Ultimate Gift

Was reading the book The Ultimate Gift over the weekend. A movie with the ame title based on book is also popular.

One of the Gift is Dream and the book mentions about the last day Walt Disney. He is dreaming even hours before he died. I always felt Akkoor my dear friend was another person has great dreams.

I realized my current problem. I don't have any dreams. I was always flowing in the water or I lost it some where. My wife always said I never had wishes even and I am living for others.

Wishes are not dreams. I need to dream. How do I do one?

A Letter to My God

Dear God

Today is Sunday and I went to church in the morning for the Sunday mass. Father do you know, Ever since this priest became my parish vicar 3 years back my Sundays are really bad. There is no you in the prayers. They are just some functions. They are using you to spread hatred, construct buildings, makes new rules and regulations and bad words. Why Father your church is becoming like this? For the last 3 years every day I was expecting the day he gets transferred after the 3 year service. So I never complained about it for last years and expected a better day. Today he dropped the bomb at the end of the mass that his due transfer is postponed for another year.

I am not involved in church politics and committee's. I want my Sunday's to be spend with you and every prayers and speeches to energies me to make a better person. There is saying in Malayalam that "Mulla Poombadi Ettu Kiddakum Kallinum undu oru saurbhyam". I am also becoming a worse person after attending the service by this priest. Since born and brought in Malankara Orthodox church I don't want to leave this church. But these types priest and decisions make me more and more away from it. But why your church is forcing me take alternatives?

God, do you know on the Passion Week Thursday evening prayer and retreat I attended the another church and retreat. There was this Mr prakash lead the retreat and it took me different level of realization. It fed me lot +ve thoughts and motivates me to be better person. On the contrary on Good Friday on my own church there was quiz competition and made the full Good Friday a Joke.

You told me to forgive others. Give me strength to forgive this priest the who makes my every Sunday miserable and bishop who bends the rules for his favorites. Also forgive me if the letter is bad. I know you will do it. But never the priest or bishops.

My Lord and My God. I love you and give strength to face it for another year!!

Love
Tiju Titus John

Bangalore

Akkara Akkara Akkara

Rengit Peter scrapped me in Orkut about the new video in which he participated in creating it. He acts in one of the episodes too. The camera steals moments to the Mallu Life in the North America.

The script, visualization techniques, acting, music gives you a fresh feeling. Yesterday I watched the movie College Kumaran. That was a sucking. This was coooool and I could contrast it with yesterday's movie pretty fast. The fresh script, the new background, satire and ammature approach all made these series of short movies just great.

Towards later it got little boring and repetitive. It is good that on the 11th episode, the camera was taken out of Thekkumuttil hose. While watching the movies I felt like reading "Bobanum Moliyum" by Toms. Don't know why? But that is what I felt while watching it.

Since we mallus don't have any industry or jobs at our godzone country, we export our best human resource. We will make export quality human resource for other nations teaching them English, IT and Nursing. It is good to see expat mallu's still give back to its art forms the like this. Great work guys. Have more but not very frequent.

On the episode 10 camera is outside and you can hear a set of dialogue between Rincy and Greggory about painting the house. It is still fresh in my mind!!!

Delhi Visit and a Metro Travel

I had visited Delhi with my family on 25th and 26th of March. The short visit was to attend a visa interview for the Portugal Visa.

This is my feelings about Delhi after visiting it.

1) You cannot survive without speaking Hindi. The two days I spend there put my Hindi abilities into good test. My wife finally admitted that I knew Hindi. Bangalore is more cosmopolitan. Here you can survive with English, Hindi, Tamil and of course Kannada.

2) Delhi's infrastructure is amazing. Wide Roads and again Wide Roads. Being from Bangalore I was jealous with the wide roads of Delhi. I felt like relocating to Delhi except for the hot climate (it was very hot for me even in end of March) and distance from home town. My cousin told that these infrastructure improvements happened in 7-8 years. It is just great.

3) Delhi has more private vehicles and big sedans. You don't see many rickhs, bikes and small hutch backs likes Zens, Wagonar's and Santros. Small vehicles are not making chutney out of you!!!

