Sri Sri and one of his antics !

He says, he is a boy who refuses to grow up !

The American President Hopeful

What a change this would be, if an african (kenyan roots) american takes on the mantle.....

Wowwww

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ewc0srSKj78

Seva, Sadhana and Satsang

I am trying to find my Vashistha's Yoga book. It must be here somewhere

(http://www.amazon.com/Vasisthas-Yoga-Venkatesananda/dp/0791413640/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1203817441&sr=8-1)

I believe this is the greatest spiritual work ever written. Of course, I have not traversed the length and breadth of spiritual literature to make this statement, as an authority. Its a strong belief, thats all.

I am yet to complete reading this book though. Every page is a dweller. I read a page and end up spending hours appreciating the obvious stated and fathoming the subtlety. The book is very well translated in simple english.

In the first or the second chapter, the book mentions about the Seva, Sadhana and Satsang. I have diligently been trying to increase the above three S'. Guru Rishi Pragya explains the three S's very well in this link

http://guruvaani.wordpress.com/2008/02/19/talk-on-sadhana-satsang-and-seva-by-rishi-nitya-pragya-ji/

More later...

Variety at the workplace

My immediate client counterpart grew up in the Soviet Union. Part of her growing up in Belarus, was watching bollywood movies in cinema theatres. Well, american movies were banned and bollywood movies were the nonsensical comical dramas, without any political overtones, which the government thought would be safe for its people. Dubbed in russian, along with the song and dance routines, brought people respite from the rigmaroles of the daily struggle. When she enquired what my weekend plans were, and on learning that possibly I would watch a hindi movie, trigerred her curiosity yet again. So are they still the same dance and music routines, she asked? And that is when, I came to know her tryst with bollywood movies, when she was growing up.

Another client colleague from the same project is a german. A young guy, must be the same age as me, very hardworking,. He was with us two weeks ago, but then went back to work from the Frankfurt office, for two reasons. One, that was part of the project plan, so that he could work with his manager there for a while, before heading back (he is coming back next monday) to the project location. And second, he was due for his final exam of the long distance MBA program that he has been diligently pursuing, for the last 4 years ! Apart from learning about the miserable weather patterns of Frankfurt, I got to hear many anecdotes about europe and its denizens. One of them was about a Jan 31st tradition, when women go bersek and start chopping off men's neckties, if one is wearing one. This bizzare tradition is very well practiced. According to the women, thats the day when they symbolically try to subdue men's power ! Men, on that day, wear ties that are very old and haggard, deserving a complete chop.

The next client associate that we work with is a chinese of vietnamese origin! She is again the same age as me, but a bit more crazier, I feel. She mumbles in her work ! Hardworking again, on the job all the time, but keeps talking to herself on every task. I think its the translation thats going on. She must be translating all work processes coded and discussed in english, into vietnamese, decoding it syllable by syllable and then functioning. She doesnt say much about vietnam or china or about other things. And when she is under stress, trying to deliver something on time, she goes on a binging spree. We have some snacks in the corner for hunger pangs (I stay away from them), and she devours them under stress, chatting along to herself at the same time. She is adorable.

My client manager, I am told has her roots from Ukraine. Another client planning manager has greek origins.

As I spend time working on this project, sitting in a conference room, somewhere in a suburb close to chicago, I learn so many facets of life and lifetimes, of other people. I learn about societies, customs, ideologies, notions. I am fascinated, how every day can be so much more....

The daily train journey

Although this blog is for me to post experiences that I have in the US of A, this week, I am kinda reminiscing about Bombay. I couldnt help but write something about an unique trait of the city of Mumbai, and what better or worse, than the Mumbai Local Trains.

Growing up in Mumbai and living mostly in the suburbs, makes you rely heavily on public transport to reach your college or workplace or the bank. Even if you had a car, you wouldnt want to take it out. It would take forever.

Mumbai is a long stretch of land, surrounded by the Arabian Sea. South Mumbai is the area with the fancy spots, whereas the north was the dungeon. Every morning, scores would leave their dungeons to go to work. And the fastest way to reach their goal, was to take the overcrowded local train network.

