ZooWorld of a U2 Maniac

Semi Retirement - ala - Afridi

2007-04-03T13:41:00.000+05:00

People people - i am sure by now those lost souls who ever by mistake end up on this page, i just want to tell you all that - i am no longer posting on blogspot and currently i am blogging ( rarely ) on " u2ism.wordpress.com ". BUT that does not mean i ve retired and left blogspot. it was my first blogging site and i am still pretty much loyal towards it and who knows, i might make a come back. till then - see you all at u2ism.wordpress.com

N72

2006-12-15T17:47:00.000+05:00

Excitemeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeenntt !!! i got myself new mobile phone after 16 months :D ....

Good bye ( not really ) Nokia 6230i

WELCOME NOKIA N72

Yes People, I got myself a new phone after much deliberations and contemplation that if i shud get myself a phone or not - well, i had my eyes on this particular phone for a while and i was just waiting for its price to drop down a bit and yesterday was the day when i got hold of this shiny, jet Gloss Black color phone which i tell u .... SEX ON PHONE ! its just THAT HOT !!! ufff uff uff !! to die for . I have used some of the most classic and elegant looking Nokia phones, the original beauty, 8310 ... then i went for 6610i and then i used 6230i ... and now this one. The moment i opened it and held it in my hand, i fell in love ! despite all of its shortcomings, handling difficulties, smallish button and all of that, i still thinkits a GEM of a phone ! and supremely practical in every sense of the word. just about everything and anything you want and not to forget, awesome speakers for music. I mean, well, i can go on and on and praise my phone but i ll stop here. HIGHLY recommended phone to whoever wants to change their phone anytime soon ... excellent value for money. a 5 star phone indeed.

P.s: though as much as i love N72 .... i still kept my 6230i .. u may ask why ? well simply because it is a phone i just cannot leave like that. emotional attachment u can say , besides, gadgets are so much better than women when it comes to emotional attachment, u dont suffer any heartbreak or anything of that sort - so its perfect to invest ure emotions to love a phone and not throw it away instead of putting them all in for a woman :p Long live Nokia .. Long live N72 !

Unforgettable Sunday !

2006-12-04T14:43:00.000+05:00

Rrrrriiiggghtt !!! What a sunday i had ! EXCELLENT food ! Super Cricket - and above all, WEATHER TO DIE FOR ! What can us karachites ask for more. Had everything one could ask for in a day. Those who are not in karachi at the moment, they are missing otu a great deal of beauty and weather. Its cold, and since karachi doesnt really have prolong winters, its time we shud all come and celebrate it. Rain has just made things even better, and although its quite difficult to step into bathroom for shower or anything else, with initial burst of cold water makes u want to run out of that place - but who cares - i WANT ICE CREAM, i want to go to BEACH, and i just want to make hay as long as the sun doesnt shine and it remains cold ! ITS TOOFFAAANNII MAUSAM !

To top it all, you only need to play good music and that shud set you up ! ... only thing missing right now is a babe in hand ;) but then ... as Aziz Miyan sings in his famous qawwali - BEWAFA YOUN TERA MUSKURANA, he says " Chandni Raat / Darya mein Safina / Hath mein Neena / Saath Haseena - Bhool janey k qaabil nahin hai " !! Oh well ... i shall do without a haseena for the moment and replace her with Cricket - ha ha ha ! off i go !!!!!!!!

its a beauuuuuuuttiifullllllllllllll dayyyyyyyyyyyyyy !!!

Tagging time !

2006-11-09T19:21:00.000+05:00

This particular tag is result of the ghunda gardi shown by my pseudo-navigator friend heewa so i cant imagine NOT doing it. coz i even dare try to go around it, i ll be forever tainted, forever insulted, humiliated, and worse of all ... I WONT GET MY PROMISED CHOCOLATE CAKE AND STEAM CHICKEN ! so no, i cannot risk that ! here is the taggy :D ( jokes aside, she knows i love doing tags :p - altho this one is a pretty useless one )

Buying clothes:
1.Do you look at country of manufacture or quality of manufacture?
A: not necessarily, abhi recently i got some BRANDED shirts which were made in sri lanka and bangladesh :p and then i got a GIFT of a shirt from same brand, and that was made in pakistan :p so no, its the age of globalization and all such shit, no country matters more. Quality baby !

2.Do you make sure they are natural fabrics?
A: ermm, sorry, but i am not really fussy about these things. buss it should be light.

Generals:
3.Sunglasses, fashion or protection?
A: al haraM ! fashion fashion !

4.If you were a dog, would you bark or bite?
A: why the bloody hell would i want to be a dog to bite someone ? but yes, i will bite ! viciously ;)

5.Do you turn your cellphone off before going to sleep?
A: No, i wish i start doing that but then i am fearful of the spanking i might get from my parents for doing that and not waking up to say fajar prayers :$

6.You came home from out and have an hour to go before going out to meet a friend,what is the most probable thing which you'll do in that hour?
A: Orkutting :p ... no jokes apart, will go online most probably or call someone up to kill time. maybe call up the friend who i am supposed to meet and tell them to HURRY UP !

7.What's you favourite state of chocolate, liquid or solid?
A: state? excuse me? wtf is this? chocolate's chocolate is CHOCOLATE. - i will use hira's answer for this.

8.What would you choose..A noticeable pay hike or noticeable improvement in work environment?
A: tau bhayya ; bat yeh hai k sab say bara hai rupayya !

9.What do you enjoy more.. Staying indoors with friends talking meaningfully or hanging around with friends outdoors?
A: depends which friends i am with. there are some OUTDOOR friends and then there are some INDOOR friends. and then there is the kind who u enjoy BOTH indoor and outdoor :) i have got all .

10. If all the music artists come to a deliberate agreement to perform their last concert on the same day,whose concert will you attend?
A: hahahahahahhahahahaha - lamest question. stupid question. is that even a QUESTION to be asked ?

p.s: HEEWA, cake and chicken !

Windows in the Skies ... U2

2006-11-09T13:20:00.000+05:00

People poeple ! i know i am i am late by ages but well , i ve been slacking off and thats about it. Had the most stupidly boring and awful birthday , eid was just a tad better considering i had my cousin getting engaged and it was alot of halla gulla, started socialising starting the 28th of ramadan and that lasted well till this week. Alot of night matches, alot of dinners and above all, the even i had been waiting for ever since past 6 months - MUNCHKINS gig on 27th October at dunkins donut.

This particular post is going to be more on the musical side, since i am gearing up for music, and more music and those who know me ... music for me primarily means one thing - U2 - yes folks. U2 is back in town and they already have released their magnum opus concert, ZooTv Sydney on DVD, and come this november 21st, they will release their 3rd compilation of best of singles, U218 is the name and it has 16 classics plus 2 new songs, Saints are coming (which they covered and played with Greenday ) and the latest song by band, WINDOW IN THE SKIES. I am typing this blog entry while listening to that song and ufff, it has got the most gorgeous, killer hooking chorus line ! i just cant move out that line of my head. Although, overall, song is not a classic as Electrical Storm was, but i ll still give this song 6.5or7 out of 10. But please , check out the lyrics and concentrate on the last one specially. The part where it says 'i know i hurt you...' onwards and ofcourse, the million dollar chorus - "Oh Cant you see what our love has done " FUCKING BRILLIANT !!!!!!!

Window in the Skies - U2

The shackles are undone
the bullet's quit the gun
the heat that's in the sun
will keep us when there's none
the rule has been disproved
the stone it has been moved
the grain is now a groove
all debts are removed

oh can't you see what our love has done
oh can't you see what our love has done
oh can't you see what our love has done
what it's doing to me

(awesome guitar)

love makes strange enemies
makes love where love may please
soul in its strip tease/so that it should tease
hate brought to its knees
the sky over our head
we can reach it form our bed
if you let me in your heart
and out of my head

oh can't you see what our love has done
oh can't you see what our love has done
oh can't you see what our love has done
what it's doing to me

oooh oooh oh oooooooh
oooh oooh oh oooooooh

please don't ever let me out of here
i've got no shaaaaaame oh no oh no

oh can't you see what love has done
oh can't you see
oh can't you see what love has done
what it's doing to me

i know i hurt you and i made you cry
did everything but murder you and i
but love left a window in the skies
and to love i rhapsodize

oh can't you see hwat love has done
to every broken heart
oh can't you see what love has done (continues in bkgrd)
for every heart cries
love left a window in the skies
and to love i rhapsodize

oooh oooh
oh can't you see

oooh

Besides that, the band i am all nuts about , the local version of U2, and so many other bands, Munchkins, they made a comeback after their last performance back in february. It was a power packed show and the guys were at their rocking best ! ... those who havent experienced munchkins, might want to check out their sample video at You Tube and go fall in love !

Elevation by Munchkins - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLpRZn3rh7k

Lastly, U2 have started touring for their last leg of Elevation tour. First night was played to a crowd of 50,000 in brisbane on 7th november. They ll tour across down under and end up at Hawaii to end the 5th vertigo tour leg with final performance at Aloha Stadium hawaii and guess whos opening for them - PEAAAAAAAAAARRRLLL JAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMM baby !!

my downloading machine is set and ready to rock and roll ! :D Have fun you all ! tao tao

Happy birthday - Mom

2006-10-05T15:34:00.000+05:00

Its October, its kind of a birthday month for me . quite a few friends/relatives have their birthdays in this particular month, some seriously good GREAT friends too . Consider this as a birthday post for all of those were born in this month who i want to wish all the best. That said, this particular post i am writing is about the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON IN MY LIFE. The person who made me what i am. The person to whom i owe EVERYTHING in my life. Quite literally, the person i singularly love more than ANYTHING, ANYBODY else in this whole wide world.

Happy Birthday mom ! ... i know you`ll never read this, but i just cant help but write it over here .. just wanted to wish you all the very best in your life, and may you have 100 more birthdays InshAllah ! ...

Okay, now on to the rest of the people who are born in this month. Happy birthday you all :)

2nd October - My Chacha
4th October - Rabia
5th October - Ammi
7th October - Aqida
9th October - Haziq
11th October - Sana
13th October - Fatima
13th October - Sadia
14th October - Nazish
14th October - Tooba
15th October - Usman
18th October - Ali Cha cha
19th October - Ahsan
22nd October - Faraz Bhai
24th October - Muddassir
27th October - Atif Bhai
27th October - Muneezay
31st October - Larry Mullen Jnr.

My God .... this month is BAD considering the amount of birthdays i have to wish. and thank god for the fact that i dont give anybody, any gift :p otherwise i would be on roadside by the end of this month. LOL

Happy birthday you all !

Sweetheart ... You`re So Cruel .

2006-09-19T14:45:00.000+05:00

I was just wondering, its been a while since i did anything on U2 up here on my blog which is weird since my blog name is u2ism, my page title is in direct reference to U2 and lastly, the blogskin is U2. but fear no more .. i am going back on my U2 obsession phase (which usually drives my friends and accomplices nuts because then i can talk/walk/see nothing else but U2) and guess which song brought me back to the heartland - So Cruel ....

