Call me the Lame Silver Octopus

The year is upon us - the world cup in Brazil runs next summer.  I wish I could be at Maracana stadium next July, as originally planned, but I did not win the ticket lottery :-(

Hi-def TV FTW!

At Maracana Stadium, Rio de Janiero, 2008

OK - so now, I'm still nursing a ruptured achilles back to health, and watching the exciting Premier League race unfold with Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool vying for top spot, I thought I'd put down my predictions for Mundial 2014.

Call me the Lame Silver Octopus. How many of my picks will hold up next summer?

For those not plugged in, there are 8 groups (A - H) with 4 teams each. These 32 teams have gone through hard trials over the past 2 years to qualify.

Here are my predictions:

Group A - Brazil, Croatia, Mexico, Cameroon

Brazil needs to get through! This is the home team, and they were automatically in the 32, but they are also an awesome force during every world cup. My favourites, of course, due to the style of soccer they play. They also have some awesome players - watch for Neymar, Marcelo to have serious impact.

The surprise element will be Mexico - although they had a lot of trouble qualifying (via a playoff game with New Zealand), I think they'll raise their game and squeak into the next round over Croatia. Cameroon will have good moments, but will fizzle out as with most African teams.

Group B - Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia

This seems to be an easy call for the first round - Spain and Netherlands will make it. Watch the beautiful Spanish game with Iniesta, Xavi, Fabregas, Pedro, Villa. Pedro will do some damage. Netherlands will, of course, continue to show off their soccer cred - Van Persie will continue be lethal. Chile will be able to pull off an upset, but the experienced sides will deliver.

Group C - Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast, Japan

This is a hard group to crack - it will be a very difficult group to get through - could be a toss-up, but I'll take my chances and announce Colombia and (surprise!) Japan to make it through (although, on paper,  Greece should top Japan). The Ivory Coast will show some great moments, but will not break through.

Group D - Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy

This is the traditional group of death, and this lineup will not disappoint.  Under normal circumstances, I'd write off Uruguay versus the more disciplined European teams, but this time, with Luis Suarez showing brilliant form at the highest level for Liverpool in the Premier League, and Forlan and Cavani always able to deliver, I'm going out on a limb to put Uruguay and Italy as qualifiers from this group. Why Italy over England? It could go either way, but I don't see anyone being a spark on the English team. Rooney is overrated, and the boring English style of play won't do it this time. I am, of course, assuming that Balotelli will play for Italy.

Group E - Switzerland, Equador, France, Honduras

I'll claim no surprises in this group, with Switzerland and France going through. I'm expecting that France, with players like Bayern's Ribery, Manchester City's Nasri, and Arsenal's Giraud, could actually go very far this time.

Group F - Argentina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iran, Nigeria

If Argentina does not qualify from this group, I'll stop watching the rest of the WC (or eat my hat! - that would be more palatable :-)). While you'd expect Bosnia-Herzegovina to be the other team to make it through, I think Nigeria would be the dark horse here  - they have a bit more experience among the African teams to make it past the group stage. So Argentina and Nigeria are my choices from this Group. Look for Messi to deliver this time and make this his world cup.

Group G - Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA

This is the real group of death! Ghana and USA will try very very hard, but will die, and the experienced sides -  Germany and Portugal will emerge from this group. Christiano Ronaldo will have his last chance to make a mark on the world stage to stay on par with Messi, Neymar and Suarez.

Group H - Belgium, Algeria, Russia, Korea Republic

This will be a group with crazy results, and I can be 100% wrong on my predictions for this group.  I'm going with Belgium after having watched some of their players in the Premier League - Januzaj, the 18-year old Manchester United wonder, Mirallas, Lukaku, Hazard, Mignolet - wow!  Januzaj will likely become a known entity after this world cup. Although I'd love to see Korea make it through, I think Russia, with Arshavin and friends, will do it.

Therefore, on to the knockout stage will be:

Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Netherlands, Colombia, Japan, Uruguay, Italy, Switzerland, France, Argentina, Nigeria, Germany, Portugal, Belgium, Russia.

