All the Beirut news.

"The Dictator" is a play currently being performed in Beirut, Al-Madina theater.

Sometimes my mind becomes numb from constant exposure to conflicting brainwashing ideas. Can you please brainwash me one at a time?

Kill, kill, kill everything.

Kill the light falling on this page
like a false promise of warmth;
kill the news of a world in spiral.

Kill time, cruel time, ruthless time,
endless time, fleeting time, time
laying at your feet like a bored dog.

Kill hope, lazy hope, easy hope, hope peeking
like misguided blossoms in a snow storm.
Kill this, the need to reach out and touch,
say I am here, and you?

Kill that, the urge to call them, to hear them,
to assure them as only you want to be assured.
Kill it, kill it all, kill the want to live again, kill
the want to die, kill the want to be, to become.

Kill it and remain, not a reminder, just
a hollow shell mistaken for what was,

I miss blogging ;(

This is something I’ve always wanted to do. We see them all over the world, but no one bothers doing some for Lebanon. But, a Facebook status later, the famous Elia Msawwir and me found ourselves heading north early in the morning and took these shots of Jounieh’s gulf and shore. We’re planning to do many, many more. But, I’d like to also ask you guys to contribute so we can eventually create a mega-post of Then and Now! Also, feedback?

"Mastery of the economics of the supply chain is, however, only one of the reasons Jobs and Apple favored China. The central reason continued to be cheap labor that is disciplined by the state. What emerges in the Times account about Apple's practices is that, despite its protestations about being a socially responsible firm, Apple bargains hard, allowing its contractors "only the slimmest of profits". Thus, "suppliers often try to cut corners, replace expensive chemicals with less costly alternatives, or push their employees to work faster and longer".

If you apply the concept of probability to luck you will find that it simply does not apply. Luck is not random; it always falls on the wrong person. Luck is not a fair game. It is a game that only gives you the illusion that the likeliness that luck will happen to you is the same as everyone else. The longer you live, the more you could prove to yourself that if you are an unlucky person, the likeliness is that you will never become any luckier. You can hope, but hope is the weapon of the unlucky.

I passed by Lazarieh building in DownTown Beirut this morning and spotted what seems to be a clock tower getting built right next to St.Georges’ Maronite Cathedral.
I must say it’s quite impressive the number of churches and mosques we have in DownTown Beirut. There are at least 25 or 30 both combined.

Watch the commercial above and then watch the Najwa Karam music video below (gets interesting at 40seconds).

Thanks Pierre

In the mist
Yes, still in that northern region of the Beqaa Valley. So we are driving around, and suddenly in the mist, we see all these shapes popping up all over the plain. The area around el Qaa is teeming with ancient mud dwellings.

Found this in my wallet… Guess some dude was giving it to a stripper he likes?

Photography exhibition in support of SANAD
Dar el Mussawir and Mohannad al-Khatib are hosting a photography exhibition to support the work of SANAD, a non-profit NGO offering assistance and care to end-of-life patients and their families.
The exhibition features 50 beautiful photographs by Mohannad al-Khatib chronicling his travels around the world!
Opening: Friday February 3rd, 2012 at 5pm –               Dar el-Mussawir, Clemenceau, Beirut.               The exhibition will run until March 2nd, 2012.
All photographs will be on sale; and ALL PROCEEDS will go to SANAD to enable us to provide dignified end-of-life care to everyone who needs it.