March 18

I should be cleaning the house since I'm making dinner tomorrow for friends so this is just a quick post.

I have totally forgotten to tell you loyal lurkers about my friend Kristin's new endevour. She has joined with another lady to create Cuppa Joe Designs a GREAT new blog about cross stitch,(Kristin please correct me here if I'm wrong) Please pop on over and have a look.

Today's SparkPeople daily desk note says:
Plan something fun. Set aside time to participate in activities you enjoy on a regular basis. Plan a weekend trip, take a drawing class, or schedule a round of golf. Enjoy your life to the fullest! (Incase you were wondering, those are the Spark colors, red, gold, green & blue.)

So far I haven't exercised or walked today. I have been busy cleaning up the house and stitching. I finished the May project from oakhaven designs.

Have a GREAT day!

The reason for tree cutting

This was pretty coincidental that we got a notice today about tree cutting after I asked that office guy yesterday, oh and it is addressed To:All Western Resident
I am typing this just as the notice reads:
"We are sorry to inform you that we have instructions to cut all big trees in the compound according to the committee of "Dengue fever" disease fighting, that according to the committee report, the disease carrier mosquitoes use the big trees as a rest place.

Contractor started the cutting process under direct supervision of (insert name of group DH works for) Engineering department, appreciating your understanding and cooperation. "
(Translation - You, American lady that walks without being covered, the trees WILL BE CUT DOWN, do NOT run out and yell at the men with the chain saws in your shorts and tank top)
So where is the notice that says SLOW THE FUCK DOWN ASSHOLE

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Please have a glass of green beer for me. Are you doing any thing special? On Thursday (our weekend) I will be cooking that hunk of beef that has been sitting in brine in the fridge for a month and having the usual boiled dinner. Today is also my son's girlfriend's birthday. I got her a couple neat things but sadly didn't order them until too late to arrive for her birthday. I know she will love them.

I did do a walk this morning, shaking my head all the way. Haven't done my walk video yet but I will get that in.

Today's Spark calendar entry:
Happy St. Patrick's Day! Research shows that moderate drinking can prevent certain diseases, but binge drinking is never a good idea. If you do imbibe, limit it to 1 drink daily for women and 2 drinks for men.

Breathe, breathe, breathe(WARNING, CONTAINS BAD LANGUAGE)

First off I will be luck if this actually posts. The damn internet is fucked up again today.

The fucking morons are at it again. So today while walking I see more trees being hacked down, the trees lining the inside perimeter wall and trees lining the inside perimeter street proving shade while I'm walking. Finally I see a guy who I know works in the offices here so I stopped him and asked him WHY ARE THEY CUTTING TREES? You you want to know the answer? This is so fucking ridiculous! They are a security risk! EVERY SINGLE TREE ON THE COMPOUND IS A SECURITY RISK! They are chopping every fucking tree down! That ORDER came from the Military secruity officer. Of all the stupid, insane dumb ass things! Then I said they NEED to do SOMETHING RIGHT NOW about the assholes that think they need to drive 55MPH down the road. I said I have almost gotten run over because of these assholes. Want to know his reply to that? "Well we did put up speed limit signs" URRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG! I said NO you Need to do something NOW! They already took out most of the speed bumps and cutthe remaining of them in half so the assholes can drive around them. Ok, that's enough, I'm pissed off enough, and YES I KNOW I CAN PACK UP AND GO HOME and that will resolve the problem.

Ok, so I did finish my walk, 4 laps, 52 minutes, about 2 3/4 miles, MOSTLY IN THE FUCKING SUN! Remind me to put on my sunscreen tomorrow.

I GOT SPARKED THIS MORNING! Yep, ya'll will be REALLY sick of me Sparking all over the place, but I love this group! First off, I just joined a new team last week, the Leslie Sansone Walk Off The Pounds team, on Sunday they chose me as walker of the day! Woo Hoo, I haven't been a team member that long either. What a great motivational group! Then I was also chosen as Spark Page of the day on my New Hampshire group. There is a challenge going on to make a Spring-y page so I put lilacs and flowers and added pictures of my Spring cross stitch projects that I did.
Then this morning there was a bag on my chair that our friend brought back for me from the states. I got my Spark daily calendar and my Spark monthly calendar and my Spark people t-shirt which I proudly wore this morning while walking. Now I am really Sparked up! The daily calendar has Spark tips, quotes recipes. It's NEAT! He also brought me some more test strips for my blood monitor, a HUGE thing of real old fashioned oatmeal which we can't find here.

