tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12340564469720758812023-11-16T04:33:57.170-08:00Prolix Trivia | Musings of a MillennialAkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-63516348502984372642019-01-03T03:39:00.000-08:002019-04-28T01:35:10.818-07:00Two TED talks I liked<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">I recently came across the following two TED talks, both of which I liked. In the first one, the Speaker talks about why it is important to make responsible choices when we are young, not push it for later with the excuse that we are too young and can afford to make a few careless choices intentionally; and how it builds up pressure later on.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The second TED Talk is about procrastination and procrastination being one of my biggest problems, I liked this one as well. When the Speaker said, "The frustration is not that they couldn't achieve their dreams, it is that weren't even able to start chasing them", it struck a chord with me (the Speaker was talking about the life goals/ dreams which have no set deadline and of those for which it is up to us to be self motivated).</span></span><br />
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-67091582047969584282018-08-08T12:25:00.000-07:002019-04-28T01:36:58.837-07:00It's time<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The funniest thing happened last weekend when I was visiting
some family in Thanjavur. Two of the closest members in my family said to me that my face was swollen and inquired if I was okay. I almost burst out laughing coz the honest truth is that I
have just gained weight and my face obviously did so too. But I didn’t laugh. I put on my best poker face, mumbled the
lame reason of travel fatigue and fled the spot. LOL!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Before venturing further, I want to categorically make it
clear that this post is not to written with the intention of fat-shaming. The
only standard I measure myself up against is myself. At one point in
my life, one of my absolute nightmares was that I would become fat. So, I do catch
myself thinking how did I ever get to this point where I have put on so much
weight. My BMI is just barely below the overweight range. But do I feel ashamed
of this setback of sorts? No. I feel loved and cherished by those who matter to me (despite flaws and all). I feel I have a certain amount of respect at work
(again despite flaws, shortcomings and all). I have navigated turbulent waters,
both personal and professional and managed to sail through. I have handled
unclear situations with patience. I have always given the benefit of the doubt
to my loved ones before I start a fight if there were ever any differences and have always
striven to be understanding. So considering all those aspects of my life and how I have conducted myself, I don’t feel bad about the fact that I have
gained weight at all. No regrets. Absolutely none.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I can give reasons that my career and all my other responsibilities have prevented me from taking fitness seriously. And it is a
valid reason. It is not always possible to have all the aspects of your life in
control at all times. Having a career and running a house is no mean feat. As
misguided as it may seem in this context there is a Buddhist philosophy which says, “Don’t try
to like yourself. Just be kind to yourself” and I believe in it. I think it is
important to forgive ourselves for our mistakes and make peace with them. Or at
least try to. But I recently hit an age milestone which will not be revealed
here (owing to the Author possessing a certain degree of vanity; also, if you want to say age is just a number, try telling that to a person who intends to appear
for a competitive exam in this part of the world). And you know when you have
thought enough about something and finally reach that sort of Zen-mode where your mind tells you, “It's time”. I am in that state now. So, as valid as all the
reasons were, it's time; time to buckle up and take some measures to lose
weight.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I do know that if I had made my health and fitness a
priority I would not have reached this point in the first place. My weight gain
started when I began slacking in my food habits like a year and a half ago. Before
then, I had a system of sorts in place and it was super effective. I ate mostly
vegetables for lunch, made sure egg was part of my breakfast, made sure to have
two cups of green tea during office hours, ate nuts with fruits for my 5 PMish evening
snack which I shared with my then colleague and neighbor at office who is also a
dear friend, had a light dinner and so on. When I look back, it’s amazing how I
invented excuses to get off the rails over time. I have miles to go with my goals
in life. I have so many things I want to achieve (again, personal and
professional) and that will not be made possible with my current fitness
standards. Aside from the endorphins they say that any fitness regimen
provides, I also want to increase my stamina. I had a naturally lean, slender
frame (which I think can be restored through some dietary changes), a good
metabolism, and I always see results as soon as I start putting in some minimum
effort. I intend to use these factors to my advantage in this journey.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">My strategy is to lose weight by mainly focusing on my diet.
Once I have that in control and start seeing results I plan to take up some
regular physical activity to get better at fitness. Following are some of the
basic measures I want to set in place right now before I come up with more measures
to regroup:</span></div>
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<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Cut back on coffee: This is more of an
occupational hazard. I take coffee the way most Tamil people like their coffee-
with lots of milk and sugar. Sigh!</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Regulate sleep timings: Easier said than done!</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Carve out time for myself: I found that I often
tend to stay up late or mess up timings in general if I feel like I have denied
myself my ‘me time’. So making a conscious effort to spend time on myself will
ensure that my sleep timings are more regular, but most importantly make me
feel good.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Maintain a more Alkaline diet</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Very light dinners: This is tough coz most days after
a full day of work, commute (which averages around 2 hours a day) and loads of
other responsibilities all I want to do is get some food inside me and crash,
so I don’t really pay attention to calories but I should from now and also eat
dinner early.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Proper asthma medication: I did not have childhood
asthma. I had the first asthma attack in my life this Jan. I am guilty of not
taking my medication on good days. Obviously this is a bad idea since no one
can function properly when their lungs don’t fetch them the maximum oxygen that
they should which is how it feels sometimes when I try to take a full breath,
even on good days.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Walking at least 5 times a week for 40 minutes each
of those times.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">GM diet: I have tried this before and seen
results. But let me tell you it is not the easiest of diets. I won’t be taking
the decision lightly about getting into this one. But after a few days I think I
will start this one. Let’s see.</span></span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Drink more water</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">More fruits and veggies</span></span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This is just an initial brainstorming sort of list to get things going. I will update on this a few days later on how it goes. I also have another very good reason to lose weight. Sometime
next year my family hopes that my brother will be getting married (it will be an Arranged Marriage).
So in view of that, I want to look my best (representing the groom’s side and
all). To talk about my brother, he used to be a little lazy when
he was living in India. He worked for two years here after completing his Bachelors in Engineering. He then went to the US to pursue his Masters and started
working there. I always thought it took a certain amount of guts on his part to leave a privileged upbringing of sorts where you don’t really have to lift a finger at home and
to go to a place where you have to do everything by yourself. It is tough to
manage to study, do all chores for yourself, manage your own money and so on.
And my brother didn’t just manage. He emerged better than ever before. Most of my friends who
went to study there struggled a lot academically, had trouble finding jobs to cover living costs and right away gained too much weight because of getting into
bad junk food habits and were unable to cope with all the stress. They have nothing to be sorry
for about anything (just like I don't feel sorry for anything either) in my opinion but when someone does manage to piece together
different aspects of their life it should be acknowledged.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Growing up he was the smarter one of the two of us in
different aspects (Note: definitely not all; so if any category is ever
mentioned I will always state that that was the category he was severely
lacking in :P). Jokes aside, he has got General Proficiency in school for
Academics many times, got centum many times unlike me, was a Boy Scout who
received his certificate from the President. He also writes way better than me.
I still remember how super impressed I was when I finished reading the
Statement of Purpose that he submitted to the Universities in the US to secure
an admission. Even my dad was impressed with how well he had brought together the
different facets of his life to culminate in such a way that his Master’s
Degree made sense. I had even written a little about his blog <a href="http://akihtra.blogspot.com/2014/07/blogging.html" target="_blank">here</a>. After he went to the US he seemed to improve a lot more as I have mentioned before. He
finished his Masters in the US with no tuition fee (he was the Teaching Assistant
and the Research Assistant during different semesters and he received a
stipend). He also got his job with an American company almost right away unlike
many of my friends who were so stressed for a long time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">He has been working in the US for close to three years now.
He is someone who visits the gym four to five times a week, watches what he
eats, manages his own money reasonably well, invests in experiences rather than
things (is eager to travel), pursues various hobbies (like boating). Thankfully, he
doesn’t impose his standards on others. He is someone who accepts people for
who they are. He has told my parents and I a couple of times to take fitness
seriously (in my family’s WhatsApp group), but beyond that he has never
mentioned anything. One thing I wish for is that he gets over his aversion to
social media. I have told him many times to curate some kind of nice presence
in his social media accounts. It still surprises me how of all the good looking
pictures (which he sends to the family WhatsApp group) in a particular trip, he
chooses the most ugly one to put in his WhatsApp DP or LinkedIn DP or FB DP;
that is, if he changes any of those in the first place (mostly he is likely to
do that once in 2 years). I have also told him to create a folder in FB for big
trips (like his recent trip to Hungary) and post a nice selection of very few pics
(like 5 to 10) there. To date he has never, ever done this with any of his trips.
