BarryUno

2011-01-18T19:00:00.002+03:00

Four Questions You Should Ask Yourself Before Beginning Any Marketing Campaign
by Whitney Hahn

So you've come to the conclusion that you need to market your service or product. Great! Proper marketing can lead to great rewards. Improper marketing, however, can waste a ton of money.

How do you avoid the pitfalls? Proper planning.

Some people get so excited about the ad, commercial or flyer that they don't really think through the whole conversion process. It's not enough to have people notice your marketing; you want them to act on it in very specific ways. Not planning the whole life cycle of your marketing is a bit like planning the wedding, but not the marriage. The day after all the excitement is over, you may be left with nothing more than a headache and a big bill.

But you can avoid lots of wasted time and effort by asking (and answering) these four questions. It's a list of questions we go over with all of our new clients and many have felt it has brought great focus and accountability to the decisions they were making. Don't let this short list fool you. Knowing the answers to these questions clarifies your business and marketing goals to you AND your prospects.

1. What are the benefit(s) to your customers of doing business with you over going to another provider or not doing anything at all?

This is sometimes called your "Unique Selling Proposition” (USP) and clearly defines what you have going on. Notice it asks about benefits, not features, and they are very different animals. Features are like technical spec sheets. Benefits answer the questions, "So what? What's in it for me?"

If you were picking a spouse, you might describe their features as tall, dark and handsome. But the benefits are really what sells them to you - they make you laugh, feel secure, feel important and loved and so on.

For example, I could talk to you all day about our 3CCD cameras and how many terrabytes of storage space we have and what whiz-bang software we used to edit with and your eyes would quickly roll into the back of your head. But, I if talk to you about a fun, collaborative working relationship where we coach you through the entire process and suggests ways to enhance your overall marketing goals through video, then we might have a conversation.

Determine what makes working with you unique and how it benefits a prospect. If you can do that, they are far more likely to become clients.

2. What business are you in?

Now, don't say "I'm in the widget business." This is really asking about your position or identity in the marketplace and how your services make the user's life better. These goes hand in hand with the benefits list.

If I say that I am in the video production business, I haven't done a thing to differentiate myself from the competition or tell a prospect how I can help them solve a problem. However, if I say that we help entrepreneurs establish themselves as experts in their fields while generating passive income though DVD sales, then I've given prospects a very specific example of how working with me could benefit them and make their life better.

Give this one some thought. Of all the questions on the list, this one usually takes the most time to answer with clarity. It is time well spent.

3. What is your target market? (age, sex, geography, income, etc.)

Asking this question helps you avoid disconnects between your message and your Audience by putting their "face" clearly in your mind. As you prepare your campaign, you will have a thousand decisions to make - everything from written copy to musical underscores - and you will need to keep the prospects in mind. Don't jam a lot of words into a small space if you are trying to reach seniors. Don't use country music in the background if you are aiming at a young, urban demographic.

Remember, when you go fishing, you don't have to like the bait, the fish do.

Knowing as much as you can about your target demographic will also help you make decisions on where and in what way your message should be heard. Your favorite stream is not going to be effective if there are no "fish" there.

4. What action do you want a prospect to take as a result of seeing your marketing message?

I know what you are thinking. "Buy my product, silly." Yes and no. That would be like bumping into someone on the street and then asking them to move in. While that would be great in business, most of us don't work that way. Chances are there will be a least one more step between hearing/seeing your message and making a purchase from you.

So, to follow the dating analogy, the prospect might decide to have coffee with you (visit your website and opt-in for your VIP coupon list), then visit later for a sandwich (stop by your store to get more information or consult with you), then ask their friends what they think of you... you get the idea.

This question gets you to think about, plan for and implement that series of "dates" so that you can build a relationship and make the sale. People would much rather buy from friends than strangers.

There they are - the four questions that can make the difference between running an ad campaign and creating a marketing magnet. Please enjoy responsibly!

Whitney Hahn is the business manager and director of Digital Bard Video. Web. Marketing. in Frederick, MD. She is a Certified Guerrilla Marketing Coach and uses her skills to bring more value to her client's projects. Whitney may be reached at 240-566-5931 or by emailing whitney@digitalbard.com.

Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article238870.html

Do we really need Ivy League champions to manage our businesses in Kuwait?

2010-12-19T23:02:00.002+03:00

It amuses me when I read about how companies in Kuwait are looking specifically for certain type of candidates to fill certain positions. Candidates that have graduated out of prestigious Ivy league schools. Some of you might ask me why?

Simply because I don't see any improvements in the way business is done in Kuwait on the whole. There are no seemingly noticeable improvements in the way these businesses are run and more importantly, there is no improvement in service! Why then do these companies insist on hiring candidates that have graduated out the Harvards, Stanfords, Oxfords, Enseads and IIMs of the world? Do they really plan on utilizing the talents of these individuals or is it just a way for CEOs to brag...

"I've got 3 Harvard graduates in my BD team"

"That's nothing, I've got 2 guys from Stanford, a guy from Wharton and 4 from IIM."

Let's face it, Kuwait is a small country. As much as I don't like Dubai, if someone told me they were looking for these kind of people, I'd believe it. Simply because, financial/real estate crisis or not, you can see the big developments in the emirate. You can see that they have a penchant for hiring talented people and getting the best out of them. You see old and new companies taking risks, building brands and engaging customers. You see new projects on the horizon all the time; the world's tallest, fattest, shortest, widest, coolest....arrgh!! The point is, we see developments taking place every now and then. So the need for these people is almost autonomously justified.

This is more than I can say for their counterparts in Kuwait. Apart from a handful of companies here, I can't seem to fathom the idea that a fresh Kellogg or IIM grad can do a better job at managing a brand in Kuwait than a guy with hardcore experience. Business ideas lack creativity, overall treatment of employees is below par with the rest of the world and again, customer service in Kuwait is appalling. How then are these companies utilizing the talents of these people positively? Do we see any developments on the horizon?

Personally, I think instead of hiring these "Ivy league champions", companies would do better if they just spent their money on training their customer service staff on better (or should I daresay - basic) customer service ideologies; that would be money well spent! Which once again brings me to my question, why hire ONLY graduates from these colleges when you've got talented people waiting for opportunities?

Frankly, I think it's a scam to make their companies look good to the outside world. I know there will be a few naysayers that want to diss this blogpost thinking quality people equals quality output. I'd almost agree with that except for the fact that: it only takes a good mechanic to fix a car, not an automobile engineer!

How about a 4sim?

2010-10-31T10:36:00.004+03:00

I had stopped posting about tech stuff since I figured there are a ton of other people that seem to know more about tech stuff that I do. Besides, we’d be talking about the same thing anyway so what’s the point right? This post however isn’t about the technology. Well at least not entirely. It’s about the preposterousness (I think that’s a word) and the absurdity of the idea. Read on.

Have you ever seen guys with more than 2 mobile phones? I have. In fact I know someone with 4 mobile phones although he doesn’t carry more than 2 phones at a time. One of the numbers is always carried while he picks and chooses which of the remaining three he’ll carry with him. Of course, he’s got a Blackberry, an iPhone, a Samsung and another one I can’t seem to remember. The only reason I remember so much is because I was fascinated with this guy’s obsession of being so “in touch” with his network that he had to get 4 phones. I was also curious about his sanity. My guess is he needs just one phone and the others are to keep track of his girlfriends/mistresses! Or maybe they’re for different business? Bah….who knows!!!

Eiher way, enter – Dody, a Chinese mobile manufacturer that has taken into accounts dweebs like this guy and made a phone just for the likes of him. Here’s a phone that has slots for 4 SIM chips and what’s even better, the e-flyer attached says you can use them all at once! (If you can't view the flyer, visit: http://www.dody.mobi/ )

What will the come up with next? Seriously, this isn’t a rhetorical question. What WILL they come up with next?

STOP getting ripped off by Kuwaiti Mobile Phone companies!!!

2010-10-03T10:49:00.003+03:00

For years now we have been getting swindled by mobile phone operators in Kuwait. We paid the heftiest charges among all the countries in the Middle East despite having more than one operator for the most part of 10 years. Coverage was at best average which in my book is very appalling considering the size of Kuwait and the straightforward topography. After a decade of paying for incoming calls, the arrival of VIVA saw the rest of the bunch allow incoming calls for free.

We thought this was the start of something new; a price war between the cell phone companies that would ultimately benefit the subscribers. But after a year for some reason there seems to be no fairness OR logic in the various promotions or schemes announced by either of these companies. To be honest, I don't count VIVA in this because they haven't been in the market long enough for me to commend or berate them. SO it's between Zain and Wataniya that we need to choose from. Which is the devil and which si the deep blue sea?

How does logic come into effect when their marketing team plans their strategy? I say this because I am a marketer myself and before I revise pricing, the first thing I would look at is the company's existing subscribers. How do they fit in the new pricing scheme? How will they benefit from it? I've had an eGo subscription for almost 2 years now and I bought the line when there was no special offer or anything of that sort on neither the device nor the subscription. On top of that, I paid a hefty amount for the device itself. After two years of being a loyal subscriber, I find out that they're doing promotions for new subscribers where they get a free device if they subscribe for one year. When I asked one of their customer services reps if I would get a special price on a new device and a reduction in my rate (since the new rates are KD 1.5 less than what I’m paying) the answer I got was a firm “I’m sorry sit but I can’t do that. It’s against the rule. You have to pay full price for the new device.”

Bastards! I would like to know who the freaking hell designs their promotion campaigs and who plans their marketing strategy. It’s insanely and cruelly absurd! Cell phone companies in the rest of the world reward you for being a long term customer and give you stuff either at discounted prices or for FREE. Here, I am being charged as though I am a newbie. Why would I want to stay a loyal customer? Are the mobile companies going to make any concessions that make sense in future or are they going to continue ripping us off?

Someone please make sense of this for me?!?!?!?!?!?

Calling all you Authority Abusers: do you think you're better than the rest of us?

2010-09-30T10:49:00.005+03:00

Thanks to my job, I get to meet a lot of people in influential positions in Kuwait and although that is not always a good thing I can cope with it most of the time. However the one thing that annoys the living crap out of me is people who abuse their authority and more specifically, people who THINK they have authority.

Have you ever worked or dealt with people at the British or American Embassies in Kuwait? I mean local recruits, mainly counter staff or lower level staff that aren’t British or American in any way; mainly Lebanese, Egyptians, Syrians, Indians, Pilipino etc.? These people think just because they work for the Embassy, they’re as good as the people of that country. Now I’m not saying the British or Americans are better than the rest of us lot, but sadly this is how people in this part of the world think. And this is exactly how these ignoramuses think as well. To make matters worse, these people are rude, arrogant and condescending and thoroughly unprofessional!

