Random Thoughts

He has the 'bring it' attitude... and will defend his political legacy like a mother grizzly defends her cubs. Watch and enjoy. And god bless this man. Even if he was a philanderer.

I've always wondered what it was like to be there when history happens. Those great moments like when Charles Lindbergh showed up at Le Bourget in the Spirit of St. Louis or when Nehru gave his speech about making a tryst with destiny Or when Alexander the Great sacked Persepolis or when the wall that divided East from West fell, unifying West Germany and the GDR into one Germany once again or at Juno Beach on 6th June 1944. Sometimes, the participants scarcely know that history is in the making... but other times, it is well known and keenly anticipated. This week, I got to go hang out and watch history being made. I am of course talking about seeing the inauguration of the first non-white man to the office of President of the United States. It was probably the largest crowd I was ever in. They estimated around 2 million people on the mall to see the inauguration. And I was one of them. It was incredibly cold standing out there for over 6 hours waiting for history to happen. I was...

I am a lucky person. I live in as a legal alien in the United States of America. That's what they call me, check Wikipedia or the INS website. Not only do I live as a legal alien in the US, I live in its capital. The District of Columbia is unique in some respects. It is not a state, it does not elect voting members to the House of Representatives (the lower house in the bicameral legislature) or the Senate. I don't think it has the ability to raise funds the same way states can and the highest ranking authority here seems to be the Mayor of the District of Columbia. Anyway, guess what's going to happen in 8 days? We are of course going to swear in the most powerful man in the country and some would say, even the world. Washington DC is abuzz with inauguration type activities. People are excited about it, there isn't a hotel in sight that has available rooms around that time, the roads are full, there is construction all over the place, the police are everywhere and so...

I heard today from some news site about US president-elect, Barack Obama picking CNN health reporter, Dr. Sanjay Gupta as his new Surgeon General. I've found American democracy interesting but I couldn't help but wonder what next. They seem to have the Tamil gene in them. If you're wondering why, go look up what Tamil politicians did prior to becoming politicians. So does that mean the president-elect might choose Judge Judy to be Attorney General? Apparently, the president can pick whoever he wants to be in charge of various government agencies; defence, health, finance, foreign affairs etc. That is in sharp contrast to most Westminster type of democracies where it is far more common for someone who is actually elected, to head a portfolio in cabinet. Don't get me wrong, our prime minster does nominate the odd TV celebrity I suppose... why, look at the last two Governors General of Canada. Prior to that, they were from radio :). And before anyone nominates the teletub...

I intended to go get Dim Sum with a bunch of co-workers on Saturday. We've had somewhat reasonable success finding decent DS out in Wheaton at a place called Hollywood East Cafe. I looked it up on google and if you go by their maps application , as I did on my phone, the first hit is in Beverly Hill California... but if you use their search engine the place is listed as 2 312 Price Ave , Wheaton , MD ‎. I looked that up and it was near the Wheaton metro. Somehow I get lost on the way there (trusting google maps and cell phone tower triangulation based geo-location isn't always the best) and ended up in a mall. After some looking about, I got my bearings right and headed to 2312 Price Ave. I end up there and it looked nothing like the place I went to the last time. I looked at the sign and guess what, the place is called Hollywood East Cafe. The rest of the people I was meeting meanwhile ended up at Hollywood East Cafe... elsewhere in freaking Wheaton MD. Keep in mind that its q...

Its the new year and I thought I would write what I thought so far of it. Its cold outside. And windy. Put the two together, and it makes for not so fun times waiting for public transit after a night of revelling. New Year's Eve wasn't anything special. I went to work, I worked... and after work, I hung around the office for quite a while, took a nap and then went to a co-worker's house party. It was pretty decent, with beer (home brewed and otherwise), sparkling wine and one very large red headed and red bearded person who shook up and poured sparkling wine over everyone's coats. Nut. Anyway, Happy New Year dear reader(s). Lets hope it sucks less than the last one. And god willing, I'll be home.