Ramadan

Today is the first day of Ramadan. What is Ramadan you ask? Ramadan is the holiest observance of Islam that runs for a period of about 30 days. During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims from all over the world will be fasting and spiritually abstaining from human pleasures such as food, drink, caffeine, sex, and nicotine from sunrise to sunset! This year the period of Ramadan will go from 22 August through 21 or 22 September (1 full lunar cycle). Living in a Middle Eastern country made up of 90% Muslims, the commencement of Ramadan is HUGE! It is THE creme de la creme of all Islamic observances. And it is my first Ramadan experience.

Ramadan begins on a different date every year. Ramadan occurs on the 9th month of the Islamic calendar, which begins and ends with the sighting of the new moon. Ramadan shaves off 11 +/- days each year. For example, last year Ramadan began on 1 September...this year 22 August...next year 11 August, give or take a day. Again, Ramadan depends on the evolution of the moon's phases. Muslims believe that the essence of Ramadan brings awareness and nearness to God, because it was during the lunar month of Ramadan that "the light of the Creator" was revealed through the discovery of the Qu'ran (holy book):

"Fasting during the month of Ramadan is one of the five pillars of faith in Islam, and commemorates the month in which the first verses of the Holy Qu'ran were revealed to the Prophet Mohammed. (The other four pillars are belief in one God and his Messengers, prayer, charity to the poor, and making the Hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca). Ramadan is a time of worship and contemplation, and when the concerns of temporal existence recede."

After prayers at sunset, Iftar or the evening meal that breaks the fast, will commence and Muslims will spend the entire night through the wee hours past midnight eating communally with family and friends. At these gatherings people will set aside their differences and express thankfulness for what they've been given. It is not unlike our concept of Thanksgiving, except Muslims will conduct 30 days of it! At about 4:30 am Muslims will awake for Suhoor or pre-dawn prayers and meals, before sunrise finds them repeating the rituals from the day before.

Yesterday, daylight savings ended and we pushed our clocks back 1 hour early in readiness for Ramadan. To be frank, I'm not ready for it. I'm a little nervous actually. Think about it. 90% of the population will be hungry, dehydrated, hypoglycemic, chemically withdrawn, and sleep-deprived for about 12 hours x 30 days. And have I mentioned that all of these things are going on during the hottest month of the year? Sheesh! Needless to say my unease has validity. Granted abstinence of earthly pleasures is supposed to bring Muslims spiritual enlightenment by suffering the plight of the poor. I just hope they channel this while they're driving around in rush hour traffic. Inshallah! (In God's Will)

Ramadan Kareem (May Your Ramadan Be Blessed)

Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon

TAG! You're It!

Ever played Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon? The original game version connects actors to Kevin Bacon within 6 links or less. My modified version links celebrity trivias - beginning and ending with a Kevin Bacon trivia. I've changed the rules purely for selfish reasons. I want to read more trivias! LoL. My siblings and I are notorious for spouting off senseless celebrity trivia thanks to the unwitting example of our dear ol' dad. *Note: Dad is brilliant with 1920-1970s trivia. Quiz him on recent celebs, however comma, and he hasn't a clue! LoL. (Pops, if you're reading this, you inspired today's blog tag).

Tag Rules? Cut n' paste this section of the tag onto your blog. Start with a Kevin Bacon trivia. Link it with correlating celebrity trivias without breaking the chain. End with a Kevin Bacon trivia. Post. The final count is up to you. Tag your blog readers. Have fun!

1. 
   
   Kevin Bacon starred in the movie Footloose with other new comers Sarah Jessica Parker and Chris Penn.
2. 
   
   Sarah Jessica Parker and Chris Penn dated briefly during the filming of Footloose.
3. 
   
   Chris Penn died at age 40.
4. 
   
   Chris Penn's brother is Sean Penn.
5. 
   
   Sean Penn's wives: 1) Madonna 2) Robin Wright Penn.
6. 
   
   Madonna dated veteran film star Warren Beatty during the filming of Dick Tracy.
7. 
   
   Warren Beatty's sister is veteran film star Shirley Maclaine.
8. 
   
   Shirley Maclaine played Weezer in the movie Steel Magnolias with Julia Roberts.
9. 
   
   Julia Roberts started dating and got engaged to Dylan McDermott during the filming of Steel Magnolias.
10. 
    
    Julia Roberts started dating and got engaged to Kiefer Sutherland during the filming of Flatliners.
11. 
    
    Kiefer Sutherland's father is veteran film star Donald Sutherland.
12. 
    
    Kiefer Sutherland and Jason Patric were in the movie Lost Boys.
13. 
    
    Jason Patric's grandfather was veteran tv actor Jackie Gleason.
14. 
    
    Julia Roberts dated Jason Patric after her split with Kiefer Sutherland.
15. 
    
    Julia Roberts's brother is Eric Roberts.
16. 
    
    Eric Roberts's daughter is Emma Roberts.
17. 
    
    Emma Roberts played the lead in the movie Nancy Drew.
18. 
    
    Tate Donovan played Emma Robert's father in Nancy Drew.
19. 
    
