It’s only been two days since the war started in the Middle East. Already it has led to several escalations and loss of lives, along with injuries. Unfortunately, this has been boiling up for quite some time now, and it was just a matter of time. We can now only hope that things get normalized soon.
It was a week ago, that I returned from Riyadh, and before that, a couple of weeks at Kerala. I lost my father in law, he was 86. He was not keeping well for some time now, and almost by destiny, the day I reached, after three hours, he passed peacefully. It was two days after his birthday. There were so many things to do, and most of my time was spent arranging and organizing. It helped a lot, that I have lot of contacts, including some of my best friends in good positions in the government. Helped get things done quickly.
Back from this bereavement, the war was yet another pointer towards how flimsy the fabric of life is. Here now, gone next! We can only hope that the limited time we spend on earth, we make it count. I know it’s normal tendency to take care of family, build up wealth, get to better positions, but I also feel we need to start thinking about how to give back.
I always had this dream of setting up a trust, and funding at least a couple of students, through their schooling. In fact, I was thinking that I will sell off a plot of land I have, put that money in a bank, and use the interest to fund the studies. Then I realized that I cannot take on more students, till the first group of kids finish their graduation. Unless more like minded people pitch in. God willing, I will still do this. For now, I contribute to a group called SoS who has a village in Cochin. Feel free to contribute as well, after doing your due diligence. Some times I feel that their communication can be improved.
When I tried to sell the land, the market prices were dismal. So I am waiting for the market to pick up a bit, before tackling the issue again. But without capital, we cannot do anything. Which brings me to the next point logically. Recently I read that India’s GDP and economy is growing at 7% or some figure like that. For more than a year now, I have been watching the growth of companies in the sensex index, and believe me, their growth is very very minor. I guess they are all already at a mature stage, and i probably need to find some midcap companies to invest in. While GDP is not linearly linked to share market growth, I expected at some level a co-relation. But it’s not there. Maybe at some point it will compound and give good returns.
My cousin (it’s his birthday today) had a baby daughter, and they named her Ayra. When I was down in Kerala, I visited them, and it was really nice carrying the baby around. She was sleeping most of the time. Her parents are both working in Germany, and I guess it’s one more contribution from Kerala to European workforce and economy.
Seasons are changing, and it’s spring. Time to tend to the garden which is quite messy, and bring some of that color and brightness to my self as well. Today I planted some tulip bulbs. I fear it might be too late, since they have to be in the cold ground for almost two months. However, it was snowing, and so I really couldn’t plant them so far. But, I had put them in the fridge, and some of them have start sprouting. It’s a hack, and I will know in a couple of weeks time if it works or not. Chances are less, but I am optimistic.
I also need to change back my winter tyres to summer tyres. I had to buy them new and it set me back by a hefty sum. Now it seems that the summer tyres also need to be replenished. I hope all these count when one day I sell the behicle. I went into some big purchases here, including the house. But it’s all in the hope that the value will increase, and I won’t lose any money. For that, I need to hold on to this for at least two years I think.
In another month, I will complete two years at my organization. It’s been a challenging and rewarding and exciting journey so far, and I hope it continues. Working in a European environment is very different, and I believe it will add a lot of missing panache to my management skills. There’s lot of learning especially in proper reporting and presentation of data. It makes me feel that the kind of graphic concepts I used previously, are legacy and a whole new world of collaborative platforms and AI based toolsets are readily available.
While I read about the war, and see videos of missiles exploding and debris raining down, I often think about my friends in Dubai. I feel that I should be there, supporting them. And experiencing the days, hours, minutes and seconds they spend anxious and worried. But then, knowing me, I would probably be the most worried if I was there. My friends are very special to me.
My tenant again misbehaved, and didn’t pay the rent on time. After giving him one month, I got a court notice issued. The moment he god that, he paid some money, though not all. But, I was also shocked through this episode. The court notice took only 550 AED. Where as , previously, when I issued a court notice, they took 4000 AED from me. So, in spite of having stayed in Dubai for a long time, knowing my ways around how thing happen, I also got caught by surprise. But now I know, and now it seems much more manageable to issue court notices for anything and everything.