If I choose one pic for him and ask him to please change his DP, even though he
changes his DP, he ignores the pic that I sent and chooses the most ugly one. Like for instance, the WhatsApp DP he has right now (which he changed from another horrible pic which didnt look like him at all either) looks like it was taken after a long day in the Sun with no Sunscreen. So
let’s just conclude he is not even moderately gifted in that sphere.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Here’s hoping that my parents can find a sweet girl from a
good family who will appreciate all his hard work to reach this point, be his strength and is also mature and understanding of my brother and his shortcomings (some stated above and other ones);
and likewise, that my brother will do the same for his life partner. And also, that
he cultivates a certain sense of sensitivity and tact which he apparently lacks
when he speaks :P Anyways, I know that what is meant to be, will be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">As for me, wish me luck in my new endeavor!</span></div>
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-24793262895792549372018-04-02T07:15:00.000-07:002019-04-28T01:48:04.397-07:00Income Tax Returns<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I recently filed my Income Tax Returns for AY 2017-2018 and AY 2016-2017. Though it was pending for a long time and I kept telling myself that I will get around to it, I didn’t. I also knew that for both the years I would get refunds since my Employer Organization had deducted more than what I was liable to pay because some of the documents I submitted were deemed insufficient and it was too late to resubmit them. </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I know in some areas excuses just don’t cut it and this is one of those. A</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">s cliche and boring as it may sound, a</span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">ll I can do is </span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">plead a busy schedule. And honestly, I didn't know this much time had passed since I last filed my returns. Time just flies!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I got a refund of INR. 4080 for AY 2017-2018 and INR. 48080 for AY 2016-2017 (how is that for a pattern?). The processing was done promptly too with a decent wait time. The process is even more simplified since the <a href="https://akihtra.blogspot.in/2014/06/of-ignorance-and-lack-of-it.html" target="_blank">last time I filed</a>, in the sense that I didn’t have to mail the physical copy of the Return with my signature in it. Filling up the AADHAR number automatically e-verifies it, which saves the hassle of taking a print out, signing it and then going to the post office to mail it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Though there are many sites which are more user friendly and make the calculations a bit easier, I still choose to go with the <a href="https://www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/" target="_blank">government website</a> to file my returns. There is something about the process (collecting all relevant documents, poring over all my records, understand each and everything about the figures) and doing it all by myself that I find immensely satisfying.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When I entered the work force 8 years ago, I had absolutely no idea about Income Tax. The first few years I paid the whole thing in full, without even making the most straight forward deductions (I guess I should find comfort in the thought that it all went to the development of my great Nation).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">This is true with most of my friends as well. In fact, many of my friends still don’t know the basics. The last time I had filed mine, I helped three of my friends and my baby brother with their Returns. I did everything from scratch for them- created the user account in the government website, pored over their Form 16s and other relevant documents, did the actual filing and finally mailed the Income Tax return and also the user account details (username and password, obviously) of the website to their email accounts. For one of my friends, I lent the tax money that she had to pay, which she prudently paid me back later (love you Pai!). With hindsight, I guess I had time to spare back then. Happy times indeed!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I didn’t file my return for the year AY 2015-2016. I was eligible for a refund from that year also but the last date to file that one has lapsed (was 31 March, 2017). Usually, the late Return can be filed even one year after the end of the relevant AY. I knew this already, but still didn’t file. Except for the AY 2015-2016 all my returns are in order now. This year though the Income Tax Department announced that even for the AY 2017-2018 last date to file is 31 March, 2018 which means they are doing away with almost one year of extra time to file the return. So it is better to look for these news items than rely on the usual practices.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Anyways, filing your Tax Return even if all your tax liabilities are paid already is good practice. It denotes that things are in order. It helps in easy Loan Processing and even Visa Processing. If you already have the Returns in hand, you don’t have to file them in a hurry when you are in the middle of a Loan Processing or Visa Processing which already tend to be tedious processes by themselves sometimes. So don’t be like me. File your taxes on time. I definitely intend to do so in the future.</span><br />
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-1717744581062741522018-03-14T10:37:00.003-07:002018-10-17T00:47:50.252-07:00Work Anniversary<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">The date 22nd February, 2018 marked
the completion of 8 years for me as a working professional. It was on that
day 8 years ago that I, along with my college friends went to report for
my first day at my first ever job in Bangalore. When I reflect on this long
journey, I feel a sense of gratitude for all the experiences that have come my
way in my work life. I truly cherish all those experiences. According to a
recent Forbes article, women hold only 26% of all technical jobs worldwide.
This fact makes me all the more glad to be able to be in the 26%.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I was lucky enough to be recruited
in the beginning of my final year of education (Bachelor's degree in
Computer Science Engineering) as part of the campus recruitment initiative by
the Multi National Organization which was my first employer. This made my final year all the
more fun. I have never known the anxiety of what it is to look for a job
after finishing studies. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">During my <a href="http://akihtra.blogspot.in/2017/11/job-switch.html" target="_blank">job switches</a></span><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"> later on I
had the advantage of having a strong place in my present job and leaving only
after having offer(s) in hand and mostly being in a position to choose. Also,
since I was always working in a position which offered reasonably good
visibility via constant interaction with the client side during development
phases I felt relatively safe (touch wood!). All of
which have made me feel reasonably secure in my professional life till now. I am so glad about this (especially considering the industry I work in).<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I still can remember how eager I was
to learn all I could when I was new to my job. I didn't mind working long hours
and the occasional working on weekends also. The learnings of the first few
years have paved the way for me to sustain myself in my profession. Aside from
the actual work that I learnt from my seniors, I also value some of the life
lessons they taught me. One such advice was something like this: “Work concurrently
on many tasks because if you don’t, either you can’t survive or you will be here
all day”. I think this is good advice because of the nature and
quantum of work involved in my job. Some of them were seasoned professionals and they knew their
stuff.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">During one of the discussions with my best friends from college, when I had just started working, we were talking about how we can’t ever be close friends with our colleagues and that we should be a little wary of getting too close with anyone at office. At that time, it held true since there is always bound to be some conflict when working together; two people in the same project meant both are looking for the same promotion, raise, looking to work on the same high priority/ competitive/ interesting task, etc. and hence both will do only what serves their interest best.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Though I have had such scenarios
with different people over the years, I have been so, so lucky to have some
amazing people work with me as colleagues, who later became some of my closest
friends. I am still in touch with most of them and I know that they are friends
for life. I often talk to my old colleagues when in doubt about some important
career subject.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am someone who believes in leaving
a job on a good note and I also believe that it is in your interest to leave
the door open when leaving a job. Keeping in touch with my colleagues turned friends
at my old job also helps in ensuring that I know to an extent about how things
are going on such as new positions opening up, new technologies or tools they
are moving on to and so on.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I am also happy with the fact that my
job has not been the one dominating thing in my life to the exclusion of all
else as it sometimes gets if I am not careful enough. My career has been
relatively well balanced with my personal life. I have been able to be true to most
of my hobbies, could take proper trips, have been able to attend almost all
