Family is a topic that has more to write about and speak about than any one person has the time or probably the inclination.
We are all born of a mother and father, and even without siblings, the ancestors reach further back in time than we can easily trace.
There are a lot of sayings about family. One that comes immediately to mind for me is, "blood is thicker than water", but here is a whole page full of sayings that are funny and quite often true, Family Sayings
I don't believe there is such a thing as a perfect family. Even when we are alike, we are all so different.
There are bound to be squabbles over many things, the more mundane such as food and larger things such as politics or religion.
And yet, for the most part, most of us are lucky and blessed enough to love our family and be loved in return.
I feel doubly blessed because I've had the opportunity to have more than the normal family unit. Since I was adopted, I have my biological family, and I have my adoptive family. Two families instead of just one. How lucky is that? There could be twice the amount of squabbles, but what I have ultimately found is that really there is twice the love.
Although I am separated by quite a distance from the family I have grown to know and love, they are always with me in spirit, and in my heart.
There will always be memories I cherish that will bring my family so close to me it is as if there is no distance at all.
I have wonderful memories of taking longs walks with my father and discussing anything and everything. That is something I won't forget, that I will hold dear for the rest of my life.
And likewise I have fond memories of my mother as well. I think what we probably came closest on over the years was food, and a love of recipes and cooking. She was always patient with me in the kitchen and always willing to show me how to do something or explain what she was doing.
So though at times I feel lonely for family and friends I knew, really they are right here with me, keeping me company in my memories and thoughts.
And, as it often happens in life, I now have a third family, the one that I married into! And though it requires some patience and a lot of learning and adjusting, I care for them and they for me, like I belonged here all along.
Alhamdulillah for family, for love, and for memories.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Boats, planes and trains, oh my!
The last couple of days, hubby and I have been discussing a trip to the States.
At this point, it would be easier for me to go by myself (read cheaper), but I do want him to come and meet my family, and he is eager to visit the States in any case.
We talked about some different ways to travel instead of just straight plane trips the whole way.
One thought was to take the train to Alexandria, then take a boat over to Italy (or thereabouts) and then fly from Italy to the States.
After that, we can either fly direct in to San Francisco, or we can fly to the east coast and take an Amtrak train across the States, which takes a couple of days but would be exciting for the both of us.
I have traveled across the States in a car before, so I've seen a bunch of things, but Ahmed has never been in the US, and I think it would be really great for him to get this chance.
Also, we could stop and visit other family that way.
The only thing is, although the train trip isn't that expensive in itself, add to that the cost of flying, renting cars and staying in hotels while in California, and it stops being so cheap.
In any case, perhaps we can skip the boat part since I was having trouble finding any information on that anyways. We can fly from Cairo to say Boston or so, start the Amtrak there and take it across the States, and then on our return just fly straight to Cairo.
Of course, it all depends on money. Hubby thinks we will need like $10k for the trip, which sounds like a bit much to me, and I don't know when we'd ever have that much saved up, but we shall see. I want to get there for spring break, which is beginning of April.
:::
I'm finally out of the hair conditioner that I brought with me from the States. I use it sparingly, so it's lasted quite some time, but alas, it is done!
This is a bit of a shame, as it was a nice organic conditioner, with no scent added.
Since I'm particularly sensitive to scents, this is of utmost importance when buying shampoo and conditioner.
I'm hoping I'll be able to find something to replace it. I have heard some people using olive oil or egg or all kinds of food in their hair, but honestly, that just sounds way too messy for me. Plus, I'd like to keep my food on the inside. lol
I also ran out of the soap that I brought with me. Ran out a couple of months ago actually. Thankfully, we did find something to replace that. I had been using Dove sensitive skin/ unscented. The unscented part being the most important.
They do sell Dove here, but not unscented, so that was a no go. And they do sell 5 million kinds of scented soaps here, none of which appealed to me.
We finally found a glycerin soap that has no scent. It's made in Egypt which is nice, as we can support the economy here instead of me buying all imported stuff. I wish that they listed exactly what was in the soap though. All I know is that it's glycerin and unscented. I think they often times add other ingredients as well.
That is something I have noticed with products here, both beauty products and food, is that if it's produced in Egypt, they often don't have very comprehensive labeling. Bakeries don't label anything with an ingredient list, which drives me crazy.
I guess the regulations here don't call for it. Which is a shame. At least as far as I'm concerned.
At this point, it would be easier for me to go by myself (read cheaper), but I do want him to come and meet my family, and he is eager to visit the States in any case.
We talked about some different ways to travel instead of just straight plane trips the whole way.
One thought was to take the train to Alexandria, then take a boat over to Italy (or thereabouts) and then fly from Italy to the States.
After that, we can either fly direct in to San Francisco, or we can fly to the east coast and take an Amtrak train across the States, which takes a couple of days but would be exciting for the both of us.
I have traveled across the States in a car before, so I've seen a bunch of things, but Ahmed has never been in the US, and I think it would be really great for him to get this chance.
Also, we could stop and visit other family that way.
The only thing is, although the train trip isn't that expensive in itself, add to that the cost of flying, renting cars and staying in hotels while in California, and it stops being so cheap.
In any case, perhaps we can skip the boat part since I was having trouble finding any information on that anyways. We can fly from Cairo to say Boston or so, start the Amtrak there and take it across the States, and then on our return just fly straight to Cairo.
Of course, it all depends on money. Hubby thinks we will need like $10k for the trip, which sounds like a bit much to me, and I don't know when we'd ever have that much saved up, but we shall see. I want to get there for spring break, which is beginning of April.
:::
I'm finally out of the hair conditioner that I brought with me from the States. I use it sparingly, so it's lasted quite some time, but alas, it is done!
This is a bit of a shame, as it was a nice organic conditioner, with no scent added.
Since I'm particularly sensitive to scents, this is of utmost importance when buying shampoo and conditioner.
I'm hoping I'll be able to find something to replace it. I have heard some people using olive oil or egg or all kinds of food in their hair, but honestly, that just sounds way too messy for me. Plus, I'd like to keep my food on the inside. lol
I also ran out of the soap that I brought with me. Ran out a couple of months ago actually. Thankfully, we did find something to replace that. I had been using Dove sensitive skin/ unscented. The unscented part being the most important.
They do sell Dove here, but not unscented, so that was a no go. And they do sell 5 million kinds of scented soaps here, none of which appealed to me.
We finally found a glycerin soap that has no scent. It's made in Egypt which is nice, as we can support the economy here instead of me buying all imported stuff. I wish that they listed exactly what was in the soap though. All I know is that it's glycerin and unscented. I think they often times add other ingredients as well.
That is something I have noticed with products here, both beauty products and food, is that if it's produced in Egypt, they often don't have very comprehensive labeling. Bakeries don't label anything with an ingredient list, which drives me crazy.
I guess the regulations here don't call for it. Which is a shame. At least as far as I'm concerned.
Monday, December 7, 2009
No ark just yet
I follow the weather forecast here, checking a few times a week, though these days there really isn't all that much variation.
I'd been looking the last few days and keeping track on the weather for today, as it said there was a 20% chance of rain. I've seen that before in the forecast, a slim chance of rain, and it never happens, so I really wasn't expecting anything. Particularly as I awoke to blue skies this morning.
But sure enough, a little after 3 p.m., it started pitter pattering outside. Of course this required me to go out onto the back balcony and watch.
The skies still looked blue out the window while walking toward the balcony, which made it seem odd that it would be raining, but when I got outside and looked up I could see there was a big gray cloud overhead.
There were a few ladies in the building across the way who were dragging their laundry in off of the line so that it wouldn't get any more wet than it was. Also... I have a feeling the rain is actually pretty dirty, and might leave your clothes dirtier than before you washed them!
I called hubby to see if it was raining at his work and it was. He even saw a rainbow, though from the balcony I couldn't spot it. That would have been just lovely.
