October 25, 2006

Employee Onboarding

The three letter company in which I work has a similar onboarding process. My dept. is notrorious for it.

October 24, 2006

Why do people trek?

Why do people trek?

When I reflect on that question, two faces come to my mind. One is that of a guy who was my room-mate. And the other is that of a girl who used to work with me. Both of them are owners of a mind that is extremely practical that sometimes, while talking to them, you would wonder if they are cynics.

The guy abhorred the thought of trek or anything that involved sweating out. He would buy such an idea only if it resulted in some tangible benefits, like attracting femme fatales ;-). The girl thought that all those who were into 'stunts' like trekking, did that because they wanted to attract the opposite sex! That there were better things one could do e.g. getting new stuffs for your home, washing, cleaning etc.

Both of them had asked me this question: "Why do you trek?" Sometimes I feel that that question is as good (or worse) as "Why do you watch movie?" OR "Why do you follow football?"

I trek due to many reasons
  1. I love photography and trekking provides me ample opportunities to click nice snaps
  2. I like to challenge myself physically and mentally. Have you tried clicking towards the end of an arduous and strenuous trek? You will find it difficult to apply your mind. Your mind will be tired; so will be your body. While trying to hold your camera still, you will find your hands shaking. You will cease to observe good frames that you would have otherwise noticed. On the top of it, if you are trekking in a team, others would want you to speed up and reduce the number of clicks, so that all can reach the destination asap. That demands striking the right balance.
  3. I enjoy the planning part of a trek.
  4. Trekking gives me an opportunity to meet excellent minds. Their good qualities inspire me.
  5. Trekking helps in building confidence
  6. Often I find myself exposing the daring side of me. Taking risks... I like that part.
  7. I get a chance to be with nature, far away from the 'known' city, exploring the 'unknown'
  8. Trekking gives me a sense of freedom
  9. It gives me that precious time to think about stuffs that I wouldn’t have if I had closed myself in a city.
I recollect reading somewhere that trekking builds character. I agree with it. Trekking is a process that has many stages. Each stage has something to offer. It is not just about reaching the destination. Preparing for the walk; walking the path, which leads to the destination; making the best use of your meager resources; all are equally enjoyable. I agree with Pirsig (on Mountain treks) when he says “Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down. You climb the mountain in an equilibrium between restlessness and exhaustion. Then, when you are no longer thinking ahead, each footstep isn’t just a means to an end but a unique event in itself. This leaf has jagged edges. This rock looks loose. From this place the snow is less visible, even though closer. These are things you should notice anyway. To live only for some future goal is shallow. It’s the sides of the mountain that sustains life, not the tip. Here’s where things grow. But of course, without the top you can’t have any sides. It’s the top that defines the sides.” That is precisely why I think photography and trekking go hand-in-hand.

I did a google to see what other trekkers think about trekking. Most of them had thoughts that were similar to that of mine. There were a few interesting thoughts that didn't cross my mind. One was that that some people trek to have sex!

This website (click here) says that "Discovery and excitement is arguably the single largest factor why people trek around. This is part of our human instinct and has never been easier to do so than now." Point to be noted.

The most interesting website I came across was this (click here).

Some of the reasons listed by this discussion group are
  1. To tackle difficult situations
  2. To develop and enhance human relations and other qualities like adjustments, flexibility etc.
  3. To make one more tolerant
  4. To gather experience that one can never get anywhere else
  5. To know how to be self reliant and how to handle difficult situations and of course different and difficult people.
  6. To learn how to manage meager resources and how to be ingenious
I think trekking is fun. And I love such fun. That’s the most important reason why I trek.


October 21, 2006

The hitch of a bike trip and lessons learned

I had planned a bike trip to Masinagudi. The plan was to start at 5:30 AM today. It didn’t work. Reason? A snapped clutch cable at 00:00 hours of 21st Oct 2006. Good that it snapped before I started the trip. It helped realize why bullet bikers insist on carrying spare clutch cables. Seasoned Bullet Electra 5ES bikers recommend carrying the spare items mentioned below
  1. Clutch Cable
  2. Throttle Cable
  3. Fuse
  4. Chain Connector
  5. Tyre Tubes
Stuff these items in the tool box or in your Cramster bike bags.

The bike trip got postponed by a day. I wish to hit no rough patches in the two day lonely trip…


Crimson Tide

I watched the movie Crimson Tide. I liked it…

A couple of dialogue exchanges, which I liked, are given below
Ramsey: “War is a continuation of politics by other means” - Von Clausewitz
Hunter: I think what he was trying to say was that… the purpose of war is to serve a political end, but the true nature of war is to serve itself
Ramsey: I'm very impressed. In other words the sailor who is most likely to win the war is the one most willing to part company with the politicians and ignore everything except the destruction of the enemy. Uh... you'd agree with that?
Hunter: Well, I'd agree that… that's what Clausewitz was trying to say.
Ramsey: But you wouldn’t agree with it?
Hunter: No sir, I do not. I just think that in the nuclear world, the true enemy can't be destroyed.
Ramsey: Attention on deck. Von Clausewitz will now tell us exactly who the real enemy is. Von?
Hunter: In my humble opinion, in the nuclear world, the true enemy is war itself.
Note down the last dialogue of Hunter. Reminds me of Plato - "Only the Dead Have Seen the End of War"

There is another dialogue that Captain Ramsey delivers.

