The Many Benefits of Home Cooked Meals

Over the years, I have come to believe that there are many many many BENEFITS of Home cooked meals. Of course, you have to cook them within the confines of your kitchen and at home - which takes time, effort and can be BORING many times... But when you weigh the many benefits of Home Cooked Meals, they will probably outweigh any reasons you may have to believe otherwise

1) It works out CHEAPER
Of course! Based on my personal experience, even the most EXOTIC meal you cook up at home will be on an average 50% cheaper than eating out! So if you want to save money, this is the best and fastest way! Cut down on eating out!

2) You are in COMPLETE CONTROL the quality and quantity of the ingredients
Absolutely! Since you cook, you know what and how much you are putting into each dish and meal. And what goes in come out! So if you cook with quality (healthy) ingredients, you get a quality output!

3) You appreciate the process of COOKING
Something which I did not value for a long time in life.. But once you start cooking regularly, you understand and appreciate the process of cooking.. And over a period of time you begin to enjoy, innovate, become more efficient and also attain mastery in one / many aspects of cooking! Not to mention that cooking can be a great de-stressor and also gives you that golden "ME Time" on a daily basis :)

4) You VALUE all the Home Cooked Meals your PARENTS made for YOU
Ever grumbled / cribbed to your parents for them insisting that you eat at home? Am sure you did! And only when you become regular with home cooked meals yourself, do you realize and appreciate all the effort your parents put into it! It's not easy to deal with daily grumbles, demands, requests and tantrums after you've cooked a meal! And then what you do? Just listen to it and insist that they finish their meal :) (Did your mom do that always.. I bet she did!)

5) You're HEALTHIER and FITTER
In the long term, you are healthier, fitter and happier..

What's your reason for recommending a home cooked meal? Leave a comment to let me know...

5 Practical ways to keep someone's memory alive everyday...

In life, we all lose people we love - With some the loss is temporary and with some the loss is permenant..
And after we lose someone dear to our heart... Many times we want to keep their memories alive on a day-to-day basis... We want them to be an integral part of our lives ; and yet we fail because we are always pressed for time...

In this blog I am listing 5 practial ways to remember someone you love on a daily basis:
1) Develop a positive habit which they had - Everyone has some positive habit worth emulating.. So it could be simple things like Waking up early everyday (say at 6 AM), Taking a walk everyday, Flossing everyday, Reading a book daily, Sleeping early, Having an early dinner daily, etc etc etc. And once you develop this habit, you can't help but think of them everytime you are do this!

2) Introduce something they like into your daily routine - Something very simple and integral to your day to day life. So for e.g.: If they liked a specific color like Red, then you use a Red toothbrush everyday (And you will brush everyday!), Or If they liked a specific food like salads / fruits, add it to your everyday diet

3) Set your account passwords in their name - Yes! So many online / social media accounts gives you a golden opportunity for this - You can set the password for the most frequently accessed accounts in their name. For e.g.: EMail, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc. I have personally found this to be so effective and powerful simply because I login everyday several times to several of my accounts.. And everytime I do, I remember the person / people whose memory I want to keep alive

4) Think of them for a few minutes everyday - Think of the many wonderful shared moments, special memories, unforgettable laughs, the journey and times together, the laughs, cries, adventures, disagreements, arguments, etc. etc. etc. - And you should do this either at the start of the day or end of the day (All other times its hard to predict your mood, schedule and environment)... But just a few minutes by yourself go a long way in keeping someone's memory alive

5) Wear something in their name and honor - This is a little personal, nevertheless very effective! It could be something they wore or something they gifted you.. But it should be something you can wear easily on yourself on a daily basis - Like a watch, or bangle, or finger ring, or chain, etc etc. - Something of personal significance.. And everytime you see it or touch it, you can't help but remember the person whose memory you want to keep alive....

The Most Beautiful Photography Blogs

Their pictures are beautiful
Each picture speaks a zillion words
Touches your soul
And takes your breath away!

Purple Ganesh
BY Ganesh Ramachandran

Dana Saviuc's Photography
BY Dana Savuic

Digital Photography School
BY Darren Rowse

Photostry
BY Kristie Heins

JeezoPeezo Photography
BY JeezoPeezo

Pixel Candy
BY Thomas Bonin

Photoschau
BY Frank Boenigk

Here and Now
BY Cyril Bays

Daily Dose of Imagery
BY Sam Javanrouh

Moments like This
BY Uwe Eischens

These Fleeting Moments
BY Jason Ertel

Daily Walks
BY Diane Varner

Chromasia
BY David and Libby Nightingale

Daily Does of Imagery
BY Sam Javanrouh

What's the cause for all PROBLEMS?

