Bend in the Rhine

I am not much of a liar     

I usually am never stressed out..

No parts of wood I have,

'cept Pinocchios nose no doubt...

It makes me concious, yes...

It is rounded, hence pointless...

Yes, I've had it for a while...

No, I didn't smash my face on a tile....

Then what is it, ask some..

'tis a deviated nasal septum..

Hey, Dumbledore had a crooked nose too... :)

Pont to be noted

Ricky Ponting perhaps had a premonition that this was going to be his last match ever. That is why he tried almost every one of his gimmicks in the match.
Claiming a bump catch, arguing with the umpire, looking pissed of in general and batting beautifully.

While most will remember the match for crucial partnership between Yuvraj and Raina and the 18000th milestone in the so well canvassed career of Sachin Tendulkar, not many will remember it for the gritty knock  played by a man under pressure, not only from his own form(he hadn't scored an ODI hundred in close to a year), but also from critics and officials in his own country. Given that he had to deal with questions of captaincy and consistency and that he was facing a team considered hot favourites for the title, his knock of 104 is one of true courage.

He was always a big match player and he lived up to that. He began nervously, but he soon found grip and dispatched eight balls to the fence including one that took the aerial route. On a track that had assistance to spin(Tendulkar bowled a delivery which Shane Warne would have been proud of) and stopped occasionally, Pontings knock helped prop Australia to a respectable total. For a man always known to be aggressive, Ponting was never the one to try anything silly. His brand of attacking was to take the ball early, switch feet quickly, pull with great skill and negate the spinner by using quick footwork. Pity that his last World Cup knock probably, ended with a misdirected reverse sweep.

The man had his flaws. His aggression sometimes got better of his judgement. And his character was several times questionable. Yet, Ricky Ponting, the Batsman was a treat to watch. Prodigious skill and indeed a great cricketer.

His last World Cup match(mostly) was in many ways, an aggregate display of what was his career.

I never asked...

In your glorious peak,
I never asked why do you give me so much joy...
I never asked why is it that you bring on me a smile every time I see you perform,
I never asked why is it that every decision of yours miraculously comes true,
I never asked why do others wilt away and never stand a chance against you,
I never asked why it was you of all the people...

And today in your not best of times,
I still wont ask why...

Dear Roger

Much like Santa Claus is the ultimate source of joy for kids, you have provided me endless joy since 2005 when I first started watching tennis. The sheer elegance of you small stepping across the ball to hit an inside out forehand winner in the hallowed Centre Court is almost as if out of a ballet. The precision of the ace you hit to win the Wimbledon 04 final was almost unreal. And if tennis is difficult to play, then it is because you make it look so easy.


You represent so many qualities. Perfection, perseverance, hard-work, level headedness, politeness, humility and importantly, good sportsmanship. And over time, I have tried to imbibe these qualities in me as well. It wouldn't be too much to say that anyone would have come a long way if they became half as much as a person you are.


I stood beside you with several others when you awe inspiringly won so many matches. I witnessed you raise in your arms so many trophies and clapped hard on each one of your "Come On!" moments. I also spent hours agonising over those few moments that sprawl the what if questions and silently suffered when you did.


Therefore, this is to say that(at least for me)


Roger Federer Forever...


Cheers

Aisa Kaisa Paisa?

Vijay Mallya

Net worth: $1.4 Billion [source: Forbes.com]

The undisputed king of good times.

Popular for lavish parties, swimsuit calenders, beer, RCB, Force India and via his son, Deepika Padukone[If you don't know her then I suggest you review your sexuality, and then click here]

Mukesh Ambani

Net Worth: $27 Billion

Mere Baap ka Sapna, Sabka maal apna

Gave his wife a corporate jet for her birthday, an IPL team for playing auction-auction and an ugly power sucking building in South Mumbai.

Lakshmi Mittal

Net Worth: $26.1 Billion

Sab maa chahein ki unka damaad Lakshmi ho.

His daughters sangeet had SRKs performance and he own three on UKs most expensive properties.

And they say money can't buy you happiness.

Agreed, it cannot buy you true love, mom-made food anywhere in the world or a wholesome family.

But it can buy you the most comfortable bed in the word, it can buy you the chance to witness any spectacle natural/manmade, it can buy you the most desirable ride and in emergencies, the best medical care available. It can even buy you good will if you donate for a worthy cause though I'd rather one donates out of genuine concern rather than a personal CSR initiative.

Money isn't everything, yet everything these days come with a price.

Women want guys with a good sense of humour, but what good is the sense of humour if you cant feed her at least twice a day? You cannot say to her at dinner time that you've made her a joke, can you?

I want money, and tons and tons of it. I don't want it so that I can swim in it[Scrooge McDuck, Net Worth: One multiplujillion, nine obsquatumatillion, three hundered and twenty three dollars and sixty-two cents], but I wouldn't say no to a private yacht. I will not obtain it by crook, but if necessary, I'll yank all the hooks to get some.

Oh AdSense...Now there is a hook!

---

This is a response...not just a mere thought...

Aarakshan Soochna

One of the greatest obstacle that we face in our country today is the prevalence of the caste system.


The archaic and (in every context since the ~19th century) meaningless system is a crippling disease which no government wishes to acknowledge.


What started as a social classification on the basis on occupation(Caste System in India)has turned into a ridiculous basis for discrimination. Long gone was the time when we realised its worthlessness and regrouped ourselves once again along the lines of our work, irrespective of colour, religion or genetic make up.


Reservations should be only in modes of travel and theatres. If the deprived classes need higher education, isn't the way forward to provide quality early education and prepare for the higher courses? Or is it to provide a direct ticket to the centres of upper learning and hope that the ticket holder will catch up once there?


Mr. Arjun Singh was central to this debate.


He is dead now(God bless his near ones)...but not many will forget his last years.
If I were his family, I wouldn't donate his body to anyone in the AIIMS. Doctors are vicious avengers.



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St. Peter(SP): Why should i let you through the pearly gates?
Arjun Singh(AS): Cos I am Arjun Singh...
SP- Sorry then, you are not meritorious enough to enter...
AS-What? There is not quota?

and a few days later, seen on NDTV 24-Heaven,
Arjun Singh announces new reservation policy for entering heaven.
Recently deceased members of Gujjar communtiy, meanwhile have blocked the clouds leading upto heaven demanding their classification into such a class.