Today, he ends his support of Isreal

subhanallah check out the link... this is why I cant hate all jews.... there are always people within faiths who arent extreme. Do you hate it when everyone assumes you are a muslim extreme terrorist?? Isnt it the same thing?

Xmas is here

So its here tomorrow.... this year is different. Usually I go up to my mums Christmas eve and stay for as few a day as possible, then back to work.. although the past 2 years I have also been going to the 'Reviving the Islamic Spirit' convention which lasts over 3 days masha'allah.. I will miss that this year, I have been following Organica's blog who is at the week long (I think) retreat before the convention masha'allah. Im hoping she passes on salams and hugs to a friend of mine, would be cool to think of them together :)

This year Im not working (obviously) so I have been at the family house for quite awhile now since coming back up North last tuesday. I will be here for the christmas holidays without a car although I have booked a car to rent from next Monday so insha'allah Im going to pop over to west Yorkshire to visit a few friends (you know who you are!)

I pray everyone has a quiet few days off and gets to spend time with family if they do celebrate christmas..

5 things I was doing 10 years ago

So Aalya tagged me with this, so Im gonna get it done now while I have the time sitting here doing zip :D
5 Things I was doing 10 years ago

1) Was 17 yrs old
2) Was just starting my 2nd year of A' levels (after deciding to resit my first year)
3) Was having tons of fun working part time at McDonalds
4) Was meeting new friends
5) Was going through a tough time with mums new boyfriend (husband now)

5 Things On My To-Do List (not in any order)

1) Learn new surahs from Quran
2) Find a job
3) Blogging new posts (esp stories)
4) settle down
5) Learn more about my deen & spread things with my family insha'allah

5 Snacks I Like (not in any order)

1) Chocolate
2) Dairy products (cheeses & milky drinks)
3) Fruit
4) little cakes
5) vegetables (carrots, cucumber etc)

5 things I would do if I was a millionaire

1) Give to charity
2) Travel, lots!!
3) Build my own home (and buy a house for mum & the in-laws)
4) Get a farm with lots of animals in another country
5) Have my own business so I could work from home


5 places I have lived ( for various lengths of times)

1) Mississauga, Canada
2) Liverpool, UK
3) Cambridge, Canada
4) Bradford, UK
5) St Albans, UK

5 Jobs I have had

1) Staff trainer, McDonalds
2) Researcher, Home Office
3) Chemist
4) QA technician
5) cleaner (while at uni!)

5 people I Tag

Aalia @ Chasing Jannah

Nora @ hairdressing diaries
Khadijah @ her everyday life
Molly over in her sandbox
Ummihabibati, there sharing her thoughts

Hyde Park mosque

1 & 2. Breakfast 3 & 4. upstairs in the masjid
So Im now back in Liverpool, which obviously means that I left London today. I went out for breakfast with the sister I have been staying with, shes working 12-8 this week so we got up around 9am and went across the street for croissant & hot drinks at a cute little place called Raoul's which was nice. Then I went back to the flat sorted out my bags more, gave her a hug, let her leave for work... packed a little bag of food then set out. Got the 414 bus all the way to the London Hilton hotel (hyde park) and walked to the masjid... Thats when I saw it, signs saying they were doing renovation in the womens area so its closed Monday - Thursday.. I could have cried!! What was I going to do? So I stood outside, I got talking to one of the workmen (well he started talking to me!) about Islam none the less.. tried to tell me that I was wrong in thinking that I possibly understand the trinity, apparently that knowledge is only given by God through the Holy spirit! Anyways, I was stood outside when one of the workmen came outside and sort of muttered something to me. The initial workmen said to me 'sorry, did you want to go inside?' I was just nodding my head like... ooh can i? hehee.. so they pulled my suitcase in and were trying to find the guy who had mentioned it (he was praying) I spotted a sign for a 2nd prayer room upstairs, so I wandered upstairs, which was pretty big.. I was impressed, oh but let me tell you what the workman told me... they are making the ladies prayer area bigger downstairs by at least 1 room (if you know the layout of the mosque) maybe even the 2 rooms insha'allah which would be really nice to see next time Im down insha'allah.

So now im back with my family. Yes my khimar has come off but I still have hijab in my heart and I feel that my iman is stronger while Im here with my family. I have to fight stronger to do things here and God knows what is in my heart.

East London

So yesterday I hooked up with ummhabibati and some of her funky crew masha'allah. So here are some pics. We had tons of fun.. then went back for yummy aero hot choc and talked for hours :D it was cool... and good to finally meet her after so long masha'allah. So heres what the pics are

1 & 2. some buildings around canary wharf 3. me & the sister 4. shop window 5. sign to prayer room :) masha'allah 6. ladies taxi hehee 7. River thames

After seeing this on inquisitive muslimahs blog.. I thought I would do something similar and see who else has a list to do :D

1. Started your own blog (of course!! although too many to count)
2. Slept under the stars (Started off in a tent that was too overcrowded)
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland (twice)
8. Climbed a mountain (boring field trips as a kid, that I would love to do again with a good camera now)
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumping
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch (does cross stitching count as an art?)
15. Adopted a child (insha'allah in the future)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight (who hasnt?)
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill (of course!)
24. Built a snow fort (never grew up in the snow, so unfortunately not)
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors (hmm dont know exactly where my ancestors came from.. does the country count?)
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language (not yet.. but intention is there for 2)
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied (always satisfied alhamdulillah, without the money)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa (insha'allah in the future)
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkelling (Turtle Islands in Turkey)
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class (it was ballet or karate as a kid)
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies (we dont do that in UK.. but I was in girl guides)
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason (just for being his girl)
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma (never been able to, seriously!)
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter (over Niagara heee)
69. Saved a favourite childhood toy (carry it on all my travels)
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (my toe after a silly dive into a holiday pool)
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible (Read the Quran)
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby (Inshallah one day)
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone (several)
99. Been stung by a bee (a wasp)
100. Read an entire book in one day

Eid mubarak

1. Notting Hill tube station 2, 3 & 5 Some of the stalls at the Eid event 4. my hennaed hand :) 6 & 7. Some of the art work on sale there 8. Dinner with the girls :)

