I didn’t realize how long it has been since I’ve written in my journal and correspondingly since my last blog. Consequently, there is much to relay, and perhaps I will break this entry into two parts like Kill Bill – there will be a Vol. 1 and a Vol. 2.
On the food front, Joyce (the cook and the wash lady) has been making a lot of effort to make stuff I like. She has made 3 curries including a chicken curry and tried her hand at Fettucini alfredo that unfortunately did not come out well amd required the addition of Tabasco sauce just to be edible. However, she makes great brownies and this past week added chocolate cake to her baking repertoire that is extremely tasty.
Over the past few weeks, there has been much discussion about the direction of PSC and its improved functioning. It began with a discussion in the cook house by the 3 J’s – Jackson, Joseph, and yours truly (Jeevan that is). Jackson is part of management and Joseph is the real person behind the optimal functioning of the PSC. When Joseph relayed the woes and challenges of PSC, Jackson was quite intrigued by these facts of which he was seemingly unaware. He suggested that I present the same arguments to the rest of the Management staff the following day during our meeting. I did so, and they were in agreement with what we thought needed to be done. I pitched our project ideas in the setting of our move. They have built a new building here that is to be the “new and improved” clinic structure. The construction of the new building was a great idea from last year. The PSC people are to get the current clinic building. It is a win-win situation for everybody. When I described the set-up that we proposed for the current clinic building and how PSC was going to utilize it, I then emphasized to the management why certain rooms had to be such and why certain staffing were required in this manner, etc. In the end they were quite convinced of the need to support PSC a little bit more than they have in the past. I think things will go well.
The conversation then meandered into American politics and recent American history. I regaled them with stories of how Bush is bad, why the Iraq war is horrible, why our politics of intervention have always been destructive. They were very intrigued by my “stories.”
I’ve been studying Go, or as I sometimes refer to it – Japanese table war. I brought two books with me and I have completed reading them. The systematic learning of the game has definitely improved my playing. Although, one must admit that in order to play this game, there must be some study of the fundamentals. Some people say that the game is extremely easy to learn; well in the sense that there are black and white stones, and one must put them on the board to capture territory, and the person with the most territory wins. However, looking at a large 19x19 square board that is devoid of any game pieces is a daunting experience. It’s like looking at a blank page and being expected to write a novel or a blank canvas and being expected to create a visual masterpiece. The possibilities are endless – how does one even start? Well, apparently there are a few rules that one can follow to make the game a little less nebulous. Regardless, the intuitiveness of the game is a challenge.
I downloaded a couple of programs to help me compete against a computer. Despite the insistence of many that computerized Go lags far behind the ability of even average human players, I’m getting my ass kicked repeatedly. On one of the program, I am average at the 9x9 version w/o any handicaps. Now, I’ve improved to a 13x13 board with 2 handicap stones on the “weak” level (there is a weakest level that is the lowest - meaning that I’m not too horrible). It was definitely an intimidating first game when I graduated to the bigger board. When I finally make it to the 19x19 board, it will be a big accomplishment regardless of whether I have 9 handicaps or not. Like I said, this blank slate, this Japanese Tabula Rossa is daunting.
Another cool discovery on the Go front is the fact that Arpan plays the game. Playing against another human, even if it’s on the internet over thousands of miles, is a much better experience than the computer. He had mentioned that to play in person is an experience unto itself. The game has so much history and rituals attached to it (typical of the Japanese) that it is no doubt exciting to sit across from a person and place these simple pieces on this big, blank, piece of wood.
Well, that’s the end of Volume 1. Volume 2 will arrive shortly!
1 comment:
Hi
The summer before last i travled to The Matoso Clinic with my parents. They had lived there for 2 years working as volenters. My mother is a nurse. the woman there now is named Tammy I was wondering if you know her?
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