Diwali in USA

Was SriLanka actually the cause of Diwali? Was is only because Lord Ram conquered the small island and cleared the evil from earth and the homecoming was celebrated by jubilant Indians? Was it Goddess Durga who killed the demon on this day that we got to celebrate this day? Whatever be it Diwali brings a streak of joy into our lives. Theoritically demolishing the darkness and bringing us rays of new hope and clearing out the hazy mist of gloom surrounding us, Diwali rejuvenates us.

Back in India, for people, it is one day off from office and worse if it falls on a weekend! Lots of Fun, and excitement. The louder the cracker is the better Diwali gets. When I was in India last year this time, it had been so much fun. Know what, i had friends who could actually go to a countryside where the actual manufacturing units were! We got loads of all sorts of stuff as if we were going to fight the world war! Dozens of friends' faces suddenly come live from just being email IDs to person coz lots of them come home on a vacation and it is real fun.

In US, the scenario is completely different.

Not a sound. Complete silence of the cool fall season with some leaves rustling in the evening. My devilish mind was thinking of ways how to burst something and the only way which came to me and was feasible was to fill a polythene bag brought from IndiaMart and Foodmart with air, close the mouth of it and slap it hard so that it bursts!!!! - Happy Diwali to Indians in the USA.

Osama.. Bin Laden..
If you try to burst something which makes a larger sound that that above, then chances are that you will get a complete green card to stay in the US on the charges of being a terrorist and the color of your skin will make you the best candidate for that. All kinds of Zajeera, Quaeeda will suddenly start making sense to you and the 911 number!

People tell me that at the local Middletown temple, we have a puja and there are lamps lit so that people here atleast remember a day when we lit lamps to celebrate the victory of light over darkness. Complete ABCD - American Born Confused Desi! Met a girl in Orkut (Thanks to the Google Accuisition, Orkut is common place Open Bathroom now!) who is Indian by name and American by everything else. I asked if she knows about Diwali and she said yes- Know what?

The price of the airline tickets to India at that time of the year soars up and we avoid travelling to India during that time. This is Diwali to people over here in the US. Often at times when i see people at the temple, i think about myself. We are all here because there is something which has kept us away from our homes but the culture we have of faith in God still remains, and the longer that message gets passed on to the newer generations the better for all of us.

Well, it is not that bland.

In US, in areas as New Jersey and Boston, we do have Diwali celebrations and in the mini-India - New Jersey, you could actually find people with crackers. And there are cultural nites organised so that people chill out in the evening. Contrary to Indians in India, here the better if Diwali falls on a weekend so that every one can enjoy the occasion.

Whatever be it, Howsoever environment friendly it might be by reducing the pollution and noise pollution, nothing like holding a Taal Futkaa, watching it Zhur Zhoor a bit and then blast it!!

KEEP WATCHING THIS SPACE..

NICK will be back soon.

Nick in his new attire

No!!!!

Please don't look at the T-shirt which I am wearing. Now dont go back to take a look once again! Actually good thing about the snap was i am only half exposed! The other half wore a sneakers!!

::Software Engineer's Daily Diary::

It has been nearly 8 months of my stay over here in the USA. Life here is pretty fast. The day dawns for every software engineer in the US at 7.15 AM in the morning( Dont kill me if I am not exactly accurate!!) And for the bachelor's with 3 people staying the same 1 BHK apartment, the rush to the restroom door is a sight to see! Each has a time slot and the first one comes out and goes to sleep again. The second one comes out and wakes up the third one. The third one comes out, puts milk in the microwave and wake up others! All three get ready for another hectic but enjoyable day ahead!


Who will drive the car?
Luckily for me, Sushovan and I drive alternatively so there are no hassles!And the cool breeze of the October falls swishes past and tells you that you have forgot your jacket inside! Once you get into the parking lot of the office, the fight starts - the first one- find a parking place, remember it and walk to your desk. As you walk down the aisle to the secure entrance, you are reminded of the the corridors of the company which sent you here and you thank God that you are here away from the place! :)

And you reach your desk! The red color blinker on the phone at your desk reminds you how important you are and how many people miss you when you are not around. Keep your pen and pencil ready to take the numbers from the voicemails when the computer starts booting. Once all set, Press Alt+Ctrl+Del and start the day ahead. I usually open my email box at 8.40 AM and find 40 emails staring at me, each waiting for their turn to be read! One by one I reach to the one which had come last and then look up in the chain in inbox to see another 15! And the mails keep coming like that for the rest of the day! I forgot.. Some find their way into the PSTs( People who are not software engineers - PST is a local folder on your machine where you archive your old emails!). Oh No! Do you think i keep looking at emails all day? I reply to them! And in a day i get around 230 odd mails and i reply to them each! But yes, it is all taken for granted that there has to have valid content which makes sense to the recipient or else the number of mails increases in the inbox! The matter is being escalated!!

Boy! Its time for the L1 meeting. The Level1 Meeting- What is done here? No idea. People dial in. Wait for your turn to speak up your name. 'Hi this is Subhendu from EPDB! - Subhendu Patta Nick!' Then press the #5 to mute your phone! And you dont need to learn Microprocessors to understand what multitasking is! - You have to respond to the emails which keep coming when you are in the meeting! Boy! The typing speed grows like anything! The meeting ended! Drop down saying - Thank you.

Another window goes red. Another meeting is due in next 15 minutes.. :)) The triage meeting. The Weekly Status meeting. Let me introduce some characters here! -
The Project Manager( Project level)- He knows something about the project and needs status if a person sneezes regularly and is not sneezing today!
The Delivery Lead - He needs to explain the Project Manager why the person si not sneezing today and asks you to explain it!
Other App tester/Developer - He needs your sneeze to trigger his application sneeze! He needs data from you.. He is the Downstream system!!

Boy! The lunch time is gone.. Did you miss the lunch? How could you? Time to take a break. Checkout the restroom atleast twice a day! Finally it is 2 PM in the afternoon and the Mail storm seems to subside.. The client team is calling it a day and reclining! :) Take the offshore issues now and sit with the development team..

Few more hours which include the gruelling setups, xpeditor and what not..Finally the clock strikes a 6 15PM and you are out to shutdown the machine. Lock the computer if you want to save sometime tomorrow early morning! Time to call Sushovan and Dipayan over the IM!

Finally you reach home. If my grandson asks someday to tell me a story, i will teach him english and make him read out this blog of mine!! The day is not yet done..

Time to clean the utensils and check the writing on the wall- My turn to cook!! God.. Take up all possible vegetables if they look greeen. Cut into small pieces. Peel off the skin if the vegetable looks brown or black! Put all of them into water. Put the Ruchi masala from India Mart, tune the Burner to Medium and take a nap. Dont forget to set an alarm! Wake up and stir the bowl and food is ready.. To be thrown out!!:) I have very understanding roomies.. they never complain, but they rely on the packed ready-to-eat items bought from the India Mart!

Its 9 45PM. Time to get ready for the offshore call! Open the mailbox over the Xtranet once more and start responding to the piles of emails since you left office! Its 10 30 now means Offshore time starts now! 7 AM Indian time!

11 people come over and take their seats in a conference room. And then mass ragging starts! :)) My offshore team is real nice and efficient. But still my calls extend till 2 3o AM in the morning. Hey you missed the dinner too! No probs. Take it when you enjoy Sarabhai V/s Sarabhai over MusicnMovies.com! Its 3 AM in the morning. Time to go to sleep now.

And the software engineer calls it a day!

It may seem hectic, but i enjoy every bit of this life. Coz you know my parents back in India take pride in telling people that my son is working in USA! And for them, anything it takes.

Keep watching this space!