So the day of Eid is officially over in the country I am in! Insha'allah it has been a good day for everyone out there... it was weird for me, Im used to praying at cambridge masjid then driving the hour to deal with the traffic and chaos of Toronto. Alhamdulillah it was different this time.. I missed my friends, terribly! More than I imagined I would... I missed, the whole guessing game of what Nadia is doing for Eid and whether I would see her at some point. I missed randomly bumping into girls I hadnt seen for ages at the Rogers Centre. I missed spending time with Aminah and trying to find her a husband. ;) I missed being able to organise things to see other friends.. but alhamdulillah

Anyways, so I went to the Eid event in Ruislip.. it was far but took me about an hour to get to. I decided to walk from the tube station to the community centre after seeing my bus drive past, only to get to the stop the directions gave me and not be able to see the centre. Alhamdulillah I bumped into a cute family and sort of adopted them masha'allah... we got to the centre a little late but alhamdulillah it started late (as usual) and although the salah was supposed to be 9am (and a second at 10am) we only started around 10am.. it was outside in a marquee with carpet on the floor that had soaked up the moisture from the grass and was making my bones cold, which wasnt good seeing as I think Ive finally kicked this cold. Eventually we were allowed into the halls to the stalls and the food.. I bought some bits that were very not for that time of a morning, but I was hungry and cold so I didnt really mind.

After dhuhr I made my way back into central London, I actually found my own way to Hyde Park mosque (very pleased with myself, incase you didnt realise!) After this I met up with the girl Im staying with and we went to eat in Covent Gardens with another flat mate and a mutual friend of ours through Nadia masha'allah... We had fun alhamdulillah.

On the way back I phoned my auntie.. my grandad has been taken in to hospital again last week.. they havent determined what the pain is that he keeps having. I only pray that they will be able to figure it out soon and sort it, rather than letting him out and him having to go through it all again. Insha'allah. I think Im going to book my tickets back up north tomorrow for next week insha'allah. Then stay up there till the after the new year if I havent got a job by then that is.. Allahu alim.

Well my readers... its late and I still have to pray isha.. Ive just been chatting with me girl dee who always manages to put a smile on my face alhamdulillah. Enjoy the photos
Peace and salams, Ammena

Its here

I know I havent posted any updates lately.. soon insha'allah, but for now I just wanted to wish you all Eid mubarak for tomorrow insha'allah. I will be going here for Eid prayer and then sticking around.. a friend from up north is helping out there so will be nice to check in with her insha'allah. early night for me.. thinking about leaving around 730am insha'allah... so remember me in your duaa ;) Remember the ummah... and remember your creator who allowed you to see this holiday alhamdulillah

Beer or not?

remember the issues I was having? well the issue is no longer that. Alhamdulillah... I didnt get the job :D Still waiting to hear about the other one, insha'allah I will give the agency a call tomorrow. Just wanted to let you all know

Multi tasking

Its supposed to be a female trait right?? I know there are guys that can do it to but for me its a running joke, as many guys around me know. Anyways back to the reason for the post.. why does it surprise me when my friend asks me 'What are you watching tv and on your computer?'

erm... yes!!
Thats nothing compared to the numerous things I usually do

Once again

.... yes Im still here & yes Im still sick.. granted a little better.. my ears arent blocked as much, my stomach doesnt feel as queezy when I bend for sujood alhamdulillah and my nose isnt as blocked, its more runny now. My Grandad woke me up at 10am today, needless to say I didnt talk to him but he left a message on my answering machine. Hes gone to church now so insha'allah Ill talk to him later.
Ive been up for over an hour now and couldnt really give you a useful insight into what Ive done during that time expect upload a few pics onto facebook and check out a few sites. Im eagerly awaiting what this week has to give me... just think, this time next week I could be house hunting or be on my way back from the North after collecting clothes.. Allahu alim. Whatever it will be Im sure it is for the best reasons. Im a little nervous to be honest but I just pray that it goes ok insha'allah.

Anyways, the weather is miserable here as usual but Im hungry and its time for dhuhr :)
Peace and salams, Ammena

Ammena is....

.... stuck in bed with flu :( but alhamdulillah interviews out the way.. just got to wait to hear back from agencies some time next week insha'allah.

So predicament about one of the jobs... so this company deals with research into the coating involved in food packaging to protect the food/beverage and the packaging. The guy told me that they rotate the work and some of the machines they use are amazing.. it would definately help me in the future with the experience. So heres the issue.. every week he says they have 50-100 samples of beverages in the cans and periodically test them to see how much of the packaging (ie the metals) have seeped into the liquid. By liquid I also mean beer too! I wouldnt be touching the liquid as I would have gloves on and I wouldnt be working with copious amounts to be affected by evapourated fumes or anything...
Comments on a postcard to Ammena's Adventures
Peace and salams, Ammena

Short and sweet

1. the new 2nd cup :) well maybe not as nice as the white hot choc or the hot apple cider, but beggars cant be choosers now! 2. Edgeware Road 3. My local food eatery... I like the girls here and they even gave us free cakes the other day when I bought some to bring home for Nashwa :) masha'allah

So Im sat here looking at a few links for the job interview I have today.. I have interviews today and tomorrow... insha'allah will see what happens.. Im a little nervous to be in hijab for interviews, although I was when I started my last job in Canada.. I just pray that it isnt an issue, and if it is.. well its not the job for me!! Allahu alim.

Anyways.. short and sweet, event though I should prob leave in 20mins Im thinking to leave early. I have to pick up my tickets at the train station and get some money out to pay for the taxi at the other end... more money to pay out!! but insha'allah it will be worth it.. I was looking at flats just outside cambridge the other day (my interview tomorrow is just north of the city) and I found 2 bedroomed places for around 650quid a month which I was pleasantly surprised at.. maybe a 1 bedroom will be enough for now though.. will see, I have to stop getting ahead of myself! ;)

Peace and salams,
Ammena

Is there wisdom in my madness?

Could someone tell me the physiological implications behind my reasoning of needing to brush my teeth before a phone interview? Back later for London updates insha'allah :)

Sorry

salam everyone.. i apologise for the time that has lapsed since I have last been on here and filled you in on my life. I know I didnt get back to that looking back list that I wanted to do, but I still havent had time and will probably put it off for a few months until I get myself settled.

