Ask here - The recipes you want from ChitVish

Dear Chithra

Thank you so much for such a quick reply time and again.

I wish to know "A Day in the Life of Chithra". How you plan and prepare your menu in a normal day / holiday / weed ends / festivals day etc.

You may reply if you wish so............... I do not insist that you should disclose. But I am very much thrilled with your versatility and quick replies to various queries :clap.

Warm Regards
Shanti
30-4-08

 

Dear Abita,
Since Gayathriar has started a thread on
What did you feed your kid today?
in the forum
Baby / Kids Foods
it will be repetitive.
I do not understand the recipe name you have asked for.
Love,
Chithra.

 

Dear Shanti,
So many have asked me this - so I am just repeating what I had been sending many by PM.
Friend, let me be frank and modest enough to admit that this question has boosted my ego !
I have a small scare that this is not a brief reply ! From early childhood, I have been an early riser. I get up by 5 A M, if not a little earlier. V gets up at 4 A M & I have given up, keeping pace with him ! After lighting the lamp in the puja room, I switch on the MW with milk, coffee percolator etc. I sit down for my early morning shlokas called Prathasmaranams.They ae a daily musty for me to begin a day. By the time, I am through them, milk & decoction are ready. With morning coffee, I switch on the computer & see the queries in Ask Chitvish or the culture thread. I start answering them one by one in the gaps of time. Till 9, I am busy with bath, kitchen work, breakfast, daily puja, cooking all dishes for lunch as well. Only the rice, I keep late in the rice cooker. After 9, I browse through the news papers etc.
Weekly 3 days I have my classes which take care of my mornings (10 – 12.30). We have lunch at 12.30. On Wednesday mornings, I do shopping, like for books, stationery & all odd things. Friday, puja takes more time. Every Saturday, I do my vegetable & fruit shopping for the week. Since ours is a compact flat, running to the computer ever hour or so & answering queries is quite easy. Broadband is a real boon to me. After lunch, I answer my e mails, private messages etc. There are some I L friends with whom I have very frequent correspondence. There are few, who write to me very regularly & I always write back to them promptly. Then I stretch my legs & relax for an hour, taking care not to sleep ! That makes me feel heavy. Lying down is like a meditation for me. I plan what all I should do, how I should go about certain situations in life – the list is endless. . When I lie down, I gather my thoughts. I plan topics, points, suitable sentences etc. Then I sit & draft recipes to be posted. I go through all my old recipe books very regularly ( they are all in tatters with over-use!) & extract recipes from them. I also write the culture thread topics with the greatest concentration. In between, I read my daily quota of shlokas & scriptures. We have tea at 3, after which I am back with I L work, writing, editing what I write, answering etc for sometime. If I want to try making new sweets or eats, I do them at this time.
In the evening we go to Marina for a walk. I love the vast expanse of sea & sky. I feel as though, my horizon & limitations expand very much ! I simply contemplate as I walk. My contemplation shapes my life as much as my doing. When I walk, I experience everything around me, but I hold on to nothing. I sometimes feel I become the world!
Back home, I quickly check queries to be replied before entering the kitchen to make dinner. I do all grinder work in the mornings, simultaneously with cooking. Morning is my most hectic and busy time. Along with tea, I make any side dish, chutney etc required for the night.
At 7, I enter the kitchen again to get dinner ready. In 45 mts-1 hr, all kitchen work is over & I close the kitchen. Now is my most enjoyable time of reading, reading & reading.
I do my reading, in front of my computer, so that I can note down points for my culture thread topics, favourite quotes etc. This time during my Madurai visit, I bought quite a few Tamil Ilakkiyam books. They are all out of the world. I also buy & read a lot of Vedanta & “heavy” books. I am not very fond of fiction. I love serious reading, but do not like to be a serious person! When I started answering queries in my forum, I used to ask myself if I can do it ably. But now I see that my fear helps focus my strength. I defeat my fear by believing in myself.
I have made a master list for monthly household essentials like provisions, toiletries, medicines etc. I finish all that shopping in the first 2, 3 days of the month. I have scribble pads in every room & note down what all I should remember to do. I love window shopping, particularly for books, gadgets, crockery etc. I like to keep abreast of what is happening around me. I spend very little time watching T V. I watch very few selected programmes. I don’t usually visit people, unless there is a need.
I close my computer by 9.30. We go to bed early. I tell myself before I sleep, happiness is not a goal. It is a result of doing what I like and relating honestly to the people, I interact with!
Shanti , I am sure you did’nt bargain for such a long reply ! Well, that is me !!
Love,
Chithra.

 

Dear Chithu,
My Thanks goes to Shanthi who had asked you this....and Bow to you for i was thinking like a "frog in the well" that only i have such a time constraint and work so hard in house as well as office and.....after reading a "Day in Chitvish's life" i feel ashamed and agree that i have been doing just 1/3th not even that of work like you....
Anyways,I'm have been constaantly inspired by you, Malathy and other great people in IL and will live up to expectations...Thanks chithu for writing this ...for u have made my day.. brighter and more clearer...

 

Dear Aishu Babes,
You have slightly embarassed me, can't help saying !!:hide:
Thanks.
Love,
Chithra.

 

Dear Mami,

i just :bowdown to you and thanks Shanti for asking mami to give us an insight into her day to day life.

Mami you have been really an eyeopener and inspiration to me. I have told you this before also but again iam reiterating that what all I have looked for in a lady you are really that. I am very proud to say that i know you and am a friend of you (if at all I can proclaim) But seeing your schedule and your meticulous way of living, I just feel ashamed to call myself your friend. Worthwile what I do is working but otherwise........ I am sorry for this but promise you I will improve and you will be proud of me.

Thanks for this eyeopener and sorry for letting you down.

 

Mami,

Just an after thought, maybe I should take a print out of this and paste it on all walls so that i keep on reading the same. At your age if you could do all these, we are really wasting our lives.

 

Dear Lalith,
If Aish has embarassed me, you have done it on a larger scale !
Please do not think, I am worthy of emulation. My parents have trained me to be a very organised individual - the same matched with V's temperament also. Ofcourse, I don't deny, there are times when he feels that I am stretching myself a little more than necessary & overdoing things. But does not object so long as the house routine goes on smoothly!
Let me tell you, every IL ite is my friend & i am more proud because you are all so much younger to me but still love me so much. I cannot thank God enough, L.
Love,
Chithra.

 

No no no....Ouch that hurts.. i did not even have a slightest intention chithu to embarass u....Even today mornign i had my daily blues for repeating rice items and got brick bats from R :-( I felt so bad whn he told that...i could not help weeping for his statement....I argued with him saying that, i do sooo much...little did i realise that elder people like you(just by age n still young at heart),my patti are doing this without complaining and y the hell on earth do i boast about me......That triggered me write to you..chithu.. anyways.. sincere apologies for making u feel that my previous reply embarassed you.....

 

Please, Aishu, don't feel bad!
To be praised is a little embarassing, but can't help saying, very flattering.Bow

Weeping is admitting they have won over you - never do that.It is equal to admitting defeat.Learn to take the spouse's comments in your stride - just tell yourself that you are not an angel & you have to improve yourself. Do not cry or retaliate - they will quiten down. Never provoke in your own interest - we may get worked up & backanswer rudely. It is not right for the sake of harmony! (not because he is superior etc - never!!)
Love,
Chithra.