Cinderella, Snow white and lots of dwarfs

Are fairy tales good for girls and boys or not? After all, what are the values that we are teaching our kids by these stories (Fairy Tale Princes Turn into Beasts,http://www.boloji.com/wfs3/wfs402.htm). For girls especially, some experts are saying that fairy tales are not good for girls self-esteem and ideas about the future, after all, Cinderella married a guy she only met twice and the princess in the tower sat there doing nothing waiting to be rescued (well, she actually concentrated on growing her hair). Psychologist also say that “the beauty and the beast” culture, is behind lots of abusive relationship where women believe that accepting the behaviour of a beast and loving him enough, will some day turn him into a handsome prince.
I think this could be over simplification of real issues and in the middle of trying to find out reasons for people’s behaviour there is a real need to explore lots of tings that could be behind certain way of behaviour, may be fairy tails are part of the problem.

Jesus taught in parables, and in every story, you can see what your eyes want to see. God has created us, men and women, in His image, and unconditional love is in the heart of His love for us and what He is asking us to do in loveing one another. In all the madness that the world is throwing at us, fairy tails sometimes enrich the imagination as long as we keep some sense of reality and keep foucs on what matter most.

Micah Challenge

Isabelle Caro posed for a series of provocative photos to highlight the tragedy of anorexia. She says she now weighs almost 4 1/2 pounds more than she did when controversial photographer Oliviero Toscani captured this image.I was shocked by the images of this anorexia campaign. It aims to ban size zero models from all fashion shows. But the fact that as a society we became so obsessed with our image to the extent that some people are dying trying to achieve their ideal weight is really hard to understand. In the mean time, still our actions or in-action a lot of the time, causing the death of people who live thousands of miles away, people who are now "size zero" not because they choose not to eat but because there is no food for them to eat. I think the idea to help them is there, but we must be really ashamed that now in this day in the 21 century there are still people dying of hunger in Africa. Join the Micah Challenge http://www.micahchallenge.org.uk/, let us stop both hunger in Africa and size zero models. Let us move from being self obsessed to acting justly, loveing mercy and walking humbly with our God (Micah 6:8).

The People's Proverbs in Egypt

My grand father book has been published some time ago after he died more than 20 years ago. I feel so proud. My grand father, Mr Hezikial Bestourous, was really passionate about God, people, life, and culture. He loved writing and wrote and collected so many of the famous Egyptian proverbs. I remember him talking also about sorties behind the proverbs and how they came to be famous. What is nice about the book is that it is in both Arabic and English. It also has the explanation about what each proverb actually mean and how it is used. The family worked hard to get this book published and I was so pleased to hold a copy in my hand and wished that he was alive to see it but sure that he would have been so pleased with it.

Here is what Kenneth E. Nolin, PhD, wrote about him:
Professor Hezkial was the chairman of English studies for the American Mission Schools. He helped us with Arabic. I soon learned of his life long fascination with local proverbs. He was a special person and a friend."

When you wish you had a better dentist!

Found this on you tube and couldn't help laughing out loud. It is one of these moments when you really wish you had a better dentist!

Global warming fun

I know it is a serious issue but here is some global warming fun :)

Murder in the Orient exprese

All I could think about this morning on the train was this book "murder in the orient express". How spacious that train was to the extent that someone got actually killed in his compartment. Well, every passenger had a compartment of course apart from the killer (obviously) who had to share the compartment for a little while with his victim (may be that is why he was so upset). On my train this morning I can tell the motive for murder was there (you can actually see it in people's eyes) however, if anyone attempt such an action there will be lots of witnesses (no need for Poirot really) and to be fair you can hardly move your elbow to open the window let alone to attempt to kill anyone. Standing on the train you can hear the next person heart beat all through your journey as we stacked like sardines (emphasis on standing). What is really annoying is that you pay too much for train tickets, that in my opinion, by the end of the year I will be able to buy a second hand helicopter to travel in with the money I spend on my train tickets. In the mean time, I will have to put up with all modes of transport and thank God that the Orient express was only fiction.

