Newy York City and Dhaka

Snowflakes are just like big cities. From afar, they may look the same, but in close up they are different from each other.  Major cities like New York City and Dhaka are overpopulated and may seem similar at a distance. However, at a closer glance, they differ in many ways such as modes of transportation. Even though both cities’ reliance on transportation is similar they differ in usage, time, and law.

                The environmental issues in New York City and Dhaka are widely known since these cities are immensely populated with people and vehicles. Both cities have more than seven million commuters. Some walk but most take either one’s personal car or a bus, taxi, or train. The amount of harmful pollution is relatively the same in both cities. Already overloaded with population, more people from all over the cities’ respective countries are coming desperately to settle in these cities. In New York City and Dhaka, this will result in more congestion and a lower body mass index.  In Dhaka, the influx of population will result in not only high population density, but also growth of slums in an alarming way. Three characteristics of the city environment: living in areas with mixed residential and commercial uses, living near bus or subway stops and living in densely populated areas, were found to affect BMI levels. When there are more than 15,000 motor vehicles running in New York City and 0.3 motor vehicles running daily, there is much severely harmful air pollution. The pollution that come from these vehicles cause many diseases and sickness to workers and tourists which are very unfortunate. The environmental issues in New York City and Dhaka are very difficult to solve or make better when these cities are known as fast-paced and people are known to have no time for many things.

                Both Dhaka and New York City are equipped with many traffic signals and walking signs at every street. At some main intersection there are even authorative figures guiding cars and pedestrians. Although the traffic signals and walking signs are to help decrease accidents, traffic, and collisions between people and vehicles, not many drivers and pedestrians follow them. In these cities that don’t sleep at night, people are always on the move and have no time to be patient. There will be many who speed on yellow lights and run pass red ones. The “walk and “don’t walk” signs are also not followed strictly. People just simply go if they don’t see any nearby car coming. These disobedient actions are why there are many authorative people on many intersections, assuring order and regulation. Both cities are coming up with new technological ways to better the system of traffic signals. In New York City, there are now cameras by almost every traffic signal. In Dhakka, new high tech signaling system would be set up in the city's 59 traffic points.  Traffic movement in these cities would be automatically guided from a central control room through the respective sophisticated signaling module.

                Airports in New York City and Dhaka are very convenient for people coming on quick business trips. New York City and Dhaka are major cities that thrive with many small and huge businesses. Both cities are populated with many businessmen looking out to invest or make money in these cities. Airports are very vital to tourists also. When tourists first come to the U.S. and Bangladesh through JFK International airport or Shahjalal International Airport, their main desire is to go tour the biggest city in the nation. Shahjalal and JFK are the busiest airports of their respective countries’. There are elevated expressway systems for these two airports from different parts of Dhaka and New York City. The Air train to JFK make it possible for people to go to and come from Long Island, Brooklyn, and Manhattan, whereas, Dhaka Metro make it possible for people to go to and come from different parts of the city of Dhaka.

               

Despite all the similarities these cities have regarding transportation, they have many differences. One such difference is the general modes of transportation. The residents of the two cities use different vehicles to travel to their destinations. People in Dhaka look to rickshaws to travel small distances, while for longer distances, they rely on cars and scooters. New Yorkers rely on bikes or cars to travel short distances. You won’t see a rickshaw or a scooter travelling 5 miles per hour on the road in New York. To travel small distances, New Yorkers mainly walk, but in Dhaka no one walks to places because you are sure to encounter danger. Public transportation also differs in the two cities. New York City has an elaborate and efficient Metro Subway system. Dhaka does have railroads that travel from Chittagong to far away cities and railroads that travel from Kolkata and cross the border into Bangladesh, but they lack a localized Subway system. The two cities also have a public Bus system, but Dhaka’s bus system is not as organized as New York City’s. Females are rarely seen on the buses because the buses are packed and even have people riding on the roof. Receiving payment for the bus is much more difficult and the buses themselves are not in good condition compared to the clean and well regulated buses running in New York City.

The time it takes to travel to places in two cities differ. Both the cities are immensely populated, but it is much quicker to travel in New York City than it is to travel in Dhaka. It is impossible to travel anywhere in Dhaka without a car or a rickshaw which is why the roads are overcrowded and people are always stuck in heavy traffic. It takes an average of thirty minutes to travel approximately a mile in Dhaka by car. Rickshaws and scooters are man powered and so the speed of the traffic on the roads of Dhaka is really slow. However, even though they travel at slow speeds, people choose to travel by rickshaws and scooters because they are smaller in size and easy to squeeze between spaces in the road. Also, the cars avoid and give way to rickshaws and scooters because the wheels on them have really large sharp bolts that leave deep scratches on the body of a car. The only vehicles that are on the roads in New York City are cars and similar vehicles which can all travel at fast speeds. The bicycles have their own lane and do not have to share the road with the cars, which is why it is faster to travel in New York City than in Dhaka.

