Midnight mumblings... :D

Hmmm, have been on my feet since morning, have a loooooooooong list of to-do things, have to get up earrrrrrrrrrrrrrrly again tomorrow... so what am I doing here? LOL ... hmmm, trying to jot down a few things that have occupied the prime space in my little mind! ;)

Ok, no preambles, no Einleitung... straight to the point:
Every day we talk A LOT... well, most of us do... (and this is not about only women, men talk as much, if not more! ;D It's just that their vocab is limited at times! LOL ) about other people that is... ;) ... and it's not always about paying compliments to people... What if there were devices everywhere (It is very much possible now!) to overhear your every conversation (as in Big brother and Big boss or numerous other reality shows...) and report it to THE people, whose names you mentioned?!!! ;) Well... in simple words, what if the person about whom you were airing some ahem... thoughts, got to know them exactly as you expressed them? We are definitely not always very diplomatic about how we feel! Such a report will most probably lead to a lot of heated tempers, misunderstandings galore (or clearing of misunderstandings! LOL) and changed behaviour patterns! Am glad that this doesn't happen too often! And even if one does come across such thoughts, are they worth brooding over? Just like that story with the donkey and the man (see PETA, am nice to animals, have written donkey before man! ;) LOL), where the guy wasn't able to please ALL the people ALL the time... I don't think we can either... So the best course of action remains concentrating on all the positives around... and not letting the BIG grin on your face falter... :D ... ok, am mumbling, coz am vellllllllllly sleepy now...


This should be sufficient to confuse people for at least a week! LOL

Chuck that remote!

How many of us believe in physical labour to keep fit? No, I'm not talking about going to the gym and sweating it out... at home, at work ... in our day-to-day activities we avoid bending, walking etc... and try to make life as luxurious and comfortable as possible. Just think of the various devices designed keeping this need in mind! Of course it doesn't pay in the long run... uff... am preaching again! ;) ... but I was reminded of it a few months ago, when I saw a young girl, barely in her teens, trying to pick up something from the floor by sitting on a chair and bending sideways... I asked her to go down on all fours and get it, coz that was the easiest way... but she simply refused!

The other extreme was while watching that fascinating documentary by Michael Wood - The Story of India - ... in one of the parts (It's an amazing 6 part series, am going to watch the 4th and 5th part tomorrow, yipppeeeee! :D ) there is a short focus on traditional ships / boats... and the people rowing it looked extremely fit... so do the labourers toiling away daily. I think the fashion world should choose its models from these... people, who don't need to starve themselves to look waifer thin and in doing so end up looking unhealthy with bones jutting out!!! ;)

Am also not advocating physical labour of this manner for everyone... but maybe it would do us a world of good, if we simply let go of some of the so-called luxuries... How about starting with the TV-remote? ;) ... Imagine getting up everytime you don't like the program on a certain channel? ;) Think of how it'll change our behaviour pattern by making us more patient, trying to pay attention to one thing for a longer period of time! ;) LOL

But then remotes have become an integral part of our day-to-day life now... we are a couch potato generation... with various remotes on our bedside... for AC, for stereo, for lights, for TV, what else... hmmm, the personal robot? ;)

Nothingzzz

Nopes, am not in a mood to blog today either!

Trying to review "Die Vermessung der Welt" by Daniel Kehlmann

Die Vermessung der Welt - Daniel Kehlmann

Am going to write a thesis on this book ! LOL ...Going by how thought provoking (provoking being the keyword! ) it is...Hope it's also available in English...

The biggest provocation for me was the premise of the book: It uses the names of real people and real events and weaves a story around these characters... I was wondering how I would feel if someone were to use my name and my data to write a fictitious story... even if I was long dead and gone! well... Humboldt and Gauß must be turning in their graves, I'm sure! I think, I'd turn around in the atmosphere... and water... and earth! lol

Well... I have to admit here that the book is verrrrry interesting, humorous, entertaining and informative, but even if the word "Novel" is mentioned on the cover page, one can't deny that it is TOTALLY based on the lives of these two great people. How can someone, in the name of "Literary Freedom", use famous names to sell his book? This is why I found the premise verrrrrry disturbing, to say the least! Imagine someone using Tagore and Subhash Chandra Bose for example, to write a work of fiction! There would be an uproar in India!!!

This, of course, led to a discussion with my other colleagues and one of them said:-why not?

me: "What if someone uses YOUR name, YOUR achievements, YOUR LIFE and writes a work of fiction... assigning YOU a personality that HE think YOU have / had... and doesn't even stop before describing YOUR supposed intimate moments? What would YOU think of it?"

...Well, I got an unexpected answer: Why not?! It is again his freedom of expression!

I was now quite upset on being so abnormal and asked: Why does it disturb me so much then?

- Coz you take yourself too seriously!!! (We're here on this earth for a short while and how would it matter to anyone, if someone used someone's name... everything is so fleeting as it is...)

Hmmm, that led me to think even more!!! LOL So, now am learning NOT to take myself too seriously, but have to say again: It does disturb me even now... am still taking myself too seriously! LOL Okay, am yet to evolve and have another goal set for me now! Okays, this is for today, but am not done as yet!

...

Okay, have finally finished the book! And I must say that it is a verrrrrrry interesting one... it completely holds one's interest till the end... making one oblivious to one's surroundings - completely lost in the book! :) Well, I like the subtle humour that steals up on you and ends up in a lasting smile on your face! :) The narrative also paints vivid images on one's mind... as if a picture is unravelling in front of you!

