Milk and Cookies

A cookie's worst nightmare

2012-01-15T15:18:00.000+05:00

Lovely advice!

2012-01-08T11:47:00.005+05:00

Sometimes questions have no answers

2012-01-01T18:40:00.004+05:00

"Be satisfied if you are alone. No
one will accompany you in the
grave except your good deeds,
anyway. Focus on doing good
deeds, not on him and her.."

"Allah never throws you deeper than
you can go. He throws you from such
a height were He knows yes you may
fall, gain a few scratches, and open
wounds, but He also knows how much
sabr, tolerance and will power you
have to stand back up. Yes we all
complain, moan and cry saying ‘Why
Me!’ but why do we forget this life is a
test; Allah is making you, not breaking
you. He is by your side, He is your
shadow and your guiding light."

These two quotes I came across today gave me a lot of hope and I feel like doing the right things in my life even more. I want to make amends and just try my best to adjust to situations in the best way possible. May everyone gain guidance and faith in this world and be able to deal with various situations in life effectively! Sometimes you think you're doing the right thing but hurdles keep blocking your path and you feel like your stuck in the worst possible place. Just sit down, reflect, seek Allah's help and do the best possible thing after that...

Life is a mixed bag

2011-12-26T19:49:00.007+05:00

I feel like this picture perfectly reflects a person's two-sided personality. One... free to express whatever he/she wants to express and the other enslaved and entrapped by various shackles around us (which, most of the time, are self-imposed and self-inflicted.) This is the sad story of humankind.

I've learned the greatest lesson of my life these past few months, which has made me very aware of all things around me. Never before was the message ever clear. Life is a mixed bag. Take what you get and appreciate it no matter what the consequences because you could all just lose it one day!

What do ya know...

2011-09-06T20:20:00.000+05:00

"Conscience is harder than our enemies,
Knows more, accuses with more nicety."

George Eliot

Eid mubarak!

2011-08-30T23:58:00.005+05:00

(Saw this very cute picture of my favourite childhood cartoon character, Postman Pat and his black and white cat - just had to put it up!)

Eid Mubarak everyone! :) TaqabbAllahu minna wa minkum! (may Allah accept from us and you i.e. the fasting and acts of worship and charity) May this Eid bring peace, prosperity and happiness (genuine happiness!) to all the people in this city of Karachi, in this country and all over the globe! :) And while you're partying don't forget to help any needy person around you and also don't forget to pray for all those living in the worse of conditions who you cannot or are unable to reach out to!

Cute

2011-08-24T06:29:00.003+05:00

Ramadan mubarak!

2011-08-24T06:11:00.009+05:00

I couldn't miss out on such an excellent opportunity to put up a colorful picture on my blog to celebrate the month of Ramadan! For those who don't know, this month is a very special month for Muslims. We fast from dawn to dusk and then... as soon as the muezzin starts the call for Maghrib prayer, we stuff ourselves - like a pack of hungry hyenas - with all the food lying within a ten mile radius! Haahaa! No, that's just me kidding. Ramadan isn't about keeping away from food the whole day and then binging on samosas, jalebis, chicken tikkas, fruit chat, dates, juice, pizzas and all that food you daydreamed and drooled about during the day! It is about much more than that. Yes, believe me :) even though it might seem to revolve around just food if you happened to stroll into a 'all-you-can-eat' restaurant at Iftari or Suhoor time. Some people make it the month of eating only and that's kind of missing the spirit and meaning of Ramadan. Ramadan is about much more than just food, as I elaborate:

Self-restraint, cultivating good habits and lifestyles (not just in the matter of eating though :)), being extra generous in your donations and zakat (many of the hospitals, NGOs and charity organizations go the extra mile to advertise their work so that people looking to give donations know just where they can give where people will be maximally benefited) , learning to control your anger/frustration while in a hypoglycemic state - which tends to make you a tab bit more cranky than during most times of the year actually :) and the overall feeling of charity and goodness that accompanies this month. The extra acts of worship that Muslims perform during this month because the reward for doing good deeds is not only tripled but quadrupled and five-rupled in many cases. My favorite act of worship is Taraweeh because listening to the Quran being recited in a loud voice in a huge congregation is an absolute treat. So calming and liberating. Lifts all the burdens from one's life!

And I just love the serenity and tranquility of Ramadan evenings. Just no comparison to other evenings of the year. They are so cool and calm despite the fact that the weather in Karachi is normally quite hot and humid. And the last ten days of Ramadan - the days in which one can attain freedom and refuge from the hellfire by maximum worship. Aisha (Ra), the wife of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) reported that: "With the start of the last ten days of Ramadan, the Prophet (pbuh) used to tighten his waist belt (i.e. work harder) and used to pray the whole night, and used to wake his family for prayer at night." (Bukhari)

Something to think about...

2011-08-12T21:11:00.000+05:00

“Say (O Mohammed) “If you do love Allah, follow me, Allah will love you, and forgive your sins, as Allah is All-Forgiving, All-Merciful”. Surah Imrân (3:31)

Real happiness

2011-08-04T13:15:00.002+05:00

Amazing video, MashAllah! I love the message of it and I came across it at just the right point in life. Regretting about what happened in the past will do nothing to change your future or make it better. Feel liberated and light after listening to it :)

Feeling tiny

2011-07-23T17:59:00.003+05:00

This is an absolutely amazing video! It compares the sizes of the planets and the sun with stars of other solar systems. The figures are staggering. You're head starts to spin after a few seconds of information, both because of being boggled by the sheer scale of our planets and by the realization that we're just an itty bitty, teeny tiny being in this vast universe! Feel extremely diminutive at the moment! Truth is definitely stranger than fiction :)

Busy, busy, busy!

2011-07-21T00:56:00.002+05:00

My third semester of BDS (Bachelors of Dental Science) was extremely busy, so much so that I wasn't able to upload anything on my blog after the exciting, explosive cricket match of the century - between India and Pakistan (unless you happen to live under a rock, you might have heard about it. The excitement and tension was tangible - impossible to miss!). As I mentioned previously, I was extremely busy this semester doing all sorts of things. The following are a couple of things that kept me occupied this semester:

1. Studies for one was the last thing on my mind this semester - which was pretty pathetic (yes, pathetic! I felt absolutely pathetic by the end) since then there was a huge pile of stuff I hadn't studied by the end of the semester and time was, well - obviously - not on my side. For the first time in my college years, I suddenly found myself cramming things/concepts/theories/teeth size/pharmacology at the very last moment - like an utter m-a-n-i-a-c. I entirely went against my own study mottoes, beliefs regarding studies... it was a huge fiasco and things got very tricky when exams suddenly popped up of nowhere a week or two earlier than expected and our oral biology department - crazy and utterly disorganized as they are - suddenly decided that this was the opportune moment to suddenly load us with a research project that required a lot of running around and taking impressions of patients - who we had to summon/ conjure up out of nowhere! And if that wasn't enough, we had a whole platter of other things going on at the end of the semester which are quite a lot and jumble-y to explain!

2. Secondly , a research project (other than which I previously mentioned) was assigned to our batch by the community department of our college. Alhamdolillah (Thank God) , however, it was assigned at the beginning of the semester and we had ample time to deal this research thingy. It was also, unlike the Oral department research project, organized and well-thought out even though it too had it's share of problems - but every project does come with it's portion of problems so we didn't mind much.

This was the first time my fellow students and I had come close to anything research-y. We got to learn the ABC's of research. Also, our batch was divided into groups of ten with each group being given a particular topic to focus on. My group and I were assigned the topic of 'Oral health practices of mentally handicapped individuals' which was a very interesting, but was a bit challenging because we had to do a lot of literature review and then gather our information from a special school for mentally challenged individuals, in Karachi.

This research project was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed doing it. But like any research project it was time-consuming and had its own share of problems, ups and downs, unexpected turns and twists - at unexpected times! Sometimes, all our work was done and the head of department suddenly felt like making a change - out of the blue - and then we would start from scratch. In the end, our whole group got really tired of the work - not because it wasn't fun or interesting but because it got so hectic that we hardly found time to study. All in all, I'm still glad we did it because a learned loads and my first visit to an institute for the mentally challenged individuals was absolutely amazing, eye-opening, humbling and energizing.

3. Visiting relatives. It's funny but somehow relatives always end up visiting at the peak of your exams. This has been happening since my very semester. I'm learning to get a hang of it now and know just how to adjust to exam time relatives.

4. Other activities: I had not participated in a debate competition since my school years and I suddenly felt compelled to take part in one. A month or so was spend in trying out for a couple of inter-college debate competitions. It was a really refreshing experience. Studying purely science and making that your subject of focus is tricky gamble. On one side, you do gain a lot of knowledge related to your body - but the overall process can make you a bit dull and drain your creativity - especially if you're attending a government college where most of the time the learning procedure and the exam layout is based more on the rote-learn principle, rather than learning through interaction. Sad really. But one has to make the most of everything in life. I rarely quote singers, but some of them can wittingly - or unwittingly - utter (sing) words of great wisdom. As Avril Lavigne says (I can't believe I'm doing this! lol) :

"Life's like this, you
And you fall and you crawl
And you break and you take
What you get and you turn it into
Honesty Promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it."

Fireflies

2011-07-12T16:04:00.003+05:00

This is such a cute song. One could never get tired of listening to it. It reminds me of quirky Timon from Lion King and his 'expert' opinion on what fireflies are:

Pumbaa: Hey, Timon, ever wonder what those sparkly dots are up there?
Timon: Pumbaa, I don't wonder; I know.
Pumbaa: Oh. What are they?
Timon: They're fireflies. Fireflies that, uh... got stuck up on that big bluish-black thing.
Pumbaa: Oh, gee. I always thought they were balls of gas burning billions of miles away.
Timon: Pumbaa, with you, everything's gas.

Haahaa! Cuteness has reached it's peak.

A fun week!

2011-06-05T15:02:00.001+05:00

(Abstract art. We created great masterpieces that day)

(It's alive!)

(My six year old cousin's paintings were just amazing. She has a very creative mind - mashAllah!- and has a good idea of the right color blends. I couldn't help but save all her drawings. That rainbow thingy drawing in the background was painted by her!)

(...battle scars?)

The week long holidays following the last day of my final exams - yes, sadly, we only got one week off but since we get so many surprise holidays in Karachi anyway these days, I figured it was maybe better this way and tried to be happy. I squeezed in all possible non-study activities that I could possibly stuff in that week. From baking to painting, from watching movies to entertaining cute six-year old cousins on sleepovers (and being entertained back with lots of funny and witty comments!) It was a fun week :)

The decision stands

2011-04-01T15:17:00.003+05:00

We congratulate India on wining the semifinal. As a good will gesture, India can keep Pakistan's prime minister :) and if you win the finals, we will send our president too :P

India Pakistan match - just a game or WAR?

2011-03-29T20:20:00.006+05:00

Green is made by crushing yellow and blue! We have already defeated the yellow kangaroos. Now... time to beat the blue team in great style!

This is a bit too mean. But gives you an idea of the intense tension between the two sides. This isn't a game. This is war! Although, I feel extremely stupid to say something like that. Should be speaking more sensibly. Ah, well... let me just shove my sensible side into the corner for today!

You can imagine just what they might be thinking: "We are playing for the fun of the game. You know... good cricket! *laugh* Yeah right. We are bringing you down on 30th March!"

Did I mention how much this match means to each and every person in the Indian subcontinent? I received about a hundred or more messages on my mobile in the past three four days requesting I pray for the Pakistan team day and night!

My next-door neighbours!

2011-02-15T12:05:00.006+05:00

(Could this classify as spying? I was merely curious as to how life is on my little farm-ville.)

(This was a really difficult picture to take from my window- all the way from the fourth floor. Felt proud of my focusing abilities later on :))

(Preparing the animal feed)

I live next door to living things which either bleat, cluck, quack or moo. No, I do not live on a farm. I live on the fourth floor, in apartments. So where do the farm animals come in from? What are they doing all the way up on the fourth floor? Well, they are not really on the fourth floor but reside on the empty plot next to my apartment building. However, that does not make them any less a next-door neighbour - since the racket they make is sure to fit one!

It does sound strange, but this is how life is in this part of the world. Man and beast live quite close to each other. You find farm animals in the most unexpected of places. In Karachi, not only are they found wandering in the old streets but sometimes in some of the busiest industrial areas – like Korangi, for instance. I remember when I used to go to a school in that area, our everyday journey was often interrupted by a herd of goats crossing the road – no doubt, to get to the other side where the grass was – perhaps - greener. They never seriously bothered me or the driver of my van. In fact, I found them very amusing. Having lived most of my childhood outside the country, I was fascinated with farm animals and goats - even more so, when they were wandering in a busy industrial area, amidst the smoke, broken roads and honking cars. Why, they might just classify as the eighth wonder of the world!

They are, indeed, an amazing sight to behold in such a scene of human chaos and confusion. With a vacant, faraway expression in their eyes, the goats stroll their way around the jam-packed smoky area, lazily watching drivers fret and fume as they maneuver their vehicles away from the huge craters and cracks in the road. Some of those delicate-looking creatures are even audacious enough to idly chew on scattered tufts of grass- all the time watching, with nonchalant-expressions, the ‘advanced’ specie struggle as chunks of tasty grass churn around in their mouth. You can imagine what they might be thinking: ‘Absolutely marvelous. Indeed. The grass on this side is surely greener.’

My next-door neighbours have an even more carefree life than the idle goats described above. They have three to four caretakers, whose sole purpose in life (it seems) is to serve those animals. From cooking to cleaning, they take care of everything. Chopped veggies for dinner and peels of orange for dessert… ah! This is the life. What more could a farm animal want? It is interesting to watch their day to day routine. And the best part is that it hardly qualifies as spying.

My family and I have come to really love our neighbours (even if they do get a little noisy at night). During the monsoon season, we watch as the ducks stand absolutely still under the shower of rain. This is their odd way of celebrating - taking in one drop at a time. But the cows and goats don’t really fancy the rain. They quickly scurry to the sheds as soon as the downpour starts. During the summers, the goats like to bask in the sun, lying flat on the warm ground soaking up sunshine, while the cows enjoy the cool shade of a tree planted nearby, their tails swishing away perpetually at annoying flies. All is beautiful harmony on this cute, little city farm.

Just before Eid-ul-azha – a period of festival for us Muslims after Hajj, spanning over three days, during which we sacrifice an animal for the pleasure of God - their population increases dramatically as the caretakers bring in more animals from elsewhere for sale around the city. The variety to be seen is astounding. I never knew there were so many different kinds of goats. And on the actual day of celebrations, a cow is sacrificed on the farm and a meat dish is prepared for the farm laborers. They have a humble meal in their courtyard, all sitting around the mat they usually offer prayers on. Their little gathering always reminds me of the feast that Bathsheba arranges for her farm hands in “Far from the Madding Crowd”, as a celebration after the annual shearing of the sheep.

So far, there aren’t any signs that the empty plot of land might be turned into a tall concrete building. And I dearly hope that such a thing does not happen for I would sorely miss my entertaining Farmville. It may be noisy and a tad stinky but it gives a nice twist to apartment life.

P.S. I have a couple of more pictures of this little city farm stocked away. Will upload them later (inshAllah)!

Wisdom from an escaped convict

2011-02-08T19:40:00.001+05:00

If you want to know what a man's like, take a good look at how he treats his inferiors, not his equals.

Sirius Black
Goblet of Fire, Chapter 27, Page 525

Ka-ching!

2011-02-04T10:23:00.003+05:00

Cute. Love the rhyming.