Traffic speeds in the two cities are also different due to laws. The laws in New York City are strictly enforced while the traffic laws in Dhaka are not. There are traffic lights in the major roads in Dhaka, but no one pays them any attention which leads to confusion on the roads. There are also police officers stationed at roads, but they are only present at the major intersections and don’t do much to assist the horrid traffic situations. In New York City, there are traffic lights and STOP signs stationed at every road to ensure safety and control traffic. There are hidden cameras that can capture drivers who run a red light. People who do not abide by the law face consequences in New York City, however in Dhaka, there seem to not be any consequences.

                Transportation is very important in these two major populated cities. Both cities have their positives and negatives in transporting people to different places, but both cities hold two of the biggest complex transportation systems of infrastructure in the world. They both have different rules and regulations regarding the system and multiple ways to get around while using similar vehicles and objects to do so.

My Event

On October 15^th I attended the annual Onam Celebration at the Knanaya Catholic Community Center in Rockland County. As the president had mentioned the celebration was a great success. The day started off with mass followed by a general body meeting. After the meeting there was food and numerous cultural programs that represented what Onam is all about.

Onam is an ancient festival which still survives even today. It celebrates the homecoming of the legendary Emperor Mahabali of Kerala. Onam is unique since Mahabali has been revered by the people of Kerala since prehistory. According to the legend, Kerala witnessed its golden era during the reign of King Mahabali. Everybody in the state was happy and prosperous and the king was highly regarded by his subjects. The emperor visited his people annually to see how everyone was doing. It is this visit of Mahabali that is celebrated as Onam every year. People celebrate the festival in a grand way and express their happiness towards  their King and wish him well.

In the beginning of the event, after the mass, I got to interview a female guest and asked her about Onam and what King Mahabali meant to her:

                        “What does Onam mean to you and how important is it to celebrate it here in the U.S. with your children who are not familiar with the customs of Onam?” I asked.

                        “Onam is a big part of me. I grew up celebrating it with my family and extended family and also neighbors. I used to decorate my front yard with “pookalam” (multi-colored floral decorations on the floor) with my friends. It used to be so much fun. I tried to do that here but the kids would just mess it up anyway. My children don’t like to come to these events as much but I make them because it is important for me and my husband that they learn more about their Indian culture. Coming to the event makes me very, very happy,” the guest explained.

                        “How did your town celebrate King Mahabali’s reign and did the event justify his importance?”

                        “Oh one of the uncles used to dress up as the King Mahabali with his big belly and unique beard. We used to have a parade in the city and there were actually more than one King Mahabali. The person who was dressed up as him used to wave to the crowd constantly and the crowd treated him like the real King, showering him with flowers when he would come into sight. Oh it was very nice. I miss the parades with my school too. The event also had an uncle impersonating King Mahabali. But it was not as fun as watching the King back home.”

                        “Are you enjoying so far”

                        “Yes I am!”    

On Saturday I saw a combination of a variety of activities that would be performed during Onam in the state of Kerala. A general body meeting was conducted after the catholic mass in malayalam was said. The meeting covered what the Knanaya Community accomplished during the last year and discussed what they hoped to accomplish in the next few months. Dinner was served afterwards. The women of the community conducted a traditional onam “sadya” (banquet). This is usually a feast served on banana leaves and serves rice along with at least an array of 4 dishes. But for the celebration we had plastic plates. Traditional pickles and papadam were also served. Dessert was “payasam”, a sweet dish made of milk, sugar and other traditional Indian savories. The cultural program, which was the highlight of the day, followed right after desert. The programs were performed by the people of the community and consisted of many traditional dances such as Thiruvadhira kali and Thumbi Tullal. Onam songs, which are collectively called Onappaattu, were also sung by a group of kids. Most of the onam songs are praising Emperor Mahabali.

I got to interview a male audience member after the cultural show:

“Did you have good time?”

“Yes, everything was wonderful!”

“How was the general body meeting?”

“Ahhh same old same old. Nothing new really.”

“How was the food? Did it remind you of your days in India when you celebrated Onam?”

