April 10, 2025 – Ted Lasso, again

So, I finally finished watching Ted Lasso for the eighth time. The series soundtrack just got better. “Three Little Birds,” by Bob Marley & The Wailers, made Season 3, Episode 6 the best ever for me. Amsterdam is where Ted finally figures out that Total Football is what the team needs to get better. The episode where Sam’s father comes to London to visit Sam was made better by “Enjoy,” by Tekno. Sam’s father, played by Nonso Anozie, is perfect in the role.

Every time I watch the show again, I am reminded of the little things Jason and the team put into it to make it what it is – a once-in-a-lifetime masterpiece. These include the music, the names of players, and the “American jokes don’t work in England” concept. When Nate decides he has had enough of Rupert’s “guy’s night”, he comes to Jade’s apartment and hugs her, with “All That You Are,” by Bear’s Den playing in the background. That’s why Ted Lasso sticks the landing perfectly.

April 9, 2025 – Ted Lasso

I am still looking for a Director-level role in Software and DevOps Engineering. My focus is on the Greater Houston area. Things at this level move very slowly and deliberately. I get that. I am not worried. I am studying AI and learning how to book travel for people in my spare time. I love doing both and it keeps me busy during the day.

I am also watching Ted Lasso for the eighth time. Yes, I am watching it straight through from Season 1, Episode 1 to Season 3, Episode 12. Now, some would say I am crazy. I would say that when I need a “pick-me-up” nowadays, there is no better entertainment than watching Jason Sudeikis and the cast of characters he has assembled in Ted Lasso. I read an article today in The Michigan Daily, “Do we need more Ted Lasso?” I would say yes, we do. As Ted says in the first season, when Ted and Trent Crimm are “enjoying” Indian food, “For me, it’s not about wins and losses. It’s about these men becoming the best version of themselves, both on and off the pitch.” That’s not the only time he says this, but to me, it’s certainly the most memorable.

I will not sit here and tell you what Season 4 of Ted Lasso will bring to the TL Universe. But I will say this: the world needs more Jason Sudeikis, Brett Goldstein, and Brandon Hunt. I really don’t care how you package them. But empathy and compassion will always beat violence and gore.

During this trip through the TL Universe, I paid more attention to the series’ soundtrack. “Sunday Best” by Surfaces was used ideally when Ted showed Nathan how to “strut his stuff.” When Sam and Rebecca have dinner at a restaurant, “Loving is Easy” by Rex Orange County (feat Benny Sings) shows a different way of watching two people talk to each other over a meal. It was refreshing. Many people (including myself) object to the episode about Coach Beard. I loved how they ended the episode with “Hello,” by Martin Solveig featuring Dragonette. Crazy good song!

The episode that hits you hard is when Rebecca’s father dies. I did not expect to hear “Never Gonna Give You Up” by Rick Astley so many times! When she decides to use that song as a eulogy, I couldn’t stop the waterworks. Earlier in that episode, Ted uses “Easy Lover” by Philip Bailey and Phil Collins to prepare for the funeral. Earlier in the series, he reminds us that no one should take more time to get ready than it takes to listen to that song.

The timing of the series and Jason’s brilliance shine bright in Ted Lasso. In the final episode of Season Three, the assistant coaches use “Beautiful Game” by Ed Sheeran to mark the end of the season.

Many more songs in the series, but you always remember the ones that touch you the most.

C’mon Citeh!

C’mon Citeh! 🩵

For those who know me, know that 30 years ago, I followed every sport on the planet. Today, I follow one team: Manchester City. I became a fan on May 13, 2012, when Aguero scored against QPR, and have been a fan ever since. My first visit to Etihad Stadium was on March 15, 2025. City drew Brighton and Hove Albion 2-2 that day.

Some will say that I like “super teams.” You would not be wrong. The Dallas Cowboys, the New York Yankees, and the Chennai Super Kings are just a few of the teams I have been a fan of in the past. I love teams that find flaws in the system. Call it “DevOps pattern matching.” All four teams above have utilized their tremendous resources to improve their teams, albeit at times stepping over or beyond the rules. Is that a bad thing? No, it ultimately improves the system. Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Newcastle can complain all they want. Unless they win 4 PL trophies in a row, I will still take Manchester City over any of those teams.

Staying in the same sport, who’s the other team I am following? Watch out for Wrexham AFC!

