One of my (many) favourite things about India is the abundance of fruit. Every day, farmers from the villages make the trek from their orchards and fields into the big cities before sunrise and set up their carts in markets and along the sides of roads, promising the very freshest produce. This is a far cry from the American South, where peaches canned in syrup and flavoured gelatin “salads” have been known to pass for fruit, much to my chagrin.  Here in Delhi, we buy fresh fruit in smaller quantities daily, rather than going to a grocery store once a week like we do in the US. Usually everything gets eaten, but this morning I realized that there were three bananas in the kitchen that had become a little too ripe, so I decided to make banana bread for my family.

Here’s where it gets interesting: I had no recipe, no measuring cups or spoons, and no conventional oven. The internet connection was down and my mother— whom I’ve watched make banana bread approximately one million times in my life— was fast asleep since it was 2:30 am in Atlanta. I did, however, have a toaster oven and 23 years of baking knowledge/street smarts, so I could probably throw together a recipe, right? Right. Or so I thought, until I actually got started, at which point my thought process went something like this: Do I need baking soda or baking powder? How many eggs? Is maida going to act the same as the whole wheat pastry flour I use at home? Oh god, how long do you even bake banana bread for?

All I knew about banana bread is that the best way to make it is to soak the bananas in coffee first and that the batter tastes amazing, so I started by making a cup of strong instant decaf (which was all I could find). I only had a little more than a cup of flour and a little less than a third of a cup of butter on hand, so I used those as the keystones of my recipe. Obviously two eggs would be too many, so I just added one. The only sugar we had at home was raw, unrefined cane sugar (called shakkar or gur), which tastes similar to brown sugar, so I used that. I omitted the vanilla that I’m pretty sure comes standard in banana bread recipes— although I did add some ground cinnamon and cloves. I knew that baking soda could be subbed for baking powder but not vice versa, so I chose to use the soda (is there a rule about when to use which?). The recipe actually turned out decently, not that you can tell from my blurry phone pictures (sorry!). The bread was moist but not very sweet, so next time I’d add a little more sugar or maybe some honey. I checked to see if the loaf was done every ten minutes after the first twenty (I know, I know)— it ended up baking for about 50 minutes total. As you can tell, this was the result of a lot of guestimating, as we used to say in grade school math classes. Here’s the recipe rounded out to real measurements.

Purana Qila in Delhi

How India Became America

Foodistan: a cooking competition show that pits Indian and Pakistani chefs against each other

Tishani Doshi’s lovely poem, Homecoming

Great pictures from Holi (“the festival of colours”)

“Krishnacore.”

Salman Rushdie on culture, politics, free speech, Pakistan, India, and ex-cricketeer Imran Khan

Some people don’t like Valentine’s Day, though, or they’re going through relationship problems. This holiday can be hard if you’re going through a break up— any day can be hard, but the incessant mentions of love and eternity that permeate our culture around the 14th don’t make things easier. Neither does the flip side: bitterness and cliches about women watching sappy movies while crying into their pints of chocolate ice cream. I don’t watch many movies, but I love to read. And when I’m upset, even the slightest mention of something sad in a book can set me off.

SO, for the last few weeks, I’ve been trying to put together a post highlighting novels for people who weren’t really looking forward to Valentine’s Day. I wanted to make a list of great books that wouldn’t catch readers off guard: no cheating lovers, no abuse, no sudden deaths, no relationship-driven emotional scarring. Books that are well-written but don’t rely on romance as a plot device to move the stories along.

Swamplandia in the NYT

I couldn’t find any. I had admittedly high standards; Karen Russell’s Swamplandia came the closest, but I vetoed it as soon as I read the term “Adultery Fridays,” although there’s a scene at the end that also discounts it. Night Circus has a broken heart; The Magicians has infidelity; Goon Squad has, for starters, that sad scene with the girl and her married lover in the club. Definitely not Silver Sparrow or Bad Marie. Aimee Bender’s Invisible Sign of My Own and Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake almost make the cut, but they’re laden with too much heartbreak, even if it isn’t romantic, to count. Both Emma Donaghue’s Room and The Road by Cormac McCarthy center around a parent and child who spend the majority of the novels in each other’s company, but even they touch on abuse and abandoning distraught partners, respectively. 

