Mauriat Miranda     mjmwired

Spending Christmas in India

I probably should be packing or sleeping ... or most likely both. Time for travel. A little bit poorly planned, I admit, but sometimes you get caught up in things. Tomorrow I'll be leaving to visit my home country once again. Last time I went to India was almost 4 years ago. In that time people have gotten married, babies grew out of their diapers and revered loved ones have left this earth.

Google Maps Across the Ocean

I saw this in the newspaper and I thought it was pretty funny. Go to Google Maps and get directions for 2 major cities that are separated by an ocean. Say for example New York and London. Try it for yourself. Pay close attention to how Google recommends you cross that ocean. And of course don't forget the disclaimer: These directions are for planning purposes only. You may find that construction projects, traffic, or other events may cause road conditions to differ from the map results.

Back from Germany

What a trip! I went to Germany last week on a business trip and it turned out to be quite an interesting experience filled with fun, stress, food, booze, late nights and women. Okay, maybe not the last one, but I had a great time (ignoring work). The Germans are a funny bunch. I can't recall all the differences I saw between them and American culture, but I want to mention some of the things that I observed.

Unique Opportunity

Even though I do have various degrees of experience across different software, I still consider myself somewhat of a junior engineer. Someone somewhere thought differently. So a "roster" of people was drafted for some workshops in Germany. One person's personal trip was already preplaned, hence he was out (you know who you are). Many people had passport or visa issues and in the end, given the last minute nature, only a subset was able to go.

Austin 2005: Better Late than Never

This is one for the memory books. I had a blast, Austin is great. The people are nice, the food is rich and the everything seems like it's in motion. Anyways, my boy Mahesh and his wife Hema are great hosts. And their friends are all very fascinating characters. Great slice of the community! :-D So a quick recap. Friday relaxed, grocery shopping then laughed at Kill Bill vol.2. Had some drinks then made fun of Tom Cruise in A Few Good Men.