Insanity workout; Week 2 done

Day 8: Today morning I felt weird as I flexed my muscles. It felt as if everything was tight and cracked with every flexed move. However I feel fine and I'm still tryin to work on my eating.
Fuck. Workout was crazy. I feel like the workouts become heavier day by day. I really think it's my eating. Once I've settled a better eating pattern, I'll be able to determine whether the heaviness is just a side effect as a result of collected exhaustion, or simply the food in my tummy. There were some routines that were just hell today.

Day 9: I didn't wear any shoes today. I can't make out the difference. I started using my fitness pal so that I finally monitor my calorie intake and perhaps adhere to the 40-40-20 recommended nutrition consumption. This way I can avoid bulking up and perhaps I would lose a few kilos. I still couldn't go through entire routines and I hope it will get better as I start taking more care of myself; if this doesn't help, I don't know what will. I will also start protein shakes as soon as I lay my hands on it.

Day 10: Crazy day today. It's been raining since Sunday so everywhere's a mess. I decided to wear long leggings to cope with the cold but when I got to the gym, the ventilation and Acs were not working. Yup, puddles of sweat all over the place haha. Today felt like any other day. I could keep up the same amount as usual. I did not feel more tired but more flexible and much smaller than before. I still am however looking for the protein bars and perhaps some energy to keep myself active.

Day 11: I wish there was a way I can compare performance to previous exercises because I can't tell how I'm doing but what I can tell is that I don't feel like I can't do it. Today's was only cardio recovery and I sweat like a jug. It was pouring all over the workspace, and probably why one of the gym members left lol. Anyway, the stretching burnt me and killed my knees, this exercise, though I already tired it in week1, made me feel all the fat around my joints.

Day 12: Haha, the sweat all around the workout space is repelling people from entering the room, which is great because I get my privacy. This exercise, I think, is the hardest so far. Pure Cardio is tough but I find it fun. Plyometric is definitely crazy. But what sucks about today is that I didn't eat anything at all, except for a bowl of cereal in the morning. I did not plan to do this but I got caught up in work, and had no time to eat and went straight to the gym. I felt a burn but managed to complete it in my usual pace. I also managed to get some protein bars but I may use shakes soon as the protein bars have the same amount of carbs as well. Not to mention, expensive.

Day 13: PURE CARDIO AND  CARDIO ABS!! I went to a water park today so that kind of kept me in an active mood. However, today was not as bad as I thought it would be. I just needed to find more power somwehere because I can keep going however, it's very tough to lift myself up. I'm proud because I managed to finish an entire ski down count. And Cardio Abs though crazy, actually felt good. Plus I found protein bars that has 16 g however it also gives 16 g of carbs. 

Day 14: Today is a good day. However I need to recover from last night because I overdozed my calorie intake with drinks, it's not like I go out a lot, so sometimes I go overboard.

Oh sweet rain

Awesome rain! Though some countries wouldn't think so. The weather right now is amazing, and I hope it remains this way but not to the extent of a flood. A slight drizzle for a while would definitely calm the nerves, and perhaps heavy showers every once in a while.

Right now, I hear reports that the situation in Saudi Arabia is horrible, and I hope everything gets better soon, as I wouldn't want to see my car floatin' around the hood.


Few days ago before the raining began, I saw a post on Facebook that said the following, whether it was true or not I did not know:

"The U.S. Navy in Bahrain declares state of emergency for Bahrain, Qatar, eastern Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.

البحرية الامريكية في البحرين تعلن حالة الطوارئ للبحرين وقطر وشرق السعودية والكويت والامارات نتيجة دخول حالة تعتبر من اقوى الحالات خلال 30 سنة الماضية

The case is considered one of the strongest cases for the past 30 years, and it warns their marine on these above countries from the wave of torrential rains too. It will begin on the morning of Sunday, November 17th and will continue until Thursday, 21 November, where it will rain for 3 days, continuously on these countries. and the U.S. Navy analyzed that this case is a strong low weather is coming from the north and the source is from the Caspian Sea in northern Iran, and there are logistical support strong moisture tropical immense sourced from the Indian Ocean with moisture from the huge basin Arabian Gulf, at the confluence of humidity stream from the north with the current humidity from the middle and a humidity stream from the south will create a state of instability layers of the upper atmosphere on the northern, central and east and west of the Arab Gulf states. Cause of this weather forecast, the emergence of Altocumulus with huge pull Alsopersel black clouds which gives lightning and severe thunderstorms, which could turn the day into Dark. This gives a very heavy rain accompanied by large grains of hails. and the possibility of emergence sea Hurricane water with sea view and warn sailors from the Navy not to go to the sea throughout the next week as well as not to risk in the wild (Deseret) and low places as a result of those heavy rains too.

