A Touch of Cricket and Other Tales!

December 16, 2017

34446012_l — Image used for representation only

Leaving Pune is always a bittersweet time. On the one hand, I am itching to get back to my life and routine, but on the other it’s always tough leaving family and friends. And as I return this time, it’s to a city that has once again been the target of a terror attack. Living in Brooklyn and working at Times Square means I often find myself in and around the attack area. Countless are the times I have walked the tunnel connecting the subways. Luckily the casualties were minimal and thankfully I was nowhere close. But as always, it leaves me with the sense of ‘anything, anywhere.’ I literally shrug my shoulders and wonder if I will always get the luck of the draw.

Draw reminds me of the one-day cricket match against Sri Lanka. After playing fantastic cricket during the test series, the Indian team was actually 29 for 7 at one low point. A run rate of 1.45 per over. Such a range of inconsistency really makes one wonder what exactly goes on in the game? Is it a fluke? It is fixed? Does it all depend on Virat Kohli? Luckily Dhoni needed to ensure he is remembered for the IPL picks and managed to salvage the innings.

What will be remembered is the Virushka wedding. A hilarious post did the rounds on social media saying there were more pictures circulating of the Virat Anushka wedding than pictures of one’s own wedding. Regardless, the couple did manage to keep the secret and finally when the news broke, the pictures and videos went viral. As expected, she made a pretty bride and he made a dashing groom. I have to admit, compared to all the big fat Indian weddings in vogue today, they managed to pull off an intimate, low-key wedding. All the best to the new Mr and Mrs Kohli. Their union has certainly entertained Indians on and off the field and on and off screen.

Two babies entertained me on my flight from Pune to Abu Dhabi. It was a symphony of crying on either side. I know babies cry. And I know I need to be understanding but it is actually quite annoying. They kept a constant refrain the whole journey and most times the mothers were unable to calm them. Maybe I was just spoiled with my kids who travelled very well and never bothered me on flights, but as a result my patience wears quite thin. If I thought it was a relief to get off at Abu Dhabi, the onward leg had another baby across the aisle. Mercifully, he cried towards the end of the journey. After all, if we get frustrated being cooped up for fourteen hours, that little body doesn’t even know what’s going on!

Another frustrating thing on my journey was the wait. I had to wait twenty minutes for the Pune immigrations counters to open and likewise at Abu Dhabi. And neither places have seating arrangements close to the waiting area. People either stand in lines or squat on the floor. I wonder why the airlines send messages requesting passengers to arrive early if they plan to make them wait after check-in. The best thing about Abu Dhabi is US passengers finish immigration and customs making them domestic passengers when they land. I finally enrolled for global entry, which is supposed to make immigration a breeze. Unfortunately, my fingerprints could not be read and I had to wait in line and do the long route. So much for that. Thankfully I always have a book handy to while away the time.

I abandoned my book on the long flight back home to catch up on movies. Dunkirk, My Cousin Rachel and Patti cakes made the cut for Hollywood and Death in the Gunj was my Hindi fix. before I returned to my book. Long hau flights is where I catch up on all the movies I have missed in theatres. Dunkirk was on my wish list and with its potential at the Golden Globes and Oscars, I wanted to make sure I got a chance to see it. In typical Nolan style, the movie turned my mind to mash. While I appreciated the immensity of the project, possibly a small screen and my semi jet-lagged dozing did not do the movie justice. The rest of the movies were great time pass.

The chilly air that hit me as I stepped out of the terminal at JFK certainly brought home to me how fast time has flown. Its already Xmas. The first thing on my agenda (apart from enrolling for Affordable Health before the December 15th deadline), is to put up my Christmas decorations. Stowing them away earlier this year is still so vivid. It’s my favourite time of year despite the freezing temperatures; the smell of pines at every street corner, the carols played in every shop, Xmas decorations and goofy grins plastered on faces. Yes, it’s good to be back home.