Adivasi- Mountain life would have been the best

 Covid has caused a rakus all over India. It’s just too dangerous at this point of time.  Being in the mountains far away from all this chaos  is making  more sense than ever before. 

I so wish I was far off from the civilisation. This pandemic is an eye opener for many such feelings.

The feel good factor in all this is people still check up on you. Yesterday bangalore count hit 25k with overall india count at 3.79 lakh single day report. It has been a major mess all over. 

One of my reportee in Romania over an office call first thing she told me “please take care, I really feel bad for you guys”. I just smiled at her. Yes it is really tough times but thanks for the support.

Another direct reportee of mine from the consulting firm pinged me asking blr cases are way too scary please take care. I just made fun of him saying I will come over to your place. He happily said anyways me and wife are there. Please come over , we can surely accommodate one more person. I was like “You are mad” both of us laughed.

Work is also very crazy and hectic, mentally very very tiring. I was doing my regular program review with the team and post review, I felt enough work. Everybody are mentally tired I told them that let’s discuss something else we are all doing a great job. We talked about all the Netflix shows, Amazon prime shows, movies . Suggested what to watch during lockdown. We thought we should watch a movie or some show by virtually sharing screen but unfortunately Netflix doesn’t offer 20 screens shares.

We talked about how some people just get to watch only cartoons all the time as the kids are always watching them and ended up becoming the adults fav shows as well especially Pokemon lol.

It felt really good in all this madness. I sincerely pray we get out of this mess. Sarve Jana Sukhino bhavantu 

 Tough times require a really tough mind to get through this phase. May God give everybody the mental strength to deal with this situation. I hope we get over this soon. Really require a strong mind to fight this phase. It turned out worse than last year.

I am a suck up for romance, I am not that lucky enough to have a loved one by my side during this pandemic but its ok :). Its  better to be not in a relationship than being in  a toxic relationship.

Who are those famous couple you like? I am usually not a fan of film fraternity. I usually love  people who are into sports than in movies as am more into watching sports, ofcourse I do watch movies but somehow I feel they are not my role models. Usually my role models are those who are good on field and off field. Hard to find such human beings these days. Like I am a huge fan of Ratan Tata and I have utmost respect for him for "N"  number of reasons. I have had utmost respect for "Atal Bihari Vajpayee" as well.  

Coming back to Couple "I admire Federer and his wife Mirka" a lot.  I like Ryan Reynolds and Blake lively pair as well (FYI I share the same birthday as Blake lively lol) now I am yet to find my Ryan Reynolds ;-) hahaha. I think personally his sense of humor is great. I am sure I am suck up for those guys who are witty and funny :P .The Virgo(Blake) - Scorpio(Ryan) not a bad pair at all :)

 Pandemic returns in a much more deadly way!

Disclaimer: All my runs am doing alone thesedays and I get up way too early around 4.30  and finish the daily runs max by before 6 am so I avoid contact with people and I run inside the Eco world campus just out of APR which means the loop which I run is a lane with all the ORR companies which are mostly shut. This is the same precaution we took last year also as a running group that we will not do group runs, we started running on our own alone way too early in the morning before the curfew (5 am) also the lane is not monitored by any cops except for each company security who are always wearing masks :).

Covid has hit Bangalore really hard. So far I had not heard any close family or friends die(Thank God for that) but I got to know that my driver who always used to pick me and drop me to all my airport pick up and drop, he passed away due to covid. He was the most efficient person I ever had to pick me and drop me. I dont even want to call him a driver because for me he was always John. All my one day outstation travels I have only travelled with John. He was more like a close aid. It was very shocking and disheartening to know that he passed away due to covid. I am too upset to about it. My international travel since my current job was extremely high and too hectic(usually thrice or 4 times to the US, many domestic travel to hyd), I just never used to rely on anyone else except John. He was very well educated, spoke fluent English and his two daughters are engineers and I could just have all sorts of conversation with him. I dont know I am in total shock and sad to hear this news. I had always hoped and wished that everyone whom I know should be safe but I am really starting to get worried with this second wave. 

