Well! Let me bell the cat! Overall, the symposium went well. The Keynote address by Prof. Velcheru Narayanarao was the highlight. Speeches by other invited speakers, Dr. Kovela Sampatkumaracharya, Dr. Akkiraju Ramapatirao (Manjusri), Sri Indraganti Srikantha Sarma (Andhra Prabha Editor), and Sri Akella (writer and cine script writer) were equally good and well-received. Dr. Veluri Venkateswara Rao's story-telling was superb (on Telugu teachers). What a humor-filled reality he did show! Even the chairs laughed non-stop throughout his nerration. Dr. Chowdary Jampala's review on recent 8 years of Telugu Story was exceptionally great. He timed it well, organized it scientifically and delivered it neatly. It was well-received also. Smt. Aravinda Pillalamarri's talk was also well-delivered and well-received. She did a fantastic job. She is role model for other second generation Telugus and Telugu kids. She should be proud of herself. Dr. Vanguri Chittenraju's story as read by him (daMta vEdAMtaM) was outstandingly hilarios - his wit was a humor-inducer. The session on computer application vs. Telugu language and literature was also a highlight. Dr. Bapa Rao spoke on the optical character recognition. Sri Vadlamani Viswanath spoke on fonts. Sri Prasad Chodavarapu Spoke on Rangavalli, Telugu Fonts and other aspects of Telugu software. Dr. Vemuri Venkateswara Rao organized this session very well. Debate on establishing an Endowed Telugu Chair in one of the US Universities was one of the priorities. Majority of the attendees agreed to establish a Telugu chair. A committee has been appointed to further pursue in this aspect to look into various aspects of this which consists of Dr. Kalisapudi Sreenivasa Rao, Dr. Kidambi Raghunath, Dr. Jampala Chowdary, Dr. Vanguri Chittenraju, and Prof. Velcheru Narayanarao. Of course this committe will also work closely with every Telugu citizen of the US. Dr. Gavarasana Satyanarayana, who submitted the memorandum, advocating for the Telugu Chair is also going to supervise some of the forthcoming activities of this committe. The debate was left to the floor and several discussions were carried out. Several important questions were asked by the attendees. Important suggestions were made on how to approach this challenging task. Dr. Pemmaraju Venugopalarao was the moderator. The formation of this committee was an important outcome of this conference. Hopefully, this will lead into another successful result leading to the establishment of the Telugu Chair in the US. BOOKS RELEASED: (1) Tiruppavai - Telugu Translation and English Version. with Bapu's colorful and beautiful paintings. (Someone should review this book). This was well-done. Prof. Pemmaraju Venugopalarao garu did a superb job in providing the English version of the Telugu Tiruppavai. Sri Mullapudi Venkataramana wrote a nice piece at the beginning. Dr. Jampala Chowdary's essay on Bapu's paintings was a nice and compact review on that subject ever written in English. Also, he was the editor of that book. Please buy this book. It is worth-reading and can be a keepsake. Published by the Vanguri Foundation. (2) Kadha Samkalanam 1998. The Vanguri Foundation conducts annual Telugu story competition for America Telugu writers. They conducted one such competition this year. Prof. Pemmaraju Venugopalarao was the chief editor. This year' first prize was bagged by Sri K.V. Rama Rao (a telusAer). I haven't read this volume. Someone should review this. Published by the Vanguri Foundation. (3) Kavita Samkalanam 1998. The first poetry volume released by Vanguri foundation. Prof. Pemmaraju Venugopalarao was the chief editor. This volume contains poetry written by America Telugu writers. Published by the Vanguri Foundation. (4) Veluri Venkateswararao's Story Collection Metamorphosis The Editor was Dr. Velcheru Narayanarao (if I am not wrong). This book has cute stories written by VRV. Get it and read it. Know the wit of Veluri from his stories. He is not happy with his stories released as a book but the readers are and will enjoy them. He said "Had I known that you are going to release such a book, I would have written stories just like that jute mill." Published by Vanguri Foundation. The Symposium Committee should feel proud that they accomplished a great thing by releasing 4 books in one year. Certainly it is an achievement. I can not review those books here and will leave it to someone with taste and expertise. MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS: Releasing Tiruppavai and other books is an achievement. Formation of a committee to oversee the Telugu Chair Project is a progress. Computerization vs. Telugu is definitely leading to a bigger project. MINOR PROFITS Friends met friends. New friends were made. People heard talks by famous writers from Andhra. People made enemies (Myself and another gentleman) :-) Had a nice time at Mrs. and Mr. Suresh Kolichala's wedding reception. I am extremely happy for him and his srImati. INVALUABLE EXPERIENCES: Enjoyed the company of Prof. Velcheru - man O man! This is a life-time experience. I don't have to take a dip in Ganges! Enjoyed the interview with Smt. Anasuya Devi conducted by Chy. Paruchuri Sreenivas and Dr. Jampala. Great experience. Enjoyed the company of Prof. Vemuri, Prof. Appajyosyla, Dr. Lakshmanna, Sri Ramanna, Sri Madhav, Sri Chandra Kanneganti etc. Thanks Dr. Vasundhara and Dr. Sreenivasarao Kalasapudi for such a nice lunch. Make sure you don't do this on a daily basis - you have to declare chapter 11. PITFALLS: I forgot those. HATS OFF: Prof. Pemmaraju gAru! Not only your dream came true (kalalOkalalO ---kala) but my dream came true too. We all enjoyed your hard labour. He handled the entire conference single-handed and came out in flying colors. His dedication and devotion are unparallel. Your effort led to a solid foundation. Again! I am thankful to you for conducting this symposium and giving me a chance to attend it and present my stuff. If I had done anything wrong, please pardon me! Dr. Vanguri Chittenraju! The man behind the fence. He worked hard. He was instrumental in conducting this symposium. He sowed the seeds. Against many odds and criticisms, he toiled and made his dream a reality. He won a slot in the history. Next time, please let me know in advance if you need any help. I am willing to work as a volunteer sir! Thanks again for allowing me to attend your conference. Sri Viswanadh Vadlamani and Sri Yellamraju! These two worked very hard. They were sweating like crazy. Hats off to you for your hard work. If I forgot any other volunteers, my complements to them also. once again! ,pn _np, ,_np, ,_p_oam, _np, _p_ar, _na, koewkovg _np_ ,np @._-np @-" np @ ,nP @ ^ NP #_,gF @ jf pn " np np p n# nP .NP ,p nP 8Y n jf *p, np , np ,N pN nP :N ,N ,nP jK ,p N pN. NlpP NppP nP nLp_o8NppP"N^lp NbpP"P^"nP "nPl-"*n,P" ,nP',@' :NP LP "*w*" pemmaraju, chittenraju ---pAlana Disclaimer: Opinions above are mine only.