A Pearly Eye

 

A pearly eye

And twinkly smiles

 Majestic across the miles

 

 A silver tide

 In a poetic glide

 Moving from side to side

 

 A ebony rise

 At untouchable ties

 A cloak to all the spies

 

 Emotions on a ride

 Through a serene slide

 Tranquility with no divide

 

Mariam.

Are you smart? the missing dollar quiz is for you :p

You saw a shirt worth $97, you didn’t have cash and so you decided to borrow $50 from your dad and $50 from your mom…now you have $100.

Since the shirt is $97, you have $3 left after buying the shirt. You returned $1 to mom and $1 to dad and you kept $1, now you owe mom $49 and dad $49, =$98, plus the $1 with you=$99.

So where is the missing one dollar?

Sugar.

yes I’m angry and can’t handle it..just like you

“You may have every right to be angry with someone, but you know that by getting angry with him you will only lose your precious peace of mind..”

The most annoying feeling when encountered with a conflict, dispute or disagreement is anger. Its never a pleasant emotional state especially when I don’t have control over it. It ends up controlling me by taking my anger out on someone other than the person I’m angry with. I’m silent, morose, and bad-tempered mostly out of annoyance or disappointment.

This attitude bothers me so much but I honestly haven’t tried working on it, maybe I’m waiting for it to change by itself in a twinkle of an eye and with the least effort possible (impossible I know!)

Worst case scenario: Destroying relationships and creating a hostile environment around me.

Best case scenario:  I work on it for real this time and I’ll finally be able to eat my anger and never show it and probably learn to express my anger in a safe manner. (isn’t that amazing?)

I know there are lots of people like me out there who are having the same problem and it gets boring and annoying when someone decides to give us advice on how to manage our anger (Dude, you surely dunno how anger eats into me..cut me some slack and enough with the goody goody Dalai Lama attitude).

Nevertheless, maybe these steps will help me and you get over those sudden flashy moments: (they’re just a summary of many links on the web)

1. When you are angry say nothing.

If we speak in anger we will definitely aggravate the situation. If we can remain silent it gives time for the emotion of anger to leave us.

2. Be indifferent to those who seek to make us angry.

Some people take a malicious pleasure in trying to make us mad. However, if we can feel indifferent to them and their words then it will have no effect.

3. Focus on something completely different.

Suppose someone has done something to make you angry. Think about something which will make you happy. The best antidote to negativity is to focus on the positive.

4. Change your environment

Sometimes it’s our immediate surroundings that give us cause for irritation and fury. Problems and responsibilities can weigh on you and make you feel angry at the “trap” you seem to have fallen into and all the people and things that form that trap.

5. Address conflicts at a personal level.

If there is a conflict with another person is very easy to keep the anger and tension between the two. It is particularly important to solve the dispute especially if they are people who see each other often, otherwise this can create a very unpleasant situation.

“Common Sense
If you leave your unlocked bike in the center of town, it is likely to get stolen. This can be frustrating and is likely to give rise to feelings of anger. Of course, we should  minimize this kind of situation – simply remember to lock your bike.” By-Sri Chinmoy (Read More)

Another helpful link here and this too.

Sugar.

A taste of tropical delight

As walking through the streets of Accra basking in it’s golden sun, it is quite common to come across a coconut cart. For a traditional experience, you can have a taste of Ghana’s excotic bliss right out of the coconut. With a cutlass and a brave pair of hands, the mega nut is opened from the top to give acess to a thirst quenshing tropical experience.

Coconut cart in Accra

The shell is cracked from the top to allow to you to drink right out of the nut.

The mega nut is then opened in half for its meat to be eaten. The cracked piece of shell from the top of the coconut is saved or a small piece of its husk is conveniently cut to enable you to spoon the meat out of the nut.

Spoon out the coconut meat with a piece of the shell or husk

More recently, advanced coconut carts are being spotted in Accra. It deprives you of a traditional coconut experience but it is quite convenient. The coconut is opened using a cutlass as can be seen in the far right end of the picture below.

An innovative coconut cart

The coconut is then placed on the peaked middle area of the cart where the water is immediately cooled and then poured into a plastic cup while the coconut marrow is cleanly separated from its shell.

Machine extracting the coconut marrow

The coconut meat and juice are presented to you in a modest plastic bag advertising the healthy advantages of a coconut .

 

For an amount of GH ¢ 1 (US $ 0.67) you get to drink your cooled coconut juice out of a cup and your coconut meat sliced and clean. I must say the traditional way of eating a coconut is fun when you have time for it.

