harbinger - vintage edition
TRANSCRIPT
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Why do books make
our lives awesome?!
“I could smell the flowers, touch
the bark, sit next to the characters
and feel the breeze from his
stories. Now and forever, Ruskin
Bond will be the only Bond that I
will absolutely revere!”
Read on, to find out how books
changed TM Devipriya’s life.
Someone the other day asked me, what kind of books I
generally read. That got me thinking.
Books have always intrigued me, for as long as I can
remember. Me ‘n’ books, we go a long way…even before I
could actual r-e-a-d! My mom says that when I was a
toddler I used to sit calmly in a corner with my sister’s
books all propped around me, examining them one by
one(handling them gently with utmost care mind you),
flipping through the pages and gawking at them
attentively, a thought that makes me flash a proud grin
even to this day (despite my mom stressing repeatedly that
almost all the time I held them upside down! :P).I studied
in ICSE board till my tenth grade and believe me when I
say I had some of the best English teachers in the whole
wide world. English classes were the time when I felt
‘alive’ and I felt at home, as a fish in a pond. I absolutely
relished every single short story, play and poem that I
learnt as part of my curriculum.
I vaguely remember the first books I read in my kinder
garden…a series called Peter and Jane that came in bright
orange and blue colors. Then there were the Timeless
Fairy Tales which made our first ever rendezvous with the
Ginger Bread Man, Cinderella and Alice happen. Then
came the abridged version of classic novels, The Great
Illustrated classic series such as The Wind in the Willows,
Oliver Twist and Around the world in 80 days. But my personal
favorite (and also of my classmates {including boys}
was…well, Heidi, ’coz I think it was around that time the
cartoon series also aired, thereby explaining the high
demand for the book). It was then time for some action
and escapade, which heralded the era of The Secret Seven and
The Famous Five! Ah! We would never forget the spirit of
adventure those books brought forth during our innocent
childhood days!
Years rolled by and in came the smartest amateur sleuth
ever known to Mankind...Nancy Drew! Carolyn Keene was
our number-one-favorite author back those days (Only
years later did we realize that Nancy Drew series was
actually ghostwritten by a number of authors under the
pen name of Carolyn Keene!). All of us rushed every
Thursday during our ‘Library hour’, to get our hands on
the best mystery stories, as vouched by the previous
readers. I still remember all those titles, Nancy Drew and
the Mystery at Lilac Inn, The Secret of Shadow Ranch, The
Password to Larkspur Lane and so many! Those were
memorable days and so were the epic clashes between
Hardy Boys fans and the Nancy Drew fans! I was such a
loyal Nancy Drew fan that I have not read a single Hardy
boys book all these years ;) We were soon becoming teens
and voila there was the entire Sweet Valley Junior High
collection! When I was in my 8th grade, my best friend
gifted me a brand new Sweet Valley Junior High book for my
birthday! I still remember the euphoria!
A few more years down the lane and I was introduced to
our homeland Indian authors. I started reading
R.K.Narayan’s books. And it was interesting relating to
Swami and friends running around our very own Indian
streets, after continued exposure to western characters and
lifestyle. Then magic happened. I chanced upon a copy of
‘Treasury of Stories for Children’ by Ruskin Bond in our club
library. I was blown away by Bond’s unique style of vivid
narration. I could smell the flowers, touch the bark, sit
next to the characters and feel the breeze from his stories.
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Now and forever, Ruskin Bond will be the only Bond that
I will absolutely revere! :D
The Harry Potter decade… We were the privileged lot
who grew up with the cast of the movie and the release of
the books! What can I say except that it has been a magical
ride! Harry Potter formed an inevitable and decisive part of
our childhood. And yes I cried with the world when it was
all over. Made us realize that we had indeed grown up!
How can I forget Chicken Soup for the Soul series? Those
books made me realize the power of words and emotions.
