Ambiguity - Some Quotes

Neurosis is the inability to tolerate ambiguity. - Sigmund Freud

If I take refuge in ambiguity, I assure you that it's quite conscious. - Kingman Brewster

On the road from the City of Skepticism, I had to pass through the Valley of Ambiguity. - Adam Smith
The awareness of the ambiguity of one's highest achievements (as well as one's deepest failures) is a definite symptom of maturity. - Paul Tillich

I'm a participant in the doctrine of constructive ambiguity. - Vernon A. Walters

We demand rigidly defined areas of doubt and uncertainty!. - Douglas Adams

Visit to the Temple

Today we decided to visit the Livermore temple about an hour drive from where we stay.
Today is a Saturday and woke up at 9:30 and at 10:00 had a good breakfast of Poha and started for the temple.
The other guys had to entice me with the lure of an excellent canteen at the temple to get me to there.
I had been earlier to the temples in NJ, Connecticut and St. Louis and always found it crowded during the weekend (especially the canteens) so was surprised when the temple was not as crowded as I expected.

interesting incidents,

• An a timer (with a remote) mentioning when the next archana is
• 3 Different pujas happening at different parts of the temple each in a different language
• Different to hear one of the puja happening in English - the lady of the family conducting the puja was reading some passages from the scriptures in English
• Another corner another puja with the son and his wife conducting the puja (with the kid next to him so I presume the first birthday of the kid) and the grandmother capturing the whole ceremony using a camcorder
• Another corner of the temple a group of kids help close some plastic bottles (I don't know for what) but the funny part was the carton containing the plastic containers said 1800 vials with child proof covers (Closed by kids)
• The priest asking people to form a queue to one side to see the god in the Sanctum
• ironing boards with silk do this in a corner behind the praharam...True Indian style addition to the brick and marble beauty
• People congregating into small groups and you listen to different languages and dialects
• Water running - as usual someone forgot to close the tap after washing their legs (I did close it)
• To top it all - there was no canteen ........But there was a special prasadam counter and all the crowd was there (half an hr wait so we skipped it)

On the way back from the temple (after a quick pit stop at the udipi restaurant for tea and bajjis to go - to make up for the lack of food at the temple) we set out on a drive towards some windmills near the temple and it was a very scenic drive.

It reminded me of the trip I made to Kanyakumari last year for my Cousins marriage and on the way back was playing with my Digital camera and got some excellent photographs of the Windmill farms at Muppandal. The photographs have to wait till I get back to India in a couple of months.

Coming back to CA, the weather was excellent, bright and the mountains were beautiful with the Windmills running and cows grazing around it. It was an excellent 15 mile drive with green mountains on either side dotted with windmills and farms of cows and goats which looked like brown rocks and they dint even move.

We were then discussion, how true that the places you see in paintings really exist and you can see them even today. (Thumbs up to US for maintaining their Natural Reserves)

On the way back we saw a signboard for a reservoir & fishing, Expecting a good spot to soak in the beauty of the Day and the sights we just turned into the place and drove in.

The place is called Los Vaqueros , its an man made reservoir for holding low salinity water for use at a later date for drinking. When we went there were not many people around. Actually during the few hours we spent there we saw only three groups of people, this meant a peaceful palace to enjoy the nature.

There is an trail to go from the Interpretive Center (Not information center and they don't know why its called Interpretive) which takes you to the view of the Dam and the water body.

We went along the trail and the view was amazing a lake surrounded on all sides by green mountains with a few occasional windmills. No people around once you get into the trail or on the shoreline. Saw a father and Son fishing from one of the docks (There you can see the bonding happenings).

We went to the wrong side of the reservoir so we couldn't do the boating, was talking to the Lady working there, she said during summer people come down there for having a picnic especially in the evening and then return. She also mentioned that the place is not much publicized and that it does not attract big crowds there are few occasional visitors (Like us ) who miss a turn and end up in this beautiful place.

To make the eventful place even more interesting, we were checking out some localities for my friend to buy a house so we went in this street which had this interesting board

Pregnant ?

Need Help ?

Call XXX XXX XXXX

we couldn't help but smiling at the board (especially that it was next to the church?)

I was wondering how do you interpret such a sign?

Pregnant? - No

Need Help ? - Yes

Call - XXX XXX XXXX

Any way we went to a community and go down to check the locality and enquire about the house prices, schooling district etc. When we saw this amazing Aeronautic Display with free falls, 360 turns, loops few times I even thought pretty soon I am going to see the flames looking at the speed at which the aircraft was doing a free fall, luckily nothing happened.

Then it was time to get back to home, which by the way is not bad because of the view of the mountains (A separate log on that later)

Finally I mange to write another large blog...Hope it is interesting.

Life in USA

"I was the only one talking, and all the suppressed misery of living in America surged from me. Oh, how many times I had wished death to entire college football teams. It was impossible to meet a friend without making a fucking appointment weeks in advance, and there were no coffee gardens where you could sit and watch people walk by. I was sick of being asked where I was from and I hated Bush and his Jesus freaks. With every particle of my being I detested the word "carbs" and the systematic extermination of joy from American life, etc. "
from
THE CONDUCTOR by ALEKSANDAR HEMON
New Yorker
Issue of 2005-02-28
Posted 2005-02-21

This passage in the story somehow struck me, Another reason could be
another event around the same time, the interview of Aishwarya in the Late Show

Aishwarya was asked "Is it common in India to live with their parents?"
and her answer - "we don't have to take appointments to have dinner with our parents"

Was insightful.

There are a few questions for which I never was able to find the right answer. They say the best way to answer a unnecessary question is to ask back a question, Ash did a good job at that.

I usually get very defensive to such questions... Lesson learnt - be offensive, ask back a valid question.

Now I know how to reply

PS: Rest of the interview was not so great, it was very artificial and she was giggling and smiling a lot.