I am an “Indian-American;” a hyphenated-American in a land of millions of other hyphenated-Americans. Even the original inhabitants, the “Native-Americans,” have not escaped the hyphen. Over the years the hyphen has become a proud celebration of the American in us and cultural heritage that we add to its salad mix.
A Whale of a Tail 5/7
Hawaii Travelogues - Part 5 of 7
A Whale of a Tail
The North Pacific Humpback whales migrate almost 3500 miles from Alaska to Hawaiian waters during the winter months. They begin their migration from the Gulf of Alaska in early fall and go to Japan, Baja and Hawaii. Whale watching season in Maui starts Dec 15th but sea creatures don’t follow man made calendars. This year the kohala (whale) showed up more than 2 weeks early, which was good news for us as we got to see them during our visit. Gina, our guide on the whale watching raft from the Pacific Whale Foundation, was super excited about their early migration this year.
The 4 islands of Maui County (Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Kahoolawe) form a shallow ocean basin on the west coast of Maui. It is only around 300 ft deep vs the 1-3 mile deep Pacific beyond this area. Whales come to mate, give birth and nurture their young in the warm Hawaiian waters (around 75 deg), till they are strong enough to go back to Alaska in summer. The humpback whale is so huge that one would think that it can have no predators. But orcas apprantely have a hankering for humpback meat, and will attack the weak and baby humpbacks. Scientists have noticed orca bite marks on juevenile whales that come to Maui. Maui waters provide a predator free environment for the baby whales. However, unlike Alaskan waters, Maui waters are not a good food source (krill or phytoplankton), so the new moms lose almost a quarter of their body weight while nurturing its young. They must go back to Alaska to regain their blubber weight. The calves spend almost almost a year with their moms learning survival skills.
We were on a small 30 man raft, with just 7 passengers, so there was great viewing angles for all on board. The guides look for the whales by the telltale blowholes they make and its vapor residue. They try not to go too close to the whales so as to not disturb them. They whales are so huge that if they decide to jump, you can’t really miss seeing them. Another way they try to spot whales is to see if other boats have stopped. Sure enough, the ferry to Lanai was standing perfectly still, so our raft headed there. In a few minutes, there was the telltale blowhole - the pirate of old would say “Thar She Blows!”. People on board started getting excited (including moi).
Whales don’t really like physical interaction ie: they don’t really hang about together or socialize and are pretty much loners. When 2 whales hang out, its because it just happened - kind of like by association. We saw 2 such whales jumping out of the water. One did a full breech jump. That was a cool sight. Then they disappeared under the water for nearly 15 minutes. Then another sighting, this time a tail. Each whale has unique markings on its tale and that’s how scientists track them. Its really a Whale of a Tail. The two were gone again for another 14-15 minutes. These guys sure can hold their breath for a long time. The guide told us that the longest recorded time is 45 minutes. We saw them jump a couple more times. They kind of wandered off after that.
Whales do have a nifty way of communicating over enormous distances with their cool whale songs. Kind of like having friends on facebook - remote social interaction without the social anxiety of physical interaction. Scientists are still trying to figure out the patterns in their singing behaviors. Its only the males that sings but it does not always seem to mating related. Sometimes all males will sing the same song and it keeps changing as the season progresses. Gina put a underwater mike into the water so that we could hear the sounds they were making. Whales don’t really have vocal cords so they produce sounds by pushing air through valves in their respiratory system. The song is somewhat eerie yet interesting in its singsong quality - its like pieces of a symphony put together. It would be fascinating to learn more about the makeup of their communication system.
The next 2 whales we saw were a mom and baby - Gina kept saying that someone brought their whale karma with them on the boat, to get to see a baby this early in the season. Maybe that's my whale karma! Baby whales can hold their breath only for around 2 minutes so it was bound to come up more often, which really worked to our advantage. The mom is very protective of her baby - hangs around just underneath even though she does not need to come up. A couple of times both jumped up together with the baby on our side, so that we could see both. Too cool! The mother whale kind of likes to tuck the baby whale protectively under its fin when swimming. A baby whale is some 15-20 feet long so is easily visible to the naked eye.
Overall a very satisfying whale watching experience for a first timer like me.
Thar She Blows!
Fountain at Sea
Thar She Blows!
Blowhole, a Whale beneath
Humpbacks in Maui Seas
Migrate from Alaska
to warm Hawaiian Seas
Mate and breed calves
Frolic on the beach (not really!)
Mom and baby
Learn survival skills
Others hang about
Singing their symphony
Hawaii Travelogue 2012
Part 1 - Aloha Maui
Part 2 - I Survived the Road to Hana
Part 3 - West Maui
Part 4 - North Beaches and Watermen
Part 5 - Whale of a Tail
Part 6 - Humuhunukunukuapua'a and the Coral Reef
Part 7 - Living Aloha
A Whale of a Tail
The North Pacific Humpback whales migrate almost 3500 miles from Alaska to Hawaiian waters during the winter months. They begin their migration from the Gulf of Alaska in early fall and go to Japan, Baja and Hawaii. Whale watching season in Maui starts Dec 15th but sea creatures don’t follow man made calendars. This year the kohala (whale) showed up more than 2 weeks early, which was good news for us as we got to see them during our visit. Gina, our guide on the whale watching raft from the Pacific Whale Foundation, was super excited about their early migration this year.
