Kadavul Vandhirundhar [God Arrived]

Random thought in the shower + couple of hours of putting this together = my first attempt at a comic strip.

Snow.. It’s out there

snow through my window, white n bright.. falling from the sky aflare..
a smile on my face, pulse on my chest.. the fun-abundance, have to share..
staying-indoors, is cheating nature.. i got to face it, have to dare..
head gear on, jackets n gloves.. the sock n snow-boot-pair..

 

glides from the sky.. falls on my head.. melts with warmth of the hair..
numbing toes.. freezing finger.. can lose one.. have 9 to spare..
the unique flake has no parallel.. nothing else to compare..
first snow-fall of the season...joy-so-much is super rare..

 

need to capture.. instill in memory.. 'my camera' i yell in despair..
lenses n filters n tripod i gather.. no batteries ? that's just not fair..
20 min later, the snow is gone.. war with snow-god i declare..
miss the snow but ill pen it down.. if it turns out bad i don't care..

Toothache – Random rant

Fine.. Yes.. I haven’t written in almost a couple of years now.. And never thought my come back post would be because of this damned toothache.. But I had to distract myself from this wretched wisdom tooth that’s grown for no good reason - cutting through my inner cheek, hurting the nerves and causing my entire right side from my ear to neck hurt so bad that I wouldn’t think twice before I pounce on the next person who would dare to irritate me..

Ok.. It’s actually not that bad, but I have a toothache and so I get to complain.. Any one has a problem with that ? I shall also bring completely unwarranted analogies to make my life better and I think none of you should ever complain because YOU don’t have a troubling tooth #1.. Well.. if you do, go yell at your own blog readers..

I guess you know what a zip tie is.. It’s sometimes called a cable tie.. If you don’t, it’s the one that we use to fasten the wires or cables, oblivious of the fact that sometimes, we behave just like those zip ties.. step forward with ease completely not realizing that it’s impossible to step back.. Or is it ?

Can I do some of these things that were second nature not so long back or have I tightened the noose on my zip tie and can’t go back now ?

Sleeping on the floor or a sleeping bag ? Not use my car for a whole month ? Not use a cell phone <shudder> ? Stay without watching TV for a whole year ? Not use the computer for a whole fortnight ? Sleep without a fan ? Stay up all night at a friends place ? Handle a power cut ?

Well… You bet I can !! Only if you get rid of my GOD DAMN TOOTHACHE !!

Rainy day..

And then for no reason, I start to write again.. Its raining here for the last few days.. Yeah.. I hear you say "You're in Seattle, what else do you expect ? " but this is not the typical Seattle rain that drizzles all the time but I can never get drenched in it...

I used to love rain.. And then this stormy rain here for the last few days have brought back all those fond memories..

Once as a kid.. We practiced really hard for a badminton match to be played at DAV Mogappair which in those days was in a land far far away from Adyar. I can't even remember any of my team mates but it rained so much and it took us forever to reach there. When I reached there I was completely soaked. The sports day was canceled and I ended up coming back home.. disappointing

And then once when I was going to write a preliminary written test for a internship program during my 10th standard when I was so drenched that I didn't even feel like giving the test.. If I ever meet N M Krishna I should ask him if he remembers this day.. But in retrospect that day was probably the turning point of my life.. Wow..

Sitting in a theater completely soaked watching the move Unbreakable .. I remember Prahlad, Jai, Sriram and Amit were there.. remember the scene when I really knew what it means when they say 'chill run through your spine'.. Cold

April 13 2001.. Prahlad and I on a ride from Alwarpet to AnnaNagar.. Soaked completely.. getting caught by the traffic policeman for running a red light which I would have seen had I been wearing my glasses.. :D Can't forget the hot tea at vatsa's house.. That day is remembered by both Vatsa and Prahlad as the 6473470 day -un4gettable

Heavy rain and I'm again driving with literally few feet of visibility at night.. And right when I was on top of Adyar flyover, there was a power cut.. I stopped right there waited for my eyes to adjust to the darkness and then continued to drive.. Scary..

and its still raining....

Burrito Units

Ever since the INR - USD conversion went below the 40 : 1 ratio, I've been hearing frequently about dollar value, rupee, inflation, capitalism, growing economy, stocks, shares - some of which I'm just making up on the fly. I should admit, I've never understood any of this too well.. Having grown up in a house of bankers, I'm so well trained to let such discussions pass through me retaining almost 0% content.. Not that I don't understand the value of money its just that I wouldn't lose sleep thinking about multiplying it..

Moving from India to US you notice many lifestyle changes, but the change in currency was the first to hit me when I landed in US about three years back.. I had no idea if something was expensive or affordable or just plain cheap.. Everything changed from Rupees to Dollars.. and my Indian brain was trained to do a 'multiply-by-45' in no time.. I was suddenly paying 40000 Rupees rent for my apartment and some gazillion amounts for tuition.. Internet, Coke, Telephone were all comparable... And Free pizza sounded like jackpot.. It was too much for my monetarily-challenged mind to process..

That's when I was introduced to the world of Burrito units. I'm not sure who coined it but I first heard it from Harish and so I'll attribute it as his discovery. Based on the simple principle that has been applicable since the time of dinosaurs, maybe.. HUNGER.. And the Chipotle burrito was, for some reason, in vogue..

"Two burritos for the movie ?? Totally not worth it.. "

"Alright.. let me get this shirt.. Its like missing three trips to Chipotle at best... "

"If I walk both ways to school, without paying for the bus.. It's like a free burrito every other day.. "

Even now.. a lot of my once-a-year thanksgiving shopping and India shopping was aided by the governing principles of Burrito units.. Priced at about 5.5$, a veggie burrito has brought some clarity in life and puts everything in perspective.. Adios Amigos..

Oh My god.. time flies

Every time I start a sentence with 'I just graduated from University of Minnesota and joined work... ' I feel that rush of fluid through my spine.. Now its been over ONE YEAR since I joined work and before I realize I'll be making a post that says TWO !!

What's happened to this entire year ? Did it just zip across while I was sitting in front of the computer ? Or for that matter the two dozen years of my life.. Am I getting old ?

Shaking off the paranoia, let me take a minute to review my last year..

Bad things...

I didn't learn so much this year.. Well, I'm out of school.. That's expected..

Didn't achieve anything technically great... Not that I used to before..

Didn't work day and night like crazy.. Wait a minute.. is that bad ?

Have slowly lost touch with many friends and folks around the world.. Terrible...

Didn't do as much activity as I expected myself to do..

Outdated myself on electronic possessions and passions.. Its criminal to do that when money is not a reason..

Good things..

Set up a house.. still setting up I should say..

Acted/ Actively participated in a Tamil play.. my long lost desire.. Makes up for a lot of things..

Another US trip... This time with Amma/Appa.. Great vacation.. Fun..

Skied a bit.. That was fun.. Should do more of that..

Had lots of friends and family visit me.. Made up a bit for that huge summer trip last year and this year..

 

Not so bad after all... Soon to come a wish list for the future.. FY08 planning..

Writer

To motivate myself to make frequent blog post I've downloaded the Live Writer.. Not only does this allow me to publish directly to any of my blog sites, it also gives me a rich text formatting interface..

And not to forget the addons to directly insert a flickr image or the upcoming silverlight videos !! And did I mention that I love Maps and this one allows you to include a Map snapshot with all the jazzy work that you can do in Live Maps ?

Well if this doesn't get me to blogging more often.. I'm just plain lazy !!

Spiderman 3

Things I know, now that I have watched Spiderman

• There's no evil.. There's no good
• One bad guy is too easy to handle
  
• Jealous girlfriend + Helping friend + Wise old people + random dance + Kids sentiment + American flag could be the ingredients of an action movie
• Spidey could ooze with happiness, fall in love, display anger, seek revenge, act stupid, flirt, cry, play the piano, emote sadness and dance awkwardly.. but i'd prefer flying and fighting
  
• Popcorn doesn't stay fresh for two and half hours
  
• Not all movies deserve a review
• Somethings stay right....... No matter how you align them :)
  

Sleepless in Bellevue

Sitting here by myself,
I feel so lonely tonight
Don't see the time or the moment
when I'll get out of my plight

The bed is cozy, pillow is soft
but now i don't feel so sleepy
Those wierd thoughts keep recurring,
my god it feels so creepy

"Tomorrow will be nice", I tell myself
"better things will be in store"
But I know its going to be, not so different,
I've been through this before

Closed my eyes, switched off the light
Counted dimes to nickels to penny
three million sheeps, four billion moons
Guys, this is definitely not funny

My life is psyched up, no point in living
Its like the book by Sigmund Freud
Cut out to be just like my limerick
Not only boring but A void !!

