Sesame Sheep

International Day for Older Persons 2012

International day for older persons 2012 theme is "Longevity: Shaping the Future".

It was October 7, 2007, The International Day of Older Persons, when The World Health Organization(www.who.int) offers some astonishing statistics on the aging population, offered by the Voluntary Arts Network (www.voluntaryarts.org).

"In the next 50 years, the number of older persons will nearly quadruple, growing from about 600 million to almost 2 billion senior citizens. Today, one in every ten is 60 years and older. By 2050, one out of every five will be an older person, and by 2150, one third of the people in the world are expected to be 60 years of age or older".

That's seriously a staggering number of individuals officially categorized as 'elderly' whilst still in their 60s!

Dissolving the Boundaries of Age

We have reached an important landmark crossroads, the closing of one millennium and the beginning of another. This is a remarkable occasion by all accounts. Yet what is overwhelming is what the future stores for the world in this new era as it undergoes a demographic revolution. The world is changing as it ages, and the older persons have been the witness to these changes, they must also be its beneficiaries.

At the same time, we must rethink rigid differentiations that represent age and give it boundaries. Everyone, individually and collectively, is attached to this single human venture, and everyone will react, in their own way, to the ventures as well as the challenges. Ageing is not a distinct issue from social integration, gender development economic advancement or issues of poverty. It has earned a connection with many global agendas and will play, definitely, a prominent role in the way society interacts with economic and social welfare organizations, family and community life and the importance of women.

The complex infrastructure of society as well as the unique life style of individuals can be comprehensively distinct by a progressive upward shift in the global platform. The total effect cannot be easily discerned.

Let’s Form all Age Society

We all know about the outstanding demographic change that is under way. But our task is not to emphasis on what we already know. It is rather to equip ourselves and future generations with the apt tools to combat these challenges. Let us see this new century as an opportunity to inculcate belief in the possibilities of non-violence and peaceful coordination in order to advocate progress for all ages in every sphere of sections.

We are all constituents of a rural as well as city dwellers, ranging society, public and private sector communities, families and individuals, old and young alike. It is important that societies adjust to this human standard as record numbers of people are reaching old age, if we are to move towards as a society for all ages.

source: International Day for Older Persons 2012

Watch closely... it's smiling at you!!!

Η κυρία με το σκυλάκι

όλα σ'αυτόν τον κόσμο είναι ωραία.
όλα, εκτός από αυτά που σκεφτόμαστε και κάνουμε εμείς,
όταν ξεχνάμε την αξιοπρέπειά μας και τους ανώτερους σκοπούς της ύπαρξής μας.
Α. Τσέχωφ


Αν και έχουν περάσει παραπάνω από εκατό χρόνια από το θάνατό του, ο Άντον Τσέχωφ παραμένει ένας από τους μεγαλύτερους συγγραφείς όλων των εποχών. 
Η "κυρία με το σκυλάκι", αριστοκράτισσα από την επαρχία, συναντά έναν Μοσχοβίτη φιλόλογο στη Γιάλτα. Ανάμεσα στους δυο παντρεμένους ξεκινά ένας δεσμός που μοιάζει να είναι προϊόν της ρομαντικής ατμόσφαιρας του παραθαλάσσιου θέρετρου. Η λογική επιβάλλει τη διάλυσή του με την επιστροφή στην πεζή πραγματικότητα. Ωστόσο ο Ντμίτρι Γκούρωφ διαπιστώνει πως αυτή η γυναίκα έχει κάτι που δεν τον αφήνει να την ξεχάσει. Στο γνωστότερο και, ίσως το αρτιότερο, διήγημά του ο Τσέχωφ αναλύει αριστοτεχνικά την ένταση των συναισθημάτων και την αλλαγή στην καρδιά και τη συμπεριφορά των δύο πρωταγωνιστών, δημιουργώντας μια αξέχαστη ιστορία παθιασμένου έρωτα.

