Author: dilipmerala

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West Coast to East Coast – My First New York Trip

A concrete jungle interspersed with all kinds of human personalities and enterprises – that was my first impression of New York City. Getting on a plane from Los Angeles on the eve of July 4th weekend had its set of challenges. I was a bit anxious having read various articles about expected delays and cancellations. Thankfully, all went well, and we got to Laguardia airport on Friday night as planned. Getting the iconic NYC yellow taxi from the airport was super-convenient and we were lucky to land one with a transparent Tesla-like roof, giving us a glimpse of the sky, some famous streets, bridges, and tall buildings right away. It also worked out the hotel was in downtown NYC making most of the landmarks walkable as we discovered over the next couple of days.

A view from the MET while walking in NYC

It all began with a hunt for food on night 1. We stepped outside the hotel at 11:30 pm to look for a nearby restaurant. The first thing we found was a food truck right round the street corner. We walked for around 15 more seconds and reached an intersection with humongous electronic billboard and tall buildings. The crowd around reminded me of Dadar station in Mumbai, with hardly any space to walk and non-stop chitter-chatter. The difference of course was that most people, including us, had their cell phones out clicking pictures of the ostentatious displays advertising everything from fashion brands to upcoming movies and shows. Summer informed me that this was the famous Times Square, and we were surprised that this was barely a minute’s walk from the hotel. We clicked a few photos and continued our search for dinner which ended with a food truck close to the hotel. As always, it was Indian food to my rescue with a kind man treating us to some delicious chicken rice for a cost less than half of a restaurant meal.

Los Angeles vs New York – Dallas friends reunited

The hotel itself was fascinating with a ship-like structure and really small but cute rooms. However, knowing that this trip was meant to be more outdoors than indoors, I didn’t mind the size of the room and quite enjoyed the fact that the location of this hotel was perfect. This trip was mostly about meeting friends after years and in doing so, witnessing a glimpse of NYC streets and the infamous fast pace everyone talks about. Being from Mumbai, I wasn’t alien to this but was still looking forward to getting a slice of the so-called best city in the US.

CHECK OUT About Face: My First Short Film in the US

Next morning, my dear friends Gayatri and Sandeep drove all the way from Philly to meet me. We spent the day reminiscing university days, walk in the famous Central Park, eating Mediterranean food and then having drinks and tacos at a hep pier restaurant named Watermark. All of this was great fun, but the best part was just seeing these two lovebirds after 2 years. It was crazy to think that I used to meet Gayatri almost daily for 2 years and had then gone without seeing her at all for another 2.

Ever the cartoon with some fancy food

It felt like I was back at Northside Drafthouse with her, telling her some story about my day which she already knew. Ha! Thanks to their car, we also got a chance to drive through some of the NYC streets and check out some more of the typical buildings before it was time to bid goodbye to them. With a heavy heart, I bid farewell with promises of meeting soon – perhaps in LA next time.

At the Watermark pier

Later that evening, we met two more of my close UT Dallas friends. Nivesh, who was particularly excited about my NYC visit, had been planning to come see me as soon as possible. He took a subway ride all the way from Jersey and we then walked to a nearby restaurant – Mama Mia – to catch up like old times. Anirudh joined us a bit later and we all had some fancy pastas and pizza. In this duration, we also had an incident with a homeless person – another infamous thing I had heard about NYC. We were sitting outdoors in the streetside restaurant, and this homeless guy walked up to us asking for cash. Summer gave him a few dollars and he goes – “I am gonna give this back to you and ask you to buy me food”. We were not sure how to deal with this other than just saying “No, sorry”. But he went on almost in a threatening tone – “If the waitress gets here, she will call the cops and I will get in trouble (but what he was implying was he will give us trouble). So just give me $8 or buy me food. We all then looked in our wallets and gave him some more cash, making us feel like we have been extorted for money.

NYC restaurant

Nivesh then told us that this is common in NYC and the common thing to do is not budge. Anyway, we learned our lesson and enjoyed the rest of our meal in peace. Nivesh, as a tribute to one of the running jokes Gayatri and he had on me, gifted me a Belated Happy Father’s Day card (because I am much older than these two).