I just pray to God that this phase ends for ever. It is affecting everyone's sanity, people are loosing near and dear ones. Its a major chaos and there seems to be no end to it.

I have been hearing lot of scary stories. One thing I heard and which really made me furious is the lack of oxygen cylinders and one of the reason being that people are buying and storing that so that they can sell for higher price like a black market. I also heard that people are trying to stock up Remdesivir antiviral thinking they might need it by creating the huge supply and demand issue. We Indians are pathetic, we want to encash on anything and everything without being how sensitive and dangerous this issue is. Honestly I dont know the autenticity of this black market issue of stocking up oxygen cylinders and antiviral drug like Remdesivir but I hope its not true but in our dear country, anything and everything is possible.

Why are we like this?  God knows. Why do we have this shitty mentality. I really hope people aren't doing this especially in this pandemic situation. I really hope people really think and act appropriately in this crucial times.

Anyways, I read one of the nicest post by one of the India's fastest Boston and NY marathoner in the amateur category Anubhav Karmakar, he is from our own running circle at Namma Bengaluru and at India level running community. Met him many a times and post run parties and during training at cubbon:

As written by Anubhav Karmakar, it is so apt at this point in time:

The third Monday of April is recognized as Patriot's day in Boston. For runners world over, it is celebrated as @bostonmarathon Day - the oldest and most prestigious Marathon of the world. While the word 'BQ' (Boston Qualified) for many is a title of honor, it has never truly fascinated me. In fact I wouldn't have lined up for this race if @gauri.jayaram hadn't informed me that I had qualified for the 2019 edition and insisted that I line up for it. I realize today that had I not heeded to this advice over a dinner after Berlin Marathon 2018 it would have ended up being 3 year wait for one of the best running experiences of my lifetime. But ever since I ran through hallowed finish arch of this legendary race, it has meant a lot more than mere bragging rights. I still wonder about how I woke up the next morning and broke into tears for reasons I haven't been able to fathom yet. Since the 2013 bombing, a new slogan 'Boston Strong' had emerged. That emotion has become more relevant as we fight the hardship of this brutal pandemic. When the 2021 edition was opened up for everyone as a virtual event, there were people who argued about the diminished prestige of the race - a very self-centered opinion in these circumstances. While all of us are affected in some way, the pandemic has hit certain sections of our community too hard. A lot of organizations are facing hardships, including some of my favorite running focused non-profits. Its been a heart breaking year and the least we can do is support them as we conquer this 'Heart Break Hill'. We are not there yet but the finish line is in sight. This is not the time to gloat, to be petty. Its the time to stand together and stay strong, Boston Strong! 

Berlin or debut Full

 A good weekend is the one where I finish my long run on Saturdays and my recovery easy run on Sundays followed by hogging like a pig LOL. The feeling of completing the long run and recovery the next day is amazing.  We used to train like crazy last year at this time, though the pandemic had just started,  somewhere there was a small hope that "Berlin" would still happen and I get to run my debut Full and I was clocking too many miles and following Sir's training diligently. It was tiring both physically and mentally to stick to Sir's targets in every training runs, especially the tempo and the intervals. I am so glad in one way that am not doing any speed workouts. But in one way I miss them too. Anyways, I almost thought I will re-register Berlin this year and after speaking to the few local friends , I thought its very unlikely that the Berlin will happen this year as well. So this time I didn't want to train hard and then get disappointed later. Somehow the feeling of taking part in races has gone for me right now. I dont feel like registering for any of the local races mostly because I am worried to run along with  so many people and these virtual races dont excite me at all. I hope I can get back to that racing feeling someday or will I loose that whole racing spirit completely? I dont know. 

