Ready for Ramadan?
It's in like a month y'all. This is likely a remix of last year's post but hey, it's all good. Now is a great time to start:
1. Thinking about groceries and starting to stock up and planning meals. I know this sounds basic and like I am reducing Ramadan to food, but have you ever tried grocery shopping or meal planning when you are fasting? It turns into, "ooh I think tonight I want a banana split...and some dates...and some pringles...and some ice cream....and some deep fried onion rings...and a hamburger...and biryani...and a shrimp po-boy...and a Lindt bar...and some samosas" Getting your food situation intellectualized is a weight off your mind and rather than reducing Ramadan to food, thinking about your food beforehand helps you concentrate on the essential. Each week of Ramadan I know pretty much at the beginning of the week what my meals are going to be. It's a modified version of my "Sunday Night Cooking" that working women often do.
2. Planning your work schedule, checking what is going on at the masjid, and trying to get byes for certain days from your boss or finalize your vacation (for those of you lucky enough to take off), for those of you who have kids this can mean organising babysitters for at least a few nights, even if you just want to stay home and concentrate on worship.
3. Fasting and make up fasts--Ladies, don't be stupid like me, hopefully no one has days to make up...if so, I will join you in the fasting club tomorrow...and next weekend....and some more....you should also have a good idea now about what Ramadan days you will be, uh, incapacitated. Go ahead and volunteer to cook or babysitthose days so that someone can go to tarawih (since you can't), and make sure that your special nights out don't coincide with "that time."
4. Start loading up your mp3 with lectures and Koran or anything that uplifts you for Ramadan. I don't like music or madih during Ramadan, when I am fasting drums give me a headache. So I have to do major shuffling and reloading and uploading during Ramadan.
5. If you have anything big to do at your house--seasonal cleaning, moving things to attic/basement--do it now rather than later. The week before Ramadan is always crazy. Trust. Anything you know you need to do before Ramadan, do it now.
6. If you don't live near a masjid, now is a good time to start staking out online resources, many places have live Ramadan series that you can listen to as they happen, or record for posterity for El Ipod. I don't link stuff like this thus conclusions be made about my religious leanings, but if you are hard up and can't find links, just holler.
7. Buying whatever thermos or tupperware you need to help you in pre-cooking or transporting food to work for the "ride home" in case of overtime or shift work. Even if you KNOW you will be home before sunset, bring dates and a small bottle of water in a ziploc bag in your purse. How many times was I caught outside and made myself sick not breaking fast until two and three hours later. Just last Ramadan it happened to me four times. If I have any doubt whatsoever about "that time of the month", I also pack a light lunch so that I don't go crazy at work, usually instant soup and an apple. Although stealth eating lunch at work during Ramadan is worth a post in itself.
1. Thinking about groceries and starting to stock up and planning meals. I know this sounds basic and like I am reducing Ramadan to food, but have you ever tried grocery shopping or meal planning when you are fasting? It turns into, "ooh I think tonight I want a banana split...and some dates...and some pringles...and some ice cream....and some deep fried onion rings...and a hamburger...and biryani...and a shrimp po-boy...and a Lindt bar...and some samosas" Getting your food situation intellectualized is a weight off your mind and rather than reducing Ramadan to food, thinking about your food beforehand helps you concentrate on the essential. Each week of Ramadan I know pretty much at the beginning of the week what my meals are going to be. It's a modified version of my "Sunday Night Cooking" that working women often do.
2. Planning your work schedule, checking what is going on at the masjid, and trying to get byes for certain days from your boss or finalize your vacation (for those of you lucky enough to take off), for those of you who have kids this can mean organising babysitters for at least a few nights, even if you just want to stay home and concentrate on worship.
3. Fasting and make up fasts--Ladies, don't be stupid like me, hopefully no one has days to make up...if so, I will join you in the fasting club tomorrow...and next weekend....and some more....you should also have a good idea now about what Ramadan days you will be, uh, incapacitated. Go ahead and volunteer to cook or babysitthose days so that someone can go to tarawih (since you can't), and make sure that your special nights out don't coincide with "that time."
4. Start loading up your mp3 with lectures and Koran or anything that uplifts you for Ramadan. I don't like music or madih during Ramadan, when I am fasting drums give me a headache. So I have to do major shuffling and reloading and uploading during Ramadan.
5. If you have anything big to do at your house--seasonal cleaning, moving things to attic/basement--do it now rather than later. The week before Ramadan is always crazy. Trust. Anything you know you need to do before Ramadan, do it now.
6. If you don't live near a masjid, now is a good time to start staking out online resources, many places have live Ramadan series that you can listen to as they happen, or record for posterity for El Ipod. I don't link stuff like this thus conclusions be made about my religious leanings, but if you are hard up and can't find links, just holler.
7. Buying whatever thermos or tupperware you need to help you in pre-cooking or transporting food to work for the "ride home" in case of overtime or shift work. Even if you KNOW you will be home before sunset, bring dates and a small bottle of water in a ziploc bag in your purse. How many times was I caught outside and made myself sick not breaking fast until two and three hours later. Just last Ramadan it happened to me four times. If I have any doubt whatsoever about "that time of the month", I also pack a light lunch so that I don't go crazy at work, usually instant soup and an apple. Although stealth eating lunch at work during Ramadan is worth a post in itself.
Labels: Ramadan readiness
posted by The DP at
10:53 AM
