Time to say goodbye

Goodbye red brick buildings,
I will hold you in my memories.
Goodbye green yellow cactus,
I will miss you on my way.

My time has come and I must go,
With a heavy heart I will depart.
A tear rolls down my eye,
Questioning me, 'Should I?'

The new horizon calls on me,
Enticing me with new promises.
I am happy but I am sad,
Is there a way I can stay?

Fruits of hard work

I achieved a clean 4.0 in second consecutive semester! But alas, I ended up with a not so clean CGPA of 3.8 in my MS degree. But I am happy I am done with this finally! Err... well, not so happy maybe. I am going to miss this place, people and this routine.

A shining star departs

Today is a terribly sad day for Hindustani Classical Music community. The legend, venerable Pt. Kishan Maharaj passed away after a paralytic attack from which he could not recover. He was 84.

Padma Vibhushan, the maestro from Banaras Gharana was country's finest Tabla player. I have been extremely lucky to have heard him live on quite a few occasions. Many considerd him a far better Tabla player than even some one as famous as Zakeer Hussain. Always dedicated to his art, he considered Hindustani Classical music as his religion and his Tabla, a prayer.

Panditjee, you will be awfully missed. But your fame will live forever. May God bless your soul. Rest In Peace.






[Image Source:
http://www.tablaineurope.com/grafica/kishan_1.jpg]

Starbucks profits down

Starbucks reported that their profits sank by 28% for the last quarter.

Starbucks, you discontinued my favorite drink 'Orange Mocha' and now you suffer. *evil grin*

Pigs on the wing. Literally!

For those of you who care, Pink Floyd's giant two storey tall Piggie has returned home, though not safe and sound.

Roger Waters of Pink Floyd has been using this giant inflatable pig in his concerts as a prop since their success of the album Animals in 1977. Last Sunday in a concert in southern California, the pig broke free from the tethers. Organizers had announced a reward of $10,000 to anyone who brings the pig back. And today the news is out that a couple from a desert town in California has found the pig and returned. Though it is in tatters, finally it is home!

This Pig really had wings it seems :D

[P.S. - Pigs on the wing is a song from the album Animals.]

Michael Bloomberg on The Time 100

And here is another personality I admire, Michael Bloomberg featuring on Time 100 most influential personalities list under the category 'Scientists and Thinkers'. And apparently he fits into both of these categories! Many of you might know he founded the firm Bloomberg LLP by creating the revolutionary software for financial analysis which reveals his Scientist side. He has been widely applauded as one of the most effective Mayors of New York who puts constant efforts for improving the city of NY.

Link to Michael Bloomberg on Time 100 here

As a future employee of Bloomberg LLP, it feels great to see him here !

Ratan Tata on The Time 100

Time magazine released their list of 100 most influential personalities of last year (2007). And as I was expecting, Ratan Tata is featuring under the category 'Builders and Titans'. This category features 22 people from all over the world and includes the likes of Steve Jobs, Steve Ballmer, Jeff Bezos and so on. And I felt extremely proud to see the 'Ever so smiling' face of our own good old Ratan Tata.

Tetley, Daewoo, Corus, Jaguar and Land Rover....... He is the victorious emperor on a mission!

Link to Time's Link featuring Ratan Tata here

As an ex-Tata employee, it feels great to see him here!

Tagged!

1. Last movie you saw in a theater?
'The Race' starring Saif, Akshay Khanna, Bipasha and Katerina. Hot cars, babes and action. Style mixed with somewhat complex plot. Good watch

2. What book are you reading
'Peanuts' comics if that counts as a book! Last one I finished was 'The Street Lawyer' - A classic by John Grisham.

3. Favorite board game?
No Games. Only Sports ;)

4. Favorite magazine?
None

5. Favorite smells?

The smell of wet earth after rain

6. Favorite sounds?
David Gilmour's Guitar and Ustad Sultan Khan's Sarangi

7. Worst feeling in the world?
Betrayed by someone I trust

8. What is the first thing you think of when you wake up?
Darn, the day begins. Where's my coffee!

9. Favorite fast food place?
Honest Pau-Bhaji center in Ahmedabad. Any fast food you name and they have it. My favorite there, of course 'Pau-Bhaji' and also 'Chhole Bhature'.

10. Future child’s name?
Boy : Bhavin Mankad Jr ;)

Girl : '........' Jr (Blank to be filled in later :D)

11. Finish this statement. “If I had lot of money I’d….?”
Not have time to do such blogging ... alas :(

12. Do you sleep with a stuffed animal?
Naah!

13. Storms - cool or scary?
Absolutely cool !

14. Favorite drink?
Coffee and Buttermilk

15. Finish this statement, “If I had the time I would….”?
Read all the books in my 'To read' list.

16. Do you eat the stems on broccoli?
Broccoli !! Yikes ... Hate it.

17. If you could dye your hair any color, what would be your choice?
Brown

18. Name all the different cities/towns you’ve lived in?
Ahmedabad, Tucson, New Jersey, Sacramento, Chennai

19. Favorite sports to watch?
Cricket, Boxing, Soccer, Tennis

20. One nice thing about the person who sent this to you?
Natasha - A sweet friend, interesting personality, South Park fan and Garfield admirer just like me!

21. What’s under your bed?
My iPhone

22. Would you like to be born as yourself again?
I would like to be born as my parents' son again. Couldn't thank God more for that.

23. Morning person, or night owl?
Well, it keeps changing. One semester I am a night owl, the other I am an energetic Morning person!

24. Over easy, or sunny side up?
No Idea what this means :P Can I say 'Pass' ?

25. Favorite place to relax?
My Sofa

26. Favorite pie?
None

27. Favorite ice cream flavor?
Chocolate, Butter-scotch and almost anything that has dry fruits or choco-chips in it.

28. Of all the people you tagged this to, who’s most likely to respond first?
Tapasya or Soham

Why doesn't Bangladesh Cricket Team call it quits?

"Try and try, one day you will succeed" Unfortunately, the saying doesn't seem to apply to Bangladesh Cricket Team. After recent white wash by Pakistan (5-0) in One Day series, I seriously wonder how long it will go on! Bangladesh has been playing International cricket since 2000. In seven years, they have consistently lost again and again. The test record is pathetic.

In seven years, Bangladesh has played 53 tests. They have lost 47, won 1 and drawn 5. That is about 2% success rate.

