Just Dance

Did anyone purchase this game for Wii?? CUZ I HAVE! It came in the mail yesterday. I needed to persuade The Husband a little bit because he wasn't feeling too comfortable with the idea of me being able to watch him dance (yet supposedly he LOVES to dance. Go figure.)

The commercial made it look like so much fun and I figured this is a healthy substitute for going clubbing (not that I've ever been clubbing). Yeah yeah, you all might think it's lame-oh but The All Mighty Allah has commanded us to surround ourselves with good (good people, good environment...) and lower our gaze/protect our modesty. And no matter what people say, especially other Muslims, there is NO wayyyyyyy you can go to the club and lower your gaze/not get involved in the dancing! Come on let's be real! BTW: I'm soooooooooo thankful to God my close friends (the authors on this blog, plus more that aren't on this blog) were never part of that social scene (drugs/clubbing) because you are who you're friends are. <3 you guys.

So ANYWAY, I decided to bring the dancing to MY house, so it can be halal and stufff. :) The Husband and I played the game for a half hour and I'll tell you, he's better than I am. When you're "dancing" to the music, you will either get an X, OK, or GREAT, depending on how close you imitate their moves. I got a few GREATS and mostly X's and OK's, lol but The Husband got LOTS of GREAT and everytime I'd turn to see what he was doing, he'd get embarrassed, lol. The hardest dance was "Groove is in the Heart" cuz there were all these funny arm movements and I was always doing the opposite of the image on the screen. It seemed more like a workout rather than dancing, which is fine cuz I sure need a workout. But I am going to bring this game plus my two Wii controllers when I go to the midwest for vacation (in 2 weeks) and I'm expecting you all (the authors on this blog) to play this game with me! Trust me, it'll be so much fun! And since my sister has Wii, we'll have a total of 4 people playing at once. Can't wait to see who's got the best dance moves! ;)


Oh and I wanted to leave you with one of my favorite verses from the Qur'an: "Was not the Earth of Allah spacious enough for you to move yourselves away (from evil)?" Chapter 4:97. This is one of my favorite verses because it's so true. We (myself first) all need to stop coming up with so many excuses for our behavior because one day that same excuse isn't going to cut it.


Kthanksbye!
- Simply Me

My Makeup Bag

I published this post at around 7pm but due to some glitches, the site got a little screwed up, I think. So here's to trying again!



A practicing Muslim woman who wears hijab (head covering and modest clothing) and wears makeup can be subject to a lot of criticism from her peers and community members. Some think hijab and makeup don't fit well together. "What's the point of being so modest if you're going to wear all that makeup?" Even if "all that" is just wearing your eyeliner really thick. "It's going to attract the opposite sex and defeats the purpose of hijab don't you think???" "Why be so fake?" "What happened to being natural?" "I know I wear makeup, but at least I'm not a HIJABI wearing makeup..." And of course, the usual "Wearing makeup is HARAM!" from people who think everything is haram (impermissible), lol. In my personal opinion, I think women IN GENERAL should never wear too much makeup. Moderation is the way to go! Now with THAT being said...

I always have THE hardest time finding the right cosmetic/skincare product to use, whether it's the right shade of blush, an eyeliner that sets in dark and doesn't bleed throughout the day or finding the best makeup remover. I have tried quite a handful of products and although I'm not an expert on anything makeup related (so don't take my advice), I just wanted to share my favorite makeup items along with some tips (ok, ok....very very few tips). Enjoy!


EYELINER
My favorite type of eyeliner is liquid eyeliner but because of my slightly unsteady hands, I can never get the perfect look I have always dreamed of (the winged, thin to thick look) so I usually stick to pencil. Or I'll draw the initial line with pencil and carefully go over it with liquid.

I'm currrently using Maybelline "Line Stiletto" in Black

with Victoria's Secret "Very Sexy Eye Liner" in Black Velvet.

I was surprised at how much I loved VS's eyeliner! It's pretty
comparable to my all time most favorite favoriteeeee eyeliner:
N.Y.C. "Classic Brow and Liner Pencil" in Jet Black.

Do you KNOW how much this eyeliner costs? ONLY $0.99! It's SUCH a steal and comes out pretty dark with the first application. It also doesn't bleed out TOO much when I use it on my bottom lid.


