shoe-shopping

I bought four pairs of shoes today. But that's just the ending :)

Last week my mom had made me promise I'd use my time in Lahore effectively - meaning I'd buy the shoes I need for my brother's wedding (5 pairs of shoes, mind you, all color coordinated with my clothes!) Lahore is, apparently, the place to buy shoes, probably because of all the Lahori aunties that have nothing better to do than making new clothes and then getting shoes to match. Anyway, Lahore's where ECS and Stylo reign supreme (both are shoe shops, for the non-Lahori's) and that's where my mom wanted me to go.

The past few days, I'd been lazy. It's cold out, I'd rather check my email, I'm not in the mood. But Sunday's getting closer, and I needed to buy the shoes before then if I had any hopes of setting foot in my parents house, so today - my third day back in Lahore - my roommate turned to me and said, "wanna go shoe shopping?"

We set off from LUMS, walked to a coffee shop, got a couple of things to eat (we're both the no-breakfast type of people, and had even skipped lunch today) and finally got on the bus. 15 minutes later, we were at the shop itself - ECS.

ECS DHA is a landmark. The shop originally started from Liberty Market - your average shoe shop, except the salesmen seemed like they were jacked up on caffiene. Hyper active, throwing shoe boxes at the speed of light. Their shoes were great, and they pretty much dominated the market, with people coming from other cities to buy their shoes. The first shop was a little more than a hole-in-the-wall. Very cramped and constantly filled with people, which meant there was barely enough oxygen for all those in it. They soon realized the error of their ways, and moved to DHA and into a huge store with sofa's and enough space for a wedding party. Business boomed.

Anyway - that's besides the point - I'm just trying to explain why I first went into ECS. It's a landmark. I had to. Going into any other shop first would be unacceptable. I can just imagine my mom going, "You went to Stylo?", had I gone into Stylo first.  

However, the salesmen in the DHA branch are apparently not as enthusiastic as the ones in Liberty - or maybe the coffee here is worse - since no one came to bug me, ask me what I needed, or show the slightest concern. After about 10 minutes of just wandering around, I came to the realization that I didn't like anything but unfortunately, one of the salesmen had by now spotted me, and so, thinking, "this is ECS!" I started around the shop with him following me and yelling out orders. Three shoes later (one I hated, two I loved but had too big feet for), he figured me for a lost cause and left. That's when I turned to my roommate and said, let's go to Stylo.

So off we went - it's right next door to ECS - kinda like comparing Jammin Java to Hobnob (Hobno is hugely successful, Jammin Java not so much).

The salesmen here were apparently taking lessons from the ECS Liberty guys - 20 minutes later, the entire stock room was at our feet. Everything in pink that is (I have tea pink clothes, go figure!) - I'm sure the guy in the stock room thought Barbie had landed in the building.

Needless to say, I walked out with four pairs of shoes.

MC applications '07-'08 just opened up. From saying at NLDS '04 that I'd be MCP Pakistan one day to actually filling out the application! The wait has been unbearable.

reconnecting...

i'd thought that when my friends graduated, i'd lose touch with them - we'd never been the emailing each other kind. (un?)fortunately, they've all suddenly turned into the emailing kind, and since most of them are now in the UK, we get weekly updates of what's going on in their *new* lives. from cleaning schedules, to eid celebrations, to who's up-to-no good type gossip. it's fun, but we all had very varying groups of friends - kind of like those ven diagrams - with overlaps here and there, and although we knew everyone, we were never *close* friends with a lot of each other's friends. which means that if X sends a weekly update, all her friends are on the list, and since everyone *loves* "replying all" on gmail, we end up having to listen to all the comments her friends have to throw into the mix. not fun. especially if you don't really like all those friends. *snicker*

it gets even more interesting.

if i have a comment to make, which i don't particularly want to share with everyone, i'll just remove all the random people from the list, and send the email to *my* close knit group of friends (possibly a subgroup of the much larger group that received the originaly email), and thus a second *internal* email begins, but again, because of gmail, this is in the same thread as the previous, much more public mail. and yes, you guessed it, sooner or later, someone will send a response that had to be sent to the much smaller group to the much larger group causing confusion, and sometimes problems.

so, not only have i *not* lost touch with my old friends, we're still creating messes for each other...

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me...

I turned 23. First birthday in the last four years I didn’t spend in LUMS with friends. Actually, yesterday was Ammar’s birthday, and since our birthday’s are so close together we usually celebrate them together. This year was supposed to be a BBQ, or something, but he moved to Little Rock, Arkansas in the summers and so I really didn’t want to be in LUMS today anyway.

Anyway, it’s Eid, and it’s vacations and I was supposed to spend this birthday with my family. But that’s not happening either.

My parents and brother have gone to spend Eid in Faisalabad – the town I was born and raised in. But I couldn’t go; too much work to catch up on, plus I have to study for the upcoming exams since the mid-terms didn’t exactly go great. But they didn’t really get it, so they left pissed at me since I refused to join them on the trip.

Why am I writing all this? I just noticed a birthday cake in the fridge that my parent’s must’ve gotten for me, but we had no time to cut. It’s the most depressing thing in the world to have a birthday cake in the house, but have no one to watch as you cut it :)

Human choice

At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: "When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?"

The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. "I believe  that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child."

Then he told the following story:

Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they'll let me play?"  Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.

Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, "We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning."

Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.

At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat  properly, much less connect with the ball.

However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.

The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.

Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!" Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second!" Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball ... the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's
intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of
him circled the bases toward home.

All were screaming, "Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay"

Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third! Shay, run to third!"

As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
their feet screaming, "Shay, run home! Run home!" Shay ran to home, stepped
on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
game for his team.

"That day", said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, "the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world". 

Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!

30 hours and counting...

LUMS used to have this really weird way of scheduling mid-terms. (Explanation to everyone not familiar with LUMS - my university: We have 10 week quarters, and every quarter has mid-terms. So roughly we have exams every 5 weeks.) What they used to do was schedule mid-terms very randomly between the 4rth and 7th week. So there was a good three weeks of, "I can't do this, I have mid-terms going one." Anyway, someone in the administration must have had a light bulb go on in their mind, as from this year, all mid terms happen in the same week - to be specific, the first class of the 5th week (or is it 6th?). Basically, it means that there's these four days when 95% of mid-terms are held, and unlike last year, where we had a break from all the mid-terms and actually managed to get some sleep during the three weeks, we now have 4 days where no one (except the really nerdy people) sleeps.

I've been awake 30 hours - which is nothing for LUMS standards. I had an exam this morning, so I was awake last night studying. And I have three (yes - one, two, three!!) exams tomorrow. Which basically means I can't sleep till tomorrow evening. But wait - we have an LC social tomorrow - and there's no way I'm missing that! Which means I won't get to sleep till tomorrow night - midnight would be a good guess. Another 24 hours...

Now - as interesting as Augustine's Confessions is, it really cannot stop me from thinking about the fact that I cannot sleep for another 24 hours, or stop me from ooking at my bed every ten minutes. Unfortunately for me, I'm not being tested on the colors of my bedspread tomorrow, so I definitely need to get back to Augustine.

Note: I just realized that when I finally sleep, I'll have been awake for 54 hours. My previous record is 46 hours, at the end of which I vaguely remember getting on a bus, but have no recollection of what happened between then and when the bus stopped 5 hours later.

The funniest conversation EVER!

Emad and I were talking on gmail - this is the conversation I saw:

---------------

Emad: dude, i was tryin to call ur bro for some work and he doesnt pick up my fone! wat the hell!

Emad Nadim: .. from no. 87 to no.78 in ONE qtr! Pakistan Baby! ..

Nida: ugh

i dont know

does he have your number?

when did you call?

an quite possibly, he's sleeping right now

Sent at 11:16 PM on Monday

Emad: i dunno

Sent at 11:23 PM on Monday

Emad: do i have his?

Nida: 0300-8285295

no no n

0300-8285205

Sent at 11:25 PM on Monday

Emad: 0300 828 5205

Nida: yep

thats it

when did you call?

Emad: i called twice.. in the evning tday.. then a coupla days ago

Nida: he's an idiot

i'm just glad its not genetic :)

Sent at 11:28 PM on Monday

Nida: brb

Emad: evening too

Sent at 11:30 PM on Monday

Emad: dude.. like at 9pm?!

Sent at 11:36 PM on Monday

Emad: wat the hell i have the rong no.!

thnx

---------

This is the converation Emad saw:

---------

me: dude, i was tryin to call ur bro for some work and he doesnt pick up my fone! wat the hell!

---

11:17 PM Nida: ugh

11:19 PM i dont know

11:20 PM does he have your number?

me: i dunno

do i have his?

11:21 PM Nida: when did you call?

me: 0300 828 5205

i called twice.. in the evning tday.. then a coupla days ago

evening too

11:22 PM Nida: an quite possibly, he's sleeping right now

11:23 PM me: dude.. like at 9pm?!

---

11:30 PM Nida: 0300-8285295

me: wat the hell i have the rong no.!

thnx

11:32 PM Nida: no no n

11:33 PM me: ?

11:35 PM Nida: 0300-8285205

me: so i had th erite one! sheesh!

11:38 PM Nida: yep

11:39 PM thats it

me: ?

11:40 PM Nida: when did you call?

me: 9

11:41 PM Nida: he's an idiot

me: eh?!

11:42 PM Nida: i'm just glad its not genetic :)

me: haha! someone is smug today!!!

11:44 PM Nida: brb

---------

Took me about 20 minutes to realize what was going on, then emailed Emad to find out that he was literally on a different page! The internet here sucks sometimes!!

decisions...

life is about to take a turn towards being boring pretty soon. not that my life so far has been the stuff real good movies are made out of - but it's definitely not been boring, especially the last four years, more specifically the last two years.

i'm staring at what is the end of my collegt education - which means i'll move out of the dorms, move into more suitable and predictable living quarters, stop staying up all night watching recently downloaded tv shows, and stop ordering food from the khokha at 3 am. It also means i have to make a decision. what am i doing next?

which brings me to the reason the last two years have been specifically interesting - i joined AIESEC in the fall of 2004. for the last two years, my non-AIESEC friends have either had to see me go off to other countries, or had to deal with the streams of guests that pass through my dorm room door. that's what's made the last two years very interesting.

now i have to make a decision - continue with AIESEC, or get a job. believe me, i know what i want to do, unfortunately, the saying that you're your own man after college is really very untrue. just as we're our parent's children our entire life, we're also bound to recieve advice - and in my case "direction" - from them our entire life.

the decision needs to be made soon - an interesting life, or a boring one.

