Sunday, October 30, 2005

It's the Weekend...

And I've been awake for the better part of it! Both days, woken up by my phone - a phone call yesterday to play Flag Football and numerous text messages from my brother this morning asking me to come online. So now I'm doing three things at the same time - talking on the phone, messaging my brother and blogging.

I played Flag Football for the first time in my life yesterday. This is the first year that I've watched American Football and I'm slowly getting into it. Personally I enjoy college football more than NFL because everyone on the field is out there for the sole motivation of winning - to me that's a purer motivation than money and contracts. Back to the Flag Football game and how sore I have been since I left the park. My thighs are hurting and my ribs are still fresh to the touch because of the pounding they got on Saturday morning. But I loved it, I totally loved playing and will do it again next week.

Time to kick back and chill for the rest of the day. I'm going to watch a movie, hang with the boys and try to squeeze in some reading before the week begins. I have almost nothing to worry about though; I guess that's a consequence of having worked hard through the week - should do that more often so I can actually enjoy my weekends. Peace out!

Sunday, October 23, 2005

Is it our life that we are living?

I was speaking to a friend a couple of days ago and our conversation inadvertently turned to the touchy subject of marriage. I find myself talking to more people about marriage these days than I did when I first moved to Seattle. It's that time and phase in the lives of my contemporaries, a time when the difficult decision of choosing a life partner looms large. Some of my friends are fortunate to be already married, engaged or in a relationship that will culminate in marriage. The rest of us aren't so lucky (though this is open to interpretation) and are struggling to find a suitable partner...

Ok, back to the conversation that prompted this post. We talked about potential suitors for her, what her criteria were and then she blurted out something that's been in the back of my head since,

"My parents won't approve of him..."

This set me thinking about the decisions I've supposedly made in the last 28 years. Indian children get a lot of love and support from their parents. This doesn't come without a price though - a lot of decisions that shape who I am today were made for me, not by me; some for good reason and others, without. Left to my own designs, I'd like to make the wrong decisions earlier so that I'd not repeat them when the outcome really mattered - but that's me. The burning question in my mind is, whose life am I living and on whose terms? In this individualistic society, I'm at a cross-roads. My Indian upbringing makes me want to do things for people around me, for my parents and family. My American life experiences make me want to look out for myself, to be selfish and removed from the trappings of societal pressures. What is ideal, which perspective is correct? Is there a correct formula?

Back to marriage then; I'd like my parents to approve of my partner, as would any other Indian. Does wisdom of age assure my parents of having more perspective and insight into the future than I do, enough to know what will work and what won't? Let's for a moment consider the possibility that I let my parents choose the girl. She'll have her approval then, correct? What's to say that this won't lead to disaster in the future? If the certainty of marital bliss post an arranged marriage is suspect, how is it any different from me finding a girl that makes me happy now but not in the future? How does the girl's provenance matter then? It is hard to find happiness with an another individual these days to begin with; how is eliminating whole sects of people going to make this any easier...

Friday, October 21, 2005

A Soulmate

I've pondered over what characterizes a soulmate for this past week. Somehow, spending tons and tons of time at work lets you dwell on things other than work. What is a soulmate? Must I have one? Can there be just one? Must my soulmate be the one I marry or be the one I am romantically linked to? If it's the latter, how does it work when I'm no longer romantically inclined towards a girl; romance is fleeting, temporal...

I know for sure that I have at least one. A person I share a lot of my daily experiences with - all the laughing, coffee and alcohol drinking and dinner eating. Maybe my best friend is my soulmate. Ergo, I don't need to find a girl who fits the bill. I can just get to know her, have fun with her, laugh and make merry without the trappings of this soulmate business.

Now I feel calm inside...

Monday, October 17, 2005

You Know What Else I Hate

<rant>
I hate stupid people. Cartman hates hippies, I hate stupids. I'm stupid sometimes too, but as the creator of Dilbert says,
"Human beings can't be intelligent all the time.
You gotta account for the stupid factor."
So yes, I don't think I'm stupid. And no, I don't hate you just because you've had some stupid moments. It's them people that insist on being stupid for most of their waking hours that prompted this blog post.

Geni, update that list of people for whom the word hate is reserved to include 3 kinds now. Peace Out!
</rant>

Friday, October 14, 2005

I blame Caesar and Shakespeare

Caesar: Let me haue men about me, that are fat, Sleeke-headed men, and such as sleepe a-nights: Yond Cassius has a leane and hungry looke, He thinkes too much: such men are dangerous

Antonius: Feare him not Caesar, he's not dangerous, He is a Noble Roman, and well giuen

Caesar: Would he were fatter; But I feare him not:

I'm Lovin' It...

Lessons to Learn for Work and Profit

1. Work smart
I usually work hard but of late, I've forgotten how to work smart. More in my next item.

2. Use Common Sense
Though common sense isn't very common these days, in my case, it has become completely uncommon. Using x86 binaries to create x64 builds is just one example but I see a trend developing over the past couple of months that is disturbing. Nothing that can't be fixed I hope.

3. Follow 1 Set of Instructions to Finish a Task
It's important to understand what you want to accomplish and what is actually going on under the hood so that you can troubleshoot problems as they arise. It's also mighty important to follow one set of instructions from start to finish to know for sure that if something went wrong, it wasn't because you missed a step in the configuration. I'm glad I'm not a Lab guy because I have a very hard time following instructions but this has got to change.

4. No Shortcuts please
Especially when you don't know how things work.

And finally,

5. If you promise to do something, try to do it On Time

Friday, October 07, 2005

A Bit of Yankees Trivia

Did you know? The Yankees have either won the World Series or lost to the eventual Winner for the last 6 years, at least. They don't look like they are going to win Game 3 of the Division Series against the Angels though. I think Yankees fans everywhere should be worried...

Boston Red Sox have been eliminated

Haa Haa Charade You Are Oh Red Sox Nation. You deserve nothing more!!!