Ramblings Of A Technician

5 Days Of Campus Connect Programs

2011-09-19T04:47:00.000-07:00

I am indeed blessed to be a part of this WONDERFUL team that does a lot of the Soft (LIFE) Skills programs. As a result of this, I get to travel to a number of colleges & interact with the wonderful youngsters. I would like to share a few incidents here which have touched me.

The first college that I did this program for is SJCIT in Chikkaballapura, a bustling city close to Bangalore. On the first day of introductions, there was a boy in my class who said his hobby was smoking & drinking. On the fifth day he came to me & said 'Sir, I'd like to change' & I suggested a few things to him. I went back to the college after about 3-4 months & this boy came running to me & said; 'Sir, I've quit smoking & drinking & I now have taken an interest in my studies'. This incident took me upto cloud nine :).

A couple of years later, I was back in SJCIT & it was for a different group of people. Oh boy! After the first couple of days, these wonderful people made me feel REALLY special. On the last day, they gifted me a BEAUTIFUL tie & an awesome pen set, which are one of my favourites!

Soon after, I travelled to Mysore to do a program in VVCE. These AWESOME youngsters really treated me like I was some kind of a super star! The painting that these guys gave me is nestled safely in my cupboard & is the first thing that I see when I open my cupboard :)

The most recent program was in Kumbalagodu at VKIT. These LOVELY people treated me like I was a member of a royal family...... The photo of Lord Ganesha adorns the wall & is the first thing that people see when entering the house 'I am touched' ;)

Each one of these college students has really touched me in a way that I can never forget & all the praise & all those testimonials that these guys speak on the stage really makes me wonder; 'have I really done this?'

You guys are all VERY special to me & you all would remain in my memory always......

Just a change in perspective......

2011-08-20T10:23:00.000-07:00

You tell a small child to not play in the mud. What do you think the child will do? EXACTLY the opposite. It will play in the mud. Why, if someone tells us ‘don’t think of a dog’ what do you think comes to our mind? Definitely, a dog. Of course, for each one of us it may be a different dog. For someone it may be a Labrador, for someone a street dog & so on, but still it will be the picture of a dog nevertheless. The point is, the more we focus on what we don’t want, the more we WILL keep getting it. Now why is this important for us to remember? The more we think of ABOLISHING corruption, the more it WILL persist. Please don’t get me wrong here, I am not in favour of giving bribes or whatever. In fact, I am of the strong opinion that all the corrupt ministers & bureaucrats must have their bloody b@!!$ chopped off with a knife & made to die a slow death. To quote a good friend of mine Sri Indroneil Mukherjee, corruption is not a thing by itself. We cannot fight it. Corruption is the absence of Integrity & Honesty. All that I am saying is our approach towards a cleaner country needs a slight shift in our perception. Instead of being against corruption, let us be in favour of integrity. Let us be in favour of honesty, let us be in favour of sincerity towards our jobs. Then automatically corruption will vanish.

So I humbly appeal to Sri Anna Hazare & the entire team that are fighting against corruption, I am FULLY in favour of your noble cause. I request you to change your perspective from ‘fighting against corruption’ to ‘fighting for honesty, integrity & sincerity’ then, I am sure you will win, we will win & the nation will definitely win.

Remember, the more we fight AGAINST something, the more it WILL persist…….

A Very Different Sunday

2010-11-22T00:33:00.000-08:00

Sunday, the 21st of November 2010 was a very different Sunday compared to most other Sundays.....

My F-I-L, Sri, Adi & myself decided to visit our school principal's farm house about 55 kms from Bangalore. On the way to the place as we were driving, right in the middle of the road was this small little puppy. It was probably not even two months old. It was scared, didn't know where to go & was hungry. Afraid that it would get run over by a vehicle, I stopped the car & rushed out to pick it up. As I was about to pick it up, it squealed & made to run away. Thankfully, I was able to pick it up. There was a dhaba there & I asked those guys "anna, neevu ee naayi mari na saakteera?" for which the man there said "saar adu naavu eshtu sala adanna olage tandu itkondru, adu aache odi hogatte. channagide adu adanna neeve saaki saar." So I decided to take it to the farm house. There it was fed milk twice & finally started to move around there as it started to get used to its new surroundings.

Feeling VERY good about having done a good deed.

More news on this coming up shortly....

The Chocolate Doesn't Lose It's Value

2010-10-04T21:42:00.000-07:00

Recently, I had the pleasure of making the association of some of the BEST people possible. My wife & I quickly struck a chord with them as did they with us. We hit it off & are now REALLY close friends. So one day, my wife said, "I am thankful to (I'm not going to mention that asshole's name here, I'm just going to refer to him as 'asshole') that asshole for only one thing. It is because of him that we got to meet such really NICE people. But then at the same time I also feel, 'what the hell, he didn't really do anything, the universe wanted us to meet so we met.'"

It was at this time that I thought of this:

Just because, I am being offered a chocolate by a monkey, the chocolate does not really lose it's value. The chocolate continues to taste just as delicious, it continues to retain its value.

The same thing is applicable even in real life I guess. A lot of times, we may be offered a REALLY good opportunity by some one who we may not give any kind of credit to. It is important that we recognise the opportunity & not the medium through which we get it.

I SINCERELY thank the Universe for giving me such WONDERFUL people in life [:)]

So does the chocolate lose it's value?

DEFINITELY NOT!

Ignorance is Bliss!?!?

2010-03-07T16:46:00.000-08:00

I refer to this new ad by "Woodland Shoes" where they show the shoe being placed on a rock on top of a hill & there is this beautiful eagle that swoops down on it & tries to grab it thinking it to be some kind of prey. While the message in the ad about the grip of the shoe is really good & everything looks fine, think about this. The ad is actually highly insulting to one of the greatest superheroes of nature. Read on to find out why I say that about an Eagle.

