Ramadan

Wife: Is Sal Rozay Rkho Ge?

Husband: Nhi.

Wife: Aur Travi Prhoge?

Husband: Mushkil Hai.

Wife: Aur Aftari Kro ge?
Husband: Zahir hai.Kya bilkul hi kafir hojaon ?

The Eternal Night...

Posted this on FB, logging it here as well.

The eternal night
darkens yet again..
as I sink deeper..
in torrents of pain..
my esteem shattered
and pride slain..
The grue lingers..
and runs through me..
over and over again
every moment turns ugly
disastrously insane..
and insanity is redefined..
every now and again..
The disease has seeped,
deep withing me..
despair has gripped..
every inch of me..
taking me to new lows
and I can't fight it..
despite all my vows..
In the eyes of death,
my tired soul now stares...
and for the heaven-bound journey
it gradually prepares..
and just before I drift
into the welcoming oblivion
I find myself hit..
with a vivid realization..
that I, and only I, was responsible
for my own damnation...

Dedicated to a country suffering from a Terminal Illness.

Shubha and Spirituality.. a Stunning Combination..

Well what can one say.. She may not be popular with the masses.. but damn she's got a great voice.. and a complete mastery over her vocals.
And this particular song... is simply brilliant... it takes you to a totally different world altogether. Rhythmic, enchanting, deeply spiritual, punctuated with nifty electric guitar riffs and laced with her free-flowing voice. Lyrically, this song transcends the religious and social divides and takes you to an absolute spiritual crescendo..

Main to Dekhoon Ga

Grab your headphones, sit back and relax and enjoy this latest masterpiece from Strings. One of the best partriotic songs ever.. Love the eastern folk rhythm, the bass, the vocals, the simple video and above all.. the lyrics.. Hats off to Bilal Maqsood for giving words to hopes and prayers of all my countrymen

A Graceful Exit

As the whole Cricketing World seems to be ecstatic over a Pak India Semi final clash..
I am quietly sitting here in my TV lounge, and thinking about a Champion Player who made his final exit from the World Cup today. Ricky Thomas Ponting, one of the last two survivors of the Invincible Australian Team has bowed out of the World Cup Cricket - and it is a tragic, yet I would say, a very Graceful exit.
The Champion batsman fought with valor.. like a lone warrior who gives everything to protect his land and dies fighting..
His ODI form was probably at its lowest ebb before this match, but he lifted his game for this occasion.. responded to the pressure and stood up to the challenge yet again.. like a boxer who stands back up on his feet from a near-knockout situation..
Played a real gem of an innings on a very difficult surface under not-so-favorable circumstances.. a very responsible innings.. held the australian innings together.. but he did not get the support he required.. there were not many skilled warriors by his side this time.. there was no Damien Martyn at the other end to support him.. there were just the failures of Hussey, Clarke and White at the other end.. and as Brian Charles Lara and Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar would probably confirm.. Cricket is mostly about 11 players.. and the heroics of merely 1 player seldom win matches..
Not all the tales have happy endings.. Ponting's World Cup tale has also ended in a dramatic and tragic manner, but still I guess he can hold his head high.. and leave with grace from this World Cup arena.. a grace which he so richly deserves too..

Edited : 25-Mar-2011 8:20 PM
People might hate him for his arrogance or attitude, but I am talking about his batting prowess here, not discussing any other attributes or characterisitics. I even received a comment on fb 'Cricket is a gentleman's game. True, he has great statistics to boast off but unfortunately he wasn't a gentleman' .
So what ? no one is giving him a Character Certificate here, we are talking about his on-field competitiveness. Ultimately, to win matches, you need to score runs with the bat in the field, that's what it is all about.. and that's what he was good at.. that's what should be appreciated.. and enjoyed..
Besides... with pitch digging, ball biting, spot fixing, match fixing etc. going on in the game.. it is hardly a "Gentleman's Game" now.. :-)

Google rankings.. hmmmm

If you happen to google 'a tribute to kamran akmal', this very page comes up in top 5 rankings (at the time of writing this)..
;)

A "Tribute" to Kamran Akmal

A collection of sentiments (in no particular order) of my friends about the Worst Wicketkeeper in the history of Cricket, feel free to add..