“The Food was absolutely wonderful. They had everything and more of what I used to have in my home during Onam. The food and how everything was set up made me feel like I was in India right now celebrating Onam there.”

“How were the cultural programs?”

“They were superb! The Westchester group did the best. Their skit and dance really reflected not only Kerala but India. All the programs were enjoyable. I’m so sad everything ended so quickly. We should have this celebration go on for 3 or 4 days like they do in India.”

Many came out for this grand event. They got to experience the unique celebration of Onam and witness the colorful culture of Kerala, India. I and I assume everyone else learned about the Knanaya community through attending the general body meeting, taste great traditional Kerala food by attending the onam sadya, and witness the interesting and exciting Onam activities during the cultural programs.

Compare and Contrast

Poverty and paranoia are two states that a human can be in. Poverty is a state of life and paranoia is a state of mind. If you think about it one can lead to the other. Being in a state of both poverty and paranoia can be very upsetting for an individual. These are two states that no one would want to be in. Poverty and paranoia compare in that poverty is when a person is poor, one can be born into it or become poor, and a person in poverty is mentally normal; whereas a person who has paranoia may have decent amount of money, can have paranoia because of anxiety or fear, and a paranoid person is delusional. Poverty and Paranoia contrast in that two different people who are in these states can both be mentally lonely, in dire need of help, and simply can be very afraid.

An obvious contrasting point between poverty and paranoia is that a person who is in a state of poverty lacks money and a person who is in a state of paranoia can possess enough amount of money. When one is in a state of poverty, one lacks money to buy food, materials, and have a decent home. They might be hungry and be walking around in smelly clothes. Poor people might not receive a decent education either. Lacking money can mean that a person might not be able to put through his/her children through school and so would not have an opportunity to get out of the state of poverty through their children. People with paranoia may have plenty of money. People with paranoia can have money for food, material, a house, and other basic human needs that people in poverty are unable to obtain easily. People paranoid can even have enough money to get help.

A poor person can either be born into poverty if the person’s parents were poor or become poor at one point in the person’s life because of a tragic event. A paranoid person could have become paranoid because of anxiety or fear.

A poor person can be mentally normal and not have any psychiatric problems. The person may be thinking straight and is able to make decisions unless the person is so poor that it is too weak. A paranoid person can be mentally abnormal. She/he can be delusional.  Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself. In modern colloquial use, the term "paranoia" is sometimes misused to describe a phobia. The general lack of blame in phobia disorders sharply differentiates the two.

A person who is living in a state of poverty and a person who is paranoid can have similar traits. For example, both persons can feel extremely lonely inside. A poor person can be lonely because he has no family and has no one to share his situation with. Poverty can actually also mean loneliness. Mother Teresa once said, “The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the

feeling of being unloved.” Some even say that one can feel lonely in a room full of people. Paranoid people can also feel a sense of loneliness when people don’t understand what they are going through. Loneliness can also cause paranoia. When a person is lonely they can easily develop fears.
            Both persons can be in desperate need of help. Poor people obviously need people’s assistance to get them out of poverty. They need people to get them food, help them to get a job, and help them to live a decent environment especially if they have a family. Paranoid people need assistance to simply escape from the state of paranoia. Being driven by fear can make one crazy. They need help to overcome fear to escape from their delusional state of mind.
            Both persons can simply be very afraid on either what to do. Poor and paranoid peoples can reach a state where they wouldn’t know what to do. This can be very scary.
            As you can see, Poverty and Paranoia has its comparisons and contrasts. Poverty is the state of one who lacks a certain amount of material possessions or money. Paranoia is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by anxiety or fear, often to the point of irrationality and delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself. Poverty can lead to paranoia. When one is poor, he/she can develop certain fears while living in complete desolation and develop paranoia.

The New York Times and The New York Post

Staicy Matchanickal

There are many obvious differences and similarities between The New York Times and The New York Post. The New York Times is liberal and more serious, whereas The New York Post is conservative and is more of a tabloid. New York Times is more organized and is divided into more sections than the New York Post is. The New York Post is more colorful, meaning it has more pictures that are large in size. In The New York Times there are more words than pictures.  Some of the pages in the Times are lettered, whereas there are no lettered pages in the Post. The Times seems to be more bulky than the Post since each section for the Times is like its own newspaper in a way. The Post is considered to be more opinionated in general towards the end of the newspaper, especially since it has its own opinion section. The New York Times is not known for incorporating a lot of opinion based articles. The New York Post is known for its gossip section; page six, whereas the Times do not put much emphasis on the gossip that circulates around New York. The New York Post puts a lot of emphasis on the gossip in page six by writing articles about them in the beginning of the paper. Sometimes one of the gossip stories can be front page. The New York Times puts more emphasis on news and puts any gossip towards the end of their paper in short articles.

