I slept with....

I was in Hyderabad recently to attend the marriage of the daughter of an ex-Colleague. No, this posting is not about how hot it is. (Oh....I realize that the title of the post is 'hot' - though it is a different hot; OK, it is about neither 'this hot' nor 'that hot').

I selected a hotel based on an internet search. It was an AC room - and AC was a necessary condition to be satisfied in Hyderabad during that time. The hotel receptionist was a nice chap. (In fact, he collected a higher advance on my credit card - and returned the unsed portion in cash! Wow - either they are great guys or simply do not understand the implications of such transactions, since credit card refunds are normally given only to the credit card back.)

I am digressing, may be, as usual.

In the night, I thought I had a good sleep; until at least, when suddenly I realized that somebody gave a smooth caress on my back. I got up with a start and switched on the light. There was none; there was nothing. May be, the 'cross belt' that I wear should have slipped on the back, giving a sensation! I went to sleep again, switching off the light.

Next the caress was on my right leg. The same sequence again - still there is no one. I got a bit scared. All ghost movies, including the recent 'Chandramukhi' that I have seen in my life ran to the full screen in my mind. I know, I do not believe in ghosts. But, then I also know that even if I do not believe in them, they are supposed to bring dangers to me.

Next time, my head followed the back and the leg. The same sequence - since, I still had some courage left.

Was it a small biting sensation in my finger on the left hand? That was too much. I got up with a jolt and this time, I should have switched on the light much quicker than the earlier times.

(Up to this point is actually what happened; what follows is my imagination since I needed a reason to find out why it happened).

Next morning, as I was checking out, I saw a notice behind the receptionist. I should have missed it the previous day. He realized that I was seeing the notice, he started explaining things with full excitement. There is an offer, Sir...some kind of a raffle....if your name comes up in the list, we give you a PC Sir. PC, you know, the computer.

Oh, interesting, really.

But the PC is supposed to come in instalment. Naturally, the hotel people want to increase the number of stays. So, each of the stays qualifies for a raffle and each time you may get different parts of the PC.

Suddenly, it made clear sense for me. So, I should have won a very interesting part of a PC this time.

The Mouse.

Hindi Ramayan

I was watching regularly the Ramayan that was telecast in Zee TV a few weeks back. Nitish Bharadwaj was Rama and the serial went very fast. A really welcome step.

I liked two things in this version:

When all the monkeys drop the stones written with the word 'Ram' (written by Nala, one of the monkeys, who had a special boon to that effect), they all float (enabling Ram to have a bridge to walk to Srilanka). To test his own power, Ram leaves a stone without his name and alas, it just drowns. He is surprised and tells Hanuman that when the stone with his name is left in water, it floats - but when he leaves the stone, it just drowns. Hanuman replies: "If you decide to leave something, there is no life for that - it will just drown".

After Ram slains Ravana, the latter is in the death bed and Ram instructs Lakshmana to go get pieces of advice from Ravana, since he (Ravana) is considered a great scholar and Lakshman obeys that.

Good ones.

Bangalore is Microsoft’ed

Well, now-a-days every thing abroad is being Bangalored. But, being in Bangalore for the past 10 years, I wonder if Bangalore itself is being Microsoft’ed.

Let me explain.

Microsoft is something that gets bashing every day. Every user blames it for every thing it provides and everything that it does not provide; every thing that it provides to the non-users of the system too. But, still we see Microsoft does not disappear. Bangalore seems to be in the same mode. Every day, everybody on the road blames the city; every company blames the city for the lack of infrastructure; every minister bashes it for grabbing (at least in the past) a major share from the Government revenue for the IT growth.

But, Bangalore is still going strong?

The third entity I can think of in this category is probably the British Prime Ministers, at least Margaret Thatcher and hopefully Blair.

J2E Simplification

If you thought that it was a technical blog, I am sorry, it is not.

J2E stands for JEE (Joint Entrance Exam) deciding who qualify for the Premier technical / technological Institutes of India, called IIT. (Indian Institute of Technology). A few ’00,000 people take the exam and a few ‘000 make it. (If it gives you any comfort or make you wonder about the system, yours truly is a product of IIT, Madras).

India has several Sports minister, irrespective of the party affiliation. Now and then, one of them decides to play with the systems that are generally left untouched and yielding good performance and result. A few years back, the object of desire (for the minister, that is) was IIM (Premier Management Institute, Indian Institute of Management). Now it is IIT. Apparently they have decided to simplify the JEE.

