After a long time....

I know, I know. I set the expectations really low but even I didn't expect to be so bad with this. I haven't written anything in so long! I'm really going to get better at this - the updates will be more, well, up to date.

Yaaawn! Another week of my life.

Nothing much happened last week - it was unseasonally hot and humid. I didn't get out much except for some mandatory grocery and household shopping. Baked apple tarts during the week.Sunday was kind of cloudy and gloomy. I made chicken biriyani, baked a banana cake and made pasta primavera. I think I'll just go back into my shell again and hibernate. Yaaaawn!
Have been reading: P.D. James - Shroud for a Nightingale, A Mills and Boon romance, Tintin and Asterix comics, Ruskin Bond and Elizabeth George (re-reading some old books).
Have fun, y'all!

Varalakshmi Vratham and Tax Returns

"We have long had death and taxes as the two standards of inevitability. But there are those who believe that death is the preferable of the two. "At least," as one man said, "there's one advantage about death; it doesn't get worse every time Congress meets." ~Erwin N. Griswold

One more hectic week and another well-deserved weekend. July 31st marked the last day for filing returns - so it was a mad rush to fill out forms , submit Form 16 and dash to the accountant to submit for filing. Am I glad that it comes by only once a year!

"Income tax returns are the most imaginative fiction being written today." ~Herman Wouk

A garland of marigolds to decorate the main entrance for the festival

July 31st was also Varalakshmi Vratham day and an extremely busy one. Cleaning, dusting and getting everything ready took nearly 3 days prior to the big day. On Friday, the pooja, cooking and catering to guests took up most of the day. Payasam, vadas, pulihora, panchamrutham, rice, dal, vegetables and curd formed the festive offerings while sweets were purchased from outside.

Pooja decorations

Offerings to the deity - diyas, fruit, incense and food

Offerings to the deity - new clothes

The deity, decorated with ornaments and flowers

Monsoon Vignettes

Another green corner - Pothos or money plant


Pomegranate in full bloom

Sunday again and short lived bliss! Roasted chicken , chocolate cake were Sunday's specials this time. My pomegranate trees are celebrating with an outburst of red blooms and fruit. Varalakshmi Vratham's coming up. Lots of shopping and cleaning is on the cards for this week.
Have been reading: Asterix & Obelix comics, High Stakes by Meg Cabot
Am listening to: Shamur and Bon Jovi

Monsoon Blues

Oh, boy! What a week that was! It started with my maid taking off for 3 days without so much as a by-your-leave and ended with a PTA meeting. Nuff said!
I hope I never have to go through this sort of week in the near future. The monsoon is doing its bit to alleviate my blues though, if what I see around me is any indication.
Maybe the week that's coming up will be a good one!

One of my favourite views.

A little green corner.

The Best Day of the Week

Sunday is definitely the day I look forward to. I don't have wake up at the crack of dawn (okay, 6 AM) and start preparing breakfast and packing lunch for my daughter. Instead, I get to sleep late and have a leisurely breakfast, catch up on some pending housework and cook something special. Today's lunch was Hyderabadi biriyani - replete with spices, chicken, fragrant basmati rice and ghee. Heavy but so fulfilling. I am going to try it again - the dum style takes some practice.
A friend of mine who's going through a bad time wrote back. I'm glad to get back in touch. What an empty world it must be if you cannot call and talk to a friend!
I just hope better days lie ahead.
DH has been having long calls and chat sessions with us. Funny how a webcam can actually make the distance seem shorter.
My daughter has an exam coming up Monday and while I enjoyed today ( we're having glorious weather, picnic weather in fact), the week looms ahead. Sigh!!

The Sun Shines Again!

Ah! A welcome respite from the endless gloom of grey skies and gusty winds.The sun is out and the skies are blue and all is good in my world. The trees look all washed and shiny green. The gardener's been on his bi-monthly visit to clean up the garden and do some heavy-duty trimming and pruning. So everything looks neat and just the way I like it.Had a long call with DH and felt good as I miss him a lot even if I don't want to acknowledge it to myself.
Today was all about me - I didn't go out for running errands at all. Just soaked in the sun and baked - a cake. Just a plain tea cake with caramel flavouring - it came out well and we all enjoyed it.
Have been reading: Careless Red by Elizabeth George, Five go Demon's Rocks by Enid Blyton(;-), Plays adapted from popular Mysteries
Am listening to: The Latino version of 'Genie in a Bottle' by Christina Aguilera (one awesome talent there!) and Bollywood soundtracks from Don and Jhoom Barabar Jhoom.

