Ramadan Treats

Hello there darlings!

How's everyone with Ramadan? Especially with the unbearable heat of August and the scorching sun above us...hope all of you are enjoying this Holy month as much as I am. From the religious aspect to the family gatherings and long evenings with your loved ones.

Unlike any other usual day of Ramadan, I pent Futoor with my Parents at home (The whole family gathers at my Grandparents house for Futoor daily throughout the whole month of Ramadan) and then left for my Grandparents. Before that, at around three in the afternoon, I baked some cupcakes for my cousin and then took them over to my Grandparents.

Hazelnut & Chocolate Cupcakes

Ramadan Kareem!

-With love,

Nev.

Two Day Journal.

29.07.11

Seventeen years ago I was brought to life and raised by amazingly wonderful parents and siblings. Celebrated with a gorgeous custom made cake from Tasmeem (surprised is more like it) after Friday Lunch at the Grandparents. Later on, got back home and enjoyed some me time reading "An Iraqi in Paris," before getting ready to go out to dinner with my Mother, Sister, and a few friends of theirs. When we got home I was surprised by a basket of goodies from my dear Lilly!

I'd like to thank everyone who made my Birthday very special with all the love, support and great wishes.

30.07.11

مبــارك علــيكم الشــهر

الأثـنـيــن أول أيــام شـهــر رمـضــان الـكـريــم .. كــل عــام وأنـتــم بـخـيــر

اللـهــم بـلــغ أمــي وأبــي وعـائـلـتــي وأحـبـتــي رمـضــان وإجـعــل لـيـلــة الـقــدر مـن نـصـيـبـهــم يـا مـنّــان

اللهم ارحم من لم يبلغ {شھرك الفضيل} وخفف عليهم حمل التراب

​ربي ادخل شهر رمضان علينا وانت راض عنا واجعله شهر تتبدل فيه ذنوبنا الى حسنات وهمومنا الى افراح واحلامنا الى واقع يارب

Ramadan Mubarak my fellow readers!

-With love,

Nev.

Movie Reviews

Bridesmaids:

At first, it was ok/a bit lame but as it goes on it gets funnier.

Limitless:

Ah-mazing! Let's be honest now, any movie Bradley Cooper's in is, well...great. Simply a must watch!

I'm totally craving nachos right now.

-With love,

Nev.

Snakeskin Mani & Pedi

I was flipping through the TV channels this morning when I saw this short segment about real snakeskin manicures & pedicures in New York City. Apparently it's this new trend which has been sweeping through The City.

I personally wouldn't get one...the whole idea just freaks me out! Even though there' s faux snakeskin manicures and pedicures alongside the real snakeskin mani & pedi....

What do you guys think?

-With love,

Nev.

Home.

'Ello...

How are you, ladies? (I doubt there are any gents reading this, so yeah...)

I just got back from Europe four days ago, still trying to get my schedule back to normal. So far I've been sleeping through the unbearable hot and humid mornings, and then just laying around watching some lame TV shows or movies...and of course, eating. There's so much to do before Ramadan which is a few days away! How exciting is that?!

As far as the vacation went, Al Hamdilla, it was amazing.

I was supposed to go back to my dieting ways today, but that didn't last long. It's actually much harder than I thought it would be after two weeks of pastas, lasagnas, and pizzas! Let's not forget the Nutella crepes and chocolate covered strawberries from Godiva! Ah, heaven on earth.

Hope everyone's all right and having an enjoyable and fabulous summer!

P.S. I missed home terribly!

Until next time....

-With love,

Nev.

Friends & Bickering

The most disturbing experience anyone can go through.

You have that friend, more like a sister, that you absolutely love to death. You're out since the morning having a great time and who'd that one of them who suddenly star shouting at the other for the tiniest little thing, even if it wasn't meant to end like that and definitely unintentional.

You see, it's not the first time such a thing happens with this friend of mine. I'm the one who is shouted at.

For example, today...we went to the gym then out to The Mall to watch a movie. We later on went to Starbucks and sat waiting for the driver to pick us up with out drinks talking. He came and we got up to leave, and I wanted to get an iTunes card. So we go to the store, but then I back out thinking I'm not in desperate need of it, so all's good. Then she shouts and says that we're already here and to jut buy it and get it over with. Oh, and that I pissed her off. I bought it. I blanked out, since that's what normally happens in situations like these.

1) There's absolutely no need to shout.

2) Stop exploding so randomly and just chill.

3) Proper communication is key. Don't shout and make a scene.

4) I'm not your youngest child for you to keep shouting at me whenever "I piss you off" for absolutely no reason, or even the most lame excuse ever.