April 2, 2025

Just read a post on LinkedIn about protein bars. About 99% of all protein bars are just repackaged candy bars. To which someone responded, “As a rule of thumb, don’t eat anything that has a marketing team behind it.” If that were the case, Americans would need to stop eating Beef, Pork, Eggs, and drinking Milk. Massive campaigns for decades. 😄

I am meeting NIA today. With lead generation for VnV DevOps happening these days, I want to understand how to network locally.

I still need to complete my taxes before April 15. Perhaps I will do that today, as Manchester City takes on Leicester City in a Premier League match at the Etihad.

Documentaries

I’m not a big fan of documentaries, but on a recent flight from Manchester, England, to Houston, Texas, I had the opportunity to watch some documentaries on board Singapore Airlines.

ABBA – Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny, Anni-Frid. Fantastic music, but the documentary starts with Waterloo and the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest. I did not know the history of that song, but I do now. That was the start of a beautiful “pair” of relationships! Unfortunately, the unions did not last long; however, the ability to make music continued. My favorite ABBA song will always be Dancing Queen.

Billion Dollar Cruise – A quick view of how a cruise ship is built from the ground up. It took more than 30 months to build this ship, but in the end, it was all worth it.

Grimsby Town – It was the first year of Rob McElhenny and Ryan Reynolds’ ownership at Wrexham in 2021. “All Town Aren’t We” is a brilliant documentary about how Grimsby Town achieved three surprising victories at the end of the season to secure promotion to League Two. I love football, and I genuinely love an underdog advancing against all odds. If you like football, you should give “All Town Aren’t We” a try.

Ozempic: an MSNBC Special Report – The story of how semaglutide became the most popular drug of the 21st century. Novo Nordisk manufactures Ozempic and other products based on semaglutide. Eli Lilly manufactures Mounjaro and other products that utilize tirzepatide as their base. These drugs have become popular, initially for controlling type 2 diabetes, but eventually for weight loss. The base medicines have proven beneficial, but their side effects are severe. Users will need to use these drugs for as long as they live.

Hair Metal genre of music – Now, you may have heard of Hair Bands. But, what’s Hair Metal? Also known as Glam Metal, it’s a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. Think Poison – “Every Rose Has Its Thorn.” Early Hair Metal bands of the late 70s include Motley Crue, Hanoi Rocks, Ratt, Quiet Riot, Bon Jovi, and Dokken. Later in the 1980s, bands such as Poison, Skid Row, Cinderella, and Warrant emerged. Hair Metal was most prominent in the Los Angeles and New York club scenes. Visually, Hair Metal is characterized by flashy and tight-fitting clothing, makeup, and an overall androgynous aesthetic, in which the traditional “denim and leather” aspect of heavy metal is replaced by spandex, lace, and a heavy use of bright colors. I have heard the music before, but never knew it was called “Hair Metal.” Interesting.

Finally, I decided to watch one more documentary on Yacht Rock. I was unaware of this subgenre of music, but it has quickly become my favorite genre! When you think Yacht Rock, think Steely Dan or ANYTHING to do with Michael McDonald! Questlove has uploaded his Yacht Rock playlist to Spotify. Where else can you listen to “She’s Gone” by Hall and Oates and “Ride Like The Wind” by Christopher Cross?

I typically watch a lot of movies and shows on flights back and forth between Houston and Hyderabad. I am now hooked on documentaries.

Going to College

I started a thread on LinkedIn about why attending college is necessary, and I received several responses, ranging from “a cost-benefit analysis needs to make sense” to “if you don’t know what you want to do, don’t go to college.” By the way, I have not met an 18-year-old who knows the meaning of the phrase’ cost-benefit analysis.” Looking around LinkedIn, I see people with a degree in one thing, doing something completely different. Now, maybe it’s just me, but I attribute that to poor parenting.

Your parent(s) or the older person you live with has one job. They teach you moral values based on some form of faith. Getting an education should be part of those values. If they are not, your parent(s) or the older person you live with has failed you. You know they say, “You don’t have to like your parents, but you do have to respect them.” To that I say, “Respect works both ways – I will respect you today, and you need to respect me tomorrow (after I have grown up and listened to everything you said).” That last part is hard to understand when you’re 12 or 15 years old, but I understood it at that age. Because my Dad put that in my head. I respect him today. It’s been 7 years since he passed away, but now it’s my turn to teach my 22 and 19-year-old kids all that my Dad taught me.

If you are going to spend time and money doing something, you need to make sure that you will benefit from that activity, either short-term or long-term. For that to make sense, your moral compass must be strong. Knowing the difference between right and wrong is part of that. Another key aspect is understanding what will ultimately benefit you. Earning multiple college degrees has not only helped me, but it has also enabled me to stay ahead of the curve.

