Tsunami Support

I'll not write much about the Tsunami since most of you know about it. All I can say is it needs your help and contribute as much as you can towards helping the people try to put their lives back together.

I personally chose AID India to send my money to since they have been great in disbursing the funds immediately. You can contribute to them at http://survivors.aidindia.org.

If you prefer to contribute to other organisations, here is a bunch of them:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1229/p10s01-usgn.html
http://www.bapscare.org/mediacenter/announcements/2004/tsunamireliefwork.htm
https://www.aidindia.org/aidadmin/DonateToRRF.jsp
http://www.idrf.org/dynamic/modules.php?name=Hnnews&file=article&sid=157
https://www.myhelpinghands.org/tsunami.asp
http://www.ashanet.org/index.php?page=tsunami-relief
http://www.nextgenfoundation.org
http://www.providentliving.org/content/display/0,11666,5595-1-2910-1,00.html
http://www.indianredcross.org/donation.html
http://www.seedsindia.org
http://pay.hindu.com/thrfpay/thrfpay.jsp
http://www.redcross.org or call 800-HELP-NOW
http://www.americares.org or call 800-486-4357
http://www.doctors-withoutborders.org or call 888-392-0392
http://www.mercycorps.org or call 888-256-1900
http://www.savethechildren.org or call 800-728-3843
http://www.careusa.org or call 800-521-2273

Also you can check the local and online news sources for other means to help. The following blog has some additional info on the Tsunami relief efforts.

http://tsunamihelp.blogspot.com/

Just remember, you can make a difference.

Goodbye Texas !

I am leaving the Lone Star state to head towards greener and definitely much colder pastures of Pennsylvania. It has been a fun time in Texas. I arrived in summer when the heat was definitely unbearable but winter has been a very nice time indeed. Chill but not really depressingly cold. Since Irving has been my only experience away from the northeast, it would be interesting to compare the two regions.

Texas is wide, vast and huge - in all aspects. The roads are much wider with a lot of lanes, definitely much more than say the PA Turnpike or most areas of I-95. While there are a lot of people in TX too, the prevalence of more strip-malls mean that there is a greater sense of space and fewer people here than in Boston on NY where there are a lot of people everywhere. The street lights system is definitely a big plus in Irving while I sorely groped for light in the streets of eastern PA. Weather wise, the Texas area definitely gets pretty hot in summer and thats in Dallas. I cant imagine how hot it can get in San Antonio or Houston. But then the winters are definitely bearable. The same cannot be said for Philly or Boston where cold assumes a whole diffrerent meaning in January and February. Also, the year-long presence of an amazing Farmers Market is awesome for a fruit lover like me.

On the flip side, a weekend in Dallas offers very little option for the travel enthusiast. Not the same in the Northeast. From Philly for example, NYC is 2 hours, Boston is 5 hours, the Niagara and Toronto is 7 hours, Baltimore is 2 hours and Washington D.C is all of three hours. And each of these places require atleast 2-3 weekend trips to truly see everything that it has to offer. From Dallas, its Austin, Houston and San Antonio, again and again. I hear that Arkansas can be really beautiful in Fall but that is still all of 5 hours drive from here. I wish there were more things to do. Downtown Dallas when compared to the downtowns on Boston, NYC or Philly is really non-existent.

All said, it has been a great experience, the last 7 months in Dallas, TX. I have managed to enjoy the best of what Texas has to offer and hope to be back someday to visit the places I couldnt this time over-Houston, Corpus Christi and many more !

Till then, its sayonara Texas !

The Protocol of gifting

Well, its that time of the year when the roads are clogged and the malls buzzing with activity. Tensions are running high and people are making sure their gift lists are all inclusive of their near and dear, not to mention the "important" ones. I figured what better to write about than the whole protocol of gifting. While I dont celebrate Christmas, in India we do have Diwali where people exchange stuff but at a totally different scale. Its more of homemade sweets and new dresses and less of having to buy things thoughtfully for one and all.

I have asked a few friends of mine as to why there is so much importance attached to gifting during Christmas and well, not many had an answer. They said they were doing it because they have been doing it all their life and their parents did it and so on. Here is an interesting "Christian" article on why people give gifts on Christmas. I am not convinced. Its nice to give and receive gifts, always. But is there a reason why its done at this time of the year ?. Or is it one of the ways corporate America gets to sell its products worth billions to the masses with a reason to boot ?

Many of my male friends complain about having to go through the rigors of buying gifts and that it tires and bores them to no end. Not to mention the bloated credit card bills. If this is indeed the attitude of many, why do it for the sake of doing it? Isnt it the spirit of giving that matters and not the gift itself. As O.Henry so beautifully wrote in his short story, "The Gift of the Magi", isnt it really in the spirit of things to want to give rather than have to give ?

So what if they kissed ?

The latest big thing to hit the desi tabloids after the Delhi Public School MMS scandal is the so called "public kiss" shared by Kareena Kapoor and Shahid Kapur. Lots of space has been used for this big kiss that I figured I gotta blog it. If you have'nt been following the story here is a link to it.

As a response to the photo article, Kareena and Shahid have denied that it was them. In addition, they have slapped a Rs. 20 crore lawsuit on the publishers of Mid day. Kareena has also claimed that she would "fight for her dignity". C'mon folks, who are we kidding here ?

Firstly, I think the issue has been totally blown out of proportion. Whats in a kiss ? She likes him. He likes her. So they kiss. I dont see any problem with that. If Mid Day publishes the photo, Id see Kareena feeling bad about it but suing them for it?. Thats weird. I mean, this is the same Kareena who can professionally strip to her underwear for movies and kiss and cuddle and what not "on screen". Now if the same person does it in real life, whats the big deal with it. The Indian public for long has had this really hypocritical view of things. While sex in all its glory shall be beamed in the various music video channels and movies after movies claiming to show "not porn" but the greatness of the Indian woman coming as a spurt, why do we still have issues with someone kissing in public. You wanna see it, see it. You think its gross, turn your face away. Simple as that. Why make such a big deal. This whole idea of keeping sex in the bedroom doesnt work anymore. Period. Learn to handle it maturely. Not like a convent school kid !

And Kareena and Shahid, grow up. If someone caught pics of you smooching, does it matter. Really ? Isnt it all too much to make a hue and "cry" about it. Isnt it time to either get a room to smooch in private if thats what you want or get over it and move on with your life. Isnt it how things should be?

