ive been in washington for over a year...
new ideas/work/projects.
coming soon.
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
28 May 2010
14 February 2009
wadi bandar
wadi bandar.
250 households.
@ 5 people/house.
1 working pipe.
[non-working spaghetti pipes throughout]
entrance from street
north lane with spaghetti pipes
1 public tap/@ 10 households.
1 shared private tap.
public toilet facility under construction.
directly adjacent to railway water tank, no service.
less than 100 meters to well source, non drinking supply.
less than 500 meters from the bhandarwada hill reservoir, no service.
250 households.
@ 5 people/house.
1 working pipe.
[non-working spaghetti pipes throughout]
entrance from street
north lane with spaghetti pipes
1 public tap/@ 10 households.
1 shared private tap.
public toilet facility under construction.
directly adjacent to railway water tank, no service.
less than 100 meters to well source, non drinking supply.
less than 500 meters from the bhandarwada hill reservoir, no service.
water/works
manual and generator powered sluice gates.guardians of a system that has not changed much in the last 100 years.
13 February 2009
sauter st
apna chawl.
240 households.
@ 6-10 family members/house.
1 pipe.
[120 each side, south side has connections in house]
looking west
looking east
1 public tap.
6 toilet stalls @ rs.2/use.
directly adjacent to byculla fire station.
240 households.
@ 6-10 family members/house.
1 pipe.
[120 each side, south side has connections in house]
looking west
looking east
1 public tap.
6 toilet stalls @ rs.2/use.
directly adjacent to byculla fire station.
12 February 2009
make my trip
this past week ive somehow slipped into a pattern that goes something like this:
browse flight itineraries.
choose a convenient and income sensitive flight.
book said flight.
find out that the flight is not acceptable.
immediately cancel flight.
try to re-book another flight.
'sorry miss, your credit card is declined'.
call creditcard.
discover that card is locked due to unusual activity.
assure customer service that the charges are indeed authorized.
try to re-book, declined again.
call creditcard.
re-assure that charges are authorized and the card is safely in my possession.
once card is re-activated, repeat sequence above, as many times as needed.
im on itinerary number three now, after hours on the phone with the travel agent, numerous emails regarding flight reimbursement feasibility, and at least 4 calls to my credit card company.
flight sequence #1 was denied due to a funny little stipulation in my grant contract called the 'fly america act'. sorry emirates, you lose. i need to have american flight codes on all my boarding passes. this is more difficult that it sounds.
flight sequence #2 was denied because the american carrier on the reservation failed to issue tickets to the agent.
flight sequence #3 will hopefully go through tomorrow after approximately two more calls to my creditcard issuer to assure them that yes, i really am charging three flights out of bombay in one week, and no, my card has not been stolen, and yes, i am expecting a refund of the cancelled itineraries, and no, i dont need anything else except for my card to work as soon as possible. and yes, i am in india right now.
maybe i should just stay?
except that the only thing more unpleasant right now would be trying to extend my visa with less than two weeks left.
flight sequence #3 has now been officially nixed, as contrary to opinion of the travel agent, air india and american airlines do not code share.
flight sequence #4 is out. klm and northwest are not the same airline. im outsourcing the project to my father now.
browse flight itineraries.
choose a convenient and income sensitive flight.
book said flight.
find out that the flight is not acceptable.
immediately cancel flight.
try to re-book another flight.
'sorry miss, your credit card is declined'.
call creditcard.
discover that card is locked due to unusual activity.
assure customer service that the charges are indeed authorized.
try to re-book, declined again.
call creditcard.
re-assure that charges are authorized and the card is safely in my possession.
once card is re-activated, repeat sequence above, as many times as needed.
im on itinerary number three now, after hours on the phone with the travel agent, numerous emails regarding flight reimbursement feasibility, and at least 4 calls to my credit card company.
flight sequence #1 was denied due to a funny little stipulation in my grant contract called the 'fly america act'. sorry emirates, you lose. i need to have american flight codes on all my boarding passes. this is more difficult that it sounds.
flight sequence #2 was denied because the american carrier on the reservation failed to issue tickets to the agent.
flight sequence #3 will hopefully go through tomorrow after approximately two more calls to my creditcard issuer to assure them that yes, i really am charging three flights out of bombay in one week, and no, my card has not been stolen, and yes, i am expecting a refund of the cancelled itineraries, and no, i dont need anything else except for my card to work as soon as possible. and yes, i am in india right now.
maybe i should just stay?
except that the only thing more unpleasant right now would be trying to extend my visa with less than two weeks left.
flight sequence #3 has now been officially nixed, as contrary to opinion of the travel agent, air india and american airlines do not code share.
flight sequence #4 is out. klm and northwest are not the same airline. im outsourcing the project to my father now.
11 February 2009
north of town
or where ive been for the last two weeks.
current e ward development plan map
e ward office holding pen
current e ward development plan map
e ward office holding pen
08 February 2009
less than twenty
plane tickets are booked, my visa is expiring, and i am leaving on the 25th of february.
the anxiety is not unfamiliar. i remember feeling a little like this about a year ago.
im excited to see familiar things, people i miss, and places ive forgotten.
at the same time confused and sad to go.
im not sure where home is, if its here, or there, or both, or someplace yet to be discovered.
until then, there should be enough time to figure out how to get out of the country in a somewhat organized way, finish as much work as possible, drink some good chai, and go for a few more bike rides.
in whatever order makes most sense.
28 January 2009
24 January 2009
city/village
highlights from a three day conference on 'innovations in the water sector'.* in progress
15 January 2009
technical difficulties
fixed!
(well, tech support was not so supportive, but things seem to be working now, at least as far as the online giving page).
please look it over, if you can spare some extra change, it will go a very very long way!
