a week in the life

I thought i wasn't spending much time outside. That was true. But going out was definitely not the best idea. I was exhausted for most of the week. Part of it was the yoga. Talk about 1 hour of yoga every morning, then another half an hour of biking to office, biking back at 8 p.m., going out till 11 p.m., ok, not at all that late, but 7 1/2 or 8 hours of sleep was not enough.
Did a bunch of cool things though. Saw Darpana's opening season show. The show was just fine, but all the dancers were beautiful. Went to St. Xavier's to see a documentary on religions, which was just ok. Met up with Anna to go to this cafe/shop, the fair price, co-op type. It was nice and all but i'm not into, a.k.a. cynical about that kind of place, though i can't really explain why.

Sunday, worked half-day in the office. Then was taken to see this well, yes, a well to store water. I wasn't too excited about the plan at first, but it turned out to be a masterpiece. Too bad i don't have the photos yet. Met some cool guys, not sure if we'll cross each other again. But one of them falls into the category of guys that i have history with: short, foreigner (this is relative), not staying here for long, not exactly in my field (as if i had one), and white. But can tell Anna and i have some similar tastes or intuitions lol.
Anyway, she's an all-around nice girl, that's definitely an underestimation, but i can't really find the word. Trying to think who she reminds me of.

Just talked with Sarah and got the slides she prepared on my behalf for the Freeman dinner. It was the sweetest thing ever. On one of them, i was so fucking high (as in HIGH) on Foss Hill but i guess no one'd be able to guess. And that was some wicked photoshop she did on this photo. Just Love It. I'm supposed to be shopping and bargaining at a bazaar lol.

fucked up priority

every one's been talking about it: the $700 billion Wall Street bailout. An economics illiterate, i cannot comment. Let's just assume that this in the long run is better for tax payers. It's taking some money away from them, true, but the other scenario would be much worse. So the government is just choosing the lesser evil. Let's agree on that.
But what about all the public schools, healthcare system, pollution, ok, nothing new, they're all so old, but they're not worth rescuing?

it could have been so much easier to stay home with my parents, to let them care for me, to go out with friends every weekend, to take things as they appear and as they come, to pretend that there's nothing to worry about, to see only few things in front of me and nothing behind or beyond.

contradictions

- those who don't have access to running water, who have to ration their use, who treasure every single drop, would pay ten times more than those who can turn on the tap 24/7

- those who live next to electric dam or who were displaced by its construction would be the last to get electricity.

- those who would never kill stray animals, who observe strict vegetarianism, would still kill other human beings, people of other religions.

- those who are so devout that they would wage a war to triumph their religious conviction would blow up themselves and others during the holy month.

ego

I say that if you care about me, you'd understand, please don't worry about me, let me do what i want. But maybe i'm just selfish, doing whatever that springs up in my mind without sparing a thought for others.

I say that i'm bad at keeping in touch, but i still treasure whatever we have between/among us. I'd like to think that i'm being present where i am, but maybe i'm just selfish and only reach out to people when i need them.

I say that i don't have a boyfriend, cause i move around too often, and cause i'm incapable of spending my whole time with someone, that it'd suffocate me. But maybe, i'm just really selfish and don't know how to curve my ego, to know how to take a step back to accommodate someone. They say all relationship must have some kind of compromise. Maybe.

sanity

What to read after the Times of India, DNA, Express, after Reuters, AP, after bomb blasts, and floods, and bankruptcy?
Vie de Merde
Overheard in New York

Lord Ganesha's Day

Every day i read the news about street celebrations and yet never got a glimpse of it, quite unsurprising, since my route comprises of going to the office from Mr. J's house at 10 a.m. and going back at around 8:30 p.m. and it takes 2-5 minutes each way, depends on whether i walk or go by car.

But finally, got to see it in close-up, and it was also the final day of the festival. Indians did live up to their tradition of being crazy dancers. It was a lot of people. (a lot as in A -- LOT, even by indian standard). And also got to see the immersion of Ganesha, which was actually scary. The paper reported 3000 idols immersed in Ahmedabad alone, including 800 in big size. Imagine all of them diluted into the river which is not even that big and which flows right through the city, cutting it into two.

But maybe even though all of the idols are made of plaster and painted with chemical paints, it's in the end nothing compared to the waste released directly from all the factories along the river. Nothing compared to all the fuel burnt when i take the plane to cross the world.

Just Read: The First Promise

The rural life in West Bengal in the tide of colonialism. Descriptions of customs, traditions (child marriage, puja, etc.) the women and their roles, how they change and are changed. the transition, the uncertainty and the inevitable. the fundamental part of identity that is challenged and that is bound to change (caste, e.g.)

