Live

On By MeghaIn Seasons of life

A lot has been going on in my life and mind. Thoughts that fail to take form of comprehensible posts hence never get posted. So I decided to compile all the thoughts and questions that are bouncing in my mind at this very moment in a live from my mind post.

1. Among the many words in Pari’s expanding vocabulary her favorite is, ‘give it to me’ which she very cutely utters as, “De do” pointing her finger in the direction of the object she fancies.

That is the first step. After repeating ‘De do’ twice if she has yet not got the desired object, the request changes form to,  ‘De do na’ with a very cute smile and eyes shining 100 watts brighter. She then counts to three in her mind (because I make her do most things on a count of three) and then the request changes to an order. Loud, urgent and very clear, “De” (give). I like her assertiveness, though not always.

2. I have forever been confused about which is my favorite color. Before you knit your brows and think is this woman insane, let me tell you what I really mean. I love all colors with due exception of the dull shades. In fact black which is loved by a lot of people too ranked in my ‘oh so lifeless’ colors list till I went abroad.

Though the never-ending blacks, browns and grays abroad didn’t make me love them, but my tolerance towards them changed for I too had them in plenty in my wardrobe. Still bright colors (not the neon ones) still rule my mind and I feel it is unfair of me to like one of them and not all.

My current favorite is yellow, maybe because I love sunshine and the warmth yellow fills my heart with. I just sneaked in my wardrobe to check which color is dominant these days and it turns out to be sky blue.

How about you? What’s the dominant color of your wardrobe? Is it the same as your favorite color?

3. The three, dimensional constants of physics MLT (Mass, Length,Time) seem to be responsible for my slowly returning sanity and peace of mind. As time is passing and my distance from my ex has slowly been growing (physically, geographically and otherwise) and am getting lighter (in weight) I can feel myself slowly bouncing back to the real self I always was.

4. Procrastination is something I find tough impossible to conquer. Almost or even more difficult than fighting weight woes. But still I am trying.

5. After almost a month of torture with Pari insisting on watching Halkat Jawani in a loop on YouTube, finally she has found another song that she enjoys with the same intensity. Bunny Party (I am adding its video at the end of this post). I like it for countless reasons but primarily because it isn’t annoying like Halkat Jawani and secondly I love watching Pari dance to its tunes.

6. Since you are reading this post, I am confident you will surely be able to answer this question of mine. It is about anti-virus protection for my laptop. Over the years I have tried all sorts of free anti-virus software only to end up regretting not using a more efficient paid version.

This changed a few years back. I have used Norton, Kaspersky and McAfee among the paid versions and I currently have McAfee Internet security (that includes anti-virus with firewall and other features) installed on my computer. The issue here is that one fine day my anti-virus stopped working on its own.

I had not installed any new program and no other changes were made to my laptop. Besides, I am the sole user of my computer so I can confidently say that no harmful websites were opened either. The anti-virus wouldn’t work, I lodged a complain with the customer care and followed the protocol but nothing happened.

I use my computer for online shopping, banking, etc hence having Internet security is my prime concern and with no functional anti-virus I wasn’t at peace. So temporarily I installed a free version of anti-virus but within few days my laptop got too slow and I had to have it formatted.

No virus was detected and the laptop was only restored to factory settings and not formatted was what the Service Centre guy told me. I still had around six months left to the expiry of my paid McAfee subscription so I re-installed it.

That was my experience with McAfee but since my subscription for Internet security is due for a renewal shortly, I want to know;

  • Which anti-virus do you use? Free or paid?
  • Do you recommend it?
  • Any technical advise you wish to share.

7. As much as I love baking and experimenting in the kitchen, there are some issues I have been unable to find solution to despite my countless efforts. The first and the biggest was the yeast again and again dying on me. I mean, the active yeast packets I have been buying refuse to proof/froth/rise and hence I haven’t been able to make any form of breads and pizzas at home. Though I have been using the bakery bought pizza bases, but still I want my own stock of yeast to experiment often.

The latest update is, just yesterday I have brought a big chunk of wet baker’s yeast. Keeping fingers crossed in hope that it finally resolves all my baking woes. The yeast has been kept for proofing as I am typing this post.

Secondly, I am on a lookout for a pie dish (metal one) to be able to make traditional pies. I have tried looking for it on all websites I am aware of but to no success. If you know a bake-ware website that sells pie-dishes please share the link in the comment section. Please do not suggest Amazon or Ebay for this.

While you try to answer my queries, I’ll quickly rush to the kitchen to check how my new yeast is faring.

The song on Pari’s mind : The Bunny Party (Jamster bunny song)

73 thoughts on “Live”

  1. Pari’s ‘de do’ sounds very cute! 🙂

    My favourite colours are purple and red. My wardrobe definitely reflects that! I love black too… 🙂

    Glad to hear you are getting back to your old self

    Procrastination. Sigh. I totally hear you!

    I use Norton Internet Security and pay for it. Like you, I do a lot online so I need the protection and I’m willing to pay for it. Touchwood, it’s been good to me so far.

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    1. I gotta question on Norton PB, did it make your system slow? The last time I had bought Norton my laptop had gone very slow to the extent that I couldn’t even uninstall it myself and had to seek help from an IT guy to uninstall it 😦

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      1. It’s never done that to my system ME. I’ve been using Norton since I got my first laptop in Dec 2005…the laptops only slowed down once they were older (which is not uncommon) and not because of Norton.

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  2. oh i am not using any anti virus at home.. but have paid kaspersky for office PC.. i find it ok..
    hope the yeast is working this time..
    hugs to pari,’ de do na..”..and thats a nice song.. going to show it to bunty once i am back home.. i just love the colour black.. but after joining architecture is tarted loving all colours.. 🙂

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    1. O yes AM the yeast worked this time and just to be double sure on that, I have been baking non-stop using yeast 😀
      Architecture is a wonderful world in itself, I can imagine your love for colors being in such a beautiful field of work 🙂

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  3. Bikramjit Singh Mann

    first of all lot of love to the little one and yes its good she asserts because in this world Assertion is necessary , so GOOD of her ..

    antivirus – Well I don’t know why it stopped working, you shud have rung there help and enquired .. sometimes there are virus’s that will actually stop a anitvirus itself..

    At home I use the normal Microsoft free one and it is pretty decent and been using for years now and not had any problem , I do all my banking on-line , so touchwood ..

    The problem with anti virus is that it becomes obsolete immediately as bad people are writing new programs which i find veyr odd so much time spend in destroying things .. when all that can be put to good use.

    I am not very sure about all the FREE anti virus that comes, don’t trust them that much .. Moreover my banks here provide free anti-virus and take responsibility in case things go wrong ..

    and the advice is simple don’t go to dodgy website 🙂 he he he he he 🙂

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    1. Thank you Bikram 🙂
      Thanks for the recommendation Bikram, I noticed a number of others too have suggested Microsoft Security and all say it works good. Maybe I am going to give it a shot this time 😀
      Absolutely the banks overseas are super secure. In fact we have had my ex-husband’s bank account hacked once, but the matter was resolved wonderfully and all our lost funds were returned too, but in India things aren’t that secure as far online transactions go 😦

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  4. First thing first…congratz on the weight part…keep up the loss 🙂
    LOl on De Do Na…she must be sounding sooo cute with a puppy face….for Mishti it is De de de de ….till the time not given!!!

    My Favourite is blue…..but wardrobe is dominated by black which also I like 🙂
    Arre this Bunny party is very nice…Thnx for sharing it..Mishti would love it 🙂
    I was using Norton previously but PC crashed due to virus…now the engineer has installed AVG… just a couple of months ago…Till now it is OK…and yes I use torrents a lot which is considered as depot of virus !!!!

    Luv to Pari 😀

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    1. Thank you N 😀
      Wow! now Mishti’s de…de..de..de sounds super cute though I know she would do it till you gave up and gave her the desired object 😉
      I am sure Mishti will like this Bunny song 😀
      I hav used AVG free version earlier, but N it isn’t too powerful, unless you are using the paid version of the same.

      Love from Pari and myself 🙂

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  5. Awww Pari’s ‘De Do’ sounds so cute 🙂 And my current fav colour is yellow too!:)
    I use McAfee paid version and have not had any probs so far 🙂

    Sigh! Happened with me too many times … but I hit upon Gloripan at Spar, and it kind of works well for me 🙂

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    1. Yay on yellow 😀
      I am glad someone uses McAfee just like me 🙂
      Thanks Swaram for the yeast recommendation, will keep it in mind, though the yeast I bought this time turned out superb too!

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  6. ME… Loved reading this post.. you made me think a lot. First, with the fav color. I too feel the same about colors. I love almost all of them and would love to explore different combinations. So, I feel it will be an injustice to name only one. if you really insist, I would go with Green. I have almost all shades of green colored dresses 🙂

    Pari is so so so cute.. tight hugs to her 😀

    Loved your interpretation of MLT 🙂 and as far as weighty woes are concerned, I am sailing in the same ship as you. All the best!! 🙂

    I have totally stopped baking these days. The packet of instant yeast that I got doesnt require the proofing time and the results were too good. I am told, the yeast would stay active if left in an airtight container for about an year in the refrigerator. I am yet to check them out. I use the brand called Gloripan and have read good reviews about it and it has worked for me too. Hoping that your dough has raised, hasn’t it?

    As far as the pie dish is concerned, are you talking about the normal pie mould? The one with a detachable base? A few months ago, I went to the IBCA – http://ibcablr.com/ I am not sure if they do home delivery outside Bangalore but they had many sizes of pizza moulds and pie moulds. I got two different sized moulds from a local store only. If I come across any other link, I will let you know.

    For the anti-virus, I dont have much info and would welcome anything others might say. So, I will watch this space 🙂

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    1. Hugs from Pari to you 🙂
      I am glad someone noted MLT 😉 Wow! you too use use Gloripan like Swaram said in comment above.
      Thank you so much GB for the link to IBCA, yes they sell pie dishes and one other friend of mine recommended it too. So I am going to shop from their website soon 🙂

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  7. 1) That’s so awww 🙂 Pari must be sounding so cute 🙂
    2) Yellow! That has been my favourite colour always..though my current wardrobe dominant colour is green..
    3) Glad for you ME 🙂
    6) using Norton(paid) here at office..It’s just about to expire in a couple of days and has been trouble free since the last one year..

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  8. Now that you have checked the efficiency of new yeast, I am hoping that it has not left you disappointed. 🙂

    1) Ah, de do, de do na…is so kyooooooot. sweet rather.
    2) Dominant color in my wardrobe is REDdddd……sky blue colour is my fav though. Same pinch for that. But I hardly find light blue dresses/tops to buy :-(.
    3) So good to know you are having a normal and peaceful life after all the tough times. You truly deserve that. I hope it remains like that or gets even better in the future for all of you.
    4) Keep trying. You will get there if you really want to. BTW, I procrastinate a lot too but I am gradually getting better at quitting as I try hard to focus my mind on things that really need doing.
    5) Pari used to watch Halkat Jawani! Good she has now found a new song.
    6) I have paid Kaspersky antivirus and am more than happy with it. Sorry , cant help you with any technical advise .
    7) I dont have much idea about baking but i have watched on telly that a combination of baking soda and lemon juice works as a substitute to yeast. This is because the acidic property of lemon apparently releases carbon dioxide bubbles (same principle in which yeast works during fermentation) that helps dough to rise. Also, seemingly the combination of baking powder and lemon juice does not require time for raising. Hence added along with all the other ingredients and baked almost immediately. I am guessing though that this might have some difference in the finished product, wouldnt it? Lemon juice in a banana bread or cake?? hmmm, not sure how that might work…should be ok for breads though, nahi?
    I live in the UK and trust Tesco for baking trays, cake moulds etc apart from amazon ofcourse. So wont be able to help you on that front.

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    1. Yes…yes…yes.. the yeast worked very well. Not just once but all four times that I have used it till now 😀
      1) Kyoooooot it is 🙂
      2) Wow! red and magenta (not the neon one) used to be my favourites for a very long time, but maybe with age I have turned to lighter tones.
      3) Thank you
      4) Wow! good going girl
      5) absolutely
      6) I too am considering Kaspersky this time, though there are a few other recommendations that I’ll check 🙂
      7) Thanks for the tip Always Happy. You are right the CO2 release fundamental is used in many recipes and your trick is a popular one for savory delights. But for breads one needs yeast. Thankfully though I have finally found a good resource for the same.

      Tesco is great. See GB’s comment above for a great bakeware site in India.

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  9. Smita

    We use Kaspersky and it has worked well. Like you even I used to use free versions but once my system crashed we started buying the s/w yearly. I feel it is better for the system in the long run 🙂

    And Pari’s antics sound so cute! Glad she has overcome the Halkat phase because that song is nothing but pure torture!