MASCARA

Lancome "Definicils High Definition Mascara" in Black

I only used this because my MIL got it for me and I would say it's quite good but once this ran out, I went snooping around CVS for something cheaper and more volumizing. After a half hour in the Target makeup aisle, I decided to take a risk and buy Maybelline "The Colossal Volum' Express." And guess what? It is great!! It really lengthens my eyelashes, as advertised (because of the collagen formula) without getting them clumpy.

It's a MUST TRY and only about $6.00!

LIPCOLOR
I'm a gloss typa' gal!

Since July of last year, MAC "Tinted Lipglass" in "Viva Glam V"
has become my new favorite lipgloss, or according to MAC, lipGLASS.


It pairs really well with Lancome "Color Fever Gloss" in "On Fire"
(I apply On Fire first)

Every time I wear these two together, I get a LOT of compliments...even from C.C, which always catches me off guard. She is one who doesn't wear ANY makeup and probably doesn't know much about it either BUT it's ok because we stilllllllll love her! :)

BLUSH

MAC Mineralize Blush in Grand Duo was available
for a limited time and I'm so glad I purchased it!

Because Grand Duo gives me a shimmery look (which The Husband thinks looks so silly), I decided to take a trip to the MAC counter at Macy*s today to get something more natural looking that I could wear during the day.

I ended up buying MAC Sheertone Blush in Gingerly

This is what the color Gingerly looks like on the MAC
website but in reality it has more of a pink/brown tone.

FOUNDATION
I feel foundation powder makes my skin look dry so I stick to liquid.

According to CoverGirl, I'm Soft Honey #155



And according to MAC, I'm NC#42 in Studio Fix Fluid SPF 15.

I love this product because it looks so "natural" and no one is ever able to tell I have it on!

I have to admit, once you go MAC, you never wanna go back! Hahahahahaha, ok I know I know that was very corny BUT MAC really caters to girls who have darker than beige complexions. Their makeup line is great!

MAKEUP REMOVER
I think I have tried makeup remover wipes ONCE and I thought it was a waste of money because there just wasn't ENOUGH to last me a long time.

CoverGirl Clean Makeup Remover feels so oily and
smells like elmers glue so make sure you stay away!


A sales associate pressured me into purchasing
Lancome Micellar Cleansing Water for Face, Eyes, and Lips

It wasn't all that! It was too weak of a solution to remove any mascara and it didn't work well on my lips.

But Lancome Bi-Facil Double Action Eye Makeup Remover
is, in my humble opinion, the best!!



But since I'm not willing to cough up $26.00, I've found the second
best alternative: Clean and Clear Soothing Eye Makeup Remover (about $6.00)



I use it with Clean and Clear Makeup Dissolving Foaming Cleanser.


This products easily removes my mascara and I lovveeeee the foaming effect. Don'taskwhy.

And if you're really feeling lazy, you can always use Pond's Cold Cream or Vaseline to get rid of all the mess!

I definitely don't wear all these products at once. God knows I'd look like an ugly clown! I save the makeup wearing for get togethers or parties usually. Other than that, I like to wear as little as possible. For everyday use, I stick to my MAC lipgloss, mascara and just a bit of concealer under the eyes (if I feel I look tired). And the days I'm REALLY feeling good about myself, I don't wear any makeup at all! :)

Now you tell me, what's in YOUR makeup bag?

back to school

This past week was my first week back to college. Yeah I know I graduated last May but I still needed to take my last 2 prereqs for my future career which IwillnotspeakofuntilIgetintotheirprogram. One of the classes I’m taking is “Anatomy and Physiology 2 + Lab” and it’s kinda annoying because technically I’ve taken it already! My alma mater offered "Anatomy and Physiology + Lab". No part 1 or 2. Just AP by itself which actually was a combination of 1 AND 2 and boy was that class real tough and intensive (but I loved it, my favorite college course EVER!!) but a lot of schools that I wanna apply to (for my future career) WON’T ACCEPT "AP". Soooooo I was left with no choice but to retake it. God Willing this class will be a “breeze” since I’ve already learned this stuff.

So let me tell you about this university, in which I am enrolled as a non-degree student … aka … GUEST STUDENT. First off, I had to pay A LOT of money for these 2 classes. I'm not a resident of this state yet so I had to pay non-resident fees, which was 2x more than resident fees. And because I'm a non-degree student, I didn't qualify for financial aid or loans. Which was fine but I'm just sayen. And I wasn’t too lost on the first day because I visited the campus many times (to fill out my application, get my ID, drop off my immunization slips, etc etc). When it came time for my break in-between classes, I didn’t know where to go! I wanted to eat my homemade lunch cuz I was STARVING but really didn’t wanna sit alone in the cafeteria…so I found a spot in the atrium (an area that connects the buildings together) and ate -- and people watched. And that was a slightly depressing scene but whatevs.

