*Sigh*

...and we're OUT.

Yet another failure at yet another ICC event. It's beginning to sting...really, really badly. Not surprising. Honestly, as much as it pains me to say it, we didn't deserve to be in the Top 4. The team we're playing is an adhoc/raw one whose body language on the cricket pitch resembles that of a 2-hour old baby giraffe trying to stay upright long enough to allow its spindly legs to take their first step.

Yes, we were unlucky to lose 3 of our best players before the tournament, but at no point during our short stay in SA did we look like we were challenging our opponents in any way. OK, so we pushed a West Indies B-team to the brink today...but even in this match, when WI were at 85/5 we had way too many fielders on the edge of the circle, giving away easy singles to the 2 new batsmen at the crease. Our best bowlers seem to get an extra bounce in their stride, a few extra Kms on their deliveries and movement in the air only against the weakest sides in any tournie. Against the big guns, they ask for defensive field positions and their only goal during the matches seems to be not to muck up in an especially horrendous way (even that, evidently, they cannot pull off).

Mahi's luck has, officially, run out. His quirky field positions, constant bowler rotation, counter-intuitive batting line-ups just aren't doing the trick. Methinks it's time to return to fixing the basics - inspire your quickies to run in and hit the deck hard, push your medium pacers to bowl every delivery in the net at the stumps (reward the most consistent with sugar-free laddoos), lift the (currently abysmal) fielding standards (and adopt the drop-and-gimme-20 regiment every time someone effs up during fielding drills), and remind your batsmen that their job is to make runs at the crease and not lay eggs in the pavilion. Times are tough for Team India and everyone involved needs to put their hands up and accept responsibility for his/her/its role in this situation. From the players who have consistently (and with an annoying arrogance) messed things up; to the selectors for continuing to value the archaic notion of experience/seniority over talent/recent records; to the media who choose to focus on sensationalism and stupid soundbites instead of constructive advice that'll actually help the team; and of course We, The Fans.

As a manic "We, The Fans" member, I stand guilty as charged. We knew, even before a ball was bowled, that we're entering the tournament with a makeshift team with gaping holes in the top & middle order and a virtually toothless bowling attack. Why then did we go around expecting, nay, demanding to see our team in the finals? Why did we act as if the lack of communication between the players and erratic decision-making were symptoms of irresponsibility - why didn't we recognise them as symptoms of a team that has never played together in such high-pressure circumstances? It's our fault too, really. Our team is never able to just go out and "have a blast". They're always out there trying to prove naysayers wrong and/or trying to fulfill the fantasies of unrealistic optimists. The only person I know who has sprouted more white hairs than MSD since becoming a democratically-elected leader is Barack Obama. And both men, we know, are giving their all to make things work.

Having said that, we all recognise that times are tough for Team India. All we can do now is wait. Wait for the Midas touch to return to our beloved captain, wait for our injured and rehabilitating players to return with all their strength fully restored, and wait for our boys' wounds to heal and to see them burst onto the next cricket ground with the hunger for victory flashing in their eyes. We, The Fans, no matter what, will be behind the Men In Blue. Despite all our whining, cynicism and occasional bitterness, we live for Team India. No matter what, day or night, we'll be cheering on every elegant drive (Kartick pulled off a particularly beautiful one during today's game), every outswinger which catches the flashing edge of an opponent's bat and every breathtaking, airborne catch at Point. We will continue to paint our faces, fly the flags and bellow: COME ON INDIA!! Until the job is done :D

And, yes, pick for the tournament at this point is definitely Pakistan. Don't know if any of you managed to tune in to the Pakistan vs Australia match -- what a cracker!! Kudos to Pakistan for their ability to make Ricky "The World Hates You" Ponting gnaw on his stubby little Aussie fingers. As much as I dislike them (especially during Indo-Pak matches), one must admire Pakistan's ability to kick it up a notch during ICC events. Tremendous self-belief and zing in this 11. As we'd say in the EDM world - Pakistan FTW!! (Pakistan For The Win) (Well, either them or England. NZ and Australia can happily crawl back to the all-white, racist crapholes they call home.)

Highlight of the day:

MAHI'S FIRST ODI WICKET!

