I just published my latest book and soon some nostalgia snuck in. It had been seven years since I started on my writing career.
I remember it was March of 2005. I was in a Beijing hotel delivering a keynote address on energy when I was struck by a massive heart attack. Six months and three continents later, I was at the famed Cleveland Clinic in the US, being operated upon for quadruple bypass surgery. Sad to say the Clinic did not live up to its reputation and the discharge papers blandly noted that I was now in CHF (chronic heart failure) and needed a heart transplant. I returned to my house in Bethesda and, after a suitable period of mourning became practical and set about setting my affairs in order. I found there was much to take care of- an old house my wife could not maintain, a car she could not drive, a medical state which would permit me no sleep at night and constant pain. Sitting in the cold dark and dreary house, I started work on my first book- my memoir- poignantly titled " A Passion to build".
A few months later, my wife decided that we needed a second expert opinion on my case. Sadly, the expert cardiologist we met gave an even bleaker prognosis - according to him I had less than an year to live. I was now housebound, tended to by only my wife of 35 years. Watching her juggle life's tribulations gave me a much keener appreciation of what love really means. And the sorrows of a caregiver, often forgotten, hit me and I wondered how she could keep a cheerful mien and act as if life was normal while her partner of thirty odd years slowly crumbled before her eyes. So I decided to pen my thoughts in my second book " Straight from the heart".
By 2007 my doctors were pessimistically assessing that the only hope left was a heart transplant but by early 2008 that too was shattered. But even more dramatic events soon intervened. In November of that year I was in Bombay delivering a keynote address when the terrorists broke into the hotel we were staying in and all of us became hostage.The next few days were terrifying as bullets flew around us and a fire started below our 27th floor room. Faced with this new situation, my heart problems were furthest from our minds. Luckily the crisis ended soon but it led to my third book, "Reflections of a curious mind" ( I carried on in the same genre later as " Musings of a curious mind " and "Thoughts on a winter day".
By 2008 I had become intrigued by a political personality in the US- Barack Hussein Obama. I later became his grassroots fundraiser and booster. It is an attachment that lasts to this day and led me to write " Obama and Me" explaining the power of his personality and charisma.
I finally completed a favorite book of mine "Pioneers of Offshore Technology in India" last month. I had always felt that India did not appreciate its technologists and builders and that their stories often fell by the wayside. This book hoped to at least partially repair that breach.
So there you have it - my six books- and they are all in the market. You can buy them at "lulu.com or amazon.com". In India Flipcart may find these books as well if you ask them. Do. And read them and let me know what you think.
I remember it was March of 2005. I was in a Beijing hotel delivering a keynote address on energy when I was struck by a massive heart attack. Six months and three continents later, I was at the famed Cleveland Clinic in the US, being operated upon for quadruple bypass surgery. Sad to say the Clinic did not live up to its reputation and the discharge papers blandly noted that I was now in CHF (chronic heart failure) and needed a heart transplant. I returned to my house in Bethesda and, after a suitable period of mourning became practical and set about setting my affairs in order. I found there was much to take care of- an old house my wife could not maintain, a car she could not drive, a medical state which would permit me no sleep at night and constant pain. Sitting in the cold dark and dreary house, I started work on my first book- my memoir- poignantly titled " A Passion to build".
A few months later, my wife decided that we needed a second expert opinion on my case. Sadly, the expert cardiologist we met gave an even bleaker prognosis - according to him I had less than an year to live. I was now housebound, tended to by only my wife of 35 years. Watching her juggle life's tribulations gave me a much keener appreciation of what love really means. And the sorrows of a caregiver, often forgotten, hit me and I wondered how she could keep a cheerful mien and act as if life was normal while her partner of thirty odd years slowly crumbled before her eyes. So I decided to pen my thoughts in my second book " Straight from the heart".
By 2007 my doctors were pessimistically assessing that the only hope left was a heart transplant but by early 2008 that too was shattered. But even more dramatic events soon intervened. In November of that year I was in Bombay delivering a keynote address when the terrorists broke into the hotel we were staying in and all of us became hostage.The next few days were terrifying as bullets flew around us and a fire started below our 27th floor room. Faced with this new situation, my heart problems were furthest from our minds. Luckily the crisis ended soon but it led to my third book, "Reflections of a curious mind" ( I carried on in the same genre later as " Musings of a curious mind " and "Thoughts on a winter day".
By 2008 I had become intrigued by a political personality in the US- Barack Hussein Obama. I later became his grassroots fundraiser and booster. It is an attachment that lasts to this day and led me to write " Obama and Me" explaining the power of his personality and charisma.
I finally completed a favorite book of mine "Pioneers of Offshore Technology in India" last month. I had always felt that India did not appreciate its technologists and builders and that their stories often fell by the wayside. This book hoped to at least partially repair that breach.
So there you have it - my six books- and they are all in the market. You can buy them at "lulu.com or amazon.com". In India Flipcart may find these books as well if you ask them. Do. And read them and let me know what you think.
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