The Wonder Years

I haven't posted anything for almost a year. The reason is that i had taken to writing in a diary. There is something entirely satisfying in writing for just yourself. Its powerful and well sometimes you realise the absolute rubbish that you put others through.

But hey, I am back!

Its the energy that strikes you. A force that seeks reckoning. There are people jostling everywhere, nightmarish from one point of view but unstoppable, undying and with a purpose. You know you are in India. And you appreciate this only when you have spent some time out of the country.

Yeah, the crowds only got worse, trains are more packed then ever, the roads are now crawling at a never before seen speed (i think walking is officially the quickest means), the system still sucks but India is home. Centuries of history blending in with the present to give the most amazing results every day.

Just one hour in the train, station and you see so many things at work at the same time that it overwhelms you. Normally you just tune yourself out to all these things. The least resistant path to just get over your day. But if you look closer, dig deeper you can unravel so many facets that you are amazed you never looked at it before.

This struck me one evening when i was rushing to meet friends in the evening. I land on the platform and have just missed the train. While i am waiting for the next one, i see 2 women and their 4 small girls sitting right there on the platform engrossed in their chore. Talking in my native gujarati, they are sorting out the 'bindis' to be sold to women in trains. They come over for a few days to make enough money to sustain for a few weeks and head back. Extremely tiny hands helping by methodically sorting out the hundreds of bindis to be sold later. Now it might be very easy to pity them and sympathise on them being condemned to a low life for the rest of their lives.

But i see some thing rare. They are happy & content. The mothers are feeding them good home made food from tiffins, the kids are laughing and making jokes as well. The elder sister tenderly helping the smaller one. Now, in all my travels i have seen that majority of people go through lives being unhappy and frustrated. A smile has probably become the most precious commodity nowadays..

Maye a domestic fight, love gone bad, not enough money, enough money but no people to enjoy it with, that elusive car, not enough time, no chance to travel the world and missing home once u start globe trotting...The big 'IF' written all over.But i seldom see people who are happy with themselves and life. You can make these out easily like a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day.

So how well you are 'positioned' in life doesn't count for anything. For all those running in the rat race to get the 'most' and to get it 'quickest' it is time to stop and take a look around. The world doesn't give a damn and it is good to realise it before it is too late...

Alright, i have been cooking for some time now and can now claim to have got fairly good at it. Though Italian is a bit of a struggle. However, some lessons are to be learnt only the hard way:

• Steel vessels in a microwave lead to some pretty spectacular fire and sound works.
• Using the oven to toast a slice of bread at full blast because you are late for office is like using an AK 47 to kill a mosquito!
  
• In the above process, the time difference between a superb golden brown toast and a charred black one is usually less than 10 seconds.....
• Exotic fruits at throwaway prices in the supermarket are cheap for a reason!
• There is no such thing as an 'authentic Indian restaurant' outside of India unless of course you have been out for so long that it really doesn't matter
• If you order curry & rice in a British restaurant, never ask them to make it more spicy. Chances are they will add as much black pepper as they can get their hands on
• If you walk in to a Chinese restaurant and order something vegetarian don't be surprised if you find seafood or eggs..After all they would feel bad at serving you only steamed rice
• There is no such thing as a 'good Thai vegetarian' dish or for that matter Thai and vegetarian in the same sentence is generally considered quite brainless
  
• According to a nice establishment just outside Victoria station in London there is indeed a 'vegetarian Chicken Fried Rice' with lumps of bananas painstakingly given the shape of the chicken! Available at a special price of only 15 pounds
• That book titled 'Indian vegetarian cooking for the NRI professional' is fake. It was probably written by a Marketing person who identified the most gullibe market segment!
  

Important notes on the multi-billion dollar business of free-range:

• Free Range eggs & chicken refers to the fact that poultry is allowed to roam freely and who give eggs or their own meat quite freely and voluntarily. This is to improve the general happiness & liveliness of the animals (official definition) so much that they readily give their lives to solve the larger problem of hunger faced by mankind
  
• Free trade coffee generally refers to the fact that the organisation doesn't trade with those employing child labourers.But there is no problem in supplying truckload of arms to such impoverished countries. After all these kids are out of work and what better way to spend time than to practice your shooting skills...

And if you ever walk in to a restaurant with special of the day as 'Pineapple Pasta' with sweet in brackets, just RUN for your life....