Everyone wants Christmas to be meaningful. Spend less on gifts and more on relationships.
Sounds good, doesn't it?
Oby is someone I've seen commenting on other blogs and she dropped by and left this wonderful video link yesterday. It's less than three minutes and a good reminder of how we can make a difference in this world. Please take a few minutes to view this. I know nothing of the group, but I could not argue with the message of this short video.
Thank you for sharing this with me, Oby. What a great reminder of helping those who are less fortunate - the "least of these" that Jesus spoke of. I shared this on Facebook, too. :-)
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Arab Women - Algerians
Part 4 -- More from Both Right and Left Handed: Arab Women Talk About Their Lives by Bouthaina Shaaban
See this post to read about the author, the introduction and Syrian interviewees. Click here to read about Lebanese women. And click here to read about the Palestinian women.
The fourth and final group of Arab women interviewed were Algerians. Reading about women fighting in their war for liberation from France was rather exciting! From this chapter, I learned that Algeria (at the time of this writing - mid-to-late '80s) had the highest birth rate in the world with the average family having eight children! One Algerian woman said she was all for women's liberation, but she said she did not want the kind of society they have in Europe where many women reject marriage and motherhood. She said too many Westerners divorce on a whim and leave a lot of broken children. The author discussed with her how men don't make sacrifices for their families, but know women will, therefore, men use women by manipulating women's sacrificial tendencies. Thus women are once again at the bottom of the ladder. (pg. 207)
From reading these interviews, I get the impression that these Arab women are not by any means rejecting marriage and children. They just wish for the opportunity to learn and have careers outside of their homes if that's what brings them joy. For those who want to stay home with the children and not have outside careers, no problem. But these women feel they are often forced to stay home and/or if they have outside jobs, they are still required to do 99% of the work at home. They wish for their husbands to pitch in at home and help them with cleaning, cooking and taking care of the children. (Actually this sounds like something past American women have fought for as well.)
One woman explained that she could not visit someone who invited her for tea or go for a walk without asking her husband's permission. When she told him how she hated this, he replied, "You're my wife; you're a woman; you can't decide things without me." (pg. 209) However, when they go out of the country, her husband treats her as an equal. She explains, "My husband behaves like this because of our society. He often says that if we were living in Europe or somewhere like that he would change his attitudes completely, and I believe him because when we go on holiday he behaves exactly as I would like him to behave - as an equal. But that's because he knows we are on holiday and no one knows us. Whereas when we visit his parents he treats me in a way which shows his parents that he is 'the man.' I understand that now and I understand the code and make allowances for it. But I do not respect him for that. He is not really honest." (pg. 210)
Lesson here: be honest, be real. People don't respect hypocrites or those who put others down in order to feel powerful. In order to be respected, be worthy of it. Respect is earned, not something we can muster up and feel on a whim.
One woman, Fatima, summed it up like this: "Marriage is recognised in all Arab societies to be the sole aim of women's lives. Most Arab men, and a large percentage of Arab women, believe that outside marriage and children women just don't exist. Legally, no woman can be entered in the census of an Arab country. An Arab nation's citizens are all men -- with daughters and wives as their property. When an Arab man gets married he is registered separately from his father, whereas his wife's name is just moved from the name of her father to that of her husband. If she gets a divorce, her name has to be re-registered under her father's entry, while her children remain under her husband's name. As for women who marry foreigners, they are crossed out of the country's registration books altogether. They have no right to pass their nationality on to their children, for the children's nationality is legally that of their father." (pg. 216) She went on to say that despite what religious people would have you believe, marriages in the Arab world are not more blissful and that's why there is less divorce there than in the West. Rather a woman wasn't allowed to live on her own so she either stayed with her "cruel husband" or "malicious father" -- what a choice!
