Ambarish's musings

T his is about one of the greatest fictional characters of all time, the character who demanded us to think that men are neither black nor white but shades of grey. Played by Alan Rickman in the movies and in my head, this character makes you think, a lot. My own thoughts about the guy were constantly evolving not only as the books released, but also a good decade after the series ended. A really complex character, he was central to one of the greatest love stories ever told. He was born to a Muggle father Tobias Snape and witch mother Eileen Prince in a Muggle neighborhood. The very village where our hero’s mom, Lily Evans was born. He was born poor, and had parents who neglected him. It is quite possible that he was physically and/or mentally abused. His parents were constantly fighting, and his Muggle father did not really like anything magic. He didn’t really have friends back then, not even among muggles it seems. Though he was quite talented magic wise. He bonded with ...

I saw the Arsenal match this past weekend, and just now got out of the trauma. Football is my escape from reality(and boy did I need an escape this weekend) and Arsenal present us this. I can't even call that a performance, maybe a no-show? I am at a glaring loss to find any sort of explanation for this debacle. As soon as I saw the team sheet, I knew we were in for a hiding. Who plays a dreadfully out of form Welbeck over Alexandre Lacazette, who scored 90 seconds into his debut? Or even over Giroud, who offers a threat a defence like Liverpool's always hates? And why play a slow Monreal over a pacy Kolasinac against Liverpool's turbocharged front three? So many questions over team selection. One of the biggest ones, why play Ramsey at all? He has been woeful in midfield, and lacks the discipline to play in a double pivote. Quite how he managed it in the 2013-14 season is a question every Arsenal fan has. The match starts and Liverpool are all over Arsenal,...