15 February 2018

For the record…

… if you ever find me someday teaching high school students or even middle school students – specifically Maths and/or Physics – you can certainly hold the lady on my right responsible for transgression 🙂

I was in Knoxville for a couple of meetings. Swung by Nivedita-di and Ranjan-da’s house for the first time ever. I am totally glad that I did. The Gangulys are one of those couples that can be great friends with toddlers, teenagers, thirty somethings as well old folks like me with equal amount of ease and grace! Ranjan-da’s humor and passion for art (including some incredible cartoon drawings) is met and matched by Nivedita-di’s, poise, intellect and gravitas.

Ever a cheerleader of the Roy family, Nivedita-di and I actually discussed the possibility of me switching to teaching as I think thru what to do with my career when I get back to working again. I have to say with all due honesty that I am a wee bit tempted!!! Of course, there is always the worry of being the wrong model to highly impressionable kids…

Category: Intersection Points | 13 Comments on For the record…
14 February 2018

Checking in with the Pulijals

This was a very long standing promise that I finally got to keep. After almost 10 years!! I remember making that promise when Hari and Usha had visited Sharmila, the two young daughters and myself in our then-new home in Atlanta. I remember having a great time talking about everything and sundry. That meeting itself was after another ten years since I had visited them both in their house in Randolph, New Jersey.

Since I have some time these days in hand, I got into the car and pressed the gas after pointing the car in a generally north easterly direction from Atlanta. The idea being to catch up with some old friends. First stop was Roanoke, VA. Thoroughly enjoyed the solo trip. Took a lot of stops to enjoy the views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Eventually showed up at the Pulijals’ abode around 7 PM. It was almost a throwback to that evening I spent at their Randolph house. Non stop chatting. We talked about our old colleagues from US and India, about the kids, about Usha’s passion for dancing, growing plants and trail walking and Hari teaching young kids yoga and Bhagwad Gita! I am not sure how we got there, but we also talked about the reverse osmosis process while softening water!!

It was just like the good old days!!

It took me quite some time to get to the promise I had made them that I would visit their then-new digs in Roanoke. Finally, I got around to it last night!!

Loved it!

Category: Intersection Points | 11 Comments on Checking in with the Pulijals
9 February 2018

Puzzle time!!

Sitting at the motorbike center (bike getting serviced), I am bored enough to see if I can bore you with one more puzzle to get the weekend rolling ….

There is a contest to judge the smartest couple of them all. Teams of husbands and wives show up for the contest and are soon read out the rules…

Each couple will be taken to a separate room by two officials. Each room will have two tables in diagonally opposite corners. The couple will be separated in the room and asked to go sit at the two tables in the two corners with their backs to each other. From that distance, they will not be able hear or see what is going on in the other table. Under no circumstances can any of the couple utter any sound. If they do, they would be automatically disqualified. Next to each table sat one of the two officials.

The husband and the wife will be given a dice (all dice are perfect dice – one sixth probability for each side). At the sound of a large gong, they will independently roll their own dice on their own table. And note whether they have an even face up or an odd face up. (Odd means 1, 3 or 5). Now, on a piece of paper, each have to write what they think came up on the OTHER table – odd or even. Once both have written their guesses, the two officials will shout out what was written.

If at least one of them guessed correctly about the other table, they continue. If both got it wrong, they will be escorted out of the room and eliminated from the event.

The last couple standing (actually sitting at their tables 🙂 ) wins the event.

So those were the rules.

After all the rules were explained, the officials allowed each couple to talk for a few minutes in case they wanted to come up with a plan and then were escorted to their rooms for the competition to begin.

The smartest couple had devised a way such that they would always win. What strategy did they use?

Note that this is not a trick question like whispering or passing hand messages etc. They were really smart and came up with a way to never get escorted out.

If you know the answer / figured it out, please send me a personal message. I will respond there and also announce your name in the common forum.

Category: Puzzles | 5 Comments on Puzzle time!!
6 February 2018

“Memento Mori” !!

This afternoon, I was at the hospice in the Memory Care Unit. I was a little early today. There were a lot of them in the common area. Not all of them were my patients, but I interact with and help all of them, anyways. Or at least, try to.

