Forced Fidelity

Meeting

Taningia danae,

Mating

in the dark depths

of oceans

in chance encounters

Male

rips incisions

with beak,

with claws

into the fair female’s neck

moving rapidly

and then

deposits the spermatophores

into the wounds

with a penis

92 centimeters long

 

and dashes  away

before the female lashes out and

devours him

in a cannibalistic reaction

Thereafter she

is sworn off sex for good.

 

Sperm storage and mating in the deep-sea squid Taningia danae
Joubin, 1931 (Oegopsida: Octopoteuthidae)

The Disturbing Sex Lives of Deep Sea Squid

 

 

 

 

 

French Kiss

French Kiss (2008)

for sale at  £ 100,000.00,

Medium: Oil on canvas , Dimensions: 61 cm x 61 cm ,

Artwork Description: See Real Video Short Film

Berhi VI

Berhi fronds stand upright

wide

waving in the wind,

yet unwavering,

welcoming,

like when you lifted your arm the other night

surrendering my reserve;

the urge to be drawn

into your sphere,

becoming the embodiment of

your Spirit,

shifting into the Bulbul

that dances

on your panicled fronds

its glabrous belly

gliding past long

thorns,

its delicate feet

grasping the rachis

firmly

chirping into

spatial channels of

chance encounters

eternal echoes

after which

Bulbul just as suddenly

flies away.

February 25th

Wishing you, Kuwait, blessings and peace always.

 

Baby Gaga

The Icecreamists at Covent Garden now offer  ice-cream made with fresh breast milk which has been pasteurized before being churned with Madagascan vanilla pods and lemon zest and is offered for £14 a scoop. That was a mouthful.

Would you or wouldn’t you go for a Baby Gaga (the name of the ice-cream)?

One of the breast milk donors said that if women realized how tasty it was, they would be encouraged to breastfeed their own babies. I don’t know if I buy that claim.

I look forward to seeing this new flavour in one of our many “ice-creameries” here in Kuwait.

Breast milk ice-cream goes on sale in Covent Garden

Virgin Bodyguards

What will happen to Gadhafi’s troop of personal female bodyguards?

Rania Ajami who filmed a documentary about Qaddafi’s female bodyguards,  entitled Shadows of  a Leader, said:   “An uncle of mine once told me a story about Muammar Qaddafi, who arrived in Kuwait one day surrounded by these beautiful women in military uniforms. The Kuwaitis, he said, were confused. They didn’t know if they were going to be attacked or seduced! I always remembered that story.”

the ideal citizen

The following clips are promotions by the Commercial bank in Kuwait (Tijari) on the occasion of Kuwait’s 50th Independence anniversary on February 25th and its 20th Liberation anniversary on February 26.

These clips feature foreigners living in Kuwait talking about their lives here.

The burning question is: Why isn’t it possible for these people to become Kuwaiti citizens through some sort of system? They are an asset and that is what countries should be made of: socially responsible citizens.

 

73 years old baker living for 50 years in Kuwait

Arab teacher living in Kuwait since 1955

Arab architect living in Kuwait since 1982

Argentinian woman living here since 1978

 

 

Love of Kuwait

Love of Kuwait – Social responsibility

Video clip on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Kuwait’s independence and the 20th anniversary of the liberation

by the Kuwait Autism Society (KAS)

affairs of the mind

In her weekly episode, Dr. Foz discussed the issue of marital infidelity.

Of  the program’s survey results, 60% percent of participants said that they had engaged in marital infidelity.  When asked if marital infidelity was a widespread phenomenon, 90% pf participants agreed.

Towards the end of the show, a man called and discussed the topic. He asked her when discussing the subject, not to relate it to spirituality or to piety and religion. He told her that although he was happily married, he had had many affairs and he would continue to do so. He admitted he had an addiction to extramarital affairs but it had nothing to do with the stability of his family life or his spirituality. He prays, fasts, gives alms and performs all religious duties. Yet, he cannot stop his infidelities.

Next week the subject continues on Dr. Foz.

Parts of the show

Condom iPhone App

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Valentine’s Day this year, New York City Health department unveiled the Free Condom iPhone Application which reveals 5 nearby locations where you can get free condoms in the city.  Naturally this is not to encourage promiscuity but to support safe sex.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HPV vaccine

Scientists are urging governments to consider vaccinating boys against HPV( the human papilloma virus) infections before they become sexually active. The vaccine is supposed to protect against genital warts and anal cancer and “may” protect against oral cancers caused by HPV infections.

