Izzy Mo’s Blog

jackson eid

Originally uploaded by Izzy Mo.

Salaam alaikum and Eid Mubarak to all my fellow Muslimeen!!!

Here’s a scene from the Jacksonian Hotel. It seems there are a lot more Muslims than I realized and this picture doesn’t show all of them. While there’s a good number in Jackson, there’s more in Vicksburg, a city 45 minutes west of Jackson.

But anyhoo…how was your Eid?

Mine turned out better than I thought, even though it was raining….hard! I had basically planned to go the Eid prayer and then go back to the museum. Alhamdulillah, we closed the museum for Eid! Also, I ran into an old friend from NOLA! Some of you know her as Umm Ahmed (especially you Musulmana and Amani). It was so good to see her and her baby son. Last time I saw her, she was pregnant and it was before Hurricane Katrina. It’s was so good to see her cutie (no, I don’t have any pics of him) and to catch up on the latest.

She invited me over for some really good Bosnian food and I must say…Bosnian coffee rocks! I was super alert for hours! Plus I met some other sisters in the community. One of my issues since moving here has been that the job keeps me so busy, I don’t get much of chance to explore or meet other Muslims. Insha’Allah, I get around more and see more of Mississippi.

I spent the previous night putting henna on my hand for the first time. The result wasn’t bad but insha’Allah, I’ll get better with practice. Don’t look all gooey and slimy once ya put it on? And the smell. I was telling Aaminah the other night that I hoped I using henna and not some weird paste that belongs on food. All of the directions were in Urdu so I couldn’t tell until the dye showed up on my hand. :::Whew::

I know a lot of folks spend Eid alone, especially us converts. But I think that as time passes, more Muslims will make an effort to go all out for Eid and possibly import some of the cool customs from overseas. It would be nice to Eid parties or henna parties where the sisters can get together and chill. I know stuff like that goes on in Georgia and other places where there’s lots of Muslims. But it’s like everything, it’s going to take time to develop the American Muslim culture.

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As for Saddam Hussein…I can’t believe that they hanged him on the Eid. The whole thing is so hypocritical but, he has to answer to God and only God knows the heart of the matter. I’m sure there’s some people out there cheering this on but let’s not forget, the man was backed with American tax dollars to commit each and every single crime against humanity. So while justice may or may not have been done, I can’t forget that there’s a slew of murderers running the current carnage in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine and they need to be tried for war crimes, too.

Unfinished Work

Originally uploaded by Izzy Mo.

Salaam alaikum,

This is what happens when you work on the opposite side of the arts industry.  You spend less time creating art and more time promoting it.  Insha’Allah, if my job issues have finally been resolved, I’ll have the time to do both.  The lighting on this painting isn’t as good as it could have been. 

If I’m off this weekend, maybe I can finish this up and finally start doing my landscapes again.  I love calligraphy but I miss doing still lives and landscapes.  Remember that painting I did of the house in New Orleans?  Well, I was planning on doing a series of paintings based on New Orleans architecture but things got busy and I sold that painting so now I have to start over.  :::Sigh::: 

I’m certainly not sighing over selling the painting

If I had the time, I would have started my France and Spain collection, the New Orleans series and the Mosque series (famous masajid around the world).  The goal of most starving artists, and I would guess creative people in general, is to find that perfect job that funds their art while giving them enough time to work on it.  I’m getting closer, alhamdulillah.  Maybe one day I have my own business and I can paint whenever I want!  Yeah right, I would probably paint half the time and sleep the other!  LOL!

V-Day Gorillaz!!!

Originally uploaded by Izzy Mo.

Here they are! 

They’re at it again! 

And it’s not even February…

THE ATTACK OF THE V-DAY GORILLAZ!!!!!!

Man, I used to love Valentine’s Day but the industry is trying waaaaaaay too hard to turn this day into a second version of Christmas.  Just wait and see.  I’m sure there’s some kind of Valentine’s Day colored lights or ornaments or somethin’.  Can you believe that gorilla has a pink bow on her head?  And she’s wearin’ a whachamacallit?  A tu-tu?  Be on the lookout cuz the V-Day apes are gonna smother you with pink and red gooeyness.

LOL!  :-) 

Salaam alaikum,

What do you guys do to avoid shaking hands with people of the opposite sex?  Once heard that a Orthodox Jewish politician gave his female coworkers a very beautiful reason for not shaking their hands.  He said that it was against his religion, and he followed this by asking, “Wouldn’t the world be a better place if men kept their hands to themselves?”  Masha’Allah, very good answer! 

It’s hard on the job, and I’ve actually been reduced (no, I willing reduced myself) to keeping random objects in my hands to avoid this situation and explaining this to museum guests.  I know most of them are very sweet and many non-Muslim guests have traveled to Muslim countries or have Muslim friends so they know a little bit about Islam.  But it’s hard to explain this when other Muslims are doing it.  Then again…

Since I’m the only wearing hijab in a 20 mile radius, and I’m the only one insisting on halal meat, why should the hand-shaking thing be so hard?  A case of blameworthy modesty, perhaps?  For now, I’m taking the advice offered by Sunnipath. 

Hand shaking is such a part of this society and if you don’t do it, suddenly you’re labeled a snob or weirdo.   There’s also the issue of explaining this to male cousins who you used to beat you up or pull your hair when you were little. It’s hard to explain to Cousin Leon why you don’t wanna rassle around anymore.  If you guys have ideas on how to explain this without offending anyone or hurting their feelings, please let me know. 

Lovin’ the vacay but must go back to Mississippi tomorrow.

