A Moving Clip- Must See!!

Take a look, and see the extent of the damage of the war on Lebannon. This is not about who is right or wrong. It is about the ill-effects of war, and violence, and it is a call for peace.

     http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article14258.htm 

A Chat With A Jew

So the other day (June 15th) a friend of mine from Forum messeged me, saying that she read my blog and found it interesting to read the palestinian perspective of the conflict, as she is of jewish decent and attends a jewish schools which is very much pro-israel. We had a good chat about the conflict. We barely agreed on anything, excpet our desire for peace but it made for great conversation. It really is great to see the other side!

Thought you would like to read it. Here it is, enjoy! (her name has been changed for privacy reasons). (It should also be noted that this post is not meant in any way to be discriminatory, nor am in any way upset with her…just in case you’re wondering).

Steph says:hey, i just read ur blog and i hope and pray that
ur family stays safe and are not harmed by the violence

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:     tnx

Steph says:     also, i have friends in northern israel so i’m hoping for their safety as well and i also am dreaming of peace in the region

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:    yeah it’s even scarier now that lebanon is involved…if ever there was hope …now it’s seems like there is none… it’s so fustrating!

Steph says:   i agree, i must say, its very interesting hearing ur perspective on the issue becuz i’m jewish adn have been attending a jewish skool my entire life which is very pro- israel and its interesting hearing ur point of view…either way, both sides want peace and the killing of innocent ppl must stop

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:     very true…i’m not anti-jewish or anything of th sort…just completely anti-israeli government…they retaliate by attacking palestine civilians all the time! which makes no sense because when they are attacked it is because of selected individuals (ex. suicide bombers) not the government or any official palestinian representatives

Steph says:       i’m sort of the same way, i’m very against hamas becuz of not recognizing israel’s existence…i understand ur frustration but the israeli gvt cannot let suicide bombers continue to commit further acts so they are forced to attack, but i agree they should never go aganist civilians, that accomplishes nothing

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:      for sure…man…that’s the thing too, eh? we have no military to defend us…or protect us…not to attack but simply to protect civilians and stand up for their rights and safety…and ppl there are so fustrated they feel like they have to resort to such extreme methods…i’m not for hamas …i like fatah…but in any case extremist will do whatever they want’…u can’t control them …but with the israeli gov’t…and the support they get from the US with weapons and money…it’s so unfar! we have nothing and they have the world’s greatest super power backing them…

Steph says:       something i recently found out was that canada does not give any aid to israel, only to palestine and i think that altho israel does get a lot of money, so does palestine but unfortunately the gvt is not giving the money to where it is needed most…so if the right gvt was in power, the palestinian ppl would be living in better conditions

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:       it’s not about the living conditions…living conditions would be better if palestinians weren’t forced into refugee camps or if israel didn’t kick them out of their homes and concentrate them into older communities…the palestinian ppl get very little money…what they do get doesn’t go to the government it goes to human rights and aid groups which is severely needed…and after humas was electe

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:        elected into power
canada cut off that aid too…so the money that was going into sectors of the palestinian community to be used for food and stuff is gone

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:        (it went to the gov’t but it was specified to be used for food and social services and stuff for ppl is the most need)

Steph says:       i dont mean to say ur facts r wrong but when did israel kick palestinians out of their homes i know last yr at this time, israeli citizens were kicked out of their homes on the gaza strip by the israeli gvt to give that land to the palestinians which i’m not sure if i agree or disagree with but either way i think it was very generous of the israeli gvt to give that land

