Until a man is nothing, God can make nothing out of him
-- Martin Luther
-- Martin Luther
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Have you done Mammography this year?
I must be scaring the living daylights out of my women friends this week. I have been asking them if they have done Mammography this year. Most of them, to my dismay, have been replying in the negative but are quick to inquire why I asked. The fact is that recently a dear friend informed me that her mom has been diagnosed with breast cancer and it is in the last stage. Horrified, I asked her how it could have gone undetected in the annual Mammography. She replied that they didn't know about Mammography at all. I kicked myself for not bringing up the topic of annual medical checkups with her earlier. Her mom's cancer could have been diagnosed, and hence treated, in time.
But I am determined to not repeat the mistake and hence asking all female friends about it. So if you are a woman of 40 or above and/or have risk factors for breast cancer, please see your gynecologist to get more information about this procedure. If you are a man and reading this post, please make sure that the ladies in your life - mom, wife, sister, daughter, friends - not only know about Mammography but do it every year if they happen to fulfill the above conditions.
I know about procrastination. I have myself been guilty of postponing Mammography since past five years. But when I learnt about my friend's mom, I made sure I got it done along with my mom as soon as I could. And I am going to do it every year.
It is true what they say about prevention being better than cure.
But I am determined to not repeat the mistake and hence asking all female friends about it. So if you are a woman of 40 or above and/or have risk factors for breast cancer, please see your gynecologist to get more information about this procedure. If you are a man and reading this post, please make sure that the ladies in your life - mom, wife, sister, daughter, friends - not only know about Mammography but do it every year if they happen to fulfill the above conditions.
I know about procrastination. I have myself been guilty of postponing Mammography since past five years. But when I learnt about my friend's mom, I made sure I got it done along with my mom as soon as I could. And I am going to do it every year.
It is true what they say about prevention being better than cure.
Supernatural - First Born
I am wondering if I need to read the Bible to make sense of the Supernatural episodes. Take the latest episode for example. I have no idea who Cain is and who Abel was. Consequently, I don't know if the First Blade is part of the story from Bible or is part of the season plot. Whatever the case, it was good to see the demons getting slaughtered in one fell swoop. Kudos to the writers for making the character of Crowley so likeable that it is a treat to watch him work with Dean knowing fully well that he does keep secrets from Dean and if not for Abaddon, would not have been on the same side as the Winchesters!
I wonder why Sam is so mad at Dean. After all, he let Gadreel possess (if you can use this term for an angel!) Sam just to save his life. Any sibling would do the same - even Sam would have done the same for Dean. They have done their separate ways in the past and it hasn't worked for either of them then.
Castiel, however, is a darling in his new Avatar as a 'humanized' angel. Sort of a middle point between the maddeningly cold practical angel and annoyingly stupid human. I know there is no way but I keep hoping that they will find some means of bringing Kevin back from the dead.
I suspect that the mark on Dean is going to play a major role in the forthcoming episodes but hope its cost doesn't translate to the death of Sam, Dean or Castiel. :-(
Surely this plot is heaps better than the Leviathans and their plan to turn the entire mankind into meal. Can't wait till next Friday for the next episode :-)
I wonder why Sam is so mad at Dean. After all, he let Gadreel possess (if you can use this term for an angel!) Sam just to save his life. Any sibling would do the same - even Sam would have done the same for Dean. They have done their separate ways in the past and it hasn't worked for either of them then.
Castiel, however, is a darling in his new Avatar as a 'humanized' angel. Sort of a middle point between the maddeningly cold practical angel and annoyingly stupid human. I know there is no way but I keep hoping that they will find some means of bringing Kevin back from the dead.
I suspect that the mark on Dean is going to play a major role in the forthcoming episodes but hope its cost doesn't translate to the death of Sam, Dean or Castiel. :-(
Surely this plot is heaps better than the Leviathans and their plan to turn the entire mankind into meal. Can't wait till next Friday for the next episode :-)
Moonlight Becomes You - by Mary Higgins Clark (Spoiler Alert!)
I can't say that I am a fan of Mary Higgins Clark. But I do enjoy reading her novels. That was the reason I picked up 'Moonlight Becomes You'.
It's a story of Maggie Holloway - an established photographer. Stuck in a boring party, she bumps into her stepmother, Nuala, quite by chance - more than 2 decades after Nuala has divorced her father. But Maggie has fond memories of five years spent with Nuala. And Nuala, of course, is simply delighted to see Maggie again. Maggie, however, senses that despite her usual cheerfulness her step-mom is afraid of something. Nuala invites her to her home in Newport, Rhode Island and Maggie readily agrees.
