Changes

Here's another long one, don't tell me I didn't warn you.

Its been changes galore for me in the past one year. If I turn back the clock to about one year ago, at this very time, I would have been doing something completely distinctive to what I`m doing right now both personally and otherwise.

In the past one year, I have managed to:-

1.To Shift base to Germany for my masters - This wasn't my first time away from home, but to think I'd have to do everything right from setting up my room to cooking my own food was overwhelming in the beginning, but as I now reflect back I end up surprising myself every time; just thinking - one year ago, I was the probably be the only guy on the planet who could burn something as simple as Maggi or would refuse to do his own dirty dishes. Flash forward to present day and I do all of that and much much more. I can cook a decent 3 course meal with desert leaving my friends gasping for breath and keep my room spotlessly clean simultaneously while working 8 hours a day. I began to realize how self-sufficient I`ve become after Appa came visiting. I cooked for him and took him around town. He went home and told my mother about how organized I've become and how I've got everything under control, that she couldn't stop bragging about me to her colleagues. It felt nice to beam like a 4 year old again, when she told me what Appa had told her.

2. To Experience a New Culture - Having come here, it's absolutely brilliant when you partake in the host country's culture. Especially when you have the kind of awesome friends that I have, who have not only taught me whatever little I know about Germany but have welcomed me into their homes and lives with such immense warmth, that I have not for a moment felt homesick since landing here. I live here in a Student Dormitory and almost everyday my neighbors and I; cook, eat and make merry together with absolutely no inhibitions or preconceptions towards each other. They have accepted me into their lives with nothing but good intentions at heart and a warm smile on their faces. It gives me the creeps just thinking how much I'll miss living with them when I move out from here.

3. To Backpack across Europe - A lot of people I know have backpacking across Europe to be among the top 5 in their respective Bucket lists. To say I've realized what is merely a dream to scores of other people would be a gross understatement. It is pure magic hopping across the small villages and towns of Holland, Belgium, Germany and France. It always leaves you longing for more. I do have about half a dozen trips planned for the latter half of the year, it remains to be seen if they will indeed materialize and if they do, expect nothing less than the magic to repeat itself.

4. To learn a new language - Well, this one doesn't really count as a change, but since I had already done 2 years of learning German in India, I didn't really have teething problems on landing here. On my first day here, I had to handle 50 + kilos of luggage from my flight and was making small talk with an aged gentleman(say 65 odd years old) in German on the platform in the railway station, he offered to help me carry my luggage into the train as he was impressed that someone who had just landed from India 2 hours back could speak in his tongue with a fair fluency. Although you can manage with English on a daily basis here, my German fluency has improved a lot after coming here and talking to my neighbors and friends in the language has certainly helped the cause.

5. To Gain a Renewed Respect for your motherland - Since I have to introduce myself to people as an Indian here, it just amazes me as to how proud I feel when telling someone that I hail from a country so rich in its traditions, customs, history and lifestyles. My neighbors and I are equally amazed , When they ask me how so many festivals are celebrated in India, how so many delicious and fragrant food items come from one single country and How one single country can speak more than more than 100 different languages in more than 2000 different dialects. It just gives me goosebumps every time I get into talking about India with topics ranging from language, food, lifestyle to religion, philosophy and beliefs being discussed. I think it would be fair to say, I've learnt to see a whole new side to India and it's greatness after coming here and experiencing my first taste of the Western World.

Amidst these changes, there exist dimensions that remain unchanged and untouched in our lives. These unchanged aspects are perhaps what defines our uniqueness, in carrying out our eventful lives despite the changes that have affected us in the past and the changes that will affect us in future. I know for a fact that 'Change is the only Constant' but I`m grateful to change; for it has widened my perspective, broadened my thought process and given me new and exhilarating experiences.

Being the Single in a Committed World

TO THE MARRIED/ENGAGED/COMMITTED FOLKS

Let me first take this opportunity to warn you beforehand, this is going to be one of those complaint box type posts where I ramble on and on about the issue at hand.

What does the universe have against us Single people? What have we ever done to you? I have off late noticed that, anyone and everyone I know seems to be in a relationship. From crazy love ridden Facebook statuses by guys my age to kids I've grown up playing cricket with are all now in committed relationships. Its almost an Epidemic, I tell you.

Now what this means to us Single people is that, we are usually caught unawares between the said friend and his love interest. The same guy who used to be able to come to the movies on any given weekend or play cricket at will or merely hang out with a beer on a Friday, suddenly has no time in the world for you. His mobile phone is his most trusted sidekick in this 'comedy' that is apparently his relationship. He spends more time kissing and canoodling his phone more than the actual girl herself. All questions with regards to why he did not turn up for last weeks snooker game or the Friday evening TV Football Marathon are met with a single and standard answer- You're not in a relationship, You wont understand.

What is it about a relationship that brings about this sudden and tectonic shift? Lets try and break the mystery in our own little way, Shall we?

