Category: writing

Podalanga Kootu

Kootu is really easy to make, especially in a Ninja Foodi. It is a quintessential Tamil food and I enjoyed learning to make it. I got a snake gourd from my grandmother’s garden in College Station. I had a lot of fun making this recipe and thought I’d share it with you!

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup chopped snake gourd
  • 1/8 cup masoor dal
  • 1/8 cup moong dal
  • 1/8 tsp turmeric powder
  • salt (to taste)
To Roast and Grind
  • 1 1/2 tbsp grated coconut
  • 3/8 tsp cumin seeds
  • 1/8 tsp peppercorns
  • 1/2 tsp urad dal
  • 3/4 tsp chana dal
  • 1/2 a dried chili
  • 6 to 7 curry leaves (fresh from our garden)
  • 1 tsp canola oil
Tadka
  • 1/2 tsp canola oil
  • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
  • 1/2 tsp urad dal
  • 1 pinch asafoetida

Directions:

  1. Wash the moong and masoor dal and soak them in 1 cup water. Add the turmeric and salt.
  2. Power on the saute mode on medium heat in the Ninja Foodi. Next, add 1 tsp oil and add all the ingredients mentioned under “to roast and grind” and saute until the lentils start turning golden.
  3. Remove from the Foodi and set aside to cool. When cool enough, grind the ingredients with a little water to form a thick paste.
  4. Add 1/2 tsp oil to the pot and add all the ingredients for the tadka. Let the mustard seeds pop. Keep the saute mode on high.
  5. Now add the chopped vegetable, soaked lentils along with water, 1 cup water. Switch off the saute mode.
  6. Add the ground paste to the Ninja Foodi and close the lid. Pressure cook at high for 7 minutes. Wait for the pressure to release.
  7. Enjoy!

This stew tastes best with hot rice and ghee. You can also enjoy it with chapati. Any kind of squash or gourd can be used instead of podalanga.

Bridges: A Poem

Bridges are a marvelous thing
Sometimes magical and mystical
Sometimes unnerving

Used to transport things
One point to another
Maybe because we don’t have wings

Strands of wire, rock, or steel
Beautiful designs and
Colors too! From orange to teal

Amazing things, so many ways
To create a brand new design
I must give praise

Blueberry Limeade

Summer is almost over! It feels like those three months with no school have flown so quickly and now, school’s starting soon again. I’ve made a lot of food over summer, but one of my favorites was a blueberry limeade concentrate. It’s tart and sweet, and is such a great drink for summer. I really enjoyed this drink, especially when chilled or frozen.

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 cups of fresh blueberries
  • 1 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 2 cups of water
  • 3/4 cup of lime juice

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Put the blueberries, sugar and water in a saucepan. Cook them on medium heat.
  2. When it starts to boil, start breaking down the berries with the back of a spoon until the sugar is fully dissolved and the berries are crushed.
  3. Strain the syrup using a sieve, extracting as much juice as possible by pressing down on the berries.
  4. Allow syrup to cool down slightly, then stir in the lime juice. Keep in the fridge
  5. To make a drink, fill 1/3 of the cup with juice and 2/3 of the cup with water.

Serving Suggestion: Make popsicles. You’ll still have to dilute the mixture with water, and it comes out really well!

July’s Top Books

Here are my top books for July!

  1. The Tower of Nero by Rick Riordan
    This is the last book in the Riordanverse (others have been hinted at, but there is no proof for them yet). I loved the classic Rick Riordan style and the way how our main character, Apollo/Lester has changed over his time as a mortal (normal human). This book is so great and the different aspects, like Piper’s identity and Meg’s love for unicorns, were amazing. Overall, this was a really great book.
  2. Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
    This is SUCH a great duology. I loved getting the different viewpoints and the humor was perfect. You can definitely see the development in the characters and the plot was great. I loved all of the characters, especially Inej and Jesper. This book is filled with danger, love, sadness, and more. I loved every page and think that it was such a great book!
  3. Carry Me Home by Janet Fox
    This is such an amazing book. I love the characteristics of all the characters and the how the plot developed. This book brings together sadness, hope, and joy together in the best way possible. It’s an emotional read and I loved the way that the author wrote the emotions. I love this book so, so much and I totally recommend it to you!
  4. The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen
    This is a great graphic novel about a young boy struggling to come out to his mother. I love the illustrations and how fairy tales played a big part in the story. It was a really sweet book and I loved the plot and how everything fit together. The fairy tales were beautiful and I loved how the book ended. This is such a great book!
  5. The Pronoun Book by Cassandra Jules Corrigan
    This book is a great guide to pronouns for people of all ages! It talks about the main pronouns (she/her, he/him, they/them), but also others (ze/zir, xe/xem, fae/faer). It’s an amazing book with fun pictures. There are also examples of how to use pronouns. It also touches on different parts of LGBT+ like trans, intersex, genderfluid, etc. This is a really great book and it’s really helpful!

