Lost in a rush

I am looking at the marriage ads in matrimonial sites, programs and etc just to gain insight. Its not l am looking out for a girl but my friends are. Soon I might also need to jump the bandwagon. One thing is its a multi-million dollar industry and other thing is its going towards wrong notions.

In one popular site, I found the following

“About My Family :
Father-***** Graduate and ****** from ****** MNC
Mother-Housewife
First elder brother - **** employed in USA .
Second elder brother - ** & ****** with engineering firm in Chennai “

 This is just an instance. People when they tell about their family they explain so and so child has completed this degree and employed in XYZ company. How does it really tell who the person is ?.

I am quite fathomed why such enormous amount of importance is placed on person’s educational degree and his/her employer’s Fortune 500 standing. Its quite contradictory to Indian values and ethos which, to my extent of knowledge, has placed importance on one’s personality, behaviour and traits. And even the astrology is all about behaviour and traits. Even there one only part is about wealth and career.

This is worse than astrology. Are we so notionized and started placing importance on wrong notions and values. Another ad talks about “She is married to highly qualified management professional”. Which idiot said the management professional can do better at family. I was rather expecting like “She is married to wonderful and caring person”.

When we were blamed that we are career-oriented or money-minded why our elders are placing such importance on degree and employment.

Unless you tell about your family or your traits , the poor indian onsite consultant cant find out anything…things are looking grim.

Mine arrived today. $20 for entire year of VOIP. No monthly bills. It needs a laptop and ordinary phone unlike vonage.

Voice is bit flattening but that could be due to my laptop setting. For $20 its more than bargained for. Check out www.magicjack.com

Update : Jan 23 10:30 AM PST

I am trying it for nearly 1week. So here is my review.

(+)1. Simple to use. Plug magicjack into your USB. Connect your phone to magicjack and start dialing. Your mom or pop dont have to fiddle anything with the computer. They have to pick up the phone and start dialing the US number - not even +1 country code is needed. Make sure to tell them not to dial 911.

(-)2. Voice is flat. It doesnt have cellphone quality. You will miss the experience but still I would say you to stick for the reason - i dont find a difference in voice quality as too big for me to put off, my each call takes 1hour to 2hours to complete (I still dont have a girlfriend!! ), savings are huge - Rs400/$20 per year with magicjack when compared to Rs400/$20 for every 2months

(|) 3. Your quality depends upon few factors. Quality of magicjack, quality of cordless phone. Things improves a lot if you use good phone. If you want to use cordless phone use DECT technology or 5.4Ghz cordless. Ordinary cordless which operate on 2.4Ghz which is the same frequency of your Wifi router.

(-)4. The supplied VOIP program is crap. There is constant keyboard polling. So you will hear click sounds in calls. Solution is to minimize the program to system tray. Its a 2 step process. You select minimize to tray option from menu and then click on top right (-) minimize button.

I am sending one to my parents this week. IMHO its definitely worth more than $20 but dont get your expectations high!

We are already working to setup a uni-mobil system using bluetooth, grandcentral , magicjack and ever-present cellphone. Welcome Phone2.0

I am pounded with questions whether I have listened to Jodhaa Akbar!!. I was quite impressed by the trailer but I didnt listen to any of the music until now. My friend in Florida and Prabhu of www.prabhukrish.net tipped me to go ahead and listen now.

Well! I need to say I am not that ga! ga! over the songs. Azeem O shaen sha had a quite good tempo and the big crescendo (dhin dhom dhinatha dhom!) was capturing. Equally good was Khwaje Re Khwaja.  Rest were too good in putting me to sleep.

I am still wondering how good the unreleased qawwali would have been

And I couldnt have better laugh when UTV goofed up about the music launch.  

Now i am Toronto, CA things are looking totally different. After being used to California weather its hard to adjust to single-digit C temperature. A suprise is waiting in every nook and corner.

• You expect english and french in the clients office. All they speak is Portugese.
• You expect Canadian, its full of Brazillians , New zealanders, chinese …of course indians. 
• You expect US units..good they follow degreeC, kmph
• You expect simple block navigation in subway…thats the most confusing part in entire toronto…and one of the iconic examples of underground city…even though I get lost everytime its kind of amazing place.

So what I am complaining about…only one thing bad timing…if it had been summer ..i believe toronto would have been more fun..for now I am tucked away in bed.