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:      um…wow! so sorry to say this but man! the WHOLE issue started when palestinians were kicked out of their homes! …back in the day…there were barely any jews in the middle east…then post-WWII …the jewish community decided to migrate to palestine as it is the holy land…when they came the UN and England etc. gave them some of our land without consultation with palestinian ppl (it was annexed to englad)…so they literally told the palestinians to get out of their homes and the jews moved in! with our furniture and everything!! (including my grandparent’s homes)…then over time (up until 1990’s) they continued to this throughout the region!…what israel does is that it invites jews from throughout the world to come to the area and tell em they are getting free housing- ppl do it! they would come and move into what was palestinian homes andthe israeli gov’t revokes their former citizenship and gives em israeli citizenship so that they can’t go back to the country they immigrated from…the issue with gaza is that the israeli gov’t gave it BACK to palestinians…gaza is a palestinian city which they took and demolished and built israeli communities in …so they were just giving it back. it’s makes sense cuz it’s in the best interests of the israeli ppl as it was/is a hot spot for attacks from hamas….anywho…we can chat more later…this is interesting..

.***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:    ttyl  (hold
ur comments…we’ll pick up later if u like)

Steph says:bye! i think i’ll send u an e-mail cuz theres lots i want to say and it might be easier than on msn

***amy***   {17}  ….dreaming of peace…. says:       sounds good!  ciao

Steph says:bye!

On the Brink of The Middle East’s Greatest Crisis

I can no longer put off blogging about the current escalating terror in the
Middle East; it has consumed my life. There are several areas for concern regarding this crisis. Never have I been so glad to have such freedom of speech and an outlet for my thoughts.

To start, simply put- this crisis and the international response it is receiving is an outrage!

Here is a brief synopsis of what has occurred over these past few days:

-an “Islamic extremist group”, Hezbollah, (which is also a political party and social organization) captures two Israeli soldiers –> in response Israel bombs Lebanon’s international airport and kills 50 + Lebanese civilians–> Hezbollah bombs Israel resulting in 5 deaths and then bombs a military ship, which was on Lebanese shores–> Israel bombs and destroys bridges and other infustructure in Lebanon and kills more Lebanese civilians, 50 min. [now 300+…500, 000 displaced, 1, 500 injured (july 23rd) ]–> Israel continues to destroy buildings and road ways throughout Lebanon–> 50, 000 Canadian nationals trapped within, as no exist routes are available–> and it’s getting worse!

International Response:

 US- asks Hezbollah to stop the violence and does not scold
Israel, stating that they have the right to protect themselves

Canada- echoes the US’s views

France- condemns Israel’s actions

Russia- condemns Israel’s actions
England- on the fence

The UN- tried to pass resolutions against Israel but the resolution was vetoed by the US 

This is an outrage! I am completely disgusted by Israel’s actions and the lack of support for the Lebanese people, a hundred of whom are DEAD!!

How can anyone believe that Israel has any right what-so-ever of retaliating in such an excessive degree!?!? An extremist group captures soldiers!! And they go and kill civilians!! This makes absolutely no sense! This is completely not proportional or rational retaliation and the international community should not stand for it!! Not only are many many Lebanese people DEAD, many of whom, believe it or not were CHILDREN, but in addition the general population is trapped within, and their recently improved and expanded infustructure is demolished.

A note to Mr. Harper: keep your priorities at home. Stephen Harper has sided with the
US on this issue because he needs their support for his softwood lumber deal. He needs their friendship and he needs to appease these giant, evil and relentless neighbors of ours. But what Mr. Harper is forgetting is the 50, 000 Canadian nationals who are in
Lebanon, and the numerous Lebanese Canadians here at home. (Not to mention Palestinians like 2/3 of my family, including my brother and mother!) In the best interest of the Canadians in Lebanon, Mr. Harper MUST condemn Israel’s actions, as it is Israel which is causing devastating loss of life to countless civilians!!   Look out for what is right for your people Mr. Harper. Keep your greed out of the equation!

Foresight: this is only going to get worse. With the world’s greatest superpower’s laying blame where blame is undue, with UN resolutions calling for an end are vetoed, and where Hezbollah calls for an all out war, and Israel brings out the big guns, Lebanese PM begging for international intervention to instate a ceasefire, it seems as though this is only the beginning. What may the future of this crisis lead to? Coupled with the crisis in Palestine, and the split within the international community, throw Iraq in the mix and my guess says all the Islamic nations will verse the US, Canada, and Israel in a third world war.    Stop picking on the middle eastern nations if you know what’s good for you, George!