Ok, well it's time to walk with Leslie. I'll leave you with a quote for my day:
"Take a breath. Slow, deep breaths can help conquer stress and lower blood pressure. With your eyes closed, practice inhaling deeply into the belly and exhailing slowly. Tey this several times throughout the day."

The importance of walking

My sister sent me this, I laughed my ass off!

Walking 20 minutes can add to your life.
This enables you at 85 years old
to spend an additional 5 months in a nursing
home at $7000 per month.

**************************************************************************************************************************

My grandpa started walking
five miles a day when he was 60.
Now he's 97 years old
and we don't know where he is.
**************************************************************************************************************************
I like long walks,
especially when they are taken
by people who annoy me.

**************************************************************************************************************************

The only reason I would take up walking
is so that I could hear heavy breathing again.
**************************************************************************************************************************

I have to walk early in the morning,
before my brain figures out what I'm doing.
**************************************************************************************************************************

I joined a health club last year,
spent about 400 bucks.
Haven't lost a pound.
Apparently you have to go there?
*************************************************************************************

Every time I hear the dirty word 'exercise',
I wash my mouth out with chocolate.
************************************************************************************************************************** I
I do have flabby thighs,
but fortunately my stomach covers them.
**************************************************************************************************************************

The advantage of exercising every day
is so when you die, they'll say,
'Well, he looks good doesn't he?'
**************************************************************************************************************************

If you are going to try cross-country skiing,
start with a small country.
**************************************************************************************************************************

I know I got a lot of exercise
the last few years ...
just getting over the hill.

**************************************************************************************************************************

We all get heavier as we get older,
because there's a lot more information
in our heads.
That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
**************************************************************************************************************************

AND
Every time I start thinking too much
about how I look, I just find a Happy Hour
and by the time I leave, I look just fine.

You could run this over to your friends,
But it's much easier to just e-mail it to them!

The Ides of March

According to my Farmer's Almanac Calendar today is the Ides of March:

Ides of March

The Ides of March has long been considered an ill-fated day. Julius Caesar was assassinated on March 15, 44 B.C. Historians note that it is likely that a soothsayer named Spurinna had warned Caesar that danger would occur by the ides of March. William Shakespeare included the phrase "Beware the ides of March" in his play Julius Caesar.

The ides were the 15th days of some months (including Martius, or March) in the ancient Roman lunar calendar; they were the 13th in other months. The word ides comes from the Latin word idus, which is possibly derived from an Etruscan word meaning "to divide." The ides were originally meant to mark the full Moon (the "halfway point" of a lunar month), but because the Roman calendar months and actual lunar months were of different lengths, they quickly got out of step. The ancient Romans considered the day after the calends (first of the month), nones (ninth day before the ides, inclusive), or ides of any month as unfavorable. These were called dies atri

I've discovered a new fitness DVD. Leslie Sansone Walk Away The Pounds. I've been doing her videos for a week now and they are quite a workout. I've done the 1, 2 & 3 mile walks but I'm sticking to the 2 mile walk for now. They re GREAT!
I'm still exercising with my friends at SparkPeople, that is how I found about Walk Away The Pounds.

They did get the tree cut down and we can now watch tv all evening without the signal cutting out. Sadly they are cutting down ALL the huge trees on the compound so there is almost no shade when I do my walks. Why they are doing this, I have NO idea.

Don't remember if I posted my April oakheaven thing. I used "buttons" I had left over from other projects. I have absoultely no clue what I will do with it.

The dumpster

I took a couple pictures of the dumpster in the yard next door. It's now 1/2 full of trees/bushes that they brought in from another part of the compound, and here I was excited because I thought the tree was coming down. I took one picture from our balcony and one from street level.

This is the tree that needs to be cut:

Icky, yucky day

At 1:15PM it is 37.9C or for you Americans, 100.2F and climbing, the sky is orange-ish/grey-ish, FULL of sand, VERY windy and just plain SUCKY! We're having a sand storm. It got HOT FAST! Glad I got my walk in at 8:30AM when it was ONLY 82F.

