Grow Up Tag Free

Archive for June 2008

“Arab” Found in Danish Iron-Age Grave

In Bizarro on June 24, 2008 at 11:11 pm

No wonder Danes had a bone to pick with Arab Muslims over the cartoons. They see them as ancient colonialists.

An ancient Dane with Arabian genes is part of a DNA study that suggests Scandinavians of 2,000 years ago were more genetically diverse than today.

The study analyzed 18 well-preserved bodies from two burial sites dating from 0 to A.D. 400 in eastern Denmark. The sites were originally excavated some 20 years ago.

One skeleton had a type of DNA signature—known as a haplogroup—closely associated with the Arabian Peninsula, according to Melchior.

“It’s especially found among some Bedouin tribes, but it has also been found in the southern part of Europe,” the researcher said.

-Source

These accursed Arabs are like flies, they’re everywhere.

I Know My ABCs

In Metablog on June 24, 2008 at 10:58 pm

Fear not, I can still blog in English.

Who would have thought that two consecutive Arabic posts would cause such a scare? I certainly did not see that coming.

This post is to announce that I have not switched entirely to Arabic, and that I do not have an intention to write exclusively in Arabic. Now relax, foreigners, and rest assured that you can always expect to find English posts in Tololy’s Box.

Now rejoice. Buy yourselves something pretty.

تعريب الفكرة

In عربي on June 23, 2008 at 2:14 pm

في الشهور القليلة الماضية عادت إلي فكرة الكتابة باللغة العربية و التي كانت تراودني في فترات متقطعة سابقة. فأنا في البداية كنت أكتب القصص القصيرة و القصص البوليسية (في إطار التأثر بأجواء روايات أجاثا كريستي التي كانت شقيقتي تملك الكثير منها) بالعربية فقط و لم أنتقل إلى الإنجليزية إلا عندما عثرت على دفتر لشقيقتي الكبرى كتبت فيه بعض الأشعار و الخواطر و غير ذلك باللغة الإنجليزية, فأعجبي أسلوبها و صرت أحاول أن أكتب مثلها لسنوات عديدة لكن الناتج كان دائماً أدنى جودة لأن الأفكار كانت بحد ذاتها مجرد نسخ عن أفكارها.

في السنين اللاحقة انقطعت عن الكتابة و القراءة أيضاً, ما خلا بعض أعمال أوسكار وايلد الذي أعتبره من عباقرة اللغة و الفطنة. مكنتني هذه القراءات البسيطة من تذوق اللغة الإنجليزية كما لم أفعل من قبل في المدرسة, فمناهج الإنجليزية الموجودة في المدارس الحكومية حيث قضيت السنين الست الأخيرة من الدراسة هي مناهج ضعيفة للغاية لا تعدو كونها مجرد إعادة رتيبة لحوارات مبسطة حول الأماكن الأثرية في الأردن و ما شاكل ذلك , و كانت المعلمات أنفسهن يرتكبن أخطاء متنوعة و واضحة في كل درس مما كان يدفعني لتصحيحهن و المخاطرة بأن أصبح عدوة “المس” الأولى, و لكن لحسن الحظ فلم أواجه هذه المشكلة إلا مرة أو مرتين. كنت محظوظة للغاية لأنني امتلكت اللغة الإنجليزية من بيئتي في المنزل و ليس من المدارس الحكومية.

قررت في مرحلة لاحقة أن أبدأ بالتدوين بالإنجليزية و ليس بالعربية, لأن أفكاري بدت لي غريبة بالعربية و لأنني أردت أن أتحدث مع العالم ككل و ليس مع الناطقين بالعربية فحسب, و بالتالي أصبحت مدونتي ناطقة بالإنجليزية بشكل شبه تام مع تغير في الأسلوب و المواضيع بين الفينة و الأخرى. أما الآن فأنا أشعر بضرورة أن أعود للكتابة بالعربية لأنني التمست ضعفاً في لغتي لم يكن موجوداً في السابق, أو ربما لأنني أصبحت أنحاز لأفكار قومية معينة أو أريد التحدث مع الناطقين بالعربية دون غيرهم عن بعض المواضيع التي تعنيهم بالدرجة الأولى, أو ربما هي كل تلك الأسباب مجتمعة. لا أستطيع أن أحدد سبباً واحداً لهذا الشعور.

