Never, not even in my wildest dreams, had I ever thought that I would, someday, blog about sports. The reason for this being my abysmally low knowledge of sports and my total disinterest in most forms of sport.
But, here I am today, blogging about sports, about cricket, about Sachin Tendulkar. The reason, of course, is Sachin creating history, just a couple of days back when he became the first batsman in the world to hit a double hundred in a one day international, that too against South Africa, one of the best teams in the world. Truly, ‘Sachin is God’.
I have always admired Sachin, for much better and much bigger reasons than his cricketing genius. He exemplifies true sportsmanship. Even after twenty years in international cricket, he still shows the enthusiasm, spirit, zeal and energy that he did as a twenty year old. He is a person who creates new records and breaks existing records, every time he goes on to bat and yet remains modest and humble. Almost every time Sachin is criticized for his poor play, he performs like a phoenix rising out of the ashes, and silences his critics. And countless times, players of the opponent team have abused him verbally, and yet he has never lost his cool. He has answered their slaying with his bat. And so many records and runs later, he is still the same invincible Sachin, approachable to anyone who needs help. He is a thorough team man, and plays for his team rather than himself; he is dejected when the team loses even after he gives a splendid performance. And in spite of being the number 1 cricketer in the world, he never misses a day of practice.
And last but not the least; he is a Mumbaikar to the core. Even today, whenever he finds time, he still plays first-class domestic cricket for Mumbai, with most of his team mates half his age, who have grown up watching him play. He has inspired millions of cricket fans nationwide and worldwide and is the face of Indian Cricket today. It won’t be wrong to say that the Indian cricket team still depends upon him, to a certain extent.
Being the genius that he is, is never easy. Despite his simple ways, he still manages to attract some controversies. But just as we would expect somebody of his stature to be, Sachin is unfazed and unaffected by them. People, who try to malign his reputation, are the ones, whose reputation gets affected; because Sachin enjoys a special place in peoples’ hearts. And nothing and nobody can ever change that. It will indeed be a sad day for cricket, when Sachin decides to retire. And till then, may the master-blaster hit many thousands of runs and win many millions of hearts. Jai Ho, Sachin.
Interesting one-liners
God wanted to play cricket, so Sachin was born.
******************
If you want to commit any sins, do so while Sachin is batting. Because the Lord won’t notice your sins, when he is busy playing cricket.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Saturday, January 23, 2010
P for Punctuality
Addressed to no one in particular but everyone in general
I watch the clock - ticking out its time.
I hear the gears - tocking till the chime…
I hold my stare acutely
And focus ears astutely.
The whole gestalt of this assault by me on clock
Collapses in to hence become
A new me-time continuum -
This clock and I, a vacuum -
Dial and me, we've come to be
A synergistic, fatalistic victim, hmm…
‘So true, so very true!’ I remarked, reading these words that Mark Slaughter has so beautifully penned. In an instant, I remembered all those countless times when I have felt these exact emotions. When I have had to wait for someone somewhere and that someone did not even bother to inform me that he/she was going to be late. When I have had to wait, panting, for the next train to arrive at the station while I had missed the previous train by just a whisker. When I have had to wait for someone to reply to my sms, that was accompanied by a ‘reply ASAP’. When I have had to wait for the webpage to download when I was checking my University results. Gosh! How I hate waiting!
Waiting for someone is one of the things I hate the most! ‘hate’ is actually an understatement, ‘despise’ is more like it. Personally, I feel, there is no other torture in the world like enduring other peoples’ stares (and unspoken thoughts) while they are going about their activities and I am forced to keep standing (or sitting, if I am lucky) in waiting, one eye on the watch and the other on the ‘red carpet’ along which the ‘esteemed Chief Guest’ is destined to make a grand entry! And I get all the more irritated if that ‘distinguished, honorary Man-Of-The-Moment’ arrives late, doesn’t even bother to apologize and makes some lame excuses or worse, doesn’t even acknowledge that he/she is late. And the icing on the cake is when His/Her Majesty just rolls his/her eyes and says something like ‘Come on, don’t you know me? Am I not always this late?’ or ‘I am just following Indian Standard Time’.
I personally disrespect anybody who has no regard for other peoples’ time. The question to ask is, why should you always be this late? Why be late at all? Isn’t there anything in the world called ‘time management’? Cliched though it may sound, this is one of the important factors that determine man’s success in life. When it was known to you that you have to meet someone at some place at say 6 in the evening, and knowing the time it will take you to travel to that place, can’t you start on time? Can’t you get dressed in time? Before you leave or start getting dressed, can’t you make all the arrangements so that you don’t have to rush at the eleventh hour? How is it that you reach the airport or the railway station on time, in fact may be even an hour early, when you have a flight/train to catch, but are almost always late by at least 30 minutes when you have to go out with a friend? Is it simply because that someone is a ‘friend’ and that you don’t lose anything when you are late for this appointment, so why bother to be on time? Since there is no punishment in sight for being late for an appointment with a friend, ‘It’s Okay’ to be late, isn’t it?
