If you can eat, you can cook..

I have always been amazed over people or in this case guys saying that "Naa man I don't like to cook" or "No I can't cook and why should I when mum or my wife does"...

But let's get down to the nittygritty of this whole scene.

You can spoon up the food from the plate and pick up the glass of water and drink it, but you don't have the energy to make the food you are eating or pour the water into the glass that you are drinking from?

That's kind of hmm lazy if you ask me. And why am I saying that? Am I being the advocate of "Get all guys to cook" campaign? Naa not at all..

I used to live in England before, all on my own. It was a tough few years, considering the fact that I either had to eat out or make something myself. I opted for making more and more things myself. Yah sometimes the rice did turn out to be mountains of white stuff stuck together but after a while managed to make them totally separate hehe

All it required was a drive to the local market, and a few bags of groceries on the way back. Then onto the shared kitchen with an idea of what I am to make. Most of the times I would call mum in Norway to guide me through the process of making Pulao (brown rice) or Aalo Gobi (Potatoes and Cauliflower). To just say the least I can say that those few years I spent in England were one of the best learning experiences of my entire few years I have been on this earth.

Being away from family was not so much fun but the fact that I had to work my way through with only 100 pounds in my pocket to earning 35 000 pounds a year gave me the sense of being confident enough to not think about petty things like few of my lovely fellow male friends would say "Cooking is for girls" and things they are grown up with which might not be their fault because their parents or lovely mothers "teach them" to be that way.

Why am I blaming the mothers? well here is the reason. It's ok to allow your mother to make the food once in a while, but does it mean that when you are capable of walking, talking, earning, selling, driving, etc etc you are too silly or lazy to be adding "cooking" into that list as well? Or is it that if you start cooking you will grow a ponytail and your friends will call you a "lady" instead?

I can very proudly say that maybe the values my mum injected in me helped me be what I am today. I don't feel that girls should be the only ones cooking in the kitchen neither do I feel bad when I want to help washing up the dishes after a long day at work.. why would I?

So to get deep down to why some guys don't like to cook or help along at home, below is a list of what I feel are the reasons.. you can add them in your comments too:-

• The guy since childhood has been given everything on the plate
• He has not been taught the feeling that it's alright for you to help along
• He has been "taught" that kitchen is only for girls
• He has friends who are anti-cooking or have silly ideas that women are below them
• When the mother is away or no more, the guy continues same "thinking" with his wife
  that now she will be feeding him as if he is a little baby

I remember when I was 6 that I used to help mum wash up the dishes at home in Pakistan and then continued to do so in Norway. Dad was quite helpful in that sense, since he loves cooking himself as well. So i would say all in all at this moment i can make a few things myself for me and my brothers at home (Since my parents are now in Saudi Arabia for a few weeks)

Just a few of the things I learnt:-

• Paratha
  
• Zarda (Sweet rice)
• Pulao (Brown rice)
• Aalo Gobi (Potatoes and Cauliflower)
• Bhindis (Ladyfingers)
• Biryani
• And a few other things that I saw mum make

But despite knowing how tough it is to be making something new for you every single day, don't you as a guy (or a girl that doesn't cook) think that it's time to start respecting the females in your house who make it a HOME. Who spend hours and hours in the kitchen making something for you so you don't starve because as I see it, some guys are still big babies. So maybe its time to grow out of that cocoon, remove the diaper and start being a MAN. And a man is not a man unless he realizes that the true value and respects the other gender like he wishes to be respected himself.

Search around for small and simple recipes. What's the worst you would do? Burn the food? Well practice makes perfect and I am sure you will do well .. so what ya say? Wanna make something today?

The hijaab and the misconceptions

Since my little sister wears hijaab (covers her head) according to the religion Islam. I was looking at some newspapers onlines and was like wow, this group is so much targetted for wearing a scarf on their head, for believing in themselves, being proud and despite all that the misconception that all that cover their head are forced to do so.

The thought became so strong that I just had to do something about it. I registered a domain www.IamScarfed.com and set out on the mission to create a network for sisters around the world who cover their head and have no proper recognition. On this network the thought is to put as much information to inspire more to follow what they can be proud of, and backup those that do already.

The goal is simple but very tough, but not impossible. And that is to get as many people as we can via the website to get a clearer picture that those that wear a scarf on their head due to their religion are proud and also successful in anything they do. A scarf doesn't stop one from doing things one wants to, it just is a part of their lives.. a very important part.

The site is at www.IamScarfed.com

The forgotten culture...

Since I have been working also as a host on some major radio stations I have come across lots of various kinds of people, either if they are listeners or as colleagues.

As a presenter I used to get lots of calls from people who wanted to point my attention towards some other issues which we usually didn't cover on the family show being so obvious. But I really wondered why we usually didn't cover anything of that sort.

Which sort you say? Well I am talking about the forgotten culture and religious values in our generation and the one younger than us, those that probably were born abroad.

And the main reason behind the topic being suggested was that lots of dating sites were popping around in Norway and guys used to be registering with fake IDs like bees to honey, and sadly the girls who range from 15 and above used to fall in their traps.

A guy appeared on the news, covered with a cloth on his face and said that he had managed to trick over 200+ girls and all of them were Asians either Pakistani or Indian. Now what does that tell us?

Are the parents of those girls aware what and where their daughters are? Or should they also be giving enough time to the guys? I believe that the lack of trust and closeness between parents and kids really push the kids into doing all these things.

Some might say that the guy was just telling a lie, to prove that these things do happen I interviewed another guy who fell under the same category. Disgusted as I was while sitting with him I couldn't think of anything else than this one important thing. "What are the parents of these girls thinking, they don't know what has happened to their girl or what their girl has done". And on they will go to wed her off to some guy in their family either the girl's cousin or someone in Pakistan, but why isn't going over the line a big deal for some of the generation here anymore?

Has anyone realized what kind of life most people are leading abroad? First being away from their home country, where going for Jumah prayers was a thing we would never miss, coming here it's the work that keeps us "busy n tied", our younger generation sees music and other things as the only way out, not only that but kids here in Norway followed by peer pressure end up smoking, n drinking and anything that has to do with drugs.

Some kids who I will be revealing soon to their parents sell drugs to make money, and yes I am talking about little Asian kids and I remember when I was their age I used to watch He-Man and play with my car models rather than making a couple of thousands kroners (Norwegian currency) selling drugs.

It's disgusting, its sick and its the point where each and every parent should start working only as much as they need to and give all their time to the kids. That's the best thing they would do to themselves and if they don't sadly, they're doomed.