My Personal Hate Hate Hate List

1) Clients who micro-manage: Why do people hire consultants at exoibrant rates only to refuse to listen to them and insist on deciding even the most insignificant detail themselves even when they plainly don't know what they're talking about??!!!

2) Dirty old men: Enough said.

3) People who ask you to do them a favor and then when you do it, never bother to say thanks but instead start criticizing how you went about it. The question that springs to mind is if they can do it better than why ask you? Do they think you've got nothing better to do than solve their problems?

4) Women who only pretend to be your friend so they can flirt with your husband and then have the nerve to lecture you about things like your ankles showing while you're praying or the fact that you hold your fork in your left hand.

5) People who offer unsolicited pity and compassion because you've been married for over a year and you still don't have kids. And people who ask you everyday if you're not pregnant.

6) Uncomfortable shoes that look good but maim your feet when you wear them.

7) People who persistently direct profanities at you even after you've made it clear you don't find this charming or funny and even though you never use that kind of language to them. Which part of I find this offensive is so obscure and difficult to grasp?

8) Having to wear contacts on tired, red, inflamed eyes because you can't see enough to do any work otherwise. Why can't I find the perfect pair of glasses? And why do I have a mental block against being seen in glasses?

9) People who double-park. And people who insist on parking their cars so close to yours that you can't open your driver's door - or get in if you manage to open it - and you wind up having to crawl in through the passenger's door. I HATE HATE HATE bad parkers!

10) People who won't stop trying to bribe you. Don't they realize that if you were corrupt you'd have jumped at the first hint rather than wait for the 155th? Am I the only one who finds the constant suggestion that I am cheap/corrupt/dishonest insulting?

Corruption is so mainstream here that such people actually expect YOU to be tactful to THEM for fear you might hurt their sensitive feelings by refusing to accept a bribe from them!

Five Things You Don't Know About Me

Tagged by Om Luji. Thanks a lot!

1) I fast a lot. Because I use the expression 'Oqsim billah' (I swear by Allah) without thinking a lot - especially when am angry. And then when I think about it, I find I've sworn by Allah I'll do something I can't do. So I have to fast 3 days to make up for it.

Recently, a friend has told me a woman needs her husband's permission to fast if it's not Ramadan. If so, then I'm a great sinner because I never thought to discuss it with him. I don't think he even noticed because he comes home from work long after Magreb(sundown).

2) Twice, when my husband was buying presents for my evil sister-in-law, her husband or her children, I watched him buy all the wrong things and wrong sizes. He's a terrible shopper. And I kept my mouth firmly shut.

3) I am very claustrophobic. I hate elevators so much that I take the stairs whenever I can. When I can't, I break into a cold sweat. I'm incapable of having a conversation in the lift because I can't stop worrying it will get stuck and I'll never get out.

I cannot sleep in a room which doesn't have large glass windows or a balcony. Same for my office. Or sit anywhere other than by the window on trains, planes etc....

If I am in an enclosed space, I have to at least be able to see outside from the window.

4) I am so soft-spoken that people often complain they can't hear me. Conversely, I have the most loud obnoxious laugh you ever heard. The contrast always startles people.

I am tagging:
1) Alina
2) Puppy
3) Kareem
4) 2B||!2B®
5) Carmen
6) Forsooth
7) Tooners
8) Hal
9) Highlander
10)Zed

Tagged

Tagged by Charismatic Soul & Nightlegend. Thanks guys!

Seven things I plan to do:

1) Sleep more.
2) Stop using things I supposedly bought to prepare for my wedding so I don't end up having to buy them again.
3) Worry less.
4) Stop smoking.
5) Go back to reading. I don't read at all these days. Not even newspapers. Getting to be an ignormous.
6) Spend more time at home with my parents before they leave.
7) Spend less.

Seven things I can't do:

1) Eat alone.
2) Sleep with my hair tied up.
3) Drive without music.
4) See nice things in my dreams instead of work.
5) Stop arguing until I have the last word.
6) Stop criticizing.
7) Feel satisfied.

