For the first CIA, for the II year Phil/Tam class, this January, I gave them quite an easy task, or so they thought.

Students were asked to just look at the essay "Respect for Life" from their text book and write it down in their answer sheet. In simple terms, I was giving them a chance of scoring good marks, but on one condition - every spelling mistake will cost them five marks.

Condition given and topic given, I asked students to turn off their mobile phones, and start their test. the enthusiasm of the students knew no bounds. All were joy personified.
Then, I started my observation. I could see students happily talking away, discreetly accessing messages from their inbox, a surreptitious glance, now and then in the direction of the teacher, curious students - trying, albeit in an adventurous way, to call back their 'dear ones' who had given at least a dozen missed calls by then, by eluding the gleaming eyes of the teacher. At the 'call of duty', many finished off their test as soon as their hands could get them out, and placed their answer sheets on the table.

Then, I started the valuation. The first paper that I valued had 52 spelling mistakes!!! One student had 'scored a century' in spelling mistakes, crossing 122!!! Almost awhopping seventy per cent of the class had failed...!!

I was surprised! Just around three pages of text numbering about hardly a thousand words was given, and just one student had written without any spelling mistakes - Lenin Mark. The next in tow had five mistakes, followed by the third student, who had got about eight mistakes.

One thing we can clearly understand from the situation is that, students today, lack the power of concentration. As Eliot says, "Distracted from distraction by distraction." Thanks to modern technology, there are ample things that lay claim to the mind of the student, especially during class hours, including his/her mobile gadget.

Among these artful distractions, the art of teaching has really become a challenge for the teacher, especially at the College level...!

"How are we, the teaching community, going to make the student concentrate in class?" is the million dollar question in our times, and most appropriately, the Challenge of our Time...!!!

Currently into my favourite book of all time, for, i guess, the third time in a row now,"BORN TO REBEL" by Sulloway, I wanted to share with my readers, certain important hypotheses that Sulloway the rebel puts forward in this lovli treatise of his.

Why do some people have the genius to reject the conventional wisdom of their day and to revolutionize the way we think? Copernicus, Newton, Darwin are just three of the bold visionaries who have radically transformed our understanding of the world. No matter how radical the idea, and no matter how fierce the opposition, some people have quickly recognized the brilliance of the innovation and come to its defense.

When Darwin proposed the theory of evolution by natural selection, he plunged the scientific community into acrimonious debate taht has continued even to this day. In spite of intense opposition to Darwin's ideas, some scientists quickly recognized Darwin as the greatest scientific revolutionary since Isaac Newton.

Darwin's success as a revolutionary thinker raises a second critical question. Why, during radical revolutions, do some people rapidly discard the old, erroneous ways of thinking whereas others hold tenaciously to the prevailing dogma? Historians, sociologists, philosophers, and psychologists have all proposed answers to the questios I am raising.

In spite of numerous hypotheses, and considerable empirical research, there is no satisfactory answer to the question of why some people rebel and why others, just as zealously, defend the status quo.

To accept or reject the status quo is a fundamental decision that we must all sometimes make. And I for once, strongly affirm that, Confirmity to dogmas and ideologies, has made Man lose his propensity to rebel!!! Hasn't he?

Today, being a Sunday of ceaseless, unending monsoon showers, pouring cats and dogs across the length and breath of singara chennai, making the already battered roads impassable, with its drainage overflowing, potholes swelling, and vegetable prices soaring, all to new heights, while i at home, was for once, quietly sipping my morning cuppa tea with THE HINDU for company, flipping through the vast chunck of typos and fonts of all hues and shades, set my eyes on a perturbing news article "Corporate offers for Civil servants worry UPSC." This set my thought process a bit excited, nay ignited, (what with a strong cuppa tea acting the much needed stimulant) and thus, with tea in hand and a pen by my side, I began to give shape to my little myriad thoughts which i have converted below, from manucriptual to typescriptual format.

If Sardar Vallabhai Patel who introduced the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in place of the Indian Civil Service (ICS) were alive now, he would have ample cause for deep regret at the debilitating state of affairs to which his brain child - the IAS has degenerated into.