There is a HUGE dumpster in the yard next door (no Velda, NOT the pretty purple ones) a huge rubbish hauling dumpster, so I guess that means they will be cutting my tree down soon, inshallah, because we sure won't be watching tv tonight in this weather. They come along and hack down trees & bushes, throw them in a dumpster and haul it off. I asked for my back bushes & tree to be cut down so we can watch tv because the trees are in the way of the satellite signal.

Well I got a surprise yesterday, I did a SAturday weigh in and I had lost 2 pounds last week! Woo Hoo. I guess I either needed to eat a full 3 meals & snack every day or I needed to cut down my exercises until I ate more calories. Whatever I did, it worked. Now to keep it up.
DH also "found" some Leslie Sansone Walk off the Pounds videos to do at home during the day so that will help on days like this.

My grandson got his birthday present finally! A day late but better than never. We got him a cute little blue kids recliner chair for his 3rd birthday which was on March 4. His party is this weekend.

I haven't done anymore stitching the past couple days but I did kit up the next oakhaven design.

Did I tell you I'm buying a NEW CAR? I am excited, DH said I can buy a NEW car which we have never ever done. We've always bought older, used cars. I'm going to buy either a Jeep Grand Cherokee, Durango, Trailblazer or something along those lines, but it won't be a car, an SUV since we live in snow/ice country. DH has been checking them out online! COME ON JUNE!!!!!!!!!!! I know, if I keep putting off doing all this stitching that should have been done 2 years ago, the time will just fly by.

Still here

I'm still here, just not on the internet much.
I finished another small project on Thursday. It's the March pattern for a SAL on oakhaven group. It's actually stitched on a green linen but it doesn't show up well in the picture.

Wow, so that makes 2 finishes this week. I'm on a roll, LOLOL.

The other night I wandered outside and stepped on a bougainvillea thorn and boy it hurt. I tried to pick it out but had to call DH home from happy hour. He got most of it but I think there is still a little bit in there. I do have to keep an eye on it so it doesn't get infected or anything like that.

Tonight is fish since it's Friday so I'll make that lime and garlic fish from a couple weeks ago with purple coleslaw with apples and of course rice, what else. Rice, rice, rice. I may HATE potatoes but I would love one right about now, nice fluffy mashed potatoes.

I didn't get to walk much on Wednesday. It was cool and very overcast but I got up to the end of the street and around the corner and saw 6 trucks with mosquito spray machines on the back of them and men walking around with spray canisters on their backs. So I just made a short circle and went home and got on the treadmill. And of course since it's my weekend here, I haven't done any exercise so far.

We went grocery shopping today, it was slow and quiet on the streets, so nice! We passed purple dumpsters, a new thing here, purple dumpsters, The singing Rose preschool, the center for Human Rights-which is a oxymoron here, the ReMax & Century 21 real estate office.

I won a contest on one of my Yahoo groups, it was just a random contest but I won! Woo Hoo!

That's my story for now.

It's Tuesday

Information on Whatever! It's stitched on 32 count Ametrine evenweave from Silkweaver with the suggested Weeks flosses. I will make either a little pillow or maybe try to make a flat fold thing.
My next project is a March sal thing from oakhaven designs.

They still haven't come to cut down that tree that is in the way of the satellite dish so it's fun trying to watch tv. It blanks out and when the signal comes back, the show is over or you missed an important part of the show.

I walked for 52 minutes this morning, probably about 2 1/2 miles. Since I stopped doing the boot camp workout videos, I noticed that I have lost weight. Maybe I was doing too much exercise for the amount of calories I was eating.

I'm still cooking every day, mostly recipes from the diabetes site. I need a menu otherwise I stand there and stare into the fridge/freezer.

Whatever!

That's the name of Lizzie Kate's new freebie. I STITCHED IT! Start to finish in 5 hours, it was fun!

I walked 65 minutes and 3.26 miles today, it was a brisk 63F when I got up and 71 when I walked at 9AM.

Welcome to March

1 Month closer to the USA!

I walked today, 57 minutes.

