Waiting for the Australian GP
Stupid move by the sarkari types - they banned all sportspersons from adorning the national flag! Funnily - Narain could havbe claimed that the chakra his helmet sported was not even the flag - I mean they cannot ban all things saffron white and green ?
Update from the Moscow Launch
The Car Apparently its an EJ13 from 2 years ago. Should say the TATA logo has been kept tastefully subtle yet noticeable.
Karthikeyan news
Mobile again, car getting ready
Got a Sony Ericsson T230 so am connected again. Wanted to get pretty much the cheapest I could find - too much of a loss last weekend. Silver lining - its way better so far than the previous handset I had - the Motorola c350.
Car guys said they might get it done with tomorrow! Things are looking up - and we may actually have a release today at work too.
Hope ?
There might still be hope for worklife sanity ? But again, will Indians even speak of this ? Mostly if you mention work/life balance issues - the assumption is you do not want to put in work! I think I should start saying life/work balance instead.
Of late, I have felt guilty about 'not being in office'...
Eyes wide open -
Think I should get that eye checkup done. The headache is a permanent thing now. So insurance claims, eye chkeckups, replacement SIM etc - life is beautiful. Especially with the current battles on the work front ! Someday this will all improve.
What a start to a weekend...Bang!
Was terribly stressed on Friday evening but got better when we went out for dinner to the Country Club - tho the drive sucked the evening was nice. Followed that up with poori aloo next morning - and then a quick trip to MegaMart for cheap clothes for all - after which Shubha and Sarika bought stuff at a very nice place called Pari's across the road from Megamart.
We then had a bit to eat ay Woody's and all felt ok with the world - and at the next stop I realized I'd forgotten my cellphone for the first time in my life! Started back to look for it in all the places we had visted - no luck at Woody's. Got back to the car - opened the door to start to get in and BANG! A bike's crash guard rammed into the door and the guy scooted even as I collected my wits - he must have passed within 2 inches of me! Now the door would not shut - Ramesh who had come along to help look for the phone helped me somehow get it closed a bit but it would not lock. Passed the seatbely through it and went looking for the phone anyway - no luck at all.Good bargains on the clothes but magnitudes more lost on the repairs+phone - Vijay Auto on Bannerghata road gave me an estimate of 7500/- + parts at least.
Ramesh and I pondered over tea how needlessly complicated and involved life has gotten - and perhaps happiness lies elsewhere ...
Update :
Insurance claim forms were filled smoother than I expected - perhaps I've become a little more negative than I need to be about suchlike.
New SIM card for the cellphone took only 10 minutes at the Airtel office.
Will probably get car only on Sunday :( (the final estimate was 13k not 10!!)
Bangalore is getting more alive
Concerts, Aero Shows, plays are adding colour to geek-town. After Sting, Mark Knopfler is to perform at Palace Grounds on the 7th of March. As one of my friends commented - its become Bangalore and Delhi now, not Bombay for concerts etc!
However, you just have to be very determined to want to go these. The traffic kills the spirit of it all - read on.
However, you just have to be very determined to want to go these. The traffic kills the spirit of it all - read on.
Bangalore is Imploding
M.G.Road to Arekere took over 2 hors last evening! We found infinite traffic jams in Viveknagar, Maruthinagar and of course Bannerghata road. Either telecommuting is going to be adopted and built into our work culture, or its going to get forced down out throats by a couple of massive gridlocks.
Narain K to F1-ly with Team Jordan
Narain Karthikeyan has done it! He's one of Jordan's 2 drivers for the 2005 season and has been making news ever since he signed the deal. He's taken to the new Toyota engined car Jordan are racing this year. March 6 and every Sunday from then should see all the F1 affinciados glued to the telly, and a lot of hectic acticvity for ad-spots during the races.
On the same note, the new F1 rules seem more field-leveling and test the whole car and longer term strategy rather than just pure horsepower.
On the same note, the new F1 rules seem more field-leveling and test the whole car and longer term strategy rather than just pure horsepower.
Oracle Layoffs at Bangalore
A lot of my friends took a hit at the Bangalore layoffs - and I'm not yet sure how many. This whole Peoplesoft buyout episode has got Oracle some real bad press and employees a lot of unnecessary hardship. A lot of these guys were real hardworking, committed people doing a great job working on successful projects! Is it merely for the few cents that the stock will gain for a brief time over this quarter or the next ?
