6.  Why Namibia’s lions take prey from farms run by racists. BBC.com   This is a fascinating story. Predators like lions and leopards have increased in numbers in recent years in Namibia because of the success of Namibia’s conservation efforts. These wild animals however are unfortunately causing increasing problems for ranchers and livestock farms, as some of these wild animals prefer to eat well-fed beefsteak for dinner rather than catch tough chewy wild venison. And it seems farms owned by racists are targeted more by these lions and leopards. You wonder, how in the world do lions know if a farmer is racist or not? How can they selectively target just those farms owned by racists and prey on their livestock?  Read the article to find out the answer to this curious animal behavior. Why Namibia’s lions take prey from farms run by racists

 

7. President Obama says: This is what a feminist looks like. From Glamour Magazine  My friend Stella forwarded this article that was published in Glamour magazine in mid-October. It is a great read. President Obama voices very eloquently in this article how treating women with respect is a non-gender specific issue, and how change has to come from both men and women. President Obama looks at how far women have come in the last 100 years, and how we can be proud of what we have accomplished to date. He also discusses how having daughters has made him look at the world through their eyes, to see what opportunities they have at their feet, and how Michelle has done more than her share to take care of the family. This is an easy to read article, very relateable, and very current in addressing the issues and perceptions women face today in the workplace and in society.

To the First Lady, With Love. Four thank-you notes to Michelle Obama. NYTimes.com  This article titled To the First Lady, With Love. Four thank-you Notes to Michelle Obama, Who Has Spent the Past Eight Years Quietly and Confidently Changing the Course of American History is written by four authors who share their opinions of the First Lady Michelle Obama and the role she has played in influencing the way America perceives women in the role of First Lady.  “Michelle Obama embodies the modern, American woman, and I don’t mean that in any platitudinous or vague way. Rarely can someone express their many identities at the same time while seeming authentic…If feminism’s goal is equal opportunity and choice, Michelle makes me feel like every choice is available. You can go to Princeton and Harvard, you can rap with Missy Elliott, you can be a mother and a lawyer and a powerful orator. You can champion the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, while also caring about fashion. You can dance with Ellen and also fearlessly remind people, on live television, of the reality of your position…” Rashida Jones.

Love them or hate them, one thing most Americans will agree on is that the Obamas have lead this country with grace and dignity. We sure are going to miss them.

8. I got these amazing pictures from Hitesh during one of his business trips. This is the email I got from Hitesh when he was in London on business, “Check this out. I walked by this building in London. Read the sign on the left in the photo.”

On that same business trip Hitesh sent this text message and these photos, “In Geneva.  Heading to a town called Lutry by train for a customer dinner. This is the view from my room in Lutry.”

9.The origin of the apple from BBC.com  You’ve heard of the saying, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”  Ever wonder where the apple first grew in the world?  I always thought that apples originated in the western hemisphere because it is so much more popular in the European countries and in America. But as it turns out, apples originated in Central Asia. Go figure! From Central Asia the apple seeds got imported all over the world. Guess which country in Central Asia?  In Kazakhstan. This is a fascinating article on the wild apple forests that grow in the interior valley of Kazakhstan, and the hundreds of varieties and flavors of apples that can be found here, all yet un-discovered until recently that is. This article also gives a brief history of how apple seeds were exported all over the world.The origin of the apple  

10. Why I Would Raise Chickens from Gatesnotes.com This article was so timely for me. I had been talking to my friend Georgina about possibly raising chickens in my yard, especially as I had an enclosed area that I could raise them in – my vegetable patch that is. But after doing extensive research on how to raise chickens in a home garden, I tabled the idea. It’s a lot of work!  It’s more work than having a pet, because you can’t put chickens in a pet hostel or have a pet sitter come and take care of them when you go on vacation.

What I found out is that raising chickens is an investment of time. Chickens have personalities, and just like people they get along with each other or they don’t. You have to watch for behaviors that cause distress in chickens, which can prevent them from laying eggs. You have to make sure the flock is happy and gets a good night’s sleep in a warm sheltered coop. You have to make sure their pens are cleaned so that the chickens have a clean and safe home. There are so many other chores that are required to make sure you have a happy family of chickens. You can’t just buy chickens and let them loose and hope for a great number of beautiful eggs. Raising chickens is like having a happy family home. I try my best to do that for my family, and I have to do the same for another family too? That is definitely a lot of work.

So when I came upon this story Why I Would Raise Chickens about raising chickens on Bill Gates’ blog, it got me intrigued. This is a wonderful article on how chickens provide so much well-needed food, income and a sustainable form of business in the poorer regions of the world. Who knew chickens are such positive  animals to have around for so many people?  Check out the article in its entirety Why I Would Raise Chickens 
A follow-on article by Melinda Gates to the Bill Gates story on chickens and starts off like this: “Chickens in America have it rough. They’re the symbol of cowards. They’re the butt of corny cross-the-road jokes. Every kind of mystery meat is supposed to taste exactly like chicken. But if you ask a woman in a developing country about chickens, she’s likely to show a lot more respect. That’s because a chicken can mean the difference between a family that merely survives and one that thrives.” 

This is a cool article by Melinda Gates about the great value that the humble chickens have for women in developing countries. Interestingly, chickens are very similar in character to women. Recent research on chickens has proven that contrary to what we think of chickens, they have the ability to empathize with chicks in distress, they form strong bonds with each other, and have the ability to express emotions like grief, fear, enthusiasm, friendship, and anxiety. Because chickens are small, they like to stay close to home, and in many cultures they regard chickens as a woman’s animal. However, despite their small size, chickens provide far-reaching income for women and their families in the developing world. Women who sell chickens and earn money from raising chickens are more likely to reinvest the profits in their families. This is an informative and enlightening read.  The Small Animal That’s Making a Big Difference for Women in the Developing World  

 

 Bill & Melinda Gates Receive Presidential Medal of Freedom. From Geekwire.com.  One more Gates related article that caps it all. When President Obama awarded Bill and Melinda Gates with the Presidential Medal of Freedom this year for all their humanitarian work, this is what he is quoted as saying: “These two have donated more money to charitable causes than anyone ever. Many years ago Melinda’s mom told her an old saying: ‘To know that even one life has breathed easier because you lived, that is success.’ By this and just about any other measure, few in human history have been more successful than these two impatient optimists. ”

It’s about time Bill and Melinda Gates received this award!! I thought they received this award ages ago, especially given how much they have done for people all over the world for over a decade now. All their  humanitarian work to make people’s lives better deserves this award and every other award all combined! 

Obama Awards His Last Medals of Freedom. From nytimes.com The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the nation’s highest civilian honor. Other recipients of the medal this year included artists, sports figures, and scientists. Well-known names such as Ellen de Generes, Robert de Niro, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Robert Redford, Cicily Tyson, Bruce Springstein, and Michael Jordan were some of the recipients of this years award. President Obama attributed the success of these personalities in this way: “It’s useful when you think about this incredible collection of people, to realize that this is what makes us the greatest nation on earth…Not because of our differences, but because in our differences we find something in common to share. And what a glorious gift that is.” Obama Awards His Last Medals of Freedom. From nytimes.com

11.How to Bond With Your Little Nieces:  When my brother Kiran visited me for a quick weekend trip with his little girls it took a little time for them to warm up to us. It was easier for my girls to connect with these little ones. But how does our guy Hitesh bond with our little nieces? He figured out an ingenious way to get them to bond with him, take a look at this video. Oh, and you are seeing double 😀😀.

This is how POTUS Bonds with Little Kids:  Here are a couple of links of our President Obama and how he bonds with little kids. Obama and Kids. from Medium.com  This next link is a video clip on the fun ways that President Obama connects with little ones. The last little kid is hilarious! Watch the little guy in the Superman costume call President Obama POTUS! It’s positively funny😀😀. That’s POTUS – Obama’s Funny Moments from youtube.com

12.Teenagers teach seniors technology from sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com is a story I saw while watching CBS Bay Area. It resonated with me because I saw my kids and my Dad in this story.  He is always asking Anjali and Rani for tech advice and tutorials.  That is what teenager Sruti Vishwabhan saw as a need in her community, a need for Seniors to learn how to use technology so they were better informed, better connected socially, and could participate in the larger technology conversation.  Sruti started a club at her High School in Almaden where teens go out to the community centers in the South Bay and teach seniors how to use the computer, the Internet, and the ipad.  She started the club at the Almaden Community Center where it was so well received that other Community Centers across the South Bay have adopted the program. Sruti is a senior now and is going to college but she has passed the baton on to other teens in her school to continue the club. Teenagers teach seniors technology from sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com  

13.  The Nerd Farmer: A Powerful Conversation on Schools, Poverty, and Race from gates notes.com The Nerd Farmer: A Powerful Conversation on Schools, Poverty, and Race is another Gates Blog post that got me thinking about education this time and the issue of race in this country.  This article is about Nate Bowling, Washington State’s Teacher of the Year. Mr. Bowling uses Star Wars trilogy to explain the Civil Rights struggles in American history.  Pretty neat, right?  Wouldn’t you like to be in his class! I watched his video and how he used the Star Wars trilogy to make the history of civil rights relatable to today’s youth who have not experienced all the race struggles of the previous generations. The analogy  was pretty neat and memorable. Mr. Bowling calls his style of teaching creating the “Nerd Herd.” To quote Mr. Bowling: “Never underestimate the power of nerddom.”  Check it out, it’s a fast read. The Nerd Farmer: A Powerful Conversation on Schools, Poverty, and Race 

