ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
I'd be curious as to who the author is doodle, if you don't mind. Most hanafi related material today in english comes from Pakistan and India. He'll be hard pressed to find any english hanafi related books that don't come from there.

If I may suggest it, my favorite book is Inner Dimensions of Islamic Worship by Imam al Ghazali. Reading it has given me much deeper insight into salat especially :thumbs:

I'm not aware of many egyptian authors that are translated into english. If he suggests some, send em my way. I do have some books about modern egypt - Mobilizing Islam is the best one I've read that introduces Islamic activism in Egypt.

Edited by rahma, 19 February 2007 - 01:47 PM.

UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-19 13:47:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
What was the book?

There aren't a lot of hanafis in Egypt, so that may be why he was like :blink: When I was looking at different madhabs, I had originally chosen the hanafis, because they've produced a lot of good books in english, whereas the other madhabs (especially the hanbalis) are lagging behind.

I personally like to learn from scholars from everywhere. The husband doesn't have any issues with that, since he's an odd duck himself and likes Ibn Hazm, who was Andalusi.

My favorite is Imam al Ghazali and he was from Persia.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-19 10:42:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
Wooo, I just got caught in a whirlwind of cleaning in my cubicle. My immediate office space is actually dust free! Now, all I need to do is blow through the approximately million pieces of paper that belong to a dozen different files so that the rest of my cube is clean as well. Wheh, I'm pooped.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-09 16:56:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
I'm going to have to step on my forearm when I get home :blush:
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-09 15:58:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
We're suppose to pray on a clean surface. A prayer rug provides a portable clean surface whenever we need a place to make salat.

Dirt is generally presumed to be clean. In fact, when you need to make wudu/ghusl and you don't have water, you use dirt.

If I remeber correctly, the floors of the Prophet's (saws) masjid were dirt. And that's why some shia use the clay tablets, so that their heads touch the earth, per the Prophet's sunnah.

Edited by rahma, 09 February 2007 - 02:22 PM.

UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-09 14:21:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
So, what's everyone's favorite egyptian dish? Mine is koshari :P Yummy carbs!

On my first night in Egypt, 2003, I was so beat from the trip over. We made it to our apartment, and I was a little shell shocked, because although I realized egypt was a 3rd world country, I didn't realize how far the poverty permiated. DH let me stay and kinda flop down on the bed, and he went out and got us a whole chicken, fresh bread and koshari. It was love at first sight (for both my husband and the koshari, lol)!
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-09 13:11:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
Tamer also speculates that it has something to do with the surface you pray on - a lot of the mosques in egypt have hard cement floors. DH had a little one while he was in egypt, but here, he prays on our soft carpet with his soft prayer rug, so it's gone away.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-09 10:44:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
Ok, now I can tell my husband's best minibus story again, huzzah!

So, he was coming from his hometown to Cairo to meet me at the airport. He hopped on a microtaxi and a little ways into the ride, the driver announced that the breaks had failed, and what would they like to do? Everyone was like, on to Cairo, inshaAllah! So, they trundle along through the Egyptian countryside and through a variety of towns, no breaks. They roll into Cairo and my husband manages to throw himself out of the taxi at Ramses, lol!

My husband has had way too many encounters with runaway trucks, crazy buses and inattentive cars. I think he's been involved in at least a dozen hits, crashes or near misses since I've met him in 2001.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-08 13:47:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
Oy, in the last apartment we had (in Dokki, supposidly a nice neighborhood to boot), apparently our kitchen was covered in little buggers when my husband went to move his stuff in. Thankfully he didn't tell me this until after we were at the airport on my way home, lol!
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-07 17:29:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club
Hmmm, as the founder of the Cairo Club, I suppose I could make some exceptions for the non egypt affiliated. I think our number one rule is that there will only be rainbows, sunshine and unicorns of the egyptian variety here.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-07 16:48:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe Cairo Club

Mine is a smart a$$...he would say habibty do you want tea? Me..yes, Him...ok make me some too.



