Indian Ameri
Tuesday
Choclate is good - But Carrots are better
An article from Kentucky Kernel
There are two types of people in the world - carrot people and chocolate people.
At least that's what my friend has recently tried to convince me of.
Give me a few minutes to explain.
There are some people in your life who are like carrots. They are healthy for you. They contribute beneficially toward your well-being. According to www.dole5aday.com, carrots are a good source of vitamin A, which is very important for healthy eyes. Carrots can pick you up when you are in a rush, as they are a healthy, quick on-the-go snack. But the problem with carrots is that they are an acquired taste. Most people wouldn't exactly put them on their top-10 favorite foods list.
On the other hand, some people are like chocolate. They are so good but seem so sinful. They provide immediate gratification. Their aroma and taste are tempting. According to www.candyusa.org, the reason eating chocolate is such a wonderful experience is because when the cocoa butter melts at body temperature, there is a moment when the chocolate is neither a solid nor liquid, which in turn gives off an irresistible sensation.
Naturally, most are attracted to chocolate. Chocolate is a key ingredient that mixes well in so many wonderful foods, just like the chocolate people that can be put in most situations and succeed. Chocolate goes well in milk, cookies, cake and ice cream. It can be packaged into bars, stuck on spoons and shaped into little whatever u want it to be. With the exception of carrot cake and ranch dressing, there aren't too many sweet foods that carrots mix well with.
I can't recall a time in my life when I craved a carrot, but I could tell you of a couple of times last week when the only thing that could brighten my day would have been a piece of chocolate (which I hate the most).
Chocolate isn't exactly bad for you when eaten in moderation, but who wants to just eat a bite-size Snickers bar when you could have a whole one? Small doses are simply a tease. When you first eat chocolate, you can't get enough. But if you eat too much, your stomach starts to quiver.
Just like chocolate people. They suck you in with the physical sensation of getting a bite. But the more you let the chocolate into your life, the more difficult it is to zip up the jeans. You start to realize that they were great for you for that short time, but their goodness doesn't last, isn't true and has consequences. Now I realize this is a bit of ridiculous analogy, but I'm starting to buy into it. I know exactly who the carrot and chocolate people are in my life.
The carrot people want what is best for me in the long run. They want to add the right nutrients to my life when I'm in need of them. The chocolate people weasel their way in whenever it is convenient for them. They add a few more pounds of stress. They fulfill the quick gratification, and then they are off.
The funny thing is that we know that chocolate people - like the food - aren't good for us, but we can't quit either of them. They drip the sweet chocolate out in front of us, and we stick our tongues out for another bite. According to www.hotfact.com, chocolate makes us feel good because of a chemical in chocolate that stimulates endorphins, which releases chemicals to the brain that gives us a pick-me-up. But the stimulation only lasts for a short moment. We get our fix and then it is over once again.
Why can't we just stick with the carrots? Why do we have to fall into the temptation of chocolate? I believe with time, everyone realizes that carrots are essential to their life. Whether it is to avoid bifocals at 35 or to avoid an unhappy relationship, carrots are worth keeping around. I wish that I had taken my chances with more carrot people instead of slurping up the all chocolate people.
So my new goal is to quit nibbling on so much chocolate - well, at least the chocolate people.
By Hilary Strauss.
There are two types of people in the world - carrot people and chocolate people.
At least that's what my friend has recently tried to convince me of.
Give me a few minutes to explain.
There are some people in your life who are like carrots. They are healthy for you. They contribute beneficially toward your well-being. According to www.dole5aday.com, carrots are a good source of vitamin A, which is very important for healthy eyes. Carrots can pick you up when you are in a rush, as they are a healthy, quick on-the-go snack. But the problem with carrots is that they are an acquired taste. Most people wouldn't exactly put them on their top-10 favorite foods list.
On the other hand, some people are like chocolate. They are so good but seem so sinful. They provide immediate gratification. Their aroma and taste are tempting. According to www.candyusa.org, the reason eating chocolate is such a wonderful experience is because when the cocoa butter melts at body temperature, there is a moment when the chocolate is neither a solid nor liquid, which in turn gives off an irresistible sensation.
Naturally, most are attracted to chocolate. Chocolate is a key ingredient that mixes well in so many wonderful foods, just like the chocolate people that can be put in most situations and succeed. Chocolate goes well in milk, cookies, cake and ice cream. It can be packaged into bars, stuck on spoons and shaped into little whatever u want it to be. With the exception of carrot cake and ranch dressing, there aren't too many sweet foods that carrots mix well with.
