The prowess of Python

Being introduced to the world of Python, I just can't think of any other language which would pack so many features in so few lines. It is like punching every algorithm implementation in their face in slow motion as you would see in any modern action movie. I have been told to try Go which might be the next promising language which promises a lot of the same features but has been written with multicore concurrent architectures in mind.

While I don't want to get into a programming language comparison here - I am too old to fall for that. However, I must admit that I have tried learning python so many times but could never appreciate it as I could do virtually everything in C++ and I took pride in its speed and nativeness to the architecture. Well then, I never had to care about cross platform code compilation. I did not code in Java for a long time. It was a desperate measure to pick up Python - it's your friend when you have to quickly write up working code which does something and you don't have to spend hours debugging and making sure you took care of those edge cases. Think of these dynamically typed languages as shell scripts on top of C++. With JIT implementations available for many of these, programming has become a pleasure you get while driving a luxury car (think corvette) on 101.

I was going to write the content of this blog about sharing some of the punches python delivers. However I saw this posted on yc today which puts the words I wished to write into a beautiful post - http://sahandsaba.com/thirty-python-language-features-and-tricks-you-may-not-know.html

Somehow - there is a lot of power in desperate measures. You adapt. If your fundamentals are right, it is just a matter of time and you learn the new tricks. The beauty is when you learn to know when to use what - that takes lots of time and mistakes.

Wise people have said, it takes 20 days to learn how to write C++ and 20 years to unlearn how not to write C++. With this fast evolution of toolkits, I don't think we have 20 years. So build on fast on others' mistakes and learning - that's the only way to accelerate.

Route 66

On a lazy Saturday afternoon, I was watching a playlist comprising of songs composed by Lucky Ali and came across this one:

Well - we traveled much of the same route last year on our road trip to Grand Canyon and beyond. It is a real American treasure and cultural heritage. Seeing Santa Fe at the end brought a smile to my face as Sukhada lives an hour from it and we have been there as well.

The roads, motels, vast acres of barren land, deserts, mountains all make the route 66 so beautiful that it stays in your memory forever. Of course, you have to experience it yourself because the beauty lies in the journey not the destinations you would visit.

The good thing is the people have tried to preserve it and I would definitely wish to relive those 10 days of road trip with Sukhada if I can some day. I grew up watching this video and would always wonder what is so special about it. Well, now I know and so do everyone who have been on route 66.

Welcome 2014

Goal of this year (As I believe happens to quite a few of my age group who have not yet realized the real world responsibilities and are still living "in" their dreams) is to get more organized and focus on a To Do list. I have created one and shared it with Sukhada. I did feel that the list was realistic and achievable and I really hope I can finish things every month and be on track.

I moved out of New York and joined Intel couple of months back. Perhaps a very important and satisfying decision as I am learning a lot. I am also getting more time to focus on myself and improve my skillset. I am feeling every passing day that I can take on more challenges.

Weather in Portland is something which reminds me of all the good things I had in California and Florida - perhaps 2 of the best places I have spent my time in. If I were to win couple of million $$, I would just buy a house in Florida, get a one-way ticket for me & Sukhada and settle down. Portland is not bad - just the rain which does not stop; even if you sing "Rain rain, go away...".

After a long time I was hearing some of the new tracks from Coke Studio Pakistan. I am not sure why the Indian version disappoints me every time I hear it and I get more amazed with Sufi based soothing melodies of Rohail Hyatt's creation. I just listened to few tracks from Zara Madani (who participated in quite a few background chorus vocals in many of the Coke Studio tracks) and they are just amazing. Somehow this reminds me that you might not have that celebrity status but still possess that lovely talent which can do magic.

I hope 2014 brings peace, happiness and stability in all our lives. Cheers!