Managing your managers

Welcome to the world of IT.
A word of caution
Its common place to have managers who screw your happiness, make you forget that a day has 24 hours and damn it you have other things in life to do!!

There are managers who cant spell communication and god forbid some wouldn't have even heard of motivation.

Not all are bad, so there's hope in this planet.

Its only at times, you have these people who call themselves managers because they have spent more time with the keyboard than trying to make sense of what the role demands.
I recently met one such weirdo.

He's an amusing piece of work. Just minutes before, you would have explained why a certain thing is difficult to solve and the problems involved. You just have to wait to catch your breath and you would find a mail in your inbox asking the same things. You think its a mistake.. Nope. You see he suffers from short term memory loss. So what do you do next time. If your smart enough you would stick to mailing him.

Well there are other such incidents that make me wonder if the designation of a manager is one sans brains. According to me the ad for a manager in the IT world should read like,

Moderate communication skills.
Well-versed in sending, updating, deleting meeting requests.
Should suck at inter-personal skills.
Conduct meetings without any agendas and keep rambling for any period of time.
Be good in playing the ping-pong game with onsite.
Should be totally unaware of the project he/she is supposed to manage.

Ofcourse there can be more additions to this...
Some people even learn to sideline these weirdos and get brownie points.

Dont start pitying us, 'cos we are the breed of sheep who wont protest but we are good at cribbing and wiling away time cursing our fate.

May be i will write about the future of this IT world someday.
Its difficult to manage people who lack sense.. and its difficult to manage your manager.
Now now, is there a difference. SMILES

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Time rolls

Last year this time, i was one of the frequent flyers of KPN Travels. I think i would have donated close to 10 grand with my visits to Chennai. It was never tiring but full of enthusiasm and fun. My only sister was getting married to a lovely man.

Sometimes i think if it was anybody else i would have fought with him for stealing her away from me. But my brother-in-law is cool. He loves playing cards and has a witty sense of humor and he is family. We dint even have to take any efforts in making him a part of it. It all just fitted.

Her wedding day would be etched in my mind forever.. she looked lovely. Am not the appreciative kind, especially when it comes to my sister, then i would get a call from her asking if i was all right. But what the hell .. ;-))

Today when i tore another day off the calendar, it struck me like a bolt. Its been a year.
Has it been that long really? I guess so!! I hate calendars which have those everyday sheets you have to tear off. Then the day just ends. Not a nice feeling.

My family is not the kabhi kushi kabhi gham kinds. We tease, fight, laugh and cry together. We are not constantly updated but we are there for each other. But i realize that more than anything its family thats binds you to the world. Even when everything goes wrong, there is still one thing that lasts forever.

Weddings mean celebration. A coming together of two souls and binding of families. Its when you dont take just one person but an entire family as part of yours. My sisters was one such wedding. I still cant look at their pictures without the lump in my throat and a grin on my face.
Yes its been a year.

There are times when words fail you, when you cant pen or say the emotions that cloud your mind. This is one such moment for me. I wish them a lifetime of happiness and once again am so glad we are family.

Happy Aniversary dude and dudette !!!

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Revolution

Government to go ahead with 27% reservation
Amidst growing agitation and hunger strikes, the UPA government decided to go ahead with reservation. Clearly this would kindle the burning fire.

We spoke about brain drain, tell me what kind of patriotism would exist in the minds of youth if they are told that you did not get into a med school because your forward caste. Never mind the 99% he would have scored. These are some of the bright minds of the country.


Shouldnt the govt look towards funneling their education and help them reach the zenith. Instead it has reached a conclusion which would nip their dreams and aspirations.

Reservation is a lousy way of tackling the issue of equality for backward classes. It fails to address the root cause. Why are they backward? Is it because they did not get educated in Harvard and Stanford? Is it because they dont drive around in a merc? Primarily because they are financially backward. They cant make ends meet and have no money to feed their howling stomachs. Would reservation solve this problem?

When more a billion people can see this truth clearly, why do people in power fail to open their eyes to this truth? Vote bank i was told. Aren't we fools to vote for such leaders? Oh Yes we are, bigger fools than them.

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The Battle of life

From Steve McCurry's Journal:
Brindavan, India 1995
I was walking down a street in Brindavan when I saw her. I was fascinated at how someone in her condition could move around the ancient city streets.
I followed her and after a few minutes she noticed me. My translator explained that I was interested in her and wondered where she was going. She invited us into her home for tea and told us her story.
She told me that she had married and was widowed by age 13. In some places in rural India, being a widow carried a stigma, because it was a sign of bad karma. This woman had survived her entire life by accepting a few coins from people for whom she would recite prayers in a temple.
She had a wonderful sense of humor and I was touched by her indomitable spirit.
One can look at her image and feel admiration or pity, but the magic of the picture is its ambiguity. She symbolizes everyone who faces difficult challenges and has the will to persevere and survive.