All of these books are wonderful, but they all contain sadness. Can it be done in fiction for adults? Is it possible to write a good novel without putting adultery, abuse, or heartbreak? I can think of strong young adult and middle grade books that fit into this category—Konigsburg, for example— but nothing meant for older audiences. Is it possible to write a good novel without hurting your characters? I once workshopped a story and had my professor tell me that it was too “gentle,” that the main character needed to have her life shaken up a little more. Good stories have conflict. But does it have to be of the heart? Can’t the crisis be getting rejected from your top choice of colleges or not getting a green card?

Can you think of any novels that fit this criteria? Please share them! I’m currently reading Cutting for Stone, and up next are Open City, The Art of Fielding, and American Dervish, so maybe one of them will make the cut.

Also, here’s a piece that NPR published today (we’re on the same wavelength apparently). 3 Biting Books for Those Bitter on Valentine’s Day.

EDIT: What about Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld? I love this book and I think it might fit: Lee has her share of troubles at Ault, some of them boy-related, but nothing truly awful happens to her the four years of high school that the novel spans (although I do wish dearly that Sittenfeld would put out another novel featuring Lee forty years later so that we can see if she’s finally happy). Thoughts?

- Joined a gym, developed a regular workout schedule, and have (so far) stuck with it. I love that now I’m doing cardio as well as all of the machines that I’d never known how to use before a few weeks ago, mostly because I was too intimidated of their names (seated row?! leg press??)— but not anymore!

- Finally went to my hair salon and fixed the awful streaks that were left in my hair after I highlighted it purple in September. Now it looks normal, thank goodness. Sorry about the awkward car picture and my baggy Braves shirt! I was on my way to the gym and figured I should take one before I went.

- Expanded my palate by trying food I’d never had before. I had spaghetti squash, which I’ve always wanted to try, and kombucha, which is a fermented tea drink made with yeast and bacteria that’s supposed to have incredible health benefits. I cant say that I liked it at all, although that may be because it’s effervescent and I don’t like to drink things with bubbles! The one I bought (bright pink, pictured below) had ginger and cayenne pepper in it and had a vague vinegary aftertaste. I also sampled one made with mint and echinacea.

- Tried new things!  The Atlanta Underground Market, which i wrote about here and here, is one of my new favourite things, and I also went to the Cox Hall farmers market at Emory University, which I’d never seen before.

- Sent a care package to a darling girlfriend studying in Boston with everything she needed to kick-start her semester: pretty stationery, MOR’s macaron lip gloss, hand warmers, homemade baked goods, and (of course) beer pong balls.
 - Created a new DIY project: Instagram magnets!

- Read 1o new novels, 2 new short story collections, and one new work of nonfiction for a total of 13 new books + probably three or four rereads. I may have a problem. The new ones are all listed on my 2012 Goodreads shelf, if you’re interested. My favourites were Night Circus + Invisible Sign of My Own (fiction) and Emerald City (short stories). I also reread the first Boxcar Children book and loved it just as much as I did in elementary school. There were also a surprisingly large number of novels that i disliked, which is disappointing. I am always, always looking for new book recommendations so please don’t hesitate to share favourites!

I blogged five times, watched two movies (Contagion and Baraka), registered for an amazing 5k, and became involved in a very exciting volunteer opportunity. Can’t wait to see what February brings— besides my 23rd birthday, of course! I have a lot of fun things planned but can’t talk about them quite yet. What are you looking forward to for the next month?

Sweet potato fries with fire-roasted marsmallows, goat cheese-stuffed fried green tomatoes with chipotle aioli, and white peach lemonade from Ibiza Bites + spinach salad with goat cheese, fresh strawberries, and walnuts with a mediterranean veggie sandwich from Highland Bakery + gol gappe on New Year’s Eve + first King of Pops of the year— raspberry lime.

Just Loaf’n shrimp po’ boy + sesame fries with Sriracha cheese dip and stir-fried tofu taco with spicy Asian BBQ sauce from Yumbii. // I can’t say enough good things about Atlanta’s food truck scene. Love that you can find 10+ gathered for lunch or dinner multiple times a week!