السؤال الآن هو كيف سأتمكن من الكتابة بالعربية و الكتابة بالإنجليزية في نفس المدونة, و هل يصح أن تجتمع الاثنتان أم يتوجب أن أبدأ مدونة جديدة مخصصة كلياً للغة العربية؟ أنا بطبيعة الحال أستمتع بالكتابة باللغتين و لا أريد أن أتوقف عن الكتابة بالإنجليزية, لكن هل من الذكاء أن أسعى للكتابة بلغتين في نفس الوقت؟ هل يجب أن تموت الإنجليزية لتحيا العربية؟

الشيخ يعقوب

In عربي on June 20, 2008 at 1:09 pm

في مسجد حارتنا شيخ اسمه الشيخ يعقوب, يدير المسجد العسكري و يؤم بالمصلين و يلقي الخطب العصماء أيام الجمع و الأعياد
ليستنهض الهمم و يعيد احياء أمجاد الرسالة و الخلافة الأولى. يغسل عقول المصلين و أغلبهم من الرجال, أو يحاول, ليوهمهم أن بالامكان طرد شبح التخلف و الفساد عن طريق الحلم بالبعث و الحياة بعد الموت في مزرعة بها بركة و كنبايات و صبايا حسان لم يطمثهن انس و لا جان.

تصلي النساء في المسجد أيضاً خصوصاً أيام الجمع و الأعياد و في ليالي رمضان و لكنهن يصلين في غرفة منفصلة عن مكان صلاة الرجال درءاً للفتن المتولدة بالتأكيد من مجرد مرورهن بخيال الرجال الجامح, و يصلين بالمعية من وراء حجاب يستمعن للخطب أو الدروس الدينية التي تؤكد أن المرأة ان دعاها زوجها للفراش فتمنعت لعنتها الملائكة حتى تصبح و أخرى تؤكد أن للمرأة زوجها في الجنة (و إن لم تكن متزوجة أو كانت مطلقة؟) و أخرى غيرها توصي النساء بأزواجهن خيراً و تقول قرن في بيوتكن ثم لأجل اضفاء الأهمية على العمل المنزلي تستشهد بمقولة نابليون وليام والاس الكافر: اليد التي تهز المهد تهز العالم, أو كما قال.

قسم النساء في المسجد كما سمعت, فأنا لم أؤد أي صلاة في مسجد في حياتي كلها و لم أدخل أي مسجد إلا الأموي في دمشق لغرض السياحة, مليء بالأطفال كما هي بيوتهن. أطفال يركضون و يلعبون و يبكون و يأكلون, فالمرأة يتبعها الأولاد حتى في لحظات العبادة و الرجل يتبعه الشرف و المكانة الاجتماعية و القوامة و نسب الأولاد إليه.

المهم, الشيخ يعقوب يسبب لي وجع الرأس و القرف الشديد. أسمعه كل يوم جمعة من مئذنة المسجد يرغي و يزبد و يتندر بنقص عقول النساء ثم لا أدري كيف و التناقض واضح يحذر الرجال لأن كيدهن عظيم! هذا الرجل يحتكر المايكروفون في المسجد ليتحف الحارة كلها بمن فيها من مسلمين و مسيحيين و لا دينيين بمواعظه الموبوءة. و يبدو لي أن لديه ما يعرف باسم التكنوفوبيا أو الخوف من التكنولوجيا, أشك بأنه لا يملك جهاز حاسوب و ليس لديه بريد الكتروني, لأن أسخن دروسه هي تلك التي يهاجم بها الانترنت, طبعاً بعد النساء.

قبل قليل ضرب الشيخ يعقوب مثلاً لابراز ضياع الأمة “انترنت و كمبيوتر و تلفزيون و مش عارف شو!” مع التشديد على مخارج الحروف و ترقيق الراء بطريقة تشبه التجويد كما يحب الشيوخ أن يفعلوا ليوهموا الناس أن كلامهم يشبه كلام الله من حيث الرنة و الأسلوب. يصرخ الشيخ يعقوب في المايكروفون فأحس أن ذرات لعابه تلتصق بأذني, يقول “الأمة” و “الانحلال” و “الواحد بيصلي في الجامع كل الصلوات و بنته طالعة اخر طرز” و يندد و يتوعد بالنار التي تصلي الوجوه ثم لا ينسى أن يذكر أن من كان له ثلاث بنات فأحسن تربيتهن دخل بهن الجنة, و يعود فيستحضر صور الحور العين ليحث الرجال على مراقبة بناتهن.

