Women- have trouble understanding them? So do I!

I am completely aware that by writing this post, I run the risk of being called a male chauvinist pig. But such an interesting topic cannot be ignored now can it?

What is the one thing all of us associate women with? Talking of course. Do note that "talking" in most cases is a euphemism for gossiping! That is not to suggest that guys do not gossip. Surely they do, but think carefully, and you will realize that most often than naught, a woman is the gossip partner for a guy. You hardly find just two guys gossiping! In the case of ladies though, its an inherent talent us men can never match up to. Why do you think the makers of Gossip Girl stuck with name? Try imagining something sounding as horrifying as Gossip Guys! Sounds disgusting doesn't it?

Put two from the feminine gender together, and sparks are sure to fly. Interestingly, age doesn't seem to matter either. Two two-year olds together, and certain talks about their dolls making food, or how the pink suits the barbie more than the red are often heard. Same is the case with two teenage girls, the only difference being that the dolls in their talks are replaced by real people!

Take today for example. I was in the MRT, when I saw a group of three girls, not more than 15, talking animatedly about some guy who "can be really asshole when he is asshole, and can be really nice when he is nice"! (trust me, I have not exaggerated, this is word to word what I heard!) The funny thing was, the tone they used was reminiscent of a time in India, when I had heard two old ladies criticizing their daughter-in-laws.  No wonder they say old habits die hard!

My Day Goes "What The...?!"

Some days start and end with just one phrase-"What the F". And thankfully, these days are few and far in between. Unfortunately for me though, today was just one of those days.

Scheduled to meet a property agent in the morning for a second viewing of an apartment we had seen yesterday, my father, sister, and myself arrived at the designated place. The agent though either thought we were nutcases, or had short-term memory loss. Or maybe he thought we did. But whatever the reasoning, he was quoting the prices at an increased rate of $200. Didn't know such a sudden bout of inflation had hit this lah-lah land!

His behaviour too was weird and somewhat unceremonious today. You know what I have realized? That property agents are the most fake people one could deal with, and more so when you are the tenant. Pardon my stereotype, but this stems only through my experiences with them.

The middle part of the day was quite the contrary to the beginning though, with a final deal being struck with the current landlord for a renewal of the house lease. Relief writ on our faces, we went for an outing to the Singapore Flyer, followed by a rendezvous at the Marina Barrage.

However, Marina Barrage is one place where one should think more than twice if you dont have the luxury of a car. For all the scenic sights it has to offer, the transportation back from the place is a real pain.

Firstly, on weekends the most irritating dialogue upon dialing 65521111 (Comfort CityCab!) is "we are experiencing a high call volume, please hold the line while our customer service executive comes on line". And if by chance you are lucky to get one to talk to you soon enough, the drivers tend not to know the existence of this place and ask for the nearest building near Marina Barrage. Am I supposed to tell them that all the buildings around the area are still under construction? So I spent half an hour trying to guide the cab driver the way to the entrance of the place, only to discover that it was a MaxiCab which was making its way towards us. Hence, a new booking, a new cab, and a new driver. Fortunately, he did not seem to require spoon-feeding of directions.

All-in-all, the day was rather irritating at times. But I hope against hope, that while Team India is currently playing a must-win match against the Windies, I do not literally end the day with "What the F!"

JP Morgan Corporate Challenge : An Experience - 5.6 km of Corporate Life

Today was an experience truly one of its kind. Never before have I seen executives, managers and associates all unite in such harmony. To make those who run the havoc and cause all the running around in offices, do the running themselves is something rather remarkable. And thanks to J.P Morgan Chase; they lived up to their name and made 300 plus companies "chase" each other in a 5.6km course.

If you thought Singapore is a small island, you had to be present to witness the exhibition of its commercial prowess, if nothing else. 11400 professionals ended the office day early to be a part of this extravaganza. Adding to the flamboyance were the creatively (and in some cases not so creatively) designed running tees. I guess a running tee tells as much about a company as does its annual report. Not surprizingly then some of the most appealing designs came from the likes of Bank of America Merril Lynch, SAP Asia, J.P. Morgan itself, and others. Their tees made one wish they were running for them instead, in possession of such designs.

Some companies though took creativity to another level altogether. One such company, Apos, dealing with back and knee therapies , was a league apart with their tees. They actually had varying tees with different phrases at their backs, the likes of "having back pain due to all the running? Come to us", "back giving you trouble with the running? Don't worry we are here", etc. What they managed to do was launch a massive advertising campaign amidst 11400 people, without literally spending a penny extra (apart from the cost of the tees and registration fees), that left an impression in the minds. To top it, they also ran away with the best- designed tee prize.

