Reclaim your life....

Soccer World Cup Fever starts again!!!

2010-06-20T13:37:00.001+05:30

After quite a long time am back again blogging... and yeah the World Cup fever in South Africa has brought me back to my blog :)
cos i remember the last time during the world cup 2006, I had blogged about predicting my fav team Italy winning the world cup.. we even had lots of our friends suggesting their favourite team to win the cup...

Here is the post on our 2006 World cup prediction and another post on winning

The start to this world cup has been a bit quite with not much surprises in the first few days.. but over the past 3-4 days, its picking up speed with title favourites Spain losing their first match and France in danger of early elimination.... Its getting interesting..

I hope this time too the Azzuris do show some magic again!!!
I also do hope that some of the African nations do well too... like Ghana, South Africa and Ivory Coast... (though Cameroon became the first team to be out of the WC today)

If any of you are still reading my blog, pls do put your predictions for this Soccer World Cup 2010 in South Africa...

My bet this time again is - Italy (as always :D)

Dhoni and his Men in Blue - World No.1 Test Cricket Team.....

2009-12-06T13:13:00.000+05:30

Three cheers to our Indian Cricket Team.... Hip Hip Hurray.... We've become the Number 1 Test cricketing nation today after defeating the Sri Lankan team 2-0 in the test series in India....

Lots of positives to take away from this series...

The batting of Indian top order - Gambhir, Sehwag, Dravid, Sachin, Laxman, Dhoni, Yuvraj and even Vijay in the last test.... all of them contributed..
The bowling improved after the first test match... with the changes brought in by Dhoni in the test match worked well with Sreesanth and Ojha playing well.... Zaheer and Harbhajan were very good in the last test match too...
According to Dhoni, even the fielding was better in this series...
Also the coaching staffs - Gary Kirsten and Paddy Upton got a special mention from Sachin, Sehwag and Dhoni...

In short, this was one of those rare instances when the entire team was responsible for this success. We should never forget the contributions from Anil Kumble and Sourav Ganguly in building such a strong team too...

In Memory of the Mumbai 26/11 victims....

2009-11-26T22:59:00.001+05:30

One year since the 26/11 Mumbai attacks... remembering the people who died during the attack and the courageous NSG commandos and Mumbai police who fought bravely to bring the situation under control....

In memory of all the Mumbai 26/11 victims....

To live in the hearts we leave behind is not to die. ~ Thomas Campbell

Festivals galore....

2009-09-26T16:24:00.001+05:30

Its been a couple of months till my last post.... work at office has been keeping me quite busy n haven't had a chance to come back n update about my CSC Ghana experiences as I had mentioned in my previous post.... I'll definitely come back with those updates on another day...

Today, my wifey took me to my first Durga Puja Pandal... I have never been to one before n she wanted me to have the experience.... So, we went to a nearby Bengali Association's pandal, witnessed the pushpanjali and also had Bhog (food provided as offerings of God). It was a nice experience for me being a South Indian...

The first week of this month, we also celebrated Onam at home... we went to an Aiyappa temple nearby and also made some special Kerala dishes.... I did some experimentation with Payasam and it turned out nice but was more like a halwa than a payasam ;) But, overall it was a gud thing that we managed to do.... We couldn't make any Pookalam this time but next year we'll try that too...

Being a North-South couple, we have different cultures, traditions n also different festivals... so, my wifey n myself took a decision this year that we'll try to celebrate both our festivals as much as possible to continue our traditions...
So, we've got plenty of festivals to celebrate :D

Happy Dussehra to all you folks... and here is a picture of the Durga mata in the Pandal that we went today....

As they say.... The World is IBM’s Classroom

2009-07-01T17:49:00.008+05:30

I've been thinking of writing this post for quite sometime now... I need to document some of my experiences that I had over the past few months...

Being an IBMer gives me a great sense of pride because of the kind of work that our company is involved. Many of you would have seen adverts of IBM showcasing the Smarter Planet strategy. While I would reserve my discussions about the Smarter Planet strategy to some other day, I want to write about another initiative that IBM started last year called IBM Corporate Service Corps, which is a corporate version of the Peace Corps.

What is IBM Corporate Service Corps?

IBM Corporate Service Corps (generally called as IBM CSC) program is part of the Global Citizen’s Portfolio initiative announced by CEO Sam Palmisano last year (2008), to develop leadership skills while addressing socio-economic challenges in emerging markets.

The Corporate Service Corps initiative involves IBMers who can contribute valuable and much-needed skills, talent, and capabilities in emerging market countries and help make an impact in that country.

