This and that

Strawberry CheseCake

2012-01-16T20:16:00.000-08:00

I remember making a no bake cheese cake from a recipe book printed by the Round Table group in Bangalore. It used Panneer/cottage cheese, milk maid and fresh cream. I somehow could not remember the recipe. So I browsed through some no bake cheesecake recipes and took a little bit of that and a little bit of this and out came a really good cheese cake. Take my word for it, it is the best cheesecake that I've made so far.

Ingredients :
1. 1 and 1/2 tubs of britannia cream cheese - about 275g
2. 1 tub of Nestle Strawberry Yoghurt
3. 1 tub of fresh strawberries
4. 200g of sugar + 2 tbsp
5. 200 ml of fresh cream
6. 1tbsp gelatin
7. 100 ml boiling water in which to dissolve the gelatin
8. 1 large packet of marie biscuits
9. 125 g of unsalted butter melted.

How to make :
1. Line your tray(in which you want to set the cake) with cling wrap such that the cling wrap is now your non-stick base.
2. Crumble the marie biscuits.
3. Add the melted butter to the biscuits.
4. Push this mixture to the botton of your tray and layer it evenly. Keep in the fridge to set.
5. Cream together the cream cheese and 200g of sugar. Try not to beat too much - I used the pulse option in my food processor.
6. Dissolve the gelatin in the boiling hot water by stirring. You could use the microwave on low power too to speed the process.
7. Add the strawberry yoghurt, fresh cream and gelatin to the cream cheese mixture and beat till creamy and smooth. Again, don't beat too much.
8. Get the tray out of the fridge. Pour the cream mixture over and put it back in the fridge to set. It needs about 4 hours to set.
9. Beat the fresh strawberries with the 2tbsp sugar (add more if you like) into a rough pulp.
10. Spread the above pulp on top of the cake when set. Garnish with fresh strawberries and serve. Do take out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before serving to soften the lower layer and ease your job in cutting.

I had made this for my hubby's birthday and therefore tried to pipe the pulp onto the cake but failed at the cone. I don't have a piping bag. I therefore used a toothpick and FREEHAND.

Vegetable Fried Rice with scrambled egg

2012-01-16T19:59:00.000-08:00

I love Fried Rice. I remember waiting to get home to eat mom's fried rice. Well, I went to a day cum boarding school so I was served lunch in school. Hence, I had to wait to get home to have the fried rice before dinner.
Well, to my mom for being a very good cook, here goes my version of the fried rice.

Ingredients :
1. 2 cups of cooked rice - best cooked the previous day. If making fresh, make sure you let it cool completely and then do the rest.
2. 1 1/2 cups of vegetables - finely chopped carrots/beans/cauliflower/corn
3. 1/2 cup finely chopped capsicum
4. 1 medium onion finely chopped
5. 1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
6. 1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
7. 2 tbsp soya sauce
8. 1 tbsp oyster sauce
9. 1 tsp vinegar
10. 1 tsp pepper
11. 2 tbsp oil
12. 1 egg scrambled - do the scrambling separately in a different pan
13. salt to taste - be careful if you've salted the rice while cooking and do remember that soya sauce is salty too

How to make :
1. In a wok/kadai/pan, pour in the oil. Before the oil warms up, put in the garlic and ginger. Fry them till them brown.
2. Add the onions and fry till translucent.
3. Add the vegetables. Remember to do all of this on high heat. Hence, do have all ingredients on hand.
4. Once the veggies are almost cooked, add the capsicum. Add salt - be careful about the amount.
5. Fry for 30 seconds. Add the sauces one after the other, taking care not to let any of them burn.
6. Add the rice. Mix everything together. Add the egg and sprinkle the pepper on the top.

Note :
1. You can skip the oyster sauce. Use 1 more tbsp of soya sauce instead.
2. You could use 5 bulbs of spring onion instead of an onion. Use the green part as a garnish.

Strawberry Oats Cake

2012-01-07T20:53:00.000-08:00

It is strawberry season here and I just dunno why but I picked up a pack of strawberries while we grocery shopping this weekend. When I found a tiny amount of oats remaining in a jar, I knew that I had to make the strawberry oats cake that I had seen on Aparna and Greeshma's blog - here. I was just hoping that I had the right amount of oats. Gingerly I opened up my laptop and found the recipe which is actually from this site. I was happy to see that it required just 1/2 a cup of oats. Since, it is just two of us, I usually make cakes with a cup of flour so I had to just halve the ingredients and 1/4 cup of oats is all that was needed.

As you all do know me by now, I just had to put in a twist or two.

Ingredients:
1. 1 cup of whole wheat flour
2. 1/4 cup of quaker quick coooking oats
3. 1 teaspoon of baking powder
4. 1 whole nestle strawberry yoghurt

5. chopped walnuts
6. A pinch of salt

7. 1 egg ( the original recipe indicates the use of a ripe banana which was, in my case, amidst gastronomical juices today)
8. 1/2 cup of sugar
9. 1/4 cup of honey
10. 1/2 to 3/4 cup of strawberries chopped (The cake was very moist due to the number of strawberries that I had put in. This reflects a modified moderate amount)
11. 1/4 cup oil
12. 2 tbsp of milk - can avoid if the batter is smooth

How I made it :
1. Sieve together the salt, baking powder, atta. Add the oats and walnuts.
2. Beat the egg with sugar, honey, oil.
3. Once the mixture is creamy, add the yoghurt and the dry mixture of step 1. Fold in the ingredients.
4. Add the strawberries. Mix softly. Add the milk if the batter is too thick and lumpy.
5. Bake for 45 minutes in a pre-heated oven for 45 minutes at 180 degree C.

This cake is quite moist and therefore can't be kept for more than a day.

Beetroot halwa

2012-01-07T20:21:00.000-08:00

I know most of my readers would not have opened up this post seeing the word "beetroot". If you've made it till here, I salute you for that. Beetroot is one good veggie for us. But that is not the reason I chose to make the halwa out of it.

Well, Hubby and I visited "Lumiere - The organic restaurant" on Christmas 2011. They have a very lovely place with great ambience. Fortunately, it was one restaurant that I've finally found in Bangalore that is not crowded on a holiday. I think it is attributed to the fact that most people misunderstand "organic" for "vegetarian". Ironically though, their board does have a picture of a prawn :) Check out their website here. Well, as a welcome drink, we were served a pinkish liquid. I assumed it was due to the root that is dissolved in the water by Mallus. One taste and I knew I was wrong, we were given a beetroot with lemon juice. It was really good. Hence, this week while grocery shopping, I picket up a few beetroots to try out this simple juice that was detailed out to us by the ever helpful waiter. However, I was still wondering what I would do with the beetroot pulp that would remain once I had extracted some juice. One moment I thought I'd make something like a tikki but with the success of the carrot halwa, I just knew what to do with the pulp. So here's how I made the beetroot halwa. I did not have milkmaid on hand this time so skipped it.

Ingredients :
1. 4 medium sized beetroots grated or blitzed in the food processor
2. 300 ml of milk
3. 60g of khova
4. 1 tablespoon of sugar
5. 3 tbsp ghee
6. 1 elaichi

How I made it :
1. Heat up the pressure cooker. Pour in the ghee.
2. Add the elaichi. Once it is aromatic, add the beetroot. Fry for 2 minutes.
3. Add the milk. Close the cooker and boil till 5-6 whistles.
4. Once the pressure releases, cook on sim, add the khova and keep stirring frequently till all the milk is absorbed.
5. Add the sugar.
6. Turn off heat once sugar dissolves.
7. Garnish with chopped dry fruits and serve. I dumped a handful of cashews and almonds in the microwave for about 1 minute. Once they had cooled, I chopped them. This makes them more crunchy.

Hubby certified that the beetroot halwa was more tasty than the carrot halwa. I guess it is just that since it was my second attempt, I got a better hang of it.

Carrot halwa

2012-01-04T21:13:00.000-08:00

Off late, due to the increase in percentage being taken by the food coupon companies, many biggies in the supermarket business have stopped accepting coupons. I was very worked up when I found a bundle of coupons for 4000 rupees lying in the back of my hubby's cupboard. Yesterday, while going for a walk, I found that a small department store near my place accepts the coupons. Hence, hubby and I went on a shopping spree :) I found really good delhi carrots as well as khova. Hence, I decided to make carrot halwa.

Ingredients

1/2 kg carrots grated

1/2 litre milk

100g khova

1/4 cup milkmaid

3 tablespoons sugar

1 elaichi powdered/smashed

3 tablespoons ghee

Dry fruits to garnish

How to make :

1. Heat the ghee in a pressure cooker. Add the carrots. Fry the carrots for about 3 minutes.

2. Add enough milk to cover the carrots.

3. Pressure cook on high for 5 whistles.

4. Once the pressure releases, add the remaining milk and keep stirring. Add the elaichi.

5. After about 8 minutes, add the milkmaid and the khova. Continue stirring. Use a glove to protect your hands from the steam while stirring.

6. This takes sometime. You will need to keep stirring to ensure that it does not stick to the bottom. Once you feel that the halwa has absorbed all the milk, add the sugar.

7. Turn off heat once sugar dissolves.

This was the first time that I tried making carrot halwa and it was truly delicious.

Vendakka Kara Kuzhambu/South Indian Ladies Finger/Okra curry

2012-01-04T19:47:00.000-08:00

For a long time I have been trying to master kara kuzhambu. Every time my friend Anitha would bring the same in her lunch box, I would say to myself "Now, this is one dish I need to master.". My aunt's maid in Coimbatore used to make really good Kara Kuzhambu/Vatha Kuzhambu. I miss that. Finally, today after viewing this link, and with a few modifications of my own, voila, I got the perfect kara kuzhambu. It was truly delicious certified by Pras as well as Latha, the owner of the house which we've rented. Latha is an excellent cook and she too, like me, keeps experimenting and trying out new dishes. We keep sharing our recipes and food :) I did borrow some tips that she had given me for kara kuzhambu.

Ingredients
Ladies finger/okra - 20 cut into 1 inch sized pieces
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp fenugreek/methi seeds
3 tsp oil
1 medium sized onion chopped
1 tomato chopped
1 and 1/2 cups of tamarind juice (soak a lemon sized tamarind ball in hot water and extract the juice)
2 tbsp sambar powder
1 red chilly
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
Salt to taste
Water as needed
1 country tomato (optional)
1/2 tsp garam masala powder

To grind into a fine paste after dry roasting:
10 shallots
5 cloves of garlic
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
3/4 tsp coriander seeds/powder - I did not have seeds to directly used powder at hand
1/2 cup of grated coconut
4 red chillies (adjust as per spiciness desired)

Steps to get that yummy kara kuzhambu:
1. Dry roast the ingredients which need to be ground into a paste. Cool and grind to a fine paste. Add water as needed.
2. Heat one teaspoon of oil. Fry the okra pieces till you can see them beginning to brown and keep aside.
3. Heat the other 2 teaspoons of oil. Add the mustard and fenugreek seeds. Let the mustard splutter. Add the red chilly.
4. Add the onions and fry till translucent.
5. Add the tomato and fry till cooked.
6. Add the paste and fry for about 5 minutes on sim.
7. Add turmeric powder, chilly powder and sambar powder.
8. Add in the tamarind juice and boil away - may be for about 15 minutes.
9. By this time the fat should've separated. Add salt, the okra, garam masala powder. Adjust consistency. Add a little more water.If you do have the country tomato, chop it into 4 quarters and drop them in - this gives it a more restaurant look. Boil for 5 minutes and voila - it is ready.

Christmas Fruit Cake recipe

2011-12-27T23:18:00.000-08:00

It is Christmas season and how could I not bake a cake? I just had to. I had already tried out the fruit cake recipe from http://www.joyofbaking.com/FruitCake.html 3 weeks ago and it was delicious. So I just had to make it again. I had some palm sugar this time - bought it from the Lumiere organic store near Marathahalli, so I decided to use it. I was a bit hesitant as I've never used palm sugar before. Jaggery in cakes and tea - yes.. but Palm Sugar - NO.. Anyways, I decided to go ahead. Those of you who know me, do know by now that always the recipe will have some twist.

This makes a very large cake.

Ingredients :
1. 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour - for a healthy twist
2. 1/4 cup of maida
3. 1 cup of rum
4. 1.5 cups of chopped apricots, dates(not the dried ones), figs and raisins
5. 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
6. 1/2 cup of palm sugar - you could also use jaggery, see note below
7. 1/2 cup of almonds - ground to a flour - I powdered these with the palm sugar
8. 2 eggs
9. 1/4 cup of milk
10. 110 g of unsalted Butter (softened)
11. 12 almonds for decorating
12. 1 tsp baking powder
13. A pinch of salt
14. Zest of one lemon
15. Juice of one orange

How I made it :
1. Soak the chopped dried fruits in the rum overnight for best results. 30 minutes will also do.
2. Preheat the oven to 160 degree C
3. Prepare the cake tin by oiling and dusting it with maida
4. Beat/cream together the powdered sugar, powdered almonds and butter.
5. Add the eggs, beating well after each addition.
6. To this add the rum along with the soaked dried fruit and walnuts.
7. Also add the orange juice and lemon zest.
8. In another bowl, mix together the maida, whole wheat flour, salt and baking powder. Pass this through a sieve to incorporate some air.
9. Mix the dry and wet ingredients in both the bowls.
10. Add milk to make the batter smooth.
11. Pour the batter into the cake tin. Decorate with almonds on the top and put into the hot oven.
12. Bake for about 40 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 140 degree C and bake for another 30-40 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.

Note : If using jaggery, dissolve the jaggery in as little water as possible and pass through a sieve to get rid of impurities.

Strawberry Smoothie

2011-12-27T23:05:00.000-08:00

Strawberries all around... I can't get enough of strawberries, they remind me of my childhood in Ooty where these yummy, red, juicy berries grew in our garden. Unfortunately, with the rapid urbanization of the area around my house, the drains do not hold up :( This totally affected the area where our strawberries used to grow. Hmm, well they are history now.

Anyways, the street vendor tempted me into buying the last box of strawberries and immediately I was thinking "SMOOTHIE".

Ingredients for 2 glasses of smoothie :
1. 12 strawberries
2. 1/4 cup fresh cream
3. 3 tbsp honey - adjust as per sweetness desired
4. 1 tsp flax seeds - for the Omega 3 - can be omitted
5. 1.5 cups of milk
6. 1/4 cup of water

Method :
Blitz the ingredients together in a juicer and serve :)

I could not get any really WOW pictures but the smoothie was truly WOW

Eggless Strawberry Pancakes

2011-12-27T22:59:00.000-08:00

Well, it is holidays now and I get really lazy, more so that it is quite cold this year in Bangalore. I woke up and Pras was like "I want some breakfast!!" I had hardly any ingredients on hand to make a healthy breakfast, not even eggs!! I went to open up the fridge and I saw "STRAWBERRIES". Out they came and pancakes were on my mind. Quickly, as almost always, I went to one of my favorite blogs and adapted the recipe from Eggless Blueberry Pancakes by Nags.I also had some condensed milk handy. So I served the pancakes with the condensed milk.

Ingredients to make 3 pancakes :
1/3 cup maida
1/2 tsp baking powder
Sugar - 1 tbsp as the original recipe. Use more if not serving with maple syrup or sweetened condensed milk
A pinch of salt
2 tsp olive oil
A little under 1/2 cup of milk
A handful or more of strawberries
2 tbsp nutella ( optional)
2 tbsp butter/oil

Method :
Mix together the maida, baking powder, sugar, salt, olive oil, nutella and milk to form a smooth batter. Chop the strawberries.
Heat up a tawa. Smear the butter. Pour on some of the batter on the hot tawa. Once the bubbles start appearing, sprinkle some of the chopped strawberries over the batter. Cover it for about 30 seconds. Make sure the heat is on low. Take off the cover and flip the pancake. Cook until golden brown on the other side. Take off pan and serve with sweetened condensed milk.

This is ready in minutes and is eggless. Do give it a try. It was truly yummy with the condensed milk ;)

Planning a trip to Bhutan??

2011-10-05T02:49:00.000-07:00

Bhutan is one country which is recently opening up to tourism. When Pras and I decided to travel there, we did not find much information about things to do and places to visit. Ultimately, we were at the mercy of our tour guide and the taxi driver to take us places. Most of the websites and forums have information from non-Indians, which is really not helpful for an Indian travelling to Bhutan. Our trip turned out to be quite expensive since we were under informed. So here's a post on how to plan your trip to Bhutan.

Getting there :
By Air
There are flights from Delhi and Kolkatta. These are small ATR type flights which get filled during the season. The online site of Druk Air quotes all prices in dollars which is not an option for us Indians. To book the ticket, travel to Kolkatta or Delhi. Spend a day or two roaming around the place and try to book the tickets directly from the Druk Air counter at the airport. A round-trip flight via Kolkatta to Paro costs 12000 rupees(approx) per person. The tickets are more expensive via Delhi. You could book via a travel agent too and we got responses from different agents claiming different air fares. The flight is for about 2 hours.

By road
You can get to Paro via road through Bagdogra - the border town in India. There are regular buses that ply this route. It usually takes about an over night journey from Bagdogra.

Stay :
We had opted for a package which costed us 3300 rupees per person per day for stay at a 3-star hotel including all meals, sight seeing and taxi fare. Though the hotels claim to be 3-star, they barely make that mark compared to real 3-star hotels in India. We stayed at Hotel Pedling in Thimphu which was actually quite nice, except for the noisy discotheque open on weekends alone. In Punakha, we stayed at a resort which was beautiful - Meri Phensuem resort. In Paro, we were put up at the worst of all hotels for *3* nights - hotel sonam trophel.
One can book hotels online rather than go through a travel agent. Make sure to indicate that you are an Indian.

