Eletronic Glue (Playlist #4)

• The Sky Is Broken, Moby (Play, 1999) [I heard this on one of my favorite episodes of X-Files and loved it]
  
• The Sea, Morcheeba (Big Calm, 1998)
  
• Protection, Massive Attack (Protection, 1994)
  
• Glory Box, Portishead (Dummy, 1994)
  
• Roads, Portishead (Dummy, 1994)
  
• Home, Depeche Mode (The Singles 86>98, 1998)
• Walking In The Sky, DJ Encore (Intuition, 2001)
• Virtual Insanity, Jamiroquai (Travelling Without Moving, 1996)
• Blue (Da Ba Dee), Eiffel 65 (Europop, 1999)
• Novocaine For The Soul, Eels (Beautiful Freak, 1996)
• Not An Addict, K's Choice (Paradise In Me, 1996)

Pop Faves (Playlist #3)

• Follow, Brandi Carlile (Brandi Carlile, 2005)
• The Sky Is Broken, Moby (Play, 1999)
• High, James Blunt (Back To Bedlam, 2005)
• Unspoken, Four Tet (Rounds, 2003)
• This Ain't a Scene, It's An Arms Race, Fall Out Boy (Infinity On High, 2007)
• Right Where It Belongs, Nine Inch Nails (With Teeth, 2005)
• What Happens Tomorrow, Duran Duran (Astronaut, 2004)
• It's Not Over, Daughtry (Daughtry, 2006)
• Good Morning Revival, Good Charlotte (Good Morning Revival, 2007)
• Before He Cheats, Carrie Underwood (Some Hearts, 2005)
• U + Ur Hand, Pink (I'm Not Dead, 2006)
• Kiss From A Rose, Seal (Seal, 1994)
• One For Sorrow - U.S. Mix, Steps (Step One, 1999)
• Last Thing On My Mind, Steps (Step One, 1999)
• One For Sorrow, Steps (The Best Of Steps, 2002)
• No More "I Love You's", Annie Lennox (Medusa, 1995)
• One Fine Day, Natalie Merchant (Retrospective 1990-2005, 2005)
• Sunny Came Home, Shawn Colvin (A Few Small Repairs, 1994)
• 24, Jem (Finally Woken, 2004)
• Holding Out For A Hero, Frou Frou (Shrek 2 OST, 2004)
• Building A Mystery, Sarah McLachlan (Surfacing, 1997)
• Adia, Sarah McLachlan (Surfacing, 1997)
• Atlantic, Keane (Under The Iron Sea, 2006)
• Is It Any Wonder?, Keane (Under The Iron Sea, 2006)
• Nothing In My Way, Keane (Under The Iron Sea, 2006)
• Shape Of My Heart, Sting (Ten Summoner's Tales, 1993)
  

Clocky

27-year old entrepreneur Gauri Nanda, a desi Graduate Student from MIT invents an alarm clock that jumps and runs away if you don't wake up. Funny and very practical! Available at clocky.net.

At Work (Playlist #2)

