Simple Pleasures

1. Finding that one empty seat on an early morning train to work
2. Watching sail boats swim with swans while I have my Saturday morning tea.
3. Finishing work on time and leaving when it's still light outside.
4. Hugs from Papaya.
5. Clean Sheets & PJs and falling asleep to the smell of comfort (in so many ways).
6. Manicures.
7. Finishing a good book.
8. BBQs and not having to "man the grill" because the "men" will do it.
9. Hand Cream.
10. Damn Good Music.
    

Michael Buble may have a funny name but he just wants to go home.

June 8th. My sister-in-law's birthday, also, my last day at work.

I handed in my resignation last Friday, right before going out to a big dinner with my colleagues to celebrate my engagement.

I didn't tell any of my colleagues, instead I just watched them all have a good time while three of my managers cornered me throughout the night and tried to convince me to stay. It was strange. My colleagues managed to sober up by Monday morning and corner me then after I told them. That was pretty strange too.

"Why" was the big question, so I had to pull out a couple of "excuses" if you'd like to call them that. Engagement. Family. Living alone is lonely (no shit). London's too expensive (give me a huge pay rise). London isn't home (I should go back to Bahrain). The last one got them nodding their heads in approval and they all told me they understand and wished me luck, so whatever my real "excuse" is, I'll let that be my "excuse" for now.

I say it but I have to admit, I feel a little uneasy about going back to Bahrain, whenever it is I do. I mean, I love Bahrain, my family lives there, you can get cocktail juice from practically anywhere, it's fantastic. But I have been away for a long time and I'm definitely a little nervous about moving back, whenever it is I move back. It could be on June the 9th, it could be 3 months from then, at this moment, I don't really know.

A year ago, when my future was uncertain and everything was pretty much a bitch, I was chatting with a friend and she asked me if I liked Bahrain. She asked because at the time, she saw me as a city girl and she thought London suited me perfectly. This could have been because a black cab had just splashed water all over us on the street and I shouted out "W*****!" She said she thought London was a good home for me and luckily I found a job so I made it my home for a while.

"Home is where your heart is, it's where you hang your hat" See, my heart is in Bahrain, but I don't hang my hat there just yet. I don't even wear hats in Bahrain. I've been hanging my hat here for so long that I don't mind it, I'm okay about it. I go about, do my thing, never once think of myself as a stranger but just another face in the crowd. And honestly? In a lot of respects, I've been alright...

But sometimes, sometimes, when it's cold (a lot) and grey (all the time), and when I take my long journey home from work alone (every single night), I think of what it would be like to just get in my car, go to my real home and see my parents hanging out or meet up with my man for dinner and talk about stuff in person and not over the phone... I wonder what it would be like to see my siblings on a daily basis (and not yearly) or go over to an old friend's house by not having to travel for 45 minutes to get there with dead skin cells and mice (even though we live in the same city)... Sometimes I get home and it's that meal for one on that empty dining table that really gets to me and I just feel like crawling into bed and pretending that "coming home" bit was all a bad dream, and that really, everyone's waiting for me in my real home back in Bahrain.

I've made a decision and "going home" it is, along with many other things that I am still sorting out (career, relationship, get-fitter-than-my-dad plan). For a little bit, anyway. Some people have told me to come back and that it's time, others are urging me to stick out and stay abroad, but I think I'm making the right decision somehow. Minus all the panic attacks and "this is all for you!" tantrums, I'm excited about being back home. Home where hugs are frequent and there's no need to vacuum, and the fridge is always filled with chocolate milk. So I'm in, for now, and I'm excited.

The Demise of the Cassette Tape

Take me back to 1994: I'm 11 years old and I'm going through a shoebox of cassette tapes my siblings have for me to rummage through in our play room. That was all I needed on an afternoon indoors, a box of tapes and a cassette player (our beloved Robo-Disco) and I was set. My fingers were imprinted with little square shapes from pressing the rewind-stop-play buttons so many times and I didn't mind - this was music to me. This was how it was supposed to be, you and your cassettes.

Tapes were all we had, stacked in neat little piles with their boxes and tiny pictures of the artists whose music they blared on our players - they were cool. As school kids, we'd hop into whatever car and pull out our tapes from our book bags and pass them to the front seat. "Side A, first song" - I laugh now when I remember how many times I must have said "press play press play! I'll miss the song!" Oh my...

Then there were the cherished Mix-Tapes. Mix tapes were the coolest - if you got a mix-tape from someone, well, we all knew what that meant... I remember sticking stickers on mine to my girlfriends, spending hours trying to make the perfect tape with the perfect pauses between songs and well timed to fill a whole tape and not over run (such amateurs, whoever overran with their mix-tapes). Telling someone you'd make them a tape was a commitment, hours dedicated to producing something the perfect tape for someone. There was no imaginary database filled with music and a cutesy little program let you click all your choices onto a list and ta da, it all happened... oh no Sir, there was a shoebox filled with cassettes that you had to rummage though. If you were organized (which you never were), you'd have them all laid out infront of you, with a list of songs... Then you'd go through them, listening to each whole song before pausing, putting in another tape, pressing record & play and then rummaging for another... Kids nowadays probably laugh at our ghetto ways, but ghetto is that who does not know the tape, I say... Ghet-to...

But Alas, no more... No more tapes, we then took on MD players and CDs... and from CDs we moved on to the electronic age where mp3s and iPods and compact nice BOSE speakers for our MP3 players came about... and now no one punches "stop" or "play" on a stubborn button, we all pull out our super flash, super small and super sexy gadgets and twirl our fingers around to play 18 hours of non-stop music. Sorry Maxwell, your 90 minutes mean nothing anymore...

