I don't feel embarrassed saying it - I AM NOT A HANDY MAN .
No I am not useless - I can sing, play the guitar , play the drums ,  cook, bake a bit , love reading , enjoy writing and speaking too. I can be witty when in the mood and am told that I am good company etc.  but being handy around the house or anywhere for that matter is a big NO .
Am I proud of this fact?  - believe it or not I am smiling while typing so you have the answer to my question without me saying anything !
Does it make me feel any less a man - OMG I am smiling again .
I guess hammers, chisels, saws, greese ,
Let me give you some thoughts on this topic .
 

I don't feel embarrassed saying it - I AM NOT A HANDY MAN .
No I am not useless - I can sing, play the guitar , play the drums ,  cook, bake a bit , love reading , enjoy writing and speaking too. I can be witty when in the mood and am told that I am good company etc.  but being handy around the house or anywhere for that matter is a big NO .
Am I proud of this fact?  - believe it or not I am smiling while typing so you have the answer to my question without me saying anything !
Does it make me feel any less a man - OMG I am smiling again .
I guess hammers, chisels, saws, greese ,
Let me give you some thoughts on this topic .
 

Let's save cricket the blushes

The Lodha Committee was appointed by the Supreme Court of India on 22nd January 2015 to analyze and recommend implementable actions for improving the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)

One of its recommendations was that the so-called “old guard” should not be re - elected, obviously to enable fresh blood to be infused into the governing body of the game. Now, it does not require a very fertile imagination to conclude as to what the “Old Guards” were up to and why Justice Lodha came down heavily on them.

There was jubilation all round as “cleansing” was perceived but the same was short lived. If they could not rule the game and interfere at will, there had to be a loophole somewhere.

So what if they were over 70 years of age and hence illegible as per the new rules. Who was bothered about the “Cooling off period” that the committee recommended. If they were going to be put out to pasture, there had to be a better way to worm their way back in.

So now, their sons and daughters, son in laws and other family members , who may never have played cricket in their lives and have no clue about the game whatsoever , are the new Governors. Surely, this is a joke in poor taste.

Bengal, Saurashtra, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat all have close relatives of the “old guard” in the associations. The BCCI has one as well.

Therefore, what has changed? What cleansing has taken place? What improvements will we perceive? What has justice Lodha to say about this? What is anyone saying about this? Why is this proxy ruling being accepted ?

One may say that the positive aspect is that our men’s cricket team is doing well and bringing honours to the country but is that the answer we are looking for?.

Why can’t we have a clean system, free from petty politics where the best men get the job and the best players are in the various teams – selected purely on merit?

It is about time we had cricketers at the helm. Saurav Ganguly as Head of BCCI is a breath of fresh air. If cricket at all levels in the country is to improve & do well then we need more cricketers running the various associations and cricket boards.

We have seen dynasty rule flopping in other spheres – let's spare cricket the blushes !

Let's save cricket the blushes

The Lodha Committee was appointed by the Supreme Court of India on 22nd January 2015 to analyze and recommend implementable actions for improving the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)

One of its recommendations was that the so-called “old guard” should not be re - elected, obviously to enable fresh blood to be infused into the governing body of the game. Now, it does not require a very fertile imagination to conclude as to what the “Old Guards” were up to and why Justice Lodha came down heavily on them.

There was jubilation all round as “cleansing” was perceived but the same was short lived. If they could not rule the game and interfere at will, there had to be a loophole somewhere.

So what if they were over 70 years of age and hence illegible as per the new rules. Who was bothered about the “Cooling off period” that the committee recommended. If they were going to be put out to pasture, there had to be a better way to worm their way back in.

So now, their sons and daughters, son in laws and other family members , who may never have played cricket in their lives and have no clue about the game whatsoever , are the new Governors. Surely, this is a joke in poor taste.

Bengal, Saurashtra, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat all have close relatives of the “old guard” in the associations. The BCCI has one as well.

Therefore, what has changed? What cleansing has taken place? What improvements will we perceive? What has justice Lodha to say about this? What is anyone saying about this? Why is this proxy ruling being accepted ?

