Teacher and Teaching.

All these years of teaching have taught me the following

• There is nothing like real learning or teaching. the teacher is just a time filling, pseudo-being who creates a make belief situation where the students feel that they have learned something ( Humanities) 
• Teacher enjoys the act of teaching seldom recognizing the presence of learners. He reaches a kind of frenzied level through the act of teaching which is most of the time narcissistic and self-centered.
• The teacher only opens up new paths in the minds of the students. The student should never feel enslaved to the teacher. They should rise above the teacher and find his own path.
• A teacher can never perform the same way throughout an academic session. Some days are good and some days are bad. Consistency is something difficult in teaching. ( this matters only if the teacher is bit sympathetic or empathetic to his students. 
• It is easy for the teacher to sulk into the role of a Facilitator, but he should be aware of the fact that the role demands more than that of a puppeteer. 
• Education is highly commercialized and marks most of the time gets equated with money. As students they need marks and as teachers we need money. So it is difficult for the teacher to say - This is what you deserve you, Moron. 
• Research and updating is sadly missing from the teacher's life. Even if he is teaching ABCD, he should prepare himself to execute the lesson. 
• Teacher should always see not the student but a normal human being with all emotions and confusion. It is easy to teach after a proper understanding of the target audience.  

The Culture of Noise

It took one month and half to properly form ideas regarding this blog. The much needed noiseless environment was missing all these days. The blog partly was inspired by the home visit I had a few weeks back. I felt that the Indian socio-cultural ambience is filled with noise. I became acutely aware of this because of the two year stay in Oman a country which is relatively calmer and less noisy. No blaring horns, No crowded spaces, people too are slow and relaxed, no pressure on them to invade a space as there is no public transport system. It is strange that here people don’t use the horns while driving. The only time that Ihave heard them honking the horn is when they celebrate the marriage of their friends. It is a lovely sight to see the cars lined up one after the another moving in a sort of procession towards the bride’s home, kind of announcing their arrival through blaring horns and sometimes even shouting. The same applies to the celebration in case of a football event. World Cup football was one such event. The fact that most Omani’s wear a white dish-dasha brings in a feeling of peace and harmony. Most of them even prefer to drive white painted cars. It is a rare sight to see a colour other than white. I feel the culture has some influence on the noise level. I am defining culture through demographic, social and personal markers.

At  this juncture I would like to comment upon the noise that is sometimes created in our innerscape – The Mind. Most of time these noise effects clear thinking and logical behaviour. I have seen people who are disturbed from within and most of the time they are so engrossed with the inner voice that they don’t mind the outer world with its tumultuous sounds.

It is even debated whether man or woman make more noise. In my experience the credit for this should go to woman. I am not biased and my statement is purely based on real-life experience both in the family and the workplace. I have experienced the non-stop chatter of my female friends and colleagues much to the annoyance of myself and my male-colleagues. most of the this leads to exchange of heavy words in the form of opinions and comments.

Being a teacher for the past 10 years, I can say that it is teacher’s dream to handle a class where  his students are quite attentive and less distracted. Real learning happens in such a situation. The one to one correspondence between the student and teacher is always possible when there is an ambiance of silence. Silence also brings in the scope for listening not just to what others are saying but even to our innermost thoughts and

My world of apps, Essential apps for SE Xperia

When you buy something, the excitement usually remains for a week or two. By this time you would have finished exploring the gadget and the interest will fizzle down. After acquiring my Sony Ericcson Xperia 1 which is a windows  6.1 based mobile this flame is sill kept alive. I think it is appropriate to the write about the buying pattern behind this product before discussing the apps that are installed in the device. There was a pull towards the I phone which was priced at 340. After having a cursory glance at X1 and I phone, me and my wife had our cup of tea which helped to straighten things out. X1 was the winner. I liked it because of its  sleek design, touch screen. I had seen the phone ( can i call it a phone when actually it is a smart device) with my Principal a few days back and in one way my decision to buy X1 was influenced by that sighting.