Last week they cut down a tree. Not just any tree, it was a tree that was at our old Villa that we lived in as a family from July 1 1988 until January 2001 or something like that. The tree they cut down must have been at least 16 years old. It was a small bush when we moved into that villa. It provided shade and I suppose a child or two climbed it once or twice. I wound Christmas lights on it a couple years. But it's gone, hacked to pieces.
Today I'm having trees cut down around my villa, they have grown up over the roof of the house and in the direct path of the satellite dish so much so that it interferes with the signals. We can't get interested in TV shows because they keep cutting out.

Went to the diabetic nutritionist on Wednesday. First off they weighed me at 8PM, 2 hours after I had my dinner and at the END of the day. I hadn't lost a pound, WELL DUH! I usually weigh myself in the mornings, NOT after I've eaten 3 meals in a day. So the Dr. wasn't 't happy at all that I hadn't lost weight and she didn't like my morning fasting blood numbers. They are up over 140 which they shouldn't be that high. She said if they don't come down by April, they will put me on insulin at night. That fucking SUCKS! I travel a lot, I don't keep regular "go to bed hours", hell, 1/2 the time I forget to take my pills when I should. So I gotta try to get them down.

I GOTTA stitch ANYTHING at this point and TODAY!

Hope you have a GREAT March.

Hi

I've had a few not so good days lately. Don't know if it's hormones, depression or the I need to get the hell outta here NOW syndrome or if something other than that is wrong.

For 3 days in a row I walked for 63 minutes and 3.36 miles, just walked and walked with the mind wandering. I have done 10 minute exercises every day too. Burn them calories.

I have an appt with the diabetic nutritionist tonight at 8PM! I REALLY HATE the stupid, dumb late dr. appt hours. The traffic here is so totally beyond fucked up every single night and Wednesday night is worse because it is like Friday night in the real world. We will have to leave at 6:30 to get there by 8 then the traffic will be almost at it's peak by the time we get done. so another 2 hours home and that is on a 6 lane FREEWAY! Well it's actually only 3 lanes but these assholes make 6 lanes out of it, driving on the extreme left side breakdown lane and the extreme right side exit ramp lanes.

Tuesday night I fell off the good food wagon. I've never really done the traditional food on this day but I tried it. I had Shrove Tuesday pancakes, home made red beans & rice with veal & beef sausage, home made Cajun Shrimp "gumbo". That blew my diet all to shit but it was good. No King Cake though, too much hassle to make that.

That's my story this week

Friend test

I know this has been going around in e-mails for years but this is for my loyal lurkers.

My friend Velda sent it to me the other day when I has having a not so good few days and it brightened my day for a few minutes.

REAL FRIEND TEST!
A simple friend, when visiting, acts like a guest.
A real friend opens your refrigerator and helps himself
and doesn't feel even the least bit weird shutting your 'Pepsi drawer'
with her foot!

A simple friend has never seen you cry.
A real friend shoulder is soggy from your tears..

A simple friend doesn't know your parents' first names.
A real friend has their phone numbers in his address
book.

A simple friend brings a bottle of wine to your party.
A real friend comes early to help you cook and stays
late to help you clean.

A simple friend hates it when you call after they've
gone to bed.
A real friend asks you why you took so long to call.

A simple friend seeks to talk with you about your problems.
A real friend seeks to help you with your problems.

A simple friend wonders about your romantic history.
A real friend could blackmail you with it!

A simple friend thinks the friendship is over when you have an argument.
A real friend calls you after you had a fight.

A simple friend expects you to always be there for them.
A real friend expects to always be there for you!

A simple friend reads this e-mail and deletes it.
A real friend passes it on and sends it back to you!

Pass this on to anyone you care about......
if you get it back you have no beginning, no end.

It keeps us together, like our Circle of Friends.
Today I pass this on to you.

'Never frown, even when you are sad,
because you never know who is
falling in love with your smile.

A sad goodbye

When you move so far away from home in a god forsaken miserable hell as this place, you meet friends who are here for the same reason and it ain't the scenery. You laugh together, you cry together, you get drunk together, you celebrate holidays together like a family, you solve the problems of the world, you get to know their kids, their parents and their homes. We lost a dear member of our "family" on Tuesday and it was a total shock. Pam & Earl were dear friends, they lived 2 houses down, Pam is a sister stitcher, a cat lover. Earl was a big, brawny guy who I really wouldn't like to cross and sadly he passed away on Tuesday. Pam is devistated, and I wish I could be there for her.
We'll miss ya Earl!
http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2009/feb/19/earl-l-mcdaniel-jr/

Ho hum

It's Wednesday TAIW AKA Friday
Got up
Walked
Ate
Exercised
Deleting my Facebook thing soon, leaving some cross stitch groups soon as well.
I get a total blank page when viewing my blog in IE but it's there in firefox.