HELP BUILD CARE
the rest im still working on. 4 days to go, not sure how this will pan out. ive been a little consumed with deadlines, and entirely ignorant of any suggested training. and heatwave? for real, its still hitting 90 deg here daytime.
but no more excuses. while i may not beat p.diddy's nyc marathon time, i will finish, i can promise that. and yes, id like to raise some money, have a good time, and enjoy the company and the run. this is my first, and will not be my last.
its the home stretch, in more ways than one.
(well, tech support was not so supportive, but things seem to be working now, at least as far as the online giving page).
please look it over, if you can spare some extra change, it will go a very very long way!
HELP BUILD CARE
the rest im still working on. 4 days to go, not sure how this will pan out. ive been a little consumed with deadlines, and entirely ignorant of any suggested training. and heatwave? for real, its still hitting 90 deg here daytime.
but no more excuses. while i may not beat p.diddy's nyc marathon time, i will finish, i can promise that. and yes, id like to raise some money, have a good time, and enjoy the company and the run. this is my first, and will not be my last.
its the home stretch, in more ways than one.
23 December 2008
hiatus
the elephants, and this blog, have been on hiatus since the end of september.
im going to attempt to catch up and fill-in-the-gaps (by way of post-dating, and finishing drafts started) upon return to mumbai on 29.12.08.
happy holidays.
im going to attempt to catch up and fill-in-the-gaps (by way of post-dating, and finishing drafts started) upon return to mumbai on 29.12.08.
happy holidays.
31 October 2008
progress check
a lot has been done, planned, scheduled, and thought about over the last month (and more), and finally there seems to light at the end of a very hazy tunnel.
or at least a clarity of structure to the remaining work and things-to-do.
some ideas:
some pictures:
some inspiration:
and some fun stuff from this book of maps.
in another week i leave for delhi, to meet my parents for a quick trip in a world they have never seen. shortly after that, there is a conference in ahmedabad, and then it will be december. its amazing how time flies, and i am very conscious of the fact that without the extension, i would be headed home in 6 weeks.
im grateful for the reminder, at the same time realizing that in so many ways, id like to stay, i want to stay. ive become fond of this place.
so back to work it is.
or at least a clarity of structure to the remaining work and things-to-do.
some ideas:
some pictures:
some inspiration:
and some fun stuff from this book of maps.
in another week i leave for delhi, to meet my parents for a quick trip in a world they have never seen. shortly after that, there is a conference in ahmedabad, and then it will be december. its amazing how time flies, and i am very conscious of the fact that without the extension, i would be headed home in 6 weeks.
im grateful for the reminder, at the same time realizing that in so many ways, id like to stay, i want to stay. ive become fond of this place.
so back to work it is.
05 September 2008
power points
(16 august)
ive been powerpointing for the last zillion and a half hours.
this is the third consecutive weekend in the office.
just a friendly reminder from the greasy sandwich stall down the street as to why:
our lunchtime snack came wrapped in an import berthing chart for the port trust. so much for lunch. after staring at charts and figures and maps of the place ive sort of lost my appetite.
24 July 2008
busywork.
so this next month will be a slight change of pace, and shift in focus. (although its part of a transition already in place). my host org has some events coming up that will hopefully encourage a public discourse on development issues concerning mumbai's eastern waterfront. the eastern waterfront was a site for a studio class in graduate school, one of my favorites, and in many ways, the reason i am in mumbai today.
the debate on what to do with 1800 acres of under-used land (owned by the bombay port trust, and largest continuous open land area in the island city), has been in and out of the media, interest group propaganda, public events for almost a decade. the key players are developers, port representatives, bureaucrats, preservationists and environmentalists, as well as academic institutions (the site has been the target of student focus over the years).
and i should also add local residents, but unfortunately they are rarely invited, or even notified of these supposedly public fora. and not that many people live there, as the land is honestly sparsely developed.
there are compelling arguments on all sides.
im looking forward to it.
the debate on what to do with 1800 acres of under-used land (owned by the bombay port trust, and largest continuous open land area in the island city), has been in and out of the media, interest group propaganda, public events for almost a decade. the key players are developers, port representatives, bureaucrats, preservationists and environmentalists, as well as academic institutions (the site has been the target of student focus over the years).
and i should also add local residents, but unfortunately they are rarely invited, or even notified of these supposedly public fora. and not that many people live there, as the land is honestly sparsely developed.
there are compelling arguments on all sides.
im looking forward to it.
sirens and clouds.
after a long hiatus, the clouds are back.
not recurring were the morning sirens, a sound i dont remember hearing in mumbai before. its strange not to hear what i would normally consider to be a fairly standard city noise. then again, this is not the standard city.
anyway, on a moderately related tangent, the disaster management plan for individual wards of mumbai, and the city whole, can be looked over here.
its an interesting read, defining areas of probable flooding, population situated in land slide zones, water timings, and solid waste disposal networks.
ive only witnessed a fire truck in action once, and have never seen a police vehicle in hot pursuit, except in movies. i honestly dont know how an ambulance would get through the traffic here. all of which makes the term 'disaster' somehow relative.
its a rain boot kind of day.
not recurring were the morning sirens, a sound i dont remember hearing in mumbai before. its strange not to hear what i would normally consider to be a fairly standard city noise. then again, this is not the standard city.
anyway, on a moderately related tangent, the disaster management plan for individual wards of mumbai, and the city whole, can be looked over here.
its an interesting read, defining areas of probable flooding, population situated in land slide zones, water timings, and solid waste disposal networks.
ive only witnessed a fire truck in action once, and have never seen a police vehicle in hot pursuit, except in movies. i honestly dont know how an ambulance would get through the traffic here. all of which makes the term 'disaster' somehow relative.
its a rain boot kind of day.