important events such as my family and friends' engagements and weddings, have
been able to spend good time with my immediate family. If there is nothing pressing at work, I also sometimes take an impromptu leave as part of mental health day off (wink), in a light and fun way, just to give myself a mini break of sorts from it all if I feel that I need it.</span></div>
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<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When deadlines are to be met at work and </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">pressures mount </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">and when something comes up in one’s personal life at the same time, it is tough to keep marching on. It is sometimes difficult to be sure if some compromise you made in some sphere is worth the trade-off</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">. Through those many challenges, both personal and professional and in a job as demanding as mine, I have been able to hold my own, hold on and stay competent for which as I mentioned before, I am truly grateful. My job gives me purpose, a sense of identity, a good pay and above all fulfillment</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">; and I value these things.</span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Here is to all Professionals and to many
more work anniversaries (in the same field or otherwise) to come! A special
salute to all women who march against all odds and are proud of it! May you
pursue all your dreams, both personal and professional!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br /></div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-50918242115597881792017-12-11T08:54:00.001-08:002017-12-13T23:53:23.794-08:005 Websites I frequent for their Jewelry collection<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I have
listed 5 websites I like to frequent to check out their jewelry collection:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 0.5in; text-align: left;">
</div>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><a href="https://www.jaypore.com/"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">https://www.jaypore.com/</span></span></a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.tribebyamrapali.com/"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">https://www.tribebyamrapali.com/</span></span></a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.jivaana.com/"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">https://www.jivaana.com/</span></span></a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.fabindia.com/"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">https://www.fabindia.com/</span></span></a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.tjori.com/"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">https://www.tjori.com/</span></span></a></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Though
most of these sites sell apparel and other things, it is their jewelry
collection that makes me keep going back for more. There are many contemporary
pieces they sell which go well with any kind of outfit. Like any Indian girl, I
especially like Jhumkis, Chandbalis, Temple jewelry and the like, which go well
with traditional Indian outfits.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I never
buy gold jewelry online. Considering how expensive they are, I like to go to
the shops and choose from the collection presented before my eyes (sans digital
media) and definitely after trying it on me, which I guess is true for most
people. What I normally buy from these websites are mostly silver jewelry,
brass jewelry or gold-plated silver or brass jewelry. I read somewhere that
gold-plated silver or brass jewelry can be re-plated multiple times
periodically to keep them in good condition; and that these metals withstand
corrosion and tend to be long lasting, though I haven't re-plated any of my
jewelry yet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Sometimes
I buy metal alloy gold-plated stuff but normally I try to avoid them. I
especially like jewelry which have some semi-precious gemstones such as Rose
Quartz (more on that later), Amethyst, Oynx and such in them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I also
found that these websites seem a tad bit overpriced, but then they sell good
quality, one-of-a-kind sort of pieces that are difficult for me to find
together in such numbers in local stores and it saves time to browse a
huge collection put together in a single place (I have spent hours going
around a single website though, but that is an altogether different kind of
hassle). What is more important to me than accessibility is the fact that I
like to invest in good pieces which are durable and so I overlooked the pricing
aspect. I decided to be prudent and as seldom as possible with my purchases to
compensate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">There
have been times when I found the same piece across many of these sites, because
the jewelry makers probably sell them via multiple sites. Also, I have felt
disappointed occasionally that a piece didn't turn out how I imagined it would
be based on what I saw online. I guess this happens at one point or the other
when shopping online. These days I don't splurge as much as I used to. My
shopping urges are under much better control than before which is definitely a
good thing in my books.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">P.S. The
websites listed are to my liking as a Shopper out of several I have come
across, based on my experiences. I don't have any association with any of these
websites since my Blog doesn't generate that kind of traffic. I have listed
them out of my own volition, since I believe finding nice things could be a
delight to anyone. I am sure there are many more cool ones out there and I will
probably find more exciting ones, but for now, this list holds true.</span></div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-53087828512229800172017-11-29T03:12:00.000-08:002017-11-29T17:00:03.601-08:00Korean Entertainment<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I
have become a fan of Korean entertainment over the years. Which is hardly a
wonder, considering their popularity worldwide now. It all started off some 5
years ago when a friend recommended the K-drama series <i>Boys Over Flowers. </i>Though
I found it a little kiddish, there was something like-able about it and it
was, well, entertaining!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">Some
other K series I have watched are <i>Uncontrollably Fond, The Heirs,
City Hunter, </i>and <i>Playful Kiss</i>. Even though
these were a little kiddish for my taste too, it didn't put me off completely
and I was able to watch it till the very end. My most favorite ones till date
are the dramas <i>Man from
the Star</i> and <i>Legend
of the Blue Sea</i> (these two are not kiddish according to moi and I
highly recommend them) and I hear these were huge hits across China and Japan
as well.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">One
recurring theme I find in their entertainment, be it in TV series or movies is
that in their romance the boy is always smart, rich, composed and
sophisticated, as opposed to the girl who is almost always portrayed as noisy,
clumsy, not so good looking (they often call a perfectly good looking girl as
not good looking!) and usually not rich. In fact, in most cases the girl is poor
and struggles to make ends meet.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I have
also found myself listening to a lot of K-pop even though I don’t understand
the language. The music videos are good and the tunes are catchy. Tara, Miss A,
Sistah and Sunmi are some of the artists I have listened to. My favorite Korean
stars are Bae Suzy and Jun Ji-hyun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I haven't
watched many Korean movies though. I have only watched <i>My Sassy Girl,
Seducing Mr. Perfect </i>and <i>Windstruck. </i>Speaking of
movies, my appetite comprises of popular Tamil films and Hollywood movies. I go
to the cinemas now and then based on word of mouth reviews from those around
me and sometimes read reviews online. The last movie I went to the cinemas and saw was the Tamil movie <i>Mersal </i>and
I quite enjoyed it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">When it
comes to TV series, I absolutely don't watch Tamil serials. I used to watch
them some years ago because my mom used to watch them. Even if a series starts
in such a promising way and the premise is so interesting, as the series progresses,
the female protagonist was always scripted to do something so stupid and
annoying that I lost interest for all Tamil TV series since then.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I also
used to watch some US TV series like <i>Revenge</i>, <i>The Vampire
Diaries</i> and its spin off <i>The Originals</i>, <i>Homeland </i>and <i>Marvels
Agents of SHIELD</i>. <o:p></o:p>I
am sure there are a lot more (and even K drama for that matter) that I have
watched but these are the ones I can think of as I am writing this post. I
am also a huge fan of the <i>Masterchef Australia</i> series,
which I think has a good editing team. I am not following the current season
though. Actually I am not watching any TV series now. In fact, except for
Revenge which ran to completion, I am not up to date with any of the other
series. I am seasons behind in most of these because I am into reading at the
moment. I am sort of addicted to reading right now. Sigh!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">I came
across some awesome cover songs for some of the most popular, recent music
videos in the US. The videos are by artists from all over the world and some are
even by artists from China and I was quite impressed by them. I will write
another post later containing some of my recommendations for these cover songs
and mention some of the TV series and movies I liked as well. I think I will
also include some Ice Skating videos I liked too (like Yuna Kim 'Imagine').<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;">P.S.