Ο Αντόν Πάβλοβιτς Τσέχωφ' (Ρωσικά: Анто́н Па́влович Че́хов) ήταν Ρώσος συγγραφέας πολλών διηγημάτων, και θεατρικών έργων. Γεννήθηκε στις 29 Ιανουαρίου(17 Ιανουαρίου με το παλαιό ημερολόγιο) 1860 στην κωμόπολη Ταγκανρόγκ, στη νότια Ρωσία. Πέθανε στις 02 Ιουλίου 1904 στη γερμανική πόλη Μπαντενβέιλερ και τάφηκε στη Μόσχα στις 09 Ιουλίου 1904. Θεωρείται από τις πιο σημαντικές μορφές της παγκόσμιας δραματουργίας και άσκησε μεγάλη επίδραση στη θεατρική λογοτεχνία του 20ου αιώνα. Στα έργα του αποτυπώνεται η διαρκής φθορά της καθημερινής ζωής. Οι ήρωες του είναι άνθρωποι της ανώτερης κυρίως τάξης, που “ξοδεύουν” τη ζωή τους μέσα στην πνιγερή ατμόσφαιρα της ρώσικης επαρχίας.

Υπάρχει άραγε ανιδιοτελής φιλία;

 Is there such thing as selfless frienship?

Amazing Lamb photos... and a piglet!

source: https://www.facebook.com/ourpreciousworld

Lamb recipe... because life is not always fair!

Sizzling Lamb lollipops by Jamie Oliver

ingredients

For the lamb and marinade

• 1 heaped teaspoon

coriander seeds

• 1 level teaspoon cumin seeds

• a generous pinch of turmeric

• 2 bird’s-eye chillies, stalks

removed, finely sliced

• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled

and finely sliced

• sea salt and ground pepper

• olive oil

• 8 long lamb cutlets, not

trimmed, fatty side scored

For the spiced nuts

• 50g blanched almonds

• 50g shelled pistachios

• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

• a pinch of ground cumin

For the cucumber dip

• ½ a cucumber

• a handful of fresh mint leaves

• 100g natural yoghurt

• ½ a lemon

For the spicy tomato dip

• 2 large ripe tomatoes

• 1 fresh red chilli

• a few sprigs of fresh coriander

• a little feta cheese, for

crumbling over

• ½ a lemon

method

I came up with this recipe when I was in Wales, which produces some of the best lamb in the world. Ask your butcher for extra long lamb cutlets, untrimmed, so you have big Captain Caveman style chops to gnaw on. Marinate the lamb overnight if you can, to really intensify the flavours, which are inspired by the amazing Yemeni cooks I met in the old Tiger Bay community near the docks in Cardiff. Their community has been there for over 200 years, ever since the coal boom of the industrial revolution brought their ancestors to Wales. Their food hasn’t become famous in the same way other cuisines have. But it should have. It’s some of the most exciting food I’ve seen in a long time.

Pound the marinade spices, chillies and garlic to a paste using a pestle and mortar add a good pinch of salt and pepper, then muddle in just enough olive oil to make the mixture nice and loose. Get a roasting tray, put in the cutlets and rub the marinade all over them. Cover with clingfilm and put into the fridge, or to one side if you’re cooking right away.

Now get all your little dips ready. Put the nuts, sesame seeds, cumin and a pinch of salt into a dry frying pan and toast for a few minutes, tossing occasionally. Once golden, tip them into the mortar and pound up a few times until fine and crunchy, then pour them into a little bowl. Coarsely grate the cucumber on a box grater, then transfer it to a bowl, squeezing out any excess liquid. Finely chop the mint and add it to the bowl with the yoghurt, a good pinch of salt and pepper, and a good squeeze of lemon juice. Stir, then put into a little bowl next to the toasted nuts.

Halve the tomatoes and rub each half, cut side down, on the finer side of the grater so you end up with a fresh tomato slurry. Discard the skins, then finely grate in half the chilli. Season with salt and pepper, stir in a squeeze of lemon juice, sprinkle over some coriander leaves, and crumble over a little feta. Have a taste, adjust if you want it a bit spicier, or saltier, then put it into a little bowl next to the other dips.

Heat a griddle pan on a high heat and cook the lamb cutlets for around 4 minutes on each side, standing them on their fatty sides for a minute or two extra to crisp up. Once they are sizzling and golden, they’re done. Pile them on a board, then get stuck in and encourage everyone to dunk the chops in the dips and some of the based up nuts. Lovely with flatbreads or rice.