Day 27: Post your Favorite Recipe

Since a year now, I have been obsessed with Trinidadian style stew chicken and I’d love to share the recipe. I was really bad at making it initially but I didn’t give up and now whoever I make it for, they can’t stop talking about it and always end up asking the recipe. So let’s get started, shall we?

Marination:
1kg Chicken and marinate with 4 tablespoons of Chief Green Seasoning. You can usually not find it in grocery stores but the Caribbean stores. I located one close by my house but if you don’t have the seasoning, no worries!! All you need is, 1 1/2 teaspoon of garlic paste, 1 1/2 teaspoon of ginger paste,1 1/2 hot chilli powder (more or less depending on how hot you want it to be), salt (as per your taste) and 1 teaspoon coriander powder. Chop 2 onions finely and throw them in the bowl along with the marinated chicken.Then leave the marination for an hour or so (I usually leave it over night).

Cooking:
Add two tablespoon of oil and let it heat. Add 4 to 5 tablespoons of sugar to the oil and caramelize the sugar and wait for it to change the color to dark brown-ish (more like blackish). Add your marinated chicken and onions in the caramelized sugar and mix it well so the chicken is covered with sugar properly. At this point, usually take down the temperature of the stove a little bit and cover the pot with its lid. Let the chicken cook in its own water but just don’t leave it to sit by itself (my mistake initially). Keep checking every 4 to 5 minutes so the chicken doesn’t burn. Also, initially you might think it needs water but don’t make that mistake either. Towards the end, if you think the chicken is not properly cooked, then you can add water and let it cook and bring it back to however thick gravy you want the chicken to have but this step is usually not needed. Well it will take around 20 to 30 minutes to cook the chicken. After 10 minutes of cooking the chicken, add 2 to 3 tablespoon of ketchup (more or less based on your taste again) and add chopped scotch bonnet pepper (Trinidadian people love a lot of pepper and I can tell with experience but people like me and you can burn our tongues and taste buds) so I prefer chopped green chilies. They aren’t as spicy as scotch bonnet and gives a good flavor to the dish too. You can tell the chicken is cooked when you can see a layer of oil on the sides of the pan (it seems like it’s a separated layer, something like that). Garnish it with chopped coriander and mint leaves (absolutely optional — moms like to pull that move with presentation).

Serving:
You can serve this with either boiled rice or roti or a takeaway naan from your local grocery store. Enjoy!

I think it wasn’t that bad. If any of you give it a try, I want to hear all about it!!

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Until next time,  Live, Love, Inspire & (don’t forget to) Smile. Believe in yourself and you can conquer all your fears.

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Day 21: Your 10 Favorite Foods

1) French Fries
2) Stew Chicken
3) McDonald’s
4) Cucumbers
5) Chocolate Cake
6) Dal and Rice
7) Turnip Curry
8) Honey
9) Special K
10) My mom’s cooking ❤

Until the next post, Live, Love, Inspire & (don’t forget to) Smile. Believe in yourself and you can conquer all your fears.

2015 Is Here (Are You Ready?)

It is very difficult for me to believe that 2014 is ‘past’ already. 2015 is here — I need somebody to pinch me. Time has been on a race track for these few years. I can’t believe that England has been my home for around 2 and a half years. I am just a year and a half away from my final destination — ‘I have grown up’. I am still the same girl who likes to pillow fight with my siblings, jump around the house on sofas and beds, live in the thoughts where I can conquer fairy tales and ride on unicorns, sing no matter how I sound and dance to any beat in front of the mirror. I mean, I am twenty but I still feel sixteen. So where have those four years gone? I have matured a lot lately and people around me keep pointing that out but at the end of the day, that kid in me is so much alive. It’s very difficult to even think that ‘I am all grown up’. May be I don’t want to grow up this fast. Anyhow, this is life and growing up is a part of it. Did I say it yet? Well, before I go ranting about my year — Happy New Year!! You readers are my ‘WordPress Family’ and have supported me throughout. I have been seventeen since I have been writing this blog and I have made valuable connections in the span of these three years. I have been going and coming back and have taken long breaks but you all have always been here for me. It’s such a great feeling to share this special bond I share with so many people across the world. You all play a great part in my life and I can’t be grateful enough for your time. All the blogs I read have helped me nurture and learn a lot about life and people. All the beautiful blogs I came across in 2014 and before, thank you for inspiring me and sharing your work. I look forward to see you all in 2015. May you all have a beautiful and blessed year ahead (Amen).