I can't recall a time in my life when I craved a carrot, but I could tell you of a couple of times last week when the only thing that could brighten my day would have been a piece of chocolate (which I hate the most).
Chocolate isn't exactly bad for you when eaten in moderation, but who wants to just eat a bite-size Snickers bar when you could have a whole one? Small doses are simply a tease. When you first eat chocolate, you can't get enough. But if you eat too much, your stomach starts to quiver.
Just like chocolate people. They suck you in with the physical sensation of getting a bite. But the more you let the chocolate into your life, the more difficult it is to zip up the jeans. You start to realize that they were great for you for that short time, but their goodness doesn't last, isn't true and has consequences. Now I realize this is a bit of ridiculous analogy, but I'm starting to buy into it. I know exactly who the carrot and chocolate people are in my life.
The carrot people want what is best for me in the long run. They want to add the right nutrients to my life when I'm in need of them. The chocolate people weasel their way in whenever it is convenient for them. They add a few more pounds of stress. They fulfill the quick gratification, and then they are off.
The funny thing is that we know that chocolate people - like the food - aren't good for us, but we can't quit either of them. They drip the sweet chocolate out in front of us, and we stick our tongues out for another bite. According to www.hotfact.com, chocolate makes us feel good because of a chemical in chocolate that stimulates endorphins, which releases chemicals to the brain that gives us a pick-me-up. But the stimulation only lasts for a short moment. We get our fix and then it is over once again.
Why can't we just stick with the carrots? Why do we have to fall into the temptation of chocolate? I believe with time, everyone realizes that carrots are essential to their life. Whether it is to avoid bifocals at 35 or to avoid an unhappy relationship, carrots are worth keeping around. I wish that I had taken my chances with more carrot people instead of slurping up the all chocolate people.
So my new goal is to quit nibbling on so much chocolate - well, at least the chocolate people.
By Hilary Strauss.
Mentally drained? Try playtime to relieve your stress
An Article from KYKERNEL:
Do you ever drive past a playground, see children playing and have an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia for your childhood days?
I thought so.
As my life continues to get busier and busier, this longing I have for the days when the most complicated thing on my plate was making sure my dolls got goodnight kisses becomes stronger and stronger. To quote the amazing "Grey's Anatomy": "We're adults. When did this happen, and how can we make it stop?"
I suppose it was a gradual transition, because if it was not, I am quite certain I would have put a stop to this adult stuff long ago. Gone are the days when we could innocently play. Playing "house" has been replaced with dating, and many people who played with G.I. Joes have become soldiers themselves. Was this really what we wanted? As a 7-year-old playing house, I did not bargain for heartaches or hookups.
When was the last time you spent an entire day having fun? That you did not once think about the responsibilities that you had, feel guilty about wasting time or stress about the extra work you would have to do the next day because of playing today?
This semester is four weeks over. Whether you think, "Wow, already?" or "That's it?" we are almost a quarter of the way there. Both feelings are scary. When people told me four years ago to make sure I enjoyed college, because it would be over before I knew it, I scoffed. It was four years. Four years is a long time!
Now I know better. It feels like I met my first friend at UK yesterday and took my first college test last week. Every semester, my life creates a new definition of busy - and, to be quite frank, I'm tired of it.
Last week, among piles of reading, hundreds of e-mails and very little sleep, I decided it was time for an adventure. It was dark, it was cold, and it was mildly raining - essentially perfect adventure conditions. That night's adventure just happened to be the playground at Woodland Park.
For the first time in my life, I discovered that I am too tall for the swings, and pumping was not really an option. They also don't twist up quite like they used to.
After the swings, we tried out the slides. You definitely do not slide as fast as you did when you weighed 45 pounds, but it's a solid experience nonetheless. Monkey bars have been replaced with this strange game called "SkyGame" that makes no sense, and the zip line does not actually slope downhill. There were strange bouncing things that were absolutely zero fun, and a lot of nooks and secret passageways that we, unfortunately, could not fit our bodies into. (What it all boils down to is that essentially, modern playground equipment sucks.)
But as much as I miss some of the equipment at our old stomping grounds, the feeling of relief that washed over me from the first time my feet left the ground that night was overwhelming. Swinging is swinging, and whether you are in first grade or a junior in college, a playground is a playground.
