My Fear

Time (Pink Floyd)

Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day
You fritter and waste the hours in an off hand way
Kicking around on a piece of ground in your home town
Waiting for someone or something to show you the way

Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain
You are young and life is long and there is time to kill today
And then one day you find ten years have got behind you
No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun

And you run and you run to catch up with the sun, but its sinking
And racing around to come up behind you again
The sun is the same in the relative way, but youre older
Shorter of breath and one day closer to death

Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time
Plans that either come to naught or half a page of scribbled lines
Hanging on in quiet desperation is the english way
The time is gone, the song is over, thought Id something more to say

Home, home again
I like to be here when I can
And when I come home cold and tired
Its good to warm my bones beside the fire
Far away across the field
The tolling of the iron bell
Calls the faithful to their knees
To hear the softly spoken magic spells.


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I do strongly believe that every individual has a unique purpose in life. Some realize it, some spend their whole life searching for it, and the rest are oblivious. Those who realize it are the ones who attain nirvana. One of my biggest fears is that I would be stuck in the second category.

Recommended Read

Read the first chapter from the book "The God of Philosophy". Wow! When I sit down to read proper philosophy, it seems like a different part of the brain is functioning.

This book is essentially on the philosophy of religion.

Find the first chapter in pdf format here.

From the looks of it can't find it in any of the online stores catering in India. O my friends in the US of A, please gift me a copy... :D

Mixed start to the day!

While returning after swimming, somebody hitched a ride on my bike. He actually did a short walk-run thing to get to my bike.
"So where are you coming from this early in the morning??"
It was around 0715 hrs. Me: "After my regular early morning swim."
"Where exactly is this pool??"
"Opposite to the Ohri's Banjara restaurant. Dolphin Swimming pool."
"Oh! Did not know that there was pool there. And where are you going??"
"Home. Road 10."
"Jaira Nagar."
"Yeah. Nearby!"
By this time we had reached a junction.
"Could you drop me here."
I stop the bike.
"Thanks BOSS!!!"
Long live AP Police.

After this encounter, I recalled the others that I have had with the police after having moved to Hyderabad. All have been nice so to say. There have been times when they have let go even when the fault was completely mine, not without a stern warning.

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"We like to come to work everyday. Do you??"

That's the catchline on a big hoarding on my way to office, replete with the smiling face of a female model. Oh, so not-so-inviting invitation.

Could not find the same on the website, otherwise would have posted it. The company : ADP

Rant

Saw a couple of posts on this photograph. While the photograph in itself is very heart rending, the manner in which these posts have been written is pathetic. Yes the photo can spoil anyone's morning cuppa. Yes the more emotional / sensitive ones may break down and shed tears. Yes, it would lead the realist, or the more socially concerned, to shramdaan in some form or other.

But!

1. It is a very deplorable way to gather reader comments on your blog, and then keep on harping on the discussion that started from it. What that photo above shows is malnutrition in a child from Uganda. The contrast shown is very descriptive. Why don't you verify what you are posting your blog. I don't give sh** when you post personal stuff, but I get pissed when you take liberty to say things about world affair when you don't know facts. THAT PHOTOGRAPH WAS THE WORLD PRESS PHOTO IN 1980 ! Question: Was the blogger born then?? Atleast one of them wasn't for sure. Please verify stuff like that, atleast quote your source.
   


2. I browse through thousands of photographs (and other media) over the net and download as and when I please. Even the context of the usage is my own. But when it clearly says that the photo(or media) should not be copied, but you want to use it desperately, why don't you link to it. Without such respect, you go on about alleviating the miseries of the world. You talk about doing your part, helping to raise awareness. READ THE FINE PRINT, PLEASE.
   


3. Another question: When was the last time that you actually saw such misery with your own pretty eyes?? Additionally, When is the next time you will actually do so. Yes you are concerned about world nutrition and diet I am sure. But do you realize that it is totally outside your domain. If you are so concerned, why not try to publicize such people/ organizations doing the actual ground work?? You sit in the comfort of your armchair and meditate upon such affairs, as if your thoughts will bring comfort to the downtrodden, without the slightest hint of people actually concerned about it. PLEASE REFRAIN!!

