Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Pet Peeves
In the past (i.e. 3 - 4 months ago), I was able to multi-task with relative ease. I could do research, some work, checkup on topics of interest on Wikipedia, and gChat - all at the same time. Being in India has changed that all. Let me segue into the topic of discussion for today.
Remember back in elementary/junior/high school when teachers or others would ask you what your pet peeves were? Yeah, I don't either but I'm assuming you were asked at some point in your lifetime. Well, I never really had an answer to that question. I simply never knew what my pet peeves were. Maybe I was just that tolerant or maybe I just didn't really care but I could never answer that question without thinking really hard. I think I am finally able to answer that question with relative ease. So, without further ado, here are my pet peeves I have discovered as of lately.
So there you have it. My list of pet peeves. So if I am chatting with you on gChat and I seem somewhat distracted or non-responsive, it's most likely due to the fact that someone is watching what I am doing on my laptop or the internet has become disconnected (or both).
The good thing is that I'm at least learning some new things about myself here. I can't complain too much - I tend to laugh these things off at night.
Remember back in elementary/junior/high school when teachers or others would ask you what your pet peeves were? Yeah, I don't either but I'm assuming you were asked at some point in your lifetime. Well, I never really had an answer to that question. I simply never knew what my pet peeves were. Maybe I was just that tolerant or maybe I just didn't really care but I could never answer that question without thinking really hard. I think I am finally able to answer that question with relative ease. So, without further ado, here are my pet peeves I have discovered as of lately.
- People rummaging through your personal belonging (and sometimes later telling you about it).
- People staring at you during your various activities. This can be broken down into separate parts.
- while eating.
- while on the phone. (mostly because I talk in English)
- while walking around. (in Pune or the village)
- People looking over your back or sitting next to you while writing or on the computer (possibly chatting or typing up personal emails) or reading the newspaper. All of these never bothered me in the US but it seems to be really getting to me as of late.
So there you have it. My list of pet peeves. So if I am chatting with you on gChat and I seem somewhat distracted or non-responsive, it's most likely due to the fact that someone is watching what I am doing on my laptop or the internet has become disconnected (or both).
The good thing is that I'm at least learning some new things about myself here. I can't complain too much - I tend to laugh these things off at night.
Monday, October 13, 2008
"Fakta Timepass"
Talking to the students here (I am able to do that somehow), I hear that line more than anything else. With my ever-expanding knowledge of the Marathi language, I am starting to understand the dynamics of village life and India in general - but specifically the Ashram I am situated at. Maybe you'd understand a little more when you see their daily schedule.
5:30A Wake-up
5:50 - 6:30 Prayer/Run/Morning Exercise/Yoga
6:30 - 9:00 Morning Routine/Free Time
9:00 Breakfast
9:30 - 10:30 Class (Theory)
10:30 - 1:00P Practicals (the Ashram promotes 'Learning By Doing')
1:00 - 2:00 Lunch
2:00 - 5:30 Practicals (Cont'd)
5:30 - 7:30 Free Time (usually students go to the village and chill)
7:30 - 9:00 Meditation/Discussion
9:00 Dinner
After dinner is free-time. I believe 'Lights Out' is at 11P but that doesn't seem to be enforced.
This is the schedule everyday with the exception of Saturday where everything is the same except for the absence of class and practicals.
As you can see, not only are their days very long but there is almost six hours of practicals. I'm not sure if you all fully understand what practicals are so I'll briefly explain the educational structure of the Ashram. Students come here for a one-year course in Basic Rural Technology (BRT) and receive an accredited diploma (DBRT) upon completion of the course. The program is aimed mostly at students from rural areas who are school dropouts (but have at least passed 8th standard) and who have a desire to start their own enterprise. There are four areas of study: 1) Engineering, 2) Energy & Environment, 3) Agriculture & Animal Husbandry, 4) Home & Health. There are 8 - 9 students in each area for 3 months and then they rotate afterwards.
Engineering and Agriculture seem to have the most work and generally keep the students busy from morning until the evening. The complete opposite is the case for the other two sections. How much can you teach about cooking (esp. when they don't get to really cook) or health (esp. when they can't really practically apply lessons except from time to time, if even). Energy & Environment really has no reason to be as free as they are - there seems to be a lot to teach but the teacher tends to be slightly lazy (most of them are). I've noticed a lot of these problems in the program but unfortunately I can't really do much yet since I don't speak Marathi and I've seen the director all of 6 or 7 times in the last month I've been here.
So I asked the students the other day in my broken Marathi, "What do you guys do all day?"
"Fakta timepass."
No need to flip through my "Learn Marathi in 30 Days" book to translate that.
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Let me end this on an exciting note. I've uploaded some pictures to Flickr. (I think if you click on that sentence, the link is there. This blog theme is ghetto. I'll change it soon.)
5:30A Wake-up
5:50 - 6:30 Prayer/Run/Morning Exercise/Yoga
6:30 - 9:00 Morning Routine/Free Time
9:00 Breakfast
9:30 - 10:30 Class (Theory)
10:30 - 1:00P Practicals (the Ashram promotes 'Learning By Doing')
1:00 - 2:00 Lunch
2:00 - 5:30 Practicals (Cont'd)
5:30 - 7:30 Free Time (usually students go to the village and chill)
7:30 - 9:00 Meditation/Discussion
9:00 Dinner
After dinner is free-time. I believe 'Lights Out' is at 11P but that doesn't seem to be enforced.