This latest Corporate trend of wooing the Civil servants in large numbers to their massive fold, is indeed part of a larger malaise. By unofficial estimates, already, a whopping five per cent of the officers have been given a red carpet welcome to the world of IT and IT enabled services with lucrative pays and perks, sometimes even ten times higher than what they would have earned in the governmental set up. The loss of the cream of the country, who are responsible for stemming the rot in the political system and administration to a great extent, housing some of the most brilliant and dynamic minds, to Corporates is indeed more alarming than what is made out to be.

M.N. Vijayakumar, IAS, Karnataka cadre - has served in Karnataka for the last 25 years. And he is only one of three IAS officers, of the 200 or so working in Karnataka, who has filed his assets and liabilities.
That's the good news. The bad news is that Vijayakumar, currently of the Principal Secretary grade, has been transferred six times in six months during the H.D. Kumaraswamy regime.
From September 2006 to February 2007, Vijayakumar has sat on a different seat in a different office in a different capacity-each time for "reporting serious corrupt practices by senior officers". His wife, Jayashree J.N., has now launched a spirited, even brave, campaign on the web that throws light on how the IAS folk deal with "black sheep" in their midst and how they use the convenient alibi of "disobedience" to quell debate, discussion and action.

VINAY KUMAR VERMA, IPS, Uttar Pradesh cadre - was SP of State Crime Records Bureau; shifted to Mirzapur as SP, from where within five weeks brought to the Power Corporation; within four days was shifted to Fatehpur PAC, immediately shunted to Bijnore, and five weeks later to Jaunpur.

RAJAT MODWEL, a 1990 batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, quit after seven years of service. Took study leave to get an MBA from London after which he joined McKinsey & Co. Realised that there were better opportunities for more interesting work outside the IAS.

H.M. PANDE of the Tamil Nadu IAS cadre is under suspension. Was chargesheeted for abetting the then state minister Selvaganapathy to permit a hotel to violate building laws. He also faces an enquiry in a deal relating to purchase of water pipes worth Rs 5 crore.

These are just tips of the bigger iceberg. Adding to these woes, it is indeed a 'nationally acknowledged fact' that the civil servants are ranked very low on innovation, implementation, involvement, etc., by all and sundry, including politicians, academicians and and the judiciary, thus affecting their morale and self-esteem.

Civil servants like IAS Officers, who join main stream administration in the Government through a cumbersome, laborious competitive process, are generally highly competent and motivated when they enter the service, in the initial stages. However, as years progress, there is an alarming decline in dedication levels, morale, commitment and efficiency. The most important reason for this decline is the dictatorial power of destruction available to the vast majority of the politicians, mostly illiterate, who deem it their pleasure to harass the efficent and brilliant civil servant according to their own whims and fancies, thus throwing all forms of decorum to the wind. Added to this, comes the problem of a a transfer per se, of being shifted to a job that carries no patronage or perks.

Under these vituperative circumstances, the Corporate bandwagon's olive branch to the Civil servants in distress indeed makes the IAS Officer sit up and heave a sigh of great relief, and at the same time heralds the distress signal to the Government's efforts at administrative progress and development.

It is time the UPSC and the Government machinery gears up to face this disturbing challenge to its administrative line up, and woke up to this 'civil drain', or the day is not far off when the civil service system which, till now, has been the backbone of the administrative machinery of the nation, will become the ‘stapes', or the ‘stirrup', or the ‘incus' or the ‘anvil', the smallest bone in the 'human' body and of least significance and little value.

DISCLAIMER: The info given in green italics, are news items used here to authenticate and validate the main issue in focus.

After debating for quite sometime on What it takes to be a Man, at our Debating Club, we formulated some guidelines for Men, obviously with outside contributions too, especially from Kendall, and Prof.Daniel David to whom I owe my acknowledgements. now here we go...!

