Randomness of my life

Time to finally update the blog and wat can be better than a tag, especially one which I have churaofied from PD’s blog

Anyway, here it goes:

Rules:

Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. If I tagged you, its because I want to know more about you.

Now as I have not been tagged by anyone, I will not be tagging anyone either

1. No surprises here, I love to talk and I can actually talk for hours on fone.
2. I can be a great listener, just dont ask for suggestions
3. Blogging has become an important part of my life and I often thank God that I blog.
4. I just hate it wen ppl ask me weird questions about my hijab.
5. Call me rigid, I love the way I am. I believe its more important to be real than to pretend to be perfect.
6. I always wanted to be married (if I HAD to be married) to someone I would have known inside out from before….as in before considering him for marriage. Instead, I am married to someone I least expected to be married to.
7. At times I wish I could change certain things of the past but then I realize that those are the things which define me today. No regrets Alhamdulillah.
8. I cant stand the sight of blood.
9. I am dreading the time wen all I’l be doing would be behaving like a doting housewife.
10. Damn, I hate the term ‘housewife.’ Can we call that something else?
11. I am a bad planner. Almost all my plans fail but I still love making plans
12. I hate to admit this but I cant whistle
13. I would want to remember my dreams once I wake up. I hardly ever remember any of my dreams and even if I do, they are usually outrageous.
14. I like collecting useless information.
15. For some reason, I have been unable to wear my emerald ring since my wedding due to ring rot. Its weird cuz I had been wearing it for years.
16. I have always dreamed of living in a house with a huge, lush green garden.
17. I can only sleep if its completely dark.
18. I seriously need to start reading a book now.
19. I am usually really good at guessing the time….the difference is usually just 2-3 minutes at max.
20. I love food. Seriously. Dont be misled by the way I look, I have just learned to control wat I eat.
21. I dont see things as completely black or as completely white.
22. I am usually very curious. If I know a bit of something, I’d want to know all that I can about it.
23. I laugh a lot and I tend to get excited quite easily.
24. I’d rather be the driver than be the passenger.
25. I actually enjoy my time in the kitchen. Cooking is a way of releasing stress for me.

Truth?

Now wen Safi and farooq did this post, I didnt really take it too seriously. It was fun to read and even more fun to read the comments coming on it. Initially I didnt really plan to take it as a tag…at least not to be done alone but the minerva did one herself so I thought Id give it a try too. Mine would obviously wouldnt be as descriptive as Minerva’s, Im sorry I dont write so well and I am always short of words ( ) so hopefully this should suffice. (I am only writing about ppl I consider my buddies so if you find something offensive about urself, dont expect an apology, buddies should be able to digest this. Wanted to add AD here but have known her for only a few months, so if i’l ever do a sequel of this, expect her to be in there. ):

• Absar: Oh well, he’s one of the few guys who dont mind being called sweet. Is that enough to describe him? Ummm, I dont think so. He is one guy who u can expect do be doing tags, always in love and is sensitive enough to not only write poems and even watch (and enjoy!!) flicks from 50s. So in short, I kinda agree with Safi and farooq here
• Anas: He can surely be a lot like Absar at times…getting there but not completely there as yet I always thought guys were supposed to disorganised and lazy. This boy plans everything years in advance and is also worried about his weight.
• PD: I just love her. She’s humble, sweet and one of the nicest ppl I have come across in my life. Sanest of us all.
• Mahwash: Takes her life very seriously. If she’s doing something, she has to be either really good at it or she wont be doing it. She has strong opinions about stuff and is not scared of being vocal about them, thus, either makes a lot of people simply hate her or just love her for wat she is.
• Hira: Witty and crude. She is very honest and thats the best thing about her. If she doesnt like something, she’l say it on ur face.
• Safi and farooq: They are both crazy and pretend to be wat they are not. But they are mature, sensitive ppl. They both know wat their problems are, even know the solution to their problem but they dont really seem to be doing much to solve em. They can be a lot of fun wen u want to have fun, they can be the best listeners wen u want someone to just listen to ur crap without really judging you and can give you great advises wen u are simply looking for sincere advises.

Paanch

My blog is the most depressing place on earth right now….or so it seems so I just thought id do something which I was supposed to do a bit earlier and is not as depressing. I am not taking a break from the Schism series, there will still be a new post every 2-3 days at least for now but this was something I promised AD ages ago.

Rules:

The idea is, to list five items in each category and not necessarily in order of liking. You can always add or subtract categories according to your will. Then tag five lovely people to be the next ones to take this quiz.

Favorite Words:

1. Absolutely (although I know everything is merely relative)
2. DUH
3. Urgh
4. Sweet (I know most guys hate to be called that )
5. Hai Rabba (does that count as a word?)

Favorite characters (Fiction):

1. Tinkerbell (Yea, I know I am not a 3 year old )
2. The Lone Ranger
3. Dr Robert Langdon
4. Long John Silver
5. Jack Sparrow (Wat? Another pirate!? Wat can I do, childhood fantasies perhaps)

Favorite Movies:

1. Finding Neverland
2. Adaptation
3. The Pianist
4. Life is Beautiful
5. Shrek

Favorite Books: This is tough, just 5 fav books!!??

