3 AM.

I lay down — absolutely still. I was the bait. Breathing carefully, I waited. I did not have to wait too long. They came. In great numbers. I raised my weapon. Chinese made. Shaped like a badminton racquet. Deadly. Swift. I waved it in long, dangerous arcs. Zap-tapety-tap-zapety-zap. Electrocuted. Blown to smithereens. I withdrew.

Outside, Bombay danced in the rain.

And then, the world ceased to exist. Our solar system collapsed under its own weight. The sun was but a dying white dwarf. The Milky Way, like all other galaxies continued to travel through space towards that ever elusive super galaxy. Space kept expanding. Ever. Forever. What was the universe heading toward? Has this all happened before? Are we merely an insignificant anomaly in an unremarkable iteration of spacetime?

Enough has already been written on the subject of Shrimp v/s. Prawns here. Biological differences notwithstanding, from a culinary perspective, both shrimp and prawn are the same and the terms are used interchangeably. That being said, none of the shrimp or prawns I’ve had the pleasure of tasting ever stood up to the black tiger prawns that are commonly available in India.

For the purpose of this recipe, any of the widely available variants of shrimp or prawns will do. One of the most important ingredients of this recipe is the spice “teppal”/”tirpal” — Sichuan Spice. As of this writing, I have not been able to locate this spice in any store in South Florida. I got my stash from India. If you don’t have this spice, I suggest you don’t attempt to prepare this curry. The distinct konkani flavor of this curry cannot be duplicated by any other spice. It’s not worth the trouble.

Now that all the disclaimers are out of the way, here we go –

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of raw, deveined shrimp, tail off

• 2 cups of shredded coconut

• 15 dry red chillies

• 20 cloves of teppal/tirpal/Sichuan Spice

• 100 grams of raw tamarind

• Salt to taste

Preparation Method:

• Soak the tamrind in one cup of warm water and set aside.

• Soak the teppal in another cup of warm water and set aside.

• Blend shreded coconut and red chillies with some water in a mixer. Once done, heat the blend at medium flame on a conventional stove for 30 minutes.

• Add salt, tamrind paste and soaked teppal and bring the mixture to boil. Add shrimp and heat till the shrimp is cooked.

Serving Instructions:

Serve with steamed white rice and mango pickle (on a banana leaf, if available)

My Celestron Powerseeker telescope

Galileo peered into the heavens and saw the lunar surface for the first time in 1610. I admit I discovered the joy of interstellar observation very late. But, I am glad I did — sooner than later — and it all came to me in one fell swoop — the grand beauty of the cosmos, the smallness of our existence, the vulnerability of our being and the crowded loneliness of the experience that is human life.

The long worn uneven streets dream away at night,
of seven little tempest-tost sea rocks that became one.
The city of lepers and kings burns fiery bright,
with similes and tears of hundreds under her scorching sun.

Her Arabian sands have seen much blood,
she weeps each night for her teeming shores.
“Oh little man, of my soil and blood,
you’ve brought hatred through my hallowed doors.”

“Struck me with your indifference, your sarcasm, and more,
you forget the truth, and truth it is you know -
I’m your mother, your wife, your wretched whore,
a therapeutic escape”, she would bellow.

Behold, tiny man – I stand here as shall I forever – the truth undone,
seven little islands – destined to be one.

Dear Raj — pray, listen — give me a chance to change your mind –

Maharashtra is a great state — and its people; magnificent and kind, upright and honest. In the form of Bombay, Maharashtra has given India, its economic headquarters. Agreed. Remember however, that this prosperity was not born, merely on the basis of the potent Marathi blood. No. When people from the south and the north, and the west and the east — all worked together, in brotherhood and love, the greatness of Maharashtra was enhanced — the glory of our great state, Maharashtra, belongs to not just the good people of the soil, but it is also the property of the rest of India who participated in its growth.

Let us not deny people from outside Maharashtra, their right to a shared prosperity. Remember, always, my brother — that we are a part of a larger entity — India. And the constitution says that every Indian has the right of dwell in any location of his choice and pursue prosperity and happiness. It would be unconstitutional to deny anyone this right. Consider for a moment, the thousands of people of Maharashtrian origin, residing currently in some other state of our vast nation — how do you expect them to be treated? Wouldn’t you feel your blood boil with a strange mix of fury and shame if images of these people being beaten up by the local people of that state started flashing in the news? Expect that feeling to have been evoked in the hearts of the good people of Uttar Pradesh over the senseless violence that has ensued in Dombivali and other regions of the Thane district and parts of Bombay after your speech.

After your speech — must make you really proud — and a little afraid. To wield that kind of power over the collective destinies of millions. Raj, please use this responsibility with great caution. The lives of many thousand men, women and children hang in the balance. It is not very late to make amends. Start fresh  — start with tolerance.

Remember, tolerance was something the great Chattrapati preached — I believe, we have forgotten — its not too late to remember.
 

Jai Maharashtra. Jai Hind.

Amit
A proud Maharashtrian

Anyway, after the initial surprise at meeting a friend thousands of miles from home, and the exchange of general questions and answers about our current life and purpose of stay in this foreign land, we decided to drive up to Starbucks for coffee. Knowing that this guy was a, errm, I guess there is no good way to say this — knowing that this guy was a tad rigid with money, I offered to buy coffee. Over coffee, he completely turned me off by singing absurd songs of praise for the American way of life and his perverted, off-the-mark, unfair comparisons between Bombay and Miami.

I admit that the streets here are wider and cleaner and the life here is comfortable, however, I believe it is disgusting when people land in America and immediately make inappropriate  and disparaging comments about the country that they lived in for most of their life — a country to which they have everything to owe, and left just a day ago.

I love South Florida, it is like a second home to me – with it’s warm people, wide roads, sunny beaches, small lakes every few miles, safe residential communities, abundant supermarkets and drive thru restaurants. But, I also love my city, Bombay — where the blood and sweat of 18 million people churns to drive the country’s economy and where mom cooks fish curry and rice every Sunday of the year.

At such times, you realize that you are no longer the same person you were in some recent memory. If you are sensitive, your mind may react with shock to such conclusion. And you may, if the transformation in question has negative repercussions, start making conscious efforts to reverse the transformation.

Such denial is healthy to a certain extent. Beyond a particular threshold (defined conveniently, by the nature of the situation), such denial can lead to emotional injury. It is important to be wary of such denial and make only controlled and externally aided efforts to negate the change. The most effective external aid is the support of family and friends and such support should be solicited aggressively.

However, a large percentage of the times, the transformation in question is positive and it is important to treat the realization of such transformation with the respect it deserves. Often, celebrating such transformation is important to obtain closure. Closure is the single most important factor in the acceptance of personal change.