All of a sudden, the millions of things I had to do were completely unimportant - in fact, I couldn't even remember what they were. Swinging gave me a sense of freedom. For ten minutes, my to-do list did not exist, and all that mattered was swinging higher than my friend.
Next time you are nearing a mental breakdown and have a laundry list of things to do, take half an hour to play. And I mean really play. Play tag or red rover; climb a tree or find a slide; roll down a hill or ride your bike. Just because we're almost adults doesn't mean we can't have fun! If little kids look at you like you're crazy, rest assured: You are still cooler than they are.
And if you're tired the next day, who cares? I promise that it is absolutely impossible to be upset if you spent the night before playing on a playground.
BY TARA BONISTALL
Do you ever drive past a playground, see children playing and have an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia for your childhood days?
I thought so.
As my life continues to get busier and busier, this longing I have for the days when the most complicated thing on my plate was making sure my dolls got goodnight kisses becomes stronger and stronger. To quote the amazing "Grey's Anatomy": "We're adults. When did this happen, and how can we make it stop?"
I suppose it was a gradual transition, because if it was not, I am quite certain I would have put a stop to this adult stuff long ago. Gone are the days when we could innocently play. Playing "house" has been replaced with dating, and many people who played with G.I. Joes have become soldiers themselves. Was this really what we wanted? As a 7-year-old playing house, I did not bargain for heartaches or hookups.
When was the last time you spent an entire day having fun? That you did not once think about the responsibilities that you had, feel guilty about wasting time or stress about the extra work you would have to do the next day because of playing today?
This semester is four weeks over. Whether you think, "Wow, already?" or "That's it?" we are almost a quarter of the way there. Both feelings are scary. When people told me four years ago to make sure I enjoyed college, because it would be over before I knew it, I scoffed. It was four years. Four years is a long time!
Now I know better. It feels like I met my first friend at UK yesterday and took my first college test last week. Every semester, my life creates a new definition of busy - and, to be quite frank, I'm tired of it.
Last week, among piles of reading, hundreds of e-mails and very little sleep, I decided it was time for an adventure. It was dark, it was cold, and it was mildly raining - essentially perfect adventure conditions. That night's adventure just happened to be the playground at Woodland Park.
For the first time in my life, I discovered that I am too tall for the swings, and pumping was not really an option. They also don't twist up quite like they used to.
After the swings, we tried out the slides. You definitely do not slide as fast as you did when you weighed 45 pounds, but it's a solid experience nonetheless. Monkey bars have been replaced with this strange game called "SkyGame" that makes no sense, and the zip line does not actually slope downhill. There were strange bouncing things that were absolutely zero fun, and a lot of nooks and secret passageways that we, unfortunately, could not fit our bodies into. (What it all boils down to is that essentially, modern playground equipment sucks.)
But as much as I miss some of the equipment at our old stomping grounds, the feeling of relief that washed over me from the first time my feet left the ground that night was overwhelming. Swinging is swinging, and whether you are in first grade or a junior in college, a playground is a playground.
All of a sudden, the millions of things I had to do were completely unimportant - in fact, I couldn't even remember what they were. Swinging gave me a sense of freedom. For ten minutes, my to-do list did not exist, and all that mattered was swinging higher than my friend.
Next time you are nearing a mental breakdown and have a laundry list of things to do, take half an hour to play. And I mean really play. Play tag or red rover; climb a tree or find a slide; roll down a hill or ride your bike. Just because we're almost adults doesn't mean we can't have fun! If little kids look at you like you're crazy, rest assured: You are still cooler than they are.
And if you're tired the next day, who cares? I promise that it is absolutely impossible to be upset if you spent the night before playing on a playground.
BY TARA BONISTALL
Monday
Crash Update about my life for the past 2 weeks
One Friday Morgan (my best american pal) asked me about being his groomsmen for his wedding. Initially I was hesitant and later himself and his fiance Amanda (another good friend I knew earlier) persuaded me in becoming his groomsmen. The reason they said was 'Amanda's cousin (20 year old girl) is pretty and that I would be walking with her during his wedding and later shall dance with her. Good Lord help me out of this.
Long weekend was a horrible but fun event in my life. I had to skip my group meeting on friday and had to go to our trip to Niagara, Pittsburg and Cleveland (Cedar Point theme park). Niagara wasn't interesting for me coz I loved Coutrallam than this one. Pittsburg temple was crowded but was not grand other than the fact that it was the first Indian temple in US. Had to drive 90% of the trip (approximately drove 16 hours all by myself). Celveland theme park was the best, but unfortunately was tired of no sleep and had to use all the adrenaline from the rides to stay awake while returning back to Lexington.