I laughed and cried to the stories of people residing
thousands of miles away (Though now you find so much
CSFTS titles around that you don’t feel like picking up
one)! I then moved on to Jeffrey Archer books. I started
off with his short story collection and loved the ingenious
yet simple (and profound!) twists he gave to his tales. And
I eventually moved on to his epic novels such as Kane and
Abel and the sequel The Prodigal daughter. Then there was
Dan Brown who shook the whole world with his dynamic
books. My personal favorite was Angels and Demons that
redefined the word thriller! With that came a string of
authors such as John Grisham, Nicholas Sparks, Mario
Puzo, James Patterson, Steig Larsson, Stephanie Meyer,
Rhonda Byrne, Khaled Hosseini , Mitch Albom and so
much more.
Then there was the phase when I was reading all Man
Booker Prize winning stories such as Life of Pi, The God of
Small Things and The White Tiger .Then I started reading any
book that had the following three words on its on its cover
page: New York Times bestseller. Later, I moved on to
reading world’s best-selling books (check out this page
called List of best-selling books in Wikipedia), such as The
Catcher in the Rye, And Then There Were None and The Hobbit.
22 years on, I am currently in the phase where I drastically
keep changing the genre of the books I read. For instance
in the past three months, these are the books I have read:
A book on Network marketing, a book on brain power, a
self-help book, a book on India after independence and I
am currently reading a book that speaks about Carbon
footprint. So there you go , the answer to your question of
‘What kind of books I generally read!’
Cheers to all the book lovers out there!
P.S. As for the others, well it is never too late! Go to the
nearest library/bookstore and pick out that one book that
calls out to you and…let the adventure begin! :D
P.P.S Recent update. I am totally drawn to children’s
literature. In fact, at a recent book fair I got myself three
of Dr. Seuss books and two Disney novels!:D
__________________
Making a Difference – The Alpha way!
When people put their heads
together, a million new things
come to be!
Alpha Toastmasters has at times
morphed into something more
than a public speaking forum.
Here’s a brief from TM Akilesh
on one such CSR initiative in
collaboration with TCS Maitree,
Chennai
TCS is marching strongly as the leading Indian IT
service provider. It is not only employee empowerment
which contributes to this, but also the CSR initiatives
which make the TCS brand a powerful, towering,
respectable figure in the market.
One such initiative taken up by TCS Maitree was to help
the Security Guards at TCS Siruseri improve their spoken
English. TCS Maitree approached our Division Governor
DTM Suganthi. Fortunately my association with
Toastmasters and prior teaching experience at NGOs had
me all prepped up take up this program, wherein I had the
opportunity to work closely with senior members of the
TCS Maitree team.
After spending over 50 hours on designing the course
curriculum for 24 classes and taking it up to TCS Maitree,
we conducted a survey to see if anyone was interested in
this initiative. The response we received from fellow
TCSers who volunteered to help facilitate the sessions was
overwhelming. Dedicating about half an hour every day
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for brainstorming ahead of the class and an hour every day
at the class itself, we understood from the energy and zeal
reflected by the Security Personnel that they were looking
forward to such an opening. In fact, a few of them had
already begun learning on their own using Oriya to English
self-learning books and this opportunity was well received
by them.
The classes began in October 2013 and ran into
completion in Jan 2014. We have tried to create an all-
round learning experience for the Security Guards by not
limiting to just spoken English, but also extending to
behavioral aspects while performing their job roles.
Hopefully, we have helped them enough to stride
confidently in their daily life.
__________________
This isn’t just
‘Alpha TM Club’
It was one of those lazy afternoons at work. After the
heavy, sumptuous lunch, I was planning to leave home by
4 PM as there was not much work in the module. I was
awakened from an afternoon nap by the stereotypical
announcement. But this time, it was not usual. It was a
“Call for Life @ Siruseri”. I happened to be one of the
fortunate people who were a part of the 100th milestone
meeting of TCS Maitree Chennai Toastmasters - the
meeting that marked the inception of TCS Alpha
Toastmasters. Roasting was the theme and I was
spellbound by the speeches of TCS Stalwarts speakers. It
was love at first sight for me with Toastmasters. I couldn't
resist the temptation to join this esteemed group.