Food :
There are not many options for food in Bhutan. You do get Chinese and North Indian food everywhere. Traditional Bhutanese cuisine is limited to Ema Datsi with red rice and Pork Pa. Beef is basically imported from India as cows are considered sacred there. My advice would be to try and avoid the beef dishes. Ema Datsi is a mix of sauteed chillies (big variety which is used for making Bhajis in India) with cheese. The chillies can be replaced with a variety of cooked veggies and pork but the basic taste remains the same.
We did try the Buttered tea which can be very well missed in my opinion.

Getting around :
As I mentioned that the taxi fare was included in the package. We were provided with a suave Hyundai Sante Fe to go sight seeing. The vehicle is fab but let me tell you that had we taken a taxi at will rather than having one at our beck and call, and too an SUV, we'd have saved precious money.

Things to do :
1. Visit the great Buddha statue being built by a Chinese company in Thimphu
2. Visit the Punakha Dzong
3. Travel to Chelela pass
4. Don't miss the hot stone bath - stones heated in a fire are used to heat up water in a tub.
5. Walk around the streets of Thimphu and Paro - they are really small and the walk is well worth it.
6. Watch an archery match in Thimphu or Paro.
7. Visit the Swiss Bakery in Thimphu - don't miss the chocolate eclair
8. Take a walk amidst the rice fields and take in the fresh non-polluted air
9. Get a taste of Ara the local brew from rice
10. Bird watching on the way to Chelela pass
11. Visit the weekend market in Thimphu
12. Get a taste of Shambaala, a beef patty, in the local market in Thimphu

Getting a guide :
We had opted for a guide at rupees 500 per person per day. The guides are well trained and speak good english. However, do make sure you let them know what it is that you exactly like doing. Our guide took us to numerous temples and forts which did get boring and repetitive.

Places to visit :
Visit Thimphu, Punakha, Chelela Pass, Bumthang. Bumthang is considered the switzerland of Bhutan and is not to be missed.

Mushroom Bread Burger with baked Mc Cain Smileys

2011-08-21T02:14:00.000-07:00

I just love mushrooms since I was a kid. Fortunately, it was one of the things that both my dad and I liked. Usually, we'd be arguing over what was to be made for lunch or dinner cause of our differing tastes. I always preferred roti and sabji and he would prefer south indian meals with rice. I had mushrooms as well as buns the other day and so tried this recipe out. It was scrumptuous. This time, I did not get the buns but had fresh bread at hand, so decided to get experimental.

This recipe is adapted from Mushroom Veggie Burger Recipe. Thanks to Pras for taking this yummy looking picture.

Ingredients :
For the patty
1. Button Mushrooms - 1 packet
2. Onion - 1/2 chopped
3. Garlic - 6 cloves minced
4. Olive oil - 3 tbsp
5. Salt to taste
6. Pepper to taste
7. Oats - 1/2 cup ( I don't know what rolled oats are so just used the Quaker oats that I have at hand)
8. Bread crumbs - 3/4 cup
9. Parmesan cheese - 1/4 cup - I had bought this at acres wild, coonoor. It is also sold at the "Bee Museum" in Ooty.
10. Eggs - 2 beaten
11. Oregano - I did not have any at hand this time
For the burger
12. Tomato - 1 sliced
13. Cucumber - 10 slices
14. Pudina chutney - recipe Mom's pudina chutney
15. Tomato sauce
16. Cheese slices - 5
17. Bread slices - 10
18. Butter

Method:
For the patty
1. Heat the oil in a pan. Fry the garlic, onions and sliced mushrooms till all the water that the mushroom leaves out evaporates.
2. Mix the above mixture with the oats, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, beaten eggs, oregano, salt and pepper. Leave this aside for minimum 15 minutes.
3. Shape into patties of desired shape.
4. Heat oil on a gridle/tawa - just enough to form a thin coating of oil on the tawa.
5. Place the patties and let them cook for about 3 minutes on medium heat on either side.
Assembling the "bread" burger
1. Butter 5 slices of bread and heat them on a tawa/gridle till they just start getting brown - this firms them up.
2. On the other 5 slices of bread, spread out the pudina chutney as much as you would like. Place these to warm up on the tawa. Make sure to place the plain side on the tawa.
3. On the buttered side of the bread, place the cheese slice. Place a slice of cucumber and a slice of tomato. Place the hot patty on top. Top that with another slice each of cucumber and tomato. You could add some tomato ketchup. Cover with the other bread slice.

Now, warm this up for 30 seconds in the microwave and serve hot with tomato ketchup. I also added baked McCain Smileys to the plate. These smileys were introduced to me by a colleague and friend, Rachna Gupta. She also did suggest using Robin Cuffs N Collars on a stain, which seemed like of oil on my new jacket, which actually works. Now, just as she does, I first use Robin Cuffs N Collars on any stain.
Alright, awright.. enough of rambling..... Go ahead and enjoy this yummy hearty burger.

Rava Idli Cake with Coconut Chutney

2011-08-10T22:16:00.000-07:00

I am an ardent follower of a good friend's blog http://www.fingerlickingfoodblog.com. Namratha and I studied in St. Hilda's together and recently we caught up while she was here in Bangalore. I am always on the lookout for good and easy to make breakfast recipes and I've made this one from Namratha's blog earlier too. This time I captured some good pictures - at least I would like to think so :) The main reason why I religiously follow this blog is because the method and ingredients are so much like what I've grown up eating. So here is the how I made my own version of http://www.fingerlickingfoodblog.com/2007/11/rava-idlis-and-bombay-gojju.html.
My husband won't allow me to buy an idli cooker saying that too many pots and pans in the kitchen make shifting houses/places more difficult. So, I make idli cakes ;)

Ingredients
1 Cup rava dry roasted till fragrant
1 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp urad dal
1 tsp chana dal
5 whole cashews cut roughly
1/4 cup oil
1 cup sour curd
1 cup fresh curd
Salt to taste
1 sprig of curry leaves
1 medium carrot grated
1/2 cup peas - if not using the frozen variety make sure to boil them separately before use

Method:
1. Heat the oil.
2. Put in the mustard seeds.
3. Once they splutter add the curry leaves, urad dal, channa dal and cashew bits.
4. Once the cashews start to brown, add the rava and salt.
5. Once this mixture cools, add the curd.
6. Oil a vessel. Sprinkle the peas and grated carrot. Pour over the batter.
7. Steam in a cooker for 10-15 minutes till done.

Stray dog menace in Bangalore

2011-07-26T06:59:00.000-07:00

I hate to give my post this title but I am left with no other choice, with the number of people who actually put it that way. I just don't get why they call dogs a menace? What makes us humans so superior and more important that instead of actually controlling our population we go around controlling the number of stray dogs on our streets? Just because a few of the dogs get ferocious and infected with rabies, it does not mean that all the dogs out there need to be put to sleep. To me, in a very humorous manner, it's like saying, since a few humans are causing terror, planting bombs, going on shooting sprees, let's kill all human beings. Duh!! I mean, come on. Some are calling it "people's welfare". Excuse me, have you ever thought that there could be something like "dog's welfare" too?
I do know how it feels to be surrounded by dogs chasing your two wheeler or having a bunch of them come charging at you when you are alone - believe me.. I am terrified too... like crazy but that would never get me to agree to the suggestion that all strays be killed.
May be some better involved measures need to be taken. All of us who don't find the dogs a menace and those who unfortunately do, should unite and help the authorities to do what best they are doing. We need to report incidents of ferocious dogs or dogs which may be infected and make sure that they are isolated. Any other way, other than killing all the strays out there?

Pav Bhaji

2011-07-09T07:35:00.000-07:00

Since I keep trying new stuff, it is a long time before I actually repeat a recipe. Also Pras prefers that I make something new with the same ol' ingredients. I had beetroot which for long was lying the basket. To put it to use, I hit upon "Pav Bhaji". I did refer Mom's Pav Bhaji. Namratha is a fantastic cook. She used to be my classmate and I am proud of what she has achieved with her blog. So here goes - I made it a tad bit different ;)

Ingredients:
To be boiled together till mushy:
4 medium sized potatoes - cut into quarters
1 medium sized carrot - cut into roughly small pieces
1 medium sized beetroot - cut into roughly small pieces
1/2 cup of cauliflower florets

To grind into a paste:
4 small to medium sized tomatoes
3 long green chillies - adjust as per taste and hotness of chilly
6 cloves of garlic

Other ingredients:
1 large onion finely chopped
1 medium sized capsicum/green bell pepper finely chopped
1 1/2 tbsp Pav Bhaji masala
1/2 cup green peas
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1 tbsp oil
water as required
salt to taste

To garnish :
freshly chopped coriander
chopped onion
1 tbsp butter
lime juice to taste

How I made it :
1. Heat 1 tbsp oil.
2. Add the onions and fry till dark golden brown. You can add more oil to prevent the onions from burning.
3. Once onion is brown, add the bell pepper and green peas. Fry till green peas are almost done.
4. Add the red chilli powder.
5. After 30 seconds, add the tomato paste. Fry till oil separates
6. Mash the boiled veggies and add.
7. Add salt and the pav bhaji masala.
8. Add a little water and allow to simmer for 10 minutes with cover on.
9. Garnish with chopped onion, coriander and a sprinkle of lime juice.

Serve with buttered pav.

Spicy Panneer Bhurji

2011-06-21T20:27:00.000-07:00

I love Panneer, esp. home made crumbled panneer - just fresh off the heat. It has been ages since I made panneer and especially this recipe. So here goes..
Ingredients:
For the panneer
Milk - 1 litre
Vinegar - 1 capful
Curd - 1 tablespoon

For the Bhurji
Panneer - made from above
1 onion - finely choppped
1/2 capsicum - finely chopped - I used a large one. Use a full capsicum if the size is small.
1/2 cup shelled peas
1 cup tomato puree
1 tbsp ginger and garlic paste
1 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
A pinch of kasuri methi
1 tsp cumin/jeera seeds
A pinch of tumeric powder
salt to taste

How I made it :-

For the panneer
In a pan, bring the milk to a boil. Add the curd and vinegar. The milk will curdle. Strain out the liquid and retain it. It can be used for making extra soft rotis or for naans. Make sure to drain out as much liquid as you can from the panneer - I use a cloth and tie the panneer in that while I proceed with the rest.

For the bhurji
In a wok heat up oil. Throw in the jeera seeds and kasuri methi.
Once fragrant, add the onions and capsicum.
Once the onion is pink, add the ginger garlic paste and peas.
Fry for a minute.
Add the tomato puree and powders.
Fry till fat separates.
Add the panneer and salt.
Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis.

Veg Moussaka

2011-06-15T22:56:00.000-07:00

I adapted the recipe from http://arundati.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/moussaka-not-quite. It was truly yummy. If only I had a 8x8 baking dish, I would have had great pictures to post too.

I did make a few changes - I did not add the pasta as was suggested and I made the belchamel sauce a tad bit differently. However, I prefer plain belchamel sauce - made up of maida, butter n milk.

Ingredients

1. 12 thick slices of potato

2. 1 large brinjal cut into 1/4 inch thick slices

3. 2 tbsp oil

For the soya layer which replaces minced meat

3. 1 1/2 cup soya granules soaked in boiling hot water

4. 1 1/2 cup tomota puree

5. 1 large onion finely chopped

6. 1/2 capsicum finely chopped - I had this left over from the sandwiches that I made earlier in the week

6. 8 pods of garlic - I used the large variety which are considered more pungent

7. 1 tsp red chilli powder

8. 1 cinnamon stick

9. 1/2 tsp cumin/jeera powder

10. salt to taste

11. 1 tsp oil

For the belchamel sauce

12. 1 tbsp butter

13. 2 tbsp maida

14. 1 1/2 cups milk

15. 1 cup grated cheddar cheese

16. salt to taste - be careful as the cheese and butter are salted generally.

17. pepper to taste

How to make...

1. In a wide pan, heat the 2tbsp of oil. Lay the potato slices and fry till they are 3/4th done on both sides.

2. While the potato is getting done, you can salt and keep the brinjal slices aside so that any bitterness will be removed.

3. Once the potato is 3/4th done, remove and place on paper towels to drain. Fry the brinjal slices in a similar fashion till done. Remove on kitchen towels to drain.

4. In the same pan, add a little more oil. Put in the cinnamon stick. Fry the onions and capsicum till onions are translucent. Add the chilli and cumin powders. Add the soya, after draining all the water. Fry the soya for a minute. Next add the tomato puree. Adjust salt. Fry this till almost dry.

5. In another pan, melt butter. Fry the maida till fragrant. Add warm milk, whisking throughout to make sure there are no lumps. Add pepper, cheese and salt(with care). Once it reaches a sauce like consistency, take off from fire.

6. Now to assemble the whole thing together. Place the potato pieces at the bottom of an oven proof pan. Place the brinjal slices on the top of that. Layer with the soya granules. Now pour over the belchamel sauce. Bake for 30minutes in a pre-heated over at 180 degree C.

Sakkarai Pongal

2011-04-05T01:51:00.000-07:00

My sweet tooth got the better of me yesterday and I made sakkarai pongal, which is very simple and easy.

Ingredients :

Rice 1/2 cup

Yellow mung dal - 1/2 cup - dry roasted till fragrant

jaggery - 1/2 cup powdered

coconut milk - 1/2 cup

cashewnuts - a handful - dry roasted

almonds - sliced and dry roasted - a few

water - 2 cups

milk - 1/2 cup

ghee - 4 tbsps

How I made it :

1. Soak the rice and mung dal for about 30 minutes

2. Cook the rice and mung dal with 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of milk - slightly overcook them.

3. Mash the rice and mung dal with a masher or the back of a ladle.

4. Add the jaggery.

5. Once the jaggery melts and mixes in, add the coconut milk.

6. Add ghee. You could fry the nuts in the ghee before adding.

7. Decorate with the nuts and serve.

Tastes best cold. Add elaichi/cardomom pods if you like the taste of those. My hubby detests it like crazy. We constantly argue about this.

Review of Orange County, Kabini

2011-03-30T05:42:00.000-07:00

It has been a hectic start to the year 2011. Shopping for my brother's wedding and then attending the wedding, falling sick twice after the wedding, hectic work schedule amongst being a homemaker. I had told Pras that I want a luxurious holiday where I can get really good food and just relax. I don't really remember how I got to know about Orange County or Kabini either but I compelled him to take me to Orange County, Kabini for my birthday. Yes, I did find it expensive but I felt we owed ourselves a good, relaxing time.

They had an offer for a 2 night 3 day package with meals starting from lunch on the arrival day and ending with breakfast on the day of departure (basically meals for 2 days) which costed around 39k. I had taken the Friday off so that we could make the best of the money that we had spent and reach the place for lunch ;).

Let's go, Alto! It took us about 5.5 hours to reach the resort. The last 8kms to the resort are miserable. Pras and I took turns driving to our destination. Upon arrival, we were greeted with lime sherbet and were told about the various activities that were available to us in the oh-so-woody open arrival lounge of the resort. The staff were very pleasant, except that Pras and I felt that the "Namaskara"s were excessive.

We then were ushered off for lunch. The lunch was a very impressive spread with a mix of local ethnic cuisine as well as the well known north-indian and italian dishes. Frozen cut fruits, sprouts, fresh garden salad, chicken salad, fish salad were some of the salads available. The local ethnic cuisine confused me a bit as Kabini is a part of Karnataka but the local ethnic cuisine turned out to be more of a kerala affair. We were offered bittergourd poriyal, beetroot poriyal, raw banana curry, bottlegourd curry, pork curry, kerala fish curry along with red boiled rice as part of the local ethnic cuisine spread. The dessert menu did not impress us much though - the items available had a very similar taste. I wished I could've seen more variety there. After all, when you are paying so much mostly for the food, you have to be more than pleased with what is offered.

Post lunch, we were taken to our pool hut. It was impressive. I could not hide my excitement. I have decided that my house will have the same design - minus the pool. We had a pool all to ourselves with a lovely hut. The hut had a dining table, sitting room and the bed room was the only room to be air-conditioned. What turned us off was that the television was not available nor viewable from the bedroom. The sitting room had a reverse osmosis system to provide us with drinking water. The water did taste a bit odd but we had to drink it as they had taken away our plastic water bottles lest we throw them around. Orange county believes in "Responsible Tourism". The refrigerator in the room had soft drinks and drinking water all on the house. Also on the house were cashew nuts, cookies and fresh fruits.

As part of the 39k that we paid, we could go for a 15 minute elephant ride, interact with the elephant for an hour - basically feed and bathe the in-house 43 year old elephant - Meenaxi, go for a nature walk cum bird watching tour as well as take a 15 minute coracle ride. We opted for the nature walk alone. The coracle ride was made comfortable by placing a table in the middle of the coracle on which one could sit - this would never give you a thrill. I had tried the real coracle ride when we had visited Punnamada in Alleppey.

The bird watching tour was worth it. We saw the green bee eater, golden oriole, egrets, ducks,storks, owlette, different types of mynas, different types of bulbuls. We were given Olympus 10x50 binoculars which really made the experience a memorable one. The enthusiasm and passion of the naturalist made it a very rewarding experience.