This blog is not about comparing X1 with any other products. This will only answer the question – How good is the X1 for me?  or by extension - The ways in which the X1 is helping in my personal and professional life. The apps in the device is handpicked from different websites and it was indeed a laborious process. The process also encourages lots of creativity and long hours of internet searching from the user – that's me. It also opened up the world of internet like never before.  I got acquainted with websites which dealt with developing the required  software for X1. Some of the websites with which i got familiarised are www.freewarepocketpc.com, www.softonic.com, www.xdadevelopers.com, www.omarket.com, www.wapking.com, the list seems to be endless. It was more like doing deep fishing done in these websites. Trial and error method was used in gathering of the apps.

Some software's were installed and later I had to remove them because of the incompatibility issue. Some of them even crashed X1. This led me to discover the beauty of resetting the device clearing the storage area. The process of installing the software and  arranging the apps will take approximately 7-8 hours. This activity is fun filled and creates a sense that  of total control over the device.

Let me discuss the top five apps that i like in my X1. There are many but I prefer to give others a nominal reference in this blog.

# 1 – Clean Ram

 

 

This is a useful app which I downloaded from Omarket. The app helps me by cleaning the system of its RAM and saving some memory. This is an important act since it helps me to make my device perform faster with much efficiency and speed. I usually run the this app three or four time a day and I can see a marked difference in the way the system functions. After running the app each time I could almost hear my system heaving a sigh of relief. The app is a must have for all those who think that their system needs a fresh lease of life.

 

 

 

# 2 Facebook for Windows Mobile

 

This is the windows mobile version of the popular social networking sight Facebook which brings together friends together. Through this Facebook app I can update my status, Upload photos and videos, comment on the status of others and like and unlike the status of my friends messages. The Facebook app is does good things for me since it is the best way to stay connected and make the world know about my interests and passions. Moreover through this app I am able to learn about new events and the latest technology. The latest one which i discovered is about the TED domain which has got innumerable videos of live speeches done by various people all over the world. Using this app I can write a short review about a movie sitting right inside the theatre. I can also take a photo and upload it immediately to the web.

 

#3  Kinoma Free play

 

 

This app is does lots of good to a book lover like me. Recently I have developed a penchant for audio books and this app acted as the starting point for that. I can listen to 5 minute audio file of hundreds of audio books through this app. The app partners with audible.com, New York Times and many other content providers to give the audio streaming. The best part is that when we log into audible.com we are entitled for a free audio book. The book title is – The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. This app helps me to be in touch with the latest book releases in both the fiction and non fiction category.

 

 

# 4  My Note

 

 

This is again a great app for brain storming ideas and thoughts. The notes are scribbled using the stylus on the screen. It is magical and quite appealing to the eyes. The colour and size of the pen can be changed and we can add more notes depending on the idea. This note making app is used for class preparation and even for preparing this blog. I can also scribble the ideas that occur to me using this app so that i can retrieve it when required. This app can be good tool in research and to make easy and quick notes. 

 

 

 

# 5 Live Journal

After  seeing the Momento app in I phone i was searching for a similar one for windows mobile. I found one in Live Journal which even helps me to put my thoughts on the web. Since I have not popularised my Live Journal id, i am confident that many people will not read or comment on my thoughts. It is my earnest desire to document every step of my life in the form of a journal entry. I am sure that reading the same after a gap of time will bring in lots of memories.

# 6  Omarket

 

 

This is a market place for downloading apps for windows mobile phone. The steps are simple. Select the app that is appealing to you, read the reviews and download to install it in your phone. Sometimes the will not work on my device in which case I may have to uninstall the same. Some apps are so problematic that I may have to reset my device to start it all over again. As I had mentioned in the beginning there are many apps that are installed in my device. Most of the apps are downloaded using Omarket.

 

 

 

 

 

   apps # 6 and 7

  Motweets - Tweeting app for windows mobile

  Pocket Bible – Windows Mobile Bible software

 

 

 

                                                                                                               

  apps # 8 and 9

Beyond Pod – App for downloading podcasts.

Pocket Painter – App for image editing and drawing.

 

 

 

 

Spb Insight – for RSS feeds.

