Potomac Sky

Pacifier Wars

2011-11-09T06:47:00.004-05:00

This is a video from few months ago when Abhi visited us.
Both kept thinking the pacifier the other dude had was in fact theirs.
So they kept chasing each other...

Puerto Rico, St Thomas, Turks & Caicos and Nassau

2011-09-14T14:19:00.034-04:00

Visiting Puerto Rico, St Thomas, Nassau and Turks & Caicos.

These are some of the places we have wanted to go to for a while. Beaches with fine white sand, crystal clear turquoise water and beautiful scenery all around – paradise right on earth.

Nassau, Bahamas

The ship arrived at Nassau, Bahamas. We woke up to a bright and sunny day and still lying on our bed. Through the window, we had a good view of the Atlantis. We got ready and took the tour of Nassau, the beaches and The Atlantis. There isn’t much in the town, its mostly poor neighborhoods. But the beaches were beautiful. The close proximity to Florida makes it a popular and affordable destination.

St Thoams, US Virgin Islands
St Thomas was one of the early islands Christopher Columbus found in the late 1400s during his famous voyages to the west. It was previously a Dutch colony and at some point became part of USVI. We drove around the island and made various stops to get a feel of island life.

Snorkeling in the beaches of St Thomas was great, especially since it was my first time. Somebody said they were able to touch sea turtles but I didn’t see any. Their famous Banana Daiquiris do taste good. The combination of mountains, beaches, harbors and indigenous Dutch heritage contributes to its amazing beauty. The famous Mountain Top, the Amalie Beach, Megan’s Bay and the historic Charlotte Amalie will remain our favorites.

By evening we went back onto the ship. The view from the deck: looking at the Sunset over the mountains of St Thomas was something we can never forget. Sun is setting behind the mountains and the breeze is cool and gentle. Pretty catamarans and yachts were anchored all over, making it look like crystals sprinkled over blue sea waters. The well light town of St Thomas on the right completed the scene. Standing on the top most part of the ship absorbing the magnificent views, sipping coffee and munching plum cake is definitely among the best moments of our lives.

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico is so rich in culture and history. The name itself literally translates to “Rich Port”. Once a Spanish colony, it was bought over by USA in early 1900s because they identified the value this port city had. The best part of town to visit is the Old San Juan. We walked around historic forts like El Morro & San Cristobal. These and the distinctly Spanish looking town of Old San Juan kept us very interested. The Bacardi factory is right there. Rum is popular and alcohol is so cheap. The Rainforest is supposed to be very beautiful but we couldn’t make it because of lack of time. We also went to New San Juan. That’s where most of the development is happening; you can pretty much skip this as it looks like Hyderabad in the making. Overall, we liked Puerto Rico a lot.

Grant Turk, Turks & Caicos

Turks & Caicos Islands are part of British empire. The beaches here are some of the best and are totally untouched by humanity. Its popular for the reefs and under water activities. The specialty of the beach was that there were colorful fish right near the shore. I signed up for an exciting activity. Power Diving into the reefs. The guide picked me up and drove all the way across to the other side of the island. The island was pretty lonely except for few wild animals. The guide stopped the van and tourists were taking pictures of these wild animals. I peeped through the window to get a closer look and they turned out to be meek looking cows and horses.

We reached the diving spot. We were taken into their office which was a roadside shed. They gave us the equipment and some words of wisdom. Then took a boat ride for couple of mins into the deep sea and we jumped off the boat. The hand held power propeller takes you in any direction you point it to. You just have to gently paddle and enjoy the views. Diving into the sea was extremely hard at first. The pressure was too much and felt like my head was going to explode. The guide gave us few tips on how to balance this pressure through the ears. After this, for the next 45 mins I experienced the most beautiful creations on planet Earth. Such colorful reefs and fish - all just inches away. The water currents would pull you occasionally. We were at 30 feet deep location and then moved onto 45 feet deep point. And then there was the most frightening thing... The bottom falls off to 7000 feet like falling off a cliff. Its completely blue and there is nothing much after that.

We started moving back to shallow waters. All kinds of fishes around us. Dora, Nemo & their friends too. At one point there was a 2 feet long Barracuda right next to me. They are not supposed to harm you unless you attack them first. I was loitering very close to it and then powered off. After looking at their teeth on the internet, I don’t think I will stay that close again. But the whole experience was terrific. I would love to do that again in different reefs.

Needless to say, these 10 days have been wonderful. It was a totally different life out there. It felt like we had a lifetime’s worth of experiences. We are looking forward to more such trips. Until then, adios amigos.

Carnival Valor, a Cruise to remember

2011-09-13T23:13:00.004-04:00

If you missed, Miami Trip pictures are in the previous post below. From there we went on a 7 Day Cruise on Carnival Valor to eastern Caribbean.

Apart from the good ratings, the main reasons we chose this cruise was i) the exotic islands it was going to take us to, which we wanted to visit for a while ii) the group of cousins we were going to go with. We didn’t expect much from the ship, we thought it was going to be just another cruise. But as it turns out, the cruise ship is a vacation destination in itself.

Cruising together with our cousins made it even more fun. We all had our rooms on the same floor. We used to meet up on the Lido deck, Panorama deck or the King blvd. Ajju got used to all our cousins; Vivi and Ananya frequently used to take Ajju to play with. That gave us time and energy to recharge ourselves and make the long vacation with a 14^th month old toddler that much more enjoyable.

With over 4,000 people onboard, it’s a mini floating city. We used to hang out in the pools and jacuzzis, the open deck on the 12^th & 13^th floor, the adults retreat Serenity, open running track on the 13^th floor, the Gym on the front most part of the ship. Guests were accommodated in 9 floors of Interior, Ocean View and Balcony rooms. We had an Ocean View state room and were pleasantly surprised at how much they packed into a modest sized room. It was very inviting and we felt at home.

The food in the buffet was awesome. They have Vegas casino style buffet throughout the day. The menu in the buffet changes from Breakfast to Lunch to Dinner depending on the time of the day and you won’t even notice it. A variety of dessert spread is available the entire day. All we do is eat, hang out and then eat again. There are also other options like The Mongolian Grill, Mexican Food, Pizza Deck, Fish & Chips and Sandwich Grill. If you want to change it up a bit, you can have fine dining at Washington or Lincoln Restaurants. Every evening, our entire group used to meet for dinner in the Washington hall.

After dinner, we used to watch a show in the Ivanhoe Theater. The theater is huge with stadium seating and they have Broadway style shows every night. There is also Eagles Lounge which is home to the Comedy Club. With both Family friendly and Adults only segments there is no shortage of entertainment. Decks 3 to 5 were filled with lot of action. Ivanhoe Theater, a Night Club, a Casino and King Blvd. There was also the Promenade and lots of duty free shops. There are several other lounges and bars to relax if you chose. But for the most part we were moving around the ship making the most out of our stay. We also got a good bit of running done while on the ship.

The crew to passenger ratio is over 1:3. Abt 3,000 passengers and 1,300 crew. That pretty much explains how they keep the ship and interiors impeccably clean and beautiful. All aspects of the ship were run like clockwork and there is little to complain about. We especially liked our waiters Greg & Agus and the room service guys. They made sure they gave personal attention.

A luxury cruise is a must-do-atleast-once kind of thing. But its only fun if you have a big enthusiastic group. And a bigger appetite for fun. We loved the entire Cruise experience.

Carnival Cruise - Eastern Caribbean

Miami , Florida

2011-09-09T13:00:00.003-04:00

We just came back from a 10 daytrip. The trip was planned 4 months ahead, so we couldn’t really reschedule it.We were very fortunate that Irene had passed Miami coast and headed away by thetime we landed in Miami. We flew to Miami and spent three days there.

