Patience pays!

I love watching those animal videos, and a  lot. Especially wondrous are the lion ones. There is indeed something regal, royal, unique about these majestic animals. It has to be my perception, but I always get the feeling that these kingly presences are not just wild beasts, not mere apex predators. 

There is something highly sensitive, absolutely intelligent about them. Luckily, I always get to watch videos that prove my point (of view). No wonder, next to doggo  (especially, beagle) videos which give me the satisfaction of meeting Tashu by proxy, lion videos are my big choice. 

Late this afternoon, while eating that impossible concoction called rice n mug dal, one's inevitable fate when ill, I watched a great, a simply wonderful video about Elena, a lioness from the Savannah.

 The video, a great tribute to 'mother love', was, moreover, inevitable proof that animals have strategic thinking, know the value of patience, and can use restraint to achieve their goals. It established, moreover, that they recognise each other as helpmeets, despite the cruel jungle laws of the evolution, and of survival.

Elena has lost her first litter to a terrible famine. Now she is guarding her twins all alone. Once when she goes hunting, leaving behind the vulnerable cubs, a hyena picks them up. The hyena is the boss of her cackle. She, too, is a mother though. The way Elena negotiates her cubs' rescue is a lesson in intelligence and patience.

Obviously, helping her on, once she recognises the underlying subtext of the lioness' behaviour, is the hyena who has to pay the price, as her clan is irritated with her. Both of them forever maintain an awareness of each other, as far as animal friendship in the wilderness can go.

A lovely video that was a great addition to animal cognition, especially in the wild. Honestly, it made my bland lunch bearable, and absolutely made my day!  Great weekend feel indeed!

Pratima@ The way most human beings behave, animals are much better, especially when it comes to emotional intelligence.

Quote of the day:                                                    "Intelligence is not to make no mistakes, but to see quickly how to make them good," explains Bertolt Brecht, one of my topmost favourite authors.

Word of the day: acuity                                            Acuity means sharpness or keenness, often referring to the ability to see (visual acuity), hear (auditory acuity), or think clearly (mental acuity). Basically, it  describes the clarity and accuracy of perception, whether sensory or intellectual, indicating how well one can perceive fine details or complex situations. 

  It may, moreover, apply to the severity of a patient's condition in healthcare (patient acuity) or the precision of touch (tactile acuity).

 Let us learn grammar:                                            We meet on Monday as the week-end begins today.

Banal, Boring and bothersome! And, oh, yes, 'peaceful'! Or 'peace-fool'!?!

  If you are not well, are down, what do you want? Quiet, peace, calm so that you can rest n recoup, right? This basic need is NEVER EVER fulfilled in my neighborhood!

To begin with, I have impossible neighbours who, the whole long day, have NOTHING, practically NOTHING, to do, and the day long, they are eternally screaming their cheap brains out. And for years on end, this has been their lifestyle. Their 'conversation' with the kachrewali begins circa 8.30 a.m. She screams, they shout (at least six baby-brained adults! How to call them adults is a big deal though!)

The shouting goes on and on till 1-ish. I get to know all these details when I am at home. They keep the closest possible watch on each one of every movement, trying to guess who woke up when, why water was not filled, when shat/farted/pissed, and so on and and on!!!

 The disgusting sixsome start their second shouting session in the evening, circa 5-ish , and it goes on till at least 11 p.m. Anybody comes to their houses, the welcomes and good-bye's are at the top pitch. They have to give directions to anybody; half the lane must hear it! They throw their remaining rotting food at your doorstep! In their front yard, they are constantly spitting, and clearing their throats, and  that, too, LOUDLY. Disgusting, banal and boring! At night, any time, they hit, bump, scrape the walls!

I am SURE somebody IS paying them huge mollah to behave thus. (That money, too, must be ill-gotten. If not, why would anybody share it unnecessarily?) Otherwise, how do their households run? Money cannot be screamed, while absolutely doing NOTHING, right? So make it somehow! With every passing veggie vendor, the gas cylinder provider from the Market Yard, they have to gag and gossip loudly. No use questioning such cheapos because you must have the ability to outshout six loudmouths!

In addition, these creepos have a neem tree whose entire foliage I have to constantly clear as it falls in our front garden. Under that tree lounge creatures who, too, shout louder. At times, they stand up the branches, why, who knows. At times, they (all the 'peacefuls' of all varieties) are screaming my colleagues', including Principals', past n present,  surnames, and saying they tell them to do the needful!!!Sometimes, they are loudly gassing about Brahmins. Then there are constantly hugely  vrooming mobikes of these sorts. Oh, yes, these 'peacefuls' do not need any holiday at all!

Yet another creepy place is a building behind. These are also extremely 'peaceful' people who are screaming at any and every minute of the day, not to forget the night.

