Hodablog

Power Yoga and Justin Bieber!

2011-09-21T13:39:00.001-04:00

Today was my first class in power yoga, I mean WOW!! I didn't know that I could sweat like a dog, no, no, actually my two Chihuahuas don't sweat at all! so I retract my claim, so they won't get offended in case they read my blog! First the room was a mere 95 degree! talk about being in a sauna for an hour while working out!! oh boy, oh boy, how much can a women's body endure to feel and look better? and for whom? for her husband of couple of decade who barely look at her.... ( well, she doesn't look at him either! so, there is equality in marriage after all) or does she do it so other women can admire her new LOOK, while saying under their breath, " that bitch looks better that me". Maybe this will motivate them to do something about their extra 50 lb or so that they are carrying, as for you miss twenty something! I don't want to hear you bitching about gaining two and a half lb and that you weigh now 118 lb instead of 115 and a half lb! come back in ten years or so, and join us, you will get it all by then! For now save you breath and complain to someone who cares, like an anorexic girl who considers herself obese for gaining couple of ounces. She might understand what you are talking about. But "US", middle aged women, we have to be overweight by over 30 lb, before we start even to complain, otherwise, we thank our gene pool for keeping our figure, not our munching habit! We are obsessed with our looks just like teens are obsessed with Justin Bieber! We even think about it during our dreams, just like teen girls are thinking about Justin in their daydreaming and their nightdreaming. Come on women! you know what I am talking about! Standing in the front of the mirror day in and day out, disturbed by the bagginess dangling under our sagging breast!

Will there be life after Facebook?

2011-09-12T13:15:00.000-04:00

Let's roll back to seven or eight years ago! Do you remember how you spent your day? A day without checking your Facebook page at least once? Come on, don't deny it! it's OK, admit it, I won't tell anybody, cross my heart! Just like over 15 years ago when we got our first email account and started checking it a couple times a day! Even spam email and chain letters were cool! Boy we came a long way baby! Today, most of our so called social life is centered around our Facebook status. How many friends do we have? What kind of friends do we have? How many comments or likes did we get on today's posting? This lingo didn't make any sense just ten years ago. Do you still remember My Space? Facebookers of today won't even admit that at one time of their life they had a MySpace account. They claim that it was so lame and only for trashy and uncool people! (Don't tell anybody, but I still have mine...I only check it every five months or so. I thought, well, you never know, maybe it will be back in fashion one day again, that's if I will still remember my password by then!)

I wonder if I would've been as involved in Facebooking the way I am now if I had lived in a place where my friends and family were close by? I probably it wouldn't be into it as much as I am now. I feel that Facebook is my direct interaction with friends and family; phone calls have become inconvenient due to our even more individual lifestyles. We don't want to be called or call the wrong time. We'd rather leave a facebook message than pick up the phone and call. Facebook makes me feel as if I am talking directly to my family and friends without worrying whether they are having dinner or a guest or they are in an important meeting. Sometimes they respond with a comment, and other times with just a "like."

Even if they don't respond it is OK with me, as long as I got what I wanted to say out of my system.

How about what I am doing now? BLOGGING! I don't believe the word even existed in the dictionary over ten years ago. Isn't it weird? Before blogs were invented, diary books with keys were the only way people expressed their personal feelings on paper, unless of course if they were writing their autobiography, which in that case would've been somebody interesting enough or known enough to find people interested to take the time to learn about their struggle with math! Today we are able to let the whole globe know how angry we got because our husband didn't pay us a compliment on our new dress!! Go figure!! Some people might say, why would we expose our so called dirty laundry for the whole world to READ! Well, we can always blame it on globalization like we do most other issues that we have no direct answer for. To some degree it is true. Globalization in general, and the Internet in particular, allowed us to get in touch with people and places we never knew even existed.

Let's not forget about cell phone and text message evolution. I was one of those who resisted the temptation of catching up with the rest of the world of having a cell phone as a must have device as important as TV or microwave in my life (if not more). With laptop it was a different story, I was a firm believer in the evolution from desktop to laptop from day one. the only complaint i have back then that I should have my own, since I hated sharing my computer or wait for my turn to check my email. but today, even laptop is not enough, since it is not convenient to drag your laptop to the grocery store or the Sunday mass, cell phone proved to be the winner on the must list. when it come to texting, it will eventually turn us into mute people. some people even text or send a picture message to people sitting next to them, we all have done it at some point.

I would like to get over a list of words that didn't exist or didn't have the same meaning like today, as back as two decades ago, yet they became part of everyday language, people who do understand or use more than 50% of them, must have been in a cave. (except Bin Laden) well, I take it back, he turned out that he wasn't in a cave, but i will save this one for another blog...