__________

** No, I didn't mean anything written in this poem...
Yes, there is a reason why I wrote it..
No, I am not going to explain it..
Yes, you deserve a give-away clue : lipogram

Love the snow

Its 1 30 AM.. I just dragged myself unwillingly into the warmth of my house.. My activities in the last 30 minutes could be called anything but sensible.. The 2 minute distance from Arun/Anish's apartment to mine has never been so beautiful nor have I ever taken 30 minutes to cover it.
Thanks to the sudden generosity of the snow-god, if there is one, towards the blessed residents of Bellevue.

I see the snow flakes.. gliding from the sky.. settling on my hand absorbing the warmth and dissapearing instantly.. I see the bright sky.. Its almost like dawn.. I see the white carpet... I feel the soft snow crushing under my feet.. I don't remember its cold and my legs are freezing.. I'm just too engrossed in the beauty of the snow that I refuse to go inside my house.. I miss the snow so much.. I don't wanna go inside....

zzzz... zzzzz... Its just so beautiful...
and here I go to sleep..

Do I get back ?

Excuse me while I'm having a small chat with myself..

Me : Do you think I should get back to blogging ?

Me : Get back ??? C'mon dude.. You never were away !!! The wide spread readers are dying for your next post checking this space every day !!



Me : You're kidding me...

Me : Of course I'm kidding you dim witted moron !! The world doesn't care about what you have to say...

Me : What ? Is that true ? So you think I should just give up on being public and just stick to my private void ?

Me : Jeezzz... 'private', 'void' ... Loooks like you don't have a life !! So what are you thinking of writing ??


Me : How about another photo album ??

Me : Beeeep.. bad idea... you have flickstr, yahoo photos, picassa and a whole bunch of stuff dude... don't start off with your jalbum thingie again..

Me : Maybe good word for the world ??

Me : Yes Mr. Mahatma Gandhi... Can I bring you the stick ??

Me : Maybe the events happening in my life.. That's what I started this blog for on the first place..

Me : And that would be what Mister ? You don't have a life.. There's nothing going on.. the WORLD knows the life of a software developer !!

Me : Awrite.. now do you have an idea or are you just trying to be funny here ?

Me : Ok.. Ok.. I'm really out of ideas.. will let you know once I come up with something..


Me : What do I do meanwhile ?

Me : Just write something.. just some warm up !

Me : Sounds good... awrite.. Here I go.............

Vegas Virtual Tour

Here comes the much awaited Vegas Photo Album

For best viewing experience:
1. Click on a particular Album from the set of Albums
2. Click on the first image from the thumbnail
3. Press F 11 to have the browser run full screen
4. Use the right/left arrow keys to go to the next picture


If the Album doesn't load please try again after a while !!

Vegas Trip

The Spring Break 2006 was the much awaited break after the legendary India trip...
The reason for the excitement : Trip to Las Vegas and Death Valley...

The grandeur of Vegas... warmth of the desert city... camping at Death Valley.. trek in the Sand Dunes... drive through the mountains.. lowest point on the western hemisphere... gambling & Casinos.. were all reasons for the excitement... but the BIGgest reason ofcourse was beyond all of this..
Its this unique bunch of characters who made it to the trip !!!

To the wonderous world of people who will be joining me on a virtual photo tour of this exciting trip : You really have to know about these people... They DESERVE an introduction....

---

Abhishek Raman....
Its slightly unfair to start writing about the person who has the style and stature to shadow the other introductions... With his personality he could give any Kollywood hero a run for his money.. With his thamizh however, he would give all the "enku-taamil-avlova-varadhu" heroines a run for their money...
Stylish goggles, impeccable dressing, flawless hairstyle, smiling face... That's Abhi for you..
Inside the dude lies the heart of a giver.. If you are ever looking for a shoulder to cry on the Theresa in Abhi will always be there.. beside you and ready to give more than what you expected, all that with an unflinching smile..
His style and charm would stay a close second to his listening ears and open arms...

---

Anand Janakiraman....

You have a plan.. you want a man... Janak's the one you are looking for..
From as geeky as solving Algo assignment to as cheeky as planning a secret Holi attack..
From as sporty as skiing or ice skating to as dirty as snow fight on the streets...
From as short as a coffee break to as long as shopping...
From as old as sharing 60's tamil movies to as new as designing new technology....
Janak generates this mysterious amount of josh which he's probably stored up unused for his entire life...
Overall, Janak is an evolving person... Adapting his hairstyle, glasses, dress, food, thoughts to the whims and fancies of the Western world but retaining the heart and soul of a typical Nanganallur tam brahm....
Oh.. for Wednesday's sake .. he is also a CARing, ChivAlRous, CARdial, CARvellous CARacter ???

---

Archana Mohan...
Anyone who knows Archu would seldom see the 24 year old girl or her sweet voice or her inborn talent to dance. She would either be in this caring home maker mode, cleaning the house and cooking for all, or, the ever-so-diplomatic business woman smartly clad in a blue shirt and a professional pair of glasses explaining data modeling fundaes..
But, what you more often see is the 3 year old kid.. still struggling to get the right pronunciation... penning her own lyrics to popular numbers... looking for a chintoo, mintoo or babloo in people around... believe me, THIS is the pattani you would LOVE to be around with...
Only a previliged few get to take a deepsea dive and see the tornedo deep into her ocean of thoughts.. the others sail smoothly in the still water on the periphery...Its so much fun teasing, troubling, irritating or making fun of her but you quite instantly start to miss the warm hug when she is not around.. I generally don't say this about someone but she's one reason I don't miss my sister much in Minneapolis !!

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Harish Barathvajasankar...

On first looks you would think Harish is this extremely nerdy guy who would seldom think of spending time away from books, school and computers... He even acts like that sometimes... But if triggered, he's this toothpaste-out-of-tube, hyper excited, FOR-THE-MOMENT character... It sometime surprises how someone could go on talking, explaining, dreaming, enquiring, clarifying and BREATHING cars with absolutely no signs of fatigue....

Occasionally he might spill hatred and anger towards something.. but in no time you will realise that he has the heart that wouldn't harm a fly... He could crib about something for real long and still go and work meticulously to sort it out...
For Harish, a long drive on his fav car, speeding where it is not required, racing and teasing others who share the road space, blaring rock music in the car, a long talk about computers and family back home, and a drink with his buddies before hitting the bed.... is probably his idea of a perfect day in his life... Which clearly shows he's gonna have many of them in his life...

---

Neelakantan Saikrishnan...

Neela could be a real strong candidate for Mr. Perfect contest.. Anything under the sun, he would have an explanation, an opinion, a thought, an experience or at least a vague idea.... Organising and bearing responsibility come to him very naturally.... He's the perfect people's guy and its very evident : he will be the moderator of community groups, handle the cricket team, play almost any individual and team sport i can think of, be a part of organizing shows and trips, do social service in helping orphanages back in India, volunteer for community activities.... and will have over 400 friends on Orkut...
The IIT stud and a Ph.D. grad student very ironically deals with the not-so-down-to-earth aircrafts... and holds an impeccable academic recordIn spite of his active social lifestyle he would always be a dutiful son, a special brother, and would be there for someone as a caring friend....

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Niroop Shankar...

Niru is the toughest nut to crack... One moment you would think that you completely understand him and at the other you will think that he completely understands you.... The extremely-family-attached guy would have lent a helping hand so unobtrusively in so many things with so little advertisement that you might have to sit back to realise how things could have been so difficult if not for someone like him...
Social restriction or shyness are words that were never a part of his vocabulary and he would befriend ANYONE the first time he speaks to them.. The ardent gamer can learn and master a video game in less than no time... He has a great passion for movies, be it 70s tamil movies or latest crappy hollywood flicks... He's also a natural raconteur and would be a treat for the kids...
Overall ... Niru is sometimes The GodFather.. sometimes The Gilmastaaa.......

---

Ramya Rangarajan...
Ramy.. Rangudu... Golu... Chinki kutti...are all part of the IUPAC series for this exceptionally rare element who I refer to as Eli (for her sudden desire for Masal vadai in an involving graph theory lecture).
She is probably the first person who I have come accross who fits perfectly into the character of a prototypical pampered tamil movie heroine ... petite and cute ... can always pose for a photograph as though it was her first one... she can dress for a couple of hours and look like it was worth the trouble... can have a whole wardrobe of clothes and still go shopping... can shop for hours together without getting tired... will shiver with the slightest fall of temperature... can collect soft toys that will fit a room... can eat a whole bar of choclate and run in the treadmill for hours...
But then atypical of any tamil movie character she can pick up a crossword puzzle and solve it.. can get excited about sudoku, algorithms and graph theory... can sit and code for hours together and be extremely effecient at it... and could play an action video game with great interest..
You'll have a tough time to pin down on one thing that makes her special, makes you happily cater to all that she wants, forces you to make fun of her, tease her and bother her...
You wonder.. if it is because the only sentiment that she expresses is happiness which so magically spreads when she's around ?? If it is because she lets you be yourself and express yourself the way you want ?? If it is because of her genuine bubbling enthusiasm and adorably childish nature ??
At some point you stop thinking... That's Eli for you !!

