Easter And Papers

Easter came and went this year . I didn't have a chance to wish you a Happy Easter , so let me now, wish you a belated Happy  Easter .Hope for those of you that celebrate , it was wonderful . When I was a little girl baby chickens or baby rabbits were sold in the grocery stores as Easter presents for children . I think I got a baby rabbit once . My cousin Cathy would get a chicken every Easter . I never got it ... the whole chicken as a pet thing . I mean how can you take your chicken for a walk , or cuddle up to your chicken when you go to bed like you could, say, a cat or puppy ? So weird to me  , the whole thing . Even a rabbit as a pet ??? Not the same as a cat or dog .

When I became a mother , we would have the kids dye Easter eggs every single year .As far as I was concerned , it was a fate worse than death !!! I still shudder when I hear the word EASTER EGGS ! EVERY SINGLE YEAR  I would hear this ... He took my egg ! Momma , she is using my dipper ! Momma he put his egg in my blue dye !! Momma , he messed up my green ! Momma she's looking at me . Momma , they are crowding me ! He spilled my purple . I hate how this looks momma . My name egg didn't color pretty and now it is so ugly ( tears are flowing by now ) I hate it momma!!!Opps !! I spilled the red color all over the table momma . Where is the paper towels ?? Momma , momma , momma !!! I told them once that my name wasn't momma . They asked me what it was then ? I told them it was a secret! LOL ! That didn't work for long ,lol ! They knew I was Momma no matter what I called myself !

Then after all that arguing over the dyeing of the eggs , we had to set the eggs out later that night for the Easter Bunny to hide , when he brought the Easter baskets filled with candy later that night , after the kids were supposedly fast asleep . Actually , it was usually Moe and I that hide the eggs . One year we forgot where we hide several eggs that the kids never found . Thank goodness they were in the shell and didn't stink . I think I found them a month or two later inside a vase or in a cabinet .

Moe and I have been running all over town trying to get some papers that we both need in order to file for some more papers , lol . And you know how that is . 1st you have to just find the office, then you have to make about 2,000 trips there just to get one paper . Well , at least we are finished as of yesterday ! I feel like a miracle or something has happened . This has been a all consuming business for the last two weeks . Now we play the waiting game .The funny thing is, after we would get home from going to here and there , we would be so mentally  exhausted that all either one of us wanted to do was just vegetate . I am all for that !

Yesterday , after we went to the last place we needed to go to , we bought a sandwich , went to the beach to eat it and watch the waves crash into the shore line . It was a magical day for us . All our papers were finished , stamped , submitted ,and approved .It was cloudy and windy cool day without all the dust we have been having the last week . We even were rained on . There was a unique mood in the air .I could tell it was affecting others besides me too . People were happy and it seemed everyone I spoke to yesterday had good news to share .One friend is going home in the US to see her son graduate from university . The other is achieving her life long dream of going to Mecca for the Omrah Hag . She is singing praises to Allah all day and night for this opportunity .

Hey , don't forget ... tomorrow is National Don't Do Housework Day !!!! A VERY IMPORTANT DAY !!!!  My personal all time favorite holiday . I think it should have much more recognition as a holiday than it dose now . Prehappes we should start a grass roots movement to make this a "day off" type holiday around the world ? What do you think? Is this celebrated in your country ? I just told Moe about it and he is still laughing!

Nagaza Restaurant And Hotel

Hey, just wanted to let the people in and around the Tripoli  to Homos area know that the Nagaza Hotel , where many of us like to drive to for cup of coffee or meal, while we sit out on their veranda to enjoy the view looking through the pine trees to the Med. Sea in the distance, is closed for repairs and renovations . How long , I couldn't find out . Thought I would save you the trip if it was on your list of places you were thinking about going to soon .

Moe and I like the drive there and back from Tagura . We love to sit outside and look down on the sea from the hill sides where the hotel sits nesteled amoung pine trees drinking cappuccino's . I especially love it when there is a breeze the whistels through the pine needles . Makes me think of the piney woods of east Texas .

Pine tree image

Previews Of Coming Attractions - April !

When I was a little girl , there was a rhyme that said " April showers bring May flowers " .I don't know about the showers part here in Libya . We usually have those in Jan. or Feb. and the flowers come in late Feb. or early March . We didn't get much of  either this year sad to say . April is a great spring  month ! Look and see what's coming in April .

