Trepidation... and Resolution!!

The only constant is change...

After four brilliant, beautiful years full of Tech City's amazing weather, Serenity and Calamity are returning to the City-that-wakes-up-early. So now you know what the title of this post is all about (It was just called 'Trepidation' initially!!). 

I'm thinking there will be more writing and venting once more - Such optimism, I tell you!
So my first innings with the city was an unmitigated disaster... Two and a half really REALLY miserable years - though towards the end, I had learned to suck it up and deal with it (or take it in my stride, if you prefer the sugar coating!)... the bad weather, the fighting with rickshaw guys, the being language impaired... all of it! I was a newly-wed, alone in a city with no family, no friends and not enough work to keep me happy. Freelancing meant working from home, and working from home meant being really really lonely... If I had friends, I think it wouldn't have been half bad.... and I did have friends...by the time we were leaving! But for the most part, it was lonely and sad....
This I began when the move was finalized, but I never got to complete it....
But so much has happened since I last wrote (many many moons ago!!) - Serenity and Calamity acquired a new family member (feline!!!) who we shall refer to as Hilarity - for all the laughs she provides every day! 

Hilarity as a kitten.... Such a pretty girl!

Hilarity today.... Throwing a princess tantrum!

She's a strange girl, loves company, but hates being handled. 

She's happiest sitting around people, but god help you if you approach her! 

So we moved, and Hilarity moved here with us (of course she did!! She's family!)

My second innings in the City-that-wakes-up-early is going a lot better... I have my own friends, I have a better grasp on the language, we live in a beautiful house by the sea, I have work, I have Serenity and Hilarity.... and I am finally happy here. 

The trepidation has been resolved... though it's early days yet, I think it'll be just fine!

....and so will I !!

Summer Hits.... HARD!

Serenity and I have this conversation on pretty much a daily basis over text:
Him: What are we doing for dinner?
Me: I dunno.... what do you want to do?
Him: I asked you first.....
etc etc.... and so it goes on.... 

So one day, I just lost the plot and told him that I had been planning "what we'll do for dinner" for quite a major part of the six years we've been together... Soooooo..... He had to plan our dinners (and therefore what we'd do for lunch the next day!!) for a whole month without asking me that one question which annoys the daylights out of me!! 

HE DID!! (Most ably, I must add!!)
And now, this month, its my turn! (aargh! the pressure!!)

Summer's come in a big way to Tech City - its unbearably hot these days..... and I can be (incredibly!) lazy sometimes!! So starting yesterday, we are beginning soup week! (We both love soup....) But the HEAT! Oh the heat!! .... Ergo, I will be covering chilled soups... ALL THIS WEEK! What could be better than dishes that only need blending and refrigerating?? (Told you I was lazy!!) 

To start with, I made the Gazpacho last night (alongside our dinner of Artichoke, Spinach and Feta Cheese Pizza - which was the result of one of my happy experiments in the kitchen - its our go-to gourmet pizza now!! I still haven't ended up taking a picture, we end up scarfing it down!!). 

Gazpacho needs to "sit" overnight to bring out the flavours, so that's what we're having for lunch today. 

Chilled Gazpacho
Ingredients:
3 - 4 cups of tomato juice 
5 - 6 tomatoes chopped
1 stalk of celery (chopped fine)
1 cucumber (de-seeded and chopped fine)
1 red pepper (de-seeded and chopped fine)
1/4 cup Olive Oil (extra virgin always!!)
1/4 cup Red wine vinegar
Fresh Parsley
Chives 
Garlic (and you know how much I love garlic!!)
1/2 Onion (chopped fine) 
Juice of 1 lemon 
Salt and Pepper

Method:
- Keep a little of the chopped red pepper, cucumber and celery aside.
- Toss everything else in the blender.
- Mix in the chopped stuff (I dont blend all of it because we like the bite of fresh veggies)
- Refrigerate.
- Serve with croutons fried in olive oil and ice-cubes in the soup. 

Super healthy, tastes sooooo good and its THE perfect way to beat the heat!! 
So watch this space, I'm thinking of a BLT soup next!! :D  

Larb Gai (Minced Chicken Salad)

Made this last night.... Its a simple, healthy weeknight meal and it's absolutely bursting with flavours of thai basil, lemongrass and mint. We spun these slightly differently - filling them in rice paper sheets to make rolls. 

