I cooked all day. Party Tonight. All kinds of friends came. Depressed, cheerful. Intellectuals, not-so-intellectuals. White, brown, black. Women, men, hermaphrodites.(Children were not invited). Atheists, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, Mormons. (Christians were invited but did not show up. Jains, Buddhists,Vegetarians, Vegans, People with heart diseases, high blood sugar and high cholesterol were not invited.)
It was a ‘Throw off silly restrictions’ party. Apéritif and Château Margaux red wine were served for everyone. But different foods were served for people of different beliefs. 
For Muslims, Pork.
For Jews, Pork and Seafood
For Hindus, Beef.
For Mormons, Glenfiddich, Moose Steak, Hot Coffee, Hot Tea, Caffeinated Red Bull, and Cigarettes (Cigarettes only for tonight)
Atheists ate everything and drank everything. After the main course of meal, everybody had Chocolates, Ice creams and Eau de vie, after-dinner drinks.
We talked, we laughed, we danced, we sang. We all wanted to visit Mars. I can tell it was a great party.
Sounds like my kind of party!
I am glad to know it.
That sounds spectacular! And now I know who to ask for party advice.
What a brilliant idea!
That does sound like a rousing good time
Oh how I wish I could do “Cigarettes only for tonight”. I hate people who can do that. Otherwise a fine party.
I have exactly the same thoughts.
I often find your blog posts here a little overwrought; so where they entail topics or themes that interest me, what I might bring to the discussion seems pointless.
Not meant this as any sort of gauntlet throwen down or delusional attempt to put you on your heels, merely presenting context, for what that’s worth.
But, this post interests me, oddly enough.
And, I find objection to the Ramadan fast kind of odd.
No mistake, that’s my kind of dinner party. Not only would I as a guest consume some of everything served, but since the point to the offerings was to cast aside the restrictions imposed by limited socio-religious groups, I would most assuredly feel a capacity to be myself (even my drunken self). (In fact, I spent my Canada Day eve this year in nearly the same circumstance.)
But riddle me these.
Parenthetically, you say children were not invited, just after you say hermaphrodites were. Not trying to call you out on anything, but why weren’t children allowed? (a sincere enquiry)? If you couldn’t manage childcare, of course that’s understandable, but is there any other reason you’d care to explain?
Before moving on, let me note that your report that “Christians were invited but did not show up” has got me to thinking.(Just sounds like a dig to me.)
More to the point, why were “Jains, Buddhists,Vegetarians, Vegans, People with heart diseases, high blood sugar and high cholesterol were not invited?”
Ok, I understand the excluding those for whom your offerings might represent a temptation injurious to their health, but why did you consider Jain and Buddhist dietary restrictions something not to flaunt?
Endulge me as I share a personal anecdote.
In 2003 I was in India, and part of my trip included a trip to Ajmer. After a day of sightseeing, as well as buying a ton of stuff I couldn’t afford, I ran into a Jain merchant who I’d dealt with earlier in the day, and he invited me to dine on the roof of the building in which his business was located. Dining with us was his Rajput buddy.
The menu. rice, sabzi, and … curried goat. To drink, water and … a 1 litre bottle of whiskey which we completely evaculated, Cooking and eating and drinking all occurred on the roof of the building of the shop in which the Jain man’s cloth shop was located, on a beautiful monsoon night(full disclosure, I spent my midnight hours alone, worshipping at the porcelain altar).
Now, I said as non-confrontationally as I could to my host, you’re a Jain but you drink and eat meat? Nonplussed he was. His friend was maybe more interesting (though with no cultural or religious restriction on eating meat or drinking alcohol). A Rajput widower, with kids. He said he wanted (sociologically speaking read, needed) a new wife. He said he’d be happy to marry a widow (judge the sincerely of that as you please) but said that he couldn’t ’cause he knew his whole extended family would disown him as a result.
I offer that as a question about the limitations on the invites to your bacchanal. Again, why do Jains and Buddhists get a pass? Further, Buddhism is not oppressive, generally or with respect to what ppl eat or drink?
But, k, they, like some Vegetarians and vegans, might be morally harmless, if not righteous, but I still don’t see how they are different from observants of Ramadan (or the others you invited to flaunt dietary restrictions).
All’s to say, you seem to be playing a little fast and loose with dietary restrictions. I think you have to have to be all in or all out.
Reject Ramadan, as a Muslim, I can respect that.
But, if you make allowances for dietary restrictions in some quarter, I think you need to undertand it, at least, in others.
I mean, and I don’t want to make a giant essay out of it, but surely you know othewise pious Muslims who take a drink, eat pork, and are not quite letter-of-the-law with respect to the fast.
But let be take another tack. Expain to me what’s wrong with the Muslim fast (or Hindu or Jain or Xtn ones)?
Eat, drink, be merry.
But what’s wrong with the community of others who say, let’s pause and deny ourselves those things? And that Mammon’s entailed indulgences are wrong.
What if I said I think that my anti-consumurist community ought to fast (understood as no eating, drinking spending, etc.specially while the world is filled with those without the wherewithal to consume) from 1 December to 31 December? And so what of I said that the justification of it came from God?
I’m not judging your flirtation with libertinism, I’m just saying that you are theatrically flirting with libertinism, as a means of criticiizing the whole Islamic tradition, and as resistence to restraint socially in general. And I find that odd.
I’m happy to believe in indulgence as a form of social resistence. But, I have to believe in restraint as the same, in appropriate contexts. You don’t seem to agree.
Anyway, cheers.
Thanks for your concern. Children were not invited because I did not want them to be in front of smoking and drinking. I did not want them to get inspired to smoke or drink. I did not invite Jains and Buddhists for the same reason as I did not invite Atheist vegetarians or Christian Vegans. They say, animals should not be killed for food. They choose not to eat animals. I respect their choice.
I’m sorry Taslima, but you NOT inviting vegetarians and vegans to your party, that’s not “respecting their choice”. That’s EXCLUDING them. If you truly respect their dietary choices, then do so by inviting them to your awesome & diverse party and offering them a selection of food they can eat, just like you did with everyone else.
Thanks for your comment. I can invite them any day but that party was ‘get rid of religious restrictions’ party. I would have invited Jains and Buddhists if they said they would not eat meat because of religious dietary restrictions. All of them said they would not eat meat because they love animals. I love animals too. But it’s true that I eat meat. I should not expect everyone to be like me.
Thank you for responding. I knew the theme of your party but since you said that you also invited non-vegetarian Atheist and they ate anything, I thought this would be same with inviting vegetarian Atheists(or not just atheists)on the same principle. Anyway, I’m sure it was a great party. I was probably reactionary a little because in the past I also have been excluded from a couple bbq parties and do on for being vegetarian. It kinda sucks.
Oh my that sounds like fun.
Hey!!! where was my invite?
No doubt ,it was a Great party to be remembered by all the participants till the day of leaving the planet earth for Mars!Very curious to know what did you actually eat?
I…I would love to know what all was cooked. It all sounds so delicious and so indulgent!
I am glad to hear that such a good time was had!
I never liked seafood and pork and lamb when I was a believer. I didn’t like seafood and pork and lamb when I got turned into a hardcore atheist. I still do not like seafood pork and lamb when I am not an atheist or a believer any more. Maybe the magic of atheism didn’t truly work for me, and I still envy those who can eat stinky seafood and filthy pork or gooey lamb. And yes, I had a little intolerance to alcohol. Turning to atheism did nothing to alleviate this intolerance, too. I am still struggling to hold just one standard drink of alcohol. I can’t. Help.
“Say, you got a nice blog.Thanks Again.”
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