Filtering Garbage

I previously told you how I had retroactively labelled all my posts for your, my dear readers, benefit. But how useful is this really? Those of you who subscribe via a feed can't filter on or off things, and those of you who read via the web probably won't be bothered to click through to a label each time you visit.

Anyway, it seems that you can subscribe to a single label if you so wish. The general format to use is the following:

http://BLOG.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default/-/LABEL

So for example, if you subscribe to the following:

http://www.radioshak.co.uk/feeds/posts/default/-/islam

http://www.radioshak.co.uk/feeds/posts/default/-/relationships%20and%20marriage

http://www.radioshak.co.uk/feeds/posts/default/-/opinion

http://www.radioshak.co.uk/feeds/posts/default/-/choice

You'll get separate notifications for my posts on Islam, relationships, opinions and who I currently have the hots for. Great, huh?

So although you'll now be able to avoid the guff that you don't want to read (like, yeh right) I think that this also means that you'll get two notifications for a post labelled twice. Still, you can't have everything eh?

Game: Earth Defence Force 2017 (360)

This game is rubbish. The presentation is lousy, the graphics appalling and the sound terrible. And yet EDF 2017 is so much fun to play you somehow end up forgiving all of that.

You play a foot soldier bloke, viewed from over his shoulder. Before each level starts, you're asked to pick two weapons, most of which have unlimited ammo. Each level asks you to clear the field/city of any bad guy alien invaders, and you get to collect new weapons, selectable at the start of the next level.

And that's all there is really. Reading back, it doesn't sound too convincing and I'm struggling to think what else I can say to express what makes this game so fun. Perhaps it's that there are so many bad guys to kill? Perhaps its the wide range of different weapons, some homing, some slow but powerful and some not so good? Perhaps it's just how simple the whole thing is, in a world where you have to normally sit with an instruction manual in order to play the game it belongs to? Perhaps it's just that you get to kill giant invader ants?

Whatever the reason, EDF just goes to show that looks really aren't everything.

Game: Forza Motorsport 2 (360)

You know, I was planning on selling this pack-in game that came with my 360. I was never interested in it before and I didn't see myself playing it much, me not being that big on racing games. To be honest, nothing much has changed really am I'm still not, least of all because of this.

But I will keep the game. Why? Because its a good example of what Xbox Live is all about. Almost everyone I know has it (a requirement for online multiplayer), and setting up races is easy enough so it's fun for that reason alone. There are problems, the most major being that you cannot let a guest play alongside you on Live via split screen - this is disappointing in an age where the PGRs and Halos take this for granted.

The game itself is okay too - it steers (hah) toward simulation rather than arcade style racing but not enough to make it hell boring (I'm looking at you Gran Turismo!). You don't have to spend days tuning up your car in order to get an edge for instance.

But I won't be playing Forza other than online. After all, it is just another racing game. But when I do play it (online) it is pretty darned ace. Vrooom.

Book: Progressive Muslims: On Justice, Gender and Pluralism, Omid Safi

Another composition of essays, this time by exclusively by self proclaimed progressive Muslims. However what is clear when reading this volume is that like "Muslim" there is no single agreement on what "progressive" actually means, so don't think you know what you'll read in this book.

You get the usual pros and cons as you do with other collections of this type - a variety of sometimes conflicting ideas written in a range of qualities. There are some brilliant essays by the likes of Farish Noor, Ebrahim Moosa and Kecia Ali contrasted by less readable ones; in fact I'd say that most of them aren't that great both in terms of style and content.

I'd also suggest that although open minds are always useful, one should read this with care: there are also some extreme yet interesting topics covered, and anyone reading should do so with the critical mind some of the authors within are asking Muslims to develop. A portion of these articles are just downright silly and not really constructive; a few authors write with baggage or a over-critical and holier-than-thou mindset which for me immediately revoked any progressive qualification they may have gained previously.