All such crooks need to be brought to book. Undoubtedly, there is some cheap kingpin behind it. I shall contact the right people, really high up, to get such loonies to stop their sick, silly and loud nonsense going on and on and on! Hope, you, Dear Readers, would help me, too.

Pratima@What these noisy loons do not realise is that their cheapness does not bother me much. Often I use ear buds/ear phones. But it denudes them in front of the whole world! 

Quote of the day:                                                      "How  people can be muted! Hope soon such a Nobel winning machine could be developed! Or, may be, sometimes some people need a high five. On the head. With a sledgehammer." On the FB!

Word of the day: vexatious.                                Vexatious refers to people, like my boring and bothersome neighbours, who tend to cause irritation and frustration.

Let us learn grammar:                                              We shall take up this point yet again. Yet let me introduce it right now. Plurals do not need articles.                                                              Students must study, for instance. Teachers must teach sincerely. Parents bring us up carefully and kindly.                                                   A caveat, though. If there is any unique quality to the pluralised noun(s), the definite article " the" must be used.                                                The Kinnaur apples are tasty, for instance. The Banares silk sarees are beautifully woven. The foreign goods were burnt during the Quit India movement.

Tulsi Poojan

 On many groups, I got a most interesting video. It showed beautiful young girls, lovely children singing paeans to the tulsi plant. Video finally, it turned out that Asaram Bapu declared December 25 as the Tulsi Poojan Day! 

Well, for a fraction of a second, I did not know how to react. No, it does not have much to do with the notoriety of the 'Guru'. Around us, we have very many, in fact, countless such Asaram's, who harass innocent women who are not even interested  in them, and against such sick crooks, though, unfortunately, there is not concrete 'proof' to bring them to book and send them to prison.

I found this idea of creating a "tulsi ma" song to the tune of "jingle bells" a little unsettling. Why not create a unique, totally different, special 'bhajan' dedicated to the holy medicinal plant? Why such a quasi-parody? 

Yet another issue is why the need to replace  one major festival with a minor sup'plant'? To spread the awareness about Tulsi, there are very many more positive ways. In fact, such an exchange would not be necessary if from childhood and in every home, 'mummies' care to educate their children thus. Instead, Mumma Dearest using her broken, awful, non-existent English teaches Betu Dear the non-indian ways!

If you are rooted firmly in your own culture, you respect every other tradition as a variant. You need not follow it, but you do not disrespect it or look down upon it either. You live and let live. Without any unnecessary reactions, clashes and/or overreach, you live your own way, without either eulogising or demeaning the other(s). Absolutely necessary for living harmoniously!

Pratima@ There is boundless beauty in our culture and traditions.

Quote of the day:                                                     "Culture is about making people feel good about how they contribute to the whole," says Tracy Streckenbach. 

Word of the day: bigotry                                            Bigotry is the fact of possessing and publically expressing strong, unreasonable beliefs and disliking other people who have different beliefs or have a different way of life. 

Let us learn grammar:                                              Today let us look at two expressions which confuse Indians; namely, "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Christmas". The first one is American, and hence oftener used in India, while the second one is typically British, especially used by the royalty, and the rich and the refined. 

THE Christmas Carol

 Yes, you guessed it right.  I am referring to Charles Dickens' much beloved novella. Sure, it is senti. Yet this novella, that is, a long short story, tugs at your heart. Yes, it can be argued that there is an unmistakable Christian message in it. Believe me though, minor changes here and there, and it can relate to any society, each culture. It IS that universal. 

How is the story presented to us, the readers? Well, it is ghost stories within a ghost story. Is it not typical that when relatives and acquaintances gather, chats always revert to some such tales? Dickens' novella has that intimate feel. 

In five 'staves', yes, the story has a  crescendo effect in addition to the Freytag mode of plot construction, the Scrooge saga unfolds. When the story begins, Ebenezer Scrooge is a stingy person with the most crooked heart, without any pity or mercy. On the Christmas Eve, his late partner's ghost comes to warn him to mend his ways. Three ghosts follow, of the past, present and future. Since it is a novella, all ends well.  A new Scrooge is re-born, making the underlying Christian allegory absolutely clear. 

Yes, it is a much loved book. In a way, in England itself, it revived the tradition of, yes, carols. It was around its publication, in 1843, that the Christmas tree began as part of the general bonhomie. The novella added meaning to such festive cheer.

In a way, the condition of poor children presented pitifully in the novella was a stark reality of Dickens' Victorian England. He had suffered it personally, too. The book hence has a lovely combo of realism, social satire, allegory, fairy tale, ghost story, all combined. A happy read, in brief!