The life span of the eagle is a whopping 70 years! However, when the Eagle nears 40 years, it starts to get old. The beak bends & is no longer able to easily tear at prey. The powerful talons are no longer able to carry away prey & the feathers become too heavy for this mighty bird. At that point of time, the only thing that it can do is, slowly starve to death. But NO! This magnificent bird flies back slowly & painfully to its place of birth. There it starts to hit its beak against a rock such that the beak breaks completely! Then it waits for some time so that a new sharp beak grows back in its place. Then it bites out it talons completely & waits for new powerful ones to grow back again! After it does this it then starts to pluck out all its feathers & then waits for new strong & light ones to grow back again. Having achieved this, it gives itself a new life of 30 years!!! (BTW, this is not some fancy story that I made up, but this is true)

WOW!! Maybe there is a lesson for us humans there!

This is why I find the ad insulting to the eagle.........

Honeymoon Ahoy!!

2008-08-01T02:20:00.000-07:00

We wanted to do something different for our honeymoon & not go to the same places that have now become dirty, crowded & polluted. So we went on a road trip to Mudumalai, Ooty, Kabini & BR Hills (K Gudi). Each place was an experience of a different kind. My MOST favourite (as was my partner's) was Kabini. Here are a few pics that I shot from our digital SLR.

I must have shot close to 650 photos atleast (thanks to digital photography, otherwise I would have gone bankrupt in getting 18 rolls of film developed & photos printed to see atleast 300 good prints :( or I would have ended up shooting only a few 70 or so photos, sigh....).

The Gaurs & the Sunlight filtering through were in NagarahoLe (Karnataka ROCKS seriously Jai Karnataka Maathe)
The Cottage was in Blue Valley, Mudumalai (very nice quiet place)
The "Enclosers" was in Ooty (wonder who these "enclosers" are & what it is that they are enclosing)
The "Hotel" was in Kharapur (no longer do you have "Kaaka Angadi" or "Kaaka Hotel" )

Route Map

If you are driving, nothing like it.

Blue Valley.

The route that we took was very good. So that I what I will write about here. From Bangalore drive towards Nanjangud & as you enter the town limits of Nanjangud, keep going towards Gundlupet. At Gundlupet, take the road to Ooty. You will pass through Bandipur on the way & please drive slow there, because you will have wild animals crossing the road. Cross Bandipur & you enter Tamil Nadu. Keep going straight & then take the road to your left at "Theppakudu". This road will take you towards Masinagudi & then Blue Valley. Again please drive VERY slow because you are certain to find, Elephants, Wild Boar, Deer & Peacock right next to the main roads.

JLR (Kabini).

Again from Bangalore, cross Nanjangud & then just about 13 Kms before Gundlupet, you will find a road going towards your right & here there is a sign as well that points to Kabini. Keep going down this road (about 85Kms). You will pass through Sargur. Keep continuing through that road. Then you will reach HD Kote Circle. Take a left there & go about 6-7 Kms you will come to a fork. Here if you take the left road you will go to the Kabini Dam. Take the right road instead & drive about 32 Kms, you will come to JLR.

JLR K Gudi.

There are two routes from Bangalore.

1) Bangalore, Kollegal, Chamarajanagar, K Gudi (shorter)

2) Bangalore, Nanjangud, Chamarajnagar, K Gudi.

The roads are closed from 6 PM to 6 AM. If you don't get there within that time, you are in for trouble. The forest is REALLY thick. Enter the lodge area before 6 PM or leave the jungle area before 6 PM. Don't get caught in between.

Just a few things to be kept in mind. PLEASE DON'T WEAR BRIGHT COLOURS INCLUDING WHITES for the jungle. PLEASE DON'T WEAR PERFUMES OF DEOS for the jungle. Please refrain from using plastic. Enjoy

NLP Session at Ashirwad

2008-03-29T08:36:00.000-07:00

Well I have been in hibernation for a long time. Although I don't like to say this I will because I am not able to come up with a better excuse. "It is just that I have been toooooooooo busy (doing nothing) & hence have not been able to post anything" Anyway, let me come straight to what I want to mention about........ In February I was in a beginners' NLP Practitioner session. It was an AMAZING experience & I shot some pics with my N81. Here are the pics.......

Circle of Exellence & Anchoring

2007-12-23T18:11:00.000-08:00

Recently I was at a workshop of No Logic Please (AKA NLP-Neuro Linguistic Programming) ;-).
We were doing an excellent exercise on the circle of excellence. This is an excellent excercise to do whenever I need confidence. Takes about 13 mins roughly. So just download the audio from the
link below & use it whenever you need confidence.

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http://www.esnips.com/web/The-Ramblers-Uploads

All that you wanted to know about Verbs & Adjectives

2007-11-27T19:16:00.000-08:00

Listening to this piece, I realised that no other word
in the English language has such versatility [:)]

He says: One of the most interesting words in the English language today is the word 'fuck'.
It is one magical word: just by its sound it can describe pain, pleasure, hate and love.
In language it falls into many grammatical categories.
It can be used as a verb, both transitive (John fucked Mary) and intransitive (Mary was fucked by John), and as a noun (Mary is a fine fuck).
It can be used as an adjective (Mary is fucking beautiful).
As you can see there are not many words with the versatility of 'fuck'.
Besides the sexual meaning, there are also the following uses:

Fraud: I got fucked at the used car lot.
Ignorance: Fucked if I know.
Trouble: I guess I am fucked now!
Aggression: Fuck you!
Displeasure: What the fuck is going on here?
Difficulty: I can't understand this fucking job.
Incompetence: He is a fuck-off.
Suspicion: What the fuck are you doing?
Enjoyment: I had a fucking good time.
Request: Get the fuck out of here!
Hostility: I am going to knock your fucking head off!
Greeting: How the fuck are you?
Apathy: Who gives a fuck?
Innovation: Get a bigger fucking hammer.
Surprise: Fuck! You scared the shit out of me!
Anxiety: Today is really fucked. And it is very healthy too.

If every morning you do it as a Transcendental Meditation -- just when you get up, the first thing, repeat the mantra "Fuck you!" five times -- it clears the throat.
That's how I keep my throat clear!
Enough for today.

