Mommy’s Pet Or Daddy’s Angel?
09 Dec 2011 6 Comments
in Babies, Parenting Tags: babies, mom and dad, parenting
You know the question “Who do you love more – Mommy or Daddy” which was asked when you were a kid? I never liked it much back then and I still get annoyed when I see people pit the Mom and Dad against each other!
But some of the competitive spirit has started to rub off on me these day grr.Thanks To Atul ! I never used to get annoyed before when baby M stopped crying when she went to someone else, or if she became happier to see Atul. It is good that they like others too right? And the times when she did come to me and stop crying or when she misses me and cries for me, I used to find it adorable seeing Atul’s sad puppy face. I mean it was funny that Atul felt so hurt if she “liked me better” (if u want to call it that)! I had always been “secure” in the knowledge that she has no choice but to love me u know..I Mean, She was living inside me…I am the MOTHER..I spend all my time (almost:)) taking care of her. How can she possibly not like me?! 
But off late I have this urge to start running this race. Especially after seeing Atul gloat every time she DOES go to him happily! So sorry Atty boy, now I have become a serious contender to win the “I like Mommy Better” title. What makes this competition worse is Baby Girl Apparel! All of them proclaim “Daddy’s Sweetheart”, or “Daddy’s Little Darling” Or “Daddy’s whatever” with Mommy nowhere in the picture.
Sigh..I am bound to get slightly combative don’t you think? So nowadays when Atul is not able to control her crying at times and she becomes all cozy and quiet after coming to me, I blush on the inside with this misplaced sense of vanity. And when she jumps to her dad when he comes home and refuses to come to me, I have started feeling pangs of jealousy. I now console myself thinking that when she is hungry, sleepy, troubled etc etc only I can calm her down..She can go for her play time to Papa, but in times of real needs, she comes to Mamma 
Muhahahhaha So, Game On Baby M’s Daddy? 
Dangerous rhymes
02 Dec 2011 2 Comments
in Babies, Children Tags: five little ducks, nursery rhymes, piggy on a railway, Why Do nursery rhymes have sad endings
Now that am singing rhymes once again, I have started wondering why all these rhymes are so negative in nature not to mention the surprisingly common sad endings! It is actually ridiculous how many rhymes I could come up with all of which suit this whole tragic ending business —
Let’s start with Rock a bye baby – So a baby is blissfully rocking in its cradle on a goddamn tree for some reason and then a wind blows and the bough breaks and the baby falls along with its cradle! Ouch..the poor little baby..and the careless parents who “rock” their babies on trees..tch tch..hmm but seriously this is a LULLABY you sing for the babies?!
Jack and Jill is not that far behind. A simple, menial task like fetching a pail of water brings about a series of unfortunate events. You have Jack falling down and breaking his crown and Jill who doesn’t like to be left alone comes tumbling down after him. The poor souls..
Then you have Mr.Humpty Dumpty who sat on a wall quite nonchalantly not having a clue as to whats going to happen next…..but as luck would have it he has a great fall.. And obviously there is no Happy ending here either ..cause a lot of people tried but in the end they “Couldn’t put Humpty together again”
Next on the list we have the “Three blind mice Seee how they run“. Not only are they physically handicapped (Blind!) but then their tails are mercilessly cut off by the farmer’s wife for no real fault of theirs. Could they have known who they were running after since they were already blind? What Cruelty I say! And why are children subjected to such torturous rhymes ? grr..
Oh and check this gruesome one out
“Piggy on the Railway Picking up stones;
Down came an engine, And broke Piggy’s bones.
‘Ah !’ said Piggy, “That’s not fair,”
“Oh !” said the engine driver, “I don’t care !”
I mean, seriously what is that about?! Why do kids have to know about these hit-and-run accidents and unapologetic drivers anyhow? hmmph.. sniff.. Sad Ending Again? Hell Yes! the poor little pigggyy..
Okay let’s continue on this quest – listen to this one about poor little ducks getting lost one by one ..
Five little ducks Went out one day,
Over the hills, And far away.
Mother duck said, “Quack, quack, quack.”
But only four little ducks Came back, back, back”
And it goes on till all the ducks are lost!!
Come on, Lost Ducks, Dead Pigs, Fallen Babies/Jacks, Blind Mice having to deal with more cruelty — Where are the happy endings???
