Places taken for granted, food, calories, ectomorphs, endomorphs n the inbetweens...

Ya what else can I talk bout but food? Ive been catching up with an old pal from school on chat, n the discussion finally boils down to food n our fav eateries..mostly cos of me..no always cos of me...

N in doing so I lined up some places thats worth a mention...n most of em/all of em are renowned for their snacks. The list has no particular ranking n its my own personal favs..

1. Alsa mall entrance sandwich shop at the right most corner as you enter - toasted masala sandwich

2. Bhats Paradise, Tambaram - paav bhaji

3. Pani poori stall by the side of Sriram stores, Tambaram

4. Ofcourse Podi dosa across Brilliant tutorial, T Nagar

5. Idli kada with their still patent pending assorment of yellow, green n white chutneys.. near BT Mansion, Triplicane.

6. Early morning pongal at anadha bhavan, triplicane (again near BT mansion ).

7. Samosa with mint chutney in the evenings at 'Main bus stop' stall, Gud Van Cherry hills(Guduvancheri)

8. Fried rice + Gobi manchurian, Caspa, Tambaram.

9. Pullayar kovil pongal, Gud Van Cherry hills(Guduvancheri)

10. Mangadu Amman kovil puliyodara

11. Cauliflower, molaga bajji @ besant nagar beach

12. Two Haywards 5000 + chilly beef ONLY at Henkala, Tambaram

13. That big ass lassi @ Sowcarpet no clue which road, wht shop...

14. Ras malaai @ Aggarwals, Mint Street/Broadway

15. Masala paal, Bhats paradise, Tambaram

16. Veg puffs @ that bakery whose name I forgot in Shanmugam road, Tambaram.

17. Fresh parottas n seruva @ the big 'drive in' onto the left in GST road just before u enter Gud Van Cherry Hills.

Might have missed a few.....but ya the time spent @ those places carry much more memories than great food, those were quality time spent with friends pondering over the future of the world resting on the then 'young' shoulder of ours....those were also days when I cared a damn bout what ecto, meso and endomorphs meant , wldnt have possibly been able to explain the diff bet calories n cholestrol, never 'felt' the tummy after I ate between meals..

Yaa I actually used to eat before meals, between meals and after meals....n was not worried bout the 'side' view of my abdomen in the mirror....just dunno where , when n how i burnt the 'calories' (ya now I know wht calories, empty calories mean, damn the internet)

There have been days when I had made visits to 3-5 of the above listed places on any given evening, hogged all thro and then still go home to my unwitting mom n have a dinner like none of it ever happenned...

At times I get soo pissed at what I put myself thro..I mean the diet..the supplements n all that bull shit. Why cant I just eat what I want to n when i want to n still 'flaunt' a 6 pack? Or shld I even flaunt 1? Whoz set the benchmark that 10-12% BMI is healthy? Hidden agenda of the supplements maker that I blindly bought over the internet? Punnakku payaluva. Ya its my conscience talking...I think this craving for all the good stuff I miss is gettin me enlightened......

Shez hot, shez gorgeous, but shez made me insecure, n got me thinking....

A month ago one fine morning I got this mail from my chief- BMW 330 ci Cabrio 'individual' convertible as subject. He was selling his 2004 beamer with just 13k odd miles on it. I knew this was it. A bmw convertible with just 13k miles, n single hand use from some1 who is soo meticulous bout doing things..I just cldnt resist. To cut it short, yes I bought it.

The reason my boss sold his hardly used beamer was cos he bought this beast - Porsche 911 Turbo a few months ago, n his wife convinced him to sell off the bm (I cannot thank her enough for that). So my boss took me from our office to his place to hand me over the keys n the car. N guess wht i gotto step into his 911 for our ride upto his place. Hmm it was a 15 odd min ride..it was fast n it floated n he was cruising at 100 mph as his normal speed. I gasped, I drooled n it was quite a ride..When I reached his place n gotto to get onto my 'new' car, I was still coming out of that ride...n wasnt quite enjoying my ride back in my new car, but instead my mind was fixed on the beauty that roared past ahead of me - my boss's car...