When was the last time anyone bought a tape? I can shamelessly tell you now that the last tape I bought was Norah Jones in the summer of 2003 from Dubai for my car (which did not have a CD player, "Ghetto" I hear you kids taunting!)... I don't know if that's what's funny or that I had to explain to a friend why I was buying a tape and not a CD (not so shamelessly, I tell ya)...

The last mix-tape I received? Now this I know for a FACT: Summer of 2001 from my good friend Mai - a tape that had Side A filled with cool music at the time (whatever dance/R&B was big) and then Side B which was filled with more geeky acoustic stuff for me (shameless, I am shameless!). The tape was, again, for my car when I first got my licence and the only tape I not only took with me to college, but I listened to that Side B for 3 years... Thanks Mimi, that tape you made for the Opel was far more valued than you thought it was...!

Last Tape I heard? Funny enough, walking around my flat a couple of weeks ago, I stopped when I heard a familiar click I haven't heard in a while... I turned to look at my flatmate, who was lounging on the couch reading a book, and asked her what it was... She merely muttered "Music", nodding her head towards the stereo system.


"Are you listening to a Tape?" I asked, astonished, as the music continued (It's one of those "smart" systems, as my flatmate calls it... the type that has a car-style 6-CD changer and flips tapes when it gets to the end of the side). I stopped in my tracks and in my fluffy house socks.

"Yup" nose still buried in her book.

"Really??!?!!" She put her book down and turned to me

"Yeah, really? Why?" She was confused and so was I. I shook my head and walked away... Who still listens to tapes?

Find out how to revive your old tapes here.

It's a beautiful May Day

M’aidez
—French for “Help me,” which is pronounced in English like “Mayday,” a universal radio code indicating extreme distress.

Taken from Margret Atwood's A Handmaid's Tale, I remember the story of M'Aidez/Mayday every year today. While protestors are shouting abuse towards Blair and the Labour Party (ha ha), I sit inside my office and remembers stories we read in high school that scared us of Big Brother and whether we'd all become Handmaid's one day.

May Day in England is a bit of an anti-capitalist day (it isn't referred to as Labour Day here as fondly as it is in other parts of the world) and as today isn't an official holiday, I don't see how this is a national workers' holiday. May Day grants us a "Bank Holiday" on the first Monday of May - also, not the 1st of May - so really none of it makes any sense.

Well, tying it back into The Handmaid's Tale it does. "It's a Beautiful May Day" is what Ofglen tells Offred while walking in a garden (*I really don't remember all the details, but bear with me), a hint at a secret revolutionist group in the Brave New World. And although it refers to that and all the symbolism that my perverted highschool English teacher drilled into us poor kids, my favourite part (probably in the whole book) is Offred remembering a conversation with her husband Luke about the word itself "Mayday" - a deviation from the french "M'Aidez" (or "help me"), which was adopted in World War II from all the french fighter pilots.

"M'Aidez" she remembers, and I remember, every 1st of May. As a student, it meant nothing to me as today would have been any other day in the past. But today, as I sit in an artificially lit office and I think of May Day. As much as I try to think of it as a holiday, I just whistfully think "M'Aidez"...

What Lyrics... # 3

Make you think of your significant other?


"I'm writing you to catch you up on places I've been
and you have this letter probably got excited,
but there's nothing else inside it...

Didn't have a camera by my side this time
Hopin' I would see the world through both my eyes
Maybe I would tell you all about it
when I'm in the mood to lose my way
but let me say

You should have seen that sunrise,
with your own eyes
It brought me back to life
You'll be with me next time
no more 3 x 5 's"

3 x 5 - John Mayer



"My life
You electrify my life
Let's conspire to re-ignite
All the souls that would die just to feel alive"

Starlight - Muse



"You're my foe and my brother and lover and friend."

Romantic Comedy - Stars



"And I know that the touch of you is hard to remember
but like that touch, I know no other
and for sure, we've danced in the risk of eachother
would you like to dance around the world with me?"

I'll Back You Up - Dave Matthews Band



"Maybe I just wanna fly,
wanna live I don't wanna die,
Maybe I just wanna breathe,
maybe I just don't believe
Maybe you're the same as me,
we see things they'll never see
you and I are gonna live forever..."

Life Forever - Oasis



"and you know, for you I'd bleed myself dry"

Yellow - Coldplay

On Going Home and all the Big Things that come along with it

It all ended far too soon.

I always knew that my 8 day vacation would fly by and I tried not to think about it too much. When my plane touched down on good ol' Bahraini land, my face stretched out into my side-ways-banana-grin and I vowed to make the most of my vacation time at home. Considering the short period of time I had, I think I did an alright job: perhaps I didn't get to see enough friends or spend enough time just hanging out with my parents, but you can only do so much in a week. To be fair, I think I did a decent job of doing a number of pretty cool stuff.

Much family stuff was in order: seeing my parents, my siblings, my little niece, it was all too good to have them back. I twirled around in my house and all its open space, leaving behind memories of cramped London flats and enjoyed being at home. So many changes to the house (our 1992 computer was finally replaced and Dad managed to move that horrid Spirit style, running horses, painting from the entrance hallway) but not too many to the neighbourhood (our neighbour's stupid well is still standing on the main street, inviting me to trash it if it's still standing the next time I'm back), which gave me a warm sense of comfort. The family are doing great, everyone looking fabulous, inches lost off waists and inches grown by the little one... My niece is fantastic and far more smart than I could imagine, I can safely say I've never heard a 4 year old criticize baby names by calling them "weak" before - I will definitely miss her and her strong adjectives the most.