Here is the new tech lingo that we didn't have couple of decades ago

feel free to add more if I missed something

BTW
laptop
iphone
smartphone
download
screen froze
computer crash
USB
blog
online
you tube
google
yahoo
amazon.com
website
URL
netflix
upload
search engine
twitter
messaging
link
online banking
HTML
spam
tag photo
status update
poke
.com
.org
mobile phone
share
news feed
log in
log out
app
update
recent activities
post comment
delete
undo
bluetooth
wireless
print preview
copy and paste
alt delete
webpage
the like button
limited profile
browse
pop-up blocker
file attached
www
http://

I would like to come back to this blog couple of years down the road and check to see how many words we will be adding to it
Some of my future's predition:

book stores will go out of business, (it's already happening)
news papers will be without paper instead will be read online
mall number will dwindle more than 70% and department store with be things of the past.
satellite dishes will become a fade and disapear
will find a cure for cancers and Aids but new fatal disease will replace it.
more school and college will become online
camera will be only a part of the phone.
desktop computer will become absolete
Electric cars will become a common site on the road
a new drug will be discovered for overweight people
plastic surgery will be replaced with wornder drugs and laser surgery
people with look younger, and live longer
pens will be rarely used
people will read more summaries and less books.
more and more people will be working from their home
wars between countries will be reduced and replace by wars between corporations.
Facebook will intergrate or merge with other social network like skype where you will be able to video chat while you are on Facebook

A New Phase of My Life!

2011-08-05T00:23:00.005-04:00

This year (2011), has been a milestone year in my life, I closed an old chapter, and started a new one, for the better.

First of all, I became half a century old; yup I hit the big O! This year, I have been questioning life more than ever, looking back at my life, at what I have accomplished so far, being grateful for good and the bad and the ugly, and looking forward for what I am going to accomplished in the rest of my life, learning from past mistakes, appreciating and accepting things, yet, enjoying and accepting people more than things. I am watching nature with admiration, something I didn‘t do or have the time to do before, I take pleasure listening to birds talking to each other, breathe more deeply, taking things slowly, living one day at a time, accepting everything that comes my way, in another word, I am truly living the NOW,

This year, I moved to a new place, new house, new city, and new state. I met new friends, and let go of some people that left me drained. In all, it has been a pretty stressful year, it was good stress at best, I tested my ability to get rid of most of my belonging, gave away four of my beloved cats, (Tooti, Bibo, Baby, and Im Riche,) Endured the loss of my dog Mister and two of my cats, Roori and Bibo. I have been away from my kids for over two months for the first time (they are over 700 miles away). But best of all, my beautiful daughter got married, I impressed myself with my ability to put together a beautiful wedding in less than two months, of course not without the help of my wonderful family and friends, and the blessing of my dear mom and dad. I sold two properties, and rented third one. And I finally became vegetarian, feeling better than ever. I am taking an hour and a half walk with a wonderful new friend Mia. Best of all I am now closer to my favorite place, the BEACH!

My wonderful husband and I have more time to spend with each other, regardless whether we are talking of not talking, being with each other it's all what’s matter, we love each other's presence. after 31 years, you don't have much left to say to each other, yet, you can read each other like an open book, I don't know whether it is good thing or not, for that I will need another blog to cover it.
After marriage, husband and wife become two sides of a coin; they just can't face each other, but still they stay together. Hemant Joshi
but overall, it has been a great year!! this doesn't mean I am satisfy where I am now, I am far from that, I am still in search for my calling in life; I hope to find it before I hit my late seventy, that if I live to that age...my goal is to leave this world a little better, or at least live to see it a better place, no war, no bigotry, no racism, no suffering, cure for disease, and the lists goes on....

"I been always fascinated by quotes, but now more than ever, I feel quotes sum up life experience in a sentence, sometimes in a funny way, and other in a serious one, either way, it give us short cut on life so we can learn from people who has been there, done that! I collected below some of my favorite quotes that sum up this blog.

"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning." Albert Einstein

Do not dwell in the past; do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. Budha

In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on." Robert Frost

Every man dies. Not every man really lives. William Wallace.

Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you only spend it once. Lillian Dickinson

2010-09-29T06:04:00.034-04:00

Things to know about me

Names I go by: Hadhood, Mommy, Hoda,
Jobs I 've had throughout my life: sales person, Credit Manager, Medical Office Manager,
Place I lived in: Lebanon, Germany, USA.
TV Shows that I like watching: House Hunter International, Saturday Night Live, Queen of NY
Places I have visited: Italy, Germany, France, Canada, Mexico, England, Spain, Cyprus, Turkey, Bulgaria, Bahamas, Malta, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon, USA, Greece, Haiti,Porto Rico, Dominica, Tabago, St. Martin, Barbados, Granada.
Places I would like to visit: Morocco, Jerusalem, Argentina, Chile.
My favorite food: Thai foods, Pasta, Beryani, Couscous.
Things I like to do and make me happy: Talking to my mom and dad on the phone. Visiting my children in D.C. Curling up with my dogs and cats in bed.
Pets that I owned, or owned me: dogs, cats, hamster, bird, Rat, crabs.
Favorite drinks: Sparkling Water, Thai Tea, Water.