    Tate Donovan dated Sandra Bullock and Jennifer Aniston each for about 4 years.
20. 
    
    Sandra Bullock played a detective opposite Ryan Gosling's psychotic adolescent character in the movie Murder by Numbers.
21. 
    
    Sandra Bullock and Ryan Gosling started dating during the filming of Murder by Numbers.
22. 
    
    Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams's characters were lovers in the movie The Notebook.
23. 
    
    Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams started dating during the filming of The Notebook.
24. 
    
    Rachel McAdams is currently dating Josh Lucas.
25. 
    
    Josh Lucas dated Salma Hayak.
26. 
    
    Salma Hayak and Ed Norton dated for about 4 years.
27. 
    
    Ed Norton graduated from Yale.
28. 
    
    Jody Foster graduated from Yale.
29. 
    
    Jody Foster played the lead in the original Freaky Friday movie.
30. 
    
    Veteran tv actor John Astin played Jodie Foster's father in Freaky Friday.
31. 
    
    John Astin married/divorced veteran tv actress Patty Duke.
32. 
    
    John Astin and Patty Duke's sons are Sean Astin and MacKenzie Astin.
33. 
    
    Sean Astin played hobbit Samwise Gamgee in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
34. 
    
    Liv Tyler played elf princess Arwen in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
35. 
    
    Liv Tyler's father is lead singer and frontman Steven Tyler of the rock band Aerosmith.
36. 
    
    Alicia Silverstone was known as "that girl in the Aerosmith music videos".
37. 
    
    Alicia Silverstone played the lead role in the movie Clueless.
38. 
    
    Paul Rudd played Alicia Silverstone's love interest in Clueless.
39. 
    
    Paul Rudd played Lisa Kudrow's love interest/husband on the tv show Friends.
40. 
    
    Jennifer Aniston co-starred on Friends.
41. 
    
    Jennifer Aniston was married to Brad Pitt.
42. 
    
    Brad Pitt has 3 biological and 3 adopted children with partner Angelina Jolie.
43. 
    
    Angelina Jolie's father is veteran actor Jon Voight.
44. 
    
    Jon Voight played Ricky Schroeder's father in the movie The Champ.
45. 
    
    Ricky Schroeder was a child star on the tv show Silver Spoons.
46. 
    
    Jason Bateman was Ricky Schroeder's wise cracking sidekick on Silver Spoons.
47. 
    
    Jason Bateman's sister is Justine Bateman.
48. 
    
    Justine Bateman played ditzy daughter Mallory Keaton on the tv show Family Ties.
49. 
    
    Michael J. Fox played Mallory's wise cracking brother Alex P. Keaton.
50. 
    
    Michael J. Fox met wife Tracy Pollan on Family Ties.
51. 
    
    Kevin Bacon and Tracy Pollan dated for 6 years prior to her meeting Michael J. Fox.
52. 
    
    Kevin Bacon started dating Kyra Sedgwick after his split with Tracy Pollan.
53. 
    
    Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick married the same year as Michael J. Fox and Tracy Pollan.
54. 
    
    Kyra Sedgwick played Campbell Scott's love interest in the movie Singles.
55. 
    
    Campbell Scott's father is veteran film star George C. Scott.
56. 
    
    George C. Scott refused his Oscar for his portrayal of General Patton in the movie Patton.
57. 
    
    Veteran film star Marlon Brando refused his Oscar for his portrayal of Don Corleone in the movie The Godfather.
58. 
    
    Marlon Brando played Dr. Moreau in The Island of Dr. Moreau remake with Val Kilmer.
59. 
    
    Val Kilmer played Iceman opposite Tom Cruise in Top Gun.
60. 
    
    Tom Cruise's wives: 1) Mimi Rogers 2) Nicole Kidman 3) Katie Holmes.
61. 
    
    Nicole Kidman co-starred with Renee Zellweger in the movie Stone Mountain.
62. 
    
    Renee Zellweger co-starred with Tom Cruise in the movie Jerry Maguire.
63. 
    
    Fellow Texans Renee Zellweger and Matthew McConnaughey debuted together in the movie The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation.
64. 
    
    Matthew McConnaughey attended the University of Texas in Austin.
65. 
    
    1950's blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield attended the University of Texas in Austin.
66. 
    
    Jayne Mansfield's daughter is tv actress Mariska Hargitay.
67. 
    
    Mariska Hargitay was a Kappa Kappa Gamma.
68. 
    
    Sophia Bush and Ashley Judd were Kappa Kappa Gammas.
69. 
    
    Sophia Bush married/divorced One Tree Hill tv co-star Chad Michael Murray.
70. 
    
    One Tree Hill is filmed in Wilmington, NC where Katie Holmes played Joey Potter on the tv show Dawson's Creek.
71. 
    
    Oliver Hudson played one of Joey Potter's love interest on Dawson's Creek.
72. 
    
    Oliver Hudson's sister is Kate Hudson.
73. 
    
    Oliver Hudson and Kate Hudson's father is musician Bill Hudson.
74. 
    
    Bill Hudson's wives: 1) Goldie Hawn 2) Cindy Williams.
75. 
    