Through this program, IBM aims to train a new generation of truly global leaders by exposing them to diverse cultures, policy environments and different societal expectations, because this is the 21st context for business.

You can ask - What is the benefit for IBM to do such a program?

The Corporate Service Corps provides a triple benefit. IBM gains leaders with a broader range of skills that can function in a global context. The individual participant gets a unique set of leadership opportunities and development experiences. And thirdly, the communities get IBM’s best problem solving skills.

In plain simple terms, through Corporate Service Corps, IBM sends selected candidates in batches of 8-15 ppl (from various countries) to various growing economies and emerging markets like Ghana, Tanzania, Romania, Philippines, Vietnam, Brazil, China and such countries. This batch of selected members would be working in the country for a month with various NGOs or government organizations or any type of industries that require professional help. We primarily do business consulting services to these organizations and help them solve their issues and lead them to a path of growth. And all these are done free of cost.

Prior to departure, the selected IBM teams engage in three months of preparatory work to learn about their team members, local customs, culture, language, their project goals and the socioeconomic and political realities of their destination countries. After the in-country service, the team shares their experiences to their local communities and IBM teams.

More than 5,000 IBM employees applied to the program and only 100 were selected for the first set of participants to be deployed to various countries during the second half of 2008. IBM selected another 100 for the 2009 spring batch and and has committed to enabling 600 to participate over the next three years. It is one one of the most competitive employee programs ever created by the company.

Recently, Buisness Week magazine featured the IBM Corporate Services Corps program in its issue highlighting it as a Game Changing Ideas for Business
Business Week Article

More information about the program can be found on the IBM CSC website

So, why am I writing about the IBM Corporate Service Corps program in my blog?

I got the news of my selection to the IBM Corporate Service Corps program in November 2008 and joined 7 other IBMers from five countries around the world on a special assignment in Takoradi, Ghana as members of the IBM Corporate Services Corps program from February 20th to March 20th 2009.

More about my experiences working in Ghana and interacting with the local people - in the next few posts.

*The posts on this blog are my views and don't necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions...

RIP Michael Jackson...

2009-06-26T21:40:00.006+05:30

Michael Jackson - The man who gave many a hits for us to enjoy... the man who entertained the people with his amazing dances.... the man who gave us the amazing "Moon walk" move.... the man famously known as "King of Pop"..... is no more today... Its very difficult to accept...
Even though his later part of the career was marred by lots of controversies n problems, the way he entertained the people will never be forgotten...
Some of the songs which has special place in my heart are - Heal the World, Black or White, Beat It and lots more....

Michael Jackson - You will be missed dearly!!!

May Your Soul Rest in Peace.....

A letter to Dhoni...

2009-06-18T16:23:00.001+05:30

Dear Dhoni,

I am writing this after our T20 World Cup exit in England. You might be knowing very well that we all had high hopes in our team being the favourites to retain the cup we won in South Africa. But, the way we performed in the tournament was far from what any Indian cricket fan would have imagined. Having said that, we are definitely not blaming you guys and loosing faith on you. You were instrumental in many of the successes that our Indian cricket team has got in the recent years right from the first T20 World cup victory to wins against almost all the cricketing nations in the world.

But, the worrying factor for me as a fan is the way you are approaching the game nowadays. I know that you are trying to be more responsible being the captain and one of the senior most in the team. But, that doesn't mean you've to lose your power hitting ability and just try to hold on to one end. We would like to see more of the Dhoni-style sixers and your big hitting capabilities. I know that your responsibility as a captain makes you think twice to do all these, but I don't want you to become another Ganguly. I feel pity to see an amazingly gifted cricketer like Sourav Ganguly getting sidelined because of his loss of form after he got burdened with the Indian captaincy (though he got more wins for India than any other Indian captain). I don't want to see you, Dhoni, trying to do more things as a captain and losing your unique style of playing. We want India to do better in all forms of cricket and the key for that is not only your cool calm-headed captaincy but also your contribution with the bat. This I feel was an important reason for our loss in this T20 World cup.

Dhoni, the pressures of 2 billion people wanting the Indian team to win always and watching you perform well all the time is always high. But, you are capable of doing that and even more. Forget about the T20 loss. Sometimes its good to have a reality check and work on our weaknesses.
We have a lot of faith in you as the Indian captain and we would like to see you and our team perform well in every tournament that we play. I know you are working on your batting too and would be more than happy to see your unorthodox style of swashbuckling cricket.

All the best for your forthcoming tournaments. We are and will always be with our team. Lets rock the world!!!

-From an ardent fan of Indian cricket....

Hail King Federer!!!

