It sounds good to me.
* I was reading the bbc this morning and ran across this "Newsworthy story". Big American newstories involve polititians and prostitutes but apparently in Briton talking on your mobile phone while driving is worthy enough for some front page action.
I'm not saying we should downplay the small things, but really? Talking on your mobile phone? And what really had me was the fact that someone got worked up enough over it to whip out their mobile phone to take a picture.
..and then send it into the police.
..and then it gets put on the front page of bbc international.
Personally, I just don't get it- I stick my phone into my hijab and keep going. Instant handsfree.
* One day, after a particularly hilarious but odd conversation with my husband, I realized that we're a lot like 'I Love Lucy'.
Except the part of Ricky is played by a handsome Egyptian. Otherwise all else is the same: I'm nutty and annoying and red-headed.
* Speaking of nutty: I don't know if its just me but 99% of the converted muslimahs I've met have been a bit on the quirky side. Like myself. And when I say quirky I mean really cool laid back chicks with great senses of humor and an understanding and appreciation of the odder parts of society.
I mean, I've met stick in the mud muslimahs who act holier than thou and 'haraam' the most harmless things. (I don't like them very much.)
But most of us are a little bit off, in a good way.
* I got asked if it was a 'chador' that I was wearing by a patient this morning. And then I spent a good five engrossed minutes in explaining the intricacies of muslimah outerwear. I told the patient to come by after his appointment and I'd quiz him on vocabulary.
* Organic Muslimah had a post about whether to support a Muslim business that allows their patrons to bring their own alcoholic beverages but does not actually serve/sell it.
Just to one-up that I guess, I walked into the Muslim-owned corner store by my house and was confronted by a glass case filled with one-hitters and bongs.
At the look I gave the brother working behind the counter he burst into laughter and said, "I know sister, I know, I had a deep discussion with the owners about it and once these are gone, khalas no more."
One down, alcohol and pork still to go.
But it sure is nice to be greeted with a Salaam everytime I go in to buy milk.
* I'm planning on moving to Egypt for a little while inshAllah this summer, however the situation with food prices is making both my husband and I sweat. InshAllah everything will work out, but why do economics have to suck worldwide? I mean, not that we're dealing with anything too detrimental to daily life right now in the US, but it seems like everywhere is feeling a crunch.
* Sometimes the cutest old people come into the clinic and they are just joys to chat with. I had one adorable woman from Austria tell me that I reminded her of her sister who was a nun back home in the Old Country (comparison to a nun number 1,243). She went on to say, "The mother superior asked me to join them as well, but you know, I just couldn't handle that headscarf business."
The celebacy would have done it in for me.
* And last but not least I recommend that everyone should check out Artemesia Rants' blog. Her writing style is amazing and her topics are hard-hitting and thought provoking. Check her out, she's a must-read.
Alright, now I want to call on any readers who have random tidbits they'd like to sound off on. Use my comments and make my day!
And let me know what you think about Random Wednesdays.
31 comments:
I agree, Wednesdays are the worst days of the week! Wednesdays are my Mondays so I usually mope around all day thinking "blah, I have to work today". I hope that one day I actually have a job that I look forward to going to every morning.
Haha, that's so weird that you've been compared to a nun before. I have only been compared to one like twice (once was from my dad). A kid in my Spanish class last semester asked if what I was wearing was called a Burqa. I just laughed hysterically...but then I saw he looked kinda embarrassed so I had to explain to him, he meant well and he was just a curious guy I guess. Don't you feel good inside when you know you just taught someone proper verbiage or a fact about Islam? It's only ONE person but still, that means there's one less ignorant citizen running around right?
LOL. Funny tidbits.
The food situation in Egypt makes me sick to my stomach. I know for a fact many Egyptians can't afford to even eat, but the striking difference with the rich is what causes me to gag. Do you know at an Egyptian Starbucks a simple coffee cost more than 10 L.E?
I don't know how some people live, but on the other hand the rich seem to be getting only richer. Better mobile phones, newer homes/apartments/nicer cards and clothing.
I want to ask: HOW? From where do you get your wealth?
Obviously some are legal and some aren't. But if you own a business or do anything related you almost always have to do something haraam to get it.
It was a dream for me to raise my children in Egypt, but I think they will be better off in the United States. It's the sad truth.
Would you permanently move to Egypt? If you have an American degree, you will probably land a good paying job with benefits.
Manda- I actually was sitting through a "Islam 101" presentation at the U of Minn when the guy turned to me and asked me if I was a nun.
in an Islam presentation.
maybe it was cuz I was white, or maybe it was cuz he was high. But it was hilarious.
O- yes I remember the price, but if you think about it, thats the price it is in american dollars. Or wait, you mean just plain coffee?
thats absurd. I never did get to starbucks when I was in cairo. I loved cilantro though.
Hey, how do you know so much about mlps?
Are Egyptians in Egypt as liberal as the ones here in North America in general?
If you are moving to Egypt then Monday will become the new Wednesday (they do their weekends on Thu-Fri, do they not?).
What makes a nun standout from a hijabi? Is it their black attire? The celibacy would have done me in too. The evil part of me wonders what would happen if a nun becomes drunk.
Yes, 99.9% of us are quirky... But keep in mind that converting is really going against the norm, so I guess you have to be against the norm already to do it!LOL Speaking of informal statistics of converts... It seems like many of us have tattoos as well, what does that mean I wonder?
Ugh, Egypt baby. Well, Organic as the friend to some of those where do you get it people... (I feel you know the answer before I even tell you) rich people in Masr are connected. You know what? I'm going to post a joke I heard this morning about just that.
Hmm, I think my comment came out wrong... Organic, I'm not assuming you know wealthy people in Masr (but I'm sure we all do) or you are stuck up or something... I'm saying WE (DH and I) have friends who fall into that category. Anyway, I'm paranoid... but I don't want to be taken the wrong way.
What are hitters and bongs? I’m afraid to ask and I’m afraid to know. Are hitters ‘shooter’ glasses?
Reminds me of when I first moved into my husband’s apartment. I opened the kitchen cupboard and there was a solid line of shooter glasses, beer mugs, and wine glasses. No, my husband didn’t drink but he did inherit them from the previous renter of the apartment, a German with a penchant for alcohol. A true Egyptian, he doesn’t throw anything away. I am embarrassed about them and have since then discretely stored them away.
Also, speaking of shooters, my uncle was marrying a woman and the only cups available was a collection of shot glasses. The VERY small marriage ceremony was being performed in the wife’s brother’s home and for whatever reason, he only had this type of glassware. It was highly entertaining and bit eyebrow-raising when the Imam was courteously provided with a shooter full of water after he had requested some water to drink. Hilarious? Disturbing? You decide!
Hey Umm Layla! I didn't take any offense to your comment one bit. I actually didn't find anything offensive until you mentioned that you might have :)
Yes. I have been around the rich and famous in Egypt (many of my family members are) and I hated it. I also hate the rich and famous in America. I like to be a simple kind of a girl who appreciate the goodness in life without excess.
Molly: I lived in the Twin Cities for a while before I moved to the East Coast. I've lived in numerous places in the United States :-)
By the way, thanks for the link, I did indeed check Artemesia Rants blog and loved it.
Salaams Sis:
Ha ha, sticking the phone in the hijab and having instant handsfree! Why didn't I think of that? Thanks for the tip.
I can't speak to the Egyptian cost of living, but for many here in the US, the cost of medicine, gasoline, etc., causes a burden for some.
Everything seems to be going up everywhere - except our salaries, of course!
I used to volunteer at a nursing home and yes old people are cute, I'd get mistaken for a nun then too.
In order someone to live in Egypt with the standard they were used to in the US. (buying paper towels, convenience foods and snacks, going out etc.) You have to have a well above average income. Its hard to explain, most everything you buy in the US is of better quality for a reasonable price. You can wear nice clothes that you got on clearance for next to nothing. Here that stuff costs you.
Starbucks and Cilantro are both overpriced for the average person. When you're living here and making EG LE not US $ you stop thinking how cheap stuff is in dollars. For my family and I to go to Mcdonalds it cost 150 LE for example...Hi. I'm Debbie Downer.
Oh yea,and I'm a fan of Random Wednesdays!
A good friend of mine referred to my "chador" once and I cracked up and really offended him! But I was wearing a business suit with a brightly coloured scarf, how could I not laugh? There's heaps of nutty converts on the net, harder to find in real life, I guess the people that attend functions are often haram police in training! Possibly that's how you distinguish those who joined Islam for the love of it, and those who joined it to be part of a group and get off on being exclusive.
What a lovely lassy you are, sending more nutty converts my way!
I love random thoughts!
- I'd wear a Burberry burqa. :D Just to be horribly obnoxious. Although I think Burberry plaid is the tackiest thing ever.
- I'm more than a little bit off. ;D
- Me duele el trasero.
When I first started wearing hijab I constantly had people assuming I was a nun. And it wasn't just because of the color of my clothes. Once I was wearing a long red dress with little white flowers all over it and a white scarf, and someone asked me which order I belonged to. Another time I was leaving a hospital parking lot and the attendant insisted on giving me the "clergy discount," no matter how many times I explained I was Muslim, and not a nun. It was all the more funny because I had been at the hospital to see my doctor because I was about 8 months pregnant. But the funniest time was when my mother's new neighbor asked her in hushed tones if I was going to be excommunicated for getting pregnant!
Alajnabiya thats hilarious!!
omg Alajnabiya that is so funny... i don't think i could've kept my composure if someone mistook me for a pregnant nun. XD
And then there was the guy who saw me walking along a busy street in LA, with a four year old, a 2 year old and a new baby, and pointed at me and loudly remarked, "I aint never seen no nun with no kieeds before!" He made the word "kids" sound like it had 2 syllables.
Mezba- their weekend is actually friday-saturday, so thursday night will be my new friday night.
And just some nun-related hilarity; a girl in my high school got knocked up during our junior year and was about 8 months along and ginormous at the end of october. On halloween she came to school, big belly and all, dressed up in full nun regalia. It was hands down the best halloween costume ever.
Janene- one hitters are marijuana pipes, but the small ones that you can only put enough weed in for one hit. Hence the name. Lots of them are designed to look like cigarettes but made of ceramic.
One day I will start posting about all of my experiences with drugs when never having used them in my life personally.
I bet it was hilarious to have a shot glass of water for the imam. How random!
Umm layla- OMG! thats true. Most of my convert friends have tattoos, although I will have to ask the whiteys galore cuz I'm not sure about them. But I most certainly have one. I think its part of our quirky rebelliousness.
What an interesing thought....
Organica- how long did you live here? and Where? and why?
Saf- I have to get a pic to post on here for the hijabi hands-free.
you should see the looks I get while grocery shopping with my cell phone tucked into my hijab walking and talking and shopping at the same time.
I'm surprised you've never seen it. :D
Mona- I know. It freaks me out but I want to test my mettle. I dont know if I will be able to live without toilet paper.
Artimesia- I love your blog, how could I not share the wealth? Your writings are AWESOME. MashAllah. :)
gulnari- your random bits made me crack up.
burberry burqa, up next the calvin klein line of salwar kameez.
pq te duele el trasero? alguien te dio una patada? jajajaja
Alajnabiya- your nun references trump mine hands down.
the clergy discount?? I can't believe that. That is ABSOLUTELY hilarious.
Thanks for telling it to us, what a nutty time. I don't mind being compared with a nun, we cover out of love for God as much as they do. Or uhm, did. Nuns don't cover so much anymore.
Keeids? Hm, gotta love the rednecks, they give us so much fodder.
Thanks for stopping by!
Actually, the guy that said "keeids" was black. Most of the red-neck types' comments were a bit more hostile.
true, half of my family is redneck and they're not real happy about my change.
but they don't think I'm a nun!
:D
hahahahahha
necesito una patadota.. porque he estado sentada en mi "assote" todo el dia. :(((
I sent you a flickr invitation!
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