My weekend has been exceptionally good. My friend Goly came to visit me from Seattle, Washington. I hadn't seen her seen uni days 3 years ago so we had a good old catch up and painted the town red from Nema restaurant on U street to club Pure and all-in-one entertainment hub Babylon.
Coming in to work on Monday after a great weekend like that was a medal-worthy task!
I picked it up though, I've done my first program for the science and technology feature that has recently been assigned to me. It will go out every Tuesday. In today's program I looked into the impact global warming has had on Somali farmers. I'm also looking to explore the boom of the telecommunications industry in Somalia and the rise in internet crime. So if anyone has any ideas or useful advice, it is all welcome.
I was listening to a life coach on Tyra's ANTM who was giving advice on career choices to aspiring models. She spoke of two twins that particularly left a resounding memory with me. These twins were identical but very different in personality and character. One wished to be America's next supermodel and had a sincere passion for it whilst the other was toying with the idea. The difference was the passionate one had to try astonisingly hard to get a somewhat decent picture and appeared clumsy and stiff in her walk, the other didn't even bother and got a perfect shot. The life coach emphasized on the importance of choosing a career path that you're passionate about but are good at and have a talent for. Neither of the two models made it into the industry, simply because one had the natural talent but lacked the passion and the other lacked the talent but had the drive.
On a more chillaxed note I now enjoy the comfort of having an actual home with all the amenities one's home needs so I'm off to experience an afternoon of channel flippin!
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
a goofy sense of tiredness..
is my present state of mind. I haven't had much sleep last night thanks to insomnia knockin on my door yet again so I'm spending my day dragging my feet desperately trying to stay awake. However I've had a fabolous weekend full of bargains. I stumbled across a moving couple on craigslist.org who were virtually selling their whole apartment for dirt cheap prices. I got a sofa, 32" TV and DVD player, microwave, Persian rug, office desk and chair and a coffee table all for the lovely price of $120!! They even threw in some paintings and a dustbin for free (aint that nice).
My living room is fully furnished (minus a lamp but that'll soon come) and I now have cable so I can watch TV. Thank God for that cos I was starting to feel like a blind old lady!
Work is excitingly busy. Some of my interviews and reports have now been aired on the English to Africa service.
Things are trolling along nicely. Now if only I can keep my eyes from shutting down...
My living room is fully furnished (minus a lamp but that'll soon come) and I now have cable so I can watch TV. Thank God for that cos I was starting to feel like a blind old lady!
Work is excitingly busy. Some of my interviews and reports have now been aired on the English to Africa service.
Things are trolling along nicely. Now if only I can keep my eyes from shutting down...
Thursday, March 19, 2009
find me a sofa
like NOW! I'm serious, I've been looking for one for like the past 8million years and cannot find a decent one, I feel like I'm searching in the desert instead of flippin DC.
For the past few days my left eye has been invaded by swelling caused according to the nurse by the scratching of hands that cannot keep away from the eye (guess I've been told!). So I'm on strict rules where I have to wash my hands every 0.0001 second and keep them tucked away in a pocket somewhere.
Since I cannot draw the line between work and personal life anymore I might as well fill you in on a rumour I heard from the little republican bird over at fox news saying some of the missing Somali-American boys have returned to the US! There is no official acknowledgement by this piece of information by the FBI or other national security forces but you know, mumsy fox knows best!
On the other side my phrasebook is coming along nicely, now that most of the editing is done it is actually starting to look sensible, though mum still needs to put the finishing touch on it before it can be deemed printable. I'm hoping it can be launched alongside the next quarterly Somali cultural awareness seminar in May in Leicester.
Every now and then something happens that puts your senses firmly back in touch with reality whilst most of our times is spent trolling along skipping ropes in LaLaland. In this instant the reality is that anything can happen to anyone anywhere. A colleague of mine recently had a sister deported to the shores of wartorn Somalia, the sister being almost born here in the US with no concept of Somalia watsoever. She is American and has grown up here just like any other American youngster.
However she spent weeks being shipped from airport to airport in almost every East African country, all of them refusing her access to their country. Throughout this time the girl has no clothes, no money, absolutely nothing on her as she was taken suddenly from the immigration office, where she went for an appointment, straight to Dulles airport leaving her family and all concerned in a state of shock.
Fortunately as all the countries refused to take her US had to bring her back here.