Just to educate the rest of you folk who don’t know this; most lower level embassy jobs are cut and dry and as easy as pie….or maybe easier! It’s mainly filling & checking forms, accepting applications, filing, placing orders for supplies, talkling to people that call for information (that is mostly read from a book of ready answers because the nit-wits don't know to handle exceptions) releasing purchase orders etc. You don’t even need to be a brain surgeon’s ass-wipe to get those things done! The nerve of some of those people, pretending that they are more important (and busier) than the ambassadors themselves?

The funny thing is I know some real Brits and Americans that work at these embassies and they’re not even half as arrogant as their wannabe colleagues. Maybe the embassies in question need to evaluate their positions on this. Or perhaps they’re happy with employing morons because they accept to work for less? Damn shame!

Would you "Crowdsource"?

2010-09-27T10:05:00.005+03:00

For those of you who are not in the know, I work as the Head of Sales & Marketing at a leading ground handling services provider. In a bid to infuse some new energy into our brand, I was doing some research on creating a strong branding image to sort of…clean house and re-create our brand vision; something that is not often done in this part of the world. While I was doing my research, I chanced upon a whole new concept called “Crowdsourcing”, an idea based on a company outsourcing tasks usually performed by an employee or a supplier/agency to a group of people or a community that do not have a direct vested interest in the company. The outsourcing is usually done over the web and the company uses the collaborative results or finding to reach its objective.

This is the latest trend that companies in North America and Europe are following for their marketing needs although it can be used for much more than marketing requirements/problem solving. How it works is: the company broadcasts the problem on to a group of problem solvers or “the crowd” though a medium (Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, etc.). The crowd then sends in its version of solutions. In some advanced online communities the crowd may sort through the solutions, finding the better ones and submitting them to the company. The best solutions are then registered as property of the company and the winners get a reward from the company.

The concept itself existed as early as the 40s and 50s but presumably, the internet and web technologies do make it a whole lot imaginable …and cheaper!

Although I don’t completely agree with this ideology, I think it is new, it’s innovative and does end up bringing new ideas to the table. After all, once you’ve worked in a company for a few years you tend to get a bit stale in your thinking process and a group of people that don’t work for your company may actually have better dieas than you sometimes. That doesn’t make them better than you, it just means their minds are fresher than yours in this regard. Perhaps you can use this opportunity to take a vacation!?!?!?!

The bad side of crowdsourcing is the informality and lack of precedures. More importantly lack of monetery motivation for the people involved or "the crowd". Additionally, competitors can plant their own people in these communities to give wrong feedback and ruin the program and in some cases the reputation of your company.

Either way, it is an interesting concept and I just thought I’d share it with you guys! What do you think?

Will we ever live as ONE!

2010-09-22T11:30:00.002+03:00

The other day I was thinking about how different countries have different defence, military and development programs that it can benefit from. Some countries even go to the extent of setting up bases and platforms in other countries or territories to get the upper hand on their neighbours and rivals. Then I chanced upon watching an episode of “V” a TV show that airs on MBC Action that revolves around a species of aliens that have come to earth from a galaxy far far away. They claim to want to live in peace with the people of earth and exchange knowledge and technology etc.but it turns out they lied and just want to conquer earth. It’s a remake of a popular 80s TV mini series that I watched as a kid. However, the plot of the storyline isn’t the point here. The point is in one of the episodes, their commander or leader tells the people of Earth that from where she comes from, there are no countries and everyone on their planet acts in the interest of the planet.

That got me thinking, when will we act like that? For centuries we have fought against one another. Different human configurations have always fought for supremacy and the reasons were manifold; racial, political, geographical and technological superiority. When, if ever, do you think will we ever begin to start thinking as citizens of the world instead of nationals of a particular country? When will we unite as one race? A race of humans! Do we have to wait for a few centuries before we start traveling in spaceships and have no more earth to conquer after the ravages of war? It is definitely something to think about. Either way, John Lennon surmises this best in his unforgettable song, Imagine. Here’s one verse for you to ponder upon!

Imagine there's no countries,

It isn't hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion too

Imagine all the people

Living life in peace

Happy Liberation & National Day to my Kuwaiti friends!

2010-03-02T09:59:00.004+03:00

I must admit, I feel for the Kuwaiti population during the Liberation and National day holidays. I am not saying this just because of the traffic during this time, I say this because I really feel for them.

Ok, I don't really love the country to pieces but I do have a certain connection to the place. I was born here and have spent half my life here. I have had many memorable childhood memories growing up watching Knight Rider & Chart Attack on KTV2, collecting Galactica cards and hanging out at Arby's, Pizza Italia and Hungry Bunny in the old Salmiya Souq area as a kid!
But what saddens me is that while the country celebrates the National & Liberation day holidays (in more ghastly ways that one can imagine) the people seem to lack a proper sense of belonging to a nation. For a country that is extremely young, there doesnt seem to be anything to look forward to. Apart for the old-timers who used to be proud citizens, apart from a few people we read about in local magazines, the younger generation does not seem to understand the true meaning of being liberated. For them it is about going to the "west" getting an American or British education and coming back to flaunt their degrees to get better paying jobs as opposed to giving back to the country. Physically it may tbe the liberation of Kuwait from Iraq in 1991 that we celebrate but metaphorically to me, it's being liberated from the shackles of complacency and looking forward o a bright future.

It's not about spraying cars with foam or not about dancing on the streets of Kuwait with face paint and colorful flags. And it's certainly not about checking out the women through a smokescreen of red, white and green tassles and waterguns. If only these people understood the true meaning of being liberated, there wouldn't be 11 deaths in 65 road accidents in a span of 4 days as reported in the newspapers. Perhaps the country should work towards giving these people what they deserve to realize the meaning of liberation and the true meaning of belonging to a country.

Taming the beast on the Kuwait roads

2010-03-02T09:31:00.005+03:00

I just got back from a crazy day driving on the streets of Kuwait City. I must admit, while Kuwait has a decent set of roads; the people on them don't seem to be half as decent. In my 15 minute drive from Kuwait City to the Airport, I got cut off by 4 fancy sports cars (2 Porsches, a Massarati and a Nissan Z350).

Of course, other people driving other cars also cut of me off but my bitch for the day is the people with the fancy roadsters specifically the Porches, Ferraris, the Lambos and the Masseratis. Albeit the fact that over 90% of the people that own these cars in Kuwait buy them because of upholding their status is true. What pisses me off is that most of the people that drive these machines don't have the slightest idea how to drive them.

My friend Q8 Apothecary (whose blog seems to have gone into hibernation) has summed it best on one of his posts a few years ago. It's not about how many horsepower your car has, it's about the guy or girl behind the wheel (in our case, the moron) behind the wheel that matters. Super cars specifically the Ferraris and Porches need to be driven specifically. They are not your every day commuter vehicles, they are not drag racing cars and most of all, they are to be driven with skill and precision. This is one of the main reasons we see rash and negligent driving on the streets that results in injuries and death. And we wonder why Kuwait has one of the highest accident rates in this part of the world?

Who might I ask is to be blamed for this? Is it the dealers who do not bother to offer basic drivers training to new buyers? Is it the parents who indulge their kids with luxuries for fear of being called insufficient providers? Or is it the fault of the drivers themselves who neglect all road sense and sensibility for want of fame and an adrenalin rush?

Now I'm not saying that you shouldn't buy a Porchse. In fact, if you can afford it, go ahead and buy one right away. But before you take to the wheel, try and understand how the machine responds to your touch. A super car is like a beast that needs taming. And until you understand how to be one with your machine, please don't take to crazy antics on the streets or think for one minute that you are licensed to thrill by performing meaningless stunts on the streets and endangering the lives of the other commuters that use them.

PS – I love the Mercedes McLaren SLR but the day I hopefully buy one, I’m going to sign up for a crash course in performance driving.

Give generously...and meaningfully!

2010-02-18T12:27:00.001+03:00

We all know about the disaster that took place in Haiti in January when a 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit the country killing 200,000 people and rendering at least a million people homeless. I must really commend the people that are on the ground in Haiti right now helping out with reconstruction, tending to the injured and needy etc. I firmly believe in humanity and that people come through for you in the time of need. In cases like the Haiti disaster, nuances of human empathy and generosity were clearly evident with online and offline NGOs reporting a record a number of donations worldwide.

Of course, for every right, there is a wrong as I like to remind people some times. In this case, there are a certain bunch of people who exploit the situation to make the most of it. My gripe in Kuwait is that although many organizations across the country have volunteered to help the Haitians by collection/donation drives etc, it appears that most of the organizations are doing this solely because it is the "in" thing to do. They're doing it because George Clooney and his friends are doing it and they think it's cool if Hollywood stars do it. They’re doing it because corporate social responsibility is a big thing nowadays especially among the corporate elite and it is compulsory for large companies to adopt CSR practices.

The point I am trying to make is; it's easy to lose sight of the big picture when you think of petty gain. What's more important is that the people who really need the money and aid get it before it is too late.

So I say to all you people who want to have a fancy looking collection box outside your reception areas, do not do it because it may impress visitors to your company; do it because someone, somewhere needs your help! Make sure you announce the drive within the company and your network of contacts. Make sure someone monitors what is collected and finally make sure that the collections no matter how large or meager are sent to the NGO you’re dealing with.

After all, what good is the effort if the end benefactors don’t benefit?

Annoying Online Promotion

2010-02-15T12:51:00.003+03:00

Have you received an email from "President Nelson Mandela" at "S.A. 2010 WORLD CUP PROMOTION" saying you won their promotion or lottery promo and to contact "MR.OWEN DOUGLAS" to collect your winnings? It is a scam. And don't get too excited if the names are different; the scammers make many versions of this scam!
It is actually a very simple scam. They claim you won a promotion, which is giving away millions of dollars based on a randomly selected email address. The scam is obvious: it's simply preposterous to think that any company would randomly give away money to encourage you to buy their product. That would be self-defeating.
There are many other signs that this is a fraud that we have highlighted in the email below, not the least of which are:
- Email address ballot: There is no such thing as a "computer ballot system" or "computer email draw". No one, not even Microsoft has a database of email addresses of the type or magnitude they suggest.
- Terrible spelling, punctuation, syntax and grammar - Scammers apparently don't know how to use spell checkers. I assume they dropped out of school before that class. They use almost random CapItaLiZAtion and often can't even spell "February" or know that "22th" ought to be "22nd". These scammers usually write at the 3rd grade level.
- Using a free email account: The scammer is writing to you from a FREE email account (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.). Don't you think a real organization would use its own email, its own domain and website? Wouldn't they want to promote that?
- What are they promoting? No one promotes "world peace" or "use of the internet" by handing out millions to random strangers. And if they are promoting a product, then this must be the world's worst promotion, because no one has heard of it, outside of the email you just received.
- Pay a fee to collect the prize: Nope, it is illegal for free sweepstakes and promotions to charge you ANYTHING! Of course, in a scam, that is the whole point: to get you to send money to the scammer

So if any one of you receives this kind of email asking them to be a part of the promotion, you know what to do.