It also made me think whether recognition within one's lifetime is really good for one! Take Humboldt (in this book) for example... After he became VERY well known and went for this so called expedition to Russia, he could not do any research worth its name coz he had to attend numerous parties held in his honour, meet the czar, the noblemen etc... And he was accompanied by a little army of soldiers, who did not let him move at his own free will! What a fate for a renowned explorer!

Anyway, I still maintain that I find the premise of this book disturbing. Though it's good that it leaves many questions unanswered and that makes one look up the real characters and get to know them. But it also does cloud one's perception of these characters (Alexander von Humbolt and Carl Friedrich Gauß) as it is TOTALLY based on their life histories... there is not even a slight attempt to present it as anything else but their stories! And just putting the word "Novel" will not make one not confuse it with the real people!!!

... Hmmm, come to think of it, just how many biographies, or for that matter, autobiographhies contain truth and nothing but the truth? They are highly subjective and might present the events as the author sees them or would LIKE to see them! So, why should I criticize only this attempt? Well...ok, literary freedom or whatever... I think I'm at peace with this book now... if only for a short while till my mind brings up another counter-argument! ;)

Blogging - not my cup of tea... for today! :D

Wonderful Wednesday! :D

Hmm... I guess am not really a blogger... takes a while for me to pursuade myself to write something... It was fine writing a few lines in the orkut profile... but here it becomes sooo mühsam! Well... since I don't have to write...it's great! LOL

So... signing off till I feel like blogging! ;) :D Real life, as it is, is offline! :)))))))))

Samosa sunday, manic monday... terrible / terrific Tuesday ???!!! :D Let's see...

Honey Chilly Potatoes

This one is a contribution of my dear sister... :) ... who is also an excellent cook... wonder what happened to my genes! ;) LOL

Ingredients:

Potatoes (of course!) - 1 kg (?!!! ... well it is not my recipe, so allllll Credit goes to my shishter! ;) )

(this is for 10 people supposedly or for people with a verrrrry healthy appetite!)

Honey - 3-4 tbsp

Chilly flakes - acc to taste (helpful advice: avoid adding spoonfulls! ;) )

Salt - acc to taste (same advice applies here as well!)

Oil - for frying purposes (she says you should have an idea how much this should be!!! I don't!!! Good luck with this recipe!!!)

Recipe:

Step 1: Dice the potatoes into 1x1 inch cubes and fry them till they turn golden brown.

Step 2: Take them out and put them on a kitchen tissue to get rid of excess oil.

Step 3: Mix honey, chilly flakes and salt in ze (zis iz ze german tinge... :D ) potatoes.

Step 4: Garnish it with coriander and eat your fill before serving it, coz very little gets left for you afterwards... this observation is based on my personal experience... can vouch for it! :(

All ze best! ;)

Lauki (Ghiya) ka Chheelan

Ok, here's another one... specially for Namita, who requested me to add this next and for Sukriti, who keeps on asking me, if she needs to buy bottle gourd for me, so that I get this dish cooked!!! :D and of course for everyone else, who loves it... :)

Lauki ka Chheelan

Ingredients:
Bottle gourd (lauki) - 1 kg
Gram flour (besan) - 2 tbsp
Red Chilly Powder (laal mirch) - 1 tsp
Asafoetida (heeng) - 1 pinch
Cumin seeds (jeera) - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder (haldi) - 1/4 tsp
Oil - 2 tbsp

Recipe:

Peel the bottle gourds with a knife, not with a peeler, because the peel has to be thicker than usual for this dish. (You can prepare the bottle gourds as well...that will be another dish, for this one, you only need the peel.) Cut the peel in small pieces, to be precise, 0.5cm x 1 cm (the width can vary, but the length should not be more than o.5 cm! Wow, what precision! :D ) Boil it and strain it as much as possible.

Roast gram flour till it's light brown and keep it aside.

Heat oil in a pan and add asafoetida, cumin seeds, turmeric powder, the boiled and strained peel and add the roasted gram flour to it. Now add salt and chilly powder and let it cook on a low flame for about 10 minutes.

Voíla, the Chheelan is ready! Enjoy! :)

Kali Gaajar ki Kaanji - A winter speciality :)

So finally am inspired to blog! ;) All thanks to ma ! :)

She's a great cook (and a great sport as one can see in the photo! :D) and I don't want her recipes to be lost. As far as I am concerned, I've been a less than frequent guest in the kitchen! So am crossing my fingers and jotting down the recipe... All the best! :)

Here's her recipe for

Kali Gaajar ki Kaanji:

Ingredients:


Black/Purple Carrots - 0.5 kg
Mustard Oil - 1 tbsp
Canola / Mustard Seeds (rai/ sarson) - 50 gm
Turmeric powder (haldi) - 1 tsp
Red Chilly Powder (laal mirch) - 3-4 tsp
Salt - 10 tsp
Water - 5.5 l



Recipe:

Peel the carrots, wash them and cut them in small pieces (to be precise: 1x4 cm). Blanch the pieces for about 5 minutes and then add canola/mustard seeds, chilly powder, salt, turmeric and 1 tbsp mustard oil. Once the mixture cools down, put it in a glass jar and keep it in the sun for 4-5 days.

Taste and see if you've succeeded! ;)


Happy cooking! :)))

Blogging finally...

... Thought I'll start blogging finally... after straining the limits of my orkut profile... So, before starting anything, here's a prayer to Him, who is to be invoked before starting any venture... :)