C'est la vie

After a very busy year...

2008-02-15T11:48:00.002+11:00

Assalamualaikum,

It has been a year since I've posted anything here. Which i figured is probably a good thing since most people will now know my blog as officially dead, noone will comment or even think twice about visitng me here, so i can pur my heart out with all my lifes worries... I dont think so!

Alhamdulillah we've been to hajj and back. THE greatest experience of my life. My dad expresses it very well:

"In our lives we feel joy at different levels on different occassions. When we ace our first exam at school, thats one kind of joy. When we get our first job, thats another kind of joy. When we buy our parents gifts with our first paycheck thats another kind of joy. When we get married, thats another. When we have children, thats yet another kind of joy. But the joy of standing before Baytullah (the house of Allah) is one that supercedes any joy you will ever feel in life".

And i can testify to that statement. Although i havent experienced any of the joys he has mentioned (no acing exams, no job, no money, no marriage, no kid - yes i am quite useless :P), in my small time in this world this has been the single most memorable journey I have ever undertaken. I feel that no matter how much I go on about the beauty of this pillar of our deen unless the audience has experienced the sentiments it wont be received with the same feelings of heartfeltedness (someone buy me a dictionary!).

Insha Allah in a later post I'll mention the pro's and con's of this journey. The lack of implementation of Islam comprehensively is very blatant, although those that live there are often convinced of what is being implement upon them is Islam and nothing but Islam. Insha Allah thats in a later post, along with fotos :) For now, im off, this "oppressed" soul has housework to complete. Toodles.

Hajj plans...

2006-12-09T22:36:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum all,

I'm working 30-40 hours every week now and its getting very hectic. I've been told that I'm losing a lot of weight (alhamdulillah) and looking more and more tired by the day. BUT there is a reason for me wanting to work so much - I have finally decided what to do with my money. Abbu ammu are going on hajj next year insha Allah and they wouldnt take me because of financial issues, so I want to save up and go with them insha Allah. Parents agreed with it too, so i will be working like crazy during the break and during uni insha Allah to save up over $6000 so i can go to hajj insha Allah. I'm so excited!

Work!

2006-11-27T23:43:00.000+11:00

Salam,

I kind of like it now that no1 reads my blogs, moner shob kotha likhte pari without anyone reading it. Last few days have been terrible. Bekar bole ammu abbu'r kach theke onek kotha shunte hoise. Khub i koshto pawar moto kotha. But alhamdulillah chakri peyechi, at Oporto's at International Airport. ajke prothom din chilo, alhamdulillah was allright. Koyek din dhore i feel like i'm so out of it, like i'm not me, like i'm living such a robotic life. Seriously, usually i get scared, happy, sad, angry, i am the queen of emotions. But i dont feel anything. In situations i know i'm supposed to feel scared, i dont. When i know i am supposed to be happy, i'm not. All i feel is sadness... I'm a freak i know...

I have not been home (during day time) for the last 7 days! I think tomorrow will be the 1st day i'll actually be at home insha Allah. Looking forward to it. I miss bludging, i miss having so much spare time. But i know myself too well to think that i'll be using that time well... I dont think so. Have to tidy the house, arrange for going out on wednesday night to khushbu's, on friday to doe's (who's leaving to london 4ever!!!!!), childrens program on sunday and AM prog as well. With all that i have work this week as well. So once again i shall be robotic me just going with the flow of life. I need a change!

A small update

2006-11-09T18:49:00.000+11:00

Salam,

Nothing much has been happening apart from exams alhamdulillah :-S but I feel quite relieved after my first exam finished yesterday. 1 down 2 more to go insha Allah :-D. The strangest thing happened with my exam yesterday, i feel like a total idiot for even mentioning it here but the day before the exam i spent a lot of time just taking notes and I had planned that the morning of the exam I'd stay up after fajr studying. Usually i cant sleep before exams, I get really tense, but I slept so well this time alhamdulillah and at fajr time I actually forgot I had an exam that day! But alhamdulillah I got enough studying done on the train and at uni so insha Allah I'll pass the exam :-D

Since I have nothing else to say here's a joke (I love lame jokes!).

The unshaven man

A man was walking along the street when he passed another man with a lot of stubble on his face standing outside a shop. The first man asked:
"How often do you shave?
Twenty or thirty times a day," answered the man with the stubble.
"What! You must be a freak!" exclaimed the first man.
"No, I'm only a barber," replied the man with the stubble.

In the spirit of Ramadhan...

2006-09-27T22:06:00.000+10:00

Fear more the sin when you are out of sight, it is where your witness is also your judge. [Ali (RA)]

In the spirit of Ramadhan, let us all reflect on this quote of Ali (RA). Fasting is something completely between Allah (SWT) and us and Ramadhan should be used as a month to strengthen our bond with Allah (SWT). Noone sees whether you are fasting correctly, if you sneak away to eat, no human being will see you, if you slander, gossip or lie very few will hear you, but Allah (SWT) is always witnessing your every action. This awareness of Allah (SWT) always watching what we do is what we are supposed to build on in Ramadhan, ie. Taqwaa or God consciousness. As Ali (RA) said, we should fear it more when we sin away from people (we should fear sinning regardless), because at that time, our only witness will also be our judge, ie. Allah (SWT).

Ramadhan Mubarak!

2006-09-24T22:13:00.000+10:00

My Speech...

2006-09-12T15:04:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

In Minto, every sunday the aunties and uncles have a regular Islamic gathering. Usually they get guest speakers everytime, but lately they've utilised another strategy: they've been getting Muslim youth in the community who are practising Islam to come and speak to them. I guess seeing a young person with a strong zeal for Islam does inspire people. Anyway, they asked me to be their guest speaker last Sunday, and I accepted the invitation.

I had summarized the first 2 chapters of "Let us be Muslim" by Abu'l 'Ala Mawdudi, because I thought it was a very relevant topic for ALL muslims, be they older aunties and uncles or youth. So thats what I prepared, and every step of the way I was getting nervous. I thought I would unintentionally offend someone, because Bangali aunties get offended very easily. I found out on the night that someone once spoke on hijaab before and it offended many aunties... I wonder y (that wasnt sarcasm, i really do wonder y)?

While I went there after having read the Prophet (SAS)'s hadith: "Say what is true, although it may be bitter and displeasing to people" (Baihaqi), I knew I had to say what I had to say, but my tone and way of expressing myself had to be respectable to everyone there. Because people often misread even the nicest of messages badly because of tone...

Alhamdulillah my speech went ok. 2 or 3 aunties even cried when I mentioned some hadiths about how devoted the Sahaba's were and they were the ideal Muslims. The point that a Muslim never questions Allah (SWT)'s command really got to them i think, insha Allah. Because these days we question everything, but the sahabahs didnt think themselves high enough to speak over Allah (SWT), which should be the behaviour of anyone who calls themselves Muslim (ie. one who completely submits their will to the will of Allah SWT). So insha Allah i pray that I have inspired at least some of those present that day to re-evaluate their imaan and become better believers.

Aaj kaal kar polapan...

2006-09-02T15:58:00.000+10:00

Just a random note, kids these days are becoming more and more shallow and vain. I know when i speak of 'aaj kaal kar polapan' i sanctimoniusly don't include myself and thats wrong, i'm no different. I have my moments of vanity which I pray that Allah (SWT) to remove as far away from me as possible cos vanity is never a good thing.

One thing with the bangali kids, they don't speak bangla!!! Some pretend not to be bangali at all! I'm no FOB but i like being bangali and i like speaking bangla, even though i'm not too good at it. English to je keo-i bolte pare here, a second language i think, is a gift from Allah (SWT), but it's a shame how people will do anything to rid themselves of this blessing.

Life...

2006-09-01T20:09:00.000+10:00

Doing assignment now on whether zionism is a homogenous movement or not. Quite interesting but hard to queeze it all into 1000 words. Seems like all my blogger buddies are on a long hybernation, well no matter, i shall keep writing...

Been editing pix like usual, but made a couple of avatars out of some, since i got nothing else to write about i'll post the ones up.

Death & Dying

2006-08-27T19:55:00.000+10:00

Salam pplz,

After a whole month of practically all my family members at hospital i really needed a spiritual boost and Allah has been kind enough to give it to me today. I must mention beforehand, i'm not like most people who praise Allah (SWT) in sad moments and forget Him in happy moments. I'm complete opposite to that, well, not completely. I find it easier to turn to Allah when i'm happy, i can even cry a lot then because i'm so happy with the blessings I have, but when i'm facing a calamity, i get so lost and confused, i 4get what i'm doing, i become very self-absorbed...

So last week was very bad 4 me, even though it was IAW at uni, i didnt wanna spend any time there. All i wanned to do is wander, to where - i dont know, when - i dont know, how - i dont know, i felt so lost. I just needed some time out, or i thought. But after today I realise what i was lacking. I was lacking spiritual awakening. Subhanallah, I becamse so ignorant of Allah (SWT) and I know thats the case when I start doing things i usually wouldnt do, little things that build up to big things. Anyway, today insha Allah (and alhamdulillah) i overcame that, mainly due to the Daar Aisha 1 day course on Death and Dying. To those who didnt go, let me tell you, u missed one of the most thought-provoking talks ever!

I took notes of the session and some of the things we learnt were so amazing! If anyone wants to read it lemme no and i'll type it up and email u insha Allah. It's well worth a read, i went teary through most of the talk. Ami mon theke dua kori for the sister who ran the course that Allah (SWT) grants her and her family peace in this world and peace in the next insha Allah. Ameen.

Lunch with Nahid

2006-08-24T10:54:00.000+10:00

Salams all,

I wrote this blog msg ages ago during the break but stupid comp did stupid things so i cudnt do anything right. Alh all is working well now, so here's my blog from during the break!

Today was probably the most exciting day of my utterly boring holidays, actually one of the 2 most exciting days during my break. The other day (apart from 2day that was exciting) was the YMSA Picnic which alhamdulillah I had a great time at, but I guess there was a lot of responsibility on me as well. So the fun aspect of it was slightly less than today but I hope everyone else had fun insha Allah (it looked like every1 else was having fun!). Insha Allah I hope we can continue this as an annual thing for YMSA every year.

What happened today was that our dear friend Nahid wanted to treat us all to lunch on the occasion of her getting a job! So we all headed to Rockdale today to have Nando’s for lunch. After a half an hour walk we finally found the place! It took us probably more than another half an hour just to choose what to have for lunch! Several batches of people came and left but we remained as the most annoying, and probably the noisiest (due to Nahid I assure you, lol) bunch there. So finally we ordered and guess what? I never knew Nando’s was so spicy!!! Shobar nak mukh theke pani tani ber hoye obostha ki je holo! And our Flynn, regardless of having the non-spiciest lemon and herb sauce “for those who love cool” (I think that’s what the menu said about it) was having a hard time with the spices, lol. Then can you imagine Rabz and Nahid’s situation who ordered the Extra-hot sauce with their food!!! I neutralized the jhaal with probably a few litres of tomato sauce and then I was fine. But the rest of the girls were still panting for breath!

After that ordeal we went to the nearby lake (I don’t think u cud call it a beach, or cud u? correct me if I’m wrong - it may be an artificial beach :S) in Brighton-le-Sands. After the 30 min walk to find Nando’s we were akready in Brighton-le-sands by that time. Since the lake/sea/something??? was right across the road we all went for a visit. And since it was isolated and we were the only people there we started
to go slightly crazy!!! Flynn was doing cartwheels (NO I will NOT attach any of
those fotos, lol, if u wanna c, ask Flynn and get it off her personally), Emu and Nahid were dancing and replicating scenes from “Titanic” (arms stretched, in front of the ocean… u no, the “jack, I’m flying” scene). HP was running around like a kid who had been given freedom after being grounded for years! It was raining too, which may have been romantic if we all didnt get cold!

Well, I won’t blabber on any more, here’s some fotos as a reward for reading all this
junk… Enjoy!!!

We were #8 in the order queue, cute chicken, eh?

Nahid posing excitedly at the beach, lake, river???

Flynn's artwork on the sand

Rainbow (purrrtttyyy)

View of the place from higher up

Entrance to our world

The rest of the beach was clear sand with no foot prints but u can tell the bit that we chose as our hangout, see all the footprints!

Charity Breakfast...

2006-06-27T09:35:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum ppls,

Onek din pore blog korchi and seems everyone else is on a longer break than me... anyways, my exams are over alhamdulillah and now i'm home for a month on holidays. Like most holidays, parents are bugging me to get a job. I get the 'u r bekar, u r useless, jibon niye kichu ekta korte paro na?' type talk quite often, lol. Makes it sound like im some old guy je mayer kol theke uthte chachche na, right? But believe it or not, thats so not me. But yes, it is true that i need to get a job and they have their reasons to tell me to do so. Anyways, off to a more interesting topic...

A while back HP contacted me about a very cute little girl in BD called Prapti, who was suffering from leukemia but insha Allah she had 90% chance of survival. Now the family was appealing for money, so she asked if i could arrange anything. What i did was contact the Probashi girls, (remember the organisation i was a part of, who raises funds for acid victims in BD) and alhamdulillah after contacting the family, everyone agreed to take on the project.