My rule for my kids: you will earn a Master’s or Ph.D. degree, and you will have no student loans when you complete the process. Why? Because I will pay for everything. You’ll thank me later!

As for my retirement, it’s pretty clear that living in America is not a viable option. I will need to find a low-cost country to live in. Thankfully, I already know one that accepts US Citizens into their country. India! By 2029, it is predicted that the USD to INR conversion rate will be 1:100. That is not a typo. For every $1, I will get Rs. 100. Trust me when I say $1000 goes a long way in India!

Trip to Manchester 2025

Vikram and I left on Wednesday, March 12th, to spend a few days in England. We landed in Manchester on Thursday, March 13th at about 9 am and noticed something. Manchester is much colder than Houston, even in March! We took the train from Manchester Airport to Manchester Piccadilly station. From Piccadilly, we walked about 20 minutes to get to our hotel in the City Centre. (yeah, they spell things differently in England. Don’t even get me started on colours!)

Avinash really helped us at the hotel. He got us checked in and gave us some great pointers on sightseeing options. The Holiday Inn Express in Manchester City Centre has a great employee! After 11:30 a.m., we left the hotel to grab some food at Wetherspoon. If you have never been, you should try it. It is a chain of pubs and restaurants in the UK and Ireland—good food and better drinks. We tried Carling there.

After lunch, we decided to visit the National Football Museum. If you want to spend 90 minutes soaking in the history of the great game of football, this is the place to be. We really enjoyed our time there.

Walking back from the Museum, we decided to grab coffee at Starbucks. While waiting for our order, I looked out the window and started screaming. Those of you who know me know that I have a thing for the Hard Rock Cafe. I collect trinkets from there – shirts, mugs, shot glasses – you know the deal. I don’t have anything that says “Manchester” on it, so off we went. I hope Vinita likes what her brother got for her.

When we got back to the hotel around 3 p.m., we decided to get some rest. I don’t know if the trip over the Atlantic had us jet-lagged, but we took a quick nap nonetheless. In the evening, we were hungry, so we decided to try Nando’s Peri-Peri. There is one in Katy, but this one had a different look and feel to it. The food was great—I highly recommend it.

We had a whole plan for Friday, March 14th, and were able to hit every single spot! First, it was off to the Shudehill Interchange to take a tram to Old Trafford. Vikram and I are cricket fans, and you can’t visit Manchester without going to the Emirates Old Trafford. Home of the Lancashire County Cricket Club (LCCC), the stadium is right outside the Old Trafford tram station. We took a ton of pictures and Vikram bought an England training jersey at the Gift Shop 🙂

So, now many of you are probably wondering, would Sagar go to the home of the “Team in Red?” If you said no, you don’t know me that well. I respect football, and I appreciate greatness. Yes, we walked the half-mile to the Manchester United stadium in Old Trafford. It’s a fantastic building, but that makes me wonder. Why is Manchester United building a new stadium? That was announced last week for those who don’t know. Hopefully, we’ll learn more soon! We bought gifts for Vikram’s friend and my nephew, who is a fan of the “team in red.” There are just some things you can’t control. 😉

From there, we decided to take the tram to the University of Manchester and walk around campus. My niece was accepted at the University, and we both wanted to see how it looked. Honestly, I was impressed. We had a quick coffee break at Federal Cafe. We then made a quick stop at Tesco Express, before heading back to the hotel.

In the evening, we went to The Bay Horse Tavern for pub food. Yes, we had a Guinness.

Saturday was the big day. We took the tram from the hotel to Etihad Campus for the afternoon match—City played Brighton and Hove Albion. We had Fried Okra (!!) and Asahi Super-Dry at the stadium. Of course, we shopped and got some nice gear. My favorite moment was singing “Blue Moon” in a packed stadium. That was fun! The game ended in a 2-2 draw, but City played well, and being there was brilliant!

Saturday evening, we headed to Manchester Chinatown and had some dinner at the Dragon Oriental restaurant. A great end to an amazing weekend. Vikram had crispy noodles for the first time. I went with my staple – Chicken with Udon Noodles – yum!