Watching the F1 was a definite highlight; my first time on the Bahraini track gave me a huge adrenalin rush I didn't think imaginable. [insert teary eyes and national pride]. I don't think anyone was more proud of what this tiny little island has done than I am: The event itself was very impressive and I couldn't stop gushing at everything around me. I suppose I wasn't around to catch too much of it (only being back for the final race day) but I loved the atmosphere and the buzz on the island for that short period I caught: Bahrain, you did good, and from what I saw and heard, you threw one hell of a party.



Other Big News revolves around Big Life Decisions - for those of you who know me quite well, you'll know that I came back to Bahrain and got engaged to the most wonderful man on this planet. It was all very hectic - planning the big night, getting everyone together, fixing me up and meeting everyone - but it all went very well. Reunion of long lost friends and agreeable conversations made a relaxing evening for all, I'm very happy with the way everything turned out. I really appreciate everyone's congratulatory wishes to us both: you never think of it but it really makes a difference when you know that the people around you are genuinely happy for you in times like these. Of course, I couldn't be happier and I owe it all to the wonderful support I've received - thank you all for being a part of this special time for us, I hope I can reciprocate the love and comfort everyone has given me. And to the big oaf, I love post-us.



Lot's of other updates: Seeing old friends, making future life decisions, loving home and thinking hard about being away and how much longer I want to do this... I suppose it's all starting to come down to ground now, I've done quite a number of things I wanted to do so I guess it's time to re-write that list of "Things I want to Do When I Grow up" - maybe even think of scratching out the When I Grow up bit - and keep in mind that things are going to have to change a little... I'm a little nervous about what's going to happen next, but a nervousness that's mixed with excitement and a bit of determination to make things great.

Going home has put so much in perspective for me and made me realize how nice it is to be with your family around you all the time, even if they're a little mad. Touching down in London with the grey weather and detaching myself from everything around me again made me cry a little because I hadn't yet gotten used to being home, I hadn't had enough. It only took one long tube journey to make me numb again and take away all emotions because that's the way things are over here. I needed the break and I got it, with plenty of bonuses than I had asked for, and I am grateful for that. In true Soos fashion, I have to start my Bigger and Better plans, so watch this space for more...

Sweet Home, GuBuwa

I can now safely say, I am completely burnt out from work. It's gotten to a point that isn't even funny anymore, it's hil-a-rious. Early starts, late nights, lot's of frustrations, lot's of hair pulling & nail biting. But that's okay, because I'm going on vacation for a week - a week!

And I'm going home.

No one here understands how great this feels - it's 3:30 in the afternoon and after my manager's meeting, I am just itching to get out of here. I can't sit still, I keep on popping out of my corner office (*cough* sounds much more glamourous than it really is) into the open plan of scattered colleagues to do a little dance and taunt those less fortunate than me, all those people who are going to be stuck here while I'm on holiday!

All it took was one little meeting: when I turned from being super stressed to just not giving a damn. A huge smile crept on my face as my manager said "Well, I guess that's it then, finish whatever it is you have to do and have a great holiday" Mouth... starts...to... stretch... At this very moment, a little part from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory comes in mind when Grandpa Joe jumps out of his bed for the first time in some decades and does a dance in his pyjamas when Charlie finds the Golden Ticket in his bar of chocolate, singing Hallelujah!! So if you can't figure it out already, I am that excited.

I cannot wait. I cannot wait to see Baba. I cannot wait to see Mama. I cannot wait to see Big Brother 1, Big Sister, Big Brother 2, Sister-in-Law, number one niece... I cannot wait for the big things this break will break and the littler things. I cannot wait to see my friends and to see my toy mouse and my patchy garden and my home.

No one here knows how I feel, but I think everyone knows how much I need this vacation... and how much I need to get outta here and go home. I've had enough, everyone here knows it and I'm going to skip out of here, with my suitcase, and sing "La La la la" and leave everything behind. Laa laa laa laaa!

Home home home home, home. Not this ugly city, I'm going HOME.

*grin*

Happy Birthday Yaya

Love you big sister - you're the one in yellow (your favourite colour).

What Lyrics... # 2

Best describe your feelings about your current life situation?


"This town it breathes on its own
With or without me
The skyline wakes up whether or not I get out of bed
El trains, they rumble along
And headlines will happen with no help from me
And when I can’t keep it all up
I’ll sing, “La, la, la, la”

Chicago Slow Down - Canasata


"We are here to make you feel
It terrifies you, but its real"

Soft Revolution - Stars

Taggedy by June

Tagged by June, who knows better than to tag me, but I guess I say back to her "wot'eva" ... =)

If you don't know the rules, you can find them here, or here, or here, or here.

So, here are my 10 random facts that will probably forget 10 minutes from now:

1. If I could get plastic surgery on any part of my body, I would remodel my feet.
2. I am very snobby with the books I read and the music I listen to - I always adopt the "been there, done that" attitude which is also common in my brothers and my COUSIN HASAN.
3. I used to bite my toenails as a kid.
4. I have a morbid fear of fish heads and lizards.
5. I can't eat much chocolate 'cause it gives me a tummy ache. So from being a chocoholic kid I actually eat very, very little now. A lot of girls find that strange. I am, however, a good-cheese-aholic and once I start, I can't stop.
6. I rarely put sugar in my tea or coffee because I'm scared of being diabetic. I calorie count, fat count, sugar count, salt count, everything count, because of a subconcious fear of becoming diabetic - none of which makes sense, but it's instilled in me.
7. I love to cook for people but hate to cook for myself - I find no joy in eating alone. I also can't cook for one, so if I do cook, I'm also eating leftovers the next day.
8. There is nothing worse in the world than cold eggs. I only like my eggs one way, and if I do eat eggs other than runny sunny side up, I'm only being polite.
9. I was never one for fancy mobile phones - I'm very happy with my dummy-proof-nokia and I don't really want a new cool phone, not unless it does something really cool, like shoot out laser beams.
10. I think Chivalry is dead.