The rain was short lived. Less than 5 minutes. But it was very refreshing and very welcome and it did cheer me up.
Needless to say, we are not building an ark just yet, but you never know, one of these days....
I'd been looking the last few days and keeping track on the weather for today, as it said there was a 20% chance of rain. I've seen that before in the forecast, a slim chance of rain, and it never happens, so I really wasn't expecting anything. Particularly as I awoke to blue skies this morning.
But sure enough, a little after 3 p.m., it started pitter pattering outside. Of course this required me to go out onto the back balcony and watch.
The skies still looked blue out the window while walking toward the balcony, which made it seem odd that it would be raining, but when I got outside and looked up I could see there was a big gray cloud overhead.
There were a few ladies in the building across the way who were dragging their laundry in off of the line so that it wouldn't get any more wet than it was. Also... I have a feeling the rain is actually pretty dirty, and might leave your clothes dirtier than before you washed them!
I called hubby to see if it was raining at his work and it was. He even saw a rainbow, though from the balcony I couldn't spot it. That would have been just lovely.
The rain was short lived. Less than 5 minutes. But it was very refreshing and very welcome and it did cheer me up.
Needless to say, we are not building an ark just yet, but you never know, one of these days....
Sunday, December 6, 2009
In the middle
I've noticed that quite a few of the tubs/showers here have their incoming water spout/shower head in the middle of the side of the tub instead of at one end or the other.
This creates a little bit of an issue, as when you are standing in the middle of the tub, there isn't much room to move except from side to side, and that's not where the water is pointing to.
It means that taking a shower is always awkward. Always.
Thankfully, at our new apartment the shower head is at the end of the tub. Not that I've had a chance to actually use the shower yet. lol
Another thing that causes me to ponder while in the shower is the water pressure. Or lack thereof of a constant water pressure. And along with that, lack of constant water temperature.
I don't know why the pressure isn't constant. It seems to cycle up and down on a regular basis during the course of a shower. When the pressure is at its height, the water is at the temp you like, when the pressure gets to its low spot, the water temperature cools down to a temp that is not exactly what you would like.
If you adjust the temp of the water to be what you like on the down pressure, it's too hot when it's at high pressure.
So... for our showering pleasure, we are trapped awkwardly in the middle of the tub, with varying water pressure and temperature.
Gotta love it.
:::
It's interesting to note that we often don't think about things that we can't see. Hubby opened the blinds in the bedroom yesterday upon waking, and I could immediately see all the dust in the rays of sun streaming in.
The dust is always there, and yet we don't think about it when we can't see it.
Does that mean I should keep the blinds closed all the time so I don't see the dust? lol
:::
No word on the Kuwait trip yet.
I thought I understood about being patient before I moved here, but it seems I was wrong.
I guess there is no way to know your limits until you really test them. No matter how many times you think you can't take any more, you find a way when you need to.
:::
It's downright chilly here. And the days are so short. We're almost at the middle point, the shortest day, and then we will work our way back to lighter days.
It's almost a shame. I can't say I care for such long dark days, however I'm definitely liking this weather better than the heat of the summer, which lasts for about 8 months of the year here.
Four months of nice temps is not enough.
Is there someplace in the world that's at about a constant 76 degrees with low humidity? If so, I'd like to move there please.
This creates a little bit of an issue, as when you are standing in the middle of the tub, there isn't much room to move except from side to side, and that's not where the water is pointing to.
It means that taking a shower is always awkward. Always.
Thankfully, at our new apartment the shower head is at the end of the tub. Not that I've had a chance to actually use the shower yet. lol
Another thing that causes me to ponder while in the shower is the water pressure. Or lack thereof of a constant water pressure. And along with that, lack of constant water temperature.
I don't know why the pressure isn't constant. It seems to cycle up and down on a regular basis during the course of a shower. When the pressure is at its height, the water is at the temp you like, when the pressure gets to its low spot, the water temperature cools down to a temp that is not exactly what you would like.