A Blustery Sort of Day

My new laptop is a blessing - my desktop having given up the ghost, I was forced to buy a replacement. Now I'm the sort of person who doesn't like to get into too many details , specially if they are technical. So, with minimum fuss, I got a Toshiba home and proceeded to fall in love with it. In fact it's the reason I'm back to blogging after so long.
I'm listening to 'Come Clean' by Hilary Duff - it seems very appropriate for the windy, blustery day it's been all of today. The moment I step outside, the wind grabs at my clothes, hair, eyebrows and tries its best to pluck off one or the other. But it's oh-so-invigorating to walk in the stiff breeze and breathe in lungsful of the monsoon wind. The pigeons aren't too happy, though - talk about ruffled feathers! They look like plump disgruntled cushions with all their feathers blown awry.
I baked Irish soda bread today and it turned out really well - chewy and crusty - seemed like the perfect accompaniment in this weather. With a hot mug of tea, it was perfect. Now, some Bailey's Irish Cream would've been perfect too!
And I indulged in my second favourite occupation today - shopping for clothes.
Now I'm listening to some 'Black Eyed Peas' - funky stuff or 'phunky' stuff , to be accurate, eh?

Is there anybody out there?

It's been months and so much has happened since then! I'm home, taking a hiatus from work, to support my daughter's traumatic twelfth class journey and keep the home fires burning while DH wanders "lonely as a cloud, across dales and hills" (apologies, Wordworth! Yes, DH has accepted a new job - one that takes him far away from us but a good jump career-wise. My daughter is now a fractious seventeen year old (almost!) and just coping with the sudden mood changes is taking up all my time. I thought I would go crazy at home but surprise, surprise! I'm actually busier than I ever was at work! Bills to be paid, chores to be done, cooking up new recipes, discovering baking, doing a freelance job as a writer - I haven't worn so many hats before. I feel I'm drowned in all these quick-change-Chester routines but I don't have time to feel depressed and that's good, ain't it? I've discovered a new author whose books I'm enjoying reading right now.
Have been reading: A Great Deliverance and Missing Joseph by Elizabeth George, Tales from Fairyland by Enid Blyton (go figure!)

Encounters of the Pleasant Kind

Yesterday was hectic - it involved a police station, a stamp vendor and a magistrate. Are you thinking what I think you're thinking? Nah, not even close. It wasn't anything dramatic - just the loss of my degree certificate. Indian red tape can be mind-numbingly frustrating. And when I was told that I had to file a complaint over the lost certificate with the police, I almost gave up. The police then had to issue a statement after verifying that the loss is genuine. This statement has to be attached to the application and a magistrate has to sign. But the bright spot in my day was the stamp vendor. When I stepped into the unprepossessing little cubby hole, I looked at all the debris and wondered why I was there. I needed a letter/affidavit on Government stamped/franked paper. Could the lady who looked like an unlettered rustic help me out? The next few minutes were a revelation. She not only understood immediately but took out the correct proforma / template and typed out the whole affidavit flawlessly. She then printed it, told me where to sign and zip, zap, zoom - I was out. Her efficiency and wonderful attitude impressed me and I was amazed to find that in spite of her slap-dash attire, she was more professional than a lot of so-called professionals I know.

Here's to you , dear unknown stamp-vendor! You made my day.

Have been reading: Venetia, by Georgette Heyer and The Clicking of Cuthbert by P.G. Wodehouse

Saturday Night Out

[Picture Courtesy:www.nicedogs.net/dog_breeds/Pugs/index.html]

The sound of wine glasses clinking decorously, the sound of unbridled laughter, attentive hosts hovering to make sure you're comfortable.....we had a great time last Saturday. There's nothing like a get-together with friends, who you've been to college with, and who understand the arcane code words of those days, is there? A feast of reason and flow of soul? Not likely. Just a lot of ribald laughter, some good-natured ribbing and oh, lest I forget, the most adorable pug dog nosing his way into the chicken.