She apologized, but me being me, it was ever so transparent that I wasn't ok with it. I love you and all, but don't shout! If it was from my parents or siblings, that's understandable, but you?

NO FREAKIN' WAY.

Anyway, that's all for now. I seriously needed to get that out of my system since these bickering ways are happening ever now and then and I've just had enough.

Thank you for reading such a pointless post.

-With love,

Nev.

What I've been up to & more...

Bonjour!

I know, I know...I promised that I'd start to blog more frequently in my last posts, but I've been crazy busy. The first two weeks were all about the gym and trying to lose some weight before going away on vacation (I stopped going by the middle of last week due to pre orientation at Uni and other factors). I went shopping, finally slept in during the mornings/days I missed out on the gym, read, and well...lazed around the house, of course! It wouldn't be summer without that! Today was my second and last pre orientation session with our academic advisor for Freshman year, and boy did I enjoy every bit!

Anyway, so I managed to read one of the books I got a week ago or something. One thing is for sure, it is by far the most inspirational and eye opening book I've EVER read! Now this is a MUST read. Every morning I woke up to that book and pushed myself to stay awake at night just to finish reading it. Before yesterday, I tagged along with my Mother to The Mall. She had some errands to run and a gift to buy. I thought I'd sit and read at Starbucks while she finished whatever she had to do. Yes, I took the book with me. It's that good.

It's Not About

the Bike

My Journey back

to Life

Lance Armstrong with Sally Jenkins

Lance Armstrong

Cancer Survivor & two time winner of the Tour de France

Here's one of my favourite quotes from the book:

The truth is, if you ask me to choose between winning the Tour de France and cancer, I would choose cancer. Odd as it sounds, I would rather have the title of cancer survivor than winner of the Tour, because of what it has done for me as a human being, a man, a husband, a son, and a father.

You can check out the rest of the quotes as well as an excerpt of the first chapter of his book here.

During my last pre orientation session a few hours ago, the advisor told me about the hours and all, as well as a Maths textbook with a few chapters to review over the summer and a book to read for orientation week. I'm planning to start reading it as soon as possible.

The Last Lecture

Randy Pausch with Jeffery Zaslow

You can check out a summary of the book here once you scroll down the page. I prefer reading the introduction as well as the summary.

The Last Lecture Website

You can also view the Lecture on YouTube.

As for now, arrivederci my lovely readers...

-With love,

Nev.

Movies

It's been real long since I last went to the movies! I can't even remember the last time I sat back and munched on popcorn watching one. Talking about popcorn, I can't help but crave a large sized salted popcorn from the cinema! I don't like the microwaved version *sigh*

Anyway I'll put up some trailers of the movies I want to watch. I'm sure you've already watched them, but oh well!

THE HANGOVER PART 2:

FAST FIVE:

I AM NUMBER FOUR:

ARTHUR:

SOMETHING BORROWED:

SOUL SURFER:

And that's all for now. Have a fun & joyful weekend everyone!

-With love,

Nev.

June aka Summer!

It's finally summer! I feel liberated...don't ask.

Hope you guys have a wonderful Summer vacation. Relax, enjoy, and have fun! Most importantly, stay safe.

I'll be going to bed now! Good night...

-With love,

Nev.

H O R R I B L E

Ok, so first it was Rebecca Black and now its her...seriously?

I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I prefer Rebecca's Friday and My Jeans is downright horrible! No, actually...no words can do justice in describing how bad this thing is. I'm not even calling it a song LOL! It's THAT bad.

On another note, what's up with kids (not even 13 yet most probably) driving cars? Really? Oh! And the rappers...don't get me started on that!

-With love,

Nev.

More books!

I still have books that I haven't read but I can't not buy some whenever entering Virgin, even if I still haven't read the ones I have at home. So, yesterday I was out with Lilly for lunch and then did some shopping (if shopping still counts for buying skincare products, nail polish, and lastly books...)

Here are the three I got yesterday:

A Warrior's Life A Biography of Paulo Coelho by Fernando Morais

Operation Mincemeat by Ben Macintyre

Dreams from My Father by Barak Obama

Unfortunately they didn't have the author Kate Morton and the three books by her that Fruitful Fusion suggested, but thank you nevertheless! Will keep them in mind for when I go elsewhere or I might even order them off of Amazon.

-With love,

Nev.

Country.

Its been...

C

R

A

Z

Y

CRAZY

So far, so crazy. A mix of bad and good crazy...

2011 rolled in pretty bad with all the uprisings and revolutions here in the Arab world. Our TV screens rarely changed channels, and if they did, it was from one news channel to another...mainly Al Arabiya and Al Jazeera. "Always get your information from more than one source, don't follow one news channel but as many as you can," says my father. The year still hasn't ended and I'm sure that it'll need more than one history book to cover what happened from Tunisia to Libya and the others in between.

