Letter to Erin 20160524

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

NYC home.  Yeah, that's cool.  What's up, Sweetheart?  Are you chillin'?  I'm writing a letter.  These letters are important, not just to you and me, so I spend a lot of time writing.  I spent the evening cutting grass around your house inshaAllah.  Grass sure grows fast around here.  There's some clover, but they only just got started after the long drought, so if I keep the other grass short, then the clover can take over.  Until the next drought.  There's no running water over there, and if there were running water, I wouldn't be able to water the clover regularly.  Bananas grow like mad there, though.  Monkey food.  Do you want a pet monkey?  I might be able to get you one.  I don't want it, though.

I'm just trying my best to live honorably.  Integrity is such a difficult life, but you do get used to it.  I'm just keeping the faith, I keep on trekkin', a little bit each day and inshaAllah, there will be a house someday.  A house for the woman I love.  I love you and I need you.  So don't let the actions and words of those who race each other into the abyss grieve you.  You are my girl.

Today I spent the morning in the kitchen.  I made a little tutorial on peeling bamboo shoots.  Bamboo shoots are bitter when fresh, so I marinade them in salt until the bitterness goes away.  My Mom likes them bitter.  I told her I was going to give her some bamboo shoots, and she asked "Fresh or sour?"  They're fresh, Mom.  I also made mole sauce.  You and I know that mole sauce and avocados are a heavenly match.  I had rice with chicken in mole sauce for dinner.  I actually didn't have enough chocolate, so I added Milo (malted chocolate powder) instead.  Worked great.  Just keep on adding Milo until the sauce turns sweet.

Do you like Bob Marley?  I posted "The Redemption Song" for you here.  I don't agree with the statues, but the performance is great.  Now please excuse me, I must spend some time practicing bass.

Letter to Erin 20160523

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

Hi Erin!  How are you feeling today, my dearest?  I pray that you are feeling great, and having a great time.  I love you Erin, and I need you.  I am still trying to whittle down that pile of debris.  It won't go down!  The pile just won't shrink!  It's been raining every day lately, and the moisture has made the wood rubbery, so I'm having a tough time trying to saw through it.  It's time to cut the grass again.  I can't stand seeing the grass long over at your house inshaAllah.  But I have to get that pile of debris to fit into my fire pit before I move on to something else.

Bob Cat is not dead!  No no, my Bobby Wobby is still alive!  Alhamdulillah.  I don't want to go through the details of this little drama here in this public place, but it sure seems like Bob played a game with all of us.  The nutshell is that he was missing for 4 days, so I thought he was dead.  Then he showed up after voice training today, laughing at me then marking my safety boots.  So I took a photo of him today to show that he's still alive.

My Dad bought me lunch today, so I didn't cook my lunch.  I always skip breakfast because I eat too much, but lunch was rather late today.  It didn't get to me until 20 minutes before voice training.  Which is cool.  It was rice and chicken, with a side of curry, which my Dad got at one of his favorite restaurants in Arau, the royal town about 12km away.  I usually have noodles for lunch, but today I had it for dinner.  I had to use up that fish head, so I made soup with it.  The broth was surprisingly dark but tasty, and I gave the kittens the head as a snack.  Full of vegetables today, from my garden.

Letter to Erin 20160522

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

Well, hi hi hi to you too.  It would be awesome if life were just fun and laughs, but right now it's time to get serious.  Don't you be concerned about what I have to do, right now you need to pay attention to your career.  Accept it or not, right now you are at the top of your game.  So right now, you need to regard and behave that others are wanting your position.  You need to have absolute confidence as to who your allies and enemies are, and what tasks are of priority.  Did you inspect your finances like I told you?  I want and need you to keep safe, and take care of yourself.  I love you and I need you.

Let's discuss the nature of jealousy.  I told this story before, and it's time to tell it again.  I seek refuge with Allah from Satan the rejected.