The Elixir of Life - Sleep

( This blog maps the pattern of sleep among human beings. As it is the usual practice this blog contains highly personalized views about one of the favourite habit of my students)

            Last night my sleep was not that good. World cup South Africa takes a big chunk from my sleeping quota. The third match which starts at 10.30 local time gets over only at 12.30 am. The spirit of watching exciting football urges me to forgo my sleep. Last night it was Germany and Australia, who played their opening match. The match was one of the best matches played in the world cup so far. It had plenty of goals, 4 yellow cards and one red card. I am sleepy this morning but deep inside i feel satisfied and happy.

              There used to be a stage in my life when I gave too much importance to sleep. I used to get up late, skip my breakfast and drag myself to the workplace. The rest of the day was spent lively way - handling classes and moving up and down working on loads and loads of extra-curricular activities which included theatre and book clubs. Now, looking back at those sleep dominated days, I feel that my mind was active than my body. Creativity took its own course and filled my life and other’s life around me with fresh ideas. I have a feeling that much of the ideas spring forth from my sleeping habits.

              We can see several motifs based on sleep used in the literary world. The celebrated poet Emily Dickenson uses sleep as a motif in most of her poems. She compares sleep with death and even regeneration.

And then—to go to sleep—
And then—if it should be
The will of its Inquisitor,
The privilege to die—

Shelley in his poem Ode to the West Wind again brings in the allusion of sleep and death when he wrote:

O Thou,
Who chariotest to their dark wintry bed
The winged seeds, where they lie cold and low,
Each like a corpse within its grave, until
Thine azure sister of the Spring shall blow
Her clarion o'er the dreaming earth, and fill
(Driving sweet buds like flocks to feed in air)

For Shelley, sleep was an phase which ultimately led to renewal. It is interesting to note that the poem Ode to the West Wind is filled with these recurring patterns of sleep and by extension death. There are umpteen examples found in the literary world which uses the sleep-death cycle.

And in the happy no-time of his sleeping,
Death took him by the heart.

(Wilfred Owen – Asleep)

Moving away from the world of words, the common man still enjoys the few hours of sleep after a day of hard work in office. It is a common saying that the rich cannot sleep due to the richness that they have accumulated. Maybe it is a socialist thought. The rich man is busy guarding his wealth whereas the poor man will sleep peacefully because he doesn’t have anything to protect. He lives under an open sky, with the stars above him.

It is interesting to watch people sleep.

• People sleep when they travel.
• People sleep when they are attending a meeting (even the Indian Prime Minister)
• People tend to sleep when they watch cinema and television.
• When people see the dead body of their friends or relatives they usually make this comment – “ He/She looks as if he/she sleeping”.

Creativity Unplugged

A blog that is published after a gap of two months. Found creative catharsis through one-liners in Facebook, Twitter and Live Journal. It is nice to write these words which celebrate the true spirit of creative blogging.

This blog examines the concept of creativity. To define this term called I am journeying into my own self to gather some personalised thoughts. Like the concept of beauty, I think that creativity is also highly subjective.

Most of the time creativity is associated with the area of fine arts like painting, writing and singing. Parents make it a point that the child receives some amount of creative inputs right from his/her childhood. In today’s world, creativity is forced upon young minds. The child is exposed to the world of singing, dancing, drawing, and what not. I feel creativity is something that should be discovered by the child. Elders should only facilitate this discovery to happen. They can do this by introducing the child to various activities involving creativity like painting, building blocks, games etc.

Creativity is a natural process and the best literary metaphor to explain is the Wordsworthian quote “spontaneous overflow” of powerful thoughts. Creativity should not be limited to the writing sphere even though that is one of the first associations that come to our mind. I have always admired the spirit of creativity in Shakespeare. A playwright who is adored and read all over the world for his sheer mastery of language and the creative ways he has put his thoughts into paper. Shakespeare can be treated as a referral point when we discuss the concept of creativity. We see a creative genius who brought in different styles, themes, genres, into his works. He also had a muse who inspired him to write and write. When it comes to writing Shakespeare is indeed a muse who can inspire a budding writer.

It is a sin to talk about creativity only in relation to writing. Creativity is something that can be quite useful in our daily life. A person shifting to a new house can find the concept of creativity quite helpful. I enjoyed watching Wake up Sid, recently and the house shifting scenes involving Ranbir and Konkana Sen. The way they arrange the house in a creative manner exemplifies the fact that the creativity is a concept that exists beyond the world of words. Even in daily conversation creativity plays an important role. Fresh ideas and innovative styles make the conversation interesting. I recollect some expressions that me and my friend coined which made our daily conversations lively. Some of the words were – wtcied, wiporish, and lovely. The first one refers to the concept of destroying something.