I havent written lots since I came over, which I didnt intend to do and to be honest I havent really been THAT busy just consumed with family which has been good. I spent time with the aunty whos husband died back in May.. my mums side of the family is hard, there are constant battles and secrets, health problems and mental problems... my mum is one of 8 so there are many relatives, I will visit 2 when Im down south. I get on particularly well with one cousin, shes very frank and very open minded masha'allah, when I moved over to Canada I asked her what she would say if I told her I was muslim, her answer? I knew before you did... lol :) Shes currently obsessed with Egypt and has been about 5 times this year so far I think, she said she would move over there in a heartbeat and was questioning me about the different styles of covering that women wear. Shes always been there for me when I wanted to complain about my mum and how shes been, shes always stuck up for me and I know she will love me as long as I love myself alhamdulillah.

So tomorrow I get the train down to London insha'allah

On the job front.. alhamdulillah Ive had a few phone calls from the agencies, some havent gone well and some Im still waiting to hear from... I had a call today about a job in Cambridge (well 2 actually) insha'allah I have a phone interview tomorrow, but the job is only a 6 month contract position. There is also another one.. about the same distance in the other direction (just past Oxford) both jobs sounds pretty interesting.. but will see.. insha'allah it will work out. Remember me in your duaa peeps :)

On another note... it started snowing in my area in Canada, and im here!!! in the greys of UK :( sucky and a half!! Allahu alim

Thats me for now...
Peace and salams, Ammena

Ooh, pics from weekend

I forgot to post about the fab time I had with 2 friends on the weekend
1. we found the nicest vegetarian restaurant opposite from the mosque and underneath the buddist centre in Manchester, highly recommended! 2. my hot apple and cinnamon, not quite 2nd cup but nice all the same :D 3. the inside of the mosque from the womens section, you can just see the lovely moroccan screen partition to the left 4. interesting sign I thought ms eyeS might get a crack from 5. the arndale centre 6. Im guessing manchesters answer to the london eye.. pitiful for nice next to the buildings :) masha'allah

Monday

So today I was supposed to travel into the city centre of Liverpool to meet up with my best friend from school. I got to the bus stop waiting for the bus that would take me to Wigan train station which would then take me to Liverpool train station, when I received a text message from her saying she would have to cancel. I was gutted, but it was for a good reason she thought her waters had broke so had to go into hospital. I just got another text from her about an hour ago saying all was well alhamdulillah, shes due on Sunday I think... so insha'allah it all works out ok.

Ive spoken to a few friends in UK since arriving and its always good to hear their voices, especially those who I havent talked to in ages. Like my mate Nazish... I met her on islamic penpals when I was at uni and on a visit to see another friend in Coventry we went over to Leicester to meet up with her. She commented on the change in my accent... noooo she never said it was canadian!!! before you ask... she said its a thicker scouse accent hehee.

Insha'allah there will be travels to document in the upcoming future :) to Liverpool, back to Manchester to meet up with Jules insha'allah and down to London to meet the algerian ladies :D insha'allah... look out for the pics :D
Peace and salams, Ammena

Arrived

salam everyone,
so im here, in UK finally once again. How did it go? well thats what Im back to tell you. The flight was fine, I was one of the first on and settled into the only slightly bigger than normal leather seat. I was given a glass (yes glass!) of OJ and we waited for the flight to take off, I was on the aisle seat of 3 with 2 old english ladies who wouldnt shut up for practically the whole flight. We were given a drink and a little glass tub of snacky things... then the movie started 'Get Smart' which was ok and makes a change it being something I havent seen. They came around to give people opinions for their evening meals and stopped by me with the question 'did you ask for a vegetarian meal?' I got a starter of leaves (spinach & lettuce) tomato & cucumber with a balsamic dressing and a bread roll then for main course (in a ceramic dish may I add!) a pasta dish with tomato sauce and roasted peppers. Was nice, yummy. I watched the end of the film, pulled my hood over my eyes and slept until we were just desending into Manchester.

I got off the plane eventually after waiting about 15 minutes because the ground staff had pulled the plane too far forward to be connected to the airport via the walkway. When I got to the carasel I noticed my bags already going around which was good to see, I picked them up and waited for my snowboard. After about 30 minutes I was getting impatient and wondered if it had been pulled off by the guy working near the entrance, I noticed someone walking away with a pram so the idea could be right, there was just lots of people in the way. I moved the trolley as far as I could and noticed the bag on the floor straight away especially as a girl picked it up with a questioning look on her face. I asked someone to keep an eye on my trolley and ran for my bag, then made my way to the main doors with some woman holding the end of my bag thinking she was helping me but was making it more difficult to get around.

So I sat outside and phoned my auntie to tell her I had picked up my bags and waited for about an hour before she turned up with my dad. We loaded the bags into the car and set off for home. And thats where I am now :) I spoke to a few family members and some friends, been to Asda a few times for mainly food and a new mobile, and bought a new power connection for my laptop just now. Im looking for train tickets to go down to London a week on monday or tuesday insha'allah found one for 13 quid.. just waiting to hear if its a good deal or not.

Well, its nearly 8pm and I do want to stay on to see if I catch any friends in Canada (aalya & anisah look out for me) so far everything is fine here, Im able to pray in relatively more peace than at my mums. I spoke with her yesterday which ended in tears (hers not mine) while saying goodbye but shes ok alhamdulillah. Take care
Peace and salams, Ammena

Last weekend

Aalya at 2nd cup
So its my last weekend here in Canada for awhile now and on Friday I decided to make the most of it and see some friends before my mum called a curfew for wanting to spend my last few days with her. The plan was lunch at licks with Nadia, coffee with Aalya, coffee with Ameenah, meetup with Noreen, Tea (food) with Kathy, night at Aminahs and breakfast with Melissa.. this is how it went... I picked up Nadia and we went to licks for nature burgers, anyone visiting around the toronto area has to look out for this small but successful burger chain and try one of these burgers, they are amazing!!! Then we decided to go for juice at square 1 and ended up walking around a little. I texted Aalya to ask her to meet me in square 1 cause I was full from the yummy pina colada juice then we bumped into a dear friend of mine alhamdulilah, Dalya who I was intending on popping around to her house later in the evening with a stitching present. We chit chatted for quite awhile and arranged for me to pop over later.. shes been super busy with wedding preps (November 7th insha'allah) so we start to walk back to the food court and stop at a salon that Nadia wanted to book an appointment in and we bump into another friend Tahmina... yes everyone was in square 1 on friday afternoon alhamdulillah. We chatted for abit and left there to meet Aalya at the food court, Nadia took our pic and headed off with the promise to come around to Aminahs later.

