Alive and kicking

Yes, that’s what I am – alive though getting a little kicked. These days are superbusy with the summer internship process of juniors going on. Hence, a major shortage of time for us seniors. Therefore, I will not be around too often for another few days, after which I will begin spamming this blog and your comments sections all too often.

Till then, hold your horses! :D

P.S. Apologies for not replying to all those lovely comments. That’s an item still parked on my list and I will do it (eventually).

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I stare at the limitless sea,
that mass of never-ending blue,
and listen to the crashing waves,
singing to me of you.

Some cribs in life…

A tough 10 days are coming up, involving baptism by fire. 10 days that will push me to the limit, test my very resolve and be a hell of a learning experience too. I’m nervous terrified, but excited too. However, there are some things that I so want need to do but am unable to find time. Some of these pet peeves are:

a) Wanting to sleep more than 2 hours a day

b) Wanting to write an article on role of HR in mergers and acquisitions

c) Wanting to read, read, read and read…

d) Wanting to blog more often

e) Wanting to land the job sometime soon

f) Wanting to do a bit of research on some HR topics

Let there be light…

Today’s the festival of lights – the entire world is out there laughing, bursting crackers, lighting candles and oil lamps, decorating their surroundings and having fun. And here I am, cooped up in my dreary room, clattering away on the keys of my laptop with a vengeance.

Why? I wonder, do such moments of joy leave me devoid of happiness? Why does the light outside seem to cast even longer shadows deep inside me? Why do I feel incapable of enjoying the occasion?

I don’t think I have the answer to these questions. I don’t even know what brings me joy any more – if anything does. I don’t know if anyone realises the battles that go on deep within, between my warring selves.

Somehow, one of Longfellow’s poems, ‘The Day is Done’ seems just right for today. Sorry to be raining on your parade, but here it is:

The day is done, and the darkness
Falls from the wings of night,
As a feather is wafted downward
From an eagle in his flight.
I see the lights of the village
Gleam through the rain and the mist,
And a feeling of sadness comes o'er me
That my soul cannot resist:
A feeling of sadness and longing,
That is not akin to pain,
And resembles sorrow only
As the mist resembles the rain.
Come, read to me some poem,
Some simple and heartfelt lay,
That shall soothe this restless feeling,
And banish the thoughts of day.
Not from the grand old masters,
Not from the bards sublime,
Whose distant footsteps echo
Through the corridors of Time.
For, like strains of martial music,
Their mighty thoughts suggest
Life's endless toil and endeavor;
And to-night I long for rest.
Read from some humbler poet,
Whose songs gushed from his heart,
As showers from the clouds of summer,
Or tears from the eyelids start;
Who, through long days of labor,
And nights devoid of ease,
Still heard in his soul the music
Of wonderful melodies.
Such songs have power to quiet.
The restless pulse of care,
And come like the benediction
That follows after prayer.
Then read from the treasured volume
The poem of thy choice,
And lend to the rhyme of the poet
The beauty of thy voice.
And the night shall be filled with music
And the cares, that infest the day,
Shall fold their tents, like the Arabs,
And as silently steal away.

The Lost Symbol

Intrigue. Mystery. History. Deceit. Name it and the book has it. The moment you turn the first page, Dan Brown leads you on into a journey that’s fast, spell-binding and fast-paced. Mr. Brown weaves together history, legend, science and fiction into a heady mix that keeps you enthralled throughout the book.

Robert Langdon reprises himself as the scholarly professor, yet again caught in a tale of mystery and intrigue – held under the power of an unknown, dangerous man.

5 years of research weaves effortlessly into a 12-hour timeframe, as Dan Brown leads you on into a frightening world of conspiracy and murkiness. Steeped in a deep history of secrecy, the Freemason traditions and customs are brought to light in this book.

Perhaps it is not as controversial as ‘The da Vinci Code’ – which rubbed the Vatican the wrong way, but the book does evoke powerful emotions, and Freemasons will probably not be thrilled with the plot.

But overall, without divulging the story, it can be said that it is worth a read, and one of Mr. Brown’s better works. It does tend to sound like a religious sermon at places, but I guess one can skip over those portions without taking them too seriously.

Happy Reading!!

Snapshots from my life…

Strolling around campus with a gang of friends, right after a spell of rain…

Spending long, sleepless nights in committee meetings…

Stealing quick moments to go out with friends for dinner…

Dozing off in class, right under the nose of the prof…

Putting up Post-It notes on the bathroom mirror, requesting others to wake me up in time for class…

Answering numerous queries that juniors have…

Not answering numerous queries that arise deep within…

Snatching bits of time to read a few pages of ebooks now and then…

Frenetically working against deadlines, trying to beat them back temporarily, at least…

Getting used to returning to my room, when the world’s quietly sleeping…

Trying to work out the functioning of the human mind…

These are some of the threads that currently form a major chunk of my life. Quite disconnected, but yet so connected. Anyway, coherent thought eludes me at this moment, with sleep-deprivation being the cause. Hence, I shall ramble on no more, and leave you to connect the dots.

The Good Mood Gig

Dear Readers,

A blogger friend of mine is applying for this freelance blogging position. Kindly vote for her. No registration, no form to fill out, just a simple click of a mouse will do. (Once she lands the job, we'll rope her in for a proper party!!)

