Looks like I'd lose my head...

Look what showed up on my uni's yahoo group. This made me crack up, it's so true sometimes I can't figure out how to apply my comp sci knowledge when I am dealing with mundane everyday issues at work. I know whatever I have to say would be to abstract and I'd get smacked. Read on after the jump:

Drink this read that

Hmmm should this become a regular feature? With the summer season in full swing the masses are hot and sweaty. Air conditioning is needed for basic survival. Here in NYC you’ll find most apartments with their AC’s blasting. It’s a huge strain on the grid but ConEd doesn’t give out and continues pumping out the juice. Unlike other utilities I know which can’t get enough of shutting off your power and wreaking havoc with your sensitive appliances. MW often calls in complaining about the lack of power, which motivates me even more to bring her over ASAP.

At any rate being in the midst of a heat wave is no fun. You sweat a lot and remaining hydrating is an uphill battle. I have to literally walk up a hill to get to my apartment building. If I am carrying bags of groceries the strain is doubled. By the time I walk in and give myself a look in the lobby mirror I am a mess. What’s worse I have given myself a headache. I need a nice cup of tea to get me back on track. Of course the preferred drink to rehydrate in the states is any number of colored sports drink. As effective as they are they are only there to replenish you, they can’t stave off the effects of heat sickness.

May I suggest to you Hamdard’s Rooh Afza:

Hamdard is a prestigious laboratory based in Pakistan, specializing in herbal medicine. They have come up with numerous remedies to common ailments like coughs, flu, colds etc. Perhaps their most tasty concoction is their summer time remedy. The label says that it’s for preventing and curing common summer time ailments brought on by excessive heat. With its all natural ingredients you get a light and refreshing drink once the syrup has been mixed with a glass of cool water. Of course people don’t stop there, it’s sweet and aromatic taste has made it a staple ingredient for deserts. Mixed with milk it makes for a tasty shake (a treat my mom served up for iftar, its refreshing goodness was much appreciated after a long day of fasting). All in all it’s the perfect summer drink. You can look for it in specialty stores as Hamdard distributes in the US.

UPDATE1: RAMADAN MUBARAK TO ALL MY READERS! You guys have been great feeding the hit counter but slipping on the comments >:-\ Anyways if you are fasting this month more power to you hope you make it through in one piece, dropping bad habits along the way and of course being forgiven for the past years sins. Pray for yours truly that he can do the same. Peace.

UPDATE2: I just bought a bottle from my local desi grocer. Man were the lines packed! In the evening when I get home I pass by the store to pick up a few groceries, by few I mean by how much I can carry up the hill to my building. The evenings are always a frantic times as dads getting off of work are doing the required milk run and moms are picking up some last minute items for that dinner party they are having.

But today on the eve of Ramadan it seemed like all of Hillside descended on this one store. The lines were snaking into the aisles! At first I thought of bailing but I needed water to drink. So I toughed it out. Glad I did because while waiting in the line I came across a shipment of the red elixir. I had to have some, its a welcomed addition to the iftar. So yeah it seems I am all set for Ramadan I even got a new alarm clock but that story is for another time. I now return you to your regularly scheduled blog post...

During the summer months the heat isn’t the only thing rising. With women dressing down libidos are at an all time high. In the past (and not too distant past) my sex drive has gotten me into trouble. On the one hand my nafs says “just do it” while my religious conditioning says “don’t do it”. I am left in the lurch it’s like driving full force on a highway with your parking brakes on. Over time you start to smell a strange odor because something burned out. In my case it’s more than just a burn out, unfortunately for me I get a case of depression. Depression is no fun and the harmful effects ripple out from me and punish people close to me as well.

Although I get back on my feet and I am stronger for it the threat is always there. The worst thing that I could think of is hurting MW because of my illness. That’s why I wanted to learn more about what Islam says about Sex. Naysayers may be raising eyebrows by now. Islam recognizes sex? Yes, yes it does and it has plenty to say. Remember Islam is more than a religion it’s a complete way of life that can be followed individually, by the family, by the society and by an entire civilization. So why wouldn’t it guide us through one of the most sensitive issues a man and woman can face together?