    Goldie Hawn has never married longtime partner Kirk Russell.
76. 
    
    Goldie Hawn co-starred with Susan Sarandon in The Banger Sisters.
77. 
    
    Susan Sarandon has never married longtime partner Tim Robbins.
78. 
    
    Tim Robbins co-starred with Kevin Bacon in the movie Mystic River.
79. 
    
    Mystic River was directed by Clint Eastwood.
80. 
    
    Clint Eastwood has a daughter with former girlfriend Frances Fisher.
81. 
    
    Frances Fisher played Kate Winslet's mother in the movie Titanic.
82. 
    
    Kate Winslet is the youngest actress to garner 6 Academy Award nominations, and 1 Oscar win for the movie The Reader.
83. 
    
    Ralph Fiennes co-starred in The Reader.
84. 
    
    Ralph Fiennes's brother is Joseph Fiennes.
85. 
    
    Joseph Fiennes played Gwyneth Paltrow's love interest in Shakespeare in Love.
86. 
    
    Gwyneth Paltrow's parents are veteran actress Blythe Danner and director Bruce Paltrow.
87. 
    
    Blythe Danner played Nick Nolte's wife in the movie Prince of Tides.
88. 
    
    Barbra Streisand acted, directed, and produced the Prince of Tides.
89. 
    
    Barbra Streisand's husbands: 1) Elliot Gould 2) James Brolin.
90. 
    
    James Brolin's son is Josh Brolin.
91. 
    
    Josh Brolin's wife is Diane Lane.
92. 
    
    Diane Lane's ex-husband is Christopher Lambert.
93. 
    
    Chistopher Lambert played Connor Macleod in the Highlander movie series.
94. 
    
    Virginia Madsen co-starred with Christopher Lambert in Highlander II: The Quickening.
95. 
    
    Virginia Madsen has a son with former boyfriend Antonio Sabato, Jr.
96. 
    
    Antonio Sabato, Jr. played Heather Locker's abusive ex-husband on the tv show Melrose Place.
97. 
    
    Heather Locklear's ex-husbands: 1) Tommy Lee 2) Richie Sambora.
98. 
    
    Bon Jovi band member Richie Sambora dated Denise Richards after his split with Heather Locklear.
99. 
    
    John Bongiovi, a.k.a. Jon Bon Jovi, changed the spelling of his name and rock band because people kept misspelling it.
100. 
     
     Jon Bon Jovi supports a celebrity charity organization for sixdegrees.org.
101. 
     
     Kevin Bacon founded sixdegrees.org, an online charitable foundation based on celebrities and philanthropists supporting worthy causes in order to capitalize on the popculture game phenomena, Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon.

[Blogger's Note: It's embarrassing how much senseless trivia I've squirreled away in my funny little brain. I could've kept going, but I started to get blogger's cramp. LoL. I can't wait to read all the tags!]

Getting to the Root of the Matter

Has anyone checked out Kim Kardashian's new blonde do? I haven't made up my mind yet on whether I like it. I definitely like her better as a brunette. What do you think???

Continuing on this subject, I checked out the annals of the internet in search of more dark-haired celebrities that experimented with the blondilocks-look.

I came across Cher. Tsk-Tsk. I remember an interview awhile back in which she admitted feeling like an outcast in her family. Growing up in a household of blonde females, she always yearned for lighter locks. Too bad she never accepted her dark beauty, because she definitely looks better as a brunette!

Kristen Stewart, on the otherhand, looked great in either coloring. Sigh. Just the fact that Rob Pattinson, a.k.a. Edward Cullen, thinks so too makes me quite envious. LoL.

Kelly Clarkson was another brunette that looked attractive as a blonde. Her body may be air brushed on front covers of national magazines, but her hair never needs to be altered on print. Too bad the media can't accept the way she looks!

Another Kelly who could pull off both colorings was Kelly Osbourne. She totally has the Emo-chic vibe going on. Her uniqueness and panache allow her to get away with anything wild and trendy... Dontcha think she'd make a great vampire on film?

Last but not least is Victoria Beckham - glam soccer mom / former Spice girl / latest American Idol Judge. She always looks pouty and scrumptious in every cut n' color she sports. Some girlz have all the luck! Beautiful, Rich, and a Hunky Hub waiting at home... Posh Spice can bend her locks "like Beckham" any which she chooses.

Under Protective Wraps

You gotta love the Chinese. Granted they're the most populated peeps on the planet, serving a whopping 1.3 billion in China alone. 'Course, this may have been their inspiration behind the Condom Catwalk Fashion Show held at the Fourth China Reproductive Health New Technologies and Products Expo in Beijing. Take a gander at some of the creative -"yet safe"- fashionable condom apparels below.

My all time fave was the "Safe Sex" Wedding Dress, which was a bit of a conundrum in my opinion. I mean, geez, isn't one of the benes of getting married NOT wearing prophylactics on your wedding night? LoL. Things that make you go "hmnnnn"....

Farewell to Summer

As summer winds down,

and this...




and this...




get replaced by this...




and this...




please be sure to adhere to this: