B&H Store, NYC

Those near and (even mildly) dear would have heard me wax eloquent about how Fry's Electronics is the ultimate geek's paradise, and how entering the place is like an instant lobotomy of all restraint.

Well, I now stand corrected.

I've been in NYC all this week. I'd mentioned the fact to David a few weeks ago, and he quite innocuously said "You should stop by the B&H store". I trusted the man. Thought he was a friend and all that sort of rot.

The place is in-effing-sane. Besides the (slightly surreal) fact that you couldn't swing a TTL-cord without hitting someone sporting a yarmulke and payess, clattering overhead was an assortment of rails on which large green crates were being flung about. This apparantly is their distribution system that gets the actual items from the bowels of the store to the pickup counter where you pay for them when you leave. This also means that you don't have to schlepp stuff around in shopping carts; you simply wander around the store and point at things, and the staff keep adding it to a list that's shoved into your hand. Walk out to the checkout counter, and with the magic of the clattering roller-coasters above, all will be waiting for your plastic.

Only the insistent buzzing of my phone (Google Calendar sends these helpful text-messages reminding me of meetings I'm supposed to attend) prompted me to finally leave. That, and the fact that they wouldn't accept my right testi arm as collateral when the plastic ran out.

Another side-effect: Given the way reinforcement learning works, I now slosh to the gills with the milk of human kindness for anyone wearing a yarmulke.

There and Back Again

I was back in Bombay for the holidays which, don't you know, is always a smashing time to visit. Firstly, it's the coolest weather one can expect (clocking in at a marrow-curdling 85F), and secondly, it's the one time of the year when the snappy "Jingle Bells" ditty belted out by the building elevator (to signal that you've neglected to close collapsible grate), is actually appropriate.

Primary purpose of the trip of course was to hang out with the old hive over Christmas-break, but as a side-benefit, I got to celebrate a dear old friend's (Michael's) decision to feed for life out of the same bucket with the lovely Fiona.

While the wedding itself was awesome, the part I enjoyed most was chewing the fat with all the old school friends that I hadn't seen in almost a decade (sometimes more!). What's interesting about a large part of that crowd is that they have practically no internet presence to speak of, and I've had no easy way of getting in touch with them.

Except, apparantly, for Facebook.

While I've heard rumors that Orkut is all the rage in India, everywhere I met up with old cronies, I was presented with the question: "Are you on Facebook?" So there, suddenly, was the "one good reason" I'd been holding out on signing up with Facebook for. And I have to admit, it's pretty scary how many denizens of the old haunts I've been able to find on there.

I still think the site is not all it's cracked up to be, and most of the "applications" are an utter waste of time (send me another stupid "gift" and by Apollo's bronze behind, I'll un-friend you, I swear). But the potential for connection discovery is awesome. Somewhat similar to LinkedIn, but for the non-professional side of your network.

But that brings up the question of social context. I'm part of something like a social network on Flickr/Blogger because the sites are particularly suited towards sharing of ideas within the social context of the photographic community. It'd be hard for Facebook to be the generic social platform for every social context: photography, basket-weaving and physics? That's why I think 2008 will be the year that the industry realizes this and sprouts an eczema of social aggregator companies that claim to unify the experience across properties. This will be an interesting circus to watch...

Sydney

Since Adam got the chance to go earlier this month, it's only fair that I save him the pain and effort of another trip down under. So reluctantly, I decided to fling myself over the equator, and spent the last week in Sydney.

When speaking at conferences, I favor the get-it-over-with-ASAP theme. Search Engine Room was ideally constructed in this respect. Quick one-hour talk over breakfast on the first day of the event, and I was done. Free to mingle and enjoy the rest of the conference (and Sydney) without a care.