After that, I decided to get some information about the college MSA (muslim students association) so I could find out about meetings/prayer area/etc etc. I found the "club room" or student organization office with the help of students who were carrying signs which read "NEED ASSISTANCE? ASK FOR HELP!" The lady in charge of "club" information was out of the office so I was just sitting around waiting for her to return. While waiting, I walked around the office and my eyes fell on this sticker that said something like, "Forget your arrogance, be humble and remember the grave" and I was all thinking like, "Oh whoa, isn't that a little...religious??" so I looked up to see which door it was posted on (assuming it was going to be some religious org) and to my surprise, it was the mediation room! I got so excited!!! Alhamdulillah they have one so now I can pray in between classes inshallah. :)

Overall, there’s a lot of different things I’m experiencing with going back to college again. During undergrad, I drove and it took me about 15 mins cuz I lived sooo close to school. Now I take public transportation and it takes me 1 hour 15-20 minutes to get there. LONGEST RIDE EVER! But it’s cool because I’m catching up on reading “THE TIME TRAVELLERS WIFE”. And it’s also not THAT bad considering I have classes only twice a week. The traveling has left me feeling exhausted though. I’m sure within a few weeks, I’ll start feeling better and hey, it’s doing wondersss to my calves!! ;)

Oh and I feel like I’m in high school again! The college policy is that you can’t be late for class more than twice or absent more than 3 times and if you are absent - there’s a chance you’ll fail the class. And professors take attendance! The college isn’t even that small but obviously not where you have 200 people for a science class (like my alma mater). So yeah, that’s REALLY weird for me because I never had to deal with that in undergrad (well maybe in a few classes). Also my exams are pretty tentative. I HATE that. I hate not knowing when I’m going to have exams. I like being mentally prepared and the professors leaving the dates “up in the air” has got me feeling really really really nervous. And also they check your ID at the entrance (something my old HS did). And the weirdest procedure is when you’re borrowing books from the undergrad library. You can’t just say the name of the book, you NEED to know the call number (whyohwhy!!) and the librarians keep your ID until you’ve returned the book. Talk about strictttttt. Anddddd there’s no eating in the library! OMG we used to PIG OUT at our undergrad lib and it was allowed, just not near the computer stations but here, nope. NO MERCY.

On the other hand, what’s pretty cool is that I don’t have to step outside of the building(s) for ANYTHING! Which is SOOO convenient because I remember during undergrad, the bookstores and libraries and classes would be so far away from each other (since our campus was pretty big) and it would be a drag to walk around, especially in the winter. But at the university I attend now…the library, bookstore, cafeteria (yeah lol) and my classes are in 3 buildings which are connected to each other! It totally feeds my laziness buttt iiiiiiii love it. And 2 of my 3 professors are pretty cool alhamdulillah. The other one is alright, he’s just giving me slight problems regarding a certain situation but insha’Allah it will be resolved soon.

I know semester just started but I’ve been looking forward to spring break even before it did lol. It’s at the end of march. CAN’T WAIT. Spring break means a visit to the MIDWEST! :)

Oh and there's 14 weeks of the semester left (yes I love countdowns).
Anddddd I probably should go study now before the superbowl starts cuz I'm having some guests over for my first superbowl party. No I'm not watching the game. Just made a party out of it since The Husband loves it. Wish you all were here.

But till next time, PEACE!

Till Death Do Us Part...until we meet again in the afterlife of course!

December 27th was my one year anniversary! I wanted to be all cute and post something on 12 am December 27th BUT clearly as you can see THAT didn't happen. It was cuz I was in Canada and didn't have a post prepared nor was I willing to sit and write one since I was so damn exhausted from attending the RISconference, which BTW was great!