Ya but why?

2010-09-29T05:56:00.000-04:00

Why are we here on this so called planet? do we have a certain mission to accomplished? or we are just supposed to hang around until it is our time to go? and when is that? and why there is some people who seems to know the answers to everything, and others have no idea what is going on? I don't know about you, but somedays I have so many question on my mind that I don't know where to start, and who do I ask all these question? well, I can always google it !! but again, I get so many conflicting answers that I still have to make up my mind which one make more sense to me

What If?

2010-09-29T05:54:00.000-04:00

What if all human are neither black, white, or yellow. but rather meeting in the middle line, dark beige. what if all cars run on water, how much money we will save, and let's not forget about saving the environment. What if there is a set time for death, everyone die at the age of let say 75. just like prepaid gasoline, no surprise, not less, not more . this way the family have enough time to say goodbye to their loved one. before the person become dependent on other and feels like a burden. also before the memory start to deteriorate, and the body start to give in to the aging process. by then, most people have lived a well long fullfiled life, have experienced what they want and what they don't want. accomplished many of their dreams, and have by then grandchildren if not great grandchildren. What if there is no war, hate or greed, people will be friendlier to each other, love each other and don't fight with each other. What if there is only one religion, one God, one book. nobody can claim that their religion is the superior that others. What if there is no disease. if our body is indestructible, like metal, nothing break it, cut if or hurt it. What if Sex is not an instrument used by men to exploit women for their own desires, and women exploit their body to get what they want from men. what if sex is a beautiful physical reunion between people who love each other and not merely a animalistic desire with no feeling.

New Interests

2010-09-29T05:50:00.000-04:00

My love for decoration is growing with time, so is my interest in fashion, maybe I had it all along, yet I have more time devoted for it now, you know an empty Nester has plenty of time on their hand to discover their true interest, I added gardening to my list, I am not into the vegetable gardening thing, maybe I will switch to it in the future, you never know, but one thing I can't seem to adopt yet, is the interest in reading fiction, I tried, I truly did, with no Vail, I still have the feeling that I am wasting my precious time in a story that doesn't affect my life whatsoever, I know that there is wonderful fiction out there that moves you, but I have so much to learn that I can't conceive the idea of spending one hour reading details account of somebody's love life.

Just filling the blank

2010-09-29T05:45:00.001-04:00

Ever wonder what people remember the most about us? is it our dedication to our family and friends or the lack of it? how about our sense humor? do we really get it? or maybe our starring look when we get angry? or how about our weird laud laugh, or even our weirder and Lauder sneeze . with no warning to give people so they can plug their ears with their finger so they can save their hearing. or maybe none of the above, or doesn't really matter whether we will be remembered or not, isn't better to think about today

Little things that make big difference in your life

2009-07-10T19:53:00.027-04:00

Making our self happy has been a life long objective since the beginning of time. Aristotle was a pioneer in advocating it, the French call it " Joie de vivre". How do we obtain it or rather prolong it, is easier said than done. Over the years, I came to learn a technique that might help achieve it, it start by paying attention to the little things in life that give us enjoyment, even for a short moment. Everyone of us have a mental list that tickle our feather and make us feel good. It varies from one person to another, it also changes with age, what you enjoy in your twenties, obviously doesn't mean anything to you when you approach fifty. your interest changes just like your body. It varies from talking for hours on the phone, driving over the speed limit, spending hours in the front of the mirror in you teens, to working for hours in the garden, working on a puzzle all night long during your middle age. We all have these moment, yet most of us don't pay much attention to it, we actually take it for granted, yet when we start to give it our consideration, embrace it, truly live it, look forward to repeat it as much as we can. conserve it, linger our awareness of it. then we can face the world head on. well, you might think, I have plenty of problems as it, I don't really have the time to create these moment or even think about it, melancholy seems to follow me everywhere I go. well, that is precisely the reason you need these little pleasurable moment, you see, it is like a saving account,you needed for rainy day, the more you save good memories in your mental account, the more likely you can face the dilemmas that we all encounter in our daily life, from having a flat tire, to dealing with difficult to please boss at work, I am not saying that these pleasant memories will solve these problems, but you are more like it to face it head on, you will have a clear mind to find a quick fix for it, to endure it. Take for example the flat tire scenario, it is counterproductive to be agitated, since it is out of your hands . On the other hand.it, if you really think about it, in couple of days, the flat tire incident will become history. you might even share the story with your friends while laughing at it. Well,since we are on the subject of laughing, it has been scientifically proven that laughing contribute to our well being, and good health, you are doing your body a great favor by not worrying and by laughing at your mishap. http://www.helium.com/items/107231-health-benefits-of-laughing I didn't realize how many things that I enjoyed in life, until I started to write this list down. Well here is the list that I wrote so far of the little life's pleasure, this is what gives me gratification and make me feel good even for a moment. they are in no particular order; 1 - watching the daily show and the Colbert report 2 - painting 3 - having coffee in the morning with my husband 4- taking a drive with my dad 5 - talking on the phone with my mom 6 - going to Gabe 7 - speaking Arabic with my daughter 8 - feeding my cats 9 - being greeted by my dogs, specially zoozi 10 - watching baby animal of all kind 11 - listening to Qur'an recital 12 - praying with my dad 13 - playing with my nieces 14 - having pedicure and manicure 15 - spa 16 - going on a cruise, or any vacation for that matter 17 - cleaning my closet 18 - cleaning my house 19 - cooking when I am in the mood 20 - blogging 21 - listening to my favorite music 22 - reading a book, preferably a non-fiction 23- being alone 24 - going to the book store 25 - shopping for books on amazon.com 26 - watching HGTV 27 - talking with my son 28 - shopping with my daughter 29 - browsing for real estate on the Internet 30 - photography 31- giving an advice to a confuse teenager 32 - going to a new restaurant with friends and family 33 - watching movies with family and friends and the list goes on and on.....

