Yis3ed Saba7ak from Jerash

It’s been one hell of a day!! I am sooo tired I can barely keep my eyes open, but I just want to write a bit before I go to sleep!!! Mom woke me up at 7:30 to drive my sister Rasha to Fastlink, because her friend told her that there’s something over there for the Tawjihi ‘awa2el’ at 8:30… (my parents recently discovered the blessing of having someone else be the chauffeur!!) We got there on time, only to discover that they’re taking them to Yis3ed Saba7ak (Jordan’s Friday morning show), which by chance happened to be broadcast from the South Amphitheatre at Jerash today!!! We got in the bus (yes the sister was allowed to go with her ) and enjoyed the one hour drive up north… except for the fact that everyone was too silent and there was no good music available!

I wanted to bang my head against the wall for not having a camera with me!! So now we’ll have to do with some descriptive writing (I’m not sure my brain is functioning right at this moment for such a task!) Aaaaakh there was so much I wanted to capture by camera!

We got there at 9:30, and the place was all set up for the show! They took the students aside and then asked all the parents and those accompanying to sit on the auditorium… UNDER THE SUN!!! I found myself a corner in the shade in a strategic location close to the stage and the entrance, one security guy tried to use some authority in getting me to sit with everyone else… but I stayed where I was They soon got the students to sit on the auditorium too, UNDER THE SUN!!! and left them there for TWO HOURS while the different sections of the show were carried out, leaving the tawjihi part till the very end!!

Let me tell you, I really respected Fastlink for their quick action in honoring top students and their involvement in the local community and the new education process and learning initiatives… they had everything set up nicely today! BUT… it was so frustrating to see the chaotic, unorganized, unprofessional way JTV works!!! The directing of today’s Yis3ed Saba7ak was horrible… first of all, leaving all those people under the sun for God knows what purpose was unspeakable, and on top of that, you had a totally meaningless way of jumping between themes and locations… they talk about something, then interrupt and go to someone reporting from some resort, then cut him off and return to the previous issue, then cut it off and go back to something new, which they don’t continue, to go back to issue one!!! OK I understand today was not like every other shooting at the studio, but they should’ve been prepared!!! Then, when I saw the show I was horrified at the sight of wires from a different camera dangling in the middle of the screen, and the totally unprofessional camera movement and transitions… Oh and worst of all, when they got the students to cut the cake, it was a completely blank moment, NO MUSIC, no background effects, nothing!!! It fell completely flat!

I have to say though, I absolutely loved the new presenter (I don’t know how new since I don’t watch regularly!!) The ones I used to see were just too fake and unnatural and lacking of wit… but this person; Rana Sultan, was wonderfully natural and witty, plus very elegant and with a lovely spirit!!! It’s such a shame to have such good capability in that weak and out-dated work setting. A show like Yis3ed Saba7ak has incredible potential but it needs a complete overhaul, and people with a fresh outlook and professional know-how to revive it.

Having said that, I must say that it was a very interesting four-hour trip! Seeing the scouts with their wonderful spirit and music, the young people from the higher Council for youth, girls from a local youth center, the Turkish dance group, and all the tourist groups who just happened to be there and got excited to see our national television in a live show (I counted four different groups, from Italy, Spain, Mexico, and France, and I felt so happy and proud)! Also, big Cheers to the people from the General Defense forces who were keeping an eye on the entire place and looking after order and security

Just to let you know, I took Rasha for a quick shopping tour afterwards (for some urgent stuff), then to the hair dresser’s (where we got delayed for an hour!!), then back home to be there for the nonstop flow of guests, including relatives I haven’t seen in ages, some of whom you realize are such wonderful people whom you’d love to see more often… I’m exhausted but I really enjoyed all the 3aj2a now it’s off to sleep because tomorrow is going to be a full day but for different reasons and projects – which I’ll write about soon nshalla! Nighty

She is MY SIS :D

Yes people she is Rasha Ejeilat and she is MY SISTER!! I am soooooo proud and soooooo happy! Tonight has been crazy I am on such an adrenaline rush I don’t think I’ll sleep!

Guess why?!! Well… Rashroush got 98.4 and she is El-2oouuuuuuulah 3al mamlakeh yes you heard me; Number one in Jordan!! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!! It feels awesome!