Pratima@Books impact generations. Surely, they cannot be of the actual/intellectual "DIY" or "how to" mode, notoriously popular right now!

Quote of the day:                                                     "What is Christmas? It is," says Agnes Pavro, "tenderness for the past, courage for the present, and hope for the future." 

Word of the day: blithe                                           Often used in the context of a festive feel, it means showing a good mood or disposition.

Let us learn grammar:                                               Since we looked at the 'few/a few' and 'little/a little' as pairs, let us look at 'some/any', though these are not exactly articles. "Some" is used in positive statements to indicate a quantity, while "any" must be used in negatives and questions.                                                                                        Let us look at some examples.                                 Do you have any doubts? Any questions?              A good teacher does not like a dumb class, dumb here means without any response.

Mathematics

 English and Mathematics are two subjects that are dreaded, hated and avoided by students often. They are considered tough. Most school failures are in these two areas!  .

Actually, both are very easy. Look at English, for instance. It is by far the easiest language; no case declinations, for instance. As for mathematics, it is dreaded so much that there have been attempts such as 'pass the tenth without maths' or the 'best five' to deduce the final score, et al. 

Mathematics, in my opinion, is the base for/of any career you may choose to follow. Engineering of all varieties, Civil to Computers, that is, the oldest to the newest, needs mathematics. Forget medicine, even social sciences, why, literature uses mathematics. The simplest example would be the stanza patterns that depend on counting.

In other words, mathematics creates patterns. Not everybody need to be a Ramanujan to tackle these. He was a genius who could unravel structures that were never located earlier, and thus revolutionised the discipline. Luckily, he met mentors who were genuine enough to recognise and reward his brilliance.

Nobody need be that brilliant. Yet do you want to know how basic to life mathematics is? Well, try buying veggies. That lady in the nauvar saree is surely from a nearby village. Possibly, she never went to any school. Yet perfect would be her calculations. She would never return a paisa more even if you were to give her a five hundred rupee note for some minor buy.

Mathematics as arithmetic is that central to our existence. True, more complex forms of the "sign theta, cos theta" may not be everybody's cuppa. Sure, at the school level, mathematics must be taught creatively to relate it to a happy feel. Yet never can mathematics, the base of all arts, too, be given a miss! Everyone need not be a master of maths; yet all have to be a jack of it!

Pratima@ The Vedic mathematics, for instance, makes magical the toughest calculations. Even a summer course in Vedic maths can energise us to no end.

Quote of the day:                                                       "What is mathematics? It is only a systematic effort of solving puzzles posed by nature," asserts Shakuntala Devi.

Word of the day: onerous                                       'onerous' refers to a  task or responsibility involving a great deal of effort, trouble, or difficulty.                                                                      Most students find mathematics onerous.

Let us learn grammar:                                 Yesterday we looked at the difference between 'few' and 'a few'. The pair relates to countable and plural nouns.                                                           A similar pattern is visible for uncountable nouns. 'Little' refers to nil, while 'a Little' refers to a lesser quantity.                                                            If you add little milk to your coffee, it would be the dark brew. If you add a little milk, the brew would be whiter, and tastier for most. 

A little oil would make chapatis softer. Little oil may be used for making a khakra. 

A little butter would make the cake softer. Little butter would make it difficult to swallow.                                                                                                       Do remember this 'pattern' of little/a little and few/a few as it can change the very meaning.

Human Rights, eh?

 Have we started celebrating certain iconic days more as a ritual? What do you think about this issue? Sometimes I do get this frustrating feel. Let me exemplify how and why. 

Let us look at the international human rights day, for example. It was in 1948, after the horrors of the Second World War, that this concept gained a credence on December 10. It was a great gesture then, and continues to be relevant, in fact, still more, even today! 

Yes, there would be wow-wow (no, I do not mean bow-wow. I respect and love dogs too much to even try such an anomaly!) conversations and speeches glorifying the day. How is the practice though? 

Often it appears as if human beings are back to the flock or cabal mentality. Any crime, major or minor, is always looked at from the microscope of the clan mentality. If the person belongs to your coterie, even a murder can be justified. 

If the person does not belong to any group/gang, even God would ten times think before siding with him/her. However honest/genuine the victim and/or his/her case may be, he/she would surely be isolated. Interest groups would coalesce as per convenience. Half-truths would pile on. Some past events would be raked up, most often, out of context.

 Blame any which way the person with whom you disagree. You can trample the truth(s). Who cares about the future agendas thus subtly set? How does it matter how the future is forever thus tarnished so long as the mafia gets what it right now wants!?!

No wonder, there ARE homo erectus (how to call them human beings? Animals are more principled and honest and helpful. They follow the ethical axioms more, and better!) who deny that the holocaust ever happened, or worse still, justify it and work towards its renewal in many a subtle ways!

