shru's world

Hello New Jersey!

2006-02-22T10:55:00.000-08:00

I became the resident of the state of New Jersey on December 21st, 2005. In the past 5 years this is my third move. My first move from India to Miami, my second move from Miami to Austin and now Austin to NJ. I landed at JFK airport hoping to see 3ft snow and cutting winds. But to my disappointment, the grounds were clear, and jackets off. My experience in supposedly COLD state is still pretty warm. I have been here for the past 2 months now but haven't felt awkardly cold. The temperatures haven't dipped below 27-28 F which is pretty warm for a COLD place. I get up every morning and look outside the window to find everything still very clear and pristine, devoid of any snow.
Ironically, the week I was travelling to Florida in mid feb was the week when the North east experienced winter storms. NJ and NY got heavy snow and temperature dipped significantly. I was happy not to bear the harsh winter but was disappointed to miss my first real snowfall in my new adopted state. I guess thats life. What you want is what you never get and things happen when you least expect them!

Adieu Austin...

2006-02-17T21:10:00.000-08:00

I left Austin on 17^th December 2005 for good. It was a bitter sweet day of my life. I was happy that I was finally moving on in life, at the same time I was sad to leave the place which taught me a lot about life – about happiness, tears, joy, sadness, anger, ambitions, dreams, goals, friendship, love..the list is endless. As a place Austin doesn’t signify anything for me. Its just another place where I lived for a while and then moved on. I am sure I would have the same kind of experiences in any other part of the world. But I will always remember Austin as the place where my transformation into the adult world took place, place where I met some of the best friends for life, place where I matured into a young woman…I will also remember Austin as the place where I got hooked onto the American craze..FOOTBALL. I had no sense of the game even till my third year. The whole football bug got into my head during my senior year when I started watching the Longhorn games just because everyone not only at school but also in Texas was a Longhorn crazy fan. I thought right before leaving I should get atleast some sense of school pride and become another frenzied Longhorn fan. But you know everything happens for a good reason….I got hooked onto the game and funny enough the year I started watching, Longhorns were doing really well. They hadn’t lost a single match in the season (2005), they beat their biggest rivals Oklahoma and then went onto pick the Rose Bowl Trophy…maybe I should have started watching the game earlier…haha..yeah, I am giving myself credit for their victory :P ..(I hope Vince Young is not reading this post!)

Well, I am a football fan now ..and I am proud to be a LONGHORN! Texas Fight!!

In my non-existent Texan accent – “Austin was a damn fine place…….n I’ll miss it..bye y’all Austinites”

Las Vegas and Grand Canyon...

2006-02-13T17:15:00.000-08:00

Before arriving in New Jersey - my final destination - of my new life....I took a small detour to Las Vegas. Thought I will try my luck one last time. I might never have to work if I get lucky in Vegas. Get an early retirement and move to Florida....my plan of action in Vegas was to either hit jackpot or meet some rich guy ;) ...well, as the life story usually goes..neither of those 2 things happened!
But I still had loads of fun. My parents were travelling with me and all three of us had a blast. It was my parents first time in US and being in Vegas was a totally different experience for them. Everything was life size there...too many lights, sounds, colors and people. My friends were shocked that I was taking my parents to Vegas of all the places ...but they thoroughly enjoyed it. Bellagio fountains is a must see attraction in Vegas. They are just captivating. I realized walking around in Vegas late at night and early in the morning that Vegas is truly the city never sleeps. Honestly, I can't spend more than 3 days in Vegas. One can get sick and tired of the never ending slot machine sounds ...The slot machines are everywhere...hotel entrances, airports, gas stations, restaurents.....I could feel the sound of slot machines in my head in my sleep...yeah, it can make you that crazy....
fact # 898 About 95.9% of people on the devilish slot machines are Old folks.....!!

We took a one day bus trip to Grand Canyon..The Grand Canyon National Park is about 5 hrs away from Vegas. Just outside Vegas we hit a town ( I forgot the name now) in which gambling is banned! I thought that was interesting....Few years back even alcohol was banned in that town. Heaven right outside sin city, I wonder.

The beauty of Grand Canyons can never be truly defined by any number of photographs we see. The beauty of canyons can only be captured from ones own eyes. I stood spellbounded for few minutes looking at the giant beast ...I was captivated by the colors, the calmness, the mystery of the rocks....They are breathing life....they are real yet not alive....the strange calmness surrounding them is only broken by the wind running across the depths of the canyons. The Canyons depict a strange, mystical land - part of Earth but still so separate and not Earth like....
I am planning to go back there again but this time to conquer the beast. Hiking the Grand Canyons in May.

