45. Idli Sambar

Darpan’s favorite Idli sambar, usually I do it, once in 15 days.

I just tried beetroot sambar this time. It came out colorful and yummy.

Finally beetroot sambar with idli became perfect combination.

44. TIki in Owl

Tikis are symbol of luck. It is said that if you own a tiki, you are blessed with luck, its a Polynesian Culture. The tikis are carvings of humanoid forms but they are scary.

Back in Bangalore, I got a Tiki which was gifted by a friend, I liked the style and design but never gave much attention in learning what it is.

When I visited Hawaii in 2011 winter, was fascinated by the carvings of multifarious tiki statues. More than ever, tikis strike me in that trip. I kinda liked its significance and bought one wooden carved tiki to accompany me @ home. It is hanged on my wall just opposite to main entrance. I’m planning to write about tikis in my blog sometime too.

Lately a thought just struck, “if the tiki is inside own, is it still a good luck?” and started doodling with same motif. Hope you like it.

43. Luffa / Ridge Gourd Curry

It looks so crooked, long fat with complete unpleasant look. I rarely choose to cook with luffa. Lately I kinda missed the curry which my mom used to make with chapati or roti. So tried and it came out really yummy. We like the hatred stuff though....

42. So Fun So Masti

Fun masti day @ hair gallery and shopping whole evening.........

Initially it was lazy morning and turned out to be an awesome day @ hair gallery.....styling hairs all together with friends and clicking pics as soon the hair is done is real convivial.

Hanging out together with same gang after fresh hairstyles @ nice shopping mall without husbands is double frantic........... It was kinda back to spinsterhood.....

Totally the day was fully us ‘girls’.......

41. Upma

It is my beloved hatred item, but imposed to cook at least twice a week. This is an affliction I’m facing after wedding. Yes its my dear husbands favorite. He loves it, if I did not cook at least once in a week, he craves for it.

I never liked upma. Whenever my mom makes upma, me and my sister used to cry saying 'concrete' 'concrete' and run. I remember how my mom used to force us to eat sometimes. 

As soon I learnt its Darpan's favorite, I regretted  my choice ;)....

I think, even upma knows that I hate it. That is why it took many days for me to understand and cook perfectly.

Whenever I make Upma, I’m filled with all negativity, hatred and sadness. I never knew that an eatable can influence my emotions. Though I make this upma with so much hatred, Darpan like it. He says I have become perfect upma chef. I do not know whether to feel happy or sad for this compliment.

40. Sidney Sheldon

I’m not a voracious reader, but I like reading. Sidney Sheldon is one of my favorite author. I started skimming his books from college times. One of my friend suggested me to check Sidney’s novel, when I first thought of reading.

His novels are filled with feminine energy, which make me feel, “uh h I’m capable of many things”.....

When I first thought of reading novels back in 2003, I never knew I can stick to reading.. After reading my first novel ‘The Best Laid Plans’  I attained what novels are and how they influence on some stranger who reads it.

From then, reading became my habit exploring works of many authors. I read most of Sidney’s books, and even now sometimes I chose his books to read.

I’m always thankful to Sidney Sheldon, who inspired in continuing my reading habit.

39. Freebie Pase Doodle

Sometimes a piece of work comes without preparation. A proper mood, a piece of paper and pencil fills the plane canvas with some beautiful design. Finally that scrap conveys assumptions to our sense, but here it reflects my emotions, my thoughts of that moment.

This scrap becomes one of the memorable times when I look back in future. My each page of sketchbook is filled with such many moment and one can see my all inner shades while flipping the pages.

Here comes one of such doodle which reflected recently on my sketchbook leaf.

I wanted to design mine and Darpan's name, but later chose to design first letters of our names. I kinda in very good mood that fine Sunday, and I finished it in few hours.

Hope you like it.

38. My Cute Blue Umbrella

Finally bought the umbrella which I dreamt off. When I heard about the movie The Blue Umbrella, I found it so silly to know one's obsession with umbrella but after watching the movie, believe me I fell in love with this pretty thing.

