Pestiferous

Where Am I?

2009-04-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

It's a real busy year, what with my honours project as well as 3 papers in one semester, plus I've got a new website project I want to start working on. So I wont be updating here too much, but will be continously updating my twitter, which has kinda become my mini blog for now.

Wondering where I'm at? Am right HERE

Guitar Tree Revamp

2009-04-06T02:32:00.000-07:00

I am starting out a new project of revamping all my old artwork. I love the old stuff and will not discard them ever, since they were what made me realize I can actually draw pretty good lol. But I wanna patch them up, make them look better. First in line was Guitar Tree, which I drew about a year ago. The first image is the original piece, and the second is the revamped one.

I dunno how it is with other people, but when I listen to music, like really really really good music, it kinda sends me into a trance. Whatever I am doing I will stop, and I will close my eyes and just listen. I would see images, like mountains or streams, or even colors depending on the tone and lyrics of the music/song. That's why I decided to add lots of color to this piece, since it conveys my feelings towards music.

Zombie!

2009-04-03T17:41:00.000-07:00

Hack/Slash

2009-04-03T04:25:00.000-07:00

Spent the better part of my day today drawing out a poster of one my fav comics: Hack/Slash. I really wanted a poster of the comic to stick to my room's wall and decided to create my own one lol.

Click on images for larger to see more detail and stuff.

Here's the 10 minute-ish sketch that I scanned into photoshop

Here's my take on Cassie Hack

Here's my take on Vlad

And here's the final poster

Am still pretty bad at drawing the background ._. Really need to improve on that. But am really happy and proud with the end product =D

Can't wait to print it and hang it up yay!

Darth Vader

2009-04-01T02:23:00.000-07:00

Oh God xD I am literally choking from laughter xD

BRILLIANT! ahahaha

Internet Vigilantism

2009-03-30T13:13:00.000-07:00

A vigilante, as defined by Wiktionary is “[o]ne who takes the law into one's own hands”. Internet Vigilantism is a very recent phenomenon that came into existence as a result of the formation of the web community with the birth of the internet and the World Wide Web.

Though the word vigilante has good intention tied with it, the Internet Vigilantism phenomenon is somewhat disturbing, due to many cases of it being similar as to the harassment of a lynch mob. The most notable method of Internet Vigilantism is public shaming, where the violator’s crime is publicized widely across the web, almost always followed by personal information of the perpetrator such as name, photos and even email and home address. Social networking tools as well as forums are utilized, thus leading to the public shaming spreading faster than an epidemic across the world.

Dog Poop Girl

One of the most widely publicized and talked about example of public shaming tied to Internet Vigilantism and followed by harassment of a lynch mob is South Korea’s “Dog Poop Girl”. In 2005, a commuter in Seoul took a photograph of a fellow commuter who refused (using colorful language) to clean up her dog’s defacement on the floor of a subway car. The photo showed the dog owner, a Korean woman, seated in the subway car with her dog in her lap; it’s defacement on the floor in front of her. Fellow passengers surrounding her look down upon the sight with disgust plainly visible on their faces. The commuter who took the photograph posted it on a popular Korean website, voicing his anger and disgust.

Within hours, Internet Vigilantes quickly sprang into action, labeling her as “Dog Poop Girl” (it being the less colorful version of the woman’s new title) and began spreading the photo across the web. Within days, as further punishment for her violation, she was identified and much of her personal information was exposed on the internet, as well as more pictures of her. Parodies of the incident were even made. The story reached mainstream media, and the public humiliation and harassment, even against her own family, lead the woman to quit her university and issue a public apology online.

Breaking the norm

It is interesting to note that the Dog Poop Girl case stemmed due to not following the norm, rather than breaking the law. The lady was expected to clean up after her dog. Instead, she refused and in a very offensive manner. Usually, this would follow with norm enforcement such as an angry scowl or someone telling off the lady. Dog Poop Girl’s norm enforcement was rather extreme, as she was tracked down by a cyber-posse, who took matters into their own hands and publicly humiliated her. She is forever branded as Dog Poop Girl.

A similar example is of 16-year-old New Yorker Sasha Gomez. She decided to steal a Sidekick II cell phone she found in the back of a cab rather than turning it in. Gomez was exposed and publicly humiliated by Evan Guttmann (friend of the cell phone owner), who tracked her down by means of the web. Another case is of Jesse McPherson tracking the person who stole his laptop, television and Xbox down after posting an obtained picture of the thief to his blog. The blog entry was then posted on Digg.com, a popular social news website, resulting in an angry mob of internet users tracking the thief’s name, home address and even high school. The violator was constantly harassed, until he confessed his crime and returned the stolen goods.

Patrick Pogan

Internet Vigilantism, in this case, was used to expose the wrong doing of public law enforcer. Critical Mass is a bicycling event held on a monthly basis in cities all over the world. It is perceived as a political protest activity, while participants claim it’s more of a gathering of people and a celebration. Critical Mass events can legally occur with no advance notification of local police, which leads to traffic problems and hence disgruntled road commuters.

During a Critical Mass rally in the streets of New York in July, 2008, Patrick Pogan, an NYPD rookie, intercepted Christopher Long, a participant in the rally, to the ground. Pogan filed a criminal complaint, outlining that Long:

was weaving in and out of traffic, disturbing normal flow of the cars
purposely veered into him, knocking him down and injuring him
resisted arrest, kicking and screaming while doing so.

Long was charged with attempted assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. However, within days, a video surfaces on YouTube of the incident in question that completely contradicts Pogan’s report.

The video clearly showed that:

there was no car traffic on the road.
Long in fact attempted to veer away from the officer, while Pogan clearly ran into the cyclist, body-slamming him to the ground, while the officer remained on his feet.

All charges against Long were dropped, and Pogan was stripped of his gun and badge and given a desk job instead. Seven months later, the police department suspended him, and he now faces criminal charges including filing a false instrument and misdemeanor charges of third-degree assault.

More to come

I only demonstrated a few cases of Internet Vigilantism in this article, however it is clear to me that this is a phenomenon that will grow more in scope as the internet and web continues growing and become more tied to our lives. It is somewhat worrying though, due to the public shaming being worldwide rather than just in the local community. Once branded or tainted on the web, humiliation and public scorn is hard to forget due to it always existing on the web, easily retrieved by Google. The Korean lady will always be known as Dog Poop Girl, Gomez always remembered for stealing a cell phone and Pogan will always be known for his criminal actions as a police officer. Internet Vigilantes exist in the cyber world, where laws and limitations of the normal world are not applicable and anything is possible.

Hamilton Night Glow 09

2009-03-29T00:30:00.000-07:00

Quoted from Wikipedia:

Balloons over Waikato is an annual hot air ballooning festival held in Hamilton, New Zealand. It is held over five days during autumn and attracts both local and overseas balloonists. The Festival is held primarily at Innes Common, at Hamilton Lake, which gets an estimated 100,000 visitors during the festival.

Events in the festival include sunrise and sunset launches, a balloon basket parade, lighting of balloons in the "Night Glow" and a morning "Dip in the Lake" competition where balloonists must attempt to secure a key placed on the lakebed.

This year's Night Glow was held on Uni grounds, a mere 2 mins walk from my place. The main street was closed to allow pedestranian traffic to easily get to the field, which was full of other events like rides, a music show and lots of food. I found a stand selling those mini cinammon donuts that are freshly prepared, bought a bag of 14 and ate them all xD I love those mini donuts so much, but unfortunatly they are not available everywhere (why is it that everything I love is hard to find ._.) I decided to skip the rides, as I was sufferening from a small headache, and headed towards the most densly populated part of the field with a friend. A band was playing, and right next to them the balloons were slowly being inflated. Here are photos before the Night Glow show began:

As the balloons were inflating, the music continued blaring on the speakers around the field. Suddenly the music stopped, and all the flood lights were switched off. Kids began to sing (Happy Birthday to you) since it's the 10 year aniversary of the night glow. As the kids came to the end of the song, the made a huffing and puffing sound, like they were blowing out candles. Suddenly the night a-glow with several gas fire stands located around all the balloons. Many people in the crowd gasped in fright, including me as I was pretty close to one of these fire stands xD Then music started and all the balloons as well as the fire stands began to glow in time with the music. It was so so so pretty!

And, ofcourse, what's an outdoor night show without some awesome fireworks =P

Dying moth

2009-03-28T02:43:00.000-07:00

I took these two shots about two weeks ago, but downloaded them into my Lappie today. Both are of a large moth I found outside my studio. It's wings were completely torn, and the poor thing kept trying to fly to no avail. I really like moths, espically the freakily beautiful patterns in their wings. I was really heartbroken to see this one in such a bad state lol. I wanted to bring it in with me and take care of it until it becomes better, but then realized how crazy that thought is. So I sat outside watching it for a while, grabbed Alpha K and took the two shots, then walked in and left it out there. Guess it's up in moth heaven now ... =(

Product Review: Raid Fly Control System Window Stickers

2009-03-24T02:47:00.000-07:00

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon. I was sitting at my desk, typing away at an assignment, when I decided to open my studio's french windows to let in some fresh air as well as warm sunshine. Enjoying the cool breezes, I left the windows open all day long. Little did I know unwelcome guests were coming into my studio as well ...

Night cloaks the world in darkness, and the cool breezes I enjoyed all day become icy. I close my french windows, and set about preparing dinner. Still oblivious to my unwelcome guests, I go about my normal night routine. After taking a showe, I sit at my desk to do a bit of course reading. I think it was about then that I realized there was a curios buzzing noise in my room.

FLIES! xD

About 2 and a half dozen of them, maybe even more, in my tiny room xD I was horrified! I grabbed a folder that contained notes for one of my classes and started smacking away at the flies. I managed to kill perhaps 5, but just couldnt get at the rest, plus my folder had torn in half from the force of my swats (it's in the bin now ... I really liked that folder =( )

It was too late to go to the store and grab an insect killer spray. It was too late to get out of the house period. So I had to put up with the nonstop buzzing near my ears, and become content with smacking myself in the head evey few minutes as a fly buzzes close to me.

I can't even describe the level of my annoyance as I sat at my desk trying to get some reading done.

The next day (yesterday) I went to the closest store after uni. Can you believe they were out of insect killer spray xD Stone cold out. But they had somthing else --> Raid Fly Control System Window Sticker. I live in a tiny town and public transportation ends at 7 in the evening, so I had no time to catch the bus to some other store. Plus I'm lazy.

I had no choice, I had to buy it. It had two stickers in it, and as soon as I got home I stuck one unto my window and hoped for the best. Within the hour, 4 flies lay dead on the floor under the sticker =D

The sticker is not supposed to be used on any other surface but a window, so I grabbed the other one and only removed the covering film. I stuck some blu tac on it's back and secured on one corner of the floor of my kitchen.

The next morning (today) there was only three flies dead altogether =( That was dissapointing, as the flies were still annoying me. However, whe I got home a lovely suprise awaited me. 11 flies dead altogether =D and another 6 so far =DDD There a still a few left in my room, but it's better than having 30-ish xD

How does the Raid Sticker Work?

Flies are attracted by the colour, design and natural food attractants in the sticker and come in contact with the active ingredient which works within minutes to kill them.

Thank you Raid, thank you for such a wonderful product. I am a believer now in insect killing stickers.

My rating of the product --> 4.5/5

!

2009-03-23T03:45:00.000-07:00

Well .. would you look at that ... I am my own people and language lol

Sara People

This is seriously weirding me out. WHY ARE THEY CALLED SARA!? IS IT NOT ENOUGH THAT THE NAME IS POPULAR ENOUGH TO BE A LANGUAGE AND ETHNIC GROUP AS WELL?!

Talk about serendipity. I was messing around with a Wikipedia software and came across this.

Evolution of Science in the internet era

2009-03-23T03:40:00.000-07:00

What is Science?

Science, as define by Wikitonary is “the fact of knowing something; knowledge or understanding of a truth” in the broad sense. More specifically, science is the “knowledge gained through study or practice; mastery of a particular discipline or area.” It is difficult to imagine a world without science. There would be no medicine to cure our diseases, no electricity to light and warm our houses, no cars to transport us around, no computers and internet. We would be struggling with life. Our interests would only involve trying to survive each day, not understanding and learning about the world around us. Darkness is what mostly comes to mind.

How it all began?

The seeking of knowledge has always been a part of human nature. We are naturally curious beings, blessed with an intelligence deeming us capable of comprehending the world surrounding us.

In the early ages, knowledge was passed orally, from person to person, generation to generation. This posed a problem, as the main tool this method is dependent on is the human memory, which is for the most part not reliable at all. People tend to forget or mix up crucial points, thus corrupting the knowledge. In addition, the death of a wise man/woman would mean that all the knowledge he/she gained would disappear as well.

Another more reliable tool had to be used in the passing and storing of knowledge. The earliest of such is symbols. Symbols represent an idea or a concept. The earliest example of these is:

* Cave paintings
* Petro glyphs
* Pictograms
* Ideograms

With the birth of the alphabet and writing, the storage as well as communication of knowledge improved greatly. Natural Philosophers, the earliest scientists, came into existence, questioning the world surrounding them, noting down their ideas, observations and breakthroughs in the form of a scroll, and later on in the form of a book. With the introduction of mass printing, new ideas and scientific discoveries were allowed to propagate faster, becoming more widely available for other knowledge seekers.

Natural Philosophy began to separate from philosophy, and became what is known today as science. Discovery after discovery were made in the name of science, a vast set of laws were associated with it, from Galileo’s laws to Newton’s law of motions. Science branched out into distinct communities:

* Natural Science, which deals with natural phenomena, with disciples such as biology and physics.

* Social Science, which deals with human behavior and societies, with disciples such as anthropology and political science.

Fast forwarding a bit to just before the birth of the internet, we see science become what we know it as today, where the role of being a scientist is a profession that you can become by earning a degree from a university. Science is taught to young children in a broad sense from an early age as they attend school, and narrows down into disciplines during intermediate and high school. The storage of the scientific knowledge is still being done in books. However, all of this is available only to communities with the resources needed, such as a university, schools and even books. This caused a serious gap in the world, as countries with resources developed faster than countries with none, creating stark differences financially as well as intellectually.

What is the internet?

The internet, as defined by Wikipedia is a “global network of interconnected computers, enabling users to share information along multiple channels.” People with a computer, a modem and web browser program were able to access the World Wide Web (WWW) or more commonly abbreviated as the Web, via the internet.

The Web consisted of a very large set of interlinked hypertext documents ranging in all topics. It started off slow, being very expensive to use and only available to educational institutions and the people whom can afford it. Fast forwarding here as well, we see the Web develop and morph into what we know it as today: an indispensable tool for information and part of our daily interactions. We use it to seek knowledge, to communicate, to shop, to watch movies, to listen to music.

Science and the internet

An information revolution is in the works.

The internet, and the Web along with it, changed the face of how knowledge can be stored and sought after. It opened a whole world of information available throughout all corners of the globe. All one needs is a device with internet access, such as a computer, and a browser.

Scientists are able to communicate with others that share similar interests, but live in another part of the world. They are able to share thoughts and ideas rapidly, which leads to more questions being answered and more breakthroughs accomplished. Scientific journals as well as news from the scientific community are propagated into the world at a pace never dreamed of before. Scientific knowledge is no longer contained with Educational institutions such as universities and libraries. It is readily available to all those who seek it via the internet.

An individual could learn about science, read online scientific journals, and keep track of all the latest research and breakthroughs from the scientific community. Having scientific knowledge is becoming “cool” with the newest generation, where you can find hundreds of blogs dealing with the different areas of science, such as biology or astronomy, written by teenagers or young adults. A quick search on YouTube will yield video upon video of scientific experiments conducted by curious individuals.

The book is slowly becoming redundant, as more people turn to the web, rather than the libraries to gain knowledge. The storage of knowledge first started as simple symbols, evolved into books, and is now starting to be stored electronically on internet servers. It is highly likely that in the future, the book will become completely redundant and all knowledge will be stored in internet servers and the Web.

The downside to all this

Due to the Web being an open library that anyone can edit, it has led to many false scientific information being published on to it. This may lead the naïve reader to believing this false information as being true. In order to not fall in such a trap, many different websites should be used as sources when looking for information or only the most reliable of scientific websites is to be consulted, such as Britannica or the Encylopedia of Life.

There is certain etiquette when it comes to searching for information through the internet. One must only consult the most reliable of websites. If unable to find the information being sought after, a certain degree of skepticism should be kept in mind while browsing websites until completely sure of the integrity of the knowledge. Search engines, such as Google, return the most popular hits first, which may not always turn out to be reliable. The web is ever expanding, with more websites coming up day by day. There is still no way to index and keep track of all of this growth, meaning there is no guarantee that everything one reads on the Web is true.

