Designer handbag or building a school? You choose

Last night I had a dream that I was gifted a Louis Vuitton bag worth 10,000 USD. I vividly remember the bag: plum flap and the bottom was gold and it had a golden chain. Gorgeous bag. I thought I was buying the bag myself, but the sales rep said this bag was already chosen for me and the person has already paid for it. When I realized that the currency was not in dirhams (AED), I was stunned. I took the bag and went to the person who gifted it to me and negotiated that I would accept another bag instead, something that is a lot more reasonable. The person insisted that they are happy to spend this amount and would not budge. I then negotiated that I would refund the bag and would buy a normal priced designer bag for 1500 USD and the rest of the money would be donated to build a mosque.

Then I woke up.

Curious Case of Life in Reverse

I'm not the kind of person who tweets quotes on a regular basis. Far from it! However, I just remembered a McGill Management notebook I used to have back in uni, and it had a whole bunch of really fun stuff. One of them was a quote by George Costanza from Sienfeld. I'm at a crossroad at this moment in my life, and it's just nifty to think about 'what if life was this way'.

"The most unfair thing about life is the way it ends. I mean, life is tough. It takes up a lot of your time. What do you get at the end of it? A death. What’s that, a bonus?!?! I think the life cycle is all backwards. You should die first, get it out of the way. Then you go live in an old age home. You get kicked out for being too healthy, go collect your pension, then, when you start work, you get a gold watch on your first day. You work forty years until you’re young enough to enjoy your retirement. You drink alcohol, you party, and you get ready for high school. You go to primary school, you become a kid, you play, you have no responsibilities. You become a little baby, you go back, spend your last 9 months floating with luxuries like central heating, spa, room service on tap, then you finish off as an orgasm! Amen.”

 - George Costanza

You're married, not in couple confinement

Congratulations, I am so happy you finally found the man of your dreams and got married.
So lovely that since you got engaged, you became so enamored with this man and spend lots of quality bonding time together. It's great that you "get" each other, and enjoy lots of activities together; whether it's going out to movies, dinners, hobbies, or even just chillaxin at home. Good for you.

So I, your friend, called you about 60,000 times but couldn't get a hold of you. You aren't responding to my texts either, or just send in the "I'm busy with hubby" standard response. WTH! I used to be your booty call! When you had nothing to do and nowhere to go, and was lonely and bored, you called me and I would happily oblige to go out with you and keep you company. For me, it never mattered the last minute call, you're a friend and I love spending time with you.

But now you're married, and you got NLSS: No Longer Single Syndrome.

What exactly is NLSS?

NLSS happens to some girls at the moment of engagement. To the recipient of this terrible syndrome, their symptoms include the following thoughts:

1. Excitement at the thought of having a man in my life.
2. I have a wedding to plan!
3. I need to get close to my in laws.
4. I will wear a beautiful diamond ring.
5. I will update my status on Facebook so no one feels sorry for me anymore.
6. My profile pic on Facebook will include 2 heads or 2 hands exchanging rings; either are acceptable.
7. I will have someone to go shopping with, and/or can buy me stuff.
8. I need to laser my body hair before getting married.
9. I need to lose weight.
10. I need to hide all evidence of previous relationships.
11. I will send songs dedicated to my man.
12. I have all these amazing married couples I must start hanging out with them from now on.
13. I will sit with the married women in all major events, and not have to sit at the kids table anymore.
14. If an "adult" topic comes up, I will no longer be asked to get more tea for the people and can actually listen to the whole thing!
15. I will finally have someone I can call before falling asleep and play "no you hang up".
16. Hubby will no longer hang out with his single friends, they're just a bad influence.
17. I don't have time to hang out with my single friends, they just don't get it, they have no responsibilities like an engaged/married woman does. Their life is so frivolous and easy.

It's a tragic syndrome. With all the above symptoms, there is no room for the old trusted friends. And the new couple friends they just have to hang out with, at some point, they themselves labelled them as boring. 

It's quite sad, because at some point, the darling hubby will get suffocated with all the smothering and will want to hang out with his male friends and guess the food eaten after any one of them farts. At that moment of truth, the married girl will sit all alone at home and will call her old trusted friends begging them to go out, and laying out the excuses of all the work that a married life entails. 

If you are married, or about to get married, you shouldn't forget who your real friends are. Granted there are lots of new elements added into your life, but you need to balance your life where in a week, you have a day with your friends, a day with your family, and a day with your hubby. Don't reach that point where you lose connection with your real friends and then they "come back" to you in pity, or for old-times sake. 

Don't reach that stage with your real friends, because if they don't come back to you, what else can you do, you certainly won't be invited to the fart-smelling contests.

Vacation - Arab style

It's 45 degrees. Sun is scorching. Shades get fogged up the moment you step outside. Peeps with long hair transform into Diana Ross.
'Tis the season for traveling.

For most people, traveling is the time for adventure at the destination: a relaxation time at the beach sipping cocktails from a coconut, or a cultural tour around a historic city, or an adrenaline rushed adventure with mountain climbing, cable rides, and a leap off a plane. Arabs have an even BIGGER adventure.

Boyfriend? No..Friend who's a Boy..Yes

I was checking my photos recently, and noticed a HUGE decline in the number of photos I have, last ones being the New Years 2010 party pics, and the class reunion pics I had sometime in Jan. What happened since then, why aren't I taking much pics when I carry my 2 cell phones & camera in tow ALL THE TIME?

I'll tell you why...no boy friend

And no, I don't mean "boyfriend"..what I mean is that trusty male platonic friend that willingly takes pics of you while u pose away.