One of my Favourite songs in my Favourite Raga

2007-11-19T07:21:00.000-08:00

Below is the lyric of one of my MOST FAVOURITE songs in my MOST FAVOURITE raaga, Darbari Kaanada. The song is an expression of EXTREME INTIMACY & SINCERE GRIEF. The reason I say this is because, these words came tumbling out of the poet when his wife lay dead in front of him. MY dear dad has sung this song & the song is there on You Tube. Here are the lyrics of the song.....

kalpanaa Chaayeyali
nalmeya naukeyali
neelamaNi hoLedaMte
hoLe hoLedu hOdeyaa
shakti tanu jaate,

kalpanaa Chaayeyali
nalmeya naukeyali

jagavella malagihudu
chaMdiranu nagutihanu
taMgaaLi beesutide
neenelli manadanne
kuMtaLaa shObhe,

kalpanaa Chaayeyali
nalmeya naukeyali

aaprathama darshanadi
mogada cheluvaa tori
noopuraadharava beeri
malligeya nage nakke
tanirasada tavari

kalpanaa Chaayeyali
nalmeya naukeyali

aa nuDiye nuDiyaagi
aa nageye nageyaagi
aa nEha madhuvaagi
manadalli suLiyutide
naaTya praveeNe

kalpanaa Chaayeyali
nalmeya naukeyali
neelamaNi hoLedaMte
hoLe hoLedu hOdeyaa
shakti tanu jaate,

kalpanaa Chaayeyali
nalmeya naukeyali

Yathaa Raaja, Tatha Prajaa!!!

2007-09-30T23:53:00.000-07:00

This is a saying in Sanskrit, which means:

As is the King, so be the subjects :)

My Association with "@$$"!!!

2007-09-30T07:00:00.000-07:00

I've been away for sometime, thanks to my schedules......

Anyway, something happened today (Sunday, the 30th of September, 2007) that had me thinking along these lines. Let me explain.

I somehow or the other, seem to end up having SOME or the other connection with the human posterior, be it mine or some one else's.
This has been happenening to me ever since I have been in college.

Here is the history of how it started.

The first time:
My buddies from my class ALWAYS used to rag me (not that I minded, because I didn't), anyway
when I asked them why they made me the "butt" of all jokes, they said: "that is because, you have the biggest of all" He he he......

The second time:
I was walking down the corridor towards the Physics lab & one of my close friends (I will call him only by his nick name here), Kunta Bhasi was coming behind me. Seeing my "fashionable butt", Kunta decided to sneak up behind me & give a SHARP flick to it. He did that, & ended up breaking his nail at the
very base of it. The reason, I had kept my thick house key, in the hip pocket......
Boy did his finger bleed that day!!!

The third time:
Today (Sunday, the 30th of September, 2007), another close friend of mine (I will call him also by his nick name), Prodigy (Karthik The Kashyap Child, KTKC as he is also known as), came
home & as soon as he saw my Guitar, he jumped &wanted to try it. In his hurry, he didn't
notice the D-Link Router's adapter. He sat with a LOT
of enthusiasm on my cot & again leapt up screaming (pretty much the same way Tom does
when he has something poking his backside)!!! He sat on the pins of the adapter with
SO MUCH force, that the pins actually broke!!! If you have noticed the adapter, you would
realise that the pins are firmly molded into the plastic, now to be able to break that, just imagine
the amount of force he must have sat with!!!!

That, folks is the story of my ass! Oops!! Sorry, the story of "My Association with "@$$"!!!"

2007-07-25T09:10:00.000-07:00

I recently was in Hyd on an assignment. I was treated like a member of some royal fraternity. Why? Well, for one I was chauffered around in Toyota Corolloas, Maruti Suzuki Balenos, Ford Ikons & what not!!! The kids themselves were awesome & a couple of them actually gave me on spot feedback. I have one of those here, the other one will be up shortly :)

The renowned Maestro Pt VM Nagaraj

2007-06-20T21:38:00.000-07:00

I had recently accompanied my Guruji to a private concert & that's when I realised that my thoughts were actually true about him being "Sakshat Saraswathi Swaroopa". Here is why I think so.......

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What kind of a sports car am I?

2007-05-25T02:02:00.000-07:00

I'm a Lamborghini Murcielago!

You're not subtle, but you don't want to be. Fast, loud, and dramatic, you want people to notice you, and then get out of the way. In a world full of sheep, you're a raging bull.

Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

nalle neenu.........

2007-05-23T08:06:00.000-07:00

Recently poetic lines have chosen to come out of me, nothing great but I have started enjoying them.
This is one of my fav poems......

Ramblings of a Technician

2007-04-07T22:34:00.000-07:00

Roller Coaster is life
I'm going through a strife

What do I say to you now
Somethings I need to say, how

I no not what to say
I'd soon like to see the day

Hey Krishna, please help me
Clarity is what I seek from thee

Crap on TV

2007-03-02T16:39:00.000-08:00

Disgusting!!! That is exactly what the current trend in advertising is like.

WHAT!!! Why would I say that when the ads these days are such stunning
pieces of creativity?
Well, for one, just take a look at the current list of ads we have.
Just what on earth am I ranting about?
SEX!! This seems to be the sole selling point of MOST ads these days.....
Testosterone seems to be the only thing that is driving all these ad makers
You may wonder well..... viewers want that.
Well you give them that & they will get so conditioned to watching such
crap, they will start believing that there can't be anything else.

Just to give you a small example of what I'm talking about:

Parle Milano
Maska Chaska
Minto Fresh
.
.
.
.
.
The list can just go on & on..........

FEW that have dared to be different

Chlor Mint
Mentos
Good Day

Unfortunately, this is not such a huge list........

Just what the f**k happened to creativity?
Why are we going back to the old stone age when carnal senses reigned supreme???

Encounter with a whore!!!

2007-01-31T18:24:00.000-08:00

The subway connecting the Majestic Bus Stands (BMTC & KSRTC) has been known to be a pick up point for many years now. I was not sure wether I believed it or not. Now I dam'n well do. Here is how it came about.