2009-06-08T17:24:00.004+05:30

Wohooooo.... atlast Roger Federer wins the French Open in his fourth attempt.... Federer conquers Roland Garros :))))) beating the giant killer - Swede Robin Soderling 6-1 7-6(1) 6-4
Am soooo happyyy.... What a way to complete a Career Slam and getting the cup from the hands of Andre Agassi (the previous person to achieve this feat of career slam). He also completed 14 Grandslam titles equalling Pete Sampras.... One title - two goals achieved....

Being a big fan of Federer, I always backed him to win this one even though his form was indifferent this whole year... and credit to Soderling for being the giant killer this year beating lots of seeded players including Nadal. It would have been a fitting final if Federer had beaten Nadal, but what the heck... he has achieved what he wanted the most... so, am fine whatever way it is... :)
Yesterday, I was so tensed to even watch the whole match... n started watching only half way into the third set when I knew that he would win it... I was doubly happy to see Andre Agassi giving the cup (my all time fav sports person)

On another note, am happy to see India starting its T20 World Cup campaign with a good victory over Bangladesh. Hoping that we do well in each n every match... All the best to our "Men in Blue" for their mission...

And in the F1 front, am amazed with the success that the new team Brawn has got... Jenson Button has been one of the veterans in the F1 racing circles and he wasn't getting his due till this year in the form of this new Brawn GP team. He has now won all the races this year except one. Am sad to see the Ferraris not doing well... not even near their best... but hoping they'll stage a comeback at sometime this year (no hopes to catch up with the Brawn GP though).

With all the sporting actions this year, am getting little time to write anything else other than sports in my blog :P
lets see.. probably next time... :)

Deccan Chargers - The new IPL Champions...

2009-05-26T17:04:00.004+05:30

Deccan Chargers it is!!! The newly crowned IPL champions of 2009 in South Africa.

Deccan Chargers vs Bangalore Royal Challengers finals was one that was least predicted at the start of the IPL 2 season. But, these two teams which got the last two spots in the first IPL charged their way to the finals this time and the DC team has gone one more step ahead to win it, all thanks to some awesome leadership and batting by Gilchrist.

Am very much happy for Gilchrist who has been one of my favourite cricketers of all times.... but due credit should be given to Anil Kumble who inspired the Bangalore RC team to perform exceedingly well and taken them to the finals. Hats off to both Gilly and Jumbo....

Watching the closing ceremony, I felt how successful the IPL this year has become... Lalit Modi has become a global phenom of sorts for making it possible this year inspite of all the problems he had scheduling it in India.
Also, Thanks to the Rainbow nation - South Africa - for hosting our event there in such a grand manner and that too in such a short notice of less than 4 weeks. I came to know alot about South Africa only recently thro' a lovely friend - Carolyn from Johannesburg... And, I am impressed with what I saw (even though it is only thro' television) during the IPL tournament. Thank you Carolyn & Thank you SA!!! Hope to be there someday :)

Time for IPL semifinals...

2009-05-22T17:48:00.003+05:30

Yaaaaaayyyy!!!! I'm happy that three of my favourite teams are in the semis... atleast my second set of predictions were right :)
I'm sure one would be in the finals.... cos Chennai Super Kings n Bangalore Royal Challengers are playing each other tomorrow...
I hope Deccan Chargers win today against the Delhi Daredevils, though the Delhi team is a much better team....
I'm hoping to see a CSK vs DC finals... and hope that CSK wins the finals too... lets see how it turns out...

the race gets hotter for the semifinal spots in IPL..

2009-05-19T20:30:00.000+05:30

So then... am back again with more analysis & predictions for this year's IPL in South Africa.

Midway thro' the IPL, my predictions were coming true with all the predicted teams in the top four. But, the last few matches have been really close and this time the IPL is getting more n more interesting as the race gets hotter for the semifinal spots...

Only Delhi's qualification to semis (as predicted) is assured.... and 5 teams have the possiblity of taking the remaining 3 spots.... that raises the level of competition to a great extent... I am sad that the Mumbai Indians are out..

I would like to see Chennai Super Kings, Bangalore Royal Challengers and Deccan Chargers to take the remaining three spots.... but the no.of permutations n combinations is still high....

Ok, so... what did I enjoy in this year's IPL.... why is this IPL so much overrated...
Some of the things that I enjoyed watching were..