It is a sad day when countless innocent lives are lost; it is a sadder day when the wrong side is believed to be at fault for now there is no end in sight.

Lights Out!

Last night: I’m in the basement watching TV and doing some filing. I have my laptop, the lights are out and a side lamp is on. My show ends. I sit in silence for 10minutes and I finish off my work, shut down my computer and turn out the light. The basement is completely black! Close your eyes. It is 10x’s darker than that! OK, no worries, I’ve done this before…but wait! It’s never been this dark! Usually the door is open and light is shining through; but not tonight. Tonight the door is closed, the blinds are shut and it’s 3am. Well, I know my way around. So, there I am walking around with a pile of folders a foot high and my laptop on top. Two hands grabbing the stack. I hop around, with one leg stretched out in front of me feeling around looking for the stairs. I couldn’t find them. Five minutes later, I realise hey! there is no way I am getting out of here today. So, then I start feeling around the floor for a comfortable place to lie down. Looks like I’m sleeping here tonight! Then I get scared. So scared. I am going to die right here in this basement! It is so dark! I have never seen anything so dark! or not seen anything… but it is dark and scary and there seems to be no way out. 5 minutes of entertaining thoughts of fear and complete confusion. All the while I’m thinking, I can always turn on my laptop and use the light to see, but of course I’m too stubborn to get help and I am too lazy- it takes 10minutes to turn on and shut off the comp. So finally I turn on my laptop and use the light to guide me to and up the stairs, which incidentaly were all the way at the other end of room, 5 feet away from the TV where I orginally was seated….total, complete and utter darkness…what would you think about if you were stuck in the dark?

Starbucks: Love It or Hate It

Over a week ago, while studying for exams, and actively seeking distractions, I stumbled across an “I hate Starbucks” website, appropriately titled www.ihatestarbucks.com .

Now as a “regular” Starbucks customer and total admirer, I was shocked and appalled at this global display of hatred toward what I consider to be one of my favorite places…anywhere! I mean, I knew not all people were exactly thrilled with the S-Bucks enterprise, but there are many who often object to such large corporations, which are seen as being exploiters of capitalist societies, thiev es of local industries and devastators of local customs.   

As a vocal left-winger, I have to say that I do fully and actively object to a lot of the symptoms of capitalism, such as unfair labour practices, child labour, and, to a degree, loss of local identities. But Starbucks has never appeared to be such an establishment. To my knowledge they sold fair-trade coffee, and they provided their direct employees with comfortable and safe work environments and benefits. In terms of loss of local cultural identities, I find corporations such a Starbucks, and similar transnational corporations to be an exciting foresight into a future where countries and parts of the world have increased things in common, things that bring us closer together while allowing us to enjoy the things that make us unique. To me Starbucks and Coke do that. I like that international/multi-culture charm that comes with global familiarity associated with simple products such as these.

So when I saw this site I was rather surprised! Naturally I left a post in the guest book; the most humiliating post, I must admit; I believe it read: i love starbucks! this is very upsetting! starbucks rox! love their coffee and white chocolate macadamia nut cookies! ur being silly!…Then I read more of the other posts and information from the webmaster. Needless to say I retracted my comments, in the least for the manner in which they were stated.

After reading what was posted on the site and then researching articles and other sources which supported that information (yes, not much studying took place that day), I came to learn that although Starbucks does in fact sell fair-trade coffee, the coffee they serve is not fair-trade! In fact it is made from one of the world’s worst places for the manufacturing (collection and processing) of coffee beans! In addition, it was found that it is common practice for Starbucks employees to be hired just 15 minutes less than the work time required for an employee to receive certain benefits. In terms of Starbucks and cultural devastation, that seems to be a running trend, and not merely in foreign countries but here as well in regards to destroying small business, a complaint frequently made against large corporations, such as Wal-Mart and Starbucks. 

