Mineral Wells State Park Visit

Sunday was pretty eventful, visited one more state park in the vast state of Texas and this time it was closer home... about 100 miles south west. The park is named after the city of Mineral Wells which was a thriving spa, health resort, town famous for its fresh water resources. At its peak the town's water was known to cure all human diseases and people traveled to this little town to spend few weeks rejuvenating themselves. Well that was probably more than a century ago. Today the town is just another small town in Texas with a large ranching community and tourism that the State park draws. Well this is the closest location from DFW metro area for rock climbing, some hill hiking and of course swimming and wildlife watching.
Here are some pictures of the location and I will post further about what we did in the state park soon.

Mineral Wells Trading Post... the only store on the state park

Lake Mineral Wells - vast waterbody

GPS Mapping Achieved!!!

Something I have been wanting to do since several months I achieved today finally... not because I bought some new fancy gadget... but because of some serious thought and working persistently on my computer. Here is a trail route I mapped from home to the library and back and of course we drove across this route. Tomorrow onwards I will try to log cycling trails, travel routes, etc..

Shelby Mustang Show in Plano

Recently the Legacy Texas Bank organized a vintage car rally to showcase their top-management's Shelby Mustang cars and other vehicles. I couldn't attend the show due to school commitments but I did manage to get a few pictures... here they are...

Heart of the Shelby Mustang

Cute high performance car...

White Rock Lake - Quiet Aqua Forte

One thing I love about Texas is the way lakes, creeks, and to a certain extent green areas are protected and allowed to thrive. This is possible partly because of the low density of population and vast land area which the early European Colonizers found virtually free to occupy. The conquest of early settlers, hard work of their offspring are being enjoyed by this generation of native born Americans as well as newly arrive immigrants like myself.

This past weekend I participated in a free Kayaking event organized by one of the leading adventure sports gear marketers REI. They offered a free experience to wannabe kayak owners, canoe enthusiasts, and fishermen who would possibly want to own their boat. Even though I belong to the enthusiast category who may not buy a Kayak or any other watercraft in the immediate or near future I still wanted to enjoy a day on the water free.

So there we went to the lake and used some of the equipment provided by REI such as Kayaks, life jacket or in America it is Assisted Flotation Device and had a great time. Here are some pictures.

Still Water Kayaking @ White Rock Lake, Dallas

Yesterday we went Kayaking at the White Rock Lake, Dallas. It was a free marketing event organized by REI, the adventure & outdoor sports gear store. There were all kinds of kayaks and all visitors were allowed to get into them and try their hand at it. Being mildly windy it was a little challenging to kayak in the area, but nevertheless it was a lot of fun. Here are some pictures...

Vistas of India-Homa

Vistas of Lost Lake and Surroundings

Continuing my report on the short but eventful visit to Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, India-homa, I would simply say that our hike turned into a mini adventure after I coaxed everyone into climbing down the rock face into the depths of the valley rather than follow the trail that snaked around the hills to form a natural slope. Once down at the water level we crossed the shallow stream via a trail of rocky outcrops and started retracing our steps around the lost lake.

Here are some pictures:

View of the waterfalls from the base of the hill

The world is full of insensitive people who will litter even the most pristine natural spots.....

Sweeping view of the valley and rock face we just descended

Tooth Fairy..... somewhat entertaining...

For lack of nothing else to do on Friday evening we decided to go to a movie at the dollar theater in Plano. The intent was to watch a Jackie Chan movie, but there was none playing at a night show. So we decided to watch The Tooth Fairy instead. This is a fairly entertaining kids movie... apart from a few minutes of fantastic ice skating and a some comedy frames there is nothing much worth watching in this movie.

The story traces the life of an aging ice hockey star who is named the tooth fairy because he knocks out teeth of his opponents. His girlfriend has two kids, the daughter just loses one of her teeth and the mother tells the story of tooth fairy. The protagonist tries to tell her the truth in a rude manner to the chagrin of the mother. The son doesn't like this guy because he is rude, and sarcastic.

The story moves on to fairyland when the player gets called to do some community service and then after some seriously boring drama and some funny scenes the movie ends with a soulful transformation of the protagonist. I definitely wouldn't pay the regular theater ticket to watch this movie....

Views of Lost Lake and around!!!

We hiked for couple of hours in the lost lake area of the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. The terrain reminded me of the rolling rocky hills that I was so familiar with in India. This is the first time since arriving in Dallas that I am coming across such terrain. The lost lake is indeed a dam built in a small valley between two tall rocky hills. The stream collects in the deep gorge walled at a strategic location and the excess flows off the wall creating some sort of a waterfall out there. We walked beside the waterfall and down the rocks to cross the stream and walked alongside the lake on the other side.

Dam that creates the Lost Lake

Lost Lake facade

A couple brought kayaks and hit the water enjoying the stillness of the lost lake. Swimming is not allowed at this location... perhaps because of the rocks in the lake bed or maybe because of the depth... I don't know. Kayaking and fishing are allowed and there were few people enjoying the therapeutic and relaxing activity.

Couple enjoying kayaking

Saudi Girls Getting Smarter or Getting Exploited???

I recently chanced upon a news report online about a pre-teen girl from Saudi Arabia who won her divorce from her 80-year-old husband. After reading the brief article I must say I am pretty impressed by the way the girl and her family handled the entire matter. I don’t know whether to term this incident as an evidence of empowerment or exploitation of women. Maybe my readers will help me arrive at a suitable conclusion.

Let me present some facts of the case according to what I read in the original news report. Apparently the girl willingly married her 80-year-old relative (father’s cousin) a year ago. In the bargain the girl’s father received a dowry of $22,000, a small fortune I must say. A year later she decides that she doesn’t want to remain married to a man old enough to be her great-grandfather and approaches a human rights group to files for a divorce.

The state-run human rights agency takes up her case and privately settles her divorce case. At the end of a year the girl is $22,000 richer and FREE. The news report doesn’t comment about whether the dowry amount was returned or not. I guess it was not, because if it were to have changed hands the girl and her family would have screamed from the top of the tallest building in Saudi Arabia.

She can now go to school, probably emigrate to the US where she will be welcomed because she fought against the oppressive patriarchal society in Saudi Arabia, find a young boyfriend, get married and settle down. She could simultaneously invest the $22,000 she got as dowry last year and use it to pay for her college.

Fantastic idea indeed. She declared to the court that she married the 80-year-old man willingly, out of “filial respect to her father”.

This is where my dilemma comes from. I understand that what happened to the girl in question is totally unfair and the father and family of the girl who agreed to Sell for $22,000 to their aged relative are completely at fault. At the same time I can’t help but marvel at the smartness of the girl who managed her family and get rid of her husband and still be $22,000 richer. Alternatively I wonder whether the father of the girl conspired with his family and manipulated the young girl’s feelings and made her do and say things she did and said.

If it were the first instance then the 80-yr-old man tried to exploit the girl’s family and got exploited in return... kinda tit for tat. If it were the second case where the girl handled the case by her own smartness, then I must say there will be lots of changes in Saudi Society in the decades to come. If it is the third case where the father orchestrated the entire incident, then I would say this is no different from any other oppressive, and exploitative incident against women in such societies.

I’d be interested to know your opinions on this subject.

Women Power in America!!!

I have been reading the Dallas Morning News off and on. Recently a news item caught my attention and when I was about to forget all about it and move on I read a follow-up column by one of their women columnists. The column titled "The pinch heard 'round Flower Mound the least of city's worries" is a well written piece of literature and conveniently takes the focus off the main issue in question. This article also highlights how women get away Scot free even when they are guilty of a serious crime such as "Sexual Harassment". Simply because the subject of harassment was a male and didn't file the complaint... probably fearing humiliation and backlash.

Anyway let us me first relate what happened as per the several news items I read. This is a fairly old incident, one that happened about five months ago. During a city function two FEMALE city officials as high ranking as the Mayor and a city council member, sneaked up behind a MALE police officer and simultaneously pinched his behind. The poor police officer squirmed in his position in surprise and the ladies just giggled away to glory watching his predicament. The police chief who saw his staff member's harassment filed a case of sexual harassment in the court against the women.

What happened after that is interesting, the court commissioned an independent investigation and considered the CCTV camera footage of the incident and concluded that the incident was NOT sexual harassment but some innocent fun. The court promptly acquitted the culprits and told disciplined the police chief. Since then there has been report after report defending the two women and now this women columnist completely brushes aside the incident and talks about how mineral rights, oil drilling, and other issues have divided the city of Flower Mound, Texas and the said incident was just an excuse for two warring factions to fight.

Well that may well be the case, I wouldn't doubt the bigger money game and politics playing in the matter. But what I would like to point out in this case is that the women have not been disciplined suitably.

Let us consider a similar scenario involving men. Supposing it were two men, instead of the women, both high ranking city officials, who had pinched the bottom of a female police officer purely out of jest, without any sexual intent. What would be the result? Would the feminists, women and human rights activists remained quiet? There would have been an uproar and the men would have been put behind bars immediately and the investigation/ hearings and trail would have been conducted later. This would have also conclusively killed the political careers of the two men concerned, while the female police officer would have been hailed as a heroine.

Now why this discrimination between sexes? Is this because men are mostly silent sufferers in crimes of this sort? Or is this because women can get away by flashing a giggle or a smile and expressing innocence?? I would really like to know????