Sotally Tober

Starkle, starkle little twink
Who the hell you are I think
I'm not under what you call
The alcho-fluence of inco-hol
I'm just a little slort on sheep
I'm not drunk like thinkle peep
I don't know who me yet
But the drunker I stand here the longer I get
Just give me one more drink to fill my cup
'Cause I got all day sober to sunday up.

name: nida rasheed

nickname: there have been several attempts to invent one, but none have stuck :) my name's short enough without needing a nickname...

languages spoken: english, urdu. i can understand punjabi, but any attempt to speak it usually causes the listener to laugh till they cry...

countries visited because of AIESEC: india, romania and poland...

favorite colour and why: i'll have to say blue. it calming, but fun at the same time.

what you wanted to BE when you were a child: i wanted to be someone who worked with wild animals, either because i was involved in conservation efforts, or as a photographer.

now, what do you want to do when you grow up: i want to start my own event management company in pakistan.

favorite book: to kill a mocking bird

favorite movie: almost famous

What song is stuck in your head right now: chelo - cha cha ( IC '06, CC dance!!)

Why I joined AIESEC: someone said i'd get to travel, and develop as a person. more importantly, they said i could go to india within the month. i stayed for completely different reasons :)

Passions: AIESEC, conservation, and anything else that has anything to do with animals (including animal planet!!)

Nida 2010: if my parents get their way, i'll be married with two children, probably named chintu and mintu while living somewhere close to them.
if i get my way, i'll have finished my @ internship and will be working full time in event management. i'll also have travelled to 25 countries by then, all set to achieve my goal of 30 countries by the time i hit the age of 30!

blogging ramadan...

Name: Nida Rasheed

Age: 22

Location: Lahore, Pakistan

Nationality: Pakistani

Religious background: Born a Sunni Muslim, I now fall into the "not religious" category

Current occupation: Student, President AIESEC Lahore

The thing I love the most about Ramadan: How excited people get when you talk about Eid :)

The hardest/most annoying thing about Ramadan: Water...

What I want to get out of Ramadan this year (learning/spiritual etc...) Learn to be more adaptable, accepting of other people's behaviours. Be nicer :)

My best Ramadan memory: I live on campus, and my first year here Ramadan was in the coldest winter days. I'll never forget how some students would come for Sehri (5 a.m.), all bundled up, some with a blanket, so that they wouldn't get cold on the walk from the dorms :D

The paradox of our time.

A wonderful Message by George Carlin:

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet m ore problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get u p too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom. We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to life not life to years. We've been all the way to the m oon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better things. We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and l ess.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. T hese are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.

Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever. Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side. Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent. Remember, to say, I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you. Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again. Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

short update...

yes, i'm horrible since i don't blog more often :P no time to do proper (read: long & meaningful) posts, but here's some updates:

1. am back in LUMS, classes have started. am loving/hating the life :D
2. AIESEC Lahore in the middle of recruitment! yay! am loving it!
3. missing everyone from the CC. too much i think :)
4. my brother's getting married in 3 months! excited beyond belief! it's a nine day wedding!! more details on the wedding later.

have a class to catch now!

Tagged by
Pierre

I am thinking about...
the "pierogi" I had for lunch ;)

I said...
a full sentence in Polish today :D

I want to...
go back in time and start my CC experience all over again!!

I wish...
I had more time to do all the things I want to do

I miss...
home :)

I hear...
the voices of people from 24 countries in the background :)

I wonder...
what happens to us after we die

I regret...
nothing

I am...
a work in progress

I dance...
not so well :)

I sing...
only when I'm very happy

I cry...
when I feel helpless

I am not always...
excited. (contrary to popular belief)

I write...
when there's too much going on in my head:)

I confuse...
everyone because I talk too fast

I need...
some time to myself everyday

I should try...
being less bossy

I finish...
university in three months!

I tag...
Romeo, Xeb, Kurt, Naaz, Nic, Nicole, Saba, Sohaib, Ahmed, Ehsan, Salman Suhail, Sharmeen, Aqeel

If you comment on this post::

1. I'll respond with something random about you.
2. I'll challenge you to try something.
3. I'll pick a colour that I associate with you.
4. I'll tell you something I like about you.
5. I'll tell you my first/clearest memory of you.
6. I'll tell you what animal you remind me of.
7. I'll ask you something I've always wanted to ask you.
8. If I do this for you, you must re-post this on your blog.

(Clockwise from centre bottom) Nicole, Emad, Nida, Puneet, Joanna, Saba, Kurt
National President's Meeting

I was originally going to post something really sad, since I'm missing home with a vengeance right now (and home means: family, friends, @Pk, LC members, EBMs, LUMS, my turtles!) but I saw the picture we took at NPM, and I realised that soon I'll be meeting most of these people again. Can't wait!!
Weirdly enough, I even miss things like Emad calling me up to bug me about @ issues!! Have a great time at JNC!

...

it's weird how i never listen to the national anthem at home, but now that i'm not home, i'm looking it up on the internet!

polska!

Yep - I'm here!! The immigration people gave me a less than amazing reception, but the reception outside the airport was great! The weather here is the most talked about topic -everyone thinks it's too hot, I'm thinking it's like Murree in the summers! The campus (where IC will take place) is beautiful, and has amazing dorms! The CC office is really cool (and I mean literally! The AC is blasting away!) and everyone's put stuff up on the walls, and there's radio music blaring away!
Proper agenda starts from tomorrow, and ends in two weeks. By then, we'll have finished planning, and will have moved onto hands-on work with the teamsters.
Haven't seen much of Warsaw, so will post more after a few days!

i really need to stop accidently clicking on the "reply all" button...!!

just because your mobile phone has a camera doesn't give you the right to snap my picture anytime you want. my shoes have heels that could poke your your eyes out, but you don't see me going around jabbing them in your face do you?

ladies and gentlemen...