(duh)

...and how handsome he looked doing it too *sigh*

(Ajmal's beauty to Mitchell Johnson during the Pakistan vs Australia match was a close second, I must admit)

Happy Dussehra/Vijayadashami folks!!

And in keeping with the "epic battle" theme: looking forward to an exciting India vs Australia match today - it's time to slay some demons, baby!

COME ON INDIA!

Champions Trophy Game 1: Post-Mortem

I decided to wait a bit before I wrote this piece about yesterday’s match. I’m known to have emotional outbursts immediately following big events (esp. those of the sporting nature) and I just wanted to give myself a moment to breathe and allow the cricket analyst in me to have a chance to throw in atleast a few lines before the cricket lover/manic India fan went on some melodramatic rant.

So, I was trying my hardest to avoid the hype. It was the first match during which I wasn’t going to go all out and put on my Team India t-shirt, whip out my dad’s 30year old khadi Indian flag or have my Pakistani friends on speed dial to gloat whenever a crucial Paki batsmen fell or Raina lofted a ball over mid-off for a 6 (I some how had a premonition that he was going to put a few deliveries away). However, despite all my attempts, I found myself gobbling my lunch in a record 3minutes, yelling at everyone around me to stop talking so I could say a (4-minute long) prayer to the Cricket Gods for MSD and the boys, and sending out last minute e-mails/twitter updates/facebook birthday wishes before my computer and Blackberry were indiscriminately switched off at 1:50PM sharp. So yeah, the hype was definitely given in to.

Let's start with the before-a-ball-is-delivered aspect of the match. It’s no secret that I utterly and totally detest the Pakistani cricket team, especially the one that has come into being over the last 3 years or so. Ironically they (well, Shahid Afridi) were the team that first got me into cricket in the summer of 1996. However, as the years have progressed and as I’ve watched them go from a talented, brave team with guts to a team that plays like a bunch of annoying, unpredictable, sulky, entitled firecrackers…my fondness for the team has steadily diminished. And to add to it, there was something so disgustingly obnoxious (borderline insulting) about their mind games and general rhetoric before this match – it made me want to punch my TV set multiple times. Despite all of that, I tried my best not to swear (out loud) at the 11 men as they lined up for their national anthem at Centurion. [Also, it was SO hard not to laugh at the poor South African singer who had to mouth the Urdu lyrics of the anthem…Umar Gul looked like a lost caveman (more than usual) for most of it.]

OK, so India had a couple of big injury blows – namely no Yuvi, Viru or Zaheer. And then Mahi went and lost the toss :P Our bowlers then went out there and got the living daylights whacked out of them - lekin, despite the pummeling and the resultant mammoth total to get, I think India could have won the game. Reminiscent of team India of the mid-90’s, however, we lost all the big moments – at times our own fault (two run outs…thanks Rahul Dravid), at times the stars aligned inauspiciously (shocker of a decision to say Suresh Raina was out lbw) – and just didn’t take the game the way we c(sh)ould’ve done.

Some tactical mistakes/Self-made disasters:

- not giving our best part-time spinner (Suresh Raina – check recent scorecards if you don’t believe me) a go even when our “best” spinner is leaking runs from his backside

- truckloads of short deliveries just outside off stump – allowing the Pakis to cut balls to the boundaries like there was no tomorrow.

- question: why does Ishant Sharma (our fastest bowler) not start the innings – why does he come on as first change?? Shouldn’t the swing of RP Singh (although if someone could point to me more than 4 balls that swung for him) be more handy after the ball is a little older/softer??

- a preposterous batting line-up. Disclaimer: I am a huge R “the wall” D supporter/fan, but I’m sometimes perplexed as to what his role in the team exactly is. We were told that RD’s been brought into the ODI team because India is incredibly weak playing shorter deliveries – but how many bouncers do the boys actually have to face during a 50-over game (and don’t say “technically 50”, because we all know a 35over old ball will NOT knock your head off)?! There is no doubting the class and genius of Dravid, but he just doesn’t rotate strike like he needs to during big chases – if anything, he ends up putting more pressure on the fellows that come after. The required rate more often than not is pushed up to 6.5+ rpo after his stay at the crease. My ideal batting line-up from the guys that were playing yesterday: Gambhir, Tendulkar, MS, Rahul, Raina, Kohli/Yusuf Pathan, Yusuf Pathan/Kohli.

