You know that feeling when the end of the year approaches so fast that we cannot keep track of what we are doing Vs what needs to be done before the clock ticks ending the deadline? It seems that most of what we are doing these days is tied to a deadline or an expiry date and we find ourselves saying over and again: I need to do this and that before something happens; the keyword here being: BEFORE!!

Maybe that’s why we stopped enjoying life as we are supposed to, we no longer stop to smell the roses because we have to reach the destination or goal before time ticks ending our chance or before someone else reaches it and takes our catch … we have become so competitive that we do not care about how we do things as long as we win in the end … we no longer feel good because we finished a project or reached a goal … we feel good because we did that before someone else did or before the deadline …

We do not enjoy the ride, we do not pay attention to the good things around us because we are so focused on ending before it is too late as if we are being chased or pushed to do these things … we tend to forget that when we work, we do that for ourselves and no one else, we are the ones who benefit and learn … but shouldn’t we enjoy that as well??

Time flies and never stops for anything or anyone … it is the only thing that keeps moving despite all changes and factors … it affects things and people but does not get affected … it is the material of our lives yet we are willingly sacrificing it to do things that don’t really matter … we try to convince ourselves that we are doing what we have to do but how sincere and honest are we in confronting ourselves when it comes to how we invest in our time??

I know I have been truly busy lately and things were too cluttered in my mind and around me, but the reason that I cannot complain about it is that I am truly enjoying my crazy times … I am working with people that I admire and learn from and such professional atmosphere is a dream come true for someone like me … I have been working, traveling and spending more time with family and friends … I lost some friends and gained new ones … as we grow older, our choosing criteria become different and more specific … we become more clear on what works for us and what doesn’t and what crowd to hang out with and what crowd to stay away from … we become less tolerant when it comes to our beliefs because we already established a strong base on which we build further … it is not time to put foundations because this is done already and now it is time to build and grow …

2007 is ending … as I review it; I realize that I have achieved big milestones and a lot more smaller ones … so many events took place … I met a lot of new people and befriended them … some of them became best friends … some friends magically dropped out and are no longer a part of my life; by choice or not, it does not matter really as the result is the same … some friends were estranged and I do not see them as much as I would love to but the beauty of the friendship is that no matter how we stay away; when we do meet; it is like we were never apart!!

Crazy times are ruling our lives but the way to deal with it in my opinion, is to enjoy the ride while it lasts

Happy Eid to everyone …

You are all invited to take part of this event

It has been a bit over 10 years since I graduated university. Although I still remember it as if it was yesterday, I have to acknowledge the years’ effect on me … what 10 years can do to a person is tremendous if you come to think of it.

I was going through Layalina Magazine the other day and I came across a page where they featured the American School Reunion for the class of 1991. If I had been in that school, I would have attended that reunion, but some of my college colleagues were there and I could recognize a lot of the photos.

When you look at yourself in the mirror every day, you will not notice the age lines that form on your face with the passing years and you will not see the big difference until someone points it out to you. When I looked at these familiar faces in the magazine, I was shocked as they looked really older, they were not necessarily old and senile, but they looked so mature, tired and older. So I started saying to myself: WOW! If they have changed that much, I must have changed as well and if they were to see me now, they would be as surprised as I am!!!

I remember these guys when we were attending lectures and labs together, how they used to chase each other in the faculty corridors and halls, how we went together on picnics and played ball and sang together. I remember how we studied together and revised our answers after each exam and how we teased each other when we got the results and some had really high grades … it all seems like yesterday when I remember these things and now when I look at their images … I see my own reflection only 10 years later

It is really funny what a year can do to us, how about 10!!

It seems to me that time is flying and sometimes I even feel that I lost some stages in my life in my memory, as if I cannot locate a face or an event. During these 10 years, I met thousands of people, I traveled many places, worked in many companies and in many fields, fell in and out of love, formed many friendships, matured in my emotions and feelings … all that and as much as I feel that I have changed inside, when I go back 10 years, I am that young girl who did not know what the future was hiding for her …

Strange feelings of nice memories and even stranger feelings of realizing that I am no longer that young girl … I realized that I am a different person altogether and if I were to attend such a reunion, I probably would not get along with my old colleagues and friends especially that each went his/her own way after graduation. We met randomly along the years, but it was awkward and brief.

10 years would change us both physically and mentally … I wonder what things would be like 10 years from now … would I look at my current friends and get that distant feeling of nice times we had together? Or would I still have them on my side where we can look back together and capture those distant moments and smile about it? I guess only another 10 years would tell!!!

The past few weeks were the craziest, with the heat and work pressure, you could say that I would have been lucky to find some time to sleep and do something for myself.

As I mentioned in my previous post, my sister got engaged and along with that came a lot of social activities both in and out of the house. My brother is also here and things are getting more hectic by the day. Work is also a very interesting front these days as we are in the process of moving from one location to another and that puts some pressure on us, but we are coping just fine as I was blessed with a great group of colleagues and my bosses are wonderful, so this kind of relieves a lot of the stress.