---

PS : I started writing this on March 24th, 2005 and today is March 24th, 2006... I might really not be a man of my words.. But I hope I at least pass for a boy with a heart...

Holi....... Rang de Basanthi re...

Thousands of miles away from home you seldom dream of celebrating a festival as exciting and colorful as Holi.. Considering the fact that it requires a little extra effort than the other 'purely food' based festivals..

For the culturally uninitiated, Holi is the festival of colors. It has different legends to back it up.. Holika's failed attempt at trying to kill Prahlad in the Narasimha avatar is probably the most popular... Poothana making a failed attempt to kill Krishna is also considered...

Red represents purity, energy, passion..
Yellow repels evil, symbolises chastity..
Blue to mean calm, deep and sacred...
Green oozes life, fertility and vitality..


An absolutely normal Wednesday morning.. Anand and I made a sudden plan to smear some paint on the vanilla life of the denizens of Apt 708... Colors procured... Time decided... Dressed in white... Brought each of them out of the house... and Attttaackkkk..........



More Pictures....
In no time... around 25 desis where disturbed from their normal living... smeared colors and it was a HUGEEEEEEEEEE success...
What followed was a hearty desi meal at B'bay bistro..

என்ன சமயலோ ? எதிர்த்து கேட்க யாரும் இல்லை..... என்ன சமயலோ ????

Its been quite a while since I really cooked good food.. As far as I can recollect, not in the last 20 years... I'm not sure what happened before that..
But for absolutely no rhyme or reason I decided to break the record yesterday..

A very ambitious plan... Bajji (aloo,onion and molaga), Peas pulao, Paneer Butter Masala, Raitha, Javvarisi Payasam, Thayir Sadham..
The plan ofcourse was mine.. execution was a team effort..


Vivek was the Bajji specialist.. Ramy took total incharge of the payasam and raitha.. With Abhi navigating and me on the driver seat we went ahead with the peas pulao and paneer butter masala... Unlike the drive to the grocery store that afternoon, we didn't mess up with this trip to success... Ofcourse some remote tele help by Sarika ji was always there..

Without any major sodhapals we actually completed it in time for everybody to eat...
After a dozen of us devouring the food, at the end of the day, something made me feel really happy and contended.. Was it because every dish came out as expected ? Was it because nothing was even close to bad that it got left over ? Was it because the connoisseur in me was satisfied tasting the food ? I guess Yes.. But that's not all... More than anything, I think its the mere look of contentment on everybody's face after eating the food..
I'm sure Patti and Amma would be able to understand what I really mean here.. I'm really glad I did this..

Speaking of which I just recollect the latest 6 heartfelt food attacks....

The dosai, sambar, chutney that Amma and Appa made that I had immediately after I landed in Mumbai..

Carrot Halwa + Panneer Sabji @ Bangalore

Lunch @ Pattani's + Breakfast @ Anand's...

Pulikuthu Upperi, molagootal, eriseri, pappadam etc.. @ B1

Murugal dosai, Panneer butter masala that chithi made @ Cal last summer

Rasam and Cabbage curry that Mami made @ texas


Sigh... my taste buds are giving my mind a 'STOP IT NOW.. I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE' signal... which actually forces me to think...
How it would be to actually have a digitized taste transmitter.. Someway to parametrize taste.. disconsidering the consistency, temperature and quantity how would it be if I could drop the paneer butter masala in a specialized input device here by my computer.. it gets digitally idenfied into different parameters like say... 60% spicy, 20% sour or whatever it takes to reproduce the same taste.. This parametrized data is sent through the internet to a remote place where it is used to generate a liquid which when drunk leaves the same taste in my mouth as my panneer butter masala...
Think of it..

"Hi I'm a Chef from Udipi @ Seattle, Is this Udipi Chennai ? Could you send me the Pudhina Chutney parameters that recently became a big hit in Chennai ? Yes... Thanks.. I'll be expecting your email.. "

"Maa...... I just made this vatha kozhambu.. something seems amiss.. Konjam taste panni sollen.. Ohhhh... I didn't know you put sambar powder in vathakozhambu... duh??????"

"Waiter.. I have in this USB drive my preferred pie's taste parameters.. Would you mind bringing me the pie that matches the taste really quick please ?? "



Yeah yeah.. I can hear you say... "Nice imagination.. talk about something possible..." But did I hear the same skeptic advice some years back when they said RGB givesyou most possible colors, no matter how your eyes perceive them ?

For the love of taste, I hope this happens someday.. :)

என் முதல் தமிழ் ஒட்டட கட்ைட

வலை இன்னும் விரியும்

Exam

Today, as I walked out of the exam hall after a 90 minute duel with the question paper, my brain was playing the recorded message : "It's over now... just be happy !! "... but my heart somehow wouldn't buy it... not today !!!

To me - a 22-year old who has been nothing but a student - 'exam' is not an unfamiliar word... I could recognise one whatever you call it :

Class test... monthly test... quarterly exam... half yearly exam... annual exam... pre-board exam... board exam... all public school exam...
Common exam... tuition tests.. coaching class preparatory exam... 12th final board exam.. TamilNadu Professional course entrance exam(TNPCEE)...
Continuous assessment tests... Mid-semester tests .. semester exams...
mock CAT.. Common Admission test(CAT)... Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering(GATE)..
Graduate Record Exam(GRE).. Test of English as a ForIEgn Language(TOEFL)..
Surprise quiz.. midterm... open book exams... class finals..

I would express my hatred, no matter how exciting they could make it sound because the objective has always been the same : A question paper... a time limit... ATTACK.....

Let's ask people... Has anyone ever told you (or will ever tell you) in real life.. "You've got 2 hours to do this stuff. Now Start." Probably not... the concept of a time trail ends with exams unless you are a professional quizzer or an ardent game show participant... Nevertheless, a timed exam is more popular than its other less valued counterparts like... take home exam, report, projects, presentations etc... at least for an Indian undergrad student...

Thinking of it... An exam comes in three phases :
Preparation phase : papers/notes all around the room... study holidays... no TV for a month ... ear plugs... late night coffees/biscuits... ALARM CLOCK... terrace... time table... night out... portions.. syllabus... units.. chapters.. Xerox... previous question papers.. question paper got 'leaked' news... spare pens/pencils... sharpener.. eraser... geometry box... writing pad... ruler.. watch.. hall ticket...

Time trial phase: Attacking the paper.. time allocation... "which goes first".. and an array of popular cheating techniques that is worth a research in itself : copying... bit paper... passing the answer paper... none of which I've tried out merely due to lack of mettle..

Waiting-for-the-result phase : the time between an exam and when you get your score is probably the most blissful period.... when the day comes... the excitement begins : the thrill of waiting for the answer paper... checking the scores over the internet... secretly looking for other student's score.. comparing and totaling the already distributed scores... groveling for a couple of more marks here and there... the re-totaling.. arrear exams... revaluation... etc...

Just go to a school and announce the cancellation of an exam... Its by far the quickest way you could make an entire crowd happy... For me.. being in Grad school has not changed anything..
The point being, next semester... the project and the other graduate level course that I have registered for are not going to have an exam and what i wrote today was probably the last ever timed exam of my life... Isn't that such an exciting thought ??

But TODAY, as I walked out of the exam after the 90 minute duel... my heart cried.. "Hmm... what an unceremonious ending to a series of the ever-loathed event... If not in the past.. as of now.. I miss this feeling.. the adrenaline rush... the exam fever.. the associated memories... Its ALL OVER???? "

Couldn't help but think about the lines from Robert Frost's - 'Reluctance' that I recently came across:
Ah, when to the heart of man
Was it ever less than a treason
To go with the drift of things,
To yield with a grace to reason,
And bow and accept the end
Of a love or a season?


If you were to ask me... "Would you rather take one more ?? "..
I would think for a while and say "Yes... I guess I love to hate exams.. "



PS : This lucky 50th post of mine got out of my hard disk ahead of its incomplete predecessors blog-1.txt and blog-2.txt that got shelved due to lack of time...

Say it in 55 words

I think you are wrong and I tell you.. You MIGHT like me less..
I think you are wrong and I don't tell you.. I could like you less..
I think you are wrong and I tell someone.. I like myself less..
Practiced the first.. scared of second.. HATEd the third.. Even if I'm you !!

A pretty delayed response.. Prahlad tagged me with this.. The idea is you write anything under the sun in 55 words and tag a few people who would do the same.
I tag Niru, S Buggy , Archu and Anish

Duluth Trip

Duluth Photo Album
The end of Fall is marked by the brilliant shades of colors displayed by the trees.. Me, Neela, Anand, Niroop, Harish, Archu and Ramy took off one fine Saturday Morning on October 15th to Duluth..

Driving in a Mini van north of Minneapolis.. We stopped at Duluth and enjoyed the lake Superior view from there.. then we took off to a National Forest + Falls but stopped on the way to flip a few stones in the lake.. Had an awesome time at the National Forest and again stopped midway next to a tunnel to take a few snaps..

Mental Health

I just couldn't believe when there was this mail from Mental Health and Resources sent to all University students.. a part of which read : ".. According to a recent survey, nearly half of all college students report feeling so depressed that they have trouble functioning, and 15 percent meet the criteria for clinical depression.... "

I actually laughed out loud.. In the vocabulary of a student who has lived his first 22 years under the aegis of his parents, "depression" and "mental health" are funny words associated solely with movie characters..

A li'l thought into this and I was already not sure if I could think of someone who did not go through this phase after leaving home not so long back..

Chances are high, at some point of time you would have associated yourself with one of these cursed words : Academic pressure, financial aid, health, relationship, family, roomies, neglect, scores etc...
Chances are high you would have heard "Its a matter of time.. ".. "No one stays sad for too long" ... "Life is a balance.. you gain some you lose some.. " "Its a passing phase" etc.. from your close friend or family.. Some of ubiquitous rules we all know but can seldom apply it in our lives..
Chances are high you would have felt sleep was evading you and free pizza or even plain food didn't matter to you much..
The acid test however is to think if you actually felt happy reading the quote from the mail and felt like replying to them.. :)

No matter what, in the end, you come out of it much stronger, healthier and wiser.. consider it words of wisdom or plain voice of experience.. but it's the truth.. believe me !! Good Luck !!

Million Dollar Baby

I have not blogged in a long time hoping to get one good post out.. However, the movie that I finished watching just now has changed my take on that..

Million Dollar Baby is the life of a 30+ year old woman (played by Hillary Swank) who works her way up to become a fighter and how life isn't always as rosy as you think it is.. Clint Eastwood as her Manager and Morgan Freeman as the old boxer and narrator enhance the already apparent melancholy.. Its little surprise she won an oscar for her performance..

You really don't want to watch this movie on a really happy day and make it end otherwise... Its not in a long time I have watched a scene in the movie through moist eyes..

I'm sure you would have read more informative and less cryptic review about the mvoie, but I am so happy I could kill myself.. After watching this movie.. :)

life moves on..

Summer.. It was the mixture of everything.. Challenges.. Learning.. Fun.. Experience.. Thought.. Travel.. It put me on a raised pedestal to take a deep look into the future (or rather the lack of it.. :P )

If I were watching my life in a cassette player with a remote control in my hand.. believe me, this summer I've felt like using all the buttons.. Pause to relish certain scenes.. Forward the most annoying parts... Slow down when things were goin' too fast.. Rewind and change certain scenes.. and Stop when you just couldn't take it any more..
However, like any other good movie.. I was watching mine in the theater where there was just a Play mode and not even remote chance of control..

After what has been one of the most eventful summer of my life, the grind continues..

Signed up for a database course in my department..
Two out of department coursre - one on human factors design and the other on Graph theory..
Had my first overseas experience of cold, cough and fever.. Doin' perfectly fine now..
Started off with my TA stuff.. This time I'm handling an Operating Systems course for the College of Continuing education..
Set up the house..
Assembled my bike and have been cycling to campus now..


Other news in Minneapolis :

708 University Ave is now officially the apartment complex holding the maximum desi population.. Almost everyone has moved in there..

There's lotsa poeple moving in into our area which was till date not so famous for desi grad students..

Anand bought a new car.. A maroon Mazda.. Looks good..

The weather is just ideal... The best weather to bike.. Looking forward to make the grand rounds (a 50 mile along the river) sometime..

A new step..

Friday, August 19 2005 - Last day of the week... 12th week of the internship.. One year after Masters.. 5 years after coming out of school.. 17 years after I started formal education.. 22.5 years after I was born..

I got a Job Offer from Microsoft as a Developer in the MSN Mobile division..

My first step out of student life into the corporate world.. Feels great..


-- Do read the other posts about my summer and internship, take a look at the photos at Washington and California and feel free to write in your comments..

Washington weekends and PHOTOS

Even as we entered Seattle on AUGUST 19th.. We had a good idea of all the benefits we would receive at Microsoft.. However, Of all the benefits that we had at Microsoft including Rent reimbursement, Bike expenses reimbursement, free pop, interns social meetings, Tech talks etc... the one that we utilised the most was the free 6 days of rental cars.. With 4 of us eligible to drive, we had 24 days of cars which means a car for every weekend..

Week Zero (Around May 30)
Landed in Seattle.. Rented a car.. Settled into our 3 day temp accomodation.. Shopped.. Shopped and Shopped.. Picked up Arun from Jai's place.. Went around Seattle Science center etc.. Looked for new apartments .. Found one and finished off the formalities and officially moved in..[photos]

Week One - Beach trip and Long night drive
Initial Josh at Microsoft over.. Took pictures of the neighbourhood and house.. Rented a car from the airport.. Beach trip.. Thai restaurant.. Long night drive and coming back at 5 AM...[photos]

Week Two
Mr. and Mrs. Smith + Some random shopping.. Don't write comments about Mr. and Mrs. Smith as I can't encourage unparlimentary language.. :) :)


Week Three
Was already swamped with work that I missed the Mariner's baseball game.. [Baseball game photos]

The Batman begins movie on Friday night.. The night out with Jai, Sai and Rajesh (the amazon guys) and the Snowqualmie falls trip the next day.. [SnowQualmie Falls photos]

Tatiana Becker, our school recruiter took all the U of M interns for a trip around Seattle.. Restaurant.. Gas Factory park, Pike Place market and Seattle Underground tour.. [School recruiter trip photos]

Week Four
The most exciting Mt. Rainier trek.. The paradise glacier trail.. Sliding down the snow.. Arun's comment on "Raining at SnowQualmie falls and Snowing at Mt. Rainier"... Having lunch at Sreeram's the next day.. Inviting Komal for food at our place.. [photos]

Week Five
Watching Anniyan on Tuesday.. Going to Bainbridge islands... Kayaking.. The kayak capsizing.. Eating at an Indian restaurant.. Taking a ferry ride back home.. Instead of driving the 4 hour road, we could park the car inside a ferry which would bring us to Seattle from the island..[Kayaking and Ferry photos]
Going to Gas works factory for July 4th celebrations [Fireworks photos]


Week Six
One of the most exciting events in Microsoft happened on July 9th.. The puzzle day.. A treasure hunt where as a team of 12 we need to crack a series of puzzles to get the cold.. the theme was Pirates and the puzzles were mind racking and exciting.. I'm not goin' to mention that we came 5th in this event (from the last.. :( ) [photos]

Week Seven
Yes... Everyday you have dinner.. But its not everyday that you would have dinner at the house of one of the most revered and greatest persons on the face of the planet.. Yes.. on 13th of July I had dinner at Bill Gates' house and got to meet him along with all the other interns.. It first didn't occur as a big even but somehow its an experience that still makes me feel good .. Unfortunately wasn't allowed to take photos..
That weekend was white water rafting with all interns.. gearing up for the fun.. taking positions.. Going through rapids and JUMPING off a bridge ... You HAVE to see the photots..[photos]

Week Eight
Took a quite weekend to one of the beaches in the neigbouring city of Tacoma and watched Charlie and the Choclate Factory in the IMax theater.. [photos]

Week Nine
The day for which I had worked so far was during this week.. The Intern Grad Fair Demo.. Steve Ballmer had been there to address the gathering... [Intern grad fair demo photos]
The weekend was @ Olympic National Park... Overnight camping... Tents.. Torches.. Burners.. Lake.. Bon Fires.. Cards.. [Olympic National Forest photos] and Rialto beach photos

Week Ten
The friday was the team barbecue party.. Water Skiing with my manager.. Badminton.. Volley Ball and Food.. Photos coming soon...

Week Eleven
Shopped at Fry's.. watched "The Rising - Mangal Pandey" and did some timepass at Home..

Week Twelve
Cleaning the house.. Packing.. Dismantling the bikes.. Settling bills.. Shipping.. Senti talk to all people at work.. Finishing up last minute office work.. Returning the card key..

Its always tough to say goodbye and all good things come to an end.. It was finally GoodBye Seattle on August 21st !!!

We....

