My 1st Car

Nissan Maxima GLE..A 1999 model built for luxury segment..with integrated Bose Speakers, Sun/ moon roof and a V6 engine..that describes my first car..
I bought it exactly a month ago on Feb 13th..from a dealer in Cleveland. i liked this car at the first instant itself and so did my wife..We r happy that we got this misty silver coloured car as our first car..
As one month has passed by driving this car, I have noticed few things about it..
First is, the mileage is close to about 22 miles per gallon, which is good for any car..
Second, the bose speakers are a great asset..they have made the experience of music so enchanting that I sometimes just like to sit in car without driving ..just to listen to my fav tunes..

Also, today I got my permanent tag and put it on my car.. I feel contented that its mine..

The Lost Symbol

After going through Da vinci code, Deception pt, Angels & Demons and Digital fortress, I took this newly and much awaited Brown fiction - The Lost Symbol..
The title was initially kept to be The Solomon key as it is something that the Harvard professor tries to get to unveil a lost symbol..
Well, whether it has been referred to a symbol or word or key or ancient mysteries or knowledge of wisdom etc. it is not at all lost. And that is something which as an anxious reader left me disappointed at the end.
This book is around 520 pages long and I must say the initial 450 pages or so are really enthrilling..Only after reading these pages when the secret is no longer there, you feel sometimes wasting your time in even finishing the book more because finally what it reveals is nothing compared to what was expected of and what the initial plot tried to built of.
Brown, as always is never short of science, cryptography, religion and chase in building the thriller and is a good teaser to the rational brains. I like mostly those parts wherein the pyramid is deciphered and that alone can make this book must read.
However, If this is your first Brown literature, will advise not to rate him from this book. He has done marvel ( if few details are overlooked while reading) in his previous works...
Will still advise to have a crack at this work for its vivid description of Washington DC and what lies buried in the capitol city of US..

(P.S. - Since the first part involved a large amount of problem solving and teaser to a curious brain, try to read it in one sitting ..I could not and whenever I tried to.. had to sacrifice on my time with my wife..read much of this after I made her sleep :-)

Trying times

I adore hardships, adore the struggles
Ones that lead to the better world
Pamper myself when its going tough
Tap my back, assure will get over it fast

Reading tales of those who paved their way
And inspire myself to walk on the same thorny way
Enlighten myself when its all dark
Use the magic wand of memories, go into the good ole past
Shall be brave, with courage over cast
Times always pass, nothing forever last

Wandering and wondering

I was wandering thru the empty space within
wondering what to do with the time's that killin
looking for a hand to catch, an ear to listen
a hug too close, a shoulder to cry upon
got Coelho and his prologue apt
in 'By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept'

The prologue goes like this:

A Spanish missionary was visiting an island when he came across three Aztec priests.
"How do you pray?" the missionary asked.
"We have only one prayer," answered one of the Aztecs. "We say, 'God, you are three, we are three.
Have pity on us.'"
"A beautiful prayer," said the missionary. "But it is not exactly the one that God heeds. I'm going to teach
you one that's much better."
The padre taught them a Catholic prayer and then continued on his path of evangelism. Years later,
when he was returning to Spain , his ship stopped again at the island. From the deck, the missionary saw
the three priests on the shore and waved to them.
Just then, the three men began to walk across the water toward him.
"Padre! Padre!" one of them called, approaching the ship. "Teach us again that prayer that God heeds.
We've forgotten how it goes."
"It doesn't matter," responded the missionary, witnessing the miracle. And he promptly asked God's
forgiveness for failing to recognize that He speaks all languages.
This story illustrates just what this book is about. Rarely do we realize that we are in the midst of the
extraordinary. Miracles occur all around us, signs from God show us the way, angels plead to be heard,
but we pay little attention to them because we have been taught that we must follow certain formulas and
rules if we want to find God. We do not recognize that God is wherever we allow Him/Her to enter.
Traditional religious practices are important: they allow us to share with others the communal experience
of adoration and prayer. But we must never forget that spiritual experience is above all apractical
experience of love. And with love, there are no rules. Some may try to control their emotions and
develop strategies for their behavior; others may turn to reading books of advice from "experts" on
relationships but this is all folly. The heart decides, and what it decides is all that really matters.
All of us have had this experience. At some point, we have each said through our tears, "I'm suffering for
a love that's not worth it." We suffer because we feel we are giving more than we receive. We suffer
because our love is going unrecognized. We suffer because we are unable to impose our own rules.
But ultimately there is no good reason for our suffering, for in every love lies the seed of our growth. The
more we love, the closer we come to spiritual experience. Those who are truly enlightened, those whose
souls are illuminated by love, have been able to overcome all of the inhibitions and preconceptions of
their era. They have been able to sing, to laugh, and to pray out loud; they have danced and shared
what Saint Paul called "the madness of saintliness." They have been joyful—because those who love
conquer the world and have no fear of loss. True love is an act of total surrender.