She came back yesterday. What I still wonder is how does the state department derive at the conclusion of sending someone to a country that millions have fled because of the dire conditions of the state of anarchy the country is in of which this very same country has accepted asylum from those people based on those conditions?
I am at awe. I sincerely hope light gets shed on this story and other similar stories as it is a violations of human rights to attempt to send someone who came to you seeking peace to a deadly warzone where their lives would clearly be in danger.
For the past few days my left eye has been invaded by swelling caused according to the nurse by the scratching of hands that cannot keep away from the eye (guess I've been told!). So I'm on strict rules where I have to wash my hands every 0.0001 second and keep them tucked away in a pocket somewhere.
Since I cannot draw the line between work and personal life anymore I might as well fill you in on a rumour I heard from the little republican bird over at fox news saying some of the missing Somali-American boys have returned to the US! There is no official acknowledgement by this piece of information by the FBI or other national security forces but you know, mumsy fox knows best!
On the other side my phrasebook is coming along nicely, now that most of the editing is done it is actually starting to look sensible, though mum still needs to put the finishing touch on it before it can be deemed printable. I'm hoping it can be launched alongside the next quarterly Somali cultural awareness seminar in May in Leicester.
Every now and then something happens that puts your senses firmly back in touch with reality whilst most of our times is spent trolling along skipping ropes in LaLaland. In this instant the reality is that anything can happen to anyone anywhere. A colleague of mine recently had a sister deported to the shores of wartorn Somalia, the sister being almost born here in the US with no concept of Somalia watsoever. She is American and has grown up here just like any other American youngster.
However she spent weeks being shipped from airport to airport in almost every East African country, all of them refusing her access to their country. Throughout this time the girl has no clothes, no money, absolutely nothing on her as she was taken suddenly from the immigration office, where she went for an appointment, straight to Dulles airport leaving her family and all concerned in a state of shock.
Fortunately as all the countries refused to take her US had to bring her back here.
She came back yesterday. What I still wonder is how does the state department derive at the conclusion of sending someone to a country that millions have fled because of the dire conditions of the state of anarchy the country is in of which this very same country has accepted asylum from those people based on those conditions?
I am at awe. I sincerely hope light gets shed on this story and other similar stories as it is a violations of human rights to attempt to send someone who came to you seeking peace to a deadly warzone where their lives would clearly be in danger.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
lost boys found...
in the havens of facebook of all places! A friend of mine allerted me to this new piece of information upon which I googled it and came across Fox news and this anti-terrorism blogsite where indeed FBI officials have confirmed some of the Somali-American boys who disappeared after they were recruited by Al-Shabab have shown up on facebook. This leads me to ponder wherever they are, they can't be that captive (as some somali alarmists here like to make out) if they're all up on facebook amongst probably other places on the Net. It leads me to further reiterate that these boys have definitely disappeared at their own discretion whether radicalisation took place or not nobody held a gun to their head. They went voluntarily and is actually a scarier dimension of the issue. It also leads me to think they must not be that secluded if they're in places where there is internet access. So the real issue is if in fact those kids pose a threat to the American national security if they come back, especially since they're apparently being trained by an anti-American terrorist group and hold American citizenships. Furthermore Somali people need to create awareness amongst each other and start paying attention to their kids' whereabouts so that more boys don't disappear.
Moving right along I recently came across this UNESCO project about African history. The idea of the project is to have African history taught by African history professors and historians rather than westerners. Since the start of the project back in 1970 they've accumulated over 4 million years worth of research on African history and have written 9 volumes of books on the subject. They've now reached the stage of implementation; how can these books be implemented into African schools, universities and general education system. They're currently holding a conference tackling this phase. The facilitator who led most part of the project is surprisingly a Somali professor from Djibouti based in Paris. There was also another Somali history professor who used to teach at a university in St.Louis, Missouri who gave me an interview regarding the project. He elaborated on the essence of history and the impact it has on our lives and how this is taken for granted. I found it to be a breath of fresh air.
I have become officially hooked on Babylon, the hang out place that is about to become my next home-from-home. I went there last Saturday with a friend in tow. The place literally has everything one could possibly need to chill, whether it's a dancefloor with enigmatic music, buzzing crowd, shisha pipes, delicious food and TV screens with all the highlights from the English Premier League. Brilliant.