The Visitor Center @ Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge

I had blogged earlier about the visitor center and nature museum at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, India-homa, Oklahoma. Here are some pictures of the innovative, informative, and interesting exhibits in the center. The folks here have tried to recreate natural scenarios that represent the park areas and the flora and fauna present within. I must say that they have done a wonderful job at that, the exhibits and soft lighting together provide a fantastic birds eye view of the park environs. We spent a few hours in the park including taking in the visitor center, I would suggest visitors to spend half a day at the visitor center and then proceed to explore the park for the next two days. Otherwise a visit to this wonderful wilderness area would be in vain.

Lasik Video Contest Winners Announced

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of Incendia Health. All opinions are 100% mine.

Among the five sense organs in the human body I believe that the sight is the most important. If one can't see, even day to day activities become a big challenge. Over the years medical science is advancing and has been able to create marvelous cures for eye problems. A fantastic procedure to improve one's vision is the Lasik surgery. This procedure has helped hundreds of thousands of visually impaired people to see better.

One of the pioneers in the field of Lasik surgery, Abbott Medical Optics Inc. (AMO), organized the iLASIK Video Contest. The contest featured videos that showcased how much their quality of life had improved following laser vision correction. The contest also featured a $5,000 grand prize for the best video and several other awards.

Needless to say the contest was a grand success and now the winners have been announced. The video submissions are stunningly beautiful and wonderfully captured. Winning videos and other entries can be viewed on the contest website www.GottaSeeThisNow.com. The website is also a place where one can register and receive new and innovative eye care products.

The iLASIK Video Contest was conducted in three categories:
Category 1: My Contacts Are Getting In The Way Of My Good Time
Category 2: My Favorite Sport Or Activity Would Be So Much Cooler With Better Vision
Category 3: You Should See Life After The iLASIK® Procedure

Each contest features two winning videos that send out the all important message about eye care. Watch the videos and you will learn a lot about eye health, vision enhancement, laser vision correction and related topics.

At home in India-Homa

Continuing my saga on the trip to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma. For starters it was a pretty long (3.5 hours) drive through the prairie lands of North Texas and Southern Oklahoma. The drive was pretty boring except for the colorful spring blossoms that line the highways. There were blue, yellow, pink, and other colored flowers moving in the wind.

After what seemed like an eternity we finally pulled into the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and were greeted by a large American Bison grazing beside the road. We stopped to take a closer look and get some pictures of the giant beast that was grazing away oblivious of the attention it was getting.

Wild Bison grazing in Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge

After spending some time at that site, we moved to the swank, and sprawling visitors center-cum-nature museum. Every wildlife sanctuary, national park I have visited be it in India, Nepal, Bhutan or US has an information center/ museum/ history center meant to provide information about the park's history, geography, wildlife, etc.

A giant mural at the visitor's center

The only difference is that in India the information centers are built with earthy materials like stucco, concrete, and brick and are mostly not air-conditioned. Here the building was built of wood, metal and drywall and of course it is centrally air-conditioned and heated. The natural history museum/ visitors center was one great documentation of the park's history, flora, and fauna. There were two huge stuffed wild bison's welcoming the visitors into the display area. There are numerous other stuffed creatures displayed in almost their natural settings. The museum is pretty interactive and simulated, the small theater showcases films on the night creatures of the park.

Stuffed animals on display

Stuffed animals on display

After spending about 45 minutes (short, we need at least 2.5 hours to see the museum thoroughly) we moved to do a short hike at the Lost Lake area. More tomorrow.

Hills, Rocks, and Boulders of India-Homa

The visitors Center

It has been several months... almost years since I touched a rock with an intention of climbing it. There are no rocks or hills in Dallas area, which is in the heart of the Panhandle Plains of Texas. Last Sunday I was lucky enough to visit a place known as Indiahoma in the neighboring state of Oklahoma. This small town is home to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.

The sprawl of Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, India-homa

As we drove on flat-as-a-Dosa landscape I was joking that Indiahoma and Oklahoma get their names because one of the ancient Hindu saints... Rishi Kapila traveled from Kapilaranya (California) with his cattle (Akalu in our language) and performed some sacred rituals to rid the land off its curses. Hence the state came to be known as Akalu-Homa and later became anglicized to Oklahoma. The place India-Home is the exact location of the sacred rituals and hence even today it is associated with India and Homa.

Anyway Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge is quite different from Texas and I simply loved the rolling rocky hills that mark the area. This is a 59,020 acre refuge and is protected habitat for several native species that have managed to survive the Whiteman's Greed. When the first Europeans landed in this country, their sole intention was to plunder and destroy whatever they found here so they can become rich. It was only after several decades that they started settling down and forming this United States of America. Some of the commonly found species in this wildlife refuge include the American bison, (We saw many of these gentle giants) Rocky Mountain elk, white-tailed deer, Texas longhorn cattle (what are they doing in Oklahoma??? Oh! these were the ones brought in by Rishi Kapila to perform the Yanga, and they are protected because, here they are sacred). Apart from these notable creatures there are over 50 mammal, 240 bird, 64 reptile and amphibian, 36 fish, and 806 plant species thrive here.