If you want to read more about Prapti, please go to the following sites (i cant seem to load any pics, so please go to these sites to see prapti's pix):

So we came up with an idea to hold a charity breakfast for Prapti and got organising. Since most of the probashi girls were busy with exams and study (it being june we all had exams!!!), we contacted some of the uncles in the local bangali soccer group and they were very helpful and helped us arrange this project. Without the uncles and many volunteering aunties we really couldnt have made it a very successful project. We also had a few banglai celebs come and support us since they were here filming a natok, we invited them to the breakfast and they came. Starts who came: hassan wahhab shoinik, rubli chowdhury, chanchal chowdhury, tushar khan, mahfuz ahmed, mamun-ur-rashid, tomalika kormokar (sorry somethings wrong and i cant seem to attach any fotos)

We also were donated 4 cushions from a local shop to auction. Mahfuz auctioned it and the set was sold for $106.00. All proceeds went to Prapti!

All in all, it was a really good event and many people not only donated through buying breakfast but made donations. How much did we raise??? Well, at the end of the day alhamdulillah we made almost $6000, which is 3 lakh taka. This has been handed over to prapti's fupi thru Prothom Alo via an uncle that went to bd recently to visit.

Probashi is keeping "PROJECT PRAPTI" as an ongoing thing and are trying to raise more money insha Allah. If anyone is interested in donating, please contact me or any of the other Probashi girls if u no them. Thanx. Most importantly keep Prapti in your dua's that insha Allah, Allah will grant her a good life full of guidance, imaan and blessings. Ameen.

Need to see daylight!

2006-05-05T09:39:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum all,

Here's my situation:

2 assignments due next week
2 due the week after
a week off the week after but...
2 huge ones due the week after that
then a take home exam the next weekend (i think)
AND THEN... EXAMS!!!

So until semester ends, I am to not see any daylight! And insha Allah in the break I will have huge plans to just celebrate and I can't wait for all those YMSA programs that will happen then insha Allah. I need a spiritual boost after so much of uni uni and uni. Although I shouldnt really say that because 2 keep up with assignments I have been skipping a lot of classes. Last week I went to uni only on 2 days, this week I went 1 day, so I shud really stop that. Make dua 4 me peoples. I really need it!

Uni work...

2006-04-22T10:08:00.000+10:00

The State is the appropriate organisation to ensure sustainable development.

This is the essay I'm working on now. Its due on wednesday, my 1st day back at uni. For some reason I had thought that I had a whole extra week to do this assignment but i must've seen wrong or something. So I better get back to it. Just got bored and decided that I should post something up.

Feeling not so peachy...

2006-04-19T18:44:00.000+10:00

Salams,

Hotath kore mon ta kharap hoye gelo. This is after I spoke 2 ammu abt the TS this weekend and she said I can't go because apparently I go to too many Islamic gatherings. The last Islamic gathering I went to was around 2 weeks ago and I was only there for around 2 hours. I dunno, sometimes I just wish that I didnt hafta hide so much from my parents. It feels bad when u hide something bad you're doing from your family. But it feels even worse when u hafta hide the good that u do from your family.

Watsons Bay Trip

2006-04-18T11:58:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum all,

Yesterday was the last day of the easter break and I had huge plans to start an assignment (being the studious person i am, ahem). However mother dear had other plans. We were to drive around the city and stop wherever we felt like it. We went to a few places, mostly just drove around the city and abbu was like a tour guide giving us historical details about EVERYTHING!

Heres a foto of the harbour bridge from the bottom. I wanted to drive our car over the bridge but apparently u hafta pay a toll and since we are bangali and fear paying money for most things we didnt go.

We stopped by the Sydney Observatory as well. There's an awesome park there. Its so pretty u'd think its in some country town but its in the middle of the city. The contrast made it so beautiful. The scenery was really nice at the same time there wasnt the loud uproar u'd expect from the city. Here's one of the many fotos of the views from that park.

The park was surrounded on practically all 4 sides with ocean so it was like a huge panaramic view u see on some tourism sites only it was real, which makes it all the more nicer too take in. After that we drove around some more in the city. Then we went to Watsons Bay. Here's a foto of Watson's Bay from above.

Let me tell you some rich people live there! The houses were so nice, we saw like 4 - 6 stories high residences! Some houses had swimming pools on their verandah, one even had a basketball court in the front yard! I guess rich people dont like life much (even tho they have it all, they have nothing) coz opposite watsons bay is a place called "the gap", an infamous area known for being a popular suicide spot. The Gap was such a breathtaking place i dont understand y people wud wanna die there. They shud wanna live after seeing something so beautiful. Have a look at these pix of the gap.

You people all should go there if you get the chance to, but for sightseeing not for suicide. I think i remember hearing about a HSC student 4 or 5 years ago who commited suicide at the gap. I've heard many more cases of students commiting suicides here from exam stress so my advice 2 u is, if u r sitting 4 HSC this year or are very tense with study, and to add to it all are a very deppressed person, DO NOT VISIT THIS PLACE! But if u rnt, please do :-D

An update...

2006-04-16T05:51:00.000+10:00

Salams all,

I wont write this as a long post coz its just after fajr and i'm so sleepy and tired I could fall asleep on the keyboard any moment.

News 1:

Jannah apu is getting married on June 2nd insha Allah!

The groom 2 b is a convert brother in NZ. His name is Nick (he's still searching 4 a Muslim name). The pair knew each other from b4 coz they travel to the same masjid since they live in the same area. When sparks began 2 fly they got engaged and eventually they will be married insha Allah. Make dua 4 the pair u all.

News 2:

Boishakhi mela was a total disaster 4 probashi. We made enuff just 2 cover how much we spent. There was hardly any profits. Yesterday was the mela, our stall looked nice and everything. Here's a pic of an info board in front of our stall (we had 2 boards - this 1 is the menu board).

Coz there was a lot more competition at the boishakhi mela than at the boi mela we didnt do so well. But at least it wasnt a loss alhamdulillah. We learnt 1 thing from this experience: never put a stall at boishakhi mela unless u know for a fact that what u r selling will sell extremely well!

News 3:

I'm so tired now! The last 2-3 days have been so hectic preparing 4 the mela. Yesterday we had 2 cut 10kg onions and 1 kg morich. It was a fun day though. It felt a lot like we were in BD preparing 4 some huge festival. But at the end of the day we were all dead tired! We just sat around watching a movie at my place. The day after that was the mela and we have been at the site from 9:30am - 9:30pm. So it was a 12 hour shift. Ekhon amar ga emon betha i think i'd be even worse than an old lady. Well, make dua 4 me ppls, I'm on break now but i have a LOT of work 2 do! So insha Allah I'll be off now and I will c u when i c u iA.

Water

2006-03-25T10:25:00.000+11:00

Salams guys,

I just watched a really good film last night. Although it is a bollywood film, it's one of those rare movies made by the indian film industry that digs well into history and makes us question societal values that culture or religion (i.e. hinduism) has placed on us. This movie is called "Water". It was nominated for best international film and because of a lot of political and religious controversy it was released much later than it was supposed 2 b. And whats even stranger is that this movie was not released in India! I guess because of the opposition 2 this film by corrupt politicians who like 2 keep people subdued in their exploitative and corrupt ideas.

The movie is set in 1938, in the Gandhian era, a time when widows had 3 choices after the death of her husband:

To be burnt to death with her husband
To live a life of self denial
To marry the brother of here husband

This movie shows the story of a little girl, Chuiya, who is widowed at a really young age (say 7 or 8) by her old old old husband and is sent to live with other widows in a widow house (option 2 from above). They live in this broken down building away from the real world. They all wear only white and have their hair shaved off. The only time they go out is to bathe, pray or beg for money in front of the mandir. This little girl did awesome acting - her innocence was brought out so well! I mean she doesnt even remember getting married and probably hasnt even seen her husband after her wedding day (can u imagine that!).

These women are treated as bad as the untouchables. Noone goes near them, no one respects them and if you touch them u hafta bathe again! Another main character in this movie is Kalyani. She is the only widow with her hair still grown. At first i was a bit confused why she was the only one with her hair grown and y she lived in a room away from all the other widows. But later u get 2 c that the eldest widow in charge forcefully sends Kalyani off to "clients" to work as a prostitute. This is another source of the little amount of money that they get. Its so sick that its none other than the rich brahmins that actually use the widows!

But all this starts to change when Narayan, a young Gandhi idealist comes into the picture. He wants to liberate the widows as preached by Gandhi. After he falls in love with Kalyani (cudnt u predict this wud happen, after all it IS bollywood, some elements of their films always remain!) he proposes to her. But I wont tell u what happens after that. After this there is a big turn of events which are very very unpredictable. So u shud watch it 2 find out. It is an awesome awesome movie! It was kind of shocking 4 me that one of the girls I was watching it with thought that the situation was identical for Muslim widows! I just realised then that we are so influenced by Indian culture we are getting our Islam confused with hinduism. I had to explain all abt the differences between womens rights in Islam and (the lack of) womens rights in Hinduism. She found out for the first time that divorce is allowed in islam (even tho it's not reccomended)! May Allah save us from misunderstanding our religion ever insha Allah.

Anyway, if u like serious movies this is really good. No rude scenes, not even 1! The furthest physical contact u will see on screen is a hug. I'd give it a definate 9/10, perhaps even a 9.5! (believe me which is the 2nd highest i have ever rated a movie). If u can get ur hands on it, u shud watch it, even as a whole family u can learn a lot abt hindu prejudice towards women from this.

My terribly unromantic parents!

2006-03-13T12:19:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum ppl,

On the 8th of March it was my Mum's birthday. My dad wanted ti surptise her and take the whole family out to dinner at a halal thai restuarant in Randwick. Age thekei onek preparation kora chilo so abbu was really excited! My mum, on the other hand, preferred to stay at home and "korola bhaji diye bhat khete" (that is what she said). But in the end we dragged the grumpy birthday girl into the car and drove off to Randwick.

On the way to the restuarant my mum wouldnt talk 2 any1. She got even grumpier when I asked her how old she turned on the day. Apart from the when we got there, alhamdulillah the restuarant was good. We ordered too much food and were inflated to massive sizes (all of us apart from my lil sis, who never seems 2 get inflated regardless of what she eats).

After dinner, we decided that since the part of sydney we live in is like a village, gram er manush jokhon shohore jai tokhon bhalo moto ghure ashe. So we decided to go 2 Coogee Beach at night! It's been my dream 4 AGES to go to the beach at night. This was my first time there and it was so beautiful subhanallah! Onek khon beach e dariye thakar por o we wanted to stay longer. But ammu abbu wanted to come back home quick. Me and Anika were enjoying ourselves so much that we could stay the night there if we had to. It was that beautiful. But my terribly unromantic parents were being the typical bangalis and decided to leave early. Nevertheless, it was a good expereince, my first time ever to go to the beach at nighttime. Onek moja korsilam!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On a more morbid note, I have been traumatised for over 24 hours, food doesnt appeal to me and sleep doesnt help me rest. I was dragged by a few friends to the movies yesterday. But little did we expect the movie to be so disgusting. Amar ekhon o bomi bomi ashche. Can u guess what we watched? Its the most controversial film of our time: "Brokeback Mountain". My eyes were closed through half the movie. From what they showed of it in the news it was nowhere near as dirty and explicitly visual as the actual film was. We just wanned 2 c what the fuss was abt, also check out some of the film techniques coz it won awards for that. But honestly, i dont know y. If the movie was aimed at creating sympathy 4 homosexual ppl, it did the complete opposite. I'm even more scared of them now.

I cried for hours (literally hours) last night because i thought of what shaytan does to people. Usually I am the type of person who always has hope in people. Even if some1 commits the biggest sins, I pray that Allah (SWT) guides them. But after watching this movie, I couldn't pray that Allah (SWT) guides the people who commits this sin, rather I prayed that Allah (SWT) punishes them. For the 1st time in my life I asked Allah (SWT) to punish some1 rather than guide them. Nijer kache khub kharap lagchilo je i couldnt ask 4 their guidance. I tried to, but the words wouldnt even come out of my mouth. All I could ask was for them to be punished. A piece of advice 2 all of u: If u were ever thinking of watching that movie, NEVER EVER watch it! If it angered me this much (I have never been angered by a film, agitated yes, but not angered) it will no doubt anger most of you. I pray that Allah (SWT) forgives me for going 2 watch it. Next time if I ever do go to the movies, I am sticking to non-controversial films.

U guys HAFTA do this test!

2006-03-06T10:07:00.000+11:00

You Are 44% Abnormal

You are at medium risk for being a psychopath. It is somewhat likely that you have no soul.

You are at medium risk for having a borderline personality. It is somewhat likely that you are a chaotic mess.

You are at low risk for having a narcissistic personality. It is unlikely that you are in love with your own reflection.

You are at medium risk for having a social phobia. It is somewhat likely that you feel most comfortable in your mom's basement.

You are at medium risk for obsessive compulsive disorder. It is somewhat likely that you are addicted to hand sanitizer.

How Abnormal Are You?

Haha, This is such a weird test guys. As u can c I'm 44% abnormal! Take it and then tell me what u got. I wanna c if I am really the abnormal one or whether we are all living in a sea of abnormal people so being normal is the odd thing, lol.

বই মেলা

2006-02-21T19:30:00.000+11:00

Salam to every1,

Guess what! Remember the group I told u all about in a previous post? "Probashi" - the grp fundraising for acid victims in BD? Well, at the most recent boi mela we had a food stall. We sold:

ঝাল মুরী, ডালপুরি, শিন্গারা, লাচ্ছি, Cake, Lucky Dip (4 the kids) and Audio CD's.

