Reasons Why I Hate Sachin

Sachin recently hit the tremendous 175 against Australia but his toiling efforts went in complete vain as our tail-handlers could not even score 19 runs .. As soon as Sachin was back in the pavallion, the rest of the batsmen fell like a pack of cards .. We lost the battle by a very very narrow margin .. I mean it's nothing new .. It has happened so many times now that we are used to it now .. I was so dishearten and disappointed and so as millions of other Indians and cricket fans ..

Recently got a forwarded mail which states the reson why Sachin is hated everywhere and it truly reflects my thoughts and my mind ..

Following are the reasons why I hate Sachin:

1. He always plays a brilliant innings before my exam and hence doesn’t let me study.

2. Every time that I think of becoming an atheist, he gets into the nineties and I have no choice but to pray.

3. Every time I take a resolution not to bite my nails, he gets into the nineties and I am left with no choice but to chew on my nails.

4. He costs way too much on ‘super selector’ but since I have to pick him, the rest of my team gets weakened.

5. During a match, invariably when I want to go to the bathroom, he hits a boundary and hence I have no choice but to sit and watch the replay. Even my father/friends wont allow me to change the sit when Sachin is batting. No one cares about my agony.

6. As soon as I convince myself that God does not exist, he plays a straight drive and proves me wrong.

7. He brings the whole country to a standstill whenever he bats.

8. And the last and the biggest reason why I hate Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar …

He is going to retire sometime in the future .. A slightest thought about his retirement brings tears in my eyes .. When he will retire, I feel that my life will come to a complete standstill .. How will I live without watching him on the field, without seeing him scoring tons and tons of runs, without hearing his baby voice .. Uffff , why Sachin why ?? .. Why were you born In India and why did you play cricket ?? .. We just love you so much that we cant see you going ..

As they say, commit all your crime when Sachin is batting, coz even GOD is watching his batting.

That he can feel more pain than the youngest team member and the oldest fan, is a fact that deserves a story by itself.

But for me, that is enough to forget my pain and stand in unreserved applause for the man who makes me feel more Indian than any other.

So true !! Hats off to the master !!

Soham

Gupshup about Festivals, Maharashta Elections, Raj and Bigg Boss !!

What's up everyone out there ?? .. It's been almost a month and half since I blogged .. Had thought of writing about Champions' league and Maharashtra elections but somehow could not implement the thought ..

Last month, I was completely engrossed in festive mood .. First came Navratri even though I did not go for any Garba Night this time but just the visual clips on TV about live Garbas of Ahmedabad and Surat made me nostalgic and quite happy .. Then came Dasherra .. After that, it was a time of the king of festivials DIWALI .. did not take any vacation for that but still went home and socialized all three days which I spent at home .. Did a bit of shopping too ..

Now I'm back to my karma-Bhoomi mumbai and resumed my job .. Maharashtra assembly election results were up to the prediction and there wasn't any surprise .. The only thing that amused me was the unpredictable and unprecedented growth Raj Thackrey and his party MNS .. MNS might have won only 13 seats but they have single-handedly dented Shivsena-BJP's votebank and emerged as the secong largest party in Mumbai .. That is quite an achievement by a three-years old party to overpower four decade old stong and aggressive party like Shivsena .. MNS' presence has cost around 45 seats to BJP-Sena where saffron alliance could hv easily won ..Keeping apart his anti-north indian ideology, this man Raj Thackrey has charishma of his own like his uncle Balasaheb and his persona has created a magnificent impression atleast on marathi youth .. He is a man to watch out in Maharashtra politics .. Even after a bad governance, security lapses, uncontrollable corruption, mis management Congress-NCP alliance is back to power to ru(i)n the goverment ..

Bigg Boss 3 has started again and the season of Maa-Bahen ki Gaaliyaan is back .. Kamal Rashid Khan (KRK) single-handedly took up the job and performed the role of a villain and abused almost everyone in the house .. He has been kicked out of the Bigg Boss because of his misbehaviour and aggression but I personally feel that it is nothing more than a bloody TRP stunt .. He will be back soon .. Sometimes I wonder these TV producers/Directors really think that we are this much stupid and idiot ??

Loved the slogan which was told by someone on twitter: Congress ki aayee fir Sarkar - UP,Bihar khaaye maaar .. LOL !!

By the way, I stay in Navi Mumbai .. So here Mr. Ganesh Naik is an MLA from Belapur , his son Mr. Sandeep is an MLA from Airoli and his older son Dr. Sanjeev is an MP from Thane .. So this one family completely rules the navi mumbai political regime .. Did this phenomena ring any bell ?? .. Doesn't it identical to the fact that the one family of Delhi which rules our whole country since decades!!! .. Political dynasty at its best .. Cant help it ..

Soham

Religion : Cricket - God : Sachin !