The trip was loads of fun even though I returned more broke and without my rich prince charming!

Free as a bird...

2006-02-13T16:27:00.001-08:00

Finally the much awaited day arrived..11th Dec - My Independence Day...I walked in my graduation gown. I am a Graduate. I now hold a degree against my name. I am SOMETHING now. It will be finally nice to select "Bachelors degree" rather than selecting "Finished High school" or "In some College" option in most of the online forms. Honestly, I am glad to be done. I feel free from mind and spirit.
Contrary to popular beliefs, graduation day was not very glamorous. I wore my gown in a parking lot 5 mins before the graduation ceremony and ran across the road to get to Frank Erwin Center with my parents. Frank Erwin Center was swarming with people....I was just another person lost in the sea of black gowns rushing across to finally close another chapter of life.
Parents were separated from their kids and sent to another entry door. All the black gown adorned kids were sent to a special hall where they were asked to line up. Amidst confusion, laughter, screams, jokes....were the twinkling eyes of the graduating kids ...full of satisfaction. Each and every eye said the same story...."where to next?" another dream in making...another goal...another story of life....
As we walked in to the arena...all the eyes were upon us. I felt like a hollywood star walking on the red carpet, waving to the crowd.. it was a different feeling. We sat down in front of the stage listening to the last lecture of college..
Graduating students walked across the stage as their respective names were being called...As I stood in the line right next to stage..I could feel the entire 5 years of college life flashing in front of eyes. Standing their getting my degree from the Dean seemed surreal for a second. As my name was called, I stepped up and walked towards the Dean..he handed me a paper and shook my hands...and thats it..for those 15 seconds I was a star in my own terms receiving my oscar without making any big oscar speech. But it was still an Oscar moment for me. Felt like I achieved something big in life. I achieved something I set out to do 5 yrs ago. College seemed like a 5 yr old movie making process with ups and downs, tears and laughter and now I was paid back for my sweat, tears and hardwork with 15 seconds of fame and a paper ( which wasn't even a real degree) ....Life does seem like a movie sometimes...

Interesting blog..

2005-11-07T14:50:00.000-08:00

Blog of a student of architecture in Hyderabad, India.

http://spaces.msn.com/members/tabyland/

Leaving on a jet plane..

2005-11-05T23:12:00.000-08:00

Learning guitar is probably the hardest things I have ever done in my life. I just started taking guitar classes this semester and I think I am terrible at it! Music had been a great part of my life ..I love almost every kind of music ..all it takes is good lyrics and good rhythm.. Though I love music, I was never an "artsy" sort of a person...music just makes me feel good..thats about it ..I never before tried to take any music class, learn any instrument or read music..or sing (which I am pathetic at) ..When I earlier used to listen to songs it was mainly concentrated on the beats, rhythm and the lyrics of the song. This guitar class has totally changed the way I perceive music...now everytime I am listening to a song..I try to place every musical instrument separately, I try to hear the chord changes in the songs ...seems like I just discovered a whole new world that always existed in front of me. Initially I always thought playing guitar or any instrument would be simple..just a little bit of practice and you can be the new Aerosmith or Kelly Clarkson. I realized that learning a simple chord on the guitar and using muscle memory is freaking hard. I guess we always take things for granted!..everything looks simple until we try or experience it.

I have started to get a lot better at guitar but I still have a long way to go. I still have to look at my left hand while changing the chords. It would take insane amount of practice to get rid of that habit ...and I hate practising..I wish I could just get close my eyes, make a wish and be a rock star!

Till now we were mainly learning lot of folk songs which I had never heard of. Last week I learnt the song.."Leaving on a jet plane", one of my all time favorite songs. I had a freaking hard time playing that song..but I still loved it. I practiced the C and G chords for n number of hours just so I could play my favorite song. I have decided playing guitar is hard but I am going to Do it this time

Soon I will be leaving on a jet plane too....6 more weeks left..

