What wishes will I make if I get the Allauddin’s lamp, asked  my friend.

The selfless and contended person that I am, told him I will make the following:

1. Tendulkar’s 100th Ton before I retire (as he may not retire)

2. Laxman not getting caught at mid-wicket

3.  Dravid being able to protect his stumps

4. Sehwag being able to hit full tosses for a six instead of to fielders

5. Ishant to take atleast two wickets a match

6. Indian bowlers bowing 5 overs at a stretch without conceding a four

7. Opposition not keeping any slip catcher for Ghambir (if possible no wicket keeper as well)

8. MSD showing some passion  and imagination on the cricket field

9. and finally, though it will be a tough ask for Alladdin’s Lamp, a victory for the Team India overseas.

******

Quiz:

Q. How can we avoid this type of 4-0 whitewashes in the future?

A. Reduce the number of tests in the series to one.  That way we can at best lose only one test per series.

Readers also liked

• India Vs Pakistan Champions Trophy group match (1)
• Hoping for a perfect five for MSD (0)
• Have to write about Indian Cricket (2)
• Ra Ra says India’s symbol for the Rupee (5)

Thanks to my friend Margabandhu for sharing this motivating story

+++++++++++++++

Once there was a king who received a gift of two magnificent falcons from Arabia.

They were peregrine falcons, the most beautiful birds he had ever seen. He gave the precious birds to his head falconer to be trained.Months passed and one day the head falconer informed the king that though one of the falcons was flying majestically, soaring high in the sky, the other bird had not moved from its branch since the day it had arrived.

The king summoned healers and sorcerers from all the land to tend to the falcon, but no one could make the bird fly. He presented the task to the member of his court, but the next day, the king saw through the palace window that the bird had still not moved from its perch.

Having tried everything else, the king thought to himself, “May be I need someone more familiar with the countryside to understand the nature of this problem.” So he cried out to his court, “Go and get a farmer.”In the morning, the king was thrilled to see the falcon soaring high above the palace gardens.

He said to his court, “Bring me the doer of this miracle.”The court quickly located the farmer, who came and stood before the king.

The king asked him, “How did you make the falcon fly?”
With his head bowed, the farmer said to the king, “It was very easy, your highness. I simply cut the branch where the bird was sitting.”

We are all made to fly– to realize our incredible potential as human beings. But instead of doing that, we sit on our branches, clinging to the things that are familiar to us.

The possibilities are endless, but for most of us, they remain undiscovered. We conform to the familiar, the comfortable and the mundane. So for the most part, our lives are mediocre instead of exciting, thrilling and fulfilling.

So let us learn to destroy the branch of fear we cling to and free ourselves to the glory of flight!!! Make it a great life!!

+++++++++++++++

In the new year, make a resolution to shrug the fear off and take that measured risky step! We take risk all the time in our life, unconsciously.

It is those people who take risk consciously that succeed even more!

Wish you a very happy new year!

Readers also liked

• Bengaluru on Qatar Airways map (3)
• A question of options… (7)
• Television Goof-up (2)
• Don’t Quit (0)

What happens when an Indian monkey strays across the border from one country to another?

If you consider it is only a monkey, then no problem.  But, when the two nations have a doubtful relationship, a stray monkey will not be any ordinary monkey business.

I read the news that almost a month back, on November 19th to be precise, an Indian monkey strayed into Pakistan border at the Rahim Yar Khan.

It has prompted a Pakistani official quip “India has a huge population of monkeys and often when they are hungry they head towards Pakistan”.

Animal rights activists in India have asked for this particular monkey to be released in the wild.  However, the Pakistani officials have stated “monkeys are usually naughty and they can harm civilian population”.

One more official has said that there is a request for this monkey to be set out but there was another monkey which strayed into Pakistan few months back but no one has asked for its repatriation.

I do not know if the above statements are loaded and one has to read between, behind and in front of the lines.

I got the following doubts:

1. Was he using up the opportunity to refer all Indian population Monkeys? Note that right now Andrew Symonds is in India for Big Boss and he is part of the Indian “floating” population.  Should this statement warrant any action by ICC  against Pakistani Cricket Board?