The 4 islands of Maui County (Maui, Lanai, Molokai and Kahoolawe) form a shallow ocean basin on the west coast of Maui. It is only around 300 ft deep vs the 1-3 mile deep Pacific beyond this area. Whales come to mate, give birth and nurture their young in the warm Hawaiian waters (around 75 deg), till they are strong enough to go back to Alaska in summer. The humpback whale is so huge that one would think that it can have no predators. But orcas apprantely have a hankering for humpback meat, and will attack the weak and baby humpbacks. Scientists have noticed orca bite marks on juevenile whales that come to Maui. Maui waters provide a predator free environment for the baby whales. However, unlike Alaskan waters, Maui waters are not a good food source (krill or phytoplankton), so the new moms lose almost a quarter of their body weight while nurturing its young. They must go back to Alaska to regain their blubber weight. The calves spend almost almost a year with their moms learning survival skills.
We were on a small 30 man raft, with just 7 passengers, so there was great viewing angles for all on board. The guides look for the whales by the telltale blowholes they make and its vapor residue. They try not to go too close to the whales so as to not disturb them. They whales are so huge that if they decide to jump, you can’t really miss seeing them. Another way they try to spot whales is to see if other boats have stopped. Sure enough, the ferry to Lanai was standing perfectly still, so our raft headed there. In a few minutes, there was the telltale blowhole - the pirate of old would say “Thar She Blows!”. People on board started getting excited (including moi).
Whales don’t really like physical interaction ie: they don’t really hang about together or socialize and are pretty much loners. When 2 whales hang out, its because it just happened - kind of like by association. We saw 2 such whales jumping out of the water. One did a full breech jump. That was a cool sight. Then they disappeared under the water for nearly 15 minutes. Then another sighting, this time a tail. Each whale has unique markings on its tale and that’s how scientists track them. Its really a Whale of a Tail. The two were gone again for another 14-15 minutes. These guys sure can hold their breath for a long time. The guide told us that the longest recorded time is 45 minutes. We saw them jump a couple more times. They kind of wandered off after that.
Whales do have a nifty way of communicating over enormous distances with their cool whale songs. Kind of like having friends on facebook - remote social interaction without the social anxiety of physical interaction. Scientists are still trying to figure out the patterns in their singing behaviors. Its only the males that sings but it does not always seem to mating related. Sometimes all males will sing the same song and it keeps changing as the season progresses. Gina put a underwater mike into the water so that we could hear the sounds they were making. Whales don’t really have vocal cords so they produce sounds by pushing air through valves in their respiratory system. The song is somewhat eerie yet interesting in its singsong quality - its like pieces of a symphony put together. It would be fascinating to learn more about the makeup of their communication system.
The next 2 whales we saw were a mom and baby - Gina kept saying that someone brought their whale karma with them on the boat, to get to see a baby this early in the season. Maybe that's my whale karma! Baby whales can hold their breath only for around 2 minutes so it was bound to come up more often, which really worked to our advantage. The mom is very protective of her baby - hangs around just underneath even though she does not need to come up. A couple of times both jumped up together with the baby on our side, so that we could see both. Too cool! The mother whale kind of likes to tuck the baby whale protectively under its fin when swimming. A baby whale is some 15-20 feet long so is easily visible to the naked eye.
Overall a very satisfying whale watching experience for a first timer like me.
Thar She Blows!
Fountain at Sea
Thar She Blows!
Blowhole, a Whale beneath
Humpbacks in Maui Seas
Migrate from Alaska
to warm Hawaiian Seas
Mate and breed calves
Frolic on the beach (not really!)
Mom and baby
Learn survival skills
Others hang about
Singing their symphony
Hawaii Travelogue 2012
Part 1 - Aloha Maui
Part 2 - I Survived the Road to Hana
Part 3 - West Maui
Part 4 - North Beaches and Watermen
Part 5 - Whale of a Tail
Part 6 - Humuhunukunukuapua'a and the Coral Reef
Part 7 - Living Aloha
The Future of Math in Silicon Valley
Journalism Assignment for High school . I had to choose a beat (education) and interview 2 people for this article. A big thanks to both the interviewees!
The Future of Math in Silicon Valley
The Silicon Valley is noted for its expertise in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). This helps it maintain its competitive-edge at a world level. Yet this area faces a severe shortage of Math teachers, as does the rest of California. An understanding of Math fundamentals and its applications is a skill that crosses many career paths and life skills. Laying this foundation and interest in Math, is often shaped by these very teachers.
Love Math, Hate Math! Math can be the easiest of subjects and it can be the hardest of the subjects. Teachers face students from across the spectrum. I interviewed 2 High School Math teachers, Sita Murugan of Independence High School in San Jose and Sushma Bana of Monta Vista High School in Cupertino, to get their perspectives.
Sita Murugan comes across both students who excel in math to ones who are unable to show the steps. Others lack basic math skills like adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, negative numbers, fractions, decimals, using distributive property etc. Monta Vista High School, on the other hand, is a high performing school, and some of the issues are very different. It is 75% Asian and it is presumed that all Asians are good in Math. Sushma Bana often comes across students who are pressured (parental and peer pressure) into taking higher-level math courses, even if interested in other areas. “In our school it is considered cool if you are a good student in math and science. Parents are very involved in their kids' education, which is a good thing for the most part. But sometimes they force their kids to take classes which are very challenging for them.” This reflects the wide underlying diversity of needs amongst students in Silicon Valley, which is presumed to be STEM-savvy.
