learnings

AH! it has been an eventful December. My return from the USA saw me thro' momentous times in personal and professional life. I have given up my job. I am enjoying this break after about 20 years. It had been a wonderful and amazing 20 years though. I really haven't thought of what to do as yet. My son is here on vacation. i am spending such lovely moments with him. It is so good to be with him. he energizes me and makes my living worthwhile. So it has been a good year with its usual ups and downs. Thank god for it!! I hope the coming year is the same!!! Ha ha!! It's good to be safe!!

Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart. - Marcus Aurelius

Nov 8th/9th/10th Heavy moments and tearful farewell at Purdue by Team Nebraska. We did not realise how closely we had bonded till we reached Purdue!! Credit goes to our Prog Coordinator, Joe Mcnulty. He gave such a hectic schedule that we hated it but fell in love with it and with one another!!!! Team Nebraska stood proud and strong at Purdue so much so that others were envious. We are truly a precious and precocious bunch!!!! Boarded the Chicago flight and the Brussels=Chennai flight with a heavy heart. Excitement creeped in as we neared home. Sat up the whole night chatting to dearest mom. Hardly slept for a couple of hours. Now eyes are heavy with sleep.

Nov 6th /7th At conferences and more conferences. it has been an amazing reunion with the teachers from all over. There are 114 of us. So cameras went clicking and the poor Americans had enough with us!! Towards night we had an awesome surprise!!! Joe and Anasatasia- our Lincoln coordinator/ faculty/ husband wife couple.. joined us. We screamed in delight and borught the roof down on seeingthe, .We, Nebraskans are missing each other!!!! They brought a few more lovely pics and a certifcate=== very valuable mementos!!! 7th, We had an exhibition on all our education systems. We interacted with the US teachers who are travelling to our country. It was very interesting. Made more friends!!!! Last evening in the USA!! Yet another surprise visitor was Tim Bayne!!!

Nove 3rd/ 4th /5th We had conferences and workshops to summarized what we had learnt. We also presented our web sites to our team mates. It was countdown time and we were drowned in mixed feelings. Nov 4th night- we had a farewell dinner. It was a lovely evening. 5th Woke up at 3.00 am( a slept-just fr one and half hours). left Lincoln by 4.30. Flew to Minneapolis. Realised that our bags had not arrived- our carry ons! Tension galore!! Continued our journey to Indianapolis. During the flights we hardly got anything to eat.How I missed Indian Airlines!!! Registered our complaints at Indianapolis. A shuttle took us to Purdue. Reached Holiday Inn totally exhausted and hungry. Fortunately got our'lost bags'!!!!

NOv 2nd We took time to complete our web site and also a lesson plan for the Purdue conference. I had a real taste of Customer care here. I had gone to the most reputed store, Best Buy, for electronic gadgets. My intention was to buy an external hard disk. Like a champ I got one gadget. To my horror, after paying 50 and odd dollars it turned out to be a mere enclosure for a hard drive!! Truly it was a humbling experience. I was fraught with worry because I likened the situation to my home country. Mustering courage and along with a good friend I went back to the store and told my problem. I did not have the bill too. To my utter astonishment the sales guy hardly blinked an eye. He took the product from me( which was in pieces as my friend had tried to assemble and install). I was asked if i had paid in cash or by card. And before I could blink an eye I was given a token to go and get another gadget to my satisfaction. No questions were asked, no explanations needed. WOW!! This is what ...

Nov 1st Visited BOYS TOWN. This is a town spread over 300 acres. It's school for the underdogs!! Children who are juvenile delinquents; those who are abused either physically/emotionally/mentally/ those who re either drug/alcohol dependent etc. All the kids are troubled, poor, angry etc. But to my astonishment the atmosphere here is so positive. there is so much of enthusiasm among the staff and students to forge ahead. The teachers work so hard to make the students believe in themselves! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boys_Town,_Nebraska . Please visit this link to know further details. There is also a famous old movie, by the same name, that won Spencer Tracy an oscar. He later donated the Oscar to BOYS TOWN!! It was a soul stirring and a soul searching event for me. It led me to reflect a lot on my role as a teacher!!

