Dr. Ragab's Universal Language by Robert Twigger

I picked this book up a couple of years back at M.R. Book Centre in Hyderabad. I was attracted to this book for 2 reasons- I found the title of the book catchy and the review at the back of the book mentioned it was funny.

I must admit, the reading of the book was a long drawn effort from me and I did give huge periods of break from reading the book. It was during my recent trip to Hyderabad that I finally managed to read a big part of the book.

The story is about a writer who is obsessed with bunkers and is to write about about the success story of an Aluminium Industry magnate. While preparing for this, he comes across a manuscript about Hertwig, who built a bunker on his own during the World War II and his quest for the Universal Language from the renowned and eccentric Dr. Ragab in Cairo.

A big part of the book is Hertwig's manuscript. The story is narrated in 2 parts- Hertwig's youth in the past, and the writer's present day and accordingly, different fonts are used to depict the different period. The earlier portions of the book are a bit funny- it will make you smile but not really roll on the floor laughing. As we continue to read, humour is almost non-existent, or if it is, definitely did not come across as funny to me. As the book progresses, it becomes a little philosophical. Hertwig's manuscript in particular is quite engaging and his travel through the desert has been described beautifully- it transports you to that time. The best part of the book is that it is not cluttered with too many characters. The writer has used simple language and if you recall my review of Make Me, some of the sentence construction is similar to that book, as in, sentences are unusually broken down in to small phrases which serve as stand alone sentences.

I found the ending really abrupt and did not quite understand it very well. To me, Hertwig comes across as a totally different person in the manuscript and in reality. While reading about Dr. Ragab, I really wanted to know more of his personality and capability- though he has been described as someone who is multifaceted, highly knowledgeable of several topics and eccentric, the writer has tried to emphasize on his eccentricity, which is not obvious most of the time. I would have loved to see more of his wisdom.

The Universal Language was not something I understood. There were a few words and phrases thrown in but I really did not understand what it was, as the words alone did not constitute the Universal Language. It is definitely not a mode of conversation. There were instances where Dr. Ragab uses the Universal Language to make himself invisible, which was not easy to comprehend. There is a bit of a philosophical explanation to it, which again, I did not understand. Probably, it is because I have not yet attained that level of maturity in understanding philosophical topics.

Overall, I would rate the book 3/5 due to the fact that a big part of the book was quite engaging but the ending, which was, as mentioned earlier, quite abrupt. The Universal Language could have been explained better and that I would have loved to see more character development of Dr. Ragab. It is not a bad book but not a great one.

Conversations with Siri

Inspired by the episode on the Big Bang Theory where Raj and Siri, the virtual assistant on Apple products engage in a conversation, I have tried the same on several occasions when I did not have much to do. Excerpts of some recent conversations:

When the focus is on Siri:











On My Boredom:



On Friendship






Apple vs Google vs Microsoft
























When Siri resorts to Sidhuism/Tharoorism



Some random chit-chat

Q1 Review of Goals

In the beginning of the year, I set aside some goals (click here). It was time I reviewed my performance on these just to see where I was:

Health: Keep up my daily exercise routine and ensure that I work-out atleast 5 days a week. Eat healthy meals every day- monthly once cheat day would be allowed. I would also go to bed at a pre-defined time and wake up everyday at the same time.

Q1 Update: For a big part of 2018, I have kept this up but I must admit, I have fallen off the wagon a bit in the month of April. I plan to reinforce my work on this goal from May.

Sharpening My Culinary Skills: I have decided to not just cook regular homely meals but push myself to prepare more gourmet dishes. I have made some in 2017 as well but would like to take things to another level. I have decided to cook 10 gourmet savoury dishes and 10 gourmet sweet dishes in the year. I will be scheduling this in my monthly planner. It will take an effort to get the recipes and ingredients together. It is a little ambitious but I will do my best.

Q1 Update: I was so lost on how to go about this. On the face of it, this might seem quite simple but in reality, was quite difficult. However, the TV show Chef's Line gave me a clear direction on how to proceed. I have now a very good idea of what to cook. I have gathered enough recipes and will be cooking them away from May. Now all these years, I have only been cooking for my family of 3. This year though, I have been regularly cooking for guests and have received a good feedback from them. So, I would not really be very hard on myself about this goal. The service to the guests has kept the machine running.

Blogging: I have decided to blog once a week in 2018. I do not want to blog sporadically but keep to a schedule. I have been inspired by Mr. Vinod Ekbote who has been blogging for the last 10 years and has been posting every Friday on his blog without fail- click here to check out the blog. I just think I need to set time aside for it and do it every week. I have a diary that is full of things that I would like to put up on my blog but due to several reasons have not been able to do so. However, I am determined to do it in 2018.

