Office Chair Thief

I finally caught him in action! For a long while we've been hearing random complaints about people's chairs being switched or chairs gone missing (yeah , I know - this is a very busy office).
So we recently moved people around so they're closer to their teams..so I have 2 new neighbours...guy 1 went out to lunch (or whatever) and guy 2 just walked over and switched his chair with a broken armrest with guy 1's chair!! I was sitting right there! Did he think I was fast asleep? I know I give that impression sometimes but, you know...he just switched the chairs right in front of me! Also, did he think guy 1 would not notice a broken armrest??? Anyway, guy 1 comes back and sits down and puts his arm on broken armrest and shoots straight up off his chair and begins looking around suspiciously...looks at me !! (I studiously ignore and pretend to type - I do that very well). Then for some reason he decides I couldn't be the thief(maybe because the chair I was sitting on is way too ratty to have been recently stolen) and starts complaining to guy 2 about someone stealing his chair...guy 2 just shrugs and makes sympathetic noises and shares his chair stolen experiences with guy 1!!! I mean wtf??? This guy just stole his chair 5 mins back!
This office is fully entertaining...

Oh, BTW I am filing adoption papers for this kid. Really.

Pictures from Grand Canyon and Las Vegas

The Excalibur

Some detailed wall art in The Excalibur.

The kids with their 'excellent' chachu.

Hoover Dam

Statue of Liberty at the New York, New York.

Arhan trying to look as menacing as the armor but ending up achieving the opposite.

The gorgeous Venetian - this is the inside!

Gondola ride at the Venetian.

Stunning Grand Canyon views.

Its been a while

For all my faithful readers(I doubt there are any), i know its been a while, but you know...
FYI, the pot luck was a great success and my palak paneer was a big hit, and the cake which I messed up (long story - maybe another day..or not)also went pretty fast.
I've been to Vegas, Grand Canyon and Sedona...fun fun! Will post pictures soon. 5 day trip, 3 days in Vegas, 2 days travelling to GC and Sedona. Stayed at the Planet Hollywood, such a cool hotel. Attended this timeshare thing where they give you a 1 hour presentation on their timeshare properties and then reward you with tons of stuff...5 day holiday in Hawaii, 2 night free stay at Planet Hollywood, Spice Market buffet(voted #1 in Vegas by a very important committee that I forget the name of), tickets to shows going on....so cool. We totally enjoyed all our free gifts.
I'm on call today, need a break, hence the new post. I got a big new project that I'm supposed to have started already but I just don't feel like can't find the time to start. Today I had to submit my time estimate for the project and I went over my task list and went into panic mode seeing how much i have to do. Immediately logged on to blog....feel much better now.
Last night A & S took me out to dinner, thank God! Would've just sat at home and watched TV, since N (henceforth referred to as 'The Frog') is away on a business trip. We went to a great cuban restaurant in Montclair (gotta love that town) and ate a super meal...chicken lollipops, shredded beef, skirt steak etc all served with delicious toppings/sauces/. Everything was SO full of flavor and taste and the meat was succulent, treat for the tastebuds. Thanks guys!
Ok, I should go get some lunch, lets see what they have at the cafeteria today. Later!

Potluck Lunch with Funny co-workers

Ok, so my co-workers are just too funny. There's Wen who cracks me up with his goofy humor and I can't believe I 'get' it. He'll send out these random emails with a phrase he's looked up on wiki...usually these are 'All American' phrases that he takes too literally like, "I'm grounded" (don't ask) or the recipe for a Bloody Mary. He looks everything up on Wiki. We have a pot luck lunch on Friday, organized by yours truly, and I asked him what he's bringing. He said he has to think about it. Then at the end of the day, he sends a picture of 'crispy Spring Rolls', straight out of wiki i'm sure. Heck, he even looked up 'potluck' on wiki and pasted the deifnition to me on IM.
I am taking an appetizer and a cake. Both of which I haven't made before. Ah, well, its only the boys from work.

The Beautiful Bahamas

The fabulous Carnival Elation.

Half Moon Cay

Here 's a picture of a beautiful sunset taken from the deck of our cruise ship.

Here's Naren, Aashee and me at the Margaritaville pool party on the Grand Turk island.

Naren and me and the Shah's at Nassu.

Our servers entertaining us during dinner.

Michael Jordan's home and speed boat at Nassau.

Relaxing on deck.

Naren and me....F.R.I.E.D.