لا يذكر الشيخ يعقوب شيئاً عن سيارات المصلين المتراكمة في الشارع أمام المسجد تسده سداً, و لا يذكر شيئاً عن هواتف المصلين ترن في منتصف “الله أكبر” و لا يذكر شيئاً عن المصلين الذين يرمون أعقاب السجائر و المناديل الورقية على الأرض قبل أن تطأ أرجلهم أرض المسجد المقدسة التي تجعلهم من الصالحين.

كان أبي يذكر الشيخ يعقوب دائماً بضرورة أن يتحدث عن مثل هذه المواضيع, فالاسلام بالنسبة لابي هو النظام, كما كل الأشياء الجيدة في الحياة بالنسبة اليه. النظام و الانضباط هما فلك الحياة و لا شيء خارجهما له قيمة فعلية. كان أبي يذكره أيضاً بضرورة أن يكف عن الصراخ لأنه ينفر الناس و يؤذي السمع. و لكن لم يقتنع الشيخ يعقوب بضرورة أن يذكر المصلين بالاداب العامة و ارتأى أن الصراخ في المايكروفون عن مفاتن بنات المصلين و شرور الانترنت أهم, فتوقف أبي عن الذهاب الى مسجد الحارة و أصبح يذهب إلى مسجد قريب يديره شيخ اخر… مسجد مدني شيخه مدني لا يصرخ, و الأهم أن صوته لا يصل إلى سمعي لبعده عن المنزل, لكن في كل الأحوال يظل صوت الشيخ يعقوب يرن في أذني بمناسبة أو بدون مناسبة, لا يذكر النساء إلا بشر و لا يذكر حتى المصليات في مسجده أبداً: يا إخوان سووا الصفوف و سدوا الفرج يهدينا و يهديكم الله. أقم الصلاة! … أغلق نافذة غرفتي لأمنع صوته و ذرات لعابه من ملامسة أذني و أود لو أقول له: تقوم قيامتك يا شيخ.

Trouble Commenting?

In Metablog on June 19, 2008 at 3:08 pm

Hi,

I have a question for you: are you having trouble commenting on my blog lately? If yes, please let me know by sending me a short note using this form or by leaving a comment and I will look into it right away. Thanks for your help, anonymous internet readers.

Humpty Dumpty

In Opinion on June 19, 2008 at 8:04 am

When I was a little girl I found a page torn from a book in the small book case we had in the “laundry room” on the roof. The page had the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme illustrated on it, very similar to this one:


Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.


Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.


All the king’s horses and all the king’s men.


Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

- Source

In my childish mind then and up until today I can’t get over how tragic that story is, how morbid and heartbreaking. This is a cute character for children who is first seen smiling and then falls off a wall and shatters into pieces, it dies right there in the rhyme and nobody can help it. I have always found nursery rhymes to be generally inappropriate under the excuse of achieving music.

That said, I now love the metaphor in Humpty Dumpty. Think of Humpty as a negative concept of your choice, let’s say dominance or monopoly of power, then think: the fake image shatters and “all the king’s horses and all the king’s men” cannot put it back again. That’s why fragile people like Humpty Dumpty should not sit on walls.

The Voice of an Arab Woman

In Culture Arabia, Wonder Woman on June 18, 2008 at 7:09 pm

I am currently reading Nawaal el Saadawi’s biography أوراقي …حياتي, and I can’t seem to get over the similarities between us. I could be imagining things of course because I respect her thought a lot, but it is undeniable that there are several aspects that link my history to hers. I think many of these aspects are shared by almost, if not all, Arab women.

The way Saadawi tells her life story is simple and almost child-like. Her language is clear and reminds me of my late aunt recounting family history, now using common English words كعب روكي and now slang for effect جوزي. The chronology of Saadawi’s tale is logical in the first volume, then it seems she took a break before continuing and so there is a mild break at the beginning of the second volume, but nothing confusing. I am done with the second volume and still have the third to go through, but so far I can safely say I have never in my life connected to an author as I connect to Saadawi. Her voice is powerful throughout the biography, too powerful to ignore.

She thinks my thoughts, she feels what I feel, but she is far more courageous than I have been up until now. She was prompted to write her biography after leaving Egypt to the United States in order to defy time and to defy death. She did not want her life to be forgotten or deformed by the same people who pushed her to leave Egypt out of fear for her life; Islamic scholars and Sheikhs threatened by her ideas about gender and religion شيوخ العصور الوسطى, and government officials equally threatened by her ideas about justice and integrity حكومة اللصوص. These two categories of people combined with the ignorant public الغوغاء who saw her mere presence a danger to their non-existent social cohesion wanted her to die, so she left to stay alive.