Now about my 2014…

2014 is a very special year for me. It’s the mixture of happiness, sadness, excitement, misery, love, pain, patience and much more. I realized it’s not always about living; sometimes it’s all about surviving. I am very proud to have survived this 2014 which is the most memorable year in my memory book.

It was my first New Years in England without my family. The 2014 New Years was spectacular. Love was in the air and beauty everywhere. I wanted to play with snow but there was none. It still was a great start to an amazing year.

I didn’t make any new friends and I have no regrets about that. I enjoy sparing myself the little time I have from the studies.

I visited my parents in April for around 10 to 15 days and spent my Summer in England. It was one of the most challenging Summer of my life with no fans when there was a very strong need. I bought a tower fan and an air cooler from Argos yet nights were uncomfortable. Regardless, I enjoyed sun to myself knowing I’d miss the sunny days in Winters.

I completed my first year in Law School and scored quite well (although the first year doesn’t contribute towards the degree). I hated Contract Law and always will.

My cooking improved quite a lot. I think it’s a good thing. My favorite dish for the year was ‘Brown Stew Chicken’ (Trinidadian Style).

I moved to a new accommodation in the beginning of July 2014. The place was a studio unlike my last spacious one room apartment. However, I like one fact about the studio that I don’t have to get out of the room to use the toilet (That was irritating).

I finally learnt to play Chess. I am not that good at it (Practice makes perfect) but at least I know I can play it!

This was the first time I watched FIFA tournament! I rooted for underdogs like Costa Rica and Columbia. These two teams made my FIFA experience exhilarating.

2014 was still a lot about ‘Plants vs. Zombies’ and my Zen Garden but I got obsessed with a lot of other games like ‘Ruzzle’ and ‘Golf Star’.

When I left my old accommodation, I had to leave Jade! I miss Jade a lot but every now and then I pay him a visit!

I planned a trip to Euro Disneyland in France, only to realize a day before that I would require a ‘Schengen’ Visa to go to France. I didn’t get any refund and I was very depressed. Well, better luck next time!

My 20th birthday — finally out of teenage years. First ever birthday in England and was worth it.

I saw my first ever rainbow on August 17, 2014. It was so beautiful and it didn’t disappear for until five minutes. It was a delicious treat!

I was addicted to Netflix in 2014. Orange is the new black, Psych, Sherlock, 24, Frasier, Three’s Company and so many more shows. I just couldn’t keep myself away from all this good distraction.

I lost a very special and old friend (my best friend) towards the end of the year (don’t know exactly how). I tried to settle things but the friend had already moved past me.

I came back home for Christmas unlike 2013 Christmas and I will soon be leaving for England again.

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The world experienced a lot of chaos in 2014. Increasing number of ‘Rapes’ and ‘Sexual offenses’ not only in India but across the world; the recent terrorist attack on an Army Public School in Pakistan resulting in the martyrdom of over 100 innocent children; the Gaza incident where hundreds of innocent lives suffered brutality and violence; disappearing and crashing of airplanes; the Ukraine-Russia situation; the formation and barbarity of IS; the outbreak of Ebola in Africa — we can only hope and pray for this world to be a better place in 2015.

Lessons learnt in 2014:

Sometimes, ‘giving up’ is the ultimate solution.

‘Forgetting’ is as important as ‘Forgiving’. One is incomplete without the other.

Merely breathing is not living. Living only happens when you are happy. Other times, you survive.