• Home Now, No Doubt (Return Of Saturn, 2000)
• Angel, The Corrs (Borrowed Heaven, 2004)
• Mysterious Ways, U2 (Achtung Baby, 1991)
• Possession, Sarah McLachlan (Mirror Ball, 1999) [Love love love this song]
• Hideaway, The Corrs (Borrowed Heaven, 2004)
• Girlfriend, Avril Lavigne (The Best Damn Thing, 2007)
• Money For Nothing, Dire Straits (Brothers In Arms, 1985)
• Wake Me Up, Norah Jones (Not Too Late, 2007)
• Sleeps With Butterflies, Tori Amos (The Beekeeper, 2005)
• Somewhere Only We Know, Keane (Hopes And Fears, 2004)
• Pictures [New Studio Song], Sia (Lady Croissant, 2007)
• Wires, Athlete (Tourist, 2005)
• Nothing Lasts Forever, Maroon 5 (It Won't Be Soon Before Long, 2007)
• A Sorta Fairytale, Tori Amos (Scarlet's Walk, 2002)
• Again, Lenny Kravitz (Greatest Hits, 2000)
• Everybody's Changing, Keane (Hopes And Fears, 2004)
• Find Your Way Back, Michelle Branch (Hotel Paper, 2003)
• You're A God, Vertical Horizon (Everything You Want, 1999)
• Half Light, Athlete (Tourist, 2005)
• Steve McQueen, Sheryl Crow (C'mon, C'mon, 2002)
• Breathe (2 AM), Anna Nalick (Wreck Of The Day, 2004)
• Sweet Misery, Michelle Branch (The Spirit Room, 2001)
• If It Makes You Happy, Sheryl Crow (Sheryl Crow, 1996)
• Change, Kimberly Locke (Based On A True Story, 2007)
• Danger Zone, Gwen Stefani (Love.Angel.Music.Baby, 2004)
• Hunter, Dido (No Angel, 1999)
• My Favorite Game, The Cardigans (Gran Turismo, 1998)
• Everything To Everyone, Everclear (So Much For The Afterglow, 1997)
• Pinch Me, Barenaked Ladies (Maroon, 2000)
• Gardenia, Mandy Moore (Wild Hope, 2007) [Surprised to find this, is pretty good.]
• Hope Has A Place, Enya (The Memory Of Trees, 1995)
• Buddha's Remains, A.R. Rahman (Between Heaven And Earth, 2004)
• Live To Tell, Madonna (Something To Remember, 1995)
• Stars, t.A.T.u. (200 KM/H In The Wrong Lane, 2002)
• Father Of Mine, Everclear (So Much For The Afterglow, 1997)
• Show Me Love (Extended Version), t.A.T.u. (200 KM/H In The Wrong Lane, 2002)
• Toxic, Britney Spears (In The Zone, 2003)
• My Oh My, Aqua (Aquarium, 1997)
• One Of Us, Joan Osborne (Relish, 1995)
• Happy Boys & Girls, Aqua (Aquarium, 1997)
• Learn To Fly, Foo Fighters (There Is Nothing Left To Lose, 1999)
• Breathe Me, Sia (Colour The Small One, 2004)
• Ode To My Family, The Cranberries (No Need To Argue, 1994)
• One Headlight, The Wallflowers (Bringing Down The Horse, 1996)

At Home Playlist #1

• Cupids Chokehold, Gym Class Heroes (The Papercut Chronicles, 2004)
• Baba O'Riley, The Who (Who's Next, 1995) [Heard this first on House M.D., awesome intro]
• Oceans, Rob Dickinson (Fresh Wine For The Horses, 2005)
• Worn Me Down, Rachael Yamagata (EP, 2003) [Heard this plenty randomly but got attached to it when I heard it on an episode of The O.C. and inspired this post.]
• The Story, Brandi Carlile (The Story, 2007) [Reminds me of a friend that I made the same time I discovered this song. The song is kinda like quiet stormy outcry, whatever that means.]
• Dump Opinion, Diana Anaid (Beautiful Obscene, 2004)
• Umbrella, Rihanna (Good Girl Gone Bad, 2007) [One of those average songs that gets stuck in my head. Annoyed a lot of people when I put this as a 'CallerBack' tune.]
• Before He Cheats, Carrie Underwood (Some Hearts, 2005)
• (I Just) Died In Your Arms, Cutting Crew (Broadcast, 1987)
• Fumbling Towards Ecstasy, Sarah McLachlan (Mirror Ball, 1999) [My favorite singer / songwriter]
• You Oughta Know, Alanis Morissette (Jagged Little Pill, 1995)
• Your Latest Trick, Dire Straits (Brothers In Arms, 1985)
• Don't Speak, No Doubt (Tragic Kingdom, 1995)
• Pictures, Sia (Lady Croissant, 2007)
• Your Eyes Open, Keane (Hopes And Fears, 2004) [Currently my favorite British Pop Group]
  
• Wires, Athlete (Tourist, 2005) [Favorite British Alternative group probably because of a sentimental reason - I went to see their concert with someone. sigh!]
• What Happens Tomorrow, Duran Duran (Astronaut, 2004)
• All You Want, Dido (No Angel, 1999)
  

Insourcing

Indian conglomerate Tata has been acquiring / opening call centers in USA! Insourcing has been happening for a while now, but I thought mostly by companies trying to be patriotic or generally more out of concern for the American worker at their own cost. But now, it seems it makes business sense.