Alhamdulillah we had a lot of customers and many people were extremely supportive of our cause. Many Ozzie people came and brought SO much from us just for the sake of donating. May people brought things for more than what it was priced at. But at the same time there was also people who complained abt the price too, lol.

Guess what our profit was at the end of the day? We made $1038! Alhamdulillah, we are all very happy with this. Insha Allah at the end of the year all our funds from this year will be sent 2 BD through Prothom Alo Shohaiok Tohobil. Insha Allah I pray that this money is put to good use.

Cruel World!

2006-02-12T10:43:00.000+11:00

Salams ppl,

I was making breakfast this morning for my sister, myself and my mum. Roti 4 my sis and me. Those of u that know me well, esp me in the kitchen, will know that I'm really clumsy. Ranna banna korte giye pura ghor jalaye dite pari ami! Anyway, what happened this time was, I was frying 4 roti's. Ektar por ekta khub taratari chulai dichilam arki. Then ekta roti deyar shomoi, ami gadhar moto eto forcefully frypan e rekhechi, many drops of tel (oil) chite eshe lagse amar mukhe! I am scarred! But not 2 worry, I thought I'll put some cold cream or something on it after putting it under running water. And guess what? The only cold cream thingo is my dear sisters! And she wont let me use a drop of it! So much for "sharing is caring". So ami ekhon boshe boshe ice niye mukher shathe dhore boshe achi. The ice is melting on my face so rapidly. Only if i cud use the cold cream!

The baton... (and my poor poor brain!)

2006-02-02T14:24:00.000+11:00

Alrite, Dags passed the baton thingo 2 me a while ago and oitar bhoye ami post kora aro komiye dilam. But alas, I shall use all of my everdying brain cells to answer some of these questions.

10 years ago:

OK, How old was I then? Hmmm??? 19 - 10 = ... Wheres my calculator, lol. Ok, so I was 9. It was my 2nd year in NZ, the year we moved from Auckland to Dunedin. Auckland was great, I was 8 when we arrived there. And since my family never really sticks to one place for too long, we were out of there in 11 months! Not even a year. When we were in Auckland, we were something like the 4th or 5th Bangali family there. It was so peaceful, until the new fleet arrived from BD. I remember that there were 2 groups amongst the Bangali's: "Association" and "Society". I think it was a political division, and each grp had their own circles and even organised their own functions and cultural programs. Oooooh, I cant 4get, I used 2 sing then. I had my own harmonium and I used 2 always be invited 2 the functions of both groups 2 sing. I remember at one of the functions i got into a HUGE fight with my sister in the kitchen. Other uncles and aunties had 2 break us up. Abbu ammu were sooooooo embarassed!

The move 2 Dunedin was good. Once again, we were the 2nd Bengali family there. After after us came the new fleet from BD. Why do Bangali's always follow us!!!!! In Auckland the school i went to was officially labelled as the worst school in the city (at one stage some student had stole the principals briefcase!!). In Dunedin the school i went to was the most Multicultural one in town and it was a great school. I'll never 4get it! Lunchtimes were spent swinging on monkey bars, playing "1,2,3 Home", having races and playing other games in the field. It was so fun!!!

5 years ago:

Ok, by now I'm 15 right? Wait, 19 - 5 = 14. Ok, I was 14, close enuff. I remember that year so clearly! It was one of the worst and best years of my life. We moved from Dunedin, New Zealand to Sydney, Australia. Let me mention, while we were in Dunedin (for 5 years) we moved houses 4 times! And when we arrived in Sydney, our moving habit was still very much alive. The year we arrived in Sydney, we moved 4 times (within that 1 year!). Ammu, my sis and I came 2 sydney. Abbu was in Tasmania for work. He came much later. The circumstances under which we came were quite sad. I remember always wishing that abbu cud be with us. But alhamdulillah he came later. I enrolled at Randwick Girls High School. That year I made a few friends whom I can never 4get and who I still have contact with alhamdulillah. Some inlude: Progga, Nahid and Zuhrat.

We also went to Bangladesh that year, for the first time in 6 years. But once again it was just my sis, ammu and me. But nevertheless, BD was a good experience, not always fun, but i learnt loads abt life and the different types of people in the world.

It was also during this year that i put the hijab on. Me and Nahid started wearing it 2getha alhamdulillah. But I wasnt too serious abt it. But in that year I also changed schools, to Beverly Hills Girls High School (because we moved houses AGAIN!). And here I met some new friends who I wish to remain friends with 4ever insha Allah. These frends at Bevo taught me what hijaab actually means. My transformation started then alhamdulillah.

Middle School:

In NZ, middle school is intermediate school. My School was called Dunedin North Intermediate School (DNI for short). I was a Loser with a capital L. Honestly, I remember being the biggest tryhard there was. Maybe thats y I never really had any true friends in NZ. I was a terrible terrible person then and I was involved in certain illegal activities (wont mention anything here). I put my parents thru hell during that time and i pray that Allah (SWT) 4gives me 4 my stupidity then insha Allah. Its quite funny actually, one of my frends from DNI who lives in sydney now bumped into me in a mall. And she was so shocked 2 c that I had become relgious! She was speechless, literally! Like I was the last person she expected to see religious, lol.

5 Bands and Artists:

U no wat? I've been thinking abt this recently so much: there are so many people gifted in singing. Only if they used their talents for the sake of Islam! I dont have any fave singers or bands. I like all sorts of nasheeds and i admire the singers for using their talents for the good of the Muslim ummah. Some of these singers include: Sami Yusuf, Zain Bhikha, Dawud Wharsby Ali, Native Deen, Raihan, Yusuf Islam.

But there are other singers whose voice I really like and I pray that one day Allah (SWT) brings them over to the side of Islam and their talents can be utilized to benefit the Muslim Ummah insha Allah. I wont mention any names but there are many young people in BD who can cause Islamic Revival by just promoting Islamic Entertainment. Many already have the fame and now if they start using it 4 the sake of Allah (SWT) to bring Islam to the masses, insha Allah it will be a great great blessing!

5 Things I'd do with £100,000,000:

Firstly, eto taka amar jibone hobe na, unless a handsome rich guy falls in love with me and wants to marry me, lol. So u can c, its highly unlikely. Kintu jodi somehow eto takay hat pore, tahole:

I'd pay off all my parents loans and send them 2 hajj.
Buy a nice little cottage near a lake (and a good neighbourhood) and a cute little car.
Donate to YMSA and other good Islamic Organisations.
(OK, some of u will slap me 4 saying this) Get Hair Transplants and braces.
All the rest of the money I would give in aid to Muslim Countries in need. Not just for aid but for Islamic Development. (But before that i'd give a lot of money 2 poorer family members in BD or anywhere else who needs assistance).

5 Places I would run away to:

Ok, when u mention running away, I wouldnt go 2 any persons place. When i'm in my "running away" mood, I like being alone. Kaoke dekhle oder chool tene chire felte icha kore, lol. So 2 run away, I have a few ideal places in mind.

Any isolated beach where I'm the only person at sunrise or sunset and pray there. (Amar na shundor scenic jaiga dekhlei oikhane namaj porte icha kore).
A scenic lookout at the top of a mountain from where if u look down u c the entire city (on a windy night when u can hear the trees moving), and I'm the only person there.
A nice park in a scening setting with swings, slides, monkey bars and many more kiddy rides. I wanna be all alone there hogging all the rides, especially the swings!
A HUGE empty road (scening setting of course!) where I can walk alone by myself without any1 staring at me or making comments.
BD'r je kono gram er khet e ba empty land e giye boshe thaktam eka eka if I felt like running away.

5 things I like doing:

Getting 2getha with friends and hanging out for AGES!!! Even Talking on the fone or chatting on msn with them 4 ages.
Reading (I'm very picky abt what I read though)
Spending LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of time with ammu, abbu and my sis Anika.
Talking
Going to nice scenic places alone (as u mite have guessed)

5 things I will never wear:

Tight Jeans (eeeeeeeewwwwwwww, OK Flynn and Dags has called me a FOB b4 but I am not THAT much of a FOB!!!)
U no the fashion that was "in" a while ago? When people wore bootlike shoes (that came up 2 the knees) over their pants? Ok, that I shall NEVER EVER wear. I DETEST that look!
Ketketa bright colours (fluoro stuff).
A wig or a fake bun (i.e. khopa)
Anything that makes me too too fat.

5 Movies I like:

A walk to Remember
Skeleton Key
Black
LOTR
All Harun Yahya DVD's (theyre absolutely AWESOME!!!)

5 People I'd like to meet:

Prophet Muhammad (SAS) - even if it is in a dream!
Prophet Musa (AS)
Prophet Isa (AS)
Aasiyah, the wife of Firawn!!!!
Khadijah, wife of prophet (SAS)

Ok theres one person I wanna meet, but its 4 a stupid reason. I have been told by many people that i look exactly like her so I really wanna meet Api Kareem one day.

5 biggest joys at the moment:

No Uni! Still Holidays!
YMSA - the girls and the programs.
Still living with my stupendous family :-D and alhamdulillah they are all healthy and alive.
LOST returns 2nite!!!!!! YAY!!!! I have been waiting ALL holidays!!!!
The greatest bunch of friends any1 cud ever have!!!

OK, I feel like I wrote an essay. If u've bothered to read up till here I honestly admire ur patience. 2 phrases 4 u: Masha Allah and Jazakallah :-D

Now I have 2 pass the baton thingo on dont I? OK, I shall pass 2 HP and Eccentric Human. Get started u guys. It took me quite some time 2 rite this!

Life since my last post...

2006-01-25T09:52:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum 2 every1,

I know it's been 48 days since I last wrote but I dont know what came over me, I've been so out of it. But its not like nothing has been happening around me. So much has been happening. Here's a quick summary:

On the day the heat reached 45 degrees here (hottest in more than 60 years) 2 of my guinea pigs died of heat stroke (blackie and blinky).
All the YMSA girls except emu, flynn, daggy, sumaiya and me are in BD so we've been working hard 2 arrange the annual Islamic Program 4 the girls in the Campbelltown area.
Our dearest Munira apu, Afifa Apu and Tahnia Apu are now married women alhamdulillah. I was just speaking 2 emu last night and telling her how happy I was 4 all of them. Ami khushite onek kedechi when I thought abt how lucky and happy they r alhamdulillah. We are all making dua 4 u sisters insha Allah.
I got offered to do honours, an extra fourth year, in Political Economy alhamdulillah. Abbu ammu are over the moon and I dont wanna do it because political economy isnt my thing. But honours is something u get offered, u dont choose. So my options are limited. Amar jonno dua rakhba shobai please!
Remember Probasy, the grp raising funds for acid victims in BD? We have a lot more things coming up so we are having more meetings. At the coming boi mela amra jhal muri and other snacks sell korbo insha Allah. The good thing is they dont have stalls in any melas BUT the boi mela. And since boi mela te beshir bhaag manhush i hoche uncle aunty ra or family ra (minimal bachelors or FOBs!) i think its the best venue we can get all year for a stall, even tho it may not be superb.
Those of you who went to Beverly Hills Girls, u remember Tayeba, right? Do u remember her younger sister Nayla? She looked exactly like tayeba but taller. Tayeba called me yesterday and gave me the news that Nayla passed away the day before from a heart attack. Inna lillhi wa inna ilaihi rajee'un. She was 16 years old and never had any symptoms or records of heart problems. And what was more was that the day she had the heart attack was to be a happy day for the family because their mum, who had been diagnosed with breast cancer several months ago, just finished her last session of chemotherapy. But when they got home, they had to face another tragedy. I ask u all to please sincerely make dua for this family and for Nayla's soul in the qabr and akhirah insha Allah. Kalke raate ami onek khon dhore ammur kole boshe kadlam. Khub kharap lagche guys. Things like this makes us realise how feeble we are and anything cud happen 2 any1 at anytime. So we shud always be prepared 4 the meeting with our Lord insha Allah. May Allah (SWT) guide us all and let us not die unless we are in a state of true imaan. Ameen.

I know Daggy has passed the baton thingo 2 me so I hafta put up a post on that. Insha Allah I'll do that sometime soon. Ajke icha korche na.

All u sisters take care insha Allah. May Allah (SWT) be with u all not only now but always. Ameen.

Daddy-dear's back!

2005-12-08T11:07:00.000+11:00

Salams all,

Abbu came bak the day b4 yesterday from bd safely alhamdulillah! We all missed him heaps! Ammu completely stopped cooking for the one month. I had to live off noodles and cereal and flavoured tea. Of course there was the week Jannah apu was here, we actually got food then. But since then, nothing.... i even had 2 meals a day sometimes. But abbu ashar shathe shathe all food is back too alhamdulillah!

He got a lot of stuff 4 all of us, considering he went all alone and stayed for less than a month, and had to travel so much that the longest time he was at one place was around 6 days! I got 6 kameez and a skirt. Anika got 3 kameez and a sharee (but she scabbed the only 2 kameez that i wanted). Ammu got 10 sharees! We all got jewellery sets and choori's as well as roopchorcha stuff like uptan, fair and lovely and mehendi (for hand and hair).

One thing abbu didnt mention 2 us while he was in bd was that he got looted by hijackers! They took his fone, money and all other valuables he had on him at the time. He told us that he lost his fone and we cudnt contact him on that number. But we just found out the truth when he came back. OMG, he was so casual abt it! Apparently they had a HUGE knife, half the size of my entire arm! Alhamdulillah abbu is safe though. Allah bachaise! I've been hearing stories like this quite a bit recently, so those of u going 2 bd, please take care and dont have too much valuables with u at any time!

HP and Zuhrat (2 of my frends who remind me so much of each other, even their mothers remind me of each other!) are flying 2 bd 2day insha Allah, but on separate flights. So keep them in ur prayes guys as i will 2 insha Allah. I hope that all of u who r going 2 bd have a good time there and stay safe and in a good state of iman insha Allah!

Harry Potter 4

2005-12-05T10:14:00.000+11:00

Yup i watched it! Was ok, not too bad. Heres a load of the good and the bad!

Good:
* Special effects (I cudnt stop screaming in the dragon scene)
* Casting (voldemort was exactly what he was described as and Cedric Diggory was every bit handsome as he was described in the book)
* Humour (although bits that werent in the book was added, it was HILLARIOUS! Snape hits Harry and Ron in the head not once not twice but 3 times!)
* Make up (the characters looked great! although not as good as they did in HP 3)

Bad:
* Plot development (like HP 3 plot, this 1 is very poorly developed. I want Chris Columbus bak - the director of HP 1 and HP 2)
* Too rushed! (this is understandable, the like 600 page book was shrinked to 2 hrs and 45 mins)
* Casting (Krum wasnt as hairy as he was supposed 2 b, Fleur didnt look anything near a semi-veela)
* The movie made it seem like Harry and Hermione had weird chemistry going on when the book makes it obvious that its Ron and Hermione with the weird chemistry!

Overall, i'd say it was ok. Bad plot development (which annoyed me a LOT!) was overcome by the special effects and humour so by the end i was ok with it. I mean even tho i was annoyed at fleur and krums casting cedric made up for all of it! lol, y duz the cute ones always die! Sorry 2 give away the ending. All in all I'd give it a 5.5 out of 10. Yup, the only thing I am ever cynical abt is movies. Theres ever been only 1 movie i think that i wud give 10/10. And believe me, I've seen heaps of movies!

I'm so freaked!!!!

2005-11-23T15:29:00.000+11:00

Salams ppl,

OMG OMG OMG, the scariest thing happened! I went driving/shopping yesterday with jannah apu in the car. And guess what? Parking korte giye ami ar ekta garite lagaye disi! It was so scary! I cudnt stop trembling. It wasnt a super big collision or anything, but amader garite ar onno garita-te mark legeche. So there is evidence of the impact. Some ppl saw what happened. So if they decide je onno garir manushke bole dibo, its ok. They shud. But at that moment i was so ovewhelmed with all sorts of emotions I decided to drive away to another suburb 2 do the shopping. Get away from that whole shopping area. And never come back! lol, i probably will go back but no time soon and hope no1 remembers me. But onek koshto kore abbu ammuke convince korsilam 2 get insurance under my name as well and alhamdulillah after a long wait they did. So it shud all be ok now. But even now i'm so scared! And ashamed that i ran away. Kintu ar ki kortam bolo, i know amar oi garite ekta note ba kichu likhe rakha uchit chilo. But i was just thinking of abbu ammu's reaction. And at that moment that was enuff to scare me so much that i ran away :(

Anyway, just felt like taking some time out of my bz schedule and sharing that with u guys. Now if abbu ammu gets a call 2 say they hafta pay up, thats ok. I dont mind coz they can handle this situation. But i cudnt so i left. Allah help me! I felt like such a coward and still do. What wud u guys do if it was u????

New Beginings...

2005-11-19T21:31:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum,

Seems like every1 has a post up on this topic. So i wont say much more. But this is what happened for those who r clueless abt it:

Next year will be 1 of tremendous change for all the girls here.

Ms Doe getting married this year and moving to the UK a year later
Ash moving out of Sydney to study medicine

So to celebrate all these changes we decided to have a party we would never 4get! Its funny, change hoi na hoi na, kintu jokhon hoi shob ekshathe hoi. I didnt realise what all these changes meant but now after the party i'm @ home just contemplating on what this means. I cant really explain what it means 2 me. But I am starting 2 feel an emptiness inside. I know that as tacky and cliche as it mite sound, i mean it with all my heart. My wellwishes to all those sisters who are going to start a new begining in their life. May Allah make this new life easy for you insha Allah. Ameen.

On the bright side, the party was a big success alhamdulillah. It truly was a party 2 remember. All the girls looked amazing masha Allah. And our Ms Doe really did look like a bride-to-be. And Nira apu began what looked like an intense training sessions on the social ettiquetes of a bengali bou with Ms. Doe, who was increasingly looking embarassed! The games were excellent! The food was superb! Everything was just the way it shud be alhamdulillah! And the best part of all was the company. Honestly, it is hardly ever that we get all the girls 2getha 4 an occassion such as this. So alhamdulillah for this opportunity. Wallahi I love all u guys 4 the sake of Allah :D. For those of u going 2 bd, please be careful, and for all of u, keep me in ur prayers.

Wassalam

Fair and Lovely?

2005-11-12T15:56:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum all,

Just today I was having a conversation with a friend on this topic. About how much our society is obsessed with fairness and skin colour. I found an article on this which u mite wanna read. It was quite interesting. It's called Indian Women Criticize 'Fair and Lovely' Ideal. I have 2 admit, I do use the cream fair and lovely. Initially it started off with me actually feeling bad because of my colour and soon I was using it on a regular basis. But now I tell people that I use the ayurvedic ones only because they honestly do keep ur skin smooth and pimple free. But I think still bhitore bhitore I do use it for the colour :$ although the other factors mentioned above are a reason too.

It is often a really common situation in BD (well i've witnessed it a lot) that when someon asks another person abt a girl's looks, its either "meyetar gayer rong dudher moto shada" or "khub forsha", even the term "shundor" has the connotation that the girl is fair. But if the girl is shemla often the reply to that question is "meyeta shemla kintu chehara sweet". Thats what i've heard from a LOT of people abt me. It sounds as though being shemla a terrible thing and even tho chehara is ok, the shemla-ness remains a big 'but'.

Islamically, we arent supposed 2 judge people based on their colour. But the stereotypes that r in place now, every1 is doing it. Plus abbu was telling me that in the arab countries the arabs look down upon us curries (i.e. indian, bangladeshi, pakistani, sri lankan.....), perhaps not because of colour but because the majority of curries there are working in low class jobs so many arabs immediately assume any dark person they see as a low class person. Once again, this goes completely against the teachings of the prophet (SAS). So y does ppl do it? Does any1 know the origins of such ideology? It wud be intersting to find out. I always thought it was because we always thought that the bideshi's were 'up there' so we wanned 2 b like them. Is that y? Enlighten us please... any1.....

Congrats ASH!!!

2005-11-09T15:18:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum every1

I have an announcement to make! Very exciting one indeed. Our dear Ash has made it into Medicine at the Australian National University masha Allah! We always knew u cud do it Ash. Congrats! Our duas are always with u! Well done!

Daddy-dear left!

2005-11-09T09:29:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum,

Aajke abbur bd jabar flight. Insha Allah he will get there by 2moro shokal our time. Ek maash thaka plan niye jache. Then he will return to sydney on 6th December insha Allah. He wouldnt let us go to the airport and wont let us go 2 pick him up. Since we live right across the station and there i train travel available right to the airport, so he prefers to give us that break even tho we were all willing 2 go with him!

It was so cute! Ammur chokhe pani chole eshechilo! And b4 abbu left he said bye to ammu and held out his hand for a handshake but ammu didnt take his hand. Rather she gave him a HUGE hug! She didnt come to the station with me and abbu. Abbu only wanted me 2 go 2 the station with him so I cud help him with the luggage. But ammu was still across the road and waited there until abbu got on the train and then left for work. But in that time they exchanged waves and smiles from across the street like 10 times! And this is a 60 second journey i'm talking abt, lol.

I remember teasing ammu abbu abt each other so much. Once we changed the banner on abbu's fone to "Shelley amar" and when he found out and changed it, we changed it back to "Ami Shelley'r", lol. Just thos morning I took a foto of ammu and one of abbu with ammus fone andI saved ammu's one as "shundori" and abbu's one as "jaan", lol.

I feel so sorry 4 abbu, he has with him 3 HUGE shopping lists. One 4 me, one 4 me sis and one 4 ammu. Bechara. I told him not 2 do the shopping. Just give the lists to my girl cousins and bhabis and mamis. They'll be better at these things insha Allah. U wanna c my list?

6 salwar kameez
4 sharees
1 long skirt
Roopchorcha stuff like uptan, fair and lovely, mehendi,......

Me sis has the same list. We had to modify it so many times 2 get it this short. B4 it was like 5 times this size, no joke! I dont care if he duznt get all this. All i ask is him 2 b safe. I've heard some scary stories about people going 2 bd from here. Please make dua 4 him ppls. The he remains safe.

U no the funniest thing, actually a good thing. Abbu started praying from today alhamdulillah and intends to keep it up in BD insha Allah. I was so happy when he told me :D May Allah make him successful in his intentions. Ameen.

Bangali formalities!

2005-11-07T10:07:00.000+11:00

Saturday:

At the evening, an aunty calls and asks to speak 2 my parents.

Me: Aunty, ammu abbuto ektu baire giyeche. Ami ki kono message dite pari abbu ammuke?

Aunty: Na ma, eid e to tomra ashla na, ei jonno bhabchilam ajke raat-e tomaderke ashte bolbo.

Me: Aunty, ajke raat-e je amader ekta dawat ache ***** Uncle er bashai.

Aunty: Tai? Acha tahole, tomar ammu abbuke bolo je kalke raat-e jeno amader bashai ashe. Bikale char tai to tomar uncle bashai ashe tai raat-e amra shobai mile khabo. Acha?

Me: Acha aunty, insha Allah ami abbu ammuke ei message ta dibo.

This is what I can remember of the convo (not word for word though). Ta ami ar ki korbo? Abbu ammu bashai ashlo, I gave them the message. And they said, "OK we'll go".

Sunday:

This being the night of the dawat, we went to this aunty's place. We went a bit early because abbu ammu hadnt spoken 2 them in a while so they wanned a jomjomat adda. Plus I told them, if u do early, go b4 maghrib coz i hafta pray there then. And thats what we did. The whole family went, all 5 of us (abbu, ammu, me, sis and fupi). The first time in MONTHS we all went someplace 2getha so it was a real festive feeling. Kintu, oi bashai giye dekhi aunty-der dorja janala shob locked. Ar ki kora, abbu gave a call on the aunty's mobile.

Aunty: Ki bhai, ki khobor? Bhalo achen?

Abbu: Eito achi arki. Tomra kothai?

Aunty: Amra to *****der bashai. Ken bhai? Ashben?

Abbu: Uhhhh (lost for words - long pause), Shelleyr shathe kotha bolo.

Shelley (aka ammu): Eije, ishita naki bolchilo je tumi ajke raate dawat diso.

Aunty: Koi, nato.

Ammu: Tumi naki bolso je ajke raat-e ******** (her hubby) ashar pore amra ekshathe khabo. Ei jonno ashte bolso.

Aunty: Koi, erokom kono kotha to hoini. Kintu, tate ki hoise, apnara half an hour pore ashen. Shomosha ki? Ekshathe khabo amra.

Ammu: Na thak, ishitar to namaj porte hobe, eijonno bashai jai.

Aunty: Na na apa, apnara ashe pashe ghuren, amra adha ghontar modhe ashchi.

Ammu: Na na, tomra berau, amra jai. Onno arek din beraiye jabo. Heh?

After that there was a long convo where the aunty was telling us 2 stay and my parents were saying that we were leaving... Then on the way back home...

Ammu: O ki asholey tomake bolechilo je amaderke raat-e jete?

Me: Ami ja message peyechi, tomake tai bolechi.

Ammu: Bujhechi, o hoito emni beraite jabar kotha boleche ar tumi oitake dawat mone korecho.

Me: Hoito tai. Uni amake bollo je raat-e tomaderke khete jete bolte, eita dawat-er motoi mone holo amar. Man, this bangali formalities! I dont get it! Dawat dile keo bolte parena je dawat dilam! Eto ghuriye pechiye keno bolte hoi!

Fupi: Etao to hote pare je unara tomake msg debar por tomar abbu ammu fone kore confirm koreni. Ei jonno unara bhebeche tomra ashbena.

Ammu: Kintu o je bollo, oishob kotha ishita ke o ekdom bolei nai.

Me: Tomader o dosh ache! Ami bollam je dawat dise, ektu fone kore confirm korba na. Ei jonnoi to unara bhule gese.

Anyways, the moral of that story is:

Keo jodi kokhono amake ba amar family ke dawat deo, clearly bole diyo to je "Eita ekta DAWAT, not just an invite saying come over sometimes". Or better that u leave the msg with abbu ammu or if u leave it with me, who is completely oblivious to bengali formalities, we'll show up when u dont want us there :P

PS. Is it just me or is every1 having trouble accessing PA's blog? When i go there all it shows is a blank page with the blogger toolbar thingo at the top :S

Probashi

2005-11-05T12:19:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum,

I have been a part of this group called "Probashi" for a while now. What we do is raise funds for acid victims in Bangladesh. I haven't really read up much on acid abuse in BD but I have been doing some reading on it lately. I was not so shocked because i knew the extent of this crime in BD. But even then, everytime I read the info and saw some of the (very graphic) pics I was very hurt, angry, frustrated and touched all at the same time. I'll post up some stuff on that today insha Allah. But I just want to warn u guys from before, some of the fotos are extremely graphic! So if u a squeamish, dont go right to the end.