So here's a list of things, you as a single guy/girl have experienced whilst being among married/about to be married/committed folks.

1. Never ending Love calls - Technology has improved and made communication much better and cheaper. The fact that 15 years ago, your local Uduppi restaurant sold Vada at 50 paise, when an STD call costed 5 Rs and now an STD call costs 50 Paise (or cheaper depending on the network you use) and a Vada costs about 5 Rs just goes on to show how technology has grown and how we misuse it to our advantage. The average gf/gf will resort to late night calling, depending on place of residence of course. My friend here in Germany has an app installed on his desktop and phone showing him what the exact time difference is between him and his Singapore based girlfriend so that she gets a good nights sleep. Now that's foresight and not everyone in relationships is as prudent like him; I reckon. Take the example of another friend who was almost broken up by your's truly for being on the phone with his lady love at 2.30 in the morning when there was a crazy party going on while he was oblivious to the truth and just went on and on by his own agenda till I lost track of how long he was on his love call.

All I ask you; committed people is, Yes, do talk to your loved one's on a daily/ hourly basis but please for heavens sake also don't forget to live the life you had when you were otherwise normal and flaunt your relationship in front of your single friends because:-

a) Some of us don't give a rodent's rear end.

b) Its outright obnoxious and frustrating when we have to put up with having invited you for dinner and 90% of your time at my place is spent talking to your lover. The only way we communicate with you is by becoming expert face reading professionals when we watch you display a spectrum of expressions ranging from a very Gay-ish sounding - 'Ohh Honey, oh sweety' to a Girlish 'Awwww' during your conversation.

2. The Gift Shopping Episodes - This is another one of those things that makes my blood boil, that I`m almost venting steam out of my ears. Why do you always pick the single guy to go with, when you go gift shopping for your lover? The gift selection is such a big deliberation, the delving into of which is done in of which is such great detail and attention that it would have rendered the lifelong efforts of the great Leonardo-da-Vinci worthless. The guy must not have read his 12th board exam question paper with such intent, but will put his entire concentration on getting his lover the perfect gift.

I recently happened to be tagged along for one such episode with a buddy of mine to a chocolate store and he spent close to 3 hours on the phone with almost half a dozen of the said girlfriend's closest friend group and finally came to the conclusion that he didn't want to buy from that particular store. I swore never to accompany him thereafter.

3. Discrimination - Single people are discriminated against everywhere and all the time.

Sample this,

1. When you're taking a train trip as a single guy, under no normal circumstances will you chance upon an attractive single lady travelling unaccompanied. It always has to be the possessive mother/father/elder brother who will go to the extent of mauling you, if you so much as steal a glance at the aforementioned young lady. Common folks, Occasional flirting is the greatest adventure that can happen to us poor souls, Have a heart and let us have our little bit of fun.

Fairly common in train journeys is also the irritant of people asking us single guys to Adjust Please. What can possibly be written on our foreheads that makes you think we should not stake claim to a lower berth. We do have a ticket that says otherwise. But not wanting to create a ruckus, we half-heartedly agree to your offer of switching to the Upper most berth where the ceiling is so low that you cannot turn over in your sleep without being hit by it.

2. Been to the movies alone? The annoying Ticket Uncle always gives you a corner seat. If it wasn't frustrating enough that your friends ditched you for the movies, the annoying couple next to you just cannot keep their hands off each other. In the bargain you miss 3 quarters of the movie on the silver screen but end up watching a poorly made Porno. (2 movies for the price of One. :D)

3. Ever tried going to a restaurant alone ???, You are perennially invisible to the waiter who does not understand the distress that you're under, for you are a simple creature who just needs your food to get a move on. You have to go to the extent of whistling for the waiter to place your order, Notwithstanding your frenzy driven waving to him he comes at his own sweet pace to take your order and brings you your given order which you can pretty well expect to taste funny and suspicious. Your frequent visits to the loo the next day are a direct result of a combination of the waiter's cold revenge that was served to you yesterday along with a few curses of his.

4. In the pubs and bars, Don't ever go to a bar with a married friend, take it from me. We`ve come here to drink our worries away and not to listen to your share of problems with your mother/father/sister-in-law. Over drinks we single people like to check out other attractive singles in the room and bang that's the exact auspicious moment you pick to tell us the most wretched of your sorrow stories. Being the large hearted souls that we are, we listen like we care, as you ramble on and on about life, marriage, love and its various pitfalls while simultaneously cursing you mentally for having cost us the opportunity to hit on that hot babe in black that we were scouting all night long, who just left after not being hit on by anyone.

Life is unfair to us single's but then again there are the those occasional moments which leave us gloating in glory

1. Like when you committed folks get into fights and come to us for sounding off on your lover/spouse/girlfriend and for insight like we're relationship PhD's.

2. Lets face it, we singles are the one's you turn to for your rebound or for consolation immediately after you've broken up.