The similarities between the two newspapers are much more noticeable. For example, the two newspapers have similar news-based sections such as the sports, business, and international sections. Both also have non-news related sections like the horoscope, movie clock, food, weather, crosswords, comics, and su doku.

One similar story that both the October 12 New York Times and New Post has is about Joe Girardi and the focus on the Yankees pitching. The article in The New York Times is names, “Yankees’ Off-Season Again Focuses on Hunt for Front-Line Pitching”, wheras the article in the Post is named, “Joe Signals Great pitching not always needed.” Joe Girardi, the Yankees manager, talks about the Yankees failure to make it to the first round of the playoffs and what lies ahead for next year. The main point was that he Yankees would once again be in the market for a frontline pitcher. The article also discussed different players who would be eligible to come to the Yankees and who might be asked to leave or lave because they are free agents. The article in the New York Times was more factual compared to the article in the New York Post. Joel Sherman, the author of the article in the New York Post expressed mostly his opinion on which players should join the Yankees and which players should leave. One can tell the article was very opinionated when Sherman started the article off by saying, “Let’s begin in the most obvious place: It is far better to have great starting pitching than something less than that.” But then again the article seems much more interesting when the author incorporates some of his views and opinions on the topic being written about, like the New York Post does a lot.

The Advance for Covering an Event

On October 22^nd the Knanaya Catholic Community will be conducting their annual Onnam Celebration. The day will start off with mass followed by a general body meeting. After the meeting there will be food and numerous cultural programs that will represent what Onam is all about.

Onam is an ancient festival which still survives even today. It celebrates the homecoming of the legendary Emperor Mahabali of Kerala. Onam is unique since Mahabali has been revered by the people of Kerala since prehistory. According to the legend, Kerala witnessed its golden era during the reign of King Mahabali. Everybody in the state was happy and prosperous and the king was highly regarded by his subjects. The emperor visited his people annually to see how everyone was doing. It is this visit of Mahabali that is celebrated as Onam every year. People celebrate the festival in a grand way and impress upon their dear King that they are happy and wish him well.

In the state of Kerala the festival lasts for ten days and during these ten days Kerala’s cultural heritage comes out in its best form. The courtyards in front of the houses are filled with traditional “pookalam”, multi-colored floral decorations on the floor. Onam Pookkalam is considered as a symbol for secularism. There is a lot of traditional food, music, and dance. Also, during these few days, people wear the color white or wear “setti” clothes. The Vallamkali is the biggest event during Onam. It is a boat race where about 100 oarsmen row huge and graceful snake boats and men and women come from far and near to watch the snake boats skim through the water.

            On October 22^nd we will be seeing a combination of the variety of activities performed during Onam in the state of Kerala. A general body meeting will be conducted after a catholic mass in malayalam is said. The meeting will cover what the Knanaya Community accomplished during the last year and discuss what they hope to accomplish in the next few months. Dinner will be served afterwards. The women of the community will conduct a traditional onam “sadya” (banquet). This is usually a feast served on banana leaves and serves rice along with at least an array of 4 dishes. Traditional pickles and papadam are also served. Dessert is usually “payasam”, a sweet dish made of milk, sugar and other traditional Indian savories. The cultural program, which is the highlight of the day, will follow right after desert. The programs will be performed by the people of the community and will consist of many traditional dances such as Thiruvadhira kali and Thumbi Tullal. Onam songs, which are collectively called Onappaattu, will also be sung by a group of kids. Most of the onam songs are praising Emperor Mahabali.

            Everyone should come out for this grand event to experience the unique celebration of onam and witness the colorful culture of Kerala, India. One can learn about the Knanaya community through attending the general body meeting, taste great traditional Kerala food by attending the onam sadya, and witness the interesting and exciting onam activities during the cultural programs. I would be able to speak to the participants of the cultural program to inquire about what their experience was like preparing for these programs. I would also be able to speak to people of the community and the heads of the community to see what their experience is like attending the event and also ask them what it means to celebrate Onam in the U.S.