1. A Time to Kill (have read it more than 20 times)
2. A Walk to Remember
3. Digital Fortress
4. Broken Verses
5. Call Me Elizabeth: Wife, Mother, Escort

Now I am not tagging anyone cuz I dont know 5 people on the blogosphere who havent done this already

Tomato List

Absar’s blog already has the second part of his hate list and I just thought it finally gives me a good reason to update my blog too Not that I hadnt been blogging at all….but doing this one felt really good

• People who judge me on the basis of my ethnic background and social status.
• Those who can label anyone a kafir who doesnt agree with their idea of Islam.
• The self-proclaimed aalims who go around giving fatwas.
• The everything-is-halal and the exact opposite everything-is-haram sorts.
• The I-know-it-all, you-have-no-right-to-speak sorts.
• People who will disagree with simply anything and everything….just for the sake of it.
• The ones who simply dont understand that I am ignoring them cuz I dont like them….and simply dont want to understand that I dont want them around!
• All the “Mashwara Khanums” who give “muft ka gayan” all the time: If I’l need ur suggestion, I’l ask for it!
• People who look away wen someone needs help
• Those who break laws and are so proud of it that they even brag about it.
• Chain smokers
• Ungrateful/thankless people
• People who pretend nothing bothers them
• Gutless drivers
• People who fake their accents
• Pakistanis who try to be whiter than the whites: you are brown and you are gonna stay that way!
• Hard core feminists who would chant slogans of equal rights every where and yet expect men to let them go ahead of themselves in the queue: If you want equal rights, expect equal responsibilities as well.
• People who think its OK to put up posters, paint “Chalo Chalo Nishter Park Chalo” and spit paan on a newly painted wall
• And even more who think its OK to throw away their garbage right in front of their neighbor’s gate

Honest Confessions

Although I have done a post out of narcism which had so many confessions, I thought of taking up an interesting post on minerva’s blog as a tag few days back. Haris has now tagged me with something similar so I’ll just mix em both

Here’s the deal to do the Honest Tag:  tell your readers 10 things about you that they may or may not know, but are true. Tag ten people and be sure to let them know they’ve been tagged (a quick comment on their blog will do). Don’t forget to link back to the blogger who tagged you.

Confessions of a Believer

• I was born in a family which is half strictly barehlvi, half strictly deobandi. I am trying to find where I stand.
• Asking questions about my beliefs make me a ‘nonbeliever’ in eyes of a lot of people. People can call me anything they want to, name calling only makes me more determined to find answers to my questions.

Confessions of a blogger

• I started blogging for myself but I soon realized that a lot of people do read what I write. It did make me omit some of the content that I would love to have here but that still doesnt change the way I see a lot of things. Just spamming a particular post with negative comments, making personal attacks on me or any other reader of mine only makes me think of that commenter/stalker/spammer as a retard.
• I have made a rule to myself that I will only allow bloggers to leave comments on my posts…cept for a few people who have been coming to my blog for a real long time.
• I dont consider myself a writer and perhaps thats the reason why I find it so difficult to do the write ups for anything at all.
• I have met some really wonderful people through this blog and I am glad that I opted to blog.

Confessions of a friend

• The word friendship doesnt mean much to me anymore. I have been stabbed in the back so many times that I dont know how I still end up trusting people; I still trust people quite easily.

Confessions of a woman living in the 21st century

• I know my weaknesses and although I complain about them a lot, I know I can handle things a lot of the things myself.
• I check my emails at least 20 times every day.
• Google is my wedding planner.

If you are reading it, you are tagged

The Lemonade Award

I have been tagged by Absar for the lemonade award which, according to his post, are passed on to those bloggers with a great attitude. (I hop great attitude here means whining )

Tou khair, here are the rules:

1. Thank the person who was so thoughtful for giving you this award by linking their blog to this post.
2. Put the logo on your blog or post.
3. Nominate 10 blogs which show great attitude/gratitude.
4. Link your nominees to your post.
5. Comment them to tell them about the award they’ve won.

The third rule’s gonna be the most difficult. Absar has pretty much passed on the award to everyone I could pass it on to. The only ones I can pass it on to are: Farooq, Hira, Mahwash and Mitali.

Narcism

I have churaofied this tag from here cuz I found it really interesting.