Have a nice day

I hate spammers!

Some moron zealot spammer named USpace has continously left the same comment on one of my posts. I have kept deleting it so I have gone to moderated comment status. I apologize to my loyal lurker readers who occasionally leave a comment. If this moron keeps it up, I will go to private blog status and report the asshole.

Hey Facebook addicts, did you see the article I posted on my page, LOLOLOL. I am so glad I don't hang out there, that stupid facebook locks up my browser windows all the time and it's SO fucking slow in loading anything. I guess that is where everyone from the cross stitch message boards hides out now. I honestly don't see what is so great about it, I don't see where any of the games are or the supposed groups or chats. All I ever see is my profile pages.


Did you hear about the new cross stitch group? It's called The Stitcher's Village and it's by Jo from Dinky Dyes and The Cat's Whiskers. IT's really neat, I joined yesterday.

Apparently I missed a Dr. Appt. that I didn't know I had. A couple weeks ago my nurse friend called and said she was going to come over for computer help. She never showed up but I had asked her to make me an appt with the Holistic nutritionist for "sometime around the middle of the month". She never called me back with my appointment so I just ignored it. She called last night and wanted to know where I was for my appt. I had no clue so she made me another one for Monday night. I need to talk to the dr. to get this gout thing straightened out so I know what I can and can't eat.

Last night was leftover roast beef in gravy. It was healthy gravy, no butter, just meat juice.

I did my walk this morning, didn't do much, my calf and shin hurt. (No, it's NOT shin splints, I looked that up on several sites and I don't have the symptoms of shin splints) I only got in 36 minutes and 1.61 miles, only 2 laps on the compound main road.

Have a GREAT day.

My update

Ok, so where have I been? I hang out on www.sparkpeople.com
Tons of support, motivation, information and friendly advice for people trying to loose weight, eat healthy, get fit and feel better. There is so much to read and do that I am there a lot.

I'm not at a couple cross stitch boards like I used to be, one has too many flashy, blinking stuff in posts that it's impossible to spend time reading when it slows down so that I can't scroll through posts and read. Another board the new members are so whiny and want to be pampered and are so gushy/mushy hugs and "oh my feelings get hurt so easy", well put your big girl panties on and grow up! I'm still having problems with runboard groups but I think it is essentally the same as Yuku, too many flashy, blinking things just slow shit down. So rather than keep complaining and asking to cut down on the huge blinking things, I just quit going, it was fun while it lasted.

I've been walking, walking and exercising. I have walked 13 out of the past 15 days, 20+ miles and I'm damn proud of that. UNFORTUNATELY, that plate of Arabic sweets that just jumped into my cart the other day at the grocery store did not help at all, but damn it was so good. I haven't lost any pounds, just the same fucking 3 pounds keeps disappearing and coming back. I gotta get past this hurdle sometime.

The diabetes numbers go up and down. They are between 134-158 in the mornings before I eat, then go down during the day and stay down which is good. But I need to figure out how to keep them down in the morning without going on insulin. I don't eat junk and I DO watch what I eat.

I finished a cross stitch project last week, whopee. It was a February project from oakhaven designs for her SAL. Ya know, you HAVE to finish this, post a picture then send me an e-mail in order to get your next pattern and NO a wip picture will NOT do, you MUST FINISH THE PROJECT.

the DH & I were talking last week about mindless stuff and I said those dreaded 3 words, didn't get an answer. Ok, so waited a couple days, said them again, got something like "that's nice" or just a smile but no real response. Ok asshole, so I guess he doesn't love me, time to move on then. I'll have to try and detatch my self somehow this summer so I can be come cold and heartless too.
Speaking of this summer, I won't be going anyplace exotic this year like Frankfurt, Rome, Paris or London. Looks like I'll be getting on a plane 'HERE" and getting off in JFK, non stop, no alcohol, but I guess if that is what is cheapest, I've done it before. Then fly to Bahstan and take the bus home. Hmmmm, wonder if I could take a side trip on NY? I'll have to check and see what the Yankees schedule is for that day, LOLOLOL.