Top Books of January: click here
Top Books of February: click here
Top Books of March: click here
Top Books of April: click here
Top Books of May: click here
Top Books of June: click here

Postcards- a poem

Page upon page upon page
From all around the world
The paper is their stage

Pages worn and curled
All of the colors, red to white
The cards still unfurled

All of them are a marvelous sight
Full of beauty and dazzle, uniqueness and more
The date and giver written to the right

On one a monument, on another a bookstore
Even more with jungles and houses
And even a beach shore

The postcards are diverse, every color and size
They truly are the most elite prize

This poem is written in the form of a Terza Rima! This type of poem is originally Italian and follows a unique rhyming pattern (aba bcb cdc, etc.) I hope you liked my terza rima!

The Difference Between MG and YA books

I close the book I had just finished and pick up the next one. Even after only 10 minutes, I can find so many differences in the two books, and it’s not just because of the genre. The whole type of writing has changed and I know exactly why. It’s always so crazy to finish reading a middle grade book, then switch to a young adult one. Today, I’m going to tell you the differences between middle grade and young adult books.

I go back to the book’s cover and look at it closely before picking up the other book and doing the same. One of the major differences between middle grade and young adult book is their covers. Typically, YA books have darker covers, while the opposite is true for MG books. This proves true especially in fantasy novel covers. I believe that it is because of the darker themes usually found in YA books. After all, the covers should reflect the book.

I marvel at the differences in the conflicts and in the way the characters solve them. The challenges in both types of books are very different. In Young Adult literature, the main character is in the adult world beyond their friends and family. The goal is to understand (themselves, their journey, and the world they are coming into, etc.). Some common themes are self-reflection, which is why the book is usually in first person. In Middle Grade literature, the characters’  conflicts are about friendships and dealing with bullies. The characters react to what happens to them, focus on their friends and family. Real-life situations are common, which is why the book is usually told in third person.

I close the book to the sound of my mom calling my name. There are so many differences between the two genres, yet I love them both just the same.

One of the major sources I used was this article.

World Building

Recently, I did a WITS writing class (I wrote this story there). We did a few mini activities, one of them being world-building writing prompts based on artwork around the Rice University campus. World-building activities help you create a brand new world and develop it. It’s a common exercise writers use to be more creative. These are the questions asked and what answers I gave based off of the artwork.

Questions:

  1. Imagine that the artwork is deeply important to people on an alien land. Why? What do they use it for? What significance does it have?
  2. Imagine you are the size of an ant and the artwork is as tall as a skyscraper. What goes on inside of it?
  3. Imagine the art is small enough to fit in your hand. Why would you give it to someone and what for?
  4. Imagine the artwork could talk. What would it say? Would it be happy with its location?

The Questioning Column:

  1. This is where rainbows come from. Colors are churned, releasing their vividness and making rainbows brighter. This is how the colors seem to blend together as well.
  2. You can slightly see the churning of the rope-like strands of colors, twisting and turning together, eventually falling into place and forming a bright and colorful rainbow.
  3. If you need something to cheer you up, you can create rainbows with the small rainbow maker. It’s easy to give as a gift and can help anyone perk up.
  4. There are many Rainbow Makers around the world, some small, some big. They are all stationed in areas with desperate need of color and they do their job quite well. They would most likely be happy where they are.

Movement at the Edge of the Land:

  1. These aren’t just piles of dirt. They help the government. Piles of dirt and holes in the ground can easily track movements around an area the way that normal cameras could never do.
  2. You can’t see any action. The government made sure that the tracking was discreet. They couldn’t let anyone know what they were up to.
  3. The government gifted these piles of dirt to anyone who they though was suspicious, tracking them as they wished. No one ever realized what the piles were actually used for.
  4. The government would never let the dirt talk. If they even tried, they would be silenced forever right away. If they could talk, they would say that they hate their job.

James Turrell Skyspace:

  1. This is a hangout for astronomers, meteorologists, and others who use the sky and space for their line of work. Though the government doesn’t trust their kind and has banned them, some still meet here day and night to practice their work. At night it is lit up to resemble a party, so the government doesn’t get very suspicious. In the day, there is a special forcefield surrounding it. It is a sign of resistance and perseverance.
  2. Inside, astronomers and more scurry around, trying and succeeding to practice their art. It can be messy and dangerous sometimes, but it’s a safe space for the “sky lookers”
  3. It wouldn’t be given as a gift, but as a signal from worker to worker signaling a meetup in the skyspace. They are usually very small, to avoid drawing attention.
  4. The skylight would be pleased for being used in such a noble manner, though sometimes it wishes that its job wasn’t so dangerous and life-risking.

