Latent knowledge

Most of us lead our day to day life believing we know only what we see and what we are currently involved with. How many of you believe that we still carry the education around that we got in school, college or post grad to our work desks or daily lives? Well, I for once believed I had forgotten what I learnt in Engineering and MBA or even in my previous jobs only to be jolted back to reality to realize that a lot of what I learnt is what I am and carry around with me everyday.

I happened to be facing a very tough interviewer today, who didn't seemed very convinced about my Engineering degree in particular. The general notion of "Women engineers: Really????". I have to admit that he tongue tied me with a simple question based on how we design a circuit, which tools we use and on what is it designed on. For a minute there, I was dismayed and then he said, if I just answered the basics...he would go on a limb to get me in....and guess what...my latent knowledge wasn't as dormant as I thought it was....! What's wonderful about our brain is...it's superb timing!

I must say I was delighted by the function of  "The brain"! I read so much junk on days and watch so much rubbish, I'd think that a part of my brain was actually dying and getting killed. But may be our brain has a filter function to it, which just seems to filter out the rubbish and instead store some of what it thinks is important. Which brings me back to another important question: What do you think is the storage capacity of our brain? Do you think there is a memory limit on it like our hard-drives today?I sure hope not...!!Hmmm....

So, whether you use the knowledge that you received in all those institutes you attended or are attending..the point is...it stays with you...to your grave...and that my friends is remarkable!

Cheers!! And keep learning :)

Celebrating Men!

Today's blog is dedicated to all the wonderful men in my life. I have seen how often women are celebrated and there is always this talk about women's empowerment and women's right but nobody asks the men, if they'd like some rights and empowerment too :) !

I have had the bliss of being with some of the most awesome men ever! The best times of my life were in Engineering with three of my best friends being guys. This is not to say I didn't have female friends but the tantrums I could get away with my guy friends were sheer joy. I remember this one time I decided to ride an elephant to college and my guy friends encouraged me on my outrageous behavior and guess what I did..I did just that.My toughest break-ups never seemed hard with my male friends around, we didn't have to talk about them or cry about them. I just rested in knowing the fact that there were better men around, the men who would make me feel safe and respect my space and decisions.

At work I never felt the need to fight for any rights or empowerment. I was always equal. I always had friends and men to treat me as equal. I remember my male friend telling me "Don't ever sell yourself short!" and till date I never have.

Today I continue to have an equal number of male and female friends. There is no distinction in the love, the honest advice and the support that I seem to draw from both the sexes. If at all, some of my male friends can be more critical and more honest than my female friends and I give them that because some of them continue to live with my drama more realistically and closely.

We women can be very moody and to be honest we are like the song by Billy Joel: "She's always a woman to me". Yet another man celebrating a woman. It's time for women to move on in life and to find these right men.

I think some of our fathers could have been more than very hard on us. We cannot change that, but the one thing we can do in life is to choose to be with men who respect us, can care about us, sometimes cry with us, support us and love us through our flaws. They may be tough on their exteriors but actually they are just like us.

These men exist! I want every woman who reads this today to know that. I've had the good fortune of meeting some really nice guys out there. And might I add, they have treated me nothing less than a princess. So to all the women out there, smarten up, find these men, take my help and make them your Prince!

Cheers to all you wonderful men out there!!

What are we really afraid of?

Most of us live our lives in fear.  The fear could vary from a simple rejection from a college/job/loved ones, un-accepatance from a society, the fear of public speaking, the fear of speaking a foreign language, the fear of interviews, the fear of losing a job, the fear of not getting that job,the fear of heights, the fear of the dark, the fear of water, the fear of the unknown, the fear of a screw-up....and so on.

I face a fear too. I'm afraid to lose control, control of situations, afraid to lose control of my emotions and to lose control of MYSELF. But then I ask myself, if every situation was planned and every bend in the road known, then how would I be able to justify my existence?

The other thing I thought about between yesterday and today were the circumstances that some people have had to deal with. I saw "Black Friday" and "Munich" yesterday. I saw the manipulation, the human play of emotions, the agendas, the propagandas and how lives could be played with. It makes life seem so little and precious.

Another stark reality for me is my country: India. A place where poverty, hunger, rape, unemployment, the worthlessness of life exists. In my country fear cannot be evaded, it has to be fought.Being competitive  in my country is not someones ability, it is a necessity. Hard work is not a choice but a compulsion.

I realize that part of our fear comes from our circumstances.The one with the circumstances, unfortunately cannot be dealt with, it's what life gave us.The other part comes from within, having to justify your existence to yourself. I think what is most important is to kill our own fears one by one. To try something different each day.To get up in the morning and resolve to try harder. To live life and celebrate whatever comes your way everyday.

We will always live with the unknown whether we like it or not..so the only option we have is to : KILL THAT FEAR!

10 Most boring questions of the century!

Ok so am full-on talli right now...but this was based on a real survey carried out through a bunch of friends and my personal experience...so here goes...people pls. point out the mistakes in the morning if any and I'll mend it in the morning...

Q1. "How are you doing?"/"Are you alright?"
A1. Definitely what I generally think and I know a bunch of you..."Yes F***er, I am fine"...if I'm in a group..don't you see..I got a bunch of people with me right here, right now..."No, I'm not"..if I'm having that last ciggi or the last drink in my hand all alone....
General advice: If you really care, give me a hug now, everything will be fine! If I'm with the bunch of people, someone will get punched real hard tonight...oooops!!