The one day record is slightly better though. They have played 177 matches, won 39 and lost 136. Success rate of about 22%. But looking closer, out of these victories, 15 have come against Zimbabwe, 8 against Kenya, 4 against Ireland, 3 against Scotland and 2 against Bermuda (I had almost forgotten Bermuda played Cricket!)

With all respect to Bangladesh Cricket, I would suggest they should make a call to give it up. 7 years of efforts have led them nowhere. Chances are, they won't lead them anywhere in future either.

[Image Source:
http://www.kaputa.com/sports/cricket/imgx/logo/bangladesh.gif]

Movie Review: Pulp Fiction (1994)

Style, style and more style. John Travolta, Bruce Willis, Samuel Jackson, Uma Thurman and above all, direction of Quaintain Tarantino. Can you expect anything less than 100% stylish and entertaining movie?

Starting with a pulse racing title music, the entire movie puts an iron grip around you for two and half hours time. I had watched this movie when I was a kid, some time during my school years. And I was totally clueless about why this movie was so famous. I had hardly understood some of the dialogues and those that i understood didn't make sense at that time. After talking to Priyanka a couple of days ago, I decided to give it another try, after all I am a huge fan of John Travolta! And I am glad I watched it again!

The movie is full of 'four letter words', crude humor, intermittent action scenes, closely knit storyline and a display of class acting. The underlying plot is about three men's lives (Travolta, Willis and Jackson) who work for a gangster (Rhames). The characters of these men are portrayed in a wonderful fashion and detail. They act differently in different situations and yet they have a common belief of loyalty and conviction.

[Spoiler Warning: Following contains details about suspense. So if you plan to watch the movie (which you should if you are a movie buff), don't read it till you watch the movie.]


Things I loved about the movie

-The scene in which Bruce Willis bursts into outrage over his lost watch which was a gift from his father.

- Bruce Willis going back to the cellar where Wallace was being tortured. Even though he himself wanted to kill Wallace, his conscience forced him to go back and save Wallace.

- Samuel Jackson reciting a verse from Bible every time before he was going to kill someone.

- Travolta and Thurman's dance on their date.

- Travolta's hair style and his on screen persona

- Samuel Jackson handling the robbery situation in the restaurant.


Things I hated about the movie

- Why on earth Travolta had to die?
Except for that one scene in which Bruce Willis kills Travolta, I enjoyed every moment of the movie!


Some of the memorable dialogues

Vincent (Travolta): Jules, did you ever hear the philosophy that once a man admits that he's wrong that he is immediately forgiven for all wrongdoings? Have you ever heard that?

Butch(Willis): [beating up Wallace (Rhames)] You feel that sting, big boy, huh? That's pride F***' with you! You gotta fight through that s***!

Wallace (Rhames): Yeah, we cool. Two things. Don't tell nobody about this. This s*** is between me, you, and Mr. Soon-To-Be-Living-The-Rest-of-His-Short-***-Life-In-Agonizing-Pain Rapist here. It ain't nobody else's business.

Wallace (Rhames): You leave town tonight, right now. And when you're gone, you stay gone, or you be gone. You lost all your L.A. privileges. Deal? [This one is a classic :D]

The Wolf(Keitel): Jimmie, lead the way. Boys, get to work.
Vincent(Travolta): A please would be nice.
The Wolf(Keitel): Come again?
Vincent(Travolta): I said a please would be nice.
The Wolf(Keitel): Get it straight buster - I'm not here to say please, I'm here to tell you what to do and if self-preservation is an instinct you possess you'd better f***ing do it and do it quick! I'm here to help - if my help's not appreciated then lotsa luck, gentlemen.


[Image Sources: http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/PYR/NECA0003~Pulp-Fiction-Posters.jpg
http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/dynamic/imgs/061006/17191__pulp_fiction_l.jpg
http://youretime.files.wordpress.com/2007/09/pulp-fiction.jpg]

The Magic of Quota - Part II

While the advocates of equality, fairness and justice were recovering from the blow delivered by Supreme Court, jubilant 'venerable' Mr. Arjun Singh could not suppress his happiness.

Excerpts taken from his interview with IBNLive.

"As far as creamy layer is concerned, we will discuss the matter at the apt forum and try and find a way out. We are not going to shove it under the carpet. We are going to do whatever we can"

“Increasing the slab of Rs 2.5 lakh per annum is one way out. The concerns of the allies will be taken into account—we will try to have a consensus on how to sort this out,”

Sure Mr. Singh, (more people = more vote). It's very simple. We understand that. You are a generous man and you are worried about the concerns of the allies. But what about the concerns of the general public?

"I have been wanting this ever since I was the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. We won 40 seats then".

Yes dear Mr. Singh. We are aware of your desires to become Prime Minister of this country since ages. And you have been playing one political card after another ever since then. And this one was an ingenious trick indeed.

And here is the statement that says it all. Coming straight from his own mouth, in his own words.

"this reservation should benefit us politically"

Aah! Glad you told us Mr. Singh. We thought you were doing all this out of a sense of sheer philanthropy and general public good. How humble of you to confess it.

[News Source: IBN Live
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/
more-cream-more-people-to-get-quota-profit-singh/63177-3.html]

The magic of Quota!

The Supreme Court upheld the OBC quota in educational institutes supported by the Government. Only consolation for the supporters of Merit over Caste was that the 'Creamy layer' was kept out of the quota system.

Congratulations Mr. Arjun Singh. You successfully carried out your agenda. In the world that is moving at lightening pace and values nothing but intellect and hard work, the quota system in my opinion is a step backward. But for UPA government, the corroboration from SC could not have come at a better time. With 6 states going to polls in coming months, UPA government will be hailed by the people who will reap the quota benefits as 'The saviors'. Well, not exactly saviors. More like deal makers for them. After all, the government has cut a good deal. 'We will give you quota in jobs and education, you give us vote and bring us to power.'

As someone with a keen interest in Political scenario in India, I must confess that UPA has some of the most cunning and crafty political brains. Starting from Sonia's so called sacrifice of the Prime Minister's post, Chidambaram's thousands of crores of loan waivers to farmers, 'venerable' Mr. Arjun Singh's recent attempts in quota system; all these events are cold bloodedly calculated to pull votes. And my hunch is that they will succeed in their attempts to get back in power. In the general assembly elections to come, I can see UPA reaping the sweet fruits of their labor and winning the elections once again.

