Travel travails...

Let me introduce you to my constant twin companions, but that would be a futile exercise...my apologies if the picture doesn't look great, in all fairness they deserve a better deal...not counting the abuse they have suffered from my own hands ever since I landed in this country... this picture was taken last evening after a delayed flight from Cleveland was further delayed due to bad weather in Newark whereas I was in Boston :(, and some further delay as the shuttle I use to commute from my pad to Logan was long gone; and I had a few moments to spare, to stretch my rusty limbs, and get some fresh air...

It's been a full year on the move...and it doesn't look like it's going to stop anytime soon, but that is a different story, for another time....

Being a small time consultant has its own charm, but it erodes after a while...and all that you thought was exciting; traveling, going places, meeting people and the fun that is usually associates with these activities begins to diminish...sometimes you feel like you are on the run, pushed into places you never though you would have to see, and fake smiles to unknow faces every week...not to mention the vagaries of hotels, the expensive beds that you wouldn't manage a decent sleep in, just because your body is not used to it..the vagaries of traffic in every city, from the turtlesque traffic speeds of Ohio and Minnesota to breakneck in California, to perpetual bad weather in Pennsylvania and New Jersey to the sunshine of New England; from the mountainous terrains of Pennsylvania(not again) to the flat corn fields of Ohio..to crazy roads and traffic rules of NJ to the fluidity of Michigan...the great desi restaurants that you can find in California, NJ and New England to the not-so-decent stuff thrown in by desperate people in other places...ah...the list is getting long...not to mention the crazy salespeople from airlines and rental car companies who talk to you as if you were still wearing diapers and sucking your thumb (this is one thing I really hate)...and would ask you the same stupid questions time and again...to meeting all sorts of people on board a plane, varying from ones who would sleep through the flight to the ones who would move every muscle in their body while sitting in their cramped economy class seats and wearing seatbelts...to some charming flight attendants to the not-so-friendly ones...from the air traffic radio you get to listen to on united flights, to the cacophony of security announcements on others (read Continental)...from the mini pretzels I have never eaten except on flights to united's wonderful in-flight meal service (you have to pay, but it's worth every penny) ..from the routine takeoffs and landings that you see...to the thrill of watching a plane swoosh across yours in mid air in the blink of an eye... when you actually feel the speed of air travel....the experiences are more than humbling....There is so much more that you absorb than you see. And I say this only because I never consciously thought of most of the stuff that I talk of above.

Sometimes, when you cannot get something you have yearned for most of your life, when misses are by whiskers than by miles, when your life is halfway into doldrums, when someone somewhere is lost... for ever, when all doors are shut, all alleys appear blind, the wind has been knocked out of your sails, and you are beginning to lose it, there are no answers to glaring questions....when you feel it is time for you to start all over, when cognition becomes synonymous with fear..... a fear of loss, defeat, pain...and disaster....when there is hardly a thought that evokes dulce et decorum est; when your past is the proverbial albatross and the future a bottomless pit....when you feel like getting away from your own self...the self which you once dreamed of nurturing...the self which is hurt more than you are; when your sounding boards appear distant and isolated...it perhaps is best to get away...to run..run hard...and fast..to alien lands..amidst alien faces....where there is no one to run away from....to a place where this song befits you...

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I made such a choice (as if there was another) sometime back...and I thought I had escaped...when my demons continued chasing me...there was no getting away from them...but an escape provides you a breather...to think...and act....

It has been more than an year since I made that decision....I am not sure if I have chased my demons away, but surely fear of my own self has dissipated....I am still not back to where I could start nurturing my soul.... on a side note, this reminds me of someone who actually made me say those words more than 8 years ago...where are you my dear....and where is that diary of yours where I wrote 'what I wanted to do' and this was one of those things...ah..those were the days..but coming back...I am still alive...and human...and that is enough...I remember reading somewhere that travel was as good as education...and there is no denying it. No university could teach you what you learn under open skies, in shady streets, amidst foreign cultures between unknown faces....So if Harvard rejected you, it may not be such a bad thing, after all. Happy traveling!

गुलज़ार की त्रिवेणियाँ

Got hold of some real beautiful verses from the master....they are reproduced below verbatim..

