"I really don't know how any conscientious person with an ounce of compassion can still side with Israel."
And I totally agree. Why? * A three-year-old blockade that has brought the inhabitants of Gaza to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe * Cluster bombs * Phosphorus shells against civilians * Indiscriminate bombing of Gazans * Massacre at UN schools * 917 dead and counting * Over 4260 wounded
Guardian World News:
Four decades of Israeli control did incalculable damage to the economy of the Gaza Strip. With a large population of 1948 refugees crammed into a tiny strip of land, with no infrastructure or natural resources, Gaza's prospects were never bright. Gaza, however, is not simply a case of economic under-development but a uniquely cruel case of deliberate de-development. To use the Biblical phrase, Israel turned the people of Gaza into the hewers of wood and the drawers of water, into a source of cheap labour and a captive market for Israeli goods. The development of local industry was actively impeded so as to make it impossible for the Palestinians to end their subordination to Israel and to establish the economic underpinnings essential for real political independence.
Gaza is a classic case of colonial exploitation in the post-colonial era. Jewish settlements in occupied territories are immoral, illegal and an insurmountable obstacle to peace. They are at once the instrument of exploitation and the symbol of the hated occupation. In Gaza, the Jewish settlers numbered only 8,000 in 2005 compared with 1.4 million local residents. Yet the settlers controlled 25% of the territory, 40% of the arable land and the lion's share of the scarce water resources. Cheek by jowl with these foreign intruders, the majority of the local population lived in abject poverty and unimaginable misery. Eighty per cent of them still subsist on less than $2 a day. The living conditions in the strip remain an affront to civilised values, a powerful precipitant to resistance and a fertile breeding ground for political extremism.
No doubt, some ignorant fatasses are somewhere sitting and thinking that "This has, like, nothing ta do with me~", and there's nothing I can say to those people beside "Congratulations, you have just proved that there's no limit to human stupidity, cruelty and ignorance. Clearly, the full area of your ignorance is yet to be mapped, and we're currently only exploring the fringes of that vast expanse. You've got a big hole in your head, now shut it. When you are at a loss for words, your loss is our gain."
But to those who actually want to do something beside talking about it with shocked voices and appalled faces, I present THIS. Especially that 60 Minutes Action Plan. Go. Do something. Save a life or two.
Also, guess what? You don't have to be a muslim to help!! Donating 5€ might mean little to you, but to them - to the mothers of father in Gaza - it might mean the safety of their children. In the link I provided, there are many options and intructions - please check it out.
I'm sipping tea (Rose tea, bought from France) and trying to recover from the shock I got when my little sister said that she doesn't like tea. How's that even possible? Even Mushu likes tea! Then again I wouldn't call what she drinks tea... she includes the milk and the sugar. I don't. Tea doesn't need milk or sugar.
Anyway, I haven't updated for a while, but I have totally good reasons for that. Good reasons. Yeah. ...I'll tell you when I know.
So, few days ago I went with Mushu for a walk/shopping spree around the city and took a few pictures. I attempted resizing them but apparently my Adobe Photoshopper divorced my computer while I was unaware. Luckily resizing can be done online so you won't have to survive the rest of your live without seeing the pictures.
Place: Kaisaniemi. That building there is a library.
Same Place. That's a statue. And something unfamiliar, but undoubtly human in the left lower corner.
The oldest stone-made house in Helsinki, House of Sederholm. First attempt at taking a picture without a car (other than the ones right in front of me). See that black one?
Second attempt at taking a picture without a car. See that silver one?
Third attempt at taking a picture without a car. See that red one?
That place is full of small stores. It's in a word: lovely.
That's a ship-cafe. Look pretty, doesn't it? Reminds me of the huge ship-restaurants we went to in Egypt.
That there is Silja Line, the best cruiser ever. We go to Sweden via it every now and then. Next time I'll inshallah take pictures from the inside, because it's freaking awesome.
That aside, I was yesterday at a friend's place. We watched this: And it was awesome. Almost as good as One Missed Call. This is one of those horror movies that really keep you enchanted while watching, filled with fear and pity and the need to watch it till the end. And where most horror movies (Grudge, Shuttle, Sweeney Todd, Hide & Seek, The Dark) fail at the end, this didn't. This one has the perfect ending that doesn't make you feel as if something is missing.
Then we watched this: And it was great too. Fantasy, not horror, if you're wondering. It had its funny parts, but since I have read the books the movie left something to be desired. But it did alos have geart parts xD Random driver "Oh no, did I drive on someone?" Jared: "Yes. Thank you."
Gotta love the humour.
10.12.08
When words fail me, I quote others. Few days later than it should, but that's not because I didn't feel like writing. I just didn't know what to say about it. Even now, I don't really know what to say. Other than this:
O Allah! Forgive him and have Mercy on him and give him strength and pardon him. Be generous to him and cause his entrace to be wide and wash him with water and snow and hail.Cleanse him of his transgressions as white cloth is cleansed of stains. Give him an abode better than his home, and a family better than his family and a wife better than his wife. Take him into Paradise and protect him from the punishment of the grave (and of the fire)
[Muslim; 2:663]
Also, happy Eid
26.11.08
It's not that I have anything in particular to say, other than that it's the snowy side of the year again ^_^ From what I heard, a friend of my friend couldn't open the front door of her house because of the snow! xD
And naturally after that something warm is being demanded by the inner voices of yours truly xD
Eid is near. There're so many things to do before it. And a certain someone will be coming back from Belgium on the 19th, but that's after Eid so it's like another era to me altogether. What to buy? It's always difficult to buy presents for people who, when asked what they want, just shrug and say "anything is fine". I mean, yeah, sure, is a pair of socks okay? When I'm asked, the answer is always clear: tea, chocolate and empty notebooks, thank you. Then again to me notebooks aint those 3€ thingies you see everywhere, no. My favourite notebooks vary from 16€, to 22€ and 25€. Then there's a hand-made notebook that's priceless and has its own category :P And tea? Anything but lemon, honey or blueberry flavoured. And chocolate is Anything Goes, especially if it's After Eight or Fazer ;)
I had an exam today. It was, mildly put, a strange event. Not that I don't have exams often, mind you. I have. Too much, if you ask me. But this is the first exam during which the teacher was like "I'll be waiting outside. Don't cheat, k? Thanks~!" I mean, sure, okay, I didn't cheat. But that's mainly because there was no need for me to cheat. But some folks were doing the exam as if they were doing a group project! Naturally, I was properly appalled at such behaviour and opted to focus on my battle of keeping my eyes open enough to scribble down the answers.