Btw, there was Olympic trails for FM at Netherlands called "NN Mission Marathon" yesterday where the running God Kipchoge ran for his Olympic trails after his unfortunate poor performance at London last year. He is undoubtedly the running God of long distance running. He is none other than the only human being who has done a "SUB 2" Marathon. He has done the impossible possible. It was such a feast to the eyes to watch him create that world record in 2019.It was an unbelievable experience in itself. Watching Kipchoge run is always a feast to the eyes. I miss watching international races live these days( I am sure most runners feel the same way:D). Those 6 Abott world Majors and watch them live is a different feeling altogether and someday dash dash dash. I dont want to say outloud that(Hope is a good thing (LOL)  for which I need to train hard though. 

I always noticed one thing about people who have excelled in sports for a long term. They are very calm, composed, one of the most down to earth people in the way they talk, there is aggression in the game they are playing I mean not the kind of external aggression which is very evident but the fire inside to win and not expressing that aggression like our own Mr. Virat Kohli shows but the kind of aggression what Federer shows or Sachin used to show like there is so much passion to the sports but its literally not shown outside. Do you get what I mean? Anyways, I love such people, no wonder I am a huge fan of Kipchoge than Mo Farah. No wonder people like kipchoge last long just like how Federer or Sachin lasted in their respective games. I believe its their gentleman attitude towards the game, opponent, the umpires even when they make a wrong decision they move on from it and control their rebellious attitude even if they loose a game they are so strong mentally that they can come back winner any time. 

I used to love watching Federer play tennis, ofcourse I still love him to the core. I feel that if there is any super power God creates I would ask him to create a replica of Federer and I would marry him in a blink of an eye LOL. I believe he is the only human by far who can loose the first two sets and still come back stronger and win the next 3 sets calmly such is the level of perfection and mental stamina he has  achieved in the game. Same thing applies to running too. Its very easy to run fast in the beginning and then slow down but very few people have actually mastered the technique of starting slow and then come back faster which we call "negative splits" it requires a lot of mental control and stamina to achieve negative splits. 

One of the reputed company's  HR reached out to me for a leadership role and they were very much interested in my resume and I was very excited about the company. Its one of the luxury car manufacturer. My skill set almost (80%) fits the role and the recruitment team was very proactive and supportive. They sent my resume to the hiring manager who apparently holds a VP position.  The guy didn't shortlist me because I had only 15+  years of work ex and not more than 18 years even though my skillset fits the role.  I understand that you need maturity and of course with more experience you bring in more value add to the role but then a difference of 2 - 3 years and I dont think its the appropriate way. I am right now hiring for a solution architect role in my current job and the guy who is my best buddy got an amazing offer @Apple and I am really happy for him and he had 3 years more experience than me but when am trying to fill that role, I am not going by the number of years of exp. I am going by anyone more than 9 years exp with right fitment. 

Also, there is a huge push on hiring women in senior leadership roles but then why cant we have a broader perspective on hiring a candidates with quality of work they have done than by the number of years of experience? I am first of all not happy with this gender bias, number of years bias. Infact, I have more females in the team when we did hire since I joined not because am a feminist but because I went by the fitment of the role. We could find right fitment in Romania where all my team members are women. But in India it was all men it was based on the right fitment and right candidates we got at that point in time barring the gender, location or the number  of years of experience. Of course for the band 3 position I didn't hire someone who is a fresher, But as long as the POCs I gave them and all the tough scenarios I put across they answered I hired them. It has worked out well so far. I believe its the proactiveness and willing to go that extra mile to fulfill the roles and responsibilities. Things have to change a lot in India in terms of maturity. I wish people stop having these kind of stigma for the hiring process.

I know am talking more controversial topics today. But I just couldn't hold myself anymore. I need to just get it out of my system and one such thing has been bothering me a lot off late and I have to put it out. Never mind I dont want to talk about it its too controversial to even talk about it. I will may be rethink on writing it again sometime later.

My run was a DNF today :(. It was my long run and I just didnt have the juice to complete the targeted distance. I believe the alcohol and food last night  from "VAPOUR" troubled me while running. I usually dont step out the night before my long runs but being at home due to this long WFH couldn't control stepping out. My stomach was growling while running.  Hopefully I get enough sleep tonight and will try to hit the targeted distance tomorrow.

