Air India has a waiting list passengers counter

Recently I had been to New Delhi on official work and had travelled by Kingfisher. The Departure terminal for Kingfisher and Air India are the same and I was shocked to see a counter for “Waiting List Passengers” on the Air India side. This is counter No.26 in New Delhi Domestic Airport (Terminal-1A). I don’t know about international flights but certainly domestic airlines don’t have a waiting list and certainly not Air India I suppose with the sort of service they provide. Domestic Airlines however good they maybe run, with a few seats unoccupied, such being the case, how can Air India Conceptualize a waiting list passengers counter? They seem to be lost in the time frame when they had the monopoly over the skies and air travelers had to contend with whatever they dished out. The arrogance of the person who feels the need for such a counter needs to be appreciated. It is such a comic relief while checking in, if you happen to notice

Being a blogger

Lack of work in hand, lots of free time, easy accessibility to internet or an urge to share your ideas with the world, What does it take to be a blogger? The first two reasons as manifestations of vexed minds meant to ridicule people whom they don’t like. Easy accessibility to internet is a contributing factor to blogging becoming a habit. However, the defining factor to be a blogger is an urge to share ones ideas with the world.
One need not be a born writer to blog. Like learning to ride a car or to swim, you can also learn to blog. Just have a pocket diary and make a single line note of all the ideas that may come to your mind throughout the day. At the end of the day, instead of spending your time in front of the television set, get in front of the system and key down your ideas. To begin with blog in quantity, quality will come by itself. Read the blogs of others, this will also give you ideas how to refine your blogging skill and also make new friends. Never be disappointed if your blog goes unnoticed, it happens to everybody and even to the best.

Other than an urge to share my ideas with the world at large, blogging was the safest way out for me to get away from the emotional dump I found myself in a couple of years ago. I could have taken to pleasurable vices of life but choose blogging. Today blogging is an obsession with me, but one which enriches me and not enslaves me. I am forced to think objectively and subjectively on issues which previously did not even come to my attention. I don’t restrict to one aspect of blogging but try my hands in all the spheres. Close to my heart are current affairs and society but that does not restrict me from dabbling in poetry, satire and creative writing no matter how unconvincing they are.

When you blog, write in the way which is most suited to your personality and thought process, never ape anybody’s style because you will never able to sustain it. Be inspired by other ideas and use of language but not by their style because no two persons are the same. I have a very unconventional way of expressing my thoughts in writing and I have never tried to fiddle with it. My attempts at poetry have been ridiculed as forced rhyming but that does not deter me because that is the only way I know to write poetry. If I have to borrow on a cricketing parallel, Shewag and Dravid should stick to their styles of batting and not copy each other.
Never believe you have conquered grammar. There is always scope for improvement. Keep the language straight and simple. Use of flowery words is going to turn away most readers. Anybody can blog and to a certain extent that makes it a double edged sword. You don’t have an editor who will do the job of refining the sentence or chopping out the superfluous. You are your own editor in a blog. If you want your blog to be successful, be your own merciless editor. Write on topics which are very close to your heart be it on economic policy, society, values, etc. Make some research on the topic you want to write especially if it involves major topics like global warming, bio-fuel, inflation, etc but don’t make it look like an exercise in cut and paste of others works. Add your own touch and ideas to it.

I have found that when you write on serious topics in life, the blog does not become popular. It is quite understandable; people are saddled with enough problems in real life and would not like to carry it to the net also. Express your views in a balanced method and most importantly on topics which interest a larger section of people. This does not mean that I am urging you to write candy floss stuff. Write in a manner which interests, entertains and inspires people. You can choose to write a blog on the grim realities of global warming quoting innumerable statistics and future projections or just write in simple words why you appreciate the contribution of Al Gore, ex-US Vice President towards global warming and how he has successfully demystified the entire issue.

Can blogging be profitable? Yes,Google Adsense does pay for ad clicks on your blog page but the conditions are so hazy that you would love to add the alphabet M before the word adsense. Blog to appreciate the numbers of views on your blog, the comments you have received and the debate it has generated on your blog site. Blog for the sheer joy of it, other rewards will come in the near future.

Indian cricketers never retire in stlye and with grace

In the past 4 years, cricket lovers across the world have been witness to the retirements of Steve Waugh, Warne, Mcgrath and Gilchrist. The entire stadium stood up to see off their heroes, the families were part of it and it was such a nostalgic event. All these cricketers announced their retirement when they got the whiff of their presence in the team being questioned. Warne, in fact went when people were asking why?

I have been following Indian cricket for the past two decades. Except Sunil Gavaskar no other Indian cricketer has had a graceful exit from the game. He did retire from test cricket in grand style with a classy 90 plus against Pakistan on an exploding Bangalore pitch. Even the great Kapil Dev had to be compelled to announce his retirement. The other legendary cricketers had to be dropped from the team and later they announced their retirement.

The famous five of Indian Cricket viz, Sachin, Kumble, Dravid, Saurav and VVS Lakshman are due for retirement in the near future. At some point of time they have to realize that they maybe blocking the way of many a talented youngsters. Somebody like Yuvraj and Kaif have waited ages to find a permanent place in the team. There may be a dip in the team’s performance once these legends call it a day but it will only be temporary. They have achieved enough in terms of fame and money. When the annals of cricket are written, these five legends will be in the top half of it. One can only hope these famous and celebrated cricketers do retire in a grand style and before the entire country starts asking when? Let the fans get a feel how it is to see a few legends retire.