"We live in a greedy little world-
that teaches every little boy and girl
To earn as much as they can possibly-
then turn around and
Spend it foolishly
We've created us a credit card mess
We spend the money that we don't possess
Our religion is to go and blow it all
So it's shoppin' every Sunday at the mall."

Teaching – a tasking job

2011-01-26T23:16:00.009+05:00

I had always lived under the impression that teaching was very easy thing to do as long as you had clear concepts and knew the in and outs of the subject you were teaching. Boy, was I in for a surprise when I started teaching!

Having experienced a bunch of horrible teachers during my O level years, I had resolved that, one day, I would become a teacher (no - a good teacher) and show all those teachers that it was possible to become a good teacher provided you worked hard and were dedicated enough.

However, before I elaborate on what I learned during my teaching ‘adventure’- which is no less turbulent than a wild roller coaster ride - I just want to clarify that the teachers who I refer to as ‘horrible’ were indeed quite horrible, and made no effort to be otherwise. The students were eager to learn and not rowdy. There was absolutely no barrier to the teaching process – except, perhaps, the unwillingness of the educator. I remember how many of my teachers wasted time in idle talk - some even singing songs in class and asking for student volunteers to recite naat. My Physics teacher was more eager to show us pictures of himself with a famous Cricket player instead of teaching us the three laws of Newton. Our Pakistan studies teacher was more interested in discussing her life and ours - rather than the struggles it took to make Pakistan. We learned about those struggles during our own ‘little protests’ to get good teachers.

The French Revolution was on. We drove a lot of teachers out of school by our protests. Many met Madame Guillotine. Others were driven out by… well, let me just safely say, by 'other means’. Our headmistress had no solutions to offer, and explained how they could not arrange good teachers because our school was in “the middle of nowhere”. Tuitions were the temporary solution for us desperate students at that time. It was then, that becoming a teacher ended up on my ‘things-to-do-when-I grow-up’ list. All those grueling hours spent with good teachers at tuitions made me realize how important it is to have good teachers. A good teacher can make even the boring mechanics of D.C motor as fun and entertaining as watching an action-packed movie, like Speed or Predator.

Self-study is surely great and does help you overcome any lacking at school but it can only take you so far. At the end of the day, what your teacher taught you is more likely to come back to you in those tense exam moments - and also help later in life. 'Studying is vector quantity, it should have both magnitude and direction' my tuition sir used to say. That saying has helped me out in many a walks of life, particularly when I'm going through my fat medical books, with their itty-bitty font size.

Anyhow, no amount of learning and preparation could have prepared me for the teaching experience. One day the doorbell rang during the summers and I got my self an eager student. When I started teaching her, all the things my teachers had ever said in class came back to me in a rush. It was déjà vu, multiplied a thousand times over. Scary was the word.

“The problem is that you people don’t listen when I’m teaching.”

“Do you think it’s easy for us teach continuously for six periods?”

“Pay attention.”

“Keep quiet and pay attention.”

A boarding the teacher express, I discovered that clear concepts and hard work - alone - were not enough to make a good teacher out of you. There was a whole lot of patience needed, along with military-style tactics. Yes, tactics. Tactics to keep your student captivated as he/she would be to the television screen. As Gail Godwin has very rightly and astutely pointed out, "Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths theater."

As a teacher, you have to drill concepts into the other person’s head, who – much to your infuriation and indignation - is usually lost in his/her own thoughts most of the time. Repeating a statement three to four times becomes a norm and you often spend hours explaining something only to be met by a vacant, confused expression. Learn to live with and love that expression. Something as difficult as ‘every reaction has an equal but opposite reaction’ is easier to absorb than the definition of force. Also, anything you say and do may be held against you in a court of law.

There are few teachers who have the ability to captivate their student audience to the extent that they have their utmost attention - and affection. And that, too, without working too hard. They simply develop a relationship with their students like that of a well oiled machine whose cogs fit perfectly. Friction is brought to a zero. Output becomes maximum. Curiosity replaces ‘not-interested!’. Inspiration replaces ‘brain-expired’. And finally, wisdom replaces boredom. I envy those teachers and hope to become like them one day.

I wish the best of luck to the next person who thinks of a boarding the train to teacher town. I also brandish a flag of warning… the journey there is full of déjàvues and a’int no less than a ride on the knight bus! I also commend student teachers who start teaching people during their own student years. It takes effort and commitment. Hats off to those brave ones!

“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher

demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” ~ William Arthur Ward

Wise words

2011-01-21T20:06:00.007+05:00

"Laughing at one's own mistakes is the sign of a mature person. Laughing at other's mistakes is the exact opposite." ~ Yasir Qadhi

Do doctors have super-powers?

2011-01-14T23:55:00.003+05:00

I happened to read this blog post of someone on Tribune. Thought it pretty accurately summed up what super powers medicine can confer on you and how crazy it can make you. Have a read.

Medical education seems tedious and never-ending. It has the capacity to kill with utter cruelty but it does have a few perks.

As I near graduation I have realized that I have changed. My English grammar and composition have suffered a severe blow. My literary sense has gone down the drain. But my colleagues and I have also acquired a few specialised skills at medical school which we are extremely proud of.

1. Energy: The magic 5 minute power nap

In first years of my college, my parents were a little perplexed when they would find me sprawled on the floor over my anatomy book . They would nudge, wake me up and ask me to lie down properly. But with time, they made peace with the fact that I had mastered the talent of sleeping for exactly five minutes on a hard floor and waking up fresh.

Nobody believes it but trust a medical student who studies for more than 30 hours at a stretch during preparation leaves. It is quite possible. Those five minutes are pure bliss plus nothing makes a better pillow than an anatomy book! Medical students also take power naps in lecture halls, so don’t be surprised if you see students zonked out there.

2. Resources: Capacious over-all pockets

There is nothing as pretty as a doctor’s crisp white coat and it carries an unparalleled charm. Come third year and the pockets of that white coat become stuffed with a collection of items. In a student’s overall, one can easily find a stethoscope, three or four pens, a torch, a measuring tape, a thermometer, an ophthalmoscope and in extreme cases a blood-pressure apparatus as well. It’s true – all this can fit in to that tiny space.

3. Immunity: Digital rectal exams

Digital rectal exams are like metaphorical bones that you can neither spit nor swallow. These have been the most uncomfortable part of my medical career and not a day goes by without one of us performing a digital rectal exam. There can be no doubt that the patients hate it more than we do but if you are a doctor and don’t know how to examine the rectum of an unsuspecting patient you are doomed – for life. Surgeons, particularly, will never forgive you. You might even be the butt of their jokes for all eternity.

4. Brain power: Ability to revise a course book in 2-hours flat

As time passes in medical school, we invariably develop the ability to revise course books within hours – the whole content in all its glory. And whoever said rote learning is a big no-no during medical education, lied. We learn things like a parrot and if asked can repeat them like one too. If they still insist, ask them what they did during their Pharmacology exam.

5. X-ray vision…or horrible handwriting vision

When I entered medical school, I promised myself that I would never write with my feet. I am about to graduate and I can proudly say that my handwriting resembles nothing like it was in first year. I can probably write better with my feet if given a chance. If a graphology student ever tried to assess a doctor’s handwriting, he would run for dear life.

Who understands those wriggly threads anyway, right? If three years of training at hospitals has led to one thing, it’s the fact that only medical students can extract information out of patient files. We glance at a prescription, see that there is a wavy line and voila! “It’s Augmentin!”

Things that kept me sane - and insane!

2011-01-14T22:31:00.012+05:00

The following is a mix bag of things that kept me on the thin red line between sanity and insanity during my final exams!

(Blood supply of teeth. Here you see the branches of the maxillary artery)

(Materials for making artificial teeth and their hardness values)

(Layers of the retina)

(Flavoured yoghurt from a very famous bakery in Karachi: Dakka sweets. Mouth-wateringly delicious!)

(A chocolate cupcake doused in chocolate sauce. Perfect to relieve pre-exam stress and tension. Courtesy: my sister)

(Chocolate-chip cupcake)

(No study of mine is complete without colorful highlighters and underlying.)

(Anatomy of the neck. The diagram shows the triangles of the neck - the contents of which we had to remember. Very interesting. I had fun doing them.)

(Good thumbie)

(... becomes evil thumbie)

(Snickers to the rescue during preparation for Biochemistry)

For more information as to how agitating medical exams can be check out: my green escape!

*Chop**chop* - a moment of pure madness!

2011-01-09T12:17:00.005+05:00

I got my hair chopped off a few weeks ago. Just did it. Yes. Just like that. One moment the pony tail was there and the next moment *whoosh* gone. Just like magic. Yup. Just like that. And I have no regret whatsoever. I just asked my hair 'assassin' sister - who is quite notorious around the house for chopping off her hair whenever she wants to and to whatever length she wants to (which is usually very short since she is not very fond of hair grooming, oiling and shampooing) - and she agreed to do it just like that. Yup. Just like that. It was that easy... and that free of charge! What a lovely sister, isn't she? and she isn't a very bad hair cutter either. In fact, if truth be told, she's a self-made hair stylist who does a pretty good job on her hair and well... did on mine... well that was until I grabbed the scissors myself and made a few random (really random) snaps here and there when nobody was looking (when even I wasn't looking!).

Yes I felt that crazy. Actually I feel this crazy all the time around this time of the year. Winter can get to you. And so can mothers who insist on their daughters having endlessly long silky lengths of hair that go on and on... and well on. Like in those t.v commercials where the girl just keeps tilting her head this way and that way and - then again - this way and that way while her silky hair (mane?) move in perfect harmony and synchrony around her. But, hey, everybody knows that nobody has hair like that! Well, yes, maybe Rapunzel, yes. But that's just graphics! And hey I don't want to be Rapunzel. Can I not be the short-haired karate-expert Mulan who always saves the day and that too without any superpowers? *Ahem* *Cough* Rapunzel and her over-rated *cough* healing, glowing golden hair!

Speaking of hair and Rapunzel... I absolutely loved the new Disney animated movie 'Tangled'. Amazing movie! I don't think Disney will ever be able to make another like it! After last year's disastrous 'Princess and the Frog' it was a welcome breath to see such a great fairy tale come to life in such a cute, touching and exciting way. Looking forward to a funny version of 'Princess and the Pea' that is, if Disney ever plans to make one. As for now, just going to enjoy my short hair while it lasts. And here are a couple of people with short hair - who look pretty even with short hair!

Lyse Doucet and many other journalists keep short hair for one reason or another:

2. Just some random person on the internet with really pretty hair. Me really likes this particular look:

Emma Watson. Tired of her usual look she got her hair chopped off after the last movie. Her father told her she now resembled Audrey Hepburn!

A tribute to the average - our time has come!

2011-01-09T10:59:00.006+05:00

This is one of the best speeches I've heard in a while. Love the beginning and the middle part but I'm not so sure of the things he says in the end. However, besides a few weird things he says, the point of the speech does come across very well and that's why I decided to put it up. And just for the record... this does not mean you don't have to pay attention to your studies anymore, because average is so great now! You can be a good (read: great) student and be average at the same time. It's just a matter of perspective and how well you can juggle. 'Do your best and leave the rest to Allah!' is what my father has always advised me and that is what I stick to.

Things that spook me out!

2010-12-31T14:39:00.015+05:00

I don't think I can ever look into a mirror at night or in darkness. It doesn't have anything to do with the movie 'Mirrors'. Just some weird fear I have. What if something spooky and dead scary happens? What if I see an evil version of me staring back at me? What if that evil version then winks at me in a evil way? What if there is nothing there in the mirror - not even my reflection. Just emptiness and overwhelming darkness. Hhmm... that would make me... well... based on all the authentic information that ever been collected on supernatural creatures through the centuries. There would no other possible answer for it. I would be an evil cousin of Count mosquito then. A vampire to be precise! Hhhmm. Spooky conclusion still.
Myself. Yup. I creep myself out sometimes. No, it has nothing to do with me looking in the mirror! *hmph* Just being different and having different ideas about life just kind of makes you wonder whether you are on the right path or not. So... yes... my thoughts, ideas and ambitions do creep me out sometimes. They overwhelm me in fact.
Death. Our religion does give us a lot of information about death, but despite all that information, I feel lost when I think I could die at any moment of my life. However, this fear has nothing to do with me doubting anything in my religion for Islam is a highly logical belief of life and there is always logic behind everything that God has commanded us to do. We are all travelers in this world. Have to be prepared for the train to leave at any moment... and that's why I feel so scared. I fear I might not be prepared to leave when the time comes. What if I don't have the right baggage? or the ticket? What if I wasn't able to complete all my chores before a boarding the final train? What if I wasn't able to do all the things I had wished to do before I died?
The fear of Jinn.
Baby t.v. (Brainwashing t.v. more like it. I could never place a kid in front of the baby t.v. channel no matter how much researches and other people say the kid could learn. The creepy dancing tomatoes and potatoes with their plastic frozen smiles, slow speech and overly-cheery goodiness is unbearable. They desperately need an injection of reality.
Karela - also known as bitter gourd. You could call it the 'broccoli' of Asia. But I have tasted broccoli and found it to be absolutely delicious. In fact, steamed broccoli must be made into a delicacy. Yes, it is that tasty. And that's why I feel it has been wrongly dumped into the category of 'icky' tasting food by many American cartoons. And just imagine, if I like broccoli then... what karela must taste like, for me to dislike it so much and consider it to be a worthy candidate for my post: "Things that spook me out!"
Unpredictability of life and time. Insecurity just makes this factor even more scary.
The sound of the wind - spooky!
A condition where I own everything - and cannot think of a single thing to go shopping for!
Certain cartoons: Cow and Chicken- in my opinion, the worst cartoon ever invented! Any kid would be traumatized (for life) by watching just one episode! Also Dora - yes, it's the same Dora... the adorable little Spanish girl who roams around her green world with her famous 'backpack'. Every toddler's ultimate television superstar and yet I find her a bit creepy! Her stationary, glassy stare just spooks me out - my six-year old cousin would probably give me 'the look' if I said anything about her favourite t.v. star, so I think I'll keep this information between you and me! Also included in this list is the sweet, innocent Strawberry short cake. I don't really know why. Maybe it's because I imagine myself eating fried doughy balls of strawberry short cake every time I hear her name. Spooky. Those fried doughy balls. Just plain spooky, even though I think she is very cute and an absolute doll!... and even though the Google images search results for 'Strawberry shortcake' just make your mouth water! Yummee!
My next-door neighbours who live in the building across to me - who are not actually living there! The apartment facing my apartments is empty... nobody lives there, and the quiet and the darkness of it just creeps me out. I usually close the gallery door facing their apartment. Not out of fear. Just something that makes me more comfortable when I'm sitting in the lounge (which directly faces the empty darkness of their apartment. So you can understand!). I just get this creepy feeling that I'm being watched despite the fact that no one really lives there. Spooky now. Really spooky. Now, don't you think?

Winter is finally here!

2010-12-30T22:08:00.023+05:00

Winter is officially here. Yup. It's here all right. So says Santa, coffee, hot chocolate, my freezing feet, my runny nose, my box of nivea cream, my anti-allergy medicine, my unearthed stock of sweaters and woolly socks (who have finally seen the light of day after their year long captivity and imprisonment in the dark, creepy depths of my suitcases), hair-generated static electricity, my chattering teeth, my sleepy eyes, drowsy days, long nights, short days, craving for hot beverages and tea (even if you are normally a cold-coffee type of person!), gajar ka halwa (a sweet dish made up of carrots. Finger lickin' good. Goras would definitely go crazy if they tried this), oranges (we get oranges in Karachi during the winter season :)) and ice-cold tap water! My soft, fluffy quilt also believes that winter is here because he, too, has finally been released from his year long plastic prison and allowed to luxuriously lie on the bed - much to the envy of the summer blankets which have been shut away for the winter. However, it has made getting up for Fajr ten times more difficult!

