On Football

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If you can be here on the streets of Cairo tonight! Ahh, you'd be amazed! A little over two hours ago, the Egyptian national football team won us the Africa cup of  nations (CAN) for the third time in a row (seven times in total!) and the people are still cheering!

Thank you national team, for bringing happiness to the streets when you are on the other side of the continent!

In Attempts to Catch Up

My sister spilt coffee all over my laptop and was trying to blame me for it..."why do you have coffee next to your laptop anyway?" She ruined my touch-pad. And now the screen just randomly went black...and I can't switch it on again- any advice? I am using her laptop now..which is INSANELY slow.

Idiot.

Let me tell you about Liz. Elizabeth Miller is one of the sweetest people I have ever met! She is such a sweet person, seriously..! So yes.. you can find her here, here and here.

I don't know what to say about her, really...apart from the fact that my dad repeatedly forcefully fed her full! haha. My family loves her :)

My friends too!

And Liz kind of reminds me of myself such that sometimes when people are all doing one thing, I would find myself- if I may call it- detached and doing an entirely different thing. Or be some place in my head; some remote place.

I felt liberated in a way reading this...and curious, too.

I am guessing everyone reads Gala Darling, so I am guessing you've all read this- but I thought I should show it to you anyway!

I AM SO EXCITED!

I am going to meet this gorgeous lady here in a matter of HOURS!

AAAAAH!!!

I can't wait to finally meet you Liz!

Smile

I am one of the people who desperately need sunshine to survive...and it's cloudy and gloomy and just yucky today so I stayed in.

I stayed in because during the past week it would be insanely sunny during the day and a bit chilly at night.. and you wouldn't believe it's January.

So I am posting photos I took that make me happy. Because I need cheerfulness.

This is Hamza, who is part of the Jordanian band, Autostrad. I only met him once..or twice, but he's such a great person! He's friends with Mohammed.

Worldwide moment. Can you see my brother?

One view from the Cairo tower :) that was one amazing day.

One of the few photos of one of my closest cousins and friends SMILING! I miss you Hamoudi!

So yeah..What makes you smile? Other things that make me smile include: good books, moleskines, kindness, smiles, my father and his jokes, silly jokes, when people like food I cook, my friends. Mohammed's silly jokes, my brother, my family, when something fits perfectly, shoes, good lyrics...the SUN!!

Vegetarian Recipe!

 This post is dedicated to Red Boots:

This is the fanciest photo of Kushari I have ever seen!! found here, I found another recipe here

Kushari usially looks like this:

google

I promised you a Kushari recipe and so here it is :)
Traditionally, Kushari is basically pasta, rice and brown lentils...also vermicelli, fried onions could be added. All that mixed together and red sauce added. Some people add a mix of lemon juice and vinegar so there are a lot of variations on basic elements, if I may say- but...I will post it the way I cook it okay?

You need:
1 cup lentils, washed.
1 cup rice, washed. (egyptian rice is cooked + one cup of water..I don't know if you get that..so cook rice in as many cups as you usually do- only use the water from cooking lentils-see below!)
1 cup cooked macaroni
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of oil

Fry the onion (add salt and pepper), then add the lentils and stir until the lentils sort of change colour, add one cup of water. You will need to constantly add water so that by the time the lentils are cooked, you would have one cup "lentil water" left.

Egyptians fry rice in a bit of oil before adding water to it, not till it goes brown...but until it lumps up together in a way..I don't know if I am making sense...if I am not let me know okay? :)

Well, fry the rice and add the lentil water to it, so that when the rice is cooked it's a beige colour (I add some lentils with the water)

For the Sauce:
2 medium or large tomatoes, finely chopped.
1 tablespoon of vinegar.
tomato paste for colour (I add a tablespoon)
1 medium/large onion, finely chopped.
2-4 cloves of garlic, minced.

Heat some oil, and fry the onion, garlic then add tomatoes, then the tomato paste, stir for around 3 minutes then add some water and the vinegar, cover the sauce and leave to cook. Kushari sauce is supposed to be a bit thinner than pasta sauce.

A serving of Kushari is made of lentils, rice and macaroni mixed together, and a tablespoon or two of sauce added. I prefer not to add macaroni because that's too much carbs for me, so I end up not cooking any to begin with!

I hope you like it...oh and let me know if you need me to clarify anything? I think everyone should try this it warms you up, and is very filling!!

Promised Photos

It's okay for me to show my cousins off. I know.

