Yummy Doodh Jalaibee

I know i will be making your mouths water by telling you that i am having "doodh jalaibee" right now. The doodh jalaibee made with the real orange jalaibee (not that dim coloured Garato). I am having this after a really long time and loving every morsel of it. We can't thank Allah enough for all the eatable goodies he has bestowed upon us. May this continuous supply remain intact. :-D

I am now going to finish off my doodh jalaibee bowl. Hope you guys get to have it (and enjoy it) soon too.

7th Anniversary of 9/11

Yesterday on September 11, 2008, it was the anniversary of another incident which is most popularly known as 9/11 (read nine eleven). The original incident took place in 2001 when the twin towers of World Trade Center were hit by two airplanes and the buildings collapsed to the ground. Several people were killed in the incident.

Who did that and why was it done is still a mystery. Americans believe those were 'Al Quaida' people, and due to this, hold the whole Muslim community responsible for it. There is one theory that it was a Jewish conspiracy. Some say it was done by outsiders (non US people) while some say that it was an inside job.

This incident changed many lives, the way we can never even imagine. It had many repercussions. The most deadly of them all, in my opinion, is the act of USA to go on a killing spree while legitimizing it in the name of war on terror. The victims of this are Muslims.

I do not know if the things have become any better (all i can see is these getting worse) but i guess that it is high time that innocents are set free from the suffering. They should no longer have to pay for the crimes they never committed. What happened on 9/11 2008 was indeed a sad incident. But can the people and government (and the soon to be elected government) of that "grief stricken" country assure the world, especially the Muslims, that things are any better at this point in time?

Quaid e Azam's 60th Death Anniversary (September 11, 2008)

Yesterday was the 60th dead anniversary of our beloved Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah. I had completely forgotten about it. I only realized when i had a glimpse of the main page of the newspaper. Thank God that our newspapers still mark the day by posting news item related to such anniversaries. Otherwise, people like me would remain uninformed on such days.

It is a pity though that such things should slip our minds. Some people would say that it is important to remember the teachings of a great leader instead of remembering his/her birth or death anniversary. While this holds true, it is also true that in this busy age such days provide us with the necessary motivation and inspiration. We may not forget the teachings and sayings throughout the year, but these days only refresh things in our minds.

Once again i am making no resolutions but would really like my mind to work with me and help me remember memorable dates, whether those are birthdays of friends & family or anniversaries like this.

Kitty on a Hot Afternoon #2

I spotted the same cat again one recent afternoon that i had seen some time ago. This time it was lazing under my car to beat the scorching sun. Take a look!

Kitty Under Car

I once again couldn't resist myself from taking a picture. (I know it's a bad picture but as i said i couldn't resist.) So i took out my mobile phone and took a shot at the cat. The cat was wide awake and looking at me. Luckily, it didn't move away and let me finish my errand. When i unlocked my car and sat inside, i actually felt sorry for the kitty that had to move in the hot sun to a different haven.

Pakistan Got a Brand New President - 11th in Line

On September 06, 2008, presidential elections were held in Pakistan. The results were same as speculated as well as feared earlier. We got a brand new president in form of Mr Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of late ex-prime minister of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto. He is the 11th elected president of Pakistan, disregarding the temporary ones.

First we were suffering at the hands of dictatorship. Now it is feared we will suffer more at the hands of democracy (so called). It is not known what the future holds in store for us and it may never be known.

All i can say at this point in time is that may Allah save us all!

Earthquakes - Reminder of the Past

This earthquake on Saturday reminded me of a similar much severe and deadly one that occurred in the year 2005. The month was same and the day was same too. Only the date was different, that was October 08, 2005. It was Ramzan then as is now. But this one was merely 5.6 in magnitude while that one was 7.6. This one was not deadly at all, while that previous one claimed around 80,000 lives all over.

That was a Saturday too when i had come to office to finish off some pending work. And this time again i found myself in the same setting. It's strange how history repeats itself. But thank God it changes the parameters every time.

Earthquakes - September 2008

On Friday morning (September 05, 2008) around 11:00, there was an earthquake in Islamabad. I was in my office, sitting on my seat. Suddenly i felt a judder and i instantly uttered 'zalzala' (earthquake in Urdu). My eyes met a couple of my colleagues' who confirmed my suspicions. The earthquake lasted for a few seconds and no more jolts were felt after that. That earthquake had originated in the Hindu Kush range in Afghanistan and was felt in Peshawar, Abbotabad, Muzaffarabad, Rawalpindi and Islamabad. It was 5.3 in magnitude.

On Saturday morning (September 06, 2008) again around 11:00 there was another earthquake. This was a notch greater than the one we had had the previous day and lasted longer too. First there was a major jolt followed by several smaller tremors. On Friday we had stayed in our seats during the earthquake but on Saturday we moved out of the building. The epicenter was again in the Hindu Kush range in Afghanistan. The magnitude was 5.6.

Thank God both were harmless earthquakes. There was no news of any building/house collapsing or of any human casualties. May Allah keep us safe from such natural calamities.

Kitty On a Hot Afternoon #1

On a hot afternoon a couple of days ago, i found this kitty, happily sleeping, trying to beat the heat in the shades.

Sleeping Kitty

But then as soon as i finished taking one shot, it sensed the disturbance. Thus I became a reason to wake it from its deep slumber. It woke up and stared at me, half angrily and half annoyed, that why in the world did i have to be a cause of disturbance. I had no words to reply. I had indeed troubled a poor old cat.

Once Sleeping, Now Annoyed Kitty

First Roza 2008

The first roza went well for me. Though it was not without little setbacks and hardships. But every action was followed by a little good as well.

The first thing that happened was the broken down car. It didn't even start on ignition. We had to take the taxi. But we found it quickly and the driver took us to destination on time. So the net effect was good (i think).

Then my boss told me that even though he is satisfied with my work, he is not quite so with my attitude. According to him i was not showing the required amount of enthusiasm in my work. And he did not appreciate it. I told him my problems and reasons why my energy levels were a few notches down. He listened and promised some good things. So that turned out good as well. Though i still need to work on my energy levels in order to get a good boost.

Another setback was related to an online gift order that was not getting through to the destination. I called up the support personnel and they told me that somehow the address they have was incomplete so that is why the order could not be delivered. Listening to this gave me a long face. But there was hope that i could contact them again and get the address corrected. So that ended well too. Now i am in process to get that address fixed. Wish me luck!

One 'bad' thing for which i could not get the neutralizing 'good' was the news of demise of a friend's father. He was sick for quite some time but everybody was hopeful for a full recovery. But today i got the news that he passed away. I felt sad as well as completely helpless because i couldn't be with my friend right away to console her or to provide support. May Allah rest her father's soul in peace.

There were some more episodes. But i guess that's all i have energy for right now. I am off to bed so that i am able to get up on sehri and also keep my eyes open throughout the meal. ;-)

Happy Ramzan 2008

Woo Hoo! The blessed month of Ramzan has started. I tried hard looking for the moon (1st day crescent) but did not succeed. I had lost all hope that Tuesday would be the start of this month. But soon i got the happy news. That was quick of our Rooat e Hilal committee to take a decision and announce the start of this month almost after Maghrib.

I was on my way home when i got the news. Right after hearing this, i started off with texting Ramzan wishes to my pals. Thank God i was in the back seat or my Father would have scolded me ;-) He is already getting annoyed at the tones that ring when i get text replies. hehe

These would be the longest rozas for me ever (so far). Hope i can cope well. Better go to bed as i dont want to miss my sehri on the first roza.

Happy Ramzan to you all! :-)