Taken a selfie with a webcam

I took this selfie using a webcam. I was wearing my home dress and no makeup. I think green suits me.

Let go

 When you have too much stress, you have no choice but to figure out how to let go of it all. I am learning that too. The most effective effort is to let go. Just let go of everything. It could be people, money, pride, status, a job, or anything else. Stop worrying about them. Be prepared to accept losing everything. I found this very helpful in recovering from stressful situations. When you have nothing, you don't have anything to worry about. So if you want to lose your burdens, just let go. Who or what wants to stay will stay.

Biography 329: Web Development business

 When I started my web development business, I desperately needed a laptop. At that time in Bangladesh, laptops were the most expensive items to buy. I used to work on a desktop, then put all files on a floppy disc, later on a CD, and after that used a pen drive to show them to clients. I really wanted to work on a laptop so I could display them directly. Anyway, I worked on some projects and earned money.

In this business, my role was to communicate with the client when they expressed interest in working with me. First, I provided a project proposal with a flow diagram and discussed with the client whether they wanted to make any changes. Then I assured them that we would keep the design changes without any extra fee unless they liked them and gave the green light to start. Then I handled the programming, and my work partner handled the design. We combined our work and then presented it to the client. 

Before starting the work, I always took 50% of the project money once the client agreed to the flow chart. I have seen that those who have no problem giving me the money at the start of the work pay in full. But people who don't want to pay first actually don't pay at the end.

I have asked my freelance marketing team to bring a successful project. If they do, I will pay 30% of the project money to them. Very few were successful in that work. It's not always their problem; sometimes the problem was on my end.

But my tendency was always to give priority to my business partner. I know I am by nature a leader. So I controlled myself not to overpower my business partner's opinions. Later, I found that my decisions were actually better. When I listened to them, I actually lost money, and I finally stopped the business.

Shopping Mall

 This picture was taken at Bashundhora City Shopping Center. It is not the only luxury shopping mall in Dhaka, but I liked it because of its well-maintained facilities. That's why I have been there many times for different reasons, such as eating, watching a movie, buying things, meeting up, or celebrating something.

Ramadan Planning for Ladies

 Ramadan planning. Ladies, our plan is different from that of men and children. Let's try to figure out whether we can pray Taraweeh salat in Masjeed? If yes, do we have to go alone or take someone with us? In that case, we need to talk with them and make a good plan. If not possible in Masjid, then at home? If at home, then when will be the suitable time? Can we pray Tahajjud salat? How are we going to manage time? Make time before serving seheri food. Every day, are we going to recite the Quran? If yes, then when? Make a plan for a time so that we can always keep that time free from other work.

Now let's plan the food. For every Iftar meal, make one special dish. The rest should be fruits, Sarbat/Sarbet, and whatever is available at home. For Sehery, keep the regular meal. For a Bangladeshi family, that means rice, daal, veg, and protein.

And don't forget to plan for sleep. It's very important. Plan when you can get some sleep and stick to that time, whether you can sleep or not. At least take a rest on the bed.

Biography 328: Controlling weight

 People who are in good health have no idea how far a person will go to lose weight. 

Since my teenage years, I have been trying to control my food intake and started exercising. I have tried many methods I found online, were suggested by friends and family, and were suggested by doctors and nutritionists. I have tried keto, among others. All of them work at first, but my body finds a way to adapt and I start gaining weight.

My doctor gave me Ozempic to lose weight. After controlling my food intake and doing some light exercise, I was still gaining weight. I tried for months, but my weight kept going up. So the doctor stopped it. I am still having trouble with my weight. I didn't stop trying. I will keep trying. But that doesn't mean I will be disheartened. I am still overweight. From my perspective, maybe it is me. If I have to live with that, I will.

Dhaka, Bangladesh.

 This is a semi-commercial/mixed commercial area in Kakrail, Dhaka, Bangladesh. I think the picture is about 15 years old. I took it from a hospital room. It was a difficult night to sleep, so I was looking outside and watching this scene.

Bus stoppage in the snow

In the winter, Toronto always gets some snow. But because of the warm weather, it melted soon. This year, 2026, was different. Due to climate change, winter became colder, longer, and brought lots of snow.

The City of Toronto did a much better job this year. Still, there is plenty of room to improve. They must clear bus stoppages as a priority, and the area must be cleaned properly so there won't be any blockages to getting on the bus or the sidewalk. There should be enough salt to prevent melted snow from making the area slippery.

Biography 327: If you get burnt

 When working in the kitchen, it's obvious that you will burn your hand sometimes. At that time, I was very new to the kitchen, and one day I burnt my hand. It was my parent's house. So after burning, I stopped working completely and tried to take care of my hand. But I couldn't find any way to make it feel better. For hours, I felt burning in my skin. I had to put my hand in a bowl of cold water. When I took my hand out of the water, it started burning again. Even though the water was at normal temperature, I had to change it to stay calm.

As I couldn't find a way, people who learned about my problem started giving me suggestions. One said to put potatoes on it, another suggested toothpaste (just to clear, never do this; toothpaste will do more harm), put salt in the water, spray spirit (you can spray deodorant or perfume), put Vaseline/gel (again, this is harmful), etc.

I tried almost everything. I found that spraying spirits works like magic. The next helpful idea was to add salt to the water. It helps reduce the pain. The rest of the suggestions didn't work at all.

Decoration with light.

Bangladesh's national fish is Hilsha. I guess somebody made that with lights.

 Street lighting decoration in Bangladesh isn't very new. People used to decorate with lighting when they had a marriage ceremony at home. It was a bit expensive. Then the government used to decorate the cities with lights on Independence Day or Victory Day. Then on Eid days and other occasions. With time, this has become an art.