The skies are drenched...
The ground's thirst quenched
the Colors soar
singing VIBGYOR
Twins, half and full they are
Or are they half and a quarter
leprechaun's vehicle ?
Or Nature's miracle !!!
Sons of sun, daughters of rain
between them, they remain
Between White and black and Gray
We are there, they say
connecting horizons
connecting the heaven
they are a fellowship
A fellowship of Seven.

A Floride in California

Okkaye now!!! Back in Florida... And still carrying some memories of "that" trip. Since then, things have happened, that are bigger than a simple trip from the east coast to west coast. However, first things first.

I remember those days when my friend used to make these trips to the other side. Although there were single friends there, California remained predominantly a land of the married couples. Being from a student community where we thought we were the coolest crowd, we heard stories of cool couples, lotsa parties, games, good food and potlucks. Temples and antaksharis, card games and bagaara baingans, potluck parties, politics and celebrity gossips... could they be any cooler! However there was this misgiving about how a lone single would fit in, in a sea of spouses. Back then, there were just a few couples here in Florida, but hey, couples can fit-in with singles much easier than the other way round, don't they!!

What I found in California, after my initial shyness among new couples (and new people in general, I think I might be mildly xenophobic) was that married or not, single or not, people are ... well people. They thrive in communities, they love being together, they love to talk, sing and eat good food. They love to welcome new people. I think that could be a characteristic of married cliques - they are always looking for new people to join in. And would love it if you decide to bring someone along.

However, the only downside, is I guess the number. 4 become 8, 10 become 20. But the gender camaradarie takes care of itself, so rarely would you find anyone left out in a group of couples. Unless you are extremely shy and can't think of saying anything about a sport, or the government, or the Wii, or the money plant, or the new curtain that brightens the living room. Or your (or their pet). But once you connect, does not matter on what topic, you are in. Oh yeah, you can dance, sing, pray, worship, joke, tease and do all that stuff that makes you a cool single. And you are special among them, cos you are single. May be there is a distant relative of theirs, who is looking. You could get lucky.

But... anywho...I wonder. My trip was supposed to be fun. At a happy moment. And I was a guest. Would I have been meted out any different treatment! May be not. But still, its interesting to ponder if a group of couples is stronger than a group of singles. I believe that larger groups are unstable. Too many egos, too many subgroups, too many opinions, no real hierarchy or chain of command. Its impossible to satisfy everybody all the time. May be the same problems plague the couple groups too. But the effective size I guess is smaller there cos two people move as one in couple groups. And difficult situations defused more easily. Or are they? I would love to find out. May be to do that, I will have to form a coupling. With somebody by my side. So, I will drink to all the fun that I think singles have with couples. And the fun singles have when they get to become couples. Let me drink to all the friendships that couples all of them. And all of us.

A Floride in Caulifornia

And so... Another year now! I remember starting my last year echoing a similar sentiment. Its 2008 this time. But this time, its different. I am in the Golden State, the state of the Hollywood land, the land of the Silicon Valley. And this picture on the left would tell you a thousand words about where I was. You got it!!! Callifornia.

Its the land of graduation of one of my friends, its the land of migration of another of my friends, and its the home away from homeland for a million of my friends. Its a great big family of friends out there in California. The Silicon Valley.

This time, my visit to California was prompted by two things. Ever since I had the free ticket, a vestige from my trip to Washington earlier in the year, I had decided I would visit SNL (S being one friend, NL being the other), at the first opportunity. Second, S's parents were visiting, and it would be great spending time with the parents of one of your best friends. And so I set out to visit the coast on the west. From Orlando, the city beautiful, from sunshine state to the state of gold.

It was fun to meet with my friends, and meeting with their parents. But at the end of the two weeks spent in California, I couldn't help but wonder the counterpoint that life in Calif is to the life I live... as a student in Florida.

Now, I am not the kind of guy who would make deep, profound, intellectual deductions based on a two week journey that alters life as I know it. But these are just some off hand, on-the-spur-of the moment reflections (that I have preserved for two weeks without analyzing too much), that I hope would reflect what I am and how I think. Mostly for myself.

I'm bored

It's been a long time since I have written anything on the blog!!! Yeah, Yeah... thats a cliche!! But you know what.. I'm gonna go all out. I'm not going to care about cliches anymore. I'm not going to care about bounaries any more. Who is going to read my blog anyway! (I hope only absolute strangers read this ... Don't want to make enemies out of friends!!) But then... those boundaries are so strong. Don't want to rub anyone the wrong way. Hell, haven't rubbed anyone the right way either (Who is the cunning linguist now, Mr.Bond!)
For the "artistically" obsessed with Bond movies, the pun in my previous utterances is profundly clear. And punny, may be. If you actually realise that, well, thats exactly the kind of thing that you will not associate with a nice, decent guy like, ahem.... me. You know, sometimes these boundaries can be so stifling. There is always this image to live up to. There are always people whose expectations will always try to define what we are. People comprised of family. Friends. Acquaintances. Colleagues. How I wish I could say "You dont know what I am capable of!"
But one of the contradictions with living upto expectations is that, over time, we (I don't want to generalize to everybody, but feel free to substitute "You" for "we" where ever. You are not gonna read this anyway...) where were we... Oh yes... we, tend to define ourselves as an image borne out of these expectations. And every once in a while, we wish to dash those expectations, do something so unlike us (unlike the expectations of us), do something rash. Of course, there are boundaries to that too. We don't want to be narcissistic sociopaths just to be rash and different, do we!! Just have some mostly harmless fun.