Q1 Update: This is one thing that I have been doing quite consistently this year. I hope to keep it that way. At the end of the year, I expect to have 52 blog posts. The most challenging part about this goal is pushing myself to come up with content every single week.

Watercolour Art: I am enjoying learning watercolour art from various online resources. I would make at least 10 proper watercolour paintings in 2018. It just must be scheduled in my monthly planner.

Q1 Update: I must admit, I have not focussed on this goal at all. However, this exercise of reviewing my goals at the end of the quarter, has helped me realise that the area where I have lacked focus. From the month of May, there will be a sure-shot progress here as well (Wow!! May is surely going to be a hot month!)

Launching my Youtube Channel: This has been on my mind for some time. I have still some way to go. I am not sure if it will be possible in 2018. I have to shoot some high quality videos and do some high quality editing. This is a good-to-do goal for 2018 and not must-do as I do not want to rush into it and put up some shoddy videos out in public.

Q1 Update: I am not working towards it too much. I do not feel prepared yet for this. I have created some private video content but there is still a long way to go. I might not actively pursue this goal this year. If it happens, well and good but I will not beat myself up if it does not work out.

Writing: in my journal everyday and at least one page a day. The goal I had in 2017 was to finish writing on all pages of the journal, which in the hindsight, did not make much sense. The goal for 2018 will not only ensure that I keep to my habit of writing, but also as a bonus, would help me finish writing on all the pages. I hope I will not get demotivated like 2017 and give up.

Q1 Update: I have been doing this quite regularly but to be honest, I really do not have much or anything to write on certain days. However, I am doing way better than 2017. I would say I have written on 90% of the days.

Reading: I have lowered the number of books to read in 2018 to 10. As you can see, there is a lot on my plate and I do not want to make the activity that I love so much to be one that induces stress. I would also like to read some good literature, and not just fun-light reading books. I think reading before bed works for me great and I think a good 15-30 minutes before bed would be great.

Q1 Update: This is work in progress. However, it is moving at a snail's pace. I did have a big reader's block, which seems to be vanishing slowly. I am on the verge of completing my first book of the year. It should be done soon. Maybe today or latest by tomorrow.

Travelling: It is my goal to travel to 5 different places in 2018. I better get started on my vacation planning soon.

Q1 Update: A lot of plans have been made and so far, nothing has materialised. However, I am quite positive about it coming to fruition in the coming months.

Apart from this, I am working actively on some of my professional and personal goals and I hope to see some progress in the coming days.

When Life Gives You Onions....Chop Them Without Tears

Life is like an Onion. You peel it off one layer at a time, and sometimes you weep.

- Carl Sandburg

This is a great simile but in reality, we tend to weep almost every time we chop onions. I learnt by observation over a period of time that this is not completely true as well. I have personally experienced tearless onion chopping. This post was inspired by a question posted on one of the food groups that I am a part of on Facebook- "Is there any way we can chop onions without weeping?" To be honest, I thought it was common knowledge on how one could tearlessly chop onions but the post made me realise that there are still quite a few people who may not be aware.

If you browse the internet, you will find several hacks which may work as well. However, I would like to share with you what really works for me- Refrigerate the onions for at least 30 minutes before chopping them. You need to start chopping them almost immediately and not let them come back to room temperature. 

The Science Behind this Hack:

When we chop onions, syn-propanethial-S-oxide is released which reaches our eyes, irritate them and cause watering. The molecules of the this compound are made less volatile when refrigerated and does not rush up to our eyes as soon as we begin to cut into onions. So, it is important that you chop up the onions before they reach room temperature. It would take a good 10-15 mins for the chilled onions to arrive at room temperature which is more that enough for you to do the chopping, unless of course you are planning to chop up a huge quantity of onions- in which case you should invest some time in planning.

The other thing to remember is- do not store onions in the refrigerator for days, months, years, decades and centuries. It could lead them to spoil, not to mention the stench, and then, you would be weeping for different reasons. Just pop them in the refrigerator just 30 minutes before chopping them. If you are in a great hurry, just put them in the freezer for about 6-8 minutes before chopping.

Let us give the onions what they deserve- a happy, joyful devouring rather than an irritable, tearful one.

Hyderabad- After 6 months

I was returning to Hyderabad after 6 months of moving out of the city. It was for a short trip of 4 days with my family. I was staying at my home there and it was a very different experience this time. Previously, I went into a nicely set home where we had everything one needed to lead a comfortable life. However, since we moved out now, the home there was almost barren. There was no furniture except for a cot that we deliberately left behind, no utensils, no TV, no wi-fi internet, no refrigerator, no gas connection, no air-conditioning etc. Here is an account of the highlights of the trip.

