Mr. Wang's Paintings

My next door neighbor is affable Mr. Wang. He is also a Chinese teacher at our School and apparently a great teacher. Last flood break I discovered that he is also an accomplished artist too. I wanted to capture him while he was painting and he reciprocated by showing me more of his work. Here is for your eyes only. By the way Mr. Wang is also helping me brushing up my Chinese.

Flooding in Siem Reap

Siem Reap is a small touristy town and the river which flows through the town could be mistaken for a canal. This year has been particularly bad for the economy of the town. Here are some pictures from the flash flood

Steven Covey's Thought of the day

Rid yourself of these five emotional cancers: criticizing, complaining, comparing, competing and contending.

Proof: Area of Triangle is 1/2*Base*Altitude

One of the most basic formula in high school mathematics or in College Mathematics is the proof of the area of triangle. Unfortunately this is not always motivated and students end up cramming this up without realizing its significance. It can be easily demonstrated by following two diagrams.

 Its easy to show that the area of right triangle is half the area of the rectangle, just draw the diagonal. But to show the area of triangle of any scalene triangle is not so obvious. Just draw one altitude and now you have two rectangles and the proof becomes obvious.

Math and Dance

This was posted by one of my friend on a social networking website. I thought that was creative !

Fruits I discovered (Rambuttan and Passion Fruit)

Two fruits which I had not tried before and now I love so much are Rambuttan and Passion Fruit. They are widely available and have heavenly taste. Rambuttan is closed to Litchi while Passion fruit looks like a small Papaya, however it tastes sour and sweet.

Siem Reap in Picture

STMicroelectronics, Farewell Memories

I pulled this out from the annals of my now sparingly used yahoo account. I am glad I still had the copy of that mail I send 8 years ago to express my gratitude at ST

Dear All,

Following is in line what sundeep did, I had the wonderful fortune of knowing you all so closely. My intention here is just to say what picture comes to mind. I am not editing or even rereading to check for my spell mistakes. So don’t be harsh on me and on you.

NOTE ::It is not with any intention to offend anyone but merely for amusement.

Shivchitt – We shared a same flat along with Amit goel. Still recount those numerous times when we had to plea the local hack to get the fuse done which has been taken away by the noida power people. Giving lavish tips and reasoning we are so busy people. Those endless night walks learning about his flames sharmil, pooja …wondering man what we are doing in noida. PUNE chalo.

Inderneil – Our beckhem. One of the coolest guy. Will always remember the saying he pasted in his cubicle “Live well it is the greatest revenge”

Pankaj – I had a wonderful time when we shared the same cubicle. I wonder why he is now keeping so low profile these days. A man with a knack to anticipate the problem way ahead. Always encouraging. His enthusiasm is just infectious. If you get bored in his company you surely need to see your psychatrist.

Sunil Narula – The methodical guy. Good he is now settled.

Arti – The beautiful lady always helped me with my work. I could still recollect the first day I came to ST and after the tiring interview with Sanjay Singh she escorted me to the lab and I kept thinking “ST mein life achi hai”.

Anup Das – Always remember those wild dance parties with him. A gentleman who always wear a smile.

Shiv Kumar – Always remember his banter and his intuition of finding the correct solution. He is a wizard when it comes to problem solving.

Mrinmoy Nath – Aaj kaun sa deo lagaya hai ? I know he will blush.

Manish Bharti –

I repeat what sundeep had said about him and there is not an iota of doubt about him

Seedha Saadha Suljha hua insaan. Cleanest of them all.

We were buddies in VCD Navigation and CDDA support.

Nabarun – A person who wud like to put himself in other’s shoes and then talk A voracious reader.

Anoop Kant Dixit – Konnichiva, Ohayo gujaima, koibito. Our daily conversation used to begin this way.

Srijib Maity – Patent Waala. “Aur kitney patent huai. Sambha “. If someone had said “A sound mind lives in a sound body”. Maiti is the epitome of that statement. The brainy guy is ever ready for the game. And he is pele of football, biyondi of swimming..

Amit Goel – A person who is always learning, learning…

Anita Devi - All the best for your new job.

Amit Gupta - The hunk has moved to his new flat. But looks for the time being other people are making good use of it. A person with rich tastes. Ghazal, Shar…, kabaab ..

Does it sound Wazid Ali shah ? No the techie has brain in his head and makes good use of it. Recently he spoke French. Does it mean he is back to his French classes ??? Amit Goel ?? Surinder ??

Punya – Getting beautiful day by day. I don’t know is it her marriage or her adorable little son.