1) Gilchrist's batting.... the way he bludgeons opponent's bowling.. I've always been a big fan of Gilchrist.. of both his batting n his personality..
2) "Slinga" Malinga's bowling.... the slinging yorkers taking the stumps for a longgg walk...
3) Hayden's batting.... I've always hated to see Hayden come down the track n hit the Indian bowlers. But seeing him in IPL this time in my favourite team CSK, it made me enjoy alot.
4) Watching Sachin and Jayasurya walking together as openers for the Mumbai Indians... but alas they failed to click leading to the team's failure.
5) Warne's captaincy... this chap is such a great captain n the Rajasthan Royals completely owe their success to him...
6) Hitting by our own bunch of youngsters - Raina, Rohit Sharma, Yousuf Pathan - These guys have shown why India won the T20 world cup two years ago.
7) Enjoyed Sreesanth being hit left n right by all the players :) He is definitely overrated as Hayden rightly said. He should first learn to respect people and begin to be sensible on the field.
8) And ofcourse last but not the least - Dhoni's calm n composed captaincy, batting and all that he does in the screen (even off the screen in those great ads that he comes in). We completely love this guy for all that he did in such a short span.

You might have seen all these in any regular international matches but you might not have enjoyed most of these cos the foreign players do it against India. But now seeing them in our local team that we support for, it brings a great sense of excitement now.
Thats what IPL has done... and definitely for me IPL is not overrated and deserves the international attention that it has got now.

One thing I didn't like in this year's IPL is - Yuvraj's arrogance and attitude - The way he comes n talks during the presentation ceremony is completely not acceptable. He is so casual n talks as if he is at a cool party... He is an amazing player definitely... but he should be committed and sensible off the field too.. didn't like the way he carried off himself off the field. Sangakkara or Jayawardene should have been the captain of the Kings IX Punjab... I like the SL players alot cos they are always committed and carry themselves very well off the field too.. Yuvraj should learn a thing or two from his fellow team members....

The race gets hotter for this year's IPL semifinal spots... hoping for some more close games.....

My predictions for IPL 2

2009-04-25T20:53:00.000+05:30

Indian Premier League second season is going on currently in South Africa. I believe Modi has done a great job in shifting it to South Africa, even though many of us do feel that it would have been better if it was conducted in India.

So, whos gonna win the IPL 2???? Wanna make some guesses n predictions???

Here are some of my predictions for the IPL 2 T20 cricket....

Seeing the first few matches that got over, my prediction for the semifinal spots are:

Prediction for IPL 2 Semifinals:
1. Delhi Daredevils - With Sehwag and Gambhir in their ranks plus great set of foreign players like deVillers, Vettori, McGrath, Collingwood, Warner.. what else do u need??
2. Mumbai Indians - The sheer presence of Sachin Tendulkar definitely makes this team one of the favourites...
3. Deccan Chargers - I've always loved watching Gilchrist bat.. he is one of my all time fav... and this time the Deccan chargers have their batteries fully charged...
4. Chennai Super Kings - Dhoni & Hayden their main trumpcards...

Prediction for IPL 2 Finals:
1. Delhi Daredevils
2. Deccan Chargers/Mumbai Indians

IPL 2 Winner Prediction:

DELHI DAREDEVILS - Somehow, this time I feel they've got what it needs to be a champion team. I'll re-evaluate all these once more mid-way thro' the IPL 2 season... lets see how it changes...

Having said these, I'm supporting for the following teams in that order:

1. Chennai Super Kings
2. Bangalore Royal Challengers (I know their chances seem to be quite slim but still am living in Bangalore.. part of the local support here)
3. Deccan Chargers (this one for Gilchrist)
4. Mumbai Indians (this one for Sachin)

Rajasthan Royals is another team I like alot just for the fact that Shane Warne is too gud with his leadership qualities and also he is encouraging lot of local talent. But still this time without Shane Watson and Sohail Tanvir, they've lost a bit of edge. Lets see how they fare this year.
Kolkata Knight Riders - I wouldn't support for them jus for the sheer fact that what they are doing with Ganguly is not gud. I don't think McCullum is a better captain than Ganguly. Shah Rukh might be the King of Bollywood.. but he is certainly not making gud decisions with the team. He did a very gud job of using Ganguly for all his advertisements n promotions and then atlast chucked him out of the captaincy in the eleventh hour. I didn't like that.

Whats your opinion? Which team has got the edge to win the IPL 2 in South Africa this year???

am back :)

2009-04-21T19:29:00.000+05:30

It feels like ages since I've updated my blog.. I jus checked the date of my last post n its indeed a long time... more than 2yrs...
And what a couple of years it has been for me...
Lots happened in these two years... which I'm sure most of them who were in touch with me know about.. so, don't want to go on listing those things..
But I definitely want to write about some of the experiences I've had in those two years gap and also some of my thoughts....

