'Indomitable Spirit' by the former president of India Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam

It has been a few days I have started reading a book 'Indomitable Spirit' by the former president of India Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam. I really admire him for the kind of work he has done for my country and also for his determination, dedication, and sincerity. In today's world of instant feel good and quick results, I am not getting the kind of satisfaction I wanted to draw from reading this book. However, whatever it is saying makes sense. This book talks about how different people and incidences influence our lives like our teachers, our education system, etc. I didn't have the choice to select my teachers, parents or education system. But, I am looking for something that could make me feel better, happy now. The only message I have drawn from reading this book so far is how to be a good parent, a good teacher and a good influencer. Being a female, you are always reminded that 'your body clock is ticking', sometimes it feels like you are sitting on a time bomb. This book gives me the comfort that the purpose of having a family should not be just filling a gap of your life to make yourself complete and a fit for the society, rather it is a big responsibility and should be taken seriously. Being an independent, educated woman, I have always valued my salary over the joy of contribution to my work field. This book makes me redetermine that the purpose of the job should not be just to earn money and pay the bills rather adding value to society. And purpose of education should not be just able to read and write, rather be a life-long autonomous learner. I think these are the skills that give purpose to our life and keeps the modern-day diseases like depression at bay.

When I reflect back on my own attitude being a lecturer in a college, I had the attitude that just knowing and explaining the academic content to the students is the only job of the teacher. Now, I realize being a teacher is such a big responsibility. What I was doing then was just reacting to the attitudes of the students. I think this is the big takeaway personal realization for me from this book.

Various food categories and associated terminology

Nowadays shopping is not only about buying the goods and paying the money, and you are done.

There are so many advertising things that often makes you confusing, but a good knowledge of such things can greatly influence our decision.

1. Organic or Bio: It indicates 95% of the ingredients used are natural or organic.
2. Ecocert: 95% of its ingredients are plant-based and at least 10% of all its ingredients by weight are organic.
3. Cereal: It is a grass which produces edible grains like maize (Makka in Hindi), wheat, rye, barley(जौ), oats (जई) etc. This grass is grown as the agricultural crop.
4. Jawar ka atta: White millet or sorghum
5. Eggs: free-range or cage-free; Pasteurized or non-pasteurized
6. Milk: Raw or Pasteurized(or UHT i.e. Pasteurized at ultra-high temperature, so even no need to refrigerate.UHT is for long shelf life ).Another thing associated with milk is fat percentage or skim milk. Homogenized or non-homogenized. Homogenized milk does not allow to form a cream layer at the top while boiling. A milk can be pasteurized and non-homogenized, homogenized but not pasteurized as well as pasteurized and homogenized. Pasteurization is followed by Homogenization. Again, homogenization increases the shelf life of the milk. 
7. cold pressed oils
8. Kochbutter Vs vorzugsbutter(i.e. cooked butter vs preferred butter): The fact that cooked butter is inferior to the preferred butter is negated by experts and retailers alike. The only difference is that with cooked butter up to 10 percent foreign cream and/or frozen butter can be processed. Preferred butter is always 100 percent Swiss cream.
9. Polished vs Unpolished rice
10. Polished vs unpolished lentils
11. Olive oil: It is so much in trend these days. Olive oil comes in various quality grades. Lower grade is "Virgin", which can be used for cooking and the highest grade is "Extra virgin" which is used for salads. Olive oil is perishable and has its shelf life of only 2-years after its harvest before opening. Olive oil, which has the label estate production is of higher quality because it should have been grown and milled on the form. There are certain geographical indications like DOP(protected designation of origin). Historically, the wines of France have been classified under the AOC or Appellation d'origine contrôlée system: Appellation of Controlled Origin, a classification created by the French government in the 1950s.In the 1960s, Italy created a similar system, modeled after the French: DOC or Denominazione d'origine controllata, Designation of Controlled Origin. In the 1990s, the European Union created a new, overarching system under the aegis of the Common Market Organization (CMO), designed to offer producers and consumers a uniform labeling protocol: Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI).

Food containers and symbols

An intelligent consumer always take time to notice the various symbols on the product.

There are usually two types of symbols on the storage container:
1. safe use information
2. Recycling information

1. safe use information
i. Can the container be used for food storage? Cup and fork symbol
ii. is it microwave safe? squiggly waves symbol
iii. is it dishwasher safe? Dishes with water lines or drops i.e. water lines over the dishes show that intended for only top racks; while water drops over the glasses show that it can be used in both bottom or top rack.
iv. can it be used for strong the food in refrigerator? Snowflake symbol
v. Conventional oven safe: mitten sign

2. Recycling Information:

i. Plastics
ii. Glass
iii. Metals: Aluminum, steel
iv 

Home Science and housewives

I never wanted to be a housewife. Now, I wonder how wrong was my thinking. I used to think that a housewife just cleans and cooks, what is so significant about this. Yes, these jobs may seem very trivial, but have an huge impact on our lives, if understood properly. Currently, we are living in such complex and modern world, and surrounded with so many technical advancements. Microwaves, dishwashers, variety of cleaning supplies usually harmful chemical based, we need to be very vigilant and informed what are we serving on the table, as well as what are we using to clean the house.
Overtime, I have developed this thinking that every individual is a house wife or house husband. It should not dislike a house wife, rather I should appreciate the contribution made by informed individuals towards building a healthy society.I always associated home science with the subject intended for only house wives. As in many schools, it is an elective subject, and gave me the impression that one could do without the knowledge of this subject. But, in todays time, I always google the internet to find the things which are usually the core of Home Science.