To link to the particular post is to subscribe to their view. I refrain. I know I am not capable of actually doing such work as is being by a few. Reasons are aplenty - starting with not enough time on hand, lots of traveling, more fun, reading, and generally activities which I like doing because they bring me joy and sometimes bliss. Yes, I am selfish and self-centered. I do stuff like this, only because I end up gaining something out of it. Maybe someday our paths will cross.

At the least I know my limits and contribute where I want to. I take pride in what I do. Do you??

Update: Thanks to i-man for pointing out that the link to the pic does not work. What you will need to do is goto world press photo, and there click on since 1955 (last line on the middle panel). A small album of photographs open. I am referring to the one labeled 1980.

Unfinished Matter

"This above does not even cover the tip of the tip of the iceberg of knowledge that can be gleaned from Vedas. Hoping to put on more of the stuff before long..."

Those are last lines from a post on my previous blog on Vedic Mathematics, something which I wrote way back in 2005. Wonder what happened in between that broke me off from the simple joys of living.

Ah! the simplicity of all such methods. I wonder why we were forced into learning by rote all those innumerable multiplication tables after encountering this side of knowledge. The only thing that was somehow included in a mathematics textbook that I can recall is synthetic division. And that too was used to divide linear algebraic factors. When it can be easily used to divide any two numbers. Just replace the 'x' in every factor with 10. You have the number and you have the result.

One thing that I knew before I started the post today is the decimals when a number is divided by 7.

For eg: 1/7 = 0.142857; 2/7 = 0.285714; 3/7 = 0. 428571; 4/7 = 0.571428;... essentially the decimals repeat themselves in the order 1 4 2 8 5 7, something which is not difficult to remember, if we notice that the number when grouped give us 14 (7 * 2), 28(14 * 2), 57(28 * 2 +1 ). Even this series follows a pattern.

Trying to recall how to calculate the square of any number. Let's take 298, which is some random number but easy to use in this case. Simple steps:

1. 300 (100 * 3) - 298 = 2
2. 298 - 2 (from 1) = 296
3. 296 (from 2) * 3 (300 / 100) = 888 (300 * 3 - 4 * 3)
4. 2(from 1) ^ 2 ( you need to square atleast something, right?? ) = 4
5. 298 ^ 2 = 88804 (first 3 digits from step3 and last 2 digits from step4)

Explanation: Step1 - for a n-digited number, first figure out the base in terms of a 1 followed by n-1 zeros. For eg: if the number were to be 378 the base would be 100, if the number were to be 4781 the base would be 1000. Then figure out the multiple of that, which considering the above two cases would be (400 / 100 = ) 4, and in the second case would be (5000 / 1000 = ) 5. Then find the difference between the multiplied base and the actual number, which is 300 - 298 = 2.

Step2 - Subtract the difference from the actual number. 298 - 2 = 296.

Step3 - Multiply the result from 2 with the multiple that was found while doing step 1.

Step4 - Square the difference found in step1.

Step5 - Put results from step3 and step4 in right places. Since the base is 100, the result from step3 is to be put down as 2 digits and the result from step3 needs to be prefixed to this. If the number is big from step3 such that it cannot be accommodated in two digits, add the hundred place digit to the last digit of the result from step4 and proceed.

More examples:

278 ^ 2
Step 1: 300 - 278 = 22
Step 2: 278 - 22 = 256
Step 3: 256 * 3 = 768
Step 4: 22 ^ 2 = 484
Step 5: 278 ^ 2 = 76(8+4)84 = 7(6+1)284 = 77284

417 * 2
Step 1: 417 - 400 = 17 (since 417 is closer to 400 than 500, to reduce the work to be done in step4)
Step 2: 417 + 17 = 434
Step 3: 434 * 4 = 1736
Step 4: 17 ^ 2 = 289
Step 5: 417 ^ 2 = 173(6+2)89 = 173889

To successfully wade through step 4, you can follow the same process, albeit here the base would be 10. So recursively the square of any number can be found. But, obviously at the time I actually learned this, I was short of time and took a short cut (which I regret to this day!). I memorized the squares of all numbers from 1 - 50.

... 49 ^ 2 = 2401; 48 ^ 2 = 2304; 47 ^ 2 = 2209; 46 ^ 2 = 2116; ... et. all. I wish I had not done this and had spent more time practicing the actual method.

