Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Seed Bead Braided Necklace.

This particular update on my creativity took me a little while to get to so let’s dive right into it. When I created the braided wristbands, at the back of mind it was a trial run for one of my most ambitious project and undertaking to date.

Finished product

I knew I wanted to make a braided necklace out of some of the remaining seed beads I had in my possession. The thought itself was challenging and took me longer than anticipated but the outcome superseded my imagination. Seeing it come to life and better than I’d imagined brought on a feeling of gratitude and pride – pride that It was I who had come up with something so pretty and gratitude for the skills however unprofessional.

Seed Beads braid

The comments I received from friends and family after posting to instagram  filled me up with joy. No one knows this but after creating the necklace and actually being overwhelmed with the outcome, I prayed. There are times when you just have to thank God for the littlest things and this was one of them. To have the gift for creativity, talent and imagination are things few people have and when you’re able to use them and come up with something better than you’d dreamed it, you appreciate.

First layout and color coordinating.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Guilty Pleasures.

Day 18 of the Writer’s challenge. I know my posts and participation are sporadic but it can not be helped. To get back to the topic of ‘Guilty Pleasures’ here are some of mine. Though, I doubt they fit the ‘guilty’ mold.

Rain 

Reality Shows. I diss, sour grape and bellyache about them but I am a serious consumer of those things. They have drama that never happens in my life and the women fight at the drop of a hat for the stupidest of reasons. My eyes are always wide in surprise and shock over those women’s actions.

Flirting. When done right, I think it is one of the most enjoyable experiences a girl can ever have. Especially if done with a man of a certain age. With him, you know it is not going anywhere. You get to test your imagination, both boundaries, practice skills and learn a few things while for him it is like a pleasant stroll  down memory lane. I miss it because I no longer have a flirt buddy. My skills are so rusty!

The smell of rain. I love that scent that permeates the air when the first few drops of rain hit really dry soil. I think of it as one of nature’s purest and freshest scent. If someone could capture that scent and put it in a bottle, I’d be a customer. I take these long and deep breathes with the need to keep the smell at my nostrils when the rain finds me near a dusty area. I can’t get enough of that scent.

Sitting on the floor. I am most comfortable on the floor and find nothing wrong with it. I have a couch in my room which is mostly used by my mother and sometimes brother while I spend a lot of my time on the rug. I nap on the rug with a pillow and light blanket, draw and create – really bad for the back and neck. All from the floor sometimes.

Interactive Pages. I’ve rekindled the love for participating in posts on pages I liked long ago. You learn all sorts of things when you participate. For instance; I recently learned there is such a thing as sexual maturity. Judging from the post it is a level a girl arrives to after being with multiple sexual partners and has realized there is no such thing as sexual fidelity in today’s world. Thus has no expectations of such from her man or men. With sexual maturity she is able to objectively handle her man’s faithfulness (or lack there of) by not being bothered by his stepping out (if he chooses to) long as he is protected. Where else does one come across such school of thought?

Those are my guilty pleasures.


Photo Credit: Google

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Goodbye Little Miss Critic.

Congratulations to Germany

When the days leading to the football world’s biggest competition – the world cup crept by, I wondered how I was going to get through an entire month of watching a sport I no longer had interest in. I say no interest because after my brother left everything I knew about the English Premier League, Champions League and basically the Football world’s machinations flew out the window during those years of his absence.
As luck would have it; the matches took place later in the night and the month has gone by surprisingly fast. Since he is around, watching some of the matches together brought back a little of the interest and the critic I used to be. It was never my intention to critique the matches and players because my knowledge on the current football world is a smidgen not enough to act as evidence in a court of law somewhere.


In my opinion, it was the beginning of the end for Brazil after that boring opening ceremony. The country is known for it’s vibrancy, colour, dances, some famous models and the ever popular carnival but it chose to tout the rainforest and river like those were its selling points. Not forgetting the performance from Jennifer Lopez, Claudia Leitte and Pitbull which was fraught with problems from poor audio to malfunctioning lift. Even the promise of Shakira’s honest hips couldn’t make me sit through the closing ceremony after that debacle.