Needless to say, when I say Korean entertainment I only mean the work coming
from Seoul, South Korea. As we all know, North Korea has a political climate
which doesn't exactly seem to promote art.</span></div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-15342167390708937812017-11-28T08:09:00.002-08:002018-10-17T00:49:34.217-07:00Job Switch<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br />
I have recently switched jobs. The decision to quit my old job and join a new one was not easy. It took a lot of consideration.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">What made me go out there and update my resume in a job portal site to look for new job opportunities is that I had not really learnt anything new for quite some time with my previous job and in an industry like mine, that is a sure way of your skills becoming obsolete in a few years' time. Initially when I joined my previous job the learning was good. Along with the product that I was working on, I learnt a lot of new things on the industry standard technologies I was working on. I also learnt some of the industry best practices and the process in place seemed good too. But in recent times, things just got stagnant and it felt like I was doing the same thing over and over. There was something new now and then, when some new feature came my way, but mostly the learning was minimal and felt insufficient. I lost the kind of excitement to work that I had initially and I felt that I was not as productive as before.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">But then my old job provided me with good work-life balance which is important to me as well. During the Interview with the new company, they kept repeating that it was a challenging role. It excited me and scared me a little bit at the same time that my work-life balance will go for a toss. Some of the technologies that I was going to work on were relatively new to the industry and also completely new to me so I would have to learn them from scratch. But then there were already training sessions in progress for these technologies in my old job since they were going to transition to this new technology in the distant future, if not in the near future, albeit slowly. From what I understood they would perhaps start work on this new technology in a year's time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">Another major factor which got me thinking hard was commute. My new job location was twice as far as that of my old one from my home. Earlier my travel time was half an hour and my new job location takes around an hour to reach. So that is roughly two hours a day gone in commute. Although I enjoy driving my car to and fro work and have mentioned that it is one of the best parts of my day, driving in this kind of crazy traffic made me skeptical and wonder whether it will remain the best part of my day anymore. In fact I had a strong feeling it would become a nightmare on days when I get caught in some traffic jam, more so when I have to be on time to attend some important meeting or if I have to get back home on time. These new routes of my everyday commute are very congestion prone and totally unpredictable.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">And then there was work from home option available in my old job which was immensely useful to me before. There were times when I worked from home for periods of several weeks at a time. Obviously when I start in the new place, I will not be able to work from home for a long time since initially there will be training sessions to attend which has to be done according to the convenience of those who would give Knowledge Transfer to me and then later on when I begin work on something, I would need a lot of support from the team that I would be working with. The transition to when I would be able to completely work independently will take a long time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">The job switch also marks my transition from a Service based company to a Product based company. As anyone in my industry could tell you, it is considered a good thing. Though not always the case, mostly it means more learning with more ownership, lesser working hours, better compensation benefits, etc. Needless to say, this new job offered me better compensation than my old one.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">All these things left me in a confused state of mind. Even after I got the offer letter, I was a bit reluctant to join the new company due to these reasons. I guess everyone goes through this kind of thing when they switch jobs. There are various parameters to consider and it is difficult to guess whether the trade off would be worth it in the end and also to know for sure that you could hold your own in a new job. What about you? What are the factors that you considered when you switched jobs? Did it work out better than you hoped for in the end?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">Eventually I decided that this was a huge opportunity that I shouldn't pass up. The Interview went on for more than four hours and comprised of two rounds of face to face Technical Interviews. Three days later there was another round of Telephonic Interview, which was an informal Technical discussion bordering on HR with the Director of the company. He briefed me about the organization a bit more, things I didn't know even after reading a bit about the company from Wikipedia as part of my Interview preparation. He also briefed a bit about my job role at the end of the Interview, after telling me that he cleared me for the position in the span of the same call.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">I prepared reasonably well for the Interviews. I was confident through out all the Interviews, even during the difficult parts when I couldn't answer well and I think I maintained a sunny disposition of sorts and a positive outlook at all times. But truth be told even I was surprised that I cleared all the rounds since I took up this Interview after a very long time with my previous organization (four years and four months). This is the second job switch in my career which means that this is the third company I am working for thus far.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: georgia, times new roman, serif; font-size: large;">I am working in the new company for about two months now. There is loads to learn and there are still some training sessions going on. Contrary to what I originally thought things like work-life balance and commute are okay and definitely way better than I feared it could be. It is still early days, so lets see. They have promised me additional responsibilities in a year if I prove myself. Here's hoping that my new job turns out to be everything that it promises to be!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<br /></div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-47814678053202393722016-07-17T01:09:00.003-07:002018-10-16T23:43:41.583-07:00Reading<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">I have been an avid reader all my life for as long as I can remember. But for reasons I cant fully understand, I find that my reading habit is on the decline. Could be due to the lack of time, what with all the responsibilities coming your way and all the challenges that life keeps throwing at you. Still, I think a habit such a reading should not take a back seat no matter what.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">The past few years for some reason, whichever book I started reading, I could not finish it at all. This coming from someone who cant keep a book down once she starts off was a bit shocking for me and I couldnt comprehend why this was so. I did read something now and then and finish it, but it is no where near how it once was.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">However, the past few months I find that this is changing. I am reading more. I am always reading one book or the other, some magazine or the other, some blog or the other and it makes me glad. At the moment, I am reading "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert and I couldn't have chosen to read the book at a better time in my life. I love it because it is about travel and travel to pursue spiritual growth in that.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: medium;">Hope this reading streak continues. I plan to transition from reading for pleasure and onto reading more content driven books about a wide array of subjects. So here's wishing Happy Reading to all the people in the World!</span></span><br />
<div>
<br /></div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-6794652792884658522016-04-11T05:03:00.000-07:002016-07-17T06:05:42.240-07:00Gearing up for the Summer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It is a bitter-sweet feeling that Summer is here. While the scorching heat, extreme humidity, make for the bitter part of it (let me tell you that Chennai, must fall under the category of one-of-the-hottest-places-on-Earth every Summer), there are several other reasons that I really look forward to summer every year.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Reasons I love the summer:</span><br />
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Vacations!- If its summer, one is officially eligible for a vacation!</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Watermelon (juice- lots of it)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mangoes (the whole fruit, the juice, the lassi, some dessert- whatever form, which ever variety)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tender coconut (Sure it is available all round the year, but I am always inclined to indulge in them more come summer and sure enough you find that shops make sure to sell them in more numbers this time of year too)</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Cucumber (same as before)</span></li>
</ol>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now it must be weird that I have given a separate point for some of the seasonal fruits each but that is just how much I love them. It is a delight to watch the markets flooded with all the seasonal stuff (fruits I mentioned above and many other Summer things, which I wont mention here by virtue of being lazy; some other time maybe folks). Making a note to self to indulge in a whole range of Summer Smoothies too with all these seasonal fruits and such.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">While we are not in the peak season of the glorious Indian Summer yet (that falls under mid- May in the calender), I believe that the best way to tide over the hot, hot Summer is by practising a few tips and tricks- staying hydrated by drinking as much water and juices as possible, and on that note never leaving your house without a bottle of water, always having a vibrant, colorful umbrella handy if leaving the house, wearing Sunglasses, wearing light and bright colored clothing, staying indoors during the peak hours of the Sun, making sure to leave doors and windows of living rooms wide open during the late evenings, taking bath twice a day- once in the morning and once in the evening coz you tend to perspire that much (remember what I said about humidity?), and wearing the Sunscreen (I wear a min. of SPF 50 during these hot months). And of course praying to God that your electricity supply is stable so that the Air Conditioner works all night.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If we manage to get these right, considering all the other things that the Summer season has to offer (aside from the above reasons, the golden sunshine for one), I think we can all rejoice that Summer is here!</span></div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-62790557071101459322015-03-16T02:58:00.000-07:002015-03-24T03:59:43.807-07:00Impromptu<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Decided to do something impromptu. Posting the recipe of a salad that I make. Tastes great when accompanied by a soup.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJI9ReHjvv1kS2R2wO_ICLHTXgfNHCEmy-Ijeu_NAGzh2hKrqKzthCr70tJkXttfoA9MFZ-vtF5fdpUIPXu5uFnHw9PJGiUBmTf-gnU41GjdTgCClaT10cOa_gK2rX4_Lbldt1ewJBF6lf/s1600/IMG_2957.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJI9ReHjvv1kS2R2wO_ICLHTXgfNHCEmy-Ijeu_NAGzh2hKrqKzthCr70tJkXttfoA9MFZ-vtF5fdpUIPXu5uFnHw9PJGiUBmTf-gnU41GjdTgCClaT10cOa_gK2rX4_Lbldt1ewJBF6lf/s1600/IMG_2957.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ingredients:</span><br />
<ol style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
<li>Spinach Leaves (the younger the better; baby Spinach is the best for this salad)</li>
<li>Onion</li>
<li>Baby corn</li>
<li>Cucumber</li>
<li>Olive Oil</li>
<li>Vinegar</li>
<li>Salt</li>
</span></ol>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
</span>
<div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Procedure:</span></div>
<div>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pan fry the baby corn in olive oil with minimum heat until it is coated golden brown/it appears mildly charred</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cut the spinach leaves if they are too large</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Slice the onions length wise</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Slice the cucumber into rectangular chunks</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl; pour some vinegar and then mix some more</span></li>
</ol>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Additional Notes:</span></div>
</div>
<div>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can fry mushrooms also along with baby corn. But remember that mushrooms cook a little faster than the baby corn so add them a little later, after the baby corn to the pan.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You can top this salad with any of the seed varieties; could be flax seeds (said to be very nutritious when it is roasted and grounded), sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds (minimally of course) and so on.</span></li>
</ol>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOEuIMHxS8ND2LDWZWHZKNI26Ob91gsrKxTNzJgwUgUVQVETEmUWOqG05FcMqWL4H4xYJ6CR4VyL6K92NO3wr7VkhT_2-gUJtoui9Ki0jayiLoa_3rHoj2GbtkjnoVTZgneV3fzW-U3Ie/s1600/IMG_2954.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOEuIMHxS8ND2LDWZWHZKNI26Ob91gsrKxTNzJgwUgUVQVETEmUWOqG05FcMqWL4H4xYJ6CR4VyL6K92NO3wr7VkhT_2-gUJtoui9Ki0jayiLoa_3rHoj2GbtkjnoVTZgneV3fzW-U3Ie/s1600/IMG_2954.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnIJ4SFWoi2FsCh8p5IQ43ffRP8OamW2fjR7kGd_kRGJJeKtJhci2LTeJgoCs4LQWdsoarGaLVzNobQTi48y4CFTwRPEjhtG7rzphTgrU4AV-3j5rHrFzbZQRt1eCYyaStryzVrF7vzlX/s1600/IMG_2956.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnIJ4SFWoi2FsCh8p5IQ43ffRP8OamW2fjR7kGd_kRGJJeKtJhci2LTeJgoCs4LQWdsoarGaLVzNobQTi48y4CFTwRPEjhtG7rzphTgrU4AV-3j5rHrFzbZQRt1eCYyaStryzVrF7vzlX/s1600/IMG_2956.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Most salads I came across consisted of ingredients that are not easily available in the Indian market. This recipe is sort of my own invention with Indian ingredients.</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We Indians are not great fans of salads. We like our idli, dosa, coconut chutney, chappathi, rice with curry and such. Who can blame us when they all taste so good! Our palettes will forever be addicted to them. But I really wish we started giving more preference to salads as well. Considering that they are so nutritious, fresh, have less calories, and have similar goodnesses about them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Point is, I have really started liking salads. And I wish you do too.</span></div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-15888463581070842112015-01-07T01:43:00.000-08:002015-01-22T03:27:13.398-08:00Car Driving<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I am glad to say that I have finally learnt
to drive a car. For many, it might seem like just another, rather mundane
thing- say like learning to make a dish. For me, it is more like a milestone.