Qualities Expected of a Man:

1. King:Provides financial, emotional, and physical stability for which he is responsible.
2. Warrior/Soldier:A protector. His spirit is assertive and aggressive. He is willing to live and die for what he believes in.
3. Character: He does not compromise his morals or character on any count.
4. Disciplined: Controls his flesh. He understands that success only comes with discipline and there is no room for excuses. He has enough self-control to stop lusting, drinking, smoking, lying, and fornicating.
5. Accountable: Allows himself to be challenged and held to a higher standard than the world would dictate. No man can be strong if he is not accountable to someone else. Do not refuse instruction and always seek wise and Godly counsel. A man without accountability is a dangerous man. "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up," says a beaitful Proverb.
6. Committed: Will do whatever it takes to achieve goals. Sleepless nights are a small price to pay.
7. Visionary: There is a proverb which says, "Where there is no vision the people perish." This man is living today but also sees tomorrow, he is planning and preparing for the future. He has conceived something in his mind and is now moving toward bringing that thing into existence.
8. Leader: He is the "point man". He leads by example and sets the tone. This man understands that as he goes, so the family goes.
9. Jack of all Trades: He will excel in one particular field, and will have the sense of curiosity to know something about everything. he could lay his eyes on.
10. He's a Gentleman: Going by Cardinal Newman's definition of a Gentleman, this person doesnt hurt the feelings of all people whom he gets to meet in his life.

If these qualities seem unattainable, remember that it will not happen overnight. We are in this battle together. Be willing to change and God will order your steps.
You can meet up with kendall at menexchange.com

Weak hearted men, please don't read this blogpost. If you still want to, and feel the shock of your life, MAN, I'm not responsible..! This is in no way a tirade against feminists or women folk. I respect women and admire quite a few valiant ones among them. This is obviously for the MEN who lack the 'MACHO' Spirit, and not meant for the girls. Now read on...

MAN is born to rule, not to fool around with a woman...!

You may call it a shocking, male-chauvinistic statement, but that's what it is...

After enjoying Hemingway's "The Old Man and the Sea" the third time, I feel fully vindicated in the above statement.

"The tragedy of machismo is that a man is never quite man enough" said Germaine Greer, the impulsive, fatally naive diva of feminism. Sounds true to a great extent, isnt it?

I feel something has gone wrong somewhere... BUT WHERE? The time when Man lost his sense of self worth and self esteem...!

In the past, those good old days of yore, when Chivalry was considered to be a virtue, a man has to obtain his girl by a magnificent display of manliness, vigour and prowess. Fighting a bull, taming a wild ox, jumping into a lake of crocodiles, hunting the BIG GAME, wrestling, and everything realating to masochism, excepting Cricket, the most feminine of all games. :-)

Today, this paper tiger of a man, has thrown away Shakepeare's beautiful dictum on MAN - "What a piece of work is MAN" and now, whereever the woman goes, he follows, crushing the rose of chivalry with his feminine toes.

Eisenhower's famous lines come to my mind: The qualities of a great MAN are vision, integrity, courage, understanding, the power of articulation, and profundity of character. In today's dispensation, all these qualities have been thrown to the wind, and MAN has become an insignificant speck, in a feminist Universe. He is reduced to a mere paper tiger, where he's no more a man, but a "YES MA'M" sort of being.

SHAMEEEE! to the first quarters..!

As always, I've quite admired Hemingway and Herge, cos they didnt have their heroes going after blondes or brunettes. I still remember my former HOD in American College, who used to say 'NO' to females in the staff rolls, just because he said, there are around fifteen Womens' Colleges in this City, and only a handful of Men's colleges. If you "women" will give our "men" a place in your staff rolls, then we shall think about it. Until then, a categoric 'no". We in the Staff admired him for that. Hats off to you, dear Sir. You are a MAN...! I admire you...!

Teachers who give those precious extra marks only to beautiful girls are a shameful lot, who demean "MANHOOD" and also the nobility of the teaching profession by becoming biased and weak. In the end, you find beautiful girls are not respected for their marks cos you know full well that most of them might have got it through hook or crook, not because of their brains, take your workplace for example, and count how many in the rolls were given jobs for their beauty and how many for their brains, and prove me right...!