It was absolute sun shine andweather was perfect to be outside all day. Unlike the usual wooden houses, most houseshere are built with bricks and reinforced cement concrete to withstand frequent hurricanes and flooding. Thecoconut, palm and mango trees give the city a very distinct look. We also drovedown the Florida Keys to Key West. The drive was great and you can do a varietyof water activities at various stops along the way.

The most happening andentertaining part around Miami is the South Beach. The crowd is great and the beach was nice too. And then there are these fancy restaurants lined up along the Ocean Drive facing the beach. Wehad dinner and then restaurant hopping. It was a nice place to hangout. A drink can set you back $30. But the fun and night life is amazing. Most places close at 3-4AM. You can stay here forever young. We went back to South Beach for lunch the next day.And were pleasantly surprised, the lunch menu was equally good.

We spent some time along theByscane Blvd, in the Bayside Market, at the American airlines Arena and BrickellAvenue. We were lucky the temperature was just about right to be having fun inMiami. One night by accident, we cameacross another hip and spicy street in South Beach. It’s a block away from thebeach and very easy for tourists to miss, it’s called The Espanola Way.The street is a pedestrian only street and is lined with amazing restaurantsand bars on either side. There is somuch choice that you can have food & fun from all over the world here. The Spanish restaurant we ate at had beautifulgirls dressed in all white dresses. Eachof the restaurants had something similar going on.

It was a pleasure just to walkaround town and be part of the exciting atmosphere in Miami.

Miami Trip Pictures

Archived Link

Arjun - First Birthday

2011-07-13T10:12:00.012-04:00

Arjun is One Year old and we had a fun time. The past year has been a busy year but very enjoyable as well.
He's learning to throw things and tantrums. But more active days are yet to come.

Click to see the pictures:

Birthday Pictures (G+)

Archived Link

1 Yr: 30.5(72)/22.5(38)

Update:
15 Mos: 32(78)/24(44)

Update:
18 Mos: 33(70)/26(57)

First Twelve months in Videos

2011-07-01T14:21:00.005-04:00

Here are few videos from Arjun's First twelve months.

Arjun - Just Born

First Shower @ 2 Weeks Old

Rocking along @ 2 Months Old

In his BirthingInn outfit @ 3 Months Old

Ajju Vs Winnie

Annaprasana

Taking Control - Starting with Feeding bottle

Pink Hat Panther

Rolling

Crawling

Pictures from the Past & Present

2011-06-16T22:03:00.000-04:00

My parents went back home and pulled up some of these ancient photos.

Thought it would be nice to put them next to Arjun's recent pictures.

Arjun - Month 9, 10 & 11

2011-05-30T22:41:00.001-04:00

Arjun is going to be 11 months old in few days. He got into the swimming pool for the first time today and loved it. He's been going to Day Care for a month now. There are lot of changes in the last couple of months. He's changed from a tiny baby into an active toddler.

Here are the pictures from the last few months:

Arjun's Month 9, 10, 11

Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon 2011

2011-05-18T11:09:00.004-04:00

Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon 2011 was held on May 15^th. It took 2 Hrs 14 Mins 43 Seconds to complete it. It’s over my PR (My First Marathon) but I am happy with that. The 13.1 Mile race course was beautiful meandering through historic Fredericksburg. Running across hills, woods and along the river was very pleasant.

It was a beautiful cloudy day and the race started off well. Just after mile 12, I ran out of steam. Since my target of 2:20 was well within reach I started to slow down into a walk. Another runner, a hot girl passing me slowed down and said “You didn’t come this far to walk. Let’s get rolling”. Sometimes you get help from unexpected sources. She provided a much needed mental boost that helped me run through the last mile. Thanks to her, I was able to finish with in 2:15

The race went very well but was uneventful. I mean personally I didn’t have injuries or any major issues. A last minute bout with cold almost spoiled the show but it held back just enough so I could complete the race. That evening, the irritable cold hit hard but it didn’t matter anymore. I could sleep all I wanted.

Half Marathon is a very attractive race to run. While the name associates itself with a Marathon, don’t be intimidated, there is really nothing marathon about it. As with any distance, running a Half-Marathon is hard or easy depending on what your target is. If you can run 5 miles, you can run 13.1 Miles. If you fancy running, you should definitely consider a Half Marathon. Go for it.

Statistics: 2 Hrs 14 Min 43 Sec

Distance               HALF MARATHON
Clock Time          2:16:49
Chip Time            2:14:43
Splits:
5K           0:30:41
10K         1:00:46
15K         1:33:19
20K         2:08:35
Pace      10:17

Bleed Cricket - Cricket World Cup 2011

2011-04-02T15:07:00.012-04:00

India has finally won the Cricket World Cup today after more than two decades.

Coming from a country that bleeds cricket, we have been waiting for this moment for a long time. I am glad that it has happened to this Team and it happened to Sachin Tendulkar – definitely the best batsman in the world, no more discussions about that. And who else to steer the ship than Mahendra Singh Dhoni – with great composure and leadership he’s arguably the best captain Indian team ever had. Dhoni saved the best for the last, playing a captain’s innings of 91 runs.

We came very close to winning in 2003 but faltered badly. Not so this time around. With almost all the other cricket glories under the belt, Team India started with the best talent on the roster. But great teams differ only by performing when its needed the most. The team as a whole did it this time - unlike in the past when we were heavily reliant on Sachin or one single player.

Sehwag’s blitzy ways, Sachin, Gambhir & Kohli’s steadying innings, Raina, Yuvraj & Dhoni closures, Zaheer, Munaf & Yuvraj’s bowling, great coach and support staff, last but the most importantly amazing leadership by Captain MSDhoni - summarizes how we won the Cricket World Cup 2011.

Sachin can make peace with cricket now. My appetite for cricket has been satisfied as well.

Arjun - Rolls over

2011-03-09T18:24:00.003-05:00

Arjun is 8 months old and is getting closer to being mobile. For the last one month, he’s been rolling backwards (ie) if he lays on his tummy, he rolls back to lie down on his back. Today, he started rolling forward. If he lies down on his back, he is rolling forward onto his tummy.

He got tonsured for the first time earlier last month. His hair was out of control and falling all over his eyes and ears. He sat quietly on my lap and let the lady clip his hair. He looked so different with the gundu. He pulls the pacifier out of his mouth and makes sounds to get attention. He holds his own bottle while feeding and holds the iphone with both hands to watch videos - once he's bored which happens very quickly, he drops it right away. He is also holding the newspaper with both hands preferably colorful ones. He's more amused at people around him than the TV.

Pls see the previous post below for Arjun's recent pictures.

Update
9 Months: 29(77)/20.5(57)/18(64)

Current events and Arjun's Month 7, 8

2011-01-18T18:55:00.014-05:00

January has been eventful so far. I got the LASIK done as soon as the Flex Spending account allowed me this yr. The first time I heard about lasik was when my cousin got it done ~18 yrs ago when they used to cut open the eye flap with a shaving blade. After talking with him I thought one should never get it done. Technology has evolved since and they claim its lot more predictable now. The procedure costs $4k and they also laser carve a letter of your choice on each eye for free.

I registered for another running event – Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon. As soon as I planned to start training for it, my close friend returned. He reminded me to take it easy. His name is Knee Pain and is always reliable. I want to try for a PR. I hope to decide on a target time in a month or two - once I start training. Since Half-Marathon doesn’t require intense training as Marathon, I feel a lot better this time around.

