Overwhelmed by Facebook

Logged on to Facebook after a very long time , most probably six months. And wow what an experience it has been, so blogger.com is not the only site which has improved interface since the time I signed up. Am getting a feeling that my perceived failures have made me more introverted than before and visiting FB just exacerbates that feeling.

But is FB the benchmark I would like to keep to judge myself and while I am writing this I now hope that henceforth my posts are read by none because I have to make this into a personal diary which I can refer in the future, for all problems related to myself. So going back to what I did on while surfing through FB was looking at people's pictures whom I despise like hell, why do they have to display everything ? What happened to privacy ? Keep somethings to yourselves, lame, shallow and people with low self-esteem like me get jealous.

Someone is married to my school crush, man that hurt but what hurts even more is that they look good together and I wish they have an amazing married life. What I need to do next is the remove all those who are following my Blog, excuse me this is too personal and can and will be used against me everytime an opportunity presents itself. I hate the internet even more because it has created seamless linkages between everyone and everything that exists on this planet. God please shut down Google, Apple, Amazon, Twitter, Blackberry etc etc.

We need to go back to the days when we didn't so many sites to communicate, I reminisce about the days when I used to go downstairs to meet my friends and they didn't need any prior intimation, now we hardly meet  but keep ourselves updated via FB and even if we do manage to get-together, it is surely going on FB as a latest event. So I seriously doubt whether we have met to meet or met to put it on the net. Finally when I was done surfing through FB, I realised that people who are so addicted to FB are the ones who are afflicted to Update Syndrome and I am still pretty much doing okay for myself.

The Year gone by

So I have logged on to this site after 1 whole year, wow. Wouldn't have believed it if someone told me this on the day I started writing, but here I am once again and this time I feel there will be no looking back because I think that I am a changed man now ( once again ). Life in the last one year has really screwed up, finally have broken my long held beliefs (I hope for the good) and made new ones (hopefully they are not as screwed as the old ones), so once again I am at the beginning line. It feels that I end up at the beginning line over and over again, just can't get enough of it.

But I feel more rejuvenated and tired at the same time, age is catching up to me in body and soul. So now have to make fresh starts in many fields. This time though I have decided that if I take up something then I am going finish it in a respectable manner, have been prone to make up my mind on things and not take them to their logical conclusions and just wander about in the millions on things that I want to accomplish. Henceforth will take up one or two things up and religiously follow up on them and not let my mind wander about. It's time to get "SERIOUS BUDDY".

I had started writing the blog because I enjoyed it, but then due to misplaced priorities I felt that others should like them as well, that made me eventually stop writing as I didn't get the number of followers that I wanted. After serious thinking and cajoling by people I realised the reason for the discontinuation and finally after facing the bitter truth here I am writing once again not for others but myself. Being a selfish person I do things only for self-gratification and right now I need to stick to it. A major step that I have decided to incorporate into my self is to FINISH things that I have started.

Lets see where I will be on 16/09/2012.

Goodbye Freddie

Gosh am gonna miss Freddie and more than that the chants of Freddie.....Freddie. So it's that time of the year when everyone will be bidding adieu to one of England's most prodigious all-rounder. For me he had already retired from the game when he decided to quit playing Tests after the 2009 Ashes. One of the best moments of Test cricket for me was the 2005 Ashes and Flintoff's bowling spells.

So his announcement from all forms of cricket was something of an anticlimax as everyone had already discounted the fact of not seeing him play again. Everything said and done he does deserve laurels for only one epoch making series, other than that everything was mediocre. He stood between the Aussies and the Urn in 2005, the English team was made up of mere mortals and Freddie in 2005. The POMS have moved on since those days and look a much improved side (thanks to foreign imports and Swann). Another feather in his cap was that he made Cricket re-enter the English conscience; many financial gains have been made not only by him but it has cascaded to other players as well.

Who can forget Flintoff shirt-off episode in Mumbai in 2002 and the subsequent event in Lord's when Dada let loose in Lord's Dressing Room. Add to that the most sporting gesture of 2005 when he consoled Brett Lee after the Aussies lost the Old Trafford test during Ashes 2005; has been portrayed as a behaviour to emulate by other cricketers. These events are going to stay in our memories forever and whenever we reminisce Freddie we will relive those days. So in the end we and I in particular will miss his antics. Goodbye Freddie, thanks for entertaining us.

Spot Fixing

This is the latest scandal to rock the beautiful game of Cricket. Don't know why ICC hasn't been able to weed out this problem once and for all. Even though this is something new compared to Hansie Cronje's days, one needs to get into the psyche of players to comprehend the reasons behind indulging in such deeds. The reason for doing this comes to down to one thing only i.e. Money.

Money has not been a problem since IPL started, we could pardon the past players on this reasoning that they didn't have this avenue to make money. Loads of money is being made by players since T20 came into the mainstream, especially IPL. We all missed one fact that the players who have been alleged in the recent spate of events belong to a country whose players have been barred from the IPL riches and to top it off IPL Nights as well. How can one bear not being a part of IPL Nights !