If you adjust the temp of the water to be what you like on the down pressure, it's too hot when it's at high pressure.
So... for our showering pleasure, we are trapped awkwardly in the middle of the tub, with varying water pressure and temperature.
Gotta love it.
:::
It's interesting to note that we often don't think about things that we can't see. Hubby opened the blinds in the bedroom yesterday upon waking, and I could immediately see all the dust in the rays of sun streaming in.
The dust is always there, and yet we don't think about it when we can't see it.
Does that mean I should keep the blinds closed all the time so I don't see the dust? lol
:::
No word on the Kuwait trip yet.
I thought I understood about being patient before I moved here, but it seems I was wrong.
I guess there is no way to know your limits until you really test them. No matter how many times you think you can't take any more, you find a way when you need to.
:::
It's downright chilly here. And the days are so short. We're almost at the middle point, the shortest day, and then we will work our way back to lighter days.
It's almost a shame. I can't say I care for such long dark days, however I'm definitely liking this weather better than the heat of the summer, which lasts for about 8 months of the year here.
Four months of nice temps is not enough.
Is there someplace in the world that's at about a constant 76 degrees with low humidity? If so, I'd like to move there please.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
No lights
Because I am Muslim, and living in a country that is full of Muslims, I won't be witnessing the Christmas and holiday season like I would if I was living in the States.
I won't be hearing the sale ads on the radio and on television.
No Christmas specials on tv and no holiday cooking shows.
There will be no driving past many a house decorated brightly with all manner of lights and sparkly festive items.
And I miss it.
I thought it would be nice to get a break from the incessant advertising and commercialism that comes with the holiday season, and yeah, that part is nice to get a break from. But it's only a small part of what makes the holiday season in the States.
Even though I don't technically celebrate Christmas anymore, the feeling that the holidays brings comes regardless of what holidays I celebrate. When October and November hit, that holiday feeling starts up!
After 40 years of living through the holidays, that feeling of "holiday" is part of who I am I suppose.
The cold weather, the baking, the cheerful songs on the radio, people bustling around trying to get things done, and in general, people getting excited about something.
I don't miss the gifts, I just miss the feeling of being in the middle of and surrounded by everyone else getting excited and celebrating. Well, and lets be honest, who doesn't like gifts, no matter the occasion? lol
I guess this isn't coming out as clearly as I had wanted it to.
But I miss being in the States during the holidays. Insha'Allah next year I will be able to visit, though if I'm visiting earlier in the year, around springtime, then perhaps I still won't be there for the holidays later in the year.
All things for the best. I just need to remind myself that I'm here because it's where I need to be right now.
And after all, I can still carry that happy holiday spirit around in my heart.
I won't be hearing the sale ads on the radio and on television.
No Christmas specials on tv and no holiday cooking shows.
There will be no driving past many a house decorated brightly with all manner of lights and sparkly festive items.
And I miss it.
I thought it would be nice to get a break from the incessant advertising and commercialism that comes with the holiday season, and yeah, that part is nice to get a break from. But it's only a small part of what makes the holiday season in the States.
Even though I don't technically celebrate Christmas anymore, the feeling that the holidays brings comes regardless of what holidays I celebrate. When October and November hit, that holiday feeling starts up!
After 40 years of living through the holidays, that feeling of "holiday" is part of who I am I suppose.
The cold weather, the baking, the cheerful songs on the radio, people bustling around trying to get things done, and in general, people getting excited about something.
I don't miss the gifts, I just miss the feeling of being in the middle of and surrounded by everyone else getting excited and celebrating. Well, and lets be honest, who doesn't like gifts, no matter the occasion? lol
I guess this isn't coming out as clearly as I had wanted it to.
But I miss being in the States during the holidays. Insha'Allah next year I will be able to visit, though if I'm visiting earlier in the year, around springtime, then perhaps I still won't be there for the holidays later in the year.
All things for the best. I just need to remind myself that I'm here because it's where I need to be right now.
And after all, I can still carry that happy holiday spirit around in my heart.
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