RIP Bob

Hey yaars,

It's with sadness that I inform you that Bob Woolmer, Pakistan's national team coach, passed away this morning at the age of 58. There are differing reports out there, but from whatever details I've read, he was found unconscious on the floor of his hotel room. It's possible that it was a heart attack, though I'm not positive. In any event, it's a very tragic day.

In a twisted way, it's almost admirable that he cared so much about his team. From what I've seen in post-match conferences last night, he was extremely dissappointed, particularly noting the day as "one of the worst in his life". His deep concern over his work was commendable, which is more than can be said of many of his pupils.

Many have pointed at the high-stress job of coaching in the subcontinent. I think it was the BBC that compared it to coaching Real Madrid or the New York Yankees. When you win, everyone's your best mate, and when you falter, you're public enemy #1. Sadly ironic, the fanatics were already changing "Death to Woolmer, Death to Inzamam" yesterday evening in the streets of Lahore and Karachi. I'm sure they'd revoke those words after today's events.

It's cliche, but it does put things into perspective. It is simply a game, and while passion is admirable, there should be a limit. Even before today, I felt Bob deserved a renewal - he wasn't out there playing - unfortunately he's now completed his innings.

I hope and pray Mr. Woolmer enjoys the paradise of heaven, and may he rest in peace.

To make me feel better...

A Sky Sports retrospective on Pakistan's World Cup history (set to a Killers song)...

I F'n Hate St Patrick's Day

Leave it to me to be clairvoyant in matters that negatively affect me. Right now I'm miserable because of what I hinted at in my last blog post. I can't believe my subtle comment would become reality.

For those of you who haven't yet found out, Ireland defeated - and subsequently eliminated - Pakistan in their World Cup clash today. Something must have been in the St. Patrick's Day air (or livers) of the Irish side. The already weak Pakistani batting was dismissed for 132 by a side that doesn't even play full-time. And despite valiant efforts from their bowling, it was always going to be damn near impossible to defend such a pitiful score.

I have been waiting four years for this world cup, after being humiliated during the last one. In the 2003 tournament, Pakistan were also eliminated in the round robin stages, with India being the team laying the final blow. I'm not sure which one will be harder to endure; losing to your enemy, or to a minnow who barely even qualified for the world cup. At least this time I didn't have to stay up all night to feel the embarrassment.

Not to equate the two, but there's also another reason I'm not exactly fond of St. Paddy's day. It was on this day six years ago, that I had to lay my dad to rest. Today, while already being a bit stressed at the massacre on the cricket pitch, my mom nagged me to take her to the cemetery in Maple where he's buried. Expectedly, she shed a tear or two, and as always I had to be the rock that stays sombre throughout.

To top it off, after expecting a nice home-cooked dinner, I find that my mom cooks nothing for me and dines with Zan. I have no idea why, but I think it was probably one of those snidy comments I say that got her set off. So let's just say that the hat-trick of events today has me mildly upset.

But yes, I'm sure I'll be fine tomorrow.

Yeah, we lost

Hey yaars,

As I mentioned in my last post, my expectations of the Pakistani World Cup squad weren't too high. Which is why I'm not totally surprised that they lost to the host West Indies in the opening match of the tournament today by 54 runs.

I sneaked in as many glances as I could while at my cubicle today. I didn't hear any of the audio but from what I've read, the atmosphere at Sabina Park in Jamaica was electric. It didn't hurt that the home team pulled through with the 'W'. You can only imagine the turmoil I was going through, watching the match minimized on the taskbar, with no audio, while trying to get some documents ready to print. Thankfully my Japanese sensei wasn't too strict on things - just as long as I kept it at a minimum.

Onwards and forwards though. Pakistan plays Ireland in their next group match, which should be a less difficult match as the Irish team are only associate - and not full - members of the ICC (cricket's governing body). Of course they've been playing quite well as of late and have surprised some traditionally established teams, so it could be tighter than I'd like.

Oh yeah, and the Pakistan / Ireland match takes place on St. Patrick's Day. Which means this will either be a cakewalk as the Irish will be too wasted to play properly, or it will be the fight of Pakistan's lives as the Irish will be drunk enough to play out of their skins !

Alright I'm off, all this waking up at 6:30 AM is getting to me. L8er!

The World Cup Begins!

Hey yaars,

If I haven't already said it, I'll say it again - I don't like cricket, I LOVE IT!

10cc references aside, the dawn of a new world cup is finally here, with the host West Indies playing my beloved Pakistan side in about 11 hours time. Our group has the West Indies, Zimbabwe, and Ireland, so if all goes well, I'm confident we'll go through to the super 8 round.

The sad part? Me having to sneak in glances of the scorecard tomorrow while working! I'm going to try and find a way to have a live video stream playing in the corner of the screen so that I can somewhat multi-task.

Before my new readers opine as to why I'm supporting Pakistan over Canada in this tournament, I'd respond by referring to history. My dad instilled pride in this team and it was a great way for us to bond. Much the same way I showed him the joy and misery of being a Toronto sports fan, he enlightened me to the ways of Pakistan cricket. Hence my obsession. And yes, it is an obsession, as I seem to know players from the 50s and 60s whom even the most diehard supporter has no clue of (Thanks dad!).

Do I think we're a lock to win the tournament? Absolutely not. What with our main bowlers out due to questionable "injuries" (the whole world thinks it's a means to hide from being caught again from nandrolone, which calls for a life ban), and our "pinch-hitter" out with a knee knock, the team will need to rally around each other. I have full confidence (and bias) in thinking that they can do it.

Oh, and if you aren't as excited as I am (which is probable), here's a lame but catchy World Cup rap produced by the Dish network in the states to promote the tournament. Talk to y'all l8er!

Another Friday Funny

Hey yaars,

I apologize in advance for my delay in posts. Fortunately for me, my excuse is work, which has kept me busy. My Sensei has been doing a great job moulding me into a white-collar worker. But yes, there still is mail. Lots of mail!

To be truthful, there are a few things pinball-ing in my head right now, so I'll just lay it out there in random form in the only way I know how...

a) My iPod's earbud's are trashed. To be specific, the right bud has a horrible hissing noise whenever there's slight bass or a voice (i.e. podcast). I've tried all the techniques prescribed online but no dice. I'm tempted to complain to Apple (evidently they changed the earbuds two months after I bought my iPod), but I'm too lazy to wait 90 minutes in their aesthetically brilliant store.

b) The CN Tower is f***ed. How can we NOT have any protocol's in place to ensure that ice can safely thaw off of the tower? Half of the downtown core has been shut down one way or another because of ice accumulation, with yours truly losing 30 minutes of sleep a day to make sure his alternate route gets him to work on time. I say we pay a crew of window cleaners as much as they want to go up to the top with ice picks and chip that mofo down!

c) Honey Roasted peanuts are delicious! PEANUTS people, not what your sick minds must be pondering!

d) Starbucks' strawberry and creme blended drink is really really addictive

e) Pickle Barrell has the best milkshakes. Ok Ok, there is ONE place I can think of that produces milkshakes with longer lasting effects!

f) O.J. Simpson may be Anna Nicole's father? I'm beginning to think he probably also hiding Iraq's weapons of mass destruction

g) Watching Newsworld the other day I saw them covering a Young Conervative seminar where students were groomed over a weekend into becoming a Tory version of a bible-thumper. One of the successful students was a gay member of the party. There are gay conservatives? Should I expect some fiscally responsible New Democrats soon!

h) Trying to co-ordinate a trip to Chicago which has me miss as little work as possible, blends in with Zan's schedule, and is before April 18th. Oh yeah, and it has to be reasonably priced. Thanks mom!

i) World Cup is less than a week away. People, if you aren't cheering for Pakistan for my sake, do it for Uncle Cricket!