SOURCE: Acid Survivors Foundation

WHAT IS ACID THROWING ?

Acid throwing is a vicious form of violence against women. Although we know that violence against women is a universal phenomenon, what many of us may not know is the extent and form the violence takes. This differs from one society to another. ACID THROWING is a particularly vicious and damaging form of violence against women in Bangladesh. There are cases of acid throwing in other countries but these are isolated incidents, nowhere near the number of attacks that occur in Bangladesh.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN ACID IS THROWN ON A VICTIM ?
When acid is thrown on a person, the results are horrific. Nitric or Sulphuric Acid has a catastrophic effect on the human flesh. It causes the skin tissue to melt, often exposing the bones below the flesh, sometimes even dissolving the bone. When acid attacks the eyes, it damages these vital organs permanently. Many acid attack survivors have lost the use of one or both eyes. The victim is traumatized physically, psychologically and socially.

An acid attack on your body would dramatically change your life. Most survivors of an acid attack are forced to give up their education, their occupation and other important activities in their lives. This is because recovering from the trauma takes up most of their time and because the disfigurement they have to bear debilitates and handicaps them in every conceivable way.

The scars left by acid are not just skin deep- victims are most often faced with social isolation and ostracisation that further damages their self esteem, self-confidence and seriously undermines their professional and personal future. Women who have survived acid attacks have great difficulty in finding work and if unmarried, as many victims tend to be, they have very little chance of ever getting married, which in a country like Bangladesh is socially isolating.

HOW MANY ACID ATTACKS ARE WE TALKING ABOUT ?
It is difficult to obtain accurate statistics because most people in Bangladesh live in rural communities that are relatively isolated and mechanisms to gather information from these communities is weak. But there is evidence to indicate that there is an alarming increase in the number of reported acid attacks incidents in Bangladesh.

In 1996, there were 47 reported cases of acid violence. In 1997, the number rose to 130. In 1998, there were over 200 reported cases. It is highly likely that the number of actual cases is considerably higher. In 1999 the Acid Survivors Foundation started to collect data and in its first year documented 139 known cases. It is highly likely that the number of actual cases is higher.In 2000, 2001 we documented 226, 343 cases and in 2002 the highest number recorded as 484 which had been lower a little bit in the last year - 2003 - the number was 410 cases.

HOW OLD IS THIS PHENOMENON ?
The first documented case of acid violence was in 1967 when a young girl had acid poured on her by her admirer when his proposal of marriage was refused by her mother. So acid violence is a fairly recent phenomenon in Bangladesh.

WHY DOES IT HAPPEN ?
The victims are attacked for many reasons. In some cases, the attack takes place because a young girl or woman has spurned the sexual advances of a male or has rejected a proposal of marriage. Recently, however, there have been acid attacks on children, older women and sometimes also men. These attacks are often the result of family or land disputes, dowry demands or a desire for revenge.

Reasons for acid attacks during the years, the highest rate of occurrence took place over Land Disputes and Family dispute, the next highest rate of these brutal incidents are due to refusal of relationship/sex throughout the country.

WHO ARE THE VICTIMS?
The major victim of attacked is Women(47%) and Men(26%). Children(27%) could not escape from the attack. Sometimes domestic animals or birds are also victimized.

If any of u Sydney siders would like to join "Probashi" u can let me know. The thing is, a lot of the fundraising is done at mela's and stuff, which I know many of you dont go to or completely disapprove of. What i do is, I help with the preparation of the foods or whatever we r selling at the mela. And usually my parents drag me to the mela so I end up going anyways.

Plus, we sold cadbury chocolates to raise money for the flood victims in BD in 2004. So there are so many ways we do fundraising. So if any1's interested lemme no. I'll let khushbu no (she's the 1 in charge i think).

Wassalam,
-iishii-

My Pigs!

2005-11-05T12:00:00.000+11:00

Salams again ppls,

Introducing............................................ (actually most of u no em :P)

My pigs! The 4 most adorable guinea pigs in the UNIVERSE!

Blackie - the mum

Cheeky - the dad

Speedy - the older sis

Blinky - the youngest and fattest sis

I love these things soooo much! Actually I'm a joke 2 some ppl coz i do, lol. Amader bashai all us girls love cheeky. Ammu thinks thats because he's the only guy, lol. Actually, he's the most interactive with any1 so naturally we all ador him the most :P. But the reas of em are cute too, each with their own personality subhanallah! Anyways, feeling like posting up a lot 2day so yeah :D

Eid Mubarak!

2005-11-04T10:24:00.000+11:00

Assalamualaikum every1,

I would like 2 wish u all a very festive and blessed eid al fitr. I have just posted up an article on The significance of Eid al-Fitr in Our Microcosm. It was quite an insightful read because I could find many faults in the way I saw Eid celebrated here. I'm sure u all noticed it too. Ramadhan came like this and went like this yet no1 contemplates over it. In Bangla TV we see the news-presenters (the women of course) with orna over their head only in ramadhan and as soo as its eid, not only duz the orna come off but all sorts of hijab-defying and more-over Islam-defying activities take place. Like cinemar gaaner onushthan and a marathon run of eid-er natoks. Well, thats TV, rite? In our everyday life we shud see things 2 be a lot better, tai na? Well, not true.

Many hijabis (I guess u cud say part-time hijabi's, even tho there's no such thing in Islam) took their hijab off. We have become so superficial that we think eid is all about ke ki porlo, ke koto takar jama kinlo, ke ki ranna korlo eid e, ke koto guest pailo, etc... But i just read this in the article: “True rejoicing is not (merely) in wearing new clothes, but in becoming true in one’s devotion to God.” Dont think its a hadith, even if it is, the Sheikh that said it didnt source it. But the message behind it may seem simple but it is SO difficult to implement it into ur lives! Devotion to God... amader devotion to Allah koto? I sometimes think that u no. Esp @ eid prayer, so many people dont turn up, esp women and even if they do, they talk non-stop during the khutbah! All the lessons people learn during Ramadhan often go down the drain during Eid. Here is our devotion to Allah.

People have such a narrow idea of 'fun'. They assume that Islam-e kono 'fun' nei. Thats y 2 have fun in eid, u cant possibly do it thru halal means. Y cant they grasp the islamic meaning of fun. Islam gives us many opportunities for fun and celebrations. Every Friday is like an Eid for us and we should celebrate it like 1. Which other religion, culture or movement in the world provides opportunity for so much fun!

Anyways, it's a festive and blessed day for celebrations. I wont complain any more. I wish u all a blessed eid full of fun (proper Islamic fun) and blessings. May Allah accept all your good deeds not only in Ramadhan but always. U r all in my prayers and please keep me in yours.

Wassalam,

-iishii-

Top 10 Muslim Pick-up Lines

2005-11-02T15:22:00.000+11:00

Salams ppls,

I found this posted up on the Islamic Sydney site and found it hillarious! Check it out!

1. Oh my gosh! I just saw part of your hair, now you're obliged to marry me.

2. Our parents engaged us when we were little; they must have forgotten to tell you.

3. I'd like to be more than just your brother in Islam.

4. Will my platinum VISA cover your dowry?

5. Will you help the cause of the Ummah by helping me fulfill my deen? "

6. Wanna pray in jamaat? Shoulder to shoulder, feet to feet?

7. Assalamualaikum, so what time does a hurain like you have to be back in Heaven?

8. Can I have your Wali's phone number?

9. Let's get married so I don't have to lower my gaze every time you walk in the room.

And my personal favourite...

wait for it.....

wait for it.....

10. Is your dad a terrorist, 'cuz you da bomb!

There were a few more but i dont no i found a few of em quite inappropriate so these are the ok ones according 2 me.

Jhogra

2005-11-01T20:23:00.000+11:00

Boka shuni na shuni na kintu jokhon shuni shara duniyar shamne shunte hoy. OMG! Ki je rag lagtese. Ectually lachilo kintu now i've calmed down alhamdulillah. U c what happened 2day is... actually its my fault... ajke shokale ammu told me that chola ar dal pani diye bhijiye rakhte because we are having guests 4 iftar. So thats what I did. Niche giye shundor kore chola ar dal pani diye bhijiye rakhlam. Kintu, jei ammu niche gelo (a long time later, 2 hours before Iftar) the house filled with obscene language and swear words directed at me! U c, what I did was chola ar dal take ekta bati-te mishiye bhijiyechi. But as u might have guessed I should have done it separately. Ujbok, ahammok, k****r bacha, h***m**d*, .... and many more bangla gali galaj shunte holo. But alhamdulillah 1 thing I am good at it chup kore boka shuna. I can get yelled at for a whole day non-stop and i can be as silent as though I dont even exist.

So there I was, lokkhi meye hoye chup kore boka shunchilam. Then to my surprize, Ms. Doe and her sis came 2 my house 2 give me a visit (as it was my b-day yesterday). They brought all sorts of yummy foods (which we all enjoyed very much @ iftar 2nite - masha Allah her mum and her are both GREAT cooks ;). Kintu oi shomoi amar boka shunar peak hour chilo. Actually peak hour just pass korechilo but things were still heated. So u can imagine, guest er shamne amake emon bokata dilo. Ami ar ki korbo, lojjai mukhta lukiye rakhte holo. I'm really sorry Ms. Doe about what u had 2 c. Only if u stayed longer I could have explained all this 2 u. Anyways, this went on for an entire 2 hours! And I was quiet the whole time alhamdulillah. Not a word came out of my mouth except responses to questions. And maybe some tears that came out of my eyes. But I was glad because I didnt cry much! This is a HUGE accomplishment 4 me alhamdulillah, masha Allah, yay!

I've realised that I dont get yelled at by parents a lot but when i do I have a big audience. Once in front of Upoma and Ema I got yelled at big time for wanting to drive to Minto (even tho I have my license). Another time I got yelled at in front of over 15 girls at a sleepover (even tho it was over the telephone it was really embarassing). I even had big serious debates with abbu in front of other uncles at dawats! See, this stuff is like once in a blue moon 4 us but people must thing we are the most jhograte family alive! lol, oh yeah, i remember once in NZ at this cultural function, i was 8 yrs old and me sis was 4. We got into such a HUGE fight, all the performances had 2 b stopped (i think) and aunties and uncles had to come and stop us (i remember that my parents were SOOOOOOOO embarassed)!

I just pray that Allah amake maaf kore dei for being such a bad daughter. Abbu ammuke ami ragateo pari, lol. Coz everytime i was yelled at it was my fault (as far as i remember). Now i just need 2 be patient and continue with my anger management and improve on it as much as i can insha Allah ;)

Get your school photographs!

2005-10-28T16:00:00.000+10:00

Salams ppls,

Check out this site. Its amazing! It has an international school photo database. If you ever missed getting it any year or just want to see your friends and yourself when you were cute and young, :P just fill in the details of where u went to school and when you went and believe me u will be surprized.

Wassalam,
-iishii-

Untitled

2005-10-27T21:35:00.000+10:00

Salams all,

Shomoi kibhabe chole jai, its so scary to even think abt it. Ramadhan started an entire 23 days ago and we have around 7 more days left. Not just this month but when i reflect on my entire life, I cant believe how soon it has passed by me. I will be 19 soon insha Allah. Now i know why HP was so philosophical abt turning 19. Although i lack her eloquence and perception i am still capable of understanding what she went thru (I think :S) and let me tell u, its an extremely scary feeling.

Anyway, sheita arek kotha, but let me tell u all a bit abt how my Ramadhan has been. I am so ashamed of myself! I have been a total idiot this Ramadhan. These days I am getting even more and more influenced by the environment I'm in. In my household, even in Ramadhan, I am the ONLY one who has been praying 5X a day. Certain persons have been not fasting without valid reasons. Certain persons continually listens to music. Certain persons do not pray taraweeah because (I quote) "eita to foroj na". Not a single person, besides me, has picked up the Quran. What I have been seeing all around me in Ramadhan is NOT ibadah but rather music, idle talk, backstabbing, obscene speech and countless other things that I know to be haram.

I would really like to meet some1 (in this time) who is in a very similar position 2 me and is surviving a lot better than me. I need a mentor who can be my inspiration. It's been almost 6 years, and believe me at times my patience has been tested to an extent where I was actually planning to run away, at times even commit suicide. But I knew neither would EVER be an option 4 a true Muslim, hence I brushed them off everytime alhamdulillah. It's just as time goes by, I feel like I'm getting weaker. I know it's no ones fault but my own and I need to tidy up my own acts and insha Allah I will do that but khub eka eka lage sometimes, lol (recognise the quote guys?). The support of a family means so much! Those that have it (in terms of practicing Islam) will not realise EXACTLY how much it means unless they lose it (Allah forbid!).

Anyways, 4give my whinging session, monta khub kharap lagchilo. Thank u 4 reading (if u bothered).

Wassalam,

-iishii-

PS. I wont delete this blog for the time being. But sometime in the near future i might feel random and spontaneous and might just delete it without telling any1. I have my reasons for doing so when and if i do. So age theke janiye dilam :P

Question...

2005-10-25T21:52:00.000+10:00

How do you get rid of an entire blog page thingo? Like if I were to get rid of this site (i.e. www.brainy-peach.blogspot.com) NOT just change the URL but to completely get rid of it, what do I do?

Does my head look big in this?