LOL! Mine does that too! Ah, arab men.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2007-02-07 16:10:00
Middle East and North AfricaMuslim Fasting Holidays
You may want to seek out some ethiopian muslims to ask about what the common practices are in their country. I don't think we have any here. Just about all muslims fast during Ramadan, but the adherence to extra fasts differs depending on the location.

The basics of Fasting - all fasts, be they required or voluntary, are performed the same. Just the days they happen on are different.

There are several voluntary fasts that were practiced by the Prophet (saws):

6 days of Shawwal - Shawwal is the month following Ramadan
Fasting Mondays and Thursdays
The first 10 days of Dhull Hijja - which we are coming up to shortly.
Fast of Dawud - the most rigorous. Basically fasting every other day, one day on, one day off.
Middle 3 days of each lunar month
Muharam and Shaban
Ashura - the 10th of Muharram (commemorates passover for sunnis)

Here's the hijri (islamic) calendar for 2008 and 2009



Ramadan in Ethiopia:

Webisode 7 - talks about Ramadan in Ethiopia. Haven't watched it.
I'd google ramadan and ethiopia and see if you can find out any specific customs that they celebrate with. Those really differ depending on the country.


If you're going to be doing assessments from June to September, that should cover Ramadan. Since our calendar is lunar, months move up ~12 days each year. Ramadan will be roughly from August 22 through September 21st, plus or minus a few days in either direction.

I tried to link most of the information here from shafi'i sources, as I believe most ethiopians follow the shafi'i madhab.

Edited by rahma, 24 November 2008 - 01:02 PM.

UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-11-24 12:58:00
Middle East and North AfricaMENA men and their family
My husband got his visa mid august 2005. He came October 3, 2005. I didn't begrudge him for one second. He'd lived in Egypt 28 years (minus a year in Saudia), so how could I expect him to wrap up his entire life and hop on a plane quickly, especially when we were playing the AP/AR waiting game and had no clue when he'd get the visa? He had an apartment to close up, debts to settle, documents to gather, and time to spend with his mother and friends. He hasn't been back to see his family and friends since he came. I've had him 24/7/365 that entire time.

Nope, it was definately the right decision to make.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-11-03 17:20:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe hijab is a symbol of oppression, sexism and perversion - Agree or disagree?
On youtube, there are a bunch of videos showing how to put on different types of hijab. Specifically how to put on an al amirah (the two piece one you have I believe), check this out.

For the longest time, I only work my hijab like this, because it's the only thing I knew how to do:





When I went to egypt, my SIL physically showed me how to do it and wrapped different styles, which gave me some skills, so now I can do different styles on my own. I still actually wear it like that most of the time, but today I have on an underscarf and a big rectangle shayla.

If there are some hijabis in your area, ask them to show you. Also, you were suppose to send me your address and your favorite color, cuz I have a present for you whistling.gif

Edited by rahma, 25 November 2008 - 09:14 AM.

UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-11-25 09:13:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe hijab is a symbol of oppression, sexism and perversion - Agree or disagree?
The blog I linked to earlier has some tutorials. The hijab blog genre is actually flourishing:

hijablog
hijab style
hegab-rehab
abaya chic
hijab chique
modest n fashionable

Select the hijab tips, how to, or hijab on youtube categories to find how to do specific styles. A few of them also link to other tutorials off site.



Again, all it takes me is one post to derail a thread into fashion talk, bwahaha! This is my style:





I'm almost all shukr all the time. I'm salivating over a few things that I hope will still be around when this current line goes to clearance:








Edited by rahma, 24 November 2008 - 03:08 PM.

UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-11-24 15:03:00
Middle East and North AfricaThe hijab is a symbol of oppression, sexism and perversion - Agree or disagree?
What the scarf (and other clothes) are made of really depends on the culture of the particular country. In Egypt, the current trend is to pile scarves on top of scarves and twist them into elaborate flowers and whatnot. That wouldn't fly in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Countries, where it's black, although there, women will decorate with fine embroidery and little sparkly crystals.