Speaking of YANKEES!!! SPRING TRAINING STARTED! WOOOO HOOOOOOOOO, the boys are back, well almost. Pitchers and catchers were supposed to report on the 13th and practice was supposed to start on the 14th. I'll have to check around to see.

The septic system at my house in NH is messed up. DS has been such a good son and going up after the snow/ice storms and shoveling the roof and our deck off for us. A couple times he noticed that the pipes were backing up in our downstairs bathroom. So he called the septic company, they were very rude to my DIL and said someone had to be there, they had to have the tank cover off and that it SHOULD be pumped out every 2 years. Well, sorry, I've never really dealt with this stuff before and I was under the impression it didn't need to be pumed out that often since we aren't there that often. So DIL gets to the house, spends almost 2 hours trying to break through the ice to uncover it and they called the next day and said "well if it's iced over then we can't come clean it out, if no one is there then it won't be a problem, call back when the snow melts" ARGGGGGGGGGGG!

My stitchy friend Kristin tagged me on her blog:

When Life Gives You Lemons...

I guess I'm one of the people who make lemonade...or as Soralis says, maybe I'm the pause that refreshes (hehe, don't know why that strikes me as funny but it does). I was given the Lemonade Stand Award by Kristin.

Here are the rules for The Lemonade Stand Award:
1. You must link back to the person you received the award from.
2. You have to nominate 10 bloggers who are deserving of this award!

So, thank you Kristin. The following people are either the pauses that refresh me or they have made lemons into lemonade. I don't know if I can name 10 bloggers that can rise up and be positive but I'll try.
Kristin is one, Jen Velda, Dee, Margaret, Venessa, I guess that's all the blogs I read.

I have cooked every day again, last night was roast beef with carrots & potatoes, I had 1/2 a sweet potato, salad, applesauce and Tofu Chocolate Cake. The cake was ok I guess, I didn't have the right tofu though. It called for soft/dessert and all I had was extra firm so I added extra cherry juice and chocolate soy milk.
I know I said I would post the recipe for the squash macaroni & cheese and I will soon. It was ok but not something I will make a regular.

Gotta take Annie cat (aka the cat from hell) to the vets today, we think she has a tooth problem. She slept ALL day Wednesday and Thursday and didn't eat anything, she didn't eat much on Friday, Saturday she did eat but sort of gagged and pawed at her mouth. Oh what fun, last time the bitch went to the vets, she tried to go through the atrium window in the vets office just to get away. She will have to be sedated in order for him to look at her mouth.

The brat bastards are still off school, hope they go back soon, it's overcast again today but still did my walk.
Okee dokee, I think that about catches me up. Sorry to worry ya'll but you can e-mail me if you want to chat.

Will update later

Internet connection SUCKS right now. All the locals are sending Valentines, LOLOLOLOL either that or the fucking moronic censors have slowed down the connection today on purpose. Wouldn't surprise me a bit, so I will try and post an update when the connection is better.

Check this out: http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/02/12/saudi.valentine/index.html

Happy Valentines Day - NOT!