My company is relocating to a new office space. So we started pulling apart the current location. After working in this office for so long, its sad to see the cubes dismantled and everything gutted. Especially since Potomac-Sky started here. We will move to more modest, intimate space just about enough for us – instead of the $1 Million/Yr office we are in right now.

Ajju is doing well. He had his first bout with Cold. He wants more physical activity. He is transitioning from lying around all the time. He's been eating solids - mashed fruits, veggies and rice for a month now.

Here are Arjun's Month 7, 8 Pictures

Previous Pictures:

Arjun's Pictures from Month 4, 5 and 6

Month 3

Month 2

First Month

6 months: 27.5(90)/19.5(90)

2010

2011-01-02T22:27:00.010-05:00

2010 was a big year. With birth of Arjun and everything going on around that. Life has changed and it couldn’t have been better. Both our parents finally visited us to share this joy.

Having a baby is a big commitment. But it’s also a joint effort and totally changes lives. It strengthens relationships and brings more joy to life. Now we have someone to take care of and play with all the time. How can a baby become so attached and be part of your daily routine so quickly!!

Ajju is a happy baby and we love every moment with him. He smiles at everyone who looks at him. He gets cranky only when he is hungry and quickly calms down once he is fed. Rajesh takes good care of him. I have never seen him say no when Ajju needs some attention. I love to see them play together and have fun.

Arjun has been changing so much every week. One thing that I can never forget is – he lifts his legs up in the air when he is half asleep. I miss the funny noise he used to make when he was only few weeks old. He started eating solids recently.

He gets bored doing the same stuff and needs different things to entertain him. It sounds pretty common but it’s amazing how babies learn things so quickly. That reminds me of an incident from our last India trip. While we were in Tdpalli, one of our cows gave birth to a calf. Within few minutes, the baby got up on his own and walked to his mom to be fed. That really amazed me. Life is so beautiful.

-Vanitha

Four Months and more....

2010-11-07T20:50:00.003-05:00

One more month. It has almost become a Baby Blog. This way I post atleast once a month.
I must make it a point to write here more often. Not much going on this side of the world...

Updated with next month pictures:
Arjun's Pictures from Month 4, 5 and 6

4 months: 26.5(95)/17(90)

6 months: 27.5(90)/19.5(90)

Previous pictures:
Month 3
Month 2
First Month

Ajju - 3 Months

2010-10-05T12:09:00.000-04:00

Ajju is three months old. He loves putting his fingers and hands in his mouth. He is not neighing any more. He is working his neck well, almost supporting his neck. He has started cooing and talking to us a little. He's getting ready for the winter cold ...

Pictures from Month 3.

Enthiran / Robo

2010-10-04T14:23:00.001-04:00

Enthiran / Robo the most anticipated and most expensive movie in Indian Film history lives up to expectations. A combination like Shankar, Rajni, AR Rahman & Aishwarya Rai has to try really hard to fail.

Its hard to write a movie review without giving away something from the movie. If you want a one-liner - Don’t miss it, it’s a must watch movie. We saw Enthiran on the second day after it was released in theaters. We went an hour before the show started (1:45PM show) and surprisingly the theater was empty. Slowly crowd started coming in and 15 mins before the movie, the theater was 3/4th filled up. Evening shows were houseful, I heard they had put extra chairs to accommodate everyone.

It was a great movie, awesome special effects and the first real sci-fi movie made by Indian film maker. It’s a Shankar movie from the start till the head spinning climax. You will be disappointed if you were expecting Trademark Rajni Style. Shankar has compensated for that with ample dose of Rajnis, Aishwarya Rai, AR Rahman’s music and amazing song visuals. Rajni did a great job in characters having multiple shades, whether is Chitti 1.0 or 2.0 or even Dr.Vasee.

For all those Ash detractors – You don’t want a Smita Patil in Robo, do you… I should say not only did Ash look amazingly beautiful but acted fairly well. Over all Enthiran/Robo is a classy effort. Must watch on big screen to appreciate the visuals.

Another Month - Two

2010-09-06T16:56:00.008-04:00

Second month went by a little faster. Arjun has started focusing and looking at people around him. Though occasional, he has started spitting up after having his food. He enjoys watching outdoors sitting on his rocker and warm showers. He had a good time meeting his friends and cousins over lunches and dinners. He also went on few sightseeing trips and seemed to have enjoyed them. His grunting still continues. If he is moved while asleep or has slight discomfort he neighs like a pony with both his arms and legs pointed towards the sky.

2 months: 23.5(65)/13(65)

Here are some Pictures from the second month.

Baby Arjun

2010-08-07T23:58:00.006-04:00

One month has passed since baby Arjun arrived. I finally found time to announce this on my blog. Or rather, I finally got over making myself look busy with a new baby in the house and the lethargy that comes with it.

We can try to be as prepared as we can. But as they say, you’ll never be fully prepared until the baby actually comes. Everything went well with the delivery. Just that Ajju was born couple of weeks ahead of schedule. I will spare you the details of the birth itself. Let me just say - like all moms, V did a great job that day. We are also fortunate to have great support from our family and friends. They mean a lot to us and have been with us all along. It’s always fun to plan and do things together.

The nurses and doctors deserve equal mention. That day, they looked like Gods. In a way, they are miracle makers. Our whole birthing experience depends on how good or bad these medical professionals are. There is hardly anything to complain abt the facility or the staff. Can you believe it, I liked the hospital food too :)

So did we really change lanes? I don’t know. Yes, we have one more person to share our love with; we have more responsibility now. We have to wake up every hour or two - feed, cleanup, sing lullabies and repeat. But I don’t think our life has changed much. For that, we have to wait for few more months or years. Or maybe, it has already started happening. It’s so gradual that I don’t realize it yet.

For now, we are happy playing and smiling with him.
We had V’s birthday party yesterday. And Ajju’s too – he’s 1 month old already.

Newborn: Ht/Wt(%ile): 19.5(50)/6.8(25)

Here are the pictures from: Ajju’s First Month

Changing Lanes

2010-04-25T04:53:00.003-04:00

I have been up since 2AM with nothing to do. For first few minutes, I tried to make myself fall asleep - as if that’s even doable. Then I gave up and started browsing. After couple of hours, I exhausted my appetite for news. Still no feeling sleepy. So here I am, trying to blog.

For those of you who don’t know, we are going to be parents in few months. V has been holding up pretty well. Not many breakdowns or hormones kicking into our daily lives (yet). The past six months were filled with lots of excitement and anticipation. Very happy yet scared at times. With help and support from our friends and family, it’s been smooth so far.

We started off this year on a trip to NC with friends. It felt a little short, but no complaints - its been so long since we were on a trip with friends. We also took a small break in April, a much needed one, especially for her. Met our cousins in Greenville for couple of days. Whole bunch of V’s cousins were there that weekend for K’s baby shower. We then headed to GA and SC for a full week. As always, it turned out to be a great trip. Had tons of food and lot more fun.

Here are the pictures from the trip: Southern Bliss

With all the good times behind us, we are back to the groove now. We are about to change lanes in our ever evolving life. V is in her last trimester. Am sure she is going to have a tough one. Hope she will cope with it just like she has done so far.

Sringarapuram to White House - Broccoli Maharaj

2010-04-01T13:26:00.004-04:00

One of my good friends Mr.Aravinda's 'BBC Diet' won the Albany Contest.

He is shortlisted to meet Michelle Obama for spreading the message of healty eating to tackle obesity.

Here is the link to his Original Recipe: http://www.5nongringos.com/?p=1421

I personally think he deserves something more. With all the microwaving and heating, man !!!

