(Click to enlarge pic) L-R: Xiao, Mustansir, Tony T, Tony K, Sylvia, Zhongtao, Prof. Apsel, Rajeev, Paul, Me.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Good bye time
Today was my last group meeting with this group that was a total stranger to me just 3 months back, but are really good friends now. Thank you all for a wonderful summer at Cornell!
(Click to enlarge pic) L-R: Xiao, Mustansir, Tony T, Tony K, Sylvia, Zhongtao, Prof. Apsel, Rajeev, Paul, Me.
(Click to enlarge pic) L-R: Xiao, Mustansir, Tony T, Tony K, Sylvia, Zhongtao, Prof. Apsel, Rajeev, Paul, Me.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Swati
I was busy for the whole last 2 weeks figuring out what can I buy as a gift for myself from this USA trip. I figured out a cheap thing but a good one that can fit in my budget would be a Bose speaker set. I was navigating through various sites to find one when I came across many good deals. Then I figured out that I can spend a few bucks more and buy myself a laptop instead.
So I sat down and narrowed down on 3 choices - an AMD single core Turion for 449$, a Toshiba intel core2duo for 580$ and an acer intel core2duo for 550$. After consulting with many of my friends and cousins, I decided on the third one. The deal was on best buy, and said the laptop was not available in stores, but only available online. I nevertheless went to the best buy store here on Friday to ask about warranties and battery issues. It was there that I found out that the scheme expired the next day. So that was it. I decided this is the laptop that I want, so I asked Sasikanth if he could accompany me there to buy it the next day. He too wanted a laptop so he agreed to come along and have a look at one for himself. We went and bought that laptop the next day then.
So this is my swati, my new laptop. Many people ask me why I have named her Swati. Well, there is no specific reason as such, just that I like the name Swati a lot. Here's the config I got for 550$ (features):
It comes with a 1GB DDR2 RAM, expandable to 2GB. So what say, good deal eh? :)
Meet Swati: (Click to enlarge)
So I sat down and narrowed down on 3 choices - an AMD single core Turion for 449$, a Toshiba intel core2duo for 580$ and an acer intel core2duo for 550$. After consulting with many of my friends and cousins, I decided on the third one. The deal was on best buy, and said the laptop was not available in stores, but only available online. I nevertheless went to the best buy store here on Friday to ask about warranties and battery issues. It was there that I found out that the scheme expired the next day. So that was it. I decided this is the laptop that I want, so I asked Sasikanth if he could accompany me there to buy it the next day. He too wanted a laptop so he agreed to come along and have a look at one for himself. We went and bought that laptop the next day then.
So this is my swati, my new laptop. Many people ask me why I have named her Swati. Well, there is no specific reason as such, just that I like the name Swati a lot. Here's the config I got for 550$ (features):
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It comes with a 1GB DDR2 RAM, expandable to 2GB. So what say, good deal eh? :)
Meet Swati: (Click to enlarge)
Friday, July 6, 2007
Weather
I was looking up my igoogle home page today morning, and checked out the weather comparison between Ithaca and Mumbai.
The Ithaca climate is probably as humid, if not more than Mumbai in summers. Just that the temperature scales are different though; I would say an Ithacan summer looks more like a Mumabian winter of sorts to me.
Nevertheless, I still miss that muggy hot and humid weather of Mumbai... however incovenient that may seem, that's where I have grown up and that's what I have grown to love... and would love to live...
The Ithaca climate is probably as humid, if not more than Mumbai in summers. Just that the temperature scales are different though; I would say an Ithacan summer looks more like a Mumabian winter of sorts to me.Nevertheless, I still miss that muggy hot and humid weather of Mumbai... however incovenient that may seem, that's where I have grown up and that's what I have grown to love... and would love to live...
Monday, July 2, 2007
What do I miss most?
What/who do I miss most in USA? I decided I should make a list of things I am most attached to and those I miss a lot here, and finally the thing I miss most.
I miss my family, my friends, the food my mom makes, my mess food, IIT, H2, Phoenix wing, GG building, WEL lab, Mumbai in general, local trains and BEST buses in particular, bus number 524 specifically, Laxmi restaurant, my comp, my cellphone, my room at IIT, bhandari's room at IIT, the squirrel who lived in my room at IIT, Mumbai rains (or floods, whichever way you prefer it), mangoes, Britannia Bourbon, Amul tricone, the nimbu paani and aloo paratha we get in H2 canteen, Dominoes 180 for 4 scheme, my tabla, tabla classes, the idli wada that I ate in our department canteen, Rin supreme, Lamington road, Lan ban, 8.30 lectures and plenty more...
More importantly I miss myself. I miss the way I was when I was at IIT just about 2 months back. I can't wait to get back.
I miss my family, my friends, the food my mom makes, my mess food, IIT, H2, Phoenix wing, GG building, WEL lab, Mumbai in general, local trains and BEST buses in particular, bus number 524 specifically, Laxmi restaurant, my comp, my cellphone, my room at IIT, bhandari's room at IIT, the squirrel who lived in my room at IIT, Mumbai rains (or floods, whichever way you prefer it), mangoes, Britannia Bourbon, Amul tricone, the nimbu paani and aloo paratha we get in H2 canteen, Dominoes 180 for 4 scheme, my tabla, tabla classes, the idli wada that I ate in our department canteen, Rin supreme, Lamington road, Lan ban, 8.30 lectures and plenty more...