But when Maggie lands at her doorstep she finds Nuala murdered and the house ransacked as if someone was looking for something. It turns out that Nuala, in her will, has left the place to Maggie - thus abandoning her earlier decision of selling it and movie to the nearby retirement community, Latham Manor. Her only condition is that Maggie should remain in touch with, and occasionally visit, Nuala's best friend Mrs. Shipley who stays at Latham Manor. Maggie decides to keep Nuala's place - much to the chagrin of Nuala's lawyer. She also visits Mrs. Shipley and ends up accompanying her to a cemetery where many of her friends are laid to rest. But Mrs. Shipley, who has taken the news of her best friend's murder very badly starts looking ill and suddenly passes away in her sleep one night. Maggie comes to know that the same thing has happened with two of the Latham Manor occupants before and that in fact one other thing common to all of them is that they didn't have any close relatives. In a bizarre twist she also discovers a bell left at the graves of both Nuala and Mrs. Shipley. Is there is a connection between the deaths at Latham Manor and these bells? Who own Latham Manor? Is she putting her own life at risk by choosing to stay at Nuala's place? Who was Nuala afraid of? Why did she change her decision to move to Latham Manor? And who killed her?
The novel does provide answers to all these questions in the end. But I am afraid it is not too difficult to put two and two together to conclude who the killer is about halfway through the book. If you paint a character in too dark a shade of black, readers sense that it is supposed to be a red herring and start looking for the criminal elsewhere. I much prefer the tactic of putting suspicion on each character and slipping a tiny clue where it will be missed by most readers. Also, I couldn't help but be mad at Maggie for unnecessarily putting herself in harm's way when she could have done better by co-operating with the cops and enlisting their help. I don't much care for characters that are hell-bent on playing Sherlock and end up dropping almost dead. The relationship between Neil and his parents came as breath of fresh air - especially since most of the novels depict children not getting along with their parents.
I was curious about the title and a little hunt on the net brought me to the lyrics (check out Bing Crosby singing it) of the song from which it seems to have been borrowed. I must confess that I failed to see the connection though :-)
It's a story of Maggie Holloway - an established photographer. Stuck in a boring party, she bumps into her stepmother, Nuala, quite by chance - more than 2 decades after Nuala has divorced her father. But Maggie has fond memories of five years spent with Nuala. And Nuala, of course, is simply delighted to see Maggie again. Maggie, however, senses that despite her usual cheerfulness her step-mom is afraid of something. Nuala invites her to her home in Newport, Rhode Island and Maggie readily agrees.
But when Maggie lands at her doorstep she finds Nuala murdered and the house ransacked as if someone was looking for something. It turns out that Nuala, in her will, has left the place to Maggie - thus abandoning her earlier decision of selling it and movie to the nearby retirement community, Latham Manor. Her only condition is that Maggie should remain in touch with, and occasionally visit, Nuala's best friend Mrs. Shipley who stays at Latham Manor. Maggie decides to keep Nuala's place - much to the chagrin of Nuala's lawyer. She also visits Mrs. Shipley and ends up accompanying her to a cemetery where many of her friends are laid to rest. But Mrs. Shipley, who has taken the news of her best friend's murder very badly starts looking ill and suddenly passes away in her sleep one night. Maggie comes to know that the same thing has happened with two of the Latham Manor occupants before and that in fact one other thing common to all of them is that they didn't have any close relatives. In a bizarre twist she also discovers a bell left at the graves of both Nuala and Mrs. Shipley. Is there is a connection between the deaths at Latham Manor and these bells? Who own Latham Manor? Is she putting her own life at risk by choosing to stay at Nuala's place? Who was Nuala afraid of? Why did she change her decision to move to Latham Manor? And who killed her?
The novel does provide answers to all these questions in the end. But I am afraid it is not too difficult to put two and two together to conclude who the killer is about halfway through the book. If you paint a character in too dark a shade of black, readers sense that it is supposed to be a red herring and start looking for the criminal elsewhere. I much prefer the tactic of putting suspicion on each character and slipping a tiny clue where it will be missed by most readers. Also, I couldn't help but be mad at Maggie for unnecessarily putting herself in harm's way when she could have done better by co-operating with the cops and enlisting their help. I don't much care for characters that are hell-bent on playing Sherlock and end up dropping almost dead. The relationship between Neil and his parents came as breath of fresh air - especially since most of the novels depict children not getting along with their parents.