Her dreams were wtcied because of his plans;

In life there we should be wiporish,

It’s a lovely day, isn’t it my lovely friend.

In teaching, to make the classes interesting I employ different methods and my superiors have always commented that the methods are highly creative and innovative. I feel that creativity is an integral part of fun learning. Language teaching/learning is made interesting using these methods.

Creativity is thus a concept that should be nurtured right from the childhood. It opens up the mind to a world of opportunities. It also makes life interesting for yourself and for others.

Sit, Sat, and Sitting…

IT TOOK 2 MONTHS FOR ME TO WRITE THIS BLOG – Phew…

It is quite natural that animals (human beings included) always seek comfort. The body controls the mind in this aspect. The body wants to be cozy and relaxed and it decides a place which provides a perfect resting place. Since humans cannot lie down and conduct the business of life, the human body has settled for the second best option- to sit and to continue with the humdrum of existence. This blog discusses the concept of sitting i.e,  seated position. I will  examine the different aspects of this common human habit including the cultural, political, and the religious.

Let me begin this examination with the Indian scenario. The idea of sitting gains cultural,political colors in the Indian context. As children we were instructed not to sit in front of the elders. We were supposed to stand if an elder from our  family walks by. The idea of sitting is linked to the value of respect. The same is the case with classrooms. Students should stand up when the teacher makes his/her entry. In the Hindu tradition the man and woman gets married seated in front of the fire. in some parts of India especially the south, the dead is taken to the grave seated in a chair. In many occasions sitting is regarded as the auspicious posture than standing. Meditation and yoga in India recommends different positions which are good for body,mind,and soul. The idea of rest/not in motion is connected to the act of sitting. Hindu priests performs the traditional adoration ceremony seated in front of the deity.  most of them hail from upper caste section of the society and hence they have the upper edge in life. A lower caste being was not allowed to sit or even walk if there is a upper caste being around him.

In modern day life seat has become the epitome of power. Political parties yearn for power seats in the corridors of power. The public respect not the individual but the chair. Even in my little academic world sometimes i feel the power of chair. In a way a seat plays an important role in creating a hierarchical order in our lives. The person who has the seat or the who is sitting has more power than the one who is standing. The standing one is always waiting. This very evident when travelling in local trains and buses. The person who has the seat always casts a sympathetic glance at the one who is standing. Most of the time there ensues silly squabbles on the topic – who is the rightful owner of that seat? I am reminded of my childhood days when I used to fight with my brother for the window seat. Maybe that's the training we receive to fight it out in the big real adult world. Seats are seen as the anti dote for waiting. Bus/rail stations have waiting rooms with comfortable chairs so that weary traveler will never feel the pinch of waiting.

Modern day life has also brought in a special type of creatures known as couch potatoes. Their main preoccupation is to watch sitcoms and other gutterly creations that comes out of the idiot box. They combine this acts with the an endless supply of food. The mobile phones also add to these new fangled fashion of immobility. The cellular company made some quick bucks with the jingle – walk and talk.

thus goes on the story of a seat. I am sure that everybody will have their opinion about this topic, please feel completely to contact me at jith77@gmail.com

Have a seat/ say

 

Tales of Black Magic from Africa

These days  my colleagues and me are kind of jobless in the department. This is the time for us to sit and chat. We try our best to kill time. Mostly we engage in conversations that are aimless and misguided.

A few days back I initiated a discussion about Black magic in this part of the world. Some of my colleagues have spent years in this land. So I was sure that they will have lots and lots of tales to tell. And they didn’t fail me. This blog is about the tales of Black magic that I heard from my colleagues.