The teachers take different approaches in tackling the issues. Sita Murugan makes use of differentiated instruction with software like Accelerated Math or Apangea, to help her students with their math challenges. Classroom instruction, in addition to computer/web-based solutions, plus on-line tutoring by credentialed instructors can help “ensure that students can learn math anytime, anywhere.” For her students, Sushma Bana feels that teacher recommendations should be taken seriously, when deciding on a math placement and that parents need to let their kids make informed choices.
While there is a fundamental shortage of math teachers, the issue is also a shortage of “good math teachers,” in Silicon Valley. The area has a very high cost of living, and qualified candidates with STEM degrees, often choose better paying careers. Attracting qualified talent loses out in the face of the cost of living. It is a critical problem, given the wide array of needs of students that live here and for Silicon Valley to maintain its competitive edge in the future.
What can be done to reduce the issues of good teacher shortage, and quality Math education? One obvious solution is to make the salaries competitive for highly qualified candidates with STEM backgrounds. Sushma Bana suggests offering incentives such as subsidized housing to motivate teachers to live in the area. The current teacher pay scales are based on years of experience rather than their effectiveness. As with the tech industry, pay scales needs to be on merit-based, rather than seniority-based. Sita Murugan suggests that the credential course for Math be made less rigorous. They could for instance split the level: Lower level for teaching (Algebra1/ Geometry) and Higher level (Algebra2 and beyond)
Other local districts have tried different methods to dramatically improve their “student to valuable human time ratio.” The Los Altos School District recently overhauled the Math curriculum for their 5th and 7th grades by using software from The Khan Academy. This was outlined by Salman Khan, founder of The Khan Academy, in his speech at the TED conference talks on Mar 9, 2011. In effect, “by using technology, they were humanizing the classroom.” In this way, they were able to motive students with a wide range of needs, keep them on a continual learning curve, and yet work with the limited teacher resources. Bill Gates, who introduced Sal Khan at the TED conference, stated that this could well be the future of education in the US.
Tablet Education - the iPad Experience
I am from Cupertino in California, the home of Apple Computers and its late CEO, Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs grew up in this very town and started off his company in his garage with Steve Wozniak. Wozniak was the engineering end while Jobs was its dynamic creative packaging end. From there grew the company that revolutionized computers in many ways and more so the area of hand held devices.
I got my first iMac at age 6. It was a transparent box with a single power outlet, a keyboard and mouse - very futuristic looking and clutter free. I spent endless hours on it going though digitized versions of my favorite books - Dr Suess and Aesop Fables. The message that the slow and steady Tortoise could win over the fast Hare sunk into my mind with surety (from the digitized Aesop Fable, "The Tortoise and the Hare"). The Apple computer took a background for a few years till the advent of the iPod. Suddenly I had hours of music in my pocket, a relaxant and my companion on long plane journeys. The noise of my surroundings could be drowned out by a device that was but a few square inches. The iTouch was the next, it was exciting as I could now play games and it even had a small keyboard that I could type on. And I still had access to all my music. Along came the iPhone, and with it the power of reaching out and talking to others.
The finale was the iPad - a computer you held in your hands - an electronic tablet. It didn't require a lot of booting time, and it was simple to use. You could do most things on it that you could do on a regular computer. A touch screen meant that you did not need a mouse or a keyboard. You could type documents and browse the internet. There was an app for everything. Games were the first and they took on new level with touch-screen technology. Best of all it opened up a world for communication for those who desperately needed an avenue. There were text-to-speech apps, which gave the voiceless a voice. There were sentence and icon apps which helped bridge communication for those who lacked it. The world was potentially at our very fingertips. We could learn anything - there were no limits to educational and other possibilities. What a great equalizer for the world that is usually divided by access and abilities.
In the end, the camera and other fancy add-ones that a gadget provides are secondary. The fact that it starts to make a difference in the lives of many, and gives them new direction and hope, is what makes it remarkable.
Steve Jobs recently died of Pancreatic Cancer. We will miss you, Steve Jobs, Cupertino's own son. You put this little city, which was once just orchards, on the world wide map. Most of all, your products truly made a difference in the lives of many including me.
Unseen Faces in the South Asian Community
Journalism Assignment - I had to do actual interviews and write an article based on the interviews. It was ... a new experience.. a bit of a challenge too, but it worked out in the end. It was a different kind of interview(s) - mostly over email and one of the respondents gave their responses over the phone. I was able to get a number of people and thereby different perspectives of the issue... A big thanks to all my interviewees. Overall it was a good experience.
Unseen Faces in the South Asian Community
Cultural isolation is not a new phenomenon amongst immigrant families but what if it is accompanied with the added stresses of managing a disability? This was the case with many families of South Asian origin here in the Bay Area.
Rajni Madan, who lost a daughter to a childhood disability, noticed the bewilderment of such parents and decided to set up a support group that would engage families. That gave birth to “Jeena,” in 2000. Jeena in Hindi means life, and Rajni wanted families to have hope even as they coped with their sudden onset of challenges. It started with 7 families who reached out to each other, but the group has grown to over 500 families today. The disabilities range from the ever-growing Autism to Cerebral Palsy to chromosomal and metabolic disorders.