I really hate that women are of such little value that they can be simply erased from the national registry. Where do people think all these children come from? *sigh*
In Algeria the author flies to the Sahara Desert region and interviews ladies from the Al Tawariqu tribe. Although it's a Muslim area, they have very liberated views some of which I agreed with (men being shamed for getting a woman pregnant vs. the woman being shamed which seems common in most Arab countries; their rejection of polygamy and wife beating) and others which I did not (divorce being super-easy, leaving your husband or wife for another person and the numerous times people married - average was about six - and the relationships between unmarried couples prior to marriage).
Interesting book overall. And with that, I am finished posting notes from this book.
See this post to read about the author, the introduction and Syrian interviewees. Click here to read about Lebanese women. And click here to read about the Palestinian women.
The fourth and final group of Arab women interviewed were Algerians. Reading about women fighting in their war for liberation from France was rather exciting! From this chapter, I learned that Algeria (at the time of this writing - mid-to-late '80s) had the highest birth rate in the world with the average family having eight children! One Algerian woman said she was all for women's liberation, but she said she did not want the kind of society they have in Europe where many women reject marriage and motherhood. She said too many Westerners divorce on a whim and leave a lot of broken children. The author discussed with her how men don't make sacrifices for their families, but know women will, therefore, men use women by manipulating women's sacrificial tendencies. Thus women are once again at the bottom of the ladder. (pg. 207)
From reading these interviews, I get the impression that these Arab women are not by any means rejecting marriage and children. They just wish for the opportunity to learn and have careers outside of their homes if that's what brings them joy. For those who want to stay home with the children and not have outside careers, no problem. But these women feel they are often forced to stay home and/or if they have outside jobs, they are still required to do 99% of the work at home. They wish for their husbands to pitch in at home and help them with cleaning, cooking and taking care of the children. (Actually this sounds like something past American women have fought for as well.)
One woman explained that she could not visit someone who invited her for tea or go for a walk without asking her husband's permission. When she told him how she hated this, he replied, "You're my wife; you're a woman; you can't decide things without me." (pg. 209) However, when they go out of the country, her husband treats her as an equal. She explains, "My husband behaves like this because of our society. He often says that if we were living in Europe or somewhere like that he would change his attitudes completely, and I believe him because when we go on holiday he behaves exactly as I would like him to behave - as an equal. But that's because he knows we are on holiday and no one knows us. Whereas when we visit his parents he treats me in a way which shows his parents that he is 'the man.' I understand that now and I understand the code and make allowances for it. But I do not respect him for that. He is not really honest." (pg. 210)
Lesson here: be honest, be real. People don't respect hypocrites or those who put others down in order to feel powerful. In order to be respected, be worthy of it. Respect is earned, not something we can muster up and feel on a whim.
One woman, Fatima, summed it up like this: "Marriage is recognised in all Arab societies to be the sole aim of women's lives. Most Arab men, and a large percentage of Arab women, believe that outside marriage and children women just don't exist. Legally, no woman can be entered in the census of an Arab country. An Arab nation's citizens are all men -- with daughters and wives as their property. When an Arab man gets married he is registered separately from his father, whereas his wife's name is just moved from the name of her father to that of her husband. If she gets a divorce, her name has to be re-registered under her father's entry, while her children remain under her husband's name. As for women who marry foreigners, they are crossed out of the country's registration books altogether. They have no right to pass their nationality on to their children, for the children's nationality is legally that of their father." (pg. 216) She went on to say that despite what religious people would have you believe, marriages in the Arab world are not more blissful and that's why there is less divorce there than in the West. Rather a woman wasn't allowed to live on her own so she either stayed with her "cruel husband" or "malicious father" -- what a choice!
I really hate that women are of such little value that they can be simply erased from the national registry. Where do people think all these children come from? *sigh*
In Algeria the author flies to the Sahara Desert region and interviews ladies from the Al Tawariqu tribe. Although it's a Muslim area, they have very liberated views some of which I agreed with (men being shamed for getting a woman pregnant vs. the woman being shamed which seems common in most Arab countries; their rejection of polygamy and wife beating) and others which I did not (divorce being super-easy, leaving your husband or wife for another person and the numerous times people married - average was about six - and the relationships between unmarried couples prior to marriage).
