dabbiya

[dabbiya]

linkin park was right. i’ve become so numb

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*takes social media break, except from tumblr and pinterest* those are my visual diaries 😭

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Do you know how hard it is to live with a cat that has the intelligence level of literally like a 3 year old but the pure chaos of a high ranking demon?

He’s learned to open the lazy Susan and won’t stop clawing open the flour and rolling in it like a little chinchilla

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Assalamualaikum sister.

I don't know how to put this, I just hope I would get some help from you. Since past three years I've been going through a difficult phase. Actually I was studying for my entrance and I got to spend most of the time alone. So these years I used to study and think about my past, not purposely,but I kept getting flashbacks. And I realised how many mistakes I have done. Saying about myself I am not someone who prays 5 times, sometimes I pray and most of the times I don't, about which I feel bad everytime. I always want to change myself because I know I want to be closer to Allah, I want to pray, I want to learn my deen. When I was younger I used to pray, I used to recite Quran. I don't know what happened to me. I just want to change myself. I am getting depressed each day. I want to repent and I just don't know where to begin. I feel like I have no knowledge about my deen. I have done a lot of mistakes in my past and I still can't do anything . I feel so helpless rn. Please tell me what to do, and where to start. I hope u understood what I'm trying to explain. Thankyou ❤️

Salam sister and apologies for the delay,

First of all, you’re asking where to start but you have already started mashaAllah. The first step is acknowledging that you made mistakes, that your relationship with Allah isn’t where it should be, and making the intention to do better. The important thing is to review this intention every day.

Next you want to dedicate some time to just talk to Allah. If salah is difficult for you, then start by finding a quiet area where you can talk to Him like He is your friend. Be honest. Every friendship needs time and effort. So acknowledge that you have been lacking, that you have not invested the time this friendship deserves. But that you want to do better. Ask Him for forgiveness and for help so that you can do that. Ask Him to remove anything in your life that’s keeping you from Him, and to make this friendship with Allah your biggest priority. He will listen and respond to you. He is the Most Merciful and you will be forgiven, so long as you want to be forgiven. This is a promise that Allah has made us.

﴿قُل يا عِبادِيَ الَّذينَ أَسرَفوا عَلى أَنفُسِهِم لا تَقنَطوا مِن رَحمَةِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغفِرُ الذُّنوبَ جَميعًا إِنَّهُ هُوَ الغَفورُ الرَّحيمُ﴾ [Az-Zumar: 53]

Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allāh. Indeed, Allāh forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."

And the last thing I would advise you is to dedicate some time to these conversations every day. Just once a day. Just talk to Allah. And if you forget, or if you neglect your time with Allah for a few days, just try again. One day you’ll get it right. If you want, I would recommend having these conversations in the last third of the night (in the hour or two before fajr) because that is when Allah is closest to us.

Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Our Lord Almighty descends to the lowest heaven in the last third of every night, saying: Who is calling upon Me that I may answer him? Who is asking from Me that I may give him? Who is seeking My forgiveness that I may forgive him?” Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 1145

I hope to hear back from you one day that you were able to invest more time in your relationship with Allah. I have no doubt that once you do this, it will be easier to make salah and truly feel like you have a friend in Him. May Allah make it easy for you sister. Don’t lose hope, because that’s what Shaytan wants you to do. Allah’s door is open for those who seek it.

[dabbiya]

Scenes from Car Detailing 4

So finally after a through wash the compund polish with hand grinder started.

Apologies for bad picture but I do not want to disturb the gentleman working on it.

I will try to take a before and after picture of one door to get an idea lateron. They should invest in a light luminosity measurement gadget though.

...to be continued ....

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Scenes from Car Detailing 3

Finally car is getting its first wash. The three men were going nuts around the car in minute detail with a tooth brush each. Around the doors , door handles , rubber parts, plastic parts; now I am sure once compound polish starts then it will look much better.

I am not sure till then in the afternoon I will be here. I was advised by my colleagues to get compound polish on a sunny day. So that one can see the results. But I am confident that with the lights they have installed it will be sufficient.

If I am happy in the end then will ask the team to pose in a group photo with my car.

These men and their services do deserve our appreciation. An honest work done with hand.

You see our cars are an extension of our lives. With our commute and travel they are an epitome of our freedom. Some might argue that motorcycles give more freedom but I would argue that I feel safer in a car with a metal body. Not from the elements mind you, from other humans.

.... to be continued....

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Scenes from Car Detailing 2

So its been an hour or so, the engine bay is getting cleaned. The term they used was 'decalsification'. I am a little worried because they yet have to wash it and start exterior. At least the compound polish will be done with a hand grinder. In Islamabad one of the team at a petrol station once did it with hand, with the result my car had a lot of swirls.

