“Hey Marc! How much more time do you require?”, I pinged him for the fourth time in last ten minutes. “Dude, you will have to wait for another 562.23 seconds more. But remember. Every time you interrupt me, the delay will only get longer”. He gave a smile before he turned back to continue with his work which his boss had assigned to him. His boss expected him to complete the job by end of business today. I had to talk to Marc today. We were publishing a special edition on New Year’s Eve and we wanted an interview with a very special guest. So, with no other alternative, I sat back looking at how Marc went about doing his work. I must admit that to say he is a perfectionist is an understatement.
I have known Marc for quite some years now. But only in that last 5-6 years that I have come to terms with what exactly he is. There were times when I was literally scared of him. He was my college-days nightmare. But gradually things have changed. And so is my opinion. He has this amazing capability and equally great potential which most of us only can dream about. Very obedient. Very simple. Yet Very classy. Very elegant. The only quality of his which goes against him is that he is only as good as his boss. If he is not in proper hands, he could create hell on Earth!
He came back after around 10 minutes. He didn’t look tired but visibly upset. “My boss always thinks that he has clearly told what he wants me to do. Unfortunately, he only thinks! But what he wants and what he says is, most of the times, completely different”. “I can understand Marc”, I said in a faint voice as he looked at me like a wild hammer fuming to break my head. Both of us knew that I myself have done this to many such Marcs!
“But anyways, good morning sir” he started with a bright smile.
“I have only 20 minutes or 3 answers before I continue with my job. Till then, I am all yours, sir”. I didn’t want to waste anymore time.
“How does it feel like to be Marc?” I opened my notepad and jumped to my first question.
“Well, to be honest… scary. Customers always expect me to deliver day in and day out. They are never happy with my work. The day they feel I can’t improve anymore, they plan to replace me! You never know when I will be thrown out of the system and a new Marc will take my place. So… yeah… it is a high risk to be me and an even higher risk to completely depend on me!”
Last statement definitely rang a bell in my head. I continued without showing it on my face though.
“Cool… so how much money do you make?”
“It depends on what I am working on. If the job is too simple yet highly useful, I get paid less. If the job is straight-forward but if I make it sound complex, I could generate millions. Strange isn’t it??”
“Any other message you wish to give out to millions out there?”, suppose to be my last question.
“O yes…! The biggest disaster of mankind is his innate ability to destroy nature. I guess the day he realizes his mistake everything around will be useless; you, me, this Earth… So I would say, wake up first! And start saving nature today so that we can live tomorrow… and day after. Simple things like using public transport and bi-cycles regularly will make a lot of difference…”
“Wait… do you really think buses and cycles will make such a big difference?”, I interrupted and waited for a second.
“Dude, are you still waiting for an answer…? I live on buses and cycles!!”
Bulb above my head suddenly glowed and I realized that it was a wrong question to ask.
My three question-quota was over. Marc made it evident when he stood up, shook hands with me and returned back to do his job. I headed back to the office press with an amazing interview and a happy feeling that my increment this month is guaranteed!
Indresh MS, in conversation with Marc [Man’s (Most) Recherché-ic Creation], a piece of software running on his PC.
http://lockedhorns.blogspot.com
Friday, January 23, 2009
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Fantastic Five
Early 1980s is an era to be written, if not in gold, at least in black & white in Indian history. It was the time when B&W television sets made their way into Indian middle-class, in a big way. Thanks to my parents who too had managed to buy a brand new B&W television set. As a kid who used to watch TV at the neighbors till then, owning one was a matter of pride for me. Very thought of watching the famous “giant-robot” at my home on our own TV was exciting.
I don’t know why, how, & etc. One morning, I got up and, instead of my favorite TV soap, started watching a game between India and another country (England, I guess) with all the interest in the world. But all that I remember is that a short fellow, wearing his trade mark traditional hat, was busy running between the pieces of wood planted on either side of 20-odd yard hard soil strip, for most part of the time I watched during the game. It was only later, after many years, I realized that it was Sunny Gavaskar playing the game of Cricket. I somehow could not sync with the game. Subsequently, the interest faded.
