The Games of your Life!

Mai © Doha, 2006

Boy.. i haven't blogged for over a month now...so bare with me if my writing got a bit rusty! It's been so hectic lately, a lot has been happening, yet all i can remember are my trips going to and back from work....!!!
I've started volunteering for the Doha Asian Games since mid last month, well ok..maybe putting me down as temporary paid staff is not exactly noble but hey i might as well frame their pay cheque & have it hung on the wall as a souvenir instead!
Truly though, its been a fulfilling experience, and to be honest just being a part of it was enough to make it worthwhile ..
Though my 12 hour shifts were getting to me ( still in recovery), and having a 7 day working week was an insane loop, but i guess it was all made up for by at least;
making new friends (australian/ greeks),
meeting new people (australian/ greeks),
working with interesting backgrounds ( aussies/greeks), lol
networking ;-),
walk in service into any match in the venue,
bumping into athletes...literally arrrrh ;-)

im truly gonna miss;
The crazy Egyptian crackheads ( love u guys ;-p) that got us on the floor every morning..
Our useless morning work/coffee meetings...
Bugging out our competition manager about how we need to sit with everyone to define roles, avoid duplicated work, and flipping try and work as one civilized team just for the last week at least...
The uncivilized, unplanned social gatherings we had in the corridors...
The tasteless al-dana lunches, or its even worse replacements at beniggins....
The morning goodies we got everyday at check ins....
Abusing the facilities after hours..
INspesction times...
The Silly tetra jokes while chasing one another on the radio...

Leaving jokes aside though, the games were a positive proof...not to mention how they were wrapped up beautifully during the closing ceremony and topped up with our victory in football..... Overall, we did a good job, Qatar did a good job...Well done and hats off, our country has come a long way its hard not to feel so proud!

Thank you God

Thank you Allah...Thank you for giving me the Ability to:

Think, Create & Imagine.
Challenge, Reach & Deliver.
Doubt, Trust & Conquer.
Sense, Experience & Endure.
Rebel, Escape & Ignore.
Love, Hate & Adore.
Relate, Accept & Surrender.
Forget, Forgive & Remember.


Thank you God for giving me the ability to Thank you!

Ze Land of Ze Dodo!

Eid in Mauritius was one interesting experience; besides being out of touch with my loved ones over some strange chokes my phone was having :-(, the rest of it was definitely worthwhile . Just got back last night and hated the fact that i had to be up and running from 6 am this morning. I think amongst the other highlights of this trip was definitely the start note and end note of "shopping till dropping" during our Dubai half day stops. These pics, however, might help put the rest of it into some slight perspective ;

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5

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Mai © Mauritius, 2006

1. Accompanied by the dramatic, swinging hand gestures, the accent, the edgy fringe, the high pitched (everyone on the bus wake the hell up) kinda voice and the widest grin: "Welcome to Ze laaAAnd of Ze DodooOo, IT IS ze land of ze dodo... Ze Dead Dodo"
2. With a french hint:"And ofcourse finally, don't forget that mauritius is an island...So,You might find some visito'3s in your '3oom, we call zem Ghekos, or as you people would like to call zem Liza'3ds, Just dial numbe'3 4 and someone will come to take zem away!!!...Past the first night: "you mean someone with a long stick will crack the ceiling, add to the problem and literally take their lives away?!"
3. "What gear number are we on....WHAT gear number are we ON?..OH CRAP" ( a map flying all about, restricted windshield view, the wrong hand on the gear shift , a slipper caught up between the clutch and the break pedal, an abrupt mosquito bite itch,hands waving at eachother...a perfect view for the perverted, over-loaded, slow bus on the lefthand side!!!)
4. Trying to cool off in the ocean: "How did you find this beautiful coral? i was stepping on it."
5. Bullshit or full of Blue shit? we'll never know..
6. Well, Ha-excuse me, Im trying to create me own drink here and have it named after me....so do you mind?

Mai © Mauritius, 2006

Well done :-)

My Life has been so empty without you..:-(
Congradulations on starting your Masters though,You dont know how proud i am of you, keep up the hard work babe :-)

Skyscrapers!

Mai © Doha, 2006

Believe it or not the building on the far left (Kamco), once used to be the tallest building in Qatar!!!!!

Gimme that juice i said!

The little ones hung out this weekend, it was a true bliss.

Watch out for the next generation, People...

7aram!!!

Photography:anonymous

The Open Plan Family/Living Room!

Miami, 2006

Hmmm?!!?

Tall, Skinny, half shot, extra hot, double foam, Gingerbread Latte Pleeeease!

Hang on..