I have been asked a few times listing my top U2 favourite songs and i ve almost always managed to name my top 4 straight ahead. So Cruel is one of them and it surprises most of the people. This Song was recorded on the U2 epic, 'ACHTUNG BABY' and is possibly, the most underrated song of the entire U2 discography, or so i think atleast. Not a most recognizeable song but then as i mentioned, one of the very rare U2 song which talks about relationship and only relationship. Love/hatred/possessiveness/jeaoulsy/betrayal ... all of it is SO evident in this song. Bono wrote one of the most poignant and moving lyrics of his life in this song. They just hit the right chords in such a manner the listener is in a trance, and shaking by the end of song, his body intense, thoughts swirling wildly in mind ... this song is coming from a mind which is at its most restless and most volatile and disturbed. Its a dangerous song. and Danger is good. So is this song. This song is Good, or perhaps , much more than that. much more than any amount of words can do justice to what this song is. Next time, play it at 11.30am, switch off the lights and let it go on a loop. Experience the 'So Cruel' phase. Its phenomenal. its unbelieveable. its mindblowing. Its painful ....

So Cruel

We crossed the line
Who pushed who over
It doesn't matter to you
It matters to me

We're cut adrift
But still floating
I'm only hanging on
To watch you go down
My love

I disappeared in you
You disappeared from me
I gave you everything you ever wanted
It wasn't what you wanted

The men who love you, you hate the most
They pass right through you like a ghost
They look for you but your spirit is in the air
Baby, you're nowhere

Oh...love...you say in love there are no rules
Oh...love...sweetheart...
You're so cruel

Desperation is a tender trap
It gets you every time
You put your lips to her lips
To stop the lie

Her skin is pale like God's only dove
Screams like an angel for your love
Then she makes you watch her from above
And you need her like a drug

Oh...love...you say in love there are no rules
Oh...love...sweetheart...
You're so cruel

She wears my love like a see-through dress
Her lips say one thing
Her movements something else
Oh love...like a screaming flower
Love...dying every hour...love

You don't know if it's fear or desire
Danger the drug that takes you higher
Head in heaven, fingers in the mire

Her heart is racing, you can't keep up
The night is bleeding like a cut
Between the horses of love and lust
We are trampled underfoot

Oh...love...you say in love there are no rules
Oh...love...sweetheart...
You're so cruel

Oh...love...to stay with you I'd be a fool
Sweetheart...you're so cruel

You could listen to Achtung Baby every which way. You could turn it upside-down. You could look at it from a dozen different angels. It doesnt matter. No matter what wa you come at it, there is blood on the tracks. And nowhere is this more evident than in the ballad 'So Cruel'
Introduction to SO CRUEL taken from 'U2 - into the heart by Niall Stokes'

On a side, but related note ... Listen to 'Aarzoo' by noori. I heard that song and within 5 minutes i came to the conclusion this song is to noori what So Cruel is to U2. I dont think i can ever give a bigger compliment to any song than this.

P.S: There is a B-side, not exactly a B-side but an earlier demo work by U2 which actually gave birth to So Cruel. That song is called 'Laugh in the face of Love/So Cruel'. Quite a brooding song that one in its own right.

First ever tagging !

2006-09-11T10:58:00.000+05:00

Well, here is my first ever tagged post. First up, i did not exactly understand what all the fuss is about 'tagging' and what is it. but well, it turns out it aint rocket science to begin with.

anyways, on with the tagging - sent to me by Ambreen Appa...

I am thinking about...
how to get out and enjoy the weather with some hot company :p

I said...
i - Rock.

I want to...
run, and i also want to hide and then tear down the walls - ala Bono style.

I wish...
to get 3 more wishes

I miss...
pluto

I hear...
U2

I wonder...
why the world is gol(circle) , why not a chokor (square) or mustateel (triangle)

I regret...
at disappointing some REALLY good friends and eventually, losing them.

I am...
what you can never be.

I dance...
and i fall down, for i suck at dancing.

I sing...
and i make others wail and plead me to stop.

I cry...
no, i DONt cry. i am a macho man.

I am not always...
right, but i live in denial.

I write...
awful, with gazillions of grammatical mistakes but then, i live in denial :p

I confuse...
others.

I need...
water.

I should try...
cooking ?

I finish...
before anybody else does.

p.s: i just realized, knowing how frequently (or infrequently :p) i update my blog, i really should do more tagged stuff and that will keep me busy. i am a tagging fan !!

Bewafa Youn Tera Muskurana ...

2006-08-16T12:04:00.000+05:00

Ever since last weekend, 12th august when i missed Abida Parveen's performance at Karachi Club, that has somewhat sparked a revival of my interest in qawwalis and folk music. I have always been a big fan of such stuff majorly because till the dawn of new millenium, we used to have annual qawwalis taking place at our home every shawwal. They were a HUGE affair and my nana used to look after the entire thing with much enthusiasm and verve. It used to be an open air thing which would go on right till fajar. Earlier, i just could not see the sense out of this and the whole salaami thing to qawwals seemed like a farce :p not only that, but people in trance and doing dhamaal and what not ... me being me, always thought its all playacting and dramay baazi, but as i later grew up and went on to appreciate and understand it better, i pretty much well can understand where did all that come from . Besides that, when abbu was working with Jinnah he used to be the head of cultural committee which organized various talent shows inviting singers like nayyara noor, alamgir, shayki, tina sani and numerous others. Now ... with a bit of history going on how do i like this stuff ... moving on to the contemporary times.

Well, Nusrat Fateh Ali khan brought the boom in qawwalis ever since `92 Worldcup and i ve been a lifelong fan. Possessing some of this old and all time classic works, he remains top of the line for me. But apart from Khan sahab, the other 2 are Abida Parveen (my dad's personal fav) and the phenomenal, fascinating, and enchanting - Aziz Mian late. Just the other day i bought few CDs, one was Abida performing at Royal Albert Hall in 2000 (Double CD) and the other one, 3 qawwalis from Aziz Mian.

Abida's collection is simply out of this world. Just no words can describe the serenity in her voice, the calm, the ebb and flow , i mean, it is just AWESOME ! As mentioned in New York Times, " Owner of one of the most remarkable voices on planet". That certainly is a fact nobody can deny who has seen her performing even once. The collection includes Man Kuntu, Jab say tu nay Mujhe Deewana , Raqs e bismal , Yar de Gharoli, Mast Qalander, Ishq Nacchaya , Meda Ishq, and so many other brilliant ghazals which make your mind go berserk !

Apart from Abida, there is this one man who was a genius, a gifted lyricist, and a vocalist second to none. Aziz Mian Qawwal was simply irresistable and the way he belted out classics after classics, it was a sheer treat and joy. His famous qawwalis, Mein Sharabi Sharabi and Teri Soorat Nigahoun Mein Phirtee rahey ... but for me , the real Gems were " haye Kambakht Tu nay Pee Hee Nahin' and above all , BEWAFA YOUN TERA MUSKURNA ! I mean .. Oh God ! it is just out of this mind ! You hear that once and go crazy ! ... Or rather let me put it this way, i have heard ALOT of music .. pop/rock and all that, alot of live performances, people know my U2 craze, but not alot of music really makes me want to head bang, but this stuff does. You know, i almost coined a new music genre, 'Sufi Trance Rock' - Now however one can interpret it, certainly not my problem but this stuff puts me thru a trance and as close to headbanging i can ever be ! Halka Halka Suroor, Haye Kambakht, Allah Hoo .... all of this made me realize and understand WHY people do dhamal and what is that pushing them towards it. it comes from within, it just kicks you from inside and you feel enchanted, captivated by it all. There is not a great deal of music going on, just VERY VERY strong lyrics, awesome vocals and the manner it is belted out - marvellous .

I wish i could transcribe the entire 'Bewafa Youn Tera Muskurana ... ' but i cannot, but before leaving ... will just leave a few lines ....

"Bewafa say bhi Piyar hota hai / Yar kuch bhi ho yar hota hai
Jo Haqeeqat mein Pyar Hota hai / Umar mein Eik Baar Hota hai
Bewafa Youn Tera Muskurana / Bhool Janay k Qabil nahin hai ... "

"Unn ka Bulanaa / Mera Na Janaa
Takay woh Mujhay Aur Manaaein
Bhool Janay k Qabil nahin hai ... "

I dont know if this will come across as as stunning or mindblowing as i ve been writing about, but believe me, once anybody listen to it ... it is just phenomenal.

Next time round, will write about the giant, the legend ... Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan . Stay tuned.

Nightswimming - REM

2006-08-07T03:01:00.000+05:00

Its raining. I am scanning. Nightswimming playing. Swirling in my mind. time check : 3:06am.

Nightswimming - REM

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night
The photograph on the dashboard, taken years ago,
Turned around backwards so the windshield shows
Every streetlight reveals the picture in reverse
Still, it’s so much clearer
I forgot my shirt at the water’s edge
The moon is low tonight

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night
I’m not sure all these people understand
It’s not like years ago,
The fear of getting caught,
Of recklessness and water
They cannot see me naked
These things, they go away,
Replaced by everyday

Nightswimming, remembering that night
September’s coming soon
I’m pining for the moon
And what if there were two
Side by side in orbit
Around the fairest sun?
That bright, tight forever drum
Could not describe nightswimming

You, I thought I knew you
You, I cannot judge
You, I thought you knew me,
This one laughing quietly underneath my breath
Nightswimming

The photograph reflects,
Every streetlight a reminder
Nightswimming deserves a quiet night, deserves a quiet night

The week it was ...

2006-08-04T02:39:00.000+05:00

Alright, i need to blog. i need to blog about rain. i need to blog about U2. i need to blog about cricket.i need to blog about car(s), civic center and the khuwaree i had to endure all this while. i need to blog about karachi. i need to blog about songs. i need to blog about get togethers.i need to blog about birthdays. i need to blog about friends, and above all, i need to blog about a friend who came to karachi for the first time and made all us karachites her biggest fan, yes, i HAVE to blog about Sidra-h H-a-q-u-e. (note: sorry abid, i edited this since i hate how it pops on google search and directs people to my blog - me)

Well, its been a while but been really occupied with domestic chores going on at home with me being elevated to the status of chachu after 7 years as solely a mamu. yes ladies and gentlemen, as u can check out in an entry below, i became chachu for the first time on 16th July with the birth of my niece Hamna Fatima Hussain, whos a doll ! :D (for pics check flickr page). Aside from that, a shadi in khandan and relatives were over which kept me quite ocupied with that but then onwards everything was under control and going thru the motions. i got myself few new books, special mention have to be made regarding a most fantastic book BONO ON BONO - Mischka Assays, which is i think is a must read book. just btw, i only wonder if the publisher of that book pay a visit to Jumbo Book stall and what their reaction will be like when they see the book in its original hardback form and the price tag attached to it. I wont mention it over here, but my cousin was like ' abid bhai, bono ki YEH izzat hai pakistan mein ? ' and i could only laugh !!

Aside from that, its been rather quiet from U2 front but i only 2 days back got a news which made me jump out of my chair and scream u2 u2 u2 u2 & PEARL JAM ! yes baby YES !! U2 announced they are going to resume their Vertigo Tour down under which was previously postponed because of sudden illness in a band memeber's family. Now they are going to be back and guess what, mother of all concerts, the finale, december 8th at Aloha Stadium Hawaii - whos doing the intro you guess, PEARL JAM ! I mean, what a concert THAT is going to be !!! Vedder with Bono !! Daughter merging into Bad ? Black into One ? Jeremy into Streets ? the possibilities are just endless ! it is going to be one helluva thing and i am MOST eagerly looking forward for year end.

Cricket, i would have loved skipping this topic but since 3rd test is starting from tomorrow and all ican say is boby instill some confidence and steel back into the team which has carried them to 2nd ranking in ICC championships and not losing a test series since 2005 january. we were blown away in 2nd match but knowing pakistan, i can expect something miraculous as always, though extremely short on bowling resources but lets see, what goes tomorrow.