Issued by the U.S. Navy
Friday. November 15, 2013

تحذر البحرية هذه الدول من ترقب موجة امطار غزيرة جدا ابتدأ من صباح يوم الاحد 17 نوفمبر وتستمر حتى يوم الخميس 21 نوفمبر الجاري حيث تستمر الامطار 3 ايام بشكل متواصل على هذه الدول وتحلل البحرية الامريكية ان هذه الحالة عبارة عن منخفض جوي قوي قادم من الشمال ومصدره بحر قزوين في شمال ايران وهناك دعم لوجستي قوي من رطوبة استوائية هائلة مصدرها المحيط الهندي مع رطوبة هائلة من حوض الخليج العربي وعند التقاء تيار رطب من الشمال مع تيار رطب من الوسط وتيار رطب من الجنوب سيخلق حالة من عدم الاستقرار بطبقات الجو العليا على شمال ووسط وشرق وغرب دول الخليج العربي وتسبب الحالة الجوية بظهور سحب ركامية ضخمة مع سحب السوبرسيل السوداء والتي تعطي صواعق وعواصف رعدية شديدة مما قد يتحول النهار الى ضلام وهذا يعطي امطار غزيرة جدا مصحوبة بحبات برد كبيرة ولايستبعد ظهور اعاصير مائية بعرض البحر وتحذر البحرية البحارة من عدم ارتداء البحر طوال الاسبوع القادم وكذلك عدم المجازفة في البراري والاماكن المنخفضة نتيجة توقع سيول من جراء الامطار الغزيرة جدا.

صادر عن البحرية الامريكية بيوم الجمعة
15"

The pictures above are what I took inside and around the Ministry of Education.

Here is an article written about how climate change is affecting particularly the Gulf. I'm not sure if this is new to several Gulf countries but from what I remember, it did flood to this extent say four years ago.


There is also another article by GDN 4 days ago that talks of a "storm". And while I was searching for news on past floods, I came across another article by GDN for 2011:

"ALMOST an inch of rain soaked Bahrain throughout Tuesday and into yesterday, causing misery for residents and shopkeepers still coming to terms with the downpour 24 hours later.

At the height of flooding water was said to be almost knee-deep in some places, with at least one major highway experiencing tailbacks hours after the rains stopped, due to the absence of a storm water drainage system."

Reminds me of Manila when I visited this August, ankle-deep.

My Watcher 3 years ago: I steal my Watcher's ideas

So somewhere in my first year, we had to read Watcher at the Gates by Gail Godwin. I have no memory whatsoever about what this was so I read it again. Reading my old piece on what characteristics my Watcher had, I realize there is a slight or maybe significant difference to what characteristics my Watcher has now. So following this old entry, I will be posting another entry of the latter. For now, here is an insight to the type of Watcher I had back in 2010.

L'Orange - The Mad Writer
Just Art, no connection to this entry teehee
http://thefindmag.com/downloads/stream-lorange-the-mad-writer/

After reading “The Watcher at the Gate” by Gail Godwin, I have to be honest as to say I have no idea what the writer is talking about. First I tried to comprehend the very actions the writer set forth in his piece by different watchers. By this I came to understand that maybe, at least maybe he might be speaking about the very thing that makes us write or at least ‘how’ we write. Here is my attempt in describing my watcher:

I have a very talented watcher. But this watcher does not have the ability to let words flow continuously for a long period of time. My watcher, at least that’s how I see it, probably does not know that I exist therefore I have no problem with it. My only dilemma would be I cannot control what sentences would form for my watcher likes to write about many things.

My watcher is independent of itself but not its mind for I can always see it. I see what my watcher imagines and fantasizes and creates and I simply write it down. It is as though I steal my watcher’s ideas.