The one real book on this endless topic can be viewed here. I don't know if this book has the method to square the number as I describe it. But it has a lot of other such tricks up on its pages, with enough detailed algebraic explanation to satisfy the curiosity of the cat.

Lament: Sitting in front of this monitor and keyboard, I forget to use those few grey cells that I have there ( yeah, I do have some!!! ) and instead do this.

Can I Fly??

What a stupid question that is! Obviously I can't, right?? The more insightful (fastidious) of people around me would be wont to think that I want to be an escapist. Or probably a hermit?? Who knows.

It's like asking can I walk on water?? No. But from a story that I heard, rather read, as a child a certain disciple of a certain teacher walked on water while the teacher could not. The reason: the teacher preached his students that they could do anything if they had belief in self. So while this particular student accepted the lesson without further thought, the teacher himself could not. Ergo, the result.

Coming back to the topic, I believe I know how it would be like to fly. I have this recurring dream where I am falling, falling, falling,... that's it. Nothing more to it. I am falling, full stop! So when I wake up and am in my rational state of mind, this mind that has been fed with "science" and "reason" since long past tells me this - flying is the opposite of falling. As in where there is a sense of weightlessness, there would be a sense of extra pressure on the body. Something that I observe when going down or coming up in the lift (I am trying my best to completely stop using the lift now-a-days).

But the romantic side of me tells me, flying should be devoid of burden. Being able to glide with the wind rushing in your face. Twist your toes so to move in another direction. The whoosh! And the superman dive from the heavens above to the ground below. Stopping millimeters above the ground and then lazily moving back up, nary a care about the open arms of mother earth ready to engulf me forever. Fly up to the heavens and say hi to stars, the night sky full of them and crystal clear. Will they twinkle for me *sigh*.

The only people who really get the thrill of flying are those in the Air Force, flying those almighty hurricanes. That is their job, but what a job!

The question remains, where do I want to fly to?? Nowhere, far as I can think now. It is supposed to take me closer to the inertia. I want to see what the astronauts see. I want to see the world at a glance, know it for what it is - a teeny weeny piece of dust in this universe, whose distance even when measured in parsecs need to add the prefix 'giga'. I want to able to show the same thing to every individual who thinks that a piece of land is his exclusive property. Oh! And I definitely want to fly over the Bermuda Triangle and find out the reason why it gobbles up all the things. I mean, no clue as where this list of 125 aircrafts and this list of ships vanished. There are theories here, but then they are just that - theories.

And then I want to stand, or maybe sit, in midair while Mt. Fuji erupts in all its fury (oh by the way, Mt. Fuji is in Japan and last erupted back in 1717).

And I want to fly with the jumping dolphins (the ones that I saw off Coco beach in Goa).

And I would like to find out if I really to fall onto something in my dream...

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"It is only at the end of many births, the man of wisdom surrenders to Me, realizing that Vasudeva is all. But it is very rare to come across such great souls."
The Bhagvad Gita [Chapter 7 Verse 19]

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P.S. An analysis of my dream reveals that on the night I have that dream of falling, I seem to have done some "heavy" physical exercise, so when my body and the constituent muscles relax during sleep, I dream of this particular dream. Looks like with the loosening of the muscles, I keep sinking deeper into the mattress... :D

Diesel or Petrol

Shame on me!!! After four years of mechanical engineering I did not know that 1 litre of diesel lets the vehicle run more miles than 1 litre of petrol. Okay. I mean I knew but not in conscious thought (whatever that is).

So when I sit down to think about cars, two advertisements flash into my mind. One is the new Indica V2 Turbo commercial, and the other is the one for the car (think it was Merc), where one line went : "Bend up ahead! Gone in a flash." Or something to the effect. Cool ads both.

So some digging and some asking around revealed this: diesel has higher specific heat capacity compared to petrol, which essentially means 1 litre of diesel will burn you more completely than 1 litre of petrol. And to think, that all these years people in hindi movies used petrol to burn things, when diesel is cheaper and will do a much nicer job !