Google has an awesome Sydney office which sits smack on the edge of Darling Harbour, with some fantastic views thereof. It's also within spitting distance of the standard touristy attractions which one just has to take pictures of. First, let's get the obligatory shot of the Opera House with the bridge in the background out of the way:

Now that that's settled, here are some other snippets:

New Zealand

So that was the best vacation yet. If you'd been paying attention to my bragging over the last 3 months, you'd know that the missus and I toodled off to New Zealand over the holidays. Some of the highlights:

Auckland city:

Sailing on Lake Taupo:

Kayaking/hiking in Abel Tasman National Park:

Spending the night on a boat in Fiordland:

Getting to see some rare critters first-hand:

I am of course leaving out large swaths of description of the what-happened-where nature; partially because I'm lazy, but more importantly because the dear lady has graciously cataloged the entire saga in her trademark detail. See more pictures here, and read about it all here.

I should also mention that the wife was responsible for all the planning, while I chipped in with all the driving. This worked nicely since if it had been the other way around, we would've done nothing more interesting than drive around very slowly for 3 whole weeks.

Escape to Moss Landing

The missus' birthday dropped in this weekend. Now, I've learned something over the last 8 years of marital bliss: no matter what you think of the beastly things, birthdays are a big deal to a woman.

So instead of sitting around and working diligently on the publication of my second chin, I surprised the aging w. with a trip to Moss Landing; a semi-comatose little town about halfway between Santa Cruz and Monterey. We lodged at the Captain's Inn, a delightful place run by Melanie & Yohn Gideon, with views (from our windows) that looked like this:

Impressive no? If you're shameless enough not to be content with that (like we were), there's also the ocean about a 10 minute walk away, and Phil's Fish Market & Eatery, which has seafood to simply die for.

Yohn also runs the Elkhorn Slough Safari, and for a modest fee, he'll strap you onto a pontoon boat, and take you for a spin about 4 miles up the slough (pronounced "sloo", not "sluff", "sloff" or "slau"). It's an impressive amount of wildlife that's infested this tiny area. In the span of about an hour, we encountered rafts of sea otters, seals, egrets, pelicans, even a blue heron or two, and several brightly colored species of kayakers.

To top it all off, I've scored enough brownie points with the old ball and chain to last the rest of the year. :)

Weekend in Point Reyes

We have a pair of dear friends who have a 6-month old baby. Outside of that minor deviation, they really are quite a perfectly intelligent couple. In fact, we hold their mental faculties in such high regard, that this weekend we decided to take their recommendation to heart, and visit a charming little place called Point Reyes; about an hour's drive North of San Francisco.

As some proof will testify, if you're looking to drop all your worldly cares and spend some time without a single 802.11 radio wave to bugger up the mood, this place is the real tabasco. Some of the complimentary charms include:

• An 11-mile stretch of beach whose only dedicated inhabitant appears to be a socially challenged starfish.
• A quaint old lighthouse which is actually quite a marvel of engineering.
• A newer version of said lighthouse, which is undeniable proof that with a little bit of effort, technology can take the charm out of just about anything.
• A protected population of about 300-odd tule elk.
• Enough wildflowers to drive the female of our species quite bonkers with delight.

Other oddities include a plant called the stinging nettle which took some offence at me consuming it for lunch, and proceeded to inflict its revenge upon my calves that evening on a nature trail. Vindictive flora aside, we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. A repeat visit is not unlikely.

Recap

It's been a while since I gave the blog some love. That's because... oh yeah, I've been swamped. It hasn't all been work though. Here's a recap:

• 5/2-5/5: The workplace sent us off to the Seascape resort in Santa Cruz for 2.5 days for a workshop.
• 5/6: Danilo Perez opens for Kenny Barron. I preferred Danilo Perez (and got my CD signed!).
• 5/13-5/14: Arjun (a roommate from USC,) visits the Bay Area with his folks.
• 5/20: We hang out with Rick and Kathy in Japantown. Izumiya has awesome sushi.
• 5/27: Hike at Russian Ridge with a couple of docents to show us the last of the wildflowers.
• Right now, I'm in London speaking at SES, and hanging out with childhood friends.
  
