All's well that ends well

Oh boy!!!! What a match!!! This is the first thing i'm doing after literally biting out all the protruding nails from my fingers... super thriller that. Didn't miss a single ball of the Indian innings and was totally worth it! Alas the sad part being Tendulkar's dismissal in the 90's ... AGAIN! I've never been a great fan of Sachin's... my fav being Rahul. But I've felt the deepest sympathies for the man who has really deserved each and every one of those hard earned 100's and a few more this time there in England. I just wish that he'll play the final one-dayer and finish off the series in grand style no matter how the series goes.... Let Sachin get the 100!

random listing

when i was away from bangalore there were a lot of things that i badly missed about it... some aspects about bangalore just make me very happy even though they seem to be almost insignificant. here's a list of a few things that i had a lot of fun doing on my return ... some are really crazy! 1. Drove a car at 95 down a straight road! 2. Bought a new car! There's sometime befoer this one reahes that speed though. 3. went to cubbon park with 3 other chaddi dosts and took the toy train at balbhavan! ate cotton candy, and waved at random kids plyaing in the park! most parents were really wondering what we 25-26 yr olds were upto! I probably would never do this with any other bunch of guys! 4. went to the hebbal flyover one eve just to watch the sunset and the view from the lake side bridge is just amazing! 5. Met random ppl in buses and on the way while jogging and spoke to them like i've known them for ages.... 6. Finally got to ride a hero honda splendor!!!! been almst 2 years since i've done that. riding that bike is a passion! ZIMBLY LOVVE EET . Thank u Baba. 7. Played cricket in a ground with the bunch of guys i've grown up with.... its just too good ... calling out those random nickname... most of these are the latest versions...blade-raja, chooslee, patient anna, wayne rooney... had chaats after a few super games! 8. Hearing the fireworks go off the moment india wins a match even tho Deepavali is quite sometime away! 9. THIS ONE'S THE BEST. Drank hot coffee that mommie dear made early in the morning with some really great breakfast!

My First day at work!

I’ve been dreaming of having a job that I joined today! So I really have been looking forward to entering office for the first time as an employee … for almost a month now, I’ve passed by the building wishing I’d be a sitting in a cubicle inside it some day! Why is it so special… hmmm for starters, I can walk down to office. Yeah I didn’t risk it today coz it was the first day. Took me 5 mins on my Honda Activa… home gate to office entrance!!! I was in so excited that I didn’t even want to park in the visitors section. But no amount of persuasion prompted the security guys to let me into the employee section without a badge… but they apologized instead… yeah, must have realized how jumpy I was about working at NXP Software. I’ve decided to walk to office from tomorrow… my daily doze of exercises … I can’t really stop grinning even as I type this post out. Started the day with a 3 hr session of usually induction formalities. Practiced my signature around 50 times on 50 different forms… there were 2 others who joined with me. One of them was to join my team and the other was appointed to do very similar work as I had to in a different team. I really felt that the welcome was warm. The HRs really took time to see that we were comfortable. Now, it’s not the first time I felt this warmth. I had 2 practice interviews (at other companies) before giving this interview a shot last Wednesday. After a 2.5 hr technical grill, they decided I was the one. It was followed up with a nice team intro and I was really surprised when team members came to meet me immediately after the interview… after another 30 min session abt the company and structure and finding out where I’d fit in the best, I was taken to lunch. It was followed with another hour of HR interviews, the usual I should say, I am much better at this round that the techie ones. When I walked out of that place I knew I was gonna grin away to glory for the rest of the day. Sure enough I got a call and the letter the next day. But unfortunately it was a holiday on Friday and the pre enroll med tests delayed things by another 2 days… so it felt like ages before I actually felt employed. The teams are very small, but the members are real value for money. I just watched how the guys interacted and went about usual business all afternoon. All I know is that I have to really be at my best to match any of their achievements. Just as good as they are individually; they sure compliment each other so well with their strengths. The business hours are usually. 9am-6pm, Monday through Friday, thanks to the transport service the company provides. But in those 9 hours (an hour or so for lunch an walk after that) I should believe it’s always work considering how much work is done. Naah, it’s just as much fun with people walking around cracking their smart jests, with the surrounding junta joining in the laughter ever so regularly. The CEO of the company called me into his chamber and spoke to me in such an informal manner that I was overwhelmed. I REALLY FELT GOOD! An ideal first day! No matter how I am going to feel about this place a few months later, this is a day to cherish. Yeah a few more freebies from the HR along with a drinking water bottle and a calendar with quotes completed the goodie package for the day! I am so looking forward to beginning work tomorrow, my manger came walking upto me this afternoon and said chill out for the rest of the day and get to know people, and you’re here to work for the rest of your life anyway!!!!!!!! AMEN