Half Moon Cay Fun

Knowing what the future holds

So, I've finished up all my work for the release on Friday, plus a bug or two more. Called home and learned that Preeti and Mama are going to Jaipur tomorrow to visit a jyotish/pundit, one who reads your birth chart (kundli), to select our birthstones to counter all the negative influences that our stars bestow on us. I'm not sure its a good idea to get involved in all of this...there are enough doubts and insecurities to stress us out already and we don't really need more to think about. But we'll see..............
P.S: The new Mercedes comes tomorrow!

Cruise to the Bahamas

What a fantastic cruise we had! We ate and swam our way through the whole thing, got tanned and sunburned, loved the beaches of Grand Turks and Half Moon Cay, the Margaritaville pool party at the tiki bar, the 24 hour buffets, the excellent service by the crew, the miniature golf, the poolside naps on the beautiful sunny deck...ah, bliss!
Will post some pictures as soon as I get a chance.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose - Deepa's Review

The debate of science versus faith, played out through a courtroom drama that tells of the events leading up to the death of Emily Rose. This is NOT a kitschy horror film that relies on computer graphics or sound effects or puke spewing out of the protagonist's mouth. At the same time it gets under your skin and scares you and makes you question what is possible. It clearly lays out how Emily's condition could be explained by science and then presents facts of the case that could only be explained by Emily's being possessed by the devil. Interspersed with this debate we see Emily's story through the eyes of her family and of Father Moore, who is accused of negligent homicide - of causing Emily's death while performing the exorcism.
The movie never tries to favor either of the opposing beliefs but only raises the question "Is it possible?". And that is summed up well with the defense's closing argument:
I'm not asking that you believe everything that Father Moore believes. I'm simply asking that you believe in Father Moore.

Laughing Baby

This has GOT to make you laugh

AKON - I Wanna Love you

Akon's I wanna love you - Unedited version, check it out here

The Machinist

I'm watching a movie called The Machinist starring Christian Bale. Its about the physical and mental deterioration of a factoy worker who hasn't slept in a year. Very strangely fascinating, dark film. All the sequences are rivetting one after the other...the factory accident due to Ivan, a co-worker who only he can see, the sequence at the amusement park with the waitress and her son, his attempts to trace the truth of who Ivan is..etc. And must he put his hands INSIDE the machine to start it, so that it DEFINITELY gets caught??!!
Some trivia about the movie:
Christian Bale starved himself for over 4 months prior to filming, eating one can of tuna and an apple each day (approximately 275 calories) , as his character needed to look drastically thin. According to the DVD commentary, he lost 62 pounds (28 kg), reducing his body weight to 120 pounds (54.4 kg). Bale wanted to go down to 100 pounds (45.3 kg) but the filmmakers would not let him due to health concerns. He later regained the weight, plus an additional 40 pounds (18 kg) due to weightlifting, in preparation for his role in Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins.

Deck Plans

Naren and I are R37, Digant & Payal are R41, Manoj and Mili are R99 (not shown). Naren is trying to get them into R299 which is near us. This is the Riviera Deck, the lowest...have to find out if thats ok.

Here's a post from one of the countless reviews I've read:

Our stateroom was on the inside, forward, lowest deck which turned out to be excellent as the debarkation for ports was one deck below and we could stop in to our room to get our bag for the day and pop out without waiting for elevators (which were near the cabin and we never heard the bell or the people getting on and off). I would request the same room again.

To read the rest of it, click here.

To read visa requirements click here.

Papa's post surgery news

So I spoke to mama and papa today. Now papa has a pain in his left leg when it is vertical. He doesn't have to put weight on it or anything for it to hurt - even if he just dangles it, it pains. This is the leg that was NOT operated. They told the doctor but the doctor said that you must have strained it since you are putting all your weight on it...but papa says that its not a muscular pain, it feels like a nerve pain...so the doctor then said that they should just ask the general physician since it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the operated leg.
Now papa has stopped walking or exercising in the last 3 days because of this! Its such a setback to his recovery when he was doing so well. He was talking walks in the corridor and all..
Anyway, they will see how it is tomorrow and then consult with their general physician.

Expenses submitted

Finally did the whole darn expense submitting routine, its such a drag...they really make you work for your 50 bucks. Anyway, Naren will be happy.

Random post for the day

Hi all,
I'm sitting here at work, thinking about vacation, shopping, getting a haircut and relaxing.
And then I'm taking a break from all the thinking and completing all my tasks one by one for Friday's deployment. I'm also answering emails in between. I'm about to start working on the expense sheet for my comcast bill - what a pain..so i'll be back when I'm done.