Brightness is what mostly comes to mind

We are living in an age of enlightenment such as the world has never seen before. The pace at which science as well as intelligence is evolving at is rapid, the standard of living improving in a couple of years rather than decades.

The future of science looks a lot brighter than before the birth of the internet.

Cadbury Mini Eggs

2009-03-21T04:08:00.001-07:00

Oh joy of joys ^_^

Today, while walking through a department store, me and my friend passed by the section with all the Easter Chocos. Rows upon rows of Choco eggs and bunnies. I suddenly realized I always wanted to buy one of these but never did. I voiced this thought to my friend and wondered why. We decided to take a looksie at all the choco available.

So I walk about, taking a look, pointing a couple of cute bunny ones to my friend, when I literally stopped in my tracks and stared at a blue box infront of me.

Cadbury Mini Eggs.

CADBURY MINI EGGS!

THE BLOODY CHOCOLATE I LOVED WHEN I WAS IN ENGLAND!

No mini egg choco witha candy shell tastes as good as this one, the rest are all crap.

I have been searching for it everywhere, but have not come across it in any other country, not even NZ. I came across it once in Aussie in a store selling British stuff, like those double decker red buses (also came across Walkers Prawn Cocktail crisps <3 But omg was it expensive! 15 dollars for a pack of choco and crisps xD)

I ran over to the box and grabbed it. It included a huge Cadbury Easter Egg in it as well, but I didnt give a damn about that, my beloved Mini Eggs were in there in a packet of their own xD

Oh they are so yummy! Candy outside shell, that crunches so deleciously as you bite the egg in half. Then you taste the delecious thick block of cadbury milk chocolate in the centre of the egg. Heaven!

Am munching on one now.

Happy day ... OH HAPPY DAY!

Project

2009-03-19T01:39:00.000-07:00

Right then. My honours project is basically proving the following article completely wrong, and that back of the book indexing can indeed be written by a computer ^_^

--------------------------------------------------

CAN'T THE INDEX BE WRITTEN BY A COMPUTER?

Indexing ultimately organizes "aboutness" for quick recall. The computer and its software assist, but the human mind alone can speak to the concept of "aboutness". If a term or concept is not specifically articulated on a page, a computer cannot choose it for the index, nor can a search engine find references to it. Neither can the computer reword the entry in a form that aids readers who are unfamiliar with the author's thrust. A paragraph or discussion can be "about" a topic without specifically using those words.

For example, in a discussion of passwords, keys and locks, you may be speaking about security issues and encryption. The words "security" or "encryption" may not appear in that page yet the reader should be directed to that page by the index under those headings. It takes a human mind to draw these conclusions.

Furthermore, a computer cannot:

determine relationships among words and concepts, and therefore cannot place subentries, synonyms and cross-references properly
decide what is and is not a relevant reference-- they can only sort the terms that appear in a document according to certain preprogrammed patterns
recognize concepts which are discussed over a range of pages
limit the search to relevant entries (vs. every occurance of a word)
function when a word is misspelled (for example. google the word "backwords" and notice how often it is used where the word "backwards" is meant)
consider how terms develop varied meanings -- for example, a "key" on pianos, for computers, to unlock doors, to unlock puzzles, for security, or as a geographic feature, as in Key West. At the same time, a computer is unable distinguish an author's use of multiple terms to indicate one concept: for example, in the computer manual field, 'application', 'software', and 'program' are often used interchangeably

Thus, without a human being to analyze content and context, automation in either a search process or in creating an index falls short of effectively bringing together relevant topics while avoiding the unrelated. Yes, a computer can think—just like a plane can fly or a car can drive.

source

Book Review: The Interpretation of Murder

2009-03-18T03:55:00.001-07:00

Finished this book today morning.

The Interpretation of Murder by Jed Rubenfeld

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars

It was a good mystery, but I was expecting better. Some of the details are vague and not explained enough, and the crime itself was not as bad or shocking as I expected it to be. On the whole very very very well written and well researched book, loved how we got a taste of Freudian Psychology (no matter how audacious lol) and the rift between him (Sigmund Freud) and Carl Jung.

Book Review: The Historian

2009-03-18T03:53:00.001-07:00

Finished this book three weeks ago, but will post review anyways.

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

My review

rating: 5 of 5 stars

Amazing ... I fell inlove with History even more due to this book. Really loved it!

The story deals with vampires, but not Bram Stoker's version of vampires, oh no. This book talks about a real vampire --> Vlad Teppes, or Vlad the Impaler. It also focuses on the connection between him and the Islamic Ottoman Empire dealing with is hatred towards it and the great fued between him and Sultan Mehmed II, the conqueror of Constantinople.

Two Historians, Paul and Helena, whom are brought together after a series of unfortunate events,begin to delve deeper and deeper into the history of Vlad the Impaler as well as the Ottoman Empire, in order to save the life of a fellow historian.

The story is fast paced, incrdibly researched and the characters are so real. It is one of those books that I can think back on and see the entire story play back in mind like a movie. It isnt a light read by all means (656 pages) but I did not want it to end at all. To be honest I was really sad when it did lol.

Muto + Life

2009-03-18T03:22:00.000-07:00

I first watched this about a year ago. Came across again today and was rivited once again. The dedication put into making this is inspiring. I love it.

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It's the third week of uni and I am already swamped, literally swamped with assignments. For the first time in my life I actually fear I wont get anything done in time, even though deadlines are months away. However, thanks to the nagging of my stupid best friend (*imaginary hugs*) I am not as scared or worried anymore. Batwakal 3ala Allah (hmm .. something like I'll put my faith in God) and do my best =)

Project Specification Due Friday

Placement Report Second Draft due Monday

Evolution of Science in the internet Era essay due Sunday

Chapter 2 of web dragons answers due Sunday

Another 10 chapters left to read in the (Using Z specification language) book

Writing up Test cases for the Flipstick programme due Monday

Fourth year is not gonna be a walk in the park ofcourse ... but ... *gulps* ._.

Loner (5)

2009-03-12T21:50:00.000-07:00

This a story about racism I wrote when I was 14 years old.

Previous Chapters:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - cont

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I had Maths after English. I walked out of the classroom and realized I don't know where the classroom for Math is. I looked around for a fellow classmate but couldn't find one. Instead, I found a swarm of older students pass by me. They were all staring at my face, some laughing and pointing me out to their friends. I rubbed my nose, looked at my hand and found nothing. Again I looked up and still people were staring at me.

"Oh no!" I thought to myself "What is wrong? Do I have a bogey stuck on my face!?"

I remembered Corrine telling me where the toilets were. I dashed in and up to a mirror, checking my face for anything that wasn't supposed to be there. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary.

I walked out of the toilet and along the corridors, looking in on every classroom through the door's window to see if my classmates were in any of them. Just when I thought I was going to cry out of frustration, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around and saw a large, rosy cheeked, blond haired, middle aged lady with soft blue eyes staring back at me. She smiled, and asked what was I doing wandering through the deserted corridors.

I told her that I was a new student and that I wasn't able to find my Math's class. She asked me why none of my classmates showed me the way. I shrugged and she clucked her tongue. Five minutes later I entered the class with the rosy-cheeked lady behind me. The teacher, Mr. Gibbons, didn't seem happy that I was fifteen minutes late for his class. He told me off , and I heard some sniggering as I walked to the back of the class and sat down. Miss Heather ( the rosy-cheeked lady) told Mr.Gibbons that it wasn't my fault as I was a new student and nobody showed me the way to his class. He merely nodded his hand and sternly thanked Miss Heather.

Math is my favourite subject. I soon found myself lost in numbers and calculation, my embarrassment at being told off on my first day of school gone. Math does not rely wholly on memorization, but a deep understanding in order to answer questions. A character in a novel I once read said that no matter how different the world's culture and language is, Math still stays the universal way to communicate as it is the same in every language. I believe that maybe one day numbers will be our tool to communicate with extraterrestrial beings. We took simultaneous equations today, and I aced the principle to solving it immediately.

the bell rand and it was time for the lunch break. Everyone filed out into the playground and I followed last. I walked out, looked around, saw Corrine walking a little ahead of me and I ran to catch up with her. She smiled and asked me how I liked the school until now. I said it wasn't bad but it was confusing to get around. She laughed and said that I'll get used to it in a week. We joined a group of girls and boys from our class whom were picking teams for Red Rovers.

Red Rovers is a two team game. Each team must hold unto one another hand, creating a chain. The opposing teams face each other. One side starts by picking a person from the other team to try and break through their chain. The chosen person will rush headlong into a link in the chain, and if they manage to make the link break (the people holding unto each other's hands let go) then the person can go back to their team and choose someone else from the opposing team to join them., making their chain longer. However, if unsuccessful in making the link break, the person must join the opposing team.

Two captains were chosen, and each began picking people for their team turn by turn. I was picked last. To my surprise and confusion, none of the teams wanted me. Why? Do I have some type of disease that they are trying to avoid or do I look like a monster with eight eyes and six hairy legs?

Or worse! Maybe this time there defiantly is something stick to my face!

Immediately my left hand shot up to my face and I began to rub at my nose. A murmur of disgust rose from the crowd surrounding me. Too late, I realized the oddness of what I was doing, and I dropped my arm limply to my side, feeling utterly embarrassed.

Finally, after much arguing about which team should choose the snotty nosed girl, Corrine convinced her team's captain to choose me, and reluctantly he agreed. I stood on the left end of the chain, and I held unto Corrine with my right hand, not daring to use my left in case I frightened her off.

It was a fun game, and everyone had a go at trying to break the link, except for me. Corrine's turn came and she was chosen to try and break the link of the other team. She didn't succeed and so had to join them. The girl who held unto Corrine's other hand wasn't too keen to hold unto mine and said she will on one condition: that's 'd pull my shirt's long sleeve over my hand. This was a bit too much, and I thought to myself that if I'm not wanted somewhere then I might as well not be there.

I walked off, mumbling that I am feeling tired and don't want to play anymore. There was still a few minutes left until the end of the the morning break. I walked over to the benches. I noticed heads turning in my direction, and whispers behind me saying "... yeah she's new, only just arrived ... what a strange color, so like chocolate, definatly not the bronze color of tan"

I sat down and watched the kids strolling around the playground. There wasn't much going on, mostly people strolling around and talking. I pondered the reason of why my classmates were behaving so strangely. Back home, I was rather liked by everyone. Even strangers instantly got attracted to me because of my charm and smile, as my Mother would put it. Here, I used all the charm and smiles I could muster but still it seems that no one cared about being my friend. Well, I can't really say no one Corrine sure is trying to make me feel at home I guess. I tried to find a reason for why that girl didn't want to touch my hand. I guessed it was because of me rubbing my nose. To tell the truth, if I was in her place I wouldn't like to touch the hand of someone whom might have some snot on their fingers.

Happy with my conclusion, I made my way back into the school's building as the bell signalling for the end of the morning break clanged loudly.

=(

2009-03-12T00:56:00.000-07:00

Dagon has passed away lol.

I have to admit, I am extremely sad at the moment. I know some people will find it weird, but I really get attached to the stuff I love (which is a kind of curse I guess) and as shown in my last post I really love my pets. My sister took good care of him, but I guess something went wrong. She is pretty sad as well lol (she's like me)

Poor Dagon ... he was a beautiful Black Moor. I was hoping he will grow big, healthy and strong.

RIP

Here's a pic of him when I first got him. He grew quite a bit since then, and his dark gold tail and fins became so long and beautiful! I loved watching his tail and fins flow in the water as he swam in the tank.

Pets ... =(

2009-03-09T20:40:00.000-07:00

I miss my pets lol. Like really really reaaaaaaaaally miss them.

I miss watching the Goldfishes at night while I sit in my room on the laptop or reading a book. I would look up and stare at the tank, watching Dagon and the rest of the gang swim around. There's something really relaxing about just watching them swim around.

I miss coming home from work and checking on Kami the tortoise, who currently lives in a big tub, filled with sand and plants and even a little cave for her to sleep in, out on the balcony due to her still being a baby and cats my attack her and stuff. I can look out unto the blacony from bedroom's window, and see her tub. Watching her eat her Prickly Pear Cactus or Aloe Vera was adorable as well =P

I miss feeding the Oscars and Snake Eels. Damn they were amazing to watch at feeding time. The know when feeding time is because I knock on the glass a few times before opening the of their tank. They would get so incredibly excited, coming to the top of the tank and almost jumping out of the water. When I feed them meat or chicken, I would drop the food piece by piece and watch how fast they attack their food. It really is awesome to watch lol. I espically miss Charlie the Albino Oscar. She was the bravest out of them all, always swiming curiosly up to my hand to investigate lol.

I miss the baby turtles, Sasha and Speedy. I espically miss Sasha, she is such a spoilt little princess! She always walks up to your hand when you put it in the tank, and she let us pet her head gently as she sat still. She would also follow me around when I put her on my bedroom's floor in order for her to get some exercise, crawling onto my foot or just staring up at me with that funny crooked look lol.

I miss the puppies =( I only got to see them a couple of times before I came to NZ, but oh do I miss them xD They would get so excited when they see us approach them and it brought joy to my heart to see them in that way. I bought so many treats and toys for them before I came to NZ.

LOLcelebs

2009-03-06T21:30:00.000-08:00

In addition to my undying devotion to lolcats, i am now a huge fan of lolcelebs (which was blocked by Omantel in Oman so I couldn't view it when it when i first discovered ._.)

http://roflrazzi.com

A few of my favs:

Riba

2009-03-05T00:58:00.000-08:00

Incredible animation clip. Loved the music.

The Thomas Oliver Band

2009-03-04T17:50:00.001-08:00

These guys were playing at uni today during the afternoon, and I must say I really really enjoyed their music. Very Indie and unique, a bit of Country and a bit of Rock thrown in from song to song, but mostly Indie. The sounded so good live! The Drummer dude came up to me and G's table and asked her if she got any good vids of the band, but unfortunatly G's phone (she used that to record them) is crap so she didnt lol.

The Thomas Oliver Band's MySpace.

AND WE HAD MR.WHIPPY ICECREAM! One of the NZ radio stations, ZM FM, brought a Mr.Whippy van to uni today and were giving out free icecream. I haven't had a softie since I was in Aussie 5 bloody years ago! I think this was one of the high points of O-Week for me. No, I don't think ... I know it is the highest point of O-Week for me.

I printed out Gods of Wind and lamenated it and oh it looked good! But G guilted me into giving it to her by going "oh can I have it" in this voice I just couldn't say no to, so yeah, she has it now =/

My eyes! MY EYES!

2009-03-04T02:12:00.000-08:00

Honestly, people should be banned from using video cameras and uploading such vids as this one xD

I am guessing it's for a dance competetion Beyonce is running for her Single Ladies song. If not, then why ... WHY?!

Finally have internet at home. Will be updating more on NZie stuff soon =)

Melinda's World

2009-03-01T17:47:00.000-08:00

Done xD

Finally been able to create a claymation that's worthy xD

The movie is kinda jumpy and there are a few mistakes in it but I hope to improve in the future =)

I am really happy with myself for going through with this project, and inshallah more to come in the future!

Seven

2009-03-01T17:45:00.000-08:00

There is seven or a multiple of seven of every pattern in this design. It was actually pretty tough keeping the balance xD

I was pretty exauhsted by the end lol, but very happy with the result =)

Click for larger

Doha Photos 1

2009-02-28T19:38:00.000-08:00

A batch of photos I took during my time in Doha. Will upload more over the coming days. More available on my flickr

Gods of Wind

2009-02-28T19:28:00.000-08:00

Haven't updated for a while coz I've been out and about ALOT! Am back in New Zealand =) Been three days since i got back and tomorrow is the first day of uni and to be honest I am kinda worried about the coming year since I am going to be doing honours. Inshallah 5air.

I generally feel pretty darn tired at the moment, just a random thought.

Anyways, here's something I drew called Gods of Wind. Took me about 5 hours. I like reading about Mythologies and folk tales of different cultures, thusly this drawing has been inspired by a mythological Japanese God.

Click on Image for larger

New York Jews take to street in support of Gaza

2009-02-15T01:40:00.000-08:00

I posted a report about a month ago on the 10,000 New York Jews whom attented a pro-Israel rally infront of the Israeli consulate on the 11th of January, 2009. That was a rather shocking demonstration. People cheering the bombing of Gaza and the killing of Palestinian civilians, some yelling “Wipe Gaza off the Map” and no one questioning the reason behind this all.

Well, another demonstration is happening in New York, but of a different nature. Only 1 tenth of the number that attended the pro-Israel rally, but still heart warming.