Jeena’s role has evolved over the years and is driven by the needs of the participating families. Founder Rajni Madan made a conscious decision not to ask for state funding for Jeena’s activities to allow for flexibility in its evolving needs. State funding entails a formal organizational structure and Jeena is entirely parent-run with the help of volunteers. Jeena relies on funding through donations (individuals and corporations) and through corporate grants that cover specific needs. According to Rajni Madan, the number of adults with disabilities is a small minority at Jeena, so most activities at the Milpitas center currently target the needs of the younger children. There are activities such as playgroups, group outings, bowling, picnics, music and dance classes, which focus on the social and pragmatic needs. Recently Jeena won a grant from the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce for community outings to encourage social appropriateness and independent living skills for teens.
Jeena also has a small funding program for families who are monolingual and are struggling to find resources for their children, which is not available through generic sources like insurance companies or school districts. They also have small project in Mangalore India, where they have helped fund the multi-purpose building of a new adult residential facility.
What types of challenges do these families face? I interviewed five Jeena families to find out. Some were parents of older children while others were parents of younger children. For Abhoyjit Bhown, father of a 19 year old, “The disability affects not just the individual but everyone in the family. There's often a constant demand of time and energy to ensure the disabled individual can function in various situations - at home, at school, in the community, etc. This time and energy means that parents and caregivers often give up various aspects of their lives such as work, rest, social activities, and sometimes even sleep. For other members of the family, they often give up their social activities, have fewer friendships, and often cannot engage in things that their peers normally do.”
Rajni Madan, who lost a daughter to a childhood disability, noticed the bewilderment of such parents and decided to set up a support group that would engage families. That gave birth to “Jeena,” in 2000. Jeena in Hindi means life, and Rajni wanted families to have hope even as they coped with their sudden onset of challenges. It started with 7 families who reached out to each other, but the group has grown to over 500 families today. The disabilities range from the ever-growing Autism to Cerebral Palsy to chromosomal and metabolic disorders.
Jeena’s role has evolved over the years and is driven by the needs of the participating families. Founder Rajni Madan made a conscious decision not to ask for state funding for Jeena’s activities to allow for flexibility in its evolving needs. State funding entails a formal organizational structure and Jeena is entirely parent-run with the help of volunteers. Jeena relies on funding through donations (individuals and corporations) and through corporate grants that cover specific needs. According to Rajni Madan, the number of adults with disabilities is a small minority at Jeena, so most activities at the Milpitas center currently target the needs of the younger children. There are activities such as playgroups, group outings, bowling, picnics, music and dance classes, which focus on the social and pragmatic needs. Recently Jeena won a grant from the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce for community outings to encourage social appropriateness and independent living skills for teens.
Jeena also has a small funding program for families who are monolingual and are struggling to find resources for their children, which is not available through generic sources like insurance companies or school districts. They also have small project in Mangalore India, where they have helped fund the multi-purpose building of a new adult residential facility.
What types of challenges do these families face? I interviewed five Jeena families to find out. Some were parents of older children while others were parents of younger children. For Abhoyjit Bhown, father of a 19 year old, “The disability affects not just the individual but everyone in the family. There's often a constant demand of time and energy to ensure the disabled individual can function in various situations - at home, at school, in the community, etc. This time and energy means that parents and caregivers often give up various aspects of their lives such as work, rest, social activities, and sometimes even sleep. For other members of the family, they often give up their social activities, have fewer friendships, and often cannot engage in things that their peers normally do.”
The other primary focus is on educational and emotional support for the parents via workshops, trainings, and social interaction opportunities. These workshops focus on learning specific techniques such as safety issues or methodologies and therapies. Parents network via a yahoo group and an online forum which makes physical location a non-factor.
Other families too spoke of similar challenges. A small change in schedule could result in sensory overloads, emotional turmoil and melt-downs. Imbibing independence in their children was a big hurdle. Even attempting to explain their children’s (dis)abilities to other families and relatives can be taxing. It is a non-stop commitment of time and effort and this paradoxically leads to social isolation from other families who don’t face or understand such challenges.
Ironically the social aspect, which is an important component in improving the quality of life for all involved, is often the first to suffer. All the while, the families are actively engaged in researching ways (be it educational, medical, therapeutic, social or functional needs) to help the affected individuals as there are no clear cut solutions. The needs of the individuals too change each year as they grew, and fresh challenges arose.
Ironically the social aspect, which is an important component in improving the quality of life for all involved, is often the first to suffer. All the while, the families are actively engaged in researching ways (be it educational, medical, therapeutic, social or functional needs) to help the affected individuals as there are no clear cut solutions. The needs of the individuals too change each year as they grew, and fresh challenges arose.
For the parents of the younger kids with disabilities, support groups such as Jeena have provided tremendous emotional and informational support to help them cope and deal with the shock of dealing with the diagnosis. Radha Kannan, parent of a now 10 year old, says, “Jeena helped guide parents to the right type of resources since it is too confusing to navigate the maze and decide where go first.” For Ahmed Hasan, parent of a now 8 year old, “Initially, the caring support from other Jeena parents was a huge emotional support; we felt that we were not alone.”