What are the core components of Home Science?
1. Food, nutrition and cooking
2. Cleaning
3. Health and hygiene
4. Clothing and Textiles
5. Home furnishing and interior design
6.Housing
7.Home Management and consumer education: Budgeting

All about Laundry

1. detergent with odor resistant agents
2. detergent for white clothes
3. detergent for black clothes
4. fabric softner: to make clothes extra soft and easy to iron
5. fabric bleach
6. detergent for colored clothes
7. detergent for sensitive skin
8. detergent for all
9. detergent for baby clothes

All about food

Salads:

1. Lettuce
         
      i.) Romaine Lettuce: It can tolerate heat, so can be used in soups as well.
      ii.) Iceberg Lettuce: This is very heat-sensitive.
      iii) Oak Leaf

2. Desserts

1. Mousse(France): Foam: can be sweet or savory. Usually served chilled with an extra dollop of whipped cream and fruits.
2. Souffle(France): It is baked egg-based dish which puffed-top in nature.
3. Lava cake
4. Sponge cake: Black forest cake.
5. Blackcurrant cake
6. Tiramisu: coffee-based Italian dessert.
7. coffee: French Press coffee
8. Torte: multilayered cake
9. 
   

Cleaning my house

When I was in India, I never thought that cleaning could be such a big thing. Firstly, I used to live in my own house, so I never bothered about how much I need to pay when I have to move out of the house. But, once I have to live in rented apartments and that too in foreign lands like Canada and super clean Switzerland, cleaning kind of become a priority for me. There are so much variety of cleaning products and many brands and I often get confused or feel overwhelmed. So, here I am sharing my journey of learning about different types of cleaning products.

1. Floor cleaners and disinfectants
2. Bathtub/Shower/washbasin cleaner
3. Tiles cleaner
4. Window glass cleaner
5.  Shower glass cleaner
6. Oven/grill and gas top or kitchen counter cleaner
7. toilet cleaner
8. Suction pipe cleaning

Some products are environment-friendly, while others have so many chemicals in it.

1. Chlorine is a very common bleaching agent and has very strong fumes, so we should use a face mask or vinyl hand gloves while cleaning.

2. Ammonia is also a gas and heavily used in cleaning.

3. Borax is also used in multi-purpose cleaning.

Sorting the Waste: One important aspect of cleaning is to properly sort the waste into recyclable and landfill waste. Waste sorting is very important from the environmental cleaning and sustainability point of view. Most people, especially in developing or underdeveloped countries as a fancy thing, but it is the need and demand of today's time for securing the better environment for the future generations.

Plastic is everywhere, it is such a synthetic material that has not left any place unaffected. But, there are different types of plastics, and all plastics are not recyclable or reusable. It is very important to know the various types and uses of plastics to keep our families healthy. Because plastic is a very durable material and last for long, but all plastics are not meant for reuse. Out of ignorance, sometimes we make the poor choice and make the lives of ourselves and our families at risk. Some plastics are not biodegradable and need to be properly disposed of, to keep our environment safe.

For deciding the re-usability and/or recyclability, we need to see the packaging of the product. It can have seven different symbols of "chasing arrows" or Mobius loop with 1 to 7 numbers inside it.

1. PET(PETE): It is polyethylene terephthalate. This type of plastic is recyclable but not reusable i.e. it is intended for only one-time use. It does not contain BPA or phthalates if it is not temperature abused. Otherwise, some studies have shown traces of antimony (a toxic chemical) leaching out from the plastic to the water when kept in the heat for prolong duration.

2.HDPE: It is High-density polyethylene. This plastic can be recycled and is considered one of safest forms of plastics. It is a thermoplastic made from petroleum and can withstand somewhat high temperatures. This plastic is reusable and recyclable.

3.PVC: Polyvinyl Chloride. It is one of the toxic plastic and should be strictly avoided. It is soft and flexible because it uses phthalates, which are very harmful to the endocrine systems. This plastic is non-recyclable.

4.LDPE: Low-density polyethylene. It is considered less toxic than other plastics. It can be reused but not always recyclable.

5. PP: polypropylene. It is a thermoplastic polymer, it means that it is strong, tough, and has high resistance to heat and acts as a barrier to the moisture. Most PP plastics are microwave and dishwasher safe. This plastic is considered food safe. It is considered safe for reuse and less likely recyclable.

6.PS: Polystyrene. It should be avoided wherever possible as it is carcinogenic in nature. It can not be recyclable.

7.Others: PC(polycarbonate): This plastic usually contains BPA, which is very harmful to endocrine health. Polycarbonate gives a very durable, microwave safe plastic.