One movie, very few directors,

With the recent financial turmoil in the US markets, there is but one conclusion that can be drawn: ...... Well, I think I will write the conclusion in the end else the story I am going to narrate will be pointless. You need to understand the train of thought that chugged along in my head and all  the hard-work and suffering that went into understanding this politico-financial essay.

I have been deeply involved in studying the collapse of Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual (don't ask me why) and unearthing the mysteries of the financial world. It started out as basic  curiosity and after I had killed the cat, it became a quest. A quest so great that the holy grail would feel left out because of this. Though very complicated, understanding the financial world just got a lot easier by making a few basic assumptions (which as time passes by, I am tending to believe that my assumptions are really facts). Just like life, when you think about something long enough, even if it is fiction, you tend to start believing its true.

So, in the next two articles that I will be posting, I will write in detail about the two companies and how they helped me understand what I know today regarding the financial system and why I would like to be a part of it and not change it at all. 

Anyway, since you were reading all this just for the conclusion, here it is:

CONCLUSION: JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs are the true rulers of this world. They dictate terms to the American Government and the UK and are responsible for the global financial meltdown and unless the system gets an overhaul (like the ending in the Brad Pitt and Edward Norton movie, the name of which is eluding me right now) we are all F()$@#D!! 

Back to blogging

I am going to start blogging again. Two years of torture at Michigan Tech and I am about to rise again ( like a phoenix, some would say) and sleep after sometime.

2 weeks in Korea

Life here has been a bit difficult to adapt to than I thought it would be. I could no longer retain my ‘vegetarian’ status here and that took sometime getting used to. Now, I have tried around 20 different species in 10 days J, including jellyfish, octopus, and some other weird sea creatures whose nomenclature is eluding me right now.

The people here are really friendly and well, helpful to foreigners to an extent that is really surprising. They take such good care of us that we feel completely at home but the only barrier is that of the language. Very few people here can actually speak English and those who manage to do so, take a lot of time to understand the way we speak and most of the times we have to repeat everything twice. It gets a little irritating sometimes but then, that’s why they say, “Patience is a Virtue”

I am actually working on some really interesting things here and it’s a lot of fun. I am designing the electric part of Volvo’s Hybrid Excavator. They don’t have many Electrical Engineers and I have come at the right time for them. I didn’t think they would entrust me with such a responsibility as an Intern, but they have high hopes from this Masters student. They provided me with all the data that they have in their possession so that I could make use of it and obtain the desired results. I was indeed surprised that they were sharing so much of important data and trusting me to such an extent, and entrusting such a responsible task.

My progress has been steady till now and I hope to do some good quality work for them in the coming weeks. The other Interns from Korea (5 of them) have a job at stake here. They will be absorbed in the company depending on how they manage to perform in the internship program. Lets see if we get lucky too. J

I have been doing a lot of hiking and well, I was lucky to get to do nothing this weekend as I have been doing something or the other since the day I landed here. I got some well deserved rest this weekend and got some time to keep with Puzo ( Reading “the family” now)

People are the same, wherever you go in this world. Emotions run high everywhere. The pride of the nation rests in the minds of every individual and it shows in one way or the other. You realize your identity when you are out of the country in a foreign land where there is absolutely no one you know. The US was not much different to me. There are many Indians and well, we are a generation who grew up watching “Friends” and “Full house” et al. Getting accustomed to the culture of US is no big deal. Any Ram, Dip or Hari would easily get used to it in a week. Let the same 3 come here to Korea and then, we can discuss the topic of cultural “shock”.

Travel has been the numero uno in my life and I am thankful to Volvo for actually giving this opportunity to come till here and doing something worthwhile in my life and contributing to the company too. Loads of travel plans in the coming weeks and so the updates will follow as and when they are due. Hope you are having fun in your life. IF not, come to Korea !!!Keep Rocking!!