Heart is your worst enemy. Keep it sane by using your brain.

Love is not about one’s own happiness. It’s about seeing the person you love happy. Thus, love is somewhat-all-about pain.

Anger is healthy to an extent for everything that’s buried deep within can be released. However, draw a line and damages (physical or material) always represent stupidity.

Falling down is what life is all about. Your job is to dust yourself off and get up to prepare yourself for another adventure.

It’s not always about winning or losing. It’s all about how you played the game.

Failure is a stepping stone to your next victory.

Life and Love are two different things. Don’t confuse one with another.

Highlights of 2014:

Word of the year: Love
Strength of the year: Ability to ‘Cry’ and let out the ‘Grief’
Words of Wisdom’ of the year: ‘Divorce and break-ups are an easy way out of the situation; trying to mend what has been broken requires courage and audacity which most of us lack. Anybody can give up but victory belongs to few – those who can conquer the differences with the shield of love and trust in themselves’ – Naima.
Color of the year: Blue
Person of the year: Dumbo
Book of the year: Tell me your dreams – Sidney Sheldon
Song of the year: Heart Wants What It Wants – Selena Gomez
Show of the year: Frasier/Psych (Can’t decide — it’s a tough one)
Best day of the year: September 10 &17, 2014
Worst day of the year: December 11, 2014
Lesson of the year: ‘Forgetting’ is as important as ‘Forgiving’. One is incomplete without the other.
Blessing of the year: Courage
Support of the year: Family
2014 in one word: Ongoing

Let’s have a look at 2014 New-Year’s-Post and if I got through with my goals for 2014:

Reduce the consumption of coke.
[I don’t even remember when was the last time I had coke — hence, Accomplished!]

Give a break to PvZ2!
[I tried but I don’t think I got over Plants Vs. Zombies the way I wanted — Not Accomplished!]

Take time out to travel.
[I will consider it done cause I planned a trip yet something happened and it had to be cancelled; not being able to go to France was very disappointing and depressing but I tried — hence, Accomplished!]

Whenever going back home, say ‘NO’ to Emirates and try different airlines.
[With airplanes crashing and disappearing, my parents became too paranoid to even consider my idea — Not Accomplished!]

Spare my hair some space and grow my bangs.
[Accomplished]

Brush my teeth in night (No excuses – I don’t want all my teeth to fall out at 40).
[I am so proud of myself for this — Accomplished]

Avoid ignoring messages from people and try attending calls (have to stop running away).
[Still trying and I have progressed a lot but not fully satisfied. I think I still end up hurting people by ignoring their messages so I am going to make this again a resolution for 2015 to get even better at it — hence, Not Accomplished!]

Learn to play chess.
[Accomplished]

Forgive & Forget (Forgive part is easy, try to apply the forget part in real life as well).
[Still trying to improve, I mean, not improve my memory. Forgetting is still giving me trouble but I have done a great deal about it and going to keep getting better — hence, I will give it Accomplished! (this was challenging)]

Get closer to Almighty and continue the journey to discover my soul.
[This is an ongoing journey for life but this year I discovered ‘Myself’ on a whole new level; I didn’t realize I was capable of so much until this year — hence, Accomplished!]

Eliminate working-at-the-eleventh-hour-rule from my life.
[This is the only resolution which didn’t get worked upon at all (probably, because its the force of habit) but I will make sure to make this happen in 2015; hence its going on my 2015 resolution list and it’s Not Accomplished]
 

Now, my goals/resolutions for 2015:

Stay ‘happy’ — I ‘should’ be happy and thank Lord for all His Mercy and Compassion.

Become an active volunteer, helping people as best as I can in my spare time.

Not to take long-breaks or disappear from WordPress — I will manage my time even if it is one post a month (although I will try to contribute more than that to this community which has given me so much).

Change myself for the better: be less stubborn, consume balanced diet (especially in England), be more patient with myself, be less selfless (think about myself before others), not be gullible and stop being a ‘hero'(I am not here to save the world or be a ‘Superwoman’ — I am here to just play a part; I can’t save everybody).

