Even
at the ripe old age of the late 70s, former Sri Lanka double
international Dr Buddy Reid cannot be denied the limelight. Now
domiciled in Australia, this son of Lanka continues to evoke national
pride among Sri Lankans. On this occasion Dr Reid was crowned World
Champion at the Over-75 World Table Tennis (TT) Championship in Spain.
In the preliminary rounds the Dr Reid showed his prowess in the game in
which he represented the National TT team with success at national and
international level, by first defeating reigning European champion Horst
Ifland of Switzerland, then former world champion Bilil of Germany and
finally, his biggest victory was when he overcame a fighting, reigning
world champion Lay from China. These three victories signaled that Dr
Reid is in for the long haul, looking fit as ever. Along the way he
didn’t have any problems defeating Lau (Hong Kong) and other players
from Slovakia, New Zealand, Japan and Sweden.
Against
reigning world champ Lay (China) in the semi-finals, Dr. Reid’s skill,
fitness and experience was stretched to its limits to overcome the
Chinese champ, as the game went to the deciding 5th set. In the finals,
Dr Reid trounced former champ Dimitri Bilil (Germany) 3-0. Partnering
Igor Klaf of Russia in the Doubles final, this match too went down to
the wire, but Dr. Reid and his partner had to be content with the
Runner-up spot, losing the all important 5th set 13-15. At St. Thomas’
College, Mt. Lavinia, Buddy Reid was a member of every age group team
from Under12 to 1st XI. As an opening batsman he was a tower of
strength, difficult to dislodge, holding his end, making way for other
batsmen to settle down to post huge scores for the school. Buddy played
in only one Royal-Thomian match in 1959 under Dennis Ferdinands, as he
entered the Faculty of Medicine.
Playing
for Colombo University in the company of Cricketers such as Sarath
Wimalaratne, M.L. Idroos, Gurusinghe, Balakrishna to name a few, in the
then premier Cricket tournament of Ceylon the P. Saravanamuttu Trophy,
he became an automatic choice for the National side to play against the
visiting Pakistan team under Imtiaz Ahamed in 1964. Ceylon, captained by
Michael Tissera, playing in the first ever 4-day unofficial ‘Test’
defeated Pakistan in three days. Dr. Reid had the unique achivement of
captaining the National Cricket team against the MCC in 1968-69 and the
National Table Tennis team at the Asian Games in Bangkok, at the Asian
TT Championship in Singapore and the Peking International Games in
China. As a TT player, Dr Reid represented Ceylon with distinction in
international tournaments. All Sri Lankans should take pride in Dr
Reid’s performance, at this age.
I am sending photos of the presentation of donation of Medical Batch 1960 to the Palliative Care Unit ,Kandy National Hospital. Total donation is Rs 150,000./- From the Medical Batch Rs 90560/- Balance from Sa,manthi Strong Foundation.
Please read the attached letter.
Mana Wedisinghe.
Dr. D.T.D.J.Abeysekara.
Palliative Care Unit
National Hospital
Kandy.
Donation from Medical Batch 1960.
Dear Dr Abeysekara.
As explained on an earlier occasion , Samanthi Strong Foundation was holding a sum of Rs 90560/- given to it by the Medical Batch of 1960, with specific instructions to utilize it to
make a donation to a worthy cause.
Hence , we decided to donate it to you to be used in the Palliative Care Unit of the National
Hospital Kandy.
We gladly made it a round figure of Rs
150,000/- , drawing the balance from
our Foundation Funds .
Dr K.E.J.de Silva ,
the Treasurer of Medical Batch 1960 will
have the honour of handing over the cheque to you.
Details of the cheque.
Drawn in favour
of :
The Kandy Kidney Protection Society , A/C number 34393 ,Bank of Ceylon
Amount. Rs 150,000.00
A/C
Number : 0007-6000-3220
A/C holder : Samanthi Strong Foundation ,
Kandy.
Cheque No : 000026.
We understand that there is no separate Bank Account in
the name of the Palliative Care Unit Kandy as yet.
That being the reason for the cheque to be drawn in favour of the
Kandy Kidney Protection Society has to
be explained to the members of the
Medical Batch of 1940. We are
happy ,with your assurance that the funds will be utilized entirely for the
work done in the Palliative Care Unit .
Please be kind enough to acknowledge receipt by signing the
accompanying voucher No 16 and also
please send us a list of items purchased , their
costs or a breakdown of
the manner in which the money was spent in order to be forwarded to
members of Medical Batch 1960.
The final item in the
agenda for today is the handing over of
a Personal Computer , HP Slimline Model s5 , a complete unit with CPU, Monitor , , electrical connections , wifi
receiver unit, etc and a Computer table
,as a gift from Samanthi Strong
Foundation to the Palliative Care Unit .