And finally...

Finally its over. The Laci Peterson case is history. The California jury has pronounced its verdict. Its death for Scott and relief for millions of Americans. I thought people in this country had a lot to do other than follow a routine murder trial in some corner of the country. Boy was a wrong.

The Laci Peterson case has consumed reams and reams of paper, sites after sites on the web (last Google count was 295,000) and hours of discussion on the television networks. I can personally remember not less than 4 Larry King Live episodes dedicated to the topic. C'mon folks, dont we have better things to do with our time. There are so many things happening around the world that needs our attention. But we try to spend our time in what is really the biggest soap opera for everyone concerned other than Scott Peterson and the families of the parties concerned. My condolences to the Laci Peterson family but I definitely think they would have preferred a much peaceful aftermath to their daughter's horrific death than the abundance of media attention that has been thrown at them.

Are we really so gossip and tabloid crazy that we focus on such otherwise trivial murder cases with this amount of public scrutiny ? Dont we really have anything else to read, write or think of?

The Ego Thing!

Well, I definitely debated a lot before raking up this issue. For one, it is something I havent found an answer for myself, yet. Also, it is a trifle dicey for a lot of friends and relatives but what the heck!

When I left for the US to study and make it big, my argument to the folks who wanted me to stay back was that there werent enough "good" jobs in India for my liking. By good I was referring to R&D and development positions in the telecommunications industry. I was true then and my argument held. The year was 2000.

But things changed, albeit dramatically in the next few years. Companies started moving their work,lock, stock and moneyed barrels to India and it all kept moving. Meanwhile I had completed my Masters and was starting to look for jobs. As luck would have it I got a good position working on a 3G protocol stack development project and was happy. But I was alarmed to know that there were a few hundred if not more people, doing the same work in India. The year was 2002.

Its 2004 now and I have since then changed jobs or rather clients, twice. The last two jobs are heavily testing oriented and while they have been pretty interesting and cutting edge, they are no different from the jobs in India. In fact in the last one year, I have had interview calls in India for extremely exciting, cutting edge wireless positions. Somehow I am unable to let go of my American dream of 2000. Why?

Are we, the Indians in America, or atleast a vast majority of us, living a lie ? Are we really doing jobs that are so great, they arent available or open to us at home ? For me, I think its an ego thing. I love my life here. I admit I miss my family and friends. But the independence and standard of living I get here is good enough for me to not want to go back. Those do make good reasons but isnt that different from what we came here for?. I am still soul searching on that one.

Do you have it in you?

I have put down some of the key things that an Indian male needs to know and follow to survive two or three days weddings in India. While the list might be more applicable to south Indian weddings, it wouldnt hurt to read em anyways.

1. Be prepared to endure long nights and early mornings. If you are a coffee drinker, great. Else for all non-coffee folks like me, better get onto something that'll keep you awake. Grad students, rejoice. Its back to semester end project submission days where sleep was a precious quantity, rare and much valued and the owls retired to bed earlier than you did.

2. Learn to smile and keep it plastered on your face for hours together. You are going to have to smile so much, you'll probably stop smiling for the rest of life.

3. Make sure you have plain-glasses handy if you dont already wear glasses. The ritual smoke is going to fill your eyes and all others that can see or feel with a hazy feeling for the rest of the day. And yes, it hurts and irritates like crazy. I recommend a small bottle of Visine in your kitbag.

4. Think four times before choosing any pant or shirt that is light in color for your wedding related procedures. Trust me, its going to get stained and soiled and you dont want your hard-earned dollars and meticulously chosen shirt or pant condemned to the bottom of your closet for the rest of your life. Khakis are a strict no-no.

5. Make sure you are seen as a world-savvy individual who is street smart and knowledgeable. Else you be prepared for "The Talk". For the record, I didnt get one :)

6. Take some memory pills with you. You are going to be subjected to a never-ending stream of "Do you remember me ?" routine and its inhuman to remember so many people.

7. Start visiting the gym a few months in advance of your wedding. A soft and gentle person is well received, not a soft body with a *lot* of flesh all over. If you are a person on the heavier side, it still doesnt hurt firming up your body. You can then pass off with the "Mappilai is so chubby and cute" comment.

8. Learn to do the "Sample but dont eat" thing. You are going to be pummeled with food from all directions and its simply not possible to say No. Added to which is the nausea and tiredness you are going to encounter during the wedding, its not possible to really eat everything. For once, even too little of something is not too good. So learn the art of sampling (taking the food item to your tongue is considered sampling here) and resisting the urge to eat like you normally would. It helps, trust me. And yeah, the rest room even if clean and close to your living quarters is going to get messy and pretty much unreachable as the marriage procedures hit their peak.

9. Do not drink a lot of water. As I noted in the previous line, rest rooms are suddenly going to disappear or become inaccesible. Keep yourself hydrated but not too much.

10. Make sure you say "No" to gifts and presents in your wedding invitation itself. Or be prepared for 20 clocks and 100 Ganesha idols. Any takers ?

11. Concoct a nice story to describe your job. A standard software engineer doesnt work anymore. There are already enough and more out there. And yes, have an answer handy as to why you are not working in Bangalore or Chennai but in the US. The oldies are going to keep asking you to come back home and rightly so.

12. Finally, the worst of them all. Be prepared to watch all the beautiful girls in the wedding and realising the enormity of the situation- They are off-limits !!!. Its all over,gentlemen. Time to hang the boots.

Sapthapadi - The seven steps of life.More photos soon !  

Life in the crowded slow lane

I just returned from a fantastic trip to India and boy, was it fun ! Everytime I head home its a great few weeks of meeting umpteen relatives and eating by the cartloads and meeting old friends and spending time just talking with all and sundry. This time the trip was even more special because I had decided to hang up my bachelor boots and get married. So it was twice the number of relatives(old and new) and much more eating, not to mention a whole lot of travelling. It was a whirlwind trip where I barely got to spend time at home but was just moving from place to place. India has changed quite a bit and it was fun.

One thing that stuck me as soon as I landed inIndia is the fact that there is more money changing hands and there are much more middle and upper class people than there were before. Prices of essential items have shot up and the luxury brands of the world whichin the past, one could either drool at, or travel abroad and pay ridiculous amounts of import duty to own, are now easily available in most metros. Chennai has much more upscale shops and many more buyers but the place refuses to get cleaned up. This year the monsoons have been unusually very active and the roads were all damaged and slushy. How I wish the tax revenue is ploughed back into improving the infrastructure in an efficient manner :(

Coimbatore, my hometown has way more two-wheelers than before and also much more upscale hangouts to boot. More and more mansions of the past are being converted to apartment complexes which, while increasing the number of people in the area, also seems to be affecting the roadscape in a negative manner.

