Holidays!

Finally i have a few days of no work. It has been somewhat hectic with all the deadlines and travelling over the past few days so i am really looking forward to these holidays. First and foremost on my to- do list is eating all the sweets possibly available. Apart from that, there are a few parties to hit and going out with friends maybe for a long drive.

I also need to update my Gooner blog and my travel photo site. Then there is the ever pending post on my exploits in Slovakia and Switzerland. I hope to get that done sometime soon. For all of you who have given up on me ....I promise.

I am really looking forward to read something. First and foremost on my mind is The Life of Pi by Yann Martel.

I think Sunday will top it all though. Manchester United vs Liverpool (The Great English derby) and then later on the el classico between Real Madrid and Barcelona. The Arsenal - Reading game is also thrown in there for good measure.

Be safe!

Women s Hockey

Before any women reading this call me chauvinist or anything equivalent to that, I would like to go on record and say that I am all for women sport. There have been the Nadia Comenci s, Martina Navratilovas (talking pure tennis here :)), Cathy Freeman s...our own P.T. Usha et al who I have admired a lot. Anyone thinking why i haven't mentioned Sania Mirza needs to peek in here to see how i feel about her and she has not achieved greatness by any stretch of imagination.

If someone gives me the "Belinda Clarke is the Matty Hayden of Aussie women cricket team" then I am ready to take it , albeit with more than a pinch of salt.
I was watching a game on TV yesterday. For those of you who came in late, the Women s Hockey WC is going on.The match in question was one between Argentina and Australia. I am sorry but the quality of play was really bad. These are supposed to be 2 of the better teams. An Australian lady stopped a straight forward 4 yard pass from her teammate and the commentator went "Thats a great trap...." and i went " what the....". The ball was hardly on the mat and as far as i could see there was no deliberate scooping involved either. The game was end to end. 1 long hit from this side and 1 from there with the ball going out at regular intervals. A few of the Australian ladies would have given Cory Everson a real inferiority complex and took turns whacking the ball into touch at the opposite end of the ground.I never knew that one can hit a simple pass straight at your opponent...i thought that this honour went the Indian mens hockey team :).

The committment of the ladies was worth appreciating but unless and until you are a hockey fanatic you wouldn't stay on that
channel for too long.