Should I predict further?  Hard to do, without knowing the matchups, but let me go out on a limb (I'll have to re-do after the brackets are settled next summer)

Quarters: Brazil, Spain, Netherlands, France, Argentina, Germany, Uruguay, Belgium.

Almost impossible to go further - but here goes...

Semis: Brazil, Spain, France, Argentina

And completely Octopus, while I'd be ecstatic for a Brazil-Argentina final, ... (I'll take any of these matchups)

Final: Brazil vs. Spain

Spain loses the title...

The Octopus is dancing!

Object Oriented Programming - Object #5: Circa 200 A.D. - Screw it all!

Preface: During Graduate School, Object Oriented Programming had a very specific meaning. Now I'm more "meta",  and stuck in a different time-warp for the next few weeks in Bangalore with time to ponder. I now see objects around me that had very specific meaning to me in an earlier life.

While in this time-warp,  I'll post some of these interesting objects.

Object #5 (Circa 200 A.D.): Screw it all!

This screwdriver still repairs things!

First, man created the wheel!

Then, he discovered fire!

Then, after putting a few things in the fire and moulding them, man built this amazing screwdriver.

Then, my dad got it (I don't know if he bought it or dug it out of the earth :-))

The years of use have left both the metal tip and the wooden handle a glossy shine!

It still says: "Screw it all!" 

A Single Leg Journey in the Metro

Namma Metro

A couple of weeks before my dad passed away a couple of years back, I had asked him if he had any regrets in his life. His answer was no, and I believed him.  We didn’t call him the Happy Man for nothing!

Those few weeks, he had trouble sleeping, and I saw him a few times just standing quietly near his bedroom window, holding on to the bars for support and looking out at the non-stop traffic on Old Madras Road 6 floors below, contemplating ... He was above the Metro that he had made his own, the city that converted his shy bangla-speaking wife  to learning english and the (tamil-kannada-hindi) chow-chow she still speaks, the city where his children grew wings to fly, the city that he’d fought for during his years of community service. I had wondered what he was thinking about. Had he realized that the end was around the corner?

There was one thing I know he wanted to do before he left. He wanted to ride the brand new Metro train - Namma Metro. It had been almost done for months, and was supposed to open for test runs in weeks.  Byappanahalli station was within walking distance to our flat, and that had been one of the reasons he’d purchased the flat … “I can walk to the Metro Station”.

At the window, I think he was thinking why the construction had taken so long, and why they had delayed the opening, and that he would not be able to take that Metro ride after all… Bangalore had been too inefficient for this efficient man  - his Metro had let him down.

After I hurt my leg, I knew I had to postpone my first Metro ride as well; I was planning to accompany Ma - she’d not yet been on it. Our driver had suggested we get on at Byapannahalli, get off at Mahatma Gandhi Road, and come right back on a two-leg round-trip; he’d pick us right up where he dropped us off. We had laughed it off... I had crutches.

Today, we were driving past the Mahatma Gandhi Road station, and he teasingly suggested we take the Metro back home and he'd pick us up at the station!  Great idea! Despite protests from my mother on my lack of mobility,  I decided we would do this ... somehow ... crutches and all.

I’d do this for her, and for my dad.  She would get to ride Namma Metro, and I’d do it on his behalf!

I took that single-leg journey on the Metro today!

Mahatma Gandhi Road Station

Ma waiting for the train to come

It's a great ride!

Object Oriented Programming - Object #4: The Sound of Music

Preface: During Graduate School, Object Oriented Programming had a very specific meaning. Now I'm more "meta",  and stuck in a different time-warp for the next few weeks in Bangalore with time to ponder. I now see objects around me that had very specific meaning to me in an earlier life.

While in this time-warp,  I'll post some of these interesting objects.

Object #4 (Circa 1955): The Sound of Music!

The tabla I learned on - now in disprepair!

My mother is a good singer. Yes - she does know hundreds of Rabindra Sangeet songs - she even remembers most of the the lyrics now!

When she was married, and arrived at her in-laws' place in Kolkata, the above tabla (then in disrepair) was granted to her for her use.  It belonged to my father's sister, who was not very musically inclined (but almost all Bengalis are to learn music :-))

A couple of decades later, when I expressed some interest in music, and I got tabla lessons scheduled at home, we got out the tabla (again, in disrepair) and got it fixed. Why did I not learn the tabla well at that time? It was tenth grade (ICSE year!) and I wanted to go play in the evenings instead of practicing or taking lessons -- I needed to play something in the evening in order to focus on my academics  at night.