Nagercoil, a small town at the southern tip of the country, where my wife comes from was a town trying to stay small but grappling with growing pains. The countryside was picturesque though and the wedding was a grand affair.

Jobs are all over the place, expecially in the IT area and call centers seem to be mushrooming all over the country. Newspapers are filled with IT job openings and more and more MNCs seem to be setting up development (not testing) centers in the country. All this bodes well in the short-term for a nation filled with colleges with IT programs. In the long run, indigineous manufacturing and R&D should be encouraged to make sure the boom does not go bust.

In all, as my friend indicated in one of our discussion fora, things have never been more inviting for software engineers to march back home. Will we do it, setting aside our egos and American materialism, remains the big question.

God takes sides...

God takes sides….
(An Editorial article without the usual links and what not)

Or so we have been lead to believe in the last few months. In India,
when the elections happen, religion comes to the forefront rearing its
ugly head. The socialists are quick to pounce on it and start
aligning themselves with the so-called non-religious groups trying to
castigate the religious right. This sort of politics has been one that
has earned ridicule for the country both from within and from the
outside. Even being a person of faith, I was disgusted to see the
temple or mosque or church and state coupled so tightly together in
determining the future of the country. For long I looked at the US as
that democracy that strictly delineated the church from politics. The
country elected its leader not based on his faith but his adherence to
his principles for the better good of the country. While the 2000
elections first sowed the seeds of doubt in my mind, this election
confirmed the fact that say what one may, the US is as religiously
fanatic as any other country in the world, albeit in a different form
and manner.

Ohio was the most affected state in the entire union due to the
economic downturn. While the bosses in the Eastern seaboard continued
to prosper (thanks for some good tax cuts), much of rural America
struggled as more and more manufacturing jobs were lost and more sons
sent to the war in Iraq. The Iraq war has been the bloodiest in the
last couple of months and marines are lost everyday to suicide
bombers. Estimates put the civilian deaths in Iraq at more than
100,000. Given all this statistics, one would expect anyone standing
against the GOP candidate and now President elect George Bush to win
with overwhelming margins (Reagan, anyone?). But that was not to be.
Not only did the President wrap up Ohio but he gained all of 4 million
votes more than last election and won the popular vote which he lost
by half a million to Al Gore. The states that lost the most since 2000
were the states that overwhelmingly voted for Bush. The lower and
middle-income people turned up in droves to vote for their President.
What happened?

Well, for starters, the opponent of President Bush should have been
Howard Dean. People were finding it hard to differentiate between Bush
and Kerry. And for those who didn't, the GOP hype machine created
enough fear in the minds of people to make them vote Republican.
Fear, as someone said is always the key. This time it definitely was
the case. But what really clinched the deal for President Bush was his
ability to reach out to the vast evangelical moderates and Christians
who in the past had not voted or divided their vote between the two
parties. This time, the issues of embryonic stem cell research, gay
marriage and abortion stuck a very big chord with the increasingly
religious American populace. While Kerry initially downplayed his
religious beliefs, he was forced to play that card for the risk of
losing a big chunk of votes and lose he did.

For once, the economy, a losing war and a possible draft did not rank
among the issues that made a difference in the presidential elections.
Instead, fear and a generous helping of church going voters ensured
that the President stayed in the White House for another four years.
While I hope for a more sanguine and fiscally and environmentally more
responsible government in the second term, it definitely scares me to
think that in America too, religion is given that much importance in
the election of its Commander-in-Chief.

Election 2004 - Its finally here !!!

So it is finally here. After almost a year of hectic and by now, mind numbing campaigning, it all comes down to tomorrow. Senator John Kerry, the Democratic candidate from Massachusetts squares off against the Republican Party candidate and President George W. Bush. In what promises, at least according to the gazillion polls and surveys and statistical analysis, the results are too close to call and until the last bunch of results come in late night tomorrow, nothing is certain. In fact, predictions of a repeat of the 2000 elections where the Chad and Florida were at the center of a electoral controversy unlike any other have also not been ruled out.

Watchdog organizations believe that a turnout greater than 115 million could favor Senator Kerry and a lower turnout would help President Bush. Early polling numbers indicate that the turnout is expected to be much better than the last elections at least because of what is at stake this time. At stake are the country’s foreign policy and also the economy. While pundits predict that it might be homeland security that eventually decides the winner, many believe that some core issues like the environment and pollution have conveniently been swept aside.

Senator Kerry goes into the polls hoping that he has convinced the American people hard and enough that he is not the flip-flopper as he has been made out to be. His questionable decisions to support and oppose many bills in the senate have gotten him into much more trouble than he would have wanted them to. But he has made his bones working hard and uncovering major scams like the BCCI bank issues in the nineties. This points to a resolute individual who does not give up on anything he has started. In addition, the fact that he did go to Vietnam and came back to protest against the war talks of an individual who does his duty for the country but does not hesitate to question the purpose of the very war he went to fight. To stand up against what he thought was a wrong war after fulfilling his responsibilities for his country fighting the very same war speaks very highly of John Kerry’s character. In the final count, what would matter is if people believe he can safeguard the country against future terrorist attacks.

President George W. Bush has been the forerunner for most of the election campaign barring the weeks following the presidential debates. While his ability to relate to the locals in rural America has got him all the support he needs and more, his performance over the last four years have not really been as perfect as the Republican Party machinery has led us to believe. While the Afghan war was fully justified and supported by countries world over, the Iraq war has never quite been truly justified. The weapons of mass destruction are nowhere to be found nor are even the evidences of one such policy by Saddam Hussein. The 9/11 committee has categorically ruled out any significant relation between Al Qaeda and Saddam. The war is far from over and even as I type this blog, Fallujah is being ravaged by one of the most intense battles in the last couple of months. Last week alone has seen the death of more than 15 Marines not to mention the scores of innocent Iraqi civilians. The war seems to be never-ending and the insurgents seem to be gaining the upper hand by the day. This is far from the phenomenal and catastrophic success it has been made to be by President Bush and Vice President Cheney. In addition, it is undeniable that the respect and reputation of the US in the World arena is at its lowest in many decades. From being the liberator and champion of democracy, the United States has become the poster boy for the evil effects of being a superpower. This reputation needs to change and it seems unlikely that it would happen with President Bush at the helm. But to the Presidents credit, his popularity among the conservatives in America is at the highest in many years and so is his unique ability to reach out to the masses especially in the heartland states of America. The economy has not made many strides since 2000 even if we choose to ignore the lost jobs and fall in manufacturing. The President is campaigning on the sole platform of national security and it would be interesting to see if that alone gets his elected to a second term at office.