Easter comes in April this year . Sunday the 4th is Easter  . The month of April is host to some other intersting holidays such as : National Autisum Awarness Month , also National Child Abuse Prevention Month .Stress Awarness month is important for many of us since it affects us all one way or another .But April isn't all seriousness . There are plenty of fun days in April , like April Fools Day on April 1st .This day is one joke after another !The 3rd is Find A Rainbow Day , I guess you could do that while watching all those April showers the rhyme talks about, huh ? April 5th is a big day for men that think they NEVER need to ask directions when on a road trip and LOST . It is Road Map Day . The day I am looking forward to is April 7th , No Housework Day . Yeah !!! See ladies , it is official , you don't have to clean house on the 7th ! If you feel superstitious , I wouldn't plan a ocean cruise on April 14th . That day is Titanic Day, after the day the ship Titanic struck the fatal ice berg that caused it to sink .That day is a definite no no for a cruise ! Another day of gloom is Tax Day on the 15th . Just skip that day altoghether ok ? The next day should be much better , that's Eggs Benedict Day , yummy ! On the 19th you could laugh yourself silly . It is Humorous Day .The following day is Cookoo Day . Not too sure if they mean crazy or the bird , hum , what do you think ? Earth Day on the 22nd  is pretty important all over the world . And where would we be today with out Zipper Day on the 29th? Arbor Day is celebrated in the US usually on the last Friday of April , which this year will fall on the 30th . Most country's all around the world have a Arbor Day where they celebrate by planting trees and / or plants . This ties in to Earth Day and is so very important for the Earth's health . So go out and plant something living on the 30th and watch a life grow .You have all sorts of days to look forward to this coming month , mark them on your calander . Go have some fun !

Life to Date

Hi ! It has been a while since I last wrote . One reason is Moe has suddenly decided I am spending too much time on the computer .That means the WHEN I DO get a chance to go on line , I am on longer than ever , trying to catch up on the mail , reading ( which I am so sorry to say I am MONTHS behind reading other blogs and have missed out on what my friends have been up to in their lives . All thanks to MOE !) , posting , Facebooking, and all that other jazz  I can only do in line .He doesn't " do computer" and has no interest in "doing computer " either , so that makes it harder for him to understand the WHY . This will pass. I just have to be patient and he will find a new project to keep him busy .

It is almost the end of the month . I am glade . We will get paid soon and I can go grocery shopping then . I need to start to stock up on stuff for Ramadan that is coming in about 3 1/2 months .Food prices have been steadily rising .  We bought a chicken that cost us 3 dinars last month . Yesterday the same size chicken cost us 7 1/2 dinars . Chicken is the cheapest meat here . What are the poor doing  for meat source ? Doing with out .Some food items were hard to find for a while .They are back on the shelves again .But need to buy them before they go AWOL again .The thing about living here is, if you see something today , it doesn't necessarily follow that you will see it tomorrow . So , you buy it if you can, when you see it . Supply and demand have a long lag period here .

I have been thinking about this new health care bill in the States . I am all for it , although I am not exactly sure what all it entails , the pros and cons . I know that sounds stupid . Consider this though , 1 child  living in a house in a American neighborhood  , with a child in every house ,will not have any sort of health care at ALL , because the parents can't afford it . Maybe the next door neighbors kid will be covered by insurance, and the 2 kids next door to them will have some sort of insurance , but then the house on the other side of them will not  have insurance, for the same reason as the 1st child .1 in 4 kids will have to figure out what to do if they break their arm playing outside because they can't go to the hospital for treatment. They have no insurance . 1 in 4 kids will have no insurance to go to the doctor if they get pneumonia . They will probably die .1 in 4 kids ,that is too many .No more will a insurance company be able to cancel your insurance policy, OR refuse to sell insurance to a person because of the dreaded " PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS" policy that exists up until now .How wonderful is that ?? To know that you can still be covered by insurance if you need it , as in the case of so many cancer patients .

The Republicans started a scare campaign , along with the insurance lobbies to try to stop the bill . Thank God they failed .There will be the good and the bad from this new health care bill, but all I know is this is the most momentous bill in both houses since the Civil Rights bills in the 1960's . And the Welfare / Social Security bills of the 1940's . Both were predicted to be the end of the world  , the end of America . They weren't . They were the making of America .This is of the same caliber . England is doing just fine with it's health care system . As a matter of fact , I had a American friend living here in Libya, go to England to have cancer treatment because Libya didn't offer what they needed and America was too expensive and unobtainable because of no insurance ... pre existing condition .