More importantly I miss myself. I miss the way I was when I was at IIT just about 2 months back. I can't wait to get back.
Greyhound - I wonder why??
Here's the deal - take a Greyhound from Ithaca to DC and book a ticket 14 days in advance and it costs you just 36 bucks. But try booking a ticket from DC to Ithaca, no matter how many days in advance, the fare is 89 bucks. I wonder why??
Then again. Book a ticket from DC to NYC and it costs you about 50 bucks, with a journey time of about 5 hours. Fly instead within an hour and half for just 60 bucks or so. I wonder why??
Ithaca is closer to NYC than DC is. But the fares from Ithaca to NYC for Greyhound are more than from DC to NYC. I wonder why??
The shortline buses from NYC to Ithaca are cheaper than the Greyhounds from DC to NYC. But they are way better, when it comes to wider seats, more legspace, cleanliness and the service offered. I wonder why??
But still I love Greyhound for their kind of service in this otherwise anti-public-transport country :) I wonder why??
Then again. Book a ticket from DC to NYC and it costs you about 50 bucks, with a journey time of about 5 hours. Fly instead within an hour and half for just 60 bucks or so. I wonder why??
Ithaca is closer to NYC than DC is. But the fares from Ithaca to NYC for Greyhound are more than from DC to NYC. I wonder why??
The shortline buses from NYC to Ithaca are cheaper than the Greyhounds from DC to NYC. But they are way better, when it comes to wider seats, more legspace, cleanliness and the service offered. I wonder why??
But still I love Greyhound for their kind of service in this otherwise anti-public-transport country :) I wonder why??
Saturday, June 30, 2007
A retrospection
Was planning out my return trip back to India today morning, when the thought hit me - I shall be leaving Cornell within a month's time, and if I have my way, never plan to return to USA, well at least never plan to settle in USA I mean; sightseeing, maybe I might. Just one more month to go before I return to the land I love, but also just a month more to go in this place that has taught me so much in such a short period of time. I had never felt I could make such good friends here as I have, never felt my views on what I want I should do after IIT would change so much after I come here, never imagined that I could get to see life here beyond what I thought of on day one, never felt that maybe 20 years down the line I can tell my kids that there was a time when I was at Cornell, maybe watch some of my pals here make it big in the future and yell out to others - 'I know this guy!'
I hated beer when I came here; this place taught me to love it, and now even though I don't drink anymore, I still respect beer for its power :P I loved the luxurious life that USA promises when I came here, but go back feeling that a luxurious life in isolation is nowhere comparable to a great social life, with a compromise on the luxury aspect. I came here as a devout follower on the 'Tech' path, but leave with a feeling that being an IITian isn't all about tech - it's about being smart, and there are other fields where I feel I can bring out my smartness (if any) in a better way. I came here unsure of how to adjust to live with people who were just strangers about a couple of months back, but are dear friends now - I have learnt to trust people while I was here, and have learnt to earn their trust as well - I have learnt that strangers are just friends waiting to happen. I came here thinking that IITians may be the smartest people out there, but now leave realising that even though it is so, there is a lot of scope for improvement.
Most importantly I feel though, I was taking India for granted all this while long, and now when I was weaned away from her, did I realise how much she meant to me. She has given us all that we have all this long, isn't it time we give something back? Something that matters.
I hated beer when I came here; this place taught me to love it, and now even though I don't drink anymore, I still respect beer for its power :P I loved the luxurious life that USA promises when I came here, but go back feeling that a luxurious life in isolation is nowhere comparable to a great social life, with a compromise on the luxury aspect. I came here as a devout follower on the 'Tech' path, but leave with a feeling that being an IITian isn't all about tech - it's about being smart, and there are other fields where I feel I can bring out my smartness (if any) in a better way. I came here unsure of how to adjust to live with people who were just strangers about a couple of months back, but are dear friends now - I have learnt to trust people while I was here, and have learnt to earn their trust as well - I have learnt that strangers are just friends waiting to happen. I came here thinking that IITians may be the smartest people out there, but now leave realising that even though it is so, there is a lot of scope for improvement.
Most importantly I feel though, I was taking India for granted all this while long, and now when I was weaned away from her, did I realise how much she meant to me. She has given us all that we have all this long, isn't it time we give something back? Something that matters.
The best thing
The best thing that could have ever happened to me while I am here in Cornell is that Suresh has gone to Caltech for a fortnight. Logic: He has taken away his laptop for the time being, and this gave me a chance to realise how addicted I was to the laptop in general and to the internet in particular. It's been just 2 days since he's away, meanwhile I have realised how much time I actually have in hand if I am weaned away from the internet. I had about 3-4 John Grishams lined up for the summers, but hadn't started any till day before. Completed 2 in 2 days. Man! I think I really was a slave of the internet; good thing this that I have only restricted access now.
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