After the bird walk and a hearty breakfast, we went for a bicycle ride into the village. Manju took us to his village. It was very hot and none of us were able to ride far enough. We headed for Manju's village, had tender coconut, just off the tree and returned back. This was a nice experience too. Manju is one of the employees at Orange County but is a local whose village was relocated when the Kabini dam was constructed in 1974. Manju is not very happy with what the government has done for such locals. Each such family was given 3 acres of farm land but irrigation is tough and left for the locals to organize. Houses which won't last in the rain are being provided and most of them have no access to the basic needs of life.

We also opted for the vehicle safari which costs 1k per head.If you take a video camera, you need to pay an additional 1k to the forest department. This was not as rewarding as we did not get to see the predators! It was very depressing.

As part of the package, one can opt for having dinner at the barbecue restaurant instead of going for the buffet spread. We tried this and the food was excellent. We did miss the tribal dance as we were tired after being tossed around in the vehicle during the safari.

However, we did enjoy the food and the pool. Overable a 7 out of 10 experience.

Mom's pudina chutney

2011-03-30T05:33:00.000-07:00

You will need

1 bunch of pudina/mint

1/2 bunch of coriander leaves

1 tsp cumin seeds/jeera

1 tbsp coriander seeds

1 medium onion chopped

4-5 green chillies

4-5 cloves of garlic

1 inch ginger

Salt to taste

Grind all these together, adding as little water as possible. Goes well with Parathas and can be used for chutney sandwiches. Sometimes, I do add this to the biryani masala.

Chutney sandwiches - interesting sandwiches part II

2011-03-30T05:31:00.000-07:00

I love my mom's pudina chutney. One very simple and easy sandwich would be the chutney sandwich. It is an ideal picnic option.

You will need :

2 slices of bread

1 stick of butter

1 tsp of pudina chutney

Method :

Spread the butter on one slice of bread.

Spread the pudina chutney on the other slice.

Place the slices of bread over one another. Go ahead and eat!!!

Interesting sandwiches

2011-03-30T05:26:00.000-07:00

I almost always experiment with the vegetables that I buy. This time it was with Capsicum. I totally love this vegetable, once liked only on Pizzas.

I bought some eggless mayonnaise from the store nearby and sandwiches it is for breakfast the next morning.

Ingredients :

1 medium sized capsicum chopped finely

1 small sized onion chopped finely

1 carrot grated

2 green chillies finely chopped

2 tsp pepper powder

6tbsp eggless mayonnaise

4 slices of bread

Method:

Spread approx 3 tbsp of mayo on one slice of bread. Sprinkle green chillies, capsicum, onion, carrot and pepper over the mayo. Place the other slice of bread over this. Repeat this with the other 2 slices of bread. Toast/grill and enjoy with tomato ketchup.

Mom's butter panneer recipe

2011-03-06T05:30:00.000-08:00

After all my cooking experiments, I wanted to make something the way my mom makes it. All this, only because, I really did not get to eat much of mom made food when I was at home this last time. Butter panneer used to be one of my favorites - absolutely yummy with rotis and sindhi papad. Without any further delay, here goes the recipe

Ingredients
1. 200 grams of panneer - cut into cubes
2. 1 large onion - roughly chopped
3. 1 inch stick of cinnamon
4. 3 cloves
5. 4 medium tomatoes - chopped {the key is to have the same quantity of tomato as there is onion, so adjust accordingly}
6. 1 tbsp cashew
7. 1 tbsp khus khus - add 1 more tbsp of cashew if you do not have khus khus
8. 1 tsp red chilli powder
9. a pinch of kasuri methi
10. salt to taste
11. water
12. 3.5 tbsp of oil
13. ginger - 1 inch piece chopped
14. garlic - 6 cloves
15. Milk for getting desired consistency

How I made it :
1. Soak the khus khus and cashew in a small quantity of water, enough to at least cover the khus khus and cashew. Heat up the water - a minute in the microwave. Watch the time as the water could over spill.
2. Heat 1 tbsp of oil. Add the cinnamon and cloves. After 30 seconds, add the onions. Fry till golden brown. Add the ginger and garlic. Fry for a minute and set aside to cool.
3. Heat 1 tbsp of oil. Add the tomatoes and red chilli powder. Fry till fat separates and set aside to cool.
4. Once cooled, add the tomato mix, onion mix and the khus khus and cashew along with the water in which they are soaking into the food processor and blend till smooth.
5. Heat a little oil and lightly fry the panneer pieces till they get a golden tinge on all sides. This step can be skipped if you are sure about the panneer. I had tried heritage panneer for the first time and hence did not want to risk it.
6.Heat 1 tbsp oil. Put in the kasuri methi. Fry for a minute. Put in the blended mixture. Add salt. Let it bubble away (cover with lid, else your kitchen will be an absolute mess). Make sure to stir as the cashew paste will make it stick. After about 5 minutes, add some milk till you get the desired consistency. Once the fat separates, add the panneer pieces. Turn off heat after 5 minutes. Add a dollop of butter before serving.

Note : In step 4, mom's recipes requires the cashew and khus khus to be ground separately. Since I have a huge mixie jar, in which that small quantity wont get ground to a smooth paste, I add it along with the other stuff to be ground. In case you do grind it separately, add it in step 6 before adding the milk and fry for 3 minutes.

This tastes best with rotis. We had it with methi roti which tasted good too.

Methi roti recipe :
1 small bunch of methi
3 green chillies
1 tsp of cumin powder
A pinch of turmeric powder
1 handful of besan/gram flour
3 handfuls of atta/wheat flour
1 tbsp oil
Water

Grind the green chillies and cleaned methi to a paste. Add all other ingredients and make a soft dough. Roll out like chapati and roast on a hot tawa with oil/ghee/butter.

Banana cake

2011-01-27T20:11:00.001-08:00

Jyothi Madanlal January 28 at 9:40am

I adapted the recipe fromhttp://www.cookingandme.com/2011/01/best-banana-cake-recipe-ever-with-cream.html

Ingredients:
1 cup wheat flour
2 large ripe bananas mashed
3/4 cup powdered jaggery
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup chopped walnuts dusted with flour to prevent them from sinking in the cake(did not have these that day)
1/4 cup oil/melted butter
1 egg
A pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla essence/extract
Milk - as needed to get the correct batter consistency

How i made it:
Prepare baking tin - line with butter paper or spread butter and dust with flour.
Preheat oven at 180 degree C
Mix together all the dry ingredients - wheat flour/baking powder/baking soda/salt.
Whisk together the banana/butter/jaggery/egg. Add the vanilla essence.
Fold in dry ingredients into the wet. Add the walnuts
Pour into the cake tin and bake for 30-40 minutes.

Milk will be required if the consistency is too lumpy/thick

Honey Garlic Grilled Eggplant

2011-01-26T07:47:00.000-08:00

I adapted the recipe from http://www.beyondsalmon.com/2006/09/honey-garlic-grilled-eggplant.html.

How i made it :

1 large eggplant/aubergine/brinjal

4 cloves of garlic

1 tbsp of vegetable oil

1 tbsp of honey

1 tbsp of white vinegar

2-3 drops of dark soy sauce

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

Method:

Cut the brinjal into rounds, about .5cm thick each

Smear some salt on either side and leave aside for 15 minutes

Pat dry the rounds and keep aside

Mix together the remaining ingredients in a bowl

Graciously dip the rounds in this marinade and grill/cook on a tawa both sides of the rounds till golden

This was truly delicious. Loved the sweetness of the honey and the sharpness of the garlic.

CCNA Prep - Key points

2010-10-25T02:17:00.001-07:00

Main functions of switches

1. Perform switching in the hardware

2. Address learning

3. Loop avoidance

4. Forward/Filter/Flood

5. Store and Forward(get full packet into memory buffer and then forward), Cut-through(read only destination mac and forward), Fragment free (read first 64 bytes and then forward)

6. increase bandwidth

7. increase collision domains

8. reduce size of collision domain

Spanning Tree Protocol

- runs on a per VLAN basis - 802.1d

- to prevent switching loops

- it takes time to converge... is completely converged when the all ports are either in forwarding or blocking mode

- root bridge has all ports in forwarding mode - but don't get confused, when etherchannel is configured also, all ports will be shown as forwarding

- etherchannel configuration

int port-channel 1

int range fastethernet 1-10

switchport mode trunk

channel-group 1 mode desirable auto

- disabled, blocked, listening, learning, forwarding

forward-delay is 15 seconds - 15 seconds in listening and 15 seconds in learning

wait interval - 20 seconds.. wait for 20 seconds for hello packet before stp is recalculated.

BPDU - Bridge Protocol Data Unit - Bridge Priority:Mac Address

The root bridge is the one with the smallest Bridge ID.

On access ports turn on portfast to reduce STP overhead or we can run rapid Spanning Tree Protocol 802.1w - does away with listening and learning states

Costs

10MBPS - 100

100 MBPS - 19

1000 MBPS - 4

10000 MBPS - 2

Port Security

switchport port-security maximimum 2

switchport port-security mac-address sticky

switchport port-security violation shutdown/restrict/protected

UplinkFast - actively finds the next best path to be enabled in case the currently active path fails

switchport uplinkfast

BackboneFast - enabled on access switches. When a switch recieves an inferior BPDU from the designated switch, it knows that the link to the root bridge has failed.

switchport backbonefast

BPDU Guard - puts the port into err-disabled state if a BPDU is recieved on the port on which this is enabled

switchport bpduguard enable

BPDUFilter - removes the port from portfast mode once it receives a BPDU

switchport bpdufilter enable

OSPF

- process id is locally significant

- process id can be from 1 to 65535

- link state protocol

- sends hello packets every 2 seconds

- link state advertisements are sent out only when there is change in topology

- administrative distance is 110

- suitable for multi-vendor networks

- metric is cost

- for routers to become neighbours

* get hello packet

* same area

* same network mask

* same hello and dead timers

- types of routers

- backbone router - at least one interface in area 0

- area border router - between areas

( all backbone routers are area border routers but not the other way around)

- AS border router - during redistribution

- internal routers - all interfaces in same area

- auto-summarization

router ospf#area 1 ip range 172.16.20.1 172.16.20.4

Costs

56KBPS line - 1785

64KBPS line - 1586

T1 line - 1544 KBPS - 64

Ethernet - 10 MBPS - 10

FastEthernet - 100 MBPS - 1

100000000/speed in bps

RIP

version 1

-broadcast routing updates

- holdowns, split horizon, route poisoning used to prevent routing loops

- holddowns - wait for a particular duration before taking the next step

- route poisoning - advertising a route as unreachable

- split horizon - don't forward a packet out the same interface that it came in on

- uses hop count as metric

- classful

- no support for VLSM

- administrative distance is 120

version 2

- classless

- supports VLSM

- administrative distance is 120

- multicasts routing updates to 224.0.0.9

- suitable for small networks with fewer hops

- metric is hop count

- ip summary-address rip 172.16.20.1 172.16.20.4

EIGRP

- AD is 90

- classless

- supports VLSM

- suitable where mutliple routed protocols are to be supported

- not suitable for multi-vendor networks

- metric is bandwidth, delay, reliability, load, MTU

VTP

- modes - server - update own database and send advertisements - is the default mode

- client - can not update their local database on their own. process and update based on advertisements from server

- transparent - used to just forward VTP messages in between. Can update their local database but not advertised

- vtp domain and passwords need to match for switches to share VLAN information

Router on a switch - to communicate between VLANs

- router has sub-interfaces, one in each VLAN subnet and the ip of the sub-interface is set as the gateway in each vlan

- the encapsulation type has to match

Frame Relay

show frame-relay map - shows DLCI and IP address mapping

States : Active, Inactive(remote side problem), Deleted(incorrect mapping entry)

show frame-relay pvc - shows all DLCIs configured with statistics

show frame-relay lmi - sequence numbers should keep increasing depending on keepalive value set in "show interface serial1/0"

LMI acts as keepalive in Frame Relay.

Frame Relay encapsulation types

encapsulation frame-relay ietf

encapsulation frame-relay - defaults to cisco

The encapsulation has to match between DTEs.

LMI types

frame-relay lmi-type ansi/q933a/cisco

LMI types have to match between DTE(Router) and the Frame Switch

DLCIs can be anything between 16 and 1019.

Status can be seen in show interface serial 1/0

On point to point links, frame-relay interface-dlci 111

Otherwise, frame-relay map ip 172.16.20.1 111 broadcast

Inverse ARP - used to find the dlci given the ip address

Proxy ARP - router returns the MAC address of its interface when the destination is on a remote network

Reverse ARP - to find the IP address of a known mac

ARP - find mac given ip address

PPP consists of HDLC(Encapsulation), LCP(Link Control Protocol - to establish,maintain connections), NCP (Network Control Protocol - to determine which Network Layer Protocol)

LCP provides multilink, callback, authentication, compression

OSI model - to let different vendors interwork

Application/Presentation/Session/Transport/Network/Data Link/Physical

Data link - Logical Link Control and MAC - Media Access Control

TCP/IP model

Process/Application(App/presentation/session) -> Host-to-Host(Transport) -> Internet(Network) -> Network Acess(data link and physical)

TCP - connection oriented, flow control, error detection and recovery, sequencing, windowning

FTP 20/21, SSH - 22, Telnet - 23, SMTP - 25, HTTP - 80, POP - 110, SSL - 443

UDP - connectionless, best effort delivery

DHCP - 67/68, SNMP - 161, TFTP - 69

DNS - 53 on both, 24 on both for mail

Wireless technologies

- 802.11, 802.11a, 802.11 b, 802.11 g, 802.11n

- 900MHZ, 2.4GHZ, 5GHZ - frequency

- 802.11a - enhancement to basic 802.11 - 6 to 54 MBPS speed on 5GHZ - uses ODFM - 12 channels

- 802.11 b - 1 to 11 MBPS on 2.4 GHZ - uses DSSS - 3 channels

- 802.11g - 6 to 54 MBPS on 5GHZ - uses OFDM but switches to DSSS if there is even one 802.11b AP - 3 channels

- 802.11n - 23 channels

- Basic Service Set - one AP

- Extended Service Set - multiple APs all using same SSID to enable seamless roaming but different channels

Memory components

EEPROM - flash - stores IOS

NVRAM - stores startup-config, configuration register

RAM - stores running config, ARP cache

ROM - stores ROM Monitor(piece of code to test, debug), POST, bootstrap, ROM IOS - very basic IOS - to enable an interface and other maintenance commands - loaded if IOS is not found in flash or TFTP server

Configuration register - 0x2102 - default value - load IOS from flash - follow boot sequence in NVRAM

0x2142 - escape startup configuration values to recover password

Ctrl+break while booting will take u into rom monitor mode.

0x2100 - rom monitor mode rommon>

0x2101 - rom boot mode router(boot)>

0x2102 to ff - boot sequence in NVRAM

Troubleshooting

1. Ping localhost 127.0.0.1 - to test TCP/IP stack implementation

2. Ping local ip - to test NIC card

3. Ping local gateway - to test local network

4. Ping remote address - to check if it is a remote problem

interface is administratively down - no shutdown has to be given

interface is down - ip address not set on remote interface or remote interface has to be issued no shutdown

line protocol is down - some logical issue - no keepalives(lmi) or encapsulation mismatch or clock rate not supplied

NAT

- ip nat inside

- ip nat outside

- ip nat pool Pool1 201.1.1.1 201.1.1.5 prefix-length 29

- access-list 1 permit 192.168.1.1 0.0.0.255

- ip nat inside source list 1 pool Pool1 overload

- static translation - ip nat inside source static 10.1.1.1 15.1.1.1

ip nat inside source static 10.1.1.1 interface serial0

- each nat translation entry takes 160 bytes

- nat helps conserve ip addresses, reuse ip addresses, reduces overhead when changing ISPs, connecting networks with overlapping address space

- nat can cause routing delays, end to end ip traceability, some applications don't work with NAT

- show ip nat translations

- show ip nat statistics

- clear ip nat translations *

- ip nat translations max-entries

- ip nat translations timeout

access lists

1. standard

1 to 99, 1300 to 1999

filter only on source address

access-list 1 permit host 1.1.1.1

access-list 1 permit 1.1.1.1 0.0.0.0

access-list 1 permit 172.12.12.0 0.0.0.255

(config-if)#ip access-group 1 in

(config-line)#ip access-class 1 in

2. extended

access-list 100 permit tcp host 1.1.1.1 host 5.5.5.5 eq www

3. named

ip access-list standard 1

permit host 1.1.1.1

deny host 5.5.5.5

Don't forget IMPLICIT deny at the end

3. lock and key ACLs - require the user to telnet and login to get authenticated

4. dynamic ACLs - specify time during which ACL will apply

time-range NO_TELNET periodic weekends 10:00 5:00

ip access-list 100

deny tcp any host 5.5.5.5 eq telnet time-range NO_TELNET

permit tcp any host 6.6.6.6 eq telnet time-range AlWAYS

floating routes

- when the default administrative distance of a static route is changed

configuring use of SSH instead of Telnet on vty lines

REQUIRED

hostname aaa

ip domain-name aaa.com

line vty 0 4

transport input ssh telnet

crypto key generate rsa general-keys modulus 1024

ip ssh authentication-retries

ip ssh timeout

configuring DNS on IP

ip domain-lookup

ip name-server

ip domain-name todd.com

configuring dhcp on ipv6

ipv6 unicast-routing - global

ipv6 enable on an interface

ipv6 dhcp pool pool1

domain-name

dns-server

prefix-delegation pool pool1 lifetime 3600 3600

config-if)#ipv6 dhcp server pool1

ipv6

----

global - 2000::/3

six to four tunnelling - 2002::/16

unique local/site local - FC00::/7

link local - FE80::/10

multicast - FF00::/8

Modified EUI - insert FF:FE into the MAC address to get IP v6 address and change second bit based on whether it is a local or global address

