Thinking and thoughts

I have a friend who is a despatch rider for another friend's company. He seems to be a polite hardworking boy. i would treat him to a teh tarik or roti canai sometimes. I was thiking aloud to the owner of the company on whether this boy could be given more responsibility as he is nice and hardworking.

The answer from my friend was straight and funnily blunt. He can't think. He has no ability to think more than the sendings and receivings, the plasterings and minor repairings of printed materials, looking at and polishing his bike and other similar things and tasks that require very little of the brain. I looked at my friend and we both gave an acknowledging smile. We understood, we are better than him not because we are nicer or work harder but because we suuround ourselves (well sometimes by default), with tasks and activites that require thinking. Our despacth friend however is surounded by brainless activites that require only simple identification of facts and minor understanding which are the lowest two in Bloom's Taxonomy of thinking.

Last week, our despatch friend lost his bike and due to that wanted to quit his job. My friend was kind enough to explain to him that the bike or the lost of it has very little to do with the job. He kept his job but the boss wil continue to do te thinking for him. Luckily, the boss is a nice man. Stop thinking long enough and maybe a loony bad guy will manipulate you. THUS, think and surround yourself with thinking tasks.

Good times in UPM

It has been a great fifteen years of teaching and 6 years of studying in this unbelievable university. I came here way back in 1989 to do my matriculation studies. I got into the degree program in 91 and graduated in 95. I got my masters in 2002 and and have submitted my Phd at te age of 39. So if you do the maths, I have been in UPM for 21 years. As in any place you spend a long time at, there were some fantastic memories and some glum ones.

Amond the grand fantastic ones as we should not dwell in the negatives are:

1. winning the inter college debate championship in 91 and 92

2. getting to the intervarsity (Battle of Wits) debate competetion in 94

3. Going to the first Asia Intervarsity Debate Championship in 94 (my team was ranked 14th in Asia)

4. Winning the intercollege rugby championship in 94

5. Scoring two tries in the Jonah Jones 7 a side tournament (in the quarter finals)

Well, a lot of good stuff if you want to think about them, a lot of good stuff would have happened in anybody's life. Remember the good ones and you'll be a wee bit happier. Throw away the bad ugly memoris as they will not do you any good nor will it inspire others to do better.