Underground?

People have started asking where I've been hiding. Nowhere actually. Its just a case of too much work for the week and weekends travelling around. And add lazy to that list of excuses too. :)

Need to get into a meeting in 10 minutes. So lemme put up some pics.

And yes, this weekend is most probably Vegas. Keep watching this space.

Playlist

1. Justin Timberlake - SexyBack
2. Rascal Flatts - What hurts the most
3. The Kooks - She moves in her own way
4. U2 - Pride
5. The Dandy Warhols - We used to be friends

Deer at Work

Most people would think these were taken at a national park. Actually, the deer was right outside our office window! They come over to graze and say hi. :)

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Dead Man's Chest

I thought Superman Returns would be this summer's biggest blockbuster. But the second instalment of Pirates of the Caribbean is breaking all records in its first weekend. Its made money in a weekend which has taken 2 weeks for Superman. Why? Because its a fun movie. Johnny Depp is in it, Orlando Bloom and Keira also co-star. So I would believe if you take a random sample of a group going for a movie, they would like one of these actors. So mission accomplished as far going to the theatre. But a lot depends on word of mouth for the coming weeks. Thats where Superman has failed. Its a decent movie but boring compared to this one. This one's an adventure story all ages would enjoy.

The plot:

Davy Jones, captain of the Flying Dutchman, lives beneath the sea. His heart was broken once and the still-beating broken heart is locked away in a chest (Dead Man's Chest). Unfortunately Captain Jack Sparrow had made a deal with Davy Jones, who is now expecting him to make good on his promise by handing himself over to Jones's servitude. This chest has a key that Sparrow and the East India Company wants because whoever owns the chest owns the seas. Jack will not give in without a fight, which is especially bad news for Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, who always seem to get caught up in Jack's mishaps.

The movie is 2 and half hours long and except a few times when you might find the going a bit slow, its non-stop adventure. Go and see it.

The case of the fishing rod and nowhere to fish

My friend, Sunil, decided that he wants to go fishing in Cincinnati. So he does the obvious thing - goes and buys the fishing rod, the worms, the works for $50. Then he decides to go fishing. But he can't. ??? How's that? According to rules, no one can go fishing in public ponds without a license. And if you are caught fishing without a license, even the car you drove to the pond gets confiscated by the state. Hmmm. Food...erm...fish for thought!!!

Parking anyone?

This is what happened last evening. One of our colleagues here wanted to learn driving so he took the car for a spin in the hotel compound. Another colleague was sitting next to him to teach him. Then our friend decides to park the car and instead of applying the brakes he decided to push the gas pedal. Then??? The car just went over the ledge. We were at Starbucks when we got a call which said that their car has gone over the ledge and two of the tires were hanging outside. So we rushed back hoping to push it back in or something.

As we approached the hotel we saw the car vertical in front of us resting against the wall. We were like 'What the f*&%!!!' When we reached the spot we fouund that thanks to the rain the earth was soft and the front of the car had dug into it. The only part of the car that was on the ledge was it left rear tire. The guys called the tow truck and while we waited for one, the police arrived. He asked a few questions, saw the license and said that since it was a private property he wouldn't give a ticket.

Then the tow truck came and he helped raise the car. One of our colleagues got into the car and gave it some gas (with his foot on the brake) so that the car moves forward. Slowly the car came down on the ground and we heaved a sigh of relief.

It was absolutely crazy and as the truck driver said before he left - 'Welcome to America'!

I have a video of this (not the one of going over, but one where the tow truck gets it back onto the ground) and I need to edit it (cut it to less than 100mb) to put it up on Youtube. Will post that as soon as possible. The picture is that of the culprit. Someone at work printed that out to like 48"X24" and stuck it to his cubicle!!! :)

Take me out to the Ball Game!

As most (if not all) Indians, I have been following cricket since I could hold a bat. And we also pride in ourselves about knowing the minute details of the game. But explaining the same to a stranger who has never been exposed to the game, takes some time. You get the jist - hit the ball and run. But then you have the various ways you could get out. Gets a few people confused.

That being said, I went to my first baseball game last night. The Colorado Rockies were playing the San Fransisco Giants at the Coors Field in Denver. The objective was three-pronged. First was to watch a live baseball game, second was to watch the 4th of July fireworks at the end of the game. Lastly I wanted to figure out why Baseball is so popular here.

Getting tickets are quite easy. Book them online and print them out. Compare this to haggling and begging for a ticket for a cricket match. And most of the tickets at the cricket match are 'given' away to 'friends' and 'officials'.

Queue moves fast except for a slight delay when they check your bags. No pushing and shoving as everyone has an alloted seat. Get all the food you can, buy more at the stadium. Beer? Yes and lots of it.

While I knew the basic rules of the game, by the end of the second inning I had a decent grasp of what happens in the game and then on, following the game was easy. I clapped as home runs were hit, 'oooooh'-ed for strikes and 'boooo'-ed for a bad call. It was easy. 9 innings and 9 batters each. 3 bases to run. 3 strikes you are out, 4th ball and you walk to the next base. Bases loaded. Quite easy to follow. Its quite evident why its such a popular sport here. Rules are simple and its just a party at the game for the spectators. Even the pouring rain doesn't drive too many away. Umbrellas, jackets, windcheaters come out.

We had a 2 hour rain delay. But the crowd stayed back for the game to finish. And then the fireworks started. Awesome is the one word to describe it. A continuous display for 15-20 minutes. Never seen one quite like last night.

The game is really fast and quite entertaining. The music gets the crowd going. They love it. Families. Kids. With gloves on to catch a ball if it comes their way. Soda. Candy. Beer. Nachos. etc etc. No wonder they love singing 'Take me out to the ball game'.

And yes, Rockies won. 6-1.