Last week our department guys decided to take part in the soccer intramurals. Ours being filled with a bunch of talentful young players went into the tournament with zero practice. I was made the keeper. We won 3 straight games and made it to the quarters. My keeping was horrible during the round games. Saved 13 goals in the quarters and we made it to the semis. I had my cricket practice on thursday and so had to quit the semis. Unfortunately our team lost against a better opposition. I was sad not being in the team.
My bro finally made it to Texas. He had to use my credit card for his gas expenses. I wish he churns out to be a good businessman sooner than I expect. Before he left he left his 36 inches TV, his CD player, DVD player, VCR and a home theater system of 3400 watts in my lil room. Spent almost a day in arranging my room to this electronic stuff.
One fine evening when I gave up on my work for the day, I realised that there was some kind of an image in my AFM monitor. Sent it to my guide with all the details and the next day he was jumping like a kid gettin a candy bar. We got some pretty good results after an years of work. I had to talk about it to my group members in a group meeting.
I did Chatting with a department girl (for 2 hours) who never used to say more than 2 words (not F off). Learnt some interesting stuff about her and the genre of girls. Decided to stick on to her as a good friend.
Enrolled in a study called pain perception research for which I need to be injected by morphine and by palcebos in 6 meetings. My hand shall be then immersed in ice water and the degree of pain and the rate of pain seeping is being studied. They are gonna pay me $425 for that. Nice way to make money for the debts I have incurred.
Saturday my UKCC team went for the finals against GDCC. The game was recorded and is gonna be showed in the TV soon. We lost the game coz of 3 decissions that went against us during both the halves of the game. Mohit was given LBW in a clear inside edge delivery. Ashwin was given LBW for a ball that hit his thigh while playing front foot shot (he is 6 2). Last minute direct hit by me (that was a miracle from my side) of the star opponent batsmen in the dead overs was ruled not out by the same ref. Even the batsman said he was out after the game. Eventually we lost the game coz of bad umpiring. Yet we were proud of making into the finals after 8 long years. Cricket season ended with this game. Its time to go back to Gully cricket in our University which we did yesterday and played good.
No clue of what to do on Tuesdays and Thursdays with no cricket practice to attend to. Got to submit a detailed report of my research for AICHE san fransisco conference. Got some home work and some studies to do to. Hoping a better week or two from now on. PS saw Fanna yesterday. Got loads of movies from my brothers collection which he left in my room.
Dont know what am gonna do.
Long weekend was a horrible but fun event in my life. I had to skip my group meeting on friday and had to go to our trip to Niagara, Pittsburg and Cleveland (Cedar Point theme park). Niagara wasn't interesting for me coz I loved Coutrallam than this one. Pittsburg temple was crowded but was not grand other than the fact that it was the first Indian temple in US. Had to drive 90% of the trip (approximately drove 16 hours all by myself). Celveland theme park was the best, but unfortunately was tired of no sleep and had to use all the adrenaline from the rides to stay awake while returning back to Lexington.
Last week our department guys decided to take part in the soccer intramurals. Ours being filled with a bunch of talentful young players went into the tournament with zero practice. I was made the keeper. We won 3 straight games and made it to the quarters. My keeping was horrible during the round games. Saved 13 goals in the quarters and we made it to the semis. I had my cricket practice on thursday and so had to quit the semis. Unfortunately our team lost against a better opposition. I was sad not being in the team.
My bro finally made it to Texas. He had to use my credit card for his gas expenses. I wish he churns out to be a good businessman sooner than I expect. Before he left he left his 36 inches TV, his CD player, DVD player, VCR and a home theater system of 3400 watts in my lil room. Spent almost a day in arranging my room to this electronic stuff.
One fine evening when I gave up on my work for the day, I realised that there was some kind of an image in my AFM monitor. Sent it to my guide with all the details and the next day he was jumping like a kid gettin a candy bar. We got some pretty good results after an years of work. I had to talk about it to my group members in a group meeting.
I did Chatting with a department girl (for 2 hours) who never used to say more than 2 words (not F off). Learnt some interesting stuff about her and the genre of girls. Decided to stick on to her as a good friend.
Enrolled in a study called pain perception research for which I need to be injected by morphine and by palcebos in 6 meetings. My hand shall be then immersed in ice water and the degree of pain and the rate of pain seeping is being studied. They are gonna pay me $425 for that. Nice way to make money for the debts I have incurred.