PHOTO ESSAY ~~ NEW YORK JEWS TAKE TO THE STREETS IN SUPPORT OF GAZA

Gaza Aid Convey Incident

2009-02-15T01:20:00.000-08:00

I was just wondering when will the British Gaza Aid Convey face any incedents on it's journey, when lo and behold I come across this:

Report: Nine arrested in England by terror police en route to Gaza

There is no mention of criminal activity in the report as far as I can see.

To Gaza with love

2009-02-15T00:42:00.000-08:00

Britain's Valentine's day gift to Gaza of an aid convey began it's three week journey yesterday =)

Gaza aid convoy due to leave UK

BBC - Sat, 14 Feb 2009 07:01:40 GMT

A convoy of 110 vehicles is due to leave London for Gaza to deliver £1m of humanitarian aid.
Hundreds of volunteers will act as drivers during the mission, which is organised by umbrella body Viva Palestina and backed by Muslim groups.
Its 5,000-mile route will pass through France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt.
Respect MP George Galloway, who will help drive the convoy, said a peaceful "intifada" was sweeping the UK.
The Gaza Strip is facing a humanitarian crisis following Israel's recent three-week offensive.
About half of Gaza's population is dependent on UN food aid.
'Beleaguered population'
Other backers of the mission include the Stop the War Coalition, the Respect Party, the Anglo-Arab Organisation and several UK trade unions.
It will include 12 ambulances, a boat and trucks full of medicines, tools, clothes, blankets and shoe-boxes as well as gifts for children.
Mr Galloway said it would be the largest convoy of British vehicles to north Africa since the days of Field Marshall Montgomery.
"There is an intifada sweeping Britain," he added.
"It is a massive and peaceful movement in support of the beleaguered population of Gaza and Palestine.
"It is happening everywhere, but is especially strong in the north of England and especially among young Muslims."

source

Park

2009-02-10T13:20:00.000-08:00

A New Taste of Drama/Horror

2009-02-08T18:30:00.000-08:00

I've been a fan of many series out there, mostly the lame ones and rarely the serious ones when it comes to TV shows. I've always been a better fan when it comes to anime freakiness, but I guess both addiction and passion for either died after I threw bleach in never to see again anime and started reading naruto manga (only). I haven't watched any kind of series nor recall me having the eager to watch the next episode as soon as it comes out and I have to admit that nowadays anime don't appeal to me too much. Soul eater was a disappointment, I didn't like it at all. The last thing I watched was californication season one in two days 2 monthes ago just because I bought it thinking its another how I met your mother-like series. I don't feel like watching lost for some reason, even though its the best series out there. So I was just randomly searching I discovered a BBC not so new series that caught my eye embracing the name 'Being Human'. It was aired in 2008 as a pilot, but now its going to be reaired as a full series.

"Being Human is a British television drama/horror series, broadcast on BBC Three. It stars Lenora Crichlow, Russell Tovey and Aidan Turner^[1] as three twenty-something characters trying to live a normal social life, despite being a ghost, a werewolf and a vampire.

Following the success of a pilot broadcast in February 2008, a six part series began on 25 January 2009 on BBC Three.^[2]^[3]

The show uses the little known belief that vampires must be invited over the threshold in to a private building, seen works such as Joss Whedon's shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. This is seen in the second episode in which Lauren asks Mitchell to invite her in to the house or else she would have the conversation with him in the street."

- Said wikipedia

Now I never was a fan of buffy the vampire slayer and I was not an angel constant watcher, but this sounds pretty much 'more' appealing and different. In Addition, I loved the editing and acting in a BBC show Hustle.

Characters:

Mitchell
Aidan Turner plays the good-looking and laid-back Mitchell who, in contrast to George, has the gift of the gab and an easy confidence with the ladies. But he is also a blood-sucking vampire struggling with going cold-turkey from the blood he craves.

Personal: I bet this guy will give us some sexy moments.

George

Russell Tovey reprises his role as the lovable George, battling with his double identity as a mild-mannered and geeky hospital porter who for one night a month is transformed into a flesh-hungry, predatory werewolf.

Personal: I have a feeling that this is my favorite out of them.

Annie
Completing the flat-share trio is Annie, played by Lenora Crichlow, a talkative ghost lacking in self-confidence and desperate for company. Annie is still pining after her boyfriend, whom she was due to marry before the fatal accident that left her with her ghostly affliction - and who happens to be the landlord of their flat.

Personal: One word. "Boring".

I'm certainly going to follow this, I'm already downloading the first two episodes and I will be reviewing each one. The major issue here is that BBC is a bitch when it comes to releasing episodes for the next episode has 27 days left. to be aired I presume one episode each month with more than one hour length.

Kul Tuv & Lehitrahout.

Aphotic Melancholy

2009-02-07T10:31:00.000-08:00

Click for larger.

I light a candle
So warm it is on my fingertips ..!

It's radiant glow
lighting another candle in my heart...

A flicker of hope
I raise my hand high, ablaze with brightness ...

To finally see
to finally be free from the gloom ...

From the inky
murkiness I have waded through for so long...

From the silent
solitude I have digged through for so long...

Radiant brightness
is what I crave, is what I thrist for ..!

Higher and higher
I lift my light, piercing it into the darkness...

But my warm glow
my flicker of sanity and hope
in the aphotic darkness of my melancholy ...

does not burn bright
does not burn bright
does not burn bright ...

Forever wandering
Forever grieving
Forever waiting
Forever stranded

My little angels

2009-02-06T12:59:00.000-08:00

Click for larger and more clearer image

Melinda Test

2009-02-06T07:26:00.000-08:00

Just a music and camera test using my Melinda.

My little sister got absoulety terrified when she saw this xD Poor thing lol. I don't think I'll be showing her anymore videos of Melinda, she kept telling me not to let her walk into her room when she is asleep at night.

Mind you, it's just a test, so not wow. Very jerky and limited movement.

Purple and Brown

2009-02-06T02:02:00.001-08:00

I LOVE THESE GUYS!

So random, so weird, and they just wont stop laughing hahaha xD

A couple of my favourite vids of theirs. It's awesome how they speak a universal language lol.

Loner (4)

2009-02-04T10:28:00.000-08:00

Note: this post is espically written for one of my blog readers =P

Oh blog reader, forgive me for keeping you on a cliff hanger for so long xD

This a story about racism I wrote when I was 14 years old.

Previous Chapters:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - cont

Chapter 3

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 4

Mr. Carter opened this door slowly, for there was little noise coming from inside the classroom. He called out for the teacher to join us in the corridor . I tried to smooth down my clothes and hair so that I'd look presentable but it seems thatI had lost control of my arm at that point of time, for all I ended up doing was giving myself a sharp smack on the thigh.

The teacher also beckoned me into class the same way Hammed's teacher did. However, my mother got a hold of me first. She grabbed me by the shoulders and turned me around to face her. She looked deeply into my eyes, gave me a strong hug and a kiss on my cheek, finally releasing me. My father patted me on the head and wished me good luck.

The teacher called out my name this time as she beckoned me to her once more. She was much younger than Hammed's teacher. Her features were delicate, her smile really gentle. She reminded me of the fair maidens often mentioned in children's nursery rhymes and fairy tales. She put her hand on my shoulder and gave it a little squeeze.

I looked back, wanting to catch a last glance of my parents, but Mr.Carter was standing in the doorway's frame blocking the whole view. He was speaking to the students; something about welcoming new students and making them feel at home.

STUDENTS!

I turned my head jerkily towards the entire classroom. Eyes were all on me, everywhere I looked. I heard someone whisper "black" but I wasn't paying much attention to actually realize what they meant. I remember thinking they were probably referring to my clothes, as I wasn't wearing the school's uniform.

The teacher told me to sit at a desk located at the front of the class. She informed me that her name is Mrs. Mills, followed by her introducing me to the students, telling them my name and where I come from . She then asked the students to introduce themselves individually to me. Many of the girls smiled shyly as they told me their names and I smiled back at them. Corrine, the girl who was sitting next to me in class, got asked by Mrs.Mills to show me where to hang my coat and bag. Corrine was a very pretty girl, with fair skin, light hazel eyes and a long sheet of auburn hair. I followed her to the corridor outside the classroom and she showed me where all the lockers were. She gave me a key and the combination number to one of the lockers ( I suppose she got given these earlier by Mrs. Mills). Finally, Corrine showed me where the toilets were and informed me the school's break timings.

We walked back into the classroom, and I felt myself turn hot in the face due the noise level subsiding distinctively as soon as I entered the class. I seated myself at my desk and concentrated on checking wether my nails were neatly trimmed or not.

Mrs. Mills told me that for three quarters of an hour every morning, the class has"Quiet Moment" where students are to read any book they chose. I loved the idea because I love reading. I have my own personal collection of books stacked on the shelf above my bed, and every night before my bedtime I'd read for an hour. I felt this relaxed me, and I end up with a good night's sleep.

I didn't have a book with me at that moment, so Mrs. Mills told me that I could choose a book from the class' small library in the corner. There were many colorful titles to choose from, but my eyes dropped on a particular book called "Kiss the Dust".

It's written by Elizabeth Laird and told the story of a thirteen-year-old Kurdish girl names Tara, along with her family, as they struffle to stay alive and together in a time ravaged by war. In the opening, Tara and her best friend Leila are walking back from school when suddenly two army Jeeps appear. Their horns blaring, the two Jeeps screech to a halt infront of a mosque. There are boys standing infront of the mosque, one of them holding a paper. An officer grabs the paper, tears it, then gets ready to shoot at the young boy who was holding it. Suddenly, an old mullah runs out of the mosque waving his arms and pleading with the officer not to shoot at the boys. The officer fumbles with the revolver, points it at the old man and shoots. The young boy tries to escape, but was not fast enough. A soldier stuck his foot out and tripped the young boy, and shoots him as he lay face down on the ground. Tara and Leila watched all this happen right before their eyes, hardly believeing what they saw.

The street with all the shocked peeople, the dead old mullah, the dead young boy, Tara and Leila suddenly melted into the classroom as I heared the voice of Mrs. Mills break in. She announced that "Quiet Moment" was over. The bell rang and we had English for the first period with Mrs. Mills.

Sami Yousef - Asma Allah

2009-02-04T05:55:00.000-08:00

Something serene and meaningful, Am sure you will like it =).

Jakarta - One Desire

2009-02-04T04:43:00.001-08:00

The video is so cute lol. My little sister is crazy for this song, I played it several times for her on my lappie and now it's grown on me.

Sasha, Speedy and Kami

2009-02-02T09:18:00.000-08:00

Walking around the garden ^_^

More piccies of the gang here

Networking site cashes in on friends

2009-02-02T07:02:00.000-08:00

Facebook is planning to exploit the vast amount of personal information it holds on its 150m members by creating one of the world's largest market research databases.

In an attempt to finally monetise the social networking site, once valued at $15bn (£10.4bn), it will soon allow multinational companies to selectively target its members in order to research the appeal of new products. Companies will be able to pose questions to specially selected members based on such intimate details as whether they are single or married and even whether they are gay or straight.

The company, which has struggled to make money from advertising, has been demonstrating the benefits of its new instant polling tool to some of the most influential business leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Source

Haha xD Facebook was eventually gonna give into the darkside =P Marketing Research LOL!

It might prove useful in a way though: getting feedback from users all over the world on a certain issue, kinda like how Twitter works.

At the conference, Facebook asked a range of questions to its users around the world, before feeding the answers back to delegates within minutes. It selectively-targeted users in Palestine and then Israel with the same question about global peace, before debating the results at a discussion forum. It also asked 120,000 US members whether US President Barack Obama's economic stimulus package would be enough to save the US economy. Almost 60pc said it would not.

Phat Adds:

Watch the following video, which talks about stuff we ignore in facebook. Its actually pretty scary.

Extremists exist everywhere

2009-02-02T06:40:00.000-08:00

But I must say, these guys are pretty hardcore. Shoving another person in that way, tsk.

Americans are welcome in Israel

Abstract colors

2009-01-31T06:37:00.000-08:00

Matrah/Muscat

2009-01-31T05:07:00.000-08:00

Crazy Machines

2009-01-30T17:30:00.000-08:00

Phat Says:

I have never lost my geeky passion to video games like I did in 2008. It makes me really sad for I got super busy with university work and just started drifting away majorly. I needed something to refill the energy I had for video games since I absolutely miss the feeling when you wake up tired yet hyper to know what will happen if you accomplished the next step of the game you are playing. Unlike the usual, I've decided to not go for the typical me and buy new RPG games that I would last forever to finish, but I decided to enter the time machine where it takes me back to the gaming phase, which disappeared, that included chess, first person shooter games and puzzles.
Yes, it sure sounds odd for a MMORPG, RPG and a MGS maniac. Not mentioning getting fed up with constantly playing versus games and family games like wii sport, super smash brawl and naruto: ultimate hero.
I'm still there, in WoW, with my desperate restoration shaman still trying to get to level 70, in which I was supposed to reach 3 months ago.

I have three games on my list, I've only started with one.

1. Crazy Machines [which I will introduce now] - Puzzles
2. Timeshit - FPS-Stars-Type
3. Soldier of Fortune 2 - FPS-War-Type

My friend downloaded this game randomly from some forum, and it drew my attention as I saw him freezing infront of his laptop's screen confused for around 10 minutes while I was playing WoW. The game consists of 102 stages full of tricks, where in each stage gravity will be disabled and the items placed, depending on the mission of the stage, will free-fall according to their positions. You are given random machines at each stage to use in order to achieve the required task in the stage. The machines can be built to rotate gears, pull levers, and more to build a unique contraption. including robots, explosives, electricity, batteries...etc.

I'm currenlty stuck at level 53, I have a hot dog to grill and around 10 machines given.
Here is a youtube video from level 1-1- showing you the gameplay:

and here is the download link to the game from zshare.com:
Crazy Machines 1

There are two more edition of this game, Crazy Machine 1.5 and 2.

Oscars

2009-01-30T11:42:00.000-08:00

My mother bought Tiger Oscars for the fish tank downstairs.

They are incredibly beautiful creatures!

Also rather intelligent, They were very aware of me and watched as I took photos of them,

The white ones are Albino Oscars while the darker ones are Tiger Oscars.

CBS 60 minutes on Israel

2009-01-30T10:47:00.000-08:00

Turkish PM Erdogan Slams Shimon Peres For Israeli Killings And Walks Off Stage

2009-01-30T08:34:00.001-08:00

Translation of Erdogan:
One minute! One minute! Mr.Peres, you're older than me. Your voice is coming too loud. I know that the reason of your voice's coming this loud is a guiltiness psychology. My voice won't come this loud, know that so. When it comes to kill, you know how to kill very well. I know how you shot, how you killed the children on plages, very well. Two people who had been prime minister in your country made important statements to me. You have prime ministers who said that "When i get in to Palestine on tanks, i feel myself a different kind of happy." And you're giving me numbers. I can give you names. You may be wonder. I also condemn who acclaims to this grimness. Because i suppose acclaiming the people who killed those children, those people, is another humanity crime. Look, we can not edge out a reality here. I keep a lot of notes here, but i don't have a chance to reply all here. But i only say two words from here. First, - Please don't interrupt me!
First, The Torah says in the sixth topic that "You are not going to kill!". There is killing here.
This is also interesting too - Gilad Atzmon: Israel barbarism is on the further side of fiendishness - a Jewish. Oxford University International Communications Proffessor who is soldiering in Israil army, Avi Shalom give a talk to the English newspaper Guardian that - (The Davos moderator wants to interrupt Erdogan) I thank you too. From now on Davos is done to me. I don't come Davos again. Know that so! You don't let me talk. He talked about 25 minutes, you gave me 12 minutes.

Fair Use Policy, Source: World Economic Forum

The Turkish prime minister has stormed out of a heated debate at the World Economic Forum in Davos over Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan walked out of the televised debate on Thursday, after the moderator refused to allow him to rebut the Israeli president's justification about the war that left about 1,300 Gazans dead.

Before storming out, Erdogan told Shimon Peres, the Israeli president: "You are killing people."

Peres told Erdogan during the heated panel discussion that he would have acted in the same manner if rockets had been falling on Istanbul.

Moderator David Ignatius, a Washington Post columnist, then told Erdogan that he had "only a minute" to respond to a lengthy monologe by Pires.

Erdogan said: "I find it very sad that people applaud what you said. There have been many people killed. And I think that it is very wrong and it is not humanitarian."

Ignatius twice attempted to finish the debate, saying, "We really do need to get people to dinner."

Erdogan then said: "Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. I don't think I will come back to Davos after this."