Thank you brothers and sisters for your thoughts on the Magnolia state.  While I think that with time (a possibly a football or basketball that kicks butt), they can overcome their self-esteem issues and start investing in the culture again.  But until then, things will move at a the speed of a snail. 

But that’s for the natives of Mississippi to figure out and I’m not the one to fix it.  Yeah, that’s coppin’ out but my debt to Louisiana is much bigger and I know sooner or later, I gotta go back–if not to live there than at least to invest in the culture in some way. 

I would love to blog on some of this controversial stuff going on but…it’s the first ten days of Dhul Hijjah and I’m trying to get as much baraka out of them as much as possible. Many blessings to the pilgrims!  I’ll be back! 

Salaam alaikum,

I’ve been very busy with work and preparing for my small vacay back to Georgia.  All in all, I must say that this short period of time, Mississippi has grown on me.  I’ve been wanting to see more but with work, I just haven’t found the time.  I’ve also been a bit reluctant to write because of some small troubles and slight controversies that have happened in these last two months. I can’t go into detail and it’s not wise to do so on this blog but I will say that I’m a bit disappointed.  Actually, that’s an understatement.  I’m finding out, in very bad way, that things are not always as they seem.  What may look like a great opportunity can turn out to be something totally different.  Let’s just say I’m learning some very important life lessons. 

But onto something else. 

As the Hajj approaches, I hope that we can all fast, if it’s possible for you.  And we can all make dua for the pilgrims that they may purify themselves and become better servants.  I ask all of you, in this post, that if I have offended or hurt you in any way, or said something sinful, or breeched the limits of Islamic adab, I pray that you may forgive me.  Please forgive me for any slight that I may have committed against you knowingly or unknowingly.  As I’m making dua for all the Muslimeen and good hearted people of this world, I hope and pray that you may do the same.  We need all the help we can get. 

I’ve been examining and rethinking this whole concept of the sins of the tongue.  Even though some people say that I don’t talk a lot, I know that I talk enough to possibly say something wrong.  It’s just so easy to flap that tongue, ain’t it?  Of course, you can couple this worry with my current studying of what happens in the grave (especially facing Munkar and Nakil) and you can understand my fears.  I guess we all worry about whether or not our good deeds are enough. 

Sometimes I really do fear for us because there’s so many of us who are not learning this deen.  Most of our confusion on religious matters would be cut in half if we took the time to really study Islam.  One day, I walked into the bathroom and saw a garbage can filled with papers with the basmala on it.  And no, non-Muslims didn’t do this.  So I’m talking about simple religious matters, such as the bathroom thing, and complicated ones.

Alhamdulillah, more Muslims are taking the opportunity to study in a formal setting. But for those of us that don’t have access or can’t afford it, sometimes you’ll just have to break down and sift through the bric-c-brac of the local library or bookstore and hope that you find a ruby amongst the stones. 

Maybe if my nafs shrinks within the next few years, if I live long enough, I wouldn’t mind teaching Islam.  Whether if that’s some weekend school thing or not, I don’t care.  We’ve got new Muslims coming into this deen who go on for years without learning the prayer or even reading a copy of the Qur’an.  Alhamdulliah ‘ala ni’matul Islam.  Also, alhamdulillah, that I verified everything I was told with the Qur’an and Sunnah just to make sure that Muslim wasn’t misinformed.  Alhamdulillah, that I did my own indenpendent study and that I knew better to stay away from books that had an anti-Islamic slant.   But alhamdullilah, I had Muslim friends who were willing to help, like the brother who gave me a rug, prayer book and dates for Ramadan and the sisters who had made dua for me and gave me hijabs, books, and such. 

I’ll probably blog before I leave for GA, but it’s not as if I won’t be blogging out there.

Salaam alaikum,

This was an article I wrote a while back. 

I wanted to write some more on the subject but time and tech problems prevented me. 

But here it is!  My musings on Beauty!

eid1427 002

Originally uploaded by yearningforjennah.

Salaam alaikum,

Remember when I said that I won’t babysit anyone’s kids? Well, I should have been more precise. I WILL babysit babies. Yeah, I can’t say no to babies. Even when they are crying, they’re still so cute. It’s the 3 to 8 year olds that can be a handfull. But when you have a 6 month old, that’s a great age for babies, because you can play with them a little and they’re just getting a little more animated.

So, bring your babies! But call first! Here’s my friend Amani’s cutie patooty better known as Zakiyya. Who could say no to that face?

Aaaaaaaaw!

blue shahada

Originally uploaded by Izzy Mo.

I’m sitting here watching VH1. Don’t ask me why cuz when I’m painting, I have the TV on and the sick world of pop culture sometimes calls me. There’s this commercial with Flavor Flav and all these girls acting like he’s the hottest thing since Denzel or Vin Diesel.

SOMEBODY paid those girls. For real!

I have to believe that because to believe otherwise would make me lose all faith and sanity. Are they fighting…over Flav? Now, I know some folks have animal magnetism and they can just blow you away with it. But there ain’t enough magnetism in the world to make me get into a smack down, drag out fight over Flavor Flav. Futhermore, I don’t think that’s his real house. I think it’s a prop!

But on a lighter note, I sold this painting! :::Grin:::

Congratulations to all of the winners and nominees of the Brass Crescent award. 

So, Umm Zaid, now that you have won two years in a row…

I guess that means your fans are getting a wee bit impatient for your full return.  :-)  How’s life in Jordan and…whenya gonna get that internet, hon?! 

Patiently waiting (sorta!)

Izzy Mo