Add to it that 1 litre diesel is heavier than 1 litre petrol (more kg/L). While these two facts are not the end all of all reasons why the diesel engine will give more mileage in the automobile (need to consider compression ratios, fuel efficiency technologies, etc, etc) they are definitely a starting point. Essentially efficiency comparisons between diesel engine and petrol engine involves the dynamics of a mechanical system and its helpers like turbocharger, while comparisons between diesel and petrol as fuel involves chemical properties of these stuff and advances made in such areas as bio-diesel, additives, etc. And, and, and... in today's day and age, who will invite the wrath of the other perfectly normal person when it comes to environment issues. Better keep that in mind. So while petrol takes more refining from crude to be obtained, while in itself is a polluting process, diesel does not take much refraction but gives out more polluting substances such as sulfur when burnt. But then again, it seems to be compensated by its efficiency in burning as well as more mileage. Am I confused??

The articles from wikipedia:
Power and Fuel Economy of Diesel Engine
Petroleum Diesel

Battleground God

For those sure of their belief/disbelief in God, try this (takes you to a 1-page intro and the link below).

For those who are super confident and without patience to go through instructions, this will take you directly to the thing.

My First Financial Mistake

... or is it?? I am not yet sure, given that I don't know the rate of interest that would have been charged to me by my bank.

A couple of days back I made an online transaction to the tune of just under Rs. 35000/- The actual value had to be paid in dollars. So the most legitimate way is to pay through your credit card, which in essence would reflect on your finance statement. The other not so legal way would have been to ask a friend in the concerned country to pay for me while I remit the equal value in Indian Rupees to him through some other channel locally, probably his relatives, in India. I chose the first.

Now comes the part where I need to repay my credit card. Although my company pays me well (ok, good!), some investments and some lifestyle spends leaves me with little cash at the end of the month. Basically, I live from one month to the next month's salary. Which leads me to the situation where Rs. 35000 is a big sum to be paid in one installment, and I need a loan to repay the amount.

Besides a lot of other "attractive" facilities, my credit card allows me to convert my expenditure into Equated Monthly Installment (EMI). So if I have made a single purchase of value more than Rs. 1500 and need an extension of credit, my credit agency would gladly convert that into an EMI of 6, 12 or 24 months by charging me at the rate of 12%, a processing fee and applicable taxes. Obviously I need to call up and ask for it. Otherwise the nominal annual percentage rate (APR) is 2.95% per month (35.4% per annum), which converts to an effective annual rate (EAR) of 41.74%, which is a bit on the higher side. For the sake of convenience I opted for a 6 month payment option.

There was the other option of calling up my bank which, last heard, would have offered me a loan for the same amount at an annual rate of 11%. Here in comes the convenience part. My bank, although I have to maintain my salary account with them, requires certain documents before they advance me the amount. The actual documents required is very nominal: residence proof in some specific template, payslips, etc. etc. It would have taken me approximately a week to arrange for it all. Compared to this my credit card company does not require any extra documents since my credit worthiness is already established with them.

Now the question is how much did I pay for this convenience. For this I needed the interest rates offered to me by my bank and my credit card company. And when I actually sat down to calculate the interest that I would pay, I found I could not recall a single thing about how to go about it. Wow!!! After 25 years of formal education, I did not know how to calculate interest on a loan. And I had to sit down with pen and paper.

Take it easy. Begin with a few assumptions for both cases: (i) interest would be compounded monthly (ii) processing fee charged would be approximately same (iii) the rate of interest by the bank is 11% and the credit card company is 12% (iv) while the credit card company would extend me a 6 month loan, my bank would do it for a minimum of 12 months.

In itself calculating the amount of interest to be paid is easy, but it required some thought. First realization: one side of the equation is the monthly compounded value of the loan amount, L, after n months at an interest rate of r% p.a. (= L*[1+r/12]^n), where r is divided by 12 (to convert into monthly interest rate) and 100 (to convert into decimals from percentage form).

The other side of the equation would be value of repayments in form of EMI, E, that I would make on a monthly basis, again compounded monthly (= E*[1+r/12]^[n-1] + E*[1+r/12]^[n-2] + ... + 1 ).

Equating these two would give the value of E (EMI) to be

E = L * r * ( [1+r/12]^n ) / ( [1+r/12]^n -1 ).
While this is one way of calculating, another method is shown here. Albeit I find it a bit more round about and a bit more complex. Anyways, putting actual values into the equation reveals the following scenario.