Islam and the Power of Kindness

2009-06-30T18:45:00.004-04:00

I am adding some of my favorite Ayah from the Holy Quran. tabsir.net » Islam and the Power of Kindness: "“It is not required of thee (O Messenger) to set them on the right path but Allah guides to the right path whom He pleaseth. Whatever of good ye give benefits your own souls and ye shall only do so seeking the “Face” of Allah. Whatever good ye give, shall be rendered back to you and ye shall not be dealt with unjustly.” (Quran 2:272)" “It is not required of thee (O Messenger) to set them on the right path but Allah guides to the right path whom He pleaseth. Whatever of good ye give benefits your own souls and ye shall only do so seeking the “Face” of Allah. Whatever good ye give, shall be rendered back to you and ye shall not be dealt with unjustly.” (Quran 2:272)

When life gives you lemon, open a lemon stand! unless...

2009-06-21T03:37:00.024-04:00

When the "unthinkable" hits the fan, clean it up before you turn on the fan... ( unless you are very hot). Don't just sit there feeling sorry for yourself, ( unless you have a flat tire on your way to your first interview for your dream job). instead, stand up and shake off the dust of your shoulder, use this difficult time as an opportunity to learn from. ( unless it happen to you more than ones, and within a month, then you should either take the bus or buy yourself a new tires, better yet a new car). Some people feel miserable if they get caught up in the rain, because it messed up their hair, while others start singing and dancing in the rain ( unless its freezing rain, then I cry for them too). some people blame their mishap on everything and everybody, and take the stand of a victim. ( ask me, I was one of those), while others use it to motivate them and fight it back head on. they climb the stair to success without looking down. ( I prefer to take the elevator). If the "feel sorry for me, and "it is your fault" people hang on there for awhile, they would have found that after the rain, the sun will shine eventually ( not lately, it feels like rain forest in here, pretty soon we will start building the ark). The truth is, people who make it up there to the top of the mountain, try to help the people on the bottom to climb the ladder to success so they can enjoy the view from the top with them ( if it happen that the people on the bottom were their children, then they are in for surprise ! as soon as the kids get up there, they push their parent ( unintentionally) down the stair. by then the parent are too old to climb again, they most likely developed arthritis in their knees and or have triple bypass surgery, so they join the others down there feeling sorry for themselves with them. The kids on the other hand don't know how to help their parent to climb the stair again since they didn't aquire the needed skills to overcome difficulties, after all they were carried up the the stair by their parent. As for the parent, as usual, they use the free falling accident as an experience for future use. except that they won't be able to use it unless reincarnation really exist. if so, they make an oath for themselves that they are going to just watch their children from above, while feeling sorry for them down there.

Yet another disability in men

2009-04-09T10:30:00.014-04:00

I don't know about you women out there, but my husband fails everytime to locate an object he misplaced himself, even when it is right in the front of him. It happen thousand time, (more or less), for example, he will be looking for his beloved hammer, that happen to be placed by him, on the kitchen counter just a day earlier from an UNFINISHED project. Believe it or not, he will be starring right at it, while accusing me of misplacing it. I try to play a game sometimes with him, just to aggravate him, or maybe to shift his brain to second gear ( to borrow his lingo). I will usually ask him to look around him, because the object is usually within his eyesight, I kind of play the hot and cold game, the poor guy never come out as a winner. I kid you not, eight times out ten, he still can't locate it. One day, I was so curious ( I mean furious) whether or not this object's displacement deficiency is a disorder suffered by my husband only or is it a genetic mutation that exists in male gene exclusively. After a couple of mouse clicking and google sniffing, and to my surprise, (NOT), I found the later to be the case. Men in general "DO" have a serous deficiency when it comes to locating an object. In a matter of fact, I was talking to my son about it, ( mind you, he has been tested by me for the deficiency and result came NEGATIVE !!). He told me that there is a popular saying that goes like this "if you want a man to displace something, put it in the front of him" . BINGO. to have a saying made after a disorder is an enough evidence for me that the disorder is officially exist. Now, by no mean I am claiming that I have scientific evidences to support my claim, but hey, who says that women's testament about a subject is not scientific enough. Let's not forget that when woman is an eyewitness of an incident she doesn't leave any details untouched, she describes the blue shirt her husband wore that day, and the smell of burnt onion left on the stove in the misplacement room. She even throw some unrelated details to support her case, like the Dulce & Cabana perfume she bought that day on sale at Bloomingdale). while she was arguing with her husband about his misplacement accidence. she still have her other ten senses working on high gear ( again to barrow from the men's limited description dictionary). Well, no wonder women are called multifunctional being, unlike men who should be call dysfunctional.

But again, I wonder why sometimes she leave out some small details , like she accidentally moved her husband tool box to the garage so she can clear some counter space for her flower arrangement project. but hey, h didn't notice that, so it is still his fault...

My Dogs

2009-03-01T00:59:00.004-05:00

Since I talked about my cats in a previous blog, I felt guilty if not obligated to talk about my dogs. If you remember, I loved cats since childhood, with dogs, it’s a different story, you see, I grow up alienated from dogs, I haven’t had any actual contact with dogs, until I met my best friend’s dog, I feel bad that I don’t even remember his name, but again, it’s been more than twenty years, it was a white Maltese, if I recall right. He had a heart problem, he died shortly after that. My friend was devastated, I felt pretty bad for her, yet I couldn't’t really understand why she took it so hard. It took me another eight years before I had my first dog Mister, it was a pure coincidence. I was at the time volunteering in an animal shelter, just because my love for cats, I felt that this is the least I can do to help them and ease their condition, by taking care of them. Then one day, here there was Mister, a gentle black Miniature Pincher, he was found tied to a power pole, it looks like he was abandon by his abuser . he had a red bandanna around his neck. There was no place available for him at the shelter at the time, they usually put the animal to sleep if they have full capacity. The lady who was in charge of the facility, asked me if I can foster him for the week-end until they have a slot open. My husband’s reaction when I brought home a dog what not very encouraging to say the least, but I promise him that I will take him back to the shelter first thing on Monday morning. It took us only a week-end to get attached to Mister, he has such sweet personality, you can’t help it but to fall in love with him. Monday came and my husband didn’t want to admit that he like the idea of keeping a dog in the house, so he suggest to keep him for extra day or so, to make sure he has place in the shelter, and the rest is history. Than came the rest of the gang, within tow years after having Mister, we got Precious, a blond Pomeranian, Mister and her hit it off from day one, Mister found in her the perfect companion, they were inseparable, I can assure you she had ADHD, she was so hyper that she rarely sit. She was truly precious just like her name, she followed me everywhere. Then on one gloomy day, I went into a store to get pick up dogs for the dogs, I left Mister and Precious in the car for couple of minutes, it didn’t take long before somebody snatched her from the car. They left Mister since he is not a popular breed unlike Precious. I was devastate, it took me a long time to get over it. I decided not to replace Precious with other dog. two years later, I stopped by a pet shop as I usually do. I noticed two Chihuahua behind the glass. It was love from the first sight , they were a male and a female, the male was light brown, the female was black. I made a decision on the spot, I couldn't’t leave the store without them, we named them Abla and Antar, we loved them, they changed our lives. Mister couldn't’t be happier, he was their guardian. Seven months later we realized that Abla was pregnant shortly before she gave birth to two beautiful litters. Just watching the miracle of birth was a life changing experience. Within a short time we end up with five dogs, with over ten cats in the house, we were living in a zoo more than a house. We then decided to sell one of the puppies before we get attached to him. By the time the puppy was gone, I already was in love, it turn out to be the love of my life, I called her Zoozi, nothing make me happy like her, we became inseparable, she added flavor to my life, I couldn't’t see my life without her. She is truly my baby.

Catology

2009-02-27T11:21:00.015-05:00

It is the science of cat psychology, I know, you probably thinking, I never heard of such a field before? well, that's because I invented it. You see, I am proud to call myself a cat lover, I loved cats since I was little child, I don't really know why, but there is something that pulled me toward them. I acquired many cats throughout the years, at some point I had the total of 18 cats, but the number has dwindle with time, mainly due to old age or accident. Let's go back to the science of catology, it is mainly about reading cat's mind, you see, each cat has her own personality, just like human, they differ in their moods and their personality. let's me analyze for you my cats's behavior so you will understand what I am talking about. . I will start with the Bibo, his name stem from Halib, it mean milk in Arabic. She is pure white, Turkish angora, long haired, she is beautiful, and independent, doesn't interact with other cats, sleeps most times, she is my eldest, over ten years old, very sweet, comes to me now and then, wanted to be petted and brushed. The second cat is one of my favorite, her name is Kika, she is olive color with white spots under her chin and chest, a natural talker, she talk to me and I talk back, like Bibo she doesn't get along with other cats, her favorite place is my room, she likes to sleep on my right side of bed. Does not eats with other cats, she is arrogant and thinks that she is better than the rest of cats, she love to be petted and brushed. We move to Roori, my favorite. Even thought she is a scratchier, I can't help hide my love to her, an outdoor cat, she purrs constantly, likes to eat alone, out of fear not arrogance. yet she get along very well with one of my most unusual cat, Phobia, which I will get to her later. Then we have Titi, her name stem from Nafertiti, she is a russet, friendly with droopy eyes, she looks sad, but I can assure you she is not, she has no enemy, nothing bother her, purrs all the time, like to sit is my bathroom. Then there is Foofi, a gray haired cat, was born under a couch in my living room, nothing seems to bother her, she drools when purred, spend most of her time outdoor, independent and friendly, her favorite place is over the kitchen cupboard. doesn't like wet food. Then we come to Sisi, a cat in her own (cat)egory, a melange of a Siamese and who knows what, she looks dirty, but she is not. white fur with brown speck. Very demanding, expects to be served, a first class whiner, when in good mood she tend to scratch the neck and plug the eye brow. constantly hungry, especially before I drink my coffee in the morning, prefers wet food, other cats avoid her, her favorite hobby is spraying on every place she get her eye on, she has green/blue crossed eyes. We then come to Baby, a full blooded Siamese, was found neglected in somebody's basement, very independent, likes to stay outdoor. I suspect she is having an affair with one of my neighbor, since she is friendly and gorgeous, I don't think she would have a problem finding a suitor. just like Foofi, she likes to sit on the opposite side of the kitchen cupboard. when in the mood she like to be petted. Next, we have Phobia, a cat just like her name, phobic, suffer from anxiety, she wouldn't let me touch her, lives in a box outdoor. has beautiful white fur with some black spots she that resembles a cow, best friend with Roori. She doesn't get along with the rest of cats. Last but not least, we have the baby of the family, Em Risheh, my husband's favorite. has fluffy tail, russet fur, she could easily pass a model, since she is photogenic with an attitude to go with it. A trouble maker by trade, feared by all cats, accept for Sisi, her God mother who keeps her in shape. she tend to build a trap for cats then chase them away. they simply hate her, yet she is a flirty and cute that she gets away with a murder. By now, you should have a general idea about my cats, in a later blog I will cover more details about them.

Take Notes Webster Dictionary

2009-02-19T12:41:00.016-05:00

I was wondering, who decides what word goes in the new edition of Webster dictionary? Because I think I am into something big here, you see, I invented a new verb, only close friends and acquaints know about it, it is the verb "GABING" !! it deprive from the Gabism movement that I found over ten years ago, our member has grown over the years to more than twenty members, Since then it has become a trade mark. I know it sounds kind of weird, but if you just know how much action and dedication goes into the movement, you will certainly understand my excitement to go public. To start, GABING, you first make some phone calls to the members to see who is available to take part in today's operation. I hate to call it a cult, but I am afraid it is the closest thing I could think of. Step two involve plannings, when to go? how long? dinner before and after? and many small details we try not to overlook. Than we take off. I prefer to use my babe magnet for the operation, since I like to indulge myself if I may say so, the trip doesn't take more than forty minutes in the car, but boy !! these forty minutes get your anticipation going, when we reach our destination, suddenly the mood change, and everyone goes on his own, its a feeling you have to experience yourself in order to appreciated. Over the years, I tried to recruit more people, its not as easy as you might think, some people don't like shopping at a discount stores, yes, you heard me right, I am talking about shopping at Gabriel Brother's Stores, look where your dirty mind took you, shame on you....

