interested in such a thingy.

My hearfelt condolences to all affected families and to all the Flowers nipped in the bud.

!!! P

2 Endorse or Not ???

Sometimes there are no conclusions on somethings. Here again I start of on one such oft-debated topic. Recently Ian/Greg Chappell commented taht tendulkar shud hang up his boots.Tendulkar pulled a smarter one. He said Greg Chappell doubted his credentials which was not true everyone knew.Tendulkar knew if he could divert the issue and make it against chappell people wud luk @ his record books and give a clean chit to Tendulkar. Well at least I don't !.
Tendulkar seems to be pushing other youngsters career downhill in trying to build his own.
Next came the issue of Sponsorship. Tendulkar feels committed or obliged to play to justify his sponsorship deals. While I agree everybody has a right to earn money. But since our Army Jawans and People in the Medical profession are not supposed to act in the media. Why not extend it to players who get selected for a ODI or a Test Match.
According to me, any Indian Team Player chosen for the indian team for any match has to stop acting or endorsing products for any company for a period of three months. Which ensures his undivided attention before Cricket Matches.
After that he can endorse whatever shitty product he wants who cares. This is exactly in line with what the Doctors or people in the Armed forces do. They 'Do not endorse any product' which can affect public opinion in a wrong way.Also assuming Dhoni endorses a Trouser line, it does not mean Trouser is as durable as its bat. It sure mean they have a bigger price tag.
After any tournament anybody is at his free will to endorse or make money to any extent possible.
Just a few thoughts ... I guess they are not unreasonable...!!!
What say fella Indyans ?
~P

How Great iz our God ?

Click on the Youtube link and then read the lyrics to understand the Average Indian Sentiment right now!!

The splendor of a King,clothed in majesty

Let all the earth rejoice All the earth rejoice
He wraps himself in Light,and darkness tries to hide

And trembles at His voice And Trembles at His voice
How great is our God, sing with me

How great is our God, and all will see

How great, how great is our God

Age to age He stands And time is in His hands ??? [:)]

Beginning and the end Beginning and the end ??????
The Godhead Three in One Father Spirit Son

The Lion and the Lamb The Lion and the Lamb
How great is our God, sing with me How great is our God,

and all will see How great, how great is our God ?
Name above all names Worthy of our praise ?

My heart will sing How great is our God ?
How great is our God ?, sing with me

How great is our God ? , and all will see

How great, how great is our God ??????

how great is our God ?

~P

Confessions of a Desi Rider

Bitter Sweet Confessions of Riding in India

I ain't no "street hawk" or a "Knight Rider"

... I am yet another rider....IAYAR :)

• when in doubt honk, it might save your life whu knows ?


• Be wary of approaching Call Center cabs, Autos, Buses, Trucks, babes [ here priority is in their order of their appearance ;-) ]


• The KISS principle - Keep It Slow and Simple.Reckless driving surely is bound to ruin your day.


• Make sure your brakes help ou stop before the estimated target ahead of you. :)


• All the Men are from MARS and Women from VENUS.;-) means trust nobody and be careful of the Nth minute U-Turns ... he he he...


• Leave 15 mins early for any destination. you might just miss/leave your embarrassing traffic moment behind in time that way.
  

you might wonder why the hell i am asking you to mellow down...
Its so that you live to read another blog :)

With this desi recipe for bike riding I wish you a very Smooth(kinda) and safe ride in India

! P

Return to Innocence

Last two days have been quite different in terms of experience for me.

yesterday :

It rained after a long long time in Bangalore. I went out and got myself drenched in the Rain like a school kid. Remembered my life inBombay. how we used to go to school in constant rain using raincoats and umbrellas. Used to wear the Gumboots and have a ball.

Still can;t forget the panchayat bawdi(well) blues from my school.

Today :

had been to the annual health check up from Samsung. Pulse diagnostics is also a neo-natal care for babies. I saw some cute babies raanging in age from 1month to 1 year.

Simply superb experience. The kids mumur in some strange way/language and its so very soothing to the ears. I thought of complementing one mom for having a Cute baby but then...somehow held back.

Overall it was kinda ...... 'Return to Innocence' this last two working days of the week.

~P

Death of an innocent Lake

Inset: A lake in Bagmane tech park as seen from the Top(Satellite image). The Green region is fast being converted to a grey region :(by dumping sand).

Life happens to us we never ask for it.

Sometimes we see every next generation Blames the one before it for their frustrations.

For instance the fast disappearance of nature flora and fauna is reason good enough.

But, we as responsible(?) people should ensure our Future Generations are better off and have no such complaints. WE ARE WHAT WE LEARN AND EXPERIENCE. If we cannot learn from our experiences then we are nothing short of somewhat cultured animals.

Anyway the point of this blog is that this lake shown above is being destroyed/buried. I work in CV Raman nagar Baghmane Tech Park, Bangalore.

Next to our Samsung building a small lake exists(?). This is being now devoured by the concrete intentions of the Owners. some might say "Rightfully So".

Well i have nothing against the "Build a building and make cartloads of money" sentiment. { I wud rather call it Convoluted reasoning }

But already BagmaneTech Park earns in crores. Moot question

Who requires a building ?.

Why can't the existing buildings be extended (like sky scrapers) and can house more people that way.

Why is the lake being buried with sand ?

Why are the local authorities turning a blind eye.

Already Traffic in and around the area is a mess due to concentration of more and more companies.

While Bagmane tech Park management does not even as much as provide a bridge for pedestrians to cross the streets at the entrance of the tech park!

Why are the Authorities screwing the place in an irrecoverable way. Instead of maintaining the lake the tech park owners are making sure it is closed or buried in sand before anybody notices the change.

Obviously the land sharks are very well connected according to many sources. But some discretion by the land sharks is required to have some sense of sanity to the Trafffic, aesthetics of the area.

I am saying it loud and clear, We are sacrificing the future !!!

As the lake dies, it appears nobody wants to see it eye to eye.

A small ode to the lake.

Like a Ocean drop,

on the bald face of the earth,

buried by human greed

Sorry to see u Gone too soon

Fool hardy men

blind folded minds

with their dollared lives

Gone with the Dusty winds

like Loss of a Life

irreplaceable forever

Splendid sight Snuffed out without a fight
The source for the muse

Inpiration for the recluse

buried by the insane

Lake shouts stop the insanity fair

In this thoroughfare of land sharks

Its not Easy come Easy Go...

Vanished without a trace

Where the heck is godot ?

Sorry couldn't keep promises

Ruthless world says to thee

Its not Miles to go before you die

Just days and hours in front of Thee...

~P.

Desi StarBucks...

In Search of DESI STARBUCKS.

Cmon itss so hot in Bangalore these dayz that u jus cannot survive without Nariyal Pani.

But being an avid coffee fan-freak. I was searching the local starbuck. Desi Starbucks are not far away but sometimes the "Coffee Days" are all snazzy, not particularly gute plazes to enjoi a Hot cuppa.

So I marched to a discreet shop in Eating Street @ VV puram and had a Cuppa.

(hell I like it taht way only:-). One helluva time to spend this big weekend. What say ?

~P

Nostalgica

In this ever changing uncertain world, its good to know some things and some people don;t change.

I am talking of the good samaritans i come across in Bangalore traffic who sometimes give way to others. I have seen umpteen no. of such instances which boosts ma faith that things are gonna change for the better after 'all. I reciprocate the gesture by paying back in kind(by giving way)

~P

--- Behind Enemy Lines ---

The recent unfortunate act of tresspassing by british navy sailors was promptly addressed by Iran.

Like any country, Iran also has the right to protect its Territorial Integrity and borders against lurking hostile armies.

After all the britishers cannot think of any mis-adventure without the support from the US against Iran. One british politician called it a hostage crisis. from when did tresspassers get this "hostage" tag.

" The UK " must have pressed Panic buttons resulting in the US geting involved. American president said on CNN that it was binding on Iran to return the soldiers. He found the Iranians behaviour "un-excusable". The moot question is what is excusable behaviour and what is best behaviour :).

Apparently american politicians dictionaries differ from the rest of the worlds. If tresspassing is excusable then I think american/british people are taken for a jumbo ride by their so called "Politicians".

I guess the americans are wary because they mightbe asked to swap the Iranian prisoners who were caught in Baghdad by the US forces.

Its like I being caught in my neighbours house by an un-identified individual. Totally Ludricrous and un-acceptable.

The Iranians found this too much, not only did they british demand release they never apologized. I remember a similar incident in which a US Spy plane which was brought down by Chinese Fighter planes which was flying over Chinese territory.

The US then had secured the release of the crew saying they might have accidentally strayed into chinese territory. China did not obviously return the plane. maybe it wanted to know what kind of data US Spy Planes collect and what sensitive data they already had on-board.

Now thats fair enough. but the US did budge against the Chinese might something to take note of.

In another of the LATEedition shows on CNN, Senator mccain was found saying he travelled from Baghdad airport to some other area closeby and saw lot of improvement. How Ironic, on one hand they bomb the civilians in and around the areas with US presence and then proclaim it to be "Positive development". I can only say that such politicians are sick in their mind.

The lives and times of Iraqi people have been shattered.

Who is accountable for this continued deaths and anarchy in Iraq ?

Why was there a need to attack Iraq ? WMDs were never found after the war. americans can't seem to stop this thing they started. They have lost lives in Iraq after the war.

Was all this called for ?

If this was all found wrong in the future!

will the US ever convict its politicians for wrong decisions in the future. The germans already have disowned hitler.

Huh, America sure amazes me no end.

While technology and geeks emerge victorious. Sadly its the politicians who are playing games in the world.

It increasing appears the Americans snuff out life from other countries and feed their own mouths.

While Techies such as Google,Yahoo try to bring some sanity to the Insanity Fair.

~P

[QOTM] April

“Coming together is a beginning, Keeping together is progress, Working together is success.”

-Henry Ford.

I kinda buy that argument though I am no big fan of ford or his cars...

~P

Ich Bin Ich !