Truths, untruths and things in-between

Have any of you heard of the quote "Nobody ever sees truth except in fragments"? Well I haven't either. And I'm not an ultra creative person, who can whip out a funny or thought provoking line in the blink of an eye and therefore I can confirm it's not mine. I relied on Google and found this one after a search that lasted approximately 0.23 seconds which fits nicely into what I'm going to harp on for a little bit. Now just look again at the quote as I'm quite sure you've forgotten what it was in the middle of all the drivel that has followed it. 

Lets start with Robin van Persie shall we? So we heard that he asked the players of Spain and Chelsea to concentrate on football and stop complaining about the referees. Well not exactly in the same manner as I, but using some of the English language's choicest words. Then we had some of the Chav blogs reacting instantly, some obviously saying that RvP was a c***. That is expected of course and proceedings were fun for a little while on Facebook, Twitter, blogs and even some otherwise boring news websites. Then all of a sudden Robin comes out of the closet and says he never said anything like that in the first place, spoiling all the fun in the process. So someone said he said it, he says he didn't, we believe the version we feel is best suited to our egos and life goes on with the episode registered in memory for use in future discussions with opposing fans.

Nothing you didn't know

It's that time of the year. There's not much football on and life is well, not boring but then there are time slots on weekends that need to be addressed. Since doing something constructive with my free time does not come naturally to me, hours and hours are spent reading things of very little importance on the internet. Thankfully I have a job now, which takes up my time during the week. 

Image Courtesy: Vetty Pictures

It's a time for reflection, especially since I'm an Arsenal fan. Think of how things could have turned out last season, how things could turn out next season and how things could turn out in the season after next when the next one doesn't go to plan. This is also a time when I get excited about any shred of transfer talk related to the club. First I read an article, then try to find at least three or four more to try and validate whether the first one was pure garbage (which it is nine times out of ten) and then think why I read it in the first place. When I'm tired of doing that, thoughts go to the upcoming season and a renewed, over optimistic sense of hope sweeps across me before it all comes to a grinding halt. That's when I suddenly remember that what I'm going to witnessing at the end of July will be a bunch of unheard of players with un-pronounceable names taking to the Emirates pitch for the Emirates cup wearing the Emirates, sorry Arsenal jersey, playing to rules that increase our chances of winning, then winning and finally pledging that THIS is going to be THE season.

What made you support your chosen club?

I come from a country where cricket is a religion. Oh wait, there is another way to say it now. I come from THE country whose cricket team are currently the World Champions. While cricket has been, still is and will be a big part of my life, I consider myself a bigger football fan than cricket fan. To be more specific I'm an Arsenal fan (those few souls who read this blog probably know by now). Until a few years ago, a lot of my friends looked at me like I was an alien when I said I supported a club team which I was in no way associated with geographically or otherwise. As the years rolled by a lot of the very same people are as passionate about their own chosen football club team.

My fascination for Arsenal started with the advent of cable television at home (I say home because it was only a few years after cable television entered India, before it became a standard norm in many Indian households like mine) and the fact that Arsenal were there or thereabouts when it came to winning championships. The English league was the most televised at the time (it still is) and I developed a taste for it, as I already had a deep inclination towards sports.