Today is Monday, August 4, 2025. How do I know that? My trusty, reliable computer told me so. It is now pouring Penang rain, with gusting winds. I do not mind as it is definitely going to be an IN day, I am still staying at Lyf, no gorgeous sunrises from here. I was seized with a brilliant idea (yet again). Searched through my photos, found one from a year ago, sending it to my WhatsApp folks for their good morning greeting with this caption: This sunrise from 7:09 a year ago. Lyf does not offer the same views as Lexis Suites did. Hahaha
Nesh: This is Lexis Suites is it?
Me: Yes a year ago. Amazing views. Lived there for six months until they gave me scabies. Only could happen to me. Hahaha. Don’t think it was ever reported to the health authorities. Criminal it was. I came from there to live, for the first time at Lyf which had just opened in November. Pouring rain here so nothing to do but write and joke with Shamir.
In some ways it has been a typical morning. Woke for Fajr prayer, then read about twenty pages of Nurturing Emotional Intelligence. It is a truly great inspiring book. My ‘find’ of the morning was found on page 80 discussing the dangers of over socialization.
While a certain level of socialization if healthy and required over indulgence can lead to a hardening of the heart. In such settings, one tends to waste time in idle talk and unproductive sinful behavior such as backbiting, slandering, or tale-carrying. Ibn Taymuyah said: “At times it is necessary for the worshipper to be isolated from others to pray, remember Allah, recite the Quran, and evaluate himself and his deed. Also, isolation allows one to supplicate, seek forgiveness and stay away from evil.”
A quotation from Dr. Al-Quarni ends in this manner:
Every person who was a genius, a mental giant or a great contributor to the human race waters the seeds of his or her greatness from the well of isolation until the seed becomes a plant and then finally a formidable tree.”
I am most social, I have social skills that do not stop (she said, humbly) but I do SO need my time alone, my isolation. My months at Lexis Suites provided such and it was there I ‘grew my faith.’ It was time for me to leave when scabies struck. Very unpleasant. It had been mis diagnosed for at least a couple of months. One can follow some of my time at Lexis Suites by going to my YouTube. The fabled Where Are You From is recorded there, wearing a gifted Batik dress. Also Lex Spa. And Alexis 2024. As you can readily see I also had fun. My time spent in solitary confinement were not photo ops. Haha
It was then breakfast time, now severed in a strange fashion. Some of my WhatsAppers sent views of their awesome surroundings. One photo will be included. I gave them a dose of my reality. (The photo will be included as well).
Somewhere along the way received another treasure from Shamir. I have absolutely NO idea how he does this. I am beginning to think he is an International Spy who can dig up all kinds of dirt on people, mainly me.
He: Maybe u need a mani and a pedi session. A reminder from yourself 😂
He sent a reel from YouTube called Fingertips. I will incorporate it on my new YouTube channel. I have absolutely NO idea where or when or how it came into being. It is kinda strange.
Me: This needs to be on my new YouTube. I love you more now for finding it and sending it to me. If that be possible.
Just got a message from Nesh that the breakdown for the latest blog is up.
Me: I cannot believe this day!!! All praise to Allah!! Well to you and Shamir as well. Hahaha Off to read the breakdown now.
All one has to do is go to Instagram and look at the most recent post. It also is on TikTok and Facebook (apparently),
It is sheer genius. Sheer, absolute genius. Better than the real blog, much better. Captures me in All of my glory. Picks the highlights – highlighting them, laughingly. For example – (yes, she defined, go figure of course.” Then about Shamir’s contribution. “Also found: A wedding reel. A legal takedown of an oyster farm.”
Oh by the way – about the oysters. Sent to a photo to Shamir of the oysters I was consuming at Mojo Jojo.
Me: Guess what I am eating???
He: omggg Johnson won’t be happy.
Me: I cannot wait to go to California with you and see who owns the oyster farm now.
He: 🤣
We do have a plan of sorts. He has a US visa, so getting there legally would not be a problem I have two passports after all. So I would be guaranteed admission.
The Shamir found another ‘hidden’ treasure. This is how he announced it.
He: I did not know you are an excellent dancer.
Me: Huh????? I am not.
He had found a reel. Equinox Dancing. I watched it. I am an excellent dancer if I do say so myself. That took place during my early Vancouver Days when I was living next door to the Equinox in my fabled residency at the Trump International Hotel and Tower on West Georgia Street. Trained three times a week under the auspices of a trainer I called Hottie. He actually did not know what he was doing and made my right grew worse, instead of better, necessitating right knee replacement surgery in Marin County in August of 2019. Equinox took no responsibility for his mismanagement and negligence. The right knee replacement was most successful, but covid interfered with surgery on my left knee. But look at that video. I sure can dance!!!!!
All these discoveries Shamir has been finding are found on a YouTube channel that Chris initiated under his name, without my permission (come to think of it). It was never integrated into my blog or set up in any discernible way. It reminds me of a staying. Don’t hide your light under a bushel, or something like that.
OF COURSE I looked it up to find the following:
The term comes from the Bible (Matthew 5:15): “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick.” The bushel in question was not presumably the unit of weight so called but the container that would hold it—in other words, a bushel basket.
Here it is used in a sentence: Oh, it doesn’t do to hide one’s light under a bushel! One must speak up for oneself, and not hide one’s light under a bushel! Another way to say it is: Show extreme modesty, as in Even after Paul won the scholarship be went on hiding his light under a bushel. This expression, which does not necessarily express approval of this behavior, has its origin in the New Testament (Matthew 5:15.
I did not intentionally hide my accomplishments, using extreme modesty and stuff but my blog master Chris was not, shall we say, demonstrating my skills and talents before the world. In all fairness to him, it was not his chosen profession. (Hahaha). This was always a sideline.
Now, of course, I am going to define sideline: an activity done in addition to one’s main job, especially to earn extra income. So in other words, I was a diversion, a distraction, a hobby. I am laughing
.
I am a diversion, a distraction and a hobby to Shamir as well because his work for me is not his main job. . However, Shamir is a lot younger, curious, is constantly adding new skills to his repertoire, we see each other frequently and correspond continually AND both of us have great senses of humor and care very much for each other. I rarely, if ever, saw Chris. We lived in different time zones most of the time and we corresponded, for some reason, only by email. Despite all of that I did become a success, but I did outgrow Chris. He was my foundation, I now realize. Shamir is also one member of the Dream Team. Nesh the other guy. Nesh would have never ‘taken me on’ if I were a novice. Well, I do not think so anyway. And my well honed skills inspire him who then inspires me who inspires him more and it keeps turning the creative wheel.
I was in my Lyf room writing from bed. My phone rang. It was Baby, We had a great chat. I had been corresponding with Shamir and Nesh all morning. Suddenly realized I was absolutely starving. Put on my shoes and hurried down to my favorite restaurant Mojo Jojo (been calling it the wrong name). Walked in, dramatically telling them that I was starving. Ordered my favorite dish from the brunch meme: the Tomato Rigatoni: with duck crisps, stracciatela and salsa verde. Definitely I will include a photo IF I do not devour it whole when it arrives. Hahaha
Photos of my Lexis Suites view of a year ago, a gorgeous view from an acquaintance, my pedestrian view, Mojo Jojo oysters and the Tomato Rigatoni.