It was yet another unforgettable afternoon. I
entered the training room at EB-5 ground floor and to my
surprise I was warmly welcomed by a gentleman who
seemed very familiar. Yes it was none other than DTM
Oommen T.John who won the best speaker award on the
100th meeting. I never had received such a warm welcome
anywhere in my life. For a moment I thought I would be
charged at the end of the meeting as we got special
attention though we were just guests. Luckily we weren't
charged though DTM Suganthi's humorous speech that
day was worth a million bucks. At the end of the meeting,
DTM Oommen asked us to take our time to think before
joining the club and we took exactly 7 days to deliver our
Ice breakers. It didn't take much time in socializing with
Alpha Toastmasters and the credit for this should go to
TM Sharanya & TM Manikandan. We joined the club, gave
our ice breakers and took up the role of officers, all
together and on the very same day.
Alpha meetings today attract a minimum of 30
people, back then we would have been really happy to see
just 18 people turning up. I still remember a meeting
which only had 10 members and we were o short of 2 role
players. Although the attendance was low, our speakers'
speeches were a real treat for the small audience. I was
mesmerized by the stage presence of Oommen John and
there were times that we would wait for the entire meeting
to just listen to our Chief's stupendous evaluations. He
injected the spirit of Toastmasters into anyone, willing to
learn anything about communication or leadership skills.
He guided all of us like a godfather and laid a strong
foundation for the soon-to-be world's best club.
The next leader who really inspired me was TM
Ranganathan. The primary reason was his unassailable
commitment as an officer. Ranga still holds the record of
attending the highest number of Alpha meetings. I took up
the role of VP-Membership for the term that started in Jan
2013. My primary goal was to improve the membership
base but I had a very difficult time getting even 20
members for a meeting. A difficult start indeed; I was
desperate to add members to the club. But I realized that it
won't work that way. The best way to add members is to
have a quality meeting. We had a series of quality meetings
and as a result, we added almost 30 members by the end of
our very first term.
Membership addition triggered the much needed
confidence among us. During the month of April, we
shifted focus to educational awards. We ran special
meetings for 2 consecutive months without compromising
the quality of speeches. When the term ended in June, 41
awards were filed by our Alphas. We produced the highest
number of Competent Communicators in the entire
District for the year 2012-13. We naturally became the
“World's best club”.
The second term started off with
the cracker of a contest in the
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name of elections. It should
probably be marked as one of the
most contest elections in the
history of Toastmasters. We had
more than 2 nominations for all
the officers’ post except for the
role of Treasurer. Consequently ,
Alpha had one of the best set of
officers in the next term.”
The second term had its own crests and troughs. The pride
of Alpha was marked when 3 of our members represented
Alpha in Division level contests with TM Kannan
emerging as one of the runners up in humor speech
contest. We had our very own Rahul Shankar organizing
the fast paced communication program “Speech Craft”
which was a runaway hit. The omnipresence of Alpha
members was felt in all the division events. Nevertheless
the exit of DTM Oommen T John was a death blow to us,
we still miss him in the meetings. But as they always say
“Life has to move on.” Toastmasters teaches us the same
invaluable lesson. It also saw numerous Toastmasters step
up and execute additional responsibilities in conducting
smooth meetings.
Alpha meetings are a learner's paradise but the
best part is “it is packaged with fun”. I learned how to
always be back stage and yet make an impact from TM
Aswini. I learned how to provide a perfect launch pad for
role players and speakers by being punctual and organized
from TM Sharanya. I can mention all our members’ names
for the exhibition, but I don’t want to take up space in this
special Vintage Edition. I thank every one of our members
for providing me a great learning experience and am
indebted to Alpha for life. This is not just Alpha TM Club;
this is one big happy family – The Alpha Family
~ Ayyappan
We, the Alphas…
“Toastmaster Sharanya on what sets the Alphas
apart.”
