For a few days now, one of my most frequently used status messages on gtalk (when I am online, that is!) has been: "que sera, sera". It aptly conveyed my present state of mind. Or, so had I assumed. Till today. This morning, my dear friend from Bangalore innocently asked me if I was referring to the song from the Hindi movie Pukar. I didn't have a clue which song she was referring to. I was then given a YouTube link to the song from Pukar. And when I heard the song, I was horrified! No!! That song was not what I had on my mind! Absolutely not!
I then realized that what I had been offered was an opportunity to serve humanity by introducing this wonderful song by Doris Day to those who had never heard of her or the song. So here you go. Enjoy!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Thursday, September 11, 2008
An unforgettable day to forget
I guess this day will never cease to come back. Year after year, it arrives and brings back horrific memories that can never fade away.
I can never forget watching the 2nd plane hit the World Trade Center LIVE while still trying to come to terms with the shock of hearing about the first plane. That morning, as I drove to work, totally oblivious of what was about to happen, I had chosen to listen to Mysoora Mallige instead of my usual NPR in the car. A minute or two before I parked, the first plane hit the towers. As I was entering the office, a couple of my friends met me at the door with horrified looks on their faces. They couldn't believe that I had a nice smile on my face (ignorance is bliss?). I was greeted with the stunning news. The three of us rushed to the conference room where the entire staff had gathered to watch TV. As we were all recovering from the shock, we saw the second plane hit the other tower in real time. It took us a few seconds to realize it was not a replay. We all froze.
And more news followed. We sunk deeper and deeper into mourning. Nobody knew what to do. We were just standing here and there, going back in and out of the conference room. Nobody spoke a word for a long time.
The days that followed were equally painful as more and more details, pictures and other stories arrived.
I also realized that a few people I had communicated with while on my previous project had perished in the attack. My previous client had an office in the World Trade Center.
Why did so many people have to die that way? It just doesn't make sense.
It hurts so much to remember 9/11. I want to forget it. Think that it never happened.
But I can't. I just can't.
I can never forget watching the 2nd plane hit the World Trade Center LIVE while still trying to come to terms with the shock of hearing about the first plane. That morning, as I drove to work, totally oblivious of what was about to happen, I had chosen to listen to Mysoora Mallige instead of my usual NPR in the car. A minute or two before I parked, the first plane hit the towers. As I was entering the office, a couple of my friends met me at the door with horrified looks on their faces. They couldn't believe that I had a nice smile on my face (ignorance is bliss?). I was greeted with the stunning news. The three of us rushed to the conference room where the entire staff had gathered to watch TV. As we were all recovering from the shock, we saw the second plane hit the other tower in real time. It took us a few seconds to realize it was not a replay. We all froze.
And more news followed. We sunk deeper and deeper into mourning. Nobody knew what to do. We were just standing here and there, going back in and out of the conference room. Nobody spoke a word for a long time.
The days that followed were equally painful as more and more details, pictures and other stories arrived.
I also realized that a few people I had communicated with while on my previous project had perished in the attack. My previous client had an office in the World Trade Center.
Why did so many people have to die that way? It just doesn't make sense.
It hurts so much to remember 9/11. I want to forget it. Think that it never happened.
But I can't. I just can't.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Ganesha Outsourced!
Take a look at this beautiful Ganesha idol I bought at the Aurora temple a few weeks ago:
As I was admiring its beauty, I don't know why, but I happened to flip the idol to see the part of Ganesha that we should normally not want to see:
I was stunned to see something that I never thought I would be condemned to see someday.
Now tell me, are we Indians so incapable of producing Ganesha idols for the world market that we have to get them made in those child-labor shops in China? Are we so inefficient that we can't stay profitable in a business like this unless we use cheap labor outside the country? Are we so devoid of a sense of social responsibility that we choose to ignore an opportunity to give jobs to Indians in our pursuit of maximum profit?
A friendly argument followed with the store manager (a volunteer with no stake or decision-making power whatsoever in the store) who very zealously tried to explain to me that Indian businessmen just don't want to commit to the consistent quality and quantity the export orders demand. She was speaking from her experience in pharmaceutical sales in the US. She said it was almost impossible to do business with Indian suppliers.
Trying to make me feel better, she said: "Oh, by the way, these idols are actually made by businesses connected to ISKCON though they are made in China!" Sure, that really made me feel better!! ;)
I bought the idol anyway. And today is his day. Though made in China, this is how he eventually turned out:
As I was admiring its beauty, I don't know why, but I happened to flip the idol to see the part of Ganesha that we should normally not want to see:
I was stunned to see something that I never thought I would be condemned to see someday.
Now tell me, are we Indians so incapable of producing Ganesha idols for the world market that we have to get them made in those child-labor shops in China? Are we so inefficient that we can't stay profitable in a business like this unless we use cheap labor outside the country? Are we so devoid of a sense of social responsibility that we choose to ignore an opportunity to give jobs to Indians in our pursuit of maximum profit?
A friendly argument followed with the store manager (a volunteer with no stake or decision-making power whatsoever in the store) who very zealously tried to explain to me that Indian businessmen just don't want to commit to the consistent quality and quantity the export orders demand. She was speaking from her experience in pharmaceutical sales in the US. She said it was almost impossible to do business with Indian suppliers.
Trying to make me feel better, she said: "Oh, by the way, these idols are actually made by businesses connected to ISKCON though they are made in China!" Sure, that really made me feel better!! ;)
I bought the idol anyway. And today is his day. Though made in China, this is how he eventually turned out:
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