A Milestone

The road lingers on;
From one horizon to the next.
Some people pass me by, but I remain,
Like I was, like I will be

Life is not forever;
Like the turn of the tide it too has to ebb.
But I remain;
Like I was, like I will be.

I found many friends on the road,
Some stuck while some just went by with a wave of the hand.
But I remain,
Like I was, like I will be.

The wind now blows hard,
Bringing back memories of old.
Some more people pass me by, but I remain
Like I was, like I will be: A milestone

Read my blog...somebody please...do leave your comments!!!

(The background: I have recently started posting on InfyBlogs too. And as crave for attention, I refresh the blog page every 10-15 mins to check if somebody commented on my blog or not. But yeah, you are right, no many do and that sure makes me sad. What adds fuel to the fire is my friend Kali. Now he is blogger and writes real well too. Respect for that. But he gets a lots of comments (of which half are his own...but the bottomline is..he gets a lots of comments :( ). So this write-up comes up to address my frustration and yes to gain more page views on InfyBlogs.. :) )

I have never been good at presenting myself. Back in school…well forget about school…I was presentable then…at least my mom says so and she is correct too, she did take pains about me wearing regularly washed and ironed school uniforms and yes regularly polished shoes too. I used to tie my own shoe laces mind you. Learnt that in Std VII (ok…fine…I am a slow learner but not lethargic mind you!!!).

As my mom says and she is correct again, “Everything changed when you enrolled in that engg collg in Pune and yes got that room in the hostel.” (mind you it was COEP, arguably the best in the state after of course IIT B but mom had her reasons to hate it). So be it in my hostel or college I was this disheveled guy, with a stale beard and an even staler t-shirt (no..no don’t look away please, I have not even mentioned my smelly floaters yet). My friends (including girls) didn’t exactly run away from me, but looking at the state of my t-shirt they could guess whether it was the first or the fourth consecutive day I was in those rags (pardon the exaggeration)!!!

Let me tell you a secret,though, the branded t-shirts (like Reebok and Nike) are real worth. I mean I did a round of regression testing on my Reebok t-shirt and it lasted the toil where other t-shirts lost their sheen or just fell by the wayside. So basically I was never presentable, but for the way I spoke or wrote!!!! And I should admit that nothing much has changed these days, only that formal shirts are a bit delicate and a bit costly and have to be washed regularly. The tie with the knot can be pulled on until your roommate mistakenly puts it in the washing machine with the heap of his clothes ;)

With this history behind me, it suddenly struck me that I was not diverting enough traffic to my blog page. So I thought out the reasons and here are my thoughts, point wise (for ease of the reader, “I care so much for the reader, but then why don’t I get many :(???”)

1) You have to be regular in posting: 1 guy reads your blog on 25th Dec 2008. Then one fine day 29th March 2009, he is relatively free and suddenly remembers, “I must check Advait’s blog. Last time I went to his page he had written an engaging account. Here it is.”. “What is this?? The same old entry. Hummmphhhh…another one of those wannabes!!!” :(

2) Profile pic : An interesting profile pic can do wonders. “Where did that “Joker!!!” pic go…Damn these software security guys” :(

3) Write about LOVE: This is a top draw I tell you. LOVE made not only Yash Chopra what he is today but many others too. One name comes to my mind but then I don’t want to offend anybody and say NOM. But ..but its not my fault….so many people talk about LOVE that even a real story will seem like a “Seen that, read that (a 100 times) before” :(

4) Make your presence felt on the BB (the public folder) first: I tried. But damn the server, by the time my reply got posted there were like 10 replies already posted and when I, myself read my reply I found out that it was way out of sync. Others who read it would say, “Man he sure is slow…Ramayan ho gaya aur puch raha hai Sita kon hai!!!!” :(

5) Attend bloggers meet: I did…I did attend it….I seriously did… what!! you don’t remember me. Hey I am clean shaven now. Maybe that is the reason you don’t recognize me. But I did attend it. I swear!!!! :(

6) Appear to be an apprentice of another blogger of interest: I tried even that..Kali you know I did that. But then everybody wants to have a piece of the BATMAN…no one if wants to glance at ROBIN :(

7) Break ur story in parts. Arouse interest: I tried that too. But by the time I completed part II, I forgot who the main characters were and part I was one story and part II was another L

8) Post on BB that you have posted on your blog and ask for comments: I did that. Whatever moderate comments you see are thanks to that. But then I don’t think I managed to get the timing of the post on the BB right. And now getting attention is not possible. “These SWINES, I tell you!!! I always hated them. Flithy ba#$%^&*!!!” :(

9) Don’t give up: Whatever you do. However disheartened you are don’t give up!!!! That’s what I am doing right now!!!! :) :) :)

BLOG ON!!!! :) :) :)
End Result: This post attracted 15 comments on Infy Blog..most of them of sympathy!!!!! :)

Whaaddd a start to the season!!! GO GUNNERS!!

First game of a brand new season....away from home...against a team who has been challenging the top 4 for quite sometime now...against a team who through sheer resilience made it to the FA CUP final last season...one the other hand we..2 players sold out...4 years without a trophy and now critics pointing out that a top 4 finish will also be difficult with money flowing at Man City....it was pressure...

The end result....Arsenal 6 - Everton 1.Truly unbelievable.

