Ear Ring Holder 1

All those of you who have a big collection of junk / costume jewellery must have faced the problem of storing them. I love ear rings and love them in different materials, colours, sizes and shapes.

I have them in Gold, Silver, beads, pearls, precious and semi precious stones, wood, seeds, bone, glass, shell, thread, etc.

Have you noticed that the ear rings with hooks get tangled up when you keep them all in a box or a case? Most of the time, you will find one ear ring that you want to wear but not its pair, especially when you are in a hurry? I had that problem often. Not any more!

I made a holder / board (for the lack of a better name) on which I hung all my ear rings with hooks. It is kept the board on top of a wall unit, at eye level.

• From a packing box, I cut out a flat piece of side panel and smoothened the edges with scissors.
• The ear rings were made into different categories based on their size. I knew how many rows and what distances they should be hung.
• Drew horizontal lines across and marked points for making holes.
• With the help of a pointy tool, made holes on the markings.
• Stuck metallic lace all round for decoration.

Finally I hung up my ear rings on the holder. There seems to be extra space for a few more pairs! 

Now they are easy to remove and put back. They are safe from scratches and breakings!

Is India Senior Citizen friendly?

Is India as a nation, senior citizen friendly?

India is a nation of 1.23 billion people in July 2014. It is a young nation. It is expected to be the most populous country by 2025. Out of 1.23 billion, those between the ages 15 - 59 are 72.9 billion or 60.3%; and people aged 60 years and above are 10.32 crores or 8.6%, as per 2011 census.

What does the census show?

It seems to me that there above 10 core old people / senior citizen as of now, and the number is going to grow rapidly in the near future. Soon we will also be joining the ranks of the 'Elderly', ie. if we have not already.

My questions are:

'Are our urban spaces equipped to cater to the elderly?' 

'Are our public spaces, transport, road and traffic rules senior citizen friendly?

'Are our outdoor spaces, Public spaces and buildings, and transportation  designed keeping in mind the needs and requirements of the elderly?'

If you look around, you do not see many elderly people going about their chores by themselves, in our busy cities. If they are out, they are mostly escorted by a younger person. Why is that?

Because our urban spaces are very unsafe and scary for the elderly! We need an environment which is considerate and supportive.

In a press release issued on 20th. Dec 2010, by Anglia Ruskin University,

'Better Spaces for Older people 

New research reveals that older people need to feel comfortable in urban surroundings to maintain independence

Urban planning needs to consider how older people use walking routes as well as public areas, concludes a Research Council UK-funded research project from the New Dynamics of Ageing Programme. Planning should include a smooth transition between walking, driving and using public transport and should take account of how older people navigate between these. 
The research was conducted by academics from Swansea University, Kingston University, Middlesex University and Anglia Ruskin University.

Initial findings show:

·         Signs are of limited use even in unfamiliar new areas - they were often positioned incorrectly or too high, and without indicating the distance to the destination;

·         Designing outdoor spaces that are more easily navigable and walkable are important in making the environment less stressful and anxiety-inducing;

·         Buildings and landmarks are particularly important as navigational aids, especially churches.

...There is still a need to understand older people's various requirements in their use of space, reflecting their diversity and different backgrounds'.

Mixed Lentil Curry

It is my favourite. Instead of using one variety of lentil at a time, and also the taste can get boring, I buy them all 250 gm. each, and mix them up. You can also use sprouted ones.

This recipe gives a lot of proteins, great taste and easy to prepare. 

Mixed Lentil curry

Take any combination of lentils with skin intact,

eg: Toor dal (Pigeon Pea)

Moong dal Greengram),

Urad dal (Black gram),

Chana dal (Bengal gram),

Lobia (Black eyed pea),

Dried Mattar (pea),

Matki (moth bean),

Alsane (red cow peas) etc.

Ingredients:

Mixed lentils – 2 cups

Tomatoes (chopped) – 2 nos.

