Pabitra - Gone back

It is snowing again. Its mid April and sometime the temperature is more than 25C, but the nest day it can be snow storm. Tomorrow the prediction is heavy snow storm here in Colorado. The weather is quite extreme here, summer is quite hot and winter is cold enough. The lands are mostly barren, but there are also few types of greeneries.

In US if you are not in East or West Cost, you may have to face extreme weather. The weather in Longmont is very dry and the sunshine is quite intense in summer. But now-a-days weather is playing topsy-turvy with its random combinations.

Last week it was Easter. First time in my corporate life I worked in Easter (Good Friday). It was a surprise to me when I came to know we don’t have any vacation in Easter. Thanks God, I haven’t planned in advance assuming this one a default vacation. We used to have long vacation during these days, in other countries like Greece. But yes we had at least one official party last week. IBM senior executive team like Global SAP head, USA sector lead and Partners came to sign billion dollar contract with the customer.

One significant event this week, my bro has gone back to India. That’s why we are little busy in shopping last weekend. We have gone to almost every chain possible, K-mart, King Scooper, Jecy penny, Ross, Marshall, Office depot, Michaels, Barnes n nobles and many more.

Sunday we had lunch in an Indian restaurant “Maharaja” in Boulder. Boulder is one a university town (University of Colorado) in the lap of the mountains very close to Longmont city. We have been there many times and with no exception this one has became our main haunting spot for last few days.

We haven’t seen a big book store like “Barnes and nobles” in West minister city. It was huge, so big that it may consume the whole day. We didn’t have much time, so had to come back after having a cup of coffee in Star bucks.

We did extensive shopping these days. We bought a Laptop with 17inch Monitor, many electronics equipments like SD card, HDD, many cloths, bags, and shoes, jewelries for family members, chocolates, photo frames, and small decorative stuff for everyone.

Finally I dropped Pabitra in Denver Airport on Tuesday. I am missing him. We stayed 3 months together and had a fun. We have been to many places and undoubtedly had a wonderful time which we had dreamt for. He was struggling for projects these days in recession market and now looking for options in India, which is good for him. I am planning to take a fly back of 2 weeks in India, beginning of May, so I am exited too.

Election: Some thoughts

My Sunday morning started with snow and NDTV again. Its almost Easter and Spring should come by this time, but surprisingly its snowing once a week. Is it Global Warming which has started the topsy-turvy of nature and weather? The seasons are overlapping like nothing. We have to take some action to save our dear planet and next generation.

I am watching NDTV news everyday especially for National Election. I haven’t voted in last 10 years, to be precise I only voted twice while I was in Kharagpur. I neither felt to vote nor am I registered in any Kolkata constituency. But I never lost interest in Indian Political equations and elections.

Unlike last few elections, this election is no longer an exception of racism, religious fanaticism and provincialism. Left and Congress continues their minority influence, while BJP is playing the Hinduism card again, BSP is vouching for datils where as Yadav politics is still very much in action.

We have seen politics of hate everywhere. The reason is we still care for them. The parochialism of “politics of hate” has been taken into consideration again and again by media, oppositions and people. We the people of India still do not care for actual developments. We are driven by emotions, theoretical secularism, and idolism. These are not bad at all, but the problem is these forces deviates us from the real issues, developments, progress and promises.

How many central Govt able to keep their promises? How many leaders actually contributed to the growth? How many parties implemented something beyond their political agenda? Probably none. As majority of our populations least bother about it, the political parties continue to peruse the card play.

Now the time has came when we the people of India has to be very conscience on actual development. We need to be focused on the deliverable, have to measure them based on their performance, not by the lectures or trump cards. Personally I do not belief BJP is communal or Congress is secular. They did what they had to do to come into power. But, yes, I do evaluate the parties on the basis of performance.

I fell hopeless when I have to vote for some party in WB. Whom should I vote? Any vote will go to UPA, then why this virtual fight. Had I been given the option, I would like to vote for Lalu Prasad Yadav of RJD, who tried to reform the Railways and not Mamata Banerjee of TMC, who sopiled the emerging chance of industrialization by Tata. I would like to vote for Chandrababu Naidu of TDP, who set up the IT hub in HYD, rather than Buddhadev Bhattacharya of CPM, who failed again and again of the issue of development. To me Narendra Modi is a hero, as he has shown how to reform a state. Starting from Industrialization to Infrastructures, Gujrat is one of the leading states of India, but unfortunately he is remembered always for communal conflicts in Godhra. I am not backing up Modi, but the days have gone where we have to be indifferent on actual development. The National Highway infrastructures were implemented in 6 years of NDA govt, why can’t Congress do it in 50years of their rule.

I have no problem with dynasty of Congress party, but they have to convince us that they are capable. Do we think Rahul Gandhi is as good as Pranab Mukherjee? The answer is No. I beg your pardon if I hurt your sentiment in someway or other by my thoughts, but still I belief before voting one should consider the pros and cons of the Candidates and of course the Party agenda regarding the development issue.

Enough of Politics, I sometime get tired, but never can avoid it. Coming back to our Sunday activities, it was good and hectic. We had a chain of shopping in different malls. I hate shopping, its not something I want to do for hours, but sometime I had to, as Pabitra is going back, we have to buy gift for each and every family members.

We went to Super Target and Big K Mart where some deals were going on. These stores are really big, bigger than any store I have seen in India. Yesterday we went to Sams club which is even more bigger, in Loveland a city nearby. The natural beauty of the place is captivating, the lake by the mountain range was wonderful, but we could not able to enjoy the beauty in the cold, the wind-chill effect made it even more intolerable. But it was a good trip.

So it is the season of shopping and final side seeing before Pabitra departs from US.