Leaving on a jet plane by John Denver

All my bags are packed I'm ready to go

I'm standin' here outside your door

I hate to wake you up to say goodbye

But the dawn is breakin' it's early morn

The taxi's waitin' he's blowin' his horn

Already I'm so lonesome I could die

So kiss me and smile for me

Tell me that you'll wait for me

Hold me like you'll never let me go

Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane

Don't know when I'll be back again

Oh babe, I hate to go

There's so many times I've let you down

So many times I've played around

I tell you now, they don't mean a thing

Every place I go, I'll think of you

Every song I sing, I'll sing for you

When I come back, I'll bring your wedding ring

So kiss me and smile for me

Tell me that you'll wait for me

Hold me like you'll never let me go

Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane
Don't know when I'll be back again

Now the time has come to leave you

One more time let me kiss you
Close your eyes I'll be on my way

Dream about the days to come

When I won't have to leave alone

About the times, I won't have to say

So kiss me and smile for me

Tell me that you'll wait for me

Hold me like you'll never let me go

Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane

Don't know when I'll be back again

Oh babe, I hate to go

Cause I'm leavin' on a jet plane

Don't know when I'll be back again

Oh babe, I hate to go

Random thoughts..

2005-11-05T03:48:00.000-08:00

Just came back from downtown Austin. Met an old friend who is visiting Austin from San Fran for the weekend. It was real nice to see her esp. nice to see her happy with her new found love. Its funny how people come and go out of your life all the time. I always wonder if this is the last time I am meeting this person. I always wonder if this is it. Life is so unpredictable most of the time. People come and go..add on something to your life..teach you something...smile at you...laugh with you...and you become a different person from the one you were maybe few seconds back. I feel its people who make you....people we meet define our likes and dislikes..define our biases and judgements...define us. They determine our behavior, our thoughts, our goals..
Over the years I have met many people..have had many good friends..ranging from teenagers to 77 year olds. They have taught me a lot of things about life. Their experiences, their stories, their prejudices...their love. I would have not been the same person if I hadn't met them. I thank all the people in my life..people who have left, people who are present..and people who are one day going to be part of it... ..that without them I wouldn't be what I am. I wouldn't have learnt the meaning of friendship, meaning of sharing, meaning of hatred, jealousy, anger, meaning of caring, meaning of Love...and meaning of LIFE.

Circle of Life..

2005-11-04T22:04:00.000-08:00

Why is it that we all follow the same circle of life...go to school, then college, then get a job, then get married, have kids, then send the kids to school...and this continues..till you die ...I wonder if I have to go through my life the same way. Is there anyway I can break this circle and define my self differently. Is there anyway I can do things differently in my life. Would I be termed a social outcast or would I be termed brave? I wish I could do something more in my life than just these usual things..something more that sets me apart..I know I want to be happy and satisfied in life but sometimes this mundane life circle makes me think whether following the rules and this social pattern and doing everything perfect is going to make me happy. Is there more to life than getting into a good school, gettting a good job, having a perfect marriage and having a perfect funeral? Is there? I guess I have to live my life to find out.....

Counting days till graduation...

2005-11-04T21:42:00.000-08:00

I just received a graduation email yesterday saying that 5 more weeks left until graduation ceremony and so, I need to soon buy the graduation gear - coats, hats etc etc...5 more weeks! whew..I am still not able to digest it. Its like someone telling a person who has been in prison for 20 years..that.."hey, buddy, its time. You are going to be released soon in 5 more weeks" I am not saying college is like prison but I guess being here for almost 5 years make you feel like a prisoner. Its hard to digest that soon I will be in open air, able to breathe life for a change and not worry what I have to do next day. At this time I am least concerned about my job. I know everyone says job life sucks and college is so much better. I don't start working until March end so I still have my freedom and do whatever I want from December to March. I think this is the break I had been looking forward for a long time in my life. Finally able to do things I wanted to do since a long time...Travel, read, write, learn new things..sometimes school and job limits your capability so much that you become like a prisoner to your own life.

Post Graduation Plans.

2005-10-01T00:26:00.000-07:00

I graduate in December and around third week of December I am moving to New York! I have been planning lots of things in my head about the things I want to do after I finish college. I don't start working until the end of March so I have almost 3 months to enjoy, sleep, read books, travel, and pull my hair out of sheer boredom.
Few things on my todo list after graduation (before I start working)
My thoughts are all over the place..as can be seen by n number of lists that are generated by my mind each day.....!!