This election, there are more swing states than ever before not to mention the possible surprises that can be thrown up by traditional Red and Blue states like Arkansas and New Jersey respectively. In the heart of the swing states are people who have started complaining about being inundated with calls and ads and visits from party cadres to the point that they are tired of it. Residents of Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Iowa, New Mexico, Arizona, New Hampshire and a few other states not to forget Florida are at the unique position of determining the next President of United States.

In all, the elections and the days that follow will make for tremendous drama and very many surprises. But what is undeniable is the fact that the voting public is divided as they have never been before and this kind of divisive politics will continue to haunt the next President of United States.

And by the way, if this blog from me is any indication, there are million such and some important ones are listed here.

At the hallowed homeground of the Boston RedSox earlier this year. I still havent got over the WS win !!! 

The Curse is broken !!!

Take than Babe !!!

So you thought we couldnt do it without you. To hell with you and your curse. I havent been as happy as today in a very long time. Its just minutes after Keith Foulke closed yet another game succesfully for the RedSox and 86 years of tears and misses go down in an epoch for ages. A 8 game streak that started after a miserable 19-8 loss to New York and it all boils down to this. As the team takes turn fondly holding the World Series trophy, the owners and Theo Epstein, one of the true architects of the team of 2004 get drenched in the champagne. I have been a teetotaller all my life and if there was one moment I wish I get deliriously whacked out, this is it. But me being me, I am just gonna scream my head off in my room and make sure I blow a wad of money tomorrow. I have already promised my fiance anything, I repeat, anything she wants if the Sox won and that was during the ALDS. So I look forward to keeping that word and seeing much more victories, now that the road block that refused to be blown away for 86 long years, lies in dust.

To a team that just refused to quit and to a whole lot of RedSox fans world over, guys, its over. Now we know who the daddy is !!!

Much more on this when I get back my sanity.

We believed :)

Sometimes even miracles happen...

And one such did last Thursday early morning at 12:01 am when Ruben Sierra grounded out to second and history was made.As I watched in a seedy Best Western somewhere in the outskirts of Charleston, SC (dont ask my what I was doing there), the RedSox came back from an overwhelming 0-3 deficit to win the 7 game American League Championship Series 4-3. It had never happened before in baseball and how could it ? For, to achieve such a feat, it needed much more than skill and temperment and patience and doggedness displayed by the RedSox. It needed that little thing which plays its part almost all the time against the RedSox, fate. Things needed to happen when it was most required and they did. Papi delivered twice for the RedSox and in the seventh game, a till now lacklustre Johnny Damon homered twice for a cumulative 6 RBI's to do it for the Sox. The Yankees were left just speechless while the famed RedSox offensive gave it to the depleted Yankees bullpen. Kevin Brown was taken off after a couple of innings only to be replaced by an equally ineffective Javier Vasquez. By the time the famed closer Mariano Riviera came out for the Yankees, it was all but over.

To me it was over when Alex Rodriguez, the highest paid sportsman in the United States, did the most unprofessional act not just in Game Six but in all of baseball by interfering with Bronsor Arroyo trying to run him out at first base. What was awful about it was the way A-Rod feigned utter disbelief in front of tens of millions watching all over the country and made sure he went down the history books as the highest paid sissy. While I have been a patient fan of the RedSox, I have had a grudging admiration for the Yankees who have time and again demonstrated their ability to come out fighting even at the most hopeless situations. Derek Jeter, in my opinion is one of the best captains baseball has seen in a long time. Given all that, what A-Rod did was a shame to himself and the pinstripes he so proudly wears. I am sure this is one baggage he will carry with him for life and that is the biggest loss of all, much more than the 4-3 thrashing. George Steinbrenner, the businessman is expected to make some big moves later this Fall and the steps could be big enough to warrant major changes in the Yankees lineup.

By the time I write this blog, Boston had taken Game 1 of the World Series defeating the Cardinals in an ugly game that could have gone either way until the Top 9th. Boston managed a win due to its offense clicking and inspite of an awful defense lead by Manny. It was also an early indicator of how good the Cards were at fighting back and ready to pounce on any error. With the second game slated for today, Boston needs not just the best from the old warhorse, Curt Shilling but also a continued blitz from the the offense and most importantly a much better performance in the field. David Ortiz is red hot and Manny seems to be getting his groove back along with a resurgent Damon and Bellhorn. Given all this, Game 2 and all the future games should make for a very interesting watch.

Go Sox..and yes, we continue to believe, much harder than before.

PS: My condolences to the family and friends of the girl who lost her life amidst the Sox victory celebrations.

PPS: I turned 26 at 12:00 am EST on Thursday and a minute later, got one of the best birthday gifts I could have asked for with the ALCS miracle comeback by the RedSox. If only I could hope for more such birthdays in the future....I would'nt be asking for too much, would I ?

How better to celebrate the RedSox win with a glorious shot of the Green Monster at Fenway. 

Ortiz is your daddy !!!

Before I start my blog, here is an call for heart specialists in Boston. Given the way the RedSox have been playing in the ALCS, a few hundred patients if not more are sure to complain of chest pain this week. Game 4 ALCS was the Yankees all the way, until the ninth inning. The RedSox, courtesy a single by Bill Mueller and then a repeat act by David Ortiz in the twelfth with a walk-off homer. The game tied the record for the longest post season game at 5 hrs and 02 minutes with 12 innings played. The RedSox had given their fans yet another reason to believe.