He should be given an award for Complicating the Most Simple Recipe.

Epic Snow Storm

2010-02-10T09:26:00.002-05:00

On Feb 5^th, 2010 we had one of the worst snow storms in the DC area in a very long time. It was Epic as in re-writing weather history kind of epic. Snow started on Friday and accumulated 30 inches in 24 hrs. In fact, we had abt 6 inches of snow in the week preceding the storm just to get us into the mood. Snow and wind gusts upto 25MPH can be scary. We had to keep checking if the roof is still intact.

Trees were uprooted and power lines knocked off. 200,000 residents in Northern Virginia lost electricity that day. We were lucky to be one of them. One would never think it could happen to them until it really happens. We lost power around midnight. Apart from not having the usual luxuries of microwave oven, TV and internet we also didn’t have heat for the house and hot water (once we use up whatever is left in the hot water tank). Most of the day was spent shoveling the snow off the drive way and the wooden deck and then loading up on carbs to repeat the process. There was 20 tons of snow or at least it felt like that. The roads had over two feet of snow all over. It paralyzed the whole region. My dying cell phone and a blackberry were the only contact with outside world. After mid day, just before becoming hypothermic, electricity came back.

Two things were noticeable from this storm.

First - DC Metro area has a good chance of beating the snow out of Alaska in total Monthly Snow Fall. Five feet of snow fall in a month for DC, are you kidding me!! Cars are buried under hard ice in the parking lots and there is no sign they can move for the next 4 weeks.

Second - human body a.k.a. my neighbor is capable of withstanding harshest of conditions and achieving great things. He cleaned his drive way several times that night during the snow storm in -15 degree Celsius and rough winds. He must be having some kind of OCD abt cleaning the snow on his driveway. When the snow storm ended, his drive way was already clean and didn’t have a single chunk of ice. Everyone else just started digging the two and half feet of snow/ice.

As if these weren’t enough, we are being hit by another snow storm right now. It started last night. Weather guys said another 10-20 inches of snow is headed our way. Let‘see what’s in store this time. If we hit the odds and lose power again, I will go buy a lottery ticket. What are the odds of winning that?

A Page in Life

2010-01-21T09:56:00.006-05:00

This happened last summer, May 2009. We met these strangers in the middle of nowhere, totally unexpected and they made a lasting impact on us. V and I were driving from Grand Canyons to Zion National Park, Utah. We stopped at a fast food restaurant in Page, Arizona. We wanted to stop at Page so we could visit Antelope Canyons after lunch. It was the longest fast food stop we ever had. It was bright, sunny, wonderful day to be on that route.

We sat at a corner table by the window having our food. I noticed an old couple few tables away from us. It looked like they have been sitting at the table for a while now. We almost finished our food when the lady slowly walked toward us. She started talking to V for a whole minute. It felt much longer because she was speaking so soft and slow & I couldn’t understand one bit of what she was saying. I wanted to collect all the cash we had and give it to her if that’s what she was asking.

By now, the gentleman who was with her came to us. He walked slower than her. He explained that she was his wife and she just felt like talking to us. He was trying to talk her back to their table but she wouldn’t leave. So we took our food, walked over to their table and sat with them to finish up our lunch. The restaurant was so busy. Everyone was looking at us and must have wondered what’s going on here.

It looked like the old man and lady were well over hundred years old. The oldies were droopy and bald, skin so wrinkled from old age. The man said his wife was ninety two years old and he was ninety three. She had a stroke at some point and she can’t speak clearly. She paused for few seconds between every word. He told us what his wife was trying to tell V: The lady saw us sitting at the corner table and she got reminded of their lives. He said V reminded the old lady of herself several decades ago and how she and her husband spent their younger days. They had been married for over sixty-five years. That’s a long time to stick together. I wonder how life would be if I even lived that long.

I asked if they needed any help and he didn’t want anything. I offered to give them a ride to where they lived; he said he drove his car. They were living by themselves in a town sixteen miles away from where we were eating. They come here whenever they can to eat their favorite salad. They must have been at the table for at least an hour and the salad bowl still looked full. At this rate, they would have to spend another four hours to finish their lunch.

I told him we were headed to Zion & Bryce in Utah. He assured it will be a beautiful trip. He thanked us for spending some time with them. In reality, we were thankful to them. “Page” will always remind us of this meeting. We wished them well and left the place.

We didn’t talk much during the drive. Then the silence broke. There is no need to feel pity and dampen the spirit. Mr & Mrs Oldie had enjoyed their life and they are still doing what they like. So let’s celebrate life as it comes. We took the remaining Jalapeño poppers and started munching. Cheers to Life.

Resolutions, Old & New

2009-12-31T10:10:00.009-05:00

Talking about resolutions, I took a couple at the beginning of 2009.

1) To learn Spanish language. No specific reason just thought it would be cool. And handy if I went to one of the Spanish speaking countries.

2) To make people less unhappy, less worried. V kept saying I wasn’t considerate for her and I didn’t do that and this. So I came up with this just few hours earlier, to make her and others less unhappy.

Now on the last day of the year, its time to evaluate how I did.

I barely completed the Mango Learning course for Spanish. Didn’t practice enough. So I almost forgot everything. I tried to speak the language with the amigos before I left work. They suggested I stick with English. Didn’t go too far with it I guess.

To try and make a person happy is one thing. To find out what is bothering someone and resolving it is something else. Sometimes, it’s harder to do the latter. In the process of eliminating the problems if the person is happier that’s an added bonus, right. This resolution went ok as well. Its hard to grade this effort when it comes to others, but I did try. V says I did alright on the domestic front.

Now for the New Year 2010, I don’t have any new resolutions. Instead I will revisit my ‘Life List’. It will keep me busy for the time being.

Happy New Year !!

Five Point Someone

2009-12-30T14:38:00.019-05:00

I just did an all-nighter to read “Five Point Someone”. It was Chetan Bhagat’s first book. A story about how three friends lived, destroyed and then survived their IIT dreams. The book was well written with simple narration. Its hard to ignore this story.

It took '3 Idiots' for me to notice this book but I am glad I eventually did. I would like to think most of what is in the book are true incidents though the author claims its part fiction inspired by real life incidents. It touched every aspect of student life – managing course work or the lack of it, having fun and pretty much what not to do in any college. Most importantly it drives home something valuable. Friendship and the bonding that happens while you are going through the ups and downs. Its reminiscent of our college days – right from the First Day when you felt like you conquered a peak by getting an admission, to the Last Day when you realize you are still at the foot hills of a mountain called Life.

This story, being specific to hardships at premium institutes like IITs, sent me back in time into the IIT campus. My IIT experience is that of an outsider. Like every other high school student in the city, I started off 11^th grade with high aspirations to get into IIT. Went to one of the better IIT entrance training programs but that didn’t help me crack the entrance exam. The intense training however got me into a college decent-but-not-comparable to IIT. And then for three consecutive years, we would show up in the IIT campus for Saarang – the annual festival at IIT, Madras. We participated in as many events as we could but it was mostly for the concerts, shows and sheer joy of feeling the IIT spirit, at least for that one week. Not to mention we used to get OD (On Duty – class attendance) though we weren’t attending our classes.

My college SVCE was no less of an entertainer in itself. I had a great time. There is really nothing I could complain about except may be the canteen food. And those one or two obnoxious beings – staff and students for the most part were great. Anyway, I’ll reserve those stories for another time.

Back to “Five Point Someone” - if you are going to read it, then start from the Bare Beginnings. Do not read the Prologue – it will give away something that is going to happen later in the book.