4) Public transport is pathetic. The Buses look horrible. This might get changed soon with Metro covering new areas. You could see lot of metro constructions going everywhere nook and corner.

5) I traveled in Metro from Rajeev Chowk to Indiraprastha and back. When I was finally getting down Rajeev chowk the crowd was so bad that I had a great difficulty in getting out train. They were like hardly 20 people to get out ad 20 people to get in. The people outside are crowding at the door and had a very difficult time in getting out. Indians can't wait in queue and create a mess out of nothing. I had traveled in much more crowded metros all over the world. But this was most bad experience I had.

6) Heard of Connaught Place a lot before. But it is not up to the Bangalore's church street, Brigade road and MG road.

7) Delhi is city of Tombs. You can see Tombs of Muslim rulers, their wife's and national leaders on the banks of Yamuna. Visited Rajghat and prayed there. It was great feeling.

8) Just saw Parliament, supreme court, Rastrapathi bahvan, India gate from car while traveling through all the Marg's and all the Bhavan's. Being used to the circles and roads in Bangalore the Margs was little amusing.

9) Delhi you don't feel like youth city. You get a feeling of city of rich and powerful. Bangalore is more Gen "X" city.

Being from Bangalore I am just jealous of the Delhi Infrastructure. The roads and speed at metro construction proceeds is too amazing. Here everything is at snails pace!

Invasion vs Liberation.

There is this TVR Shenoy article on Tibet crisis. This is a highly biased article by the paid writer of BJP. Shenoy looks worse than his foe CPIM's articles which usually comes in their media like Kiarali TV and Deshabimani publications.

The CPIM articles will be always having some justification for interference in Nepal and non interference in Myanmar or Tibet. Since Muslim votes are crucial for victories in Kerala (With recent changes Malapuram has more seats) the old foe America is biggest enemy of CPIM. All the articles have repeated sentences globalization depoliticisation. They find CIA interference in the strike by people for land in the Quilon district. Is CIA so jobless?

During the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 I was so shocked when Late EMS justified of the Chinese Govt who forcefully cracked it down. I was a 10th STD student. This was first incident in my life when I left felt political leaders are more hypocrite. They don't do what they preach. The irony of becoming the crucifier from the crucified is true for any movement. Anand in his book “The Fourth Nail” talks about it. Refer the links for Malayalam and English Translation. I will write a review about it later. Find the Hindu Review about the book.

Personally I hate all kinds on invasion. But from the current media it is difficult to find out which is invasion and which is liberation? Find this article on economist on Tibet. Is it biased or not? I am leaving it you.

History shows today's invasion is tomorrow's liberation and today's liberation is tomorrow's invasion. The invasion of India in Kashmir or Invasion of China and Pakistan in the Kashmir. The liberation of Bangladesh from Pakistan?? Or Invasion of India to split Pakistan.

But I felt like vomiting when India sold the Myanmar freedom fight for little bit Petrol. I hate Left parties they are more hypocrite.

Unscriptted Drama

Yesterday in NDTV talk show about the IPL Cricket, Harsha Bogle made an interesting comment that Cricket is unscripted drama live on TV. Since it is unscripted live it is more attractive than than the scripted dramas like movies and serials. You all know that Bhuvan's team in Lagan or Sharukh's chakde team is going to win the match.

Might be the reality TV shows are becoming more and more popular because they are also unscripted.

We had seen in cricket how the betting mafia had made the cricket matches as scripted drama. So how many of these shows are really unscripted?

So here is ultimate stuff. The unscripted news.
http://www.rationalistinternational.net/article/2008/20080310/en_1.html

Always I felt that lot of news in the news papers and TV very well scripted dramas. There are sure lot of Media Syndicates creating news !!!!

Deadlocked Bangalore. Execute "kill -9"?

I am writing about the never ending topic. Sucking Bangalore. I hate to write it like this again and again as this is the city which had given me most of the things I have in life. But it sucks now. I want to run away from you now.

Usual walk to the bus stop was so difficult, as the recent rains made the road into a dirt pond. Dirty water from smelling garbage dumped in the corner of the road is over flowing to the road. Splash!! Oops that is a pretty new 4 wheeler. I just escaped from skin disease by an inch. The walk to the bus stop was better than an aerobics exercises to avoid splashing waters from moving vehicles and dirt filled potholes.