Now, few posts back i mentioned about car troubles i was having with my santro, so as things stand now, we decided to get ourselves another car and we eventually decided to buy my sister's corolla 2003 model and the transaction got completed last week and ever since i ve been consumed with that new car for 4 days straight. First it was a visit to civic center, has to be among one of the most unorganized, ill-mannered, indisicplned office in pakistan - wahan say went to get CNG kit installed which took such a long time ! and then on thursday 27th it was time to go and get trakker device installed in the car.

Now, that particular thursday is the time where my real thing starts, 27th july 2006 started one of the best week of my life, certainly.27th July is the birthday of my one and only celebrity friend, Insiya Syed ;) . Besides that, let me reveal it over here to everybody else, i ALREADY KNEW Sidrah is going to come, as a matter of fact, i was the only person who knew this whole plan beforehand so it wasnt a surprise to me that she landed in karachi that morning. Infact, i was quite waiting to know when she ll come and all. Anyhow, i went to get the trakker thing installed when sidrah told she has landed and upon asking where is she, as luck would have it, was quite literally TWO buildings away from where i was. So that kick started a mega good day with AWEEEEESSSOOOMMEEE weather which brought the FIRST rain in karachi this summer (something to do with ms. haque i guess) and i went up to meet her, after which i became guide for the first time in my life and took her to a flying visit and among other things, showed her 'THE CLIFTON BRIDGE' :p Later that day, went to Pizza hut for insi pinsi ki birthday and that was a blast - and guess who was the star of the evening, Mr John Louis Pinto, by a long distance !

Right - now after that, time litreally went past like a blur, ice cream at sheraton on friday night with my guest from lahore, lunch at espresso on saturday, where i was technically late with the ever wonderful Appa and sidrah, who i met after a LONG time and the fun we had discussing bihari wedding traditions and totally freaking out poor, puzzled Sidrah who couldnt understand what we 2 were on about :p then later malling around Park towers for the first time in my life and ofcourse, meeting up with the Syed family at indulge - marvellous i tell you !

Sunday i go to dreamworld with family and half meet/half see one of the most important person in my life, in SUCH A gorgeous weather, it was beyond words! Cricket that very evening with cousins where i kicked every single ass BIG TIME !I MEAN, how can u top a performance where you start your participation in the match by taking a hattrick frm first three balls you bowl and then steering your team to three consecutive victories. i tell you this much, i shud have been there at the manchester helping pakistan :p

and then ofcourse, THE TUESDAY. I really need not to say anything except that my companions from that day have already written in a much better way whatever happened, all i can say is - THANK YOU, Madiha, Insiya, Hira, Saphiya and ofcourse Sidrah, a BIG THANK YOU to ALL of you for the company - it was sheer pleasure being around. not to forget the unbelieveably amazing Chocolate cake at nandos later that night.

and now lastly, wednesday - where i get to meet Umar sahab again, in comical circumstances obviously, since i had my car keys locked up inside the car and all, and ofcourse, met ms. Khizra that day and became a fan immediately ! as they say in the books, literally bowled over ! the fact that you love matka jhatkas just makes you so much more precious ! :p

and lastly, today - when Sidrah's stay in karachi came to its end, but i am SO much looking forward for her next trip down to K-town, no question she is a lahorite and whatever, but i am certain she will definitely have good memories from her visit here, atleast i know for a fact that I simply had ball with her, be it driving around the city, going to beach, loving the wind, wishing if we could play tennis, having ice cream at sheraton, and ofcourse walking around park towers, choosing between sinatra and bombay vikings :p, plans to visit that underground eatery ;) and what not ! i guess just about that and everything else we did/talked about. All i can say is, Thank YOU SO much for coming. Thank you.

SuperMonis on Abby Mamoon

2006-07-24T00:18:00.000+05:00

LOL , look at that , my janooest Bhanja monis trying to do a Superman sort of flip on my shoulders :p ...

1st picture

2006-07-17T01:25:00.000+05:00

1st picture
Originally uploaded by bono-fan.

Yes, thats my niece, Yumna Fatima Hussain. Born 16th July 2006 @ 7:45am. Nice, no ? a bit loud as one can see frm the picture :D

Saturday Rituals - mE Like `em

2006-06-18T23:42:00.000+05:00

DSC00217
Originally uploaded by bono-fan.

Well - so all others who are concerned with the saturday ritual ( not a ritual, but becoming one hopefully ) have blogged already bout it, think its time i shud put it up now too.

But before that, just a roundup of what was going on or what i ve been upto which was nothing alot actually. Going crazy with car's CNG issues. Phele it was plug wire which conked out, then couple of plugs got damaged and mother of all issues, faulty air filter box which had to tempered and juggarofied to get it fixed. Now all was done, plugs are again giving up and i am just wondering WHAT THE EFFFF !! Its Khuwari.com going on lately, and nothing else. I switch it on petrol and car is running like i might as well drive in F1 but as soon as i convert to cng, the usual phat phat phat starts. Oh, one more thing, as my companion yesterday Madiha will testify, break needs serious adjustment and wheel alignment is absolutely out ! Have to get it fixed this week for SURE.

moving on to other stuff, lots of guests are over at my place since there is going to be a big shadi in july ; worldcup is going on full swing and producing some scintillating matches, biggest one was yesterday when ghana rolled over chezck republic. huge upset it was.

and Now, coming back to the main thing - as the subject says, an all 'bridge k ISS paar' wala gang has decided to join forces and be together at Ms. Insiya Syed's house under the disguise of participating in a ludo tournament (honourable mention must go to that DIL WALA LUDO board :p ) and would u believe it, we havent even laid the gotis on the board yet ! its been amazing last 2 weekends with LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTSSSS of gossip, opinions, dil ki bharas nikalnay waley session, taking on each one , and eventually concluding to agreement over everything. I never actually expected all of it go to So well ! the way all of us clicked together, and the comfort zone we were in, simply amazing, or as the blogger word of the day, MAGICAL it was :) . Went to Lattetude yesterday when we actually were supposed to go to Nandos ! thanks to our psuedo navigator.

Special mention MUST go to Saphiya, who i met yesterday for the first time and the way it was, did not seem at all if it was the first meeting. You`re one charming lady - hope to see you soon.
(uss chicken fillet pe mera naam likkha hua tha ;)

Thanks to everyone there. I had a ball.

P.S: Insiya, I am still curious to know WHY did u complain about your neck when you were only supposed to eat food, why why why !
P.P.S: He is STILL gay with a silver number - and you are Number 9 ;) [if u remember what i am talking bout]

U2ism @ FlickR - Visit now !!

2006-06-02T16:11:00.000+05:00

brother love
Originally uploaded by bono-fan.

Okay, now that i am back to blogging and everything else associated, i realized that i am more inclined towards a photo blog than a mere text blog and hence in order to do that, i decided to open up myself an account at that wonderful thing called FlickR . Was always a memeber there because of atu2.com's involvement by putting up U2's concert pictures. Now, all of you can check my stuff out there (since i am armoured with a digital camera finally), and laugh out loud :)

www.flickr.com/photos/u2ism

EnjOy !

P.s: Esp thanks to misha for all the help and assistance.

shave-man

2006-05-31T21:23:00.000+05:00

shave-man
Originally uploaded by bono-fan.

OKay .. i know i am getting a bit wild with this but i cant help it since misha told me such a simple way to upload pics and since i am just trying to fiddle around with all this ... people might have to endure this torture just as well, which i actually call as one of my better pics of all time ! thats huge coming from me since the fact that i was a major cutie when i was in my nappies. So watch in agony and enjoy if you could :p

P.S - My best friend called it a porn pic, is it so ?

Computer Desk

2006-05-31T20:55:00.000+05:00

Computer Desk
Originally uploaded by bono-fan.

Look, thats where i operate my starship from !

Bachna Aye Haseeeena !!! Lo Mein Agayaaaaaaaa !

2006-05-31T16:43:00.001+05:00

Okay Okay ! I should be shot, i know that. But you see, i wanted to celebrate my azaadi by wasting time and that i ve been doing since last 14 days ever since my annual leaves started. But that said, ladies and gentlemen, let me reveal here ... I have tendered my resignation and although I am on annual leaves right now, I shall officially be an EX mobilink employee on 14th June 2006, exactly ONE year after i joined.

Reasons why i quit was primarly the fact that i promised my parents that i ll work for 12 months and not more than that, aside from that, MBA beckons too. Dont ask the details but i am still in the process of checking out my options and the first one probably is going to be SZABIST.

Aside from that, life is going at a rather normal pace with nothing much of note except the fact that we bought a new Sony Digital camera DSC-W100 and man, its a pretty good camera. I'll upload few pics and will look to my resident gadget guru Misha to comment and suggest.

Now, life without work is turning out to be somewhat bore which is exactly what I expected it to be even. The fact that I worked my ass off for the last 10-11 months and took a major hiatus from most of the thing I normally do and in the process missed a lot of stuff as well, it was a routine and I was quite used to it. So now that I have bucket loads of time on my hand, I am somewhat confused what to do with it. Infact, the other day I was just thinking if I could have done much more rather than sitting idly and wasting myself this way, my mom came up with a brilliant answer. She was like treat this idle time as a gift from God, because once you start education and other stuff that ll keep you occupied, this FARIGH time will never come back again. Do WHATEVER you want, or DO NOTHING for that matter ... just try to enjoy it as much as it lasts because this won’t come again, atleast for a while now.

Anyways .. have got myself couple of new books, one is Messiah Code by John Condy and the other one is Killing Bono - I was Bono's Doppleganger written by Neil McCormick. Which btw is a very interesting book in itself.

Well, that’s about it – but wait ! I have started a new blog with Sidrah which is specially for all tennis aficionados and will be updated with latest from tennis world and opinion/comments about our favourite/hated players so do keep an eye on that! So that’s about for now, will come up with something new and INTERESTING in coming days. Adios!

2006-05-25T18:12:00.000+05:00

"Bow, BOW before us your worthless commoners!!!!"

abid, my friend, it is the era, we're in :)

and you need a Blogging 101 - you've forgotten how to make posts!

- Sidrah

May You have Many Many More :)

2005-11-25T15:19:00.000+05:00

Well, it is this aupicious day when i update my blog, and it is this special day when i wish HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY MOST ADORABLE friend, who sounds like she is still in school and is young and naive ;) but when you READ her, yes ... READ her stuff and you ll fall in love the next second.
Besides that, my fellow sports buddy - that says it all.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to YOU . and No, i wont NAME you over here. It was just amazing talking to you last night along with Hira. must do it sometimes soon, and i even have a date in my mind when can we do it.

With that, i end my post ( i am in a hurry, still have to get ready for work and its less than 45 minutes left ) so i ll just run wishing you the best in life, now and always.

Happy birthday babe !

I am Alive / I am being Born ...

2005-07-04T03:21:00.000+05:00

I'm alive
I'm being born
I just arrived
I'm at the door
Of the place I started from
And I want back inside

All Because of You - U2.

For all of those who basically gave up hope if i ll ever venture back onto the Blog world. :)

What a Day, What a Match, What a Night, What a Concert !!

2005-04-04T12:11:00.000+05:00

This particular blog confirms the fact that i should be given the title of slowest Blog updater. Infact, more than that, it seems as if my body clock is a week slow or something. But the thing, my this blog will be a boastful rant of HOW we kicked indian asses in bangalore, and how U2 kicked butts of all the rock groups combined, when it comes to live performance.