For parents of many of the older individuals, Jeena has provided wonderful social and emotional support and an environment accepting of their child’s challenges. However, for these parents, the added worry is the long term care and needs of their children – post-school, college, post-college, vocation, housing, finance, and emotional needs. For them, support groups provided help in some, but not all areas. They also felt that support from the community for the families lessened as the child grew. It was important that a support system be in place all their lives, such that they lead meaningful lives. How this was to be achieved, is still unchartered territory. In the meantime, these families were glad to receive whatever support they could get. The role of support groups such as Jeena essentially need to keep evolving, a thought echoed by its founder, to support the needs of its older children, now starting to reach adulthood.
Jeena may be a parent-run organization but often these parents are the same people who are over-stressed and over-stretched for time and resources themselves. Founder Rajni Madan feels that the biggest challenge Jeena faces is the ability for parents to participate on a regular basis. “A lot of times, the community is there to support, but for whatever reasons, the family is not able to participate.” Families too shared this frustration. Parents like Sumathy Narayanan, want to reach out and help or participate but often are limited by the demands of their own special family member.
A number of volunteers have come forth over the years to help Jeena and their support has been invaluable in various ways. I spoke to two such people, to get their perspectives - Prabha Venkat and Sanjana Anand. Prabha Venkat’s entire family, including her two sons, volunteer at Jeena. She started by babysitting while parents attended workshops and helping organize events. Her initial aim was to help in any way, even if it be another listening ear. She started to tutor 2 of the kids and this led to her sons being involved, and they started the Jeena Music Band. She is now an integral part of many of the activities at Jeena. Sanjana Anand is a teacher at Pt. Habib Khan’s School of Hindustani Music and their organization has been teaching Indian Classical Music to a group of Jeena children for over 2 years now. Her love for teaching music initially brought her to Jeena. It turned into wanting to understand the children and how best to teach them in a way that would make a difference. Such volunteers have essentially understood that rather than a disability, it should be regarded as, ‘different ability’. They both acknowledge the importance and role of support groups like Jeena in the lives of the families, especially the emotional and information component. Prabha Venkat also reiterated the need for immigrant families to think about the next steps - “What is the place for such individuals 20 years from now?”
I asked all the interviewees if it was a question of awareness in the community and what could be done to raise awareness. For Suman Kumar, parent of a 16 year old, “More parents of typical kids need to be part of Jeena to create positive interactions and create awareness.” Rajni Madan felt that awareness was far more than it was 11 years ago, but it was also about understanding the abilities of a person. Disability does not mean an inability to lead a normal and productive life. What was needed was a shift in how disabilities were perceived as was acceptance and tolerance on the part of the community at large.
Sanjana Anand felt that there was still a lot of stigma associated with disability in the South Asian community and hence the reluctance of the mainstream community to face issues that were different from their comfort zone – a kind of fear of the unknown. The unpredictability of the edges could be dissolved only through education. When the mainstream audience sees Jeena Kids perform at their public concerts, “It brings about a moment of pause, from their regular lives to understand the importance of organizations like Jeena.” For Prabha Venkat awareness was a function of exposure. The information age was there to help. “Heartstrings have to be tugged , an emotion has to be kindled…then comes maybe curiosity, then interest and before long you have an advocate, a fan and acceptance.”
The need for volunteers is ever-present and growing at support groups such as Jeena. According to Rajni Madan, the bottleneck has often been matching the time availability of volunteers with the needs of families. Prabha Venkat illustrated this mismatch with an interesting analogy - it was easier to run for “a cause,” than to actually interact with the special needs population. Not that the former is not a worthy cause, but running as an activity is predictable while physical interaction is unpredictable. For most, the unfamiliar territory is difficult to venture into. Her advice to all my fellow typical teens is to get involved and become part of this society because you all have a lot to give even as you learn in return.
(Information about the support group and how to volunteer is available at their website www.jeena.org)
Dios, ¿qué te llamo
Dios, ¿qué te llamo (God, what do I call you?)
usted o tu (formal you or informal you?)
Usted es mi padre (You are my father)
pero (but)
tú eres mi mejor amigo demasiado! (You are my best friend too!)
Hola Mundo
Hola mundo, Hola amigos!
(Hello World. Hello friends)
Hola mis compañeros estudiantes
(Hello my fellow learners!)
My foray into español starts this year.
Its sophomore in High School and the volume builds up.
A new language is thrown into the mix.
Vocabulario, Eso es puro
(Vocabulary. That’s neat)
Gramática….hmmmm… pero, asà y asÃ
(Grammar…hmmmm… just so and so)
Las sentencias, el flujo de pensamientos comienza
(Sentences, the flow of thoughts begins)
My teacher is Mrs Saunders (Maestra “S”)
and the software is Powerspeak – the world of virtual learning.
Wisdom Headed My Way
I enter my sophomore year in a few days time. Am I really that wise??
Sophos has a Greek origin, meaning "wise." Early Greek teachers, philosophers and imparters of knowledge were called Sophists. The novice, ignorant 'freshman' puts a foot into the world of wisdom. Then comes the 'junior' class of wisdom (sophos) and the 'senior' class. The suffix of sophomore was eventually dropped from the 'junior' and 'senior'. Today we are left with Freshman, Sophomore, Junior and Seniors. This college terminology then percolated its way down to the four years of High School.
So is there lots of Wisdom headed my way?
If so,
I hold my arms out wide.
The greek "moros" means foolish! Oh the disappointment! Are sophomores (sophos+ moros) then mere "wise fools?" Isn't that an oxymoron as well, like the mournful optimist? I don't know about college years, but I can say that this definition pretty much sums up the quintessential high school teen!
