New Year's wishes:Peace, Prosperity and Pragmatism

Hi friends, I am wishing us all a happy, peaceful and prosperous new year 2006.
Love.
~A

Refreshing Rendezvous! Thanks, Faisel Da'!

It was nice talking to a good friend, philosopher and guide of mine- Faruq Faisel. Almost two decades ago, I met this multi-talented man (a journalist, development activist, humanist, magazine editor, radio and TV talk show host, a columnist, a great dad of a cute daughted, a true fusion of east and west..the list could go on and on but let's pause here for now). He is now Canda based, travels around the world in connection with human rights and social developent action research projects. His blogs are thought provoking, captures well the passing time and inspires us to work harder to build a better tomorrow for everyone( http://faruqfaisel.blogspot.com ).
Let's join me in wishing this great person a very happy and peaceful new year-Happy New Year 2006 for you, family and friends, dear Faisel da'!

Good Goes Around.....

Reflecting on my Christmas eve dinner at my host family. She graduated from the same school that I am attneding now (www.gsu.edu) and raising four girls. I asked her why she likes to host international students? She said, it is kind of pay back. When she was in the Navy-she was stationed in a remote naval base for a training session which supposed to have ended two days before Christmas, but for some reason, the training had to continue until the first week of next year. So, the trainees were ordered not to leave the station.So, she was so sad that she started crying during the Christmas eve remembering family and friends. Then a local host family showed up who drove several miles to get to the naval base to adopt trainees for the Christmas celebration to take to their home for a day and then they promised to return the guests to the naval base before the training resumes. They dined together, played games...a touch of home away of home. She felt so relieved after spending that Christmas with that host family and liked it so much that she decided to 'adopt' guests who are away of their family during crhistmas. Thus every Christmas she comes out and look for international students of GSU who are staying here here away of their family and home and adopt them for a day or two. Same an act of good can really replicate it self, as my host jokingly said-like a 'good virus'! I guess I have to help someone learning driving someday for the same token...

Policy is Important

I have wake up today to a realization that, policy intervention is necessary to bring in positive changes. Old saying, but new realization..after reading a news piece of a newspaper from India (www.anandabazar.com). The news is that in members of Bihar Police (Bihar is one of the states of Federal India) cook and dine in a highly segregated environment. Each racial/religious and ethnic group maintains their own kitchen and cook. This tradition has been sustaining in the state police barracks from god knows how many hundred years (at least from the Moghul period..when the organized state police froces were formed). As there was and is no policy intervention available (not until today) to change this segregating culture, this is perpetuating. So, one can argue, people have different tastes and preferences about many things, democracy should provide that diversity in the menu. But, having seperate menu and having seperate kitchen and dining place are not same and the later creates more negative externalities than positive utility maximizations as suggested by typical neoclassical economics.

My Exams..and A Recipe request

Guys my exams are coming in january. That's gonna be an eight hour long exam..called comprehensive.
However, I will share with you any new thoughts that may trigger any interest for you.
But currently, I am thinking of tailoring a way of regret free life for my self.
Any recipe, guys?

Ground Hogs Day...

Public forum guys....Open book...So I must share things keeping in mind of the universal audience (and my dear censor board members, ha..ha).

Recently watched movies: Ground hogs day. I know this movie was released few years ago..but, hey this was first time for me. Good making. I also enjoyed today Charlie rose's interview session of the director of 'Memoirs of Geisha'- Rob Marshall. This guy was sharing his experience of making the movie, managing an international cast (from china, Japan, U.S. and some other countries). How director has to co-ordinate himself between what interpreters had been saying of others and what his (Rob's) gut feelings was asking to comprehend.
Also, Rom mentioned that how folly it is when some poeple perceive the word 'Giesha' as a synnonym for 'Japansese sex worker'. Geisha is not that, it is more than that, I should have said beyond that. They were the icons of Japanse art and aesthetics at a time and they all went through rigorous trainings (sometimes about 19/20 hours a day for months at a stretch..) to master all the major branches of Japanse fine arts.
How ever, I was amazed to read the full text of Nobel Laureate Harold Pinters' Prize Lecture. You guys should read it too!
Good Night.

Merry Christmas, Home Alone.....

