Funnies, and not so

Subtle, but I get a kick out of it all the same.



I can't wait for the levitation part. And if they boil it I'm calling them out for cheaters, because nobody says anything here about transformation from liquid to gas. Nope, they've got to levitate it in its liquid form or I'm demanding a refund.


The poster is pretty typical of things around here: everybody gets a poster for everything, especially if they're already important. Like, "Sheikh Somebody-or-other cordially requests the honour of your presence as he enjoys his daily breakfast of jam-on-toast, crumpets, a fruit cup, scrumptious dates, and Arabian coffee what could levitate a horseshoe."

We are also fond of rubber stamps, whether they are legitimate or not, principally, we suspect, because a) We find it amusing to make the Western ex-pats beg, borrow, and steal to get the stamps in the first place, or b) the damned British done wrote them into the post-colonial rule book, like the continuing presence of ruggers and cricket, the usage of roundabouts, boots, bonnets, and spanners, and the occasional twirling of umbrellas as fashion accessories for the slightly effeminate.

Don't get me started on decrees. Wa'allah. (Loosely: ay caramba.)


Alright. Not sure this is going to work, and it's probably illegal, but it's a nice rendition of the "Adhan," or call to prayer. It's by the Cat Formerly Known As Stevens, or, if you prefer, the Artist Formerly Known As Cat Stevens, and whose tenure on Billboard is matched only by his tenure on the no-fly list after some injudicious comments made post-7/7. Without further ado, except for the production credits by the hired infidel, I give you Yusuf Islam:



Might wanna listen to it twice, just to let the stream catch up. His Arabic is a little different from what we hear around here--might be because he's a Brit: he does the kinds of things I can imagine Dad doing if he ever got his Lancashire jaws on a semitic tongue (which sounds rather violent, now that I think about it).

Anyway, we hear "Allahu okhbahr," not "Allahu aikhbaihr." Potayto, potahto.