The Foundation would be happy to carry out maintenance
repairs to the Computer for a
period of one year from Jan 2024.
- Forwarded message --------- From: Mana Wedisinghe<adivasi1940@gmail.com> Date: Sun, Jan 28, 2024 at 11:02 PM Subject: Mini Batch 2024 To: Mana Wedisinghe <adivasi1940@gmail.com>
Hello Philip.
A few of us met at Priya Ratnayaka's on 23.01.2024.
Priya lost her husband , Rtd Major General Andrew Ratnayaka a couple of weeks back.
Lakshman Karalliedde had an alias
"Charlie" bestowed on him due to his
fondness to visit "Charlies" bar at the Queen's hotel in Kandy. As
was
mentioned before he and I became close friends. Along with Kapu, Alky Bala,
Sunil Liyanage, Ponna, the late Rama Karthigesu, Syed Ahmed with the late
JBC de Silva joining in sometimes we formed a study and play group. Once we
decided to hike up to N'eliya.it was great fun but on the way down Kapu got
Chicken pox. Having come to Kandy where as usual we planned to stay at
Karals'. the problem was getting Kapu back to his home at Matale. Karal's
mother was adamant in not giving their Grey Austin A50 to take him
back. Luckily a Mr. Wijesuriya who happened to be one of Sunil's family
friends lent us his car, if I remember correctly green Opel car. Later on Karlas
married Mr. W's daughter Kanthi.
After exams parties -all male affairs were at Sunils' parents home in
Gregory's avenue a logical choice as Sunil's father was the youngest dad
amongst ours. He would join in the fun along with his elderly ‘Appu’. Ponna
and Syed Ahmed were teetotalers and sobering influences. Dr. Stanley de
Silva Paediatrician was Sunils' opposite neighbor.
My place at Bambalapitiya was frequently the study centre. Between breaks we
would head to Sarawathi for ‘thosai and wade’ and stand at top of the lane on
Galle Road and watch the world go by. A practice my father too did. He had
a phenomenal memory for car numbers and names of people whom he identified.
passing by driving their cars.
Prenatal sex discernment is the prenatal testing for discerning the sex of a fetus before birth.
Methods
Prenatal sex discernment can be performed by preimplantation genetic diagnosis before conception, but this method may not always be classified as prenatal sex discernment because it's performed even before implantation.
Cell-free fetal DNA testing, wherein a venipuncture
is performed on the mother to analyze the small amount of fetal DNA
that can be found within it. It provides the earliest post-implantation
test. A meta-analysis published in 2011 found that such tests are
reliable more than 98% of the time, as long as they are taken after the
seventh week of pregnancy.[1][2]
Chorionic villus sampling (CVS) and amniocentesis
are two rather invasive testing procedures. These may, in principle, be
performed as early as the 8th and the 9th week of pregnancy. The
difficulty of these tests and the risk of injury to the foetus,
potentially resulting in miscarriage
or congenital abnormalities (especially when done early during the
pregnancy), make them quite rare during the first trimester. In the
United States, CVS and amniocentesis are most commonly performed after the 11th and the 15th week of pregnancy.[citation needed]
Obstetric ultrasonography, either transvaginally or transabdominally, can check for the sagittal sign as a marker of foetal sex. It can be performed between 65 and 69 days from fertilization (week 12 of gestational age), where it gives a result in 90% of cases – a result that is correct in approximately 3⁄4 of cases, according to a study from 2001.[3]
Accuracy for males is approximately 50% and for females almost 100%.
When performed later, after 70 days from fertilization (at week 13 of
gestational age), it gives an accurate result in almost 100% of cases.[3]
Applications
Potential applications of prenatal sex discernment include:
Preparation, for any sex-dependent aspects of parenting.
Sex selection,
which after preimplantation genetic diagnosis may be performed by
selecting only embryos of the preferred sex, or, after post-implantation
methods by performing sex-selective abortion depending on the test result and personal preference. A 2006 survey [1] found that 42 per cent of IVF
clinics in the US that offer PGD have provided it for sex selection for
non-medical reasons. Nearly half of these clinics perform it only for
"family balancing", which is where a couple with two or more children of
one sex desire a child of the other, but half do not restrict sex
selection to family balancing. In India, this practice has been used to
select only male embryos although this practice is illegal.[4]
Opinions on whether sex selection for non-medical reasons is ethically
acceptable differ widely, as exemplified by the fact that the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology Task Force could not formulate a uniform recommendation.
