Skip to main content

(UN)LUCKY SEVEN

Exactly 7 months have passed since I reached India with a mind full of uncertainties, anger and a sense of desperation to get back to the US; just any part of the US would do. As luck would have it, I made it back to Chicago this past weekend for a long-term assignment with a client of ours. Lots of people would say I am darn *lucky* to make it back to the US to be with my wife, not realizing the heartbreak I have experienced in those 7 months that I have been away from her, *unlucky* to have my visa denied when things seemed hunky-dory.

I would gladly trade away my 3 trips to Bombay and 1 month in Europe to being in the US continuously without a break in between. But, at the same time, I am sort of clear in my head now, with my standing in my company and the exposure that I have received since being at the nerve center of the organization, Bangalore.

Equally importantly, being in Bangalore has given me the opportunity to look at the way my company operates and this India experience has certainly put me in close proximity with many top guys in Wipro, whom I would have never got a chance to talk to, let alone know their names had I been in the US all this while. Who knows when those contacts would be needed, but nevertheless, its worthwhile to be in their radar.

Being in this project also has provided me the opportunity of a lifetime to assume a senior position and continue my work-ex in the medical device industry. Although the real test of being in the outsourcing industry begins right now, with 24x7 access to people and work, the comforting thing is that at the end of the day, I get to come home to my wife, who has had to spend the same agonizing time away from me.

But as one Idiot would say, All Izz Well, it sure feels that way now that I am back where I am really comfortable and where I think, I belong.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Please Help

While I have been blogging for nearly 2 years now and that visitors (like you) are fairly low in number, I would still like to know who you are. Although I know one of my UA friend is a regular here (and yes, it is you Hari), I don't know who are the other frequent fliers. If you choose to remain anonymous, that is also fine, but kindly leave a comment or two in the message box that is on the right side of the webpage. I am trying to get a feel for how often do you stop by. The reason I am asking you to do this is because I need your help. No, it has nothing to do with donations or anything monetary, but here I am in my third month in Bangalore and I am absolutely bored. I need some suggestions to utilize my time efficiently and effectively. Please refrain from suggesting using the gym or joining a book club. These 2 are not my cuppa tea. My mind is 100% blank about extra-curricular activities and I need some 'external' help. One of my closest friends had suggested joining...

The only reason I write this...

So last time around, I missed writing about a new thing that we did for the first time. We went to a stand-up comedy show at The Improv in Schaumburg. We went to Anthony Jeselnik's show (those who watched the Roast of Charlie Sheen on Comedy Central should know who he is) and it was amazing. Non-stop jokes with a dead pan expression kept the audience in splits throughout the show. He even picked on someone from the crowd and made us realize never to mess with a professional. The woman who got singled out surely learnt her lesson. One thing with these comedians is that no one and no event (however tragic) is off-limits. Case in point, a joke about Casey/Caylee Anthony. So to use the second of our 3 coupons, we watched another show, this time by Greg Behrendt. The profanity-laden show was just average, clearly not the bar set by Jeselnik. And we are still debating on whom to use the final tickets on. So this past week, we had a baby shower for V & S. S, mainly. The surprise party...

Peculiar Observation

Had been to the Hindu Temple today. One of the first things that I noticed about the temple parking lot was that it resembled a used Honda and Toyota car showroom. These two Japanese auto powerhouses have to thank the Indians all around the US for their exceptional sales. And this observation is true about any temple in the US. Pittsburgh Balaji Temple, Aurora Balaji Temple, Lemont Rama Temple etc are the few huge temples that I have visited and have been pleasantly shocked to see the number of Hondas and Toyotas in the parking lots. Lexus and Mercedes are also catching up. Seems the Indian diaspora is not gravely affected by the recession. They were/are smart about the money they earned. Talking about car sales, almost everyone from GM to Ford to Chrysler to Toyota to Honda to Nissan have seen their car sales decline by double digits. American automakers are struggling to sell their "bad" products to the consumers and this time unlike earlier years, the consumer knows better...