Oct 31st It's Halloween!! I am staying with a wonderful family at Lincoln. Randy and Paula have a daughter Sara(22) and son, Jonathan(25). Such a warm family and they have such a lovely house. It's a dream house- so beautiful, spacious and with lots of natural light coming in. They have done it up very aesthetically.. Yeprakasia( Armenia) is with me too. We were picked up at 10.30 am. We had a lovely lunch- potato salad, yummy sandwich. We exchanged a lot about our countries and culture. The fun part was when we cleaned out the pumpkins and began to carve them. It was hilarious!! There were small knives and saws that we worked with.. We placed the pumpkins outside and placed small lamps inside them so they lit up so beautifully lending an orange glow. Meanwhile kds from across the neighbourhood ,dressed up in whacky costumes came to the house asking'trick or treat'. Inevitably candy treats were given away. Dinner was salad, burger , hot dog, fruits, apple pie with ice c...

Oct 30th Workshops again and this time it was technology all through. We learnt a bit about Excel. We had a tele conference with teachers in Georgia and Azerbaijan who had been to Nebraska on exchange programs.

Oct 29th Today we had a couple of workshops on Effective Leadership. Both were good. A manager does things right while a leader does the right things!!

Oct 28th We visited Public and private schools in Nebraska City. The private school-Our Lady of Lourdes School was run by a Catholic diocese. I found the students more friendly and courteus. It was refreshing to see the KG and primary students. Our next visit to the Lewis and Clark center. This is a small museum showing the trail of these two men who hiked throughout this region recording the animals/birds/trees species. So this center honors these men and have recreated their trail. The most exciting part of the trip was seeing the Missouri river. It was quite picturesque. Click , click went the cameras!!!

Oct 27th, Visited Crete a small town here. Participated in a Adult Education program. It's amazing to note the level of dedication here. Post Noon, Lunch at cafeteria and workshop on technology. We also did a guideded reflection on our micro teaching.

Change is the rule of nature. Whatever happens happens for the good!! This ancient wisdom stuns me and renders me speechless from time to time.

Oct 26, We were taken to a public school in the countryside. It was a small replica of the schools here so it was hardly exciting. In fact it was a mere waste of time. All I gained from the trip was reading.. I managed to read the National Geographic, Reader's digest and the Time magazines. Post Noon, Did a little shopping at Wall Greens.

Man Proposes while God Disposes...

Oct 25th, After a good brunch ( waffles with blueberry sauce etc) we headed to Omaha. We stopped at an art museum. It was a pleasure to see works of Renoir and Monet. The most stunning were the artifacts of native Indians. Such intricate bone and bead work on leather/ hide. Next we headed to the zoo.We were taken aback by what we saw. it was truly amazing. the desert habitat, butterfly park, cat complex, giraffe and zebra complex ,bear complex were awesome. But most astounding were the apes- gorillas and orangutans. The gorillas won our hearts. Seeing them leaves no doubt about Darwin's theory of evolution. We saw a baby gorilla in diapers being carried by a lady who is playing its surrogate mother. It was too to cute. The way this country presents its culture/ history etc is something we have to learn. The zoo experience was remarkable.

Oct 24th Today we had to do the 'micro teaching 'presentation! We had to take a lesson for 15 minutes in our native language. English should not be used strictly. So I decided to teach in Tamil. Ha ha! it's an irony as its not my native tongue but I feel more at home in Tamil than in Malayalam. So I taught 'my class' a rhyme in Tamil.It was good learning and great fun too. We learnt many a language today ranging from French, Spanish, Ukranian, A sengalese dialect to Bengali...It was interesting to note that the person whom I thought would not present well actually did a wonderful job. It is definitely not easy to teach!! The ones who appeared to be smart could not communicate as the shy Bangladeshi friend of mine. She stunned me! Her teaching was so effective.She used such simple method and simple language. Effective communication is the key!!! Post noon Had lunch very leisurely at the cafeteria.Had thought provoking conversation with Tim Bayne. Got back to the hote...

Oct 23rd, Today has been a day of emotions!!! It was my last day at East High. We had a celebration.. I conducted a small activity. I told the children to write down the names of their classmates on a sheet of paper and alongside they had to mention one unique quality. I another paper when their friends called out each name and the quality, they had to write what was described about them. The were quite thrilled to learn what their friends thought about them. hey had written about Lyn and me too so it was good fun. I also got a royal tour of the school. Cody Brown too me around. He is a very nice boy, well-mannered. I was astounded and amazed at the vastness of the school and the awesome facilities they have. The woodwork class/ photography/indoor gyms/ culinary classes are 5 star category. Ansur came to meet me and it was a very emotional farewell for us. I have got so attached to him. My ninthers also gave me an emotional farewell. Lyn and me broke down!! In just 2 weeks we had all b...