A quick recap of my past - I could afford my first bike only after college on my first job..I didnt have the luxury of driving to college, though I always fancied bikes like any average teenager. N while I was in India I never drove a car. Yes I didnt even know to drive 1.

Fortunes changed,I moved around n here I was sitting in a beamer, my own car the moment to cherish n my mind was fixed to the beast that flew past me..hmm mind, my mind am just an average human right? Sethu had aptly pointed out in one of my previous posts that if I intend to buy the mustangs n beamers I cannot really do wht I claim to be my passion- paying it forward. Those high sounding words just rang a bell onto my ears n I woke up. Where is my philosophy of keeping things simple? Where am I heading from here? Save enough to buy a porsche or plan something concrete for my ambitious foster father plans.

I used to tell my frenz after half a dozen beer n steak that had we set aside this days outing n used the money we cld actually sponsor a kid's whole year's food clothing shelter n foremost - decent education. Idealistic yes but practically plausible. I personally dont believe in a buck here or max 20$ bill there...charity. At 28 , I guess I am level headed and when I say I want to personally take charge of some kids, see the them grow spend some time with them every year, give em all n inspire them enough to pay it forward again -is it wishful thinking? May be not. I love kids n I love the old ones, I mean both the first and second childhood in a person's life is and should be beautiful - and both need some help. The kids and the old ones - the needy ones, the rest can n shld take care of themselves. Aint that simple? I have this new found approach thats worked very well lately -to push myself up to my goals by putting it on papers n lettin the world know - no secrets bout it. Remember 'creative tension'? I strongly believe in Paulo Coelho's words "when u know what u want, the whole world conspires with u to achieve it". Yes no matter what career I pursue n how I make my money my only ultimate vision is to be a foster father for a handful of really 'lucky' kids back home. period. I wld love to do this and also travel around the world with no 'strings' attached (read girls).

This blog is to reassure myself of where I come from (read oor naatan) my where I am heading...yes life is beautiful n i intend to keep it that way.

Biriyani

Let me confess, I tried twice in my life to become a vegetarian, 2 months once n 45 days once ( when Nik n I watched some horrible videos on PETA website..)I really dont care for remaining a veg but how, how, how on mother earth can I ignore an aromatic, steaming plate of fresh Hydrabadi dum biriyani out of the oven? I cannot and I will not try the stunt (being veg) again but may be down the lane...ill replace non veg food with just biriyani once a while.

Making of biriyani....hmm its a poem. soak that saffron in a cup of milk let em mingle n get to know each other....n the basmati...soak em too let em stand out seperate n 'dum' it with the right spice n meat....the right texture of meat(goat/lamb) n a hint of fat that drips n mixes with beads of rice while in the oven...the subtle spices n ints flavors that keeps u guessing n teasing ur taste buds....hmmmm sigh( i swear i just had a biiig sigh visualizing a plate of biriyani now) its not bout the rice or the meat or the spices...its bout bringing all the 3 together in the cook's own artistic way to bring in a poem with its words complementing each other. Not all biriyanis can become 'the' biriyani...even by the same hands it doesnt come out consistent all the time..

I am shameless when it comes to annihilation of mounds of biriyani...the really good ones. I wish to recollect my close encounters with the best of best till date...

All time first was on Yu's bhai's nikka...I sat for the first round with ppl..they came , they ate, they left, I think I was there until the third round 'pandi' ws close to over n I stood like a rock conquering those humanly not possible quantity of biriyani...

Close to heels second was Z n R's engagement....hmm there were no 'rounds' it was in their house, the folks there thought I might be shy n were trying to 'force' me to eat, cant help it they didnt know me..n then there was a point they just placed a mini handi of the sacred biriyani n 'enna kathirikka' right next to me to save me(or them?) from the embarrasment.