...the batch of 2006 has left the building...

well...i haven't...and neither has ammar or naureen...but yesterday was the last exam day for LUMS - and for a lot, the last day in LUMS, or last night.

i now know how weird it is saying goodbye to people who've become like an extended family. how do you say goodbye to someone who was there for every important moment in your college life? you can cry, you can laugh it off, or you can do what we did and bury a time capsule (i kid you not!) at 4 am in the morning. i think, for some of us, it was a hassle-less way of saying good bye - no tears, no awkward hugs, or sad faces. we buried it with the promise that the next time we're all together (after graduation) we'll come back and dig it up. so right now, all we have to say is "see you soon", since we have to meet to dig the darned thing up anyway :)

that being said, i only recently realized how much i'm going to miss these idiots who became the most important people in my life - even when i hated them. these were the people who stuck by me in the worst of times, helped me out no matter what i needed, and let me rant and rave about everything under the sun - including them - and didn't say anything back.

...next year won't be the same without you...

they do...

apparently, the LUMS ITSC department has a sense of humor...

the new message boards (yes, LUMS finally has them too) have an ITSC problem solving forum, and this is one of their helpful messages:

background: it's hot as hell in Lahore right now

"OK, we have set the session time to '0' in
horde. 0 means "end session when user closes browser window. Hopefully
this will lead to the behavior you have asked for. The change will take
effect when horde is restarted. We will do that when the least number
of users are logged in because restarting will cause the users'
sessions to terminate.





Please close the window when you leave the machine. And close the door so that the cold air does not leave the room!"

George Carlin's View on Aging

Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like to get old is when we're kids? If you're less than 10 years old, you're so excited about aging that you think in fractions.

"How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never thirty-six and a half. You're four and a half, going on five! That's the key. You get into your teens, now they can't hold you back. You jump to the next number, or even a few ahead.

"How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 16!" You could be 13, but hey, you're gonna be 16! And then the greatest day of your life . . . You become 21. Even the words sound like a ceremony . . YOU BECOME 21. YESSSS!!!

But then you turn 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk! He TURNED; we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're Just a sour-dumpling. What's wrong? What's changed?

You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50, And your dreams are gone.

But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would! So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday! You get into your 80's and every day is a complete cycle; you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime. And it doesn't end there. Into the 90's, you start going backwards; "I Was JUST 92."

Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!"

May you all make it to a healthy 100 and a half!!

*HOW TO STAY YOUNG*

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay "them!"

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop." And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9 Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

i'm bored with this template...someone know where i can get a funky new one?
it's weird how, during exams, i'll get every last mind-numbing task done, but will refuse to open my books...

...

i love my gmail inbox right now - it's completely empty (yes, i'm part of that irritating group of people who archive all emails after replying!). i'm so happy i finally got through the gazillions of emails that had been waiting for me... yay!

anyway - now that the farewell is over (i made a brief appearance), there's that whole feeling of it's almost over. just these exams left, and May 29th will be the last day this batch will be in the same university. of course, i have to come back after the summers end, but it'll be without all the familiar faces...dang!

anyway - lots of other boring things happening...won't bore you.

The Social Events Team

Team Leader Social Events
Nida Rasheed (Pakistan)

Teamsters
Codruta Stefaniga (Romania)
Dorota Wysoczanska (Poland)
Ekaterina Shishchenko (Russia)
Seun Richards (Nigeria)
Siddharth Shivahare (India)
Vishal Jodhani (India)

2 months and counting...

From now onwards, this shall be known as the blog of the IC CC Team Leader Special Events! Just got the email, cannot begin to describe how giddy with joy I am!
2 months from now, I'll be working on the biggest AIESEC conference of the year, with the largest team possible - in Poland!! Yay!

Coming Home

Somebody forwarded this to me when I was in my sophomore year...

**
When you arrive at college, you know no one, you're in a strange place, and you
can't wait to go home and talk to the friends you left behind. But after a few
weeks, a few months even, you make new friends and eventually get to the point
where you don't want to go home because you don't want to miss a party on Friday
or going to the club on Saturday.

The next time you do go home, it
doesn't quite feel like home anymore. Your little brothers and sisters have
suddenly grown up and created a life that is better than spying on you. Nothing
seems the same anymore, no matter how much you try not to notice or think it's
not true.

When this reality hits, it's enormous, and the fact that no
one understands doesn't help. You find that old friends have moved on, and your
parents get on your nerves even more - they don't mean to, but they do. No one
understands what you have been through, or why you have changed. Only your
friends at school who go through it with you understand. And when you leave at
the end of the year, you leave behind those friends, and take all the memories
with you - the good, the bad and the ugly. It will hurt just as much to leave
your new friends at school as it did to leave your old friends at home.


Home will never seem the same, and you won't be able to bear the wait to
go back in the fall for more fun times, crazy moments and new friends. It
doesn't do much good to explain this to anyone back home, because no matter how
hard they try, they won't understand. Some won't even try. Family members don't
understand what you are thinking when you look around your house and notice that
nothing is the same. They may say you're imagining changes. The empty feeling
you get when you realize how much things have changed and how much you have
missed back home is hard to deal with.