Also me being my nosy self took pictures of the office and send it to the owner to detail clean his own office.

See its a brand issue! If your services are good -which it seems they are- then their work environment should reflect it.

The fact that I am sitting here is giving the boys/men a little anxiety (I think!) because every five minute I poke out and check.

Also told them that they should clean their own office as well -which they took it sheepishly smiling.

to be continued...

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Scenes from Car Detailing

So I finally found a place where I can get my car properly cleaned. I had to come to Lahore for that!

There are a few places in Islamabad /Rawalpindi cluster but three things were hindering me. Distance of 45 km , cost and the fact I had to leave the car there for one or two days. With my job, hubby job and my 10yo school , I could not figure out the time.

Luckily I had a plan brewing- to visit my sister in Lahore-for a long time. I have a lot of extended family here in Lahore but I knew I cant meet them all. Thus I thought rather then social calls (tyst too during Omnicrone wave) I will get my car cleaned up. The poor baby is five years old now and was in need of a good detailing.

My husbsnd had an office trip planned so I tagged along. In the morning he left for field visits while I stayed in at hotel and just watched vegetable cooking recipies.

Now today (day two) hubby left again after breakfast and after checking out of hotel I am at this car detaling outlet at 10:00 am. To be honest their own setup is not clean. Two men are sitting and playing games on mobile. The floor is not clean, the shelves are not clean. What can I expect?

As soon I wrote this line - one man stood up and started cleaning the floor of the shop. Its 11:20 am. The interior is vaccumed and engine bay is bring cleaned with a tooth brush by one of the mobile game guys.

Now I will sit snd observe the detailing quietly till 3:00 pm. Then hubby will come and I will go to my sisters home with him leaving the car here for tye night. Hopefully I will be happy tomorrow.

#fingerscrossed

#facepalm

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Watching a storm blow in tonight - each of the first four photos were a minute apart (6:21-6:24pm), the fifth was three minutes later.

Most of the storm passed us by, which is what’s been happening over the last two days. We got a bit of rain this time at least, only distant thunder though.

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Thinking a lot on the traumas of 2021 as we approach their first anniversaries.

January 6 not only forced our country to really look at how fragile our system is, but for me personally, my boss was in one of the chambers where it happened and I have had to live vicariously (not in a fun sense) through her experience to communicate that day’s serious implications. Looking at photos and videos of her ducking for cover break my heart—for her, and for the soul of our country.

Then the winter storm that happened a month later and the fragility of the fucking Texas power grid… not knowing if, or when, we’d be warm again for four days and being warned to mentally prepare for it to continue to be bad. Let’s just say I watched the people stuck on the road in Virginia during the storm yesterday and sympathized to a point where I was forced to admit I do carry trauma from my my own experience.

And then my director left for a better job (which was truly destabilizing for me professionally and emotionally) and I was left to manage comms while the 6-week ab**tion ban in Texas went into effect. This is an issue my boss built her political reputation on and actually wanted to be on TV for and the stress and anxiety of managing that for her left me sleep deprived and malnourished.

Anyway. We who work in and in relation to DC politics are being forced to relive the events of January 6 because other people are trying to gaslight us and rewrite history. If we just roll over and don’t remember the trauma, it feels like we are just laying out a welcome mat for them to install fascists. And then this “great experiment” will really have failed.

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dont tell my sister but every time a website asks for my phone number, I give hers

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mum to grandma: and I had questions about the salami

12yo cousin: isn't salami the thing that goes on pizza?

me: that's pepperoni, salami is the bigger one in sandwiches

12yo cousin: oh I see

mum and grandma: -facepalm- you kids are so burger, salami is gifts for the family of the bride/groom

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Internet do your thing! Help me find this grandfather on Seoul subway in Dec 2016.

Throw back to five years ago when Sheikhu made friends with a drunk grandfather on #seoul subway!

Because of Sheikhu we would take elevators rather than stairs so we met a lot of grandparents in elevators. Sheikhu being a happy 5 year old would smile up and say “Anihessio” or hi to every one and they would MELT!!!

In this picture Sheikhu asked me to take picture ( he never does!!) with this really really drunk and happy grandfather ! It would be cool if we can find him and invite him to Pakistan!

#Seoul #subways

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If people want pets that are different but interesting and actually domesticated they should get goats. Pleanty of interesting types, not very difficult to care for, can be trained to do tricks, you can get milk from them, and are mobile compost piles for a lot of excess food waste.

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Linux is everywhere