First and second bits of mac-address

I/G and G/L in MAC Address

I = individual when 0

G = multicast/broadcase when 1

G = 0 globally administered by IEEE

L = 1 local administration like DEC

Creating a IPv4 dhcp pool

dhcp pool pool1

network 172.16.10.0 255.255.255.0

default-router 172.16.0.254

ip dhcp excluded-address 172.16.0.254

Cabling standards

10Base2 - 185

10Base5 - 500

10BaseT - 100

100BaseT - 100

100BaseF - 412

1000BaseC - 25 metres

1000BaseT - 100 metres

1000BaseS - MMF - 550metres

1000BaseL - Single mode - 3to 10km

802.11

a - 6-54mbps - 5GHz - 12 channels - 190-75

b - 1 to 11mbps - 2.4Ghz - 3 channels - 350 - 160

g - 6 to 54mbps - 2.4Ghz - 3 channels - 300 - 90

h - 6-54mbps - 5GHZ - 23 channels

n - MIMO - 23 channels - upto 250mbps

Wireless authentication methods

open

shared key

ssid

mac based

wep

wpa - TKIP and AES

Drive to Palakkad and back to Bangalore

2010-10-19T02:32:00.000-07:00

There was a long weekend coming up and hubby and I decided to hit the road. Since it had been some time since we'd visited his parents, we decided that Palakkad should be the way to go. We took down every possible route that we could take from Bangalore to Palakkad. We had finalized on going via NH-7 and then onto NH-47 all the way. We both took the previous day also off. Hubby dear was the first to wake up out of excitement on that one Thursday. We were off by 5:15 am. Hubby took the wheel and we had some initial hiccups on ORR getting onto Sarjapur Road and unfortunately we took the Harluru Road to E-city which was a nightmare. There are so many speed breakers. It is almost like each and every house now has to have a speed breaker right before the gate. Once we crossed that, it was all smooth. It was a nice cool day and Pras was enjoying the drive, looking very comfortable at the wheel. NH-7 is awesome. However, as per our plan, we were to go all the way to Salem on NH-7. Unfortunately, we diverted onto State Highway 20 following a sign board. This road is not that bad but the initial part has a lot of pot holes and passes through all the villages. One really good thing about this route, was Mettur Dam. It is so beautiful. We stopped to take pictures but read in tamil that photography was prohibited. There are no proper restaurants on this route until you reach Bhavani. We reached Bhavani around 10:00 am and had breakfast. A cute grasshopper, whose tail resembled a leaf, was happily resting on our windshield. I took the wheel and Pras found a pet for a while. He was so cute, happily hopping around Pras. We finally got onto NH-47. Once we got onto NH-47, to confirm the route, we asked a lorry driver the way to Coimbatore and his response was "Go straight. The speedometer should not come below 100" :) NH-47 has a lot of ongoing work to widen the roads. Well, the wide roads and 4 lane highways are awesome to drive on, but it's pathetic and disheartening to see that they've cut down all the trees, never to plant another one to replace the cut tree. Since we were off on a weekday, the traffic was negligible. We touched 120+ on this route where the stretch was very good. Pras was getting a stiff shoulder and hence, we kept taking turns to drive. The stretch post Avinashi towards Palakkad is horrible. There are many pot holes and huge lorries parked on either side. Fortunately, we did not have to spend any time at Walayar check post. We reached Palakkad at 2pm.

We started back on Sunday. We started at 6am and got to Bangalore by 1:30pm. The road from Palakad till Walayar was depressing with so many dogs/cats lying pools of blood. There was quite a bit of traffic, it being the end of the long weekend. Most of the cars on the road were Karnataka registrations vehicles, all raring to go, without a single thought. The funny thing about the National Highway is that there is these "Kurk Chalai"/cross roads for villagers with zebra crossings.Each of these had many sign boards one of which was a "Don't Sound Horn" sign meaning that the pedestrians have right of way. Further, the villagers cross the road with cows/goats without looking to neither left nor right. And the drivers knowing that the pedestrians have right of way, don't stop for them. Accidents are eminent. There was a swift and a wagon R behind me. I used to brake or take my leg off the accelerator when we neared these crossings. These guys waited for a chance, when I was behind a bus and overtook me. At the next immediate crossing, the swift driver rammed into a bike. The whole village surrounded his car. Fortunately, no one was hurt. There was a blockade on the Dharmapuri road due to a truck that had run off the road and was being pulled up. This took upto 45 minutes of our time. Another irritating thing were these TOLL PLAZAS. Oh god, we spend almost 200 rupees or so on toll charges, each way. At one toll plaza, the road was bad just before the plaza. Hence, I asked the man sitting at the counter "You are collecting such hefty tolls and the road is not good in front of the toll plaza itself". He shouted something.. not sure what. At one toll plaza, I went to the toilet and guess what I found when I opened the Ladies toilet door? Another man doing I-don't-know-what in the toilet. I was dead scared as to how he would respond as Pras had stayed back in the car. Anyways, I acted very innocent and shouted "Sorry" :P

We took the elevated highway from E-city to give it a try and it is not really a highway.. it made me feel sorta claustrophobic - the walls are high giving you a closed feeling. We had lunch at 'The Dhaba" and ate the scrumptuous food that Pras's mom had packed for dinner.

Overall, it was a great experience. I am sure Pras is now very confident about driving which is a worry as well as a relief for me. Worry - he may not let me drive at all. Relief - I don't always have to drive through traffic.

My version of Bharwan Karele ;)

2010-08-28T03:27:00.000-07:00

Well, Pras loves his Karela. However, he loves them the south-indian way - with the skin not peeled and only the hard seeds removed, as a poriyal. I had other things on my mind when I picked up these tiny baby karelas from the store last week - yes, Bharwan Karela. ;)

I got home on Friday evening with plans of making this dish but had a customer feedback session by 6:30pm and I was sure that I would not be able to make the dish in time. Fortunately, Pras and I had a fight and we both went to bed hungry ;) Come Saturday morning and I was all set to make the dish.
It turned out real good that things were back to normal between Pras and me... So,here's how I made it :)

You will need :
Baby Karelas - 5 (preferrably soaked in salted water for a few hours)
Onions - 1 medium sized chopped finely
Tomatoes - 3 pureed
Garlic pods - 3 crushed
Garam masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Red chilli powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin seeds - 1/2 teaspoon
Salt to taste
Oil - 3 table spoons

For the stuffing :
Besan/Gram flour - 1 cup
Red chilli powder - 3/4 teaspoon
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Coriander powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon
Garam masala powder - 1/2 teaspoon
Onion - 1/2 finely chopped
Water - to bind into loose lumps
Salt to taste

Method :
1. Scrape the skin of the karelas. Slit the karelas lengthwise - make sure that you don't go all the way through. Scoop out the seeds et al. I discarded the peels as well as the insides. Some people suggest using them in the stuffing.
2. In a bowl mix all the ingredients for the stuffing. Add just enough water to bind the ingredients together till they resemble coarse bread crumbs
3. Fill the empty karelas with the prepared stuffing
4. Heat oil in a wide skillet. As the oil heats, add the crushed garlic pods and cumin seeds.
5. When the cumin seeds crackle, add the chopped onions and fry till they turn golden brown.
6. Throw the red chilli powder and fry for a minute.
7. Put in the tomato puree. Fry for 3-4 minutes. Add garam masala powder and salt to taste.
8. Place the stuffed karelas in this tomato chutney. Pour some water till the karelas are partially covered. Cover the vessel and cook on low heat. Every now and then, you can turn the karelas around to make sure that they are cooked evenly.
9. Garnish with coriander and serve with hot rotis.

I loved it and so did Pras. The karelas were a bit bitter but the sweetness of the besan and the sourness of the tomato chutney blended with it well.

Nuances of modern communication

2010-08-27T00:10:00.001-07:00

I, being a fairly frank person, love modern communication methods. Email, texting as well as chats allow me to BE the frank ME. I have been able to put across a lot of my thoughts to my good friends through chat which I would not have been able to do, had I been facing them. It is really hard to be outright FRANK when I am face to face with a person. Up to a limit, I shall go but beyond that, I always prefer to use other means.

However, there are drawbacks too. Like, you can be misunderstood easily. The reader can also get the tone wrong though you never would've meant it. The reader can and will read in between the lines, which can not be clarified there and then, leaving a mark most of the time. And, the worst of them all, emails are living proof that "You Did Say It"!!!. When you talk face to face, there is no proof unless it has been recorded, of course.

The last two days have taught me a lesson to proof read my mails before I send them out and that I should never ever be brash in emails.

The big fat Sindhi wedding!

2010-08-19T01:32:00.000-07:00

Well, as most of you do know, I studied in CIT, Coimbatore. During those 4 years, I stayed at my dad's youngest sister's place. She has two sons - Kunal and Dilip. When I heard that Kunal was getting married, I was like "So soon?".. Never occurred to me that I had got married a year ago and people around me are growing up. Anyways, Kunal's wedding was fixed for August 17th, 2010 to bubbly Deepika Punjabi. The mayhem was to start on 15th August, 2010.

Pras and I booked our tickets and then applied for leave. Sadly, Pras's leave was not immediately approved. Since he does not believe in lavish weddings, he did not try asking one more time. It did prick a bit but I was looking forward to the cocktail ring ceremony, with or without him ;)

Free hair cut:

I worked late till 1:30 am on Friday night, to try and show the device team engineer that the issue was actually on the device and the management software could not really solve it. However, was unsuccessful. On 14th, Saturday, I went to YLG salon in Frazer town for my scheduled free haircut. I had bought 2 bars of Galaxy chocolate, with which I got a coupon for a hair cut worth 350 rupees. However, though the haircut cost 600 odd rupees, it was all free :) We took the Lok manya express coming from Mumbai to Coimbatore. The train was FILTHY!! Ugh!! After ages I was travelling in sleeper class. As usual, I got adventurous and we got off at Peelamedu Railway Station. We then navigated our way to the closest bus stop, took a bus to Singanallur and then from there to Ramanathapuram, Sungam to freshen up at Venu chettan's place.

Venu Chettan's place:

It was nice to be at Venu Chettan's place for a few hours on the 15th. For the first time since my wedding, Chaitu and Mridu played with me. Chaitu has spoken to me before but this time it was really nice. I got to know both of them quite well. After a hearty breakfast and a tummy filling lunch, Pras and I left for Rajasthani Sangh in R S puram. My parents were put up there. I was expecting Guddu to be with them but alas, when I entered the room, it was Adi with them. Anyways, it has been long since I visited Ooty. I wanted to see my dad who has been suffering from gout since a few months. I am going to Ooty along with Vidya and Abu in September for FOUR full days :)

Cocktail party :

I wore the shoulderless/backless frock which Priya had gotten me when she left Chennai. Pras was part of a the cocktail party for an hour or so. He left totally irritated though - not really sure why. The cocktail party was at Jenny's Residency opposite CIT on Avinashi Road. The party started off with the exchange of rings and cutting of the cake. Following that, there were some dance performances - they seemed never ending.. I was yelling for them to stop so that I could have my fun. While waiting, Pras left and I had a drink - vodka+sprite. I had just gotten high and the dance floor was open to all. Attack!! There was one really tall guy - Abhishek - who kept trying to dance with me. I tried avoiding him by dancing with Guddu/Jhanu or jumping into some group but he never got the hint. ;) At one point, he took my phone and put it into his pocket so that we could dance with no interruptions... Ahem!! I snatched my phone from him as soon as I could and turned away. Got to the room at 1:30 am that night. Danced till the very end.

Day two - Mehndi and reliving the past:

I had planned that I will roam around CBE and go for Peepli Live. However, that never happened. People kept asking me about the guy I was dancing with - Abhishek - I said I had no idea. They told me to tell him that I was married and that he would not come near me ever again ;) I was asked to go for the Curry Chawal function to feed Deepika. I got to apply Mehndi there. I applied on one hand then. I came back and got mehndi applied on my other hand. Hence, I was not handicapped with wet mehndi on both hands at one time :) Smart eh? Sadly, not everyone was as lucky as I was. They all got to apply on only one hand. Hmm!! Talk about cost cutting!

Later that day, we had the "Tel" ceremony where we apply gingelly oil on the groom and tear all his clothes - like a new beginning for him.. Kunal was so despo to get it over with and meet Deepika that he sat silently while we all applied "COCONUT" oil on his head and make on his face umpteen times while his dad kept wiping it all away. They refused to give us gingelly oil!!Grrr!! My bro applied rotten tomatoes, egg, etc. on Kunal's head. When we began to tear his clothes, Kunal willingly removed his clothes and gave it to us :) Ha ha ha... Usually, the guy would wear many layers to save his shame but Kunal was ultimate. He had no issues with getting naked in front of all his relatives.

Had tea with Sid, Suraj and Mohan. Sid is the same guy who had once stayed at our place and had come out of the toilet with just a towel around his waist when I told him that a girl, Reshma, had come looking for him ;)

Post that, Suraj told me not to sleep but to join the guys to play cards. While waiting for the guys, I got to know Sonam. Sonam is Kailash's sister in law. She is so different from her sister Radhika/Sangita(we change the name of the girl once she gets married based on her husband's stars - fortunately, no such thing applied to me ;)). Finally, we played cards. It was like reliving the past when all of us cousins would play cards in Ooty during the summer vacation. Missed Jeetu a lot then. Wish he was with us. Wish Kanchan also was okay to have joined us while we played late at night. Slept at 3:30 am that day.

The finale :

While waiting for the "baaraat" at Rajasthani Sangh, I once again bumped into Abhishek. I then told him that I was married and that I work for HP. He was stunned. He felt that I was may be in the 10th or 12th and in college maximum. He was a friend of Deepika's and he was from Andhra. He had scored 98 percent in his CA exam (I think) and was currently working for ICA in Coimbatore. Once again the dancing in the baaraat with Sid and Suraj while Mohan was busy pressing the right button in the toilet.

Post that, I was off to decorate.. umm.. spoil Kunal's room for the night. Could not do much as I had to rush back as my in-laws had reached. When I got back, I went shopping for new clothes with my in-laws. Bought a new salwar set as it has been ages since I bought myself one. Wore a saree for the reception. Many people were like "from a tomboy to a pretty butterfly" :)

I will miss these 3 days. It is good it was not longer as it may have turned sour. I will also definitely miss the "JEALOUS" people who went "most people put on weight post marriage but you still so slim"..... ;) I just wish I got to tell them that!! Ha ha ha

Cooking

2010-08-04T22:07:00.000-07:00

I just love cooking. It is so relaxing, especially when you know what you want to cook and have all the ingredients handy. However, I am always in a dilemma. I have so many recipes that I want to try out and taste. I miss home so much. My mom is a fantastic cook who makes loads of variety. Hence, I am used to all cuisines. Cooking is my way of reliving my days at home and eating yummy food. Further, after a stressful day at work, when the food is tasty and yummy, the results are well worth it and the day is all fruitful :)

A few weeks back, I met up with Compromise and Namroos. I follow Namroos's blog like crazy. All her north Indian recipes are so much like how my mom makes them. http://fingerlickingfoog.blogspot.com is her blog - check it out.

Pras gets really irritated when he sees me browsing for new recipes or watching cookery shows on television. How mean!! Does he not enjoy the yummy food I cook? Hmm..

The other day I was chatting with Ambareen and she was talking about different variety rice recipes. I thought to myself, "When was the last time I thought of making variety rice? It has been ages since I made the plain tomato rice and potato fry". I always end up trying so many different things that it is a looong time before I try out the same recipe. However, a skinny south Indian meal is a standard once a week as Pras loves his rice, being a mallu.

Tonight I am gonna cook up the tomato rice and potato fry as we have run dry of veggies. No matter how much I buy never seems to be enough these days. Two reasons : Pras works from home and secondly, I keep trying out different recipes that sometimes I cook two dishes for a meal. Fortunately, super markets these days have so much variety, that one does not have to run around to take a grab at ingredients.

I however do miss baking and dessert making. I remember making all these yummy desserts when I was at home. Mom, Meema or Susheela would do the regular cooking and I would do the desserts - rock cheese cake, black forest cake, etc.. I also remember trying out exotic dishes which would require hours in the kitchen like the boats recipe - half cook the potato, scrape out the centre and then bake them, following which you stuff the centre with some filling and what not. I really don't think I have that much time and energy to try out those things these days. I would love to but for now I will have to make do with the jhat pat khana which is not bad in any way.

