Cycles..

Today, I went to my hairdresser.

She works from her home, and I prefer it that way. Commercial hairdressers have huge open windows and its not always the modest thing to do.. So I met this lady, Yolanda, and she used to do my hair whever I needed her to. No appointment required..and without fail I'd always look fabulous. She didnt live in the most savoury part of the city but..

She's the kind of person that held together her whole impoverished neighbourhood. All the children in d neighbourhood were raised by her, when their mothers were drunk, on drugs, working, or just too young to know what to do. She fed everyone that came to her door, hungry, and she never complained about the kind of life she led. She looked after the sick, and listened to everyone's problems..

Today I went to my hairdresser.. And walked into her funeral.

God bless you Yolanda, you will be sorely missed..

Its my.. SISTER!!..

I have to tell u guys about this.. Amazing moment that filled my chest with warmth and awe..

Alright, this all begins with a craving for home-made pizza. I only realised this like an hour before futoor, and wore an abaya and shayla, with baggy tracksuit bottoms and sneakers underneath :) this has relevance to the story, trust me..

So off I go to the closest mall to get the bases, as anyone who had ever made pizza bases knows that an hour before futoor may NOT be the best time to start..lol.. So the closest mall is closed and i zoom off to another mall, and its 40 min before futoor..

Get there, grab a pack of halaal bases and rush to the queue.. And a kind Muslim gentleman sees my shayla and abaya and one item in my hand and rushed look, and he gives me a place right at the front of the queue..

*insert* in Cape Town, where I live, the law of the queue is utterly respected. Nobody jumps, bumps their way up, or does anything else but join the back of the queue.. And jumping or bumping is regarded as horribly rude, and people WILL protest..LOUDLY.. !

I pay, wish the kind man Ramadaan Kareem and turn around.. And all over the store (its a store kind of lke Tamimi, or Tesco), I see Muslim people giving other Muslim people a place at the front of the queue.. Someone did dare to protest.. And a lady turned around (clearly unrelated to the person she gave a place to) and hissed..'Its my SISTER'..

I was so proud to be Muslim at that moment..

Im in love!!

Just got my new pc casing: Gigabyte Sumo..5115.. And its worth every single cent! Oh my word. Its tool-free, comes with great accesories and a mesh cover for extra cooling..

Flip.

Cant wait to get my I7 now.. Many happy hours of gaming await :)

And yes, Im goin to get 3 new monitors too. Just for eye-finity. Happiness!!!!

*UPDATE*
Why this case is so awesome:

-Supports SLI, crossfire dual/quad multi graphic cards
-Supports 12'' by 13'' motherboard.. So u can use ATX, CEB, E-ATX or micro ATX.. But no micro ATX for me.
-Its aluminium with hair line brish anodised finishing.
-When u switch it on, its got a personalised image projector, so u can shine UR NAME out from d casing :)
-Front and back fan is illuminated in blue LED lighting
-sooo the transparent side panels come in handy for showing the lighting
-The aluminium alloy chassis accelerates system cooling performace, in addition to feeling and looking really mean and awesome!
-It has a front panel that's a door design, so it opens to reveal the slots for (5.25'' drive bays) dvd drives etc.. Its got about five slots, so u can STACK EM UP!!

I wasnt joking when I said its an awesome casing. Im building my own pc, so this is why im so excited with the casing, it arrived first..

Goodbye

No, this is not goodbye to blogger. After a tumultuous two, or so, years, I have decided to blog again.

So I guess it is kinda fitting to start up again with a goodbye.

One of my very good Saudi male friends has gotten married. This means that he is not allowed to have any female friends. After worrying and stressing about him for about a month, I mailed him and he gave me both shocks at once. Anyways, I had just read hnings post on 'breaking up smooth' and decided to use that as some inspiration for the following goodbye letter (edited version):

"I guess congratulations are in order, and I hope everything works out for you, I really do. I cant seem to feel like Ive been short-changed somehow, because it should be the happiest time of your life, and even then, the one person who will always have your best interests at heart (Im referring to me, silly, not YOU!) cant even be there for you when things get tough. Im kinda glad ur living the 'Saudi Dream' (arranged marriage, living with parents, and ur wifes probably pregnant by now, too) even though its a choice I wouldnt easily make for myself, or anyone I really cared about, but eventually, we all do as the Romans do and take our chances at a shot for a happy life.

Not everyone has the chance to be 'Lamya' and screw the world and find our own way, no matter who says what.. sometimes the best and most honourable fight is just to be where we are and make the best of it. Give it all you've got, because without you, someone wudnt have a person to wake up next to in the morning. Someone wouldnt have been able to look at their son with pride and say, he's married to so-and-so's daughter. Without you, a wedding wouldnt have existed, two families wouldnt have come together, and without your contribution, Saudi ways would wither and die..And somehow, your wired to fit right in..

So Im proud of you for fighting the fight I was too much of a coward to face, for settling in and taking the good and the bad with it..

I think that no matter how long or short this email is, or how Ive tried to hide it, Im feeling a little heartbroken, and quite a bit sad. You've been a huge part of my life, and Im reluctant to say goodbye, but in parting.. just remember that the breakup of a friendship like ours is not the end of future involvements, not the end of respect and kindness for each other. This breakup is an acknowledgment of unconditional love, no matter what the time and place may be.

Have a good life. "

Yeah. Welcome back to Lamya's World

Coming up: 'Escaping the World Cup in South Africa'