Have been busy at work these days, really busy. At home, I can't setup my mood to write.
My next post will be covering our trip to Peshawar last weekend, will be writing about that soon, don't know exactly when. Then, I am aiming to write something about "Spiders", but need to complete some research about them. I'll soon be creating a technical blog, on which I'll be posting mainly on Java & Flash technologies and will try to cover the best practices learnt from my experiences.
I'm planning to goto Karachi the coming weekend, really missing it.
Monday, February 28, 2005
Monday, February 14, 2005
I am proud of my Parents
Parents, a blessing from Allah, what would I be if I wouldn't have the parents I have. I didn't realize their vision & approach till I was 16, but since then I have been analyzing all of it, though there had been second thoughts during all of this, but now I am 100% convinced. My love & respect for them is increasing gradually since then. From the very beginning, they have been working hard to bring us up, especially my elder brother and me. They had their own parents as well to take care of.
They had only negligible financial reserves to start with. They had a vision for both of us and they worked really hard to achieve the goals, leaving aside the constraints and personal motivation levels. They had their financial plans, which they have now achieved and all seems smooth, but it isn’t. They got us very good standard schooling and worked everyday consistently to make us better human beings. The amount of sacrifice and the amount of struggle, in terms of time, energy, money & use of intelligence is simply invaluable. One small example of their decision-making ability is that they changed our schools for a better secondary education, keeping in line with their vision. Not only they wanted us to be good at studies, but also in other areas.
From Montessori to Kindergarten (and sometimes during primary & secondary), my mother used to pick my brother and me up from school in a local bus or a rickshaw, depending upon the saving they did in the month. If you add this to the responsibilities of maintaining our home as well as cooking and other daily activities, it's a hell lot of work and pressure. But she made it look all easy.
My father worked harder and harder to make as much money as to raise both of us in the best of his control. He worked hard at his office, as well as at home to teach us, as well as doing work at home, all by himself, yet keeping everything simple.
They got me a new PC (386 dx) when I was in 9th, the price of which was not compatible with our financial position. I had a major accident when I was in 10th, fracturing two of my bones. I had major operations going on, needed a good surgeon. They arranged all of it, again sacrificing their plans financially. I was not a good student at all at that point in time and still they loved me as if I were their best child. They did everything for me during that time, more than what I needed. I still remember the support I had from my father when I was on bed rest for a few months. Add this to raising two other children within financial boundaries, and you'll imagine the pressure, and the energy required.
We also went for annual trips to several countries and I am amazed at how they managed to do that. The education after intermediate was expensive for us, as we were struggling to some extent financially. Yet, they managed it. I saw them shopping, I saw them eating, I saw them saving each & every paisa they can, yet they spent all the money they can on us to make us the best.
And now, I am proud to claim that they have succeeded in all of that, our education, financial stability, home environment, relationship with others & the family reputation, etc. My brother is a Chartered Accountant, working outside the country with one of the world's best companies. I am here in Islamabad, again in one of the better companies in Pakistan, earning a good salary. All the credit goes to our parents and all the sacrifice they had faced for us.
It's human nature that the realization comes with experience and I am sure people have gone through the age where you feel like your parents haven't done anything for you and I am quite sure that, that age is still to come (or may have come already) when one realizes the efforts of one's parents and then an era comes where you are the parent!
The age from 30 to 50 (depending upon the birth of kids) is an age for extreme struggle and careful decision-making and I haven't seen many who have gone through that with success in all areas. There's a lot to do for them, in fact I'll never be able to return fully what they had given me. I must end by saying that praying for them and doing anything they want should be one of our main goals.
They had only negligible financial reserves to start with. They had a vision for both of us and they worked really hard to achieve the goals, leaving aside the constraints and personal motivation levels. They had their financial plans, which they have now achieved and all seems smooth, but it isn’t. They got us very good standard schooling and worked everyday consistently to make us better human beings. The amount of sacrifice and the amount of struggle, in terms of time, energy, money & use of intelligence is simply invaluable. One small example of their decision-making ability is that they changed our schools for a better secondary education, keeping in line with their vision. Not only they wanted us to be good at studies, but also in other areas.