In general, the fabric shouldn't be see through (if it is, wear something solid underneath), and not too flashy based on the culture of the country/area.

Personally, I think the current egyptian trends are toooooo much. Now, I love color as much as the next girl (I'm not known as the girl in the hot pink hijab for nothing), but it's like, umm, yeah, I'm blinded here. I don't do fancy wraps, partially because it weighs down my head to have an imbalance of scarf on one side, but also because I'm incompetent and my designs tend to fall out after a few hours.

These are in a "spanish style" that is very popular in egypt:




More Egyptian Styles:




Designer Abayas from the Gulf:




Here are some turkish hijabs. They tend to be very shiny:




More Turkish hijabs. If I were rich, I'd be on a plane to Turkey to go shopping:



QUOTE (*Len* @ Nov 24 2008, 12:03 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (estadia @ Nov 24 2008, 09:48 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (*Len* @ Nov 24 2008, 10:46 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
mwahahahahaha devil.gif

In other issues, here's another question. Can the hijab be made of any material?





welllllllll some will disagree im sure of it but i find cotton the easiest to deal with and more comfortable just change the weight of the cotton for the time of year..........when its winter time i also use wool


oh, ok. But there is no limit? As in could I buy a nice long scarf in Mexico as a gift for my muslim friend and that would be oks?



Just be sure it doesn't have any symbols from other religions on it. My coworker brought me back a beautiful scarf from Italy, but it had hindu symbols on it. Couldn't wear that.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-11-24 13:13:00
Middle East and North AfricaLinks between Islam and Terrorism
If one wishes to have a deeper knowledge of any of the sciences of Islam, they should get it from a primary source, a teacher, not a secondary source, newspaper article. There are a ton of concepts in that article that are overly simplified, and many key aspects of tasawwuf (sufism) that are outright ignored.


Some more primary sources:

The Sufi Path - from Sh. Nuh Keller of the shadhili order
What is Tasawwuf? - from Shaykh Zulfiqar Ahmad of the naqshabandi order
Islamic Spirtuality - by Abdul Hakim Murad who I believe is with the alawi order
Tasawwuf and Sharia - by Shafiq ur-Rahman
Was Rumi an Orthodox Muslim - by Sh. Faraz Rabbani who is with the shadhili order
True and False Sufis - by Rumi, founder of the mevlevi order



Again, my original pet peeve was the classification of sufis as seperate from sunni and shia muslims. I would bet dollars to donuts that the sheikh mentioned in the article, Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bukhari, adheres to one of the sunni madhabs. Sufism is not a sub sect in Islam, it's a religious science that is practiced by sunnis and shias alike.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-02 13:55:00
Middle East and North AfricaLinks between Islam and Terrorism
For those interested in sufism as related to traditional islam:

http://shadhilitariq...o...3&Itemid=11

QUOTE
What is Sufism?

Sufism is a knowledge through which one knows the states of the human soul, praiseworthy or blameworthy, how to purify it from the blameworthy and ennoble it by acquiring the praiseworthy, and to journey and proceed to Allah Most High, fleeing unto Him. Its fruits are the heart’s development, knowledge of God through direct experience and ecstasy, salvation in the next world, triumph through gaining Allah’s pleasure, the attainment of eternal happiness, and illuminating and purifying the heart so that noble matters disclose themselves, extraordinary states are revealed, and one perceives what the insight of others is blind to

-- Muhammad Amin Kurdi

The way of Sufism is based on five principles: having godfearingness privately and publicly, living according to the sunna in word and deed, indifference to whether others accept or reject one, satisfaction with Allah Most High in dearth and plenty, and returning to Allah in happiness or affliction. The principles of treating the illnesses of the should are also five: lightening the stomach by diminishing one’s food and drink, taking refuge in Allah Most High from the unforeseen when it befalls, shunning situations involving what one fears to fall victim to, continually asking for Allah’s forgiveness and His blessings upon the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) night and day with full presence of mind, and keeping the company of him who guides one to Allah