Seven things I say most often:

1) Ya7aram
2) Wish kayen?
3) Khair inshallah?
4) Yasalam
5) Suit yourself
6) 7abibi or 7abibti
7) Great

Seven people I want to pass this tag to:

1) Haal
2) Jane
3) Wonderer
4) AlSharief
5) Meme
6) Moonlightshadow
7) Me ®

Tagged: 5 Random Things About Me

Tagged by roora.

1) Have always wished for long, straight, pitch-black hair like my Mom's. Indian hair. She's got masses & masses of it. Mashallah. Instead I've been blessed with long, curly hair of some indeterminate shade of light brown. All I can say is the spiral curl effect is nice if you do it once for a crazy look to go to a party or something but to live with it day in day out?Have always been bummed by the fact that my hair appears to be the first thing people notice about me. Only last week someone referred to me by saying :"and who is this curly, bad-tempered-looking person?"

See that was at work. Another one of my problems. It's very difficult to look professional when you have hair like mine.Don't always look bad-tempered but it's true that my hair is so in your face. You see my hair first then you have to wait for my face to come out of my hair. If you're in a hurry - or am in a hurry - you never see my face at all. You just remember me by the hair.

The only good point is that when am embarrassed I have somewhere to hide. People will say come on come out of your hair.

If I could ever change one thing about my appearance it would be my hair. As luck would have it I ended up marrying someone who loves curly hair. So now even blow-drying is not a frequent option - let alone a perm. He gets this pained look on his face whenever I do anything to my hair - like he just swallowed something that didn't agree with him. Of course that makes feel great & wonderful about myself.

2) Am a middle child. Two older bros, a younger bro & a younger sis. Was an only girl until 14 years ago when my sister showed up. Have never forgiven her for taking away my queenly privileges & being spoilt by everyone instead of me. To add insult to injury, SHE has long straight black hair!

3) Am very competitive at work. I get really tense if someone else is doing better than me - even if I happen to like the person. Used to get pretty upset when other kids got higher grades at school too.

4) When very worried my hands get freezing cold & start sweating. Sometimes at home I go & hold them on top of the stove to warm them. When I was little I used to go to my parents & complain my hands are cold & they would rub them for me. Too embarrassed to do that now. Too grown up for it. So now I just dry them on paper tissues every 10 min & ignore the hypothermia. It will go away on its own usually when am calmer. Or I find that smoking really helps.

5) I talk in my sleep.


I am tagging Haal, Al Sharief, Charismatic Soul, Around the Clock, Zoss & Tota.

5 Nice Things That Happened To Me Today

1)My supervisor says am a brilliant mind & but that I sometimes lack discipline. Am a brilliant mind?Me?Who cares about discipline? Am happy.You can't have everything right?

2)Went perfume-shopping with my Dad. He bought one perfume & the lady was trying to convince him to buy something more from the same brand because they had a special gift if you spend a certain amount. He didn't want anything more so she started working on me. She was trying to sell me eyeshadow. She offered to do my eye make-up to demo the product. So she did & then she asked my dad isn't she beautiful with this make-up? He told her don't ask me that. She's my daughter. Whatever you do to her I'll still find her beautiful.Then he asked me if I want it. I did so he got it for me.

My Dad never said he thought I was beautiful before.

3)My friend bought me a cute little pink nightdress. It says "I'm Usually Gorgeous But It's My Day Off". Love unexpected gifts. Wearing it right now. Put it on as soon as she gave it to me. She just left.

4)Was trying to register for a new gym class. Found something called Tamarkuz which is supposed to be a mix of yoga & Sufism. Physical & spiritual exercise. Can't imagine what it will be like but looking forward to it. First class is next Sat.

5)K. called this morning. Woke me up for work. As soon as I picked up he said that's it I want to come back now. I asked well was it something I said just now?Was joking though. All I said was hello!
Asked him why he was up so early. He said he hasn't slept yet but was about to when he thought he'd call to see what I'll say. He always says that. Never I called because I have something to say to you. Always I called to see what you'll say. Don't know if that means anything. Here's my mental note to figure it out sometime.

So a new nightie & a new eye-shadow. Both I love. And both gifts. It feels like it's my birthday today.