Interesting book overall. And with that, I am finished posting notes from this book.
Arab Women - The Palestinians
Part 3 -- More from Both Right and Left Handed: Arab Women Talk About Their Lives by Bouthaina Shaaban
See this post to read about the author, the introduction and Syrian interviewees. Click here to read about Lebanese women.
In the next chapter the author talked to Palestinian women who resided in other countries as refugees. (Because she is Syrian, Ms. Shaaban cannot travel to Palestine/Israel to interview women still living there.) I read eye-opening accounts from women who had experienced so many hardships because of the Israeli occupation. It was interesting reading facts I had never heard before, and I learned how the Israelis exploited the fact that Arabs are very, very concerned with their women's honor (sexual purity) by saying they would rape all the women. Therefore, many people fled. (It wasn't until later years that Palestinian women took it as a sign of courage for getting raped by Israeli monsters because they refused to abandon the land.) I was appalled by many things described -- how women and children were killed either by Israeli bullets or by being allowed to starve and thirst to death in shelters. Truly heartbreaking if you really imagine people living in such a way. And how can people be so incredibly evil and cruel to one another?
When asked what she thought the answer to her problem as a Palestinian, one woman replied, "The answer is for all Arab countries to unite, love each other and stand in one line and one heart against the enemy. The enemy is not the problem, because if we unite we could defeat not only Israel but America as well. America is one country and Israel another -- but how many Arab countries do you have? Fifteen or sixteen? I just wish to God that we could start loving and truly supporting each other, and then no enemy, however mighty, would be able to impinge upon our rights." (pg. 153)
Speaking of her family pressuring her to marry at age 14, one lady said, "Although my mother was against the idea and my father never tried to force me, I nevertheless felt the pressure from the extended family and from society at large; a pressure that bordered on brainwashing. I found their industrious attempts to persuade me to get married exhausting." (pg. 157)
Another lady didn't fight the pressure to marry early, instead she declared that "Like most Palestinian girls I got married early in an attempt to escape family and social oppression. Despite the fact that my family was quite a distinguished one I was still expected to live a double life; I might be open, intelligent and independent, but once it came to marriage I was expected to marry a man of my parent's choice rather than that of my own. Amongst Palestinians communities, early marriage is the norm; as far as young women are concerned an early marriage is their only outlet from the traditional Arab family in which unmarried women have no right to act, speak or even think independently. So my marriage was in a way a bid for freedom." (pg. 161)
So from reading these interviews, I've come to realize how awful extended families can be! Why in the world is it necessary for women to be married off so early in life? :-/
Stay tuned for excerpts from the interviews with Algerian women.
See this post to read about the author, the introduction and Syrian interviewees. Click here to read about Lebanese women.
In the next chapter the author talked to Palestinian women who resided in other countries as refugees. (Because she is Syrian, Ms. Shaaban cannot travel to Palestine/Israel to interview women still living there.) I read eye-opening accounts from women who had experienced so many hardships because of the Israeli occupation. It was interesting reading facts I had never heard before, and I learned how the Israelis exploited the fact that Arabs are very, very concerned with their women's honor (sexual purity) by saying they would rape all the women. Therefore, many people fled. (It wasn't until later years that Palestinian women took it as a sign of courage for getting raped by Israeli monsters because they refused to abandon the land.) I was appalled by many things described -- how women and children were killed either by Israeli bullets or by being allowed to starve and thirst to death in shelters. Truly heartbreaking if you really imagine people living in such a way. And how can people be so incredibly evil and cruel to one another?