Oct 22 Today when I joined back work, there was a lot of cheering from my ninth graders. They are a sweet naughty bunch. Today it was very interesting. The children prepared transparencies on the given topic. They also had an interactive session where some did skits/ songs/etc. Post noon At the university we planned for the end of program presentation,SSC!! It was chaotic. Lilya, my Armenian pal refused to agree to our ideas ad it was vice versa. It was hilarious. We had dinner with a senior professor here. He has a lovely house which is so well kept. He and his wife make a very handsome couple. We had a great time. Lovely food and friends playing the piano!! It has started raining. the temperature is 4 degrees

Oct 21, I did not go for work or the workshop.I woke up with a bad bout of gastritis.I took complete rest. According to the program rules I had to see a doctor. Fortunately it was an Indian doctor from Andhra so I could convince her that it was just gastritis. I took plenty of the much needed rest.It's amazing that the body gives us signals when it is not feeling well. Yet we ignore and then suffer!! The rest did me good. I missed my mother a lot!!

Oct 20th Lynn is back today. the day went off smoothly. I had been to Tim Bayne's class. He conducted the fish bowl activity. After which there was a parliament session. One boy ,Sam was particularly impressive. Post Noon, The colors of Autumn!!! Oh my the campus looked stunning with the maple leaves turning bright rust, some leaves in yellow and one particular plant with scarlet red leaves. It was an enthralling sight. Today the WEB QUEST presentation began.

Oct 19th, Lyn did not come to school today as her baby daughter was sick. So i took a psychology class for AP students. I also conducted a mock European Union. Once again I missed my Indian students as it would have been so difficult to control their excitement. Here the kids have everything working for them- great teachers, super technology and other resources. But they just do not participate. The silence here is sometimes killing.. ha ha am I missing the noise!!! Post noon We worked on our lesson plans/ web quest/ micro teaching til 6. 30 pm

Oct 18th, We had an ethnic dinner night!!! Each nation presented a dish or two. Sarada and me made kheema upma. Devika made kesari. Both dishes came out so tasty! The upma got over in a jiffy. We also danced to various genre of music of varied countries. Indian music rocked!! i had taken a collection of old hindi (bombay vikings) and tamil koothu. Everyone lovedthe music ad we danced merrily.

Oct 16 Today it was exciting to note the palpable excitement at school. Teachers and students were on a natural high as its the weekend. The mood infiltrated into me too. I was skipping ,literally, at the end of the day. We had the students doing research on the member nations of the European Union. I am holding a MOCK EU on monday so they are preparing for it. I also distributed 'jeera mithai' to the students. Some liked it ans few did not. Surprisingly boys liked it better than girls. Post noon we had a session wit hDell Harnisch. We were divided into groups to do a presentation o nany of the cultural events that we had attended here. So we chose to enact the Union Coll dinner( where we dressed in our national costume and showcased our country) . I was chosen the leader of the group by my team members. We had hardly practised but gave a great show. Each one of us sang/ danced/ talked on how we had perceived the evening thro seeing/hearing/tasting/ smelling/touching. So Devik...

Oct 15th Today was exciting at school. I took 2 AP( advance placement) ie 12th in psychology. it was interesting. initially I was nervous but got over it soon!! Then it was geog the rest of the day. Post noon the workshop was intensive but of short duration,, I forgot to mention that a few days ago an Indian looking boy of ninth grade walked up to me and asked in a very happy tone if I am an Indian. With great excitement i nodded in the affirmative and I asked him the same. . With a beaming smile he said that he was from Pakistan. Now I was all the more excited. We struck instant friendship. It was a unique bonding, so instant and so intent. He has promised me to look me up every day. Ansur keeps his word and comes after lunch to say a hi and we end up exchanging a small conversation in hindi. Today he was a few minutes late and I was anxious and actually began to miss him. he is so endearing. There was no difference between us. We felt we were of one nation. All barriers melted. I wis...

