Indian Dinners in Ohio

Cleveland isn't like Chicago, New York, LA, San Fransisco, Austen, Atlanta, Boston... It's one of those quarter-way-there "big" cities. There are a handful of Ethnic Restaurants scattered all across Northeast Ohio, and people aren't exposed to much here compared to NYC. The minorities are minorities, so there isn't much exposure to other cultures, foods, lifestyles, clothes, other than on TV.

A few years ago a 7 year old told me, "I'm sorry you will never be beautiful". This was because she had only ONE idea of beauty which was her "barbie doll"  and Hanna Montana. Sad, I know. When I lived in Michigan (I will leave the city unnamed to not embarrass the fold), people asked me things like "Do you have Elephants as pets in India?" "How do you go to school?" "Is there electricity there?" "Have you ever been to a huge city like Chicago, or even _____ (City Name in Michigan)?"

Some may call this ignorance, I think it's lack of exposure. Most of these people were fairly young too, some were older, having seen a couple of wars, yet didn't know things. Anyway I think people in general are sometime scared to try new things especially if its something they weren't taught to do since childhood. My mom always told us to try everything and she made us like it - we had NO OPTION. So we grew up to be open to everything, and see things from different perspectives.

Here I am in Cleveland, and trying to make best of what diversity is at my disposal, the college campuses are always thriving with diversity, however not the main walks of life, especially not the suburbs (depending on which suburb). A few of my friends from my group of climbing friends asked me what was a good Indian restaurant in these parts. Having the best Indian food served to me at home by my mom, I really don't eat Indian food at restaurants. So I decided to take a tour of Indian restaurants 1-2 times a month all across North East Ohio, maybe even near Columbus, to help friends get comfortable ordering, understanding and eating Indian foods.

Most of the popular Indian food is Dhaba foods - the naans, the dahls, the paneer tikka masala, tandoori, biryani, etc. There is one or two South Indian restaurants, a chaat restaurant, and ok zero bengali, gujarati, etc. restaurants. It's all Delhi/ North Indian food! Anyway it's still yummy, and full of butter and ghee :-P

In some ways authentic/ home made Indian food is way healthier than what is served at restaurants, but it's still probably healthier than pizza, if eaten with roti and not butter naan. Indulge in the raita (yogurt salad eaten with rice), drink the lassi (refreshing milkshake), and taste lots of veggies in curries, the oxidizing spices. In school in Chennai (Southern India), we were always given the most healthiest Indian food to eat. All vegetarian lunch followed by fruit, a snack (egg-less cookie/ biscuit) and fresh lime juice in the morning, and another snack and milk in the evening (ugh the milk was gross though fresh). Lime rice, tamarind rice, pongal rice, bisibela baath (don't ask me to explain that one), sambar rice, rasam rice... Rasam - the best soup ever, it can cure you of any cold!

My home made dal (lentils)! it's actually really good! and healthy!

Masala dosa and coconut chutney

Although the food my friends get to taste is but a small fraction of the foods available in India, it's better than being oblivious to it! I wish I had an elephant to ride to school as a kid, that would have been a tale! Now atleast it is but a Tall-Tale!


Breathe!

Upma, ginger chicken, butter chicken and guacamole (I like to mix it up)

Feminism in the Second Decade of the 2000s

I have always considered myself a feminist... well until all the feminists made a huge hue and cry about the sexism in Seth McFarlane's boob song, and other comments he made in his typical jocular satirical manner during the "Oscars". Then I read this article about what true feminists are, which talked about a book called the "feminine mystique" by Betty Friedan. Where feminism seemed to be defined vs. American Feminism which claims feminism can be sexy and funny, but still feminism. So is there a true feminism? Have i never been truly a feminist?

True feminists do not give into their insecurities and the "lies" sold to us. Ie. don't shave legs, wax, because that's what men want us to be. They want us to have a certain body type, look a certain way... I do agree with the part that states "To my mind, the most amazing and miserable aspect of The Feminine Mystique is how relevant it still is. Women of my generation are still being sold lies to keep us obedient. We are told that we are valued, until we accuse a revered man of rape. We are told we are equal, and yet we still do most of the low-paid and unpaid work. We are told we are respected, and yet we are harassed in the street, objectified and ridiculed in the media, and haunted by words like nag, harridan and hysteric in our personal relationships. Like Friedan's, our feminism is stifled by the belief that the battles have been won, and we are free to enjoy equality in all of its male-sanctioned glory." However, I do feel we can choose to take feminism, like anything in life, to extremes.