Sometime back, I was invited to handle a batch of students as a visiting faculty at MS Engineering college. The college is about 70 Kms from where I stay. As you go on Bellary road towards Bellary. At a certain junction about 64 Kms from my house you need to take a left & travel another 6 Kms. On the first day, I parked my motorcycle at Janata Bazar, Gandhi Nagar & from there walked to Sangam theater. That was the boarding point for me. On the way back after class, the bus driver dropped me off at Anand Rao circle, saying that, that was his last point. So I was walking down the road & at the railway station, I entered the subway, so that I could cross the road & walk further up to Gandhi Nagar. Mind you, this was at 1630 Hrs. As I was walking in the subway lugging my heavy laptop, I felt someone brush past my arms. I just turned around to ensure that nothing was serious. What I saw, shook me. There was this lady about 25-28 years old, she was vigourously rubbing her breast & screamed gently. She then said, "would you like to see if I am really hurt there & massage it?"(!!!) I simply bolted from there & even now I sometimes foolishly wonder, if I did the right thing. Thanks to GOD, I know I did the right thing.

2007-01-31T18:20:00.000-08:00

Me performing at a concert & then receiving a memento in return from Leelavathi R Prasad, former minister for Kannada & Culture.

I, me & myself

2006-11-19T18:17:00.000-08:00

I just went to Personal DNA & this is what I found out about myself.

Err Ahem!!

2006-11-09T07:39:00.000-08:00

This website what do I say?

You're a Romantic Kisser

For you, kissing is all about feeling the romance
You love to kiss under the stars or by the sea
The perfect kiss involves the perfect mood
It's pretty common for kisses to sweep you off your feet

What Kind of Kisser Are You?

This is nice

2006-11-09T07:05:00.000-08:00

I'm glad to know that I am not a domineering kind of a guy. I already knew that, but this is kinda reassuring :-)

You Are 40% Control Freak

You have achieved the perfect balance of control and letting go.
You tend to roll with whatever life brings, but you never get complacent.

Are You A Control Freak?

My Expression Number

2006-11-09T06:45:00.000-08:00

Well, I don't know what's come over me, I am just taking a lot of tests to kill time. (height of joblessness eh?)

Your Expression Number is 7

Very intelligent, you are usually thinking, introspecting, or analyzing.
You have a good mind, and you are especially good at finding out the truth.
Very little ever escapes your observation and deep understanding.

You tend to obsess over wisdom and hidden truths.
You are likely to become a authority on any subject you undertake.
Operating on a different wavelength, most people don't know you that well.

Very logical and rational, at times you tend to lack emotion.
So much so, that you often have times coping with emotional situations.
You are not very adaptable - you may tend to be overly critical at times.

What's Your Expression Number?

Intelligence Type

2006-11-09T06:30:00.000-08:00

I was getting bored & so I just decided to take this test.

Your Dominant Intelligence is Musical Intelligence

Every part of your life has a beat, and you're often tapping your fingers or toes.
You enjoy sounds of all types, but you also find sound can distract you at the wrong time.
You are probably a gifted musician of some sort - even if you haven't realized it.
Also a music lover, you tend to appreciate artists of all kinds.

You would make a great musician, disc jockey, singer, or composer.

What Kind of Intelligence Do You Have?

Flat Tyre? No Problem!!!

2006-10-12T00:13:00.000-07:00

As you travel through Bangalore, if for some reason should you have a flat tyre, don't worry at all. There are a variety of places that you can get it fixed at, can't believe? Just look:

1) A "Punchure" shop in Jayanagar

2) A "Pancher" shop in Gandhi Bazar

3) A "Puncher" shop in JP Nagar

Everywhere!!

2006-10-11T23:40:00.000-07:00

"GODs GODs everywhere, nor is there a mind to see"

This looks strangely familiar doesn't it? Well it should be because, it is an inspiration from:

"Water water everywhere, nor is there a drop to drink" (Remember Samuel Taylor Coleridge, "The Ancient Mariner")

You may say that this is entirely an individual's perspective, but the way I see it, I have seen my GODs. You just need to keep an open mind to recognise them when you see them that's all. My GODs are:

Parents
Sister
Teachers
Guruji
Some people associated through my Guruji,
Master
Sensei

"The Corporate World" & "Political Correctness"

2006-10-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

If some one were to ask me what I thought was the biggest hypocrisy of our times, I would quite automatically say; 'The "Corporate World" & "Political Correctness"'. Why does it seem to be hypocritical now? Well to start with, in the so called "Corporate World", nothing is natural. Yes, including the people that make up the "Corporate World". For eg. everyone is so f***ing artificial here. No one is allowed to be their true self. Everyone is supposed to wear masks that are full of "The Company Values". No doubt the company's values themselves are really good & ethical & stuff. But the people who it is thrust upon, do they really believe in those? NO WAY!!! They just do it because their jobs depend on it. So what is the result of this? They become so bloody used to this double standard, it starts to manifest itself every where.

Just to give you an eg. there is this world famous IT company(Bangalore based), in Electonics City. This company prides itself on being environment friendly. True, once you enter the company's campus, you will be struck by the buildings (which are well in accordance with environment norms), the amount of greenery etc. The employees too make sure that they don't litter about. Outside the campus however is a monumentally huge dump of toxic waste & plastic. The employees' attitude of being civil & environment friendly is restricted to just the campus. Once they are out, they are back to being the uncivil assholes that they actually are! Now, this is just a SMALL example of the filth that actually exists.

This double standard manifests itself in every possible way. Be it in the usage of profanity or showing respect to the other person or whatever else. So you know, once you realise that this hypocrisy is rampant everywhere(almost) & in every other person(almost), it makes you feel like you want to puke. Yuck!

"Political Correctness"

This article has been withdrawn.

2006-09-08T08:58:00.000-07:00

I received this as an email forward sometime back. I'll be damned.

Permission is freely granted to copy, print, and distribute this material by any means, so long as the author is given proper credit and so long as this statement is included in any and all copies made for distribution.