Larb Gai (Thai Minched Chicken Salad)
Ingredients:
Minced chicken - 1/2 kg
Thai Basil
Lemongrass (cut fine)
Fresh Coriander leaves
Fresh Mint leaves
Birds eye Chillies - 3 nos
Salt
Spring onions
Shallots
Lemon juice 
Galangal / Ginger
Kafir Lime leaves (cut fine)

Method:
Now this is the cool bit, all you need to do is saute the chicken mince. Season with salt.
When the mince is cooked, add to the tossed green ingredients and the other ingredients.
Season with lemon juice and a little demerara sugar.
** We rolled this into Thai Rice Paper rolls and served it with a lemongrass dipping sauce and Sriracha.

The Kitchen Cheat Sheet!

Stumbled this a couple of days ago.... MIND. BLOWN! SO useful!!

Me, the Thrill Seeker.

Yes, I know its been a while. 

No, I'm not dead yet. 

Yes, I'm back home in Tech City. 

The Big Apple was a looooong time ago (and I'm planning another trip!!)

So, like I said before (here) .... I'm a thrill seeker. Serenity doesn't understand or share my love for being scared to death - but he accepts it and even encourages it. This, then, is the story of how I walked off into empty space 150' above the ground (that's the height of a 10 storey building!!) with a rubber band tied to my legs! Not a mob hit, but pretty much walking the plank..... also called Bungee Jumping.

Oh wait! Did I just let you think I did that peacefully and calmly with no hysteria whatsoever?? You're in for a BIG disappointment! :D 

I was part of this event conducted at a popular mall in Tech City, and the Event Manager told me to come and have a shot at it (with Serenity and whoever else I wanted to invite!). The event was being setup with the guidance of one of the best Bungee Jumpers in the world, he's done stunts for 007 !! So I went. Serenity did not accompany me. A visiting friend did. He resolutely decided to stay on the ground though! So I get all geared up, kitted out, take many brave pictures going up etc etc.. and then I'm in a cage with one side open, hanging at 150' from a crane and looking out on building tops and skyline.......

THIS is the point where my legs turned to water, my blood ran cold, and I almost S#@& my pants. Yeah, you can laugh now. I had a death grip on the cage.... got till the edge with pretty much only my heels resting on the platform..... but could I "Conquer my fear" (as I had so snidely put on all the artworks!) and let go off the damn cage and step off? I'd also like to clarify that at this point, it had gotten dark, so I could only see the little lit circle of the landing area..... and lights..... "Dont look down, look straight ahead at that tower over there!" didn't help either!!! The guys in the cage did the count for me..... MANY times! 1, 2, 3... GO!! 

ummmm..... I didn't. 

I just clung to the cage, stood there and pondered my life for a while..... begged them to give me a little push.... which they will NOT do. So I figured, if they're not going to push me, I'm not going to jump. After over 10 minutes up there in that swaying monstrosity and hearing everyone yelling "jump, jump, JUMPPPP!!!!" from way up there, I came down. And didn't do it. I chickened out. 

You haven't seen a Walk of Shame like that one, believe me!! I felt about 2 inches tall. 

I squirmed every time I thought of it. Had difficulty sleeping that night, picturing myself on the edge of that cage over and over. Just the thought of it had my palms going cold and clammy again!

BUT. 

I DID JUMP!! A whole month later, but I did. TWICE!  So now, I can take that off the Bucket List! :D The Event Manager, he's done a ton of jumps. He told me they'd never push me.... but they COULD let go! 

So that's what I did this time..... 

They held on to my harness while i leeeeeeaned out..... and let go on the count of 3 (I had to give verbal agreement, though talking was the last thing I felt like doing)!!! I was FALLING!!! And yowling! .... and then the yowling turned to squealing once I opened my eyes and started enjoying it! All too quickly (read a minute and a half) I was being lowered to the landing bed. Over? Already??? And because they saw how much I enjoyed it, they asked if I wanted to go again!! SO I DID!!! Two back-to-back jumps!! 

