I heard from a friend that Australian schools do not have exams till the 5th standard. We were a bit taken aback by this piece of news and started debating the pros and cons of it with some friends.
My thoughts around this were
* Competition is part of life and there is no point shielding kids from it. It will only make them lax and unfocused.
* A diamond is created only under intense pressure. So too must we put kids under pressure to bring out their best.
* Kids have to face exams as they move to high school. So why not get them used to it as early as possible and make it a part of life ?
However my friends put forward the view that having exams during the early years creates undue stress and stunts personality development. Also they point towards the fact that more and more students are committing suicide because of bad results and the societal pressure for performance in exams.
What really shocked me was the news that in India as well, exams are going to be done away with till the 8th standard !! I am not sure if this is still in the proposal stage or its been legalised. Having grown up with exams as very much a part of school life, and none the worse for it, I find this quite disconcerting.
It is still possible to comprehend exams being done away with till say the 3rd or 4th standard, but its too much not to have competitive exams till the 8th standard!
Exam or No Exam
Posted in Personal.
– June 13, 2007
A Second Chance
She was going away for a month’s holiday. Who would take care of her wonderful strawberry plant ?
The strawberry plant was laden with still ripening strawberries.
She gave it to me so that I could enjoy the strawberries once they were ripe and also take care of the plant.
The strawberry plant came to my small balcony and took up a temporary home there. Unfortunately, there were many predatory birds around the garden and the ripening strawberries caught the glad eye of many a bird. I put a white transparent veil to protect the strawberry plant. But some of the birds were horrible and sometime I would find the veil fallen on the ground and half eaten strawberry.
My little daughter proved to be an unanticapated nemesis as she started pulling the strawberries off the plant before they could ripen.
The strawberry plant’s cup ran full of woe. We had to go away for a few days and when we came back the plant was in bad shape. All the leaves had grown brown and one could hardly see any green at all !
We moved house soon after and my wife said “Looks like the plant’s dead, let’s get rid of it”. It was saddening for us, but one has to face the realities of life.
But something told me not to give up on the plant. I took it to the new home. I trimmed off all the brown twigs and dead leaves off from the plant, ensured that she got nourishing water and sun. There were no predatory birds around in the new place.
Soon, I was filled with joy as I saw green little buds sprouting out from the almost dead strawberry plant. Some more patient nourishing, and the plant literally jumped out of its grave, growing bountiful and plenty of green leaves.
There are now a few almost ripe red strawberry fruits hanging happily from the plant. My kid has become sensible and does not harass the poor plant.
Whenever I look outside and see the strawberry plant alive in all its glory and laden with fruit, I feel happy.
Posted in Philosophy.
– June 9, 2007
Horses on the Highway
Posted in Anecdotes.
– May 6, 2007
Bellydancing and feeding the belly
Recently I took my family to one our favourite Indian restaurants. Imagine my surprise to see a scantily clad belly dancer gyrating away between the tables in our favourite joint ! There was some hooting and cheering going on among younger male patrons of the restaurant. We did have our dinner there - the food was sumptuous as usual - but I was still not too sure about whether having and enjoying food while a belly dancer is hopping around your table really gel together too well. Hmmm….Have to do a few more trips to that restaurant to decide on this one 
Bellydancers seem to be doing great business out here in Sydney as I find many Indian restaurants here having belly dancing one night in a week to attract patrons and do something “different”.
Posted in Food.
– May 3, 2007
Amazing Gajanan
This post is a tribute to my friend Gajanan. One day he was driving with his wife by his side and his 4 yr old daughter in the back seat. He was not too far from his house. It was just another day for him. He was telling his wife that he had had a near accident in the morning. Out of the blue, a van from the opposite lane came right at him and hit his car hard on his side. His car spun out of control and crashed. The driver of the van was drunk.
Gajanan’s wife and daughter escaped unscathed. But he went to emergency ward and had multiple operations to save his life and then his eyesight. He was in hospital for weeks. He has come back and started driving to work again. But he has suffered permanent eye damage and has one major operation scheduled to take out more glass pieces and debris from his eye.
The incident is probably not very different from many car crash victims all over the world. What is different is the way Gajanan has responded to this unhappy event in his life. When I call him to enquire about his health, he is always so full of cheer and good humour and jokes and bantering, that I always end the call with a smile on my face. He jokes about the lady doctor who is treating him, he cracks jokes about his wife, he cracks jokes about himself….the guy is amazing. Only once in passing did he mention his anger at the drunk who screwed up his life.
I have the utmost admiration for this guy who despite going through such a major accident comes back , returns to driving, keeps his good humour intact and makes others laugh - despite probably never being able to return to the perfect health which he had before the accident.
Hats off to you, Gaju!!
Posted in Personal.
– March 4, 2007
Mysterious symbol
This mysterious symbol (look at the photo on this post) has been visible against the blue skies of Melbourne in the past few days - it appears like a key, or a cross , an anchor perhaps ?
It has puzzled visitors, and scientists, and everyone - as people struggle to find a logical explanation for this phenomenon !! Is God sending us some sign which we cannot yet interpret ??
Just kidding, folks. But I was really amazed at this architectural beauty which is actually hanging in the air by almost invisible threads. Melbourne is full of such modern architectural pieces and it gives the city its distinctive appeal.
