After my wedding in 1989, I went to Toronto, Canada. Then shuffled between Toronto and New York as my family members 're in both places. When I didn't get the air ticket in time, I drove between the two places in about ten hours. Every time a stop over at Niagara-falls, which is one of the wonderful places in the world. Toronto is very cool and one of the best places to live, but New York makes you a man, or sometimes a real dude.

Association with the Bombay Mittal Group was the turning point of my life. They sent me to different cities like Bangalore, Calcutta, and New Delhi in the late 80's. I lived in the Mittal's Ruia Park executive quarters in Juhu Beach while I was in Bombay. Once you are capable to live in the 'Indian Metros', you are well set to live anywhere in the world successfully. And that's the secret behind the Indian origins' success in this part of the world. You may be a lazy worker in India, but once you are here, the system will keeps you moving, put you in the fast track. Smartest may race, others may park in the shoulder and everyone pays the heavy toll, like it or not. Sometimes the price we pay for success is more costlier than it worth.

Once we reach here, the first enthusiasm may go away in few years' time. Very soon the metabolism will be changed, and a thick layer of fat will cover the whole body to protect from the bitter coldness of the polar wind if you are in Canada, and another layer of mask will cover your thinking if you are in the States. At last, try to merge in this world though we contact our relatives quite often, or an Indian visit once in a while. We know the value of INR and the traitors. Earlier there were plantations in the South, and slaves worked for their masters day and night but were considered as just properties. Today there are BPO's, cubicles, computers and the so called high tech workers, but no different than their counterparts centuries back. We may outsource an eighty dollar job for peanuts and a rap, or $3.75 which is also a big bundle in Indian rupees!!! "Take it or leave it," as the late night show machos talk, is nothing but a business strategy. As long as the Euro and the Dollar rules, we can't look back, but we can't ever forget our past. Brain-drain is the key word, but only blame the so called leaders who do not have any vision. But one thing is for sure America beckons.

The most important aspect of this part of the world is liberty, the freedom of speech. (It is the saddest part that the famous Liberty bell was broken long years back, before it rang.) Everyone is free to express his opinion as long as it won't leads to a personal attack. Opinion and fact may be the two ends of a spectrum. Narrowing it down is the way to go. Interfering with other's business is not an American way, but we fight terrorism at any cost, anywhere, anytime.

Few years back, I was watching the twin tower burning, and I saw the second plane hitting. The horror still blares my American dream. The price for any kind of terrorism is heavy, and that is our Americanism. I am a proud Canadian and the US citizen, but I will always value my good Indian roots and tradition.

My Friend: I have few childhood friends, like Fr. Eugene, Lloyd, Matthew, and Bob. And many were in Fatima college and other colleges were I studied.
Mark, the one who founded an ISP in Toronto in 1996, before the invasion of AOL is one of my best friends.
So many friends like Sebastian, Timothy, Pinto, are in New York.
All of my friends are not the kind of blah, blah type. They have a high level of ideology and are very successful in their fields.

Another Fact: I was so fortunate that the very first TV I watched is the one I made by myself in the early 80's. Hey, not many people can claim this. But TV does not impress me much then or now. It tells what they want to tell, and contains you very easily if you're a poor soul.

The most interesting thing I like to do is to spend good time with my family. I spend so much time teaching and learning, and broadcasting live classes from New York City. Last, but not least, producing music- creating and remixing in my recording studio is so much fascinating and fulfilling.

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