Yes ladies and gentelmen, this particular blog should have been written on 28th march but for whatever reasons i am writing it now along with few minor updates. Hope you all enjoy reading the following edition of AbidSports.com and Abidu2news.com.

Sports - WE WON ! WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON WE WON.

I cannot remember the last time i shouted myself hoarse this way while watching a Pakistan cricket match and believe me, it was probably the best setting too. We were at uni and with just one class, everybody planned to gang up in computer lab and suck up the servers at cricinfo.com, little did we know that our cafe wallay, Lateef bhai will arrange for this old, worn out 21inch ka TV and place it in cafe. From 11pm till 4:00pm, there were almsot 250-300 students in the cafe PLUS teachers as well [ classes were unofficially suspended ] and all of us sat thru the whole thing. It was a mindblowing experience, something which just does not happen again n again. As i write these lines, i am getting goosebumps just by visulizing and recalling the images of that day, the way we screamed at Shewag's run out, hugging each other at Dravid's dismissal, shouting at Laxman's departure , AND THE BIGGEST CHEER OF THE DAY, GANGULY GETTING BOWLED !

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHHAAHHAHAHAHA

It was a single MOST picture perfect moment thrown from this series. It was out of this world feeling, NO amount of words can do justice to the feeling of ecstasy we felt when he was bamboozled by MY MAN AFRIDI ! Even Sidrah cannot possibly articulate into words the joy which exuded from his wicket. It was simply, MARVELLOUS. The stunned look on his face, as if he saw death pass by and took away the timber. The Shock, the disbelief, the horror, it was unbelieveable stuff . Sutff of dreams i tell you.

Sachin, although was dropped before tea and that made us all curse Asim Kamal, but God Bless Sami for providing that Waqar-esque Yorker to get rid of Dinesh Khartick and then 2nd kodak moment, Afridi snaring Saching and running after that with Inzimam following him all the way.

Finally, after much suspence and stout resistance from Kumble, and soem dubious decisions in favour of Indians, Kaneria finally broke the barrier and claimed the final wicket. This victory, i believe ranks almost as close to what Pakistan did back in `99 at Chennani against same opponents. *me* bows and salutes to the whole team.

Cricket update - [Acting like most indians do when they lose] One day series started and pakistan played poor cricket and lost the first ODI with a huge margin of 87 runs. next match on April 5th.

Tennis - There is ONE king in world of Sports, and he goes with sophistication and precision of a Swiss clock and his name is . ROGER FEDERER. Last week, he defended his title at Indian Wells TMS cup and yesterday he faced a msot resolute and a super talented teen-age spaniard, Rafael Nadal. It was a dog fight from start and i just happen to catch the match from START. After sitting thru 3 hours and 43 minutes of gruelling, tense, and gut wrenching display of tennis, King finally won after going under a 2 set deficit by 2-6, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5), 6-3, 6-1. I am So going to watch its highlight today when i get back home and i would suggest all tennis afficiandos to DO check it out, first 2 sets you ll find Nadal playing breathtaking tennis and last 3 sets, Federer and his Magical wand manufactured by Wilson Rackets.

U2 Update - U2 is back ! BIG TIME ! On the same day, 28th march when Pakistan secured that memorable victory, U2 opened up their Vertigo Tour concert at San Deigo and it was a super success. Although, i have my reservations against the setlist of first night but nonetheless, return of RTSS , Zoo Station and Electric Co is much welcome. So far they ve played 4 concerts and once again thanks to my University net, been able to download 2 of them [ San Diego # 1 and Anahiem # 1] . Anahiem # 2 is turning out difficult because probably no tapers were allowed inside. San Diego # 2 will come pretty soon when its uploaded in MP3 format, currently its avaialble in SHN lossless format which made 24 songs a whopping 730mb. Apart from that, i ve got hold of atleast 12 U2's unreleased and Rare tracks which were included in THE COMPLETE U2 BOX SET COLLECTION done with the collaboration of U2 and Apple which also gave us that stunning, super sexy Black & Red U2 iPod. *me* is a VERY happy person :D

Lastly, the final news i want to pass on to those who are not yet aware of it, Yours Truly is heading to Lahore InshAllah on Wednesday the 6th via airblue and coming back on Sunday the 10th InshAllah. This will be my first trip across Pakistan in 5 years. Lahorites, I WANT COMPLETE protocol. Special reminder to Sarah, Cute Man is coming ;) [open to debate :p]

Have fun you all !

Tentative Concert Setlist !

2005-03-26T12:35:00.000+05:00

U2 is set to start their VERTIGO TOUR in 3 days time and its going to be , in bono's words, 'FUCKING BRILLIANT'. U2 first rehearsed for their concert at vancouver and now they have moved to L.A where they will continue the rehearsels. From the various websites, 2 playlists have emerged which have strong possiblity of being played on the opening night. Previous rumours also stated that U2 might choose from a pool of 50 songs to select and rotate during this concert, which means that this is going to be a super show and you can expect songs to change ond aily basis. Treat for all oldies. Anyways, on to the playlists.

1- This one came out on March 17th, [ and i actually wish this one is played, though i still think MY suggested list kicks some major arse ]

Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
Stuck In A Moment
Love And Peace Or Else
Out Of Control
City Of Blinding Lights
All Because Of You
Yahweh
40
Bad
Beautiful Day
Pride
Where The Streets Have No Name
Walk On
Elevation
One
I Still Haven't Found
Vertigo
Miracle Drug
Bullet The Blue Sky
With Or Without You
Running To Stand Still

2. This one was reported on March 25th and is more of a damper, since it does NOT containt Bad, Until the End, WoWy, Pride - majorly dissapointing list.

City of Blinding Lights
The Electric Co.
An Cat dubh
Into the Heart
Beautiful Day
Miracle Drug
Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
Love and Peace or Else
Elevation
Stuck in a Moment...
Yahweh
Gloria
One
Where the Streets Have No Name
Running to Stand Still
Zoo Station
The Fly
Vertigo
All Because of You
Sunday Bloody Sunday
40

Looking forward to the concerts REALLY eagerly, and all of this will mean a return to the frenzied downloading sessions and all those early mornings and crap, but oh well, its U2 we are talking about :) . On a parting note, i ll upload the first ever image on my blog, My Desktop ! Have fun yah all !

And I don't want the world to see me / Cause I don't think that they'd understand

2005-03-26T02:51:00.000+05:00

A song which is good enough to make me nearly shed some tears - Been on a constant loop for a while now and dont know when will it stop. All of you, appreciate the song and PLEASE, Do hold onto your loved ones.

Iris - Goo Goo Dolls

And I'd give up forever to touch you
Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now

And all I can taste is this moment
And all I can breathe is your life
Cause sooner or later it's over
I just don't want to miss you tonight

And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming
Or the moment of truth in your lies
When everything seems like the movies
Yeah you bleed just to know your alive

And I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

I don't want the world to see me
Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am

I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am
I just want you to know who I am

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And this is the other song in my current playlist of TWO songs, evokes almost similar kind of emotions, and a song for ages.

Wish You Were Here - Pink Floyd

So, so you think you can tell
Heaven from hell, blue skies from pain
Can you tell a green field
From a cold steel rail, a smile from a veil
Do you you think you can tell?
And did they get you to trade
Your heroes for ghosts, hot ashes for trees,
Hot air for a cool breeze, cold comfort for change
And did you exchange
A walk on part in the war
For a lead role in a cage?

How I wish, how I wish you were here
We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl
Year after year
Running over the same old ground
What have we found?
The same old fears
Wish you were here

Boss Inducting U2 ! Boys Say Thanks !

2005-03-17T14:51:00.000+05:00

Been looking around for this and finally found it. Transcript of the Speech by Bruce Spirngsteen for inducting U2 into Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Uno, dos, tres, catorce. That translates as one, two, three, fourteen. That is the correct math for a rock and roll band. For in art and love and rock and roll, the whole had better equal much more than the sum of its parts, or else you're just rubbing two sticks together searching for fire. A great rock band searches for the same kind of combustible force that fueled the expansion of the universe after the big bang. You want the earth to shake and spit fire, you want the sky to split apart and for God to pour out. It’s embarrassing to want so much and to expect so much from music, except sometimes it happens: the Sun Sessions, Highway 61, Sgt. Peppers, the Band, Robert Johnson, Exile on Main Street, Born to Run... whoops, I meant to leave that one out... uh... the Sex Pistols, Aretha Franklin, the Clash, James Brown; the proud and public enemies it takes a nation of millions to hold back. This is music meant to take on not only the powers that be but on a good day, the universe and God himself, if he was listening. It's man's accountability, and U2 belongs on this list.

It was the early '80s. I went with Pete Townshend, who always wanted to catch the first whiff of those about to unseat us, to a club in London. There they were: a young Bono (single-handedly pioneering the Irish mullet), the Edge (what kind of name was that?), Adam and Larry -- I was listening to the last band of whom I would be able to name all of its members. They had an exciting show and a big, beautiful sound. They lifted the roof. We met afterwards and they were nice young men. They were Irish. Irish. Now, this would play an enormous part in their success in the States. For what the English occasionally have the refined sensibilities to overcome, we Irish and Italians have no such problem. We come through the door fists and hearts first. U2, with the dark, chiming sound of heaven at their command which, of course, is the sound of unrequited love and longing -- their greatest theme. Their search for God intact, this was a band that wanted to lay claim to not only this world but had their eyes on the next one, too. Now, they’re a real band; each member plays a vital part. I believe they actually practice some form of democracy -- toxic poison in a bands head. In Iraq, maybe. In rock, no. Yet, they survive. They have harnessed the time bomb that exists in the heart of every great rock and roll band that usually explodes, as we see regularly from this stage. But they seemed to have innately understood the primary rule of rock band job security: “Hey, asshole, the other guy is more important than you think he is!” They are both a step forward and direct descendants of the great bands who believed rock music could shake things up in the world, dared to have faith in their audience, who believed if they played their best it would bring out the best in you. They believed in pop stardom and the big time. Now this requires foolishness and a calculating mind. It also requires a deeply held faith in the work you're doing and in its powers to transform. U2 hungered for it all and built a sound, and they wrote the songs that demanded it. They’re keepers of some of the most beautiful sonic architecture in rock and roll.

The Edge, the Edge, the Edge, the Edge. He is a rare and true guitar original and one of the subtlest guitar heroes of all time. He's dedicated to ensemble playing and he subsumes his guitar ego in the group. But do not be fooled. Take Jimi Hendrix, Chuck Berry, Neil Young, Pete Townshend -- guitarists who defined the sound of their band and their times. If you play like them, you sound like them. If you are playing those rhythmic two-note sustained fourths, drenched in echo, you are going to sound like the Edge, my son. Go back to the drawing board and chances are you won’t have much luck. There are only a handful of guitar stylists who can create a world with their instruments, and he's one of them. The Edge's guitar playing creates enormous space and vast landscapes. It is a thrilling and a heartbreaking sound that hangs over you like the unsettled sky. In the turf it stakes out, it is inherently spiritual, it is grace and it is a gift.