Avoid ignoring messages/calls (Communication is the key; hence running away won’t help). I am working on it since last year (I think I am getting better at it).

Be ‘Spiritual’ than ‘Religious’ (I am quite religious already).

Spare some time for my personal fitness — whether it be yoga, self defense or gym.

Avoid being over-optimistic which leads to ‘false-hopes’ and mere consolation. Have a practical approach and go by the rule of ‘Expect the best, prepare for the worst’.

Boost up my self-esteem and be more confident about myself (like before — I have to get back to be the confident and self-assured ‘Naima’).

Start working on my ‘bestselling-novel’ that I always wanted to write.

Eliminate working-at-the-eleventh-hour-rule from my life (I have to really work on this one).

Finally, I have enjoyed reading everybody I follow but there are some blogs that have had a great impact on me and I have loved their work throughout 2014 (or for the little time I could follow them):

Cookie – I personally ‘love’ her blog ‘Calliope’s Lyre’. Her poetry touches the deepest chords of my heart and I can relate to her poetry in so many ways. She is an ultimate inspiration. Her blog is a great find of 2014 for me. She is amazing at what she does and I ‘heart’ her work!! Some of my favorite posts include Aspirations, Within, Dark Mornings, Living By Halves, The Apology, Living Numb, Messages of a Cigarette -XXV- [And many many more].

Cecilia – I absolutely love her blog ‘Mum C Writes‘. It’s informative, raises issues of awareness and the quality of her work (poetry in particular) is phenomenal. I can’t thank her enough for finding me on WordPress because that way I found her beautiful blog. Some of my favorite posts include Breast Milk, When Shame Tames and Optimistic Vibes.

Nadine (The Nadlog) – She is a young, beautiful and a very talented blogger. Her simplicity and positive attitude towards life inspires me. I discovered her blog a few months back and since then I have loved her blog for her bold and positive attitude towards life. I really enjoy her posts but the best ones I remember are Sisters, She drowns and I don’t know about but I’m feeling 22.

Bill – I know this man for a while now. He tells himself as my honorary dad and I absolutely adore him and his wisdom. His blog (bwthoughts) is all about the best things and experiences with a ‘lesson’. His posts (his thoughts) are not too lengthy and superb!! He and his blog has helped me learn so much about life. Discussions with him are fun. I can’t thank him enough for being such a great influence. I loved his recent post Polonius-isms.

Neeraj – This man and his blog (Exposed Emotions) is my personal favorite. I have done poetry-duets with him and I get to learn so much from him. His work inspires me and his enthusiasm is commendable. He is just not a fellow-blogger but a friend as well. The philosophical discussions are a source of learning as well. He recently self-published a poetry book ‘Reverberating Pang: WHEN You Lose Someone You Don’t Own’ which was a great success (I personally loved it). Now, I am looking forward to his new book ‘Together Forever’. Some of his poems that I very much enjoyed include Conclusion, Barefoot, Five Years Later, All Alone, I Can’t Stay Mad At You and I wanna Live (From the Heart of Unborn).

Kim (Silently-Heard-Once) – She is somebody I discovered when I started blogging on WordPress and I have been following her since then. I love her poetry and her courage and enthusiasm to fight every battle. She is an inspiration. I loved her recent posts like A Dip in the Sea, Intimate and Now is Today.

Alastair – ‘A Mixed Bag’ is a beautiful blog. I love his photography. The posts where he puts up a poll to choose ‘Photo of the Month‘ is a very interesting idea. He makes me want to be a better photographer (Chuckling).

Wendell – ‘Where Words Daily Come Alive‘ is a beautiful blog that I have been following for a while now. It’s all about poetry. I enjoy reading Wendell’s blog and his poetry is always so soothing and inspiring. Some of the posts I like are To Forever Keep and Everywhere I Go.