When asked what she thought the answer to her problem as a Palestinian, one woman replied, "The answer is for all Arab countries to unite, love each other and stand in one line and one heart against the enemy. The enemy is not the problem, because if we unite we could defeat not only Israel but America as well. America is one country and Israel another -- but how many Arab countries do you have? Fifteen or sixteen? I just wish to God that we could start loving and truly supporting each other, and then no enemy, however mighty, would be able to impinge upon our rights." (pg. 153)
Speaking of her family pressuring her to marry at age 14, one lady said, "Although my mother was against the idea and my father never tried to force me, I nevertheless felt the pressure from the extended family and from society at large; a pressure that bordered on brainwashing. I found their industrious attempts to persuade me to get married exhausting." (pg. 157)
Another lady didn't fight the pressure to marry early, instead she declared that "Like most Palestinian girls I got married early in an attempt to escape family and social oppression. Despite the fact that my family was quite a distinguished one I was still expected to live a double life; I might be open, intelligent and independent, but once it came to marriage I was expected to marry a man of my parent's choice rather than that of my own. Amongst Palestinians communities, early marriage is the norm; as far as young women are concerned an early marriage is their only outlet from the traditional Arab family in which unmarried women have no right to act, speak or even think independently. So my marriage was in a way a bid for freedom." (pg. 161)
So from reading these interviews, I've come to realize how awful extended families can be! Why in the world is it necessary for women to be married off so early in life? :-/
Stay tuned for excerpts from the interviews with Algerian women.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Arab Women - Lebanon
Part 2 -- More from Both Right and Left Handed: Arab Women Talk About Their Lives by Bouthaina Shaaban
See the previous post to read about the author, the introduction and Syrian interviewees.
Lebanon was discussed next and it included interviews with female Amal leaders, who shared stories about their reasons for joining this movement and how women have fought against Israeli occupation in southern Lebanon. One section told of a son who wanted his mother to pray that God would accept him as a martyr. She shared how after four battles, his prayers were answered. "All Southern women urged their children to join the Lebanese resistance and give their blood for the liberation of the land. Here, it is no longer the habit of women to mourn their dead children; instead they celebrate their death and hand their guns on to their younger brother or sister." (pg. 92)
One lady said, "The Israelis have all the American and Western media at their disposal, whereas we have no access to either. That is why they have more supporters in the West. As for the Americans they might have a lot of human knowledge but they don't have a clue about the Lebanese, the Palestinian or Arab problems in general. ... The problem with the Americans is that once they learn something about something they can't learn to think of it in a different way. They must be the most gullible people on earth. I believe people have to think about what they hear, but the Americans don't think about what Israel tells them; they always take what is said to be the ultimate truth." (pg. 110)
The head of the Druze Welfare Society told the author, "I believe that what needs to be changed in the Arab world is not the laws and legislation; rather it is men's attitudes to women. It is true that the laws are not perfect, but it is also true that people's attitudes lag far behind these laws. I blame Arab women for not making more effort to change people's convictions and opinions. The Arab women should bring men up the right way. She should teach them to respect their mothers, sister, etc. She has to make her son feel that he is equal to his sister, no more or less." (pg. 112)
When asked if she were envious of European or American women, a Lebanese Christian woman replied: "I don't feel envious of them at all. I feel that we are richer as women than they are, richer inside, because I think that despite all the suppression, oppression and taboos we have had more love in our families than they have had and I think we have learnt more about giving. I think we are better givers than they are. They are more assertive of their personal needs; I think they are more selfish" and "if you want to be that selfish and assertive you should not have children in the first place." (pg. 124)
By the way this same lady claims there are more lesbians in the Arab world than in Europe. (pg. 122) She and another woman (in the Syrian section of the book) claimed that women often have true relationships with other women because they don't get that love and respect from their husbands.
The author found some Lebanese students studying in Damascus. One, a Sunni Muslim, said this: "Look at the Arab world; there is not a single Arab country in which you could say that women are free and equal to men. Arab men themselves are not free; how can a man be free who doesn't dare voice his own opinion about a political system, a party, or even an idea, and how can such a man help a women to be free? So long as Arab men suffer from their own weaknesses they will continue to keep women down. Most Arab men feel frustrated in their jobs and society so they go home and try to prove their manhood by pinning their women down. I strongly believe that so long as there is no democracy in the Arab world neither men nor women can be truly free." (pg. 126)
Well, I think there is some (a little?) democracy in the Arab world now so I wonder if things have changed. Are the men treating their women better now that they have more freedoms? I think this book needs updating to reflect current Arab women's views. Surely things have changed among Arabs in the twenty years since this book was published.