(ris=www.revivingtheislamicspirit.com)

So yes, I spent my anniversary + 3 extra days at an Islamic Conference in another country. Oh and C.C was with us too!! Hiii C.C!! =] OMG that reminds me, on the measly 4 hour drive to Toronto, we pulled over twice because my bladder was acting outta control and boy can I tell you that the public "washrooms" in Canada are SO FREAKING CLEAN! At least the ones I used. They had an inspection sheet posted on the wall and these washrooms were cleaned every 15-20 minutes. NOW that's what I call service!! I think Canadians have time to spend cleaning their washrooms because hellooooo, they have universal healthcare and we all know that just makes everything sooooooo much better. Really. Ok so back to my non-i-versary. Basically at 12 am anniversary night, my husband and I looked at each other, smiled and said, "Happy anniversary". And you know whaaaat? That was totally OK! I remember at the beginning of December, A.L. asked what I'd be doing on my anniversary and I told her I'd most likely be at the Islamic conference. She said, "have a GOOD time at RIS and at your 1st anniversary. its perfect, you will spend a weekend uplifting your islamic spirituality TOGETHER... that's perfectly romantic <3"

Alhamdulillah.

And AL was so right! Who says gifts have to be wrapped? Or that you even need to exchange gifts? My husband and I were together, safe, happy and healthy! We didn't need to go on a date or to dinner/movies to enjoy our 1st year together. I think being at the conference together was more memorable than throwing an anniversary party or getting some blingblingchingching, not that there's anything WRONG with that ifyouknowwaimsayen. ;)

The husband makes me happy. Real happy. I should tell him that more often. I'm usually too busy imitating karate moves, pinching his cheeks and throwing fake punches his way. don'task cuz I aint gonna tell.

Oh btw: Happy one day belated birthday to C.C!! And happy 2 week belated birthday to C.A.! Danggggggg everybody's gettin' old! ;)

Until next time, peace!

Handbook For 2010

I fell across this note on a friend's facebook (who says facebook isn't useful?). These are not really resolutions but more like...life rules. I think I'm going to print this and tape it to my refrigerator. Enjoy! :)


Handbook for 2010

Health:
1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants..
4. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy
5. Make time to pray.
6. Play more games.
7. Read more books than you did in 2009 .
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:
11. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
12. Don't have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
13. Don't over do. Keep your limits.
14. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
15. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip.
16. Dream more while you are awake
17. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need..
18. Forget issues of the past. Don't remind your partner with His/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don't hate others.
20. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
21. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
22. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
23. Smile and laugh more.
24. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

Society:
25. Call your family often.
26. Each day give something good to others.
27. Forgive everyone for everything.
28. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.
29. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
30. What other people think of you is none of your business.
31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:
32. Do the right thing!
33. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
34. GOD heals everything.
35. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
36. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
37. The best is yet to come..
38. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.
39. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

Have a Healthy and Happy New Year!

Sincerely,
Simply Me.

Au Revoir!

Fort Hood

Front page of every news revolves around the shooting that happened in Texas. I don't even need to go into details for all of you to understand what I am talking about.

News reports started breaking out about a shooting spree from several gunmen. Which eventually turned into one gunman. Instantly people on twitter started betting it was a muslim. Prayers were being read for those involved. Others tweeted about how they were appalled.
It wasn't just twitter though. News articles involving the story where constantly being updated. Everyone anxiously waited for news about those involved in the incident. And still do.

With the country watching every piece of information coming out about the horrific shooting spree, people are once again examining Muslims. With that Muslims in America are coming out to condemn the incident. But others question why is it necessary for us to condemn everything someone else is doing? Just because they are Muslim and we are Muslim? Shouldn't the focus be on "the psyhciatrist and issues he had with deployment and that fact that he needed help/therapy himself"?

Anyways, so instead of presenting a single muslim voice to you, speaking about the event at Fort Hood, I had a few individuals type up blurps. They might not know everything but it's their own opinions, thoughts or just covering the facts that took place at Fort Hood yesterday.


I'm sure we all know what happened in Texas yesterday. It's such a tragedy. I don't know what to think. It seems like there's no break in the cycle. The same thing just happens over and over again.Why must Maj. Hasan be referred to a "muslim" "arab" and "terrorist" every single time? What happened to plain old "American"? It's stated he was a "US Born Muslim." Was Timothy Mcvey every referred to as an "US Born Catholic"? Were the Columbine shooters labeled as "American Protestants?" No, they were not. How come that was irrelevant? These words are brainwashing everyone and causing so much more fear. Do we really need that right now, especially with the lack of evidence for the shooters motive??