2005-10-25T08:00:00.000+10:00

If you enjoyed Looking for Alibrandi, you'll adore this new novel by Randa Abdel-Fattah. It has all the right ingredients of a ‘coming of age’ novel; identity confusion, school issues, parental problems, weight and image dramas, bitchiness, sex, drugs and everything else you dealt/deal with in growing up. However, as an even more appropriate and enlightening twist, the main character is also confronted with something else…

The catchy blurb on the back nicely sums up the whole context of the novel:
The slide opened and I heard a gentle, kind voice:
‘What is your confession, my child?’I was stuffed. The priest would declare me a heretic; my parents would call me a traitor…The priest asked me again: ‘What is your confession, my child?”‘I’m Muslim,’ I whispered.

In today’s society this focus is extremely relevant and intriguing. It also allows the reader to really delve into the life of a young girl, dealing with normal adolescent issues, with an additional focus on religion and belief.

Abdel-Fattah has written an extremely likeable novel, which will appeal to both children and adults. She has easily captured the heart and spirit of her main character, Amal Mohamed Nasrullah Abdel-Hakim, a sixteen-year-old Australian-Palestinian-Muslim still coming to grips with her various identity hyphens. Mind you, Abdel-Fattah herself went through the same issues growing up, so the warmth of the novel obviously comes from real experiences.

It’s hard enough to be cool as a teenage when being one issue behind the latest Cosmo disqualifies you from the in-group. Try wearing a veil on your head and getting in the ‘bums up’ position at lunchtime and you know you’re in for a tough time. Luckily my friends support me, although they’ve got a few troubles of their own. Simone, blonde and gorgeous, has got serious image problems, and Leila’s really intelligent but her parents are more interested in her getting a marriage certificate than her high school certificate. And I thought I had problems…

Amal decides one day to wear the hijab, full-time! ‘Full-timers’ are what her Muslim friends call girls who wear the hijab all the time, which basically means wearing it whenever you’re in the presence of males who aren’t immediate family. After many debates and by the power of watching a ‘Friends’ episode, Amal is ready to demonstrate her belief. Not only do the students question and abuse her, but they also are proud and intrigued by such a strong character. However, her religion also forbids her to sleep with anyone other than her future husband. Try telling that to the boy you have the hots for and the feeling is mutual.

To be honest, I had not given it much thought as to how some kids today deal with the normal pressures of adolescence but also have to contend with their religious differences. This book really was an eye opener. It is thought provoking, relevant, and educational. It is a fantastic novel to give all children aged 14 and up. Who knows, the positive message this book portrays might even help break some very uncomfortable barriers between children of different religions and nationalities.

Source: http://www.theblurb.com.au/Issue57/DMHLBIT.htm

The verdict:

Does my head look big in this? is insightful without being preachy. I loved that Amal sticks up for what she believes in and that the ending wasn’t sickly sweet. It’s a book for everyone. If you’re in the mood for a teen comedy, a romance, or an intelligent view on a different culture – it’s well worth a read.

Source: http://www.nzgirl.co.nz/articles/5477

Emotions...

2005-10-22T11:49:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum,

I've had this question with me 4 a while now, so i will ask:

Is it bad to be emotional? What does Islam say about it (using Quran and Sunnah).

I've had friends, sisters in Islam comment on this. They say i'm too emotional and thats not good. Some say that its good because it doesnt make ur heart hard. Ami bujtesi na. Coz this is a big part of my personality, I just wanna fix it up.

I no that being emotional 2 an extent where u sacrifice islamic ideals is bad and i'm aware of that. But being hyper sensitive is a bad thing, i no that. I've learned thru many ecnounters with flynn :P, lol. Plus when it comes 2 giving dawah, u need 2 b strong in character and not break down (at least in front of others, lol). Well, i dont no, what do u guys think. Amake ektu advise koro please.

Wassalam,

-iishii-

Beauty Tips... (cute poem)

2005-10-14T16:51:00.000+10:00

For attractive lips

Speak words of kindness.

For lovely eyes,

Seek out the good in people.

For a slim figure,

Share your food with the hungry.

For beautiful hair,

Let a child run his or her fingers through it once a day.

For poise,

Walk with the knowledge that you will never walk alone.

People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived,

reclaimed, and redeemed;

Never throw out anybody.

Remember, If you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.

As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands,

one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears,

The figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.

The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes,

Because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.

The beauty of a woman is not in a facial mole,

But true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.

It is the caring that she lovingly gives, the passion that she shows.

And the beauty of a woman, with passing years, only grows!

Ramadhan Mubarak!

2005-10-06T12:29:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum every1,

Alhamdulillah its Ramadhan again! So let's not waste our time, lets utilize our time to the best of our ability! The first 10 days of Ramadhan are those of Mercy, next 10 are those of forgiveness and the last 10 are those of protection from hellfire. So before time passes before our eyes i pray that Allah (SWT) helps us make the most of Ramadhan.

Bangla song...

2005-10-03T19:11:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

Just wanned to test the bangla text on my blog, since every1 else is doing it too. So here goes! This is a song i learnt when i was around 6. I will guarantee u this b4 u read tho, there will be spelling errors!

বিরাল ছানা ইদুর ছানাকে করলো টেলিফোন

বিরাল ছানা ইদুর ছানাকে করলো টেলিফোন
কালকে আমার জন্মদিনে তোমার নীমন্ত্রন
বিরাল ছানা ইদুর ছানাকে করলো টেলিফোন

আশতে জেনো ভুল করনা
কোন রকম ভয় পেয়োনা
তোমার মত ব্ন্ধু আমার আছে বা কয়্জন

বিরাল ছানা ইদুর ছানাকে করলো টেলিফোন

ইদুর ছানা বললো মাকে
"শাজিয়ে দিয়ো কাল আমাকে
শঙ্গে কিছু উপোহার ও নেওয়া প্রোয়োজন"

বিরাল ছানা ইদুর ছানাকে করলো টেলিফোন

ইদুর মা কয় "ওরে বোকা
বিরাল তোকে দিচ্ছে ধোকা
আশোল কথা করছে তোকে খাওয়ার আয়োজন"

বিরাল ছানা ইদুর ছানাকে করলো টেলিফোন

Well, what did u ppl think? Cute song eh? I loved it then and love it now too. Well, first tell me did u understand what it's about?

Coming up...

2005-09-27T19:09:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum people,

I'm on break now from uni for one week. But nevertheless I have so much to do. But I just CANT put my mind 2 it! I cant believe we're already half way through our break and I havent completed ANYTHING! Time is passing me but i cant keep up and I know that its entirely my fault :( I'm sure u all go thru this too, rite? Any tips?

Well, 2moro insha Allah a bunch of us are going ice skating. So am looking forward 2 that. It shud be fun insha Allah. But the only thing i'm scared about is the number of people coming. I think theres way too many people coming. So we shud just keep a track of every1. The funniest thing happened 2day. One of my frend (who never went ice skating b4) was asking me whether she needed 2 bring a helmet with her? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! We both had a long laugh after she asked this.

On Friday is the SUMSA (Sydney Uni Muslim Students Association) glamer and glitz night. Its a girls only dinner which is a fundraising event for the muslim society. Insha Allah quite a few of us are going so I am quite excited abt that too. I've already planned my shari, make up, jewellery, even shoes! I know this makes me sound really superficial and shallow, but we hardly ever get an event like this, where us hijabis can dress up so much. So this is a rare opportunity, so I wanna make the best of it insha Allah.

Well, i dont wanna bore you ppl anymore with tales of my unlively life. Eituk porar jonno dhonnobad! Biday my dear frends. Assalamualaikum.

Better Late Than Never...

2005-09-09T14:05:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

I know i'm late, haven't written in ages. But i guess its better late than never. Lately, I'm getting sik of blogging coz no1 else seems 2 blog. Well nothing much is happening. Here's a list:

Got my license (for driving) - legally i'm allowed to drive around by myself, but parents wont let me even after admitting that i am a superb driver!
3 essays due in 2 weeks - all 2000 word essays worth 40%
Cant wait till this semester is over. Am absolutely sik of uni!
Going to watch "Charlie and the Chocolate factory" with sis 2nite insha Allah.
(For Mou) posted the longest letter i have EVER written in my life (20 pages) yesterday. U betta reply 2 it soon Mou!
Have a really bad back ache. Took every opportunity when surrounded by family and friends to get massages from ppl. Still not gone.

Nothing more. Life goes on. Boringly.......

BD news...

2005-08-18T12:14:00.000+10:00

Has anyone checked BD news lately? The newspaper is covered with these hadings:

Blasts rock every corner of country
400 small bombs explode in 63 districts: two killed, 150 wounded: 50 held

Two killed, over 200 injured in 63 districts: an Islamic group claims responsibility
String of bomb blasts rock Bangladesh
Countrywide security alert ordered, check posts installed in each district

459 blasts in 63 districts in 30 minutes
2 killed; 100 hurt; all explosives were time bombs; Jama'atul Mujahideen leaflets found

You can guess the kind of terrible thing that has happened. I will copy and paste some excerpts from some of the bengali newspapers. Its in english (for people like flynn and me to understand better).

My sources are:

The Bangladesh Observer (http://www.bangladeshobserveronline.com/new/2005/08/18/front.htm)
The Daily Star (http://www.thedailystar.net/2005/08/18/d5081801011.htm)
New Age Bangladesh (http://www.newagebd.com/front.html#1)

"Panic gripped the entire nation following the series of time-bomb explosions in all the district headquarters except Munshiganj that left at least two persons killed and more than 200 others injured on Wednesday"

"In an unprecedented scale of terror attacks, a banned Islamist militant group yesterday simultaneously blasted at least 459 time bombs in 63 of 64 districts across the country"

"According to witnesses, a bearded young man left a bag beside a roadside shop in front of the press club at about 11:15am. ‘He went to buy a bus ticket and no sooner had he left an explosion took place injuring the shop owner,’ the clerk of a ticket counter said. The bag also contained leaflets in Bengali and Arabic, attributed to Jamaatul Mujaheedin Bangladesh, an Islamist organisation that was banned in February along with Jagrata Muslim Janata of Bangla Bhai"

"Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh, the banned militant group, claimed responsibility for the blasts through leaflets that left the countrymen in shock.

Panic gripped the country at the extent of the network of the terrorists who meticulously calculated the timing of the bombings between 11:00am and 11:30am, targeting government establishments, mainly the offices of the local district administrations and courts.

Only two hours after Prime Minister Khaleda Zia departed for China on a five-day official tour, a time bomb went off on the stairs inside Zia International Airport, showing a gaping hole in the security system. Three madrasa students and an imam of a mosque were picked up from the airport premises.

In the leaflets, in Bangla and Arabic, found with the bomb devices, Jama'atul, which was banned on February 23 this year, said: "It is time to implement Islamic law in Bangladesh. There is no future with man-made law."

If you are interested in reading up more on this event just read the actual articles (sources listed above). I know that media has the tendancy to sensationalise things and finding 'news' such as this must make them happy rather than sad, so I am a bit critical on some aspects of the reports. However, anyone who resorts to violence when there are most definately peaceful means of solving things sickens me.

Also, another thing, apart from the media, is BD politics. It has to be the most twisted and corrupt system (not only my opinion, but it is a common international opinion). So bola jay na ki diye ki hoche. Whatever it is, it is so SAD. May Allah guide us all. Ameen.

Halal...

2005-08-18T11:34:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum ppls,

I found some information about some foods that I thought were doubtful (might not be halal) that i thought would interest you.

Firstly, concerning glycerin/glycerol:

Emu copied and pasted this excerpt from a vegetable forum (dont ask what she was doing there, but the info is useful).

I wrote to Bruce Edward asking about the source of the Humectant used in Jols Sugar Free Pastilles, the ones that come in small boxes in flavours of Forrest Fruits, Mandarin etc. His response is below:

Dear Duane,
Humectant (422) is Glycerin. Historically Glycerin was derived from Vegetable or Animal fats, as a by product of the soap making industry. In modern times all commercially produced food grade Glycerin is derived from the by products of Vegetable oil production. Hope this info is useful.

Bruce Edward,
Managing Director,
FERNDALE CONFECTIONERY PTY LTD
Ph: 03 5336 2933
Fax: 03 5336 2968
www.fdale.com.au

Secondly, concerning krispy kreme doughnuts:

I know I emailed it to most people but just in case (plus more ppl might see it here).

KRISPY KREMES INGREDIENT INFORMATION

The only animal byproducts used in our doughnut are eggs (whites and yolks) and dairy products (including milk, butter, yogurt, whey, nonfat milk and nonfat whey). Our doughnuts are cooked in 100% vegetable oil shortening (partially hydrogenated soybean and/or cottonseed oil). All monoglycerides, diglycerides and enzymes are vegetable based. The lecithin we use is soy based. We also use wheat in our doughnuts, including bran, germ, gluten, starch and flour. Our products may contain allergens. To get further information about our products call us at 1800 557363.

Source: www.krispykreme.com.au

I found this stuff useful so just wanted to spread it around. Hope it helped =D

At last ... a normal post!

2005-08-16T18:50:00.000+10:00

Assalamualaikum ppl,

I c you've all gotten sick of the little tests i put up (which mite i mention were put up because I was too lazy to write an actual post!), so i decided that it is time that I actually post up something... well... normal, if u can call it that, hmmm....

Ok, so what have I been up to? Let me think. I warn you, beware, this might bore you to sleep!

