"Everywhere I look now, I'm surrounded by your embrace. Baby I can see your Halo. You are my saving grace"

We don't seem to choose who we trust, or who ends up being there in the end. 

Not all your so called "real" friends stay, on the contrary, i find the "keeper" friends to be the ones that you meet or befriend in the most peculiar ways..

The ones you can call up at 4 am sobbing as you attempt to communicate what is bothering you whilst wiping all the runny mascara, the ones you pour your heart out too even though you barely know them and end up with amazing bits of advice and insight that others wouldn't have dared tell you, the ones that will watch over you through a computer screen as you slowly rant and complain yourself to sleep.. 

Life without friends is just another lonely race, in which everyone tries to prove themselves, get rich, or make it to the top; with no real bonds formed, no shoulders to cry on nor people to tease randomly out of the blue.. 

Life would be monochromatic, and monotone as we all go through that rat race, with no one cheering us up or helping us if we ever do slip. 

To having people who care, right by your side when you slip up, make a fool out of yourself or stand and accept that big-time award... 

Down with the ones that are just there for the perks, and for that free ride.

For one day, that ride will be destined to be paused for maintenance, and that que will sadly begin to empty, with only a couple "real" thrill seekers left waiting for the ride to resume.. 

Those are the "Keepers." 

xx

Baroque 

Ps. Not all the glitters is gold. 

Nb. Title is part of Beyonce's current hit song "Halo" (**brilliant, just brilliant) 

Smile.

A smile is sometimes just an involuntary movement that causes all your face muscles to contract thereby marking the unveiling of your teeth and the twinkling of your eyes; it does not mean that it's an invitation to get to know one, or a reason to believe that someone somewhere might be interested in you. 

A smile is a charitable movement you can bestow on those lower in rank on the mood-scale; with one simple smile you can alleviate another person's mood, bestow joy into someone's life, or even make someone madder. 

A smile is an aesthetic accessory that can add beauty and charm to a person's face, make chiseled sharp features less fearful, give one an aura of youth, and make one more attractive and approachable.

A smile can communicate an unknown and hidden message, it can send out a reply, and relay a lot of different signals. 

A smile can make someone fall in love. 

A smile can make someone fall out of love. 

A smile can make someone happier. 

A smile can flip someone's life 180 degrees. 

You can remember someone by their smile, you can choose to forget someone's smile. 

You can give a person something to smile about, or wipe that smile right off. 

A smile is a powerful weapon; when used wisely. 

They say the "Pen is mightier than the Sword," I say a smile's power is instantaneous. 

Sometimes you can't stop it, other times you can jolly well use it to your power and control it. 

Either way, I hope this makes you smile. 

xx

Baroque

Ps. A fantasy of smiles.

What-if?

Inspiration strikes in the strangest times.

I find the best time Dear Inspiration pops in for a visit is always just as I rest my head on the pillow and attempt to get some sleep; thats when all the thoughts, ideas, words, and notes parade through my mind.. 

A clever line of prose, 

A new word I read somewhere, 

A new thing I need to try, 

Something I have to do, 

A blog post, 

A life-strategy,

That text I forgot to reply to,

An article idea, 

Something I had to tell my best friend and forgot, 

or something i have to plan....

But most of the time, I get the "what-ifs"

The "what-ifs" are those lingering thoughts you get about things you've done, things you haven't gotten around to doing, things you've forgotten, things you've said, etc... 

Everyone gets them, I guess it's just part of the end of the day tally people do.. 

It's a chance to reflect and think of what's next, or to learn from mistakes.. 

You take them with a grain of salt and shoo them away. For life is too short to dwell on stuff, and "الدنيا يبيلها صبر" (**a new lesson I learnt today from a ladies gathering, I just love learning new pieces of advice, you never know if you might need it again later..)

Random topic I know, but this whole poem was inspired by a poem I read yesterday by Shel Silverstein, which is accordingly is dubbed "Whatif":

Last night, while I lay thinking here,

some Whatifs crawled inside my ear

and pranced and partied all night long

and sang their same old Whatif song:

Whatif I'm dumb in school?

Whatif they've closed the swimming pool?

Whatif I get beat up?

Whatif there's poison in my cup?

Whatif I start to cry?

Whatif I get sick and die?

Whatif I flunk that test?

Whatif green hair grows on my chest?

Whatif nobody likes me?

Whatif a bolt of lightning strikes me?

Whatif I don't grow talle?

Whatif my head starts getting smaller?

Whatif the fish won't bite?

Whatif the wind tears up my kite?

Whatif they start a war?

Whatif my parents get divorced?

Whatif the bus is late?

Whatif my teeth don't grow in straight?

Whatif I tear my pants?

Whatif I never learn to dance?

Everything seems well, and then

the nighttime Whatifs strike again!  

Don't you just love reading such inspirational stringed words? 

xx

Baroque 

Ps. Sincerity; a trait that shines through the hardest personalities.

If I was a Crayon, I'd be the Tangerine one.

Remember in Kindergarden how much fun drawing time was? 

I was never a fan of finger painting, and always found myself attracted to that pile of crayons; all those vibrant colors, that one of a kind smell that still reminds me of my childhood, and those crayon splatters you get on your fingers from the residue that is scraped off the crayon pencils when you color things in... 

*Sigh* 

Well, guess what? 

There's a new artist in town, and he is definitely bringing back "Crayons."

Herb Williams, has started creating masterpieces out of  Crayons, bypassing the usual tools/resources artists use and instead picking a simple fairly cheap resource such as lego. 

You gotta give him credit for his creativity; just in case you were wondering if there was anyone that could ever buy something so cheap-ily made (**as in made out of a simple thing like crayons)? 

