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  • I’m in Kolkata

    The trip from Dhaka to Kolkata was interesting, to say the least.

    I woke up around 5:30 to catch a bus that was suppose to arrive around 7:10 AM.  It didn’t.  There were some tecnical problems or something or another, and the bus didn’t arrive until 9:00 AM.

    The simplest parts, the actual trip, ended up being the most complicated, due to technical difficulties, traffic jams & what not.

    Strangely enough, Immigration, which I feared would take a couple of hours to pass through took ~15 minutes.

    For all it’s technicalities & intricacies, I went over to one room, showed a guy my passport, went through to another room, showed another guy my passport, walked through no-man’s land, showed yet another guy my passport, walked into immigration on the Indian side, and showed the contents of my bag to the customs officer.

    Anywho, I gotta go for now.  More later.

    =^^=

    - Saad

  • Disko Modell


    Umm… enjoy…?

    Okay, okay, so I have a bit of explaining to do.

    Back in my youth, the bollywood flick, Disco Dancer, was a huge hit in Bangladesh.  There was also a rather familiar ad which utilized a song called “Das Modell”, by german band called Kraftwerk.

    Now, in the pre-internet days, media was much harder to attain, let alone come by.  If you heard a song you liked, that was about it.  You’d have to be content with having heard a song you liked; with no way of finding out who sung it, or how you could possibly attain a copy of it.

    Well, a couple of weeks ago, a buddy of mine showed up with not only the titular “Disco Dancer”, but also Rammstein’s own take of an old favorite.  And I kinda’ figured… why not?  A couple of days worth of editing later, this little beast was born.

    So… umm… enjoy…?

    =^^=

  • How do you feel about the world’s obsessions with weight, diet and beauty?

    I’m of the opinion that people with issues generally tend to obsess over weight, diet and beauty.  To assume/imply that the world is obsessed with them, especially without a clear definition of what constitutes the world and it’s collective obsession is a gross generalization.  I think.

    I’m a bit more curious about how one reaches the conclusion that the world is obsessed with weight, diet and beauty.  merriam-webster.com defines “obsess” as to haunt or excessively preoccupy the mind of.

    Is the world as a whole obsessed with weight, diet and beauty?

    There are an assortment of industries that do their fair share of singing & dancing about it; but that’s how they make their living.  There is promotion, criticism & whatnots by the buttloads, but it’s got more to do with marketing than with actual obsession.  Is it profitable to convince people they absolutely need to use a certain group of products to try and meet a globally established criteria; and then manufacture and sell those products?  Absolutely.

    But does that mean their target demographic, namely the World, is obsessed with  what is being promoted?

    As far as feeding habit is concerned, most people I know fall somewhere within a spectrum ranging from “don’t care” to “somewhat concerned”.  (A rare few can actually be categorized as being obsessed, but the ratio is less than 100 to 1.)  Granted, the statistic will vary according to geographic locations, but even then, the numbers of all the diet obsessed folks in developed countries should be matched (if not surpassed by) people in thirdworld countries who are too busy barely staying alive to give a damn about weight and diet, let alone beauty.

    So how do you I about the world’s obsessions with weight, diet and beauty?  I feel that the world is not obsessed with weight, diet and beauty.  And I kinda’ wish the the people that are, would stop.

    I just answered this Featured Question, you can answer it too!

  • Of Thongs & Songs (about thongs)…

    My mom is an old fashioned woman.  She is fairly conservative in her ways, and there have been situations where this has led to a lot of arguments between us.  Which is why it was a bit surprising, one fine day to find out that she had developed an adoration of “Thong Song”.

    She used to like “Thong Song”.  A lot.  She used to sing along whenever “Thong Song” came on the radio.  A lot.  Then she saw a clip from “Thong Song” on the TV.  She no longer liked “Thong Song”.  Not even a little.

    Moral of the story:  Multiple cultures, especially along where their boundaries meet, makes for some memorable oddities.  My mother has a decent grasp of English.  She got by for 12 years in New York without any trouble.  When she heard the “Thong Song” for the first time, she enjoyed the music & paid little attention to the content.  Which is why she was shocked to see the music video for “Thong Song”.  (My sister & I called her to the living room, actually.  “Mom, MOM, they’re playing your song on the TV!!”)

    However, that was not the last we heard of Cisqo and his apparel oriented melody.  No siree bob.  You see, I have a distant niece.  Her parents, much like my mom, had heard “Thong Song” on the radio and took an immediate liking to it.  Much like my mom, they had little idea about what it is the singer was singing about.  Her kid brothers, too young to understand the significance of  thongs, also took an immediate liking to it. 

    Unlike my mom, however, they were singing along to “Thong Song” on their family trip.  Which, according my niece (and or common sense), was a sight to behold.  A car full of kids & middle aged people, singing/screaming along to the chorus of “Thong Song”, and amidst them, a befuddled & embarassed teenage girl.

    That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.

    =^^=

  • Once a Star Wars Geek…

    (A little discussion between a buddy & I.  It started when I posted a comment on his painting of Natalie Portman, as Amidala from the new SW Triogy.)

