Friday, July 17, 2009

Change - III

It's now official(I mean, things are finalized), and I can post it in my blog, the news what so far only my closest circle knows. No, I am not getting married, (Although some my friends and classmates are getting ready :( ) I am moving to New York from Mid August to pursue my Masters in Computer Science at The State University of New York @ Stony Brook aka Stony Brook University :)

The last one and half years, I was preparing for this. Wrote the GRE in last September and TOEFL in October and managed to scalp 1370 and 110 respectively. How I wished for a single window system for the US universities like we have for Engineering/Medicine here in TN for it was the toughest part of the process. Preparing the Statement of Purpose and getting the Recommendation letters was the next stage. Once through with the application part in early January, it was followed by an infinite wait, and in March, I got the first admit from Clemson University followed closely by University of California, Irvine, Arizona State University, University of Maryland - Baltimore County, North Carolina State University , State University of New York- Stony Brook and Ohio State University. The strike rate was much better than what I had thought (0.7)

Selecting SUNY-SB over others wasn't difficult for it is the best in Computer Science, ranks much better than others, fees is comparatively cheaper and more than that, some of my seniors and close friends are already there. what else would one need above all this? Getting the I20 docs took some time and eventually scaled the tension-filled visa interview and got the US visa stamped in the passport.

Whew!! It had been a tight rope walking all these days, managing the job and the aspiration to pursue MS. Now comes the most difficult part, leaving India... Change is always tough, and every change teaches some important lessons in life. What I would miss the most, needs a separate blog post by itself and hence I am leaving it for now.

Now waiting for Change - III to take over after the successful Change - II (Madurai to Bangalore) which happened two years back.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Into the Wild

"Into the Wild" is a travelogue movie sticking along the lines of "Motorcycle Diaries". It accounts the travel adventures of Christopher Mccandless from Atlanta to Alaska through Arizona, California and South Dakota and his stay in the unbearable Alaskan cold for 4 months. The film is a visual treat to nature lovers and people who have a strong inclination towards travelling. The tragedy in the end is quite disturbing.

The film is adapted from the novel "Into The Wild" by Jon Krakauer which in turn is inspired from the real life story of Christopher Mccandless. Through the protagonist's thought process, the film also dwells on the purpose of life and the pitiable state where the human society heads. The script writer must have experienced and savoured such thoughts and has come out with such scripts.

"I mean, the core of man's spirit comes from new experiences."

Though the central character's travels and adventures kindles a fire for outing in us, Going into the wild without any preparation or tools and his underestimation of the risks involved sometimes irks and I believe the tragedy in the end is a consequence of his own foolhardy. After all, Human life more valuable than any adventure.