If that was a long game, then what could one say about the game today. Game 5 of ALCS had Pedro pitching against his nemesis, the Yanks. The Yankees were out to prove that they were indeed the big daddy. The RedSox were first on the board in the first inning with a RBI single and a RBI walk for Varitek. But the Yankees not to be left behind came back hard and soon were leading 4-2 with a three run RBI hit by Jeter in the 6th. Things were quiet again at Fenway and the fans were back to praying like the previous day. The Baseball Gods decided to bestow the fans with a homer by Ortiz and a sac-fly by Varitek in the ninth. The RedSox Nation had reasons to hope again. The game then assumed epic proportions with pitcher after pitcher coming in to the mound and soon the bullpens were empty. The previous day record was handily shattered and the game was into the 14th inning. And then it happened. A walk for Damon and then a walk for Ramirez brought Ortiz to bat. After a prolonged battle of fouls with Esteban Loaiza, Ortiz managed to yet again find a way to keep the RedSox alive with an RBI single. Game RedSox. For all the Yankees fan, it would be a reminder that only fools would think of rolling over the RedSox. For the New Englanders, it was yet another agonizing day that thankfully resulted in a win.

Tomorrow is a brand new day and while the Yankees are the favorites to win at Yankee stadium, the RedSox have demonstrated that they are far from being dead. Game 6 would be an important momentum game and an interesting one to see if the dominant Yankees or the resurgent Sox come tops. It may yet be that the Yankees might win the ALCS but to RedSox fans who were in the dumps after Saturday's 19-8 bashing, myself included, the last two days have been yet another reason to believe. And for all those who think baseball is really a boring game, guys, start with the RedSox and Yankees. Chances are you wont be ever bored or disappointed.

The Curse might live on, but we will continue to believe.

Update: The Houston Astros just nailed Game 5 of the NLCS with a walk-off three run homer by Jeff Kent. A game that was scoreless until the ninth was blown open and simultaneously closed by the massive homer. The Astros have demonstrated tremendous resilence by coming from a 0-2 deficit against the clinical St.Louis Cardinals and are now leading the series 3-2. Game 6 returns to St.Louis where the Cardinals will try to save the series. They need to first same themselves from Carlos Beltran who is having a record breaking, astonishing post season with 8 homers in 10 games. It really doesnt get better than this.

And by the way, Terry Francona just confirmed that Curt Shilling will be starting Game 6 with special shoes and padding and all. Here is hoping that the old warhorse still has some games left in him this post-season.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to October.

We believe !

While Buster Olney has reported for many such big series happening throughout this baseball season, it doesnt really get bigger than this. Its the Yanks and the RedSox, yet again for the American League Championship Series (ALCS). Its really not hard to see why this assumes so much significance at New York and Boston. For the next one week all eyes in the NorthEast not to mention most other parts of the US and even Japan will be glued to the TV sets and the newspapers. Will the RedSox stumble, again or will this year be any different ?

It has the makings of a surefire Hollywood epic. Great team with fantastic track record of success. Decides for various reasons to trade its best player to a rival team. The tables are turned. The traded player (to the few people who have heard of him, he is called Babe Ruth) then goes on to make history for his new team to such an extent that a new stadium, tailor made to his batting style was built in 1923. To this date, the RedSox have not won a World Series Championship since the trade in 1919. Some people refer to it as the 'Curse of the Bambino'. Others refer to it as just another trade which has since assumed cult status due to the press. It is said that the book "Curse of the Bambino" by Dan Shaughnessy triggered the idea that it was really a curse and something supernatural.

Whatever be the case, the RedSox have had something going against them when it comes to winning the World Series. They have come as close as an out to winning the game but it has never been the real thing. This year, the Sox believe they have their best team yet and if last weeks smothering of the Anaheim Angels is any indication, we could be in for a phenomenal series. The Yankees as always have been clinical with their wins, coming back from behind more times than anyone else in the league. Even with Johan Santana, arguably the best starter in the League this year at his best, the Minnesota Twins lost the ALDS to the Yankees courtesy A-Rod's resurgent streak and Derek Jeter's usual October histrionics. For the RedSox, both Manny and Ortiz have been red-hot pretty much all season long. They lead the league in a duo with most homers and RBIs and the count is only increasing. Last Friday, Ortiz put the final nail on the coffin for the favorites Angels with a 10th inning walkoff homer off Washburn. Manny drove in 2 RBIs in the same game and not to forget the two most important people for the RedSox; Johnny Damon, arguably the best leadoff hitter in the league this year and Curt Shilling, the best pitcher in the league who made it to the CS. With possibly their best team in years, the RedSox have their best chance yet at toppling the Yankees and making it to the World Series.

Will it finally happen this year or will the Yankees find yet another way to come back ?
Only time will tell. For now, here is to looking forward to the best week of baseball yet, in a year that has already produced some great matchups.

We believe !

If only we had more such people alive. The world sure would have been different. They dont make like 'em anymore.  

Frodo Baggins vs. Saruman

One such contest was played out in front of millions of American viewers last evening. Agreed you would like to be on the side of the meek but then experience and age (I will not call it wisdom but rather political savvy) were on the side of VP Dick Cheney last evening in the Vice Presidential debate. While personal injury lawyer and Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Senator John Edwards was charming and all smiles throughout the show, he was outplayed by the wily old Vice President. Even when Senator Edwards had the facts on his side, VP Dick Cheney played all his age and experience cards and squashed what was definitely a much weaker challenge than the one put out by Senator Kerry in the Presidential debate last week. It was not as if Senator Edwards was not at his best. It was just that his best was not enough in a debate where facts were thrown out of the window (VP Dick Cheney said he never tried to connect Al Qaida and Iraq) and replaced by sharp and stinging attacks at each other and their respective Presidential running partners.

With two debates over and two more to go between the President and the Democratic candidate Senator Kerry, the focus and pressure will be intense. The first of the remaining debates takes place in a town hall like setup in Washington University, St.Loius, MO, where the audience will be allowed to ask questions. This should be interesting given that MO is a "swing state" which voted for President Bush in 2000 and President Clinton in 1996.

From an Indian perspective, the election is a unique one. While President Bush's reelection would definitely continue the outsourcing trend, so beneficial to the Indian software industry, idealogically, a war President who has time and again been proved that Iraq was a "mistake" is difficult to accept. Moreover, irrespective of how evil Saddam was, the fact that the flimsy and now totally untrue reasons provided for the Iraq war needs to be given a big thumbs down by the American voters. Today the weapons inspectors confirmed that Saddam was nowhere close to producing weapons of mass destruction. One thing to say about Indian politicans, however corrupt they maybe, succumb to political pressure within and from outside the party and resign after even a train accident. Given the large scale deaths, American and Iraqi, the so called perpetrators of a false war need to resign on moral grounds, now that it has been proved that their reasons were all wrong. This is one election that would once and for all demonstrate how forgiving the American public are, to such a costly (in terms of money and life) mistake. Come November, the opinion of America and its people will be on show to the rest of the world. Will be courageous enough to take a stand ?

