Good Bye... 2012...

Sun sets one more time, to rise and shine again...

As the day end in next few hours…. Year 2012 goes by leading way for 2013….

2012 for sure will be the most talked year…  One of the reason happened to be Mayan Calendar was wrong with keeping up with the D-Date 21 Dec… its just went by with not much fuzz…. All I know for sure is producer of movie 2012 smiled all the way to bank :-0

How the year went by for me, I wont say just like any another year, each year stand some special moments along with some down as well :-0

Like each year I make loads of resolution, some do not even make it until next day they just fade away… some stay… some get altered… and so on…

Apart for the list of resolution we all tend to have a list….

Things to do this year… as time fly we do a reality check where we stand on the last…  and that’s when we realize oops…. I may miss most…. Lets readjust it for next year…. And year passes by right in front of us.

So my friends… don’t just create a Bucket List when we are on crease for playing our last innings, let’s have one and do a check where we are…. And what we can fulfill the one item in it at a time…. (Being multitasking is not bad at all)….

I to have my list, some of which I was able to get through… some I see like a huge cliff in front of me, from which running away would be worst decision, I will to gear up and start learning how to climb the cliff and move on to another one.

This year I learnt a lot…. Some lessons were easy, some I happen to learn the hard way, which I feel that it was good that I learnt the hard way. As leaning always through the easiest way is not most fruitful, a small sapling has the bear the brunt of weather and time to finally produce the most flavored fruit.

So in next few hours the year 2012 will fade away and sunny morning of 2013 (at least in Pune a Bright new awaits), with hope and happiness.

p.s. on separate note, I am 200 post old in last four year, its been a nice journey so far, however off late I am not a regular on the scene, I wish I be post more stuff in next calendar year, now lets see will be a resolution or will it be a line from my bucket list.

Foggy Dwcember Morning

Foggy December morning:


After initial couple of days of chilly morning we didn't have any sign or traces of winter this time around....

Yesterday was amazing.... It's been a while since I went out for a jog, for which getting up in morning is a task in itself I am not a morning person....

Still I managed to pull myself out by 6:40am (way late by many people standard... Still way early morning for me)
I was amazed to see the for outside visibility....

Some of the pics would convey the story....

Memories: Childhood..... School & Cricket ground

Over a period of time we all wove memories, it is a mixed bag, and its one thing on which at time I feel we really do not have any control, we just keep on knitting memories….

Over a period of time some memories do fade away with time and some grow stronger and stronger the one that you tend to remember for life.

Some of memories are those which are deep hidden under layers and layers beneath, which you wont remember until spend some time to find them and get those incident out.

Something similar happened last week, this one reminded me of my childhood days…. School times…..

I was with my wife Manu.... We were at Pimpri’s flower market getting floral decoration for car and next day it was my brother marriage...

We had some 30+ minutes in hand.... Pimpri is the place where I did spend all my schooling years, we were a kilometer away from my school, as we had time I told her let me drive by my school, Until my 10th grade I studied at Indira Gandhi High School...

My school still had the same look, I felt as I was back in time, and I could see my childhood where I had spend… the lane were we all waited just before the school started, the canteen place were we had our snacks…. Hmmm sweet little memories….

Later I went to the Cricket Ground (it's located some 2+KM from my school at another school... As our school didn’t had any cricket ground of its own so were had played countless cricket match, it was fun to visit….. And I still see bunch of kids from school playing.

Thats my school....

Its the place were we played Crickets.... 

Dipawali: Akash Kandil' (Sky Lantern) & 'Killa' (Mud Fort)

Dipawali.... After 3 years I am in Pune my hometown (the place where i belong).... Why i love Pune, may take couple of minutes to compose my though about, the first reason i can say is all Pune is the place where i grew up, it the place where i learnt how to crawl, walk and run....  Its the place where i learnt how to speak and made some amazing friends for life.....  

Coming back to Dipawali, the reason i love festival as each one has its own flavor (I am a big time foodie).... i still recall the Biriyani and Sheer Khurma i had a my friends place....

A day before Dipawali i was roaming around City and near Deccan i saw the whole pavement was covered with rows and rows of 'Akash Kandil' (Sky Lantern), it was awesome look at night.... ahhh why i did not carry my SLR, but my phone was able to justify a bit....

The city was lit in colorful light all across... 

Another great aspect of Dipawali is Kids gathering together and preparing Mud Forts. During childhood days i remember we kids would gather around and build Mud Fort, and once its all done we would put all sort of clay effigies (Animal / Soldiers / village dwellers . and on the top of the castle we would place a thrown on which 'Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj' would watch over his kingdom). Those times were amazing, the spirit of creating those Mud Fort is still around but lately i see the number has reduced a lot, and thanks to cheap plastic colorful Fort are replacing them.

If you are to roam around city you will find kids still have the enthusiasm in preparing them, this one i saw near Manu place, the kids from her society had created the castle and it was amazing... they had created farm fields, where Cows were grazing, farmers were ploughing the fields, and Shivaji Maharaj was looking over his kingdom.

I feel its the parent who should be promoting kids in preparing Mud Fort during Dipawali, and along with explaining the story behind it (Mud forts are built with the imagination and design, inspired by actual old forts, these mud forts are made during Dipawali week, decorated with toy idols. These Mud Forts do remind us of the valiant struggle and heroic deeds of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his solders, building this forts will help kids to work together and have fun.

Next time around i would roam around and capture more of this Mud Forts that represent the true spirit and togetherness. 

Bond.... James Bond....

James Bond:

It is been 50 years since the first spy came to life and since then it has been a amazing journey from Dr No to the recent one…. Skyfall….