When I went to the U.S., I learned tabla again for about 6 months in Houston. At the time, I had a pair including the tabla my wife had that matches her vocal scale - yeah ... she's a trained classical singer.

This tabla was stowed away again in Bangalore. (Sounds like Toy Story?)

Now,  again in disrepair, this instrument that is more than sixty years old, is awaiting another new head and a restringing (I know that sounds kinda bad...)

Maybe, if Rikki continues to pursue the tabla  (he's been learning for 2 years),  I'll clean it, re-head it  and gift it to him.

It is the sound of our family tradition.

Object Oriented Programming - Object #3: The Weight of a Microchip!

Preface: During Graduate School, Object Oriented Programming had a very specific meaning. Now I'm more "meta",  and stuck in a different time-warp for the next few weeks in Bangalore with time to ponder. I now see objects around me that had very specific meaning to me in an earlier life.

While in this time-warp,  I'll post some of these interesting objects.

Object #3 (Circa 1975): The Weight of a Microchip!

A glass paperweight with a suspended faux microchip

Even before we realized the importance and power of the chip, it made its weight known!  Let's just say it was worth much more than on paper!

I'll bet I must have asked "What's that thing in the glass?" when the cool-looking paperweight first surfaced in our house in the 70s.

Little did I know that I would later be studying how to work these chips, program them with assembly code, and, eventually, design and build my own. At Rice, I designed, and built a chip that was shipped off to  MOSIS to fabricate.  When the chip arrived, in "flesh and blood" and we ran our first tests, it was a thudding heart - did I miss a gate here, or a circuit line there?

For kicks, we put our names in the corners of the circuits - you can see our signatures in the photos of the chip design masks.

But most cool ... my chip worked!

I'll post a pic of my chip when I get home  - as you know, I am at my other home halfway across the globe right now!

Object Oriented Programming - Object #2: The Table Fan that Rallis!

Preface: During Graduate School, Object Oriented Programming had a very specific meaning. Now I'm more "meta",  and stuck in a different time-warp for the next few weeks in Bangalore with time to ponder. I now see objects around me that had very specific meaning to me in an earlier life.

While in this time-warp,  I'll post some of these interesting objects.

Object #2 (Circa 1963): The Table Fan that Rallis!

Rallis Table Fan - Older than yours truly!! Still works perfectly!

Note: In the above photos, note how the image on the right is blurred due to excessive speed :-)

This fan was purchased in 1963, before I was even born. Bangalore, until then a non-fan-station, had just started warming up during the summers.

My dog Pixie knocked it down, and  the fan was out for about 2 years, with a bent frame. Not to be outdone, my dad got the frame and blades fixed, and the fan repainted.

My mother uses the fan everyday since it is so convenient!

Now - it keeps the mosquitoes off my legs as I watch Champions League matches.

Object Oriented Programming - Object #1: Hello World (IIT)!

Preface: During Graduate School, Object Oriented Programming had a very specific meaning. Now I'm more "meta",  and stuck in a different time-warp for the next few weeks in Bangalore with time to ponder. I now see objects around me that had very specific meaning to me in an earlier life.

While in this time-warp,  I'll post some of these interesting objects.

Object #1 (Circa 1983): Hello World (IIT)! The alarm clock that I took with me to IIT[M] 

This clock often got me up in time during the 4 years at IIT(M)

Gift from my brother-in-law.

In some cases, the clock did its job. I'd wake up to its loud jangling, which was hard to ignore.

Sometimes, I'd shut it off, and one my wingmates (A-Z) would bang on my door every 5 minutes until I woke up.

Some days, when life was just suspended, I avoided winding it up, so I'd just sleep on!!

I'm not sure it works any more, but I'm afraid to try it - the loud jangle will surely cause me a heart attack!

I'm like Kobe Bryant!

Note: In the above photos, note how the image on the right is blurred due to excessive speed :-)

Kobe and I were both born on the same day - August 23. I did not know this when I started writing this blog post! I think that’s an awesome coincidence!!