The Big Debate !

Last night was the first of the big Presidential debates. The first of a few between Republican nominee President George.W.Bush and Democratic candidate Senator John Kerry of Massachussetts, the debate should put to rest some questions about the oratorical strengths of the respective candidates. While the policies and political agenda of the candidates assume a lot of significance, in the past, the visual and oratorical appeal of the candidate has been the most important factor that people have looked for.

This time the venue was the UM Convocation Center at University of Miami, Coral Gables, Fl. The show was hosted by Jim Lehrer of PBS. The hour and a half long debate was based on rules agreed upon by the representatives of the candidates and the questions were all by Jim Lehrer. For Senator Kerry, it was a chance to address a much wider audience than before and to lay to rest claims that he was a flip-flopper. For President Bush, it was a chance to assert his confidence and control over the foreign affairs of the country, and to also justify his "invasion" of Iraq. To that effect, Senator Kerry did a better job than President Bush. For most of the debate, President Bush kept reverting to the "mixed-signals" being sent by Senator Kerry. There was neither any new material nor an admittance of the fact that things were going very wrong in Iraq. Instead President Bush continued to prey on the flip-flop tag of Senator Kerry as he has done during most of his campaign. Senator Kerry, for the most part was trying to defend his one big decision to support the authorizing troops to Iraq in Congress. This one decision of his continues to haunt his presidential aspirations and might very well prove to be campaign's downfall. But beyond his defense, Senator Kerry's command over the language and the debate as such was very evident. Senator Kerry dominated the proceedings and was on the offensive while President Bush continued to beat the mixed-signals accusation to death. In addition to the verbal drama, the body language of the participants were available for contrast to the audience via the split screen display in CSPAN. While Senator Kerry appeared failry poised and confident, President Bush appeared troubled and disinterested in the proceedings.

Many analysts, while agreeing that Senator Kerry won the debate, also indicated that debates rarely swayed the public. All that this did was give Senator Kerry a fighting chance in what was appearing to be a lost cause. This would also trigger more interest in the public for the second and third debates, not to mention the only Vice Presidential debate this Tuesday.

It would be really interesting to watch similar debates between the candidates during the Indian elections. Unfortunately, the candidates get chosen amidst great drama much later than the elections themselves. While there are always a bunch of possible candidates, elections in India have thrown up so many interesting political marriages of convenience that it would be unwise to bet on the Prime Minister elect, until he has met the President and formally submitted the support signatures of his and other parties. Democracy assumes a totally new context, when it comes to electing India's Prime Minister totally unlike the one we are currently witnessing. With some renewed vigor in the final stages of the election campaign, this is one month of the year (actually 4 years) that would make for the best of political masala.

Fall is here. This was a shot taken in King of Prussia, PA in the early weeks of Fall last year. 

Houston, we have a problem !

This week all eyes are focussed on the Ansari X Prize contest which promises a purse of $10 million (no less) to the first team that finances and launches a space ship capable of holding three or more people, and makes two trips in a span of two weeks to space (a height of 100 km is acceptable). Today, Michael Melvill, a veteran space pilot made the succesful trip with SpaceShipOne, a privately funded effort sponsored amongst others by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. In a related news, Sir Richard Branson, the maverick founder and CEO or the Virgin Group of UK, signed a deal with SpaceShipOne to launch Virgin Galactic, an intergalactic spaceliner that is expected to launch commercial space trips in 2007.While I would love to dedicate this posting to all that has been happening in the X-Prize front, I would rather discuss about something that I feel needs to be addressed.

Many a time, I have felt that the money spent on the space race between the nations of the world, and now rich entreprenuers could be channelised to developmental activities that uplift the living conditions of millions of poor people throughout the world. This is not to say that the entreprenuers are not doing enough to this effect. But given the amount of money and enthusiasm that is poured into making commercial space travel a reality, it also gives us a moment to ponder, is this all really necessary ? Is it not enough for man to walk on the moon that now we need to work and spend millions of research dollars on commercial space travel. To flog the same old reason once more, could the same money not be used for AIDS research ? Space travel is a fascinating subject and it not only demonstrates that man can go where he wishes to, but also serves to bring out the very best in science and technology. Unfortunately that same science does not have a cure for AIDS. The most recent SARS attack served as a stark reminder of the fact that there are diseases aplenty that could strike us and cripple not just a few people but large economies like China and other neighbouring Asian nations.

NASA's space research has been pioneering to say the least. It has also resulted in many technological advancements that have resulted in the betterment of our standards of living. But today, in its pursuit of conquering Mars, NASA has spent billions of dollars that definitely would and could have been used better. The question is not about NASA's purpose. The question is about how much and how far would man have to go, not to mention how many billion dollars need to be spent to prove our mastery over space and the universe when there are so many unsolved and life threatening issues that plague us in this very Earth ?

With every succesful space mission, a few million or more people are condemned to life and death due to starvation and disease. Is it really worth so much ?

Yada Yada Yada !

I give up. My friends know me to be a die-hard(and something more) Seinfeld fan. I wanted to see how long I could keep without referring to something in the Seinfeld cosmos in my blog. At this stage, the news was too big for me to skip. The cast is getting back together, one more time. AP reports that the crew is getting together for a retrospective, "The Seinfeld Story" on the 25th of November. Sadly, I will be out of the country that particular day. I am starting to make plans to ask people to record the show for me. I have'nt preordered my Seinfeld DVDs out on the 23rd of November, just to not miss the UPS guy when he comes home to find me away.

One might ask, why this obsession with a show about nothing. Apart from the reason that Seinfeld is the most popular sitcom ever, to me, it is the show that put things out there that we always felt strongly about but never had a channel to express. The hilarity of seeing George screw up one more job or Elaine dumping yet another boyfriend or Kramer coming up with one more hare-brained scheme to get rich quickly, all under the ultra-scrutiny of the totally jobless cereal crazy lactose intolerant Seinfeld is just the tops. In my opinion, Seinfeld does not have a lot of pop culture references. It is pop culture in itself. It redefined the way sitcoms are written. It was a phenomenon that just survives the test of time. As one of the many thousand visitors to a popular Seinfeld blog, I see people from all walks of life just reliving each and every episode, be it the all-time classic "The Contest" to "The Hamptons". Everyone has his favorite character, his favorite quote, favorite episode and all.