LVC

2009-12-28T09:57:00.001-05:00

Last December, we were talking about our resolutions for 2009. It sounded typical but it was fun to know what each of us wanted to do most in the upcoming Year. We had all sorts of stuff in the todo list for the New Year. I had 3. Volunteering was one of them.

I always thought about it… may be help someone of any age that needed a hand for what they can't do by themselves. But often used to wonder how I would get into something like that. I looked up for some ideas online but didn’t commit to anything. It was sometime in July, when I came across an idea from Loudoun Volunteer Caregivers (LVC). I looked up their website and liked what they are doing. I sent them an email and asked where I should start. They asked me to come in for the orientation. My husband Rajesh and I went to LVC in Leesburg. They had interesting personal stories and inspired me so much. By then I was sure I was at the right place to do what I wanted. The process of getting enrolled and actually starting the work was long. We had an India-Trip in the middle and then LVC had some changes going on within. After several months, my registration completed and I finally got the badge along with some envelopes to send in donations.

A week after that, I took up my first task. I had to take an old lady Ms.S to a doctor’s appointment. She must have been in her late 70s or early 80s. When I went to pick her up, I was taken aback to see her in a wheel chair. I was told earlier that she uses a cane. I noticed her right hand was paralyzed. As I drove her, we talked about Christmas, holiday lighting and such. Once we got to the parking lot, I was holding her and we slowly walked together into the doctor’s office. I left her there for her appointment. I went back after an hour to pick her up. She was just done with the appointment, paid the fees and was ready to leave. I held her again and we walked back to the car. I could see how everyone around us tried to be so nice and helpful by holding the door or yielding in the parking lot or whatever way they could. When we reached her apartment, she thanked me for helping her and said she would call me again.

I was thinking about her while driving back. I didn’t spend much time with her but I couldn’t get her out of my head for a long time. At first I felt very sad that an old handicapped woman has no one to take care of her and needs some stranger to help her with daily chores. I am not able to not take this experience personal. I am not able to be unaffected by the loneliness in Ms.S’s life. Then I felt happy that I am at least trying to help people like her. It wasn’t just about giving her a ride. It is about making them feel they have someone who cares for them, someone they can count on when the need comes.

I want to undertake more such tasks whenever possible. Thanks to LVC for giving people like me a chance to serve. Thanks to my company SFDC for encouraging and supporting us in serving the community while we do our jobs.

(This is a Guest Post)

The Telangana Saga Continues

2009-12-12T04:23:00.001-05:00

The issue of separating Andhra Pradesh into Telangana and Andhra has turned into a civil out-break. You got to have an opinion on this. I am not supportive of a separate Telangana state but I can understand why some have been asking for that over four decades ago. I don’t think those arguments are valid in the current order of things though. By now most of you know why people are asking for the bifurcation – lack of infrastructure, failure to support agriculture, backwardness… anything negative in Telangana region is attributed towards this.

Here is a document by Dr.K.Jayashankar – known as father of the Telangana movement: The Demand for a Separate State. The disparity between Telangana and rest of Andhra is not huge, in fact its too close to say everything has been stolen from Telangana. If there is Andhra University, there is equally popular and successful Osmania University. There has been reservation based on population distribution for all three regions (Rayalaseema being the third region within AP) in academic, govt. entities and wherever else possible.

Yes, there could have been more development in Telangana but lack of development is not as much as it’s been projected. Economic and social backwardness is present in rest of Andhra as much as it is in Telengana. The failure in most cases is due to lack of strong political force that can stand up for the development of the region or because of corrupt politicians or both. Having a separate state would not address those issues. The new separated states will be ruled by the same political parties that you have today.

If enough is not being done for developing Telangana region, the politicians and civil servants of the region should be held accountable. Where are all the funds they are getting from the govt., if they are not getting enough, why hasn’t anyone presented the case, why couldn’t they get more funding for the region? That might be more meaningful thought process than fighting for a separate state. More often, its done when the political party is not in power. Note that almost any party that supports separate Telangana state does so when it is not in power. When they become the ruling party, they suddenly turn against bifurcation and distance themselves from this topic. It’s another matter that KCR /TRS - never being in power - has successfully used the age old Telangana movement to gain politically.

The bifurcation issue is turning into civil movement more because the city of Hyderabad is involved. Hyderabad is not only the administrative capital of AP but it has been a representation of cultural, art and a way of living in the region for several centuries. Whichever way Hyderabad goes, the other state is going to feel the pain. People from all over AP, India and whole world have setup enterprises in Hyderabad. Over the past decade, a huge percentage of state’s budget has been spent to develop Hyderabad into a world class city. The city is at a point where it’s returning the favor. The whole state is being benefited by the returns that Hyderabad is generating today. To take it away from one and give to another is not going to sit well with either region.

Water is a huge resource. If Telangana state forms they have more control over the main river water sources. More control for one means less flexibility for another. This is going to cause permanent problems between the two newly formed states. Bifurcation will ultimately be a huge blow to Andhra, its going to be the ultimate loser. There is no guarantee that separate state of Telangana will flourish either. Because tomorrow, Telangana will complain that everything is in Hyderabad and nothing everywhere else - so lets divide more.

We have seen similar conflicts all over the world. There is no silver bullet that will solve these issues. If the decision is to separate into multiple states, the ideal thing would be for the rivers tribunal to resolve the issues on water sharing. And to come up with ways to have Hyderabad city as a common capital; or compensate the state that does not get Hyderabad. However no price can settle a dispute over gem of a city like Hyderabad.

dBuggr - Where Knowledge Is Money

2009-10-14T11:09:00.000-04:00

One of my friends/ex-colleagues started a new venture. It’s very useful for most of us.

It’s called the dBuggr – where knowledge is money.
URL: http://www.dbuggr.com/

A place where people can share their knowledge about anything. The site's design and implementation is impressive as well. The way it differs from umpteen other similar sites is that it pays you for your knowledge. Cool, isn’t it!! It needs few tweaks here and there but it’s a great idea and neatly implemented.

Check it out and let us know your feedback on how it can be improved.

A Short History of Nearly Everything

2009-04-03T15:58:00.000-04:00

"A Short History of Near Everything" is the general science book I mentioned in my earlier post. Its written by Bill Bryson and read by Richard Mathews. I finally completed the audio version of the book.

It has a brief history of nearly everything you see and that you cannot; everything you can imagine and that is beyond your imagination. The book gets very interesting because of the diverse topics it covers and the analogies used so we can understand the facts and figures better. Almost no major scientist goes unmentioned in this book. For most inventions and discoveries, persistence paid up and sometimes sheer coincidence. Every successful discovery is preceded by large number of failed attempts.

Discussions range from Universe, Geology, Physics, Chemistry and Paleontology to so many others – I can’t even remember all of them. There is tons of information in this book that listening to it makes me feel how little I know about anything - about anything that has already been discovered.

‘Universe’ might be most interesting to general reader but there are other topics that might interest you as well. I strongly recommend at least the first few chapters. Here are few tidbits from the book. If you are definitely going to listen to this book, please skip this section, I don’t want to spoil the fun.

-- How old do you think our Earth is? Bill talks about how various theories were proposed over centuries to determine the age of earth. Initially scientists think its few hundred thousand years old. Then they say it might be 1 Million. Then Few Million. Further studies show its 100 or 200 Million Years old. As of today, the age of Earth has been set to be at minimum 4.5 Billion Years

-- If the current age of Earth was scaled down to a 24 hr day: Let’s say earth formed at 00:00 hrs, life started on earth as late as 4pm and human species came into existence at 11:59PM.