There is not much to say about my watcher for my watcher is unique and in itself inhibits unique abilities and imagination. Its mind is not always open for it takes days and days to sleep therefore the minute my watcher opens its eyes, I have to be well prepared and record every single moment of thought or it will be lost forever for my watcher does not repeat what it thinks.

I am a mere vessel where my watcher resides in me. I am simply the plain writer who records every single thought the watcher who lives within thinks of. I am the book keeper.

Going Insane, insanity workout, a diary for the alternative lifestyle: A new turn in my Life

I began this workout called Insanity on Sunday November 10, and I read online that it's a good idea to keep a blog. I did however have a journal anyway to record every day's workout, and I decided to post them online on a weekly basis. It's a "If I don't get to post the whole thing everyday, THEY'LL KNOW" sort of thing. So something like a boost. Eh. We'll see how far I get.

Day 1: Horrible pain. I actually started at 3 AM on Day 2 but I'm considering it Day 1. I had horrible cramps but it subsided before I started. I sweat like crazy. I had to stop midway and grab some water. My head hurts a bit. My shirt is soaked. I wasn't wearing soaks and shoes, I was doing it in one of the rooms at home. My head hurts ugh. It's emotional. It makes you feel like shit but also motivates you to break through. Thinking of results of the last day. I WANT this.

Day 2: I enjoyed the exercises today. I couldn't keep up AT ALL. I was shocked. At some point, I felt like I was going to be sick. It's like the saying "you are what you eat" took a literal turn. I sweat a lot, and switched on the AC, and I still sweat, which is could; just means it wasn't just hot. I did today at home again at Day 3 around 2 AM. I'm hoping to get the next day earlier on, at the gym preferably. Need to lift some weights. I also noticed that I gained 2 kilos since I first started gym-ing, which is like in Septemeber. It's alright, I bought some goodies to watch what I eat. Two more months!

Day 3: Today, only finished with Day 2 and I woke up with the worst case of body coordination. Everything hurt. My calfs, my feet, my back, my wrists, my hands, my neck, everything. I felt it all day. Though I still ate what I usually eat, with some sort of moderation, I felt like I should cut down just a bit. Not a lot, since I don't want to create a huge shift in balance once I go back to regular training after this program. It's all about creating a consistent pattern - lifelong. Though it's only Day 3 workout, it already feels like it will get easier. I did skip on some routines just because I can't move my body at all. But it feels like it would get better.

Day 4: Today feels much better than yesterday. Maybe it's just my body getting used to it. However, I had the weirdest change in my weight, it kept going up and down. I decided to stop checking my weight and just wait it out till the fit test day. So I went to the gym and used their work out space. It's pretty cool, very free and wide. Today's exercise was cardio recovery. Lots of breathing space but it wore out my legs that I couldn't do any of the one leg stand poses for more than a second. I was all shaky. That is all.

Day 5: I woke up pretty late today, around 1 pm. I thought yesterday's workout was not bad but my body felt like an out of date machine. I could feel aches everywhere. They weren't cramps. They were aches. Todays pure cardio exercise was not as scary as I thought it would be but there were "several" routines that I just couldn't get past the second count. Sweat sweat sweat ... perhaps mixed with a bit of tears. No, just sweat.

Day 6: I slept early yesterday, before 1 AM, in attempts to wake up early today. I did wake up at 7 and again at 9. But I just couldn't get out of bed. It's very tiring, I feel heavy. I managed to get up at around 12. I felt ashamed. However, I was very anxious to get back to working out again. I could feel my body itching to work out. To my surprise, when I did begin the routine "Plyometric Cardio Circuit", which is the same as Day 2, halfway through I found myself doubting my ability to finish this program. I just felt so tired. Tired and heavy. But I tried pushing myself. Though I couldn't finish some routines completely, I tired pulling in a couple of counts. I finished through today and tomorrow's break which I guess is good. Let's hope Day 8, a new week, is a better week.

Day 7: Rest day felt great. Didn't have much aches. Or maybe I do but I had a wonderful time on rest day.