Luxury or necessity?

I left my mobile phone at work for the whole week end. For the first time in 5 years I am without my mobile phone. It is amazing how much it has become part of my life, all my contact numbers are on there and I can't text anyone. But how did we manage before we had mobile phones? The argument against mobile phone technology was always said to be that people wanted their privacy when they talk on the phone (hence the phone booth), and so manufactures had to think about how would people take to use their phone in the train or in the street while others can listen to their conversations. But now we see that people can not do without their phones and it does not matter really who is listening as the conversation is almost always the same; "yes, I am on the train, I will be there around 6.15" or " No, John, all the papers were left on your desk on Friday and should have been sent already" and of course you get the odd "yes, 3 million pound deal, yes no less than that" conversation (not that I am ear dropping at other people's calls, but sometimes you can't help it). So what is next, the luxuries of yesterday has become the necessities of today and we can't do without it anymore. I am sure I will survive for 2 days without my phone and I will make sure that I will enjoy the peace and quite for the whole week end.

No rest for "you know who"

YES, there must be more to life that this. But what are we really after? I think “being happy” is on the top of the list for most people. In a society that is self centred most of the time (if not all the time), being happy is on the top of the list of things to achieve in life. People changing jobs, having or not having kids, leaving partners, trying new things etc all in the name of being happy or trying to be happy. Chasing this illusion that is called happiness. So, is it an illusion or is happiness a real thing we can actually achieve and be. Saint Antony once wrote: “God, you’ve created us on your image and our souls don’t find its fulfilment without you”. Is it so important to be happy, or is it more about being happy with whatever God has given us? Nothing wrong in wanting better lives as long as it doesn’t consume all our energies and destroy our relations and people’s lives around us. If your heart is on the right path, then being happy will not be because all is rosy and cheerful, but because the journey is with the Lord himself.

Be blessed

This is a real blessing. You can find some more on: http://www.donghaeng.net/english/main.htm web page.
Enjoy.

Just for fun

Science or what?

The buzz words in medicine at the moment are about "evidence based" and "controlled studies", we need to prove everything and research everything in a "controlled" way, to the extent of this paper here on the effectiveness of parachute in preventing death. Here is the summery of the paper, you can read the full paper on the BMJ.


BMJ 2003;327:1459-1461 (20 December), doi:10.1136/bmj.327.7429.1459

Hazardous journey

Parachute use to prevent death and major trauma related to gravitational challenge: systematic review of randomised controlled trials Gordon C S Smith, professor1, Jill P Pell, consultant2

1 Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 2QQ, 2 Department of Public Health, Greater Glasgow NHS Board, Glasgow G3 8YU

Correspondence to: G C S Smith gcss2@cam.ac.uk


Abstract
Objectives To determine whether parachutes are effective in preventing major trauma related to gravitational challenge.

Design Systematic review of randomised controlled trials.

Data sources: Medline, Web of Science, Embase, and the Cochrane Library databases; appropriate internet sites and citation lists.

Study selection: Studies showing the effects of using a parachute during free fall.

Main outcome measure Death or major trauma, defined as an injury severity score > 15.

Results We were unable to identify any randomised controlled trials of parachute intervention.

Conclusions As with many interventions intended to prevent ill health, the effectiveness of parachutes has not been subjected to rigorous evaluation by using randomised controlled trials. Advocates of evidence based medicine have criticised the adoption of interventions evaluated by using only observational data. We think that everyone might benefit if the most radical protagonists of evidence based medicine organised and participated in a double blind, randomised, placebo controlled, crossover trial of the parachute

Chocolate is a Vegetable

I came across this and to be honest, i agree with this view, so here it is.

Chocolate is a Vegetable:
Chocolate is derived from cocoa beans. Bean=vegetable.

Sugar is derived from either sugar CANE or sugar BEETS.
Both are plants, which places them in the vegetable category.

Thus, chocolate is a vegetable. To go one step further,
chocolate candy bars also contain milk, which is dairy.
So candy bars are a health food.