Saturday my UKCC team went for the finals against GDCC. The game was recorded and is gonna be showed in the TV soon. We lost the game coz of 3 decissions that went against us during both the halves of the game. Mohit was given LBW in a clear inside edge delivery. Ashwin was given LBW for a ball that hit his thigh while playing front foot shot (he is 6 2). Last minute direct hit by me (that was a miracle from my side) of the star opponent batsmen in the dead overs was ruled not out by the same ref. Even the batsman said he was out after the game. Eventually we lost the game coz of bad umpiring. Yet we were proud of making into the finals after 8 long years. Cricket season ended with this game. Its time to go back to Gully cricket in our University which we did yesterday and played good.
No clue of what to do on Tuesdays and Thursdays with no cricket practice to attend to. Got to submit a detailed report of my research for AICHE san fransisco conference. Got some home work and some studies to do to. Hoping a better week or two from now on. PS saw Fanna yesterday. Got loads of movies from my brothers collection which he left in my room.
Dont know what am gonna do.
Thursday
| You Are 29% Selfish |
 In general, you are a very giving person who treats others very well. But at times, you insist on getting your way - when it matters most to you. |
Wednesday
Better than the world record chase
If you think the win by SA agaisnt Aussies is the best, then u r wrong. The game we played recently was the best in my life. We had the game against KCC on last weekend. We had already consequently lost three times on a row against them. The first game was at the start of the Bear cat tournament. We hadn’t been quite into the game at the start of the season. Everyone was rustic. During that game we dropped 7 catches. KCC is a team having two captains. That’s the sole advantage any opponent has against KCC. It’s got a Pakistani batting line up just like any Pakistani batting line up. The two captains are Bukari and Hammad Malik. Malik is a solid opener. He starts usually with Nitin being a very good batsmen with just one weakness. His cover drive goes in the air. Their middle order is also solid. Naved and Bukari come usually at the late middle order to lambaste any bowler be it even good. Though we had a good total on the board during our first game these guys won at the last over because of our lapse in catching.
The second game against them was in the MOCL start. This time too we batted first and we lost because of our misfieldings. There was this opener from India who is fatter than Inzamam and plays cross bat. We somehow made him go for his half century and that proved costly. Bukari was out the first ball he faced which was a record for our team UKCC coz he never got out in the first ball.
The third game was the worst. It was in our division 1 game against them. By this time we had developed into a great team. We had good totals and great bowling too. We were pretty confident to finish this losing spree against KCC once and for all. Unfortunately we were over confident. KCC dint have Malik play this game. But they brought in the fast bowler Aditya. This guy looks walks, bats, runs, and bowls and does everything exactly like Agarkar. The one major difference between him and Agarkar is that Agarkar is the “Lord of the Rings” (too many ‘0’s) whereas this guy is good with his batting. We were around 50 odd for 3 at the end of 14 overs. But we were all out for 86 at the end of 27 overs. He bowled great. We lost that game heavily. After this game our performance in the forthcoming games too receded.
Fortunately our previous wins made us have a better run rate. We lost against GDCC through Duckworth Lewis system. Yet we made into the semis coz of our run rate. We had to play against KCC.
Now here comes the fun part. We started to have longer sessions in our practices for the game against KCC. We had decided to stick on to one team. No more changes in the 13. Whoever comes to the practice gets a chance in the game. Keeping the fact that we had lost thrice with KCC we decided to practice hard.