Well... When we landed in Seattle on the last week of May the only thing running on our head was work and performing well... Little did we realise that we could have so much fun.. Now at the end of it all, if I look back at my internship I realise that each moment we spent together would be remembered for years to come..

Now.. Who is this WE ??????


Anish Mohan.. My roomie... Both of us from U of M computer science department.. was the only Program Manager intern around us.. the Digital Documents team.. The early to bed, early to rise worker would not meet me most of the days at home considering my split sleeping schedule.. His sincerity and discipline about everything including food, sleep, work and play is definitely something I could only dream of.. This organized hard worker is also a good listener.. Can never forget all the stuff that we organised, planned, assigned roles and executed..


Arun Gurunathan...My classmate at SVCE.. the stud Software Development Engineer in Test intern from University of Illinois, Chicago.. Windows shell team.. Known for his subtle comedy and "silent killer" attitude.. he's rightly nick named "KD".. Someone who was able to understand my local tamil dialect and be able to contribute to it.. Discussing and watching movies, songs and "Goli Soda Ungal Choice"... Crossie and Sudoku.. Cribbing about my non-working code are unforgettable memories..

Ninad Kulkarni.. "Echo" boy... Arun's classmate in UIC... Incidentally happened to be Anish's classmate in Undergrad... Security One-Care-Live team... enter Chicago and ask any Desi girl and they would tell you about Ninad.. especially the..... :) :) "I know" is in the tip of the tongue for this "baap of reasoning".. Inspite of all the brilliant reasons he comes up with, he's great to talk with and good fun to be around.. Something about him makes you feel good.. Maybe its the genuine enthusiasm...


Prasad Gopal.. the other Dev intern (apart from me) in the gang with the IW team.. Heading from Virginia Tech, he could be the Malik Bhai of Company, Pandya of Khakha khakha or the Kameswara of MMKR. I can never forget the Kayaking experience, the racquet ball games, TT at building 32 and night drive with this extremely vivacious and sporty character who can sometime put a mind reader to shame..



Some thought kindlers that would make me smile after years from now..

-- Sambar vada at Udipi Palace..
-- "Lonely.. I'm so lonely" and the "Ooo..ooo" song on the car trips
-- Bollygrounds + Tamil Grounds + Blockbuster
-- Meeting Sai at the airport and Mr. and Mrs. Smith..
-- Fungus and exhibits
-- Subway vs Quizznos..
-- Ninad's colleagues..
-- Undying navigation controversies..
-- "Venam.. vitru.. purila.. ".. "Tune kya socha.. "
-- Nimish the guy who looked like "Aditya" :)
-- Sunita and Smriti and the Olympic National Park experience..
-- Vaibhav and Dylan during the Kyaking experience..
-- Samarth the cricket champ ..
-- Gayatri and the Anniyan movie with Arun..
-- Satish with Hampton greens
-- Night out with Rajesh, Jai and Sai..
-- "Ey.. Police.. ".. "300$ kuduthrukar.. ".. "Simple.. Aana powerful.. "
-- Crossie and Sudoku with Arun..
-- Accounts.xls
-- Laptop o mania.. and the irritating wireless router problem..
-- Freedom Struggle talk after watching Mangal Pandey..
-- Last minute packing and house cleaning..

Sleepless at Seattle

Its justified to have my first post about Seattle related to the main purpose of being here.. Internship at Microsoft... After the internship interview and the offer it was decided that I would be in Redmond between June 1st to August 19th..

The New Employee Orientation marked our first day into Microsoft Corporation... Met new people felt good to be part of one of the biggest companies in the world...

What followed was the ramp up session, setting up my dev box, do an s+ to sync up with other employees and have weekly one on ones with my mentor...
which in a non-Microsoft world would be..
What followed was the initial learning session, setting up my computer, set up and appointment to follow up with other employees and meet my mentor weekly.

My team.. MSN Mobile Services is all about developing services for Mobile applications... The idea is to give a Windows like experience in operating with your mobile phone. However, I also got to work with the client team that makes the mobile phone talk with these services...

The internship as such, is extremely well planned and organised.. The first week in Microsoft, you would have to discuss with your mentor and set up goals for yourself.. 6 weeks into your internship you have the Mid Point Review where you are assessed based on keeping up with your goals' schedule and based on the company values... Improvements, corrections and acheivements are mentioned and the rest of the 6 weeks is planned... If you are performing at a level expected from you, they would discuss about your interview for a Full Time position..
If you choose to interview with your own team, you would have to just meet the recruiter and the manager in your team. If you feel that you want to interview for some other position (and/or) in some other group, you would have to go through the four rounds of interview which is similar to the internship interview... Finally, at the end of 11 weeks you would have to go through the interview and submit a Final Review document after talking with both your mentor and manager. The last week of your internship they would make you an offer for a Full Time position, if the team needs you...

My experience was pretty much the standard path... Had my goals set up.. My main target was the intern fair demo on the 27th of July where I had to demo and end-to-end working prototype of my work.. The learning curve was too steep and had to refer to a lot of code and lot of people to understand and implement what I wanted. With some fixed deadlines and last minute night outs, I was able to successfully demo my work.. There was a Mobile group team meeting on 28th and I had the opportunity to demo my work again and received good appreciation from the entire team.. The rest of the internship was spent in stabilising the service, adding a few more features and bringing my code up to date on the protocol.. I had a decent-to-good reviews... I chose to interview with my team and had a nice talk with the recruiter and my hiring manager...
Their decision ofcourse was to be made on the last day...

Pitstop at LasVegas

On the way to Tucson, Arizona, was an intentional 8 hour pit stop... OMG.. Even as you exit the gate in the airport you would hear the crinkling coins falling from slot machines... No drinking fountains anywhere, only vending machines selling "water"........ Welcome to Las Vegas, Nevada - An entire city dedicated to gambling, money and "fun" !!!!

I met up with Lakshmi (my cousin) in the airport.. and I would be too subtle if I were to say that she's slimmed down... I landed exactly in the wrong day as she had her finals on that day and she was not able to hang around.. She still came to the airport and saw to that I had a good day... I spent time for a while with a couple of her friends before being dropped at the most famous road of the city.. "Strip"...

So on one of the most happening places of the planet.. with little money.. absolutely no intention to gamble.. the afternoon sun scorching over the head... eyes craving for sleep... the teetotaler in me was screaming out ... "What the hell are you doing here all by yourself ???? "

The day when there are lotsa friends... When money really didn't matter... you would have some real good fun... and I would def. recommend it as one of the must see places in the US.

End of Second Quarter

Phew... I haven't blogged in a while... My exam got over on May 10th... It now looks like its been ages since it got over... I had just 2 days to clear up my home, sublease it, arrange for things to be shipped and leave on my muchhhh awaited vacation...

One round of house cleaning.. Shopping... Returning stuff in campus.. Emptying the house.. finalising on apartment subleasing...

The most fun part ofcourse was the Bombay bistro dinner just the day before I left... With just a few hours of deciding we finally made it that day and in good number...

At 12 midnight packing started and I had to leave at 4 30... Never thought I would have to put a night out for packing..

GoodBye Minnesota.... for three months... (Ugh.. I'm already misssing it... :( )

Only Minneapolis possible...

In Chennai, at this time temperature would be around normal human body temperature.
In Baroda, 44 deg Celcius is probably a normal day....

Only in Minneapolis, would I wake up in the morning on 1st of May and find it snowing outside...
Its around 0 degree celcius and I'm searching for my gloves....

Considering my life from January 2004 to April 2005, I've lived 8 months in Chennai followed by 8 months in Minneapolis... Think of it... On an average.. Temperature has been around 20 deg C... I've had one of the most ideal living conditions...

Phew... Now you know why it doesn't make sense to take an average always....

End Semester rush

In another 10 days I'll be done with half of my Masters Program. Can you believe it ?? 15 course credits completed. Consdering the 1 credit I would get for internship this summer, it leaves me with just 15 more..... Way to go......

None of these thoughts however, is going to make the rest of the semester any more fun... The finals for the Advanced Algorithms (algos) course is on May 10th. My Advanced Graphics project is also due on the same day... What is going to keep me busy apart from this is my TA work. I have another set of demos to do the entire week. This leaves me with just the next weekend for my course work. Oh.. did I mention the algos assignment due this Wednesday !!!

Running in my mind apart from this are... filling the Microsoft travel documents... finding a house at Redmond for the three months... Shipping stuff from here to there... Subleasing the apartment here...

Hmm.. thinking of it... the situation is not all that bad... I've got time... Let me take a nap... zzz....

Inertia of rest

I have just been through one of the most sluggish unproductive week of the semester... It's all because of the end of last week...

