Post Mortem

Football World Cup

So France has won the football World Cup, beating Croatia 4-2 in an unforgettable final last night. Eight hours later, in the Garden today morning, we were to do a post-mortem of what shall be remembered as a match of one self-goal, one penalty goal, one comedy goal and three exceptionally brilliant goals.
“I predicted France would win!” exclaimed Nahid Khan, who had watched the match from start-to-finish on a laptop. “The other team did not stand a chance. They lost because of their own fault. But what a match it was!”
Significantly, almost everybody in the Club had watched the match yesterday and even Yusuf Rassiwala, Rukhsana Khan, Arun Patil and Kajal Babani (who hardly follow football) held an opinion on how the final should/ should not have played out.
Dilip Babani, a staunch Croatia supporter, analysed the “game plan” of France “when they were playing defensive” in the beginning.

After the exercises today, in the China Hut

But he also conceded that the better team won. “Mbappe turned the game around when he suddenly sent the ball crashing into the Croatian goal like a bullet,” Dilip exulted.
Yusuf R was happy that it was not a one-sided contest as “both teams did their best”. More importantly, he got to see some top-class footballers in action as the timing of the telecast (8:30 pm to 10:30 pm) was such that it “was difficult to avoid watching the match”.
And then there was Bijoy Gupta who could not hold himself on the goal gifted by the French goalkeeper to a lone Croatian striker. “It was such a silly mistake, even a schoolboy does not commit in his dreams,” he observed. “And this was to happen in a World Cup final. I haven’t stopped laughing after that joke of a goal.”
Sadly, Siba Prasad Maitra was not there (ref post of July 13). He is knowledgeable about the game and would have added colour to the conversation with his typical one-liners and witticisms on the finer aspects of yesterday’s match.

Lt Col Angad Singh (rtd):
Croatia proved to the world that it has good players as any other big country. The French were dead scared of the zeal of Croatian team. No doubt the better team won the match.

Bihari Milwani:
If this is the kind of interest our members had in a football match India is NOT playing in, I cannot imagine the amount of interest members would show if India was in the finals or say, if it were to be a ladies' final.

DAY 2608

Pic of the Week

RECURRING IMAGE FROM A RAIN-SOAKED WEEK (Can you think of a suitable caption?)

BIG LAAF going by local train to watch the finals of football match? --Bihari Milwani

Monsoon Madness

It hasn't started raining yet

Look at the picture on the left. Exercises are on and there is one man in the middle holding an umbrella. It isn’t even raining yet. This man is an armed forces veteran – a retired officer of the Indian Navy. But like the legendary village chief Vitalstatistix (of Asterix comics) this man is afraid of the sky falling on his head!
You guessed it right. He is indeed our very own Shekhawat.
Bijoy Gupta, his friend, has a pet theory: “Between seven and eight every morning, Shekhawat loses his head.

Nahid Khan is all smiles

A dusht atma (mischievous spirit) enters his body and makes him do things he is not even aware of. Once out of the Garden, he gets back to his senses and behaves like a normal human being.”
But then, why accuse Shekhawat only for wayward behaviour? The monsoon has a way of getting the worst out of us as the picture on the right illustrates. It had rained eventually today morning and as always, we rushed into the China Hut for shelter – except for one lady.
Nahid Khan stayed put in the Garden, getting drenched to the skin, all by herself.

Arun Patil

She couldn’t care what anybody thought of her sitting all alone, without an umbrella, on a bench as it poured cats and dogs. Only after we were more than three-fourths through with the exercises, she joined us. Oddly enough, she had an umbrella upon her now!
Another instance: A portly woman (not a member) had skidded on the slimy pathway and sprained her ankle. Still, she wanted to exercise while we were in the China Hut. And of all the people, Arun (Disciplinarian) Patil rushed to her aid and insisted on massaging her foot. She allowed him... all this, while the exercises were on.
When the massage did not help, Arun made her turn around and began pressing her neck and shoulder with renewed vigor. It was a superb sight, straight out of National Geographic, but cannot be photographed. Only when other ladies like Zareena Khan started wondering aloud if all this was serving any purpose did Arun get a hold on himself and stop.
So why blame Shekhawat alone? The monkey in the air can possess anybody, anytime during the monsoon.

Lt Col Angad Singh (rtd):
We certainly have many crazy people among us. But they also help to keep us laughing -- the main motto of our club. Keep it up, good show.

