Indianised.. Punctuality

I am extremely particular about respecting others time and I expect the same in return. With no intention of blowing my own trumpet I would say the number of times I get disappointed are not few. Time is money, time is precious & time is not a renewable resource...In a 24 hour day every small delay here and there adds up. I am quite sure Indians as a demographic group can be singled out for absolute contempt for time. Why? for the life of me..Why? As if that is not enough one should see us beaming with pride whenever the acronym IST is thrown about..Indian Stretchable Time..Shouldn't we all take a hard look in the mirror and be ashamed of ourselves? Scheduled meetings never start on time, files do not move, construction of bridges/roads are delayed, implementation of plans never happen on time, court cases get postponed time after time. The are numerous examples and it is not humanly possible to count them all. Let me stop this tirade....and lets Indianise punctuality....

Way back in 1996 a prominent German firm's manager took control of its India operations. He was one of the best the company had and failure was not an option. In the beginning he would turn up for all social get together with the trademark German precision. For example if the party was at 2100 hrs, he will be there smack on the dot, only to find the embarrassed host still in the shower! Times changed he got a a little 'Indianised'. Fast forward to 2006....the firm is performing really well. He decides to host a party and the party starts at, well you guessed it, 2100 hrs. His Indian guest turn up at 2125-2130 hrs only to find him still in the shower!

I am baffled...instead of learning good habits from others we are teaching bad habits to others

De rigueur

Reading books is de rigueur...
Education for all is de rigueur...
Embracing 'change' is de rigueur...
Better Infrastructure is de rigueur...
Chilling out on weekends is de rigueur...
This season, wearing woolens is de rigueur...
Better tax regime in India today is de rigueur...
Sadly, a mobile phone these days is de rigueur...
In organizations, being politically correct is de rigueur...
Commanding respect more than demanding it is de rigueur...
Investing time in a relationship more than money is de rigueur...
Being ruthlessly passionate about attaining your dreams is de rigueur...
Elimination of the 'RED Brigade' from India's political theatre is de rigueur...
Contributing to the "India Wave" for the larger good of the world is de rigueur...
Saying personal things and loading it with "do not take it personally" is de rigueur...

Action Packed

Things that capture imagination...they happen un-announced and that precisely is the beauty of it. Monday, I was thinking I will exclusively make a blog post for the words that I have learnt new but not got an opportunity to use. Time Warp, Psychobabble, Brand Slut, Laundry Virgin, Past Master, Vertigo to list a few.

Tendulkar scores his 41st hundred, his knock pretty much sealed the match in the first 50 overs itself. His baiters will remain quiet for two more matches and then their tongues will wag again. Let me predict, it will be "he is not making enough runs, he should manage his restaurant business or do some advertisements in between". Tongues are meant to wag and Tendulkar's bat is meant to talk. I am glad it talks to the cricket ball alone.

100 years ago another tongue wagged. "Do you mean to say that Tatas propose to make steel rails to British specifications? Why, I will undertake to eat every pound of steel rail they succeed in making" - Sir Frederick Upcott (Chairman, Board of Indian Railways, in 1907 when Tatas proposed to make steel). Post Tata's takeover of Corus(ex-largest British steelmaker) I am sure Sir Upcott will be turning in his grave. He need not eat steel rails, he can eat his own words for the time being. He may upgrade to steel rails once he succeeds in digesting his own words...tough ask that one!

Between wagging tongues and learning new words I sneaked in some time to learn+play sudoku. I prefer playing it online at www.websudoku.com, try it you will like it too! If not anything it lets the logical juices flow freely.

Last but not the least, I learnt water boils at 212 degree Farenheit. I knew it along it was 100 degree in Celcius. Checkout this 212 degree inspiring video. www.212amovie.com. Go on get inspired!