I had one of those powerful moments today. One of my patients – we will call him Mr. “L” today – who just listlessly walks and has no ability to understand or talk was doing his up and down rounds. After walking with him for some time, I rushed to help one of the attendants who was trying to help a patient yelling in pain (turned out to be a simple issue that was fixed quickly). When I turned back after fixing the problem, I noticed that my friend had walked up to another patient who was in his sofa – let’s call him Mr. “T” – and was blankly staring at him. Now Mr. T has no memory, repeats the same things, will laugh at you weirdly but is very cordial. I was expecting a very awkward moment. (my patient – Mr. “L” also drools all over the place – making a mess of others). But, in a flash of near normalness, Mr. T asked Mr. L – “How are you?”

You have to understand the import of the moment. None of them are “normal” by the normal definition of “normal”. They see each other many many times a day, although I am not quite sure they remember. Just when I was getting worried about a awkward moment when I have to clean up drool, the purportedly recipient of the drool – calmly greeted the soon-to-be drooler!! It was like he was more worried about his friend’s well being than being drooled upon.

I have noticed this among the ladies too. They are in very different state of coherence and cognition and many are outright upset, but put them in a table – and they always look out for each other. They will ask how the others are doing. If we are late in bringing yogurt to somebody at the table, the rest will create a din till their compatriot is taken care of.

It is an amazing feeling. It will make you wonder – where is all this cognitive power when it really matters? It is like they know they are at the hospice center for a few more days but they are determined to live the rest of their days in the best possible human way that their physical state will allow them.

A simple “How are you?”. Often the last words some of them will ever hear. Whether they can process it or not.

The difference though, is in the fact, somebody asked them. Like I said, whether they can process it or not.

In “On the Shortness of Life”, Seneca says… “Let us prepare our minds as if we’d come to the very end of life. Let us postpone nothing. Let us balance life’s books each day. The one who puts the finishing touches on their life each day is never short of time.”

Put in my way, let’s realize that we will all go one day. That we cannot change. What we can change is what we do from now till that day!

“Memento Mori”!! Remember that you will die!!

Acceptance of mortality can be a downer if one focuses on what one has not done or gotten. And yet, it can be one of the lightning rod for happiness if we leverage that acceptance to make us who we want to be in the days that are left.

That is a choice we have to make every single day.

What is your choice today?

Category: Music/Poetry | 4 Comments on “Memento Mori” !!
4 February 2018

From the bartender’s corner – Death’s Door Rouge Martini

A Rouge Martini is a rather simple cocktail made from gin and Chambord liqueur. I used the Death’s Door Gin today. Like I was surmising yesterday, the simplicity of the gin made it pretty good for a cocktail. The raspberry was not drowned by the junipers or other botanicals. I might increase the gin to liqueur ratio next time (I used 2:1 this time) to let the raspberries be a little more understated. Overall though, for a wet and cold evening, getting ready for the Super Bowl, it was a great drink.

I am sure the experts must be wondering how does the blackberry fit into the scheme of the gin or Chambord. Well, it does not. Ideally, the right garnish would be a raspberry (or a string of raspberries with blackberries). I could swear I had some raspberries in the kitchen. Evidently not. Ergo, just blackberries 🙂 Not sure it did anything to enhance or take away from the nose of the drink but it had a good visual effect, all the same!

Category: Cocktails | 5 Comments on From the bartender’s corner – Death’s Door Rouge Martini
3 February 2018

From the bartender’s corner: Gin #30 – Death’s Door

For such a dramatic name, the distiller’s website is fairly frank about this gin being very simple. In fact, other than the mandatory junipers, the only two other botanicals are coriander and fennel seeds. The distillers claim that you can taste all the botanicals – well that is because there are only 3 of them.

The base alcohol is more interesting though – it is made from winter wheat, corn and barley!

The distillery was established in 2006 in Washington Island in way up north Wisconsin.

For a simple gin, it is surprisingly good. While I will not claim to be an absolutely great gin but it is mild and soft enough to make it a go-to gin especially with tonic water. I tried it two days in succession and I liked it on second day more than first day. And because of that softness and not being too forward in anything, I suspect it will make a good gin for cocktails.

The juniper is predominant in the nose and I was surprised by the citrusy palate (suspect the corianders). The finish was fairly uneventful other than the remnants of the juniper.

Category: Cocktails | 1 Comment on From the bartender’s corner: Gin #30 – Death’s Door