Great Expectations

A one-on-one interview, puzzles, brain teasers and the like, and finally an interview with a panel of board members. No, this is not a 20+ year old trying to get into B-school. It's just a regular interview for admission into Lower Kinder Garten (LKG). As shocking as it seems, this is the procedure for admission into school here in India these days. What's funnier is that not all applicants are called in for an interview. Using 'random selection' only a certain percentage proceed to this stage. And even if the child passes with flying colours, there is a hefty donation or some fancy term given to a monetary contribution to the school.

It's tough to keep up with the number of children here in India. The intake only goes up annually but there aren't enough resources to keep pace. The old schools in every city are in greatest demand with people having to register their children even before they are born! How absurd is that!

I'm starting to panic already and my kid is more than a year away from having to be enrolled. Maybe I should start my own school...

Oh for the love of sports

I'm a sports junkie. I think I've always been one. First it was tennis, then basketball, then most events during the Olympics, even American football! I have favourite players, favourite teams, favourite team uniforms and so on. As much as I love to watch sports on TV, it is with mounting levels of tension that I watch my favs perform. Today was one such day. My heart skipped many beats as I watched a not-so-perfect Federer pull out a victory after 4 1/2 hours to move into the fourth round of the Aussie Open. When I was younger (ahem) Pete Sampras caused many palpitations in my heart. And always the Lakers. I always thought that as I aged (ahem ahem) my involvement would reduce and maybe I could just watch the game for the game; just enjoying it and not sitting there biting my nails wondering at the outcome and doing silly superstitious things that might make my favs win.

But some things just don't change. How nice!

The Nano

Tata has launched the cheapest car in the world. It costs only a lakh of rupees. This in a country where the roads are shrinking and in some places, non existent due to the large number of vehicles that already ply day in and out. With increasing salaries and credit limits, even people in the lower middle income group bracket can afford these. The roads will probably have as many Nanos as autorichshaws. How scary is that thought? How much more cluttered can our roads get? How will this end?