Today I continued with European Union with the 9th graders. I gave them an activity too. I conducted an oral quiz. It was such an easy quiz that my 6th grade back home would have done it in seconds. Here to elicit an answer its a monumental task where as my 9thers would have been so excited!!! Post noon we had a short session of workshop with Joe on how to make a 'problem statement' required for a grant. It was a relief getting back early to the hotel!!!

Oct 14th, It's my best friend's bday and i was most excited calling here from here .She is holidaying at Coorg!! I wish i had been with her. She is there all alone. Today was yet another busy day. Took classes independently at East High for the ninth graders. It's so mazing to note that kids are so similar all over the world. One particular batch is so interactive and few are mischievous. When one girl remarked that she was stressed out due to some assignment, my heart cried out for my boys back home!!!Exams, loads of homework,pressure form school, home and society... Poor souls. If they had these facilities, this system they would have all gone to space by now!!! Post noon- It was raining and biting cold! Thanks to Tim Bayne I am better equipped for the cold. He has lent me lots of woolens. We had a SSC workshop till 5.30 pm.

Oct 12th Today Lyn was on leave so I managed to take a class on types of govt. I also attended Scott Gailey's class on theater and poetry unplugged. During the poetry session a girl recited a poetry by heart with such depth and expression. I was astounded. If i had read the poetry I am sure I would not have liked it but hearing it from her made such a difference. I have lunch in the staff room. Lilya's mentor Chuck Morgan is so full of spirits. He reminds me of the song'for he is a jolly good fellow'!!! The noon session with Dell Harnisch was as usual very good. The highlight was that he treated us to ice cream!!! it was heavenly in spite of the cold weather.

Oct 11th Today we visited an aircraft museum. It had aircrafts from the world war 2 days. It was interesting. The most awesome experience was when i sat inside a helicopter simulator. Oh it was such an enjoyable ride !!! Virtual reality is such an amazing concept!!!

Oct 10th ( am actually writing this a day later!!) WE had been given a video camera to shoot a film. We were divided into 6 groups. I gave the name 'Sparkzz' to my group. It was fun and great learning to plan/ write the storyboard/ shoot the film. I have always enjoyed being in front of the camera. This time I enjoyed directing and shooting some footages of the film. All the more fun and learning was when we had to edit the film. We did it on MAc again on Imovies! I enjoyed editing/ adding effects/audio. It was very fulfilling. http://cehs.unl.edu/tea2009/tea2009/Movie_Time.html This is the link to the film. Our film is right at the end. Enjoy!1

Oct 9th Another day at school. kids enjoyed the photos i showed on power point. Am learning to use the MAc machine! One boy called Will had me listening to a song composed and sung by him. He also plays the guitar. He is awesome.

Oct 8th Today I started my school internship. I am assigned to Lincoln East High. My teacher partner is Lyn Peterson. Here students move to the teacher's room which is equipped with a pojector/ magnetic wall maps/electric sharpner/shelves/ computer/white board...Students do not have uniforms. Neither do they have to carry a heavy bag. They bring in a folder which contains sheets for them to do their CW and HW. They have individual desk and chair. They have lockers to store their personal stuff. They work with pencils. They have only multiple choice questions or one line answers/ map activity.. they can represent their answers graphically. All answers are accepted as it's their own work. They do not copy ever as they do not have the stress of failing an exam. They graduate from one class to another irrespective of their grades. They can take re-tests to improve. They receive special coaching if they find difficulties. HW is done at school when they have free periods and every d...

Oct 7th Morning was a session with Lindsay Hastings on Youth leadership training. It was ery interesting. we learnt a new theory- the bucket and hte dipper theory!! Each one of us has a bucket that gets filled with happiness, cheer, goodwill etc. For eg if someone wishes us in the morning with a smile it fills our bucket. Yet there are some one who can be nasty to us, pull us down etc. They are dipping into our bucket and removing our joy. Such dippers cause misery. Our bucket gets filled if we fil the buckets of others!! Such a sweet and simple theory. So let us choose to be either a bucket or a dipper!!

Oct 6th Today we had tech workshop. I assisted the instructor in teaching others. It very interesting to teach as i learn more myself. Lunch Post lunch also we had tech workshop.