2. Did the Pakistani official mean food scarcity in India as the reason for high food inflation when he said “hungry monkeys look to Pakistan for food?”.

3.  Do they indirectly mean that Indian population is all monkeys and they are all naughty and uncivilized while the Pakistani population, even those who live in the wild, are all civilized?

4. India has asked for repatriation of one monkey but has not asked for another.  I hope there is not even a remote connection between the release request for the second monkey and ……… (I do not want to offend Mr. Kapil Sibal and get into trouble!)

Read the full story here: http://news.yahoo.com/monkey-business-india-pakistan-191129462.html

Most Commented Posts

• Satyam fraud, unravelling the mystery (85)
• Ravi my favorite to win Super Singer 2008 (39)
• தமிழகத்தை குவைத் ஆக்கும் திமுக (28)
• Jai Ho – Wishes to Mozart of Madras (25)

Everything except WPI seems to be falling right now in India.  If you are an investor in the stock markets, more doom is being predicted.

As a Gulf based NRI I am happy that I am able to send more money than what I was able to do about six months back thanks to a favourable exchange rate.  However, I am also able to notice that the extra money that goes to my home country has lesser value than what it fetched year or two back.

We have a highly respected economist as our Prime Minster but there seems to be no real effort in controlling inflation.  And  Reserve Bank of India, the Financial Controller for the country, thinks that the only way to control inflation is by raising interest rates.

These thoughts took me to a short humorous piece that I wrote three years back, when we had almost similar situation.

——x——x——-x——-

If only they heeded to advise of elders and “Exercised” caution regularly, they would have lived for some more years.  But they were “Banking” too much on “Power” and had little “Healthcare”.

The body looked sound but the internal “Infrastructure” was very bad may be because of “Engineering” faults or “Cellular” problems.

Some even felt that “Biotechnology” could have saved them with the support of data gathered using “Information Technology” which in turn used “Computer Hardware”.  They even tried to “Outsource” some of the life support systems and by “Auto”mating some organs but  nothing could strengthen and “Cement” the situation.  But despite the efforts every “OTHER” thing tried failed.

The “real estate” left behind them are staring at us in our portfolios as strong immovables.

We can only look to buy some “Capital Equipment” to build a nice monument for these departed souls and make a ever burning light with some “OIL” and pass “Gas” looking at the monument.

——x——x——-x——-

Readers also liked

• Simple mistake or Larger Consipiracy? (0)
• சுபிக்‌ஷாவும் சத்யமும் ஒன்றல்ல (4)
• "Fall" Collection (1)
• Bull Market Vs Bear Market (2)

இன்று பாரதியார் பிறந்தநாளாம், நாட்டுப்பற்று மிக்க நல்ல நண்பர் திரு ஜி கே ஆர், பாரதியின் நினைவிழந்த தமிழரை எண்ணி விசனக்கட்டுரை இணைந்த மின்னஞ்சல் ஒன்றை அனுப்பியிருந்தார்.

அவருக்கு என்னுடைய பதில்:

அன்புள்ள அய்யா,

இது என்ன ரஜினி பிறந்தநாளா

சிறப்பாக கொண்டாட,

நினைவு கொள்ள?

இந்தியராக இருக்க பழகுங்கள்.

உங்களுக்கு ஏன் இந்த கொலவெறி?

எங்களுக்கு காந்தி என்றால் சோனியா

கவிஞர் என்றால் வைரமுத்து

தியாகி என்றால் கனிமொழி

கர்மவீரர் என்றால் கருணாநிதி

எங்களிடம் போய் பாரதி! யார்?

Readers also liked

• மகாத்மா காந்தியும் கூகுளும் (1)
• அடுத்த முறை கண்டிப்பாக… (0)
• நல்லவேளை ரஜினி தேர்தல் பிரசாரத்துக்கு போகல… (6)
• போடுங்கம்மா ஓட்டு… (1)