Radiation fears

Now comes the second part of the story. After a few hours, news of the blast in the nuclear reactors filtered into the US. As our local and national channels broadcast updates, I looked up how far the reactors were from Tokyo. Then I skyped my brother to see if he was thinking of moving. He told me not to worry, as it was just the shells breaking, the reactors were fine. Although worried, I felt my brother and his wife were in the best position to know what to do. In the days that followed, I had nightly conversations with my mother, both of us agreeing that my brother should move, yet dreading asking him what he thought of that option, because both my mother and I knew what his answer would be.

It was a great relief when I heard his office was moving him temporarily to Osaka. Even better to find out that they were going to Singapore for a while.

It has now been six weeks since it all started. My brother and his wife are back in Tokyo, to their daily grind. I still worry because the radiation levels keep rising from what one hears in the news. I keep telling myself not to believe everything I see or read in the internet or TV but it is hard to be objective and rational when one's own is in danger.

It is still hard to believe that Tokyo, that great machine and success story of modern technology is living through a crisis it is ill-equipped to handle. No one seems to have a handle on the reactor situation. Maybe there isn't an immediate fix. But let's hope that things will improve in six months. I never want to relive the anxiety, the fear and the constant worry of not knowing and not being able to help in any meaningful way.

My Tokyo Earthquake post

This post is over a month belated. The Tokyo earthquake of March 14, 2011 destroyed thousands of lives and the tsunami redrew the coastline, killing thousands more. The resultant damages to nuclear reactors created a radiation hazard that continue to plague the lives of people in northeastern Honshu.

Not many people in my immediate circle know that my brother, my only sibling, lives in Tokyo. We have rarely spoken to each other. There have been times we've been estranged and the physical distance, the stress of modern living, jobs exacerbated the gulf between us. But the news of the earthquake was troubling. I remember telling myself that if any country in the world is equipped to handle an earthquake, it is Japan. Then I tried calling my brother and sister-in-law's cell phones. No connection.

I kept calling, while telling myself that things are fine. But it was getting harder to keep the tears at bay. My morning classes started, and I still had no word. I could not reach any number in Japan, in any area. After two hours of non-stop dialling, my tears were falling pretty fast. I did not care that my students saw me in this vulnerable state. I was doing exactly what I try not do in a crisis: panic.

I called my parents in India, to see if they had heard anything. All they could tell me was that they had spoken to my sister-in-law while she was still in her office, but that the phone had disconnected during their conversation. Hearing this made my fear the worst.

It was my husband who was finally able to make contact through Skype, to find out that everyone was safe. My sister-in-law walked home. There was a food shortage brewing as people were stockpiling food. But other than that, things were normal. Heaving a sigh of relief, I went back to my usual day.

Success!!

Super successful auction!! After six months of sleepless nights, constant planing, countless phone calls coaxing donors, the verdict is in: the auction raised $120K for the school this year.

Not an all-time high, but definitely a record in recent years, given the dump the economy's in. Feel good about selling a classroom art piece for $4000. That's some serious marketing.

Also happy about the dining frenzy going viral in the live room. People buying $50 restaurant certificates for three times the price....seriously?!! WTF guys? Annnyway, this auction chair is not complaining...show up all your neighbors and tablemates, be the first one to raise that paddle and keep it up the whole night ;-)

Time to move on to the next event, AP exams in May!!

T-5 and counting!

Stress Relief

This post is not connected to any self-help nonsense. Nor am I interested in medical or psychylogical issues and their treatment. One could make sexual associations and under usual circumstances I would be okay with it. But not now. Now I'm just stressed. Not with physical exertion but with dealing with a thousand passive aggresive tiger moms with pta stripes whose idea of fun is to pick apart other people's ideas. For fun. I wonder what they do when they are mad.

Power does make a lot of people feel better about themselves. And to some extent, we all enjoy a taste of power when we look back at our youth and feel happy about how far we've come. The genealogy of power is fun to read about, and power plays are certainly amusing to observe at a distance. But being in the thick of it is just awful. Especially if you're like me who likes to see smiles all around and never mind the world going to pot.

Not gonna happen, you say? I need to wake up and smell the daisies, you say? Maybe I will. Then I will give those daisies a big fat smile for being so darn cheerful.

Life/ Furniture

If you have lived in student housing you know what the room looks like: university issued twin bed with metal frame, sofa bed in a matte brown or some other unbearably drab color, vinyl tiles on the floor and kitchen counter.

Move up to the newly employed singles scene where monochrome rules in black sofa and white or animal print rug. Stainless steel (new) shiny appliances add a bright note. A few well placed knickknacks on low tables speak of a well traveled resident. Books placed strategically scream 'this is an intelligent person who wants you to know they read'. And of course, a large screen TV.

Then comes the family. The white rug is replaced with one in neutral colors, preferably with a pattern of some sort to hide the stains. The knickknacks are replaced with boxes of tissues, always within quick grasp. Crayon doodles on walls mark the creative genius growing up in the household. Plastic covers on antique wooden tables, locks on toilets and drawers, a swing or a high chair where the wine rack used to be.

Finally, as the locks come off and rooms get divvied up, a well used recliner is placed next to the natuzzi sofa. Look closely and you'll see that the recliner is placed directly facing the TV. Almost as if the person sitting on is o a desert island. Look closer and you'll see the dents in the sofa next to it. Where others used to sit and argue over the remote. Arguments that have now ceased. Seats that lie open.

Photo with said hottie...Geoff Stults for the curious...