The author of the article goes to make the comparison between the feminists of yesterday and feminists today, that there was the hardcore feminists that helped us get where we are, and today you have the "Sex and the City" type feminists which combine humor, sexiness and feminism. However she points out that's just a way of pleasing everyone, and feminism isn't mean to please people. It is meant to show the harsh reality of women today. I think this idea is 1- subjective (to lifestyle, career choices, political view points, etc.), 2- relative (compare women in say Sudan to women in America) 3- dependent on individual opinion. Here's a quote of what the author actually says "In my mind, if being sexy and funny are the two cornerstones of a new feminist movement, we may as well all pack up and go home now. At its core, feminism should be angry. It should be angry because women are still being taken for a ride. Like the women in The Feminine Mystique, we are being sold a lie of equality in a society where the odds are politically, socially and economically stacked against us."

Honestly, I don't want to be an angry feminist. I mean I am angry sometimes, but really it might be because of the Occupy Wallstreet movement by the 99%, which I totally feel by the way but I am lucky to have had work throughout not in my field, and still underemployed. Anyway I do get angry but not because I feel I have been lied to, taken for a ride... I agree for us women there is economical, political, socio-culture issues still to tackle, such as married women vs. single women, health insurance, political and religious ideologies that may shape our choices, rights to our own body through policy in the future, and socio-culture issues being heck let's start with women judging women, women judging men, and men judging women. No wonder we aren't taken seriously. First off - we judge who's a true feminist and who isn't!

In all honesty (yes I start another paragraph with the same word), I am tired of being uber sensitve. I used to be super sensitive regarding my race, sex, body, sexuality, religion, and culture once. I mean was hyper sensitive about "comedy" in general because ALL comedians (including Russell Peters)  fall back on racism, sexism, etc. I did realize though that if I continued being as sensitive as I was, I would probably have zero friends. I would over analyze jokes my friends would tell me, and make it into something to cry about. I would be so offended by people's jokes, I stayed away from them unless I knew their jokes were PG level. Until I met Ryan: a guy I really liked and though let me try seeing things from his perspective. He isn't ignorant, he knows about the harsh realities for women, and has experienced it through near and dear ones. So I decided to give comedy the American style a shot. From The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, to Tosh.0, and even Family Guy (Right now we are just finishing the Family Guy series that was based on the Star Wars). I try to watch South Park, but I don't get why they kill that little guy in the orange hoodie every time, it makes me sad. Up until then I was always sensitive, sensitive to others, and politically correct. Now I balance it, I get a feel for my friends and know who I can let down the "sensitivities" around.


Sometime last year Daniel Tosh made a joke about rape during his stand-up comedy tour, a girl pointed out that it was not funny. He retorted with the comment that - wouldn't it be funny if everyone just raped her now?
I was pretty offended by that, because I took it personally. Ryan and I had a long discussion about it, and although he is a feminist at heart too, we both decided that although it was a joke and probably highly inappropriate, it was a joke, its who Tosh is, actors do that, especially comedians. I have a hillbilly southern persona myself, and he/she is not politically correct, forget grammar! From this Seth Mcfarlane hosting the Oscars, to Colbert, to Tosh, I think what I have learnt is that we can create a mountain out of a mole hill in regards to anything... it depends on your attitude in life. Like remember forgiveness? Remember teaching people through love? Being open minded to other people's perspectives? There are many examples of this... and Feminists just need to be angry because anger is the only thing which changes anything. :-O Not the way I live, not in what I believe in. Gandhi helped India get freedom by harnessing the anger into Ahimsa, peace. Why can't "feminists" learn that?

It is true, as seen last December, India has had its own feminist rising. A truly horrific incident shook the nation, and woke them up to the basic plight of day to day living in India. Forget the "objectification" of women in Bollywood, lets change the basic attitudes towards dress and lifestyle first. There is a lot of ground work before addressing the way "celebrities" handle themselves, ie. education of boys and girls. Sure media/celebrities influence us everyday, but it is we who let them, thus education at home, school and play, can help make people realize this.

Yes, women and their insecurities, do help companies sell large amounts of products. We forget that companies target the insecurities of men too. Yes they have insecurities too, and are lied to as well- hair loss, abs, shoes, cars, guns, "size" matters stuff,  clothes, hair! (Some men are lucky and don't have the loss of hair problem), body hair (women like hairless chests, hairless backs). It goes both ways. We just CARE more of what other women think, than men worrying about what women and men think of them. Yeah analyze your thoughts, feelings etc.