On Golden Pond

2009-02-14T08:14:00.008-05:00

Over ten years ago, my husband was in the process of relocating to a new city. I asked a friend of mine (who happen to be a frequent mover), whether it is better to live in a big city or small town, her answer has impact on me, she said, "do you prefer to be a big fish in a small pond? (small town) or a small fish in a big pond ?(big city). In a small town, you get the chance to see the same people over and over again, their faces become familiar to you. They know when your children leave for college, or when your relative visit, and so on. In a big city on the other hand, you become one of the masses, you ride the metro to work every day without even looking at the person sitting beside you. Well, do you want to be known, or you prefer to live privately? well I choose to be a small fish, (actually, my husband got a job there), since then, I have been living in a small town, it wasn't easy at first, but then, I realize, as long as I get to visit a big pond often, I will be OK. But the sometimes I wonder, maybe if I have chosen the big pond, I might have become a big fish, just I wonder.....

Hodablog: My First Blog

2009-02-06T12:37:00.003-05:00

Hodablog: My First Blog I finally created my first blog, thanks to my daughter who encouraged me to launched it. I don't have any expectation, I don't know where it is going to take me, or if it will go somewhere, but at least I can say that " I have a blog" yeah.... I hope i will be able to delete this entry later because it sure seems very lame, but again, can you blame me? it is my first entry after all...I don't even remember how I got here! let's see, first I was checking my email, then I end up in a lovely vintage site, I end up spending quite some time there (almost two hours). then landed here creating my first official blog. That should be interesting !! I guess we need to put some of those thoughts that are floating in our minds day in day out on a paper, or for that matter, on a computer screen, You never known, maybe, just maybe, by jotting down some thoughts I end up with a good idea that I can transform into a useful project. Well, that is enough for my first blog, I better hit the bed (it is almost 1:30 am). till will meet अगं Not much to say here, but I will sure I will think of something to say about myself sometimes down the road, until then read my blog and figure it out yourself....

Our Little Vice

2009-02-06T11:10:00.011-05:00

We are all guilty as charged। We are a first class nation of consumerism। We have to have that flat screen 52” HDTV with surround sound ( and charge it!) and the latest 15 gallon SUV (fill it up!) And don’t forget that 14-day Mediterranean Cruise (two years to pay it.) And how about remodeling the kitchen and adding a new granite countertop that everybody is talking about, and at the same time replace that old fashioned carpet that use to be an asset to any home in the eighties with hardwood flooring that mind you has to be Brazilian cherry wood (refinance the house।) And the list goes on and on and without realizing we are up to our knees in mud (debts).

And guess what? Our beloved credit card companies who bombarded us with junk mail to apply for a low rate credit card (4% interest) suddenly overnight shoot up the interest through the roof to 24% , claiming that we were late three hours on our monthly payment ( a big lie and we fall for it)। In no time our expenses exceed our income, so we end up finding a second part time job to cover our expenses to no avail।........... ........................................................................................

..And lets not forget our savings that we were supposed to leave it for a rainy day in old age। But guess what, it is still sunny and yet the financial crisis swept away most of it while we are watching। Are you relating yet to what I am saying? Ok, who are we to blame here, the marketing strategy ? That makes us feel that if we don’t have it now than we can’t keep up with the Johnson's next door and we have nothing to show off with, no story about our vacation to brag about. Or should we blame ourselves for becoming so materialistic so we can satisfy our needs and greed? .......................................................................................................................................And don’t forget our obsession with little and big gadgets. You know what I am talking about: from the tooth paste squeezer, the electronic nail filer, to a rain coat for our beloved four-legged pet. The problem with these gadgets is that we hardly use them. You might say to yourself, well these gadgets are usually not so expensive. Well, have you done the math to see how much they add up to? You will be amazed. Or let’s all blame Wal-Mart for selling all the “As seen on TV” products that they strategically plan next to the check out counter. Or how about those lame info commercials with the guy with the screechy voice that comes on late at night when you have insomnia and are flipping through the channels. You pick up the phone to order the spatula for $19.99 plus $5.99 for shipping and handling, but you end up spending $59.99 on related stuffs that make the spatula work like magic. But wait, if you order within 5 minute, they will give you an extra spatula for free; you just pay another $5.99 for shipping and handling. By the time you hang up the phone you already bought 6 spatulas for everybody on your Christmas list, including your 93 year old aunt who lives in a nursing home. Mind you it is only February and you have to wait another 10 months to deliver the presents. Hopping that aunt Margret still around to make with the spatula your favorite pancake she use to make you when you were seven years old.

Bad Habit

2009-01-27T00:09:00.006-05:00

I have a confession to make, it is not easy for me to admitted, believe me I thought a lot about it before coming out, but I believe it is going to help me face my handicap, here I go, I ....bite my nails, I have been doing it as long as I remember, I might even started in the womb, ,I can't help it, I tried everything to stop it, but at the end I gave up and thought to myself, so what! at least I am not bothering anybody doing it, (except my poor husband) he doesn't like to catch me in the act. I do it when I am in a tense mood, like watching an action movie, or when I am very upset. I hope when day I will stop, but until then, there it more important things in my life I need to improve. I'll keep u post it when I stop, but don't expected to be soon...