Women are oppressed (and this goes for many other groups) certainly not only because men are sexist. A sexist society nurtures a sexist mentality in both men and women, so women can certainly be oppressive to themselves. They have to find the empowerment to break through. Liberation doesn't lie in the hands or at the mercy of the sexists.

traffic sign of development

- hawaii, stop on the road to greet and talk with each other: they're being friendly
- rural vietnam, cycle or walk in the middle of the road, they are being lawless, or at best oblivious to the notion of traffic roads

- new york, pedestrians jaywalk and disregard traffic lights, they're being New Yorker
- hanoi, pedestrians jaywalk and disregard traffic lights, well, it's just typical in a developing country.

extremely negative:
tired of and from work
impatient to hear back from Daina and to move in the new place
dreadful to spend the whole evening (Sat.) at J's house
and to avoid that tomorrow, will have to go somewhere
though don't really have any place, or anyone to see
lonely

democracy

1.

when i give instructions, there are always some thoughts behind. So either you ask, or you follow.

2.

since we're of different opinions, let me prevail, ok?

Just Read: The Hungry Tide

I don't like the two foreground protagonists (if such a notion exists), but the book offers a beautiful, rich, and humane depiction (or documentation?) of Sunderban, where the relationship between human and nature reaches both extremes: symbiosis and enemy. Meticulously researched like a comprehensive anthropological work that covers everything related to the locale: environment, folk tradition, history.

teamwork

Boss: Ok, let's come up with some ideas... Let's give each of the student a topic, and they will have to talk about it in one minute... Any other suggestions?

Me: Well, i'd go for a conversation, something more interactive, since this is an oral test...
...

...

...
Boss: ok, what i suggested is not perfect, but since we couldn't come up with anything better, and we don't have time left for more discussion, we'll move ahead with it.

Comment: No comment. Because i was embedded in it, i wouldn't be able to judge. Both of us knew that our ideas were not without fault, but we had different criteria, and from our own point of view, our proposal outdid the other.

being a girl means

people tend to be on the look out for you, to go out of their way to help you

you're unlikely to get into a fight with a stranger

you can see married women who never show their faces to any men not directly related to them (father, brothers, children), except the husband.

It also means:
feticide
infanticide

In India, a conservative estimate claims 0.5 million missing girls a year.

In China, the sex ratio is 119.6 male : 100 female (CIA world factbook reports an 111:100), compared to the global 105:100. In the two southern provinces of Hainan and Guangdong, it's 135.6 and 130.3, respectively. This skewed ratio has lead to a constant threat of cross-border kipnapping for Vietnamese women.

It doesn't spare the "developed" South Korea and Taiwan either. No wonder about the overseas bride demand.

outsourcing

I was first introduced to India's home helper industry in Kolkata. After the dinner at Tora's, i offered to help and was told not to worry, someone would come in in the morning to take care of it. As it turned out, there were three of them. They'd come in twice every day, each time for about 2, 3 hours: wash, clean, cook. Since Kolkata is an expensive city, a maid earns about Rs. 6 per month per family. Working for 8 families, that'd earn her Rs. 4800.

My boss also has a "maid" cum "office girl." From a conversation i had with this super sweet girl (actually, it was in broken english through another employee) i learned that she's 25, has two kids who live with her parents (in-law?) in Surat, about 200 kms away. She comes back there the first day of each month to see them. She's been working here for more than a year. Now she earns Rs. 1947 for her 8-6 work schedule.

I found my apartment yesterday (finally!). The rent costs Rs. 2000, with electricity and other expenses, it comes up to Rs. 3000. My roommate (Daina) and I are splitting the Rs. 400/month pay to our maid. The thought of cleaning our own house and washing our own clothes seems very alien here.

Anyway, the apartment is spacious. It's on the 4th floor, and Daina's room has a beautiful view of the river. It's 2 minutes walk from the Darpana school, next door to which is a little cafe, seems like an artsy neighborhood to me.

Can't say how grateful i am to Daina. She didn't want to sublet it to my at first, but then she got my text and couldn't say no. She said she understands how hard it is to find a place here. She herself spent 7, 8 months to land this one.
Not only that, this place is a real luxury to me, after having seen the girl hostel: 20 girls on one floor, 3-4 people in one tiny room, shared bath and toilet. And it costs Rs. 1350. The other place that i asked was a flat with 2 other girls, but the room is tiny, and it costs Rs. 4000, just rent, nothing else included. Ridiculous!

A day in the life

Still haven't found housing yet. Could have been much easier if I could pay out of my pocket. But i'm not willing to, especially since i'm not making any money. Would rather save for other expenses.

A successful person doesn't necessarily work hard, but work smart.

A quote posted in our office.

Don't know if we're working smart or hard or not, but we're certainly working long: rarely closing the office before 9 p.m.
Anyways, i'm excited to leave early today to head to alliance francaise.

faking to be high-tech

discomgoogolation: Colbert's missed it this time.

Chrome: got really excited over Google's Chrome and couldn't install the damn thing because of this Window's incompatibility .

Hadn't it been for vietnamese blogs, I'd have forgotten it's Sept 2nd

oddly enough

So the fish i was talking about in this post had a partner. They looked alike and of course i couldn't tell them apart. But anyways, we came home last night (to Mr. Jowher's) and found one convulsing, gasping for air on the floor. He had jumped out of the tank. I didn't know if it was the fish I'd noticed or it was the other one.