Back from a fantastic week in Mexico. Milwaukee is drab, boring and dry as ever. I've got plenty of stories to share...more to come shortly.

My first week of work in Milwaukee has come and gone. Just like that...poof and it's done. Now - there will be 23 more of those and before I know it, back to Toronto! Don't take this the wrong way though. I am not counting down the days or anything. I am only commenting on the fact that time flies and it most certainly will during this phase of my training. The last two days, I was in a workshop entitled "Think on your Feet" and it was really cool. We were taught how to be more effective communcators - but even more specifically, how to give clear, consise, logical and memorable talks without rambling and/or sounding fake. It was a really neat class and I feel that I've learned a lot. I should be able to apply some of the skills I learned to everyday life. Let's see how it goes...

So Vince is out for about a month. Damn that is not good news. I was thinking today. One thing that truely separated great players a few years ago like the Jordan's or Gretzky's was that they never had really serious or chronic or lingering injuries (until much much much later in their careers). But, until then...they were fine and kicking butt. Why is that? Is there not enough respect for superstars in these games anymore?

By the way, the quesadillas and the guacamole that I made last night were absolutely money!

I really don't have any horseshoes up my butt however you are going to hate what I have to say next. I am going to Mexico City tomorrow morning for a week. I am being sent along with my team for a training seminar. It is going to be really great cause there will be other students from other Leadership Training programs there and in total, there will probably be about 50 or 60 students in my class for the next week. I've never been to Mexico City but I'm not expecting too much in terms of culture or substance or anything like that. However, traveling always give you a nice opportunity to see new places and experience new cultures. Also, next weekend after the course, I am going to visit my friend Reva in Merida (which is on the northeast coast of Mexico). I'll hang out with her for a couple of days and then come back to Milwaukee. Merida will be great cause it's a lot smaller, a lot let busy and full of locals (as opposed to tourists). I am going to try and see some tequila making factories and some Mayan ruins.

I've already packed the Immodium so have no fear!

I have fantastic news everyone. I am going to Europe for the Holidays after all. My brother will be graduating form INSEAD in December and my parents and I are going to France to see him. I am really excited cause I've never been to Europe. We are going to rent a car and drive around in the south of France and Italy. This is going to be a great trip. I've gotta start reading up on those countries though and figure out what I want to see. I'm leaving Milwaukee on December 20 and will be coming back to Toronto on December 30 (just in time for New Year's so keep me in the loop for all the New Year's eve parties in Toronto). I then fly back to Milwaukee on January 1 to get back to work. Damn - this ticket was CRAZY EXPENSIVE but I really want to go and travel with my family. We haven't gone anywhere as the 4 of us in probably something like 8 or 10 years so I am definitely looking forward to it. I guess it also helps that I am looking to travel at the heaviest time of the year and I am buying so last minute.

Today work went by pretty quickly. Most days as I was previously saying are just going through a lot of administrative crap. That is expected until we actually get some projects. I went to the gym afterwards today as well and I'll be heading back tomorrow for some more. I feel okay right now but definitely not in pain so I've gotta work harder tomorrow. I cooked some pasta tonight and it turned out okay - you know what sucks though? When you cook the pasta too long and it gets rubbery cause it's overcooked - Not Cool At All. I am going to a Mexican party on Thursday so I'm making quesadillas and guacamolee...I am looking forward to that.

Did I tell you about my shopping experience at the Pick N Save yesterday? My first official time grocery shopping in the U.S. and it was an adventure. I was there for about 1.25 hours when I should have only been there for about 30 minutes. I was just so confused by some of the newer brands that I've never seen before and that whole non-metric way of measuring down here (absolutely stupid if you ask me). I was having the hardest time figuring out gallons vs. litres or pounds vs. grams. Some of the prices were absolutely crazy as well. I saw Kraft Jam concoction for something like $6.85 (I'm pretty sure it's like $1.45 CDN back home). One funny thing happened when I was paying. I had some hand soap and the lady was scanning it but for whatever reason, the bar code wasn't being read. So - she just asked me how much it was and I said something like $1.40 so she just gave it to me for that amount no questions asked. Anyway, that was my shopping experience. Nothing to extravagant but news nonetheless.

Gotta hit the sack now...

Hey - did you see??? The Leafs won tonight! Beat one of the best teams in the League (yes, I am serious - the Tampa Bay Lightning).

i've been here in Milwaukee for two days now and so far, life is grand. The city is not too bad so far. The training is going well but it's kind of disorganized at times when we are just sitting around waiting for meetings to start.

Last night for Diwali - I went to the temple with a bunch of Indian folks from around Milwaukee. It was great to go to the pooja and sing along to the aarthis (as best as I could) and just be a part of the celebration. I haven't been to the temple in a long time so I'm glad that I went and took part. It was just nice to be there, especially since I couldn't celebrate with my family this time around.

i was just chatting with christine about how we often have these great ideas to blog about but when it comes time to write, we always forget. Case in point...today while driving, I thought of so many great things or I saw so many funny things and I actually said to myself, I should write about that on my website! Then, I went and forgot of course.

That's all...I just wrote it cause I didn't want to forget about it. Did you catch the irony?

Greetings everyone,

I have arrived safely in Milwaukee. It's currently 9:35 CST and I've been here for about 7 hours. I've unpacked and set up my room. It's pretty funny cause I've never had a room this big and it just seems to have too much space. I might have to buy a bean bag chair or something to fill it up. The drive from Toronto wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. In total, it took about 9 hours which wasn't bad at all. I was going pretty fast but I don't think it was absurd. I stopped in Ann Arbor last night and hung out with my friend Manju. She's finishing her residency at U of M so it was goog to see her and just hang out in Ann Arbor for a bit. We had some great Japanese food for dinner so that was great. One downer about last night was that my allergies of cats came back. I hadn't been too allergic in a long time but last night, my throat was all itchy and it was so tough to fall asleep. Needless to say, I eventually did...but it was definitely tough. I do know though that cats are a definite no-no for me.

American drivers love to park their asses in the left lane!!! What the @&#& is up with that? The funniest is when they merge onto the highway and immediately go to the left lane...without even checking their blind spots. It is just very very annoying. While I was driving today, I saw the funniest billboard in Michigan. It was for a strip club and the slogan was: "Come see hundreds of beautiful ladies and three ugly ones". That was priceless.

My last few days in Toronto were great. Thursday night was especially fantastic. I got to see a bunch of people who came out to wish me off. We went to Alleycatz, a new jazz bar in Toronto and we saw Carlos Morgan play. He was pretty good. Thanks a lot to all of you who came out. It was cool to see my marathi posse, waterloo posse, l'am posse and work posse all together.

Before I move on...what the @*@^&@(#@&%$"^@#*#& is going on with the Leafs? I am utterly pissed off. There is something fundamental missing from this team. Just don't know what the deal is. Is it Quinn? Is it a lack of heart? I think one major point is that they are missing Yushkevich, Cujo and Roberts from last year's team. Roberts is the only one they are getting back. And, will he be 100%? I highly doubt it.

Well, you haven't heard the last of me. I am in Milwaukee now (for the next 6 months) but I'll still be blogging as often (and of course, as long) as possible.
Good night from the midwest...