Far from idolizing her, this woman is a solid role model to every Arab girl out there. She’s educated, she’s strong, she’s unafraid to voice her opinions, and she thinks for herself. What more do we want our girls to turn out to be? Forget the people who call her a tramp منحلة أخلاقياً without knowing anything about her life and contributions to political and social life in Egypt, forget the people who call for Allah’s help against the devilأعوذ بالله من الشيطان الرجيم when they hear her name because she is a woman, forget all the hatred directed towards her because she personifies what Arab people fear: an intelligent, strong woman who gets some air time to “corrupt” their girls’ minds امرأة .فاسدة تدعو إلى الانحلال What every person must do is learn for themselves and form their own opinions, and I learned this the hard way. It pains me to admit I was prejudiced without even realizing it at the time.

As I said before, Saadawi’s biography resonates with me to a great degree. I recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about the life of Egyptian women and Arab women in general, and about Saadawi herself. I have a lot of respect for that woman now, and I am sure you will too after you learn about her life.

Mosaic Class: Day Five

In Life on June 17, 2008 at 5:50 pm

I am obsessed with felines, big and small, and it so happens that I am a Leo myself. That’s why I have been toiling for five days to make myself a 42×35cm lion mosaic:

Compare with Day One here. And now, allow me to give myself a hug and try to forget about my mosaic-stiff neck and shoulders. Being an artist is not easy!

Note to Self

In Personal on June 16, 2008 at 2:44 pm

Dear Self,

It’s absurd that I am writing you a note and publishing it, a blatant contradiction in terms similar to saying “I am discreet but I have an exhibitionistic flare,” but I will do it anyway because I must unload my mind right this minute or I will lose this pressing idea. You know that my ideas are generally evanescent, you can’t blame me.

I believe I am about to change again. In the series of changes that make up who I am, this one is not yet very defined but I promise it will be extraordinary. I can feel it. There is a rush to it, a certain bitter taste at first which later turns sweet then insipid right when another change comes along.

It’s an accelerating feeling of getting close to something entirely authentic. At a certain distance I will have to decide if I want to embrace it, and that moment is always the most painful. Remember the last time I changed? It took years for me to finally muster up enough courage to shed my previous skin, and it’s an ongoing process still, faced with many obstacles and far from being complete.

It’s wonderful how other people can inspire improvement. I am fortunate to know some of these rare specimens of human excellence. I suppose they are models of godliness in their capacity to breathe life into other minds. To meet someone like that is a true privilege, so you should never compromise on the quality of company you keep. Remember this bit whenever you question your life choices. Also remember that while the public does not think, there is an intellectual elite hidden somewhere who make basking in their light worth the pain of brushing the masses aside.

Now back to work.
Tololy

Kharoofi Kharoofi

In Jordan on June 15, 2008 at 8:48 pm

This is an awesome, awesome Jordanian song which my brother gave me. It’s called “Kharoofi Kharoofi” and I think it’s done by a guy called Raja’i Qawwas (although I am not sure, if you know for certain, please indicate the name of the singer). I am in love with it, it’s so great because it reminds me of 1990s Abu Yousef material, it’s hilarious and so well done, and so very Jordanian:

DOWNLOAD HERE: 5arofi-5arofi

Seebak men ala3eebak.

Spettacolo Religioso

In Love on June 14, 2008 at 8:06 pm

I like religious art mostly because the European visual arts were the interpretation of Christian thought in the periods which I value the most: from the Renaissance to the 19th century. I also like Islamic arts by the way, particularly calligraphy and tile work, although I must admit I regret their general lack of human figures for religious purposes, but I equally appreciate their luxurious attention to detail. It’s eye-opening to observe how the various religions promoted and prohibited the arts.

On that, a Jesuit church in Rome now features a dazzling show of light, sound, and a mechanical introduction of a Baroque masterpiece, all to delight the believers. I am in love with the idea:

Every afternoon at 5:30 sharp, the “ta-da” moment arrives at the Chiesa del Gesù, the mother church of the Jesuit order.