From Montessori to Kindergarten (and sometimes during primary & secondary), my mother used to pick my brother and me up from school in a local bus or a rickshaw, depending upon the saving they did in the month. If you add this to the responsibilities of maintaining our home as well as cooking and other daily activities, it's a hell lot of work and pressure. But she made it look all easy.
My father worked harder and harder to make as much money as to raise both of us in the best of his control. He worked hard at his office, as well as at home to teach us, as well as doing work at home, all by himself, yet keeping everything simple.
They got me a new PC (386 dx) when I was in 9th, the price of which was not compatible with our financial position. I had a major accident when I was in 10th, fracturing two of my bones. I had major operations going on, needed a good surgeon. They arranged all of it, again sacrificing their plans financially. I was not a good student at all at that point in time and still they loved me as if I were their best child. They did everything for me during that time, more than what I needed. I still remember the support I had from my father when I was on bed rest for a few months. Add this to raising two other children within financial boundaries, and you'll imagine the pressure, and the energy required.
We also went for annual trips to several countries and I am amazed at how they managed to do that. The education after intermediate was expensive for us, as we were struggling to some extent financially. Yet, they managed it. I saw them shopping, I saw them eating, I saw them saving each & every paisa they can, yet they spent all the money they can on us to make us the best.
And now, I am proud to claim that they have succeeded in all of that, our education, financial stability, home environment, relationship with others & the family reputation, etc. My brother is a Chartered Accountant, working outside the country with one of the world's best companies. I am here in Islamabad, again in one of the better companies in Pakistan, earning a good salary. All the credit goes to our parents and all the sacrifice they had faced for us.
It's human nature that the realization comes with experience and I am sure people have gone through the age where you feel like your parents haven't done anything for you and I am quite sure that, that age is still to come (or may have come already) when one realizes the efforts of one's parents and then an era comes where you are the parent!
The age from 30 to 50 (depending upon the birth of kids) is an age for extreme struggle and careful decision-making and I haven't seen many who have gone through that with success in all areas. There's a lot to do for them, in fact I'll never be able to return fully what they had given me. I must end by saying that praying for them and doing anything they want should be one of our main goals.
Monday, February 07, 2005
Snowy Weekend
Last thursday, I alongwith two friends decided to have a trip to Murree/Bhurban on Saturday/Sunday. We planned to reach Murree on Saturday, stay overnight and return back the next day after doing lunch at PC Bhurban. Murree is around 60 Kms from Islamabad and it usually takes around 1.5 hours to reach.
We left Islamabad at around 12 noon in Tahir's red Daewoo Racer with original Hankook tyres, and quickly reached the snowy mountains which started around 20 Kms before Murree. As we moved ahead, we encountered a huge traffic jam somewhere around 15 Kms before our destination. Kids & even grown-ups came out of their vehicles and started throwing snowballs on each other as well as the slow moving traffic. We were hit a few times as well. There was snow here and there, everywhere.
Finally, after 3 hours, the slow traffic was converted into low traffic and we reached Murree in no time. Mall road was closed down for all sorts of traffic, so we looked out for the first decent hotel in the way. Hence, we checked-in at Murree Tabaash Hotel and quickly turned the heater on and made ourselves comfortable. At around 6 pm, we got out of the room to check out the atmosphere at Mall road.
We reached Popeye after viewing the public around us and had coffee & soup to warm ourselves. We then decided to visit Kashmir Point and enjoy the view. In the way, we got hold of 3 ice spikes and enjoyed eating 'em. Moving forward, we enjoyed the beautiful, yet creepy pathway with snow crystals glowing in the dim light and light clouds surround. The way got more creepy, as there weren't many people going towards our destination, so we decided to take a 180 degrees turn for the sake of our healths. During our return-back to hotel, we had dinner and again enjoyed the beautiful atmosphere around us. We headed back to our hotel at around 10 pm and enjoyed the services of our temporary heater.