My New Laptop

2009-01-11T00:21:00.007-05:00

How bad do I really need a new laptop? well, it depend on who you are talking to. My husband believe in me getting one so I can sit with him in the living room instead of me spending most of my evening in the kitchen surfing the net. As for me, I like to have a laptop to use when I sit in my bed late, or when I visit the kids and like to share something with them while they are surfing themselves the net. Did I made my case convincing to buy a new laptop? sure not! but too late I bought it already, beside I made up my mind to buy it beforehand anyway, I did all my calculation, it is funny when you are convinced about something, you make all excuses to feels how crucial for you to buy a computer. case close, I mean laptop open.

Living the moment !!

2008-12-22T04:17:00.006-05:00

We seems to be in a hurry to do the next things most of the time, we drive to the store, we can't wait to get there, once we are there, we can't wait till we finish grocery shopping, then off we go home, we can't wait till we empty the grocery, we start cooking, we are looking forward to eat since we are very hungry,then we can't wait till we clean up so we can sit and watch TV. is that it ? we do all this so we can sit ad watch TV? what about all what we did? it didn't mean anything to us? did we miss to enjoy it all so we can watch TV? are we avoiding reality so we can live in fiction? we don't to waste time doing these little errands, but guess what, doing these little errands is living our life, watching TV is living somebody else's life. We want to accomplish so much, we always complain that we don't have enough time, we judge our day by how much we have accomplished, but whose counting? time is the only thing we have, happiness is living the now, not tomorrow, not yesterday. there is so much I want to accomplish in this lifetime, so much to learn, I want to learn how to play a music instrument, how to sing,how to sculpt, how to fly,how to crochet, and the list goes on and on, but what if I learn how to do all these things? then what? do I sit around doing nothing? I guess having a motivation to learn something new keep us alive, the moment we stop wanting to learn something new, we should stop living, at least that how I feel. but maybe I should stop analyzing everything in life, I should just let it be, to borrow the Beatles term.

Get a hobby !!

2008-12-12T13:36:00.009-05:00

They call it hobby, but I just realized recently that it should be called obsession, you know what I mean, when you start a new hobby, you become so obsess with everything related to it, you think about it in every waking hour, even in your dream. Take for example cake decoration. Couple of month ago, I took a cake decorating class, it lasted only one month, but I did plenty of damage to my pocket, in less than a month, I bought every gadget related to cake decorating, from spatula to smooth out the frosting, to a cake rotating holder. I end up with so many objects, I could have easily opened up my cake decorating business, yet sadly that obsession died as soon as the class was over. So what did I do next. I took up knitting, luckily it is a cheaper hobby, or should I say obsession ? by now, I have every color yarn under the color palette. I believe that hobby is an obsession we choose, unlike a real obsession, were we can't have any choice in what we become obsess with, and in most cases, it might have a unpleasant, if not harmful effect on our life, like turning the light switch on and off while counting to one hundred, or washing your hands until they bleed, and it is a obsession you would rather keep it to your self, ( except for your Psychiatrist) " You really don't want your friends and family to find out that you have OCD. However, having a hobby, is something you brag about. If you happen to be surrounded with people you are trying to impress, like a cute girl or boy you've been eyeing for quite sometime, when you finally get your big chance to make a good impression, what do you say or talk about? your hobby, if your are the girl, make sure you don't say that your hobby is " shopping", and if you are the guy, you better not reveal that your hobby is collecting " beer cans . As for me, I can't wait until I pick up a new hobby, as long as I stay away from "sailing " I will be fine, cause sailing is one of the most expensive hobby. ( like I can afford it! ). this hobby will be the last hobby I will take on, since I won't be able to even eat after that.

Past Life

2008-12-06T13:45:00.007-05:00

If there is such a thing as past life, then I must have been a belly dancer in a harem somewhere in a khalifah's palace. I mean belly dancing comes to me so natural, that sometimes I feel that I am not doing any effort whatsoever, I feel as if my body is moving by itself. Whether I am good at it or not, you have to see me to judge it yourself, but you better be an expert on belly dancing move, because it shouldn't be judge as an exotic dancing. It is an art, I can tell right away when somebody is performing it right, regardless whether they master it or not, if they feel the music.

Again, if there is such a thing as past life, then I will like to come back as a cat, or maybe I was a cat before. I have such admiration for cats, I feel like I can read their mind, and I don't thing there much going on there, I think all what they have in , there is food, chasing little creature, grooming and sleeping. I guess I can mange that expect the chasing part.