As choral music fills the church, a meticulously choreographed light show begins in the left transept of the Chapel of St. Ignatius of Loyola. During the startling crescendo, a painted altarpiece descends slowly, exposing a deep niche in which a majestic silver statue depicts St. Ignatius, founder of the Jesuits, jetting into heaven.

The spectacle does not actually end with the unveiling of the statue. The show goes on, ultimately illuminating the entire nave of the church, where St. Ignatius is welcomed into an illusionistic vision of heaven where figures spill out onto stucco clouds painted by G. B. Gaulli, known as Baciccia, and then into the church’s dome, where he is united with God.

Source

The reaction of the people present when the show takes place must be similar to that of peasants in Renaissance Italy upon entering a small church on a Sunday, to be met by a colorful altarpiece, in trivial occasions concealed, depicting a religious episode (and yet featuring the rich patrons of the church as characters). I imagine it must be very profound and awe-inspiring to see God or his work presented thus.

This is what I like to call The Art of Belief. It is the use of arts to inspire faith, a clever tool and one I personally am grateful for since it has helped the arts more than it has hindered them (at least in the past). I would love to see that Jesuit spectacle, as I am sure I would appreciate the marriage of art, faith, and mechanics in a holy place. If stained-glass church windows impressed me, this would send me into a trance.

Young Brides for Sale

In Culture Arabia, Wonder Woman on June 13, 2008 at 5:51 pm

Poor Egyptian families definitely see marrying their young daughters off to wealthy Gulf men as a win-win scenario; the girls are supposedly provided with a chance to escape poverty, and their families get financial aid and remain with one less mouth to feed after the marriage. In today’s news:

The Egyptian authorities have banned a 92-year-old man from marrying a 17-year-old girl, the Egyptian al-Akhbar newspaper has reported.

The ministry of justice invoked a law which says the age gap between spouses should not exceed 25 years.

Egypt brought in the law prohibiting the marriage of elderly men to very young girls during the Gulf oil boom.

It was an effort to prevent wealthy men from the Gulf states seeking young poor brides from the Egyptian countryside.

Not much is known about the 92-year-old man who tried to marry an Egyptian girl of 17 except that he is an Arab from the Gulf.

This is not exclusive to Egypt, of course. Young women all around the Arab world and in other countries as well are usually traded off like sacks of wheat in such transactions, particularly if they come from poor families. This is not to say that well-to-do families don’t practise similar trade, but they do it with more pomp: the dowry in proportion to the girl’s education or her father’s social standing, the extravagant wedding to signal status, the expensive gifts, and all the other ornateness a marriage entails. It all boils down to the same thing in the end: a commercial transaction similar to any other.

It’s a good thing that Egyptian authorities banned that 92-year old man’s marriage to that girl. Sadly though, this is one case in many, many others that don’t get reported and are not banned. The Egyptian law also has a loophole regarding this, and for all we know that 92-year old man can use it and marry the girl after all:

However, in special cases, the justice ministry does allow foreign men to marry Egyptian women more than 25 years their junior if they deposit a very large sum of money in the name of their wife at the Egyptian National Bank.

Needless to say, the objectification of women is thus made legal by the very law that intends to limit it. That’s like saying: Hey! If you have THAT much money (about $80,000) and you put it in an Egyptian bank and let us work it for you, then OK, you can have that girl. She’s probably worth a lot less, but it seems you really like them young and fresh and poor, you rich pedophile you! Go on now, take your young virgin bride to your high-walled mansion and do what you please to her. Who cares if you’re perverted? Her family can’t afford to care, and her country has been paid to keep mum. She’s all yours.

An Architectural Masterpiece

In Bizarro on June 12, 2008 at 7:52 am

You know how you use a pedestrian bridge to cross a busy street? Well, don’t use this one.


Click picture to enlarge

- Manja – Madaba

Not Offended

In T Play Box on June 11, 2008 at 8:15 pm

Mosaic instructor shows my sister a picture of a couple’s portrait done in mosaic. The mosaic shows a 40-ish couple wearing sun glasses and waving at us in the manner of Kim Jong Il.

Tololy: What’s this?
Sister: It’s a portrait.
Tololy: Oh wow…who are these people?
Sister: They’re the tourists who commissioned the work.
Tololy: They had their own portrait done in mosaic?
Sister: Apparently.
Tololy: Wow…that’s pretty narcissistic!
Sister: I guess…
Tololy: It’s totally something I would do.
Sister: That’s what I was thinking.