Oh and here is the kicker – Although this one doesn’t sound as menacing as the others, its “meaning” is tragic enough. Our very own
“Ringa Ringa Roses, Pocket full of Poises..Hushaaaa Bushaa ..WE all fall down”. It is supposed to be about how children all died (All fell Down!) during the plague.Woah.. and yeah Husha bushaa (ahem that’s how I remember it)..is actually “ashes ashes” or whatever..Ugh That Is Ghastly!! Why can’t all rhymes be all twinkling and “starring”???!
Gosh you know what? I am feeling depressed after doing this exercise..my childhood suddenly seems violated ! I am glad that children lack the judgement to analyse the rhymes they sing .. Haha
Hmmm but maybe they were all so sombre to teach kids a lesson ..to serve as a warning or whatever…
So children what have we learnt today?
“Don’t sit on walls..or u’ll fall“
“Don’t pick up stuff from railway lines..you’ll be run over“
“Don’t hang cradles from trees, and don’t put babies in them!?“
“Don’t wander away from your mommy“
“Don’t go up hills with girls to fetch water ?!?”
Very Good Children..Next Lesson Tomorrow 
Can anyone think of more of these sad ending rhymes?? Will be interesting!!
The World From Baby M’s View
29 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
in Babies, Children, Parenting Tags: babies, parenting
So what does a baby’s world look like??.. Here is a sample of Baby M’s schedule
8:3
0 AM : Stretchhhhhhhhhhh…”Oh what a beautiful morning..I feel like singing baaaaaaaaabaaa vavavaavaa oooooh aaaaaaah And wait is that today’s newspaper ? I need to know what is going on in this world..and yes I shall read it my way “
She crushes the paper..Makes happy sounds..crushes it some more..rolls around with the paper wrapped around herself elated with the crunchy sounds that it makes until I snatch them all away!!
9:00 AM : It is time for daddy to leave so while checking out the traffic status on the terrace Baby M Sunbathes. Its then play time while Mommy does some household work stuff.
“Yayyy Now that I am alone I can go for all the things that Mommy never lets me play with” So M centipedes herself to the wipes and the tissue boxes, the telephone wires, the chairs and the chappals! Once she gets hold of the tissues or the wipes, she gleefully pulls out all the tissues..Am sure She must be thinking “Wheee Its so much fun to pull this white stuff…It just keeps coming out..Me Likeyyy” . It is funny how we keep buying her toys and how she carelessly discards her toys when she spots any random thing at home like the remote, or the mobile or my plate or spoon or anything which isn’t a toy basically!
10:30 AM : Its the time for a batho…( To rhyme with disco ) ..Massage and then bath for the baby..Thankfully Baby M loves to take bath and splashes around a lot.”Splash Splash..Water is the coolest thing on earth!“. She is also just coming to terms with “cause and effect” and hence loves to play with the mug and watch the water spill when she tumbles it over again and again and again!
11:15 AM : Hmmmm..”Zzzzzzzzzzzz Massage and Hot water Bath Make me veryy Sleeepppppyyy“.
1:00 PM : “Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah…My mommy left me alone..Waaaaaaaaaaaah..I think it is time to teach her a lesson by rolling to the edge of the bed..It looks like fun toooo“..
Ahem, but Mommy now keeps a watchful eye though
1:30 PM : Messy Food Time Follows. Baby M loves to “wallow” in the Dal I try to feed her. She will go for the cup, put her hands in the dal and rub it all over herself, her face, her hair, my hands. She will grip the spoon really tightly and shake it up and down. Usually I just let go and get another spoon to feed her! Ofcourse Then she aims for the new spoon, hits it out of my hand with the dal flying around! Once the Mission:Feed Baby is done, the whole place looks yellow..Baby M’s head to toe covered with dal, the surrounding areas – ye
llow, floor – yellow , my clothes – yellow!! I wonder how much of it really goes in. Pheww…
2:00 PM – 2:45 PM : Masterchef Australia. “This food looks so much better than what Mommy gives me. Seriously ! Why does she watch it if she is not going to make it! ” Pout..