Overall it's difficult to recommend this book. Instead I'd say to look up some of the authors that I have noted above and read what they have to say elsewhere - you may not get the exact essays that are contained in this book, but good authors aren't made by single pieces anyway.

Stalkee Update

Just in case you thought that I was no longer a creepy despo, here's the latest on the girlie going-ons during my daily commute in to work.

But first, a bit of supplementary explanation. The main reason I've been a bit quiet recently is due to a change in route - since discovering how close Marble Arch actually is to my workplace (yes, after almost four years of working here), I've been using that exclusively to go home and part of the time to come in (like when I'm running late).

Not all commutes are equal, and its now obvious to me that the Victoria is prettier than the Central Line - so much so that I've returned back to the former even though it's slower and more hassle. I've also been delaying my commute into work by around 15 minutes, and so have a totally different crowd to travel in with too.

So anyway, all this means that I haven't seen Victoria or Chewie for an absolute age. Still, its not all bad news. Instead of them I've been blessed with three new characters to give me that much missed boost to my journey. In no particular order, they are:

• Fundie - Although I've only seen her twice, Fundie is hijabi who joins me all the way from home to work. To be honest I wouldn't have paid too much attention if she hadn't had stepped on my foot (very painful for such a small person) to then give me a look as if it was my fault.
  
• Stuckup - Does exactly what is said on her tin: Beware, no entry, danger! 10,000 volts, etc. But she is hot (and obviously knows it), and so probably has a right to glare at loser guys like me.
  
• Jailbait - Not literally (of course) but in the age gap/Charlie Wilson/Wikipedia sense. Perhaps she just has good genes or something though - its not like I look (or act) my age either anyway. And just in case you're wondering its the hair and dress rather than the youthful looks, okay?
  

So yes: change has clearly been very good for me in this case. But I do miss Victoria and Chewie too, especially since I expect my commute to totally change altogether in the next couple of weeks and won't see any of them when that happens. But more on that in a later post.

Film: AVPR: Aliens vs Predator - Requiem

Does it really have to be called that? Anyway, the sixth Alien and fourth Predator film continues where the last part (don't ask which, since I've lost count by now) ended.

AVPR does exactly what it says on the tin. The two extraterrestrial races fight it out yet again in our backyard, with this time made more interesting with the introduction of an Alien borne of an impregnated Predator.

Of course, technically, this film can't be anything but bad; I won't bother going into too much detail regarding the acting or special effects. But bad can be fun too and there's plenty of blood here and guts to satisfy anyone on a Friday night. Without spoiling the film too much, the conclusion is pretty interesting and - dare I say it - different, and since the whole thing only lasted a paltry 90 minutes or so there was no regret felt on leaving the cinema.

I won't bother recommending AVPR; you'll already know whether you want to watch it or not.

Twins

You couldn't have scripted it better - just like a storyline from Eastenders or Hollyoaks, a pair of twins separated at birth managed to find each other in their new lives, fall in love and get married. It's not clear how they figured it out or whether they remained chaste before the nuptials, but then such details are irrelevant to those of us who aren't busy body gossipists anyway.

Considering cases like these, it's easy to see where Islam's insistence on recording and demonstrating hierarchy, parentage and lineage comes from. For those who are unaware, adoption by name is unrecognised in Islam and the status of an adopted child is always apparent in contrast to a birth child; in fact some Muslims hold the opinion that adoption is not allowed at all. I'm not personally aware of what the opinions are on surrogacy or anonymous donorship of eggs or sperm, but the point stands that in all cases knowing your linage is supremely important in Islam.

Of course practise is different in theory and even a strict parental record will allow cases to slip though (due to fraud or administration errors). But seeing how there are now some in the UK who believe that adoption should no longer kept secret perhaps it's the right way to go anyway.

Game: Assassin's Creed (360)

How can any game that allows you to play as an assassin be bad? Well during development no one could imagine that AssCreed would get the disappointing reviews it did. Although not completely slammed, most publications accused it of being a pretty yet shallow experience, full of flimsy and pointless game mechanics. After playing it for a bit on the PS3 I kind of agreed.