*claps*

Marwan Khoury - Kel El Asayed (All the poems)

2009-01-29T22:09:00.001-08:00

I very rarely like Arabic songs, because they all sound the same to me lyrically and music wise, not to mention alot of them (not all!) are pure crap xD

This song is different. When I first heared it, I was going through my punk and alternative rock phase with music and LOATHED anything not punk or alternative rock. However, I really liked this song. Like really REALLY liked it. I guess you could say it's one of my favourite arabic songs ever.

The lyrics are incredible. Simple and really heartfelt. Even though it has been translated to English subtitles in the video, the beauty of the words are kinda lost, you can just get a gist of it.

The melody and the music however, is what makes the song so good in my opinion. It starts out so desolate, so sad, speaking of heartache. Then the tone picks up, it becomes happy and so sweet! As he starts explaining the depth of his love for her. (I am really weak when it comes to the Piano, it can literally make me laugh from happiness or cry from sadness xD)

Also, the entire song, lyrics and music was written by the singer, which is rather rare in the arabic music world.

The video of the song still sucks though.

Woe ...

2009-01-29T01:02:00.000-08:00

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter

CLICK

Immortal Jelly Fish!

2009-01-29T00:54:00.000-08:00

The method in which it makes itself immortal is making me giggle. It resonates rather closely with the many philosphies and ideologies from around the world that explore the divinity of sex.

The Turritopsis Nutricula is able to revert back to a juvenile form once it mates after becoming sexually mature.

Marine biologists say the jellyfish numbers are rocketing because they need not die.

Dr Maria Miglietta of the Smithsonian Tropical Marine Institute said: "We are looking at a worldwide silent invasion."

The jellyfish are originally from the Caribbean but have spread all over the world.

Turritopsis Nutricula is technically known as a hydrozoan and is the only known animal that is capable of reverting completely to its younger self.

It does this through the cell development process of transdifferentiation.

Scientists believe the cycle can repeat indefinitely, rendering it potentially immortal.

While most members of the jellyfish family usually die after propagating, the Turritopsis nutricula has developed the unique ability to return to a polyp state.

Having stumbled upon the font of eternal youth, this tiny creature which is just 5mm long is the focus of many intricate studies by marine biologists and geneticists to see exactly how it manages to literally reverse its aging process.

Source

Israel’s Gaza Massacre: We Will Never Forget

2009-01-27T08:47:00.000-08:00

An excellent video montage clip of Israeli's Gaza Massacre during Operation Cast Lead. It showcases notable media moments during Israeli's bloodthirsty assault. The world is finally waking up and having enough of this madness. Please watch the entire clip (9 mins)

Gadget Mastery

2009-01-27T08:04:00.000-08:00

Three days of nothing, but crack jokes, continuous online/non gaming, walking with no destination, eating like a pig, watching movies, solving puzzles and farting on each other. That's the life me and my stupid best friend have, I really needed something like since I longed for it thanks to being chocked by I'm-not-letting-you-go electrotype Unipenis multiple non stop attack.

ok ... a random pic of why I love my own cave 'room'. You should conclude why by looking at it:

MWAHAHAH!

Wired Spider web! This is only like ... a corner of my room, I LOVE YOU! MY EVERYTHING.

Yes... you are smart, I'm multi-tasking. No, Infact I'm RULING Every Milli-Ampere Transferred Within These Wires to give me.. no. thing. but. pleasure.

On a side note, I got a box filled with useless stuff like a mouse pad, time watch, files etc. But I found something that is also useless to many, but amazingly beautiful. Like a pure bloodstone.

This:

...........

I know what you are thinking.. its a pen.... wow shiny pen....

take a better look at this

"FF victory song appears"

Its a PEN! that holds a 4GB Flash Memory in it! NOW you will save space in your pocket, instead of putting the flash drive that is 4 cm's long! You will just have to take care of the pen and probably the irritating feeling when you sit on and press on extra space in your pocket!
(pen+flash memory) = robotic geeky sex.
THIS INVENTION IS FUCKING GENIUS!!!

BBC = Biased Broadcasting Corporation

2009-01-27T05:42:00.000-08:00

Incase you've missed it, BBC has been exposed as a Zionist "independent" news corporation.

The BBC’s director-general, Mark Thompson, refused to air the appeal due to risking compromising it's impartilaity. Well that explanation totally blew up in his face. Thompson is a long time friend of the Israeli Zionists. He met up with Ariel Sharon back in 2005 in order to build bridges between Israel and the BBC.

That Mark Thompson has been supporting Zionist leaders is no secret. In fact, Mark Thompson’s wife, Jane, is Jewish and a fanatic supporter of Zionist policies. Is Mark simply trying to appease his wife? If he is, then this has to be one of the most outrageous acts in the history of British media. The glaring disregard for human suffering, however, can only be explained by Mark Thompson’s close relationship with Israeli leaders. In 2005, Mr. Thompson broke all rules of independent journalism when he travelled to Jerusalem and met former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in order to “build bridges” between the BBC and Israel. This unprecedented move was not covered by Western media, but the Israeli press gave it significant importance

Shame really, the reputation of the BBC has been hit pretty hard by this incedent. Just another biased independent media outlet.

50 MPs and thousands of British Citzens (including Archbishop of York and Canterbury) complained and demanded for the BBC to air the appeal, but it's still a no go.

Here's the appeal that risked compromising the BBC's impartiality (or more like risk making Tzipi Livni statement of there being no Humanatrian Crisis in Gaza totall bullshit)

Random Snaps ...

2009-01-27T05:25:00.000-08:00

... of my Palestinian Kofyeh, Sprite the the Goldfish and Kami the Tortoise (you can kinda see Dagon in Sprite's snapshots. He just would not get out of the way! Every photo of Sprite has Dagon in it xD)

Gods of Wind (uncomplete)

2009-01-26T10:38:00.000-08:00

First and foremost, I know that's not the right way to spell the word (uncomplete) according to the English Dictionary but I DONT CARE! Am not gonna conform to THE MAN (in this case, the English Dictionary). Uncomplete sounds cuter anyway =P

Ok, rant done.

Started this drawing yesterday, and slowly getting it done while juggling other stuff at the same time.

The idea was in my mind for quite a while now, of drawing the Wind Gods, but I just couldnt figure out the right way to embody them perfectly. Yesterday morning, while laying in bed feeling rather ill, I finally realized that the way I was picturing the Wind Gods in my mind's eye was totally wrong! I imagined them to be floating in the air, the wind blowing about their attire and hair. It never did feel right, and that is why my numerous attempts at drawing them in that fashion never got completed (my sketchbook is full of the attempts lol)

Instead, this is how I drew them:

I am so incredibly jelous of the Wind Goddess' hair ...

Mind you, the drawing is not complete yet. Lots of white space to fill, not to mention the background needs to be done. I just read a tutorial on how to create kimono patterns using photoshop, and that's gonna be my next step with the drawing, adding patterns to the Goddess' kimono =)

Skillet - Those Nights

2009-01-24T21:21:00.000-08:00

Just goes to show how one person in your life can make all the difference in the world.

Dedicated to Phat

2009-01-24T20:59:00.000-08:00

How the hell does he do it? xD

I mean I can kinda do the farting noises with my hands, but not create actual musical high notes and crap xD

Most awesome thing --> The look of refinement on his face throughout the whole thing.

Jumpie Jumpie!

2009-01-22T10:56:00.000-08:00

It's Thursday. All the kids come over to our house on Thursday. I took photos of them while they were playing on the trampolene in our garden during the afternoon. Gonna share a few photos from the bunch.

The first bunch of photos are pretty normal, just grabbed a clear and clean shot of them while in the air, each improvising their own move.

The second set is a little different, in where the kids are blurred while everything else is not (read a tutorial in the morning on the right way to achieve to this effect). My take on it is not that good btw lol.

It's pretty noticable one particular kid was the star of this photoshoot (my cousin)

I had a go as well, and my sister managed to grab a shot of me doing Trinity's Angel of Death move from the Matrix series =P

HA! Dodge this!!

Dagon isn't feeling well =(

2009-01-21T12:35:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, while watching him swim around his tank, I noticed a little tear at the end of Dagon's tail. I was a little mystefied as to how he came to injur himself, as there are no other fishes in the the tank, nor any sharp objects for him to cut himself open, nor any trap areas of any kind.

I dismissed the tear and thought that it would heal by time, since there didn't seem to be any kind of infection surrounding it, not to mention Dagon was as vigorous as ever, swimming and digging all over the tank.

Two days ago, I noticed that his other tail was torn as well. Infact, his tail was really frayed, and there were red spots on the end!

I quickly googled the symptoms, and it turns out that Dagon has a bacterial infection called Tail Rot or Fin Rot, where his tail and fins are slowly being eaten away by bacteria. One of the causes of Tail Rot is a sudden harsh change in temperature, be it hot or cold. Well, there has been an incredibly cold front in Oman recently, and that was about the time I noticed the first tear in Dagon's tail.

Tail Rot can easily be treated using a special water treatment medicine. I finally managed to find the right medicine today (petshops in Oman are mysteriously under stocked), took out 50% of his tank's water, replaced it with fresh clean water and added the medicine.

The medicine colored the tank's water a BRIGHT GREEN! It looks so cool lol. And Dagon is swimming around the tank more and also digging again! I hope he'll recover soon inshallah =) The Medicine doesn't affect the other inhabitants of the tank (Bean, the water turtle, in this case) but it could have a negative effect on my plants =(

Some pictures:

Tears Untold

2009-01-21T03:36:00.001-08:00

Two days ago as I was bored sitting, happy about changing my guitar strings playing randomly on it, without learning something useful and I came up with something....really simple yet has a tune to it. Its something really lame and I laughed at myself because I just spent an hour playing till I got this.. I wish I was more active. Anyway, thats why I decided 'hopefully' to be a bit more active.. learn more stuff, scales, chords, blableblo. I tried recording what I made around three times but its hard since my acoustic guitar doesn't have a plug in wire, so I made a version on guitar pro and uploaded it to check what people say. Regarding the name, I wanted to call it porn of the pain, but ended up naming it this because its the first thing appeared in my head lol?

The so called song:

Conjugater - Tears Untold (and oh btw, the funny thing is its not even a minute LOL)

I LOVE TABOULEH!

When I grow up ...

2009-01-21T01:19:00.000-08:00

I wanna be a crazy cat lady. Seriously.

UPDATE:

Ok on a more serious note, I googled animal hoarding to read more about this weird habit in some people. Picked the mental health issue side of it from wiki:

"Mental health issues

Though it has not been firmly linked to any specific psychological disorder, evidence suggests that there is “a strong mental health component” in animal hoarding.^[14] Models that have been projected to explain animal hoarding include delusional disorder, attachment disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and various others, but more study is required before definitive explanations or diagnoses can be made.

Delusional Disorder

Animal hoarders display symptoms of delusional disorder in that they have a “belief system out of touch with reality”.^[14] Virtually all hoarders lack insight into the extent of deterioration in their habitations and on the health of their animals, refusing to acknowledge that anything is wrong.^[13] Further, hoarders may believe they have “a special ability to communicate and/or empathize with animals,”^[20] rejecting any offers of assistance. Delusional disorder is an effective model in that it offers an explanation of hoarder’s apparent blindness to the realities of their situations.

Attachment Disorder

Another model that has been suggested to explain animal hoarding is attachment disorder. Attachment disorder, which is primarily caused by poor parent-child relationships during childhood, is characterized by an inability to form “close relationships in adulthood”.^[20] As a result, those suffering from attachment disorder may turn to possessions, such as animals, to fill their need for a loving relationship. Interviews with animal hoarders have revealed that often hoarders experienced domestic trauma in childhood, providing evidence for this model.^[20]

Obsessive-compulsive Disorder

Perhaps the strongest psychological model put forward to explain animal hoarding is obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) 5. An overwhelming sense of responsibility for something is characteristic of OCD patients, who then take unrealistic measures to fulfill their perceived duty. Animal hoarders often feel a strong sense of responsibility to take care of and protect animals, and their solution—that of acquiring as many animals as they possibly can—is clearly unrealistic.^[20] Further, the hoarding of inanimate objects, practiced by a majority of animal hoarders^[13], is a fairly common occurrence in OCD patients.^[20] These connections between animal hoarding and obsessive-compulsive disorder suggest that OCD may be a useful model in explaining animal hoarding behavior.^[20]

Cat hoarding and "Cat Ladies"

Recently, there has been speculation in popular media that the widespread incidence of cat hoarding may be related to infection with the Toxoplasma gondii parasite ^[21] Unlike ordinary animal hoarding, which is often caused by obsessive compulsive disorder, it has been speculated that one of the effects of Toxoplasma gondii could render the infected host attracted to, or at least not offended by, the scent of cat urine.

Others

Other models have also been suggested, including zoophilia, dementia, and addiction, although there is little direct evidence to support these.^[20]

Further research and study is needed before any psychological models of animal hoarding can be firmly established.^[13]"

WTF xD Crazy cat ladies are attracted to the smell of cat's urine!!? But let's be fair, the reason why they are attracted to the smell of cat's urine is due to them being a host to the parasite T. gondii. Check this out:

"T. gondii infections have the ability to change the behavior of rats and mice, making them drawn to rather than fearful of the scent of cats. This effect is advantageous to the parasite, which will be able to sexually reproduce if its host is eaten by a cat. ^[8] The infection is almost surgical in its precision, as it does not affect a rat's other fears such as the fear of open spaces or of unfamiliar smelling food. There has been speculation that human behavior may also be affected in some ways, and correlations have been found between latent Toxoplasma infections and various characteristics such as decreased novelty-seeking behavior, slower reactions, feelings of insecurity, and neuroticism.^[9]

Several independent pieces of evidence point towards a possible role of Toxoplasma infection in some cases of schizophrenia and paranoia, but this theory does not seem to account for many cases.^[10] A recent study has indicated toxoplasmosis is also correlated strongly with an increase in boy births in humans, leading to an alteration of the human sex ratio.^[11] According to the researchers, "depending on the antibody concentration, the probability of the birth of a boy can increase up to a value of 0.72 " The study also notes a mean rate of 0.60 to 0.65 (as opposed to the normal 0.51) for Toxoplasma positive mothers.

One study suggests that a possible behavior modification is that people not infected with the parasite found women with toxoplasma more attractive than women who don't have toxoplasma.^[12] Another study performed in the Czech Republic suggests individuals with latent toxoplasmosis had a 2.65 times higher risk of traffic accidents than noninfected subjects; and concludes "that 'asymptomatic' acquired toxoplasmosis might in fact represent a serious and highly underestimated public health problem, as well as an economic problem."^[13]

The prevalence of human infection by Toxoplasma varies greatly between countries. Factors that influence infection rates include diet (prevalence is possibly higher where there is a preference for less-cooked meat) and proximity to cats."

Ok ... this is getting a little disturbing now. I'll need some time to digest all this. It reminds me of this series of books I read when I was younger, called "Animorphs". Basically the story is of 6 teenagers in an epic battle against an alien parasite species called Yeerk, that infest the body through the ear canal, making the creature their host and also being able to control them.

I think I read science fiction too much.

Coraline

2009-01-20T10:38:00.000-08:00

I've been following this movie's news for a quite a while now, and I am happy to say the time to it being released to the public is coming sooner and sooner! It's ranked as high as the movie 9 in my MUST SEE MUST SEE MUST SEE MUST SEE movies.

The story of the movie is adapted from a book with a similar title. Although, I severly disaprove of movies whom were first introduced to the world on a different medium, be it a novel or a video game, Coraline is an exception simply for it being 100% hand-made. What I mean by that is everything you see in the movie has been created by hand, nothing has been digitally rendered.

Offical Trailer

Do not for one second be fooled by the whimsical and happy feel of the charecters and movies, Coraline was adapted from a horror novel =P

From the book's wiki:

"Coraline is a horror novella by British author Neil Gaiman, published in 2002 by Bloomsbury and Harper Collins. It was awarded the 2003 Hugo Award for Best Novella, the 2003 Nebula Award for Best Novella, and the 2002 Bram Stoker Award for Best Work for Young Readers. It has been compared to Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland because of its surrealism and plot based in an alternate-reality."

From the film's wiki:

"Coraline is an animated stop-motion horror fantasy film based on Neil Gaiman's novella of the same name. Directed by Henry Selick, it is scheduled to be released in theaters on February 6, 2009. It is rated PG for thematic elements, scary images, some language, and suggestive humor.

The film is about a young girl, Coraline (Dakota Fanning), who unlocks a mysterious door in her new home and enters into a parallel reality, a fantastical and thrilling imitation of her own dull life. In this world, Coraline finds a new version of her real mother (Teri Hatcher) and father (John Hodgman), her off-kilter neighbors, Miss Forcible (Dawn French), Miss Spink (Jennifer Saunders) and Mr. Bobinsky (Ian MacShane), and the Cat (Keith David). However, this other world soon begins to unravel and she becomes a prisoner to her Other Mother and must count on her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home."