I myself had been a victim to these 'feminine' masculines, where beautiful girls used to get all the marks just for their beauty, and not their brains, while we the guys who used to sweat it out through sleepless nights, burning our midnight oil were not given a fair share of the pie. We the MEN call it INJUSTICE TO THE CORE...! All forms of fairness in the system is lost here because this man has lost the real sense of 'macho' within his system.

The moment a man follows a girl, he loses his dignity.

The moment a MAN stoops beneath his dignity, and he becomes a "slave" and loses all his self worth.

The moment a MAN demeans his male friends in front of a woman, just to please her, loses his self respect, and respect too.. it would have been better if he were'nt born at all (as a MAN, i mean..!)

And if these MEN were to continue in their 'feminine' tricks, the present society whould become HERSTORY instead of HISTORY...! :-) No wonder, Helen Rowland summed up this sort of a MAN perfectly, in her own word thus: "It takes a woman twenty years to make a man of her son, and another woman twenty minutes to make a fool of him." How right she is..!

I'm not an anti feminist, or a male chauvinist, but a Man who wishes that MEN were MEN...!

Yesterday, during a training session on IELTS/TEOFL, I happened to have an interesting chat with a software professional of a famous IT Company. He had a lot of thoughts to share and some of them were, from my perspective, quite shocking. Here begins his tale of woe:

My day at work starts around 8 am and I've to spend nearly 40 minutes speaking to my representative from the US, updating project details carried out the previous day and about upcoming tasks.

Being the PL (Project Leader) of a team of 20 members is a very arduous task in itself. In a team of say 20, only one person will be found to be very sincere, find out bugs, if any, and streamline the whole thing. The rest of the 19 just while away their time, doing almost nothing, and enjoying at the other's expense.

Secondly, most of them are freshers and they are not committed to their work at all. The reason being that, a majority of them use this IT Company only as a mere stepping stone towards their own career aspirations elsewhere. Sometimes I find, the fresh faces preparing for their CAT oe GMAT exams discreetly, as they find this "Big" company just a rung up the ladder. Almost a major chunk of them leave in the first two years, around 60 per cent, and so we go on a Campus recruitment spree to fill up the lacunae.

Thirdly, We dont have job satisfaction at all. Who am I working for? It is for some company off shore, who doesnt know me at all. For him, it is the end product that matters and not the means. If not me, it's somebody else. So, we normally dont have any involvement in the job at all.

Fourthly, almost every other day we get mails in our mail box from our Company which opens like this: Remembering a Special Person - None other than a young software professional around 35 years of age, who has died of cardiac arrest. Many IT people also commit suicide because of Stress, and some end up nervous wrecks.

Fifthly, most of the parents are afraid to give their girl in marriage to a software professional, because of many factors. The odd working hours, resulting in a temptation to falling to the vices, immorality after work time, and husbands having to wait for their wives even at around 2 pm at night to finish her 'shift'.

Sixthly, now that the rupee value has risen, we've been asked to compensate it by working on Saturdays too. Our clients do not go by nation or community at all. It's sheer economy in money matters that proves the clinching factor. If you guys in India cant do it at $100, and if you charge us $120 just cos your rupee value has increased, we dont bother. We can shift our operations to the Phillippines who are willing to do the same work at $90. So it's all about pressure and competition.

Seventhly, China is bound to overtake us by the year 2011. They are catching up on their language lacunae too..So it wouldnt be a surprise if in the near future, the whole world turns to them for project execution, leaving us in the lurch.

I now prefer working as a teacher in a small school, teaching a few passionate students in a poor village in my country, and do something to uplift them, which gives me immense job satisfaction and happiness. It also gives me involvement, a sense of belonging, and a great sense of achievement etc., which I dont and can never hope to find in IT.

That leads me to the question, what counts more? job satisfaction or money? health or wealth? peace of mind or a mind in pieces? 

He sure had a point worth a ponder, a thought worth a thousand dollars or even more there...!