But when you think about how much
you experienced in college and how you have become more independent, that empty
feeling will fade. You will be filled with memories of hanging out in your dorm
room watching movies with new friends, and that warm night you went for a walk
at 3 a.m. just to talk to a friend about a tough time. College things - the deep
conversations, the late-night parties, hours spent laughing at nothing, sad
moments when a friend is hurting - those are what will stand out the most in
your mind. In the end, you will realize that college is one of the your best
experiences.

by Heather C., Hillsborough, NC

i've been thinking about skipping the farewell - for those of you who don't know what it is, it's the LUMS equivalent of the "prom", without the dates - anyway...been thinking about missing it. last year was great, it ran on for too long, but things went well - and we threw a good after-party. this year, the party might not even happen. apparently planning isn't the 2007s forte, thus they don't have money to do anything other then a measly dinner and a title! since all i was looking forward to was the party, i might as well skip the whole shingding if there isn't one, go home, get some time with the parents, something i haven't done in a while.

even if i manage to forget the party fiasco, and do attend the dinner, all dressed up in a sari, with hair all perfect and dressed to the hilt, i'm going to get bored halfway through the 430 titles. yep, 430 people will be called on stage to recieve a title - something people may or may not have suggested for them, mostly its a randomly picked song. we suggested that we could skip the whole title thing this year, why does everyone have to walk on stage like there's a parade happening. but when the organizers (the 2007s) suggested it to the rest of my class, supposedly things were thrown at them...which is just stupid!

so there went my brilliant plan of just having a concert and dinner, now we have to sit through at least 7 hours of titles (1 minute per person (yeah right!) = 430 minutes or 7.something hours). thus, i'm thinking about skipping it - after all, it's not a life altering experience...most of us will end up pissed at each other for one thing or the other, the food wil not be eaten (who can eat in a sari?) and the only tangible thing that we'll get will be that one picture we get taken by the photographer at the photo booth (which i've heard they also don't have money for!).

but i know that skipping it will mean i will have to hear the question "but why?" atleast a million times (ok, maybe just a few hundred) between the event and graduation...i'll probably make history - no one misses their farewell - and end up becoming the outcast in the group...no pictures to share, no "d'you remember blah" conversations...

so...still undecided... :)

Raju...

For a creative writing class, we had to write about someone on the periphery of our lives - then we were told to alter it based on the feedback we got from the teacher/TA/class.

Original:
His day probably starts close to dawn, a trip to the market, a bike ride to LUMS. By the time the rest of us wake up and get to the store - for breakfast, or an early lunch - he's midway through his day, though you couldn't tell that from the way he reacts on seeing each and everyone of his customers. Always a smile, a reference to the previous week or the latest serial on TV. In the five minutes that you are in front of him, you have his attention, even if he has a backlog of orders he has to get to.

You would think, in all this talking, that he would mention his life, but he doesn't. That's because during the day, he's one of the students, not a worker in LUMS who has to go back to a life where he can barely support his family, but someone who relates to the average person in front of him. And for the students, thats who he is, he's the happy guy at the counter and if that's what he has to limit himself to, he will.

But if you sit in the store and try and look deeper, you'll see the stubborn spirit in him, the one that tells him to not care about authority and do things his way, you'll see the wistful looks at the new watches and mobiles everyone's sporting nowadays, the side glance at that hot girl who just ordered a juice, the stolen berries he just popped into his mouth and thinks no one noticed.

If you dig deeper, you can see who he is, and forget his circumstances, and that he's behind the counter and not in front of it. He really is no different than everyone else in this place, he doesn't have to try.

Altered:
The day starts close to dawn, a trip to the market, a bike ride to LUMS. By the time the customers start walking into the store - for breakfast, or an early lunch - it's midway through the day, but the smile doesn't reflect that. "Every customer is special, everyone must be talked to", the mantra goes through his head, "Orders can be caught up with later. Who's that new kid walking in the door? Never seen him before! Salam boss, freshie ho?"

You would think, in all this talking, that he would mention his life, but he doesn't. That's because during the day, he's one of the students, not a worker in LUMS who has to go back to a life where he can barely support his family, but someone who relates to the average person in front of him. And for these students, that's who he is. The happy guy at the counter...

"Raju this, Raju that"...the litany never stops. But somethings make it worth the while. The students treating him like he's part of the gang. Being at the front line, watching it all happen. Joining in the revelry as the LUMS teams beat GIKI again. All this makes it worth it.

It's hard sometimes. Watching all the kids go about their life without a care. A four year education gauranteed by their parent's bank accounts. But if he tries hard enough, he can be just like them, share a few laughs with the popular kids, eat the same food they eat, feel like he belongs.

But there's stubborn spirit in him, the one that tells him to not care about authority and do things his way, there are wistful looks at the new watches and mobiles everyone's sporting nowadays, the side glance at that hot girl who just ordered a juice, the stolen berries no one notices.

Dig deeper, and the real him is right there. Forget that he's behind the counter and not in front of it. He really is no different than everyone else in this place, he doesn't have to try.

I liked the original better - anyway - we don't get graded on assignments during the course, so have no idea how I did...but me is liking this class :)

Overload...

Finally, the overload concert pics are online. cool looking team, no? The two lines of people at the back are mostly security and roadies, the most important people in the Music Society :P

what age do i act?

apparently, 16...

try it out for yourself :)

...

don't shoot the puppy

who makes these game?? having said that - it is a must to get to level 14! hilarious!

a softer world...

