chaikidukaan.com

Category: General

  • 30on30 Updates

    The 30on30 Project got an overwhelming response from friends all around. Here are some of the highlights so far:

    1. Reached the initial goal of raising Rs. 30000
    2. Decided to not stop there
    3. Revised the goal to Rs. 50000 and are about 5K short of it as of today
    4. Even if we reach 50K we would try to continue raising some money till 30th April and do as much as possible

    Thank you everyone who has participated, appreciated, purchased, promoted, and wished for the success of the project.

    And like I said, its not over yet !!! There is still more than a week to go.. please do spread the word around if you have not yet done that.

  • notes

    One fails as a consultant if (s)he is not able to bring value to the table. I get very disappointed when I have to work with people who only fill spaces…

    p.s. don’t need comments on this… just had to take it out of the system !

  • To be or (K)not to be !!!

    I kept thinking about it, and at the end of the year, I had “TO BE” 30 years old… could not do much about it… so here I am on the other side of the decade… in my “Thirties” now 🙂

    The photograph is not really relevant except that the the title of this post is the title of the photograph as well 🙂 But in case you can get some analogy going with the shoes, the knot, the years, you are more than welcome… but please don’t come up with the “tie the knot” thing… its too predictable !!!

    I like quiet birthdays and on the contrary when I was a kid the birthdays were FAR from being quiet… Mom used to invite all my relatives home and the mornings used to be Havan time and the evenings a cake cutting ceremony… I used to love it, mostly because that was one day of the year when the entire family used to be together… all my chachas, mamas, grandparents, cousins… fun times !!!

    But over a period of time, things changed, the way birthday was celebrated changed, the family gathering reduced to phone calls, SMSs, Facebook and Orkut wishes, and ecards… Friends became more important than relatives, and evening dinners with friends took the priority over family dinners…

    and then another phase kind of took me away from these as well… as of now, I like quiet birthdays, silent, peaceful, with either my parents or with just the friends who understand how I feel within… and not driven by social networking obligations… I like those few calls from “parts of my life” far away from me, and I like waiting for them too… and Aro you ass, you did not wish me this time !!!

    This birthday was different and full of loads of fun !!!

    • Midnight drive to search for Perkins and have pancakes
    • Not finding anything open at 1 in the night
    • Cutting a Apple Pie instead of a Cake
    • Conversations that were put to a forced stop at 4 in the morning
    • Getting late for all planned activities
    • Driving to 3 different key “what to visit when in Milwaukee” locations and not getting inside any
    • The amazing poori, matar paneer, aalu sabzi dinner… Thank you Deepak, Sapna for that effort, and ofcourse Deepali for the utensils 🙂
    • Me driving Pritam’s SUV for atleast 150 miles in 3 days
    • The live music at Mo’s Irish Pub
    • Deepak’s confession, which is now recorded on the camera 🙂
    • Some conversations to laugh about for a long long time ! including what happens to a deer if you hit it with a car in Wisconsin 😛
    • Getting Choclates and a CD from Canada (Thanks Jas)
    • Getting Tea cups from India (Thanks Swati)
    • Tricking Pritam into giving his iPhone to me when the new version comes out sometime this year (Thank you Pritam 😉 )
    • Gifting myself a flash(not sure how much I need it, but I am sure I will put this to good use) and a macro lens (finally)

    I have a lot going on in my mind these days… need to get some thoughts out, some things done, some tasks completed… one at a time !

    side notes…
    I am going to stop commenting on posts, blogs, photographs where the writer/photographer conveniently writes “thank you all”, “thank you folks”, “thank you friends”, “thank you peeps” etc etc… I have seen that there are times when people ask questions or have something specific to say, and even if not, they spend time, a minute or two writing a comment for you… and its unfair to not address that comment personally… spending any time on such pages is only a waste of my time… I don’t think it matters anyway to the author

  • of Amreekaa and of Indiaaa

    I was reading some online news about protests in the US against steel made in India and advocating using “only” those things which are American.

    I could not help but laugh at the thought of this… if overnight something of this sort happens, then most people in the US would run around “almost” naked, with “almost” no software to use, with “almost” no customer care, with “almost” no electronics and huge reduction in the number of vehicles… oh but where would they get the fuel to run the vehicles? well.. sorry about that !!! Add vehicles that do not have any gas to run…

    While I agree to the thought that a nation’s and its people’s interest should be kept in mind when you are outsourcing or buying, I feel the “barter” system is something that we have lived with for ages… someone somewhere has a different skill and someone here has a different one.. both utilize it for a mutual benefit !!!