Over the years, based on the actor who portrays the famous Spy we know 007…. Bond…. James Bond. The franchise had made sure to have a unique identity for each Bond we had from Sean Connery until recent Daniel Craig,

Before Daniel Craig has become 007, Pierce Brosnon, made all guy envy how he can have all three G’s…. Girls Guns and Gadgets and not to mention a wow Car, and with all those marvelous gadgets Bond made it look so easy how a spy solve a case.

And the first time I heard this time Daniel Craig is to wear the tuxedo and have Vodka Martini…. Shaken but not stirred, I felt is he going to have the same charismatic flow how his predecessors lived the spy life…. But no he was to start a new chapter in the way we had seen 007.

First time when I had seen the movie I did not like it, as I was looking more to the 3 G’s….. However on the second attempt when I just looked as the way they wanted to cast a new 007 agent who is not following his predecessors.

Once again I started liking 007 profile, yesterday I happen to watch the new installment offered Skyfall , and I liked the way they presented 007 who had to fight against all odd and secure MI-6.

Guess what would have been if we never had 007 the Spy, would the love we have for Aston Martin be some different….

As we all know who the Spy is we would follow him, so the wait has already started what the next Bond movie is gonna be all about.

Brooklyn Ice-Cream factory.... You will love it

Brooklyn Ice-Cream Factory, this place has been permanently imprinted in my memory, and will be tagged as the ‘The Best Place for Ice-Cream’ and it is for real, once you have it Ben-N-Jerry has not chance.

Few weeks ago, I was watching my favorite show ‘Best Things I ever Ate…’ in Food Network. Today episode was on Ice-Cream, that when this particular chef (I do not recall) mentioned about this favorite place for Ice-Creams is Brooklyn Ice-Cream Factory.

Few weeks later while we were walking over Brooklyn Bridge, we can catch a glimpse of this place, so we walked to this place.

First sight of this place made me really indeed this place is really famous for its ice-cream, as more then 30 people were in line baking under sun for their ice-cream, after 15 minutes of wait we were in, only to realize that a place need not have to be famous by its ambience and wow factor. This place just had two small tables with 6-8 chairs and for ambience they had some old picture of Brooklyn, that all and walls of refrigerator unit stacked with buckets of ice-cream. 

In that particular episode the chef had ‘Butter Pecan’, so I had to have that… walked outside sat on a chair on boardwalk, and next 10 minutes I had no idea what was happing around me, I was not even distracted by mighty skyscraper Manhattan Downtown view with the new World Trade Center in front across river on left you can catch glimpse of Statue of Liberty on right photogenic Brooklyn Bridge, those ten minutes all I was just focused on my ice-cream.

It’s the best Ice-Cream I ever had in my life, only regrets why I have not been earlier this this place, never the less, I enjoyed until the last tiny bit of my Butter Pecan Ice-Cream.

One really need to taste to enjoy this ice-cream, words wont justify the smooth rich creamy flavor of it, this ice-cream is one such sin even a calorie conscious people can have it.

So next time if you happen to be around Downtown Manhattan walk across the Brooklyn Bridge and enjoy ‘Butter Pecan’ at Brooklyn Ice-Cream Factory.

Brooklyn Ice-Cream Factory (in backdrop Brooklyn Bridge)

Butter Pecan Ice-Cream

Downtown Manhattan ... WTC still in construction...

Statue of Liberty

Ironman triathlon: Story of determination....

An usual lazy Sunday, woke up early 10:00am compared against Saturday time….surfing channel, I have a hard time sticking on to a channel, at time it bad and good, why good that when you end up an a channel on which you generally would not have ended at correct time when it mattered.

It was a 30 minute program on Ironman… Not that the one in which Robery Downey Jr suits up and fly across….

Ironman triathlon held annually in Hawaii, in the month of October, it is by far considered to the most grueling and testing limits of human endurance and the will to succeed and achieve. The race is divided in 3 stages 2.4-mile (3.86 km) swim, a 112-mile (180.25 km) bike and a marathon 26.2-mile (42.2 km) run, raced in that order and without a break it starts at 7:00am and with official close out time is mid-night.

Winning Ironman triathlon is not about fame, money and glory that follow, I felt winning over your perseverance  and desire to complete is far more important, in Ironman it’s not about finishing first or being on the podium, it all about are to able to cross the finish line.

Lew Hollanders, is one of the competitor, what is special, at the age of 81 we was focused and determined to complete, couple of miles before he finish line he fell dehydrated and bruised his knee and elbows, people asked him do you want to quit, he smiled and said ‘why quit’ and managed to stand once again under a mile to finish line he had a big fall on road barricade… once again he had a nice smile… Lew finished 14minutes before the official cutoff.

Rajesh Durbal, he finished his race in 13hr 49+ minute well over 5+hr over the first winner, what’s special Rajesh was born with congenital deformity in his legs and right arm, Rajesh had his both legs amputated at age 1 and partially his right arm. This is what makes Rajesh a special, is assume that’s his strength.

Harriet Anderson , was titled the oldest female ever to cross the finish line just at age 79, impressive isn’t.

Gayla Chambers, proved if you have determination age is not barrier to learn, she learnt how to swim only at age 58, not an early start to learn, and how about aiming to swim the 2.4 miles stretch and going ahead and completing 2011 Ironman Kona triathlon at age 71. So next time dare we ever say I am too old to learn any new tricks.

Nancy Summer is another name, is not listed in person who finished the race as she was 4 seconds late before the official midnight cutoff.

Matt Michelson, 40 year old entrepreneur and founder of a social media firm, had a bet of $1`million with rapper 50cents, money would pass on to charity to feed hunger, good that Matt finishes the race for a cause.

Many more stories were associated, all making a point it’s a race against yourself, do you have it in you and have the urge to finish.