Pimento cheese with benne seed crackers + tomato basil soup + barbeque shrimp + grits from 82 Queen during Charleston Restaurant Week; not pictured: she-crab soup + portabella with olive oil and goat cheese potatoes and spaghetti squash. // I was a little disappointed with my spaghetti squash dish (i had been so excited to try it!), but 82 Queen is phenomenal and the service we had was impeccable— the waiter noticed me having a hard time deciding between two first course dishes so he brought me both. We’ll definitely be back.

North African spiced boiled peanuts + white peach soft-serve ice cream with pepper jelly + garden chili dog {veggie frank, veggie chili, walnut mayo, crispy shallot rings} + Eastbound and Down dog {house frank, Carolina pulled pork, mustard slaw, mop sauce} + Little Italy {Italian sausage, San Marzano ketchup, fontina, grilled radicchio} + waffle fries with maple-oy from HD1. // I’m a big fan of Richard Blais’s from Top Chef and adore his restaurant flip burger boutique, so I had high hopes for this new hot dog concept as well. However, I was pretty disappointed with my veggie dog. I wanted to try the sous vide carrot but was told it wasn’t available for lunch, and the alternative veggie option left me wanting more. Next time, I’ll opt for a simpler dog so I can really experience Blais’s innovative flavours. The waffle fries and spiced boiled peanuts were both incredible and the Eastbound dog was well-received, but the white peach soft serve would have been better without the pepper jelly.

Pimento cheese with apple slices and micro celery + cornbread madeleines from Seed Kitchen and Bar.

Five-cheese macaroni with dark chocolate cabernet wine jelly + chocolate pots de creme + cheddar and apple stuffed zeppoles with caramel-rum sauce + macaroni and cheese quiche + zucchini frittata with caprese salad + cantaloupe juice + Bloody Mary cupcakes; not pictured: roasted salmon stuffed with feta, cream cheese, spinach, and green onions over savory grits + Scotch eggs + banh mi sliders + pepper shrimp + white chocolate bread pudding with caramel sauce + cheese and guava pastries + hibiscus flower juice + tiliapia tacos from the Atlanta Underground Market on two different occasions. // I mentioned the market previously, but I went back this weekend for their first brunch with my mother and had an absolute blast. There were over 100 dishes featured, and we ate as much as we could before bringing back food for my dad in plastic to-go containers. My favourite dish was definitely the apple and cheddar zeppole (think beignets or stuffed doughnuts) with caramel rum sauce. I also loved the hibiscus flower + ginger juice.

Have you eaten anything good this month? Or have you cooked anything that I should try? Since February is filled with birthdays, I’m going to try to eat healthy at home every chance I get so that I can eat cake guilt-free. :)

It’s the first day of what’s going to be a very long week for me, so I thought I would put together a quick post about some of my favourite things right now. (This has nothing to do with the fact that I’m supposed to be writing five posts a month and the month ends tomorrow, I promise.) Check out what I’ve been loving lately and let me know what items in your life have been helping the new year go a little more smoothly.

{clockwise from top left}

This sweet book, How to Sew a Button and Other Nifty Things Your Grandmother Knew, promises to teach readers how to do everything from removing stains to writing letters to representatives. It has cold remedies, card games, composting techniques, and pretty much anything else domestic that you’d ever need to know. Okay, it’s a little old-fashioned, but I adore having it on hand so that I can reference how many ways there are to clean with baking soda or vinegar or how to throw together a last-minute flower arrangement. I keep this book on my shelf right next to Real Simple’s New Uses for Old Things and an old etiquette book I picked up at a yard sale for 25 cents.

