Mixed feeling!

...that your kid can now count, and read alphabets and numbers is a mixed feeling - especially when she starts recognizing that it is CNN at 311 and not Cartoon Network at 521 with a loO0Oong ad-break...

Gone are the days when I could make her believe that Papa is indeed waiting for cartoons to start up by showing her a C and N on TV screen - these days she not only grabs the remote to punches the number, but confirms too that it is indeed the channel airing her favourite show!

A simple solution (...again!)

A simple solution (...again!)                                                                                        31-Jul-2013

TV – la Television, although educational, but is a medium which constantly bombards you with advertisements which, needless to say, influence children the most. Fortunately, we have found a solution – things are either for grownups, or she already has it (...it or a close substitute “it”), or is very expensive (...fiscal responsibility in young age, remember...) or in simpler words, requires a lot of money.

But yesterday she found a way for that as well – we were told “I’ll get that when I’ll grow up....the whole bunch of money...errr I’ll take that from you”.

Funny, but many a variations of this game are still played around…

“Water is deep and you don’t know how to swim, so please be careful” – cautioned Mulla Nasreddin, but the old, ugly, niggardly and cruel but wealthy man did not hesitate from entering into the lake as he knew for sure from his informed sources that this magical water could cure his permanently hunched back.  It didn’t take long – definitely not more than a blink, and there he was - gasping for air, throwing up his hands continuously, and desperately trying to keep his head above water. Mulla Nasreddin, not willing to be blamed for this undesirable creature's departure, said loudly, “Hey Mister, give me your hand, give me your hand”! The cruel miser hesitated – in his whole life he had never given anything to anybody, so he continued his struggle. Other watchful onlookers too – as if prompted by a cue – started the chorus, “Give me your hand…”.

Funny, but many a variation of this game are still played around…

PS - for those who are interested in the fate of old man, there happened to be a young soul around- a bit naive, foolish and hence under the perennial debt, who, in the hope of getting a big-reward which he never got - told the scrooge, "Take my hand, Mister".

Life...ain't it?

Few good stories…

Everyday life brings you a few good stories – some incidents, about the people whom you know, or you don't even know - that make you feel good. You feel good about life – that there is hope - if one is interested in it.

My commute to work includes a forty minutes (each side) journey by my office-bus – and I prefer to spend that time in reading or catching a power nap while listening to music. In other words I shut myself against any disturbance which can devoid me from my me-time. Not a chatter I am, but sometime I cannot escape, and I must say that these are the time when I do learn about people.

A conversation with a colleague on slow-down, recession, firing and why is it "hard" to train "resources" turned into a chat  about a person who used to drive their office cab in the organization my colleague worked previously. Cab or taxi driving, unfortunately, is not regarded as a very noble profession in my country. A tough job it is, all it includes driving - like crazy to skip the stiff penalties imposed on not reaching within time, and it includes a lot of nagging from the cab users on reaching 2 minutes before time in the morning, and it includes sleeping – in the car for at least five days a week, and at bad time on wheel too as most of the time the driver is exhausted! Since, in most of the cases drivers do not own the cars, guarantee of a timely/monthly/complete salary too is not there. 

So it happened, that  the driver-lad, who could be in either side of his twenties at that time, was trying to learn the language of the Gods – English, a language which, in my country, may help you to elevate your status by a couple of inches over the rest who can't speak and/or can't understand. He was sharp, but couldn't complete the education after 10^th standard, but he had a keen interest in learning and improving himself, but didn't have any means - money and time included, to do so.

So, he, the driver-lad used to request his passengers to speak only in English with him. Starting from almost zero, it took him around two years to master the language - with very noticeable improvements. No…he did NOT acquire the accent and all, but at the end of two years, he was, ugh...better than some of the passengers he used to give ride to. My colleague used to think that the driver-lad is doing it so that he could start driving for some five-star hotel, where they ferry foreign-guests routinely on long distance, week-end trips and earn (relatively) high tips; or may be, to impress the girlies. But it turned out in the end that his ambition was comparatively simple – not to sit on the driver's seat for his whole life. 

Last heard, he secured a job which involved handling customers' queries in firm catering domestic customers. May be he will – and he should, go further up too. Like my readers, I don't know him, but I am happy for him. 

And yes, if we still feel that after some years of working-life, learning could become tough - despite all the classroom trainings at company expanses, books and all the Internet sites - Wikipedia included, spare a thought about this chap for whom learning meant taking directions in English for two years with eyes constantly on road!

