Bonjour!

As some might have noticed, we are huge food aficionados!!! we just live to eat!!


I was thinkin of how much i love havin ful breakfasts, definitely is my favorite meal of the day!!! The array of hats breaky can wear, from the sweet pancakes, to the salty croissants... and voila, the croissant, itself being such a versatile breaky food with all its varieties!!


I stumbled upon the below video, just check it out... makes me wana savor it even slower whenever i eat one now, the process behind it is just amaziiiing...


Just thought i'd prepare your morning drool for breaky! 





My fav is definitely the Pain au Chocolat, no the almond one, no no waiiiit, the zaatar (Thyme) one,,, hmmmmm or is it cheese? aaaaaaggggghhhh it's so hard to decide, and that's the beauty of it,, cuz u get to order more than one for breaky hahahah 


Bon Appetit!!! 


@Alexi13

Guilty Pleasure

I am sure almost everyone has tried it,, and few are who dislike it!!!!


but i met the #1 fan so far, short of stickin her fingers in, every spoonful keeps on gettin bigger for @LaSahely ... i prefer using my hands :p hahaha


and voila @LaSahely every night before goin to bed!

@Alexi13

El Mariachi !

FINALLY ! 

after 3 years sittin in its coffin, the guitarrrra came out!! i enrolled today to take classes and try to master the instrument!


Went over to the Sing n Swing center in Ibn Battuta Mall, and met the teacher, his name is Nitin Joe.. very cool guy, if u ever wana learn, he the man!! 


so we started by restringing my guitar since i had a broken string,, and we were off!! 


i opted not to follow the classical type of music on the guitar and more into the spanish,, since i wana play hopefully the classic spanish ballads and rock songs and such... 


First off, got accustomed to the notes, the chords and the scales,, and started practicing them with the teach, and gettin some tips on hand and finger positioning..


yes it was frustrating to see how difficult it is to control each finger to hit the notes well, was a bit boring since you kinda keep on repeating the scales.. and thats how it will be for the next couple of weeks till i get it right :D 


i must say when i saw him playin the notes so easily, that was it, i must practice hard every day!!! 


hopefully next time ill post a vid about me playin my first correct notes :D 




@Alexi13


Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

I See You and the World Through You

Je t'aime (by @LaSahely)

Waiting for Godot?!

did you get 5 mins to think about your day today? 
did you get 5 mins to think about your parents today?
did you get 5 mins to think about next week's plans?
did you get 5 mins to think about that pending favor for a friend?
did you get 5 mins to read about world news?
did you get 5 mins to practice your guitar lessons?




in this modern day and age you barely have some alone time, to either check up on your family, friends you havn't seen since college, practice on your new guitar... we live in such a fast paced age, such a flooded system, that we developed the special skill to cram and live a + 24hrs day into a single day... 




i am lucky to still have the now scarce "Me Time" almost every day,, with my daily commute from DXB to ADH, i get to have some "Me Time" to enjoy, whenever my boss (who rides with me almost daily) is on the phone.. i get to switch off from the world for coupla minutes during the long straights on the drive (thank you cruise control and comfy seats!!) These are like tiny bites of ur fav chocolate, where you can forget about the coming surprises in your inbox, the freezing office, etc...




yet the best time i have found to really switch off from the world, escape it all, and forget about everything, and indulge in the much needed self reflection which keeps me sane in this crazy world!
my refuge, the plane!! 


yes the plane is becoming my favorite place in the world right now (other than my lover's arms). With an almost monthly commute in the phallic fuselage, ive grown accustomed to its serenity. Surely my best isolation tools (Beats n iPod 160GB) come in hanndy to fliter out the screaming babies, the talkative "OOO-MMM-GGG, cnt-believe-u-r-on-the-same-plane-as-me convo people", the snoring neighbour and the random PA annoucement of the captain's horn blowing,, 

and this is it, you, alone, your fav track ON, a good book/movie/anime and you are off to an amazing time... away from the whinning of your other half, the smartphone! to be able to just have 3 hours of peace while awake,, this is priceless!! 




this is when you plan your weeks to come, this is when you organise your activity list, this is when you take your time missing the ones you love, this is when you come up with your best ideas, this is when you are you...




take a trip people, u deserve it !




@Alexi13


That's my buttermint for the day


Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Pandora's Box

love, life’s pandora’s box!! 

My All :)

so full of surprises it does not come with a manual, so scary that the only protection is abstinence, gives you such a high that coming up with a cure is banned, so heart warming that global warming might be a result of it,, 

never thought id be writing about love, i mean there goes my man card out the window ! 

well, how many of you think that these fairly tales we read about are so hard to come by? how many of you think that soul mates are only in movies? how many of you have listed your perfect match criteria and then started to cross off stuff just to find som1? 

