10 September 2009

Free Bacteria

Free Bacteria – courtesy Indian Railways

We just came back from a great 3 week vacation in India. The kids had a blast and so did Sharmila and I. There were some memorable moments in the trip – I will try to capture some of them here.

On our way back from our home town Durgapur to Calcutta, we traveled by Shatabdi express – which is one of the most premier express trains. If you did not know this, India is the country with the maximum amount of railroads in the world. It is the primary mass transit mechanism. If all the railroads in India were laid end to end, you would reach the moon and come back quite a few times. Indian Railways has 1.6 million employees!! Talk of corporate complexity. Due to the size, Indian railways prepares and presents a separate budget a day earlier than the budget for the rest of the stuff in India!!!

Anyways, back to the story – so, we were traveling First Class AC (you will be surprised what a strengthened dollar can help you do 🙂 ) And half way thru, we were offered “premium dinner”. Usually, I avoid all outside food in India – but this once I decided to try. I opened the tray and the first “welcome note” that greeted me had me guffawing out loud. See the picture below!!

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Not only does the bacteria come free and clear, it is ready for use too!!! 🙂 🙂

For the curious, Sharmila had an upset stomach for three days after eating the meal. Talk about truth in advertising!!

Rajib

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15 August 2009

Totally Running 5K

On Aug 15th, 2009, I ran the Totally Running 5K. As an interesting aside, my last run was on Independence Day of USA – my adopted country. The next run, today, was India’s Independence day – my birth country!! I ran a race after a long time – since I was suffering from shin splints. First and second miles were strong but had to relent in the third mile. Will need to train more.

Came in at 25 minutes 23 seconds.

Race proceeds will benefit the Will Davison Memorial Scholarship Fund, founded in memory of William Clay Davison. For more information, please visit www.willdavisonmemorial.com
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4 July 2009

13th Woodstock Freedom Run

On July 4th, 2009, I ran the Woodstock Freedom Run. For the fist time I used racing flats. And for the first time, I did not slow down on the 3rd mile. Shaved off more than 2 minutes from the previous personal best.

My time was a personal best of 23 min 09 seconds!!

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10 June 2009

Facebook Anthem

This is hilarious and true!! I am myself so fed up with all the applications on Facebook and zillions of people wanting me to install their applications that I have reduced the amount of time I spend on Facebook. Anyways, enjoy…

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6 June 2009

River Run for Hope, 2009

On June 6th, 2009, I ran to raise money for HHMM – HELPING HANDS Medical Missionaries (HHMM) in providing medical care, hope and spiritual support to people in rural areas of Africa. HHMM is a non-profit organization that was established in 1996, and has since served more than 100,000 patients in 8 countries through participants who volunteer their time, service and medical supplies, along with donations from companies, hospitals and individuals.

My times were 25 min 38 seconds. Came at 63rd position out of about 250 odd participants.
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30 May 2009

CASA Strides for Kids, 2009

On May 30th, 2009, I ran to raise money for CASA – which is an organization devoted to getting judicial help for abused kids. CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocates for children. While it was slated as a 5K run, the actual distance was a little short (2.8M). My times were 22 min 41 seconds which for a full 5K would be 24 min 57 seconds. That would be about 30 seconds better than my personal best. The tips from my mentor in Dallas helped out immensely. This was organized in the city of Cumming, GA. You can find more about the organization at http://forsythcountycasa.org/
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16 May 2009

Alphareta Mayor’s Challenge 10K, 2009

On May 16th, 2009, I in the Alpharetta Mayor’s Challenge 10K run. All proceeds went for the benefit of Rotary Club service projects. Till date, this is my best time in the 10K category. (56 minutes 55 seconds). This was organized in the Wills Park. The first 5K was on the roads and the next 5K was in the park trails. Shaved off a little over a minute from my previous best. Details at http://www.mayorschallenge.com/mchome.aspx
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