Updates

I am penning this post at the risk of readers tracing a pattern to these updates. (Please detect the hidden message in the previous line intending to convey the increasing readership for the special crap that I dish out)

- It is official now. I am a bench warmer. For people who thought bench warmers were only associated to sports, take a break. This is a relatively new phenomenon that has been developed in software services firms, which have the propensity to recruit in terms of colleges (not heads) and then try and locate work for this very enthu crowd. Always for projects in the "PIPELINE".
Speaking of which, IT seems to be full of jargon like this. On second thoughts, let me not get into the jargon part of it.
The bench has been this "utopia" for me ever since i joined this company. This mysteriously wonderful thing that people talk about. No work, Late to office, leavy early to compensate for that. Ill-fated that i have been, in a company with very few long term projects, I got stuck into one that has been going on for the past 6 years...SIX years and from day 1 it was one word "SLOG". Have seen people around me enjoy this period. Heck, my roomie was on the bench for one whole year and then he moved onto IIM. Speak of luck.
And now that i am here at this wonderful place, in a gap between 2 projects, i don't want to leave. But I wil have to leave and the thought of working again makes my head spin. I will think of crossing the bridge when i come to it. SIGH!

- Chennai finally got to me. This summer has been horrible. Chennai temperature usually hovers around 38 and peaks at 41. this year it has been hovering around 42 and yesterday peaked at 43. And my luck, I was riding around in bike all day. 8 to 10 in the morning, 2 to 4 in the noon and 6 to 8 in the night. Sweating like a sponge when squeezed, I was dehydrated beyond description. surviving on tender cocunuts and water. and sleeping all the while in between. I would have set a record of sorts by sleeping 8 hrs during the day time. The end result being i was unable to digest any solid food in the evening. And my sister, like an angel boils me some rice. Add water, Add salt, My grandma's pickle and that was the best damn food that i had tasted in a Looooong time. My sister is definitely a good cook...PERIOD.

And i guess that is enough ramblings for a night. So adios. As i go hit the bed.. Lot of sleep to catch up on.

The end of the road

It was just one of those days. Not much work. Warming my seat. attending the odd meetings and then head back home at the stroke of 6. Chennai was scorching at 43 and so stayed around in the a/c till 7. Said bye to all the friends at work. Even a junior in the project who had joined a couple of months back.
A comfortable ride in a little bit of rain and a refreshing bath later; i looked at my mobile to see tonnes of missed calls. Called back one of them, my partner in crime at work and he broke it to me. The Junior that i had bid goodbye had died in a road accident 15 minutes back. The suddenness of it was too hard to fathom. I was listening to music on my comp and it continued playing. The fact that he was no more was incomprehensible to me. By God's grace, I have not had to face the fact of people close to me dying and so never had to think about it. But there it was. His smile was still flashing across my eyes every once in a while.
I just sat there, for i dont know how long and then somehow collected myself. Made a few calls and others who were closer had reached the hospital and saw him lying there.. people there told me.."It is sad how people in the medical field treat the mortal remains. He was an accident victim. No visible injury except to the head. and he lay there on a stretcher next to the reception."
Surrounded by friends and strangers. Friends, all in their 20s, all trying hard to come to grips. Someone asked me to come there and i made excuses. I knew that i didnt have it in me to see him like that and then drive back home.
Sleep was hard to come by. Dawn and the daze had still not left me. Rode to the GH were the post mortem was happening. And saw what i feared the most. He lay there on the stretcher as though in sleep. And the sight was even more difficult to fathom. My stomach was churning - the heat the stench and above all the tears of all those around. In a few hours time all that would remain will be ashes. But imagining his seat in office as empty - there an hour ago, but now no more, still beats me.
Last May saw another accident that was cruel in every way. And this one so close to me, shook me beyond belief. Exposing a fragile side of my mind, that i am very uncomfortable with. And for all my bravado, something rung home "Death" scares me.

A small tribute to an unbeatable legend

Brian Charles Lara - A Legend signs off

A lot of people say a lot of things about Lara...but for me he is what cricket is all about..passion..come what may..and there are comparisons with lesser people back home but the statistics (by Wisden Almanac) below say it all...


Top 10 test innings
---------------------

1 DG Bradman 270 Australia England Melbourne 1936-37 262.4
2 BC Lara 153* West Indies Australia Bridgetown 1998-99 255.2
3 GA Gooch 154* England West Indies Headingley 1991 252.0
4 IT Botham 149* England Australia Headingley 1981 240.8
5 DG Bradman 299* Australia South Africa Adelaide 1931-32 236.8
6 VVS Laxman 281 India Australia Calcutta 2000-01 234.8
7 C Hill 188 Australia England Melbourne 1897-98 234.2
8 Azhar Mahmood 132 Pakistan South Africa Durban 1997-98 232.6
9 KJ Hughes 100* Australia West Indies Melbourne 1981-82 229.7
10 BC Lara 375 West Indies England St John's 1993-94 228.1

Top 10 One day innings
--------------------------

1 Richards I.V.A 189* (170) 1984 WI won by 104 runs Old Trafford
2 Richards I.V.A 138* (157) 1979 WI won by 92 runs Lord's
3 Jayasuriya S.T 189 (161) 2000 Sri Lanka won by 245 runs Sharjah
4 Kapil Dev N 175 (150) 1983 India won by 31 runs Nevill Ground,Turnbridge Wells
5 Saeed Anwar 194 (146) 1997 Pakistan won by 35 runs M.A Chidambaram
6 Gower D I 158 (118) 1983 England won by 54 runs Woolloongabba
7 Lara B.C 169 (129) 1995 WI won by 4 runs 120*
8 De Silva P.A 107* (124) 1996 Lanka won by 17 runs Gaddafi Stadium
9 Lloyd C.H 102 (85) 1975 WI won by 17 runs Lord's
10 Lara B.C 153 (143) 1993 WI won by 6 wickets Sharjah

P.S - I know this is a bit too late...but was offline for a while...so pleej adjust