Chocolate-covered raisins, cherries, orange slices and strawberries
all count as fruit, so eat as many as you want.

If you've got melted chocolate all over your hands, you're eating it too slowly.

How to get 2 pounds of chocolate home from the store in a hot car.
The solution: Eat it in the parking lot.

Diet tip: Eat a chocolate bar before each meal.
It'll take the edge off your appetite, and you'll eat less.

If I eat equal amounts of dark chocolate and white chocolate,
is that a balanced diet? Don't they actually counteract each other?

Chocolate has many preservatives. Preservatives make you look younger.

Put "eat chocolate" at the top of your list of things to do today.
That way, at least you'll get one thing done.
A nice box of chocolates can provide your total daily intake of calories in one place. Now, isn't that handy? If not for chocolate, there would be no need for control top pantyhose. An entire garment industry would be devastated. You can't let that happen, can you?

Big plans for the whole week

I came across this fun graph and thought WOW...someone knows exactly how the week goes when you start putting plans on Monday morning. Well, let us hope that this week will be different.

The day after the night before

I was overwhelmed by the amount of email, messages and calls I have received from family and friends. I am so grateful to you all. I think it has started to be part of reality, my research has been a big part of my life and letting go of my project is kind of letting go of a loved one. I am glad that it is done, but one gets so emotionally attached to certain degree of obsession sometimes. I remember having to remove some tests and cut few experiments that I already carried out, that was hard.

However, letting go and pressing on ahead is what the bible teach us, to forget what is behind and straining toward what is ahead (Philippians 3:13). It is always taught in the sense of letting go of the past and it's painful memories, or bad experiences and drama etc. But in my opinion I feel it is letting go of it all, the bad and the good, the failures and success and not to get stuck to what and who we WERE but what we are doing now. I said before that degrees and success inflate egos, but as we press on toward the goal, the ultimate goal of serving the living Lord, we keep focus on what matters most.

My celebration for obtaining my PhD has just begun and I am sure it will continue for a while yet and my gratitude to God will carry on as well. My prayer is not to loose sight of what is important in all of this.

Passed my PhD !

So..here we are, another day, another entry, but what a day it has been. after a 3 hours of siting in a hot office to defend my work, i was awarded my PhD degree. WOW. it is an amazing feeling and i do not think it has sunk in yet that i have actually passed. As i said before, it has been quite a journey. Through it all i was blessed with family and friends who were tremendous support, their prayers and confidence in me helped me tremendously to live through it all. However, science and degrees only inflate egos, but only God can fulfil to the maximum and as i prepare to celebrate this wonderful blessing (and sure it will be a big celebration) i only remember that without God we are nothing and without people that you celebrate with, success does not mean a lot.

A PhD is bad for your health!

So..do you think this is a good idea? Do you recognise any of these photos(you can check some more of these on "I did a PhD and did not go mad web page)? If you are mad enough to think about doing some more studying, have a look at these funny photos (the before and after shots of someone fictional I hope:), and may i just say this is not me (although some may disagree!). But just for the record I kind of enjoyed my PhD, it was a long and painful journey at times and it tested my strength and abilities to the limit some times. However, I was blessed with wonderful people whom i worked with and they provided continuous support and advice, that made this "endurance" course a lot bearable. I just hope that for them it wasn't as trying as it was -at times- for me. God has been my refuge through it all and His provision was evident all the time.

Prayers for Monday's blues

In today's paper, there is an article about the church of England trying to put some prayers together for those who have busy lives, to pray about things like finding a space to park the car or a seat in the train and to pray about Monday's blues. This made me think about the way we treat God, like a genie in a bottle, you rub it and you have three wishes. Being so smart, for your first wish you ask for another 100 wishes :). In a culture where we get fast food, instant messaging and quick delivery, we want everything so quick. I do not underestimate the promise that God cares about every little details of my life, but if we are too busy to have time for God, is it fair to want him to give us his time and attention? and what is this relation we have with God, a father / child relationship or a master / genie type of relation?

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=64441&in_page_id=34