The tournament of all tournaments... and then some movies and books.

Oh Man! Its been way too long since I posted something in here... not that anyone noticed. Those who did notice were probably jobless, okay, I'm kidding... don't stop reading my blog people.

First things first, how great was the past month... pretty exciting right, all the World Cup drama. Staying awake late into the night watching the match, admiring Diego Maradona and his uncontrollable energy stalking the sidelines, dancing the waka waka with Shakira, marveling at how good Beckham looks in a suit, hating all those referees who made bad decisions, especially hating Netherlands cause they defeated Brazil, then thanking the Gods that Brazil didn't have a chance to play with Germany (the way they slaughtered the Argentinians was bad enough, I wouldn't have been able to bear it had they done the same to Brazil), crying with Japan and especially Ghana when they failed to qualify for the next round (Gyan, I feel for you), developing a crush on David Villa when I finally took notice of him, thinking that German coach Joachim Loew would look great on the 'The Bold and the Beautiful'... he had that chic uber cool look, definitely the most fashionable coach out there, whooping with joy when David Villa, then Puyol and then Iniesta scored the winning goals that finally made Iker Casillas (this guy is amazing, the saves he made... its uncanny how he does it) weep with uncontrollable joy. I was so glad when Spain lifted the trophy (high five Paul), it was beautiful... they played good football unlike the dutch. It would have been awesome to have seen the energy and celebration in Spain, I wish I could ask Paul who would win the world cup in 2014, then I would book my tickets before hand and go freak out in a country gone delirious with joy.

What else, on the movies/book front I've got a few reviews for you. First, if you haven't seen 'A Walk to Remember', then you (by you I mean girls, boys won't like an old fashioned romantic movie like this) should somehow try to get a copy and watch it. Its based on a book by Nicholas

Sparks, that explains why I was so hesitant to watch it initially. I bought this book for Shilpa (a die hard romantic friend of mine) a few years back and the story was okay, sappy love story... the kind that makes you feel nauseous. So I kept putting off watching the movie, but one day I started to watch it out of sheer boredom, and before long I was laughing and crying and sighing and clutching my heart whenever the guy did something insanely cute. Its a love story that's so pure and beautiful... you are left wondering whether such love really does exist in the world. A cool and popular boy with a daredevil attitude gets into trouble and is forced to do community service. There he gets to hang out with the preacher's daughter who he has known since kinder garden, only he doesn't really notice her... cause she lives in her own world away from the wannabe's and the popular kids. Slowly he realizes that her confidence, faith and her kind soul is starting to play havoc with his emotions. Before he knows what has hit him, he has fallen for her and its heartbreakingly beautiful how he does all those small things for her... like making her stand in two places at once, or getting that butterfly tattoo (beautiful scene), or making her number one wish come true. Its one of those great crying movies... will make an impact on you.

Another movie that I saw recently was Remember Me, I liked it... its bout this guy (Robert Pattinson) who has no direction in life, he has no hope, yet he never loses hope. He is a flawed human being and even though he believes that what he is doing is insignificant, he ends up saving those he loves the most, his family. I know many people can't stand the movie, cause of Pattinson's zombie/vampire like looks, if you can look past all that and just focus on the story, its a really decent movie. I liked the scene where they zoom in and then zoom away as Pattinson looks out from his dad's office and you realize with a gasp where he is standing. Personally, I can't understand all the Robert Pattinson craze, he isn't that good looking... I mean Taylor Lautner is a million times better looking and hotter too.

I saw another dumb movie, Dear John... the less said bout it the better. It was really bad, Amanda is like that female Hilary Swank, these people should find other careers. Don't bother watching this movie... it sucks.

Coming to books, I read City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre and it was overwhelming... I mean I had to shudder every time the author described a scene in the slums of Anand Nagar, Calcutta. Its a very descriptive book and you can't begin to imagine what a luxury your life is when you read what happens in the slum on an everyday basis, like getting up in the wee hours of the morning just to squat over the edge of a drain overflowing with filth to complete your morning ablutions, how you sell your blood for a few pennies to buy food, how you eat food cooked by lepers and how you live in utter poverty, how you work yourself to death literally, how you put up with so much filth and yet live with hope to face another day which is going to be no different from the rest. The protagonist of the story is a young catholic priest, Fr. Stephen Kovalski who voluntary takes up residence in the slums of Anand Nagar cause of his desire to live a humble and meaningful life, this takes guts and courage... you have to be a saint to do this. He used to say mass (in the book) with a piece of chapathi and a little wine, needless to say you will be in awe of this character once you are done reading the book. A great and well researched book... should be read for the sensory assaults that it will provide through its description of mind numbing poverty and the indomitable spirit to carry on. The movie is a let down, they have changed the most important character in it... the priest in the book becomes a woman on one of those missionary works and everything in the movie is a disappointment, better to stick to the book.

Read 'Promise Me' by Harlan Coben and liked it... I like this guy, his stories have a great twist in the end. I mean I kept suspecting and then discarding almost all the characters saying he did it, no, she did it... and the one person I never even considered suspecting was the person who actually did it!!! Yeah, Harlan sure knows how to keep you hooked...