Stay tuned for excerpts from the interviews with Palestinian and Algerian women.
See the previous post to read about the author, the introduction and Syrian interviewees.
Lebanon was discussed next and it included interviews with female Amal leaders, who shared stories about their reasons for joining this movement and how women have fought against Israeli occupation in southern Lebanon. One section told of a son who wanted his mother to pray that God would accept him as a martyr. She shared how after four battles, his prayers were answered. "All Southern women urged their children to join the Lebanese resistance and give their blood for the liberation of the land. Here, it is no longer the habit of women to mourn their dead children; instead they celebrate their death and hand their guns on to their younger brother or sister." (pg. 92)
One lady said, "The Israelis have all the American and Western media at their disposal, whereas we have no access to either. That is why they have more supporters in the West. As for the Americans they might have a lot of human knowledge but they don't have a clue about the Lebanese, the Palestinian or Arab problems in general. ... The problem with the Americans is that once they learn something about something they can't learn to think of it in a different way. They must be the most gullible people on earth. I believe people have to think about what they hear, but the Americans don't think about what Israel tells them; they always take what is said to be the ultimate truth." (pg. 110)
The head of the Druze Welfare Society told the author, "I believe that what needs to be changed in the Arab world is not the laws and legislation; rather it is men's attitudes to women. It is true that the laws are not perfect, but it is also true that people's attitudes lag far behind these laws. I blame Arab women for not making more effort to change people's convictions and opinions. The Arab women should bring men up the right way. She should teach them to respect their mothers, sister, etc. She has to make her son feel that he is equal to his sister, no more or less." (pg. 112)
When asked if she were envious of European or American women, a Lebanese Christian woman replied: "I don't feel envious of them at all. I feel that we are richer as women than they are, richer inside, because I think that despite all the suppression, oppression and taboos we have had more love in our families than they have had and I think we have learnt more about giving. I think we are better givers than they are. They are more assertive of their personal needs; I think they are more selfish" and "if you want to be that selfish and assertive you should not have children in the first place." (pg. 124)
By the way this same lady claims there are more lesbians in the Arab world than in Europe. (pg. 122) She and another woman (in the Syrian section of the book) claimed that women often have true relationships with other women because they don't get that love and respect from their husbands.
The author found some Lebanese students studying in Damascus. One, a Sunni Muslim, said this: "Look at the Arab world; there is not a single Arab country in which you could say that women are free and equal to men. Arab men themselves are not free; how can a man be free who doesn't dare voice his own opinion about a political system, a party, or even an idea, and how can such a man help a women to be free? So long as Arab men suffer from their own weaknesses they will continue to keep women down. Most Arab men feel frustrated in their jobs and society so they go home and try to prove their manhood by pinning their women down. I strongly believe that so long as there is no democracy in the Arab world neither men nor women can be truly free." (pg. 126)
Well, I think there is some (a little?) democracy in the Arab world now so I wonder if things have changed. Are the men treating their women better now that they have more freedoms? I think this book needs updating to reflect current Arab women's views. Surely things have changed among Arabs in the twenty years since this book was published.
Stay tuned for excerpts from the interviews with Palestinian and Algerian women.
Friday, December 4, 2009
Arab Women - Intro & Syria
Part 1
Both Right and Left Handed: Arab Women Talk About Their Lives -- though first published in 1988, this book was interesting because it provided details about some historical events (e.g., the struggles for the liberation of Syria, southern Lebanon and Algeria) and cultural practices from Arab women's perspectives. I was warned to take this book with a grain of salt since the author is now a minister in the Syrian government which is an oppressive police state. So whenever I read positive things about the Baathist party or former President Assad, I kept this in mind.
