No wonder Danes had a bone to pick with Arab Muslims over the cartoons. They see them as ancient colonialists.

An ancient Dane with Arabian genes is part of a DNA study that suggests Scandinavians of 2,000 years ago were more genetically diverse than today.

The study analyzed 18 well-preserved bodies from two burial sites dating from 0 to A.D. 400 in eastern Denmark. The sites were originally excavated some 20 years ago.

One skeleton had a type of DNA signature—known as a haplogroup—closely associated with the Arabian Peninsula, according to Melchior.

“It’s especially found among some Bedouin tribes, but it has also been found in the southern part of Europe,” the researcher said.

-Source

These accursed Arabs are like flies, they’re everywhere.

Fear not, I can still blog in English.

Who would have thought that two consecutive Arabic posts would cause such a scare? I certainly did not see that coming.

This post is to announce that I have not switched entirely to Arabic, and that I do not have an intention to write exclusively in Arabic. Now relax, foreigners, and rest assured that you can always expect to find English posts in Tololy’s Box.

Now rejoice. Buy yourselves something pretty.

Hi,

I have a question for you: are you having trouble commenting on my blog lately? If yes, please let me know by sending me a short note using this form or by leaving a comment and I will look into it right away. Thanks for your help, anonymous internet readers.

When I was a little girl I found a page torn from a book in the small book case we had in the “laundry room” on the roof. The page had the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme illustrated on it, very similar to this one:

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men.

Couldn’t put Humpty together again.

- Source

In my childish mind then and up until today I can’t get over how tragic that story is, how morbid and heartbreaking. This is a cute character for children who is first seen smiling and then falls off a wall and shatters into pieces, it dies right there in the rhyme and nobody can help it. I have always found nursery rhymes to be generally inappropriate under the excuse of achieving music.

That said, I now love the metaphor in Humpty Dumpty. Think of Humpty as a negative concept of your choice, let’s say dominance or monopoly of power, then think: the fake image shatters and “all the king’s horses and all the king’s men” cannot put it back again. That’s why fragile people like Humpty Dumpty should not sit on walls.

I am currently reading Nawaal el Saadawi’s biography أوراقي …حياتي, and I can’t seem to get over the similarities between us. I could be imagining things of course because I respect her thought a lot, but it is undeniable that there are several aspects that link my history to hers. I think many of these aspects are shared by almost, if not all, Arab women.

The way Saadawi tells her life story is simple and almost child-like. Her language is clear and reminds me of my late aunt recounting family history, now using common English words كعب روكي and now slang for effect جوزي. The chronology of Saadawi’s tale is logical in the first volume, then it seems she took a break before continuing and so there is a mild break at the beginning of the second volume, but nothing confusing. I am done with the second volume and still have the third to go through, but so far I can safely say I have never in my life connected to an author as I connect to Saadawi. Her voice is powerful throughout the biography, too powerful to ignore.

She thinks my thoughts, she feels what I feel, but she is far more courageous than I have been up until now. She was prompted to write her biography after leaving Egypt to the United States in order to defy time and to defy death. She did not want her life to be forgotten or deformed by the same people who pushed her to leave Egypt out of fear for her life; Islamic scholars and Sheikhs threatened by her ideas about gender and religion شيوخ العصور الوسطى, and government officials equally threatened by her ideas about justice and integrity حكومة اللصوص. These two categories of people combined with the ignorant public الغوغاء who saw her mere presence a danger to their non-existent social cohesion wanted her to die, so she left to stay alive.

Far from idolizing her, this woman is a solid role model to every Arab girl out there. She’s educated, she’s strong, she’s unafraid to voice her opinions, and she thinks for herself. What more do we want our girls to turn out to be? Forget the people who call her a tramp منحلة أخلاقياً without knowing anything about her life and contributions to political and social life in Egypt, forget the people who call for Allah’s help against the devilأعوذ بالله من الشيطان الرجيم when they hear her name because she is a woman, forget all the hatred directed towards her because she personifies what Arab people fear: an intelligent, strong woman who gets some air time to “corrupt” their girls’ minds امرأة .فاسدة تدعو إلى الانحلال What every person must do is learn for themselves and form their own opinions, and I learned this the hard way. It pains me to admit I was prejudiced without even realizing it at the time.

As I said before, Saadawi’s biography resonates with me to a great degree. I recommend it to anyone interested in learning more about the life of Egyptian women and Arab women in general, and about Saadawi herself. I have a lot of respect for that woman now, and I am sure you will too after you learn about her life.

I am obsessed with felines, big and small, and it so happens that I am a Leo myself. That’s why I have been toiling for five days to make myself a 42×35cm lion mosaic:

Compare with Day One here. And now, allow me to give myself a hug and try to forget about my mosaic-stiff neck and shoulders. Being an artist is not easy!

Dear Self,

It’s absurd that I am writing you a note and publishing it, a blatant contradiction in terms similar to saying “I am discreet but I have an exhibitionistic flare,” but I will do it anyway because I must unload my mind right this minute or I will lose this pressing idea. You know that my ideas are generally evanescent, you can’t blame me.

I believe I am about to change again. In the series of changes that make up who I am, this one is not yet very defined but I promise it will be extraordinary. I can feel it. There is a rush to it, a certain bitter taste at first which later turns sweet then insipid right when another change comes along.

It’s an accelerating feeling of getting close to something entirely authentic. At a certain distance I will have to decide if I want to embrace it, and that moment is always the most painful. Remember the last time I changed? It took years for me to finally muster up enough courage to shed my previous skin, and it’s an ongoing process still, faced with many obstacles and far from being complete.

It’s wonderful how other people can inspire improvement. I am fortunate to know some of these rare specimens of human excellence. I suppose they are models of godliness in their capacity to breathe life into other minds. To meet someone like that is a true privilege, so you should never compromise on the quality of company you keep. Remember this bit whenever you question your life choices. Also remember that while the public does not think, there is an intellectual elite hidden somewhere who make basking in their light worth the pain of brushing the masses aside.

Now back to work.
Tololy