I don’t know why but I kinda felt I should be offended, except I really wasn’t. Funny.

Change of Plans

In Life on June 11, 2008 at 7:42 pm

Change of plans. Again. No mental resort for me this summer, I’ll have to manage in Amman. In the meantime; progress is being made with the infamous lion:

And for the record, the lion is so popular a tourist has commissioned the workshop to make a duplicate of it for her collection. Also, I found out that the bastard has got a lot of curves. He’s also got boobs. These dirty dirty Byzantines. Tsk tsk tsk…

Lesson learned: Yes, I love blowing my own horn and I also love to notice little peculiarities. I got nothing else/better to do.

Aussie: Land Down Under

In V for Video on June 10, 2008 at 1:41 pm

I’ve always loved this song, but the video beat all my expectations:

Fantasy

In Life on June 9, 2008 at 9:22 pm

“A goal is a dream with a deadline.”
- Napoleon Hill

Free to Read

In Literature, Love on June 8, 2008 at 8:20 pm

One thing I appreciate about my parents, among many others, is their general self-restraint when it comes to my reading materials. They know that I read questionable materials, but they never try to prevent me from doing so. From literature to political theory to religious debate, I am free to read whatever I like — although if my tastes were more to their liking they would have appreciated them more, of course.

The most laudable aspect about their behavior is that they know for a fact that I derive much of my attitude and a good bulk of my opinions from the books I read. Both of these things (my attitude and my opinions) clash severely with their own, and cause conflict and overall unease at home. I suppose the easy route for any parents would have been banning these books of “useless knowledge” as the good hadith tradition put it, yet my parents never considered that as an option. I really respect that, precisely because it is the road less traveled and it’s more sensible than trying to cut off the Hydra’s head.

This brings me to yesterday’s trip downtown with my mother, during which I bought all three parts of Nawal El Saadawi’s autobiography from a small bookshop right off Al Husseini mosque square. This place had over 30 of her works, so I plan to go back and buy some more after I’ve acquainted myself with her life first.

My mother doesn’t like Saadawi, and she likes her thought a lot less, but she waited in that bookshop with me for about 15 minutes while the shop boy fetched the three volumes. She also endured the questions the shop owner asked about me as I was taking pictures outside, and she answered him with such pride despite our differences. Now that’s special.

City Colors

In Jordan, Picturesque on June 7, 2008 at 11:00 pm

I went downtown today with my mother, to buy some books and other items. Threads and needles, brown paper bags, gift wrapping paper…

Downtown Amman

The Mosaic Class

In Jordan, Life on June 5, 2008 at 10:11 pm

I went to Madaba today to enroll in a mosaic class at a workshop owned and run by a mosaic artist and instructor who also teaches at the Madaba Institute for Mosaic Art and Restoration (previously The School of Mosaics of Madaba).

It took me and my sister a bit of time to get to the exact location of the workshop, thanks to several natives who gave us wrong directions. Our instructor gave us a tour of the Institute, a modern workshop which awards diplomas to students who have finished high school, both in the production and restoration of mosaic art in the model of the Italian school.

We also went to Virgin Mary Church at the Madaba Archaeological Park, which was an enriching experience especially since it seems that I really like ancient churches and church ruins for some reason. They feel entirely holy to me — to be complemented by incense and a dark mood listening to Gregorian.

The Virgin Mary Church even had two subterranean chambers where the monks used to store food and other items. Very eerie, I loved it! Perfect with the above mentioned settings and mood.

Contemporary mosaic at the institute:

Virgin Mary Church mosaic:

More pics here:

Mosaic Class in Madaba

Needless to say, I am very much looking forward to the start of this course. I’ve been wanting to learn this art for years. The downer is that I will have to cut my nails before classes start, and I found a better-looking lion than the one I plan to make.

Has Anyone Been Watching Nart TV?

In Jordan, Opinion on June 5, 2008 at 9:15 am

Nart TV (National Adiga Radio & Television) is such a great idea that I can’t believe a similar initiative was not born years ago. The TV station aims to reach Circassian viewers and to spread Circassian traditions, culinary arts, and language. This is important because as the official website of Nart TV says “the language is almost not spoken within the many Circassian communities today and virtually about to go extinct among our youth of Circassian descent. The disappearance of the language would not only be a loss of world’s linguistic heritage, it would also open the door to the gradual loss of Circassian culture around the world.”


The Circassian flag, used in Nart TV logo.