Ultimately, despite all the efforts they made, I really wish the boys hadn’t played like such twits – not being able to maintain a good line/length and the many instances of really bad decision-making during the chase really didn’t help the very difficult cause the team had on their hands.

Having said all that, I’m very proud of the team. A weak Indian side was playing a fully-fit Pakistan. And what more – a Pakistani team that believes beating India is more important than any other victory. We gave them a good fight. And, I am always in awe of MSD’s brand of leadership – he is an honest, no-nonsense kind of man -- critical when necessary but always supportive of the team. I am very proud of how India approached the politics of this match and the disappointment of our subsequent defeat. As much as the Indian press tried to ram it into our heads that this was “the first India-Pak match since 26/11”, the team decided to stay away from irresponsible, masaledar journalism and focus on what the game really is – a group stage match in the 2009 Champions Trophy. It makes me really proud to see our boys play this game as if it’s any other – one they’d really like to win, because as sportsmen, that’s what they’re supposed to do. Of course I’m not denying that we all wanted to win it that much more because it is against Pakistan – but we weren’t looking to win because it was against Pakistan. The maturity with which MSD and the rest of the team handled the pressure was fantastic. I can safely say, for myself and for most Indian cricket fans out there (please don't go out and ask your friendly, BJP-supporting neighbour ok?), on any given day, beating Australia (oh please Cricket Gods, PLEASE) is 10 times more satisfying than beating a Pakistani side. What say you?

Ultimately, India’s back under pressure again – it’s a knock-out tournament for us now. We have to beat both Australia and The West Indies to qualify for the semis. It will be far from easy, but we have more than enough talent in our squad to do it. I hear that Team India is thinking of playing 5 specialist bowlers in the next game against Oz. God forbid there’s a “batting collapse”. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this (potential) decision – MSD’s known to stick to the same squad throughout a tournie to show faith in his players (remember T20 World Cup), but maybe this shuffling will do us some good. Let’s see. This is the worst part about being a spectator – you just never the get the opportunity to jump onto the pitch and bowl the perfect spell: Shaon Bhattacharya – 3/24 off 6 overs *sigh*

Although, maybe it’s good I’m not allowed to be on a cricket pitch when Pakistan is too – I don’t want to be put on death row for murdering Younis Khan (I usually have a great deal of respect for this man – he’s just been really annoying during the last few weeks), Afridi and motor mouth Gul in cold blood. I want to be able to see India lift the World Cup at least once before I die…

Cricket fever love,

S xxx

** Favourite quote from pre-match buildup: “More than us, Sachin would be under enormous pressure since now so much rests on him to deliver the goods” – Younis Khan at a Press Conference on 25/09

Oh yeah, this is definitely the first time that Sachin Tendulkar has ever faced such pressure in his 20 year long batting career. And obviously, he’s not a good enough player to overcome such pressure huh? Especially seeing as "he’s not a super-natural creature or ghost” (Khan’s words, not mine). Really, Younis? The greatest batsman in the history of the game was under more pressure than your entire team during a first round match in the Champions Trophy?! Aren’t you just the most modest (and delusional) mouse in the barn…

:D

MARKO is here!! Well, technically in the shower - but he's HERE! *smiles*

Marko is one of my oldest friends - we met when I was in Joburg on a summer break in 2003 - although, I've never before really had the opportunity to spend oodles of time with him. From the very first time we met, we've had a very special connection and he's one of the few people who I've always shared a "finish-each-0ther's-sentences" type relationship with. I've never really been able to explain our relationship to other people...I think even some of my closest friends won't recognise the name Marko...whenever I'd speak about him at Uni, I'd just lump him into the "one of my close high school friends" or "one of my friends from home" category. But, in reality, he's always been much more than that. He's the most real and independent person I know and even we, those who know him best, are never able to predict quite what he's going to do next. In my world, those are three of the most valuable qualities in a person.

