Flag at half-mast on Thursday

Adeel  Ahmed of Class XI

Carlyle McFarland (on facebook Wednesday, August 22, 2012)

Distressing News

Adeel Ahmed, a Humanities pupil of Class 11 died in a drowning accident in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, while visiting for Umra. His friends and teachers are devastated.
Adil had been a resident-scholar for some time and was a day-scholar more recently. Ironically, he was known to be a good swimmer.
The College flag is flying at half-mast today and will be flying at half-mast tomorrow. There will be a special Memorial Service at 7.45 a.m.. Classes shall remain suspended as a mark of respect. Teachers and resident-scholars shall be attending the Service. Day-scholars are free to join.
Pray for the repose of his soul and for his heart-broken parents.

Kenneth Jude Taylor

Recently got in touch with a school friend after more than forty years. Kenny Taylor was a great friend in school who moved on as everyone does. While all my methods to trace him, even through the internet, failed he came across my email address and contacted me. I was disturbed to hear that he had been to Lucknow twice over the years, the second time just 18 months ago and didn't even think of the possibility that I've not moved anywhere...

The Mart

Sunday, July 1 boarders return after the summer holidays.

Testing address

The Mart June 4, 2012

Naini Tal May 2012

May 2012 was my first visit to Naini Tal and I wasn't disappointed though the reports of overcrowding etc was right. This picture was taken Sunday, May 13 morning on a walk up to St Josephs. My son, Glenn and I decided to take a walk since the rest of the family were not properly awake. This was Glenn's second visit since he had been here 3 or 4 years back.

Hillside garbage

Garbage seems to be a big problem here as is the case in the plains. When we were maybe half a kilometer down hill from the building (top pic) on could make out paper, lots of it, and other material burning on the hillside. I don't know whether there is a better solution but that wasn't a very welcoming sight!

Naini Tal May 12-16, 2012

This was my first visit to Naini Tal. Our family, two daughters and their husbands and three little boys, my son, wife and myself made up a group of ten. It was great fun! I'd head about the over-crowding, the vehicular traffic - buses, two-wheelers and four-wheeler. There were lots but there was seldom a trafficjam for long. It seemed to sort itself out in no time.
There is no doubt that the hills have lost a lot of their green cover, one reason, I guess, for the landslides at several spots all the way up from Kathgodam railway station. Some of these spots looked very frightening, massive rocks that appeared ready to roll down anytime. Road repairs appear to be an on-going process. At one point on the way up there were several men looking down below the road. The taxi driver said a bus had gone over the day before. I don't think that type of news would help promote tourism in the hills!

Ingrid McLeod MP 'insulted'

Raipur:
An Anglo Indian parliamentarian has accused the Congress party and its
general secretary Rahul Gandhi of insulting Catholics and her
community after she was unceremoniously ousted from a stage.

Ingrid Mcleod has pledged never to attend Gandhi's programs again
after she was asked to get off a stage where Gandhi was seated in
Raipur on Saturday.

Mcleod, who belongs to Chhattisgarh and is one of two nominated
members of the Anglo-Indian community in the Lok Sabha, lower house of
parliament. After the incident, she resigned her posts in the party's
state unit.

She described the treatment meted out to her as an "insult" for all
Catholics and Anglo-Indians across the country.

Mcleod went to the dais during a training session for Congress
functionaries. However, B K Hariprasad, who heads the Congress party
in Chhattisgarh, asked her to get off.

The 43-year-old parliamentarian did not protest, but later met Gandhi.

Mcleod's husband Rodney Mcleod said his wife complained to the
Congress general secretary about Hariprasad's "rude behaviour," Gandhi
ignored her. "Instead, he said it was he who had told Hariprasad to
tell her to get off the dias.
Georgie's Musings: I feel that Rahul Gandhi should have himself
politely told Ms McLeod that it wasn't the appropriate time/place to
meet him, however, if there were others who 'ignored protocol' as she
was accused of doing and got away with it then her anger is justified.