What sadistic pleasure do you derive by making someone wait for you? Does it make you seem important? Or someone who is sought after? Repeatedly being late, I feel, is the habit of people who have no better thing to do in life. There is no other way that can make them feel important and sought by others. They do not have any other way in which they can make others remember them or think about them. Doesn’t matter even if the other person curses them, just the thought that he/she is thinking about them is enough. For heaven’s sake, get a life man!
Never, my friend, never ever have a disregard for anybody’s time, be it a friend or anybody else. Life is too short to lose waste time being away from a loved one. If that person is waiting for you patiently and devotedly, it means he/she loves you and you have no right to put his/her love to test, in this way. Every minute that you are late, your friend is losing his love and respect for you. And you never know, it may cease to exist one day. And then, there is no use crying over the split milk.
Being late for an appointment be it professional or personal, is an unpardonable offence in western countries. Do not let this become a routine or a habit. Once the habit of being late sets in, it may become difficult to mend ways. This habit could land you in trouble, could cost you your job, or worse, your life. And, it is not always circumstances, which are responsible for such actions. You were late, not because your mom did not wake you up, but because you overslept. You were late, not because your alarm failed to go off, but because you kept ‘putting it on snooze’. You were late, not because the trains were late but, because you didn’t start on time. Don’t you realize my friend, that it was your fault in the first place and, the circumstances, just added to all the misery. Always remember, you, and you alone are responsible for all your actions. In the end no one bothers why you were late for that all-important interview. The fact is you were late and it cost you the most challenging opportunity life had presented you. Opportunity had knocked your door, but you just did not open it in time.
P.S. This does not imply that I am ‘Miss Perfect’ or the ‘epitome of punctuality’. I am also late on a number of occasions and I honestly regret all those moments during which I test my friends’ patience. But I am trying hard, really hard, to improve and hope you do the same.
I watch the clock - ticking out its time.
I hear the gears - tocking till the chime…
I hold my stare acutely
And focus ears astutely.
The whole gestalt of this assault by me on clock
Collapses in to hence become
A new me-time continuum -
This clock and I, a vacuum -
Dial and me, we've come to be
A synergistic, fatalistic victim, hmm…
‘So true, so very true!’ I remarked, reading these words that Mark Slaughter has so beautifully penned. In an instant, I remembered all those countless times when I have felt these exact emotions. When I have had to wait for someone somewhere and that someone did not even bother to inform me that he/she was going to be late. When I have had to wait, panting, for the next train to arrive at the station while I had missed the previous train by just a whisker. When I have had to wait for someone to reply to my sms, that was accompanied by a ‘reply ASAP’. When I have had to wait for the webpage to download when I was checking my University results. Gosh! How I hate waiting!
Waiting for someone is one of the things I hate the most! ‘hate’ is actually an understatement, ‘despise’ is more like it. Personally, I feel, there is no other torture in the world like enduring other peoples’ stares (and unspoken thoughts) while they are going about their activities and I am forced to keep standing (or sitting, if I am lucky) in waiting, one eye on the watch and the other on the ‘red carpet’ along which the ‘esteemed Chief Guest’ is destined to make a grand entry! And I get all the more irritated if that ‘distinguished, honorary Man-Of-The-Moment’ arrives late, doesn’t even bother to apologize and makes some lame excuses or worse, doesn’t even acknowledge that he/she is late. And the icing on the cake is when His/Her Majesty just rolls his/her eyes and says something like ‘Come on, don’t you know me? Am I not always this late?’ or ‘I am just following Indian Standard Time’.
I personally disrespect anybody who has no regard for other peoples’ time. The question to ask is, why should you always be this late? Why be late at all? Isn’t there anything in the world called ‘time management’? Cliched though it may sound, this is one of the important factors that determine man’s success in life. When it was known to you that you have to meet someone at some place at say 6 in the evening, and knowing the time it will take you to travel to that place, can’t you start on time? Can’t you get dressed in time? Before you leave or start getting dressed, can’t you make all the arrangements so that you don’t have to rush at the eleventh hour? How is it that you reach the airport or the railway station on time, in fact may be even an hour early, when you have a flight/train to catch, but are almost always late by at least 30 minutes when you have to go out with a friend? Is it simply because that someone is a ‘friend’ and that you don’t lose anything when you are late for this appointment, so why bother to be on time? Since there is no punishment in sight for being late for an appointment with a friend, ‘It’s Okay’ to be late, isn’t it?