Renard – ‘Renard Moreau Presents‘ is a great blog! This man writes about everything and anything. If you have been following his blog, you know you will keep yourself updated with everything! His blog is super informative and user-friendly. I can’t name his one post that I like but his ‘Just Pondering‘ blog posts are always interesting!!

Less-About-Love (Diary of a Tight-Lipped Girl) – I like her blog for her bold expression about relationships and sharing her life and thoughts to educate others with her experiences.

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Settling into UK!

Hey ya fellas! I apologize sincerely for vanishing for a week or so but I had to or rather I put it like this that I was too much messed up in the emotional trauma that I was going through that it made it difficult for me to inform my lovely family here! I have read too many posts on Renard’s blog expressing his miserable feelings for the bloggers who vanish without explaining the cause and though I have had a sincere readership around yet I failed to inform you all and that is why I feel awful so apologies, apologies and apologies! And I hope its granted now!

My books – Business, Mathematics, English (Three subjects for this term which ends on December 7th 2012)

Now the question is where have I been? Interesting question! I am no more in my country but in England for my studies i.e my undergraduate program! The previous week was crucial! I covered 6 chapters of Business Studies and 5 chapters of Mathematics and submitted the project of Business on Friday and wrote the maths test on Thursday (which was nearly perfect!) Apart from studies which are smooth enough now after a rushing week because I arrived two weeks later than the starting date (Another story why I was late – briefly, I turned 18 in August and it took longer for my identity card to get to me and as soon as I got through it, I filed my visa and fortunately I received my visa in 5 working days!)

Clouds forming before it starts to rain or rather drizzle! I love the smoky skies in here – this place is romantic! (lol)

Settling into UK – not a problem at all! Lovely people out there in almost freezing weather and yeah romance pouring my heart with the rain tickling my face! According to me, it never rains in here instead it drizzles! I like the feeling of walking on the lonely and empty streets aimlessly trying to figure out where I have to go. I love getting lost and then finding my way back again and the sweetheart babies you see all around you; almost perfect but I miss my family terribly! The most difficult part is when you sit all alone by yourself trying to eat but you can’t cause you miss your family’s dinning table, your parent’s arguments and siblings chit chat and funny pranks! I have to cry to myself because if I will be weak, my mum will certainly be not better! My room is okay – thankfully it is my room only so I do not have to share it with anybody even being on university’s accommodation!

I carried it all the way from Morrisons to my room – those 15 minutes were hell!

Plenty of stories in my head and I want to let all of them out! My flight was 7 hours delayed and I got to know it on Dubai International Airport when some Italian guy (whose English accent was a terrible pain for my ears) told me how they do not have enough passengers to fly to Birmingham! I simply never knew how Emirates could ditch me like this but those 7 hours were an incredible experience. The sense of responsibility that ensured me how I had grown up and can do everything independently now. Those 7 hours when I had to look after my money, my luggage, keep contact with my parents, resisting the sleep when I was up for more than 24 hours and what not. Dubai Internstional Airport was my first examination and with His cooperation, I succeeded it like a victorious warrior! I reached my accommodation at 11:00 pm on October 12th and the very next day I realized I had to do my grocery all on my own (which I had never done before) and I had to walk like crazies! Yeah, I missed my driver and at times my car as well but with time walking was a pleasure instead I discovered how I can observe many things minutely when I walk and see the world without technology!  I have been to city center twice and I kinda bought many things though I am not a shopaholic at all but I guess that was the need cause UK is kinda freezing and will continue to freeze more and more with every passing day! Primark, H&M, Topshop, Zara’s, Integration,  Evans – you name it and I am sure I have been there! I am still discovering good restaurants though right now Subway and my own cooking skills had help me enough!

World Of Coins!

