Does your Cisco move with you?

I am up early today because I will be training a group of IPMs.  I have designed a game called "What is the Answer?" to assist in troubleshooting with vendors and practices.  It should be a great time.  So, my eyes are a little blurry and head is a little fuzzy.

Sunshine and light wind are on the weather planner today.  The pigeons are sitting on the rail by my front window.  It is too early for the crow to come by.  I have called Admin for a cab at 315pm IST today.  I have "Rush Hour 3" on the TV.

I have been sitting with some of the IPMs and watching all of them.  They are a great group of people.  In April all of the IPMs will be sitting together again.  Now, there are different shifts.  So, Rohan sits at one pod for part of the day, then I watch him unplug the CISCO and moves to a different pod.  Yes - I wrote CISCO.  Cisco is the company that manufactures the telephones eCW uses.  For the computers and internet to work the Cisco has to be plugged in at the pod the person is working at.  I am asked about my mobile which is my cell phone.  In my case I have a BLUE phone.  Who makes the phones seems to be important.  If the company changes the phone manufacturers what will the people call it then?

Last night Ritika ordered for me Chicken Tikka Marsla (boneless), bread (I believe Naan) and rice for me to eat when I returned to the apartment at 430am IST.  I have eating grilled cheese sandwich (open-face) when I return from work.  It was a great change to have this delicious meal.  I have more for tomorrow morning.  Yum!

We are planning a shopping trip to the street markets.  I am so excited.  It will be a great time.  I am hoping to find more elephants to bring back.  No one can ever have enough elephants in the home or cube at work.

I have to get back to creating more scenarios for the game to be played today.  It should be a great time.

I forgot...I had thought there would be cows walking in the streets of Mumbai.  I was wrong.  Rushab (a very innocent looking tech, but do not be fooled) has sent me pictures of cows walking on a path.  Rushab has a charming smile, but he has a "devilish" side.  He always has a smile.  So the following pictures were sent to me by him.  Thank you Rushab!

Walking down Memory Lane -

I am sitting in the apartment eating grilled cheese, peas and drinking coffee.  I will have a second cup of coffee in a few minutes.  I love green peas.  The best pea is when you eat it from the pea pod.  As a little girl my grandma or mom would go to the garden and pick peas for dinner.  As we were shelling the peas more went inside me than in the bowl.  The smell and taste of fresh peas are so wonderful.  It is a great memory of my childhood.

Instead of coffee breaks people in Mumbai take Tea break.  I like tea when it does not taste like tea.  Yes - that is correct.  I like my tea with no milk or sugar.  This brings me back to one of my favorite childhood memories on my grandparent's farm outside of Columbus, Nebraska.  Around 4pm the grandchildren would be little hungry.  The adults were getting ready to do the evening chores of gathering eggs, milking cows and feeding the farm animals.  My grandmother would take time from preparing supper for the family and evening chores to prepared "Tea and Crumpets" for the grandchildren.  The Tea was Kool-Aid and the Crumpets were homemade cookies.  All of us would sit around the "kiddie" table and have a wonderful time.  We thought we were so important.  I realize now who busy my grandma was, but she took a few moments out of her schedule to make all the grandchildren to feel we were having English Tea with the Queen.

As my children were growing up I tried to have special moments like this with them.  I have always total them to "Make a Memory".  When the people in your life have gone, you will always have that memories you make to make you smile and laugh.  My grandma is 95 years old and still very active, but I have great memories of my time with her.

My grandpa would be in the fields all morning.  He would come back for lunch and take a short nap on the floor between the kitchen and living room.  I asked him why and he told me his clothes were too dirty to lay on furniture.  There were times when I would be playing in the living room of the farmhouse and my grandpa would ask me to come with him to get the mail.  The mailbox was a long way for a little girl.  We would take the tractor or his truck.  He would let me drive (steer) the vehicle.  For a little girl it was a great moment.  There were times when my grandpa would be sitting in his chair in the living room and I would climb on his lap.  He always wear overalls (he was a farmer).  I would search all of the pockets and ask questions about the different items in the pockets.  He had a pocket watch which I loved.  I would ask him the same questions about the pocket watch and what time it was.  He always answered my questions.  There was always a piece of candy in his one of the pockets.  I would give him a big hug.  I remember laughing with him.  I do miss my grandfather. He was a wonderful person.

I will always remember my trip to Mumbai.  The people, my coworkers and friends, have allowed me to make get memories.  They have taken time out of the busy schedules to make my time here great.

I have started down Memory Lane without my daily weather check.  It is beautiful, sunny with a light breeze.  The mosquitoes are out, but I am using repellent.  Lesson learned about not using it.  The bites from last week are finally disappearing.

