Time Travel

Its a nice feeling to be here again. Its been more than a month since I have posted anything on the blog. There have been so many times that I have logged in and stared at the blank post window, a million thoughts running through my mind only to shake my head and focus back on something that needed my attention at that moment. The people closest to me already know why I have not made the time to post anything. Time has become an enemy and at this stage I feel I am fighting a losing battle.

Much has happened in the past couple of weeks. I have been enjoying the fact that Schumy seems to have got the measure of his blond haired team mate (I dislike Rosberg immensely :):)) but hey, it was yours truly who called it out in my post in mid April and I do so love being right. The overall win eludes but now there is a genuine reason to have hope. It just might happen...

Its has been a few weeks now since that devastating Mangalore crash. I don't care who you are in life, some tragedies will affect you no matter what. While I was thankful that I did not know anyone on the flight, it was something that could not be ignored. You know, I have never been a happy flier. I have been very fortunate to travel several times by planes thanks to my dad working abroad for more than 15 years but I have never, ever been comfortable with flying. Man was not made to fly is what I say and yes, while I sound like I belong in the 18th century, the truth remains that I don't like to fly. I have seen more than my share of air pockets and turbulence and I can assure you, that I take the name of the Lord every single time the plane shudders even in the slightest.

I have often wondered why I dislike flying. Perhaps, its because I am a subversive control freak. The truth is that if I am not at the helm of a car, bike or even an airplane I start freaking out. I remember a few years back when my dad used to drive, I would hit the invisible brake pedal on the passenger side and would even sometimes close my eyes! I admit, my dad is a fantastically safe driver but that matters not. Two years back I had an accident while a friend was riding my bike. Mind you, it was not the first time I crashed. I am proud of it but, I had previously crashed at least 7 to 8 times and each time I brushed it off. However, the last time I crashed on the bike there was someone else in control and since then I have not touched my bike. I am convinced its the most unsafe means of transport out there and I will not even permit myself to sit pillion with anyone. Man, I hate this feeling. There was a time when I even fancied buying a big cruiser and looking oh, so cool astride the beast but not any more. I know I will get this misplaced sense of fear fixed someday, I really dont want to live in fear but for now, I don't ever want to get on a bike again.

Something special happened this week. I got to met "her" again. As with most good things in life, it was unplanned. I still am not sure how it happened but before I realized I was driving half way across the city to our impromptu rendezvous. In the hour and a half that I spent with her having a late lunch, gently laughing over silly stories, I remembered why I fell for her in the first place. Looking back, I feel honored that this gentle creature even considered an ogre like me to be "The One" albeit for a relatively short period. No further meetings are planned and while admittedly, this was not a life changing meeting, I unquestionably loved the fact that we met.

Some people will always affect you and they will do so in the most profound manner. They will have a power over you and while distance can make their hold on you seem a little less pronounced, the feeling only intensifies as soon as you are within the individual's vicinity. I pride myself on not having too many people who affect my sense of self. "She" forever will be one of those who will.

Well, the weekend is here and I cant wait to get away. Time to sign off..:)

The Week That Was..

Another hectic week. A little more so than what I'm used to. As always it was work that was the cause and if the daily routine was not enough, I signed up for a 2 day training that needed me to attend the training from 9AM - 6 PM and then come back to office for work till 2 AM.

Translation : Sleep deprivation!!!

But the training was nice and nice for a very different reason. Well its done and on a Saturday I'm in office again conducting some interviews for my team. One of my potential interviewees decided to skip it and that allowed me this 30 mins to update my blog. I often ask myself why I choose to run this hard. Isn't it is easier to shift to a lower gear? Isn't it a little easier to care less? Well, truth be told, it isn't. Trust me, I have tried.

Blame it on the last few years of college where I never lived up to my true potential which is one of the things that I keep kicking myself over. Or maybe, I should blame it on the fact that the moment my mind is idle it begins exploring questions that leaves me more mentally exhausted than I would be after a draining work week. It's mysterious sometimes, what makes us do the things we do. Its the beautiful quirks that makes us who we are. At home, I will not get off the bed for hours, perfectly content flipping channels. At work, I have been accused of being dedicated, hardworking and couple of times, *gasp* dynamic!! Who knew that's the tag I would have?

Last weekend I had the chance to cook a little. I am not a great cook but I can create. My parents on the other hand are brilliant at cooking. Stories of their prowess have traveled far and wide and I know the potential resides in me too. Whenever I get a chance, I love to get into the kitchen. Funny thing is, I never do it at home because I know what I cook will never compare to my parent's cooking but when I'm out I feel liberated. I feel that I have nothing to prove and that allows me the peace of mind and clarity that one needs to create. And make no mistake, cooking great food is akin to an artist putting together a masterpiece, the intense please of creation rivaled only by the pleasure of tasting a well cooked meal and having friends go Ooh and Aah over your creation.