Q: Daddy, why did we have to attack Iraq?

A: Because they had weapons of mass destruction.

Q: But the inspectors didn't find any weapons of mass destruction.

A: That's because the Iraqis were hiding them.

Q: And that's why we invaded Iraq?

A: Yep. Invasions always work better than inspections.

Q: But after we invaded them, we STILL didn't find any weapons of mass

destruction, did we?

A: That's because the weapons are so well hidden. Don't worry, we'll

find something, probably soon.

Q: Why did Iraq want all those weapons of mass destruction?

A: To use them in a war, silly.

Q: I'm confused. If they had all those weapons that they planned to

use in a war, then why didn't they use any of those weapons when we went to war with them?

A: Well, obviously they didn't want anyone to know they had those

weapons, so they chose to die by the thousands rather than defend themselves.

Q: That doesn't make sense. Why would they choose to die if they had

all those big weapons with which they could have fought back?

A: It's a different culture. It's not supposed to make sense.

Q: I don't know about you, but I don't think they had any of those

weapons our government said they did.

A: Well, you know, it doesn't matter whether or not they had those

weapons. We had another good reason to invade them anyway.

Q: And what was that?

A: Even if Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction, Saddam

Hussein was a cruel dictator, which is another good reason to invade another country.

Q: Why? What does a cruel dictator do that makes it OK to invade his

country?

A: Well, for one thing, he tortured his own people.

Q: Kind of like what they do in China?

A: Don't go comparing China to Iraq. China is a good economic

competitor, where millions of people work for slave wages in sweatshops to make U.S. corporations richer.

Q: So if a country lets its people be exploited for American corporate

gain, it's a good country, even if that country tortures people?

A: Right.

Q: Why were people in Iraq being tortured?

A: For political crimes, mostly, like criticizing the government.

People who criticized the government in Iraq were sent to prison and tortured.

Q: Isn't that exactly what happens in China?

A: I told you, China is different.

Q: What's the difference between China and Iraq?

A: Well, for one thing, Iraq was ruled by the Ba'ath party, while

China is Communist.

Q: Didn't you once tell me Communists were bad?

A: No, just Cuban Communists are bad.

Q: How are the Cuban Communists bad?

A: Well, for one thing, people who criticize the government in Cuba

are sent to prison and tortured.

Q: Like in Iraq?

A: Exactly.

Q: And like in China, too?

A: I told you, China's a good economic competitor. Cuba, on the other

hand, is not.

Q: How come Cuba isn't a good economic competitor?

A: Well, you see, back in the early 1960s, our government passed some

laws that made it illegal for Americans to trade or do any business with Cuba until they stopped being Communists and started being capitalists like us.

Q: But if we got rid of those laws, opened up trade with Cuba, and

started doing business with them, wouldn't that help the Cubans become capitalists?

A: Don't be a smart-ass.

Q: I didn't think I was being one.

A: Well, anyway, they also don't have freedom of religion in Cuba.

Q: Kind of like China and the Falun Gong movement?

A: I told you, stop saying bad things about China. Anyway, Saddam

Hussein came to power through a military coup, so he's not really a legitimate leader anyway.

Q: What's a military coup?

A: That's when a military general takes over the government of a

country by force, instead of holding free elections like we do in the United States.

Q: Didn't the ruler of Pakistan come to power by a military coup?

A: You mean General Pervez Musharraf? Uh, yeah, he did, but Pakistan

is our friend.

Q: Why is Pakistan our friend if their leader is illegitimate?

A: I never said Pervez Musharraf was illegitimate.

Q: Didn't you just say a military general who comes to power by

forcibly overthrowing the legitimate government of a nation is an illegitimate leader?

A: Only Saddam Hussein. Pervez Musharraf is our friend, because he

helped us invade Afghanistan.

Q: Why did we invade Afghanistan?

A: Because of what they did to us on September 11th.

Q: What did Afghanistan do to us on September 11th?

A: Well, on September 11th, nineteen men - fifteen of them Saudi

Arabians - hijacked four airplanes and flew three of them into buildings in New York and Washington, killing 3,000 innocent people.

Q: So how did Afghanistan figure into all that?

A: Afghanistan was where those bad men trained, under the oppressive

rule of the Taliban.

Q: Aren't the Taliban those bad radical Islamics who chopped off

people's heads and hands?

A: Yes, that's exactly who they were. Not only did they chop off

people's heads and hands, but they oppressed women, too.

Q: Didn't the Bush administration give the Taliban 43 million dollars

back in May of 2001?

A: Yes, but that money was a reward because they did such a good job

fighting drugs.

Q: Fighting drugs?

A: Yes, the Taliban were very helpful in stopping people from growing

opium poppies.

Q: How did they do such a good job?

A: Simple. If people were caught growing opium poppies, the Taliban

would have their hands and heads cut off.

Q: So, when the Taliban cut off people's heads and hands for growing

flowers, that was OK, but not if they cut people's heads and hands off for other reasons?

A: Yes. It's OK with us if radical Islamic fundamentalists cut off

people's hands for growing flowers, but it's cruel if they cut off people's hands for stealing bread.

Q: Don't they also cut off people's hands and heads in Saudi Arabia?

A: That's different. Afghanistan was ruled by a tyrannical patriarchy

that oppressed women and forced them to wear burqas whenever they were in public, with death by stoning as the penalty for women who did not comply.

Q: Don't Saudi women have to wear burqas in public, too?

A: No, Saudi women merely wear a traditional Islamic body covering.

Q: What's the difference?

A: The traditional Islamic covering worn by Saudi women is a modest

yet fashionable garment that covers all of a woman's body except for her eyes and fingers. The burqa, on the other hand, is an evil tool of patriarchal oppression that covers all of a woman's body except for her eyes and fingers.

Q: It sounds like the same thing with a different name.

A: Now, don't go comparing Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. The Saudis

are our friends.

Q: But I thought you said 15 of the 19 hijackers on September 11th

were from Saudi Arabia.