We have our own club mission - to learn and to have fun
We consider our meetings to be informative and stress
busting
We feel positive and good after every meeting
We demand speech slots
We yearn to be on stage
We enjoy roasting Ayyappan!
We love to watch the war of words between Ranga and
Rahul.
We watch in awe and take notes when DTM Oommen
John evaluates.
We clap magnanimously!
We naturally enjoy each and every meeting
We are generous in giving feedback!
We are the personification of encouragement and
appreciation.
We make the fullest use of Table Topics!
We have loads of fun and often experience a laughter riot!
We roar with laughter at all our members' jokes
Our eyes sweat when we hear an emotional speech!
We cringe at cell phone messages during meetings
We become exceedingly serious during evaluation section!
We enjoy our time on the stage!
We realize the value of Toastmasters!
We work hard to make each and every meeting a
qualitative and successful one
We believe we are one family
We are the Alphas!!!
______________
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Life of an Alpha
“Life is paranoid, we never get the expected outcome
at the expected time but it comes as a surprise in
more than one way.”
Some times with aspirations we turn our life upside down.
We search for what we dream, a source of knowledge,
opportunity and many a times just pure fun and of course,
love. We spend all our time and energy only to find it
accidentally. Many of you might assume this is a love story,
but unfortunately it is not. I used to spend a lot of hours at
the library and much more time on Wikipedia. I was a
clueless, direction-less and aimless guy, I still am. I am a
voracious reader, an outspoken debater, a thinker but
never knew where and how to use all this. Knowledge if
not used is worse than ignorance; I knew this but was
again clueless.
One eventful Thursday, my friend asked me to come along
with him for a session. I too was feeling sleepy and being
seated just beside my manager, going back to ODC was a
dangerous option. But surprisingly, this became one
among those few sessions where I did not sleep. Rather, I
almost fell from my seat laughing. It was a humorous
speech contest. Then the next Thursday and the one after
that, I began to attend meeting after meeting at Alpha
Maitree Toastmasters Club. Then an ice breaker marathon
was held. The TMOD was 'the toastmaster of our club',
the ever charming, ever enchanting chief Oommen John
and the TT Master was TM Sumit. And that’s when I
didn’t just break Ice but crushed a rock. No, I did not give
my CC1, but my first table topics. I always thought that if I
go on stage, I wouldn’t be able to utter a word. But I did. I
have an experience of going on stage and returning
without uttering a word in college. But listening to
speakers like chief, Ranga, Rahul and Sumit created a thirst
in me for public speaking. I probably have the second
highest attendance (without membership) in the club. The
first goes to my friend Aakash, who later joined and did all
the roles but never gave a single prepared speech. One
day, three people broke the ice. I saw them for the first
time that day and later, one of them, Ayyappan, inducted
me. Chief, the mentor for the whole club was assigned my
mentor. Each meeting passed with chief asking me when I
was planning to give my speech. These questions were
answered in monosyllables. Later, I started sitting away
from his sight. I still had stage fear. Soon Ayyappan would
ask me to deliver my first prepared speech and suddenly
most in the club. But they did not nag me. Instead, they
motivated me. By then I had won two best TT speakers
and had a secret resolution to begin my CC journey only
after winning one more. I did win one more and then,
there came 'Ashwin with an extra I', breaking the Ice and
the self-created shell once and for all. I had never before
thought I could make so many people laugh. At the end of
my speech, chief passed me a chit with feedback and later
Ranga evaluate my speech. The feedback, I still have with
me. I finished my CC journey within 5 months and it
remains one journey through which I virtually saw my own
improvement. These were the people who inspired me to
think, articulate and deliver.
