Julian's Humble Hubris

EARLY DRAFT! My long-lasting friends are a diverse bunch, but they all have one thing in common: they all return texts fairly quickly, virtually always.  Besides the obvious "being more engaged", is there a deeper meaning?  Can the average text response time be used as a predictor of friendship longevity? I'm come to see that the answer appears to be "yes" on both counts.  Let me elaborate! First, let's be clear: I'm NOT talking about new acquaintances, i.e. situations where a sluggish response could be - and often is - a sign of lukewarm interest.  Here I'm talking about friends or prospective friends past the initial stage , after a connection has been established and it appears to be generally solid. Text-Message Responses Whenever I further investigate chronic substantial delays in responses, it typically appears to point to a personality trait, rather than some dynamics between me and that person - and I hear a lot of " I'm the same wit...

"Divine Potatoes" is my nickname for a fabulous vegetarian dish - reminiscent of samosa filling - that my equally-fabulous housemate Palak can, to my surprise, whip out with amazing ease... a dish for which she says there's no name.   Hence my nickname!    I think it deserves a "Michelin star"! (a prestigious culinary award.)  Do we dare to re-create it?  Fasten your seat-belts, and let's jump in! SHORT VERSION :  boiled potatoes with Indian-style gravy. LONG VERSION :  the full recipe is 1,862 pages long, and requires a 10-year apprenticeship to master, but here's an executive summary :) The following recipe is scaled for smallish portions for 6 people . ------------------- TRACK 1 (start here, because it takes longer) - the  POTATOES .   3 or 4 medium (Russet) potatoes. Peel and slice into small-ish cubes; put into water and boil until moderately soft. Then drain the water with a colander. ------------------- PARALLEL TRACK 2 ...