If I take the credit card company option, I would be repaying the loan by paying an approximate EMI of Rs. 6100 (approx) for 6 months. While if I take my bank's loan option for 12 months, I will be paying an EMI of Rs. 3100 (approx). While the second option seems costlier by Rs. 600, actual calculation would not vary much from it.

But, but, but... is it the most viable option?? Here we need to consider the time value of money. Which would a full topic by itself. A simple explanation would be if I can take that Rs. 3000 extra per month from the 6 months and keep investing it and then it out after 6 months and use it to pay the rest of the installments for the 12 month option, I would be left over with something extra. But how much is the question. Will it just be enough to pay for the difference in both terms or will I have more??

The Machine: Repair, Maintenance and Enhancement

Have you tried to sew a button on your shirt?? Or at the least have seen somebody doing it. I myself have been sewn over at more than a couple of places of my body, much thanks to the mess I keep landing up in. And it is not an easy job. One of the times that somebody stitched me, he did such a botched job I still have a noticeable scar after 4 years.

Initially today's post was for automobile engines, but as chance would have it I got to see work on a part of the greatest machine existing : the human body ( was there any doubt?? )

Statement: I have stopped rash driving.

Ok. It needs modification. On most occasion I do not drive rashly. Sometimes I drive fast, but that is on free roads. Which is what I did today morning, that too without a helmet on. Sun in the face, wind in the hair (albeit it was more in the ear)... you know the feeling. Add to it that I am learning to swim these days and I don't wear those recommended goggles which are supposed to protect your eyes from the chlorine in the water. Complex combination of factors led to some irritation in both eyes and I had to visit the doctor in the eye hospital.

While waiting in the waiting room (where else??), I saw a video about corneal transplant. Cornea is the transparent layer over your eye pupil and iris and the white of the eye. Lots of people are blind in the eye because this transparency is lost and the thing becomes opaque. Many others suffer from impaired vision. The origin are many, genetic birth defect is just one of them. So what's the cure?? Corneal transplant. That is to say, somebody actually gives you his/her cornea and the doctor puts it right in, in your eye (obviously the donor is dead, why else would somebody become blind for you??). And then you see the world in light. So far so good.

What I saw in the video was much more amazing than this simple fact. The eye is actually popped out from the eye socket of the donor, dabbed with antibiotic and stored in a fridge. And the fridge that was there in the video was the regular Kelvinator or Whirlpool 165/195 L type thing. Eeewww! Better hospitals must be having better storage. I mean how can you store something so precious in such a thing?? That's what I thought initially but then I realized that the thing is currently dead, so it hardly matters. Matters of personal taste, eh??

Next the operation was terrific/horrific (depending on how squeamish you are). The cornea is actually sliced out and the new cornea from the donor is put back in. Obviously there is no magic glue which will hold the thing in place. And here in comes in some real skill. The doctor actually used a needle and thread to sew the cornea in place. Ooooo... The sewing needle is held by some forceps and the other end of the thread by another instrument. And the hands merrily sewed away all along the edges. Realization dawned. Those are really steady hands to deal with such sensitive area. One mistake and you are behind square one. Anyways...

Remember the video from Eye Bank Association of India in which Aishwarya Rai promoted eye donation. Smitten as I was at that time, I immediately wanted to go and pledge mine. But then I was legally junior. But chance has presented itself again. Let me see if I have it in me to donate even eyes. Will come back with updates on this.

Some videos I found:
Cornea Transplant Surgery - Price Vision Group

Transplante córnea

And the obvious wikipedia link
Cornea

There are lots others on the net.

Happy Woman's Day

My salute to all my female friends and the women in this world. I totally realize your contribution to my existence. And I support Blank Noise Project. Great effort ladies.