My preferred coloured pens are the Staedtler Triplus Fineliners. They write so well, and the 20-pack has basically every colour you could need to match the fronts of cards or brighten up letters. I’m really picky about my pens and I colour coordinate like crazy (class notes, to-do lists, itineraries..), so these are a godsend. I’ve been using them for twelve years and haven’t ever had a problem..except that the turquoise and violet ones always seem to run out of ink much faster than the rest. :)

Making loose leaf chai instead of using tea bags is time consuming, but so worth it, and this carved wooden box that I picked up in India is the perfect size for storing tea leaves. One of my current favourites is Darjeeling de Triomphe black tea. I do have to confess that I bought it solely for its name, though…

The One Line a Day  five-year book is perfect for people like me who love the idea of journaling but never seem to have the time (or prefer writing fiction!). Each day of the year has its own page with space to write a sentence or two about what happened— not only this year but also for the following four. I love it because once next January comes around, when I add new entires, I’ll easily be able to go back and read what I did or how I felt on the same day a year ago.

Speech bubble paperclips! These are so much fun, and they hold more papers than the normal ones (which I also use all the time, but mostly in place of bobby pins in my hair). Mine were given to me to “make thesis-writing more fun” by a sweet friend last year, but you can find them here.

I have a collection of Moleskine notebooks that would make you roll your eyes, but one of my favourites is the mini ruled Volant. These are truly pocket-sized, in that they actually will fit into the back pocket of your jeans, unlike the so called “pocket” notebooks, which will not. Unlike the hardcover Moleskines, which, of course, you have to get in black, I make sure to buy these in bright colours so that I can find them in the mess of my daily life. I always have one on me, which would be more convenient if I also always carried a pen. I’ve used many strange things to jot notes in my journals or planners— borrowed eyeliner pencils, sharp Georgia red clay rocks (during a picnic— you never know when inspiration will strike), and, once, I took down a phone number in apple green royal icing.

This precious New Year card was sent from my grandmother in Bombay a few years after my younger brother was born and is addressed to both of us. I found it recently in a box of old papers and immediately pinned it above my desk. On the front: On New Year as always; inside: Wishing you joy and sweet moments to cherish, the whole year through. It was the perfect message for three-year-old Sonia, and the (almost!) 23-year-old me will take it to heart as well.

C.O Bigelow’s Rose Salve No. 12 saved my lips this winter. I’d heard so many wonderful things about rose salve in the past, so when I stumbled across this (on sale at Bath and Body works, of all places— I buy their tiny bottles of hand sanitizer to keep in my purse), I had to buy it. It smells amazing, comes in a cute little container, and is the perfect fix for chapped lips, dry elbows, or cracked cuticles. If the men in your life need something to help out their skin but don’t want to smell like roses, I recommend this hand and nail salve from Savannah Bee Company. I’ve forced it (lovingly) upon both my boyfriend and my brother.

I love this vintage key from an antique store in Charleston. I haven’t been inside the gorgeous shop yet, since this was a gift, but I can’t wait to go and try to discover the story behind it— and buy a few more keys so I can make a pretty display.

This is my mom’s copy of George Orwell’s famous novel. The inscription inside has her name and the date— 16 July 1975, before 1984.  LOVE.

Lovely papillion paperweight my parents picked up for me on a trip to Asheville.

Winter white honey, also from Savannah Bee Company, is delicious. I tend to dislike most honeys; they’re too cloying for me and I don’t care for the sickly sweet smell. Plus, when I was little, before I could swallow pills, my mom would crush up malaria prevention medicine and mix it with honey for me when we went to India. It never masked the bitter taste of meds, and I’ve never forgotten how much I hated eating it. This one is different. It’s creamier and more reminiscent of a sweet sauce than a syrup. I love it drizzled on top of goat cheese and crackers.

New glasses purchased after my old pair snapped in half. I can’t say enough about these glasses and how much I love them, even though it has less to do with the Ray-Ban frames than with my new prescription and the fact that I can finally see again.

What have you been loving lately?

]]> http://analogchronicles.wordpress.com/2012/01/30/lately-im-loving/feed/ 1 analogchronicles P1000262 http://analogchronicles.wordpress.com/2012/01/25/diy-instagram-magnets/ http://analogchronicles.wordpress.com/2012/01/25/diy-instagram-magnets/#comments Wed, 25 Jan 2012 21:03:45 +0000 Sonia http://analogchronicles.wordpress.com/?p=359 Continue reading →]]> Instagram is kind of taking the world by storm. So many people I know are completely obsessed with it, and some of them— some of them— are really good at using the application. If you are one of those people or, like me, you know somebody who is (who also conveniently happens to have a birthday coming up), then this DIY project is for you.