Ofcourse, the book sounds a million times better. But common, it's stop motion animation, my love, MY PASSION! Sounds rather hypocritical, but meh =P

As I went though Coraline's official youtube channel, which btw has lots of behind the scenes videos on construction of the puppets and the animation process, I felt a huge longing to be one of those animator, building the tree, or animating one of the puppets *cries*

Maseera!

2009-01-19T08:53:00.000-08:00

Oman is the champion of the 19th Gulf Cup. For the first time in it's history, and after reaching the finals for the third time in a row, the Omani team finally managed to keep a hold of it's nerves and WIN! =D

Oh the last few moments were so incredibly tense. Both Oman and KSA, the team that qualified to the final as well, didnt manage to score in the normal time and golden time of the match. Oman managed to attack KSA more, some attacks were really dangerous, but no goals were scored.

So it went down to penalties. Everytime Oman would score a penalty, a huge feeling of relief would go through my body, until KSA scores a penalty as well xD This kept going 5 times, until the 6th time, when KSA DID NOT SCORE!

That's when the whole of Oman was literally breathing with one breath, hearts beating with one pulse. The Omani captain picked up the ball and calmly walked unto the pitch and towards the goal post. If he scores, it will be history in the making. If he misses, he will have the guilt of letting the Gulf Cup slip from Oman for a third time in a row.

My two aunts, my sister and I were in the living room of my uncle's house. My mother and two uncles were watching the match in garden's tv screen. I covered my eyes, not being able to handle the pressure. But then I uncovered them, saw the Omani team captain kick the ball, and it was a goal!

I suddenly found myself screaming at the top of my lungs and jumping all around the room. I could hear other people screaming, many other people screaming, but I didnt know who it was, coz I was so HAPPY, although I did notice my uncle's cat pouncing off the couch and running out of the room at super fast speed xD! I just kept screaming "WE WON WE WON!! WE DID IT!!"

I then realized what I was doing and collapsed into the chair behind me, laughing and at the same time trying real hard not to cry from happiness. I looked around the room, coz everyone else was still screaming and jumping around. I heared my baby sister crying in the garden. Turns out all of us screaming, including my mother out in the garden, terrified her. It took a while to calm her down xD

We could hear noises from houses in the neighbourhood, fireworks and yells of victory. We watched the boys recieve their medals and the Gulf Cup on TV, and it was incredible, they really deserve it after all their hard work!

After the ceremony, we started hearing the cars outside. People were going out for the maseera (kind of like a parade but not exactly). We all got into two cars and left the house at 10pm, in order to check out the celebrations in the street. Got home at 2 am xD It was AWESOME!!

The following are some photos I took during the maseera. I didnt take many photos coz I was too busy watching all the people dance and scream and celebrate lol. Even the foreigners joined in the fun! Sorry about the quality, am not good with night shots =(

All Ready for the Maseera

We stopped at the petrol station to fill up incase we get stuck in traffic and found these guys =P

POSE!!

I missed the shot of the cute little kid next to the guy in the blue shirt while waving at us =( But at least I got this shot ^_^

A huge crowd of old ladies standing on the side of the street holding the Omani
flag up

People performing the Omani Lewa dance in celebration of the win

Monster Fan

Huge teddy bear wearing the Oman team t-shirt. The guy saw me trying to grab a photo of the teddy bear and reversed his car in order for me to get a better shot ^_^ This is the best photo out of the bunch lol

We are the champions!

Dancing on the street

Pimped up ride

The Omani guy suddenly grabbed the Pakastani dude and started yelling "OMAN NAFR WA7ED!" and both posed for a photo lol. (note: the logo of the Omani team this Gulf Cup was "Oman nabth wa7d" which means "Oman one pulse". It somehow got morphed into "Oman nafr wa7d" which means "Oman one person". People who usually use the word "nafr" to refer to a person are Pakastani's and indians who can speak arabic)

=D

2009-01-17T09:05:00.000-08:00

WE WON !!!

*I lost my voice from screaming xD*

Vacaton, you fucking bet!!!!

2009-01-17T08:02:00.000-08:00

MWAHAHAHAHAHAAA !!!!

YES! I finished, and guess what I'm going to get it all ! soft and clean, I'm so frantic that I can eat a cow now. Its such a relief to have such a fuckin' feast after so long and get back to a game I left for almost 4 monthes. HELLYEAH! going to upgrade my guitars, psp and ps3 and let the gaming begin. Must finish silent hill 5, hope I see pyramid head otherwise it would be stupid.

blogs I discovered:

http://fuckyoupenguin.blogspot.com/

It basically is a stupid, random guy insulting random animal pics in a funny way, you oughtta visit it.

Demo:

http://fuckyoupenguin.blogspot.com/2009/01/clich-capybaras.html

Another blog:

http://failblog.com

.....just FAILS after FAILS

video from there:

This might be awwwish to you beautiful readers, but it made me tear like hell. I personally repeated it for ten times!

This is Where I am.

2009-01-17T00:42:00.000-08:00

[Lovely image from an album I love]

The following song is more precious than diamond to me at this very moment, It reflects many endless things... and my favourite personal part is the very last 3 lines. it means alot and you wouldn't get it unless you pay good attention to the lyrics as he starts singing.

I'm one step
From a breakdown
Two steps from
Being safe
Just try to
See this through
I'm three steps
From this nightmare
And four steps
From the door
The rest is
Up to you

Pardon me while I
Just turn my back
And walk away
Pardon me if I
Can't listen
To the things
You say
Pardon me if I
Can't fake it
While you still believe
Pardon me

I'm one step
From forgiveness
And two steps
From my grave
We're all just
Passing through
Three steps
From redemption
Four from the
Devil's door
On a path
That leads to you

Pardon me while I
Just turn my back
And walk away
Pardon me if I
Can't listen
To the things
You say
Pardon me if I
Can't fake this
While you still believe
Pardon me

Pardon me while I
Just turn my back
And walk away
Pardon me if I
Can't listen
To the things
You say
Pardon me if I
Can't fake it
While you still believe
Pardon me

I'm two steps
From salvation
But i'm only
Taking one
Pardon me

Melinda done

2009-01-14T12:44:00.000-08:00

Finally, I found the time to finish her! It was getting a bit depressing, not to mention freaky, seeing her head only sitting on my desk and staring at me all day. Now she has a body =D !

Creating the body, using clay and a copper wire armature, did not take too long. However, creating the dress did, due to the fact that I am hopeless at sewing, even though I've had lots of practice at it with my Grandmother when I was younger. Thank goodness I managed to piece together something decent in the end.

The above photo is my favourite of hers. I love how she's standing, with a dignified air and stance, her shadow long and dark behind her. Hey, she may not be perfect, but I love her =P Hopefully she will be featured in a claymation very soon.

Two more photos of Melinda:

Palestinians Will Never Forget

2009-01-12T22:30:00.000-08:00

By Susan Abulhawa

How can anyone watching Gaza burn escape the bitter realization that history repeats itself? Many have compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to Apartheid South Africa. But not in their cruelest hour did the Apartheid regime wreak such wanton murder and destruction. Let us stop mincing words. What is happening to Palestinians now whispers of Warsaw and Lodz.

Schools, universities, mosques, police stations, homes, water treatment plants, factories, and anything that supports civil society, including the only mental health clinic in Gaza, have been blown to rubble from planes that rain death from clear skies without any resistance, because Palestinians have no opposing air force. Nor do they have an army or navy. No mechanized armor or heavy weaponry. Thanks to Israel, they haven’t even had continuous electricity or fuel for the past two years. Or food and medicine. Israel’s siege and blockade of Gaza has prevented the movement of people and goods in and out of Gaza, including the import of the most basic goods necessary for survival.

A recent study by the Red Cross showed that 46 percent of Gazan children suffer from anemia. Malnutrition affects 75 percent of Gaza’s population, half of whom are under the age of 17. There has been widespread deafness among children due to Israel’s intentional and frequent sonic booms from low overflights. An alarming number have stunted growth and serious mental disorders due lack of food. The only way they have been able to survive thus far has been due to the tunnels that smuggle food and goods from Egypt.

Half of Gazan children under 12 have lost their “will to live.” Can anyone fathom the kind of oppression that leads small children en mass to lose their will to live?

This is what Israel has done to Gaza over the past two years. They ghettoized Gaza and turned it into an open air prison – a concentration camp of civilians with no way to earn a living, no way to defend themselves and no place to run from the slaughter bombarding them from air, land, and sea. From the white phosphorous disemboweling young and old alike.

But Gazans dared to try to resist with pathetic homemade rockets that, until Israel’s barbaric attack, generally landed in open desert. The rockets were mostly symbolic of resistance, very much like the fighters in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising. But who would have called on a ceasefire there, in 1943, for “both parties” to “cease the violence”? Who would have blamed the Ghetto fighters for their ultimate fate? Who would say they had no right to resist? No right to fight back?

Just as Nazis gave Jews only the right to die silently, Israel starves and besieges Palestinians, giving them only that same right. Just as the Warsaw Ghetto was blown to rubble, Gaza is left to burn in an inferno, its hospitals bursting with the puss of death and unspeakable wounds. The entire population of Gaza is terrorized and traumatized. No one is spared the insecurity and fear. Imagine, please, that you are a Gazan.

What have Palestinians done to deserve such a fate? To be endlessly hunted like animals? To have their homes demolished, their ancient history and heritage cast into forgotten space? To languish in refugee camps and slums, while Jews from all corners of the earth flock to fill their confiscated homes and farms? To be tortured, imprisoned, and denied in every conceivable way?

What have we done that leaders will not speak against this massive and cold aggression against our people? With what logic do you call Palestinians terrorists when their streets flow with the blood of their own children? When they have been stripped naked of possessions, dignity and hope?

Why? Because they elected Hamas? Hamas has held power for less than two years. Yet, Palestinians have suffered this kind of slaughter for 61 years. Whether now in Gaza, in 2002 in Jenin, in 1947 and 1948 in Deir Yasin, Balad el-Sha, Yehida, Tantura, and the list goes on. Or 1982 in Sabra and Shatila.

Palestinians are killed as if insects not because of Hamas or Yasser Arafat before them. Not because of Qassasm rockets or hand thrown rocks. Palestinians burn and bleed because they are the non-Jewish natives of that land. There is no other reason. Just like Jews were killed for being Jewish. Palestinians are killed for being the Muslims and Christians who hold historic, legal and even genetic title to that land.

But unlike Jews of Europe, Palestinians are killed slowly over decades. Unlike Israel, Nazi Germany did not establish such an effective global propaganda machine that would demonize its victims and blame them for their own ghastly fate. But most importantly, like the fighters of the Warsaw Ghetto, Palestinians do not march like mice to their death. In six decades of enduring unspeakable oppression, their will has not been broken. Now is no exception.

Israel, and the United States with its unconditional support, will only succeed in radicalizing a whole new generation of its victims. Of revving world hatred and resentment against this unholy duo.

Palestinians will not forget this, as they have not forgotten the past 60 years. But what will you remember a week or a year or a decade from now, when a Gazan, who stood before the long rows of corpses and vowed vengeance, creates your 9-11? When one of those few million children without a will to live straps on a belt that rips through your daily routine? Will you remember what we did to them?

- Susan Abulhawa is the author of The Scar of David, www.scarofdavid.com, and founder of Playgrounds for Palestine, www.playgroundsforpalestine.org.

Advantages of slaughter

2009-01-12T22:28:00.000-08:00

There are a few advantages coming out of the slaughter:

Jewish apologists no longer have any possible ammunition to argue against academic boycotts, as the Israeli version of a boycott is a bomb dropped on a university or school.
There is nothing bad you can say about Israel or Jewish support for Israel, no comparison you can make to the worst holocausts in history, that can live up to the blood-dripping from-the fangs evil. Israel and the Jewish people - and Jewish support for the Palestinian holocaust puts the full blame on the Jewish people - are as evil as it gets, and everybody knows it.
I've been called an anti-Semite for daring to speak of Jew-controlled politicians and Jew-controlled media. No more of that. I blame the crypto-Zionist 'progressives' for much of the horror, all because they couldn't accept the truth about Jew control and wanted to show off how 'progressive' they were. When every mainstream media outlet and every major politician spouts exactly the same made-in-Israel words, words that are patently bullshit, which everybody knows are patently bullshit, and in direct contradiction to the knowledge and understanding of the vast majority of the population (less vast, of course, where decades of Jew-controlled media malfeasance have misled the people), there is only one possible explanation: Jew control. Let's shout it, unapologetically, from the rooftops. I await the abject apologies from everybody who has accused me of being an anti-Semite.
Sanctions, divestment and boycotting are now commonly discussed, and millions of people are now newly politically aware, and mobilized, on the issue. The demonstrations in Europe were amazing and, again, highlight Jew-control, as the Jew-slave politicians are so obviously out of line with their electorates. One would hope that the mass realization that both the mainstream media and all major politicians have been bought and paid for by World Jewry would lead to a further realization that these lying Jew-slaves need to be replaced, pronto.
We're witnessing the death of the Chomskean lie that all political evil flows out of the United States. While the Bush Administration, in its death throes, has managed one final embarrassment to the United States (one for which Americans will be paying for decades), this one is entirely to be blamed on Israel and World Jewry. Again, while acknowledging the evil of the United States in blessing this monstrosity, everybody knows who is really to blame.

We can't forget that the slaughter is encouraging a deep examination of the psycho-killer psychology of Israel and World Jewry, which, just as in the case of many psychopaths, is tinged with self-righteousness. An example of the new analysis is Gideon Levy:

"You can't have it both ways. The only 'purity' in this war is the 'purification from terrorists,' which really means the sowing of horrendous tragedies. What's happening in Gaza is not a natural disaster, an earthquake or flood, for which it would be our duty and right to extend a helping hand to those affected, to send rescue squads, as we so love to do. Of all the rotten luck, all the disasters now occurring in Gaza are manmade - by us. Aid cannot be offered with bloodstained hands. Compassion cannot sprout from brutality.

Yet there are some who still want it both ways. To kill and destroy indiscriminately and also to come out looking good, with a clean conscience. To go ahead with war crimes without any sense of the heavy guilt that should accompany them. It takes some nerve. Anyone who justifies this war also justifies all its crimes. Anyone who preaches for this war and believes in the justness of the mass killing it is inflicting has no right whatsoever to speak about morality and humaneness. There is no such thing as simultaneously killing and nurturing. This attitude is a faithful representation of the basic, twofold Israeli sentiment that has been with us forever: To commit any wrong, but to feel pure in our own eyes. To kill, demolish, starve, imprison and humiliate - and be right, not to mention righteous. The righteous warmongers will not be able to allow themselves these luxuries.

Anyone who justifies this war also justifies all its crimes. Anyone who sees it as a defensive war must bear the moral responsibility for its consequences. Anyone who now encourages the politicians and the army to continue will also have to bear the mark of Cain that will be branded on his forehead after the war. All those who support the war also support the horror."

Self-righteousness is the defining characteristic of Zionism (just read anything by Dershowitz; it is almost funny). They won't be able to get away with it any more.

The final advantage of the slaughter is that people are finally considering what is to be done to Israel to punish it for what it habitually does - another advantage of the slaughter is that the entire history of Zionism is being reanalyzed as part of a pattern of psychopathic murderous compulsion - and stop it from reoffending.

A note of caution. The lite Zionists are gearing up to protect Zionism by ensuring that the sanctions on Israel amount to no more than ineffective boycotts (especially so as boycotting Israel is illegal in the United States). They will purport to be outraged, and purport to be dealing with the problem, all the while doing what they always do - protecting the project of Greater Israel which they all secretly support. We can't let them get away with this. We now know that Zionism is an incurable violent psychological illness, and Israel will not stop murdering. Zionism has to be stopped. Permanently. The only way to accomplish this is to make a Jewish state in the Middle East impossible. We need to be figuring how to do this in the most humanitarian way, while acknowledging that there will inevitably be millions of Jewish refugees. As terrible as that is, Israel and World Jewry have made it necessary.

source

Matrah

2009-01-12T05:33:00.000-08:00

Matrah Souq

A water wall created from a wave hitting the Matrah corniche really hard. This was my 8th attempt at grabbing a good shot of the water wall, and my camera as well as myself were getting wet from all the water mist xD

A very beautiful old Mosque, found while walking down one of the many alleyways in Matrah

Alex Thomson shuts-up Israeli spokesman!

