"Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May" is a poem by Robert Herrick. This poem portrays our existence on earth, and that people age as life goes on, and everything becomes boundless. Herrick here urges people to take advantage of youth and energy while they may! The poem is in the genre of carpe diem, to seize the day.

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Food and Food... and MORE Food





I have been pigging out royally in the last few days... Going to C&G, Genki Sushi, Gelato Italiano, Burger Boutique TWICE, Kanafani, Wicked Bites, and God knows what!


It all started with Genki, we went out few days back for dinner.. then I went to Burger Boutique with a couple of friends and ended up driving to Gelato Italiano for dessert.... That same night I went to C&G for dinner!!! And earlier today, we ordered Burger Boutique and Kanafani! It did not stop here... I went back home to a nice surprise! My cookies arrived from Wicked Bites... I wont their contest AGAIN :-D

Ramadan Kareem



Wishing you a very blessed Ramadan :-)

Random Pics







Just snapping out photos during a mini break at work last week... I was talking on the phone in the staircase and looked out the window... up and down the stairs and snapped those photos away!

The waffle and ice tea pics were taken earlier today when I went to C&G - Marina Crescent.

The weekend is over :-S ughhhh!

Friday, August 29, 2008

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Official Noor Ban




So now that thttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifhey are out of ideas and real problems to discuss *sarcasm* they are banning all kind of school bags, stationary, and equipment that has Noor and Mohannad pictures on'em! Yeah and all other stuff with "famous" celebrities on'em! No student is allowed to enter the school with'em!

Way to go on having this piece of news in the front page! BIG news huh? Go figure!


Click here for original article.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Friday, August 22, 2008

Outdoor Harrods café and downtown Kuwait

All I gotta say... "THIS IS LANDAN!!! Not jeleeb shyookh!" :-P




As received by email
Thanks Dan-Dana


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


Harrods café? Not in our back yard, say wealthy neighbours

Robert Mendick, Chief Reporter
13.08.08

Millionaire residents of Knightsbridge are threatening legal action against Harrods, claiming its new outdoor café has made their neighbourhood resemble 'downtown Kuwait'.

Protesters including bankers, aristocrats and international businessmen gathered outside the department store to demonstrate their anger over the opening of Ladurée cafe at its rear three weeks ago.
They claim it has led to traffic gridlock and noise as well as helping to attract prostitutes, drug dealers and beggars to the area.
The pavement outside the café has been widened by several feet to accommodate customers paying £15 for a club sandwich - but in the process it has narrowed the road, causing mayhem, say the objectors.
Farih Tabbah, a Jordanian businessmen who is orchestrating the protest, said he would meet lawyers this week in a bid to overturn planning permission for the café, which was granted by Kensington and Chelsea council. He plans to seek a judicial review in the hope of having Ladurée shut down.
Mr Tabbah, 56, who lives in a £5 million house in Walton Place, opposite the café, said: 'It's worse than Piccadilly Circus - it's more like downtown Kuwait. They have taken away part of the road and all they have done is increase the traffic. The result is the biggest gridlock in central London. The traffic is at a standstill from 5pm. I cannot even sit in my own garden because of the noise.'
In two hours outside the café the Evening Standard witnessed near-permanent gridlock, with cars parked illegally on street corners, and a constant queue for tables at Ladurée. Many of the high-performance cars going past had numberplates from Kuwait, Qatar and United Arab Emirates.
Faisal Naif, 23, from Qatar, a passenger in a Lamborghini which went by at least four times, said: 'What can I say? I cannot make the engine quieter.'
Martin Diggle, 46, a fund manager who lives opposite Mr Tabbah, said: 'It is blighting the area. My children get woken up at night by the noise. I have even seen fistfights caused by road rage. It is an absolute farce.'
Actress Helen Forbes-Watt, 52, whose husband was a chief economist at the UN, said: 'The noise is driving us mad. It's like living in the middle of Brands Hatch. It starts at 5pm and goes on until 11pm. I rang Harrods and they told me they have 28 restaurants inside the building.'
A petition circulated by Mr Tabbah claims the cafés in the area are attracting 'street buskers... beggars and drunkards... prostitutes and drug dealers' and even 'salesmen selling pornographic materials and other illegal merchandise'.
The café, at the corner of Hans Road and Basil Street, was given permission to run for five years to have 25 tables and 100 chairs, and to have the pavement widened. It is a branch of a famous Paris chain. The manager, who refused to give his name, said: 'You should talk to Harrods. We are just operating the concession for them. But we are really sorry for the noise it is causing in the neighbourhood.'
Harrods' owner Mohamed Fayed spoke with Mr Tabbah yesterday to say the store was doing all it could to minimise noise and other disruption. A Harrods spokeswoman said: 'Mr Fayed always likes to reassure residents personally where appropriate and will contact them personally. Our managing director has also spoken to Mr Tabbah and sought to reassure him we take his concerns seriously. Obviously this is a new venture and we are always open to discussion about how to manage it effectively. But we have planning permission to extend the pavement and this is a very busy time for Harrods. Many of our Middle Eastern customers choose to come at this time of year.'