This is why: it has taken me years to learn it (I can count at least 9!). I
started out learning to drive during my 12<sup>th</sup> standard (Indian
Standards) holidays. I drove along the streets of Vellore, Salem during my
initial still-new-at-driving phase, since my dad was posted in those places at
that time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But then two things happened. Once, I drove
the car straight to the wall of my house’s parking lot after one of the
practice sessions. The second is that, one breezy evening, again during my
still-new-at-driving-phase, I had taken my mum to a rather sparsely populated
locality nearby to drink tender coconut water at a shop, and I had parked the
car just at the edge of a slope. Parking was a walk in the park (!) for me. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I was still new to the whole the half
clutch when driving at a slope and the clutch-brake-accelerator manipulation
thing at a slope. I thought I had learnt the intricacies, but turns out I
didn’t. And because of that on that day, the car went backwards when I tried to
start and move it forward. Behind the car was a rather large thorn field (Ring a bell, anyone?). I
tried thrice to bring the car up, but finally decided to call one of my dad’s drivers
to come fetch us. But a stranger who was also at the shop with his wife offered
to help us. I drove back to my home, but my confidence was shattered.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">One thing I will always remember is that
when I had driven the car to the wall as mentioned earlier, and I had cringed
away in shame coz it was rather stupid because of the way it happened, my
dad never once scolded me. Frankly, I was a little scared that he might say
something since I knew he needed the car that evening to attend a wedding, but when he came home and was told of what had happened, he quietly made alternate arrangements without so much as a word or the slightest hint of disappointment at the discomfort.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Months or perhaps years later, when my dad
made fun of me about this, saying that he didn't have another 30K to spare for
my car driving exercise, all I could ever sense was affection. Of course, a dad
scolding his child for something like this cannot be considered as lack of
affection and a word of caution uttered to his child is pretty understandable;
but the thought that my dad did not scold me or say anything at all always warms
my heart. He always encouraged me to drive.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My brother who is two years younger than
me, who started to learn driving after me, during <i>his</i> 12<sup>th</sup>
Standard holidays, picked it up instantly. While I was both struggling and reluctant
to learn it because of my insecurities he surpassed me and went forward to
drive himself to work after driving us all occasionally during the four years
of his college life. And he seemed to excel in this realm.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Of all the people who ever drove me around
over the years- of all my dad’s numerous drivers over the years, my cousin
brother (elder one, coz I have referenced my younger cousin bro later), and my
dad even, I have felt safest when he was behind the wheel. Of course your
younger sibling surpassing you in any sphere does make you feel a little
inadequate and does not bode well with your parents who make jokes at your
expense (all in good spirit coz I never once felt bad about it and strangely
felt gleeful whenever they made fun of my driving). </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At one point of our lives, my brother and I
drove (he drove) 40 km each to and back from our work. He tortured me with impossibly
loud English pop music to the extent that my ears hurt from all the noise and sometimes
even my head was pounding; the thought of which still annoys me. He is now at
Uncle Sam’s, doing his Masters there. Wonder how he is doing with the right
hand gear system drive there. Should ask him next time I speak with him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I must admit that I don’t know to drive a motorcycle.
My dad had a Royal Enfield bullet when I was little and I used to take a bicycle
to school. And then my family moved on to cars; my family and I completed
skipped the step of buying me a motorcycle. Transport for me was never an issue
until now coz I was always driven around and when I was in Bangalore it didn't seem
to matter that I took the public transport because I had friends to give me
company, whose company I loved, not to mention all the bus stops were close by
and I enjoyed the commute. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">But now I had to do something about
commute. It was beginning to become an issue. There were times I considered
giving up car driving and buying myself a motorcycle coz I kept hearing that
for someone who knows cycling learning to drive one would be very easy for me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">As an aside, I feel sorry for the Royal
Enfield these days because it is not loved enough (what with my bro away, my
dad having transitioned to being driven in his cars because of the nature of
his work, my cousin bro who lives with my parents at the moment coz of his
studies in Chennai, away from our home town Salem, doesn't seem to know these
things and as for me, I can’t even imagine handling that much weight without
being crushed). I just wish it is took out more and looked after more.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At the moment, I know where I stand in
terms of my driving. I need a lot more practice (in terms of kilometres). I
think driving is a lot like playing a video game (which I love and was always
good at by the way), except that the stakes are high. I seem to be doing ok. I am 26 years old and I
have finally learnt to drive a car. Anyway, in this case, I feel it is better
late than never. As of now I seem to be enjoying it. I simply cannot tell
how much I love listening to music as I drive to work!</span></div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-79419170293769755842014-07-16T21:17:00.000-07:002014-07-18T22:49:27.911-07:00Relax yourself<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
After a long exhausting day at the office, how do you relax yourself? I like sitting in front of my television or watching a drama or movie in my laptop. I am beginning to notice that some people (I look up to) relax themselves in an entirely different way. They cook, take a walk, clean their house, read a book (Ah! The one thing I have in common!) or so to relax .<br />
<br />
So I have decided to relax myself in an altogether different way as well. I am going to take a walk, organize my things, read (as always), call my close friends more often (speaking to my some of my close friends always makes me happy) and such other things which relax me and make me feel good.<br />
<br />
Of course, I would still watch movies, television series because there are so many good ones out there and I totally love them; but the problem is they eat up so much of my time. So it is just that I am going to lessen the time I allocate to them and not look at them as the prime way in which I relax myself. And maybe turning in a more interesting and fun direction will eventually become a habit and eventually I could pick up on a wonderful hobby or two along the way. So, here's to finding creative ways to relax yourself!</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-68705203832154717972014-07-09T21:17:00.000-07:002015-01-09T06:52:56.806-08:00Bilingual<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Learning new languages is a fun thing to do. It is one of the things that really interest me. But it looks like I don't have the inherent ability to learn languages with ease. Just another classic case that penchant and talent are two different things.<br />
<br />
I took up a course in basic conversation of Japanese when I was in college. So I know some Japanese words and sentences. But the way they speak it is too fast for me and I cant seem to comprehend much.I can identify that they are speaking Japanese though. Wink.<br />
<br />
But my greatest regret when it comes to learning languages will always be that even after spending two whole years in Bangalore, India, I still could not learn Kannada. My Telugu friends seemed to easily take to Kannada, maybe because as they say there is a lot of similarity between Telugu and Kannada.<br />
<br />
I do know the computer programming language Java. Does that count? Wink. Jokes apart, I can claim to know only two languages- Tamil and English with a decent amount of fluency.<mastery over="" them=""> I will always keep trying though; and interested. And someday will boast of knowing many more languages. But, for now, I have to accept that I am bilingual.</mastery></div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-16865647833386157372014-07-05T04:28:00.002-07:002019-01-03T00:29:18.245-08:00Blogging<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Let's face it. Going by the traffic my blog generates, my
blog is not swarmed by many avid readers. Going by the number and nature of my
posts, I am not a prolific writer either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
write for the pleasure of it, occasionally. I am someone who likes to read my
old Tweets or Facebook posts when I feel like it, every once in a while (say
once in a year or so), so I hope to read my blog as well and try to relate to my
'thought process', as they call it. So if a Reader comes across my blog and
likes it, well and good. If they do not, that is fine too. Then
again, this is not a concept blog. It is true to its title, it talks about
'prolix trivia'. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There were about five followers for my blog as indicated by
a gadget to the right, but I removed that gadget after I received a series of
mails from a person, the timing of which coincided with an anonymous person
contacting a friend of mine and asking her for my details pretending to be
someone I knew, but as it turned out I didn't know such a person. I guess I
freaked out and consequently tried to delete my digital footprint. I need to
take a moment here to thank my friend for being cautious and not giving away my
details. But that whole tale is for some other time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
As long as we are speaking of blogs, I have to mention<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>something about my brother. He happens to
blog as well. He has one of these blogs with hard to understand philosophical stuff,
random stuff, with sophisticated words and implied meanings which can be
understood only if you are, well, my brother. But he is still my brother and I
had to read it to show my support. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At one point he felt that it seemed like I was the only one reading his
blog (though I believe that is not the case since there were comments for his posts). Anyways, you would think one would show the least amount of gratitude for such
loyalty. He was however offended! Can you believe this? OFFENDED. He moved his
blog to another address without even telling me. I am still not sure if it is
because I told my parents about this post of his titled, "Family"
where he said <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>'family is supposed to be
a nourishing environment where an individual shares his ideas and opinions
freely without fear of being reprimanded', 'Often this is not the case', and
many such contradictory statements. Or that I made them both read it. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Regardless, the fact is that he moved his blog to a
different URL address and lest we forget his most heinous sin which is that he did
not even tell me. But, as can be expected, I found out about this new address and
still keep tabs on what he is up to (all for the greater good!). The lengths I
went to, to discover this address will not be discussed here, for obvious and
not- so- obvious reasons.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And just like that, I am done with this post. I wanted to
pen down these thoughts of mine. Which reminds me, blogging sure is fun! To my
fellow bloggers, happy blogging!</div>
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-41527111177386342592014-07-03T00:28:00.000-07:002014-07-04T08:34:43.709-07:00Hope<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Most of us do not give our 100 per cent to most of the
