Bench..

I know it evokes feelings of a paid vacation for a IT professional. For the non-IT folks, on bench is a term we use to denote a period when a resource is not generating revenue and is waiting for his/her next project.

Usually on bench is a time people dream of. In TCS since there is computer allocated to a project and never to a employee , so we never have a PC , or a cubicle to sit when on bench. So all you do is drop your phone number to RMG(Resource Management Group) and stay at home.

I have had the pleasure of bench more than once. When I was on bench in offshore(noida) for the first 15 days I was really thrilled as I finished up all my pending tasks. No more scheduling office work so that I could leave early and finish just 1 of the so many tasks. Now in just 2-3 days everything was done. No issues with having to travel to other part of delhi for a trivial issue.

But it soon becomes boring and irritating as all you do is watch everyone rush to work every morning. Then you realise that you are the only one on bench, all your friends are still working !!! So I thought that I should pick some certifications, attend "six thinking hats" training. But soon that also turned to be really boring, I cant just be reading the whole day.I then started spending time in office playing TT and burning calories in gym, but that still did not help.

It was then that I realized how important office gossip is to my health.I wanted to know who had a fight with his onsite counterpart, who has a crush on whom, who are the new freshers in project, who fought with his Project manager and so on and on. Ya my phone bill went through the roof during those bench months

These days I am again on bench, this time at onsite, ya I know people go WoW!!, but it is not that great.First because I dont get months to stay on bench, if I dont get a project soon I might be bundled to Delhi. Second I dont have a office to go and play TT or kill time in gym. Besides that I have to spend time anticipating client interview and then the day ends with no phone call.

I had recommended to lot of people to pickup some new to learn, but it is actually not that easy, because you are constantly worried about your future project/allocation. Hope my uncertanity ends soon or I will go nuts !!

How to drink right

I know very few men who do not drink. Most of the people start to drink in college days and usually in college all that we drink is whisky with Pepsi or beer. It is usually spur of the moment decision and a competition among friends to drink as much as possible. This result of all this is that we just don't enjoy our drink that much and neither do we know various fusion possible with alcohol.

I had also experienced the above, so decided to find out more about drinking. I found couple of interesting links.

Vodka is my favourite, so I was really curious how people manage to drink so much of it in Russia. I got my answer here.

Tequila is also a very popular party drink, the link here mentions some variations to try out.

I have never tried brandy, so this website served as a good introduction.

Beer !!! who has not drank beer ? and what possibly could be there to learn about it ? Apparently there are still some things that most people don't know. Some of it can be found at this website.

Wine !! Wish I could find time to visit vineyards at napa valley to witness the actual process of making wine. Here's a little introduction on how to drink it.

And finally, something I am truly amused about and am going to try tonight. Ice cream with Rum.

Lonely...

As you wander as a lonely
You wander as a lonely at night
You wander as a lonely on sight
You wander as a lonely at day
You wander as a lonely and pray
You wander as a lonely each day

Slow down, slow down
Shut down, shut down
Shutdown the lonely before you drown
Embrace your friends with warmth
They can give you assistance
Deliver you from your lonely existence

You keep fighting love
Bending it around like a curve
With your glowering face
Reserving only a lonely place,
Halting happiness to arrive in your life

Do you ever stop to wonder?
Do you ever stop to ponder?
Are you the reason for the lonely blunders?

Slow down, slow down
Shut down, shut down
Remove from your head that lonely crown

You wander endlessly as a lonely
Searching for a spot called homely
But your face is missing that vital smile called lovely

Copyright 2006 - Sylvia Chidi
Sylvia Chidi

Scrap BRT, but why ??

All of us must have read dozens of articles about how BRT has been a nightmare. For a change I saw a different view in Times of India. The author is absolutely right. May be the government needs to go another step in discouraging people from using cars. Anyways the rate at which we are adding cars in Delhi, it is pretty clear any number of expressways and 8 lane highways will not solve the problem. Swaran jayanti expressway is a testimony to this.

I have been to San Franciso,New york and Washington, nowwhere does government encourage people to bring there own cars in main downtown, public transport is efficient and is the preffered mode of transport.

If government sticks to BRT soon people will realize the time they save by travelling in bus. Government has already taken a decision to add more international style city buses. I believe soon it will be as good as Metro. Remember people cursed metro big time all along its construction period.

IF.....

IF you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!'

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son!

My friend shaifali suggested me this link. Thanks a lot shaifali

(www.kipling.org.uk/poems_if.htm)

For those who dont know shaifali, she is a FMS graduate and also a budding politician. She contested from Lucknow seat for MP and is an active member of lok paritran party. It amazes me how she can be active and brilliant in so many things.

Research in India

I was reading TOI and came across this nice article. click here to read it. It is so very true, phd in india in most of the institutes except for IIT's and IISc is done in this fashion. Although my friends at PEC would be really upset, but I must say that is the case at PEC,Chandigarh also.

I still remember being told by my guide at PEC in subtle language to look for some repetitive thesis, rather than original one. Let me quote him "Think of research as a tree , so if someone has been on one leaf, then you should try to be on the neighbouring leaf". wow !! what better way can you find to instruct your student to copy some one's thesis. Now I don't remember what I was thinking of researching on ,but I googled on some topics and came up with a published thesis. From then on I thought of it as a programming assignment.

Though I do remember Prasad Sir, who used to scold us like anything for not devoting enough time at research ( and sitting like couples at verka drinking coffee with friends). We were all told to devote at least 4-5 hours in library, but he was all alone in his quest. Guy in above article mentions of thesis on bank in every university( that had me laughing for 10 minutes ), I think we in IT have our own equivalents, like neural networks ( yup I did my thesis on it).

I think that research is in this state because it is just not paying enough. A guide should be thinking above the meagre allowance they get per student.

Having said all this , I must still say PEC did take my career to great heights, but it rocks because of the efforts students put in.

Holi @ San Diego

Well today was the festival of Holi and I must say we celebrated it as we might have done it in india. Infact last couple of my holi in india would pale in comparison. Expect for one unfortunate incident, everything else was real fun. Had I known that we would be playing real holi , then I would have brought some eggs and lots of other stuff also.