"Behind every successful batsman there is ..... Kamran Akmal"

"Why didn't Taliban recruit Kamran Akmal?.... Because he would have dropped the bomb"

"What do Micheal Jackson and Kamran Akmal have in common? .... They both wear gloves for no reason"

"Kamran uckmal to Ijaz Butt, "no one remembered my mother and sister on women's day" Ijaz butt - "beta every time you dropped a catch, the whole nation was remembering them.."

"Firaun, Numrood, Sahir Lodhi, Himesh Reshamiya, Zaid Hamid,Zardari, Kamran Akmal"

"Kamran akmal's work is not done yet, he will sh*t on the pitch and then will surely run someone out.. and only then will he play an irresponsible shot and get out.." Me. (when Akmal came out to bat)

"Darwin's theory of Wicketkeeper: Akmal -> Apes -> Kirmani -> Healy -> Rashid -> Gilchrist "

"If his batting was as good as Don Bradman's,he couldn't score enough runs to make up for what he costs them with his keeping." - Ian Chappell

" Kamran akmal's fav pickup line "Can i drop u somewhere" - Cricinfo

We will fight till the last "Akmal" of our blood - Shahid Afridi

This is how Kamran Akmal's kids will learn A B C D. . A for Akmal, B for Ball, C for Catch, D for Drop !

Kamran Akmal thinks wicketkeeping means 'to let the batsman keep his wickets'

"Can we have some of those Bengalis please who pelted stones at Windies bus ? This is Kamran UCKMAL'S address: 83, Block EE, Defence, Lahore. Do as you please, first come first serve. "

The Interview Call..

Got a phone call from a Dubai-based recruitment company a month or so back.. They told me that they found my CV on one of the recruitment websites and shortlisted it, and that their client was interested in interviewing me for a position in their Software Development team.
I noted the relevant details i.e. date-time and interview location and hung up, telling them that I'll get back and confirm my availability in about 15 minutes...

I pondered for a while after hanging up the phone. Usually these recruiters go for updated CVS, and I had not updated my CV in last three years.. So I was a bit surprised..

Just out of curosity, I decided to google the company name in order to get some more information about the company, and the THIRD result on google result page caught my attention (actually there were plenty after that third one, first two being the company website links)

According to the details on more than one websites; the company was a scam.People had discussed and complained about it on various forums..
The company would call up potential candidates and "arrange" interviews with so-called clients. But the candidates would be asked to pay up a "Registration Fees" of 150 AED upfront, right before the interview. After this "registration process", an "interview" would take place. As you can guess, the candidate would never hear back from them..
Net-result, a loss of 15o Dhms and some valuable hours for the job-seeker..

Needless to say, I just "well-left" the opportunity.

Later, I discussed it with one of my friends, and he told me that his brother had fallen prey to the same scam some years back.

Resurrection...

This blog will "soon" be resurrected.. ah.. hmm, well let us just say that my "soon" usually means about 5-6 months as far as this blog is concerned..
So, here I am, itching to resume writing, rants and random musings on this very blog.. During this period I have actually "bookmarked" a few thoughts in my mind to blog about.. and now that I have got some time I am surely going to publish them here, before I start loosing track of them, So you can expect some posts about (in no particular order)
- Cricket World Cup 2011
- A Phony Interview Call
- Leap Of Faith
- At the Top
- Music
- Places to hangout in Abu Dhabi.. (Especially Sheesha Cafes)
- Reconnecting with School Friends
- Pakistani Passport Renewal and Visa Renewal in Abu Dhabi
- Movie reviews
- Living in an over-connected world
- Spot fixing and views of some of my friends..
- Dead Memories..
- Emptiness
I am not sure about the last two points... but let us see how things pan out, and let us kick things off..

Dad is here :-)

This blog will soon be resurrected. Stay tuned :-)

Don't give up on me

Against all odds,
I've come this far,
I've shed my blood,
I've fought my wars,
they tell my story,
these deep,dark scars..
but looks like now..
whatever I've been through
whatever I've faced...
has taken its toll...
and here I lie now..
plagued by the pain
in sheer great agony..
my eyes are blurred
I see you though..
turning your eyes away
and just as you walk away
I muster my strength..
do you hear me say ?
"Dont turn your back...
Don't give up on me"
my breaths are shallow
my wounds are deep
but don't tell me
that my chances are low
do you forget ?
the odds I defied
despite everything..
I have survived..
I walked so proud
I did stand tall..
can't you help me ?
with this tragic fall ?
I might just not die..
while my hope is alive
all I want from you
is just another try
and your belief in me
don't turn your back
don't give up on me..