As if the division of people based on the religion was not enough, now the UPA is bent on creating a rift between people based on their castes. I wonder why other countries which are economically more successful than India never had the necessity to impose such affirmative actions. Why in US we see no discrimination based on race?

-Is merit really secondary to your caste?
-If an economically middle class or lower class bright young student who can't afford to pay for the NRI or payment seats is deprived of higher education and at the same time if someone from quota system is allowed, is this fair?
- If you can waive farmers' loans, why can't you give economic incentives to the OBC or other castes if you feel they have been wronged in the past.

These questions are age old and many anti-quota activists, a lot more vocal than me, have tried their best to avert this rule. But I felt it a moral responsibility to give this issue a space on my blog.

Thanks UPA for leading us back to the past. Your definitions of progress are indeed unique.

P.S. No hard feelings for any one based on any caste. I DO NOT believe in caste system and that is why I feel there should not be a divide based on it.

A millionair orphan wants me to be his guardian. Thanks Yahoo Mail !

Another interesting story on my Yahoo Mail. Now Abrahim Musa (Reference: Previous Post) has adopted the guise of an orphan and wants me to be his guardian.

Hello ,

I will like to make myself brief.I am Bile Vesta, the son to
late Mr.Vesta Gilbert who was a wealthy farmer here in Ivory Coast and i
am 15 years old. My mother passed on two years after my father's death
from a protracted illness thereby making me an orphan.
I have been under the care of my uncles ever since these sad events but
things began to be ugly as my uncles are now diverting money meant for
my upkeep and studies to their own personal and selfish desires.

When my father was alive he secured $9.5 Million (nine million five hundred
thousand
U.S.Dollars) with a bank.Presently, this
money is still with the bank.

The fear i have now is that my studies are being threatened and my uncles
are after my father's
property.They have seized most of his estates and business empire.I am
also being threatened of being thrown out because they believe there is
nothing to gain from me.That will mean no roof over me and becoming a
street urchin.

All i want from you is for you to help me receive this fund and
become my guardian,who will in turn help me to invest the fund and also
take care of me.

I await your prompt mail and response.

Thanks,
Bile Vesta

Locked up for smacking son

How a slap brought police and social services in to tear a family apart...

read more

Five things I would love to own

Mercedes Benz C Class Sports Sadan

Omega 300M Chronometer

MacBook Air

Kindle : Amazon's e-Book reader

'Oh By The Way' : A complete collection of Pink Floyd studio albums

South Park kills 10 YouTube memes for good

In last night's episode, Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and Kenny asked themselves "How Do We Make Money on the Internet?" and predictably, they find it difficult — just like YouTube. This leads to a South Park scene straight out of Viacom CEO Philippe Daumann's dreams as, one by one, the viral-video sensations that made YouTube so big are destroyed.

These videos that are doing round on YouTube are so lame and retarded that one might ask what the hack is wrong with American audience! How can you be so foolish to make these videos popular? Even the featured videos on YouTube are asinine. Read the story and watch the videos that these guys made fun of. You will realize what I am talking about!

read more

Yeh Kya Hua, Kaise Hua ....

Ooops .... !!

Indian Cricket fans and the players both were left with this song at the end of the first day of the second test match against South Africa. Supposedly stellar batting lineup of Indian team got wound up in just 20 overs with 76 runs on board. Four ducks. Only two batsmen in double digits. Extras as second highest runs (19 after Pathan's 21). Six batsmen clean bowled and the harrowing details of Indian collapse continue.

You go in with an extra bowler (Irfan Pathan in place of injured Tendulkar) and when you know that the pitch has slight grass on it and may favor bowlers, what in God's name was Kumble thinking when he decided to bat first?

I was lucky not to be watching that horrifying display of dismal batting by Indian team. It is going to be a tragic and humiliating defeat for India. A defeat that will haunt them for a long time to come. (I wish my words aren't true and some miracle happens and India saves the match. But those kinds of miracles rarely happen.)

[Image Source: http://www.cooqy.com/blog/images/shame.jpg]

Orkut's April Fool Prank ?

We saw Gmail's custom time april fool prank. I noticed Orkut's prank too this morning. Look at the circled part on top left of this image! Funny :)

P.S. some parts of the page are grayed out for privacy purposes

Is the art greater than the artist?

I had a long discussion with my uncle yesterday about this. Is the art greater than the artist? Should we neglect personal flaws and evils of an artist and appreciate his/her art?

The discussion/debate started with V. S. Naipaul. As you all know, he is a Nobel laureate for literature. I highly admire his writing skills and have read many of his works. The point of discussion was his confessions in his biography The World Is What It Is, about abusing his wife. He says "I think that consumed her. I think she had all the relapses and everything after that. She suffered. It could be said that I killed her. It could be said. I feel a little bit that way".

His wife Patricia, was suffering from cancer. Naipaul confesses of inflicting mental cruelty on her. Naipaul blatantly boasted of extra-marital affairs and visiting prostitutes in one of his interviews and this humiliation and stress caused severe downfall of Patricia's health.

The question is, 'Is it moral to continue to admire the author once you know how horrible his personal life is?'

I took the stand of placing art higher than an individual. I argued that I would still continue to read his work and admire him because of his literary works and not personal life.

But the crimes that he has committed towards an innocent, suffering woman are really despicable. I wish he were as good a person as a writer.

Down memory lane: Remembering the visit to Kolkata

I have not written many travelogues. But out of nowhere came the desire to write a few lines about my experience in Kolkata. Some places are like magnets. They compel you to make visits again and again. Kolkata visit has had similar effects on me. I have fallen in love with that place in just one visit. Quite frankly I don't know the reason. It's certainly not the most beautiful place I have visited. Neither do I have any relations there. Yet the strong emotional attachment that I feel towards it and my desire to visit it again is indeed intriguing.

The exact dates that I visited Kolkata fail my memory. I think it was about 5-6 years ago. I remember taking the books along for studies. I still regret spending hours inside my hotel room preparing for the exams and missing the beauty of that foreign land. My sister was to deliver her classical-vocal performance at a contest (which she eventually won) there at Ramkrishna Mission, Kolkata and that was what prompted the visit.

Kolkata is a place full of extremes. It has an aura of its own. It does not have modernity of Mumbai but has its own rich cultural heritage. People are busy just like any other metro city but they have time to appreciate beauty of art and music. I am amazed by the number of artists and musicians come out of this region. It certainly runs in their blood. Despite being a metro city, it does not have the arrogance like Delhi (No offense intended towards Delhites). You can feel the sweetness in nature of people you meet.