Oops my 335 bus is already at stop. Ran with my heavy backpack (When are TV networks and research will be done techies heavy backpacks??) to catch the bus. The journey till the Victoria road was smooth. It was a huge block in the Victoria road. 10 mins wait and the Bus is at the same place. Bus is not moving an inch. One side of the road is dug up for some construction. Since it is only 200 meters to my destination I got down and started to walk. It was impossible to walk. No footpaths and vehicle’s are there in every inch of the road. Water gets splashed when ever some vehicle moves. Only one vehicle can move in that road due to construction. A Maruthi Zen wanted to enter a building on the roadside. Heck he blocked all the traffic as the security of building not allowing him to enter. Security wants to rearrange the current vehicles before allowing this guy to enter. HONKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK... from behind. But Zen drives don't care!!!

I lost all my energy and positive feeling when I reached Office. Just wanted to run away from here. How can I do some creative work when week starting itself is so sucking!!! I hate my Bangalore. I will start to office tomorrow early and pull out my car. Sure I splash water at others and park in the roadside.

Times of India is running campaign "Unlock Bangalore". There was a photo cars parked in MG road and with a comment "Roads are for to drive the vehicles. Not to park." The campaign also advocates of using public transport. Why do I care?

If a construction is happening in a road Bangalore has is distinction of not allowing public mass transport on that road. Only private cars, bikes, taxis and autos will be alloweded. In MG Road from Trinity circle to Mayo Hall currently buses are not allowed. If a person wanted to come to MG road by bus from Airport road he need walk a KM at least!!

You cannot unlock Bangalore. You can only do a "kill -9"

Heros from Babu Raj

The article Battling the babu raj gives very factual insight to the Indian Civil Service. When I was in SB College, I always wanted to join civil service. After joining IT industry I forgot about it and didn’t even give an attempt for it. Soo bad yaar....

But today I want to write about 3 Civil Service Officers who had impressed me during college days. These 3 are chosen because they were ex-students of SB College and came to college and given speeches to students during my college time. They were heroes to me once upon a time. Still some are heroes while others got displaced.

The first is Raju Narayana Swamy. His father Iyyer Sir taught me Maths in college. Raju got his Civil Service First rank soon after I joined the college. A big function was conducted in the college for him. He was always in the news for not bending for politicians, relatives and friends. He was one of the cats who were sent to Munnar for land recovery operation last year. He was a too good cat and stood for the people and law which irritated the chief minister itself who send the cat. The cat got transferred soon. But during the short stay there one minister lost his post and CM got screwed for land recovery drama of taking back land from TATA.

The next is Tomin J Tachenkkerry. He was Arts Club secretary when he was in college. While we were in college he was freaking out in Iddukki and Alleppy with drug hunt etc. After couple of years we see him as a musician with his Christian devotional song which was an instant hit. Then I saw him once in Singapore. I was in Business Trip in Singapore. On a Sunday he was there at Orthodox Church Singapore giving a speech. He had given a cool speech. Don't even remember anything now. He is the most controversial now and even suspended from Job for the pirated CD case.

Third was C.V. Ananda Bose. He was invited to college when he got some international award for Nirmithi Kendra work. At college old prof ‘s in speeches were remembering about how an arrest was avoided during emergency. Don’t remember the details. The last I heard he was also ran into corruption cases. Don't know where he is now. Did a Google and found some articles like this.
http://www.aees.gov.in/welcome_chairman.html and http://www.kerala.gov.in/nss.htm
As usual these Govt. sites don't have any dates on it.

Some of them are fallen. Some of them still hold to the old values. But even if in-efficient I still dream to be a Civil Service Officer, at least when I see mammooty in King or Suresh Gopi in commissioner.


PS: Last Saturday (15- March-2008) Manorama had summary of this economist article and used the Ernakulam Collector's quote to given nasty comment on Panchayat Raj !!!

Innaguration Web sites.

Today CP(I)M Secratary innagrated the Deshabhimani's new website. Are they still hosting it India. I doubt !!!!