Flying Old Lady:

This is about a family and the weird experience they had some years back. One night after dinner they were seated in the living room, watching a football match. They were engrossed in the match when they heard a loud crash. The TV screen went black. They could make out that the noise came from the roof. They decided to move upstairs and enter the roof through the bedroom window. The father and the two sons moved together. They had a torch in their hand. When they reached the roof they saw that their  TV dish antenna was twisted and in a mangled state. Lying next to the antenna was a dark figure.They approached the figure with careful steps. It was human and it was moving, groaning and whining pain. They focussed the beam of light on the human shape,so that they could see the face in the bright white light that fell from the torch. To their shock and disbelief they discovered the human figure to be the old lady who was their neighbour. They shook her and called her by the name. She responded in a feeble voice. They called her name, this time their voice didn’t hide the suppressed irritation. She looked at them, her eyes probed them from their wrinkled sockets. She spoke and what she said made them stare at her in disbelief. She told that she was flying in the air on a stick and she fell on the roof after hitting the dish antenna.

The Naked Roadies:

This happened a few months back in a mountainous area in this country. Two brothers were travelling in a Toyota pickup. They were returning home after completing some important work in the city. They were in a hurry to reach the comforts of their home. Moreover they were driving through the land where no human presence was there. All of a sudden one of them saw something whitish moving across the road. It was fast and he couldn’t make out what it was. The younger one who was driving the pickup was so shocked by what he saw, that he lost control of the vehicle. The pickup skidded to the right, and it crashed against the road barrier. Both of them were thoroughly shaken and they were  silent for some time. Then the elder one who was in the navigator seat asked ‘Did you see them?’. ‘Them?’, the other one asked,what do you mean by them? ‘I saw three men, naked, with long white hair crossing the road’. The other one just stared at the road, his eyes eagerly scanning the darkness. They tried starting the engine and realized that the tyres were struck in the dirt. They had a sigh of relief when they found that their mobile phones were in working condition. So they contacted the police and waited for them to arrive.

( The tale will continue from the POV of the Police Officer)

I was about to go home when the office phone rang. I attended the call and from the other side I heard one voice excitedly speaking in hurried breaths. It was another call reporting about passengers stranded in the desert. I didn’t want to take up the job, but my conscience asked me to make the trip before heading home. So I set off in my patrol vehicle. The traffic in the city was light and soon I found myself moving towards the highway which led to the mountainous landscape. From a distance I could see the pickup with its lights flashing  lying on the side of the road. I parked my patrol vehicle next to the pickup, got out and moved towards the two figures that were in the pickup. ‘What happened to the vehicle’ I asked them. They were silent for sometime and then one of them spoke ‘We saw something and we lost control of the vehicle’. ‘What did you see in this place?’ I asked ‘It seems to be bit strange that you saw something here’,I commented. ‘We saw naked men running across the road’, they replied in a quivering voice. I couldn’t believe what they just said. I was about to open my mouth to say something when I some cries and not far from where we stood I saw a group of naked men, with the long hairs almost touching the ground moving quick and fast across the road.

Black Magic is still practiced in this part of the world. The rich use it to make more money and the poor to harm the rich. Black men use it to woo the fair maidens and in some cases even to destroy whole tribes. It is a belief system surviving mainly because of the inherent fear factor that is present in the human heart.

The Constant Gardeners – Our Farmville Tale

 

As I have mentioned before in this space, games have played a major role shaping sensibilities. The games added more variety in my life or in our life to be precise. Living in a land where the scope of entertainment is limited and restricted games helped us to remain in touch with the imagination. It all started with computer games and slowly it progressed to Play Station Portable games. The discovery of the shop in  XXXX Mall with a wide range of PSP games made us explore the world of virtual games. Then Facebook happened and along with it happened Farmville. The game is  played by thousands of people all round the world. The game is kind of hot topic these days in the Internet.

 

This blog is about Farmville. It is divided into two parts. In the first part,  I will describe how we became ‘real’ farmers because of Farmville. The second part deals with the lessons that we can learn from Farmville.

Farmville made us think about the possibility of creating a farm in our flat. Some events  happened that actually made us swing into action. One Thursday we got some plants from the church (thanks to the lady) We got some pepper plants and other plants. It was like receiving a puppy or kitten, with great care and concern we brought them home. The next step was to find a place to plant them. Again it was a neighbourly turn from another lady who brought us empty yoghurt buckets.We also used modified plastic water cans to plant them. We felt immense joy and satisfaction once we completed the task of planting. I kind of added some more plants by bringing some from my college garden. A visit to the restaurant made us procure some money plant. We also learnt about a popular belief that money plant should be stolen not borrowed.  In the next step of expansion we were assisted by the kids in the neighbourhood who actively participated in the act of farming. This time we had the support of uncle neighbour who brought  bag of mud from his ceramic factory. Kids joined us in mixing ordinary soil and the mud. As of now we have 15 plants and we hope that the number will grow in the future. It also depends on how long we are planning to stay here.