Siddharth Batra – Narcissist. An excellent driver. Knows everything about the best deal, best prices, best offer, best hotel, best liquour, best buy…

Dipsy kapoor – Did she ever took time to lunch? The beautiful lass seems to be obsessed with work. Never even saw her writing mail. Dedication to perfection. Best wishes for her engagement.

Venkatesan Rajagopal – “Aur kya chal rahhaaa hai ?”

Manoj – Few people like to be life long learners and manoj happens to be one of them. A person with passion for long driving.

Navneet – Tokyo mein masti.

Tarun Garg – The industrious man. Never ran out of enthusiasm to help others. Man with golden hands “give me a piece of solder + iron and I will give you the perfect solder job”.

Sunamika – I still remember the day she came in pink salwar kameez. Hey did anyone of you remember ? I bet very few can. Cool, Soft spoken, beautiful and dedicated to her work.

RK Shukla – Our clearcase Guru. Eveready to sacrifice his personal time in interest of other’s project.

Nisha – Tomboy of our lab. Has guts to be candid. The cheerful lady has a gifted teaching ability. Can perspicaciously explain the difficult technical thing in a very easy manner and you wonder why I was such a fool to take it so long to understand.

Rajeev Vnr - Got a technical problem and you need a lucid explanation ? Rajeev is the man to look. An ace photographer, technical guru with creative interests.

Sibnath – He has a heart as big as a football stadium. Had a wonderful collection of good stuffs, but who had the key ??. Won’t mind going an extra mile to achieve perfection in his work. A man totally dedicated to give his best and help other. Cheers buddy.

Nandan – The dashing, brainy lad shared my passion for travel. Soft spoken and always smiling. Now shifting to his HUGE apartment. Buddy best wishes for your “grih pravesh”.

Chiranjib – “The thing is he is my tuner buddy”. Wonderful chap, will always remember his sense of humour and his mails to ..

Manish Sharma – The man with the most degrees. A never say die man. Sir apko salut.

Ankush – Our new team member. Sharp, intelligent, witty and a great team member. Nabarun your team is in secure hands.

Sushil- Our wonderful, convivial, lanky, intelligent team member. A person who will not give up until he has solved the problem. Will remember the dance party in Greater Noida.

Venkat – “Mein daaru nahin pita”. A tanker who will never go dizzy.

Kaushik – You may wonder if pheromones do the trick. You are wrong. Spend some time with Kaushik sir and you can feel the aura. The charismatic personality oozes sexiness.

Mohit Jain – I really learnt a lot from him. Few guys have their funda of life so clear. He introduced me to so many things. A tech guru and a hyperactive person who puts more than most people even think can. I wonder where will he be in next 5 years.

Surinder pal singh – The Jim Carrey of our lab. The genius has now recently become the saviour of many cmgsl projects. Getting so many inquiries from prospective sasuraal waale that he needs to put his CV on the entrance of the 4^th floor. Kyo sp ?

Amit Chawla – My French teacher. Amit is a man of many words.

Binod Singh – I kept my promise binod.

Soumen and Naveen – Congratulations for the stellar performance with their project.

Pankaj Sharma – Dehradooni. “Aur bike kaisi hai”. Yaar us jagah ka kya naam tha ?

Tarun Joshi - Mera uttranchal guide.

Pravesh – Ever smiling.

Neeraj Aggarwal- Will remember his solo songs and the apt gazals and shers he could churn in a matter of seconds.

Subhasis Das - The soft soft guy.

Ravinder – The witty guy always gave me a firm handshake.

Nitin – All the best for your marriage. Will miss it .

Saibal – I believe he is a wonderful manager.

Narayanan – Gave me my daily dose of jokes to start a great day. Narayanan don’t forget to add my yahoo account to ur list.

Dayanand – Higidera, Chanagidey, Sahisvidney .. Mera Kannada guide.

Aashish Rudola – Few managers are like aashish. Down to earth and always full of wits. All the best to Aashish on moving to his new house. I will miss his energy both in office and at football field.

Vivek Khaneja – I always took pride in working with Vivek Sir. He is a great taskmaster. A wonderful manager, teacher, learner, musician…

Pankaj Batra – We danced till we dropped at his wedding. Will miss his antics.

Rahul Bansal – My bus stop buddy.

Rest -- Sankalp , Amit Suri, Parveen ,karuna, Manish Agarwal ji, Kapil Singal , Pravesh, Sanjeeve,Pushpendra, Bijoy, Rajul and all those I am not able to recount now. My very best wishes are with you.

May you all achieve your goals

Best Regards to all,

Sumant

Mail : yaoosumant@yahoo.com

Some men see things as they are and ask why.