    Lakakalo:
    I like the painting.
    (I wish I could say the same for the movies… :rage:)
    :D

    Eric:

    what do you mean ?
    You haven’t seen these movies ? so you have to !

    QU’est ce que tu veux dire ?
    Tu n’as pas vu ces films ? tu dois les voir !

    Lakakalo:
    J’ai vu ces films. Mais je n’aimes pas ces films. :rage:

    Eric:

    dommages moi j’aime bien il y a plein de bonnes choses dedans autre que l’action, l’architecture, les costumes, les décros

    Lakakalo:

    Er… J’aime bien A New Hope et Return of the Jedi; et j’adore Empire Strikes Back. :love:

    Mais je n’aime pas The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones et Revenge of the Sith. Ces films ont becaup de “l’action, l’architecture, les costumes, les décros”; cependant ils n’ont pas l’intrigue, le jeu et la réalisation. Ce sont les publicités pour Industrial Light & Magic. :rage:

    =^^=

  • Deceptively Simple Noodles With … er… Stuff

    Hello again.  Today, I post a recipe for Deceptively Simple Noodles With Stuff.  Yep.  That’s what I call it.  Deceptively Simple Noodles With Stuff.  Why?  Because it’s involves Noodles.  It’s deceptively simple to cook.  It contains some other stuff.  And…er… well… that’s about it, actually. =^^=

     
    One more thing.  The Incredibley Amazing Saad Azim usually cooks for one.

     
    You’ll need:
    - 1/2 to 1 cup of stuff (beef, chicken and/or shrimp)
    - Salt, according to taste
    - 1 to 2 cups of water
    - 1 pack of instant noodles  (Cup-Noodles generally have the spice mixed with the noodles to begin with, which is a no no for this recipe…)
    - A bit of cooking oil (The Incredibley Amazing Saad Azim has yet to try this with cooking spray)

     
    Throw the stuff into the pot, or gently lower them in, if you prefer.  Add the water.  Add the salt.  Add the oil.  Put a lid on it.   (The pot, not your cooking.)  Let it boil until most of the water evaporates.  Stir occasionally, otherwise the stuff might start sticking to the pot.  Once all the water has evaporated, stir fry in the oil that remains.  Once the stuff is adequately fried, put it aside on a plate.

    Now, in the same pot, add exactly half the amount of water recommended for cooking instant noodles.  (Most of the instant noodles available in the States are soup noodles, and if you add recommended amount of water to cook them, you’ll end up with a soup type thing…)  Anyway, occasionally stir the noodle to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot.  Add a little more cooking oil if you like.  Add the stuff to the noodles if they’ve gotten cold… stir. 

    Once the noodles are done, you’re done.

    If you’re cooking with chicken or shrimp, it shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes.  If you opt for beef, it should take around 30 minutes.

    That’s about all there is to it.  Enjoy.

    =^^=

  • Stir Fried Garlic Roasted Mushroom With Parsley & Bell Peppers

    It cooks more or less the way it sounds.  =^^=

    You’ll need:

     - Four to six Mushrooms, quartered.  (Well DUH.)  I usually go with the canned variety. Ya’know, the ones that look like little balls, with stumps.
     - Finely minced garlic… according to taste.  Now, me, I LOVE garlic, and usually use a buttload of it whenever I’m cooking with garlic.  If you’re not all that fond of it, you can probably skip it altogether.
     - A little bit of Parsley.  Once again, the amount depends on your preferences.
     - A quater to an eighth of a bell pepper.  Finely chopped.  If you’re feeling fancy, you can use bits & pieces from red, green & yellow peppers.  It’ll add a splash of color to the whole thing.
     - A bit of oil, or cooking spray, whatever floats your boat.  The Incredibley Amazing Saad Azim prefers Olive Oil, or, on occasion, a bit of butter.
     - You might also need a bit of salt.  (The canned mushrooms that I buy come submerged in a salty solution to begin with.  However, if you’re buying fresh mushrooms, you might want to add salt according to taste.)

    Now, heat the cooking spray/oil/butter in a frying pan and throw in the mushrooms.  Stir fry in medium heat for a couple of minutes until they start smelling fried.  Lower the heat, because garlic can get burnt very easily.  Add the garlic.  Keep stirring over low heat, until the garlic smells like it’s been thoroughly fried.  Add the parsley, followed by the chopped bell peppers.  Stir fry for a few more minutes and it should be done.

    If you want,you can add an extra item or three, like sliced sun-dried tomatos, or shrimp, or onions, or thinly sliced chilli peppers, or chopped chicken bits or what have you.

    Er… that’s about it.

  • tEH <3 (part II)

    Stupid YouTube and their fancy schmancy policies…While I’m trying to figure out a way around the aforementioned policies, here’s something I found at DeviantArt.com

    Enjoy. =^^=

    Artwork by Coelasquid.  All the characters are © by their respective owners.

  • Which Heroes Character Are You?

    Er… if I actually saw the show, this might have meant something… -_-’