    I have also been thinking that people who went on spending money like crazy, when they did not have any to pay up their credit card bills, must be the people who have played an important role in companies going bankrupt by purchasing dieing financial firms and dead assets… (Correct me someone if I am wrong here) and who gets thrown out first? The people who come from outside and save like crazy (another extreme, and I fail to understand why suddenly most desi’s talk about how much they are able to save when they are in US; sorry digressing from the topic)

    umm.. but that was it, I guess about the “America use only American” point of view…

    Our second point on today’s discussion is the Lok Sabha Elections… I am hoping and wishing and sincerely hoping and wishing that the people who had stood up for a cause after the Bombay Incident make a difference in these Lok Sabha Elections !!! AMEN to that ! this is a wonderful opportunity to bring the change a lot of us started to talk about !

    I hope we elect people who

    – can make a difference in the country like Shiela Dikshit made to Delhi in the last few years (I personally feel that Delhi has changed from what it was 10 years ago, for both good and bad, but mostly good)

    – can make a difference in the country like Lalu did to Indian Railways (I can see and feel the difference in IR which has happened in recent past, mostly because of improved audit mechanisms and accountability and privatization playing and important role)

    – can lead the nation and bring it on top like Mayawati did to her party in the last assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh (The BSP won the elections single handedly in UP, with Mayawati leading the pack and playing her cards very carefully. While she has always and continues to advocate the lower casts fiercely, she made sure that her candidates were a right mix from all communities)

    – focus on what is the USP of the country like governments did in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttaranchal (These three states I feel have understood that tourism is the key for them when it comes to revenue and the efforts to promote tourism are more than obvious… The lovely roads in these states, the availability of information, and a slight change in the attitude is something that you can notice if you have been visiting for a while)

    I feel we have to move ahead of the manifestos that focus more on luring people to vote for a party instead of value they add to the country, move ahead of religion and see the country as one unit, focus on sustainability and ……………….. sorry… enough of this…

    Oh and I just recalled… there were two major campaigns the Lead India and Teach India… can someone help me know what happened to them… I am not aware of the current status… I know a few friends did register in the Teach India campaign but not sure what happened from there…

  • and she…

    It had been raining all night… literally !

    She had not slept for a second …

    The sound of the rain drops, the sound of the wind passing through her windows, and her tears kept her awake…

    The morning came… it had to…

    And as she walked out of her house…

    the cold breeze greeted her and said good morning…

    the warm sun came out of the clouds and said a shining smiling hello…

    some birds flew past her chirping all sweet nothings into her ears…

    and she… she smiled !

    and moved on…

    … and before you reach any conclusions… I was not crying the last night 😛 I have been very very happy with the way 30on30 has been received ! Have responded to over 40 people, must have read/written at least 150 emails in the last three days about the 30on30 project… Have placed the first order for the the prints.. have a commitment of over Rs. 10000… have Rs. 4000 transferred as well… The month has started on a brilliant note !!!

  • अंग्रेजी की पाठशाला (Angreji ki Paathshaala)

    A for Aalu ki Sabzi

    A for Aero-plane

    B for Bells

    B for Buddha

    B for Boat

    What else is

    A for?

    and B for?

    Simple simple please… no big big words…

  • Go but never leave…

    I needed a break, had been working for a while…

    Got up

    and tried to open the door… but it took me some effort before the door opened…

    on my way back.. the door opened relatively much easier!

    I thought why, and realised something…

    • The flames are more stable near the wick…

    • The flags flutter least near the rope…

    • The door opens with the most effort if pushed from near the hinges…


    Strange thought but I need to write it here…

    Stability is more when you are closer to your roots… when you are closer to your base…

    The farther you wander away the more unstable you get…

    Now another point of view can be about the reach when you move away… Remember that geometry problem from school?
    What is the area in which the Cow can eat grass when she is tied to a pole with a rope which is 10 metres long?

    Increase the rope length and the cow has more to eat, more space to explore… but when it comes to taking a rest, the cow (At least that is something that I have seen in my village) would always come back near her pole and sit… and if they are out in the open, they will come back home in the evening… That’s where the word Godhuli comes from too.

    The essence of this post (and this is a note to myself) is to be aware of your roots, and stay connected while you explore the rest of the world… because your roots are where you get the most stability and the most peace !

  • The Good and the Bad !

