In the teacher’s lounge one of my co-workers had brought her daughter down into the room from babysitting to eat lunch together.  My friends and I were sitting at one part of the table sharing a bag of chips, and the woman’s daughter wanted some.  We happily gave some chips to the little girl.  The mom told her that was all she was going to get.

After eating her chips, the daughter wanted more.  The mom said no, but the daughter threw a fit.  So the mom caved in and gave her daughter some more chips, again saying that this time was the last.  Of course, the same thing happened at least two more times.  After the third time, the mom finally decided to tell her daughter there weren’t anymore chips… she lied!

Well, after eating her chips, the daughter wanted more.  So she started crying for it, again.  The mom kept telling her the same old lie:  there weren’t anymore chips.  But she finally realized her daughter didn’t believe her, so she turned to me and said, “Can you give her some more chips?”

I was a little annoyed.  Didn’t she just tell her daughter the chips were done?  I actually mentioned that to her, “You told her there weren’t anymore…?”  The mom said, “Yea I know, but she wants it now.” (more…)

As promised, the rest of my Spring break… for those of you who want to know how I spend my time when I have nothing to do.

Wednesday morning Saqib dropped me off at the Metra station in downtown Lisle and I took a train to Union Station downtown to get on another Amtrak train to Ann Arbor.  I was a little nervous about using “so many” trains to get to my destination, because public transportation makes me nervous.  The schedules, tracks, fees, and employees are generally confusing or not very helpful.  But alhumdu’lillah, I made to Ann Arbor in one piece, to be picked up by my bhabi.

Wow, what a driver.  Hunno really knows how to make good time.  She picked me up right when I stepped off the train, and we were off to the grocery store before I knew it.  We had to pick up a few items for ammi who was waiting for me back at home.  Hunno, who wanted to make good time, managed to pick me up, stop at the store and get me home all within one hour.  Impressive, wouldn’t you say?

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Does it ever feel like just too much?  Family hits the skids, students acting nuts, job teetering on a coast line, slipping on ice, congested nose?

 Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of] what [evil] it has earned. “Our Lord, do not impose blame upon us if we have forgotten or erred. Our Lord, and lay not upon us a burden like that which You laid upon those before us. Our Lord, and burden us not with that which we have no ability to bear. And pardon us; and forgive us; and have mercy upon us. You are our protector, so give us victory over the disbelieving people.” (2:286)

Well apparently, it ain’t no thang.

I got married two years ago today, and I’m really happy.

Alhumdu’lillahi rabil ‘alameen.

A few weeks ago I was talking to my husband about Eid in Illinois.  I was a little nervous about how it would be for me, as it was the first time I would be celebrating Eid without my parents in a different state.  I innocently asked him, “What exactly do you do here?”  He grinned and said, “Nothing.”  Apparently Eid in Illinois consists of going for prayer and then eating Biryani followed by hanging around your own house.  There’s nothing wrong with that, of course:  to each his own.  But for me, I need a little something extra.

So I sat down and thought about what we do in Michigan, and figured,  if I couldn’t go to Michigan for Eid, I’d have to bring a Michigan Eid to Illinois.  I called up some friends and invited them over for an open house… Michigan style.  That meant tables of food and people coming in and out all day long.  Below are some food pictures from the event.

Pasta salad with chicken, carrots, corn, black olives, and mozzarella cheese

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