طلعنا على الضو

You already know that my younger brother Walid is now living with me in Dubai; it’s amazing how we two get along so well. When I lived with my elder brother (he is two years younger than me but don’t tell anybody ok, he’s married with a kid now!!); when I lived with him, we used to fight like cats and dogs. Not that we didn’t get along, nor I loved him less than I love Walid, no, but maybe we were too close to indulge each others, or maybe I was still young then? I don’t know.

Don’t get me wrong, Walid and I still have our small fights, it’s not easy to share the house with a man, even if it’s your brother. Now the biggest fight lasted for good 10 minutes including the 5 minutes I stopped talking, but still, it was a conjugal fight. Last week we argued over DVDs, he insisted on making me watch scarface, claiming that it is a must see. I watched a few scenes. Unfortunately it was at the end of the movie and it was very violent and too tragic to my taste. I exploded at him for not warning me beforehand. It was so bloody violent and I hated it. Few days later he made me watch “A Bronx Tale” and I had the same argument with him; although the movie was not violent; the testosterone dose was quite high, the story was old and the plot was so predictable…

To make it up for me, coz he realized that “girls” do not like this kinda movies, he got me a chick flick (what women want) and a Fairouz K7 since I complained about the rock music that invaded my car! It was Natourit El Mfati7. I’m not a big Fairouz fan, the only Fairouz albums I got are the Ziad El Rahbani ones. I don’t know what was he thinking, but I really appreciated it.
The highlight of the album (and the reason why I’m writing this post) is the Freedom’s song “tla3na 3ala eddaou”. Walid says that this was a popular song during the March 14 protests against Syria. I know nothing about that since I was in Dubai. I haven’t heard this song for long time, very long time, since I was in the primary school.

I was 5 or 6 years old, not sure, I can’t tell from the photos. It was at the end of the scholar year and we participated in the school’s activities. I remember I paid 5 Lebanese Pounds for the dress. It was made of “jonfeiss”(sorry I don’t know what it is called in English). I don’t recall the rehearsals or even the evening itself; I guess it was not an evening, it was during the day, since the pictures we got after the event were during the day. I only remember a lot of black fabric, I guess it was the backstage. I also remember that I was not a great dancer. We danced to the “freedom”. I never understood why we were wearing those lame dresses; neither did I understand the meaning of the song. I loved the words though: we went out to the light, to the wind to the sun to the freedom. I enjoyed the idea of changing names and changing the color of our eyes, WOW, change the color of my eyes, how can I do that? Water coloring? What color would I choose? Would black suit me? I don’t like blue, I’ll go for green, if I have to color my eyes I’ll choose green, that what suits me the most….

I never participated in any activity after that, every year there was a reason to cancel the year-end festivities, every year there was a reason not to do extra curriculum activities. I paid twice to join guitar, and once to do acrobat, never attended more than a class. It was so frustrating growing up during the war. You stick to the basics, you cannot indulge in activities that risk your safety, and you cannot go out in a sortie every weekend.

I become an adult very quickly, I was less than ten years when mama asked me (or ordered me) to play dump, she made me wear old cloths and asked me to pretend that I’m retarded. I was tall and about to reach puberty. Militants broke in our house and asked for help, mama prepared dinner and I don’t know what else, I can’t forget her face, she was so scared that they would rape me, we heard a lot of those stories you know. That’s how I learned what rape is….

As a teenager I had a very small margin of freedom, and being the rebel I always was, I put up big fights with mama, “ma belle geoliere” I hated being a girl, why the hell my brother could go out whenever he wants and goes wherever he wants and I can’t??? Well, now I know.

Although we had some moments of relative peace, growing up in West Beirut was rather challenging. When the war came to an end, I was already 17 years old, and I joined USJ, it was on a “khat tamess” and it was the first year moving between west and east Beirut was allowed, but still I had the full support of mama, and eventually baba. It wasn’t being a girl that made my parent so paranoid about my safety; it was being a girl during the civil war….