-- Imam Nawawi

Aspects of Sufism, defined, delineated, and explained, amount to nearly two thousand, all of them reducible to sincerity in turning to Allah Most High, something of which they are only facets, and Allah knows best. The necessary condition of sincerity of approach is that it be what the Truth Most High accepts, and by the means He accepts. Now something lacking its necessary condition cannot exists, “And He does not accept unbelief for His servants” (Koran 39:7), so one must realize true faith (iman), “and if you show gratitude, He will accept it of you” (Koran 39:7), which entails applying Islam. So there is no Sufism except through comprehension of Sacred Law, for the outward rules of Allah Most High are not known save through it, and there is no comprehension of Sacred Law without Sufism, for works are nothing without sincerity of approach.

-- Ahmad Zarruq

PERHAPS the best description of the path of Sufism, certainly one of the most frequently cited among its scholars, is the hadith of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace):

Allah Most High says:

“Whomever is hostile to a friend of Mine I declare war against. My slave approaches Me with nothing more beloved to Me than what I have made obligatory upon him, and My slave keeps drawing nearer to Me with voluntary works until I love him. And when I love him, I am his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he seizes, and his foot with which he walks. If he asks Me, I will surely give to him, and if he seeks refuge in Me, I will surely protect him. I do not hesitate from anything I shall do more than My hesitation to take the soul of the believer who dislikes death; for I dislike displeasing him” (Bukhari, 8.131: 6502. S).

This hadith describes the means to the change that is central to spiritual realization, in conformity with the teaching of the sheikhs of the path who define a Sufi as “a scholar of religious learning (faqih) who practiced what he knew, so Allah bequeathed him knowledge of what he did not know.” While people differ in their capacity both to learn the religion and to attain the consummate awareness of tawhid or ‘divine unity’ expressed in the above hadith, everyone who travels the Shadhili path (tariqa) must know the works needed to “practice what one knows.” If one is great in them, one will be great in spiritual attainment, and if one is weak in them, one will be weak in spiritual attainment, unable to pass from transitory experiences (ahwal) to permanent realization (tahqiq).
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-02 10:54:00
Middle East and North AfricaLinks between Islam and Terrorism
QUOTE (Hanging in there @ Dec 1 2008, 08:38 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (rahma @ Dec 1 2008, 04:16 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
QUOTE (Hanging in there @ Dec 1 2008, 01:59 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
As far as following advice, different medhabs have different opinions, some being much more tolerant of other religions as some less so. The sufis are very open to all the books of all the people of the book. Sunnis much less so... Its all what medhab you follow as to how you perceive religion wise , the people around you


I'm sorry, but this is a huge pet peeve of mine. Sufis are not a seperate branch of Islam. Sufis practice the science of purification of the heart, tasawwuf. They also adhere to a madhab (school) of fiqh (jurisprudence) in either the sunni or shia branches.

I don't know what you mean by "sufis are very open to all the books of all the people of the book" but the sufis I know aren't universalists and are firmly within ahl al sunnah wa jamaah, orthodox sunni islam. For them, it's the Qur'an and the sunnah and that's it.

Pet peeve or not,, Suffis do not practice their religion like many others. You never see a group of sufis lobbing hand grenades into hotel rooms or shooting a babys parents in front of them to leave them wandering in a pool of blood. Their goal is peace, enlightenment and dialog between them and other religions. I whole heareted disagree with you on this one. In purifying your heart, you dont demonise and terrorise others.... in that they are very different



What's the tariqa that teaches this? Who is the murshid? The goal of tasawwuf is to reach Allah (swt) through submission to Him, adherence to the required and recommended, leaving things that are merely permissible, shunning what is disliked and haram, and living in full accordance with the sharia. If you achieve peace and enlightenment (never heard an orthodox sufi use the term enlightenment), then good for you, but those aren't the goals.