-Learn skiing
-After I get sick of skiing and cold weather...travel to Florida to meet up old pals.
-Read books ...I am soon coming up with the list of books I want to read
-Learn bartending
-Look for apartments

Possible places to travel to getaway from cold NY
---------------------------------------------------------
Florida
Las Vegas
California(?)
--need to research and plan more..

Books
--------
World is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman
Liar's Poker: Rising Through the Wreckage on Wall Street - by Michael Lewis
FREAKONOMICS by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner
The Dalai Lama's Book of Wisdom
It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life by Lance Armstrong
THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRAIRI - Robin Sharma
CATCH 22 BY JOSEPH HELLER
The Road ahead : Bill Gates
THE MONK WHO SOLD HIS FERRAIRI - Robin Sharma
business@speed of thought by Bill Gates
The McKinsey Way - Ethan M. Rasiel
ZEN-the art of motorcycle maintenance
THE INSCRUTABLE AMERICANS- Anurag Mathur
THE GOAL - Eliyahu M. Goldratt, Jeff Cox
Maverick : The Success Story Behind the World's Most Unusual Workplace by Ricardo Semler
Richard Branson, Virgin King : Inside Richard Branson's Business Empire by TIM JACKSON
The Road Less Traveled and Beyond : Spiritual Growth in an Age of Anxiety -- by M. Scott Peck
My Life - Bill Clinton

...and more to follow...I think I am already overwhelmed by this list....

I am back....

2005-09-28T03:05:00.000-07:00

I am finally back again after several months of disappearance from the blogging world. Lets just say that I didn't feel like writing anymore..so many things happened so fast in life in the past several months that I didn't get the chance to stop, think and write. Life flew by in the blink of an eye. But now I want to slow down things a little, sit back and watch myself going through last few months of this life that I had been living for almost 5 years now...the life of a college student..
Recap of last few months:

AS usual got really busy with school work by april and then suddenly I get an interview call from Goldman Sachs. I went for an interview on April 5th to New York and in a week I got to know that I got an internship with GS for summer. I was excited beyond my imagination. NYC, and GS ...I couldn't wait to go there.
Before joining Goldman, I went for a week vacation to London. London lived up to its expectations. It was cold and rainy the entire time I was there, but it was still fun. :D Living in a youth hostel was surely one hell of an experience.
I reached NYC on 22nd May and internship started from 23rd. From the start, I enjoyed each and every day of my experience at GS. People were warm and nice. Work culture was great. Everything was perfect. I was assigned a buddy in my group. Karen - my buddy - who would soon change the way I would think about life. Her motto in life - Live A Little.
I realized that though I am alive but I never really lived my life fully.
I lost that "living" feeling somewhere while running after so many things in the past few years. As my internship was coming to an end, I had mixed feelings. I was sad 'cos the best time of my life was coming to an end. But I was happy knowing that soon a new phase in life is about to begin...maybe the Best is Yet to Come. :-)

I am back in Austin and school has started in full swing again. Last semester of my college life. Feels weird. I am about to close this chapter of life and begin a new chapter soon. Lot of apprehensions. Lot of fear. Lot of excitement. Its amazing how life itself gets you ready to jump from one phase to another. Before you know it, you are 70 years old. Time does fly very fast, with a blink of an eye. And this time around I want to really Live my Life. I want to "Live a Little" Thanks, Karen :-)

Crazy NIGHT in downtown Austin...

2005-03-05T16:59:00.000-08:00

I know a post from me is pretty surprising...not that I am lazy to write, but because my life is pretty boring with nothing crazy or wild happening except for going to college, working, studying and getting drunk once in a while ..

So, rather than being boring and lazy, I decided to change my life around a bit and do something fun this semester. I am learning ballroom dancing..YAYAY. Till now have learnt different forms of dancing like Salsa, waltz, country, swing, cha cha, merengue etc etc...! Almost every weekend I go to some dance club where they either play country(texas) music or salsa music. These dance clubs are way different from the other clubs that are in austin. In these clubs, ppl are actually dancing rather than trying to hit on u and drinking and smoking. Mostly guys who come to these clubs are very good dancers , showing off their skills!

So, this weekend me and my roomate, as usual went to a salsa club in the downtown area. It was around 12 midnight and we found a parking spot little away from the club. We were about 2 streets away from the club when we started to hear some screaming and loud bitching on the road front of us. We thought probably someone drunk. We were approaching the main road when we saw a guy coming towards us screaming and just cursing..I had a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach and pulled my roomate closer and told her, "lets get out of here, he doesn't seem right to me". As soon as we started walking away from him and were almost about to cross the road, he started rummaging inside the trash can lying at the side of the road...and took out this metal rod. me and miriam completely froze! we were like what the fuck is going on..