2:00 PM – 4:00 PM : Rock and Rolll babyyyy! Okay She doesn’t rock as much as she rolls But boy does she roll ! She manages to get around the length and breadth of the living room by rolling around..I usually find her under the sofa, under mats, chairs, or in a corner trying again and again to roll even more . Haha..it is hilarious. She’ll interchange between sitting , lying down on her stomach and rolling atleast 10 times in 3 minutes! One minute I find her sitting next to her small chair, the next minute she is lying down under the chair and the next minute she is back up with the chair upside down dragging it around and fiddling with the plastic cover on it!! Very “mechanic” like ) lol
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM Zzzzzz..Phew!! Baby M Tired after doing all that work , not to mention the rolling
After 7 PM : Papa is here..”Yayyy..Mommy is boring now, I need Papa to entertain me now”. She literally jumps out of my arms to go to her Dad! (Of course , Mommy doesn’t mind one bit! )
Welll Anyhow..So don’t want to bore you with minute by minute details of what baby M does ..atleast all in one go ..will let you in on more in the next post about her
Enough Drama For A Day
21 Nov 2011 3 Comments
in Children, Parenting Tags: Baby adventure, Children, new mom, parenting
So I had just finished typing out my other post about how I am in control and all that and Baby M decides to show me who is the boss.
Drama 1 : I was in front of the TV eating salad. Baby M was around playing with her toys. She is at this stage where she instantly knows if we are eating something and stares at us and tries reachin for the food in our plates. So as soon as I put one piece of cucumber in my mouth, she began to eye the plate. (Anyhow the background is that she has no teeth and is primarily on my feed so doesn’t really “eat” anything). So I look at the tv one moment and look back down and I see that Baby M has gleefully grabbed 2 pieces of moolis (radish i.e) one in each hand and is sucking at them . I found it very amusing that she picked them up and felt sorry that I was eating in front of her. So I just gave her a piece of cucumber to suck on to distract her. Another momentary glance at the tv and back and whoosh – there is a small piece of cuumbber lying down while the bigger piece is missing. I get slightly psyched and look at baby M and she has turned red and starts coughing. Now I get fully psyched and started cursing myself for not having paid attention to the first aid section in What To Expect (what was that Heimlich maneuver or whatever thingy!?) What am I supposed to do now? I just decide to go with hitting her hard on the back. I also bend her down so that with gravity the cucumber could dislodge itself. thankfully a mere 3 seconds (felt like wayy longer) later it was out!! Phew..I patted myself on the back for having great presence of mind and thought I had a new method to save babies from choking. Sigh..Baby M will be so proud of her mommy. Funnily enough when I read online about choking and things getitng stuck, it said that the baby’s coughing will, in all probability, automatically push the stuck thing out! Cha..And I thought it was all my doing..I was even going to name it the Brave C Manouver
Drama 2 : After the cucumber incident, I get Baby M to finally sleep. I put her down on the bed and build a mini fort around her with pillows so that she doesn’t fall over.( Again background is that Baby M is an expert at rolling now ). I then came to the other room to catch up on my “internet time”. After 10 minutes, I decided to check on her even though it was all quiet and she should have been sleeping. I entered the room and saw Baby M at the very edge of the bed inching her way to a fall. (Super HeartAttack!) She had skillfully kicked the pillow down and had rolled over! I get majorly worked up and start running towards her so she doesn’t fall down. And Ofcourse while running, the bathroom mat gets under my feet and I slip and Humpty Dumpty has a great fall. I was only slightly hurt but on the ground and I look up at her and scream “maaaarviiiiiiii” so loudly that she looks at me, gets startled and starts crying. But phew that saves a few seconds and immediately lift her off the bed. Disaster Averted! Why does baby M like to live on the edge!? It has happenned so many times now. One moment I bend down to pick up her diaper and by the time I look up she has rolled herself all the way to the edge.Kids these days I tell You!
I think Thats enough drama for one day. So okay I give up, Baby M, you are the Boss. Please stop giving me heart attacks And I shall also try and be less careless
Brand New Role
17 Nov 2011 7 Comments
in Children, Parenting Tags: babies, motherhood, new mom, parenting
I cannot believe it has been 11 months since I last blogged. Actually I can believe it. I have been busy after all. I stepped into a new role on May 24..I am now officially a — drumrolll please —- brand new MOM Yup it has finally happened , the “any good news” questions have come to rest at last (for the time being I presume!). It has still not really “sunk” in that I am a “mother” and its almost been half a year with this designation. I mean first off, it is such a weirdly different experience to have an actual human being come out of you..and suddenly you have this helpless creature totally dependent on you for everyyyy small and big thing. Then the initial few weeks you end up feeling like a cow (a clueless one at that!) It felt like all I was doing was feed her and this was when she slept for around 17 hours a day! Somehow I never had time to do anything else..Cooking was taken care of by my mom-in-law, all my multifarious “errands” were heeded to by my mom and grocery shopping was my father in law’s duty. Now that I think back, what the H did I do with all the free time I had? Guess time just flew me being dazed about the status change, physically I felt fine but when everyone asks you to take rest and nap, you HAVE to follow the advice right?