Two-tier Exercises

ANDAR BAHAR: Exercising in and out of China Hut

Usually, when rain interrupts our exercises, we would instantly gather our umbrellas and make a beeline for the China Hut. Thereafter, we would continue from where we left. This has been our usual practice – our Standard Operating Procedure, so to say.
But what happens when the rain comes and goes? Or threatens to descend, but does not?
This morning, we were caught in such a situation and for once, split into what became a two-tier exercise group. One set (mainly women), dead scared of the rains, insisted on completing the exercises inside the China Hut.

Siba Prasad Maitra

The other set (men mostly) gathered outside, defying the elements – if only to display an exaggerated sense of bravado.
Fact is, exercising

Birthday girl NASEEM KHAN serenaded by Shekhawat and Gupta

in the confines of the China Hut is never comfortable. But in the monsoon, we do not have a choice. We would perforce squeeze into the restricted space, trip over assorted creepies and crawlies on the floor, inadvertently bump and hit one another, inhale foul breath and body odour… Getting out of this hot, dank and stinky situation is always liberating.
One consolation today was that there was a birthday celebration after the exercises. Like Banoo Apa yesterday, Naseem Khan had a small treat for us – a precursor to the mega birthday bash to be hosted by all July-borns jointly (see yesterday’s post) in a restaurant. The highlight of today’s celebration though was Bijoy Gupta and Shekhawat jointly serenading Naseem with a cheesy film number till she turned beetroot red, blushing like a school girl.
Meanwhile, news comes in of Siba Prasad Maitra having hurt himself badly after an idiotic autorickshaw ran over his foot yesterday. He was rushed to Kokilaben Hospital and administered first aid. His X-ray report reveals a fracture on the foot, which Maitra insists on dismissing as a “minor” issue. He has been advised rest for three weeks but he is determined to be up and moving in a week. That’s the spirit!
Still, let us hope and pray he takes good care of himself and recovers soon.

Geeta Latte:
Happy Birthday 🎂🍬🍭🍮 Naseem Aunty 🎂💐🎂

Anonymous:
Bade dukh kii baat hai kii hamare rashtrapati (president of Big Laaf club) zakhmi ho gaye hain.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
Happy Birthday, Naseem Khan. Wish you a happy long life. And dear Maitra-ji, please take care of your health. At this age it does not pay to display bravado.

Hap-Hap-Happy Morning!

It's a beautiful day... Attendance peaked to nearly 20 today morning

Banoo Apa receives the birthday calendar from Siba Prasad Maitra

After a long, long time, we could experience a cool, breezy morning. The rains have gone away (though temporarily) leaving behind a light cloud cover, a lush green Garden stretch and the fresh, unpolluted air of a hill resort.
Only great people such as Pablo Neruda and Bimal Roy and the very blessed like Google boss Sundar Pichai, pianist Robert Carl, Nobel laureate Malala Yousufzai … and our very own Banoo Apa get to celebrate their birthdays on this day.
But ours was a rather simple affair. Siba Prasad Maitra presented the birthday girl with the Club calendar after the usual jing-a-ling of raising a fourth laugh, clapping and singing to the birthday song and exchange of pleasantries.
Banoo Apa is lining up a grand celebration next week in some restaurant, together with other July-borns (ref previous post) of the Club. Yet, true to her generous nature, she treated us to hot home-made tea and muffins to mark the occasion today.

Inspecting the birthday calendar

Celebrating with tea and muffins

As an aside, Naseem Khan had some disturbing news to share. It seems she has been a victim of stalking – that too, from a neighbor half her age she would least suspect. The man followed her to her doorstep upon learning that there was no one in her home. When she raised an alarm, the man disappeared.
The incident has no doubt, left Naseem badly rattled. But she needed to talk about it in the Club today because many of her friends stay in the same neighborhood and know the stalker well from the past. Let’s hope the worst is over.

Lt Col Angad Singh (retd):
Happy Birthday, Banoo Apa. Wish you a very happy and healthy long life. Keep coming to the Garden and enjoy laughing.

Geeta Latte:
Happy Birthday 🎂 dear Banoo Aunty!

Karun Sharma:
Happy Birthday Banoo Apa. God bless you with lots of smiles. I was not able to make it as my role as single parent is loading me with essential personal and professional responsibilities. I wish to be among my BL friends more as my son is flying back from Delhi after 14 days.