I’d like to know why the authors on this blog seem to always write in sync with one another? We’re like women who have lived together for way too long and have our periods at the same time. Yes, I just compared BRBcoffee to menstruation. Booyah!
What I really want to write about today is….HALLOWEEN! Now, while I often look down upon the ways of “typical” Americans, I must confess that I am probably one of the worst when it comes to partaking in meaningless Halloween rituals. I honestly have almost no clue where the true origins of this holiday come from, nor what significance it holds in history, but that’s where Wikipedia comes in handy. To roughly summarize, it comes from the Celtic holiday known as “Samhain” which, “celebrates the end of the ‘lighter half’ of the year and beginning of the ‘darker half,’ and is sometimes regarded as the ‘Celtic New Year.’ ” The aforementioned Celts believed that the doors between this world and the “other” world became easier to pass through. They welcomed the good spirits and warded off the bad ones with costumes and masks. So, I guess that explains where the whole costume thing came from. Of course, if you were truly trying to honor the past, you could only wear scary costumes. That seems very limiting, no? I mean, if we had to adhere to those rules, you’d never be able to see me as Elton John (a costume which must wait one more year until I’m 21 and can therefore maximize its glory), and that’s a travesty that I just can’t live with.
So you know what I say? Screw those traditions! I want Halloween to be about ridiculous costumes, and massive amounts of candy which lead to obesity and cavities, and carving pumpkins into completely non-original faces and, and, and! And everything which brings joy! If you haven’t noticed, this world is kind of in the process of hitting the fan, so to speak, and so why not use a certain day every year to goof off and enjoy life? Ahhh, but it’s the devil’s holiday! Children that dress up as witches (AKA Christine O’Donnell, hahaha) are blasphemous! Lighten up, my hardcore Christian comrades. Halloween was founded upon an equally unbelievable platform as Christianity, but at least it’s not killing anybody in the process!
Anywhozille, I plan on spending this Sunday with my family, watching/re-creating Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” music video, eating some candy originally intended for trick-or-treaters, and simply enjoying the fact that Sarah Palin is not president.
Good day!
Someone buy this for me, please?
[poll id=”20″]
I read one of the most amazing, heartbreaking and enlightening novels I have ever read this summer. The book is titled Mornings in Jenin, and is said to be “[…] a heart-wrenching, powerfully written novel that could do for Palestine what The Kite Runner did for Afghanistan”. And I believe this to be absolutely true!
The story of the novel revolves around a palestinian family, through different generations, and through the history of the occupation, the wars, and about life in the refugee-camps. The family history starts in Ein Hod, Palestine in 1941, and it continues untill present time.
The author, Susan Abulhawa, is a palestinian refugee, currently living in the States. And I think that that is a part of what makes the book so great and moving: It feels so personal, so real, and allready during the first chapter I was moved to tears by her writing.
Another great thing about this novel is how it is historically and culturally correct. Abulhawa has used UN-documents, articles and stories from the media and even research on Israeli soldiers to get this novel as true-to-life as possible. And yet, even though some of the stories are real, the characters are fictional.
The book was originally published by a smaller publisher as The Scar of David, but after they went out of business Bloomsbury Press bought it, and published it, under the new name, Mornings in Jenin. And I am happy that they did! (And also; If anyone could get me the first edition of The Scar of David I would promise my undying gratitude to this person. And maybe even some kinky stuff if it was in a really good shape!)
Abulhawa has been criticized by many for the book, including a rabbi from a synagogue in New York (surprise, surprise!) claiming it was full of “made-up stuff”, and this criticism led to a scheduled speaking from the author at a bookstore to be demoted to a book-signing.
I do, however, believe this to be one of the most accurate and moving stories about the palestinian people’s history, culture, situation and, most importantly to me, long fight for freedom. And I think that everyone should read this book, no matter background, religion, ethnicity or nationality. If not for learning about the conflicts and wars of the Middle-East, then at least for a great and moving story, written in a wonderfully poetic, yet still realistic and personal way.
I would like to include a very moving, to me, entry from the guestbook at www.morningsinjenin.com, written by an american jew by the name of Susan:
“I must first comment that Mornings in Jenin is a beautifully-written story. You are a talented writer. More than talented-incredibly gifted.
I am an American Jew who is deeply disturbed by your book. I grew up believing unflinchingly in the existence of Israel, and am now besieged by feelings of horror and sadness at the treatment of the Palestinians by the Israelis as portrayed in your story. Is it all true? I am moved to find out all I can about the formation of Israel and what has happened before and since. I am saddened by the incredible complexity of this issue – the history of Jews vs. Arabs – and am left wondering what I can do to help. […]”
This entry shows how incredibly moving and heartfelt the book is, and also why it is so important for people to read it.
The palestinian-israeli conflict was one of the main reasons I became politically active, and is still one of the most important political causes, to me. Reading this book hasn’t changed my political opinions, only made them stronger, and I also feel a better understanding of the situation. Also, the use of actual arab-terms and the way the book teaches you of the culture and history of the palestinian people just made it even better, to me.
So do you get my point? Read the book!
I believe palestinians to have the most optimistic and beautiful ways of greating each other good-bye:
I will see you in Palestine,
Frida
I was applying to a college, and the big essay asked me how college admissions have made me reconsider myself. I wrote this, but then I decided that it was stupid and started over. I did, however, think it had enough merit to go in a post instead! Needless to say, it is too insecure.
College admissions have seriously made me rethink myself. Once upon a time, I was pretentious, cocky even, until I began working at my future. I realize now how unsure of myself I truly am. I don’t know if it is even worth it applying to prestigious schools such as Harvard or Brown because I don’t know if I can get in, or after that if I can pay. I am eighteenth out of a class of two hundred fifty-one. I am in the 93% of my class; the problem is that it isn’t the 99% of my class.