IT WAS AWESOME!!

Would I do I again? HELL YEAH! 

Am I feeling like the bee's knees? OH YES!

Mad Mallu goes to the Big Apple!!

 So, after long LONG hiatus, here I am again.... and writing in from the Big Apple!! Calamity is on a walking and eating tour of the city - exploring the Upper East side on foot - eating and walking .... and then eating some more! So far, I've done the Guggenheim and the New York City Museum, a part of Central Park, lots of window (and real!) shopping. I LOVE reading the inscriptions on the benches in Central Park... even shot a couple!! Walked into a frame shop because the display was so colourful, the proprietor turned out to be Bangladeshi! The picture below the frames is of the Rotunda, the atrium in the Guggenheim.... and the last picture is of a couple of my nieces' snowglobes...

Yesterday, I walked into this quaint little shop which had the COOLEST stuff.... and the friendliest shop-owner....She was TALL!! Her shop had these cushions and plaques on the wall with the coolest sayings! And Oh yes! Indian shopkeepers!!  I've made friends with a LOT of Indian shopkeepers! Seems like a lot of the hotdog vendors are Bangladeshi, and the convenience store guys are Indian.... The bagel shop I go to is owned by a guy from Delhi, who was SO thrilled to talk in Hindi with me!!

Today was absolutely magical... ended up near Central Park and walked into a church - which had THE most gorgeous stained glass windows.... went and sat in the chapel, I was alone... and then this gent came along and sat down at the piano and just played.... and played.... and all I could do was stay... and listen. Walked through Central Park and was lured by the sound of a violin.... there was a wedding happening near one of the fountains (small, intimate, beautiful little wedding..... sighhhhh!!) and this lady was playing the violin... again, stayed for a while, listened and left..... Walked around the rest of the day with the happiest smile on my face, only to have a cabbie smile and wave, and when I waved back, he said "Te quiero!" I must have looked baffled, because he said "I love you!" and drove away!! 


New York's been great so far, hotdogs, sushi, super salads and cheesecake all the way!!
I'm loving this, but I miss my Serenity....

The Cooker Monsters!

Another one of Mimi's brilliant ideas (no, I'm not being sarcastic!) that I actually bought into is this one - 

A cooking blog..... She cooks, I cook, we put up pictures and recipes! And its gone LIVE today!!

And so, ladies and gentlemen...... presenting.... *cue fanfare*.......

The Cooker Monsters!

Mid -week Nom Noms!

Mushrooms, Leeks and Parsley come together in this mushroom pie / quiche.... Accompanied by strawberries and sweetened vanilla whipped cream! Yayyyyy Tuesday night dinner!! 

Conversations....

So what do people who've been married 4 years talk about? If you've been a reader of this blog  piece of verbal diarrhea, you won't have ANY trouble figuring out who's saying what!


1. "So if there's a zombie apocalypse and you've turned into a zombie, will you spare me or bite me too so we can be zombies together?"
(the answer for this became very convoluted - on how zombies are not human and he wouldn't want to make me one etc etc)
2. "Why do you love me?"
    "Because you're special..."
    "Special as in retarded???"
3. "What's the one job you'd NEVER EVER do?"
    "Manual drain cleaner.... and you?"
    "Oh! a butcher! Definitely never a butcher. I like being non-vegetarian."
4. "One super power you'd like to have?"
    Me: Flight!!!
5. "If we were friends, or had friends in common, do you think we'd have still ended up together?"
    "No."
    "Why not?"
    "Because."
6. "There's a 70% off sale at my favourite shoe store...."
    "Are you competing with Imelda Marcos???" *looking exasperatedly at the 2 overflowing shoe racks.*
7. "If I died tomorrow, how soon will it be before you remarry?"
    "Never, I'd miss you too much."
    "Awww.... but you know I'd want you to be happy etc etc"
    "Okay, maybe a couple of years."
    "That's IT?? You'd get over my dying in a COUPLE of years??" *sulk sulk*
    

My Four Year Old...

I have a 4 year old...... which is happy and giggly and bouncy most of the time, and sometimes weepy and sulky and stubborn. No, I do not refer to Serenity. Serenity and Calamity have now been married for 4 years, and the temperamental 4 year old is our Marriage!