NOT A REAL OBITUARY-SCHOOL PROJECT

An Aspiring Doctor Dies in a Car Accident

          Staicy Matchanickal, an aspiring Doctor at Cornell University, died as a result of a car accident in Dobbs Ferry, New York. She was 27 years old.
          Matchanickal, a resident of Yonkers, was involved in a serious car accident during the big storm last Friday night. She was with her four friends, all of whom are in serious conditions. Staicy was able to spend at least twelve hours with her family before she passed away in St. John's Riverside Hospital Saturday morning.
          "She was a very hardworking and dedicated women," Steven Paul, a colleague of Staicy's at Lawrence Hospital where she did her residency, said. "Staicy was always a very warm person who cared about her patients very much. She never left the patient's room without leaving a smile on their faces."
          A memorial service is planned for her on Friday at 5 p.m. at St. John the Baptist Church in Yonkers. There will be a mass afterwards also in Malayalam.
          Matchanickal was born in Yonkers, New York. She attended School 17 and Museum Middle School as her secondary schools. She graduated Maria Regina High School in June 2011 and entered Cornell University's pre-med program. She is supposed to graduate with a PhD in May 2021.
          Staicy married her long time boyfriend Jason George, a doctor, in the summer of 2019.
          Staicy was an active member of her Knanaya Catholic Church in Rockland. She taught religious education and was a real leader. In school Staicy was on the soccer team and was active in numerous clubs and organizations.
          "I always thought she would be the next Marta of the U.S. and set up her own soccer school and go all over the world teaching under privileged kids how to play the sport." Geena Patel, Staicy's high school friend, said.
          But Staicy's real passion was to help people. She always knew that she wanted to be a doctor ever since she started volunteering at Lawrence Hospital in high school. She loved being there for the patients when their families weren't around to witness their pain. Staicy enjoyed seeing them recover and go home peacefully. Most importantly she loved to make people smile.
          Matchanickal is survived by her daughter, Jessica; her two sisters, Sheena and Syna; her parents and her husband.
          Staicy's family requests that flowers be sent to St. Peter's Memorial Hall and that contributions be sent to the Matchanickal foundation.

         

Advertisement Dissection and Analysis

The advertisement says “Be bad. Snack well." According to the advertisement, the saying means that if one eats the snack advertised, then one is able to have the fit and fabulous body to have a fun and bad time as shown in the picture. The advertisement shows a girl standing on top of the guy’s back. The people in the image look like they are fun being on top of each other. The picture suggests that the couple is very intimate and is happy and having a lot of fun. The girl is wearing a short shirt and underwear, whereas the guy seems to be either wearing just underwear or nothing at all. The people in the advertisement seems like they had just met the night before and were attracted by each other and so decided to go to one of their apartments and get together.
The advertisement has a bed, pillows, white sheets, and a snack box. The objects are associated with the present. I can recognize a city's skyline through the windowsill, which suggests that they are in an apartment room. The advertisement is selling Snackwell's White Fudge Drizzled Caramel Popcorn at 130 calories. What is most interesting about this advertisement is that when the ad is supposed to be selling a healthy snack, the ad seems like it can be promoting birth control items or underclothing.

English Assignment

High School is when one must experience life outside of home. Experiences such as going to house parties, taking a train out to the city, watching a movie with friends almost every weekend, meeting up with guys very late in the night, and the list goes on. Having such experiences was not an easy task to take on since I have many responsibilities that come with being the eldest child. But one weekend in Philadelphia made me feel like all the other seniors in high school.

My older cousin took three other people and me to Philadelphia saying that we would just go to attend Phillyfest, which was basically an Indian dance competition.   I was very much interested since I studied dance for thirteen years. I was totally unaware of the fact that my cousin and the other three kids had an entirely different agenda and that I would be fine with being a part of it. Within the first night itself of reaching Philli, all five of us and three other college kids had gone to a Fraternity party and had tried to get into a club. I had the time of my life! I went on an entirely new and exciting adventure where no parents were around to tell me what time to get home at. We had as much fun as we could and came back as late as we could. I definitely took my time that weekend to my full advantage. The second night was even better. We all went to a hotel room to party with other kids from our church. But the night got a little crazy when a few of the kids got wasted. The receptionist at the hotel threatened to call the police if we didn’t leave immediately. I definitely didn’t want my night to get spoiled so I gave her $60 bucks so she would not call the police. To my surprise she refused and said that she will put me in jail if my friends and I did not leave immediately. I was so embarrassed. We left before the receptionist could continue to threaten us even more. I soon realized that I took my freedom to a whole new level where for a moment I seemed to have forgotten my roots.