Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Masala Mix !




The pain I described in my boastful post just few days back did not let me ease off for so many following days. Though I kept myself pushing along, the morning sessions remained painfully disastrous keeping me too low to my stamina and later forced to visit a doctor.

The doctor didn't take more than five minutes on me and prescribed a muscle relaxing tablet advising twice a day for a week and for rest. It helped miraculously and very next morning I felt the same energy to return back to old pace ignoring his second advice of rest and enabled me to wrote 'Dance in Rain'. Sadly that miracle was effect of that muscle relaxing tab's hidden pain killing (hiding) salts and after a week the uninvited pain was back and this time little more strongly.


A group of ladies and gents do yoga everyday where we usually play in morning. As one of them sometimes play with us, overhearing my problem took me to their yoga teacher, an elderly lady and retired principal, she checked my index finger gave me a jolt declaring these are signs of future Arthritis. 'What the hell' was I about to shout in protest but could not speak so for the sake of respect to lady. Nodding to some exercises she advised I drifted away quietly and decided to stay away from her. My other friends also laughed at her idea and I resumed my game trying to ignore her words and the pain knocking in my finger and left groin.


I still would had ignored it until yesterday morning when came back from play field and lay down again for some sleep (cause of the 'Detective' I slept very late unusually and got up early as usual). But the pain in the chest didn't let me sleep at all even I was feeling too sleepy.


'I gotta get some serious look into it', was my thought and before leaving for office I walked in to the reception of a known specialist of bone & joint.


As I described him only about my left groin and chest, he himself questioned me about any pain in fingers. I was alarmed and stunned. After I nodded to his question and forwarded my right index finger to him he told me to have some blood tests done. 'Are you suspecting Arthritis doc' I asked with pounding heartbeat and wishing for a 'No' from him. But that 'No' never came. "We can only say after your blood test reports but these symptoms are of Arthritis", he said in his professional tone. "What the ---- !" I murmured and then spoke apparently, "Are you sure doc? I mean I am doing bloody two hours of workout daily since my childhood and no such history of this disease is in the family. I think you need to check again." He smiled and said "I have seen this problem with state level sports persons and even to children. So don't worry and get back to me with your test reports."


I don't remember when I left his office and reached a test lab for blood tests. I was so agitated with the idea of suffering from that sicking Arthritis. Me, having such a fantastic track of fitness and being leader of all the physical activities since my childhood and having 'staying fit' always atop in my interest list of all my profiles could have suffered with such shit?? I cannot allow that to happen to me. As they say a main factor of having such problem is cause of increased uric acid in blood and uric acid is increased by much pulses in diet. Now what is the simplest food one can have ? A simple Dal Roti ? And dal was (since yesterday) my favourite among all and I could had dal all the three times. I was really anguished and irritated at myself that being a vegetarian for at least twenty years I started thinking of changing my eating habits and shifting to non veg menu. The future picture looked very gloom to me like sitting at a bench watching others playing or dropping ideas of trekking ever again.


It was very difficult day at office to attend visitors or concentrate at work. I left the office early than usual and went to pick my blood test reports like a student who knew he has failed already.


But there was another thud somewhere inside me as I read the reports.


RH Factor : Negative     Should have Negative
Hemoglobin : 13              Should have between 13 - 18
TLC: 6800 cumm           Should have between 4000 - 11000
Neutrophils: 55%            Should have between 40 - 70%
Lymphocytes: 35%         Should have between 20 - 45%
Monocytes : 2%               Should have between 2 - 10%
Eosinophils : 8%               Should have between 1 - 6 %
Basophils : 0%                  Should have between 0 - 1%
ESR: 1o mm                      Should have between 0 - 9 mm
Uric Acid: 5.0 mg             Should have between 1.5 - 6.0 mg


But of course this thud was of drum beating of a triumph. No idea of how to narrate my feelings at that time. I would have kissed the lab technician standing by me if he had not been an old baldy guy. Again I don't remember when I reached doctor from that lab filled with joy of passing the exam with distinction which I feared to loose a moment ago. Doc there too smiled while glancing at my reports and scribbled down few pills to have for another ten days before calling me for reexamination. Now as he has ruled out Arthritis, let's see if these pill could work any wonder.


But can't stand with the idea of any disease like that. It's Horrible. Just like such a long post :)


Tuesday, June 19, 2007

Detective




As I was looking for some book at the library, the title ‘Detective’ caught my sight. Just to scan the story a bit I started reading the first chapter and it was only “Excuse me” voice from my back for the way which made me realize that I almost had read 12 pages of the book already. Needless to mention I got it issued.

‘Detective’ by Arthur Hailey is a thrilling story of mysteries of gruesome slayings of aged couples by a serial killer and leaving some weird and out of context symbols behind for an ex priest Miami police detective Sergeant Malcolm Ainslie to solve.

The story sets it pace at the very first sentence of very first page and keeps your thoughts provoking till the end. Though at a stage the story seems simple and the name of ultimate criminal struck in your mind just after the middle of 595 pages novel, it was difficult to put the book down. Author has done a great deal of scrupulous research into the modus operandi of the detectives of police force. Every little event has narrated so specifically that it seems like you standing in the middle of actual happening. Hailey kept tickling the nerves of his readers like bringing up a name at 565th page which was mentioned only once in complete novel at page 26 or describing the history of a building just at the doorstep of climax.

An exciting and entertaining novel. It was my first by Arthur Hailey and I surly would be going for second or may be third too.


Monday, June 18, 2007

The 18th of June !