But after having the chance to play it with a bit more care and attention, I think I've changed my opinion. AssCreed is actually pretty good. It looks good and plays well, the missions aren't actually that repetitive (although I suppose if you play it to complete every little sidequest it could feel like that) and the story is engaging. Is as much of a MGS replacement as you can get really. Oh, and it has Kristen Bell in it. I like how you can take as much time as you want - I'm just interested in the story so am pretty much ignoring any bits I don't have to and the game accommodates this.

There are flaws - the otherwise perfect controls sometimes get "stuck" (although even then they're a whole lot better than that of others), the voice acting is a bit too low key for my taste (I wish subtitles were available) and the stealth bits get a bit dreary at times. But these are all flaws I've bringing up to somehow relate and justify the reviews it got - I'm enjoying the experience and that's all that matters really.

So I do think that reviews were a bit unfair, and possibly victim to expecting way too much or falling for the hype. Taken as what it is, there's no doubt that AssCreed isn't a bad game at all. You get to play a frikin assassin after all!

Film: Charlie Wilson's War

Highly amusing political drama about the decadent Texan congressman Charlie Wilson going out of his way to militarily enable the Afghan "Muj" and so helping them to defeat the invading Soviets.

I had little complaints with War. The acting was superb, drawing from a brilliant leading cast of Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Amy Adams and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Direction and production were also top notch, but it was the script and plot which shone the most.

Yes, the events themselves have probably been Americanized, but there is a poignant feel nonetheless for the lengths Charlie went to in order to provide arms to the Afghanis. We don't see too much detail of the process itself - further reading would probably be a good idea if that's required - but it appeared to be an altruistic move rather than manipulative one.

One could even forgive Charlie for having been a womanising alcoholic; not that I had a problem with him myself. I mean when he says of why he doesn't hire men that "You can teach them to type, but you can't teach them to grow tits" you have to admit that he has a point. Or maybe that's just me...

Anyway, the film itself is risk-free short and so is worth checking out if you're dubious; even if you decide that it overbearingly puts the America of the 80's in a good light, it acts as a fun and smart way to begin looking into the real events of that time. I certainly will be doing that myself.

Recommended.

Film: Lust, Caution

Ang Lee manages to surprise his audience again by bringing something different and, at last, actually not that bad.

Set in 1940s Shanghai and Hong Kong, Lust, Caution mainly tells us the story about Wong Chia Chi, a student activist chosen to assist in a political assassination by going deep under the covers with the target. It really isn't much more than that, yet manages to keep the viewer entertained for most of the two and a half hour running time anyway.

Well acted, shot and scripted, it wasn't as difficult to watch as it could have been so credit has to be given to the producers for making the film as accessible as it was. There was a gratuitous amount of sex and nudity though, most of which may be irrelevant and off putting for some. It's worth getting past it if you are though. And although the film didn't feel as long as it actually was, there was a few threads that cold have been cut off.

A good spot of drama, and recommended to those of you with too much free time on your hands.

Food: Lahori Nihari Restaurant

No external link for this little backstreet Nihari place down on Plashet Grove. But what Nihari lacks in marketing it makes up for with some awesome and pretty authentic food.

The accommodated nineteen of us with pleasure and we managed to order almost everything that was on offer on their basic menu; from the Haleem to the Kharai to the Nihari this place got its name from everything was damned fantastic.

And that's really all there is to it. A measly 6 quid per head got us more than enough grub to keep us happy; hell I'd come here every month if my arteries could take it. The next time you're in Green Street, make sure you check it out.

Food: Goley Restaurant

Quite possibly the worst restaurant I've been to for a long, long time. I'm not quite sure what it was though - I mean the food was pretty good (although I was struggling to believe that it was authentic Somalian), the place was clean and the staff polite. But the whole thing just didn't quite manage to put it together on the day.