Oct 5th Woke up with groan on Monday morning.. the usual monday morning blues... Today we visited a landmark here, the state capitol which houses the legislature. It is the only building with the highest tower.( 14th floor). We were given a very good guided tour by Ms. Gloria. She was so articulate and excellent in her communication. The highlight was when we were received by the Lt.Governor. We were all awarded honorary citizenship of Nebraska. This was very exciting. We then boarded the elevator to the 14th floor where we got a bird's eye view of Lincoln city!!! LUnch.. Post lunch we had a session on student council/ lateral thinking( which I did pretty well because I have held quiz programs on the same).... 5.30pm back to the room. It's been drizzling. the temperature is 16 degrees while back home its more than 40 degrees!!

Oct 4th Ah today I woke up only at 10 am. Blissful sleep. Felt homesick. Missed my parents and son. missed home!! At 2 pm we had a meeting with the teachers whom we will be working along with. From Thursday my internship at EAST HIGH school begins. The teacher whom I will be working with is Lyn Peterson, a young lady with just 3 years of experience. She is very enthusiastic and eager to work with me and its a mutual feeling. I will be teaching geography to the ninth grade and observing the psychology classes in the 11th grade. I wanted to brush my skills in geography and psychology so i opted for this combination.We discussed in length our lesson plan. Then we were taken shopping. Thankfully shopping has lost its charm. God save my pocket!! Back to the room and had a simple dinner....

Oct 3rd Today we had a session with Anastasia on web quest.we worked in pairs. Anahita from Armenia is my partner. Post brunch it was a session with Mila.She introduced Czech language using flash cards, cartoon. Very helpful in teaching a new concept/ topic. The Ar gentians behaved child like!! Why is it that we adults stick on to our egos? How can one 'learn' then? Evening w were hosted by Bob at his lakeside house. It's such a beautiful location. After two days of chilly weather it was welcoming to see the sun out today. I felt wistful on seeing the lovely house. Then I felt happy that at least I had a chance to visit such lovely places and meet such lovely people!!!!!!!!!!!1 We had a wonderful time .We, Indians began singing songs, well I was just braying along!!! Soon others joined in. Music truly bonds... We danced too. Me with a left foot .. but hey I taught the Turkimenistan friends to jive to Indian songs and oh how they danced. It was an evening of fun

Oct 2nd It was very windy and cold once again. Brrrr so so so cold. This morning we had been to East Campus. We had a session with Shannon who gave us a lot of inputs on 'learning by doing'. Lot of interactive games to teach various concepts were discussed. By noon the univ campus where we first headed to the cafeteria for lunch. I had a hot meal! it's indeed surprising that here 'cold meals' are most common for such a cold place!!! salads, meat, vegetables,beverages are 'cold'!!! Post noon we had a session on service learning with Tim Bayne. It was interesting. He is very good in his communication and reaches out to all of us. It was a good interactive session. It made us think on the community service we have been doing. It is like 'lip service'!! Our so called social work has not actually changed the lives of the target people! Service learning is when we reach out to bring about a change i n the community. Reminded me of the teaching of Confuciu...

It is an strange coincidence that my son and I remembered Chintu and Mintu our old neighbours who had been a trmendous source of strength to us when we had a great personal loss

Oct 1 Thurs Today I had a good session with Tim. Both Socratic and fish bowl methodology were explained. we had a discussion and learning on quality assessment of homework!! Had an early lunch. Post noon was the tech workshop which was meaningless as I am quite ahead. Did some shopping too....

Wed 30th Sept This morning we learnt to create a website for ourselves. It was exciting and a high voltage class. Please do check out the link. I am now a proud owner of a website!! http://sites.google.com/site/swapna10tea/ Lunch with the faculty of the teacher college. It was a pizza lunch. It's amazing to see teachers/professors as old as 70- 75 years so active. Post lunch it was English Language Learning with Mila. Yesterday we had been divided into various groups and assigned various methods to do presentations on. My group was assigned "direct method". We decided to teach Common nouns using this method. My group members began the lesson using pctures/ games and objects. One member ( Anahit from Armenia) taught thro reading a passage and dictation. I summarized the session with a roleplay and song- farmer in the den.. My teaching was appreciated by my friends. Some of them took down the song! Session with Tim We had an intense discussion on the methods and constraints...