Others dream things that never were and ask why not.

~ George Bernard Shaw

Ashok Hall, Farewell Memories

   This was my farewell message to my colleagues at Ashok Hall, Majhkali School. I worked there for 1 year and it never occurred to me that I was working. It was one of the best vacation I had. Majhkali is an amazingly beautiful place and the view of majestic Trishul range from there is simply breathtaking.

      

                                           Memories that I will carry

Last one year one month one week was the longest vacation I took and it was one of the most memorable one. Thanks for making me part of your community. I always believe that parting should be quick. So I hope you will forgive me for keeping this under the wraps. You all are blessed to be living in such an amazing place and I will always cherish my time spent here.

1. Prasanto Sir: You are the greatest artist I personally know. Thanks for teaching me Origami and exposing me to different art and craft forms. I am fascinated that how much artists and mathematician's think alike. I believe that if math is taught in art class it will be far more effective.
   
   
2. Manoj Sir: You have been an awesome house mate. I will always cherish our morning sweetened tea, our trip to Kafni and uneding discussions over so many education phylosophy, travel, alchemist etc. I really want to be as thoughtful, inquisitive and passionate like you.
   
   
3. Yogesh Sir: You have always been the wonderful host and I have lost count the number of times you feed me. I had given up watching television years ago but I enjoyed watching television with you. I loved that how you were able to connect with your students and the kind of respect you command.
   
   
4. Alok Sir: Its rare that you develop friendship with someone so fast. You have truly been an amazing friend and an awesome person to look up to. There have been so many things I learned from you about teaching, becoming money wise and conducting oneself that I think I was in Majkhali for some corporate training.
   
   
5. Sharique Sir: You are truly a gentle man. Who could belt out sher after sher and in a second's interval could make an insightful remark on current affairs of the world. You are a great orator and I always enjoyed whenever you gave a speech.
   
   
6. Preeti Chandra Madam: One reason I think I never missed my family here was because of you. Otherwise what's the probability of teaching beside one's very own school teacher in this remote part of the world. I think pretty close to zero. I learned from you what is meant to have an unwavering faith.
   
   
7. Ashim Sir: I want to be a yoga expert like you. I do yoga just to keep myself fit but whenever I saw you it encouraged me to become better at it. My next goal will be to do Mayur Asana. You taught me the rewards of single minded dedication to an art and how it changes your life.
   
   
8. Monideepa Madam: I want to be like a smooth public speaker like you. You emit that aura of sophistication and intellect that's infectious.
   
   
9. Saraswati Madam: Children love you and I too. You showed me how you can be so firm with students and yet when situation demands could be the most trusted friend to confide in. You command respect and awe because you are so good in your subject and truly care about your students.
   
   
   
10. Poonam Madam: I am proud that you were part of our math department. We class 6 love you for who you are and for all the trouble you take as a house mistress and on top of that help student with their coursework in all kinds of subjects. I feel fortunate to know you and will miss sitting across the dining table with you.
    
    
11. Anuja Madam: While going through the exam copies I was stuck by the honest feedback with detailed remarks you give to your kids about their performance. To me this is a hallmark of a great teacher. I think this is one of the many reason children love you so much.
    
    
12. Sunita Meena Madam: My regret will be that we didn't do the munshiyari trip. I admire that you are so passionate about life. Doing things your way. I have seen you teaching kids and how they get so pumped up during and after the class. You are a perfect example of what great teaching can do to kids.
13. Anjana Madam: English has never been my forte and I regret I never learned grammar. So I am petrified that you will pick gazillions of mistake in these remarks. I like how you project your voice and so circumspect in your expression of language.
    
    
14. Sunita Chowdhary Madam: The only time I seriously studied chemisty when I bought Morrison and Boyd's book to teach myself chemistry and after doing 12 chapters I realized how brainy chemistry teachers are. I strive for the diligence you have and the motivation you bring with your subject.
    
    
15. Twinkle Madam: Perhaps the most convivial person around. You brighten up everyone's day with your warm good morning greetings. I wish I had spend more time to improve my basket ball skills.
    
    
16. Sri deepa Madam: I want to be balanced person like you are. Is it your subject which makes you so calm and composed ? If yes then I definitely want to make sure that I enroll myself in psychology class. I have seen you doing great work with kids and how much at ease they are when talking to you.
    
    
17. Mukta Madam: Good teacher teaches and great teachers inspires. While we are on Internet we fritter away our time on random website but I always see you learning new things relating to your subject. I want to be a continuous learner like you are.
    