The train service, one of the most efficient services provided by the government is outdated technology, but yet functional and very much the life line. Each day, traveling on those trains, is a crash course in time management, people handling, health management, 'saving your mind' management, optimization, survival skills, and more. It could also lead to depression, stress, anxiety, cravings, and easy access to suicidal opportunities.

One of my favorite sights on the train, was that of a tall man hanging on to his newspaper neatly folded into many layers, so that the end product is a 15 * 15 cm square piece that he holds skillfully with a strong grip of his left fingers, whereas the right arm dangles, holding the overhead support. He is surrounded by other commuters on all sides, not at a safe distance, but clinging on to him or sticking to him. The shorter ones probably have their heads sticking out under the arm pits of the taller neighbour. Most of them end up breathing air, which is polluted with a generous dosage of body odour. Well, amidst all the chaos, when the train has started moving and is probably about ten mins away from the next station, calmness is restored. The tall man, focuses his attention to his reading material and reads every line on it. The interesting facet is that on the other side, another person too is reading the back side of same square literature. The untold agreement always amazed me. If the bearer of the newspaper finishes his section and wishes to unscramble the newspaper and then fold it back to a different section to read further, he asks the stranger on the other side, if its ok to do so. The stranger might ask the tall man to hold on as he still has the last bit on aishwariya rai to complete. Why would the newspaper owner be curteous enough to check on the other person? Probably because, on the next train journey, he might be on the other side, reading tidbits off another stranger's newspaper and hoping that the favor would be returned.

I want to be a monkey !

Yes, this is what I exactly told my uncle, when I was six. Unlike many other kids, who replied with fancy answers like ' I want to be a pilot ' , I naively and honestly said I wanted to be a monkey when I grow up. The 'grown - ups' found it 'wildly' amusing and since then it has been part of folk-lore, etched in my family's memory. It comes up in most family get togethers. All these years, I used to get embarassed hearing the narration again. I thought of myself, ' couldnt I have gone with the cliche ! ? Couldnt I make a cutie face and say that I wanted to be an engineer (I did graduate in electrical engineering)' .

I also remember the next question from my uncle. He asked ' Why do you want to be a monkey' ?. I had a darn good reason. According to my imaginative mind, built by many wildlife bedtime stories by my dad, a monkey can jump from tree to tree and can eat any fruit it wants. It can eat a banana now and a mango next. Simple pleasures! That was good enough to get the whole house erupt in laughter and comments such as , ' how adorable' ! Although my parents felt it was adorable, they were a bit embarrased then, I think. In a social circle, it doesnt help, if one's kid mentions that it wants to be a primate, when grown up. They would probably want their children to have the same aspirations that a society aspires for their offsprings. An engineer, a doctor, a lawyer....and dad's day at work would have been brighter, the next day.

Today, as I look back, I am glad I have fullfilled my naive ambition. I am like a monkey now. I am a raw vegan. I only eat fruits and vegetables (mostly greens, uncooked). I can proudly say, that I am one of the lucky few who has gone on to fulfill his/her ambition. How many of us, can say this, beamingly? :)

Three bags and no baggage

Recently used this phrase and kinda liked it. Thats how I can summarize my current state of affairs. Well, if you add my bagpack and the laptop and the guitar, its six bags and no baggage(s). No baggage, cause I feel free. The most, I have felt than ever before.

One should travel. Any person who has stayed at a single spot, needs to move. The movement, triggers upliftment. Or else you rot. Same is with the mind. Explore new ideas, listen to what others have to say, you dont have to agree, but atleast have an open mind. Dont be biased.

I want to live in the moment. No past to haunt, and no future to overplan. Patting myself on the back, actually, I am doing a pretty good job. I am happy, I am contented.

I have aspirations, plans and hopes. I have thought about them, and have written them down.

I have suffered pain in the past. I will suffer pain in the present. I know that. But I have forgotten the pain and will forget it again, whenever I am subjected to it.

And a place called Deerfield

I spent the weekend, going to the Venice and Santa Monica beaches, back in California. How busy were these spots? Folks, surfing, running, working out, cycling, etc and having a ball! I took a roller coaster ride, which on couple of turns, gives a breathtaking view of the ocean. I also took a free basketball throw challenge at the fun & games area. Three shots for 5 $ ! I got all three, and won three basketballs. I chose a Tar Heels ball and a Cal Ball. Tar Heels, of course the number one college basketball team and a favorite! I didnt take the third one. My hands were full.