KK in Korea

I'm in Korea. That should say it all to someone who has been here before. But for those of you who havent, its time to read on.
The plane left from Bangalore and I wanted to sing the song "Take my breath away" as soon as I saw the air-hostess(es) in Thai airways but I figured its just the foreigner effect ( I will soon name this the KK effect the main principle of which is something like " Most foreigners look hot").
Life here is pretty easy to adjust to especially if you are accustomed to eating meat and have a lot of patience while speaking and listening to English. I have neither and so, I am finding it a lot easier than I thought it would be.
Life here starts at 5:20 a.m., which is strange for me because my bedtime coincides with that. But, as life is the way it is ( we really dont have a choice, do we?) I get up at that time now and get ready in a hurry to catch a bus (been doing it all my life) to go to work. They told me the bus would leave at six and it does. I reached at 6:01 today and guess what? Yes.
Breakfast: Rice with soup and Kimchi and some meat curry( more on this later) and packaged(flavoured) milk.
Lunch :Rice with soup and Kimchi and some meat curry
Dinner :Rice with soup and Kimchi and some meat curry

The soup has a distinct sea odour to it and you can guess why? Its not sea water.It has some sea weed in it. It dashed my hopes of getting high though. Sea weed should not be called Sea weed. I want to sue someone right now for getting only my hopes high.

The work I am doing now for Volvo is fun and exciting. Its about Hybrid Excavators. An earth digging machine using a modern concept of integrating an electric motor to supplement the diesel engine.

There are a couple of American Mech students and they are fun to be with. Thankfully. We try our best to meet up regularly to let go of our minds and start conversing in English the way its meant to be. Not pausing for the moon to complete ten revolutions across the sun. Yes, I meant that.

We are in our respective test teams and I am in one which deals with the hybrid section.The team members are so helpful and understanding that this is like a fraternity in its own right. We eat together, take coffee breaks together and sometimes play table tennis together. Life is good.

I went to watch a movie yesterday, Oceans 13. Slept in the middle and was awake in the beginning and the last couple of mins. A very interesting movie indeed. Did a lot of window shopping and the prices here are on par with that of the US.

Kimchi is a traditional cuisine and its made of baked cabbage and a gazillion spices. Its like Chutney with a slightly different taste but the degree of hotness is comparable.

More about the people and culture here in the next post. Hope you are having fun. I am. Therefore I think..... hmmmm.. not really!!! :)

Breaking news..

I just broke a plate today and I thought I will let everyone know :)
Anyway, in other news, things happen when you least expect it. Thats life and thats why its fun!!

Background: I am here in the United States now and in a 'godforsaken freezehole' as described by one good friend. Its called Houghton and its in Michigan. More about how I got here and the events preceding and superceding it will be in future blogs which are going to be up and about soon.

Now, since I am here on an F1 Visa ( student Visa) we are not allowed to work outside campus for the first two semesters. Since I came in the spring session (January) I cant work till next Jan in the US. Sucks huh? Yeah, I think so too. I cant go for an internship or work outside and earn lots of moolah for myself...

Or thats what I thought and so did everyone till this happened...

There is a scam going on. Guess who is behind this?? Indians of course!!! There are some shops, companies, hotels et al owned by Indians all over the States and they hire Indian students and make them work like dogs... wait a sec. Have you seen anyone using dogs to do any of their work other than maybe pick up the early morning newspaper? I guess its just a phrase used a lot back in Kannada land. When I tell some people here that one of the languages that I speak is Kannada, they look at me in a queer way and say "You mean English?" (psst.. they get confused with Canada)

oops.. I am deviating away from the main topic.
Where was I? Here I am in the 7th floor of my department and this is a huge Lab with nearly 50 computers for our use. The topic was that how some people exploit this aspect of the American law for their (and sometimes, the students) needs.
I know a couple of them who worked in these places and well, they were happy because they got the money. But, its a tough going for students who have to live the life of a daily wage worker for a couple of months.

more on the hardships later ( or maybe never)
I had resigned to this fate of mine where I imagined myself to be doing something like this over the summer where for more than 4 months of our time, we are free.

But fate has its own plans and it decided to do something nice to me (like always, I flirt a lot with lady luck :) )
My Advisor said we will be starting my Masters Project in the summer and he already gave me some work to do though summer is still a forthnight away.
Wait, the story does not end here.
I got an Internship in Volvo and I will be going to South Korea for 2 months in the summer.
for now, the story ends.
Will be back soon...

Shit Happens

Shit Happens!! forgot my old password and well.. lifes like that my friend. But thanks to this digital world, Bond would never say " You only live Twice" ever again. Neither would I. B'coz I think this is the third time I am creating my blog.
Google is spreading its monopoly by buying out blogger too. Now, they make things easier even more. The only thing left for them to do is bring out credit cards and loot us by showing life through rose coloured glasses.
Will be back soon.