I would love to just keep on writing about Seinfeld. I have seen and relived every one of the episodes atleast a few times each. But I'll stop here. There really is no need for this Yada Yada Yada. I just cant wait until November for the first lot of DVDs. So until then, I will head to my taped reruns. Serenity Now.

The G word

Given the huge popularity enjoyed by everything Google does these days(nevermind the corporate missteps leading to their IPO) in the eyes of the masses, it comes as no surprise that Google is preparing to launch its own browser.

I have been an active user of Gmail for the past few months and have found it to be an extremely convenient and innovative mail service, not to mention the vast storage space of 1GB per mailbox provided. The labelling system is unique and definitely useful and the conversation thread management mechanism is alone worth having a Gmail account. The service which is still on an invite-only basis has become so popular that they are sold for a dollar or higher on ebay. The cool factor of being one of the select few(although the few has been increasing fairly fast over the last month or so) with a Gmail account, coupled with the 1GB space has generated a great demand for it. As with its pioneering search engine, Google has come up trumps with its email service. It would be interesting to watch how google starts handling the accounts once it becomes a regular service and comes out of its beta, invite-only stage. While Yahoo has responded by upping its storage capacity to 100 MB and also improving its service, Hotmail from Microsoft continues to be the bad boy with a paltry 2MB (where is the promised 250 MB?) , not to mention the regular "Server is busy" messages and the annoying "Mailbox is approaching its limit" indicators all over. In fact its interesting to note that inspite of announcing an upgrade to 250MB mailboxes this summer (Summer is over. Officially), Hotmail continues to push for its Plus service that would not make much sense, after the mailbox size upgrade. As always, mixed signals continues to be Microsoft's forte.

Google, now cash rich with 1.67 billion dollars is preparing a multi-pronged attack into what is conventionally MS-Yahoo-AOL only territory. Its rumored to be working on a browser GBrowser based on the solid Mozilla Firefox source code. Given the security flaws in IE and the increasing popularity and press attention for Mozilla Firefox, Google would be starting off on the right foot. Added to that is Google's penchant for all things new and different and we have a much anticipated browser on the horizon.

On a final note, there is so much talk of Google and what its going to do with all its money that the rumor mills are going to be working overtime on this. Adding fuel to the fire is the number of engineers google is adding to its workforce every week (in its own unique way, I must add). Sergey Brin and Larry Page would not have envisaged the amount of interest and hype they would be generating when they created their now ubiquitous browser at Stanford. But given that Google generates all its money without compromising on all the free services they offer to the masses, this is one race horse that will remain a public favorite for a while.

Baseball for the passionate cricket fan

This week did not start too well. On Sunday, a weak Indian cricket team lost to a better Pakistani team at the ICC Cricket Championships in England. The same afternoon, the Bronx Bombers lived up to their name and destroyed Pedro Martinez and an apparent bid by the Red Sox for the AL-East division title. In the process the Sox were reminded of how frail their pitching was against a good offense and how quickly the much touted Red Sox defense could fail with some disciplined pitching. If anything it taught the RedSox that they still had a long way to go before they could think about winning the American League title leave alone the World Series.

The baseball season is heading towards an exciting phase with some division titles and both the AL and NL wild card positions still up for grabs. While the NL wildcard race seems to be a three-way race between the Cubs, Giants and the Astros, the AL wild card is still a possibility for the Texas Rangers and the Angels although the Red Sox are close to clinching it. The Pennant Races are on!

Indians in America tend to compare baseball with cricket and the former almost always pales in comparison. While I had the same problems initially, one thing that has helped me enjoy baseball is the wide array of teams and the possibility of a new champion every year. Cricket in recent years has come to be dominated almost completely by the Aussies. While there has been the occasional challenger in South Africa or India, there never has been the thrill of seeing a new challenger and a new victor on a regular basis. In this regard, baseball has a distinct edge that makes the season all the more enjoyable. Last year's champion, the Florida Marlins are struggling for a place this post-season. The 2002 champions, Arizona Diamondbacks are the last in their league. This year there is going to be a new champion and while the Cardinals and Yankees have shown that they have got what is required to win the World Series, they have also demonstrated that they have chinks in their armor. As a cricket fan, I have been fortunate enough to be able to make a temporary transition to baseball ( nothing still compares to a vintage India-Pakistan duel with Sachin blasting the bowlers all over the park) . Afterall without sports, life is dull indeed.

iPod Nation : A primer (as if you need one)

Earlier today, I posted a picture of me with my friend's iPod taken during a recent trip. The device was so cool, I was wowed enough to get myself snapped with it. It has been an interesting experience following the phenomenal growth of the iPod-iTunes combo right from the time Apple announced the iTunes store to the launch of the iPod in the US. While Apple has always been a pioneer in designing the uber-cool gadgets, it excelled even its own lofty standards with the iPod and its sibling, the iPod Mini. Today, the iPod is a part of every college student's wish list, if they havent gotten one already. In addition, the iPod Mini has firmly placed itself in the purses of the foremost of the world's fashionistas.

Today, geeks all over the world are trying to get the most out of their iPods and its accesories. There are a few hundred hacks dedicated to doing everything from using the iPod as a universal remote to reading the daily news using RSS feeds and to boot up your iMac with it. This website has many such hardware and software hacks for the interested many.

I have had a chance to play with the iPod and its wannabes, the Dell DJ and Creative Zen Touch. The Dell DJ is clunky and while it is about $50 cheaper than a comparable iPod, it does not allow the device to be used to store data unlike the iPod and does not have the click wheel to navigate easily between menus. The Zen Touch from Creative is much heavier than the iPod and the DJ and has a less than desirable playlist management system. Beyond all other factors, the iPod scores a grand slam in its coolness factor and sheer delight in handling comfort.

I have'nt been able to justify a $300 music device for myself, not to include the accesories and support plan which would altogether set me back by $400 but someday I hope I will. Until then I will continue to drool at all your Pods, which you can get at the Apple Store or the HP store .

Enjoy the music.

iPod Nation : Are you a part of it? 