Introduction - Author Bouthaina Shaaban talks about her growing-up years and how women in her village near Homs were treated. I could see why she became a feminist after reading about the chauvinistic culture which valued and respected males far more than females. It was sad to read how having daughters instead of sons seemed to be such a tragic thing although I know this isn't only in Arab cultures.
Syria was the first country discussed and it seemed the interviewees were all feminists (of course), Alawaites and/or supporters of the Baathist party which they said brought more rights to women. While they said Islam is pro-woman, generally the men of Islam let their culture guide them over their religion. One interesting fact, speaking of extended family, one woman said they "guarantee a tighter grip and exert efficient male domination over women." Indeed "to most Arab women extended families mean one thing: extra male authority." She said you hear of cousins killing cousins for the sake of family honor, but "we have yet to hear of a woman whose life has been saved, happiness achieved or even chances improved by a cousin." (pg. 75)
The author interviewed ladies who fought against the French occupation and some who were among the first women to attend university classes and stop wearing the veil.
I'd like to see this book updated to see if women today have more rights than they did in the late 1980s when this book was published.
Stay tuned for more from this book as the author talks with women from Lebanon, Palestine and Algeria.
Both Right and Left Handed: Arab Women Talk About Their Lives -- though first published in 1988, this book was interesting because it provided details about some historical events (e.g., the struggles for the liberation of Syria, southern Lebanon and Algeria) and cultural practices from Arab women's perspectives. I was warned to take this book with a grain of salt since the author is now a minister in the Syrian government which is an oppressive police state. So whenever I read positive things about the Baathist party or former President Assad, I kept this in mind.
Introduction - Author Bouthaina Shaaban talks about her growing-up years and how women in her village near Homs were treated. I could see why she became a feminist after reading about the chauvinistic culture which valued and respected males far more than females. It was sad to read how having daughters instead of sons seemed to be such a tragic thing although I know this isn't only in Arab cultures.
Syria was the first country discussed and it seemed the interviewees were all feminists (of course), Alawaites and/or supporters of the Baathist party which they said brought more rights to women. While they said Islam is pro-woman, generally the men of Islam let their culture guide them over their religion. One interesting fact, speaking of extended family, one woman said they "guarantee a tighter grip and exert efficient male domination over women." Indeed "to most Arab women extended families mean one thing: extra male authority." She said you hear of cousins killing cousins for the sake of family honor, but "we have yet to hear of a woman whose life has been saved, happiness achieved or even chances improved by a cousin." (pg. 75)
The author interviewed ladies who fought against the French occupation and some who were among the first women to attend university classes and stop wearing the veil.
I'd like to see this book updated to see if women today have more rights than they did in the late 1980s when this book was published.
Stay tuned for more from this book as the author talks with women from Lebanon, Palestine and Algeria.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Michael at Disney World
Back in September, Michael went with his parents to Disney World in Orlando, FL. Here are just four pictures from that time.
The Three Little Pigs...I mean,
Minnie Mouse, Michael & Mickey Mouse
Look at Minnie twirling her dress in her fingers.
Look at Minnie twirling her dress in her fingers.
Michael and the blue Power Ranger
Every kid's dream...Jedi training!
The Three Little Pigs...I mean,Will, Piglet and Michael
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
On Compression Bags, Writing So Much, Swiss News, Big Houses, Writing Arabic & Such
Incredible! December is here again! I guess this means I need to haul the Christmas decorations out of the attic and put up the tree at some point. Hmmm!