The two carts featured above were seen on Osu, Oxford Street in Accra. They were actually by each other. The guy at the regular cart made an effort to acknowledge his competitor by offering straws to his customers instead of having them drink right out of the nut. Buying a coconut from a regular cart would cost you GH ¢ 0.50 (US $ 0.33).

I did not quite enjoy my coconut juice because the cup fell as I was attempting to snap the picture for this post. My jeans did appear to enjoy the juice though, at least it did not go to a complete waste.

Spice

Starbucks Logo in Saudi Arabia

I stumbled upon this very interesting blog post by @RobaAssi

Apparently according to Roba, the Starbucks logo in Saudi Arabia doesn’t have the original mermaid on the logo because it was inappropriate in the Kingdom.  However, an older post by B Knotts dated back to 2000 states that the original logo was restored.

Probably anyone living in the KSA would be the best to confirm if it has been restored or not.

Sugar.

KFC soon in Ghana

I’m surprised it has been on the net for almost two months and only until today that I heard about it. Guess what!! KFC is coming soon to Ghana. Maybe that’s not news to some, but in this part of Africa .. it is NEWS!

People have been waiting and asking about the emergence of the 2 giants (McDonalds and KFC) for long enough and there you go .. wish granted.

Let’s hope whoever got the franchise (whether Lebanese / Indian) made the right decision. << Turned out to be Indians.

I must say most local “fast foods” in Ghana are reasonably healthy. Yes! Healthy..this is because there isn’t much of additives that would make it more yummy and shiny in comparison with worldwide fast food chains.

Will KFC be around for long?

Well, its a bit vague to predict KFC’s future in Ghana. Many of us (in Ghana) remember when “Steers” (originating from South Africa) first opened its doors to the public..it was the HIT.. like the drive-thru experience and all the effects etc..but Steers didn’t stay around for long and closed down too soon.

In my opinion, KFC will definitely be a hit for some time .. but Ghanaians will agree with me that the national and most preferred meal is “rice & chicken”… lots of fried rice..! This is why “check-check” food joints are booming (example Epo’s).

KFC will be provided with the fries, meat etc. all shipped to Ghana..so nothing much is going to be done here expect for the putting things together…are we ready to take in the ready-made (God knows what and how its made) chicken?

All the folks have to do is deep fry, serve and we munch on more fat day after day!

I’m personally excited about it .. because I think it’s about time we had one fo the two (KFC/McDonalds) in Ghana..so I bet many will pretty much like the idea.

Prices? Taste? will it be made of cheap expired chicken specifically for this part of the world? Only time and out taste buds will tell.

Sugar.

Don’t Drive Tired! Drink …

Surely Blue Jeans Energy Drink can post better advertisements across Ghana to market their products than this …

 

Spice

Song of the weekend

I have been replaying this track since yesterday by M.I. a Nigerian artist.

God Bless You M.I.

Nigerians are really doing well with their music industry. Always releasing cool and improved  tracks.

What do you think?

Spice

Beaming at an examination schedule.

Today was our first time seeing an examination schedule and feeling so happy about it. Why? Because it does not concern us but rather concerns all the other classes that are not seniors Yes we are seniors, soon to be graduates this Friday and we are so done with our exams.

In a way it’s a great feeling that 4 years have come to pass so fast. They weren’t four rosy years; there were lots of ups and downs, smiles and frowns, relief and gloom. As much as we’re happy and excited about graduation, we are already beginning to miss school, our friends, the lounge, walking from one building to another catching up with lectures, the assignments and research projects [Okay, not really! But you get us ] and most importantly our favorite place “Melting Moments”.

Sugar & Spice.

Juicy Dilemma

So I was at the mall today doing the usual weekly shopping with mom. She set her eyes on these juicy oranges. I went for a plastic bag and was getting some to be weighed. I stepped back and read the box..it read Jaffa.

Then it clicked “oh Jaffa Oranges”. These are supposed to be a very sweet, almost seedless orange variety. Originally developed by Arab farmers in Palestine, not until  Israeli producers took it up and began growing and exporting them.

Now this is the point, should I buy them or not? For a second I thought I wasn’t going to because of all the politics and my position as a Palestinian. Then I thought again, okay! its fruits from MY land .. and OUR trees .. doesn’t matter WHO gets paid for it.

It’s too bad they’re gonna get my money, it would have been better if I knew it was going to the right source. Better yet they taste so good.

Does it make me LESS-PALESTINIAN?? What would YOU have done?

The yummy looking Oranges:

Sugar.