Qur'an 20200715

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

6.  Say, "I am but a man like you.  It is revealed to me by inspiration, that your God is One God, so stand true to God, and ask for God's forgiveness."  And woe to those who worship many gods.

7.  Those who practice not charity, and who even deny the hereafter.

8.  For those who believe and work deeds of righteousness is a reward that will never fail.

9.  Say, "Is it that you deny God Who created the earth in two days?  And do you join equals with God?  God is the Lord of the worlds."

Expounded 41:6-9

Happy Birthday, Natty!

Today is the Great Pizza Day!  Anybody who doesn't celebrate the Great Pizza Day is obviously... not great.  And if you were truly, really, and profoundly great then you would dress up in a pizza outfit and eat nothing but pizza all day and drink pizza flavored soda.  Otherwise, people will see that you are... not that great.

Here's a snapshot of your birthday pizza before going into the oven.  I guess I should turned on the light, huh?  Please take note folks, that when making pizza at home, the crust has to be ready to eat before you put anything else on there!

And here's your birthday pizza right out of the oven.  I love you, Natty!

Fluffy vultures

Hi Natty!  How are you feeling?  Are you excited for the Great Pizza Day?  Yes, there will be many people all over the world gorging on pizza that great day.  Please eat some pizza this month OK?  I'm all set to make some pizzas tomorrow.  I had to take my mother to the hairdresser this morning, but I spent all evening in the kitchen.  I got the pizza sauce done, now I'm ready for pizza.  Oh wait, I forgot to portion the pineapple!  My mother doesn't like sausage and basil, so I'm making her chicken and pineapple.  I'll open up that can of sweetened pineapple I've been chilling, portion out the fruit, and snack at the same time.  I also managed to fit in making "sambal tumis" (chillies, onions, and "belacan" (fermented shrimp paste) blended then fried in oil until saturated) and my dinner, which was fried noodles.  The cats were all over the kitchen all that time, but I didn't lock them up in the kitty litter room.  I guess I should have, because it does get annoying having them perch on my stove top and stare me down like some fluffy vultures.  Tomorrow when I cook up the pizzas, I will definitely lock them up.  I have devised a routine for making acceptable pizza with what little I have.  Check out how small my oven is, I put my thumb there so you can compare it with the size of the oven.  So the biggest pizza I can make with what I have is 8".  Which is a good thing, because I can willingly put down a 16" pizza, which is not good.  I'm not making any deep dish pizzas.  I personally like a nice balance of crust and toppings, and deep dish is too heavy on the toppings.  I wish I could feed you some of the pizza I make.  I guess it's like your offering me a chocolate bear then putting it in your mouth.  It's not revenge, Honey.  We have to be married first, I guess.  Then I can taste your chocolate bear.

July is International Pizza Month

Hi Natty!  How are you today?  I hope you are healthy and having a blast.  As you well know, July is International Pizza Month.  So I've been getting the stuff together to make a few pizzas.  I got the spicy sausage done, the basil is still too young but usable (I should have started the basil a month earlier), now I have to make the dough, shred the cheese, and make the sauce.  Oh yeah, and make the pizzas.  What used to take me 4 hours every morning prepping for 50 plus pizzas and pastas, salads, chicken wings, etc etc is taking me 4 days for 3 pizzas.  Granted, I've become old and I don't have the time nor equipment.  But I'm happy and grateful to God those days are over, and I escaped with my life, the music, and some knowledge of cooking.  InshaAllah all will be done in time for the deadline of Tuesday, which is the Great Pizza Day.  Please make sure you eat pizza this month.   I love you!

Gummy elk

Hi Natty!  Oh, I love it!  So were you resting on the rock, taking a break from running wild in the forest?  Ah, the life of a wolf isn't easy.  This reminds me of some lyrics: "No one can save me from the wolf, because I am the wolf." ("Gunman" by Shadowplay)

I couldn't find any gummy elk for you to chomp on, but there might be something similar in this photo.  Suck, don't chew!  Save your molars!

You have probably already read this book, and I probably already recommended it to you, but this is one of my favorite books: Steppenwolf-By-Hermann-Hesse.pdf

Qur'an 20200711

In the name of Allah, most Gracious, most Merciful.

66.  Say, "I am forbidden to invoke those whom you invoke besides Allah, seeing that the Clear Signs have come to me from my Lord, and I have been commanded to to bow to the Lord of the Worlds."

Forgiver 40:66

A little trouble with knowledge

Hi Natty!  How are you, my love?  I hope all is well with you.  I'm doing all right, just a bit full.  Knowing how to cook is useful alhamdulillah, I get to eat what I want to eat and the portions I want to eat, and on a budget too.  So I finished off the rest of the "rendang" I made the other day for dinner, now I'm bloated.  That's my trouble with the knowledge, when I discover something good I tend to binge on it..  I used to buy whole chickens to process into cat food because they were cheapest.  I would keep the legs and wings for BBQ chicken.  BBQ chicken got so good that I gained weight, so I had to give that up.  No more BBQ chicken, now I can fit into my slimmest pants again because of that.  So I guess that might be the last of the rendang too.  It's a good thing I don't make desserts often.  Oh dear.