We sat down and chilled for abit then walked around to Old Navy in the search for new jeans for me, in the end we drove over to 2nd cup without new jeans (well for me anyways) Sitting there was nice, we were there for like 2 maybe more hours and had a nice time.. we talk about random stuff, but I feel she is the one who understands my situation more than anyone, as much as they want to.. u never really know unless you are in it which she sort of is and Im grateful for having her as a friend alhamdulilah. We waited together for Ameenah who got lost and stuck in traffic so we ended up cancelling, me & Aalya stayed around for a little longer then just before 6pm we split up and I went to pray at Nadias house which was close.

Then I met an old friend from when I first started working at Barrday, she was a coop student there and we used to meet for lunch and stuff :) shes a cool girl, very pretty masha'allah. I havent seen her in soo long, so was good to catch up with her at Spring Rolls and be filled in on what shes been up to alhamdulillah.

After that I popped back to Dalyas to give her the stitching present I made for her ages ago.. yeh thats how often I see her lol.. we sat down and chatted for over an hour though and was good because we wont get the chance to do it much in the future either. Allahu alim. Anyways, then I left to drive over to Aminahs and we stayed up until after 4am chatting.. Tahmina came over after 12 for abit and Nadia came over after 2 for a few hours.. was good to be with the girls alhamdulillah.

In the morning I met Melissa for breakfast at Muddy Duck.. was nice,shes been having some health issues lately that seem to be more serious than mine, so was good for perspective alhamdulilah. She also mentioned to me when leaving that she said to her bfriend about me 'You know Ammena is one of those friends that you dont have to be around 24/7 we can not be in touch for months and months, then when we get together and sit down.. conversation flows and its like I saw her yesterday' That made me smile alhamdulilah :)

Im going to miss everyone, but Im grateful for everything everyone who I have come into contact with in this country has given me. Alhamdulillah.

ooh.. you should have

So last week I stopped by my ex-local post office to post off a relatively large ($45 shipping worth) of hijabs to Ines :D jazakAllah khair sis :) Anyways, the woman behind the counter enquires about my situation because she was the person who I gave in the notice the weekend before to get my mail redirected to my mums. It was nice she remembered my situation but then she always has. So she started off the next conversation like this,
Her: so what are you?
Me: confused look, huh?
Her: like your religion?
Me: while writing Ines address on the envelope, Islam, Im a muslim
It was pretty normal until then, then it went plain old weird and somewhat offensive
Her: so are you a strict one?
Me: laughs, depends what you mean by strict
Her: well do you eat the...
I stop her, Im vegetarian I tell her, so I dont eat any meat... thats a personal choice, not a religious
Her: but they dont eat the erm.... beef though do they
Me: I smile, thats hindus and sikhs... muslims dont eat pork
She starts nodding like she totally understands, maybe she did.. who knows... Then she asks about my family, if my parents eat 'the pork' yeh... shes canadian!! I tell her yes they do because they arent muslim. At this point I was getting tired and I wanted to finish off my errands but she carried on, but shes confused and looks at me point blank until I tell her I converted awhile ago... ooh she says and nods like that just explains it all
Her: I knew when I first saw you that you were different, I said to myself as I saw you wearing that head thing that you didnt look like one of them
At this point I could get really offended but she still hasnt finished my packages so I let her go on, she proceeds to ask why I started looking into Islam
Me: I looked into cathodicism and I still had the same issues as with chrisitianity
Her: Ooh, you should have chose that, thats what I am!
At that point I was flabbergasted and thats where I will finish this post after telling you about a little bit regarding The kite runner
Her: Have you read his other book? One thousand splendid suns?
Me: I have it, but I havent gotten around to reading it yet
Her: When I read it, I swear if one of those guys were in the same room I would have slapped them. I know I know its their...
she went to say religion and I butted in
Me: Its not their religion its their culture (I dont even know the situation shes talking about but just guessed)
She nodded
Her: yeh yeh, I know
and passified me! she passified me! subhanallah... at that point I dropped the whole thing and thanked her for the help. Allahu alim

The move

So yesterday I 'unofficially' moved from Cambridge to my mums, I saw unofficial because it was supposed to be permanent but being the procrastinator I am, time slipped by ;) and my mum wanted me back by hers for a certain time. So I packed the car with as much stuff as I could and headed over with the intention to go back another day and finish things off insha'allah. So now Im at my mums, bored cause theres noone to talk to bar the dog and the numerous phone calls I have been making to the doctors to find out my test results (with no such luck) Insha'allah Ill be going back to Cambridge tomorrow to get the rest of my stuff, lunch with a friend and maybe coffee with a sister (i havent asked her yet) Got to drop off some things at value village & my modem at rogers, then thats it! I got a little emotional yesterday, saying goodbye to a friend who had helped me clean a little and was standing outside my building. Its been my home for nearly 2 years now.. its my longest abode since moving to canada, and longest since I left my home back in uk to go to uni in 2000. Its also the first place I have settled, a big space all to myself with proper rooms and bills and things. My last place was a room, this was a 2 bedroomed flat and Im going to miss it tons.. I think I will probably have a little cry before leaving tomorrow. Not looking forward to that!
Anyways, I just wanted to keep you all up to date with my little adventures over here.. still dont know whos picking me up from the airport, got 1 suitcase packed with 70lbs so just the other one to sort out insha'allah. Trying to get my car transferred over to my mum at the moment.
Had a busy weekend apart from the packing, I went out for lunch on saturday with a friend I met at the mosque. We chatted, its been awhile since we met up and so much has happened in both our lives since then. I went to watch saw V with a friend from work... wasnt impressed! then we went for thai food for a few hours and discussed our future apart :( Then I drove out to Milton and met my snoboarding buddy who I used to work with.. that was nice, we havent seen each other in soo long and I was touched that (even with 2 kids) she met me past 8pm to sit with me for 2 hours alhamdulillah.
So for the next week, cambridge tomorrow, thursday at mums, friday Im going to mississauga to meet up with Nadia, Aalya and insha'allah stay the night at Aminahs, then breakfast with my friend Melissa from college.. then back up to mums until I leave on the tuesday then. Mums got the tuesday off, which will make for interesting times and thats when I fly. Think Im going to try this live blogging like iM hehee... sat at the airport blogging about the planes ;) will see. I also have a few pics I want to eventually upload, whether here or in uk.. need to put on facebook, so watch out.

