Rainboots!!

Excited does not begin to explain how I feel today. I woke up this morning to the lovely sound of pitter-patter. Usually, this sound would explicit a groan from me - rain...urg!! But today, my thoughts went to my shiny new rubber rain boots waiting in the closet. YES!!! I could wear my boots and with good reason too.

I put on my jeans, rolled up the pant legs enough to let a peak of rain boot delight flash through and smiled. I loved my new boots.

I felt like a stylish farmer girl.... How could the swirls of brown and blue flowers painted on my boots make me so happy??

Driving to work, each raindrop that fell on my windshield made me happier. I couldn't wait for my outdoor yard duty at school. As luck would have it, it was an indoor recess :(

Maybe not today but watch rain puddles - here I come!!

A long short kinda week

Have you noticed that short weeks always seem to drag on longer than a regular week?

First of all, I think Muslims should have Friday off - afterall it is Juma' .. shouldnt that count as a continuous religious holiday in addition to the weekend? Muslims are law abiding citizens and we follow the law of the land so we have to follow the Saturday and Sunday weekend rule. I mean, is it too much to ask to be able to attend Friday prayers? This will also help to eliviate the long short week stress I have been dealing with! I guess I may be fighting a losing battle there!

I am trying to figure out what helps to make the week go faster - keeping busy or doing nothing. This week had been a busy busy week, but that didnt help... and usually, I am glued to the tv doing nothing - that doesnt help.

Why is this soo complicated???

Well, Friday is here! Enjoy the weekend!!

The Vegetable Trick

I have been trying to watch what I eat. Someone told me to try not to mix protein and starch - so meat and veges or potatoes and veges. Not meat and potatoes with veges rotting in the fridge.

Now this makes it really hard to make Sheppard's Pie b/c the two main ingredients are potatoes and meat. Anyway, I was determined to try this new meal plan. So I made Sheppard's Pie today substituting the mashed potatoes with mashed cauliflower. When I served the food, Asif noticed a difference in the texture. I told him not to think too much about it - I tried a different recipe using a different kind of potato. I watched Abbas and Asif play with the food out of the corner of my eye. Abbas tried a little forkful.

"How is it Abbas?" I asked bright eyed.
"Its.... interesting" Abbas replied. He is too polite. He continued to eat.

I told Asif what it was and he pushed the plate aside and made himself some eggs. I was insistent that it was good and healthy! I had two helpings just to make a point. It was awful!

I have tons of this Sheppard's Pie left. Feel free to come over and try it before it goes into the compost!

Oh yea - the compost! I LOVE the compost!

The Lost Wallet

I resort back to retelling uninteresting blurbs about my life. At this point of my life, I have no insights, political/religious views I care enough about to share.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand - A lost wallet. On my way home on Wednesday after an exhilarating cycle class, I tried to fish for my wallet. My hook came up with NOTHING. I couldnt find my wallet! I was frantic and spent the first few minutes taking deep breaths in my car to calm myself.

I am thinking a few things -

1st thought - I lost my wallet at the mall I work out at. A few months ago, I lost my hijab at the gym... someone thought a two piece scarf held together with a safety pin was a good steal. Now, I lost my wallet! Are these signs? How am I to read these signs? What will be the next thing to get lost there - I sure aint losing any pounds!

2nd thought - When I lost my scarf, I thought it to be the funniest thing. I ran out the mall sheltered my by winter hood. However, when I lost my wallet, I was so upset. Shouldn't it be the opposite? Shouldn't I have been more stressed to have lost a symbol of my religion over a wallet of only materialistic importance (pointed out many times to me by Asif and my mom).

3rd thought - Having no one to listen to me complain at home, I shared my wallet story with my students at school. These 6 year olds impressed me to bits. After I shared, one of the kids put his hand up. "Ms. Fazal, I am going to look for your wallet everywhere", he said sincerely. Another kid said, "Ms. Fazal, I have a dollar to buy a snack, do you want it?". At the time, I started to laugh explaining to them that I had some money and thanked them for their kindness. As the day wore on, my thoughts went back to those kids. What a lesson in generosity and kindness I learned from that day - the day I lost my wallet!

Anis, if you are reading, I need a new wallet. Any samples??

Never ending Writer's Block

I have a problem. I dont know what to write about. Its weird! I think I have a bad case of writer's block. I havent updated my blog since the beginning of March, and I keep hoping something interesting will pop into my head to write about, but alas - the vacuum in my head is getting larger with every passing moment. What's going on?

I think facebook plays a role in this problem. While I worry about my writer's block, 30 grade 7 kids join me in the library...