Update on the construction on the street in front of the Boomerang...it is completed.  The ditch or trench has been filled in with the dirt.  Vehicles are parked on the uneven dirt road.  The construction has moved around the corner to the street my apartment main road.  It is not as bad as on the main road.

Mondays seem to be the day all the vehicles stop at the Gas or Petrol Station on the corner.  The lines were long from both sides to fill up.  I have seen prices of 91 Rupees per Liter.  The conversion rate is 60 Rupee to 1 US dollar.  Petrol is a $1.50 per Liter.  US is paying upwards to $4.50 per gallon.  If Americans would begin using their own resources and the oil companies stop the greed, the prices would go down to a reasonable price.  I do not know if cars or vehicles get good Petrol mileages (or Kilometers). The vehicles rarely go very fast. It is always stop and go.

There are so many things I am forgetting to write about.  I am going to start writing them down so everyone will know what I am feeling and seeing in Mumbai.

My crow came to visit me again today.   Yea!

Now off to develop my game for the my next class with the IPMs.  Games are a great method of learning.  I want to have the people to "Make a Memory" and hopefully a happy one.

Random Thoughts - Very random thoughts

It is another gorgeous Monday afternoon in Mumbai. The sun is out and there is a light wind blowing.  Yesterday I did see blue skies.  I have just noticed there is always clouds in the sky. The sky is grayish white but the sunshine comes through it.  There are horns honking all the time.  I rarely notice it now.  It is the roosters crowing in the afternoon  that throws me off.  I always thought rooster crow at dawn.  Well, it is early morning in Eastern Time Zone.  The pack of dogs fighting in the early morning does not bother me as much any more.

I have noticed on TV there are commercial to "Stop Smoking".  There are so many people who smoke here.  They are not real commercials.  For 30 seconds or less a sign and words appear on the TV.  It is asking people to stop smoking.  I don't notice people smoking on the public streets.  I notice people throwing the cigarette butts out of vehicle windows.  I don't see billboards ads for smoking either.  At work on the Terrace there is an area for the smokers.  If the wind is wrong, the smoke comes to the area were the non-smokers sit and walk.  The Westboro office offered Quit Smoking Support Group.  I wonder if Waikiki has done the same thing.

I have finished my laundry.  This week I did hang up most of it on the rack on the balcony.  The clothes were completely dry by this afternoon.  The washing machine does take a long time to complete.  The clothes are a little more than damp, but it smells like home.  I love doing laundry.  The satisfaction of having everything clean and fresh.  To begin the week with fresh clothing is the best thing.

While I was waiting for the cab yesterday, there is a garden and walking path at the apartment building.  There are trees, bushes and flowering plants.  It is very nice and quiet place to walk and think.  The playground is next to it.  When I was walking there were no children playing.

This is picture of the outside of my apartment and lobby.

I am on the 5th floor.

This is the lobby.  There is another elevator to the left.

I thought there would be more palm trees in Mumbai.  I pictured Mumbai to have the cattle walking in the streets, palm trees everywhere.  There are trees and bushes but very few palm trees.

Oh - Here is my daily visit from my friendly crow.  It begins on the bottom rail and faces me cawing.  It climbs to the top rail caws at me again.  Then,  it flies away.  I wait for the crow to come.  It has flown away again.  Usually a pigeon sits on the railing as well.

McDonald's minus Hamburgers and Cheeseburgers

It has been a wonderful Sunday in Mumbai.  The weather, of course, was perfect.  The sunshine and light wind made the temperature perfect.  It is nighttime.  I can hear the horns in the background.  Archana and I are watching "Ghost Rider" in English with English subtitles.

Last night Royson and I went to Prerna and Ananth's home in Navi (New) Mumbai.  I had a wonderful time.  Prerna had worked for 9 hours, but she cooked Chicken Biryani and other dishes.  It was the fantastic food and company.  Ananth had bought a bottle of white wine.  It was produced in India.  It was great wine.  Their friends, Krishna and Amit, came over.  Amit and I are so much alike.  They were great company.  I felt at home.  Royson and I were waiting for the cab to pick us up, so Ananth brought the electric bug killer.  He was attempting to kill the mosquitoes flying around us.  What a "gentleman"!  Prerna - Ananth is lucky to have you!

I returned to the flat/apartment around 12 midnight.  Of course I could not sleep.  I am usually working at this time.  I watched 2 movies instead.  First was "Life is Beautiful".  It is an Italian movie dubbed in English.  It was about Italian Jews in 1939 and the extermination of the Jewish race.  The young Jewish father and his son were taken to a concentration camp.  His wife was not Jewish but went on the train as well.  The story was beautiful.  The father protecting his son from the horrors of time.