-- Do you remember the Diagram of Solar System that we saw in middle school? The planets’ orbits are shown to be equidistant. They are not shown to scale. When compared to the distance between Sun and Earth, Jupiter is 5 times farther away. Pluto is 50 times that distance. So there is no way to draw The Solar System to scale on any book or paper that we ever carried. If the diagram was to be drawn to scale and earth is shown the size of a small green pea, Jupiter is almost a class room away. And Pluto will be good 1 mile away – or some large number like that.

-- We still don’t know enough about our earth itself. If earth was the size of an apple, we have drilled down to the depth of only its skin so far.

Ironically, the slowest part of the book for me was the evolution of Homo sapiens. The book gets dull and boring at times, but that could be because of my interests. I am sure others will find those chapters interesting – just depends on the individual.

Thanks to KP for finding the book and making a strong recommendation, and to T for getting it into my player. If you want to listen to it, let me know. It’s definitely worth the time.

Theory of Relativity

2009-03-04T13:06:00.001-05:00

This is a theory I thought of over 12 years ago. Or at least at that time, it was just a passing thought.

I am putting up the theory on my blog now because of a very interesting book I was listening to. I assure you I will make another post about the book once I complete it. If you come up with something interesting, no matter how stupid your idea might sound, just put it out there for analysis and dissection.

Here is my Theory of Relativity w.r.t. Human Senses:
Assuming the visual and auditory senses have been functioning correctly, if either one of them deteriorates suddenly, the other sense feels less receptive.

In other words, assuming you can see and hear perfectly well till now; if for some reason, your vision suddenly deteriorates and you cannot see properly, you will feel like you cannot hear properly as well. The converse is, when your hearing gets impaired, you will feel like you cannot see clearly as well.

The idea behind the theory is that, when a perfectly functioning sense deteriorates, the signals they send to our brain get weaker. The brain takes time to adjust to this change in signal strength. This affects how the brain receives, interprets and responds to other correlated senses.

I first felt this relative deterioration of senses when I had to manage without spectacles for a day and complained to my mom that I couldn’t hear properly. Everyone thought I was mixing up ears with eyes. It was obvious that I was not able to see clearly without glasses, but I felt I couldn’t hear properly as well. But again, the circuit mess could just be in my head. However, the converse didn’t hold true for me. I didn’t perceive any difference in my vision when I plugged my ears with cotton.

The theory can be simulated and tested by a person who wears high index prescription glasses, say -4 or more. Wear your spectacles or contacts and look at a person standing abt 15 feet away from you. Talk for few minutes. Now remove your spectacles and continue your conversation. Observe if there is any change in your audio perception. If none, repeat until you feel the difference : )

Try it yourself and do let me know what you feel.

Dreams Galore

2009-01-19T14:55:00.000-05:00

This is how a dream goes………
God decided to appear before three human beings and grant them a wish each.

God appeared to a young kid and asked "Tell me one of your best qualities and ask me for a wish. I will grant you whatever you ask". The boy said "I think I have very high IQ. Make me a scientist." God said "So be it". He went on to become one of the greatest scientists ever and we all know him as Albert Einstein.

Several years passed and God appeared to a boy and asked "Tell me one of your best qualities and ask me for a wish. I will grant you whatever you ask". The boy said "I am very smart. Make me a businessman." God said "So be it". He went on to become one of the greatest investors and we all know him as Warren Buffett.

And then after many more years, God appeared to another young kid and asked "Tell me one of your best qualities and ask me for a wish. I will grant you whatever you ask". Before the boy could respond, the dream was interrupted. So what happened to the boy? Nothing really. He went on with his life as usual. He had his ups and downs like everyone else. After many long years, we now know him as Barrack Obama.

He has come out victorious by virtue of his great vision & judgment, his perspective about all things essential and his hopefulness & charisma. He has been an inspiration to the current generation and surely will be for generations to come. One could argue that he has been a beneficiary of circumstances, a beneficiary of the mistakes made by his predecessor. Whichever argument you choose, the fact of the matter is that he has fought against all odds and he is at a point where he is creating history. Obama might not go into the “Greatest Humans” league yet. His voyage has just begun. He has to work his way through. It might take years and even decades to evaluate Obama and how he has done. Good luck Barrack Obama.

This is not just Barrack Obama’s dream. This is One Man’s dream getting fulfilled, every man’s dream getting fulfilled. This is the day when a whole country’s dream comes to fruition.

Holiday Bidding

2008-12-16T10:00:00.000-05:00

Holiday Bidding is something we do at work every holiday season to raise money. The idea is, we start off with certain number of holiday characters, say fifteen. We get to bid some $ amount on a particular employee getting dressed up as a particular character. After a series of bids, the winner for that costume would be the person with the highest cumulative dollar amount bid against him. Once it’s finalized who wears one costume, we move on to the next costume doing the same thing and raising as much money as we can.

For example, I can bid on personA to be dressed up as Mrs. Santa Claus. Someone else might make a higher bid on personB for the same costume. This goes on till no one bids anymore and the person with the highest cumulative dollar amt against his name should dress up as Mrs. Santa Clause. This is otherwise known as Chinese Auction. There are also, last chance bids which are bought for $10 apiece. Which are in turn used to bid during the last 1 hour. The last hour feels like a Christie’s style auction.

Are you confused? It’s ok if you are. Because the point of this post is not to make you understand how Holiday Bidding works but to convey the essence of it. Over the years, the money raised by Holiday Bidding has been donated to “Carpenter’s Shelter” for homeless children, families and adults. With the help of our generous colleagues we raised $6765 in the Alexandria office alone. I hope it reaches those who need it the most.

The fun part of the whole thing is getting dressed up as those holiday characters. This year we have people dressing up as:

Three Wisemen, Four Merry Elves, Frosty the Snowman, Mr. Santa Claus, Mrs. Santa Claus, Sugar Plum Fairy, Holiday Angel, Abominable Snowman, Cindy Lou Who, Scrooge, The Grinch and Baby New Year.

Here are some pictures from incredibly talented AC:

Link to Pictures

Idle Brain

2008-11-01T13:22:00.001-04:00

This is unlike the weekends I usually have. So what’s going on this weekend? Absolutely nothing. Yes, that’s the specialty of this weekend. I am not doing anything at all.

For several months, there were only two things I have been doing on Saturdays (or/and) Sundays.
1) 4-18 hrs long change windows where we do production work depending on the type of change window.
2) 4-20 mile long runs depending on the week of the month.

When I do either, it has after effects. I won’t be able to do much the rest of the day or sometimes rest of the weekend. Now that the run is over and this weekend is not a change window at work, I am totally idle. I am looking at things to do to kill time. Hence you have to read this post.

Hope you all had a good Halloween. Check out Bin Laden being caught by Obama. And few other beauties and beasts.

It’s 70 degrees on the first day of November. What the heck am I doing indoors? Time to step out....

(Pictures Archived)

My First Marathon

2008-10-28T16:57:00.006-04:00

One of the most prestigious marathons in the world - The Marine Corps Marathon was held on Oct 26th. To say that it was an ordeal would be an understatement.

The day started at 5AM. We parked the car few miles away from the race area and took the Metro to Arlington Cemetery. The race was to begin at 8AM right outside Pentagon. I got off the Metro and went up the escalator to the street level. As I walked out, I could see huge sea of people. Some tens of thousands registered to run this year’ MCM. You could see people all the way to the horizon. The first sight was intimidating.