It’s awful people it’s awful, the war is awful, I don’t want my kids to grow up in a war. I don’t have any, and after what is happening I don’t think I will ever have any, but my friends and relatives have and I don’t want them to live the way we lived. Stop this non-sense NOW. I don’t care corruption or no corruption, I don’t care who’s right and who’s wrong, I don’t care about any cause but my kids’ cause, I don’t want Lea, Lyn, Dana, Farah and Dima to live another war. They don’t know how bad it is, I do…

HELP

http://hilalchouman.blogspot.com/2007/01/breaking-news-13.html

طب ليه كدة

ممكن بس حدا يفسر لي ليش حتى الصفحة الأولى لجريدة الأخبار اللبنانية انضمت لجحافل "الرديحة" و"السميمة"؟ إنو شو فينا نعمل لنقرا الأخبار بدون تمليح و تبهير و خلطة الخواجة الصحافي الخاصة للتواصل الإعلامي.

إنو شو ممكن إفهم أنا من مانشيت متل "نصر الله: الثأر من أسياد القتلة" و سطرأول بيقول: " أجهز الأمين العام لحزب الله السيد حسن نصر الله على مشروع الفتنة من جانب المعارضة. "

إنو وين الخبر؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟ ومين اللي عم يحقن العالم ويعمل فتنة.

كل عمرا جريدة الأخبار مفذلكة و بدك تحط اللاروس والمعجم و إستاذ خصوصي لحتى تقدر تستوعب كتابات جوزيف سماحة. وشي مبصر على محلل رموز على شاكلة رأفت الهجان لتفهم شو بدو يقول زياد الرحباني. بس عل القليلة كان في صفحة أولى بتخبرك شو صار بأقل قدر من اللؤم و السم ومن دون ما يحيدو عن توجههم السياسي المعروف.

شو صار؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟؟

طب شو بيعمل الإنسان الحساس اللي متلي (قال إنو يعني تونغ إن زا تشيك) اللي بيبطل يستوعب لما تتقل دوز السم واللئمني. ما شي يا خي بيتلت راسي ببطل إفهم شو عم يقولو! طب ما أنا أولريدي, ديجا يعني , وقفت إقرا و إتفرج عل المستقبل, أل بي سس, نيو تي في, والمنار. ما يا لطيف ألطف صار في نوع مبتكر من الجهاد اللي ألله نسي يفرضو والنبي نسي يضمو لأركان الإسلام وهو الجهاد الإعلامي اللي الحمد الله ما مخلى حدا من شرو!!!

ألله يخلليلنا الشوتايم يا رب و يطول بعمر الدجادج جودي (مش دجاج فراخ يعني, لأ يا زكي دجادج يعني قاضي! أف ولو!!!)

تكسّر الأثير
فوق ثنايا العبير
وتصدع الخرير
على طيات الغدير
وصعق الصرير
في أعماق الهدير

كل الكائنات صُمِدَت
انغرست في اللحظة ووقفت
مقهورة مغلوبة أفلت
انتصر الأزل عليها وخسرت

تجمّدت الصور, وأفلَتَ الوقت من قبضة الزمان
وقف حال الناس وانسلت الصور من تراتب الأيام
نُحِتَت على غبار الخلود فأضحت
كورقة خريفٍ سهت من يد الدهر وعلقت...
علقت
في أبدٍ سحيق البراثن
خططت أطرافها بماءٍ واهٍ
حبست عندها قدرُ فاتن
عوقب معاقبة خائن

حلّ عليها شبح الموت
أرخى بثوبه اللامتناهي صوت
أسود ملعون أنين سابق الفوت
ينبئ ويعد بتكرار الشوط

لُصق نعيب الغراب على ذرّات الهواء
ونعيق البوم ينذر بالوباء
وعيون هرٍّ أسودٍ تقدح شرارةً و مواء
الأزل هو جزاء الوفاء

What do we expect? tab ma of course, when you keep pumping hater that’s what you get. Hater brings war, simple equation.

Why can’t we talk, we all remember the civil war an still did not forget how bad it was, why? Why? For fuck sake why?

Why can’t we exist as human being, humans, humans for fuck sake humans. Why can’t we exist without our ethnic and ideological background? What the hell is happening? When did we become barbarians in our minds and in our talks? And what do expect? Applauds at the end of our act? Well the applaud we got is a “taste” of the civil war.