    
18. Swarnshree Madam: What an accomplished and stunning dancer you are! You always gave us those eye popping performances and showed us the real meaning of being true to one's profession. All these kids are thrilled whenever you have a class with them and I can say so because there have been times when I had to cut short my class with them.
    
    
19. Deepanjali Madam: I loved your teacher's talk that day and I could feel that how much you care about the children. I have noticed that you always have something interesting to say on any forum which means you think and care about other people.
    
    
20. Mausmi Madam: One reason our staff room is so lively is because you are there and I will never forget that ring tone “subhan allah ….” you have in your mobile.
    
    
    
    
21. Pranita Pant Madam: Our children here perform so well in inter house competitions and if I were to pick few people who are the driving force behind them then your name will be the first one. I salute your dedication to bring the best out of these students not only in house events but also in teaching chemistry.
    
    
22. Shobhita Madam: You were the first person to welcome me here at Ashok Hall. I still remember the first day I was sitting on the sofa and you asked all sorts of little questions to help me feel comfortable in this new environment. I learned from you that what a few kind words from one person can help other person's day.
    
    
23. Debolina Madam: You have been one of the most voracious reader here. There was hardly any day when I was in library and I didn't see you.
    
    
24. Ratna Madam: I regret that I have to leave this neighbor and I cannot have any more of those evening get together. There are very few people who ooze that aura of coolness that a minute of talking to them takes away all the hustle bustle of life and you have been one of those people. I think some times I came to staff room just to have a little chit chat so that calmness would rub on me.
    
    
25. Sumit Sir: I will forever be indebted to you for taking me to Kafni trip. It was one of the most fun filled trip I had. I admire your leadership quality and concern about students. The program you conducted with Sammer Sir was quite an experience. Lot of people talk about leadership but few demonstrate it and in you I see someone who walks his talk.
    
    
26. Lalit Sir: People like you make oneself inferior. I still vividly remember the teacher's day musical chair competition where you as a true sportsman gave up the seat to the other person so they can bask in the glory of winning. You taught me to play badminton but more than that you taught me how to be generous with your time and money.
    
    
27. Vishal Sir: The most well dressed man at Ashok hall. I learned more about teaching from you in that one visit to your home than I have learned anywhere else. Your result speak for yourself. I admire your ability to make people feel good under their skin.
    
    
28. Vineeta Madam: You were the first teacher I met and I still remember how politely you escorted me to dining hall and to my demonstration class. You have that grace and zen like sophistication which one finds only among the learned people.
    
    
29. Asim Ali Sir: I love the way you talk. You have that tone in your voice which can disarm the most agitated person. I watched with awe when you take phone call after phone call without loosing your cool. You taught me how to be calm even in the most demanding situation.
    
    
30. Rich Tripathi Madam: I admire that you have such conviction and so thoughtful about school becoming a great institution. I have no doubt that school will become a better place under your able leadership. You are blessed to have such a wonderful group of teachers around and I hope the next time I am visiting India, I could proudly say that I was part of this school.
    
    
    
    
31. Prafful Sir: I think you speak with honey in your mouth. You are the debonair gentleman here. Its hard to say no when you make a request so politely. I think you have lot to give to this school.
    
    
32. Kripal Sir: Tell me one single day when I didn't see you smile at me. You know it always made my day. You never said no to my request and were always prompt in acceding to my request.
    
    
33. Mahender Sir: I will miss your firm handshake everyday. It is remarkable that you have so many qualities that a good leader has. You are punctual. You dowhat you think is right and not afraid to say what's in your mind.
    
    
34. Mohanty Sir: I want to be a free thinker like you.
    
    
35. Adam Sir: I like the thorough professional you are. I was moved when I heard about the night you were ready to go out and help Alok sir in the middle of the night during that incessant rain and that speaks volumes about ones character.
    
    
36. Vishwanath Sir: Service with a smile. If we all could inculcate this habit world would be a far nicer place.
    
    
37. Jaya Madam: Thank you so much for letting me borrow all those books. When I look back past one year and convince myself that it was productive. It was because of you. You have been doing an excellent job with library and I am sure to miss my quiet days there.
    
    
38. Deepak Sir: Not in my weirdest dream did I think that I will meet someone from bhiwani in majhkali. You were a great travel buddy and I will cherish all the trips we had together.
    
    
39. Julia Bailey Madam: I would like to be like you. You showed me what it means to be a life long learner and living a life based on integrity and trust.
    
    
40. Pat Joshi Madam: The reason you get so many things done is because of the fine qualities you have. You showed me how to be compassionate and true to your given task no matter what it is.