Rocky Terrain

I will talk about the short hike we took in the refuge in my next post. For now I have to get ready and get to work... enjoy the pictures.

Poetic Picture

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. I agree... but the blabbermouth I am... I was compelled to add a few words to the picture... wonder how it looks and whether it reads alright.

Hinduism Summit at Chicago

The Forum for Hindu Awakening is conducting a Hinduism Summit from April 24, 2010 at Chicago, IL. The aim of this summit according to the organizers is to "promote an understanding about the unique science behind Hinduism concepts and practices, and provide practical guidance on living Hinduism...."

One of the good results of living in a foreign country for Hinduism is that Hindus here are willing to come to a common platform forgetting their caste, region, heritage, guru, philosophy, etc and discuss the religion in general.

Unfortunately in India though a Hindu-majority nation, this kind of summits are rarely held and even when they are conducted they tend to be dismissed as some "RSS-type event" and touted as a "Hindu Fundamentalist event" by the mainstream left-inspired media. Caste based and narrow group based events are encouraged across the country.

Luckily in the US a new Hindu Awakening is possible and hopefully all Hindus will come together as one strong group rather than weak fragments. I will not be attending this event in person but will get updates on the web and keep myself informed.

Study online to Earn Prestigious Master of Arts in Teaching Degree

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of USC. All opinions are 100% mine.

Higher Education is a sure shot gateway to better career, greater earnings, enhanced respect, broadening of intellectual horizons and of course a better quality of life. Unfortunately all of us have not been lucky enough to go to graduate school when we were young. Some of us had to start working early and had neither the means nor the time to go to the university. There are many among my friends who would like to go back to school, earn a masters degree, but are unable to do so due to clashing schedules.

It is also a reality that in today's ever changing jobs marketplace one needs to be constantly upgrading skills, acquiring new knowledge to have the competitive advantage. This is specially so for teachers and those that are contemplating becoming teachers. I recently came across a fantastic online masters degree program for current and aspiring teachers/ educators, from the USC Rossier School of Education.

The program aptly titled Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT@USC) is completely online and offered by none other than the University of Southern California, considered an elite research institution. As I read more about the program information I am totally impressed by its interactivity and fast pace that enables students to complete a Masters degree in just 12 months. The two features of the program that attracted me the most was the phenomenal tuition reimbursement program of the university and the rare chance to become member of the USC Trojan Family.

Though the program is completely online there are field work opportunities at the student's local area. The university will work with you to schedule field activities for you.

These advantages seem too good to be true or at least that is what I felt when I first read through them. On further research I came to know that USC is an internationally recognized school with over 100 years of history of educating teachers. USC was ranked #22 in the US and #9 among private universities by the US News and World Report. With such high credentials I would be glad to graduate from the USC.

Important Indian Events in Dallas

Dallas area has a fairly large Indian community... something or the other seems to be happening always. I try to keep abreast of different activities that take place in the area, if I don't attend it personally I end up reading about it on someone's blog or looking it up on a forwarded email and sometimes even on desi event sites. Couple of days ago I received this information about the Hasya Kavi Sammelan 2010. This is the third year in a row and according to the organizers the show has been sold out the past two years. I am quite sure this event will be enjoyed by Hindi speakers and listeners, I have viewed some programs on TV when I was in India. The Kavi Sammelan's are usually quite hilarious and also provide important lessons to society.

Details of the Dallas event are as follows:
Date: Friday, April 9th , 2010

Venue: DFW Hindu Temple, Irving

Ticket price: $25 at the gate but only $20 if purchased in advance. VIP tickets are $50

Presenter: International Hindi Association

And like most Indian events, first food and then show. The Kavi Sammelan is also serving Complimentary dinner for ticket holders and dinner is served from 5:45PM to 7:45 PM.

Show begins promptly at 8PM.

Hanuman Jayanthi Celebrations in Dallas

Since yesterday the Datta Yoga Center has been celebrating the Hanuman Jayanthi festival. The actual birthday of the Simian God is tomorrow March 29, 2010. Today was an attempt to chant the Hanuman Chalisa 1008 times. I could not be part of the chanting because of work schedules but did chant the Hanuman Chalisa once today.

I would say the Hanuman Temple at Frisco, TX in DFW Metro area is one of the grand Hindu shrines here. This is also perhaps the most dynamic shrine, with numerous activities to educate American-born children about Hindu culture, traditions, languages, scriptures, Sanskrit holy chants etc. Whenever I visit the temple I feel as if I am back in India for the few minutes I am in there.

The organizers did a great job in putting together this event.