And oh! yeah, I almost forgot bloggy! He is just obsessed about winter and insisted that I give him a winter make-over this winter, a theme and style that suits this chattering season. 'What defines winter better than coffee, hot chocolate and ice-cream?' I thought and *poof*, with a wave of my magic wand (read: mouse), he turned into a scrumptious chocolate bar with six scoops of ice-cream on the top. Yummy.

And people in Europe would definitely not disagree that winter is here. I'm sure many of them are surrounded by white snow right now - enjoying the cold and snow and yet at the same time having tremendous difficulty in going from one place to another. Speaking of snow, I would absolutely love it if we had some snowfall in Karachi - just a bit of freakish weather pattern change for a day or two. Would be a nice change for this lively city that has otherwise become so stagnant and quiet this winter. I don't know about you but I feel like the city has become very numb and inactive this winter. Or it might be just the stupid politics and insecurity bringing my chi down.

P.S. I know I'm pretty late in my winter post. Winter has been here for at least a month but I was majorly busy in my exams and couldn't put up an 'official-winter-is-here' post. And since I really (really) wanted to put one up this year I though: better late than ever! And by the way, I have a feeling that the word 'drowsy' has some connection with the word 'drouge' - which means dry herb- and is the word from which drug has been derived. I've just started studying Pharmacology this year and just made the connection. For me, making such connections is the height of coolness and fascination. Excuse me and my strange ways please :)

Eating and enjoying cow...feet?

2010-12-26T14:07:00.023+05:00

Today for the first time in my life I tried Paye - a curry made up of feet of cow and dollops of moist chunks of beef, garnished with chopped ginger, coriander and eaten with traditional naan. And boy, was it tasty! Mouth-watering and finger-lickin' good*drools*. I was even tempted to lick my plate in the end to get the last drop of sunshiny gravy goodness.

And yes, you did read right. Not hallucinating or losing your mind. The dish is actually made up of cow feet. I know... I couldn't believe it myself! When my father brought cow feet from the market yesterday, I was absolutely disgusted by them specially since the cow feet- including the hooves- still had some hair on them :S my mother had to clean and scrub them thoroughly before putting them up for boil. Even after observing the cleaning process, I couldn't imagine myself tasting a bit of the curry... it was of cow feet after all! And- yet- when they were ready and the aroma of the gravy and meat was wafting through the house, I could not resist but wander towards the pot in the kitchen, lifting the lid and losing myself in the the dark brown depths of the bubbling curry. The smell was rich, warming and satisfying. It alone could fill an empty stomach.

My mother had actually kept a family paya party today. It was sort of a one-dish party since paya - by themselves - are considered equal to a table full of dishes. I soon understood why. My entire extended family dived right into the dish as soon as it was served, taking bits of naan and thoroughly soaking them with gravy and slurping each piece in one go, all the time licking their fingers and exclaiming of the great richness and flavour of the meat and gravy. I learned that the bony parts of the feet are taken to be very tasty and people often suck on them like lollipops! It looked that way to me. Anyway, watching everyone enjoying paya like it was Biryani, I got curious and took some in a bowl (since it was like soup). It did not look like cow feet at all now! In fact, it looked just like Nihari - another popular meat dish. And it tasted equally good... I was loving it!

And so now I know why people are soooo crazy about it! Ironic though, that the tastiest part of a cow is it's feet! :)

P.S. just in case your wondering why the dish is called 'paya', paya is the word for 'feet' in Urdu.

Dramas of 2010 that I enjoyed!

2010-12-24T19:12:00.023+05:00

Normally, I'm not the kind of person who watches Pakistani dramas or - *shudders* - watches Indian dramas. They are too much of a "drama" to watch and filled with way too many cliches, sappy scenes, exaggerated emotional outbursts and unnecessary melodrama to bear. If you've ever seen a glimpse of an Indian drama and "lived to tell the tale", you would know what I mean! I cannot stand watching five minutes of such dramas without gagging and pulling faces at the ickiness of them. Artificial emotions, plastic expressions with stories that hardly make sense... often always revolving around an eternal battle between the cruel mother-in-law ('saas', as they are called in the subcontinent) and the helpless, innocent daughter-in-law ( aka 'bahu' in the subcontinent) or vice versa. But it is mostly the saas terrorizing the bahu. Very rarely is it the opposite way around, for how can the bahu ever raise her voice in front of the saas despite all the evil things she does to her!

You have to watch such weird dramas to really understand what they are like. (Wait, what am I saying?! I must be crazy to suggest these dramas to anyone!) However, I feel I should not group Pakistani dramas in the same category as Indian dramas. Yes, it is not wrong to say that even some of our dramas are pathetic and horrible copies of Indian dramas, but I must give sure credit to some of the old Pakistani dramas (and a few of the new ones) which were just brilliant and definitely worth a watch - in fact, a dozen watches! . 'Tanhayeea', 'Angan taray' and 'Alpha, Bravo, Charlie' were some of the most popular and loved dramas of the past , and rightly so. They always left you with a feeling of fulfillment, a close affiliation to the characters involved - which were very believable and close to life - and filled you with that inner sunshine-y goodness that current dramas completely fail to convey.

However - this year- I was really happy to see the old Pakistani drama touch/feeling return in a couple of dramas. 'Dastaan', 'Meri zaat zarra benishan' and 'Daam' were some of the outstanding dramas of this year that could earn a rank as high as some of the old dramas. I followed them every week, anxiously waiting for the next episode to be aired as soon as one ended. The wait and the nail-biting tension was agonizing and "argging!" (a new word I just invented to convey my agitation) especially since one episode usually always ended on suspense-filled cliff hanger. In fact, the entire city seemed to have become addicted to these dramas and it became a local phenomenon. I remember how at the end of one of my midterm exam students were more anxious to learn about how Daam's last episode would end that day, instead of worrying over how their exam went! My entire extended family were also deeply into the drama. It was the most talked about drama after it ended and for a few days people all around could be heard discussing the ending and whether it was right or not. It was realistic but unpredictable. Dastaan had a similar ending but was equally great as Daam.

I particularly liked Dastaan because it aptly highlighted the suffering of the Muslims of the sub-continent at the time of partition- something movies and other dramas have grossly misrepresented and not done justice to. Dastaan was a tragic and depressing drama but one that taught a lot of important lessons. Worth a watch but a box of tissues must always be at your side!

All in all it was a good year for dramas. But, now, I have decided to fore go drama watching all together... just too much anxiety and suspense for me to handle - except, maybe, when an exceptionally great drama hits the screen, I might think of giving it a watch. That too, mainly, to have something to enjoy with my mother together on weekends. For now, however, I'm better off watching comedy programs, movies and real-life events rather than worrying about what will have happen to Shakuntali at the end of that drama! Will she live happily ever after or not? Who cares, is what I say!

We need to focus on current issues and the need of the hour. Dramas do teach us how to deal with difficult situations, to sympathize with the down-trodden and do make us sensitive to the suffering of the suppressed and the tortured but they cannot help us shape the world if we lose ourselves in them. Just something to think about. Cheerio!

Chocolate cake!

2010-12-22T18:37:00.012+05:00

I had my birthday a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, it was right in the middle of my papers - on the day of an exam actually. My family made it really special by getting me a couple of gifts and chocolates. But the cake baking had to wait. Finally got a chance to bake the cake after the exams, and this tried and tested recipe was the one for it! I just thought I'd share it with everyone because it's such a neat recipe. And best of all, it requires no melted chocolate to make it fudgy. Cost efficient and delicious! What more could a chocoholic want?

I took the cake to college as a treat for my class fellows and friends. It was fun sharing the cake with everyone and I was pretty flattered that they all liked it very much. There were immediate demands for the recipe and hence I put it up. You tube is the best place to learn how to cook and bake. I highly recommend it.

P.S. I made the cream myself. Very easy. Will put up the recipe for that one day, inshAllah ("one day" means whenever I get time from my busy, busy schedule! Yup, I'm a pretty busy business woman.) It is very easy to make but I wanted to give a step-wise procedure so no one jumbles it up.

The exam bully

2010-11-07T17:48:00.007+05:00

The thing about me and books is that we love to hang out with each other during normal school days, spending hours together... just laughing and fooling around as we learn new things and discuss new ideas. But as soon as exams starting drawing closer we fall apart. Hours are spend on the computer, in front of the television and chit chatting with friends and family instead, then- while my poor books lie stacked away, all alone on the study table, in swirls of dust and in the company of those drugged mosquitoes that lurk in the shadows of that table when left in darkness for too long a time.

The fear and threat of the exam ‘bully’ pushes and me and my buddy books apart. Yes, exams are very much a bully, a mean nasty bully indeed. They ought to be locked up in jail for torturing students for all these years and for causing damage to the environment (all the trees that were brutally chopped down for making papers for exam booklets, of course). However, before I start degrading the old-time exam system - which has been evaluating students since time immemorial- let me just add that I do know that there are millions of students out there who study just out of fear of exams – right at the eleventh hour. Cramming in during the last tense moments, cursing teachers for not teaching something (which they did, by the way, while they were too busy chit-chatting, doodling away or just catching up on Z's in that ‘oh-so-boring’ class) and reading from short books (big books are just for decoration, you see). So in the end, what did you gain in those last tense moments? Fractured concepts and a traumatized mind that was forcefully fed with all sorts of jumbled up gibberish information? Use of exams, then? What about making learning fun, interesting and - most importantly natural- a way of life?

Hence, I feel, that there is a need to completely change the exam system. Can we not do away with them entirely and have a different evaluating system? Like interactive sessions, mind-stimulating tests at different times during the semester, vivas and presentations. Exam are evil. They need to be eliminated. Yes. They do.

"Examinations are formidable even to the best prepared, for the greatest fool may ask more than the wisest man can answer." ~ Charles Caleb Colton

"In examinations, the foolish ask questions the wise cannot answer." ~ Oscar Wilde

Experiments in the kitchen

2010-11-07T16:52:00.008+05:00

(Ice art)

(A mutating pea omelet)

I seem to be losing my mind during these exams. Not focusing at all but doing all kind of weird things. Exam studying tips and how-to-focus-advice are welcome! Marie Curie and Marcus Aurelius seem to helping for the moment.

"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done." ~ Marie Curie

"Every man's life lies within the present; for the past is spent and done with, and the future is uncertain." ~ Marcus Aurelius

I believe...

2010-10-30T23:57:00.002+05:00

Chilean miners rescued - a touching miracle

2010-10-16T14:05:00.015+05:00

I was so glad to hear that they made it to the surface! Although I had been following the whole incident since they first got trapped, I didn't realize how quickly the time - the three months needed for rescue operation - flew by. Was so occupied in my own little troubles and other things (mid-terms exams, college, friends, family and deadlines) that I did not notice the time fly by in such haste. And that made me wonder how agonizingly slow the time must have seemed to pass to the trapped miners and their anxious families. Isn't that weird? Made me feel so disillusioned about life and time.

Secrets of a Cinderella - seven things that could make your housework easy

2010-10-07T10:29:00.014+05:00

“Mrs. Joe was a very clean housekeeper, but had an exquisite art of making her cleanliness more uncomfortable and unacceptable than dirt itself.” (Great Expectations). Lesson learned: you can either clean the house like an agitated military dictator or, make it enjoyable, by pirouetting and singing along with the mice and birds around the house as you sweep. Since many women would find the latter hard to do (have noticed how women and mice just don't gel well together!), allow me to share a few secrets and tips that could make the prospect of cleaning your house a less cumbersome and annoying a task:

1. Never underestimate the power of the broom in winning you a groom.

Honest, hard-working Cinderella was richly rewarded for all those years she spent patiently scrubbing dishes and polishing floors. A handsome Prince charming whisked her away from her life of chores to the palace of her dreams. In the Pakistani society, we all know how a sugghar larki, who knows how to brew magical tea and keep the house tip top all the time, is the center of all aunty talk. They cannot wait to get her hooked to the next Mr.Bingley (Pride and Prejudice) in town.

2. “It's all in the attitude - housework is exercise. Slim your way to a clean home!” says Linda Solegato.

When the maid doesn’t show up on a weekend and the house is an absolute mess, take it as a perfect opportunity to do some work out. Instead of going to a fancy yoga class or gym, exercise and energize yourself at home. Believe me, it’s an adrenaline rush. Put on some ragged, old clothes (your Cinderella outfit, I mean) and grab your cleaning companion: the mighty jharoo. It will be your weapon against the army of evil dust bunnies, spinning socks of stink, hanging cobwebs and even help you in vanquishing the dark forces that lurk beneath your bed. House work ain't any less horrifying than a battle from the Lord of the Rings.

3. Lie low.

Never tell your mother you’ve done all the work she asked you to do, especially on Eid. She will happily assign you more work to keep the house extra ‘shiny’ in case some guests arrive unexpectedly who, I might add, have not much to do but keenly observe – with microscopic vision - each and every decoration item and table top in their vicinity while they devour sheer khurma and other delights. That wad of hair you stuffed behind the couch might not go unnoticed…

4. Happy mom = less work expected

“Everybody wants to save the world before bedtime but no one is willing to help mom with the night’s dishes,” I read in the Reader’s Digest once. You are bound to become mum’s favourite kid if you start helping out with the night's dishes and, as a result, be assigned less work in the future . After all, despite all the love you show your mum, she is bound to say: “I like hugs and I like kisses, but what I really love is help with the dishes!”

5. Humor

You need to make housework fun and humorous. If you haven’t been able to get house into shape before the all-important guests arrive, learn from Phyllis Diller’s wisdom: “If your house is a mess and a stranger comes to the door, greet him with, “Who could have done this? We have no enemies.”

6. Improvisation

“The best time for planning a book is while you're doing the dishes,” said the Queen of detective fiction, Agatha Christie. Just imagine… doing all your brain storming while scrubbing away in the kitchen, eagerly relating possible story ideas to an assembled armada of attentive glasses, greasy pots and a leaning tower of dishes. Who knows? You might just end up becoming the next J.K Rowling!

7. Think win/win

Who likes dirty dishes? But the next time you see the sink overflowing with them, just bring this thought to mind, “Thank God for dirty dishes, they have a tale to tell; while others may be going hungry, we're eating very well."

No funds for education?

2010-09-29T20:17:00.010+05:00

“You will have to pay extra money for dental materials from now on,” our lab teacher announced, as we sat carving partial dentures in hot wax on plaster teeth models in our dental lab. ‘Why?’ was our immediate question. “We have already paid the university such an exorbitant fee, they could surely manage to supply us with the materials in that amount,’ said a girl sitting next to me. Others nodded in approval knowing very well how much they had paid. And since dental materials are not cheap to buy, we were all concerned.

Many students were already having difficulty in paying the current fee (despite being admitted on basis of merit in a government college) let alone extra money for dental material supply. After hearing her, many were all set to protest and stand up against the unfair money demand. But this was unavoidable, she told us, saying that no amount of protesting would be able to change the situation because the university was running short of funds, and therefore, could not arrange the materials by itself now. We would either have to pay the extra amount and carry on with our work, or not at all.

A few days later, the issue was a hot topic in the media. The Higher Education Commission (HEC) had been forced to cut short funding to many government universities (including mine) due to their own lack of funds from the government. It was a sad state of affairs. Senior members of our staff mentioned how it was getting difficult for the university to supply even teachers and technicians their salaries. We students had to bear the brunt of the problem though, and eventually had to pay the extra money so we could complete out partial dentures. When did education become so linked with money?