I guess first impressions were bad when we were told that almost half the menu wasn't available to order. Still, I settled for the twice-baked goat's cheese (that didn't seem to have been baked once let alone twice) and the Cajun Chicken. Both starters and mains were very generous (I think we could have gotten away with ordering half as much as we did), but on the bright side that made the £12 quid per head charge, including drinks (a very nice fruit cocktail), pretty good value.

So pretty bad then but not without charm? It's no place I'll be rushing back to any time soon and there's no way I can recommend it, but since I've alive to tell you about it and am remembering the pretty good time we had there anyway it can't have been that bad I suppose.

Nemi

Once again Nemi says it how it is:



Of course I'm just going to be accused of being a cold hearted hypocrite by posting this, but I guess that's the cost for standing up for truth.

Game: BioShock (360)

A particularly good Christmas offer finally broke what resistance I had to buying a new console. But now, as the proud owner of an Xbox 360, I get to play some of the games I only heard about.

First up is BioShock. Wildly acclaimed by professionals and players alike as being one of the best games of 2007 (if ever), I was always going to check this out be it on the 360 or an upgraded PC in a couple of months' time. Essentially it's another story led FPS and compared to other games of its ilk even less than that; there's no co-op or multiplayer modes here, folks.

To be honest I've not been impressed so far. I've never really been a die hard fan of the FPS genre but can appreciate and enjoy a well built one - confer Half-Life 2 or Portal for instance.

But so far there's just nothing special about BioShock. It's as dark and gloomy as all those other games (why do they insist on restricting these games' brightness levels?), it's pretty slow and clumsy in a world where lightening fast reactions are supposed to win the day and it seems to be super tight on the ammunition. Oh, and it has the same effect on my as Halo does; that is I'm left headachey and drained after as little as an hours play. There are some clever bits including an exciting story and the whole plasmid secondary weapon system, but these aren't really enough to call a game great.

Still I owe it further play if only due to the acclaim it's received from others. I've had my first impressions proved wrong before (see: Ico), so I owe it that much.

Of Mosques and Matrimonials

My local, The Qur'ani Markuz Trust or South Woodford Mosque as it's more endearingly known by its congregation, has always been a bit forward with its community initiatives. They're the type of organisation that sends Christmas cards out to the locals, arranges football and biking activities and provides copies of the Quran on MP3.

They've also been doing the whole matrimonial thing for a while by maintaining a list that manages to attract people from all over London, but this weekend they went a practical step further and actually hosted a matrimonial event.

Due to other commitments I arrived late, but apparently the afternoon consisted of a talk on why we should all pull our fingers out and get married, some people standing up at the front and introducing themselves, everyone mingling over food and stuff and finally everyone sitting in a circle and introducing themselves. I arrived in time for that last bit.

Apart from the inevitable awkwardness from some, I thought the whole thing was pretty much a success. As far as I know no one got married, but as the start of a wider initiative it has bags of potential and most importantly was quite fun. There were some complaints about there being more women than men (as usual), and some discussion to do with us holding such an event in a mosque, most of which was positive.

Personally, I think we should be aware that people in a mosque will act like they're in a mosque (so there were no rude jokes from me today, no sir) and it should be seen as a way for adults to introduce each other rather than govern the whole process up to a marriage itself. In this way it's less of a preferred or exclusive way for a Muslim to meet a partner and is as good as any other strategy any of us could (and should) have.

But on the whole I think it's something I will participate more in; there was some talk about organising some kind of speed dating variant for the next activity, and if anything will lift my reservations about that kind of thing it's that it'd be held in a mosque.

New Music

American Gangster OST - Jay-Z

Jay-Z takes a step back to bring us this ace track - in a time when I tend to stay away from Rap it takes something special to grab my attention and Roc Boys is it. Pray and the title track from the OST are also of note.

Yeh Ishq Hai - Jab We Met

Fun yet smooth number from a pretty rubbish film.