Munnar

2010-07-14T23:32:00.000-07:00

I was so excited when I came to know that Binu was getting married. I was like "FINALLY".. I had to wait until Aruna told me so that I could call him and congratulate him.. But guess what? He did not recognize my voice.. Hmm.. Anyways, I was too excited then to get angry... I had already started making plans - we had already visited Alleppey the previous year... Coaxed Pras into nodding the way I wanted, for a trip to Munnar. Well, it was all planned - a budgeted trip this time. We booked and cancelled and rebooked quite a few times as we were not aware of the buses.. sadly the trains were all booked by the time I could confirm that Binu wanted us to attend his D-Day :)

Binu's wedding was on a Monday - the 28th of June, 2010. We decided to spend the weekend in Munnar. Being from Ooty, we booked a resort away from the hustle and bustle of Munnar. The resort was called Eco-Exotica Holidays. I was not too pleased with the name but was blown away when I saw a picture of the swimming pool. Just as we left to catch our bus to Munnar, Amma called telling us that there was a strike in Kerala the following day against the then recent fuel price hike. Pras and I decided to go ahead and check with the KSRTC officials. They said the bus would reach Munnar at 11:30 am the following day. Trusting them and believing that there wont be any issues for us on the way, off we went. Once we reached Coimbatore, I asked the driver if he knew about the strike in Kerala and he was like he had got to know about it just that morning when he had stopped in Coimbatore. Hmm.... I then asked him to stop so that we could have some tea at least. He stopped an hour from Coimbatore, just before Pollachi. There was this one girl on the bus who waited patiently while all the other passengers, including us, all of 7, had our breakfast - she had to get off just 15 minutes away from where the bus stopped. My heart went out to her when I knew that we had made her wait for over 45 minutes to get to a place just 15 minutes away.

At the Udumalpet check post at the border of TamilNadu and Kerala, the bus stopped saying that they would wait for other buses - which would be safer. Fortunately for us, there was a dam close by where we could spend time. Off we went to the dam.. walked around in the sun..ate fried fish, dosa and AWESOME fish curry and got back well before the earlier stated deadline of 2pm. The bus started at around 12:45pm from there and we were stopped by CPI activists. Each vehicle that was stopped there was given a time at which they could proceed from this point. Crossing this stop, we were stopped once again. This time it was more dynamic with one gang of drunk chaps imitating the activists. One of them waved the CPI flag in front of one the activists who was happily allowed by the others to proceed. Humiliated by this, all vehicles were allowed to move. We finally reached Munnar at 5pm. It was raining - the usual June July weather of Ooty. A taxi was arranged to take us to the resort - some 20kms away from the town. We did lose our way there once - the freaky resort had no sign boards whatsoever. Finally got to our destination around 6:30pm. We were told that the tree house that we had booked was not available cause of the rain and that we could spend the first night in their "SUPER DELUXE" rooms. The flicking room was no better than the room that we get in hotels near my house in Ooty at 500 rupees a night. I do agree that the location of the resort was good and we could pay a bit more just for that but not 2500 rupees per night. Further, the damned place had no power - they used to run a generator in the evenings.. Hmm....

The resort was not that good - they shared the same compound with another resort - Wild Elephant resort which had not got very good reviews. No wonder the same swimming pool picture was put up on both sites!!!!

From the resort, we had a good view of a lovely waterfall. We visited that waterfall and I almost took Pras down with me there with my butter feet :) The food at the resort was also not good.

Google maps says it is a 3 hour journey from Munnar to Kayankulam - the place of Binu's wedding. The resort guys told us it would be 4.5 hours. Preparing for 4.5 hours, we started at 6:30am on Monday for Kayankulam. Stopping on the way for breakfast, we bought Bamboo rice - which is supposed to flower once in 40 years. Bamboo rice is medicinal - helping with night blindness, joint aches and is also called natures's viagra. ;)

Our journey took 7 hours and we reached after the muhurtham time - we did get to meet the bride and groom fortunately! After a heart meal and yummy payasam, we braced ourselves for another LONG journey homeward bound to Palakad. First we went by taxi to Ernakulam, jumped onto a bus to Thrissur. At thrissur, we boarded the very train which I had suggested we take from Alleppey itself, ticketless in the Unreserved compartment. It brought back memories of the time we travelled in the second class compartment during one of our school excursions. However, this time there were just too many people cramped inside - some sleeping on the floor.. some cribbing on and on... was fun.. I could not stop laughing and there was one lady who kept shouting at me for laughing - well, I was not laughing at her.. was just laughing at just how good the trip had been!!! :P

Finally, the romance with kerala has actually ended. For a while, no more Kerala trips....

Outdated!! Am I?

2010-06-19T06:57:00.000-07:00

Well, if you have been reading my blog, you will know that Pras and I are now the proud owners of a second hand alto. (It's actually funny that now I can't stop saying hubby or husband rather than Pras/Prashanth) Since Pras does not have hands on driving experience, we've been going on short drives near our house so that he gets a hold of changing the gears, managing the clutch and accelerator with his feet as well as handling the steering wheel all at once. Last weekend, after the lessons, we went to total mall. As we entered, I was asked to open up the boot and I said I did not know how to open up the boot - basically I thought it had to be done like in old M800s as that's the only car I have really driven around for most of my life so far and I was too lazy to get out and open it up. They let me in by checking via the back seat.
Today, after having had a minor accident - for which both of us are at fault - I shouted at Pras and he hit the HIGH foot path while taking reverse. Fortunately, nothing serious - a small tear in the mud flap :) - we went to fill petrol. I was asked to open the tank and I dutifully got off the car to open the tank with the key as in the cars I've known so far. Sadly, there was no keyhole :( I felt like a fool. The guy working at bunk called me to the driving seat and showed me where the control to open the fuel tank flap was available.
After these two incidents I feel like may be Aditya, my colleague, was right. May be I am really "outdated" (in his words). It is not a nice feeling..... :(

June 9th

2010-06-10T01:59:00.000-07:00

Looks like June 9th is bound to be an eventful day every year for Pras and me :) My friend Sakthi, never forgets to remind me of these important days in my life. He did call me y'day morning too, telling me that it was a special day and I was wondering what it was. I was already feeling low cause of the number of things I had missed while making changes for a SERIOUS bug. Once I had had a talk with my manager, things in my head cleared up and I saw that it was the very day on which, 3 years earlier, Pras and I had met with an accident. We had been to two movies and had a lovely time together. We were riding back from Subway in Besant Nagar, when a speeding bike crashed into us as we were crossing the road. Pras did not get even so much as a scratch. I fainted like twice and remember seeing things in green. I could make out Pras's face but could not see his eyes or nose or mouth. I was in so much pain that I could not feel pain. Anyways, it was a very minor accident. I got away with some bruises. However, the guy who crashed into us ended up with a fracture. I got 10 days off from work thanks to my swollen knee. However, this fracture did bring me close to Binu whom I really respect for his brains. And guess what, Binu is getting married end of this month. Am so excited about his marriage. It is nice to know that people who really need some love in life are finally getting married after not accepting it for a long long time.
Well, that was about June 9th in 2007.
Y'day Pras and I went to collect the second hand alto in Koramangala. We had gone there on Pras's bike thinking that I would drive back the car alone. However, we drove back together leaving the bike at the consultants' place. After a late lunch, we took a bus to HSR BDA complex, from where we had planned to take an auto to Koramangala to get the bike back. However, just as the bus was approaching the stop, it started raining cats and dogs, just like in Ooty. I have never once got wet to the bone in Ooty - thanks to the luxury that my parents have bestowed upon me. I did get wet once in Chennai - was returning home after having watched Blind Date in satyam cinemas along with Sakthi and Nirmal. Well, since Pras and I did not want to get wet, we bought tickets to the last stop that the bus was headed towards which, was not too far, Central Silk Board. The bus driver stopped in the middle of nowhere and asked us to get down. Pras got down from the door at the back. However, I was unable to get off as the ladies in front of me did not want to get wet in the rain. A frustrated driver, closed the doors and took the bus, made a U-turn and stopped the bus on the other side of the road. Pras could not find me and hence called me but I was too busy trying to get off the bus. I did try calling him as I got off but my phone battery gave up. The thing here is that Pras did not know that the bus had taken a U-turn. I now had a choice of waiting in the bus shelter feeling guilty that Pras will be tense or I could run across the flooded road in the heavy rain and find Pras. Well, as most of you know me, I ran across the road. By the time I found Pras in one of the many shelters at Central Silk Board, I was completely drenched and I could not stop laughing. I kept laughing till we got home :) From Silk Board we took an auto to Koramangala, handed over address proof letters to the consultant for transfer of ownership of the car and then rode back home on the bike. We then had yummy hot maggi with an omelette for dinner.
It feels great to get wet to the bone in the heavy rain, more so when the rain reminds you of home. I miss Ooty. I love Ooty. I would still do anything to go back there. Just wish Pras would love Ooty as much.

Invictus - a must watch

2010-03-08T22:47:00.001-08:00

I am now a Rugby fan. I watched Invictus in parts while travelling to Lakshadweep - most of which was on the train journey from Bengalooru to Ernakulam. I always stayed away from history and geography. I am still weak in these areas - I got my lowest marks in these two subjects in school. I am so much a fan now of Invictus and Nelson Mandela, who has accomplished so much. I wish I could emulate him or the Mahatma. I would have gone mad had I been made to live in a small prison room for THIRTY years. I can hardly stay at home 24 hours at a go. I definitely have a lot to learn from these great people. I am glad that such movies are made which educate bimbos like me on things that really matter - which make me realize who I really am and what I really should be doing.
I always liked Morgan Freeman and his acting in Invictus is outstanding.
I recommend that all go watch this movie.

Lakshadweep - true heaven on earth

2010-03-08T21:47:00.000-08:00

My husband has been in between jobs and we were planning a trip. I had managed to get my leave approved but we were unable to finalize on the holiday location. We initially tried Uttaranchal and then the north-east. Failing both, my husband chose Lakshadweep - India's only coral destination. I was not very impressed initially. I had my own inhibitions but I obliged as life has been really different for me these last few months - have been travelling a lot, work has been a bit hectic and worst of all, I have been undergoing a lot of treatments. I really don't know why I go to those doctors and then fall for what they tell me. Anyways, I am done with that phase again :)
This package to Lakshadweep is a Government of India organized trip. There is a Government ship named Kavaratti, which sets sail from Cochin in Kerala. They have a fixed schedule. The ship is not intended only for tourism and has other agenda as well and hence it is requested that you stick to the schedules given.
We took a day train from Bengalooru to Ernakulam on the 3rd of March, 2010. Hubby and I planned to watch movies and pass time through the day and sadly, the laptop power charging socket had an erratic power supply. I did, however, manage to watch most of "Invictus". We had a hotel reservation at the "Hotel Abad Metro". We had eaten at this place on our earlier visit to Alleppey. The food was awesome and value for money. We checked into the hotel, took a bath and took a walk around the streets of Ernakulam.
The ship was to set sail on the 4th of March, 2010 from Matancherry Wharf, Willingdon Island. One word of advice here, eat your lunch and then head for the screening spot [ a few metres from the Wharf, where your luggage is checked and they ensure that you are not carrying any alcohol as alcohol is banned on the Lakshadweep islands]. The itinerary does mention that you will be served lunch aboard the ship but that is not the case. However, you can catch up on a kerala thali for 30 bucks at the second class canteen aboard the ship meant for the bunk class passengers. The food in the second class canteen is really better than the food served to first class cabin passengers a.k.a tourists. The ship sets sail around 4pm, around which time tea and tiger biscuits are also served to tourists. We noticed some pink nosed dolphins just off the coast of Cochin - was my first time seeing dolphins :)
The cabins are really cozy, if not luxurious. You are provided with a table, 2 chairs, a 2 seater sofa, 2 cupboards, life jackets and 2 comfortable bunk beds. The toilet is also very cute and comfortable. Drinking water, towels, blankets and soap is provided - I guess it is included in the package cost of 20.5k per head. Warm and not hot water is available for bath. Since the ship has other agenda and not just take tourists sight seeing, it is requested to keep your valuables under lock and key, whenever you are not available in the cabin - there is no lock provided for the cabin. The ship is a means of transporting people as well as other goods between the other islands. Lakshadweep consists of 36 islands out of which 10 are inhabited by humans. Kavaratti is the capital of Lakshadweep and is the largest amongst the islands. Minicoy is the second largest island. Coconut farming, livestock rearing and fishing are the major sources of income for people. All people are government employees and 99% of the population is Muslim. It is believed that there is 0% crime rate on these islands. Alcohol is prohibited and most of the islands are not open to foreigners. All the people living on the islands speak and understand Malayalam or one of its dialects. Minicoy has its own language called "Mahal" which is a dialect of the language spoken in Maldives, however, they do understand Malayalam.

Dinner is served at sharp 8pm and consists of dal, roti, rice, fish fry, chicken curry and some vegetable dishes too - the vegetable side dishes depend on the vegetables that are being transported, I guess - we had brinjal on all 4 days - even on the islands.
Morning tea is served at 6am and breakfast is served at 7am. Breakfast consists of bread, butter, jam, a local delicacy - such as dosa/upma/idli, coconut chutney and sambar.
At 7:40 am, all tourists need to assemble for disembarking to proceed to the island.
We visited Kalpeni first. Kalpeni is the smallest of the 3 islands on the agenda and I feel had the warmest and friendliest people. We are taken by means of a boat between the islands and the ship. We are then taken to the government run resort by means of some vehicle. The beaches are very clean, the sand is very fine. The water is crystal clear - with two shades - a lighter blue where the water is shallow and the dark deep blue of the sea.The first activity was water sports - kayaking and snorkeling. I got into my swimsuit only to be stared upon by the aunties and uncles from Bengal and Ajmer :) Sadly , hubby and I were the only "YOUNG" couple in the tourist crowd. We first went kayaking from the island to another smaller island close by. From there, we were given snorkeling equipment. The water was about 3feet high[low tide] and the corals in Kalpeni are really sharp so wear your footwear when in water too. You need to float and look into the water and get a good look at the fish and corals. I am really really scared of water and especially of it getting into my ear - by the time I got comfortable of putting my head into the water, it was time to head back for lunch. I did however see something.. We also saw sea cucumbers - which shrink when taken out of the water. There was one which was like a snake and was moving. We have to stick to the schedule as the ship has to stick to its schedule ;) Post lunch, we were taken around the island.Kalpeni has a hosiery factory and a khadi bhavan. We bought tees for 63 bucks from the hosiery factory. We were shown how the weaving is done. However,the raw material comes from the mainland and that may add to the cost that we eventually will pay. I loafed around while people took their time at the hosiery. I made friends with Saifudeen who wanted his picture to be taken. His mom offered me some coconut fruit - this grows inside a coconut. After tea and some cultural programmes, we are taken back to the jetty to embark back onto the ship.
The next day we visited Kavaratti - the capital. Kavaratti is more commercial and has a population of 10k. We were taken on a glass bottom boat ride where we could get a good view of the corals and fish. We got to see the colourful sea anemone and many other corals. On payment of 200 bucks, you can get to go snorkeling for 30 minutes. I was a bit sea sick after the boat ride and decided to stay back. I did change my mind at the last minute but my hubby said that he would not take care of me - there are guys who come to help and take care of people but my hubby insisted I save my energy for the scuba diving the next day. I am told that the snorkeling at Kavaratti is a must-do. Post lunch, we had some cultural entertainment. We also went to the desalination plant which is the source of drinking water across the Kavaratti island. This plant was installed for an initial cost of 4 crores and one litre of water costs 15 paise. People are however not charged this amount. The technology for this plant is all Indian coming from the National Institute of Ocean Technology, Chennai. We also visited an aquarium and museum of preserved varieties of fish. I loafed around while people took their time and made friends with the villagers. After tea, we got back to the ship to proceed to the next destination - Minicoy.
Minicoy was very beautiful - had 3 different colours to the beach - a white, crystal blue and the deep blue of the sea. This was because of low tide. By afternoon, this had changed. The landscape of Minicoy was very different from the first two islands - there were a variety of trees that could be seen. In Kalpeni and Kavaratti, it was hard to find a tree other than a coconut tree. We first went to the lighthouse. We climbed all the way to the top - from which we could see a small island with 12 coconut trees, named Wringley island - after Lord Wringley who was buried there. It was a beautiful sight. Back at the resort, we registered for scuba diving. I mustered all my courage to go scuba diving. However, with an impatient, discouraging helper and my non-supportive hubby, I did not make it. I was very depressed post this - felt like a failure - could not overcome my fear for the water and deep blue sea. My hubby and the others kept talking about the beauty and of a big fish hiding inside a small cave. I was given back the 750 rupees as I had cancelled the scuba diving - I did however get over most of my fear for water. Post lunch, we had a cultural programme. We were informed that in Minicoy, the husband moves to the wife's house post marriage and the entire expense of the wedding is borne by the husband's side. Minicoy has 10 villages with each village having a central village home. The people in Minicoy were least friendly when compared to the other two islands. Minicoy was also more hep in terms of resort look and feel, etc.. The boat ride back to the ship from Minicoy was what I enjoyed the most. The sea was rough and we were completely drenched once we got back to the ship.
The next morning we were back in Cochin. Hubby and I visited the Jewish synagogue in Jew Town. I met the beautiful Amelia, who works as a nurse in London but is from New Zealand. We bumped into each other again at the Dutch Palace museum.Hubby and her partner Rowan, who is from NZ but works as a carpenter in London, got acquainted with each other and we had some nice chit chat after which we bid each other adieu. It was nice to meet them as hubby and I plan to migrate to NZ for a while. We had tea at the Ginger House Restaurant and lunch at Caza Maria restaurant. We then took a local boat to head to the railway station - we did bump into one of the crew members of Kavaratti who was heading home until the 10th of March, 2010 when the M.V.Kavaratti would again set sail.

I am really amazed at what the Government of India can really accomplish. The islands are so clean and people so friendly. It is hard to believe that they don't have any crimes reported there. Alcohol being a no-no, makes it all the more appealing to me - though I really wanted to get drunk on a cocktail or two ;) More important is that they have preserved the beauty and culture of the people. Kudos to the Government for this. I recommend this trip to everyone - even if you are not a water person.
The government has other packages where one can opt to stay on an island. People say that it is better to stay on one island for 2-3 days so that you can get a better feel of the island and visit the places that may be of interest to you. Our package was called the Samudram package aboard M.V.Kavaratti. Aboard the ship we did not really feel sea sick - mostly cause the sea was calm. However, in case you do feel sea sick, the best way to feel better is to look at the horizon.