This is hosted in US using the Microsoft technolgies such as IIS and ASP. NET.

Last week the same newspaper carried an article of KSEB ( Kerala State Electricity Board) is using Open Source software. Chief minister VS who innaugrated the software and told in the meeting that he was considered anti devlopment he fought against using Microsoft. I thing Pinarayi want to be pro devlopment and innaugrating the websites with Microsoft technologies.

I am not belonging to any syndicate. Just a techie who likes Open Source

Life and Death of Bangalore Techie

As any Bangalore techie He was born in middle class family in India. He had gone a private school till the 10th grade school in his small home town. He comes out with decent marks in 10th grade. Now he was supposed to work hard for 12th grade and the big list entrance exams to get admission to various professional colleges. In this particular case he screwed up his 12th grade as well as the entrance exams. He lands up an ordinary college to do the B. Sc course in Maths. 3 Longs years of hope, dream, anger, politics, social works, fiction and maths. The life was challenging !!! He likes all kind of "*******ism" and wanted to change the world. He hated money and rich. He wanted to become a mathematician. Bertrand Russell’s Mathematical philosophy was his Bible


He graduates. It was the time he heard of new course called MCA. A course designed for IT jobs. He write couple of entrances and he lands up decent institute for MCA. There he found a new world. People are behind campus interviews, jobs, money, and corporate world. There are new heroes. His old idols don't have a chance to survive here. He embraces the new ones.


There he comes in contacts how the cast based society still exist in India. This was his first bad exposure to it. How teachers are cast biased........ Cast clans lead by teachers!! He hated it. But he compromised with it for an IT Job in MNC or for a 4 digit month salary which was highly attractive then.


3 years he wasted his life in college and but ultimately he landed up in Bangalore. He started working for a start up software service company. He heard new jargon's and new mantra of management. He was an obedient sheep. He worked of code and reworked on the code. He created documents for CMM levels and reworked on the documents. He leared how cheat on time sheets. He sat through appraisals, went on site trips, and attended late night client meetings and what else. He did this all days and night, holidays and Sundays... He thought it was challanging.


One fine morning his mother call up and tell that she find a girl for him to marry. He had bored most of restaurants in Bangalore and cooking skills are not even decent also. His was also very lone in the busy city. Most of his friends either had left the country or busy with work. Nothing else to do he decides to marry her thinking it makes life better. But soon he realizes some one to share his life comes with more constraints. He looses his freedom. He has responsibilities. And in couple of year’s time his family grows. Kids arrive.


He changes jobs for work life balance, money, and roles. He learns new jargon's, new domains and new problems. He climbed some ladders and fall down on some other ladders. There were places where there are no ladders also!!!. But he realizes the big organizations are inefficient and inefficient and they survive because others are more inefficient. Now he is grown up enough to see the bias, corruptions, inefficiencies, politics, and racial abuse in organizations across the world. He had compromised with it already... and he is also becoming one of it.


Suddenly he realizes that it is 10 years passed since he started working. Now He has a family to support. He still lives in the middle class rented apartment of 650 sq feet. He wanted to buy a home. He realizes that for an apartment 20 kms Bangalore MG Road by a corrupted builder, he have to pay half of his income for next 20 years. He also felt that Bangalore had grown too much. There is traffic everywhere and no infrastructure improvements. He started worrying about his daily life. His daily life is so difficult he cannot think of any thing else. He wakes up in the morning scared of basic things of reaching office on time. His health gets bad. He lost his creativity. He is afraid of life. He lost his energy to innovate!!

Without a creative mind and innovation, He realizes the he is facing a slow death. He changes projects and change jobs. Nothing makes a difference. He is loosing his life.... Death is coming towards him !!

Changing Jobs

After a long six years working in HP Software, I shifted to NSN two weeks back. Lot of people asked me why I changed job and how is the new office.

The real feeling is shifting the Manth(Lymphatic Filariasis) from his left leg to right leg. I need to give copyright of this statement to Naranath Branthan.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naranath_Bhranthan

Route 335 Bangalore

Find the travel blog by me
http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Bangalore/blog-255644.html