My visit coincided with Doorga Pooja, known as just 'Pooja'. It is the biggest festival in Bengal and Kolkata was adorned like a bride for the occasion. All the streets were decorated with lighting and sweet Bengali music and the fragrance of sweets filled the air. The atmosphere was electrifying around us.



I found the city lazy. I am not sure if it was a norm or just an exception but I saw many shops and offices, even private closing strictly at 5 in the evening. The areas I visited had a large population of blue collar workers and thus the road-side eating joints were crowded for the evening tea and supper. You could buy a meal in Rs. 4 (10 cents). At the other end of the city, in areas like Esplanade and Park street, you could see the young upper-middle class people eating in McDonald and shopping in one of the most swanky shopping malls.



The roads are eternally jammed and they look like a sea full of yellow-top taxis. As long as your sight can reach , you can see nothing on the roads but taxis. The traffic jams are so bad in some areas that I remember getting out of taxi in the middle of the road and start walking.



This was the first time I experienced Metro rail (The second time being in NY last summer). I was really impressed by the efficiency with which the metro runs. Also, the underground stations are quite clean and modernized. There are large, fascinating murals on the walls of these stations like those of Tagore at the station named 'Rabindra Sadan'. It is an amazing view while riding when the train emerges from underground to the street level near the Dum-dum airport station. Looks like a gladiator entering the arena!



There are a lot of Victorian style buildings with red bricks. They stand as the reminder of colonialism and Raj. Along the similar lines, I must add that 'Babu' culture (Attitude of bureaucrats as if they are 'the higher living beings') is still prevalent here. You see loads of chauffeur driven Ambessadors on roads. With the 'Sahib' sitting in the back seat.



Other most vivid memories include our visit to Bellur Math. This is an ashram built by Swami Vivekanand, on the banks of the sacred Ganga. The peaceful environment has amazingly refreshing effects on mind. You feel ethereal sacredness floating around you. Eternal bliss. A momentary feeling of Nirvana.

The last memories of Kolkata I have is seeing waves of peasants and workers heading to the railway station. The driver told us that all these people live in nearby rural areas like Howra and they take trains to arrive in Kolkata to work. They start their day at 5 in the morning and when we saw them returning, it was already 8.30 at night.

I know there was no significantly unique experience in this visit. It looked just like another one week trip to an unknown place. But yet it has had lasting impression on my mind. I have fallen in love with that place. After that visit, I have read numerous Bengali authors. Whenever I see a book set in Bengal, I instantly buy it. This includes books by Tagore, Sankar, Amitav Ghosh and so on.

Mysterious, spellbinding, simple and lovely. I would summarize my impression of Kolkata with these four words.

[Image sources:

http://galen-frysinger.com/india/calcutta01.jpg
http://www.clayimage.co.uk/Dasmi.jpg
http://www.urbanrail.net/as/calc/calcutta-tollygunge1.jpg
http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:JxbaRI-Q1xSkxM:http://lh3.google.com/
_MdMP4fNXkng/RpXs5ksQEoI/AAAAAAAABAw/LIdVUim955g/s800/Picture%2B003.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y176/Photobarnaul/Tomsk/P1020358.jpg
http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2007/10/15/Kolkata_wideweb__470x304,0.jpg
]

Anatomy of Deception by Lawrence Goldstein: Book Review

Real characters in history woven in the net of a mysterious fictional plot. That is Anatomy of Deception. Part history, part fiction, this book is an absolute delight to read. This was the first book of its kind I have read.

The book is set in late 19th century in the Medical School, Philadelphia. The characters in the book include legendary doctors like Dr. William Halstead and Dr. William Osler. Their personalities have been depicted just as they were. But the circumstances surrounding them in the novel are fictional. The story revolves around the murders of a doctor and a young girl from an affluent family of Philadelphia. A young successful doctor, Dr. Carrol takes it up to him to solve the mystery of these two deaths and finds himself caught in the net of deception. Should he trust his own colleagues? Should he trust 'The Professor' who has been his guiding light in his professional as well as personal life?

The aura created resembles that present in Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie novels. The places include dark alleys, grave yards, morgue rooms of hospitals, palatial homes and so on. Characters include some legendary doctors, a ruffian immoral medical student, a diligent and committed medical professional, blue blood families of America at that time, some tough-nut mafia dons and so on. A perfect set up for a suspense thriller. Anatomy of Deception has it all.

But what stands out in Lawrence Goldstein's novel is seamlessly woven facts about the early history of medicine in America. Details about various inventions and discoveries, made by accident or otherwise have been integrated as part of the novel. Those related to medical profession or study will indeed find it very informative. And yes, these details are not fiction. They indeed happened the way it has been portrayed.

The novel is written as first person narrative. So those of you who don't prefer to read this kind of style might find it as a put-off. But I assure you, the writing style is indeed flawless. It's gripping and entertaining. A perfect material to arouse your curiosity about history of medical profession in America. If you haven't tried this genre, I would strongly advise you to go to your nearest book store (The nearest being the computer you are reading this blog on - Amazon ) and grab a copy of it. Enjoy.

Links to some characters in the book:
Dr. Osler: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Osler
Dr. Halstead: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Stewart_Halsted

[P.S. Thanks a ton Niki, for such a wonderful gift]

[Image source: http://forum.connpost.com/joe/images/anatomy.gif]

Hushh.. little baby don't you cry, everything is gonna be alright ...

Flight was about to take off. Lucy was quietly playing with her Penguin toy that I bought her at the airport. I tightened her seat-belt. She looked up suddenly and said, 'Daddy, when will we see Mommy?'.

'Mommy will be at Phoenix airport, sweetheart. You are going to see her as soon as we land', I assured her. She gave a faint smile and got herself engaged in playing with her Penguin again.

'Daddy, when will I see you again?', she asked again looking up. My heart sank at the question. How was I going to explain to her that she was not going to see her parents together ever? 'You will come to see me during the summer, sweety' and I tried to look away, trying to escape the questions in her eyes. She held my hand tight and asked, 'Why?. Why will you not be with me and Mommy in Phoenix?'.

'Because Daddy and Mommy are not going to live together, honey. But you as soon as the summer arrives, you will come to Daddy and we will spend time together. Daddy will take you to the park and you can play on the slides and swings. Daddy will bring you ice cream and chocolates. But first you must be a good girl and spend time with your Mommy.', I said with a heavy heart, trying hard to keep my gaze into her uncertain eyes.