After successfully meeting the deadline for the graphics assignment on April 13th I decided to take it a little easy... April 14th was a marathon badminton session followed by an equally long cooking session.. The occasion was Tamil Puthandu !!! Potluck !!! Actually my Thenga Sadham and Thakkali sadham was comparable in taste with the Uralakazhangu, Venpongal, Payasams, Aviyal, Thayir sadham, Bajji, Chatni that were served for dinner that day.. Ok... You have to believe me when I say the "butterflies in the stomach" at the end of the day was due to Afridi's innings....

Even before I realised, it was already weekend... Never has weekend been really productive unless its part of the Dead week, but not even an attempt was made to do something productive on this particular saturday...

Off to Albertville... one of the biggest factory outlets that I have seen.. Nike, Adidas, Reebok, GAP, Dockers, Aeropostale, Calvin Klein, Levi's , Van Heusen, Tommy Hilfiger, Old Navy .. You name it and it was there and there were hajaar things on sale !!! The only meaningful purchase was the sandals and the shoe.. The best thing however started after that..
Driving a car from Albertville to Home.. Then back to an Indian Restaurant in Bloomington where I had 70 mm Dosa... Then the midnight drive.. Starting to drive around 1230 me, Manoj, Archana (archu) and Ramy (ramy) got officially lost in the streets of Minneapolis (I think it was Mpls..). I drove for like 3 hours with absolutely no idea of where I was , but till date, I have never had so much fun driving !! Finally we had to call up Neelakantan (neela) to do a Google Search for us and came back home at 0330...

Well... You really don't expect someone to work on a Sunday after this kind of fun but its now ONE WEEK... I've not had the mood to start anything new.. I didn't even feel like blogging.. I kept postponing doing my take home midterm until the last day when I realised that I had done a real bad job with it.. Talk about procrastination ... I should probably write one whole post about that... hmm.. maybe later.... Adios Amigos !!

To cut a long story short !!

In an effort to write a detailed encounter of my experience.. I have postponed writing a lot of things.. Cutting the long story short...

My trip to North Carolina... Its been more than a month now... The 5 days spanning the weekend before my spring break and a couple of days before after...
It started out as a casual conversation between me and Prahlad (kp) about a surprise visit to Srivatsan (vatsa) on his B'day... The Srirams (raju and SJ) and Yashaswini (yash) set the wheels rolling... The Indo-pak test series was adding more fuel to the fire.. The icing to the cake was ofcourse Lavanya (la) and Archana (mba) who landed there the day before Vatsa's B'day !!!

A few things that made the trip really worth the effort for all of us was... The sheer look on Vatsa's face seeing me and kp on his room when he entered the house one fine thursday afternoon... The Car.. our first attempt at driving a car in the US... The 120 mile road trip to Welmington beach... The "food lion" grocery store.... Vatsa's b'day bash... forcing him to shower at midnight (twice) which made up for his general showering frequency... SJ's driving test :) ... Yash's song at the temple... The Indian restaurant... getting lost with la in the car at 0330 without a cell phone or a map... "keeping up the secret" about la and mba's arrival.... raju's aloo gobi... mba's aviyal (she actually cooked.. :O i still can't believe.. :) ) ... naradhar velai from prashanth... and to top it all the weather at Raleigh...

Got so attached to everything and everyone about Crest Road, Raleigh, North Carolina !!! Hope I make such trips more often in the future....

First words...

Browsing through some of the CDs that I brought from India, I found a very special file....

Around the same time 2 years back... I was feverishly preparing for my GRE... After many attempts at writing a perfectly-gramatical-error-free essay, I had realised that I was not cut for it..

The outcome.... first words... not from the top of my head... but from the bottom of my heart...
Eveningstroll.txt
____
"My day was infernal. I never know why i felt so despondent and this was not the first time in these few months i'm feeling so. Worried about the future ? Exam tension ? General discontentment ? I always used to attribute my being worried to any of these but today i couldn't figure out why !! Maybe it was all put together.

I felt so claustrophobic and irritated with myself that i put on my sandals and started walking. No idea where I was heading to, didn't bother to think of that either... I let my feet carry me and once out of my apartments i realised its been years since i walked on these roads. The pace of life has forced me to always take a faster mode of communication but today i had nothing to lose, no time to keep and no destination to reach.

Future, exams, books and a lot of other things haunted me and i was jolted back to consciousness by a child's scream. Turned back to see how the helpless poor limping dog that was equally scared of the kid was darting the exact opposite direction as that of the kid. I gave myself the luxury of a small smile at the kid who had now ensconced himself in his mother's lap. I wondered where I was and I recognised the familiar buildings that had fostered me for a decade.

My school...... I kept staring at it for quite sometime and was quite thrilled at those pictures that popped across my face. It was like a ride back the time machine..... There in the same ground I saw myself with sweat dripping in my face.. The shirt doing what a handkerchief is generally expected to do... Those small khaki shorts... The shoe, supposedly black, soiled beyond recognition.. A spate of thoughts... The corpulent girl i fought with for equal space, in the bench i shared with her... The feel of neglect when i used to wait for hours for just being allowed to play one game of TT... The excruciating pain when the tree i was sitting on gave way for a quick return to the ground.. The temporary loss of consciousness when i was knocked off my cycle by the car passing through my school... The insult i felt when the principal gave me a tight slap for my innovative use of sticks as swords... The humiliation i felt when the teacher made me realise that i was an "out-standing" student... Those visceral feelings wearing my glasses to school for the first time... The feeling of a loser when i was asked to skip the march past on the final day for which i had tanned myself for more than a month, the reason being as trivial as me coming 10 minutes late.... the place where i wept for having lost a game of chess....

I was already beaming at those notalgic feelings.. I noticed it was getting dark and i had spent quite sometime over there.. I walked past the mosaic and could see myself in its reflection... My six foot stature made me look a lot stronger now than then. I strolled back towards home but now with a smile spread across my face...

I took the route that i usually walk back from school... the pebbles i used to kick all the way were still tempting me... I felt like knocking the mangoes off the tree on the way back.... I saw this old lady carrying flowers and she returned the smile that now was fixed on my face..

Back inside my own apartments I was recollecting those jejune moments of life. The pain, neglect, agony, insults, tears seemed to tickle my funny bone now.. Did all those trivial issues make me feel so bad then ? I smiled again... this time not with reminiscence of the past but with the realisation that this same logic could be applied to the present... My woes are definitely not worth brooding over....

Another kids' scream in my apartments jolted me back to consciousness.... i was reminded of the kid near my school and wondered "how different am i from him ??"

Trekked a few places and written so many pages of technical matter... But this evening stroll and penning of mine seems to be a class apart... MY DAY IS MADE... "
____

Wrote it.. Reread it.. liked it MUCH more than many perfectly grammatical essays I've ever read.. Probably why the 5 on 6 in my GRE essay writing didn't bother me as much as it would have generally.... If I was bad, it didn't matter anymore....

On the move !!! Again ???

Minneapolis. Minnesota, US :
After months of being cut off from the rest of the world, Arjun Sundararajan has got a new Sony Ericsson Z500A mobile phone. The number is 612 770 3913.
"Finally .. Back to the days of walking and talking "
Arjun.... On the move ... Again !!!

Baroda, Gujarat, India:
Less than a year back... The Information Technology division of Bank of Baroda absorbed their newly promoted employee Sundararajan, making the entire family shift from their 17 year home at Chennai. Now, he is wanted in Mumbai by April 6th to take care of the Core Banking Solution Project.
"Appa is always fine with the busy city. (H)amma eventhough concerned about another shift is clearly excited about the Arabi Kadal Oram.. Thatha is tuning his Marathi after having had his share of Gujarati "
Appa, Amma and Thatha... On the move... Again !!!

Bangalore, Karnataka, India.
In the IT Hub of India, Anuradha Sundararajan is getting prepared for yet another Overseas visit. From Chennai to Bangalore to UK to Bangalore, the garden city girl is now considering the largest island.. A small non official trip to Australia is on the cards...
"Anu is looking forward for the trip... or probably waiting to take a break from the boredom of corporate life :) "
Anu... On the move.. Again !!!

Dead Week

Dead week is the name given to one of those brilliant days when you have more than multiple deadlines. A regular event in the life of grad students who are incapable of managing time, pushed things to the last minute, have over ambitiously ventured into more than the required number of courses, have some exceptionally affectionate advisor or a subset of this.

The last week of February and last week has brought out in the clear that I somehow fit into one of these categories. The dead week funda has only partially to do with the deadlines.. it is more to do with the state of mind.

The typical day in a dead week. Midnight. Grad Lab. I'm sitting there coding..

----Good... so far so good..... Maybe I should try coding the next module.... The last bus is only at 1254... I just don't get it.. How can there be so much more... Let me just do some reading........