I feel like I have graduated from a clueless mom to a know-it-all-or-well-google-is-there kinda mom Here are some thens and nows (then = more than 3/3.5 months back and now = now (duh!))
Then : I needed 2 people to help me feed her. I was so confused about which position to use and all that crap.There was a point when my husband would demonstrate positions in which I could feed..That was a priceless moment! haha..
Now : I can do it with one hand tied up . And in any position..Ha..(Okayy “It” refers to feeding btw ahem)
Then : I sterilize anything and everything that goes near the baby
Now : I give it a cursory wash with water. I justify myself saying “immunity will develop this way”)
Then : I kept asking people I met about the whys and whats and the hows
Now : I give gyan to people I meet about labor, babies , their feeding habits, their sleeping habits and other topics they care to hear about.
Then : I couldn’t believe I was baby M’s mom and didn’t get senti for a long time
Now : I behave like a mom to other kids sometimes!! and I am quite senti about my baby M..my poochoo wooochooooo my cupppyycakkkeee.
Then : I felt completely clueless when she cried. Baby Centre said there were some 6 different typse of cries. To me all of them sounded the same and I felt frustrated and helpless during her colic phase..
Now : Once the colic phase and the “unknown” crying stopped, things came under control and I have actually started decoding her cries and actions now (more or less )
Then : She used to cry harder when she saw me(I am guessing I reminded her of her hunger?)
Now : She actually stops crying when she comes to me (Awwwwwwww)
Then : I was really reluctant to put up her pics and get on video chat with her (I was a bit superstitious for some reason)
Now : I just need an excuse to show her off everywhere
Then : I was scared that the laptop/tv screen radiation will do some harm
Now : Baby M enjoys watching TV. She particularly likes Masterchef Australia
Then : I used to refer to her as “it” sometmes
Now : I can’t stop talking about baby M as baby M
Anyhow so now she is almost 5.75 months, Baby M can roll over (which raises my BP many a times) and sit as of now (though she can’t raise herself to that position which frustrates her to no end)..I feel much more in control of things (and as I write this she proved how wrong I was ..Read on here ). I think I have come to terms to being a mom, I feel more “adulty” if u know what I mean..I can entertain her on my own and don’t think to myself “Oh when will Atul come back from office and take over” (Actually I do feel that sometimes, but I think I can manage on my own too). And now I think she actually likes me. I mean she becomes pretty happy when she sees me (sigh my heart does melt !!) and yes finally I think she appreciates more than just my feeding skills
Culinary Series – Simple and delicious Baingan Bhaji
21 Jan 2011 2 Comments
in Food, Recipes Tags: baingan bhaji, brinjal recipe, indian brinjal recipe
So Jiggy came over to Mumbai the other day and as usual displayed her lowwee and talent for cooking. I got inspired enough to click pictures of all that we managed to make that day ..So here is a series of recipes all of which came out really well.
To begin with here is a super simple and delicious baingan(brinjal) recipe to go with roti or paratha or rice.
Ingredients :
Bharta Baingan (The large brinjal) - 1
Tomatoes – 2
Hing (asafoetida)
Methi (fenugreek) Seeds
Sarson Ka Tel (Mustard Oil)
Turmeric powder
Red chilli powder
Dhania Powder (Or use Sambar Powder if you have that)
Salt
Method :
Dice the brinjal into big pieces and keep aside
Heat 2-3 tbsps of Mustard Oil for atleast a minute before throwing in 1 tspn of Methi Seeds and a tspn of Hing.
Stir for 30 seconds and add in the Brinjal.Stir it so that the oil covers a bit of all the pieces.
Now cut the tomatoes and toss them into the Kadai.
Put in all the other masala – Turmeric Powder, Dhania Powder (or Sambar Powder), Chilli Powder, Salt to taste
Cover it and let it steam for 10-15 minutes (Or until the brinjal is done).
