1 more week to go!

yaay!! just 1 more week to go before a nice and refreshing 2 week vacation :)

after what seems like ages, we are actually going somewhere nice and far away from dusty Bangalore :)

this time it's Darjeeling and Calcutta - these are the only 2 places fixed on our itinerary.. rest is up to exploration!

some of the things we are looking forward to:

• a ride on the DHR toy train
  
• waking up to a view of the Kanchenjunga
• the original Darjeeling tea
• mountain biking - Martam to Gangtok
  
• (hopefully some ballooning... but I just can't find any info on that..)
• Exploring Calcutta in walking
• and many many more :)

anyone has any comments, tips, must-do activities... am all ears (or should I say eyes??)

How do you deal with a craving?

I've been having this hopeless craving for banana chips for the past 2 weeks or so, and it just won't go!!

I like banana chips.. and then I stopped having them for a while.. gym n all that.. now I am going crazy if I don't eat them! The good thing is the craving lasts from 4 to 6 in the evening and not through the day.. otherwise I'll be rolling my way to work very soon... The bad thing is, it's junk food.. and its chips for God's sake!

But not everyone agrees that it's 100% bad.. there are some folks who actually think it's good for you! Now I'm not siding with them.. but does anyone know how to get rid of this want??

Me is very hopeless :(

Follow the rules!

Rule 1:

RED = STOP
GREEN = GO

Have you ever noticed that most rules/policies/regulations always talk about what should NOT be done, rather than what should be done..?? Rule 1 would have been easier to understand if it had been written like this:

RED = DO NOT GO
GREEN = DO NOT STOP

There you go! Now everyone will know what to do when they see a light.. correct?? WRONG!! You know why? Because fundamentally, at a subconscious level, we simply don't understand rules. The basic logic that even a 3-year old can comprehend - the meaning behind YES and NO - we just don't get it, do we?? We just don't get it.

As of 11.20am this morning, I have already had 1 sorry email from IT that clearly states "you must not install commercial VoIP software on any company owned hardware" but 4 arguments, and 6 emails talking about how we can find a way to still do it!! There surely must be a tiny loophole somewhere. Arguments, emails, web references... after the tipping point, you realize it's not about the rule any more. It doesn't matter what the rule says or doesn't say. We just don't care! Brings me back to the classic Indian attitude that - like the cockroach that survived the Ice Age, and the dinosaurs - still believes in this mantra:

"It's not like you're going to get fired... relax!!"

This is so hard to believe... the fact that in today's world of man-eat-man, you would still believe that YOU are SO GOOD and SO irreplaceable, that even after you screw up a million times you won't get fired!! Hell, it's not the government that's employing you for God's sake!

But honestly if you take a step back and think for a minute... why don't we get it? Is it that we aren't taught rules (blame it on the teacher) or is it that the enforcing doesn't happen (blame it on the rule creator)?? Or at some level deep inside us, we really don't give a damn?

What is it with Chinese food..?

No seriously... why is every Chinese restaurant serving the same food? It's always got noodles, rice, and gravy with a heavy dose of garlic. Now I am not talking of the mixed type restaurants - the Eastern Asian ones which serve Thai as well. In that case, throw in a Thai red/yellow/green curry and the rest is the same. It's just so boring!! And don't even get me started on dessert. Have you noticed that Chinese restaurants have a colossal lack of options for dessert..?? It's always the crispy honey noodles with vanilla ice cream... duh!!

I remember going to so many Chinese places for lunch outside India... and it is SO different! First of all, they always always serve you unlimited cups of Chinese tea.. where do you ever find that in India..?? And then there's the chopsticks - now that is something I am not complaining about :)

But the food has so much variety, that too in vegetarian. I mean, think about it. All you have to do is pick some 2-3 different colored vegetables, slice them flat and wide, and cook them in a watery gravy.. how hard can it get?? And yet, you always have to get stuck with some manchurian, or a veg balls, or a vegetables in hot garlic sauce. Don't the Chinese eat anything else???