Mai © Cornwall, 2006

Much to say..

late or early maybe...
bright yet cold..
morning call for prayers...
starting point is unknown...
new day... new hope..
what happens to the old..
glad you somehow made it...
my story is still to be told...

GLOW...

Mai © Doha, 2006

Good Luck Lil sis...

Its my little sister ( yes lil :-)) second week at Uni, almost 3rd now...
going to school at UCL will surely be an experience....Gosh it feels like yesterday when i was waiting in that long line to register for classes...or for what i felt at the time was my first chapter into the real world... and it was...
i cant forget the mounting feeling of hope, excitement, ambitions and dreams....
The nights when i couldnt sleep, visualizing my future while noting down short/long term plans..
The feeling that u are about to change the world...that what u are about to recieve is all u'll need to be equiped for life... the truth is...the reality of this is yours!

Hamdo, I've been meaning to post you a good luck note the first day you started, hope this will still find its place...

A few tips for you sis;

• First year is for mess up...lol easy now.. the truth is, its meant to be a combination of fun hard work and mabye if u really really really had to a bit of the unavoidable slacking.. so in other words, if need to get some things out of your system, the tme is now.....just be smart and dont forget its also the time where u create first impressions and get to prove who you really are...
• Student Unions, waste of time...dont get dragged, pick when to join and who to chill with...
• Potential good freinds, will spot u...thats if u didnt spot them first ;-) they say the best friends you make are those u meet at uni...enjoy :-)
• Get involved...besides your own gain, and this may sound geeky but the faculty will appreciate an active member..and a recognizable face will come in handy one day.. trust me ;-)
• Treasure the simplicity of being a student, nothing replaces a " one day.. we were completley broke..." story..
• Believe you me ;-), Your time in the library will pay off...even if u were a tiny bit distracted by some cuteness sitting across...even more of a reason to go ..jks seriously u'll only realize later on how much u've produced in these library sessions...
• Try and create your own study group where u can....side tracked debates, all nighters, sneaked in pizza, horrible coffee, 2 days unshowered, rammed printers, brainstorming on deadline extension excuses... they are fun!
• Dont take time for granted, allow for a bit of spontaneity (not madness ;-) every now and then ..... but remember the min that passes u by is counted and if it wasnt put to use ( according to your perception) then dont look back, stop the misuse now and make the most of whats left...while you are at it capture every moment you can in any way can...
• Every morning when u walk out of the door just remember to take with you your common sense, confidence, humor and yourself.
• Essentially, you are only gonna carry two things out of Uni with you; the memories and the transferable skills... so enjoy getting the experience and creating your moments at the right time with the right people...

-----------------Bare

Mai © Doha, 2006

Doha from a Different angle!

Places that Still Exist.....



Colourful Skyline

Dead Dusty Hour

Taking a Back Seat

Mai © Doha, 2006

The secret behind Mona Lisa's smile revealed...

Ramadan Kareem II

Finally moved into the new long awatied house....funny that im about to say this... but wala it was on a SHORT notice... well i guess coz its been postposed way too many times, that we didnt actually see it happening as soon as it did...but alhamdilla we did move , its our second day in the house..and im kinda loving my room esp ;-)...though i couldn't sleep the first night at all... havent got acquainted to the room yet i guess...my mom and I are slightly moving away from living out of boxes into living out of kinda descent closets... sounds like a couple of gypsies i know... a lot still needs to be done.. but we are enjoying it and my charm on convincing my mom with getting rid of certian classical pieces (too classical for my liking) is FINALLY working...mmmwahahaha (evil laugh)

Funny how we are all confused, or discombobulated shall i say, in this house at this point..including the helpers... we still dont know where everything belongs to or how our routines should be like or even where our everyday sitting area is...you just see a bunch of 4 crazy looking women running around the house aimlessly....bless!

As for ramadan rituals..not sure how they are to fit in with the move yet...but gosh i still have a few things to complain about... as i already started saying on my previous blog... ramdan comprises of sleep,food, prayers, sleep, food and sleep... two things i can add and that are getting to me by now ..its LACK of good nite sleep and traffic: when u think about it, of course there is gonna be mad traffic... everyone is rushing home afterwork at 1 pm...rejuvenation starts at 8pm and is limited to four/ five hours after that...

Today,I've taken a friend's advice, stayed a bit later at work, avoiding traffic & unnecessary naps...spending a couple of hours blogging, aint in the mood to pick me nose thw thanx...and lets see what happens next...

but for now, i say car, supermarket,TV, food, kerak tea, clearing boxes, Bed....

