A little more than 2 years ago, as a graduate student managing his living expenses with part-time work, I failed to comprehend the necessity for a cell phone. As recently as a month ago, I wondered how I could ever survive without one.
Seduced by trend and under the guise of its necessity for the job hunt procedure, I signed up for a 12 month T-Mobile contract and opted for the Nokia 6610. Since Jan 11th 2004 when it landed in my palm, it has been a constant companion through thick and thin and on the few occasions that I left home without it, I felt handicapped and cut off from the rest of the world. The thought of it lying at home, unused and unable to fulfil its destiny, meant that I walked/drove back to get it, borrowed a phone to call up the rest of the world and find the one 'dear friend' who is closest to it and can bring it to me.
Now, all of a sudden, with one month to go on my current contract, it conked out. I guess I am partly responsible. I did soak it in water for 5 minutes...
Anyway, I expected a rough ride for the next week or so before the gleaming new Motorola E815 arrived. Surprisingly, it hasn't been too bad. While at work, if I needed to contact someone, I just looked around and found an abundance of landlines waiting to be used. Strange....I don't remember them being around when I had the 6610 in my pocket. And at home, I am using this old handset that a co-worker offered, which fails to hold charge for more than 5 mins talk-time. Life didn't quite implode the way I expected it to. On the contrary, I don't seem to miss it as much.
It's not the first time that such an 'integral' part of my life was taken away from me and I ended up not missing it as much as I expected. Non-vegetarian food and Star Sports have been two longstanding, dear companions who have gone missing for significant portions of time. And life did go on....
Made me wonder if there are actual technological friends that I can't live without...
1) Car - well, I do not need to party or go out every single weekend. Groceries and work are close enough. So, I can easily live without one
2) Digital Camera - no big deal
3) TV - recent history suggests, no problem
4) Internet - (impulsive reaction) NO WAYYYYY....Hang me instead! (after some thought) well, let's see. Though, hopefully, I would never have to see....
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18 comments:
heyy, its good to see a non-sports blog in ur link... not bad boy!!! Its a good start I would say. How come you have not mentioned about AC.... you probably would have, if you were in a place like Chennai and I am probably thinking about it cos I am in Chennai... Mann..... I cant imagine how I lived in Chennai without AC in the past. It is unbelieveably HOTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT.
Apparently you've found a nice way to access the internet without a computer/input-output device. Good going....
Could you share this with the rest of us as well...
Rubia
This is no start or anything of that sort. This blog will remain a sports blog primarily, barring any unfortunate event in the future (say, the WRONG marriage). Now, that we have established that, lets move on...
Regarding the AC....true, I guess that Chennai is getting hotter by the year. Anyone and everyone mentions the heat as a huge factor with regard to summertime acitivities. However, Rahul Dravid, when I last spoke to him mentioned that, while the heat was an issue, he preferred to play in the summer rather than experience abandoned matches during the Chennai monsoon season :D. So, if Dravid can play in the hot sun and Ajit Agarkar can bowl deadly reverse swinging yorkers during the fag end of a ODI (after scoring a 50 to rescue our batting), then you might as well learn to adapt to it. What say?
btw...Quite a few ppl say that Chennai got a lot hotter on Mar 19th and has stayed that way since then. Any thoughts on that??? :D
FSN
I did not claim that the four devices that I mentioned were a compehensive list of my technological friends. True, my laptop has been another 'bachelor life wife'. But then, when I think about it, without the internet, I don't think that I'd care too much about a missing laptop. Loooong time since I played any NFS or FIFA on my laptop....
Hey Vinesh,
Mirroring Rubias comments, I would also like to add that its refreshing to read a non-sports post on this site :) Keep 'em coming my friend and dont think that it will detract from being a sports freak.. we all accept and understand that you are one helluva sports addict, so just relax :)
So are you all geared for the world cup matches? There are a few hotties I understand... Pls keep me posted about them as the matches are at an insane hour here, I wont have a chance to catch a glimpse of any of them :)
Divya
Alright then. Now that we are CLEAR about the final verdict, maybe I will cut you FANS some slack and publish some non-sports posts :)
Regarding World Cup, well, I can't help you much except point you AGAIN towards the Italian team.
Also, I beg to differ on where the insanity lies. When the FOOTBALL WORLD CUP is on, you reschedule your day to ENSURE that you watch all the important matches. That's just how it HAS GOT TO BE. So, late night matches aren't insane, it's the failure to see the benefits of watching a late night match that is INSANE. Just think about it...you are NOT AT WORK (matches are on at 9am for me :( ), the roads are quiet, everyone in the house is sleeping (it would be a good idea to soundproof the bedroom actually) and you have the TV to yourself. Ahhhhhh, brings back memories of France'98...
Dream sporting..
Just how much would you pay for me to post 1 comment / day? Ballpark figure would suffice.
ViM
ViMMMMMMMMMMMM....Good to see you here buddy!
Alas, how can I quote a ballpark figure when you haven't figured in any park that is used to play ball???
