Re: Season's Greetings -Reply
Ramakrishna S. Pillalamarri (pkrishna@ARL.MIL)
Mon, 27 Jan 97 12:45:11 EST
As one of the four (or so) Ramakrishna-s in this list, let me start this note
with the caveat that it doesn't really toe the guidelines of the group. But,
I will try to make it veer towards that.
I think that SKR indeed said "oops" after he hit the send button. In fact,
when I saw that mail, and was going to send him a note, I used the reply
option, and almost hit the send button, but realized the soon-to-be faux pas,
and corrected the address.
However, unbeknownst to SKR, he gave me a lead-in for me; to mention
something here that I have been mulling over for sometime. Actions do indeed
have unintended consequences, and in this case, it is a pleasant one.
To start with, SKR should be commended for getting books to the tune of
Rs. 7000. Books are many times an after thought in such journeys. Besides,
they are bulky, take a lot of time to purchase (unless you go to a big
bookstore, and say "give me Rs. 7000 worth of books", or "fifteen kgs of
books", or some such guidance to the hapless vendor. If he doesn't summarily
eject you from the premises, you could even give him some further points of
selection, such as half serious, and half comedy, (not half-serious and half-
comedy), with a few dramas thrown in for Tata Prasad.
Not only did SKR bring books for himself (quick, how many remember a line in
these proceedings, that SKR's house in Queens is a treasure trove of telugu
books), but he also brought a considerable quantity of these for his friend
Ramakrishna too! This is highly commendable.
How would it be if a few weeks before your next trip to India, you post a
message to that effect, and volunteer to bring a book, or a few books on
request? Don't say that you'll be flooded with impossible requests. You'd be
surprised as to how many won't take you up on the offer! Also, it is a no-
promises offer, conditioned only on your "best-efforts" basis. If the said
books aren't brought, you won't be facing a law-suit.
Now, any body volunteering to get a copy (of the set of) sUryarAyAndhra
nighanTuvu?
The popular telugu dictionary nowadays seems to be "Sabda ratnAkaramu" by
bahujanapalli sItArAmAcAryulu. It is in one volume, quite neatly bound,
and wonder of all wonders, printed on good quality paper, for a telugu book!
How do I know? My wife brought a copy of it last week. But alas, before I could
look up "vidhRta", and "anEkapa" in it, my daughter took it away with her.
sUryarAyAndhra nighanTuvu is (the last time I saw it) in four volumes.
Perhaps it has more entries than SR. SN invariably gives examples of usage,
as from old poetry. To my surprise, I saw that SR did it too, more than I
thought it did.
Ramakrishna
PS: In the list of the members of this group, I see only two, possibly
three Ramakrishna-s. adiyan, Challa Ramakrishna, and Dronamraju
Sriramakrishna. Who is the fourth (hidden) Ramakrishna, according to TNVP?
Inquiring minds want to know.
PPS: Why is Kambhampati Chandrasekhar quiet on this "heady" forum? I have
known him, on occasion, to express his opinions in no uncertain terms!
PPPS: I made one of my rare, semi-annual forays into the wild world of SCIT.
I see that Tata Prasad, Kambhampati Chandrasekhar, Kulbir Singh (how about
making him an honorary Telugu person, for posting to SCIT with such
regularity!), and a few others are having heated discussions about
free-speech (or its equivalent in this medium).
PPPPS: SKR tells me that bringing 30Kgs of books from India (as far as
transportation logistics) is done simply by putting all the books in a
gunny bag, and checking it as a piece of luggage. Of course it helps
if you are travelling as a family, in which case you have more allowance
for luggage than you know what to do. It is one of those "family-values"
no one even knows exists!