WHITE RAINBOW is a movie based on the life of widows in brindavan. It is conceived by the nephew of the legendary actor Sivaji Ganesan - Dharan Mandrayar.
Statistics say there are about 10,000 or 15,000 widows in Brindavan, a very small town.
Why is the woman to be blamed when her man dies?

We have come past the days of SATI when women are burnt alive. Now we see living images of women lying like beggars in the streets of brindavan just because their spouse' have reached the end of the road. Why is she the vanquished?

This is not about women's liberation. This is about beleifs.
Question yourself about the thousand beliefs that encircle you and keep you tangled in their web. Are you willing to break free or can you break free? Do you have the freedom to make your own set of values and live by them.

We are the generation who have the power of knowledge with an oppurtunity to view different cultures. If we cant question the past and dictate the future for ourselves. Nobody else can.

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End of an Era - Maradona

One of colleagues told me that if i give a link to the world cup then he cant comment on it.
So here goes, my feeble attempt to revist some of the pages of this great sport.
Disclaimer: Am a amateur when it comes to soccer, but this year am more than engrossed in this sport. So any errors in judgement or events, feel free to point them out.

When i think of soccer, the first personality that crosses my mind (and many more) is none other than Diego Armando Maradona. He is a legend in this sport. Google has many videos about Maradona Vs Ronaldinho - a separate post on that.

Born on 30 October 1960 in Villa Fiorito, Argentina, Maradona went on to become one of the most famous personalities in the football arena.

Maradona is nothing short of divine in the land of Argentina.
Maradona made the ball an early friend and it was his constant companion in the games of street football that taught him how to compete with older and bigger opponents.
Maradona's physique, or lack of it, almost cost him his career.

Balance was the key - which was ironic given his struggle to find equilibrium elsewhere in life.He shot at journalists with an air rifle, insulted the pope on TV and always roused the extreme of emotions. It was impossible to stop 'El Grande' as he slalomed towards goal; and just as unerring was his accuracy from set pieces.

The last chapter in Diego's FIFA World Cup history was also the darkest. It unfolded at USA 94 where he helped Argentina triumph over Greece and Nigeria. Then, however, he failed a drugs test - showing signs of the banned stimulant ephedrine - and was banished from the competition. The team followed soon after.

Maradona was banned in 1991 after testing positive for Cocaine whileplaying for Napoli. When he returned to play in Argentina the Championship wasplayed over two league stages. He was banned a second time after testing positivefor performance enhancing drugs during the 1994 World Cup.

Its amazing how one person who shot to fame comes tumbling down faster.
Neverthless, anybody who watches him play would accept that this man was a born footballer.
His agility in passing the ball and sledging goals is quite unmatched.
The crowd erupts into a frenzied applause everytime his foot touches the ball. Such is the thunder, we hear long after he has stopped playing.

Maradona - A legend !!!

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Hand of God

After keeping the mighty Argentinians at bay for much of the first half, England had started to come into their own - but six minutes after the break Maradona took centre stage.
The next 20 seconds would be imprinted on all our minds.
Steve Hodge slices the ball into his own area.
Out comes Peter Shilton, though, and he'll surely punch it clear.
But somehow Maradona - who must stand no more than 5ft 6in - has beaten him to the ball and it loops into the net.
The little Argentinian wheels away towards the corner flag to celebrate, but not without glancing over his shoulder to look at the referee.
Shilton races out of his area with his left arm in the air screaming "handball, handball, ref, he's handled it" (or words to that effect) but the official gives the goal.
The fact that four minutes later Maradona scored one of the greatest goals of all time mattered little then, it was only years later that we could appreciate the quality of that strike.
England had been cheated out of a semi-final appearance.
(Courtesy Reece Killworth )

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The Da Vinci Code

The most awaited movie this year The Da Vinci Code

I, for one wanna catch it as soon as it hits the theatre. Want to check out if the movie is as fast as the book!!! Couting the days..

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Still Standing!!!

In 2006, nearing 82, a man who did not attend the Tamil Nadu assembly even once these past five years, citing ill-health, decides to plunge into the campaign once again. He travels the length and breadth of the state, promising voters freebies that must make the state's bureaucrats wince.

On Saturday, May 13, M Karunanidhi will be sworn in as Tamil Nadu's chief minister a fifth time.

Rediff has a full fledged article on this.