Anyways, here I'm back again... will definitely try harder this time to keep up my promise of maintaining my blog properly :)

Merry Christmas to all you folks...

2006-12-26T07:01:00.000+05:30

heylooo all... surprise surprise... can't believe ur eyes?? :D
yeah, am back with a new post after quite a longgg time.. :)
Christmas is a nice occassion to kick start my blog journey again.....
Starting my journey back once more by Wishing You All Merry Christmas....

Its been three months since my last post... All the while I've been occupied with my work and lots of new changes in my life. One change which I guess most of you would be knowing is am in Canada now. Came here for my onsite assignment... and thts what has been keeping me busy alot.. A big change.. new place.. new people... new lifestyle... new project... new challenges...
But, all the while I've missed home n India alottt.. anyway, I'll reserve my comments of how I feel abt Canada and living here as an outsider... for another post... For now, I jus wanted to get myself back to my usual habit.

A big thank you... for all the ppl who have visited my blog all the while I was away and for all the ppl who have inquired my whereabouts... thanks alottt...

For now.. am signing off with one of my favourite lines by Robert Frost.. which keeps me going all the while..:)

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep

a random update....

2006-09-20T05:44:00.000+05:30

Hey guys.. Its been quite sometime since I updated... quite alot of things going on in my life... Anyway, taking things one at a time...

jus a random update....

I had been to Bangalore Marathon 2006 with my friends last Sunday. We ran the Celebration run for 7kms.. It was great fun... We did it without having much trouble.. Next year probably we r planning for half marathon for 20kms.. lets plan n practice chandu n pv.. :)Sometime back I also did a crazy thing - cycling for 30kms.. :D jus for fun...

At the Bangalore Marathon - The Contenders :D

My sis, bro-in-law and my cute li'l nephew have come from US. They are here for the past 3 weeks and will be leaving this weekend.. My nephew is very fond of Superman, Spiderman and
Batman... For him, he is Superman and I'm the Spiderman.. when we play :D
Spiderman is missin' Mary Jane :P
Spent my Onam at home with them and also had been at home for 8 days in the past 2 weeks.. It was nice to spend Onam with the whole family together after quite some years..

Pookalam done at my house for Onam...

As for cricket, Tendulkar has come back very well... Was fabulous to see his innings against the West Indies.. but now they've got their back against the walls.. would have to win both the games.. lets see...
And Hockey World Cup was too gud. I would have been happy if India had lost against South Africa too... we would have been first from the last then :)) Its going to be too hard for us to shine in this sport again..
Formula 1 is gonna be thrilling.... The last 3 races are gonna be really decisive as Schumi n Alonso are jus 2 points away from each other.. Am looking forward for the last 3 races... Lets hope Schumi retires with a Championship....
And i've not seen Lage raho munnabhai yet :( All my friends have seen it without me :(( since I had gone home for most of the last week... I also want to see Ahista ahista and Pyar ke side effects... this one seems to be a fun flick.
And the songs of Bas Ek Pal r toooo gud.. Have been listening to only these songs for the past 2 weeks.... Tere Bin is tooo gud and Atif delivers another Woh Lamhe type hit.. KK has also sung beautifully in other songs... All in all a very gud album
Am looking forward to lots of things in the coming month... will update this space then..

Ending this post with a picture of a beautiful rainbow which we saw during the Bangalore marathon...

Isn't it Beautiful??

UPDATED: Legends do live forever - A tribute to Andre Agassi...

2006-09-04T01:26:00.001+05:30

A tribute to Andre Agassi - The legend....
From an ardent fan....

Am writing this post jus minutes after Agassi's career ended with a third round loss in the US Open 2006 against Benjamin Becker.

Watching the match live, I could gather that this could be his last match, as he was struggling alot to even get to the ball. But still his love for the game egged him on n on... Atlast, he had to give it up once for all...

With tears in his eyes, he bid farewell to all the ppl there in the stadium...

"You have given me your shoulders to stand on to reach for my dreams, dreams I could never have reached without you.
Over the last 21 years, I have found you, and I will take you and the memory of you with me for the rest of my life."

The final few moments brought tears in my eyes as he blew kisses one final time to all the ppl there who have come to witness one of the greatest Tennis legends of all times...

Agassi's Achievements:
Andre Kirk Agassi
(born April 29, 1970, in Las Vegas, Nevada - US)

One of the five male players to win all four grandslams in tennis.
The first male player to win all four grandslams in different surfaces (Australian Open on Rebound Ace, the French Open on clay, Wimbledon on grass, and the US Open on hardcourts)
He is also the only player in the open era to have won every Grand Slam singles title (8 Grandslams in all), the Masters (which is considered to be the fifth grandslam) , the Davis Cup (twice led the US team to Davis cup victory), and an Olympic gold medal(1996 Atlanta Olympics).