Tada.Thats it…Slurrpp..It was so easy to make and I loved its taste…It has no onions ..is a no frills kinda sabji and yet I could eat the sabji as it is and still not get enough of it! Do give it a try with Mustard Oil…I usually don’t like the smell of sarson ka tel..but with this it really brings out the baingan flavor and the sarson ka tel flavor is very subtle .
Here is a snapshot of the dish..I was surprised I saved some of it for the photograph ..Baingan is seriously driving me crazy these days..I need more baingan recipessssss…
Why guns rage over trivial issues?
14 Jan 2011 1 Comment
in delhi, India Tags: Delhi crime rate, Delhi Trivial Issue Crime, Jessica lall case
I finally got to watch Noone Killed Jessica the day before and came out feeling really disturbed about how our country and its systems function. In the end, Jessica did end up getting a fair trial but it took 10 years and a whole lot of media frenzy to get that to happen. This sort of law evasion is possible only if every arm gets twisted, every person, every police gets manipulated into rigging the entire system. I am amazed at how people readily buy into freeing a crazy man who for the most trivial of things takes a life. What gives him the right? It was so frustrating to see witnesses turn hostile. I honestly don’t know what I would do if faced with the choice of my life or facing my conscience. I am hoping that I’d be able to live with myself and keep the faith on the police doing its job. If it was some girl at a party now, it could be you tomorrow if these guys are let to escape any form of punishment.
Take the Jessica case again …Just because Manu was a minister’s son, the entire system was willing to bend and let him off. Even after being arrested in 2009, he was given a 60 day bail where he was spotted in several parties while he was supposed to be attending to a sick mother! The insane killer out at night clubs again!!! Is a politician really the GOD for our country? Is his word always the bible for those maintaining law and order in our country? I wonder if this is why Delhi has become a hotbed for crimes over trivial reasons. It is a city filled with politicians and people with power in their heads. This probably implies that anyone who knows a friend of a cousin of a son of the minister can get away with practically anything. And maybe this is why people are roaming around with guns waiting to show their power at the slightest provocation.
It has become an almost everyday event in Delhi (as the papers report) for people on the street to take out guns and shoot each other over trivial things like accidentally opening the door of a car on a passerby or someone splashing water on a customer’s clothes by mistake. It makes me wonder why this is becoming a trend in the Capital of our country ? Why is nobody in control of their rage and does anyone understand the consequence of holding a gun in his hand? I am honestly searching for an underlying reason which could someday be addressed to stop this. Why are there so many people roaming around with guns in their pockets in the first place? Should gun licenses be re-looked at ? Is it necessary for everyone who feels the least bit insecure to possess a gun? Or is it just that so many politicians in one place makes everyone dizzy with drunken power that they think its inconsequential to take another life in any which way. The psyche of many people in Delhi has probably been shaped to feel that to get out of jail, all you need is to find a contact who has a connection with some minister. The city seems to have developed norms and laws which aren’t like any other just because of the whole “power and politics” equations.
I frankly don’t know if Delhi is really unsafe or the media makes it a point to report all possible such cases from the capital. But I have heard so many real cases of the city being unsafe and the city police being not very co-operative. So many questions and I don’t have the answers. Although I do think that if the police and the judiciary system are trustworthy then these incidents will be rare. The Aarushi case is another case in point where evidence has apparently been tampered with! Pay these guys more so that they aren’t tempted by bribes so much. Instead of increasing salaries for politicians for whom the “actual” salary has rarely mattered, increase it for the law enforcing personnel of our country who need it more to protect themselves inorder to protect us… I don’t know what I would do to solve any of this, but I just felt like ranting after watching that movie..
.Here’s to making the capital more safe for everyone…
The year that whizzed by
14 Jan 2011 Leave a Comment
in New Year
Happpy NEW Yeaarr to one and all..
I came up with this ridiculous idea to relive every month of 2010 through my google chats and bring out the highlights from it ..(Yes so what If i am jobless) . Also considering my horrid memory, google chat logs is a fun and great way to remember things which ought to be remembered.
January 2010
Can see the numerous Resume Version Number X mails going around between Shnoo And Me. Cannot see much of difference between Version 1 and Version 6 though ) But realising WHY I did not get shortlisted with such a resume now ..
Last minute ELP presentation work . It was the one thing which went positively for me this month. Was fun doing the project with Prabhu n Somu..All our discussions meant for ELP which always used to veer to a totally unrelated topic , the Nalanda trip in October , Prabhu’s love for the environment.. A great experience and thankfully a great presentation at the end of it. We were so delighted that day to hear good feedback ..