When the in-laws visited

2010-01-02T22:53:00.000-08:00

Pras and I had found that BIAS-8 would take us to the airport about 30 minutes before the landing of the jet on which my in-laws were coming. We woke up by 5 am, made lunch ready, munched a quick breakfast and walked to the bus stop. The bus was supposed to be there by 9am but came by 9:20am. We then bought 2 tickets, 150 rupees each, for the airport. We reached the airport at 10:40am. Now, we had to spend over an hour waiting. For a while, we walked up and down, had a hot chocolate, read some papers, took another walk, commented on the number of muslims who had come to welcome their kin who would be returning from Haj, cleaned bird shit off Pras's tee and went to the loo. The flight was about 10 minutes delayed - my in-laws had boarded the flight at Coimbatore. They seemed very content and relaxed when we saw them - I thought they may be a nervous wreck - as it was their first time on a flight. We got onto a taxi and we were on our way home. On reaching home, they were impressed with my cooking - except for less salt and the rice a bit under cooked by their standards. They then took a nap while Pras and I watched TV. In the evening, we went to the mall, where amma bought a saree. Now, I must tell you that amma can never say "NO" to a saree :) For dinner that night, I tried my hand at "Kerala Parotta". Well, it came out quite ok - except they would have been softer had I used some egg while making the dough. The next morning, we had aloo paratas for breakfast and then Pras and I went off to buy NSC certificates - I need to submit investment proof between Jan 5th and 15th, 2010. My mother-in-law made sambar while we were away. When we got back - Pras was a bit taken aback that he would have to have sambar on the second consecutive day - but I must say, the sambar made by my experienced amma was really good. The same was had for dinner.
Now, you must understand that my in-laws don't really know what to expect from me cause of the difference in our cultures and the way I've been brought up. It was a welcome surprise to them that I was able to cook and that I would keep the house clean and all that. Amma has just recovered from a broken right wrist and hence, can't do too much cooking. Achcha helps her out and due to this, he has become less particular about the taste of food - thank god. I was really worried as I always use less salt and achcha had once gotten very angry when the salt was less in the sambar made by a relative after my wedding.
By the second day, things were really cool and going smooth, especially since there were not too many expectations.
On the third day, we went to watch Avatar. We had an awful lunch at the food court in Swagath Garuda Mall and I must say - the cinema inside a mall is a real no-no - there was not enough aisle space. We got our 3-d viewing glasses and had a nice time watching Avatar - this movie is a real must-watch - for the graphics as well as the message - "You can not keep screwing with nature". We returned home, had a light dinner and went to the bed.
The next day, we woke up early, had a tasty upma for breakfast and embarked on our tour of Bangalore. We visited the Bannerghata National Park, LalBagh Botanical Garden, Sankey Tank, ISKCON and Shiva temple. BNP was a welcome surprise - I loved the drive to there and the place was nice. The Royal Tiger was so majestic and I just could not get enough of it. Amma and Achcha, though, did not seem too satisfied with this. LalBagh also did not impress them. Sadly, LalBagh did not impress me much too - it has changed so much since when I used to go with my cousin sis and sit on the rocks and chew on roasted corn. We had lunch at "Woodlands" and got to know that ISKCON is open to public only at 4pm. Hence, we went to the park near Sankey Tank - very beautiful and spent some time there. We then went to ISKCON - which is now a "COMMERCIAL TEMPLE". They asked us to buy a special ticket worth 150 rupees which also entitled us to books worth 50 rupees when they actually don't have a single book worth 50 rupees there. So, eventually, you need to pay more :P
We then started back home and on the way visited the Shivan temple at Marathahalli. Well, Pras and I were not very interested in waiting for an hour in the queue and hence stayed in the car, had a chai, bought a small piece of cake to celebrate amma's missed b'day. It was Amma's b'day, the day she landed in bangalore but they never told us :( The next morning, Pras went to IIM. I made chutney, sambar and dosa for breakfast and for lunch, we had sambar and rice. I had a long chat with amma and achcha and made them realize how corrupt even religious institutions have become. We cleaned the house after which Achcha and I bought fish and amma made fish curry with fish fry that day. The next day, we went shopping again and Achcha bought Pras and me a top each :) Achcha insisted I buy a jean too but I refused as there were no offers on. The rest of the day, we relaxed and talked.

I must say, it was really nice to have my in-laws over. I was a bit tense in the beginning and so were they but when they saw that I was at ease doing the work, they relaxed. Yes, I did get a bit irritated when they stepped on my feet while I was cooking but that is ok - I need to get used to having someone around me in the kitchen. Staying alone and being independent has its pros and cons - you learn a lot but makes you so independent that any extra help seems like an interference.

Lasik Surgery

2010-01-02T22:17:00.000-08:00

I have wanted to get this done for a long time now. However, earlier I used to wonder if it was worth spending 25k on correcting what nature has given me and sometimes used to think that I would feel lost without my glasses - behind which I often hide. Well, my hubby is a really fantastic guy - he just has this do-or-die attitude sometimes and he was my strength all through. The date and time of the surgery were fixed just the day before the surgery on the 31st of December, 09. Yes, I was doing the most unthinkable - getting operated on the 1st day of the New Year :) We were asked to be at the hospital around 11am. Till I woke up on the 1st, I was still wondering whether I should really go in for the surgery or not. Well, as fate would have it, out of anxiety, I got my period earlier too. Now, for people who know me well, know what this means - I will be flat on the bed. But, hubby dear perked me up and off we went. My "know-it-all" uncle and cousin sister came over to give me moral support. This sister, Subbu, has undergone this surgery before too. So, it made me feel a lot better. There were a few last minute tests done to confirm my actual power. The doctor met me and gave me strict instructions - keep watching the green light at all times, it may however, disappear for 20 seconds, but don't get tense. I was shown my room and asked to change into a "LARGE" purple coloured outfit. I was a bit reluctant cause of the size but once I was in it, it felt like heaven - the cloth was so soft and wearable and the colour kind of soothed my nerves. Drops were inserted into my eyes two times - they were either antibiotic drops which also helped numb the nerve endings in the eye. Though I was told that the surgery would take place at around 12pm, I was called at around 12:45pm. A cap was placed over my head and I was given large gauzy shoes for my feet. I said a final good bye to my hubby dearest and went into the room, where I was seated and a last dose of drops was administered. Pras did sneak in and I did get a last glance at him before the nurse shooed him away :( I was really nervous. I wanted to just run back home.

I was taken into the surgery room and asked to lay on the bed. The nurse was a real darling - so warm and I could the warmth of her smile radiated out of the mask too. The doctor, then asked me to open my eyes wide, look up at him. He then placed a shield so that my eyes would stay open through the surgery. I asked the nurse to hold my hand. She was holding my left hand. Suddenly, there was cold water running down my face and I panicked and lifted my right hand to stop whatever it was that the doctor was doing. This really pissed off the doctor. He was just flushing my eye out. However, I have this fear of water going into my ear. But the doctor did not give me a chance to tell him of my fears :(. He always cut me short as soon as I had uttered "But doctor....". The doctor then attached a lens of sorts onto my eye. This time again, I got tense and started telling him that I could not see the green light . The doctor got really angry and told me that he had already informed me that the light will disappear for 20 seconds or so. I relaxed. Then, a light beam, like the one in the xerox copier which moves from one side to the other, went over my eye and once more the eye was flushed and cleaned and I was told that the right eye was done. And then, I started shivering. I wonder why I was shivering after the procedure was done.
Now, this doctor, he got on my nerves by telling me that the easier part was over and he was about to do the left eye which had more power and hence required more co-operation. The doctor kept contradicting himself - one moment he would tell me that I was co-operating well, following all instructions and the very next moment he said that I was not at all following his instructions. Now, amongst all this, the doctor had also moved aside the overhead green light and while my eye was searching for this, he shouted at me to stop searching and to look at the green light, which obviously was out of my line-of-sight. Then, when I told him that I could not see it, he asked me to at least look in the direction of the light, after which he realized that it was moved aside and corrected its alignment with a humph!! This time, they placed a ball of cotton in my left ear to prevent the water from going in. He did shout at me one more time for moving my eyeball from one side to another. At last, it was all over. As soon as I got out of the theatre, the doctor complained to Pras about how tense I was inside the theatre - obviously - my first surgery!!!
I was sent to my room, administered some drops and given the "Gola - Italy design" goggles and asked to wear those. We ordered lunch from the cateteria and were waiting, when we were asked to meet the doctor. There was another gentleman who had been operated before[luckily] me, cause he was mentioning some sort of issue in vision after the surgery. As soon as the doctor saw me - "Jyothiiiii, you made my life miserable in the theatre" to which I promptly replied "Sorry Doc". I will never forget the accent and tone with which he said that. I also thanked the lord that I did not get operated before the other person - imagine what would have happened if the doctor had to operate the other chap, who had -7.5 power, after I had irritated him.
I was then told what I could do and could not do and was sent home. I was able to watch TV. I was able to read.
For 15 days, I can not splash water on my face - hence no face wash nor hair wash. I am not supposed to touch my eyes nor rub them.
I had a follow up check up yesterday and my power is nil now - though, the left eye is not 100% clear - but they had already told me that they can't guarantee a 100% correction. However, with both eyes, my vision is now a full 6/6. I was told that I need not wear the sunglasses anymore too.
This morning, I woke up and was watching SRK on "Lift Kara De" and guess what?? My hand went up to push my spectacles up my nose, only to realize that I wont be wearing any henceforth - fingers crossed :)

P.S. I got my surgery done at Sankara Eye Hospital, Kundalahalli Gate, Marathahalli, Bangalore.

Smart yet innocent nephew ;)

2009-12-16T19:50:00.000-08:00

My mom has this nailcutter from Indonesia - which for aesthetic reasons, has a cover. It is all baby pink in colour :P My mom had used it yesterday and left it on the bed. My nephew who loves jumping on the spring mattress[which is fairly new] in my mom's room, strolled into the room, found the nailcutter and played around with it. The cover fell off. My nephew, cute li'll thing, is totally scared that my mom would yell at him. He takes the cover to my mom, and tells her

"The hand broke it.. the hand did it Mini[he calls my mom Mini ;) ].. Chi Chi hand"

P.S. Chi Chi - meaning bad or dirty.

As he was telling her this, he was hitting his hand with the other hand....

So so cute :) But I wonder if he is so smart as to say such a thing and get away or is it his innocence to not know that it is his own hand :)

Holiday season '09

2009-12-16T19:31:00.000-08:00

Well well well.. the holidays are finally here - one of the advantages of working in a US based company :) I am looking forward to having my in-laws over for a few days - however, I am really scared. No, not cause they are evil, in fact I have the best in-laws. But, I am a very moody cook - so I am like - I have got to make sure the food is good enough - all 3 meals in a day, for 4 days... this is really freaking me out. Nonetheless, apart from the visit, I plan to find out and get myself vaccinated against cervical cancer - did not know that a vaccine has been in existence for the last 2 years. If you are a lady and you are reading this, and if you are between 20 and 30 years of age, please do consult your gynec about this vaccine. Cervical cancer is the 2nd highest cause for death in women after breast cancer. I also plan to get a lasik surgery done to correct my eyesight - spectacles have been hoisted on my nose since I was in the 2nd standard :P Just a bit scared about this as well... not sure if this will help prevent further weakening of my left eye.

Anyways, happy holidays everyone :) Merry christmas and a very happy new year :)

I wonder....

2009-11-29T19:12:00.000-08:00

Man must've come after all the land on earth was already present. How did man go about dividing land and owning it?

Working across cultures

2009-11-10T19:10:00.000-08:00

We had a talk a few days back about "working across cultures". Well, it was all about the mentality of people in different countries and how to work with them, interpret what they mean, etc.. However, what is most important is not that people have different mindsets in different countries alone. People within a country can have different mentalities and thoughts too. It should be a team building exercise to make everyone be able to adjust and work with people who may be very unlike them. Take for example my team! Most of my team members prefer to keep things down and don't like being confronted and I, on the other hand, prefer to be confronted[I HATE BACKBITING] and I prefer being open and honest. One of my team mates who attended the same talk, came and gave me the same feedback -that "I had an American mindset". I guess, it should be more of a team building talk than "working across cultures".

Nostalgia

2009-11-09T19:08:00.000-08:00

The "pich-pich" climate in Bangalore, these last few days, brings back memories of the "very dear" Niligiri Networks. The way we all used to huddle around the "antique" heater [which Ismail always wanted to sell off to Mohan's :) ] and warm our feet or Ismail would use to dry his wet clothes. The gossip, Suja's chai.. playing with the "bambarams" from the cheetos packets - I don't believe I used to eat so much and that too junk most of the time. The all-time favorite second breakfast of bun n butter from the local bakery - playing carrom.. playing badminton.. playing cricket... taking walks with various different people.. the kadalai mittai that Partha and ADS never forgot to buy me.... Bike rides!!! Yaay!!! Riding in the rain... Biking on my scooty pep.... the treats of pizzas, choclate croissants, chocolate log.. the list is never ending... oh and how can I forget the "togetherness"? The fights that I had with Ambareen on bugs...

I truly miss all you guys... Ismail, KP, Navin, Siva, Jayanthi, Suja, Murali bhai, Kishor, Ambareen, ADS, Partha, Nanda, Senthil, Abu, Rags, Hema, Lavanya, Selvi, Shiju.... I am glad I got a part of all this as my hubby - B.Prashanth :)

Innovation

2009-11-08T23:57:00.001-08:00

Most companies nowadays talk, advertise and advocate "Innovation". And this one word is given a lot of importance in the team that I am in too. I was told that it would be the deciding factor for the performance grades and that did put a lot of pressure. It has kind of forced me to try to be innovative. I have been seeing other people and their innovations and have been thinking 'Now, how did he get that idea?', 'Am I not creative?', 'Why did I not think about that?', etc.. I also bought books on how to be innovative,etc. However, I don't think I have succeeded in the past one year :( I happened to watch this video by some Allan guy on TED.com, about thinking simple... Now, I am overusing my head to think like a child[as children think simple?] - to see how a child would perceive what my eyes can see, to rekindle the childlike curiosity and hopefully after all this, I will someday be innovative.

Hmmm.....

2009-11-08T23:53:00.000-08:00

My colleague asked me to read his blog and I did not know that he had one till I noticed the link in his gtalk status message. Well, his blog posts seem to be a nice refresher. However, they got me thinking - is it that girls are very cynical about the way we see the world? I can get very cynical I know and I do know a few others who are very cynical about mundane happenings. Are guy's very easy-going as compared to the fairer sex?

Poor doggy

2009-11-05T18:58:00.000-08:00

On my way to work today, I happened to notice a dog crossing the road, dragging one of it's hind legs. It was howling[louder so when a vehicle was approaching - may be as signal that it was there]. I guess some bike or car had run over its leg or it had hurt itself before. Whatever the case may be, the poor doggy. Do we really care about the animals around us? We get to read about the number of people who were killed or wounded in an accident or bomb blast or other natural calamity, but what about the animals??

I am not perfect!!

2009-11-05T00:21:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I found the time to blog. Though my schedule is as hectic as ever, I deserve a break. :) Every one of us are entitled to our opinions and judgements[I am not a very judgemental person though I can be very opinionated]. When it comes to poverty, I can be very nasty. It is not my fault that I may be better privileged than many others around me. However, that does not entitle me to be ignorant of the suffering of others around me. No, I don't feel guilty that I am more privileged. It is just that I feel for the under privileged and their suffering. I do try to do my bit for such people via donations/buying clothes for street kids/buying expensive biryani for street kids. I am not trying to show off or any such thing here. All I am saying is that I am doing my bit. I am happy with what I have and I don't want more and more. Yeah, but I am a human being and I can get greedy. But, is it entirely wrong on my part to be greedy sometimes just cause I feel that people should not be ignorant towards the needs of the under privileged? Does my feeling entitle me to be so austere as to not enjoy my privileges within my means?
Is it not ok for me to eat out at an expensive restaurant once in a while? Or do I need to donate all my earnings? Just cause I feel that the better privileged should help under privileged people?

Hubby makes it into IIM :)

2009-09-05T23:10:00.000-07:00

I am so relieved and glad that hubby dear got "selected" for the EGMP[Executive General Management Programme] at IIM, Bangalore. It is a one year executive course which I believe is very intense and would require him to read material for 2 hours everyday. Whew!! Nonetheless, I bet this will take him places. :) Am so happy for him...

Hilarious!

2009-09-03T01:49:00.000-07:00

One of the most hilarious things I've heard in the recent past is about the late YSR Reddy,[ex]CM of Andhra Pradesh. I heard that YSR Reddy was able to win the elections this time around since he has the power to bring rains to Andhra whereas Chandrababu Naidu did not have this godly power[LOL]. Hey, why then did YSR not become PM of India? There would be no floods or droughts right?

Now, to add to this, I am also told that YSR Reddy has gone to god to ask for more rains :)[ROTFL]

To anyone reading this : Please note that I am not against YSR Reddy nor Chandrababu Naidu. I just wanted to capture the "light" moment that I had shared with my friends.