Sometimes in my long conversation with my female friends they utter this, "All men are dogs!" Or a variation, "Men are bastards." Asinine as it is, they would look at me (or think of me, if on the phone) and add, "Not you! But you know generally..." And then would follow a long/short diatribe against all "man"kind, depending on how the mood is. At occasions like this I am left devoid of words of defense. I know that they are not including me in their outrage, but I am also helpless to defend myself. All that goes through my mind is the shi**y behavior that lots of my male friends would get down to on seeing some woman walking by. I don't get the fun that they seem to extract out of such actions. To add, these men don't even have the balls to walk up to the female and say hi, or ask her out. But they are ready to ogle, or as the crude behavior goes "accidentally" bump into them.

Why am I incensed by such behavior?? Because it lessens my chances of meeting the fairer sex. There are times, albeit rarely, that I feel like smiling on seeing the sense of purpose and/or determination on the face of some woman. But then I have had to check myself on such occasions, knowing that such behavior would lead her to think, "Dog!" I would rather not. There were times when I have been categorically told by my female friends that I am the Mr. Nice Guy. On one occasion, a newly found friend told me about a female friend of hers, who, in her words, "would give an arm to meet" somebody like me. Yeah!!! I liked the compliment. But I am afraid I will never get to talk to her, lest I be called a lecher.

But then I am a wimp (not WIMP). Why o why do I not stop you from such behavior?? I guess it is the kind of herd mentality that you get into when you meet another of your kind. But I assure you guys, you would not find me giving you company on such occasion, however close a friend of mine you are. Many a times you have asked me, "Are you not interested in girls?? Why don't you look at them??" Oh! I am but biologically built to look at women and take an interest in them. Part of my being is from them if you want to know. But when I am in the company of people like you, or otherwise, I choose not to ogle or leer. I have met enough women in my life and am satisfied with their company. Guys, have you ever stopped to think that being from the other side of the gender does not stop them from being a human being. Give them their freedom. Yes, I don't say all of them are angels. There are times when there is an invitation even. As a matter of fact I have not many found many that are interesting enough to engage in conversation with. But it is just as with other guys, right?? Not every guy that you come in contact with is good enough to make friends with, or make an acquaintance out of.

Guys, guys, guys!!! Give respect and find more company. Live and let live. These creatures form an essential part of your existence. Woo them gently, don't jump on them. And add to it, what John Nash says in the movie, A Beautiful Mind:

Nash: "If we all go for the blonde and block each other, not a single one of us is going to get her. So then we go for her friends, but they will all give us the cold shoulder because no on likes to be second choice. But what if none of us goes for the blonde? We won't get in each other's way and we won't insult the other girls. It's the only way to win. It's the only way we all get laid."

For me: Stop being a wimp, especially when you find an acquaintance engaging in such behavior where there is no invitation and/or categorical denial.

VisualDNA

Was bored of blogthings and was getting jumpy and distracted with nothing new to do. And as is wont, when there is desperation, the whole universe conspires with you to take you where you want.

Result : VisualDNA from Imagini. Discover your VisualDNA. For mine, scroll down to the end of the page... :D

Are you SKILLED LABOR ??

Heard in the lift -- two people, not from my company

Person 1: "A team size of 15-20 is good for daily interaction. More is trouble."
Person 2: "I have a team size of around 40. But they are mostly technical people and freshers. You can get them to do what you want!!!"

Somewhere I may have misconstrued what person 1 said, but there is no way I could have misconstrued what person 2 said. And at that point I wanted to scream, "Is that all?? They are just hired hands !! Or would you prefer the term 'Skilled Labor' "

Why is it that there is no dignity of labor, especially among the people working in the Information Technology companies?? Why do the employers treat the subordinates as hired help?? I keep meeting lots of people from this industry and most of them are in the same situation. And they know their position and respect in the organization, yet they do nothing about it.

One classic example is my flatmate. He is the highest performer in his team of 35+ people (his annual performance rating says so). Puts in long hours, works with dedication and no distractions. Yet his company regulations require him to reach office by 9 o'clock in the morning. Can't a man even have his morning peace and quiet??

And who has not heard of the classic example of the developer knowing more about a certain product than the program manager, who is supposed to advise the client on issues, talk to them and understand their requirements. And most of it seems to happen in the IT services industry. With the lure of good "on site" offers and fat pay packages they attract good talent and then work them like donkeys. Why do you agree?? Don't you have a family life?? Don't you socialize??

