Category: Uncategorized (Page 4 of 4)

Baking is fun!

Pat-a-cake, Pat-a-cake baker’s man,

Bake me a cake as fast as you can,

Pat it and roll it and mark it with a ‘B’,

Put it in the oven for baby and me!

so goes the rhyme….that is how much fun baking can be, if you put your mind into it!

B for Baking….

If you search the net for the definition of baking, you will know that, baking is a process in which cooking is done using dry heat, like that in an oven or cooking on hot stones or even hot sand. (I remember when my mom used to make yummy Osmania biscuits, which she baked on hot sand and fed us poor souls! She loves to cook, so I have tasted many varieties of dishes and that has made a picky eater like me into a complete foodie. Thank you Amma.)

Thankfully, baking doesn’t only mean cooking in oven or on hot stones and sand, it can also be done through steam, called steam baking and our own pressure cookers are the perfect examples of that. You can even buy Steam Oven if you are invested in cooking healthy!

But it is difficult to talk about baking and not to mention French Bakers and their breads.  While we lived in Charlotte, NC, USA, Mr.Bee and I used to visit a French Bakery Amelie, which always had a heavy inflow of customers, coming for their chocolate eclairs and croissants. Although I didn’t mind eating there, I still missed the curry puffs from our Desi bakeries, back home! I love their bread, though. Never seen so many different shapes of bread and I found heaven on earth. (Bread makes me salivate!)

Anyway, baking is a good hobby. I managed to bake a cake on GBee‘s third birthday, during peak COVID lock-down, with the help of Mr.Bee. I decorated it with crushed Gems, because GBee loves them, like a lot!!

The cake may not look like it, but it was yummy. We made it with bourbon biscuits, thanks to my friend K. (Even Marie biscuits can be used to bake a cake. They are Indian alternate to Graham Crackers)  Even though the cake had a wonderful taste and vanished into our mouths an hour after our baking, GBee hardly had a spoonful. He hates cakes. Even now, he only eats the chocolate flowers or balls which are used on top of a cake for decoration, but leaves out the main cake!

Now that I think about it, Mr.Bee baked me a cake, a year into our marriage.  He made it from scratch, moulds, multi purpose flour, whisking, baking in oven etc etc. (we were in USA then) I think it was a chocolate lava cake or something. Thank you Mr.Bee, once again!

Mr.Bee made the cake, topping it with my favourite fruit, strawberry.

So, have you even tried baking as a hobby yet?

P.S:

  1. Cooking in a Tandoor (clay) oven to make naan comes under baking.
  2. The French bread that I love is the Wheat Stalk bread, which I had at the Venetian, Las Vegas. (That might be because I loved the place as well!)

3. I love watching MasterChef Australia. It taught me so much. Although I don’t cook most of what is shown in the series, I enjoy watching chefs exhibit their creativity.

I also love a webtoon, Gourmet Hound, which taught me so much about French Baking!

Let me add Li Ziqi in the mix! She is a Chinese vlogger, whose videos I watch, which promote healthy traditional way of living.

4. The other hobbies starting with a B are Barbecuing , Badminton and Body Building. I have a long list of hobbies to post, so there will be a windfall of posts this month. Till the next hobby post, cheerio. Oh, do check out all the links in the post, if you want to go deeper into the topic. Au revoir my French bread loving friends!

Amigurumi

Foreword:

April is the month, where bloggers participate in A-Z blogging event. I had been a part of this for a couple or more years, but ‘missing’ older data and the gap years in my blogging activity, pushed this event out off the window. So this year I am participating in the A-Z Blogging Challenge again and the theme is going to be A-Z Hobbies!  That  brings us to A for Amigurumi.

Amigurumi

Firstly, crocheting and knitting are two techniques, where yarn is used to make sweaters, doilies, scarfs, winter wear and the likes. In crocheting, one hook needle is used to create art, using yarn, whereas in knitting, two needles are used. (So basically, only the one needle is the difference between crochet and knitting!)