3. We qualify as loyal buddies and great listeners, when you committed folks share with us your lengthy accounts of your romantic instances with your cute gf/bf, It sure isn't romantic to us, but we would never say that to your face because we love seeing you and your loved one smile ear to ear.

4. We're the first one's you turn to when your relationship seems like it's going South. We act as Peace brokers and in the process make ourselves look like buffoon's but would not say that explicitly because we see you so happy with your loved one.

We love you all to bits, we can hate you at times with vigor, but we can never leave you out of this circus we call life.

Here's to a peaceful co-existence.

Yours Lovingly

Frustrated Single Guy Caught up between Married/Commited/Engaged People.

Captain Chronicles

Every year the first week of July is special for 2 reasons, two of India's greatest among other great cricketers celebrate their Birthdays in a gap of a solitary day(born on different years of course)

The very mention of one or both of their names brings about a spectrum of varied emotions ranging from Demi God like Worship to Sarcastic chides. Such is the effect these two gentlemen have evoked on millions of Indians and cricket lovers alike throughout the face of this planet.

Sourav Ganguly (born 8th July) was as unique to Indian cricket as the word unique could be interpreted. Grit/Aggression could have easily been his middle name, as he came up into the International cricket scene in 1992 as a cropper against the West Indies on his debut and was dropped immediately for being arrogant and having temperamental issues, but there began his journey of struggles and comebacks. Ironically, Dada as he was to be later called; was summoned to his Test Debut in 1996 to replace a certain Navjot Singh Sidhu who was dropped because of a tiff with the captain. Talk about life coming a w

hole circle. He batted like a dream, scoring a blazing century stamped with the signature Ganguly Cover Drives and straight drives that put could put any world class bowler's 140 km/hr+ delivery to shame and enroute to the boundary more often than not.

The most significant aspect of his career was by far his Leadership skills apart from his staggering batting record only second to the God of Cricket - Sachin Tendulkar. What captains post the Kapil Dev era couldn't do, Ganguly managed to do. He instilled in the team a certain confidence and winning spirit which his predecessors couldn't manage. This clearly showed on the team which bagged a string of victories both at home and away, the pinnacle of which was the World Cup Final appearance of 2003. Although the team lost to Australia, the current Goliath's of the cricket World, little could be done to stop the Indian juggernaut post 2003 with victories in Pakistan and Australia. Post 2005 Ganguly's career took a turn for the worse with his loss of captaincy and place in the team. This seemed to show on the team's performance as well, which went on to face a string of defeats in the 2006-2007 seasons culminating with the shameful first round exit from the World Cup in 2007. Then came the comeback of comebacks, batting in seaming conditions in South Africa, Ganguly again stamped his class with a patient inning while the famed Indian batting crumbled and danced to the swing and pace of the South African fast bowlers. His international career ended like a fairytale with his last series against Australia after which he stuck around for 4 more seasons of the cash rich IPL.

The other man in question is currently one of India's favorite sons. The man with the Midas Touch Mahendra Singh Dhoni was born on 8th of July. Traditionally drafted into the team as a second choice wicket keeper to replace the shoddy Dinesh Karthik he consolidated his place with his flamboyant and explosive batting. Armed with his 'Helicopter Shot', he managed to send many a ball into the viewing galleries with an alarming frequency. However with the likes of VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly being axed from the One day squad, Dhoni grew into the captaincy role in quick time and took India to its first T-20 world cup victory in South Africa in 2007. He then went from Strength to strength taking the team to successive victories in Austalia, New Zealand and Sri Lanka in the coming few seasons. The crowning glory of his career till then would be the clinical World Cup win he would chalk out at home in 2011. With his cool headed captaincy and carefully strategised plans, the team could trump any opposition with impressive consistency. His IPL career was also equally eventful, with his team the Chennai Super Kings making every single semi-final since the inception of the tournament and winning successive titles in the years 2010 and 2011. They were suitably likened to 'Manchester United' of the IPL for their consistent and crisp cricket.

The commonalities that exist between these two gentlemen are plenty.

1. They were both born in July (obvious).

2. Both came from Non-traditional cricketing backgrounds, Ganguly from Bengal and Dhoni from Jharkhand.

3. Both ascended the captaincy role when the team was in turmoil, Ganguly when the Match Fixing scandal was at its prime in 1999 and Dhoni took over after India's first round shock exit from the 2007 World Cup.

4. Both of them actually preferred football to cricket when they were young but fate took precedence and they have not looked back since.

5. Ganguly's highest score of 183 against Sri Lanka was equalled by Dhoni who hit the very same 183 against 'surprise surprise' Sri Lanka again.

It remains to be seen how Indian cricket scales greater heights under the cool and calculative head of M.S Dhoni who surprisingly made his debut under Sourav Ganguly. The uncanny similarities between these two just makes one wonder if it is indeed a play of destiny by the stars or a tale of magic written by the gods.