May I introduce to you Mufti Ibn Adam’s book Islamic Guide to Sexual Relations:

Now for the most part conservatives like me and others tend to shy away from this topic. In my case I feel it’s immoral to go around talking about indecent things. Furthermore you stand the risk of exciting others and you would be partly punished for any sins that they commit. Keeping this in mind I didn’t want to mention that I bought this book. But then I see Islamophobics talking endlessly about how “them damn Moslems” go around beating their wives and killing their daughters. It made me sick to see how narrow minded and one sided their arguments really are. Often times they are so blinded by their hate they often don’t consider the facts and make their case based on heresy and paranoia.

Well I am here to set the record straight. We love our wives and daughters. We give more respect to our mothers than most American teens would ever dare to give. Oh and we know who are fathers are. I hate it when those morons get to me and I have to sling mud just like them. My apologies to any sensitive readers; so getting back to the review. In a word, stupendous.

I must say I had some preconceived notions of my own and this book helped clear them up. I have even more love for the prophet and respect for his companions after reading this. They were real human beings who faced each and every aspect of human nature with the utmost dignity and nobility. As God had intended their example became a beacon of enlightenment for all mankind for all times. Mufti Adam takes us through each phase of the typical sexual encounter. Mind it he clearly states that the only lawful encounter is between a man and his wife. As groundbreaking as this book may be he doesn’t condone any deviant relations, including homosexuality.

Having said that readers will find this book to be surprisingly liberal. The author himself tries to explain why he chose to be so explicit. He is a religious figure and is expected to maintain a certain level of decorum. But when he saw classical scholars, who enjoy tremendous respect in the Ummah, had written works on this subject in even greater detail. He felt embolden and began to tackle many modern issues we as Muslims living in the West have to face. Growing up in the glare of Hollywood we just like everyone else are often given our first lesson on sexual relations by celebrities. Its easy to make the case that they are not the best role models for a happy married life. But we get no respite society is saturated by their message and everything is geared towards fornication and adultery. It can make a man go mad!

That’s why I am deeply thankful to the Mufti for writing this book and to Allah for giving me the chance to read and understand it. The contents deal with mundane hadiths that we have been hearing ever since we were kids. Like staying clean and healthy. But then he brings up hadiths that our parents never mentioned. Let’s just say that Allah’s mercy to mankind was a skilled lover. Subhanallah. Oh and the chapter about the fiqh of ones wedding night, is enough to cover the cost of admission alone.

I don’t get paid to evangelize this work. I am just a fan and da’ee who wants to get the word out. I hope this book can help others just like it has helped me. If you want to interact with the Mufti, who is 30 something, born and raised in the UK and classically trained in Islamic teachings by some of the greatest scholars or our time you can go to his website. This link is also in the “Political Activism” blog roll look for the text Ask Adam.

So that’s my shpeel. All in all you should be ready for summer after reading this. You should know what to drink if you need to cool off. And what to read in case you can’t. Till next time I bid you farewell.

IT'S OUR WEDDING ANNIVERSARY!!!

A year ago today MW and I signed our marriage contract. One year later we have remained committed to that mutual promise. In celebration here's some Urdu poetry for all you lovers out there. May everyone find and hold on to their soulmate. Ameen.

UPDATE: Today we celebrated our second engagement anniversary. It was very modest just a few text messages and an e-card. Long distance relationships are so hard to endure. I miss her terribly and want her by my side as soon as possible. Her immigration case is proceeding at a slow yet steady pace. sure there have been some small hiccups but by the grace of god it was nothing I couldn't take care of. So there's hope for the future. Tata for now.