Dallas passed away few days ago. Its really sad that he is no more. He was one of the first Client Managers I worked in the US and he actually believed in me I guess. In fact all thanks to him that my stay in US extended from a month to an year. He had given me a nickname called "Carnigie" , I had copy pasted our chat in one of my blogs. I absolutely have no clue as to why I saved that chat back then(11 years ago). May be this was the reason to just cherish the memories. It came to me as a shock when I got to know that he had cancer. We were just connected on FB but we were hardly talking to each other. Then in the recent past, he started posting funny stories about his every hospital visit on FB, he was so funny about his whole treatment, surgery, covid stories. I think he was trying to forget the pain by trying to be funny. By the look of it I sensed he wont be alive too long. At one point in time, 10 years ago I felt he had a crush on me. He used to invite me for drinks and one day suddenly he called  and he came near my apartment that was a pretty strange thing though. I was shocked to see him.  I was actually deeply in love with my first ever Boy friend back then. Dallas knew about it. That was one of the reason he gave me that nick name "Carnigie" because my then bf was to join that college for his full time MBA and that was one of the reason I had moved to US before him. Anyways, coming back to Dallas, I knew he was hitting on me. But I clearly openly had told him that I am into my then bf only. Dallas was then going through divorce and he had left his first wife with whom he had 2 beautiful children. Anyways that's his personnel choice. I never asked him what went wrong and I was just 24 or 25 years old and was too young to understand the so called "Western Marriage" back then. I didnt ask him much about it. Later he found a really hot chick and he got married and apparently both of them were very happy with each other. They were living like a very happy family. His wife really really took care of him as he would describe his wife and how she would take care of him in his posts. I feel sad as he left too early and too young to live this world. Anyways, may his soul rest in peace and may God give strength to his family, kids and his closed circle.

I was discussing this with one of then collegue in US who used to know Dallas as well and this guy told me that Dallas had cancer 10 years ago and he recovered back then and it re occured again after 10 years and this time it was too bad. It is so scary. Even if someone survives it the first time there is no gurantee that it will not hit them back at later stage. 

I dont know on and off I have been thinking from past few months that I should do a himalayan trek. 2 years ago when a known runner friends went for the Mt.Everest base camp trekking. I decided that next year I will do either EBC or one of the himalayan trekking. I honestly strongly feel mountains especially himalayas have a magic in them. I still remember our visit to Joshimath, Gangaria and then the Bhutan himalayan range(Honestly I loved the Bhutan himalayan range and told my self I will again visit Bhutan and this time I will explore the trails of himalayas over there). We all know that Covid happened and again last year I was discussing with one of my other runner friend she also felt she wants to do a himalayan trekking and we infact thought March or April we should do and 2021 turned out to be 2020 repeat.  I seriously badly want to go over there this time. I wish I can go work from there too with this unlimited wfh option. I still remember when I was hiking from Joshimath to Gangaria we came across this beautiful view with the water flowing from the top of the mountain thats where we sat and had a lunch I still remember that view and I dont know I always felt since then that when I am retired or old I should just live with a view like that. Honestly, I love beach and mountains but given a chance i would always love to live in the mountains. I know that my body cant take extreme weather, I cant take bangalore winter due to my allergies and things like that. That is mostly because of bangalore pollution and the pollen it makes it worst and I fall sick often and I dont want to addict myself to this inhalers on a daily basis. I also feel I have the same genes as my dad, my dad also used to have this unlimited phelgm issue and its the same thing with me. Infact running has helped me increase my lung capacity. I was worried that during Covid I would be the most targeted person as Covid is directly related to the lungs and things like that. I am still concerned but all thanks to running that my lung capacity is better. Infact I did fall sick in december end I did have all the mild symptoms of Covid and I recovered also pretty fast and I hope this year I would get a vaccine soon