How time flies!! We have days and weeks that'll go by in beautiful machine-like precision like a well-orchestrated ballet.... and then suddenly one day, we feel like we're all over the place and then sparks fly. I think the move to Tech City has been the best thing for us as a couple, given the fact that the City-which-wakes-up-early caused me nothing but angst. We're SO much better now (because I am so much happier now!)... happier - which I think is MOST important. 


Yesterday felt like any other day - morning hugs, a working day.... and then in the evening we both got all dolled up and went for a fancy sushi dinner, came home and opened the Ardbeg and sat chatting on the balcony like we used to in the City-that-wakes-up-early. Those balcony chats were always special, sitting in the darkness, having a drink and just talking, talking, talking. It was how we got to know each other - and it was quiet time and it was for us alone. 


Considering how we had a (not so typical) Arranged Marriage, we had a lot of "getting to know one another" to do. The balcony chats were when he told me what irritated him about me, and I told him about the things he did that pissed me off. It was neutral ground somehow, and nothing that was said could be taken offense to (that was one of the ground rules!).... and so over 4 years, we rubbed each other's corners raw, got angry, frustrated and wanted to break things.... and made up....and stayed together. We still fight, of course, but we're a lot better at dealing with it. Serenity has figured how to make a PISSED OFF Calamity laugh in the middle of her yelling and tears.... and then he shakes a finger at me and says "You laughed, so you can't be angry any more!"....and yes, it IS usually left to Serenity to make me laugh, because if Serenity laughs during a fight, you can put money on the fact that I will NOT be calming down - the opposite in fact!!


In our wedding pictures, there's more than one picture where I look worried and pre-occupied, questioning myself whether this was what I wanted - to marry him and move to a city I had no one in.... I look uncertain and scared even. I can confidently say today, I made the right choice. Marriage has been different from single life, but Serenity's been SO good to me, good for me. We've grown into this marriage, like a pair of leather shoes that pinch when you wear them the first time and now just fit your feet like a glove that was made especially for it, it feels sometimes like we've always been together..... and yet, just like those shoes, when you stop and look at them, they look great - a little scuffed maybe, but they make you feel like you're on top of the world and they warm and protect. (God! Typical woman - SHOE metaphors????? - I can SO picture him saying that!)

So yeah, like I said, my "shoes" are 4 years old, scuffed, comfortable and with a LOT of wear left in them - they're my favourite pair in the world !!

Regrets of the year gone by....

1. I STILL haven't made my website. Bad, bad, BAD girl ! (how am I EVER going to widen that freelance web??)
2. I didn't stay in touch enough.....
3. I STILL haven't hit my target weight.
4. I made it to Thailand, sans Serenity, but not the other places I had planned to visit with him.
5. I didn't save as much as I should have.
6. Though I have mellowed (quite a bit, according to me..... not enough, according to Serenity), I'm still not zen enough to not yell and scream and get homicidal when we fight.
7. I STILL hate my killjoy partypooper bitch of a neighbour.
8. I don't get enough exercise. 
9. I shopped wayyyyyy too much..... also refer point #5.
10. I've stopped checking my glucometer, I don't think I'm making much progress with keeping my blood sugar levels down.....also,
11. I haven't gone back to my diabetologist in a year almost.


.....and as far as resolutions go, well.... its the 6th of Jan and its not like I kept mine even on the 1st, so the less said about that, the better!

What's with the Invincible Corks??

Mimi / Arliemol and I have history..... of the DISASTROUS variety!
The simplest, most mundane activities we try to perform (post Serenity's bedtime, post midnight!) usually end in disaster and de-wash-tation (to quote Mimi!)....
Here we present 2 case studies of the more memorable kind. The second is what prompted this post. Unfortunately, Case study 1 is not accompanied by pictures.


Case Study 1: 2 women trying to paint their nails.
Method: Volunteer to paint Mimi's nails RED. Shake bottle vigourously. Watch helplessly as said bottle flies out of hand and splatters on pristine white guestroom floor. Realise there's about 2 ml of nail-paint remover left. Try and prioritise whether to clean Mimi (who is spattered upto her knees in red nail paint) or the floor. Fail miserably at both.
Result: Guestroom floor now looks like a scene from Dexter.


