Time Travel

Remember that guy who wrote the science fiction novel, The Time Machine - Herbert George Wells? Well his sci-fi came to my mind the other day when I was caught in a traffic jam. I thought, how wonderful if somehow I just tripped over that machine on one of my forays into the suburban 'jungle'. Then, whenever I got caught in a traffic jam, I could just adjust the dials to an earlier time when there would be no one on that road, cross the problem area with ease right up to the target destination and then turn the dials and come back to the present time!

As I pondered further, I began to worry if there might be somebody at that exact spot in time which I had targeted. Would I be able to miss that person or would my action cause an accident which could cause an irriversible tragedy and upset the course of history forever! I might accidentally eliminate a future Olympic gold medalist for this country and everyone would hate me. That was such a frightening thought.

So I decided that should I get hold of such a contraption, I would go to a deserted place to try it. I would go backwards in time as this would be to my advantage as I would be the smarter person if I came across someone from 'ulu' days. But then I thought, if I went back too far and to a time when there was not much development, there might not be anybody to show off my 21st century knowledge to. What then? And this H G Wells fellow did not think about safety features for his machine. It is open to marauding creatures of the jungle. What if it was still a jungle and the wild animals would be looking for their next meal! I would be a sitting duck inside that machine. It would not have been built like a Humvee or a sherman tank. This isn't working for me.

Another nagging thought was if I went back in time, will I be growing younger and younger until I reach the point of my conception and then 'poof'- I am gone! This is too much for me. H G Wells can have his time machine back. If I ever trip over it, I will cart it to the 'botoi shop' and sell it for scrap. At least I will get some money from that encounter. heh heh ..

Indian Delicacies

When I say Indian, I don't mean the whole of India but only to the southern part specifically, Tamil Nadu. I was not born there but my father was. I have vivid memories of that place as it was such a long time ago when he took me there.

Being married to a Chinese I have lost touch with the Indian food. I remember my mother used to cook a type of curry from a leafy vegetable. It is called 'keerae kari' and with just that curry I could finish two plates of rice. Of course the 'achar' will be there to boost the taste buds and a glass of 'moeru'.

Then there was the 'mochukotai and karuvadoo'(a type of beans with anchovies) curry. Where to find all these!!! I liked her 'nandu'(crab) curry with 'rasum'(a type of soup) the best. This dish I still get to eat once a year at my friend's place during Deepavali celebration. This is a finger licking good Indian dish.

My mother also cooked 'sambar', which we ate with rice and fried fish. Sometimes she fried the fish with a little vinegar. Fantastic stuff! The combination of the meat and vegetables plays an important part in the alluring taste of the recipe.

My brothers and sisters are into vegetarian stuff. Not my cup of tea. But they are an understanding lot and when we meet during Deepavali, there will be chicken or mutton curry for us.