The thing about love, is how unexpected it is, you could be walking down the street bump into the woman of your life, say sorry and smile and find urself happily ever after, or say hi and smile and walk away without both you knowing what might have happened... i never accepted that and always followed through after the hi n smile,, till i found her...

till i found my baby girl, till i found the one who makes me laugh hard, till i found the one that warms up my heart with her smile, till i found the one that can reach with her arms around the world just to hug me, till i found the one that bakes the most amazing cakes, till i found the one that can give me the best goosebumps at the best and most unexpected times, till i found the one that can Ikea my heart as her own refuge with such ease, till i found her,,, 

all of that at the most unexpected of times, i found love, the journey is crazy and never enough!! 

i love her 

@Alexi13

Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Ridin' The Wind

 

Just got my baby Jade fixed up, new chain, new chain sprocket and new front tyre and we both feeeeeling goooooood!!! 

So what might have gone off in my mind to get a motorbike in Dubai ?! with an accident every, ekhh i lost count :s 

Jade: '06 Honda CBR 600RR

I must say it is not the sanest of things to do :$ but it was out of both a boyish dream to ride and ride fast, the whole experience, the adrenaline rush of it and lately the convenience of it, 8 months of the year that is in the desert.

It admit i went off a little crazy on a bit at first, after coupla falls, i had to tone it down and care for my safety more, much more!!  with that said, the convenience of a bike in Dubai is unparalleled!! Still the dangers never keep on popping out in the way, from the unexpected patches of water/oil, the crazy drivers, some even trying to run you off, to the slippery car park flooring... staying on super high alert and concentration is part of the fun too :) 

how many times did u circle the mall parking for more than 15 mins looking for a parking spot, sometimes even missing a movie cuz of it? well i don’t cuz i always park in the “bike zone”, the sidewalk hahaha!! 

how many times did you get stuck in traffic cuz of a silly fender bender and the drivers rubbernecking? well i just zip through and never miss an appointment :p 

ahhh  gas, with the long drives in Dubai, im happy refilling my baby costs me only 20Dhs for a full tank to get me zipping along for 150Kms !!! 

Ahhhhhh, the Crotch Rocket factor, yess, yess, it is an insaaaannneee feeling to reach the high speeds on the bike feeling every bit of wind, sand, dust, wiper water and yes, the infamous insects :s !! and nothing beats the feeling of driving under the rain in Dubai, as scarce as it is, i wait for it!!  just makes it even more challenging even more dangerous!! 

one of my vices is my adrenaline junkie side, it must admite, it gets me in trouble most of the time!!  i just can’t over it though, it is so addictive, even when driving go karts which barely touch the 90Km/h mark on the track, i still feel so high on adrenaline!! 

on a last note, try to get on a bike, experience it, embrace it even for once, it is exquisite and remember, ride fast but safe !!  ride the wind 

@Alexi13

That’s my buttermint for the day!

Follow me on Twitter.com/Alexi13

Tainted Ink?!

  

Tatu, or most commonly know as Tattoo or Ink, a marking made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment for decorative or other reasons, is considered one of the most controversial forms of body modification/decoration or as i like to see it, ART!

you guessed it, im inked, 4 pieces of art to be exact,, 

My Hand of Fatima or Maryam

I've always been interrogated about my ink:

- where, when did you get?

- does it hurt?

- what does it mean?

- but ur name is Ali, isnt it haram (legally forbidden by Islamic Law, and other religions apply here)?

- do you regret them?

- why did you get one? two? three? four?

- is it addictive?

- can you remove it?

Well, to be honest i do not mind answering most of the questions, they are part of who i am, they each relate to a single or many pit stops in my life which i have chosen to keep forever to remind me of them and for other various personal reasons. 

The question which bothers me the most though is #4!! simply because religious beliefs are some of the most personal to a person, one's relationship with the deity he worships is to be only probed by himself, and himself alone. Don't you think i would've thought of whether it was or not, of whether i might be seen as a Kafer (Those who deliberately hide the truth; unbelievers, truth-concealers; one who is ungrateful), don't you think that this is my personal decision and none of your business? well i did my part and looked it up and came up with some interesting findings!! here goes....

To start off, tattooing is forbidden in Judaism, Christianity and Islam,, guess im screwed wherever i go ! now the juicy why(s):

- Fundamentalist Christians consider it to be an activity that was done by Pagans, so non-believers, thus haram.

