Yawn.

Sorry, this is not a good way to start out a post. But I am BEAT. I was falling asleep folding laundry with a friend tonight while she was uncharacteristically awake and chipper at 11 p.m. despite having a boatload of kids and some medical issues. I guess we switched places. I haven't been sleeping well for like, ever, so that's part of it.

Hit the snooze, mom!

The rest of today's post will be short and hopefully complete before I nod off.




EXERCISE
I worked today and we had a party afterward for a few different major accomplishments, and then it was time to chill with said friend for an evening of leisure. We were able to steal away on a walk with two in the stroller and one on a bike for what very well could have been 20 minutes but may or may not have included a stop at the corner store for snacks after I declared it "chips o'clock". But we don't have to talk about that.

Instead of a health tip today (because I was NOT a model human by any means) I would like to share this awesome photo I found of a very cool invention that gives "riding lawnmower" a whole new meaning. If I had a lawn I would totally ride one of these just to freak out the neighbors:

Of course mine would have ape-hanger bars and a banana seat.

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ISLAM
So I kinda slacked on this today too, but on the way home I did listen to Surah An-Nisa' (The Women) and continued while assembling a meatloaf before bed (long story). I was reading some of the translation of this chapter which deals a lot with how to treat women and orphans with justice and kindness whether it be in matters of inheritance, marriage (and divorce, which is permissible in Islam), or legal matters. I will say that much of this chapter needs more than just the translation to be explained to Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Please do not read this chapter and make any snap judgements about the religion based on the limited explanation the translation provides. There is so much more to know about the context for many of these verses as well as the benefits for men, women, and the entire society when Allah's commands are followed.

On a light (and humiliating) note, I got to the part about who is lawful to marry and who is not, and remembered a presentation some of us students did in Sh. Hatem's class a couple of years ago on this very subject. He was trying this thing where we would pick a topic he had covered and then make PowerPoint on it to show what we had learned and organize the information. One of the funnier images I made was a chart about blood relations and marriage. Check it out and try not to laugh:

My little "key" at the right really doesn't help a person navigate this all that well and even the usually stoic sheikh commented that the kufis (hats for men) look like hamburgers. I almost died. Thanks a lot, Adobe Illustrator!

It will make me feel better if you share something embarrassing you've made and shown to a bunch of people. Or maybe just an epic fail moment in your life. It's good to have company when you do something stupid.

NOT ISLAM
Speaking of stupid, no one in my neighborhood has any business celebrating Cinco de Mayo yet nearly every bar has these dumb banners telling everyone to come in for Coronas and there's a lot more white-boy yelling outside than usual tonight. Come on, people—barely anyone in Mexico even celebrates this holiday and it wasn't popular here beer companies started marketing it to you rubes in the '80s. Sorry, I don't normally rant but this has been bothering me. Off of box now.