In the Qur'an chapter 5 verses 27-31 tells the story about the two sons of Adam who presented a sacrifice, and it was accepted from one and not the other.  Said the latter, "Be sure I will kill you."  "Surely," said the former, "Allah does accept the sacrifice of those who are righteous."

28.  "If you do stretch your hand against me to kill me, it is not for me to stretch my hand against you to kill you, for I do fear Allah, the Cherisher of the worlds."

29.  "For me, I intend to let you draw on yourself my sin as well as yours, for you will be among the companions of the fire, and that is the reward of those who do wrong."

30.  The soul of the other led him to the murder of his brother: he murdered him, and became one of the lost ones.

31.  Then Allah sent a raven who scratched the ground to show him how to hide the shame of his brother.  "Woe is me," said he.  "Was I not even  able to be as this raven, and hide the shame of my brother?"  Then he became full of regrets.

You see that jealousy is a spiritual problem.  People feel the way the feel, and they act because they can't help it, because that's how they feel.  That's their excuse, anyway.  But it's an excuse that's not acceptable to God.  But what do we do in the meanwhile?  Let them get away with their shit?  I don't think I'm as elevated as the righteous brother in the above story.  If I had loved ones to protect, I wouldn't let them do whatever they pleased.  But even that, sometimes my hands are tied.  No revenge, only patience.  From Allah is our origin, and to Allah is our return.

I had to finish off that thick generic curry I made, so I heated it up and added the rest of my Mom's "sambal belacan" (hot red pepper condiment) which I also had to use up.  Then I made my bread nuggets to go with it.  Dinner was a heaping helpful of fried calamari.  Want some?

Letter to Erin 20160521

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

Hi, Coach Crowley!  Now don't you use the word "bubble" about your home.  I need you to be optimistic.  There might be some guy over here giving his life to build your house.  I suggest you call it your "mini home".  I spent the evening dismantling all that debris I showed you, making the pieces small enough to fit in my fire pit, to burn when the next big storm comes.  It's a trip watching the fire burn right in the middle of a heavy rainstorm.  There were huge storm clouds gathering right when I went outside to break down the trash.  It came from the north, then it went east then south and west.  The storm went around us.  It's almost as if God were playing a joke.  I'm sure it's not funny to the rice farmers, who still don't have enough water to start the next crop and have been in that position for the past 6 months.

Isn't it a trip to see Gisele go near psycho in that VS angels in Venice video?  And to see Ed Razek's face, it's as if a chill crept up his spine.  Maybe she did have jet lag.  I don't know.  Ana-Beatriz is so much prettier than Gisele.  So is Adriana.  Gisele looks like a McDonald's burger.  That's not a bad thing: a McDonald's burger is a beautiful thing to people who love burgers.

You on the other hand, look like an All-American Sweetheart.  A beautiful girl who loves football, basketball, baseball, and hockey, and you have a heart of gold.  I love you with all my heart, and I need you.  I didn't do much cooking today.  Just leftovers for lunch, and a pizza for dinner.  I didn't go anywhere either, other than to the mosque for Friday Prayer, and to buy drinking water.  You can drink water out of the faucet, but it doesn't taste good.  I'm so used to filtered water.  Those industrial sized water filters generate better tasting water than home water filters.  They take better care of them too, and I'm so used to the flavor of well-filtered water.  My parents buy a couple of cartons of 1.5 liter bottles of drinking water at a time.  We're going to have to keep about 10 full bottles at a time of those big bottles in your house.  InshaAllah.

**News Flash**  Right as I had finished writing this letter for today and was about to start on something else, the rain started to pour.  So I ran outside and tried to light that fire, but all I got was soaked.  So I changed my clothes, grabbed an umbrella and tried again and again, but everything was wet.  Eventually, I got some dry kindling that was in the shade of my house and set that on fire.  I spent most of the night  fanning the flames until the whole thing caught on fire, just in time before the rain really started to pour.  In the background, my TV was playing Tony Franklin's version of "The Rain Song" on fretless bass.