I've learned some of my most important life lessons in his presence. Whether it's through our conversations or during the course of our most fun (and infamous) nights out together. It makes a great deal of sense in my head that the dude I party the hardest with is also the wiseman from whom I take a lot of my life-plan advice lol. I suppose it's that paradox which I've always thought people wouldn't get.

This is the first time I'm seeing him since Ibiza (part of the reason why our trip was so amazing is because Marko planned most of it, and he seems to have great connections with every important club owner/promoter on Magic Island) and I haven't stopped smiling ever since he got here...inspite of the fact that he got into the car and instantly made fun of the first song that came out of my speakers [this song - it's SO good]. I actually take that kind of crap from him because he does have ridiculously good taste in music - and he knows a lot of amazing EDM producers, so I count on him to get me a good job in the industry in a few years ;) Even though he hasn't lived in Lusaka for about 6 years or so, he still knows more about the "hip" places here than I do. I sometimes hate being friends with him - he's just so effortlessly cool...and yes, I know that's a very highschool thing to say, but really he is. And the reason I can be so nice about him on here is because I know for a fact that he doesn't read my blog (the audacity!).

All in all, I'm pretty sure the next few days are going to be awesome. Pretty darn awesome.

I like drama

…when it’s on TV. However, there is nothing more unbearable than real-life drama. Especially when you’re not directly involved. [Let’s admit it – we all love some excitement in our own lives.] When I’m caught between two friends, having to hear them go on and on about each other all day long - believe me, it gets pretty boring pretty fast. But, it does get me thinking about friendship-drama, old and new...

Every friendship has an expiry date, sure. Some come later than others, but they all end. Or, at least, change drastically. While I’ve never lost a friend, per se – well, one of my friendships is on the verge of a “god-you’re-so-fake-and-annoying-leave-me-alone” type breakdown but that nagging feeling’s been there for the past few months, so it's nothing new – I certainly have seen relationships change and have convinced myself to act accordingly. But, I never pretend like the friendship will be exactly as it once used to be. Might seem terribly painful at first, but ultimately it's life-saving.

No-brainer: we all get mad at our friends – and if it’s a really dear one, the disappointment we feel often makes us angry and bitter. But I think the mark of a friendship that is built to last can be identified by our choosing not to air our frustration in a hurtful way. What really damages the foundation of a friendship is what you tell other people when you’re in a fight with your best mate. I’ve definitely been *really* angry/frustrated with my closest friends at random times – usually it’s over their insecurity about our friendship, their insecurity about their relationship with other friends, feelings of being taken for granted, boy-drama (OMG KILL ME NOW!), etc. – but I don’t think I’ve ever told a common friend that I wanted to 'end' a relationship with my bestie. I think what differentiates the strength of our relationships is how low we are willing to stoop when we're angry or disappointed in someone. I think once you open the floodgates and reveal your deep-set resentment towards your closest friends (with a heavy dose of self-righteousness, vengeance and bitchiness) to other people, you’re pretty much decapitating the relationship. If you're being real, that is.

I, therefore, find it very strange when two people who have had a really bitter argument/falling out/i-hate-you phase in the recent past come together like best buds again. WTF, mate? Does all that bitterness truly disappear - and if it does, how? I struggle to understand how people can patch up, when they have confessed to hating who their friend is (versus what their friend is doing). Don't people feel guilty about the things that they said about someone else? Or do we just convince ourselves that the things we said were circumstantial and we don't actually feel that way about the other person. Really?

I personally think it's fake. If romantic relationships are never the same after one person cheats on the other, how can a friendship go back to what it used to be after mudslinging of the highest order? Back-biting your best friend, no matter what the circumstance, is far worse than cheating.

Now, deal.

S xxx

Disclaimer: No, there's no particular/personal reason for why I'm writing this. I'm getting on swimmingly with all my old and new friends. Maybe it's the fact that two of my friends are in a minor high school-esque tussle (i.e. high on drama, low on substance)...but that 'fight' will be sorted out almost as quickly as it broke out (I give it till lunchtime tomorrow), so that can't be it.

Err, I suppose I just needed somewhere to ponder. And this seems like a good place to do so.