Then today, on 22^nd September, many government universities (seventy two, to be exact) remained closed across the country in protest. Teachers and students were out on the streets holding placards and chanting slogans instead of focusing on their ABC’s in classrooms. In a country like Pakistan, where the literacy level is already low (adult literacy rate is only 55%), it is depressing to see the education process suffer further still. “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” said Nelson Mandela. If we want to make changes in our country and worldwide, education is the key. We cannot progress without it. "Next in importance to freedom and justice is popular education, without which neither freedom nor justice can be permanently maintained." said also James A. Garfield. If we want to maintain our independence, it cannot be without education gaining prime importance.

Ten thousand schools have been destroyed by the floods. This is the time to increasingly invest in the education sector rather than spending money on foreign trips and other useless institutes, not to mention the initial sum of Rs.34 billion that was allocated for the Benazir income support program. There wouldn't be a need for such a support program in the first place, if people got a shot at education and were then able to earn for themselves.

“Every time you stop a school, you will have to build a jail.” observed Mark Twain. Our society is not short of its fare of criminals. In fact, there has been a recent surge in violence across the country with some terrible, blood-curdling incidents brought to light, like the lynching of the Sialkot brothers. If we need anything - urgently- during these difficult times, it's education, for only education can eliminate intolerance and ignorance. So, please, let the wagon of education go on. We don’t need an eleven million statue of Benazir Bhutto. Pray, build a university in her name. Let her legacy be education. Let education be the best revenge.

Note: This article was published in Express tribune. It was written prior to the release of the funds for education, that were eventually released by the government after pressurization from the Higher Education Commission (HEC). Media publicity of the incident also boosted in the release of the necessary funds. Also read:

Pakistan enews - teachers protest

Dawn news - release of funds

Eid mubarak everyone!

2010-09-11T12:10:00.007+05:00

Warning : This is not for the sweet-hearted.

Eid-moo-barack everyone! Have a joyful Eid! Devour plenty of mithai, jalebi, sheer khurma, chocolates, candy (and pink, fluffy cotton candy), ice-cream donuts, chocolate-glazed brownies, double-chip chocolate chip cookies, sugar-dusted bon-bons's, cupcakes and other sugary cakes over- laden with sugar sprinkles, chocolate shavings, crescents and generously drizzled with chocolate sauce as you will be generating lots of money - *ahem* I meant... errr... work experience - for me and my co-workers who - needless to say - are honestly dedicated to the goal of achieving global dental hygiene, sparkling teeth and fresh minty breath!!! And, yeah, do try the new sticky taffy in town.

Poetry on Ramadan

2010-09-02T23:17:00.009+05:00

I'm not a poet. Never was. However, I do appreciate good poetry. I just love the haunting poem "Because I could not stop for death" by Emily Dickinson(1830-1886) and also "Prospice" by Robert Browning (1812-89). I love the message and the depth of feeling in both of those poems and wish I could compose poetry like that. It is a real gift to able to express yourself so strongly through poetry. "Break, break, break" by Alfred Lord Tennyson is one other example of passionate poetry that I adore.

This Ramadan, Muslim matters (www.muslimmatters.org) kept a poetry writing competition. It was a treat to read all the different poems on the idea of Ramadan. It was a different experience and it really showed me how much people love Ramadan, cherish it and wait for its arrival. Normally, I read poetry on flowers, clouds, life, death and spirituality. But poetry about Ramadan is a rarity (at least I haven't come across many poems and raps about Ramadan apart from a few Nasheeds by famous singers). But I really loved the idea of poetry about Ramadan. Very touching and makes Ramadan all the more special.

Here is one poem I really liked in the competition. There were many more that I found equally amazing but I couldn't possibly put all of them on my blog :)

Welcome Ramadan

By: Syed Muneeb Shere

I wonder how you welcome Ramadan
Do you wait for it with open arms?
And when it comes, give it a welcome warm?
Or do you grumble and believe that harm
Is hunger to health or is thirst too hard?
And it fascinates me how you treat your fast
Do you wake up grumbling before dawn?
To eat a morsel, on your face a frown?
And then do you pray, with a sleepy brain
Your morning prayer, before the time is gone?

And do you sleep, through out the day?
Or does your fast get in your way
When you are told to do some work
Other than chatting, or gossiping, or play?
Does your fast stop when you lie?
Or does the fast pass as every normal day?
In entertainment, untruths and useless bray?
Is that how you treat Ramadan?

Or when fast is broken, do you eat your feed?
Without caring about those in need?
Is a day’s hunger not sufficient to make you heed
Or your heart yearns not towards a good deed?
Or does it not pain you, your every bad deed?
Is not Ramadan, enough to take lead?
Of your misguided selfish deeds?
Is that how you treat Ramadan?

And in the mosque, at the time of night
When is recited, the book of light
Do you spend the time in flight?
From your Lord and in useless fights?
Does not your conscience bite?
Your heart or is it too much still
To make you stir for the path which is right
Is that how you treat Ramadan?

Beware the month of forgiveness and mercy
Do you not take from the hell fright?
Or do you not wish to be pure and white
To rush towards your Lord and the guiding light?
Return before you reach the height
When time is over and your insight
Becomes frightfully clear and bright
O Man waste not your Ramadan

P.S. I did not put up this poem for its publicity but only because I really liked it. The competition is still on and you can vote for your favourite Ramadan poem on the website: www.muslimmatters.org

Ramadan Mubarak!

2010-08-13T11:19:00.005+05:00

Although I place a picture of a delicious, mouth-watering cheesy burger at the start of Ramadan, I dearly hope that this month will be about sacrifice and abstinence - and be a lot more productive instead of just revolving around eating and indulging in "all you can eat" offers; particularly in the light of the massive flood that has devastated so many people in Pakistan. It would be better to have humble meal at home and donate as much as one can.

Ramadan mubarak to all! "Taqabballahu minna wa minkum (May Allah accept from you and us)" The fasting and sacrifice, of course :)

Funny pictures

2010-07-27T14:00:00.006+05:00

(This is definitely me. I love sports and running but I hate exercising.)

Those pestering pigeons! (Part 2)

2010-07-21T23:11:00.014+05:00

(Finally, they hatch out of their eggs!)

(The brother and sister huddled close together)

(Daddy pigeon standing guard while mommy is away on worm-shopping.)

It is strange how we always hear about the phrase ‘survival of the fittest’ and just brush it aside as some random fact of Biology you only get to see on Animal planet. However, if you ever get to witness this horrific fact of science play out before your very eyes, you would never then brush it aside so carelessly. At least, that was the case with me. When my pigeon parents laid two eggs, I thought: 'hey, they're going for a nuclear family. One father, one mother, one boy and girl. How sweet.' Little did I know that one of the kids was just a decoy and would never get to fly away from his home geyser

Yes, it is cruel...very cruel indeed. It is the survival of the fittest. Which baby pigeon gets to live, depends on which one is able to grab most of the food from the mother's beak, fatten up the most and face up to the tough weather conditions most successfully. The other one, which is slightly 'slow' to catch up on the latest developments in and around the nest, usually gets shunned to the neglected, lonely corner of the nest. I witnessed this happening with one of the baby pigeons. The parents stopped feeding him and he was pushed aside into the corner. Eventually, he came to be so neglected that the other pigeon grew double his size while the poor thing was left as only skin and bones.

And worst of all, one day I saw an alien pigeon (from a neighbouring geyser) attacking him. As soon as I saw what was happening, I grabbed a large spoon from the dish rack and began to whack the evil, cannibal-istic pigeon. For one wild moment I did not care how much I interfered with the delicate balance of nature - this little pigeon was being killed by this big bully before my very eyes. I just could stand there and do nothing! But, alas, my attempt was futile. I could not stand and guard that neglected piggey night and day. Eventually, his own pigeon family turned upon him. It was sickening. I shut the window and let the curtains fall. This was how it was meant to be. His own parents would have stood up for him if they thought he stood a chance against pigeon-eat-pigeon world out there. They were doing what they had been programmed to do. Even penguins do the same. However, it would be a lot better, if only, we humans, learned to differentiate ourselves from animals.

Those pestering pigeons! (Part 1)

2010-07-20T22:37:00.011+05:00

(The place pigeons are most likely to strike. Next to the hot water geyser)

(They made their nest so pretty and with so much hard work. I wanted to stop me mom from brushing it away into the dustbin. But, alas, pigeon droppings are not exactly good with your hot water system. If you have happened to watch a particular episode of 'House' related to pigeon droppings- you would know that.)

(Stuffing newspapers into this small place did not deter them. They started building atop the stuffed newspapers. Pigeons believe in the impossible, all right.)

(Spying on my pigeon friend)

Apartment life in Karachi is accompanied by a lot of things, including a bunch of pestering pigeons who- needless to say- need a place to lay their eggs and bring up their little ones. The tiny little space next to the hot water geysers is their favorite spot to be. Warmed by the fire, sheltered from the strong wind and open to fresh air. What more could a pigeon family want?

Come summer time and you will see pigeon estate agents squeezing their way into this teeny-tiny space, showing off 'luxury' apartments to a bunch of eager pigeon families. With many a fluttering and ruffling of feathers, the deal is finally signed off and the beautiful, airy loft is handed over to the highest bidder. Within a few weeks, the pigeon family starts building up their nests with earnestness... selecting and arranging each twig with a whole lot of love and care; like every family, they want their little ones to have the best of everything. From fuzzy toys to a cute balcony to hang out in... they should have an untainted, sunny and blissful childhood- or, so they hope so. They prepare their dream house, hammering in nails and putting up pretty family pictures (of their previous brood, of course), completely oblivious of the dark cloud that looms over their heads and their dream house. Of course, the pigeon estate agent- true to his estate agent traits- has not informed them of the 'dark' side of this apartment. The ugly truth will be revealed in a nightmare.

All is seemingly peaceful in the pigeon house - but, then - hey, wait a minute! Stop! What are you doing with our house? Hey, I worked weeks on that! Hey, I'm talking to my lawyer! the house suddenly comes crashing down as a human hand reaches inward towards the geyser and sweeps the pile of twigs away with a swish of the 'magic' broom. All is silent for a while as the pigeons take in the loss of their newly built house. They stare wide-eyed, shocked and repulsed, at the perpetrators of the crime, who - totally oblivious to their loss - are now busy cruelly stuffing newspaper into the space they once called home. Tragic tale, isn't it? An inevitable one too. Forbidden love. Tooth and sugar. Anyway you like to see it.

But as resilient as these pigeons are... they try and try over and over again. I was reminded of the story of the spider and the fallen king; how the spider kept climbing the wall despite slipping down so many times. They did not let us rest in peace. Everyday, there was a constant struggle to drive them out. Ultimately, one day - after weeks of throwing away their nests (one was actually a mesh work of electric wires! we figured they had probably run out of their supply of twigs. Could we get any crueler?)- they somehow succeeded in setting up a nest, and then quickly lay their eggs before we got a chance to throw it away. Of course, we would never throw away the eggs. So there came into action a temporary cease fire. A line of control was established (a piece of tile), and there on began the cold war. My mother would drive them away with a rolling pin in hand (or whatever she had in hand) when she saw them lurking near the window. The little ones were growing up in a troubled neighborhood, alright.

But I was pretty overjoyed at their hanging around. Closer to nature and a chance to snap pictures of the growing new brood. The kids were growing in the flashes of camera.

Frutastic

2010-07-14T20:18:00.008+05:00

Peaches are in town these days. You can find them on all the thele walas (street vendors) along with Mangoes and plums - which, I have to say- are equally yummy. I love Pakistan (specially for its fruits) because it has such a wide variety of fruits and all of them are so juicy and full of flavor- even the bananas are so sweet, tasty and out of this world. I remember, when I used to live in Saudi Arabia, the fruits there were amazing (the watermelons and grapes were the best I've ever had!) but somehow the bananas were oddly tasteless. We attributed that to their huge, bright-yellow exterior... which was sort of proof of their genetic modification. Clearly, they had been blown into larger size but the flavour was going to come slowly. It was in Pakistan that I came to taste such yummy bananas, that even banana could turn into your favourite fruit. Yay Pakistan!

This particular peach you see in the picture was kind of odd because the nut inside it was already broken into half, so I did not have to smash it to get to the oh-so-yummy almond. And, naturally, since this was something odd, I could not resist the temptation: out came my camera to capture the 'super' natural. And I got a free almond without having to smash the nut with a hammer. That was a delight.

Scared of the sea

2010-07-12T18:36:00.005+05:00

There is just something so scary about being surrounded by a large expanse of water. I don't know how sailors sail at sea for such a long time without being tied to a mast all day long. At least, I would do that. I went on a boating trip with a couple of cousins yesterday, and I was really tempted to do just that. It was my, let's see...third time out in the open sea. It was a lot of fun, but I could not help feeling slightly haunted and terrified of all the dark water that surrounded us. I realized I was not made to travel on the sea. People take world tours on ships, I don't know how they do it. I consider a boat or ship a cage or floating prison on the sea. But, then again, I am kind of weird.

The exam bully

2010-07-11T05:44:00.000+05:00

The thing about me and books is that we love to hang out with each other during normal school days, spending hours together... just laughing and fooling around as we learn new things and discuss new ideas. But as soon as exams starting drawing closer we fall apart. Hours are spend on the computer, in front of the television and chit chatting with friends and family instead then- while my poor books lie stacked away on the study table, in swirls of dust and in the company of those drugged mosquitoes that lurk in the shadows of that table when left in darkness for too long a time.

The fear and threat of the exam ‘bully’ pushes and me and my buddy books apart. Yes, exams are very much a bully, a mean nasty bully indeed. They ought to be locked up in jail for torturing students for all these years and for causing damage to the environment (all the trees that were brutally chopped down for making papers for exam booklets, of course). However, before I start degrading the old-time exam system - which has been evaluating students since time immemorial) let me just add that I do know that there are millions of students out there who study just out of fear of exams – right at the eleventh hour. Cramming in during the last tense moments, cursing teachers for not teaching something (which they did, by the way, while they were too busy chit-chatting, doodling away or just catching up on Z's in that ‘oh-so-boring’ class) and reading from short books (big books are just for decoration, you see). So in the end, what did you gain in those last tense moments? Fractured concepts and a traumatized mind that was forcefully fed with all sorts of jumbled up gibberish information? Use of exams, then? What about making learning fun, interesting and - most importantly natural- a way of life?

The joy of a new keyboard (and it's washable!)

2010-06-26T00:02:00.016+05:00

I know how absolutely mediocre and average this post of mine is going to be (the title says it all), but I cannot help but write something extremely average after such a long break from updating my blog. Really cannot help it. Forgive me and my weird and wacko thinking. I've noticed how you go into this stagnant blog phase if you don't blog for a while... every time you head towards the computer, you think: "Nah! Tomorrow. I don't have anything interesting to say (read blab) at the moment..." or more genuinely in my case: "Hey, the keyboard is broke. I cannot possibly spend an entire day typing in single letters on my on-screen-keyboard." That would, definitely, have been a nightmare, considering- specially- how much the electricity plays hide n seek in Karachi these days.

Anyway, I am finally back on the blogging scene. Happy to be back! There is so much I want to write about. I'm already done with my first semester of BDS (Bachelor in Dentistry). Seven more semesters to go and hopefully, inshAllah- I pray- they go smoothly. The first semester was good and eventful, with high and low points. My last post about "anger issues" was a reflection of those low points. A whole post is definitely needed to elaborate on the issues at college that made me angry. I'd rather not mull over them at the moment though.

I'd rather let the joy of a new keyboard fill me up with warm sunshine for now. That, and the list of all those yummy snacks I can devour over my new keyboard, carelessly letting the crumbs roll into its deepest, darkest depths. After all, it's washable. Yes- surprisingly!- it is. I could not believe it either but it has "washable" written on it in bold, silver letters. "Silver" letters somehow makes it sound authentic to me. Just my weird thinking coming into action. But, isn't it still amazing and out of this world? I don't know about anyone else but these little things greatly amuse me. Washable keyboards! What will they come up with next?

When people make you mad

2010-02-07T21:11:00.006+05:00

“Throughout life people will make you mad, disrespect you and treat you bad, let God deal with the things they do, because hate in your heart will consume you too”~ Unknown

This unknown person, I know nothing of - not even a name! - is a very intelligent person. Thanks for helping me out Mr. Unknown.I had some unresolved anger issues towards a couple of people and *ahem* towards certain institutes of higher learning (that does make a lot of people). I, now, care not of how they treat me as long as I am fair and honest towards them inshAllah. May Allah bless them all. :) And may Allah guide me and protect me from Satan's whispers. He makes me forget that I'm supposed to be patient and thankful of all that I have, instead of focusing on all the negative things around me.

Cough, wheeze, cough!

2010-01-04T22:10:00.006+05:00

Health is wealth. It is only during sickness that you truly treasure health. You may say it in a dozen different ways but it won't change the fact that I truly understood it just a couple of days ago. Two days of sickness got me really down. I could think of nothing else but bouncing back on my feet again. So there you have it. I learned a very important lesson during my sickness.

Baking cakes for Eid

2009-12-06T23:33:00.014+05:00

(Sweet)

(Finger lickin' good!)

(Playing with the yummy batter.)

(Threatening the cake to cooperate with us.)

(The production line. Many hands were work at the Khan bakery- slicing, decorating, cutting, shearing or simply just playing with chocolate sauce. And... that punctured cake you see over there was actually a mutant cake. Somehow, it didn't turn out that good even though the recipe was a very tried, tested and much trusted one.)

Fun with henna

2009-12-06T22:29:00.004+05:00

(I went for a really radical henna-design this Eid. It made me feel like Spiderman.)

(My sister's hand. She left an empty, henna-free finger so that she could put on her contact lenses. I found that really funny. She does such cute and intelligent things. I often feel like a dumb older sister in front of her. She comes up with the coolest of ideas and the funkiest of designs and artwork. She once made a colorful lamp by recycling old floppy disks. We all thought it was good enough to send to Ikea. I might put a picture of it later on :))

Pete and his yukoo!

2009-12-01T19:31:00.006+05:00

My five-year-old cousin, Anushey, has always been the star baby of the family - and for a reason, too. She is fun-loving and comes up with the wittiest things to say at just the right moment. You talk to her and she repeatedly cracks you up. Having grown up watching baby programs, like Dora and Barney, she is quite bright for her age. She came up with this drawing on Bakra eid. It cracked me up. I don't think I was ever this creative at her age. All I drew were childish houses, with those typical conical-shaped mountains in the background, curly clouds floating in the sky and weird-looking looking birds flying into the sun peeking out from between two mountains (seen it? been there? done that?) But, this is one creative kid (mashAllah). Her abstract drawings are even better. What did I do at the age of five? I was a dumb, dumb kid.

Eid moo-barack!!!

2009-11-28T15:40:00.001+05:00

Thought I'd do something different this eid! :)

Crumplesville

2009-11-14T18:31:00.009+05:00

Abeer: I'm ready. (looking in the mirror)

Amal: Looks like you walked right out of Crumplesville... your trouser isn't ironed, your shirt isn't ironed, your dupatta isn't ironed.

Abeer: Errrr...ummm... well, I'm too lazy.

Amal: Don't you have an iron in Crumplesville?

Abeer: Ironically, we do.

This was a real conversation. Laugh really hard if you found it funny.

Medical college entrance test

2009-11-02T14:18:00.017+05:00

(Pictures from a book I was doing MCQ's from.)

I gave the medical college entrance test a week ago (as you can see, I was kind of preparing for it in the above pictures). It was actually the entrance test of DUHS (Dow University of Health Sciences) which is a pretty good university in Karachi and recognized internationally, although not so much so as the Aga Khan University. I was applying for DIKIOHS (Dr. Eshrat-ul-ebad Khan Institute of Oral Health Sciences) which comes under the ownership and league of Dow university. It has a total of hundred seats but only sixty seats for 'open merit' so I was kind of scared that I might not get in. Hence, the reason I studied and revised weak concepts and theories over these long, long summer holidays (around four months) .

There were around four thousand students at the test venue, all contesting for eight hundred seats only. *yikes*. Among those eight hundred seats were my sixty seats. *double yikes*. It was a really scary event. Really, really scary event. Not that the test was difficult. In fact, it was pretty easy, apart from the Physics portion which was really complicated. It was full of complicated numericals which I might have been able to do (I think! No, I wish ) provided I had not lost my nerves. The number of students who had come out to give the test was alarming and the reason why I lost my nerves. The sheer size of crowd is enough to make one forget whatever you studied and revised in the past few months.

But, thank God (Alhamdoillah), I got in even though I made some really stupid, silly mistakes in the test. That makes me happy, happy, happy! The initial stage of euphoria and dizziness after eating so much sweet mithai (this is how we celebrate here. Everyone brings loads of mithai at your place and you end up gorging on so many sweet thingys) will probably wear off as soon as my University (sounds so cool) starts. The books I will have to read are gia-normous and the font is microscopic! Will have to work really hard to become a good dentist. *yikes*

Pittar patter pictures

2009-10-08T16:01:00.014+06:00

Out in the rain. My father is really adventurous and loves to take us on long walks and drives, particularly when the weather is as good as this. I am really blessed to have such an adventurous and sportsy father. He keeps us charged.

My Uncle's turtle is peeking out of his pool to check whether the coast is clear. I caught him on camera before he could pop back in the water. He is kind of camera shy. I feel like an annoying paparazzi right now.

The famous storm water drains, constructed specially to prevent the roads from getting water-logged during heavy rains. The rains last year had shown the mayor and others how badly Karachi needed them.The underpass had been turned into a small swimming pool, most of the main roads were jammed and everyone was pretty much locked within their homes (or islands). Our city mayor (Mustafa Kamal) had then claimed to be working on 'war footing' to get the storm water drains constructed in time for the next rainfall.

Here I am peeking into the neighbour's lawn from the balcony. *Hhhmmm* I really am turning into a paparazzi.

I really like this picture...took it very randomly but it turned out to be pretty good. Me thinks, its quite artistic how only half the door is open.

A grand, mughal-architecture type house was under construction near Sea-view. I couldn't help but take a snap.

From donuts to do-nothing!

2009-10-08T15:51:00.010+06:00

I made yeast donuts a couple of months back. They turned out pretty good, although they did not rise as much as I had expected them to. I think, I messed up while following the recipe... added too much flour and or too little yeast. Anyway, I had fun making them and my family had fun eating them. My father had them with yogurt (you can probably see it in the above picture) but we were happy with just plain chocolate donuts sprinkled with coconut and colored sprinkles.

Can't wait to make them again. But I don't think it will be in the near future due to the current situation in the country. My mother has banned my sisters and I from making any sweet dish in the house because of the 'man-made' artificial sugar crisis in the country. The corrupt, good-for-nothing, greedy, money-loving sugar mill owners have formed a cartel. They won't let the sugar price go down and are hoarding large amounts of it in secret places so that the masses have been left sugar-starved. On the other hand, the government, instead of taking action against these looting, soul-less, cold-blooded sugar mill owners, are importing sugar at high prices so that the price of sugar has doubled and tripled like anything. Well, naturally, that is bound to happen, since half- or perhaps more - of those sugar mill owners are sitting in the government itself. It is very a pathetic situation specially if one considers the enormous sugar producing capacity of the country. But, alas, there is a serious lack of political leadership and will to change things for the better.

A few people have started boycotting sugar in an attempt to paralyze the mill owners and their business. Let's see how long it lasts. In my home, so far, my mom will just allow sugar in tea and other beverages. No more cake baking and other sweet stuff making for me :(

P.S I won't be surprised if many people are cursing the mill-owners and wishing they all get diabetes as 'just' punishment for their cruel crime.

Roar meow purr

2009-10-08T15:38:00.011+06:00

Sunday bazaar is a great place to go for socks shopping in Karachi. You get all kinds of varieties, from anklets to those really long ones sportsmen wear. My sister actually bought ones of those (despite my insistence that she wouldn't be able to wear any of those in the hot weather of Karachi.) She is wearing them, though, I cannot imagine how. I, on the other hand, prefer the smaller ones that are somewhere between the really long ones and the anklets. Somehow I'm not really fond of anklets, even though they come in such cute designs and colors.

The above socks are perhaps the cutest socks I've seen in Sunday bazaar. And they're not only cute but also very comfortable. The furry mane of the lion actually makes you feel like your walking on soft 'lion' fur. I grabbed them as soon as I saw them because good things have a tendency of disappearing from right underneath your nose in Sunday bazaar. One minute you spot something good and the next minute somebody else is bargaining with the shopkeeper for it. It was time for some action.

The lion (read cute kitty) just meowed out to me and I couldn't just leave him there, in that great, big scary bazaar. Out came my wallet and the bargaining session began. I have always been quite horrible at it. I cannot help but pity the shopkeeper and usually end up giving him more than his amount. The socks are always so good and pretty! How can I possibly give him such little an amount for such amazing socks?Anyway, the socks are now happily mine. They purr when they're lazy, show me their big, shiny 'Puss n' boots' eyes when they're hungry and roar when I toss em' in the washing machine. Cats really don't like getting wet, it turns out.

Nature comforts

2009-10-03T13:20:00.015+06:00

I love browsing through nature pictures on the National Geographic website, or else where. Some of them are so heart-stoppingingly beautiful that I want to imprint them in my brain forever. Your mouth drops open in amazement as you note the colors and the fine details, and you cannot help but envy the photographer. He or she is one lucky person!

Just one snapshot of the beauties of nature can brighten up a dull mood- and put a huge smile on the face of an urban dweller (that would be me! :)) Living in the city is very exciting and you love the fast-paced whirlwind of activites. However - you would agree with me- you seldom ever get a chance to peek in on a tiger amidst the leaves or witness the first dive (or pool party!) of the Artic penguins.

But since not everyone can take trips to such beautiful places, we need to be content in watching from a far i.e. looking at such photographs. I've learned to do that, and am content with it, Alhamdolillah (Thank God). And speaking from the point of view of an urban dweller, there's a lot of charm and beauty even in that simple action - no matter how cheesy it may sound! We should'nt underestimate the power of photographs. Like books, they come to life in our imagination. (Yet, another cheesy statement. I wonder if its because of something I've been eating. Too much candy?)

How about gate crashing a penguin-only pool party in the Artic? Or, playing hide and seek with the tiger in the jungle? That did not come out very right, did it? Hmmm. The tiger doesn't look very hostile. No harm in playing one game is there?

Ka-ching Eidi in the house!

2009-09-22T10:36:00.010+06:00

So far I have collected quite a decent amount of eidi (money given as a gift by elders on Eid day)*beams*. But it's quite impatient and constantly trying to leap out of my bag. It cannot wait to visit a bazaar. So I don't really have a choice in the matter of 'saving it'. Will have to spend it! :) . Besides, my shopping list is never-ending, but, for a reason. The stuff I 'need' to buy has been piling up since I have been so 'busy, busy, busy'. On the top spot are colorful, matching scarves which I am really short of. My mother will probably not allow me to wear them to parties (she prefers me to wrap my dupatta on my head instead) but I could still wear them to college InshAllah. My going to that particular college I have been imagining my self in, of course, depends on whether I pass their entrance test or not. InshAllah, I'm praying I do! But I'm not thinking about that right now. Eid is a time for celebration (with humility and sensibility of course)!

Other than collecting eidi, this Eid has been (mashAllah) a whirlwind of activites, outings and eatings (mostly eating, I think! No Pakistani celebration is really complete without an array of sweet and savory dishes.) *yum**yum* Sheer khorma, mithai, sawayaan, zarda, daheey badaay, kebabs, chana chaat are the traditional Eid dishes served almost anywhere you go. In fact, if you happen to visit a few relatives in a chain you'd probably end up eating loads of Sheer Khorma and sampling all its different types, flavours and variations. But since it's so delicious and usually just made specially for Eid, no one's complaining!

My mother has arranged a party at home today which means more food and people - and more eidi! She will be making some great mouth-watering treats, one of which is an apple sweet dish which disappears rather quickly. Everyone loves it. That pretty much wraps up my Eid celebrations (for now :)).

And this Eid I was planning to give some of my eidi away in charity. There are a lot of needy and destitute people out there who need help. Even if it's a small contribution, it will make a huge difference to them, inshAllah. If you have a wallet swelling with some newly-found eidi fortune, then continue the spirit of Ramadan and donate a small portion it to someone. It will really make their Eid! *Cheerio*

Busy, busy, busy!

2009-09-13T21:25:00.008+06:00

I have'nt been able to blog for some time. Part of the reason was my own laziness. But the real reason, which probably forms three-fourths of the reason (maybe, I think! :)) is the amount of stuff and work that has been keeping me busy. Here are a couple of those things:

I have been preparing for college admissions. I don't think it's very difficult to gain entry into a medical college over here but, yeah, it's not a piece of cake either; especially when you're aiming to get admitted on the basis of merit. 'On the basis of merit' gives you some discount in the fee structure (education sounds commercialized, doesn't it?) Who wouldn't want that? Anyway, I'm applying for dental colleges since I want to become a dentist. So far I have given only one test and, thank God, I got in! *jumps in joy* But that college did not offer any seats on the basis of merit so I excused myself, ditched the interview procedure, and am now back to the drawing/studying board. There is still one month till the test. Ample amount of time, Alhamdolilllah. Will discuss more about my prep later!

Secondly, Ramadan had started and I was focusing on self-improvement, character-building and, of course, developing healthier eating habits- which translates into: avoid artifical-color laden ketchup (aka scrumptious poison) and white bread (which is probably the worst thing you can put in your body). Other oily, greasy food stuff was also avoided and fruits and water was given top preference. I do hope I'm able to continue this healthy lifestyle even after Ramadan. InshAllah (God-willing)! I have found it most satisfying and refreshing. "All you can(not) eat" has been my motto this Ramadan.

Thirdly, I have been busy in prayer. There is so much I want to ask God for (not just sparkly shoes and clothes! Although I wouldn't mind having a few more). And, really, if we would only ask Allah sincerely and humbly, He would (inshallah) fulfill our prayers. We usually underestimate the power of prayer and lose out on a great opportunity to get our prayers accepted. This may sound very fairy-tale like and you must be wondering whether I grew up watching too many Disney movies. But it is for real. Try it some day :)

“And those whom you call upon other than Him are not able to help you, nor can they help themselves.” ~ Al-Quran

“Thee alone we worship and Thee alone we ask for help." (Chapter 1: Surah Fatiha)

“And your Lord says: Call on Me; I will answer your (prayer). But those who are too arrogant to serve Me will surely find themselves in Hell-in humiliation.” (Chapter40:60)

Omlette du fromage!

2009-08-07T11:18:00.009+06:00

This is not really a cheese omlette. I just like saying 'Omlette du fromage'. And that would be a sibling thing. My sisters and I just loved that episode of Dexter's laboratory where he learns to speak French and then ends up destroying his lab! *wipes tear of joy* So we have pretty much been calling a normal omlette 'Omlette du fromage' since then. The word always brings back great childhood memories.

This is actually a tomato and spring onion omlette. I was particulary proud after cooking this one because it was my first 'good-looking' omlette in sometime. I really could not let my vacations end until I had acheived that 'prefect, fit-for-a-star' omlette. Before this perfect 'mother-approved-and-loved' omlette, my omlettes were always quite messy, with tomato and egg all squished together and blackened pieces of spring onions peaking out from the sides. I think it tasted better that way- but, yeah, thats was me saying it! I kind of like squished sandwiches and food because the flavour oozes out.

Anyway, leaving my taste buds aside, I had to satisfy my mother's tip-top taste buds. I devised a trick to prevent the tomatoes from losing their rich, red colour and also to prevent the charring of the spring onion. I cooked the omlette at low heat in the beginning and sprinkled in the diced tomatoes only after the omlette had started setting in the frying pan. Voila! It worked! I also mastered the omlette flipping technique so it did not split into two. Voila!

My result is coming out tomorrow!

2009-08-04T20:04:00.009+06:00

The newspaper brought really scary news to my doorstep this morning: my result is coming out tomorrow. *Screams* *Curls up in the corner* *Rocks back and forth in a dark room, reitering the words 'Nannee, nanneeee, naaanee'. Yes, you would expect me react that way. Any normal kid would react that way (atleast, I think). But, no, I didn't react that way at all. Surprisingly, I was totally calm and composed. And even now, in the evening, I am exceptionally cool as a cucumber. Completely carefree, even though this result will play a very important role in my college admissions (which are just around the corner by the way). It's weird. I have no goosebumps. There are no butterflies in my stomach. I'm least concerned about the result. Utterly weird. I think I might be in shock. Weird. I still don't get it. I must be the weirdest kid ever to get her exam result.

From Hollywood to Hajj

2009-08-01T13:50:00.004+06:00

Kinda funny video I came across on Facebook yesterday. It's an interview with Omar Regan, the double of Chris Tucker in Rush hour. Very funny! And it opened the door to a dozen more cool videos. So, I've been pretty much busy watching them. Cheerio.

Pitter patter- part two

2009-07-29T16:39:00.022+06:00

(Pleasant weather when we were going to my Uncle's house. No hint of a stormy weather.)

(Here you can see a part of a big scary truck and a white car stuck in traffic jam. By the way, that car broke down a little distance away.)

(Here we are stuck in traffic jam with our car swimming in a water-logged road)

(A picture taken while stuck in traffic jam. The car wipers were busy sweeping away the water, but since it was raining so much the windowshield was always this wet.)

(My apartment building is usually dry during normal rains. But when we got back that night, we found the floors covered in water. The kids were playing and cycling in the water.)

Part 2: Sinking in water

We had a couple of more yummy treats at my Uncle’s house: roast sandwiches, gulab jamun, kheer (a sweet dish made of rice and milk, somewhat like a milky pudding) and gole gappe (delicious hollow balls that are filled with sour n’ sweet syrup, yoghurt and chickpeas). Yummy! However, while we were munching on all these goodies inside the house it suddenly started raining cats and dogs. Worried that it may become worse and water-log the roads, we hastily left his house and hit the road- but not before getting heavily doused with a bucket-full of water as we left!

We decided to take the wider roads that were less likely to fill up with water. But to our dismay and shock, the widest road we took was completely water-logged and jam-packed with traffic. Many cars had broken down due to the intense rain and people were scrambling out of them onto the sidewalk, soaking wet and searching for any sign of shelter.

The problem seemed to get worse as the rain continued to pour down and the road turned into a small swimming pool. Waves were lashing at the side of our car, at times, even making it sway and float. A couple of more cars broke down around us (including a police patrol vehicle) and the wide road did not seem that wide anymore. Then we got stuck in a line of traffic for a very long time and the water started to seep into the doors. I only realized it when I heard a ‘splash’ near my feet, and looking down, was stunned to see a pool of water. Frightened, I shared a look a horror with my sister sitting next to me. The rain would not cease, cars were breaking down left and right, we were stuck amidst scarily big trawlers and trucks and now… water was flooding our car! *Panic attack* It was getting pretty tense in the car. No was talking. My father struggled with the steering wheel and the whining engine (it was making all sorts of sounds. No wonder since we later found it drenched in water). He looked worried. All of us were quiet and saying our silent prayers to God. We were all praying for a safe return home. My sister- as we later found out- promised to offer ten prayers as soon as we got out of the mess.

You might be wondering why we were scared of getting stuck on a water-logged road. After all, the worse that could happen was that we would have to spend the night on the road. Or we could always get out of the car and walk all the way to home. Right? Well… no. In Karachi, you have to worry about one major thing which comes along with water-logged roads and streets: electrocution. Yes. That is very scary. Electricity transmission lines in the city are not always installed and maintained properly so that they are usually dangling here and there, and break loose when the slightest bit of stormy wind hits the city. The kunda system (a method for stealing power from the mainlines by hooking a piece of rod and wire to it) also creates a nasty web of wires that easily short-circuits in stormy weather. Therefore a lot of people die due to electrocution in the monsoon season. You can never be sure of walking safely in a water-logged street here. It is very risky. Tantamount to suicide…

I knew my father was worried because of that. He did not want us to have to leave the car at any cost. So he kept pushing the engine to its limit, forcing it to go on and on. Every time it would show any sign of breaking down, he would accelerate and urge the car on through the traffic. I was greatly impressed by his driving skills that night. Even in this tense situation, he kept his nerve and calmly drove through the storm.

And so, finally, after much difficult driving (and praying!), we reached quite near to our home. Thankfully, there was a road there that was not that deep in water. The car waded through it easily and we felt happy as our home got nearer and nearer. As we turned the corner *sigh* *thank God**Alhamdolillah* we saw our apartment building. I had never been more happy to see it. How had we made it out of there? How had we made it out of there? The whole thing seemed like a very bad nightmare now… very surreal.

The experience greatly reminded me of another such experience we faced while doing our Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca). I’m sure everyone has heard of the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca. Millions of people attend it every year. The Saudi authorities do take steps to keep their number under control, but somehow, despite taking many measures, a lot of people sneak in illegally and this creates a lot of problems. The places where you need to perform the necessary religious acts become very congested. One of those acts includes the circumambulation of the Holy Ka’bah. It was there that we got caught in a rather sticky (literally!) situation. The whole place was flooded with people – seemed like a sea of people- and while circumambulating, we suddenly got stuck in the crowd. There was no space to walk and we were caught like a bunch of sardines in a sandwich. The crowd buffeted us on all sides, pinning our arms to our bodies. There was absolutely no gap left. If the crowd would happen to sway a little we would all fall like pieces of dominoes and that would be the end of us.

Previously, a lot of people used to perish this way during Hajj, crushed and scrambled under the feet of the crowd. It’s something neither they nor you can help. The individuals in a crowd cannot control their actions, just like the waves in a sea cannot help crashing against a rock. It just happens. But (thank God!) the crowd miraculously started to thin away in a few minutes; the people around the perimeters decreased and in the small place that was created we quickly got out. We decided it was better to complete the rest of the circumambulation on the roof - which does take longer time but the crowd is much spaced out over there, so lesser risk involved.

Anyway, the fact of the matter is that such incidents really shake you and remind us that we don’t have any control over our lives. We don't know when death may knock at our doorstep. Today? tomorrow? -we have no idea! Needlees to say, we must be prepared at all times. Your baggage consists of nothing else but your own deeds. Make sure you have enough of the ‘good ones’ to tip the scale to the right. Cheerio.

Pitter patter - Part 1

2009-07-25T13:23:00.012+06:00

(My Uncle's turtles enjoy their first splash of the season.)

(Water flowing down the windows like a waterfall. Too much rain man, just too much rain!)

(The police parade down sea-view on their horses. They're just showing-off and having fun, because they don't always get to ride cool horses in this congested city! :) )

Part 1: Rose tea, pakoras and… wipers!

Sunday, 19th July, I woke up to the pitter patter of rain. Excited, I quickly turned my head around to see the window behind me splashed with water and rain drops dancing on the window ledge. ‘The first rain of the monsoon season! Yes!’ I thought and quickly jumped out of bed, eager to share the excitement with my family. My sisters were in my parent’s room, huddled around the windows with my mother (we usually do gather there when the first drop of rain falls. It’s sort an unsaid family tradition).

Another tradition was to follow, which has absolutely nothing to do with family, but with KESC (Karachi Electric Supply Corporation). One drop of rain falls and *puff* the light goes away. I’ve just convinced (read: brainwashed) my mind to believe that light is allergic to rain; and I guess, I should leave it at that, and not elaborate over the sorry state of electricity in the city. It would spoil my wonderful rainy day story. Besides, I should say ‘Alhamdollilah’ (Thank God) for all the other blessings I have instead of mourning over the one I do not have.

It had started raining fast now and the empty plot next-door to my building was filling up pretty quickly. The workers their were washing their 'city-farm' with the rain-water and tending to their animals, letting them roam freely in the rain so that they would get a good bath. The cows were soaking in the rain, their tails still swishing like wipers despite the fact that there were no flies around to bother them (habit, I guess.) The cute baby goats were skipping and hopping around in the rain, totally carefree. Funnily, my sisters and I were doing the same thing four floors above in our apartment: hopping around our mother, begging her to make Gulabi chai (Rose tea) and pakoray (fried balls of turmeric, onions and potato- delish!).That is also a sort of rain tradition in the family. Rose tea is made only on this occasion or, well, when we have baakarkhani (bready cakes that are dipped in the tea). My mother was more than happy to put up the tea for brewing and pretty soon a rich, wonderful aroma of rose tea filled the house.

While the tea was brewing, we decided it would be more fun to take our pakoras and chai to my Uncle house (haha! How goody-goody and sugary does that sound? Looks like its been taken somewhere outta the Little Women. ). They live near the sea, in a locality popularly known as ‘Sea-view’. The area becomes really pleasant and breezy on a rainy day, not to mention, the festive people that pop out of nowhere to party near the sea side. Most Karachites – particularly the lower and middle classes – always rush to the sea side when it starts raining, packed into overloaded buses, vans and rickshaws. In fact, on rainy days, you can see herds and herds of families picnicking on the beach, eating roasted corns (locally called butta), ice-cream, gola gunda (ice on sticks, drizzled with colorful syrups), bun-kebab (local burger- very delish indeed!) and pizza from Pizza hut (yes! Haha! It has an outlet even on the beach).

We had to take a round about route to the house in order to avoid the traffic jams and the water-logged roads, but that made it even more fun because the weather was so cool and refreshing. When we finally got to our Uncle’s apartment, we were surprised to see the furniture swimming in water and buckets scattered here and there to collect the water dripping from the ceiling. The rain was not a blessing for everyone, it turned out. My Uncle and Aunt told us how they had spent most of the morning removing the water from the flat by wipers. Indeed, we could see more than five wipers, of different kinds and sizes, leaning against the walls. Funnily, they reminded me of knights’ swords… and my mind quickly conjured up a comical picture of my Uncle and Aunt battling against the waves, swinging and slashing their ‘mighty’ wipers, left and right, to hold the water at bay.

Anyhow, that is what we all ended up doing. Armed with our ‘mighty swords’, we worked for almost an hour and wiped out all of the water from their flat. Chocolate cake, rose tea, sweets and namak parey (salty biscuits) was our reward. Yummy! While we ate and sipped our hot teas, the last drops of water on the floor dried, and it seemed, now, that the rain was going to stop. But to enjoy the atmosphere even more, we decided to visit another Uncle of ours who lived a couple of streets away. He has a large lively family with eight kids, including twin girls who make a lot of delicious desserts and snacks. What the hay! Let’s go! This rainy day (ironically) was becoming more and more enjoyable by the minute. I would remember it forever, I thought contentedly as we drove to my Uncle’s house. I did not know how right I was – well, until a couple of hours later.

Eclipse- only a sign of God.

2009-07-23T14:05:00.008+06:00

I did not know about the eclipse hitting Pakistan or I might have seen it. The torrential rains had terminated the power supply so most of were virtually cut off from the world for a couple of days. Anyhow, I do not regret missing it even though it was a long one (6 mins and 53 seconds, I remember reading). It was, perhaps, better that way. Besides, I was sleeping at that time! I woke up at nine and read about it in the newspaper, which reported that the eclipse would occur for a very little time in Pakistan, that too around seven in the morning.

But I was not very excited about seeing it anyway. Islam teaches us to be practical and rational human beings. Prophet (pbuh) taught us not to associate any kind of powers and events with the eclipse. The eclispe occured during his life time and this is how he dealt with it:

One night in March 630 CE, Angel Gabriel visited the Prophet and addressed him as: "O father of Ibrahim." A few hours later, the Prophet received the news of the birth of his son from his wife Mariah, and the Prophet named him Ibrahim. He was the only child born after the six children from Prophet’s first wife Khadijah. Ibrahim died when he was ten months old. On the day of Ibrahim's death, there was an eclipse of the sun. When some people began to attribute it to the Prophet's bereavement, he said: "The sun and the moon are two signs of the signs of God. Their light is not dimmed for any man's death. If you see them eclipsed, you should pray until they be clear."

In all things Muhammad (pbuh) was profoundly practical. When his beloved son Ibrahim died, an eclipse occurred, and rumors of God's personal condolence quickly arose. Whereupon Muhammad(pbuh) is said to have announced, 'And eclipse is a phenomenon of nature. It is foolish to attribute such things to the death or birth of a human-being'.

Book Hunting!

2009-07-21T11:11:00.008+06:00

(I recently wrote this article for a local newspaper and that thought it wouldn't look too out of place on my blog. So here it is! Really hoping that it gets published because I haven't been able to get anything published since uummmm... well... quite a long time.)

Hungry for a good book? Perhaps, even starving for one? I do not know about everyone, but when I am starving for a good book, my mind starts grumbling and rumbling, very much like a stomach does for food. And ever since the holidays started it began protesting much too loudly, and it was imperative to gag it into silence by satiating its ‘book-binge’ with a good fat book. So off I went into the concrete jungle of Karachi in the hunt for a good book…

Many of the popular book shops in the city are quite expensive. I would have been able to buy only one book there, even if I had cruelly smashed my piggy bank to use up the last drop of gold. They were out of the question. And I did not have any memberships to library clubs either. Where was I to get good cheap books? I was pretty down until someone told me about the book section of Sunday bazaar. ‘Okay… let’s check it out!’ I thought and the next Sunday I was ready to go. ‘Onward my noble steed to the sandy plains of Sunday bazaar...’ I said and was soon roaming around the huge bazaar. Of course, my father was the noble steed and he had to sacrifice his special Sunday morning! But you can even go there in the evening because it is much cooler and less crowded at that time and, obviously, it will not spoil your father’s sleepy Sunday morning.

The book bazaar was just great and a dream-come true. Sprawling over a wide area (quite wide), it was small paradise for book lovers - nay - inexpensive book lovers! There were piles and piles of books: either stacked into teetering towers or lying humbly in their shelves, just waiting to hop into the hands of the next book lover who happened to venture their way. It was such an enchanting place, with an air of magic about it… the dust swirling around, illuminated and glimmering under the rays of golden sunshine, peeking in through the gaps of the marquee. The bazaar seemed to be luring and beckoning people towards their ‘chosen’ book, very much like the time when Harry Potter first chose his wand – or, should I say, when the wand chose him! Funny how one’s imagination can run off in such places…

This heavenly book bazaar had old as well as new books, the best part being their reasonable prices (You need not smash your piggy bank.) Some were quite dusty, battered and dog-eared but not enough to make them unreadable. It just helped you in their bargaining! And there was a large variety too: fat ones, thin ones, long ones, small ones, colored, black n’ white, with pictures and without pictures. All genres from modern science-fiction to old, romantic classics were available but you had to a bit of scavenging to find your ‘chosen’ book. Or you could ask the shopkeeper. I preferred hunting for mine, because during hunt you end up finding other good books. My forage yielded: ‘The Hobbit’, ‘Little Women’, ‘The Little White Horse’ and ‘Mrs.Frisby and the Rats of Nimh’ – the last two of which I had been looking for quite some time.

You’ll be happy to know that the books are for all ages. Mothers can feast on mouth-watering and tempting cookery books, while fathers can go through their political ones, like ‘The Case of Exploding Mangoes’ by Mohammed Hanif. For kids, there is a large variety with some wonderfully illustrated books, like ‘George speaks’ by Dick-King Smith, ‘The Indian in the cupboard’ and funny book called ‘The adventures of Captain Underpants’ – which even I was tempted to buy! The grown-up section included fat books by many authors, such as Nicholas Evans (famous for his book ‘The Horse Whisperer’), John Grisham, Stephen King and others. Apart from books, many colorful magazines including National Geographic and Reader’s Digest were also available; they were in reduced prices so that you could buy half a dozen for the price of one. Paradise, ain’t it?

I had reached the place at noon but it was around evening when I left. My pocket had become considerably lighter but my arms were heavily laden with books and my mind was humming peacefully, its ‘book- binging’ satiated for the moment. Well, at least, until the next book hunting season!

Islam in Europe

2009-07-11T23:18:00.004+06:00

I came across this great documentary on youtube. It showed me how entertaining and informative youtube can be. One doesn't have to read lengthy, boring articles on Wikipedia or anyother website to find about the the history of the world. It is there for you in video form on the internet. This documentary is just amazing! Must watch...

To kill a Mocking Bird

2009-07-07T18:03:00.014+06:00

I started looking for good books as soon the holidays started, but somehow I wasn't able to get a hand on one. Everyone (yes, everyone who wants to be someone.) was reading the trashy 'Twilight' books ( if can call them books) around me - some, even desperate enough to read photo-copied versions when they weren't able to get a hand on original ones. But I didn't even want to hover near those books. The book blurb was enough as a proof of what that book actually revovled around.

Anyhow, I finally found a good book while going through my small (very small, I think, though my mother would disagree!) book collection. It was "To Kill a Mocking Bird" by Harper Lee. It was a part of my sister's literature course in her O levels. The book blurb made it sound dull and the book cover didn't help : a plain and black front with a yellow-outlined bird sitting underneath the title "To Kill a Mocking Bird". Even the title made it sound boring because I thought it sounded like some really serious and deep book, that would discuss 'serious issues in a serious way'. *laughs* Yeah...really. I once came across this book in the school library, "The Crow-eaters". I wasn't inclined to read it for the same reason because I thought it would be about serious, social issues or too mystical and idiotic like the "Alchemist". Speaking of the Alchemist...I still don't understand how people quote from that book. It was horrible book that made no sense whatsoever. I don't know about the Crow-eaters though. It might turn out to be just as good as "To kill a mocking bird". Reminds me of that old saying: "Don't judge a book by its cover". And its funny how we always do.

However, the lack of choice in my library finally compelled me to pick up the "dull-looking, black" book. But that turned out to a blessing in disguise! Because the minute I began reading it, I felt excited and increasingly curious, particularly about the mysterious "Boo Radley". He greatly intrigued me and I was drawn to the book in pretty much the same fashion as Dill was drawn towards the "Radley house"; like the "moon draws water" to be precise. The entire book was so good, infact, that I got stuck to it night and day. It was beautifully written, with great symbolism and humor scattered all over the novel. Atticus's lines were so profound and on the mark, Scout's innocent observations were amusing, Dill's exxagerations were just hilarious and Jem's emotional side was truly touching.

"Someone rare has written this very fine novel", said Truman Capote at the back of the book, and I couldn't help but nod my head in approval (vigorously!) at the end of the novel.

'Shoot all the Bluejays you want if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.' ~ Atticus Finch

Love thy parents!

2009-07-04T19:28:00.012+06:00

These days I am becoming more and more aware how hard my parents work in order to keep me happy and satisfied; and how hard they have worked in the past, and will probably work in the future – the past is a great witness to that. When I look back - and forward- I realize, there is so much I owe them. Really...there is so much I need to return... the list is endless: the money, the love, the affection, the wisdom, the teaching, the entertaining trips to parks –which were never complete without an irritating trip to the bicycle repair shop – the schooling, the whole ‘bringing-up’ thingy, the delicious food (my mom truly makes meal times fun and magical), the ‘pick n drop’ routine from school, tuitions, friends’ houses, tuitions again, school again. And not to forget all those sleepless nights they (mostly my mom because dad had office in the morning) spent, trying to shush an obstinately, crying baby- which, by the way, still cries occasionally! The baby blues comic strips probably sums up the entire parenting experience

All the way from cradle up to college (yes, this period is a long and expensive one, excluding the marriage which probably costs as much) they have done everything to provide me with whatever I need, no matter how big or small. Along the way, they have, miraculously, even kept up with all the unreasonable tantrums and moaning I have thrown their way. Wow! I wonder where they got so much patience from. When I think of their patience, I cannot help but feel like a total spoiled brat who never really appreciated her parents as much as she should have. I do help around, yes, but I don’t think the stuff I do is enough recompense. So what if I wash the dishes a couple of times? So what if I wash my own clothes and socks –a difficult task indeed, but don’t pity me since I am greatly blessed with a two-tub washing machine. So what if I help out with the cooking and the cleaning sometimes? So what if I try to keep my room clean and tidy so that my mother doesn’t get angry? Am I really paying her back by doing all that stuff? No. A simple no because: I was already supposed to do all that. It’s nothing extra I’m doing by doing all the aforementioned stuff.

The bottom line is that I need to do something more in order to repay all that hard work, the hard work that has made me what I am now. For now, I don’t really know what I can do apart from, well, being grateful and doing all I can to serve them. Cups of hot, tea served on time, brewed and sweetened to perfection. Making them proud by becoming a good dentist and trying to repay some money (will probably only be able to return an infinitesimal amount) of all that they have spent on me. Hhmm…will have to rack my brains and come up with more ways to make em’ happy. For now, Cheerio!

P.S I know how cheesy that ‘making meal times magical’ sounds but that’s how I feel when I sit down for breakfast, lunch and dinner. :)

Bagram, Gauntanamo Bay, Abu Gharib- and more

2009-06-30T15:49:00.017+06:00

(Amnesty International activists dressed with orange detainee-like suits and white masks protest during a demonstration in Paris on January 6, 2007, in front of a replica of the Statue of Liberty, to demand that the U.S. shut down their detention center at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. )

(Protesters in the U.S Capital, dressed in orange detainee-like suits, 11th January, 2008)

(Bagram prison abuse in Afghanistan is exposed by the BBC in the following video.)

Recently, more reports of prisoner abuse by American soldiers was brought to light by the media. As always , the Pentagon denied the charges. No surprise there. And even if they would have admitted to those crimes, what differnce would it have made? In most cases, the accused go scot free or are not justly punished for the horrific crimes they have done. I remember, when the Iraqi prison abuse was brought to light a couple of years back... disturbing photographs of the abuse were splashed all over the television screens and newspapers. I wonder how many of the American and British soldiers guilty of the crimes were actually held accountable and punished. Or were they simply welcomed back home as "heroes" of a brave war?

What I find hard to understand, is how the American public and parliament can oppose the closure of Gauntanamo Bay; if they truly denounce and condemn the prison abuse in Iraq, Afghanistan, and in the many other secret, American detention camps across the world, how can they oppose its closure when they know its probably the worst of those prisons? And worse, its in their own backyard! Besides tons of reports that the majority of the accused held in Gauntanamo Bay are innocent, the Americans are still turning a blind eye, a deaf eye and acting like mute dummies. Don't take me wrong. I'm not talking about the entire American public over here...I know there are good people among them. Infact, I remember a large protest ( organized by Amnesty International) being held against Gauntanamo Bay, in Washington on January 11, 2008. I wholeheartedly commend their effort and commitment in fighting for the closure of that torture center. I even realize that they are - perhaps - more sincere in their opposal and rejection of the detention camp than many people in my own country (particularly the youngsters). For now, we can only hope and pray that Gauntanamo Bay and other such camps may indeed be closed. Or else, we will be watching another "Khmer Rouge" trial play out in a court room, after a decade or so.

If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else~ Booker T. Washington (1856-1915) ~

Boom boom team Pakistan!

2009-06-23T20:18:00.006+06:00

Hilarious video showing a scene that will probabaly become a classic scene in Cricket! Shahid Afridi winks and throws a flying kiss to Jacques Kallis, of the South African team, to cool him down during a tense moment in the match. Haha! That guy has got some nerve. He's completely unpredictable and that's what makes his batting fun to watch. Two thumbs up for him for his spectacular performance throughout the Twenty-twenty world cup series.

As for winning the tournament, I just loved to watch the final match and videos of people celebrating all over Pakistan. A win after seventeen long years- good, great, superb! I would have put another video showing the public's reaction after winning the twenty-twenty world cup but it was a little embarrassing. Yes, sadly, a few people got overly enthusiastic and became a tad bit too wild in their celebration. The CNN news reporter (Nic Robertson) who was reporting the Pakistani victory from Islamabad, was... ummm, let's just say, "overwhelmed" by the rejoicing, jubilant crowd. So. Yeah. Umm... a simple dignified 'yahoooo' will have to express my bursting joy for now!

Sleepless in Karachi

2009-06-18T18:54:00.010+06:00

Karachi and electricity. We just don't go together. Load-shedding and Karachi - now that's a perfect match made in Heaven! If there ain't any load -shedding in Karachi, then it ain't Karachi. I don't know which lunatic dubbed Karachi the "City of Lights" but he must have been really, really dumb...probably never set foot in the city. If he had, he would know that the city hardly has any light despite being the industrial hub of the country. Well, yeah, you could count all the light on the street, but, hey, wait a minute... all that "light" on the road is from the car headlights. Any surprises? Nope. Even while driving in the city you feel like you're driving on the highway. The picture on the top is proof to this fact.

Having lived in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia most of my childhood which has superb roads , brightly lit and lined with neatly cut bushes and trees, I got a pretty big shock when I came to Karachi. Streetlights are almost non-existent here and, even if they are present, they don't switch on properly. The city is in the dark most of the time, of course, apart from the posh areas, home to all those fat ministers and their body-guards. So, all in all, the most of the light on the road, as I said, comes from headlights. The credit for lighting the city goes really to the people of Karachi. *Hats off to those Karachites and their patience!*

Summer is probably the worst time to be in Karachi because both the heat and load-shedding are on their peaks (not to mention the mosquito population!) Well, as luck has it, this time we didn't have load-shedding. We had something even bigger and nastier... and boy was the mosquito population happy! Karachi had a complete power breakdown so that most of the city was plunged into darkness. There was some fault in the main line so the electricity supply to most parts of the city was terminated. But, not to worry! Karachites are like rubber-bands... stretch them to the utmost limit and they still don't break. MashAllah they are so strong and patient that they endured the power breakdown and then bounced right back on their feet. *Thumbs up for those elastic Karachites!* Of course, there was loads of complaining and frustration with politicians being cursed left and right as people swatted flies and mosquitoes in the dark, but at the end of the day (or should I say night) people continued on with their lives. It was like a bad nightmare. Now lets just go back to Facebook and Twitter and change our status. How about "Karachi: The City of lights?" Humor and Karachi. Now, they really go together.

"Fear of Afridi"- haha!

2009-06-12T21:14:00.010+06:00

I'm not that big a fan of cricket these days even though I just the loved the game a few years back. My sisters and I just loved to watch the one-day matches following each every ball, the catch outs, the LBWs and of course the famous "Chakkas and Cahukas" (at which we would scream our hearts out!) We particularly enjoyed watching the Pakistan Vs India matches because they were always smothered in masala and deep-fried in secret scuffles and tussles. There was always a silent icy tension on the ground, the players eyeing each other suspiciously, and some even sharing dark looks. The crowd was always wild and crazy and the players always desperate to win the game as though it were not a game but a war. Seriously! Some might say I’m exaggerating here but, hey, you probably haven’t seen a Pakistan Vs India match then!

I remember this one time when Inzamam was running to take a run and an Indian player , literally, stood in his way, pretending to look out in the field for the ball. Inzamam shoved him aside, they both shared a dark look and Inzamam took the run. That was a classic scene in Pakistan-Indian Cricket. I’m sure it’s there on Youtube!

Anyway, all that was in the past. I don’t like watching Cricket anymore… it isn’t like it used to be. In fact, I stopped watching cricket after the Pakistani team's bad (read pathetic) performance in the 1999 World Cup. It just put me off and I didn't feel like watching Cricket anymore. But then, the day before yesterday, something clicked and I began watching the Pakistan Vs Netherlands match. The wickets started following like dominos and I just couldn’t stop watching! Haha! It was really funny when the Netherlands Captain talked about how they had “Fear of Afridi” in the match ceremony. Fear of Afridi? Ha ha! Afridi is most unpredictable cricketer we have, widely known for his habit of hitting a few chakkas (sixers) and then getting catch-out. However, he is also famously known as "Boom Boom Afridi" because of his sixers and his surprising knack of turning a match around. ... And he also comes in a lot of Shampoo ads. :)

"Shahid Afridi is the maddest of mad maxes"~ Kamran Abbasi (September 2007)

Aussie enters into Islam - religion of terrorists?

2009-06-09T10:49:00.003+06:00

Super shopkeeper to the rescue!

2009-06-06T11:15:00.009+06:00

Something really funny and amazing happened to a Pakistani shopkeeper in New York on the 3rd of June, 2009- a year he will probably never forget! The shopkeerper's generosity and clever thinking brought out the better side of a thief, making him a US celebrity overnight.

I found the piece of news very entertaining and really felt proud that he had represented our country and religion in such a good light. Three cheers for the unknown guy! But not to sound too goody-goody and patriotic, let me just say that the only mistake he made was in naming the guy. Who names a guy Nawaz Sharif Zardari!? *laughs* But, ofcourse, that doesn't change anything... why don't you go ahead and read how "Super shopkeeper" saved the day !

A compassionate Pakistani shopkeeper who helped a would-be robber with money and bread has become a minor celebrity of sorts in New York after his story was aired on New York’s TV stations on Tuesday night. As a matter of fact, the shopkeeper, Mohammad Sohail, claimed that the man promised to change his religion before he fled. According to Sohail’s story part of which was captured on his shop’s closed circuit TV, he was closing the store just after midnight on May 21 when — as shown on the store’s surveillance video — a man came in wielding a baseball bat
and demanding money.

“He said, ‘Hurry up and give me the money, give me the money!’ and I said, ‘Hold on’,” Sohail recalled in a phone interview with CNN. Sohail said he reached under the counter, grabbed his shotgun and told the robber to drop the bat and get down on his knees. “He’s crying like a baby,” Sohail said. “He says, ‘don’t call police, don’t shoot me, I have no money, I have no food in my house’.”

Amidst the man’s apologies and pleas, Sohail said he felt a surge of compassion. He made the man promise never to rob anyone again and when he agreed, Sohail gave him $40 and a loaf of bread. “When he got $40, he’s very impressed, he says, ‘I want to be a Muslim just like you’,” Sohail said, adding he had the would-be criminal recite an Islamic oath. “I said ‘Congratulations. You are now a Muslim and your name is Nawaz Sharif Zardari’.”

When asked why he chose the two Pakistani politicians’ names, the Pakistani immigrant laughed and said he had been watching a South Asian news channel moments before the confrontation. Sohail said the man fled the store when he turned away to get the man some free milk. He said police might still be looking for the suspect but he didn’t intend to press charges.

Flowers are red!