Goodies for you

Wow what a win! Congrats to Spain you guys deserve it! Just finished watching the final match of the world cup. I managed to get a hold of a live stream off of the internet. I would have used my cable transmission but it was spewing its signal into empty space as it didn't have a TV to catch and decode it. As I have mentioned my TV is busted. I have it packed and set aside. There is no recall so I plan on selling it for parts. I called a couple of dealers this morning to do just that. Hopefully someone will bite. I am glad for a high speed internet connection that let's me witness a momentous occasion such as this.

Another momentous occasion in my world is the production of two kick ass graphics. I am sharing them with you so you can marvel at their grandeur. They are the cover arts of my short story and debut novel:

Wicked cool eh? I made it using flash. This is for the exclusive Smashwords release. Each weekend I get a few precious hours to work on my dream project. And here are the fruits of this weeks labor of love. I do this for free but the chance to get paid makes it twice as nice. SW has very specific guidelines for manuscript formats. The short story is compliant and will most likely be uploaded first. There are just some kinks I have to work out with the front matter but I am sure that will be resolved. Then I have to do the same for the novel length work.

Once that is done I plan on doing some marketing. Get the word out to the SW community that their favorite son has arrived, huzzah! Then I plan on sitting back and watching the paisa roll in. With sales! sales! sales! and hits! hits! hits! because the e-books will also contain links to this blog and the sadisoft website. Any proceeds will go towards my project (or to pay off bills which ever is more pressing). In the meantime I will be working on the sequel to ROTD that Ishan sets up for us. I am working on a really spine tingling concept, which the faithful will find most exhilarating!

In the meantime feast on this delightful eye candy. I find they capture the gray and ominous feel of the stories, quite nicely. Enjoy!

UPDATE: You know it's great how international events like the world cup bring people together. NY has a large Hispanic community and in the aftermath of a Spanish victory, their pleasure is understandable. On my way to work, ever so often, I spotted gold and red jerseys in the crowd. On the train ride home the guy standing next to me was clad in the victors colors. I wanted to engage him in dialogue but hesitated. Finally I piped up, asking why his jersey didn't have the now obligatory gold star. He was delighted and extended his hand in friendship. We started talking about the game, the nail biting last minutes, and how both teams were equally matched and it was only pure luck that one side was able to score. We were both ecstatic that the game wasn't decided by a humdrum penalty kick.

The conversation soon drifted towards our livelihoods we each told each other what we did for a living and the joys and sorrows of the daily grind, family life. In the end we had learned more about each other than we normally would. All because of a game we had watched. A shared experience that brought us closer together. Giving us a chance to discover our common humanity. We can never have too many of these kinds of events. Perhaps we can even dare to overcome hateful ideologues like "clash of civilizations". In the words of a particularly poignant advertisement "We all speak football".

Did you stay tuned to the spot...

Because if you did you would have noticed that a big shiny medal is in its place. I know it appears blury but that is the Stephen Colbert award for literary excellence. If you know anything about the funnyman you would know that is all huey.

What it is, is a gimmick to get you to click on it. After doing so you will be taken to my smashword profile. Yeah boy! I am getting serious about publishing and I had told you I had found a distributor so here it is. No books up yet, but I will take care of that soon. Once that is done I'll let you know plus if you follow me on FB there too. Be sure to buy a copy or at the very least donate. I got a mouth to feed and bills to pay!

Boob Tube Slump

If you are friends with me on Facebook or happened to stumble upon my profile you would see a status update stating the fact that my TV is busted. The "Don't Buy Philips" mantra is so true and I will never buy products from that company again. Until I can get a new set my apartment feels very spartan. I love watching the bube tube, so does MW. So while I am between sets what is a guy to do? Well adapt of course. I decided to head on over to youtube and hulu to scrounge up some movies that I had missed. I am happy to say these tube sites have delivered the goods. Last night I binged on some tasteful documentaries and films. Here are my reviews of some of them.