Caught by the Po-po

...for hitting 110Km/hr today. All thanks to this track that I was listening to at the time (I promise to give a prize to whoever listens to the whole song!):

Lesson of the day:: NO MORE HARDCORE TECHNO ON THE ROAD!

Crazy-tech-breakdown love,

S xxx

P.S. - For the worriers amongst you, I got off with a warning. It's my charming smile that does it, you know ;)

"We didn't miss it. This is it."

Best-movie-ever.

I watched it 3 times in a row today -- from 1AM - 7AM -- bangbangbang. And, just like that, I found love.

It is at once the most simple and the most lyrical film I've seen...utterly disgustingly bee-yoo-tee-ful! Absolutely adored every scene, song and scene-song in the film. I would sit here and write about my favourite moments from the movie - but I think trying to describe 1hr25mins of film might drive both you and me crazy. If you're looking for something to lift your spirits and splash a Skittles-sweet rainbow over your life - pleasepleaseplease watch this movie. If you're not happier and/or groovier at the end of the experience...someone better call 911, because your heart has officially stopped beating.

And the soundtrack? OH, THE SOUNDTRACK! I think I just rediscovered the Indie side of me :) I've decided to give my subwoofers a break from heavy basslines and, instead, go with the sweet (albeit somewhat cacophonous) Indie-rock melodies of the soundtrack for the next few days.

New York. Musical soulmates. Sunrise. Love. The story feels all too familiar...

Lots of "Where's Fluffy" love,

S xxx

N.B. - Can we PLEASE recognise the awesomeness of the "Maybe we are the pieces" moment! Oh, Michael Cera, you are the cheese to my baguette, the jelly to my toast... *sigh*

No work, only play on Saturday!

I've found it very hard to sit down and study today. I've spent most of the morning sipping on Mango tea, chair-raving to some really excellent Trance sets sent to me by friends I've made through this gloriously interconnected EDM world and gorging myself on yoghurt and snazzy fresh fruit. I've had my text book open to Chapter 5: Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility for the last hour and a half. Just cannot seem to get into it today. Bah.

Watched Delhi 6 last night. Hmmm, wasn't exactly impressed by it or anything - but wasn't as grossly disappointed as I know a lot of people were. I thought Abhishek was really quite excellent (though it was hilarious seeing him struggle with the American accent...who knew New Yorkers *actually* speak with an Aussie/Cockney accent when they're nervous? lol), Sonam Kapoor was delectably gorgeous, the cinematography was magical (Delhi is one of my least favourite cities, and still I found myself falling a little bit in love with the narrow galis and cluttered skyline), and I can watch the movie a thousand times just to be able to witness the sheer perfection of "Dil Gira Dafatan". Ultimately, though, the film felt a little preachy and kind of raw. Lish asked me who my favourite character in the film was...umm I'd have to say the random fakir with his mirror who tries (without success?) to drive home the Sufi message that god resides in each of us. All in all, a 6/10 rating (would've been 5, but "Dil Gira Dafatan" kicks it up a notch).

I decided last night that I'm going to re-read the Harry Potter series. I've read the first 5 books like 8 times each, the 6th 4 times and the 7th only once. I haven't read them in a terribly long time, so I feel like each plot twist will surprise me. For which I'm very excited. (Hey, my life is boring, OK. Joy in the little things, remember?)

And yeah, before you remind me, it's Electric Zoo weekend in New York. First thing I thought about when I woke up this morning. I had my tickets bought in April :'( ...I suppose more than not being able to be at the actual event itself (because, honestly, Ibiza/Mykonos this summer was 5trillion times better than any Electric Zoo ever can be), I feel like it's what EZF stood for. I suppose I'm more disappointed in the fact that none of my life plans have seemed to pan out the way I've expected them to in the past few months. It makes me feel so utterly powerless...

Oh, STUFF IT! So I'm not in New York for EZF! But I can certainly pump myself up with some bangin' Hard Trance, look forward to having coffee with Amadeus (yes, that's his real name), and of course get sucked into Harry's transformation from mere Muggle to Hogwarts freshman. No more Negative Nancy behaviour from me!

Ooh ok, an M6 belter on Daniel's set is emanating from my speakers. Must get back to my duties as a chair raver. Good day to you all!