ALSO READ San Francisco – Sausalito – Monterey: From Trains and Ferries to Bridges and Hikes

The next morning, we met Summer’s friend Eddie at Bryant Park for lunch and spent the rest of the afternoon walking on the streets, exploring part of the city. They showed me some famous landmarks which were all just a few minutes from each other – Empire State Building, Grand Central Station, MET. It was awesome that people could just walk to all these places, as compared to Los Angeles where it’s unusual to get anywhere without a car. Our walks also gave me a chance to observe establishments, coffee shops, bagel places, stores, parks and listen to voices, conversations, accents – and tried to compare these with what I had seen in Dallas and Los Angeles. It became quite obvious to me that NYC clearly had its own distinct character, pace, vibrance and aura. It also became clear to me that I was perhaps more of an LA guy by now 🙂

summer at NY library
Kiosk says it all

Finally, it was the 4th of July, and we hadn’t made any plans for the evening. Thankfully, I was able to get a reservation for the evening fireworks at a place Nivesh recommended – 230 5th rooftop bar. And I was glad later that I did. We spent the day walking on the streets again – we picked up bagels for our friend Bettina from Essa bagel, bought coffee from a small shop on the way, and then had lunch later at a German bar. When it was time in the evening, Nivesh, Summer and I showed up at the rooftop bar which was bustling with well-dressed people excited about the upcoming Macy’s fireworks. Our table happened to have a clear view of the Empire State Building lit up in USA colors. There was fun music playing and around 8 pm, the fireworks started. It was a great experience listening to music, watching these fireworks in a new city, with an iconic landmark (KING KONG!) in front of us. We captured a bunch of pictures and videos and walked back to the hotel after stopping for a donut on the way.

Empire State Building as seen from 230 5th Rooftop Bar

It was time to say Adios to NYC the next morning and rent a car from Avis near the airport. The taxi guy this time was Harminder who talked to me about his neck of the woods in NYC and how it is full of Indians. We spoke in Hindi, and he told me it’s not usual as even Hindi-speaking Indians prefer conversing in English when in NY. we were dropped off safely and as it has been customary to lose something on every trip, I dropped my sunglasses somewhere while deboarding Harminder’s cab. We rented a cool hatch back and drove to Connecticut, where one of the best places I have experienced in the US so far awaited me. More on that in my next post…

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A visit to Griffith Observatory and the Samuel Oschin Planetarium in Los Angeles

At the age of 11 with some guidance from my friend Sainath, I wrote to NASA expressing my interest in space and astronomy. The stamp for the letter cost around Rs. 40 if I remember correctly but it was totally worth it because 3 months later, I got a package full of stunning pictures of the planets in our solar system. Ever since then, like many other students in the world, I have been curious about space. So when I moved to Los Angeles, the one-of-its-kind Griffith observatory was on top of my list of places to visit.

an aerial shot of the griffith observatory in los angeles california usa
Photo by Geminiiphotographs gemini on Pexels.com

All through the pandemic, I got a chance to check out the Griffith park and its surroundings including the touristic Hollywood sign thanks to Sunil and Dips driving me there a few times. However, I was waiting desperately for when the Samuel Oschin planetarium would open so I can experience one of its marvelous shows. Finally, I got an opportunity to visit it and check out the show “Centered in the Universe” last evening and thankfully, it did not disappoint.

ALSO SEE About Face: My first short film in the US

Griffith observatory is open only Friday-Sunday unlike the park which is open all week from sunrise to sunset. Summer and I had tried on a weekend a few weeks ago but were unable to catch a show due to lack of parking and the energy to hike up. So this time, we went prepared for some exercise. On Friday, we first drove all the way up to Griffith to see if we can find some parking but were turned around like the previous time as the paid parking was full. Summer had done her research for parking spots so we parked next to the Greek theatre and hiked up a mile to Griffith. The weather was beautiful and the hike was pleasant.