Salt  - to taste

Onion (grated or made into a coarse paste) – 1 no.

Chilli powder – ½ tsp.

Garam Masala powder  (optional) – ½ tsp.

Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp.

Ginger garlic paste or garlic paste – ½ tsp.

Oil – 2 tbs.

Cumin seeds – ½ tsp.

Raw Mixed Lentils

Method:

                                                                            

Clean and soak the mixed lentils over night or for 4 hrs and more.

Cook them in pressure cooker until they are cooked soft.

Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds. When they start to splutter, add onion paste and ginger garlic paste. Fry until lovely aroma comes. Add chopped tomatoes. Cook them till they become soft.

Now add cooked lentils to the onion tomato mixture. Keep stirring to make sure it does not stick to the bottom.

Add turmeric powder, salt, and chilli powder.

Mix 1 cup water or whatever consistency you like. Add garam masala powder and let it cook for a few min, and switch off the stove. You can add fresh cream if you desire.

It is very healthy and tasty too. Can be eaten with rice, rotis, or puris.

Bottle gourd with sweet cum sour mango curry

Summer is the season for MANGOES! I love them; sour, sweet and sweet cum sour! We eat the sweet mangoes or make juice out of them. With sour / raw mangoes, you can use them in cooking or make chutneys or pickles. There are always a few raw mangoes which start to become ripe. What does one do with them? They are not sweet enough to eat, and not sour to cook with. This is what I did ….

Ingredients

• Bottle gourd – small one
• Sweet cum sour mango – 1 no.
• Mustard seeds & Cumin seeds – ½ tsp.
• Green chilli, cut into small pieces – 1 no.
• Curry leaves – a few
• Salt – to taste
• Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp.
• Oil – 2 tbs.

Method:

Clean and skin the bottle gourd. Cut it into 1 sqcm. pieces.

Take out skin from the mango too. And cut it into pieces.

Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and cumin seeds, and then green chilli pieces and curry leaves. When they begin to splutter, put bottle gourd pieces into the oil. Cover the pan and let it cook in low heat. When the vegetable is half done, add turmeric powder and mango pieces. Stir well and add salt. Cover and cook until the vegetable and mango mixture is tender.

Tastes sweet and sour and goes well with rice or roti. 

Mirror Mozaic piece

I was always fascinated by Mozaic, the arrangement of random sized pieces in mortar. Goa is famous for Chinese Mozaic and I was wondering who will teach it. Luckily, Ms. Kanika Singh a Mozaic artist from Gurgaon, conducted a 2 (half) day workshop, and off I went and registered myself. 

Glass tiles of different colours

She provided all the materials, ie. a frame of 9" square with hardboard backing, a mirror of 4" square, glass mirror pieces of various colours, coloured glass beads, etc. The glass mozaic pieces have a translucent quality and lovely gloss to them. On the right side, they have a smooth finish, and on the back, there are groves for better grip when glued. They are about 2.5mm thick. One can use any other decorative pieces like, sea shells, pieces of ornaments, metal pieces, small stones etc. to give variety to the composition.

In the 2 days, we have to make a decorative mirror frame with mozaic around the mirror.

Round wheel tile nipper (Tile cutter)

We could use the materials as they are, or if we need smaller sizes or different shapes, we could cut them up and use. The cutter (as shown above) has circular blades and you get a more or less even edge. One needs a little bit of practice to get the diagonal lines and curved lines properly. 

The mozaic work is done in two stages, the first stage consists of Tiling. I made a tentative design, deciding the position of mirror, the colour scheme, and sizes of glass pieces and a general pattern to follow. It would have been better if we did draw the whole thing on paper and arranged the pieces on it, finalised it , and then transfer the whole thing on to the frame. Anyway, I had a mental picture of what I wanted. Firstly, I stuck the mirror on the hardboard base with Fevicol. Then one by one, stuck all the glass pieces as per my pattern, leaving a fine gap of 1 - 1.5 mm between any two pieces. I also filled a few gaps with glass / ceramic beads to add interest to the design.