So, get trigger-happy at:

Good Mood Gig from SAM-e

Cheerio
Sumit

Happier…

Naah, this is not a reflection of my current state of mind. Or may be it is. Though, the broad idea here is to talk about a variety of recent happenings in life. (After all, as your bloggy friend, it is my duty to bore you to death with sordid tales of what has been happening in the last month.)

a) Some of the courses in this term are fantastic. We have a course on managing creativity (the reason for my last post), one on strategic HR management (my favourite subject) and another one on personal effectiveness and leadership. The last one throws up some interesting ideas, though I must admit that I find self-help books rather insufferable.

b) I’ve been doing some reading (and not just the academic kind). There’s this compilation of tales from Kerala, called ‘Where the rain is born’. It’s a nice compilation by Anita Nair, with stories by the likes of Dr. Shashi Tharoor.

c) I actually managed to watch a few movies too! Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen was the only one of note though. Despite critics panning the movie big time, the fact that it had killer special-effects and a Linkin Park single at the end, made it worthwhile. (Perhaps, the presence of a certain Ms. Megan Fox also had something to do with it.)

d) I want to stamp on my phone and break it. It rings far too often!

e) Surprisingly, by prioritizing my tasks better, I’ve been able to spend more time with friends, even though my overall schedule has become much busier. (The next couple of months are going to be tough, with me almost underground, so I’m doing all the catching up I possibly can.)

f) I think I’ll be docked grade points in at least 2-3 subjects. Gah, 9 am classes – I hate them!! I’ll never make the attendance requirement, at this rate.

g) I’ll possibly be the first person in Jamshedpur to own a licensed version of Windows 7. The DVD is in the mail. Yippee!!

h) I had my Microsoft job interview – the first round, last week. I think I did a decent job, though some questions could/should have been handled better, and not like a moronic half-wit on LSD. (*fingers crossed, and toes too*)

i) I’m supposed to read this self-help book called ‘Happier’ as a course requirement. I absolutely detest the book, and somehow it seems to be mocking me for this, as it lies in its resplendent yellow colour on my book rack.

j) I have 102 followers. Wow! I’m glad so many people have good taste in what they read. ;)

In case you expected some common thread, some line of thought in this post, too bad! The only thing common to all the above points is that there is nothing common. I hope you enjoyed reading. Tee hee!! :D

Creativity – Can one learn it?

It’s an interesting debate. Could one teach a dork like me to paint like Picasso or sculpt like Rodin? With some training for hours, days, weeks, or years, could I be made capable of inventing something even remotely as revolutionary as an iPod?

Some would agree and some would disagree. I wouldn’t do either. That’s not because I’m a fence sitter, but because I don’t think I even know the definition of creativity. Something that’s creative and new for me, could simply be routine, mundane work for another person. Also, something that’s supposedly creative to another person may appear to be totally useless to me. For example, we have had cases of numerous people who have had to eat their words about the uselessness of ‘creative’ objects.

Television, cars, airplanes, and even overnight delivery suggested by the originator of Fedex met with universal scorn to begin with. So, do I have the right to deride a ‘creative’ pursuit today, when it may become the next big thing tomorrow? I don’t think so.

In fact, I guess I’d define creativity simply as a new idea that strikes me – irrespective of its utility or monetary worth. It’s probably a personal definition, if you ask me. Not an organizational or dictionary definition at all. Call it a creative definition, if you will. :P

What say you folks? What exactly is creativity to you? Do you think one can teach it in classrooms?

Every team needs a powerhouse…

One set of professionals I admire a lot is the folks who create ad campaigns. I often wonder, if they just sit at desks, churning out creative pieces like cars at an assembly line, or take long walks in sylvan surroundings to stimulate creativity. It might be a bit weird on my part to imagine, but do they resort to hallucinogens like LSD to amplify their creative capabilities? (Yes, I’m drawing a parallel with Mr. Samuel T. Coleridge’s opium-induced state that led to masterpieces like ‘Kubla Khan’ and ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’)

Of course, the idea is not to cast aspersions at the habits of creative professionals. I merely intend to confer my admiration for them, courtesy a recent ad that I saw for Adidas’s new shoe – the F50i. (Perhaps the admiration also stems from the fact that two legends I worship – the great Zinedine Zidane and the iconic Steven Gerrard are featured in the ad.)

Do see the ad below and decide for yourselves. And of course, pour in or at least trickle in your thoughts.

Guess who’s back!

Yes yes, I’ve been missing for almost a month now and not responding to emails, blog comments and messages. It wasn’t intentional though. Just that the maddening pace of life tore my attempts at getting a life to shreds.

Since the end of the MBA that I’m pursuing is in sight, these are busy times indeed. The last month has been particularly excruciating. And the next one month promises to be the same, if not worse.

Still, I’ll keep trying to pour in some banality here, like always. More than writing, I’ll be happier if I can do a bit more of reading because these days, whatever I write sounds choppy and unconnected to reality – much like my own life.

The last few days have been incredibly tough, personally. However, now that they’re past, I’m hoping things will look up again.

Anyway, hopefully I’ll be back here more often. Till next time…

Ta!