A: Yes, but they trained in Afghanistan.

Q: Who trained them?

A: A very bad man named Osama bin Laden.

Q: Was he from Afghanistan?

A: Uh, no, he was from Saudi Arabia too. But he was a bad man, a very

bad man.

Q: I seem to recall he was our friend once.

A: Only when we helped him and the mujahadeen repel the Soviet

invasion of Afghanistan back in the 1980s.

Q: Who are the Soviets? Was that the Evil Communist Empire Ronald

Reagan talked about?

A: There are no more Soviets. The Soviet Union broke up in 1990 or

thereabouts, and now they have elections and capitalism like us. We call them Russians now.

Q: So the Soviets - I mean, the Russians - are now our friends?

A: Well, not really. You see, they were our friends for many years

after they stopped being Soviets, but then they decided not to support our invasion of Iraq, so we're mad at them now. We're also mad at the French and the Germans because they didn't help us invade Iraq either.

Q: So the French and Germans are evil, too?

A: Not exactly evil, but just bad enough that we had to rename French

fries and French toast to Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast.

Q: Do we always rename foods whenever another country doesn't do what

we want them to do?

A: No, we just do that to our friends. Our enemies, we invade.

Q: But wasn't Iraq one of our friends back in the 1980s?

A: Well, yeah. For a while.

Q: Was Saddam Hussein ruler of Iraq back then?

A: Yes, but at the time he was fighting against Iran, which made him

our friend, temporarily.

Q: Why did that make him our friend?

A: Because at that time, Iran was our enemy.

Q: Isn't that when he gassed the Kurds?

A: Yeah, but since he was fighting against Iran at the time, we looked

the other way, to show him we were his friend.

Q: So anyone who fights against one of our enemies automatically

becomes our friend?

A: Most of the time, yes.

Q: And anyone who fights against one of our friends is automatically

an enemy?

A: Sometimes that's true, too. However, if American corporations can

profit by selling weapons to both sides at the same time, all the better.

Q: Why?

A: Because war is good for the economy, which means war is good for

America. Also, since God is on America's side, anyone who opposes war is a godless unAmerican Communist. Do you understand now why we attacked Iraq?

Q: I think so. We attacked them because God wanted us to, right?

A: Yes.

Q: But how did we know God wanted us to attack Iraq?

A: Well, you see, God personally speaks to George W. Bush and tells

him what to do.

Q: So basically, what you're saying is that we attacked Iraq because

George W. Bush hears voices in his head?

A: Yes! You finally understand how the world works. Now close your

eyes, make yourself comfortable, and go to sleep. Good night.

Q: Good night, Daddy.

JAI HIND

2006-08-16T20:09:00.000-07:00

Just what the f**k is the matter with us? Have we completely flipped? We have important people hoisting the Tri Colour at Midnight!!! Then we have bloody two bit leaders hoisting the Tri Colour at half mast. Are we becoming cowards & ashamed of our contry? Are we mourning the fact that we have become "independent"? BTW, the people who hoisted the Tri Colour at midnight were nationally famous people. Doesn't anyone realise that the Tri Colour is to be hoisted only at dawn (or the stroke of it) & to be brought down at dusk? Then for GOD's sake, we had one news channel even covering this event & it was making a big deal of it. So does that mean even the media is not aware of the fact that it was wrong to hoist the Tri Colour at midnight? What kind of crap is this???

What is the Matrix?

2006-07-10T10:40:00.000-07:00

What is the Matrix?

Well you might ask if it isn't a little too late to ask about something that old. Well my dear friend IMO the truth is, it is not old at all but it has always been there seemingly innocently enough. We all fail to notice it because we are so caught up in the mundane occurences of the "Society" which is nothing but the Matrix!! Think about it, I mean the way most of us spend our lives, without thinking, we are just like the Sentinels mechanically going about our daily grind like Robots, we hardly are conscious of anything else. We are so lost in our "own belief systems" that we are not even awake (conscious of the reality). So then what is reality you may ask. Again, think & you will find that the so called "society" & the so called "morals" that you have to abide by are all just illusions, myths created by our own demons over a period of time. I am not saying that we need to live without any sense of right & wrong. All that I am saying is we need to be more awake or conscious of what is ACTUALLY right & what is ACTUALLY wrong

While a lot of us are in a state of deep sleep (so caught up in the Matrix) that we are completely oblivious to reality, there are some of us who are just beginning to stir & out of those, some of us are still not ready to ask the right questions, so we drift back to sleep but maybe for a shorter duration. Those of us who are ready to ask the questions, we just open our eyes. When we do we will definitely be piqued by the fact that we were chasing a mirage. The "society" starts looking differently to us now & we realise that all those people who propounded the "beliefs" & the "morals" were/are actually spineless cowards, so they become the "Agents"...........

2006-07-03T21:24:00.000-07:00

A recent trek took me into the depths of the Malnad forest & just look at how thick the forest is in some areas, you will really have to make your own way! Some places of course are relatively less dense.

Hair Rising Experiences

2006-05-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

These days I am trying to find answers to a few questions that I have always had since the time I started to appreciate music (esp Classical). When I listen to certain Raagas, even though it might just be a plain Raaga(aalaap) w/o any wordings(saahithya), I feel some lightening or uplifting kind of a feeling in my heart. Sometimes I feel a knot in the pit of my stomach. I wonder why!? I asked my Guruji this & he said don't think of the "why", just enjoy it. Today while I was returning from one of my client meets with another of my friend cum mentor, I was just pondering aloud on the same subject & my mentor said well "it is because the body just not remember things in the brain alone or the mind alone. It stores images, sounds, smells etc in different locations of the body. The no 7 is a wonderful no. There are 7 'Swaras' or basic notes in classical music & there are 7 'Chakras' or energy centres in the human body. Why don't you think about this?" was all he said. When I thought about this, the hair on my arms started bristling & those on my head were trying to stand up but were held in place only by the gel I had on. So I am now wondering what is it with the number 7? I hope you the reader can enlighten me. What is it with the number 7???

