Bah! Home ownership is fraught with pitfalls and repairs. First, it was the tub where the water only came out of the spigot at the base and not through the showerhead above. When TP tried to fix it, a gush of scalding hot water erupted out of the hot water faucet handle and could have done some major damage if he hadn't raced down to the basement to shut off the main water pipes. All this while guests from NY were arriving. "Welcome to DC! We have no water." Luckily, our friends are easy-going and laughed it off. "It's like being in Pakistan! Sort of like load-shedding but with water!"

Next, it was garbage disposal which somehow got a tiny hole in the plastic housing and was leaking water into the cabinet below. After several phone calls to the warranty people and convincing them that we are covered, they finally sent a technician to repair it. Upon further examination, the tech decided it was more trouble that it was worth to fix it and insead just installed a new one.

Then, stupid Verizon, whose service we use for the phone and whose DSL service our neighbors - whose house is attached to ours - uses, insisted that WE could not receive DSL service. For some reason, our house had two lines running through it. After a month of mixed messages, repair guys appearing and tinkering around but not fixing anything, and a final "no," we just got Comcast cable modem yesterday - which is pretty pricey if you don't also subscribe to their cable tv service - which we can't because we already signed an 18 month contract with Dish Network - which goes bonkers any time it is rainy outside. Speaking of rain . . .

Latest: The deluge of stormy weather that has hit DC has caused buckets o' water to collect on our roof and now it is starting to seep through the ceiling. I woke up the other day to get a snacky snack at 2am and found a puddle of water on the landing at the top of the stairs. With near-constant rain coming down, the wet spot on the ceiling is getting wider and worse. We need to get that repaired beofre the roof caves in on us.

So, what's up next?! (interrodread!)

*shhh. he's alseep. i should be asleep too. and yet, here i am with a quick update. thanks to cybermom and dad for helping me with everything from bathing zp (slippery lil' devil) to rocking him to sleep (using every family member as his own personal bed). thanks to gojira for visiting me and providing me with adult conversation as well as an opportunity to nap while she obeyed the master's commands or suffer the wrath of the angry toes (can't wait to have our own celebrity poker tournament!). thanks to lb and kg for the food and babysitting and the laptop (without which, this blog would have cobwebs in the corners . . . errr, more so). and thanks to tp for taking care of me in every way - emotionally, physically, and foodily (gonna hunker down over some home-cookin' tonight). and thanks to all youze guyz for still visiting this place even though the updates are few and far between and seem to be all about baby stuff. alhumdulillah, his first month's dr's visit went well and he's a healthy baby weighing in at over 10 lbs and stretching out to 24 inches. the best is the morning smile i get and the funniest is watching his huge cheeks tremble with effort when he raises his head. awwww.*

ALERT! ALERT! FURIOUS BEAST AWAKENS! SLASHING CLAWS (seriously, baby nails are fiercely sharp), GNASHING GUMS (hints of teeth threatening beneath), AND ANGRY EYEBROWS (inherited from his daddy)!

*runs away*

Happy Birthday, LB!
Here's a kiss from your absolutely mostest toastest favorite nephew.
xoxoxo, Baji

Been tagged by Musicalchef and so . . . Ten things (most of you) don't know about me (apologies if there is some repetition from the 100 things about me post, parts one and two):

1. When I was younger, I could lace my fingers together and jump through my arms as though they were a jump rope. Not so sure I could still do that these days.
2. With sugared cereals forboden in our household, I used to sneak a scoop or more of sugar straight out of the sugar jar to get my sweet fix.
3. The hardest part of Ramadan for me is the waking up and forcing myself to eat something for Sehri - I used to fall asleep while chewing a banana and when woken up to finish it, I would just shift it from one cheek to the other and snooze.
4. I've seen the Princess Bride so many times that I could (and probably still can) recite almost every single line.
5. I was so addicted to Atari that I managed to get calluses on my fingers from playing so much. Pacman fever, indeed!
6. Although I try not to be, I'm a very vengeful person - during the first month of starting at a new school in the 7th grade, the 'cool girls' decided to pick on me and wrote mean notes to me and put a tack on my chair; in response, I determined who the 'leader' was and kicked her into her locker as the end of school bell rang and walked away. They didn't bother me after that.
7. I can fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes a mere three weeks after delivering my baby.
8. One night whilst asleep on my pallet in Pakistan, I woke up when I felt something tickling my cheek - it was a monster cockroach. With wings. Still freaks me out.
9. For some bizarre reason, after a shower with still-wet hair, I would sometimes suck the water out of my long hair on my way to school. Since I never used a hair-dryer, sometimes my hair would be a mass of frozen strands.
10. My name means 'the fountain in heaven where those closest to God drink.'

To spare what few readers I have left, I won't tag anyone. But whomsoever wishes to be tagged may consider themselves so tagged - just let me know and I'll come visit!

my, how my life has changed. sporadic sleep, incomplete meals, and use of a whole different set of muscles. here is the new soundtrack of my life:


Breast-feeding: Taste the Pain by the Red Hot Chili Peppers
Wriggly diaper change, belly button cleaning, and change of clothes as fast as possible: Jerry Was a Racecar Driver by Primus
Busting out the clippers and letting Dad 'shave' ZP's hair: Cut Your Hair by Pavement
ZP's angry eyebrows and ferocious anger when I'm not fast enough to understand what he is trying to communicate to me: Any song really, by Rage Against the Machine
Looking at the multiple laundry baskets that Mom has graciously been attending to: I Don't Wanna Go Down To The Basement by the Ramones

Being hypnotized by ZP's wide eyes and believing he recognizes me and adores me (especially when I catch that fleeting smile that may indicate pleasure but may also indicate a soiled diaper in progress): Your Favorite Thing by Sugar

Watching ZP sleep and wanting to do anything I can to give him everything he needs and wants: Little Babies by Sleater Kinney

i'm the water i'm the dishes i'm the soap

i will comfort make you clean help you cope

when you're tired feeling helpless

come inside i am the shelter

and then when you're feeling better i'll watch you go

dum dum dee dee dee dum dum dee dum do

all the little babies go oh oh i want to

dum dum dee dee dee dum dum dee dum yeah

rock the little babies with one two three four

are you hungry did you eat before the show

i peeled potatoes set the table washed the floor

i know the others treat you rough

and when you know you've had enough

you'll come and see me cuz' you know

i'm always here

mother's little helper

I can't wait until ZP fits into his new onesie - hand-stitched by TP's previous singer in his band. MORE COW BELL!

In other non-baby related news, I'm glad they are showing the second season of Lost these days because although I caught one episode in the middle and the finale, I'm not certain what the shaq is going on. Also, I cannae believe I finally have cable again after a drought of about two years. So long, Netflix. Hello, Good Eats, Adult Swim, IFC, and Comedy Central (oh, how I've missed Colbert).