This story on BBC about Essena O’Neill, a very popular Australian social media celebrity, helped me stand back once again and re-examine the effect that social media has on our lives today. A while back I posted about happiness and turning off social media, and that was quite some time before I finally closed my own…
My Favorite Cooking Shows
I love to eat. I don’t always love to cook (namely after 12 hour work shifts), so preparing delicious meals at home is unfortunately not a daily occurrence in my home. Add to the fact that I have yet to master the organizational skills it requires to meal plan and prep for dinners, and some…
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
Last night my husband and I were searching for a movie to watch and I found this title on iTunes. I had never heard of it, but it seemed to have great reviews, and given my weird interest in topics around death and dying, I thought it would be an interesting movie. It ended up…
On Having a Daughter
To be frank, when I first became pregnant I was hoping for a son. Don’t get me wrong — it is not because I think sons are more desirable than daughters or because of the worldwide view of boys as being “superior.” On the contrary, I am very passionate about the rights of girls and…
Family
Family Family wraps you in its arms From the moment you enter the world It nurtures your growth Consoles your tears Corrects your mistakes It guides your feet to walk the earth Family cooks your favorite meals And makes your favorite sweets It feeds your heart and soul with love It sings old lullabies that…
Dr. Abraham Verghese on the Importance of Touch
Sometime during medical school, I heard about a book about treating patients during the onset of the AIDS epidemic in America. I was surprised and delighted to learn that the author, Abraham Verghese, was Indian, and, like me, his roots were from Kerala, India. Given my deep interest in HIV medicine and Infectious Diseases at the…
Idli Sambar
As of late, I have been having a lot of Malayali/South Indian food cravings. The simplest recipes like moru curry (a simple dish of yogurt and turmeric served over rice) and pickled mango or lemon (achar) have brought me great comfort. Several weeks ago I called to ask my mom for her her avial recipe…
Readjusting Expectations
Lately I’ve been pondering expectations and how they have changed (or not changed) over the past decade or so of my life. Expectations, specifically from the people in our lives, can be a sticky area to navigate. We all have different ideas of how people should treat us and how we would treat others, and…
Priya’s Shakti: Gender Crimes Awareness Through a Comic Book
I’ve written numerous times about India’s rape problem (here, here, here). Ever since the brutal rape and murder of Jyoti Singh Pandey in December 2012, numerous stories of rape and mistreatment of women have made it into the global media. The spotlight has been turned on India and it is still shining, slowly burning through the…
Fruit & Nut Overnight Oats
During our honeymoon in Thailand, we enjoyed a daily complimentary breakfast that was unlike any other continental breakfast I’ve ever had. Each morning there was a wide variety of breads, cured meats, pureed jams, fruits, and freshly squeezed juices to choose from. It was a challenge not to eat a bit of everything (which we…
With Liberty and Justice for All
A recent news story about a New York school allowing students to recite the pledge of allegiance in Arabic sparked controversy across the country. It appears that many were upset by this, and the school ended up apologizing for allowing it. My question is why? The school had been reciting the pledge in different languages…
Aziz Ansari Feminism
My husband and I recently watched Aziz Ansari’s latest stand-up routine on Netflix and I have a newfound respect for this brother from another mother. I think this is actually the first stand-up of his I had seen, and it definitely makes me want to go back and watch more! I only really got to…
pen . paper . storm 