    And how can ur fav color change?? hehehehe!!! My constant fav is Pink!!! 😀

    And I have been wanting to try the yeast beast but am afraid!! sigh!! Hope this one works well with you 🙂

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    1. I agree Smita, paid is the way to go for anti-virus and Internet security. I have learnt it the hard way.
      Absolutely glad on Pari letting go of Halkat in time 😀
      Na..na…my favorite doesn’t change. I don’t have a favorite 🙂
      It worked Smita. Go for the brand Swaram and Greenboochi recommended to avoid any hassles 🙂

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  11. As you are very well aware, black very popular color in USA. If you want to buy a car, you can take it home the same day. But if you want a black color car, you have to have about 2 weeks. That much demand.

    I use Comodo Internet Security Pro 2012. They charge $19.99 per year. Works pretty good.

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    1. Black rules the world, just not my mind 🙂
      I have tried the free version of Comodo, maybe it’s time to try the paid version. Thank you for the recommendation SG

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  12. kids’ vocab and grasping power is amazing. They can learn a lot in their first few years. 🙂 So keep observing how Pari picks up words and uses them in sentences. You would be amazed to know that she already knows those words 🙂
    Colours…hmmm..even I don’t know what my favourite colour is. At one time it was pink but now I can hardly stand it. Currently maybe it’s any shade of brown.
    As to favourite songs, my son loves ‘cham cham karta hai yeh nasheela badan’ for a long time. So don’t worry, she’ll keep changing songs. 🙂
    And for anti virus, I have been using eScan and it is the best so far I have used. It’s a paid one.

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    1. I agree about the wonders of kids’ growing years 🙂
      Yay! atleast someone is like me who doesn’t have a favorite color. I guess it’s the catchy beats of item songs that attracts little minds.
      Thank you for the anti-virus suggestion. I’ll check it out 🙂

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  13. Arjun Sharma

    U might wanna use Microsoft security essentials. free software, built by microsoft, no hassles, no problems, works perfectly. ive been using it for years.

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  14. Pari is so cute when she says de do na 🙂
    The color yellow makes me feel bright and shine.
    So good to hear you are bouncing back . Yay to that.
    I don’t have advise on the anti virus, at home I am using one provided by my internet company and my work laptop has one with corportae license.

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    1. Same pinch on loving yellow 🙂
      Thank you LF for being there at all times. without the support of friends like you I would have never reached this place in life 🙂
      Hugs dear

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  16. I just melted at the ‘de do na’ 🙂 Awwwwwwwww………………!!

    For anti-virus, Norton is the best. Paid is usually better (in my experience) and more reliable. Try Norton 360 or Norton Internet Security…never fails.

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    1. I had bought Norton 360 a year ago and it had disastrous impact on my laptop 😦 (Please read my reply to Psych Babbler above)
      But I am yet to research Norton Internet Security 🙂

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  17. #1. Can imagine what happens when ‘De’ does not work 😀
    #2. I have no favourites, but all shades of violet are found in abundance. There was a time when I used to shop only monochrome and grey, used to make my father mad 😆
    #3. Time is the best healer eh 🙂
    #4. Good girl.
    #5. She must have perfected the moves too na 😆 Poor you, God came in the form of a bunny to save you 😀
    #6. As far as the anti-virus stopped working on its own accord, did you change the system date for any reason? When you use sites for shopping or banking, make sure you check the url. It should be a https instead of http- at least in case of banks. Many fraudsters create an exact copy of the official site and con you into believing that you are logging into a correct site. Once you try to login or click any form to submit, virus and cookies get stored which can harm your data.
    I have been using Avast antivirus for a long time – both, the paid and free versions are good, it has given me no issues yet. Try that 🙂

    #7. Am just unable to even to try baking 😦 Dunno what I am fearing…sigh….

    Did the yeast live 😛

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    1. #1 I am glad you could guess.
      #2 Violet is smart 🙂
      #5 didn’t reach that stage but was quite close to it. Absolutely Bunny the savior.
      #6 Thank you for the awesome advise. Will keep it in mind.
      #7 Get baking girl it’s way easier than routine Indian cooking.
      Yes the yeast thrived 🙂

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  18. 6. I don’t have the problem of virus because I use Linux Mint & Ubuntu. Both Linux flavors. You can just download and install it along with Windows after burning the downloaded file to a CD/DVD. It’s very simple, I am using it for the last two years and most of my activities are online. Also, the OS doesn’t hang or get slow. You can boot from Windows or Linux as you wish, but these days I use only Linux. For many windows applications, you have its (free) Linux options.

    Destination Infinity

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    1. I too am pretty careful about the data I download and the webpages I visit but having Internet security always makes life easier. I have used the free version of AVG with a few critical attacks on my system, so gave up on it long back.
      Thank you for sharing your experience sos 🙂

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  22. I could imagine the ‘de do na’.. so sweet 🙂

    And even my current fav colors are some shades of yellow and orange. But you know I always find blue/green dominating in everyone’s wardrobe.