things we do. Sometimes even though we want something badly we tend to become
sluggish and easily lose our way. We do enough for what keeps us out of
trouble. We encourage the distractions that come our way and get carried away
until something else comes along and reminds us of that thing that we want.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">But for some of us in order to achieve something that we
want to, we need to challenge ourselves because of the nature of our dream. And
also to change ourselves; change as in, make sacrifices, change the way we
approach problems, change the way we make decisions, change the way we deal
with people and so on. But is it truly possible? Can we ever improve by leaps
and bounds? Can we
change how far we go to reach our potential?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">When I was in school something caught my attention. In my
class, there was a girl who always used to top the class. It was as if the top
slot was always reserved for her. Not like the rest of the class was not smart
but the thing is she was way better than the competition.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">All of a sudden, another girl topped the class in an exam,
to everyone's surprise of course. Until then she was way below average and I
think in some subjects she didn't even get enough grades to pass. She was the
member of a close-knit friends gang which was always secretive, mischievous,
obtained low grades, didn't </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">mingle/ talk much with the rest of the class.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">What had happened was, there was a fall out with all her
close friends and she had redirected her energies into studying. She never
reconciled with her friends and always remained one of the top scorers in the class
till we finished school. This incident has been in my mind ever since and
whenever I think of this it gives me hope.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I have big plans for myself in the near future. Ambitious
plans. And I will work towards achieving each goal of mine. But I need to make some
major lifestyle changes and also give my 100% if I want to realize all my
dreams. I have had my moments but if I want to be better than my own track record
and reach my potential to the fullest, I need to make these changes that I was
talking about. The sooner I make them, the better for me. So, for now, I will
remain hopeful.</span></div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-72825375315377397082014-06-04T05:45:00.001-07:002018-05-22T01:38:06.769-07:00Of ignorance and the lack of it<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The first two years of my professional life I paid
my Income tax knowing almost next to nothing about it. I didn't even know the
bare basics. What is taxable income? What are the tax slabs all about? What are
deductions? What is the difference between paying the income tax and filing the
Income Tax return? And such. </span>Partly because the company did everything
for me. I was paying more than necessary but I was not bothered.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">One good thing though, I somehow always filed it, which
helped me in buying a car for myself. Last year, after quitting my first
company and shortly after joining my new company I started reading extensively about it, all thanks to my new organization for keeping me in the free pool.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">I found innumerable articles to read in the interwebs relating to
the topic. When I asked around I understood that so many IT professionals, more
experienced or as experienced as I, did not know much about these things
either. They were pretty much in the dark as I was.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">I feel this is one case where people do not have to
be ignorant. It might take a while to figure out, but it is very easy to
understand the basics; and this is a learning for life. As long as we have an
income, like it or not, we are obligated to pay a tax for it. Anybody can
understand the basics and anybody in India can file their returns online themselves through the
website <a href="https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/">https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/</a>.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">
</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">Ever since I cultivated a penchant for it, I have helped
so many of my friends and family to file their returns- some through clarifying
their doubts and for the more lazy ones even doing it end to end. I also got refunds for myself, for the years some mistakes were made in
calculations, using the two year window period rule. And the Income Tax Department has been kind enough to return the refund amount plus interest for the period.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: large; line-height: 115%;">Weird though it may sound, I
feel a new found liking for this time of year, something I did not have before, and
kind of look forward to filing my returns. Waiting to receive the Form 16 from
my company.</span></span></span></div>
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-9524705409303475252014-05-14T10:51:00.002-07:002014-07-03T00:43:04.860-07:00Another unpublished article<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Had sent the following article to </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">the supplement called <i>Nxg</i> (Next Generation) of the </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">daily newspaper </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Hindu</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> for a column called "Think Tank" which features articles on new trends and such. This one didn't get published and I thought I might as well post it here.</span><br />
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ever
considered retiring early? If you think that you are still studying or have
barely started off your career and hence it is not prudent to think along these
lines, read on. The notion caught some people's attention when it was mentioned
in the Hindi movie, "</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Zindagi
Na Milegi Dobara", where a lead actor pursues this goal; the crux of the
movie is that we should enjoy life for what it is every now and then though.
Regardless, looks like the idea of an early retirement is soon to become cliched with many classes of working professionals.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Several
professionals who have the drive and passion for the profession early on in
their career do not have the same later on. If anything at all is culpable
towards this disposition, it is perhaps the challenges that are part and parcel
of some professions which often than not, make it difficult to attain work life
balance; this could very well be one of the reasons that the workforce of some
professions such as the IT and the hospitality industry is so young. The few for
whom the passion for the job outweighs everything else, do endure. </span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Many
people who think of retiring early are now looking at the relatively young age
of 40 to quit on their profession and start something else anew; and planning
for one could mean anything to anyone. For some, it could mean travelling the
world, while some simply love the idea of not having to wake up to a schedule;
for some, it is about spending time with family, while for others it could mean
cultivating new interests, to explore the unexplored. As a contrast, many
pursue their hobby on a more serious level.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pursuing
one's hobby after retiring early comes with its own set of intrinsic
advantages. Though it is ideal if one chooses his or her passion as their
profession, it sometimes happens that people lose track of themselves in the
hustle and bustle of life and enter the rat race with what is less than one's
true calling, willingly or unwillingly; and hence taking up one's hobby pensively
offers a chance to redeem oneself.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Such
hobbies include Photography, Writing, Stock market trading, Gardening,
Translation, Interior Designing, Event Management, and many, many more. The
list is endless with possibilities. I have heard of professionals who have even
taken up agriculture with their ancestral land in their native places. The
congenial aspect of this is that, one can add value to the hobby by virtue of
bringing to the fore the technical prowess or any other quality that one accrued
along the way of their profession. Making your hobby pay off through freelancing
means that one can leisurely work even at home at a convenient time and saves a
lot of time on commute. Apart from that, it offers the freedom of being one's
own boss.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Needless
to say, planning an early retirement comes with the territory. It requires an
individual to more than put his or her financial house in order. It is
pertinent to be practical; after all, at the end of the day there are bills to
be paid and financial goals to be met with including planning for a regular
retirement, which often prove eluding even in the presence of a regular source
of income and when there is a disruption of that, there is definitely an
overhead with planning for an early retirement.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So
if an individual ever considers an early retirement, the sooner he works
towards this resolve and the younger he is, the better it is. He needs to be
pragmatic about things such as his investment portfolio and the returns from
it, his savings, his expenses, his short term and long term financial goals,
backup plan in case of unforeseen circumstances which may make things go south,
how inflation will affect his life during his silver years and how to deal with
it and so on.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Early
retirement or not, here's to living happily, professionally and otherwise!</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">-
Akihtra is an IT professional with a penchant for Personal Finance and the
elusive Income Tax</span></div>
<a name='more'></a></div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-43623520760845719122013-07-21T19:08:00.001-07:002013-07-21T20:57:15.577-07:00Traveling alone<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">I just realized that I really
like traveling alone. One can always ask, what kind of travel?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">When it comes to travelling
alone it is always those low profile, low on adventure kind of travel that I
like.</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> I would prefer the other kind of
travel only if I had some good company. Now that I
have moved to Chennai, travel has almost become a non-existent phenomena and
even a sudden trip to my native seems exotic. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">These days life seems so
busy that there is hardly any time to plan a trip, one that involves travel and
I don't see things improving any time in the near future. But when I was in
Bangalore I used to travel by myself almost every other weekend to Chennai. I
did make some good friends in the railway station- other lonely travelers such
as myself and they did provide me awesome company, but mostly I did travel alone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">My reading habit was also
in a pretty good place back then since I had ample time during travel and I
happened to read a lot of books during this period, especially the ones that I
had always wanted to read.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">I took the night trains mostly
since it saved time and meant I could spend more time at home. But travelling
by the Shatabdi Express from Bangalore to Chennai and vice versa, now and then
was real fun. Though it seems like a tourist train and the route doesn't offer
much in terms of sightseeing, they were always very relaxing, soothing
journeys. Aboard the train, apart from looking out, I read a lot, had a lot of
time to key in some article or the other, made calls to friends and family. I
was never bored and the occasional, tender Sun ray which fell on my book (the thought
of it gives me an Utopian glimmer even now) made me relax even more. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">A whole trip all by myself?