Tues -29/09 Today we had an icebreaker round with Shannon- the chicken game where we threw the chicken doll to another. that person would introduce saying the name/ country and one unique fact-- very interesting. then we categorized ourselves- visual/visual reading/ auditory/ kinesthetic based on a questionnaire. taught us identification skills. we also made name cards reflecting our country and tastes/ personality. Went shopping in the evening. Later we met up in our own group to work out teaching strategies for tomorrow

Monn 28th sept. This morning we had a techy session. Did not learn anything new. Post non was a session with Mila.What a bundle of energy she is. She must be past 60!! We had a good discussion on langage learning, the methods adopted till now... It was learning by doing and i realized how interesting such a class is.

Sat 26/09/09 This morning had a quick bit of a huge turkey sandwich. Rushed to the univ campus for morning workshop.Met Tim. What a bundle of energy he is. He is 51 years. We had an ice breaker workshop which was very useful to me. It would help me in my GVC classes!! Headed for a good lunch.Had huuuuuuuuuge strawberries, hot fudge wtc. Yummm. Post noon we had an hour discussion with Tim. Headed for a technology workshop with Bochi who is a pony-tailed goodlooking Polish ! strolled around the campus after the sessions. Its football season here. The whole city is out in red. Campers, balloons and bbq have been set up beneath colorful umbrellas or behind their cars. Lot of decorations. Helicopters are patrolling. Traffic is massive but everything is well under control... Today's learning-- I have improved my listening skill!!

Yesterday was so exhausting but I was able to hold up well!! I checked out of the room in DC at 8 am and have been up and baout till 12.30pm. had lunch andthen by 2.30 set out forthe Baltimore airport. a half hour drive. We had to stand in q for 2 hours to check in as our passports had to be checked and baggage needed to be booked. We have to pay 20 dollars for the first piece of luggage.Then we proceeded to the security check which was a cumbersome process. Shoes, laptops, bangles, watches and blah had to be removed. once again a long wait. The flight was ok and pangs of hunger set in. I missed Indian Airlines then!!! Reached Minneapolis. HUUUUUUUUUUUUge airport! Had to walk almost the distance between chintamani to blue star. GOD! all this for an half hour flight. By the time we reached Nebraska it was 1.30 am. Every one was tired and hungry. The highlight was when someone commentdthat I had always been cheerful and it made others happy. I am always surprised when such comments come...

Visitedthe Smithsonian museum of american history!!! so beautifully history is presented. it has 4.5 million visitors in a year!!. we do have lots to learn from them!! Presentation is indeed important

Its a marvellous experience. i have met teachers from so many countries-- senegal, ghana, haiti, columbia, gautemala, cambodia, equador, el salvador, kazakhistan, ajerbajian, uzbegistan, kyrgystan, turkeministan. wow. so many. and how can i forget bangladesh. they are sooooooooo excited as i speak a smattering of english!!! yesterday we interacted with 3 students and 2 teachers of washington dc. today we will be visiting museums in the noon!! the food is sooooooo delicious!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Almost 20 hours of travel from Chennai to Washington!!!wow!! Am here on a teacher exchange program for 6 weeks.

“Masters of one art have mastered all because they have mastered themselves. With dominion over both mind and muscle, they demonstrate power, serenity, and spirit. They not only have talent for their sport, they have an expanded capacity for life. The experts shine in the competitive arena; the masters shine everywhere .” ~

Mute football during gvc class was a moment of satori!!!!

Spring cleaning helps! What one has not worn or used in the last 6 months is never going to be used. Good learning1 So I am donating lots of clothes!!

Rest in Peace, Senator Ted Kennedy!! at last!!!

going shopping for onam!!!

Reminding myself to take each day as it comes!!!

Why is it that students tend to think that humor is when teachers are ridiculed!! It hurts!!

Just returned from a beautiful trip!!!

Dedicating this friendship day to my best-est friend Sandhya who is there for me any time and every time for no rhyme or reason!!!!

Last night was amazing... spent it with my son recalling our earlier days. It was nostalgic and hilarious!!!

Ah! finished filling in the forms for the USA interview!! All set to goooooooooooo

If you want love learn to give love!

It's great to be back to my daily blogging. It has been an eventful month. There is a lot of satisfaction in being busy with something or the other!!!

It's not the years in your life that count, it's the life in your years that count - Abraham Lincoln!

A whiff of breez is more enticing than A/c!!!

How wondeful is friendship.... one relationship that energizes you!!! I had a lovely weekend with my collegemate who is down here from USA.