'Will Mommy come with me to see you then?'
'No sweetheart, Mommy will not see Daddy. You will come alone. Daddy and Mommy will not meet each other.'
'But why Daddy? Why?'

And a tear rolled down her left cheek. It has always been like this with her. It is always the left eye which gives way to her tears first. And she started sobbing then. Pressing her head against my chest and curling her little arms around me. I did not know how to comfort her. I did not have logical answers to her 'Whys'. I did not know what went wrong. All I know is Lucy did not deserve this.

I held her tight. Trying to calm her sobbing. The deep humming of the airplane engine went on in the background.


P.S. - Inspired by a little girl and her father, sitting next to me in one of the flights I took once. The conversation didn't take place actually. Just a work of fiction.

[Image Source: http://lh4.google.com/ericandamos/RfXMDzT7odI/AAAAAAAAAWE/
_bYT12yy5aE/IMG_2305bw.jpg?imgmax=512]

Why SRK is the King of Bollywood

I decided to post something lighter on blog today. And it couldn't have been better. I was surfing IBNLive this morning and came across this little chit-chat and taunting between Amir Khan and Shahrukh Khan that is going on these days in Bollywood. Amir had asked SRK 'How it felt to be No. 2'. SRK replied in a press conference saying "I just want to tell you, Aamir is a dear friend of mine and if he has thought that I am second to him, it's a great compliment to me."

War of words boomeranged on Amir himself. Dear Amir, you can't beat SRK in any department, be it acting, humor or personality. So it's about time you stopped attempting! SRK is and will be the 'King Khan'

Article at:
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/
srk-says-thanks-to-aamirs-no-2-remark---aamirs-dig/61097-8.html

Image Source:
http://static.ibnlive.com/pix/sitepix/02_2008/srk_aamir_pic248.jpg

Movie Review - Michael Clayton

Ever since A Civil Action and Erin Brockovich, if you have been waiting for a good legal drama, your wait is over. Michael Clayton is undoubtedly one of the finest dramas of this year. Written and directed by Tony Gilroy (The screenplay writer of The Bourne movies), MC is gripping, thought provoking and a perfect crime drama.

George Clooney plays a lawyer/deal-maker in a large law-firm in NY city. A case that his firm is handling, involving a corporation, goes awry and he is called in to clean up. Things get nasty as he learns the truth behind the corporation and their tactics. Three fourth of the movie runs in flashback and then in the final piece of drama, the story springs back into present. The climax is one of the best in class and leaves the viewers smiling, amazed.

George Clooney once again proves why he is the boss in hollywood. Calm yet passionate, unpredictable and intense. Clooney literally lives his character. The intensity with which he acts puts him class apart from other actors. The camera work, lighting, motion and sound all remind me of The Bourne series. The only difference is that it is not as fast moving as Bourne yet equally enjoyable, even more so to some extent.

There have been a lot of movies about the 'the evil corporations'. This movie is also similar. But it views the story from a more humane perspective. The 'blind zones' created by the scriptwriter make the movie much more thrilling to watch. Total lack of predictability makes it a perfect thriller.


If it is running in any theater near you, go and watch it. I regret not watching this movie in theater. I am sure it would have been worth every minute and dollar spent on it

My First Rental Car in US

After two attempts at driving test, a few weeks ago, I finally managed to get the Driver's License here in Arizona. Special thanks to Qadirbhai for his relentless efforts, his time, his guidance and his car. And also Akshay and Samba for taking me for practice!

Unlucky that I am, I flunked the test in first attempt because I was 'under-speeding'. I was going at the speed of 25mph where the limit was 35mph. And the officer who was taking my test, failed me. Aah, felt bad. Then next week again, Akshay and I went to the DMV but it was a holiday. Third week of waiting and again came Saturday. Qadirbhai was back in the instructor's seat and we went for the second attempt. And this time I made it! Perfection eluded me even then and I lost 8 points for using wrong lane. But because it was more than 80% overall, they passed me.

Equipped with the 'License to Drive', I rented a car from Enterprise here for the first time over this weekend. I had asked for a standard sized sedan and what they gave me was this!



On second thought, this was not bad! They upgraded my request from standard to SUV as they didn't have any standard sized cars. And as I had not driven a SUV before, I was a bit hesitant. But looking back, it was fun driving this Jeep for 3 days.

My iPhone was a great help in finding my way to places. The Google Maps and inbuilt GPS like function are fantastic. I realized true value of iPhone now! A funny incident happened when I got stuck at the gas station. I had no clue how to operate the pump so I asked someone who was filling up his bike. He explained to me the operation and then I managed to use it. (Ok, I know it sounds dumb but I tried to handle the pump myself and couldn't do it. So i had to ask !)

Geoffrey Boycott speaks

In an interview with Cricinfo when asked his choice of best all-rounder of all time.


"....[But] if I had to pick my greatest allrounders, No. 1 would be Sir Garfield Sobers. He is the best batsman I have ever seen. Obviously there have been other [great] batsmen, but I have only seen people in the last 30 or 40 years. He was a fantastic batsman. As a bowler, he could bowl these wrist-spinner chinamen and the orthodox left-arm, but when he bowled seam-up - and he only did that late in his career - as a left arm swing-seamer he was quite sharp. He was much sharper than Kallis is now, at about Kallis's pace when he [Kallis] was at his youngest and best. He [Sobers] swung it alarmingly and he was a fantastic bowler.

If I had to pick another one it would be Imran Khan. If you look at his record, he averages about 37 with the bat and he gets his wickets at about 23. He has been a match-winner for Pakistan and to top that there were his leadership qualities. The Pakistan side were sometimes a rag-tag and bobtail bunch who were either fighting among themselves or there were political things going on. But Imran could pull them all together and make them what they usually are: a very talented, world-beating side. Imran has got to be in there [in my top three allrounders].

The other great allrounder I have seen is Ian Botham. He was a swing bowler at his best. He had a narrow waist, big shoulders, big back side, a lot of power and pace, and he could get right around and bowl outswingers at pace. A very aggressive bowler. He got his wickets cheaply, and then he was an exciting batman. To top that, he could catch at slip - he was brilliant.

I forgot about Sobers: he was a brilliant catcher too.

