hat tip: http://xkcd.com/1024/
Yearly Archives: 2012
Dogs and Pines and Moon
Fri, 2 Mar 2012, 10:03 PM (-06:00)
The dogs walked around the yard a bit, sniffed the balmy air and went back inside. It was dark. I couldn’t see my feet in the shadows. I stood there in the warm night letting my eyes adjust. A breeze came up. It blew thru the branches of the pine tree and made that lonesome […]
What Forman Did For Him
Sun, 26 Feb 2012, 10:15 PM (-06:00)
1. Crossing the Border So my father decided to leave Aligarh Muslim University to study at Forman Christian College. Forman sent a him a permit that would get him across the border. “Without that, I couldn’t go,” he said. “Indian muslims were no longer allowed to cross into Pakistan.” 2. What Forman Paid He was there for […]
The Agha Khan
Sun, 26 Feb 2012, 09:53 PM (-06:00)
In his fifth and sixth years at Aligarh, my father worked on his master’s degree. After that, you could do research, but it took years to get a doctorate. My dad wanted a doctorate. Sometime near the end of his sixth year, he was offered a scholarship to study at Forman Christian College in Lahore. […]
Mumtaz Annexi
Sat, 25 Feb 2012, 09:26 PM (-06:00)
There were 10,000 students at Aligarh Muslim University when my father started there. It was the only Muslim college in India. His first year there, the dorm was full, and he stayed in Mumtaz Annexi. (I wonder if that’s Google calls Mumtaz House, today.) The students in the annex were evidently packed several students to a […]
Knowing the Answers
Sat, 25 Feb 2012, 08:55 PM (-06:00)
1. Black Hat Colonel Heather taught chemistry at Aligarh Muslim University. My father sat in the front row when classes began. “He used to call on me,” my father said. “Even back then,” he said, “there were people who were envious if you were smart, if you knew the answers. (I think you have this now.)” And […]
From Khanpur to Aligarh
Sat, 25 Feb 2012, 08:28 PM (-06:00)
They started the academic year in Khanpur in June. My father had left his family village and was there on a scholarship, but they only had liberal arts and no sciences. He wanted to study science. Some fellow students told him about Aligarh. They said he should go there and study science. And Aligarh started […]
My Father’s Brother
Fri, 24 Feb 2012, 07:38 AM (-06:00)
My father was sitting on the couch. I was sitting across from him. Trudy was sitting next to me. Khadija was sitting on a chair nearby. “My younger brother was smarter,” he said. I have heard him say this before. Although I don’t know anything about his brother, I’ve heard my dad talk like this […]
What My Mother Said
Thu, 23 Feb 2012, 05:45 PM (-06:00)
My mother came to town. One day we went to a sandwich shop to get some lunch. It was busy, and there was no clear path to the spot where you order. “Excuse me,” I said as I squeezed around a woman standing next to a chair. I walked quickly by and got in line, […]
What My Brother Said
Thu, 23 Feb 2012, 05:39 PM (-06:00)
My brother came to town. On Sunday, half-way thru the day, he looked at me and asked, “Is this what your Sundays are usually like?” “Yes,” I said. Either he was envious at our slow pace of living and the amount of time we spend working in the yard. Or he was horrified.