No need to tag anyone, but feel free to join in on the fun of making lists (never a boring task!).

What Lyrics... # 1

Lyrics Survey for your entertainment.
I'll post song lyrics to answer the question below - Easy.
Feel free to input your own thoughts in comments.


What lyrics…


Are good life advice?

(jeez)



"Alright already we'll all float on
Ok don't worry we'll all float on
Even if things get heavy we'll all float on
Alright, already, we'll all float on"

Float On - Modest Mouse


"This is how it works
You're young until you're not
You love until you don't
You try until you can't
You laugh until you cry
You cry until you laugh
And everyone must breathe
Until their dying breath "

On the Radio - Regina Spektor


"Boys will be strong, and Boys solider on,
Boys but will be gone without the warmth
of a woman's good, good heart.

Father be good to your daughters,
daughters will love as you do
Girls becoming Lovers,
that turn into mothers,
so mothers be good to your daughters too."

Daughters - John Mayer

It's been six years since I graduated from high school and I forgot to plan our five year reunion

Sometimes, you forget where you've come from and feel like just another face in the crowd. It's easy, especially when you wake up and you go through the same routine: Shower, Change, pretend to intend to have breakfast but pretend to forget as you run to catch the bus, the train, the tube, get to work, slave away for 10 hours and then go home exhausted only to do it all over again. You forget that beyond the exhaustion and apathy there's actually a fun person somewhere in there that used to sit in your old self - in a sweet, innocent life before the grimaces and the struggles began: a time that was much, much easier.

***

For most, including myself, that time was high school. I forgot about high school and the fun of it all, the laughs and giggles, the traumas that really weren't so bad and the tragedies that came along with it - the lack of responsibility for any of your actions. I forgot about linking arms with my classmates and telling them we'd be friends forever, probably because it's been years since and we're not. It's only natural and it's been long accepted and forgotten: like I said, that was a different, sweeter time.

***

So I continue to walk my walk, talk my talk, do my thing here alone in this city seas away from home. I do miss my old friends but rarely have time to dwell over the memories while I'm busy doing other mundane things. I was lucky enough, over the last two weekends, to spend time with two of my dearest friends that reminded me of the fun and sweet person I used to be just by seeing how great they still are. These two have especially come a long, long way from high school and I can't say I could be more proud.

***

My first song of praise is for this girl over here who is not not only incredible human being, but also a soon to be mum. When she first told me she was expecting, I almost fell off my chair at work as I gaped at the email on my computer screen "Make sure you're sitting down.... [scroll all the way down] I'm pregnant!" I was speechless and my fingers did overtime typing out the WHYs and HOW COULD YOUs (that I really didn't want answered)... We agreed to meet on her next business trip over and when I finally spotted her, hand on belly, trotting down the Watford High Street, I felt myself bubbling up with emotion... A mum! Here she was, no longer flicking her funky 'do about in the car as she sang along to Miami but brushing her grown up fringe away from her glowing face as she told me about her pregnancy and the baby - it feels like last summer that we all celebrated her engagement and not 4 summers ago, seeing her was a definite reality check that time has passed...

***

I was awe of her all weekend... Not only was she absolutely beautiful and glowing, she was so ready for this... "I woke up one morning and I thought, what's missing? Ah, a baby" - her words gave me happy goosebumps, because although none of us could handle this, she could... She was great, shopping for little onesies and bibs while I stared at her bump the whole time. "Hey Baby" I'd shout out across whatever room we were in, "Hey Auntie Thooth" She'd mimick, and I'd start giggling about, talking to the baby about how when baby comes out, we're going out for ice cream all the time...

***

I watched her so comfortable in her new role and was so happy for a friend who's somewhere completely different than me... I couldn't compare or criticize because I knew how right this was for her and how it was the next logical step.... I hadn't seen her in six months and all of a sudden she was a mum - what a leap from being just-my-friend... It was great seeing her still the same and so much more of a super human that she was before: She'll be a great, intelligent, caring mother and I know she'll be so loving over the little one.. As will the rest of us - if it's a girl, I've already got dibs on Baby's first tiara, ballet shoes and every scoop of chocolate chip ice cream she gets...

***

The second wonderful person I spent this weekend with was one of my oldest and all time best friends... I met Chaz on the first day of the 3rd grade, when he came into our classroom (the reject class of 3 K or 3 M, I can't remember) and we were assigned to sit next to eachother as a pair. Yuck, he's new and he's a boy: I look at the teacher in despair but received no sympathy, I was forced to sit next to him for the whole year and I had to deal with it. A whole year lasted the next 10 years, where some where along the way we actually became friends and I realized that he didn't carry any infectious diseases as a boy (he was a clean freak) nor did he want to hurt me on the play ground (he was actually the nicest little boy you could imagine). He helped me with my struggles throughout school and after graduation, throughout college as we kept in touch through various email chains and long-distance phone calls... Strangely, he was always there for me, in his funny ways and I always knew I had a friend to lean on in times of self-doubt, because he always reminded me of who I truly was...

***

I will always be the one who recalls funny stories of when we were kids, starting from the sweet things he'd say in class and how the teachers always hugged him afterwards, to his perfect posture as an 8 year old. Classic story of sitting next to eachother in Arabic class and hearing him in a clear voice saying he wanted to be a Surgeon when he grew up. Back then, at 8, I definitely thought he was a weirdo, but I also knew that whatever a "Surgeon" did, he could do it. I can easily say he is one of the best people I know on this planet and he is a rare, rare breed... I knew it at 8 and although he was stuffy as a kid, he grew on me and it is reiterated every time I think of him...

