the basu trail..

I thought i had to immortalize this ...

A and I have been chinese food ethusiasts for for as long as I can remmember. Our association with chinese food started in Kolkata . In Kolkata everyone likes chinese food..the city has restaurants all over the place and not to mention Tangra or old china town.
A ghetto of chinese residents in the north eastern part of the city. But the chinese here are far from economically challenged. Most chinese families here live in huge mansions and run fairly various business : tanneries, chinese sauce production units, successful beauty parlours and almost all of them run chinese restaurants on the ground floor of their mansions. The community is very close knit and it is not unusual to come across a big mama in one these restaurants who understands little or no english. These restaurants are always run by members of the family.. you would more often not find the daughter or daughter in law of the family handling the till and ushering in guests. The food is what I would call Indian Chinese or Calcutta Chinese as it is known in other parts of the world.
Also this is the only place in Kolkata where one could get alcohol even on dry days ..if you can get past the long line of cars and cabs that is.
At one point A would have his lunch everday in a restaurant in Tangra called 'lily's kitchen'' which served the best panfried noodles I have ever had .
When we moved to Pune, chinese food options were limited, so we decided to start cooking at home. thanks to A's travels availability of ingredients was never an issue.
And our cooking at home evolved over a period of time. As far as chinese is concerned A is strictly a recipe book chef. We started with books like easy to cook chinese to land of plenty by Fuchsia Dunlop.Fuchsia Dunlop is a hot favourite with us.. She has studied Sichuan Cuisine in Chengdu from the Sichuan institute of higher cuisine.
She consults with a restaurant called 'bar shu'' in chine town near SoHo in London.
We celebrated A's 49th birthday in Bar Shu this year. A discovered the restaurant on one of his trips to London about a year ago. He frequented Bar Shu so often that the staff did'nt realize he did'nt live in London. He had a pattern. he would go for a drink to this pub across the street from barshu called the 'the dog and duck'' and then have dinner in bar shu before calling it a night. He did this trail with clients, colleagues and friends who then coined the term 'the basu trails'' for these evenings .In my one week in London, I had dinner there 3 times.
Bar Shu serves exquisite Sichuan food. We do almost all the dishes on the menu at barshu and to quote some of over zealous admirers of A's culinary skills 'you do them better''.. dan dan noodle,mouth numbing chicken, boiled beef, preserved eggs and the like.

movies and me..

Just got back after seeing ocean's thirteen with Cinderella. George Clooney and Brad Pitt seem to be growing hotter as they grow older.. or maybe it is my evolved taste in men. the older the better.. so long they are not grandpas.
Ocean's thirteen is definitely a much better watch than Ocean's twelve.. though all the three are a great recommemdation for your personal DVD library collection. Steven Sodenberg got all of them in and you even got a glimpse of Andy Garcia..
The same setting.. las vegas casino and boy! I loved the dialogues. This film definitely lifts your spirits..

Saw a very different film with A last night: ' Amadeus '.. a sublime film. Will write about it when I have finished watching it..

one has moved on in life..

to a new job, opportunities and relationship.

Things have really changed since I lasted posted anything on this blog. I wanted change and boy! what a change it has been!

Work is engrossing and exciting.. an opportunity to create something from nothing. I could develop this into a core competency one day.
And I have finally found a mentor. We have a intellectually stimulating relationship. He says, he was like me when he was younger... that is the nicest thing anyone has said to me in a long long time. Wishful thinking though!

we are back!!!!

and delighted to be..

movie and more

So the oscars came and went. I made sure I had watched all movies nominated for best movie or best direction by then. The Oscar ceremony is telecast live early in the morning at 6 :00 here in India. I thouroughly enjoyed the show. Thought it had a casual air compared to the cere,monies in the previous years. All their hosts are humorous but I never saw John Stewart or Billy Crystal with a vaccum cleaner.
Some of the movies I saw recently :

1. The Good shepherd A slow but interesting movie about the founders of the CIA and the circumstance under which it is formed.
2. The Illusionist : a love story with a twist.