Today for Dad, who left us on the evening of this day two years back. He did not even wait for 15 minutes so I could reach and see him before he breathes his last. Can not say who was in hurry, He or God !


Thursday, June 14, 2007

A Ghazal For A Ghazal !






Lo ji ! Another attempt is made. After Juneli posted Ghazals day after day, how can I stay behind, after all she is my poetry guru and I am following her foot steps :)
This purple flower attracted me at a petrol pump while refuelling my car and I captured this little one in my cell cam.


Dance in Rain !




What else could I have asked for? It went only as I wanted. Only few days back I was thinking of the days we used to play in the rain. Years have passed and I don’t remember the nearest day we played in the rain. It is not that that since years I was not present at the grounds while rain came, I do many times but awfully most of the time either I was acting as referee or we can say an officer who could watch but cannot play.

Until this morning, when I came out of home at six, dark clouds gave a smiling signal. By the time I got free from my warm up and then routine workout at ground, the time seemed running backwards. Dark black clouds covered the entire sky above us and shifted the morning scene into early night with no light at all. People in the ground started packing up for home to avoid getting wet but we were determined to have the feel of rain on us.

As soon as we started playing, rain came with full force. Aha! It was so good after such a long time. We played in the rain for about forty minutes and still wanted to have more. Every single piece of thread of cloths on our bodies was drenched in the rain water. And so was my soul.

Indeed was that a great start of the day after so many days of resting cause of my previous injuries। I simply loved it। But yeh dil mange more.


Monday, June 4, 2007

Let's Play !

Almost daily work out in early morning is my routine since my childhood. This workout includes jogging, sprint, yog and of course my favourite one, playing the games. My day won't sound a day if I am not drenched in my sweat any morning. I remember in my school days when we used to play like maniacs in the summer evenings and when we sat after the game for a breath, we actually could see the white smoke of vaporizing sweat from our hot burning backs.


I still have the memories just like yesterday, when in the rain we used to play the worst game of struggle in the muddy grounds. It was really fun. Never in the life my mom ever scolded me for a torn t-shirt filled with mud or my elbows or knees to be sanded off to the white layer of fresh skin with sparkles of very slowly growing tiny red dots of blood.


It was real fun. I would say without any doubt that I am a lucky guy to still have the almost same fun even now. (Though now days some friend hesitate to bother wives for their dirty clothes or not having that much of enthusiasm as I used to see among my team mates in those good old days) I still have the fun of working out and playing games with my fullest strength. By the grace of god, I have been able to maintain the my image of any match winner. One thing I wanna clear here is that I am not talking about the game of Cricket where two or three persons are active and rest are chewing nails in wait for their turns to move their muscles. We mostly play desi Indian games.


Having a stretched muscle, bad sprain, muscle or nerve strain, twisted ankle, jammed neck, pain of punches on the back or biceps or thighs are very common and friendly problems to me. And these oh-ah-ouch's never could stop me to be at the ground again the very next day. I feel pretty lucky to never have any broken bone till date even with my wild playing. I never had any fracture, touch wood. Though three of my friends had ligament fracture in this May withing a span of only 20 days.


The last muscle strain I had was just around the last week of April. And it was pretty bad. Surprisingly it stayed very long, I could not run at all for almost all the May. I got frustrated as I was not able to have the usual fun I am habitual of and physiologically I felt I was gaining weight cause of not having exercises.


This Sunday morning, I decided to kick off that strain and found myself standing in the court of Kabbadi match refusing to be a referee as per schedule. My friends were happy to see me standing next to them and the friends in the other team were little anxious. The game started well off. Though I was not feeling 100% fit, we managed to gain the lead of 18 to 6 in the first half.


Though many friends sitting outside were feeling it was an unequal match, an experienced and strong player was added in the opponent team to balance the match. As I started the raid in the second half, my strain decided to kick me off. The moment I tried to touch the same player with me left leg, my right one refused to follow with the same pace. A cool wave of pain started from my left groin and knocked the door of my brains while changing expressions on my face. I could not realise when my leg was blocked and held and pulled by the opponent. And I had to fall and I did and I did it very beautifully. Just like as they write, 'he fell like a tree'. In attempt to save myself I tried to support my right hand at the ground but angle went wrong. I landed on my elbow pinning my right chest. Ah! What a fun it was. It felt like some one nailed my elbow in my ribs. As I was just enjoying the pain, five of the other mates jumped on me in fear of I might try to touch the center line. Damn it was good.


I was out and as my team did not want to leave me sitting alone outside the court holding my shoulder, they followed too one by one. A friend who was not playing and was the main person to shout about the unequal match ran to me and spoke while bursting in laugh, " Arre, aaj to untth ko kutte ne kaat liya'. I laughed aloud too but the pain forced me to halt immediately. No need to mention, we lost this friendly match by 26 to 27.


But the pain could not stop me to play a small football match with local kids in the ground for another 15 minutes after we conclude the meet. Do I need to mention, we lost that friendly match too, by 0 to 2 :)

Later at home as the body was cooling down, I started realising the real flavour of these burns & bruises. I was just unable to move with a month old muscle strain in left thigh, a nailed down right rib, strongly twisted right shoulder, jammed neck and puffed right index finger. (what happened to finger? I can't remember). As I was harmless and arms less enemy at the battle field, Vande did not leave any chance to tease me all the day long, making fun of my oh-ah-ouch's.
But as I said before, these injuries cannot dampen my spirits to be at the grounds very next morning (at least I try) shouting to my friends, "Hey, Let's Play".

.