***

When I saw him pointing at me across Leicester Square, my face broke into the biggest grin and I felt 17 again. We laughed and joked around like old times and it did not feel like a whole year has passed since we last met. We talked a lot about future plans, I warned him that I wanted to see him graduate with honours and no less, no brain surgeon's going to graduate from med school with just a pass... It was good fun and the throughout the weekend he'd randomly burst out with "Oh My God! [I can't believe it!] I'm sitting here with Sara and [other friends]! How amazing is this?" And we'd all laugh, because truly we knew that he was the one full of wonder and we were happy to have him with us...

***

Sometimes, a length of time will pass without seeing or hearing from people you considered close to your heart, but it's only sad if you when you see them it truly has felt like years and you've both moved on from your friendship in that time... With these two, it was an incredible weekend.. We laughed, we joked around and we reminded eachother of the times when we were together in the past... And what they did was they reminded me of that person I still am, after all these years... I still have a lot going for me, I'm still young, I still want to conquer the world and I still will... It's amazing the impact one person, let alone two, can have on your morale when you're feeling a bit of a slump. It's amazing how friends can remind you of how lucky you are to have such cool people in your lives...

***

Thanks guys, your weekend trips meant a lot more to me than you can imagine... I'll keep pushing forward as long as you guys keep throwing me high fives along the way...

Gamers hugged themselves and each other and said: "Sony we love you"

Coming into work this morning was actually pleasant and I was surprised to see how many smiling faces there were. Probably because it's a Friday, I mused, as I involuntarily squashed myself between two big burly men with bags underneath their eyes. They were smiling too and after (again, involuntarily) listening in on their conversation, I knew why:

"I am so tempted to call in sick, everyone else in the house has and they're glued to the TV... I'm definitely coming home early to play it..."

I smiled as I listened to the story of how this young man hadn't slept all night because his housemate was one of the first people in the country to buy a PlayStation 3 and he couldn't let go of it all night. They were joking around about hugging it, taking turns kissing it and how lucky they were to have it. I completely understood, even though I'm not a gamer - although they did get a couple of strange sideways glances from some people on the train.

******************

The PS3 was launched last night in the Virgin store on Oxford Street (Corner of Tottenham Cout Road) and the gaming world is overjoyed. I may not be a geeky little kid (glasses not thick enough) or a 20something city bloke with a 9 - 5 job (doesn't matter how old you are, you're still a little kid on the inside), but I understand how big this launch was. Gamers have been waiting for too long for the launch of yet another console that will take up all their time and cause problems with girlfriends and spouses. Previous launches of the XBox 360 and Nintendo Wii drew just as much attention but also a lot of complaints to the companies that didn't provide what their customers wanted.

In this case, no one has yet to complain of the ridiculous antics pulled by the company who launched the console. Unlike Nintendo and Microsoft, Sony didn't dupe their customers by only providing a small number of consoles in relation to the demand. Sony actually provided more consoles than expected to sell AND the first 100 customers at their Virgin Launch last night received HD flatscreen TVs worth £2,500 - for free. This is all just for being great customers and being patient enough to stand in a queue for 48 hours.

You read that right - readers in the UK or US might find it normal to hear of people queuing for days to get their hands on a gaming console (people in Japan right now are probably laughing at people who don't). I remember the launch of the XBox 360 at midnight when a laser show was taking place as the doors of GAME flung open and people ran to grab whatever they could - it was crazy. Problem was, some people were queuing for ridiculous hours and when they got to the front of the queue found out there weren't enough consoles to go around. If that were me, I would have probably gone ape shit, start kicking demonstrations and staff and even my own shadow from having to wait around for nothing. Many times before, gamers have complained to reporters on site (yes, because this does make the news, contrary to what some of you would agree to what should be branded as "news") of waiting for hours and not getting anything at the end. I don't blame them. I have been on many awaiting list for the Ninetendo Wii (a joint christmas gift) and many times have I run to the GAME in Canary Wharf to find a group of people standing around and a spotty member of staff shaking his head in embarrassment. It's March and I still haven't gotten one, must to my (and my christmas gift receiver) disappointment.

Sony was smart enough to put away gimmicks/laser shows/juggling marmoset acts and make this a basic launch. Okay, so they did launch the product at midnight but that's actually pretty smart because you don't have to take time off work or school. Also, Sony recognized this wasn't about marketing as much as about getting the product out to the customer, so they didn't have any flash celebrities around or fancy displays - instead they provided their customers with Coke and Caffeine in the last 24 hours of waiting (super bonus) and gave everyone a pretty cool gift for being so dedicated.

What's cool is that they even provided more consoles than they anticipated selling because they didn't want people to buy consoles and turn around and sell them for double the price on eBay - respect to that. No one should be so desperate as to surf eBay at 6 a.m. to buy a gaming console, it's just not right.

************************

I hope this makes a lot of gamers happy - I for one, have lost many hours of my life listening to the same complaints from a certain someone about this whole launch of consoles... Complaints such as corporations not caring enough about their customers, not taking into consideration certain populations and demographics in comparison to others, debating markets like Europe vs the Japanese, the Japanese vs the Americans, the people vs the corporation, my sanity vs rant rant rantrantrantrant... I think Sony's done good this time, maybe this could mean people can finally purchase something and be satisfied with it...

Read the BBC report here, which has put me in a good mood for the rest of the day.

Happy Gaming Kiddos xx

Sunday Dedication

from post secret

Number 41: Real Milk Tea

I've been here for too long. I missed my niece's fourth birthday party this saturday and I internally sulked at the fact I couldn't be there to paint faces or dress up like some cool character that she would remember forever. Yeah 3amee, I'm definitely jealous I wasn't there and this doesn't make you anyone's favourite, alright?

