Aman's Blog….ANYTHING goes here!

Another Week Ended & Am NOT Happy…. February 24, 2012

I am sitting here in my session room. Finally, this week is also finished and as I said, I am not feeling so happy about it. Some how, I had a feeling that it wouldn’t be a smooth ride at all and that’s the same which happened. Right from the travel to the hotel and now, even to the session, anything and everything was a bumpy ride. I am sitting here in my room alone now trying to spend some time alone with myself and also trying to think about everything(and writing it here too) and as I said, I am not feeling so happy. To be honest, I am feeling so damn angry!

For this week’s session, I had to come to Singapore(where I am right now). Besides the long flight, I was having another two week’s session at Banglore. My flight was supposed to fly from Delhi to Singapore in the morning 7am. Now, whenever this is the case that I have to travel in the morning, I never can get to sleep. You may call it extremely stupid but I always think that I may not wake up and shall miss the flight. So I shall force myself to stay awake, take a bath and leave for the airport. You can imagine that how tiring it can be when you don’t get a sleep and have to take two flights to finish your travel. And when on the next day, its Monday and you have a time difference of +2.5 hours, its highly unlikely that you would be able to take any rest whatsoever.

But that’s not so bad!

Not getting sleep and feeling tired is still okay, but you check in a hotel which is far away than its charges, you suffer even more. And matters become worst when you come to know that you don’t have enough cash to do the check in for the required number of days.

Did I say that I had a feeling that this trip won’t go so smooth?

When I reached my hotel, IbIs Hotel Singapore, I came to know that I am carrying cash only sufficient for two days of check in and not for the 5 days for which I had to stay. Why did it happen? Don’t ask me, I am not responsible that’s all I can say and its true,trust me! I had to give the entire cash that I had with me leaving very less which I needed to carry for hiring the cab and all daily. I made few calls, informed to some people who were supposed to manage it well in the first place and checked in my room. When I entered in my room, another shock was waiting for me.

I have stayed in many hotels and guest houses of all kinds of stars and moons ratings. Most of the times, I am in a budget hotel only. Now, budget hotels are basically having a limited set of facilities but normally, they DO have them. I won’t consider not having an in-room dining or a porter to carry your luggage to the room a big issue. But what you would say when you pay 285SGD$ for a night charge and the hotel doesn’t even provides you a freaking water bottle even but mention that the washroom’s tap water is “safe to drink” ?I mean come on, that’s just bullshit! For what you are charging such a high amount then god damn it! Yeah, that’s what the shock which was waiting for me when I entered in the room. And this was two single bed room, again something which was of no use to me in anyways. Worst, I couldn’t even club the two single beds together too since they were locked with the wall. Great! I just went to sleep without eating anything since I was so dead tired and there was a session that I had to take in the morning. If not food, at least was needed for me. And a suggestion, if you are coming to Singapore and are actually willing to pay such a heavy price as room rent, add a little more and stay in a good hotel. Ibis is good for nothing, trust me!

You must be wondering that I didn’t mention anything about the session by now. Well, that’s also something which I can’t say that I am very happy about. Why? Well, I wish I could put in details here but I can’t. So very briefly, its not ME who decides which module would be sold or bought by whom and what is written why in the book? I try to supplement it with a lot of stuff that’s NOT actually there. So if there is something wrong on these fronts, its not me who has done it. I guess I should stop here and say no more.

This week’s session is finished and I shall be moving towards the airport in an hour or so. The flight of mine is VERY late and as I have already checked out from the hotel, the only place where I can go is the airport. I have another session scheduled in the next week so I shall be going for it next. Hope that there are no more shocks waiting for me anywhere. I am not inn a mood at all for anything like that right now.

Oh and BTW, the good people here took care of my hotel issue and made sure that I didn’t get to face any issues related to it. Thanks so much everyone for it! It was a big burden on my head and I can’t thank you enough for sorting it out for me so quickly!

Time to get a cup of coffee, after that , travel starts!

Happy Chappy I Am…. February 17, 2012

Its been three weeks that I am on the roads and haven’t got  a chance to go back to my home even for a day. Moreover, those who are frequent here , they must have noticed that I am not writing much as well. Well, there is a reason for it and that is that I am actually feeling super lost in many many thoughts and worries. I wish I could put them across here but I can’t and to make things more complex, I have had a really busy time in the past 3 weeks. But all said and done, I am feeling happy, in fact quite happy today and that’s why I decided that I shall be sitting and writing about it. Hopefully, I shall be more consistent in writing from now on, at least I shall try for sure to do so.