A Softer World

overload...

last night was another insanely crazy night for the lums music society. the concert, was amazing. i'm too tired to write too much about how it went, but i've heard from people who were there - i was at the gate - that it was great music...and great security - YAY!

the band "overload" is different from the rest as it has in it, pappu saeen, who is plays the dhol. this was my first time watching him perform, and even though i was only there for the last ten minutes or so, it was really really awesome. hehe..that seems like an understatement here. there's really no describing the music, it's just great. there's a post on metroblogging lahore is you want to know more about him.

a huge thanks to the newly recruited security team who had the most difficult first day possible...you guys were awesome!!

the pic i'm putting up, i found on salman suhail's pc, hope he doesn't mind :P

pappu saeen

MC Apartment

Hey - After having seens Kurt's random attempts at trying to figure out where the MC apartment is, I finally decided to take pity on everyone trying to guide him and post the picture up myself :P
*finally got the postcard, the office says thank you*

evaluation of last year

This is late in the year...I filled it out in Jan but didn't think I should post it, but it's just lying there so I will...

1. What did you do in 2005 that you'd never done before? lemme see...did a lot of new things. most significantly, i rode a "fun bus" (so named by nicole, because they look like "fun"! you've probably seen them in websites about pk - they're all coloured and stuff) in karachi. most significantly because i'd never considered riding one till she suggested it.

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? never make any :) - i just take one day at a time

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? one of my cousins, a boy :)

4. Did anyone close to you die? no...

5. What countries did you visit? romania, india, uae

6. What would you like to have in 2006 that you lacked in 2005? nothing, can't think of anything i'd want that i don't already have...

7. What date from 2005 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? september 27, 2005! opening ceremony for IC 2005 is something i'll never be able to forget...the sheer magnitude of the conference, and the emotions it brought out in the Pakistani delegation - woohoo!

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? have never been caught smuggling in visiting aiesecers (always female!) who stay overnight in my room, about 12 or so to date, and if i'm caught 1500 rs fine per person/per night...and a visit with the disciplinary committee (something i JUST found out!).

9. What was your biggest failure? i let a friendship die out because i was too busy with everything else...

10. Did you suffer illness or injury? the usual colds, sore throats, a minor ear infection, a foot problem i have right now...nothing serious.

11. What was the best thing you bought? my nomad - which i have already broken!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? tori and delia - the hottest MC in the world! they've been through everything these last 6-8 months, and i've actually come to think of them as pakistanis!

13.Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? a friends...no names :)

14.Where did most of your money go? travelling

15.What did you get really, really, really excited about? winning LCP elections, both times!

16.What song will always remind you of 2005? the bunty n bubli soundtrack...sounds dumb - but it's so darn catchy!

17.Compared to this time last year,

I. are you happier or sadder? same same
II. thinner or fatter? fatter :)
III. richer or poorer? no change

18. What do you wish you'd done more of? hanging out with friends

19. What do you wish you'd done less of? getting scolded by parents...!

20. Did you fall in love in 2005? nope...

21. How many one-night stands? none...good girl!

22. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year? nopes...

23. What was the best book you read? hmm...all four of dan browns book - can't remember which one i read when though

24. What was your greatest musical discovery? james blunt!

25. What did you want and get? funky new wallet and the nomad

26. What did you want and not get? laptop! boohoo!

27. What was your favorite film of this year? bunty n bubli! i know - kill me!! it's funny!!

28. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? turned 22, got a cool bag...

29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? a laptop!

30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2005? same old, same old...jeans and t-shirts...

31. What kept you sane? who said i was sane?

32. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? that guy in lost - the doctor..something fox

33. What political issue stirred you the most? the mis-management of resources after the earthquake took place. people were actually burning the clothes we sent because there were too many for them to use - had this been better managed, we might've been able to help more before it snowed!

34. Who did you miss? weirdly enough - fahd majeed, a friend who moved to the states!

35. Who was the best new person you met? met a lot of amazing people, but nicole was undoubtedly the best! superstar!!

36. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2005: never assume how people will react.

wacky...

i am so bored right now, it's not even funny. and i know most people will be thinking, why isn't she asleep yet (it's 3 am here), but i can't! i have to be up at 8:30 and get ready for the training session for our new members, and if i sleep now i won't wake up on time...and that can't happen. so i'll stay awake. tomorrow's pretty free anyway, so i can..

coming back to the point, i'm really bored. i've been playing "fish tycoon" for a couple of hours now, but it's not something you can do on it's own, so i also played AoE, checked my emails, prepared the sessions for tomorrow, updated the @lhr blog, and sorted out through 500mb of unsorted documents...but now i have nothing to do. so i went on google, and searched for "bored"...and very interestingly, i came up with this wacky website. i'm really tempted to try some of this stuff out now...

feeling depressed...

feeling blue? sad? wanna laugh? wanna see something cute?? Cute Overload

if you're looking for a laugh...

all i had to do was tell naureen i liked guinea pigs...now i'll never be able to look at guinea pig's the same way ever again. check out "the guinea pig way" to see what i'm talking about...

old pics...

while sorting out the many files that i have to upload/change/delete, i came across some pics from last summer...

first...rusty - found behind the tire of a car, brought to me while i was in a coffee shop by some friends and then stayed in my room in the dorms for two weeks, and then moved to islamabad for another couple of weeks before some moron drove to fast in a residential lane and probably didn't even realize he ran over a three month old kitten...anyway - found the two pics i took of him...