Ms. Singh recommends Fevicol SH for gluing the mirror and the glass pieces. We let them dry overnight. 

   Cement for Grouting      

     Hardner        

   Spatula or artist's knife

Stage two is done on the second day. It consists of grouting, ie. filling the gaps between the glass pieces and finishing. There several shades of cement for grouting. Different coloured grouting gives different looks to the same colour scheme of glass mozaic. I chose copper shade cement. Used the hardner and some water and mixed the cement thoroughly. A soft and stiff consistency should be achieved. 

Left it aside for a few minutes to become tight. Took a small lump of grout and pressed it between the gaps in the design. Slowly filled all the gaps in the frame with grout. Either with the fingers or with the help of spatula, the grout had to be pressed, making sure there were no air pockets. Next step was to wipe off excess grout from the mozaic. Polishing the glass pieces and beads with fine cotton or muslin, until they shone, took some time. Once it is done properly, the whole thing looks lovely and it is a very satisfying experience.

My final Mirror Mozaic Piece

I am thrilled at the finished product. Infinite number of designs are possible. I aim to explore a few at least.

Role of women

Was the role of women in olden days really demeaning, pathetic and dismal? When I look at the life of present woman I many a times wonder; what are we fighting against?

(The following piece has been posted by me, under my husband's name in Linkedin , error on my part. Please forgive.) 

Here is my take on the questions raised by Ms. Vani Sarma on Linkedin:

What is 'Olden days'? and when is 'Olden days'? Women from 'which' region are we discussing here?

Since I donot like generalizations, let me be specific. My maternal grand mother had a very astute analytical and legal mind. There was no support and no options for her. She felt her life was wasted. I feel her 'Talent' went waste.

My grand mother from my father's side, wrote several books of prayers (got them published too), later in life. No one bothered to promote them. Here too, her talent went waste.

Coming to the next generation, ie. my mother and aunts, they HAD to stay home and mind the kids. No other options available. There were no creches those days. They were in a joint family; still could not take care of other's kids. My mother taught for some time, but had give it up. She missed having a career, having her money, her identity (Pehchan) based on her capabilities and talents outside the house. She sorely missed it. She felt, a woman can do so much more than cooking, cleaning, changing the diapers, and taking care of children's education. Yes, she did them all and felt she could do more. But she didnot have a choice.

It is not whether one way of life is better than the other. It is about have the right to make one's own choices; not dictated by people or culture. Why cannot a woman have children and pursue a career? why cannot the partner take care of the children or atleast share it? Why is it her sole responsibility?

A career does not mean a job in a office only. It also means learning something new and working with it, eg: going for higher studies and keep studying; it can mean exercising one's capabilities, physical, mental, emotional or spiritual; it can also mean indulging in the things one loves, eg: music, fine arts, working at any of the millions of interests etc.

I hold that greatest wastage is the WASTAGE OF HUMAN POTENTIAL. 50% of the human race is women, and if they do not live up to their potential (whatever be the reasons), God will not be happy. It is not a question of right or wrong, it is a question 'whether God approves or not'.

Rasam Powder with raw ingredients - 2

I have been making this Rasam powder for a long time now. It is easy to prepare, lasts long and the Rasam comes out very tasty too. I learnt it from my mother. All the ingredients are raw (not roasted or fried). You can vary the proportions slightly, depending on the availability at home and the taste does not alter too much. Dry ginger is optional.

Ingredients:

Dhania (Coriander seeds) – 2 tbsp.

Jeera (cumin seeds) – 1.5 tbsp.

Black peppers – 1 tsp.

Toor dal (Pigeon Pea) – 3 tbsp.

Dry ginger – 1 cm. piece

Method:

Dry grind all the ingredients to a coarse powder in the mixie. Store in a glass bottle.