Anyways, remember me in your duaa everyone, for my health, my deen and my future insha'allah. Peace and salams, Ammena

Outlandish

So I saw these guys perform live at RIS 2006 if I remember correctly they were the only group in the whole concert that I enjoyed :) but I dont understand why I didnt really get into them... Today Ive been listening to a few of their tracks.. they have some talent masha'allah. I think they are a good group for those trying to move away from mainstream music but not yet strong enough to stay away from it properly for whatever reason. I also love the fact that a lot of the songs incorporate the cultures of all of the group, esp the languages of them all 'although their songs are primarily in English, they usually feature lyrics in Spanish, Urdu/Punjabi, Danish, and Arabic' You may hear some french too masha'allah. Here are some of the ones I especially like
Guantanamo

Callin u

Walou '04

Aicha

The other half

ok, so after a busy week.. ive finished work now and since I got a little poke from ines thought i would fill you in on the other half of my last weekend...

Where was I? oh yes.. the party... so in turn a few people turned up and we brought out a little food.. there wasnt too much, but it was enough and nice all the same.. cocktail sticks with cherries, pineapples & cheese on em :D we sat around chatting and discussing some very random topics masha'allah. In the end the girls who stayed the longest were Ms eyesS, my close friend aminah and a sister i met at the mosque during taraweeh prayers last year masha'allah.. it was interesting, the different walks of life these girls have all had and what brought us all together. My mosque friend asked how everyone knew me and a few girls actually knew each other before me.. like aminah went to uni with my friend filza and in turn aminah introduced me to filza when I moved to cambridge. She commented that she was an outsider because she only knew me.. made me smile, I was the mutual reason that a few people were there and I like that.. I have made some close friends here in canada, friends I dont think i would have made in england and i question these friendships constantly. As Ms eyesS left later in the evening (around 1am) it got emotional.. I admit I havent been the best friend with keeping in touch with her, she has always been the one to visit me in canada when she has been up, and I only went to see her last august (when she moved down like 3 years ago or something) for that i apologise and i pray she forgives me. I also pray that she comes to visit me in uk in the near future.. i would love to show her the things I have talked to her about, for her to meet bro A cause he knows all about her :D masha'allah. To see the friends I have there and, of course, to take her shopping!! heehee. insha'allah. Aminah mentioned it was amazing to see the friends I had made in such a short space of time, the people I had touched.. and I tell you, that nite was a little eye opener... and I need those once in awhile. I decided to rethink my 'friends list' noo.. not on facebook, you ninnies!! in my life!! But i was warned to not try to change how I am... Im the organiser you see, i sort out getting together with people and badger them until its done.. but Im getting to a point now were it exhausts me (physically & mentally) and Im sick of being let down! will see.. its been a hassle trying to fit everyone in to my schedule before I leave here too! but thats another post.

On sunday we woke early and aminah left for an islamic history exhibition at the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) I pottered around for a few hours then left to make my way to nadias to drive to the aqiqah. This was the first aqiqah i have ever been to and didnt really know what to expect, although 2 ppl had told me all it was was food... I knew the whole reasoning and the slaughtering thing behind it, but being the veggie that i am i didnt really get into that! so i just sat back and enjoyed the time with my friends. I met up with a dear friend who has moved to london and was back for a few weeks, this was to be the 1 and only time i would see her here before i meet up with her there. Insha'allah shes offered me a place to sleep while i sort myself out.. so its good to know we will be seeing some new things there together, and she wants to do some travelling when Im back too insha'allah :D so looking forward to that :) The whole day was nice.. I left around 830pm with the promise to meet up with a few girls before I left insha'allah.. memorable weekend, alhamdulillah.

There were a few things I didnt do this weekend that I regret, but Allahu alim. I wish I had taken pictures while I was moving and that I had took my camera up to my mums, I saw some lovely horses on the side of the road that I would have stopped for.. and a few nice shots of my mum with Nadia, 'shes a nice girl' she tells me :D erm.. yeh I know!! lol

Anyways, I should probably get around to finish tidying up.. Im meeting a friend for lunch in an hour :D Watch out for more soon :D
Peace and salams,
Ammena

The weekend

so I promised to fill you all in and that is my intention insha'allah.. where do I start?? Friday night... Nadia actually got to my house late, around 945 ish but was good to see her eventually when she knocked on my door with her duvet, pillow & bags :) We talked for a little before realising she hadnt eaten and headed off to Quizno's for a sandwich, decided to try baskin robbins for ice cream afterwards too. However, it was shut and we ended up at Crabby Joes for dessert where I ordered the sickest (take it whatever slang way you want!) chocolate cake. We had such fun with my camera, with the brown paper covered table and crayons provided and with each other. I cant remember the last time we had that much fun... its been awhile but it was good to experience again. I always have so much fun with Nadia and feel like Im totally myself around her, she knows who I am, I know who she is and we dont care how everyone else is! Shes my friend and I know I can rely on her for anything, well except to show up on time.. but who out of my 'friends' can I say that about?? Anyways, we went back... watched a little bit of mean machine, boxed things a little, talked more and slept.
I woke up early (7am) to get myself sorted and ready to pick up the van at u-haul, the guy had told me I could turn up at 8 but there would be people before me to pick up their vans.. erm, excuse me? what happened to first come first served?? Anyways, I got there just before 8 and guess who was the first to be served? well me, of course!!! I picked up the van and headed over to Tim Hortons to grab coffee and croissants for my helpers :D I got back to my place and was able to finish up a little bit more packing before the others arrived, then we set about organising. It took 4 of us about an hour to load the van.. that was with chatting, laughing and eating in between moving backwards and forewards which was pretty good timing. Im upset that I didnt take a few pictures, I would have liked a nice pic of my helpers infront of the van or something :( to remember the day I moved my stuff out of cambridge, but oh well. Allahu alim... so we left for my mums about 1030, dropped a few boxes (my islamic boxes) at Nadias and arrived at my mums about 1150 -Nadia didnt realise the speedo was in miles lol.. sorry, just wanted to get that in :D heehee.. i thought it was funny to watch her speeding down the 401 thinking to myself, that girl hasnt driven in uk.. and she isnt seeing how slow everyone around her is driving lol :D
When we got to my mums, I was a little nervous... you prob all know my mum has a thing about pakistanis, and i hadnt told her nadia was, I just didnt think it was important.. anyways, we turn up, she backed the van into the drive and we went in for a cup of tea. We all sat and chatted, of course my mum and stepdad asked her all the usual questions, esp since she has lived in UK and doesnt hide it for a minute that she would run back if she had the chance. So there were lots of comments, questions and little silences but it went very well alhamdulillah. My mum even told her to come back to visit before I leave :D We left about 230 and made our way back to cambridge, got stuff in a massive queue and finally got to mine about 430ish i think maybe even later.. I tidied up a little, well tried and we chilled for a bit while waiting for people to arrive. There were less people coming now after 4 cancelled on me that morning, but alhamdulillah i was still expecting some good friends to turn up...
and that, my friends, is enough for this evening... I really should get some work done insha'allah
Peace and salams, Ammena

Its empty...