Got an unexpected mail that Me and Jiggy were through to the Finals of “MarketPlace”, an event in IIM Calcutta. I remember going through the first round in a stupor!! So it was interesting to be shortlisted. We decided to go to Calcutta and compete in the Finals. Was a fun trip with Jigs the Pigs. Even managed to visit South City Mall with Vineetha Kaka and Vichu in the 1.5 day trip we made ) We made a good presentation which wasn’t much on the execution side but I thought it rocked the Strategy side. Funny part was how I called Wildstone a “Cheap” brand in front of its Managing Directors. Maybe that is why we din’t win anything. I had hoped they’d appreciate my honesty
Placements start and the agonizing wait for a “shortlist” also starts. I am still under the illusion that I wasn’t being shortlisted because I wasn’t applying to many companies. Little did I know the story will stretch forever regardless of whether I was applying or not !!!
February 2010
Celebrated my second anniversary with Atul by going for Dinner to “N-Grill”. Nice place, great food (really small portions though). Spent a nice week in Mumbai before the “Placement Week” Started. The take home Corporate Governance Exam was good fun. I was writing tales and tales using the coolest sounding words. )
Priya’s Wedding was coming up and I was really looking forward to it. Unfortunately, I was STILL under the illusion that if I applied to the “right” companies, they would shortlist me. Had to advance my ticket back from Chennai without seeing either the Reception or Muhurtham for a stupid stupid company which finally did not shortlist me. Ughh..How angry I was..and irritated. Made the resolution to never miss any friend’s wedding for trivial things like “hoping for a shortlist”!!
Not a great month. One entire “placement” week goes by without me applying for a single company. I think only 4-5 turned up and I wasn’t interested. it was one hell of a boring and Velaa week in ISB.
Holi came and went and it was great fun…Atul was laughing so much that it was hilarious
Mar 2010
Last term at ISB. No mood to attend classes apparently..or do assignments.. One particular course which I had “personally” recommended was Database Marketing whose assignments were the most tortorous ever..esp in the LAST term. But the classes in particular were actually fun since we were allowed to use laptops and spent this time Chating and facebooking and looking at photos..That din’t help us much during assignment time. Got cursed super-types by Jiggy and Shnoo for having suggested this course to them ..
April 2010
Convocation was really emotional actually.. Will miss ISB, my quaddies, my other friends, the parties, the classes but at the same time I was reallly glad to be living together with Atul again.. …Meanwhile, after passing out me and jiggy wanted to prank call our quads back in ISB and sing “one little two little three little indiansss” in a sooper spooky voice..sigh me likes spooky little indian songs
Nothing much happening on the job front, hopeful still though and applying to many many companies
Thanks to security threats in Bangalore, I got to watch Chennai SuperKings match at DY Patil.. Have already blogged about that!
————————
I have realised that I chat way tooo extensively and getting into chat logs is like diving into the Marine Trench in the Pacific Ocean .. I have a minimum of 400 chat logs for every month!! Gosh..So well am giving up on this “assignment” inspite of being vela. Its a surprise I got till Apri ..actually its a surprise that YOU got till here reading hehe..l!
________________
A Quick Veggie Thai Green Curry!
13 Dec 2010 2 Comments
in Food, Recipes, Thai Cuisine Tags: Thai Cuisne, Thai Green Curry, Vegetarian Thai Curry
I always crave for certain foods and Thai cuisine is one of them (inspite of being a veggie). I just love the green papaya salad, their tom kha soup and the thai green curry. I finally decided to give a go at making a Thai green curry with most of the “present-at-home” ingredients. The only thing I needed to go to the market was the Lemon grass stalks and they were surprisingly easily available. So here is my recipe for a quick thai green curry ..which turned out quite decent (I was surprised too!!)
