Dear Members,

There is, I know something very special about receiving post and having letters delivered by the mailman. The physical evidence of a desired communication is a feeling that cannot be replaced by the electronic media that many of us are comfortable with and consider as a matter-of-course today. But in defense of the not-so-new-age media - emails, text messages, networking sites, twitter and its entire ilk is the ability it gives us to create an instant communication.

You ‘think’ of writing to someone and it is done! No hunting for paper, pens, envelopes & postage, no need to dress up and step out to buy the supplies you don’t have at home ….. no delays.  Of course you need to switch on your computer and connect the modem. But that is easily overcome – we simply just keep the machine on and thanks to broadband – we also keep the modem on all the time J. The only true hiccup in this instant “think it and it is done world” is erratic power supply. Damn. ….(and I know you will pardon my French)… Damn again. There just had to be something to make it all so very painful huh! But hey! Lets just blame it on the rain or lack of it and be done with that and keep the inverters on all the time!  And O... today’s mobile phones ensure I can text, read my e-mails, respond to emails and be connected to friends all the time! Amazing is it not!!

A while ago we started a UWA yahoo group – which allowed us to email all members of the UWA (who are on email) without having to check if we had inadvertently left anyone out of the “To” list. This has helped a great deal in sharing thoughts, news, updates and in connecting members and bringing members together (albeit in the virtual world). We hope to further this connect soon by also have a website that allows for members to share their views with the world at large as well.

Even as I urge those of you who have not yet shared your email ids with us and those of you who have not yet created your virtual thumb-impression; I know I will face resistance. But I can’t blame you – for I do know of the anticipation of opening a mailbox, the joy of finding a letter and seeing your name printed on the front, the tactile pleasure of having pages unfold and visual delight of seeing words jump out at you and then dance madly in your head. But hey hold on a moment - Would you not like to know what’s happening at UWA and have your say too ... the very instant you think it? Think about it!

Having said that, I have compiled here for you some of the latest emails and notices that have gone out to the UWA Members email group. Bear with me... I am not able to share this with you “real-time” ... the reasons for that have already been cited and acknowledged.  Further it also turns out to being rather expensive. Don’t feel slighted, don’t feel left behind….don’t be upset that you are missing out on the exchanges, the responses, the banter and cheering that typically follows a mail sent to all. You do miss out on the funny emails, jokes and perk-me-up messages that members share with each other on the list. Try not to dwell on that and instead try and feel included and know that you have been updated. And O… you can do one more thing: get yourself an Email id and get registered with the UWA BANGALORE members mailing list!

Cheers & regards!

The UWA Thrift Shop Opens                    19-Feb-2010

Folks,

A slight change in plans:  The thrift shop will open the following Saturday.

Saturday 27th Feb 2010 from 4.00 to 5.00 PM

Sunday  28th Feb from 10.30 to 1.00 PM

This change is to make it convenient for members who will anyway be attending the hostel day celebrations to also visit the shop. Please do tell people who you think might be interested to visit our shop.

As shared with you earlier, there is stuff that might interest members too!

Come visit the shop and save the planet even as you spend some money on interesting gifts and household articles!

Cheers!

THRIFT SHOP OPENS                                17-Feb-2010

We have decide to open the thrift shop on:

Saturday 20th Feb 2010 from 4.30 PM to 6.30 PM and again on Sunday 21st Feb 2010 from 10.30 AM to 1.00 PM

We are looking for volunteers to help man shop!

Please do mail/ call me.

Thanks!

Saritha

An Appeal for Doctors                               17-Feb-2010

We are looking to have a doctor to provide consultancy free-of-charge or at a nominal rate in our premises i.e. the hostel in SR Nagar on a weekly / fortnightly basis. It will be a great service to our residents. The residents are typically in the hostel after 7 Pm most days, and are back earlier on Saturdays. Most of them have the day off from work on Sundays.

We are looking preferably for a GP, a gynecologist, and a psychologist / counselor.

Thanks in advance!

Regards

Nalini Rao takes over as Events Secretary                           16-feb-2010

Dear Members,                       

It takes me great pleasure to inform you all that Nalini Rao has volunteered to take over as events secretary for UWAB.

Some of you may be aware that last year this time, Dr. Nalini Rao kick-started our attempts to have frequent events with a talk on Breast Cancer. 

She joined the managing committee of the UWAB last year.  Those of you who have met her, will know her to be not just friendly and articulate, but very very approachable and warm.

Nalini is known to get people talking, get people together and foster long-term positive relationships.

It is a wonderful thing that she has taken on the mantle for organizing events that will have us meeting periodically.

If any of you have any suggestions for events, talks, conferences, suggestions for speakers etc etc., please do mail Nalini at nkrao@hotmail.com

Urging you all to support and aid Nalini in making UWA of Bangalore a vibrant organization with frequent thought-provoking activities and events!

Regards

Saritha

Hon. Secretary, UWAB.

UPDATE ON THE  “GARAGE SALE”        9 Feb 2010

Dear Members,

Thanks for the contributions of clothes, electronics, household wares, children's books, toys, shoes etc etc etc. It took us quite some time to get a hang of how to handle the sorting, cataloguing and presentation for the sale.

Before I say more  - I must thank LAVANYA ARUL who has been most enthusiastic and extremely generous with he time and efforts in getting the shop on its feet. Her drive and doggedness was much required!

I also thank SONALI BHATTACHARJEE - who has been very innovative and has managed to get part of the outside of the hostel painted free of cost. The scrubbing and face-lift will make our shop that much more attractive!

I am happy to share that we have now got in place a fairly decent "THRIFT SHOP".  We have occupied the room next to the computer center entrance for the same. Articles are priced in the range of Rs. 10 to Rs. 150. As soon as we fix the date for the opening of the same, I will inform you all, so you can inform your home and office staff. As shared with you earlier, we hope to make this a regular affair. Whether it will take on the form of a weekly or monthly market will depend on the supply and quality of items we receive as donations.

We also received a fair amount of high-value items which we intend to have priced appropriately and opened out to either an auction or an on-going sale in what we could call a "GIFT SHOP" . I will mail you details of that as soon as it is fixed. The articles here range from old LPs with a player, to Nirmal Paintings, porcelain figurines, world war 2 memorabilia, first day covers and so much more. We hope that sale of items from the "Gift Shop" will help us buy bricks and help build the new hostel.

Even while I thank you all for your contributions....... I have a few specific items that I request you all to delve into your homes, hearths and hearts and contribute to the thrift shop, the UWA office, the SR nagar hostel and the new hostel project. Please do find the same listed below. If you do have items on these lines, please do take the effort to send it across to the UWA office. Thanks in advance. :-)

a. Hangers to display clothes in the thrift shop

b. Sarees for sale in the thrift shop (an initial feeler to potential customers gave us feedback that they would be most interested in buying sarees - cotton, synthetic, silk etc etc). Interestingly we did not have a single saree in our shop!!

c. Upholstery cloth or old but sturdy curtains to stitch cushion covers for the office furniture

d. A small writing desk & chair

e. Mixier-grinder for the hostel kitchen

f. Door mats

g. A filing cabinet for the UWA office

h. Wooden planks to make shelves

i. The services of a carpenter

j. Flower pots (with and without plants)

k. Children's toys and games for the thrift shop

l. Anything else that you think we can sell in the shop (thermos flasks, vases, paintings, crockery, utensils etc etc

Thanks again!

Looking forward to a simple and effective opening of the shop in the very very near future!

With warm regards

Saritha

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