And how about life in Deerfield? Although I have been there only for a week, I am wondering what outdoor activities, I could take up. Skiing? Hockey? Of course, only if I find time after soon to increase office hours! How can people live in these temperatures? A concept so alien to me! But again, I consider myself as an explorer, and I am sure, the field of deers, would ignite some local passion in me.

I hope I can write more on the local life in this town. Soon.

Omniprescence

The Art of Living group, is omnipresent. And thats what I like the most about it. I flew into Deerfield, and one of the first things I did, was to reach out over the internet to local AOL groups, and immediately found one at Northbrook. I look forward to meeting them and participating in the Satsangs and the kriyas. Monday, is the slotted time for the satsang, and I might end up missing the first one. No prizes for guessing why ! Work, work and work !!!

Coming back to the group, the AOL idealogy is spread across the globe. Groups exist in every town. And the entry is always wide open. Each group welcomes you with open arms and showers love.

IF not Monday, I am looking forward to Thursday!

Where am I headed next?

Hello world, happy new year. I am glad to be back and posting again. Well, one of my new year resolutions is to blog more. Lets see, how long this one lasts! :)

Well, its the first week of a new year. My next assignment is based out of deerfield, IL. I hope to see a lot of deer there!! I have to be at the client site, 8:30 am sharp on Monday, January 07th! Well, till last week, I was only going to be in Chicago during the last month of January, as a trainer for a new bunch of BI aspirants. With my next project in Illinois, I guess I will be spending more time in and around Chicago.

People would call me crazy for accepting a role/project in windy Chicago, at this time of the year. Well, I am addressing two of my (many) new year resolutions with this choice. One, I want to travel more this year. Traveling from west coast to the east or the midwest and back, and beyond probably. Second, I want to do more things that I fear. Cold, windy weather is what most of us dont fancy. I have been in California for a year now, and have got used to the sun. But, I want to step out of the comfort zone and face the snow!

Plus most of my buddies stay in the midwest and the east coast. I have some extended family too around there, and its high time I paid them a visit.

January 7th also marks a year for me at my new workplace. I remember December in Seattle last year. We had a rude snow and rain storm disrupting life. Power was out for two weeks, at a stretch, trees resting on roofs, houses swept away, and lives lost! Meanwhile, I was huddled with many at the Microsoft Sammamish Campus, as I used to consult there. The little time that I spent in the apartment, clothed in three trousers and four shirts, I played chess, ate fruits and listened to Bollywood music in my head. The phone battery and lines eventually died down, making communication difficult. We seeked warmer homes, places where power had returned. Folks, spent more time in their cars, with the heat on. Darkness everywhere. I was supposed to be in the most developed country, but the speed at which everything got disrupted, was similar to a similar incident in Mumbai. And the speed at which life came back to normalcy, Mumbai scored higher. The spirit of Mumbai, wins, everytime!

Some Interesting Quotes

We, the unwilling, lead by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful.


We have done so much for so long, with so little knowledge that we will one day qualify to do anything, knowing nothing.


Everybody starts out with a full bag of luck and an empty bag of experience.
The trick is to fill the bag of experience before the luck runs out.

The Laguna Beach

Sleep Fighter !

As a kid, I remember being enthralled by the dishum dishum of cinema. I used to fall asleep in the theatre during non dishum scenes. My parents were probably glad that I took a nap, lest bother them and the neighbours with my tantrums. During fight scenes, they used to wake me up knowing that I wouldnt want to miss them for anything in the world. With eyes wide open, I was in awe, at Amitabh and Dharmendra's fighting skills. At home, I used to practice those fight sequences in my sleep, resulting in punches and kicks in the air, but mostly injuring my parents. When I used to visit my cousins during summer vacations, we had the tradition of sleeping all in one line on the terrace floor, under the skies. My sleep devouring fight sequences were still etched in memory and thus my cousins were hardly spared. I also had the habit of turning round and round in my sleep and on a few occasions would wake up on the other side of the room. Whether this was due to my own sleep disorder or did someone pick up me and set me aside from the rest, caring about their safety was a question that is unanswered.