Once there, we took in the view of the observatory and the beautiful Hollywood sign across it. The sign was still bright in the sky and the brightness washed over the landscape making it more sensible to keep the sunglasses on. We then stood in the cue for 5 mins with our vaccination proof to be let in around 5:40 pm. We then purchased our tickets at $7 a piece (no queue thankfully) for the 6:15 pm show of “Centered in the universe” and spent the next 20 minutes checking out the displays inside the observatory. Then, we stepped out to queue up on the West Terrace for entering the planetarium when we witnessed a marriage proposal with a plane carrying the banner “Willst du mich heiraten?” in the sky. There was a “Yes” and kissing and hooting and clapping and just like that, it was time to get in.

CHECK OUT San Francisco – Sausalito – Monterey: From Trains and Ferries to Bridges and Hikes

We took our seats and as we were waiting for the show to start, we overheard a man in the back entertaining some kids. He was doing an Indian accent (a terrible one) and they were laughing but also saying aloud – “we are not with this guy”. It seemed like he might be telling a story of some character he played. He certainly thought he was funny, but Summer and I didn’t. I decided to let it slide and focus on the show.

For the next 35 minutes, I was just glued to the ceiling which presented a majestic journey of our planet and the universe since the Big Bang. The visuals were surreal and the storytelling was engaging. I was familiar with a lot of the content as I had read about it and also given a refresher in the show Cosmos. Nevertheless, the visual experience made going through it again totally worth it.

We then stepped out and made our way to the roof where the 12-inch Zeiss Refracting telescope is housed. The queue was really long so we figured we will do it another time.

And then it started getting quite chilly so we hiked back to the car, picked up Pho to go 😁 from Indochine at Glendale Blvd and headed back home. And that was the little story of my first trip to the Griffith Observatory.

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How many distractions do we need?

The reason for indulging in any kind of entertainment often seems to be – “Life is tough as it is, so this is just an outlet, a distraction, a guilty pleasure, an escape!”. Films and TV with their several forms of content are a distraction. Travel is a distraction. Sports is a distraction. Dating is a distraction. Strip joints and casinos and pubs and clubs are distractions. Motorcycles and cars and comics are distractions. Smoking is a distraction. Music? Shopping? Stand-up comedians? Social Media?

flat screen television
Photo by JESHOOTS.com on Pexels.com

ALSO SEE Racism and Indians in the United States – What’s Our Role?

How much entertainment do we need? How many distractions do we need? When and how did we turn into a species that wants to escape more than be present? French philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote – “All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone”. It seems like with every passing day, this is becoming more and more accurate. Yes, it creates more opportunities for employment and occupation. But at what cost? I hope Mr. Jared Diamond finds the time to delve deep into this and write another gem. Let me think about this more as I brew a cup of coffee and tee up the latest episode of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

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About Face: My first short film in the US

Almost two years ago, I was invited to act in a wonderful short film in Texas. Named ‘About Face’, the film is extremely relevant, especially in today’s political climate. Directed by the exceptional Dr. Thomas Riccio who had auditioned me for a couple of his plays (none of which I got selected for 😆), the short film brings to light the topic of racism over the ages.

Cast and crew of About Face

It premiered on Kera TV (the local wing of PBS in Texas) this October. Dr. Riccio plans to send it to festivals so for now, all I can share is the teaser. Let me know what you think –

About Face teaser

Here’s the list of other projects (and a gist of About Face) that featured in the Frame of Mind series: Four short films explore race on Frame of Mind

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Shakespeare in Los Angeles – Summer Intensive 2021 at Will Geer Theatre Botanicum

One of the things that has sucked most about COVID-19 is how it has put a damper on theatre activities. Having moved to LA recently, I was excited about participating in stage activities and becoming part of a theatre group as soon as possible. However, the pandemic hit the theatre world bad and made it impossible to start something new in a new city. Mercifully, after months of emailing groups, schools and artists, I found a summer Shakespeare workshop in the valley that I could easily attend.

I’ll never forget my first visit to Will Geer Theatre Botanicum. I rode my motorcycle through the curvy roads of Topanga Canyon flanked by pleasant views of hillocks. The short ride was fun, adventurous and refreshing. As I pulled into the parking lot of the Botanicum, I saw Ms. Ellen Geer walking in. I was to meet her to present a short monologue and get my assignment for the intensive workshop. She smiled at me as I parked my bike but our greetings were drowned by the loud thumping noise of my motorcycle as I, in my stupidity, hadn’t turned off the engine before beginning to speak. We walked in where I met Michelle and after a short chat, performed my monologue from Romeo and Juliet. To my delight, Ms. Geer said I’ll be fine and gave me an extraordinary piece from Richard III.