Are you a Facebook Addict?

2009-07-22T16:01:00.005+03:00

Have you ever experienced some kind of a high after noticing that someone sent you a comment on Facebook, someone tagged a photo of you doing something either incredibly nasty or stupid or possibly both? Are you one of those people that spends endless amounts of time looking through people’s profiles on Facebook and other such community networking sites? If the description fits you, you’re a Facebook Addict!

I thoroughly understand when something’s new and we all want to be constantly on it especially in today’s high tech digital world where everything is…..well digital! I was quite excited when I signed up on Facebook 2 years ago. I learnt a few new things about some people I know, caught up with old friends and had some laughs looking at old pics.

It's always great to catch up with old friends from around the globe and see pictures of their kids and the family vacations I guess. But people, please know when to draw the line. I read somewhere that a lady was prosecuted when she ignored her daughter’s request for homework help because she was too tied up with Facebook. Turns out she spent an average of 10 hours on the website!

On a separate note, sites like Facebook promote a certain narcissistic approach towards one’s self. I think it is because we think we are all interesting, we feel the need to let people know about the important details in our lives. But seriously people, know to differentiate between the milestones & the unwanted notes in your status updates. You might want to share the fact that you just got married or gave birth to a really cute baby but please don’t let me know if you’ve just trimmed your toe-nails or shaved your goatee! And yeah another thing; if you’re down and depressed, how about you pick up the phone and call a friend. (this holds true for bloggers as well btw)

Here are 4 signs that you may be a Facebook or Twitter Addict:
- You spend over an hour on Facebook a day
- You spend half your time at work on Facebook
- You’re spending time sending your Facebook buddies virtual gifts, drinks and forgetting the real world of friends
- You’re accumilating a lot of Facebook time reconnecting with your high school sweetheart (particularly inappropriate if either one of you or the both of you are married)

Ways you can detox from sites like Facebook or Twitter:
- Disable SMS alerts from facebook and Twitter; these can be quite distracting especially when you’re enjoying a holiday with the family or a quiet weekend with your girl.
- Stop adding friends. In real life, you’d never be able to keep up with all the 300+ people on your Facebook or Twitter account so at least when you stop adding friends, you’ll keep your circle of friends down to a more manageable level.
- Make friends with people that are not or these sites. And when they ask you if you’ve heard abuot them, pretend you don’t know what they are! ;-)
- Call your close friends or try and meet up with them if you can instead of leaving him or her a tweet or a wall posting

The best piece of advice; check your profile once a month (like me) and only make contact with people you know well or knew well but went out of touch with over the years. And remember, making new friends is an art best practiced in person, not online. Cheers!

Michael Jackson - GONE TOO SOON

2009-06-26T12:21:00.006+03:00

My wife and I are deeply saddened to hear about the untimely loss of Michael Jackson, the undisputed King Of Pop, a man that is considered to have single-handedly changed the face of pop music & pop culture in the 80s and 90s. From his beginnings as the youngest member of the Jackson 5 to setting new standards in dance and music videos Michael was in more ways than one – an icon who through his sheer talent and artistry unified the world through his music.

We will always consider him a representation of our age; someone who inspired our generation (and so many other generations). We grew up listening to his music, watching his videos, collecting his memorabilia & keeping track of his exploits.

I “Remember the time” I was a kid and looked forward to doing the moonwalk in front of friends and family to “Beat It” and “Billie Jean”. His music was so universal; it appealed to everyone no matter if they were “Black or White”. He was always trying to do so much, trying to “Heal the World”. We danced to his music and had to “Blame It On The Boogie”. His music is so invigorating, “You Can’t Stop Till You Get Enough”. No matter what anyone says about Michael Jackson, most people will consider his life quite the “Thriller”, most people will always consider the King of Pop an indubitable part of “HIStory”. In one simple word he will always be – “Invincible”.

REST IN PEACE & GOD BLESS YOU ALWAYS!

Handling the Recession

2009-06-25T10:57:00.004+03:00

Researchers and financial analysts (these are the same people that said the US economy was solid for the next 2 decades by the way) say that even through we’re undergoing a recession; some communities are seemingly less affected by the global downturn than the others. This means that if you’re in healthcare or education, you’re less likely to lose your job than if you are in the banking or financial services sectors. Of course this doesn’t mean that teachers, doctors and nurses are recession proof; it just means they are harder to get rid of than the annoying investment consultant bugging you with incessant phone calls telling you to diversify your stock portfolio.

Maybe it's about time some of us switched professions? ;-) Either way, I think we're lucky we live in the GCC. Although things are rough at the moment with job-cuts, pay-cuts and budget-cuts, at least we're better off than the people in the US where the scene is almost literally cut-throat!

My Wife and I

2009-02-05T09:57:00.002+03:00

For those of you wondering why I have been out of circulation for the past many months......here is why:

It’s hard to get out of bed these days. It’s partly due to the chilly weather outside but it’s more to do with something else. It isn’t like the old days when I’d just slam my hand on to the snooze button on my alarm clock. I used to hit the button about 5 times, toss and turn in bed and jump out of it after realizing I had snoozed for an hour! Now I have to adjust to someone else in bed next to me. The first bit of realization that I’m not single anymore (the first bit of realization of the day I mean). I have to be careful not to let my flaying hands hit my wife who’s sleeping snugly. And I realize the real reason I get up late these days; I just can’t seem to drag myself out of bed with her right next to me.

Just to fill you readers in, I got married last month and am just about getting adjusted to it. Honestly, some of my friends told me it would be a piece of cake. Others said it would take a lot of time getting used to. But on the whole, it’s been great!

Why? Because after you’re married, you’re a team. I love having a team-mate who will go to all lengths to ensure our team wins.

Take shopping for instance. My evaluation of products stems from looking for items in attractive packaging. Men don’t generally look at food-color types, calorie content and most importantly – expiry dates. How else would you describe the heaps of expired products in my refrigerator before I got hitched?

Then think about instant foods like making pop corn at home. Unless you’re a chef, you’re not going to take the trouble of putting oil into a frying pan, adding kernels of corn and standing next to a vessel full of them until they’re popped. Men just like popping the stuff into a microwave, giving it 3 to 5 minutes and voila! Pop corn! Or how about salad dressing? How many guys have actually taken the time to prepare the dressing from scratch? Now I am being trained to make every food preparation from scratch.

Being married has its other advantages. It’s great that you’ll find someone who laughs at all your jokes no matter how many times she’s heard them just to make sure you don’t look uninteresting or boring.

It’s great that you can have someone tell you very subtly via sign language that you’ve something in your teeth while you’re having dinner with friends.

Let’s look at it from another perspective. Before you’re hitched, you’re always on the phone to your boyfriend/girlfriend. Endless amounts of text messages and phone-calls later, both your budgets take a hit in the negative. But once you’re married, you’re literally living together. No needs to text or call, your wife’s right there next to you. You can judge the complexity of a situation (if there is one) without having to second guess and what’s better is your thumb doesn’t get stretched typing or dialing.

If the two of you are driving together, you have company and don’t have to listen to sloppy radio programming. You can have simple conversations about why the fender of the car in the next lane looks crappy to subconsciously complex conversations like why you didn’t let her know her favorite TV show was on while she was taking her nap. And conversations get even more fascinating if you’re stuck in a jam.

Planning a weekend is tricky. When you’re single, you’re more than ready to mingle. You’re more or less ready to set the dreary desert sands of Kuwait on fire with only your thoughts of being in a foreign land sipping martinis. If a friend calls you over, you oblige. Now it’s a different ball game. “I have to check with the missus and get back to you mate” is the reply to those impromptu invitations I have these days. And rightly so. I love saying things in the collective noun way. Like “My wife and I are having a blast” or “my wife and I will be dropping by later” or just plain and simple “my wife and I are planning on staying in tonight” I love saying sentences with “my wife and I”, it sounds so grown up.

Another fun-filled task is ordering take-out. Somehow you’re stuck between Chinese and health-food and after tossing a few take-out menus back and forth for 20 minutes you both decide to order a pizza with the works.

All said and done, for those of you thinking I’m being a know-it-all on marriage, I most certainly am not. Just treat this as a spiel from a guy wanting to impress readers with his astute first hand views on being married. After all it’s not smart taking marriage advice from someone who’s been married for a little over a month, is it?

This is from my January article in the bazaar magazine

A New Year's Message from BarryUno

2009-01-04T00:18:00.001+03:00

Cyberspace has not seen Barry for quite a while and admittedly, it is because of a lot of reasons. Blame it on new responsibilities at work, the new employees we hired, the new Sony Experia and what have you but mostly it is thanks to my wedding that took place in November in Goa, India.

Needless to say, planning and executing weddings are arduous tasks that need to be accomplished with the panache and dexterity of a lion tamer on his last bit of meat. My wife and I have worked tediously to ensure a smooth transition from single-dom to wedded bliss which has been attained by the both of us and even though the world bliss isn’t easy to put right next to wedded (except of course in wedding speeches), we’re doing quite well, thank you very much.

Any-ho…without further ado, I will now subject you all to my effusive new year’s message as usual to be taken with a pinch of salt and perhaps some lemon-barley water; something I’ve got addicted to since my wedding…makes you piss like a horse!

First of all, forget all this hogwash about life being a roller coaster, life’s a bitch etc etc. Life is life. And no, before you smartasses think I am referring to the Opus song of the eighties Life’s is just what we make of it.

The past year has taught me just that. The only difference is that we all have a multiplicity of choices to make. Some of us choose wisely while others think we have time and go about knocking the wrong doors. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. We screw up, we get ourselves out of the mess we made and move on. That’s the beauty of life.