What sadistic pleasure do you derive by making someone wait for you? Does it make you seem important? Or someone who is sought after? Repeatedly being late, I feel, is the habit of people who have no better thing to do in life. There is no other way that can make them feel important and sought by others. They do not have any other way in which they can make others remember them or think about them. Doesn’t matter even if the other person curses them, just the thought that he/she is thinking about them is enough. For heaven’s sake, get a life man!
Never, my friend, never ever have a disregard for anybody’s time, be it a friend or anybody else. Life is too short to lose waste time being away from a loved one. If that person is waiting for you patiently and devotedly, it means he/she loves you and you have no right to put his/her love to test, in this way. Every minute that you are late, your friend is losing his love and respect for you. And you never know, it may cease to exist one day. And then, there is no use crying over the split milk.
Being late for an appointment be it professional or personal, is an unpardonable offence in western countries. Do not let this become a routine or a habit. Once the habit of being late sets in, it may become difficult to mend ways. This habit could land you in trouble, could cost you your job, or worse, your life. And, it is not always circumstances, which are responsible for such actions. You were late, not because your mom did not wake you up, but because you overslept. You were late, not because your alarm failed to go off, but because you kept ‘putting it on snooze’. You were late, not because the trains were late but, because you didn’t start on time. Don’t you realize my friend, that it was your fault in the first place and, the circumstances, just added to all the misery. Always remember, you, and you alone are responsible for all your actions. In the end no one bothers why you were late for that all-important interview. The fact is you were late and it cost you the most challenging opportunity life had presented you. Opportunity had knocked your door, but you just did not open it in time.
P.S. This does not imply that I am ‘Miss Perfect’ or the ‘epitome of punctuality’. I am also late on a number of occasions and I honestly regret all those moments during which I test my friends’ patience. But I am trying hard, really hard, to improve and hope you do the same.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Get Set and Go!
Yes!!!!!!
This one word has made me an official blogger. I now own my own blog (stating the obvious!) and needless to say, it is special for me. For once, I now have something rather some place to sprawl the strangest of my feelings, the deepest of my thoughts, the darkest of my emotions and all of these without being afraid of anything or anybody. I now have a web space that I can proudly call my own, I can now laugh and cry, be proud and be jealous, be pleased and be disgusted, be surprised and be shocked, be euphoric and be dejected, be victorious and be defeated…..and all this, just through words…..words that convey my thoughts, my feelings, my emotions, my sentiments.
Being an engineering student, I am pretty used to the practice of beginning any article by answering questions like what, why, how, when etc. So, first things first….
What is this blog about?
For me this blog is a space to rant on and on and on (infinitely) about things that I want to say but nobody wants to hear. Things that may seem boring to others but seem really interesting to me. Things that others laugh about, but really touch me. Things that may seem worthless to others but seem pretty important and worthwhile to me.
Conclusively, this blog is about anything and everything under the sun that catches my attention or for that matter, fails to catch my attention(pun intended)!And, you never know, in the future, it could also include “tech-stuff”.
Why am I doing this?
Honestly, I don’t even care if this blog has no readers.
For me, my blog is “the extra segment “(“tech-stuff”) of my memory. This is the part of my “segmented memory” to store (in words), all those pent-up feelings and thoughts that clog my mind, so that my mind becomes free to come up with more of such stupid and useless thoughts (hehe) and some weird and crazy ideas.
I also aspire to address certain issues that are close to my heart, but I don’t know the right medium and the right audience for the same.
And last but not the least, I want my thoughts, to induce some thoughts in the minds of my readers.
How will I be doing this?
(I know this question is quite incorrectly framed, but I could not think of any other way to put it. So that’s that.). I intend not to plagiarize any content from any source. . Any content, borrowed from any source shall be duly acknowledged. If the author is unknown, it shall be mentioned likewise. .I shall try to avoid getting into any kinds of conflicts with any one or any controversies regarding any issue. I shall try to see that no factual errors crop up in any of my articles. I shall try my level best not to hurt any individual’s or organization’s feelings or sentiments or interests in any way.
When will I be doing this?
Truly speaking, whenever I feel like. My two consecutive posts may be minutes apart, hours apart, days apart, weeks apart or even months apart. If at any point of time, any thought crosses my mind or an issue touches my heart, it shall appear here. If not for anything else, at least for future reference for my own self.
I am always open to any kind of recommendations, criticisms and suggestions of any kind. You may leave it as a comment for that particular article.
Last but not the least (how cliched this sounds!), I sincerely hope you don’t count the time spent on this blog as time wasted.
P.S. I am really happy that, unknowingly and unintentionally, I have inaugurated this blog with the word “YES”. It definitely is a sign of positivity.
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