Now, all of this has to be held down by something. The deep sureness of Adam Clayton's bass and the rhythms of Larry Mullen's elegant drumming hold the band down while propelling it forward. It's in U2's great rhythm section that the band finds its sexuality and its dangerousness. Listen to "Desire," she moves in "Mysterious Ways," the pulse of "With or Without You." Together Larry and Adam create the element that suggests the ecstatic possibilities of that other kingdom -- the one below the earth and below the belt -- that no great rock band can lay claim to the title without. Now, Adam always strikes me as the professorial one, the sophisticated member. He creates not only the musical but physical stability on his side of the stage. The tone and depth of his bass playing has allowed the band to move from rock to dance music and beyond. One of the first things I noticed about U2 was that underneath the guitar and the bass, they have these very modern rhythms going on. Rather than a straight 2 and 4, Larry often plays with a lot of syncopation, and that connects the band to modern dance textures. The drums often sounded high and tight and he was swinging down there, and this gave the band a unique profile and allowed their rock textures to soar above on a bed of his rhythm. Now Larry, of course, besides being an incredible drummer, bears the burden of being the band's requisite "good-looking member," something we somehow overlooked in the E Street Band. We have to settle for "charismatic." Girls love on Larry Mullen. I have a female assistant that would like to sit on Larry’s drum stool. A male one, too. We all have our crosses to bear.

Bono, where do I begin? Jeans designer, soon-to-be World Bank operator, just plain operator, seller of the Brooklyn Bridge -- oh hold up, he played under the Brooklyn Bridge, that's right. Soon-to-be mastermind operator of the Bono Burger franchise, where more than one million stories will be told by a crazy Irishman. Now I realize that it’s a dirty job and somebody has to do it. But don't quit your day job yet, my friend, you're pretty good at it. And a sound this big needs somebody to ride herd over it, and ride herd over it he does. His voice, big-hearted and open, thoroughly decent no matter how hard he tries. Now he's a great frontman. Against the odds, he is not your mom's standard skinny, ex-junkie archetype. He has the physique of a rugby player... well, an ex-rugby player. Shamen, shyster, one of the greatest and most endearingly naked messianic complexes in rock and roll. God bless you, man! It takes one to know one, of course. You see, every good Irish and Italian-Irish front-man knows that before James Brown there was Jesus. So hold the McDonald arches on the stage set, boys, we are not ironists. We are creations of the heart and of the earth and of the stations of the cross. There's no getting out of it. He is gifted with an operatic voice and a beautiful falsetto rare among strong rock singers. But most important, his is a voice shot through with self-doubt. That's what makes that big sound work. It is this element of Bono's talent, along with his beautiful lyric writing, that gives the often-celestial music of U2 its fragility and its realness. It is the questioning, the constant questioning in Bono's voice, where the band stakes its claim to its humanity and declares its commonality with us. Now Bono’s voice often sounds like it's shouting not over top of the band but from deep within it: "Here we are, Lord, this mess, in your image." He delivers all of this with great drama and an occasional smirk that says, “Kiss me, I’m Irish.” He’s one of the great front-men of the past 20 years. He is also one of the only musicians to devote his personal faith and the ideals of his band into the real world in a way that remains true to rock's earliest implications of freedom and connection and the possibility of something better.

Now the band's beautiful songwriting -- "Pride (In The Name of Love)," "Sunday Bloody Sunday," "I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For," "One," "Where the Streets Have No Name," "Beautiful Day" -- reminds us of the stakes that the band always plays for. It's an incredible songbook. In their music, you hear the spirituality as home and as quest. How do you find God unless he's in your heart, in your desire, in your feet? I believe this is a big part of what's kept their band together all of these years. See, bands get formed by accident, but they don’t survive by accident. It takes will, intent, a sense of shared purpose and a tolerance for your friends' fallibilities and they of yours. And that only evens the odds. U2 has not only evened the odds but they've beaten them by continuing to do their finest work and remaining at the top of their game and the charts for 25 years. I feel a great affinity for these guys as people as well as musicians.

Well, there I was sitting down on the couch in my pajamas with my eldest son. He was watching TV. I was doing one of my favorite things: I was tallying up all the money I passed up in endorsements over the years and thinking of all the fun I could have had with it. Suddenly I hear "Uno, dos, tres, catorce!" I look up. But instead of the silhouettes of the hippie-wannabes bouncing around in the iPod commercial, I see my boys! Oh my God! They sold out! Now, what I know about the iPod is this: it is a device that plays music. Of course, their new song sounded great, my guys are doing great, but methinks I hear the footsteps of my old tape operator of Jimmy Iovine somewhere. Wily, smart. Now, personally, I live an insanely expensive lifestyle that my wife barely tolerates. I burn money, and that calls for huge amounts of cash flow. But, I also have a ludicrous image of myself that keeps me from truly cashing in. You can see my problem. Woe is me. So the next morning, I call up Jon Landau (or as I refer to him, "the American Paul McGuinness"), and I say, "Did you see that iPod thing?" and he says, "Yes." And he says, "And I hear they didn’t take any money." And I said, "They didn’t take any money?" and he says, "No." I said, "Smart, wily Irish guys. Anybody – anybody – can do an ad and take the money. But to do the ad and not take the money... that’s smart. That’s wily." I say, "Jon, I want you to call up Bill Gates or whoever is behind this thing and float this: a red, white and blue iPod signed by Bruce 'The Boss' Springsteen. Now remember, no matter how much money he offers, don’t take it!" At any rate, after that evening for the next month or so, I hear emanating from my lovely 14-year-old son's room, day after day, down the hall calling out in a voice that has recently dropped very low: uno, dos, tres, catorce. The correct math for rock and roll. Thank you, boys.

This band ... this band has carried their faith in the great inspirational and resurrective power of rock and roll. It never faltered, only a little bit. They believed in themselves, but more importantly, they believed in "you, too." Thank you Bono, The Edge, Adam, and Larry. Please welcome U2 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bono: Born in the USA, my arse. That man was born on the north side of Dublin. Irish. His mother was Irish. The poetry, the gift of the gab, isn't it obvious? In fact, I think he's tall for an Irishman.

It's an Irish occasion this evening. Paddy Sledge, the O'Jays -- they're a tribe from the west of Ireland. This is a bit of an Irish wedding. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a bit of an Irish wedding -- beautiful girls, beautiful frocks, fights in the bathrooms, managers and clients again, lawyers with bloody noses. It's an Irish wedding. It's a great occasion.

I even like it when it gets dirty. I've seen it get really dirty over the years here - that's what rock and roll is, the sound of revenge. So make your enemies interesting, I would say, ladies and gentleman. But not tonight. When I, when we look out we don't see any enemies, we just see friends. And this country has taken this band into its bosom all the way. (applause) It's an amazing thing.

Frank Barselona early on, he's a great friend. Chris Blackwell, what an incredible man he was to have looking after you. Can you imagine your second album -- the difficult second album -- it's about God? Everyone is tearing their hair out and Chris Blackwell says, "It's okay. There's Bob Marley and Marvin Gaye, Bob Dylan, it's a tradition. We can get through it. And I think about what Frank Barselona said earlier about long-term vision because you know without the long term vision of Frank Barselona, Barbara Skydell and Chris Blackwell, there would be no U2 after that second album. It would have been cut. No "Sunday Bloody Sunday," no "Unforgettable Fire," no "One," no "Where the Streets Have No Name," no "With or Without You."

That's what I'd like you to take away from tonight. I would like to ask the music business to look at itself and ask itself some hard questions. Because there would be no U2 the way things are right now. That's a fact. Only friends out here. But still Rolling Stone puts us on the cover, thank you very much. MTV, VH1 still play our videos. College radio still believes in our band and makes our band believe in ourselves. It's an amazing place to be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, feeling like this -- feeling like you've just made your first album. It's a great feeling, a very special feeling.

And I see around friends and people that we've worked with for a very long time -- and generally I don't do big Thank You speeches because they're boring and why stop a tradition of a lifetime? It's too many people in the room to thank, but I'd like to thank the really gorgeous women that work for us. Because they're fun to thank. Beautiful, gorgeous women of Principle Management. Ellen Darst, thank you very much. Sheila Roche, thank you very much. Anne Louise Kelly, thank you very much. Keryn Kaplan, thank you very much. Beautiful, sexy, sometimes Irish, sometimes American women, thank you. And lots of bodyguards around here. No bigger bodyguards than Jimmy and Doug. Jimmy Iovine and Doug Morris continue in the tradition of Chris Blackwell, which is pretty much letting us get away with anything we want. So I want to thank them very much. I'm trying to think of what else.... The biggest bodyguard of all has to be our manager, Paul McGuinness. You see him right there. The reason no one in this band has slave scrawled across their forehead, thank you very much.

I'm going to go on and list three Kodak moments over twenty-five years I'd like to share with you. One - it's 1976 - Larry Mullen's kitchen. About the size of the drum riser he uses now. It's a bright red -- scarlet, really -- Japanese kit and he's sitting behind it in his kitchen. And he's playing and the ground shakes and the sky opens up -- and it still does, but now I know why. Cause Larry Mullen can't tell a lie. His brutal honesty is something that we need in this band.

Second Kodak moment. It is 1982. New Haven, I believe. Things are not going very well. There's a punk band onstage trying to play Bach. A fight breaks out. It's between the band. It's very very messy. Now you look at this guitar genius, you look at this Zen-like master that is the Edge, and you hear those brittle icy notes and you might be forgiven for forgetting that you cannot play like that unless you have a rage inside you. In fact, I had forgotten that on that particular night, and he tried to break my nose. And I learned a great, great lesson that night. You do not pick a fight with someone who for a living lives off hand-eye coordination. Dangerous, dangerous man, the Edge.

Third Kodak moment. 1987. Somewhere in the south. We'd been campaigning for Dr. King, for his birthday to become a national holiday. In Arizona,
they are saying no. We're campaigning very hard for Dr. King. Some people don't like it. Some people get very annoyed. Some people want to kill us.
Some people are taken very seriously by the FBI. They tell the singer that he shouldn't play the gig because tonight his life is at risk, and he must not go on stage. And the singer laughs. Of course we're playing the gig. Of course we go onstage, and I'm singing "Pride (In the Name of Love)" -- the third verse -- and I close my eyes. And you know, I'm excited about meeting my maker, but maybe not tonight. I don't really want to meet my maker tonight. I close my eyes and when I look up I see Adam Clayton standing in front of me, holding his bass as only Adam Clayton can hold his bass. There are people in this room who'd tell you they'd take a bullet for you, but Adam Clayton would have taken a bullet for me. I guess that's what its like to be in a truly great rock and roll band.

(Makes way for The Edge...)

Bono: He's got a Blackberry. (Edge has his speech on a handheld.)

Edge: I am, in the end, the technology guy of U2. Which really, all it means is I can fix the printer. You turn it on. I don't tell them that.

Above all else what U2 have tried to avoid over the last twenty years is not being completely crap. But next on the list down from that was to avoid being typical and predictable and ordinary. Because it's so very hard to avoid the cliche´s. Everyone else's of course, but more than that your own. It's hard to keep things fresh and not become a parody of yourself. And if you've ever seen that movie Spinal Tap, you'll know how easy it is. It's a parody of what we all do. The first time I ever saw it, I didn't laugh. I wept. I wept because I recognized so much in so many of those scenes. I don't think I'm alone amongst all of us here in that.

You know, we're all guilty of taking ourselves and our work way too seriously. And we've all gone to hang out in a hotel lobby like we were doing something really important. But the reason we're all here tonight is that in spite of all the cliche´s which do exist, you know, rock and roll, when it is great, it's amazing. It changes your life. It changed our lives. Witness, for instance, tonight. The O'Jays, Percy Sledge, Bo Diddley, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, the Pretenders. I mean, Amazing. Really magic stuff.

