Editorial

I am going to try to resurrect this newsletter one more time. Life has been busy and those who know me know that I have always tried to juggle too many balls and a knife or two in between. And life has been busy and every once in a while when you are juggling too many balls you have to drop one of them.

Well enough excuses. I am going to change the format of this newsletter. I will continue to write about stuff that's happening in my life to stay in life. But the theme may change a bit. Let me know if you like it.

I have hit a bit of a dry spell when it comes to creativity and so I may not do the flash fiction that I used to do. And if you miss it, please tell me about it.

This is the first after many so it is out of schedule. Next month onwards, I will strive to be more disciplined. But who knows, I may keep it ad hoc. Let's see.

Those who know, know that I started my newsletter first in 2003 or so. At the time it didn't look so good. It was just an email from my outlook. Over the years it has transformed until it took this shape. I now write my newsletters in Mailchimp.

I have always had the habit of writing. I used to write a journal 4 or so times in a week when I used to be a programmer. Once my wife woke up in the middle of the night and came over to my study and I was busy writing about my thoughts about what happened during the day. It was mostly technical and she exclaimed, "What are you doing at this time of the day? Do you realize it is 3.47 am?". That's where the name of this newsletter came from.

I have always loved doing what I do. God knows I would do it for free. And thank God I get paid for it. I have loved programming, I have loved technology and I have loved the work that I do now. It is a fluid world and the pace at which it is changing, it is just an absolute pleasure watching it unfold.

But I don't just love doing what I do. I also love talking about it. That's why I used to write about it. But I have come to realize that there are other media where I can actually "talk" about it. Last year, I started a podcast. It is a podcast about Enterprise Architecture Radio and it is about effective and efficient management of IT.

Listen to the podcast here:

Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/gRM-NMnn

Spotify: https://lnkd.in/g8rFPF3j

Amazon Music: https://lnkd.in/gH-5F5VG

Google Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/gPDPBNiu

Podbean: https://lnkd.in/gTr58-n7

I know I know, "this is not a subject of my interest at all", you are thinking. So let me tell you, But then it is not just about technology and IT. It is about the business. It is about design. It is about leadership.

Let me give you an analogy. We have been building houses for many centuries. But our first houses were smaller in height. Even when construction architecture became a science and we could build taller houses, we didn't go above more than 5 floors. Simply because people would have to climb those 5 floors. But then we invented elevators. And that transformed construction architecture entirely. Literally and metaphorically speaking. Now when we were constructing buildings, when it came to height, sky was the limit, literally and metaphorically.

Now elevators play a big role when it comes to construction architecture. does that mean architecture is about elevators? It isn't. Similarly IT and technology play a very important role in the way we do business these days. There are computers everywhere. But trust me, IT is less about computers and technology and more about the business. And that's what I mostly talk about in my podcast.

Of course I am not going to deny it. Every once in a while I also talk about pure play technology, like master data management or artificial intelligence. But I talk at a level that most people can understand. Give it a try, who knows, you may actually like it. And if you do, don't forget to share with your colleagues, friends and family. 

This is a weekly podcast, so you may hear more often from me. To listen to my podcast you can go to one of the following links, depending on which podcast platform you use.

Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/gnNZp_bQ

Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gAdddzE4

Amazon Music: https://lnkd.in/gPey2Wqf

Google Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/g3jXScYj

Podbean: https://lnkd.in/gMrYAFWY
 

2021 was a horrible year when it comes to reading. Target was 60 which means 5 books a month. I must have done 15 tops. So to keep myself strong on my goal, I will log here some of the interesting books that I read and maybe you will find them interesting too:

1. Seeing like a state: This talks about how humans have made decisions with the intent to do good but it ended up being bad. Mostly about statecraft since medeival times till the modern world. Dry read, but decent.
2. Productize: This one is about pure play productization of services. Interesting because it starts by productizing a service, building it as a product, and then in the end providing the product as a service. A full circle
3. The end of the world is just the beginning: This one is about macro economics and globalization. Again a dry read but I have recently started taking a lot of interest in macro economics
4. The great fragmentation: This one talks about how the time of large enterprises and behemoth organizations is slowly going away and it is the small micro and boutique organizations that are going to rule in the future.
5. The Lights in the Tunnel: This one is a pure play technology book that talks about automation, the technology that's accelerating at an exponential rate and the economy of the future. Goes into some interesting details of what's possible (communism, socialism and the future of capitalism). Interesting read.

I have been riding for many years now. I have had some very interesting experiences. I started this time around on my Royal Enfield Classic 500 motorcycle. And by this time around, I mean after I "matured". I have been riding all my life, without knowing that riding is a thing. In my college days I used to have a scooter that my father gave me. When I got into IT and got my first decent job with a "decent" salary, I bought a Bajaj Pulsar 150 which is still there with me as a remnant of an old past. 

So this time around I started riding with my Royal Enfield Classic 500. I went to some very interesting places like

1. Bhor, Maharashtra
2. Gangtok, Gurudongmar Lake, Lachen, Lachung, Nathula Pass, Dzuluk, Muzaffarpur in Bihar to Benaras in UP all in a single solo ride
3. Hyderabad to Pune to Vadodara to Udaipur and back the same route in a single solo ride
4. Multiple rides to Pune and Bangalore to attend conferences

Then I bought the Royal Enfield Himalayan this one also served me well and I did many rides in the last 2 years, especially the one from Guwahati to Nagaland to Manipur and back the same route, again a solo ride. I also did 2 rides to Arunachal Pradesh with some friends

In my last ride to Arunachal Pradesh, I realized that I have become a good offroad motorcyclist and that I can now more confidently ride to places where there are no roads. And that I now have some money so I can afford a higher end motorcycle. I have sold the Royal Enfield Himalayan and recently purchased a BMW R1250 GS Adventure.


I have taken this hobby very seriously and I am rather passionate about it. It gives me the peace and tranquility like no other activity. It is meditation in motion. It is my cradle of creativity.

I am going on a ride to Bengaluru tomorrow for a conference again and I hope to do some more adventurous rides on this one in the future.

Wish me luck.