Rogues at BSNL

2006-05-23T03:28:00.000-07:00

I have been a BSNL customer for as long as I have had a telephone connection. Recently, in March I also subscribed for the highly acclaimed Data One services offered by this company. I got the connection after a slight delay of about a week. I opted for purchase of the Type II Wi-Fi router. I was accordingly billed as well. Now, 2 months after the connection has been established, the router has not been working.

I was last online on the 24th of April 2006. I was not given any telephone no, to contact in case of any technical difficulties. Hence I got the technical support no, 080-25514444 from Just Dial services. I spoke with the technical support team on the 25th of April 2006. The lady was kind enough to run me through a lot of trouble shooting steps & she finally diagnosed the router to be faulty. So, she said I had to contact the telephone exchange dealing with this area after assuring me sufficiently that it would be immediately replaced. I went to the JP Nagar exchange & was asked to contact the Jayanagar Exchange. On going there, the person asked me to get the complete set that was installed for me.

So I came back the next day with all the equipments there & Siddaiah the man incharge there said that “Sir naavu yenu maadokke aagalla. Yaakandre adanna naavu alla haakirodu, namma franchisee haakirodu. Neevu avaranne contact maadi”. So I again went back home & tried to contact the technical support no, they said: “Sir illa, adu haagalla sir. Exchange navaru adanna definite replace maadale beku”. I was annoyed & so I told them that they are not helping me & the lady said, “Illa sir. Naavu maadokke aagalla. Dayawittu avaranne contact maadi”.

So I again ran back to the exchange & Siddaiah gave me the phone no of the man who was responsible for dealing with broadband. I tried contacting that man Mr. Manju on 9845203421 about 15-20 times on two consecutive days. The phone was ALWAYS not reachable. I cam back to the exchange & tried to again speak with Mr. Siddaiah around 11 in the morning. He bluntly refused to even talk to me & rudely asked me to come back after 3 PM. So I again came back around 3:30 PM & told him that the no was always not reachable. So he contacted the man some how & that man Mr Manju assured me that he would have it sorted out on the same day. I waited at home the whole of next day & no one came.

So again the following day, I was back at the exchange & Siddaiah asked me what happened. I told him that no one had come in. He again acted like he was doing me a favour & spoke to Mr. Manju again. He again assured me that he would have the man sent over again & when I asked him for his actual contact no. he said that he would not be able to give me that no. I again waited at home the next day & again like I suspected, still no one came. I was back at the exchange & this time Siddaiah gave me Mr. Manju’s personal phone no (9845359510) as well, saying that Mr. Manju would answer this no very quickly. That is precisely what happened. I spoke to him angrily & asked him why no one was able to sort out the matter. He again handed the phone to his technician & I angrily asked that man if he would EVER attend to my complaint. He said “Yenri sariyaage maathaadtheera swalpa? Naavu sariyaage maathaadthilva? Yaake hangaadtheeri”, I said I was fed up with them for their false promises & said if he did not turn up that day, I would contact the Area Manager & complain to him. He said “aaithu adu yenu maadtheero maadkoli” & hung up. I have been trying to reach Mr. Manju on his personal no ever since & he has not picked up my call & as usual the 9845204321 no. is still out of reach.

In the mean time some one suggested that I call 1500 & complain. I did that & was asked to carry my router & its accessories to the DE’s office & he said that this would immediately be replaced.

What appalls me is that in a country where we say “Athithi Devo Bhava” what kind of crap are those “people” in BSNL up to???

I read about myself !!!

2006-05-18T06:30:00.000-07:00

The Zahir. What can I say about it? Well, it is a wonderful book, no doubt about it. I must really thank my Guru (Teacher) for having recommended that book to me. What is that book about really? Well I was reading all about myself in that book (!!!) Although, the author may not even know that there is a guy by name Ashvin Bharadwaj he has actually written about what Ashvin Bharadwaj’s thought process is like & stuff. Even now, as I am writing this, it is not like I have thought of what exactly is to be written, I am just sitting in front of my computer & am typing out the words as they are coming out of my mouth.
As I was reading that book, I felt that I was reading about my own life through the author’s words. However as I was reading through the book, I realized that I there is a Zahir in my life too. With every page that I covered, I felt that I was on a journey into my own life. The hero is passionate about writing which is a form of art. I am passionate about music which is another form of art. I have just started listening to poetry & also want to be able to write poems like the author some time soon.
However, the book threw open to me a lot of questions which I have not been able to answer them to my satisfaction. I have attempted to answer some of them & have penned down my understanding of it. I hope you the esteemed reader will be able to tell me if I am on the right track (this is assuming that you have read the “The Zahir” by Paulo Coelho!!)

1) What is the voice?
I am sure, all of us at some time or the other while on a task have felt “something within” tell us to do that task in a particular way, or to do it differently or not do it & so on….. Is this the same voice? If yes then is this was Intuition is? If yes again, then when intuition is telling us of something negative then is that what premonitions are?

2) The universal love energy. What exactly is this?
Is this the bonding that any two humans feel for each other? If you see a person in trouble while you are going about your own business, you may want to stop for a moment & do what you can to help that person. Is this what the Universal Love Energy is all about?

3) Personal history.
Each of us has a lot of baggage that we lug around without even realizing its existence (??), is this what it is? Or, is it simply the story of our lives?

4) How does repeating a problem take it farther away from us?
Well the age old saying goes, “repeat a lie a hundred times& it becomes the truth”. Is the age old saying wrong? Well, technically it is not the fact of the lie actually becoming the truth. But when 3 or 4 generations of people have been conditioned to one kind of thinking (even if it is a lie), the subsequent generations definitely do all they can to protect, propagate & guard the “truth” w/o actually knowing that they are guarding a lie & are actually running away from the truth. Coming back to the question itself, if you repeat a story or a problem, with every repetition, it sits more & more strongly in your mind.