Other than that, I'm graduating this year! I'm so thankful for everything and everyone, honestly! To top it off, I got accepted at the university of my dreams! What more can I want? Well, other than the chance of continuing my studies abroad, but right now I'm just more than satisfied!

الحمد الله على كل حال

Anyway, this is just a quick update. Hopefully I'll get back to blogging more frequently in no time since I've just got a few things here and there to get done with.

Have a great Monday morning everyone. Wishing you a positive and productive day ahead!

-With love,

Nev.

Summer Reading List

During our school breaks and holidays, and nearly every vacation, I have got to visit the bookstore. An absolute must! Girls find shopping for bags, clothes, shoes -and the list goes on- therapeutic. On the other hand, books are my ultimate retail therapy and the shopping for clothes or whatever kind of stresses me out.

So, when I do go on one of those shopping sprees...yes, for books, I come back with 4 or more. I absolutely can't leave with less than that and the time I spend in every aisle is ridiculous! And I usually read 1 out of the 4. So with those frequent visits, and with the lack of free time on my hands, I've got a pile waiting to be read. I'll list a few of them now though; the ones I really can't wait to read!

First up is The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown:

Then comes Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson And David Oliver Relin:

Third, Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi with Curt Gentry:

Lastly, The Sand Fish (A novel from Dubai) by Maha Gargash:

I was looking through Amazon the other day, found a few books that grabbed my attention. Can't wait to order them! That's it for now...how about you share your favorites or yet-to-read lists?

Good Night!

-With love,

Nev.

Jammin'

Getting your iPod's summer playlist ready? You might want to consider these!

Frankmusik - Do It In The AM

Frankmusik - The Fear Inside

The Lonely Island - Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton)

You should check out their other music videos on their YouTube channel, hilarious!

Enjoy!

-With love,

Nev.

RIP Abdulla

I'm sure you've heard about Abdulla, the boy who was accidentally hit on a jet ski by his friend on another one. His body was found, although I'm not sure if it was today or yesterday. I send out my prayers to his family and friends, and pray that they have the strength needed to cope with such a tragedy.

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

قال الله تعالى

(( كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَآئِقَةُ الْمَوْتِ وَإِنَّمَا تُوَفَّوْنَ أُجُورَكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فَمَن زُحْزِحَ عَنِ النَّارِ وَأُدْخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ وَما الْحَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا إِلاَّ مَتَاعُ الْغُرُورِ ))

صدق الله العظيم

اللهم أسكنه فسيح جناته اللهم تقبله قبولا حسنا اللهم انه أكمل صيامه واتم قيامه فاقبله قبولا حسن وتجاوز عنه وهون عليه عذاب القبر اللهم اغسله بالماء والثلج والبرد ونقه من الذنوب والخطايا كما ينقى الثوب الأبيض من الدنس واجعل الفردوس الاعلى داره اللهم آمين لا حول ولا قوة إلا بالله إنا لله وإنا إليه راجعون
-With love, Nev.

It's Friday!

Have a very blessed Friday darlings!

This time tomorrow I'd be done with my Arabic Literature and Religion final! I can't wait. Going to catch up on some sleep first thing I get back since I might not get any tonight.

ربي اجعلني في يوم الجمعة ممن رضيت عنه قبل أن يلقاك وممن أنار قبره بالقرآن

Arrivederci!

-With love,

Nev.

Mentally & Physically...

DRAINED

I am exhausted, and when I'm exhausted, I tend to whine and whine and- well let's just say it never gets old. So today was...not one of my best days, but I'm kind of laughing/crying it off (still haven't cried though...but it's in the works). I still have 7 more pages of Literature to learn. Hopefully I can get it done today so I can have more time revising tomorrow and doing the rest of the material.

*BANGS HEAD ON TABLE REPEATEDLY*

I'm craving a warm cup of hot cocoa and endless Friends episodes to enjoy (I never get bored of reruns anyway).

Summer, where art thou?

Hope everyone has a relaxing Thursday and a great weekend ahead!

P.S. Have fun instead of me this weekend.

P.P.S. Here are two songs to start of your weekend. Kick off those shoes, sit back and enjoy!

-With love,

Nev.

An era ends, another begins...

"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."

-Martin Luther King Jr.

-With love,

Nev.

If...

If you were given the chance to meet any person not with us today, who would it be?

For me, it would be my paternal Grandparents, My Grandmother Shaikha and Grandfather Mohammed.

My Grandfather passed away before I was born. I hardly remember my Grandmother as she passed away when I was a toddler. Even though I've never met them, I feel this strong longing, especially to my Grandmother. I'd do anything to meet them, or even exchange a few words of love and care for a few minutes...I wish.