So once I'm done with the interviews, I can look forward to catching up with friends and chilling out. I am sure I will get to listen to their stories and I know I will enjoy sharing mine with them. Bet we will even have a few laughs. It's good to have friends. They make me realize there is more to me than being "Mr Dynamic-Office-Going-Man". After a hard week that's what I most look forward to.

No man is an island. Everyone needs someone don't we?

Dying To Win

Mellow Sunday afternoon today. Laziness fills my senses. I loathe the thought of even brushing my teeth or worse, having a shower. The Jack D (Best Whiskey in the world..Woohoo!!) from last night's get together with friends is still in my body and it does not help. Not one bit.

As has been the case for years and years now, it does not stop me from waking up in time for the Chinese GP and hey, I got my prediction half right. It was a McLaren which won but the one driven by Button and not by Hamilton. Alonso drove brilliantly too and I am still convinced Alonso will clinch the driver's title this year. He is just too good a driver and he looks at home in the Ferrari. He just needs to have some luck coming his way. But still the race sucked for one very painful reason. Schumy came a cropper. Again.

Today, the conditions were wet and changeable. Five years back it would mean just one thing. A Schumacher masterclass performance and a demonstration of why he is the best F1 driver of all time. But today, every Schumy fan would have felt a knot in their throat. It was yet another race where Schumy struggled. He did not get the start right. He worked his tyres too hard and wore off the inter's threads way faster than he should have. He just about slithered his way to a very humbling 10th place finish. The car was just not working for him and I would not complain all that much but for the fact that Nico Rosberg got his second consecutive 3rd place finish. Schumy has to spend the next 3 weeks doing some much needed soul searching. Was the comeback really necessary? Was it worth the ignominy of bringing in the car so far down the order? And yes, Was it the right decision to join the Mercedes team and turn away from Ferrari's open arms?

Schumy is not over the hill. I am sure of that. What made Schumy brilliant however, was that he was light years ahead of his contemporaries in every aspect of the game. He brought a ruthless, single-minded approach to F1 that saw him being the fittest driver of his generation. A driving approach that leveraged shrewd thinking on the pit wall with blinding speed when it mattered the most, at the end of, and at the start of a tyre and fuel change. Hell, he did not even shy away from the politics of F1, getting himself in close with Bernie and then with Jean Todt. By the time the field had upped their game he had built Ferrari into the unbeatable colossus they were, sewing up back to back to back to back...to back world championships. I think Fernando Alonso heralded the start of the first wave of Schumacher-esqe drivers. Then Lewis followed very closely by Sebastian Vettel. I dont think Schumy has lost his edge, except that all the drivers and teams have realized how he and Ferrari had become such a devastating combination. And now that Schumy returns after a 3 yrs hiatus he is being made to realise that, for the first time, he is the guy who has to play catch up.

The question is, Can Schumy raise his game now? At the age of 41 one cant see it happening. But then what is a fan, if not a fanatic? I tune in every F1 weekend hoping to see the magic returning. I tune in hoping to see him finding that last missing piece that is holding back. For one race, just one race, I want to see him step up to the top of the podium, holding the winner's trophy aloft. Detractors proved wrong. His decision to return, validated.

I can guarantee that it would be the sweetest win for Schumacher and atleast for this lifetime fan.

The Week That Was...

So did anyone else feel that the Sania Mirza marriage turned out to be such an anticlimax?

I did appreciate the buildup and the hoopla that accompanied the event. What more could one ask for? Ex-wives crying foul. Public outcry over the Indian tennis player riding off into the sunset with a Pakistani cricketer and then, as the day of the marriage approached, Sania Mirza standing by her slightly forgetful husband-to-be. Yes Sir, I definitely expected the actual marriage to resemble the D Day landing on the beaches of Normandy with fireworks blazing in the sky like the 4th of July and hopefully a final "kahani mein twist". But instead, SM transformed herself to the perfect Indian bride wearing her mom's 25 year old red sari (Looking great, mind you!!) and they got married in a relatively hum drum fashion and that was that. The next day all was forgiven, the marriage forgotten and we were left wondering "What was the fuss all about?". Strange ending, I must say :(

Looking forward to the weekend. Work this week was, well, work. The Chinese GP's qualifying is in a few hours and I plan to slumber till 11 AM and wake up in time to catch final quali. For sure, I am an ardent Schumy fan but Alonso is the only other driver in the F1 field who gives me the same goosebumps as Schumy did back in the late 90's. With the long straights though, I am putting the McLaren of Lewis Hamilton down for a win. I think the guy is brilliant. I just don't like him, that's all :). No denying his talent though, unfortunately. I'll know if I got this right by Sunday afternoon. And so a weekend with friends, good old Mr Jack Daniels, some more office work and some F1 action beckons.

