The weather, Red Sox and Indian cricket!

One of the things I cannot get to terms with in Boston is the weather.

We somehow survived the winter- it was brutally cold and it snowed forever. But I do remember that our first reaction to the snow was one of complete joy and delight. I have actually never seen a snowfall in my life and so when it snowed on the 12th of November last year, the day we celebrate Diwali, the Indian festival of lights, I was ecstatic. It was one of the quietest but also the most joyous Diwali I have celebrated. We loved the snow- initially that is. We thought it would end in February- no let up; March- it was worse; by April, our impatience started running high and when we experienced the coldest May in some 50 years, I couldn't believe that we were virtually in summer and still wearing our leather jackets! My wife has packed and unpacked our winter clothing thrice. Now, she doesn't bother to pack anything. For all you know, it may snow in July!

When we lived in Singapore, we often wondered why there was a weather channel at all. I could tell you the forecast for Singapore sitting right here- a high of 32 degrees celsius, a low of 24, with mild showers and thunderstorms between 3 to 5 in the afternoon. Thats the weather for 340 days of the year and for the rest of the 25 days, the time of shower changes, nothing else! After coming to Boston, the weather channel is something we've seen more than CNN or ESPN. It determines not only what we would wear, but also what we would do (its going to snow heavily- no driving out this weekend- lets rent DVDs and be couch potatoes!). It clearly is a major conversation piece in offices, and with friends and between weather and the form of the highly inconsistent but charismatic Red Sox, you could pretty much spend a good night of conversation and we don't have to talk about Bush or Iraq- and I'm so happy to avoid those topics.

Talking about the Red Sox, they remind me of the Indian cricket team in a lot of ways. First of all, they have some very charismatic players who can turn the game on its head single-handedly- Johnny Damon, David Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Curt Schilling very much like the Indian team- Sachin, Sehwag, Dravid, Laxman etc. Second, they are both highly inconsistent. The Red Sox whipped the Yankees 17-1 at the Yankee Stadium and the very next week, lost to the Baltimore Orioles! The Indian team beats the Aussies one day and loses to Bangladesh the next. Third- both teams have an army of dedicated, almost fanatical fans that span across the globe. They follow the two teams wheever they may be, jump with joy when they win, go crazy when they lose, but inevitably, they can't live without following their teams.

Its an uncanny similarity. I am happy to be part of both camps, and shall surely continue to follow the fortunes of these two teams wherever I may be.