Well, this do enlighten my belief, gives some relief
amidst the tides in the turmoil of life
Love will find a way for sure
Can we keep patience some more ?

Birthday Song

On these day, at this moment
I wish you a great birthday and many fun filled moments;
Love will keep growing between you and me,
No distance can separate from you to be with me.
I may be seven seas apart,
but my heart throbs on every beating of your heart;
Cherishing the times we enjoyed together
Treasured in the book of sweet memories forever
The Bellagio's fountain show of vigor
or Biltmore palace's marvel grandeur
The Grand Canyon's trip by the air
or the Fisherman's wharf in the evening of winter
The Georgia Aquarium's huge whale shark
or the Forum mall's gentle walk
Those amazing views of Ranakpur mountain
or that scooty ride on the far away oceans of Daman
Last year we enjoyed this day together,
This year let our souls talk to each other,
May God bestow us with all the happiness
and showers forever his warmth and bliss upon us
Amen !!

How u doin Syndrome :-)

How u doing ???
A question being asked many a times not for the sake of getting any answer.
Its a gesture that many people show in US and many reply to it in a similar way.
This gesture is not limited by how much you know a person, its just a way of nodding for a fellow human being. But its kinda widespread and sometimes puts you in an awkward place. Especially when you are lost in ur own self and a stranger asks you How u doing? It sometimes tempts u to say I m not doing great, wud u like to share my concerns !! Well, many a times it does the good things like bringing cheers to your gloomy face.
When I came to this country, the first day when I was walking on the road unaware of this habit of people here, I was surprised and start wondering whether I even know this guy or not or whether this guy knows me or not? This is not a tradition in my land with more than 10 billion population where you come across more than 10 people every minute on the street.
Gradually I started liking this tradition and now I m also one of the patient of this syndrome. However, I like to change myself sometimes and instead of asking How u doing, I just say Hello or Hi..One of the funny incidence about this happened yesterday which actually inspired me to write this. I was walking down to the cafeteria in my office wherein a security guard came across me. Habitual to answering alright to the How u doing question, this person immediately responded to my Hello with alright. We both stopped for a moment to think what was asked and what was answered and we shared a smile and moved ahead. I thought that more than a good gesture this has actually became an epidemic where sometimes people just reply to prove themselves to be civilised.
This is not at all a bad habit though, but it forces oneself to reply and puts in an awkward position as happened y'day. But I will like to be victimized at least till it ends in a laughter only.