The second movie was "Now You See Me".  What a movie!  Manny, Max and Noor told me it was a great movie.  It was!  I hope there is another movie.

Wait!  There is music and drumming in the streets.

I am hearing drums and music outside.  Archana has told me that there is a marriage.  It is very loud.  I saw this last night.  The traffic is completely stopped.  This happens on the busy roads of Mumbai.  There are beautifully decorated platforms driven throughout Mumbai.  People are dancing on the motorized platform as well as all around them.  This is in the street.  The busy streets of Mumbai.  The celebration last for miles/kilometers.  The wedding party is passing near me.  Amazing lights and music.

This afternoon Sharmeen and I went shopping on the store fronts on the streets of Mumbai.  For the people who worry about me, I want to tell you that I did take the cab alone to meet with Sharmeen.  I know, I know - "You are in India!".  The cab driver was very nice.  We had to wait a bit for Sharmeen to meet us.  He turned off the cab and did not roll down the windows.  It got a little stuffy in the cab.  Sharmeen came and off we went.  She is always smiling and happy.

We went to Tagline but found nothing there.  So off we went to the next store, but found nothing.  The people told Sharmeen of a store that sold larger men's shirts.  We found the store and bought some presents for family.  I also bought other items from another store.  We stopped at a restaurant to buy Bisleri (bottle water and Slice up your Slice Mango.  The Mango drink was delicious.  Thank you Sharmeen for introducing me to it.

We went to McDonald's.  The biggest difference with McDonald's in India is there are no - I mean - no Hamburgers or Cheeseburgers.  There is no beef served in McDonald's in Mumbai.  They have chicken and fish.  There is regular fried chicken and spicy chicken. There are chicken nuggets and french fries.  Sharmeen and I had the chicken.  Ha! Ha!  The french fries are the same here and in the US.   Thank you Sharmeen.  After lunch at McDonald's the cab dropped Sharmeen at the station and off we went.  Yes - I am the only passenger in the cab.  He dropped me off at the flat (A504).  Ritika was supposed to come, but the trains were not running.  Next time - Ritika!

We are going to plan to go the street market to purchase more stuff.  This will be done before work.

The end of week 2 and the beginning of week 3.  I have not tired of Mumbai and the people.  I have become accustomed to the traffic and the crazy driving.  I am enjoying the company of all the people.  There is more to do with only 2 weeks left.

Thank you! Excuse me! Please!

It is Saturday afternoon in Mumbai.  Guess What?  The sun is shining, crows are cawing and the horns are honking.  I had a wonderful day or night sleep depending on how you look at it. The temperature and humidity are perfect!

Everyone in Mumbai has been so accommodating. The Admin Group are always waiting for me.  I joke with them that it is the right of a woman to be late.  I do not purposely try to be late, but at the end of the work shift I lose track of time.  Can you believe that?  I never lose track of the end of the day in Westboro.  The people in Mumbai office are so full of life. They are always talking to each other about work and other things.  They are not afraid to laugh and show their admiration for each other.  You feel a part of the team.  There is no reason to have team building experiences because they are TEAM.

At 430am IST I am back at the apartment.  The watchman opens the gate to allow the cab to drive in.  I always wave and smile.  The first week the watchman did not know what to do with me.  Now he waves and smiles back at me.  There is a guard always outside when I am being picked up in the afternoon (morning for EST).  I always wave at him.  He is always smiles and waves back.  A little kindness brings great joy.  When I enter in the 7th floor I always say Hi to the person sitting at the front desk.

There is always an Admin person in the cab with me at the beginning and the end of the day.  They are wonderful.  I am always thanking them for taking to the time to escort me in the cab.  I have had to call the Admin Office a few times and they have always been attentive to my needs.  They are an amazing group of people.
I will be calling for a cab today.  Royson will be coming to the apartment to go to Ananth and Prerna's home.  No one wants me to be alone.  All I hear is "You are in India.".  They are very protective - everyone!  I am getting used to the protective "firewall" around me.

There are some people in the office who interrupt others conversations. This is normal.  It is funny to watch this. The person will call out the person's name and begin talking before asking permission.  I have explained to the certain people (you know who) to say "Excuse me." before "he" or she begins to start the conversation with me if I am talking to someone. We are always laughing about it.  "Excuse Me" is a way to ask permission before speaking.  It is a work in progress for some of us.  I need to remember to do the same thing.