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The month of the workshop was the most creatively satisfying time I’ve spent in California so far. Surrounded by hills, green trees, nature sounds, and a group of talented actors, I worked on my monologue under the guidance of wonderful teachers. The voice work sessions with Ms. Jan Wilkstrom got me back in the groove as it had been months since I had acted. Ms. Melora Marshall directed my monologue in which I employed scansion and rhetoric techniques taught by Ms. Susan Angelo. The Alexander technique sessions were great for body language, breath and future work. I particularly enjoyed the Elizabethan life session by Ms. Elizabeth Tobias as it gave an insight on social structure, clothes, courtesy during that era and how it matters in Shakespeare.

On the day of the performance itself, we were all ecstatic. Starting with some Elizabethan dance (choreographed by Ms. Marshall), we went through one monologue after another presented for a small audience. Our directors had done a fine job making use of the entire space for the show. I myself was to hide on the upper level and make an entry from the balcony. I was a bit nervous but by the time it was my turn, I was confident and raring to go. The last performance I had done was a student project where I played the General in a recreated scene from The Outbreak for a direction class. Stepping on stage to perform for a Live audience again, and a Richard III monologue at that, felt like an infusion of much-needed oxygen.

I have now returned to the Will Geer theatre for another workshop in October, this time on scene work. It’s reassuring to see some familiar faces from the summer intensive – wonderful artists I had the pleasure of connecting with in August. And there are some new ones to learn from! Here’s hoping that my journey as an actor continues here in LA and I stumble upon some creative inspiration again.

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San Francisco – Sausalito – Monterey: From Trains and Ferries to Bridges and Hikes

One of the coolest things about my workplace is that we get an entire week off for celebrating the 4th of July. I figured this would be a good time for my first post-COVID trip since I was fully vaccinated and had some travel money saved. I decided to embark on a train ride from LA to San Francisco aboard the Coast Starlight – something I’ve wanted to do for a while. I had driven through the Golden Gate Bridge with my cousin last year and spent a few hours in San Francisco. This time, with a week to spend, I figured I could get a better feel of the city and couple of its neighboring spots. A couple of my friends from UT Dallas were interested in exploring San Francisco so they visited me in LA for a couple of days before we took off for our summer holiday on Friday, the 2nd.

The train ride was what I was most excited about. And boy, did it live up to the hype! We started from Union Station in Los Angeles at 10.10 am. While the first hour or so from LA is just views of the city, the stretch just before Santa Barbara up to San Luis Obispo is spectacular to say the least. The train has an observation car which became my office for the day!

View from Coast Starlight train between Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo

The crashing blue waves on one end and the horizon blending into the clear blue sky on the other – I couldn’t take my eyes off if it. The observation car was fully occupied for those couple of hours and I met a couple of interesting fellow travelers too.

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Our first day in SFO was as dedicated to the Golden Gate Bridge. Thankfully for us, the bus and ferry rides were free for the 4th July weekend. So we hopped onto a bus and reached the bridge – walking across the bridge from one end to the other and back. I hadn’t walked that much in a long time. The views from the bridge are truly magnificent. The city on one side, the woods on the other and clear blue-green water all in between. The bridge was full of people of all ages from all over the world. As we walked on the walkway, I noticed motorcyclists performing stunts on the bridge, bicycle riders pacing on the other side (dedicated to bikes), couples getting all mushy, children running around, families clicking pictures… it is very touristic and yet so refreshing.

Golden Gate bridge

The bus back to the hotel was eye-opening and exposed some parts of the underbelly of downtown San Francisco. Some streets were full of garbage and home to junkies just sitting/walking around. I felt a bit intimidated thinking what I’d do if I were to find myself walking on one of these streets. Some others were fancy with patio seats of trendy restaurants.