Barn Raising:

  1. These ribbons are a festivity, or at least, that’s what most people think. As soon as you step into the forest, you’ll doubt yourself. Something about the rustling of the ribbons sneaks up on you and makes you wonder if you made the right choice (spoiler alert- you didn’t). Slowly, without the ribbons doing anything, you’ll start to lose your mind. You mind will turn against you- starting with self-doubt and ending with complete insanity.
  2. The ribbons blow with the wind. Something about the way they move so gently, but with a ferocious demeaner is frightening to people. In the end, not many know that the ribbons are the villains in this story.
  3. Only true villains who know the power of the ribbons gift it to others. Though it’s smaller, it works in the same ways.
  4. The ribbons would just laugh gently, with a slightly horrifying edge. They don’t have and conscience and therefore don’t care.

How would you build a new world?

5 Books on my TBR

I recently did a post on the book series that I have in my To Be Read, so I thought that I’d also do one on the stand-alones that I want to read. Some of these series are YA (young adult) and some of them are Mg (Middle Grade). They’re all books which seem really good and I can’t wait to read them (hopefully soon).

  1. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
  2. The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
  3. Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly
  4. Lore by Alexandra Bracken
  5. The Stepmom Shake-up by Niki Lenz

Have you read any of these books?

June’s Top Books

Here are my top books for June!

June’s Best Books:

  1. Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
    This is a book about Ariadne, a figure in Greek mythology. This tells her story, from a young girl to an older mother. I loved reading about her feelings and the way that she grew, both in personality and in her knowledge. She’s such a true character and I love the way that we also get Phaedra’s (Ariadne’s sister) view as well.
  2. The Cursed Carnival and other Calamities by Rick Riordan
    This is a series of short stories from the Rick Riordan Presents authors as well as Rick Riordan. Each character faces a problem and they work together to solve them. There are also little mentions of other stories in some of them and that just makes it so much more fun. I also really love the diversity in the books.
  3. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
    This is the first book in the Shadow and Bone trilogy, the first series in the Grishaverse. Alina is such a brave character and I love the way she faces her problems. The fantasy element is perfect and I really like the way everything plays together. All the characters are well shaped and I can’t wait to read more about all of them in the next two books.
  4. Drum Roll, Please by Lisa Jenn Bigelow
    This is a book about family and finding your voice. I love how Melly navigates throughout the confusions of her life and the ways she overcomes her challenges. I also love the LGBT+ content and how it adds to the story. This is such a great book!
  5. The Stolen Prince of Cloudburst by Jaclyn Moriarty
    This is part of a series, but you can read each book like standalones. This book is about Esther, an often-forgotten middle child. I love the way the story is conveyed and how we get a great sense of who Esther is. I also really like the connections to the other previous stories. This book is so fun and I really enjoyed the humor and liveliness of the book.

Top Books of January: click here
Top Books of February: click here
Top Books of March: click here
Top Books of April: click here
Top Books of May: click here

The Stolen Colors

This year, I participated in a WITS writing camp. For the camp, we wrote a short story and talked about the other elements along the way. This is the story which I wrote. I hope you enjoy!

Imagine a world where color is stolen. The world is naturally grey, so colors are taken from other planets that are both willing and unwilling to give their source of brightness away. Now imagine what would happen if all the colors suddenly went out. 

“Why are you making such a fuss?” I asked tiredly, “It’s not that big of a deal,” I rolled my eyes, much to the annoyance of my best friend, Jadelyn. 

“Yes it is!” Jadelyn insisted, “Don’t you think it’s weird that we steal colors, Edith?” 

I shrugged, “That’s the way it’s always been on Arcus. Stop thinking about it too much and let’s just go home,” 

Jadelyn sighed before nodding with a pasted-on grin. I smiled thinly, relieved that a conflict had been avoided. We hurried to my house, excited for our sleepover. Jadelyn trailed behind slightly, but I knew that she would forgive me and I would forgive her. We always made up after our arguments, usually about the same topic that we had fought about today. 

We got home and my eyes lit up when my cat, Rosa, came to greet me. I chuckled, relenting to Rosa’s indignant purrs to be petted. When I finally stood up, I realized that Jadelyn had gone inside. I smirked, knowing that my best friend couldn’t resist the special cookies my mom made when she came over. Petting Rosa one more time, I stepped inside to the warm and familiar smell of freshly baked cookies. Jadelyn was climbing up the stairs, a tray in each hand, beckoning me to go with her. I raced up the stairs, eager for us to get to my room. 

We played a lot of games and talked about everything. I picked up the TV remote and had just opened Netflix, when something flickered. We looked around, scared and trying to figure out what it was. There was another flicker and I looked at Jadelyn wide-eyed. I could tell that she had also figured out what it was. “The colors,” I murmured, frightened. They flickered one more time, then stopped at grey. Jadelyn and I both made the decision simultaneously. We dashed downstairs to check if it was just our room or the whole world. 

As we biked through our neighborhood, my stomach sank lower and lower. When we reached the normally red party lanterns emitting a faint grey light, about a mile from our house, we realized the truth. I checked my government-given watch frantically for an update. There was none. I stared at my usually bright clothes in despair. Jadelyn looked down, biting her lip. It was official. There was no color anymore on Arcus. 

Jadelyn’s eyes glimmered, but not from tears, “The Rebellion- they’ve done it”.