Letter to Erin 20150622

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

Hi Erin!  My beloved!  How are you feeling today?  I pray you are feeling healthy and confident.  Please make sure you get lots of beauty rest, because you are so beautiful to me.  I love you, and I need you.

Right now I'm watching an old episode of the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, while I'm waiting to break my fast.  My Bat Cat seems to be healing OK, so there's no alarm there.  I wanted to get more done today, but it's too early in the fasting month to go at my usual pace.  Plus, I'm lazy.  Voice training went quite well today- I think it's because I remembered to take a shot of honey before beginning the fast this morning.

Chee Cheah is the oldest kitty I have.  I met her 7 years ago, and I think she was 5 then, so that makes her about 12 years old.  She's not much of an indoors cat because she's a persistent violator of the 3 P's rule: no peeing, no pooping and no puking in the house.  And now that Floofy and her daughters have taken control of the house, I can't bring her inside at all which is a shame, because she's an old kitty.  But she seems to prefer the outside.  I'm not rationalizing, she does prefer being an outside kitty.  She has to wear a protective collar all the time now, because she's an itchy kitty and she would scratch all her fur off if she did not have to wear that collar.  Not even the vet knows why she's so itchy, and the anti itch medication doesn't work.  She didn't want to be photographed just now, but after a few shots I succeeded, as you can see.  That expression on her face means, "You feed me when I ask you to feed me, not when you want to feed me."  All the outdoors cats share their food with each other for some reason.  Bob Cat is the supervisor of the cat food, but they always leave food for each other, for those busy cats who miss the feeding times at dawn and 4 pm.  It's certainly not because they like each other.  Chee Cheah is always by herself outside of feeding time, pondering over something.  Or remembering, rather.

Qur'an 20150622

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

30.  Or do they say, "A poet!  We await for him some calamity by time!"

31.  Say, "Await you!  I too will wait along with you!"

The Mountain 52:30-31
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Await you!  I too will wait along with you!

Letter to Erin 20150621

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

Hi Erin!  How are you feeling, luv?  The first few days of Ramadan takes some getting used to for me, but I can usually shake it off and function somewhat normally inshaAllah.  This morning God cut me a break: there was a big storm, so I couldn't do much of anything.  I woke up at 9 am (after falling back to sleep after the dawn prayer) and it was raining, so I cleaned up the cat room, hung up my laundry, then went back to sleep.  Oh, the temperature was SO comfortable: I like it best when it's slightly cold.  I woke up again at 1 pm.  Now, that's what I'm talking about!  Like a REAL rock star!  Up all night, sleep all day!

Someone threw a rock at my Bat Cat, and there's a hole in his right side.  He's acting all nonchalant and tough about it, and he finished off his dinner quickly, but there's a hole in his side!  I disinfected the wound with some rubbing alcohol.  Ya Allah, please drop a rock on the one who threw a rock at my cat.

Getting through voice training today wasn't very easy: all that standing around I've been doing wears me out.  I was tempted to go back to sleep again after the Asr prayer, but I shook it off and cut the grass by the roadside.  Dinner is noodles, of the spicy Thai variety.  Have you ever tried Siamese hot sour soup (also known as Tom Yam)?  You should visit a Siamese restaurant and try some.  Now I'm sitting here watching "Being There", and waiting to break my fast with noodles, Tom Yam flavor.  I'd split it with you, but you're not here.  I love you, and I need you.

P.S. I'm, not really a fan of Slaughter, but I thought this song is appropriate for the moment.  Doesn't the lead singer look like Tawny Kitten?  Oh, you're too young to know who she is...  You're prettier than her though.  And blonder.  I prefer blondes.

Letter to Erin 20150620

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

Hi Heather Erinton!  How are you feeling right now?  Are you having a good time being a Global Citizen?  Better the world than New York City, I say.  Broaden your resources.  Is it true that New York City is going bankrupt?  Anyway, I apologize for not watching the NBA final round.  I'm not much of a sports fan: the only sport I really like is ladies figure skating, and even then I don't really keep up with it.  Watching sports would have more meaning to me if I were watching sports with you.  I'm a sports wife: I'm actually supporting you.

Right now it's 7 pm, and about half an hour before breaking fast.  I did some burning this evening and I just took a shower, and I'm watching TV and waiting to break my fast.  I picked up some dates at the mosque last night.  The Prophet (peace be on him) recommends breaking fast with dates.  My Mom gave me some bananas and watermelon, and I cooked up a sausage calzone, the usual stuff.  I didn't make a portion for you because you haven't been showing up for dinner, and I didn't want to have to eat your portion (even though I could) because I didn't want to have to go to the bathroom when I'm trying to conduct worship tonight.  They've been finishing prayer at about 10:30 pm this year, so it's a good thing that I'm writing now so I can go to sleep right when I get home tonight, plus I have something to do while I wait.  This morning before dawn I woke up too late to prepare rice, so it was just a block of tofu swimming in sauce with an egg on top, eaten with sliced bread.

I pray you are getting lots of rest, and are feeling healthy and confident.  I wish you were here with me, but please know in your heart that I love you very much, and I need you.

Letter to Erin 20150619

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

Hello there, my beautiful Erin!  Are you feeling lonely at the top?  Well, I am feeling lonely without you.  I love you with all my heart, and I wish to be with you always.  I want to marry you, my beautiful Erin.  I will marry you, inshaAllah.  I love you, and I need you.

These first few days of the fasting month is usually the most difficult for me, so today I took it super easy.  I just lounged around in bed, watched TV, worked on your house plans a little, then took a nap before the mid day prayer and voice training.  Singing for 2 hours straight while fasting is SO hard.  Ugh.  For some reason, my legs were the most tired.  What is this weight when I sing?  Do ghosts have weight?  Once I get past the Asr prayer, it's usually easy sailing.  And I was able to a little yard work.  It's that singing... I don't eat big for breaking fast.  Just some chili and sliced bread.  When I get up to eat next morning inshaAllah, it's going to be rice and tofu.  Almost vegetarian: I'll break an egg on top of the tofu block.  Care to join me?

Letter to Erin 20150618

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

Oh hi, Erin!  How are you doing, Sweetie?  I just got back from the first "taraweeh" prayer, the optional group prayer during Ramadan, which commences right after the night prayer.  Ramadan is very social for me, which can get uncomfortable for me.  I'm quite a loner, you know.  I'm trying to picture what it will be like when we are married inshaAllah, and we go to this prayer together.  We would most likely be with each other until the actual prayer, when men and women split ranks.  I have this picture in my head that unless you have your friends with you, you would be playing with your smartphone back there.  Please try not to do that.

It's almost time to get to sleep, if I want to wake up at 3 am or something to cook and eat.  I usually write right after dinner, after the sunset prayer.  So there's a change of habit, what is time anyway.  Actually, I rather enjoy Ramadan.  You take care of yourself, and get plenty of rest.  I love you, and I need you.

Letter to Erin 20150617

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

So tomorrow is Ramadan.  That's Thursday.  Today is my Mom's birthday.  Of course it means something, she's my Mom!  Happy Birthday Mom!  I bought her a new headscarf.  I love you, Mom!  But tomorrow is when the fasting month begins.  What will you be doing?  While it's true that I cannot be married to a non-Muslim, if you were to conduct worship just to please me and/or to show off to people, then don't even bother.  What God cares about is your sincerity, and so do I.  But if you are sincere, then don't call it a diet.  Call it "fasting".  This is where you abstain from food, drink, and sexual activity from dawn to sunset.  Don't swear or pick your nose, either.  The day before and before dawn of the fast, voice in your heart, "I hereby fast tomorrow, this month of Ramadan of this year, for the sake of Allah, the Most High."  If you are on your period, then you are exempted from fasting, but you must make the day/days up later before the next Ramadan.

Ow, I hurt my back somehow.  Maybe I did my scrunchies, I mean crunches, wrong.  No, I think it was all the time I spent on the seat of my motorcycle.  For dinner, it was rice with tofu cooked in a sauce made of sweet bean paste, sugar, hot pepper puree, garlic, onion, ginger, chillis, sugar, and palm oil, with finely sliced steak sprinkled on top.  Very delicious, and very filling.  Alhamdulillah.  I wish you had joined me for dinner, because I'm stuffed right now.  Time to relax.  Erin I love you, and I need you.