It's a myth that sufis are somehow hippy dippy new agey pacifists. If there is a just cause for a physical jihad, then sufis take up the sword and fight, just as non sufis take up the sword and fight. Sheikh Uthman dan Fodio, perhaps the greatest sufi in the history of west africa, lead jihad. Many of the chechan jihadi leaders in the 19th and 20th centuries were sufis.

Jihad is a part of our faith. What is not a part of our faith is targeting innocent women, children and non combatents. The mujahideen who adheres to the sunnah of the Prophet (saws) would never commit attrocities of terrorism.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-02 08:49:00
Middle East and North AfricaLinks between Islam and Terrorism
QUOTE (Hanging in there @ Dec 1 2008, 01:59 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
As far as following advice, different medhabs have different opinions, some being much more tolerant of other religions as some less so. The sufis are very open to all the books of all the people of the book. Sunnis much less so... Its all what medhab you follow as to how you perceive religion wise , the people around you


I'm sorry, but this is a huge pet peeve of mine. Sufis are not a seperate branch of Islam. Sufis practice the science of purification of the heart, tasawwuf. They also adhere to a madhab (school) of fiqh (jurisprudence) in either the sunni or shia branches.

I don't know what you mean by "sufis are very open to all the books of all the people of the book" but the sufis I know aren't universalists and are firmly within ahl al sunnah wa jamaah, orthodox sunni islam. For them, it's the Qur'an and the sunnah and that's it.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-01 16:16:00
Middle East and North AfricaHoliday Gift Stamps in the mail today
QUOTE (ME~n~HIM @ Nov 19 2008, 03:53 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I got these last year. I'm excited they have them, but honestly, a little disappointed they've used the same design *&* color from last year. Oh well, at they've got them...


It's been the same since it was released in 2001. I still have some of those original ones lying around somewhere *goes to rummage through drawers*
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-05 09:46:00
Middle East and North AfricaHookah - Haram or Halal?
There are 2 opinions, no matter what is being smoked - that it is disliked (munkar) or haram (forbidden). IMHO, the second opinion is stronger, and there has been a general shift from the former to the latter in recent years, as we find more about the ill effects of smoking

Is Smoking Permitted?
Is Smoking Hookah haram?
Smoking Water Pipe
Is the Ruling on Smoking Still Controversial?
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-05 10:01:00
Middle East and North AfricaWTH to get them for Christmas
I got Tamer wireless sennheiser headphones for eid. They're perfect, so he can turn on his arabic movies and news on the computer and putter around the house without being stuck in front of the computer for hours at a time.

He's getting me a cat for this one kicking.gif
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-04 09:14:00
Middle East and North AfricaAmerican women vs Arab women raising children
My husband was treated like an absolute piece of sh*t by his first boss when she found him praying on his break. He asked for no special treatment - didn't ask to rearrange his breaks to pray or break his fast, didn't ask for any place special, just found a corner of the break room to pray. Before this, he was the golden boy. After that, he could do no right and was hounded out of the job.

So yes, discrimination against arabs/immigrants/muslims does exist. Thankfully though, he hasn't let that color his opinions of all americans. There are crappy americans out there. I know I've run across my fair share who treat me as dirt because they precieve me as a foreigner. And there are crappy arabs I've run across as well.

Does this add anything to the topic? Probably not. It just bothers me when people don't think that discrimination exists or it's not that bad.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-10-08 10:19:00
Middle East and North AfricaHappy Eid Al adaha
Our new kitty sends Eid greetings to the VJ family as she sits on my lap and gives me this look that says you should be petting me instead of typing dang it! No name yet, just a bunch of kitty love.



For those who want to know more, check out my blog. I won't clog up VJ with my endless cat prattle whistling.gif
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-08 13:26:00
Middle East and North AfricaMENA 2008 Spouse Reunion
3 years. Well, nearly 3 years...2 years and 10 months for my husband to get a decent job. If you want depressing insanity, I've been there, done that. Alhamdulilah in the end, he has an excellent job in his field with tons of possibilities for advancement and networking, but for the 2 years and 10 months prior to that, yeah, it sucked.


Some things for people to think about/prepare before their husbands get here:

*resume/cover writing - sign them up for a class and have them practice practice practice until it's perfect
*practice interviews - enlist some friends who aren't used to hearing him speak to practice his q&a and communication.
*show him how to apply for jobs thruogh the mail, in person and on the internet
*ESL, even if his english is good, it gets him out of the house and hey, it can't hurt
*transportation - if you have a bus system, show him the ropes. If not, get him driving ASAP
*volunteering - look anywhere and everywhere. It fills out space on the resume, provides references and keeps him busy until he can work/find a job. It was actually the husband's volunteer internship at a local non profit that helped him get his current position.
*if he needs more college, get him started asap
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-15 16:58:00
Middle East and North Africanewbie evidence question
Granted, we went through Cairo and that was almost 4 years ago, but here's what we included:

*Lots of pictures of us together, and a few with my family and him (they went to Egypt with me once), and a few with me and his family
*Stubs of train trips we took together and places we visited
*My boarding passes to Egypt + passport stamps - I also didn't fly into his hometown, no biggy.
*Copies of letters we exchanged + screen shots of our inboxes throughout our relationship + a selection of emails from throughout the relationship

We never stayed in a hotel, and didn't have any problem.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-15 12:14:00
Middle East and North AfricaAlhamdolilah Got our Visa!!

UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-17 12:00:00
Middle East and North AfricaFriday
If anyone wants snow, I'd be glad to send some. Heck, I'll trade places with you! We're expecting snow just about every day for the next few weeks. There are a few places in Northern Minnesota where it's been snowing for 19 days straight.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-19 11:34:00
Middle East and North AfricaFriday
Are they tame dolphins that have trainers who bring them up to you? We swam with dolphins in an open pool in Florida, and they just swam around and didn't come close. I know a lot of the resorts will have them trained to come up to you, which would be a lot cooler.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-19 10:28:00
Middle East and North AfricaFriday
There are tons of lasers at both petco and petsmart. If I had to buy another one, I'd look for one that you could click on and didn't have to hold a button. On mine, you have the hold the button down, and my thumb gets sore after awhile.

I have this one. It was the cheapest one there and came with an extra set of batteries.


UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-19 09:54:00
Middle East and North AfricaFriday
Yesterday was eventful:

*Got in a minor car accident. I was following a bit too close (still probably 30 feet behind a car) on the road by my house. He was breaking to turn, and my breaks wouldn't work! Stupid snow/ice! Thankfully, I only bumped into him going like 3 mph, and there was no damage. The guy was so nice, wasn't mad at all, and after a minute of looking for any damage, we were both on our way.

*Interrupted a drug deal in my apartment parking lot and got a death threat. I pulled into my spot and went to the passenger's side to get my groceries. The people in the car next to me were shooting me looks of death as I was next to their car, and I noticed bags of white powder and money being exchanged. They told me to walk away or they'd kill me wacko.gif I need to move.

In happier news, Squeaky the cat finally has a toy she likes. I got her every imaginable cat toy under the sun, and she's not impressed by any of them, except the laser pointer. We had some good times with that yesterday and this morning.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-19 09:01:00
Middle East and North AfricaHow long have you and your SO been together
Oh man Bridget, I still remember when you had just met your sweetie. I wonder if I still have those PMs somewhere in my CF inbox luv.gif
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-19 11:57:00
Middle East and North AfricaHow long have you and your SO been together
*Met 7 years ago
*Got married religiously 5 years ago
*Got married legally 3 years ago
*Been together in the US 3 years
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-18 15:04:00
Middle East and North AfricaMonday Bluezzz
If you're looking for an indian cookbook, I can't sing the praises of this book highly enough. I think I've been blathering about it non stop since I found it at a used bookstore a few weekends ago.

"The Varied Kitchens of India - Cuisines of the Anglo-Indians ofCalcutta, Bengalis, Jews of Calcutta, Kashmiris, Parsis and Tibetans of Darjeeling" by Copeland Marks

Looks like people have been taking my advice, because all the cheaper used copies have been snapped up whistling.gif If I didn't love it so much, I'd sell it and make a fortune. I think I got it for $8. I posted a recipe for fish curry in Sultan's Kitchen, and I'll probably type out more and post them when I have time.

The recipes are super easy and absolutely wonderful.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-22 14:17:00
Middle East and North AfricaMonday Bluezzz
QUOTE (sandrila @ Dec 22 2008, 10:27 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
btw where do you find halal chinese food??? blink.gif


Halal Chinese

If there isn't one in your area, just order seafood or vegetarian options, so long as they're not cooked with alcohol. My favorite restaurant as a kid was a cambodian restaurant in my hometown. Now whenever I go, I ask them to make me sesame tofu. They have sesame chicken on the menu, and they just use that sauce with tofu and veggies. Delicious!
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-22 11:48:00
Middle East and North AfricaMonday Bluezzz
My husband loooooooooooooooooooves chinese food. He knew I liked it, so when I went to Egypt the first time, he found us a dinner cruise that served chinese food. Now it's our tradition - chinese dinner cruise every time we go to egypt, and chinese food on special occasions here. Thankfully, we have a restaurant here that serves zabiha indo-chinese food, otherwise going 100% zabiha would have been near impossible blink.gif
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-22 09:36:00
Middle East and North AfricaMonday Bluezzz
You know it's cold when it's too cold for the salt to melt the ice on the road. Lots of accidents on the road to work today, but alhamdulilah, aside from a little slip and sliding, we made it a-ok.

No holiday plans, just staying home Wednesday and Thursday, hanging with my cat and the husband, maybe making some chinese food and watching some movies. I would go out for halal chinese food on Christmas, but I'm thinking I won't want to set foot outdoors if I dont' have to.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-22 08:09:00
Middle East and North AfricaPoll to help the newer members
*digs up k-1 timeline*

~3 months for an approval stateside, then forwarded on to Egypt
~sent in our paperwork to the embassy in mid June, they messed up, I called up and b*tched them out, and they scheduled him an interview asap, for early July
~5-6 weeks of AP, then the visa

Of course, that was like almost 4 years ago now, so who knows how accurate that would be.
UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-22 08:44:00
Middle East and North AfricaWomen arrested for wearing Hijab in traffic court!
bwahaha!

Police to get training after head-scarf wearer's arrest



QUOTE
In an interview with CNN's Rusty Dornin, Valentine said a bailiff told her she could not enter with her head scarf.

"I didn't pose a threat to anybody," Valentine said. "So I got really angry. I told her that was discrimination, and I said it was b.s. -- and I used the full term of the word."

She tried to leave, but the bailiff demanded that she appear before the judge, and pulled on her arm, Valentine said.

"I was right near the door. I said, 'Don't touch me.' And so she got in front of me," Valentine said. "... She called for a guard or a police officer. He came and then he just was near me, and was like, 'You're going to do what you're told to do.'

"And then he grabbed my arm, and of course instinctively I pulled it away. So he's like grabbing me and bending my arm, like you see people who are resisting arrest, and trying to get really physical with me. ... Then I said, 'OK, OK,' and I let them put the handcuffs on me."

Valentine said she would have had no problem with allowing a female officer to check under her head scarf to make sure she did not pose any danger.

Valentine said that when she told the judge what had happened, he sentenced her to 10 days in jail for contempt of court.



UmmSqueaksterFemaleEgypt2008-12-23 11:33:00