I was curious about the title and a little hunt on the net brought me to the lyrics (check out Bing Crosby singing it) of the song from which it seems to have been borrowed. I must confess that I failed to see the connection though :-)
Thursday, January 23, 2014
A friend forwarded a few lines by Javed Akhtar:
'लफ्ज' ही ऐसी चीझ है जिसकी वजहसे
इन्सान या तो दिलमे उतर जाता है या दिलसे उतर जाता है
जिंदगीकी इस कश्मकशमे वैसे तो मैभी काफी बिझी हू
लेकिन वक्तका बहाना बनाकर अपनोको भूल जाना मुझे आजभी नही आता
जहा यार याद ना आये वो तनहाई किस कामकी
बिगडे रिश्ते ना बने तो खुदाई किस कामकी
बेशक अपनी मंजील तक जाना है
पर जहासे अपना दोस्त ना दिखे
वो उंचाई किस कामकी
'लफ्ज' ही ऐसी चीझ है जिसकी वजहसे
इन्सान या तो दिलमे उतर जाता है या दिलसे उतर जाता है
जिंदगीकी इस कश्मकशमे वैसे तो मैभी काफी बिझी हू
लेकिन वक्तका बहाना बनाकर अपनोको भूल जाना मुझे आजभी नही आता
जहा यार याद ना आये वो तनहाई किस कामकी
बिगडे रिश्ते ना बने तो खुदाई किस कामकी
बेशक अपनी मंजील तक जाना है
पर जहासे अपना दोस्त ना दिखे
वो उंचाई किस कामकी
Sunday, January 19, 2014
New Tilgul flavor at Naturals
Not every edible thing should be turned into an ice-cream. I realized that when I took the first bite of Natural new Tilgul flavored Ice-cream. I had ordered Tender Coconut and should have been content with it. But as I was happily gorging on it, I noticed the board advertizing the new flavor. It also advertized Strawberry + Cream but that would have been a more calorie-laden option. Plus I wasn't watching Wimbledon so I decided to settle for what appeared like a healthier option - relatively speaking, of course.
When the ice-cream arrived I was alarmed at the quantity of peanuts that seemed to be sticking out of it. "But there are no peanuts in Tilgul" - the Maharashtrian in me protested at once. "Don't jump to conclusions" I admonished as I ate the first spoonful. The sesame seeds provided a crunchy texture that went well with the softness of the ice-cream but in my humble opinion they have gone rather overboard with it.
The overall effect was as if I am eating a peanut-sesame seed chikki mixed with vanilla ice-cream. Not at all impressive!
When the ice-cream arrived I was alarmed at the quantity of peanuts that seemed to be sticking out of it. "But there are no peanuts in Tilgul" - the Maharashtrian in me protested at once. "Don't jump to conclusions" I admonished as I ate the first spoonful. The sesame seeds provided a crunchy texture that went well with the softness of the ice-cream but in my humble opinion they have gone rather overboard with it.
The overall effect was as if I am eating a peanut-sesame seed chikki mixed with vanilla ice-cream. Not at all impressive!
X-Files
I had to check the internet (read Wiki!) to make sure that I had just watched the very last episode of the last (9th) season of the X-Files. It felt "that" incomplete. I wondered how Mulder got onto a helicopter and walked nonchalantly in that facility. And why. I wondered why Kersh suddenly changed his tune in the end. I wondered what answers Mulder and Scully hoped to find by visiting the Wise Man who turned out to be the Cigarette Smoking Man. I wondered what help Krycek's spirit provided to Mulder. And I wondered why the show ended on such a lame ineffective note.
To be fair, I didn't expect Mulder, Scully, Skinner, Doggett and Reyes to go with all guns blazing and rid the Earth of the 'bad aliens'. That happens in only Hindi movies and well, in movies like 'Men In Black'. It is also true that when the series ended, 22nd December 2012 was a few years away. Setting that as the date of the Alien Invasion must have sounded a creepy enough end at that time.
I also read on Wiki that there is talk of making an X-Files movie about this invasion. I wonder if it is rather too late for that, considering the fact that it is already 2014 now.