Something else on my mind , not nearly as heavy ,but equally difficult to understand , is people I have recently re-connected with on Facebook, that I haven't been in contact with in over .... well, many years, let's just say ,lol, are so blown away by the fact that I am living here in Libya , married to a Libyan , raised our children here ,and I have become a Muslim . As IF  I have become a alien from outer space or something . I am asked the strangest questions .Their imaginations have run wild . I am waiting for some one to ask me if I ride a camel instead of driving a car , lol .That just goes to show you several things . One, that the way Libya has been portrayed over the years by the Western media is biased , slanted , and incorrect in many ways .That isn't to say history isn't history , but rather there is HISTORY , and then there is HISTORY . Perspective is everything .With the advent of the internet , things should be easier to learn about and to see , if a person takes the time to investigate .Propaganda is rampant all over , so one must use common sense and a sieve to find the truth sometimes on any subject .Of course I can't really blame them for the misconceptions they have because of the things the the radical Muslims have been doing to gain  negative press coverage in the news .The assumption is that All MUSLIMS , i.e. all Arabs ( LIBYANS ) are terrorist .

Smaller things are bothering me , like why can't I get YouTube on my computer any more ? I have reset my settings , done this and did that . Nothing . I miss YouTube  a lot . I guess I will no longer  be able to post music on my blog .Really hate that ! I am gaining weight again . Yeah , I KNOW what to do about that , sigh , but have a hard time doing it ! Need to get to Sheila's and have her cut my hair short since it is getting warmer. AND I want to complain about the mosquitoes problem we are having around the Condo . I bought a bug insecticide that plugs into the electrical wall outlet . It works . Yeah ! Only problem ... it gives me asthma . It made Patches La Chat ill as well . I didn't plug it in tonight . So far , so good . May not need to use it all the time .

Oh yeah , the next time you hear about a country that is in a "CIVIL WAR" , think genocide . Civil war is just a nice way of saying " ethnic cleansing " no matter what they call it . Also , " Human Trafficking Day " was yesterday .Human trafficking ? Just call it what it is ... slavery . This is 2010 and slavery is still rampant ALL OVER THE WORLD ! OMG !!! I know there is some other stuff I wanted to get off my chest but my mind goes blank right now. I guess that let's you off the hook for now . No more moaning and groaning from me for a while.Am going to bed to think of something positive to write about next time .Ciao !

Artist unknown but painting named " Dizzy" .

Your Age By Chocolate

Here is some fun to have with chocolate . Add up your age using this chocolate test . It really works .

YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH

 Don't tell me your age; you'd probably lie anyway-but the Hershey Man will know!

    YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH

 This is pretty neat.

 DON'T CHEAT BY SCROLLING DOWN FIRST!
It takes less than a minute .
Work this out as you read .
Be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out!
This is not one of those waste of time things, it's fun.

 1. First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to have chocolate (more than once but less than 10)

2. Multiply this number by 2 (just to be bold)

 3. Add 5

 4. Multiply it by 50 -- I'll wait while you get the calculator LOL !

 5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1760 .
If you haven't, add 1759. Tell the truth !

6.. Now subtract the four digit year that you were born.

You should have a three digit number . Aren't you JUST dyeing to know what that means , lol ?

Doesn't all this chocolate look good? Ok , next ...
 The first digit of this was your original number
(i.e., how many times you want to have chocolate each week).

 OMG ! I used to LOVE chocolate covered cherries ! Alright , back to the test ....
The next two numbers are ........... Can you wait ???

  

YOUR AGE! (Oh YES, it is!!!!!)

 

THIS IS THE ONLY YEAR (2010) IT WILL EVER WORK, SO SPREAD IT AROUND WHILE IT LASTS.

 Here is a Chocolate Calculator just in case you need one again .

 

Muslim Feminism Alive and Well

Femagination

The feminist imagination blog is a conundrum of sorts .On one hand it is a moderate feminist blog , not a "burn your bra" feminist rant,  as one thinks about when you hear the word " feminist ".It is written by a woman that likes women for all the amazing things we are , rather than a "feminist " that hates all men .

More interestingly is the fact that she only recently became a Muslim , while her husband , not a convert, is very supportive of her choice of a new religion .She says it was the influence of Libyans that she met studying in the States where she lives . She wears the Hijab . Yet somehow she has managed to integrate her new beliefs and religion into her feminist  views . She is very insightful  and honest . 