I just have come back after finishing this week’s session. Its the same module which I took last week as well at a different location. I always say that for me, its very important to know that how I have performed in my session. Many people do tell me that I shouldn’t be much worried about myself and ratings anymore but that’s not me. I am and I shall be always very concerned as this is important for me to improve and correct myself where I am wrong. And the best guess for me to check this that whether I have done a good or bad job, as I say all the time, is to see that smile on the faces of the delegates and to see that whether they are willing to contact me after the session or not. If both the things are there, I am sure that I have done a little good work. And when the delegates say really kind words, for me that’s some thing which I consider as the biggest reward. Fortunately, in the last two weeks, I have got a VERY warm response and got to hear a LOT of VERY kind words from all the delegates and the delegates from the sessions did do one thing especially for me which really really made me feel so happy.

As I said that I taught the same session last week as well. All the delegates in the last week’s session were very senior guys(just like the current one’s) . Its always a challenge to take a session for the senior folks as they mostly have an idea about all what you can talk about in the session. And that’s the same which happened in the last week. All the guys were very experienced, in fact one was amongst the most oldest employees at that location’s office and indeed was a very sharp and smart person. Its been quite some years that I am doing these sessions but still, just like the first time, I always have butterflies in my stomach when I enter in the room on Monday. The previous week also was not any different and I had the same feeling. But I must say, all the delegates were so nice and co-operative. In fact, few came to me on the 2nd day itself and told that I am doing a really good work and they are very happy. What else I could ask for after hearing this right? But there was more good things to come. On the last day, the delegates took me out for lunch. I believe, that was just so kind and nice of them to ask me for lunch and take me for one. When we came back and finally closed the session, the delegate about whom I mentioned that he is among the most senior folks, he came to my seat and said so so many kind words! I won’t mention it all here but you got to trust when I say this that he was extremely happy and he told me that Aman, you are doing really good! I think that’s the best I could ask for to hear. And like him, almost all came to me and said personally to me that they were all very happy and really liked the session and also, me. Isn’t that was just so great! Finally the week was over and now, I had to go for the next week’s session. But before that I had to go to Delhi for few hours and then had to fly from there to the next destination. Not a problem was there in anything except that my flight was at 6am and whenever it is like this, I can’t sleep in the night. So without sleeping at all, I started for Delhi, reached there, finished the work and again , started from there to the next destination, on the very same evening. Needless to say that word tired can’t even come close to explain how exhausted I was! You can imagine from this that I reached at the next destination at 3am and since then I slept off till the next day 5pm. After such a grand sleepover, finally Monday again knocked and I was supposed to buckle up for the next session of mine which I expected to be a very tiring and grilling one and that’s exactly it turned out to be as well!

This current week’s session was probably the most grilling and tiring sessions that I ever took up and can recall. The timing of the session was 9am and I had to start at 8am to avoid any traffic which would otherwise be a very big issue if I would had got late. And after starting at 9am, the session would continue till 7pm for sure(on the first and second day, it stretched up to even 8pm as well). And it was not just the time that was getting stretched, there were a lot of discussions that happened as well. As like the other session(and in fact all to be honest) in this session also, the delegates were very senior and moreover very eager to understand and learn the technology. And we had some really really long and very interesting discussions, out of which one has made a concept quite clear to me as well. So I can say that though the session was really tiring for me( I wasn’t able to speak for some time after coming back from it daily and constantly had legs in pain because of the long standing posture and moving around) but it was still very fruitful. And the best part was that the delegates were REALLY so good. I can even go ahead and say , they were all super COOL! I can’t seem to recall where I had seen a group of so technical guys being so friendly with each other and also so cheerful, witty and so lively in nature. And guess what, they also did the same what the delegates of the previous session did, yep, they also took me out for lunch today! We 17 people went to a south Indian food joint Maiyas, which I was told is very famous. We ordered south Indian meal and I must say, I really did like the food and also the place. I was told that the place offers authentic Karnataka food which I wanted to taste from a long time since I have been coming here but never did get a chance to eat one. So for me at least, it was very good food and I am sure that the place is quite popular as I could see that there were a huge crowd who was waiting to get in outside but had to wait because the place was constantly full with no empty tables at all. But more than the food and the place, it was the kind gesture of the delegates that I was so happy with that they thought of taking me out for lunch with them. And not just this, at the time when we close the session, they presented to me a box of sweets which they told is a speciality of this place. Needless to say that I was so happy and grateful. And along with all this, they all said really kind words in the official rating and also were happy when they were leaving thus made me assured that I did a little good in my work.