Runners are divided into groups – grouped together based on the expected finish time. I should have rightfully been standing with the 6 hour group. That is almost at the end of the road. I couldn’t see where the runners’ lines ended. Imagine twenty thousand people lined up on route 110. It was already 7:58AM, just 2 mins before the start. I was desperate to get into the runners lines. It would take me 15 mins to go to the back and find the 6 hr group. So I got into the line closest to where I was and found a place for myself. Then I looked up at the board, I was standing among the sub 4 hour runners’ group when I wasn’t even guaranteed to finish in 6 hours. There was no time to think abt anything now. The countdown began - 10 seconds to go.

Just like everyone else around me, my excitement level was so high. It was 40 degrees and my nose and ears almost froze. We slowly started jogging and in couple of mins, I came to the start line. With the huge roaring crowd, I officially started the Marine Corps Marathon. The crowd was so enthusiastic that with their cheering, they provided half the energy the runners need. They estimated abt 100,000 visitors would be out there to cheer the runners.

My first mile was very pleasant. It was interesting to see runners of all shapes and sizes. As soon as I got to Mile 2, the right knee pain started again. It’s the same thing that has been bothering me for the last few months and has not let me complete even 10 Mile runs during training (see my earlier post below). As if this wasn’t enough, there was 120-160 feet elevation on the course around Mile 3 and then around Mile 8. The pain wouldn’t go away. By Mile 3, I was considering abandoning the race. That’s when I saw a pretty girl who was pushing it hard to go up the 120 feet elevation. I was so inspired by her attempt that my pain paled in comparison to her struggle. I could either give up the run and save my knees or go on and see how long my legs will hold up before snapping. I chose the latter. I diverted my attention towards the cheering crowd. I slowly started noticing the placards – they had my name on it. They were cheering me to go on. There were hundreds of them. And then there were thousands. I couldn’t believe so many came out to support me. I tried to relish the moment when suddenly I felt someone push me from behind. The guy behind me was trying to move over to the road side to reach one of his family members to give a hug. That’s when I realized that the placards actually had the names of other runners – held by their family and friends. They were all so generous with their support that I felt they were personally encouraging me. That was enough for me to push myself to go on.

Few miles down the road, there was a U turn on the course. I saw the race leaders run towards us. This would be the only time such a rare occurrence could happen. They were 3 miles ahead of me while I was still at Mile 5. Isn’t it great :) By the time I reach the next U turn on the course, the leaders would finish the race and would be on their flights back home. The race goes on and so does the knee pain. By now, both knees started to pain. The right knee was the worst. It was excruciating. All I wanted to do was reach the 10 Mile marker – The Lincoln Memorial - that’s where VG and SB were supposed to be waiting for me. The least I could do for them is show that I could run at least 10 Miles.

It was downhill and the pretty girl I overtook earlier during an uphill passed me. By the way, did I mention that the pretty girl was 72 yrs old, had both legs amputated and was on a wheel chair. She had just two lean hands and a great heart to push her through. That was a symbolic reminder for me to not give up. There are times when you just have to yield and times when you can keep fighting. My time to give up hasn’t come yet. My target now was to reach Mile 10 and then reevaluate. The second uphill was painful. I was trying to run at a steady pace without trying too many things. I didn’t notice anything with my knees for the next few minutes. I crossed Mile 10. The only good thing so far is that I have steadily been maintaining a pace of under 10 min/mile. i.e. over 6 MPH. As I was getting closer to a bridge the pain was slowly subsiding. Right under the bridge, I met VG and SB. I almost missed them in the crowd. I removed the extra T-shirt that was protecting me from the severe cold and I felt much lighter now. The temperatures were rising. My knee pain was magically reducing. At Mile 11, I totally didn’t feel the pain. I was really lucky that the knees held up and even the pain was gone. If I were to thank someone at that point, it would be the “Gods of Knees”.

I was enjoying the run now. One of my favorite runs is to run in DC in the middle of a highway without being bothered by the traffic. I was able to do that today – George Town- M Street, Lincoln Memorial, Constitution Avenue, right next to the monument, Smithsonian museums, Capitol Hill, Jefferson Memorial, Crystal City. I was constantly hydrating myself at every water point and my appetite for snacks helped very well. I was at Mile 18 maintaining a steady pace of 10 i.e. 6MPH. I was pretty happy that I got it this far and was almost sure to complete the race. My predicted completion time was around 4 hrs 30 mins now. When I came to Mile 20, the next big problem started. All muscles in the legs were cramping up. This is something every runner will go through at some point. So I wasn’t as worried as I was when I got the knee pain. But by Mile 21, I came to stand still. I was trying to walk fast. No amount of cheering from the crowd could help me this time. Because I almost couldn’t hear anything. Muscle cramps could stop you instantly. The phrase “so close, yet so far” was very apt. I knew my friends AC, TR, KP, SY, SR along with VG & SB would be waiting at the finish line. That provided much needed encouragement and mental strength. That last 4.2 miles were probably the longest 4.2 miles that day. The only thought that kept me going was being able to share the triumph with my family and friends when I cross the finish line.

After 4 hrs and 57 mins, I finally crossed the finish line. Though it could have been better, I am extremely happy with the 4:57. When I stand near my window, looking out at the Potomac and the Sky above, thinking what I did today that I will remember for the rest of my life - My First Marathon will always be up there. Thanks to everyone who has been supportive all along. Without you I wouldn’t be able to do this today.

MCM2008 Pictures

Statistics: 4 Hrs 57 Mins 16 Sec
Distance MARATHON
Clock Time 04:59:49
Chip Time 04:57:16
5K 0:31:46
10K 1:02:02
15K 1:32:10
20K 2:03:54
Half 2:11:14
25K 2:36:07
30K 3:11:07
35K 3:52:00
40K 4:38:24

How we can spend $700 Billion

2008-10-01T14:54:00.000-04:00

What a roller coaster ride it’s been the last few days. To Bail Out or Not??

For every argument supporting one decision, there are two valid arguments against it.
My knowledge is limited to what I read off the wire and hear off the air waves. I neither have enough experience nor do I know someone with enough experience to learn from them. So I can’t say for sure if it’s good to bail out or not. Personally, I would lose a lot of dough if the markets go down, so I need govt. to step in. But it also makes sense when people say we shouldn’t bail out the markets and let price correction happen now for a better future. We all agree that the govt. should have introduced regulations at the right time so we wouldn’t have had to see this day in the housing/financial markets. Now that the damage is already done, the common man needs some kind of help.

If they decide to Bailout or have a Rescue plan of some form, how are they going to spend that $700 billion? It makes little sense in giving the money to the Wall Street companies to write off their debts and then take few more billions themselves. It will take forever for the money to trickle down from the corporate structure & bureaucracy to the common man like you and me – that is – if it ever does. When it does, it will be a very small fraction of what they gave the companies to begin with. Govt. might have to spend much more if they go this path. I don’t believe in this Top-Down approach.

Remember the interest rate cuts Feds made the last few quarters so banks could borrow more money adding liquidity to the market. It’s such a mirage. It never really helped the consumer. It was just a stop-gap strategy. Hoping the turmoil will entangle itself if you give it enough time.