People break it down. You can study it all you want but you can't just dial it up. It doesn't work like that. And as far as U2 goes, I've stopped trying to figure out how, or more importantly when our best moments are going to come along. But I think that's why we're still awake. And that's why we're still paying attention. We know in the end, see ... we know that it is magic. And so we end up waiting around. Like we all do sometimes. Like actors in some Beckett play, just like they did in that movie, in the lobby, waiting around for some magic to happen. And we've done a lot of that over the years. I have to say.... I've done a lot of waiting with Bono, with Adam and Larry and Paul for those moments to come along.

And we've had some great people with us during those times those times. (muffled) Brian Eno, Steve Lillywhite, Danny Lanois, Jimmy Iovine, Nellee Hooper, our great engineers, Principle Management. The team that was talked about. Flood. Our show collaborators -- Willie Williams and all his team. A crew of fantastic people. Joe O'Herlihy. Bucky, Jake, Dallas, Frasier who isn't here, Stuart. Incredible people that we couldn't have come through the last twenty-five years without. And tonight it feels like it's just about half the room has been along with us on that journey. So I just wanted to say thank you to my family for being so patient. The main guy for showing me how. The rest of the band particularly, and tonight, you know, all of you for this evening and most of all, I guess, for making space for me as we always do together for something magic to happen. Thank you.

Larry: I promise I'll be brief. Thanks for this tonight. We really appreciate it. It's very special. I feel like we've cut the line or jumped the queue along the way, someplace along the way. And we never would have got out of my kitchen in our town in Dublin had it not been for people like the Sex Pistols, Television, Roxy Music, Patti Smith. These people are in our rock and roll hall of fame. Thank you.

Adam: The bass player approaches the microphone. What's he gonna say? I feel bassless. Okay, yesterday, it was my 45th birthday. That's a fine age to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. That means twenty-five years ago we released our first recording. That means twenty-nine years ago we all met and formed our band. Thirty years ago I got my first bass guitar, or as I thought, a guitar with only four strings. I had no idea what bass was. I had not heard of James Jameson, Doug Dunn, Jack Bruce, John Entwhistle, or Bootsy Collins. I just needed a weapon and a shield to take on the world.

When we all got together in Larry's kitchen we didn't know about the great traditions of American music. We didn't know the blues or soul or R&B or country but we did know that together we had a chance to change the world by making a noise. This was punk and it saved my ass. We needed someone to get us gigs and to pay for demos. We met Paul McGuinness and he became our manager. Next we needed a record deal. We were turned down by many people until Nick Stewart offered us a deal at Island Records. This was the start of a long relationship with Island. Many people along the way helped us develop and grow. Rob Partridge and of course Chris Blackwell. We made three records with Steve Lillywhite, came to America and Frank Barselona and Barbara Skydell were our U.S. agents. They introduced us to a network of promoters. Ellen Darst and Keryn Kaplan ran our U.S. office, and they taught us how radio and promotion worked.

As we were learning all this about the music business, we were also learning about American music and the kind of artists that are honored her by the Hall of Fame. John Lee Hooker, B.B. King, Hank Williams, Ray Charles, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan. Now our generation is being inducted and our time has come to join those we did not know 25 years ago. I hope that in 25 years when this room is full of hip-hop and pop artists that they will enjoy joining the diverse list of talents that the Hall of Fame recognizes.

It took many people to get this band here tonight and I'd like to thank some of them personally. Paul McGuinness and Kathy, Anne-Louise Kelly, Ellen Darst, Sheila Roche, Keryn Kaplan, Regine Moylette, Barbara Galvin, Susan Hunter, Trevor Bowen, Gavin Friday, Chris Blackwell, Anton Corbjin, Steve Lillywhite, Danny Lanois, Brian Eno, Jimmy Iovine, Doug Morris, Arthur Fogel and Michael Cole, Denny Sheehan, Joe O'Herlihy, Willie Williams, Dallas, Sammy, Stuart and Terry.

But in the end the people who really got me here tonight and who I must thank for everything I have, are Ali, Ann, Morleigh, Suzie, Larry, Edge and
Bono. And I'd really like to thank Bruce for what he said, and I fortunately can remember the names of everybody in the band as well.

Bono: We've about 35 songs to play. Won't be long.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now looking for the U2's performance from the night, a short setlist of 4 songs which i read was phenomenal. Lets see what the boys have in store for us !

Finally, an update !!

2005-03-14T10:45:00.000+05:00

Lord, I really shouldnt have started this blog. My updating frequency [or the lack of it] is a complete joke. I am sad, i know , but i go on my blog everyday with the sole intention to check out how many comments i have got, or if i have recieved any more tag comments; THAT makes me more excited than actually concentrate on the real thing, that is to update my blog.

This particular one will be a mixped plate, starting with the confession [ which isnt a secret in any case :p] that i happen to have worse grammar, ever ! During past few days, i have been reminded and corrected by few friends over my grammatical mistakes and thats something i know about and least bothered to improve, i still think its just fine to declare a disclaimer aka Sara's blog that its MY blog, MY typos [ sidrah knows about them most :p ] and MY brand of english with all sorts of most comical and hilarious grammatical mistake which even a 6th or 7th grader wont ever commit. So, please bear with it and atleast take it considering that this blog can be an amusing outlet where you can laugh all you want over some stupid mistakes :) Its always nice to see people laughing, regardless of how are they getting it.

That said, U2 needs some special mention in this blog with some really interesting news about them. Starting with the revelation that Jordan,16, Bono's eldest daughter is SINGLE !!!!! :D

Also, U2 will be inducted in Hall Of Fame tonight and i think the ceremony is probably being aired on MTV [America]. March 28th is going to see the start of eagerly anticipated 'VERTIGO TOUR'. Band is currently rehearsing for that in San Diego , but still there is no news about what will be the setlist . Thinking about that, i just came up with MY idea of a setlist for the night .

Vertigo
Beautiful Day
Until The End of The World
Miracle Drug
All Because of You
Sunday Bloody Sunday
Out of Control
Pride [In the name of Love]
Bullet The Blue Sky
Crumbs From Your Table
City of Blinding Lights
Love Peace or Else
Bad
Where The Streets have No Name
All I Want is You/Running to Stand still
Stay [Far away, So Close]/Original of The Specie
If God will send His Angels
With or Without You
Sometimes You Cant Make it On Your Own
One
Yahweh

Fellow U2-ers, what is your take on the mentioned playlist ? What songs you might want to add/remove.

Sports Update:

As usual, my blog cant be complete without any sports news, so here it is. Although i could have made this as the title of my blog but then i chose against it. Anyhow, as we all know, PAKISTAN SAVED THE MATCH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wooohooo *wolf dancing/howling* It was no better sight than seeing Ganguly biting his nails and displaying such a forlorn look, it was a joy to behold ! I did not mention Razzak in my team and i am glad i had to eat my words. HE is the real hero, curbing his natural game in such an astounding manner to face 260 balls, that is more than 40 overs ! That was a phenomenal, supherhuman effort from the man who so often throws away his wickets. Razzak, YOU are in my team [ thanks to MAQ ] . Updated team is as follows

Salman Butt
Yasir Hameed
Inzamam
Youhana
Asim Kamal
Razzak
Afridi
Kamran Akmal
Rana Naveed Hasan
Muhammed Sami
Danish Kaneria

Done with cricket, Soccer is turning out to be a real heart breaker of late. Man Utd, Real and Barca got kicked out of CL, only shining light was that Arsenal too got the boot. Real, lost in the leauge again last night and now are 11 points adrift Barca, nearly impossible for them to catch up now. Another season without silverware. Man utd drew with Crystal palace and making a hash of their chance to catch up with Chelsea. Nistelrooy has yet to get back his touch, though the last match at Southampton for FA cup, Ruud played well and created chances for his teammates.

King Federer is back in action and hopefully, he will culminate the week with this 27th career title at Indian Wells.

Thats all for this update. I think. Although i have one more thing to mention but that , since related to U2, deserves a Blog of its own. Will come soon :) Have fun everybody , happy reading.

Return of the Snail Man !

2005-02-28T11:55:00.000+05:00

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Lounging back on chair. Stretching my arms. Look right and left. yawn. Scracth ears, head. Staring at the screen.

Last time i wrote a blog was back on 16th february and since then just did no get enough motivation, time, idea, mood to do an update. Awfully boring , i know. Terribly lazy i am and this just proved the point. Even right now, i am writing coz i promised few people and it was some sort of embarrassment to me that everybody is writing on my tag urging me to post up and here i am , doing ZILCH, NOTHING and still not updating the blog.

Anyways, here it comes the belated entry. Past few days have been most ordinary, run of the mill usual stuff for me. Last semester is turning out to be a complete bore, as a matter of fact its a HUGE task to get out of bed in morning knowing when you have just couple of classes all day and nothing else. Most saddest thing is that instead of doing ANYthing constructive ever since this semester started, i have been using Uni net, rather SUCKING it for downloading U2. As usual, my ghar ka net is fucked up big time and i am not going to say anymore on that, i just use the uni net and its AS GOOD AS I VE EVER SEEN IN MY ENTIRE LIFE ! 8 Concerts i downloaded in a week, cant get any better than that. Along with it loads of htdaab performances along with video, special mention must be made to Grammy performance as well as Brooklyn Concert Video. So yeah, academically, not a most happening time despite the fact i hve my midterms from 7th. Lets see if i do enough to keep my gpa over 3 [ which i fear i might not the way i am going this semester ]

Aside from that, nothing special going on at home front either. I realized i am a super good conversationalist , esp on phone. Spend a huge amount on buying credit this week and for whatever reasons, i consider myself a nawab ka baccha and talk to my friends on MOBILE instead of land line. Though, i talk to only 3-4 friends on phone [excluding my best friend Ali ] these talks can EASILY last in excess of 2 hours. Its not that only I whos wasting credit, i make sure others do that too :D But point is that i went to bank to check out my balance and realize i am running short on finances, not exactly short but i need to get my priorities and straight and save up the money. Lately, Dividends arent coming regularly plus since Abbu moved all our shares to Ammi's account in CDC, we get less money which means mazeed ghurbat.

I curse myself for missing out the most golden opportunity to work last year after my iternship at E-Commerceateway. I applied to Mobilink call center and got thru three departmental Interviews with flying colors, with the director dude highly impressed. After completion of my 3rd interview HE congratulated me and asked me to visit the HR department and confirm the appointment . I went there, gave another interview to that lady Ms Sheeba, and she gave me the heart breaking news that since i am NOT an undergrad as yet, they wont be able to accomodate me. That was MOST shocking. One of the very few times in my life that "I" was depressed, upset and absolutely furious. But well, life moves on and i am looking at my options what to do next.

On a side note, we booked ourselves a Cultus and i am SO NOT in favour of that ! We already have a Baleno and i have serious grudges against that car , because its NO WAY WORTH its pricetag of 750,000 + Rs/- ! But its too hard to convince daddy dear to move to Toyota/Honda. He thinks us brothers are helluva reckless driver and will be smashing car around the town, plus CNG reasons also give Suzuki an edge. Except abbu, all of us were rooting for Santro [ since we are going for hatch back ] but when we went to showroom, the guy said it will take 8-9 months for that which is totally , unacceptable. Our current 2nd car, a Toyota Starlet `83 [older than me by 8 months ] is nearing its death bed and it will be end of an era for us.

Biggest news for me this week was that i FINALLY was able to buy myself a new mobile [not exactly DABBA PACK NEW :p ] . Since i got mugged on the morning of 15th December `04 at 7am while going to uni, i have been using this old, worn out 3210 which i couldnt carry withmyself due to its battery dieing in 30 minutes flat :p . Anyways, got myself Nokia 6610i, my same phone which got robbed, only this time i got it in Black color instead of silver, with 5 months warranty. Me is REALLY, REALLY happy at this deal :D

Sports Update - Pakistan cricket is leaving today for India and God Bless our team !