This happened just over a week ago. I was driving my car in one of the not so busy streets of Chennai one fateful day, when I got a call from Wesley, my close friend of many years, who was too eager to tell me the outcome of his engagement ceremony to a soft spoken warm hearted girl from a distant town.

I was engrossed talking over the phone, little realising that a cop was tailgating me in close quarters. He soon overtook me, asked me to get down, and pay a fine of Rs.1,000/- Since I had just then filled up gas for my car, I had exhausted my monetary resources by then, and so paying him right then through the nose was way out of the question.

I promptly owned up my mistake and apologised to him. But the cop was relentless. He said he needed my licence. Having scanned through it top to bottom, he said, he would retain it with him until the fine was paid.

Little did i realise that the fine was a fine way of collecting money for private pockets, meant to be shared among conniving cops. He asked me to see him the next day before 6 pm with the money to get back the licence. The next day as i was about to proceed, he rang me up and said, since he's on some other lane, he was not in a position to get the fine that day, and so asked me to come back on another 'auspicious' day, now with an extra Rs.100/-

The next day I took one of my students Muthu along with me to see the drama, and it was a high drama. He had asked us to come to one place, but when we reached there, to our shock, he said, he's now in the fag end of another area altogether.

After about an hour's drive we managed to get in touch with him, and also managed to transact business with the cop, giving him his due. At once came a handwritten slip with the words, received Rs.1200 only towards the offence of using cell phone while driving, and the seal of the local traffic commissioner in faded ink at the bottom.

We returned, happy at having gotten back the licence, and the cop himself happy at having got his due. He was in cloud nine, or the seventh heaven, whatever. Long live the cop, and his loyal sense of duty...! 

I think its high time we teachers of the English Language went on a tirade against the beaten-track approach to teaching of literature.

The question i would like to put forward is Today's English literature syllabus - does it really address the demands of our time... Literature buffs, (including oldies who've been teaching Literature as a subject for decades may raise their eyebrows, if not a hue and cry or a hullaballo over my radical question... but leave alone prejudices.... come into the era of realism, after your hangover into idealism, and you find the english literature student at the undergraduate level doesnt have a good recipe to taste...

he has to swallow, taste, or digest whatever stale dishes are being offered to him (sorry feminists)... and i hope today's language and literature teachers would agree with me in toto when i say this... what has a MRS. DALLOWAY by Virginia Woolf gotta do with a student's prospects - be it in job or in life - pessimism to the core - or insanity and sanity - side by side- as the 'sane' author would love to call it..

OR what does a THOMAS HARDY contribute to the student's thought process- I am reminded of a goody oldy saying - You can take a horse to water, but not make it drink - you can take a student to college, but not make him think-

OR DO WE? Are we really making our students enjoy literature - or are we giving them an overdose of isms (that includes pessimism and stale archivisms_ for lack of better word)....

All ye Lit fraternity....and students of this lovli subject... dont you feel its high time we said adieu to this beaten track?

We were happily talking over a cup of coffee, in the evening, just over three days ago, little realising that our happiness of the moment was just short lived by an interruption in the guise of a tele call.

She was a tele caller from a reputed National Bank who called me up over my mobile, around eventide. Introducing herself as Sheela from S..., she said, "Sir, we are calling from S..., and congrats sir, you have been conferred the privilege of Gold ... Customer, and as such you are entitled to an insurance for five years. You need to pay only for the first year. There are a lot of benefits accruing to you cos of this insurance, and you need to pay only for the first year. The rest of the years you need not pay.. bla bla bla... "

Finally she concluded her first phase of talk by saying,

"Sir, shall we freeze Rs.4300/- from your credit limit for the insurance?"

I said, "No madam, look i've to consult my parents, since i dont take decisions on my own, as i am not married yet"

She said, "Oh sir, your parents will definitely not stand in the way of a nice policy, and that which comes with a lovely offer."

To which i said, "But still madam, i'l just talk to them, and then give my consent."

By this time it was a solid 20 minutes by my watch, and prof.Dany & co were passively watching this tele caller trying to catch hold of a 'gullible' customer.