Melbourne is also well known for having a tram system like our very own Kolkata. I had the opportunity last week to visit Melbourne for a week on work and was able to ride in the trams there - something I always wanted to do. Unfortunately you cannot clamber onto a running tram as you might do in Kolkata since they have tight hydraulic doors which shut once the tram is in motion. Some of the trams are quite modern and move fast. But there are still some trams from older times which are smaller and nicer to watch somehow. There is even a “Restaurant” tram in which presumably tourists can enjoy food and a tram ride simultaneously.
I saw quite a few Indians around, some young people working for banks and IT companies. Many taxi drivers are youngsters from Punjab. One of them was from Ludhiana and had done a Masters in IT. After completing his Masters, he started driving a cab to make some money, since its difficult getting a job in IT for a fresh graduate in Australia. Driving a taxi gives him a decent income most of which is tax free. He actually preferred driving a taxi to working in a 9 to 5 office job ! This would be unthinkable in India, isnt it ?
I did not have much time to move on the tourist track in Melbourne because the whole day was spent slogging away at the office and a bad cold kept me lying low in the evenings. However, one solo journey I relished was to St Kilda beach and watching the sunset there was a memorable experience.
Posted in Anecdotes.
– March 3, 2007
Cricket - Australia is beatable
The aura of invincibility surrounding Australia’s cricket team has finally been broken. They lost the CB series to England and now have been routed 3-0 in the Hadlee cup in New Zealand. Whats amazing about their losses in New Zealand is that - in 2 of the matches Australia made 300+ runs which were successfully hunted down by the Kiwis ! In the last match of the series, Hayden scored 181 not out with 10 sixes, and still Australia lost the match ! The last 2 matches were records for the second highest successful run chase in world cricket.
The number of boundary shots executed by both teams were amazing to watch. The Kiwis have come of age and Brendon McCullum and MacMillan hit breathtaking shots to hunt down Australia’s total in the last match.
The World Cup is going to be a feast to watch as England and New Zealand have suddenly come alive. Australia is looking beatable. India suddenly seems to have found its guns firing. Sri Lanka never looked too bad. So its anyones Cup now, though the Proteas would differ and say they are Number One now.
Looking forward to this feast in March!!
Posted in Cricket.
– February 21, 2007
The next US President ?
I was reading about Barack Obama, the man whose name rhymes with Osama, and who might be
US President one day.
A recent comment by the Australian premier - John Howard - brought Obama into focus here in
Australia. Howard made the rather unwanted comment that if Obama wins in March 2008, it would be a day of celebration for the enemy.
Obama hit back by saying that Howard should send 20000 Australian troops to Iraq before opening his mouth. The current strength of Australian troops in Iraq is around 1200.
Obama and Hillary Clinton are the two top runners for the Presidential position in the US. I am slightly tilted
to favour Obama because he seems to represent so many things to so many people. He is a black, a man who has lived in Indonesia among a muslim majority country, a middle class guy who has worked his way through Harvard Law School.
Whatever happens, history would be written because the US would either have its first Black president or its first
woman President in Hillary Clinton. Clinton herself is a tough nut and I am sure she would be giving a good run to Obama.
A story which came out about Obama during his college days is that one day his car vanished from its parking spot. It was such
an old car that he knew nobody would steal it. Sure enough, it had been towed away. The parking fine of $75 was almost 50%
of the cost of the car! But still he went ahead, paid it and got his car back. That shows his sense of loyalty and humility. He did not dump his car.
Whatever it is, I think people would be glad to see the back of George Bush 
Posted in Politics.
– February 19, 2007
Aging gracefully
How to age gracefully is one of the key questions as one approaches middle age. One sees some people who age so well - Hema Malini is a prime example and so is the Big B.
My theory is that the following are very important to age well.
1. Good rest and sleep
2. Good sense of humour
3. Exercise
4. Emotional balance
5. Good diet
6. No smoking
7. Drinking in moderation - red wine is the best if one does need to drink.
8. Ability to relax even in times of stress
Posted in Philosophy.
– January 31, 2007
Is there a GOD
Recently I read a Time magazine article debating the existence of GOD. They got together two of the leading scientists of the world with opposing views and got them to discuss and share their views. One of the scientists is doing cutting edge work in genetics. I dont remember what the other guy is doing. Anyway, it was a very interesting debate between the two.
Is science able to accomodate the spiritual concepts - for example, the virgin mother - a concept alient to the scientific mind. Or a miracle like Ganesh ji drinking milk. Or Vibhuti coming out of Sai baba’s hands mysteriously. One of the scientists trashes such miracles and in fact says that “miracle” is the worst word from a scientist’s perspective.
However, the other guy makes some interesting points as he points to the wonderful complexity of the universe but which still seems to follow very intricate rules. Isnt it possible that there is a designer who has made the universe according to his blueprints ?
While I read the article, I thought about another unrelated book I had read where the author talks about fish in an open aquarium. The fish live in their own little universe with its boundaries. When it rains for example, the fish are disturbed and wonder where these drops are coming from. They have their own theories about it. But they cannot even imagine the huge and vast world out there beyond their own little aquarium. Similarly, there is so much we do not know about the universe. Science and the logical thinking associated with it is essential for humans to continue in their quest for knowledge. But it is also possible that there may exist the truth with which we would come face to face some day.
Posted in Philosophy.
– January 28, 2007