• Oh yeah, and I've lost 7 pounds and I'm now running 3.1mi in 30 minutes. Body fat is down from 18.5% to 15.5%. Finally being sub-150lb again is goooood!
  

Misplaced in Translation

A recent trip to the motherland (pun unintended until I noticed it) made me realize that growing up in India placed a few words in my vocabulary which --- while rarely used now in the Republic --- bring a nostalgic sniffle:

• gum-boots: Hideous rubber boots that we wore to school during the monsoon at the age of about 6. Wonderfully watertight, but that only meant that the water dripping into them from the raincoat sticking to your knees had nowhere to go.
• lift: Elevator. But not the fancy-schmancy stuff with the automatic doors. These are the ones with the collapsible metal grating which you have to drag open and shut. Oh, and if you don't shut it completely, you'll be haunted by the midi-style "Jingle Bells" all your life.
  
• "yoo-dee-clone": This mysterious fragrant stuff that my grandmother believed would cure everything from colds to fractures. When I got around to reading, I found out it was eau de cologne.
• flat: Apartment. Not rented but owned; in a building where everyone knows everyone else and their birthday.
• chai: Not the strawberry-raspberry-mango flavored foo-foo crap that Starbucks foists. This is the real stuff. Sold at most street corners (milk and sugar included) and strong enough to make you sit up and bark. Perfect during the monsoons while those gum-boots are drying off. If you're in a hurry, you can ask for a "cutting" (half) serving. By the way, do any of my non-desi readers realize that chai means "tea"? So when you ask for "chai tea" (with or without the passion-fruit infusion) you just sound kinda silly?
  

Anyone else have a list they want to throw in?

Overdue

Meant to post this on the 21st of March, but I (naturally) forgot to carry the USB cable for my camera. Now that I have the picture... Happy 95th birthday, Grandma.

Why Google won't give you driving directions in Mumbai

Because nobody knows what the street names are. Or which direction (E-W/N-S) they run. Everybody goes by these really absurd landmark-based instructions like "Turn left at the second signal after the big lotus shaped petrol^* station". Sometimes the directions require prior knowledge: "Do you know where Lilavati Hospital is? Right. There's a church adjacent to it, across from which is a lane, with a bank on the left. Across the street from the bank is the building you want".

We're doomed. No matter how much research you put into it, I just don't think directions like "Make a u-turn after you pass the wall with the paan^* stain that looks like the Virgin Mary" is something an algorithm can spit out.

^*For my American readers^H: petrol=gasoline; paan=chewing tobacco;

Tags: rant, google, maps

Visiting India: Day 10

Oh this is just the most wonderful time in the world to be alcohol-deprived. I could drink of course, but with the medication I'm taking, it might mean sacrificing my eyesight.

Don't think I'm chicken though --- oh no!! I'm only complaining because it's the wrong sense; if I (at least temporarily) lost hearing instead of eyesight, I'd be inhaling the stuff.

Tags: rant, alcohol, whatsupdoc

Air travel -- Indian style!

The bit that really amused Jayita and me as we were flying up to Delhi on Tuesday, was that the meal actually had this little dairy-creamer-sized container --- with achaar! (pickle). Even better, the after-meal "mint" was a little sachet of saunf. Compared to the "budget" airline services back at the republic, getting great service at the budget price was a pleasant change.

Unfortunately, Indian passengers seem to be the most boorish bunch of twits in the world. For some reason, the wheels touching down are an immediate call to unbuckle seatbelts. Before the plane has even come to a stop, our daisys (as a dear friend likes to call us) are already rummaging around in the overhead bins for their loot. And while actually leaving the plane, the idiots can't wait for you to remove your own bag before trying to squeeze past. I thought we were supposed to be a "patient people"? Jayita commented that it was sad that Indians now have the money for en masse air travel, but not the commensurate courtesy.