Farmville is a lovely way to do some virtual planting. The game helps you in the following ways:

1. Not-so-bad-way to kill time.
2. Gives a Sense of Hope.
3. It helps us in creating a sense of time, valuable lessons in time management can be learned.
4. It creates a kind of eco sense. Planting trees will almost becomes a habit.
5. You will become a good Samaritan and you will start helping others in real life not just your Farmville neighbours.

Education – A System Revisited

There are umpteen articles upholding the true spirit of education. There are several individuals who have labelled themselves as educationists and academicians who have taken up the responsibility of plowing out the weeds in the system. The obvious question that crops up in one’s mind is - Why the system is still a failure? In my opinion education is just another time wasting exercise which aims at making the individual more and more dependent on the system. As a teacher for the past 9 years, I have seen the concept of education crumbling under money pressure. Education became a means of earning a livelihood. It has become more like an investment business. Parents invest money in the education of children expecting two types of return. First of all, they want their children to earn a decent living (a big fat salary, MNC offer letter, big fat dowry all these are included in the package) secondly they want their kids to take care of them. The argument is this – we gave up all our comforts for your upbringing now in our old age you have to pay us back. This argument is as old as the human race. It is my strong belief that nobody in this world should do something expecting some returns. Education thus became need based or need fulfilling exercise. The joy of learning is almost lost and the individual adheres to the strict structure of academic drudgery. We see around us

courses designed for the specific markets. As an English teacher, my duty is restricted to improving the communication ability of my students. It is even an anathema to call them as students. In the modernized world they are better known as ‘customers’ or ‘clients’.

And for me, I am not supposed to move away from my lesson plans and curriculum document.

Most of the problem that happens in today’s educational world happens due to lack of a holistic approach. The problem will continue to haunt the system as long as the system exists on a policy of parochial learning. By the term parochial learning I mean the lack of creativity and the passion towards learning.

When I was a student, I didn’t even think about the post-studies scenario. It was like living in the moment. The city of Chennai stood there with her arms wide open. It was up to me to take the lead and explore the city. I did that exactly with the help of some of my friends. I explored the libraries, book shops, and attended the exhibitions not to land up in a highly paid salary job. It was just for the sheer fun of it. The type of learning which I undertook kind of set the tone for my future studies. I also secretly fell in love with the city for its endless supply of books and CD’s.

Maybe one of the reasons why I wrote this blog is because of the crime and the mental punishment that happened yesterday. This week is examination week in my college. Clients are busy scribbling answers in the paper, invigilators running around, anti-malpractice squads with snake eyes, and me standing in the center laughing at this comedy of errors.

Oman Diary 2

I have been in Oman for one and half years and have accumulated loads of images about this country. This is my second tryst with a Arab speaking community. Through this blog I am holding up a mirror to the Omani culture. I am not judgemental or critical . Here I share with my unknown readers my experience which gathered through my five senses. I have divided this blog into three parts

Teenage life:

Boys and girls lead a normal life here. They do have their limitations primarily because of lack of freedom. They are excessively dependent on mobile phones. The mobile companies are reaping benefits because of this. They offer MMS and Internet packages aimed at teenagers. This year four new mobile companies launched their services taking the total number of cellular operators to six. There is co-education only in the college level. Even there the interaction between boys and girls is very minimal. Religion plays a pivotal role in their lives. Most of the boys and girls spend their free time listening to the Holy Koran. Boys do venture out into the areas of Pop music, Rap and Reggae. Names like Akon and 50 cents are quite famous among boys. Boys also spend their time playing video games mainly Play Station. They like playing football games like Fifa 2009 and 2010. They take active participation in the football matches that take place in Oman and even in other Arab countries. It is a lovely sight to see them moving towards the stadium huddled together in a car or a pick up wearing their favourite team’s colour. They are also die hard fans of various European clubs like Barcelona, AC Milan and Manchester United.

