Danderma's Blog, page 99

Help: What Bag Goes Well with your Camera?

This question is for my friends or followers who carry both a DSLR and a bag at the same time. How do you do it?

You should have seen me in the latest expo I’ve been to, with the clutch, iphone, and my camera. I wanted to take a picture, the iPhone tedarba7 o went to fall in the middle of the floor and in the way of passers by. You’d think someone would help pick it up but they pointed and laughed, don’t know what’s so funny except maybe I looked ridiculous trying to balance a clutch, DSLR, and iPhone all at once and failing to do so miserably.

Or when I want to buy something, then I have no where to put my stuff while I pulled out my purse. I am sure you are familiar with what I mean. Lately I’ve decided to use my DSLR camera as my bag and I’d stuff my car keys, purse, and iPhone inside but again it won’t close o 7ala kaseefa y3ni!

I tried a big bag, my favorite Balenciaga, it would even swallow my DSLR whole. But then it got too heavy and the beautiful chocolate brown bag turned into something resembling a garbage bag with in a brown hue. 7safa 3la my bag intalfat. Now I cannot wear it anymore.

What do I do? What do you do? Sometimes you cannot go out without a bag! Sometimes you have to attend an event alone with no one to hold your bag for you while you point and shoot and mingle and eat and try to balance everything at once and you I am not the most naturally graceful person on earth. I’m getting tired, I wish I was a guy with pockets where I could keep all I need in them when I go out. Oh well.

So help please. Do you have any idea or tips on the kind of bag you can take out that is the perfect companion to a blogger/photographer that doesn’t look like something a professional photographer would lug around? Or any tips regarding juggling everything during events or coverages?

Picture of the Week: The Lock

Last week I saw this door in Bait Al-Sadu and I was mesmerized. The fine retro detailing on this door is so pretty, the structured glass so old, I almost wanted to take it home with me. Back in the day the attention to detail was fascinating. You’d see the art in a simple door, in a window, in the gateway of the house, in a balcony, in some concrete extensions here and there. Now adays most houses looks like boxes with holes for windows and souless design.

Don’t you just love this door?

Stealing other people’s work is NOT acceptable!

When you work hard, for years, to create your own brand and reputation in the market. When you create something out of god given gift. When you are successful and loved, you are bound to find copycats popping around you, creating a similar business but with their own stamp/version. Welcome to the human race.

What is not usual though is for someone to just waltz in, decide to create a business printing designs on Tshirts and iPhone covers, then simply taking someone else’s design and printing it, la e7em wala distor, without their knowledge, or approval. This time it was the very distinguished designs of the talented f2o.

Then you stand proudly in an local exhibition, held in Kuwait University for all students and professors to see, and actually sell them. When the man was confronted, you know what he replied with? He denied the theft, and proceeded to say that he was going to sell those designs for less than what f2o sells them!!!! WOW!

I am not surprised. Only yesterday did I find that a guy on instagram had used my trademark ice cream picture without my permission. When I reported him and told him so, he was offended, said it wasn’t my picture and it doesn’t have my name on it, unfollowed and blocked me ya weldah. Maskeen wayed e7tar.

So I know exactly how f2o feels, only my pictures are not my business. Its one things to steal pictures off the internet, or google and use them as you please on a newspaper or a website. Its shameful and not right, but it happens all the time and it happened to me and many other bloggers. Its completely a different thing when you go further and try to make money off them o wain? In Kuwait University’s campus b3d. Wallah 3aib.

Thank god f2o is a registered trademark and she is going to take legal action! And until the court’s verdict is read out, this blog will support f2o all the way. Not only f2o’s designs, every other design/picture/story/text intellectual property from being stolen or used without permission. Copycat is one thing. Stealing is a completely another matter!

Some of f2o’s stolen sketches can be seen here (link). You can follow f2o on instagram and twitter for more information @f2oDesigns

The Perfect Bite of the Perfect Salad

Let me tell you about a culinary obsession of mine, since its lunch time and I’m starving and dreaming about food. I don’t know how long this tantalizing salad has been available in 10.0h.8, probably since its opening but somehow my radar never landed on it, until I’ve seen a picture of it recently in instagram.

Now that I have tried it, I have to say its the kind of thing, so fresh, so weird, so different, that sticks to your pallete and makes your mind wander when you are trying to think of things to eat. I love bree, I hate green apples, I don’t like spinach leaves, so and so with pistachios, and loathe honey.

However, when all these ingredients are united on a plate together with a slice of warm Brie cheese -a huge favorite of mine- and some crusty brown bread slices, all my prejudices fall away and I lose myself in assembling the perfect bite.

 

First, bread. Next, a leaf of baby spinach or two. Topped by a salted slice of green Apple, a hunk of honey drizzled creamy Brie cheese, and finished off with one honey coated pistachio. Now that’s what I call a perfect bite with a marriage of textures and flavors that is simply lipsmacking

Bread finished? No worries! Let the slice of apple be the base, followed by the rest of the ingredients accordingly, and you can even have an even healthier version of the perfect bite. You want to taste the perfect bite salad, you will find in 10.0h.8!