Soon I got a reputation of being the sleep fighter. Uncles and Aunts, cousins alike used to dread sleeping next to me. All this didnt bother me though. I had my wish granted. No inhibitions, just dreams about me as Amitabh or Rambo and go rat a tat tat at the mean Gabbar or the druglord. Jackie Chan was slowly stomping his authority too. Soon Amitabh and Rambo were passe for my nocturnal instincts. Jackie Chan's kung fu was awe inspiring. With my fists clenched in the kung fu style and feet in the air, it must have been the funniest sight.

Well, as we grow up, these simple dreams are replaced with real life aspirations. How I wish, I could just dream about the dishum dishum for ever ...........

After a long long time

After a much needed bloggers break, here I am...

Homesick

It had to come! I was expecting it, sooner of later ! I am homesick! Yes, the viral fever, that spreads during the festive season, when one is far far away from family !

Although Christmas is not such a huge thing at home for my family, it definitely is that time of the year, when everyone seems to be in a cheerful mood. New year cometh....new and exciting events to look forward to ! Yes, most adults do remind themselves of their receding hairline, or the extra flab. But hey, come on, lets smile and show the kids that we are all gonna have more fun, in 2007 ! :)

Theres one particular new year's eve that I remember well. It was probably when I was in the 8th or 9th grade. We had exams in January first week, and on Dec 31st, I was forced to sit at home and study !!!! My vociferous appeals went unheard. Any fast bowler worth his salt would have been proud of me, for such tantrums could have hardly gone unrewarded on the cricket field. But alas, my mom, with nerves of steel, simply and disdainfully ignored me! I wanted to go out on New year's eve and goof around! My friends were waiting!

I was sitting in my room, reading how sulphuric acid can be caustic ! My parents were watching the new year eve programs that the channels used to dish out...Some family friends were also in and the world was having a jolly good time. My brother, well past his school days, was a big college boy, with freedom written all over his forehead. I just couldnt take it anymore. I got up, put on some fancy clothes, ran my fingers through my scalp to settle the strands , and went past the living room, to wear my slippers. As I was doing this, my mom, with a tone that could send jitters, enquired about my act ! Before she could get up from her chair, I was out of the door, onto the stairs, and out on the road, in a flash. Free at last !!! Sulphuric acid and its caustic properties, were not going to ruin my night out. I was 14. I was growing up. I wanted to be with my friends and the group included some pretty girls. And pretty girls in their fancy clothes, dont come out late in the night too often. Thats the beauty of the new years eve! Everyone gets to break the rules.

Well, this time, I wish I could simply get up and leave this place and join my family...breaking rules the same way I did that new years eve !

The Boeing Everett Factory Tour

* The photos are reproduced from the tour brochure.

To see the largest passenger planes being assembled !

PART 1

Wow!.... On a lazy saturday, Nikhil, Shiv and myself decided to take the tour.

http://www.boeing.com/companyoffices/aboutus/tours/

Umm, the new age kids...you ask them, 'Where do we get milk from?' .. their answer most probably, would be ' The refrigerator!' (No offence meant to anyone, any generation!) . Well, my answer to a question 'Where do the planes come from' would be similar to some degree. Yes, I know they are built in huge spaces, by robots and robotic men and women, but did I ever imagine of visiting the worlds largest factory (by volume the largest building in the world!) to see this.....a big NO!
Thanks to the opportunity of being in Seattle, we were off. Not too far from our place (30 miles, I guess).

We didnt bother to book online. It was easy, as ticket booking at any counter is, in the US. We were among the 10 folks who took the 10:30 Am tour. The group had representation from India (thats us and another Indian family), folks from Korea, China, and some locals ( Americans from different states) .

As we sat in the auditorium, with bated breath, a lady emerged from the shadows and introduced her self as the tour guide. She seemed to be a veteran in this. Carefully chosen words, to explain the rules and regulations of the tour, and doing her best to be as succinctly informative as possible! 'No cameras or any gadgets in the tour', she warned! Looking at our curious faces, she went on to explain the rationale. Apparently, few tours ago, an excited teenager, frantically taking snaps of the assembly process below (the tour walk is at quite a height so that we can observe the interesting stuff below), accidentally dropped the camera. It hit one of the air - plane parts being assembled and one thing led to another and there were damages worth over a couple of million ! Hearing this, i guess, each one of us immediately calculated the number of years we would have to be on this planet to repay the debt from our meagre earnings, and some of us, even didnt bother taking the effort....A couple quickly got up to hand over all items at the reception.

After this initial and most important clarification, we were told to sit back and relax, and watch two short video clips - first about the BOEING history and then on the assembly process of a giant 747 !

Both were remarkable. Power packed! Watching the planes, I couldnt help but marvel the ingenuity of the Wright brothers and William Boeing and their respective dreams. Looking at the assembly video gave me goosebumps. How efficiently and laboriously (lot of automation, and a much larger manual labour) are these flying machines built! We were getting impatient. We wanted to quickly get to the place where all the action is....

Sensing this, the tour operator (TO) asked us to board a tour bus waiting outside. Ironically in this hi-tech complex, the bus microphone was not working ! Our tour guide, banged the box, cursed the microphone and after many such futile attempts, gave up and cleared her throat. She had a pleasant voice and all of us could hear her clearly. As the bus got on its way, she pointed to our right, and we could see the test fields! Here, all the assembled planes, were ready to be taken for a test flight (untill now my world was restricted to test drives. I was in the process of buying a used car and was busy taking test drives at user car dealers, prospective private sellers!) by the customers. We saw planes ordered by Singapore Airlines, Angola Airlines (they fly!!!??), and others waiting for their turn. That field itself, was bigger than the Mumbai Airport!

The TO added: ' The planes are test flown by the customers' pilots and if all is well, they fly it to their own hangars. BOEING does not ship the planes'.

Slowly the bus was on a road bridge, and this one was on top of a free way! A private brigde on a free way! This was meant for the planes to be taken out of the hangar and then park them in the fields for the test drive, oops, flight. Untill a few years ago, this was done in the day and it used to cause mayhem below on the freeway. Startled and pleasantly surprised folks got out of their cars abruptly to take a quick snap before the gigantic 747 dissappeard. Confusion and a few accidents later, the BOEING management decided to do this only in the night !

After crossing the bridge, we were confronted with the largest building in the world. Not tallest, but the largest in terms of volume. I strained my neck to make a quick grasp of the expanse and almost pulled a muscle!

PART 2

We slowly entered the building and were made to walk in a single line, behind our leading lady. Staff, taking a break, walked by us. They were dressed in casuals, one just too casual, in a sweat sogging half shirt and a almost fully torn, faded pair of cut jeans. Wanted the extra ventilation, I guess.

The TG was sharing some interesting trivia. Some of the introductory ones were,

a. It can take more than a year (nowadays its getting shorter) from a time a customer places an order until the airplane is ready to be delivered. About half the time is needed to get the parts, a 747 has just 6 million for example. These are sent to this factory to be assembled from hundreds of suppliers spread across the globe.

b. Talking about suppliers and supplies, the costliest ones, guess.....the engines, are procured from GE, Pratt and Whitney, and Rolls Royce.

c. We all know US exports comprise mainly of arms (to maintain peace around the world, if I may put it) and wings! In 2004, Washington state accounted for 17 billion US dollars of them, just by exports of Aircraft, Spacecraft and Parts. Chunk of that comes from factories such as these!

At the viewing section on the top, specially built for the tour. We could see the giants below, slowly being built with precision, looking so bare without the fancy paint and the finishing. Believe me, building a plane is laborious. Yes, theres the technology to make life easier, friendly robots and all, but for example each of those window moulds have to be installed manually. Each row of seats need to be fixed firmly, and tested multiple times. On so on...takes almost 6 months to assemble a 747. For a moment all this didnt seem too interesting or challenging. Planes are passe ! And building them seems no longer a hearty challenge. I dont want to be in the shoes of one of those technicians, diligently playing god, with the responsibilty of assembling the pieces together with six sigma perfection.