اللهم أرحم من أشتاقت لهم أرواحنا وهم تحت التراب

P.S. Even though I've never met you, I love you beyond what words are capable of.

-With love,

Nev.

Surprise & thanks

*Earlier this afternoon*

I was sitting at my desk when I got an unexpected phone call from one of the dearest people to my heart.

"Nevaeh, hurry downstairs. I'm outside. Quick!"

I pull my over sized hoodie over my head and slip my feet into a pair of purple crocs. Racing down the stairs, I don't mind that my hair's a total mess and the fact that I'm in my pajama bottoms, I go out to find her walking in the gates with...

With a yummy box of my favorite red velvet cupcakes and flowers!

Speechless is the word. I've never had a friend do something like so for me before, ever! And this was just amazing! The best part was seeing her after what, a month? I miss her more than words can describe! I'm truly blessed with the most wonderful and kind hearted people around me, and to that, I say Al Hamdillah.

Lilly, I love you loads! Thank you a billion!

Another special thank you goes out to Dazzlin & EmpressJr.

Those three girls are simply amazing. Without them, I wouldn't have gotten where I am today. I cherish and adore them so much, it's unbelievable! Thank you both for being there for me, supporting me all the way. I wish you three the best and only THE BEST in whatever you do...love you girls!

God bless.

-With love,

Nev.

Update

Hola amigos!

It's been long! What...about two or three weeks?!

I've been so busy, a lot went on during that period! Lows and highs, but thankfully, all's good. I just thought I'd give you guys an update...

• I'm in.
• Just got back from a welcoming event they hold every year for their newly admitted students-to-be.
• Finals this Saturday...
• Guess what else? The Tree Planting Ceremony -our school's idiotic version of a graduation, mind you, it isn't even that- on Saturday too.

I wish that I had to go into detail about the first two bullet points, but unfortunately, I've gotta go sleep. Got an early rise tomorrow and loads of material to study and get done with.

Before I leave, I'll leave you people to listen to two songs from Chris Brown's new album F.A.M.E.

Have a good night peeps!

-With Love,

Nev.

3rd Term begins...

Tomorrow.

I can't believe Spring Break is over and it passed by pretty fast too! What I really hate is the fact that we had our break a week earlier than the rest of the schools/uni here...which is a total major bummer! Couldn't see Lilly this past week since she had midterms and then with a couple of others things that happened. She just started her break and now I'm like shoot! I might pass by on Monday or Tuesday though for a quickie.

Anyway, I'm not looking forward to starting our final semester tomorrow. At all.

No, really.

I don't know about the rest of you but a sleepless week and the almost all nighters we pulled off (I managed to pull only one off successfully,the rest I stayed up till 3 a.m. mostly and then try to "sleep" for an hour and a half)...so yeah, back to where I was...a one week break is definitely not enough! I only used to sleep an efficient 4 hours out of 24 hours a day! I need a good two weeks to relax and catch up on hours and hours of sleep! And let's not forget the fact that this break was one of the most boring breaks I had.

Before I finish, here's another one of my favourites from MJ...salute!

-With love,

Nev.

Michael Jackson - Earth Song

I randomly and oh so suddenly started purchasing Michael Jackson's song from the iTunes Store. I didn't like him back then but after listening to Hold My Hand, I'm liking them right now.

RIP MJ.

Fear

I fear rejection.

Yes, rejection.

It's like someone stabbed you in the stomach, pulled out your intestines and all your organs too, and feed them to the beasts out there. I might be over exaggerating, but bare with me.

*Inhale*

(Forces herself to think positive...and she will)

*Exhale*

One down. Rejected.

Two to go. Decision unknown.

I cried. Yeah, Nevaeh cried. It's because of the shock, but I shouldn't be that surprised, coming to think of it.

I poured out my heart into writing those two essays but...I screwed up the interview!

(Tries to make herself feel better in 1...2...3...)

Psht, I'm too good for them anyway. It's their loss. Besides, who knows what God has planned for me?! When a door closes, another opens. Stay positive, Nev. Think positive. Positivity all the way!

Alright then, I'll go catch up on some sleep. Been a hectic day with tears streaming down my face the half of it.

Good night.

- With love,

Nev.

Another beginning...

Dear readers,

With every chapter we decide to end, a new beginning follows. From a shy little caterpillar to a lovely and vibrant butterfly, the world undergoes many changes and time happens to fly by faster than we may acknowledge. Like every other person about to start his journey, we're either anxiously awaiting or dreading what fate has in store for us. I hope that with this blog I shall be able to cherish wonderful moments and forget the sorrowful memories that are yet to become.

- With love,

Nev.