Ramadan Kareem

I didnt picture ramadan to be this challenging in Doha... at least not more than i thought it was in london...!! before i go on, i need to point out that there are a lot beautiful values and rituals that are still practiced here...
BUT, i cant get over the fact that ramadan is an exceptionally Sleepy month in this town....
People do get up and do their prayers, on time and in full... however there are other times in between that are completely dead! i can't take the long hours of the afternoon till iftar time, Everything is closed, u can barely see a cat in the streets and TV is just filled with sorrow and misery...what can u possibly do to kill time from 1 till 5 that doesnt involve food, public places or anything that doesnt require much thinking....even working hours are cut short to accomodate... not sure if thats a bonus for some of us or not...though my brain has been dead for the past two days... i still think people who dont have much commitments at home, should still be given the option to work overtime if they choose to...
Another hour that kills me, is the one between iftar and Isha....Again i cant stand getting depressed watching anything on TV, to top things up for me im running out of favorite/new TV shows reserves... and surely i dont want to nap...to wake up craving for sweets..
Having said all that, its the 3rd of ramadan, and yes i have snoozed a couple of times after iftar and yes i have watched a bit of TV and yes i have stuffed my face with syryp dripping sweets..hmm!
Though religous practices is set out well and just about right for now, there is still a desperate need for me to get proactive on other levels..
I cant get sucked into this cycle...No way...its time for me to wipe the dust off my camera (a common problem with every other object in our houses here) and cruise this town through its lifeless hours...

My subject is missing...

Now

















Mai © Doha, 2003

& Then....

Mai © London, 2003

Irwin fans may be behind stingray deaths

How weird & disturbing.... i just read this in the telegraph...what a twisted way of thinking some people have... Funny enough and on a different level, i dont see certain political groups far off from this retaliation approach..

The discovery of a dozen dead stingrays on Australian beaches has raised fears that angry fans of "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin are taking revenge on the normally placid creatures for his death.
The rays were found with their tails cut off on beaches in Queensland, where Irwin died last week. He was speared in the heart by a stingray barb while filming on the Great Barrier Reef.
Irwin's supporters said he would have been appalled by any harm done to stingrays, which have accounted for only three or four deaths since Australian records began.
"We will not accept and not stand for anyone who's taken a form of retribution. That's the last thing Steve would want," said Michael Hornby, the executive director of Irwin's charity, Wildlife Warriors.
The desire for retaliation has not been confined to the natural world. An online game called Terri Irwin's Revenge depicts Irwin's widow firing darts at stingrays underwater. The aim of the game, which its creators claimed was a tribute to Irwin, is to kill as many stingrays as possible.
A private funeral for Irwin, 44, was held at his Australia Zoo wildlife park at the weekend, with a public memorial service due to be held in a sports stadium in Brisbane next week.

Misplaced...

.......

It just keeps me going...

Photographed By Robert Frank



A number of quotes that I find timeless:

" You never see the hard days in a photo album but they are what get you from one happy snapshot to the other."

"In this town, its not about what's right or wrong, its about what's common and what's not."

"The real loneliness is....living amongst these really kind people asking you to pretend."

" You gave me my first glimpse of a real life and asked me to carry on with a false one... no one can endure that..."

" A person who aims at nothing is sure to hit it"

(Anonymous)

M. Gandhi once said:

" First they Ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they Fight you , then you Win.",
" Happiness is when what you think, what you say and what you do is in harmony."

Paulo Coelho' s inspirational thoughts never fail me:

"We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only path.",

"You have to take risks. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow for the unexpected to happen.",

"Waiting is painful. Forgetting is painful. But not knowing which to do is the worse kind of suffering.",

"In the long run, what people think about shepherds and bakers becomes more important for them than their own destinies."

"A fall from the third floor hurts as much as a fall from the hundredth. If I have to fall, may it be from a high place."


Last but not least,to close off... my all time favorite words were once infamously said by John Lennon:

"Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans."

My Best Friend's Wedding ;-)...

Just got back from Amman,Jordan after being away for the weekend to attend one of my very close friend's wedding.... i'll have to say she looked phenomenal, the ideal picture of how a bride should look like on her big day...