Quick Vegetarian Thai Green Curry – Serves 2
Grind to a paste :
3-4 Small Green Chillies
Half a bunch of coriander – Stalk and Leaves
1 inch piece of normal ginger (Instead of Gallangal or the thai ginger)
Lemon Rind (Just peeled two pieces of 1′inch skin off the normal lemon – instead of Kaffir Lime Leaves )
3 Shallots (i.e baby onion or sambar onion as we get here)
2 tbsp Coriander Seeds
1 tbsp Black Peppercorns
Lemon Grass Stalk ( 2-3 leaves cut should be fine)
3-4 Garlic Cloves
Salt
Olive Oil
2 tbsps of coconut milk to get a decent liquified mixture
(I used the “Homemade” brand of Coconut milk)
For the Veggies :
I used
1 diced carrot
3-4 baby corns diced
1 yellow/red pepper
8-9 beans cut into halves
1 Potato
Frozen Peas – 3 tbsp
Half an onion
Tofu/Paneer (I used 3-4 cubes of paneer)
Method :
Put all the veggies (except the bell pepper) in a pressure cooker and take it down just as it is going to whistle.
Quickly Run the cooker under some water to let the steam off , so that the veggies have a bit of crunch in them.
Then use 1 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan and let the bell pepper and some onion fry until translucent.
Add in the ground paste and the coconut milk until you have the light green color that you want. (Be generous with the coconut milk). I used 1 entire pack of the “homemade” coconut milk. Once it starts boiling, add in all the veggies.Put in some paneer/tofu too. Tofu would give a better “thai” taste than paneer, but according to availability you can use either.
Also add 2 lemon grass stalks at this stage and put in some dried basil on top and let the entire thing simmer for 5-10 minutes.Add Salt according to taste and a 2 tsps of sugar for that slightly sweet taste.
And well, thats it! You have your quick thai green curry.
Here’s a snap shot of how it looked in the end. Not bad for the minimal effort which went in!
Jai Ho – India and the Commonwealth games
19 Oct 2010 Leave a Comment
in Commonwealth Games 2010, India, Sports Tags: Commonwealth Games 2010
So now the games are all over and the probes, the scams and Kalmadi are all back in the media. But inspite of all that I am still happy that the CommonWealth games took place and took place in India. And I really don’t care if wet blankets are saying that ALL the good players pulled out of the games or that india is just a big fish in a small pond. I am still really proud of India’s performance in the games and am proud of all our athletes coming from small towns, medium towns and all other towns.. I see this not as a triumph of Delhi pulling it all off at the last minute, but a triumph for all those unheard of athletes who have come into the spotlight. We were undoubtedly competing with strong nations and still coming out tops. That is just plain inspiring.
I am not saying that India is all set to top the charts in the next Olympics, we need to put in a lot more effort to outshine China’s dictatorship , but I am just saying that it was a great platform for sports of different kinds and athletes of different genres to showcase their talent. Even I have always been quick to dismiss India after abysmal performances in the Olympics, but the common wealth games really opened my eyes. 
Not only do we have a top-seeded Saina Nehwal who plays brilliant badminton and won the gold, we also have 17 year old Deepika who held her own against an Olympic Medalist with three times her experience to clinch the gold in Archery. And I have to mention the determined Ashish Kumar in Gymnastics. The firang commentators kept saying he is all heart but not much technique and he managed to win a silver with sheer ambition and determination. Yayy.. I had never been prouder of our country. With no history, no training centers around in Gymnastics and no popularity, for India with a team strength of 1, to win a silver beating world champion countries is no small feat!
There were so many events that gave me goosebumps, literally! The women’s 4*400 Relay was one of them. I had no idea that we would be able to beat the “afro” heritage runners who all seem to be born with extreme stamina and lighting speed genes. It was a thrilling moment to see our women cross that finishing line first. And the clean sweep at discus throw was a rare moment in Indian Athletics…
Ofcourse I have to mention Shooting, Wrestling and Boxing where we won medals by the dozen. Kudos to these men and women. I take pride in their ambition to do SOO well at such a platform. I am sure with all the encouragement they are getting now, they will go on to win Olympic Medals for us. Sushil Kumar especially won his event with such flair that it was easy to see he was an Olympic Medallist and will go on to get more medals for us.
All in all, I had such a great time watching all the events that I am missing it sorely now that it is over. It was a refreshing change to have India seen as a country with a lot of talent in various events. I hate seeing all the scams and probes now – a real black spot on such splendid performance by Indian Athletes and Sportspersons. It was so good when the news was all about which golds did we clinch and which countries did we upstage . I feel that the commonwealth games has exposed a lot of us to the kind of talent we have and I am hoping that it will bring a positive change to the state of sports in our country. With recognition and encouragement, the athletes will definitely feel more enthused to make our country proud. I hope that people are inspired enough to let their children pursue a career in professional sports. I am glad it happened in India this time