Hmmm, I guess not. To be honest I am scared to take a whole trip by myself in
this blessed country of ours, thanks to the safety standards for girls. It
scares me, and I believe rightly so. So as of now, I will simply stick to saying
that I like travelling alone and in that, a one way journey here and there. I
wish I travelled more now- more meaningful travels which involve visiting some
new place or the other. I believe travel is one of the pure joys of life and a
luxury in itself; and one that should not be found wanting in one's life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-58279362146274383512013-01-26T09:07:00.001-08:002013-01-26T09:07:41.211-08:00A write up<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
Had written down the following lines for a lending library; felt like posting it here:</div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
<em>Books are always a delight! They transport you to unknown places, introduce you to unknown people, take you to new horizons, give insights into unknown lives, and affect us in ways which even we can’t comprehend. Some books inspire us while some encourage us or sadden us or make us happy and there are some which simply overwhelm us.</em></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
<em></em><em>While how we feel when the book concludes is one thing, the wholesome experience of reading a book is entirely another. While e-books seem to be the norm of the day, some things are meant to be enjoyed the classic way. Imagine a rainy day at home, and you on a nice cozy sofa engrossed in a book of your choice. Imagine your experience as you revel into the content of the book over a cup of hot ‘filter’ coffee, and a hot savoury snack, as you turn the leaf of each page, anxious to know what comes next in the book, all the while enjoying the fine print of the book as you knowingly and unknowingly take in the crisp odour of the paper. Is there a way to define this experience? Yes, it can only be defined as pure bliss.</em></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
<br /></div>
<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 13px;">
<em></em><em>Please choose your pick from the books listed below. They are available with <<library-name>> Lending Library. Go right ahead! Dive into new frontiers and immerse yourself in the absolute delight which is the habit of reading.</library-name></em></div>
</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-7458641771193064402012-12-09T07:42:00.001-08:002020-02-20T01:08:11.296-08:00Two cultures<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 13.5pt;">I have developed a liking towards the Japanese culture! Many aspects of their culture and country such as the silk Kimonos, the Japanese tea ceremony, their obsession with the 'sakura' (cherry blossom) tree, sake, the Japanese <em>manga and cartoons</em></span><span style="line-height: 13.5pt;"> ('Inu Yasha', 'Dragon Ball Z', 'Cardcaptor Sakura'- to name a few), their love for the Tuna fish, charcoal fish, the importance they attach to the presentation of food, the low tables, absence of chairs, their liking for golf, their fame for cutting edge technologies, the fact that they have a train like the Shinkansen, their sense of perfection (just my opinion) and many, many such things that I can't even remember right now, have always intrigued me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Guess I was exposed to this truly unique and mesmerizing culture ever since I can remember but like most things near and yet so far (in my mind that is), realization dawned on me only recently! When my college offered basic foreign language courses, I elected to learn Japanese. The course was called “Basic conversation in Japanese” and was offered by ABK-AOTS DOSOKAI, Chennai Centre. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In spite of having a very good instructor, I never managed to learn many Japanese words beyond: sashin (photograph), sakura (cherry blossom; redundant, I know!), nihon/nippon (Japan), nihongo (Japanese language), daigaku (University), and such; and a few sentences such as “watashi wa <i>my-name</i> <my-name><my-name>desu” (meaning “I am </my-name></my-name><i style="line-height: 13.5pt;">my-name</i><span style="line-height: 13.5pt;"><my-name>"</my-name></span><span style="line-height: 13.5pt;">, “desu” is just a way of bringing closure to the sentence I was told) and “Hai. Wakarimashita” (meaning, “Yes. I understand”).</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My Japanese teacher back then told that Japanese is a lot like Tamil (my mother tongue) when it comes to sentence formation. I was surprised when she said, “Think in Tamil when you initially form a sentence in your mind and then translate; don’t think in English”. In fact, I was surprised when I started watching some South Korean serials (with English subtitles of course), surprised that there were some words that were so similar between Korean and Tamil. ‘Omma’ in Korean means mother. It rang a bell coz in Tamil, it is ‘Amma’. ‘Appa’ in Korean means father. It is the same in Tamil as well; and then there are the words ‘Aigoo’ (Korean) and ‘Aiyoo’ (Tamil), which have a similar meaning and pronunciation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I was surprised that there is any similarity between these languages at all, considering that they come from different parts of the globe. True that life is never devoid of surprises! I was not exposed to the Japanese script during the course. I heard from a friend who was attending weekend classes that it takes a four year course to completely learn the Japanese script. Whew! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The fact that some of the Japanese liked Tamil movies like <i>Chandrelekha, Muthu</i> makes me glad in a teeny-weeny sense of the word. Of course only a Jap can feel all these elements of their culture in true depth and sense, but the fact that I like it too somehow gladdens me and feels like it has given me refreshing perspective.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Italian<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Another culture which fascinates me in equal measure is the Italian culture. Talk about Italy and one's mind instantly thinks of places such as Venice, Milan, Florence in Tuscany, Rome and Sicily (was it the Godfather movies from which I first heard this one?).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">To talk about the Italian cuisine alone, this one post would not do (ever watched David Rocco's cookery show called Dolce Vita?; when I learnt later that the term dolce vita means "the good life" I thought it sounds so cool!). With the pastas alone being example enough to speak for the Italian cuisine, it is hardly surprising that Italian cuisine is as famous as it is across the globe. With their innumerable football teams, their innumerable fashion designers, fashion labels, the people (Leonardo da Vinci, Amerigo Vespucci, Marco Polo for some and err, the models?) this shoe shaped country sure is interesting. I am not familiar with the Italian language, though I am a little familiar with the accent (wink). Recently I wrote about the Italian word '<a href="http://akihtra.blogspot.in/2012/09/ciao.html" target="_blank">ciao</a>'. Well, as of now, that is the one Italian word I use extensively.<span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Personally I want to say with all earnestness, that I believe to study and understand the history of my culture and my people, even if I were to give up everything else that I am doing right now and go for it, my one lifetime would not suffice; so what I intend to do (if at all) with these new found likings of mine, remains to be seen.</span></div>
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-50699039381639144402012-11-08T23:07:00.001-08:002012-11-09T01:12:15.503-08:00Corporate SIM<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">Buying a corporate SIM sure is easy. All you
have to do is take a photocopy of your Identity card with your organization to
get one. Mine being a postpaid number I kept paying bills online once a month
and all was well. I moved back to Chennai from </span><st1:city style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;" w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Bangalore</st1:place></st1:city><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"> and so I wanted to deactivate my
number and be done with it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">But the outstanding amount was 1300+ bucks
(unbilled amount). So I called up customer care and sought a way to resolve the
matter. They asked me to wait till the billing cycle is over and pay once the
bill is generated and then close the connection immediately. And then I forgot
about it; completely!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">After some three or four months I came to know
that I had to pay some 1200+ bucks- the actual bill plus the rental for three
months which calculated to about (249 rental + 99 bucks internet plan) *3.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">It is funny that mobile phone service providers
who literally sit on your head asking you to take this offer or that, or who
constantly keep reminding you of their presence somehow chose to keep mum about
it. Maybe coz I wasn’t using the number anymore? (!!). But to be honest, I
don’t remember receiving emails of my bills either.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">Though the amount doesn’t account anywhere near
being called huge, I told myself for the umpteenth time that I should be more
careful with (my own) hard earned money. When I asked around, I heard of people