And it's a wednesday and I'm feeling funny and the only thing that's keeping me going is that in exactly one month I will be back home. Awesome eh? I can't wait. All I can think of is how I'm going to spend lot's of time attaching myself to various people I've missed over the past year and how much crap I'm going to bring back with me. Coldstores and supermarkets beware: Sara is coming back - no jar of PUCK cheese will be safe.

List of things I miss about home:

1. Not scrubbing limescale off anything.
2. Constant sunshine - no better way to wake up
3. Mum's food and funny ways.
4. Mum. And Dad. And my brothers and my sisters and my neice.
5. Playing pretend with my niece and having her "read" me stories. I even miss it when she corrects me if I skip something - I miss her bossiness and her hugs.
6. Being woken up in the early morning to have breakfast with everyone in the house before they go to work. Watching my sister fuss over herself in the mirror in the kitchen before she leaves, my brother drink his chocolate milk/banana milk/coffee milk. Mum reading the newspaper absent mindly and Dad asking about the expiry dates over everything on the breakfast table (but still eating it all).
7. Meeting friends in 15 minutes all the time - wherever we are.
8. Late night runs to Burgerland for Shawarma
9. Making nice dinner plans and not having to pay more than 15 squids for it, ever.
10. Reading the GDN and tearing apart the crossword puzzle.
11. Driving over to Saar for a lazy afternoon - I love morning drives on empty roads because I have yet to experience the horrendous traffic everyone speaks of.
12. Making cakes that someone will eat
13. Even when there's "nothing to eat at home" the kitchen is still overflowing with goodies to munch on.
14. Honking your horn outside a coldstore, buying something and then waving my "Thank You" - I know the asian men appreciate it as much as I appreciate their service.
15. Hong Kong on a Friday - even if the food isn't as good as it used to be and most of the staff have changed. It's the principle of it, and the Baskin Robbins ice cream that must follow afterwards.
16. Long drives and the talks that go along with it.
17.Never getting the style but loving it anyway.
18. Hearing the label "So Bahraini" and how people always want to be different than that. It makes me smile, some people who live in Bahrain just can't accept the fact that you are what you are.
19. Lgaimat and Mihyawa
20. Taking your shoes off before you walk in anywhere, such a sign of respect people in the rest of the world lack.
21. Space. Spacious cars. Spacious Houses. Spacious streets. OPEN SPACE.
22. Going over to my gran's and finding more kids than I remember being born running around and causing general ruckus.
23. Formalities in the Arabic Language.
24. Stopping to say hello to people and not having to rush off anywhere else.
25. Being able to rent any DVD that's out before than in the UK. Hah, beat that Blockbusters and your crummy, crummy selection of movies.
26. 500 fils coins and notes, either, and the value that they have.
27. Al Jazeera Supermarket for stocking Lucky Charms and Count Chocu-ula.
28. Buildings, Tall Buildings =)
29. Swimming and Beach Days and the smell of the sun
30. Coming home somewhere nice and getting hugs for it. I miss you, crazy family.

That's it. I can't come up with any more or else I'll start balling my eyes out to poor Meredith who won't know what hit her.

One month, folks!

Happy Birthday 'Shoo

Excerpt from my Diary, Dated 29th April, 2004

I'm listening to one of R's favorite song... It reminds me of this one time back home, one of those times that was super insignificant but will alway stick in my mind as just one of those nice days spent with my big brother... I remember waking up that cool morning in December and finding him sneaking into the house his pyjamas.... Sneaking into our house to steal some movies to watch while he bunked off from work...

"I'm supposed to be sick today..." he would say to me, smiling ... "and i'm also supposed to be too sick to come over for lunch.. so don't tell mom I was here" he smiles again, holding his fingers to his lips... I would laugh, he always made me laugh like that.... "What are you doing? do you want to come over and watch movies with me?" How funny he was! Why not?

Here he was, whom I always thought was the most responsible of us all - sneaking behind around to do something so silly: steal some movies to watch because he just didn't want to go to work and didn't want to have to explain... I knew it, he woke up, watched his wife get ready and take their daughter to her play group while he coughed and droned how tired he was... watched her leave the gates, turn the corner to the club and then he would run to the car to escape... didn't even have time to change out of his blue striped pyjama pants ...

And here I was, aiding his escape, finding the newest rentals in the house to watch and jumping into the car with him... driving in the early morning sun that still wasn't hot enough to cause discomfort, it was just right... As we drove away from the house he just about to explain why he was faking his illness when out of the blue, this song came on the radio...

"I love this song!" he shouts, raising the volume... are the villagers looking, I wonder? Who cares... I look straight ahead and sing right along with him...

You've gotta be cruel to be kind, in the right measures, cruel to be kind, it's a very good sign...
Cruel to be kind, it means that I love youu... baaabyyy... you gotta be cruel, you gotta be cruel to be kiiiiind...

It will always be one of my favourite memories, singing along in the car to some good old music we both loved... We got back to his house and he called his wife, admitting of his little escapade... I heard her laugh and tell him we might as well walk over to the club to pick them up... We walked over, found his wife and his daughter waiting and I watched him reunite with his family... Smiling together, pushing the little one's pram and just enjoying the simplest of times...

Truly one of my favourite days, favourite memories... Even the simplest of days are the best: spending time with my big brother... how cheesy but true... I miss him a lot, I hope he's still not bunking off work to watch stupid movies at home...

Happy Birthday, Love Lot's

Seroo x

mmm mmm good good!

I was never a soup person. I was just never that into soup.

I guess I always preferred having the lamb chop or the cheese burger or the tikka (notice a trend) and never really the watery slurpy soup.