Do you guys remember when General Cone mentioned that witnesses supposedly saw 3 shooters? I understand in the moment of panic, you see things or THINK you saw them. But how do people mistake that? These 3 shooters were interviewed and let go, to find out it was a single shooter incident. So if people thought they saw 3 shooters but were wrong, then it seems witnesses could possibly be wrong about these statement too:

"Soldiers reported that the gunman shouted "Allahu Akbar!" — Arabic for "God is great!" — before opening fire, said Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, the base commander. He said officials had not confirmed that Hasan made the comment." (Yahoo News)

"The commander of the base, Lt Gen Robert Cone, told NBC News that, according to eyewitnesses, Mr Hasan had shouted the Arabic phrase "Allahu Akbar!" [God is great] before opening fire." (BBC.co.uk)

Why mention an unconfirmed statement? Let's get our facts together FIRST before jumping to conclusions people. I urge everyone to be open minded and to not believe everything the media says.

I'm angry. I'm angry that he did this. I want to know why. What was going through his mind? I'm angry that this guy killed/hurt so many people. They were so innocent. They didn't deserve this. No one did. I'm angry that the media, never ceases to accuse Islam (indirectly and you can't argue that they're not) and I'm angry thinking of how many people are probably in fear of their life right now.

Why are we, as humans allowing this to happen? And with "this", I mean allowing the demonization of Islam, allowing the military men to go untreated, allowing wars to happen, and allowing the unfair treatment of others? I don't like to lose hope but sometimes I feel as though I don't know what else to do to prove to everyone that Muslims are SANE. Sometimes I want to hide in a cave and sometimes I wish, really really wish that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was alive. sigh.

I pray that all the families, including Maj Hasan's family find peace and may God make this easy for them. May He expose the truth behind this matter and bring justice to all that rightfully deserve it.

---Simply Me



Yesterday a cousin of the Army psychiatrist spoke with CNN over the phone. He kept repeating over and over that his cousin was a "Good American." I wouldn't call him a good American or even a good human being. What this man did was terrible but I have a hard time believing it was for religious purposes. Yesterday the news didn't mention that the man screamed "Allahu Akber" (God is great) right before his attack, so how come they are saying it now? I dunno. I just have a hard time believing that this man really said that. How could a man do so much damage and no one stop him? Ok, maybe they tried to stop him but they couldn't manage to kill him? I dunno. I'm one of those people who doesn't believe most of what she hears on the news. If anyone did what he said it would be huge and be on the news, just as it is. However, its so much of a bigger deal since the man is a Muslim. Sigh

--Mrs. Cullen

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8347501.stm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2009/nov/06/fort-hood-shootings-hasan-muslim

These articles discuss how Major Hasan was horrified after he found out he was to be deployed to Afghanistan. I think it's clear that he was deeply troubled and unstable from all the work with mentally-distressed and traumatized veterans, and his own military tours. He most likely just wanted to do anything he could to not be deployed...

It can be hard to understand how troubled some soldiers are; it's an issue quite hidden from the mainstream. My friend commented, “A Muslim.. and a mental health professional. What are the odds?” Well, how about the odds that eighteen soldiers commit suicide everyday (according to the Veterans Administration). Here's an enlightening article about suicide and PTSD issues.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/13/cbsnews_investigates/main3496471.shtml

Couple such mental issues with a confused, Palestinian-American identity and the additional troubles this brings of dealing with the violence and acts one may have committed or seen as a US soldier.So yeah, the odds look alright to me...

And while religion and spirituality could bring stability to these problems... people point to this man's religious identity while being totally silent on these issues. How many American veterans are unemployed or completely homeless after serving their country? How many suffer from PTSD and receive no support whatsoever? How many are casualties of the nation they thought they were fighting for?

At the same time, I just wish people would have the same uproar over violence against innocent civilians as they do for military personnel. Though of course, all loss is unfortunate. It's just that reality here in the American bubble is somewhat distorted.



---Provoking Invoking


Yesterday I was at the mall and the giant tv screen, which was on mute, had "BREAKING NEWS: MASSACRE AT FORT HOOD, scribbled across the screen. I was like, whoa, what happened? And then I started getting texts about this Muslim Major who went psycho and started shooting everybody on this base. They were reports that he had been to Iraq, that he could have been emotionally deranged, oh and also that he was probably working for a terrorist Muslim group.

Here is what we know:Maj. Nidal Hasan, is a 39 yr old Psychiatrist who spent most of his career at the large Walter Reed Army Medical Center. A processing center for soldiers returning from and about to be sent, overseas. He opened fire with an automatic pistol and another weapon, killing 13 people and injuring 31. Hasan, had been shot four times until he finally went down, by a wounded Civilian Officer. At first believed to have been killed, he is now recovering and on a ventilator. He was born in Virginia, got his medical degree from a military academy in 2003 and has been at the Washington Army Medical Center for 6 yrs before being transferred to Texas.

