Dusty Wyndow Blog

Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently. (Read more about the 30-day Challenge ) Yes indeed, money has grown so fast between my hands the last two years that I can't find any traces of it now, all that's left is loans and debt. I long for the days when the 150$ I used to make at the end of each month from private tutoring were enough to make my day: I was a lot happier back then....

Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you. (Read more about the  30-day Challenge ) To start with today's challenge, let's try to define the character that shall give inspiration to the person I am today: he (supposedly it's a he) must be of an enormous value, an indescribable presence and an irreplaceable impact in his surrounding. He must possess the highest levels of morals there is, an incomparable amount of intelligence and wisdom, an utter height of compassion and the absolutely least portion of anger and hatred. He shall not be weak, never pessimist nor downbringing. He is a leader, a father and a husband. He is the true image of a man we all dream of. He holds the most exalted title of wits and intellect, while at the same time never condone his soft side. He must be a romantic person, a fair player in the field of husbandry and a role model to both his wife and his children. I bet most of my personal friends already know where I'm heading, and to al...

Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die (Read more about the  30-day Challenge ) Join the Circus, even for a single day. Photo courtesy of  Steve Taylor Such an irrelevant errand I have today, having already launched my  Bucket List  mentioned up above. There must be enough errands and wishes for a whole lifetime already, but as far as I know Natheer, the list will keep growing on and on. Which gets me to my next question: looking back at the summit of my existential crisis, I can't but admire the way we are born with no expectations, no hopes and no dreams at all. This very fact turns out to evolve and alter with time that we reach a level where all the hours we spend breathing are mere anticipations with a fluctuant intensity of aspiration, until we eventually realize the universal divine wisdom in creating such a powerful human being, that happens to be futile all at the same time. Stay Silent for a long time, starting with one da...

Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without. (Read more about the  30-day Challenge ) Enough Said...

Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) COLDPLAY There is no room for doubt when trying to answer which is my favorite band of all time. Setting aside all the commercial aspect their fame gave them, or the fact that their music imposed their presence in the field of alternative style, I proudly am an old admirer, ever since their first single where actually very few knew of a band called " Coldplay ". Back in those day there were still traces of Metallica and Nirvana fans, also mostly Pink Floyd people and surely the on-going wave of new pop singles. But I chose otherwise, in fact their music chose me. Having spoke of it, how do you choose your favorite band? What are the criterion? Well personally, there is no other band, no other style that I can repeatedly and constantly listen to without ever getting bored nor feeling the itch to switch to the next track. Coldplay have been playing and composing now for more t...

Day 12 - A picture of something you love. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) "The best things in life are free".. I wish I had the ability to shoot a slow motion footage of someone stepping foot at the end of a jump, especially the facial expressions. A total thrill I must admit, an easy sport that suits all ages and guaranteed to bring back a smile, even if it ended mistakenly with a fall on the side or the knees.. 

Day 11 - A picture of something you hate. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) A photo says more than a 1000 words do

Day 10 - A picture of the person you do the most messed up things with. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) Indeed :) it's not a single person, a whole bunch of a Lebanese Salad, the above four when combined together can only make the earth shake and giggle. I never get that silly with anyone else, it HAS to be the four of them to totally enjoy the moment. Although these are enough to make me laugh and be happy, both of my other cousins, Marwan and Wissam were also the charm, even much more than we are now, but unfortunately chances were they had to travel to Australia at such a young age. If it weren't for those 3, I would've had a truly despicable time growing up. Thank you...

So I stayed the whole night awake knowing that the slightest nap would take away the chance to visit the cemetery with my mother on Eid Al Fitr's morning, just like any other Muslim Family's tradition on this occasion. Regardless of my personal beliefs and projections on such "habits", it was nevertheless an occasion not-to-be-missed for me to spend with my dear mother especially after the distance between us she was telling me about in the last period of time. Camera in hand? check; and now we've hit the road. Can you Imagine what I kept thinking all the time we spent there? I kept constantly monitoring all the mental thoughts "rivering" inside my head making all that noise that almost covered the loud chatters of the surrounding; thoughts that mostly were the child of the observations I made at the time, part of my recent on-going constellation of questions about our social behavior. It was time to take out my camera, which to my surprise, was...