Honestly, Brazil put up a less than spectacular performance from the get go. They were floundering in all their games. There was nothing reminiscent of it’s former glory with all the young men on the team and their 7-1 defeat proved it. Before the defeat, I’d caught the news earlier where an anchor said, ‘Germany was looking forward to beating Brazil on Brazilian soil’ and it tickled me pink. Kaka who had World Cup experience hadn’t been called to the national team. I might be wrong but I believe his four matches weren’t used up. Germany had 40 year old Klose for goodness’s sake and Netherlands had Diego Forlan!


I wasn’t really into the tournament until the need to thoroughly annoy my brother arose. Oddly enough;  whatever I said just to irritate him came to pass. On Brazil’s defeat, I threw it out there the final would be between Germany/Argentina before Argentina and Netherlands battled. The realist in me knew Germany was taking it because those Germans had played quite a good and sometimes aggressive game. It somehow felt as if it was their time.


I’m glad the tournament ended. I felt so sad for the Argentines when they saw the chance of winning the cup on their nemesis’ turf explode into nothing after the Germans scored. You could literary see the disappointment and heartbreak on their faces plus the endless crying. The cameras kept showing Messi and his demeanour, his attitude with the receipt of the golden ball and medal. I kept thinking the lack of privacy is what reigned in his urge to cry and he would so once off the pitch.
That has been my time at the World Cup. And now that it is over, little Miss critic shall now go into retirement! I can not promise her return in four years but then again, who knows?

Thursday, July 10, 2014

The Best Advice I Ever Received.

My second foray into the Writers Challenge. I have been too under the weather to participate in the previous ones.
Day 10: The Best Advice I Ever Received.
 If memory serves, the best advice I ever received is something I have been carrying out for the longest time – ever since it was given me to date.



‘Whenever you’re reading a book, take note of quotes and passages that speak to you.’ – Uncle Abidan
I come from a family of readers and I myself are one. My uncle Abidan found me reading a Jeffrey Archer one day and passed on that piece of advice. He said it is something he used to do as a young man with good sight and one never forgets a quote or a passage they have read for there are situations that always bring them to memory.
Ever since that day, I find it odd reading a book without noting a passage or quote that speaks to me. I’m more of a literature connoisseur now instead of someone who used to read simply for the pleasure and fun of it. I even note quotes from some of my favourite shows on television and movies. This is why there are so many posts on quotes and passages here and the reason why my reading taste is eclectic.
This piece of advice resonated and stayed with me so much so that it is the only one I seem to remember because it is a habit. I read a lot and doing so feeds it which makes it a habit and not a one time thing.

Picture courtesy of Google

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Style Personality.



It is a known fact that our style just like our personalities evolves as we grow. At every stage in our lives we tend to dress in accordance with the changes and how we feel about ourselves. After all, ‘style is a reflection of who we are’ and ‘what we think about ourselves’. Suddenly, you find what worked for you a couple of years ago is no longer age appropriate and neither flatters nor makes you feel good about yourself.
I doubt mine has changed at all because more often than not, I find myself being asked whether I own a couple of dresses and skirts.A not so inappropriate question for my style leans towards the masculine with a feminine touch since my teen years. I am more of a jeans and tee kind of girl than dresses and frills. The jeans, tee-shirts and skinny pants in my possession probably rival that of a guy and my slave to accessories persona provides the feminine touch.
Yes, I do own a couple of dresses and skirts whereby most of them are courtesy of my sister although the total number of these items does not come anywhere near the pants. She is more feminine to my masculine and why not? She has the curves which I don’t so dresses and skirts flatter her more than they do me who is (aside from my noticeable assets) built like a boy. Fun fact: what passes for a dressy top or shirt on her usually looks like a dress on me albeit as minis sometimes.
Since I own only a few, I wear them sparingly and do so when the mood to remind people of my femininity strikes. I love the feeling of femininity and freedom a dress gives you. On those days, I look like the proverbial girl with a flower in her hair. And a dress influences your actions and the way you carry yourself which is not bad.
Much as my style remains masculine with a feminine touch, I would like to think it has changed. I prefer tighter at the bottom and looser on top. I love the trapeze and long vests, the loose blouses and blazers. I only wear the low rise converse on cold days and my girly shoe game is no jokes! As for dresses and skirts, I prefer round, A- line skirts and skater dresses to form fitting and bandage because those do not flatter my shape at all!

The Disability Lane

Simply Shanah harbors both professional and personal milestones. In 2019; I made the decision to separate the professional and individual ex...