Adult Life & Marriage:

When a boy or girl attains the marriageable age their parents will take the initiative to see their children married off. In most of the Muslim countries the boy has to pay a large sum of money and literally buy the girl. For a beautiful girl you have to pay more. Omani society consist of different tribes. The word tribe in the Omani context is different from the one we use in India. In India tribal means a person who lives in a forested area away from the so called civilized world. Some of the tribal names are  al-balushi  (from Baluchistan), al-mamari, al-maqbali,al ajmi. They practice community living and some of the towns are named after these tribal names. Marriages are often arranged within these tribes.Certain tribes get married only on Thursdays. Usually for marriage a tent is put up outside the house for the male members. Women spend their time doing henna. Women prefer western gowns for marriages. Meat and Chicken is served either separately or in the form of Biriyani.Food is served in a big bowl and three to five people eat from the same bowl. The groom’s car is decorated with flowers and festoons and his friends goes around the town in different cars in a procession. The procession is full of sound (honking horns) and fury signifying the blessed occasion.

Snapshots of Oman

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Coming soon

Cultural study of Oman

The Dead Mosquitoes in the Language Lab

  This morning as I was arranging the chairs and mouse pads in the language lab I noticed two dead mosquitoes. They were lying dead on the LAN server. When I removed their dead bodies I noticed that they their bodies were as light as feathers.

This sight triggered thoughts in my mind. First of all I asked myself – What caused their deaths? What made them die on the LAN server? Since I was the one who asked these questions I was forced to find the answers myself. I am sure that these mosquitoes entered during the day time hungrily buzzing and in search of human blood.

 

Day time the lab is filled with students and the smell of human sweat would have drawn these mosquitoes into the lab. By afternoon the lab is closed and the human presence disappears. I can imagine them flying around the lab. Their buzzing sound will be kind of drowned in the drone of the air conditioner. Their search will yield them no results. Their tiny stomach will yearn for a few drops of fresh human blood.

Round and round they will fly.

Hunger equation in them will multiply.

Their wings will lose its strength.

Their lungs will gasp for breath.

Eventually they will lose the battle. Some will fall on the ground, some will fall on the tables and desks, some will fall on places where human eyes cannot reach and some may fall on the LAN server.

Remembering 2009

I have mixed feelings towards this year. I can't really say that my year was bad nor was it too good. The highlight event of the year will definitely be the leg fracture and the subsequent hospitalization. It was altogether a different experience. Another important issue will be the fall out with d&m. There were attempts to connect the former with the latter.I don't think it is an exercise worth doing. Maybe I will comment on that in this web space soon. This blog is about my journey through the year - 2009.

Movies: Movie watching in Sohar became a new experience with the opening of Sohar Cinema. We started with Aliens and Monsters and ended with Saw Le. Some of the best movies which we saw were - Taking of 123 Pelham, Pazzahassi Raja, and Loudspeaker. Some movies are meant to be watched in the year. For the other we have the TV and the endless supply of movies from my students. I enjoyed watching Scary movie 1&4,and Meet the Spartans.

Books: This year saw me searching for a book and finally buying it from the City Centre. The title of the book is - The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I also got attracted to the area of audio books and made some quick purchases like ‘Dreams from My Father’ by Barack Obama and ‘Jude The Obscure’ by Thomas Hardy.

Events: I had a fall and was hospitalised for 5 days. I fell in the month of July and started walking in the month of December without any external aids. First time I underwent a major operation and experienced life in ICU. I used walker, crutches and finally elbow walking stick during the course of my recuperation. I still have the nail inside my leg and it will be removed only when I go home next year.

Xi and me: I purchased a new phone Sony Ericcson X1 which is a windows based mobile. It has opened up a new world to me. Most of the time I am hooked to the software which i have downloaded. Kinoma Media Play, Viigo, and lots and lots of software.

The tickets issued to heaven…2009 took some good people along with it. I personally felt the loss of Dr VJM, Lohitadass, Murali, John Updike, and MJ.

The year ahead for me: Only prayers that i should be guided by the good Lord in every step I take, every word I utter and every decision I make.