If there's one thing I observe all around me.. .It is PROBLEMS
Problems of all kinds
Problems of varied severities
Problems of different magnitudes
Problems with very diverse impact

And I can't help but wonder WHY are there so many PROBLEM?
After some thinking, I figured that the underlying cause for all PROBLEMS is really EXPECTATIONS....

You expect someone to say something.. They don't
You don't expect someone to say something.. They do

You expect someone to do something.. They don't
You don't expect someone to do something.. They do

You expect to see something.. You don't
You don't expect to see something.. You do

You expect something from yourself.. It doesn't happen
You don't expect something from yourself.. But it does happen

You expect something to happen.. It does not
You don't expect something to happen.. It does

And when things don't go in line with your expectations... You are bound to be unhappy, upset, angry, irritated.... And this triggers a chain of negative thoughts, emotions and actions from your end

And the thing about negativity is that Negativity breeds Negativity – certainly, rapidly and quickly! And before you realize, negativity has engulfed your life.. Not a pleasant situation to be in!

So if you can figure out a way to set realistic expectations of yourself and others; and a way to effectively communicate these expectations, your life will be a lot simple, stress-free and positive! And a lot of the micro and macro problems of the world can be effectively eliminated or controlled...

Why WOMEN should WORK?

In my life, I've known of
Women who've never worked their entire life
Women who've worked their entire life
Women who've worked some time in their life

And based on my observations and discussions with women of different ages, from different professions, from different ethnicities, from different walks of life and from different parts of the world, I've concluded that there are some IMPORTANT reasons why WOMEN should WORK...

In this blog, I have listed the key reasons...
1) You learn - Obviously, you learn about your work. But most importantly, by virtue of your day-to-day routine and interactions, you learn about life - From travelling to work, to interacting with people, to building and nurturing relationships, to time management, to effective communication, to personal financial management....

2) You have financial independance - In addition to your financial earnings, there is a huge impact on your own self-confidence and self-worth

3) You gain exposure - Working women have better exposure to the real world, to working life and life in general. And this exposure enables you to be aware and appreciate diverse points of view. The one observation that I've made here is that for women who don't work, your life tends to be pretty unidimensional and your day-to-day experiences and exposure tend to be somewhat similar. Unless you make a conscious effort to create opportunities for yourself for different kinds of exposures and experiences, you will probably not really get them..

And most importantly, working enriches your own life.... You learn.. You grow.. You evolve..

TV Serial Musings | Junior MasterChef Australia

Name of Serial: Junior MasterChef Australia
Aired On : Star World

One of my favorite TV programs in the recent past as been Junior MasterChef Austtralia... Was mulling over why I really like the show...
* Its amazing and impressive to see kids between 8 - 12 years cook exceptionally - Its not just about cooking.. But handling a range of cooking ingredients, chopping beautifully, creativity in conceptualization of the menus, their culinary prowess, presence of mind in the kitchen and presentation of the final dish with stand out
* The confidence of the kids is an absolutely treat to watch - Especially in the kitchen and in the way the conduct themselves throughout the show
* Communication skills are so impressive - Clear and Concise .. I think you can always learn a lesson or two from watching the show
* Most kids are so controlled and mature about their emotions and expressions- A failure / setback / defeat is taken in the right spirit (and very few tears or emotional drama on screen) and so also with a victory / success / achievement - There is happines and joy, but rarely did any one go over board!
* The participation of twins (Isabella and Sofia) is testimonial that probably you do inherit the "cooking gene" if it runs in your family - They are both exceptional in the kitchen
* My personal favorites on the show are Sam, Sofia, Isabella, Lucy - Love their personal style and culinary skills

What is RESPECT?

I was watching a program by Sister Shivani from Bramhakumaris in which she beautifully explained what RESPECT is.. Here’s what she said:

Respect really means:
• No judgment
• No blame
• No criticism
• No control

I’ve never really thought about what RESPECT means.. I mean I use it and people around me also use it.. But I don’t know if enough introspection is done on the meaning of this 7 letter powerful word…

The most common usages of the word respect I’ve heard are below:
• I want to be respected by …
• I have self-respect and hence….
• I don’t want anything other than respect
• Learn to respect your parents and elders …
• You have to earn respect, You can’t demand it

As I mulled over this, I realized that what Sister Shivani says is actually so profound.

Respect for others really translates to
• Not judging others – for everything they say, do and their choices
• Not criticizing others – for their actions and decisions
• Not blaming others – especially for how they impact your lives
• Not controlling others – and trying to make them change in line with your expectations

Self-respect really means
• Not judging yourself
• Not criticizing yourself
• Not blaming yourself

Pause and Think..
Do you respect yourself?
Do you respect the most important people in your life?
If not, maybe it’s time to start..