The week Batman and Robin succumbed to the Djoker

For a long time, I have been a fan of Rafael Nadal. He plays great, he plays hard, but even before I understood the nuances and nuisances of the game, I fell for Nadal's game for his ability to consistently challenge Federer. Thanks to Federer (I dont really mean thanks) but tennis was going to the way of test match cricket with Aussies at the helm. Thankfully there, England and India produced wild and wildcard performances that put the T back in test cricket. And Rafael's games with Federer did almost the same thing.
Hey, but don't get me wrong. I don't think Nadal is the best player ever. He is solid, and usually consistent but very predictable player. He is the best contemporary player on the clay courts. He flatters to deceive on the hard courts. He has had a good run on the grass courts, but anywhere other than clay, his opponents, who live in valleys next to the mountain that is Federer, will always fancy their chances. Berdych, Youzhny, Blake. A few of the players who have had consistent winning records against Raffa. And then, there is Novak.
Watching Novak Djokovic's winning run this week at Montreal Masters, I couldn't help this sense of awe as he dismantled Nalbandian (who according to me is a player with amazingly fluid game), and went about destroying Roddick's dreams, and bombing Nadal out of the court. Now, playing rallies with Nadal and frustrating him in long rallies is something that only Nadal has managed against his opponents consistently for quite some time now. And Nadal tasted his own bitter medicine, and lost his feet and balance from the game. Was this a better version of Nadal we were watching!! Even then, I couldn't help but be resigned to the fate of the finals. I had a wish that the final would run to three sets. I bet on the wrong winner.
Watching Novak play Federer, you could feel that he was confident of what he wanted to do. The same thing Nadal does when he plays Federer. Except that with Novak, he had his serve to back him up. And a consistent return game with amazing flat forehand down the line strokes. So, whenever the points were taking a little bit longer time, he would come up with THAT shot. Both Federer and Nadal looked tentative when they were playing Novak. And the Djoker had nothing to lose.
And so now, we have hope. May be after a long time, we are not just looking at a rivalry. May be we should call it a trivalry.:-> Bad djokes aside, a larger question now comes up about whether Djoker can keep up this level for 5 sets. By playing higher ranked players (just the three of them anyway) on three consecutive days, he has shown he has go the mettle. But may be its too soon. Youth always has a high exuberence that flashes and then diminishes. But then, thats what people like me would have thought after watching Federer defeat Sampras in THAT match. I am reminded of the Hamburg final when Federer finally defeated Nadal on Clay. And Now, The Djoker has defeated Federer on hard courts. It will be interesting to see if Federer does a Nadal in the US Open. And if Nadal silently, has anything to say about this. And so, cheers to the next great trivalry.