Alpha is not about delivering a speech that you have
already prepared but it’s about spending time thinking,
writing, rethinking and finally delivering it. It isn’t about
just memorizing the speech but bringing the body, mind
and speech all in action at the same time. All along this,
like all other toastmasters I had a parallel track, CL manual.
Playing roles later at area and division level I learnt to
manage time and taking responsibilities. Evaluating
speeches I learnt to notice the intricacies of a speech.
Becoming mentor, I gave back to fresh joiners what I got
and still getting from seasoned toastmasters.
All of us know that Toastmasters International is a forum
for public speaking - is that all? This article is proof that
Toastmasters and particularly Alpha, is a place where we
interact with like and unlike minds, put our mind to work,
speak and even write. It’s a one stop destination for
learning, self-improvement, finding inspiration, making
friends, fun and finally, escape from our busy work
schedule.
I had a thirst for writing, but it only started to become a
reality after being here. I always had some ideas, thoughts,
creativity but I started to put them on paper here. I was an
introvert, but it was the company of toastmasters that
made me an extrovert or should I say ambivert.
Learning could be fun at many places, but in Alpha fun
teaches you.
~TM Ashwini
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“Dreams are free”
Read on as TM Faraz weaves a
scene to life
It was late afternoon. Her eyes took a break and
gazed outside a large window at the Connomera public
library. The sky was clear with the sun about to call it a
day. But she noticed some dark clouds hovering across
the horizon. And in no time, the whole sky was engulfed
by the clouds. It was completely dark, as if the sun had
deceived people. The warmth of the noon was no longer
there. The temperature began to drop in no definite
pattern. Within minutes it was freezing. She could barely
feel her fingers. She looked around but didn’t see any one.
She didn’t remember being in the company of anyone
either.
Veronica, 22, was a beautiful and dusky girl, adorned
in old world charm. She was there reading "The book of
the dead". She was determined to finish it that day. The
library was her favorite place to relax and escape the hustle
and bustle of the city. She has been going there for years
but today it felt different.
As she was turning pages with her numb fingers reading
things she thought she'd regret, she heard a whisper. She
ignored it. But the strange noises continued. It was as if
someone wanted to talk to her desperately. The cold in the
room was unbearable now and she turned around to find
herself all alone. Unable to compose herself, she decided
to leave. She stood up and as she was slowly walking she
noticed that the temperature was inconsistent in the floor.
She had read about cold spots being a sign of supernatural
entities. This was because the spirits feed off on the energy
from the surroundings making it cold. Veronica didn't
want to be there anymore. She grabbed the book and
rushed to the librarian. She couldn't see a single person in
the hallway. She was alone. She finally managed to reach
the librarian. The librarian was there with a bright smile as
always to greet Veronica. She was her only friend in the
new city. Being an avid reader, Veronica didn’t socialize
much. The librarian started off by saying "I knew you'd be
here”. She insisted on Veronica borrowing the book. The
librarian then says "You must finish this book for the good
of it". The librarian was behaving strange and unlike
herself.
Veronica took the book and ran across the hallway. In
seconds, she was out. As she was exiting through the gate
the watchman stopped her. The watchman asked her what
she was doing inside so long. He showed her a sign which
read "Closed", indicating the library had been closed the
whole day. Veronica asks the reason for the same. "The
librarian passed away the other night", says he. Hearing
this sent shivers down her spine. All of Veronica's strength
was lost, she could barely stand. She then reached out for
the book she collected from "the librarian" a while ago.
She was shell shocked. The cover was blank. The pages
were blank too. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
As she was turning the pages, a bookmark fell from them.
She bent over to pick up the bookmark, held it in her
hands and turned it over. The bookmark read "Dreams are
free" .She wakes up in heavy sweat, panting and looks at
herself in the mirror (Sigh).
The Social Animal
The Internet has drastically
changed the way we choose to
express ourselves. With
technological advancements,
come cons we fail to see. Ilu
Jain shares his perspectives on
social networks and the role
they ought to play in our lives.