Perhaps it has something to do with it being too filling for before a meal and then not filling enough on its own. Whatever it was, I was never too big on the soup & salad combo (just the salad, thanks) or the soup and sandwich (just a bigger sandwich, thanks again) - I simply was never a soup person.

Then one day, things changed, and on this particular day, I was cold. On this particular day, I noted that winter was upon us and there's no denying that fact: as I stepped outside the building and pulled my coat tighter across my waist and cursed Mother Nature for giving us 4 seasons instead of one (Spring of course). I wasn't hungry but I needed something to warm me up and I've had enough heartburn from numerous cups of tea and coffee all morning. I needed something else. A pie? I looked at the queue in the tiny eatery and decided against it, walking to the Sainsbury's and keeping my face down, away from the piercing wind. What could I get?

"Get some soup" Charlotte retorted 5 minutes earlier in our office when I pondered aloud as what to have. We wrapped ourselves up in layers of dull coloured mixed wool and made our way out the building for lunch.

"I don't know..." my voice trailed off, thinking of the stringy chicken soup mums force down the throats of their sickly children. "Where's the chicken, Mama?" I'd ask, playing with the steaming liquid infront of me, unsure of why I was drinking something I should be chewing on - especially as a child, the concept of a meal you had to drink wasn't at all appealing unless it was space food. Looking back at it, perhaps it wasn't the fact that it was soup but more the fact that it was chicken (and I'm not so hot for the chicken) and that I was sick and sometimes funny things like that carry on with you for the rest of your life and you can't really explain why. Perhaps.

I could get soup... I looked at the alternatives: Sandwiches? Nothing satisfying. Baked Potatoe? Never really fussed about a potatoe before... Greasy Chilli Con Carne on long grain rice? Pass. Soup it is then.

I turned the corner to the fridge and I have to say, I was impressed. Soup isn't the boring cream of tomato it used to be. Oh no, soup has now evolved into so many different things as I looked at all the possibilities. Hearty Broths and Chunky Chowders, even the boring Chicken Corn Soup had been given a face lift and there was the bold Red Thai Chicken (even soup has become Thai-a-fied! Incredible!).

I hung around the soup shelf shyly for a couple of minutes, mulling over the possibilities. Minstrone or perhaps the Winter Warmer? So many choices and the clock was ticking - I was somewhere between the begining of lunchtime and the middle of rush hour, so I had to make a decision fast. I decided to go for the Vegetable Mulligatawny Soup - seemed safe and had some chunky vegetables and some rice, so I could do a bit of chewing and ease myself into it. Would I be disappointed? I bit my lip as I paid for my veggie soup and wondered whether this was going to be a bit mistake - in a flash, I imagined having my first spoon of soup and feeling so revolted I'd spit it out at my co-workers in disgust. I shivered at the thought of stringy chicken soup and vowed to give this a try.

And disappointed I was not - My Mulligatawny soup was just the right mix of veggies, rice and broth and was satisfying til the last spoonful. I was overjoyed - one less food not to like! And the days that followed after that were filled with different soup adventures: the chunky chilli veggie, the carrot and corriander - perhaps a multi-grain bagel to go with that? Sure!

The key element to take back with you is that soup is perfect for those cold winter days. Unfortunately, today the sun was shining and I was stuck for choice of lunch so just ran in to get my dependendable Carrot and Corriander and bagel only to find it bland and unsatisfying. This was probably because the sun was out, and when the sun's out, there's no need for the warmth of soup. Maybe tomorrow, when it's cold and grey and there's a chill in the air, I'll go back and have some nice chowder. If not, it's okay, at least I know Soup Isn't Just For Sick People, it's also for those with the winter blues.

Sad little Robot Me

This past week has been tough. But fret not, this broken robot will be fine tomorrow, because:

(a) it will be the weekend

(b) two of her faaaaaaaaavourite people come into town this weekend

(c) two of my faaaaaaaaaaaaaavourite people will remind me that I'm not a broken robot nor do I have a square head and that they love me anyway (i love you guys)

Happy Friday everyone... you know, I really do think robots are cool...

"I've made a decision, I'm gonna live in Morocco for one year. I need a new crowd. Do you wanna come? "

** Double points to whoever can guess where the Title is taken from **

This post is long overdue but the memory of ElMaghreeb is still fresh in my mind... I better document it before the smell of sweet oranges in the streets and the rumble of tiny taxis escape me...

From the minute we arrived at Marrakech airport, we were welcomed by a swarm of people that were really welcoming other people and not us. It was post-Hajj and all the pilgrims were returning from Mecca, their families awaiting them at the gates of the airport with flowers and kisses (and stares to the tourists). Our first task of exiting the airport was crazy enough to want to send is back into the comfort of the cramped EasyJet airplane, but we managed to push through the crowds with the help of security guards who were literally holding back the crowds of families. After walking through the masses and down a non-existent path only led by some government official, we found ourselves in an abandoned parking lot staring at the masses of people and looking around for whispering taxi drivers. Seemingly the only tourists around at this time of year, we were passed around one taxi driver to the next until we found a man sitting in a bumper car with a bewildered look on his face. Our journey had just begun!

Our first taxi driver was a funny one who pointed out land marks and horse-drawn carriages, knowing he would definitely score a tip with the three foreign girls in the back. We began snapping our cameras at everything we passed and immediately fell in love with the old town. Funny thing about Marrakech: Everyone seems to own tiny dirt bikes, or "bu6bu6a"s as I warmly refer to them. They seem to be the most popular mode of transport, especially if you're an old lady in a hoodie. England would be ashamed.