1 minute Manager

A manager is a person who manages every aspect of a business and its stakeholders. Such a person cannot be a task oriented only since it will create a hostile environment within his people. At the same time, a people person may not extract the work out from his team in the most effective manner. What is a perfect manager like then? Well, this is the dilemma of the author of the One minute manager. In search of a manager who is loved by the sub ordinates for good management style as well as by the supervisors for obtaining results, the author wanders through many corporations and cities and his search ends in a person who is described as follows:

He is a person who does not likes to tell people what they need to think, he tells people what needs to be done, and leaves on them to work out the plan. Of course, he closely monitors the execution in the initial phase so as to get confidence in the plan.
He does not believe in micro management, but he likes to still keep himself aware of the happenings around him on personal as well as professional front.
He likes to set 1 minute goals, the goals which can be listed on paper in a very little time and which enlists the major work areas to focus on. Once a week, he likes to check the progress of his subordinates by having a meeting with them, one on one.
He likes to do 1 minute praising of his people when they do something right and more when it comes at an early stage of the project. This sets his people align towards his common goal and then he does not have to worry much on their progress since they will b self motivated.
He also likes to do 1 minute scoldings when he finds people not working as expected out of them. he also makes a point that it comes at an early stage and gives the right message as in he scolds the work and not the person. Also, he helps the person find the right way and motivates him to do right.
He also likes touch therapy which helps him to give an extra edge in understanding people and vice-versa. By giving 1 minute touch, People get a sense of his being with them at any time.
He believes in doing 1 minute appraisal thereby giving clear idea to his team to focus on the final goal.

In short, he is a person who puts faith in his team and closely monitors them without going into the specifics of micro management, and also giving enough doses of appreciation and scoldings wherever and whenever necessary, thereby motivating his people working for him and working for the common goal.

Saving, Spending and Conserving - An Indian Perspective

To be an Indian and that too from the Marwadi Jain family who has settled in the state of Gujarat is a lethal combination as far as economics go. A person of such an origin can so easily understand and manipulate the financial complexities of any system.

I don't claim that a Ramnik bhai from Gujarat with baniya blood running in his veins will be like a financial superhero or will never be saddened by the economic slowdown, but I do say that the probability of him falling in the clutches of this epidemic will be lesser than any average man. He understands the micro rules of this game with so ease that he does not have to many a times think about what he is playing.
To cite a few examples ( will try to use financial jargons as much as possible), consider these:
-> A stock market does not work only on the chain or ripple effect, technicals and fundamentals of any scrip plays a very important role in it , but he who studies the trend at a microscopic level, gains in short term, despite the fact that a long term investment always pays at the cost of losing liquidity.

-> Ramnik bhai understands that a portion of money needs to be invested in high P/E stocks but a share of money needs to be dynamic, it needs to circulate to earn confidence, happiness and keep going.

-> He understands that times change and that inflation always play a major role in any economy and hence a investment done in present may not sound equally attractive down the line and hence should take a call accordingly.

-> He always believes that the expenditures needs to follow a priority table ascendingly and the ones which are less important need not be made in order to save the money for future.

-> He also understands that a spending economy, till the time it runs glitters but may come to a halt. On the other hand a saving economy does not reap fruit for the generation that sow it, but for the forthcoming ones, Hence he makes a judicious share in both the diverse forms to enjoy as well as to secure himself. I will say he conserves his material gains in a very similar manner as one does with non renewable energy forms.

-> Life isn't about only saving money , one needs to spend it in order to earn it. Its like the universal law of energy. Money is never created nor destroyed, it only transfers from one person to another. It always flows to make a complete circle and the one who is at right place at right time gains from this form of kinetic money.

-> He feels restless when he owes and feels relaxed when he lends.

I would hence say that he very much knows what he has got, always checks his ground and is very much a social person who believes that to stay in the game and that too nicely, he needs to be aware , diligent and insomniac.