I was so happy that i didn't miss on being a part of it, & to have gotten the chance to share her excitement, emotions and fears....and last minute deals..lol
The wedding was a lovely, light, hopping wedding at Le Royal , Amman..
Picture a "big fat Greek wedding' episode all over again, with of course an arabic touch to it...lol especially when it comes to the big close family gatherings and all... it was so cute and extremely funny at the same time...
Almost the whole 20th floor was booked for the wedding crew.... room doors wide open, late night visits, midnight feasts at neighboring rooms, pajama parties, noise complaints, bride dragged from one room to the other, hosting pre-wedding dinners while taking over the whole restaurant ... continuous camera flash, wrong make up/hair advice...last minute findings/arrangements...dramatic flower bouquet catch, killer heels, nonstop dancing, wedding stalkers...it was great fun!
Im not sure if i can say im gonna miss my friend (the bride), as i miss her already...but also i guess her move to Bahrain will only get us closer to each other...similar lifestyles & only a 20 mins plane ride away..Good Luck Mo ;-)

You truly never know where your real destiny lies, you can only have control over it to a certain extent...u can either facilitate what god has in plans for you or not... but you truly cant create your own from scratch...what's written up there is destined to take place....i believe that God's plan is not there to clash with ours, or at least it shouldn't be regarded that way...To me, you are given the choice of picking the path that will lead you to your intended destination... you can either use the aid of a guided tour or make it your own way...at the end all Roads Lead to Rome...

Suzy, I can't wish you anything but the best...to a new beginning, to new memories and to new shared hopes, laughters, and dreams.....

Wished all of our friends and dear ones where there just to see that genuine smile on your face...

The Comfort of a Blank Page....

It's taking me more than half an hour now to write a single word.....Instead i felt comfort from staring at a blank page... i wish i had the option to stay silent for the longest convenient time...its the confusion of not knowing which direction to look at anymore...need to address at least through words and/or actions what is a priority right now.... i don't think that i'm incapable of assessing who and what is important to me at this point in time....got the feeling that my life has been shattered into too many little yet significant pieces before my eyes...wish all of these pieces are within visible sight...from where im standing, i can only see what i can ...
Out of sight out of mind...?? i highly doubt that, im aware of all these missing pieces as they make up the person i am or at least the person i've become...reaching out is the only challenge...how can i function if a missing part of me is lying on the floor ready to get crushed or maybe swept away for good...
The problem is will I have to get down on my knees, risk getting cut over again and start looking for every missing bit myself or will I have to wait for a passing stranger to kneel down and offer to help....

I miss my once living angel...you are the only one who used to believe that i come just as i am!

Tomis Doesn't like my art work!

I think maya looks cute and playful in this version...i know there are much better ways to do it but hey give me a break i'm a step away from turning my office into a digi lab....;-) i think it would look good incorporated somewhere in her new room...hint hint :-p!

Anyway it's the start of the week again, a lot of deicisions still up in the air..have this feeling its gonna fly this time...don't know where im gonna be in a week's time or two...got quite a bit piled up, though it looks like i might not last the week, gotta get through today somehow and start looking foward to tomorrow...

No Bravery....

There are children standing here,
Arms outstretched into the sky,
Tears drying on their face.
He has been here.
Brothers lie in shallow graves.
Fathers lost without a trace.
A nation blind to their disgrace,
Since he's been here.
And I see no bravery,
No bravery in your eyes anymore.
Only sadness.
Houses burnt beyond repair.
The smell of death is in the air.
A woman weeping in despair says,
He has been here.
Tracer lighting up the sky.
It's another families' turn to die.
A child afraid to even cry out says,
He has been here.
And I see no bravery,
No bravery in your eyes anymore.
Only sadness.
There are children standing here,
Arms outstretched into the sky,
But no one asks the question why,
He has been here.
Old men kneel and accept their fate.
Wives and daughters cut and raped.
A generation drenched in hate.
Yes, he has been here.
And I see no bravery,
No bravery in your eyes anymore.
Only sadness.

James Blunt- No Bravery

Looking around us...truly"Bravery" is out of sight....except for those who are suffering of course! Thanks Lulu s for your e-mail... it kind of opened my eyes even more...man what is happening to our world!!

Just Another Random Thursday!

Another Day at Work...

Im still uncomfortable with the idea of having my written thoughts exposed.... and dont ask then why blog? (will get to that in later posts) but to be honest, the furthest my personal thoughts have been before was in some drawer, hidden between some pages of some uncompleted journal. I think i'll always have in the back of my mind that this will hardly be a place i can call my personal space or my private zone...No offence, i enjoy the idea of sharing but i just wonder if i'll find the thought of having to filter my words an obstacle at times....
Funny enough, i think i have come to realise that i generally find more comfort in expressing myself and my ideas through creating images....I dont know maybe its coz i find that imagery tend to give more room for controversy and less for judgment....weird!
The written word seems too binding for me to let it run riot ;-). I may sound surprisingly prudent while saying this, but articulating my fears, emotions or worries has always had a slight holdup at first...