Doilies are decorative mats mostly used as coasters

Amigurumi is the extension of crocheting and knitting. It is the Japanese art of making cute stuffed dolls using crocheting/knitting techniques.

Queen Bee and bee Amigurumi dolls

Like you can see in the image, in the Amigurumi dolls yarn is crocheted/ knit for the outer covering and stuffed inside.

If you want to start Amigurumi, the crocheting patterns for each shape is available online, which makes replicating the dolls comparatively easy. There are also Amigurumi clubs where enthusiasts can join and learn together.

Check out the link for Amigurumi related stuff.

Go ahead and watch the video if you are interested to learn some basics.

P.S:

  1. For all the people who have abundance of patience and who don’t mind repeating the same pattern, Amigurumi is for you. Go ahead, get the needles moving! I am already a little late on my A-Z Blogging Challenge schedule, thanks to GBee and his summer holidays leaving me with little time on hands. I plan to complete the challenge and post about other stuff too.
  2. I do have an Amigurumi keychain of my own, gifted by Mr.Bee. I also tried my hand at crocheting very briefly and managed to make a dozen bangles for myself.

3. The other hobbies starting with an A are Astrology, Astronomy, Art Collection , Acting and Animation. Till the next post, Sayonara!

Fighting the Writer’s Block!

Writer’s Block is a phenomenon in which a writer’s brain freezes temporarily and it is unable to come up with any new exciting ideas to write! Every writer, blogger, amateur story teller and the likes face this, once in a while, when they are stuck  thinking about what to write next. There is always a solution for this. Personally, hot water bath helps or after singing my favourite songs, inspiration comes to me, each time. So ya, writer’s block is manageable!

This is an old post from 2018, when I had a severe case of writer’s block, unable to write at all. That’s when I wrote this letter addressing writer’s block itself, telling ‘him’, he is not welcome at all!

Read ahead….. (This was how I used to write then..)

—————-***—————–

Dear writer’s block,

It is not you, it is me, who is breaking up with you.

Just when I started taking baby steps towards becoming a writer, you show up and I fell for you!

All the stories I started to write, I had left them unfinished, just because you demanded more of my time, but then you said I lacked quality….

When I tried to drive away the spiders weaving cobwebs of inactivity in my brain, you asked me not to bother writing again….

Many times I would talk to people, to get more ideas, to get a new perspective and you would say…’you lack inspiration’!

I loved you , but you had always been selfish and insensitive. You knew how much I wanted to write and you have always stopped me by saying, the more popular I become the less I would have time for you.

If I managed to write something in spite of your admonitions, your criticisms brought me down like a pack of lifeless cards…

It’s been a year and I feel miserable, for you crushed my hopes, like a dying cigarette is!

Enough…break up it is!( Should I say Talak- Talak- Talak?)

Go away and let me write in peace…

Wait!

Let me return all your gifts, the lazy ring, the ‘No-time-to write‘ watch and the bland ‘No-Inspiration‘ dress you gifted me.

As you may ask for any last words, here they are, NEVER RETURN!

Yours,

Not- so – in – love,

now- Ex.Girl Friend,

Queen Bee.

Holi Ke Din….

As usual, at 1 o’clock in the afternoon,  I was eagerly waiting for the return of GBee from his school. Just as he put his foot inside the hall, I saw his face. It was covered partially with green colour on his cheeks and forehead. That was when it hit me that tomorrow is Holi!

The rectangular thing in my hand is supposed to be a cell!

Looking at GBee in colours reminded me that, gone are the days when I would look forward to Holi!

I remember the days when we used to return to school with traces of gulaal (pink colour) in our hair, faces and hands. The more pink one appeared, the more proud we would feel. Being pink meant, we had played and enjoyed the festival!

