The New President Elect

My dear friend Farah Nobleman wrote a blog about Arabs being too carried away with Obama. She said that instead of going all out with celebrations we should focus on ways to improve our own democratic systems. He should be a role model for us but we shouldn’t excessively celebrate our neighbors’ achievements when we have so long to go as Arabs.

(I hope I haven't misunderstood what she said. See for yourselves in case)  http://farahnobleman.blogspot.com/2008/11/blog-post.html 

 

I agree with her in the sense that Obama winning is not the end of the fight. Yes We Can has not yet become Yes We Did.

 

Obama winning the American election is not the end of the world’s problems.

 

But it’s a great first step. And it’s a sign that Americans are looking for a leader with more knowledge about the world, a leader who is willing to listen and learn. His sober acceptance speech said that he will listen to people he didn’t agree with “I will listen to you, especially when we disagree,” is a marked difference from the Bush policy of discrediting his critics and calling them “un-American.” It gives us Arabs a chance to renew our pledge to be peaceful people willing to contribute to the world in a positive way.

 

While I will not go as far as one of my facebook friends and consider tattooing the speech on my leg, I believe that this type of dialogue is what the world needs.

 

I agree that we have to wait and see before we decide that Obama will be a great president for the US and the world.

 

His appointing of famously pro-Israel Rahm Emanuel has gotten Arabs nervous of Obama’s stance on the Middle East already.

 

As for Arabs getting too celebratory- After eight years of the Bush administration’s Patriot Act, War in Iraq, War in Afghanistan and world wide economic screw ups, don’t we at least get the chance to celebrate the end of it?

 

We learnt the hard way from Bush that what the US decides affects the whole world. I think it is time to celebrate the end of a misguided phase and the birth of a more reasonable one.

For You

Excuse my lack of posting. I’ve been busy with school.

 

College in NYC has been a dream come true. Really. When I was in school I had elaborate day dreams of things I would do with my friends. I imagined traveling with them, partying with them and being cool and mature and glamorous.

 

I saw them being there for me if and when times became rough.

 

I have traveled and pretended to be cool and mature and glamorous with my friends. They have also supported me when I needed to be lifted up. But what I didn’t see coming was the boring stuff.

 

I actually enjoy cleaning the bathroom when they are around. I had fun in a train compartment, waiting in lines and doing homework with these guys.

 

Now we sit on the terrace and talk about nothing and everything. Some of us talk more than others. We all say stupid things, get heated up or serious or ironic or funny. And I can’t help but think that I’m going to have to leave them soon. And that I’ll be without them at some point in my life because graduation is on the horizon. And I’m in pain.

My friends have been more than I hoped for- and I hoped for a lot.

 

Maybe Marriage Is A Good Idea?

 

There goes my “marriage is not better than being single” theory.

 

People who live with a spouse are less likely to suffer from Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia, according to the study in this New York Times article.

 

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/01/marriage-divorce-and-alzheimers-risk/

 

Wow. It makes you realize just how important being sociable is. I’ve been pretty anti-social during the past week and a half so I’m a bit nervous that I’ll end up a complete recluse.

 

It’s interesting to note that divorced people are worse off than non-divorced single people. I guess you shouldn’t get married if you think that you might end up getting divorced but should if you think you will stay married. J Hmmm… this really makes sense even without potential dementia factoring into the decision.

 

I don’t know what effect chats on AIM or MSN or whatever have on your mental health. Do they count as being sociable or not?

 

Post your thoughts.

 

By the way, I just love the New York Times- it seems so sophisticated and elite but its really a lot of fun to read. 

More Reasons To Love NYC

New Yorkers have a sense of humor. They get organized to do the silliest things for the entertainment of everyone. Check this site out. They organized the now famous No Pants Day as well as a pretty cool prank where everyone freezes in Grand Central station. New York is cool. 

http://improveverywhere.com/2008/01/16/no-pants-2k8/ 

Did You Just Ask Me Why I Love New York?

I was asked recently what it is exactly that I love about New York. I stammered “everything.” It’s such a loveable city that I really don’t understand how anyone could not love it.

 

I recently read a New York Magazine article with reasons people love New York… Here’s the link if you want to check it out. http://nymag.com/news/articles/reasonstoloveny/

 

 

While I completely disagree with some of the magazine’s statements- number 36 “because even our rodents are loveable” comes to mind- I’m glad that I have all these points to support me.

 

“Because we walk everywhere… in great shoes.” Mmmm… I completely agree with the walk everywhere statement and it truly is a reason I love New York so much. New York walking does a lot more than keep me active. One of my favorite pastimes (when the weather is decent) is walking and staring. The amount of people watching you can do in a two block radius is mind boggling.

 

As for the “great shoes” part- mmm… you know in ‘Sex and the City’ Carrie has a gorgeous shoe collection that are kept in her closet. You know how those shoes are pristine. Mmmm… if she really walked in New York with those shoes on they would not look like that. What I’m trying to say is, the shoes that people walk around in are great, but they probably won’t stay great for that long. I made a mistake of walking in the most gorgeous black high heels one day when it started to rain. They are no longer as gorgeous as they were. On the upside, I can now choose shoes that are more suited for all the walking.

 

And then there’s the culture. I get annoyed at people who say that Broadway is just for tourists. NYU offers us students cheap tickets- which makes it for students as well. But other than Broadway, there is so much going on in NYC, I have to admit I haven’t been to an NYU production yet but I’ve been to some off-Broadway (or off-off-Broadway, I’m not sure) plays and I saw the NYC Ballet and went to the Opera. I also go to museums for fun every once in a while. Anyway, you wouldn’t be able to do this in many places. This- and so many other reasons- is why NYC rocks.

 

 

Farah and Tatiana

Farah and Tatiana are my friends. They both started blogs this summer and after reading their blogs I decided it wouldn’t be completely invasive to my privacy it I started my own blog. I think its almost shocking how different they are even though they are both strong independent women.

 

Check their blogs out. (Maybe when you read the two you’ll realize how weird and random I am to be friends with these two at the same time.)

 

http://farahnobleman.blogspot.com/

http://tatianainhayastan.blogspot.com/

Hope springs

I’ve been doing a fair amount of complaining recently, about the people I’ve been forced to spend time with and about the amount of people I know who are not “on my wavelength.” I’ve tried to get along with people, but recently I’ve decided to give up. Obviously, I’m not going to be able to stop talking to a whole lot of people completely, but I decided not to visit places or go out with people that make me uncomfortable.

I was worried that I may not really end up with any friends at all.

And then I met two people, in the most random way possible. They were so relaxed, probably a lot more sporty than I will ever be. I only spent time with them for one meal. There is no funny happy ending story at the end of this that ends with us being friends forever or anything, but I met people I get along with. They were not pretentious (even though I half expected them to be), polite and friendly. While it wasn’t exactly an unstoppable flow of conversation (there were a few awkward silences when everyone focused on their food) I was comfortable in their presence. They live in different countries than me and I probably won’t see them again but meeting them gave me hope.