Feminists how can you stand for women who spend millions on dresses, millions that could help women in Africa, but make a hue and cry about the boob song. There's something not right in that equation. Maybe it's liberating to walk nude, appear nude in a movie... but its subjective to perspective. Sometimes I may see a naked body as an art, but I have hormones and have not mastered Brahmacharya (the art and science of disciplining your sexual energies) yet! This leads me to point out a double standard/ stereotype in movie making/ acting etc.

Glee is known for addressing socio-culture, political, economic and all sorts of other issues in tactful ways that apply to high school kids' lives. Recently Rachel Berry, character played by Lea Michelle, goes to art school in New York, and gets an opportunity to act in a student film. The catch is she has to do a nude scene. She justifies doing the film by saying nudity is alright because every great actress has done it sometime in their lives. She is still uncomfortable with the idea, but her role models were all strong confident women who appeared nude on the silver screen, so this would make her strong, confident and later an acclaimed actress. Her friends come to the rescue and tell her that it's a student film, and there will be other opportunities and she should wait till she is comfortable with the idea. The point I'm trying to make is that there's porn side of nudity on film, and then there's the great actresses that have appeared nude, and then there's the actresses who haven't in the middle. Most academy winning female nudity is artistic, anyway these actresses are also usually of a certain body type so are they in fact a part of the "lie". Oh wait they were directed by men, probably!

As for Mr. McFarlane: Everyone knows how crude and "crass" he is in his shows Family Guy, The Cleveland Show etc. So why is everyone so shocked, surprised, and offended? Maybe it was not appropriate for the Oscars, but he was chosen knowing how he is. He is highly talented and I thought he was hilarious, and I still consider myself a feminist (perhaps a "balanced feminist"). I think through comedy, satire, we can show people what is wrong in our culture, our programming... Maybe we/ feminists, instead of just attacking individuals should hold the culture, all the "Seth McFarlanes" of Hollywood especially the men and women behind the scenes, the anti-feminists in Government, the men who rule Wallstreet and corporate America "selling us lies based on our insecurities", all the men of Religion who hold being female against us, the fashion world which helped skinny boy like bodies for women get popular...  All of them accountable for this atrocity at the Oscars.

I guess my point is I'm a feminist, but not an extremist. I believe we can see the truth of our world through humor and satire. I believe in being balanced with regards to sensitivities, and not going over board. I believe in being mindful, peaceful and loving in all my endeavors. (By the way the use the crazy angry irrational woman, against us, no matter how educated and intelligent, when you let anger take over it's the breaking of the dam).




Breathe

My idea of the feminine mystique... the magical gift of birth, the balanced yin and yang, peace, love and harmony.

2 Week Deadline

Dear Me,

It's your birthday in 2 weeks almost, and you're having a big birthday bash! So maybe it would be nice to dress up just a little bit and look good for yourself? So let's work on that gorgeous bod that you haven't been pushing. Sure you have been exercising and are recovering from health issues and injuries, but it's about that time. You've healed, everything is under control, so we can take over this mother-ship once again.

Spring is fast approaching, then summer! It's that time of the year again, the most wonderful time of the year!Nope not Christmas, that's the killer of the fitness plan... I'm talking about warm weather and outdoor activities. We need to get in shape for biking that 30+ miles, camping, rafting, climbing, running, hiking, traveling!

Also let's look good this year, we have a closet full of amazing clothes, and nope we arent buying new clothes to fit the big butt!

Yep am beating you up about this, but if I don't push you? Who will, and even if they do it's not as big of a deal as me telling you. So here's the plan:

Work out in gym at least 3 times a week 1+hour of cardio and then toning on the other days via weights and yoga.
M-yoga
T- cardio
W- Yoga
Th- Cardio
Fr- Cardio
Sat-Yoga 
Sun- Cardio

Drink lots of water.
Eat smaller portions of food. (come on 10 day fast helped you with this).
Eat lots of veggies and fruits, cut out processed foods and sugars.

Great work hard.
Get lots of sleep.


You can do this Me! Just a little determination, effort, and yes waking up in the early morning to hit the gym, that's when this body will burn the fat and set the metabolic pace for the day. We can do this together!
See you in 2 weeks!

Love!

Breathe

 

Maugran Thaulk

Also known as Maugron Thaulk.
Famous for his country-rock music, misanthrope and highly private person, philanthropy, famous accidental obstetrician, lewd nude actor, male sex god, and world traveler, famous for the late night talk show - Talking with the Graun.
Known for his neck that totally looks like Channing Tatum's hunky thick sexy neck, and outmatches him in the brutish goodlooks department. His beach blonde hair and surfer - emo bo - meets hillbilly farmer brought him the title of male sex god. If women's magazines rated men like GQ, Playboy, and Sports Illustrated rank women, He would be number #1 on the list, for 5 years straight.
Margaun Thaulk and his talents was discovered by Wallstreet investment banker Gokul Mohanty who  helped him rise to fame and cashed in on his sudden success. This is the epic true story of a rags to riches, a mans loyalty to to his friend, and the hottest man coming out to the world. In some ways he's the Derek Zoolander of real life...