2009-01-12T01:58:00.000-08:00

Best two comments on the vid:

When asked why Israeli soldiers refused The Red Cross access to starving children who were clinging to their mothers corpses for 4 days, douchebag Israeli spokes man, Mark Regev, tries to blame Hamas.

FUC-KING-ASS-HOLE!!!

----------------------

The IDF spokesrobot used the opportunity to blame hamas! for the IDF blocking Red Cross humanitarian aid to children who's mothers were killed by their violent massacre. If that isn't DESPERATE or what. "we have to make sure lines of communications are open and working, that the telephones are working" WTF? Hello, McFly? He changes the subject to Hamas again. "it's a difficult combat situation".. Well no shit asshat. What a dumb sound bite. They never do ANYTHING wrong, nor will they honestly admit to it. Their motive is to shift the blame elsewhere and distract from their own actions by re-framing it onto someone else. Therefore, it's never their fault! Very underhanded.

They're always making excuses, backpedaling, "we're still investigating" "waiting to get the facts" "we don't know the full story" "the information might not be accurate" "hamas could be behind this!" and accusing someone else hamas/muslims/santa claus etc. of wrongdoing, and playing the victim.

Then he goes "the hamas movement has an interest in betraying humanitarian crisis for their own political purposes".. What does Israels own soldiers refusing humanitarian aid to victims, children whos mothers have been murdered have to do with "hamas" for fucks sake? I was waiting for him to say the Red Cross is "hamas sympathizers" "supporting terrorits" and "anti-semitic" or some other laughable disinformationalist BS.

Wow what an interview though. Direct, no minced words PC bullshit trying to dumb it down for willfully ignorant propagandized herd monkeys as on controlled "American" info-tainment "news" media. So that's how the real journalists do it. Could you imagine "hard hitting" Bill O-riley "the spin stops here!" or tuff talking Geraldo Rivieria taking a stand against any of Israels actions..even for the slightest thing? Especially challenging one of their professional propagandist "spokespeople.".. It just wouldn't happen. Not in this lifetime right. They'd be out of a job! Branded "anti-semitic" and "bigoted" "racist" etc. Everywhere else is far game to scrutinize in the "American" media but the sacred Israel. The controlled 'American' media would never dare air that interview.

LOLcat of the day

2009-01-11T21:47:00.001-08:00

Home's Garden

2009-01-11T11:50:00.000-08:00

Here are a some photos I took of the garden in my Muscat's home backyard. All taken with Alpha K. Click for larger

---------------------------------------------------------------------

A huuuuge spider and spider web high up in a tree. I had to stand on a ladder to grab this photo since the spider was really high up, and I was so terrfied it would jump unto my face xD I told my uncle, whom was steadying the ladder for me, that if that should happen and I fall off, he must grab my camera and make sure no harm comes to it, I'm not that important =P

Kids helping Mama plant Marigolds

Sour fruit tree (forgot it's name)

Baby Cactus <3

Big Cactus

Chamoo on the swing

Birdhouse

My Mother pruned this plant's branches to grow out into a heart shape

Four camera setting tests, using the same flower

Jews protest against Israel and Zionism

2009-01-11T10:26:00.000-08:00

A must watch vid, differntiate between Jews and Zionists.

What the noble Rabbi says in the vid rings true with Phat's blog post late last year titled (Mother of all Relegion). The post has since been published as an article in an ezine (which we kinda didnt mention before lol) and can be viewed here for those who wanna reread it --> http://www.thearabzine.com/?p=80

IDF vids

2009-01-11T06:08:00.000-08:00

An arabic message from IDF to the people of Gaza. Brainwashing at it's best. The Israeli's are not given enough credit for their puppeteering talents.

Another vid from the IDF desk. They realeased this on the 6th of Jan after the shelling of the U.N school which killed over 40 people, mostly children, whom were taking shelter in the school from the fighting.

and now, take a look at this, quoted from a Haaretz article on the 9th of Jan

In briefings senior [Israel Defense Forces] officers conducted for foreign diplomats, they admitted the shelling to which IDF forces in Jabalya were responding did not originate from the school," Gunness said. "The IDF admitted in that briefing that the attack on the UN site was unintentional."

He noted that all the footage released by the IDF of militants firing from inside the school was from 2007 and not from the incident itself.

Any outrage in the world?

Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah

It's all good =) A simple little mistake, just a few scared palestianans killed. No biggie.

Speedy

2009-01-08T12:28:00.000-08:00

Some snapshots of Speedy the turtle, hanging out and stuff.

Click for larger.

Red Rose.

2009-01-07T01:48:00.001-08:00

Red Rose, I did this in 15 minutes because I did not want to sleep while I was drunk swaying on my desk.. just to not start another day filled with work...

Illegal weapons in the war against Gaza

2009-01-07T00:50:00.000-08:00

I just had to quote the whole article...

"The Israeli Defense Force is using white phosphorus on built up areas in Gaza. They've denied it, sort of, by saying only that Israel is using "munitions that are allowed for under international law". Israel isn't a signatory to key arms control treaties, upheld by most of the rest of the world, which govern the use of WP and other chemical weapons. So those treaties can be ignored in favor of long-planned PR spin. Both the US and Israel claim that using WP as a smokescreen generator isn't prohibited by any treaties and they're correct - as long as the WP isn't being employed over built up areas, at which time the indiscriminate nature and incendiary anti-personnel effects of these airbursts make them illegal by the Geneva Conventions governing responsibilities towards civilian non-combatants and by article two, protocol III of the 1980 UN Convention on Certain Weapons. That is, a war crime.

That distinction came up in Fallujah, Iraq during 2004 when US forces initially said they were using white phosphorus only as a smokescreen, later on admitting reluctantly that it had also been used as an anti-personnel weapon on insurgents. The US military never officially admitted to using WP on civilian areas, however, despite numerous reports of second and third degree chemical burns consistent with WP use.

Incandescent particles of WP cast off by a WP weapon's initial explosion can produce extensive, deep (second and third degree), burns. Phosphorus burns carry a greater risk of mortality than other forms of burns due to the absorption of phosphorus into the body through the burned area, resulting in liver, heart and kidney damage, and in some cases multi-organ failure.[26] These weapons are particularly dangerous to exposed people because white phosphorus continues to burn unless deprived of oxygen or until it is completely consumed.

Earlier, the US had no problem with saying that Saddam's use of WP on civilian areas had been an atrocity, a war crime.

Now, it looks like the IDF isn't just using the same weapons over built up areas, it's using the same excuses. Compare this footage from Gaza:

With this from Fallujah in 2004.

They show identical patterns of glowing airbursts leading to explosive incendiary effects on the ground over a wide area, as do many of the photos from Gaza. That pattern is of the US-made 155 mm M825A1 smoke WP projectile.

Let us all be clear about something.

The Gaza Strip is one of the most densely populated pieces of property in the world. The presence of militants within a civilian population does not, under international law, deprive that population of their protected status, and hence any assault upon that population under the guise of targeting militants is, in fact, a war crime.

Moreover, the people Israel claims are legitimate targets are members of Hamas, which Israel says is a terrorist organization. Hamas has been responsible for firing rockets into Israel. These rockets are extremely inaccurate and thus, even if Hamas intended to hit military targets within Israel, are indiscriminate by nature. When rockets from Gaza kill Israeli civilians, it is a war crime.

But the debate really does resolve down to this question from the movie "Night At The Museum" - who is evolved? Who is the terrorist and who has the moral high ground? Descending to the tactics of terrorism can never defeat terrorists. As we've seen in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere such tactics only ever create a new generation of hardliners on both sides willing to use conflict to their own ends. In Israel's case, right now, the hardliner's purpose isn't defeating Hamas - it is winning an election. To that end, Israel is using a definition of "enemy combatant" wider than any in common useage.

The International Committee of the Red Cross - guardian of the Geneva Conventions on which international humanitarian law is based - defines a combatant as a person "directly engaged in hostilities".

But Israeli Defence Forces spokesman Benjamin Rutland told the BBC: "Our definition is that anyone who is involved with terrorism within Hamas is a valid target. This ranges from the strictly military institutions and includes the political institutions that provide the logistical funding and human resources for the terrorist arm."

Philippe Sands, Professor of International Law at University College London, says he is not aware of any Western democracy having taken so broad a definition.

"Once you extend the definition of combatant in the way that IDF is apparently doing, you begin to associate individuals who are only indirectly or peripherally involved… it becomes an open-ended definition, which undermines the very object and purpose of the rules that are intended to be applied."

That means that Israel will continue indiscriminately burning down the house in Gaza, with predictable consequences:

The scene on Sunday at the hospital, a singular and grisly reflection of the violence around it, was both harrowing and puzzling. A week ago, when Israel began its air assault, hundreds of Hamas militants were taken to the hospital. Yet on Sunday, the day Israeli troops flooded Gaza and ground battles with Hamas began, there appeared not to be a single one.

The casualties at Shifa on Sunday — 18 dead, hospital officials said, among a reported 30 around Gaza — were women, children and men who had been with children. One surgeon said that he had performed five amputations.

“I don’t know what kind of weapons Israel is using,” said a nurse, Ziad Abd al Jawwad, 41, who had been working 24 hours without a break. “There is so much amputation.”

White phosphorus burns to the bone."

Source

....

CBS Gaza Report and a Wedding Invitation

2009-01-06T22:44:00.000-08:00

Interesting report by CBS, Norwegian doctor in Gaza decries purpose Palestinian murder.

*Warning: Video is heart wrenching for the humane ones out there)

A Wedding invitation

Youtubers against Gaza massacre.

2009-01-06T05:35:00.000-08:00

'Ouh....Just Ouh....'

Been Digging

2009-01-06T01:16:00.001-08:00

Some cool stuff from around the internets

XKCD:

LOLCAT:

Do you believe in magic? <--- A forum with 1092 Topics, 2268 Posts, and only one member. Pretty creepy =/
USB 3.0 <--- This is pretty cool, the new generation of USB. Has a transfer rate of 5 Gbit/sec as opposed to USB 2.0's 480 Mbit/sec.
How Twitter got hacked. <--- Over the past few days, famous Twitter accounts have been hacked into, such as Bill O'Reilly and Britney Spears, with odd Tweets as a result. The reason behind it all.
Apple's keyboardless laptop <--- From The Onion. 'Nuff said.
20 games to look forward to in 2009 <--- STREET FIGHTER IV!!! *squeals*

First Match (Oman vs Kuwait)

2009-01-05T09:58:00.000-08:00

Ended in a stupid draw.

Patriotisim and Excitment

Dissapointment

Harry Potter is Gay

2009-01-05T04:23:00.000-08:00

The following is an expert of an IRC conversation taken from http://www.bash.org/.

My tummy was cramping up from how hard I laughed while reading through the convo xD

(Incase anyone out there doesn't know what wang means, use this to find out --> Urban Dictionary )

Note: It's highly probably that the only people who will find this funny are individuals whom have read the Harry Potter books, and understood how weird the book can get at times.

==============================================================

#111338 +(13244)- [X]

[JonJonB] Purely in the interests of science, I have replaced the word "wand" with "wang" in the first Harry Potter Book

[JonJonB] Let's see the results...

[JonJonB] "Why aren't you supposed to do magic?" asked Harry.

[JonJonB] "Oh, well -- I was at Hogwarts meself but I -- er -- got expelled, ter tell yeh the truth. In me third year. They snapped me wang in half an' everything

[JonJonB] A magic wang... this was what Harry had been really looking forward to.

[JonJonB]"Yes, yes. I thought I'd be seeing you soon. Harry Potter." It wasn't a question. "You have your mother's eyes. It seems only yesterday she was in here herself, buying her first wang. Ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow. Nice wang for charm work."

[JonJonB] "Your father, on the other hand, favored a mahogany wang. Eleven inches. "

[JonJonB] Harry took the wang. He felt a sudden warmth in his fingers. He raised the wang above his head, brought it swishing down through the dusty air and a stream of red and gold sparks shot from the end like a firework, throwing dancing spots of light on to the walls

[JonJonB] "Oh, move over," Hermione snarled. She grabbed Harry's wang, tapped the lock, and whispered, 'Alohomora!"

[JonJonB] The troll couldn't feel Harry hanging there, but even a troll will notice if you stick a long bit of wood up its nose, and Harry's wang had still been in his hand when he'd jumped - it had gone straight up one of the troll's nostrils.

[JonJonB] He bent down and pulled his wang out of the troll's nose. It was covered in what looked like lumpy gray glue.

[JonJonB] He ran onto the field as you fell, waved his wang, and you sort of slowed down before you hit the ground. Then he whirled his wang at the dementors. Shot silver stuff at them.

[JonJonB] Ok

[JonJonB] I have found, definitive proof

[JonJonB] that J.K Rowling is a dirty DIRTY woman, making a fool of us all

[JonJonB] "Yes," Harry said, gripping his wang very tightly, and moving into the middle of the deserted classroom. He tried to keep his mind on flying, but something else kept intruding.... Any second now, he might hear his mother again... but he shouldn't think that, or he would hear her again, and he didn't want to... or did he?

[melusine] O_______O

[JonJonB] Something silver-white, something enormous, erupted from the end of his wang

[JonJonB] Then, with a sigh, he raised his wang and prodded the silvery substance with its tip.

[JonJonB] 'Get - off - me!' Harry gasped. For a few seconds they struggled, Harry pulling at his uncles sausage-like fingers with his left hand, his right maintaining a firm grip on his raised wang.