For me, the year 2008 was great. It was great in the sense that I got a new perception on life; in the sense that I moved up a little at work. In the sense that I now get to share the rest of my life with my wife Eva who is now my best friend in the whole wide world. (I know some of you might be cringing now)

And so I say: 2009…bring it on baby! Bring on the tough battles along with the light-hearted moments. Bring on the emotional quandaries and the rag tag arguments at work. Bring it on….bring it all on!

But most importantly, bring on the good times. Here’s to a happy, wonderfully charged up, excitement filled, (terrorism free) new year!

Happy New Year Everyone...!!!

What's in a title?

2008-03-23T11:19:00.002+03:00

Some of you might find this post familiar. It's just my article for the bazaar magazine for the month of February. It might be a little too stale and the moment but the topic still makes my head boil at times......and sometimes makes me laugh until I almost puke my guts out! Anyway....read on:

What qualifies a person to be a manager? Or what qualifies a person to be a Director or Vice President for that matter? Let’s take a peek at how titles are derived these days.

I don’t mean to pass judgment on the people that have gone up the ladder the old fashioned way – hard work, hands-on experience and leadership abilities among many other traits. It’s just that in recent times we have seen an unusual, almost abnormal growth of titles in large corporations and medium sized company. Gone are the days when being a Sales Manager or Product Manager was the “in” thing. Now we have complex titles like Manager, International Relations, Middle East & Africa or Senior Corporate Advisor, Asia & Emerging Markets. They have titles, subtitles and the area in which they function both in terms of the company itself and sometimes the geographical location.

Occasionally these fancy titles take about 40 per cent of the space available on a business card (and half your breath away). The people with the titles for the most part are just “suits” or sometimes just “skirts” if I may use that term. People with a fancy degree from an even fancier sounding college or university that speak with a Western accent get fancier titles compared to the rest of the plebeian folk.

What dictates your title and your position in the pecking order of a company? Is it your experience? Is it your capacity to handle complicated projects? Is it your ability to supervise people? Apparently some companies in Kuwait have no clear distinctions. You could be a Vice President and have nobody except an executive assistant reporting to you. You could be in a department of six wherein all six are managers with no sub-ordinates.

Granted sometimes when you are in a Business Development function and you are meeting with higher-ranking members of the business community, it does help if you have a senior (sounding) title on your business card. However that does not mean you hire people who have just graduated out of a top university and give them a superior title to impress your clients and this seems to be the case in Kuwait of late.

In my opinion, companies in Kuwait have to draw a line on how to award titles. For instance, if you are in the capacity of Business Development Manager, are you in a position to draw up a Business Plan for the product or service that you are selling? Are you able to segregate strategic, tactical and day-to-day decisions and create a plan that will incorporate all these fundamentals? In most cases, I’ll tell you right now, the answer is no. Fine, they probably can drum up an exciting presentation in PowerPoint with fancy bells and whistles and sophisticated graphs and pie charts but tell them to do something a little more strategic in nature and they’ll shun you like the plague! They make simple projects sounds as convoluted as knitting sweaters for an entire football team blindfolded in semi-circles!

This is something I have experienced. I meet these kinds of people on a daily basis all the time. These are the people who have offices of their own and disapprove of working in cubicles. They are the kind of people who appear to be real busy (taking a page right out of Dilbert) staring into their laptops all day making you think they’re diligent workers who have an urge to make it to the top. Little known to the common folk is that these people are actually silently chatting away their time on MSN or of late (Face-booking their profile). Or they could be YouTubing too! What is amusing is their skill on how to maximize and minimize applications in Windows is so flawless that they can make you believe they’ve been working hard on a global product pricing graph all day when the truth of the matter is they’ve been chatting to some East European girl promising to walk down the aisle with them and bring them to Kuwait for better prospects.

Personally I could care less if these people become CEOs within the next year or two. I would rather hone my skills as a professional and climb the ladder – the right way. To those people with flamboyant titles, all I can say is – Damn shame!

Being well dressed does pay off!

2008-02-03T10:07:00.000+03:00

I have this reputation of being a sharp dresser and until recently I hadn't given it much thought. Call me boastful or a prude but that is the truth and most of you readers who haven't met me in person might think the same. Both my parents are reasonably good dressers and perhaps I imbibed my dress sense from them. Perhaps it was the fact that I was involved in the fashion industry back home in India in my teens. But what really inspires me to put effort into my dressing is the fact that it makes me feel good about myself. It brings on more confidence and I feel I can take on the world (apart from dressing it's thinking of my fiancé that does that too).

What prompted me to post this article on my blog was the fact that a lot of people (while complimenting me on my dress sense) have always remarked that Indians aren't the best of dressers and I for one resent that. I know a lot of Indians who've got very good taste in clothes and accessories. Of course there are a few people who need a makeover desperately but for the most part I think it isn’t that they don't know how to dress, they're just fixed on an era that was theirs and got stuck to the clothes at the time.

Here are a couple of tips for guys who work in the office and outside either in sales or business development.

Invest in three good suits. They don't have to be designer suits just well cut suits in solid colors or thin pin stripes if you're on the heavier side of the weighing scale. Since we're approaching summer go for one solid cream or beige suit. Your accompanying shits with this one could be a crisp white, pink or light blue. Your second pick should be a blue suit; not dark blue, not navy blue, just plain blue. For shirts you could use plain or pastel colors or even stripes but if they're formal shirts the stripes should be in one single dark color. And no loud ties with these shirts just plain solid or striped ones will do just fine. Leave checkered shirts for weekends and outings with your fashionably challenged friends.

While you'll wear these two suits to everyday meetings with clients, the third one should be a dark grey or black one that you will reserve for your meetings with high level officials or when you attend a big event. You could also wear this one to formal events and dinner parties. Make sure you wear a crisp white shirt if it's a formal event and the ties for these night time soirees should be in solid and dark colors.

What about accessories you might ask? Timepieces are very important and are very representative of who you are so leave all your Casio Digitals in your drawer at home and stick to analogues. Ideally you should have one dress watch either a steel or leather strap while the other can be for those casual meetings or evening coffee-shop appointments with friends.

Shoes should always be well polished and you could try carrying one of those little shoe-sponges in your car's glove compartment for those times you're forced to park in a sand-patch and walk to a modern building for about 100 yards before getting to your appointment. Remember your belt always matches your shoes so if you're wearing black crocodile leather shoes make sure you're wearing a black belt and so on and so forth.

Speaking of shoes another big faux pas I've seen guys make is wear white socks on suits or formal trousers. Let's face it dudes, break-dancing doesn't pay a lot unless you're insanely talented so make sure your socks either match the color of your trousers or are a shade darker. Pointy white shoes are for Cuban drug lords, Lou Bega and Jitender so they're definitely out of style unless you really want to make a point (pun intended).

I think I have done my part here so I'll leave it at that. For those of you who have these kind of clothes in your wardrobe, good for you. For those of you who don't, I think it's time you went shopping. And to those of you who think I'm being an ass and don't want to take my suggestions.......just get a subscription to GQ! ;-)

Parking Woes!!!

2008-01-30T15:46:00.000+03:00

Parking has always been a problem in Kuwait. From parking at work to parking in crowded streets to even paid parking lots. We find people doing all sorts of nonsense when it comes to parking. Let's break it down into a few categories:

Take for instance the Asian expatriates who drive their Kuwaiti sponsor's cars. Man, just because you're driving a Lexus or a BMW 7 Series, doesn't mean you get to behave rude and obnoxious like your bosses! First of all these people drive like peacocks on a mating spree and when they're waiting for their sponsors to come out pf the malls, they wait right at the entrance blocking other drivers from passing. And heaven forbid you blow your horn, they give you that stare that makes you think they're actually the owners of those fancy cars who just have absolutely no dress sense!

There those other kind of people who think that it is their God-given right to take all their time when getting into their cars after a bout of shopping. It could take anything between 30 seconds to 45 minutes for ladies (who are heavily made up) to get into their car, get out to throw their Oscar De La Renta bag in the back seat, climb into the driver's seat again, adjust the rear view mirror (while simultaneously checking to see if their heavy make up is still on), turning on the ignition and almost rear-ending the vehicle behind theirs while getting out of a seemingly easy-to-get-out-of parking spot. They might not want to Asian driver waiting for them but this is worse than that; at least for people waiting for their turn to park. Ladies, please learn to differentiate between N, D and R in our gear shift.

Then there are stalkers who stalk parking spaces. These people drive slow and steady smack in the middle of the parking lot with little regard for the people behind them. Their only aim is to obtain the parking slot right next to the entrance of a mall or supermarket despite the large number of empty spaces that exist in the next lane. They don't mind waiting for even 15 minutes if it secures their spot right next to the entrance. Now all they need is a red carpet and the steely white flashes of the paparazzi!

Then you have those stupid paid parking lots especially in downtown Kuwait City. You pay to enter and despite that you spend about 20 minutes finding a spot. The whole concept of ease of use has been lost here and this happens quite a lot during rush hour. Why don’t they just keep track of the number of cars they let in and stop people from entering once it is full?

Let's not forget, there are those dim-wit numb-skulls that think they have the right to park in two spots instead of one. They either don't see the white line separating two spots of they just don't care. They park diagonally and think it's a mater of style or it shows off their driving (in this case parking) prowess. These people really piss me off – selfish fu#ks!

Finally, there are the people who block someone else thinking "he's not going to move…..I'll be back in a jiffy". Now these are probably the people who come home from the office for a quick lunch and get caught up in an afternoon quickie that they need to take a small nap after it's done. Forget about the poor soul downstairs that has to get to the office or an appointment on time, he can wait until I finish my nap and get another quickie on my way out!

Why do I ask you are people so inconsiderate? Why is it that they are so lazy? Why do they think they're the only people privileged to drive on the roads? Do any of you want to add to these categories?

What kind of a name do you have?

2008-01-10T15:06:00.000+03:00

I have always thought of the naming game as a little too cumbersome. Babies should come with name-tags as soon as they're born. Some of us who are fortunate enough to have been blessed with an average intellect have the foresight to give decent names to our kids. First it was the west. Gone are names like John, James, Christopher, Howard and Robert. Nowadays people in the US especially have taken a liking to names like Hayden, Jayden, DiShawn etc.