She denied the café had encouraged prostitution or drug dealing.


UPDATE
Original Article

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

"Burqini" & "Hijood"






First, the burqini, now the hijood. The Australian designer of the full-length swimwear for conservative Muslim women has created special headgear for athletes seeking to win glory without compromising their faith.

Bahrain's Olympic sprinter Rogaya Al Ghasara is set to become the first athlete to compete in the "hijood", a combination of the words "hijab" or veil and "hood", on Tuesday in Beijing.

Designed by Aheda Zanetti, managing director of Australian firm Ahiida, the hijood is breathable, fits snuggly like a hood and covers the hair and neck in accordance with Islamic custom!


To read the full article, click here

Thanks Suli!

Monday, August 18, 2008

Minute 22

As received by email!


'Minute 22' is a project about taking a single photo at the exact same time in the Arab world. The objective is to document, through pictures, what everyone is doing during Minute 22.

On Friday 22 August 2008 at exactly 2.22 pm Lebanon local time, anyone with a camera (mobile phone, compact, point & shoot, DSLR, and so on) can take a single photo and submit it by reading instructions on www.sowarmag.com

The number 22 was selected because it represents the number of countries in the League of Arab States. Anyone living in any of those countries can be a part of this project at the following local times on 22 August 2008:
Egypt - 2.22pm
Iraq - 2.22pm
Jordan - 2.22pm
Lebanon - 2.22pm
Saudi Arabia - 2.22pm
Syria - 2.22pm
Yemen - 2.22pm
Libya - 1.22pm
Sudan - 2.22pm
Morocco - 12.22pm
Tunisia - 1.22pm
Kuwait - 2.22pm
Algeria - 12.22pm
UAE - 3.22pm
Bahrain - 2.22pm
Qatar - 2.22pm
Oman - 3.22pm
Mauritania - 11.22am
Somalia - 2.22pm
Palestine - 2.22pm
Djibouti - 2.22pm
Comoros - 2.22pm.

Sowar Magazine, a journalistic and documentary photography magazine based in Lebanon, is the sponsor of the Minute 22 project, and will publish a special edition dedicated to it. The pictures will also be posted online.

Sowar, the phonetic pronunciation of the word 'pictures' in Arabic, is a picture-intensive magazine that covers events, cultures, scenes, and individuals in Lebanon, the Middle East, and the Gulf. It is distributed to major bookstores in Lebanon and is available through online subscriptions to international

For more on this, click here

Thanks Abz :-)


Update:
You can join their facebook group by clicking here

Requirements:
- You must be in one of countries mentioned above to take the photo
- The photo should include at least one person (i.e. no plain landscape or architecture photos)
- Maximum size of the photo should be 3MB
- Please submit ONLY one picture
- The deadline for submitting photos is August 30, 2008
- By submitting a photo, you agree to the terms and conditions
- Email the photo to minute22@sowarmag.com and copy/ paste the following text in your email message (please write the country and city in the subject header as well):



FULL NAME:
COUNTRY:
CITY:
DESCRIPTION:

I HEREBY EXPRESSLY AGREE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR SUBMISSION OF THE PHOTOGRAPHS FOR THE MINUTE 22 SOWAR MAGAZINE PROJECT, AS PUBLISHED AT: http://www.sowarmag.com/minute22/termsandconditions.htm

Three Cheese Quiche with Turkey




Here is the recipe I promised you since this post.