مريم

2009-01-04T02:02:00.000-08:00

في سَكْرَةِ الفَجْرِ الجَميلْ ،
واللَيْلُ يَسْحَبُ ذَيْلَهُ ..
عَنْ شُرْفَةِ النَجْمِ الكَحيلْ
قامَتْ تُصَلّي الصُبْحَ مَرْيَمُ،
تَذْكُرُ الرَحْمنَ بالعِرفانِ ..
وَالحَمْدِ الجَزيلْ
غَسَلَتْ صَفاءَ الوَجْهِ والكَفَّينِ
وأسْبَغَتْ فَوْقَ الجَدائِلِ ..
مَسْحَةً مِن سَلْسَبيلْ ،
وَتَعَطَّرَتْ قَبْلَ التَهَجُّدِِ مَرْيَمٌ
بالمِسْكِ والكافُورِ ..
والغَيْمِ الصَقيلْ !
*** *** ***
كانَتْ لِمَرْيَمَ غُرَّةٌ وضَفيرَتانْ ،
وأنامِلٌ كانَتْ لَها ..
مِنْ بَيْلَسانْ ،
وَعُيونُ زَيتونٍ وقامَةُ خَيْزرانٍ
كالحَقِيقةِ ..
تَسْتَميلُ .. ولا تَميلْ !
كانَتْ لَها أنْفاسُ لَوْزٍ ..
وَابْتِسامَةُ بُرتُقالْ ،
ورَفَّةُ نَوْرَسٍ يَهْفو ..
لِبارِقَةِ الرِمالْ ،
وبِعَيْنِها أحْلامُ عُصْفورٍ ..
وَرِقَّةُ عَوْسَجٍ ..
وَحَياءُ شالْ ،
وَحِكايَةٌ بالأوفِ والمَوّالِ
تَعرِفُها دُموعُ النَهْرِ ..
وجُذوعُ النَخِيلْ !
*** *** ***
كانتْ لمَرْيَمَ في ضِفافِ النَهْرِ دارْ
وكَرْمَةٌ وخَميلَةٌ ..
وحُقولُ غارْ
وَمَواسِمٌ لِلزَهْرِ والنَوَّارِ ..
والظِلِّ الظَليلْ
وَطُيورُ حُبِّ بَيْنَنا ..
تَشْدو بِأطَيافِ المُنى ،
للعُرْسِ في حُضْنِ السَنا ..
عَمَّا قَليلْ ،
لَمَّا يَصيحُ الطَيْرُ وَيَذوبُ النَدَى
والعَنْدَليبُ يَزُفُّ بُشْرى النُّورِ ..
لِعُيونِ المَدَى ،
والأُفْقُ يَلْهَجُ بِالصَدَى
وَتَسيلُ أسْرارُ الزَنابِقِ بَيْنَما ..
التَسْنيمُ بَيْنَ خَمائلِ البُشرى ..
يَسيلْ !
*** *** ***
حَتّى تَلَبَّسَتِ الفَضاءاتِ الغُيومْ،
وتَقَاطَرَ المَطَرُ المُعَتَّقُ بالسُمومْ
وأسْمَلتْ سُحُبُ الرَّدى ..
عَيْنَ النُجومْ ،
جارَتْ بِمَرْيَمَ بومَةٌ شَمْطاءُ ..
تَنْتَحِلُ الهَديلْ ،
وَتَكَسَّرَ الرَيْحانُ ..
تَحْتَ سَنابِكِ الخَيْلِ الهَزيلْ
*** *** ***
قَامَ النَهارُ مُوَدِّعاً ثُمَّ انْصَرَفْ ،
وَأنْكَرَ الحُلمَ المُوَشَّى ..
بالأََماني والصُدَفْ
والعِشْقَ والعُشَّاقَ ..
وَلَيالي الدَنَفْ ،
وَرَمى الرِسالَةَ في مَزيدٍ مِنْ قَرَفْ ..
الشَمْسُ هذا اليَوْمَ ..
ضَرْبٌ مِنْ تَرَفْ ،
وَالنورُ يَسْطَعُ في زَمانِ البومِ ..
عَيْنُ المُسْتَحيلْ !
*** *** ***
ألْقى التَحِيَّةً وَاسْتَدارْ ،
حَزَمَ الحَقيبَةَ مِنْ أغاني العِشقِ ..
ودُموعِ الصِغارْ
سَرَقَ المَراقِدَ والوَسائدَ والدِثارْ ،
وامْتَطى ظَهْرَ الغِيابِ الفَجِّ ..
والدَرْبِ الطَويلْ !
*** *** ***
رَحَلَ الطَريقُ مَعَ الرَحيلْ ،
فَرَجِعْتُ أنْصِبُ خَيْمَتي ..
مِنْ خَيْبَتي .. وَتَألُّمي ،
وَعَلى مَهاوي نَكْبَتي ..
تاهَتْ جِراحي عَنْ دَمي
وَقَوافِلُ الشُعَراءِ أهْدَتْني ..
مِنَ الذِكْرى ..
بَريقَ الأنجُمِ ،
وَقَصيدَةً ثَكْلى تَساقَطُ مِنْ فَمي ..
يا دارَ مَرْيَمَ بِالعَراءِ تَنَعَّمي ،
وَتألَّمي .. وَتَكَلَّمي .. وَتَبَسَّمي ،
وَعِمي هَناءً أو شَقاءً ..
واسْلَمي ،
وَتَلَفَّحي بالشَوْكِ ..
لا تَسْتَسْلِمي !
واللَيْلُ يَقَْتلُني وَيُحيي مَأتَمي
وقَلائدُ الفُجّارِ تَلْجِمُني ..
وتُدمي مِعْصَمي
والبومُ يَرْجِمُ جَبْهَتي ..
مِن مُهْجَتي ،
وَيَسومُ أحْلامي بجَمْرِ تَوَهُّمي
وَيَبيعُني الآلامَ والأوْهامَ ..
والحُلْمَ القَتيلْ !
*** *** ***
ضَيَّعتُ وَجْهي خَلْفَ ناصِيَةِ السِنينْ
وَبَحَثْتُ عَنْ نَفسي ..
يَساراً وَيَمينْ ،
وَعَلى جَبيني ..
نُدْبَةُ الجُرْحِ السَخينْ
وَهْماً يراودُني على عَيْنِ اليَقِينْ !
أصْدُقيني القَوْلَ يا عَيْنَ اليَقينْ ..
عَنْ ذا الذي أدْمى الجَبينْ ،
هَلْ خِنْجَرٌ .. أم رِمْشُ عَينْ ؟
أمْ وَحْشُ قَشٍّ ..
ثارَ بالعِصْيانِ .. مَقْطوعَ اليَدَيْنْ ؟
أم وَرْدَةٌ حَمراءُ أعْماها الحنينْ ؟
أمْ هُمْ فُحولٌ في المَنَصَّةِ شاخِصينْ ؟
شاهِرينَ مُدَى اللِسانِ ..
بِكُلِّ ما سَحَرَ البَيانُ .. مُشَعْوِذينْ ،
أوْرادُهُمْ تُذْكي الغَليلَ ..
وَتَرْتَدي سَقَمَ العَليلْ ،
وَلبوسُُهُمْ ما بَينَ مُحْتالٍ .. وَمُخْتالٍ ..
وَعِنِّينٍ كَليلْ !
*** *** ***
حَتَّى إذا سَكِرَتْ بِما سَحروا ..
مساراتُ الزَمَنْ ،
وَتَدَحْرَجَتْ لِلوادِ شامِخَةُ القُنَنْ
وتَضَرَّجَت وَجْناتُ مَرْيَمَ ..
بالصَديدِ وبالسَكَنْ ،
قالوا أخيراً سَوْفَ تُعْرِسُ مَرْيَمٌ
وَيُرَدُّ لِلروحِ العَليلَةِ ..
ما سَلاها مِنْ بَدَنْ !
وَيَعودُ لِلعَينِ السَميلَةِ ..
مِنْ مَدامِعِها .. دَليلْ !
*** *** ***
صَلِّي فُروضَكِ مَرْيَمٌ ..
وَتَحَمَّدي رَبَّ المِنَنْ،
وتَطَوَّعي للهِ مِنْ فَضْلَ السُنَنْ
هذا عريسُكِ ،
قَدْ أتاكِ بِصَهْوَةٍ ..
عَرْجاءَ ..
مِنْ إسْطَبْلِ خَضْراءِ الدِمَنْ
فَتَخَيَّري لِلْعُرْسِ ثَوباً أبْيَضاً
أوْ فارْتَدي إنْ شِئْتِ ..
طاقاتِ الكَفَنْ !
سَيَّانَ مَرْيَمُ واحْتِفالُكِ قائمٌ ..
حُلَلٌ مُنَشَّاةٌ .. ورَقْصٌ مُمْتَهَنْ ،
وَالطَرْحَةٌ الجَرْداءُ كُلَّ قَوامِها ..
خَيْطٌ نَحيلْ !
*** *** ***
وأنا هنا ..
حَتَّى يَثوبُ الصُبْحُ ..
وَيَتوبُ الزَمَنْ ،
في الخَيمَةِ العَزْلاءِ ..
وَقْفٌ مُرْتَهَنْ
أهْذي بِعِشْقِكِ مَرْيَمٌ ..
وألوكُ كَسَراتِ العَفَنْ
وَأهيمُ في الآفاقِ
أبْحَثُ عَنْ طَرِيقِكِ ..
بالسِراجِ .. وبالفَتيلْ !
وَأُسَائلُ الكُثْبانَ والوديانَ عَنْكِ ..
وَكُلَّ وَغْدٍ أو نَبيلْ ،
كَيْفَ السَبيلُ لِدارِ مَرْيَمَ ..
دُلَّني يا صاحِ ..
كَيفَ هو السَبيلْ ؟

محمود الباتــــــع

Fishies!

2009-01-03T21:39:00.000-08:00

Zohan, my new fishie, is a Japanese Shubunkin.

Shubunkins are very popular fancy goldfishes in Japan, mostly kept in ponds. Seems like Zohan is gonna grow to be bigger than Dagon inshallah =)

Shubunkins are known for being really fast and active swimmers (no wonder Zohan was like that last night xD) They are Calico colored fish, which means they can sport a number of colors in patches (Zohan is white, red, orange, and gold with black spots in his fins and tails). Shubunkins have nacreous scales, a mix of metallic and transparent scales that give it a pearly appearance.

Dagon, as I mentioned before, is a Black Moor, who also originates from Japan. His scales are metallic, a mixture of black, dark bronze and dark gold. Dagon’s gold scales are particulary more abundant around his tummy. It’s Japanese name is kuro demekin, and in China it’s Dragon Eyes (totally suits since they do look like Dragons lol)

Sweepy is a Chinese Algae Eater. They basically keep the tank clean, eating up all the algae that may grow as well as leftover food. Pretty shy fishies, that mostly hide in corners. They do well in a tank community when young, but become territorial as adults and may attack other fish (that does NOT sound good! Oh well, I’ll let future me deal with it =/)

So yeah, my three little fishies ^_^

Zohan and Sweepy

2009-01-03T10:25:00.000-08:00

I finally got a big fish tank for Dagon. Installed it today, but he looked so lonely in the huge aquariam. So I got two new friends for him lol ^_^

This is Sweepy, the tank's Janitor.

This is Zohan. He is so incredibly hyper xD I could not for the life of me get a clear shot of him coz he just WOULD NOT STOP MOVING! He's multicolored; orange, red, white, black, gold, and has huge black eyes.

Dagon was asleep in the corner of the tank when I dropped Sweepy and Zohan in. Sweepy immediatly swam to the bottom of the tank and settled down. Zohan, to me and my sister's delight and amusment, began swimming all over the tank at super duper speed! He would zip from one end to the other, either having a look at the plants or digging at the stones in the bottom ( I better place heavy pebbles around the plants so they dont get uprooted by Dagon or Zohan) During all this Zohan hyperness, Dagon was still peacefully at the corner of the tank totally motionless and calm, until Zohan swam straight towards him with a headbutt, causing Dagon to swim upwards in fear xD Oh how I wish I had recorded that with my video cam!

Dagon was pretty creeped out for a bit. He stayed in the same corner of the tank, warily facing Zohan whom was still happily zipping around the tank. Finally, Dagon cautiosly swam towards Zohan, and kinda began following him around the tank.

Check out Dagon's bemused expression (love the green light reflection on his tummy). Zohan is a little blurry in the picture because he just WOULD NOT STOP MOVING AGAIN!

Am watching the two of them as I write this post. Dagon seems really happy, he's more active now! They are swimming around and following each other. If one goes to the top of the tank, the other follows, if one swims towards the plants, the other follows. Sweepy is still in the same position as when I first dropped him lol.

ELEC ENG: Sound Identification Project.

2009-01-01T12:48:00.000-08:00

Phew... I'm really proud I finished this in only 4 hours where it took the guys a whole day to the point they slept in university, even though my approach is quite not totally efficient and needs some editing to be perfect, but we can say that the code is 90% done. What am I talking about? I had this project to do in Engineering called sound identification where you have to save your voice and store it in the device and then gain access to the device using your voice again.

So basically, you record in yout voice and get the signal in time domain, transform it into frequency using fourier transform functino (fft) and get the absolute maximum of that frequency some couple of times after repeating the same method and then specifying a range for your absolute maximum.

The programe I made is again not efficient, because the frequency is dependant on how loud you get. but this problem is going to be fixed hopefully soon, all I need is specifying some ranges to prevent the user of being either too loud or too low.

Fs = 8000;

durata= input('Insert the duration of the recording (in seconds):');

micrecorder = audiorecorder(Fs,16,1);

disp('Now, speak into microphone...');

record(micrecorder,durata);

while (isrecording(micrecorder)==1)

disp('Recording...'); pause(0.5); end

disp('Recording stopped.');

y = getaudiodata(micrecorder, 'uint8');

w=fft(single(y));

z=max(abs(w));

if((z>2040570 && z<2050000))>

elseif ((z<2020570))>

The Rise of the Anti-Christ in the Nation from Hell.

2008-12-30T23:41:00.000-08:00

This blog post entry pretty much echoes my thoughts. The situation in Palestine will get worse and worse to an explosion point. And then it will be the end.

source

------------------------

I look in awestruck disbelief at the lies being repeated over and over; bullshit and the tragedy of false belief. In respect of that I would like to set the record straight. I realize only a few people will read this but I can’t let that interfere with the need to say it. Perhaps this will add to the collective outcry across the world and one or another of us may be that final straw that breaks the horned camel’s back.

Once again I am going to direct your attention to the incredible shrinking map of Palestine. You can trace the changes and compartmentalizations that have occurred across the last sixty years of aggressive land theft by Ersatz Israel. We can start at that point sixty or so years ago or we can go back further still. It doesn’t matter, the animal is the same and the intention is the same.

During a short period of time over seven hundred thousand Palestinians were displaced. They were displaced by force at the hands of a rapacious group of avaricious land bandits who poisoned wells and murdered entire families as examples to the rest. Basically it was “move or die.” There’s no disputing this. It is fact. Following the theft of these lands and towns, the areas and towns were renamed in an effort to blot out the history of the previous inhabitants.

The argument for allowance in regard to the murderous operations of these vicious psychopaths marching under the banner of some demon that they call God was the belief that these people had suffered mightily at the hands of a German dictator and that they were deserving of a certain piece of land that was promised to them by this demon according to things written in a book that was also written by these people. In other words these people wrote that the demon told them that they were his ‘Chosen People’. As history has shown, they are correct. They are the chosen people of this demon. However, this demon is not God and the book was not written by God either… unless God really is a bloodthirsty demon who advises his chosen to kill these people and kill those people and that it’s all fine and kosher.

While these people were suffering in Europe, other members of these people did everything possible to make the suffering more and more intense and used the event entirely as a public relations stunt to gain control of this piece of property in order to set out and take over the whole world. Today, through their control of The Federal Reserve (this is not disputable either), they control who gets the money, where the money goes, how much and how little money is available and by pulling on different strings they can make the puppets dance to whatever tune they want to play.

If there’s a God then Israel appears to be the throne of the Devil. It’s possible that the anti Christ is not a person but a nation. In any case, those he rules are part and parcel of the package. It’s eerie indeed to see the old prophecies of the anti-Christ who is said to arise in the Middle East around this time and to see that, in fact, there is one nation seeking to plunge the Earth into global war. Only one nation is assaulting it’s neighbors and blackmailing the super powers into wiping out it’s alleged enemies based on an assault that this nation engineered in the land of the biggest super power of all; soon to be less than super.

Here’s my first point. When you invade someone’s land and kill the people and drive them into exile and when you then continue to steal the land of those remaining until they are forced into ever smaller ghettos. When you routinely kill these people and use their children for target practice; when you bulldoze their olive trees and orchards and homes, when you move violent settlers into their neighborhoods and allow and protect these settlers when they beat and rob and injure and kill the ancient inhabitants of this land, when you arrest the representatives of their LEGALLY ELECTED government and then throw them into jail for no other reason that that they were elected, when you then begin to increase your genocidal practices upon these people by cutting off their power, their water, their medical supplies and opportunities for treatment and causing them to suffer in any way that you possibly can BECAUSE, allegedly they are firing missiles into lands that were STOLEN FROM THEM but which missiles never seem to hit anything THEN… THEN… these people have EVERY RIGHT… EVERY RIGHT to fire any and all missiles they want to fire any time they want to fire them.

It is interesting to note that now, after Israel’s recent bloodbath… now playing… rockets are actually hitting people and things where they almost never did before. Israel has launched rockets on her own people before and when caught said it was a mistake; an accident. This is also not in dispute.

Now we find that the only reason Israel has made this assault is because there is an election coming and certain candidates want to be seen as the sort of murderous scum that the general public likes to have in office. In other words, all of these people are dying for no more than the election concerns of a handful of psychopaths.

In the meantime, all the self-righteous swine on the left and all of the self-righteous swine on the right and the endless rank of indifferent swine in the middle, feeding at the trough of their personal appetites…they make excuses for Israel as if to say that Israel had the right, not only to drive these people off of their lands but also to continuously terrorize them for decades while making the portions of land upon which they live ever smaller and smaller until there is no where for them to stand and- as is their intention- no one left to stand on it.

Here’s my point and this point is indisputable… whether members of Hamas are or are not launching missiles into Israel they have EVERY RIGHT TO DO SO. Is there anyone among you who would tolerate such actions against yourself? Wait a minute… yeah, there’s quite a few of you.

Today Israel is attacking the ship, Dignity. Cynthia McKinney is on that boat along with a handful of the few human beings left on Earth. It’s not in the news because it isn’t news. Oh you vipers… you whores in the governments and in the press. All of you are exposed by your actions and your words. When justice comes you will none of you be overlooked.

It is a very strange thing how events mirror prophecy. If these prophecies are true then; where does that leave you?

In conclusion; Palestine and the Palestinians have EVERY RIGHT to fight back in any way they can because Israel is attempting to exterminate them and prior to that make their life a living Hell every day of the week. The facts are indisputable so what is this argument about bottle rockets really about?

All of you who support this… all the gatekeepers and bought out slaves to personal fortune… all those laughing at their pursuits while dining in the high tower and shopping for shit to gild your walking corpses… all of you who speak for the nations who permit these murders, not just in Palestine but across the world; who staged the assault in India to bring war to Pakistan… you and your mighty ghost armies are nothing more than chaff in the wind and you will reap the whirlwind. Yes you will.

Death is Calling my Name

Not very well done… but apt

URGENT! Israeli Navy Attacking Civilian Mercy Ship! TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY!

2008-12-30T02:16:00.000-08:00

The Dignity, a Free Gaza boat on a mission of mercy to besieged Gaza, is being attacked by the Israeli Navy in international waters. The Dignity has been surrounded by at least half-a-dozen Israeli warships. They are firing live ammunition around the Dignity, and one of the warships has rammed the civilian craft causing an unknown amount of damage. Contrary to international maritime law, the Israelis are actively preventing the Dignity from approaching Gaza or finding safe haven in either Egypt or Lebanon. Instead, the Israeli navy is demanding that the Dignity return to Cyprus - despite the fact that the ship does not carry enough fuel to do so. Fortunately, no one aboard the ship has yet been seriously injured.