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How do you stand up for an issue (anti-smoking,
corruption, rape etc.)?
- By ‘liking’ a post shared by someone in FB related
to the issue?
- By ‘sharing’ a post related to the issue?
- Or even better, by posting a status on your wall
regarding the issue?
How do you wish your friend on their birthday?
- By posting ‘Happy Birthday’ on their wall
- By texting/Whatsapp them Happy Birthday
How do you enjoy your trip?
- By clicking countless photographs at every place,
thus preparing for your next potential DP in FB?
How do you socialize with people?
- By texting/Whatsapp them?
- By chatting with them in FB?
If your answer for the above questions is “yes!”, then you
are missing out on something very important, something
very substantial and something very meaningful,
something that our forefathers call ‘Life’!
We live in a virtual world. We live in WTF generation –
Whatsapp, Twitter and Facebook. Technology has enabled
us to connect with people whom we otherwise wouldn’t be
able to connect with, but that doesn’t mean you leverage
technology to connect with people whom you can talk
with verbally, face-to-face.
I’m not against technology or social networking, Agreed
that it is one of the greatest inventions of the 21st century
and the best possible medium for communication.
However there are lots of things you miss when you
restrict yourself predominantly to a virtual environment.
There is a “real” world out there. There is “life” out there!
The whole point of the Toastmasters is to meet real people
and break out of that self-created imaginary shell to which
you confine yourself. When I look back at my four month
stint at the Toastmasters so far, I know I have gifted
myself the best thing I possibly could have. Le Motif! A
driving force in life! I have made more friends, real friends
in Alpha Toastmasters, than I have made in my 15 months
with TCS!. I realized that to experience real things, you
have got to use your lips more than the keypad.(No pun
intended! :P) .
As we the “Alphas” reach our milestone, I’d like to go
forth in a life with a message to myself and to fellow
Toastmasters -
“Don’t insult the gift of life by
limiting opportunities for
yourself. Speak your heart out!
The fun, confidence and
satisfaction that you get from
being real is unprecedented and
unparalleled! ”
So the next time you face an issue that concerns you, speak
out!
If it’s your friend’s birthday, call him/her to wish him a
“Happy Birthday” or even better wish your friend in
person if you could!
If you travel, Enjoy the places you travel to, absorb the
spirit of the place instead of merely clicking photographs
for your Facebook post!
And the next time you want socialize and network with
real people - Well, Join Alpha Toastmasters!!
Proud to be part of The Alpha!
Sincerely,
Ilu Jain
VP-M, TCS Maitree Alpha
Toastmasters Club
______________
Which Club Officer are you?
Our officers are the heart and soul of the club. Amidst
busy work schedules, they run a constantly active club.
They lead teams, deliver speeches, engage crowds,
welcome guests, mentor budding Toastmasters, strive
constantly to better themselves and set an example for the
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rest of the club. The personalities of our vibrant officers
impact the decisions and activities of Alpha. If you want to
find out which club officer you are most like, then go
ahead and take this quiz.
1. Why did you join Toastmasters?
A. You wanted to improve public speaking
B. You wanted to meet new girls/guys
C. You got caught sleeping in the ODC so you come
to meetings to sleep here instead.
D. You wanted to make new friends (Your old
friends got smart and stopped returning your call.)
E. You like to keep busy
F. You thought it was secret club with secret
missions
G. You like to try new things.
2. While writing a speech which topic are you most
likely to pick? A. Reading, travelling and cuisine
B. Romancing a girl
C. A deep, meaningful message
D. Humour
E. Family
F. Secret undercover missions you have done for the
government
G. Adventure
3. While a member is onstage delivering a speech
you are usually –
A. Listening intently
B. Break into applause every now and then
C. Sleeping
D. Sniggering silently at some joke only you can
understand
E. Nodding your head vigorously
F. Looked bored and indifferent
G. Guarding the door
4. If you could be a club officer you would choose
to be?