I got to sample a Sula Shiraz/Merlot - not too sweet, very refreshing. Not that I know much about wines. Most of the time, I was badgering the pug - who was remarkably good-natured about it, I might add! Our hosts were throwing this small, intimate party to introduce us to their new house - which was magnificently done up in a combination of Indo-Colonial styles. I loved the number of French windows that gave out on the lawns - the house must be beautiful in the daytime, I imagine, with all the sunlight and greenery. Seen at night, the house was very decorous but with a lot of intimate spaces for the family to lounge around when they feel like it. A piano brought in the Victorian touch and a Chola bronze copy accentuated the Indian in the spacious hall.

All in all, an evening to remember! Thanks D and S!

Winter is here!

It's colder in the mornings and there's condensation on the glass windows - sure signs of the onset of winter. Also, the maidservant comes in late - another sure sign! Though it doesn't really get cold in Hyderabad (temperatures rarely go below 10 degrees C), the change in season is welcome.
The days are brilliant with sunshine, dusk sets in by 5 PM with the mingled smells of exhaust, wood fires and of dusty,decaying leaves. The streets are quieter, emptier and the shadows seem darker around the streetlights as they cast orange pools on the roads.
But the upside : there are more birds on the pomegranate , guava and mango trees in my backyard. The din they set up in the mornings is a welcome marker to the start of the day. They quarrel noisily over the fruit or while foraging in the dead leaves for insects. The Plumeria (champa) tree loves the sun and starts to shed leaves and will turn bare by the end of December. The Poinciana (gulmohar) tree luckily doesn't lose all its leaves but keeps shedding them like yellow confetti throughout the season.The skies seem bluer and the clouds mere puffs of cotton wool.
It's so hard to get my family out of bed and going in this season. They will groan and burrow deeper into their pillows to get me to stop pestering them to wake up. The sound of the alarm clock is the most hated thing in the house during these months:-)
Winter is the season for craft fairs and exhibitions in Hyderabad - perfect weather for shopping till you drop! This is also the season that we get to flaunt our sweaters and shawls, caps and scarves.
When I was a student in engineering college, I remember being amazed at the plethora of woollens available in Delhi. The women I knew thought nothing of wearing sweaters, pullovers or woollen stoles to match the outfits they wore! As a South Indian, my limit was a neutral colored sweater bought once every two years. After all, you got to use the sweater only for two months in the year.
I buy my sweaters at Bulchand's (which has now opened in Banjara Hills too) in Abids and at Monte Carlo, if I can find my size. Thanks to the craft fairs, we now have access to Kashmiri shawls and Nagaland/Manipuri shawls of bewildering variety.

Image courtesy: www.kohimaeducationaltrust.net

Have been reading: Loves Music, Loves to Dance by Mary Higgins Clark, some book by Lee Child that's putting me to sleep.

A Historic Win!

THE COLOR PURPLE

Watching the Presidential race for most of this year,2008, was very interesting. As an Indian, I'm not going to pretend that I understood it all - but I have to say this: no Presidential tussle generated the kind of suspense and expectation that this one did. I remember being vaguely interested in John Kerry and Ross Perot and other such Pretenders to the Throne - but Obama galvanized the world's attention and I've been watching the campaign closely. Since I'm neither Democrat nor Republican, this victory makes no difference to me. But as a world citizen, I'm compelled by the event itself to see that America has truly come a long way in terms of prejudice and color. Obama is probably not the silver bullet to right all wrongs but, hey! He got there, didn't he? That makes it possible for all non-white communities to dream. I wonder if Martin Luther King is up there, watching. As are the shades of all those African-Americans from the past.

Whether he can fulfil his campaign promises will be another story..um..post.

All power to you, Mr. President!

My Birthday and Assorted Impressions

It was my birthday last Saturday and I had a great time ushering in the big four-oh. My Mom and DH gave me presents - clothes and jewellery, loads of friends mailed or called, my daughter wished me and helped me cut a cake in spite of her busy schedule. It was a bright, sunny day - typical of the onset of winter. A slight nip in the breeze, yellowing leaves and bright, blue sky - perfect! The chocolate cake was just right and Mom cooked me a few of my favorites.