I hope you like it :-)


Preheat oven to 180C/350F

Ingredients;
Filling
*******
*Get the kind of cheese you like. I mixed Gruyere, Edam, and a Provolone
*Deli Turkey slices cut into medium to small size squares
*Chappati bread (ready made in Coops) - MY SECRET PIE CRUST LOL

Custard
*********
In a bowl, mix 1 1/4 light cream (I used Elle et Vire brand)
4 eggs
1 tablespoon mustard
salt and pepper

Recipe:
********
In a foil/aluminum plate, place the chappati bread (or any kind of crust/pie crust you have)
put a layer of the cheese(s), then turkey and repeat three times making cheese your last layer on top

Mix wthe custard well and pour it onto the plates you have prepared with turkey and cheese

Cook in the oven for about an hour... until golden on top

Let it cool for 10 mins before you try to take it out of the foil

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Unbelievable




I received this msg earlier today -not gonna say from who-



يوجد لدينا ورق جدران غرفة نوم نور و مهند
متوفر لدى معرض سن سيتي

Noor & Muahand's bedroom wallpaper is available at our Sun City branch




COME ON!!!!! Are they for real!!!!!


If you missed out on my Noor post, click here.

Kinder Surprise -NEW-


Friday, August 15, 2008

My Baby Picture!




My friend dared me to post a picture of me... so I DID IT! heehee
Anyway... its a baby picture of me. I was few months shy of three years old. Picture taken in Hawaii with me holding a flower outside what seems like our hotel (I THINK!)

If you read this post, consider yourself tagged and post a baby picture of yourself!

Ta Ta for now

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Yasmina's Locks of Love




Last Saturday, four year old Yasmina (my cousin's daughter), had a big event! She had her very first haircut... and for a good cause too :-) She donated 11 inches of her hair to Locks of Love. Basically her mom and dad were talking about it for a while, how it is nice to donate locks of your hair to little kids who are sick and lost their hair due to sickness...

Yaya... very proud of you little princess :-)


Check this video out!



Kids have pure hearts!

Monday, August 11, 2008

Homer Simpson Euro




MADRID (Reuters) - A one Euro coin has turned up in Spain bearing the face of cartoon couch potato Homer Simpson instead of that of the country's king, a sweetshop owner told Reuters on Friday.

Jose Martinez was counting the cash in his till in the city of Aviles, northern Spain, when he came across the coin where Homer's bald head, big eyes and big nose had replaced the serious features of King Juan Carlos.

"The coin must have been done by a professional, the work is impressive," he told Reuters.

The comical carver had not taken his tools to the other side of the coin displaying the map of Europe. So far, no other coins of the hapless, beer-swilling oaf have been found in circulation.

"I've been offered 20 euros for it," said Martinez.


Source: Reuters

Thanks Suli!

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Cheese and Mushroom Omlette




Yes! Still trapped in the cooking mood!

Ingredients:
*2 eggs
*4 medium size mushrooms diced and sprinkle with olive oil
*2 tbs shredded provolone cheese
*1 1/2 tbs butter
*Italian spices
*Salt & pepper

Recipe:
*In a small bowl beat eggs
*In a small skillet and over medium heat cook the sprinkled mushrooms till a little bit brownish... drizzle with spices
*In another skillet, melt the butter and spread evenly until it sizzles
*Pour beaten eggs spreading them evenly, cook until they thicken but do not over cook'em
*Pour in mushrooms to one side along with the cheese
*Fold the omelette on the mushroom and cheese
*Fold again tucking one side under

Voila... nothing special, just an easy to make cheese and mushroom omelette for you :-)

Friday, August 8, 2008

Updates





I had a very long tiring week! Mostly at home in bed... I have been out of it for few days! Been sick :-( And was not able to go to work for three days (Mon - Wed). I could not even finish the paperwork for my new car, which I was waiting for since April, when the dealer called me on Sunday... I waited till Wednesday when I felt a little better!

So Sunday I had a couple of friends over. We spent our time in the kitchen making Quiches, waffles, and fruit salad. We had so much fun... at night my muscles cramps were getting worse... I could not sleep, and I could not get out of bed in the morning to go to work on Monday.