The Art of being Anonymous

The Internet offers people what they like to do the most: Comment, review and critique anonymously. While this is a great way to express your true opinion without fearing an act of retribution while participating in politically sensitive discussions, it also serves as a really poor way of disguising oneself in many others.

Anonymous posting allows people to make personal attacks without having to face the response for their words. This sounds great because here you are venting all your anger, jealousy and what not about somebody without him or her ever knowing who it was. The only problem though is that by doing so, you get to be the greatest jerk in the world. He is a true man or she is a true woman, who faces up to his or her thoughts, actions and words. By posting anonymously, the poster assumes that he or she is the more intelligent person whereas, in reality, he or she is the fool because words assume no significance without the conviction and support of the user.

The reason I thought of this at this juncture was an interesting and thoroughly amusing personal comment on my blog which I just received from a so called "Anonymous" person(I like to think of them as cowards). He or she was meticulous enough to point a lot of things to me, good and bad (some very definitely useful I have to say) but did not have the guts to say who they were. That took away all the good from the comment since I cannot take advice from someone, who himself or herself needs a lot of it.

With blogging becoming huge and discussion boards mushrooming all over the internet on every possible and impossible topic in the world, it is a good time for all of us to pause and think.
Are we such weak people that we cannot accept and own up to our very own words ?
By hiding beyond the convenient confines of the Anonymous realm, are we in fact, hiding from our very own insecurities and fears ?

"Cogito, ergo sum"

Russians and tennis

All year we have been hearing about Russian women performing or rather winning the WTA tennis majors. The latest WTA rankings (www.wtatour.com) shows that there are 7 Russians( 9 if you consider Belarus which was a part of the erstwhile USSR) in the top 20. This is more than any other country has in the list. This has been all the more surprising since I have really not heard of anyone other than Martina Navratilova performing at the highest levels of the game for a long time (atleast as long as I have been following the game). Given the amount of upheavals and economic problems Russia has had over the last few years, its truly remarkable and a big credit to the athletes. Many of their stories showthe tremendous sacrifices made by the family to give their daughters the very best of coaching required to perform at the highest levels of the game. This has often involved the family sending the daughter off to the US where the facilities are some of the very best for prodigies. Hats off to the parents of these tennis stars.

In India, where facilities are not as good as Russia but the economic support can be fairly good if the player shows promise, there has been an utter lack of female tennis prospects, leave alone stars. The only tennis player from India to have ever made an impact in the Indian papers itself was V.Nirupama. I have to admit, I have not even heard of any other Indian female tennis player mentioned regularly in the papers. Such is the level of the game. Much of this can be attributed to the stamina of Indian athletes which has plagued not just Indian tennis but Indian sports in general. I wouldnt want to discuss that in this blog as there is so much that can be said about whats with the performance of Indian sports or rather the lack of it. There is also very little grassroots support for women in tennis and not much corporate sponsorship. This situation needs to change. The success of Russians in tennis is a good example of how stars are born with the support of families and total focus on part of the player to make it to the top. We sure can learn a lot from them. Hopefully we do.

Yankees suck ... Go RedSox !!!

I am typing this as I watch the Yankees bullpen performing as awfully as only they can with minnows Kansas City. The only thing surprising is that they have survived all season long atop their league with such an undependable bullpen. They just finished pitching what has been one of the longest innings I have ever witnessed with KC getting 10 runs and 15 batters
As a RedSox fan, nothing gives me greater pleasure, of course. While the Sox lost what should have been an easy series with Seattle, they have a better bullpen than the Yankees with league leading pitchers like Curt Shilling and Pedro Martinez. This weekend's series at Yankee Stadium should be very interesting. With both offenses on an overdrive and their rivalry legendary, it might come down to the pitching. The winner might just end up being the one who pitches better. I will be screaming myself hoarse all weekend hopefully in utter joy as the RedSox sweep the Yankees.
On a digressive note, the Patriots began the defense of their Bowl with an unimpressive win over the Colts. While the defense was almost indifferent all of the first half, thankfully it came back alive in the second to thwart the attempts of a very good Peyton Manning. Tom Brady was clinical as usual and hopefully he retains the luck and gameplay that got the Patriots their second title in three years, earlier this year.
As an Indian, I cannot but not mention proceedings in the cricketing world. The Indian team which was doing so well until three months ago, took a really untimely break and performed or rather didnt in both the Asia Cup and the NatWest trophy. The ICC Champions Trophy currently underway is definitely not in their grasp given their poor performance and no Sachin to boost the team. The Sachin factor was evident when the team crumbled time and again in Sri Lanka and in England. We are still not ready to talk about an Indian cricket team sans the Master Blaster.
Thats about all for now as I take in the joy that I derived watching the Yankees give away 10 runs in an inning to KC.:)

Up-and-Downtown

I was in downtown San Francisco a week back. It was a great trip and one thing that stuck me was the way people lived, parked and commuted in the downtown or in my opinion an up-and-downtown. The roads were precipitously dipping and rising at times and while it proved to be fun driving there, I dreaded to think how messy and painful it could become during rush hour. I have'nt experienced rush hour downtown SFO traffic but I can get an idea.

My friend tells me that it was the result of a civil engineer's lack of suitable knowledge of the terrain while planning the city. But given that its both a major tourist attraction and a pain for local commuters, is it really serendipity on part of the designer or just his greatest folly ?

And one other thing that I would be interested to know is if anyone every missed his turn in crooked street and went hurtling down the town ?

Downtown San Francisco with its beautiful yet extremely inconvenient up-and-down-and-up roads. 

Trying to be the cool dude !!! 

Peer pressure

I tried my best to be an Indian in Rome. I really did.The whole world has become one big blog fractal scrammed with similar yet different blogs of its zillion odd. I have been reading the blogs of friends aplenty for a long time now. Before the blog revolution hit the web taking with it all in its wake, I was there. But before I could latch on, the ocean of blogging was filled with "unique" blogs from all over. I ran out of things to blog before I could start blogging.Funny, when you think about it. I had so much to say but everybody had said it before I did !

The purpose of this blog of mine is really to be there. Put out some stuff once in a while. Fancy the blog with a photo occasionally. I am interested to see how long I persevere in this project of mine.

Before I sign off my first blog, I gotta thank my fellow mangaboys (more about them in future postings -I gotta have some material for the future) Paran, Sree, Pradeep and Aaron for inspiring me to do this blogging thing.

And by the way, Go RedSox and Go Patriots !!!