Fast forward few months - now I am in Bangalore - returning home in an almost empty bus. An empty bus means that I could get a whole seat for myself and could read, or could open my laptop as I did that day. Suddenly I felt a tap on my shoulder - it was the conductor. I had already shown him my pass, but still I reached to my pocket. He waved his hand and asked what is the smallest element on the screen - a pixel, or a bit. Well, it is pixel...exchanged few more sentences, when he asked about where I am from. Then he chatted about the current chief minister there and how many times he has become the CM, and that there only a few (four...?) CM's who became CM 5th time. Knowledgeable fellow - was the though I had. He told me that he appeared in his departmental exams for promotion, where he could get a desk-job, and that he had a paper on computers, and one on general knowledge. My stop came, and I had to get down. But, as the luck had it, I bumped into him the next day - after the weekend - too, again, an empty bus. This time I had my dongle too, so we went on and searched for the answers on some 20 or so questions. I was amazed at his knowledge. I spend a large chunk of my time on the job in reading the on-line newspapers and articles, whereas his time is spent mostly with his passengers who, mostly - like most of my countrymen - are either shouting, or complaining or are alternatively, too busy/elite etc. even to bring the right amount of change, and hence haggling constantly; amid all this he still find the time to read - standing next to driver, reading a local, Kannada newspaper and has amassed as much knowledge, as he could.
Wish him luck - a very good one, folks!

But that is not a school…

I was shocked to hear these words. Not that these do sound hopeless, but because of the reason who the speaker was!

A little background - the spouse of a colleague of mine (let us call my colleague ABC, and spouse TheSpouse, to conceal their identities) – got job as a teacher in a state-school at elementary level. TheSpouse is a post graduate in science – I don’t remember Physics, Chemistry, Biology, or some other applied-science type majors, but that humble job won’t really provide the opportunities to showcase the skills acquired over such a difficult academic journey over all these years. I, being a water-cooler buddy of ABC, have to hear laments on all this. 

Although the school is slightly far, at a non-commutable distance on daily basis, but they’re not really willing to leave that job for some other career in non-state sectors – because this job is "secure". Not a bad approach, given the tough economic times we have had in not so recent past, most of us are likely to do the same – that at least one of family member can keep getting a regular, consistent income. But what I find troublesome is that TheSpouse never goes to the school. And after a long, paid hiatus, visits to offices and maybe, obeisances to a few politicians too, they are trying to get transfer to a school near to their home, and surprise - there too TheSpouse won’t go. Instead, they will provide a cut – some 10 to 20%  – to the other teacher, with 80-90% still left to themselves…or even a 50% won’t be that bad. That colleague will mark TheSpouse’s daily attendances’ and will inform TheSpouse to come to school if any authority cares to inspect that going concern termed as a school by the government.

I, being a “friend” of ABC, have a gall to dissuade them from doing this unethical activity…but replies range from (harmless / routine) everybody does that so why not we, to the most outrageous one I have mentioned above. ABC said “Hey, they are not schools. In earlier days they had classes under a tree, now just four walls have been erected. But does that make a school? No..ooo. (Now emphatically and loudly) don’t worry that is not even a school…”!

I couldn’t hear rest of the ramblings - I was left speechless and I dared not to discuss it further. But, if a teacher does not believe that it is a school, then who else would? I, never, in my life have, knowingly, come face to face with a person with such degraded moral ethics.  The children there are getting deprived of, probably, their only chance to get educated, to be a contributing part of the society.

And this statement - coming out from a person with fair academic achievements, a cozy job , an educated, middle-class background with a lot of exposure to multiple cultures across India, and abroad as well (through work) is appalling!

Well…the usual helpless, here I am. All I did was to unfriend ABC & TheSpouse on Facebook...and now I am trying to avoid conversations with ABC too - as much as possible…in a persistent fear that I too might catch this repulsive germ!

No wonders that a large chunk of our population is still illiterate, and that we are a doomed 3^rd world country – whatever we claim to be – Superpower in making or any other grandiose claim, with such people around - we are nothing, but super losers!

PS - A few days back I found that this gentleman - ABC - used to contribute to "Sponsor a child's education for a year" programme of the place where I work. Basically it is like you pay INR 6,000/- to sponsor one year's education expenditure for a kid somewhere...does that make it even?