2009-06-04T11:37:00.004+06:00

Another great song which can be an eye-opener for many teachers out there!

Upsy daisy!

2009-06-04T11:13:00.004+06:00

This is a very cute and bouncy song that is sure to help you in getting up for the morning Fajr prayer. And, perhaps, also make your mornings less grouchy. It worked for me atleast :)

Cat-alicious!

2009-06-01T18:05:00.010+06:00

I love cats. They are such delicate, innocent creatures with fluffy paws and big, adorable eyes that just scream: Cuddle wuddle me! Who cannot love cats? They're the cutest stuff toys on the planet. I’m sure everyone remembers Puss n’ Boots… his big, innocent eyes could have stopped an army!

Cats are really the sweetest creatures around with such a gentle and loving nature. I don’t understand how people are scared of them… some people start jumping around in panic when they see a cat as though the cat’s distant relative has jumped out at them or something. Recently, I read an article in the newspaper by a woman who was scared of cats. She believed she had “Cat phobia” and was convinced there was nothing odd about her fright. It was just ridiculous! I would understand if someone were afraid of rats, lizards, cockroaches and all those other icky, slimy insects, but cats! Come on! Hello! They’re walking, purring fluffy stuff toys that you can cuddle and play with at will. What wonderful animals with such cute and cuddly-wuddly habits. They don’t bite unless attacked and provoked. I think, those people are missing out a lot! Tis’ folly. Tis folly indeed.

My cousin’s cat is very adorable and my only close contact with cats since I can't keep one myself due to cat allergies (*sniff* *sniff*nature is cruel). His name is Bootle and has got the most beautiful green eyes, soft fur and boy is he fat, fat, fat! His ego is huge and he never begs for food. If you want to give him something you have place it before him, not show it to him and expect him to come to you. He may be a street cat but he considers himself royalty. He also has his occasional whims that need to be met. For instance, he wakes up my cousin in the middle of the night just because he wants to have a “lick” of water. He also likes to eat all the time, looking up expectantly (or rather hungrily) at anyone eating anything in his vicinity.

I guess that's the reason why I love cats so much... they are so honest and so human in their behavior. Infact, I believe cats aptly represent us humans and our current lifestyle: couch potaotes, sleeping away the day, munching and eating all the time and pretty much lazing around the house. Well, a cat isn't much different either. As you can see, Bootle is lying around or is half-asleep in every picture!

“When picking out pet keep in mind that, to a dog you are family; to a cat you are staff.” ~ Ron Dentinger

"In a cat’s eye, all things belong to cats” ~ English proverb

“A cat is a dilettante in fur” ~ Theophile Gautier

“As every cat owner knows, nobody owns a cat” ~ Ellen Perry Berkeley

“My cat does not talk as respectfully to me as I do to her” ~ Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette

Yahoo!

2009-05-30T18:10:00.004+06:00

Yes! My exams are finally over! Freedom atlast! I am left with the practicals but they're a piece of cake after the heavy thoery papers. So I'm not worried and pretty much enjoying myself, skipping and jumping around in joy. There is so much to do. Like always, I'll be starting with the "cleaning and scrubbing". So many clothes to be washed, room to tidied and surfaces to be scrubbed til squeaky clean. But I don't mind such household works... they really keep me happy and going. Infact, my day is more productive when I do household chores rather than when I don't. It's funny but doing household chores makes me appreciate all the extra time I have so that I actually start thinking of doing "something". Anyway, let me relish the free time I have now. In a few weeks, I have to start perparing for my Entrance Exam for University. Only forty-three seats for those getting in on merit. It's going to be a bumpy ride!

"A idle mind is a devil's workshop." ~ *I wonder who came up with that one?*

Sinking in garbage…

2009-05-24T12:08:00.006+06:00

“Crunch, crunch” goes the plastic and before you know it the girl sitting next to carelessly throws the scrunched up wrapper out of the window. Seen it been? Been there? Even done that? Of course you have! Most of us living on planet earth have committed this crime and walked away with a clean conscious, some even feeling cool. In the van, in the playground, in your classrooms, in your building and- perhaps- even in your very own spick and span home!

Tossing the garbage outside the window belongs to the same psyche that makes us sweep all the dust under the rug. We just don’t want to clean the ‘mess’ but, at the same time, want it out of our sight. Who cares? The garbage isn’t going to come back and smack me in the head. No? Think again! The ever-increasing piles of garbage are slowly turning our planet into a huge dumpster and leading to global warming . Burning of the excess garbage produces toxic gases that destroy our precious Ozone layer. And everybody knows what happens after that. So, what are we to do? Well, for starters, get a dustbin and start recycling. Don't make that face at me! Get to work!

Me: Slumps off to get a dust bin.

Rise cakey, rise!

2009-05-20T11:15:00.005+06:00

I baked an apple cake yesterday. It rose so high that I couldn't jump higher in excitement! It had a delicious taste of cinnamon, buttery creamy richness (with only two-three teaspoons of butter) and a light fluffy feeling. Considering my history of cakes, this was a great success. My previous cakes never rose properly either because I forgot to put the in oil (Big ooops!) or perhaps because I put in too much milk. Anyway, I think milk makes the cake muffin-y! At least, that's my discovery after putting in milk in the cake so many times. As for now, let me just bask in the sunlight of my success! Cake-y! Cake-y!

P.S : That's not the real picture! :) The cake vanished before I could take a picture! :)

Fishes and electricity!

2009-05-16T11:37:00.002+06:00

There has been a lot of load-shedding going on in Karachi these days... hardly any electricity throughout the day or even at night in some areas. If you want to get an of the scale of the electricity problem here, consider the fact that even a three-year-old kid knows what a generator is and what UPS stands for. Seriously, my little cousin actually asked me whether I wanted to play "UPS, UPS" with her instead of the usual " kitchen, kitchen" or "Barbie dolls". I guess there is some good in the power breakdowns... increase in your child's vocabulary!

On the down side, it can be really frustrating to sit in the oppressive, suffocating heat of the summer without even a fan to just shake the air a bit. Yesterday, the light went away during the exam and owing to the great heat the invigilators began losing their cool. There was a lot of fuss and noise, with examiners yelling right and left on cheating students. Everyone everywhere had nothing else to talk about but the rising temperature and the torturous Power breakdowns. One of my friend told me her fishes died in their tank last night because there was no power and their respirator wasn't working. Poor fisheys... they must have cursed KESC (Karachi Electric Supply Corporation) till their last breath.

Anyhow, I'm still one of the lucky ones, Alhamdolillah (Thank God) , who have the blessing of a generator, which immediately switches on as soon as the light goes, so I don't really suffer that much. But somebody I know does not suffer at all, of course, Mr 10%, our very own Zardari! Two of my Uncles live near his house (*ahem* read palace) and they inform us that they never have any power breakdowns in their areas. Our fat, money-loving, cheesy-smiling, dubai-hugging president just cannot bear the heat!

Off exam cancellations...

2009-05-12T12:41:00.003+06:00

Two of my exams got cancelled. You can imagine how traumatised some must be feeling right now and how insanely happy others. I don't need to explain who's happy and who's sad, depressed, moping, melancholic and completely dejected, do I? Hmmm... I thought so. By the way, one of my exams got cancelled at midnight when I was all done with my preparation. Pray that never happens to any of you out there. It can be shattering, I tell you, shattering. But the second cancellation was a great blessing! I was able to finish watching season three and four of Prison break. It was very hard to resist it owing to those amazing cliffhangers. But now that I'm finished watching it and have another cliffhanger to think (read obssess) about, I'll go right back to studying. My next exam is three days away, better start working on it :)

Learning the fun way!

2009-04-19T20:37:00.003+06:00

I am 1-2-di-chloro ethane away from going crazy! Organic chemistry is taking over my brain. Like Spongebob (ironically) I'll have to delete everything else in my brain!!! :S I think I'm suffering from exam pyrexia (for those who don't know pyrexia is 'fever').

Timetables, schedules, equations, isomers, chemical formulae, deadlines and pages upon pages of information *sigh* Don't you just feel like running away sometime? Going away on some Mediterranean cruise or perhaps an African safari? Ah! Just picture yourself exploring life on earth and learning tonnes of interesting things along the way. Wish there was no school but only scholars and gurus who would guide us and let us use our minds as they ought to be used. Not just for stuffing in information! I wish I could just walk all over the earth and learn everything that is to learn on the way. A stop there and a stop here. One day in China, another in Japan. One swim in the Atlantic ocean and the other in the Pacific!

Snores

2009-04-15T14:56:00.003+06:00

It's surprising how reading a book can make you so sleepy. It usually happens with me when I lie on the bed and read something, even if its as interesting as a thrilling murder mystery or a action-packed car-chasing, roller-coaster ride type story. I guess its the silence around you that gently lulls you to sleep. Nobody is talking around you but your brain is full conversations. The characters are talking in your brain, everything take shape in your brain and then suddenly *pop* the brain starts shutting down and before you know you're asleep. I'm just going to have to read in a more crowded area :)

Gutter cat!

2009-04-14T12:30:00.002+05:00

These pictures just getting funnier and funnier! I wonder who comes up with the captions...they're amazing! Hats off to that cat-lover! :)

Cat-astrophe!

2009-04-13T11:22:00.004+05:00

Why my mum won't let me keep cats. :) Plus my allergies!

How catfights starts...

2009-04-11T10:17:00.004+05:00

"You lookin' at me kitty?"
"Yeah- got a problem with that ?"

I just can't stop laughing whenever I look at this pic! Its just too funny! Look at those incriminating eyes in the background!

Sleep, sleep, sleep...

2009-03-23T21:14:00.006+05:00

Tossing and turning
Longing and hoping
That I would start dreaming
Where is that lousy sandman?
Is he out of sleeping sand?
I really don’t understand!
It’s past my bed time!
Way past midnight.
Where is that lousy sandman?
Sailing the seven seas?
Oh! So ignorant of our sleeping needs!

“Oh! I wished I could get my hands on that lousy sandman!” I said furiously as I squished and squashed my pillow for the hundredth time that night. But my struggles seemed futile against my active mind and sleepless eyes. They seemed resolute to keep me awake the whole night. It was frustrating to lie in bed for such a long time and still not be able to catch forty winks. I had pretty much tried every traditional sleep inducers, from counting cute, cuddly sheep to simple, quiet meditation. Nothing seemed to work.

Then, suddenly, I remembered something my father had told me once when I had been very young. One day, my father gave me some advice about sleep, saying that sleep was a soothing sensation that required a clear and unperturbed mind. Only when we vacate our minds of all the calculations, arguments and discussions only then do we enter into deep, comforting sleep. It was pretty simply. No tuff chemistry equations or long detailed explanations. Remembering that advice, I wondered whether I had some rocket science calculations going on in my head or perhaps even a war raging over whether I should have said what I said. I racked my brain a couple of times, recalling the events of that day. At first, nothing seemed to be weighing down on my conscience and then finally, it hit me! I was worried and inwardly disturbed about my behaviour to the shopkeeper! I had bargained with the poor guy so much that he reduced the price to piddling sum of hundred rupees. However, for some insane reason I decided to test his patience and demanded for an ever lower price. The already frustrated shopkeeper had turned red and made a disgusted face at me. Throwing the slippers away angrily, he had stormed away to the back of his shop.

Laying in bed now, a couple of hours later, I realized that I had been really unfair to him. He was earning his bread and butter while I just fooling around, trying to save more and more of my pocket money (which was not hard earned). Acknowledging the fact that I had been utterly rude and bad-mannered towards him, I resolved at that very moment to return to the shopkeeper next day and buy the slippers at the original price. Before I realized, I was spiraling into darkness and dreaming of sparkly slippers and pretty shoes.

“A ruffled mind makes a restless pillow.”~ Charlotte Bronte

Getting ill - good or bad?

2009-03-17T20:42:00.005+05:00

*Cough* *cough* There are many sides to getting ill. I realized that when I feel ill a few days ago. By the way I'm still ill. *coughs for proof* It's not easy being ill. There's the constant discomfort, the coughing and the sneezing and the wheezing (in the case of asthma patients) - yes all of that is really terrible- but I think the greatest thing that really bothered me and got me down was the state of 'inactivity'. When you're ill you are mostly confined to your bed and just trying to do 'something' so you wouldn't waste time, especially when you have some very important exams coming up.

All in all, I think, getting ill is not all that bad. It gives you a break, gives you time to think and my favorite thing about getting ill: you don't feel guilty about not studying. People around you cannot pester you to study! And I also like the attention that comes with being ill. People serve you left and right. If you want to have something chilly they'll make it for you, if you want to have butter toast with tea they'll get it for ya! Really I think getting ill is a blessing in disguise. Yes, the disguise is itchy and makes you sneeze and cough all the time but, hey, you can just hide in your disguise while the world floats by, hurrying to meet one deadline or another. Cheerio!

Milk and Cookies

A cookie's worst nightmare

Lovely advice!

Sometimes questions have no answers

"Be satisfied if you are alone. Noone will accompany you in thegrave except your good deeds,anyway. Focus on doing gooddeeds, not on him and her.."

Life is a mixed bag

What do ya know...

Eid mubarak!

Cute

Ramadan mubarak!

Something to think about...

Real happiness

Feeling tiny

Busy, busy, busy!

Fireflies

A fun week!

The decision stands

We congratulate India on wining the semifinal. As a good will gesture, India can keep Pakistan's prime minister :) and if you win the finals, we will send our president too :P

India Pakistan match - just a game or WAR?

My next-door neighbours!

Wisdom from an escaped convict

Ka-ching!

Teaching – a tasking job

Wise words

"Laughing at one's own mistakes is the sign of a mature person. Laughing at other's mistakes is the exact opposite." ~ Yasir Qadhi

Do doctors have super-powers?

Things that kept me sane - and insane!

*Chop**chop* - a moment of pure madness!

A tribute to the average - our time has come!

Things that spook me out!

Winter is finally here!

Eating and enjoying cow...feet?

Dramas of 2010 that I enjoyed!

Chocolate cake!

The exam bully

Experiments in the kitchen

I believe...

Chilean miners rescued - a touching miracle

Secrets of a Cinderella - seven things that could make your housework easy

No funds for education?

Eid mubarak everyone!

Poetry on Ramadan

Ramadan Mubarak!

Funny pictures

Those pestering pigeons! (Part 2)

Those pestering pigeons! (Part 1)

Frutastic

Scared of the sea

The exam bully

The joy of a new keyboard (and it's washable!)

When people make you mad

Cough, wheeze, cough!

*Baking cakes for Eid*

*Fun with henna*

Pete and his yukoo!

Eid moo-barack!!!

Crumplesville

Medical college entrance test

*Pittar patter pictures*

From donuts to do-nothing!

*Roar* *meow* *purr*

*Nature comforts*

*Ka-ching* Eidi in the house!

Busy, busy, busy!

Omlette du fromage!

My result is coming out tomorrow!

From Hollywood to Hajj

*Pitter patter*- part two

*Pitter* *patter* - Part 1

Eclipse- only a sign of God.

Book Hunting!

Islam in Europe

To kill a Mocking Bird

Love thy parents!

Bagram, Gauntanamo Bay, Abu Gharib- and more

Boom boom team Pakistan!

Sleepless in Karachi

"Fear of Afridi"- haha!

Aussie enters into Islam - religion of terrorists?

Super shopkeeper to the rescue!

"Be satisfied if you are alone. No
one will accompany you in the
grave except your good deeds,
anyway. Focus on doing good
deeds, not on him and her.."

Baking cakes for Eid

Fun with henna

Pittar patter pictures

Roar meow purr

Nature comforts

Ka-ching Eidi in the house!

Pitter patter- part two

Pitter patter - Part 1

Snores