Both are recommended.

It's good to be back. Had problems posting because I still have'nt upgraded to the new beta version of blogger and I don't have a g- mail login ID. I did'nt want to create yet another e-mail ID. I already have 3.

The oscar countdown begins : 19 days 6 hrs and 45 mins to go

Ever since I realized that I had an above average interest in films, the oscar night is a big night for me too.
I start watching all the films which have any sort of nomination as soon as the nominee list is announced.
So this is what I have seen so far :
The Departed
nominations : best picture, best direction, best actor in a supporting role (Mark Wahlberg), writing (best adaptive screenplay) and best film editing
My take on the film : A modern day goodfellas. Brilliant film. The second mob movie I loved. It was refreshing to watch a movie that did'nt mention the word 'terrorism' a zillion times.
I have'nt watched all the films so can't say if it stands a chance to win
Little Miss Sunshine
Nominations : Actor in supporting role (Alan Arkin) Abigail Breslin (Actress in a supporting role), best picture, writing (best original screenplay)
Heartening movie on a dysfunctional family coming together when the little girl enters the Little Miss Sunshine contest across the country.
My take on the film : I think the film has stellar performances by many other actors ,other than the ones nominated. A good watch. Even inspirational for some.
The Devil wears Prada
Nominations : Best actress, best costume design
My take on the film : It is Meryl Streep all the way. The lady never let's you down. As a magazine editor in the fashion world where even her smallest word makes and breaks careers, she is potrayed as a woman in power who is powerless when it comes to her personal life.So much versatality in the same film. A must watch. Beautiful costumes for those who are interested.

Look out for more oscar news on this blog.

the highs and the lows of learning

I was averse towards developing myself technologically.. probably just a mental block.

So last year I decided to stop depending on others and learn to do things by myself.

So here is what all I learnt :

1. uploading images from a camera (after aquiring a digital camera)
2. loading the ipod (after acquiring one - a gift from A)
3. burning/copying CDs (after being given a laptop in my last job)
4. Scanning documents

I have considered them small achievements looking at the value they brought into my life just like driving did 4 years back.

I gave up my new job and landed myself a new one. Most of the stuff I will be dealing with is stuff I have never done before. I had arrived at a learning plateau in my old job. The situation scared me. I don't know if it was a lack of learning opportunities or the unwillingness to find them. anyway it was time to move on.

Today I learnt to chat. I chatted with my ex colleagues and my brother while going through a pile of resumes..like a true wet behind the ears chat(ter) I used emoticons with every sentence I typed..

I have just finished reading 'pitching the tent' by Anita Diamant. The book is about Anita's life, her first and second marriage, her relationship with her daughter and her jewish faith. Loved the book though it is a bit of overdose on Judaism.
learnt about the concept of 'marital love'. I was releived.
A and I have drifted to state of being, which I used to think was abnornal despite feeling fairly contented.

Marital love is..
1. sharing cupboards
2....hobbies
3. KIDS! and gloating over them
4. buying presents which are not wrapped and have price tags attached and seeing nothing wrong with it.
5.being objective about each other and still wanting to live with A
6. looking forward to A coming back after business trips and going back to sleep as soon as he lands after a quick hug.
7.exchanging glances across the room and knowing exactly what he is thinking.
8. not being able to fib to each other. getting caught when we do!
9. being able to laugh about fights
10. organizing surprize birthday parties.. once in 7 years.
...... well you get the drift.
a lot of water needs to flow under the bridge to get to this stage. A and I have been through a lot in the last 8 years of marriage. There are issues we resolved, some we have'nt and still others we never will.
Life goes on .. day after day, month after month, year after year.. some things never change.
I don't think I would have anyone else cook sichuan food for my birthdays.. ever .
State of being. I like it this way.. at least for some things in life.

once an author always an author

Just finished reading 'cat o nine lives' by (sir) Jeffrey Archer.As with every other Jeffrey Archer book I've read, I found it extremly engrossing.

