"Raj proposed to me 3 months back and i said yes to him almost immediately", said Priya.
"Oh wow...am happy for u", Rahul was forcing a smile.
"Yeah and i met his parents and they liked me too...and my parents were happy as well that i chose Raj"
"ofcourse"
It was almost a year back when Rahul had proposed his love to Priya, but she promptly turned it down, saying that he deserved a better girl! "Usual crap", Rahul had then thought. They remained good friends and just that, ever since...or so Priya was made to believe. Rahul couldn't really forget Priya. He tried making new friends but he couldn't get to open his heart with any of the girls. He had given up on girls now...
Rahul was brought back to the present as Priya said, "dad's happy cos Raj's well educated, earning handsomely and is from a good family"
"most certainly..he's the best", said Rahul.
Priya was smiling.
"seriously Priya...i think he's the right one for you"
"why do u say so?"- she was not happy with just the words but wanted to hear the reasoning too, he thought.
"Well...he's been very close to u and it has been obvious all the time that u enjoyed being with him and what better than getting married and living ur life with him forever?...and ofcourse there's no second thoughts about the way he takes care of u like u r some one-year old"...Rahul fought hard to get those last few words out of his mouth, for he knew, given the chance, he'd take care of Priya like a princess in a castle on a hilltop. She'd be made to live "a dream" life...
Priya's smile was becoming more pronounced with every word Rahul was saying and all of a sudden she was laughing out loud.
"Got you idiot! I was just bluffing!!"
"what the...",Rahul was smiling widely now.
"Today's April 1, remember??"
Rahul grinned, tears of joy welling in his eyes.
"I love u Priya", he said sheepishly.
"I know. I love u too and saying that was the actual purpose of my visit today", she smiled like an angel.
Rahul stepped closer to her and gave her a tight hug.
"Wake up Rahul"
"What?? Dad's voice!!...Priya- let him not see you now...find a place to hide"
"Wake up son and are you trying to hide that pillow ?!!"-Rahul realised that someone was giving his body a shake and he woke up, startled.
"What's the date dad?"
"28th, why?"
Everything started to make sense now...It was real until before Priya's smile turned into an uproarious laughter and immediately Rahul sensed tears welling in his eyes and this time it wasnt tears of joy and he wasn't crying in his dreams. How he wished all of it was a dream...
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Sunday, April 24, 2005
Thirty Two
Today's Sachin Tendulkar's 32nd birthday. He's one of the very few people outside of my family who have brought me a lot of joy. I salute the master and wish him many more happy years of life.
Monday, April 18, 2005
Tight Corners...
Friend 1: I used to sleep so deeply earlier that i used to have no clue when the alarm went off. Nowadays, i switch the alarm off after the first or second ring and go back to sleep! Now, that's an improvement.
Friend2: How do you know for sure that it was the first or second ring? Is it actually the first and second rings or the first and second rings that you get to hear, after you wake up? I guess it's the latter.
Now, what can Friend 1 reply? I guess there's just no honest reply to that question.
During my first year here, i used to sleep a lot. Out of the 4 roomies(me,Shankar,Shyam and SK), i would invariably be the last one to wake up. All 4 of us were being ragged with one(or more!!) girl(s) at the university.
One fine day, Shankar said that i was talking in my sleep and that i said "fruit salad".
Shyam said "Ava onakku fruit saladaa daa?".
I did not know what to say. First of all, i wasnt sure if i talked in sleep. When in India, my dad used to say that i said something in English while sleeping and that it was incomprehensible. So, I could have...but I could not afford to accept that for these guys would rag like hell then! Either ways, they did rag me a lot because of this.
Shyam, after a few days, claimed that i was kissing the air while sleeping! Again, i had to blindly deny what he said, all the time wondering if it really happened!!
There were a lot of other instances of me talking in sleep and only after a good year or so did Shankar tell me that most of it was made-up. He said that the "fruit salad" story was true though!
Now, this is what i call a tight corner. I have put a lot of people in tight corners and it is fun. Only when you are put in one do you get to know how tough it is to get out of it! I miss those Glendora days...
Friend2: How do you know for sure that it was the first or second ring? Is it actually the first and second rings or the first and second rings that you get to hear, after you wake up? I guess it's the latter.
Now, what can Friend 1 reply? I guess there's just no honest reply to that question.
During my first year here, i used to sleep a lot. Out of the 4 roomies(me,Shankar,Shyam and SK), i would invariably be the last one to wake up. All 4 of us were being ragged with one(or more!!) girl(s) at the university.