Here's the shocker, some of his sculptures are worth four figures (**for those not into maths and numbers, thats thousands of dollars..) 

Don't you just admire people that create things from scratch or in this case such a childhood favorite, and actually make a hefty profit from it? 

That Ladies and Gentlemen is an "entrepreneurial stint," that succeeded.   

xx

Baroque

Ps. Just be you, no matter what. 

Photo Credits: Herb Williams Art, and Vivre

Be +

Some say that positivity is "seeing the glass as half full" as opposed to "half empty."

Others claim that positive people wear "rose-tinted glasses" that splash the world out with a subtle happy pink glow.. 

The status quo in life seems to concede with the fact that "positive people live longer," and that when you "تفالئوا بالخير تجدوا".. 

I believe that positivity is an outlook, it's not something you wear to block out negativities and wash the world in a terrific pinkish hue, nor is it lying to one's self about the fact that the glass is half full; how can it be half full, when it was full and you just slurped it making it half empty? 

I learnt a bit or two about positivity yesterday in the pool.. 

Yes, in the swimming pool, with my little brother, as we played with his toy-ship.. 

Positivity, Ladies and Gentlemen, is playing submarines with the ship you just played pirates with after it had drowned.. 

He switched games automatically and began to dive after his ship, that had accumulated water, and began to drown; but instead of lamenting it's sudden submerging and attempting to de-flood the vessel, he pretended it was a submarine instead.. 

Positivity is seeing the good in the bad; "رب ضارة نافعه" 

You can learn a lot of things from the most random people and places, in this case a ten-year old lego fanatic in a pool.. 

xx

Baroque

Ps. No use holding back when there's nothing to loose. 

Oh Happy Days.

Wear what god has endowed you with like bangles clinking on your wrists, a declaration of how much you are lucky, and a forever reminder to keep thanking him for all those treats. 

Life can be hectic, it can be overwhelming at times, but no matter what happens, there is always someone worse off than you. 

Eventually there comes a time, when that storm passes, and the rain starts to wean till it tinkles, and a rainbow appears- a perfect day, a perfect time, where nothing can possibly go wrong, and nothing ever does.. 

A day that makes you beam, makes you forget all that stress, in which you live that moment.. 

A good day in which you keep muttering "الحمدالله والشكر" every time you realize how good it really is.. 

A perfect day, with the perfect company, and the perfect setting.. 

Hoping you have an endless supply of "good" days, and endless unexpected joys, 

xx

Baroque 

Ps. Life's too short to hold a grudge. 

"درب، درب"

I've realized that I kind of neglected my blog this past month.

A lot of things have been happening, and my blog was thrown in the backseat the whole way through.

Twitting became a guilty little pleasure for it seems to be less of a hassle overall and updating one's status is effortless; Whilst blogging needs a bit of thought, a dash of creativity and at least 15 minutes.

Although it's a bit tasking at times, I seem to love and enjoy this whole blogging phenomenon..

Nothing beats spilling one's creative juices on paper, i mean in a post, and seeing all the feedback or even re-reading it later and attempting to absorb it all..

I've been working hard with my friend and fellow co-founder on Khaleejesque, and it seems to be shaping up nicely.

We've been getting a lot of positive feedback, and quite frankly bewildering amounts of hits on the site; it's been surreal.

But now it's time to dedicate some time to my favorite pastime that has grown with me those past couple of years.

A hobby that has allowed me to meet amazing people, taught me oh so much, unmasked my anonymity, and just allowed me to express myself no matter whether I was venting, or going all avante garde it seems.

I love you dear Blog.

xx

Baroque

Ps. Life transitions are daunting at times.

Happiness is...

• Having your hair down in the car, whilst singing ensemble with your favorite people to ultra catchy yet ever so sappy songs. (**keyword: Taylor Swift)

• Something you've been bugging your best-friends with and about for ever so long, only to see it turning into a reality. 

• That chocolate cake you stuff yourself with on your "off-diet" day.

• That mellow day, you spend in, parked on the couch, far away from any stressors or social engagements, only you and the people whom silence is not an issue with. 

• Samples that make-up salespeople stuff with your purchases. 

• Seeing that someone you've missed ever so much for real and not just across a screen or a phone call. 

• The final countdown for summer vacation. 

• Being remembered on a special occasion. 

• That amazing long slumber you sleep after a long, hard, worthwhile and carpediem-ed day.

• Knowing that there's a person that will always be there, no matter what. 

• Retail therapy, and getting things on sale.

• That very flattering outfit/dress that you can throw on and get out of the door with in 3 minutes flat without looking like you barely made it. 

• Knowing that you can make mistakes because life is too short anyways.

• That milky, frothy, sweet latte that warms you up inside, and gives you a jolt of life.

• Acing  that long exam, with aching fingers, and a long "phew."

• Just being yourself, and finding out that, that's all that matters in the end. 

Happiness is subjective. 

What makes you happy? 

xx

Baroque 

Ps. Some people can totally surprise you, in a good way. 

"Khaleejesque" is Live.

Check it out @ www.khaleejesque.com 

Your portal into the Gulf.

"أنا الخليجي أنا الخليجي وافتخر إني خليجي وافتخر إني خليجي"

"مصيرنا واحد وشعبنا واحد"

"أنا الخليجي أنا الخليجي والخليج كله طريقي الخليج كله طريقي"

Now, if we can just get hooked up by a railway system... 

I'd hangout in Bahrain (*sigh*),  shop in Dubai, "غير جو" in Muscat, see Qatar, and have a "فله" time in Riyadh; then hop in a train and come back home to Kuwait. 

Just Imagine the possibilities. 

Why do parents/people in general consider "trains" an easier way to get around/ "أخف" than airplanes? 

xx

Baroque

Ps. Cohesive groups do better in the long run.