A. The PR so you can exercise your writing and other
artistic skills
B. The treasurer so you can use club money to fund
your dates with beautiful girls/guys.
C. The Secretary so you can proudly claim to be a
club officer and yet do no work but writing
MOMs
D. The VP of Membership so you can talk to new
people (the ones who already know you won’t
come near you)
E. The VP E because though no one knows what
you do exactly it looks like you do something very
important
F. The president because you are secretly a control
freak and you like the idea of a seat of power.
G. The Sergeant at Arms so you can stand on stage
and be the center of everyone’s attention
5. What makes you stand out or popular in the
club?
A. Your well delivered speeches
B. Your reputation as a compulsive romantic
C. Your way with words both spoken and written
D. Your height. You are so tall that when you stand
you stand out.
E. Your longstanding membership
F. Your dedication to the club
G. Your enthusiasm
Write down the number of you choices. If you have a
maximum number of A’s or B’s, then you are most similar
to the Club officer corresponding to the number. To read
a few words about your Club Officer - Read on!
A – You are TM Hemalatha
She loves reading books and blogs. If you talk to TM
Hemalatha you’ll notice that she moves her hands a lot.
She is a black belt in Karate. Do make sure those hands
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stay well out of reaching you. In her free time she likes
teasing Ayyappan.
B – You are TM Ayyappan
TM Ayyappan loves marketing, educational videos (wink,
wink!) and girls. If you start a conversation with TM
Ayyappan, he will probably tell you about his romantic
escapades. In his free time he unconsciously works as a
marketing agent for Amway.
C – TM Vijayalakshmi
TM Vijayalakshmi likes doing nothing but reading. If you
start a conversation with her she will either say things that
let you mouth hang open or politely yet reticently reply. In
her free time she likes to day dream and figure out how to
get a Booker prize.
D – TM Ilu Jain
TM Ilu Jain likes the movie Lion King. If you talk to TM
Ilu Jain you’ll soon begin to wish you hadn’t. In his free
time he likes to update his status on media sites like
Facebook and twitter. He is the 7UP dude of the club.
E - TM Sharanya
TM Sharanya likes singing and animals. If you talk to TM
Sharanya, she’ll nod her head so frequently you’ll get dizzy
just watching her. In her free time she does the Club
Secretaries work. She is the nicest, politest officer Alpha
has seen.
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F – TM Rahul Shankar
TM Rahul likes Toastmasters, travelling and espionage. If
you start a conversation with him you’ll probably begin to
wonder if he is drunk or just stoned. In his free time he
likes to go on secret missions for the government or cook
up lies that claim he does.
G – TM Saranya Garimella
TM Saranya likes branded clothes and expensive watches.
If you talk to her you’ll catch her enthusiasm. It’s
contagious. In her free time she provides tips to Ayyappan
on how to impress a girl.
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Melbourne Memories
The world is a book and those
who do not travel read only one
page. TM Hemalatha gives us her
perspective on Melbourne,
Australia.
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by
the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do.
So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor.
Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream.
Discover. Mark Twain - who said this - not only wrote
adventure. He lived it.
Suspense, mystery and discovery have always ignited the
curiosity of the human mind. There is something about
venturing into an unknown land that no video game, book
or song can recreate. In this vintage edition, I share with
you some interesting things that happened on my trip to
Melbourne, Australia - also my first trip overseas!
`
16
I visited Melbourne in fall. Browned maple leaves sailed
through the air and covered sidewalks as the gentle wind
blew. The delights the city had to offer were many and we
wouldn't have time for all. So let’s get to the best of it.
The first best thing about Melbourne is its people.
Melbourne is home to people from diverse cultures and
backgrounds. At Melbourne Central, people rush past you
in pursuit of success and happiness. They roll up their
sleeves and get to work. There are hot donuts,
hamburgers, exotic coffees and cheese on sale. Street
magicians and performers are by the dozen. Towers spiral
into the sky and people flit in and out like industrious ants.