I've also finally joined the nearby gym and have started training regularly (these American sizes of food portion isn't doing anything for my figure!). I'm particularly enjoying a Latin aerobics class called Zuma which I take every Monday.
I actually need to sleep right now as it is virtually 1am in DC and I have to get up at 5am for work but I slept throughout this afternoon and my body feels spoiled for rest but I know it will come back and bite in the nose in the wee hours of the morning.
Lord help me!
Moving right along I recently came across this UNESCO project about African history. The idea of the project is to have African history taught by African history professors and historians rather than westerners. Since the start of the project back in 1970 they've accumulated over 4 million years worth of research on African history and have written 9 volumes of books on the subject. They've now reached the stage of implementation; how can these books be implemented into African schools, universities and general education system. They're currently holding a conference tackling this phase. The facilitator who led most part of the project is surprisingly a Somali professor from Djibouti based in Paris. There was also another Somali history professor who used to teach at a university in St.Louis, Missouri who gave me an interview regarding the project. He elaborated on the essence of history and the impact it has on our lives and how this is taken for granted. I found it to be a breath of fresh air.
I have become officially hooked on Babylon, the hang out place that is about to become my next home-from-home. I went there last Saturday with a friend in tow. The place literally has everything one could possibly need to chill, whether it's a dancefloor with enigmatic music, buzzing crowd, shisha pipes, delicious food and TV screens with all the highlights from the English Premier League. Brilliant.
I've also finally joined the nearby gym and have started training regularly (these American sizes of food portion isn't doing anything for my figure!). I'm particularly enjoying a Latin aerobics class called Zuma which I take every Monday.
I actually need to sleep right now as it is virtually 1am in DC and I have to get up at 5am for work but I slept throughout this afternoon and my body feels spoiled for rest but I know it will come back and bite in the nose in the wee hours of the morning.
Lord help me!
Friday, March 13, 2009
a foul incident
I just came back to my apartment after I went to get some snacks from downstairs and I overheard the most strangest convo between a woman and a man whom I rode the lift with. I caught the convo halfway through but they were talking about some man who cheated on his wife with her best friend. Now if you've been watching Jerry Springer back when he was still funny to watch, you would know this is a commonly practiced activity amongst American couples.
Funnily enough the man was defending the woman criticising the husband for his infidelity, especially since the dude crossed the boundary of the 'best friend scenario'. The woman hit back at the man's criticism screaming "he should've cheated on her a long time ago. She aint worth a tickle or a tease, that disease-ridden bike of a wife!!!!!!
Disease ridden bike of a wife! How deep did she dig to come out with a comment like that?! Plus she's not worth a 'tickle or a tease'!
And she was so serious when she said that, like the woman infected her with some leudly transmitted disease.
I almost choked to death from laughing.
Funnily enough the man was defending the woman criticising the husband for his infidelity, especially since the dude crossed the boundary of the 'best friend scenario'. The woman hit back at the man's criticism screaming "he should've cheated on her a long time ago. She aint worth a tickle or a tease, that disease-ridden bike of a wife!!!!!!
Disease ridden bike of a wife! How deep did she dig to come out with a comment like that?! Plus she's not worth a 'tickle or a tease'!
And she was so serious when she said that, like the woman infected her with some leudly transmitted disease.
I almost choked to death from laughing.
working round the clock!
Hey peeps I apologise for my long absense from the blogosphere reason being the above title. It's been a non-stop back-to-back working schedule for the past week. I attended the Somali conference at the CSIS on Tuesday which proved to be very interesting (though some Somalis couldn't help but put their spoiling suit on by attempting to talk!). Dr Samatar was there too who I've become to admire. He's well screwed on and highly articulate.
On Wednesday I went to a senate hearing about the recruitment of young Somali-Americans by Al-Shabab for possible terrorist activities. So far approximately 20 youngsters are believed to have disappeared from America and are now reecruited by Al-Shabab. (By the way the same issue is affecting Britain too with the Somali boy from Ealing, London going to Somalia and committing terrorist activities).
The FBI has made an official statement recognising Shirwa as the first Somali-American who last October went to Somalia to blow himself up and a representative of the FBI was one of the witnesses at the hearing. There were also two Somalis given testimonies, one of them represented the Somali families that were affected by this ordeal. The other was a youth worker who worked and went to school with some of these youngsters.