Q2. "So...you from India...you have the caste system..."/ "So..you from Russia...you drink a lot of Vodka..."/" So..you from Brazil..you speak Spanish/visit the carnival every year...?"
A2. "So....you probably ARE uneducated and have never ever worked in a cooperate environment..because if you DID...you would be talking about our economy and looking beyond the stereotype"
General advice: Stay off the stereotype..get balls or whatever....talk about something else, you have lost our interest already..really..so "Buzz off"

Q3. "Do you think I look fat?"
A3. If I say "Yes"...you'd hate me...if I say "No"...you think I am liar!
General advice: Don't ask me/us..look in to the mirror...if possible give me a manual to tell you the truth...!!

Q4." Do you love me?"
A4. Tricky question...if I did love you...I would say it without you asking me...if I haven't said it..."Dude, I'm really not that in to you, so take a hike!"
General advice: A good question to irritate the shit out of someone...do ask them if you want to annoy them and want them to take a hike...otherwise..don't ask them...please do us a favor like "World peace!"

Q5." Why haven't you added me on Facebook?"
A5. Well...."Mostly because I don't want you stalking me and getting too personal"....could be " I don't like you enough for you to see how awesome I really am!"
General advice: Take the hint or again take a hike!

Q6. "So...where is you husband?"
A6. Hmm...."We weren't born twins and I'm not good with ESP..so I don't know...but most importantly...why do you want to know...you like him too?"
General advice: Marriage can also be a freedom of expression...some people choose it regardless!

Q7. "Has being married changed your life?"
A7." SURE it has...don't you see the horns on my head and the tail that follows me...you must try it too..FUN!"
General advice: Keep away from stupid questions..makes you look weird and DUMB!

Q8."What's new?"
A8." If there was something new, would I be sitting here with you?"
General advice: If you can, tell me what's new with you otherwise take a seat next to the bartender!

Q9."How is the weather?"
A9."Really now....we have nothing in common do we...????So why are you still in my face!!!!"
General advice: Try this with some really really dumb and boring people, you want to get rid off!!

Q10. "What are the most boring questions you ever came across in your little life?"
A10." Exactly the one that you asked me!"
General advice: Unless you are as cute as me..don't even try to ask them!

SO....thanks guys for the eventful TGIF....I am proud to present to the world...what exactly they shouldn't be asking people and boring them with....

For the rest of you who read this...please don't ask me the above questions and bore the s**t out of me and the rest of the world!

Question: Can Students and teachers be friends?

So...as life would have it..I had to get in to teaching, which is the best profession by the way, it's honest+adds value to your life+adds value to other people's life. Now about the latter part: How far can we (teachers) take it?

I am not talking about a general "Good will hunting" kind of theme. I am talking about bringing out personalities outside the classroom. Is it overstepping the boundaries, to take out your student for a coffee and talk about their problems and also being able to help them out in life, in the little ways you can?Hmm...

Help me here someone...pour in your opinions and ideas. Is it too wrong to be able to help a struggling student in getting used to a place or getting used to people? I have some great ideas on how I could change the way people see their circumstances. I personally deal with very non-normal (not abnormal!!!!) situations in my day to day life and I am as far as I know "the most nonjudgmental" person alive....So could I not just help beyond the barriers of a classroom....????

Hmm....whoever reads this...collect your thoughts and pour in your suggestions...

Cheers!!

Restlessness=Sleeplessness

I always end up not sleeping on the days I feel I haven't worked hard enough. I wonder am I an exception to this restlessness. At times I feel like I am caught in a time zone of stillness. A time, where it is too late to go back and too early to move forward. It's not even a cross-roads, because there are no decisions to be made, just an unexplained stillness.

As I look out the window at this unearthly hour, I see the tree outside my window, the one that has to bear with my smoke rings and my still thoughts. It has to bear with all the unspoken questions in my head, where do I go from here tomorrow?Why do I feel this utter restlessness and why can't I pick up the phone and annoy a grumbling friend?Unfortunately, the tree nor I have the answers today. Too bad.

I wonder what it takes to quench the restlessness of an uneasy soul. Could a gratifying job, loads of money, an enormous friend circle, a revolutionary cause be the answer? Who knows? I definitely don't.

I only know that on days I've burnt myself out physically and mentally can I get a charming sleep. Hmm...time to work harder I guess....

God can you give me a million pounds...I need to open a disc/bar/cafe/gym that is open for the sleepless and restless :)

Cheers

The eeriness of Stuttgart

I have lived in Stuttgart for almost 2 years now..so technically I'm no longer a Delhite and more likely a Stuttgartner. Although there are still a few things that disturb me about the city, I call home. Today as I walked out of the train station, I saw a female with her head ducked inside her hands, it was so evident that she was sobbing that even the deaf or the blind would melt in pity. As I came out of the train, with more than 50 people, stepping out on the platform at the same time,I noticed, not one person stopped to ask her what was bothering her or why she felt the need to sob in public. Initially neither did I. Then I thought and re-collected all the experiences I've heard from all foreigners and residents here, how sometime or the other they have broken down, not to be heard or seen by anyone.

May be it was just the day or it was the empathy I carried back from London or the Indian in me, to stop and ask. There wasn't anything I could do for her but ask if she needed to talk. The episode struck such a stinging reality about Stuttgart. No one cares here. It's tough to find out why but people don't like to see or hear things here. Why is everyone so quiet or sad...days on the train could be like people are going for a funeral. Some people even carry blood-shot eyes and no it's not because they are doped but because they are depressed.

If everyone here is as lonely as they say they are or feel that there is no one to celebrate with...then why is there no empathy or humanness? Why is a developed nation, the city which has the third lowest crime rate, no cut-throat competition and no starvation..be so cold and dark?Why do people here "NOT CARE"....? Why does it lack human emotion or character...

May be I am too new here to understand and may be I will never understand or belong here...but I never want to belong to a place so inhuman or cold...