Tuesday, was even worse! Heartburn and achy allover. I went to see two doctors;
Doc #1: For my spasms. He told me I was stressed and very tensed... and that I looked tired and asked for some blood tests. I went to the lab, and my blood pressure was low, which is not unusual for me, so the nurse sticks the needle and NO BLOOD will come out. At this point I started laughing and my head was hurting (not a nice feeling to have a needle stuck in your arm and wait for blood to come out) so she tried with my other arm, and blood finally came but with SLOW FLOW! She told me the results would be out in a couple of hours.

So I went to see the other doctor, Doc #2, who immediately admitted me to the "One Day Case" unit for endoscopy! He was like since you are fasting lets go ahead and see whats wrong! The thing is I went to the hospital with the driver, and I asked him to go home and come back after two hours since I was told I will be under sedation. I called dad to come and asked Isaac to go. I went into the mini OR room, and the nurse was about to inject me with the sedative... I asked her: "When will I be sleeping" and then things started to get funny, I dont remember it all well, but I was awake at some points -flashes- here and there! I dont remember how I got back to my bed, but I heard my dad's voice "Excuse me nurse, where is Ansam?" so I opened my eyes and looked at dad approaching me and was waving with a stupid smile on my face LOL! I kept asking them to let me go but they wouldnt. They brought a wheelchair and I started laughing telling them I can walk fine, but they wouldnt let me...

My sweet daddy got my blood test results and we quickly went back to Doc #1. I am glad dad was with me to talk to the doctors because I really dont remember well what was going on around me... how I got to the car.. or left the pharmacy! I was in a good mood, and got two sick leaves (Doc #1 gave me three days, and Doc#2 gave me two days)... I tried to read through the reports and its funny how sometimes they say things like, "Patient was pale, but in a good mood...." or "She tolerated the procedure well!"

Anyhow... I am fine now, and I went to work yesterday! I had to go wrap things up before my leave... My manager and coworkers were extremely nice and tried their best to make sure that all is well with me...


Ohhhhh and another highlight of the week! I had to say goodbye to my old car.... who served me really really well since 2002. I would still see you at home (we still have it) so I will be saying hello to you between now and then...

Monday, August 4, 2008

Stupid Spasms :-(




Last weekend I went swimming and I got a very bad muscle cramp... I relaxed and it was gone. Then when we decided to race from one side to the other, and as I was swimming to the other side, it happened again but MUCH worse I thought I was gonna drawn :'-( it was really bad that I was gonna cry but resisted and played all mucho in front of my friends (opps! they may read this!) Oh well... it was bad, specially the second one. Felt like something was drilling into my calf hard. Later that night I started to feel pain in my muscles, which got worse at night (maybe because of the AC!)

At work, its freezing cold, and I was wearing a dress... got few cramps but tried to hold my horses and went to the staircase to sit a bit where its warm and under direct sunlight.

Last night I couldn't sleep! It kept hurting me, only now I am achy all over.. and have spasms in my legs! It was so bad that my muscles were stone hard.. one of them lasted more than 10 minutes I swear.... and then the worst happened... it reached my foot and it was so damn painful! I couldn't move out of bed until it was noon. I was also starving by then!

Now I have muscle ache all over, ear hurting like there is no tomorrow, and runny nose with some dry coughing... ughhhhhh! I dont like being sick!

My doctor is out of town, I am going to see his colleague, who will be able to check my history/files... last time something similar happened was five years ago, and turned out my body wasnt absorbing calcium due to deficiency in Vitamin D or something, but I also was sick with a very bad flu at the time! :-S

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Knox Leon and Vivienne Marcheline!





They got their mommy's lips! HeeHee
Again,those babies were swimming in a great genes' pool!

Waffles






Dry Ingredients:
* 2 cups flour (you can use one cup regular and one cup whole wheat)
* 2 teaspoons sugar
* 1 tablespoon Baking Powder
* 1/2 teaspoon Salt
* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (Optional)

Liquid Ingredients:
* 1 and 2/3 cups milk
* 1/4 cup vegetable oil
* 2 eggs (separating whites and yolks)

Recipe:
*In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients
*In another bowl mix the liquid ingredients without the egg whites
*Whip the egg whites (do not over mix it)
*Mix the dry and liquid ingredients
*Whip the egg whites and add them to the mixture

Spray the waffle maker surface with butter and start making them!