QB with pink highlights in hair and some random classmates talking about Holi

There used to be this gang of rowdy boys, who would come to our apartment every year on Holi,  They would catch hold of the guys in our apartment and brush their teeth with gulaal and blue colours! (Yuk!Who would want dirty colours in their mouth and teeth? Beats me!) They would also throw eggs at us kids. Phew, who would want smelly eggs on their heads, mixed with bunch of colours? Double yuk! If you are being chased by someone with an egg in hand, suddenly sit down on the floor and you probably would avoid being hit!

Trying to avoid an egg on the head? Just sit down suddenly!

Those were the days, we would drench each other in buckets of gulaal water and begin to shiver. To stop the shiver, we would stand under the Sun, in the middle of the road! (Who even does that now?)

Even the uncles in the apartment would play Holi. I remember one particular incident when someone brought silver colour to play and the next day, my father and I had severe rashes on our faces. (Silver is danger!)

The ladies in the apartment would play with the good old kumkum and haldi.  We even had fun scaring away the domestic helps, who would come to their respective flats to work. We would sneak attack! If we sneak attack now, we may get beatings, people are less forgiving these days.

During one Holi celebrations in my schooling days, I had taken an egg in my hair, from K, who was younger to me. (How dare he mess up with a senior!) I waited in the verandah, till my mom had hot water ready for my bath . Meanwhile, I was fed lunch, by my dad. What fun!

I pity the generation of kids who have no idea how to spend time away from a t.v. or cell.  They have no idea of how safe our world was and how carefree we were, while we played on the streets, away from deranged people who lay hands on innocent kids or the violent stray dogs or the lack of traffic and vehicles on streets. Those days can never come back!

P.S:

  1. Before going out to play Holi, it is better to apply oil on your face and hands. This way, you won’t look like a pink alien in office. This is for all those who hate looking like they drank gulaal!
  2. My favourite Holi song is Arey Jaa re Hatt from Navrang, a very old Hindi movie, directed by Shantaram. Not everyone likes it, but check it out. The dancer Sandhya acts as both boy and girl in the song. It was a sensation in those days. (Let me be your DJ for Holi and suggest grooving to these songs…)

and also this…from Sholay, hence the title of the post!

Lastly, I would like to mention Balam Pichkari from Yeh Jawani Hai Diwani….

Did I miss any popular Holi song?  Do drop a comment and let me know. Till the next post, cheerio!

The Ugly Butterfly

Those were the ‘Happy Days’ of my life! (Just like the Telugu movie, Happy Days, set in CBIT, Hyderabad, this post is of me, during my Engineering College days.)

During those days, the only worries I ever had were, does my dress look too flashy? Will the seniors decide to rag me because of my dress? What seminar should I attend? What is my attendance percentage? Is it really above 75% ?

Anyway, I have always been insect friendly.  So, naturally, the ever beautiful butterflies were also among my friends, who caught my attention every now and then. But don’t go imagining the beautiful Costa Rican blue butterflies here!

Blue Butterflies = luck

The Costa Ricans actually  believe that spotting a blue butterfly means luck is on your side. (Lucky Shivudu. Spotting a group of blue butterflies must be the reason he could climb the waterfalls, defying death! This is part of Baahubali story. Hope you watched it. It is one of the most iconic scenes, with a magnificent waterfalls in the backdrop. Never was CGI used more beautifully for creating a waterfall)

The butterfly that I am actually referring to was a far cry from these beauties. Although our Engineering college campus had its share of huge farmland insects, thanks to all the farm lands and vineyards around our campus, this one was a surprise.  I had seen big grasshoppers the size of my hand, beetles the size of lemons and some insects whose names I don’t even know.

After a fun filled day at college, I was exhausted and I lept on to my bed , ready to end the day.  We (me and sister shared our bedroom) chatted away, after turning off the light in our room. I turned to my side in my bed and put my hand on the pillow beside me. My hand touched something and I felt something flee the spot, like rushing away! I jumped out of my bed, ran towards my sister’s bed and turned on the light! I saw the most surprising thing ever!