Last year at this time we had recently sent our visa applications and passports to the Syrian Embassy and were waiting to see if we would be given permission to visit Syria. I believe I mailed it on Black Friday and our visas came about four weeks later. I'd have to check my calendar to be sure though. So last year we were anticipating an upcoming trip. A pretty major one for us. (To put it mildly!) This year seems a bit of a letdown in comparison. At least I'm not busy trying to find flights and arrange for travel insurance and properly-sized suitcases and carry-on bags. Yesterday I went into a store and saw the luggage. It reminded me of last year when I'd go into various stores seeing what we might need. Of course we ended up using my inlaws' luggage and it worked out well. By the way, those compression bags work great! We used them to pack our things and we really liked them. On the way home we stuffed a couple of them full of our dirty clothes before we packed the suitcases. Figured if customs was all gung-ho about searching our luggage they'd just have to deal with a compression bag (or two) full of dirty clothes. Thankfully it never came to that at all. :-)
So ten months ago we were in Syria. I like thinking back trying to remember what we did on certain days. I hate that memories fade over time because there are so many great things that happened and conversations we had that I'd like to recall better.
The book I made on Snapfish.com with Syrian pictures came last Wednesday. I'd just ordered it Monday night. However, the other book I purchased five minutes later still hasn't come. Standard shipping says 3 to 5 business days (and we had Thanksgiving and a weekend in there) so hopefully it will come soon. The first book arriving so quickly spoiled me though. It turned out great. I'd been wanting one of those and when I saw Snapfish offer them for half price, I decided it was time to make one.
In case you wondered why I wrote so many posts last month, I was trying to do this thirty-posts-in-thirty-days thing that some bloggers do in November. Not that my posts were original since so many of them were quotes from books, but still. I often find quotes interesting or thought-provoking and I like to record them. Speaking of which, I have some from the book I finished Monday that I need to record about Arab women speaking of their lives in Syria, Lebanon, Palestinian refugee areas outside of Palestine and Algeria. I copied down what a few women said about Western women because I found it quite unflattering, but maybe true.
In other news, I was a bit surprised to read the Swiss voted to ban future construction of minarets in their country. I always think of the Swiss as open-minded and liberal or neutral anyway so this was quite surprising. As one Florida lady said on Twitter this morning "Minarets don't kill people, Muslim terrorists do." (And terrorists of other faiths or non-faiths do as well, obviously.) Not allowing minarets is kind of like not allowing church steeples or bell towers, isn't it? I think the Swiss stooped to the level of the Saudis. Well, not quite that bad since I understand the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia doesn't even allow the building of churches. At least the Swiss did not ban mosques.
Something else in the news: American houses are no longer the biggest in the world! The Australians now claim this distinction. For those interested in these things, in Europe the biggest homes are in Denmark, followed by Greece and the Netherlands. Homes in the UK are the smallest. American and Aussie homes are about three times larger than those in England, for example. (For those who care, my house is more in line with size of the average German home - about half the size of the average American home. It's just me and Andrew here. We don't each need 1250+ sq. feet...unless he is getting on my nerves. ;-) Hehehe. It's just more to heat, cool and clean, right?)
In news closer to home, November 2009 was super-wet. Typically November is our second driest month just after October. But last month we had about 9.5 inches of rain at my house. By contrast, normal is between 2 and 3 inches.
I need to order some books very soon. I've been procrastinating on this for about three months. I finally finished my Arabic writing book and have been practicing names. So I think it's time I ordered another book so I can learn something besides recognizing the Arabic script. I wish I could show you my name in Arabic. It's siin, waow, zay, 'alif, nuun except you have to read and write them right to left instead of our way of reading left to right. Oh, I just found a way to show you my name. Arabic Keyboard. Hopefully it will show up.
سوزان
The siin and waow connect, the zay, 'alif and nuun are in their isolated forms in my name. Cute, huh? The hardest thing for me is not trying to think in the English spelling, but rather recognize the sounds. It's especially difficult when you have non-Arabic names with sounds that they don't have. For instance Arabic doesn't have the "p" sound at all. And as far as vowels go, they have only 3 short and 3 long.
If I did it right, here is my sister's name. ستفاني
I think this post is long enough. Talk to you later!
