Life With A Metro

One can only imagine the thrill of having a Metro in your town. More so, when the Metro is bang outside your house.

Dubai just went through it's own share of Metro mania when virtually the entire country was looking forward to a great launch. The day, the time, 09.09.09 09:09:09.. Virtually an unforgettable day. Fireworks, the launch by the Royal Family, all the bigwigs of town in one Metro train going from one point to another. The hype, the media frenzy, the countdown, you name it, it was there.

It is not every day that you see the construction of a Metro. More so, when it is done in a little less than three years. The sheer magnitude of the construction, the entire network in the sky, the jazzy stations, the people working day and night to ensure all stations are ready and functional, the drilling, the installation of the tracks, the mess that every conceivable road was in, the hassles and the pain of driving all around your locality just to get around to the other side of the road.. It was a horrible two years.

Come the magic day, people flocked out of nowhere.. Total chaos, pandemonium and the roof fell down. The excitement was unbelievable. Every where that you go, it is only the Metro that was under discussion. It was as if there is nothing else in Dubai... After all, it is not every day that you hear of a train line being set for nearly 50 Kilometers, and running without any drivers.

The ride was worth it.. We spent a Saturday going from Point A to Point B. Excellent infrastructure, lovely trains, an absolute gorgeous view of bulidings that you never see from close or you are above them. The smoothness of the ride, the comfortable rides all across the city, something that one always dreams of.

However behind this one could also see the failures of the system. The overconfidence that came crashing down as people management took a beating, the lack of basic processes, the lack of adequate infrastructure to manage the crowds, the manner in which people were taken for granted, the total ignorance displayed by people when arriving at the station, despite many of them having travelled in Metro's world wide..

A matter of both pros and cons.. The Metro was some thing that the city simply needed, however the total lack of planning and the manner in which Dubai showcases its assets, despite their worth not being what it truly is, boasts of an overconfident mind set, which time and time again comes crashing down. Nothing to take away from a great achivement in such a short span of time, however one could always sense, the hype is simply short lived.

Olden Days, Golden Days

Was discussing an issue with my Dad and Uncle, today and the discussion veered towards, how busy life had become, despite facilities becoming more and more.

A trip down memory lane brought up memories that there were no E_Mails, no Computers, no Mobiles and yet life went on. People worked hard all day, you type a letter, however there was no Tippex invented at the time. There was no concept of working remote, no concept of call forwarding, no concept of Blackberry's and mail forwarding, no concept of electronic house cleaning items, no concepts of digital cameras, or websites, where you could post photographs for all the world to see, no dvd's to watch movies at home, no one for all applications, not every one having cars to go to various places.. and so on..

Yet, there was one thing. Life though hard, did not have the tensions of today. Life though difficult was not a burden to go through the day. Life though simple, and people not having money, was good.

Where has that gone? I doubt it will ever be the same again, as man in his quest to improve, will make life more complicated than before in his quest to make it simple. Will we ever stop. Do we ever want to stop.

Brings back the million Dollar Question again.. Were the simple days the Golden Days for our parents. Are these days for us, our Golden Days 20 years from now?

Bachelorhood

What is it that makes all the best of bachelors go down the road of matrimony? Have often wondered.. we all say, looking at others, we will never do it.. come a time, we all follow suit. Some on our own count, some on count of our elders. But we all do it.

I guess my cousin is no exception. A guy fiercely independent of his freedom, always stating that he is his master, also bit the dust.. No one to report to, no one to get bogged down by, no one to keep on asking a person, what time will you come.. Yet, he got engaged. Of course it is too early to worry, these are just blissful days of enjoyment for two people who take a big commitment to spend the rest of their lives together.

No joke this, as this becomes the start of a change in life styles and processes which would never be the same again. Two people, both handing over their life in each others hands.. That is a major decision. That is the beginning of a new life, a new dawn.

Of course the eternal question always remains, what if we did not get married.. For starters, the world would have ended with Adam and Eve. And maybe considering the population issues that exist in the 21st Century, that might be a good option, however, I believe it is a road that leads to loneliness. The joy and the pleasure that one gets with the presence of a family, with people around oneself, simply cannot be replicated with any other form of relationships. This is also part of change that is so imperative in life, as with each new generation, comes new hopes, new challenges, new growths, that simply would not exist, if we were to continue as is.

Criticism

Was reading a post put up on FB on Criticism and the note was quite interesting:

"When people criticize, they often reveal more about themselves than they reveal about that which they are criticising. Criticising often stems from insecurity. People feel the need to show their intellect or cleverness by putting others down. So, listen to criticism and if you respect that person, then heed to that criticism......"

Indeed, it led to a thought and some lively debates as to whether criticism is warranted, and if yes, to what levels. With this, I go back in time, when I was in school and as we grew up, we learnt as went. If you did not do your hw, you were punished, if you made mistakes, you were told off, if you did not listen to the teacher, you were made to stand in the class on the chair, if you still did not obey, you were made to stand in the corridor.. and so on..

Are these criticisms or forms of it? Is Criticism restricted to verbal onslaughts only? Does it exist in a physical form? Is it warranted? I agree on both counts, there are people who criticize simply as they know no other aspect in life. Their aim is to simply put up a snobby nose to every one, with the air, that they are and know the best. Every one else in life is a copycat of them or simply are trying to copy them. Other than probably being insultive, this category simply adds no value to a comment, but reflect their own insecurity and the fear that some one else might actually be better than them.

There are also people who do not tolerate fools and will criticize some one, simply due to the errors of the individual. While we are all human and people do make errors, there are some, who defy these beliefs and simply donot care. It could be a case of limitation of capacity of an individual, or simple carelessness, which in the long run costs every one money. These people cannot live without criticism, depend on others to guide them and fully deserve no sympathy.

Where does that leave us in today's world? Regrettably, as we have progressed in technology, we have in my opinion digressed in terms of growth of the people. We do not tolerate harsh words, we do not tolerate shouting at children, we have so many laws created by ourselves, that we are now bound by these laws, who are bigger than the very people who have created them. Have we inadvertantly lent a hand to create a generation that can only survive on speaking in diplomatic overtures?

Gandhi / Lincoln / Churchill are all students of the schools who grew from criticism and that drove them and their ambitions to great heights. Would the world have been any different, had they not embarked on the paths that they did?