Multitude

When do we think of plural

when teacher asks for many

of a singular form

Does a musician fixate

on one instrument?

Tree work ahead

Friend says

For a preschooler

everything is work

When you drink tea

its tea work for them

What is tea work?

Making

Drinking 

Clean up

What is tree work?

Hssh. the trees are at work

sprouting

The tree is the sign 

of 

nature at work

All things pink

are iconic
Pink flamingo

MCSweeney poetry series

Recently I came across Mcsweeneys poetry series and now I am reading The Boss by Victoria Chang which is a part of that.


Trimeter

old 20 note goes out of wallet faster than a fresh 5

Men tip more. Does it align any one way if its a waiter or waitress?

Younger students perform better. But what if students joined the school system a little later like say at the age of 5 instead of 3.

Clive James poems

Taw in the memory game in Stagedoor Rocket science

Poems with pictures
Whitman and moth
Shark

Exercises:
1. Write a poem with strong first, second, third lines - Nefertiti in the Flak tower
2. What is poetry to you? for e.g Poetry as Numismatics. In this poem, the poet compares the process of writing poetry to making coins out of Planchet
3. A petrels fast movement is likened to an agile dancer in Against gregariousness.

 The movement of spreading out your wings or limbs does look similar like skydiving.

What if the dark nights were mountains

like the illustrations in A snowy day. 

360 degree story weaving

City of refuge project

Business writing

A colleague of mine writes very good emails about the history of a problem, its solving.

1. Whats in it for them.

2. Benefits not features.

3. Using Relationship building techniques. But we feel a certain way and only then ask about.

Older book

Why Literature

View from the top of a slidy mountain

Al Jaffee's Mad Life

Recently I started reading 'Inklings: A memoir by Jeffrey Koterba', but I had to put it away as it was too evocative of the family conditions. I am not made to read well written books like 'Angelas Ashes' by Frank Mccourt.
The material that Al Jaffe has could have been written in a similar way, very well and never be read. But written in the collabarotive way that it is, with Jaffe's unique sketches of his childhood and Weisman's writing, 'the book will be read' (Paraphrasing Adam Levine).
Even if you try to get ahead of the book with the sketches, they need explanation of all the mischievous things that Al Jaffe has been upto in his life. This way the writing and the sketching take the yarn ahead smoothly. This book is an example of how difficult situations like displacement from your familiar environment into a different culture back and forth, can be looked at in a 'funny' perspective at some cost to the author.
Talking of funny, its the 'funnies' that he looked forward to in the tough time and little surprise that he grew up to be such a big contributor to MAD magazine. Fold-ins. Tall tales.

Feb 19, 2011

Go put your apron on

Pure and Simple: Vidhu Mittal

I tend not to make pulao dishes for the excessive amount of rice in it, but this book has cast a green spell on me with its 'Broccoli-Zucchini-Spinach pulao'. It tastes good and while chewing spinach, you get to understand why this dish does not need many spices. Yellow looking 'Sabz Pulao' with cauliflower, potataoes and peas is a good way to get all the veggies in.
The book increases your interest in cooking. Its both the pictures and the simple steps. Finding a pictorial how-to for the 16 layer paratha, I dived in.

Jan 11, 2011

Companies and culture

Things I learnt

1. Non-compete clause - Meredith Whitney worked for Fox to be out of bank business for a year.

2. Customer service agents get incentives for short calls.

3. Zappos rotates who mans front desks to keep egos in check.

4. Method Products innovation and weirdness

The profiles of the business leaders in the book are an easy way to know what was it that clicked for them instead of having to plow through their biographies. Wait they are under 40, so not all of them think they have even lived enough to think of biography. Eric Ryan has his The method method book.
When I read the Method section I was very curious to know of their products. Even the bowling pin structure didnt click in my mind that I have already seen their products. Same with under armour. Their logo is hidden in the annals of the consumer minds. I feel a small picture of the company logos would have added to the reader's bonding of the profiles right from the beginning.
This book set straight some of the perks of a company that get exaggerated by word of mouth. I also gave a friend a recommendation of a to do in Vegas - visit Zappos.
Some of the people profiled are media darlings while the others are not too heard of.

Ants and watermelon

Yesterday a weather forecast showed ants whisking the watermelon away. What is the connection between ants and watermelons?
Is it just the sweet?

Poets note

How a night is different from another.
How tomatoes/produce different in another month

A killdeer sound approached with 9 killdeers following it.
A butterfly visited the Brazilian skyflower and left in the same haste