It is funny about certain people.  They will not go to the person to speak. I hear the person shout "Shanawaz!"  His name is always being called out in the Tech area.  It is funny.  If he is not seen then the person will shout to others "Have you seen Shanawaz?".  He is not the magician in the group.  He is not allowed to disappear - POOF!.
The same comedy goes on with the IPMs.  I am working or on a call and I hear "Ankit" or "Maya" or other's names.  The first week I would jump.  Now I laugh.  Only the person's name is called out.  I have asked why not say "Please" come here instead.  Not everyone does this.  It is funny to watch the people.  Yet - I love working with all the people here.
The IPMs are coming to me asking me questions.  I do not know everything but I will always try to find the answer.

Well - "My Tech" is moving to off hours.  Ashish and I have worked together more than 1 year. He wants to work normal Mumbai hours not the American hours.  I understand this, but as many know "It is all about me!".  This time it is NOT.  Madhura will be my main tech and Gaurav my secondary.  Both are very quiet.  Can you believe Shanawaz tag me with the 2 quietest techs in the group?  I have great respect for both of them.  I hope Madhura is ready for me.  Gaurav was talking to me yesterday.  He has a great voice.  He sits quietly at the end of the pod.  It is a perfect spot to sit.  Madhura faces the most quiet tech I have ever met - Vishnu.  He is a man of few words, but he has a great smile.

For dinner the IPM bought Butter Chicken (boneless for me), Roti, Chicken BIR-YA-NI.  It was a wonderful time together.  They are a great group of people.  There was the vegetarian dishes as well.  I sat with the Vegetarians and ate my Chicken.  Thank you for wonderful food and company.

My apartment mate and I have finally met again. We work different shifts.  Archana has found 3 apartments.  Now she has to chose which one is best for her.  She is a very smart young woman.

I have called for a cab.  They will call me back to make sure a cab is available.  Royson will be coming here.  We are off to Ananth's to celebrate.  It will be a great night.  The girls - Namrata and Ritika - and I are supposed to go shopping tomorrow afternoon.  All are invited!

How do you enter a Mall in Mumbai?

This morning at 4am IST I was waiting for the cab to bring me back to the apartment.  In the pre-dawn sky a full moon was hanging brightly.  I felt I could touch the moon.  There were wispy clouds lazily passing in front of the moon.  It reminded me of the summer days of my childhood on my grandparent's farm in Nebraska.  I would lie in bed and watch the moon dancing in the nighttime summer sky. I would be listening to the cattle lowing in the pasture.  The crickets would be chirping louder and louder as the summertime air got warmer.  As a child you have no cares in the world.  This early morning I had a brief moment of a child without a care in the world other than what new experiences tomorrow will bring.  This is the same moon my family and friends were looking 12 hours later.

Today is St. Valentine's Day.  The sun is shining with a light wind blowing.  The temperature is perfect.   Again another perfect and beautiful day in Mumbai.

In my previous post I had written about the experience of shopping at the Mall.  I had jumped ahead of myself.  There is so much to tell about "How do you enter a Mall in Mumbai?".

The cab drops us (Vijeta, Ashish and I) off at the entrance of the mall.  The doors to the Mall are right there. I started heading toward them.  Noooooo!  Vijeta points me to the line to go through a metal detector (airport style) and have your bag checked.  There was a guard directing the person in the line to one of the two metal detectors and another guard opening all the bags to be inspected before the next stop.  Again - I was heading to the mall doors (you know they were that close to me...).  Vijeta tells be to go over there.

Note:  There was no Male and Female lines this time.

The men step up on a little platform and a male guard uses a wand to verify there is truly nothing on the person.  The women are brought one at a time behind a temporary room with a curtain and female guard.  She demonstrates to me what she wanted me to do.  I held me arms out and she used the "magic" wand to scan me.  I felt I was in a sci-fi movie.  I finally made it to the mall door.  I walked in and the first thing I saw was a kiosk for Tupperware.  TUPPERWARE!

Mr. Tupper of Tupperware was from North Grafton, Massachusetts.  This is the town I live in.  He begin creating the famed Tupperware products in his home.

The amount of security checks to get into most buildings should make a person feel at ease.  I think is the threat of terrorism any greater here than in the United States.  Is the United States so naive or India paranoid?  I believe Americans have short attention spans.  India wants to protect everyone who lives and visits this beautiful country.  Americans are concerned about losing their civil liberties instead of safety in the larger cities.

I am climbing down from my soapbox to discuss St. Valentine.

St. Valentine was a Roman Catholic priest in Rome in the year of 269 AD.  He was beaten and beheaded because he would not renounce his faith.  He is the Patron Saint (this is the saint/person you would pray to) of couples in love, beekeepers, engaged couples, married couples and travelers.  This is the short list.