... my apartment. Not as empty as having nothing here, but empty all the same and Ive just been shouted at for saying 'Its a little depressing now' Yes, Im gettin emotional.. Im going to miss it here, but alhamdulilah i have lots of nice memories to take with me and new friends I will meet in the future on my visits back. I suppose its not just the move thats getting to me, its the new life thats waiting for me over in UK.. it scares me a little. Allahu alim.

Waiting

Just cooking something to eat while waiting for my friend (she just left lol) Its been a busy day alhamdulilah, I slept in :( set my alarm for 11am, woke up at the dhuhr adhan :( which means lost out on 2 packing hours.. alhamdulillah making up for it now :P So of course I missed jummah :( which made me sad when I realised I didnt know if I would be able to go for another jummah in Canada. Allahu alim, looking forward to all of them in UK though insha'allah. Had dr appointment in afternoon, which ended up taking 2 hours out of my day. Got to go back for some more tests and an ultrasound next week, so keep me in your duaa peeps insha'allah. I had blood taken after mentioning I was thinking of changing to soy milk from the homo (3.25% fat) she wanted to check my chlorosterol but said she didnt think I should worry about changing it too much.. esp since Ive lost quite abit of weight too! I didnt realise how much :( yeh Ive gone down to 107lbs 7 1/2 stone which means Im back to my pre uni days which is nice to think of :P considering all the rubbish I started eating at uni lol... but she did show concern to this and my BMI being on the nearing underwight for my height (162cm / 5ft 4in) Allahu alim. It has caused havoc with my womanly insides thought, so insha'allah it will fix itself. I thought it might have been from fasting, but its been awhile since I finished fasting now... then I have to think of the 'stress' Im under heehee.. :D
Halloween party dress up: a witch or Jason (the hockey dude murderer) ??? please vote :D
Anyways, remember my in ur duaa insha'allah... ok, back to packing or food...
Peace and salams, Ammena

I suck

Yup, feel free to admit it. I do freely!!!
I was looking at changing my template, decided against it and was thinking of ways to shorten the transition to find that it had been shortened for me. So I lost all my links :( So if you read my blog but I dont have your link... tell me!! Or better yet, follow me! Then I can follow you and add you instantly. Please!! I think I can feel the withdrawal coming on all ready.
But on a lightly note, how do you like the new background?

So, where have I been??

Hello my friends, well I have been around.. Ive chatted with some of you on msn & yahoo but I havent been on my blog much. Only really to check updates and approve comments, so here I am back at work for 2 nights with not much to do so I thought what better time than to fill you all in on my comings and goings.
Trust me when I say I havent been that interesting :) just busy as per usual.. which probably wont come as a surprise to some of my readers out there. I havent been shopping and I havent been eating properly either :( but all I seem to have been doing is trying to pack my life into as few boxes as possible and somehow tidy my apartment. Oh and get stressed out about looking for a job. I have managed to rent my apartment for that month, so I wont have to pay for it (although I already have, I will get the money back insha'allah) All my utilities have been cancelled, so not much else to really worry about... just getting these boxes packed and ready to move. Ive rented a van for Saturday, I have 2 friends from work coming early doors to help me aswell as my mate Nadia :) insha'allah Id like to take a few pics of them working.. so keep an eye out. Im getting very emotional lately about leaving here, Barrday, Cambridge, Canada so I can imagine this to be a big day.
Im also getting ready for party weekend :) Im organising a party for saturday at my place.. insha'allah lots of people coming, and def be pics to show insha'allah.. then on sunday Im going to a friends baby's aqiqah... Ive never been to one before, so should be interesting to talk about. Then I only have 3 days of work left....
Bro A is still in Algeria *huff* after supposing to be back on Tuesday, he decided Nov 2nd.. now hes thinking October 26th because hes getting a little fed up of being over there now.. I knew it!! I swear, everytime he goes, depending on how long its been since he last went, he gets fed up and starts missing London. I dunno what it is! Im a little nervous about going back because, well we dont have jobs and we dont have a place to live... but insha'allah it will all work out. Remember me in your duaa ladies (oh and dubai dude who started following my blogs :D)
Ive also been working more on my stories and got a lot for publishing in the near future which includes the finishing parts to the current series :D insha'allah you all like it, please read and comment.. it makes things easier for me when I have feedback :D
Anyways, i should be working so Im gonna get back to it.. Im currently in the midst of matchmaking too :D I love this job lol..
Peace and salams, Ammena

So Solid Crew

Blue and maybe a touch of neon orange

So what dya think?? I found this really cute dress (actually the pic is the back of it) its got a ballerina type cross over front, from Old Navy. I know how you girls all love your heels, so I found these 2 cute pairs that arent too bad in the pain stakes department. I think the top ones go best, but the bottom ones add a touch of colour with the blue from the jeans in them too. As for me, trainers are the way to go and I love adidas classics... so I found this pair which goes perfectly alhamdulillah. So if you are going to be like me with the trainers, I would go for the orange hijab, I actually wanted to find a 2 piece but I couldnt find any out there. I would probably go for the more casual bag with that outfit too, the pretty one although it has a touch of orange in I think goes best with the heels. :D

Ive finished one

And I have decided to only take the one Im currently working on back to UK with me for the time being. I really cant see myself having much time to sit down and stitch. What with having to get used to being a wife, working, my language classes and IT help for Ines ;) Allahu alim. I have a few friends from Canada coming over at some point next year and I will be back to visit next year, so I can pick things up then or ask them to bring them over insha'allah.
Im very pleased with how this one turned out and I even framed it too. Although Im sure it could be framed better in the future insha'allah. I know exactly who its going to and insha'allah she likes it :) Wanted to thank Ren for the pattern for this stitching masha'allah