My test playing 11 is [in batting order]

Salman Butt
Yasir Hameed
Younis Khan
Inzamam ul Haq
Yousuf Youhana
Asim Kamal
Kamran Akmal
Muhammed Sami
Rana Naved ul Hasan
Danish Kaneria
Arshad Khan

Shahid Afridi - 12th man.

Although, i am the biggest afridi fan you can ever meet, i Even WANT him to play test matches, but with current situation, i dont think he deserves a place in team right now, at most if HE HAS to be included, it can only be done in place of Arshad Khan.

Football - CL

Man Utd lost, nistelrooy's magic did not work :( But i REALLY hope that he rises to the occassion at San Siro in return leg and kick some major ass. Real JUST sneaked ahead of Juv and i see some serious fight going on , since suddenly, real's domestic form slightly dipped with consecutive losses and Juve is getting its touch back thanks to Del Piero. I WANT A REAL/MAN UTD FINAL !

Thats all for now folks. I HOPE to come back REALLY sooon next time and wont take this long for the blog update. Thanks to everybody for their concern and asking about it. Have a good time reading :)

A Tale of 2 Shezaadis and a 'Kutta' song

2005-02-16T11:30:00.000+05:00

Weird Title. Yeah i know that. But cant help that because the changes my blog went thru, all the reveamped and renovated look which you see now is only because of Sidrah and Misha ! Former for the blog and latter for comment and that tag conversation. Love yah both, my 2 shezaadies ! :D

2nd part of the title is obviously in relevence to the new Noori track on air 'Kuttay (te tau uttho) ' . My love for noori goes back nearly 5 years when i first heard Manwa Re and I Love You for honda city ad. I fell in love, instantly. I got both of them from a friend of my brother's who eventually gave me the earliest bootlegged recording of Noori which included Manwa Re, I Love you, Khalla, Ooncha, Saree Raat Jagga and Mujhe Roko. Those were te days of audiogalaxy and NO ONE had heard of noori, manwa re wasnt even on air during that time. Noori boom exploded and i vividly remember the time when i actually did NOT play u2 for a whole week, all of it was dedicated to Noori. Brilliant. I dont care whatever people might say about them, i will almsot always defend the band. I have this kind of emotional attachment with them which i have with U2. Despite the fact that noori undertook loads of stupid decisions and rubbish , but none of it will deter me from not loving the band. Met with the guys few times and Lord of the Bass, Jafri sahib a few other times as well. As sidrah will put it, claiming i seriously need some nooragra but i say, keep them away. i AM a Noori groupie :p

Back to the song. At first listen, i found it a most lame and crappy ass song because of name. Finally got to hear it week and a half back and it took me THIS saturday to finally make a conclusion whether i like the song or not. I do.
At first listen, song comes out as a very wanna be attempt to be rock and whatever, but it actually grows on in a while and the solo , despite being a very short one is awesome !! The fact that hamza is also sharing vocal chords is a very nice change but the best thing about the whole scene is that ALi Noor himself finally got bck to his lead Guitar. That itself will improve noori's performance tenfolds ! Lyrics are still the achilles heel of noori and this one , despite having a very ambiguious and somewhat abstract meaning , people arent able to much understand the song because of its fast pace and hardcore Punjabi !! They can only hear words which are usually considered expletives. My take is that you need to play this song LOUD, and just rock on this number ! its that kind of adrenaline pumping song. Definitely not the best noori effort but not as bad as people are calling it.

Chawani dey chuwarey Khao mitthay piyaraaarey !!!!!!!!!!

Mr Late Lateef makes a comeback with Top 10

2005-02-09T14:58:00.000+05:00

Finally, after almot a week and half - i get enough motivation and a good enough internet connection to make this belated blog update. Despite making several appearances and commenting on various blogs, i just wasnt able to take out enough time to make a proper, elaborate kind of blog. besides, there wasnt much interesting happening to to mention per se.

Pakistan lost the finals despite playing wonderful cricket, alot of frustration came because of that. Oh, on this sunday had a Super Brunch at our place which had some of the most sumptous dishes, a mixture of bihari and arabic cuisine. Special mention goes to Sambakh Lebnani , Bihari Kabab and baer Khani Roti. I also made humous too and that was YummmmmYyY !!

Been busy with university as well where i am having some problems due to administration and i just dont know how to kill them OR to make them realize that before rejecting my registration process, for heaven's sake check up with their account records ! Only saving grace all this while has been the university internet which is lightning fast, only that i dont get enough time on it. My own cabla wala has got a monopoly in my area and either i use HIS service or else i dont. Cant go to dialup because of some problem with my USR modem, which works on every computer, with every phone line, except MY COMPUTER and MY ROOM's Phone connection !

Moving on, I had planned to write various stuff on my blog, my opinion over different stuff or whatever, but since its been so long, i just cannot recall them. May do so some other time. For today, i will present my U2 Top 10 for all of those U2 loveers who visit my blog and SPECIALLY for all those who think U2 sucks and fail to fulfill promises sincerely [ hint sidrah hint ! ]

There it is .... my top 3 is FIXED FOR LIFE. PERMANENT. Rest 7 positions often move around.
I may as well write a commentary on all of them, but that is for some other time.

1) With or Without You [Joshua Tree]
2) Bad [Unforgettable Fire]
3) So Cruel [Achtung Baby]
4) Where The Streets Have No Name [Joshua Tree]
5) One [Achtung Baby]
6) Sometimes You Cant Make It On Your Own [How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb]
7) Running to Stand Still [Joshua Tree]
8) A Sort of Homecoming [Unforgettable Fire]
9) Mysterious Ways [Achtung Baby]
10) All I Want Is You [Rattle&Hum]

Honourable mention must go to -

I still havent found what i am looking for [JT]
Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me [Batman Forever ST]
Whos Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses [AB]
Electric Co. & Out of Control [Boy]
Tomorrow [October]
40 & Sunday Bloody Sunday [War]
Beautiful Day & Walk On [ATYCLB]
Please & If God Will Send His Angels [Pop]
Dreaming With Tears in My Eyes [ Rare]
Be There [ Rare ]
Ground Beneath Her Feet [ MDH ST]

Will mention other songs as they come to my mind , because with U2, i can really go wild and spoiled for choices. There are still SO many songs i can write down but then ... Enjoy these for now .

P.S: Sidrah, this above mentioned list SHOULD be your guide to an introduction to U2. You need not to download or buy all the albums at once, just give these songs time and soon you will belong to Us . Muwahhaahh !

Dont let it go away / Its a BEAUTIFUL DAY !!! HA HA HA

2005-01-30T20:37:00.001+05:00

Life cant be any better !

Dinner last night at Sajjad @ Super Highway , Lunch today at Chaccha's. And since i am SUCH A BIG foodie who when treated to some meticulously done, superlative , mouth watering dishes - i am found in the most ecstatic of mood. But food isnt the only reason to make me this happy.

Quite contrarily to the last week when all my sporting ideals lost , Sunday turned out to be a Super Duper mega sunday ! Man United won, Safin won, but above all , PAKISTAN WON !!!!!!!

Okay. So last night was a pretty good one at Sajjad, one of my chaccha is here from America and we decided to treat him and some other relatives to Sajjad at Superhighway. It was mind numbing cold and all of us had to dress up as if going to murree ! Despite being frozen like an ice cube, food was marvellous and esp when one was as hungry as me, the joy was doubled. Came back home at around 1am.

Today we had a brunch at Chaccha's place where rather than concentrating much on food, i was more concerned with both Cricket and Tennis matches on air. Tennis, i had placed a bet with a most dear friend of mine yesterday over the winner of Men's title for Australian Open. I was obviously rooting for Safin. Stakes were high, they were of such proportion that my unending loyalty about someone was going to be questioned. It was a dare i took up after much thought, and it could well have cost me my reputation i ve built over years. But i had firm believe in Safin and he won it in the best possible manner, although gave me some heartaches in the first set. Safin won the aussie open finally, in this third final in 4 years. Final scoreline was 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. It was sheer ecstasy for the man who lost 3 years back to the unheralded Swede after being hot favourite and last year when he ran into King Federer. Today, there was no stopping and despite most partisan homecrowd to deal with, a most tenacious and determined opponent in Hewitt, and worse his own tempramental attitude, Safin overcame all the odds and after 2 hours and 45 minutes held aloft the trophy. Brilliant stuff.

This wasn't the end , best was to come with who else but our National Cricket team. This was a most amazing match and the way Afridi [ yes, him again ! ] clouted Symonds for those couple of sixes, i was absolutely sure we WILL make it somehow. Although, the pathan nut lost his pea-mind again and he couldnt finish the match [ which he never does btw ] Razzak the cool customer was there and boy it was some finish . That jackass named Rana FINALLY got himself an inch of a space in my good books after his much adequate showing with bat today, especially those couple of fours he struck to finish off the match, it was a dream come true to beat Aussies after 2 and a half years !

I am not sure what makes me more happy, winning the bet or Pakistan's victorious showing. But that still doesnt matter much, what is more important is the fact that I finally had something to cheer about as regards sports after the gloom of last 5-6 days .

But thats about it for the day, hope to come up with something OTHER than sports in the coming days [ which seems unlikely ]. Till then, Sing with me ... ITS A BEAUTIFUL DAY !!!!

A Tragically Chilling week [Trying to exaggerate :p ]

2005-01-29T13:35:00.000+05:00

So, here is it my VERY late blog update. Almost a week late, but circumstances were stacking up against me hence i had no chance to make an entry. Some excellent weaher in karachi of late and it rained on monday and tuesday, bringing back the freezing, bone chilling winds back in town WHICH I LOVE !! Its strange in a way, because i am one who is very vulnerable to cold weather and normally, i feel much more cold than others do. But despite all of that, i still think that Winter is the best time of year. The feeling of wrapping yourself around in a blanket, wearing 4-5 jerseys/sweaters/jacket/hooded shirt/beanie cap/socks ... HEAVEN !! Nothing beats that.

But along with the rain, my cable guy had his service absolutely disrupted by the weather and i had no cable for a while and along with that, another pc problem. My Secondary HDD crashed with the most unusual and un-recoverable problem. Its media broke down. When i turne on my pc, while booing up it made some weird , scary screeching and knocking noise and bios failed to detect the primary slave. I tried some different combos and checked out with bios but all failed and right now i am in a fix what to do with it. The HDD was with me for 5 years and it had some important stuff, which , i can live without but prefer to have it. No clue nor any hopes if it can be recovered.

This wasnt the only tragedy of the week. All my favourites participating in various sports, lost.
Worse was Federer/Safin match where i had to sit the entire 4½ hours only to see him lose agains the 2nd MOST talented player in men's tour, Safin. It was most sublime tennis on display. Only another match which i can remember displayed this much quality was the Sampras/Agassi quarterfinal in US Open 2001. This match was phenomenal with both showing their gutsy, never say die attitude and coming up with some out of this world, miraculous shot making skills. Treat for all tennis aficinados. Final score line was 5-7, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6, 9-7 in Safin's favour. Bottom line is that i am just glad that it was Safin who beat him, not those morons named hewitt and roddick. Safin plays Hewitt on sunday and i am all for the russian.
Sharapova lost to serena in a magnificient match where serena had to come back from 3 match points to secure the victory and today, Serena lifted the Trophy by defeating Davenport.