I love this song about My Valentine by Martina McBride.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNGwNntQECA

Today for work we are supposed to wear Red and/or White.  I have a Boston Red Sox shirt.  It has red.  Ritika and I are going to the stationary store to buy red and white paper to make hearts for the people who did not wear the colors. We will be wearing Red and White.

Yes - Westboro - I am going to wear the colors.  I will not rebel again

The people who work at eCW in Mumbai have a wonderful bond.  The minute it was midnight they started wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day.  We were shaking hands and "bro" hugs were given.

I have not updated the people who are worried about me eating properly.  Rohit's mother is an amazing cook.  He has been wonderful bringing extra dinner to share with me and others.  Today the IPMs are having a dinner.  I will be dining with them.  Everyone (most everyone) knows I like chicken (white meat) without bones.  I will eat the outer meat if it is attached to the bone.  It will be great time.

Did you know the Mumbai mosquitoes can bite through a sweatshirt?  Now you do!

How do you say BIRYANI?

As I am waiting for Vijeta, Madhura and Ashish to come to go shopping I thought I would begin writing for today.  Madhura was a no show.  Too bad!

For today's weather it is slightly overcast (not with SNOW CLOUDS) and still beautiful.  As the friends and family in Westboro area are waiting for more snow, I look out my living room window and find birds, trees and sun.  I am smiling.

For dinner the interface tech and trainer groups bought Chicken Biryani, some starters (appetizers), some type of salad (it was creamy so I did not eat it) and dessert.  Imran asked me if I like the dessert.  The puzzled look on my face told him I did not know anything about dessert. Where was Ashish or Noor?  You guys should have saved a piece for me.  I had to eat quickly and leave for a call.  (Laptops are not allowed on the Terrace or Cafe.)  I did not know about dessert.  Too bad for me.  I wish had more time to spend with the group at dinner, but you know the duty calls.  In this case CALL calls.

Chicken Biryani was amazing!  The spice level was perfect for me, but I believe it was too mild for most.  The starters had chicken leg with spices, chicken kabob and what I thought was a potato.  Shanawaz told me the name but I forget now.  It was made of chicken.  Now many of the techs including Mr. Ashish (or WHO IS ASHISH) knows I have a lot of trouble pronouncing biryani.  I do not know why but I do.  We all laugh when I try to say it.  BIR - YA - NI.  Yeah! It looks easy but they roll the R and say the YA at the same time.  So I have decided to call it Chicken Bir.  Not Chicken and Beer!

After my training session with the IPMs (Integration Project Managers) they have started to come to me for advise with compendiums.  Compendiums are list of tests and/or procedures providers use to order in the eClinicalWorks EMR.  I have told all of them I am happy to answer questions or guide them.  I have ask them to validate the compendiums before sending it to the techs.  Next week there will be more training on other topics.  I had a great time talking to the people.  They are very quiet in the Training Room.  There is no need to be.  If the answer was not correct, this is the opportunity to find the right answer.  There may be others that thought the same thing.  I hope I talked SLOWLY.  I have a tendency to speak very fast in English.  Just like the people here speak too fast in Hindi.  I kept asking if I am speaking slow enough.  I have told everyone if there is some issue with my training or me come to me.  I am not perfect and a positive criticism may hurt at the beginning will only help in the future.  I told them that I may cry at first, but I will get over it.  I was only kidding about the crying.

Oh - I am still waiting for the group to get here so we can shop. (This is a fact!)

We were waiting for the cab.  It was not coming and Vijeta, Ashish and I were waiting.  I did not want to call again and ask about it.  The girls asked Ashish to call and say he is the watchman of Adityavardhan apartment.  He called and sounded like a watchman.  He can have a second career as an apartment watchman.  But he can only be in one career as MY Tech!  When I saw his shirt I told him that is an Orange, but he said it is Peach.  So he is a FUZZY PEACH today.

Fuzzy Peach!

Vijeta, Ashish (the bag boy) and I just got back from shopping at Oberoi Mall.  We went to Lifestyles and had a great time.  Ashish was a gentleman.  He held the bags and clothes.  He assisted in choosing outfits.  Vijeta has a great eye for clothes.  I bought for others.  Yes there is a STARBUCKS in Mumbai.  We sat and had coffee and treats.  It was wonderful. I bought Manny the India mug.  I had a Venti (large) ice coffee black.  Yummy!

WHO IS ASHISH is so cute!

Which one is my shopping bag and which one is Ashish's?

We are waiting for the time to leave for work.  The cab is waiting downstairs for us.  It has been a great day.  The day has only begun!