१. माँ ने जिस चांद सी दुल्हन की दुआ दी थी मुझको
आज की रात वह फुटपाथ से देखा मैंने

रात भर रोटी नज़र आया है वो चांद मुझे।

२ सारा दिन बैठा, मैं हाथ में लेकर खाली कासा (भिक्षापात्र)
रात जो गुज़री, चांद की कौड़ी डाल गयी उसमें

सूदखोर सूरज कल मुझसे ये भी ले जायेगा।

३ सामने आये मेरे, मुझसे बात भी की
मुस्कुराये भी, पुरानी किसी पहचान की खातिर

कल का अखबार था, बस देख लिया, रख भी दिया।


४ शोला सा उतरता है मेरे जिस्म से हो कर
किस लौ से उतारा है खुदावंद ने तुमको

तिनकों का घर है, कभी आओ तो क्या हो?

५ ज़मीं भी उसकी, ज़मीं की नेमतें भी उसकी
ये सब उसी का है, घर भी ये घर के बन्दे भी

खुदा से कहिये कभी वो भी अपने घर आयें!

६ लोग मेलों मे भी गुम हो के मिले हैं बारहा
दास्तानों के किसी दिलचस्प से एक मोड़ पर

यूँ हमेशा के लिए भी कोई बिछड़ता कोई?

७ आप की खातिर हम लूट भी ले आसमाँ
क्या मिलेगा चांद चमकीले शीशे तोड़ के

चाँद चुभ जाएगा तो उंगली में तो ख़ून आ जाएगा

८ पौ फूटी है और किरणों से कांच बजे हैं
घर जाने का वक़्त हुआ है, पांच बजे हैं

सारी शब् घड़ियाल ने चौकीदारी की है

९ बे-लगाम उड़ती है कुछ ख्वाहिशें दिल में
मेक्सिकन फिल्मों में कुछ दौड़ते घोड़े जैसे

थान पर बांधी नहीं जातीं सभी ख्वाहिशें मुझ से।

१० तमाम सफहे किताबों के फ़ड़फड़ाने लगे
हवा धकेल के दरवाज़ा आ गयी घर में

कभी हवा की तरह तुम भी आया जाया करो।

११ कभी-कभी बाज़ार में यूँ भी हो जाता है
कीमत ठीक थी, पर जेब में इतने दाम नहीं थे

ऐसे ही एक बार मैं तुमको हार आया था।

१२ वह मेरे साथ ही था दूर तक मगर एक दिन
जो मुड़ के देखा तो वह दोस्त मेरे साथ ना था

फटी हो जेब तो कुछ सिक्के खो भी जाते हैं।

१३ वह जिस सांस का रिश्ता बंधा हुआ था मेरा
दबा के दांत तले सांस काट दी उसने

कटी पतंग का मांझा पूरे मुहल्ले में लूटा!

१४ कुछ मेरे यार थे रहते थे मेरे साथ हमेशा
कोई साथ आया था, उन्हें ले गया, फिर नहीं लौटे
शेल्फ से निकली किताबों की ज़गह खाली पड़ी है।

१५ इतनी लंबी अंगड़ाई ली लड़की ने
शोले जैसे सूरज पर हाथ लगा

छाले जैसा चाँद पड़ा है उंगली पर!

१६ बुद बुद करते लफ्ज़ों को चिमटी से पकड़ो
फेंको और मसल दो एड़ी से

अफवाहों को खूँ पीने की आदत है।

१७ चूड़ी के टुकड़े थे, पैर में चुभते ही खूँ बह निकला
नंगे पाँव खेल रहा था, लड़का अपने आंगन में

बाप ने कल दारु पी के माँ की बाह मड़ोड़ी थी।

१८ चाँद के माथे पर बचपन की चोट के दाग नज़र आते है
रोड़े, पत्थर और गुल्लों से दिनभर खेला करता था

बहुत कहा आवारा उल्काओं की संगत ठीक नहीं!

१९ कोई सूरत भी मुझे पूरी नज़र आती नहीं
आंख के शीशे चटखे हुये हैं कब से

टुकड़ों टुकड़ों में सभी लोग मिले हैं मुझको!