Then you have people who want to make their race obvious with their names. For instance you know babies with the names Keisha, Delroy, Desiree, Tyrone, Francine or Darius are most certainly African Americans. Just like Alexander, Casey, Jamie are predominantly white baby names! Then there are people who like to change the way their kid's names are spelt. So now you have Brayan, Jayson, Jenipher, Nancee & Justyn! Thanks to the Beckams we now have people naming their kids after cities (in the case of the Beckams it was after their baby was conceived. Brooklyn was where their first-born was supposedly conceived so they named him after the New York borough. What will we have next, New Hampshire, Maine, Khartoum, Addis Ababa? Then there are those descriptive names. In a way it's like the names are telling you what the baby will grow up to be. You have Butler, Porter, Fancy (Yes, I met someone with that name), Destiny (what are the chances she won't be a fortune-teller?) and Castro. If you're naming your daughter Ruth, you're making her out to be an 80 year old nun. Blanche might not sound like a nun's name but it's like saying come over and spend some time with old grandma Blanche in the senior citizen's home.

Even Indians seem to be getting a little overboard with naming their kids these days. Earlier there were names like Ravi, Shyam, Ram, Shekhar, Rukmini and Gita. Todays names are a little complicated like Rushil, Ramon, Revati and Ruchira. For the most part they're all right one could say. But within India let's take a looksey at a few of the states. Goans like to be considered a different part of India. Apart from the politicians most of the normal people (mostly Christians) think they live in a different country. They wear western clothes, (try to speak with a Western accent) and give everything they do a Portuguese story. When it comes to names, Goans like fancy sounding ones. They think their baby will grow up to be famous with a fancy name. Royston is a favorite among the clan and so are variations of other popular names. Other names like Glenville (Goans actually have these kind of names) are better reserved for small town with populations of less than 200 people. Then you have Goodwin, Godwin, Larry, Gary (and sometimes Garry with 2 Rs). A trend that started in the 90s was combining the names of the father and mother to form a new and improved version of the family! ;-) There's Edlin derived from Edward and Linara. (I know these people) There is Milton from Milagres and Tony (which actually is a real name as gay as it may sound). Here's another one – Alvirita derived from Alvito and Rita.

People have also got to realize the implications of naming their kids a silly dorky name. I can't imagine a guy called Willy growing up to be a bouncer or someone called Chantal becoming a UN ambassador someday. How about a president of the US named Porter or Micah?

Seriously, I have a few names in mind for the time I have kids of my own but until then, making fun of other weird and interesting names is all I can do? So…..what's your name again?

Goodbye 2007!

2007-12-30T09:46:00.000+03:00

Someone once said, “People often worry about what they eat between Christmas and New Year when they should actually worry about what they eat between New Year and Christmas”. Hopefully all you people doing the binge eating (and drinking) should learn from this! ;-)

The year 2007. The year that was. At least for me! Those of you who know me well probably know I'm not one to send cheesy e-greeting cards via email. I believe in the sanctity of the written (in this case typed) word. So I thought I'd just put some of my thoughts on cyberspace as this year comes to a close. and this is a little different because it's my first blogging year!

As we ponder upon the year that's just passed us, we think about how we could have done things differently. We think about how we could have made better decisions and altered our fate. We think about what we want to achieve in the coming year and the rest of our lives. As for this year, some things went wrong, some things went right and some things simply happened. We partied till morning, we drank all night, we got raises, we got promotions, we got married and we got children. We got chicken pox, the flu, diarrhea and some new strain of virus that got our bowels doing a different dance! But we survived! At least those of us reading this did. Those of us that didn’t are probably in a better place where there’s no need to file your tax returns, no need to think about entertaining surprise guests and no worry in the world (and more importantly they do not have to listen to Himesh Reshamiya and Lindsay Lohan sing anymore!).
As for me I always believed even numbers were good for me. The 2s, 4s, 6s and 8s were usually good for me. But this year was different. A lot happened in 2007. I got a new perspective at work after sorting out some stuff (and some people). I got a new perspective on my love life. I realized I'd finally found the woman of my dreams and proposed to her. For those of you wanting to make a trip to Goa, India next year, the wedding's tentatively set for the 8th of November 2008. And finally, I got a new perspective on life!

I'm thoroughly happy with myself (those of you with naughty thoughts, it's not what you think). I'm just happy with the way things have turned out. While we all give thanks to God (or whoever you think is responsible for the great big jig we call life), here's raising our glasses and cheering on the New Year; a year filled with new hope and promise. A year filled with joy and pleasant surprises. A year that will hopefully be – the best one of our lives!

Here’s wishing you all a Happy New Year!

PS - Special New Year greetings to my homies - Lord Raj, Rubick, Rayboy and a few anonymous characters for keeping this blog alive.

Merry Christmas!!!

2007-12-25T14:44:00.000+03:00

A little poetic banter from BarryUno for the people of the bloggin world:

Christmas is more than just a festival,
It's more than having lots of fun and merriment.
It's more than exchanging presents and gift giving,
It's more than kissing under the mistletoe with sentiment.

Christmas is about celebrating life with new spirit,
It's about trying to make all wrongs right.
It's about taking it to the next level,
In this great big journey called life!

Wishing you and your loved ones a fun-filled and blessed Christmas!

Peace!

People and cars!

2007-12-18T09:32:00.000+03:00

I have made an astute observation. The car you drive speaks about your personality. For the most part it does........and definitely more-so in this country!

For someone to drive a Toyota Echo or Nissan Sunny simply means that he or she has absolutely no knowledge about cars and couldn't give a damn! He or she wants to get from point A to point B and couldn't care how that trip is made. The interiors are shabby and cheap. Albeit all the improvements and additional accessories Nissan has introduced in the new Sunny, it still feels like driving a gypsy caravan without prizefighter Mickey O'Neil in Snatch!

The same goes for people that drive the Echo. Looking at the instrument panel is like looking at a cheap Casio calculator. Needless to say the shape of the car is a complete turn-off. It's like a frog made of fiber! Or maybe something you'd get if a Corolla spat out a car! I'm glad they stopped making it. The replacement - the Yaris also has a lot to be desired but at least it looks better than its predecessor!

The people that drive these cars; what can we say about them? According to my observation, these are the people that do 80 kmph on a 120 lane! They're the ones who'll wait for an eternity to cross an intersection. And they'll drive so defensively that you get the feeling they're driving like everyone else on the road wants to kill them. Pisses the hell out of me!

Bottom line; if you can't afford anything else, wait. Get a used Lancer, Corolla or Peugeot 207 but don't buy an Echo or Sunny!

Full Circle!

2007-12-17T09:39:00.000+03:00

Life is a full circle! Of course most of you know that already and for those of you who don't.....I'm sorry, you've got to either read more Buddhist philosophy or marry Richard Gere!

I have noticed of late that I keep bumping into people I used to hang out with in school and college. I randomly meet people I first started working with. I even meet people I've pulled nasty pranks on when I was growing up! Which brought me to thinking last night......about what Baz Lurhman said in his rant Sunscreen a few years ago. "The more older you get, the more you'll run into people you knew when you were younger" or something to that effect. And this is so true!

I'm probably reflecting on this cos I turned a year older last month and it's the end of the year etc etc. But it is something that hits home nonetheless. And as I grow older/younger and wiser I look forward to seeing more of the people I knew. Talking about the good old days when we used to blow up condoms thinking they were balloons and set them across the village river about 2 decades ago (we couldn't possibly have known what they were actually meant for).

Have you fine people experienced this?

The "Yesterday" syndrome!

2007-12-11T10:57:00.001+03:00

I'm perplexed by the "yesterday" syndrome. What do you do when your boss or one of your colleagues from another department comes over and asks you to do something? Most of us decide to take the project on and start preparing for it. It's only when the person who assigns you the project says "I want it yesterday" that you start doubting your decision of joining your present company.

Let's face it; the whole "I want it yesterday" syndrome was pretty cool back in the day when it was first made popular. It showed passion and determination. It was used sparingly and with meaning and you sort of respected the people who asked you for stuff yesterday. Nowadays about a decade after it was made popular, a lot of the people at work use that phrase a lot. I want that report on my desk yesterday. I want my car serviced yesterday. I want to be able to fly to the moon and back after going to a tanning salon on Jupiter and a gambling trip to Las Venus – yesterday! Come on people, give it a break!

It's bad enough that we've got so many things to in so little time at work because our superiors keep dumping work on us like we're a sate-of-the-art food processing plant in France. Now we have to deal with morons who ask us to time travel to the past and get stuff done. What initially was seen as passion has been transformed into a rabid joke that is taking over every office. What does that mean in one line? Our bosses are procrastinators. If you think the task had to be completed yesterday, you should have given it to me the day before! It's as simple as that! Why wait until today to assign it to me? What it proves is that these people are not good managers and collaborators and they're even worse at planning!

Do you people have any such gripes about the "yesterday" syndrome?

Winter in Kuwait!

2007-12-06T15:06:00.000+03:00

Kuwait isn't that charming to begin with. I mean I like it here to a certain extent (this is a fact clearly visible in my previous post) but sometimes it does get a little too drab. When I say drab I mean the landscape, the people etc. It lacks color! And excitement!

However come winter and I tend to get a little excited. Perhaps it's because of the winter fashion. I'd like to think that I'm quite trendy and that's one thing I like about winters. Albeit there aren't any opportunities for snowball fights and sleighing but at least we get to experience fashion and ever-changing trends. Winter in Kuwait always gives you a chance to dress up and exhibit your sweaters, jumpers, cardigans and what not!

Another thing that excites me is Christmas! Allright so it isn't as big as it is in the US or even India but there is a certain charm to it here in Kuwait as well. People decorating their Christmas trees at home, putting up their hangings and banners.....it's a cute little sight if you know what I mean. The fact that it isn't as commercial is what makes it special. It is because there aren't many or any official events associated with Christmas here in Kuwait apart from a few X'Mas balls (the dancing variety not the kicking ones) that makes it more personal. All there is to do is visit your relatives, eat christmas savouries and get drunk while eating (in some cases while cooking) your turkey lunch! I find this scene quite charming.

Finally, it's the last month of the year so most people I know are in a very contemplative mood. Should I have accepted that job offer, should I have asked for a raise instead, should I have boinked that chick without protection......are only a few of the many questions they ask themselves! And so they make new year's resolutions - I will accept the next best offer that comes my way or I will aim for a higher salary this year or I will make it a point to carry a box of Durex Play at all times! ;-) Needless to say, it's quite a sight listening to them tell you their resolutions. All in all a very interesting month!

What excites you about December? Does it excite you at all?

Why do we live here?