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The next day, we took the ferry ride to the next available ferry. And to our delight – it was to this beautiful island of Sausalito. A beautiful, Greek-like island, Sausalito was a breath of fresh air. A marvelous place to take a walk and enjoy great views with hip restaurants, coffee shops, ice cream parlors, Sausalito quickly became the best part of our trip. That was till the next day when we visited Monterey.

Sausalito

So one of my friends wanted to take a drive to check out this bridge from the show Big Little Lies – the Bixby Creek bridge. We rented an car and started in the morning. While it took longer than expected because of traffic (4 hours instead of 2), we were quite happy with the last stretch of the drive as it was flanked by scenic views of fog-clad hills and pristine beaches. After a mandatory photo shoot at the bridge, we decided to stop by a trail on the way back. And that’s where we all found our favorite part of the trip.

Bixby Bridge

The trail on Garrapata state park is straight out of a romantic song in a Bollywood movie. It’s surrounded by green landscapes and flowers, clean, quiet beaches, hills kissing the clouds and an X-factor I cannot even begin to describe. No matter which direction I turned in, there was a magnificent view sweeping me off the floor. We walked around for a while, then found a spot and sat quietly just to take it all in. We didn’t want to leave but realized that no amount of time there would be enough. So, after another walk through the trail, we headed back to the urban hoopla of downtown SFO.

Our last day in San Francisco was all about street walks and shopping. My friends then left for Dallas while I visited some other friends in Pleasanton and Sunnyvale. It was great to see high school buddies who are now parents to adorable kids. I took the flight back from San Jose to Burbank with a full heart and a wide smile.

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Integrating Smartsheet with Spotfire

It’s been over three months at my new job and I have already learnt a variety of new things. Working with a brilliant team of developers, I have been exploring the nitty-gritties of Spotfire and unraveling new functionalities every week. While there is a significant difference between the available functionalities for the client and web versions, Spotfire leads my list of best visualization tools to provide business insights. But what I have found most exciting recently is integrating it with Smarstheet.

Image: Wikimedia Commons

Smartsheet, as the name suggests, is a smart sheet – essentially an Excel-meets-Trello-meets-Tableau platform. Tying it up with Spotfire gives you a pretty neat solution where on one end, you can create efficient workflows for your team to work directly on the data source and on the other, pull the data in to create great data visuals. To give you a simple example – you can set an automation in Smartsheet to send out email reminders to different members of your team to populate cells assigned to them and this data can then be pulled into the corresponding Spotfire dashboard. The only catch here is – you would need a Smartsheet business license to connect Smartsheet to Spotfire using the Live Data Connector.

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As I continue to monitor things that are new in upcoming versions of Spotfire by following Neil Kanungo’s enlightening Dr. Spotfire sessions, I plan to keep an eye out for other such integrations to help my team build efficient processes and deliver fast, accurate business insights.

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New City, New Job, New Start… Hello Los Angeles!

It’s all been a bit overwhelming. Yes, there is a global pandemic that has shaken things up for almost everybody on this planet. But that aside, the last few months have been an emotional roller coaster. I graduated with a Master’s degree in May, left behind some loved ones in Texas and moved to California in June, turned 35 (still can’t believe it!) in October… and throughout all this, kept looking for full time employment to land on my feet. So, you can imagine my thrill when I inform you that just as the year was nearing a disappointing end, I have joined Amgen in Thousand Oaks, California as a Clinical App & Analytical Services Manager.

I really can’t describe how I feel at this point. Relieved? Happy? Anxious? Motivated? While these words begin to describe my emotions, they don’t completely portray what’s going on. It’s been that kind of a year. What I do know is that I have been incredibly lucky throughout this journey. I am touched by the kind gestures of a number of people who have tried to help and support me. From the professors at my University to my friends and colleagues to strangers who admired my Resume song to a kind old friend who offered me a lifeboat in the form of a contract job to my cousin who suddenly reappeared in my life to play big brother – I have had so much love and warmth that my heart is full of gratitude. I also know that whatever is coming my way holds great value and can never be taken for granted.