You've asked me three and I've given you three but I'd like to add one name to that. A man I didn't see but one I've read a lot about would be Keith Miller. Miller was one of the great, exciting cricketers - and I use the word "great" properly - of all time. You ask people who saw him bowl. With [Ray] Lindwall and Miller, it was like lightning. Miller bowled people out with fast, genuinely fast bowling. He was an aggressive, attacking batsman as well as a carefree individual. You ask someone like Richard Benaud and he just rolls his eyes - he thinks Miller was fantastic."

[Article at: http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/talk/content/multimedia/341141.html?view=transcript]

Business or Human Lives? What a no-brainer !

Sure Southwest Airlines would have thought this when they flew the 'unsafe' planes as shown in the following report and made sure that their business and flight-schedule remained intact .

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/03/06/southwest.planes/index.html

A befitting reply

They called Harbhajan Singh 'An obnoxious little weed'. They alleged him of racial abuse. The crowd booed him on the field. Ponting said 'They should look at their own backyard'. The entire Australian team was high on the spirit and ecstasy of arrogance. But the 'Men in Blue' did not lose focus. They were committed to answer the sledging and taunts of Australian in a befitting manner. And they did it yesterday. India won the CB series after defeating Aus in two straight finals. The series and the final was very remarkable in cricketing history for a variety of reasons.

I watched the entire match (Thanks to Sopcast!) after a long long time. And it was worth every minute spent watching it. Some of the highlights of yesterday's match.

- A brilliant, patient and classy knock by Sachin. But once again he became the victim of 'Nervous 90s'
- Sachin toppled Ponting to become No. 1 in ICC ranking
- Praveen Kumar was flawless. Some of his 'Leg break' type deliveries were just marvelous. He uses his wrist brilliantly to swing the ball both ways. He is one of the finds of the series
- Fielding of Indian side was very tight led by athletics of Yuvraj Singh on the field
- Dhoni has proved himself a very calm, composed and calculative captain who knows how to use his bowlers, not to mention his 'Lead by example' style both behind the wicket with his gloves and in front of it with his bat. It looked as if he has more than a decade of captaincy experience
- Despite of Srisanth's total lack of confidence, he held his nerves very well to deliver some very good overs in the slog overs time
- Symonds and Hayden both once again fell victim to Harbhajan. My advice to them, instead of targeting Harbhajan personally, focus more on his bowling and try to get over 'Harbhajanofobia'
- A very hilarious scene when a nude spectator ran down to the middle of the pitch. He approached Symonds with full force and momentum, but strong as a bullock he is, Symonds just stood there and the spectator bumped into him and fell hard flat on the ground. A display of enormous strength!
- A bit unfortunate for Sachin, but Praveen Kumar indeed deserved the Man of the Match award

[Image Source: http://www.ibnlive.com/photogallery/740-0.html#view_start]

The BOSS speaks... with his bat

I have never been a fan of Sachin myself. But irrespective of that, I consider him the greatest cricketer who has lived the game. Silencing his critics, Sachin tore the Australian defense in the first final and allowed the Indian side to cruise to a much needed victory. Some of his characteristic drives and those cheeky sweeps mark his fabulous innings. Have a look!

Garfield ... The Real One !!

The cat in my apartment complex. She is so very cute. Whenever I sit outside, she comes and sits besides me. Sweet :)

Elegant Pose, Eh!

Why are you staring at me?

I don't like to be photographed !

Where did you go?

I remember the times when
You and me were together
Where did you go my beloved
Can I not have you back?

Those parks and those slides
How we used to swing against the winds
Those stories and those songs
All faded in the darkness of past

Time heals so they say
But hurt is what it has given me
I want to halt this speeding life
And go back in time to meet you

I call out to you O' my Childhood
Where did you go?
Was it maturity who defeated you
Or was it you who betrayed me?

My Beloved Ahmedabad

Alive and Kicking
Rocking and Cheerful
Vibrant and Cozy
Safe and Charming
Rich and Forward looking

This is my city. This is my home.

I love you Ahmedabad ! And miss you too.

Whose fault is it?

(Indian IT Software and Services Industry US $ Billion)

AT WHAT COST ?

"We are under pressure, we need to push the limits and need to work harder. Guys (including gals), let's make sure we work at least 14 hours a day for sometime."

This is a dialogue from a project manager which should be familiar to all who work in Software Industry in India. The pressure never reduces. Days don't become shorter than 14 hours ever. And in a city as unsafe as Banglore and Delhi, women IT employees are the ones who suffer because of such attitude of management.

In 2005, a female employee working in HP at night shift was raped and murdered. In what can be called an eye opening judgment, the Karnataka High Court gave its verdict against Som Mittal who was HP's CEO then, charging him of negligence under Shops and Establishment act.

People might argue, a meager sum of Rs. 1000 as fine for Mittal as a punishment for a human life? The argument is indeed valid. The punishment is hardly anything in all practicality. But an important underlying issue is that the court recognized this as a problem and decreed that it is indeed a partial responsibility on the part of top bosses.

Many Indian IT companies have what I call pathetic HR practices. And I say this as I have worked in this industry for more than a couple of years and seen it happening. People are forced to work for 12-14 hours a day regularly and sometimes even more. The weekends are virtually non-existent. Woman employees are pressurized to work till late nights and even stay over night in the name of imminent delivery of product.

I have seen some project managers who would peep into an employee's mail box and would comment on personal mails if they see any. A newly wed friend of mine asked for a transfer because her husband was in another city. And the answer she got from the manager was, "You got married is your problem, not mine. I won't let you get a transfer"

Foul language, accusations, loud yells at the subordinates - all this is not a scene in any manufacturing shop floor. These are the scenes in a posh, centrally air conditioned and neat office space in a software company.

Who's to blame in this situation? Employees who are not committed to their work? Project managers who are constantly under pressure to get results? Sloppy hiring practices from recruitment? Senior management?

I see the problem manifold.

1. Top management is too obsessed with profit margins. They are so greedy to grab a deal that to reduce the cost estimates in a proposal, they would literally put half the effort actually required. What does this translate into?

'I will give you only 10 person months even though I know that you will need 20. Motivate your team and make them put a little more effort', says the project manager to a team leader. A little more effort? You are asking the employees to work double time.

I have seen this happen when I was a Project Lead for a project.

2. The top bosses set impossible targets for all the departments. So what do you do? You hire more people. But when you are given a target of hiring almost 4000-5000 employees in a quarter, your recruitment practices become sloppy. The talent level of work-force is compromised. And then you expect a mechanical or a civil engineer to pick up the pace in software development in a month or two. Is this realistic?