Ok, lets start with 10 August:

I had so much planned. I was going to visit my school with none other than flynn shaheb. Shokale early uthlam, koto plan niye! I love visiting skool - so many memories (both good and bad). Well, I was quite excited. I got dressed nicely (normally my fashion sense is super dorky!) and was even planning to have lunch from the skool canteen (they have the ymmiest halal foods there and its cheap too - stupid uni food is such a rip-off!). Well, right before I left home for uni, I get an sms from dear flynn. Ki shundor kore bole, je I have problems at home 2day, cant cum 2 skool. Amar to raage matha gorom (OK thats an exhaggeration, ami jokhon raege jai, beshi raag korte parina). I sms flynn bak, telling her off in bangla. I said to her "apni bashay boshe boshe hawa khan!". In the train, i get an sms bak from the haba saying that she didnt understand anything i said! She goes "whats 'hawa khan'?". Are pagol, what do u think? Amar chachar nam? Ar ki hote pare, hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha, after that flynn er upor shob raag kome gelo. Her habluness got the better of me. After all, we are the Beverly Hills Hablu Group of 2004 eh flynn?

What else? Well, we had a forum arranged by the Muslim society and the Christian society - pretty much it was a freindly debate. Well, it was supposed to be. The topic was something along the lines of "Humanity is in desperate need for revivlal. Who can provide it: Islam or Christianity". The Muslim speaker spoke very respectfully and didnt criticise christianity at all. He merely answered the question and discussed what Islam could offer for the revival of humanity. But the Christian speaker began his speech with criticisms of Islam so hostile that even the christian audience were shockingly disapproving his words! He brought out many ayahs from the Quran and took it out of context to support his claims. He even made a slideshow labelled "Muhammad vs. Jesus". It was actually kind of sad because we would never dream of saying bad things about Jesus (peace be upon him) but this speaker did not have an ounce of respect for Muhammad (peace be upon him). But I guess it doesnt matter does it? Allah (SWT) had respect for him and so do all true Muslims. But overall the forum was quite interesting. i have never been to an interfaith dialogue before. So for a first time experience, it was quite exciting.

OK, this post is turning out to be quite long. I'll just talk about one last thing. Last week, my sis was so sik that she missed all 5 days of skool. Bechari, i felt so bad for her. I even skipped uni one day to look after her and came home earlier other days to stay with her. Ami koto bhalo tai na, lol, jokes =P. Well, u can guess what happened after that? Spending so much time with her, I got sik! Thanda, kashi, jor, matha betha, u mention it, i had it. Except for getting sik(alhamdulillah I didnt throw up or anything) I had a few bad symptoms. Well, alhamdulillah i feel much better now.

Before I leave I just wanted to request something from u guys. U all know Brother Ahmed Deedat i hope. He has done some AMAZING works on comparitive religion masha Allah. It has been known for some time now that he was quite ill and was hospitalized. Well, he passed away on 8 August 2005, just around 2 weeks ago. Inna lillahe wa inna ilaihe rajee'un. I request u all to make u sincerest dua's for this brother. Insha Allah, Allah will grant him into Jannah for his work in the path of His deen. Ameen.

Brother Ahmed Deedat has certainly left behind a legacy which will be very hard to live up to. May Allah help us all strive to seek knowledge of Islam as he did. Ameen.

Which Harry Potter character are you?

2005-08-10T19:30:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

OK I know what some of u mite be thinking (esp u flynn), that this girl is going completely nuts with harry potter. But try this and tell me wat u get. Click on the link below and take the quiz and tell me which Harry Potter character are you.

http://pages.prodigy.net/hpdevo/quiz/

Guess who I was? None other than Harry potter himself! It would be so cool to see some1 being Draco Malfoy or Snape.

A tough riddle...

2005-08-02T18:39:00.000+10:00

Eighty percent of Kindergartners solved this riddle, but only 5% of Stanford graduates figured it out!

Can you answer the following question?

What word...

1. has seven letters...

2. Preceded God...

3. Greater than God...

4. More Evil than the devil...

5. All poor people have it...

6. Wealthy people need it...

7. If you eat it, - you will die!

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Did you figure it out?

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Try hard before looking at the answers - - - Did you get it yet??

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- - - - Give up?

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The Answer is:

NOTHING!

NOTHING has 7 letters

NOTHING preceded God

NOTHING is greater than God

NOTHING is more Evil than the devil

All poor people have NOTHING

Wealthy people need NOTHING

If you eat NOTHING, you will die

Don't feel bad - I have to admit that I couldn't solve it either and had to look at the answers.

Is your mind normal?

2005-08-01T17:38:00.000+10:00

Have you ever wondered if your mind is normal? Well, do this little mind exercise and find out! Free will or neurological wiring? You decide!

Try the following exercise, guaranteed to raise an eyebrow. There's no secret trick to it!

Just follow these instructions, and answer the questions one at a time and as quickly as you can.

Remember, do it as quickly as you can, but don't advance until you've done each of them.

Now, scroll down (but not too fast, so you don't miss anything)...
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Now repeat saying the number 6 to yourself as fast as you can for 15 seconds.Then scroll down.

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QUICK! THINK OF A VEGETABLE!Then scroll down...

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You're thinking of a carrot, right?

If not, you're among the 2% of the population whose minds are different enough to think something else. 98% of people will think of a carrot when they do this exercise!

SOURCE: www.funtown.com

Yay, finally got it!

2005-07-29T09:23:00.000+10:00

I finally got the scanner to work and scanned this foto of me when i was a baby. I absolutely LOVE happy babies so this pic is my favourite. And plus, I was cheery then and I still am. C the big blood clot type thing near my right eye? Its a hemangeoma (i think thats how u spell it). Anyway it was very serious with me and because my Mum followed the advice of a few very stupid unqualified doctors I almost died with the 'treatment'. But alhamdulillah a good doctor came along and suggested some decent treatment - leave it alone, it will go away by itself. And alhamdulillah its gone. All thats left is a small mark there which every1 thinks I have because of glasses, lol. (By the way, I dont wear glasses, never did and insha Allah will never have to because alhamdulillah so far my eyesight has been quite good).

By the way, thanx 4 the inspiration princess ;)

Horror @ Uni

2005-07-28T11:20:00.000+10:00

Salams every1,

Uni started this week and OMG! So much work. Last semester was such a bludge that I thought things wud be the same now, but wow, i was so shocked after the first day that I made a study time table for myself at once and then planned on following it. So far it isnt going very well, but insha Allah I shall start soon.

How is every1? Onek din dhore blog korina and every1 else has also abandoned their blogs. Hey ppl, I dont like the template. But y duz every1's comp stuff up with other nicer templates on my site? Uff, thats so annoying.

Well, guess wat? The uncle that was living with us rented a house and left so now the comp room is free to use whenevr i want, unless Anika gets to it first.

After finding out Krispy Kremes are halal, amar khali khaite icha kore! Bad habit! Mota hoye jachi onek. Need to start controlling wat i eat. I ate like anything these holidays and went clothes shopping yesterday. Kapor gula ja tight tight hoi, uff! Any1 got any weight loss tips?

I tried to scan a foto of me when i was a baby (got inspired by princess' blog). Seriously, I was SO cute masha Allah, lol. U guys hafta see. But scanner isnt working, uff! Everything is going wrong, tai na?

Well, as soon as the scanner works insha Allah I will post it up. Oh by the way, I read Harry Potter 6 and cried! And now I'm reading the old ones over again. And u pick up so many things in the old ones after reading the sixth one its amazing. Did u ppl no that JK Rowling is a billionare now and she earns more than the Queen? Impressive eh?

Who else read HP, tell me wat u thought and princess, I want Digital Fortress when u've finished with it =P

More changes...

2005-07-16T17:26:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

As u mite have realised that my old template for my blog was stuffing up. I dont know what was wrong with it! WEIRD huh? Well, i suck with computers so rather than fixing it up I just changed it 2 a more simple 1. So even if it duznt resemble me as much as my old template did, kichu korar nai my dostos.

Guess what? I got a letter in post from Nabila that was 10 pages long! I was so shocked and happy at the same time. She replied 2 a letter I wrote 6 months ago so ekta duita page likhle hoito na. Nabila, yaar, tui ekhon mone hoi onek din pore ekta thik kaaj korli =P

YMSA girls Islamic comp was 2day. Sad 4 me the organisers could not compete 2day. Even if we were given permission to compete, I would probably b the only 1 who was super willing 2 perform something. My sis came 1st in Islamic nasheed. Yay! Alhamdulillah! Masha Allah! I'm running out of praises. Help.... well, dekhte to hobe bon kar, tai na? Plus the little girls were SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO CUTE masha Allah! I wanned to go up on stage and just cuddle them! To tell u the truth they were quite inspirational, esp during the Quran recitation comp. They were so much better at it than me *blush*. Plus they had super memories masha Allah. I always need the lyrics to sing anything (even 2 sentences) but these amazing kids were doing it off the top of their heads and confidently too. While the big girls were trembling with fear, one younger girl even volunteered to have a go even tho she was too young for any age group!

Got Harry Potter 6 today. Left home @ 7.30 in the morning. Initially i thought it was early enuff but wen we got there i wish we had came earlier! The line was huge and people were dressed up like witches and wizards. And all the media was there too. Anika and I tried so hard 2 b on the camera while they shoot. But they only interviewed the people that were dressed up. But oh well, even if they interviewed us, we wud be speechless cos honestly, i'm nowhere near as obsessed as the people i saw today (alhamdulillah).

Well, thats all from me 4 2day. I hafta go now and check out otha ppls blogs. Haven't been visiting ppls blogs 4 a while so I betta catch up. Wassalam ppls. Hope ur all enjoying urselves wherever u r.

Dont ask...

2005-07-09T10:54:00.000+10:00

How r u supposed to know who to seek advice from when u desperately need help? I know that theres a hadith where the prophet (SAS) told us to seek help from those who fear Allah. But isn't it weird how if what u need advice about is regarding some sin u've fallen into it is so difficult and often seems impossible to seek help from those who fear Allah? Because u begin to think that these ppl r so good and get ashamed of urself and fall into a bigger form of deppression. Obviously it's all shaytans tricks with our minds. But how do u overcome it?

By the way ppl, dont start thinking that ami deppressed. Just asking coz i know this is a scenario many many ppl fall into. Thats y with all the people I've ever given dawah to, they've been like really good friends to me so i guess they cud always tell me stuff, regardless of how personal they were. And as a frend I've always been able to advise them in a way that they wud value what i had to say. But when stuff comes up with me i cant tell em, coz oder chokh e ami choto hoye jabo and they will start to think that what I do is ok by Islam. And then I'll get even more deppressed. I think the best solution here is to open up 2 Allah - build up a closer bond with Him. Then 'har mushkil ahsan ho jayega', meaning all ur problems will become easy to solve (it sounds way too cliche in hindi).

To-do list

2005-07-08T11:30:00.000+10:00

Salams,

Yay, my 3 day weekend started yesterday. I was so happy about it until I realised that I am the best time waster in the world. I guess because its holidays I can waste a bit more time than what I wasted while uni was still going. But I dont wanna get used 2 being lazy.

By the way ppl, hijabi girl has finally appeared in my blog =P. Guess what? I finally figured out who she is! And she's not Rabia, hehe. Rabia just has an email ad similar to that title, so u can understand the confusion.

Went to Intis place yestreday with Ms. Doe and her sis. Bought my sis clothes too. Man, ever since I started working, she has been devising plans 2 get me 2 spend! I buy more things 4 her than 4 myself!

U ppl wanna no wats it my mind now? OK here goes:

Yr 12 Video (must edit soon)
Andekha anjani si, paglisi deewanisi, jane wo kaisa hogi re (dont ask - weird weird song stuck in head)
Hafta pre-order Harry Potter 6 for me sis. It comes out next Saturday so hafta go in to shop pretty soon.
Must put mehendi on hair. Bathroom e mehendi bhijaye rakhsi so after dhuhr will put on hair insha Allah.
Hafta tidy my room. Afta exams my room is unchanged. It looks like a tornado just swept thru my room.
Feeling deppressed. Sine wave @ -1. But dont worry, it will change bak soon to 1 insha Allah. Plus sine waves always fluctuate rite, so i shud be only b/w -1 and 1. Insha Allah no more or no less.

I'm home alone now. Kothao Keo nei. U c, theres no point in having a big house if ur gonna be lonely anyways. Well, thats y I'm blogging. I betta get to working - doing all the stuff I listed above. Besto manush, bujho na... =P

Dan Brown

2005-07-04T12:33:00.000+10:00

Peace 2 every1 here,

U ppl have to read Dan Browns's books "Angels and Demons" and "The Da Vinci Code"! Personally I found "Angels and Demons" so much better, I dont know y the da vinci code got more attention. I guess whatever is more controversial always gets more attention, eh? Check out the following ambigrams, cool huh? An ambigram is a word written in such a way that it is legible both rightside-up and upside-down. Ambigrams are an ancient artform and play heavily into the mysteries of Angels & Demons. By the way, I copied that definition from Dan Browns official site (www.danbrown.com). So, if u thought that sounded too smart for me, u were rite =P.

Need time out...

2005-07-03T13:29:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

Sorry, onek din dhore blog kora hoche na. Besto ba onno kichu na, but just ben feeling so tired lately. Khali ghum ashe - esp when i have something 2 do =P

The other day Ema, Flynn, Sadia and me went to M apu's place and tennsi khele amar shara ga betha - uff! Kichu korte pari na. I feel like I'm diseased. I really need to get more fit. Ektu doura douri korlei ga betha hoye jay. How did everyone else feel afterwards, any betha?