So, tomorrow you may see questions like:

• Write the last digit of the result when 10 is raised to the power of 5. (You are permitted to use calculator).
  
• What is the formula for water? (Clue: H IJKLMN O)
  
• Why is periodic table called so?
  
• If the value of g is 980 cm/sec/sec, identify the weight of a stone whose mass is 3 gm. (Clue: Force exerted by gravity is given by the product of mass and the constant c).

I think we are missing the real master stroke of the decision makers. When every body gets 100% in the JEE, the existing IIT’s will not be able to accommodate them. Then what should we do? If the Mohammad does not come to mountains, let the mountains come to Mohammad. Whatever colleges these brainy chaps with 100% in JEE join, they automatically become IIT’s. So, in a few year’s time, we will have IIT’s every where.

Tomorrow, we may listen to the following conversation:

“Hi, where did you do your degree from?”

“Of course, IIT. What about you?”

“What else, IIT? Which IIT you are from?”

“In South street, Kilaperumpudur.”

“What, I also did my degree from that IIT. Mr X was our principal, right?”

“Aha, you are mistaken. I think your IIT was between the hotel and the ground, if I am not mistaken. My IIT was between the Grocery store and the railway gate.”

“Oh…that IIT…”

See, when we realize that there are so many IIT’ians conquering the world, why not exploit the brand? In a few years, down the line, the Prime Minister can proudly declare that all his educated ministers (no..no..I am not ready to guess the percentage of educated ministers) are from IIT’s. Bills (Gate and Clinton) will never refuse meeting them – and may even offer jobs.

Let me wind it up with the request from a hopeful rookie who has joined a Java shop recently. He is a .NET guy, but, is being forced to get into Java. He is wondering if the minister can help simplify the J2EE next. That may probably be a boon to at least a few techies.

I am (re)licensed to..

Today, I got my driving license renewed for another X years. (Sorry, mentioning X will reveal my age). It was a cool experience. My earlier feeling that RTO (Regional Transport Office, I think) in Yashwantpur, Bangalore is a corruption-free, efficient setup (based on some interactions, like International Driving License) got confirmed. Actually, being lazy, I bought the approrpriate forms in a shop downstairs (not costly - just Rs 2 or so) and filled them. There were a basic form (9), a form for the computerized plastic card (I had a paper license before that) and the Medical check-up form (Form 1A and 1). There are approved medical practitioners sitting in the cabins downstairs who will sign the medical form.

When I went up (2nd floor), there was a friendly person with several copies of all the forms neatly stacked near him at the entry to the office. He gave neat instructions, including the money involved, for each form to be filled. I filled the forms, went up to the third floor to pay the money, came down for an approval signature from an officer, went to the 'computer section' for the photograph, came to another officer to surrender the papers and get a numbered acknowledgement. The time I took for all these transactions is more or less the time you took to read these. (OK..OK...a little exaggeration. I have been told myself at least a million times not to exaggerate, but I keep doing so. Sorry about it.)

The license was promptly collected by my wife the next evening producing the acknowledgement. And, now I can carry the cute plastic license along with my credit cards. (Though it will not be accepted in an ATM or in a shop as substitute for money. I do not have plans or fortunately need to try it if it fetches money in a pawn shop).

So, my fellow country men, let us be optimistic - hamara Bharat Mahaan, still!

Love for one's language

I remember Rajiv Gandhi saying once that the enthusiasm of Indians is like the boiling milk. When the milk boils, it just puts off the fire, overflowing the container. We also tend to spoil the original purpose in our desire to protect it.

In Tamilnadu, Hindi was almost abolished. There is a heavy sentiment against anything non-Tamil. But the irony is that people who concentrated on things other than Tamil (including the ministers from Tamilnadu in the Central Cabinet) are better off. And the rule that one should speak and learn Tamil is only for the commeners.

I wonder if any body can get an idea of good things unless he / she is ready to get out and see things. I mean, unless I get an opportunity to see what good things are given to the other children, how can I decide on a gift to my own son?

If you look around, who brought Tamil to the internet or Internet to Tamil? It is only those who ventured beyond Tamil and decided that Tamil deserves nothing less. If the guys were not getting out, we would have been just complacent.

Love does not mean hatred for the others. Yes, I cannot love another woman as my wife - but definitely I can love another woman as my mother! There cannot be any clashes.

Are books gone forever?

No way, I bet.

Unless I get the convenience of holding the monitor in my hand in the area between the thumb and the other fingers (not just while in the rest room - but every time), the internet or computer can never replace the books.