Bangalored! (via chennai)

Some how i feel the story of my trip to Bangalore from Singapore is more fascinating than the trip Tioman isle... so i'll do this part first... so much chronology and free time. Stage 1: When i was to check-in my luggage, I noticed i was the only one without any check-in luggage. carrying only a backpack which weighed only 5 kgs. the clerk there was so shocked that she repeatedly enquired as to why i didn't have any check-in. Might have thought of me to be some kinda terrorist, coz nobody goes to Chennai on a budget airline without check in luggage. probably i created history. Infact she even asked me if i was on transit from the US! As expected the Air India Express flight (which is a misnomer coz it took all of 6 hours in place of 3.5 to cover the distance) took off late. The day chose to land was a Tuesday and hence there was no Shatabdi at 5:30 PM. So i did settle in for the 9:30 Kaveri Express well ahead giving me a lot of time to kill. Stage 2: After abt 4.5 hrs, there was a stopover at Trichy, where suddenly the plane got emptied and people came in to clean it! crew change and all... was wondering if it would ever take off again. Finally, it took off after an hour, landed an hour late in Chennai at 2:30 PM. Luckily the weather was very pleasant coz of the rains. Stage 3: I had a very stereotyped view of Chennai until i met Mr L. Yeah I considered them to be just as dirty as the city. Now dont kill me for this... I'm a changed man now! So first thing I bought was mineral water. Lunch at the Golden Chariot was great... yeah except for the flies.... i kept flinging my arms over the table so often that it became too obvious to the hotel staff. Suddenly if i wasn't already embarrassed this waiter comes with a small swat which resembled an miniature tennis racket and starts swinging it around me. I looked up right into his eyes and he smiled showing me all his teeth. I said " boy, I am irritated with the number of flies inside ur A/c restaurant, but this is even more embarrassing." Promptly, still smiling he replied " Sir what to do, mango season!" Need i say more... I burst out laughing so loudly that the rest of the people in the restaurant wondered what the joke was. Then I ask for the ketchup bottle and the waiter goes to next table and almost snatches it from the next guy's hand. In the only restaurant around the international airport, there was only one ketchup bottle!!! I was charged a big sum for the alu gobi + egg fried rice! but the food was great! :) Stage 4: after 4PM Boarded an auto to Chennai Central... again the ride was very pleasant! loved the cool breeze blowing. Nice change from the aircon chill I'm used to in Singy. The moment i landed at the station I realised I had made a mistake. It appeared like the whole of Chennai's population was waiting in the station. Thanks to a derailed train, (of which i was warned abt in advance by a friend who had a crazy morning switching trains,) there was no train moving in or out of the station. I found a place near some platform to sit. i was in the 2nd row of chairs. both rows were filled with random junta. Then, an old couple arrives and the first 2 guys leave their seats for them. A minute later, a friend old couple of the 1st on arrives and chases away 2 more people. this goes on for a while and then its abt my turn. the old lady sitting beside me points out to a girl a little younger than i am and says "ladies ko seat do!" (Give the sat to the lady) I usually dont mind giving away my seat to a needy person, but this was the limit. It was almost an attack on poor people who were already seated . So i didn't budge. Just gave the poor old lady a dirty look. A few mins after the entire gang vacated and I suddenly saw a 50+ aged lawyer occupy the seat next to mine. He went on talking about his family and trips and life.... I had lots of time to kill so i didnt mind. Life in singy is so different, that the 1st thing my mom asked me when she entered the train there was as to why ppl were so self involved. My sister went the extent of saying that her exam halls had more noise than the local singapore trains. Yeah I think SGP turns ppl to be self involved. seen it happen to a lot of friends. back to that lwyer, he was so interested in knowing abt me, and even went to the extent of asking me to show him a demo of my phd project! all done spent 2 hours and realised it was time i decided on taking a bus. The nice lawyer directed me to the nearest travel agent and i picked up a tkt for the 10 PM bus to Bangalore after informing my folks at arnd 7. Met this funny guy in front of the phone booth when i went to call my parents. I was standing outside one waiting to make a phone call. suddenly this guy comes and squeezes in, in between me and the phone booth door. so i make a hand sign to queue up behind me. he inturn says something in tamil + hindi + english which kinda meant that he was there sometime before i was. somehow he starts a conversation with me and suddenly wants me to find a job in Bangalore for his daughter who was in Hyderabad!!! Ironically, I am looking for one myself at this very point!!!! (job i mean) ... man why do i always run into such people. Now his attitude suddenly changed and he wanted me to be ahead of him in the queue ... which btw had only 2 of us! Ran into another character in the train tkt cancellation line ... I had a tkt which reqd a passport for confirmation coz it was an e-tkt. i knew i wasnt gonna get much in return. this guy wanted to buy it at full cost and convinced me to sell it to him despite knowing that no trains were leaving!! I didn't mind it at all... So after all these events, me boarded the bus and reached Bangalore safely and on time at 5:30AM! With an experience to cherish.... 24 hours after i started my journey!

Happy happy joy joy

Things that make me feel that i am living and not just exisiting on earth! 1. A long awaited convocation and all the smiling people around you. People I've barely helped with tit-bits during courses remembering me and just wanting to take a pic to cherish the moment! Realising I did spread some joy after all and it was worth all the trouble :) 2. Singing the graduation day song 'Graduation Day-Friends Forever!' in unison. 3. Warm hugs from family and friends! 4. A trip to KL, Putrajaya and Tioman Islands in Malaysia which realises my ideal vacation! (Detailed post when i find some time) 5. People telling me how much they'll miss me when I'm gone :) Yeah I'm all sentimental here.

mobi-loo....

Found the piece of art in the shopping center in the ground floor of my apartment.... was wondering if anybody would actually like to use this state-of-the-art creation! Just a passing thought ... with pics... all i had left was to come up with a product name!

Finally ...verity

Time for the truth: the response to this previous post 1 . True. Lived in the St. John's Hospital Quarters till I was age 7. Could see the planes land and take off from the HAL airport in Bangalore (was very different back then in the 80s) and wave at them like any other kid 'aeroplane tata aeroplane tata' ... always wishing i would fly one someday! 2. True. Was born premature(7.5 months). My grandma said i actually fit in her palm. :-) 3. True. I really did hate eating until I joined work a few years back. It's a very different story now though! 4. Very True! As absurd as this sounds, I had a very different idea of what is DONE! Until of course the pics and videos that they provided enlightened me. (Didn't take bio in PU). 5. True. Feel dizzy when i look vertically downwards from heights. 6. False! Surprised I'm sure. I did have those glasses. Will probably post a pic sometime. But It was only coz my mummy dear forced me to wear those big fibre frames instead of sleek metal ones. Her reasoning was that metal frames would heat up in the sun and cause burn marks on my nose. Only mums can come up with such things and still make u believe in them. Yeah all the girls i planned to hit on did run away at first sight! 7. True. No surprise here. 8. True. I think they are slimy, gross and mess up the whole place with poop. 9. True. He still boasts about it during friends meet-up days. Me though just like joining in the fun. I'm sure he'll give that another try if i let him do it again! Ok ... one last statement... see if u can detect how much of it is true here After UKG, during my summer hols I would roam around the St. John's Hosp Quarters area with a bunch of 5 guys (3 of them were 2 yrs older and other 2 were my age) and 2 street dogs (Jimmy n Andy), chasing chameleons and what we called back then 'King Chameleons' cause they were orange and black. At the end of the hols Jimmy died of rabies and my parents saw Andy jump on me a few days later. Had to take the anti-rabies vaccines cause of this incident beginning month of 1st standard. My love for dogs, nature, friend groups and hatred for lizards all started during this time!

surprised.... take a pic then!

What do you do when u bump into ur prof n his family at the movies...... simple take a pic.... time for a Kodak smile .... kaaatchaaak!!!! this is with ref to this post....