Pratima@When you lie through the teeth for immediate gains, later on, even dentures will not help chew the realities that you thus engineered! 

Quote of the day:                                                        "Be your own master, and look at things as a man, as a human being, as a citizen, as a mor(t)al creature," stated Marcus Aurelius.

Word of the day: coterie                                          A coterie is a small group of people with shared interests or tastes, especially one that is exclusive of other people.

Let us learn grammar:                                             This concern with articles is going to last for quite some time. Today let us look at a few examples to understand their relevance. SURE, some communication does happen. Is it adequate though?

1)He has passed few tests last month. Let us not right now look at the horribly wrong use of tenses nor the semantics. Let us just concentrate on the use of articles. This statement, as it stands, would mean that the person it refers to must be a total dumbo.  "Few" means almost nil, while " a few" means some. So if you want to lick up the person and his coterie, you must say " a few tests".                                                                              Let us look at a few more examples. 

2) "She has a few friends, but few enemies." Has to be Mother Teresa! The statement means no enemies and some friends. Try saying/writing "few friends", it would mean the realities today! Friends do the vanishing trick, plain disappear, and enemies, open/secret, crawl  out of not only the woodwork, but out of everywhere! 

3) He reads few books. The statement would confirm that the person is most probably a social media addict. If he/she has to be some kind of a bibliophile, it has to be "a few" books.

4) The last example: Akshay Khanna acted in few films. This would mean, he never acted. "in a few films" would mean he was choosy about the roles he essayed.

In other words, even for communication, basic grammar has to be OKAY! When the AI takes over, it is communication that may save us. Hence this teeny-weeny attempt!

A Continent @ Countless Eras

  Our motherland! People call it a sub-continent. Actually, is not it as good as a continent? Look at the varieties of geographical features, oceans, mountains, deserts, islands, archipelagos, mention them, we have them! 

Want a variety of climates? We have every possibility. In fact, we enjoy six seasons, though currently such seasonal precision is going bonkers. Like the rest of the world suffering the climate jinx. 

I need not even reiterate the usual region, religion, class, caste, gender, language kinds of varieties, not to forget the rampant ageism. If we were to analyse subtly, we could add multiple jeopardies to the existing theories!

Yet the most striking distinctions in our country seem to be of periodicities. Yes, India seems to be existing in multiple eras at the same time. Our space mission, whose budget is less than that of many a film, is precise to a 't'. Yet, our trains seem to follow the time table of the James Watt era!  For months on ends, express trains run at a speed that would make a passenger on the meter gauge blush.

We have six lane high ways, and yet in a major religious center where, very soon, there would be a huge Kumbh Mela like gathering, in the last leg of the journey, you have a semi dirt road without proper street lights leading you to the holy confluence. 

Most interesting is the ferry that takes you there. It is diesel run, but it is known as a steamer. Talk of the Maucaulay mania! It is as good as a floating platform on which are loaded cargo, two wheelers, including mobikes, animals, and countless human beings. There are absolutely no safety measures. There is no listing of the names of people who boarded it. 

This wonder of a ferry has a railing that is two feet high and at least twenty feet is the distance between two such poles. There is not any protective mesh. On the ferry i took, a kid of about two ran almost to the edge, following Mummy Dearest, dressed to kill, and busy with selfies n Titanic poses! 

Heart-rending was the father's call, asking the child to get back! And this in a country where in Hoogli, under the world famous Howrah Bridge, there are posh, well guarded, ultra modernist cruises aplenty. Are we indeed not a country, rather a continent, simultaneously existing in multiple eras? 

Much worse are the habitats! Kolkatta, full of colonial mansions, the high rises typical of a metro, and yet full of shanties! Beautiful street decorations dazzling to glory in the capital, while the last stretch of a much visited religious destination nearby without street lights, but much worse, with power cuts! 

In a country of such contrasts, is it any wonder that a huge railway station with twenty-three platforms has a special lounge with sofas (and the a/c, too, against super extra charges) for those able/ready to pay, while the majority shivers in the cold, despite a blanket or two!

Marx would indeed write anew each and every one of his treatises, if he were to make such scenarios his understudies!

Pratima@ Cry, the beloved country! Indeed what can ail thee? The curious may please note that both these phrases need not reflect any particular ideological inclinations!

Quote of the day:                                                         "We buy things we do not need with money we do not have to impress people we do not like." Thus described Dave Ramsey consumerism. Tweak the quote a little here n there, and you can best describe a continent full of  contrasting eras! 

Word of the day: agitate                                           The word has two meanings. It denotes mixing in/stirring briskly. The better known and more used reference is to disturb, to make someone feel troubled or nervous.