The very big change for me was MONEY! Amazing! It took me almost a week to learn about currency, coins, pence and I am still on my way to learn more about them! We had maids back in home to do everything, from ironing clothes to polishing shoes and almost everything. Now, I wake up 2 hours before I have to leave so I can iron my clothes and look about my shoes and then leave almost 40 minutes before because it is a 20 to 25 minutes walk to my school from my accommodation and I leave the margin of 20 minutes in case of any accident (God Forbid) I never imagined how time would play with me and change me within a week! I thought I was careless (clutz) and may be I still am but I don’t see it. The very big problem for me is to look about my keys and wallet; back in my home country I never had a wallet! All I ever did was slip few bucks in my jeans but wallet – NO!

Talking about Leicester, it is not a busy city like London but it is still busy enough. Traffic can prove you and when you see Audi and Mercedes cars out there, you are like Woahh!! (Just Kidding) It is like a Mini China in here cause you will find so many Chinese people! Okay, they are Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Nepalese but all of them look almost same so you can never ever tell who they are! Now what I am fed up of is every other person asking me if I am from AMERICA! I am not boasting about myself but hundreds of men and women have asked me if I am from America because they say my accent is American and when I tell them from Pakistan, I see their eyes bulging out as if I have said that I am the president of US. Excuse me, get a life – my school’s principal will kill me if she gets to know how I am receiving such a comment because we are taught British English then HOW THE EFFING HELL I POSSIBLY CAN SOUND LIKE AN AMERICAN? Does that even make sense? The very first person to tell me was a guy on the plane, then the immigration lady(until she saw my passport), then this surgeon I met in the grocery store, then almost every receptionist on the university information desk, the receptionist guy on the accommodation information desk, cashiers in the shopping malls and I am tired of giving them that look to not repeat it! You know how is it like? Let me demonstrate, consider I am talking to a lady who is the saleswoman of H&M;

Naima: Excuse me, Can I see this?

Saleswoman: Yeah sure!

Naima: Thank you (Smiling) – But I don’t want heels you see.

Saleswoman: Oh! Are you from America? You have an American Accent!

Naima: (A crucial look and then a smile and says with grinding teeth) Everybody says so though I don’t know why!

Pasta – Cooked on Friday, 19th October 2012!

Chicken and Capsicums – Cooked on Saturday, 20th October 2012!

Chicken and Vegetable fried Rice – Cooked on Sunday, 21st October 2012!

I know at times it is a LOLing situation for me but I have to bear with it. I don’t mind being the way I am so back out! Another worse thing in here is that it is autumn and I hate to walk on the fallen leaves! I mean, why did they ever taught us that leaves are living beings because now I feel miserable when I see plenty of them lying on the floor and I have to walk over them! I feel guilty at times and curse my science teachers for being so mean back then when I was 9 or 10. I started cooking like 3 days back that means from this weekend cause I had to buy my cooking pans and everything and I think I am doing pretty well if I eliminate comparing it with my mommy’s food! Of course, she is a professional! I see old couples being too romantic – holding hands and linking arms and I go back in my memory to recall when did my parents or even grand parents did it last time in front of me! I adore the people here, their innocence and the love they share through their smiles! (Believe me or not, I am almost smiling to everybody on my way; exclude the young guys please cause they will take a different meaning out of it)

Cooking and eating – a good time pass; need no friends! (lol)

Briefly, I enjoy in here. It is an adventure ride. Lazy mornings in my bright room with a chilly wind that knocks me down and I stretch my arms thinking if I can see some other faces than Chinese (Just kidding – no hard feelings please but the fact is there are too many Chinese out here and I appreciate their love for education) As expected, no friends yet but I think with time, I will be okay. I talk to a Singaporean girl in my class *Ann* who has a boy friend so she is too busy with him all the time but she is a great girl to talk to and I have been lately talking to this Canadian guy *Marcus* who has explained me the maths and business problems that I have not understood after reading on my own! He had been a great helping hand but again it is just a hello-hey with them; they are not yet friends! I am too bad at it, I know but I hope to do good!

PS– I know I have missed out whole a lot on reading the blogs I follow but I will try to manage it out whenever possible! Thank you for the support and cooperation as always! It is greatly appreciated! Stay blessed!