Then, she said, "Ok sir, pls wait, while i pass on the call to my Customer service representative."

Now, the customer service person sounded very polite in his talk, as he began with a word of praise, saying,

"Sir, i've been hearing your conversation all along, and i really appreciate your regard and respect for parents. Even i too have got five policies, but i've consulted my dad all the time, before taking each and every policy."

"Thank you" i said, happily, relieved that here at last there was a person who understood my words.

But then it was that he started his rhetorical tactics cum verbal antics to persuade me gently by saying,

"Sir, but do you think your parents will stand in the way of something good happening to you?" Do you think they will prevent you if you are getting some prize money.. Tell me sir.."

I said, "nope, but still i feel that i need to consult my parents."

He did not leave me at my words there.. He said, "Sir, just answer me.."

Now, Dany sir, seeing my plight, got the mobile from me and cut the call... and said, "rufus, we'l see if he calls back again."

No wonder, this time it was Sheela who called up and said,

"Sorry sir, i think he confused you a lot... but you see it's quite simple..."

Now, i disconnected the call.

The tele caller called back again, but in vain.

I felt i was relieved.

But my relief was only short lived. Cos, the next day, around twelve noon, Sheela was there with her kitty of verbal antics, to clown me again. This time, i picked up the call and said, "Sorry i'm not interested."

But she said, "Sir, we'll just send you the brochures home, and you'l have a full twenty one days time to peruse it and cancel it any time you wish to."

I cut the call..!

Later, pondering over the whole EPISODE, (rightly so, cos it continued to the next day,) I felt that I had 'wasted' almost forty minutes of my precious time on 'nothing.'

This leads me to pose a question to the Bankers of Repute, "SHOULD YOU PEOPLE OF GREAT REPUTE, STOOP TO THIS DEMEANING LEVEL, TO CONQUER?", thus COMPROMISING YOUR OWN MANNERS IN WINNING OVER A CUSTOMER?."

The next day, even as i went to the same bank to transact some business, i saw Gandhiji's quote where he calls the client to respect the customer. I thought that it would do more good if the Bank officials hung another lovli quote by the FATHER OF THE NATION,

"Manners are a sensitive awareness of the feelings of others. If you have that awareness, you have good manners, no matter what fork you use...!"

Ever since India's fiasco at the hustings this World Cup, many heads have rolled, and much water has flown under the bridge.

But the question remains... Do our sportsmen really merit all the attention they get? or is it that the media is blowing the whole thing out of proportion by magnifying the whole hype and hoopla...

i thought of giving it a 'thought' - mulled over it.. and hence am keying out here...

Not because my Grandfather was an army officer, but because common sense demands it... and we've ample reason to vindicate it...

Soldiers of a country are expected to stand ready to defend their country's territorial integrity.

They consider it an honor and their revered duty to preserve, protect and defend their beloved country.

One of the manuals that I came across recently, prescribed the duties of a soldier thus:

"Every soldier has certain duties, responsibilities, and most have some level of authority. You should know what these are and how they apply to you. One of your obligations as a soldier is to carry out your duties to standard and the best of your ability. Bear your responsibilities knowing that you are part of a great team that only works well when each of its members do their best. If you are in a leadership position, exert authority to build the team and develop your soldiers. Your fellow soldiers are depending on you each and every day to make tough decisions based on your rank and duty position."

Being a cadet in the National Cadet Corps for three long years, i've had the privilege of being trained under the mighty seniors and military personnel. The first thing we were taught were, i still remember, Obedience to Orders. Strict obedience to orders. Second was, Discipline.

A person who serves the country as a soldier, has to undergo a lot of routine work outs, and strenous exercises, rigid discipline frameworks, etc for one avowed purpose: PRIDE OF THE COUNTRY.

In war or peace, the Soldier doesnt get his recognition at all. How many armed personnel get killed everyday in escalating tensions across the country. Still, how many have been recognised? Just a handful.

What about the thousands of perishing soldiers who die for the sake of the country....