Tags: travel, rant

(Not Just) Jazz by the Bay

On Saturday, Keith (my cousin) calls up and says "Hey, do you want to come to a concert at JbtB this evening? We're performing." (I should mention he's a bassist). Of course, I jump at the chance since:

1. It gets me out of the house.
2. I get to listen to some good music.
3. I'm going to be in one of the nicer clubs in Bombay surrounded by really hot women.

A most excellent evening. I got to hang out and chat with Gary Lawyer who was performing. I've never liked his original stuff, but he did some nice renditions of a couple of Frank Sinatra and Al Jarreau standards. And he seems to be quite a likeable guy. The evening eventually wound down at about 2am, by which time I was thoroughly exhausted.

Btw, Indian women do sizzle.

Tags: music, family, travel

Homesick for Hitler

The trouble with visiting a real democratic, secular nation is that the inmates actually expect one to be... well, democratic and secular. Dashed inconsiderate of them, I say. These problems are non-existent back in the good old republic. There one simply "exports democracy" because any fool can see that the less of the stuff one has in one's own country, the better.

Tags: family, travel, rant, politics

Visiting India: Day 1 (encore)

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
<deep breath>
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!

Tags: family, travel, rant

Visiting India: Day 1

Oh yeah. Now I remember why I chose to live on the other side of the planet.

Tags: family, travel, rant

Visiting India

Sunday afternoon I fly off to India to visit the aging flesh-and-b. Jayita joins me there in a week. Watch this space for updates :)

Tags: travel, family

SES @ NYC

All of last week, I was at the Big Apple for the Search Engine Strategies conference.

• Black-hats' tongues get a little looser after they've slathered some alcohol over it. Doubly so if they have to impress a female colleague.
• Talk about a small world. As soon as I landed, I called Dhiren (friend from high-school, now in NY/NJ) and told him I'd be there for SES. His answer: "Really?! We have a booth there!". Sweet. Managed to hook up with him, catch up with his dad and brother, and meet the lovely Esther. Btw, his brother was one of the guys heading up Morgan Stanley's handling of Google's IPO.
• Vanessa and I went to this Egyptian restaurant on Wednesday. She laughed at me slipping money into the moving targets which were the belly-dancer's hips, and I had my turn when she was picked to dance with her.
• Central Park is pretty in the morning. Especially when it snows.
  

Unfortunately, I was too busy to catch any jazz. Next time.

Tags: travel, google, friends

WebmasterWorld PubCon @ Vegas

So it's been a busy couple of weeks since the last post. This week I spent 2.5 days in Vegas attending the WebmasterWorld PubCon. This is primarily a gathering of webmasters and SEO (search engine optimization) practitioners that get together a couple of times a year to swap tips and war stories. Matt and I were there to find out anything we should've known that we didn't.

The conference sessions themselves are fairly uninteresting. The fun is in chatting with everyone over drinks till 2am. That's when the juicy information gets spilled. There's a fly in the ointment though. Ever since Jayita's been taking CalTrain up into San Francisco every morning, I've gotten into this really nice schedule of waking up at 6:30am. On the dot. No matter what time I've gone to sleep. You get the picture. By the time I was back (Friday afternoon), I was a sleep-deprived zombie.

By the way, I have to plug the hotel that we were at; the Renaissance. What I loved about this place was that it felt like we weren't in Vegas anymore. It didn't have those damned slot machines beeping and booping all over the place, and to cap it off, it has an awesome steak house, and was across the street from both the convention center and the monorail (if you're really desperate to hit the strip). If I'm ever unfortunate enough to go to Vegas again, I'm staying there.

Tags: travel, google

Solvang

It's been such a long time that I visited Solvang that I'd forgotten what a peaceful place this is. Waking up on a Saturday morning is such a pleasure. Sandalwood incense in the air, the neighbour feeding bluebirds, Jayita puttering around making coffee, and me sitting and writing to a damned blog.

Ok. Enough stupidity.