3. Middle level managers and team leaders are in a non-enviable position. They are pressurized from the top and even if they empathize with the employees below them, they are helpless. But what they should do is resist the force from above and at least make an attempt to shield the employees beneath them.

My plea to all such companies,
Before it is too late, please wake up and implement employee friendly policies. Don't treat employees as machines or slaves. If you want to spend time on the golf course and five star hotels' swimming pools, give at least a little time for the employees to take their meals with their families once a day.

P.S.
I do not want to mention any company's name here and if someone wants to infer my previous company by other means, I am not responsible. I have tried my best to protect my previous company's identity in this post.

HP Boss Guilty: Article link at
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/hp-bpo-rape-case-exboss-guilty-of-negligence/
59537-3.html

Image Source:
http://www.businessweek.com/adsections/indian/infotech/
2001/software_bar.jpg

Making Over Mumbai

An Article in Time

Click Here

A Google Horror Story

A must read
http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2008/02/08/a_google_horror.html

Equilibrium (2002) - Movie Review

There are some movies which pass both the tests. Giving entertainment as well as driving across a message. Equilibrium is one such movie. I did not have any great expectations from the movie and I started watching it with a skeptical note. What turned out to be was 100 minutes of absolutely thrilling and adrenalin pumping entertainment.

Equilibrium is a Sci-Fi/Thriller movie in which the story begins after the imaginary Third World War has destroyed the earth and a handful of people have survived. These people are ruled by an organization which claims to have eradicated woes and agony from the world by eliminating the core reason for it all. And that reason, they say is feelings. So they have developed a drug which eliminates feelings and emotions from a human. And feeling is considered a crime punishable to incineration. They call it sense-crime.

Christian Bale is one such commander (Cleric in the movie's lingo) who realizes the true importance of feelings. He realizes that without feelings, there is no meaning to life. And then he rebels against the empire.

The movie very delicately shows feelings creeping up on Bale. Little things like a puppy's love for him make him realize that without feeling the life is not lived but just existed. Some dialogues too grab attention of a true movie lover. Like when Marie says to him "Without love, breath is just a clock .. ticking away.. " Some of the Matrix-like action scenes deserve loud applause. Bale has done a good job in acting.

IMDB review at http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0238380/

[Image Source: http://www.wallpaperbase.com/wallpapers/movie/
equilibrium/equilibrium_1.jpg]

In Rainbow

This picture was taken a couple of days ago from my department building at University of Arizona. The picture does not look even half as gorgeous as the actual sight.

[P.S. The name of the post alludes to In Rainbows album by Radiohead that I have been listening to since morning. And as a side note, those of you who love Brit Rock and Alternative, you should check out this album. All Radiohead fans like me would be obviously aware of it.]

Without love, breath is just a clock ... ticking away ...
- From the movie 'Equilibrium'

Why I hate Yahoo Mail !

Every single day Mr. Abrahim Musa remembers me from 'His Desk' at International Bank of Africa and sends an email to me. He is supposedly an Auditing and Accounting Manager there. His problem is, his client has left a few million dollars in his bank and he is supposedly dead. Now he wants to be so nice as to give a piece of that to me. And he will help me establish myself as the dead man's Business Partner and help me get the money out of his bank. Very kind of him, I must say!

Also, every day, the manager of UK National Lottery is relentlessly trying to make me rich by making me win his lottery. They want all my contact information and they are so responsible that they put a notice at the end of the mail saying 'The information will be kept secret'. Secret from whom Mr Manager?

Another some Mr. Ousmane from Bank of Africa has the same problem as Mr. Musa. I wonder how so many wealthy old people died all of a sudden leaving their wealth in Bank of Africa. And this bank is in some place called OUAGADOUGOU , BURKINA FASO. Oh, by the way, Mr Musa also works at the same bank! (Surprise !!)

I don't know why Yahoo Mail's spam-guard (if there exists any) is so dumb. Every time I see one such mail, I tag it as 'Spam'. And still Yahoo Mail is not able to remember that just yesterday I had tagged this type of mail as Spam and there is not even a remote possibility that I would consider Mr. Musa's offer today after denying it for so long.

Speculations about Microsoft taking over Yahoo does not lessen my worries. I have never used Microsoft mail. And I am not sure about their anti-spam capabilities either.

I always fancy that given a chance to punish all the spammers of the world one day, I would hand out a 30 years imprisonment to every one of them. This 30 years period is significant and I have spent considerable amount of time on arriving at this number. The reasons why it has to be 30 years are manifold.

1. Spending 30 years in prison, the spammers would lose all the enthusiasm and energy to do their evil deeds of spamming innocent people like me.

2. There might be spammers whose evil may not have been eroded with time and age. But in 30 years, the technology would have changed so much that they will have hard time learning the ropes of spamming in those days.

3. And most importantly, in 30 years, I would be old enough and will not be using emails so often and thus I would not have to worry much.

P.S. while I am writing, Microsoft Promotions has sent me an email saying I have won 1 Million pounds.

Fun

Funny cartoons about Google and MS/Yahoo

Click Here

Darn !

Iron Maiden are performing in Mumbai on Friday, 1st Feb ! How I wish I were in India :(

[Image Source: http://alcamusicgames.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/
iron_maiden2tifbig1.jpg]

Blessings

I take a deep breath and inhale the fresh air deep till the lungs cry out 'No more'.
The clouds are sailing in the background of a light blue sky.
The trees are divine after a sacred bath.

I look up to the heavens and say, "Touch me O' Almighty. Bless Thy child."
And I feel the drops of rain streaming down my face.



[Image Source: http://www.praktica-users.com/img/pics/
mk_raindrops.jpg]

Something to smile about

The Teaching Assistant evaluations by my students of last semester has arrived. The subject was Analysis of Discrete Structures. Here are a few comments from them. I feel grateful. Thanks guys!


"Excellent TA, one of the best I have had"

"Thanks for all the work you put in"

"Very helpful with the homework. Thanks!"

"Great grading, very prompt and contains good explanation, Thank you"

"Our TA's were very helpful and made appointments outside usual office hours monitored the newsgroups carefully etc. I would like to have Bhavin as a TA again. Bhavin seems to know everything"

Time

And you run and you run to catch up with the sun, but its sinking
And racing around to come up behind you again
The sun is the same in the relative way, but youre older

Shorter of breath and one day closer to death

- Time, Pink Floyd

Thank you Mr. Bloomberg

[New York] Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is testing his appeal nationwide as an independent leader, outlined a bipartisan agenda in his State of the City address Thursday, including some tough new law enforcement measures, a major tax cut and expanded social services.