He started running towards us with the metal rod ...me and her started to run, crossed the road and I almost tripped 'cos I was wearing high heels! Meanwhile he kept running towards us with a raised rod and screaming like a mad man.

Suddenly instead of running after us, he stopped near some cars parked there and started smashing the car windows.
At that time we were right opposite the club, running to cross the main road with cars coming towards us...! and honking!

We reached front of the club and saw some people looking at what had happened...and they asked us, "are you girls ok?". Me and her were shivering so bad that we could hardly speak! We went inside the club and were still in a pretty shocked state! Finally, we both calmed down, and I looked outside the window, and saw cops outside, near the parking area...looking for the mad guy...I hope that bastard got caught! such a Psycho!

Phew! well I am glad that my name is not in today's news...with the headlines...girl killed 'cos of head injury...fingers chopped off etc..
sorry for such a bad description..I got too scared 'cos I was watching this movie in the evening before going to the club on serial killers who cuts people apart after beating them up!..LOL...
well it was pretty funny now when I think about running in the middle of the road with a guy running behind with a metal rod. Seems like a scene from some comedy horror movie~!..an MTV prank maybe!

well I am still alive and happy..don't want to die or become disabled!

So, now I have an interesting incident to tell people..finally I am not boring anymore! YAY!
Hopefully I will meet more psycho ppl and fill you guys up with my crazy stories!
Who would ever think that something like this could happen to you...but one day it will..anything can happen in this crazy psychotic world!

on that note,

Enjoy life,...get out there on the road in the middle of the night and I can promise you all a hell of an experience of a lifetime..!!!

Lessons Learnt last night
--------------------------------------------
1. Never watch some crazy movie right before going out at night.
2. Never wear heels ...and if you wear them...take them out and run for ur fucking life..
3. Always carry a metal rod with you ....the bigger the better!
4. Remember to dial 911, when you have a fucking cell phone in the hand!
5. Look while you are crossing the main road..if you don't get killed by a mad man, there are chances that you will get run over by some vehicle...and then your name will definitely enter the darwin awards..!

6. Do not trust drunk people...oh wait, I get drunk too..well..I am sweet when I am drunk, not Psycho!..well sometimes maybe..but not like that! :P :P

7. Never live thinking that things you hear in TV or read in newspaper, can't happen to you...try to be cautious than being stupid and walking alone in the dark.
and lastly have a tall, hot, strong well built guy as ur escort.. he better be in uniform..thats it! LOL, there I go again!

I am back!

2005-02-03T18:08:00.000-08:00

Took a very long time to come back and write another entry....I wouldn't say I was busy ..i was I guess, very lazy ....

New Year has long started and school too. Second last semester...feels good to know that I will be finally getting out of this place. I have sorta mixed feelings about everything in life as of right now. I don't know what I want to do or where I want to go. Grad school maybe. Job maybe. US maybe. India maybe. or some other part of the world maybe. BUM...that is one thing I really don't want to be. So, yeah I need to decide soon what I want to do. Sitting at home and not doing anything makes me go crazy completely. Sometimes I feel its good not to know where you are going. Just go with the flow. Live in oblivion. I think I have become like that. Earlier I used to plan everything and do things according to my master plan...but I have started realizing that you don't control 99% of the things that happen in your life. The rest 1% maybe. Its human tendency to feel in power all the time. I think we spend most of our lives perceiving that we are in control. A delusioned perception. Atleast thats what i think. rest I don't the know real truth. I wish I could know everything one day. If thats ever possible.

till then...

OTTER rocks!

2004-12-07T15:31:00.000-08:00

Got an email from Dr. Boyer...he loved my 14 page final term paper on Circuit Design and Verification using the Automated system OTTER. I am sooooo HAPPY :D sooo soo happy :D YAY!!! I think I deserved that A on that paper..I put in lot of effort into writing it and learning to use OTTER to formulate the chip design problems. Nice start to FINALS...now I just need to work on Cryptography and Automata Theory..I can do it! Yesss.....finally life is becoming so much better.

.................

2004-12-07T01:55:00.000-08:00

Finally classes are over and all the Hws and projects submissions are done. Sigh of relief.