There are reports that he was "deeply, fundamentally opposed to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq" from an un-named former colleague, which I am skeptical about. Every other source, his commanding officer and the nurses he worked with, were identified. I don't know what was going through his mind as he shot and killed so many people, if/when he regains consciousness.

---Snake Charmer

And those are the blurps I have for you today.

And those tweets wondering whether every Muslim they meet might be a foe? I am not even going to respond to that. What would like me to do? Plead to you I'm not a foe?

Personally? I truly salute the woman who brought him down, feel sorry for those that are suffering, for their pain, but I also wonder about the man who went from being a good neighbour to someone that seemed to have lost their mind.

To quote Simply Me, "I pray that all the families, including Maj Hasan's family find peace and may God make this easy for them. May He expose the truth behind this matter and bring justice to all that rightfully deserve it. "

--controlled chaos

Food for Thought.

OMGAHHHHHHHHHHH. So I was looking back at my previous post: SM's Ramblings and didn't realize you guys left more comments! Sorry! I finally got around to replying to them. Bad blogger, I know. :( I wish there was some notification system, like facebook! I will try to be better next time, God Willing. BTW: Great layout!!! Totally loving it even though I'm not in the picture. ;)

Anyway, I'm currently reading this book "Skinny Bitch" by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnoiun. The authors are both former models and one's even got an MS in Holistic Nutrition! Holla. I got my BS in Nutrition so that makes me feel kinda super cool. The book is kind of an expose (not really) of the food industry and how different ingredients are harmful to your health and what you should eat/avoid in order to be/remain healthy. I'm only on chapter 4 and I already feel like I'm going to die of a heart attack, brain tumor or something really bad...like die in a car accident because I was eating a fish filet while driving (which btw I would never do because I despise McDonald's). They have a sarcastic sense of humor and it makes me laugh but some of the stuff they've written, I feel, is a bitttttttttttt extreme. I'm not done with the whole book so I dunno what else they've got to say. But it's sort of a reality check and gets you thinking about food and health.

Some might think I'm crazy psycho (redundant, I know but it sounds cool together) because I read the ingredients to spot out haram (unlawful) ingredients/components. Gelatin is something I religiously avoid because it's usually from pig, which is haram to consume if you're a Muslim. And although some gelatin originates from cattle (which is A-OK to eat), it would still be considered unlawful if the cattle it came from was not slaughtered in an Islamic/Kosher way. So why not avoid it in general? I mean I'm not really missing out on life just cuz I can't eat starbursts, marshmallows ( Thanks to Muslims, there's the halal version) poptarts and other unhealthy snacks. I'm still alive and very content indeed. And now, a new ingredient I've been avoiding are enzymes.

In Islam - with regards to food- if something originates from an unlawful source/has an unlawful component, the whole food is considered unlawful. Say if some food was cooked with alcohol, that food would be considered haram, even though supposedly alcohol "evaporates" when used in cooking...which is nooottt true according to the USDA. Their chart can be found here and here. Also The Journal of American Dietetic Association (Volume 102, Issue 4, April 2002 page 536) speaks about it and possibly other sources which I have not had time to search yet cuz USDA's got me convinced. Oh btw: I recently found out shrimp scampi is cooked with wine!! Even at red lobster. Booooooo!

By now you're probably thinking I don't get to enjoy any food if I'm so darn picky and mustonlyeatHalal but actuallllllllly, it's not that hard at all! Unless you live in Kentucky or Iowa or something. And God is always forgiving.

Which brings me to something else (Yes, I'm all over the place), have you ever wondered that although our meat is getting slaughtered in the name of Allah, WHERE is it originally from? HOW are these animals being treated? WHAT are they being fed? Islam strictly forbids cruelty towards animals even when they're being slaughtered!

“Fear God in regards to these animals who can not speak their will. If you ride them, treat them accordingly (by making them strong and fit for that), and if you [plan to] eat them, treat them accordingly (by making them fat and healthy).” Abu Dawud <--- this is a Hadith. Hadith are statements or actions of the Beloved Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessing be upon him.