The day came. We had to go to Cincinnati for the semis against KCC. This time there were two neutral umpires. We won the toss and keeping the fact that we lost heavily against KCC in the previous game we decided to chase. The weather was good. Sunny and also blessing. Nitin and Malik were the openers. They played real sensible this time. They were 50 for no loss at the end of first break (12 overs). Then they decided to go for the kill. Nitin scored 26 runs in a single over against Laka. That’s how the flooding of runs started. Nitin was dropped of a tough catch by Mohit in deep cover. Rohan dropped twice of Malik in Long off. Nitin and Malik had their half centuries. Finally we had a break through using the sole weak point of Nitin. His cover drive failed and it was a low fast catch by our Captain Dinesh Pupalla. The score was 148 for 1. Then came in the slogging middle order. Malik scored 86, Bukari 30 odd and the first down guy 30 odd. Naved came in at the last overs and scored 40 runs from 15 balls. Our bowling was haywire. The final bowling figures were Dinesh Pupalla gave 43 runs. Prageeth, Rohan and Akshar gave 50. Laka 38 in 2 overs. Dinesh reddy and Sreeram gave 12 and 28. Manju was the one bowler who had decent figures. But he had cramps all over his right leg. Oh I forgot to mention, the hard and long practice sessions this time screwed up the team big time with loads of injuries. Prageeth and Rohan had back pain. Manju and Dinesh Pupalla had a bad foot. Laka had a fever. Akshar was sleepless. The one guy who looked really fit was Ashwin our Wicket keeper. I saved a couple of runs by diving to my left at the end overs and 2 boundaries by sliding towards the rope. I was fielding at point. Though I saved runs I wasn’t happy with the teams bowling. It was horrible. These guys had bats like springs. They hit the ball slightly and it was enough to take the ball out of the ropes. They had 13 sixes and 16 boudaries.
Though we gave up lots of runs in the first session we were pretty confident that we can chase the total. It was Prageeth and Dinesh who went in as openers. Prageeth was seeing the ball like an UFO. He was hitting fours and also was rotating strike. Dinesh too started good. He never went for 3 runs. But this time he took all the risk. He mistimed the shot and the fielder in Long off some how got hold of the ball. Manju came in. We requested Bukari a by runner since he saw the state of Manju while he bowled. But Bukari said that he wont give a by runner and that Manju should feel the game. These two guys made some good runs mostly by running hard and taking risks. Prageeth still saw the ball well and was going for it like hell. But a miscall and misunderstanding between Manju and Prageeth costed Prageeth’s wicket. Bukari again the fielder who had a direct hit from covers.
Laka went in with the fever. He had just one thing in his mind. He gave 26 runs in a single over and so wanted to play good. He being the Emperor of Offside had some delicate shots and cuts and went to his 20s soon. One mistimed shot and that costed his wicket. At the end of the first drinks session we were 55 for 3 in 12 overs. After drinks weather changed to cloudy. Fearing Duckworth Lewis system Bukari brought himself and Naved spinner to bowl the 8 overs for D & L to work. Ashwin was the supporter for Manju at that time. This gave Ashwin to settle down pretty good. Manju because of his cramps was runout at the 20th over. Before this Prageeth said that if they don’t give a by runner for Manju then they are gonna lose this game coz of their Karma.
Mohit was sent in when it was 80 odd for 4 with Ashwin in the crease. After the second drinks break the equation was 13 runs per over for 11 overs. This was when the fun began.
Ashwin had his first six in his life. It was a sweep shot of Naved. Then that over himself and Mohit scored 18 runs. 10 overs and 118 runs. The pair hit 14 runs. On the pavilion we were turning into jumping jacks. Laka was hitting the cooler with sticks. Some of us were hitting bottles. Prageeth doing the typical srilankan dance. Capi yelling Bahut Aala (urdu for good shot taken from KCC team). The next 5 overs we saw a flury of runs from our batsmen on the crease. Majority of the runs came from the on side. The opponent team had 5 players covering the on side with 4 on the ropes. We started to see the tension among ourselves and the fury among the two captains in KCC. Bukari and Malik were fighting over everything ranging from fielding and who’s supposed to bowl.
Ashwin got out by a nick to the keeper. When he was out the equation was 5 overs 48 runs. He made 46 in 34 balls. That was a great performance. We dint even think about counting Mohit’s score.
Priyan was sent in. This guy is a very sensible player who keeps his head cool in most situations. He is a very sluggish runner coz of his Punjabi food made by bhabiji with loads of ghee. Mohit was still hitting the ball like hell whereas Priyan doing his job great by giving the strike to Mohit. There was even a time in which Priyan had to defend the ball so that Mohit can bat next over. This ended because of Priyans sluggishness in running. He was run out.
The equation 8 balls 11 runs. Single by Akshar. Last over 10 runs required. We are not supposed to make it to the finals even if we drew the game. Single by Akshar. 4 by Mohit, 6 of four required. Dot ball. 6 of 3. Four by Mohit coz of an edge behind the keeper. 2 of 2. Mohit lost his confidence in going for a couple and so went for a lofted shot. Went towards long on in a projectile way. It had the power to go near the ropes. The fielder was Bukari there. It was slightly higher to his right shoulder. He watched where the ropes were. We were holding our hearts in our mouths. Bukari went for the ball. It hit his hands and whoop……. The ball popped out of his hands and fell outside the ropes. A six and UKCC won. We ran like being chased by a wild bull and jumped over Mohit. His face filled with angry accomplishment. Mohit scored 136 of 64 balls. That was humungus.