This man's mother and I share a surname. ie His mum is my dad's cousin. So we're almost cousins. Himself, his brother and their two very talented cousins are the Pete and Jen of my dad's side of the family. Unfortunately though, I don't  know them as much (well)..I would post a photo of him but I didn't ask for permission...so I won't.

He takes beautiful, and by beautiful I mean beautiful! shots..my favourite of which are these three;
(This first one is my absolute favourite)

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Click to enlarge, I guess. Show some love :)

Photos and Clarity

Ju tagged me to share my favourite photo...and I thought, I have quite a few favourites, so why not share one of the ones I've taken? My blog banner is one of my favourite..I took that.

And I took a few while in Sokhna..during the weekend. I have a cousin who takes GORGEOUS photos! I asked him if it's okay that I share some here. But I will wait for him to send them to me :)

Ain el Sokhna photos :) Taken by yours truly

Ju, can I pick a favourite painting?

wikipedia

I have another tag and an award waiting to be posted :) I loved this tag.

Anyway, so I have been looking for clarity right? I have a lot of books on my bookshelves that I haven't read yet, so sometimes one calls me- this time it was "A New World" I think it helped. Turns out I was looking for clarity in all the wrong places. I have been looking for signs and places and people; clarity is something within you. It's the peace that's inside you waiting to be acknowledged.

Yesterday, a friend who went with me to school- who I don't really know and don't remember talking to in real life- had his status as uninspired and I facebook messaged him- only because it felt right. I got this vibe from him and I had the urged to. A facebook message evolved into a messenger conversation that lasted till 4 am.

That helped me a lot. It made me smile. Smile at the randomness of life. And at the simplicity of it all...or rather the simplexity. Simplexity sounds so much better..it sounds like twinkling water. Anyway, I hope that left you inspired. I really do.

What makes you smile? What inspires you? Any photography tips?

Untitled.

My grandmother sometimes confuses things. She forgets.
She tells stories over and over without realizing it. And she can call the same person twice if not more, for the same purpose. And it makes me sad. Just a little. Because my grandmother was so in control of her life. It's scary.

We're going to Sokhna today, by the Red Sea... maybe I'll find my clarity. I have been praying for clarity. Constantly.

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I've been pleading for clarity. Maybe it's true that when you want something so bad you never get it? Or...does the concept of a watched pot never boils apply here? It reminds me of having to wait for someone to be there for me when I hit that man on his scooter.

I.want.clarity.

Please find me?

Oh and check this out!!

Sometimes, I "write"

I've been having sleeping trouble lately...and I can't get myself to think of/about certain things...
Yesterday I went out with my cousins and stuffed myself full...we also got complimentary dessert. Anyway, I posted this on facebook...and thought I should post it here as well;

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In which I fail to rhyme
Encircled in quietude
the comfort in solitude..

In hope for a voice
(a sound)
Familiarity;
of language..
of tone
of tune
of home.

Complex in its primitiveness
Passive
Concrete
Regressive
Discrete

In which I fail to rhyme
A comfort I fail to mime.
You are not me.
(who do you mean?)
by(e) you,
by me.

In which I fail to structure.
To write..
A piece.
(peace)

An eternal tan.
A sun-kissed smile
Eyes tinted with honey
Warm toned and gracious

In which you remind me of me
A moment.
A brief- almost unquestionable encounter

In which I fail to rhyme
(as usual!)
A corner. Ignored.
Dark, damp and delusional.

Any thoughts on that people? I need opinions...it has been a while..It's bright and sunny outside! And the sun feels beautiful on my skin...and at night, the chill is usually as beautiful!

Hello, 2010!

Thank you for being nice to me, lovely new year :)

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I am no longer "grounded"! I understand what my father was trying to do...he was trying to make sure I value my freedom, and that I am thankful for it.
Not that it is something that can be taken away, but at times, it can be a luxury. And I fully understand that.

here I love that book/film

I realized that our children won't know what cassette tapes are, they wouldn't be able to imagine life before the internet, the won't have a VCR nor tapes to tape things on to, or watch their favorite cartoons..If video killed the radio star, who is it that's going to die during this decade?

they took the credit for your second symphony.
Rewritten by machine and new technology,
and now I understand the problems you can see. 

Video Killed the Radio Star

I will shine this decade. We all should.

It's now or never.

I understand that I will never be to old to be my parents' daughter! And I will never be too old to learn, never too old to heal...

I woke up today to a message from Uncle Steve, and being the emotional person I currently am, it made me cry! He said that once I know what I want, it will all work out fine, I will find obstacles, but I shall overcome them. Yes, my Uncle Steve is amazing! (and so are both sides of my family!)

I'll leave you with this:

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