jest on immigrants :)

Russel peters is a Comedian.

Canadian Indian and make fun of everybody who are immigrants and their attitudes. he don't leave anyone in his comedy act. Indians, Chinese, Jamaicans, Africans, Canadians, Arabs, even his mom and dad and their accents.

when i moved to States i never liked comedians in this country, because they are making fun of other person or some ethnic groups and felt so offended but years passed by gradually i am the biggest fan of these comedy shows and enjoying thoroughly, since it is true what they are saying! and such a relief when laughing so hard at ourselves.

doggy training

Snowball (our 4month old coton de tulear) is doing great and we all enjoying his company.

Naturally he is well behaved dog, doing his best pleasing us, listening us, eating, pooping, peeing, sleeping,chewing and 

being healthy. 

no complains about him, but he mush have some complains about US.
he is patiently waiting somebody make some house rules for him.

we are still pampering him since he is new and young, if it's cold outside or raining no one interested to take him out

so we are dangerously confusing him where he should go to poop or pee!

four of us have different opinions about every single situation, like 

training, who is going to walk him, who is going to play this time, feed him, the most important thing discipline him.

we didn't give him specific rules, bathroom place, commands to sit, stay, come, 

 go to his kennel, 
or haven't decide who is the leader!
No one surrendered to no one yet (balance between human and dog) we are still in the process of deciding that and applying in real life.

if we continue like this for a while he is going to decide to be our leader and we are going to be doomed and become his human pets for the rest of his life and that's for 14 years!
that's not gonna happen in my watch!!

Yesterday i went to library for some books and my eye caught on a 6 disk DVD set, i heard about the dog whisperer through media before, like always I got curious and bought the DVD home.
we sit as a family and watched first Disk and we were amazed of Cesar's talent and his techniques. 


 balancing life needs commitment and 100% effort. 
parenting, being a better person in any relationship, good employee what not everything.
it's all in your mind.
if you stood up and tell what you want that's what you get, but HOW you ask? is the real challenge:) because it changes from person to person and animal to human.
Dog whisperer show me that, simple body language, commands, signals make the dog understand that you are the leader and every dog likes to be under pack leader! when ever you show your weaker side then and there he become your leader.
my family decided that i should be the leader and trainer.
since i am so natural bossing people around ruthlessly (according to every one in the family)
why not the dog as well;)
my daughter does what ever sonwball wants, so he likes being around her, with in my watch we have to adjust this whole thing and train him together Cesar's way before it gets too late.


{text and puppy photos are mine}
 Dog whisperer: Cesar millan

spinach and chickpeas curry

where ever we are in the world Indian pantries (vegetarians and non vegetarians) filled with lentils and legumes. They contain plenty of essential nutrients, even after taking a full meal you feel lighter.

 when you mix some spices, veggies, greens along with them, that dish makes your body, soul, taste buds calm and satisfied.

In this dish i used canned Chick peas and frozen spinach.

chick peas..........1 can

frozen spinach 1 box ...or...2 cups diced fresh leaves

tomato's..........2

tomato paste or 1sp tamarind paste.......... 2sp

fenugreek seeds..........5

 small onion.........1
grated ginger....... 1 sp

diced green chili's............2 or 3 
salt.........2sp
coriander pwd............1sp

In a pan add 3sp oil stir fry fenugreek, grated ginger and add onion, salt cook until it turns brown, to this add chili, diced tomato, coriander powder cover the pan stirring occasionally cook until you can mash tomato from back of the spoon.

add tomato paste, spinach, 1/2 cup water and let it cook for 10 minutes.
add chickpeas (with out can water) adjust salt to taste and with out lid cook for 5 more minutes.

 serve with hot rice
or

 with chapati, puri, pita bread, or naan 

{pictures by me}

14 years and counting

The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size.  ~Gertrude S. Wister

When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other.  ~Chinese Proverb

 I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck.  ~Emma Goldman




{pictures taken by me}

bellpepper ballerina

it's not my fault i see things this way, it's completely my right brain's fault.

bell pepper from seed to now.

Pumpkin

transfering to bigger pots

  finally got time to transfer the baby plants to bigger pots.

i killed gongoora completely. i got so excited past week when weather got warmer and planted them in the garden

big mistake and lost them after a week with snow fall.
Cleveland or what?
never fail to fool me!
my friend called me the other day a fellow gardener, i told her the tragedy and she said 
why did you plant them out? never forget 

"mother's day is a good rule of thumb to plant seedlings out"

great, after killing the gongoora, ridge gourd i learned a valuable lesson.
good part is i still plant them as seeds directly in the ground but my greed to get month worth of extra crop is not going to work. that's all, no big deal.
actually i am looking for tissue to wipe my warm tears.
IT IS A BIG DEAL!!!
i think i preached about this before and suggested get ready for that, it's not easy at all, i am telling yah! not at all.
 but
i planted spring seeds directly in the ground.
spinach, thotakoora, carrot, cauliflower, beetroot, brussels
they are doing great.
Garlic, onion is doing fantastic.
at least there is something to smile :)



{text and pictures by me}

Art on the wall

my son's art on the wall.
this art drew by him a year ago.

a friend of mine came to our house and saw these, curiously inquiring me did your son in trouble after this?