In the United Kingdom, oral cancer rates caused by HPV  have gone up. Engaging in oral sex with multiple  partners raises the chances of contracting HPV infection which is a leading cause of oral cancer.

Scientists claim that this virus is more common in people born after 1935. Before the advent of the sexual revolution in the 1960′s, the HPV virus was rare.

In my opinion, I’m a bit skeptical about this vaccination. I can understand polio and smallpox vaccines and other such diseases that would be unavoidable. However, shouldn’t diseases like HPV be avoidable through awareness and education?  It seems like a big lucrative scheme for pharmaceutical companies to engage in.

Article link

All Boys Should be Vaccinated against a Sexually Transmitted Virus

the end is nigh

The women all talk at once in the oblong room. Each one raises her voice in a shrill crescendo, and the words reverberate, bouncing off the vanilla colored walls. I quietly press the remote control, to silence the blaring Television, a monster sitting in the corner of the room, its belly full of riots, protests, blood, dead bodies and armchair experts speaking from the comfort of their self-imposed exile.

The women stare for a moment at the screen. The demonstrations are unnerving.

The women all agree that it is a sign. A sign of the end of the world. A sign of the nearing of the day of Judgement.

They all nod their heads and agree: when people will be leaderless,  the Mehdi shall appear to lead them all and guide them.

The inanities rile me. I  burst out: “Leaderless? What are you talking about?”

They refer to all the demonstrations taking place around the Arab world and the countries that have deposed their rulers. They see people’s unrest as a negative sign.

I make an attempt to explain that so many people cannot be wrong. So many people protesting cannot just be doing so to pass the time. They must have a cause that they believe in. They must feel that they have exhausted all channels and protesting is the only means to get their message out.

It’s useless. They would still rather mull about the Mehdi. About the end of time. And then they turn it onto Layali Febrayer and the volume goes up. The music swings the room into action and the kids get up and dance to a song about traitors and infidelities.

 

 

 

 

 

Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth

This February marks the 50th anniversary of Kuwait’s independence (25th February)  and the 20th anniversary of liberation from Iraqi invasion and occupation (26th February). On the occasion, Kuwait’s ruler has gifted every Kuwaiti person with 1000 KD. In addition, some of the subsidized food sold at lower cost to Kuwaitis will now be free for the next 14 months.

We are a small population and this gift is affordable so I wish outsiders would stop being envious.  Every country has privileges of some sort.

This is the time of course where you really wish you had a larger family.

Many people’s initial reactions were: all that money could be spent on improving our hospitals, building state of the art theaters, and towards projects that would enhance citizen’s living standards.

However, those who objected soon started to appreciate the gift for what it is: a gift to spend on something you enjoy,whatever you need to spend on.  Some people decided to use the money for traveling ( a favourite Kuwaiti past time). Others used it to buy clothes and fashion accessories. Some people gave up to charity. Others paid off debts.   The options are endless.

One thing for sure. This gift has made many people smile and the jokes are endless about those who have already spent it before it has arrived.

khamsa w khamesa

 

Better in than out

Malawians are angry at this proposal:

“Any person who vitiates the atmosphere in any place so as to make it noxious to the public to the health of persons in general dwelling or carrying on business in the neighbourhood or passing along a public way, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour.”

In other words, a proposed bill in Blantyre, Malawi’s financial capital, will make farting in public a misdemeanour.  Malawians are angry because they think government officials should be discussing more important matters.

But why is farting the subject of this new bill?

Perhaps the Malawian diet causes them to have excessive gas.

Perhaps the effects of Globalisation have obliterated local cultural norms and made public farting more acceptable and this distresses the more conservative and the older generations.

Perhaps public  farting is culturally accepted, like burping in Japan, and in an effort to become more Globalized, Malawi government wants to impose more rules to mould the unruly public.

Perhaps it is an attempt by government officials to distract the public while other more sinister activities are going on.

There are many possibilities, many reasons why a governing body would try to spend public funds on curbing a very natural human activity.