By June, Jo will finish her Masters. I am keenly waiting for the next phase of her life. I would like to see her settled down with a good job, get some savings, become independent and then think about a family. Of course it’s all in God’s hands. But it seems like Gen-z doesn’t want to get married at all. Marriage is a serious business, and the traditional style of arranged marriages will be a big flop going forward, I feel, due to the influence of families from both sides. If the kids were left to themselves, they might stick together. But our parents always have the habit of getting involved in anything and everything , treating their children as always kids.
I am on lent, and this time am determined to observe it. I am skipping meat of any kind, alcohol and sugar. And then I found non-alcoholic beer (Heineken 0.0). Now, some people might call it cheating, but I think it’s a good solution when we feel tempted. I get it everywhere, so I guess it’s kind of becoming popular now. Last year, I neither confessed nor took the holy mass, which I guess is a no-no for a Christian. This time I will try to get that done.
With the spring and summer beckoning, I also want to travel a bit. This year I have Portugal in sight. Mauritius is also on my bucket list. Hope they happen. A lot of it depends on the weather. And also disciplined and a healthy life. When I checked my vitals in Nov, I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic. My three month average was 6.3. Doctor asked me to stop sugar and check after three months. I was having lot of sugar, including sweets from office, cakes, raisin bread, bananas, french fries. I stopped all that, and tested, and it had come down to 5.9. Still some way to go, but it shows that if we control sugar, it definitely will reduce.
Today I watched Sanju hitting 98* and putting India through to the semi finals. A great achievement, and really proud to live that moment when a local boy did the unthinkable. I feel he’s one of the best cricketers in the world right now. And with his keeping as well as power hitting, he’s bound to go far. I believe he’s 32, but he can easily go on till 38 because he plays only the limited overs format.
During these challenging times, I can only think of maintaining the following disciplines in my life
- be committed: – to whatever you are doing. Rain or shine, do it. Even if you are not well, drag yourself to it
- be honest:- first and foremost, to yourself. Then to others. You should sleep peacefully. I know many people who cannot, and I pity them.
- be humble:- don’t be arrogant, help others, support others, and show decency in your actions. You will always reap what you sow…
- be happy:- it’s easy to say and difficult to achieve. I see some of my friends put reels after reels, and I wonder how lucky they are, to be happy, and also to demonstrate it publicly. I admire and adore them.
It’s very boring staying by myself. It’s been almost two months now, though one month I was also away. I have become expert at grilling salmon, chicken, vegetables. Then with good weather, daily walks also become possible. I hope to increase my average. For the last one year, it’s 7900 steps per day, but I want it to be 10K steps per day. Even with this, pre-diabetics and what not!
I am big on planning, including financial planning. I have this spreadsheet, which I use for one year ahead. Since I came to Europe, to be honest, I found little use for the spread sheet, because I was living pay check to pay check. Couldn’t plan anything that took up money, such as a vacation, or buying something. Couldn’t save anything either. Now, with Jo’s education wrapping up, I hope to return to the spread sheet and have a holistic view of where I will be. Foreign education is very expensive, and if we are not prepared, then it’s difficult to maintain as well. But the benefits and the learning that kind of education provides the child, is invaluable. Jo’s guide is someone who’s published several books and is a well known technologist. Such kind of exposure can be obtained only in good universities, and my advice is to prepare for that, and not to compromise on education. Money is only as valuable as the object it is spent for. My wife always says “There is nothing to replace money where money is needed”. I believe it’s important not to be caught unawares, and plan early so that when you need money, you have it. I also strongly believe money has a role to play in life, but it cannot be at the cost of integrity and honesty.
For young couples with children, one word of financial advice. If you invest 500 EUR/month , and increase it by 50 EUR every year , and it grows at 10 % annually, in 20-25 years, you will get close to 1 million EUR. The power of compounding!
I invested in a Zurich investment scheme and it gave me good returns. Savings is key to financial security.
I wish everyone the wonderful spirit of March. March is named after Mars, the God of War. So, conquering new heights… March is also when the Spring equinox hits, day and night is of equal length. So, balance in life….March is also when shoots spring up from the dark soil, and flowers start to bud and slowly blossom. So, to new beginnings and re-awakenings. March is Memories…