This is the only picture I could find of him:

Last night he gave an unparalleled critique on comedians today, feminism, homophobia, and the Oscars... all in his down to earth, southern Louisiana accent (that IS where it's at... he should have been Bill in HBO TV show Trueblood).

"Offended by Seth McFarlane hosting the Oscars?
Ever been to a stand-up comedy show?
Watch Comedy Central much?

Ever called your bff a bitch?


Well I'll tell you a story, I was super sensitive about all this stuff being raised catholic and all, and one day I realized that there ain't nothing wrong about being sexy, being gay or being a redneck. Heck, am proud of myself. Anyway my point is I make fun of me all the time, I mean that's what got me famous! Me making fun of all the stereotypes I do encompass, and heck its funny, its sometimes very dysfunctional (I do realize), in the end it's just who I am.

About Seth's boob song, all I gotta say is that women and their insecurities! Heck and they do rub onto us guys too. Here I'm worried about my chest hair color, but really women! First you want us to accept you for your body type so we do, then we point out that hey we saw your boobs they were nice... OSCAR worthy nice, take a prize. And then they get offended? Why did you take it off then? If yer actin' was so darn good, then why did ya have to play the boob card? We guys we don't do that, but I'd sure love to! Honestly in the end we choose to be affected or not affected by others actions... we choose to be sensitive or insensitive ... balanced or imbalanced... we choose to be who we are and how we interact with people and perceive their interactions. Either extreme end of the spectrum of sensitivity is not good!

America is known for its laid back country humor, freedom of speech, right to bare arms... and know ya'all are up in arms about this guy speaking freely! Do we need the third reality check? If ya'll so upset then take it up with the TV people! It's not like he dropped the f!#@% bomb or the C@#$ bomb! He was sayin' it like it is... and as usual we can't handle the truth. We get all upset... both the libs and the conservatives. We forget to laugh cause we got somethin' stuck up our butts. It needs removin' real quick. So why not appreciate a man's work just like we appreciate a nice pair of boobs... or even one boob! Besides I think all them ladies were enjoying it (the scenes of them being embarrassed were prerecorded or somethin'). And if they didn't want them mentioned they shouldn't have done it in the first place.

Now i ain't got no time for this no more!"

Mother and Daughter Cooking Lessons

I've been spending time with my mother these few days, to keep her company, eat healthy, and relax.
So we are sitting there watching her television shows, and the phone rings.Since it's closer to me I answer it, after seeing that it is my sister calling in the caller ID. I am a punk so I answer in my dad's voice ...
Sis- ded give it to ma
Me- how did you know it was me?
Sis- give it to ma I need to talk to her its urgent.
Me- like an emergency?
Sis- yeah.
Me- she's indisposed at the mo. You can ask me I can be your stand in mother-sister
Sis- no I need her!!!!
 
Worried that it is something serious... like "girl problems" or something, I give the phone to my mom. A long conversation ensues on how my sister is trying to make my mom's delicious cauliflower curry, and my mom giving her instructions while she does it.

15 minutes later still listening to the these two banter. My mom is seriously giving my sis a step by step on the phone cooking lesson, as we hear dishes clang and clash in the background. My mom tells her to heat some oil in the frying pan, and in the mean time get the spices ready, and dice up an onion. Also she must set the potatoes to cook separately, and since she has no pressure cooker, she must boil it. 

My mom tells sis - add 3/4 panch pharang, jeere, and diced onion to the hot oil in the frying pan...
Sis - umm this is a little scary (as the oil splatters a little) 
Mom- ... after lowering the heat of the oil.
Mom - this is such a simple and easy recipe, you can't go wrong with it.
Sis - none of this is easy!
Mom - check to see if the potatoes are cooked simultaneously
Sis- they look done...
Mom- no you need to prick it... don't just "look" at it!
Me- stab it you need to staaaaaab it! (I say in the background, with a stabbing motion).
Mom- (bursts out laughing) You two are too cute, well you are a little insane (pointing at me, and she resumes instructing my sis.


Eventually my sister completes the food, but realizes there's nothing to eat it with ie. Indian food is usually eaten with rice/ roti  or naan (types of Indian Bread). She has no rice, but she does have couscous and quinoa. My mom says either is acceptable. She prepares it and sends us a picture and boy does it look yummy!







Breathe