Thursday, May 24, 2007

Lies, damn lies and statistics...



A little bit of descriptive statistics can reveal all...

Friday, May 18, 2007

Life's best lesson

Life can be utter sh*t at times, with nothing happening, nothing going right, and nothing to reach for.
The easiest and certainly the worst way of dealing with this is to go down with the ship, falling into the deepest and darkest corridors of your mind.

Those of you who read this junk -sorry, blog - are probably familiar with my musings on that king of games (and game of kings), cricket. Cricket is a lovely sport, if only that you can draw so many analogies from it. K, here's my story:

It was a 40-over away game on an unmatted wicket - low bounce, making batting extremely tough. Our side is in, and a slow start begins to take a devastating turn: wickets tumbled left and right, till we end up 80-8 by 25 overs~slim pickins for any side. Miraculously, our 9th wicket stand lasts for the rest of the innings, and our total is 136. Respectable, yet not completely defendable.
A paltry lunch brings us to the field, with the aim of scuttling down the other side as quickly as we could. They too started slowly, but a massive 6 from the massive left-hand opener lands the ball in a canal, irretrievable. Thereafter, the batsmen opened up their shoulders - their total becomes 104-1 in around 24 overs. 33 runs to win, 8 wickets in hand (they were one batsmen short), and 15 overs left. We were surely doomed to a harsh rebuke in the dressing room.
But then, as that same opener told us he was going to go ballistic, he got out. Then another wicket fell. Then another. The next half-a-dozen overs saw maidens and wicket-maidens. On 131-8, with 6 runs and 1 wicket left, our captain took a brilliant catch to complete a remarkable turnaround.

The moral, ladies and gentlemen, was best put by Yogi Berra: it ain't over till it's over. However improbable the task you have at hand, as long as it can happen, there's no saying that it won't.

Thursday, May 17, 2007

The Last Stand?

You can accuse me of many things, but calling me honest, moral, hard working and clever would be slander.
There are times in a man's life (or anybody's really) where he is called to do his best, to face his fears, and take his place in the world. Like everyone else, I've faced moments like these often in my life. It is moments like these that you train yourself for, the last wicket stand against the great fast bowler, the delivery that has to be made when you are one run away from losing, and one wicket away from victory.
Many have been called upon on occasions like these, and many have faced the moment down with a glare of steel.
I am afraid to say I don't measure up to those men.
I laugh at such events when they are located somewhere over the far away horizon of the future; I tell myself that I could do it with my eyes close; I try to believe that I savour such moments.
Sadly, I choke at the end. I don't even try to achieve it, I just want to be as far away from that moment as I can. Those occasions strike at my heart, my conscience and more than anything else, my fears; rousing the most dormant and extinct feeling of anxiety that rests in my mind.
Why am I saying this? Being the gutless coward that I am, I want to be able to tell myself 'I told you so' at the end of all this. Goodbye, and good luck. I'm sure you won't need it.

Monday, May 14, 2007

Love, take 2

In response to a previous post, i got a few good answers from face to face meetings. But here's a better question:

How on earth can u tell if a girl likes u?

I've got one idea:
you can't! Cos u can never tell what they're thinking!

The Bastard Church of Scientology

Can you believe this: Editor defends Scientology report ?

The story of the exploding BBC Panorama reporter is a sad reflection on the limits, the cunning, and the utter stupidity of human kind.

Scientology is a new ... 'religion'. I am hesitant to call it that because its apparent values (technically, you're not supposed to know the full story of the aliens and volcanoes until you've coughed up a few million) seem to tend towards the absurd. Then again, believing that someone turned water into wine or heard the voice of God inside their head seems somewhat silly as well.

What I feel is wrong about Scientology is its requirement of massive amounts of cash from members in return for further revelations as to the true history of life, the universe and everything (although again, the word 'tithe' springs to mind). It seems so unscrupulous, so blatantly and perversely greedy that it calls for a great leap of faith itself.

Tom Cruise (I just had to mention him!) and the other famous members of this odd congregation bring a certain glamour and interest to this 'church'. But if it was just comprised of a bunch of hicks, red necks and loonies, would we be so enthralled? Scientology would just be another cult (note that word), unknown and uncared for. Based on a book by L. Ron Hubbard, it would probably sound like some sci-fi fan club gone wild - which it just might be.

I feel deeply sorry for that reporter. The way he shouts is suggestive of a man who is trying to reassure himself that the world is round, rotates in about 24 hours and is pulling at (and being pulled by) his centre of mass - not full of the crazies around him. The vast funds of the church means that even old Aunty can be hunted down by private detectives, harassed to the point of tears. Investigative journalism is by nature an ugly, probing thing, necessary for society as a whole. Nothing except the foundations of democracy, liberty and freedom - should stand in its way.

Oh, and by the way Mr Patriarch or Pope of Scientology: I'm an atheist. So nah na na nah nah!