The things that have kept me away

Assalamalikum my lovely readers...
its been awhile since I last wrote, I know that and i apologise. I have been writing new stories on my other blog and generally been living life day by day, alhamdulillah. There has been many updates over the last few days that I have wanted to share with you all yet not really got the push to sit down to write a particular blog about it all. So now, here I am ready and waiting.
So on Monday I got an email with my flight ticket to find that they have changed the times of my flight. You may or may not remember that I chose this particular flight because of the late time (2325) so that my mum could have time with me after finishing work before flying out. The time has now been changed to 1905, so with the 'be there 3 hours before' it means she will have to take time off work to take me if she wants to be there. Her answer? well I will see what I can do, but Im not promising anything. Whatever! Anyways, it means I will be in UK sooner.. 7am I land in oppose to around 1130am :D so thats the plus side. Then of course I had the one sided argument of why I couldnt get a weekend flight to which I replied I couldnt find one which of course she doesnt believe cause she flew on a weekend last yr and our old neighbours just flew on a weekend.. Again, I didnt think properly until when I put the phone down.. the companies seem to fly in seasons, so after the end of sept one company I usually fly with stops flying to Manchester. Another stops flying at weekends.. Allahu alim.
What else? erm.. bro A phoned me at 6am monday morning to tell me quickly he was flying out of Algiers then that he had no minutes on his phone.. I phoned him back a few hours later after sleep and enough wandering if he was back in UK to find out he has gone to Constantine to visit friends masha'allah. I dunno if he realises hes due to go back to UK in a few weeks or not lol (actually next week), I also freaked him a little cause the number that showed on his phone was similar to a UK number so he thought I had flown over sooner heehee... Anyways, he is fine alhamdulillah and I also got to meet his mum on webcam last week which was nerve wracking but cute masha'allah. He was telling me all the things she was saying to him about me and us, sending her duaa that we are married soon insha'allah cause Im just so damn cute :D Shes so tiny and adorable masha'allah, he said shes about my size but she looks smaller in height which is sooo cute. Sorry, I cant stop thinking of her like that.. she loved me even more when he told me she had gone to make him coffee and I told him he should be making her coffee :) stick up for the mil thats all it takes hehee.
So the other things that were taking up my grey matter... my apartment issue. so yesterday someone came around to look at my flat to see if they could take it over for that month that I dont want it (nov) Anyways, my landlord phoned me before to tell me that I can get out of the contract alhamdulillah :D so everything is working out alhamdulillah. I have to be out by oct 31st, Im finishing work 24th so gives me plenty of time to make sure everything is spot on. Insha'allah Im moving the big bits of furniture to my mums on the 18th so my place is going to be pretty empty but Im looking forward to that step insha'allah. Then I just have to get that money back which might be after I leave but I dont mind.
Ive sold my sewing machine (shes coming to pick it up tonight insha'allah) and I have sold my dining room table and chairs too.. either to a friends friend from work, he hasnt contacted me yet, so if he doesnt get in touch Im gonna have a word with the friend so if I dont hear back tomorrow then Im going to email someone who was willing to pay more for it. I was doing him a favour by selling it cheaper, but I cant be bothered with being played around with, so his loss! :D Just got my computer desk & chair, bread machine, bookshelf (maybe) and a few tables to get rid of now insha'allah.
Went out for lunch with a friend on MAT leave from work, good to catch up with her and went out again today (due to meet at 12pm, woke up at 1206 tut tut) with 2 other girls from my shift.. I really am going to miss all the friends Ive made here. My mum commented yesterday that when I come over here to visit that she isnt going to see me cause I will be visiting all my friends :D Allahu alim :)
Well, Im intending on finishing a stitching piece tonight insha'allah and a few hours ago I left a conversation with Nora to finish learning this surah which I havent even looked at :( so Im off..
Peace and salams, Ammena

Suggestion...

... from my mum... why not take out a loan here to pay off my student loan in UK? Then I will know exactly how much Im paying and everything will be in Canadian $ she doesnt understand why I may be going back to UK for a similar paid job and how paying off the loan will be any different from there. But... as she pointed out 1 million times... she isnt stopping me :)

Did you guys see?? 30 days!! subhanallah.. i have too much stuff and I havent got my backside in gear yet. Got stuff to sell and boxes to fill. Remember me in your duaa please :) JazakAllah khair
I did also realise that I never did a lookin back at September post... seeing as it was Ramadhan, I think its pretty obvious what I got up to from the few times I did post throughout the month alhamdulillah :D

Latest news

I spoke to my lawyer who was fine about me not being there.. said she would email me the results of the court case... pff, so what was all this 'you have to be there!' nonsense lol on another note, I just upgraded my ticket to first class :D yay.. this way I get 40kg luggage allowance and 15kg hand luggage :D woohoo... Ive also started packing a few things into boxes today too and got 2.5 bags and a small box of stuff to donate to value village insha'allah

Islamic short stories

Salam, so you still looking for a little bit of fiction? all halal of course... Feel free to check out my other blog of collection of short stories, I need some feedback insha'allah

The world

Salam, I dont know how many of you await the friday links from MMW as much as I do, masha'allah, they dont always cover the stories I would choose while I wander around the virtual news rooms but alhamdulillah they bring up many issues that people would not find otherwise. May Allah reward them for their intentions and the news they bring to people. Anyways, today being friday Im just sifting through the links for this week and wanted to share a few that I opened 'in new tabs' :) Enjoy
Forced marriages in UK, what is the world coming to when this thing is still happening? why arent our girls being educated in Islam to be able to walk away from this sort of thing? Who are these parents to think they are doing whats right for the girls?