STOP NOW, IMMEDIATELY

By Gideon Levy
"This war must be stopped now and immediately. From the start it was unnecessary, even if its excuse was justified, and now is the time to end it. Every day raises its price for no reason, taking a toll in blood that gives Israel nothing tangible in return. This is a good time to stop the war because both sides can claim they won: Israel harmed Hezbollah and Hezbollah harmed Israel. History shows that no situation is better for reaching an arrangement. Remember the lessons of the Yom Kippur War. Israel went into the campaign on justified grounds and with foul means. It claims it has declared war on Hezbollah but, in practice, it is destroying Lebanon. It has gotten most of what it could have out of this war. The aerial "target bank" has mostly been covered. The air force could continue to sow destruction in the residential neighborhoods and empty offices and could also continue dropping dozens of tons of bombs on real or imagined bunkers and kill innocent Lebanese, but nothing good will come of it. Those who want to restore Israel's deterrent capabilities have succeeded. Hezbollah and the rest of its enemies know that Israel reacts with enormous force to any provocation. South Lebanon is cleaner now of a Hezbollah presence. In any case, the organization is likely to return there, just as it is likely to rearm. An international agreement could be achieved now, and it won't be possible to achieve a better deal at a reasonable price in the future. Israel's other goals - returning the captured soldiers and the elimination of Hassan Nasrallah - will anyway be more difficult to achieve even if the war goes on for weeks and months. The IDF is now asking for "two more weeks" and in another two weeks it will ask for "another two weeks." A decisive victory is not in the offing. On the other hand, the price is skyrocketing. Every day increases international criticism of Israel and hatred of it. That is also an element in "national security." As opposed to the choir in Israel that makes a false presentation as if the world is cheering Israel, the images from Beirut are causing Israel enormous damage, and rightly so. Not only in the streets of the Arab world is more and more hatred being sown, but also in the West. Not only hundreds of thousands of Lebanese but tens of thousands of Westerners fleeing from Lebanon are contributing to the depiction of Israel as a violent, crude and destructive state. The fact that George Bush and Tony Blair are cheering Israel might be consolation for Ehud Olmert and the media in Israel, but it is not enough to persuade millions of TV viewers who see the images of destruction and devastation, most of which are not shown to Israeli audiences. The world sees entire neighborhoods that have been destroyed, hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing in panic, homeless, and hundreds of civilians dead and wounded including many children who have nothing to do with Hezbollah. The continuation of the war therefore is neither moral nor worthwhile. The economic blow the war caused to Israel will even remain limited if the war ends now. A lethal summer will exact a much greater economic price. The Israeli rear, which has so far displayed impressive resilience, will not remain indifferent in the shelters for much longer. Slowly, the cracks will open and citizens will begin to ask why we are dying and what we are killing for. That's just the way of war. At first, nobody asks why, but the more entangled they become, the more difficult the questions become. We've been here before, more than once. Wars began with broad national approval and ended with a great crisis. Those who bask now in the consensus should know that nothing lasts forever. The war will become an imbroglio. When it becomes apparent that the air force is not enough, the ground invasion that has already begun will intensify. The cliche about the Lebanese quagmire will be revalidated, and when the soldiers are killed, as is already happening daily, in house to house hunting, the protests will rise and divide society. Now Israel is hoping for the elimination of Nasrallah. That's an atavistic impulse, even if understandable, which seeks the head of the enemy in order to prove our victory over him. There's no wisdom or practicality in it. Once again it is worth reminding ourselves of the dozens of people Israel assassinated in Lebanon and the territories, from Sheikh Abbas Mussawi to Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, each replaced by someone new, usually more talented and dangerous than the predecessor. The goals of the war should not be dictated by dark impulses, even if they come in response to the wishes and demands of the mob. The only advantage that would benefit Israel from the elimination of Nasrallah would be that maybe it would bring about an end to the warring. But it can be halted even without that. The other desired goal, the return of the prisoners, will anyway only be achieved through negotiations to release prisoners. Israel could have done that before the war. It is still too early to weigh out the balance of achievements and failures of this war. The day will come when it will become clear that it was purposeless, as are all wars of choice. Ceasing it now guarantees a limited achievement at a limited price. Continuing it guarantees a heavy price without any guarantee of a suitable reward. Therefore, Israel must cease and desist. The president of the United States can push us to continue the war all he wants, the prime minister of Britain can cheer us in parliament, but in Israel and Lebanon, the blood is being spilled, the horror is intensifying, the price is rising and it is all for naught."

Finally I've joined the Club...

I don't know when im gonna let you guys know about this, but just in case u did stumble upon this... here i am! ;-)