Case Study 2: 2 women want to drink a mini bottle of Rosé
Method: Try and open with Corkscrew A. Helplessly watch as corkscrew A breaks, embedding itself in the cork. Proceed to sloowwwwly chip away at cork with knife, avoiding embedded corkscrew to further avoid blade joining corkscrew in the cork. Progress to potato peeler. Abandon hope. Resume chipping away at cork, tea- strainer on standby. Involve mighty Ikea toolkit. Successfully pull out remnants of Corkscrew A. Resume mission with Corkscrew B. Mission successful. 
Result: 2 measly glasses of wine that in hindsight - a) we could have done without.... and b) REALLY did NOT justify the effort we put into it.

Mediterranean Madness Continues...

And so, as promised, here are the pictures!

Sadly, these are the 'ones that worked' - the one which got away, is the image of my kitchen counter with a coffee mug that I used to mix the yeast in and left unattended.... Only to come back and see that what had previously 'not risen', had now risen, left the mug and overflowed onto the counter!! But I'm not going to show you those pictures, am I now?!!

The Pita bread came out PERFECTLY!! :) 

ooooh! I am SO kicked!! (and very smugly proud of myself! - my pitas were "almost" circular! For me, that's saying a lot since I don't EVER make rotis!!)

The dough when it began to rise! :) yayyy!!

The perfect Pitas! (with my recipe book in the background!!)

The Chicken and the Chick pea! :)

The Spread! - Hummus, Pita Bread, Mediterranean Chicken and Zalouk! 

Om Nom Nom Nom!! Pure Happiness!

Mediterranean Mania!

I've been meaning to do a Mediterranean dinner sometime, and what better way to kickstart the week than with some yummy in the tummy?!!

The menu for tonight is :

• Hummus
• Zalouk (A Moroccan Eggplant salad - which is the ONLY form in which i actually LIKE eggplant!!)
• Mediterranean(ish) Chicken (which doesnt really follow any recipe!)
• and Pita Bread !! (that I'm MAKING from scratch!!)

• • Hummus 

Ingredients: 600 gm cooked chickpeas

                   3 garlic cloves crushed 

                   (of course, I used more garlic! I LOVE garlic, remember?)

                   100 ml Olive Oil (preferably Extra Virgin)

                    2 tbsp Tahini 

                    1 tsp Ground Cumin (which I skipped!)

                    Juice of 1 lemon

Method:       Blend chickpeas, garlic, olive oil, tahini and lemon juice till smooth. 

                   Add 1/4 th cup water and blend again. Garnish with paprika and olive oil.

• Zalouk (Moroccan Eggplant Salad)

Ingredients: 1 large eggplant - peeled and chopped

                   4 (or more) large tomatoes - peeled and chopped (I didnt peel them!)

                   3 (or more!) cloves of garlic - minced fine.

                   1/4 cup chopped cilantro

                   1/4 cup chopped parsley (also skipped!)

                   1 tbsp paprika / chili flakes

                   1 tbsp ground cumin

                   1 1/2 tsp salt

                   1/4 cup olive oil

                   1/4 cup water 

                    Lemons (optional, but best if you DID use the lemons!)

Method:       Place all ingredients except the lemon in a pot.

                   Cover and simmer at medium heat.

                   Cook covered for about 30 mins till eggplant and tomato are tender.

                   Mash well. Continue cooking (uncovered) to reduce - upto 30 mins.

                   Stir frequently. Drizzle additional olive oil if required.

                   Squeeze lime over after cooking. Stir. Serve either hot or cold.

• Pita Bread 

Ingredients:  1 sachet yeast (about 1 tbsp)

                    1/2 cup warm water

                    3 cups flour

                    1 1/4 tsp salt

                    1 tsp granulated sugar

                    1 cup lukewarm water

Method:        Dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup warm water. Add sugar and stir until 

                    dissolved. Let it sit for 10-15 mins till it turns frothy.

                    Combine flour and salt in a large bowl.

                    Make a well in the middle and pour in the yeast mixture. Slowly add 1 cup 

                    of warm water and stir till the dough is elastic, not sticky.