Celebrating our 4th month wedding anniversary

2009-08-27T19:29:00.000-07:00

Pras and I finally decided to go to the multiplex to watch Kaminey. We went to Prestige Forum Value Mall and booked for the 6pm show at Fame cinemas. Well, though Kaminey has been influenced by movies like "Snatch","Lock stock and two smoking barrels", etc., it is a movie worth watching. Shahid Kapoor has done a fantabulous job. The movie does have dramarama, comedy and hilarious action. And guess what? I ended up buying a new jean ;)

Dal payasam anyone??

2009-08-23T22:43:00.000-07:00

My parents-in-law were very upset to know that Pras and I wont be visiting them for Onam. Hence, my mother-in-law quickly got down to making some dal payasam for us. I thought that it would be a very tedious task but she made it look very simple. Yet, I think I shall take the shortcut of using coconut milk from a tetra pak rather than extract it myself ;)

Here goes the recipe[this will also help as a reminder for me]
Ingredients
1. Coconut milk extracted from one coconut - don't mix the first and second pressing
2. yellow mung dal - 1 cup boiled
3. Jaggery - 250gms
4. ghee - 1 tbsp
5. cashew nuts - a few for garnishing
6. elaichi - a few for garnishing

Method:
1. Boil the jaggery in a little water
2. Pour the second pressing coconut milk and jaggery into the dal and allow it to boil for a while.
3. Fry cashewnuts and elaichi in ghee.
4. Add the first pressing coconut milk, ghee, elaichi and cashewnuts. Do not let it boil.

For extracting coconut milk, boil a little water. Grate a coconut. Add a tiny bit of hot water to the coconut and squeeze the coconut bit by bit, extracting the coconut milk. This is the first pressing.
Add a little more water to the squeezed, grated coconut and squeeze again to get the second pressing coconut milk.

Giving Ayurveda a try

2009-08-23T22:36:00.001-07:00

After attending Remya's wedding, I went to an ayurvedic specialist. Off late I've been facing a lot of dandruff, hairfall and skin related problems. My in-laws accompanied me. It was a one-of-a-kind experience with the specialist telling me a list of problems just by feeling my pulse rate. No, I did not tell him that I had any of those problems. I was a bit surprised for most of what he told me was true. He gave me 2 Kashayams and one hair oil. I am gonna start using those from tomorrow. He has promised to cure me completely of these problems in 3 months. I shall keep you posted :)

Snake Snake Snake!!!

2009-08-23T22:20:00.000-07:00

I had been to Palakad last weekend. Pras and I had gone to attend Remya's wedding. Remya is Pras's "muh-boly behen"[sister not by birth] :) The climate was really good... raining for a while and then sunny for a while - the sun and the rain were playing a game for sure. The wedding was simple, like ours, 10 mins and it was done. Remya was looking great and I really like Pratheesh, the bridegroom, for his simpleton like looks. After the wedding, we were returning home, and my mother-in-law who had entered the house gate first was standing still, looking at something, without unlocking the door. I walked upto her and asked her what the matter was and with movement of her eyes she motioned to me to look there. Looking ahead I saw the tail of a snake, entering the pipe coming from the bathing area in the toilet. Just going a bit off topic here, my father-in-law has built the house in a very eco-friendly manner :) He has about half an acre of land, but has built the house on a small area, growing turmeric, ladies finger, drumstick, mung bean[green moong], a different variety of french beans, coconuts, papaya and bananas. The water from the bathing area is diverted to the coconut trees/banana trees and the garden. Rain water harvesting has also been incorporated in the design. It is a very beautiful place and you get to see a lot of butterflies, which stopby at the flowers, squirrels and different varieties of birds. Some butterflies are so big and they seem to fly around just like birds.
Getting back to the topic, Pras rushed to the toilet to pour some water to scare the snake. However, the snake did not come out when Pras poured water. Pras very cleverly then poured some phenyl down the pipe and voila - the snake's head popped out, it put out its tongue to sense any danger and then made a dash for the garden. I wonder where it went. I was pretty scared to go near the garden. I must appreciate my mother-in-law's guts for she went into the garden a while later to pluck some ladies finger and beans for our next meal :)

Contradictory

2009-08-21T02:28:00.000-07:00

We women need to make up our minds on whether we want to be treated as equals to men or we want men to follow "Ladies first". I've heard a lot of women complain about being treated as inferior or the weaker sex. The same women have also complained about not being given respect when men do not follow discipline such as "ladies first". It is either this or that. Unless you are very lucky, you can not get the best of both worlds. So all ye women out there, make up your minds! I know I am one of y'all ;)

Cruel humans

2009-08-21T00:07:00.000-07:00

Well, the past week has been quite hectic. I have been getting home after 5:45pm, leaving home at 7:15am and cooking dinner for hubby dearest. Well, this may not sound like much, but it does especially after a tiring journey back from Ernakulam. So, on Tuesday evening, after completing all my chores, I sat down to watch television with Pras. Pras put on National Geographic and there was this really beautiful scene of colourful crabs, red, yellow and orange, crossing a road somewhere in Austrailia. A "wow" just escaped both our mouths when they showed a car just run over the poor things. How cruel can the videographer be to take a video of this and not to anything about it? The poor crabs are water beings, so they go to the water to mate and this is the fate we humans put them through. On the funny side, the car tires do have numerous punctures and the crabs which don't get crushed, do end up eating the remains of the crushed crabs :) Well, the humans do deserve the breakdowns, don't they?

The next scene was more horrific. They showed some very pretty birds building nests. The birds are allowed to mate and lay eggs and then boom!!! Some human being blasts a bomb below the tree on which these birds have built their nests, setting the tree and the nests on fire. All this, to control the population of the birds so that the crops are saved and enough is harvested to provide for human beings. Grr...

I agree we human beings are smarter than most living things today but why you this to our own advantage and commit such grevious crimes towards other living beings? Can we not use stringent measures to control our population so that all beings can survive? Why is it that human population is allowed to explode whereas the poor birds are killed.
Human beings are very cruel and I would not like to add one more to this mess. I am so thankful that I married Prashanth, who from day one has only talked about adopting a kid. Hence, we shall adopt a kid and try to make him/her a better person and give him/her a better life. But I will not add one more to the misery.

This and that of Alleppey

2009-08-16T22:44:00.000-07:00

As part of our "staggered"/"scattered" honeymoon, my hubby and I visited Punnamada resorts in Alleppey. The resort is a beautiful place with a lot of attention given to detail, so much so as to have wooden locks for the doors. Personally, I did feel that they've gone a bit overboard with the wooden interiors. That said, the place is very beautiful, peaceful, calm and serene, overlooking the Punnamada lake/backwaters. The staff there were very welcoming, everyone from the sweeper to the manager kept smiling always and were always willing to help.
We spent the first day on a houseboat. Well, I was thrilled - it was just Prashanth and me with the captain, a cook and a helper on the boat. Just before getting onto the boat I was cribbing about having to share the deck space with some noisy north-indian family. It was a welcome surprise when we were shown the way to our boat via the north-indian family's boat :). We were garlanded once we entered the boat and given a yummy pineapple juice. It was all hospitable and warm. We then set sail. The backwaters are very still and calm - smooth sailing :) I had a look around the boat and went to take a shower and to my disappointment was unable to get a single water droplet to fall on me :( Then hubby dear tried and he too failed. Finally, came captain to the rescue and all that had to be done was to turn the knob upwards :-P After a cold shower, it was time to enjoy the beauty of the backwaters - green rice fields, calm water body around us, other house boats passing by, noisy government transport boats, private boats with people ever willing to wave me a "hi", women busy at work outside their homes - they are so lucky to have a house just on the side of the river. Sadly, these people dont realize that they are polluting the water by bathing in the water, washing clothes in the river/lake, washing their vessels in the river. I wish they would realize this and instead of washing in the river/lake, take water out of the river/lake to do the needful on land with proper drainage facilities. Hmm.. this did sadden me quite a bit.

Anyways, forgot all that with scrumptous spread Syjeeth put in front of us. Once done with that, we played some carrom and I beat hubby dear 2 to 1. We then were joined by a very sweet couple from the US as we went in a row boat across the Venice of the East. Once back, we went a bit further and stopped the house boat for the day. Took a small stroll with Anoop[helper] leading us. We went near a lotus pond and saw a water snake... with its head nicely perched on top of a leaf - sadly we only got a glimpse and could not take a pic cause as Pras went closer to take a pic, it dived into the water. We walked back, played some cards, had another yummy meal and hit the bed.

The next morning, we awoke to the smell of pooris being fried. Once we ate, we set sail back to the resort. Back at the resort, we checked into our lake view room. The same had a view of the pool in the front. We took a shower, some snaps and went cycling. Once back, we showered and got into the pool. I tried to relearn swimming with Pras's help. We then had lunch, played carrom and table tennis at the activity center and then went on the speed boat.

I was very frightened when I heard the word "speed boat". However, not wanting to play spolit sport, I got into the boat and put my hands to my ears and looked down. We started and to my surprise I did not get the usual speed butterflies in my tummy. The person in charge also gave Pras and me a chance to try our hand at the speed boat. Was real fun. I never wanted it to end. Waterways are fun as you have no "right" way :)

Back at the resort, we took a walk around the nearby village with one girl coming out of her house and politely asking us to photograph her, which we willingly did so. We then had dinner, did another photography session and crashed for the day.

Next morning, we woke up, had bath and went in a row boat. Pras and I took turns with the one paddle given to us. It was a good exercise. One more bath and it was time to leave :( We were dropped at the alleppey bus stand from where we took a bus to ernakulam. On the way we got off to take an auto to "Fort Kochi". Fort Kochi is very much like Goa and you get to see a lot of foreigners in "short" shorts. ;) We visited the Maritime Museum whose caretaker was a very nice gentleman who asked me to take a look at his security guard when I asked him if it was safe for me to leave my haversack with him :) After walking around, we entered a gallery cum cafe, the manager of which was surprised to know that we were not from Goa - my thali confused him quite a bit. Infact, I think it confused many people since many of them kept glaring at it.

We had dinner at the "Abad Metro" hotel near the KSRTC bus stand. The food was very tasty and worth every rupee. We did not expect the bill to be just 115 rupees from the looks of the place. Got onto our bus and I slept through the entire journey on hubby's shoulder waking up for the first time when the bus had stopped cause there was a minor fire mishap due to faulty electrical wiring, which the conductor fixed in a few minutes. However, the bus got delayed and we were on the bus for more than 12 hours :(

I enjoyed this trip so much as I had Pras by my side at all times - the TV did not come in between us - not even once, which I had not anticipated. ;)

The world's fastest Indian

2009-08-10T02:55:00.000-07:00

Well, so much for bikes with more vroom. My hubby and I were on our way back home after attending the intro to the landmark forum. Riding smoothly past us was a Bajaj Pulsar R220 cc bike. The guy riding the bike was wearing a helmet and the tiny guy behind him was holding onto the seat so that he does not fly away. We had stopped for a tender coconut on the HAL Airport road. When we started back, we saw that the bike was lying on the road having taken an exact 180 degree turn. The pillion rider seemed to have bruised his nose and was walking to the side of the road. The rider was looking very innocent and tried getting his bike up. The bike's front was not recognizable. Well, they had crashed into a poor cycle guy who was crying on the side of the road.

I wonder why people want faster bikes and other modes of transport. It is just a matter of a few minutes that will be saved and I don't think we are gonna acheive anything critical in a matter of a few minutes. Humans have weaved such a tangled web for themselves and are only moving rapdily towards spider's mouth by the day.

Back to Chennai

2009-07-28T20:50:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, I always told my mom that I would never marry anyone who is from a hot place like Coimbatore or Chennai. I had visited Chennai on a school trip and hated it. We stayed in a youth hostel and got brown coloured water to drink. However, I ended up doing my bachelor's degree from Coimbatore and working in Chennai - all out of my own free will. What's more? I can not stop praising these 2 cities. Coimbatore is a nice city to live in - kind of a prosperous place. Chennai is an awesome place compared to Bangalore, where I currently am put up. I felt very safe in Chennai. I DON'T feel safe in Bangalore.

Well, I convinced my husband, and we went last weekend to Chennai. I was so excited about the whole trip. I was on a high. The heat never bothered me except for 5 minutes on the way to Sathyam cinemas - we got lost and were trying to find our way[lot of diversions cause of the so-called infrastructure building]. Sathyam cinemas has changed a lot from when I left Chennai but it is beyond comparison with the INOX/PVR in Bangalore.

The beach is such a lovely place to go to. The vastness of the ocean makes me feel so small and my problems much smaller that I get back riding the wave. It does depress me to see that people don't keep the beaches very clean but is that not the case everywhere? I wish I was more bold to tell every person I saw throwing paper or rubbish onto the road, that he/she was doing wrong.

Lunch at Tiffany's in IIT was really good. Somethings never change. Oh, but they have increased the prices quite a bit.

We spent a lot of time with the NMSWorks folks - and it never felt like I did not belong there. Everyone was so warm and welcoming. I love this about the place and the folks there.

After dinner, I enjoyed getting out of the A/C restaurant - the warm, balmy air hugging every inch of my body. It made me feel so welcome. I was so happy to be back "on my turf". We rode back to the guest house in a light drizzle. Now, can you think of doing this in Bangalore? It is too cold to really enjoy it.

Somehow I don't think I will ever change my views about Chennai. I guess, you never realise the goodness of the place unless you experience it yourself. Who knows, sometime in future, when I move from Bangalore, I may end up saying Bangalore is a good place too...

Moody Moody

2009-07-28T20:46:00.000-07:00

I know that I am a very moody person. I don't need anyone to second that. Infact, things are better these days. It used to be worse when I was in Chennai. My mood swings were very popular with the team in which I worked. People were always not sure of where they stand when it came to me. It irks me to have hurt someone unknowingly and I did it just yesterday again :( I am still feeling guilty. The funniest thing is that the whole morning I was low and spoke harshly to my team and the rest of the day I was my usual chirpy self. I need to learn and put into action, how not to be moody and even if I am in a bad mood, not to take it out on some poor innocent soul.

Tomato cheese rice

2009-06-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

The other day I wanted to make pizzas. Unfortunately, after I had prepared the toppings, I found that the base was bad. So, I used my intuition and made the following

Ingredients:
One large onion - sliced
Two large tomatoes - sliced/chopped
Garlic paste - 1 teaspoon
Red chilli powder - 1 teaspoon
Cheese - 3 cubes grated
Oil - 3/4 tablespoon
Salt to taste
Rice - 1 cup
Water - 2 cups

Method:
Heat oil in a pan. Once oil is hot, put in the sliced onions. Once the onions start turning brown, put in the garlic paste. Put in red chilli powder and fry for a minute. Then add the tomatoes and the salt. Once tomatoes are cooked and soggy, turn off heat and leave to cool. Grind this into a paste.

Put this paste in a cooker alongwith the rice, cheese and water. Pressure cook till rice is done.
Tasty and yummy tomato cheese rice is ready :)

What am I on earth for?

2009-06-03T05:25:00.000-07:00

I wish I knew why I was given this life and why I am living this long. I don't seem to be doing anything useful at all. Yeah, I do get a salary out of which I meet my expenses and send home some money. But, something is seriously missing. I keep getting this feeling now and then. I know many people who live their lives working hard, spending money and saving some with no real purpose in life. I wish I knew my purpose. I wish I could really help someone - not just monetary aid. And my friend Sastha just informed of a 36 year old friend of his who died of a kidney failure!!

My first trip to Ooty as Mrs. alongwith my Mr. :)

2009-06-01T22:53:00.000-07:00

Well, I knew from the start that it will take Pras sometime to get used to my family and the formalities. I only hope he does not take forever ;) But, he did get along very well with Guddu[my nephew]. My nephew refused to come to me but went on kissing this fellow on his cheeks :( Grr...
Well, it was great to be in Ooty and for the first time "I WANTED" to wear a saree :) We attended Nanda's wedding in Srinivasa Perumal Kalyana Mantapam. Was good to meet all our friends one more time and spend time with them. Pras showed me his NN's first office and where he sat when joined Dr. TAG. Somehow, you may feel you know a person very well, but there is always something new to be learned :) The day just sped by and I just hated the comments I got after the trip, about MOI!! Pras told me that I should change the way I talk. I know that it would be a shock for him to see the real me at home. For those of you who don't know me - I am a very frank person and can be very blunt at times. I am very blunt with folks at home. I also tend to get rude - this usually happens when I am very close to a person. So, Pras wants me to change this. I never comment unless it is for the benefit of others. I never mean any harm or try to gain anything for myself. If it is for my own benefit, I generally shutup. My mom has been trying for many years to make me a diplomat and now add one more person to that list - my husband :)

Adam Gilchrist

2009-05-25T01:39:00.001-07:00

I loved the way he scored 80 something in 30 something balls against the Delhi Daredevils in the IPL 2 semi-final. I was real upset when he got out for nothing in the final match against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. But who cares, Deccan Chargers won!! Yeah!!! And Gilly was smiling most of the time, though his team's chances were slim. I was thrilled to hear that in the news this morning[could not stay awake till the match got over].

Delhi 6

2009-05-25T01:35:00.000-07:00

I never really read any reviews about Delhi 6, but I did hear that the movie got mixed reviews. My opinion - very nice put. I loved the way the true India has been portrayed. I did not get bored at anytime through the movie. It was total entertainment :) The kala bandar stuff was dragged a bit though.

Fantastic climate in Bangalore this morning

2009-05-19T19:43:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed coming to work this morning. Except for a little "black" pollution near Marathahalli bridge, the air smelt so fresh. The air wasn't so chilly or anything. Was great. Just wish I could have come on my bike to work today.