Film: Taare Zameen Par

Brilliant, lovely, fantastic and emotional, Aamir Khan pretty much smashes it with this, a film he acts in, produces and directs. But although the film owes a lot to Khan's talent it's the young Darsheel Safary who steals the show in his portrayal of an undiagnosed dyslexic boy. I really can't overstate Safary's skill in performing; he certainly put Aamir Khan himself to shame in this film and outclasses any young talent Hollywood has to offer.

Beautifully shot and put together with love and care, Taare Zameen Par deals with the issue of learning difficulties in children in two parts; firstly we see how someone struggling with such a condition deals with it when it's not addressed by a more conventional schooling system. It's here that Safary really shines since it's by definition all about him.

Post-interval we are shown a possible solution to the problems presented before. This is where Ram, Aamir Khan's character, comes in - Ram is a special needs teacher who happens to fly in to save the day just at the right time. If that sounds cynical it's kinda because it is; I felt that that film was incorrectly paced in that more time should have been spent post-diagnosis - as it stands everything seems to be solved way too quickly and easily (by Ram who it seemed to be more about by this stage) and really doesn't do full justice to the moral message the film is trying to send out. As a result it all becomes a bit too over-sentimental for my taste and not as "real" as the first half.

But all that wasn't enough to write off the film. It was still ace and a pleasure to watch all three hours of; once again an Aamir Khan film has raised the stakes in Indian cinema. I totally recommend it of course, if only to expression the delight that is Darsheel Safary. Go watch.

Fill Yer Boots

Yes, it's sale time again. Although not quite, since the traditional sale has now been totally replaced by the less authentic version as pioneered by Next. So called bargains no longer sell out, but are manufactured to now make a profit. The now genuinely profitable "sale" sessions occur throughout the year with people thinking they're getting a bargain from the big names when they could just as well go to Primark down the road (who are at least honest about their wares).

Still, I braved Oxford Street last night and bought some things. Steal of the day was a woollen Gap scarf, priced at five quid but ringing up at the till for half that. Nice. I also finally picked up that pair of green Golas I've been wanting for ages. Various tops and trousers rounded off a pretty successful evening.

Food: Yauatcha

Fancy and expensive Dim Sum? I'm not sure why but the two don't really seem to go together for me. Still, Yauatcha provides some pretty good food, a nice atmosphere in which to eat it and some very good service - a nice touch was them presenting the various courses as we finished the last. We didn't have to wait long for anything at all.

Although I didn't pay the bill myself (yay) I got the impression that it broke the £25 per head barrier - I'll try confirming this later, but for now if you're thinking of trying out Yauatcha yourself, make sure you bring a fat wallet.

However, despite the pleasant experience, it still doesn't beat Royal China for Dim Sum.

Film: I Am Legend

My word, this film was slow. For a 101 minute film, it felt twice as long. For those of you with short attention spans, this is not the film for you. On the other hand Legend was very impressive visually. The derelict 2012 version of New York City seemed as authentic as any capital hit by an apocalypse would, and the infected really are scary-ass.

The mistake made, then, is thinking that this was a science fiction action horror, and apart from a few superb scenes, it really isn't. No, this is about a single surviving man and how he deals with his isolation - his state of mind and behaviour. Yawn.

But even if that's exactly why you had chosen to watch this film, it still doesn't quite deliver. Will Smith is great, and has proven his ability to bring his characters to life in his previous movies; this just happens to fall short of the mark.

One for the home DVD player, I'm afraid.

Three-Nil

Congratulations to my brother and sister in law on producing the first baby girl on my mother's side of the family for the last 35 years. My Nani's wish/curse of us all only ever having boys has indeed finally been broken!

Still, a part of me wishes they could have hung on for 70 minutes. Think of all the Jesus jokes we coulda made!

Strictly Hating, And Reasonably So

Well at least the two hottest female (Matt who?) dancers made it to the Strictly Come Dancing final - personally I was split between them myself, but I guess I would have always been happiest with fellow birthday celebrator Alisha winning. Flavia was pretty awesome too though (and extra credit goes to that concave stomach of hers). Dance class for the new year perhaps?