Just because Tendulkar blasts a century against Kenya or Ireland, he adorns the front pages of all newspapers, and the media give him that extra coverage, asking him how he was able to perform this 'wonder', and he attributes it to the 'guys'.

What is the sacrifice that these sportspersons make for the country that they deserve this unneeded hype?

On the other hand, soldiers sacrificing their lovli lives at the feet of their nation, rendering families homeless,  not caring for any fame or name, but just the 'spirit' and the 'pride' for the country.... what recognition have they merited... except a small column which discreetly mentions,

FOUR SOLDIERS KILLED IN AMBUSH - atleast four soldiers were killed and fifty others injured in an ambush, twelve kilometers north of Kashmir. The condition of ten of them is stated to be out of danger. AGENCIES

Is this the tribute that a soldier who has sacrificed his life for his beloved country gets?... Is this the recognition they deserve for forgetting their families, their beloved friends and well wishers, their home town etc etc., and stand out in the battle field?

The sportsman who retires from "ONE DAY CRICKET'" gets the prominence that only a few can expect to get. He gets another reem of articles devoted to him singing his praises, his triumphs, his 10 wicket hauls etc... Later, after three or four years, the same guy retires from "TEST CRICKET" and another reem of articles flood the media. He is praised as a disciplined, sincere, hard worker, etc etc...

Forget the countless sponsors, the paraphernalia, the govt houses, govt land and other accolades that take many sizes and shapes, the sportsman has got himself a pride of place that rightfully the SOLDIER deserves...

I Humbly but strongly FEEL THAT THE SPORTSMAN, ( in INDIA, the cricketer) has usurped the name and fame of the SOLDIER...!

With the LAST WORKING DAY of the current Academic Year drawing to a close here at MCC, I look back, and ask myself, have I done my job to my utmost satisfaction? (forget the Head!)

Have I addressed all the anxieties of the student, dispelled his doubts, clarified his confusions etc etc etc. A lot of things I had in mind for my classes were unfulfilled.. for example, the formation of a Book Club, the Performance of a Play in Class by the Students, Special Lecture series by distinguished alumni and reputed Scholars, etc, remained only a fragmented reality.

I am to blame for the lacunae... Call it my lackadaisicality or lethargy... whatever... But I have one consolation, and that i find in the poetic diction of James Russell Lowell,

Life is a leaf of paper white

Whereon each one of us may write

His word or two, and then comes night.

'Lo, time and space enough,' we cry,

'To write an epic! ' so we try

Our nibs upon the edge, and die.

Muse not which way the pen to hold,

Luck hates the slow and loves the bold,

Soon come the darkness and the cold.

Greatly begin! though thou have time

But for a line, be that sublime,

Not failure, but low aim, is crime.

These lines do indeed invigorate me, and so I wish, in the words of Milton,

"To scorn delights, and live laborious days;"

for the sheer love of my profession.

To all those avid admirers and ardent supporters and fervent patrons cum connoisseurs of cricket, the game where bookmakers make their mark, and bookies rule the roost, it is high time all ye people woke up to the sad fact that Cricket is no more a game. It is now the haven of horror and the habitation of the heartless.

Before the coin is tossed on the pitch, my dear ardent baktha, the game has been won. Who has won, is known only to the dadas of the game, (not our dear Dada)who are the real patrons of the game.

It's not mere 100s or 1000s but millions at stake for these bookies.

Bob's story is a sad case in point.

To do justice to the great cricketer, it would have been sane on the part of the authorities to suspend further matches in the world cup. That wont happen.

Hence, let's ask our national cricketers to concentrate on their science and arts for five more years, while other lovli games, native to our culture, which have taken a back seat for so long a time, be allowed to resurface.

I have a dream, that ONE DAY, my country will be playing cricket with the West Indies, without fear or favour, where they shall not be judged by the amount of money of the bookies, but by the skills in their batting line up.

    TILL THEN, let's bid adieu to the bookie, and bon fire to our cricket bats and balls in the interest of DON BRADMAN and the game of CRICKET...!