2007-12-03T11:56:00.000+03:00

I just got back from a vacation in London a week ago. If you're wondering why I didn't post anything on this blog since then it's because I proposed to my girl in London, she said yes and I was just reveling in the joy of being engaged! Now that the effect has worn off (to a certain extent) I am back to my blogging ways!

For the most part of my travels in the past, I didn't really bother about coming back to Kuwait from a vacation. Probably because it didn't matter that much at the time. On this return journey however, I just got this sinking feeling as soon as I landed into Kuwait. Partially because I was missing my fiancee. But more than anything else, it was because I was back in the land of the rude. In a country where the phrases "please" and "excuse me" have as much value as a screaming nun in a cemetary! I was transported from a land where people (although snooty) are polite, to a land where people are snooty, impolite and to a certain extent downright dumb. I refer to the people at immigration desks (including the women). Does it really cost them to be polite? Maybe smiling is something they reserve for weddings or hitting on people of the opposite sex and think it is wasted on travelers coming into the country but at least be civil instead of yelling out orders.

Makes you wonder doesn't it? If it wasn't for the money, we'd be long gone from here! Damn shame!

Overweight and unrelenting!

2007-11-04T14:45:00.000+03:00

This blog-post of mine is to educate some of my fellow Indians. Having worked at the airport for the past 2 years now, I am always inundated by people requesting me to help them with their check-in at the airport. Suffice to say, I work for National Aviation Services more popularly known as NAS. Our primary role at the airport is to provide ground support to airlines that WE handle and fortunately we DO NOT handle Indian Airlines, Air India or Kuwait Airways (they handle themselves) and as such I have no power as an individual or as part of NAS to help these people that request me for favors at the airport. I have actually stopped telling people where I work because the moment you tell them, they just assume you work behind a check-in desk and you can help them sort their problems.

For the most part, people want to check-in excess baggage and want to get away without paying for it. Heaven forbid the airline staff refuses to take the bags on, these people will start ranting about how the airline mistreats them and as passengers they have the right to take on however much baggage they want to.

People, people, people – you’re all idiots to think that you have the right to check-in as much baggage you want. The airplane is a somewhat magical invention that carries tons of weight including passengers and cargo, defies the laws of gravity and transports you from one land to another in a matter of a few hours. Wonder of wonders, the airplane (as magical an invention as it is) has a payload capacity and you have to find it in your good hearts to forgive the airline staff for not checking in your 80 (extra) kgs. Indians in particular have had the reputation of transporting their entire households on one flight and they continue to do so. Believe me people, it’s perfectly normal. Perhaps it would be wise to use a freight forwarder to move your goods (just in case you absolutely HAVE to transport your entire household) to India instead of yelling at unfortunate staff that have the unforgiving job of reasoning with dumb-ass passengers on their inability to accept their excess baggage.

And one last thing – those of you who know me, don’t even dare call me and ask for a favor when you’re traveling. I’ll end up ripping your bags, shredding you vacation clothes and giving you a wedgie! Bon Voyage!

Stand out....don't blend in!

2007-11-01T10:07:00.000+03:00

I am dumbfounded by the lack of creativity in Kuwait sometimes. I'm talking a about the same voices you hear doing jingles and commercials on Kuwait radio every morning. I'm talking about the same automated voice you hear when you call at least 3 or 4 leading banks in Kuwait. For some reason people making these cheap works of shame seem to think that associating a familiar voice in their automated voice system will enhance their reputation as they feel they're using a celebrity voice to a certain extent. Little to those fools realize that people CAN spot the similarities in the voices. For an organization of any international repute, it's important to have a clear-cut image and segregate it from the usual hum drum. Oh ye exalted people of the advertising world (in Kuwait), can you absolutely not find another voice to do those jingles? Having to hear the same voices over and over again just irritates the living crap out of me (sometimes it is good when I'm constipated but otherwise it's just annoying)

I just have one piece of advice for you - stand out instead of blending in….you idiots!

A Crane in the neck!

2007-10-21T10:20:00.000+03:00

Kuwait has been bitten by the construction bug. Everywhere you go, you see buildings being constructed at a furious pace. Gone are the days when it would take over a year to get a building constructed. Nowadays you have a 12 storey apartment complex come up in about 6 months!

What really bothers me apart from the shoddy construction that starts to crumble even before you've managed arrange your furniture, is the way the entire process is managed. Cranes blocking the street during peak traffic hours, scaffolding material lying around on a public road along with cement and rubble. It's bad enough that the standard of material the contractors use is poor, now the standard of contruction is just as bad if not worse. Apart from causing huge blockages in traffic which can be a nuisance when you're off to work in the morning, what's worse is they do it like it's their damn birthright - to block streets.

There are numerous methods of construction (mainly adopted in developed countries) that require minimal usage of public areas. Seeing how technology has improved so much that you can (seemingly) build complexes in a matter of months, I'm sure the same can be done to conserve the sanity of the landscape around construction sites! In fact in places in Europe and North America, contractors are fined heavily for blocking public access, something the government in Kuwait should seriously think about considering the construction boom that has hit the country.

For now I am just annoyed at having to take a longer route to get the the highway from my house thanks to two large cranes that have partially and completely blocked access for me respectively. A crane in the neck I tell you........or is it 2 cranes in the ass? ;-)

Indian TV - It gets worse by the day!

2007-10-13T15:31:00.000+03:00

I'm not saying I have all the time in the world to watch cheesy Indian talent shows but when it's Ramadan and you get home at 4:30 and have lunch, you can't take a nap too soon, you can't work on anything from home so what do you do? Watch some Indian telly.

And from my last post where I pointed out how judges show partiality towards certain contestants it get worse. Now some dingbat judge (we know her as Alka Yagnik) decides that women are getting voted out on purpose and it's a big conspiracy etc etc. The channel then goes on to air sentimental footage on how some ladies think it's unfair that boys get all the votes and the girl that is ousted gets another chance.

Damn you people, do you know anything about TV programming? And what's with the hosts saying it a show for the junta and right out of the blues, judges are given veto powers, arguing rights and permission to show affection towards one contestant? This might be good for TV ratings but it puts a very bad taste in some peoples' mouths. Especially the people who think India is one of the world's largest democracies!

Indian Television Singing Competitions are a big SHAM!

2007-09-23T11:24:00.000+03:00

People, I am back from a sabbatical – and needless to say it was good! On with the blogging then :-

For the past few months I have been watching a few episodes of Indian television singing competitions like Indian Idol, Star Voice of India and Sa Re Ga Ma Challenge! Now I'm not a guru on Hindi music although I have been known to occasionally pop in an RD Burman CD every once in a while and while the singing talent at these contests is extraordinary, what pisses me off is the amount of emotion and drama that is weaved into the shows. First it was the weeklu serials, then it was the soaps and now it's the singing contests. They just don't know when to stop.

It's not like the soaps have given us respite from all the emotion (that in most cases doesn’t make much sense) but now the producers have succeeded in making these talent shows emotional as well. Talk about one of the contestants recently getting his old grandmother on stage to get some sympathy votes. (With all due respect to his grandmother who was really very sweet) Or the contestants getting overly emotional and sobbing their asses off when they're eliminated! Get a grip on yourselves people, I know to some it may be a dream to be on television but don’t you believe in the saying "all good things come to those who wait"

I find most of the judges of these shows extremely unprofessional (except Alisha Chinoy on Indian Idol). The judges don't seem to know what kind of behavior is allowed on screen. If they're trying to be controversial like the nut-jobs on shows like Pop Idol and American Idol, then the producers should know that there is a difference in being controversially fair and insanely stupid! Our Indian judges don't seem to be able to make that difference. There is a certain unwritten code of conduct judges need to follow for these kinds of shows. They can't be putting down other contestants and side with their favorite in the manner that some judges on Indian television have been doing for the past few weeks now. They can criticize but they can NOT be biased towards any candidate. Last year American Idol saw Paula Abdoul severely reprimanded by her producers for her (supposed) partiality towards one of the contestants and this wasn't even proved, it was just a speculation!

Another thing that annoyed the hell out of me is that these shows have mentors and once their candidates get ousted, the mentors get all loud and emotional themselves and start canvassing for their students and do silly things like vow to never come back to the show again. Some mentors have even gone on record to say that Indian viewers don't know how to vote! Come on people, the concept of the show demands that the people vote for their favorite contestants and if the Indian population has voted for their choice, they do it out of their own judgment. If the judges or mentors want the candidates of their choice to win the contest, perhaps the lame-brain producers should think twice before making it a voting show for the masses and just let the judges decide themselves.

Damn shame!

Kuwait - in the 80s!

2007-08-22T09:21:00.000+03:00

Having spent a considerable amount of my childhood (1984 -90) in Kuwait, one can surely understand why I loved the eighties. Although my love for the era and the place was not evident back then (I always wanted to grow up and start shaving) looking at things presently, one can only turn to nostalgia of the yesteryears and remember the great times.

I remember the TV shows they used to show us. Mainly KTV and I have to admit compared to some of the other regional channels back then KTV was a hit. Bringing us hit shows like Silver Spoons, Macgyver, The A Team, Magnum PI, Knight Rider and the likes. I won't get into these since I've already posted on 80s shows earlier this month. Do you guys remember Chart Attack? Compared to channels like Dubai One and MBC, KTV is crap now!

I remember the old Salmiya shopping area even though I wasn't much of a Salmiya guy. We as kids loved going there and hanging out. The Gulf Road was barely ready (at least during the early eighties) and there weren't as many traffic lights.

My mom used to work at Safeway across from the Crowne Plaza (the Holiday inn back then). The sixth ring road was fairly new and less traveled and I remember waiting at least 5 minutes before I could cross it and go to Kids R us and Safeway!

Safeway and The Sultan Center were the only 2 supermarkets in the country that were open 24 hours. The co-ops were just crappy!

I don't quite remember if Pizza Hut was around but Pizza Italia was the best and they always had some kind of promos running. Of course Kentucky Fried Chicken and Hardees were some of the other few international fast-food joints and Hungry Bunny was THE place for burgers. I think there was an Arby's too but I didn’t go there that often. I remember Wimpy's too!

As an Indian the only live local band I knew of then was "Next of Kin" who I think are still in action (the old dinosaurs). DJing wasn't DJing, it was just playing a tape recorder connected to an amplifier. Walkmans were THE thing for us kids back then and so were Archie comics!

As an Indian I remember the rivalry between the Indian School Salmiya and New Indian School Jabriya. We used o get into a lot of fights with all the spray painting and stoning!