A few months ago, I came across a website that creates magnets out of Instagram pictures— 9 magnets for 15 dollars. I thought it was a great gift idea, but you have to give the website access to the account from which you want to pull the pictures and I wanted to use someone else’s photos, not my own. So I ruled that website out and decided to DIY some magnets myself. The largest problem I encountered was that I couldn’t save pictures from Instagram myself. This was easily remedied by a quick Internet search, which led me to Copygram. Copygram pulls up the Instagram app in a web browser, which allowed me to save the pictures I wanted to use onto my computer. NOTE: Don’t use pictures from other users without their consent, as that’s illegal.

Once I had the pictures saved, I got started creating the magnets. I am so bad at Photoshop, y’all. I mean, I can very basically edit a picture, but beyond that I’m completely lost. I’d had “Photoshop proficient” on my resume since high school, but I took it off immediately after I frantically gchatted my friend Elias demanding help resizing images and made him talk me through the program for half an hour. ANYWAY. Here’s what you do.

1) Save up to 12 Instagram pictures from your phone/copygram/wherever to your computer. You can use non-Instagram pictures too— this tutorial is to print 2 x 2 inch magnets, but it’s easily alterable.

2) Open the 12 pictures and make sure they’re sized at 2 inches x 2 inches. Mine saved to my computer from Copygram at 8.5 x 8.5 inches so I resized them to Photoshop at 306 dpi (I tried for 300 but couldn’t get it to work).

3) Make an 8.5 x 11 inch document at 306 dpi. Ideally, you’ll want to make a 2×2 grid with borders (maybe 1/4 inch) around each of the squares, but I didn’t know how to do that so I made a grid that’s 2.25 inches x 2.25 inches with 9 subdivisions per square (every .25 inches). That way, the 2×2 pictures won’t touch. The gridlines won’t print; they’re just there as guides. PS I’m sure it’s really easy to make borders. Don’t laugh at me!

4) Drag each photo into a box. With the 2.25″ squares and the 9 subdivisions, a 2×2 picture should fit neatly in each square with one row and one column left. Mine, for some reason, didn’t. They were too big, so I resized them once they were on the document  (command + T) so that they would fit.

5) Print! Do a test run on regular computer paper first. This is highly useful if you, like me, don’t pay attention to your printer settings and accidentally print in black and white the first time. I also ended up with three copies of my trial print for some reason. Instead of throwing them away, you can use the pictures on the test run pages to make gift tags for other presents since they’re so pretty. After your trial, make sure to take all other paper out of the printer, then put just one sheet of magnet paper in. Then print. Let the page dry before you touch it. Heads up: the magnet paper is pretty thin, so don’t expect your finished products to be able to hold a ton of weight!

6) Use paper cutter to cut magnets to size, especially if you, also like me, are incapable of cutting in straight lines. Put them on your fridge or wrap them prettily and give them away. Before I mailed these, I put a piece of paper between each magnet to protect them, though I’m not sure this is at all necessary.

This would make an awesome little gift for grandparents (picture magnets!) or Valentine’s Day (just because it’s coming up and you can say cheesy/cute things like “I’m attracted to you”). You could also make promotional materials for your business (my eye doctor just sent me a magnet) or save the dates. Endless possibilities!

Cost: 5 sheets of magnet paper from Office Depot for $15.99 + tax (approx $17) makes 60 magnets, which comes out to 28 cents a magnet. You also need to factor in the cost of the ink, I guess— say $30 for a cartridge divided by 60 magnets (which is generous because it won’t use all of the ink), or 50 cents. That brings your total to 78 cents a magnet. Not bad!

All the photos used to make the magnets were taken by the definitely follow-worthy @soorma on Instagram.
“Underage Witches and Wizards” photo taken at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Fla.

