Things that Make Me Happy (Updatable)

In no particular order:

• Rain
• Babies
• Wet grass
• Dew drops
• Good food
• Cheese
• Coffee
• Flowers
• Writing/blogging
• Typing
• Cameras
• thxthxthx.com :)
• Shades of purple
• Being so busy with something, you involuntarily forget about lower-order needs
• Long phone conversations
• Smiling
• RAOKs (directed from or to me)
• Good stationery
• Clean desktops—real and virtual

An Open Letter to Whoever Can Change the Scenario Described

Sir/Madam

I have to clarify right at the outset that, no matter what people might say, I love life at Thapar. Everything about the place—the negatives totally included—make life so much fun and satisfying, and I'm probably blessed with the best people around too.

But anyway, frequently I think of how India's fourth best private engineering college fails to live up to its name in some ways. Rather than using engineering in a way that reflects the education being imparted, the campus is just an ordinarily equipped place. Here is a reality-check:

- We're churning out an exponentially rising number of Computer Science engineers every year, yet there is no official system (that is followed as well) to distribute notes online, and offer video-taped lectures. Even the attendance and testing systems have remained the same over the years while technology grows as warp speed.

The idea is to enhance communication among students and teachers (WebKiosk 2.0), an example of which is Mr. Apurva Bakshi's IPR blog: avbakshi.blogspot.com.

- Electronics and Electrical engineers have not been able to design greener technologies to mow lawns, water plants, power the campus... Not only are we yet to bring out a breakthrough in the existing technologies, despite the generous revenues, even already-available technologies are yet to be put to productive use.

- Despite the high desirability of Civil engineering courses, the real thinktanks have been rather uncivil in not having bettered the walkways, which are sure to ruin a good pair of shoes with the oodles of quicksand during the rainy days.

- Most courses are based on the theoretical aspect of things, and the practical applications only come as a footnote. Unless we realize the manifestations of its concepts, how are we expected to find interest in the course? And what real innovation are we bringing learning exactly what the past generations of engineers have been studying?

- The labs are a wonderful way to waste/utilize time trying to prove the proven. The curriculum overall, and the labs in particular, have no flexibility, and that goes directly against the very idea of engineering.

The list has more than can be recounted, but the general idea is to inject more engineering into a campus like ours.

On the shiny side, however, some of the ongoing research is highly awe-inspiring. The potato-tomato hybrid, and the zapping cars of the mechanical engineers of course do us all proud. Let's try swinging the scales in favour of the delicious side of engineering.

Truly

100806095

Life Lessons from a Theatre Director

If I start it, the story will be use up a million words, so I'll directly skip to the point(s):

Make it fun

Nobody enjoys injecting effort into something that they don't relish. I'd be sorry for you if you were one of the people who are stuck doing something they inherently don't enjoy, but the point is that even in activities we revel in, light moments are always welcome. Create an atmosphere around that is light, humorous and fun.

Acknowledge your role as the team leader...

and make sure that you always give out positive vibes and stay optimistic. Don't let your negative thoughts rub off on the team and get you all down.

Welcome criticism, but know where to draw the line

Be open to ideas from people who might not be authorized or asked to help. Genuinely consider ideas that may turn out to be for the greater good. Nevertheless, know that you'll have to put your foot down at some point and take decisions that not everyone will appreciate. The director may be "only just a director" but in the end it is her call.

You're never too prepared

No matter how far the big day seems, you never have too much time to prepare. Stay focused, do not be delinquent, and work hard.

Trust spontaneity

Preparation sometimes comes in the way of excellence. True, you can never be too prepared, but the line has to drawn somewhere. Put in a sincere effort; and leave the rest to the D-day eustress.

You'll have to surrender control at some point

No matter what, your duty will be over at some stage, where you have to have faith, trust your cast and crew, and God, and hope everything works out well. And guess what--if you've put in an honest effort, it will! Loosen up!

Look for the positives

During the performance, keep track of all the positives. (The goof-ups won't need conscious tracking. :P) And once it's over, congratulate yourself and your team on the good work. When you start working on the next performance, be sure to use the feedback constructively.

Thank you, Lovneet, for being the in/direct source of wisdom.

Reminder: Subscribe to the TCB feed!

Hello, beautiful people!

This is just a reminder that for your convenience and mine, I'll be delivering the TCB newsletter to you via a different channel now. Nothing will change; all you have to do is subscribe to the feed by visiting thecreativ3bee.blogspot.com. And I measured that the process takes under a minute on an average.
Here are two screenshots to walk you through the process, just in case (Click to enlarge):

Thanks! See you around. :)

TCB Blog

Guys, what do you think of a blog for TCB, with RSS feed?
As I'm getting more subscribers, I have to forward them the emails, which is very inconvenient. A link, however would be simply amazing. I intend to keep the email newsletter going for a few more times, but ultimately switch over completely to the blog.

Any thoughts on this?

EDIT: The blog is now fully ready and updated, and # 7 onwards, the emails will be discontinued. Head over to thecreativ3bee.blogspot.com to subscribe to the feed via RSS/email.