My World

We were talking about recent books that we were reading then, and he happened to mention this masterpiece to me. And that was how I came to know about Jordan B. Peterson. As time got by, I got curious. So, I actually looked for the book at a couple of places. He had said that it was one of his favorite books, and now, now I know why. Jordan B. Peterson takes us through 12 rules, which he deems as an antidote to chaos. As if the tagline of the book hadn’t given it away enough, Peterson talks about order and chaos. Chaos is the realm of limitless possibilities, unsuitable for life. It is where depression, anxiety and suffering find a home. Order, on the other hand, is the world of rules, predictability, explanations, science, and conformity. The big idea is that life is a careful game of balance between the two that oppose each other.          Stand up straight with your shoulders back        Treat yourself like someone you are responsi...

Whenever I would think of having rolls for a meal, my thoughts would go to those deep fried delicacies with a dipping sauce, filled with veggies and noodles and what not. They’re delicious, no doubt, but spring rolls can be a bit overwhelming because well, it’s deep fried. And hence, due to this very reason, I passed up on spring rolls during most meals. Sorry, spring rolls, no offence! I only found out about the healthy kind of rolls later in life. The Vietnamese spring rolls, or the summer rolls as they are also popularly called, are the healthier versions, if you may. They are light, they are fresh and they are delicious. If you could have 3 spring rolls, you can have 6 summer rolls; yeah I’ve tried it. They take mere minutes to make and only a few ingredients. The major hindrance in me making this rather exquisite dish, was not knowing that rice papers are actually available in Nepal. I was more than delighted to discover them during a Bhatbhateni shopping trip near the ...

My sister and I were casually looking through the bookshop at Gyanmandala, which sadly does not exist there anymore. I happened to notice the book “Tuesdays with Morrie” by Mitch Albom among the shelves. My mind went back to the moment when during a family gathering, my aunt had told me about the book. I mainly read fiction books back then; still do now. My aunt prefers nonfiction books more. I remembered her telling me about this particular one and how I must give it a read. It was a pleasant surprise to have come across it in the book shop. I turned the book over to read the synopsis. It said: “Maybe it was a grandparent, or a teacher or a colleague. Someone older, patient and wise, who understood you when you were young and searching, and gave you sound advice to help you make your way through it. For Mitch Albom, that person was Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago. Maybe, like Mitch, you lost track of this mentor as you made your way, and...

Try a different twist on your regular omelet. Granted, it might take you more time, but it’s fun to do and watch and the taste is something you’ll have to try for yourself. Here is what you will need 2 eggs ½ teaspoon sugar Salt and pepper to taste 2 dabs of butter The ingredients are few and something you will find at home any day of the week. You can see why this is a good idea. It will take somewhere around 30 – 40 minutes inclusive of preparation time, unless of course you have an electric hand mixer, then it would save you the trouble and take   you only around 15 minutes. Instructions. Take two separate bowls Crack open your eggs and separate the yolks and the whites. Put the whites in one bowl and the yolks in the other Take the bowl with the whites and drop in the ½ teaspoon of sugar.   Grab your whisk and start whisking good. Whisk until the egg whites seem creamy and form stiff peaks Take your bowl of yolks and put in salt and pepper t...

This thought has come across all of our minds, at one time or another in the past few days. How much longer? When will this end? Will anything ever be the same again? To tell you the truth, that is not in our hands; none of this is. Our safety and precautions is in our hands, of course, perhaps if we all keep taking the precautions, then we are contributing to make all this go away. There has been consistent turmoil and restrictions in our what we considered normal life. Who would’ve thought we would have to live through a pandemic during this lifetime? And the aftermath, it seems, is here to stay for a while. So, yes: to answer the question, things might be same again, but not for some time. We will have to live through some changes even in the aftermath of this pandemic. Even after the lockdown and self-quarantine, other changes such as changes in economy, inflation, tourism, which our country majorly depends on, are inevitable. So, it is better we mentally prepare ourselves...

We’re all craving that rich decadent chocolate cake during this lockdown right now, aren’t we ? Because, let’s face it, what better cake than chocolate cake? Well, think again, because you don’t have to go far, nor do you have to wait long. Make yourself a mug cake: it’s just as good, takes only minutes and besides this, there aren’t even many dishes for you to take care of thereafter. It’s the perfect getaway. Here’s what you’re going to need: 3 tablespoons flour 1 tablespoon oil ¼ cup milk 3 teaspoons sugar A pinch of salt ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon vanilla essence 1 teaspoon cocoa powder 1 bar of chocolate (use what is available, I used dairy milk fruit and nut, or you can skip this part) The whole ordeal takes about only 5 minutes, including the preparation time. So brace yourselves. Instructions:  1.  In a small bowl, put in your flour.          Then put in your cocoa powder Give it a g...

I didn’t know what to expect when my colleague shoved the book in my hand.  “You must read it. And tell me what you think about it!” she said. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting anything at all. I looked at the book on my hand. It was a children’s book. “The Giving Tree” it read. It was her daughter’s book. I flipped through the pages, it was an illustrated children’s book at that. “It won’t take me more than 5 minutes” I mentally made up. Little did I know how surprised and moved I was about to become. Okay, before I get to that, I will pry my brain to remember the children’s book with lessons. Most usually do. They have good messages or a moral lesson as we used to call it. There are many popular ones out there. Some are about life: the story of the hare and tortoise over the top of my head; some about the environment: Dr. Seuss’s the Lorax which was very cleverly written. So you see what I mean; they could be children’s books but with hard hit lesson t...

Yeah, you read it right. I know; I thought it was not possible either. I thought microwave desserts were limited to mug cakes and mug meals but this one is a real mindblower. Not only can you indulge in your favorite oatmeal and raisin cookies in mere minutes, the taste is pretty awesome too. Here is what you’re going to need. And I added a little twist to the authentic oatmeal and raisin; I added peanut butters. 1 egg 3 teaspoons sugar ½ cup flour 3 tablespoons oats 2 teaspoons peanut butter ½ teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon vanilla essence 2 tablespoons milk Raisins to your liking The preparation time can take anywhere from 5 – 7 minutes and the cooking time maximum 2 minutes. It’s a win-win situation for everyone. Instructions:        If you do not have caster sugar or granulated sugar, grind it. It makes cookies stick better.       Crack in your egg in a bowl        Add in yo...

Hello there fellow reader! I am sure, like me, you must have at one point or another in life felt that the book was better than the movie based on the story. We would choose the book over the movie any day or “Always”. See what I did there? * wink? Only me? Alright.  I can’t tell you how many times I have been disappointed by the movie. Nope, I’ve lost count. And trust me, I always try not to be too excited when a movie based on a book comes out but they always get me only to be swept off my feet by the trailer and then hit on the ground, hard.   This can be a debate that can go forever, I know. There are people who have only seen the movie and they like it; I get it. It wouldn’t be too fair for me to expect so much from a movie either. I mean, can you really expect a movie to include every single thing in a time limit? No. obviously they’re going to have to pick the important scenes only. They cannot include the little moments that book readers get to go by....