The HORROR

I am job hunting... and today, I felt like venturing away from the normal job-posting dedicated websites and contact the companies directly. I called up the Audi HQ, had a very nice chat with the receptionist, obtained the e-mail address, copied my cover letter and attached my CV, after which, I naturally hit sent.

I wasn't until 10 minutes later when I received a confirmation email from them that I realized I had sent it from a VERY embarrassing e-mail address that I use for ads and stuff.

One word: Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Is hoping that they may find my email address intriguing and oh so cute a long shot?

On jellyfish

So... I want a jellyfish pet. They are so much better than fish to watch and are mesmerizing in their movements. I want a jellyfish in a nice, big tank with lights that change colour, and are accordingly reflected by the Jellyfish. For as long as it is my Jellyfish, I shall name it Butters. I do not know what they feed them... or how to clean the tank... or what water I'm supposed to use.. or how long they would live for... or anything about them other than they would die out of water. All I know is, I want a Jellyfish called Butters.

Not weird, right?

Riiiight.

On nostalgia

It is weird. I am sitting here on my couch, all alone. It is very quiet as I don't have any music or the T.V on. The kitchen window is open and suddenly, in comes a lot of noise. People laughing, singing and whistling. For a second, I was transported back to my Montreal apartment. It was snowing outside and warm inside. My apartment was quiet as well, but I could hear the same sounds coming in from the outside. For a second, I felt a calm I haven't felt in years. For a second, I was back home, in my element, where I belong. For a second, I was there... but then again there, is always here with me.

It is weird.

On I think these are all action verbs...

End.
Want.

Need.

Demand.

Ask.

Take.

Give.

Push.

Pull.

Fall.

Rise.

Shine.

Flat.

Dim.
Start.

I need to Ctrl+Alt+Esc my life. Better yet, I wish there was a copy of a different life I could install. 

On confusion... and Barbie heads

Let me start off by saying that I am not as psycho as I sound... most of the times. This is why, when I saw these pictures of Barbie Jewellery, I got a little worried. Is it weird that I find them fascinating?? I mean, they did not seem odd and did not even remind me of Dexter's Ice truck killer or anything. I sincerely liked them. I think wearing Barbie's mouth around my wrist is a great tribute to a well-spent and half-forgotten childhood.

Plus, maybe this is a good time to share the following: when I was a kid, I used to dismember my Barbie heads after it broke and keep them around. Till this day, I do not know why... Too much info, right?

You be the judge:

All pictures from here.

on dates

There are certain dates that everyone remembers, and they remember exactly what they were doing on that certain day. Take September 11, 2001. Most of us know exactly what we were doing when the first plane hit that first tower. Me? I was flying back from Lebanon, solo. My sister was picking me up from the airport and then we went to her friends place. That was where we first found out about the crash. Another date: March 19, 2003, the USA's invasion of Iraq. I was up all night following CNN, BBC, Al Jazeera, and Al Arabiya. I did not sleep one wink that night while I watched on as the USA started bombing Iraq. First thing in the morning, my friend calls me and says "Iraq has fallen." for it had fallen indeed. I stayed in all day that day, I did not attend any of my classes because, history was being made and I was watching. December 30, 2006: Saddam Hussein's execution: I was feeling down about not spending Eid with my family, so I stayed in. Again, it was me and the internet, searching, watching, reading and listening.February 2011: Husni Mubarak states that he will not abdicate; I was at a wedding following on Twitter. We promptly left so we can go watch the news. February 11, 2011: Husni Mubarak is ousted and he resigned. I was in my room when my parents called me to watch with them. October 20, 2011; Gaddafi dies. I was sitting at home, with the parents, following the news.

All those dates are important, and all those dates have made history. However, there is one date that will forever haunt me. One date that I will remember for the rest of my life. One specific day, that no matter how long ago it was, I would always remember exactly how I felt, exactly who was there, exactly what went on, exactly what I was wearing; and exactly how my heart broke. That date is January 27, 2007. It is the day I had to leave Montreal and come back here to live, and call this place home. My heart shattered into a million pieces, I cried rivers and oceans, and felt so miserable throughout the whole flight back that even the people around me were feeling very sorry for me toward the end. That day is coming soon, in 2 day's time. I call it my black out day.

Monty peeps, Je me souviens...

I miss you!!!! Thank you for a wonderful 5 years, I literally would not have been able to make it through with out you. Now, 5 years on, I still can not make it without you; so thank you skype, BBM, Whatsapp, Gmail, and Gtalk for simplifying things and making it possible to still be in touch with my Monty peeps.

On the most romantic thing I've read in a while

You have to read the full post here

This is taken from it:

" ‘Cause what I mean is I want to touch you, not Poke you; I want to like you, not Like you; I want to love you, not Heart you. I want to live in a place void of scare quotes, of capitalized letters that inject semantics, a place void of tonal ambiguity. I want to live in a place where the space between your back exists, where it’s wire-less and not wireless, a place where I can like you in lowercase. Let me like you."

 This is really what life has become. How many relationships do you have that are mostly on line? I communicate with my sis, her kids, B and C on line as there are oceans, mountains and vast lands between us, not to mention the horrible 9 hour time difference. I live in cyber space. I sleep, eat and drink there. It is where I am most myself, and if I ever am in a relationship, I know I will be more comfortable communicating using 0s and 1s with him rather than talking face to face. As long as I have a vehicle to connect with (Phone or laptop) and a cup of coffee/tea next to me, I am happy and content. The world comes to me, rather than me going to it. It is so convenient, so simple, so EASY to lose yourself in cyberspace. All the roads may lead to Rome -in this case Rome is whatever spot I am sitting in-, but it only takes one to lead out of it and into the glorious world wide web.

We should all remember to sign out, log off ,shut down and go out to have some human experience. We, as humans, are losing that and we need to get it back.

Thoughts: On Life

I have been getting some random, yet awesome, and very inspiring quotes and thoughts via e-mail, twitter, BBM, Whatsapp etc and have decided to start sharing them here. I apologize beforehand as I can not attribute every single one properly.

Some of them are funny, some make you stop and think, while some others state what we refuse to admit ourselves. Most of them we already know, but every once in a while, we need to be reminded of them.

Mother Theresa 

Please find this

Today I had two philosophical conversations with two different people about human nature. With the first, I discussed how sad the world has become, how it has become easier to rely on friends rather than family; how blood is no longer a prerequisite for being loved unconditionally and cared for. Nowadays, it is the family you make for yourself, that what we refer to as friends, that loves and cares for you, no judgements. Relatives are the ones judging now, when they should be the first people to accept and embrace.

The second discussion was about how us, as humans, are constantly looking for, and are in need for closure. We can't just let things slide, no matter how hard we pretend otherwise. We say "I don't care" when in reality, we care way more than we care to admit. It only takes a few seconds to admit that we did someone wrong, or for them to admit that they hurt us, and yet, we rarely ever follow through. We all need and strive to be accepted, be heard and be noticed. We need to feel as though we matter, and part of that is closure. We need to know that the person who hurt us knows what they did, and that they are sorry for that.

We, as humans, are such a greedy bunch. We want it all, but are never thankful for what we have. We live in the past or the future, not in the present. We expect things to happen, but we rarely ever actively seek them. We are lazy and very conceited. We forget that for things to change, we need to change first. We need to make the first move, we need to decide, act and speak up. Only then will we see things change. Maybe not at first, but eventually, the change will be felt.

I will leave you with this video on youtube. It touched me with the simplicity of its message. Please listen to it and think about what it says.

2012: It's on!

Dear Friends, far and near;

This is going to be long and very mushy -very unlike me, but please bear with me (It's 3 am here so keep that in mind). Before giving you my blessings for the new year, I would like to share some thoughts of things I've learnt and the year gone by:

* Have a silly, 7ashkal favourite song to help raise your spirits (mine is this)
* Laugh whenever you get the chance to
* Learn to laugh at yourself
* Fall in love as often as you can. A person, a place, a thing, an animal, a thought, a prayer, whatever. Just learn to love and appreciate what is in front of you
* If you don't like something, change it. If your life isn't what you pictured it to be, change it.
* Talk about your feelings with someone, cheaper than seeing a shrink, better than popping antidepressants and being numb
* Be selfish and selfless, each in the right time and place
* Have at least one person that you can share your deepest, darkest and craziest thoughts with... it will keep you sane. (Tried and tested)
* Be kind, even if you feel like slapping/punching/seriously injuring the person in front of you
* Step outside your comfort zone; that is where the adventure that is life begins
* Try to keep the past in the past... there is no point in dwelling over what has been already said and done, Shoulda's, coulda's and woulda's are roads you do not want to go down, EVER.
* Don't let your mind over analyse. Learn to make it shut up and be quiet
* Be your best cheerleader instead of your worst critic
* Discover something new about yourself each day
* Read to enrich your soul and feed your imagination
* Sing out loud, even if you can't carry a tune and your voice is so bad it would shatter glass
* Stand up for what you believe in
* Share your knowledge, time, and material possessions
* Dance, especially to your own tune
* Be spiritual, not religious. Seek out the truth of all things and find a higher power to believe in
* Allow your imagination and your thoughts to wander, you will be surprised at where they take you
* Ask questions
* Learn to smile while your world crashes around you
* Enjoy the silence, and be comfortable with it
* Embrace chaos
* Learn to shoot a gun properly- very liberating and awesome when you manage a bullseye!
* Enjoy when you can, endure when you must
* Make friends with your inner demons
* Hold on to your memories- good or bad- for they are your greatest treasures

2011 had some very interesting twists and turns, and I personally learnt a lot. We should all attempt to learn from the heartaches, heartbreaks, headaches, boo-boos and meltdowns in order to grow as beings and flourish into what we can be. I truly believe 2011 was my year, it may have started out great and progressively got worse toward the end, but it was a great year overall.

I would not change the major events that took place in 2011. I started my masters (positive), semi-temporarily moved out (positive), got sucked into major family issues (negative), moved onto blaming America for everything (positive twist on things), and have finally embraced the fact that I am responsible for my own sanity and well being. There were more negatives than positives, but I shall not dwell on them, I choose to walk away from them. I am grateful for a lot too. I am grateful for my sister, even if I do not say it often enough. She is my rock. I am grateful for my friends, they know how insane I can be, and yet they still decide to remain in my life. Most of all, I am grateful to myself, as conceited and self involved as that sounds. I got myself this far, and I know I can get even further if I put my mind to it.

Peeps, may 2012 be a wonderful year that is filled with joy and much happiness, coupled with wealth and health. I love you all so much, I miss you all more than I will ever confess and I am very lucky to have met/known each and every one of you. I somehow managed to surround myself with purely awesome people that light up my world and make every day a little more bearable to go through.

Always remember: be as big as the sky, calm as the sea, tall as a mountain and solid as the Earth.

Happy New Year!

Love, hugs, and many, many, maaaaaaaaaaaany kisses,
Berry

I wrote this for you

Click here for blog

"And in you and in all of us, there is nothing more than the capacity to be a force for, or a force against. And to wonder, how many people wake up each morning and can't decide if they want to save the world, or destroy it."

From here

For my batta 2

When my little niece was first born, she was a teeny tiny little thing. She was the tiniest and first baby that I ever held. My sister had to have a C-section, and so I went over to help her out in any way I can. I am telling you all this because you need to understand that although she was teeny tiny, she had MASSIVE lungs. She would cry and snort and cry some more. The only remedy?

This song:



and, this song:



I wonder if she they would still work in calming her down... probably not. She has moved onto Barney and the crew since then.

True

"All animals are equal. But some animals are more equal than others"
- George Orwell, Animal Farm

On Concordia

I haven't had time to miss Montreal recently, but during the examination period, I REALLY missed it. I miss the old office I used to stay at 24/7 that no longer exists. I miss Montreal freezing winter. I miss Montreal streets. I miss the Montreal hustle and bustle. Mostly, I miss being easily able to find a place to study, and a place to just relax, and I miss those places being not more than a 10 minute walk away.

Here, university life, SUCKS.

So, in an attempt to transport myself to Montreal in 30 seconds, I popped in my Discordia DVD. I know this sounds stupid, but every time I recognized someone in that movie I just had a huge grin on my face.

Ahhh, Concordia. university life only belongs to you. You make it interesting and exciting.

I miss you. I miss Montreal more though ;)

Blog Design

So, which is better? This new yet dark take on this blog, or the old pinky/girly one???

On UAE turning 40

I am not one to go insane on National day here, but I have to admit that the joy and happiness everyone radiates is contagious. You simply can not feel miserable, you can not feel sad, and you certainly can not ignore it; people are happy and it makes you happy.

The celebrations and the parades were insane this year, it is almost midnight and it is still SO noisy out there. People are singing and dancing in the streets, they are honking their car horns, spraying each other with crazy spray and everyone is enjoying it. They even turned their flashy and expensive cars into moving portraits reflecting the country and its leaders.

What I find to be amazing is how many people from all nationalities join in these celebrations. It is the one day where everyone is friends with everyone, where all the social barriers are broken, where everyone joins each other in celebrations. Amazing and awesome. Too bad people do not feel as "brotherly" the rest of the year... but that is a blog for a different day.

I share with you some pictures of this weekend:

bird's eye view

even google.ae joined in with a doodle

I LOVED this car. So creative. The guy was also super happy that I was taking pictures, he actually thanked ME!

This is him insisting that he wants to be in the picture

This is Sheikh Zayed, may he rest in peace, Founder of the Emirates and the First ruler of it and Abu Dhabi.

singing and dancing in the street 

I love how the flag is focused in this pic, while everything else is blurred. No photoshop, just pure talent

Porsche

Alice, Mushrooms and Caterpillars

As I sat there trying to get some work done earlier today, a part from Alice in Wonderland crossed my mind:

"One side will make you grow taller, and the other side will make you grow shorter. One side of what The other side of what? Thought Alice to herself. Of the mushroom, said the Caterpillar, just as if she had asked it out aloud, and in another moment, it was out of sight."

That Caterpillar gave Alice such great advice, if you really think about it. Life is all about decisions, and those you make will either make you taller, or smaller, depending on what path you choose. He also asks her "who are you" to which she replies that she isn't sure. Who of us is ever sure? We are continuously growing, changing, adapting, readapting and just trying to fit in. In today's world, you can be anyone you want, so long as it isn't yourself. What a weird thought.


I think Lewis Carroll is very misunderstood. Critics keep insisting that his book was about drugs as she falls asleep in an opium field, then starts to pop pills, eat magic mushrooms, hallucinate, fall upwards, fly downwards and so on. I think that maybe, Mr. Lewis is the only one that got it right. It is an insane world out there, and fitting in will drive you crazy. So crazy, in fact, that one day you may just wake up to a white rabbit dressed in a nice red jacket screaming "I'm late for a very important date". Then again, aren't we all running round shouting that we are late for this or that? I think that most of us are white rabbits, some are mad hatters and only a rare few are Alices.

On technology taking over lives

This is a video showing a one year old girl attempting to use a magazine as she would an Ipad. I think that this may yet be one of the sadest things I have seen yet. Technology is there to add to our life, to make it easier and simpler, not to take away from it. If technology is affecting a child that young now, what will they do when they are all grown up? Technology has somehow replaced parks, painting, story time, bicycle rides and so much more. So sad...

Simple things

When your day doesn't go according to plan; when you find yourself feeling very blue; when you would rather curl into a black hole than talk to anyone, here are a few simple things to remember:

Randomly picked From Here

A Simple Truth

" You should eat to fill your stomach, not your soul. And drink to numb your thirst, not your pain"


From here