Length of Highlights Packages

I'm frustrated with the length of the highlights packages that the sports channels offer. Cricket is the only sport I watch, by the way. On second thoughts, tennis too. But don't watch highlights of tennis matches. So, I eagerly tune into Star Cricket to watch the highlights of the first ODI between Australia and Pakistan. All I get is a 50 min package, with absolutely no signs of the twists in the game. Before I come to terms with the fact that Aussies have had a bad start to their innings, Cameron White has already hit Afridi for 3 successive sixes thus ensuring victory for the Aussies. No idea why the channel doesn't use the 60 mins available. The last 10 mins is invariably used to show Sachin's hundred against England at Edbagston 14 years ago or the century against Aussies at Melbourne 10 years back. And it only brings bad memories of the Sachin-only-scoring days of Indian Cricket. Sucks.

Less said about Neo Cricket and Ten Sports, the better. While Star Cricket deprives us, these two channels bore us to death with two hour highlights. I missed the Eng SA series and Ind SL tests because of this.

Interestingly, Star Cricket's programs like Australia Victorious are for 90 minutes. Wonder why highlights cannot be for 90 minutes. I think the solution lies in having a variable amount of time for highlights. For example, if a day's Test Cricket has around 270 runs scored and not many wickets taken, the highlights can be for 1 hour. If there is a lot of action, it can be extended to 90 minutes. And if the highlights is less than 90 minutes, Star Cricket can always play any of Sachin's or Lara's hundreds in the remaining time! The only aberration I can think of are matches like this, where the entire match is like highlights!

Let me know your thoughts on this.

I want to write. A lot. But something is stopping me. I feel bad, depressed, lonely (after a long time). I think I will write irrelevant bullet points and try to get out of this depression.

• It's 2:57 am now and I plan to put a night out. My previous night out was for the Micro exam. Thought I had done decently, only for the results to suggest something else. Have decided not to put night outs for exams henceforth.
• I'm 'available' on Gmail Chat after a long time and chatting with my schoolmate who is in London. How he became hard working after 12th is a puzzle that cannot be solved.
• My cousin's flight to US will depart in half an hour. Wanted to call him in the evening, but forgot and kicking myself for that.
• Made use of the Vodafone Tuesday offer and hogged at Dominos with a good friend, Karthik. Had pizza after a long time. Post dinner, walked in random streets off RK Salai.
• I'm listening to good music.
• Don't plan to attend classes tomorrow, but will go to college. Just like that.
• I want to read. Non-fiction, preferably. I haven't read much and expect lots of insights from books. Any suggestions?
• Ashamed to say this, but being a hard-core Kamal and Rajini fan, I should have watched Aboorva Raagangal much earlier than last week. Liked the movie. Plan to watch a lot of KB movies this semester.
• Been watching movies on HBO, Sony Pix, etc these days. Like most of them.
• I'm a bad conversationist and a worse listener.
• Mylapore is a very nice place. :) Karpagambal mess, more so. Have to check out Rayars mess soon.
• Wanted to taste the food at Chennai Sangamam. Some company would have been helpful. Did go alone though. Only to be put off by the crowd. Listened to a song by Nithyashree and planned to listen till the concert ended. Just that the next song was the one I hate. Kurai Ondrum Illai... Walked away cursing my luck.
• It's 4 am now and my friend in London is asleep.

Being Oblivious

Over the last few years, I have learnt to live with being oblivious, deciding not to do anything about it. But what happened yesterday shook me. I had just screwed up an exam (no idea when the frequency of screwing up will come down), paid a whopping 25 bucks for a below average meal I had at the mess and waited for a boring one and a half hour class to commence. All of a sudden something gets into my head and I decide I would be better off at home than the AC classroom which would only aggravate my cold. I reach home, refresh and spend an hour in trying to figure out what I should be doing. And then I realise there is an Ind vs Aus cricket match going on at Nagpur. I had stupidly missed Sehwag's 31 ball 40. Thankfully I switched on the TV just in time to watch Dhoni's wonderful innings.

I cannot remember any instance of forgetting a match India has been a part of. But I guess I have just become more oblivious.

Hmmm

So, I had some work in college the other day. Decided not to go by cab and head to office directly from college. I got up late (as always) and had to reach college by 12.15. My friend is usually punctual, and I couldn't afford to keep him waiting, not because he wouldn't wait, but because I had to be at office by 2 (that I reached office at 2.30 is a different matter altogether).

As I was getting ready, I thought of ways to commute quickly. By no means could I reach at 12.15. Only after half an hour of thinking, it stuck me. I could go by an auto! Yes, auto! I'm so used to commuting by Public Transport that the existence of autos eluded my mind for half an hour. Strange.

A Day I Cannot Forget

June 28, 2008.

The YGP Auditorium was half full and each member was looking forward to watching the play Swadeshi Iyer. It was around 18:57 when Rajnikanth (yes, Superstar!) walked in along with his wife. I didn't know how others reacted, but I had goose bumps all over.

Once the play ended, everyone surrounded the Superstar and he patiently shook hands with everyone. I was speechless. Only that afternoon, I had seen a movie of his, Naan Adimai Ilai. I wanted to tell him I liked it, but the name of the movie didn't strike me! All I could muster was "Naan Slave Ilai". Somehow the word "Adimai" went out of my system!