Ten Things You Wish You Could Say to People, don’t take any names

1. Just stop keeping track of me you bloody stalker!!

2. Yea, I love myself, any problem?

3. Just mind your own business for a change!

4. Your girlfriend is not that naive (I know the guy I want to say this will most probably never read this!)

5. If he loves you, he should respect you and make sure that everyone else in his family respects you too (Again, I dont think she will ever read this)

6. Just stop judging me or anyone else! You are not better than anyone else…just stay in your limits.

7. I am worried about the way you live your life….slow down a bit.

8. Dont try to act like Mother Teressa, you are only making a fool out of urself.

9. Stop bashing your ex.

10. Stop under-estimating yourself!!

Nine things about you

1. I like to have my space.

2. I love the smell of books: new, old, photocopied, pirated…

3. I didnt know what broccoli is till I was 14, its my fav vegetable now.

4. I believe in para-normal activities.

5. I dont have a favorite color, the only color I dont like wearing is yellow.

6. I think too much.

7. I dont like girls who think they are weak and helpless.

8. I dont like winters.

9. My name is actually a word in Hebrew

Eight ways to win your heart

1. Buy me a book…simple, aint it

2. Be knowledgable. Know wats happening around you, not only wats being aired on TV the whole time but also wats happening with the people who care about you.

3. Have your own opinion, dont get influenced too easily by other people’s opinions.

4. Talk to me!

5. Dont think of me as a customizable software package.

6. Do not try to be my satellite: trust me, I’l tell you what you would need to know about me.

7. Read!

8. Respect women.

Seven things that are on your mind a lot (random ordering)

1. Religion

2. Politics

3. My work…..and my research

4. My fiance

5. Books

6. Food

7. My family

Six things you wish you never did

1. There have been times wen I have been really nasty with my family.

2. I dont basically regret much in life. I own my mistakes….perhaps the reason why I think so much. If I do something, it is cuz of a decision which I take after a lot of consideration. If things dnt work out, I dont regret it.

Five things that turn you off

1. Smoking..biggest turn off! Hate is a really harsh word but I really hate smokers.

2. Behaving like a demigod.

3. Being judgemental.

4. Showing off.

5. Tantrums

Four turn on’s

1. Confidence.

2. Sense of humor. Yea, I am cheap and you should be able to understand my jokes without trying to judge me.

3. Intelligence…although intelligence is just a relative term.

4. Be yourself.

Three things you want to do before you die

1. I have done a similar list here.

Two smileys that describe you

1. :S

2.

One confession

1. I dont like doctors.

Phew. This was more difficult than I thought it would be and thus, I wont make anyone’s life difficult.

Bolo Ali Ali

I was I think 7 or 8 years old when I first heard Sajjad Ali singing ‘Bolo Ali Ali’ on a vacation trip to Karachi and the tune was so catchy that I not only liked it but would also sing it the whole day (I dont torture people any more by singing ). One day I was singing ‘Kiya khaybar Fatah, woh hai mushkil kusha, bolo Ali Ali’ while having dinner when all of a sudden my nana asked: Do you know who was Ali (RA)?

Me: Obviously, he was the Prophet’s (SAW) cousin, a very brave soldier.

Nana: (smiling) Ummm ok and do you know what he did at Khayber?

Me: He was the commander (in a I-know-it-all tone)

Nana: Hmmm and?

Me: And nothing (Ok, I didnt know much after all )

Nana: I mean what happened in the war? Or after that?

Me: Ummm, No (I just had to admit!)

That night, we didnt sleep till around 3. He told us about Hazrat Ali’s (RA) bravery and his fierce fighting skills. For me, it was all like a character in a fiction story: a brave handsome prince, married to the princess of his dreams, living the life of a hero. It then became a custom at home. My nana would tell us stories from Islamic history and I would think of all of them coming straight out of…well yea a fiction story. This continued till his death a few years later…

Fast Forward to 2005

I had just finished reading The Satanic Verses and I was looking for something written in response to it…and there it was, a book called Muhammad by Karen Armstrong. A beautiful book by all means but wen it ended, it left a lot for me to find out because it was not exactly written as a biography but pretty much as to why the reaction was the way it was Rushdie’s book. I wanted a biography and just a day later I was standing in a bookstore with my first ever book on Islamic History and it was again by a non-muslim author but I knew I just had to read it. It was so intriguing that I ended up reading the whole book in less than two days and I was back at the store to get its second part. This time the story was real, about real people, people I loved and admired dearly but didnt know much about. The book series was by a non-muslim writer so it was not something I could depend on solely but the best thing it did to me was instilling curosity in me…

So why have I been talking about this all of a sudden? Well, you guys know of the series of posts that I have been doing lately and I have now decided to take a break cuz its emotionally exhausting for me. This is an unending research. The more I study, the more it fascinates me, the more it confuses me. I might not be blogging at all for a few days…need some time to breathe and wind up some work which I should Got a lot of things to do. I have to make up for my classes over the next two weekends. Further, I have started with the write up of my paper..getting some really good results, need some more stuff to be reported in the paper. Planning to get it done as soon as possible. Btw, N is helping me with the write up (If you are confused as to why I need help, then see this ) . And have a look at this:

(No sympathies for my fiance plz ) Consider yourself tagged. Although the test is basically for married people, it is fun

So anyway, I will insha Allah be continuing not only with this series later but also with this blog pretty soon.I’ll miss you guys…all the rockstars in my life