One fine day, Shankar said that i was talking in my sleep and that i said "fruit salad".
Shyam said "Ava onakku fruit saladaa daa?".
I did not know what to say. First of all, i wasnt sure if i talked in sleep. When in India, my dad used to say that i said something in English while sleeping and that it was incomprehensible. So, I could have...but I could not afford to accept that for these guys would rag like hell then! Either ways, they did rag me a lot because of this.
Shyam, after a few days, claimed that i was kissing the air while sleeping! Again, i had to blindly deny what he said, all the time wondering if it really happened!!
There were a lot of other instances of me talking in sleep and only after a good year or so did Shankar tell me that most of it was made-up. He said that the "fruit salad" story was true though!
Now, this is what i call a tight corner. I have put a lot of people in tight corners and it is fun. Only when you are put in one do you get to know how tough it is to get out of it! I miss those Glendora days...
Sunday, April 17, 2005
Revamp Indian Batting Line-up for ODIs
After a close analysis of the IndoPak ODI series that concluded yesterday, I felt that there was an immediate need to revamp the batting line-up of India. People in some cricketing forums echoed the same thoughts. On paper, Indian batting looks to be solid and more reliable than the Pakis, but when it comes to match situation, they flunk more often than not. A simple analysis will get the needful done without requiring new faces in the team.
The first 15 overs are crucial and India invariably needs a good start. Out of the seven given batsmen- Sachin, Sehwag, Ganguly, Dravid, Yuvraj, Kaif and Dhoni, in my opinion, all of them can be successful opening the batting with probably the exception of Kaif, who can be a candidate for both LBW and caught behind with the new ball and we dont need to take chances there. Next is the 15-35 over phase. Ganguly cannot rotate the strike and get singles at will. Dhoni, i feel, will find it a little difficult too. So, i think i should rule them both out for playing the 15-35 over period. The other five can do justice to that role. Then comes the last 10-15 overs where one needs to run like hell and also have the ability to hit big. Kaif, Dravid and Ganguly dont qualify fully to do this role. The other four can play this role to perfection.
So, the analysis is now complete. What needs to be done is fitting the right piece at the right place.
1. Ganguly needs to open alongside Sachin, Sehwag, Dhoni, Dravid or Yuvraj. Since it'll probably be a crime to not let Sehwag open, Ganguly and Sehwag should open.
2. Numbers 3-6 must have sachin, dravid, yuvraj and kaif(order undecided as of now)
3. We need Sachin n Yuvraj at the death and so Kaif and Dravid need to bat at numbers 3 and 4...letting Kaif in early might help since he has a better stamina and he can be the one to take the attack to the opposition first, when it is required to do so and Dravid can anchor the innings from the time he enters to bat until probably the 45th over or so. So, i'd say Kaif at number 3 and Dravid at number 4.
4. Sachin at 5 and Yuvraj at 6, followed by Dhoni at 7.
5. So the line-up would be:
Ganguly
Sehwag
Kaif
Dravid
Sachin
Yuvraj
Dhoni
Dhoni can always be sent to bat at number 3 when chasing big totals if the run rate is poor at the fall of the first wicket....else he should bat at the death where India needs big hitters.
Consider Irfan to be the all-rounder we've always dreamt of and this line-up can be compared to a very familiar batting line-up.
Ganguly-Butt
Sehwag-Afridi
Kaif-Shoaib Malik
Dravid- Youhana
Sachin- Inzy
Yuvraj- Younis Khan
Dhoni- Akmal
Irfan- Razzaq
It doesnt need a Bob Woolmer to get this right...it just needs an imitation of the way he thinks...an outright plagiarism. Will the new coach and Ganguly get this right, atleast now?
The first 15 overs are crucial and India invariably needs a good start. Out of the seven given batsmen- Sachin, Sehwag, Ganguly, Dravid, Yuvraj, Kaif and Dhoni, in my opinion, all of them can be successful opening the batting with probably the exception of Kaif, who can be a candidate for both LBW and caught behind with the new ball and we dont need to take chances there. Next is the 15-35 over phase. Ganguly cannot rotate the strike and get singles at will. Dhoni, i feel, will find it a little difficult too. So, i think i should rule them both out for playing the 15-35 over period. The other five can do justice to that role. Then comes the last 10-15 overs where one needs to run like hell and also have the ability to hit big. Kaif, Dravid and Ganguly dont qualify fully to do this role. The other four can play this role to perfection.