Last year at this time we had recently sent our visa applications and passports to the Syrian Embassy and were waiting to see if we would be given permission to visit Syria. I believe I mailed it on Black Friday and our visas came about four weeks later. I'd have to check my calendar to be sure though. So last year we were anticipating an upcoming trip. A pretty major one for us. (To put it mildly!) This year seems a bit of a letdown in comparison. At least I'm not busy trying to find flights and arrange for travel insurance and properly-sized suitcases and carry-on bags. Yesterday I went into a store and saw the luggage. It reminded me of last year when I'd go into various stores seeing what we might need. Of course we ended up using my inlaws' luggage and it worked out well. By the way, those compression bags work great! We used them to pack our things and we really liked them. On the way home we stuffed a couple of them full of our dirty clothes before we packed the suitcases. Figured if customs was all gung-ho about searching our luggage they'd just have to deal with a compression bag (or two) full of dirty clothes. Thankfully it never came to that at all. :-)
So ten months ago we were in Syria. I like thinking back trying to remember what we did on certain days. I hate that memories fade over time because there are so many great things that happened and conversations we had that I'd like to recall better.
The book I made on Snapfish.com with Syrian pictures came last Wednesday. I'd just ordered it Monday night. However, the other book I purchased five minutes later still hasn't come. Standard shipping says 3 to 5 business days (and we had Thanksgiving and a weekend in there) so hopefully it will come soon. The first book arriving so quickly spoiled me though. It turned out great. I'd been wanting one of those and when I saw Snapfish offer them for half price, I decided it was time to make one.
In case you wondered why I wrote so many posts last month, I was trying to do this thirty-posts-in-thirty-days thing that some bloggers do in November. Not that my posts were original since so many of them were quotes from books, but still. I often find quotes interesting or thought-provoking and I like to record them. Speaking of which, I have some from the book I finished Monday that I need to record about Arab women speaking of their lives in Syria, Lebanon, Palestinian refugee areas outside of Palestine and Algeria. I copied down what a few women said about Western women because I found it quite unflattering, but maybe true.
In other news, I was a bit surprised to read the Swiss voted to ban future construction of minarets in their country. I always think of the Swiss as open-minded and liberal or neutral anyway so this was quite surprising. As one Florida lady said on Twitter this morning "Minarets don't kill people, Muslim terrorists do." (And terrorists of other faiths or non-faiths do as well, obviously.) Not allowing minarets is kind of like not allowing church steeples or bell towers, isn't it? I think the Swiss stooped to the level of the Saudis. Well, not quite that bad since I understand the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia doesn't even allow the building of churches. At least the Swiss did not ban mosques.
Something else in the news: American houses are no longer the biggest in the world! The Australians now claim this distinction. For those interested in these things, in Europe the biggest homes are in Denmark, followed by Greece and the Netherlands. Homes in the UK are the smallest. American and Aussie homes are about three times larger than those in England, for example. (For those who care, my house is more in line with size of the average German home - about half the size of the average American home. It's just me and Andrew here. We don't each need 1250+ sq. feet...unless he is getting on my nerves. ;-) Hehehe. It's just more to heat, cool and clean, right?)
In news closer to home, November 2009 was super-wet. Typically November is our second driest month just after October. But last month we had about 9.5 inches of rain at my house. By contrast, normal is between 2 and 3 inches.
I need to order some books very soon. I've been procrastinating on this for about three months. I finally finished my Arabic writing book and have been practicing names. So I think it's time I ordered another book so I can learn something besides recognizing the Arabic script. I wish I could show you my name in Arabic. It's siin, waow, zay, 'alif, nuun except you have to read and write them right to left instead of our way of reading left to right. Oh, I just found a way to show you my name. Arabic Keyboard. Hopefully it will show up.
سوزان
The siin and waow connect, the zay, 'alif and nuun are in their isolated forms in my name. Cute, huh? The hardest thing for me is not trying to think in the English spelling, but rather recognize the sounds. It's especially difficult when you have non-Arabic names with sounds that they don't have. For instance Arabic doesn't have the "p" sound at all. And as far as vowels go, they have only 3 short and 3 long.
If I did it right, here is my sister's name. ستفاني
I think this post is long enough. Talk to you later!
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