I remember Atari & Nintendo. Atari was more popular and I had about 3 sets that I eventually broke (due to overuse)

I also remember Like Cola and RC Cola. Vimto and Shaani were very popular and so was Sunkist!

The Holiday Inn had the first bowling alley (which I am told was a discotheque earlier) and was quite the hangout for young adults. And whatever happened to that boat they had turned into a hotel (was it the Marriott?)

I remember Muthanna Complex in Kuwait City being the only "cool" place to hang out with the clothing stores and the gaming arcades!

I remember the Rubick's cube being a major source of entertainment along with game-in-watches and those other Casio watched with calculators!

I remember Farwaniya and Hawalli being Palestinian ghettos and the Palestinians themselves were quite the kingpins driving Trans-Ams that were a tad bit noisy.

I don't remember the roads being as congested as they are today and people drove a lot better and with a lot more consideration & road sense.

I remember Kuwait – it was certainly a better place to live in. Maybe it's just because we were kids then and didn't have a care in the world except homework and collecting skittles for prizes! Things have definitely changed now.

All in all they were great times. Ah nostalgia – makes us grow old sometimes! Do you guys remember anything from the eighties in Kuwait?

Independence Day Blues!!!

2007-08-14T23:28:00.000+03:00

Indians all over the world have attained a great amount of notoriety! Some people have been hailed as enigmatic leaders, some are talented musicians, (a few) are gifted athletes, many are intelligent educators and even a few visionary gurus. India is one of the strongest and fastest growing economies of today and is making a huge impact on fashion and entertainment in addition to international commerce and industry. Needless to say this was not always the case and by and large, the media is to be thanked for this. The Indian media has played en enormous role in the transformation of India from a perceived nation of elephant riders, hungry kids, old beggars and snake charmers to showcasing it as a country with rich traditions and human diversity. It's a country where people are strong willed and determined to make a difference in today's world. And no matter how crappy they dress or how thick their accent is, they will make it if they want to!

About 3 years ago, before I discovered the wonderful world of blogging I had sent out an email to all my Indian friends. It was an email on India's Independence Day and the various ways Indians celebrate it all over the world. In essence it was sent not to deride the larger Indian populace outside the country but to educate people on the true meaning of Independence. I received a lot of feedback – mostly positive, some negative and even got into a verbose diatribe with a few of my close friends on how independence needs to be perceived.

And here I am again – trying to make my point to the few people that have yet to get the message. We do not celebrate Independence because we have extra cash to buy fire-crackers or silly colorful stickers to stick on our cars and bikes. We celebrate it because we are proud of belonging to a country that has so much to offer!

I am proud of being an Indian not because of some silly email that is making rounds once again reminding us of Sabir Bhatia's contribution to email by inventing hotmail or the fact that India has not invaded a single country in a zillion years!

I'm proud of being Indian because it has instilled in me the virtues of patience.

For if I hadn't stood in long lines waiting to pay my electricity bill ten years ago, I would not have enjoyed the quicker service now.

If I hadn't to walk through doors and doors of bureaucracy and red tape in India a decade ago, I would never have realized how much worse it is here in Kuwait.

If it hadn’t been for the grit and determination of a handful of somewhat noble (or should I say visionary) politicians in the nineties, India would still be in the slums.

I'm proud of being Indian because it has made me street-smart and I can finally tell when someone's trying to con me.

I'm proud of being Indian because it's made my immune system stronger and my intestines can digest almost any kind of edible food after my bhel puri escapades on chowpatty beach, Mumbai India!

I'm proud of being Indian because back home 10 AM tomorrow means 10 AM tomorrow (no matter how many people in Kuwait say Indian Standard Time thinking it to be a mockery of sorts) and not Inshallah 10 AM tomorrow which could mean anytime between 10 AM tomorrow and the next 3 weeks!

What most of us here in Kuwait do is criticize. That's because we're just lame-brains and that includes me. We're quick to find faults in the way people think and react when incidents happen in India little realizing that we'd probably do the same thing if we were a part of that society. We think we're more successful because we drive better cars on better roads. And that India really needs our money! Truth be told people – she doesn’t!

I will not end this with a corny greeting like "Happy Independence Day" but with a hope that readers will try and understand the true meaning of Independence. Peace!!!

Designer Babies!

2007-08-12T10:28:00.000+03:00

The media have over the past few years thrown about issues of stem cell research, assisted reproduction and cloning. The making of designer babies as some people like to term them has been in the news for quite a while now. And while countries like the US have initiated and set of boards and committees like its Bioethics council to discuss and proliferate issues related to biomedical technologies.

Some of you may know I write for the popular magazine bazaar in Kuwait and my feature for the coming month is intended to shed some more light on biomedical technology and its pros & cons. As such some of your comments may be used in the article if you don’t mind me publishing your names or we could just use your nicknames in blog-land (don’t know how readers will react to a "flaming carrot")

I personally am not a proponent of designer babies. The fact that we're messing around to create the perfect human being is just plain "wrong" to me. For me biotechnology is more about finding ways to cure some of the most common ailments and diseases in the world today. Some of you may argue that stem cell research has the potential to substantially change the way people are treated for diseases like cancer, Parkinson's and leukemia and while that is true, some scientists have been trying to use the findings of embryonic stem cell research to go to the next level; selling the concept to wealthy families in the guise of designer babies.

A reproductive technology like in-vitro-fertilization is to a certain extent acceptable if the recipients of the artificially fertilized babies are couples that can not conceive a child but there have been reported cases of couples resorting to in-vitro fertilization to just get better children. This is like challenging God to a contest saying we can make better and flawless human beings.

Any views people?

Are you working late these days? Perhaps you shoudn't!

2007-08-05T10:22:00.000+03:00

How many of you guys work late? I don;t mean an extra 30 minutes or anything, I mean a few hours. Get home just in time for dinner or sometimes even have dinner in the office?

I have worked late or the past 5 years of my life. Maybe not evey day but at least once a week. For some reason this kind of culture is slowly but steadily creeping into most companies in Kuwait! I recicved this forward from a friendtelling readers how employees in large corporations in bangalore work late just for the free internet and coffe! As cheap as this may sound it is atually the truth. Kuwait is not far behind! In my previous jobs the entire Finance department used to be in until about 8 or 9 pm! Senior managment thought the guys were real hard workers. Nobody realized that they'd only walk into the office at around 11 am pretty much making up for working late thus erasing any extra hours they'd put in.

Bosses too have become acustomed to a certain employee that puts in extra hours while most of the time he or she is just downloading songs or surfing the internet for books, movie reviews or ordering that accessory for their car! And what happens inadvertently is that the boss gets acustomed to the "late" hours and once there is a change in lifestyle (like the employee in question gets married for example) he or she may not be able to put in those extra hours. Then the once diligent and enthusiastic worker gets another label - "a work shirker".

Isn't that a bit cruel? Aren't we entitled to have a life of our own? I sincerely believe that your employer pays you for your services for the 8 hours (or however many hours your company sees fit!!!) you put in on a daily basis. How you manage your work and your time is entirely up to you. If there's something that needs to be done, you've got to get it done. Unless there's something that needs urgent attention or unless you're an ER surgeon you have the right to enjoy your evenings and your weekends. So for those of you who intentionally work late: cultivate some interest or find a hobby. Or just plain and simple - get a life!

The Eighties - Reliving the music!

2007-07-25T16:10:00.000+03:00

Thanks to my previous post about TV shows in the eighties I've been inspired to put up another post about the music at the time. Eighties music has been inspirational to a lot of people for a lot of reasons. Great music, weird dress sense, bad hairdos would be the way I'd describe the era!

Listed below are some of my favorite tracks of the eighties:

Take on Me – Aha
Billie Jean – Michael Jackson
Every Breath You Take – Police
Thriller – Michael Jackson
Rebel Yell – Billy Idol
With Or Without You – U2
Karma Chameleon – Culture Club
Broken Wings – Mister Mister
Maneater – Daryll Hall and John Oates
Enjoy The Silence – Depeche Mode
Piano Man – Billy Joel (this was actually sung in the 70s but I listened to it in the 80s)

The list goes on! Anyways, peeps, please feel free to put in your favorites – web space is infinite…or is it? ;-)

What're your favorite TV shows of the Eighties?

2007-07-23T14:00:00.000+03:00

I was just reading a post on Rayboy's blog about some producers in the US wanting to make a newer version of the popular TV show Knight Rider (one of my all-time favorites as a kid) which is what insposred me to post this. (Thanks Ray)

Being an eighties kid, I grew up watching tv shows like the A Team, Knight Rider, Simon & Simon, Matlock, Remington Steele among many more. One of my favorites of course has to be Moonlighting. While the A Team showed the world how a bunch of vigilantes can also be "nice guys after becoming a modern day version of Robin Hood & his band of merry men and Knight Rider inspired the youngsters of the older generation to go and get themselves black Trans'ams, Moonlighting not only revived the career of Cybil Sheperd and made a star out of Bruce Willis but gave us a highly entertaining TV series with action, adventure drama, comedy & romance.

So how many of you watched these shows in the eighties? Any favorites? What did you think of their clothes and their dress sense? And the technology back in the day? Feeling a bit nostalgic for some reason....

Orkut to be banned in Kuwait?

2007-07-16T09:42:00.000+03:00

This post stems from the article I read this morning in the Arab Times stating that the Ministry of Information plans on banning acess to the popular community networking site orkut.com in the near future. Are these guys for real? Afte the governments of Iran, Saudi Arabia (no surprises there) and the UAE (surprisingly) Kuwait is soon to follow apparently.

Orkut is a communitiy based website similar to hi5 and facebook that enables users to post profiles, comments and network. A lof of my friends and other people I know have actually got in touch with lost friends through this website and it's one of the most popular sites in the world especially since it was bought by Google earlier this year.

The governments mentioned above are supposedly afraid of the content that is posted on this website and the fact that users can create multiple profiles and this may lead to fraud, racism and probably propogation of violence and hate groups. Seeing that the internet is one big cauldron of information that can by and large be controlled by users, I don't see the point in banning a site like orkut. What the government does not realize is that there are ways to control this sort of thing. Perhaps they can poilce the site and restrict access to objectionable content. It beats banning access to the site completely. Come to think of it no site or community on the internet is safe from this. That doesnt mean you're going to ban the internet entirely does it?

Choices choices choices - This time, what smartphone do I buy?