Now, this got me to thinking: how can a place I love so much cause so much damage to the global community?  Not exactly a thought that would arise in the mind of Plato, but it certainly perplexed me. How is it that an establishment so widely respected and adored can wreak such havoc, and how can we stop it?

I love Starbucks. I even try to recreate it at home, my faux Starbucks, by dimming the lights, playing some jazz music and making some Maxwell House coffee, which tastes very much the same. (*hint*hint* this is a very conducive environment for reading a good book or studying). I also have a little pocketbook on how to properly order at Starbucks and what is in each drink! Yes, I am S obsessed!

I have also faced this issue with other companies which I love, such as Wal-Mart. How can you not shop at Wal-Mart?! But what about the child labour? Now this may not be deep or philosophical but it’s an honest question: how do you stop supporting places like this? If I stop drinking Starbucks, I will drink Tim Horton’s, and I am not exactly confident that their coffee is of the fair-trade sort! And so what if I object to the mistreatment of worker’s in other countries (which I DO!!), is it not better for them to have A job, than NO job?

Now, ideally if we objected to unfair labour practices in every industry and economic sector we can eventually drive manufacturers to using fair-labour practices, but let’s be realistic, is that possible? Will it ever  be possible? I would love to think so, and I will not stop doing my part, (I PROMISE!) but it seems as though the world is becoming more and more selfish and countries are getting poorer and more desperate. Is it possible?

I want to help! I really do! But Starbucks increased their profits by 30% last year and just started a film production company (Akeela and the Bee is their first film), so clearly they show no signs of losing popularity, nor does it seems as though they will adhere to any public outcries for economic justice. So what do we do? When does advocating for fair-labour start and economic injustice end?

Summer Readin’

 Books I am Currently Reading (Part 1 of 3- Summer Reading List)

1. Noam Chomsky- Hegemony or Survival
2. Craig Kielburger- Free the Children
3. Ann Brashers- The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (hehe I can’t help reading these over and over!)
4. George Orwell- Animal Farm
5. George Orwell- 1984
6. Karen Armstrong- The Battle for God
7. Nathaniel HAwthorne- Scarlette Letter
8. William Johnson- Stephen Harper and the Future of Canada
9. Margret Thatcher- The Downing Years
10. Dostoyevsky, Fyodor- Crime and Punishment
11. Jane Austin- Pride and Prejudice
12. Sun Tze (?)- The Art of War
13. Albert Hourani- The History of the Arab People

Goal is to read as many books from as many different genres as possible, as well as to read books that are “classics”/are widely cited. Some of these can be in a day, while other like the History of the Arab People will take all summer. This is Part 1 of 3, and some books will be skimmed/speed read through, such Free the Children. Possible book reviews to follow.

Any one read any of these and wants to chat?! or have any books they recommend??

Happy Canada Day!

HAPPY CANADA DAY!

 Best wishes to all of my fellow Canadian citizens!

May you enjoy this time of celebration and

may everday we share together be one of joy and happiness.

 

 Bonne Fete a Canada!

 

Back in the Sadle Again

So here I am back to regular blogging; (well let’s not kid ourselves, I was never a regular blogger but in any case here I am).

So much has happened this past month. I could recount it all but frankly, I find that too overwhelming. Here’s a quick overview: class retreat- good- found four leaf clover:P, Catholic Stewards Day- not what I’d envisioned but successful none-the-less, OSTA-AECO AGM- amazing! a ton of fun! such amazing ppl!, Mini-Forum Reunion in T.O.- so so great!! I could cry I miss my forumers SO much!, Awards Banquet- i don’t even want to go there! All I can say is nepitism sucks!!, Last Senate meeting- not sentimental, extremely productive, still so much senate stuff to do, Exams-studying was interesting:P they went quite well, Writer’s Craft online course- procrastination, my middle name, never again!, Last School Board meeting- missed it!!! heartbroken still!!, Fireworks- fun, UOttawa- know so many people going, got my room, dying to move! so excited!, Graduation- amazing!!!!!!!!!!!

Needless to say this past month has been full of varied emotions and a lot of reflection on life now, then and in the future. Frankly as I look back at this past year I have a great deal of difficulty recalling 80% of what happened. It’s all a blur. But perhaps for that’s for the best. For now I shall be content with what faces, and what I must do to prepare.

And that folks is the month of June in short. Hense forth my blog will cease to be about myself, but rather about things in the world around me, my thoughts, feelings, opinions and ideas about that world, and my occassional life recap, more along the lines of the June one stated above as opposed to my former style of thorough point-form detailing, (what a contradiction- point-formed and detailed!).

Summer Goal: blog daily!

The Dance

This is a short story I wrote for my Writer's Craft course. Enjoy! No blogging until after exams, which end next friday. Until then…

I hated being alone. Not because I am codependent but because everyone had someone and I didn’t. Jealousy is the sole reason behind all of my actions. Of course, this had not always been the case. I can still recall the time in my life where I did what I wanted simply because that was what I wanted to do. At this point, my thoughts ran ramped with envy- this burning desire to be the best and to have the most, the most and the best of what everyone else has.

She was beautiful; beautiful and perfect in every sense of the words. Both inside and out she had everything that one could ever desire. I wanted that. I wanted the beauty and the perfection that encompassed her being. I wanted to be her.

The day was young, as was I. I knocked on her door, a knock that’s force vibrated through my chubby hand. In order to become her, I needed to get to know her, to study her. In order to be her friend I needed her to like me. And so I stood waiting for her face to appear through the thin netting in place of the open door, a clear indication of her presence in the house.

I closed my eyes picturing her face- every line soft and subtle, every contour distinctly visible, eyes wide and gleaming, open to the world with a bold air, lips plump and sculpted, with an ever-present, iconic, smile of satisfaction, hair glistening, even in the most dimmed of lights, soft and following past small well arched shoulders.

My eyes opened slowly, stuck together with the dew of the warm summer’s day. There she stood, the smile of satisfaction on her face.

“Hello,” the words soft yet joyful, “This is unexpected! What a great surprise! How are you?” Her enthusiasm was not visible across her calm face, only apparent through the tone of her voice. She did not speak often. She caught me by surprise.

“Hello. Um, I just was on my way to the mall. I wanted to see…if you would like to join me. I need an outfit for school dance and… well… I figured your advice would be very useful…would you…would you like to come with?” Stutter. Stutter is my middle name. Not often. Not when I am speaking in public; not when I am speaking to an adult; but now, when I am speaking to beauty and perfection.

Shock and stutter also took effect when she agreed to join me on our shopping venture. She grabbed her bag of green straw and gold threads, slipped on her metallic sandals and off we went. That is part of her perfection. She need not ask when to leave or when to go out. She was perfection. Even her parents knew that.

We arrived at the mall. This place was not my friend. It was my doom. It was the place where my thoughts and emotion of envy thrived. It was where they had been born.

I brought her here for a reason. Not to search for an outfit, but rather to show her off; to show to the world that I had somebody too. And now here we were, together. No one stared at us or took too much notice. Perhaps they thought I was a relative or sibling. But it was certainly not the atmosphere of shock and awe that I had envisioned. But regardless, there we were.

We were drawn into the most obvious store for youth such as ourselves. I had never been there. I had never been at this store, with its mannequins seductively dressed and poised in the window, the music of chart-topping hip-hop artists resonating throughout, clothing and décor in colours of a coffee shop, and prices, the clothing equivalent of Starbucks.

She was at home here. Eagerly, she searched for an outfit. What would she select I wondered. Curiously, I watched her every move, careful not to close my eyes as not to fall into the trap of shock and stuttering.

“Oh! I found something! You’ll love this!” she bounced back toward me with dark denim jeans and a white and pink striped polo shirt, the very ones as those that were on the mannequin. She had laid them out in front of me.