I recorded the hearing to prepare a 5 and half mins package. I'll probably cover this further as it now has become breaking news surfacing the front pages of most newspapers and other media sources.
On a personal note if I can add my two cents to this issue, there seems to be a fundemental part that is somewhat disregarded by folks. Many of them are accusing external sources of kidnapping these youngsters and manipulating them into deciding to go to Somalia making it look like they're two year olds with no real conscious who've been dragged to Somalia when in fact they're grown men who have actively taken steps towards that decision.
There might have been some radicalisation that took place but nevertheless the key point is that these boys went voluntarily. So the real issue is what made them decide to leave a peaceful country to go fight and possibly kill themselves in a wartorn country where the only applicable method is survival of the fittest. They left their families, their friends, their schools, their whole life literally and figuratively. They weren't criminals or drop-outs, in fact many of them were university students studying to become the nation's next doctors, lawyers and engineers. Therefore I think it is key to dig deeper than the surface rather than taking the easy way out and dismissing the issue as a simple manipulation of the mind. I'm willing to believe there might have been forms of radicalisation and brainwashing that have taken place but I refuse to believe conscious, grown men have decided to end their lives simply because someone told them to. Investigators should therefore research what factors contributed alongside the radicalisations that made these boys choose suicide bombings over a peaceful living.
Moving on I'm also doing the press review regularly with my partner in crime Hussein. Thoroughly enjoyable feature which comes on air every Friday around 9.40am DC time.
I'm glad the weekend is here though, I could do with some TLC.
On Wednesday I went to a senate hearing about the recruitment of young Somali-Americans by Al-Shabab for possible terrorist activities. So far approximately 20 youngsters are believed to have disappeared from America and are now reecruited by Al-Shabab. (By the way the same issue is affecting Britain too with the Somali boy from Ealing, London going to Somalia and committing terrorist activities).
The FBI has made an official statement recognising Shirwa as the first Somali-American who last October went to Somalia to blow himself up and a representative of the FBI was one of the witnesses at the hearing. There were also two Somalis given testimonies, one of them represented the Somali families that were affected by this ordeal. The other was a youth worker who worked and went to school with some of these youngsters.
I recorded the hearing to prepare a 5 and half mins package. I'll probably cover this further as it now has become breaking news surfacing the front pages of most newspapers and other media sources.
On a personal note if I can add my two cents to this issue, there seems to be a fundemental part that is somewhat disregarded by folks. Many of them are accusing external sources of kidnapping these youngsters and manipulating them into deciding to go to Somalia making it look like they're two year olds with no real conscious who've been dragged to Somalia when in fact they're grown men who have actively taken steps towards that decision.
There might have been some radicalisation that took place but nevertheless the key point is that these boys went voluntarily. So the real issue is what made them decide to leave a peaceful country to go fight and possibly kill themselves in a wartorn country where the only applicable method is survival of the fittest. They left their families, their friends, their schools, their whole life literally and figuratively. They weren't criminals or drop-outs, in fact many of them were university students studying to become the nation's next doctors, lawyers and engineers. Therefore I think it is key to dig deeper than the surface rather than taking the easy way out and dismissing the issue as a simple manipulation of the mind. I'm willing to believe there might have been forms of radicalisation and brainwashing that have taken place but I refuse to believe conscious, grown men have decided to end their lives simply because someone told them to. Investigators should therefore research what factors contributed alongside the radicalisations that made these boys choose suicide bombings over a peaceful living.
Moving on I'm also doing the press review regularly with my partner in crime Hussein. Thoroughly enjoyable feature which comes on air every Friday around 9.40am DC time.
I'm glad the weekend is here though, I could do with some TLC.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
a pleasant change
of scenery. The weather has dramatically improved in DC and the city just looks like the fabolous four have given it a revamp. I'm lovin it! It's the type of weather that makes you want to take long walks along the river, bring a picnic basket and a blanket and escape from the big city mayhem for a little while.