If the government does decide to rescue now, why not do it Bottom-Up? Let them directly work with the consumer. This will in turn bailout the companies core to the financial system. Govt. can lend 20-30% of the mortgage amount to the home owners at very low interest rate for long term; which in turn MUST be used by the owner to pay off the bank loan. In other words, that 30% cannot be used by the home owner for anything else but paying off the banks. That way, the money is guaranteed to flow back into the financial system and at the same time help the most effected individuals. Its not like the money govt. is spending in this plan is gone forever. The borrowers, in this case you and me, have the responsibility to pay it back. The govt. will eventually get back the money. If the borrowers default in spite of this intervention, its not worse than the situation we are in right now anyway. All the money the govt. gave us would be back with the banks which will provide the liquidity. That way, money is guaranteed to flow where it is needed. Another way is for govt. to put a cap on interest rates for Adjustable Rate Mortgages held by banks, essentially making them fixed interest mortgages. This is to apply brakes on the ever falling real estate value. That way, banks can get back some money instead of having to foreclose 10 houses every day. Yes, there are lots of intricate details that we need to consider as part of my plan. If you need numbers to backup this plan, we will let the calculus and finance experts do that : )

Does it sound insane? Well, it can’t be worse than the trouble we are already in. Can’t be worse than bailing out the financial companies. I am just saying if you decide to bail them out anyway, do it Bottom-Up. Don’t do it Top-Down.

Run amigo run

2008-09-10T12:39:00.000-04:00

Fall has just started. We love Fall for various reasons. I like it for the colored canopies and the long runs. This is also the home stretch of the Marine Corps Marathon (MCM). It’s just around the corner.

It is one of the better things I enrolled myself into – running a marathon this year. About 6 weeks to go before the big day – Oct 26^th. I have been training for several long months now. I tried to follow a set schedule and by April got up to 30-35 miles/week including 14 milers on Sundays. Then the usual hurdles started. Shoulders, calf muscles, hamstring, blisters, the perpetual cold….. I will spare the details. By now, I got used to the pains and learnt how to avoid them. I set myself a decent goal time to complete the Marathon, decent for a first timer like me… until things started falling apart.

In June, I started getting acute pain in my left knee. It was not continuous, the pain lasts only 5 to 10 mins. And then I would be alright for several days before the pain shows up again. But it was enough to scare me and slow down the training. It was almost a show stopper. The pain, when it showed up, was so severe that I couldn’t stand on my left leg, leave alone running. Doctors checked out the knee and concluded that it’s not major to visit a sports specialist and I needed to take some rest. I stopped running for a month. The pain did not come back. I started running again, though not as serious/regular as before. I thought I could slowly build it up to where I left. Running went well for couple of months.

And then another issue came up out of nowhere. This was just last week. I had a good run on a Friday morning, watched US Open, ate well and slept well that night. When I got up early on Saturday for a long run, I couldn’t stand up on my right foot. My right ankle/heel bone was hurting so much. It couldn’t take any weight. Bengay, cold packs, hot packs… nothing worked. When we are so close to MCM, this kind of injury is definitely going to put me in a low gear. Now, I was considering postponing my MCM registration for next year. But again, there is no guarantee that I will run next year either. Because after training hard for the last 9 months, if injuries can stop me now, the same thing could happen next year. So I decided to give it a shot anyway.

I got reminded of something I read a while back: “If you run without sacrifice, you just jogged”. Injuries are part of our training. We have to learn to overcome them and keep going towards the goal. There are people who have more serious life threatening conditions and yet come out triumphant in these long distances.

I now have a revised goal for my marathon. Way off from what I had in mind in April. It might probably take quarter of a day or more, I don’t know. My goal now, is just be able to complete the Marathon.

All my friends who are reading this, if you are running or want to run any distance, 5k, 10k, marathon or ultras, best of luck. You will hit certain walls all along but keep going. In distance running, the only person you are competing against is yourself. It could mean different things to different people. You push your own limits in the process. At the end of the day, am sure you will be proud of what you did.

I will remember what Dean Karnazes once said: “Run when you can, walk when you have to, crawl if you must; just never give up.” More non-runners would have read this sentence about running than any other. It is one of the captions on the Starbucks cup.

Phelps & Bolts

2008-08-22T10:59:00.000-04:00

The Olympic season has almost come to an end. How can I pass an opportunity to write one abt it...

So what is it in these Olympics that will remain in your memories forever? I am sure there are lots of things from the past couple of weeks. The innumerable world records that were broken, the first gold medal for India in an individual event, the high speed TT, volley ball & beach volley ball or the evergreen soccer & basket ball games.

To top all these off, it has to be Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt. Who is the best? Hard to say. They are both great.

Michael Phelps for winning 8 Golds in 8 events in single Olympics. With WR timings in 7 of them.
For winning the most Olympic Golds “14” (as of 2008 Olympics), most by a human being. Honestly, I thought the relays 'might' be the show stoppers and he would have easy wins in all the individual events. As it turned out the nail biting finish came in 4 x 100 meter freestyle relay, thanks to the anchor Jason Lezak (Lezak did it in 46.06 seconds; faster than the 100m world record of 47.05).

Phelps seemed to have won all other events with ease except one of his favourites - 100 metres butterfly. He beat Cavic by one-hundredth of a second. That is 0.01 second. It’s almost impossible to tell who won the race if not for the electronic sensors. In fact, Phelps took an extra half a stroke than Cavic to make the touch. For lesser mortals that extra half a stroke would have meant a defeat. Not for Phelps. I still can’t believe he touched first with that stroke. The close finish – for once – made him look like a mortal living on earth. If not for this finish, I would have declared he came from another planet. Due credit to Cavic, he swam well, he just couldn’t finish well. That was the only element of luck Phelps needed to equal Mark Spitz 7 Golds in single Olympics. As the saying goes “Fortune favors the brave”. The ever soft and humble Michael Phelps has just become the Greatest Olympian yet and one of the greatest athletes ever.

The other end of spectrum is Usain Bolt. Is he the Greatest Athlete ever?? We can’t argue against what the clock showed. Usain Bolt - 9.69s in 100m, 19.30s in 200m and 37.10s in 4X100m relay. His 100m run made it look like he was racing with a group of high school kids. Note that, this is his Olympic debut in 100m sprint. He was equally dominating in the 200m sprint while breaking Michael Johnson’s WR. Bolt is the only person to hold the WR in both 100m & 200m. And only person after the Great Carl Lewis to take Olympic Gold in both 100m & 200m. But I have to say, am not too fond of Bolt. He is too arrogant to have a positive impact on others. Of course, his arrogance is justified, for he is the fastest man on earth – as of today.

Happy Olympics and don’t miss the marathon on the last day.

Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

2008-07-25T18:51:00.000-04:00

Let me start off by saying that this has nothing to do with how to achieve your childhood dreams. This is not even about my childhood dreams.

Well, this is to remember Randy Pausch. Today is the day Randy Pausch passed away. It’s just that I got reminded. Yet again. That you have to pursue your dreams. Do what you really like, what you aspire to do. I started admiring Randy a lot. I haven’t known him for long. I saw his speeches only twice.

The first time I heard him was his “Last Lecture” last year. It was fantastic. I thought he was one of those rare beings in this world. A perfect combination of knowledge, wisdom and humor. The second time I heard him was today – the day he passed away. I listened to his “Last Lecture” again. My feelings for everything he said are more intense today than the first time I heard the lecture. He starts off the speech by saying his good health is going to end in 3 to 6 months. And ‘don’t feel bad for me’ or ‘don’t pity me’ or something like that. But my eyes tear up every time his words reverberate in my head and the truth strikes me that he is no more. I wasn’t this sad the first time I heard him speak – may be because of the hope that the advances in medical research will cure him out of the evil tumors and we will not have to see this day.

Between now and the first time I heard him, I got to know him a little more, thanks for Google and online videos. There are so many things about the “Last Lecture” and about Randy that I want to share with you, but I will spare you and your valuable time.

I strongly recommend this lecture/speech: Randy Pausch Last Lecture:
Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

I am sure you will appreciate him and get to like him as much as I do.

Have a good day.