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I fell in love with the photograph of this girl.
My student Karthik Muthuvali had captured her eyes that convey many nuances, and I could not resist commenting:
“பேசாமல் பேசும் விழிகள் சொல்லாமல் சொல்லிவிடும் சேதிகளை மென்மையான ஒரு பார்வையில் சொல்லிவிடுவாள் பெண்.“
“With her tender reticent eyes, a woman can indeed convey subtle implied messages.“
Yes, the eyes speak.
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Elkridge, Maryland, USA.
January 30, 2012
Yesterday, my son suggested that we go shopping at IKEA. Though it was sunny and cloudless, the temperature outside the car was 45° F (7° C) and freezing.
Before coming over to the United States, I thought that everyone here had enough monetary resources. But, on our way to College Park, the image in my mind of an affluent United States of America shattered.
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Do you see the woman in the centre of the above photo standing in the middle of the road holding a placard?
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Since we were in the third lane. I could not read what was written. So, I zoomed in with my camera. What I read shocked me.
Family in Need
Due Lay off
Any help Appreciated
Thank you
God Bless.– Elkridge, Maryland.
While in India, I thought the United States of America was a land flowing with milk and honey. But now I realize that this country is no different from any country in Asia. It too has its own quota of poor people!
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In a lighter vein, my former student Keerthi Jeyaraj posted the above picture on Facebook. He says:
“Quite common here…I see a lot of such ppl with hoardings in Manhattan… the best part I saw was at Vegas… a beggar had a board in front of him that said: ‘My Ex-wife had a better lawyer’.
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I took these photos on 14 and 15 January 2012 while travelling in my younger son Subas Raj’s car.
Initially, occupying the front seat while my son drove his Honda CRV smoothly between 60 and 70 mph, I felt a bit jittery being not used to left-hand driving.
I really admire the clean streets over here in the United States – not a bit of paper or piled garbage could be seen. The roads are smooth devoid of potholes – no bumpy roads and so, no backache.
No town busses. So, everyone has a car or two. The drivers are road conscious and polite towards other drivers and stop and give way to pedestrians crossing the road. No harsh driving, no unnecessary road hogging and no rash overtaking; and everyone obeys the road rules. All use the fantastic GPS for guidance and direction.
Spacious non-congested landscape with houses built with light materials, looking bleak and drab outside. Almost all houses look alike with mostly painted – no vivid or vasthu colours that we see in India.
Since it is winter not much of green foliage could be seen.
Though the sun is shining, the outside temperature chills the bone. Here I give the lowest temperatures in degrees Celsius for the past 4 days: 13th: 2, 14th: -3, 15th: -4 and today (16th) it was -7 at 8am (it would have been colder outside while we slept) and now at noon it is -1. Inside the car we need the heater for warmth. Inside the house a steady temperature of 68 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit is maintained throughout day and night.
Impressions 