The first one is "Ramchand Pakistani" a debut film by director Mehreen Jabbar. It's an excellent tale of life on the Pakistani Indian border. After a young Hindu boy accidentally crosses into no man's land and then the country of India he's apprehended by security forces. His father, in search of him, follows suite. The callous security personnel promptly accuses them of being spies (yes even the cute little boy) and throws them in jail. Where they languish for years on end. This is such a heartbreaking story it's stupid how nationalism makes us treat fellow humans in such an inhumane manner. We are all God's creations our souls come from the same place and must return to him. We are so much more than a group of nations we are citizens of the Earth. Hiding behind our national flags to justify violence against a people of another flag is medieval and vile. Let's try to gather under the banner of Humanity!

This next documentary tries to do just that. After the success of "Super Size Me" Director Morgan Spurlock is at it again. This time spurred on by the impending birth of his child he seeks to make the world a safer place. So he goes after the most wanted man in the Universe. A play on the popular Kid's show the title film seeks to chronicle the effects of "The war on Terror" on common folks in the countries that have been blacklisted as the most dangerous in the world.

At first Morgan appears very paranoid and eats up the propaganda spewed by Fox and Friends. I thought, great another independent filmmaker biting the bullet and becoming part of a "Red Neck Agenda" (tip of the hat to Green Day!). But he admits that he's just being paranoid and begins his journey. Following the trail of destruction allegedly perpetrated by OBL and his henchmen. He's taken to numerous Muslim countries. He sits down and talks to movers and shakers, university students and ordinary folks. For the most part no one considers OBL to be their champion and curse him for bringing the wrath of the US military upon them. The film goes out of its way to show that demonized Arabs just want to go about their business in peace, building a better future for their children and co-existing with others. Spurlock is a multi-culturist something that I am too. So I totally dig this movie and recommend it to all my readers.

However towards the end the film maker couldn't gather the nerve to enter into the tribal areas of Pakistan. A roadside sign clearly stated that foreigners are not allowed. Thinking of his family and himself he said it wasn't worth it and heads back. I don't blame him I once had a run in with an Afghani Gunmen guarding a settlement on the outskirts of my town in Pakistan. Let's just say a change in underwear was needed. This next and last film also tackles the issue of foreigners and their misadventures with the tribesmen of Pakistan.

But perhaps its most compelling message is the battle between traditionalist and Liberal elements within the Islamic Faith. Each wants to serve their lord in their own way. Some through music others through vigilantly justice. The opposing forces come head to head in a dramatic court scene. The film was plagued with controversy because of what the Liberal Imam had to say. He bashes the traditionalist for focusing on how people dress when it's what's on the inside that counts. Plus he justifies the use of Music saying that the Prophet David was blessed with the gift of Music by our Lord. The narrow minded people lash out and attack the defendant. This is typical of these backwards people. They have hijacked the religion of Islam to feed their power lust.

During my time in Karachi one of my classmates said that his Imam told him that the famous hadiths in which the Prophet (PBUH) says that the greater Jihad is the Jihad against the Nafs not Jihad against are enemies, was false. I was shocked by his comments and wondered who on earth was feeding him this poison, as this is clearly unIslamic just like denying education to girls., or justifying the killing of Muslims by other Muslims. Of course I don't expect my opponents to understand these nuances. Their view of Muslims is tainted by propaganda that says that we are all radicals bent on killing every last American. They have no idea who they are dealing with we are a civilization much older and wiser then the century old American Empire. More sensitivity and enlightenment on their part is sorely needed.

Overall I agree with the Imams Liberal views and find the film to be well made raising some very important issues. Although the interrogation scenes seems a bit far fetched. I doubt law enforcement will abduct you from your home in the middle of the night without a warrant and then torture you to make a false confession. That's not to say that this sort of thing hasn't happened to foreign nationals in the aftermath of 9/11. Lastly while I am being critical I must also say the cinematography was a bit hokey. We moved through the story in an abrupt manner smoother transitions were needed.

So that was my film binge made possible by the 4th of July long weekend. I might do another one if I have time. I'll let you know what I come up with in the meantime share with me what you did over the break.