Jeffrey Archer landed in jail accused of various illegal activities- providing false alibi, insider trading and few other things.And guess what the man does - continues writing publishing book(s) on stories he sniffed out, from his fellow inmates, in the high security Belmarsh prison. Though his political career ended with his conviction, he continues raking millions with his best sellers, some of which were written during his prison term.
Cat-o-nine lives is a collection of short stories of criminals of various kinds.Some seasoned, some novices. The though that it is fact and not all fiction makes them even more interesting.
Enjoyable reading!

the year that's gone

Year 2006 has been good to us.
Here are things that made me smile that year
1. junior's wise cracks.. seem sharper by the day.
2. Cinderella changed and her step-up article.
3.A's new guitar
4. Junior's attempt to play piano and guitar
5.our new Toyota Corolla
6. Dad in the media
7. Mulshi after the rains
8.Driving to Goa.
9.three new job offers (all doubling my current salary)
10. my certification
11. realization that I love chocolate.
12. walkathons
13.Dr T.
14.my new bose wave music system- a surprize gift from A after I oogled at it for 6 years. I am still confused about what made me happier : that A remmembered I wanted it or the bose itself.
15. Wagah border :closing of the gates ceremony.

Cinderella makes us proud

I watched her handle herself at the Sasoon hospital. I felt really really proud of her. She seemed to know how to behave, how to dress (faded salwar kameez), how to organize.She suddenly seemed grown up, responsible, self assured. And she stood out.

Bob Geldolf Fans

The husband bought a Yamaha C70 guitar.I came back home one evening from work and found the husband and Junior strumming their respective guitars with their feet up. I think A was always a closet musician.

He harboured hopes of forming a Basu band..till I dashed them by refusing to learn any form of music.
Music has always been an integral part of our household.The CD wall is the most used storage space in the house. So I guess it was only a matter of time till we moved to the next level.. jamming at home.

cinderella says, couscous is growing on her

I made some couscous salad with the leftover couscous in the refrigerator. We all loved it. My first ever attempt and my very own recipe. Here goes :
1 cup couscous (before cooking), cooked in a little chicken stock and butter.
a bunch of very fresh corainder leaved
freshly ground pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
1 red onion thinly sliced
half a cup of green peas, blanched
half a cup of button mushrooms chopped into 4
half a cup of chopped green onions - very fresh
3 pods of garlic
1/2 a cup of red and yellow peppers chopped
olive oil
salt to taste
1. saute the garlic and red onions in olive oil. When the onions start to change colour,add the mushrooms and then the peppers.
2.once the vegetables are nearly done(they should not be well done) dunk them in a salad bowl with the couscous.
3.throw in the corainder and the green onions, season with salt and pepper.
4. add lemon juice
5. Toss well and serve cold.

At the moment I feel I can eat couscous everyday.

Couscous is originally a dietary staple in the Mehgreb or the north African countries like Morocco, Libya, Tunisia and Algeria. Couscous is has now become popular in the middle eatern countries and France. The American call it pasta but excuse me, I beg to differ.
Couscous was traditionally made from the hard part of the hard wheat triticun durum which resisited grinding with a primitive millstone.The couscous grains are made from coarsely ground semolina (coarsely ground durum wheat) which was once a labor intensive process but has now been mechanised.
Steamed couscous is usually served with a meat or vegetable stew in the countries of it's origin or mixed with greens or fruits as a salad, in other countries.

the new James Bond

Cinderella and me saw Casino Royale on Saturday night. I think Daniel Craig makes a great JB. He still can't beat Pierce Brosnan though.
Things that worked well with Daniel Craig were :
facial expressions are almost perfect
almost sophisticated
he looked tall
great BOD!
felt human - Bond cries!!
felt human - he actually falls in love!
Things that could have been better
sophistication
Could have looked more intelligent, he almost looks like all brawn and no brain kinds.
(Pierce Brosnan takes the cake even in a black shirt and denims in talk shows)
Bond is Bond effortlessly. The new Bond has worked hard to be Bond and it shows!