    I use a company laptop now, so no views on the anti-virus thing.

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  24. If Pari says “de do na”, i will give her anything – it is so so heart-melting …. :’)
    I love all colours and funny you say this because, I feel that the rest of the colours feel bad too. Exactly that way. I was so overjoyed to see someone think that way ! But I can never tire of black. Black with red, yellow, whote, silver – anything ! I love to go into my walk-in and see all colours 🙂

    Not sure about antivirus – I had Kaspersky and now i have Norton but no issues (major) so far. If K can suggest something, I will email you.

    Love that song there 🙂 Cuteness!

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    1. awww….Pari would love to have you around Kismi….she loves people who dance to her tunes. Please consider it as a personal invitation to visit her 😀 😀
      Yay! am glad too to have someone share my views. I agree black skirts and trousers go with all colors and no doubt makes me look smart too but still I don’t love black.
      Please do let me know if you have any other suggestions 🙂

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  25. Pari’s antics are so cute 🙂
    My favorite color is red and its different shades.
    Time is the best healer!
    Bunny song is better than Halkat Jawani any day!
    Avast antivirus free and paid are better.
    I do not know even the B of baking!

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  26. I’m confused about yeast toooo. Dry yeast works well the first time I open the container. But it goes bust after that. love to bake pizzas from scratch…but this is frustrating.

    Favorite colour.. purple. my wardrobe has a lot of black. Somehow its easiest to buy black!!! I want more purple and yellow though 🙂

    Never used anti virus. And I keep a back up of all things important. So far, virus has never entered my dearest laptop. I use torrent extensively as well! thuu thuu thuuu..lol!! (that was nazar na lage type thing, btw!)

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    1. Try the brand Greenboochi and Swaram recommended in their comments above. Yeast going bust can be quite frustrating 😦
      I agree with the importance of backup. I do it too.
      O yes, I am aware of the thoo-thoo bit 😉

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    1. There was a time when I had plenty of black in my wardrobe too but I make sure I never let it dominate my wardrobe, for somehow it always appears a lifeless color to me, despite the fact that I look great in it.

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  28. I can so imagine Pari saying De do na pointing her finger to the thing she wants 🙂
    In India, I use to wear all bright colors, I love all bright colours but here my wardrobe is full of black colour, its not my fav but it makes me look bit slim 😉
    PK has installed AVG anti virus, we do banking & shopping on our laptop and till now our laptop is safe from virus “touch wood” 🙂
    In office we use kaspersky.. have had virus attacks sometimes 😦
    Any update on yeast??? 🙂 🙂 🙂

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    1. I have to agree on the fact that finding vibrant colors outside India can be quite a task. Besides all the coats, over-coats and jackets are all shades of gray and black when you live in cold countries.
      I have to agree black does make me look way taller and slimmer, but still the weird me doesn’t love it 😦
      Ouch! thank you for the warning about Kaspersky.
      Yes, the yeast thrived and has been working fine 😀

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    1. 😆 😆 I try to yield to her demands most of the time but you know she can be very stubborn about things I cannot give her 😦
      P.S. – love your new Gravatar 😀

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      1. Well, if you think this is stubborn, wait till she grows up and starts talking., you’ll be looking back at this phase of her life and thinking ” the tantrums were so simple back then” lol, trust me i’ve been there..;) love kids at this age .
        Thanks for the compliment:)

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  31. privytrifles

    I love the positive streak in this post which spells life and joy 🙂

    Pari is so cute …de do..he he he 🙂

    Well I love whites a lot. For me they mean serenity and calmness. My wardrobe is full of them like crazy. I adore them and guard them zealously lest they are spoiled while washing!!

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  32. Did the yeast work/ Instead of opening a container of yeast, try buying individual packs. When I use half a pack and leave the rest, the remainder won’t proof/rise. You could also try packing the yeast in an airtight container or bag.

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    1. Which brand of yeast do you use Meera? I’d love to get separate sachets instead of a big box.
      Yes, the yeast worked superb this time and I have been indulging in breads of all sorts since then 😀

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      1. In the US, there are a number of brands. Most everyone that sells yeast in containers also sells them in sachets. in India, i am not so sure, i have a baker friend in Mumbai. I will check with her to see what she uses for all her breads and get back to you.

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