On Valentine’s Day

By Fouzia Khan
Friday, 13 February 2009 - 18 Safar 1430 H

SOME Muslims, out of ignorance, have fallen into the evil of celebrating Valentine’s Day. Shopkeepers have jumped into preparing gifts for this day in the hope of earning some extra bucks. It’s sad that a pagan festival that promotes immorality is being observed by Muslims undermining their faith and Islamic values.
The Permanent Committee for Islamic research and verdicts of Saudi Arabia declared it impermissible for Muslims to celebrate non-Muslim occasions like the Valentine’s day, which is also known as the ‘festival of love.’
“(This) is one of the festivals of the pagan Romans, when paganism was the prevalent religion of Romans, more than 17 centuries ago,” said Dr. Su’ad Ibrahim Saleh, professor of Fiqh at Al-Azhar University, Cairo in one of his articles.
Several customs connected with the Valentine’s Day originate from the beliefs held in England and France during the middle ages. One such example is that birds begin to pair on February 14. According to research, the Romans introduced this pagan festival into the Christian world. In Saudi Arabia, however, it’s not permitted to celebrate this festival and the Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice strictly banned the sale of any red roses, hearts or even wrapping paper on this day.
In Islam, expressing love is fine as long as it doesn’t fall into what is Haraam. Among the greatest of all types of love is the love for Allah and His Messenger, and the love for Islam. Loving our parents, family and relatives is very much encouraged. Love of courtship is allowed only between married spouses. Islam highly recommends that spouses show affection and mercy towards each other. Islamic requirements are only in the best interest of the society, to protect morality and nourish familial values. Immorality and Haraam relationships lead to disintegration of families and ultimately to the degradation and destruction of a society. Islam is the best model to follow. All praise and thanks be to Allah for giving us this blessing. We, who have the divine guidance, are not in need of imitating the West.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) told us that Muslims would eventually fall into this error. Abu Sa’eed Al-Khudri narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “You will certainly follow the ways of those who came before you, span by span, cubit by cubit, until even if they were to enter a lizard’s hole, you would follow them.” We said, “O Messenger of Allah, (do you mean) the Jews and Christians?” He said, “Who else? !” (Al-Bukhari, 8/151, and Muslim, 4/ 2054)
This Hadith should serve as a stark reminder for all of us. We, instead of influencing others to enter the fold of Islam, are following them at the expense of our religion. May Allah protect all Muslims and guide them to the straight path. Aameen. – SG

MORONS! (Language WARNING!)

STRONG LANGUAGE WARNING!

Hi Dee, checking in, LOLOL. I'm fine.

Fucking idiot asshole morons! This article was in today's newspaper. And yes I know what you are thinking, this warning comes out every year, why is she still pissed off. It's the principal of the idea, asshole zealots. And it's not like Valentines day means shit in this house either.

Friday 13 February 2009 (18 Safar 1430)

Red rose ‘price index’ shows Valentine’s spikeSultan Altamimi & Omar Mohamed Arab News

RUDDY SEASON: Valentine’s Day flowers and teddy bears are displayed at one of the upmarket gift shops in Jeddah on Thursday. (AN photo)

JEDDAH: The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice(AKA Mattawa) intensified its vigilance over flower, chocolate and gift shops to confiscate items related to Valentine’s Day, a perennial crackdown on a holiday perceived by many to be both Western and immoral.
Ahmed Al-Ghamdi, head of the commission’s branch in Makkah province, said the agency has instructions to eliminate any activities aimed at celebrating this event or sell products related to it.
“This is based on the teachings of Shariah. God ordained Muslims to celebrate their own festivals in place of un-Islamic ones,” he said. “So Muslims are not allowed to celebrate any festivals other than Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha.”
Arab News toured a number of shops selling flowers, chocolates and assorted gifts. All but one of the stores avoided any hint in their displays of merchandise that Valetine’s Day is tomorrow.
But money talks even if most shopkeepers don’t: The price of red roses have gone up as much as 10 times the regular price, indicating a demand.
“We ordered thousands of these Indian red roses this morning,” said a Filipino florist in Jeddah who only wanted to be named Armando. “By tonight, the roses will be sold out.”
The price of one red rose is typically SR5, he said. The price starts at SR10 running up to Valentine’s Day. As the stock is depleted, the prices rise to as much as SR50. Armando says he sells full arrangements of 200 roses for SR2,000.
“It is not even Saturday night yet and people are coming in and buying these items,” he said. “This is a season of love and appreciation, so buyers come here to purchase these items for these reasons.”
The religious authorities tend to look out for red items sold in these stores, viewed as an attempt by merchants to market the holiday. However, one shop in Jeddah was found to be openly selling red flowers and stuffed toy animals.
“Red flowers are sold throughout the year,” said the shopkeeper, who only went by the name Fadi.
By tomorrow his roses will be selling for SR50, or 10 times his usual price.
Another flower shop owner said that from his perspective Valentine’s Day is simply one of year’s peak retail seasons. This shopkeeper, who didn’t want his name published, said customers come to him with special requests, or they bring in their own stuffed animals or poems to deliver with the flowers.
In many cases florists keep and arrange bouquets behind the scenes or in separate, undisclosed locations.
Prices of chocolates, too, have risen at specialty shops. At one shop in Jeddah an assorted box of chocolates that normally sells for SR150 was selling for SR200. And though commission members are looking out for signs of Valentine’s Day merchandising, it was possibly to find heart-shaped red boxes of chocolate.