We didn’t see everything but got a taste of Manchester to keep us going. This was our first stop to visit the Premier League Stadiums. We have a specific goal—to see all stadiums for a game with teams in the PL for 10 or more years. So, here is our list:

London Teams

Arsenal
Chelsea
Crystal Palace
Tottenham
West Ham United

Merseyside Teams

Liverpool
Everton

Manchester Teams

Manchester City – March 15, 2025
Manchester United

Here are some teams getting close to our criteria:

Aston Villa – 6 years
Wolverhampton – 7 years
Brighton – 8 years
Newcastle – 8 years

Vikram and I have seen Emirates Stadium (2018) and Manchester United (2025), but never for a game. This will be our plan over the next 10 years.

Cricket: India in CT2025 Final

The Indian Men’s cricket team played 3 matches in Group A: Bangladesh, Pakistan, and New Zealand, and won all three in Dubai. The team played a semi-final match against Australia yesterday and won that match in Dubai. The final game will be played on Sun, March 9th, against either New Zealand or South Africa, in Dubai.

Notice a pattern here? CT2025 was supposed to be a tournament hosted by the defending champions, Pakistan, in their home country. So, why are all of India’s matches being held in Dubai? The reason is simple: since 2008, the relationship between India and Pakistan has soured in every aspect. Pakistanis require extra scrutiny while entering India. Indians don’t travel to Pakistan at all. This has spilled into sports as well.

But is this fair? With the weather being unpredictable everywhere nowadays, many matches in Rawalpindi and Lahore have not been played. Conversely, India arrived in Dubai 10 days ago and has not had to leave its hotel. They play five matches (including the final) in the same stadium for about two weeks, while other teams must travel between Pakistan and the U.A.E. Was this tournament biased towards India?

I’ll be rooting for India on Sunday, March 9, whatever team they have to play. Whether India wins or loses, I wonder if there should be an asterisk next to the CT2025 final match.

Looking for the next challenge

A lot of activity to report in the first two months of 2025:

I started VnV DevOps in January to focus on DevOps and IT Service Management consulting. I post on LinkedIn to boost the VnV DevOps brand. I have things in the pipeline that will take time to develop, but the runway is set up to accelerate.
As part of VnV DevOps, I have started advising college students on the best ways to grab internships and co-ops. In 2025, most companies around the world want you to live within a 50-mile radius of an office. If you are in college and would like to talk, click on this link and set up a complimentary 30-minute session with me to discuss your next steps.
I volunteer with Pathful to help K-12 kids understand the benefits of a Computer Science degree and a career in DevOps Engineering. I also visit my wife’s school, Harmony Public Schools, to talk to her AP Computer Science Principles class about careers in Software Engineering and DevOps Engineering.
I signed up with fora.travel in February to become a Travel Advisor. I am still going through training, but I love to travel. More importantly, I love to plan travel trips for other people.
As of February, I am an Advisory Board Member at Houston Christian University for their Strategic AI program. As you know, I love to learn, so I am also taking the online course. The Advisor role is voluntary and is for a one-year term. This will help me understand how to help my next company tackle AI.
Perhaps, in a moment of weakness, I decided to sign up as an Uber driver. Now, some of you will say, why? Well, I live in the Greater Houston area, and I have had MANY friends and acquaintances ask me for rides with the offer to pay. Houston is extremely spread out, and to go from Katy to any airport takes over 45 minutes on a good day. Well, why not put two and two together and actually sign up? So, I did!
Is anyone interested in generating passive income? I have worked with Life Success & Legacy since 2019, and I am so glad I am a client.

I am still out searching for a Director or Sr. Director role in DevOps and IT Service Management. These things take time and I understand that better than anyone. It doesn’t mean I have to stop living and learning.

Side-gigs

If you have a full-time job, you are probably working more than 40 hours a week. If you have to commute to work, you are probably out of the house at least 50 hours a week. Should you have a side-gig that can get you the cash you need short-term or perhaps even help you have some income when you are in your 60s and 70s?

My answer 20 years ago: no. What you get from your job should be more than enough to sustain you without having a side-gig.

My answer today: yes. A side-gig that does not interfere with your regular job. For some, that would mean being an Uber or Lyft driver. For others, becoming a travel agent for cruises and special weekend trips. For some others, writing a book about your experiences. Should you tell your employer about your side-gig? I think so. Being honest with yourself and your employer goes towards building trust.

Your reasons for needing the extra cash? Planning that special trip – you know, the one you never got to take. Buying your special someone something that you can’t afford for months with your regular salary due to other expenses. Your reasons are your own.

Some people want to earn passive income. That is a good side-gig as well.

Thoughts?

#dailythoughts #sidegig #travelagent #uberlyft