14. Wish We All Could Be Californian from nytimes.com opinions page Wish We All Could Be Californian from California Today NYTimes.com is an awesome short article that explains how despite in California so many different cultures, people of color, and nationalities live together, how it is a wonderful example of a pluralist society in America today. Pluralism is defined by Marian Websters Dictionary as “A situation in which people of different social classes, religions, races, etc. live together in a society but continue to have their different traditions and interests. It’s the belief that people of different social classes, religions, and races should live together in a society.”

The article starts off like this: “San Francisco — THIS is going to sound very California, but here goes… All my life, I’ve seen strangers on California beaches — bearded bodysurfers drinking local Bourbon, Republican volleyball players eating vegan energy bars — trade warm glances that say, “I salute your lifestyle choices and respect your privacy.” After the election, those furtive nods implied nausea, terror and a compassion born of confidence that others felt much the same. Within that compassion, I sensed the emergence of something new in California public life: an awareness that we Californians are bound together as one people by the shared values of our increasingly tolerant and pluralistic society.”  Brian Rea.  

The article describes how Washington State and Oregon are kindred spirits to California on the West Coast. Wish We All Could Be Californian  

Online readers of NYTimes.com vote California Governor Jerry Brown as Californian of the Year.  When NYTimes online asked their readers to vote for the Californian of the Year, Governor Jerry Brown won by an overwhelming majority. In this article reporter Mike McPhate asks author Chuck McFadden who wrote the book  Trailblazer: A Biography of Jerry Brown, what makes Jerry Brown such a popular figure in California. Chuck answered the question in this article as follows:  “Jerry Brown is the son of a governor; he grew up in privileged circumstances; he is, by any measure, a member of the elite. Yet he somehow manages to be a populist. He says things the people want to hear, but retains his idealism — a remarkable combination of traits that makes him very popular. For three and a half years, he studied to be a Jesuit priest; after his first two terms as governor, he spent six months in Japan studying Zen; he sprinkles Latin phrases in his speeches and refers to St. Ignatius and Buddhism; he has always been an unabashed intellectual, unusual in a politician. Californians like politicians who are out of the ordinary — witness the elections of movie stars Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzenegger. It’s doubtful someone such as Brown could be elected governor in, say, Iowa. But in California, he will have wrapped up 16 years as governor in 2018. Quirky state — quirky governor.”  Check out this article for a list of other personalities nominated to be Californian of the Year, and to read more on our favorite politician Governor Jerry Brown. Online readers of NYTimes.com vote California Governor Jerry Brown as Californian of the Year.

15. Woman Who Lifted a Village from BBC.com This is a story of a woman named Shantha who with no formal education or experience, lifted an entire village in India from poverty by empowering the women around her. Because of her tenacity, her willingness to start small and work her way up and her initiative to want a better life for herself and her children, Shantha plowed forward despite her lack of education. She took a volunteer job at a local government office to gain experience of working in an office and she used her position to network with government workers and business people with the hopes that it would lead to better opportunities. The volunteer job exposed her to a wider world beyond her immediate family and community.

Though no job was offered her, she did learn of a microfinance initiative for small-scale projects and with the help of her colleagues she developed a business plan and won a stipend to start her own women-owned small business – in this case it was to buy cows to make milk-based foods. She tried to recruit other women in her village to be part of her group, but had a hard time recruiting them, but she didn’t give up. Shantha persisted in convincing women to start taking ownership of their own lives and successfully recruited 20 women in her village (some who were abused by their husbands and were afraid to leave) to become part of her small business. Shantha’s success has encouraged other women in her area to follow suit. Shantha’s son Manikandan says of his Mom “I remember how hard my mother worked to start the women’s group. If my mother had not started this group… I doubt I would have finished high school. But because she took these initiatives, I was able to go to engineering school and graduate. And now I work as a technical officer at a reputed company.”

Now Shantha tutors other women in neighboring villages on how to start a home business and how to get loans from banks and government programs.  Woman Who Lifted a Village   

16. Lastly, if you are like me and have been enjoying all the holiday festivities and eating more than normal, you will relate to this sign I saw hanging at our local Philz Coffee shop. 😀😀