Day 1: We arrived in Hyderabad during the early morning hours in Kacheguda. It was cooler than we anticipated. I love the sight of the beautiful white Kacheguda station- it seems like one made for the royal family.
 Once home, we got it cleaned. The next thing we wanted to do was have a shower. However, the water would not pass through the geyser, so we booked a OYO room in a nearby hotel....until we discovered an electric kettle that we left behind in a wall cabinet. It really came to our rescue. We thought of several uses of it- the most important one being able to heat the water for a bath. We heated the water using the kettle for our bath and since it was all working fine, cancelled our hotel room. We went out for a brunch and then a bit of shopping to Sultan Bazaar. If you remember my previous blog post (click here if you do not), I really like shopping in Sultan Bazaar. We wanted to keep our luggage light so did not really buy much. However, we did go to Rajshree Dry Fruits and got some simple snacks to munch on and also a pack of instant misal and pav. Day 1 though hot, was quite bearable with a fan to keep us cool. I slept on the floor with just a sheet and an air-pillow (the one which is inflated by blowing air into it) and this continued throughout the trip.

The Life-changing Kettle definitely deserved some credit in this blog

Day 2: We had Misal-Pav for breakfast. We reconstituted the misal with the boiling hot water from the kettle. We purchased a small glass bowl so that we can use it for the basic cooking with the water from the kettle, if needed. After finishing a bit of business in the city, we had a lunch in a restaurant.  We also purchased a couple of packs of instant noodles and used the boiling water from the kettle to cook it. I had this for dinner, along with a banana. One could really feel the sweltering hot Hyderabad summer and the urge to drink lots of water.

Day 3: This was a movie day. After lunch we went to watch a movie, which was just an excuse to enjoy the air-conditioning of the theatre. On our way back, we had a nice snack and also parcelled a bit of food for dinner. However, the snack was quite filling and we skipped the dinner. Now, the challenge was to store the parcelled food without the refrigerator. My MIL came up with an amazing solution. We filled up the glass bowl we bought on day 2 with water and placed a plastic container with the food in it, in the glass bowl. The food was intact on the following day. The temperature touched 40C this day and it was pretty hot.

Day 4: This day for me was a reunion with my friends. I met a few of them in a mall and a few of them in my former office. It was time well spent and was great catching-up. I felt like I never left. All our friendships were still as warm as they were 6 months ago. I really had a good time. I hope they liked the home-made chocolates (made by someone else, not me) I got for them. It was a hot day again with temperature touching 40C yet again.

What Changed in Hyderabad in 6 months:

• The metro service in the city has started and the construction in other parts of the city seemed to be in full-swing with greater energy than 6 months back.
• I absolutely loved the replacement of conventional bulbs illuminating the streets, with LED lights. The streets now not only seem brighter than before but also cooler owing to the white light compared to the fire-like lights from bulbs.
• In the Hi-Tec City part of Hyderabad, there has been massive development of buildings, in just 6 months. The areas that seemed pretty barren were now lodged with a lot of new completed/under-construction buildings. My only fear after viewing the rapid urbanisation is a fate similar to Bangalore. I hope the Telangana government would learn from Bengaluru's woes and take necessary measures.
• Durgam Cheruvu was neglected for quite some time. I think they have started some sort of a beautification process there which seems interesting. The place has had on and off attention and it is good to see some change being brought about there.
•  Hyderabad for once seemed quite expensive. At least I did not feel any difference in the price of commodities compared to Bangalore, which seemed pretty obvious when I moved there 5.5 years ago. In fact, some things seemed more expensive in Hyderabad. The rents might be still cheaper compared most of the other southern capital cities, but it is climbing up is what I have heard.
• The traffic seems to have gone up considerably as well but still not in a terrible situation.

The one thing I hoped would change but did not was Autorickshaws. They have a meter but it is just because the vehicle came with it. There is absolutely no intention to use it and one is at the mercy of the price quoted by the drivers. Though some of them budge from the quoted price, most do not.

This trip gave me an opportunity to disconnect for longer periods during the day, from the world of webs. I really felt nostalgic about the time I moved to Hyderabad as a bride, the time I bade farewell to my best friend from there and her visit in one occasion after she left Hyderabad, the joys and troubled times that we sailed through together as a family. I also made a lot of progress with my reading- review would be posted once I am done reading. I wish I could go to Himalaya Book World, Deccan Pen Stores in Abids and a whole bunch of other places in the city and meet more of my friends- maybe next time!