No, i kinda like the antenna on the apple though;)

above the apple is a cute mystery alien.
i yakked and yapped about his talents and how we supposed to encourage and not destroy their imagination, what not!

recently he drew again with permanent marker in play room,
he is working on the second one while my daughter caught him red-handed.

this time i got mad and told him that's not funny and i don't want him draw on the wall again.

he said i don't love him anymore, that's why i am mad,

yeh! right, he thinks i fall for his pitiful face and 

long eye lashes. No way!!

 "fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice shame on me"

                       -Ricky gervais in Night at the museum. 

i love that line when Ricky says in the movie.

Attention parents:

shrimp pickle/రొయ్యలు పచ్చడి

i take this picture with shrimp visible, but the shrimp and masala should be under one inch oil otherwise pickle spoils fast. 
 
Shrimp pickle is the ultimate favorite to Non-veg lovers. my daughter,  my younger sister, my niece had an exceptionally crazy love affair with this pickle. spicy shrimp (prawns) in lime juice marinate for one day (we usually don't wait that long!) and the end product is nothing but mouthwatering, pungent relish.

this is my mother-in-law's recipe. there are numerous varieties in shrimp pickles but this is coastal Andhra (konaseema) version.

To make the pickle you need these:

small shrimp..........1lb

corn/peanut/sesame oil..........1cup and 2tbsp

coriander seeds..........1/4 cup

cumin seeds..........2 tsp and 2 tsp

Cloves...........12 to15

cinnamon stick........1 inch

poppy seeds........... 1/4 cup

ginger garlic paste..........1 tbsp and 2 tbsp

salt..........to taste

chili powder..........1 tsp and 2 tsp

curry leaves.......... 10

lime juice..........1/2 cup

make pickle masala first with coriander seeds, cumin seeds, poppy seeds, cloves, cinnamon stick make a fine powder.

1.coriander seeds 2.poppy seeds 3. cloves 4. cinnamon 5. cumin seeds

clean the shrimp thoroughly
removing black thread like vein in the back under running water.

in a pan add 2 tbsp oil, shrimp, 1 Sp salt, 1 tbsp chili powder, 1tbsp ginger garlic paste, 1 tbsp pickle masala stirring often let the shrimp absorb the spices, if needed add water and cook through and let it cool.

get all other ingredients ready by the stove 

 

1. chili powder 2. pickle masala 3. ginger garlic paste 4. salt 5. cumin seeds 6. lime juice 7. curry leaves

in a deep pan with lid

heat 1 cup oil and fry the shrimp in brown color.

hold the lid to keep oil spattering on you.

take shrimp out and keep aside.
to the same oil add curry leaves, cumin seeds, ginger garlic paste, remaining pickle masala, salt and fry for few seconds not more than that since oil is so hot it burns quickly.

add lime juice and boil it for one minute.

add shrimp back, cook for 3 minutes in medium flame.

turn it off and add chili powder so the chili color stays to rich burgundy color.

let it cool completely before transfer it in to dry jar.
pickle stays a month if you keep it in the fridge, but is that necessary? i don't think so! you finish it waaaay before that!

use dry spoon every time you scoop some from the jar.
enjoy!

{recipe by Mother in law, pictures by me}

Microsoft tools

from: Al Lowe's

Goal of yoga and meditation?

good book on subject of yoga

"it is a subjective way of eradicating the instinctive weakness of human being" who ever it may be in what ever average intellectual condition they are, change has to take place, transformation has to take place and yoga takes you there slowly years of practice".

                                 - From 'Enlighten up'! documentary

I am practicing yoga with out a teachers supervision, on and off for a while, and yoga gave me the privilege of excepting my self who i am, and embrace the fact of it. it's not as simple as in one sentence, but 10 years of inner search and practice. "accept your self" is age old philosophy, that's not invented yesterday or by me;), if it's already there, why it takes a long time for me to understand it, because i ignored it, i used to think the whole idea of yoga and meditation is "boring" and ancient. it started with a library book i bought years ago, and started practicing it. i started with curiosity, not at all as a seeker or spiritual point of view.

 i don't know then, but puzzle started forming, along side i am living with a yogi for about 14 years now. that's my husband. 

first 2 years he seems like, naive guy. i used to give advise but 
no response. 
next 2 years i used to ask him like"what is wrong with you? 
no response. 
next 2 years i started asking him "what's going on with ME"? no response.

next 2 years i started saying out loud "there is something wrong with me"! 
no response.

past 2 years i realized "how naive i am all these years"

 he said, he knows that, and he is glad to hear that from me.