Pas de deux

Neither thou become worthy,
Nor great by a mere act-
Of sacrifice & love for those
For whom anyways would have
Thou be such though,
Suffering the turmoil and angst
Kind of known to the soldiers and knights
Thou farther away from oneself

Having met many people who have inspired me, I learned some basic tenets of life. Some of them were conflicting each other, but eventually led me to be a person, I am now. I am aware of the fact that I have just started on this long journey and that there will be many more occasions to write/ edit this post again but today I am again at that point of my life where I do feel blessed and find myself capable of understanding others and more importantly myself.
I know that life is a pas-de-deux but I also understand, that one not be near always to enjoy this. Life can be a blend of separation and rejoice, and one need to enjoy every aspect of both. I know that one cannot wait and watch for things to take shape but at the same time one need to be assured that it would not be a bumpy ride always. It has to be a combination of both, and if it is not, then you not living life to fullest. To enjoy this dance of life, one needs to be aggressive in choosing the option and keep marching ahead without much pondering the past and fearing from future.
For one to gain mastery over the senses, virtues of self restraint, self confidence and foresight is enough and to achieve this, one has to make bold moves and stick to it. Rome was not built in a day, Similarly you would also not gain everything in a blink of an eye.. but Rome did by continuous endeavor, and so would you ..Just be on the right track, may be you see it only after going through couple of wrong ones..but be virtuous enough to chose it when you get one.

Book Review: The Broker

Book Review -> The Broker by John Grisham.