With Love.. Pakistan

Raja - March 19 2010

Opportunities

"Our life is defined by the opportunities, even the ones we missed."

The Divide

My Faith is Righteous
and yours is Void
My Book is Holy,
and yours is flawed
I say my Prayers
and you do too
but yours are worthless
and mine are True
the Light is mine
and yours is Gloom
I will taste the wines
Oh, you will doom
I do not hate you
but, Can I love you ?
Can I mingle with you ?
The way, the brothers do ?
Oh maybe no
I am not allowed to..
My brothers are those
who follow my faith
and no, not you,
I do not discriminate
among people of my faith,
yet,I do so strictly...
between us and you,
and I am baffled,
by the way you dress,
the food you eat,
the things you do,
the words you recite,
all of it.. is nothing..
nothing but fallacy..
even if you do..
all the good deeds..
even if you pray..
ten times a day..
even if you keep
every one happy..
still, oh my man
you have little chance..
because there is one thing
which you do lack..
you will find out
when you rise back.
until then
we will live like this..
you and me..
till the end of time..
on either side
of this grand divide

(Raja 10-FEB-10)

Pity The Nation

Pity the nation that is full of beliefs and empty of religion.
Pity the nation that wears a cloth it does not weave,
eats a bread it does not harvest,
and drinks a wine that flows not from its own wine-press.

Pity the nation that acclaims the bully as hero,
and that deems the glittering conqueror bountiful.

Pity a nation that despises a passion in its dream,
yet submits in its awakening.

Pity the nation that raises not its voice save when it walks in a funeral,
boasts not ept among its ruins,
and will rebel not save when its neck is laid between the sword and the block.

Pity the nation whose statesman is a fox,
whose philosopher is a juggler,
and whose art is the art of patching and mimicking.

Pity the nation that welcomes its new ruler with trumpeting,
and farewells him with hooting,
only to welcome another with trumpeting again.

Pity the nation whose sages are dumb with years and whose strong men are yet in the cradle.
Pity the nation divided into fragments, each fragment deeming itself a nation.

Khalil Gibran - The Garden of the Prophet (1934)

Bulleh Shah.

Masjid Dha Dey, Mandir Dha Dey...
Dha dey jo kuch Dhainda

Ek Banday Da, Dil Na Dhaween
Rab Oday Vich hi Rehnda

Translation

Break down the mosque, Break down the temple
Break down everything which you can ..

Just don't break anyone's heart
because God lives there ...

Avatar

I watched Avatar last weekend.

There was a tremendous hype and buzz about this brand new flick from James Cameron. After all, it is the most expensive movie ever made, and it has taken about 10 years or so for them to finish it.

So naturally, my expectations were quite high.

Overall, the movie is a Technical Masterpiece, graphics and special effects are awesome - spellbinding, something we have never seen before. Great attention has been paid to the little details, and it really shows on the screen. Within first few minutes, I was totally blown away by the breathtaking views of Pandora, and as the movie progressed, it all went bigger and better, culminating in war-scene which literally shook me.

It is rightly said that, James Cameron has yet again raised the bar, as far as the action and special effects are concerned.

Now let me discuss the most important thing - The plot - I expected something novel from James Cameron. But sadly, the plot of the movie is a major MAJOR disappointment. It is almost very predictable. It is the same old plain, brave-hero-does-it-all and good-vs-evil stuff. There was no drama, no surprises at all in the story. Maybe, maybe it would have been a good story 10 years back, but today - No Way.

[spoiler alert]

And in the climax scene, when the girl finally kills the bad guy, when he is about to kill Jack, well it almost reminded me of the endings which I used to see in bollywood flicks many years back.

[/spoiler alert]

One more thing, which irritated me, was the love between our hero Jack Sully and the Na'vi girl. I mean, it is not really illogical or anything, but I am not a big fan of "Aliens-in-love" kind of stuff. For some reason, I really find it very boring. Why do they even try to throw in that much romance in a science fiction movie ?, It is really beyond me.

