Lotus Blooms Again in Tasik Chini

Tucked away in a quiet corner of the Malaysian state of Pahang lies Tasik Chini and once upon a time, the entire surface of the lake was covered by the Sacred Lotus Nelumbo nucifera.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 Flower and receptacle of the Sacred Lotus

 

The lotus plants are still around although they no longer rule over the lake as before.

 

The iconic plants nearly died out due to the heavy water flow from Sungai Pahang that occurred during the massive floods last year – that's because they cannot survive being submerged for a very long time.

 

But the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia and the Forestry Department came to their rescue and they embarked on a replanting program. Slowly but surely, the lotus plants are blooming again.

 

FRIM ecohydrologist Mohd Ghazali Hasan explained that the method of rehabilitation was to transplant lotus plants from other areas to the lake. For example, they harvested lotus shoots from the Sekinchan paddy fields in Selangor and within two months of being placed in a nursery, they would have grown anew. And then they were moved to Tasik Chini. 

 

The Star featured the story yesterday (page 31). And it is comforting to know that we still value the natural environment and when it is threatened, we are equally capable of fixing up the imperiled ecosystem.

 

On Thursday, at the Sunway University Toastmasters meeting, I took up the job of Table Topics Evaluator. A good session of impromptu speaking. So too the assignment speeches and evaluations. In fact, this Club’s meetings are almost always awesome!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Still, we were sixty seconds late in starting the meeting and we finished thirteen minutes behind schedule. One of those days, I suppose. I would award this meeting a 4.5 over 10.

The Baltimore Batman

Leonard B. Robinson visited a hospital in Charleston, West Virginia, USA on August 15, 2014. Credit Kenny Kemp/The Charleston Gazette, via Associated Press
        

A fifty-one year old businessperson who lighted up the lives of thousands of sick children with his impersonation of Batman for more than a decade was hit by a car and killed on Sunday on a highway in western Maryland, USA.

 

The man’s real name was not Bruce Wayne, but Leonard B Robinson, a father of three adult children from Owings Mills, near Baltimore in Maryland. For years he visited hospitals, schools and charity events dressed as the Dark Knight to everyone’s delight. He even gave out thousands of dollars worth of gifts and books and signed autographs as “Batman”.

 

The police said Robinson was having engine trouble and had pulled over on Interstate 70 to look under the hood of his Batmobile, a custom-made black Lamborghini decked out with the superhero’s insignia. He was standing on the car’s passenger side, which was still partly in the fast lane, when he was struck by a Toyota Camry that sideswiped the vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

 

The driver of the Camry was not injured and no charges were filed against him, the police said.

 

Robinson gained national attention in 2012 after a dash-cam video of him being stopped by Montgomery County police in Silver Spring, Maryland, went viral. He was pulled over for failing to display a license plate, but the officers, who were amused by the encounter, promptly let him go without a ticket so that he would not be late to an event at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital.

 

The video has been watched more than a million times on YouTube alone. (1,099,546 views at 10:45 AM today).

Video by Montgomery County Police Department

“When we replay the traffic-stop video, we smile and laugh, fondly remembering the day that MCP met a real superhero”, the Montgomery County Police Department said in a statement. “We hope that the Dark Knight’s bright light shines on”.

 

Robinson, who made a fortune building a cleaning business that he later sold, began masquerading as the Dark Knight in 2001 to cater to an obsession of his youngest son. The boy grew up, but the role grew on Robinson, who became known variously as the Route 29 Batman, Beltway Batman and Baltimore Batman.

 

“Eventually, it sinks in and you become him”, he told The Washington Post in 2012. “It feels like I have a responsibility that’s beyond a normal person. And that responsibility is to be there for the kids, to be strong for them, and to make them smile as much as I can”.

 

Robinson worked closely with Hope for Henry, a charity that throws superhero parties in hospitals and was founded by a couple whose son died from a rare blood disorder. “Our superhero, Lenny B. Robinson, is gone”, the charity said on Facebook on Monday. “So, so sad”.

 

He reminds me of how even the smallest things we do can bring a positive payoff. Rest in peace, friend!

A Safety Briefing

WestJet flight attendant Michael McAdam acts out a flamboyantly dramatic interpretation of the required pre-flight safety briefing. And he had the entire plane in stitches!

 

 

What a great way to make us pay attention! Way to go Westjet!

 

Scope Toastmasters Club had their Installation Dinner on Friday and also celebrated their fifth anniversary. A fun evening!

 

Thanks for the invite.

Parody Rap Against Unilever

One way to protest irresponsible environmental practices is by using the medium of rap music.

 

In India, corporate giant Hindustan Unilever found themselves pitted against an unlikely opponent last week: a YouTube video titled Kodaikanal Won't, modelled on Nicki Minaj's hit song Anaconda.

 

The video called out the company for allegedly dumping toxic mercury in the soil and the water in Kodaikanal, a city in southern India in 2001. Fourteen years later, Unilever have still done nothing to clean up the contamination and compensate their workers and families. But forty-five people have died and more than five hundred people were adversely affected.

 

The song was written and performed by Chennai-born rapper Sofia Ashraf and set to Nicki Minaj's “Anaconda”. 

The video attracted over two million views and the protest rap caught the attention of both local and international media – more so, when Minaj responded on Twitter with a “shout out”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Image credit: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-33815254

 

The company shouldn’t pretend the issue didn’t exist – regretfully, they came out with a lame statement saying that safety is their "number one priority". They even claimed that studies showed there had been "no adverse impact" on Kodaikanal's environment, except in some of the factory premises.

 

Unilever are in denial. They talk big about corporate social responsibility but you and I know that this is nothing but a big lie!

 

I should do my part even if I am in Malaysia. Boycott Unilever products – until they (1) express remorse and (2) take remedial action!

 

Image credit: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/9821936/Unilever-warns-of-challenging-decade-in-Europe.html

 

On Monday, I was at the Sime Darby Healthcare Toastmasters meeting. Sure, there were only eight of us but we still had a decent meeting. And I delivered CC #9 – my first speech in nearly two weeks! I would score this meeting a 5.5 over 10.

 

 

Dolly Parton is Flattered by Tribute

Country legend Dolly Parton (left) is flattered that there are so many drag queens who dress like her. The singer is one of the most successful country musicians of all time – and it’s not a shock that some people want to be just like Dolly.

 

The star – whose gay icon status was cemented when she appeared in “9 to 5” opposite Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin – has become a popular target for female impersonators and drag artists.

 

Addressing the boom in queens modelling themselves on her peroxide blonde hair, eye-catching make-up and costume jewellery, she added: “Be totally accepting.”

 

Dolly told The Times Magazine: “…There’s a lot of Dolly drag queens out there, and I’m always flattered by that.”

 

On Saturday afternoon, I was at Sunway University for the Division P 'Club Officer Training 1' – a Toastmasters Leadership Institute (TLI) program.

 

A successful event if I may say so – if we measure it in terms of attendance. The venue can only hold 120 persons but on that day, it was overflowing so much so that even the aisles were encroached. Toastmasters from Division P came in full force and there were also Toastmasters from Divisions B, C, D, J and W and even one representative from a club in the US of A.

 

A really good session!