Dood! howz you. This could be out of context, but jus wanted to broach the topic of indian cricket again. Remember, I said....the Indians have jus been winning in the back yard and ranking does not really justify the current state. No wonder we got screwed in Windies. Sad part is we still dont have an opener and a number three. And, Chappel goes on and on abt preparation for world cup. ne ways...jus wanted to broach the topic again. Sorry it was out of context wrt this article.
- RG
Heyyy 'Kalyan'..Good to see you around. And also, unless your comment is about the stock market (in which case, it will be out of context to the post), you do not have to mention a 'sorry'. Please keep them coming.
Here is what I had to say when we had a discussion long time ago...
'Actually, in the euphoria of recent results, I hadn't quite realised that we have been playing all our matches in familiar subcontinental conditions. Someone pointed that out to me recently, which is when it hit me. So, while our performances are praiseworthy due to the strong opposition that we have sene of (SL, ENG, SA), we need to remember that the performance curve wouldn't be as smooth when we start touring later this year. However, it is totally upto us, to be patient with this team and look to the future'
And I still stand by it.
I didn't watch a single ball of the current series, so, my assessment is based on the reports that I have gorged. And based on those, I inferred that our heavy loss in the ODI series was primarily due to 2 factors: 1) inability of batsman to adjust to slow pitches 2) outstanding WI fielding.
Now, do either of those factors dimnish or condemn our performance during the home season? I don't believe so. Our home season conclusively proved that our batting in able to take on and beat back any sort of pressure in subcontinental conditions. Now, that is progress from where we were two years ago. Our failure in WI shows that we have some way to go. But like I've been saying, I personally, like what I see from the management. For one, I am willing to give the benefit of the doubt to all the decisions of the management simply bcos, Rahul Dravid and Chappell are THINKERS. Their radical thoughts can't always translate to success. If that were the case, the challenges of cricket aren't worth our time. All I see from them is an attitude towards improvement. NOT ONCE during our success period did I hear either of them say that we were No2 in the world. Their mantra has been improvement, processes and challenges. Why fault them if someone else called them No2 and is now calling them No10?
Also, with regard to the way ODI is played these days, I really wonder what the need is for a traditional No1 or No3. Of course, we know that Sehwag and Sachin are our 'traditional' opening pair. Followed by Dravid, Yuvraj, Kaif, Raina, Dhoni and Pathan. Now, traditionalists might never agree to this frequent change of batting order, but I totally agree. I believe that the game situation is what matters and not the slot numbers to each batsman. Probably tackling the new ball and the soft old ball are specialist skills. And we have Sachin, Sehwag, Dravid, Pathan to tackle the new, while Yuvi, Kaif (hopefully he will get better at it), Raina and Dhoni to tackle the old. I personally don't care about whether they have a permanent slot number.
I see harder times coming up in SA. But am ready to grit my teeth and look to the future :) Looks like you are not very happy though. What is your proposal??
Hi....thats a pretty long one. Jus got to work and I shouldn't be doing this, but then any discussion on cricket, especially when the person has a different point of view excites me :)
I am the last person to comment on stock market, so dont worry. I dont understand what the fuss is all about some curve that moves up and down. ne ways...
I dont have the patience to read your response again..will address whatever I can remember.
On Dravid & Chappel not gloating over the # 2 status...You might recall Chappel make a rather unnecessary comment about windies forgetting how to win. A haughty remark directly coming out India's recent success story. Dravid, the diplomat that he is, never makes comments out of context, but that arrogance basking in recent success can be seen in the team line up. Five bowlers??? with no genuine all rounder? ne ways, this is not really the point of debate. Does not really matter how these guys project the team.
I do agree with your view point that ODI has changed in character. We have moved out of an anchor role and might soon move out of this "fancy" thing called footwork. Horses for courses or batsmen for positions is important simply for the mindset. Batsmen often tend to get confused if made to bat in different position; technically they might be able to play any position, any bowler, but they might not be mentally tuned for it. This can happen even in division cricket. While you can make changes once in a way to confuse the opponents, you need to have some regular opener and number three. This opener and number 3 should know exactly what to do when all is not hunky dory at the other end.
Personally I feel Chapppel is making a mess of the team. I really hope I am wrong, but thats the feeling I get. With this thought lingering in my mind, I predicted a 3-2 defeat for India this series, it got even worse. How would you explain "resting" of Pathan and Bajji. If they both need so much rest, why are they in the squad? And, if reasoning is that Pathan is down on confidence, how will it help if you drop a player. I will go on and on on this Chappel saga....
On same lines...feel Windies will comfortably bat through the last day today (tonight). Ten wickets from the kids that we have...I would say..fly a kite! :)
Nice to start the day with some cricket discussion. Keep them coming dood!
- RG
PS: Hey Divi..in case you are reading this..how u doing!
Guys,
Did you read my first comment? Cut out the sports talk for heaven's sake :(
NOT ONCE during our success period did I hear either of them say that we were No2 in the world.
