I'm the Game , Can you play me ??

Show me Something more thrilling than a perfect volley...
Tell me U never dreamt the immaculate strike...
Tell me That football is not our one common language...
Some may say it’s just a game...
But this is about Heroes, triumphs, loyalties, devotions...
It’s our commitment and our passion, our battle and our belief...
This is our faith...
Now feel the fever of the crowd, Hear the roar of the faithful...
This is the beautiful game. This is, your moment !!

Fck. A million things jst flashed ma mind. Nostalgia. Anywz...

For those who don't knw wht the context is, v r talkin about a religion, & that's FIFA. Personally, i love FIFA b'cause i love futbal. i can't play that well on the field, thou i want to, desperately. so i do it in d virtual world.

Those wer d days. man o man. crowd gathered behind the players who compete. sweat, shivers, mind about 2 xplode, smoke, tense surroundings. & here comes Nuno Gomez, runnin al thru d way 4m half-line, n yes, it's unbelievable, it's a GOAL !! i dreamt a lot. it was sumthin i worshipped, & cudn't afford 2 loose.

The golden days r gone. v r al dun wid clg. i thot it was gone 4 evr. GONE.

Stop. No. I can hear a knock. Am i dreamin, or is it 4 real ?? Well...

Office, work, tight schedule, pesky calls, & amidst all, cruisin it's way al d way down, as if a blazing first-touch. FIFA !! it's back !!

i'm more than glad. work, work, work, & then suddenly a brk 4 a 20-minute game. Argentina vs Brazil...Barca vs Arsenal...Liverpool vs Chealsea
things r a lil different thou. u can't yell, u can't bang tables when u concede a goal, no expletives. but then, damn - it's back. & i can't really xplain what happines it brings 2 busy minds & hefty hearts. Who says winnin or loosin dun't mattr. It dus damn it. Cum beat me, if ya can !!

I'm d game, can u play me ??

Dreams fulfilled !!

I neva thot things come is such a realistically true fashion, without a knock, without a chance to drop jaws, & unexpectedly, while u r working.

Now office is sumthin not many people wud lyk bein calld a haven. things sting at tyms. things dat mak u crave for a day off. needles 2 mention, dat forced the xpression TGIF in2 xistance (go google if u r stil ignorant). n at tyms u don't really realise that a vknd has just passd by (which is xctly what happened wid me last sunday nyt, when i, as a whippin shock, realised - 'Damn, it's office 2morrow'). Dreams comin true is a point of elation, but sumthin perfectly normal when u liv a carefre lyf. But under d tiresum circumstances as mentioned above, a dream comin tru, probably is a dream in itself. Wel, not alwz (n dat's d inspiration behind dis piece of writin).

Was scrollin thru d stuff shared by guyz on the intranet in ma office. a colleague (n a friend) of myn is so very fond of futbal, as any of the brazilian players, the point bein reflectd in his e-mail signatures, his passionate talks about futbal, his blogs, his celebration of India winnin the AFC Challenge Cup 2008, how he cursd the indian media for not coverin the victory, and d talks of his own team, their matches, n innumerabl such things.

[ Gist - fubal drips from evry drop of his blood ]

Now, 4 such a personality, what wud b a dream ? sumthin once fulfilled, is worth cherishin 4 a lyftym ? I got the answer whn i found a folder titled "UK Pics of that Sunday!". n d title itself was so captivating that i cud barely hold-on befor my fingers tapped twice 2 c what moments of glory lies within. A glimpse at the contents of that folder is included in this post

[ it is made sure that d privacy is not breached. he's not visibl here. if it stil offends u Tatha, please accept my sincere apologies ]

Arsenal !! Emirates Stadium !! u know what dat means damn it !!
hah. Been there, done that !!

On-job, on-site, working, and a lyftym dream fulfilled. damn !!
dats how lyf is ryt, suprises, surprises, surprises !!
dat smile on his face whn he poses against d arsenal logo on d stadium walls is stupendous.

Now, if dats how dreams r fulfilled -

Lord, i'm ready to work, al clad wid smiles, 24x7, 12x30, 365xinfinity,
n whtevr calculations represent a lyftym !!
Just keep ma dreams comin in please :)

First Drop In a New City !!

Ysterday !! it wasn't a downpour, a cloudburst. it didn't even crop up enough to form a sphere. it was just a glimmer, a shine, a sparkle. Out of grief or out of joy, m not very sure. But yes, it brought anxiety, a tremor, n a hel lot of thought provocation.


First job, a new city, stil a month for the first salary to b credited, n i, short on cash, with d skysoarin rent and brokerage for the flat we chose, went on to withdraw 700 bucks frm the SBI ATM, d last of what i had. As i was carefully plannin ma xpenses til money comes in, the guard posted on the ATM reached out ma hand. I didn't feel him hot then though.

[Backdrop : I first met the guard a cupl of days ago, n v conversed, later realisin that he was from a place close to ma hometown. 2000kms away frm home, n a person close frm ur place feels really like a close relative. ]

On the eventful day, he askd me for money, some of it. n i was taken back, reasonably enuf. i mean, no mattr what d amount was. u meetin a person for jst d 2nd tym in ur lyf, n he asks u for a favour, dat too a monetory one. Past swept across ma face, whence, 5 yrs back, i gav money to a person who claimed to live in a remote place nearby, as his bike was out of oil. 100 bucks, which obviously, neva came bck. So, retrospectively, i claimed petty xcuses, jstifyin sumhw,

"Sir, i can't do that"

He was stil adament, i turned furious. But when he said that he had high fever, n dat he was wearin a sweater within, in strong daylight (n he really showed it to me), i was remorseful, n realised how impolite i've become.

[Development of Thoughts: Me, or the entire society ?? Who's to blame ? Me, why ? i went thru a bad xperience once, n dat reflected in ma reaction to the 60+ man. was it my fault ? yes, it was, without d slightest tinge of doubt. but the partner-in-crime, or rather the one completely responsibl, was d man who neva gav me back those 100 bucks. was it my fault at al ??]

I askd him how much he wanted. he said "20-30 rupaye beta, bas. main kal lauta dunga aapko". my wallet had d least denomination of 100, which i offered to him, without a second thought. He was confused (i really dunno why). n he said he dusn't want dat much, instead he requestd me 2 buy him d medicine frm d nearby medical store. i did d same. n al it took was 5 minutes, and 4 rupees.

Parting ways, i laid ma hand over his shoulder, askin him to tak care, n hav d medicine on time. He gav me a smile, n i jst couldn't bear it. As i turned ma back n walked ma way towards ma flat, sumthin flickered in ma resentful eyes. I didn't let it flow, it tried to thou, but i didn't let it (they say, men don't cry).