Day 09 - A picture of the person who has gotten you through the most. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) Photo Courtesy of Karim Zock She is indeed the most person that helped me go through obstacles of life, even though they were only 2 years, but I had witnessed an enormous and indescribable amount of support and unconditional help, in all its measures. I can't forget the day I was sick of being an expatriate alone in KSA right on the edge of breaking down in tears; She, as always, was there to forget what had had been with her at the moment and simply focus all her senses and intuition in the prospect of leading me through the dilemma. I also cannot forget all the times I mistreated myself, let it be an eating disorder or simply not taking any pills or not visiting the doctor when I must've. She was my guiding angel ever since I knew her. No other non-family person could ever insist on my paying attention to myself and constantly, no matter what, stay awar...

Day 08 - A picture that makes you laugh. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) Among all the chaos in our surrounding, I have to admit, I NEVER laughed so hard at a photo like I did at this one. I spent the whole 10 minutes giggling while preparing that photo and in the end it was simply a blast over the internet =D Btw Ranin El Chaar was awesome that night. And Mayada was awesomer to have the high spirit and allow me use this photo.

Day 07 - A picture of your most treasured item. (Read more about the 30-Day Challenge ) I never believed in mage and wizardry, nor did I ever fall for voodoo and acts of sorcery. Wishes to me are a sign of weakness and tokens were only for decorative purposes, that was before I received my precious royal card... Ever since that moment, I became little prince Nathy, whenever I wanted to be, wherever I needed to be that prince. I was prince for one at least, for one who saw the real me, who touched me deep enough to, at least once, have felt that there's something enormous inside that skin. Ever since I held that card it never left my pocket. It's not the ink, never the paper, it's that tiny part of a soul securely contained in that piece of cardboard for ages to come... I would never feel underrated, underestimated, or simply out of luck as long as I remember I am holding a royal card, a gift from the most precious human being ever. And yes, makes me smile each and ev...

Day 06 - A picture of a person you'd love to trade places with for a day. (Read more about the 30-Day Challenge ) Peter Pan, for one day only.. No comment this time, I'll leave the interpretation to yourselves.

Enough of the challenge posts already. Yesterday's Shoot as you walk was simply unbelievable. I must admit I missed the big groups and the humongous number of people gathering at certain times of the year in the shoot, most of them being newbies to the activity, and simply strolling down the streets I thought I knew well. It seemed to me that I mostly didn't know my town as much as I thought. Photo Courtesy of my dear friend Karim Zock The night was beyond awesome, especially that Ramadan is coming to an end and Eid Al Fitr holiday is right at the corner. Parents and newly-weds filled the alleys of old markets looking for the greatest bargains of all, to prove to themselves that their country still allows them to buy decent low priced-clothes at least once a year for their deprived children, or for the groom to buy "the" gift for his fiancee with the amount of money he had saved ever since they got engaged. 5000LBP (3$) shoes are everywhere to the point that yo...

Day 05 - A picture of one of your favorite memories. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) Sorry about that watermark, it's a trial as you noticed. Won't happen again Now for the photo, I was saved by the bell since a "favorite memory" is simply impossible, whereas there are lots and LOTS of favorite memories, yes with an "S". I simply lack the words that would match all those memories... All salutes go to Jana, Marwan, Wissam and of course my brother Najd for making it the most awesome childhood ever. I can still remember every skin cut, every bruise, every tear and every laugh. Too bad we've grown old on such activities and photographs, but I believe it's never too late.