I came in the net cafe and checked the score and I was kicking myself for not staying awake the entire 90 mins. I watched the first half and the score read Arsenal 3 - Everton 0. The match was in the back. I did expect that after the half time break Moyes will tighten up. After all he could not afford humiliation at Goodison Park. But 4 goals were scored in the second half. Fabregas taped in 2 and Edu (am so happy he is back) scored 1, Saha pulled one back for Everton. In the first half it was a beauty from Denilson to open the scoring for the Gunners. Credit also must go to Bendtner, he kpet his cool and more importantly possession in the box before tapping the ball to Fab who passed it on Denilson. "Pick your corner and hit me" was written all over the ball and Denilson did it to perfection.

The remaining 2 goals came from set pieces. Unnecessary fouls committed, and poor marking in the penalty area gave the debutant Vermaelen his first Arsenal goal, followed by the veteran Gallas (yes that Chealsea reject...that abusive ex Arsenal captain) who netted the team's third.

It is a dream start to the season for Arsenal especially they have a tough start to the season with a Champion's League qualifier against Celtic coming up on Tuesday. It is of utmost importance for Arsene to win silverware this season more so if he wants to retain the big names of Fab, Van Persie in the team.

With the likes of Nasri and Ro-sicky (remember him!!??? :) ) we only have one way to go...TOWARDS THE OPPOSITION'S goal.

GO GUNNERS!!!!

Man....Machine..The Bullet

Its been close to 2.5 years that I bought the Bullet and each day I have felt that the Bullet is not only a Motorcycle, it is not only a Machine but it is like me in more ways than one. Remember how in Transformers I it is said, “You don’t choose the car, the car chooses you!!!”. Though I must admit that my Bullet (MH 12 DU 9116) did not actually come to life when I first touched it much like BumbleBee did but then it started to grow on me from the moment I got it home from the dealer.

Given my history of being irresponsible and at times utter careless about my belongings, everybody around me were skeptical whether I deserved the Bullet or not. Well I do agree that I am not one of those motor freaks who would take a spanner in their hands and get to work on their machines on hearing a slightest noise which is not normal to their trained ears. But then my Bullet is teaching me, it is making me learn and making myself worthy of it. And that is why I say much in the vein of the famous TV series of yesteryears: Man..Machine..The Bullet!!!

The first 3000kms (running in) are very important to determine the fate of the Bullet. Just like a good schooling to some extent is the foundation of your later life, the running in is of prime importance for the Bullet. It is advised not to rev the engine much and yes also not to go beyond the 50kmph mark on your speedometer. With all this knowledge, I threw caution to the wind and did what I always wanted to do. Within the first 3000km I was consistently clocking 80kmph and I even dared to make my first trip to Nashik this way. I knew I was rubbing it too hard but once the thump started, I just could not stop. It was as if I wanted more of it…more of it. The Bullet was teasing me, many times testing my patience and I gave way. The result, oil leakage, burning of oil in the engine leading to white fumes from the exhaust leading to indications of engine seizure. The block piston had to be changed (thank God this was covered under warranty), but the machine stood in the shed of the garage for a better part of the month mocking me and shouting “You LOSE!!!!”

After I got it back, I ran it in (taking the precautions I should have taken earlier) and every thump that time was as if the Bullet was laughing on me saying “..grow up mate…speed isn’t everything; learn to enjoy the ride.ha ha ha !!!!”

Getting your ride serviced regularly is also of prime importance and my Bullet was no exception. The riding manual advises to get the Bullet serviced every 3000kms, with the replacement of oil, changing of the air filter and other general checkup like the brakes, tightness of the chain etc. After the block-piston heartache I regularly visited my mechanic and my ride responded with no issues at all. I rode to Hyderabad for RM 08 and also rode to places near Pune. The ride to Hyderabad gave me a sense of pride and a feeling that yes I was finally a rider, deserving my Bullet but it was not to be.

Pride brought a sense of complacency in me and the visits to the mechanic started to be few and far between. Only when a ride was planned I visited the mechanic to get the ride serviced. I let the 3000km rule fly out of the window and the Bullet gave me a wake up call!!!

Returning from office with my roommate Aniket one evening, I hit a pothole on the road and the chain gave way much like in a bicycle. I had nothing but to kick myself. Hell the Bullet was due for servicing a couple of weeks back. “Suffer mate!!!”, said the Bullet as I parked it in a nearby building and got back home on my rommate’s bike ( a pulsar). It took me 2 days to find a mechanic who could get there and fix the problem before I got the ride to my mechanic for servicing. When I related this incident to him, he could not help but laugh. I was looking for someone to hide behind; but the onus was on me.

Then I even had a fall from the Bullet when in one of the ghats while coming down I took a wide turn and then slammed the front brakes as I saw that the ride was going off the road onto the gravel. The front wheel skidded and I came crashing down with my pillion finding an apt cushion in me. The guard in the front prevented injury to my leg and we were back up and riding. Not bruised but battered nonetheless. From that day I keep my turns tighter and less wider, controlling my speed also.

There are a lot more lessons to be learnt, lot more wakeup calls to be listened to before I can be anywhere near a TRUE RIDER but to get there I have only one way and that is to RIDE!!!!
And it is only after I feel that I am close enough to be one with my Ride that I will take the ultimate route to RIDER HEAVEN!!! You know what I am talking about, the route from New Delhi to Leh-Khandung la!!!

The ultimate route: