<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" version="2.0" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" xmlns:googleplay="http://www.google.com/schemas/play-podcasts/1.0"><channel><title><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></title><description><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></description><link>https://shenanigans.my</link><image><url>https://shenanigans.my/img/substack.png</url><title>Sowmya Iyengar</title><link>https://shenanigans.my</link></image><generator>Substack</generator><lastBuildDate>Sun, 12 Apr 2026 16:29:23 GMT</lastBuildDate><atom:link href="https://shenanigans.my/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><copyright><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></copyright><language><![CDATA[en]]></language><webMaster><![CDATA[siyenga@substack.com]]></webMaster><itunes:owner><itunes:email><![CDATA[siyenga@substack.com]]></itunes:email><itunes:name><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></itunes:name></itunes:owner><itunes:author><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></itunes:author><googleplay:owner><![CDATA[siyenga@substack.com]]></googleplay:owner><googleplay:email><![CDATA[siyenga@substack.com]]></googleplay:email><googleplay:author><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></googleplay:author><itunes:block><![CDATA[Yes]]></itunes:block><item><title><![CDATA[From Paintbrushes to Prompts]]></title><description><![CDATA[How a 60-Year-Old Principal Schooled Me on AI &#127912;&#129302;]]></description><link>https://shenanigans.my/p/from-paintbrushes-to-prompts</link><guid isPermaLink="false">https://shenanigans.my/p/from-paintbrushes-to-prompts</guid><dc:creator><![CDATA[Sowmya Iyengar]]></dc:creator><pubDate>Mon, 16 Mar 2026 13:44:04 GMT</pubDate><content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I headed into my daughter&#8217;s Parent-Teacher Meeting expecting the usual "she&#8217;s doing great" talk. Instead, the Principal threw me a curveball: "Can you help us design the backgrounds for the Annual Day program?"</p><p>My inner artist rejoiced! I was already mentally cleaning my brushes and picking out acrylics. Then came the crushing blow: "Make sure it looks realistic. Use AI to get the perfect pictures."</p><p>My face fell. I&#8217;m sorry, what? Why is this "old school" Principal more tech-forward than I am?</p><p>The Battle of the Bots I sat down with Gemini, and let&#8217;s just say... it wasn't love at first sight. Explaining what I wanted to the AI was harder than explaining the "correct" way to do household chores to my husband.</p><p>Me: "Give me a rustic village."<br>AI: Generates a futuristic neon colony. * Me: "No, you&#8217;re being dumb."<br>AI: "I humbly apologize for the misunderstanding."</p><p>After a few "humble apologies" and a lot of trial and error, we finally clicked. I learned the "Secret Language of Prompts," and the results? Breathtaking.</p><p>The Result? Magic. &#10024;</p><p>When the curtains went up, the kids weren't just standing in front of painted cardboard. They were in a "real" farm, under "real" rain.</p><p>The shift was incredible: The kids felt the environment and spoke their dialogues with genuine emotion.</p><p>They were mesmerized by their digital surroundings.</p><p>I even walked away with an award for "Realistic Image Generation", something I never thought I&#8217;d have on my mantle!</p><p>The Big Question &#129488;<br>This experience got me thinking: If school principals are now demanding AI-integrated sets, have we reached the point where AI "Digital Twins" will be the norm for students?</p><p>Is "AI Prompt Engineering for Second Graders" the next big business frontier? &#128640;</p><div class="subscription-widget-wrap-editor" data-attrs="{&quot;url&quot;:&quot;https://shenanigans.my/subscribe?&quot;,&quot;text&quot;:&quot;Subscribe&quot;,&quot;language&quot;:&quot;en&quot;}" data-component-name="SubscribeWidgetToDOM"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe"><div class="preamble"><p class="cta-caption">Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.</p></div><form class="subscription-widget-subscribe"><input type="email" class="email-input" name="email" placeholder="Type your email&#8230;" tabindex="-1"><input type="submit" class="button primary" value="Subscribe"><div class="fake-input-wrapper"><div class="fake-input"></div><div class="fake-button"></div></div></form></div></div>]]></content:encoded></item></channel></rss>