It took another short fellow to re-ignite a cricketer and a new religion, in me and alike. This time the impact was mighty strong. He came; He played; He ruled. His affable batting, immaculate timing, his impeccable collection of shots and the very way in which he played the game had a lasting impression on millions. When we were down and out, he gave us hope; When we were sad, he gave us a reason to smile; When we were divided time and again (thanks to our politicians), he held us united; When we were lost in the intricacies of worldly image, he gave us an identity. Sachin successfully managed to build a new India; India which believed in one religion, in hard-work, in winning, in fellow countrymen. (Unfortunately, this India struggles to survive as soon as Sachin is off the field)
The saga, however, had just begun. What followed is probably the most glorious phase of Indian cricket. If text books could walk, run and play, Rahul would be first. He is, without any doubt, the most sophisticated batsman to have ever played cricket. Not surprisingly, in his simplicity lies his sophistication. True to one of his famous statements, “…When it comes to cover drive, first there is GOD and then there is Saurav…”. Saurav and Laxman are the gifted craftsmen with the bat who made batting look terribly easy with there silk-smooth drives and classy flicks. And between all these batting greats, one man held the Indian bowling guard for decades bagging hundreds of wickets in both forms of cricket.
I watch, follow, and play cricket not because it is cricket. But because Sachin plays it. Rahul plays it. Saurav, Laxman, and Anil play it. For me cricket will never be the same again. More so, when Sachin retires. The day after his retirement, India will wake up to a different game of cricket; totally new, strange, cryptic, and completely difficult to comprehend.
Agreed that no one is bigger than the game. But these guys have made the game bigger and better. Apart from being great ambassadors of cricket, they have been inspirational role models and, more importantly, wonderful human beings. They inspired me for the first half of my life. Now I wonder what will happen to my second innings.
I don’t know why, how, & etc. One morning, I got up and, instead of my favorite TV soap, started watching a game between India and another country (England, I guess) with all the interest in the world. But all that I remember is that a short fellow, wearing his trade mark traditional hat, was busy running between the pieces of wood planted on either side of 20-odd yard hard soil strip, for most part of the time I watched during the game. It was only later, after many years, I realized that it was Sunny Gavaskar playing the game of Cricket. I somehow could not sync with the game. Subsequently, the interest faded.
It took another short fellow to re-ignite a cricketer and a new religion, in me and alike. This time the impact was mighty strong. He came; He played; He ruled. His affable batting, immaculate timing, his impeccable collection of shots and the very way in which he played the game had a lasting impression on millions. When we were down and out, he gave us hope; When we were sad, he gave us a reason to smile; When we were divided time and again (thanks to our politicians), he held us united; When we were lost in the intricacies of worldly image, he gave us an identity. Sachin successfully managed to build a new India; India which believed in one religion, in hard-work, in winning, in fellow countrymen. (Unfortunately, this India struggles to survive as soon as Sachin is off the field)
The saga, however, had just begun. What followed is probably the most glorious phase of Indian cricket. If text books could walk, run and play, Rahul would be first. He is, without any doubt, the most sophisticated batsman to have ever played cricket. Not surprisingly, in his simplicity lies his sophistication. True to one of his famous statements, “…When it comes to cover drive, first there is GOD and then there is Saurav…”. Saurav and Laxman are the gifted craftsmen with the bat who made batting look terribly easy with there silk-smooth drives and classy flicks. And between all these batting greats, one man held the Indian bowling guard for decades bagging hundreds of wickets in both forms of cricket.
I watch, follow, and play cricket not because it is cricket. But because Sachin plays it. Rahul plays it. Saurav, Laxman, and Anil play it. For me cricket will never be the same again. More so, when Sachin retires. The day after his retirement, India will wake up to a different game of cricket; totally new, strange, cryptic, and completely difficult to comprehend.
Agreed that no one is bigger than the game. But these guys have made the game bigger and better. Apart from being great ambassadors of cricket, they have been inspirational role models and, more importantly, wonderful human beings. They inspired me for the first half of my life. Now I wonder what will happen to my second innings.
Indresh M S
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