Book fair at the old NYIT campus, last day Thursday Nov 21, 500 Fils and up

For all the crazy bookaholics out there roaming the the expensive bookstores of Bahrain just casually browsing around, here is a fair you'd might want to visit. Though I don't know what types of books they are selling, I wouldn't miss the opportunity to check it out. It already started on Sunday and will end this Thursday, November 21. Heard about this from a friend and off The Bookcase's Facebook page.

If you remember where NYIT's old campus was, it's held right there. It's only now called the Multinational School, just by Block 338 restaurant.

Hurry hurry.

Address: Multinational School, Avenue 338, off Dilumn Avenue, Adliya.

SUV driver stops to let kids pass, Aali

So while leaving Ramli Mall today, I waited at the roundabout for my turn and noticed that a Toyota probably Land Cruiser just stopped at the roundabout. On the roundabout were four little boys (maybe around 11 - 12 year old) who seem to have just gotten back from school. It was a bit unsettling because cars were rushing and the boys didn't know whether to cross or not. This guy or lady in the car just stopped while making its turn, not sudden, just safe enough for the back cars to brake on time. The kids were hesitant as to whether they should cross and finally with the driver asking to cross, they did.

This. Was intense.

Thumbs up to the driver.

My passage-trip from Cairo to Amman, by Ferry: Spring Break April 2013, AB Maritime

This could be part of my Spring break chronicles as an undergraduate student. Spring break 2013 began in April and I think we left for this (budgeted) journey on the 24th. This is how I described it as a caption for one of my Facebook pictures:

"Bus at 11 pm from Cairo, arrives at 6 am in Nuweiba, ferry leaves at 6 pm, arrives in Aqaba at 9 pm Jordan time, we catch a bus to the bus station and wait for an hour, instead we take a cab to Amman and reach at 5 am.
- Spring Break 2013."

The AB Maritime ferry
Courtesy of a friend N.O.

Yup, that's how we reached Amman all the way from Cairo. We booked our bus tickets (which I think were around 90 Egyptian Pounds) from Cairo to Nuweiba a few days before, along with the ferry tickets from AB Maritime (Can't remember the price, maybe US$ 100 one way).

It was myself and two other friends, all different nationalities. The bus was to leave at 11 PM. There were maybe around five or eight other passengers on the bus so that gave us enough room to sleep. And we finally reached say around 6 AM in Nuweiba, one of Egypt's cities in the East coast. Now why we took the early bus was because they, at the ferry office, told us we had to be there before 12 noon. If you've never been to Nuweiba, then you won't understand our condition. It was like one of those villages where you can't just sit anywhere, just like in those movies, and I'm glad it was morning.

We were looking for places were we could rest our aching bodies but it was very difficult, and the "security" at the ferry docks said the gate would open a little before 12. We keep asking around for places we could stay at and someone mentioned a Hilton (I think) which was close by. A Hilton?! Okay, we go walking there, it's like walking through a desert, nothing on either sides except for creepy old houses and the blasting heat. It's funny how we see mirages and assume the place is near but it just .. isn't. And finally cave in to a taxi that happens to pass by to drop us to the hotel. No worries, we only paid 5 pounds.

So we reach there in our not so glamorous outfits and walk into this place .. this place filled with old white folks in swim suits! Imagine walking from village to resort. So we ask about room prices and they were just out of our budget and take the breakfast meal, which is open buffet. I think it was around 200 pounds per person. But that's okay! We were hungry and we know how to work with open buffets. Keep in mind it was like maybe around 7 AM. Oh and I forgot to mention I had to submit two essays, so I was "working" during our trip. The receptionist also mentioned that we were only allowed to stay at the restaurant and not go to the beach side ... okay ..

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After we've fed ourselves well, my friends were just too sleepy. Both of them went to the pool side and slept on those sunbathing chairs, talk about making the best of what you have. And while they were sleeping it off, I had to work on one of my essay and I was worried at the same time, because I'm a bit of a "don't break the law" sort of person. Just a bit before 12, they rise from their majestic somber, and proceed to get ready. Oh, we made use of the bathrooms alright. (I actually woke them up suddenly, one of them got pissed at me)

So we leave to the ferry docks. We pass through x-Rays and stay at the waiting room, which looked like a slaughter house for cows. You must understand that the people who were there were not .. middle class. Not that it bothers me, it's just, you sort of draw attention to yourself when you're no longer in places you usually go to.