NOW! after all these years!

where do people like him come from? how they survive among us? how can they live with us?

i strongly believe, secretly deep inside, that by birth or later,  a nerve in my brain sprained little, not much:), thus my attitude, so by doing meditation, gradually that sprain heal to familiar, not entirely, but progressing to the level of my yogi husband and daughter. Oh! yes! i am living with a yogini too. my advice to you is don't live with cool people, or prepare to spiritual path! they don't say anything bad about you, but makes you feel sooooo bad about yourself and eventually you end up sitting in meditation, knocking the higher power door, begging to open it, because you have questions to be answered, why? why me? why them?

why together? who am i -by the way?
(i am sharing a secret with you guys, Shhhhh! when you are panicking, higher power never answer you back) 

ok fine! don't answer me. i live for NOW! but tomorrow i demand for an answer, and 
the next day same thing repeats. 
that's what meditation! simple huh!
when you meditate you come to conclusion that
we are living in a manic world and the world view is nothing to do about how you feel towards your life. you don't have to be comparison or dependent, but just be
yourself! with compassion.
meditation takes you there! slowly, patiently, annoyingly, uncomfortably, obnoxiously, agonizingly, awkwardly, distressingly, disturbingly, excruciatingly, irritatingly, miserably, wretchedly.

After a while or after so many years you come to yourself.
that's the goal of yoga and meditation!!!!
some people climb the mountains, some walk, some do aerobics, some write, some dance, some laugh for no reason, some hug, some kiss, some do gardening, some shop, some do puja, some dedicate them self to service, on and on ....... and i practice yoga and meditation:) 
what ever we choose and what ever we do it suppose to calm our mind. so give a try! by the way there are no side effects, but smile is guaranteed :)



{text written by me}

My daughters proud accomplishment

My daughter is asking for puppy as long as she could talk. That's 10 solid years!

she ask, beg, listened what i said, did what i ask, impressed me with extra chores, all her precious life every birthday and Christmas puppy is on top of the wish list and the list contains nothing but puppy.

Even my neighbors started recommending that how good girl she is and how responsible she is with their infants. 

how ruthless i am not granting her wishes.

My response for all her efforts are, cold blooded "NO"!

i tell her how hard to raise a puppy in here, how expensive the dog itself, what we suppose to do with it when we travel to India, my carpet, my furniture, my wood floor, my time, my sleep, my neatness....on and on.

As big the list of her reasons are for puppy, i come up with even bigger list to avoid the idea.

we both crushed inside she is not happy, i am not happy.

so many words exchanged between us out of frustration.

she spend all her money on buying soft toys, posters and games, video games related to puppies and she is obsessed with the dog.

i had enough of it and said save your allowance and buy your own puppy, i thought it's definitely impossible to a teenager to save hundreds of hundreds of dollars and takes years to accomplish that goal!

she took the challenge happily. 

she split her allowance in to half and saved brutally. she tell every one not expect anything from her as a gift or treat and she except only money as gifts.

she babysit, did extra chores and serious negotiation while asking for job, did all of that with so much devotion and hope.

My heart aches for her efforts but my reasons are strong too.

but this year my heart melt little, my daughter is old enough as well, to take responsibility.

last month we started serious online search for breeds which suite our criteria and budget. we decided on York shire.

last two weeks we are visiting pet shops for that breed but couldn't find one.

 what ever she sees in the store she wants to go home with that puppy and i am keep reminding her we should stick with our decision and she is so restless and not happy with me that, we are coming home empty handed and saying i am just acting but not serious. 

she gave me silent treatment for days and that's her friends idea in school.

On Easter Saturday we went there and Snow ball desperately waiting for owner just like owner is waiting for puppy.

4 month old Coton de Tulear, we can't even pronouns that name, all that preparation we never heard about this breed so i am clueless.

associate at the store said do you want to hold him, we said yes, after few seconds i ask, you want to take him home, my daughter look at me with twinkle in her eye and said Are you serious?

i said why not my heart says take him home, i ask questions to associate how big he grow? is his hair shed a lot? how much he cost?

all the answers are perfect!

let's take him home, adoption paper work took a long time and puppy in the box and my daughter out side they both are so restless and getting bored.

 she pay the bill with her savings including tax and proudly bought home, she announced that me and my husband are the new grand parents of that puppy and my son is the uncle.

i am so happy for her and the puppy. they meant to be together.

{words and pictures by me}