The quintessential High School Teen
Neural activity at its peak
Yet...
illogical and logical simultaneously
This year I will have American Literature, Algebra II, Biology, World History, Spanish 1, Journalism and P.E. Waiting till next Monday!! My freshman year flew by in the blink of an eye. Oh, and I made it to the Dean's High Honor List in my Freshman Year!
Donner Lake
Donner Lake
Big blue, bluer and azure! Donner lake, blue gold by sunlight, turns silver by moonlight. A treat lay in store for the youth attending the DS USA event. Promises of chances to experience this magnificent lake at close hand. The 3 mile long lake lies on the edge of the Sierra Nevada Range near the town of Truckee.
The experience was just way way beyond expectations. Ie: I was in seventh heaven cubed. My favorite had to be the Jet Ski ride, which I did 5 times around the lake!! The Jet Ski just cleanly slices through the shimmering wavy sheet-like water and sends out streams of spray on either side. Houses on the other side of the lake - 3/4 mile away - are visible - mere toys to the eye. Little toy people stand on piers and grow lifelike as you get closer to the other shore. The steep turns and the tilts of the Jet Ski provide extra bonus thrills. I first tried Jet Sking during my vacation to the Bahamas laat year with Mom and Dad. The volunteers go faster than Mom and Dad, so this was more fun.
I would love to be able to drive a Jet Ski on my own!
I also tried tubing for the first time. It was fun to be dragged around the lake on the tube, but it was somewhat bumpy, compared to the Jet Ski. But still, not an activity to be missed - so went not once but three times. And of course a leisurely canoe ride was sandwiched there, somewhere in between.
We had spent the night at the Donner Village Resort. From the floating pier in front of our hotel, we watched others out on lake and the changing color of the alpine waters and the surrounding trees as the sun set. It was just delicious to the senses. (Kind of really over stimulating too!)
What a lovely mini-vacation!
Summer 2011 Vacation Travelouges
(A Mini Vacation 7/31/11)
ParaSailing at SoBe 8/8
(My OJ State Vacation .. Part 8 of 8)
ParaSailing at SoBe
July 26
I'm no stranger to diets - I was on the GFCF diet for the longest time. And I've heard names of other diets in both the medically necessary and cosmetic (aka lose weight fast) categories. So when I went to South Beach in southern Florida, I half expected a sign somewhere that said "South Beach Diet."
South Beach a.k.a "SoBe" is the southern section of Miami Beach. Miami Beach is in Miami Beach City, which is not the same as Miami. The City of Miami is on the mainland, while The City of Miami Beach is on a barrier island, off the Florida mainland, with Biscayne Bay seperating them. This caused a lot of initial confusion for my parents, as they could not locate our Hotel on the GPS. Turned out, the city we needed was Miami Beach City, not Miami! Our hotel was right by Miami Beach. (Given the numerous roads connecting the island to the mainland, it hardly felt like an island.)
South Beach has to be one of the best US beaches I've been to. The waters of the Atlantic are warm off the Florida coast, so wading into these warm ocean waters was a pleasure. ( SoBe and adjoining beaches had crisp white sands that crunched under the toes. The slope of the coast was very gradual. In effect, you could walk quite a distance from shore into the ocean water with the water hardly waist deep.
It was well.... Just delightful to hang out there.
I would love to live in a house right by such a beach with its warm ocean waters.
I'm all for the nice SF Bay Area weather in northern CA, but do wish the waters are not so freezing cold for most of the year - makes it a challenge to enjoy the beaches.
SoBe has lots of shopping and boutiques (not my area of interest). There were hordes of girls and women carrying shopping bags filled with merchandise from the colorful stores. SoBe is also a culinary hotspot - the ears perk up - now we're talking. We enjoyed some delicious Thai Food for dinner in an outdoor restuarant and delicious Mexican for lunch.
I tried out parasailing for first time at SoBe. I was actually very very anxious about it. Somehow, the total loss of control, when you are suspended in the air is a scary thought. What if you should crash? What if the rope breaks, and the wind carries you off? What if its too wildy and wild up there? It was a long series of What Ifs..... as I watched others Parasail from the shore.
We were to be the first party to Parasail the next morning, so reached there nice and early at 8am. To our disappointment, we were told it was too windy and not safe. They did not know when they would be able to resume - we were at tne mercy of Mother Nature. We had almost given up hope, when the company called and gave the all clear. It was nearly 11 by then. (Dad and Mom are amazed at my patience that day - waiting isn't one of my strong suits. Same when it comes to handling anxiety.)
Turned out Parasailing is just TOO MUCH FUN and an AMAZING experience. Indeed, I would say parasailing was the highlight of my Miami visit. I felt like a bird soaring over the ocean blue. The 15-20 min ride just seemed to go on forever. The tall buildings on the beach were like toys in the distance. Below us, the tiny boat towed us along. Eventually we were smoothly reeled in back to the boat.
From Parasailing to lunch and to the Airport. That concluded my OJ State (aka Florida) Summer Trip. Saw lots, did lots and had lots of fun.