२० कोने वाली सीट पे अब दो और ही कोई बैठते हैं
पिछले चंद महीनों से अब वो भी लड़ते रहते हैं

क्लर्क हैं दोनों, लगता है अब शादी करने वाले हैं।

२१ कुछ इस तरह ख़्याल तेरा जल उठा की बस
जैसे दियासलाई सी जली हो अँधेरे में

अब फूँक भी दो, वरना ये उंगली जलायेगा।

२२ काँटे वाली तार पे किसने गीले कपड़े टाँगे हैं
ख़ून टपकता रहता है और नाली में बह जाया है

क्यों इस फौजी की बेवा हर रोज़ ये वर्दी धोती है।

२३ आओ बाँट लें अब अपनी अपनी हम
न तुम सुनोगे बात, ना हमको समझाना है

दो अनपढ़ों को कितनी मुहब्बत है अदब से!

२४ नाप के वक़्त भरा जाता है, रेत घड़ी में
एक तरफ खली हो ज़ब फिर से उलट देते हैं उसको

उम्र ज़ब खतम हो , क्या मुझको वो उलटा नहीं सकता?

२५ तुम्हारे होठ बहुत खुश्क रहते हैं
इन्ही लबों पे कभी ताज़ा शेर मिलते थे

ये तुमने होंठों पे अफ़साने रख लिए कब से?

And if you have enjoyed reading so far, let me know which one(s) you happen to like most.

Envisioning a new world....

I somehow happened to glance over the copy of USA today that was slipped under my door my door this morning. And it really got me hooked up. Check this out:

New Rules could rock the wireless world

It's just what these oligopolistic bunch of carriers need; a hard kick on their shins. Till date, these carriers have sabotaged the aspirations of millions of customers and got away with it. It's time for some determined action to inject the concept of free-market in their I-need-more-money psyche.

I am asking you, yes you, are you happy with the the quality of service rendered by these companies? If you are, you may be one in a million. There is a real scarcity of quality handsets, and the service is totally unreliable. sample this from my experience, my t-mobile phone works fine in two places (only, if I may add): my home and freeways, and there is no assurance about the later. Most of the other places I travel to, including my workplace, and the hotels I usually stay in, I have to rush out under open skies every hour if I am expecting an important call, just to ensure that I at least get my voice mail. but then, you even pay for listening to your voice mail. Every time. WHY DO I HAVE TO DO THAT? Most phones have enough memory for a few voice mails to be downloaded, but you never heard of that option, did you. what outlook express did to emails more than a decade back is yet to be replicated by these carriers. Just because they want your hard-earned cents. This is just one example. I am not talking if wi-fi and other techno-zaz that iPhones and likes are rolling out. the iPhone is pretty innovative, but it comes with a price, and it's just the handset. there are absolutely no guarantees about the quality of service. Coming from India, the schemes these carriers offer can at best be said to be of medieval origin, at least in my opinion. And if you are getting sick of my rant, ask yourself one question: Do you get value for what you pay?

I just hope skype or google, even microsoft just buys out the newly-available bandwidth and gives the consumers what they deserve.

इसे कहते हैं गंगा उलटी बहाना

ये पढ़ो।

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1108645

आमची मुम्बई ये कैसे लोगों के हाथ में पड़ गयी है!

अब टाटा और मारुति को कार बनने से पहले इनसे पूछना पड़ेगा; कहते हैं कि पार्किंग स्पेस की राशानिंग करेंगे; मतलब भ्रष्टाचार का एक और तरीका। मेरे ख़याल से टाटा वालों को चंद्रशेखर जी को नौकरी पर रख लेना चाहिऐ, मुझे पक्का यकीन है कि इतने शानदार आईडिया तो टाटा वालों के दिमाग में भी नहीं आ सकते। और ये तो मैं अनुभव से कह सकता हूँ।
जय हो एम एम आर डी ए की।

और कुछ दिन पहले मुख्य मंत्री विलासराव देशमुख ने ये कहा था:

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1108490

स्वयं ही पढ़ लीजिये मैं क्या कहूँ; लेकिन सारांश तो यही है कि इंद्र देव ज़िम्मेदार है मुम्बई की इस हालत के लिए। बारिश वैसी जगह हुई जहाँ इनकी तैयारी कुछ कम थी। वो तो भला हो इन नेक लोगों का कि इन्होंने मौसम विभाग को ज़िम्मेदार नहीं ठहराया। इतनी ज्ञानवर्धक बातें सुनकर मेरा मन अति प्रसन्न हो उठाता है। आख़िर ये लोग कितने समझदार हैं, और जनता कितनी मूढ़!