I'm particularly havin fun at work. Since my undertanding of how the service works has deepened, my desire to participate in the programme making has really gone up a notch. Last Thursday I went to the Kenya: elections Aftermath at the Centre for Strategy and International Studies where many intellectuals gathered to discuss the aftermath of the horrific Kenya elections in 2007 and what the coalition government has accomplished thus far. I was assigned to record the seminar and prepare a 5 min correspondence package of it. The seminar and the mingling afterwards finished around 6pm, I grabbed a quick bite to eat and went straight back to the office. I didn't finish work til 1am only to go home and get back up for work at 4am! But I must admit I had the greatest satisfaction when my package was played in the morning programme. I also did, with one of my colleagues, the press review, which is a 6-10min feature we do every Friday reviewing what the newspapers of the world have written about Somalia. I particularly enjoyed that as I am an avid reader of newspapers and stories they write about global affairs. It allows me to stay abreast of what's current and the views of the different newspapers.
This Tuesday there is another seminar happening at the same CSIS centre where the topic this time is about Somalia and the challenges ahead. I'm also looking forward to a hearing the homeland security committee is conducting on Wednesday about the Somali boys who left Minnesota to commit suicide attacks in Somalia. It has become a very disturbing issue in the Somali community.
Post work I've managed to have a very restful weekend. On Friday I took a few friends along with my boss and work colleagues out to dinner as a small token of appreciation for their help and support so far. Afterwards some of us went to a shisha bar in Crystal City conversing the night away. I managed to get some household shopping done on Saturday and continued my chillaxing for the weekend at my uncle's place where quite a few of us gathered to catch up and ponder over pointless yet hilarious stories. Today I went to U Street to an Ethiopian restaurant that served a very delicious anjera with lamb and beef stew and coincidentally discovered where the African American memorial museum is. Made a mental note of that, definitely going round there.
The clocks have been changed last night so I have an extra hour to lie in bed. I get to get up at 5am now (wat a joy pff ).
I'm particularly havin fun at work. Since my undertanding of how the service works has deepened, my desire to participate in the programme making has really gone up a notch. Last Thursday I went to the Kenya: elections Aftermath at the Centre for Strategy and International Studies where many intellectuals gathered to discuss the aftermath of the horrific Kenya elections in 2007 and what the coalition government has accomplished thus far. I was assigned to record the seminar and prepare a 5 min correspondence package of it. The seminar and the mingling afterwards finished around 6pm, I grabbed a quick bite to eat and went straight back to the office. I didn't finish work til 1am only to go home and get back up for work at 4am! But I must admit I had the greatest satisfaction when my package was played in the morning programme. I also did, with one of my colleagues, the press review, which is a 6-10min feature we do every Friday reviewing what the newspapers of the world have written about Somalia. I particularly enjoyed that as I am an avid reader of newspapers and stories they write about global affairs. It allows me to stay abreast of what's current and the views of the different newspapers.
This Tuesday there is another seminar happening at the same CSIS centre where the topic this time is about Somalia and the challenges ahead. I'm also looking forward to a hearing the homeland security committee is conducting on Wednesday about the Somali boys who left Minnesota to commit suicide attacks in Somalia. It has become a very disturbing issue in the Somali community.
Post work I've managed to have a very restful weekend. On Friday I took a few friends along with my boss and work colleagues out to dinner as a small token of appreciation for their help and support so far. Afterwards some of us went to a shisha bar in Crystal City conversing the night away. I managed to get some household shopping done on Saturday and continued my chillaxing for the weekend at my uncle's place where quite a few of us gathered to catch up and ponder over pointless yet hilarious stories. Today I went to U Street to an Ethiopian restaurant that served a very delicious anjera with lamb and beef stew and coincidentally discovered where the African American memorial museum is. Made a mental note of that, definitely going round there.
The clocks have been changed last night so I have an extra hour to lie in bed. I get to get up at 5am now (wat a joy pff ).
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
all work and no play turns Idil into a moody bag
The past few have seemed to have gone by in a split second. Friday was quite entertaining though I was still stuck in zombieville but I went to the K'naan concert which was short but very enjoyable. Afterwards me and a few friends of mine went to the hip downtown Somali restaurant Nema and actually had the energy to go clubbing after that (don't ask where I got it from). I came home at 4am and dropped like a log. Spent the rest of the weekend recuperating.
Since then it's been all work and no play so haven't got anything interesting to add, except a tiny rant about the ever-changing mood of this city's weather, can you believe it is back to frostbite again with all the roads turned into slippery slopes?! not fun, there is no need for it. pfff!
Since then it's been all work and no play so haven't got anything interesting to add, except a tiny rant about the ever-changing mood of this city's weather, can you believe it is back to frostbite again with all the roads turned into slippery slopes?! not fun, there is no need for it. pfff!
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