DIY Grooming Blogging: my trimmer is wiser than an electric shaver!

2017 was cruel in terms of my body reacting to certain prescription drugs and the outset of what seems like a herpetic tendency. During this time, there were repeated outbreaks in and around my mouth. Over a period, the lesions and scarring dissolved but they also created these small, darkish grey patches around my lips. The road ahead has been difficult as I can no longer shave in the usual way. I have been asked to keep away the razor from these areas that can be very sensitive.

The only way ahead was using an electric trimmer or shaver, ensuring that the growth was never shaved away completely. I had to repeatedly trim my beard and it was getting frustrating to repeatedly visit the men’s saloon. The only solution was to buy the shaving or trimming gear for myself – a long-term and definitely smart investment since I was not going to shave for many weeks now. The question was – what suited me more – the shaver or a trimmer?

A Pickled Obsession that Infests Me Right Now: Ginger & Garlic

Pickling: Ways to Up Daily Ginger, Garlic Intake

It has been a slow recovery from my bout of jaundice and among the few lifestyle changes and dietary adjustments that I had to make, I took upon another innocently addictive exploration – pickling using vinegar. I have to ramp-up basic detox agents like ginger and garlic apart from herbs that help the liver to leach away the abundance of contaminants in the blood. My wife not being a very garlic-ky person made it clear that having a persistent Sulfur breath was akin to killing our couple time. Now, I had to find a way of consuming more of garlic without the breath and without the torture of consuming it in a raw, highly potent form. 

Going (Pea)Nuts…yet again, Winters does this to me!

It wasn’t a great start to the winter season as me and my wife fell sick. My jaundice too forever to clear-up and as a couple, we are still loading-up on all types of natural, detox aids to ensure that the sickening hangover of being over-medicated is uprooted and dumped for good. However, now that am eating the more regular stuff again, the annual challenge of winter eating is up and running. What is this about? Resisting the temptation of loading-up on peanuts and gudd. The combination is like a dose of morphine to someone suffering from extreme pain. I can devour packets full of peanuts, taking the time to crack and split apart each entity, taking pleasure in what seems like a playful activity that rewards you with a strong nutty flavor.

Loving the Flames – a peek into Unplanned Bonfires & Loving the Flickers!

Exploring Mood Enhancing Benefits of Sitting by Fire

I am not a pyromaniac, though I have a history of playing with fire and some mood-elevating medicines. Where is this coming from? Recently, I blogged about the Lohri bonfire and it emerged that lighting-up a small bunch of sticks and some random woody stuff from here and there, re-catalyzed the love for flame that once existed. For the longest time, when I was a child, there was this love for burning-up things and watching them melt and turn into a black mass.

[Suggested Reading: Celebrating Lohri in 2018]

Why some people cannot get enough of loving a woman's navel?

The navel, also known as the belly button, is a small depression located on the abdomen. The anatomy of the navel includes the following parts:

Umbilicus: This is the visible part of the navel, which is the small depression on the surface of the skin.

Umbilical cord: During pregnancy, the umbilical cord connects the baby to the placenta and allows for the transfer of nutrients and oxygen from the mother to the developing fetus.

Umbilical ring: This is the small opening in the abdominal muscles where the umbilical cord was attached.

Umbilical stalk: This is the small piece of tissue that connects the umbilicus to the umbilical ring.

Umbilical granuloma: This is a small, benign growth that can occur in the navel, usually after the umbilical cord has been cut at birth.

Scar tissue: The navel area may contain scar tissue, which results from the cutting of the umbilical cord.

What is the easiest way to clean the grout lines in your home?

A grout line is the small gap or space between the tiles in a tiled surface such as a floor or wall. The grout is a material, typically made of cement or a similar mixture, that is used to fill these gaps and hold the tiles in place. It also helps to keep the surface sealed and protect it from water damage and mold. Grout lines are usually narrow and not always visible, but they can become discolored and dirty over time, and require cleaning to maintain the appearance of the tiled surface. The color of the grout is usually chosen to be similar to the color of the tile, which makes it less visible, but it can also be chosen to be a contrasting color.

My Wavering Aversion to Cabbage – Don't Count on It

Google Funny Animal Pics for the Funniest Images

The good things first – I can eat cabbage, without any apprehensions, when it is used as a part of a bigger salad ensemble or layered between multiple slots of a sandwich. I like the crunchiness, I like the greenness of this leafy veggie. However, there is one problem – if I eat it too raw or too cooked, it challenges my threshold for patience. I share this weird relationship with cabbage. If I can smell the odor that emerges from a leafy veggie being cooked, I just cannot eat it. Camouflage this smell and it becomes very edible. Leave it absolutely raw without anything sprinkled on it, and it becomes difficult for me to chew it. Served it as a part of kuchumbar salad preparation, and I start liking it. This journey hate & love journey began in school.

Don't Look Down upon Window Shopping Food - It is a Thriving Sub-culture

It is not aimless if you have a habit of visiting alleys and local markets that are overflowing with food stalls, roadside eateries, open cafés and vendors that sell food in the raw, semi-processed and highly packaged form. The reason? This too is a type of window shopping! Why should the idea of physically browsing through shopping lanes without any intention of buying be restricted to apparel and lifestyle niche only?

Seeking Compliments Has Got Nothing To Do With Vanity…In Most Cases

There is this skewed perception that if you are curious about how many compliments you will get for a favorite pullover you are wearing to the office, there is something very narcissistic about you – it seems that the debate for seeking admiration about yourself is pretty much settled, i.e. you are chasing vanity, it boosts your ego levels. However, this idea is rather messed-up. A compliment or two can be very soothing, helping you get in the right mood when starting your day or navigating through it. A difficult day at the office can seem less overwhelming if someone admires your wardrobe combination or the new watch you are wearing.

[Suggested: My Opinion about Dressing-up in Winters]

Something Soulful about Gajar Ka Halwa: Addictive Winter Feasting

Am a typical Punjabi in many ways, including the gastronomic preferences. It is winter season these days and my sweet tooth cravings guide me toward one direction only – a bowl of heavily roasted Gajar Halwa, overwhelmed with almonds and cashews. Why?

There is no substitute for it! There is no other sweet preparation in or around the city that comes even close to the flavor of blood red carrots, slowly cooked for hours.Yes, there are many commercial eateries that put-up this winter season treat for folks like me but honestly, the retailed version is never up to the mark. The variety prepared by my wife has been patiently cooked for hours, sometimes spread over a couple of days without taking the shortcut of adding condensed milk or excess khoya. The difference can be seen, and felt, in the first bite. Moha’s version of Gajar Halwa has that laidback smokiness to it.