I shook hands with him. A very firm one at that. He interacted with the artists and was whisked away by his driver and another guy. I ran along with them wanting to talk to him. But as I said before, I was speechless.

Yes, I met Superstar. The man who rules Indian Cinema.

June 28, 2008. A day I can never forget.

Life was good without internet. When I got my connection back last night, I opened Mozilla and didn't know what to do. Just checked mails and disconnected. I have been browsing for half an hour today and there is some depression setting in. Have retorted to blogging hence.

There isn't much I have missed actually. Infact I indulged in a lot of outdoor activity and continue to do the same. Would probably surf for half an hour a day. Lets see.

Enthu

Why can't one have the enthusiasm that a child has?

Was totally bored staring at the book on the eve of my first exam and decided to do something interesting. Switched on the FM and decided I would listen to atleast one song completely. And it had to be a song I like. But as always, I was turned off by the monologue of RJs. So started juggling between channels and couldn't listen to most songs from the beginning. The few songs I listened from the beginning invariably ended up being songs I loathe. This happened for half an hour and finally Radio City played "Atthaiku Pirandavale" from Kizhakku Cheemayile.

Coming to think of it, I should have just listened to one channel. A channel that usually plays songs that I like. Aaha and Radio City probably. I have become dumb. Have my Operations Research paper on 24th. Hopefully, I prepare well and put the concepts into use in my day-to-day life. Such as this one.

For the First Time

since I got a mobile, three years and eight months back, I haven't recharged before the validity got over. It got over on sunday and I will recharge only after my exams end. Now I don't ask my friends about their preparation and don't send arbitrary sms es.

This move showed immediate results. I studied for an hour on monday. Yesterday was dull and today has been dull too. But I will be awake for four more hours today and hope I can cram something.

These exams will, in all probability, decide my future. Let me see how I perform.

Billa

Saw Billa today. Finally. Low expectations meant I wasn't unhappy for spending 35 bucks. I was even engrossed in the movie for a little while. Nayanthara was hot, and I was ogling whenever she was on the screen. The movie also ascertains the fact that Ajith sucks less than Vijay.

Reached Woodlands just in time, thanks to the traffic at Royapettah. Watching movies in theatres like Woodlands, Udhayam is certainly better than spending 100 bucks at Sathyam, where I only manage to shiver because of the very low temperature.

FM Woes

Turned on the FM in my phone after a long time. What happens? No channel played songs I like for more than half an hour. Out of frustration, I tuned into Radio City, which played some peter song. Certainly better than Deva's music.

.....

Why do I think to think?

The Ganguly Saga

Strange are the ways of BCCI. When Ganguly shouldn’t have been dropped for the third test against SL in December 2005 and the home series against England in March 2006, he was dropped. And when he shouldn’t have been picked for the ODI team (in January 2007), he was picked. One of the reasons why he shouldn’t have played the WC was that it affected the balance of the team. Ganguly coming in meant Sachin had to bat in the middle order and that was one prime reason for the early exit (I will come up with a post on Sachin being made to bat in the middle order in crucial tournaments, in sometime).

After the WC, I was of the strong opinion that Dada was a liability in the team. I still think he is, in the ODI format. He has been amazing in the tests and the half century in the second innings of the third test against England was probably the best display of batting I have ever seen from him. Against the Pakistanis, he only got better, what with a century on home turf and a double ton at Bangalore.

I think Ganguly should play at no.3 in the tests against Australia. It is sort of evident that Dravid will open with Jaffer at MCG. Both Laxman and Dada are in good form and it is only obvious that one of them will play at 3. Laxman batting at 3 will mean Dada and Yuvi batting at 5 and 6, and with both of them being southpaws, I’m not sure if that will be the right way. Dada at 3 will mean the left-handers splitting the right-handers, which will only add to the woes of Australia’s bowlers, who are already up against a formidable batting line-up.

All said and done, I hope Ganguly bags the Man of the Series trophy, gets injured immediately after the Adelaide test and doesn’t play the ODIs.

Sahasranamam in an Auto

I took an auto to college for the first day of the last semester as I started late. It wouldn’t have made any difference had it been any other day. But I didn’t want to be late for the first day itself. I was in for a surprise inside the auto. The music system was playing Vishnu Sahasranamam! "Ah! What an auspicious beginning to the new semester", I thought.

After a few minutes, the auto reached Gemini signal and the driver was waiting for the signal to turn green, when he got a call. Sahasranamam was paused for a few minutes. He finished talking and the signal turned green. The driver forgot to press the play button. “Anna, Sahasranamam podunga na”, I said. “Oh! Maranduten sir”, replied the driver and played it.

Attending classes => I don't have a life.

Few Statistics..

1) I had a shave on 28th december 2006, not after 4 or 5 days, but after a small matter of 66 days. Of course, I couldn't beat my previous record, set sometime in november 2004 - february 2005.

2) The first mail I sent from my yahoo! account (my first mail account and the most active of my accounts) after 8th june 2006 was on 7th january 2007.

3) I attended college on 28th december 2006 after 13 days. Bunked 8 working days on a trot from 15th - 27th december 2006.