rusty


rusty and uzair (my nephew)

the other pictures are from the annual family migration to "dunga gali", a small city in the northern areas where my uncle has a house which gets filled to capacity during certain weeks in the summer...we only went for a few days this time - and as usual, nothing even remotely interesting happened - except for the leopards that attacked some village women and managed to kill a few goats, which resulted in my mom refusing to let any of us even venture outside the front door - thus making the already boring trip a maha-boring one! atleast we had our dvd player, books, cell phones on us. anyway - took these pics on the way back...the weather was really nice and the scenery was jst awesome...

johari window...

the johari window was invented by joseph luft and harrington ingham in the 1950s as a model for mapping personality awareness. by describing yourself from a fixed list of adjectives, then asking your friends and colleagues to describe you from the same list, a grid of overlap and difference can be built up.
saw kurt's...and thought it was an interesting thing to do... so here's the link to mine :)

in other news - i have three exams in the next 72 hours...

...

i was recently emailed this statement a groups of islamic scholars released regarding the cartoons published in the danish newspapers. thanks ahmad :)
i still don't have an official stance on the whole issue, but this statement makes me feel slightly more positive about the muslim world and it's response...there are quite a few things in the statement i agree with, but some i don't...an interesting read...

Two die in Pakistan cartoon clash

"Pakistani security guards have shot dead two protesters in Lahore during unrest over cartoons satirising the Prophet Muhammad, officials say." Read more here

Most AIESEC Lahore members have been contacted and are safe, we're still trying to contact others.
Those who have families based in Islamabad are being contacted.

There's been some interesting debate amongst the LUMS instructors over the caricatures of the Prophet (sws). Here's some emails...

"I agree that freedom of expression is indeed a fundamental right of any
human being or society. However, limitations have quite often been used in
many laws and constitutions of democratic societies to uphold restrictions
on hate speech and obscenity. In French law, public speech or writings
that incite racial or religious hatred, for example neo-nazi ideas, are
prohibited on the same basis. Similarly, Article 5 of the German
Grundgestez ("basic Law") includes some restrictions on free speech, for
example personal insults or hate speech (Volksverhetzung). The Irish
Constitution categorizes "blasphemous, seditious, or indecent matter" as
that which cannot be granted the right of free expression. In fact, on
July 18, 2003 Dorota Nieznalska was sentenced to six months in Poland for
publishing an art work that showed a penis on a cross, which was
considered to be an insult to religious sentiments. Similarly, On January
5, 2005 another man was sentenced to a fine of about 5000 euros for
insulting Pope John Paul II. The European Convention on Human Rights
(November 4, 1950) sums up many of these restrictions on freedom of
expression:

The exercise of these freedoms, since it carries with it duties and
responsibilities, may be subject to such formalities, conditions,
restrictions or penalties as areprescribed by law and are necessary in a
democratic society, in the interests of national security, territorial
integrity or public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for
the protection of health or moralsfor the protection of the reputation or
the rights of others,for preventing the disclosure of information received
in confidence, or for maintaining the authorityand impartiality of the
judiciary. [Emphasis mine]

How exactly should the Muslims and their governments protest against the
publication of these cartoons is a separate question. The fact that some
Muslims resorted to arson is indeed wrong. But, it would be unfortunate if
that made the world forget the most important thing about free society:
that all humans have certain inalienable rights; but, they also have some
basic responsibilities. It is on the basis of this principle that we
regard calling a black man a nigger or a Jew a kike as indecency rather
than free speech as such, for all human experience has shown that, whether
we wish to criticize an idea or justify it, the all-important battle of
ideas can never truly be won without superior morality. The question,
therefore, is Couldn't the same ideas be expressed as effectively in a
decent way? Academic critiques on Islam and vociferous criticisms against
the Muslims by many renowned scholars (as Bernard Lewis for example, who
is still widely read in Pakistan) have shown us that they can be. However,
without responsibility, freedom can quite easily become what it was never
meant to be: indecency and oppression.

It must also be emphasised time and again that quite often it is we who
choose the shackles of slavery ourselves by the choices we make. It is
here that “Freedom is Slavery” (in Orwell’s words). Who is stopping the
Muslim world from making a strong statement economically? What is it that
we truly and really need from the West? Technology? Maybe. Maybe not. But,
at least, let's stop buying European products that are not our dire needs.
It became quite obvious after the Bajour bombing how much spine we have as
a people. Economic sense. Maybe. At least, that's some kind of twisted
justification. But, do we or do we not have any dignity? Can't we even
abandon the purchase of a few European luxuries to defend our Prophet's
sacred honour (sws)? Maybe I am just overreacting, but I don't think I saw
even half the emotion on this one that LUMS demonstrated in the wake of
the earthquake.

Asif Iftikhar
Lecturer, Islamic Studies"

Miguel replied to this (he's an instructor with the social sciences department and originally from portugal, though he's settled in Pk now).

"As a "European" and a Muslim let me elucidate some points:
First of all, as we are supposedly all inteligent and well-read people (we do attend a university) I'm pleased to see that very few people at LUMS buy the "Clash of Civilisations" theory (where do the Mediterraneans like me fit?). But it is as erroneous as to generalise about Arabs and Muslims as it is talking about a unified "West" or even a generalised "Europeans". There is a stark difference between Southern, Northern and Eastern Europe. Just because some countries have strong economic (and in the near future legislative) ties, does not mean we are "one".