After the spectacular celebration we were given the color shirts and pants for the finals. We are going to play the finals in front of a crowd of 250 in a country where cricket is a game unknown. Its going to be telecasted live to the Dayton public and the game is going to be presided over by Chanderpaul and is gonna be re telecasted in ESPN3. After the winning run around the ground we made some heavy comments about the opponents such as did u “feel the game” when they said it to Manju when he got out coz of his cramps.
We had a short party in Buffalo Wild Wings. Some of the team had beer and the rest had great food. We rode in Prageeth’s van and chatted about the game during the entire trip back to Lexington. The next day all we saw in our yahoo mails were congratulations from ex team members from the yahoo groups. The partying mood still goes in. We are going to play against GDCC in finals on the 9th of September.
The main logo in our yahoo groups now is Letz kick some GDCC ass and bring the cup home.
The second game against them was in the MOCL start. This time too we batted first and we lost because of our misfieldings. There was this opener from India who is fatter than Inzamam and plays cross bat. We somehow made him go for his half century and that proved costly. Bukari was out the first ball he faced which was a record for our team UKCC coz he never got out in the first ball.
The third game was the worst. It was in our division 1 game against them. By this time we had developed into a great team. We had good totals and great bowling too. We were pretty confident to finish this losing spree against KCC once and for all. Unfortunately we were over confident. KCC dint have Malik play this game. But they brought in the fast bowler Aditya. This guy looks walks, bats, runs, and bowls and does everything exactly like Agarkar. The one major difference between him and Agarkar is that Agarkar is the “Lord of the Rings” (too many ‘0’s) whereas this guy is good with his batting. We were around 50 odd for 3 at the end of 14 overs. But we were all out for 86 at the end of 27 overs. He bowled great. We lost that game heavily. After this game our performance in the forthcoming games too receded.
Fortunately our previous wins made us have a better run rate. We lost against GDCC through Duckworth Lewis system. Yet we made into the semis coz of our run rate. We had to play against KCC.
Now here comes the fun part. We started to have longer sessions in our practices for the game against KCC. We had decided to stick on to one team. No more changes in the 13. Whoever comes to the practice gets a chance in the game. Keeping the fact that we had lost thrice with KCC we decided to practice hard.
The day came. We had to go to Cincinnati for the semis against KCC. This time there were two neutral umpires. We won the toss and keeping the fact that we lost heavily against KCC in the previous game we decided to chase. The weather was good. Sunny and also blessing. Nitin and Malik were the openers. They played real sensible this time. They were 50 for no loss at the end of first break (12 overs). Then they decided to go for the kill. Nitin scored 26 runs in a single over against Laka. That’s how the flooding of runs started. Nitin was dropped of a tough catch by Mohit in deep cover. Rohan dropped twice of Malik in Long off. Nitin and Malik had their half centuries. Finally we had a break through using the sole weak point of Nitin. His cover drive failed and it was a low fast catch by our Captain Dinesh Pupalla. The score was 148 for 1. Then came in the slogging middle order. Malik scored 86, Bukari 30 odd and the first down guy 30 odd. Naved came in at the last overs and scored 40 runs from 15 balls. Our bowling was haywire. The final bowling figures were Dinesh Pupalla gave 43 runs. Prageeth, Rohan and Akshar gave 50. Laka 38 in 2 overs. Dinesh reddy and Sreeram gave 12 and 28. Manju was the one bowler who had decent figures. But he had cramps all over his right leg. Oh I forgot to mention, the hard and long practice sessions this time screwed up the team big time with loads of injuries. Prageeth and Rohan had back pain. Manju and Dinesh Pupalla had a bad foot. Laka had a fever. Akshar was sleepless. The one guy who looked really fit was Ashwin our Wicket keeper. I saved a couple of runs by diving to my left at the end overs and 2 boundaries by sliding towards the rope. I was fielding at point. Though I saved runs I wasn’t happy with the teams bowling. It was horrible. These guys had bats like springs. They hit the ball slightly and it was enough to take the ball out of the ropes. They had 13 sixes and 16 boudaries.