Next best I can just close my evey n relive the moment was this 'specialist' biriyani stall in Meenambakkam that my beloved frenz took me on my last visit to Chennai. To my standards I was acting wierd cos I wasnt sure of 'eating out' after a long stay away from India. I started with a 'half' plate. Hmm then came the second n add to it mutton 'chukka'...This continued to an 'undisclosed' no of plates....I dont know how I do it....

Other fav spots for biriyani were...Sulaiman Set biriyani in Camp road across MCC, the kaiendibhavan with no name in Chrompet( no I dont think Ive tasted kaka biriyani these guys rock)....hmm engirundaalum vaazga.

At present there is this one place here in Bahrain that wld get a B+ grade. I order 2 reasonably huge plates there n Ive actually 'lied' to the cashier its for me n my friend n the friend being me...I know I am a glutton , my mom says I was notorious for cleaning up boxes of 'farex' in just few days while I was a kid...

'Vanjana illama sappiduppa' always holds true with me, but I take it too seriously when it comes to good biriyani. Oh plz veg biriyani shld be renamed, no offence , with due respect to ghaas bhoos, biriyani is no biriyani w/o meat.

N for Eid I am sending out request for invites....I told u I am shameless. Its ok.

"Even if you are on the right track, you've got to move on"

There is this genius called Sachin Tendulkar n this is what he says explains him the best. There is soo much debate we get to read on Tendlia not being a match winner etc etc am poor @ debating rather dont want to think too much bout nething, but every time little master walks in I get goose bumps, I see humilityn I see determination ...

One of the questions thrown at him.... "Surely at times you feel a sense of power beyond measure? Your endorsements are heftier than even Amitabh Bachchan's. Global icons like Michael Schumacher and Dire Straits are your admirers... "


Just one look @ this pic n we can say what this man is made of(no am not talking bout the rice n curry on his plate) .Hez still got his feet very much on the ground even after 17 odd yrs....

And the count down begins...

the final 12 week countdown has begun...

2+ months ago i made a promise to shed some serious weight n get ripped 'FLAUNT MY 6 PACK' by new year. Its almost half way through, been smooth with some hiccups (read 40+ beers) but still my obsession with running has kept me on track. Now its time to say good bye to beers TOTALLY n say hi to jack n diet coke....

feels good to work hard to get 'back' my 6 pack( i really had washboard abs in college until i read 'milk is for babies bodybuilders drink beer').

5 meals - wheat bread, tuna(yukk), nonfat milk, NO RICE, chicken breast,pasta, casein, whey, amino acids, omega 3, 6 fatty acids, EGCG, hoodia... cheat day, or carb up day to boost the metabolism 1 day i get to eat rice....

Workouts - weight training, plyometrics, shadow boxing, heavy bag n aerobics (trust me i got nothing else to do here..)

I shld be listing all this after I reach the pinnacle...well call it complacency...

Creative Tension

Stumbled into an article on Leadership and Creative Tension. Excerpt-

Just a "Creative tension is the primary source from which effective leaders derive their power. One can compare creative tension to a bow and arrow. The bow is nonfunctional as a weapon until tension is applied. When the arrow is placed on the string and pulled, it increases the tension. The potential power of the weapon is then developed. Therefore, the power and effectiveness of the arrow lies in the tension exerted in the bow.
Leaders throughout history derived their influence and power through creative tension, not tension as in destructive stress, but tension as in potential energy - energy to achieve, to accomplish. This creative tension, unique to each leader, exists between love and fear, position power and personal power, success and effectiveness, and the current and the possible. To achieve, we must begin from the current conditions we face today if we are to ever achieve the possible future we hold only in our mental vision."

Holds so true to every individual than just looking at it from an organization's point of view. The Inspiration or the vision on top and the current reality at the bottom and the tension in the band - You either raise ur standards or lower ur vision. Beautiful. Sports, career, or even personal relations....I guess this holds true. This tension is just the 'drive' the 'passion' each person has just depends on which one gets the better of the two.... U either say 'itna tension nahi lene ka' or view it as 'creative tension'.