There are 15 civilian passengers representing 11 different countries (see below for a complete list). At approximately 5am (UST), well out in international waters, Israeli warships began surrounding the Dignity, threatening the ship. At 6:45am (UST) we were able to establish brief contact with the crew and were told that the ship had been rammed by the Israeli Navy in international waters, and that the Israelis were preventing the ship from finding safe harbor. We heard heavy gunfire in the background before all contact was lost with the Dignity.

It is urgent that you TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION!

CALL the Israeli Government and demand that it immediately STOP attacking the Dignity and endangering the lives of its passengers!

CALL Mark Regev in the Prime Minister's office at:
+972 2670 5354 or +972 5062 3264
mark.regev@it.pmo.gov.il

CALL Shlomo Dror in the Ministry of Defence at:
+972 33697 5339 or +972 50629 8148
mediasar@mod.gov.il

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Dignity departed from Larnaca Port in Cyprus at 7pm (UST) on Monday 29 December, bound for war-devastated Gaza with a cargo of over 3 tons of desperately needed medical supplies donated by the people of Cyprus. At our request, the ship was searched by Cypriot Port authorities prior to departure, to certify that there was nothing "threatening" aboard - only emergency medical supplies.

TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY TO STOP THE ISRAELI NAVY FROM ENDANGERING THE DIGNITY AND ITS PASSENGERS!

Civilians aboard the Dignity being threatened by the Israeli military:

(UK) Denis Healey, Captain
Captain of the Dignity, Denis has been involved with boats for 45 years, beginning with small fishing boats in Portsmouth. He learned to sail while at school and has been part of the sea ever since. He's a certified yachtmaster and has also worked on heavy marine equipment from yachts to large dredgers. This is his fourth trip to Gaza.

(Greece) Nikolas Bolos, First Mate
Nikolas is a chemical engineer and human rights activist. He has served as a crewmember on several Free Gaza voyages, including the first one in August.

(Jordan) Othman Abu Falah
Othman is a senior producer with Al-Jazeera Television. He will remain in Gaza to report on the ongoing military onslaught.

(Australia) Renee Bowyer
Renee is a schoolteacher and human rights activist. She will remain in Gaza to do human rights monitoring and reporting.

(Ireland) Caoimhe Butterly
Caoimhe is a reknowned human rights activist and Gaza Coordinator for the Free Gaza Movement. She will be remaining in Gaza to do human rights monitoring, assist with relief efforts, and work on project development with Free Gaza.

(Cyprus) Ekaterini Christodulou
Ekaterini is a well-known and respected freelance journalist in Cyprus. She is traveling to Gaza to report on the conflict.

(Sudan) Sami El-Haj
Sami is a former detainee at Guantanamo Bay, and head of the human rights section at Al-Jazeera Television. He will remain in Gaza to report on the ongoing military onslaught.

(UK) Dr. David Halpin
Dr. Halpin is an experienced orthopaedic surgeon, medical professor, and ship's captain. He has organized humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza on several occasions with the Dove and Dolphin. He is traveling to Gaza to volunteer in hospitals and clinics.

(Germany) Dr. Mohamed Issa
Dr. Issa is a pediatric surgeon from Germany. He is traveling to Gaza to volunteer in hospitals and clinics.

(UK/Tunisia) Fathi Jaouadi
Fathi is a television producer and human rights activist. He will remain in Gaza to do human rights monitoring and reporting.

(USA) Cynthia McKinney
Cynthia is a former U.S. Congresswoman from Georgia, and the 2008 Green Party presidential candidate. She is traveling to Gaza to assess the ongoing conflict.

(Cyprus) Martha Paisi
Martha is a senior research fellow and experienced human rights activist. She is traveling to Gaza to do human rights work and to assist with humanitarian relief efforts.

(UK) Karl Penhaul
Karl Penhaul is a video correspondent for CNN, based out of Bogotá, Colombia. Appointed to this position in February 2004, he covers breaking news around the world utilizing CNN's new laptop-based 'Digital Newsgathering' system. He is traveling to Gaza to report on the ongoing conflict.

(Iraq) Thaer Shaker
Thaer is a cameraman with Al-Jazeera television. He will remain in Gaza to report on the ongoing military onslaught.

(Cyprus) Dr. Elena Theoharous, MP
Dr. Theoharous is a surgeon and a Member of the Cypriot Parliament. She is traveling to Gaza to assess the ongoing conflict, assist with humanitarian relief efforts, and volunteer in hospitals.

Want to fight back Israelis? Here's the plan!

2008-12-29T08:47:00.001-08:00

An inspiring facebook note written by Bisher Al-Homsi

Want to fight back Israelis? Here's the plan!

I know that we all feel angry and we are so emotionally charged towards what's happening in Gaza. And I'm telling you it's been hard on me personally. I felt so angry and I even cried like a little girl once I saw what happened on the news!
It's really efficient that we use this emotions and anger in the right and efficient way.
And I'm really afraid that some of us will be very excited for a while then they will get cold in a matter of a few days.

So, the question is: WHAT CAN WE DO?

Do we have to fight them back with shotguns and rocks? Do we have to go to Israel and fight the Israelis? NO!
You shoot a bullet at them, and they are going to shoot a million bullet back at you!
Shooting is not the answer.

So, here's what is going to bring Al-Quds back to us!
Here's what is going to stop these bastards from killing us, playing with us like puppets, and controlling our lives by doing whatever they want with us.

First we have to notice that we are actually paying the price of our tardiness and abandoning to apply the precepts of Islam. Our weak connections with our real conceptions of Islam made us weak in ourselves. In the past, we started being like that until we passed the power and domination to the other nations where they worked hard in every sector in life till they got the ultimate power over the world; and I'm speaking about the US and Israel.

So, it's time that we get back to Islam. Build our minds and souls. Stop chasing girls for meaningless love stories! Stop being lazy at schools!
It's time to start searching in the Quran and learn about the amazing and the precious things that this amazing religion have for us in each and every sector in life.

These are called the natural laws of granting victory. That's exactly what the prophet meant by saying that Allah won't change the situation of people till they change themselves
إن الله لا يغير ما بقوم حتى يغيروا ما بأنفسهم

It would be the dumbest thing ever to go and fight Israelis back! They got the technology, science, power, and the destroying weapons. They're gonna kick our assess out there, that's a sure thing!

But do you know how you can fight them while you are in your country, inside your room? How? Here how!

When you spend some time to learn, and acquire knowledge to rise the flag of Islamic Nations up in the skies.. That's equal to 1 million bullets in Israeli's butts.

When you treat Muslims in a good way, smile to their faces, being a good friend, and help in uniting all people under one flag, the flag of Islam.. That's a zillion bullets in Israeli's butts.

When you stop chasing girl and get involved in meaningless relationships that eats your heart out and eats her heart out as well, and start to learn the reasons about why Islam wanted to save your heart by making laws like Hijab or the laws having relationships.. and after that, start thinking about the concept of family, and how you should take care of your kids and learn the Islamic teachings that guide you in leading that sacred ship.. That's a billion bullets in Israeli's butts.

When you think about Allah, and his names الأسماء الحسنى
And what do they mean, and how they can help you knowing your God better so you feel the closeness with Him… That's a fat huge nuclear bomb that can destroy Israelis how ever far they go..

When you treat your wife with love and care, stop beating her, and start work hard to make her happy and safe with your children, and be close to your family all the time teaching them and satisfy their needs of good livings..
That's a million bulldozers sent to Israel ..

The list can go on and on … now let me have your own list of what can you do to make a difference

And here's a rule that I learned from a wise man, and which I'm never going to forget.. These are his exact words, to me he said:
"I grew up thinking that my mission is to try saving the world until I realized that a man's mission is first to save himself"
If you will remember anything from my words, remember this.. !

Allah says that He won't ask from you something that you won't be able to do ..
إن الله لايكلف نفسا إلا وسعها

So,
Are you a student? Get straight A's at your classes, and that's your way of Jihad

Are you a business man? Wow, that's how Islam reached the far east! Did you know that ?.. yeah, read the history.. it's the trading and the business men who traveled there for business is what made the others like Islam because of the Muslim Business men behaviors.. So there's a lot more you can do than just craving for money ! and that would be your own way of Jihad

Are you a musician? Write a song that can move millions in the whole world about what is happening in Gaza.. ! Remember that music is the language that the whole world speaks! So show me your guitar and let me hear the rhythms!

Whatever you are you should move from your circle of concern, to the circle of influence. That's what author Stephen R. Covey talked about in his Great book " The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People"
He says that if you want to do something massive and creative.. Stop talking about governments and how they are corrupted (Circle of Concern) and start thinking about how you can improve your self (Circle of influence and effectiveness)
To think smart, or to make a difference.. Think about your talents that you can use to improve your society.. Whether it's scientific or artistic talent .. USE it !
That's how you make a difference..

That's what I think .. ! Tell me what do you think!

Massacre continues

2008-12-28T21:23:00.000-08:00

Universty was hit, and Gaza now gets ready for War.

No comment from Obama

Jew ends support of Israel

Real ways to stand with the people of Gaza

Arab world losing tolerance for indifferent leaders

Massacre

2008-12-28T01:11:00.000-08:00

It's disgusting, what's happening in Gaza. 200 people killed in a mere 3 hours. I've been feeling so desolate and angry since yesterday night, and I am having a hard time concentrating at work at work coz I keep thinking of it. What I am feeling though is nothing, not even an atom of what the people of Gaza must be feeling now and Palestinians all over the world. Even the most level headed and peaceful person would lose their mind in such a situation and go on a killing rampage against the Israelis, seeing the blood of his fellow people spilled so easily ...

------------------------
UPDATE

Death toll has now reached 300, with over 1000 people injured. People have reacted angrily to the bloodshed on the streets, but arab leaders still standing by, postponing the emergency meeting coz of other meetings taking place (like it would do any good in the first place).

Post by TI3GIB on the matter here.

Homunculus

2008-12-26T23:44:00.000-08:00

Click for larger

Let's talk about Snot baby

2008-12-25T13:53:00.002-08:00

So I learnt something new while at the Children's Museum today. I was actually wondering about this topic a couple of days ago when I had the flu. Click on the image to understand what the hell I am on about.

Fascinating =O

So the yellow snot are heroic white blood cells that died in battle. Am never gonna look at my yellow snot in the same way again xD

9

2008-12-24T08:35:00.000-08:00

9's trailer ...

"... 9 will also be an upcoming computer animated feature film adapted from the short film and will be produced in part by Tim Burton, Timur Bekmambetov, and Jim Lemley and is scheduled for release on September 9, 2009. It is being animated in Luxembourg by Attitude Studio and will be released by Focus Features."

Source

Here is the orginal short animated version of 9 made back in 2005, from which the feature length is being adapted from. It was created by Shane Acker, and although CGI, the film has a stop motion feel to it (which I totally LOVE!) It won many awards, and was nominated for the Academy Award of best animated short film.

Ahhh ... my love for animation, espically stop motion animation, is being unabashedly teased by this movie. It's so beautiful and delecious!

Lip biting

2008-12-23T21:32:00.000-08:00

I seems to have a little habit of biting my lips uncounciously. I always have bite marks on my lower lips, and they are espically promeninet when I wake up in the morning. A bit of lip balm and the bite marks are smoothed away.

I kinda really noticed the bite marks today morning.

“Hmmm … “ my brain thought “why do I bite my lips a9lan (in the first place) ?”

So I apply a bit of lip balm, marks are smoothed away. I drive into work (40 minutes coz of traffic), go to the toilet to freshen up and notice the bite marks back again. Walked to my desk, googled (biting lips) and got some gory- licious pictures as result.

Lip biting is mostly harmless, but with some people it’s a disorder resulting in self inflicted injury (kinda like how nail biting is mostly harmless, but when hardcore it’s totally not). They pretty much bite and scratch away at their lips until they bleed.

My lip biting is definatly not hardcore, and I moslty seem to do it when I am deep in thought or really annoyed.

The thing is, I NEVER notice when I do the actual lip biting. The marks are just there. Kinkay!

Alpha K

2008-12-23T09:13:00.000-08:00

And that's the name of my new DSLR Camera =P

(Excuse the mess, I got two laptops am tuining up and both are on my desk)

Bought her today (on a spending roll lol). After saving up for about two weeks I had half the amount I needed, but with my spending habits it was gonna take another month and a half until I collected enough to buy her. I kept on spending the saved cash on other stuff lol. So today morning during breakfast, my Dad gave me his bank card and with a lovely smile on his face told me to withdraw the amount money I need to get the camera. I grinned at him, clapped my hands gleefuly and yelled "Yay!!!". I was excited all day, and after work, I immediatly headed out to the store and bought Alpha K.

Damnation I am so looking forward to expermienting with photography. After extensive research, and actually wanting a Canon Rebel XTi as a first choice for a DSLR, I changed my mind to the Sony Alpha 200K because:

I am an amature photographer, and the Alpha 200K is the best recomended camera for beginners.
The image stabilization built into the camera's body is a darn nifty.
It has the features I need for the type of photography I will be using it for.
I get a lens as well as a Sony camera bag.
Every single review I read online about the camera was good.
My old camera is a Sony point and shoot and it lasted 5 years with no problems at all (until I dropped it xD)
Costs less. Really good for what it offers.

I must say though, I am rather daunted by all the controls available on the camera. I've had a quick skim through the instruction book and I think this might be the first instruction book I will actually sit down with and read page to page, because I truley am clueless. This camera is a whole other level away from my old baby (whom is now owned by my six year old sister. She followed me around the house today copying my every move with Alpha K with her "new" camera).

Here's the first photo I took with Alpha K, little bro is the sophisticated young model. She was in Auto mode.

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I am sick for the THIRD time in two weeks! What happened to my immune system? My white blood cells used to be powerful, warding off all attacks on my body. I rarely ever fell ill.

Then I traveled to New Zealand ...

*shrugs* Oh well. End of post.

Dagon

2008-12-21T22:59:00.000-08:00

Dagon is my new Black Moor fish ^_^

I got him yesterday, and I am determined that he lives for a long time, and not die like poor Mr.Fish (my previous pet goldfish). Come to think of it, I hope he isn't sucidal like Mr.Fish either ...

I saw Dagon yesterday in the petshop and instantly fell inlove with him.

He's so beautiful! Black and dark gold velvet like scales, and a mean face that looks like a dragon. My gothic fish lol. If taken care of well he can grow up to 10 inches! Just imagine how beautiful he will look with his long flowy tail and fins (He's currently about three inches). Hence the reason why I chose the name Dagon, he's a little fish god =P

I'm gonna get a bigger aquarium next week and place it in my bedroom. Dagon currently resides next to my Buddha lamp on my letter table. I've been waiting for our large aquarium to be installed in our hallway downstairs for over a year now, but to no avail. Hence, I will install one myself in my bedroom since I got plenty of space for a large one.

Dagon will have new friends soon, I've been reading up on fishes that he can live with and I think I will go with a white Veiltail as well as a red one. I want Veiltails that look just like the pretty ones in the 1940 Disney's Fantasia. How awesome would it be if my fishes could dance like them as well! I wish I could teach them to, but alas, if I was able to then the expression "Memory of a goldfish" would not exist =(

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UPDATE

=O

Omg you can actually teach goldfish tricks!

Check this out http://www.fish-school.com/

I must admit I am incredibly surprised

Melinda

2008-12-18T05:45:00.000-08:00

Say hi to Melinda =)

I finally started on her after weeks of procrastination. Just got the head done so far, took me the whole day! Will work on her body tomorrow.

Mind you, her looks may change a bit so this isn't exactly the final version of her face. I'm considering giving her longer hair since I don't like how she looks all Cleopatra-ish.

I wish I had better tools to work with =( I had to use the tip of a rubber to smooth out the clay.

Phatty suggested the name Melinda. I researched the meaning of it and fell inlove with the name:

"The modern name Melinda is a combination of "Mel" with the suffix "-inda". "Mel" can be derived from names such as Melanie meaning "dark, black" in Greek or from Melissa meaning "honey bee" in Greek. It is also associated with the Greek word meli meaning "honey" and with Linda meaning "gentle, soft, tender" in Germanic"

From wiki.

Melinda is gonna be used in a clay animation project. I already built the set, but I am gonna scrap it and start over because it's too small. Atleast I got a feel for how to build sets so I wont repeat any mistakes I've done with the first version.

Updates on Melinda and the project coming soon!