Recently one of my college and blogger friends Nova expressed her annoyance about her hubby's passion and affection to cricket and how he (unconsciously) ignores her during cricket matches .. Few other girls supported her in her disgust as they were facing the same ditto problem from their husbands' fondness for cricket ..

This conversation literally kicked away my writer's block which I was facing since long and gave some gyan in my mind to pen down my thoughts about how cricket-crazy my family is .. Ofcourse, we belong to a cricket fanatic country and my family is no exception in that ..

Let me start with my dad .. I have not seen ardent cricket fan like him in my whole life .. Be it any god-damned match even Bangladesh v/s Kenya, you can find him watching on TV .. Whether it's 5 AM in the morning New Zealand match or late in the night West-indies match, no matter what, he will stick to his TV ignoring the whole little world around him .. He's a big Sachin fan .. He wears a pendant which has Sachin's face on it so that Sachin always remains close to his heart .. When Sachin used to get out, I could see the anger in dad's eyes and in behaviour .. He is not much into statistical data or a records lover but he does not want Ponting to break the record of Sachin for highest number of centuries in test cricket .. So right now his prayers mostly involves the wish that Ponting gets out early whenever he is on the crease .. One of our family friends Mr. Surajiwala even suffered from a heart-attack when Javed Miandad hit Chetan Sharma for a last-ball six ..

My 80-year old Nani (Grandmother) is a big cricket fan too .. even at this age, she captures every bit of news which involves our team, our captains and any damn controversies .. She even has many suggestions for our team like who should open and who should come in the middle order to name a few .. She watches cricket matches in her room having bhagwan-ki-maala in one hand andr emote in the other .. She even takes out her anger and disgust when Sehwag gets out playing a foolish and unnecessary slog shot .. It is so thrilling to watch those expressions ..

There is this thing called heriditary and genetics .. Hence I do have inherited this cricket-craziness and passion from my family .. I too watch all most all the matches amid tight schedules and office timings .. I'm also more into statistics and records .. I love to keep myself updated about almost every records and statistics of the cricket world .. My cousin and I have never missed watching a single match that has been played in Ahmedabad during our teens .. We used to plan in advance about it as how to bunk the school, tutions and how to prepare if exams are near .. Watching IPL matches in Mumbai was fun .. I even prayed and recited Hanuman Chalisa almost thousand times when our team was losing in the world cup final in 2003 .. It even rained and match was about to get canceled but then it started and we eventually lost .. May be the GOD was with Australian fans and heard their prayers which really made the clouds and in turn rain invisible and the match was resumed ..

I'm also lucky to get a wife who likes cricket and has knowledge of cricket rules (Not LBWs though !!) and even loves watching it on TV .. I even remembered her shouts, anger and agony when 'Mumbai Indians' lost last year's IPL match and failed to qualify for the semi-finals .. She was furious ..

So my message to all the wives/girl friends who have problems with their soul mate's cricket passion:

1) Cricket is religion for us and Sachin is our God ..

2) We do care for you and love you but we too have the same feeling for Team India as much as you have the love for shopping and gossiping ..

3) World around us becomes standstill for cricket fans like us when there is an important match going on or when there is a tense moment .. Please let us eat our nails during these tense moments as we dont like advices at that particular time ..

4) Whenever possible, please say whatever you have to say during commercials when any match is going on ..

Oh !! it's 2 in the afternoon and I'm heading to cricinfo site for live cricket scores of India v/s New Zealand match which will start in a short while in Colombo ..

All the best India .. All the best Sachin ..

Soham

Swine-Flu : Prevention is always better than Cure

Flu -- Flu -- It's a Swine-Flu !!!!!

Swine-flu is omnipresent these days - in news, in talks, in papers and also in the bodies of humans !! .. It has already created a panic in India and it continues to haunt people even when I am writing this one .. At the same moment, I am getting an email from my office HR explaining the Dos and Don'ts during this Swine-Flu anarchy ..

Current Death Toll because of Swine-Flu:
Pune - 3
Ahmedabad - 1 (NRI who had come from Atlanta, USA)
Delhi - 1
Mumbai - 1
Chennai - 1

Pune is the worst-affected city while Delhi comes close second ..

Swine-Flu is not at all dangerous .. All cases of Swine Flu are not serious in nature .. So there is no need for panic .. It just needs an extra care and it can be prevented .. Public awareness is what the need of an hour instead of panic, chaos or fear ..

• Some important points about Swine-Flu (H1N1 Viral Infection):

1) Swine Flu is a highly contagious disease .. So If suffering from flu-like symptoms ( fever, running nose, cold , sore throat, nausea / vomiting) , please isolate yourself to prevent transmission of infection to others as the disease spreads by droplet infection while coughing and sneezing ..

2) Report to doctor either family physician or preferably in a govt. hospitals as they are better equipped and take necessary treatment ..

3) Undergo nasal / throat swab test on the advice of the govt. doctors as required at recognized centres .. SWINE-FLU medicines are ONLY available with Govt. Hospitals in India ..