Rare weekend with saturday off- rare luxury!!!! spending time with old friends, food and.....

In love stand together yet not too near apart, for the pillars of the temple stand apart!!

Let there be no purpose in friendship save the deepening of the spirit!!!

First day of school and it was so busy and exciting. I put up my fav quote,' If I rest, I rust'! A constant reminder for the year to come!!!

Ah! School's reopening tomorrow. It sure was exhilirating to  get the new time table, new classes and new assignments!!!!  Now I have to do better than last year!!! 

It's ssssssooooooooooo hot in Chennai. I should be taken for granted becos i never use the A/C and I have used it many a time this summer!!!

It was actually wonderful to be back to work!!! School- ah! my children, the books, the excitement of new kids, new classes, the love of ur previous batches -mmmmm its exhiliriating!!!!

always treat your boss like you are meeting him/her for the first time.. (it doesn't matter if you were being killed, humiliated by the same person or if you just had a great time partying or sharing a light moment the day before..) niiice.. POSTED BY  ROHAN RAJIV, my son!!

Always have a back-up of files!!!

Understand how you think! some people think by writing.. others by sitting quiet.. yet some others by talking..  understand which one you are and see how you can use it fit in. POSTED BY  ROHAN RAJIV   AT  12:14 PM This blog is created by my son. 

Today I learnt how to edit and finish a document wth finess!!! We went to the printer to gve the 'agnee' files for printing. The person who took us is such a humble person. And the techie guy who worked with our files is amazing too. It was fun. We learnt to  look into a document minutely!!

Whne you have a team working under you, one must look into the minutest detail! Learn to be more professional-- learnt how to be 'corporate like professional' today frm my son!!!!

The yellow roses were drooping, I put them in a vase. I stared into the mirror, Ravaged by time my face, Stared back… Every wrinkle, every line Had a story! I wondered, I brooded, Till my Master said, ‘Your world is a room full of mirrors!’ The roses, meanwhile, smiled. I looked into the mirror Glowing with realisation My face, bright The smile, the shine Has a story!!!!!      

The election results have been amazing. The Indian voter has proved to be intelligent- opting for a stable govt which will take our nation ahead.The presence of youth, especially Rahul Gandhi givs a ray of hope.

Ah! I missed so many days of blogging! The heat makes one so lethargic actually!! Diplomacy is an art. I put it into practice today and won the argument!!!!

Mangoes so luscious on a tree  how wonderful is the sight!  how many more years  Will it be that trees and mangoes are no more!!

Easy to say but extremely difficult to put into practice. My son drilled this into me and made me put into practice. Voilaaaaaaaaaa!!! For once he was my Task Master today... I enjoyed it... new learning for me

I learnt more about Excel today!! yahooooooooo.

From 'nothing' came everything From 'emptiness' came this planet From 'zero' came life From 'light' came the Supreme O Monk your absence has been learning! I 'realised' your Self I 'understood' myself!!!

Today has been so productive!!! Ah! it's a great feeling to be working even if it's in the midst of hols!!

Today I walked into a beauty parlour and came out feeling like a Queen!!! One must pamper oneself occassionally

It's so easy to fall into a routine!!!! I am so comfortable doing nothing!!!

"Sow a thought and you reap an action; sow an act and you reap a habit; sow a habit and you reap a character; sow a character and you reap a destiny." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sometimes when we don't have time to listen, god has to throw a brick at us. It's our choice: Listen to the whisper ... or wait for the brick! Borrowed from  http://tejasvilearnings.blogspot.com/

People wish to be liked, not be endured with patient resignation- Bertrand Russel

Richard Koch -  It's important to focus on what's easy! Most people tell you to do what's difficult for you. They are WRONG! So what is it that you are amazingly different from others and enjoy doing??? Build up on your strengths!!

Be a sniper.. not a shot-gun shooter. A shot gun shooter is good for spraying a few bullets at a short range.  Anyone can be a shot gun shooter - just requires us to hold the gun and shoot all over the place. It takes a lifetime of skill to be a sniper..  What this means is that when doing something, we have to be just like a sniper - focus focus focus and then shoot and hit one target and blast it! POSTED BY  ROHAN RAJIV  

I stare at the gadget When will it twitter I think When will it bring your messages When will it bring news from you When will it sing that you are calling me??? Oh! My god, I’m addicted To this l’l gadget! So sleek and balck Its my soul-mate I’m never seen without it It has invaded my privacy It’s the window of my soul It brings in the world to me Page three, friends, music, everything1 Almighty Oh! Save me form this l’l devil I am breathless, I’m strangled I’m angry, I’m depressed Sometimes elated, ecstatic and joyous!! Ah I’m ruled by my Nokia N81!!!!!

to Susan Boyle.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY.Wow what a woman. truly inspiring. one can do anything if one wants at any age ,anywhere!!!