Everglades - River of Grass 7/8
(My OJ State Vacation .. Part 7 of 8)
The Everglades - River of Grass
July 25
The Everglades - River of Grass
July 25
The Everglades are an unique wetlands ecosystem stretching over 100 miles in Southern Florida. This vast 40000 sq. miles of shallow marshy estuary originally served to empty the waters of the Lake Okeechobee (which in turn was fed by the Kissimmee River) into the Gulf of Mexico. This River of Grass is as wide as 60 miles in some places and as shallow as 6 inches in some places. The Seminoles call it pah-hay-okee meaning "Grassy River", given the abundance of grasses (saw grass, wire grass, toothache grass) that grows in the marshland. Of course, early settlers did a lot of damage by draining vast tracts for use as farmland. This adversely affected the native habitat of its abundant flora and fauna and introduced non-native species. Now a massive conservation effort is underway to restore this ecosystem. Some 14 endangered species of fauna and flora are found there.
We had talked about this ecosystem in my Oceanography elective last semester in school. So I was looking forward to getting a live glimpse.
We took a 2 hour airboat ride through this river of grass. Airboats are flat bottomed, which means nothing gets caught - good for the shallow waters. Raised seats give a good view of the water. Its propeller driven - it looks like a giant enclosed fan at the back of the boat. Good thing the propeller is enclosed, imagine getting your fingers caught in it! The propelled air drives it forward, so airboats can’t go in reverse. It’s really noisy though and I wondered how this noise pollution was affecting the wildlife.
The mix of salt and freshwater means that both crocs and gators are found in the Everglades. We got to see only alligators though, on our ride - good thing as crocodiles are by nature more aggressive than gators. We must have seen some 40 to 50 of them - from a bunch of babies to a massive 12 footer male, who'd dug out his own private pond. He was soaking up the sun on a shallow grassy mound, and scurried into his pond as soon as our boat neared. There he lay waiting, just under the water, with just his enormous round eyes above the surface. The eyes watched and waited - is this friend, foe or prey. If we hadn’t seen him dive into the water, we would not have made him out - his colors (brown and green) was a great camouflage and blended so well with the colors of the marshy waters. It can hold its breath up to 15 min and stay submerged up to 2 hours. We came to an area with tiny baby gators - some 20 of them were swimming around. And we saw gators of various sizes in between. Basically there was no dearth of gators on our trip. The Everglades is home to multiple species of large wading birds - we saw several egrets and herons. They took wing and one dived down into the water - food? The saw grass prairie stretched on endlessly on either side of the slightly deeper canal we were traveling in.
A visit to the Everglades is not exciting like a rushing river (the endless sea of grass seems boring after a while) but it’s awe-inspiring in a different kind of way – an unique experience.
===============
"Here are no lofty peaks seeking the sky, no mighty glaciers or rushing streams wearing away the uplifted land. Here is land, tranquil in its quiet beauty, serving not as the source of water, but as the receiver of it. To its natural abundance we owe the spectacular plant and animal life that distinguishes this place from all others in our country." - President Harry S. Truman (dedicating the Everglades National Park in 1947).==============
To continue.. More on my OJ Vacation saga....
NASA - Kennedy Space Center 6/8
NASA - Kennedy Space Center
July 2
As its three engines reverberated to life and the twin rocket boosters roared like Thor, the Space Shuttle Atlantis took off on its final voyage into space on July 8, 2011. It was headed to the International Space Station, to provide supplies, conduct experiments and further our understanding of our intriguing universe. When it returned on July 21, it marked the end of 30 years of the Space Shuttle Program.
NASA's Kennedy Space Center on Merrit Island in Florida is/was the sole launch facility for all the Shuttle's 135 missions since 1981. And I was fortunate in that I got to visit and see the last Shuttle docked, ready to take off, just a few days before its launch. No more will we witness the Shuttle take off, land or even see it docked. The sheer scope of such endeavours is thrilling. What would it be like to experience weightlessness I wonder, (like Dr Stephen Hawking did) - does it give you freedom from the limitations and vagaries of this human body. When not controlled by gravity and/or friction, what are the possibilities for the physics of motor movement and abilities. The mind and consciousness expand in the vastness of space. Like space itself, the possibilities stretch to infinity.
Kennedy Space Center has a Shuttle Launch Simulator. The ride tries give you as close an experience to the real Shuttle launch into orbit as possible. You enter the shuttle launch facility (modeled after the real one the astronauts use). As you wait, you hear/see astronauts talk of their own missions and experiences. After a pre-launch briefing, the crew (that's us), enter the module and are strapped in. The launch process begins, guided by a veteran astronaut, with views of the external robotic arms at work. The shuttle takes off and the pressure changes as we approach space. The roof opens up and we get views of our magnificent planet Earth.
In terms of being a "ride", the Universal Studios, Six-flags and Disney's of terra-firma, do a better job of the bumps, jolts and quick thrills. That is to say, the Shuttle Launch ride was tame, if one compares it to an amusement park ride. But one can't compare the Space Shuttle Missions to an amusement park ride. You open your mind's eye, become an astronaut and feel the experience of take off.
A bus tour took us around the facility. A great deal was not open to the public, which is both understandable (top secret work), yet frustrating - I would have loved to see and learned more. From the Observation Gantry, we got a panaramic view of the docked shuttle. It looked magnificent against the backdrop of the blue skies above and the equally blue ocean nearby. We got to see the absolutely ginormic transport vehicles with caterpillar wheels, that carry the parts to the launch facility. They need their own special road. The main NASA building, when it was built in the 1950s, was considered to be the biggest building in the world. (I guess you have to be an employee or VIP to get in there!). Merrit Island is also a wild life santuary, so we got to see an alligator, an eagle and even an eagle's nest.