2007-07-14T11:13:00.000+03:00

Having used imate PDA phones for the past 4 years now, it's going to be a little difficult for me to get used to a different PDA/smartphone but it's about time I switch phones methinks. For the past few days I have been comparing various smart phones with the intention of getting one soon but can't seem to make up my mind. I've narrowed it down to 3 phones now, the imate JAQ3, the Samsung i600 and the Blackberry Pearl.

While the JAQ3 is my first choice at the moment, it is the first phone from imate to look and feel similar to a Blackberry and I have had qualms about the Blackberry since day one. Just like its predecessors the JAQ3 has good battery life (a must for a power user like myself), Quadband, GPRS with Push Email, a front placed QWERTY keypad, a decent camera with movie recording capability (for those specially over-the-top moments) and the usual Microsoft Windows Mobile for the on-the-go user. And it's got a stylus which I'm very very used to! Overall I think it's a pretty decent phone.

Second we've got the Samsung i600 with a sleek and sexy design. The thumbwheel is similar to the one provided by Blackberry and the Windows Mobile interface is a familiar sight for the hardcore imate user. (Don't you just hate the Sony Ericsson and the Handspring Treo interfaces?). The only weakness I see (apart from the slightly small QWERTY keypad which may take a while to get used to) is the battery. Samsung smartphones have been known to be battery drainers and how this one runs in the market is yet to be seen. Perhaps that is one of the reasons they give you a second battery.

The third in this review is the Blackberry Pearl 8100. The one really good thing about Blackberry is their marketing although the phones themselves have been getting rave reviews in Europe and the US. I honestly have a hard time buying what Americans buy! The Pearl comes with the usual Windows Microsoft interface, superior push email capabilities to add to the already much talked about email functionality of this phone with EDGE support. However the phone is sans 3G (don’t know when we'll get the full use of 3G in Kuwait but….) the QWERTY keys on the keypad are a little too small and according to some people that already have it, the phone capabilities of this piece are a little below expectations.

So there you have it; 3 good phones and I need to make up my mind by the end of this month. Any advice or input people?

Dumbasses - How many varieties do you know?

2007-07-11T16:35:00.001+03:00

This post has been inspired by the large number of stupid people that inhabit the world. With all due respect to everyone reading this blogpost, I am going to whine a little about how certain people just piss you off by being rude, inconsiderate or plain stupid.

Dumbass 01:
These are the people who will try and suck the life out of an elevator button thinking it will get to you faster if you press harder.

Dumbass 02:
These are the people who get to an elevator, see a bunch of other people already waiting for the elevator to get to them, press the damn button a few times just for reassurance. They're the smartases who think that nobody else has pressed the button and it is solely their duty to do so and prevent the rest of the people from looking like fools. (perhaps in Kuwait it is attributed to the "vasta" factor) pull a few stirngs, press a few buttons....

Dumbass 03:
This category just runs into an elevator as soon as the doors open often not allowing persons already inside to step out. These people are either in a real big rush to get hit by a truck or are just desperately in need of a potty break.

Dumbass 04:
Ever knew people who casually ask how you're doing when they see you on the street or at the dricleaners or your local bakala (local convinience store)? Notice, they say "How are ya?" instead of "How ARE you?" My guess on this is that if he or she says "How are ya?" they're really not in the mood to know how you're doing. It's like a lackadaisical approach to the whole greeting."How ARE you?" on the other hand warrants to a few other questions"How is the wife? Kids ok? Blood pressure under control? Watch Die Hard 4.0?" etc etc etc.

In due course of time I am sure I will find at least another 4 dozen categories of dumbasses to write about but in the meanwhile, this will have to do.

The reality that is Dubai

2007-07-09T10:20:00.000+03:00

I couldn't get too many days off work so I decided to go to the closest "quick vacation" spot around - Dubai. I guess spending time with my girl is the best time spent as far as I am concerned but that is not the point of this post.

Now I've been to Dubai about a zillion times before and I've noticed that things change almost in a flash. Whats annoying is that the people are getting more and more artificial every time I go there. The fake accents, the fancy restaurants, the designer clothes and night clubs seem to be a facade. I'd rather live in a place that has a little more heart. Like Kuwait!

I know what most of you will be thinking. Kuwait? And heart? The truth of the mater is I was born here and have spent a considerable amount of my life here. Perhaps it's the comfort level, perhaps it's the people. Or my familiarity with the roads and the ever changing rules for expatriates that change in a flash (much like the skyline of Dubai). But on the whole I think the people in Kuwait as rude or incompetent as some of them may seem) still have a kind of innocence. That innocence has been lost in Dubai which is now turning to be a well-oiled corporation.

Do I like it in Dubai? Yes, I do. I like the pace of business and the profesionalism people display there. I like the recreational avenues, the malls, the bars and the nightlife. But would I live there? I don't think so.

A New Passion - Come Sing With Me

2007-07-01T09:56:00.000+03:00

So there I was last thursday night waiting for something exciting to happen and while we all know that in Kuwait this could take anything between 2 days to about 7 years in some cases, my friends and I decided to jam. Three guys in a room with some equipment; laptops, speakers, amplifiers, one acoustic and another electric guitar and a set of keyboards - and we think of strumming a tune.

Nothing in particular, we just strum and yoodle (try yoddling after a few drinks and about a pack and a half of Davidoff Lights!). People, I kid you not, about 3 hours later we had actually written a song, composed the music and sung dummy recordings in our makeshift studio in 3 pitches......and that too in 2 different genres; rock (the original version) and reggae!!!

Come...
Come sing with me,
A distant melody,
A hardcore symphony.

Don't...
Don't change yourself,
Don't sow unsure seeds,
Don't make yourself bleed.

You've got to be yourself now,
You've got to do what's right.
You've got to make life work for you,
Without taking a bite.

You've got to be yourself now,
You've got to do it right.
You've got to make life work for you baby,
Without taking a bite.

Come!

To some of you pros out there this may sound like some childish or drunken (or perhaps both)attempt at a Kuwaiti-Indian version of Rockstar but I think with some practice, dedication and the right strategy, we might be on to something big here.

I'm not saying we're the next big thing after Supernova. Hell, we might not even want the accolades and the fame. All we want is something to do creatively, something to collaborate among friends with, something to entertain with. And possibly a cult following! ;-)

In the meanwhile my friends - come sing with me!

Karaoke Kings - In Kuwait???

2007-06-27T09:01:00.000+03:00

Karaoke is one of those new fads that actually allows you to become the lead singer of the rock band you always dreamed of fronting. At least if you don't mind losing your inhibitions after a few minutes at a karaoke bar.

Karaoke bars of course were always around but the prevailance of new gizmos and software has now made it possible to bring it home to the confines of your own living room! And we here in Kuwait are doing just that (it's funny what the absence of a good pub or bar can do to you).

Karaoke singing is a great release, a way to let all the events of the day disappear, to let loose and have a good time! If you're feeling a bit voyeurish, you can just sit back and enjoy everyone else’s attempt to sing karaoke (and look stupid mind you). It is quite entertaining, listening to people that are really good, people having fun with it, and people that just have no clue whatsoever(these are the people you might want to clobber with a baseball bat because they've murdered the song for you)

All in all I think we've finally managed to catch on to a new fad and we'd hopefully like to hang on to it until we get bored (which will be in a few weeks) or until the next best stress release is released! ;-)

Does love make the world go round? Hmmm....

2007-06-25T14:41:00.000+03:00

It's my girlfriend's birthday today and we're about a few thousand miles apart! She's in london and I'm in Kuwait. Doesn't that suck? Well, maybe not for you guys reading this post but for the two of us it really does!

So what do people dating long distance do when their birthdays come close and they're nowhere near each other? They talk on the phone, send flowers via the internet, they send about a thousand racy, sensuous text messages and hope this will do the trick until they meet next. In my case I'll be meeting my belle in just under 10 days so holding my excitement (among other thing) might be a good thing to do!

But what boggles the mind is that after about half a dozen failed relationships (and a few visits to hooters in Chicago whenever I got a hance to) I've managed to find a girl who totally understands how quirky I can get when my food doesn't taste right or when my house is a mess. But on a more serious note, she's one of the few people who can stand my sarcasm (other people just appreciate the wit and get offended with the sarcasm) apart from my close friends. We've been together for over a year now and that in itself is a record (for me of course)

Aahhhh love! don't know if it really makes the world go round as some people say but it sure makes me get a nice feeling all over! (I'd go on but I am very serious about this girl (her name is Eva btw) so I'll stop here.

So for those of you in love, good for you. For those of you still trying to find love........you desperately need to go out there and get some! (love I mean). And maybe if it's long distance, one of you can tell me how you're supposed to get by occasions like birthdays and anniversaries.

Are you a LOSTIE?

2007-06-25T14:27:00.000+03:00

Lost, the advertnure drama series that's presently airing on ABC in the US (they just ended their third season) has got to be one of the most entertaining television series I've ever seen. It's one of those shows that keeps you interested in what's happenning. It's a show following the lives of plane crash survivors in a remote island somewhere in the South Pacific.

What draws you to the show is the way the storyline unfolds. In essence the show follows 2 storylines; one with the current plight of each survivor and the second, from some significant point in a character's life in the past. Somehow everyone seems to have crossed paths at some point and that's what makes their present scenario mnore interesting for the viewer.

I've watched all the three seasons on DVD and I have to admit I have managed to become a "Lostie"(that's what Lost fans are called methinks)

While Magnum PI, the A Team, Miami Vice, Remington Steele and Moonlighting (my all time favorite TV shows) all had their own charm, Lost promises to deliver a unique experience to viewers looking for more than the usual crime stories and familiy dramas on the idiot box.

For thos eof you who haven't stepped on to the bandwagon, I suggest you try hooking into some re-runs if you can or do the next best thing - get the DVDs.

Hipocracy - how dumb to people actually think we are?

2007-06-23T11:43:00.000+03:00

Isn't it funny how people say something and mean the total opposite of what they say?

Now I live in Kuwait which is to be honest not an extremely bad place to live in. That is if you don't mind the racism once in a while. And every now and then you meet people who say that they're totally opposed to racism and are al for equal treatment you actually think to yourself "here's someone I might actually get along with" or "finally I've met someone who respects people for who they are and not for the color of their skin or their religion"

And while in your head you\re thinking of how cool this person is, he or she will make a real dumb statement that'll make you want to stuff yesterday's leftover linguini down his or her throat!

Hard to believe? Well I'm telling you the truth - except for the linguini part. I'm Indian so I'd rather use chapati (an Indian form of bread similar to pita bread) instead!

Ok people I'm just getting started on bloggin so please excuse my inane rantings sometimes.