One may say that the positive aspect is that our men’s cricket team is doing well and bringing honours to the country but is that the answer we are looking for?.

Why can’t we have a clean system, free from petty politics where the best men get the job and the best players are in the various teams – selected purely on merit?

It is about time we had cricketers at the helm. Saurav Ganguly as Head of BCCI is a breath of fresh air. If cricket at all levels in the country is to improve & do well then we need more cricketers running the various associations and cricket boards.

We have seen dynasty rule flopping in other spheres – let's spare cricket the blushes !

Vaping is the new menace all around us and it's about time it was taken more seriously than it already is. Temptation, peer pressure , and experimentation are strong words and however wrong this may sound , no ones' child is exempt.

No parent should ever say " my ward will never ever try it ". No one is beyond reproach.  We live in a world of sweeping fads. They come in like a typhoon and destroy all in their path leaving behind tears , illness ,sadness and above all blame . 

Vaping is on the increase and that's the undeniable truth.

Teens as young as thirteen are getting sucked into the vortex and by the time they are eighteen they are well on the way to being ruined .

It is a misconception that vaping is much safer than smoking and hence awareness is the key. 

Gender, affluence , locality,  family values , educational qualifications and the like are all inconsequential.  

Parents and educational institutions must work closely together to eradicate this menace.

So whether it's formulating new policies,organzing awareness campaigns or tightening of discipline by educational institutions, or looking for signs and just spending more time together for parents  , everyone needs to reach out to the youth to tackle vaping head on.

This is serious business- very serious.

Michael Guzder 

0506568672

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Vaping is the new menace all around us and it's about time it was taken more seriously than it already is. Temptation, peer pressure , and experimentation are strong words and however wrong this may sound , no ones' child is exempt.

No parent should ever say " my ward will never ever try it ". No one is beyond reproach.  We live in a world of sweeping fads. They come in like a typhoon and destroy all in their path leaving behind tears , illness ,sadness and above all blame . 

Vaping is on the increase and that's the undeniable truth.

Teens as young as thirteen are getting sucked into the vortex and by the time they are eighteen they are well on the way to being ruined .

It is a misconception that vaping is much safer than smoking and hence awareness is the key. 

Gender, affluence , locality,  family values , educational qualifications and the like are all inconsequential.  

Parents and educational institutions must work closely together to eradicate this menace.

So whether it's formulating new policies,organzing awareness campaigns or tightening of discipline by educational institutions, or looking for signs and just spending more time together for parents  , everyone needs to reach out to the youth to tackle vaping head on.

This is serious business- very serious.

Michael Guzder 

0506568672

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android

The humble onion

So the humble onion is in the news again and yes , its bringing tears to peoples eyes. Will it make them weep ? That is the question everyone is asking

Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh , West Bengal , Karnataka and Bihar account for most of the onions grown in the country . Maharashtra accounts for one third of that total with its onion belt of Nashik, Ahmednagar , Pune and Aurangabad . As a large part of the state was facing drought this year, the onion was the only hope for farmers to survive.Unfortunately rates never picked up for the entire season and the farmers are not only disgruntled - they are very angry . And an angry farmer in a country like India is not a very good sign .

Farmers blame the central government’s policies for the fall in onion rates. “This government works for the middle class in big cities. To keep them happy, this government controls onion prices. Why is it that every time only farmers are forced to face problems"

In 2010, the prices of onion, in India rose to ₹ 88 from ₹ 25 (per kg) in just one week. The Government had to ban the export of onions and even had to import it from another country .

The Great Onion Crisis of 2010” haunted Mr Manmohan Singh’s government and was something he wished had never happened .

Something similar happened in the year 1980. Due to the sky rocketing prices of onions, the Central government was toppled .

In 1998, once again the prices of onions rose very high leading to a ban on export & affecting the common man . This led to the fall of BJP government in the State elections in Delhi.

In a country like India, where the majority of the population, still, is either spending or making their largest share of income on food items, such rise or fall of prices of basic ingredient can be catastrophic .

Is anybody listening ?