The Shuttle Launch Plaza had a full size replica of the Space Shuttle. There were stairs to take you to different levels. Though it is enormous, it must be kinda cramped living quarters for the astronuts, with all their equipment and supplies on board.
There were various exhibits and shows - showcasing the past and future endeavors of NASA. The interactive Explorers Wanted show was interesting, we were right there in the mission control room on the ground.
The grandest exhibit had to be the Saturn V rocket - it was the real deal, not a replica. It is some 36 stories tall, so it was one really looo...oong exhibit hall. The Saturn V rockets launched the Apollo moon missions including Apollo 8 and Apollo 11. It had 3 stages, each a tech marvel in its own right.
The cafeteria features astronaut ice-cream - solid even at warm or room temperatures, as enjoyed by astronauts in space. Its taste was interesting, kind of like candy, yet not at the same time.
It was a super super hot day as well - the outside temperature was in the high 90s - desert like. (Would have loved a water ride in that heat :)). Kennedy Space Center is a very popular destination, judging from the waiting lines outside the visitors center. It took us some 40 minutes in the heat, to buy tickets to get inside.
The trip to NASA was both educational and awe-inspiring. Mankind truly thrives in new discoveries.
2. Wizarding World of Harry Potter
4. Universal Studios, City Walk, Downtown Disney
5. Typhoon Lagoon and Back to Islands of Adventure
6. NASA - Kennedy Space Center
7. Everglades - River of Grass
Typhoon Lagoon 5/8
(My OJ State Vacation .. Part 5 of 8)
Typhoon Lagoon
July 1
July 5/2011
If you had to pick a park to visit, which one would you pick, especially if there are many choices?
Universal has a bunch of parks, Disney has a bunch and Sea World has a bunch. – all in the Orlando area. It was quite the dilemma! But what better way to beat the summer heat than to head to a water park. The question that now remained was - which water park? Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon made the cut or rather the shuffle…
Typhoon Lagoon apparently has the largest artificial wave pool amongst the theme parks, sending out 6 ft waves every half hour or so. The ever vigilant orange-clad life-guards watched from either side as the excited screaming/shrieking crowd welcomed each giant wave. It was kinda cool as you could decide how deep you really wanted to wade in, before you caught the waves. (The advantage of a man-made pool is the depth making on the sides!!). The waves would continue for some 10 mins or so, before pausing for the next sequence. Another easy-to-do thing was the Castaway Creek, a 3 ft deep lazy river – where you could just float on tubes for some 2000 ft or so.
In the Crush n Gusher ride, you got to ride in 2 or 3 person tubes as you whiz past hairpin turns and finally land in a pool of water. There were three paths to choose with cute names like Banana, Coconut and Pineapple. Only thing was that you had to carry those tubes some up steps to some 3 stories high prior to each ride. This ride was a keeper and experienced several times over.
The Gang Plank Falls was a family raft ride with a very long waiting line. I think we spent more time waiting in line than the actual ride itself. The ride really was "Long Time, No See!" Though short, it was however enjoyable.. The Mayday and Keelhaul rides were single person rides, which was a new experience for me. Till the very last minute I did not know if I would be able to hurtle down on a tube by myself. You have to remember to hold on to the tube the entire time and prop yourself just right on the tubes as well. The ride was supposed to have a “rough-rapids feeling” which does not paint a safe picture for someone with anxiety issues. Turned out to be a lot less “rough-rapids” than the mind had imagined – the end result was 2 fun rides.
What was cooler still, was that it started to rain – the drizzle during our Gang Plank wait , turning to a heavy shower by Keehaul Ride. So there we were, standing in line in a warm rain, waiting for the rides. We were gonna get wet in a water ride anyway, so the rain was just a preamble.
Water from below (ride) and water from above (rain) truly make for fantastic water park rides!!
Eventually the heavy shower turned into a thunderstorm and the rides shut down for safety reasons. There was a veritable mass exodus out of the park – Nature follows its own timetables.
Back to Islands of Adventure
A closed Water Park meant time to spare, so we went back to Islands of Adventure Theme Park (my favorite) and popped into The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, plus a chance to drink an additional Butterbeer. To my disappointment, the main Harry ride was just shutting down for an unspecified period due to technical difficulties. It was fortunate that I had gone on this ride several times the previous day. So my disappointment did not quite match those of the hordes of first timers fans who’d been waiting in line.
The Jurassic Park ride was closed too… The thunderstorm must be messing stuff up big time at the Florida Parks! But Spidey (an indoor ride) was still open, so got another chance to see Spiderman land on our car during the ride and get rescued by him.. Again.
Amazingly enough, these rain showers did not dampen our vacation at all. Showers were to be expected this time of the year in Florida, but the rainwater was warm and did not result in chills and colds. Most people just waited out the quick bursts (restaurants do good business during showers) and then moved on as though nothing had happened.
To continue.. More on my OJ Vacation saga....
2. Wizarding World of Harry Potter
4. Universal Studios, City Walk, Downtown Disney
5. Typhoon Lagoon and Back to Islands of Adventure
6. NASA - Kennedy Space Center
7. Everglades - River of Grass
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