What is your retirement date?

One of the things that help me get through the Sunday morning blues is thinking about my retirment day. In the olden days women had the chance to retire after working for 15 years. Sadly by the time we started working the law of retiement has been adjusted so a person can retire at age 50 or more.

This morning I went to the “Ta2meenat Ejtema3iya” website -don’t know the name in English and found a calculator that you can use to check the exact date of your retirement day. My retirment day insah2 Allah etha Allah 3a6ana 3omor is 17 July 2030! Not so bad, 18 years, 2 months, and 11 days left to go till my retirement insha2 Allah. Plus, lo and behold, its on the date of my 50th birthday! I hope I am alive, healthy, thin,  surrounded by people I love the most, and very happy by then. Insha2 Allah ya rab!

So, my retirement date is 17 July 2030 and I’m already working on my retirement plans. What about your retirement day? You want to calculate it to pass the Sunday blues, click here (link).

Book Review: Fe’9a o Shaheen by Alzain

For as long as I can remember and whenever I had the time I’ve read the stories on Alzain’s blog. Always beautifully written in an flowing Arabic mixed with words from the Kuwaiti dialect, her stories are always heartwarmingly interesting.

And then she had a book. It came out during January 2012 which was one of the busiest most hectic time of this year which left me in a haze. I totally missed the book, didn’t know about it until last week. Once I did I just went out from the comfort of my house, through the killer traffic, to grab me a copy and come back home to read it.

I finished it in a record time. I just opened it and started reading. At some point of the book I screamed “ashwa ashwa” and woke up my poor husband. By the time it ended I was crying so hard I finished half a box of kleenex. I wanted to extend my hand and wrangle someone’s neck and hit their head against the wall.

The writing was so easy, so familiar, the words were flowing like wisps of clouds throw my fingers, I felt I was sitting aside from an elderly lady while she told me a “7zaya”. So warm, the rain so fresh, the aromas so so overwhelming, the beauty so tantalizing, the flavors so sharp, the love so pure and strong I kept weeping then saying aww then weeping then laugh then a few more tears.

You know what made my cry even harder? When you read the book, you will read the intro. When you read the intro, you will learn about the whispers this story was inspired from. I’ve heard those whispers too, a word or two here that no one would elaborate on, mainly because all that was told of the story was these whispers. Thank god this is 2012.

If you can read Arabic, and love a good book with a Way7a Qalbi factor, and want to grab a book that makes you really want to not read it so you can read it again for the first time -its that kind of book- then head over to Afaq book store in Al-Tilal, Shuwaikh, and grab yourself a copy. Its so going on my bookshelf, in a prime location b3d.

Congratulations Alzain on a job well done! Your book so deserves to be become a local movie or a Ramadan series. Waiting for your next book and this time I won’t miss your book signing for I am a big fan

Saturday Garage Sale: A Collection of Arabic Books

I haven’t done a garage sale in a while given that I am still unboxing the mess in my office after the move. However I finally managed to put together a collection of Arabic books that I want to find a new home for.

In this collection there are 10 Arabic books. Some new, some published a long time ago but are newly bought. They are in excellent shape.

1- Made in Jumaira – كلثم صالح

2- هند و العسكر – بدرية البشر

3- هذه آخرتك – فيصل وليد الجاسم

4- صباحاتي سكر – رانيا السعد

5- لعنة الشطرنج – علي بوربيع

6- حكاياتهم تحدثني – آلاء أشكناني

7- يوميات خادمة في الخليج – د. محمد التونجي

8- أرواح و أشباح – أنيس منصور

9- مذكرات شاب غاضب – أنيس منصور

10- ست الحسن – مصطفى أمين

Price? 10 KD.

If you are interested in this collection of books leave me a comment below or send me an email (link). Items must be picked up by the buyer (or their driver) and payment is cash upon pickup. No refunds or exchanges.

Event: Chef Boutique’s Kuwaiti Bloggers Cooking Competition

For as long as I remember, I’ve been fascinated by the British cooking series Ready, Steady Cook. I loved how the contestants brough in a bag of ingredients with a budget of £5 and then with the aid of a chef they would whip up an entire meal in 20 minutes! Appetizers, main dish, and dessert!

I would be on the edge of my seat, biting my nails, then smacking my lips at the creations they had produced. And I loved the host chef Ainsley Harriott, oh how I loved him, and still do! I guess that’s what made me cook recipes that would take only 20 minutes to prepare. It suited my impatience personality.

So imagine, one day, when you wake up to an email asking you to spend a the first weekend in June participating in a team of two to cook something and impress a panel of judges well known for their creativity and distinguished palletes? How would you feel?

Yes, Project X by Chef Boutique is all about an upcoming Kuwaiti Bloggers Competition. If you are a Blogger in Kuwait and have nothing to do on June 8 and 9 you may want to register for the competition here (link) especially if you love food, cooking food that is. Its all about having fun and being filmed by out fellow blogger Basma 13 Cups whose the mastermind behind the competition. I’d expect a few crazy moments with kitchen disasters especially given this is NOT a professional cooking challenge, its all about messing up and having fun.