I think whether you are Muslim or not, you will like what she has to say about being a woman and a Muslim . Go to these different links to see what she has to say about it all .Enjoy !

Islam and Gender Roles

Burqa Barbie

Conversation With Muslim Women About "Covering" ( Hijab, Niqab , Or Nothing )

Muslim Feminism :  Women At Prayer

Happy Saint Patricks Day

On March 17 every one becomes Irish! Happy Saint Patrick's Day to Ya !

p

Moe and Cupping

That is a picture of Moe's back . Gorgeous isn't it ???? Looks like he has been attacked by a giant octopus or some other sea monster, huh ? The marks have been caused by wet cupping .It is a form of blood letting , or hijama as it is called in Arabic.It's all the rage here in Libya .

I really don't now how to write about this " cupping " thing . I am over whelmed by all the data on " cupping". It is an ancient healing method for all sorts of ailments  dating from several 1,000 years ago .It plays a major roll in Islamic healing , which by the way , Islamic medicine was way advanced in the Middle Ages to an unbelievable extent , almost comparable to today's medicine . A actual trail blazer in modern methods and healing  procedures . The Prophet Mohammad was a strong advocate for cupping , as he himself used it for treating his medical issues .

Anyway , my  Moe decided to go have his self cupped because he thought it would be a magic cure for all that ails him .His new best friend that he met in the coffee shop near the Condo was going on and on about how he had been cupped and cured of ... WHATEVER , and he JUST knew if Moe went to be cupped he would be healed of everything too .

Moe came home and said he was going to do the cupping too . I  was like oh no , here we go again ! We had gone through this all before , several years ago . I managed to talk him out of it then and was hoping to do so again , but not this time . He had his mind set on doing it . Even though I was sick and dying ( I had the flu AGAIN !) barely able to talk , I reminded him he had suffered two debilitating strokes , still had high blood pressure , and please let's don't forget the sugar diabetes ! Oh , and the 6 stints in his arteries ! But WHAT EVER ! That this cupping just might cause a blood clot or his sugar to drop dangerously low from blood lose. All Moe heard me say was "Yata, yata, yata ... blah, blah, blah !" And off he went to be cupped ! A happy camper .

I sat at home and waited to hear from him after the procedure was finished to tell me all was well , or some calling me to say he had died . No call . Ok , I won't panic .....YET ! I waited several hours and then called him . He answered his phone and was barely coherent when I spoke to him . He said he just woke up from a nap at the clinic. He  had fallen asleep right after the "doctor " was through cupping him . It sounded like he passed out to me , but what do I know ??? I am only a woman .

He came home and I asked him all about it and what happened . Did they check your blood pressure ? No he said . Hum , did they check your sugar ? No . Did they use new needles ? Yes . Oh Thank God for that I thought . Did they wear gloves ? Yes . Ok , that's good .Did it hurt ? Oh yeah ! Was it supposed to hurt you?
Moe seemed to think that yes it was supposed to hurt . Was there alot of blood ? Oh YEAH !!! TONS OF IT!! Didn't you tell them you were on a blood thinner ? Sure he says . I give up and stopped with the questions by this time . It was over and done with . Too late to do anything about it now . If he has another stroke due to a blood clot , so be it . What can I do now ?

The next day he has a killer headache . I panic . Is it like the one you had when you had your strokes before ? No . Is it like this ? Is it like that ? I check his blood pressure and I am up all night monitoring him and the headache . He refuses to go to the hospital and I can't get him down 4 flights of stairs alone . So , I am a nervous wreck .Finally the night is over and he is better .

Tonight I read that one is to never to lie down after cupping , but is to walk vigorously for 30 minutes afterward to prevent blood clots from forming  .The cupping isn't supposed to cause extreme pain , it did in Moe and the doctor thought it was all good .Some one with all his aliments shouldn't do this procedure at all .Last but not least ... there should only be very slight discoloration ( bruising ) and/or a faint ring that should leave in a couple of days . The above picture was taken 4 days later . He still has the rings on his back .

I will personally  KILL him IF he EVER does this again !!! We are talking about an educated man . A man that has traveled the world over . A man that knows he has to be careful of his health . So , if you ever hear that Moe was murdered by me , you will know why ! And I don't care what anyone says about cupping , it is a barbaric practice that should be stopped !