It was a huge butterfly, with each wing, a little bigger than the size of my hand, whose wings were as rough as the skin of a crocodile! It was wheatish in colour. (That must have been the reason I couldn’t spot it before sleeping. Camouflage!)  It was completely different from the notion I had of butterflies and the tender love I always had for the colourful beauties vanished!

Once we spotted the butterfly, all hell broke loose!

The Ugly Butterfly, refusing to budge, while I and sis were at wits end.

We began jumping up and down, crying out loud. Our commotion brought my parents into our room. We demanded our dad to chase it away or we wouldn’t sleep at all.  After 10 minutes of extreme effort with a mop, dad managed to chase it out. It was such a stubborn butterfly refusing to budge. It must have been scared about the commotion it was creating!

Sadly, one of its wings was hurt. (It was unintentional. Seeing such a butterfly in our midst made us adamant. We wanted it out of our room at any cost.) I am mostly a forgiving person, but once it perched on my bed, I knew it was better to get rid of it. I can still remember how I felt when I touched it by mistake!

Looking back, I now understand that, even in the midst of the concrete jungle, a wild butterfly managed to survive!

P.S:

1.  Our college chairman once said during our Annual day celebrations, that he was torn between, whether to use the land to ‘grow’ grapes in his vineyard or to use the land to build the college to ‘grow’ students!

Our college was in the middle of farms and vineyards. I also remember seeing Sunflowers each morning. Happy Days indeed!

2. One of Mr.Bee’s friend, J from our days in Charlotte had presented him with a souvenir of a Blue Butterfly, after his trip to Costa Rica. That’s how I got to know the significance of the blue butterflies.

More posts coming up. Till then, cheerio!

Ignorance is (NOT) Bliss!

Whoever said ignorance is a bliss needs to meet me personally, to get an earful! They must be joking, right?

I learnt my lesson the hard way.

Let me elaborate on the point…

All had been well and I remember announcing the arrival of Baby No. 2 , KBee, in my blog and that was my last post for 2021.  I also re-christened my first born, from Baby Bee to GBee, now that he is not a baby anymore, but a pre-schooler. (We named our first born as MG and the younger one as MK. )

Anyway….coming back to my original  plot of the post…

2021 had been a busy year, what with my share of good and not so good experiences. By the time we entered the last quarter of 2021, I had been so ignorant that my hosting plan had expired! I couldn’t renew it within a month of expiry date, due to issues with the credit card. (My blog was being hosted with my previous USA address, even after relocating to India)

I cursed the bank and the Government for the new guidelines, which made the renewal difficult. (Conspiracy right under my nose!) I lost all the years worth of my precious moments, events and prize winning blog posts to the “black hole” of internet. (Sadly my backups failed me.)

I don’t know how Lord Voldemort must have felt when Harry Potter destroyed all the seven horcruxes, the 7 parts of his evil soul, one at a time, but when I lost all the 7 year worth of precious data, I felt “this” must be it! (I am a Harry Potter nerd , through and through. I tend to drag Harry Potter world into my life, drawing parallels. J.K.Rowling must be thankful for having me as a fan! I hate ‘The Cursed Child’, that’s there!)

I felt so sad for a couple of days, I never knew one could connect so emotionally to one’s own writings. I shed many a precious tears, I mourned the early and sudden demise of my blog.

Slowly I let bygones be bygones and decided to start afresh.

So here’s to a new beginning of the blog, albeit with an old name!

Welcome back to BeeAfterYou, where the buzzing is always true!

P.S:

  1. It feels so gratifying and encouraging when friends and family enquire after my blog and my writing schedule or the lack there of! It is such a humbling experience and truly inspires me to sit , write , edit, edit, edit, edit and post!

Thank you for all the love and I truly appreciate the concern. Lots and lots of love, dear readers…. QueenBee is back!

😉

P.P.S:

It is better to back up all your files regularly. If you are a fellow blogger, please back up and store it in a fool proof place.

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