The real reason of this post, however, is to hate a tiny bit on Matt Di Angelo and recent reports of him being in a bit of a love triangle with both Alisha and Flavia. Good grief, what a bastard, etc.

Film: St. Trinian's

First things first: it was not my idea to go watch this film. Although I have fond memories of watching the St Trinian's films with my mum as a kid, this latest update really didn't appeal to me. Just in case you were wondering I mean. But since I had been dragged to watch, I may as well give my opinion on the film.

I guess that, in a sentence, there really wasn't many surprises here. When the school finds itself in bad financial shape, it is left to the students to figure out a way to raise the funds needed to save it. Alleged comic antics ensue and a lot of fun is had. The acting is poor (and at some points pretty weird), there are fundamental errors made with respect to the plot (and ultimately it didn;t really make much sense) and there are some truly bad moments in the film. There were some points which made me laugh out loud, but not enough to save it.

St. Trinian's was never going to be a classy act, and it isn't worth watching really. Unless you're into the whole schoolgirl thing of course.

Jeff Wayne's The War Of the Worlds

In a day of gratuitous free-riding, I also managed to get myself invited to the O2 Arena to watch a musical production of The War of the Worlds. We were sat in one of the corporate boxes so had a fast-track entry, a wonderful view, a private suite and food (although that last bit was totally non-vegetarian at first).

It was also my first time at the newly refurbished O2 dome thing, and I was mildly impressed. The Arena is obviously the main draw; I don't see myself coming to eat, hang or watch a film here. As a concert venue it was pretty neat though.

But I was here to listen to some good music and the WOTW production itself was pretty damn fantastic. Jeff Wayne managed to seamlessly combine the classical orchestra with modern rock to retell HG Wells' story about alien invasion, yet it all felt so comfortably familiar and accessibly. I was tapping my foot for most of the performance. As a bonus we got light and special effects, but for me they were all pretty superfluous.

There were a few things I found odd about the actual storytelling though; they decided to concentrate on and give time to some very dry parts of the story and kinda jumped to the ending a bit too quickly for my taste. But since the music was so damn good I didn't really mind - if I wanted to hear the story in any detail I'll go watch Tom Cruise instead (or read the book).

All in all a brilliant night out, and especially because of the whole box thing. I expect to be still humming the instantly recognisable hook (you'll know it when you hear it too) for at least a week more.

A Day At The Races

A friend managed to swag free tickets to Ascot today and asked me if I wanted to come along. I've never been to a race meeting before let alone one as Ascot, so I pretty much jumped at the chance.

Since some of us had other things planned in the evening, we had to get to the racetrack early. The complex itself was pretty impressive - the grandstand reminded at least two of us of an airport, and the famous racecourse itself oozed with class and grandeur. I was glad I decided to wear a shirt after all (as opposed to another guest who decided to go for the whole jeans and non-matching shoe look. Don't ask).

Of course as Muslim I wasn't there to bet on any races, but it was interesting to see how the whole thing worked. As it was, we got a bit bored after the first two races. The weather didn't really help, and although it was good to experiencing the atmosphere alone, if that was the only reason to go something like the Royal Ascot would have probably been more interesting. We left after lunch, but not before having a go on the Winter Wonderland carousel.

I'm glad I went but I don't think I'll be heading back to a meeting here or anywhere else any time soon though. If you're not into horses then there's not really much else to do...

Islamic Labelling

Although I'd always proudly claim to be and identified as a Muslim, I'd never claim RadioShak to be an Islamic blog; as a friend commented once, the amount of T&A alone on these pages would kill any attempt at entering that particular section of the blogosphere. On the other hand, Islam does make up the single largest topic I write about and further receives the biggest amount of feedback so there so I guess it could be classed as such in a somewhat tenuous manner.

But to be honest I'm not sure I'd want it to be labelled in such a way anyway. One of the basic premises of this place was to break free from having to conform to my environment and to be as close to a real self as possible - the idea being that since everyone I knew could read these pages I would be unable to model myself to a particular crowd as we subconsciously (and reasonably) find ourselves sometimes doing. It's pretty liberating having all my cards on the table, especially as I become more and more comfortable with who I am.