Thank You, TBS , for playing home alone today....I watched this movie over and over again, and most of those times when I was home alone. So, the here is Christmas and it is slipping away until next year we get it back. I made phone calls and wrote emails to friends in many countries wishing Merry Christmas. Today was Hanukah as well. So, Happy Hanukah to my Jewish friends. I wish I could keep track of all the faith based festivals of the world so that I could greet my friends from different religions, languages and cultures. Now a days, sendings greetings became so easy! A click away! But I should also mention about the duality of technology and politics of the present time we all are passing through around the world..

One the one hand amazing advances in communications and transportation technology is bringing us together via cell phone, email, video phone, instant messaging, super sonic jet planes, sattelites etc. On the other hand, political and social unrests and extremisms are making the process of international communications difficult and slower. One of my class mate from Austria friend was telling me how slower the process has become in the immigration counters at port of entries around U.S. even for the EU nationals. I am sure, many others countries now have put additional restrictions on their immigration and emmigration processes since the beginning of this decade.

It was nice talking to my friend and former room-mate Suman. He is a computer guy originally from India. Now nicely managaing his career and family in USA and progressing with satisfactory speed. He sometimes give me some 'anti-dinosaur tips' which are very useful and taught provoking... ... Curious to know more about his tips? Stay tuned, come to read this e-journal often and eventually I may share with you his contact email address (not the cell number), OK? Good night guys.

Christmas Eve

It was a nice evening in a local host family. Hostess were Ms. Sonya and thier four daughters-Bianca, Brandy, Jamie and Joy. Also there were family friends Jancie and Rashida. We, the guests were quite global-two sisters Nasiba and Salima from Tazikistan, two chinese students-Yatin and Kim, there was a guy named Snotty(born in NYC, dad from Liberia and Mom from Grenada) and I (born in Bangladesh).
We ate good food (chinese girl Yatin helped the host to cook some great dishes, thanks again Sonya and Yatin!), we played games -Gesture and Monopoly or something (can't remember the name really, kind of gesture where the description has to be by words, not via body language). Nice dessert and everything.
Great time. Thank you all-the hosts and the guests. You guys made my evening.

Festival in the Air and Free Lunches are not gone

This is last week of December and festivities are in the air. I am invited to attend a chrismas eve dinner , and to a family for christmas dinner. Now, while Christmas cards can do the job, there are kids in both the houses..so, may be I will need to be a candy man too.
Today I had a lunch with a friend in a local restaurant. This pop and mom eatery has named the place after theri first child-Dania. So, it is 'Dania's gormet'. We took Salmon and green beans with fried rice. And talked about an hour over the lunch. Who told the days of free lunch is gone? As the hosting guy was celebrating the joining of a new job, so I didn't have to pay for my lunch today. So, I encourage you all to join the labor force as soon as possible and celebrate by hosting a freel lunch for guys like me who are languising in the graduate school for more than four years in a row...

Thinking Man's Tavern

Names of eating and drinking places are believed to offer interesting images in the minds of prospective customers , and, in that sense, an interesting name is the most cost effective ever lasting ad campaign a business house ever wishes to run.
While driving to the local farmers market, a tavern's name caought my eyes...
"Thinking Man Tavern" ( http://www.thinkingmantavern.com/ ).
Interesting logo, nice menu and affordable price tags, most of all, the word 'tavern' immediately creates a handful of british imagery in the head of the reader takes him or her back to the time of Robin Hood, and Kings and Queens and Lords and Barons and, many other icons of the Britis isles.
One day I am going to try that tavern and will report as I hear the bell tolls there...

My Days...

How do you guys feel to be in grad school 7 years in a row?....Ask me and I will share how it feels adn what it takes.......
As soon as I finished doing my MBA, I started pursuing this phd program in economics.
Hope someday all these will be paid off...
So, I hear bell tolls occasionally. Don't get a chance to post blogs daily.
But you guys can post something on my behalf on this website. I have allowed the setting such way that anybody can post something here without going thruogh those boring signing up process.
Take care.
~A

Hi, Friends! Let's Celeb My Little Web Presence!!

So, here I am. As I hear the bell tolls, so I will share with you. If you hear it differently, You have my respect. Would love to listen to your storiefs...the way you hear it.
Cordially,
Abdullah