Last year, I was introduced to the concept of 101 in 1001— a challenge in which bloggers (or anybody!) complete 101 predetermined tasks in 1001 days. I loved the idea but didn’t have time to implement it in 2011. This year, I’m doing it. You can find my comprehensive list here and the two bloggers who inspired me here and here. I would love for you to join me.

I broke my list into categories such as health, kindness, and creative/edifying goals. Some of them are easy, jumping off points (join a gym!), while others are things I want to implement into my daily routine (both working out and writing every day). Some will require lots of advance planning (host a formal charity fundraising event) or patience (learn to French braid hair— I’ve been trying since I was nine), or getting over my fears (riding my first roller coaster). Looking over my goals, they seem mainly focused on two things: trying new things and organizing the old. I tried to keep everything manageable— blogging five times a month, for example, as opposed to fifteen— so hopefully I’ll succeed. For every item on the list not completed at the end of 1001 days, I’ll be donating a dollar to a to-be-decided charitable organization.

We’re already almost a third into this month (!), but here are the goals I hope to achieve:

• Join a gym. Stop flitting around from one free two-week membership to another and actually commit.
• Renew the domain name for a website I made to fundraise for a school in India we’re building in memory of a friend and send an update about the school’s status to all of the 200+ people who donated to make it happen.
• Go through my clothes and jewelry and donate the things I don’t wear (that’s two!)
• Learn to cook something new

Additionally, I’m working on on-going goals, one of which is to read one new fiction and one new non-fiction book every month {no. 27}. At the beginning of the January, I read and really enjoyed Night Circus, a novel I’ve wanted to pick up since reading a WSJ article on it this past August. It’s an easy, fun read with fantastical elements and wonderful details. I just started my non-fiction option, The Convert, which I was given last February but never finished. It’s about a secular Jewish woman in the 1960s who converts to Islam and moves to Pakistan. It’s very interesting so far, and I’m always intrigued to read about Partition from the Pakistani/Muslim side, since I grew up hearing first-hand accounts of what happened to Hindu-Indians.

I also went to my first Atlanta Underground Market this weekend, which neatly crosses off my first of many new adventures in Atlanta {no. 82}.  The AUM is a secret market— the location is only disclosed the night before— full of gourmet food vendors who cook out of their own homes instead of restaurant-grade kitchens. It was held in the ballroom of the Atlanta History Center this month and the effect was oddly reminiscent of the International Festivals we held every year in our high school gym— but in a good way and with much better food than the blender-made mango lassi we used to always give out at the festival. The vendors sold everything from ginger lemonade and hibiscus flower juice to bacon+chocolate petit fours with crepes, arepas, sliders, and tamales in between. There were plenty of options for people who don’t eat meat, dairy, or wheat, and fare from Brazilian, Ethiopia, India (North and South both featured), Japan and Trinidad made appearances, and so did cupcakes, cake pops, pots de creme, and truffles. I tried a five-cheese macaroni with dark chocolate cabernet wine jelly and definitely enjoyed it— I’m a fan of mixing sweet + savory but had never done so with mac and cheese before— and a green tea + pomegranate cupcake. Friends of mine had pork curry from Kerala and gluten-free donuts that came with a variety of sauces including salted caramel and orange-rosemary. The one thing I was intrigued by but didn’t get? Sweet potato + Nutella empanadas. The market was a great experience and I hope to attend another one soon.

What do y’all think? Are you better at getting things done when you make lists?

Came back from a perfect trip to Dubai, Delhi, Bombay, and Kurukshetra Sunset over Burj al-Arab from Burj Khalifa

Temple in Kurukshetra where the Pandavas prayed before battle

Saw more snow than Georgia could handle— we didn’t get mail for a week! Went to New Orleans

Then California Then as many Braves games as I could (and one in June in San Francisco, too!) Said goodbye to Athens  Ate an inordinate amount of popsicles and stalked food trucks like nobody’s business Then went back to California and went hiking in Muir Woods Fell in love with my favourite city, Charleston, over and over again  Attended Atlanta’s first flash mob picnic

Streaked my hair purple

Assisted in the opening of an absolutely wonderful independent bookstore

Went DIY crazy from Diwali to Christmas— which is another blog post in and of itself. Happy New Year! What were your favourite parts of 2011?