As soon as we arrived, we had the pleasure of being shown around the market square (Jaam3 elFnaa) by our two semi-resident friends. We walked into open squares and "ooh"ed and "aah"ed at street performers, henna painters and the inevitable snake charmer. As everyone else will tell you, tons of photo opps around and we soon found ourselves drawn to a cave of small streets and treasures galore. The inside market was incredible and filled with everything you can imagine to find: from jalabiyat to soaps to tea to shoes to belly dancing outfits and crockery, really anything you could sell to a tourist that had a camera around their neck. Walking through the tiny alleyways of market stalls and vendors shouting out to their potential customers, you feel a rush of energy to be quickly replaced by an immense overwhelming feeling and then absolute exhaustion. And this is all from just looking at the goods! Everything is jam packed and as soon as our tour guides left to take their afternoon siestas and we were left alone to do our shopping, the three amigos announced in unison that we needed a coffee to tackle the rest of the day! (that and we were sick of people shouting out "HELLO! FISH AND CHIPS!" in their best English accents)

Coffees were had with my new friend Mahmood Al-Yousif and the lovely Samar at a cafe where we relaxed and chatted the night away. Biggin' it up to the Big M, he is definitely a cool cat and it was a pleasure meeting him in such beautiful surroundings...!

Coffee was preceded by dinner - food gets a huge mention in Morocco... The square which was filled with various forms of entertainment was transformed into a huge out-in-the-open food market, with dozens of stalls only identified by their number (Biggin' it up to stall # 30 and the sweet Rasheed!) Apologies for their being no pictures of the square at night, there were just too many to put up...

The oranges get also special mention - never before have I seen so many orange trees everywhere that excrete such a sweet smell through the streets of a city! In the market square we found this very nice man with the nicest and sweetest oranges (and no Moroccan sweet talk to go with it! He must have been the only one!)

Just to give you a little background: Our trip to Morocco was primarily to attend a dear friend's wedding, so after a day and night in Marrakech, we hopped onto a rickety train for our 5 hour journey to the capital, Rabat. We got to Rabat and were a little disappointed at how modern things were but managed to find our hotel, get ready & hop into another cab off where the Henna party was at. The Bride's directions to the first leg of the fun was "Next to Service De Mile, you'll find us." With no street name or no GPRS to guide us through the neighbourhoods of Rabat, we started to panic as our taxi driver crammed in 2 car's worth of passengers and began driving in figure eights around a residential area. Nail biting and prayer reading lasted a little longer than we expected, until we turned an unexpected turn to find these chaps shown below in the street doing their thing and a good couple of dozen women partying right there. We yelped, we jumped out of the cab and we joined the start of the party, right there in the street pres de service de mile.

Amongst the crowd was a parked car with the fidgety bride waiting in the passenger seat, whispering "This has all gone terribly wrong, hasn't it?", waiting for her prince in a shining dishdasha to find his way to her. And he did, escorting her out of the car and through their neighbourhood. The band followed, still drumming, clapping and singing away, and so did we. Down the street, into the building, up five flights of stairs and into the newly wed's new home. All by candlelight.

The Henna party was great - the two ladies got straight to business on the bride, paining her hands & feet away and applying glitter and gems which I've never seen before (but quite liked). All the girls quickly got in line to get their hands painted too - I got a special YE YE YE YE when I sat down to get my hands painted, which the bride told me means not only am I special but it's my turn to get married next! Good job Soos!

The night carried on with much dancing and meeting a lot of the Bride & Groom's family that had flown from all over the world to celebrate with them... The party went on til late and we woke up early to get ready for the actual wedding...

I must say, Moroccans really know how to keep you entertained at their parties: The wedding was a fancy affair and not only were there 3 different bands to keep us dancing throughout the night, the bride made 6 entrances (with 6 different outfits!) and was carried into the hall like a Queen by four men! We were stunned at how beautiful she looked waving from up above while we all took pictures and danced around her...

Another thing I really liked about the wedding that there was a sit-down dinner, none of this buffet bull we get back home... There was no pushing and shoving to get your plate of luke warm casserole, as waiters came to each table with huge plates of food for the table to share. First course was a seafood bastilla which was very good, followed by the main meal which was a carnivores dream: A whole lamb pierced with skewers of chicken pieces (and cheese samboosas for your touch of dairy). Yum-my. Of course, I have to point out that each course was huge and plonked in the middle of each table for everyone to eat from together, which was a bit of a problem for our veggie friend who had to fill herself up on nuts and sweets while we all dug into the carcass in front of us.

The wedding was incredible just about after 6 a.m. when they served us a delicious breakfast of meat soup (I probably have gout now from all the red meat I had this trip), we watched the Bride and Groom leave the hall... The wedding slowly came to an end and we rushed back to our hotels, back on a train, back to Marrakech, and eventually back to London... our hearts sank as we touched ground in the pouring rain and we all sullenly went back to our lives behind desks and between cold walls...

Writing this all makes me nostalgic for that sunny place I was in a month ago... Again, apologies for getting this out late, but when you take such a great trip there are too many pictures and too many memories to try and retell to your audience, so I suppose the best way to end this is to take it from me, there's magic in that land over in Africa, some real Moroccan magic...

Good time memories: Getting hurled abuse at by taxi drivers, becoming bargaining queens, all the Rasheeds, the mad-woman on the train back (Aysha, it was definitely not a pleasure meeting you), the hammam experience and all the dirt that came along with it, all the cafe au lait and paninis, the im-sem-in-a's and the mint teas, the jumping on the beds, shouts from passer by's and all the mad, mad dancing...

Wishing the Bride & Groom a happy life together wherever they settle in the world... wishing for my travelling partners many more trips together to come...

Best Valentine's Day Celebrity Quote

Matt Bellamy, Muse, won best British live act at the Brit awards, and included in his speech:

"Thanks to our girlfriends for putting up with our schedules. Happy Valentines Day."

Well said.

Other updates should follow shortly.