One more masterpiece by the thriller and mystery king Grisham. The broker is the story about an astonishingly successful attorney Joel Backman in Washington DC. The broker as the people in the business circle calls him, used to charge 5K per minute with a new client, before he himself pleaded guilty and sent behind the bars for 14 years. As media said, he was afraid that he will also be killed as his fellow partner Hubbard, an ex Illinois senator and a person with great influence at White house. What was that secret which already took many lives and that forced the broker to go behind the bars for 14 long years.
Well, Grisham is anything but not a science freak at least but here he brings fictitious spy satellites and the hacking software JAM to his resort.Developed by three Pakistanis, the software hacked a spy satellite unknown to many and hence could have reaped fortunes to them if sold to the one who can bid the most. And here comes our broker in picture who known for his contacts in White house, becomes the middle man to sell the software. The negotiations happened with Chinese,Israelis,Arabs along with Americans. The process in turn creates a lot of enemies all of whom wanted to get the same at any cost. The deal went good with Arabs but since others were also chasing it, Hubbard, Joel's partner gets killed in the process and this pushes Joel to go behind the bars for the charges of compromising the US security. Although, he reveals nothing and hence till the time he lives, the secret will also. As anticipated, CIA wants to bail him out and kill him, of course not on his own soil.
The pen picture of old man in his late seventies and about to retire but with ever lasting glory and guts on his side were neatly depicted to describe Teddy Maynard, the CIA director, who convinces the leaving President Morgan to pardon Joel at the 24th hour. This spreads the resting story of the broker after 6 years and Dan Sandberg, a Washington Post veteran with great contacts at every US agency publishes it as a scandal wherein the broker has paid a hefty amount to the president for his pardon.
However, things were completely different for Joel who was shifted to Italy in a town called Travisia with a fake name of Marco Lazzeri.He was then shifted to a slightly bigger University town of Bologna. He was made to learn Italian, which he hated continuously more for his depressive student tutor Ermanno. The perfection with which Grisham draw the pen picture of his characters and the daily routines of their lives and the surroundings is something to be appreciated. Italy will not be more beautiful than what Grisham has depicted through his words. The broker's attempt to learn Italian also leaves Grisham's readers to learn few of it. The concept behind Cappuccino aids in creating a picture of stranger in the foreign country forcing himself to learn it to live or to die. His numerous lunches and dinners at local cafe's and restaurants with Luigi, his CIA sent advisor cum spy also compels one to visit a foreign country and to stay there enough to learn and appreciate its culture and heritage through language and food habits and city guides.
The broker however continues to be a puppet at the hands of CIA till the time he learns the reason behind his pardon and his hiding from everyone including himself. He practically has no family now, his three wives had been nothing lesser than bitches, the only contact he has now is with his ailing mother in CA, and the son Neal Backman, who now is an ordinary lawyer in a small town of Culpeper, VA with no traces of Joel Backman on his career. Gradually, Joel learns that if he continues to live as Marco, he will be dead quite soon. But since he is also aware that he has been watched almost every moment, he cannot act openly. The broker than uses his tricks and techniques that he was quite flamboyant at when in full bloom at work. He makes a University professor, Rudolph his friend and in a uniquely plotted way reaches his son Neal for help. To do so he secretly travels to Milan int'nl Airport and hands a letter to a lady to mail it to Neal's address making her believe that its a greeting card meant for his mother and wants it to reach her before his birthday the next week as he is unable to travel after his passport has been stolen. As the letter deemed, the help comes from Neal, who somewhat perplexed, somewhat anticipated that his old father will contact him sends him a latest web enabled Motorola phone and some 2000 $ cash. Joel, who is not an internet- savvy person soon finds himself learning the new gadget and hiding it at the same time. With an encrypted e-mail account, Joel was able to talk to Neal and eventually plots his escape route. The climax however waits for the new Italian teacher Signorra Ferro who being a serious figure at one hand, is an attractive Italian woman. With the warmth of the company of a woman after 6 years. Joel keeps coming closer enough to Signorra to make her his partner in crime or escape.
Teddy Maynard, with the growing fear of the secret of the JAM software lying beneath the professional brains of the broker from the new president and with the increasing media pressure decides to leak the co ordinates of the broker to those interested before his forced retirement. CIA also tried enough to frighten Joel to get the secret, but he did not break and decided to move on. However, with the Israeli kudon(gang) in Bologna and Arabs, Chinese and Russian also suppossedly arriving soon, the broker is getting more and more worrisome and one evening after the lesson with Signorra, the feeling within is growing more and more panicking. Although, Joel already got admission to Signorra's residence after the nice feat. of rescuing her when met with accident atop the mountain ,since he learnt about her dying husband and her old mother taking care of him, he did not want to put Signorra in trouble by asking for a help. He also had to leak his originals if he wish to ask her any help , which he did not want to at the first instant. However, with his confidence with women, he decided to take this least preferred but only option and told everything about himself. He told her that he is not a Canadian and also that he is innocent enough to be trusted. Signorra already quite captivated by his chasm immediately rose to help him and offered her husband's passport and a leather suitcase and clothes to get dressed to disguise his onlookers. He was pleased to get her help and bid farewell and upon getting asked about his return to the streets of Bologna ever again, he simply told he owe one. Started for Milan, he wanted to reach Zurich, where he would meet his banker. Although the train would have taken him directly to Milan and then any rail/ road/ air connection would have taken him to his destination quickly, he decided not to leave his trail. Started in a bus, hiring a cab halfway, reaching Milan, dressing oddly again to get a 2nd disguised look, taking a train to some small town in Switzerland, getting midway at a small village, spending a short night in a deserted looking hotel, taking a cab to Zurich from there followed as a chain of incidences on his journey to the secret.
Adapted to his profession, he has always liked the quite busy attitude of the city of Zurich. He entered his vault at the bank and took out some cash, the set of CDs containing the software, wired 100K to a new account in DC and got the courtesy help with getting tickets to DC from Munich as asked to his banker. Finally he reached the most awaited moment of his second life and was at Marriott watching White House at a distance. Called his son, Neal and his partner at firm, Prats and an old friend, ex senator and ex head of Intelligence from South Carolina he went on with the entire sequence of events with him since the JAM curse was bestowed and discussed his next move wherein they agreed not to involve CIA but the Intelligence. The senator arranged for the meeting and eventually Joel got rid of the curse of JAM and was a free men now. Enjoyed his dinner with his grand daughter and daughter in law, he lived a moment he longed for when in prison. He got two passports one each for Canada and Australia from Intelligence in return but he never wanted to use them not for his own safety but he had a promise to keep, before he sleep.