- Catholics, well i guess this sums it up,  Leviticus 19:28, which reads "You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead, nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves..." 

- Jews take it a bit further by stating that "tattooing is simply something NOT done", et voila!! and the Germans worked on this quite well, if you ever wondered why Jews in concentration camps used to be tattooed with an identification number, yes, it was an act to separate observant Jews from their God.

- Islam, now here is where it gets tricky, since there is no apparent instruction in the Holy Qoran (as per my research), but rather a series of Hadeeths (narrations concerning the words and deeds of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Hadith are regarded by traditional Islamic schools of jurisprudence as important tools for understanding the Qur'an and in matters of jurisprudence) well,  the most specific one goes like this "cursed the one who does tattoos and the one for whom tattooing is done", moreover, other scholars/ important ppl in Islam have said that 

      - “Islam denounces excesses in beautifying oneself when it alters the physical features that Allah created him with. The Glorious Qur'an considers such alterations as inspired by Satan, who "...will command them (his devotees) to change what Allah has created...” (An-Nisa': 119)

      - “May Allaah curse the women who do tattoos and those for whom tattoos are done, those who pluck their eyebrows and those who file their teeth for the purpose of beautification and alter the creation of Allaah.”

Soooo, apparently its forbidden to pierce, tattoo, enhance, alter and bring any modification to your body, since it is a an act of Satan, to modify the appearance which God gave you, which in turn is apparently "perfect"

My Rocks

Well, the Islamic point of view, since i am most concerned by it, since the question i get start by "but your name is Ali,,,", so basically, i am a Kafer, an unbeliever (face palm!!) but hey, isn't my grandma also who is a devout believer since she dyes her hair , isn't my sister who has pierced ears, aren't most women who have "enhanced" body parts? isn't my dad who has teeth bridge? hmmm arent the poor animals we eat which are tattooed in order to keep count and identification? 

too many questions which surely i am not the right person to answer, 

a quickie though, funnily enough, if a person converts to Islam, all his previous sins are exempted hmmmm,, but this is for another time to explore :)

Finally, personally i see them as part of who i am, as snapshots of my personal history, as art on my body... i do not truly care what any1 thinks of them, they are on me, for me :) my relationship with the Divine is between me and him, and im sure ill sweet talk him into giving me a "free jail pass card"...


P.S: all ink done at the best studio in the middle east Skin Deep by the famed master Hady Beydoun 
check out his FB page http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2251836098

And there's my buttermint for the day :) 

@Alexi13

Follow me on twitter.com/Alexi13

One Half of SuddenlyTwo (@Alexi13)

wasssap peeps! (yea, not the wisest start for my first blog post i guess :$) 

well a snapshot of who is @Alexi13 is in order so here goes!

Born into a multicultural family with an Arab and European mix, in the land of cheese and wine... i am what you might call the mischievous rebel when growing up, always being questioned about my heritage; a fairly challenging experience considering i grew up in one of the most diverse countries sociologically wise, the land of the Cedars, the land of the Phoenix, the ex-Switzerland of the middle east and soon to regain its title! I've always valued my parental background and so glad my parents have been able to show and teach me the best and worst about their background, their experiences and life. I was still subject to failures and successes like any other teenager growing up, but ever so glad of becoming the person i am today, the pride of my parents, the pride of my lover, the crazy friend of my social circle, the achieved professional i am to become.

residing now in the UAE, Dubai more specifically, i ventured into the world of digital media and marketing and have become a, hmmm, let's say "consensual victim" of the web and the social media cloud that has spawned around the world. Working in one of the biggest local and regional media company, with an amazing team, i am bound to share much of the knowledge and experiences i go through with you all.

You might wonder what makes me so special to blog, to be worth reading, get to know; in all humility, i am one of those persons who likes to keep a positive mark with everyone i meet. The buzzing bee i am allowed me to grow an amazing circle of friends, within my home country and the desert, friends who became more of a second family to me in the recent years. I believe one of the essential things in a person's life is the circle of friends, the circle of life (yea huge Disney fan :$ ) one builds; and my circle has proved to be the best support i can have in any endeavor, but that is another topic to blog about.

ddnt think my first post would be so long, or so personal, i hope it is not some random blabber to some, but just ddnt know where to start or to end, and found myself writing and writing...

well you'll get to know the crazy me in my future posts, my zest for life, my passions, my friends, my interests, the love of my life, family, views on this unpredictable life we are living!!

big shout out to everyone out there!!  hellloooo?!

@Alexi13,

follow me on twitter: twitter.com/Alexi13

there's my buttermint for the day!