Indian Cricket - Where do we stand

"And so it shall come to pass - that India will fail".
I know - a billion hopes would have been dashed today, a million dreams strangled and asphyzated as India went down to Srilanka. I would have wanted to add "fighting" at the end of that last sentence, but I don't know if its the moment or the place that I would chose for that phrase. Don't get me wrong, I love India. I love cricket. I am, (therefore I think - Descartes anyone) a fan of the game, and would love to see India regarded as the team to beat in cricket. But today, I am disappointed. That they came croppers in a crunch game. That world cup won't mean the same anymore . And "shame" would mean a lot more.
But this week was about a lot more than cricket in the cricket universe. The death of Bob Woolmer was very very unfortunate, not to mention the murder which was shameful to say the least. I had always thought of foul play being involved in the death, and though I 'm not surprised, I feel disappointed at the security for an event as premier as the cricket world cup. Not long ago, I watched Munich and felt a sense of abandonment when the athletes were being murdered. A similar sense engulfed me as the events unfolded. But I am ashamed to of myself to be thinking about the next big match and to have moved on so quickly from the murder of a cricket coach.
If anything, the death of Bob Woolmer is an indication of things that are beyond cricket. A loss of life always puts a perspective on the things going on and around. I guess if Bob Woolmer was not murdered, but had died anyway, people would have still accepted it as part of the obsession with the game - a sense of helplessness that comes with the territory when you are associated with the cricket in subcontinent. Disgruntled fans always have extreme ways of showing their discontent. But where is the sense of "Its just a game anyway"!!! I understand competition, I understand ambition, but does it have to kill the sporting spirit?
I guess all of us have played cricket at various levels, and I would love to ask everybody if they have won all the time. If they had a 5-fer or a century everytime they played a game. I used to play with kids less than half my age and they won against me a few times. It was just a game. But why do we associate ourselves with the sports so much, elevate human beings to superheroes and turn to supervillians when they fail??? Do we look to these guys to be the answer to all our misgivings and failures in our lives? Do we expect that the dishonest lives we lead are redeemed by the passionate, honest and loyal sportspersons we expect to see on the field all the time?? Its time to realize that they are just beings - as falliable as the rest of us. Of course, they are luckier because they are overpaid, over sponsored, over adored, never understood (over-stood>???).
Let me ask you this - if you got an offer that lets you make more money, would you go for it? If that comes at the cost ofa little corruption, would you do it? India is probably a country with a lot of corruption - and everybody wants to live a more comfy life all the time. So are the cricketers wrong to be looking ways to earn more money by their endorsements?? Who cares as long as they perform!! You wouldn't like it if you saw a cricketer looking like he is not giving 100%. Would you be able to give your 100% towards your job if a cricket match was going on!! If you would, go ahead and criticise the team. Else, stop ridiculing them and debasing them. They are probably no better than you are. They are accountable to you because its your money to them. But they are only as good as you (or sometimes not as good, depending on what pedastal you see yourself).
Anyways, in the context of the sad murder of Bob, the win-lose situation of India has lost its sheen. I would have been elated if India went to super eights, but on their performance, they are probably better off staying home, and working on their basics. I am sure there will be whole-scale changes, and no one will probably be untouchable anymore. May be this is for the good. Though it pains to know that some of the best batsmen of my generation won't probably be a part of the coronation with the world cup, but then - its just a game.
My interest in the game hasn't dwindled, though India will not be a favorite team for some time to come. But hey, all it will take is a streak of 16 continuous chase wins for them to be on the front seat of my fandom. Which I guess will probably take some time.
And till then, life moves on. But I really hope the Indian team finds some semblance. From its fans especially. And I hope nothing untoward happens. To the players. And the coaches. And the coaches they travel in.

Valentines Day, 2007

"Its just another day", I tell myself. In my mind. My heart tells me otherwise. My senses tell me otherwise. Its there on TV. And its there on... well, mostly TV which I end up watching a lot!!! With all the Ohh choo cute romantic flicks, ads, dedicated soap opera episodes on TV for this one day, I can't help but feel like an outcast on Valentine's Day. Have I been missing something? "It's just not my day", I retell myself. Every moment.
I finally conclude that its just another of not-my-days, and enviously think of all those people who would really have fun today. For whom, "It's my day / our day" (Does it remind anybody of the Boost Commercial with a young Sachin and an old Kapil...? ) would make a lot more sense!!! And then I try to dissect Valentine's Day just to convince myself that it actually doesn't mean a lot to a lot of people. My argument is this - if you are in love, you don't need one specific day to remind yourself you are in love. For you, everyday is Valentine's Day. So, Feb 14 specifically shouldn't mean much. If you are not in love, Feb 14th should n't mean anything at all. So thats it V-Day shouldn't mean anything to anybody at all.
But, wait a minute. How come all cards - from Hallmark to 123greetings find their ways from innumerable stores to your mails and emails and hearts on this specific day!!! It definitely means something. But who!! But Why!!!
May be today is the day for you to discover if you are in love. May be today is the day to tell someone that when the whole world is thinking of love, that someone is the one you think about. May be its just one way to say I care. May be its one of all the ways to say I love (you!!!). May be. May be its the day for people who are in the honeymoon period of their love / relationship. When they need assurances. May be it is the day for all the singles on the verge of their attractions, crushes, infatuations - to dignify their feelings and dream of a fantasy for that someone who sends butterflies in their stomachs. And of course for all people in love, well its just another day!! May be the whole world is filled with such people.
And now, I know being in love is very fantastic. But I still dunno what being in love feels like. All that I know of love is that there is a lot of anticipation - of beauty, togetherness and harmony. But I guess to be in love, you need to be loved. I guess I have loved, but haven't been in love. So may be I will not understand what Valentine's Day is all about.
And so, another of not-my-days goes by for another year. Yeah Yeah I tell myself that I can spend Valentine's Day with friends and family - people I really love and care about in a very non-spousal way (thats a yucky way of putting it, but hey this is my blog), but who am I conniving!!! I wish there was a day dedicated to singles. St.Singles Day. May be St.Singles Day is everyday. Days you enjoy being single, uncommitted, un-adulterated (pardon me!!!). Well then today is my day. Sorry lovers, but till next years V-Day I wish you would be as jealous of the singles tribe!!!
In the end, I guess this stuff about a stupid day in an year doesn't matter. There are far more bigger problems in this world that need solutions. Should I waste my time thinking about these trivial things. May be not. But I guess its these trivial things that give us persective about a wasteful life that we lead. And are a part of our emotional growth. So maybe, I will just stick with this blog.
PS: Every Valentine's Day I make a resolution to make the next one different. So far, I have been steady at making the same resolution, every year. So, lets see if I will whine next year on Feb 14th. 100$ says I will.