This ain't any reason to pardon the guilty, but this greed is not only because of the disparity of earnings between cricket and other mainstream sports. Cricket being a sport played my only few countries and having an addictive fan following only in the Indian Subcontinent; which is even now considered a developing region. Come to think of it these guys might be the highest earning sports-persons in their countries and way above their Per Capita Incomes.

The main reason behind players not being apprehensive about indulging in Spot Fixing can be lain on the lax regulatory and reprimanding policies of the ICC and respective country Cricket Boards. Everyone knows that all the players indicted in the earlier cases are still having a great time, they have found better sources to sustain themselves; some have been let off after serving bans of a maximum of 12 months and others have taken gladly to remunerating careers as Sport Commentators, Book Authors or Politicians.

So I feel the change should start from the top, making the ICC more responsible for the sport that it had been mandated to not only preserve but also spread.

Confusion Unlimited

This is that part of the year where one looks back at the goals and targets shortlisted at the beginning of the year.As always 2010 was ushered in with magnanimous goals and overflowing hopes. All's not well though, didn't clear one goal and dropped another due to under-preparedness and lack of motivation to pursue it. But there is light at the end of the tunnel, have pinned my hopes on a new goal, though am not sure whether I will pursue it or not. The clairvoyant's prognosis hasn't been encouraging, he told me that as per my stars I am not destined to achieve the new goal even if I try hard enough.

Thought about abandoning it as well, until I read a quote which goes as , " The difference between Successful person and Others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will ". So here I go once again on strength on this inspiring quote, this quote won't be strong enough to push me through, I will have to dig into the god given will-power. More than being successful this is one peak which I want to scale for the journey. And am doing it to beat my long time nemesis 'Sloth'.

Moving on from professional goals, other aspects of life are going pretty well. Waiting for Mom to get back. It's been long time since she left, and there's a constant feeling of something being amiss at home.

Malhar 2010

Malhar is the inter-college festival of St. Xavier's College, Mumbai. I couldn't make it to Malhar during my college days, ever. So when the opportunity came knocking, I was not going to let it go. Full credit for getting me in should go to Neha, as she was the one who arranged the VIP pass for me.

I spent my five year's of College, despising every tiny detail about my College ( am not proud about that fact, but still that's the truth ). On my way to attend the Festival, the sense of expectation was reigning high. Once inside, the first thought that came to my mind was, I should have taken admission in St. Xavier's. And I was thinking what could have been if I was in Xavier's. But no use crying over spilled milk, can't undone the past.

Positives about my visit are :-
1) Hot chicks - Couldn't get enough of the sights
2) Contagious enthusiasm
3) Amazing management of the event
4) Xavierites know how to have a blast

I went on the last day of the festival, and could catch only couple of the events - Rock Band Performance, War of the DJ's and The Fine Art Gallery. Not being a big fan of rock music I went to The Fine Art Gallery first, the art was contemporary and very well done. One can feel the kind of efforts put in by the pupils to get it up and running. Then to the War of the DJ's, it was good fun, great dancing, vuvuzelas and amazing music. A special tip for prospective aspirants to St. Xavier's College, the organisers get to dance on the stools, it's a great place to dance coupled with a great view of the event.

Finally we went to the Rock Music performances, won't be able to comment on them because for me it was just loud noise and a lot of screaming. But the crowd was having a blast, from the kind of cheering and hooting that bestowed on all the performers. Finally the best part about going to Malhar is getting an inside view of St. Xaveir's college itself, being a great fan of British Architecture, just being was there was intimidating.

By the end of it, I was thinking I got to be here next time too. Am not sure whether fate, will be kind enough on me once again.

Amazing June

Come to think of it, June was an amazing month to watch TV. It couldn't get any better than this for couch potatoes. We had an amazing choice to choose from Asia Cup, England v Australia ODI series, Wimbledon, French open and the greatest of them all FIFA World Cup. All of them were amazing contests and for a sports enthusiast it was a difficult choice to make. But even after all these amazing sporting events I sorely missed watching Saina Nehwal win three world series in a row, they could have atleast televised the Indonesian Series ( the third and the latest one ).

It was a fantabulous achievement and a welcome change for Indians who are constantly bred on sports news based on the cricket team's ups and downs, a tennis star's ( supposedly ) marriage gossip and the hockey team's continuous spiral downwards. Hopefully this achievement might cause a revival in Badminton, which traces it's roots in British India.

Another TV show that begun in the last week of June was Glee on Star World, has caught my imagination and has filled the void left by Scrubs. Glee is a quintessential story of American High School where losers are trying to gain an entry in the school's happening crowd. So a professor, who also happened to the an ex-student of the school, resurrects a club which was the toast of the school in his hey-days,and he was a part of. The club is called the 'Glee Club', who are preparing for a song and dance competition with the help of the Professor, and the plot is of the underdogs taking on the big boys.

Moving on from Television, reading novels has also become a great past-time. Had taken a consious decision of not reading Fiction novels, so these days have been read books on History, Philosophy and Economics. Have bought a few books on the same and after a lot of procrastination, I have finally taken up reading 'Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World', am close to finishing it, probably by next week. My next blog would be on a personal review of the book, something which I have planned to do for all the books that I read.