Day 04 - A picture of your favorite night (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) One of the most favorite nights would obviously (at least obviously to me) a night alone in the street with the camera in hand and the tripod tied to my back bag on a highway probably or a deserted street taking long exposure photographs. And they mean to me of course. But having thought of today's quest thoroughly, I came to a conclusion that the most favorite night was the one I spent on grass in the middle of the street. Can't find the right words to describe what level of awareness that scene helped me reach, but it utterly left an impact so strong that now I have a refuge on hand that doesn't need any camera. It was frustration that was eating me that night, frustration of my inefficiency to solve my problems, frustration of all the surrounding, and the frustration of certain personal confusion that were bumping over inside my mind. I found no other way but to ride my bic...

Day 03 - A picture of the cast from your favorite show. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) The Legendary Mork and Mindy Many of you would instantly think of the vintage "Friends" or maybe the recent "House" series, and don't get me wrong I'm utterly attached to that era/kind of series. But, Mork and Mindy has a totally different taste. This was the first series/show I watched apart from the ones on Disney Channel. This show has shaped some aspects of my teenage years, and really helped me question more, and love the fact that life is way beyond the walls of a country, or a society. That omnipresent innocence is what caught my attention and kept me stuck to the actors and the whole storyline. I grew up watching so many other shows but this one was the most pleasant to me as of becoming an adult. "Mork and Mindy" so magically puts on the table the extraordinary relationship between man and woman having no common interests, no specific g...

Day 02 - A picture of you and the person you have been close with recently (Read more about the 30-Day Challenge ) As unexpected as it may sound, this day's challenge kept my brain thinking all day long to find something suitable enough for it to call achieved. Among all the people that I shared feelings, problems, advice with, among all the closest to my heart, among all the friends and family, I chose Georges, that tiny smiling creature who's oh so younger than me. Why? Simply because the challenge explicitly specified " recently ", which made things a lot easier for me. Actually it was yesterday at night that I met him, and we stayed for more than one and a half hours discussing my issues and a recent story he went through. Although I showed so much opposition and rejection to his advice, in fact his words were true and honest, it was me that was fragile and weak preventing myself from fixing my problems. Please welcome, Georges Rattel, the genius of t...

Day 01 - A picture of yourself with fifteen facts. (actually I pleasantly got 20 facts) (Read more about the 30-day Challenge ) And here are the 20 facts that I came up with: 1- I never weighed more than 65KG, and my average weight is a steady 60KG 2- I was once a programming addict, a total computer geek, and an introvert book nerd. 3- I believe most people (if not all of them) live a lie and don't truly know who they are, yes, even yourself 4- I believe not in the religions of today, for all of them are plain businesses and encourage bigotry. I only believe that religion is the kindness we brought to this world. 5- My first camera was a canon (yes a canon) Powershot A480, worth 200$ at the time, which I had had saved the money for probably several months earlier. 6- My dream car is a black  Mini Cooper S 7- I cry, a lot, sometimes 8- I often munch on my lips' tissues and love the taste of blood 9- I have a secret bucket list (things to do before I die), and ...

Just as I promised a close friend recently, and of course having promised myself in the first place, here goes my 30-day challenge, a road to self discovery whilst breaking ego and paving the way to getting covered with humility. Each and every single day I'll be posting a new photo in accordance to that day's challenge rule, Photo will be posted on Facebook  while the full description will be here on my Blog , where it should originally be. Now remember, I'm not exposing anything here for the sake of entertaining anyone. If you ever get bored please show all kind of respect to the person going through this challenge. First of all i'll be reciting the rules corresponding to each day according to that challenge: Day 01  - A picture of yourself with fifteen facts. Day 02  - A picture of you and the person you have been close with recently. Day 03  - A picture of the cast from your favorite show. Day 04  - A picture of your night. Day 05 - A picture of one ...

Rushing from the Poetry night in one of Mina's old alleys to the Safadi Cultural Center in downtown, we thought we'd missed on the most extraordinary part of the Soufi Dance Concert ever since we were 40 minutes late. The auditorium was amazingly FULL, all booked. Some VIP personnel were filling the first two rows and photographers (both photo and video) were filling the stair steps, one of them was a friend I recognized instantly. I was kind of stuck in a corner due to the amount angles being covered by all the video cameras recording the concert, but a damn excellent corner it was! I'll leave you with the photos.