Soccer wasnt any good, Man utd were beaten by chelsea in a pulsating encounter in League cup semi-finals and lastly, Cricket - Lara single-handedly blew us off the Gabba.

Other than this, University will resume on monday and this whole week i was occupied with numerous trips to bank and DC office. Applied for shares of Attock Petroleum Ltd. and it was quite a hectic thing. It was an absolute machli bazaar at all the banks. I had to go there on Friday and today as well, and both times i had to wait for over 2 hours to have my application accepted/verified/forwarded ! Total Khuwari .

In another episode of tragedy in my life , i went to this new driving liscence office which started working near my place, on thursday. I had my previopus learner's lisc. expire 2 years ago and i decided that now being 21 yrs old, i ought to get a Pakka lisc. When i reached the office, iwas told to get myself made another Learnes lisc will be valid for 10 days. I applied, had my application forwarded and medical checkup in no time. Then, this guy came up to me and told me to go this another building to have my TEST taken. Stumped at this new revelation since there is NO TEST TAKEN if you apply for learner's lisc. I went to the other buildin and there this traffic constable asked me to sit and answer atleast 4 out of 5 traffic signs. I was stunned !!
Eventual result , no prizes on guessing, i failed by answering 2 out of 5 correctly.

Next attempt will be made sometime in the coming week and at this i culminate my rather sorry week which hopefully will come to an end now !!

Till then, have fun all of you and have a grand weekend !

Double Blog day - U2 !

2005-01-24T17:07:00.000+05:00

This is not normal. I am doing a DOUBLE blog in one day. But just cant help it. What happend earlier this morning compelled me to make this one .

Today, day started in the BEST possible manner. I woke up with bell ringing at gate , around 11am and i went down to check it, turns out theres a mailman delivering a package for ME, and on side of it was written AMAZON.COM
It Only meant ONE thing, one of my very close friend sent me my promised Birthday gift, which despite being late by a few months [ october ] it reached me finally and MAN ITS THE BEST gift !!! HOW TO DISMANTLE AN ATOMIC BOMB [Deluxe CD/DVD] edition as well as the bible of U2 concerts : U2 LIVE - A Concert Documentary by Pimm Jal de la Parra.

I just cannot be grateful enough to her for being so kind to deliver me this shipment despite being busy with her university trips to macedonia and all other chores. Thanks babe. You ROCK. Thanks alot :)

By getting hold of this, my U2 collection is suddenly getting exclusive and bigger by the day.

1258 Mp3 Songs [Concerts/Albums/Rare/EPs/Covers/Best Of]
All Albums except War and Rattle & Hum
Popmart Mexico [VCD]
Elevation Tour - Boston [DVD]
Elevation Tour - Slane Castle [DVD]
Best of 1990-2000 [DVD]
U2 - Into the Heart : Stories of every U2 song by Niall Stokes
U2 Live - A Concert Documentary by Pimm Jal de la Parra.

Still missing from this is Sydney ZooTv VHS and few books which I plan to get somehow. Must say that i am grateful for having some of the most wonderful friends who went out of their way to send me goodies from all over the world and without their help, the above mentioned exclusives could not ever get to me. Hats off and a million salutes to all my amazing friends.

P.S: Cursed, if you are reading this blog at anytime - Yes, Sometimes is one hell of a song and i believe this song is an instant U2 Classic, in the category of With or without you, One, Bad and so on. Infact, i consider this song among my Top 10 U2 songs. Will list out my ranking sometime soon.

Sunday -not bloody- Sunday

2005-01-24T16:56:00.000+05:00

Being a mega sports lover i am and fond of playing/watching/disucssion multiple sports, this weekend was/is a boon for me because few of my favourite teams and players are involved in action and as i write this, most of them were victorious and that brings immense joy to me.

But above all of that, I myself went to play night match on saturday night with my cousins and man it rocked !! Love playing cricket [ like almost every youth in pakistan does ] and i am actually quite good at it. Lately, all of the playing has subsided due to our cousins being busy with work/studies and loads of other reason but whenver this particular favourite cousin of mine comes from England, our gang of 14-15 guys get together to blast the night away. Last weekend was amazing, because we played a test match and were given a target to chase 58 runs , which were accomplished with much thrill and i carried the team through from start.

Saturday night, same set of guys got together albeit with a couple missing for whatever reasons and I proudly announce my stellar performance of the night :

11 matches played
batted in 9 innings
Scored 18 runs [ out of which 14 were scored in ONE MATCH ]
Bowled 3 overs, costing me 38 runs for ONE wicket.
missed 4 boundries, missed 4 run outs, missed 1 stumping.

But guess what, we STILL won 8 out of those 11 matches !! Now whos to complain as long as we WIN :p Without an iota of doubt, one of the worse EVER days in my cricketing life but i had SO much fun. Sports really get me high and playing nightmatch with cousins is one thing i simply love.

That done, some other sports related update included both my preferred Soccer teams scored convincing victories, tragedy only being their rivals ALSO succeeded and thus maintaining the lead. Man Utd won 3-1 and Real Madrid were victorious too with same scoreline. Thankfully Ronaldo and Zidane are getting back some sort of form finally and beckham too is gaining confidence. Nistelrooy , how i wish that guy to be available for AC Milan matchup, my favourite striker and i believe he is THE most deadliest finisher in the game right now. People often blame him for being not an extra ordinary player. He is not. He cannot be termed in same class as Ronaldo / Henry / Schevenko / Nedved for their overall skills and technique, but the important thing is to score goals and finish the moves to have the ball in net, Nistelrooy is your man.

Moving away from soccer, on to my favourite sport after cricket, Tennis. Sampras was the greatest tennis player, EVER and if there is anyone close to him, its Federer !! That guy is an artist, a brilliant one at that. He can well be the greatest player and may even emulate Sampras in all the accolades which were showered on the american. One has to see Federer to believe what an out of this world shotmaker he is. Most creative, most fluid, and most entertaining player there can ever be, is HIM. Not the rough power basher or a hustler like roddick/hewitt, he makes tennis look SO easy and smooth. His performance in Aussie open is sublime and its going to be a mouth watering clash on tuesday with Agassi. VERY much looking forward to that.
On a side note, for eye candy i think women tennis players are the best thing ever, and Sharapova is my current darling. She too managed to get into quarters..

Now, finally VB series. I need not much to say about it, only that Afridi is my hero. Always was ever since he broke into team and despite his antics, despite having numerous, countless arguments with friends/cousins alike i just cannot hate him or ask to kick him out of team. That guy is superlative player and i totally believe he is MUCH more destructive than Gilchrist/Sehwag/Flintoff Combined. He only need to find a brain which works as well as last for a while, not expire after one match :p Thats about the VB series, will discuss that more as the tournament progresses.

Sunday i was supposed to go to a friend's sister's Dholki practice . Was good, was reluctant to go in first place since i was so terribly sleep but then just dragged myself out of it and went. Was fun. Will see if i can possibly upload the pictures or not.

After that, had a dinner at my sister's place and that was grand !! HobKnob's chocolate cake can so easily compete with Armeen's double choc fudge ! Heaven, absolute heaven i say.

Horror ! I am getting Blog bug !

2005-01-22T15:21:00.000+05:00

Hah, i am sure this topic will make atleast TWO of my friends jump in glee, for they get rewarded after months of hardwork and convincing me - but lets not get drastic. Its just that i am curiousabout all of this business and i want to get the hang of it if anything else.Though, i repeat, I STILL HATE and those who are bored enough to hear the reasons, either contact misha or wait till i list them here - which will be most ironic.

I still havent been able to fix the time automatically and i think its very lame to manually change the time everytime i ll make a post. Mish, Sid, please i ll be needing some help in this regard. More so, few unknown but very kind souls who made an appearance on my blog - thank God there are still fellow U2 lovers around in this world. Sanity IS alive ! - YAY !! - I think i should get down to more U2 in here. Ms Haque, your help is also needed to guide me thru the process of changing my commenting system which you were complaining about.

Eid day went quite monotonous, atleast the same way it has been for last 5 years. Namaz,
breakfast , sacrifice , me helping around and in the process breaking my back [ someone doing 2
goats and a cow in one day and help with their chopping/cutting all day will know what i mean ]
and then meeting guests which can last for a long while. Boring. Besides, you dont get any eidee
this time round either, which again is quite sad.

All of it wasnt bad since i later at night got to go to my sister's place to spend some most
quality time with my bhanjas who i adore to death, esp the youngest one who share my passion for U2. Its SO engaging to see him do some matkas and jhatkas [ he is 2 ] on vertigo or on that
'batman wala gana ' [ hold me thrill me kiss me kill me ] ! Besides, i am his abeee mamoon and
formerly abayee :p

That reminds me, my current playlist consists of FOUR songs only which are [ in order ]

One
So CrueL
Sometimes You Cant Make it On Your Own
With or Without You

Anyone who would like to kill their time by doing an analysis what is my state of my mind if i am listening to these songs on a constant loop for past 8 days ? Couple of my friend believe that i am getting depressive whereas i vehemently deny that. I just Love U2 :D

Thats about it for the day i guess, besides i also have to vent out some of my fury on blogger.com fellows for what they did last night !! This post wa originally done by me at 1:05am last night, and as soon as i clicked published, it vanished, citing some damned problem with their apache servers. I know i know, my fault, i shud have saved it first before publishing, but then atleast they should learn to be slightly more reliable.

This time, writing the blog at 2:30pm and lazing at home. Somehow dodged and convinced that they should not take me to any relatives hence i saved myself from all the fake niceities and too much food [ which isnt bad ] but it will ruin my plans for tonight when i have to go for a night
match.

Thats about it ..... *i* sign off !

P.S: Just learnt another thing, its compulsory to PUBLISH your blog to actually have it visible :p *me* chuckles at my foolish self. This particular blog has been done THREE times and everytime i did not bother to re-publish it, which blogger sya is necessary. And i kept wondering where the hell did my blog vanish in this cyber land. Silly silly me !

Posting time - Saturday 22nd January, 15:41.

Of Threats and Bakra Eid !!

2005-01-20T13:57:00.000+05:00

I think i am going to start my every new blog with ' this is my Nth blog', hence .. this is my Second blog post , which again is initiated by constant pushing, shoving, and ultimately, some deathly, fatalistic threats by the one who is the REAL FOUNDER of this particular blog. Ms Haque , you will have to pay for it sometime later in some very mean way ! So you better be prepared for it

I got 2 comments too, not bad for starters :D My Goddess friend graced the blog with her presence and i feel highly indebted to her [ is this getting a tad too formal ?] i dontknow how to fill up this space provided by google guys, farigh people i tell you.

Bakra eid is up tomorrow and i am not a great fan of this particular eid. Just not a very my kind of eid. Eid ul Fitr is the time when i can actually sleep for a while and get away from work atleast for a few hours after we come home from namaz. This Eid is entirely different, loooking after sacrifical animal, making sure their tummies are filled and quenching their thirst and all of their needs. Worse comes on eid day when i have to actually do the sacrifice AND cut and chop the meat along with the butchers. Dirty dirty dirty disgusting work !! ... I wouldnt mind that much, IF MY DAMNED brothers take out sometime and make their presence felt. But no, one is eternally busy with his friends and the other one is busy with tv/news paper and usual socialising ! Me the poor soul :( Sympathy is highly appreciated

----End of blog II------

Debut !

2005-01-19T16:05:00.000+05:00

There it goes, my first ever blog post. WOOHooOo ! .. I joined the company of HIP people !!