And far as fat salary goes, the actual developer does even get paid a quarter of what the client pays the company for the developers' performance. What I wonder is, where does the rest of the cash go?? Being in the IT industry there is hardly any capital outlay and almost zero recurring expenses. So what does the company do with the rest of the cash??

Compared to such environments, I think it is a lot better to work for the government firms. There is no respect -- they are not asking for any in return at least. My advice -- break the Indian middle class mentality while you have a chance. Go get a life. Cultivate a hobby. Give up your comfortable and cushioned desk job and walk the streets. With India opening up to varied sectors jobs are a galore. And entrepreneurship is at the high.

One story that I heard : There is a service in Mumbai, which cleans your sports shoes (when did you last wash yours??) When it was started the proprietor used to hand wash them himself. Now he employs a few hands and is planning to bring in machines. Cool, na! Add to that, it is a door-to-door pickup-n-delivery like pizzas. Ooooooh!!! Too much!

As for me, thankfully by a combination of hard work, due diligence and opportunity (what is generally known as 'luck') I am in a company where there is dignity of labor, at the least. You are given opportunities, time, guidance. To top it all, I have landed up with a good manager and a greater team. Cheers!!! So while I work late at times, I also leave pretty early at other occasions. Work is fun! And life is a blast! And it is the ideal place to let the inertia take over... :)

I Envy

• The comment on a straight guy's profile on Orkut (from a female friend of his): "This man is my closest girlfriend (oh yeah he can bitch!!)"

• People who can sing (not the BS). God chose to give them that special skill.

• The camaraderie shared by two cigarette smokers. Even strangers are bonded in this. (I am becoming obsessed.)

• The knack of a college-mate who given the rules and tools of any game, will win you the match.

• The people who know the abbreviated form of id est is "i.e." (should I have put it the other way... I wonder)
  

Drowned

Life seeping out of you rapidly, while you watch helpless to do anything about it. Gulping down water at a rate faster than I could actually think about anything, I simply had to give up. All the thrashing and wild movement of the hands and the legs were of no avail. I had been told that the water was just 7 feet deep, so essentially I could bounce from the floor and surface. But the desperation and the loss of breath scavenged the last remaining thoughts out of my mind.

Finally what seemed like ages, the coach pulled me up. Rather he grabbed my shorts and kinda pushed me towards the pipes at the edges of the swimming pool and I held on for dear life. As I write this, I can only think of the people traveling in Titanic. First hitting the freezing water must have sent them into shock. Whatever senses remained would have been sucked out by drowning. I am thankful that I am still alive to see the light of the day and continue my swimming lessons on another day.

Have been trying to learn to swim since 7 days now. And I am nowhere near it. With no physical flexibility exercises since childhood, difficulties have been compounded by the occasional weight training sessions that I did. My whole body is stiff and am unable to let go, something that everybody tells me is the key to swimming. All advice on swimming ends up with float like a corpse. Only then will you learn. Yeah! the advice is good and all. And am trying. But right now after the ordeal in the morning, I have tons of water inside me, all trying to gush out from my nose, ear, eyes and other countless pores and holes that my body has. But it refuses to pour out of the proper ones like the mouth and the urinary tract. Awk!

Tomorrow is a new day and a new war in the battleground. Wish me luck!

Debit or Credit ??

The three simple rules of Debit and Credit:

1. Debit what comes in, Credit what goes out. (Real A/C)
   
2. Debit the receiver, Credit the giver. (Personal A/C)
   
3. Debit all expenses and loses, Credit all profits and gains. (Nominal A/C)

Real A/C : These include accounts like the cash a/c, furniture a/c, machinery a/c, etc.

Personal A/C : These include accounts for the proprietor, creditor, debtors, etc.

Nominal A/C : These include accounts for salary, interest, discounts, etc.

So far, so good. And I thought, oh that's easy. One look at point 1, and I went on to summarize that whatever is received by the account is debited, and whatever is taken out of the account is credited. I even went on to visualize a neat little cash box that a firm maintains on the part of each debtor, creditor, cash a/c, et. all. So when you put in the box, you do debit and when you take out you credit that account. And then wow! Then same visualization works for the second rule.