Overall, the presentation is awesome, the treatment of the plot is great, but the plot itself is not very original. Great visual spectacle, not a great movie.

Go watch it just for some good 3D fun.

Kuch to...

Kuch to tanhai ki raato mein sahara hota...
Tum na hotay, na sahi, zikr tumhara hota..

Will you dance with me tonight ?

It’s been so long
Since I’ve known right from wrong
Got no job,
sometimes I just sit down and sob

Wondering if anything will go right
Or will you dance with me tonight !!

When the sun departs
I feel a hole down in my heart
Put on some shoes
Come down here and listen to the blues

Wondering if anything will go right
Or will you dance with me tonight !!

I’m looking at you
You’re looking at me
We’re the only two off the dance floor
Do you see what I see
Two broken lives
working in harmony
Might make for a decent time
So get up and dance with me

I know that it seems that the grass will grow
Better on the other side of the barb wire fence
But that other side is not in sight
So I’m fine with what I have now

If you’ll dance with me tonight
What’s the point of life
If risk is just a board game
You roll the dice
But you’re just hoping that the rules change
What’s the point if you can’t bring yourself to say
Things you wanna say

like Dance with me tonight
Or will you dance with me tonight !!
Or will you dance with me tonight !!

From the movie : Music and Lyrics
Starring : Hugh Grant & Drew Barrymore.

How SMS works, quick and dirty.

OK, the main purpose of this post is to streamline and consolidate the bits and pieces of my knowledge about the SMS technology and how to go about sending SMS from your program, So here goes a quick and rough overview of what I know about the SMS technology.

When you send an SMS from your mobile, it is first submitted to an SMSC (Short Message Service Center).
SMSC is an entity in wireless network of a telecom operator, which is supposed to handle all the stuff related to SMS, The address details of the SMSC are pre-configured in your SIM card by your network operator (like Etisalat in UAE) hence the SMS reaches the SMSC first, with all the details like the source number (originating party), SMS text, the validity period, the target number (terminating party), date-time, size etc.

Usually an SMS consists of 160 characters but if exceeds it is classified as a long sms and broken down into more than one part, but all those parts have a particular identifier (which remains same in all the parts) which indicates that the parts are actually one SMS. SMSC recognizes it and concatenates all those parts.

The job of SMSC is to route the SMS to the target number, SMSC queues and routes the messages to the desired numbers. If the target mobile number is offline, the SMSC stores the SMS for a certain time period and then again forwards the SMS when the target number comes online. This "certain time period" is actually called Validity Period and there is a default value set for every SMSC for this (but you know what, you can increase it while sending your SMS).

The underlying protocol which is used for this data exchange is SMPP (v 5.0 is the latest one). Short Message Peer to Peer protocol. The mobile device and SMSCs exchange data through this protocol and the basic unit of data here is called PDU, (protocol Data Unit). This of course has a certain header and body and a particular format.

Now let us explore sending SMS through your code, when you are writing program to send the SMS from your application, you are basically using an API which is an implementation of SMPP protocol. The two common Java based APIs are SMPPAPI and OpenSMPP.

SMPP API
http://smppapi.sourceforge.net/

Open SMPP
http://opensmpp.logica.com/introhtml/menu.htm


Before you can write your program to send an SMS via SMSC, you need to make sure that you have the following information from your telecom company about the SMSC
1- the IP address of the SMSC
2- the port allocated for SMS
3- the username
4- the password
5- Address range
6- System type
7- etc. :)

It is better to use an SMSC simulator while you are writing your code rather than hit the live SMSC each time while you are still developing your program. Plenty of free SMSC simulators are available online.

http://opensmpp.logica.com/CommonPart/Download/download2.html

OK now let us revisit the API (the first one, SMPPAPI). The most important classes which you need to know very quickly are

ie.omk.smpp.Connection
ie.omk.smpp.message.SMPPPacket
ie.omk.smpp.message.SubmitSM
ie.omk.smpp.message.SubmitSMResp
ie.omk.smpp.event.SMPPEvent
ie.omk.smpp.event.ConnectionObserver

In the next post, I ll give an overview of how to actually use these classes to be able to send an SMS from your code to a mobile phone.

to be continued...