The word “nart” means chevalier or horseman and it’s the name of one of my cousins. My own parents (both of them, which I find very cute) always have the tv on Nart to watch either dancing, or traditional cooking, or even to learn the language. My mother, albeit Circassian, did not receive a solid linguistic instruction from her mother or father. Living in the heart of Amman at the time, right around the Roman Amphitheater, she was brought up to speak Arabic rather than Circassian. She understands it though, and can speak it if spoken to, but she never could make a serious effort to teach us her language.

This is heart warming really. I think what the young people at Nart TV are doing is a commendable effort, and a large part of it is actually volunteer work. Another one of my cousins is a volunteer there, and very much encouraged by his family, as I imagine all the other Adiga youth in Jordan are, to help the channel any way possible. I heard they had a bazaar the other day to support the channel. It’s all good.

They should also enlist the help of the talented Circassian “visual artists;” be they graphic designers, art producers, photographers, or others. The Circassian community in Jordan -at least- boasts of an impressive number of these talents and they would do well to help educate young generations about their culture. I also think on the long run they have to have solid partnerships with well-to-do Circassians and corporations, or to generate substantial funds through ads and other endeavors, in order to remain in business. Even if it’s not a for-profit project, it still needs money to function.

Weird ‘Unpregnant yet Craving’ Parking Lot Lady

In Life on June 4, 2008 at 7:05 pm

Even before my exam this evening, I had a strong craving for a vanilla frappuccino. It took a lot of self-restraint not to use the word in my answers. After the exam, I drove all the way across town to get my large, ice cold, rich frappuccino. While at the place, I noticed they had blueberry slush too. The choice was difficult, it was hot outside, I needed to celebrate my finishing that damned exam…so I figured, I’ll do both!

I was a sight in the parking lot. Now gulping French vanilla frappuccino, now blueberry slush, and with such enthusiasm that I got brain freeze for the first five minutes. I took it slow afterwards. Weird ‘Unpregnant yet Craving’ Parking Lot Lady is my new name.

Lighten Up, Donut!

In Bizarro on June 1, 2008 at 1:15 pm

After reading the discussion between Bakkouz and Nas, I found this hilariously doctored “screengrab:”

Screengrab from donut sleeper cell training video surfaces

Source: Boing Boing

Lighten up, internet!

Honour Strikes Again

In Jordan, Wonder Woman on June 1, 2008 at 9:58 am

Just the other day I was thinking of the role that women in leadership must play to help society move towards gender equality by cooperating with women’s civil society organizations. This duty is often clouded by “differences” between women in various leadership posts.

At the call of the The Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW), women ministers, deputies, mayors, and others met last week to discuss ways to cooperate to lobby for women’s causes in the country. This is a good step forward I think, but I withhold judgment until something tangible comes out of it — like suggestions to achieve equality for women in the various laws.

Take this an example of legal and social discrimination against women in Jordan:

20-year-old kills his sister in so-called honour crime

By Rana Husseini

AMMAN – The criminal prosecutor on Saturday charged a 20-year-old man with the premeditated murder of his younger married sister in the Jordan Valley for reasons related to family honour, official sources said.

The suspect reportedly confessed to stabbing his sibling to death at their family home a day after she was released from custody by the administrative governor, the source told The Jordan Times.

After the incident, the suspect waited for the police to come and arrest him and when they arrived at the scene, he claimed he killed his sibling, who was married at the age of 16 and had a one-year-old child, to cleanse his family’s honour, the source added.

His sister’s husband accused her of seeing other men and she went missing from his home a few days before the incident, according to the source.

“The authorities found the victim and she was detained for a while by the administrative governor, who handed her over to her family on Thursday after her father signed a JD5,000 guarantee that he would not harm his daughter,” the source said.

The victim went home with her father on Thursday and on Friday morning her brother murdered her, the source said, adding that the criminal prosecutor did not press charges against other family members, but ordered her brother detained.

The victim’s husband refused to press charges against the suspect, a source close to the investigation told The Jordan Times.

The victim became the seventh woman to be killed in a so-called honour crime in Jordan since the beginning of the year.

She is also the third woman to be killed for reasons related to family honour in May.

Source: The Jordan Times

Every time something as atrocious as this happens in my country, I feel a piece of me has died. When I think about it, I feel that I am powerless except to shout from the bottom of an abyss. There has to be something you and I can do about it, I hate to think we are so insignificant in the face of organized and legalized murder. What can we do?