Agassi's professional tennis life is so different from any other player you would find.
He was a hippi-kind, a rebel when he came to the professional tennis in the late 80s. He made strong fashion statements, had a longgg hair and had a personality which many of the teenagers would love to have.
I saw his first grandslam Wimbledon 1992 victory live... It was a great match against Ivanisevic...

After winning a couple of grandslams, his form went down and ppl said that he would no longer be the same great player.
But, in came the reformed Agassi.. with clean shaven head.. and more appropriately a calm n cool head... :)
He proved all the critics wrong by winning more and more grandslams.. even in his early thirties... From a ranking of 141 , he came back to No.1 position again in the late 90s. Such was his determination... and he was always the crowds favourite....

As for his playing style, there is no player in this open era who can return a service as strong n accurate as Agassi.. His return of serves are considered to be the best.
Agassi always believed in playing from the baseline. He is never comfortable with the serve n volley kind of play. But still with his strong baseline play and heavy powerful hitting, he used to weary his opponents and win the matches in styles.

I must say there is one player currently who looks great to beat lots of records and who has a great allround play with a lethal backhand which will make you wonder if he were playing table tennis instead of tennis. He is none other than Roger Federer and I bet you all would have guessed it by now.

I would not do justice if I don't bring this point abt Agassi. His rivalry on court with Sampras (another legend) is considered to be one of the best..
Those matches are always special. I've seen most of their matches live and every match would be sooo special... Both players will give their heart out in those matches.

His personal life is another talking point among the fans. He was married to Brooke Shields (a famous Hollywood actress) for a couple of years before they got divorced.
Then, he dated and married Steffi Graf (a legend in women's tennis). They now have a son (Jaden Gil) and a daughter (Jaz Elle)

Agassi has come a long way to achieve all these. His love for tennis and his love for the people who support him is always evident...
Its true.... LEGENDS LIVE FOREVER... And Andre Agassi is one legend who'll always be there in ppl's heart.

Hail the legend... Long live Andre Agassi....

taggie tag....

2006-09-01T12:25:00.000+05:30

A tag post.... tagged by Anjan....

I am thinking about • A treasure island... :P confused?? heheee...

I said • "I want to go home!!!"

I want • to go home and celebrate my Onam with my whole family.... play with my nephew...
btw, am leaving tomorrow evening to my native for the same...

I wish • to get hold of tht treasure island soon...

I hear • “Sab Bhula Kai.... - Call - A Pakistani band... ” on my earphones. Pls do listen to this song if u've not... its a beautiful song...

I wonder • If I'll get the ticket tomorrow to go home for Onam. Actually had got a ticket to go only till Coimbatore. But luckily today my friend said he has a ticket till Ernakulam. So, if I get that I'll get down at Thrissur :) so, hoping to get tht ticket tomorrow....

I regret • for not having booked my tickets earlier to go home for Onam... for having wasted so much time when I could have brought some meaning to my life...

I can’t • see injustice handed over to the poor n needy.. esply li'l children... somehow feel God is really unfair as he doesn't give each n every child an equal opportunity to play, study n grow like every normal person...

I am • simple... fun-loving... li'l sensitive... very friendly...

I dance • Dance is something which I dread alottt.. the last time I danced in a stage was way back in my fourth standard and tht too with a girl :))))
Otherwise, I dance (actually, jump alot :D) whenever I go for partying outside with friends... and also at home when I feel happy..

I sing • at home... :) singing is something which I like alot.. wanted to learn it in my childhood days.. but couldn't...

I need • to organise myself.... and try to do lots of things which I wish to...

I cry • when I feel lots of pain.... not the physical pain... the last time I felt tears in my eyes was when I saw the picture in rediff of a guy pushing a trolley of a couple of children who died in Lebanon due to bombing by Israel... I can't take such things...

I make • my own rules n break it myself too :D

I write • I rarely write nowadays.. its all typing :P When I write, its for probably signing some document...
In one way its gud.. cos when I write, I make sure(or rather happens) that whatever I write... it can be read by only the person who wrote it yeahhh.. its ME :D

I confuse • when I think alot abt why things are not happening the way I want.. :)

I miss • my school n college days alottt.. and I miss being at home with my parents... my sis, nephew.... my princess whom I see everyday in my dreams :P

I will • get my dreams into reality someday or the other...