Easy :-D

No More Mr. Ansam at Zawya!




Zawya fixed Mr. Ansam to Miss Ansam! YAY! I am back!

Friday, August 1, 2008

Seafood and Seafood







This is from a competition I went for... Cooking! Lets hope I win hehehehe WISH ME LUCK my loyal readers :-)
Here is my story....


I was thinking it is summer time, and that I have to be creative... I decided to go with seafood. As an early start, I went earlier today to the fish market in Sharg and got me plenty of clams. I later on headed to Sultan Center to buy my ingredients. Whats interesting is that I kept imagining the dishes that I was going to cook so I did not have an actual list to buy! Even better? I am gonna name each dish myself hehehe.

Here is my outcome (and pictures will be posted in the group album)

Starter...
It takes Two to Mango
(Two main ingredients - crab meat and mangoes)
Dressing:
Four tablespoons mango chutney
Two tablespoons lemon juice
Two tablespoons lime juice
One teaspoon curry powder
Two table spoons lemon mayo (knorr)
In a blender mix the above ingredients

Salad:
One small mango cubed
Butter lettuce leaves
Red lettuce chopped
Crab meat (processed - Japanese)
One small shallot chopped
One clove of garlic - crushed
Salt, pepper, curry powder, and white pepper
One lurpak butter (the small ones)

In a saucepan heat, melt the better, add shallots, garlic, and the spices mentioned aove. Cook in the crab meat.
Arrange the butter lettuce leaves in a plate. Mix the mangoes with the red lettuce and add the crab mix. Place all on the arranged lettuce and add dressing

Main Dish
Linguine Alle Vongole
Cook pasta as instructed on its pack, but only make sure you dont fully cook it... set aside

for clams
250 grams fresh clams
Six tablespoons olive oil
Dash of dried oregano
Four tablespoons butter
One teaspoon crushed garlic
Two diced shallots
A handfull of chopped basil
Two cups fre premium white non alcoholic wine (available at sultan center)

Recipe:
In a saucepan, heat olive oil, dried oregano, and butter. Add in garlic and shallots... cook well until fragrant (hmmm hmmmmm)Add clams, basil, and wine. Also add salt and pepper... let it boil and when all clams open lower the heat. Then let it simmer.
After that, you add in the pasta to the clam mix and let it simmer again

For dessert after seafood.. you want something refreshing. I decided to go with fruit!

Lemony Fruit Sticks
You need
Papaya
Dragon Fruit
Kiwi
Elle et Vire pineapple yogurt
Lemon
Lime
wooden skewers

In a bowl mix one serving of elle et vire yogurt, grate lemon zest (one teaspoon), squeeze in some lime and lemon juices (to your taste) and whisk well. Refrigerate.

Cube the pieces of fruit you have and place them onto the skewers. Top them up with the yogurt and have some on the side for extra dip

Voila :-) I hope you like it

Saudi religious police ban pet cats and dogs



I received this by email earlier today! Interesting! A MUST read...
Thanks Dr. Shurooq :-)
*********************************

RIYADH (AFP) — Saudi Arabia's religious police have announced a ban on selling cats and dogs as pets, or walking them in public in the Saudi capital, because of men using them as a means of making passes at women, an official said on Wednesday.

Othman al-Othman, head of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice in Riyadh, known as the Muttawa, told the Saudi edition of al-Hayat daily that the commission has started enforcing an old religious edict.

He said the commission was implementing a decision taken a month ago by the acting governor of the capital, Prince Sattam bin Abdul Aziz, adding that it follows an old edict issued by the supreme council of Saudi scholars.

The reason behind reinforcing the edict now was a rising fashion among some men using pets in public "to make passes on women and disturb families," he said, without giving more details.

Othman said that the commission has instructed its offices in the capital to tell pet shops "to stop selling cats and dogs".

The 5,000-strong religious police oversees the adherence to Wahabism -- a strict version of Sunni Islam, which also forces women to cover from head to toe when in public, and bans them from driving.




Click here for the original article.

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