You can see from the clutter around me that I am doing a million things together

Last week; I was invited to attend a reception at the British ambassador’s residence in celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Birthday. I was very interested to go and that’s exactly what I did. The invitation read my name as Mr. and Mrs. Khalidah so I had to choose a Mr. Khalidah for the night and go with him to the reception. My dear friend Bashir came to my rescue and he accompanied me there and needless to say; we had a wonderful time wondering around among ministers and ambassadors and diplomats.

The reception took place in the back yard of the ambassador’s residence and I can’t begin to tell you how the police have surrounded the place and how hard it was for us to find a parking spot; my guess is that you get the picture

On another family front, we were invited on Friday to one of my favorite and best friend’s house; Kinzi. She was the perfect hostess and I am really thankful and grateful to her for having me and my family in her home and for sharing their comfort zone with us for a few hours. We chatted and discussed many things and it was one of those days that will stay with you for as long as you live and are able to go back to those details that made the day so special.

She cooked for us; both Arabic and American meals and those brownies were from heaven … I am waiting for the recipes; not that I will be doing them any time soon, but at least I will have them just in case.

My parents loved and enjoyed the experience and they talked about Kinzi, her cooking, her wonderful gentleman of a husband, her warm home, her well mannered children, her sophisticated friends and the list would go on and on … I thank you Kinzi for doing this for me … this means the world

On Saturday; my sister celebrated her graduation from Arabic College and she was the at the top of the class in her major; Marketing. I am really proud of her and her achievements; with a limited time for studying and with all the football team training and traveling; she did a wonderful job and I congratulate her on this great performance.

Nisreen with Graduation gown; Mabrook my dear

My parents, my brother and his wife and my sister and her fiancé went to the graduation and my baby sitting days were back for a few hours. I had to watch over my nephews and I have got to say that this task really became harder with time or maybe it is fair to say that we develop less tolerance for kids as we grow older and don’t have ones of our own; maybe we just don’t get kids’ behavior!!

There you have it; that’s where I was the past period and by the way; I got invited by the German embassy to attend a workshop for bloggers and I am expecting to have a good time; it has been a while since I have seen so many people from those who will be there, so stay tuned for more after this one is over

Summer season is officially back with all its parties and family gatherings. It is like people wait all year long till these few months to finish all their social obligations whether they were weddings, engagements or even family parties. It happens to be that all graduations happen in the summer, students finish their exams in summer and holiday season also falls in the summer.

It is true that summer is easier than winter for all activities but it is turning into a summer of craziness and frenzy. By the time the sun starts shining every day and the temperature starts rising up that the girls start wearing less and less. We have become used to the mini clothes and exposed flesh with every passing year.

Yesterday was full; we had an engagement party for my sister and I have to say that I was really shocked with the outfits that the girls are wearing, as if you will not be trendy unless you wear as less as possible or as revealing as you can get away with. I remember ten or fifteen years ago, we were more shy back then and we would not wear anything that exposes more than half of our arms, but I guess people change with time or maybe we start seeing things differently when we grow older.

Anyway; the party was really nice and longer than I expected, because in these types of parties, people come and go very quickly but this one lasted for 4 hours or so. Of course; my day started really early because I had the task of driving the bride to the salon and stay with her to make sure that everything is done by the book, then drive her home, but one of her friends came over and insisted to drive her home so she followed me and the party officially started when we arrived.

Some of my foreign friends came to the party and shared the joy with me; the lovely Kinzi, Momma beans and Teta Beans and two of Kinzi’s friends; Ruth and Emilie. This was a good opportunity for them to experience a Jordanian party with all its ins and outs and they had so much fun. My eldest aunt approached Ruth asking her if she would accept marriage to her son and she was so insisting and would not let it go until they promised her that they will look for someone and get back to her. I guess that my aunt was living the American dream all the way from Jordan and was trying to assure a better future for son and no one can blame her, yalla 3o2bal el 7abayeb.

At the end of it; this was a very long happy day and I am really grateful that it ended OK and would be even more grateful if people stop wishing me a husband like saying: don’t be sad, maybe God will finally send you a husband!!!
This happened a lot yesterday and was so annoying and really impolite, but I can’t change the world as much as I can change my attitude on how to react to it!!!

This is one of the things that keep happening to us over the time and during all work experiences. It happens that when you start dealing with someone on daily basis, you become friends and maybe even best friends without you even noticing. You start going out together for movies or just to hang out, and then you start confiding in each other pouring your heart concerns and you talk about your personal issues with them, you ask them for advice and you give them some in return, you talk and you listen and all of a sudden you are friends who work together and not coworkers who became friends.

The question is however; is this wise?

When emotions get in the way of a professional relationship, the outcome can never be predicted and the reason is that emotions trigger reactions we can never expect and this might hurt both the business and personal relationships you share. If your conflict comes from business related matters, you might not forgive your friend for not favoring you and cutting you some slack and if the conflict is personal, you will start picking on each other at work which will affect both your works and might affect the atmosphere you share at the workplace altogether.