The movie showed the innocent obsession with one fancy umbrella, which inspired me and made me realise to see the beauty in things which we use and see daily. How one can fall in love with the thing which means less for most of our senses and regardless of age and sex, how a man behaves when it comes to our loved things is very well screened. 
I’m looking forward read the book The Blue Umbrella by Ruskin Bond on which the actual movie based on.

I became a fan of Japanese umbrella and I badly needed one.This umbrella was amusing me daily in dreams. Finally one super fine day I found it in a fair, which happened recently in Costa mesa. Now it's in my home, with me. Check out the pics of my new buddy.

37. Bisi Bele Bath

Sunday special bisi bisi bele bath. One of my favorite dish. Mom usually used to make during holiday days.

This spicy delicious dish is from Karnataka. With handful of spices and all cut vegetables, the bite of bisi bele bath just melts in mouth. I prefer having  mirchi bajji or pakora as side chat along with boondi and raita. Today I have made onion pakora.

This colorful plate with bisi bele bath, pakora with aloo bhujia and raita, watching some telugu movies made this Sunday perfect.

36. The Blue Umberella

I never thought an umbrella can play a important role and screen on cinema. Then the filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj made this character screened and wondered the crew. The Blue Umbrella is awesome and pretty movie of Bhardwaj.

The movie is based on Ruskin Bond's novel with same name. Its a very simple story telling with multiple shades of elements as innocence, greed, loss, isolation, criticism, failure, hurt. Like Nancan Kishore in movie, everyone who watches becomes a kid wanting that beautiful umbrella. The locations and sceneries of HImachal Pradesh are mesmerizing. The beautiful umbrella against the lovely sceneries is a sight catching.

The character in the movie did excellent justice with their brilliant performance. The role Biniya is excellent, Shreya did marvelous job with the innocent and mature attitude. Pankaj Kapoor as Nancan Kishore looks such a wonder on the screen with his awesome performance. I almost cried in few scenes. He is so delight and good in The Blue Umbrella.

One should watch such movies to come across wonderful performances. The music is cool. The cinematography is excellent. This movie upholds pure innocence and goodness of humanitarian spirit. It's one of the great childrens movie I even watched.

35. Vegetable Rice

Just tried today this yummy dish mixed with colorful cut vegetables and spicy flavor.

34. Sabudana Khichdi

This pack of sabudana was in my kitchen cupboard from couple of months. Finally it took a shape as Khichdi. The experiment executed very well.

I use sabudana very rarely, but after preparing Khichdi this time. I determined to explore more items with it.

I soaked sabudana for couple of hours and drained off all water. Later I did tadka with little more oil than usual, adding chillies and potato. Once the potatoes are boiled, added fried peanuts powder, turmeric, salt and little lime juice. Then added soaked sabudana and mixed it well and garnished with coriander.

Thus prepared yummy yummy sabudana khichdi. Here goes the pics.

33. Orange County Fair

A bright sunny Saturday in OC Fair. The day was fully filled with fun roaming shopping with friends.

Had got into ride after many years and it was total fun. Rides are kind of seeing nature in all views as possible.

This is my first fair in US. I kinda missed my childhood and home town fairs which usually took place during Ganesha and Dussehra festival and I used to hang there with my family every year without missing.

When I got tempted for foodie stuff in Fair, I badly missed my childhood fairs and the chats and fair foodies.

Amazing shopping place for accessories and stuff. I had bought Chinese umbrella and fan which I was dreaming to buy after watching The Blue Umbrella movie. Finally my thirst for blue umbrella quenched in OC Fair. Check out the pics of beautiful day.

32. The Dark Knight Rises

The dark knight rises is the most awaited movie. I wanted to watch it as soon as it released, but got delayed for some reasons.