j) My brother knows when to push the right buttons. Months ago I showed him a cool Paris Saint Germain shirt that I wanted but couldn't find in sports stores, Queen St. or even eBay. Last week he came home and gave it to me as a gift. JUST when I think I can be harsh on him, he comes out all sweet. He MUST be reading this blog!

k) I was never a Myspace guy, but this facebook addiction I'm having is just too much. It's the blackberry of the internet world!

l) It's official, my dad had some of the coolest AND ugliest ties out there. It still amazes me that whenever I don one of his neckties it'll get a compliment here or there. I guess the ol' man had a bit of playa in him after all!

Alright boys and girls, I'm officially tapped. I'm hitting the hay. Have a great weekend!

Friday Funny

Got a good laugh after watching the above mock ad. And it's always good to start the weekend with a smile on your face.

Today for yours truly involved auditing orders to make sure that they were properly processed. I've gone through about 1/3 of the 2000 or so, and let's just say that it's been challenging. But in a good way of course.

On the way to work I couldn't help but notice the number of women who carry not one but TWO handbags. What's up with that? I can see the need for one, and perhaps a plastic bag to carry something which may not fit in a handbag but can be easily disposed of. But TWO purses? Why not just get one larger one, or even better - carry a backpack! This wouldn't normally be a big deal, unless of course you're squished like a sardine on a subway train with women using them as weapons of mass destruction to find their way off and onto trains! I say no more to multiple purses ! :P

Anyhow, I'm going to hit the hay, another work day awaits!

Keeping in Touch

After procrastinating for so long, I'm starting to touch base with quite a few of my friends whom I haven't talked to in ranges spanning from weeks to months. It becomes very easy to slide into your own personal shell and forget about old friends, but I'm trying to maintain my friendships. I know from personal experience how much something as simple as an email can mean in terms of brightening one's day.

With that being said, if you consider me a friend and I don't find a way to hit you up with some form of communication, HOLLER (not holla) at me!

There goes the World Cup!

If you've known me even remotely, you know I have somewhat of a passion for cricket, especially anything pertaining to my beloved Pakistani team. And if you've read my blog or read the odd newspaper, you would have heard of Pakistan's bowling spearheads testing positive for nandrolone in their systems last October. After being given 1 and 2 year bans, they were overturned by an appelate committee. I'm afraid it was all in vain though, as this morning I discovered that neither will be participating in the upcoming World Cup.

The Pakistan team did it's own internal drug testing for the World Cup last week and they were 2 of the 15 that did not take their tests. The reason given was that they were nursing injuries and receiving treatment abroad. Media reports suggested that they were seeking medical advice to ascertain whether or not traces of nandrolone remained in their systems. It is believed that by claiming injury and pulling out, the players avoided testing positive again - which would call for a lifetime ban.

I'm saddened by this as it really dents their chances. They already lost one of their pinch hitters in Abdul Razzaq (who got injured after being hit by a ball in the knee). What's worse is that the replacements aren't exactly up to scratch - at least Mohammad Sami isn't!

The one positive I can take out of this is that it gives otherwise disenfranchised players the chance to show that they're deserving of a spot on the team. I'm still heading into cautious though. It's why I love this team, you really never know what you're going to get from them. It's ALWAYS a day-to-day thing!

Life's not a competition, but I'm winning.

Hey yaars,

So I've completed day 2 upstairs. It's been interesting to say the least. Any fears I had of not adjusting were quickly erased when I the boys took it upon themselves to bring me to lunch with them the last few days. It's only been 2 days but they treat me like I've been there for a month or two. Then again, I have known a few of them over the past few years. Regardless, it's been a warm welcome.

I actually got to walk around all the offices around the stadium that I had no idea existed. FINALLY saw the World Series trophies within 2 feet, and must say that they're even more impressive in person. Oh, and the washrooms on the 3rd floor suck!

Day 3 awaits, I'll be sure to continue my detailing of the travails (without breaking confidentiality agreements!).