Though we gave up lots of runs in the first session we were pretty confident that we can chase the total. It was Prageeth and Dinesh who went in as openers. Prageeth was seeing the ball like an UFO. He was hitting fours and also was rotating strike. Dinesh too started good. He never went for 3 runs. But this time he took all the risk. He mistimed the shot and the fielder in Long off some how got hold of the ball. Manju came in. We requested Bukari a by runner since he saw the state of Manju while he bowled. But Bukari said that he wont give a by runner and that Manju should feel the game. These two guys made some good runs mostly by running hard and taking risks. Prageeth still saw the ball well and was going for it like hell. But a miscall and misunderstanding between Manju and Prageeth costed Prageeth’s wicket. Bukari again the fielder who had a direct hit from covers.
Laka went in with the fever. He had just one thing in his mind. He gave 26 runs in a single over and so wanted to play good. He being the Emperor of Offside had some delicate shots and cuts and went to his 20s soon. One mistimed shot and that costed his wicket. At the end of the first drinks session we were 55 for 3 in 12 overs. After drinks weather changed to cloudy. Fearing Duckworth Lewis system Bukari brought himself and Naved spinner to bowl the 8 overs for D & L to work. Ashwin was the supporter for Manju at that time. This gave Ashwin to settle down pretty good. Manju because of his cramps was runout at the 20th over. Before this Prageeth said that if they don’t give a by runner for Manju then they are gonna lose this game coz of their Karma.
Mohit was sent in when it was 80 odd for 4 with Ashwin in the crease. After the second drinks break the equation was 13 runs per over for 11 overs. This was when the fun began.
Ashwin had his first six in his life. It was a sweep shot of Naved. Then that over himself and Mohit scored 18 runs. 10 overs and 118 runs. The pair hit 14 runs. On the pavilion we were turning into jumping jacks. Laka was hitting the cooler with sticks. Some of us were hitting bottles. Prageeth doing the typical srilankan dance. Capi yelling Bahut Aala (urdu for good shot taken from KCC team). The next 5 overs we saw a flury of runs from our batsmen on the crease. Majority of the runs came from the on side. The opponent team had 5 players covering the on side with 4 on the ropes. We started to see the tension among ourselves and the fury among the two captains in KCC. Bukari and Malik were fighting over everything ranging from fielding and who’s supposed to bowl.
Ashwin got out by a nick to the keeper. When he was out the equation was 5 overs 48 runs. He made 46 in 34 balls. That was a great performance. We dint even think about counting Mohit’s score.
Priyan was sent in. This guy is a very sensible player who keeps his head cool in most situations. He is a very sluggish runner coz of his Punjabi food made by bhabiji with loads of ghee. Mohit was still hitting the ball like hell whereas Priyan doing his job great by giving the strike to Mohit. There was even a time in which Priyan had to defend the ball so that Mohit can bat next over. This ended because of Priyans sluggishness in running. He was run out.
The equation 8 balls 11 runs. Single by Akshar. Last over 10 runs required. We are not supposed to make it to the finals even if we drew the game. Single by Akshar. 4 by Mohit, 6 of four required. Dot ball. 6 of 3. Four by Mohit coz of an edge behind the keeper. 2 of 2. Mohit lost his confidence in going for a couple and so went for a lofted shot. Went towards long on in a projectile way. It had the power to go near the ropes. The fielder was Bukari there. It was slightly higher to his right shoulder. He watched where the ropes were. We were holding our hearts in our mouths. Bukari went for the ball. It hit his hands and whoop……. The ball popped out of his hands and fell outside the ropes. A six and UKCC won. We ran like being chased by a wild bull and jumped over Mohit. His face filled with angry accomplishment. Mohit scored 136 of 64 balls. That was humungus.
After the spectacular celebration we were given the color shirts and pants for the finals. We are going to play the finals in front of a crowd of 250 in a country where cricket is a game unknown. Its going to be telecasted live to the Dayton public and the game is going to be presided over by Chanderpaul and is gonna be re telecasted in ESPN3. After the winning run around the ground we made some heavy comments about the opponents such as did u “feel the game” when they said it to Manju when he got out coz of his cramps.
We had a short party in Buffalo Wild Wings. Some of the team had beer and the rest had great food. We rode in Prageeth’s van and chatted about the game during the entire trip back to Lexington. The next day all we saw in our yahoo mails were congratulations from ex team members from the yahoo groups. The partying mood still goes in. We are going to play against GDCC in finals on the 9th of September.
The main logo in our yahoo groups now is Letz kick some GDCC ass and bring the cup home.