who received bills after almost a year of having stopped using the SIM and
being asked to pay hefty amounts.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;">So, if you have a corporate postpaid SIM, be
extra careful about it; if you don’t want the SIM be sure to deactivate the
number promptly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-9103103402898441882012-11-05T19:13:00.002-08:002012-11-08T23:05:26.315-08:00An insider’s perspective<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;">In light of the recent comments (rather mean!) from some of my relatives,
family friends and such about an IT job, with some merely gossiping about it,
some declaring that IT jobs are a bad thing to have happened to India and that
expenses on rental properties, bank loans' rates, real estate costs, etc have
all gone up, thanks only to the IT jobs, while a few going as far as to state
that IT employees are software coolies, I would like to add some aspects
of what it is to hold one:</span><br />
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<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Cool outlook:</b> Though it is ironic that
every Tom, Dick and Harry lands up in an IT job (the job being something
totally astray from his/ her chosen field of education), it is still lucrative
to the eyes of many.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Good infrastructure:</b> The infrastructure
of the IT offices is by far among the best, perhaps next only to the
Hospitality Industry. Undeniably, one of the best aspects is that you go to
office before the “Suryabhagavan” shines with all his glory and you start from
office well after Sundown. And of course the office is air conditioned (thanks
to the fact that on prolonged usage computers emit heat). What better way to
beat the heat eh?</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Onsite opportunities:</b> Chances of being
sent abroad on deputation are high in an IT organization since most IT firms
cater to clients abroad. If you work hard enough and most importantly, if you
are lucky enough, you get to ‘see the world while you are still young’, like
they say.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Employee centric policies:</b> Since it is
a people intensive industry a lot of attention is paid to make most of the
policies as employee centric as possible as compared to several other
industries. Though there are outcries here and there saying that there is no
Employee Union as such, most policies are still employee centric.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Pay packages:</b> One might genuinely
believe that he/she is offered a pittance for a pay and might even be modest
enough to say it. But then to people, of course that person is either joking or
being</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><i style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">too</i><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">modest. Not particularly anyone's fault
if an IT job is construed to be</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><i style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">that</i><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">high paying. Besides, a little mystery
has never hurt anyone, has it? So, one can afford to let it pass I guess; just
saying.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Banking:</b> Two words- ‘Corporate’,
‘Salary Account’, are enough to ensure that banks are only too happy to serve
you. Opening an account, taking loans, applying for a credit card etc are much
easier if you are from the IT industry and in most cases, you are more favored
than a government employee.</span></li>
<li><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b>Tech savviness:</b> When people around you
have cool gadgets and are tech savvy, you tend to acquire a little of the
trait. And societal compulsion (!) mandates that you indulge in acquiring</span><a href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1234056446972075881" name="_GoBack" style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></a><a href="http://draft.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1234056446972075881" style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"></a><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">a
few of the latest gadgets yourself in order to appear so.</span></li>
</ul>
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<span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10.0pt;">The list is endless with possibilities- most
professional ethos, positive work atmosphere, austere disciplinary standards
(ombudsperson), young workforce (good or bad debatable, but for me good),
flexible work timings and work from home options (not always though), flexible
work wear (again, not always) and many such things. There are of course several
occupational hazards such as hectic lifestyle, lack of an organized lifestyle
and so on, but it is true of many other professions as well.</span><span style="font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<u1:p></u1:p>
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<span style="color: #17365d; font-family: Verdana; font-size: 10.0pt;">To the fellow IT job holders! The next time
your friendly neighborhood aunty (not Spiderman!) is kind enough to sit
judgment on the fate of all IT employees come next recession, you might
consider flaunting any of the above mentioned aspects of the job. Or should you
rather ignore her for the better? It’s your call.</span></div>
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</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-13026746301706366392012-09-21T01:19:00.001-07:002012-12-09T22:23:33.797-08:00A sarcastic mail<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Had sent the below mail to my credit card company (dated 21/09/2012):<br />
<br />
<i>Hi,<br /><br />I would like to know why I have still not received my Credit card statement due for Oct 1, 2012.<br />I received an SMS about it on 12 Sept stating that the bill will reach me shortly. However I have still not received one.<br /><br />As a customer, am I expected to keep mailing and follow up on receiving the bill myself?<br /><br />I
am already not pleased with the fact that once the bill is paid by me,
it will take 3 days for the same to be reflected in your system, which
means that if the last date is 30th of a month, then the last date for
me is in fact the 27th, as mentioned by a call center executive of your
company. What displeases me is actually the fact that I was not informed
prior about this.<br /><br />So, in this case if the last date is October 1, the actual last date is 28th.<br /><br />This
is just my 3rd billing cycle and I am already faced with so many
systemic problems and I am beginning to wonder about long term
relationships.<br /><br />Regards,</i><br />
<br />
Honestly getting romba (super) annoyed with all these "Service Providers"; meaning my credit card company, my mobile phone service provider, my 3G data card service provider, my 2G data card service provider (before my 3G, both of them happen to be different companies), my television's DTH service provider; every one else in fact. Love them or hate them, cant live without them right? There lies the problem I guess. <br />
<br />
At least buying a product is something different. You just buy it once, you have to go to them only if you have some problem. Otherwise it is like they never even exist. But this is different. You have to be in touch every month. There is always some problem with one thing or the other. God save the planet from these "Service Providers"!<br />
<br />
Just wondering how the poor soul reading this mail (on the other end) would feel. Well, I cant help it!</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-5714509258047178492012-09-12T23:16:00.003-07:002017-12-20T22:33:07.343-08:00Ciao<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Just figured the Italian word <i>"Ciao"</i> is the perfect
synonym for the Tamil word "<i>Vanakkam</i>" (<i>வணக்கம்</i>). I have always wondered
how I would explain the word 'Vanakkam' if someone were to ask me for its meaning.<br />
<br />
Can I say it is a greeting, stands for 'Hi' or 'Hello'. But then, how would I
explain those news reporters sign off saying "<i>Nandri, Vanakkam!</i>" (<i>நன்றி,
வணக்கம்!</i>), meaning "<i>Thank you, Bye!</i>"; obviously, in this context the
word takes the meaning "bye".<br />
<br />
Unlike 'ciao', 'vanakkam' is formal though. Until now I was using 'ciao' thinking it only stood for "bye". Now, whoever said ignorance is bliss?!<br />
<br />
Until my next post, ciao.</div>
AkihtrAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03383616349941334771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1234056446972075881.post-4107132737297518162012-07-26T19:12:00.000-07:002012-07-28T19:34:41.932-07:0010 Random Pics<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Posted here are 10 random pics taken over a period of time. Pics were shot with my Samsung Galaxy Ace S5830 phone which has a 5 MP camera.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMB0t7D5lPpIesGyLfIrAPhFNdX8tzz14v35IN91yu4KzKwNniFO4KNr4F7GgTvgHJSAd8VsZbTPqTy3ifdCkpB-wXSLRADcnHty8DGEJFCBaVXArEea2kDSGiGD80U_xOHOnvMLxsRjFx/s1600/2012-05-13+10.03.08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240px" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMB0t7D5lPpIesGyLfIrAPhFNdX8tzz14v35IN91yu4KzKwNniFO4KNr4F7GgTvgHJSAd8VsZbTPqTy3ifdCkpB-wXSLRADcnHty8DGEJFCBaVXArEea2kDSGiGD80U_xOHOnvMLxsRjFx/s320/2012-05-13+10.03.08.jpg" width="320px" /></a></div>
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