So, what's it actually like? Being 40? Not much changes, really:-) A few more aches than I would like but I'm essentially the same. It's been a good year - I managed to make up my mind about certain things that I want to do and I have my family's support. Excised a few toxic relationships that were wearing me out with their shallowness and lack of true warmth. My health is miles better and I did manage to keep my New Year resolutions of eating well and exercising regularly. My pigeons now eat out of my hand when I feed them. The turtle doves come waddling by to ask for their grain. My daughter is settled into a groove and seems better at handling stuff now. DH is going through a paradigm shift in terms of responsibility - life's good!

Have been reading: Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln, Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie (for the nth time!), Where are you now? by Mary Higgins Clark (pulse-pounding suspense)

Post Diwali Blues

Wow! It's been a long time since I last posted. What can I say? Diwali is the all-consuming festival and I have been so busy the last week preparing for the Festival of Lights. Rooms to be cleaned and dusted, cobwebs all swept away, buying sweets and new clothes - it's been a hectic time and I loved every minute. Probably because this festival is all about family bonding time. I decorated the door and gate with marigold garlands, had a kumkum and haldi rangoli adorn the front of the gate and lighted diyas with sesame oil and cotton wicks (like in the picture). We performed the Lakshmi Pooja in the evening to usher in prosperity and lit a few fireworks. The rest of the evening was spent in watching a movie.
Now that all the excitement is gone, I feel like one of those flowerpots on the roads - all spent and empty:-) To get over the post Diwali blues, I'm going to post the recipes for my festival foods.

Medhu Vada (or Vadais) are fried lentil snacks shaped like doughnuts. A must for every auspicious occasion, this festival food is simple to make.

MEDHU VADA RECIPE

2 cups of urad dal/ split black gram lentils/ minapa pappu soaked overnight
1 cup finely chopped onion
2-3 chillies sliced finely (skip if you don't like your vada too spicy)
1 tsp cumin/jeera/jillakarra
Salt to taste (about 2 tsps)
Sunflower Oil and wok for deep frying
A square of plastic sheet or a banana leaf
A small bowl of water

Grind the lentils along with the salt in a mixer-grinder or wet-grinder, adding as little water as possible as you don't want the batter to get too runny. The resultant batter should be a smooth sticky paste. Mix in the chopped onion, chillies and cumin. Place the square of plastic sheet or banana leaf on a chopping board and keep a bowl of water handy.
Place the wok on the stove and pour oil in it. Light the stove and keep it at medium-hot. The oil should get really hot but should not smoke.
Wet the sheet/leaf so that batter does not stick to it.
The batter will be really sticky, so dip your hand in the bowl and form it into a little ball the size of an orange, by tossing it a little. Place it on the sheet / leaf and spread till it is flattened. Dip your finger in water and make a hole in the center of this flattened vada. Use the sheet to slip the vada into the hot oil. Be careful! The oil may splutter. If the oil is hot enough, the vada should rise, bubbling, to the surface.
Wait for a little and turn the flame down to low, so that the vada cooks through. The perfect vada is crunchy, deep golden-brown on the outside and deliciously soft on the inside. Like so,


[Picture courtesy:http://www.vahrehvah.com/ Go check out the recipes there!]

Vadas are served with coconut/peanut/tomato chutney or sambar. Enjoy!

Have been reading: Harry Potter series again, Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson: The Battle of the Labyrinth, P G Wodehouse's Piccadilly Jim

One last thing!

Oh and before I leave you all for the weekend, I couldn't resist this last post, sort of like 'one for the road' picture. Awwwwwwwww - isn't he adorable!
All you want to do is cuddle him and scratch his ears!

It's a FRIDAY!

It's been a week since I last posted and I did promise myself that I would be more diligent. Ah, well! Promises were meant to be broken:-) It's a FRIDAY! What more can I say? I feel like a bird let out of the cage. But Saturday means a lot of pending chores (grrrr!) to catch up on. And Sunday means lots of cooking (sigh!). I wish a weekend was three days - so that I could spend one day just recovering from Saturday and Sunday:-) I keep wanting to look like this:


But end up looking like this:


LOL!