और डी एन ए वालों को मेरा बहुत बहुत धन्यवाद।

Safari 3.0.2

Have been trying the new Safari beta for a week or so now...and the thoughts are mixed. If you are coming from IE 6/7, you may just love it, but if you are a Firefox addict anywhere close to me, you may be in for a slight disappointment. Let's see what I found...

New: snapback...ultra cool...and how thoughtful..when you do your next google, try safari..you don't need to track your search results page by going fwd or back..when u do a web search using your the standard search box..the results page is marked as a snapback page..so no matter how deep you have hyperlinked your way thru..you can get back to the search results in a single click...way to show...

Good:

Looks: the typical Apple looks more like QuickTime and iTunes...none of which are much to my liking, crisp toolbars and uncluttered buttons, the lack of lines separating the menu bars, the tool bars, the address bar, all merging onto one. the smallish status bar is cool, and you will not notice it unless you want to. All this translates to more area assigned to the web page and although it does not have an F11, I hardly needed it. that's where it scores over FF, but then even IE does better than FF in this department. the address bar doubles up as the page download status bar as well..and thats really cool..

Speed: Compares to and scores over FF in browsing speeds. Download speed is more or less the same.

stabilty - hasnt crashed yet...but then I havent used it so much..I forced it to crash..half expecting FF's restore session or something similar..but was disappointed..but then..it didnt crash..

Bad:

Navigation: No good shortcut keys, thats where FF is damn good, so I need to use my mouse all the time, a big pain in my fingers :( there is no ctrl+tab..the equivalent is ctrl + } or ctrl + {..so u gotta press shift as well..and that's a pain...

When you type in something in the address bar..and you get some matching choices to show up, you can't edit them as in FF..that's something which I don't do often, so it's not a major inconvenience..

Search: Defaults only to yahoo and google searches, no wiki, no answers.com..but hey, it's just a beta

bookmarks: the default install comes with hundreds of bookmarks: yahoo, NY times, and all the usual yankee crap..but its bookmark management is not that intuitive, like FF or IE; know what I mean..but honestly, I haven't tried enough yet..and yeah, it imports your FF/Mozilla/IE stuff by default. but there lies a catch. I want a central bookmark repository, not one for IE, one for FF and one for SF(Safari); and none of them has this feature. So I have to keep importing 3C2 times all the time :P. It also doesn't have the 'open in tabs' feature from FF..and that's another cool thing amiss here..

scrollbars: they are a real pain..esp with orkut, somehow it does not wrap up everything and I have to scroll an inch horzontally everytime.. I call this a pita(pain in the @$$)...

blogging...good...I am typing this in SF, there is a marked difference between this and FF as I can see how much I have written. Let me confess my laptop has a small screen, and I use a small resolution of 1024 x 768. It is so much better than FF, where I would use F11 all the time..again, for all its good stuff..the Devanagari transliteration is screwed big time..FF does a wonderful job when it comes to showing Devanagari fonts..SF has some homework to do..first up, it messes up with the इ and ई symbols...and moves them around the consonants...so not much fun there...it also screws up the mixed consonants and although you cn read it, it's an eyesore..but wattheheck..it's a beta..I just hope they fix it..sooner the better...

Advanced web features: Not that great with custom UI..php and js things...some things that are expected didn't show up. not sure how good it is at running applets..but then who has designed web apps keeping safari in mind..it's not going to hurt anyone..

ugly: nothing really..

summary: it's a good cross between the appearance of IE and the speed and usability of FF, but as many a wise men said...miles to go...I am a avid fan of microsoft (I hear knives being drawn ;))when it comes to UI...but this is as good as it gets with a beta...and it beats FF 9 out of 10 times when it comes to speed.

verdict: download, install and use...and it's not FF losing it's share... it's IE.


P.S. Here is what it looks like. See for yourself..much more content..but the transliteration went haywire

What's cooking?

Nothing exotic there, I must say; but I don't have a clue why I did such a thing. If you don't understand what I am saying, you obviously haven't experimented enough!

The after effects....

Overheard: There are some days when you only have the hope of happy hour to give you strength.

And a master piece from Private Opinion
दिन गुज़रा बड़ी मुश्किल से, फिर तेरा वादा-ए-शब् याद आया