Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Randy Pausch, the Tigger.



I have been besotted by Randy Pausch. the speech is mind boggling.
the complete last lecture is here

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=362421849901825950

shorter versions are here

http://youtube.com/watch?v=k0aO64aKqek&feature=bz302
(On Oprah Winfrey show)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utwFZsSFke0&NR=1
(he is ABC's person of the week)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWIT8x4b4gU&NR=1
(on CNBC)

his home page

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/

at the end of one of these interviews he says "I like living" and that is from the mouth of a person who is going to die in the matter of weeks. that was the defining moment for me, when all his words made a synergy, a whole new meaning, when for a second my heart stopped beating and i thought every living moment is a gift.
i thought at the end of the oprah winfrey show he had become feeble when he mentioned his children.
i think his story is remarkably similar to richard feynman's.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

i feel it in my bones...

last night i had a tough time breathing, long time since i had that sick feeling like the balloon in my chest is poisonous. it took me a fair bit of time to go to sleep. but today evening i felt a pleasant presence in the air. i think winter is approaching. its a nice feeling. the air feels silky, yes i think its silky coz its not cold or chill. i feel a slight electricity in the air, and a similar feeling i have every year around diwali.....

Tuesday, October 02, 2007

holiday

today, was a holiday and i slept like a log. all my plans for the day went in the drain as after a hearty and satisfying lunch, i slept quite easily. now, a point to consider here is since i called my lunch "hearty and satisfying" it could not have been in the hostel. i have not always been so skeptical of the mess food, but lately i observed that not having a good meal made me irritable. but in today's case it resulted in quashing of all my plans.
as i was going out today i suddenly loved seeing "houses". yes, a bit queer as it may seem, i observed different types of houses and homes. in this locality of puttappa colony, thippasandra, houses are small, mostly. there are flats and individual houses. sunshine is plenty and the wind was blowing very nicely. the whole environment around the urban households is very warm, energetic and something is happening all the time around the houses. and two ladies were up in the balcony keenly observing and chatting about whats happening. clothes of all kinds were hanging from windows and balconies.
probably i was getting homesick. i so wanna be at home and eat the home food. these homes could be small to live in i fear. i was reminded the time when i was searching a one room kitchen for rent. hated that time. but people live so happily i thought. the whole business of living in small abodes in busy city. small neglected existences involved in their own chores with such renewed enthusiasm over and over again, everyday.

the people out there

people dont always mean what they say. what they say often hurts us. if i look closer, it is just us, ourselves who is letting ourselves get hurt.
a benevolent, compassionate view of the world is difficult to come by. if i say that all the people of the world, my friends, my colleagues, teachers, parents, small children playing in the street, shopkeepers, waiters, etc. are actually very nice people. they are innocent. they do and say things on accounts of reasons beyond my knowledge. that i will never know. there is something out there which i dont know that i dont know. but i just gotta believe that the world out there is GOOD and innocent, but its not how it will physically appear always. so, what i am saying is -
1. world - (the people, essentially) is good.
2. it wont always APPEAR that way
3. why is it so? you' ll never know, so dont break your head over it.
4. believe in the goodness, and get your work done (the key to success and happiness)

you will continuously get the stimuli that will puzzle you. people shouting at you, challenging you, make you angry, tease you, beat the hell out of you, invite you to be nasty, compete with you and what not. you gotta succeed, and keep your self esteem in tact. but at the end of the day you have to keep the faith that they are all good. you have to be compassionate. stop trying to understand. you can never understand any person fully, ever!
but the happy, good, benevolent view of the world is inspiring. i had this experience when i was presenting a case on Walt Disney in the international business class. it was my first presentation of the second term. and before i started to walk towards the front of the class, i recited in my head many sentences something to this effect - "the audience are my friends. they are eager to listen to me. they want to know what i have got to say."
when we are in a negative spiral, we neglect the positive stimuli. i remember in my past i refused to see the good things in myself. i refused to see the opportunities i had. i just wasnt happy about what i had. i sulked about what i didnt have.

in a positive spiral, you identify the negative stimuli. you dont turn blind to them. you say "what i see is not the truth." smile and believe that the reason for this might be beyond my knowledge, but my faith in the goodness of the world and the people around me is ultimate and strong as a rock. he is saying or doing this because of something which is beyond my knowledge. but i will not get influenced in a negative way because of this.positive spiral is not reactive. it is not outside in, it is inside out. my actions are not a response to what others say or do but my beliefs and integrity in action.