Sorry-ology

  I took Y to an exhibition on Botanical Art and Design in Fuchu City Museum last Monday to create some quiet time and space for T to study for his exam at home.  The exhibition is curated to show the birth of botanical art in the 18th century in England and its peak when it was adopted in designs of household wares. The items are not particularly impressive, but it was a spirit-lifting day out for me who hadn't been any art exhibitions since T was born. That is, nearly 11 years. I also learned something new about two topics that I have been interested in as academic subjects. The families of Wedgwood and Darwin. I did not know until the exhibition that the English manufacturer of fine china, Wedgwood family, and the scholarly family of Darwin, that of Charles Darwin, were interconnected through first business partnership then intermarriages. My knowledge began with an exhibition item, a china plate of water lily, the description of which includes"Darwin Service". After ...

  16/Sep/2026 I read Ganesha's Sweet Tooth to a group of 6 graders last Wednesday. I thought it was good to introduce the children to the well-known deity in Indian culture so that they will find that Ganesha and his mouse are common objects to be seen in Indian restaurants in our local town. So that perhaps they would get to understand that Ganesha has only one tusk and has a faithful companion, a mouse, and that Ganesha usually appears to hold a broken tusk in one hand.  It was not the book that I planned to read in the beginning, but right outside the classroom, my son objected my first choice, a melancholic story by a Korean author. Usually, he does not like stories with climax and has difficulties digesting those emotions, a secrete about himself that he has kept. I followed his preference. To be honest, I was not super satisfied with the result since I was less rehearsed at home. I had read the story to baby T over and over again when he was little though. To help listen...