Time to head out.

Wash my pain away

Bangalore saw its first proper rain shower today. A brief spell lasting just over 2 hours or so. I was lucky enough to catch the live performance for a few minutes after dinner. No surprise, everyone in office were thrilled with rain. Hands down it was the theme of the day!

So what is it about rain that most people fall so in love with?

I get the physics and obviousness of it. Rain cools the earth down, brings down the ambient temperature, raises the water table, good for crops, helps to fill up the reservoirs which in turn helps generate electricity, yeah yeah, blah blah...whatever!! This isnt the National Geographic so ill drift away from the tangible and get back to my favorite realm, the intangible.

My experiences with rain have been varied. On the road, I have had more than my share of scary moments and also one or two crashes in the rain back when I used to ride my bike. I recall, back then I had the uncanny knack of getting caught in the rain whenever I used to drop my girl home. Man, I used to curse the rain back then. I used to hate the fact that I did not have enough petrol money to drop her in my van and if that was not enough, not only did I have to see her go, as an insult to injury, I would have to ride back home wet to the bone with only the cold breeze and my wet jacket as company. Nothing pleasant. Nothing beautiful.

Today the rain stopped far too quickly and I was in office anyways. Still it brought back some memories. Made me smile. Isn't that what matters, a smile from within? I am at peace with the rain now. I have no animosity towards it. It has its role to play and it will play it no matter if I like it or not. But Ill tell you one thing. What I do enjoy when it rains, is how it seems to wash the city clean. It removes the layers of dust and grime. In just a few minutes it cleanses everything. For a few moments after the rain stops when I look around, I like to believe the city has become just a little cleaner, just a little more innocent, a place where I can live for just a little longer.

And then, I smile...

When the Tiger roars...again!

Quite a weekend for Tiger Woods. He makes a brilliant return to golfing on a fantastic stage like The Master's and simultaneously makes it to the top of the "Unsexiest Man" Top 100. Such a wide spectrum of accolades.:)

Now hey, the "Unsexiest Man" Top 100 is some loser poll out there. I never even knew it existed till yesterday but the fact that he tops their listing is a reflecti0n of the fact that the world has still not forgiven Tiger for his indiscretions. In the past 5 months we have seen a hero being torn down, his image of perfection being shattered. Does anyone even remember the number of women pouring out of the woodwork accusing Tiger of sending obscene texts, sleeping with them , the works? Add to it the fact that today's media does not want to stop at just exposing a story. Like a rabid dog, the media will get after a story and rip it apart, exposing it in each and every grisly detail and then more. And finally, just when you think the dust was beginning to settle and when you think the worst is over, another bimbo appears and we are right back where we started.

I am not defending Tiger here. Well that's not completely true. I am defending him just a wee bit. I mean, there is no denying his crime. He was a married man and he cheated on his wife with scores of women. Period. He embarrassed himself, his wife, his family and anyone else who was close to him. Somewhere I think he made the mistake of believing his demigod status on the golf course would translate to his personal life and nothing and no one would stand up in opposition. He believed the good will and adulation he had generated would never disappear. He could not have foreseen how the public's opinion would turn into loathing.

My question is, Does Tiger deserve this level of public outrage? Did Tiger have a semblance of normalcy when he grew up? I mean, Come on, you thrust a golf club in his hands when he is 4. His childhood unfolds in front of the media's eye for all the world to see. He is revered as the best thing in golf even before he begins playing in the professional arena and by the time he has hit adult hood he makes more money a year than the economy of a small country. Tiger's life has been abnormal from the get go and then we are appalled when he does not follow "Normal" behavior? Please!! Who are we kidding? Why are we being such hypocrites? Somewhere as individual, we have take a good look at the whole situation and avoid getting swept with the public outcry for Tiger's behavior.

Coming back to golfing was a brave and smart thing for Tiger to do. Elin whatever her name is will divorce him and she will get a fat check for her pains and that will be that. As far as I am concerned, I so want him to succeed. I want to see Tiger dominate the golf world as he used to. I want to see him end his career as the undisputed No 1 golfer in the record books and in the public's opinion. He was groomed for greatness since the day he could hold a golf club. Whether he likes it or not, it is his for the taking. The greatest golfer ever. His destiny awaits.

Just do it.

Three Years Later...

Can you believe it? It has been three years since I last accessed this blog.

Three long years...So much has happened in the time between my last post and now. So many things...good things and bad. And the stories of the past few years will definitely be shared, not probably in a chronological order but probably when something in the present triggers something from the past. But this time I would want to keep the blog going and atleast not wait for three years before I access this again.

Well lets see how it works out :)