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Hoganekkal

Start Time: 7.30AM
Distance: 170-200kms
Travel: Hosur Road to Dharmapuri
Reached Hoganekkal around 12.00 noon.
Pointers:
Was suspicious about two people following us till we parked the car. Later, we learnt that they were the coracle drivers :P
Its easier to pack some bread and jam or you have to wait for an hour for a not-so-delicious lunch.
Bargain with the coracle driver for Rs.200/hour for 8 people. If your bettern than me in bargaining, try your luck. Am a amateur in this.
And then enjoy the water flowing in all directions and the enchanting sights enveloping you.
Take the three hour ride - covering the falls and the island.
Island has about three-four feet deep water, where you can learn to swim, float and play and beat the heat.
Coax the driver to take you back through the falls and enjoy getting drenched in water.
A time to cherish and chill out!!
Drive back to Bangalore where the roads will tell you when you crossed the border into Karnataka :-)

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Count your blessings!!

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A Time to Rule

My roots are in the southern most part of India - TAMIL NADU, more precisely Chennai.
Nothing is more heart warming than stepping foot on this dusty, hot and active city. Its very difficult to understand the passion i have for my dear city - Singara Chennai.

Its Election time now in Tamil Nadu. No one knows how the ballot is goin to be sized. "Tamil Nadu's cliffhanger of an election"

We have been ruled by two major parites alternatively. The DMK led by Karunanidhi and the AIADMK led by Jayalalitha. Some say its like choosing between the devil and the deep sea and its really not democratic when you dont have good choices to make. The most popular channels Sun TV(DMK) and JAYA TV(AIADMK) has been airing campaigns and mostly i find it a releif that it has stopped. We have a new player in the field. Another film star turned politician - Captain Vijayakanth. It would help to have a new face and a fresh hand but will he be able to beat this race? We also have a Lok Paritran - Alums from IIT standing in selected constituencies. Would this new breed of young blood be able to shake it off?

In the next 24 hours, it would all be known. The fate of my world's best place.

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My element

find your elementat mutedfaith.com.

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Fierry eyes

Photo Courtesy : Steve Mccurry (National Geographic)

What is about this picture that makes my mind run at 100kmph?

Those fierry eyes, tattered clothes or steel like determination that it vibrates with?
The fire within her, all-consuming rage .. Do we all identify with that?

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Leave India to God!!

Watching CNN-IBN @ 8 gave me a weird line of thought. So i pen along..

"Mob burns man alive in Vadodara" - A 1500 strong mob burns a man alive in Vadodara by setting fire to his car.
The only mistake Mohammed Rafiq Abdulgani Vora did was pass through Ajwa Road's Mahavir hall crossing on his way home from work. Communal riots, fights in the name of religion is a common scene in India. Today its Vadodara, tommorrow it could be mumbai and day after in Delhi.
The clock keeps ticking and the numbers keep rolling, more senseless deaths.


"New find strengthens Darwin's theory" - Scientists recently have discovered well-preserved fossils of a fish that provide the vital transitional link between fish and land dwelling four-legged vertebrates — tetrapods
Evolution is a concept i studied when i was a little girl. I was taught that man evolved from monkeys. Is the evolution process complete? I would say not. We kill each other heartlessly, we dont care about the world, we would drive other species to extinction, we would think of new excuses to kill each other. Have we evolved?


Why has it become so difficult for us to co-exist with fellow humans? How are we able to compartmentalize and segregate our love and care based on our faith on god. Why are all our sixth senses sleeping when it comes to religion. Where did we lose it? Why can't we stop to think that this war would never end until the last man on this earth.. there can be no winners in any war.


The angry mob torched a man's car killing him.. did they stop to think that they were killing a son, a husband, a father, a brother and a friend. What does it take to stop this? An awakening?

Leave India To God.

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Rising to Power

For long the United states of America has weilded power over its latin american nations. But in the past few months, it has been releived of this power and put to rest.

The trio - Cuba , Venezuela, Bolivia have strong leaders.
Cuba promised to send Bolivia doctors and teachers.
Venezuela will send gasoline to the Andean nation and set up a $100 million fund for development programs and a $30 million fund for other social projects.
Cuba and Venezuela also agreed to buy all of Bolivia's soybeans, recently left without a market after Colombia signed a free trade pact with the United States.

In every second newspaper or magazine you will find aticles about China and India and the ground breaking development, rapid growth and economic reforms. Little has been said about these Latin American nations who are making strong but steady progress in improving their worldy conditions.

Cuba's Presiden Fidel Castro, Bolivia's President Evo Morales and Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez are rubbishing American policies and social reforms. Bolivia has taken a step to nationalize the oil and gas sector. Fuel prices are the highest in Europe 1.53euros/litre but in venezuela an entrire tank can be filled for less than half an euro.

The rise of the these three nations will sing high and would send a shudder to the world. USA has been the pivotal point in the world's history for decades together. Is the focus shifting? This would be a million-dollar question for the years to come!!!

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