My DH is home and that means we'll probably watch a movie or two. My daughter will be too busy preparing for her Monday test. Poor kid - it's like she's been locked up in a prison and someone's thrown the key away.

I am currently reading the last three Harry Potter books again along with a P G Wodehouse. Which reminds me - I need to go buy some more books. My daughter has a Rick Riordan that I'll read after she finishes. Both of us couldn't progress beyond the second Stephanie Meyer book - too little plot and too much embellishment. I'll post again next week. See you later, folks!

Haiku : Word Picture Poetry

Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry with strict restrictions on the number of syllables. In English, haiku are usually written in three lines that consist of five, seven, and five syllables to resemble the three metrical phrases of a Japanese haiku.

My attempts at haiku :


On the monsoon:

Raindrops drum on glass,
Runnels form patterns in dirt,
Nature’s play unfolds.

Wet roads, slick pavements,
Signals blinking blearily,
Traffic swirls and pools.

Lightning rips the skies,
Clouds rumble ominously,
The heavens weep tears.

Newly washed blue skies,
Rainbow on the horizon,
Where are you, my heart?

On work:

Ties that bind and choke,
Salaries do not feed souls,
But wolves snarl at doors.

A four walled prison,
Desiccated lives and hopes,
Power play and games.

Good Egg!

[Source:www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/w/p-g-wodehouse/ge...]

Today is my day for a doff of the hat to a master wordsmith - P G Wodehouse. I'm reading a Psmith omnibus and like every time I read it, I'm chuckling insanely to myself all the time. Psmith's verbose flights of fancy and his habit of using at least ten words where one will do - coupled with the classic English dry humour - still charm the reader across all these years. It isn't the zany situations Wodehouse's characters get themselves into, it's the way he takes a threadbare plot and spins into a wonderful, light confection. A review I once read compared his works to souffle - and I agree. My personal favourites are Bertie Wooster and Lord Emsworth - could anyone be more dim-witted than these two? Hilarious! For a paean to Wodehouse, read Stephen Fry's article: http://www.pgwodehousebooks.com/fry.htm. Stephen Fry played Jeeves in television adaptations of the Wooster chronicles. Whenever life creeps up and catches you like the down express in the back, to use a Wodehousian simile, all you have to do is curl up with a Wodehouse creation and allow him to do some gentle healing. If there's a golf links up there, with a whisky and soda , and a comfortable smoke at the end of the day, Mr. Wodehouse, I hope you are getting yours.

[Source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1574698/P-G-Wodehouse-fan-reveals-the-real-life-Jeeves.html]

Manic Monday

Does anyone recall that old hit by the band Bangles - 'Just another Manic Monday?' And so, here I am, it's another Manic Monday. It starts with my daughter being in a foul mood because she's starting her half-yearly exams and has to wake up early. I'm still trying to tide over the weekend sleep-deficit by trying not to doze and fall over into the eggs:-) Coax unwilling daughter into eating a chapathi and omelet. See her off on her way to college.
And, disaster - maid-servant's late! What to do? Do I start cleaning up? Or should I wait? This time, I tell myself, I'm going to get rid of her. But where will I find another one? I can't do all the cleaning, washing, cooking and still go to work in the morning. She arrives, at last, with her trademark sheepish grin. After she's done, feed the pigeons - they've been waiting patiently for their millet. They coo and gurgle and show off. Then run downstairs to make coffee for a still-sleeping husband. Curse a little at how all men have it so easy and then curse myself for spoiling him so utterly. Bath. Pooja. Pack lunch. Where are my clothes? I never have enough clothes to wear. Never mind that the recent painting job has left about 6 bags full of old clothes in the downstairs bedroom. Take the plunge and dive into traffic. There's this lunatic who thinks he can squeeze between two cars as if he's two-dimensional. Traffic lights - a beggar knocks at the window. I could cheerfully strangle him but hunt around in my overcrowded purse for a coin. Traffic starts again like racers in the Grand Prix. Try to find a parking place in the basement. All places taken. Swear and curse. Go back to ground level to park. Lift takes an infernal time and I'm trying not to drum my fingers or kick the door. Sign in. Open door and switch on the lights in the cabin. My Manic Monday has just begun.