Oh my god !! Its 1 o clock.. I just missed the last bus... I should probably go ahead with this.. this is actually interesting to read..

Sweet, now that I have understood should I start coding... What its 0220 ???? It was 1 o clock some 10 minutes back... I can't take so long for understanding this stuff... C'mon quick......

Good.. now this should be compiled... Its 0335 ??? Ugh... these procesors should be fast.. they can't take so long to compile.. and look at the sound...... No.. don't tell me this wouldn't compile... Errors in MY code ???

There.. you silly bunch of paranthases.. can't you just stay in place ??? Ok.. Finally... Zero errors... Way to go.. time to execute it... It can't be 0400 !!! Fine atleast this one is over.. Wait.. where is this sound from now.. Oh !! my poor wretched stomach... Let me grab something... pop corn ? iced tea ? Hot choclate ??

Let me execute this code... This is silly.. there is no reason it should hang.. Its flawless..... Ohhhhh.. Now I know..... There.. I fixed you, you brainless moron... Now what ??? Why can't you just run properly..... Its 0450 in the morning and I have better things to do............

Where am I ???? its 0520 ?? When did I sleep ?? Let me wash my face... I'm getting this done in 20 minutes and taking the first bus at 0545...

Ok.. its 0540.. maybe I should take the next bus.. Just half hour..

0610 ?? Code or the bus ???? Ok.. let me take the 0645... I'm no good if I don't get this thing working before that..

0640... I think I'm just too sleepy.. Maybe I should sleep some time and try it later...

10th Ave ?? The bus is already here ??? When did I get in... Now stop thinking about the code !!!!

C'mon Arjun your house door doesn't require the swipe card... Keys.. keys...

Bed.... Where is the alarm clock ??? 0710 to 1010.. Ideal.... Wait.. did I save my code... zzzzzzz...

Its 1040 ??? I need to find a way to disable this snooze button... No way I'm goin' to be in time for the class at 1115..

Yeah.. maybe what others say is right.. I shouldn't have come to class if whatever that prof says is goin' to go over my head...

Let me atleast do this Teaching Assistantship job properly.. Hmm.... I can actually hear what this guy says but why isn't anything going into my head...
Good.. I did a decent job with these demos.. but its 1600 already... When did I last eat ??? What day is it today ???

Now.. Two more hours with this bird brain and it still can't execute my program... Give up !!! I think I need to go home to eat something...

Man... I have just 3 quarters.. I've got to settle for that Apple pie now.. Why is this vending machine so different... Oh... Steady Arjun... this is a Fridge and you don't have to use quarters at home...

Maybe I should just close my eyes for a while its just 1920 and I have the whole evening with me...

2140 ????? Oh my god !!! When's the next bus ?? Why is my head so groggy ??? I shouldn't have just eaten those ccokies before I slept...

I can see some food in the house.. Plain dhal... Rice.. Curd... I think this is the best meal I have eaten in life... What's the point in living if I don't get proper sleep and food..

I should just probably finish that part of the code... Its now 2220.. Here's the deal... I'm going there to the lab.. finishing that part of the code and taking the last bus home..................................... -----

Skiing trip

As the car was jumping through the rickety roads leading to Wild mountain, all I could see through the foggy windows were snow, snow and more snow. 6 months earlier, none of the ten of us had even seen snow, but this day we were all en route our first skiing trip organised by the Minnesota International Student Association. Feb 19th is a day etched in the snows of time..

With snow pants, one really heavy boots, ski, gloves , jacket and a cap, I was all set for the excitement.
"Now.. lets see if you can put your skis on and off. Yes... Now you try... ".
Ugh.... Just let me go... I'm all decked up and can't bother to hear these prosaic beginner's instructions.. I'm no 10-year-old !!!

The day proved me wrong..
There are so many things you should do right for you to be a good skier - Be able to walk on a slope up with your skis on, Hold the rope the pulls you up the bunny hill (for beginners), Get off the rope without bumping on to the person holding on to the rope behind you, Setting the right direction to ski down, Braking at the right moment, Getting on the ski lift, Getting off the ski lift, Controlling the speed and turning in the intermediate slopes.

But, There is just one thing that could go wrong.. you fall
Until you ski (or probably see ME skiing) you will never realise that there are so many ways to fall.. Apart from the simple fall there are some special varieties easily categorised by those last minute memories before falling...
"First fall... "
"I'm falling.. I'm falling.. I can't help I'm falling... "
"Can't these skis stop touching each other"
"Hey you... get out of my way... Noooooo... "
"I brake or I fall.. one of them should stop me"
"Right side or left side"
"Not again....... "
"This rope is cast against me"
"The skis better come off.. I have to anyway remove them to get up"
"I'm no good.. I deserve to fall"
"C'mon.. this ski lift can't just dump me like that"
"Let me act like I'm liking it"
"Ok.. I'm doing great.. I'm doing great... ugh.. not really.. THUD"
"Green ?? I thought this fence was black"
"Fall now or end up in the parking lot"
"Dei.. look I'm actually skiing good..... aaah... "
"If I fall here that 10 year old standing 20 feet away would help me get up"
"This time I'm not going to fall"
"Let me try not to fall next time.. "

This, of course, was not the state with people around me. There were a bunch of kids zooming past me in their skis or snow boards often giving me a helping hand to get up. Few of my friends were also skiing like pros suggesting many techniques which helped me realise different ways to fall.

Beyond all this.. after 2.5 hours... When I finally went up the rope holding it in one hand and skied down waving to my friends and slided to a halt exactly where I wanted.. the effort was seriously worth it.
The chill that runs down the spine when you ski down , the cold air striking you on the face, the elegance of braking that makes a pattern in the snow were all worth the effort.

Inspite of the physical exhaustion, cold and aching body, given a chance I would be there again and maybe then I wouldn't fall so much...

The twin offer !!

When it rains, it pours..

Two real long weeks after the MS internship interview(read previous post), it was time for "give-up". Just sent one final mail to my Recruiting Coordinator asking if there is any point waiting.

That very same day, MSN Mobile offered me an internship. The MS Project team that interviewed me had sent recommedations to the MSN Mobile group after seeing my *ahem* Undergrad Project. Few minutes of "googling" to find out what MSN mobile does and I already know that it runs the Messenger, Hotmail, Alerts and other web features through your mobile phone.

When things were going pretty smooth did the MSN Content publishing team offer me an intern too. They are doing some real pseude stuff to stay up in the market against the now-ubiquitous Google. One of the most happening things.

With just a day to give my decision, the "known-people survey" left me more confused than before. Finally, I decided on MSN Mobile .. More of a toss-of-a-coin decision..

The offer letter found my Inbox a couple of days from then..

Twelve healthy weeks at Seattle-Redmond it is for summer !!

Internship interview - Facts

Mid October : Career Fair
A U organised occasion where the famous software giants (and ofcourse lots of other companies for different departments) put up a stall and accept resumes, have a nice chat, answer your questions and distribute freebies.
They process your Resume and call you for a interview.
Microsoft does a very elaborate job of talking to people for atleast half hour during the career fair and then later invites them for an on campus interview.


November 4th : On Campus interview
Among many other desis competing for the position, my slot was one of the earliest. 9 AM on the first day of a 2 day interviewing session.
30 Minutes..
10 minutes : I explained one of the projects that I'm currently doing here at the U with enormous detail (almost to the level of writing the code).
10 minutes : Coding quetsion for which I need to explain the algorithm, write the code in a piece of paper, test it and optimise it.
10 mintues ; Finally, my time to ask them any quetsion I want..
Results to be announced in two weeks..

November 18th : Nothing heard from them

November 29th : Interview offer is made. Had to fill out online forms. Decide on the date to go there. January 24th it was !!!
Had the entire trip sponsored by Microsoft. The flight expenses, food, stay, travel and everything.

January 23rd : Left Minneapolis at 4 AM. Stop at Denver. Land at Seattle. Amit (ami shadow) was there in the airport to receive me. The coding guru typically is so sought after in MicroSoft that he has been sent to Seattle 4 months after he got recruited by MS India and his stay extended for the third time now.
The hotel was peaceful, the weather was awesome !!! , Amit and me had a longggg walk and enjoyed the day.

January 24th (DDay or BDay) :
Building 19. The official recruiting building at Microsoft. They typically interview 70 to 80 people per day !!!

Meet with recruit at 12 noon. Half hour of HR interview
Put on a shuttle to another building 3 blocks down the road for interview with the Project group.