Secondly, the vast majority of "Europeans" are against these cartoons, for the simple fact that they would not like their own beliefs to be ridiculed. Also, they know when newspapers are reprinting stories for the sake of "freedom of expression", or for the sake of making a quick buck.

Thirdly, all the newspapers that printed the cartoons are private companies that have very little to do with the governments ruling these countries. And although stopping consuming their commodities is a very good way to get the message through (hit them where it hurts), it will not directly affect these newspapers.

What is interesting is that during the Iraq invasion discontent Muslims all over the world had the possibility of having a bigger impact by boycoting American companies (many which contributed monetarily for the present administration's re-election campaign) and did nothing.

You see, it's always easier to burn a few flags than to stop drinking Coca-Cola ($1 million contributions) or Pepsi ($2 million), eating McDonald's ($0.8 million), using Windows ($0.7 million), Dell computers ($0.4 million), putting Chevron/Texaco ($2.4 million), or Exxon/Mobil/Esso ($2.8 million) in your car, or smoking Phillip Morris ($6.9 million).

By the way Asif, you're not overreacting, but asking the "burger-batchas" not to consume..."

and finally:

"Thank you for your comments, Miguel. Since I completely agree that it is
not fair to make sweeping generalizations about any people, I apologize
for any statement that you might have seen as critical of all Europeans.
That was certainly not my intent. While suggesting a boycott of some
“European luxuries” I used the word “European” synecdochically and assumed
that it would be taken as such in the given context. Nevertheless, I
apologize if this point was not clear in my message. Furthermore, it would
be great if Muslims could make an impact on the concerned companies
directly. But, if that is not possible, I don’t see why it would be
against any democratic or civil norms to make our displeasure known to the
governments that “harbour” such miscreants as misuse the idea of freedom
to insult our Prophet (sws). The statement we’d be making through an
economic boycott would still be much more civil than “Either you are with
us or against us” rubric to illegally invade an independent country or
bombing on remote parts of an allied country to hunt down an elusive
phantom terrorist."

Best,
Asif

for the past few hours i've been listening to the song "in rahon main" by a new band called burzakh - it's really good, one of those songs you put on repeat and then just keep listening to...
the past few weeks have been weird...nlc, transition, recruitment and some weird music society stuff has made me want to just get away from it all.
now that nlc is just 5 days away (feb 8-12), and most of the big problems have been resolved, i've managed to catch up with most of my emails, meet friends again and get back to blogging.
i still need to clean the room - i've cleaned parts, but the ones i still haven't touched are now getting anxious looks from my roommate who has to be the neatest person on planet!! i'll get down to it soon...before nlc...i hope :)
i really want to be there at IPM this year - so many people i know are applying for AI...good luck guys!
also, cricket fever is running high - y'know, the sort that draws every male in lums to the rec room and superstore so they can watch "just one more over", the one that makes people have one hour long conversations about bowlers, batsmen and wicket keepers like they're people they grew up with!
random thoughs running through my head - the most important must stay there...weird...

...

...it's tough to believe it's been more than a year since i joined @. in another month the current team i work with will leave office and i'll start my next term, with a completely different set of people. it's a very weird feeling...

wedding bells...

it's weird, in the last one month two people i'm really close to got one step closer to tying the knot.

lukhan baloch, the youngest of the baloch sisters and one of my best friends since 4rth grade got married. she got married to a guy that she loves. she's actually old enough to love a guy! i'm never going to think of lukhan as anything other than the person who i mercilessly beat (yes, yes...punches n all!), who showed up at my 11th b'day in the weirdest clothes imaginable, who used to loan me her "smash hits" magazines...someone i could have hour long conversations with on the phone..someone who lives in a different country now, someone who's moving even further away soon. i also feel it is my duty to point out that the picture in NO WAY shows lukhan in her true light, the picture i have from my birthday, however, does...if i didn't fear for my life i would upload it. i do, so i really can't. she's a hellfire, and she's going to come all the way back from the uk to kill me if she finds out i put it up...however, i shall be presenting her husband with that as a wedding gift...a little something he can use as blackmail the rest of his life...

the other person, my brother, didn't get married - but will be getting married at the end of this year. again, he's getting married to someone he loves...another odd thing - since all i can remember is him beating me up (mercilessly i might add) day in and day out since the first day i can remember. asides from the beating we havea great relationship - he tells me what to do, i don't do it, he gets pissed, i get scolded, sanctions are imposed, i sulk, i whine, i get my way (or not), we hang out, proceed to forget about the whole affair... :)

he made my first 2 years at college a living nightmare...he not only knew everyone, but had also moved to lahore for a few months in the middle. which meant that i had to deal with him telling me what to do IN PERSON! which is bad...i mean adeels temper is something best dealt with from a different postal code. still...he was in lahore - which wouldn't have been bad if he hadn't known the ENTIRE university. so imagine something like 10 friends of his calling him to tell him what i had been up to everyday...he always knew what i was up to...which meant i had to tell him everything myself. again not something i particularly look forward to...i've realised it's better to just let him find stuff out himself...he can deal with it whatever way he wants to...and since he now lives in karachi there are fewer chances i'll get killed while he's adjusting to the fact :)

it's weird - i'm now old enough that my best friends married, my brother close to it, and my sister has a daughter who's 3 years old...its time like these when i actually start wondering about where the heck i'm headed... :) more on that later maybe...