                    Place dough on a floured surface and knead until it is smooth and elastic 

                    for about 10 - 15 mins.

                    Coat with olive oil and let it sit in a warm place until the dough doubles 

                    in volume - about 3 hours. Once the dough has doubled, roll out as a 

                    rope, pinching off small pieces. 

                    Cover and let the pieces sit for 10 - 15 mins. Preheat oven to 250 C. 

                    Roll out the dough into circles of about 5 -6 inches diameter and about 

                    1/4 inch thick. 

                    Bake for about 3-4 mins till the bread puffs up. 

                    Flip and bake the other side.

So I'm off to knead and punch and chop and dice and mince! Will post pictures soon! :)

   

(Nothing) Lost In Translation!

While in Phuket, on one of our shopping expeditions, I was looking at a stall that sold t-shirts. In most of these countries, where English is not the first language, bargaining happens in pidgin English with the help of a calculator... You ask the vendor the cost of something, he types it into the calculator... you shake your head and mime that you don't have that much money... he hands you the calculator and you punch in your figure.... and so on.


So my travel companion was looking at some stuff in another shop, while I looked at the t-shirts looking for something to get Serenity....and I told the shopkeeper I was looking for something as a gift for a boy... He pointed this one out to me... and WINKED!! 

To which I laughed and shook my head.... 

and then he points to THIS one!!

To which, again, I shook my head to say no, then made an angry face and a "cut-throat" gesture and pointed to my ring finger to say "I'm married to him!" To which the guy made a sad face, shook his head sorrowfully and pointed out THIS one!!

And then we both laughed our heads off !! 

Not one word spoken, but SO MUCH said !!

Picture This....

So here I was, preparing to leave on a long-awaited GIRLS TRIP to Phuket.... Numerous checklists were made, wardrobe decided etc etc...


On the morning I was supposed to leave, I was enjoying a sleepy morning cuddle with Serenity and he asked me if I had packed my medicines (I am diabetic.. yeah - bummer!) and I, equally sleepy, said "Yeahhh.... I have to go to the chemist before I leave - need to get The Pill also..." Which obviously woke him up good, because he was like "The pill?? For what?!" And because I'm evil (obviously!) I said "Because I'm off to have lots of unprotected sex with strangers!!" And proceeded to explain that I didnt want that time of the month to coincide with my beach holiday!! And then I did a "Gotcha! Didnt I?" on him!!


So then, he left for work etc etc... and I decided to take off my rings (because I didnt want to get mugged / lose them) and I left them in HIS cupboard.... and it struck me much later that he would come home, empty his pockets, take off his watch and find that I've taken off my wedding ring!! :D 


And then... just before I left, I was taking off my gold earrings and I dropped one of the screws into my cupboard. Not having the time to look for it, I wrote a post-it saying "FIND SCREW!!" and put that on my desk!!


While I was sitting in the cab on my way to the airport, I suddenly thought of this whole sequence and laughed my head off!!

And Yet Again...

So I was having a really busy day yesterday - lots of damage control needed at one of my sites in Delhi and I was on the phone almost all evening. When I called my client to update her about some changes being made, she suddenly says,"I'll talk to you later, I have to go - there's been 3 blasts in Bombay!".... 3 blasts... again? 


Now Serenity and Calamity dont have a TV... we didnt want a TV in our initial year of marriage... and then we just got so used to seeing movies on the computer or at a theatre that it stopped mattering... (psst... I'll let you in on a secret... I'm going to get me one when I hit my target weight!! :D All to prevent me from turning into a couch potato - an eventuality that is a definite possibility given what a TV Junkie I am!)


And so, for the SECOND time, I got to know what was happening in my city over the phone. With 26/11, I had friends call me and ask me if everyone I knew was okay.... I was like,"Huh? why wouldnt they be?"... upon which I was told about what had happened.... "Arent you watching the news???" (Would have been waayy too lengthy to explain the no-TV thing at that juncture, so I just left it and went to check live feeds online.)