Qur'an 20160521

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

18.  The Jews and the Christians say, "We are sons of Allah, and God's beloved."  Say, "Why then does God punish you for your sins?  No, you are but men, of the men God has created.  God forgives whom God pleases and God punishes whom God pleases, and to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth and all that is in between, and unto God is the final goal."

(The Repast 5:18)
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Letter to Erin 20160520

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

Gluten free, huh?  You poor little sweetheart.  Come here, let me give you a hug.  I have to have my bread, darling.  I still have my voracious appetite, so I have to have man sized portions.  So salads, huh?  I loathe salads, but I will make them for you.  I used to make countless salads of all types when I worked in a restaurant.  Have to please the ladies, I guess.  And they certainly scoffed down copious amounts of the stuff.  I do need to get my salad dressing chops back, I've gotten rusty in that area.  That's because the dressing is usually the most expensive part of the salad.

That photo of you in Brazil looks almost post-apocalyptic.  Have you ever seen the movie, "The Road Warrior?"  That's the movie that made Mel Gibson famous.  Are you involved with the Olympic games there?  It must be convenient to use all the facilities they built for the last football-you-play-with-your-feet World Cup.  Very expensive.  Just like the Olympic games.  They must have every Brazilian involved in paying the mortgage.  Have you seen the ruins in Sochi?  I'm not attracted to Brazilian women.  I prefer blondes.  You.  But if you were to ask me which Brazilian model is the prettiest, I would vote for Ana-Beatriz Barros.  I posted a video of the old VS models in Venice.  Listen to what those women say.  I don't think they're kidding.

Ya Allah, please protect my beloved Erin.  I love you, my darling Erin.  And I need you.  Are you hungry?  For lunch, I had some store-bought curry that I had to use up, so I fried up some bread to go with it.  I don't like bread sticks anymore.  I don't like the texture.  The shape of bread is what influences the texture inside.  So instead of sticks, I made mini pizza shapes.  But the air inside ballooned the dough, and made it extra yummy.  Dinner was fried flat noodles with cockles.  A local standard, so I didn't include a recipe.  I believe the key is simplicity, and to let the cockles carry the flavor.  Delicious.  You must try some.

Letter to Erin 20160519

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

Hello, my beautiful Erin!  How's the view, Boss Model?  Are you sharing the wealth?  Please make sure you keep some for yourself so you can live well.  Don't give it all away.  I give my heart to take care of you as best as I can, so please look after yourself.  You are my love, I love you and I need you.

Today has been a trial of patience for me.  All petty stuff though, so I have no reason to flip out.  I'm trying to clear out all the junk around your house inshaAllah but I can't burn, so that frustrates me.  I'll always be an outlaw, even when I'm trying as hard as I can to be halal.  Rain clouds have been thick the past few days, but very little rain.  Hm.  Anyway, after the night prayer it started to rain and I was able to burn whatever was in my fire pit down, so there was no point in my grumbling.  Another 5 more loads then I can begin accumulating debris again.

Floofy is my favorite kitty I suppose, because I love all my kitties.  But Floofy is the only one I allow into my bedroom, so I guess that's why she's my favorite.  She's a fat cat, but I love fat cats.  Fat cats are cute, but fat humans are not.  So I give her cat food whenever she asks for it.  This afternoon, she was asking for food and eating it over and over again, so I gave it to her.  Then she asked to leave the room.  I watched her: she puked out all the food I gave her in front of her daughters, and they ate it all up.  Bleah!  Is that what you would call generous?  Hey Floofy, I don't want your kittens to get as bloated as you, so I give them a set amount of food!  So I suppose the solution is to get all of them bloated.  But what if they all puke?

Food.  I had to use up the rest of that scad fillet, so I made the same dish as 2 days ago, but with a variation.  So it's like a brick of Ramen with thick curry sauce and scad, with vegetables and a side of sauteed onions, garlic and mustard green stems.  Looks good.  Tasted good, alhamdulillah.  Dinner was pizza.  I didn't take a photo of that.