So I guess it must be clear now that why I mentioned that I am so happy today. And all I can say is thanks to all the delegates of both the sessions for being so kind, friendly and co-operative. Thanks so much everyone, you really made me feel so happy, I mean it! It was indeed a pleasure and treat to be with you all and I surely would be looking forward to meet you again very soon!

Now, something about the coming week’s session and travel.

The next week’s session is going to be a grilling one and so will be the travel. You can imagine from this that I shall be starting again today at 3am and this time, its going to be an international destination as well. Let’s see what happens. Its time for me to start doing the packing and also to order a cup of coffee, a lifesaver when you are dead tired, isn’t it ?

After A Long Time…. February 4, 2012

Its been more than a month that I have written anything. In case anyone remembers, I had my birthday on the 22nd of January and I thought I shall write about it and mention it on that day but there was a lots of tension (and still there is) at home at that time so I just dropped the idea. Though it was a day filled with so much of (silent) chaos, two friends of mine made my day. One ordered and sent for me a cake at my home in the mid night and another brought a cake for me to cut at home. I can’t say enough thanks to both to make me , mom and my sister smile despite all the tensions and bad things happening. And I also can’t say enough thanks to all those many friends of mine who did send me their wishes through various other methods. Thank you so much guys. Its you only who keep me going in the tough times and I can just say this thanks to you, that’s all! And to show the proof that I was really happy, here is the link for the pictures taken at that time. Yes, its me covered completely in cake!

Though I really wished to write about all this on that day itself and also about this that I am feeling so damn terribly upset, I just got struck in many many tasks, things, issues and even when I was at home, I just couldn’t say anything at all. Today, after finishing my session and doing well in it, when I am having a weekend free with me, I thought I shall write few lines. I still don’t know and not sure that about what I want to write about though but after cracking my head, I just decided to throw away some random thoughts(not an unusual thing for me to do over I guess) since its my blog and I can write whatever I want and about whichever topic I want .

I just finished this week’s session yesterday. The topic that was there in the session is among the most tough ones and though , I have delivered it couple of times, it still gives me tension whenever I go for it. Fortunately, it did go well, in fact it did go very well. There were few delegates whom I knew already and are friends and there were some new delegates as well. Though all the delegates were very experienced ones but few among them were REALLY good, something which can be taken as both a good or bad thing depending on how you take it. I take it as a very good way because presence of such delegates makes me feel that how less I know and how much still is out there for me to learn. One of the delegates from such category, Tanmay even contributed in the session and shared his wealth of knowledge with all of us. Thanks to him and his shared knowledge, for me, finishing the last chapter became really easy and obviously, I learned few bits myself. As I always, a session can be called good , according to me at least, if the ratings are also good and this did happen. The delegates gave an awesome rating score to me and also gave some very kind comments. I don’t like to share them here but one comment which I got was, “one of the best instructors to live with” . Now, I don’t know who gave it but I must say, I was so very happy to read it. Thanks so much everyone for being so kind and for such kind words. I shall surely be looking forward to meet you all soon in some other program.

Other than session, there is a lot of chaos happening at home. I can’t mention that what is there but its good enough to keep me awake in the nights. And just like the icing on the cake, I am not well from last almost 10 days, with fever and cold enjoying their stay with me a little too much. I have two days free with me (or may be its one and a half day now) so I shall try to finish some unfinished tasks in this time besides trying to take some rest. There is a lot that I need to do and somehow,  I am just not able to make up my mind to get up and do it.

I have been asked a lot that where I am, why I am not replying to emails, messages or anything like that. I guess, the above post should give a little idea. I haven’t written much since last some time and I shall resume the normal pace of blogging now, hopefully!