Indus Music was the only visible channel from a list of good channels, so we enjoyed it while playing Black Queen. At around 2 am, we decided to sleep and planned the next day. During the night, Amir realized that he'd caught cold because of which his chest was filled with a lot of pain. He couldn't sleep all night and so at around 7 am we decided to drop the plan for Bhurban and get back. But, it was snowing heavily, infact we soon realized that it had been snowing the whole night and it would be very adventurous to drive in that sort of weather. At around 10 am, it was still snowing, but there was little traffic as well. So, we decided to check-out and head back to Islamabad.
While we were leaving, I realized that the atmosphere created by the falling snow was extremely enjoyable. Wind was blowing as well, making the scene more attractive. But, we had to move, move on and head back, head back to home, home having comfort, comfort which we strive for. We left at 10:15 am!
A few tips for people who go on a snowy trip are:
-Driver & car should be excellent & confident, in order to handle the worst of the situations.
-Keep ultra-warm clothes. An extra set of everything is highly recommended.
-Keep a high buffer of time for extreme conditions.
-All the participants should be strong enough to cope up with you.
We left Islamabad at around 12 noon in Tahir's red Daewoo Racer with original Hankook tyres, and quickly reached the snowy mountains which started around 20 Kms before Murree. As we moved ahead, we encountered a huge traffic jam somewhere around 15 Kms before our destination. Kids & even grown-ups came out of their vehicles and started throwing snowballs on each other as well as the slow moving traffic. We were hit a few times as well. There was snow here and there, everywhere.
Finally, after 3 hours, the slow traffic was converted into low traffic and we reached Murree in no time. Mall road was closed down for all sorts of traffic, so we looked out for the first decent hotel in the way. Hence, we checked-in at Murree Tabaash Hotel and quickly turned the heater on and made ourselves comfortable. At around 6 pm, we got out of the room to check out the atmosphere at Mall road.
We reached Popeye after viewing the public around us and had coffee & soup to warm ourselves. We then decided to visit Kashmir Point and enjoy the view. In the way, we got hold of 3 ice spikes and enjoyed eating 'em. Moving forward, we enjoyed the beautiful, yet creepy pathway with snow crystals glowing in the dim light and light clouds surround. The way got more creepy, as there weren't many people going towards our destination, so we decided to take a 180 degrees turn for the sake of our healths. During our return-back to hotel, we had dinner and again enjoyed the beautiful atmosphere around us. We headed back to our hotel at around 10 pm and enjoyed the services of our temporary heater.
Indus Music was the only visible channel from a list of good channels, so we enjoyed it while playing Black Queen. At around 2 am, we decided to sleep and planned the next day. During the night, Amir realized that he'd caught cold because of which his chest was filled with a lot of pain. He couldn't sleep all night and so at around 7 am we decided to drop the plan for Bhurban and get back. But, it was snowing heavily, infact we soon realized that it had been snowing the whole night and it would be very adventurous to drive in that sort of weather. At around 10 am, it was still snowing, but there was little traffic as well. So, we decided to check-out and head back to Islamabad.
While we were leaving, I realized that the atmosphere created by the falling snow was extremely enjoyable. Wind was blowing as well, making the scene more attractive. But, we had to move, move on and head back, head back to home, home having comfort, comfort which we strive for. We left at 10:15 am!
A few tips for people who go on a snowy trip are:
-Driver & car should be excellent & confident, in order to handle the worst of the situations.
-Keep ultra-warm clothes. An extra set of everything is highly recommended.
-Keep a high buffer of time for extreme conditions.
-All the participants should be strong enough to cope up with you.
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