And we wait, and wait, and wait, and wait. That's all we ever did. Until it was finally almost 6 PM! And we get to board the fabulous ship that exceeded our expectations (no sarcasm here). It was really clean. It was smooth and took maybe around two hours to reach despite the warnings from fellow friends that it would take forever.

Not much pictures during this passage because of the crap we had to go through. So when we reach Aqaba at around 9 PM, they ask one of our friends to follow them to an office outside the ferry (passport stuff). And we wait at the docks. We wait and wait and wait. We get our bags and our friend's who just left. We then follow the crowd (with no sight of our friend) to an office after walking through what looked like a scene of the docks from GTA.

Hallelujah, we find our friend on the top floor of a shabby security building. We then proceed to go through corridors and x-Rays, like how airports operate. And then finally, the backdoor where buses and taxis wait for us. Just US. There were maybe only one more group. The funny thing is, though the ferry was packed with people, only foreigners which were a group of maybe 20 were taken through this security process. And we couldn't find them either because they probably took a different door or booked a tourist service which take care of them.

My friend (same passport person) walks towards a cab and make an agreement. Just as we were following the driver, another taxi drives past us fast, stops and gets out to argue with our driver. So we freak, cancel and hop on the empty bus we find because it was public. Just three of us where in. This was almost 11 PM. Yes, it took us that long. And the bus finally decides to leave. And we were glad. Because the way from the port to a city in Aqaba was so empty. I don't know if we would ever be lucky to find a cab while walking to the main road from the port.

We reach a bus station in the city and feel better surrounded by people. The bus waits and waits and waits. It's around 12 and still doesn't move. It's waiting for people to fill it up, but even the people become restless. So maybe around 1 AM, the same friend looks for a taxi service (they call them that) that would only move once filled with four passengers. He agreed to 12 Jordanian Dinars each but no no, that's not how it works. Of course he'll ask for more later 915 each). So we were like F this, we're taking a cab to Amman. And we did. It was a long ride, three of us and one strange passenger in the front. Some of us doze off from time to time. And we finally reach the house of our Jordanian friend at around 5 AM. Yes, we reached.

We finally reached. Then showered and slept.

Jackass driving, take 3

Yesterday, while at the traffic light near Salmaniya (Sana on my left, that furniture place straight ahead), witnessed stupidity. While it was the turn for the cars on my right to go straight ahead (Green lights), a car on the opposite side clearly thought he should take a leap of faith that day. He took a turn while the cars on my side began to proceed. If they haven't slowed down, they would have hit the side where I saw a little girl sitting, obviously with no seat belts. That mofo was lucky.

And while driving in a converging lane, I clearly having the front advantage already past the convergence, tada! a wild pickup appears to my side. The driver decides to go as fast he (it was a guy) can in attempt to be just ONE car ahead ... in a not-so-busy day ...

Creative Photography, always the best with the up-and-coming

One of his works under Fine Art
Kyle Thompson

I recently came across an article of a photographer who apparently never took formal classes on this before. His work is just amazing. I tend to use this word a lot.

It's sort of surreal. It's like what Dali would do if he had a Canon and a tripod. I have a thing for unusual scenes, I even "attempted" to paint a tree with a mouth, out of which it wraps its tongue around a girl. So this guy's work pretty much pulled me in.

For those who look for inspiration, he is definitely one to look for.

His name is Kyle Thompson, born in 1992, and his website shows some of his work.

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One of his works under Fine Art
Kyle Thompson

My brief opinion on Expressionism Art

Expressionism is a wonderful technique to express emotions rather than realistic drawing. For many, this is a good opportunity to make mistakes and draw with feelings rather than precision, or at least that's my take on it.

Expressionism was inspired by art sometime from the 19th century onwards. It was during the age of many things like religion, the art scene, social problems, wars. It was a way of letting out. Much like cartoonists on newspapers today but more on the not-so-humorous side. It was all about color and expressing one's view on the world. Every art form is linked together in one way or another.

From what I understood of Expressionism is that it depicts the artist’s feeling of something.