I wanted them, but to purchase them right away would surely reduce our time together. To try them on would prove to be a greater issue. I did not want her to see me try things on.

“They’re very cool,” I said energetically. “Let’s look at some other stuff …just to be safe.” She giggled. Cute and soft, her giggle was hard to interpret. Every indicator showed that she was a sweet girl, but my paranoia said otherwise. I giggled too, and we continued to look. Soon we had picked out three such outfits- all trendy, all stylish, all for me. Everything is always all for me, but I had never felt special this way before. I bought them all. I bought them all, eager to wear them, eager to show them off.

After I paid for the items and we walked out the store together, I turned to her and stuttered, “At the dance…who…who are you going with…I mean which friends…’cause I really have no one…to go with that night…my friends…my friends aren’t going…they don’t dance much.” I didn’t want to hear her reply. I knew I would be humiliated. I knew that I would shrink down to how small and insignificant I was in her life. My mind begged her not to speak.

She spoke; soft and polite as always, “I am going with a group of people. You are more than welcome to join us.” The smile on her face, the smile of satisfaction was still there, but it was beginning to ware. She was tiring of me. I knew our time together was through. I didn’t want to force her to spend any more time with me. I wanted her to enjoy our time together at the dance. So we quietly parted ways. I had urged her to let me make my way home alone. I had homework, as did she, and leaving together would have proven to be a hassle.

I didn’t go to school the next day. Dance day. I was sick; sick to my stomach at the thought of being with her and her friends so soon. I was nervous-excited. I spent the day in my room trying to conserve my energy for the night; the night where my life would surely change.

I sat there in my room dreaming- fantasizing. I couldn’t wait to be on that dance floor. I have someone now too. And everyone would see and know that soon enough.

The sun was beginning to lower and the sky was beginning to darken. And I was beginning to get anxious. I put on my shirt, the one she had first picked out for me. I had never worn pink before. It blended beautifully with my skin, now a colour of pink, that of blushing and not of sheer skin. It was difficult to get the clothes on, but I managed. I thought of the night ahead. I thought of how my life would change. I thought of perfection. Putting those clothes on was the closest I’d ever been.

I arrived at the dance and made my way to the gym, along my usual route past the vending machines, which stood nearby. Today the walls were shrouded with posters, banners and crate paper. My heart began to race.

What I had assumed would happen at the mall was happening here-stares- stares from every direction. But I wasn’t with her. I was by myself. Shock is what people felt seeing me here. But I couldn’t care less. Soon enough they would see that I had someone too, that I was here just like all of them.

As I entered the gym, my eyes darted furiously back-and-forth. For the first time the thought entered my mind: what if she didn’t come? I didn’t know what I would do if she didn’t come. How would I react? Where would I go? What would people think? My heart was beating at an unbelievable rate.

I felt as though the pounding against my weak chest would certainly suffocate my breathing. My chest tightened. What was I going to do?! My hands were sweaty, the sweat thick enough to prevent me from grabbing anything to stop my inevitable collapse. 

Suddenly, a tap on the shoulder. I flinched. My arms whipped back. My heart plummeted. And then I saw her face-perfection- every line and contour, her eyes, her lips and her hair, all with a new shine and gleam, all soft and stunning. At the sight of this beauty and perfection, my pain was relieved. My day had come. It was real now.

We stood by and talked, chatted. We chatted about the decorations, about the dance organizers, and about the people who were there. The decorations were typical, yet festive. The dance organizers had done a good job in their preparations, and the people who were there were beginning to stare. I was thrilled.

Their stares validated all my hard work at getting here. They affirmed my belief in the shallowness of my peers- which was fine by me! A grin came over me. My face was open and bright. I was thrilled and I wanted everyone to know this. They did.

Then something even more shocking occurred. She turned to me, “Would you like to dance?” No one had ever asked me that before. I had never heard those words. I had never danced. Did I know how? I did not know. But I knew that this was the most amazing thing to ever happen to me.