I wat to welcome eccentric_human to this 'happy' blog (I dont no y u ppl think its 'happy' - mite be the colours, eh?). Kemon lagtese apnar? U'll fit in just fine, every1 here is quite nice but usually beshi keo ashe na. Ashleo rarely comment kore =( I'm not as popular as I thought I was, lol.

Man, there's so much to do these holidays. There's the Islamic Competition and the reunion back to back. I'm gonna b so bz preparing for both of em! Insha Allah I will survive bu having work 4 days a week doesn't help! Man, every1 hates their work dont they? Eita bhebe nijeke consolation dei. Kaaje jete iche kore na, but I need to go, I have to go. Taka poisha nai =( Bekar hoye boshe boshe ammu abbur taka khaite lojja lage coz they have so much problems with money anyway.

Hey ppl, I'm so excited about the swimming pool at my place. It shud be finished by October/September insha Allah and of course u ppl can invite urself. I'm terrible at dawat and formalities as Ema and Flynn will tell u. Amar bashai ashle i make ppl cook. We cook 2getha and eat. Ammu abbu kaaje thakle, if ur mostly home alone, u'll become like that too.

Acha ppl, bokor bokor na kore betta get rady 4 work. Jete hobe soon. Take care and make dua 4 me.

Wassalam

Like the changes?

2005-06-28T14:59:00.000+10:00

What do u think of the new look? Man, do u no how long it took me to fix it up? AGES!!! I suck at computers! Hafta learn more stuff...

So how goes the days of the ordinary folks =P jkz.

My day u ask, well... hmm... i have a very bad cough - could be mild bronchitis (ammu had it b4, i have same symptoms) - so didnt go 2 work.

Exam 2moro and day after - Arabic. But after that insha Allah it will be the best days of my life =D

Well, enuff 4 2day, betta go and study. Keep me in ur prayers ppl.

Wassalam

My utterly boring life...

2005-06-24T12:31:00.000+10:00

Salam salam fellow bloggers,

Just when u thought it was over and couldnt get worse, guess what happened, yes, my life got boringer (thats not even a word)! Same monotonous life. Man I need a holiday! Dont u guys ever feel like u just need to run away from everything for a while and just enjoy nature. Sounds weird coming from me I know, but thats what I feel like so often.

Acha, I'll let u guys know about the highlights of my life:

I work now, yay! And I love my workplace and my work alhamdulillah. But some of the people I call are so bad - no sense of charity at all! The stingy doctors are the worst!
I told abbu off the other day for backstabbing religious ppl! That felt so good! hehe, I felt older and grown up. Like a lot of people i know, my dad loves to criticize relgious ppl. I find it sickening to tell u the truth. People shud fix themselves first so they can criticize others. And yes, like every1 else, some religious people have flaws. But people love to point that out only when its the case with religious ppl. I told abbu that "look, if ur criticizing sum1 for not bein religious, then by backstabbing ur even worse than them, so u really shouldnt be talking like that!". And then they stopped. Yay, I felt so happy alhamdulillah.
Went to Liverpool with ammu. She's such a kid! She kept whinging in the train coz she didnt like where i chose to sit, so we had to change seats. Then she kept whinging coz she wanned me 2 sit right next to her. We got lost in Liverpool hospital! Apparently to ammu, me getting a job is a sign that i'm a grown up now. She sed that because she doesnt see me at home for dinner sometimes, she gets a feel that i wont be living with them all the time, HAHAHAHA! Bengali parents, have to link everything to biye in the end!
Watched star wars: episode 1 - to tell u the truth, its nothing that good. It's OK, but the way ppl make such a big deal about it, it's not worth all that. LOTR, on the other hand, was a masterpiece!
Watched LOST last nite. It's getting good, eh? U wanna no a secret about what happens ina few more episodes near the end of the season? One of the main characters die! Sorry to be such a spoilsport, but hehe, just wanned to let u's know (esp. Ash!).

No more 2day. Life goes on, each and everyday, its the same process. But to brighten things up, u hafta make the moves. So insha Allah these holidays I want to plab lots of things. And a lot of ways to increase my imaan and keep it high coz honestly, uni is the worst place to keep ur iman high, even with all the muslim societies and all (thats what I find) because there are so many different types of Muslims there and u end up more confused that learned.

Acha, ppl, I shall leave now. The main reason i rote this msg up is coz of flynn's complaints of the songs getting old! So even if u found this post absolutely boring, blame Flynn!

Songs

2005-06-20T12:15:00.000+10:00

Salams ppl,

I'm gonna post a few lyrics up. Tell me which song u like.

HERO

There's a hero if you look inside your heart
You don't have to be afraid of what you are
There's an answer if you reach into your soul
And the sorrow that you know will melt away

And then a hero comes along
with the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
and you know you can survive

So when you feel like hope is gone
look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
that a hero lies in you

It's a long road when you face the world alone
No one reaches out a hand for you to hold
You can find love if you search within yourself
And the emptiness you felt will disappear

And then a hero comes along
with the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
and you know you can survive

So when you feel like hope is gone
look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
that a hero lies in you

Lord knows dreams are hard to follow
But don't let anyone tear them away
Hold on there will be tomorrow
In time you'll find the way

And then a hero comes along
with the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
and you know you can survive
So when you feel like hope is gone
look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
that a hero lies in you.

WHEN YOU BELIEVE

Many nights we prayed
With no proof anyone could hear
In our hearts a hope for a song
We barely understood
Now we are not afraid
Although we know theres much to fear
We were moving mountains
Long before we knew we could, whoa, yes

There can be miracles
When you believe
Though hope is frail
Its hard to kill
Who knows what miracles
You can achieve
When you believe somehow you will
You will when you believe

In this time of fear
When prayer so often proves in vain
Hope seems like the summer bird
Too swiftly flown away
Yet now I’m standing here
My hearts so full, I cant explain
Seeking faith and speakin words
I never thought I’d say

There can be miracles
When you believe (when you believe)
Though hope is frail
Its hard to kill (mmm)
Who knows what miracles
You can achieve (you can achieve)
When you believe
somehow you will
You will when you believe

They don’t always happen when you ask
And it’s easy to give in to your fears
But when you’re blinded by your pain
Can’t see the way, get through the rain
A small but still, resilient voice
Says hope is very near

There can be miracles (miracles)
When you believe (boy, when you believe, yeah)
[though hope is frail]Though hope is frail
[its hard]Its hard to kill (hard to kill, oh, yeah)
Who knows what miracles
You can achieve (you can achieve, oh)
When you believe somehow you will (somehow, somehow, somehow)
Somehow you will (I know, I know, know)
You will when you believe [when you](ohoh)

I Believe I Can Fly

I used to think that I could not go on
that life was nothing but an awful song
but now I now the meaning of true love
I'm leaning on the everlasting arms

if I can see it then I can do it
if I just believe it there’s nothing to it

I believe I can fly
I believe I can touch the sky
I think about it every night and day
spread my wings and fly away
I believe I can saw
I see me running through that open door
I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly

see I was on the verge of breaking out
sometimes silence can seem so loud
there are miracles in life I must achieve
but first I know it starts inside of me

if I can see it then I can do it
if I just believe it there’s nothing to it

I believe I can fly I believe
I can touch the sky
I think about it every night and day
spread my wings and fly away
I believe I can saw
I see me running through that open door
I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly

coz I believe in you

if I can see it then I can do it
if I just believe it there’s nothing to it

I believe I can fly
I believe I can touch the sky
I think about it every night and da
yspread my wings and fly away
I believe I can saw
I see me running through that open door
I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly, I believe I can fly

I did it!

2005-06-17T15:42:00.000+10:00

Alhamdulillah, guys,
I did it!
Me very happy :D
I don't think I've accomplished something so great in a long long time.
Last time I accomplished something so great was almost 8 months ago!
Cheer me on ppl.
Guess what I did?
I bet ya u can never guess...

Can u c it?

2005-06-17T15:28:00.000+10:00

Salams every1,

I'm just experimenting with something. I've pasted a jpeg image above this text. Can u c it? If u can't can any of u please explain 2 me how 2 attach photos here?

Thanx a bunch :D

Scary telemarketers...

2005-06-17T10:12:00.000+10:00

Salams every1,

Let me share a scary experience with u (although some of u will know this already). Last Sunday I was terribly sik with the flu and I got a call from a telemarketer. The guy was indian and he was trying to sell me some holiday deal. He called b4 as well and I kept telling him 2 call and talk 2 my parents but betar mathai kichu dhuke na. He keeps calling and asking ME if i'm interested in the deal. I even sed no to him b4 and he calls again! Matha kharap hoye jay na?

And this time, beta ulta palta proshno jiggesh kore. He asks, "So what r u studying Sujana?", "What was the mark for that?", "wow, ur a genius, r u a human or what?" (ami ei betar flirting method dekhe hashte hashte faint korar obostha).
Then I told him, "look, I've spoken to my parents about this and they're not interested."
Then he asks, "Sujana, have u ever been to India?"
I sed "no, but im from near there"
Then beta kept talking abt india and hindi. And eventually started speaking 2 me in hindi.
Then he sed, "Sujana, do u no, u sound like Amisha Patel?" (thats an indian actress by the way) - amito eita shune hasthte hashte behosh, lol.
I told him, "i have a cold - my voice is weird now" and i went bak to the deal and told him 2 call bak wen my parents are home.
In the end, he's like, "So Sujana, do you want to continue talking with me?" (lamest pick up line ever!)
I just sed, "No, thats ok, i'm fine thank you, Bye" And hung up, lol.

Sorry, that was so hillarious. I told ammu about it afterwards and she was like, "I know i can trust u ishita, tumi onno onek meyeder moto oi polar loge flirt marba na", Ok she didnt say it like that, i'm just making it sound more ancholic bangla :)

Well, hehe, just felt like sharing that.

Black

2005-06-16T11:29:00.000+10:00

http://www.indiafm.com/reviews/05/black/index.shtml

Ok, I know that many of u absolutely HATE bollywood movies but please read this review. It's about this new movie out called "BLACK". It's definately 1 of a kind and most unlike other hindi movies. It's abt a blind, deaf and mute girl and her struggle to survive in the world and eventually get an education. There is no melodramatic love story (like most other Bollywood films) and (believe it or not) no songs! The style of the film is very western (which is much better than the Bollywood style i find). But the story is very touching. I'd reccomend it to u guys to watch it. Plus they speak in english like in half the movie. So it wud be good for all you non-hindi-understanding ppl. So read the review and tell me wat u think.

EXAMS!

2005-06-16T10:24:00.000+10:00

I need help concentrating 4 exams! Any ideas ppl. I'm the worst procrastinator! Worse than flynn, ash apu, any1 else! No matter how much i yell at meself it dont work :(

How do u guys concentrate? Ash apu's been called a science geek by some1 who i wont mention *cough cough*, how do u study?

Lost is on 2nite!!! yay!!! Love that show! Hafta watch! U c, me parents come home at 6 and after 7:30 I watch TV sometimes and afta 8:30 i'm always watching TV coz all the good shows r on den. So they dont c me studying and they think that im always watching TV, hehe. I'm not always watchin TV but i'm not exactly always studyin either. But its all good. No prob bobs.

Hey u guys like the name of me blog: C'est la vie = thats life. Do u rememba the song from the band Bewitched called "C'est la vie"? I used to really like it. "Say u will, say u wont, say u'll do wat I don't. Say the truth, say to me, C'est la vie" - ring any bells? well, im ancient wen it comes 2 songs so lave me alone.

Now i shud really go - studies calling. I'll save u guys the gollum impersonations ;)

Wassalam

Oprah

2005-06-16T10:16:00.000+10:00

Salams all,

Those of u @ home on stuvac or for any othe reason, have u been watching Oprah lately? Yesterdays episode was so upsetting - it was about sexual abuse of children. I went all teary watching it. Did u no that 1 out of 4 kids in the US have reported being abused sexually by some1 they know. But there are many who are too afraid to report such crimes.

One lady, after finding out her boyfriend was sexually molesting her 3 year old daughter, shot her boy friend straight off. Personally I think she did the rite thing, the prison system doesn't keep em in prison for long enuff! And these men are so twisted and sik - they deserve to die!

Another lady was married to a serious sex offender for 8 years without knowing that he was on the run from police. She then found out that he'd been sexually abusing children and videotaping em and putting em online 4 sale. And the worst thing, one of the children in the video was her 8 year old daughter! Can u imagine!

These sik twisted people shud be punished more severely! And the children that are abused in such a manner will be scarred for the rest of their lives. No amount of counselling can change wat they went thru. It's so sad that people cud stoop even lower than animals!

Me finally here

2005-06-16T10:08:00.000+10:00

Salam salam to all,

After many of me pathetic attempts at setting up a blog (most wof which has failed) I've finally made one. Me writes this with the assumption that this will work. Goodness gracious me (Bevo girls - do u rememba that?), i even made a blog b4 and it was all running smoothly but then i couldn't post on it. It didn't even show up as me having any blogs for meself.

Anyways, ppl betta post in me blog! Well, even if ye dont i'll keep writing in me blog about meself. Man, i sound like that weird dude from the Simpsons - u no, the redhead dude.

Well, I hafta go now, study calls
- save me! I dont wanna go!
But i must, its important
- I need a life!
You already got 1
- Get away frm me
My precious!
- I hate u Gollum
U need me Smeagol
-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA - bachao!!!!!

hehe, Salams all :D