I should try • not to be as lazy as I'm nowadays... :)

I tag • shama, ricky, jaya and nidhi - do take up this tag.. and to all those ppl who are willing too...

checking out the new beta blogger features..

2006-08-22T15:05:00.000+05:30

hey guys.. if anyone of u using blogspot blogs, try out the new beta blogger... lots of new features like labeling ur posts, easy customizing, lots of changes... jus check out..
doing some experiments.. so, my blog will be half-baked :D for somedays.. till I complete the changes..
Was planning to write a post now when I landed on this beta thingy.. and now am completely into experimenting on tht ;)
so, postponed the blog post for tomorrow :D

Sights n sounds of Thiruvilwamala..

2006-08-08T18:02:00.000+05:30

Life is so different nowadays.. Things have changed quite alot... I seem to have very less amount of time nowadays to update my blog and also read all my friends blogs.. but, I don't want to let this blog die. This blog has given me sooo many things.. It has given me lots of confidence... It has also given me some very good friends who have made a lot of difference in my life.. I'll always be thankful for the person or group of ppl who found this concept called blogging....
Am late in wishing.. but let me wish you all...
Happy Friendship Day... to all my friends out there...

I had written in my prev post that I would be going to my native with my friends.. and we all had a whale of a time at my native... :D
First day, we went to a dam nearby, played there.. had lots of fun... then went to the temples Parakkotu kavu bagavathi temple and Vilwadrinathan temple in the evening.
The second day, we got ready to go out when it started raining. We all got out of my house and played in the rain getting wet completely.. it was sooo gud.. And then, we got dressed up again n we went to a nearby small hill and spent lots of time there... then from there went to the Bharatha puzha (river) and played there in the waters for quite alot of time...
It would have been a different kind of experience for my friends... am glad that we all enjoyed alott..

Here are some of the snaps...
I've also complied a spl album containing some very good snaps of my native. You can see God's own country at its best.. :D
Check it out here..

Click here ---> Sights and sounds of my native...

This is my favourite snap tht we took in this trip... this was taken by the river side.. this is my wallpaper now...

This one taken on the way to the temple... PV trying to adjust his dhothi.. with some expert tips from my father.. :)) myself n chandu r marching forward without any problems :D

A beautiful pond near our temple

This is Bharatha Puzha(river).

Playing....

trip to native with my friends..

2006-07-21T13:53:00.000+05:30

Seems the blogworld, atleast in India, is hit due to the ISPs blocking blogspot.com domain... I hope in another couple of days it'll be fine...

Ok guys n gals.. how have u been doing all these days. I have been absconding from the blogs arena time n again... The work am doing presently requires more attention... thts why am not able to devote enough time for my blogs.. hope I'll be back on track once I get my broadband connection at home....

Am all geared up for todays trip back to my native.. Even though its jus a weekend visit to my native, this time am taking some of my friends with me too... Thts the reason I said its gonna be a nice "trip" to my native.. :)
Chandu n pv are already having lots of plans.. they hv even got their dhoti's packed :)) Oh.. Gods own country is going to have a tough two days ahead.. :P

So, expect some kind of update after I return back.. :D
and yeah.. I still have one post pending abt the second part of our festival.. hope i get sometime to update regarding that one too.. Sorry for keeping you all waiting. Hope to catch u all at ur blogs soon.. byeeee n have a great weekend..

All Hail ITALY - The World Champions!!!

2006-07-10T17:45:00.001+05:30

ITALY - World Champions 2006

There it is... atlast the Azzuris have proven to the world that they can be the best in the world :)

Yesterday's WC finals was a well-played game with some incidents too.
But, ultimately the Italians have come out on the top again... even if it was thro' penalties. I've never seen Italians converting all the 5 penalties for a longgg time.. I've been supporting them since the 1990 world cup when Schillachi(one of the best strikers in those days) and Walter Zenga(the then keeper, who was simply amazing) together put up a great performance but only got the third position for them.

But, you can't take away from the fact that they r the World Champions now and am soo proud of that. I was jumping out of joy y'day after the match was over...
But, one sad fact.... didn't expect Zidane to end his career in this manner. He is a great player and deserves all the accolades for his magical play... But, he too was honored with the Golden Ball award.. So, kind of a consolation for him too..
Some of the moments from the match.. Wanted to record it permanently.. so, here they are...

So, here it is... Hope you all enjoyed the match.. but am sure many of them were rooting for France to win it :P.... but its ITALY :D

hehee.. surprise surprise.. update :D

2006-07-06T18:58:00.001+05:30

Ciao guys n gals.. how have u been doing??
Its been a long time... I know I owe some expanation for my sudden absence... but as I had mentioned in my previous post, I moved to a new project in my company which is keeping me fully occupied. But, am learning quite a lot of new stuffs... so, am very much happy and satisfied... only thing is that I don't get enough time nowadays to reply for mails or blog hopping, since its early stages of the project. As things settle down, I'll be more regular.