Hands-in-the-air love,

S xxx

P.S. - Those of you who ARE at the Electric Zoo Festival today/tomorrow - have an amazing time! And give Markus Schulz, Armin van Buuren and Menno de Jong my lurv :)

What You Need*

A thousand apologies for slacking off on the blogging front recently. I suppose it’s the result of a nasty combination of ridiculous amounts of studying (one of our lecturers keeps going vagabond-student on us and playing truant), catching up with tons of old friends and a (rather sad) realization that I’m not particularly interesting. LOL! No, but seriously – life, other than a few only-I-would-appreciate type sparks, has been rather quiet.

But, I guess that’s the very essence of Life In Lusaka. Quiet, relatively unchanging, comforting and stifling all at once. It’s like a hug I guess. So warm and lovely in the beginning…but after a few seconds turns into an experience that is just horribly awkward and asphyxiating. (New readers, I have queer metaphors/analogies…just deal, OK?) Just to be clear: I’m not at the blue-in-the-face stage yet. Not even close. But this hug is slowly losing its tenderness…

I’ve been trying to do lots of things to spice things up (OK, you can drop the creepy hug analogy right about here) in this boring *cough* not-busy city – I’ve been revisiting places that remind me of my child-and-early-adult-hood, I’ve been reading a lot, I’ve been teaching English to my lovely children (note to World: Congolese kids are going to rule the effing world!), I’ve been taking classes, I’ve been transcribing/shaping parts of my thesis, and I will soon learn to play the guitar and (wait for it) DJ (we’re starting with Minimal and Electro and then moving on to Trance eep!)! Ooooh Oooh AND I found out on Monday that my Trance radio shows can all be streamed right here, in mi casa! Oh, joyyyyy! [No, but seriously…I was listening to music that was like 4 weeks old. Unacceptable in my world. OK, I digress…] Also, I’ve met some ridiculously nice people since I’ve been back – the kindest, most interesting, down-to-earth young people I’ve met in a very long time – which means my social life hasn’t exactly been rotting away in a dingy dumpster. And, honestly, I’ve lost a lot of that horrible nagging emptiness that followed me around during my years away at Uni. I’m definitely reconnecting with old parts of myself and (perhaps more importantly) discovering new talents that I never knew I had. But, there are also a lot of things that I do miss about le developed world…Boston/Cambridge, in particular.

Smoke alarms. The MAC store on Newbury Street. Mobile internet (that actually works). Casual street chat. Walking to and from my destinations. Cafés. People walking their dogs. Whole Foods. Antique wine shops. Creepy waiters (who woulda thought, huh?). Netflix. Joggers. Credit cards (ooh how I love me some plastic!). People minding their own business. Used bookstores and the owners who live for their trade. Pesto pasta. Phone conversations (versus SMSes that read like “wer r v mtng 2nyt?”). Happy Hour(s). The MBTA!! Burdick’s (although I’ve definitely lost 3 or 4Kgs because there isn’t one here…mmm, chocolateheaven). Being near all my smart-cookie East Coast friends.

*sigh* But no, this shan’t be a whiny post…because, I really am enjoying my time in Lusaka immensely. I suppose it’s only natural to miss what you’ve left behind. I know I used to whine about living in an uptight, warm-sunshine-less city all the time when I was in New England. Basically, iHappy…if not entirely content.

At this very moment, though, I’m thinking that my malcontent stems from a morbid lack of carbs in my system. Only one cure: ice-cream and a movie. Lemon-cherry sorbet (hah! Bet you didn’t think we get this fancy-shmancy stuff in Lusaka, did you?!) and Delhi 6, I'm thinking. Without any OMG-I-should-be-reading-this-450-page-book-on-political-theory guilt?

Umm yeah…suddenly the hug feels all warm and fuzzy again.

Hugs of the non-metaphorical variety,

S xxx

*I couldn't think of a title for this post, so I decided to just use the name of the song I was listening to when I started writing. Which, it turns out, fits quite well :) And, in case you're interested, this is le song. Warning: it's a belter, best heard loud :D

All Loves Excelling...

That's all.