I feel that colleges, especially prestigious colleges, look far too much into grades and scores. My grades aren’t stellar. I have a 4.0, but I haven’t been through high school without ever seeing a B. I take the hardest classes, but I am rarely at the very top of them. What colleges do not look far enough into are the extra-curricular activities. What I lack in grades, rank, and test scores, I make up for in extra-curricular activities. I have been an active member of 4-H since third grade, being both President of my small community club and Vice President of my County-wide club, an avid band member since fifth grade, the vice president of both Youth Alive, our Bible school, and Key Club, and the Secretary General of Model UN, which I have been a member of my entire high school career. My grades aren’t because of laziness, they are because of business. I am too busy to make straight one hundreds on every single test in AP Chemistry or AP History. I am too busy to study for the SAT or ACT with band competitions and football games every weekend.
But maybe, just maybe, I am making up excuses for myself. This is where the insecurity comes out! Should I have worked harder in high school? Should I have quit band, 4-H, Model UN, youth alive, Key Club, CIU, and National Honors Society to pursue higher, more elite education? Is it my duty to serve my community or to serve myself? Should I try to benefit the school or my future?
With these college admissions came, in an emanating crash, a series of mistakes and problems that I had no idea even existed when I was thirteen years old, when every choice I made started to become tracked.
Most would say that college admissions have made them find themselves; however, I am experiencing the antithesis of that. College admissions make me worry, worry about my future, my choices, my life. With each application sent in sends out another emanating feeling of discontent.
Tomorrow, I head to ye ol’ town of Dayton in order to help prepare for my, let me think a minute, third cousin’s funeral. I mentioned her in an earlier, emo blog, but I think I have come to terms with her death and whatnot and so I’m feeling much better about things. I don’t know if it’s wrong of me to say this, but I’m actually kind of looking forward to the funeral. It’s going to be the closest thing my paternal side of the family- scratch that, they are my only extended family- has had to a family reunion in years upon years. By no means are we a large family, but it seems like people used to make more of an effort to get together on the holidays and such. For one thing, everybody started dying off. For a second thing, everyone moved away. The only ones left in Dayton are my grandmother and great-grandmother. Anyways, I miss it and so I’m looking forward to seeing everyone, be that moral or immoral of me to say.
In other news, Sarah Palin is a 10th cousin of Barack Obama. Crazy times, yes? What I want to know is how the devil they can trace back that far. I think most of us would be lucky if we could trace back 3-4 direct generations, let alone know all the cousins and distant relations that correspond to each. Mayhap the world of political breeding is similar to that of Royalty- it’s a small pool and inbreeding is bound to occur. Mayhap that is why they are all so fucked up in the head…
According to Wikipedia (where would we be without it, ‘ey?):
Insomnia is most frequently defined by an individual’s report of sleeping difficulties.
It says that Insomnia can be defined by a positive answer to either of these two questions:
“Do you experience difficulty sleeping?” or “Do you have difficulty falling or staying asleep?”
So, do I experience difficulty sleeping, falling asleep or staying asleep? Yes. To all of the above.
And tonight my main problem is the simple act of falling asleep. I’ve been trying for the past 5 6 hours to fall asleep. And I have to get up in about 4-5 3 or 4 hours.
Tried and failed attempts so far tonight:
- Doing my assignment on feminism in the marxist ideology. (Fun fact: This didn’t bore me, and I didn’t get anything done…)
- Watching a boring movie I have seen 3 times before, and never actually managed to see all the way through without falling asleep at least once. (I watched it to the end this time. The girl chooses the right guy, they get married on the beach eventhough she wanted to get married in the boat-house like her parents, her sister forgives her, and she has 29 brides-maides.)
- Working-out. (This helps sometimes. I guess I just didn’t work hard enough.)
- Seperating and counting my dreadlocks. (I have 27 26, and am wondering where the last one disappeared to…)
- Fixing some of my my nails. (I got bored after 2 and a half…)
- Applying cold, green eye-mask-thingy from the fridge. (Then I just got chills… Not the multiplying kind, thank God! Positive note: I looked like a superhero!)
- Lying around with my eyes closed. (Yes, this was the first thing I tried. And I tried it again, and again, and again.)
- Eating a light meal. (My mother mentioned that if you eat something before going to bed it’s easier to sleep. And I was hungry.)
- Drinking cranberry juice. (I wanted hot milk, but seeing as I’m allergic to milk I went for the cranberry juice instead.)
- Brushing of teeth. (4 times. I flossed twice. I even tried doing it with tepid water, so that the cold water wouldn’t make me more awake. Well, not tepid as in 2 parts cold, 1 part boiled water, but tepid as in “hotter than I want for the water I use to brush my teeth”.)
- Reading from the Catcher in the Rye. And some curriculum stuff.
- Writing this blogpost with a list of things that didn’t work. (And guess what: Not working!)
I would have tried a hot shower, but a friend told me it worked once, and I tried it, and it just woke me up even more.
I also thought of trying a glass of red wine, but the only wine I have is a) white, 2) sparkling or whatever, c) was a gift from a friend (so saving it for something more special…), x) is locked into the apartment of my best friend (who lives in the same building as me, but is visiting her boyfriend) and z) I no longer have her key. Oh), and I’m going to work in some hours, so drinking now would be stupid.
Oh yeah, it is probably my own fault for not beeing sleepy. I slept all day yesterday, because I couldn’t sleep the night before, and instead of sleeping for a couple of hours, getting up, being tired all day and going to bed early I just stayed in bed untill I felt like getting up. So I blame me.
One good thing about this night: I found wonderful music that I will now share with you:
Cristopher O’Riley – Second Grace, a tribute to Nick Drake.
You are welcome.
-Frida