HE'S BACK!

-- BREAKING NEWS --

Fans of Journalist Omar Jamil's weblog, Chasingtails, had reason to rejoice Sunday. Mr. Jamil, who had not posted any of the titilating details of his life since Friday, graced his readership this afternoon with a new post: "bed blogs and bloom flicks."

In the release, Mr. Jamil describes his busy weekend. He writes of dinner at Lahore Karahi, where he ate seekh kababs. He tells about drinking at the Rickshaw top and listening to a band. He explains how his fashionable shoes hurt his feet, almost ruining an otherwise pleasant visit to the SF MOMA with girlfriend Tasha Amaral, 22. He doccuments his cooking of something called aloo keema and his thoughts on seeing "The Forgotten," "Troy," and "Freaky Friday."

According to the most recent release, Mr. Jamil and his acquaintance, Miss Amaral, have regained some modicum of domestic tranquility. Omar experts were quick to point out that despite the return to normalicy, Tasha may be harboring an undercurrent of discontent. "Dude, she, like, broke his favorite ashtray," an California-based expert, who asked we not use his name, said.

Omar analysts noticed a wistful introspection in Mr. Jamil's most recent entry. "When will I stop chasing these damnable skirts?" the 30-year-old journalist wrote.

For fans of Omar's blog, the answer is: "hopefully never."

Fan Mail

OmarWatch periodically receives mail from its readers regarding Omar Jamil. We thought this letter, in particular, would be useful for fans who have expressed concern over the lack of recent postings on Mr. Jamil's weblog.

Dear Sirs:

In such circumstances as the repeated absence of a posting on Chasing Tails, the Omar Jamil blog, I, as a dedicated fan, thought I might help others through their withdrawal symptoms by providing some news of another famous Omar. Whilst not intended as a replacement for news of the real deal Jamil, this Omar is doing his part to spread the omarvellous and jamilicious vibe made famous by his namesake.

The artist simply known as ‘Omar’ is an (apparently) British club and dance star. His most famous tracks include such titles as ‘meaning of life’, ‘serious style’, ‘best by far’, ‘there’s nothing like this’, ‘I’m in love’ and ‘beautifully human’.

One reviewer on Amazon.com reported: “When he’s at the top of his game, Omar is amazing. But he needs to publish more…and less typical commercial stuff. I don’t know if the US is ready for this brand of neo-soul.”

Another, who gave his review the title: ‘Some great moments but too much cheese’, wrote: “Omar is still the man!!! He’s a true artist to me and should be respected as that. But it is notable that Omar wrote very few tracks on this CD.”

To Jamil fans yearning for more news, I want you to know that it is possible to get through these days, devoid of – to use another song title of artist simply known as ‘Omar’- your “Essensual” reading.

-An Omar fan

Somerset, England

Lack of posts worries Omar fans

--NEWS--

Silence may be golden to some, but for fans of journalist Omar Jamil's weblog, silence is an unbearable torture, similar to the pain of being poked in the eye with a sodering iron.

Public support for Mr. Jamil's online-journal reached record highs after its January 20th inception, many of his friends, relatives, and coworkers greeted the oportunity to enjoy Mr. Jamil's musings with unrestrained glee. Ryan Blitstein, a journalist at Red Herring Magazine and one of Mr. Jamil's coworkers, said, "DIAMOND," upon learning of the new blog.

But Omar's recent silence -- two full days -- has dismayed his loyal readers. "I felt like crying," said reporter Anna Petherick, "But then I realized it was just a piece of dust in my eye."

Others have speculated that Omar can't be bothered to blog during his busy weekends. "That guy's a party animal," said an Omar insider who asked not to be named.

Will the blog be back? Only time will tell.

Omar Jamil, goat killer?

The San Bernadino Times reported a story on Muslim goat sacrifices that profiled Mr. Jamil as a goat killer. The article reported his age as 60. Experts at OmarWatch suspect the San Bernadino newspaper may have erroneously reported Mr. Jamil's name, but others have pointed out that the man profiled in the news story could be a different Omar Jamil.

Decide for yourself:

Copyright 2003 MediaNews Group, Inc.
San Bernardino Sun (San Bernardino, CA)

February 11, 2003 Tuesday

SECTION: NEWS
LENGTH: 512 words
HEADLINE: Area Muslims observe Festival of Sacrifice; Ritual recalls Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son in obedience to God.
BYLINE: BRENDA GAZZAR, Staff Writer
BODY:

Light showers and brisk weather did not dampen spirits during a yearly Islamic ritual at a custom slaughterhouse Tuesday.

Omar Jamil of Rialto hand-picked seven goats from Lizze CustomProcessing for sacrifice and distribution in honor of Eid al-Adha, or festival of sacrifice. The holiday, one of the two most important Islamic holidays, commemorates Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, at God's command.

According to Islamic belief, God spared Ishmael's life and allowedAbraham to sacrifice a lamb instead.

The three-day holiday, which started Tuesday, also marks the end ofthe yearly pilgrimage called hajj to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

"A lot of people love animals,' said Jamil, 60, who came to theslaughterhouse in Chino to sacrifice the goats for his family and his brother's family. "Nothing is wrong with loving animals. But the love of God should come before the love of animals. We are fulfilling the tradition of Abraham.'

Thousands of Muslims from the Inland Empire gathered for prayer inlocal mosques and at the Ontario Convention Center Tuesday. After prayers, men, women and children from throughout Southern California braved the rain to select lambs, goats and cows for sacrifice at the Chino farm.

About 300 to 500 animals are slaughtered at Lizze Custom Processingfor the Islamic ritual each year, said Richard Lizarraga, general manager.

Lambs and goats, once paid for, are taken inside to be slaughtered.Cows, usually first stunned with a stun gun, are then sacrificed outside in a wooden stall.

With a short blessing, "In the Name of God, the Compassionate, theMerciful,' the animal's throat is slit with a sharp knife and in one quick motion.

The animal is sacrificed this way to avoid causing the animal pain,said Moktar Moktar of San Gabriel, who has done the ritual for about 10 years.

"You have to have the heart and the guts before the training,'Moktar said. "By doing it a lot, you get the experience.'

Muslims are required to give one-third of the meat to relatives andfriends, another third to the needy and keep the final third for themselves and their families.

"You are not by yourself; you have a duty towards religion, society,and your children,' Jamil said of the obligation to distribute the meat.

A cow is divided into seven parts, or shared by seven adults. A lamband a goat are each considered to be one part which is sufficient for one adult.

After morning prayers at the Ontario Convention Center, Nash Ashi ofUpland brought his four sons, ages 7 to 13, to the farm to watch the ritual for the first time.

Instead of sacrificing an animal, Ashi decided to give money to theneedy.

"I prefer to give money,' Ashi said. "It goes where it is mostdeeply needed.'

Yaser, his eldest son, peered with his brothers through the chain-linkfence into the pen where the animals could touch their hands.

He said he was excited to learn the ritual and see how the lambs arechosen.

"I want to choose which one is better; the one that looks clean andhas no marks on its body,' he said.

LOAD-DATE: October 27, 2003