The next moment, it seems fascinating..designing new flying machines to take the skies, always striving to make aviation cheaper, faster, less risky and of course to make it more profitable (isnt that the goal of any business!).....the skys no limit, literally. The 787 dreamliner by Boeing is one small step. This jet is expected to rule the skies in 2008. About half of it, is constructed of composite materials, making it about 40,000 pounds lighter than other similar airplanes. They claim of it being 20 % more fuel efficient and shorter by 20 % in fuel emissions. And yes, it is also meant to be more comfortable to passengers.

We were enamoured to say the least. As the TG took us down again, we thought something else is in store. Unfortunately, an hour for the tour makes it feel like an abrupt end to a fantasy. We were just getting into the mood, to probably go down and pat on the back of those technicians, encouraging them to keep up the good work!, but sadly none of this was on the cards. We were made to board the waiting tour bus, the lady driver, definitely sensing our discomfort on being grounded so soon, greeting us warmly with a beautiful smile!

As we returned to the base, to a new entrance, no prizes for guessing what was on the other side of it. The gift and souvenir shop! Caps, miniature models, key chains, cards, all with neatly marked price tags. Each one, enticing on its own right! I bought a key chain! I felt that was good enough to remind of me of the short, but enriching tour of something that I had least expected to see, ever!

On our way out, I played the flying captain in one of the dummy cockpits out there.

As I switched a few buttons on and off, I couldnt help looking for the rear view mirror !!

Fights and Patchups

1. Communication gaps - Altercations - Fights - Stress - Loathing - Life

2. Communication gaps - Altercations - Fights - Calm - Communication - Peace - Patchups - Life

Yesterday I had a minor tiff with my flat mate. I think we ended up as mentioned in point 1.

I hope we can quickly shift gears to point 2 and get on with life ! :)

The library !

I am a sucker for books! Deep down, I know I am. But I had never been able to easily expose myself to the world of wodehouse, kafka, tintin, asmiov, sheldon, seth, lapierre, agatha christie and others (not in any specific order) at the same time and at the same place. The Asiatic Library in erstwhile Bombay ( ya ya its Mumbai now), was in deep downtown and almost out of reach to the suburbian (dont know if this word exists in the dictionary) folk. The British Library, as the name suggests, was for books authored by Britis authors, and similar to the Asiatic, was out of reach.

Although, I could blame myself for not taking the 'pain' of taking the local train all the way for picking and dropping off a few books. But, I cant be solely blamed for this. The government assumed that suburbian folk (again) were somehow less intrigued by literature and were probably more focussed on livelihood, survival, politics and academics (in that order!). Hence, I would assume, they did not build any public libraries, where bulk of the population lived.

Libraries in colleges/universities/schools were good. They were full of books. Mostly academic. I already had enough of them, thanks to my professors. The thought of going to the library for more studies, made me sick.

My idea of a library is something like this. Atleast 10 storeys tall, with multiple seating and reading rooms, tons and tons of neatly stacked books and segregated as per field, author, academic/non academic, age groups, and so on and so forth. Add in an auditorium for book reading, discussion groups, and community building activities. And of course, free!
I would love to be lost in this world.

I did visit a library like I have mentioned above. Last weekend, in downtown Seattle, I went to the Seattle Public Library. It took me 5 minutes to avail a membership card and I was free to browse and read whatever caught my eye in those hundreds of shelves. I was like a child, running around, looking at the different sections and books, and simply overjoyed. I also found a lot of homeless citizens, using the library for shelter, simply seated there and waiting for the day to pass in solitude. And of course, the ubiquitous STARBUCKS.

As I browsed through the sections, I realized that in the US, these are basic facilities, in every main city. I did not want to tread further into yet another deep US - India comparison that we as Indians in foreign land generally do. I borrowed a few books of interest and headed out, with a resolution to make the most of this opportunity.

PS:
Starbucks, this coffeee chain is literally round the corner, everywhere in Seattle.

Seattle Downtown Pictures

Its always a treat to go here...it feels like mumbai's marine drive

It was 17:45 when we decide to catch a movie at the AMC theatres! And the movie was Casino Royale!

The streets are lit, thanks to the festive season.