It is Just Me…

    I watched The Secret in my hour break at Jordan University- for the third time (yes JU has some interesting stuff). I really do get the point, be optimistic blah, blah! (Haven’t we heard that broken record). It is not that easy to apply though. My life has been a series of unfortunate events; optimism is seriously out of the question! I really do try but all my friends and family say that I’m a ball of negative energy. I do not really think so, try being in my shoes and we’ll see who is the pessimist.

   As we were all watching (Amino and her class mates, I just pop up for no apparent reason!) Amino would give me the eye whenever the speaker says, “You need to think positively” or whatever. It is hilarious, I felt ungrateful. Ok I am privileged in many ways but freedom in some forms are lacking. I am still a woman after all!

   However, The Secret does really work, I’m sure you have heard it a million times. But it really does. “The universe is a catalogue”, “Thoughts become things” I wish it were that easy. I advise watching it. Getting a new perspective in life.

   We all probably apply The Secret one way or another unconsciously. It is a way of life almost all religions state that. Basically The Law of Attraction governs all lives to achieve happiness effortlessly. Thinking positively pays off.

    Anyways, my new years resolution is to stop being depressed, whiny and complain about useless things. Although it became a habit, it is just me. This time I will try harder to stick to it for good. Maybe I will get my dream car! I already got the most important thing.

   On my way out some students were disappointed because they expected to watch an action movie instead!

Laugh Out Loud

    I was sitting in my Italian 101 class- bored to death, while the Professor (originally from Italy) asked a student to draw his Family Tree on the board. He drew a short one- to avoid darting Italian questions his way.

    When I asked him if he had any cousins he answered no just because he did not understand the question. The professor was extremely surprised to find a Jordanian with no cousins “non e’ vero? Non e’ possible! Tu sei Giordano?”- That is not possible? Are you Jordanian?

    The professor was baffled, as she knows that most Jordanians have 20 cousins! The student answered her “YES I AM JORDANIAN” banging his chest like a monkey. It was like the professor offended him or something.

    That reminded me of hilarious a video I watched on Axis of Evil Comedy Tour by Maz Jobrani, where he makes fun of the differences between Persians and Arabs. Part of the video mocks the way Middle- Easterners say “I am Arab”

 

   Which proves Maz’s theory completely; I just could not contain myself and laughed so hard at him. The student was looking all confused!

Rat on Campus

     A rat was found in one of the classes in the faculty of arts. The rat was the highlight of the day. Apparently the fluffy creature lived in the walls for some time, weeks, months, years, who knows?

    The rat reminded me of Ratatouille (a rats dream to become a chef). However, fluffy (campus rat) is surviving the annoying sounds of students and dodging footsteps. Trying all these to stay ambiguous when finally a screaming student found fluffy running reaching for a piece of bread near the garbage. It was not Fluffy’s intention to become so popular.

   Funny how small creatures scare us? Fluffy is actually frightened from gigantic creatures as ourselves.

   When I heard about Fluffy it gave me a kind of pleasure that a rat is living amongst us all these weeks, months or even years. I hope no one gets Fluffy…run Fluffy run…

Long Hair Frenzy

    Jordanian women are obsessed with long hair, and most men for that matter. It became an unknown phenomenon for all ladies to have long hair. Every woman worships her long –ankle height- tresses.

My hair was long for some time (almost 5 years) I was also obsessed for some reason. I cut my hair real short a while ago. The feeling is sensational! My neck is bare. Last time I felt the wind slapping my neck was 10 years ago. I wanted a drastic change, a change from the daily routine that we live in. I wanted to free myself from the stereotypes of the society. I felt emancipated (never knew hair could do so much!).

    The hairdresser held a lock of hair, hungry scissors in one hand, closed my eyes and heard ‘chuck, chuck’. The feeling was amazing, he kept cutting the past away. Falling locks of wet brown hair every bad memory forgotten. I felt- I feel like a new person with a new start.

   I went home dreading my family’s comments; I knew they would not like it. My mother hated it at first thinking my prospect of getting married narrowed down, my point exactly! But my sisters loved it; it is a change that they have to get used to.

I went to the University the following day completely unconcerned with their comments (well not completely!). I had different comments and I quote:

   “Wow it’s amazing I didn’t recognize you”.

   “Oh my god what have you done”.

  “Why?”

  “You are so brave”

 

   If bravery is measured by cutting hair then I feel sorry for the real brave one’s. Oh I forgot my favorite “you’ve got balls!” Thank god I don’t!!

Women should realize that it is just hair, it will grow I assure you. It felt like a competition between women, measuring hair length according to where it reaches on the back. A monthly check up where all girls mark their backs with chalk. The winner gets vitamins ‘hair, nail and skin’.

However, I look great

Crappy System

     I was sitting in class reading a book and trying to block the laughs and gossip of other students. The professor comes in bearing bad news. He says, “I have the marks for your mid-term exams”, excited knowing that I will get a full mark.

After the professor hands out the papers dreading the feedback he will get. I took my paper disappointed by the mark- not remotely close to what I expected. He starts by apologizing deeply for he had no choice but to be strict with correcting the papers. Apparently, there is a n unknown rule that us students do not know about.

   The matter of fact is that there is precise number of students of each class getting an A. The monstrosity of the situation is that almost twelve students are supposed to get an A in this class. However, the rules of the faculty prohibit professors to give A’s for more than five students per class (the least number of students per class is 40).

    The professor had to make up mistakes in our exams in order to limit the high marks. I was wondering if this wonderful rule is applicable to all universities in Jordan. Apparently, these things only happen at the great University of Jordan.

    It is outrageous, as well as students are getting special treatment for those who pay high fees. The university decides to grace us with their unfair marking system. Decreasing the possibility of getting high grades is their number one concern. The only problem is that I cannot prove it. It is not written in the regulations and professors will not come forward in order to keep their jobs.

     Fortunately, we live in an honest open-minded country that enables us to express our feelings with out repercussions.

  Makes you think really, why oh why?