But yes, the exam went relatively well.
Those two tea types are my current favourites. The left one is caramel tea, and a good replacement for chocolate every now and then. The one in the right is Grusian Tea, and is just the sort of taste I like when I have to work or study... somehow it just gives me the energy
Now how about some icons I have made for myself during these past years?
21.11.08
Tea is more than a drink to me. It's a hobby. So when someone brings up the ancient Tea vs Coffee battles, I have to say that I'm in the Tea-team. And don't tell me to judge before tasting - because I have. I have tasted coffee and all it does is make me sick. Tea on the other hand... various tastes and since I don't add milk, sugar, honey or anything else into it, drinking tea to me is a non-messy deal. Unlike some people who put cream and sugar into their tea. Tsk tsk.
Check this out:
16.11.08
I'm hiding from my NaNo. Please don't tell it I'm here.
*cough* Today we had something akin to a chocolate party. Maybe. Sort of. I even took pictures. When all is said and done and eaten, I can look at these and think "dude, wish I had some right now". That white thing is chocolate, not cream, btw. Tho I wouldn mind some whipped cream.
From that picture you can see my hot pink headphones. Or a part of them. And my laptop too. They are greeting you in their own mechanic way, you know. Trust me when I say it.
As I said, I eat my models. Guess what happened to the other one? Ha ha, I say. Ha ha! So yeah. Now I'm sort of not in the mood for chocolate since those were quite chocolate-y. I'm not complaining, tho. Definitely not.
Okay, back to writing *siiiigh* or no wait, I guess I'll get myself distracted via the messenger...
15.11.08
Lookie~ I changed the layout. The only edit I made to it was inset the comment codes that I couldn't find previously. Then I battled with the cbox codes for ages till I won the bloody battle.
Then I played dead for half an hour before guilt tripping myself to grab the school books and study. Why do they have to make things difficult? Who cares about the different sort of oils used for... er... cars? I'll fall asleep! Why not teach us something useful and interesting? Like, ya know, that cocoa beans contain a variety of chemicals, and its primary psychoactive components are threobromine and caffeine. Other chemicals include serotonin, histamine, salsolinol, methyltetrahydroisoquinoline, phenethylamine, telemethylhistamine, spermidine, p-tyramine,3-methyloxytyramine, tryptamine, and spermine. Not that's relatively interesting.
It's cold and I should be either studying or working on my nano... why is it so hard to focus on the task I should be doing? O.O
Eid is over and I wish to start it from the beginning again xD It was fun. You know how they say "you can't pick your family, but you can pick your friends"? I guess I couldn't have picked a better family even if I tried.
Allah ykhalleekom leeya, inshallah. <3 (<--- that's a heart. Next I'll start using 'lol'.)
Anyway, people.
Months are more or less important to us, and not only for us to see the passing of time. Each month has its significance - whether it includes exam periods, birthdays, specific vacations... then there's November. Well, before November we have October, but to many it's just that waiting period before November. October is the time when you buy new notebooks, heaps of pens, call your friends and say that if they want to meet it better happen before the end of this month because when the 11th month starts you won't be available till December.
<-------- Does that ring any bells? It's NaNoWriMo! The National Novel Writing Month! It's November! The month during which you write 50K words and call it a novel!
It's also the time when you stay the nights being over-caffeinated, staring with a dazed expression and call your enemies "wordcount", your neighbours "writing buddies", your mother "sponsor", your computer "weapon", your goal in life "50K", your hobby "slacking" and every sentence you say includes either the word "Nano" or "wordcount".
November is the time during which when someone asks you "Hey, how ya doing?" you say "18K, but hopefully I'll reach 20K before next sunrise". You get bags under your eyes, kill your social life and by the end of it all proudly stare at the wordcount-o-meter and grin like a nutcase.
Anyone can participate! Many say "but I can't write", without even trying. Pshah! They could if they put their minds into it! Don't miss this, because I promise that NaNo will open a whole new world, and bring experience that's like nothing else. This is my second time, and hopefully it will also be my second success. I'm looking forward to the 1st of November, and I since October if the time for planning your plot and characters without actually writing anything - that's what I'm doing. Even if my characters don't have names yet x)
But yeah, I'm off to plot again~ ^_^
The Chocolate Lover
Pain au Chocolat
Your average story telling chocolate addict.
Proudly Libyan, proudly Muslim.
I have lived almost my whole life in Europe, though visiting Libya is something I desperately would love to do (it’s on my list! The white one!).
I have a passion for writing and tea – most preferably writing while drinking tea. Chocolate would be a nice extra. I also love reading (books and manga) and listening to music. I'm not a big fan of watching TV, but I like horror movies.
If by this point your eyes are stinging and you wish desperately to leave, then click here for a quick escape.
Loves
Tea. Rice. Chocolate. Books.
Really, I could live off those four. Unfortunately the world seems to disagree and I have to actually earn a living (fancy that!).
Quote
It's hard to explain,
so I won't even bother.
- Unknown