Kiss ikht hal 7ale

الحرب قامت

ألله يستر

لست حبيبي

لا أنا لا أحبك
لا ولست أطيق رؤياك
ولا أنا مغرمة بصوتك
ولا يعنيني حسن محيّاك
ولا أنت توأم روحي
ولا ألهث لأنال رضاك

لا أنا لا أريدك
ولا تدمع عيني للقياك
ولا يقفز قلبي من بين ضلوعي
إن لاح في الأفق مرآك
ولا أدفن رأسي بين الكتب
وأختبئ من هذا وذاك
ولا ألوم وهج الحاسوب
على دمعة فرّت لذكراك

لا أنا لا أريدك
لا ولست أطيق رؤياك

Nietzche is dead

"God is dead"-- Nietzsche, 1886
"Nietzsche is dead"-- God, 1901

"Nietzche is dead. God" was part of an ad campaign from Oglivyone Singapore to bring God back into daily life. It was a one simple campaign in which all the touchpoints gave meaning to the same idea, and every piece of communication employed its specific possibilities to the fullest.

In different touchpoints, God has been given a personality – someone who talks to you in his own way, with wit, irony, humor and complete irreverence in simple ads, SMS’s, TV commercials, posters and bus displays. For example it is God who says: "“I hate rules. That’s why I only made ten of them"

Yeah sure, Nietzche is dead… I'm not sure about God though. What I'm sure about is God is a myth, and if he's really there, he / she doesn't really care. I honestly believe that the Greeks have done a much better job with their Gods, they make much more sense.

Trip Photos

Howdy!

I got the bag back today! It went on a cruise!

As promised, my photos on flikr

Souvenirs

One week in Dubai I'm trying to hide from the whole world. Not because I didn't want to come back, nor I'm having a post vacation depression or anything…
No, I lost one of my 2 bags. And I can't forgive myself how could an ex MEA staff forget evident stuff like"never put all your valuables in one bag, never forget to have an extra name tag and never ever forget your laptop in the luggage".
The bag that has got everything I bought, all my valuables and my laptop is missing. What hurts the most is the photos, sorry guys I won't be posting much. Also the laptop had some invaluable data…

Karim says that I have to get over it; memories are not limited to the photos, and people should draw a line somewhere and relay on the memories in their head... When shall we stop taking photos to remember? i.e. the wedding photos minute by minute, the delivery of the first kid, his first haircut, the clothes, the illnesses…. Where do we stop? And if the "souvenir" is gone, does it really mean that the "souvenirs" are gone? Naaaaaaaaaaa, they're not!!!!! I had great time, and it'll always be there with me!!

So I'm back to normal life, and if the bag shows up anytime soon or not so soon, it'll be great…

من ألبوم "يا قصص" لجوليا بطرس جملة عم اتدور براسي: "غناني نغنّيا, لكن ما فيا, لا نغمي, لا كلمي الصوت بيكفيا. "

تصبحو على خير و انشالله بكرا بفك الإنعكاف و برجع لقواعدي سالمة

My lady

She's the most photographed lady in the history; 121 years old and never looked any better!



Meet my lady...

On the road

Hello Everyone,

Long time away from the blogging scene. I'm on vacation! Although I made sure to take my laptop to stay in touch, I ran out of battery the first 3 hours in Milan! And guess what, NO ONE uses the same cables as the one we use in Dubai! So I carried the stupid laptop around in Milan, Florence, Munich and now Miami FOR NOTHING!!!!

Well, my vacation is awesome, Italy was beautiful, Munich was amazing, guys I tell you I fell in Love with Bavaria, really I did. Only if I spoke German.... helas!

In Miami I'm half business half pleasure. The Business side is good, the pleasure... well as expected, if you live in Dubai, nothing much to say about Miami.

Tomorrow, or today, well, in 7 hours anyways I'm heading to the BIG APPLE. Can't wait to see New York.

I'll be back in town on the 13th. I downloaded some pics but I got them packed in the luggage already. More updates with LOTS of pics will follow, promise.