Dusty Wyndow Blog

Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) I have no clue how far would the discussion take, or how long the back-and-forth arguments would last, trying to convince me that this is not a book to be considered among other books, such as novels or biographies, existential or philosophical literature. In fact this book is simply another perspective that goes way beyond the title, to the point that I can truly admit it (somewhat) never speaks about religion in the first place! The book is titled " The truth about Islam " and the author chose to caption the front page with the most amazing saying ever "A book that is 4000 years overdue" (4000, don't confuse it for 1400..) Why is this book my favorite? I saw myself inside, I say a complete projection of all what I wanted to say and all that I didn't know of. The fact that there's someone else who backs the things I kept my mind busy around in the last few year...

Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at (Read more about the 30-Day Challenge ) I've been struggling lately to recuperate some of my skills in French speaking. My years in College and in being an engineer afterwards were more than enough to make me forget probably more than 80% of my ability to generate full sentences and go further in conversations that go beyond salutes and shallow topics. For instance, read what happened with me when I went for an interview with a company partly french. Such incidents are humorous at the moment, but are in fact showing the trace of a major problem waiting to be fixed. PS: this is not the no.1 thing I'd love to be better at, this post was made totally for the sake of having fun. Main thing will remain a secret.

Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget. (Read more about the 30-Day Challenge )  Photo Courtesy of  Backpack Foodie Well, to tell you the truth, it's not the fear of heights exactly. It's simply an unfortunate mishap that happened once in the past and occasionally keeps chasing me till this day, and when it does come back, forget all about good night sleeping, starting from one to three consecutive nights. It happened during the year 2000, not sure about the exact date, but the main point's that my youngest brother was a toddler at the time. My mother was absent and I could not really tell how it all began.. [Heart skips a beat once again each time I remember..] All I recall was the same exact scene you're seeing up above, but imagine my hands stretched out holding a 18 months old toddler out the balcony from the 5th floor. I'd give the most precious thing I have if only I could forget that single memory that's still haunting me ...

Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel (Read more about the 30-Day Challenge ) Yes, my dream travel destination is Ljublijana, Slovenia, which should ring a bell for anyone who's already familiar with Paulo Coelho's "Veronika decides to die". There's this desire to relive the story, to stand in the middle of that town's center and look for the window where the whole story started at.

Day 19 - A picture of you when you were little. (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge )

Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity (Read more about the  30-Day Challenge ) Oh god, I get the craziest and ugliest goosebumps each time I see this photo or remember it in mind. In fact, I'm writing this without looking at my laptop. I don't know when or how this insecurity originated, but all I can remember is the fact that I CAN'T IMAGINE someone chewing on cardboard. Point a la ligne...

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...

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.

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...