Now, I’ve chosen my partner, I’m watching the food network, and I cannot WAIT for June to start. My husband is so excited he is convinced it cannot be that far away. He is such in a hurry that he called me yesterday at work screaming “Fahad says its tonight, check his blog (post)”. Fahad who? Fahad the diet ninja of course! In my opinion he is going to be the easiest judge to win over giving I know his food style from his posts by now, kilish kilish slather on some Nuttela or honey on what he’s going to taste and you will win -sorry sensai :p-.

Other judges? Chef Boutique’s Chef Mongkon, Mr. Ziad Al-Obaid, Ms. Jumana Al-Othman, and Mr. Basil Al-Salem. Now Mr. Al-Salem is the hardest judge to impress given that I believe his culinary style and creations are phenomenal -The money bag in Cocoa Room? My favorite egg dish on planet earth, how to impress this man ballah?-

Bloggers, are you excited? Now go on, be part of the fun, and click here to register (post). As far as I know bloggers who are in are , Pink Girl, and The Triple F. I don’t know if audiences are allowed but I do know if they don’t let my husband in he would be bringing a chair and a pair of binoculars and sitting at the door of Chef Boutique given that he is more excited than I am, thank god he is not a blogger so he cannot participate :p

So now, May, can you please budge? We have a competition to win insha2 Allah :)

Blast from the Past: Quantum Leap

When I was a child in the early 80′s, and back then KTV2 showed the latest blockbusters in a timely manner, there was this show where a guy, Sam, used to live in the shoes of someone from a different time and different problem and try and solve their problems.

The only thing I remembered was the guy’s name was Sam. I remembered the other guy who either timed him or enabled him to go from one place to another, and I remember loving the show to bits. Years later as I began to speak and understand English I remembered the show, the fascination that engulfed me while watching it, the different stories and lives and experiences.

I wanted to watch the show again, I really did, but I’ve searched high and low for its name to no avail. I always confused it with the show “saint” which also was shown at around the same time. Not until I was watching the latest episode of DHW that I recognized Bree’s lawyer as Sam from the show of my childhood! Only much older and more winkled!

Thanks to Google, 2 minutes later and I got the name of the show, Quantum Leap! Sam’s real name is Scott Bakula and his most noted role was actually that of SAm’s in Quantum Leap!

Needless to say I’m going to waste my entire weekend watching one amazing retro show insha2 Allah. Thank god I found it for I had been missing it terribly.

Do you remember Quantum leap?

Instagram’s No-Nos and Etiquette

1- You saw a picture, you liked it, you are curious, normal mo? Then first read the location, then look at the picture carefully, then read el picture description, then read the comments, then for the love of god if you cannot Google the thing, ask the damned words “Min Wain”.

2- “How much” is a very rude word. A9lan even in life 3aib you ask someone “ebcham this o ebcham that”. Don’t.

3- Instagram is about capturing the moment you are in. Ga6o yetmaqa6, yahel emlaqme6 wayha. Something funny, frustrating, sad, yummy, ele oho. It is not your flickr profile. Its OK for people to mix some pictures here and there, but do not use your Instagram to showcase your “photography talents” then complain to anyone who would listen that no one liked your professional pictures while everyone likes someone else’s iPhone picture and that people obviously have no taste that’s why they didn’t like yours.

4- Don’t preach about religion. I believe we are all grown ups who have been brought up well and know how to worship god by now. Shoving your religious believes down our throats is unacceptable. Say to yourself “Allah yahdeehom” at the comfort of your own home please o bs.

5- Say masha2 Allah! For the love of god thekraw Allah! Not only in instagram, in your daily life too! Everywhere and whatever you see, just say Masha2 Allah! If 3yonkom 7arra y3ni mafrooth min nafskom ter7moon elnass o ma tdahweronhom.

6- If you have nothing good to say, then please don’t say it. You will be blocked and people will see the exact level of class you have. In other words, 7eshmaw nafskom.

7- If you read that a person is invited somewhere and being catered food, don’t say “ask the host how much o min wain”. If you are a malgoofa, please don’t expect us to be one also.

8- If you follow a food selling business, you like their food, do not ask for the recipe. Just because you are behind the screen doesn’t give you the right to ask for the recipe y3ni. Wain 9arat hathe?

9- You see someone posting about food? Don’t go “waay basikom 9owar akel eshkether takloon”. Mo sho’3lich. A7ad gallich follow people ’3asob? Simply unfollow if you cannot control your cravings.

10- We do understand that on Instagram there are competitions where winners with the most likes win some kind of prize. If you participate in one, please do not beg for votes by mentioning every instagram user in your pictures and saying “please vote for me” when we didn’t even know of your existence before. Its simply pathetic. If your picture is actually good, it will win! 3n el6rara!

What about you, fellow instagrammers? What would you like to add to this list?