.....In his address on Thursday, Bloomberg took veiled jabs at the declared presidential candidates, some of whom he has criticized in the past for being anti-immigrant.

At the start of his speech, he introduced several immigrant families who live in New York City and hail from Colombia, China, India and Italy, and said: "To those who are wailing against immigration, to those politicians who, all of a sudden, have embraced xenophobia, I say, 'Open your eyes. Take a look behind me. This is what makes America great.'''

[Article at http://www.1010wins.com/Mayor-Bloomberg-Delivers-
State-of-the-City-Address/1494366]

Run for cover

It is a dark night. There are so many people around me. All of us are huddled into some kind of a giant hall. There is pretty much nothing else in the room except windows.

The windows are open. But I think there is a lot of wind coming from outside which is making the windows smash on the frames. I feel cold too.

All the people have frightened look on their face. I don't quite understand what is going on around. And all of a sudden it starts to rain. It is raining fire from above. I see bright yellow fire balls coming down on us. And along with that there are bullets. It is unimaginably scary shower of fire and bullets whizzing past us.

People start running around like crazy. "Run for cover.. run for cover", I shout. People are stumbling on each other.

And before it could conclude, my eyes opened. Heartbeats racing and a dull trace of headache.

Not a very pleasant start of the day today for me!

A close call - Kahani Ek Damaged Passport Ki

"Hi, Good morning", I greeted her with my usual warm and affectionate smile. The official behind Korean Air's desk at the Mumbai International airport was a young, genial looking lady. "Good morning", returning my greeting with a reciprocative smile said she.

She took my passport in her hands and looked at her with a bit of puzzlement on her face. She called a man who looked to be in charge at the Korean Air area at the airport and gave him my passport. The man looks at it and says, "Sorry, but we can't allow you to fly without Immigration clearance of your passport. It is the case of damaged passport"

Darn, I cursed under my breath and looked at the passport. The lamination of the back page had been torn off and the page was exposed. Everything else looked in place. My negligence, I thought; I should never have kept the passport in my pocket. But I had not realized the gravity of the situation until I went to speak to the Immigration officer.

"Good morning sir", I started, "This is my passport and the Korean air people think it is a case of damaged passport and they want your nod before they can issue me a ticket"

The officer takes the passport in his hands and says

"Nahi ho sakta. Yeh to bilkul fat gaya hai. You can't travel with this passport"

I can't say I have never felt helpless and hopeless like this but this surely was one of those incidents in which your mind blanks out for a few seconds.

"Sir please. I am a student. My flight takes off in a couple of hours and I have to fly. I have no other way"
"Nahi ho sakta. Impossible hai. Agar humne yaha se permission de di to aapko aage jake problem hoga aur humko bhi musibat hogi fir"
"Sir you show me a way. What should I do now?"
"Cancel karva do ticket"
"Sir ticket to refundable nahi hai"
"Sorry. Bola na aapko nahi ho sakta kuchh bhi"

Now I had realized the pathetic situation I was in. Trying to find a reasonable argument, I worked out various scenarios in my mind as to how to go back to Ahmedabad, how to book a new ticket and so on. I continued,

"Sir aap apne sahab ko puchh lo ek baar. Unke paas koi raasta hoga. Please aap meri situation samjo. Yeh abhi Ahmedabad-Mumbai flight mein hi hua hai. It was not like this before I boarded the plane from there. It got damaged in my pocket on the flight"

"Thik hai, puchh leta hun", and he goes inside to meet his boss. A few seconds passed and I saw him coming out of his boss's office. My heart raced at the speed of a Ferrari.

"Impossible hai", and my heart sank. "Sahab bol rahe hai nahi ho sakta. Yeh bilkul damage ho chuka hai and we can't do anything. Naya passport banva lo"
"Sir, naya passport to kaise banva lun abhi. Usme to time jayega and I have to reach my college. Please aap kuchh kijiye". Now I had almost lost all hopes but yet I hung around for those last desperate few moments. As if waiting for the last and final blow in a fight.


"Sir please. Kuchh karo aap"
"Thik hai, jaao flight ke representative ko bula ke lao yaha pe"

Hearing this, I felt like a loosing boxer who got an unexpected time-out from the match referee.
I rushed to Korean desk and asked that person who had sent me to Immigration to come with me and deal with the situation. He looked uncertain but certainly unhappy with this. He clearly did not want to get involved. Helping a troubled man was not to his liking for sure. He mumbled something and called out another person to go with me. He turned out to be a real kind hearted man. He came along with me to the Immigration and met with the boss there, indicating to me when to speak, when to follow the boss, where to stand and so on. He certainly seemed to know the ways of bureaucracy.

"Why are you going to US"
"I am a student sir, I study at University of Arizona"
"What do you study"
"Masters in Computer Science"

He walks away to some immigration booth. This was definitely a positive sign. More time indicated less probability of rejection. He spent about 5 minutes there, came back and handed my passport to that Korean air guy and whispered to him about signing some agreement.

"Ho gaya hai. It's okey", he came to me, smiled and said.
"You just need to sign an agreement saying 'Korean air is not liable' for this"

Whatever. Let me out of here, I thought. So finally I signed that agreement and got my boarding pass. I almost flew away from there without looking back. Lest they change their mind and call me back.

Throughout the flight the thought of having problems at the LA immigration check troubled me. I have done nothing wrong and it happened while I was in flight, I kept convincing myself.

Luckily the immigration officer didn't seem to be bothered about that page of the passport and I had no trouble clearing the immigration.

Happy ending to a tense situation. Thank God for that. It reminded me of those trying moments during my visa interview where I had to struggle for more than an hour and thirty minutes to convince the visa people of genuineness of my case and establish my credibility.


P.S.

My sheer dislike for travel is not unjustified. I always get my checked in baggage in the end after every bag has arrived on the carousel. Whenever there is a connecting flight, the two gates are separated by at least a mile's distance which I have to walk. I hate packing. I dread those narrow seats and small legrooms on the flight. How I wish I could avoid those long queues at security check in and avoid the trouble of emptying everything on your body except clothes (Thank God and American Government for that). And now this incident!

[Image Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_passport]