5) The other author’s views on Love & Marriage.
Sometime during the middle of the book, the author is looking for a magazine article on relationships & he comes across another author’s views on Love. She says something about love not being permanent & that marriage not being fulfilling. Now, when you marry a person you truly marry & truly love the person that you are married to, isn’t that feeling so complete?

6) Where does the tribe fit in?
The author goes with a few young people dressed as rock fans & stuff. Where exactly do they come into place in our journeys? Are they an indication that there will be in our journeys a lot of people wanting to embark on this journey with us but not exactly knowing the right direction to take?

7) What are interrupted stories?
All of us in our lives take a particular path & realize that, that is not the best path for us at one point of time or the other. Meaning that story although begun has no proper ending. Is this what it means?

8) Concept of choosing a name
Dos asks the author to choose a name, what is the significance of this? Is it that since you are being reborn as a person, it is best not to have any reminders of your previous way of living?

9) Dos says that Esther might move away………..
When the author expresses his disappointment over the fact that Esther might move away if she is not yet ready to meet him, Dos says that she is not obliged to stay there. Well what is the point? Distance increases the amount of love between two people. Here is the author coming searching for his wife who he love (& who loves him) after she has disappeared for a few years without telling him anything. So does she not really want to meet her man?

10) What is the presence?
All through this book there is a reference to this “presence”, what exactly is this? Why doesn’t everyone experience this?

11) The story of the dog & the doe.
Well usually the doe is always looked at as a symbol of gentleness (which is a feminine quality generally, which a male is not). The dog is a picture of aggression (which is a masculine quality & not generally a feminine quality), so why in this story is the comparison so & what is it’s significance.

These are some of the doubts that have come to me as I read that book. Also, I must mention a few reactions from my own side as I was reading the book. A lot of times I would feel my cheeks all warm & kind of flushed. Sometimes I would experience a slight pain in my head, (the same kind that I used to experience, while sitting & talking with my teacher or while watching the Matrix) As I was reading the book, with every page that I read, I would feel some kind of a fear beginning to form in the pit of my stomach. I don’t know what is happening to me here, I am all psyched out. I hope my Guru has a remedy for this.
As I was reading this I also started wondering:
Why am I doing this? Obviously to discover myself. But then why am I trying to discover myself??? Who am I???

Teacher I hope you will help me……….

Training in progress

2006-04-22T02:38:00.000-07:00

I was recently at a training program talking to the staff of a resort. This is an outdoor activity in progress there.

Heights!!

2006-04-21T20:25:00.000-07:00

Well when we were in high school, I remember we used to have tonnes of those "Heights Jokes", you know like, "What is the height of stupidity?" blah, blah, blah....... Well let me ask you guys, What is the height of CG (Center of Gravity for the ignorant)? I think the picture tells you all about it. On the way to Devarayana Durga, we saw this girl walking by balancing a 2 litre bottle of water on her head. Cool huh?

A trip to Devarayana Durga

2006-04-21T20:00:00.000-07:00

On the 11th of April, I went to Devarayana Durga with a few friends to celebrate a birthday. It is a damn good trekking spot about 80-90 kms from Bangalore on the Bangalore-Tumkur express highway. The drive tothat place is absolutely fantastic. I could never keep my heavily loaded Maruti Omni (which I treat as an SUV) below (err ahem) 100 KM/H. But once you get off the highway (just before the second flyover), you will have to really slow down. Because the road is just about drive worthy. Also besides there are a lot of villages so you really should watch out. But then again if you keep going down this road you will go to Madhugiri, which is a fantastic place for rock climbing (sigh..... I wish we'd gone there). Anyway, you get a deviation to the left. That is again a beautiful road. So just keep going down that road & you have another deviation to your right takes you straight to Devarayana Durga.

Grrr.........

2006-04-21T19:44:00.000-07:00

I am truly angry with myself. I have been in absentia all these days on the blogging circuit on account of my own stupidity. Well it so happened that the telephone line was acting cranky & I reset my router. So I have been out of action for almost a week. Well anyway it sure feels damn good to be back again. Will keep posting

120 Kms everyday

2006-04-08T20:28:00.000-07:00

Sometime in the last week of March, I was training at a resort about 60 Kms frommy house. Goodness me, travelling 120 Kms everyday (given the bad roads & the uncivil traffic) is quite trying. But all the same, the kids themselves are quite OK. The resort itself is a great place. Let me see if I can post some photos of the activities there

C.I.T Rocks

2006-04-08T20:15:00.000-07:00

On the 6th of April, I had gone to C.I.T off Gubbi on the Bangalore Tumkur road. I had expected the college to be in some God forsaken dump(I am ashamed I must admit). But the college is right on the highway. The kids there just rock. I had not expected the function to have been so well organised. The kids had taken care of the organising so well, you'd think it was managed by some event management company. The tratment that we got as visiting delegates was VVIP class. They made us feel so nice. But WELL BEYOND all this was the kind of harmony they have with each other. The kind of love & adoration they show for each other is like what you'd feel at home. When I told the gathering that I am a certified handwriting analyst. I got mobbed & from 1630 Hrs IST onwards till 0030 Hrs IST (that midnight!!)!!! I must have analysed over 200 handwriting samples (all quickies) Keep rocking guys!!!

Freedom

2006-04-03T06:02:00.000-07:00

Well, it is always said that you realise the true value of something only when you lose it. That is precisely what I have experienced. Although in a slightly different manner. Freedom is something that I had not experienced for quite a long time. When I was an employee of a company, my routine would go something like this: Wake up at 1030 Hrs IST, wash up & get ready to go to work around 1230 Hrs IST. Although working hours were strictly supposed to be 9 Hrs, it would never stay that way. I used to slave for 12 Hours & then get back home around 0230 Hrs IST(That's right!!!) Now that I quit my job & am an independent consultant, WOW man, you have no idea what it feels like to be able to work according to your own schedule & do other things that you like!!! Hats off to all those Self employed people!!!!!!!!!

Wheeeeeeee

2006-03-03T02:09:00.000-08:00

WOW!!! Feels great to be back as a blogger. More thoughts coming up!!!!