Right - So Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappal always speak only when you're around? {Although you are a round, :-) )
We need a line and length bowler - for one. Lets get Laxmipathy Balaji back. He's fit or so I've read. Sreesanth is clearly out of his element in WI. Our opening (in ODIs) is all messed up. Rahul Dravid may be Mr.Versatile, but seriously we need him to bat at no.3. Sachin essentially is going to have one foot in the hospital every time he comes out to bat. Its getting funny now. We could bring back one Mr.Sourav Chandidas Ganguly - who's still got the passion and the fitness to play. Give him one last chance. Instead when Sachin is 'fit' again (which means he's been fixed up for another convenient alibi when he fails after his comeback) he will automatically be selected, which is sad.
If Dream-Sporting stops spewing forth from his amalgamated cauldron of useless stats, sports.com reports and Andre Mania, there will be nothing left for him to say. Hmm..that's not a bad thing. :-D
@ViM: How much do you figure he's paying his groupies now? :-)
True, players might not be mentally prepared to bat in positions that they are not familiar with. But that is precisely the idea i.e. to help them get familiar. Which is bound to provide results in the future.
Regarding Pathan...I don't think that Chappell made him stand up on the desk and told him that he is not good enough. The management MUST HAVE discussed his form, confidence, their viewpoint and come to a mutual agreement. Cmon..this is Pathan we are talking about. The confidence that the team has in Pathan is well known. They aren't about to trash him after an ordinary ODI series. And that's a guarantee!
My personal viewpoint about this team management is completely different to yours. I could go into details, but I'll refrain. The gist of my thought process is....Dravid and Chappell think well. So, every single decision they make is after careful consideration of its merits and demerits. And I do not question their loyalty to the team's cause. Thus, I trust them and believe that they will take us places.
Whether you enjoy the ride or not, is entirely upto you...
DUMBASS
Looks like you are losing your grip on your ONLY strength...language, that is. Your question to my earlier statement is flawed. Figure it out yourself. Moving on...
Balaji might be fit, but he has been out for more than a whole season (I think). Without any competitive cricket, it is hard to pick him over the other pace bowlers in the fray. So, we are going to have to wait and see how Balaji progresses.
Regarding Ganguly, well...I would love to see him come in and perform too. However, based on the recent decisions of the management, I would be very surprised if that happened. Selecting Uthappa for opener seemed to convey clearly that they did not see Ganguly as a part of their future. And I agree! Ganguly the captain is more AN ERA than just an individual. That ERA has passed, IMO.
As for you Divi...sports talk is better than ANY talk. More pertinently, sports talk is most definitely better than NO talk.
So, you NO TALK, we talk SPORTS TALK. You talk ANY TALK, we talk the SAME TALK. Deal?
See...every caption/coach is expected to at least "think". Not even suggesting that Rahul or Chappel lack this basic ability to put some thought into every action. But that does not mean they make the right decisions. Even the great Viv Richards has made some flawed decisions during his time. From an external perspective it is easier to spot these mistakes. And, to say that Chappel/Rahul are thinking..so jus sit back and enjoy the ride will take a discussion no where :) Sure, come up with the "details", I got some counter ones too.
And on Pathan, I was not in the dressing room to check if Greg made him stand up on the bench, but it is simple rule of thumb that if a player lacks confidence dropping him would do more harm. Also, even if Pathan does not bowl well, his experience can come in handy to educate the other bowlers during the match.
Was watching the match till very early this morning. Some helpful umpiring and poor batting by the windies batsmen gave us a glimmer of hope. Inspite of this, our bowlers lacked the ability to wrap up the tail. The pacers (except for Sreesanth)lacked any plan and were bowling all over the place.
We got an interesting series here...lets wait and see what happens.
R'K'
It is NOT easier to spot mistakes from an external perspective. It is just easier to spot mistakes with the benefit of hindnight. And it is also easier to THINK that you have spotted mistakes, when you actually do not know the complete story. Let me put forth my perspective on the dropping of Pathan...
Pathan has been playing international cricket for the past 3 years or so. During that time, he has developed immensely and become our spearhead. No question about that. Now, how exactly did he become that? And more importantly, how come everyone in India knows that he is the spearhead? It's not like he is averaging 20 with the ball, right?! So, we all know that Pathan is key thanks to the way the management has handled his case....of course, this is besides his skills. So now, with him being off color during the ODI series, I CANNOT imagine the same management dumping him for VRV Singh! Which is why, I believe that there must have been a discussion about the state of affairs before making the deicison to 'rest' him.
Similarly, dropping Bhajji seems a blunder with the benefit of hindsight. However, since the management read the pitch as a hard bouncy one (which it was on the first couple of days), they had to go in with 3 quicks. Imagine being asked to bowl first on a bouncy track and seeing Kumble bowl the 11th over, which would have been the case if we went in with a two-two combo.
Overall, I am willing to give the 'benefit of doubt' and the 'benefit of future' to the decisions of this management. That's the belief I have in them. I also realize that to someone who does not trust them, every 'uncommon' decision of theirs must seem like a stupid one. So, either Dravid and Chappell are extremely STUPID or so SMART that the fans are just not used to that. Hey, we have always had people that are in denial about the significance of the Ganguly era, don't we?
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