Still, after watching all 9 seasons back to back over the past few months, it is difficult to imagine the 8 o'clock slot without Mulder, Scully, Doggett, Reyes and Skinner. Who knows? The truth could indeed be out there :-)
To be fair, I didn't expect Mulder, Scully, Skinner, Doggett and Reyes to go with all guns blazing and rid the Earth of the 'bad aliens'. That happens in only Hindi movies and well, in movies like 'Men In Black'. It is also true that when the series ended, 22nd December 2012 was a few years away. Setting that as the date of the Alien Invasion must have sounded a creepy enough end at that time.
I also read on Wiki that there is talk of making an X-Files movie about this invasion. I wonder if it is rather too late for that, considering the fact that it is already 2014 now.
Still, after watching all 9 seasons back to back over the past few months, it is difficult to imagine the 8 o'clock slot without Mulder, Scully, Doggett, Reyes and Skinner. Who knows? The truth could indeed be out there :-)
Mahalakshmi Saras 2014
Disappointment seems to be the flavor of the month. I had been to Mahalakshmi Saras for the first time last year. And like I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, I had felt like a child in a secret cave full of treasures. I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said that I had been looking forward to this year's visit since December.
Don't get me wrong. This year's exhibition too has many stalls, like last year. But somehow they all seem to be selling the same stuff - especially the stalls selling food. I wondered why stall after stall was selling unpolished rice, papads, Nachani and Jowar flour, Kokam Syrup, Alphanso Mango Pulp, Amla Sherbat, dried fish, red chillies, Malwani Masala, Meat Masala, Garam Masala, Chilli Powder and Turmeric Powder! Then there were the usual suspects like kurtis, fabrics, saris, pillow covers and drapes. This time around I found that the costume jewellery was a bit steeply priced. There wasn't anything new on offer as well. Only on one stall I found chunky bracelets that looked as if they were made from brass. There was a stack of 6 of them so I inquired if that was a set. The lady said that it wasn't so I asked what the price of a single bracelet was. She said 600!
Another stall, from Jharkhand I think, had organic soaps on display. They smelled fresh and looked like a good bargain for a price tag of Rs 100. The lady told me that each soap will last for 45 days. I think she clearly meant it as a plus point. But I didn't like the prospect of using the same soap for a month and a half. :-(
I was also looking for the stall that had sold one hell of a Halwa last year. Unfortunately, the guy was nowhere to be seen. The only Halwa stall was from Kerala and the Halwa there tasted same as the Badami Halwa sold at any of your friendly neighborhood shops selling sweets. The only exception being that this one had a lot more dry fruits in it - probably to justify its price of Rs 280!
The food court also seemed to be carrying the same theme of 'more numbers, less variety'. No matter where you looked, the boards seemed to advertize Kolhapuri Pandhara rassa (white gravy), Tambada rassa (red gravy), Chicken thali, Mutton thali, Fish thali, Baingan Bharata-Bhakari and Pithala Bhakari. There was only one stall selling Sinhgad special Onion Pakodas, Mataka Dahi and Bhel and one stall selling Rajasthani thali.
I was interested in Chicken Thali and since almost all stalls were selling the same it was a random choice. One lady seemed to be saying that her food was hot (as in temperature, not in spice). I told her specifically that I would be ordering only if she served the Thali piping hot. She said yes so I paid Rs 120 and wondered what fate had in store for me. To her credit, I didn't have to wait for long. The gravy was hot as she had promised. The thali consisted of 2 bhakaris made from rice flour (soft and fluffy!), chicken gravy (spicy!), a bowl each of red and white gravy (both without any meat) , rice, couple of onion slices and a bit of pickle. I didn't like white gravy, the others were okay. I also ordered a bowl of SolKadhi by paying extra Rs 20. It was cold but not spicy enough! All in all, it was okay food for the price I paid. The best thing was that the food court was very clean and there was arrangement made to wash your hands. You could see the dustbins without having to hunt for one. And a cleaning crew was always on the move - to clear up the tables. Way to go guys!!
I wanted to check out the Moong Daal Ka Halwa and Churma Laddoo on offer at the Rajasthani stall so I headed there. The guy manning the stall was in the process of fixing up a thali for a couple. I cringed when I saw greasy looking blood red gravies getting piled into each other in the tiny thali. As if that wasn't enough the guy then proceeded to ladle a big spoon full of desi ghee (or what appeared to be desi ghee!) on the whole mixture. The lady from the couple was horrified and kept asking him to go easy on the ghee. But he said that it will add to the taste and asked where else will she sample "shudh desi ghee"!!