In this case the center in Reno is targeted toward companies willing to pay a
premium - its workers there cost up to 40 percent more than their counterparts
in India - to give their U.S. customers a more culturally fluent, less
frustrating 1-800 experience. (No more hearing someone read from a script ten
time zones away.) [Link]

Specifically, Expedia outsources to Tata who insources to a call center in the U.S. because they can understand the geography better and provide a better service.

... and more companies are finding that hiring Americans offers distinct
advantages. Some companies feel hearing a fellow American makes callers feel
more comfortable. Other foreign firms think Americans bring a more
entrepreneurial attitude to their work. In Expedia's case, its call-center
workers need a firm grasp on U.S. geography.

Now I can believe outsourcing is not going to be seen as evil for too long by the American worker. They know their skill set better than their competing counterparts from other countries, and can focus on what sets them apart in the international economy. The world may now be flat, but they can't always beat out the locals at their own business.

Pursuits after college

...Nine to five
Living lies
Everyday
Stealing time...

Life after college is just not the same. It feels true more and more everyday. It's the first time you really have to make a schedule and start sticking to it. No more just doing whatever. It's been over four years since I was in graduate school. Looking back at it now, a lot has changed, but the one thing that is truly and fundamentally different from then and now is - the pursuit of a worthwhile goal.

Education was always a given. The pursuit of it was an unquestionable goal. For me, it was an excuse to come to the U.S. Nevertheless, it was still an unquestionable and worthwhile pursuit. Nothing else mattered. Got on a plane and left my family behind without another thought. Friends were lost, but they could be replaced. The city I grew up in, the familiarity, the comforts, love interests, whatever! I didn't care. I had to make it. I did.

Today, I feel like I'm standing perfectly still. Which is what I wanted to do for a long while. Enough of that rat race and the constant need to prove that I can do something better. I want to be happy staying wherever I am. Take a moment, take a break. Can it happen? It's such an unfamiliar and somewhat uncomfortable pursuit. I miss the feeling I had in high school and college. That unflinching focus, hope, investment on a goal, a constant goal.

I'm actually quite busy. Yeah, standing still doesn't exactly translate to doing nothing in my life right now. I've got a job that pays the bills and a really expensive apartment that keeps me reasonably busy from time to time. I've taken up not 1 but 2 volunteer jobs that keep me busy the rest of the time. I'm involved with someone on and off. I go on plenty of first dates and nothing comes out of them. Also trying to keep an active interest in photography whenever I get the chance. I constantly meet new people and make new friends almost every other week. I keep up with my multiple social circles in Atlanta and a few close friends that are all over the U.S. and one in India. I love playing PS2 with my niece and nephew and hanging out at my sister's place. Oh, and my parents are visiting from India as well.

Strangely, I don't feel invested in any of these. None of them seem worthy of pursuit towards any a goal right now, or worthy of spending my time. I do it now cause it's there. I'm busy but aimless. I work hard but I'm not invested. I feel close to my friends and family when I'm with them, but somewhat detached the rest of the time. I used to read better but have been compulsively inching the same boring novel all this year. It certainly doesn't feel like college.

Next year, if everything changes and I find myself engaged with some other totally new tasks, I won't mind. None of them will be worthwhile anyway probably, but I wonder... What will they be? For now I'm just drifting. I'm waiting.

...Motionless wheel
Nothing is real
Wasting my time
In the waiting line...

(Lyrics from In The Waiting Line by Zero 7)