It feels good to complete one more semester of your college life. You could almost see yourself near the finish line. Though, you are happy to get out of college but there is always that fear. What Next? Maybe you know what you want to do. Maybe you plan to go to graduate school or maybe you have a job. But you still wonder, is it the best choice? Would I like it? There is always that constant worry. But I guess thats in every point in life. We are never satisfied with where we are. always wanting more and ending up with nothing (usually..i guess ..dont know)

I wish life was much more simpler than this. I wish I could change my perception a bit. I wish I could just stop thinking, the way I am constantly beating my head out..thinking about so many things at the same time. I wish I could just stop my thoughts for sometime and relax without having to think.

Cold...

2004-12-02T03:20:00.000-08:00

This place is sooo freaking cold.... :( :( Its 3 am and I can't sleep..room is just tooo cold. Heater is broken. :( :( Management still hasn't sent anyone to fix it. I think i am going to sue them for causing mental and physical trauma to me.

Still listening to Goo Goo Dolls, Here is Gone
You and I got something
But it's all then it's nothing to me yah
I got my defenses when it comes to your intentions to me yah
And we wake up in the breakdown
In the things we never thought we could be yah
I'm not the one who broke you
I'm not the one you should fear
We've got to move you darling
I thought I lost you somewhere
But you were never really ever there at all
And I want to get free Talk to me
I can fear you falling
And I won't tempt to be
All you need
Somehow here is gone
I am no solution
To this sound of dispollution in me yah
And I was not the answer so forget you if ever thought it was me yah

And I don't need a fall out
Of all the past that's here between us
And I'm not holding on
And all your lies weren't enough to keep me here
And I want to get free
Talk to me
I can fear you falling
And I won't tempt to be
All you need
Somehow here is gone
And I want to get free Talk to me I can fear you falling

I know it's out there I can fear you falling
Somehow here is gone

Even the song feels cold.....

OTTER

2004-12-02T02:27:00.000-08:00

Not sea Otter..but OTTER(Organized Techniques for Theorem-Proving and Effective Research)..an automated reasoning system in first order logic built by Argonne National Laboratory. Finally finished writing final paper for the automated reasoning class. Topic I chose: Circuit Design and Verification using OTTER. Turned out to be a pretty nice paper (TA's comments! ) Me happy :) really happy....it was supposed to be 10 page paper ..I got carried away and wrote 14 pages ..hopefully Dr. Boyer won't take points off for writing too much.:) ......13 more days before I leave for India....can't wait to see my family ...and chill with friends! and work at SCO.!!! Also planning to go food crazy n shopping crazy. Places planned to visit: Manali, Bombay, Calcutta, Jaipur..!! yupee..life is awesome :) ....Have to buy a new digital camera before I leave..my fav. so far Canon Powershot S410 with 4MP and 3x optical zoom. Here is gone...by Goo Goo Dolls..awesome song...!

Thanksgiving break

2004-11-29T08:26:00.000-08:00

Finally back to school today after 4 days long Thanksgiving break...Though I long for such breaks when the school is going on, I get bored and feel useless after 2 days in the break.
I completely utilized(wasted) my break sleeping, eating, cleaning(my fav work) and watching Bridget Jones diary n number of times. The things that I had planned to do during the break still remain uncrossed in my todo list. :-(
I realize that I achieve more when the school is going on. I am more punctual and less lazy ..
As soon as sunday approached, I realized holidays r over ..
Finished grading 240 math papers last night and fixed a paper. Today I have to continue working on the paper and also do my Cryptography HW due tomo. sucks. Best thing of the day: .......Narayan got awesome food from his home for me.....hash brown sandwiches and rice and some sabzi(??) that I relished on...It felt like I hadn't eaten in days..I just gobbled up the food so fast!!! (unbelievable!) Thanks, N...you are the BEST. love ya big bro :)
I wish it was Saturday today...I could have finished all this work and still would have sunday to enjoy...but then I wonder, if I would have done anything if today was actually saturday..
Its a vicious circle.

Well..counter has begun..4 more days of classes..yuppee
and 2 weeks more to go home...!

Black friday..

2004-11-26T22:07:00.000-08:00

Went to bed at 2.30 am today...unable to sleep (like always)..tossing turning..thinking that I have to get up at 4 am to go to Best Buy and Fry's to stand in the line with millions of people in the hope of getting cheap deals. As I closed my eyes, I had this haunting memory of the last year's black friday sale with me freezing to death in the cold winter morning but still burning warm with the hope of buying something cheap. I remembered the faces of the people with me in line and the "hope" in their sleepy eyes. ....
Finally, I tried to sleep..