1245 :
10 minutes of basic questions about projects.
coding_question(Xioning Li, Software Development Engineer, 50 minutes);


coding_question(string INTERVIEWER_NAME, post, time t)
{
for(time = 0;time < t minutes;time++)
{
input = "a coding question";
void mind(true);
question_is_known = FALSE;
while(!clear)
{
ask_clarifying_questions =TRUE;
think_aloud = TRUE;
}
getAlgorithm(as_soon_as_possible);
write_code(board, marker);
test_solution = TRUE;
while(!optimised)
{
optimise(space complexity, time complexity);
}
}
return confused;
}


10 minutes of cross questions I get to ask him.


1400 :
15 minutes question about projects, deadlines, problems, achievements
coding_question(Nicole, Software Development Engineer - Lead, 70 minutes);
10 minutes of general talk


1535 : Was left near the vending machine - Had a cup of Choclate milk.
1540 (already) :
20 minutes of questions about coursework, current course projects, grades, assignments
coding_question(Sundaravadivel Paranthaman, Software Development Engineer - Lead, 30 minutes)


1630 :
30 Minutes questions about prospects of being a intern, what are the kind of stuff I expect, how should a typical intern day be like
coding_question(Ludovic, Software Design Engineer - Manager, 30 minutes)


At 1730 when I came out, I had a bad headache , a growling stomach and an absolute blissful feeling of having lasted through the day of around 4 hours of coding and no break in between. A mental marathon !!!
Results to be given in 1 week.

2000 : Left for sight seeeing in Seattle. Had a brilliant beach view with Amit.



January 25th : Back to Minneapolis after an excruciatingly boring journey.

Feb 1st : No news !!

Feb 8th : No news !!

Feb 10th : FINALLY !!!! One group has offered an internship position and would be getting to know the details after talking to the Recruiting coordinator today.

Coming up soon : The experience and lessons learned...

Facts

November 9th - Half hour past midnight
Hand breaks... Rushed to the hospital.. Prahlad and Manoj to accompany me..
X-rays taken.. Pain killers given.. Hand put in a cast.. Fracture fact was established..
From what it looked then and for almost a week after that.. It is some hair-line fracture which would be alright with this cast in a couple of weeks..

November 10th to November 12th
Postponed the midterm exams by two weeks... Completed the pending assignments with left hand.. Started managing activities with one hand..

November 12th - Meet with orthopaedic surgeon
Possibility of serious bone damage mentioned.. Asked to consult a hand orthopaedic specialist.. Appointment for Monday - November 15th

November 13th and 14th
Dull weekend.. Fingers crossed.. arm in the cast..

November 15th- Dr. Laurie Koch
She suggested Three possibilities...
One.. Twist the hand in one of the most awkward position and put a cast.. Not use fingers, elbow, arm for 6 weeks.. Shall set.. Might pop back to bad position in case of mismanaging

Two.. Surgical operation.. Put a pin to hold the bone to another bone.. 4 weeks of healing.. Surgically remove the pin and wait for a little more time for the incision to heal..

Three.. Put a plate.. Make a cut.. use the plate to put the bones back in position and put a screw to hold the plate.

Option three chosen after various opinion polls and xray research...
Day fixed to be November 19th

November 19th - Surgery

Took the bus.. Prahlad and Vivek to accompany.. Finished paper work.. Got into a funny robe.. Checked for BP, Heart, lungs, temperature etc.. Intravenus installed.. Removed the old cast.. Another intravenus for the right hand.. Settled in a room probably tailor made for me.. It had a clock with a broken hand..

OPERATION THEATER
Nothing like the one we see in the movies.. Brightly lit.. Music during the surgery.. Heart beat and pulse monitored in those fancy machines seen only in movies before.. Tight band on the right arm at the blood pressure cuff... Anasthesia injected in right hand to be spread only under the band.. Sedation in the left intra venus..
Hollow for 45 minutes...
.............
Woke up with a heavy head.. First thought .. "Hope they didn't screw it up... I mean... Hope they screwed it up properly... "

Out of the OR .. Instructions given... Food given... Apple juice.. Throbbing head.. Cab back home.. Threw up the juice.. Ate.. took the pills .. slept.. got up.. ate..
took the pills.. slept... got up.. chatted and watched movie with friends who had come home .. ate.. took the pills .. threw up.. slept...

November 20th - Saturday
Anasthesia leaves.. Pain arrives.. Ate.. slept and took the pills the entire day.. Talked to everyone over phone..

November 21st - Sunday
Little stabilised.. Pain killers losing effect.. Food habits normal.. juice.. bananas.. apples.. rasam sadham..

November 22nd - Present
Recovering.. itchy feeling.. healing sensation.. Decent movement of the hands.. almost nil pain..

Facts apart there was much more to it... For the feel of it read below.......

Single handed effort

Blame it on luck or sheer timing but November 9th proved to be a real hard blow. Should I say ARMageddon ???

The birthday party was utterly chaotic considering the thirty odd people trying to make their presence felt in a room ideal for three. Everything was fun until a random kick by god-knows-who landed on my right hand, instantly breaking my ulna bone in two.

Nobody in the room, including me could believe (we refused to believe) that it could be something serious, until I realised that I no more had control over my wrist. Amidst immediate attention with sprays, ointments and pain killers I was already sure my two hands were no more similar. Not until writing this did I realise that they never are going to be. Thinking of it now, I could have challenged them about a broken bone.. I would have won it hands down.

The consequences and the pain are too much to HANDle. The cast was restrictive enough to hamper my elbow movements too. The days following the accident were characteristically different with me realising how dependent I have been on one hand. But I thought I was RIGHT in doing so. Inspite of all my friends offering me a helping "you-know-what" there were lots of things that were too difficult to manage...

It took me a while to digest that my typing speed was one-tenth what it was. Technically shouldn't it just be half ? My mouse became left handed. Spoon replaced the fingers. Bowl instead of the plate - that makes more sense .. two plates in one hand is redundant...

It WAS irritating and clumsy to be eating like that initially but on the "other hand" it was definitely a learning experience.
I learnt that 5 minutes is normal time to wear shoes. I learnt that the shirt pocket was made for the right handed. I learnt taking a dollar out of the wallet is seriously worth the money. I learnt that my hand writing doesn't matter much when I write with my left hand. I learnt that you might end up having less number of plastic covers, a painful shoulder and a hour less if you want to take a bath... I learnt the complexity of parallax while combing and shaving..

Beyond the tears.. Beyond the sorrows.. there were more meaningful lessons I learnt.. Whatever be the situation, friends and family would always be there to support you. No matter what.. life goes on......

Eventhough this might have been a oft repeated diwali warning said almost every year.. this year coming through the phone from Amma who was totally oblivious to the facts made so much more sense and brought down a trickle of tears.. "Paathu da... pattasu vedichena use the long agarbathi.. match stick vechu koluthi.. kaila patukadha"
[[[In case you burst crackers use the long agarbathi.. Do not hurt yourself using a matchstick]]]

Cycle stealing

Two of the many peculiar issues that I learnt after coming here to U of M are cycle stealing and cycle stealing.


The trivial of which is what strikes first. Many students park their cycles (bikes) either in the department or home for a few hours just to find either the entire cycle or part of it missing. It is one of the most irritating crimes prevalent in this otherwise safe city. Needless to say, the cost of the lock is 20% of these pollution free transport which are generally priced between 50 and 1000 dollars. Roller blades and skates are common here too..

The more relevant of the two - about which I really wanted to write - is however something that is of potential use to the society unlike the other. A variety of this called the Human Cycle Stealing was the topic of the lecture that I recently attended. A Ph.D. student from Carnegie Mellon University had come here to present the idea of Intelligently using human cycles to deal intractable problems in the field of computer science

Almost everyone of you reading this would have created a mail account some time in the recent past and would have come across a text box where you had to type something that is written in a picture. This is called a CAPTCHA. A very simple and effective tool used to establish that SOMEONE is creating an account and not SOMETHING. No computer software could read what is written on that picture and therefore cannot be used to automatically create email accounts.

Have I eariler told you people about this ESPGame ? Something that I was playing for hours together not really knowing what was happening behind it. The game is the brain child of the same guy who came for the lecture. Two entirely random people wanting to play the game see a series of pictures one at a time. They go to the next picture only if they both could type one word in common about the image. You obviously don't get to see who the other person is, what he/she types, how many words they have typed and stuff like that. Eventhough I played this game entirely to demonstrate my typing prowess and capability to match my ideas with someone across the globe, I realised that there is much more I was doing for the society by playing this game.
Indirectly and cleverly, the makers of the game have used me and millions of other naive counterparts to label around 4 million pictures in the web. These labels ease the task of picture search and also can be used as an effective content filter.

This and many other applcations of effectively stealing the human cycles to solve the otherwise intractable problems in computer science, according to Luis von Ahn, seems to be a more justifiable story line of Matrix as against the current existing Matrix-theory of utilising humans for the power generated through their brains.

The lecture was technical and yet evinced simplicity. A unique combination in the field of engineering.