Holiday Season!

Evil Ravana


In the American Northeast, the first snow is a major seasonal milestone. It signals the beginning of winter and, for most, the onset of the holiday season. After the first snow, you are comfortable in the thought that Thanksgiving is right around the corner - soon to be followed by Christmas and New Years. Especially as a kid, this was a great time.

In India, the change of the seasons also ushers in the holiday season. The change and the holidays are different, but the effect is similar. Today was one of those days. As I left my apartment and began the journey down to the car, I noticed that it was actually pleasant. I was not sweating; I was not gasping for breath from the oppressive humidity; I was actually comfortable! This was the Delhi equivalent of the first snow.

As I paused for a moment to enjoy the sensation of being outside and not sweating, I reflected on the upcoming holidays. In two weeks, on October 6th, Dussehra will kick off the holiday season. Dussehra is technically a 10 day event that celebrates the triumph of a few gods over evil culminating with "victory day" called Dussehra or Vijayadashmi. This is a significant holiday on the Hindu calendar, but I cannot recall any festivities from last year.

We then have Diwali, the grand-daddy of Indian Holidays on Oct 26th with a few gratuitous days around it, like Balipadyami and Bhai Duj to pad out the week. November starts with Rajyaotsava Day on the 1st, Idu'l Zuha on the 7th and the much anticipated Guru Nanak's Birthday to which we were roused from our beds last year with a parade at 7:00am. Finally, we wind down with Muharram on December 6th.

They may not, at first, seem to have the allure of Thanksgiving and Christmas (who amongst us would not prefer a burning Yule log to a burning effigy of the evil King Ravana), but as I grow older, I tend to measure holidays in relaxation time versus impact and these Indian Holidays, I can tell, will be a welcome respite to the daily grind!

Settling Back In

There is distinct rhythm to an expat life in India, but it is a fragile one. Friends come and go and routines changes as personalities and experiences are introduced or removed. This is usually a gradual change, but when you leave for an extended period and plunge back into your life, the change can seem abrupt.

One of the biggest changes that have taken place over the time we were gone is that many of our close friends are rotating out. A few were expected, but a few were surprises. As the global economy continues to flounder, many companies have decided to reduce their overseas presence and bring their expats home. For some, this is a welcome relief, but for most, it is an unwelcome lifestyle change as their ex-pat gravy train finally pulls into the station and the reality of being "average" sets in.

There are tearful good-byes and many Bon Voyage parties as the Diaspora fan out across the globe, but in the end, we, those who remain behind, must get back to it. Surviving - muddling through the traffic, the heat and locals.

They say the 2nd year is the toughest and it looks like we are right on schedule!

The Humidity … Oh the Humidity!

I stepped off the plane at roughly 7:30pm into a torrid stew of heat and humidity that instantly sapped any remaining energy I had from the 22 hours of travel I had just completed. It was the immediate and punishing reminder that I was now back in India.

As I waited for my bags, my body acclimated to the new reality. There was the familiar and gut retching smell of mustard seed oil combined with body odor that has come to define India for me. There was the oppressive heat that makes you sweat in places you thought you had no pores. Finally, there is the humidity which locks all the aforementioned into a nauseating, overheated, odiferous package with no escape.


Welcome Home!

National Sales Meeting, again!

On Wednesday, we had our National Sales Meeting. As you may recall from my posts last year, this is a big, big deal. Employees from all over the country come to Minneapolis for a huge gathering during which we hear about future strategies and corporate things that would only interest us as an organization. The big attraction, though, is that during the stream of information, many famous people and musical acts which have relationships with the company make an appearance. This is the highlight of the year and this year did not disappoint.

Firstly, the setting is a bit overwhelming. 13,000+ Red & Khaki clad people are crammed into the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis riled up by loud DJ’d music, powered by caffeine and driven by pure pride in a great company. It is quite the scene. It is not the contrived atmosphere you see at some other company's events, but a cool and hip kind of gathering that only this company could pull off as a sales meeting.   

This year’s meeting was kicked off by Ross Mathews, better known as Ross the Intern from the Jay Leno Show, conducting interviews with passing employees as they funneled into the Target Center. These interviews were then piped live into the seating arena on a massive Jumbo-Tron, as the hoards of people searched the venue for their seats. Once seated, we were treated to Ross hosting a game which involved a great deal of cheering ultimately whipping the crowd into a frenzy for the introduction of the CEO.

After a few speeches, the first of many surprise acts were introduced. Not being a country fan, the name did not ring a bell, but apparently Alison Krauss & Union Station have quiet a following. Who knew? I found the music to be a little downbeat, but no one asks me when they booked the acts, so I simply enjoyed not being in India and soldiered on.

After a few more speeches, Willow Smith was introduced. If you do not know Willow Smith, it is because you are not 11. Apparently, she is big with the pre-teen group. I did not connect who she was, though, until after she finished and I looked in front of me to see Will Smith, doting father, walk past me.

We then had a nice visit from Taylor Swift who wanted to come by and thank us for making her the number one recording artist in the US. I guess when you get a colossus like my company behind you, you tend to sell some CDs. Anyway, to thank us, she wrote a nice little song called “Red shirt, Khaki pants” and sung to the tune of “Smelly Cat” from Friends. It was quite funny!

One of the highlights of the meeting is always the community relations recap. This is the time when they parade all the amazing things the company does from helping children to read to making meals for disaster victims in a video/picture montage that ends with most of the crowd in tears. She also usually highlights all the celebrities in which we partner, primarily Oprah and her crew. This time, though, she did not have tell us how appreciative Oprah was as Oprah herself stopped by to greet the sea of Red & Khaki and say thanks personally. Half the crowd had a seizure!

The crescendo of the meeting is always when the head of Marketing comes out and runs through the new ad campaigns for the holiday season and the upcoming year. Those of us that have been to a few of these also know that during this time, the big acts usually make their appearance and there is always much speculation on who might perform. About half way through the speech, James Taylor was introduced to a mostly stumped audience (since most of Target was born long after JT peeked). He soothed the audience with a song in that recognizable James Taylor voice and then was joined by the venerable Mr. Tony Bennett. Tony Bennett has a two duets albums, one of which features JT and they regaled us with “Put on a Happy Face” from said album. James Taylor then exited and Tony belted out a few classics of his own. For an 85 year old man, Tony Bennett can sing! It was a great few songs and I can now say I have seen Tony Bennett live.

As the meeting wound down, the crowd was getting ready to leave when the head of marketing, in a contrived act of forgetfulness, sprung the biggest act of the night on us. Pregnant, but clearly not showing in her sparkly little dress was Beyoncé. Yep, Beyoncé. Even though I am not a huge Beyoncé fan, I will say, the woman can crank out a tune! She only sang one song due to her "being in a family way" (as we say in India), but with one tune, turned the crowd into a screaming mob!

All in all, the company once again delivered a great National Sales Meeting full of great information and great entertainment. I can now say that I have  fulfilled the life long dream of finally experiencing Oprah live!