For instance, take the food industry today. The animals are treated like shi*t, literally:

"...A pig is being raised in a confined pen, packed so tightly with other swine that their curly tails have been chopped off...in concentrated animal feeding operations, large number of animals--1000 or more in the case of cattle and tens of thousands for chicken and pigs -- are kept in close, concentrated conditions and fattened up for slaughter as fast as possible...to stay alive and grow in such conditions, farm animals need pharmaceutical help, which can have further damaging consequences for humans..." Time Magazine, Aug 31, 2009.

Poor pigs! And cows! And chickens! :(

Now I'm not saying become a vegetarian nor am I saying to start "doubting" and become super paranoid Muslim. No. Allah makes Islam easy for us and since Islam is a way of life, finding food to eat should not be hard. We're so blessed that there's halal food available at the tip of our fingers. I think we all just need to do some more research to find out where our food is coming from. If we don't take care of ourselves, who's to blame?

Allah says, "O mankind: Eat of what is lawful and good on earth" Qur'an 2: 168.

We have the lawful part down, now let's search for what's good.

I'm backkkkkkk...

...kinda. So I was one of the original authors on this blog circa 2008. Proof: SM's Ramblings! Ok so I know two posts is kinda really lame but it was hard for me to commit! Not because I was lazy but because I was already commited...to xanga so I felt like I was cheating on xanga with blogpost and it was eating away at my conscious. Anywayyyy, in between all that drama, I got married, graduated, said bye bye the the midwest, hauled my butt over to the east coast because the husband lives here (*throws up east coast sign*) and VOILA, here I am...again.

So what have I been up to since the big move? A lot actually! The husband and I went to Hawaii for our "honeymoon." That's in quotes because IIIIIIIII don't consider it our honeymoon. Why? Because we initially wanted to go to Malaysia. Malaysia didn't work out because his cousin (who lives in Malaysia) was in America during the time we wanted to go to Malaysia (in July) and she really insisted we only visit when she's home so she can entertain us....But on the real, I think the reason it didn't work out was because everytime someone asked me, "Where are you going for your honeymoon?" I'd say, "Malaysia, Insha'Allah (God Willing)" and they'd be like, "Ohhh wooow" So I think me telling everyone before it was even confirmed and all those "ohhhh woowwss" jinxed it. Seriously. I have this thing about jinxes. :| But that's ok, there's always next year..or the year after that...or...whenever.

So back to Hawaii-- it was great! I loved it! Even convinced him to move down there once I earn my degree but move back to the mainland before we had kids! It was beautiful, subhan'Allah. Everyone was nice and I learned a lot of Hawaiian words: Aloha, mahalo, wahini to name a few. And I'm a very lucky to have "The Husband" as my husband because he loves sightseeing and travelling, something I've always dreamed of doing and now Allah has granted it (Thank You).

We visited 3 different islands: Oahu, Kauai and Maui. By the time we got to Maui, I was exhausted and just wanted to sleep in, which we did and that was great too. And I think we drove around the coast of Oahu and Kauai. We visited the Dole Plantation (where all the pineapples come from), we took a boat ride out to the NaPali Coast (too bad I couldn't really enjoy it because I was seasick, first time I found that out!!), we went on a helicopter ride in Maui (got motionsickness AGAIN! didn't learn the lesson the first time), visited Pearl Harbor, ate at Romys and Giovanni's Shrimp truck (2 separate places) and did lots of other things. Kauai was breathtaking. And I was blown away by the natural beauty of the Hawaiian natives: no makeup fakeup cakeup...just beautiful sun kissed skin. sigh.

This is in Oahu. See the water? Yeah, that's the Pacific ocean. BEAUTIFUL!! And yeah that's me :)

I got leid for the first time in Kauai. It was so cool and I was so excited. And the view from our hotel room in Kauai was A M A Z I N G!

Proof:

RIGHT BY THE PACIFIC OCEAN. Alhamdulillah. We found ourselves to be very lucky and totally undeserving of such a great view/great hotel/great stay/great trip. Sorry I didn't capture it better, ocean was a lot closer than it looks. And yeah, that's the husband.

Sigh.

Anyway, this trip was only a portion of what I've been doing since the big move and I would talk about more things but for now, I think this should be the end. I don't want to bore you guys to death and plus, I'm sure you all have LIVES, right? (So get back to work!!) :)

Peace,
SM

I love...