Ok - let’s start with what’s not in common between me and Kobe Bryant:

• He’s tall, I’m short
• He is a professional basketball player - I’m an amateur table tennis player
• He has 5 NBA rings. I have more patents :-) (yeah sure,  everyone cares!)
• He launches three-pointers. I launch products.
• He’s rich. I’m not.

Now - don't be disappointed. We have a lot in common:

• We share a birthday.
• We both like Michael Jordan. We both think Jordan's the greatest basketball player ever.
• We both love soccer. We are both fans of Barcelona.
• We both ruptured the achilles tendon on our left legs in 2013 :-(

Here’ what both of us said after the incident:  “I made a move I’ve made a million times and it popped,” Bryant/Mukherjee said afterwards calling the injury “by far” the biggest disappointment of his career. (Please note - Bryant has a real career, Mukherjee does not!)

Kobe’s getting ready to get back to the game in a record 3.5 months - he’s been diving into a pool from 40 feet already!

His idea of 40+ :  “If I can run, I can jump.”

My idea of 40+ :  "Will I be able to play table tennis/soccer again?"

Back to Yahoo! after 7 years

The House of Cards!

Netflix has been playing well-timed cards to stay in the game, it seems … the content cards ...

I’ve been trying to cancel Netflix for a while now...

Why cancel, you ask?

Nothing good to watch, or no easy way to find it without spending a chunk of time, at  which point I’m tired, ready to give up and go to sleep!

Ok - so ready to pull the plug last year, … and along came Lilyhammer - I watched the first season, and … kinda enjoyed it. What happened to it?

Ok - so started watching Breaking Bad - fantastic AMC show - on Netflix. We’d missed the boat on AMC. Being late to the party, my wife and I spent a crazy period of time catching up. We did that in record time and arrived very quickly at ...Season 5. Not on Netflix! OUCH!  Not even available for $$. I’ve never before gotten to the point where I’m desperate enough to pay for a TV show  - right then and there!

No go on Netflix :-(

Switch to Amazon - it wasn’t on Amazon Prime, but it was available for-pay; I coughed up promptly. We’re now ready for the rest of the final season to air - we’ll probably catch it on AMC on Comcast (I pay Comcast more than for food and clothing per month!)

Ready to cut cord with Netflix again …  we watch House of Cards - pretty darn good show. And Sherlock. We’re caught up on the first season of both shows.

Do I stay or do I go? Ask me after the summer!

Amazon, I think has/had an amazing opportunity to upend Netflix, and it hasn’t happened yet. They’re trading content deals - PBS, Dreamworks, ... - and something’s got to give. Amazon has also gone the path of original content - we’ll see what they come up with. YouTube's playing on the sidelines with its own content strategy.

I think Amazon can leverage it’s Prime position,  but again, content is king.

What’s the next card to be played in this house?

The Reunion

Rarely  does a person feel old and young in the same moment! The reunion had exactly that effect. A bunch of middle-aged folks feeling and acting exactly like they'd scratched 25 years off their lives. More juvenile, in fact! The jokes came quickly and everyone laughed, independent of how terrible they were.

Walking around campus alone at 4.30 a.m. with the orange traffic lights on the trees and the deer slowly sauntering, unperturbed, the crickets making a gentle racket in the gul-mohars ... a strong sense of nostalgia hit! The memories were blurred, but the one of the black buck and chital deer herd bounding across from left to right in the moonlight while I was returning from the computer center on my moped "Julie" - an indelible scene carved into my young mind.

Walked to OAT all alone to see that there were renovations ongoing; I could see the spot where I had first spoken to my wife; we have two young boys because of that meeting 25 years earlier. A few words exchanged ... and the world changes!

Met my 3 Idiot friends; 4, 5, 110 of them for that matter. Singing along "All izz well" with the rolling credits at the screening of the 3 Idiots movie the next day at OAT, walking right into the ambush of the warm Madras torrential rain as it soaked us to the skin as we walked back to the Taramani guest house.

Better than it was 25 years ago? It was! 

The only thing in favor of our student days? 

We were younger, our hair was black! We felt like our sons do today?