All 3 Of My Feelings

you've seen the jokes. india is "dirty", indians are "everywhere", why don't they fix their own country. ok. let me tell you why, and what's happening right now while nobody's watching.

first, the history you skipped: britain ruled india for two centuries and drained it. economist utsa patnaik's research estimates around $45 trillion in today's money was taken. the india that got independence in 1947 was one of the poorest countries on earth. every "why is india like this" question starts there. you don't get to profit off a robbery and then mock the crime scene.

now, what's happening RIGHT NOW:

in may the question paper for NEET leaked. that's the national medical entrance exam. over 2.2 million students took it. cancelled. years of studying, families' savings poured into coaching, gone overnight because someone sold the paper. students died by suicide after. these were kids who wanted to be doctors.

and out of that came a protest movement. a gen z group called the cockroach janta party, started by a 30 year old named abhijeet dipke, got 22 million instagram followers within DAYS. they've been doing a sit-in at jantar mantar in delhi demanding education minister dharmendra pradhan resign.

and then there's sonam wangchuk. if you've watched 3 idiots, he's the real engineer the character was based on. built solar schools in ladakh. invented ice stupas so himalayan villages have water. spent his whole life on education. he's 59 and he's been on hunger strike for 17+ days now. reporters went to see him this week and he was too weak to talk. and the troll armies are calling him "anti national" and "foreign funded". a man starving himself for other people's children. that's the thing here, anyone who asks a question is suddenly a traitor.

it's not one incident, it's everywhere you look:

• infrastructure worth thousands of crores failing within months of the ribbon cutting. tunnels collapsing in regions where heavy rain is a guarantee, not a surprise.

• youth unemployment near 10% for ages 15 to 29, 13.6% in cities. in a country of 1.42 billion where more than half the population is young.

• only about the top 3% of indians earn above 10 lakh a year. meanwhile billionaire wealth keeps ballooning and the headlines celebrate it.

• manipur burned for over two years. an ethnic conflict, tens of thousands displaced, and the prime minister barely said the word manipur while it happened.

• journalists raided. critics' houses bulldozed. activists sitting in jail for years without trial under laws like UAPA. our press freedom ranking has cratered.

• even the petrol is a fight now, ethanol blending pushed through while drivers complain about their engines and get no straight answers.

and through all of it, the PM, who came to power on religious polarisation (americans, sound familiar?), travels abroad for photo ops and has not held one single open press conference in over a decade. not one.

what i'm asking:

if you're not indian: share this. our media mostly won't cover any of it because the big outlets are owned by the same billionaires the government serves. the only reason wangchuk's fast is getting any coverage is people refusing to look away.

if you ARE indian: speak up even if you're comfortable. especially if you're comfortable. join the protests. add to this, correct me, translate it. staying quiet is a choice when nothing in this post touches your life.

india is not "dirty". india was robbed, and it's being robbed again, from the inside this time. but it's also the country where a 59 year old will starve for strangers' kids and 22 million young people will rally behind a party literally named after cockroaches, because cockroaches survive everything.

we can still save her. but only loudly.

This is the one song everyone / would like to learn: the song / that is irresistible:

the song that forces men / to leap overboard in squadrons / even though they see the beached skulls

the song nobody knows / because everyone who has heard it / is dead, and the others can't remember.

Shall I tell you the secret / and if I do, will you get me / out of this bird suit?

I don't enjoy it here / squatting on this island / looking picturesque and mythical

with these two feathery maniacs, / I don't enjoy singing / this trio, fatal and valuable.

I will tell this secret to you, / to you, only to you. / Come closer. This song

is a cry for help: Help me! / Only you, only you can, / you are unique

1. canonically female (no variation)

2. canonically the protagonist of her story (if it’s an ensemble cast you have to say you can legitimately see her as The main character)

3. your personal #1 favorite character in that story (ties are acceptable)

Banana Bread (with extras!) Recipe!! (difficulty level: I don’t know what I’m doing)

This recipe is eggless! It can be made vegan by using a butter substitute.

@cuddlingsun sorry it took me so long to post it, yesterday got v busy!

Ingredients - Necessary items:

Bananas - I usually use three. Ripe/brown. Mash them!

½ cup butter/shortening/margarine (can use a little less for Health)

¾ cup sugar

1 ½ cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda (like, the small spoons in your house!)

1 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla essence

Ingredients - bowls and things

Large bowl for mixing

Loaf pan or other smallish baking pan

Something to stir with

Something to mix up your ingredients with

Big sieve to sift flour etc (or pour it in slowly if you don’t have one)

Ingredients - Bonus

This is the fun stuff and you can add literally whatever you want!! I use the following in fairly random and yet generous amounts

chocolate chips (m&m’s or other candy work really well too)

cocoa powder (honestly I use hot chocolate mix for this, it’s delicious)

walnuts (use like… ½ cup and squish them so they’re not Whole Walnuts)

oats

nutmeg (I spilled like 2 tablespoons worth in the mix this time by accident but use like 2 teaspoons and it will be Good and taste like Fall)

cinnamon (1-2 tsp max)

confectioner’s sugar to sprinkle on top so it looks like it has Lightly Snowed on your banana bread. for the aesthetic.

How to Make The Thing

Preheat your oven to 325°F/165°C. Take all the pots and pans out first if you use your oven for storage like I do, lest you burn all the handles off

Grease your pan. I used a loaf pan but I’ve also made it in a bigger, flatter baking pan when I didn’t actually have a loaf one. I usually spray oil and then use a paper towel to spread it around and get all parts of the tray

Pour your sugar in the bowl, and add the butter (helps if you soften or melt it first). Mix them up together and add in your 2 tsp vanilla.

Add your flour to the sieve, add baking soda and salt. Sift all of it into your sugar mix

Add the mashed bananas and stir the whole mixture together

BONUS STEP: add your bonus ingredients!! Any order is fine, just make sure you get them evenly mixed into the dough. Especially if you’re using cocoa powder - you don’t want patchy bits of chocolate dough

Pour your batter into the pre-greased pan and stick it in the preheated oven! A good Standard Amount Of Time is 60 min if you’re using a deep loaf tin, but just open your oven every 15-20 min and stick a lil toothpick in the side (not the edges) of the loaf once it’s risen. If the toothpick comes out clean, it’s done. Let the loaf sit out and cool on the counter for 15-20 min and then sprinkle your sugar on top