A gender reveal party is a party held during pregnancy to reveal the baby's sex to the expectant parents' family and friends, and sometimes to the parents themselves. Prenatal sex discernment technology furnishes the necessary information.[1][2] The practice originated in the United States during the late 2000s.[2]
It is distinct from, but sometimes combined with, a baby shower, where the primary activity is giving expecting parents gifts for their future child. The gender reveal party often involves gender stereotypes such as pink and blue denoting girls and boys, respectively.[1][2]
The practice is controversial and has been criticized for the use
of elaborate and dangerous special effects, which have directly
contributed to multiple deaths, injuries and large-scale forest fires,
namely the 2017 Sawmill Fire and the 2020 El Dorado Fire.[3][4] The practice has also been criticized for reinforcing gender stereotypes and the gender binary.[1][2][5]
History and development
The gender reveal party developed in the late 2000s. An early example
was recorded in the 2008 posts of then-pregnant Jenna Karvunidis on her
ChicagoNowblogHigh Gloss and Sauce
announcing the sex of her fetus via cake; she had previously had
several miscarriages and wished to celebrate that her pregnancy had
developed to the point that the sex of the fetus could be determined.[6][7]YouTube
videos can be found as early as 2008 and 2009, becoming significant
around 2011, after which the trend continued to grow through the 2010s.[8][2]
In 2019, Karvunidis observed an increase in extreme reveal events
over the preceding five years, with parents "burning down forests and
exploding cars, bringing alligators into the mix". She expressed regret
at having helped start the trend, learning how the LGBT and intersex communities feel, and finally revealing the daughter they announced back in 2008 to be a gender-nonconforming individual who wears suits while still identifying as female.[6] After the 2020 El Dorado Fire
was started by a malfunctioning pyrotechnical device at a gender reveal
party, Karvunidis pleaded for people to stop staging such events.[9]
Comparison to baby showers
Baby showers,
a traditional prenatal celebration, have some key differences from
gender reveal parties. Primarily, the focus on gender reveal parties is
fetal sex, while baby showers focus on the giving of supplies and items
for the future infant to expectant parents. Traditionally, baby showers
are for women only,
while gender reveal parties have no inherently-associated gender
restriction and attendee limitations are determined by the pregnant
individual or couple.[citation needed] Some couples combine the two.[1][2]
The trend has also reached South Korea. In 2022, Na Ju-ye of the Hankook Ilbo
reported that the trend was growing amongst young parents. Na noted
that the parties differed in several ways from those in the West. Some
parties, instead of focusing on the parents, are focused on the
grandparents. In addition, due to the low birth rate in South Korea,
the parties are perceived somewhat positively and the historical
practice of preferring male children has become significantly reduced.
Finally, while there is technically a law that forbids doctors from
informing parents of a baby's gender before 32 weeks of pregnancy,
parents still manage to receive guesses from doctors.[10]
Planning the event
The focus of gender reveal parties being the fetal sex, such information is a prerequisite. This can be determined at or after the gestational age required by the method being used. For ultrasound,
the most common method, the earliest this can be reliably done is
approximately 65 days, but it is typically done at around 20 weeks.[a] Both the determination of fetal sex and the party are typically held during the second trimester.[1][11]
Post-examination knowledge of the fetal sex by the parents
varies. Most commonly, a third party (sometimes called a "gender
guardian") is entrusted with the information, and it remains a secret
from the parents until the reveal. This person is responsible for making
party arrangements to ensure the reveal happens without the prior
knowledge of the parents. In other cases, it is already known to one or
both parents, and the reveal is specifically for attendees.[1]
To help maintain the mystery, party decorations are typically heavily gendered, but ambiguous when taken as a whole.[1]
During the event
American football-themed gender reveal party featuring "Team Pink" vs. "Team Blue".
While the focus remains on the fetal sex, the reveal is typically the climax of the party. Prior to the reveal, party games are common, in which attendees or expecting parents guess or assert the fetal sex.[1] This can also take the form of competition between a "Team Pink" and "Team Blue" which parents or participants may join.[1][2]
Sometimes the event includes features of a baby shower. If this is the case, gifts may be given or opened at a specific time.[1][2]
The reveal
A gender reveal cake sliced open, with a pink middle layer suggesting a baby girl
Once these colors are revealed, both the expecting parents and
onlookers are made aware of the fetus's sex, typically to great
celebration and comment by attendees. The announcement of a predetermined, sex-dependent baby name may also take place.[1]
Criticism
The sex and gender distinction underlies many criticisms of gender reveal parties.[2] The term "gender reveal" is considered a misnomer by those who believe in a distinction. Gender is a social construct in this view, not definitively determined by biological characteristics, with an individual gender identity impossible to determine medically. Thus, when a reveal of a fetus's genitals is made, it is the sex and not the gender that is being revealed, according to this view.[2][8][12][13] Although some have argued renaming the concept to a "sex reveal party",[14][15][16] the title has failed to catch on. This is likely due to the secondary meaning of sex, and thus its associations with intercourse.