I am not saying that coworkers can never become friends but there is a missing ingredient in such a relationship and that ingredient is moderation and balance. If you know how to be moderate and balanced in the way you feel towards your friend and you know how to separate your professional life from your private life, you might actually get a shot at this. The other important ingredient is for your friend to understand this and be able to do the same, because this is a two way street and as they say; it takes two to make it or break it and you can never work a relationship on his own; a relationship no matter what type, needs a lot of work from all parties involved to maintain and grow it.

In my experience working in different companies and with a wide variety of people, friendship and business do not mix without consequences, and that is why they call it: conflict of interest. In our human nature, we are more likely to practice nepotism and without even noticing that we are doing so. We tend to make us excuses to our friends even if we know that they do not deserve that and sometimes, we might forgive them for mistakes that if done by someone else, they would never get the same feedback or treatment, and the problem is that the more special treatment you show, the more they will demand out of you which eventually leads to a disaster, because then the mistake gets magnified tens of times and the way back is too steep and difficult to walk.

I found out that being friends in the same workplace makes disappointments hurt much worse and reactions become emotional and uncalculated, so the chances are higher that you will end up losing this friend and maybe even consider quitting your job because you cannot handle dealing with this person on daily basis and not being able to talk to them like you used to do. I also found out that if you leave your job at one point, your relationship with your friends become stronger because you do not have to worry about the conflict of interest any more and your friend is just your friend which gives you more freedom to talk and most importantly, your work is not a talking material any more and it is not getting in the way of growing this friendship or nurturing it.

My advice to all of you out there; be careful of this dangerous mixture because the consequences are severe and if you have any doubt in your mind that you both cannot be objective enough to work through this relationship, chances are you are right and you should keep things in a clear perspective so that not to regret later. Life can surprise us and sometimes shock us with things that come from those who are closer to us the most and that’s when it hurts bad and might change your views about friends for good.

So, can coworkers be friends?

I say: probably but not likely!

So today was my birthday … yeah yeah yeah … another birthday and another year has passed by and when I think about my birthday last year, it seems like a hundred years ago because so much has happened since then … but isn’t that what life is about?

This year, I spent a happier birthday than the year before and the day was full of warm wishes and nice surprises and did I tell you that I am loving this facebook? It is really cool how everyone wished me a happy birthday on my wall there and even though I could not be with all of these friends in the same location, somehow that’s exactly how it felt …

I received flowers and the family had a small party for me at the end of today … so all in all; I can safely say that today was really one of the good days, so I would like to thank all those who participated in making it a nice day after all

My sisters sent me this to my office and it was a very nice surprise … thank you girls

My nephew got me these beautiful yellow flowers … and they smell nice too

The cake

Mom got me one of her masterpiece as a gift … thank you mom; I love it

And there you have a full report … hope you enjoyed it

* JB 2nd Meeting:
* Day: Saturday
* Date: March, 24th, 2007
* Time: 6:00 P.M. - 10:00 P.M.
* Place:**UPDATE**Louganos Coffee Shop - Abdoun Circle Area - Tel:5930073**UPDATE**
* Cover Charge: JD 5 per person
* Email jordanblogs.net@gmail.com to RSVP

You are all invited but please confirm your attendance ahead of time

Happy International Women’s Day …

It is really nice that we have an international day to celebrate womanhood and all the women around the world. The question is though; how do we do that?

Do we send cards to the women we know and call it a day?
Do we brush it off as one of these meaningless internationals days?
Do we do nothing?
Do we celebrate the women in our lives?
Do we go out ourselves and party in celebration of our womanhood?

To me, this day is a symbol of a wonderful creature; a woman who can be a wife, mother, sister, daughter or friend … God gave us uniqueness in the way we look, the way we feel, the way we fight, the way we think, the way we laugh, the way we live … yet; we are still figuring out our way through all these things and through life itself.

We need help and we know how to seek it, we realize that we are only a part of life and not all of it, we know that we have a holy role in the lives of the people that touch those lives in so many ways and we learn as we go how to become women through experience, because we are born females and we turn into women as we ripe and mature.

On this day; I have a wish to make …

I wish that …

No woman is ever beaten
No woman is ever raped
No woman is ever enslaved
No woman is humiliated
No woman is ever forced to sell herself to live
No woman is ever deprived of her rights

I wish all women of the world …

Food on their tables and roofs over their heads
Means to become educated
To be able to love
To be loved by those around them
To have wisdom to lead
To have someone to share life with
And most importantly; a happy healthy long life
Happy International Women’s Day everyone!!

On the same level … I received a wonderful note from the one and only; Lama Hourani. I really admire this creative woman and respect her talent and initiative … I would like to share her wonderful note and magnificent art with all of you …

This body of work is not only a celebration of life and times in Jordan, but also
the testimony of one woman’s odyssey into the metaphysical realm of the East.

From Jordan to the women of the world.. Happy International Woman’s day

*A necklace from the cave animal’s collection, Silver, Yellow Gold, Mother of Pearl, Citrine & Baroque Pearls.

LAMA HOURANI Creations
Foresight Art Center
Tel: 962 6 5560080
Fax: 962 6 5560090
P.O.Box 940631
Amman 11194
Jordan
www.lamahourani.com