Snooty A-I leaders
Georgie's Musings: I have no doubt that there are 'honorable' men and
women from the Anglo-Indian community who are nominated to represent
the community but there are also those who behave rather uppish and
are hard to contact once they become members of state assemblies or
parliament.
Several years ago a community member who had a problem where police
help was required, was told by the A-I MLA : I cannot help you, I am
only concerned with education.' I know of MLAs who encourage social
meets/functions where a pic or two are taken and sent to the A-I
central 'leadership' for inclusion in the Anglo-Indian 'Review'
(magazine) that most of the community never even receive. The
so-called leader after making an appearance moves on to another party
where scotch and champagne flow...

(to be concluded)

The Band Pavilion (1890)

The Band Pavilion (1890) has crumbled. Let's hope it can be restored as it could be put to use once the surrounding grounds are made usable. The bricks are stronger than the ones used today. (May 5, 2012)

The Washies

 Friday, May 4, 2012. Happy to find clearing work is taking place behind the washies (swimming pools) that had become a dumping ground for garbage and debris over the past decades.

The missing (altar) stone

Many years ago there was a marble stone that said the spot in the picture is where the first altar was constructed in the early 1800s. Years later I discovered that the stone was missing. Now this is history! What happened to the stone? I asked the Parish pastor. He told me he had it and would have it put back. That was about ten years ago. A person who has a blog on churches informed me he will look it. Let's hope the stone comes back.

All Saints Garrison Church, Lucknow Cantt

A beautiful church with a very small congregation, big neglected compound, bushes and wild trees (not in the pic). Is this place waiting for landgrabbers? Christ Church, near the GPO, doesn't seem to function as an open church thought it is used on Sundays. When McConaghy School moved from Lalbagh, Lucknow to the Christ Church compound the name changed to Christ Church  School which makes sense. This is a long, sad story!

Lat22.04.12

April 18.2012

This is looking towards the golf club. The bushes still has to be cleared here. (Boy in pic is Aden Mac, my grandson)

Bushes cleared!

April 14.2012-- The Martiniere grounds on the village side of the road, that was a part of the golf course had fallen into disuse over the past three decades and had literally become a forest of bushes, used as  a toilet by the villagers and others. It has been since the pic was taken, cleared and levelled.

Mon Ap16.12

Clearing brushes

April 6.2012

Mazar

After the rubble, garbage and bushes were cleared.

Ap6.2012

LMC Ap6.2012

Cornwallis House Rugby team

Rugby team: Standing left is Anklesaria, (?), Patrick Nijjer, Sobti ?, Admiral Wheeler, Roger, (?), Lionel Coulter. Kneeling: (?), John Isaacson, Desmond Carlisle, (?) and 'Gorgo' Dhillon. I feel real bad that I cannot name some of the boys.



 Below are Clayton Roberts and Denzil Simeon with Mrs Betty Dignum

Relay team with Mr E. Tuck

'Dhabloos' Nigam, Allan Baker, Robert Jordan and Lionel Coulter

Gonda Rly Institute

If the walls of this building could speak one wonders
what stories would be told about the Anglo-Indian
 railway  families of  Gonda.
The institute was the social hub of all railway colonies
 - a place where families came together to find release
 from an otherwise  humdrum  existence. Today most of
 them are being used for other  purposes or remain
 permanently closed.

Rubble being cleared

The Lat Jan 30.2012

Martiniere - moving ahead!

Robert Cooke and I took a look around at the changes (improvements) taking place at the Mart on Sunday, Jan 15, 2012. It was my grandson, Aden McFarland's birthday and the Principal's lawn was the ideal place to hold a day-time party. My daughter, Faye, is married to Carlyle's nephew, Craig, who was also in the Mart for a couple of years.
The walk proved quite an eye-opener, even though we were aware of the changes taking place.
The surrounding hedge of the bungalow that was shared between Mr Victor Rainer and Mr Sydney Lewis in the 1960, had almost disappeared over the years; having been completely obliterated by creepers and undergrowth  This had now been cleared. as on can see in the next pic (if it loads, now).