This is the schedule everyday with the exception of Saturday where everything is the same except for the absence of class and practicals.
As you can see, not only are their days very long but there is almost six hours of practicals. I'm not sure if you all fully understand what practicals are so I'll briefly explain the educational structure of the Ashram. Students come here for a one-year course in Basic Rural Technology (BRT) and receive an accredited diploma (DBRT) upon completion of the course. The program is aimed mostly at students from rural areas who are school dropouts (but have at least passed 8th standard) and who have a desire to start their own enterprise. There are four areas of study: 1) Engineering, 2) Energy & Environment, 3) Agriculture & Animal Husbandry, 4) Home & Health. There are 8 - 9 students in each area for 3 months and then they rotate afterwards.
Engineering and Agriculture seem to have the most work and generally keep the students busy from morning until the evening. The complete opposite is the case for the other two sections. How much can you teach about cooking (esp. when they don't get to really cook) or health (esp. when they can't really practically apply lessons except from time to time, if even). Energy & Environment really has no reason to be as free as they are - there seems to be a lot to teach but the teacher tends to be slightly lazy (most of them are). I've noticed a lot of these problems in the program but unfortunately I can't really do much yet since I don't speak Marathi and I've seen the director all of 6 or 7 times in the last month I've been here.
So I asked the students the other day in my broken Marathi, "What do you guys do all day?"
"Fakta timepass."
No need to flip through my "Learn Marathi in 30 Days" book to translate that.
----------------------
Let me end this on an exciting note. I've uploaded some pictures to Flickr. (I think if you click on that sentence, the link is there. This blog theme is ghetto. I'll change it soon.)
Tuesday, October 07, 2008
The Whimsical Weather of Pabal (Wabal?)
There goes my sad attempt at alliteration.
Anyway, for the past few days, the weather in Pabal has followed an odd pattern. During the day there is bright sunlight with temperatures that border a hot summer day. But around 5PM, the clouds start to move in and the thunder begins to echo from miles away. A couple days ago, it rained so hard that our staff meeting had to be cancelled. And the weird thing about it (it's already weird that it's like that, so maybe the weirder thing about it) is that when you wake up in the morning, there is no indication that it rained that hard the night before, let alone at all. I still don't understand how this works. I'm under the impression that the government is controlling the weather patterns. Oh and the ironic part is that my room hasn't had any water for a couple days. Prior to the bizarre weather, I've had a relatively unlimited supply of water and it's been like summer up until these past few days. Meaning I would have assumed that water would have been scarce during those hot days instead of during a rainy patch. Right? Maybe my logic doesn't work out here.
Anyway, for the past few days, the weather in Pabal has followed an odd pattern. During the day there is bright sunlight with temperatures that border a hot summer day. But around 5PM, the clouds start to move in and the thunder begins to echo from miles away. A couple days ago, it rained so hard that our staff meeting had to be cancelled. And the weird thing about it (it's already weird that it's like that, so maybe the weirder thing about it) is that when you wake up in the morning, there is no indication that it rained that hard the night before, let alone at all. I still don't understand how this works. I'm under the impression that the government is controlling the weather patterns. Oh and the ironic part is that my room hasn't had any water for a couple days. Prior to the bizarre weather, I've had a relatively unlimited supply of water and it's been like summer up until these past few days. Meaning I would have assumed that water would have been scarce during those hot days instead of during a rainy patch. Right? Maybe my logic doesn't work out here.
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Out of the Village (for a bit)
I've been shuttling around a lot recently. I've been put on a new project - to bring internet to my village (I know, it's exciting!). To bring internet into my village requires me to talk to service providers who are located in Pune. Thus, I've been traveling back and forth from my village to Pune - and back again. It's been quite intense.
When I first arrived in Pune, I was elated. I saw people. Yes, my eyes were full of dirt, and probably my lungs as well, but I was temporarily in a state of happiness. It all quickly faded after I realized that I would have to wander around the city by myself. Up until that moment I had been with my director, so I had felt a relative sense of comfort since he knows Pune like this back of his hand and could negotiate with the unscrupulous rickshaw drivers. Roaming the city is crazy, to say the least. I'm in the area of the city which isn't as hip as one might think so most of the residents speak very little English - a situation I am becoming very used to. But it was a real eye-opener. I was glad that I was forced to do that.
I savor any chance I get on the internet. During this post, I updated myself with the horrid financial mess that is occurring in the States (I laugh everytime I hear the US referred to as the States, I dont know why). Hopefully it hasn't hit home for any of you. I will update later.
When I first arrived in Pune, I was elated. I saw people. Yes, my eyes were full of dirt, and probably my lungs as well, but I was temporarily in a state of happiness. It all quickly faded after I realized that I would have to wander around the city by myself. Up until that moment I had been with my director, so I had felt a relative sense of comfort since he knows Pune like this back of his hand and could negotiate with the unscrupulous rickshaw drivers. Roaming the city is crazy, to say the least. I'm in the area of the city which isn't as hip as one might think so most of the residents speak very little English - a situation I am becoming very used to. But it was a real eye-opener. I was glad that I was forced to do that.
I savor any chance I get on the internet. During this post, I updated myself with the horrid financial mess that is occurring in the States (I laugh everytime I hear the US referred to as the States, I dont know why). Hopefully it hasn't hit home for any of you. I will update later.