To write to a single audience would be way too restrictive as well. Forget the bits about girls, would talking about relationships be appropriate? What about my passion for film or videogames? Maybe, maybe not. I think that one of the biggest benefits that blogging has brought to the Internet - the "realness" and integrity of being written by a non-expert - has been trampled on as they become more focused and aligned to a particular topics. We've always had conventional websites and editorial to talk about specific topics, and as blogs continually turn into magazines like these, issues regarding their aim and agenda start creeping out and like I've suggested before I think that it's pretty easy to write what people expect want to read.

Having said that, I've seen many Islamic blogs digress in ways magazines would not and so I could be wrong. But even so I like to think that the non-Islamic freedoms I afford myself here ironically allow me to write about Islamic topics others may not and more so in a language and style I feel the most number of people may relate more to.

Continuing on from this idea, Islamic blogs may also find themselves less accessible to non-Muslims, whereas I have regular non-Muslim readers who sometimes find themselves reading about a religion they wouldn't have otherwise. It's not quite sneaking Islam in through the back door, but I think it's clear to these readers that I'm here to discuss and offer ideas rather than preach a specific religion.

Apart from the practical implications there is a bigger reason I avoid going down the explicit Islamic route. For sure, Islam is important to me, and that's not just because I've been practising since I can remember, but more because it is something that is embedded in my life in a much different and more fundamental way to being Pakistani or British or a Software Engineer or wannabe film buff.

And I guess, rather counter-intuitively, that's why I'm so uncomfortable with the overtness of wearing Islam on my sleeve. On a trivial level it would almost be as if I would be trying to prove something about myself that I already knew. But it's deeper than that too; Islam is such a native part of who I am it almost feels weird and redundant to bring it up as if it were an extra special quality I have.

I don't wear a badge saying that I'm a man or that I'm human or that I have black hair and brown eyes or that I believe in a particular brand of gender and social rights; no, these things all become apparent via other more coincidental means and I'd like to think that my faith was blatantly obvious too without me explicitly having to draw attention to it.

Of course, there is a case of overtness being a form of dawah (religious invitation) and there is a very good argument in that. And at this point I have to make it clear that this post isn't about shutting down or discouraging Islamic blogging - I recognise the good that comes out of them be that in others or personally (I follow at least two of the BCA nominees religiously, ha ha) and the right to write what you want is something more important than any criticism I can come up with here.

But my personal approach has always been to give dawah by (extremely unlikely) example and if someone managed to wrestle a good practise from my behaviour I wouldn't be concerned whether they recognised it as coming from my belief in Islam or not.

Perhaps I don't value my Islamic consciousness or practise enough to vocalise it? It's not that I don't want to be recognised as a Muslim; I do and when asked I say that I am in a very proud way. But to extract my faith as a kind of entity that I own, manage, market and fine tune rather than one that owns me is something I don't think I could bring myself to doing; to rip out and isolate something so ingrained in my life would be quite impossible.

So there you have it: RadioShak isn't a Islamic blog, but a blog that happens to be written by Muslim. It's not here to explicitly spread the Message or make people think about religion, but if these things inadvertently happen anyway then that's cool too. I'm more than comfortable with that status than if I was seen as being only about one thing, be it film, relationships or Islam.

And yes, I totally acknowledge the irony of this post - there's nothing more overt than saying how covert you are about something. But hey, I've never claimed to be not self-involved.

Joke of the Day

Thanks to Atha for this little gem:

What did the Asian milk bottle say to the other Asian milk bottle?
Hey dood!

Just awesome.

Eid Mubarak!

Although midweek Eids are always weird, I'm excited about today. It marks the start of the holiday season and I've no doubt that the next three weeks will fly past. And after that it will just be the long straight home. But more about that in the new year.