This movie did not disappoint me. It has everything I expected. The story is very well knitted and screen played. Though it is little exaggerated for initial half hour, for the next two and fifteen minutes, you don't take your eyes off the screen.

I felt the Batman character in the story got weaker, but Bruce Wayne without mask did splendid job.

Loved the Joseph Gordon who played Blake as a cop and screened awesome performance.

Character Bane is very well executed but the magnified voice did not work that well. Tom Hardy very well justified his character. The Batman always had a powerful villains, which I love the most. I can never forget the Joker from The Dark Knight.

I feIt The Dark Knight was better, but the Rises is well screened. It has the glimpses from previous movie and gives a perfect end.

The special effects, soundtrack, action sequences were as usual out of  expectation. The teams efforts are quite visible on the screen.

The Batman took its place as one of the best trilogy of all time. Finally I congratulate Christopher Nolan for rendering Batsman in an excellent manner.

31. Karela Masala

The bitter guard, which I know very little about. I never liked it. But these days I felt like something is missing in my fridge with my foodie vegetables. And it was bitter guard.

I never tried to experiment much with this crooked weird textured vegetable. So thought of giving it a shot. Initial experiment was kind of failure, where I tried to fill the karela with masala, so took some time for the second experiment and was searching for some easy and tasty recipe.

Recently when I had been to one of my good friends Anita, I came across this particular recipe which is easy and makes you love karela.

Here I cut the karela into pieces removing its skin. Later boiled it with buttermilk adding salt and turmeric. After boiling, drained out the buttermilk from cut pieces and deep fried in oil and added the spices with tamarind and little sugar.

Believe me, it came out really well. Bitter taste slightly touched with sourness and

sweetness drooled my mouth. Hope you too like it. Lets try and enjoy karela.

Few of the karela masala pics.

30. Swaad by AID

A mini food festival by Association for India’s Development(AID) was quite cute and good. It was the organization's first anniversary too.

The Saturday evening began with visually thrilled superhero movie followed with Swaad. Though I entered the gathering with high expectations on variety of dishes, I enjoyed my mini plate of handful dishes with pleasant live music presented by few of the members of AID. Loved the female vocalist Bhavana. Her hymns from Bombay and Parineeti were excellent.

Though I spent short time with them, I felt as if I’m in India. Organisations like this indirectly gives a great support to our nations development.

Thoughtful work by quite a group of good samaritans.

Check about AID @ http://tamu.aidindia.org/

Was able to catch few of the mobile clicks. Hope you like them.

29. Rice Roti

Hot crispy Rice roti. 

28. Gobi Paratha

Yummy crispy Gobi Paratha with yogurt and green tomato chutney.

27. PaintBall

Paintball is a game of action, shooting and strategy. Frankly speaking it is a very good fun game. But the weather on sunday made me feel, it as the worst game.  

It was very bright and sunny sunday. Though was sad lately, I acquired all josh to play paintball with our friends. We had to go Jungle Island which is near Lake Elsinore.

After reaching the place was quite excited seeing field with vehicles, camo nets, broken walls, sandbags, bunkers, holes on walls, the guns and gelatin balls containing water soluble dye around gelatin shell which were fluorescent orange in color. But was little disappointed seeing the dress they were renting which stinky and were not well maintained. But was not bothered to wear.

So all set to enter the field. Before we entered, had a solo, group and all fun photo session with each other capturing the moments.

The sad thing is we had to wait for long time in that bright sun, which made us really suffocating in those helmets and heavy stinky outfits. By the time we entered the field, I was half tired and dehydrated but the excitement kept me energized to play.

As we entered, the rules were told by one of the staff and the teams were separated into two (ribbons and non ribbons). So these two teams have to shoot each other.

The first round went really very well after which we had a short lunch break and again set to go for 2nd round. As the sun was too harsh, I couldn't manage in second round and got to quit the game. But the rest of our team had a great time and fun completing all rounds.

I was not able to click the pictures as I wished but was able to take few. Here are the clicks of deserted Jungle island.