Strange coincidence, yesterday was the birthday of that ASSHOLE we're keeping alive and feeding biryani to.... Arlie, now, is the Queen of Conspiracy Theories... Her personal investigations and follow-ups on the Aarushi Talwar case would put the CBI to shame! And I, in full steam, had a flame-war with an idiot on an online forum because he kept saying "Yeah, India's never going to learn." My only question is howw?? What CAN we do to prevent this from happening over and over again? We've been Gandhian for far too long and turned the other cheek / picked ourselves up and dusted off the carnage from our systems. What HAS been done after 26/11? 


India is my home, and I dont feel safe in it any more. We elect new governments with the hope that each one will be better than the last, but to what effect? Suresh Kalmadi has raked in an INCREDIBLE fortune, while making India look like a fool in the international arena and he's sitting pretty behind bars, socialising with other birds of his feather. We've found Kasab guilty - no question about that... and yet we keep him alive to eat biryani?? Its ridiculous and a mockery of a judicial system that would allow a creature like him to live after he's butchered so many innocents. "Security has been beefed up" - SUCH a trite phrase. Sure, you think its been beefed up, but if a recurrence like this is how you "beef up" security, you need to check your definitions, pal. 


A friend of mine said that she was looking at little boys leaving a madrasa and thinking "Potential jihadis".... which is SO sad, dont you think? Like I've always said, I believe that India's Muslims are Indians first. I dont want to tar everyone with the same brush because of a few... but when home-grown terror units are on the rise, I dont blame my friend for voicing what a LOT of other people may be thinking. What if a whole nation began thinking like that? What would that do to the cultural diversity of this country? This is as much their home as it is ours. Look what the 1947 partition did to us...


More than anger, I'm just really sad. I really dont have any answers and I honestly dont think the Government has either... Which is a pretty hopeless situation to be in, wouldnt you say? 

Frying.... but not quite!

You know how fried stuff tastes so good, but every morsel is accompanied by the weight of how unhealthy it is? The guilt has made me avoid the Chicken Parmigianas of this world in favor of the grilled, baked and oven-roasted. NO MORE! 


I was going through one of my cookbooks and found this method of cooking crumb-fried fish... OVEN FRYING!! And since I haven't experimented in a while, I made this variation on the theme... with chicken! And it was gooooood!! (My very captive audience of two will attest to that, or maybe it was the beeeyoooteeful single malt that accompanied it!)

From mad mallu's monologue

From mad mallu's monologue

I paired the chicken with mashed potatoes and a red wine reduction mushroom sauce! 

And in case you're wondering how to make this, here goes the recipe! This is another one of my own recipes, so when you make it, do think of me! Bon Appetit!

Oven Fried Crumbed Chicken Breast

Chicken Marinade:

Olive Oil

Garlic Salt

Pepper

Lemon Juice

Mustard Sauce

Filleted Chicken Breasts

Crust Mixture:

Bread Crumbs 

Garlic Bread Seasoning (I used Keya's readymade Seasoning)

Garlic Salt (Yes, I LOVE my garlic!!)

Method:

- Dip chicken in marinade to cover (Always stir the marinade before each fillet you dip!)

- Dredge in the crust mixture to coat completely.

- Spread on a baking dish

- Spray with oil spray (I used Pam butter flavour... you can also drizzle with oil or dot with butter, but that kinda defeats the low-fatness of the recipe!!)

- Preheat oven to 185 degrees C.

- Bake the first side at 185 degrees for 15 minutes

- Turn the chicken over and bake the second side at 185 for 10 minutes.

Quick, easy, lowfat crumb fried chicken... Voila!!

Amused to death!

I'm a crazy woman, Serenity will attest to that. Also my motley crew of friends. I do crazy things and I have crazy demands with crazy moods to match. For the last three years, I've eaten Serenity's brain with the demand that I wanted to go to an amusement park. Why? Just because I haven't done that in a while - since school, actually. Serenity HATES crowds. He hates going to a mall on weekends, hates loud pubs with even louder music. Yes, I know I'm married to a complete antipode of me, but I love him anyway! Now that we're in Tech City, our friend circle includes a lot of couples with kids, and one family we're closest to is one of Serenity's childhood friends. They are a feature of our weekends, with either us being at their place, or they at ours. They have a 3 year old lil fella and since the weekend past was a long weekend, coupled with the jubilation of India's victory at World Cup Cricket, everyone was mellow enough to agree to a trip to an amusement park... on a public holiday!! :) 