Ramsey: We are here to preserve democracy. Not to practice it.
It just shows the importance of discipline and maintaining the chain of order to win a war.

This one on horses and high school girls is quite cool.
Ramsey: Horses are very fascinating animals. Dumb as fence posts but very intuitive. In that way they are not too different from high school girls. They might not have a brain in their head, but they do know all the boys want to fuck them.

Captain Ramsey’s speech to pep up the crew just before they board USS Alabama is awesome. That’s what I call an inspiring speech



Talking about speeches, my fav one is the one delivered by Mr. President in the movie Independence Day



There are other speeches that I love, like those in the movie Main Azaad Hoon. I guess "famous speeches" is altogether a different topic, which I should cover in a separate blog.

October 13, 2006

Know the real meaning behind a few common words...

Another interesting fwded mail that hit my inbox...

FINE

This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

FIVE MINUTES

If she is getting dressed, this is half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given 5 more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

NOTHING

This is the calm before the storm. This means "something," and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with 'Nothing' usually end in "Fine"

GO AHEAD

This is a dare, not permission. Don't do it.

LOUD SIGH

This is not actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A "Loud Sigh" means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you over "Nothing"

THAT'S OKAY

This is one of the most dangerous statements that a woman can make to a man. "That's Okay" means that she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

THANKS

A woman is thanking you. Do not question it or faint. Just say you're welcome.

WHATEVER
A woman's way of saying #$%@ YOU!

October 12, 2006

Scott stole my words!

Scott, you stole my words. I have worked with such boss!

October 06, 2006

An Ostrich Act

Tiny little acts can make one lose his reputation and the respect others have for him.

I have (had) high regards to the protagonist of this story.

Before this incident took place, my regard to this guy - one of my bosses - was = 8/10. I had fixed an appointment on Friday with him to discuss certain issues. On the day, few minutes before the meeting was supposed to take place, I pinged him to check his availability. No response. I waited for a while. Our IM tool has this feature of checking whether the other person is typing something or not. I observed that he had typed something and then retracted. I guessed he was really busy. So I decided not to bother him. Hoping to catch him later I closed my IM window.

Regard to this guy is still = 8/10.

After a few days I catch him again on IM. This time he responds and asks me: "Why didn't you ping me last Friday?"
I'm taken aback: "I did!"
"Strange I didn't get your message!"

Regard to this guy = minus-minus

Moral of the story: Don't try to do an Ostrich Act. You will lose others’ respect.



October 02, 2006

Managed to pull one.

This pic I had clicked, managed to secure a prize in a flickr competition. Feels good :-) And I hope to win more... :-)


Gowrish

My last day in 216-Kleopatra

My diary note:

It was a VERY hectic day. The last day of any consignment - shipping metallic-ore to home in batches - is always hectic. Managing them is tough. Good that today is my final day here in 216-Kleopatra. I was asked to get back home to manage some other work item... and I'm overjoyed. I hate traveling out of my home planet. But can’t help it. Sometimes have to do it. Home planet needs my service. Resource hunting in asteroids like 216-Kleopatra is vital to keep things running back home. Unable to sleep due to the excitement of returning back to earth, I stepped out from my bed.

Everyone was still sleeping so I went to the window and gazed at the Earth slowly gracefully rotating underneath….

What I mentioned above is very much possible! The last paragraph was lifted from Anousheh Ansari's blog. She has written it as if it quite normal! As if it has become part of her life - inseparable! Read that last paragraph once again. Savor it! You might be saying that soon... :-)


October 01, 2006

Dussarah and Gandhi Jayanthi

"Hi, Monday is a Holiday!"
"Yep I know..."
"It is Dussarah, right?"

And my eyes popped out at that question. My expression spoke for me. Failing to understand why I gave that face, my friend continued...

"What happened? It is Dussarah. That is why we have a holiday this Monday!"

Ok... He is not joking. He really doesn't know the significance of the day.

"It is Oct 2nd!!"

It was his turn to give that puzzled expression.

I said: "It is Gandhi Jayanthi!!"
"Oh... ok. Dussarah falls on the same day. In my place, that is more important"

I don't think "Dussarah" earned him his freedom to talk like that. Gandhi did. But who cares about Gandhi. He has become old fashioned and has vanished to oblivion. For most people he is the guy whom you can see on the Indian Rupee Notes.