First morning after marriage

2009-05-14T06:12:00.000-07:00

I was terribly sick on my wedding day - cold, fever and bad throat. For the bad throat I always rely on Strepsils lozenges. I went to sleep on the day of my marriage with one of them in my mouth. Guess what? When I woke up, my upper lip was all swollen up. I looked awful. Prashanth was a bit irritated ;) Guess who had bitten me? An ant - which wandered to my lip cause of the sweetness of the lozenge. Was real funny and embarassing ;)

Getting Married...

2009-05-11T22:10:00.000-07:00

People told me that my wedding was gonna be real simple and quick. I was real cool about the whole thing hearing all of that. I did not care much for the type of saree that I chose - some materials are easily wearable. I was in complete shock when I got to the temple that morning. I was already sick and my make-up was all messed up. Mom and I had done a rehearsal earlier but at that moment, she got tense and started shivering. Me, being a real pro :-p, took over and did a fantabulous job[people who know me will know better]. There was a huge crowd. Many brides and bridegrooms with their fan following ;) I was still cool cause I had heard of a token system. Well, there we had to buy the token but that did not apply for that time window since there were too many couples to be married off. How stupid!!! Should the token system not apply especially at this time? Well, I was pulled and pushed near the mandap... sweating profusely in the heat.. The worst was when a fat man wanted to get out of the enclosure. I ended up climbing the stairs to the mandap with my bindi fallen off and my blouse falling off of my shoulder cause some imbicile caught on to my saree palav and would not let go until my father-in-law pushed and freed it for me. Once in the mandap, it was a cool ride... real smooth and quick. I really liked the fact that Prashanth and I could talk to each other and just be ourselves. There were qualms or glaring eyes or some dumb rules to be followed..... Once married, Prashanth held my shoulder and kept rushing me to eat lunch. I could not talk to everyone who had come for the wedding. No time to even click a snap with everyone who came. Purna has been pestering me for a snap of his!!! I am real sorry guys. I never knew things would be so rushed. But, I am so so glad that I am finally married to "MY PRASHANTH BHASKARAN".... :)

Well, but things are a bit different after marriage. It is not just Pras and me, it is Pras and his family and me and my family. But, it has been a very nice experience and I am looking forward to a long and happily married life. I do know that there will be the occasional sadness but why think about that now?

A week to go before I am "married"

2009-04-20T02:03:00.000-07:00

I've not really been keeping a count on the number of days but I do know that days are going by and I think there's a week left now. Sometimes I am so happy and excited - waiting to show the entire world that Prashanth is now finally mine, and there these times when I get so upset and feel low. I really don't know why I feel this way - usually it starts off cause someone whom I really like tells me that they can't come to witness one of the happiest days in my life, the day my love will be victorious legally ;) And there the times when I am wondering if I will be able to do justice to the new in-law roles - daughter-in-law, sister-in-law and co-sister. I am sure that I will be a good wife - I will just follow my mom's footsteps and I damn well know that my mom is a perfect wife. I did not get along well with my brother's wife and so this things frightens me a lot. No-no, it's not that I am a bad person but I can get real frank and easily irritated with minor things. Anyways, let's see how things turn out...

A land of a thousand suns - Khalid Hosseini

2009-04-20T01:58:00.000-07:00

Thanks to a Nargis, I did get down to reading the book. It is a wonderful book. It expresses the cruelty to the female sex in Afghanistan with the changing political environment in such a way that pulls the strings of your heart. It irks me to think that there are men out there who look down on women, think low of entertainment - even playing chess!! It irks me that people fight for land, money, etc. too and I do know that there are many such people around me. I am glad that the book ended on a positive note. I am so glad that Laila and Tariq do end up together[I am the filmy sorts ;)] On the whole, it is a book worth reading. The language is simple and I'd recommend it to anyone.

Training at HP campus at Electronic City, Bangalore

2009-04-15T19:57:00.000-07:00

I was in complete awe when I walked into the HP campus at electronic city near Gate 1. It is such an amazingly beautiful campus, with so many trees and greenery around. What's more? They have signs to use a handkerchief and avoid paper towels, they provide only steel tumblers for water, only coffee/tea mugs and no papers cups. Moreover they use recycled water for watering and maintaining the lawns. It is a really beautiful place. It reminded me so much of IIT. For once I did not really miss IIT. I agree that there are not as many trees but it was a bliss to be there, to be able to hear the beautiful birds chirping. There also was a beautiful waterfall - all well planned. I wish I was a part of HP Globalsoft such that I went to that campus everyday. The tea they provide is awesome too - real tea - boiled!! Not the horrible tea bag tea. The space is more open with a wonderful ambience. GRTP in Whitefield does suck.
Oh btw, I did notice quite a few trees-to-be on the outer ring road on the way to mahadevpura post. I am really glad to have noticed something positive about Bangalore[Bengaluru]

The TWO REAL EVILS in today's world

2009-04-08T23:35:00.000-07:00

Is it not obvious? Can you not guess? Can you not see? Well.. I will tell you.. In my opinion, they are MONEY and RELIGION. I wonder why did man ever come up with these two things. All human beings are equal. They come into the world the same way and leave the same way. Why then do we need to distinguish based on which religion one follows, whether one prays to stones/trees/water/etc., or a cross or the Quran or some prophet or some holy person? Why can't people see that all these are man-made and hence are no basis for distinction or discrimination? It irks me to see people fighting to prove that their religion is the way of the lord. Who said there is a lord God anyway? When neither can prove the existence, why can they not just live and let live? Religion does not help me go about my daily activities. I wake and go the bathroom just like every other Hindu/Muslim/Christian/Sikh/Buddhist. I don't go to the toilet or take a bath or go to work or clean my house just cause of the religion that I follow or belong to. But, the good that I see.. humans are getting killed in wars and suicide bombings, etc. This is a good thing cause they deserve to die - atleast for the way they treat the other living things in this world. There needs to be some way to control the population right? Especially with the standards of living going up and the average existence increasing.
Coming to the second evil. I know that competition, anger, jealousy are all natural feelings, in-built in each and every one of us. But all of us are the same. We need food to eat, air to breathe. When all of us get air for free, why should we not get food to eat for free? Why can we all not get clean water to drink? Why can't atleast the basic amenities be provided to all for free? Why do I need to have money to get the basic necessities? Money brings in racial discrimination. Money is looked at a source of power which is often misused. Should not everything be equal? Should we not share what we get for free? If I have excess, can I not give it away rather than wanting more and more? When will this wanting stop? Is there an upper limit for our wants? If I have enough clothes to wear, why do I still want the type of dress that is in fashion, when there are so many who don't have a single complete outfit to wear? It is not that I don't have desires, but someday I would like to see a changed world - a world in which there is no poverty, everyone has a house to stay in, food to eat, clothes to wear, clean water to drink.
I am trying to improve myself and control my desires. But I think I alone can't change the world, I hope I am doing my bit.

Vegetaranism

2009-04-08T02:05:00.000-07:00

Kesavan, my good friend in college, introduced me to vegetaranism. Well, I did not really get influenced by him but decided to give it a try nonetheless. I was a vegetarian for over 4 years. It is not that my skin cleared up and glowed or anything like that. I still got pimples - may be cause I am too lazy and expect miracles by trying a new thing once or twice. ;) I got back to eating non-veg when I fell sick in Chennai for the first time, ending up with dehydration. To gain back my strength, I had lamb paya almost every other day. The truth is, non-veg is real tasty. And soon after I tried all my favorite non-veg dishes, I decided that I had had enough and turned vegetarian for a while again. Once I started going out with Prashanth, I started eating non-veg. You see, it is not feasible to order veg and non-veg when there are just two people to eat the dishes and you will agree more if you know how much I eat. ;) But I've had enough again. Especially after I have seen the way people treat the animals that are about to be killed. Humans need to be butchered that way, it is only then that they will understand the pain involved. Have you ever seen the scooter carrying the chickens to the chicken centre? It is so pathetic. All of them hanging half dead with their feet tied and their bodies squeezed. Have you ever really heard and felt the fear in the hen's voice when it is taken out of the cage? There are so many vegetable available, why don't you try those rather than wanting meat all the time? You will have more variety.

I truly believe that people can do without killing innocent animals. Many people who want meat tell me that the numbers of these animals will go above the human population indices. My answer - so what? Their requirements,including space, are far less than ours. They don't need luxury villas or cars. Their carbon footprints are far less than ours.

I know that many people still wont agree with me and I am not trying to force my opinions on you. I just felt like writing about this. It would be my humble request to you, try opting for a veg meal atleast once.

The other side of my life

2009-04-07T02:02:00.001-07:00

Almost everyone knows how a software engineer's life would be. So, here I account some memories from the other side of my life :)

I am so thankful that I got such loving parents who gave me almost everything and let me do whatever I wanted to do. It is not that they did not stop me from doing certain things but I am happy they did so. But parents in India don't really understand one thing, that the more you stop your child from doing something, the more the urges to do exactly that. :) Well, I had such urges. Thank god I woke up on time :) My parents let me work. I enjoyed working in Ooty. I just love Ooty. It was 3 years of fun. Nilgiri Networks is a fantastic place - to work as well as make friends. Since it is a small company, you get to learn a lot of things and grow fast. There used to be a lot of freedom. I can not forget the games that we played. I joined the guys when they played cricket. I always played badminton. I used to go home with pants and shoes all muddy like I'd toiled in a field the whole day. I used to be sent to Chennai pretty frequently on official trips[cause the main office was there - inside the beautiful IIT-M]. Initially, I was not sure how my parents would take it, if I told them that I wanted to move to Chennai. My initial plan was to move to Chennai for a few months to enjoy independence ;) Unfortunately, the branch office in Ooty was closed down and I had to move to Chennai with no plans of coming back to Ooty. I did everything on my own without giving my parents much control cause I did not want to be stopped ;) My dad did tell me to stay back so that he could get me hitched but fortunately he gave me one year's time :) I am glad...it almost reached 2 years before things finally worked out between Prashanth and me. I moved to NMSWorks, Chennai and was there for almost 2 years. I loved those 2 years though I used to be depressed most of the time. I made so many friends in Chennai. I can not fail to mention Usha, Jemimah, Ambareen, Aruna, Priya, Radha, Sakthi, Nirmal, Ismail, Abu, Senthil[Peter], Monian. I had a flat of my own and never really had to ask anyone permission to do anything. I could go to the beach when I wanted. I could go for a late night movie with my room mates without having someone worrying about me and me having to feel guilty about it. I remember waking up early and going for walks along the beach with Prashanth. Sometimes we walked inside IIT. IIT is a beautiful place, with loads of trees[I wish they would not cut down the trees as they have started doig so lately] and deer. There are quite a few stray dogs off late. There are cute squirrels. I've only heard about the snakes. I loved riding on those roads. It is funny how we don't feel like doing things when we are asked to do them :) I hated my parents telling me to go to the temple on my birthday and other special occasion. But there was something about the IIT temple. I loved spending Saturday evenings there. No one told me to go there. I went there on my own.

There is something about going to a supermarket. It fascinates me. I can spend loads of time in the supermarket, just looking at the various things available for sale. It was a favorite weekend timepass for me in Chennai.

Another weekend timepass was going to Usha's place on Friday night, stuffing myself with delicious food and waking up early the next morning to have some coffee having the sea in front of my eyes and then going for a long long walk along the beach. Oh and I remember the walks I took with Usha, in the hot sun, every afternoon to have tea at staff canteen after lunch :) I got hooked to walking, yoga and tea - thanks to Usha :) I really miss Usha now.

Another thing that I can never forget is the walks that I took with the various people whenever I needed a break. Mostly it was Sakthi and Nirmal. But there were others like Jeyastin and Radha. I totally admire Mr. RadhaKrishnan[Radha in short]. He is a true gentleman in the way that he deals with women and the fairer sex and always made sure he took time out for his kids and wife. He brought his daughter, Smriti, to our office outings and took care of her so well.

My blog posts may be real mixed up but that's just cause the thoughts in my head are that way - may be I am one mixed up person :)

Me n music

2009-04-07T01:41:00.000-07:00

I just love listening to music. Well, the type of music I listen to differs with my mood. I am a very moody person. Many of you, who know me well, will agree ;) There was a time when I could not get enough of BackStreet Boys, Boyzone, Spice Girls, and all love songs... but now, I hardly can listen to those. They usually pull me down. I prefer peppy numbers - no matter what language. The music and beats are what matter. It is not that I don't listen to love songs at all, I do like them but.... I listen to them but I can't figure out when I really like them. Nowadays almost all songs sound the same to me. None of them really stick in my head. Well, there are some exceptions like "Tujh mein rab dikhta hai" from RNBDJ.. I really don't know what it is about that song but I could just keep listening to it without getting bored.

On the other hand, here are a few of my favorite artists...
I love Abba, Celine Dion, Shania Twain, ol' Kishor da numbers, Ace of Base, UB 40, Boyzone, Backstreet boys, Spice girls,Bryan Adams, Roxette, Michael Jackson, BeeGees....
I love the songs Kal ho na ho[Kal ho na ho], Tujh mein rab dikhta hai[RNBDJ], pal pal dil ke pass[blackmail], minnalai pidithu[from shahjahan], Mama[Spice Girls], I believe I can fly[R. Kelly], Summer of 69[Bryan Adams], The one[BSB], Everytime[Janet Jackson], Reach[Gloria Estefan],The more you give, the more you get[Boyzone], All that matters[Boyzone], Father and son[Boyzone], Jai ho[Slumdog Millionare]

These are quite a few which come to my mind right now.. There are many many more. I have been shifting base these last few years and have somehow lost quite a few of my favorite songs but thanks to the internet, I manage to find them one by one as I remember them :)

Chennai versus Bangalore

2009-04-03T02:01:00.000-07:00

I've heard hundred people talk about the heat in Chennai. Have all these people really lived in Chennai for more than a week?

Have these people taken a walk in Bangalore during April around 12 in the afternoon? My skin burns in Bangalore. It never did so in Chennai. I walked a lot in the sun in Chennai. People talk about how cool Bangalore is. I wonder if these people really know what cool is.

The traffic is so bad in Bangalore. This so called "silicon valley" of India sucks at planning. There is no planning whatsoever. Traffic moves inch by inch almost throughout the day. And the air is so polluted that there is a pinkish cloud hovering in the skies, almost every night. I never saw this in Chennai. I guess the sea took all the pollution to clear the air in Chennai.

Bangalore has just grown enormously but has not really developed. You do find so-called supermarkets everywhere which dont really have everything and are just equivalent to a general merchant or provisions store.

Another thing about Bangalore is the number of wine shops. You will find one on every street. How do people feel safe here?

I am not sure if the problem is with me or if it is the others, but I just can't stand the place nor the people in Bangalore. I miss Chennai a lot. I miss my friends in Chennai. I miss IIT. I miss the trees, the deer, Gurunath and cup noodles.

Society!!!

2009-04-03T01:49:00.000-07:00

Who the hell coined out this term? Where the hell is this so called society when I am facing pain? Where the hell is this society when I suffer loss?? All the society does is take from an individual and tax him into doing things beyond his capacity. Think of the poor farmer who takes huge loans on his land to get his daughter married, just because society expects to hear a huge dowry and attend a lavish reception. Where the hell is this society when his daughter is divorced and back in his house? Oh yes, I will tell you. The society is busy spreading evil things about the girl.. the same girl with whom their child played and grew up.. the same girl who they all admired for her skills...

Does this society not feel for those who don't have? Does this society not feel fortunate to have got so much for free? Does this society never want to do their bit for the earth that has given them so much? Are there not so many other important, pressing matters to get this society involved in?

Society is there for me only when I am happy and I don't really want it. Society is never there for me when I am sad and want to talk to someone and offload my burden. Why then should I care about the society? Why then do my parents care so much about this useless society? Can I not be different? Will this society not let me be different?

Cost cutting verrsus greener planet

2009-04-03T01:43:00.000-07:00

All employees of so called MNCs need to change their thinking. I agree companies are on a cost cutting mode, but can you not see the brighter side of it all?

Do you miss those paper cups on top of the water dispenser? It may be due to cost cutting reasons but think about the trees which have been saved, the energy that has not been wasted on recycling those extra paper cups.

Finding it irritating to use the hand dryer instead of the paper towels/napkins? Have you ever heard of a handkerchief? It is a good time to get those handy pieces of cloth out of your closets and start using them. Best part of it all, they are definitely recyclable ;) The electricity used by the hand dryer may not be from a clean/renewable source of energy so try avoiding that too.

Please start thinking of the environment. If not for your sake, for the sake of your children/nephews/niece.

IT companies and campuses in villages

2009-04-03T01:34:00.000-07:00

IT companies need to seriously rethink on settling in cheap villages. Seriously, it is just a productivity hit. Why? Wait.. wait.. I shall give you an example. Consider the life of an employee working in the an office in ITPL, Whitefield, Bangalore. The cabs start around 7 in the morning. Hence, the employee reaches work by 8:15am. He then checks his mails for 30 mins or so and heads off to have breakfast. After 45 mins to an hour, after discussing the headlines for the day, he comes back and checks some more mails. He then does work, may be. Then comes lunch time. Once again, he discusses some more headlines and gets back to his cubicle only to check more mails, browse the internet, etc. And these companies have their cabs start early to beat the evening traffic. At 4:00pm, he goes to his friends' cubicles and asks them to pack up so that they don's miss the cab at 4:30pm. And he reaches home early enough, staying in office for shorter periods of time and doing lesser work than otherwise.