Salam (peace) everyone! I haven't written in here in forever! Things have been busy and blahblahblah..You know, it's not important for me to recap on the last 3 months so I'm just gonna cut to the chase and introduce you to the [current] LOVE OF MY LIFE:
*drumroll and scrollbar down please*

PUPPY!!!!!!! Isn't he SOOOOOOO cute? Masha'Allah

Yeah, yeah, I am very very aware he is not a puppy.

He's my first pet and I've had him for a little over a month. I think he's like a year old? *shrugs* When C.C. first got her kitty, all she would do was talk about him..her..IT. (I forgot, don't kill me!) And I never understood why, until now! Everytime someone comes over, I show Puppy off -- like he's some kind of prize. And I kinda wish he was more like a kitty. I wish he would sleep at the foot of my bed and respond to his name. I wish he was able to walk around the house without pooping and peeing everywhere. He's just kinda..useless, BUT useless and adorable so it's ok! And he's also mute. I guess I assumed bunnies had a unique sound of their own... like....well I really dunno what I thought it would sound like but he's soo quiet! Unless he's sneezing. I'm sure I can train him but I don't have the time so he just sits in his cage all day. *sigh* OK, not ALL day (I'm not inhumane! And his cage is 5x bigger than he is, just like the humane society ordered!) cuz we let him out to exercise and stuff. And he has his own leash so we can catch him if he's lazily hopping away. Anyway, he loves it when I pinch his cheeks (I can tell cuz he closes his eyes) and the whole thing about carrots and lettuce for bunnies??? Puh-lease! Mine absolutely loveeeeessssss to eat bananas and strawberries (yeah, he's kinda high maintenance). It's not really a lot of work taking care of him but my sister think's it is so his death is a constant topic (She's 11). "If he dies, I wont' really care." "If he dies, we can bury him in the backyard." She seriously wanted to return him the day after I brought him home and what's ironic about that is SHE was the one begging me to get it in the first place (guess she's at a confusing time in her life). But I know deep down inside her soul, she would care if something happened to Puppy. She has to care cuz I mean she wants to be a vet for crying out loud!

But seriously, you know what's the best part? I know this might be silly but I feel blessed to be able to take care of one of Allah's (God) amazing creation. And if I neglect him for a little bit (for instance, say I'm feeling lazy to clean his cage), I immediately start feeling horrible because I know Allah wouldn't be happy with that. He would want me to be kind and gentle with His creation so yeah...I'm tryin'! Cuz I know I wouldn't wanna sit in my poop all day. Shooooooooooooooooooooooooot.

Freedom

Independence Day or as I like to say, "Freedom Day" (well I've never outright said it, but it sounds so much cooler) is coming up, tomorrow. Anyone excited? Any plans? I've got none, as usual.

I kinda miss the fireworks aspect of it all. The cool colorful ones are really expensive and I've never had to money to buy them, but I will one day when I'm rich and famous, or at least the former, Insha'Allah (God Willing). And I remember as a little kid growing up in NYC, we'd either park our car on the bridge (between Manhattan and Queens, I think) and watch the fireworks over the river, or celebrate at home. But that changed a while ago. That kinda stuff's illegal now and the residential streets of NYC are so quiet that you'd kinda think the 4th of July was the 3rd of July.

I wonder why they were banned. Maybe people started losing limbs? Maybe houses started burning down? I really should look into that.

Independence day doesn't really mean anything to me. Yeah, we got our "freedom" but (depending on your place of residence) people of different religions/ethnicities in this country are still treated as second class citizens. I was born and raised in this country but I don't even consider myself American. I consider myself Asian American and I think my whole generation will consider themselves that. People look at me like I'm an alien, because I wear a "turban" on my head. What will it take for me to be American? Whatever happened to freedom of religion??? Which is the exact reason people fled from England to THIS land. *sigh*

This is what I feel like being "AMERICAN" is defined as:

• must be light skinned
• must speak only English, unless you're risque and wanna learn French or something
• must be Christian or Jewish
• ancestors must be a mixture of all the European countries

I know people will definitely disagree with me on that but sometimes, I have no American pride (but then again, I'm not much of a nationalist). Yeah, I like living here, but I don't feel like this place is home. Isn't home somewhere you feel comfortable? Somewhere you're accepted because of who you are? Maybe that's Canada.

Anyway, enough of my rambling...and I dunno if I'm supposed to post something now, because we've got some blog rules or whatever, but rules are made to be broken! (Corny? Yes) And I don't care because it's almost independence day and that means I will take advantage of my freedom. ;)