Another phrase which I personally liked was on the shirt of the American Embassy Team. "RUN FOR YOUR LIFE" is a quote often used in times of danger, fear. But on the tees of this team, they had a picture of a running man, and his heartbeat next to him. The double meaning connotation struck me as brilliant. It was another double meaning which made the entire purpose of this event clearer to me. JP Morgan, by organizing such an annual event had hit gold. On the face of it, they were creating awareness of a healthy lifestyle. But subtly, the three aspects that matter in a corporation and its growth; reputation, networking, advertisement, all were enhanced through one such event. Indeed, the marketing and events team must be given due credit for such a masterstroke.

The only blip of the entire event occurred from the least expected of all quarters. Upon the completion of the race, there were tents for each participating company, where along with the usual bananas and 100 Plus, were strawberries, vegie pies, grapes, and...BEER! I guess its true then, corporate life simply does not exist without alcohol! So much for all the healthy living and 5.6 km!

Oh, and for those who are left wondering, yes all these thought were flowing through my mind while I was huffing and puffing my way through 5.6km!

Choice (I) : College life and Friends

'Spoilt for choice' is a phrase depicting riches. However, at times it is these riches which spoil a person. Such is a story of three friends. Friends who were the closest you'd find in high school, and their friendship journey through college, where they were educated in lessons more than just academic.

***

Haven't you ever wondered why it is so often the case that of hundreds of people you meet and work with throughout your life, only a select few end up being there forever? And even then, equation with them too has its ups and downs. We are said to be the most adaptable species on this planet, and this I would think is the sole factor for our ability to 'move on' as we like to call it. But with some people, as you would have realized yourselves, that isn't even an option.

"Keep in touch! I am so sure you wont write a single mail, whereas I will bug you with continuous ones!" was what one friend had said to him when he had last seen her. Its funny though how the sands of time tend to fade friendships into mere existence akin to sand castles, present but weak. New settings, new friends, new environment add to the pre-existing geographical distances.

The initial glamour of college life (those yet to experience it, yes, its only INITIAL. Movies always misguide!) did not get to these friends. Thanks to facebook, orkut (yup, this is the prehistoric setting before facebook publicly murdered orkut), and in general the web based mailing and chatting, these friends managed to keep that closely knit bond intact.

But, inevitably as some would call it, chinks did start appearing in the relations. Though all three of them knew that they were there for each other should the need arise, new college friends constituted most of the time set aside for friends. Those three way conversations on gtalk metamorphosized into two separate two way ones. Where once two hours were spent chatting the time away, now finding two minutes to send an SMS seemed tough. And all three of them were to be equally blamed.

The story which started off as that of trying to keep in touch had reached a point of hoping to keep in touch. And those who have gone through such a transformation, would agree that it is not necessarily a very nice place to be in.

(to be continued...)

Choice

To begin with, I owe an apology to those who have been visiting the blog in anticipation of finding a new article, only to be disappointed by the infrequency of new posts over the last three weeks. Reasons have been more than one.

Firstly, exams were the talk of the town. Although I did not have to sit for more than two exams this semester, the very fact that I was doing a full day internship (still am) meant that I had hardly read through the lecture notes in the first half (and a bit more) of the semester in the first place. That left me eight weeks of backlog, another four tutorials, along with understanding complex concepts..and you can do the maths yourself! You get the situation right?

The second reason, was the creation of a parallel blog. This though is a cooperative blog, which some friends and myself have got together for with the vision of making the world read (actually, its to fulfill our passion for writing!). For the greater good of blog-iety and catering to those needing their monthly dose of humour, techism, life, and general randomness, we have brought to you the Hodgepodge Rostrum- http://www.hodgepodge-rostrum.blogspot.com/, where we currently have the Pardesi Dhaba running. So be welcome, come to the Dhaba and experience the rich desiness (for the convenience of those Hindi-cally challenged Desi is a term for Indian. And please do not have that look on your face, I am warranted at least one sentence of advertisement of my own creation in this blog, aint I?!)

But this post is not all about the other blog. I have felt something over the course of absence from this blog, which I would like to share today, as well as in the coming days, and this would form the core of the coming few entries on this space.

As is often the case with something new, a lot of my time and effort went into the initial setup of the other blog. I tended to neglect this blog, and not suprisingly, the guilt factor made its presence felt within a few days. This is a reaction many have to face, and that too in such a variety of aspects in life that I would be surprised if you aren't surprised. When one is married, it must be ensured that the parents are given the same attention they were given before. Having a girlfriend/boyfriend should be followed by friendship not being forgotten. While making new friends, the old ones must be held even closer. Life experiences deal with all such situations. Think about it, similar situations would have hit you in your lives. I known of people who have had to face them as well. The series of the next few posts would be inspired from these occurrences, and touch upon the finer nuances in life of CHOICE...