A few miles away, in the suburbs, the city kicks back and
relaxes. Everybody stops to say "Cheers". You see
Japanese, Koreans, Indians Romanians, Russians and the
locals. People from different corners of the world brought
together by one thing - their zest for life.
In this time and age, when we're busy from the moment
we open our eyes we forget life's simple pleasures - an
indefinite walk in the woods with a friend or simply staring
into space. We're so busy with drowning in technology and
chasing things that don't mean anything to us…
Melbourne reminded me that "I was the center of my
world! Nothing or no one else! "
Our second day, we were gathered at Federation Square -
which is the city center for the opening ceremony of the
Martial Arts Games. After the ceremony, we were seated
on some stairs facing a lake and lush gardens. The skies
were clear that morning and out of the blue came an
airplane. It didn't rush past us in a second; rather it made
loops and lines with streams of white smoke. In a matter
of minutes, there was a note, on the sky, which said "Marry
me Joanna!” An insider tip to all the boys - No girl is
saying no to you if you declare your love for her with a
note in the infinite blue skies. If you don't have time for
thoughtful gestures, what do you have time for?
Another incident happened during our visit to the zoo.
We'd taken the tram and were finding the main entrance to
meet the rest of the gang. We passed a long line of buses
and suddenly someone called out to us - "Hello there!" and
walked up to us. The voice belonged to 70-year old Peter.
He drives school buses and had brought some
kindergarteners to the zoo. He enquired whether we were
Indians and when we said yes, he asked us a favor. Peter
had an "Indian" girlfriend and she was teasing him
endlessly and calling him "Dadima". Peter wanted to know
what it meant and how he could tease her back. So there
we were in Melbourne giving this Australian tips to
impress his girlfriend and grinning from ear to ear.
The next best thing about Melbourne is that it’s one of the
most livable cities in the world. And to tourists, Melbourne
is a dream. Clean wide roads, pavements and streets.
Bicycle tracks, generous gardens and avenues. It’s easy to
get around Melbourne. And easier still with all the little
details the State government has in place. I prepared a
great deal for my trip. I spent entire weekends surfing the
net about Melbourne, what to see, what to do, what to eat,
what’s cheap and what’s not. One thing I wasn't prepared
for was the literature that Melbourne threw at me. As soon
as we cleared immigration, we were handed the official
Melbourne Visitor Guide. You may think it’s a 4-5 page
pamphlet. But no; It has every detail you'll need to enjoy
your stay and is 200 pages long! And it didn't stop at the
airport. There's information available in stores, museums,
trams, trains, buses. . On a tram, there's a pamphlet
guiding you through attractions present on the way! You
could glean enough knowledge from the pamphlets
everywhere to write a book about Melbourne. And for
someone like me, who loves to read even product labels
and nutrient information, it was heaven
The third best thing about Melbourne was its nature and
wildlife attractions. Melbourne Aquarium with its
marvelous array of sea life and penguins. I even got a
chance to hold a starfish in my hand! But nothing beats the
grand oceanarium. In the basement of the aquarium
complex, is a little sea; where sting rays, say 10 times as
large as Akilesh glide through the gentle water, in harmony
with exotic reef fish, sharks, and jelly fish. Walking
through the oceanarium gives you a 270 degree view of sea
life. You might as well be meditating under the sea; such is
the serenity that you feel when you see it!
`
17
I visited Melbourne in Fall. Browned maple leaves sailed
through the air and covered sidewalks as the gentle wind
blew. The delights the city had to offer were many and I
came back rested, rejuvenated and set for the race that life
is, for us! Discovering Melbourne was also in parts re-
discovering myself, a chance to stop and think about
where I stand and where I want to go! And… there are
miles to go before I sleep and miles to go before I sleep.
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