Last week, even as MCC was celebrating its convocation with no less than the FIRST PERSON of the NATION to grace the occasion, the occasion was witness to a lovli decorum... that mobile phones were banned in the precints of the huge hall thrown open for the occasion.

People,including dignitaries were frisked for the man's best friend in the post modern world, and asked politely to keep them in their cars or departments.

The effect was fabulous... The students were able to liisten to the great scientist cum statesman with rapt attention, that enthused the FIRST PERSON quite a lot. Even dignitaries on the dais were seen lurking without their mobile phones...

The net result? Concentration to the Core... Hope a day would come when even our class rooms emulate this noble gesture... Indeed the noble hearts that create famous FIRST PERSONS deserve their due too... aint it?

This is not Homer's ultimate dictum on choosing the girl of your dreams... Yet i bet this proves true to millions of young men across the globe...

For those guys who would like to go for a gorgeous, beautiful and charming girl... read on...

Let me illustrate by narrating a true story... 

The other day,  my friend called me up and confessed that he had fallen in love. A guy who had all along been against love, leave alone loving a girl, was here now, giving his testimonial confessions over a nokia mobile.

The credentials that he said about the girl made interesting and thought provoking hearing. When i asked him the oft repeated quote when a person falls in love, "What made you fall for her...?"

He gave three lovli reasons that vindicated his stand and made it an inspiring example worth emulating. She was a lecturer and a colleague to my friend in question.

And remember, the guy in question is quite handsome, like the girl.

First, he said, "The girl was simple in demeanour. Though she hails from a good well-to-do family, she never wore a costly dress on her. The cheapest dress which she could lay her hands on, was hers, to college." So she never cared about her appearance, though she was quite charming.

Secondly, she used to spend more than half of her meagre income on the poor, unnoticed, and she used to spend time with the weak students and taught them difficult passages during the afternoons when there were no classes.

Thirdly, for all her charm and beauty, she had an inner beauty that was all the more bright and radiating because she was always in the company of elder women, and never once was she seen flirting with a man.

These, according to my friend, were the three charming and lovli reasons for his falling for the charming girl.

THIS SET MY THOUGHT PROCESS IGNITED...

YES.... HOW SHOULD A GUY CHOOSE HIS GIRL, OR CHOOSE A GIRL FOR HIMSELF...

Well, looks dont matter at all, in the first place. As the dictum goes,

AAALLL THAT GLITTERS IS NOT GOLD... and also,

DONT JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER...!

A girl who looks beautiful or charming, will alwayssss be sooo conscious of her beauty and her looks, that she will want you to praise her always, lavish her with beautiful costumes, and spend precious, valuable time in front of the mirror.

Her wardrobe will be her heaven, and variety the spice of her living. Such being the case, where will she have time for you? And even if she "devotes" a fraction of time for you, and if you are busy in that particular time, she may drift to where the magnetic power is high. As such, you and your life will be one hell of a mess.

Secondly, choose a girl who's wise and practical. A girl who knows what it is to deal with people, Interpersonal skills, positive, who can associate herself with anybody and everybody without a tinge of ego. In short, a girl who can identify herself with all and sundry.

Thirdly, choose a girl who reads a lot of books, both fiction and non-fiction. A voracious reader carries with her the gift of forbearance, and patience too. She rarely acts impulsively, but reasons out and adjusts quite a lot. History indeed teaches her through the printed word.

Fourthly, go for a girl who has her own personal space. I mean a world of her own, where she creates something, paints, sings, designs, or does something unique for herself, which makes her a unique individual.

Fifthly, get a girl, who does not associate a lot of importance on purchasing vanities like display outfits, vanity fittings, embellishments etc, which not only make a dent on your wallet, but also on your psyche.

Sixthly, choose a girl who can nurture you, care for you, and understand you, not for your looks or colour, or money, but for who you are.

Seventhly, a bit of spirituality is the essence of life. Let the girl of your dreams help you lead a better life in the spirit.

These are life sustaining therapies from a chronic bachelor for those who are about to fall into the abyss of love, or out there to seek an 'attractive', 'gorgeous' woman.