In time for the holidays...
The holidays always lift my spirits. Festivities everywhere, celebration, happy faces, time with family and friends - just makes me happy. So I figured what better time than now to restart my blog...and given the tradition of lists at the end of the year conclude with a list of my own. So here goes
Ashesh's List of Top Holiday Activities
1) I dont want to be a Scrooge but do we really need extravagant displays of lights and multiple blinking species of animals and snowmen every night for many hours? I am all about spreading joy and cheer but we are all trying to deal with global warming and reduce ecologically wasteful activities so maybe start by reducing the number of hours the lights are on, cutting down the number of lawn ornaments, maybe keeping them on every other evening, taking turns with the neighbors so every year alternate the houses that have lots of lights...there's got to be something we can all do.
2) Check out the One Laptop Per Child initiative driven by Nicholas Negroponte. The foundation is working to provide the famed $100 laptop (its not quite at that price point yet) to children in less developed countries. Better still - get your child/nephew/niece a great gift for the holidays by participating in the Give One Get One program by Dec 31 and help get more of these devices out to kids in countries like Afghanistan, Rwanda and Cambodia. These machines have been cleverly designed for the conditions and usage in those environments.
3) Go places you don't normally go or wish you could go to but just never have the time. Every year we try and take the kids to San Francisco so they can see the giant tree in the middle of Union Square and enjoy the lights and celebration. We did that again this year and it was a lot of fun - took us almost an hour and a half to get there because there was just so much traffic but it was well worth it. I am also planning on taking my 3 year old to a museum (MOMA?) so he can get exposed to it and maybe...just maybe...he will find something that grabs his interest. If nothing, he'll enjoy the train ride on BART and hot chocolate in the city...and we'll get some time together.
4) Find the time to catch up on reading books and essays that will provide new and different perspectives even if you dont agree with all of them. Some examples: Ishmael Beah's harrowing narrative of children fighting a war, Richard Dawkins questioning belief and faith, CK Prahlad analyzing business opportunities amidst seeming poverty, Suketu Mehta interweaving the glamour and dark underside of life in Bombay...
That's it...enjoy the holidays with family and friends and be thankful for the peace and merriment we can enjoy here. Many parts of the world are struggling with so much conflict today.
I look forward to recharging and engaging afresh in the New Year!