4) Avoid going to crowded places like market, malls, air ports, railway stations, multiplexes if possible. I know there are so many great and lucrative deals going on in malls but avoiding it will save you some money too .. And yes, you can watch 'Kaminey' next week .. No big deal, huh !!

5) Always use N95 masks whenever possible .. They are specifically made for H1N1 Viruses .. Just dont buy usual surgical masks ..

6) Be careful with elderly people, children , pregnant women and people suffering from TB, HIV, diabetic, chronic lung / heart and neurological diseases and Cancer as they are more susceptible ..

7) Develop healthy habits like nutritious diet, safe drinking water , enough rest, sleep and breathing exercise ..

• DOs and Don'ts :

[Click on the below image to see it larger .. Don't be lazy .. Do click and read it ..]




So use some common sense and take some extra care and be preventive .. Together we can and we will fight this swine-flu ..

Soham

Scrabble - Genious !!

This has got to be one of the most clever e -mails I've received in a while. Someone out there either has too much spare time or is deadly at Scrabble.

( This is a piece of forwarded email .. Hence credits to those who have created it !!)

DILIP VENGSARKAR:
When you rearrange the letters:
SPARKLING DRIVE.

PRINCESS DIANA:
When you rearrange the letters:
END IS A CAR SPIN.

MONICA LEWINSKY:
When you rearrange the letters:
NICE SILKY WOMAN.

DORMITORY:
When you rearrange the letters:
DIRTY ROOM.

ASTRONOMER:
When you rearrange the letters:
MOON STARER.

DESPERATION :
When you rearrange the letters:
A ROPE ENDS IT.

THE EYES:
When you rearrange the letters:
THEY SEE.

A DECIMAL POINT:
When you rearrange the letters:
I M A DOT IN PLACE.

MOTHER-IN-LAW:
When you rearrange the letters:
WOMAN HITLER.

Soham

Mumbai to Ahmedabad via TRAIN - An experience of Life Time

As few of you might be knowing that Ahmedabad is my native place and Mumbai is the city where I work .. It takes hardly 7 hours to reach Ahmedabd from Mumbai by train .. So I go to Ahmedabad almost every alternate weekend .. To travel by train is quite an economical and comfortable option than the flight .. I always take an overnight train on Friday night and reach Ahmedabad early morning of Saturday and I take Sunday night train to Mumbai and reach Monday early morning .. Best timings for any office-goer ..

I have travelled in almost every class of a train be it sleeper class, three-tier AC, two-tier AC or even First/Executive class AC .. Every class has its own charm and appeal .. Every class is fun in itself .. So let me take you through every class that I have travelled in and will share some of my experiences ..

• Sleeper Class : This class mainly involves lower-middle and middle class families .. You will find people around you very friendly and approachable .. They will also help you in settling down and to put your luggage underneath your seat .. After few initial minutes, no matter what you are wearing or how you are looking or how weird you are behaving, some one from somewhere will surely ask you about your name, about your work and even about your family .. You will come to know about each and every passenger's family and work details withing few minutes .. People around you will offer you food, chocolates , sweets etc with a very friendly smile .. The whole of your compartment will turn into discussion forum with topics varies from politics to bollywood to cricket to sensex to recession .. If the talks are getting interesting then other compartment people will join you too .. All these chatting and gossiping will last till late night with smiles and loud laughs all around .. It's a very nice experience even though by comfort and amenity wise, this class is at the bottom .. But those constant chatters will overtake and overshadow your discomfort for sure .. It's fun to travel by this class ..

• Three-tier AC : This class mainly involved middle-class and upper-middle class families .. After few minutes of your boarding of train, you will settle down and will exchange smiles with your other compartment mates .. If you are lucky and if you have got a friendly passengers, someone will ask you about your name and work .. But things wont stretch to your family and business details .. After some basic talks, everyone will go to sleep and there will be a total calm and peace in the whole compartment .. IF you really want a comfort and good value for your money, this class is the best one to travel .. Very economical though very comfortable ..

• Two-tier AC: This class involves mainly upper-middle-class and rich class families .. Once you board the train and will settle down in your seat, I don't think anybody will ask you something or anyone will even exchange a smile with you .. Most of them are usually reading novels or talking on phones .. Once the TC checks the tickets, everyone will go into the lands of dream and there will be a complete peace with lights off and curtains close in no time .. you will even not remember the faces with whom you travelled in an overnight train .. Sometimes it becomes depressing if you are not feeling sleepy but comfort-wise this class is quite good ..

These are my experiences of each class .. I found that people with less money are far more friendly, smiling and approachable than the people with more money .. People with less money have so many things to talk about than the people with more money .. I don't know why this happens but you might have also experienced the same .. I don't remember any of the instances when I had talked to the person sitting beside me in the flight or even he/she has exchanged any smile with me whatsoever .. I may be grossly wrong in quoting this but this is what I have felt all these years ..

Soham