And so, we set off for an amusement park a little outside Tech City, bright and early in the morning. Serenity, Calamity, my gal pal Arlie and the family of 3 were up at the crack of dawn, dealing with me chanting "Picnic day, Picnic day!!" and doing a little picnic dance! We went to a place called Wonder La (?? seriously??? Wonder LA??) and I must say, I was EXTREMELY impressed. For a place that deals with such a HUGE volume of people every day, it was VERY clean (clean,dry toilets that smelt of lemongrass!) and their safety checks VERY thorough. That's actually very reassuring, because when you're tumbling 360 degrees at about 40 feet, you dont want harnesses that budge and move around!


Serenity does NOT like being surprised - not on his birthday, NOT EVER! I'm totally chicken when it comes to horror movies, but somehow, I still like the jumps and thrills and the being-scared-for-a-long-time-after! Not so, my Serenity. He will NEVER watch a scary movie and he doesn't like heights too much. I don't swim and I'm chicken and freak out over the strangest things, but yesterday, at that amusement park, Serenity saw me heading for the scariest rides with what looked like manic passion in my eyes!! I TOTALLY milked my entry fee!! The family put their lil fella on kiddie rides and us girls went on that water splash rollercoaster thingie, but I - I went crazy!! The first ride I made a beeline for was an insane shake-u-up and tighten-your-guts and hold-you-upside-down at 30 feet kind of ride! All of them looked at me with a you're-completely-mad-if-you-think-we'd-risk-our-lives-on-that sort of look.... and I gleefully stood in line... and went back to it TWICE more!! :D 


LOVED LOVED LOVED it!! And no, I did not shriek or squeal !! I just had this gleeful grin right through! But yes, I must confess, those drop rides? The ones that take you insanely high to just drop you repeatedly? Yeah, THOSE FREAK ME OUT! And yes, I yowled for my mamma! On a school trip to an amusement park, there was a rollercoaster with a 360 degree loop - I stood in line for that SEVEN times! Not quite what you'd normally expect from chicken me! What is it about thrill rides that do it for me? I LOVE that adrenalin, the speed.... its like flying (which also, I LOVE!) Its about doing something for the thrill, giving the finger to your fear... it feels like coming really close to dying, and before you know it, you're back on level ground.


Its so much like LIFE, being thrown in out of your depth, of harnessing your fear ....enjoying the ride, before you come to rest. The boys came along for 1 of those deadly rides, Arlie came along for 1.... but for the rest, I was on my own and believe me, for those 2 minute intervals when you're being hurled around and spun around... its REALLY LIVING!


At the end of the (very exhausting!) day, Serenity looked at me and said "Happy now? At least for another 3 years there will be no more talk of amusement parks?" Incredulously, I stared at him "Are you crazy? I could do this every week!!!"

Bitten by the travel bug...

I LOVE TRAVELLING!

Destination - not specific, just the 'getting up and going' is good enough for me.
Travel Companion of choice - Serenity
Ideal holiday - hmmm... anyplace that's not freezing, I guess.
I'm planning to give Serenity a holiday this year. Post 6 pm, in between work, its ALL I do these days! Research, research and more research. 
So this here, is my Bucket List - my list of places and things to do before I kick it....
1. The Northern Lights
2. Amsterdam (!!!)
3. Machu Pichu
4. Turkey
5. Greece
6. Spain
7. Italy
8. Morocco
9. Snorkelling (CHECK!!)
10. Cambodia (CHECK!!)
11. Bali
12. Fiji
13. Kenya
14. Laos
15. Vietnam
16. Thailand (this may happen soon!!)
17. Austria 
18. Belgium
19. France (surprise! this comes wayyyy at the bottom!)
20. Basically the rest of the world !!!
21. Take a cruise
22. Actually GO to a freezing place (just to see how long I last before I turn into an icicle!)


So if anyone out there has any suggestions on what corner of the earth I should drag my long-suffering husband off too, please feel free to suggest! 


Constraints - should NOT be wildly expensive!!
Reward - I promise I'll get you a little something from there if I do take your suggestion!!