Election trivia 09     The media is agog with Election excitement… Journalists and citizens hurling shoes Has become the order of the day! Whither civilisation….? False promises, illegal polling Fanatics abusing in the name of Religion, caste, gender.. Whither civilisation…? My tax money, your tax money, our tax money Is changing hands! ‘black’ is the favoured color! ‘honesty’- is that a word or value? Whither civilisation…..? ‘the chair’ is the favourite piece of furniture ‘the citizen- voter’ is the favourite buzz word ‘power’ is the favourite concoction ‘greed’ is the favourite situation!! Whither civilisation………????        

chinmaya student Bhargav to a freak accident. bunge jumping. He went with a  few of his online friends. He was a mischievous lovable affectionate and such a cheerful boy. 25 is not the age to die. I pray for his family.

is not enough!! i realised that inspite of being on bed rest for almost more than a week( and some more weeks to come) I do not have enough time. I have so much to do. Books, movies, calls, sms, net- phew the list is endless and not exactly in the same order. I am enjoying every moment of it!

that of one's mother.  I experienced this with my best freind too. how selfless she is! I believe that a true friend who is there for you any time and every time. There is no specific occassion!! 

is like a breath of fesh air! Today my friend's daughter had come to see me ( the patient). She cheerfully commented that I do not look like a 'patient'.  I was thrilled at the spontaneity!!

can never be replaced!!!!!!! I am being pampered like a BABY!!!!!!

are happier to see you sick. Ha ha!  Last week I got admitted for a surgery. I always took care to go well dressed each time I went to the hospital. I even underwent a pedicure, manicure, hair trim prior to the surgery. It made a world of difference to me. It helped me to cope up very well. But to my surprise people expected me to look and feel dull.I gave them a rude shock!! I am exclding my good friends ofcourse!! Even my mother was trying her best to snuff out my attempts at looking good.  I wonder why is it expected that pateints ought to look their worst even if hey do not want to!! 

a surgery.  Need to remove a sick organ out! I was just reasoning this out with my son the other day. I am feeling so sad to remove an organ which I know is not healthy and causing me  discomfort. I feel a tremendous sense of loss. So i wonder how is it that a mother or a father has the heart to snuff out the life of a foetus, just because its a girl. Or how do they kill a new born n treacherous ways due to some reason or the other. How, how how????

restless!

having lunch in my classroom, with my students. The Board exams are on at the school so we, teachers, have to be in the classrooms during break time. It strenghtens my rapport with my students. I am going to miss my 8th darlings. They have been with me for 3 years and next year they will be shuffled into various sections. So I am going to miss my 8a!!!!!

of our body as a temple. Unfortunately only when something goes wrong we realise it.

does wonders for the soul!! Its so lovely to share a joke, however silly, and laugh or giggle over it.

on your instinct. 

tell him your future plans!!

as far as you think!!!

beating Man U was a serious surprise!!   Were the Man U players complacent? Will this egg them on? Life is wonderful. It keeps throwing challenges. It is up to us to play the game....

the proper footwear always!!! Footwear compliments your dress! It reflects your personality!! Iwore a casual pair of sandals with a lovely outfit and my student commented that I looked different!!! He said,' The footwear is not suiting you Mam!'  Ah how much the kids notice!!!

communicate, communicate! it solves a lot of problems! Be direct in what is to be communicated. I have my colleague who has been communicating in circles. I am helpless in offering a solution other than to listen. May be that is what she wants! I tried to communicate in the same vein and I was exhausted. Direct approach suits me best. Life is short. Communicate and move on!!!

I received was from my student who said this to me,' God creates problems only after offering the solution to it.. My problem was lack of confidence and finally came the solution.. YOU'!!! I am touched. These are the sweet moments which define my life! I am egged to do more!! Thank you lord!!!

has flown!! Keep your eyes on the path and not on the result!!