Its 11.30 am and suddenly I scream in my sleep, damn no more cheap deals for me :-(
I overslept..... I get up realizing its too late. So I dump the hope, and help my cousin make a nice heavy breakfast. I get a phone call from my roomate saying that she is in Fry's and there is still a lot of stuff lying around. i wonder what happened to people this time...Did everyone oversleep like me?
or people just don't care anymore about cheap deals? i wonder what is it...
I get ready to go to best buy. When I reach best buy, I see nothing "good" is left. I roam around for a while and look at some digicams and leave. next stop - Fry's ...same story at Fry's too...except for a little detail...I saw the end of Tommorrow Never dies on 61 inch flat screen TV($18999) at Fry's. There were more people around the TV than there were in the whole store ( ok ok mild exaggeration!) .... I finally exit the store thinking why are the things that I don't want always on SALE? Why can't they ever put something useful on sale..? I wonder.
People hoard these stores as if the stuff is being sold for free. But this is not really the truth. Companies make a huge profit during Thanksgiving Sales. According to the recent article I read on CNN money, it said that the companies' profits go from red to black (high profit)..hence the name Black Friday. and thanksgiving sales are the most profitable for companies even more than Christmas.

Still the question lingers in my mind...why can't I ever find something that I need in sales?

Falling into infinity

2004-11-25T23:45:00.000-08:00

By the time you reach your senior year in college, all the motivation , and feeling of being on the top of the world disappear in thin air. When you are a freshman, life is great, its 24 hrs party..day starts with going to every class...even the 8 am classes in the freaking winter! You not only go to every class but make a point to reach the class 7 minutes before the class and greet the prof when he enters the class with a huge dumb smile on your face :)
You not only make a point to scribble each and every word that comes out of your prof's mouth but also drive your fellow students and prof crazy with your endless cross-examination of the topic in discussion. But those sneering looks don't stop you. They make you smile with content. Oh! how awesome were those good old days...when as soon as you would get your first assignment, you would go back home(library) and work on it. At night, you sleep thinking why are college students considered Procastinators. Aha, well you might be just exceptional..that thought puts you on cloud nine...and you fall asleep nicely in the comfort of your thoughts.
Fast forward ...After about 2-3 yrs ( depending upon level of patience..)
Its 9.30 am, class starts in 1/2 hr...you are still in your bed...thinking just 2 more minutes...2 more mins will not make a difference. At the same time thinking, " man! I should have taken 12 o clock class ....10 am is too early :( " yeah, even 10 am becomes early 'cos you went to bed at 5 in the morning after finishing the HW due at 10. Mind you, you still have to print the paper you finished writing last night (ahem...this morning!) and yeah, write conclusion and results before you print it. Not bad...you can do it...after all you are exceptional!
You reach the class 20 mins late, your fellow students and prof give a look to you...and then to their watches...You give a dumb half hearted smile to your prof and friends..and then go and sit at the back of the class. While the class is going on, you try hard to focus your eyes on the board, not because you can't see it but because that stupid paper didn't let you sleep enough. After 5 mins of trying, you get tired and just don't care. In the next 20 mins, your mind wanders aimlessly in the class, outside the class , everywhere ...After a while you get tired of day dreaming so you start looking at the watch every 5 seconds for the class to get over. You are waiting impatiently for that beautiful sound of the bell which you hated in your freshman year.
Finally you get out of the class, your next class doesn't start before 1 hr, you go back to your dorm room to take a quick 45 mins nap.
As you are trying to sleep, you wonder what is wrong with you.
Realize that you are suffering from the disease called Seniorites ...symptoms: lack of motivation, feel sleep deprived, procastination, strong urge to turn off alarm clock every 5 mins in the morning, caffeiine overdose and incessant daydreaming......!

Physicians say Seniorites is totally curable. Symptoms disappear automatically the day you graduate. :-) So be happy and dont worry...Life is too short to spend worrying about Seniorites..

Finally...

2004-11-25T14:45:00.000-08:00

Finally, I am here: "The Blog World." Today, I pledge my allegiance to this new world and the new species, the Bloggers. Proud to be a BLOGGER....!