So, the analysis is now complete. What needs to be done is fitting the right piece at the right place.
1. Ganguly needs to open alongside Sachin, Sehwag, Dhoni, Dravid or Yuvraj. Since it'll probably be a crime to not let Sehwag open, Ganguly and Sehwag should open.
2. Numbers 3-6 must have sachin, dravid, yuvraj and kaif(order undecided as of now)
3. We need Sachin n Yuvraj at the death and so Kaif and Dravid need to bat at numbers 3 and 4...letting Kaif in early might help since he has a better stamina and he can be the one to take the attack to the opposition first, when it is required to do so and Dravid can anchor the innings from the time he enters to bat until probably the 45th over or so. So, i'd say Kaif at number 3 and Dravid at number 4.
4. Sachin at 5 and Yuvraj at 6, followed by Dhoni at 7.
5. So the line-up would be:
Ganguly
Sehwag
Kaif
Dravid
Sachin
Yuvraj
Dhoni
Dhoni can always be sent to bat at number 3 when chasing big totals if the run rate is poor at the fall of the first wicket....else he should bat at the death where India needs big hitters.
Consider Irfan to be the all-rounder we've always dreamt of and this line-up can be compared to a very familiar batting line-up.
Ganguly-Butt
Sehwag-Afridi
Kaif-Shoaib Malik
Dravid- Youhana
Sachin- Inzy
Yuvraj- Younis Khan
Dhoni- Akmal
Irfan- Razzaq
It doesnt need a Bob Woolmer to get this right...it just needs an imitation of the way he thinks...an outright plagiarism. Will the new coach and Ganguly get this right, atleast now?
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
NAPM, NAPL
I finished reading Jeffrey Archer's Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less last night. I might be revealing significant details from the plot in this post and so reader discretion is advised in further reading of this post!
It's only my second book of Archer, after Kane and Abel and I should say it was not to my liking as much as K&A was! Considering it was only Archer's first novel though, I thought he had done a pretty good job. The only worrying factor was that some of the incidents were too dramatic and rather thankfully, the author did not make it over-dramatic by thinking of some plot to get back the last $1.24!
I had a hunch as to who Anne was, right when her character was introduced, since I felt that her character was almost unnecessary to the plot at that point and I should say that I lost the surprise element there. Maybe I was over-expecting stuff and hence was surprised in the end which I felt was rather tame, considering the momentum gathered in the early stages of the book. I also did not enjoy the fact that Harvey Metcalfe was shown to be a stupid throughout...didn't justify him becoming a millionaire with the help of his brain!
The humor in the plot was very subtle and extremely pleasant to my liking. So was Archer's deliberate play with words...he proved to be a master at it, yet again. The characters were well etched and the screenplay was very gripping, albeit dramatic. The carefree manner in which David Keslar was dumped off the screen was adorable(i kept expecting that he'd reappear in the end!) and I couldn't help but adore the manner in which Archer, unlike Follett manages to keep the intimate scenes limited to kissing, allowing himself the privilege of having an audience whose ages can range anywhere between 10 and 100!
The book's certainly worth a read...
It's only my second book of Archer, after Kane and Abel and I should say it was not to my liking as much as K&A was! Considering it was only Archer's first novel though, I thought he had done a pretty good job. The only worrying factor was that some of the incidents were too dramatic and rather thankfully, the author did not make it over-dramatic by thinking of some plot to get back the last $1.24!
I had a hunch as to who Anne was, right when her character was introduced, since I felt that her character was almost unnecessary to the plot at that point and I should say that I lost the surprise element there. Maybe I was over-expecting stuff and hence was surprised in the end which I felt was rather tame, considering the momentum gathered in the early stages of the book. I also did not enjoy the fact that Harvey Metcalfe was shown to be a stupid throughout...didn't justify him becoming a millionaire with the help of his brain!
The humor in the plot was very subtle and extremely pleasant to my liking. So was Archer's deliberate play with words...he proved to be a master at it, yet again. The characters were well etched and the screenplay was very gripping, albeit dramatic. The carefree manner in which David Keslar was dumped off the screen was adorable(i kept expecting that he'd reappear in the end!) and I couldn't help but adore the manner in which Archer, unlike Follett manages to keep the intimate scenes limited to kissing, allowing himself the privilege of having an audience whose ages can range anywhere between 10 and 100!
The book's certainly worth a read...
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