For example, if I saw people with sad faces in a poverty area, I would paint a gray background with black blocks for houses and smudge figures of people depicting that they are fading away. This way I try to transmit a message to viewers to show that there is nothing there and they have nothing to live for. There may be contradictions that it is not really how ‘they’ feel but I would argue that this is how ‘I’ see it.

If ever I master painting, I would exploit the magnificence of colors. I have come to learn over the years that colors is a wonderful tool for controlling one’s emotion. Light cool colors will give us a feeling of calmness, red of anger or agitation, yellow of happiness and so on. What I wish to create one day is a portrait of someone’s feelings using only colors. It will either have a plain background of a particular color and the person standing inside with all the colors of their feelings or/and vice versa. The intricate detail will be amazing just to look it, at least for interested people.

Why not give it a try?

What makes you anything: Have Arabs lost their sense of Inherited Fashion?

Here is another piece that I wrote maybe three years ago on Arab traditional fashion. A good example on writing skills at an amateur stage. Keep in mind, these are opinions of mostly undergraduate students studying in an American university in Egypt. Very opinionated, don't consider this as a generalization of Arab traditional fashion.

The Kafiya scarf

Dazzlllee - with sequins and colorful shrouds! What is your version of an Arabic outfit? Is it necessary to retain traditional values? And what is it that makes you a part of a race?

What is tradition? In simple words, it is simply the preservation of cultural values over time. Values however, is not only restricted to morals, habits and food but also clothing—fashion. Every country has its own traditional clothing from the colorful Kimonos in Japan, the Kanga in Kenya and let us not forget the Sari that Indians proudly wear even in a foreign country. These countries and others have preserved this icon of identity over generations as ‘their’ fashion. So what is ‘Arab Fashion’?

Thai student studying Arab Studies described Arabs as “those people who consider themselves Arabs sharing particular collective ideas such as tribe, culture, language and religion (in some cases)."

First of all we need to familiar ourselves of the term Arab. Arabs, modernly in geographic terms, are known to be those mostly who come from West Asia and North Africa. Most of them may share common languages, culture and traditions. When outsiders think of the word Arab, they always think of the image. They would describe their image of the outfit as “colorful and long, pretty ornate with embroidery and stuff like that,” Political Science student from the US said. Another student when asked about what he thinks when the term Arab is pointed out the words: “Hijab, white Thoub and the Kafiya."

So People from the West and Far East have a colorful idea of the clothes ‘Arabs’ may wear. Either that or veiled and let’s not forget the famous Kafiya. This is what most people would argue is what the whole world sees.

So do we still conserve our traditions? In another way, do we still wear traditional clothings from time to time? A few others like Petroleum Engineer student from Yemen and Communications Media Arts student from Egypt have said that they did wear it but only for occasions such as the Thoub and Galabeya.

Mostly seen among Arab Gulf countries
Alternate spellings used The Thoub or Thobe is a garment with long sleeves and the length varies depending on the country’s tradition. It is mostly seen in white but there have been instances of other colors like brown, dark blue and black. The Galabeya or Jelabiya is known to be used by the Persian Gulf women and is also seen in Egypt. It is used as a casual or evening wear. Egyptian student studying Marketing Communications said that she does “not like it” and an Egyptian student studying Biology explained that he “normally don’t find it important to wear or pretty."

And why don’t we wear these traditional clothes if not for special occasions. It seems that we’ve had a lot of influence from the West. We are certainly influenced by them through mass media. The effect it has is not only to the Middle East but reaches globally. Another Egyptian studying Communications, when asked whether she wore any traditional clothes answered, “No, because it is trendy to wear Americanized style of clothes like jeans."

Maybe westernization is a modern term for many. So what would we describe a ‘Modern Arab’ as? French student studying Biology says that a Modern Arab is usually “westernized” from what he sees in his university. When asked whether there is anything for them to retain their traditional image, he explained that “there is no link between the clothing and culture."

Well, that means clothing is not important to retain traditional customs. Another Egyptian studying Communications said: “It is not really important to wear traditional clothing and it all depends on your personality."

However, it is not seen as something necessary as Egyptian student studying Journalism said: “I don’t wear any traditional clothes because I don’t own any, and also there is no reason that requires me to do so."

Then again, does wearing these traditional outfits really make you an Arab?