 

Caution: Kindly do not vitiate the Boudoir atmosphere and make it noxious to other visitors here. If you need to pass gas, do consider going to the toilet.

 

Peeing Petra

Petra is a piece of art by 27-year-old German sculptor Marcel Walldorf. This sculptor made of silicone and metal depicts a female police officer in riot gear, squatting to urinate. On the floor is a puddle of gelatin resembling urine. Propped against the wall is her baton.

Although the sculptor has been awarded a prize by the Leinemann Foundation for fine arts, it has also disturbed some people who regard it as shocking and an insult to police officers.

In an interview the artist said that he had seen male officers in such gear relieving themselves and wondered how female officers would in the same garb.

When I first saw the photo of the art work, I assumed it was a real person. I also assumed it was a man. The genitals were blurred in the photo I saw. I wondered why “he” was squatting in a hall in front of a door. But then after translating the German, I soon realized what the story was about.

 

 

 

More here

 

RoboEarth

RoboEarth is “a giant network and database repository where robots can share information and learn from each other about their behavior and their environment.” In other words, an Internet for robots where information can be shared and used to build on what is already known in order to deal with complicated human environments and interactions.

It’s fascinating to imagine the implications.

More explanation here

 

 

 

The downside of being a hunk

In Arab romance, a possessive attitude and jealousy are usually regarded as a positive trait in a romantic or a marital relationship. It proves that your partner cares. This is not my personal opinion but what I perceive to be the norm: “I’m jealous, therefore I care about you, darling”.

Some men and some women carry their emotional possessiveness to extremes and indeed there have been horrific side effects of this debilitating characteristic.  Recently in the news, a jealous Saudi wife poured boiling hot water on her handsome husband’s face while he slept.  According to the news report, she had repeatedly asked him to remove his personal photos from social media networking sites like Facebook and other forums but he had refused. She was further angered by the admiring looks her husband constantly received from other women when they went out in public places like the mall.  She constantly asked him not to look so spiffy when going out especially with her but he did not  respect her wishes.  The husband suffered burns on his face from the boiling water and has now filed a court case against his wife. They had only been married six months.

Exhibiting a bit of jealousy in a light playful manner or in a restrained capacity is alright and indeed adds some spice to a relationship now and then. However, when it becomes an obsession, then it’s time to worry and it reflects negatively on the stability of a romantic relationship.

 

Exposed

On the occasion of Safer Internet Day 2011, the following clip promotes a film dealing with the risks and consequences of sexting amongst young people:

“Exposed

“…..‘Exposed’ is a 10 minute drama about a 15 year old girl called Dee.

Dee makes a common mistake of many teens and sends indecent photos of herself to her boyfriend Si.

Without thinking of the consequences, Si sends the photos to a friend and very quickly the images become public.

As we watch, a distressed Dee is helped through the situation by her alter-ego. Together they come to terms with the consequences of her actions and learn where to go for help and advice.

The film is available for young people, parents and teachers to watch online. It is aimed at 14 to 18 year olds although in practice teachers, trainers and parents may feel the film is suitable for those outside of this range.  “

More here

the Kuwaiti Dewaniya

Dewaniyas are unique to Kuwaiti culture. There are different types of dewaniyas, some formal and others informal. Formal family dewaniyas are open on certain  set days during the week to receive guests.

The BBC recently featured a report on the Kuwaiti dewaniya:

I was quite disappointed to hear  of the resignation of Talal Al-Yagout CEO of Marina FM 88.8 and presenter on one of my favourite radio shows the Dewaniya. It always made me laugh out loud and made many congested drives back home bearable. Best of luck on your new endeavours Talal Al-Yagout.

Hollaback

Have you ever been harassed by demeaning actions or comments made against you while in public? Hollaback is a site where you can share your personal story about any incident of harassment that has happened to you on the street.   You are encouraged to use mobile technology as well to relay the incident and the location is also mapped.

As I was browsing through some of the stories, I could identify with some of the situations. While it’s unfortunate to be in such a negative situation, it only goes to show that harassment is not confined to any particular culture, country, or people. However, dealing with it and taking steps to curb it make a difference.

A site like this provides support in situations where one may feel shame or anger and alone as the result of a harassment encounter.

It seems to me also that we shouldn’t forget men who are harassed by other men and by some women. We don’t hear about that too often but I’m sure such incidents exist.