    Lets start with the good one… According to an article in the TOI, Delhi Police would help stranded women anytime of the day… which basically means if you are stuck somewhere please call 100 and a PCR would assist you shortly…

    The decision is noble and well appreciated… what needs to be done is a proper implementation and then sustain it… make sure that records are maintained and published for the people to judge if this initiative is successful or not… if not anything else it might just help restore some faith that I am not sure how many have in the Delhi Police.

    If the past has taught us anything, such initiatives do start but loose their steam in the early stages, either because of lack of properly thinking or planning !

    So, good luck Delhi Police! I hope you do make a change !

    And the bad one now…

    Sri Lankan Cricket team attacked in Pakistan… ok before that… Pakistani Stand up comedians were forced to leave India after the Bombay incident !

    I agree that the magnitude of these two incidents is way different, but still SHAME on people who are involved in spreading the terror and reacting like a bunch of idiots to it !

    ART, SPORTS, MUSIC and similar, are things that go a long way in helping bridge some gaps at-least between the people if not between two nations… and such acts ensure that everything is over in a minute…

    I doubt if SL or any other international team is going to play a match in Pakistan EVER, and I am not sure if any Pakistani Comedian or Musician would perform in India…

    but what I know is somewhere someone, in the streets of these nations, irrespective of the boundaries would continue to love how JayaSurya has kicked some bowler butt, how Wasim Akram has made the batsmen go clueless (I love watching his action… every single time), how Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan has made millions of people love him..

    Damn the Political Agendas which has separated the people and drew these limits !!!

  • Of mixed emotions…

    Its strange how one act of nature can invoke so many feelings together in me…

    I am talking about a snowfall !

    On my way out of home today I just happened to check the scene outside, and I was like damn… need to change the shoes… so the formals go in the bag, and the dependable woodlands are out !

    I walk out, and there is a cover of white all around… I feel a certain peace and calm when I see the snow on the footpaths, the trees, bushes…

    The snow is still falling and there is no wind… so it falls slowly and the snowflakes enjoy their ride down to the ground moving around at their own pace and taking their own path… Find a snowflake that you like and then follow it to the ground… Its amazing…

    And then some wind… some snowflakes hit my face and I just take my tongue out to let some of the flakes fall on it… I love that feeling of the cold snowflakes landing on my tongue… 🙂

    I walk by a small park towards the office and there is so much snow… and I feel like leaving my bag and just go make a snowman the entire day

    All of this snow makes me want my friends around me too so that we can play war in the snow 🙂

    and something that I always miss in a snowfall… to have a sweetheart and walk with her hand in hand looking at the snowfall !

    All of this in some 5 minutes walk to the office 🙂

  • The 8th Day !

    I have been thinking for a while about this and I finally talked to Uncle God to see what does he have to say about it… here is how our conversation went…

    Me: Uncle, I need another day …

    Uncle: For?

    Me : To have fun… Weekdays seem to be too busy at work, and weekends as well fly away… when do I have fun…

    Uncle: And?

    Me: So you add another day in the week… make it an 8 day week… and the 8th day would be the “Funday“… I will only enjoy on that day… no sad feelings, no dull faces… only fun !

    Uncle: You are crazy fella ! And me too, for keeping up with you… but I am sorry, I cannot just add another day to the week… Even I am hit by recession… even I am short of days these days ! I rather give another day for people to eat, and another day for people to live.. don’t even get me started on that note.. but here is what you can do…

    • When you wake up in the morning, thank someone that you have another day to enjoy !
    • When you brush your teeth, dance
    • When you are cooking in the kitchen, dance
    • When are walking to the office, or driving or cycling to the office, listen to your favorite music… and do that when you are coming back from work too
    • When you meet people in the elevator, always say a hello
    • When you are taking food in the cafe, greet the person on the other side of the counter
    • Before you go off to sleep, call someone you’ve not called in a while and talk for 5 minutes
    • Don’t ever sleep with a unresolved argument
    • Sing when you take a bath
    • Go out for a walk after you have your dinner… spend this time with yourself.. leave your phone home, leave your iPod home as well
    • Cook for someone you like
    • Write a letter to your parents
    • Play, run, jump, hop whenever you get an opportunity
    • Once a day smell something nice
    • Compliment when you like something
    • Ask for opinions from the sales people when you shop
    • Find a complete misfit cloth, wear it and show it your friends
    • Make faces in the mirror


    Do these and come back to me… I will tell you a few more things to do… If you still feel you need another day called a “funday” we will think about it !