I almost ran away wondering how many spoonfulls of the "shudh desi ghee" must have gone into the Moong Daal Ka Halwa. However, my sweet tooth didn't allow me to do so. So I soldiered on and ordered a plate of it (Rs 50). Mercifully, it was neither dripping with ghee nor sickeningly sweet. If at all, I felt it could have done better with some more sugar. The Churma Laddoos (2 more Rs 50) were, however, perfect!
So, like I said, it was a bit of a disappointment because I hardly felt like buying anything and when I walked out of there, my wallet wasn't much lighter. :-(
Don't get me wrong. This year's exhibition too has many stalls, like last year. But somehow they all seem to be selling the same stuff - especially the stalls selling food. I wondered why stall after stall was selling unpolished rice, papads, Nachani and Jowar flour, Kokam Syrup, Alphanso Mango Pulp, Amla Sherbat, dried fish, red chillies, Malwani Masala, Meat Masala, Garam Masala, Chilli Powder and Turmeric Powder! Then there were the usual suspects like kurtis, fabrics, saris, pillow covers and drapes. This time around I found that the costume jewellery was a bit steeply priced. There wasn't anything new on offer as well. Only on one stall I found chunky bracelets that looked as if they were made from brass. There was a stack of 6 of them so I inquired if that was a set. The lady said that it wasn't so I asked what the price of a single bracelet was. She said 600!
Another stall, from Jharkhand I think, had organic soaps on display. They smelled fresh and looked like a good bargain for a price tag of Rs 100. The lady told me that each soap will last for 45 days. I think she clearly meant it as a plus point. But I didn't like the prospect of using the same soap for a month and a half. :-(
I was also looking for the stall that had sold one hell of a Halwa last year. Unfortunately, the guy was nowhere to be seen. The only Halwa stall was from Kerala and the Halwa there tasted same as the Badami Halwa sold at any of your friendly neighborhood shops selling sweets. The only exception being that this one had a lot more dry fruits in it - probably to justify its price of Rs 280!
The food court also seemed to be carrying the same theme of 'more numbers, less variety'. No matter where you looked, the boards seemed to advertize Kolhapuri Pandhara rassa (white gravy), Tambada rassa (red gravy), Chicken thali, Mutton thali, Fish thali, Baingan Bharata-Bhakari and Pithala Bhakari. There was only one stall selling Sinhgad special Onion Pakodas, Mataka Dahi and Bhel and one stall selling Rajasthani thali.
I was interested in Chicken Thali and since almost all stalls were selling the same it was a random choice. One lady seemed to be saying that her food was hot (as in temperature, not in spice). I told her specifically that I would be ordering only if she served the Thali piping hot. She said yes so I paid Rs 120 and wondered what fate had in store for me. To her credit, I didn't have to wait for long. The gravy was hot as she had promised. The thali consisted of 2 bhakaris made from rice flour (soft and fluffy!), chicken gravy (spicy!), a bowl each of red and white gravy (both without any meat) , rice, couple of onion slices and a bit of pickle. I didn't like white gravy, the others were okay. I also ordered a bowl of SolKadhi by paying extra Rs 20. It was cold but not spicy enough! All in all, it was okay food for the price I paid. The best thing was that the food court was very clean and there was arrangement made to wash your hands. You could see the dustbins without having to hunt for one. And a cleaning crew was always on the move - to clear up the tables. Way to go guys!!
I wanted to check out the Moong Daal Ka Halwa and Churma Laddoo on offer at the Rajasthani stall so I headed there. The guy manning the stall was in the process of fixing up a thali for a couple. I cringed when I saw greasy looking blood red gravies getting piled into each other in the tiny thali. As if that wasn't enough the guy then proceeded to ladle a big spoon full of desi ghee (or what appeared to be desi ghee!) on the whole mixture. The lady from the couple was horrified and kept asking him to go easy on the ghee. But he said that it will add to the taste and asked where else will she sample "shudh desi ghee"!!
I almost ran away wondering how many spoonfulls of the "shudh desi ghee" must have gone into the Moong Daal Ka Halwa. However, my sweet tooth didn't allow me to do so. So I soldiered on and ordered a plate of it (Rs 50). Mercifully, it was neither dripping with ghee nor sickeningly sweet. If at all, I felt it could have done better with some more sugar. The Churma Laddoos (2 more Rs 50) were, however, perfect!
So, like I said, it was a bit of a disappointment because I hardly felt like buying anything and when I walked out of there, my wallet wasn't much lighter. :-(
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