Ok... So, guess u all have been watching World Cup 2006....
And am sooo glad tht the team I support for - ITALY has reached the finals.

Here is the list of Blog friends n the teams they supported for.. We had some kind of fight going on in orkut, supporting n fighting for each others teams :) It was fun...

Myself - Italy and always Italy :)
Chandu - England
PV - Brazil
Ricky - Brazil
Anjan - Germany
Manpreet - Argentina
Shama n Nidhi - changing support based on which team has cool dudes in it :P heheee..

So, now among these.. Italy is the only team remaining, but I know they r the underdogs and all the others want France to win.. But, lets see... am not going to say out and right tht Italy will surely win. Their game is completely different... a strong defensive team which attacks all of a sudden.. gets a goal and settles to defend it for the rest of the game.

So, the big game ITALY Vs FRANCE on Sunday... Don't miss it guys....

2006-06-15T13:10:00.000+05:30

Hi guys.. Thanks for the comments for my previous post. Sorry that I couldn't reply to those and also for not updating for soo long.. Haven't been reading any blogs too..

Its like a break for me away from all these...
Lots have happened in the past 2-3 weeks for me, that am still trying to cope up with all those.. it seems like my life has taken a complete "U" turn... :)
Some decisions play a vital role in our life and may be I took one which will shape my life into a better one.. lets see... time will answer all these...
Will take some more time for me to be regular with the blogs.... but I promise u i'll finish off the previous post, with a Part II coming soon :) atleast by next week..
Thanks for all of those who have been visiting my blog and waiting for the updates :) won't disappoint u all.. Will try to catch up on ur blogs too...

And before I end, hope u guys are catching up with World cup... Three cheers for the Italian team... have always supported them.. lets see how far they go...

Want to add one more... Did u guys get to watch the trailers of "Ahista Ahista". It looks sooo cool.. the lead pair, Abhay Deol n Soha Ali Khan, look very gud.. and I jus love the title track.... Did search in the web, but seems the music hasn't released.. Any idea guys?

Thalappoli - Part I

2006-05-25T11:14:00.000+05:30

Hey all.... am sorry to keep u all waiting for the post abt the Pooram festival in our native... work is a bit hectic nowadays... so, not finding suitable time to write a detailed post and upload the pictures.
So, I thought let me upload a few snaps here as of now.... and start explaining the festival in parts rather than keeping u waiting for a detailed post :)

Generally, Pooram festivals are celebrated every year all over Kerala in different dates. "Thrissur pooram" is the King of all poorams which most ppl would have heard about.

Thalappoli is the name of the Pooram festival that is celebrated in my native Thiruvilwamala (present in Thrissur district). This festival is celebrated jus a week(the next Sunday) after the famous Thrissur Pooram.
It is a festival celebrated for the Parakkotu kavu temple housing Goddess Bhagavathi(or Durga mata as known by many)

So, as of now enjoy these snaps... u'll see more snaps of elephants.. :)

Parakkotu Kavu (Durga Temple)

Elephants which came to our home to take a bath. Yeah.. don't be surprised... since our home is near to one of the temples, some elephants came to our house to take bath before getting ready for the festival.

This one is the largest temple elephant in Kerala and very famous too.. I forgot its name.. will update it once I clarify with my father :)

Aana Chamaya pradarsanam - A paraphernalia of elephant decorative

Ezhunnellippu of elephants in the kavu...

This is a short gist abt the festival, the next part will have more details pertaining to how its celebrated in our native....
But, do read about the Thrissur Pooram in the following link. It'll be interesting... Link abt Thrissur Pooram...

Thts it for today... rest in the next part... :)

lots to write n lots to upload :)

2006-05-17T14:34:00.000+05:30

Hey guys.. me back from Kerala y'day.. Had a great time at home, enjoyed the Pooram festival alot..
Lots to write... thought I would write abt what happens in our place during this Pooram festival..
Lots to upload... took a lot of snaps and am in the process of uploading them so that I can share with u all...
Will do it sure n certain within the next few days :)

Okie... its been a month full of wishes.. so, let me add one more wish thro' this post...

Congratulations to the wonderful couple Neeraj & Poonam. They are getting married today. So, lets wish them a lifetime of happiness being together...

As of now, let me jus leave a picture of the pooram festival for you all.... till u wait for the next post... :)