15 seconds of fame

So I was on national television for all of 15 seconds and frankly I don't think I made much sense. The question I had to answer was how as a woman I've contributed to the product I'm working on. Say what? I mean, I contribute. I do a good job. And maybe I do better than some other people would have, but how being a woman have I made a difference? Our roles are defined irrespective of gender and purely on skills and talent. Given the nature of my job I think I haven't really done anything special on account of being a woman. However, I believe that having a diverse team is an indication of a healthy team. Men and women are not wired the same, we approach problems differently and I guess it helps to have a mixed group when you are brainstorming or say tackling a problem. A woman's perspective might just come in handy specially so if it is a product you are designing with women consumers in mind.

As to why I got this opportunity, I wasn't the first choice, but the other person happened to be on leave and I volunteered. I'm camera shy and all that but hey I want to be famous too. :P Also funny how I'm usually never the first choice for many such events. Like recently,I got to go on campus placements (something I've always wanted to do) because someone else dropped out. That talk I gave once simply because no one else was qualified enough, the chance to 'garland' few delegates (in this case though I am not sure why I even agreed to do it).... Oh well, I'm not complaining.

China round up

While in China, I obsessed over the title of the post that I would eventually write. Should it be 'From Bangalore to Beijing', you know like 'Chandini chowk to China'. Or should it be called 'Beijing Bites'? All along I made notes on random observations that would go into this post. Back home, the notebook went missing and provided the perfect excuse for not writing at all. Today, I found the book but believe it or not the page in which I made those little notes has vanished. Maybe the perfect post was not meant to be and you will have to make do with these tit-bits that I remember...

* No google, facebook, twitter. The Chinese have their own versions of all these sites which they claim is far better than the original.
* People, people everywhere!
* And they look great. Wonder how they stay so thin and look young. Could it be the tea that they constantly drink?
* Had to face the horrid summer heat. It rained on only one day in all the time I was there and that was on my birthday.
* The traffic and the one hour long journey to work everyday made me feel at home. Even then it is not as chaotic as it is here.
* Communication was a big problem. It was like playing dumb charades everyday.
* This trip reminded me of my Turkey visit for many reasons. The feeling of old meets new, history lingering in every corner, the sense of pride the locals have...but then it is not the same. People are less friendly and guarded.
* There are quite a few Indian restaurants, I even found a Kamats restaurant. But wonder why Indian cuisine hasn't had the kind of influence Chinese has in India.
* Speaking of food, Indian-Chinese beats Chinese-Chinese any day ;)
* I didn't interact much with the locals there, my only source of information was the daily English news paper which I eagerly looked forward to everyday. Other than the daily news they'd write about how men were finding it hard to find women, of parents trying to 'arrange' their kids marriages, how they try to escape the one child policy...all in all very interesting.
* The subway system though crowded is the best way to travel within the city. Cheap, fast and efficient. I cant wait for Metro to take off in Bangalore.

That is all for now..here are some pics. Enjoy.

Tears for the nameless slob

So I very rarely cry watching movies but I was crying like a baby watching this scene from Breakfast at Tiffany's :



And I think it had nothing to do with her sudden realization following his monologue or them getting together...I think I just felt sorry for the cat. Maybe I miss B.

Anyhoo beautiful line this one is,

Because no matter where you run, you just end up running into yourself.

5

..is just a number!

Very old friends of my parents (henceforth referred to as uncle and aunty) have come down for a visit from Mumbai. My parents reconnected with them without the help of facebook, orkut or the internet for that matter. It took a single phone call and though they are meeting after 20+ years, it doesn't seem like that.

They had last seen me when I was 1.5 years old. Aunty said I look the same (she said that twice). That is good news.

Knowing that my mom is an artist Uncle asked me what is it that I have learnt from her. I was about to smile and say nothing really when my dad interrupted and said 'She visited US.......and she cooked for herself'. Now, I'm sure my parents are proud of me but I think I need to pick up some skill like knitting or something. I mean, 'Yes she knits very well' is so much better than 'We raised a daughter who has life skills'. Also funny how 'visiting US' is considered as an achievement. Or at least a cover up for not being talented.

Uncle said my dad was the best engineer in the company. It is something I knew already but was good to hear that from someone who actually worked with him.

Aunty claims she knows astrology and on reading my horoscope says I have some defect which has something to do with snakes. I think what this means is I might be a parseltongue. I am thrilled.

Chief I'm awesome Officer

I have always envied people with really cool designations. I once almost took up a job because they offered me a position that had an important sounding name though the profile was pretty ordinary. Unfortunately in the last few years I've had to make do with standard (read boring) designations. Not that I have a problem with my current role. I like what I do but on paper it translates to something very ordinary. I find myself searching for words trying to describe my role when people throw at me their oh-I'm-so-good job titles. This one time I chose a fancy name for my business card, it was rejected by someone who didn't even know me citing some obscure reason even though my manager had approved it. I never applied for any ever again. This is also one of the main reasons I never updated my profile at LinkedIn. Every time I tried, that horrible 'title' text box kept staring at me as if it was mocking, 'Really, is that all you are?'

Coming up with a summary or headline is an art in itself where being modest can work against you. I have much to learn, meanwhile I'll live with what I have - code monkey.

Dear 2009, Thank You for the memories

Late for the customary year end post,I'm sorry I was busy recovering. 2009 was a good year despite everything. Started with a bang and ended with a bang and it had the perfect mix of fun, personal achievements and disappointments. Looking back, I now realize that I did everything right....well almost. You cant blame for not trying. That's what I like about 2009, I have zero very few regrets. Another belief that was reinforced time and again last year was that eventually, everything turns out for the good. Let me see what I can turn this year into.


Happy 2010 people! All 6 of you :)