It begs the question - what do employers really expect when they ask for ownership and commitment ? Is sounds like a very unfair one-way deal. At least in India people are not that great at handling these situations, and a lot many will become that bit more risk averse.
Guys like Infy and Wipro hire people and match them upto available work (and Tisco and Tata Motors have been in that mode for generations). Laying of someone is under extreme duress for these orgs - unlike the MNCs who hire people for specific tasks. Which mode is better is up for grabs - but at the moment it does feel like a guy would want to invest more commitment to someone who's in with them for the long haul.
All the best to all those guys who bore the brunt of this - hope you come out of this better. I know a lot of you guys needed to be in better jobs anyway.
It begs the question - what do employers really expect when they ask for ownership and commitment ? Is sounds like a very unfair one-way deal. At least in India people are not that great at handling these situations, and a lot many will become that bit more risk averse.
Guys like Infy and Wipro hire people and match them upto available work (and Tisco and Tata Motors have been in that mode for generations). Laying of someone is under extreme duress for these orgs - unlike the MNCs who hire people for specific tasks. Which mode is better is up for grabs - but at the moment it does feel like a guy would want to invest more commitment to someone who's in with them for the long haul.
All the best to all those guys who bore the brunt of this - hope you come out of this better. I know a lot of you guys needed to be in better jobs anyway.
morning commute stress....
These days I take the company cab, and leave home around 8am to catch it at East End upto where I drive. But even so twice this week have reached office in a daze, tired and sleepy!
Even this morning blew it so easily and felt extremely stressed just because Akshat got a couple of minutes late for his car ride to school. I guess need a break and need to slow down - but there is no scope for that right now with the new project etc.
Life has to improve. Chittappa's bypass has also got me a little worried about where we're headed - food, stress and unhealthy lifestyles.
Even this morning blew it so easily and felt extremely stressed just because Akshat got a couple of minutes late for his car ride to school. I guess need a break and need to slow down - but there is no scope for that right now with the new project etc.
Life has to improve. Chittappa's bypass has also got me a little worried about where we're headed - food, stress and unhealthy lifestyles.
Bannerghata Road exists!
Last evening the stretch in front of IIM got redone with fresh macadam - right upto the Arekere gate intersection! Maybe, just maybe the traffic there will improve. Of course, the users (including I) need to improve their driving style a lot before this can happen.
Now all that remains are small patches, and of course interconnections with Hosur road.
Trans Indus not accessible any more :(
Just got to know from some friends that Trans Indus is off limits to non-residents since the last couple of months. Used to love going there for early morn breakfast and Rainseed concerts.
Alumni meet and Coffee House treat
The BITOSA chapter of Bangalore finally got going - Dr. Pandey himself attended the gathering and the overall response was huge - more than 290 registrations from the first to the most recent batch!
I met people I'd never imagined I'd meet again - or recognise :)
Ramesh, Swayambhu and I went to India Coffee House - after ages! After Barista and Coffee day and the like, this was a refreshing change. Apparently its managed as a co-operative run by the waiters etc - after the government first decided to sell it off because of low profitability! We discussed our mid-life crises and how the continuous corporate cauldrons over 8 years had sucked the life force out of us and all we were left with was this uneasy unhappy feeling in the background.
We are approaching middle age rapidly :)
Came home after that - a day of low traffic and no 'value-add' - need more such.
I met people I'd never imagined I'd meet again - or recognise :)
Ramesh, Swayambhu and I went to India Coffee House - after ages! After Barista and Coffee day and the like, this was a refreshing change. Apparently its managed as a co-operative run by the waiters etc - after the government first decided to sell it off because of low profitability! We discussed our mid-life crises and how the continuous corporate cauldrons over 8 years had sucked the life force out of us and all we were left with was this uneasy unhappy feeling in the background.
We are approaching middle age rapidly :)
Came home after that - a day of low traffic and no 'value-add' - need more such.
We're us
From two individuals who came to Bangalore way back then - in '96 - to start a life on their own and grow with IT here, we've come a long way to a family of nearly four now - a little cynical, a little soft in the belly, and a little worried about where life in this city is headed.
This is a random one about us, our journey along with this city.
Oh yes - the coffee is great ....
This is a random one about us, our journey along with this city.
Oh yes - the coffee is great ....
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