Make it work!

I recently received a gorgeous shirt dress from my cousin Emm as a gift. Although it was oversized on me, the fit was perfect with the addition of a belt. I love the look and comfort of the oversized dress with leggings. It made me consider that as I get older, I should experiment more with the size of my garments and accessories. Who cares if it's a size 2, 6, or 16 - just make it work!!

Thanks cousin for keeping me fly!! It clearly runs in the family.

Mizz Bea Markey

Watermelon

Just turned 30 and boy am I enjoying this third decade of life. So far, so good!! Now let's try and get this blog really going off the ground :-/

Bright pink and green are a nice combo for the summer sun. You would think they clash, but somehow it works. Thanks to #hijabista and #newboldneighbors for keeping me on fleek (haha I just couldn't resist!!). Now back to my daily commute. 

Also note to self - buy a selfie stick/hire a cheap photographer and remove headphones (duh!!! I don't even think I was listening to anything). 

MizzBeaMarkey: miss fatu all growed up

Perfect spring day

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The weather has been absolutely gorgeous. And this past weekend I enjoyed it at my alma mater, Bryn Mawr College. I walked around the campus with my number one dork, Mr M. Students were out all dressed in pure white enjoying the late morning sunshine for the May Day celebrations marking the end of classes. The air was light and lively. As I walked throughout the campus I was filled with thoughts of times that have passed but are not forgotten. I truly enjoyed my time as a student at Bryn Mawr and it was so nice to come back to the campus after 8 years ( wowzers! How time flies ^,^). You can't get to where you are going if you forget where you come from.

#anassakata #bmcbanter #mayday

Sister time

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My sister, Miss A, came to visit me over the holiday weekend! It's always so nice to get my sister-sister (say it like the 90's sitcom) time in. We went to the Franklin Institute and enjoyed the Body Worlds Animals Inside Out exhibit. FI is absolutely an excellent museum. And as you can see by the statue in the foyer, not only does the institute pay respect to Ben's amazing intelligence and aptitude for discovery, buthe was clearly also ahead of his time regarding men's fashion. ^.^ The weekend ended with a BBQ and taste testing a new dessert at one of my favorite restaurants. All in all it was a great couple of days. 

Weekend fun

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Had a great weekend filled with all new things! Puma shoes, dinner at P'unk Burger on an arcade table that actually works, fresh mani-pedi, home made New Orleans style fish fry AND A DYSON VACUUM!!!

This new vacuum is so good that Mr M has been doing all the cleaning. I just prop my feet up and watch ^.^ I give it 🌟🌟🌟🌟 four stars for its husband hypnosis abilities. 

#winning

Outfit of the day

Cause I DO look nice sometimes

One scarf, two outfits all thanks to hijab-ista.

This second look is a souvenir of the most recent Pi day - The Pi day of the century. Nothing like getting your geek on ^.^

#ootd

Commentary: Terrorists in Paris

If you have already noticed, or maybe you haven't, I like to savor and ruminate on events/thoughts before I write a commentary. Part of it is to remove the initial emotional response from my writing in order to really evaluate the situation with intelligence and logic. I like to question and examine and hypothesize a bit . . . I think it's a habit from many, many years of scientific training. So with that intro, let's talk about Charlie Hebdo.

The clearly terroristic attacks on the offices of the Charlie Hebdo publication and those that occurred subsequently are flat out disgusting. As a devout and practicing Muslim I cannot wrap my head around how anyone justifies such horror in the name of religion. These actions are so far from what I have been taught and seen within the Muslim community that I will in no way consider these people as members of my faith. They can identify themselves however they want, but I do not see them as people of faith. 

I have seen firsthand the "satirical" comics that caused such over-zealous outrage. Quite frankly I find them vulgar and disrespectful. I do not think the goal of the Hebdo cartoons was simply to comment on religion, the cartoons are too distasteful, in my opinion, to indicate such tact. However, as stupid as I think these cartoons are no one needs to die for being stupid. Honestly, there would be no one left on this earth if we took stupidity to heart. 

What I fail to understand with these ridiculous attacks is why these radicals cannot see that logic? It also demonstrates for me that there is clearly a lack of even the most basic religious knowledge with these individuals. All prophets were mocked and ridiculed and mistreated by the populations in which they emerged. The same poor treatment was passed on to those who devoutly saw the right path and followed these leaders; despite all this negativity the prophets persevered in following God and spreading their message. Why does it matter if the people around you are insulting you and turning away when you know in your heart you are doing what is right? These same challenges that the prophets faced during their time now exist in present day. And just as those challenges were handeled with dignity in days of old, we must do the same. 

These attacks not only have harmed the peace and safety of Muslims living in these countries, but they have brought unnecessary support and attention to a small magazine that had a fairly low readership. The comedy presented in Charlie Hebdo was not mainstream; these unthinkable attacks have essentially led to the promotion this negative magazine. How are these terrorists achieving any kind of justice for anyone if this is the outcome? 

I have also come across an NPR article that claims there is a double standard in France with regards to freedom of expression when mocking religion. A French comic by the stage name Dieudonne has had numerous problems in expressing his own brand of comedy which tends to mock the Jewish faith. However, he finds that there is often censorship against his satire from the French government;mthe writers of Charlie Hebdo probably never encountered any censorship of any kind. Double standard? Probably. It is not a secret that French society has a prejudice against those who are seen as "others." Unfortunately, these bipolar attitudes make it very difficult for some in the French immigrant Muslim community to decry the acts against Charlie Hebdo. If these people are isolated and withdrawn from the normal society, this type of injustice will eat away at these groups to spawn the type of hatred that produces terrorist attacks. 

Where do we go from here? The momentum cannot come from only one side. Too often I hear that Muslim communities need to do more to fight against these budding terrorists, but the truth is we cannot do it alone and we should not be required. I have yet to hear any Cathloic need to take personal responsibility for the child molestation that occurs at the hands of their priests nor do I hear the need for any Causian to shoulder the burden of crimes committed by white serial killers.

These terrorists did not only kill French men and women, they targeted a Muslim man as well. If anything, that action should make it clear that this fight is bigger than extremism in the Muslim community. I am just as much a target as anybody else. This fight is against pure evil NOT religion.

#JenesuispasCharlie

Outfit of the day - Strawberries and cream

I recently purchased this gorgeous cream blazer from H&M. At the time it was on end of season sale (score) and had some slight staining (boo), but I asked the cashier for a further price reduction due to the stains and she agreed. Once I got home, my mind twisted with how to best treat the stains so I could proudly wear my new blazer. A little bit of water and baking soda did the trick (thanks little sister, love ya girl!) and now I'm enjoying a great new addition to my wardrobe. 

I have also found that in this terribly cold whether a blazer is much warmer than a sweater, especially when combined with a couple extra layers.  

#ootd