One 14-year-old girl said she was in fear of her life because she had become pregnant and thought her parents would kill her or marry her off if they found out

Subhanallah.. why is a 14 year old girl in this situation?? is that what todays culture and society are showing to our youngsters?
You want glass bangles for Eid Betu? think again before answering!
Eid mubarak my dear, now choke... subhanallah.. what gives these men the right to live while they hold disgust and hatred in their hearts for the women who have stood by them.
Has France gotten to UK? why cant we all just live how we want? I understand the need for uniformity in school wear, but to stop ppl from wearing hijab? do they seriously think that the religious communities will simply say 'ok, let our girls take off hijab, let our boys go turban-less' I think not!! And its ignorant and stupid to think they will
A mother & daughter convert in Liverpool, I had to put this in.. its my home city :D masha'allah

The days leading to the big bang

So, now I have time to sit down and tell you all about the last few days of my life.. alhamdulillah its been so much fun and highly rememberable. It all started on Monday, I moved to night shift of sunday night so finished work at 7am monday morning. I actually finished an hour early and went straight to sleep to be woken at just after 11 by a friend who was shocked to find me still asleep. Anyways, she was phoning to tell me she could make it to visit me in the evening with another friend, alhamdulillah so we set about organising and left it at that. I eventually got hold of my other friend who was the driver and everything was set... so I set about tidying my place. It bugs me sometimes that I really need a kick up the bum and the prospect of visitors to tidy my place :( but oh well.. so I tidied, went out for snacks and arrived back to finish cleaning the bathroom. I was washing the dishes when I got a phone call from them telling me they were slightly lost, but still only about 10mins away from mine which was a shock cause it was around 630 when I had been expecting to meet them at the masjid for iftar. So they got here, we broke our fast at the mosque, prayed maghrib then went to East side Marios for food :D Then we went back to the mosque for isha and taraweeh masha'allah. I bumped into a friend who I have been spending lots of time at the mosque with and my friend (the one who woke me up) also bumped into a unknown mutual friend masha'allah.. small world us muslims live in ;) After taraweeh we headed back to my place for treats and henna :D these pictures are from the day after :) my feet and Nadias hand masha'allah. we woke up for suhoor, was nice to share it with someone else, I havent had that at all this year so was good to finish the month off with such memories alhamdulillah. Then we went back to sleep and woke up around 1pm lol... we prayed dhuhr and then the girls left to drive back home. I had things to sort out here and drove over later on, getting to there about 430ish I think it was. While they had been at mine I went through Eid outfits with them and decided on a pink dress I had recently worn, had only worn it once before and not for work but I needed a hijab that went properly cause they one I had worn last didnt totally go (stripes and pattern!) so I needed a plain cherry coloured hijab and I knew exactly the right place in Square One to find it. Nadia told me she would meet me there when I dropped by to pray asr at her place, so I set off in search of a scarf. I also needed a new long white sleeved shirt, so decided to pop into H&M for it :) shouldnt have done that lol :D I looked in the sales racks and found a gorgeous dress for just over $20... yes not in my usual price range but it was nice masha'allah :D anyways, i found a black top to go underneath and tried it on... loved it!! now the issue was the hijab, either I could go with the purples in the dress or a black chiffon one (which i hadnt brought with me) so i phoned nadia to ask her... she eventually came to the shops and I showed her the outfit and told her the options on the hijab, she (and her sister) agreed it should be purple so I picked up a normal scarf from H&M and here is the finishing combination (as well as black flip flops from Old Navy) I totally wasnt intending on buying a new outfit but Im glad I did, made the day seem all the more special and as it will be my final Eid in Canada for awhile I wanted to remember it.
So I stayed at Nadias for the evening and in the morning she went to ISNA for the Eid salah and I went to the Rogers centre, via second cup :) I had a great few hours there alhamdulillah, there were soo many people although not that many that I knew which made a change. I saw a few people but hung around with my friend there, the sister who I went to Vancouver with masha'allah. We had fun, I made it to the first Eid salah which I thought I was going to miss because of over turned lorries on the Gardiner, numerous tourist buses on Spadina and full car parks outside the centre but alhamdulillah I made it. I left about 2pm and picked up Nadia for some lunch fun at bombay chopsticks, we used to always eat here (its halal, even though we are both vegetarian!) and we havent been for years, although she told me she was there the other day lol. We were rushed (got there at 250 and they kept the place open until 340 for us (supposed to close at 3pm) alhamdulillah. However, it was good.. and we met a few other girls there too which was nice masha'allah, a great ending to the day. I dropped Nadia off at home with an 'insha'allah' to see her over the weekend at a few parties and I drove home... peacefully happy and definately relaxed alhamdulillah.
When I got home, it was a different story, I got back to a message on my answering machine from my landlord telling me I have to give 2 months notice in to my apartment :( so I will have to pay 1 more months rent and I will have the place officially until the end of November even though I have no intention of actually being in the country. I also received a letter about my speeding ticket court date, now let me explain how it works here cause everyone Ive talked to in UK about this gets confused. So I was caught speeding, end of.. there is no, 'I wasnt speeding' here.. u are caught!! however, there are companies who deal with purely speeding tickets on the promise of reduced points and fine for a fee. Points over here = higher insurance, and after 2 write offs my insurance is high enough. I was intending on leaving the country when I got the ticket anyways, but contesting it meant it wouldnt show up on the insurance renewal until the next year when the whole thing was finished. Anyways, I got a letter from them telling me that they have reviewed my file and I have to be there..... now originally she said it would be in my best interest! So this got the light bulbs flashing. I had intended on telling them I had to fly home for a family emergency but everyway I look at it there are problems. The court date is November 12th.. yes people, Im supposed to fly November 4th!!! I spoke with bro A and he thinks its best if I stay and get it finalised and sorted... he also said it isnt a good idea to look at flights for the same day, which means looking at 2 weeks after originally planned :( So Im looking at the flights and seeing a few problems but all will be ok insha'allah.. I prayed istikharah and now Im trying to get in touch with the lawyer to ask her how long will i need to be here after the date to have everything sorted. The flight prices are extremely cheaper for these dates and if they wont give me a refund Im thinking to go first class seeing as I have already paid out the money for it, oh wait.. i havent... doh!! I paid just over $600 before they went up to $850, the first class ticket is just under $800 with 20kg extra for hand luggage and 15kgs extra for carry on.. hmm, just looking at prices for extra luggage, they say $20 per kilo so for the extra 20kg i would normally pay $400, this way Im paying less than $200 but would I use it all? Im taking 2 suitcases so I think it would be worth it in the end.. plus Im taking my snow board and boots back too.. yeh I think i will insha'allah if i get this ticket... Just didnt really want to stay any later, but I guess with the apartment, I will have somewhere to stay and I can stay working a little later too... just have to talk to the lawyer I guess... so plans on hold for time being insha'allah.
Well, thats my eventful Eid masha'allah :D insha'allah you all had a great time and remembered those around the world having not so much a great time during this season. Allahu alim
Peace and salams, Ammena