I now move forward, with the entirety of my skills, dedication, and experience, to join Amgen’s mission to serve patients. As part of the R&D team, I’ll work for Global Development Operations and strive to provide meaningful analytical insights and business intellect using vital data. I am already moved by the warm welcome I have received at the firm, and am pumped to work with a brilliant global team. It’ll be amazing to employ my Python, Spotfire, data analytics, and business training and experience to help develop life-saving drugs. I am inspired by the incredible things Amgen has achieved over the years, and feel honored that I can be part of its upcoming feats.

On the personal front, I will soon be moving into a little apartment – my bachelor pad if you will – in Los Angeles! Once the virus is no longer a threat and it’s safe to step out again, I would love to explore the city of Hollywood. I’ve heard and read great things about southern California and can’t wait to check this part of the world out. Like anyone beginning life in a new city, I’m feeling the butterflies. Let’s see what 2021 has in store!

This will probably be my last post of the year. So, here’s wishing everyone reading this a merry Christmas and a marvelous new year! Happy Holidays!

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Love, Respect, Goals – The Compatibility Triangle

What does it take to find “the one”? Gazing upon the picturesque view of sunshine hitting the peaks of stunning Simi Valley hillocks, we pondered on this age-old question. After the discussion, my friend suggested that I write down my take on the subject. So here I go!

My take, I should point out, is my humble opinion based on my own experiences and sensibilities. It works for ME. Anyone who knows me would tell you that I am certainly no expert in this particular subject 🙂 I have no intention of suggesting how one should approach this or any life matter. Like other articles in this category, this one too is a musing.

My theory is that the decision to choose a life partner finally boils down to this triangle of compatibility:

The Compatibility Triangle

The first one’s a no brainer, right? Love, in this context, encompasses all feelings of attraction – romance, sex, chemistry – you get the drift. Without this vertex, it wouldn’t be a life partner compatibility triangle but an “any relationship” line segment. When two people develop the same romantic feelings to a mutually acceptable degree, they are all set to try and explore the likelihood of a long term relationship (marriage, for example).

Then there’s respect! It’s possible to get attracted to someone, even love them with all their flaws when you spend some time with them. However, unless you respect the behavior, personality, actions, ethics of your partner, you are bound to run into problems sooner or later. Respect, like love, develops over time as you experience the actions and thoughts of your partner. It also employs your moral compass. While you may agree to disagree upon a few things, certain things may be non-negotiable for one or another. For example – punctuality, hygiene, humility are my non-negotiables. So on dating apps, when I see that a woman’s answer to the question “I’m known for..” is “being late”, it’s a dead end. Once two people accept organically that they both respect each other’s values and can live with the disagreements, this very vital criterion is met.

And then comes the most practical one of the three vertices – Goals. Two people may love and respect each other enough but they also need to be true to their own identities. Everyone has aspirations, goals, dreams for what they want to do with their limited years on this planet. To make a lifelong partnership work, two people would not only need to be cognizant and supportive of each other’s goals, but also align them in a way that they can build a fruitful life together. If one plans to live life as a teacher in the mountains of Nepal, and the other insists on being a developer in San Francisco, or if one wants to travel the world all year round while the other enjoys a grounded, indoors life in one town – it might be tough to find bliss.

While I do not want to do this all year round, at least twice a year won’t hurt!

Of course, people make sacrifices for their partners all the time. In all of these three vertices, one partner or another is probably going to make some compromises to keep the relationship stable. That’s commitment. The question is – how much is okay? Where’s the line? Think of it like a balance with one partner’s sacrifices on each side. If the scales tip too much in either direction, the equilibrium is lost. If one or both of the parties in the relationship are having to compromise too much on their feelings or values or goals, that’s a red flag.

Also, there is no particular order to these three vertices. One doesn’t necessarily come after the other. In several long-lasting arranged Indian marriages, feelings of love develop at a later stage (speaking of the ones where couples are actually happy, not the ones where there is just silent suffering for years to avoid societal backlash). Couples take a leap of faith based on familial approval of mutual respect and agreement of goals. This initial respect is often based on things like one’s financial stability, security, qualifications, qualities, culture, horoscopes, et all. Love may come later.

So, long story short – If I can build the compatibility triangle of mutual love, respect, and goals with someone, I’m not letting her go! Let’s see where this mantra lands me 😀