Furthermore, gender reveal parties rely heavily on the assumption that the child will not be intersex, which occurs in an estimated 1 in 4,500–5,500 births.[17][18] Gender reveal parties have been argued to reinforce gender essentialism, precluding and minimizing transgender identity.[8][17]
Some parents have rejected gender reveal events, in part because of
conversations regarding gender identity and transgender issues becoming
more common.[5]
Overall, the practice reinforces stereotypical gender roles,
often utilizing polarizing gender dichotomies in party materials such
as "Guns or Glitter", "Pistols or Pearls", or "Wheels or Heels".[1][2]
Critics say that there is no reason to assume a neat fit into the
essentialist dichotomy even in the case of a cisgender, non-intersex
child.[5][13][17]
In 2019, Jenna Karvunidis, considered one of the pioneers of gender
reveal parties, called for re-evaluation of the practice due to how it
might affect transgender and non-binary individuals, writing about her own daughter's gender nonconformity.[6][7]
The practice has also been criticised for sometimes involving dangerous stunts[19] and animal abuse.[20] After the El Dorado Fire in 2020, Karvunidis decried the parties and pleaded for people to stop having them.[9]
Dougie was with Sydney
Hettiaratchi our batch-mate at Trinity College, Kandy, Ceylon. One day Sydney had been ‘gated’
for some misdemeanor inside the Trinity premises. The master who ‘gated’
him, Mr.Jacob, Mary Jacob our junior batch student’s father, while
shopping in the Kandy town, thought that he saw Sydney walking ahead of
him. He walked fast behind the presumed Sydney and gave him a slap on the
back to see that he had mistaken someone else for Sydney. It was time for
the master to look foolish in front of a large crowd. He realised his mistake, apologized
profusely to the injured party and disappeared from the scene quickly.
Dougie was working at
Medamahanuwara as Medical Officer of Health, in the late 1960s. He said
that while trekking on a foot path, to go to a remote village, he was
surprised by wild elephants and had to beat a hasty and breathless
retreat. Luckily the elephants did not chase him very far.
Unlicensed liquor sales
were common in the remote villages. The two brands sold were the cheaper
Gal-Oya arrack, also called ‘Gal’, produced from sugar cane molasses and
the more expensive Coconut arrack, also called ‘Pol’ produced from coconut
toddy. If you wanted to acquire these from the shops in these remote
villages, there was a secret pass word used, as police raids were a
perpetual danger. It was ‘Ballata Gahana Badu’ (The item you use to throw
at dogs) for ‘Gal’ which meant ‘stone’. For Coconut arrack the term used
was ‘Deiyanta gahana badu’ (The item you smash in front of Gods) for ‘Pol’
which meant coconut
Douglas Arulanandam, known as ' Dougie' and a few
batch-mates decided to do the Colombo to Kandy trip by bicycles. After 50 Km cycling,from Colombo, they came to the old
bridge at Mawanella, at the half-way mark to Kandy. The flowing waters
of the Maha Oya, provide an ideal bathing spot for the nearby villagers.
Dougie and friends were sweating and stopped for a river bath.
Mawanella Bridge is the oldest operational brick
bridge in Sri Lanka. The bridge was built in 1833 in Mawanella over the Maha
Oya. The arch bridge has four arches, with each arch 15 m in length and is
constructed entirely from bricks. Wikipedia
A few of 'Dougie's' friends were using
‘Jock straps’ as under wear. When they got into the water wearing this type
of clothing, exposing the buttocks which was not covered by this type of underwear, there was a brief, shocked silence from the villagers bathing in the
river, at the same spot. After a few minutes, one
of the male youngsters shouted out loud ‘Ado puka penawaa’- ‘Hey, your buttocks
are exposed’. Our friends quickly got out of the water and beat a hasty
retreat, accompanied by a crescendo of hoots from the crowd bathing in the river, which included females.
A study of 'Jock straps'
The word jockstrap has purportedly been in use at least since
1891, a likely contraction of "jockey strap", as the garment was first
designed for bicycle-riding messengers and deliverymen, or 'bike
jockeys'. The Bike Jockey Strap was the first jockstrap manufactured in
America in 1874.
History - The jockstrap was invented in 1874 by C. F. Bennett of a Chicago
sporting goods company, Sharp & Smith, to provide comfort and
support for bicycle jockeys working the cobblestone streets of Boston.[citation needed] The original incarnation of the jockstrap resembled a thong, as it featured a strap that went between the buttocks.[5] In 1897 Bennett's newly formed Bike Web Company patented and began mass-producing the Bike Jockey Strap
The jillstrap (a.k.a. a "jill") is the female equivalent of the jockstrap but is designed to protect the vulva from getting struck. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jockstrap)