A big pat on the back to all those who managed to complete the Hajj rituals today. I pray that God accepts their pilgrimage and that they take as much away from the experience as possible.

For most people Hajj is an eye-opener. The typical effect is for attendees to come back as new people - usually more practising and God-aware. I think Hajj had an equally profound effect on me too, but in what appears to be the opposite way.

The sheer number of different Muslims attending the pilgrimage of 2002 opened my mind to the different the practises of Islam around the world. The rush itself taught me patience (not that I managed to keep mine during that week), and how sometimes spirit and ideas are more important than concrete and definitive practise. If there was ever a single event that put me in my alleged liberal or progressive mindset it was my Hajj.

If you've never been, then I would easily suggest you make a move to. Not just because it's an obligation, but because it's one of those rare experiences of a Muslim that may mould their sense of faith, in whichever way that actually turns out to be.

Yet Another BCA Post

The results are in and the winners of this year's BCAs have been announced. My congratulations to all that have won, some more to all who were nominated in the first place and even more so to those (Muslim or not) who take the time to write about and discuss Islam at all.

Inevitably however the whole awards thing wasn't without controversy. At least one nominee withdrew (albeit for seemingly noble reasons) while another used his nomination to let it all out. The rest either unabashedly requested their readership to Vote For Me, or more impressively kept quiet altogether. But hey, what's a virtual awards ceremony without virtual gossip eh?

This discussion did prompt a question in my mind though. What exactly is a Muslim blog? Is it one that contains writings about Islam? Or one that's written by a Muslim? Written for Muslims? From this year's nominees I can't quite tell.

There's also the bigger issue of integrity: the potential for exploitation or commercialisation of an Islamic identity may compromise what a person has to say or even what they believe. Some blogs are able to avoid this easily; Yahya Birt springs to mind but he's rare (and certainly a better man than I am) in his ability to keep his humble head while in the spotlight.

I hate marketing and representation in all walks of life and find it to be opaque and manipulative and some would say that the BCA winners are more about their prettiness and user-friendliness than content: a friend and I were joking about how easy it would be to write an award-winning Islamic blog.

So how about an award for best post from a non obvious source? I've read many good things that people have written "in passing" on blogs whose focus are not particularly on Islam. These kind of contributions should be encouraged in order to widen the net of dialogue and break out of any collective or clique mentality.

I could be missing the point though - if these things all equate to greater accessibility of ideas and result in change in a positive way, then who am I to comment? Having said that, I do wonder how many non-Muslims read the BCA nominateship anyway.

But this isn't really about blogs per se; no, the question is a wider one and more about how we each choose to represent and label ourselves - the age old and well trodden question of (blog-)identity and (blog-)politics then? Zzz. Expect a further post about my take on RadioShak, then.

Oh and yes, of course I could just be totally jealous and hating. I hope the winners all wear their award badges with pride.

Book: The Meaning of the Glorious Quran, M. M. Pickthall

Although my madarassa days had put me into the habit of completing the Quran in Arabic four to five times a year, I've never once read the whole thing in a language I can understand. Of course, due the the nature of the book at hand this isn't a regular review - it is worth noting my experience with Pickthall's work though.

Along with Yusuf Ali's famous work, Pickthall had generally been taken as a top credible translation of the Islam's most (and only) holy book. From my limited experience of the former, Pickthall certainly seemed the most accessible of the two, although I'm not quite sure we can refer to it as modern any more. It's also very concise; footnotes are sparse and as a volume on its own I'm not sure it's enough to get the most from a translation.

Following on from that point, it's important to know that a translation of the Quran is NOT the Quran. The Arabic language in which it has always been authentically scribed and copied in is as much as part of the book as its content, and any translation will always be incomplete because of this.

But for those of us who don't understand Arabic translations are an (albeit imperfect) way to gain a deeper understanding of the Quran and pave the way to later study via tafsir or the like. I recommend that any who do read the Quran regularly complement their lessons with the corresponding translation, even if it means halving the absolute amount you read to save time.