Casino Royale has this retro effect through out the film. Somehow that adds to the charm. On the whole a good watch.

Dhoom 2 seems to be taking the multiplexes by storm. the night the movie premiered it seemed as if the entire state had come out to see the movie. Al multiplexes are running a min of 6-7 shows a day of the movie.Finally saw it today with Cinderella. There is a lot more intelligence used in making the film. though one almost does'nt notice it because of a whole lot of eye candy. frankly the film would have been just fine without Bipasha. It is Hritik all the way. I realized that Hritik was a great actor while watching one of his worst films ever - Main prem ki dewani hoon or something. Even in a pot boiler like that one can't take eyes off him.He is soo mesmerizing. I enjoyed the film though I am still wondering whether I liked it better than the first one or not.

this and that

I have always liked movies of any genre based on real life stories.
The latest one I saw was ' The Ron Clark story'. It is a story of a dedicated teacher who lands up teaching a bunch of kids at a school in Harlem, NY. The story is about how he turns around a bunch of kids labeled as under-achievers in to high performing students

Ron Clark seemed real to me even before I discovered that he was for real. I always thought Mathew Perry was one of the best out of the 'friends' lot. He seemed much more versatile than the others in the sitcom. After being seen as Chandler all these years, I must say he does justice to the role making Ron Clark come alive on screen.

The film is a simple, straight forward and touching.


moving on, the maid is on French leave. We seem to be doing fine at the moment though.

eerie coincidence

As a part of my assignment I had to create an ad for a hotel to boost sales! (what else, IGNOU assignment writers at their best)
I looked through a conde nast issue I found in my old magazine chest and cut out a picture of a majestic looking hotel on a cliff overlooking what seemed to be miles of ocean. It was The Ritz Carlton, Half Moon Bay, California. Frankly, anything you wrote as a headline or a copy would have been a waste. The picture said it all. You suddenly wanted to be part of the picture.

I flicked on TV and decided to watch Discovery travel and living. In a feature on hotels, today's episode was on The Ritz Carlton, Half Moon Bay!!

Saturday..

Still doing my assignments.. groan. They get more and more bizzare.

Saw 'being Julia' yesterday. Annette Benning in all her splendor. All others pale in comparison. This was the second time I saw the movie. Loved every bit of it.

A is travelling again. He always manages to think of some interesting things for me to do every time he travels. This time having his Bose headphones delivered to Mumbai to some place en route the international airport. oh! and there is a small condition attached : the driver should not be sent to deliver them.

the bong leanings

I am not technically a graduate though I did sort of graduate from college many years ago. The course I did, did'nt make you a graduate though it did make you slog and pay much more than other undergrad courses. The government decided to correct that,and has now asked all the ex students to do a small course and get their graduation degrees. I enroled a couple of months back.
I am ecstatic! In my family you needed to be a post graduate to be considered human and a science graduate to be considered educated. I was neither. Though neither of my parent's ever made me feel that way, I always felt like the black sheep as far as education was concerned.
So after 10 years here I am furiously writing pages of assignments. The only things I have written in the last 10 years is lists, practice sheets for my 6 year old and cheques . This is an experience an half.
Though it has taken my multitasking to a new level, I'm not complaining. It is also taking me closer to a post graduate degree which I always aspired for .

The deadline for my assignments is the 31 st. I have completed 4 1/2 out of the 6 that I need to do. The last 1 1/2 are really dragging on. Groan!

My friends called me a quasi bong. Maybe that is why all this is so important to me.

paella for everyone

I made the paella for Shalu's party last week.I made loads of it. Shalu says her guests loved it.
I send a batch to Sumi as well. She and her mom had it for dinner one night. Her mom has had the real thing.. in Spain. She said mine was awesome and very close to the real thing. I scored well on that one!