Before my mind could process a response, before I got over the shock, she had taken me by the chair and had rolled me to the centre of the dance floor. There, in the heart of the gym, we twirled around. We danced.  

You Know You’re An Arab When…

A friend sent this to me today….LOVE it!….applies to me 95%! It's sooo disturbingly true!

You Know Your Arab When…… (only arabs will get this)

You have a Sitto always cooking for you

You go to Arabic Resturants, tell the owners your Arab, and think you're
going to get free food.

You fight over who's going to pay the bill

You act like you want to pay, but in reality you hate to pay

You would never call it Pita Bread

you know what the debki, a hafli, and a derrbakki is/are

You say "bolice" and "bastor" for "police" and "pastor."

You smoke as if it were your last day on earth…and you only smoke Marlboro.

You cook a meal that lasts 3 days.

Your father swears at you with words that effect himself (Ibnil Kalb). (so true)

You have 500,000,000 cousins.

Your relatives alone could populate a small city.

At weddings it takes the bride and groom 4 hoursto kiss all the guests

You have a gold necklace of your name written in Arabic.

Your middle name is your father's first name.

If you are male, you're named after your grandfather or great-grandfather.

You play cards till the break of dawn.

You can't have a meal without bread.

You never run out of bizzer. (seeds)

You get offended when Americans call Arabic bread "Pita bread"

You teach your American friends Arabic word (mostly bad ones) and get happy when they use them in normal conversations.

Your Mom has a creative nickname for you like "Natoosheh," or "Tuntooneh."

You have a difficult Arabic name so you come up with an Americanized version of it like "Sam" or "Mike."

You have someone tell you your fortune through your coffee cup.

You love Um Kalthoom and if you don't, your dad makes you listen to her and tries to translate the words into English so you can appreciate her as much as he does.

You get really happy and call the whole family to the room when there is a special or documentary on Arabs or anything Arabic related on CNN or PBS.

You bump Arabic music at all times

Your dad eats mensef with his hands and forces his son to "join the men

You or your relatives own a grocery store, liquor store, restaurant, or gas station

You eat hummus at least 4 times a week

You watch the hell out of Arabic Satellite

You own and/or play the tubleh

Your favorite food is wara' dawali, but you are embarrassed to tell your friends that you ate leaves for dinner (for those of you who don't know what wara; dawali is its grape leaves)

You make Turkish coffee before leaving home to work, at the office, before lunch, after lunch, when having guests, before the guest leave, after the guests leave and before you go to bed.

You still have stored suitcases of clothes that you used to wear when you were five.

Everyone is a family friend.

If you are 25 and unmarried, your parents make you feel that you are getting old.

You ask your dad a simple question, and he answers by telling the story of how he used to walk miles just to get to school

You hug and kiss relatives you have never seen before in your life.

You curse at your teachers or strangers in Arabic.

You have to constantly remind your American friends to take off their shoes when they enter your house

You flip out when someone mistakes you for a Mexican or Indian.

You can spot an Arab a mile away and they have spotted at you because they keep staring.

After a family meal, the women fight to the death over who should wash the dishes while the men sit on their behinds and discuss politics, waiting for their tea.

Your mother yells at the top of her lungs to call you to dinner even if you're in the next room.

You have at least thirty cousins.

You have a 4 cousins, an uncle, a brother-in-law and 7 friends named Mohammed.

You arrive one or two hours late to a party and think it's normal. …all arabs are late- all the time!

You are standing next to the largest suitcases at the Airport.

You talk for an hour at the front door when leaving someone's house.

You say bye 17 times on the phone.

When your parents meet strangers and talk for a few minutes, you discover they know one of your uncles back home.

Your parents don't realize phone connections to foreign countries have improved in the last two decades, and still scream at the top of their lungs when making long distance calls.

You're walking out of customs with your trolley at the airport and you see at least twenty-five members of your family who have come to pick you up.

You go back to your parents' country and people treat you like a member of…the royal family.

Your parents drink 6 cups of tea a day

You've had a shoe thrown at you by your mother (not true but its funny)