Just as I was thinking that this was going to be easy, up comes the third point. Whose account is it anyway?? Far as I could reason the expense/loss a/c cash box was always giving out things to others so it was always going to be in credit. But with no debit, there was little chance that the account was going to be balanced. Also need to consider that where does the money come in from. Phew! Things started going over my head.

Then somebody showed me the light of the day. My visualization while not completely wrong was misleading me. These accounts in accounting practice should not be treated as just money, as in cash. Treat them as they are, i.e. an entity called account, and they will behave fine. Waah! After all that hullabaloo about accounts being about money, about changing every possible transaction to talk in terms of money, my concepts were about to go up in smoke.

And I came across this case:

"Interest charged by creditor XYZ Co. Ltd. Rs. 2000"

Hitting the roof was never easier earlier to this. How much ever way I tried to apply the three rules, or any combination thereof there was simply no way I could balance this. My explanation: Rs. 2000 paid as interest. So considering that there is an interest expense a/c I debited the account by the same amount according to rule three. Now I took a look at XYZ Co. and applying rule 2, I debited their a/c. Now wait! How is this going to be balanced?? When an a/c is debited another is to be credited, right?? But here both are being debited. That angel came to rescue with an explanation. You always treat the creditor (the debtor for that matter) as a liability. So when the creditor pays you money (which you are supposed to pay back), according to rule 2, the creditor goes into credit. Similarly, the interest that you are paying your creditor is a liability. It is a sum of money that you are supposed to pay your creditor, although the creditor has never actually paid you the amount. So, to show that the you owe such an additional sum to the creditor, you need to credit the creditor a/c with the additional amount to balance your books.

These concepts are supposed to be grasped by a student in the 11th grade studying in India. I started to wonder at that social notion that the Indian society attaches to a student taking up commerce/ accounts papers. It's as if they are the lower of the student fraternity. All bright students are supposed to take up science and become doctors or engineers. Far as I am concerned, this simple thing was no less than "Rocket Science". (been long since I used that phrase; the last time I remember having that feeling was when I read "Analysis of Mind" by Bertrand Russell)


I am just beginning to learn such concepts in finance. I maybe wrong or right. If you are reading it, keep that pinch of salt with you (Don't forget the lemon and the shot!)

Update: Found this site with an explanation of the Accounting Equation, which is what I have been talking about above. Good examples.

I am disgusted

... by the way certain people down the ladder behave, just when they know that the person up the ladder who is feeding the whole chain is not watching.

There is a driveway around my block of office buildings, albeit within the boundary of it enclosure. Essentially when you are crossing it, you might find oncoming vehicles wherein you either stop and let the vehicles pass, or you sort-of hurry on before the vehicle reaches you.

The other day I was walking behind a threesome, whom I did not know. These people were regular people wearing as they were a white shirt and blue colored trousers, with the customary identification tag around their necks. Just as we were about to cross the driveway, a four-wheeler was so near us that had it been me, I would have allowed the vehicle to pass before proceeding. This smart ass of the group of three had the audacity to do this. He put out his hand, the one that was holding the cigarette, to indicate that the vehicle must stop and just stood there on the pathway. The driver of the vehicle did stop. And then he did an action like an arm extension and the tilted head, much like the protagonist in a movie would do to prove his superiority in some scene. "Hey shit! Stay down! Dare you to raise your eyes to meet mine!" And then these three calmly walked across the pathway, laughing and joking. I pity the driver who must have had to grit his teeth to maintain his calm.

Why am I particularly peeved?? Well, had it been his manager's car, I am very sure he would have bowed and let the car pass before attempting a stunt like that. What is it that allows you to behave in a certain way in some circumstances with a certain set of people and do something else in the same situation but with a different set of people?? Does not the other same set have the same dignity??

I think, that Munnabhai said thing very succinctly in the movie, Lage Raho Munnabhai:
"Take note of how the person treats another who is below to him in the social(monetary) status. It will tell you the real value of the person." Well said! Kudos to that!

But then why am I even bothered?? Let the inertia take over.

Information Overload

The Start Page

Need to spend time

What's Happening??

Tired Eyes!!!

Timepass

Guess the pictures need to be clicked to get a proper view. Pictures from my desktop.
"How do I get these ideas? It's like a gift, you know? It's like I can't control it."
Created courtesy Google Personalised Home Page, which is something I use!!!