The results were originally supposed to come out on Friday, but then yesterday the ministry of education announced that they will be out on the internet Wednesday after midnight (just think how irresponsible that is towards people’s previous plans and time)… then the Jordanian rumor mill started rolling early this morning and people said the results will be available at 6:00 PM – which they were not!!! Probably someone had a contact at the ministry, got their result, and started honking all around town… causing stress and more rumors and chaos!! I took Rasha for a drive to the “wakalat street” in Sweifieh to get away from home and the constant phone calls from people asking if we know anything yet!! She was very nonchalant about it and we enjoyed a delicious coffee in the beautiful weather…

We got home at around 8:30, and at 9:00 the result was confirmed, it was just AMAZING!! so much 3aj2a all of a sudden, it’s beautiful when it exceeds the expectations we all headed to her school, who had planned a wonderful on-the-spot party for everyone with a DJ and knafeh and all… it was loads of fun, and continued at home with all the family, uncles, aunts and cousins!! Phones and mobiles wouldn’t stop ringing, we had a great show at the entrance with an air honk and a tableh and everything, oh and little fire works (no gun fire, we’re not that type of family thank God!!)

Then off to a drive around Amman, which again was a BLAST… up to the point when we got a driving ticket because my cousins were sitting out the car window! They tried talking the officer out of it, but I’m pleased to say that he wouldn’t budge, the law is the law… yeah we deserved it, but it was great fun nonetheless

I am sooooo happy

Enjoy the pics!

Nabil Sawalha’s Mansaf Trail, and Laughter Clubs!

This evening we went to Nabil Sawalha’s new one-man comedy “The Mansaf Trail from Amman to Ramallah”, which was presented on the Royal Film Commission’s terrace before its official opening at Nabil’s theatre in Jabal Amman this week. It was part of the RFC’s “Summer, Stars and Cinema” Series, where they host an artistic or cultural event every Sunday on the beautiful terrace overlooking old Amman (the picture is a poor attempt to show it, since I still don’t know how to make the most of my camera’s potential!!) So far the series included a performance by local band INK, a screening of short films from International Film Schools, a screening of short Jordanian films, and tonight’s play – which was a lot of fun and a good laugh!!

It’s basically about this retired Jordanian man, married to a Palestinian, who tells the story of his life with all the ‘nakad’, sons and daughters, the Italian daughter-in-law, the Syrian daughter-in-law, his 17-year-old son with all the piercing, the grandchildren, the government, Cholesterol, high blood pressure, his love affair with Mansaf… and his encounter with death after a heart attack!!

It was all drawn out of everyday life and culture, and some parts were really funny!! Add to that the nice audience and a night of Amman’s perfect summer weather, and you get a very pleasant entertainment!! After the show Nabil talked to the audience about comedy, the development of this work, the use of spoken language and the importance of keeping a natural tone as opposed to the traditional over-dramatic Arabic, and most importantly, he spoke a lot about laughter, its therapeutic effects, and the positive attitude.

He recently set up his theatre in Jabal Amman where he’s planning to discover young talents and organize drama, comedy, and script-writing courses! He also wants to set up a Laughter Club, modeled after the one he visited in India, where this idea originated. He talked about laughter as a great breathing exercise; it creates what is known as internal jogging in the body, it stimulates the production of endorphins in the brain which work as natural pain killers and alleviate depression!

Some of the goals of these laughter clubs are:

. To create awareness of new techniques of therapeutic laughter all over the world, by setting up Laughter Clubs and imparting practical training in various techniques of laughter. Thus, we can help to cultivate the spirit of laughter by understanding ways and means of sensible living and putting them into practice through laughter.

· To maintain a website as the international clearinghouse for information, ideas, and activities of interest and importance to the laughter movement.

· To publish books, manuals, newsletters, videocassettes, CDs and other information on Laughter Therapy.

· To bring people of various countries together and promote events that bring everlasting peace through laughter.

· To disseminate accredited training around the world, and to develop models for advanced training using traditional educational methods as well as modern technological innovations, such as distance learning.

· To develop a cadre of competent, accredited trainers who will train and certify Laughter Leaders.

· To promote Laughter Clubs in public places that can be free and open to everyone.

· To promote the adoption of Laughter Clubs in every long-term care facility in the United States, as well as in schools, government, and workplaces, as an effective, reputable, professional program, on a fee-for-service basis wherever it is appropriate.

· To create a professional association for accredited Laughter Leaders and providers of therapeutic laughter programs, to enhance credibility, and spread the access to these methods around the world.

· To foster international conferences, meetings, and symposia on the therapeutic benefits of laughter, laughter methods, and to foster research and the sharing of research findings.
Via: World Laughter Tour

Very interesting, isn’t it?!

Again big Cheers to the RFC and the wonderful culture they’re spreading

Corporate Cushion, don’t get too comfy!!!

Via Subzero Blue, I have read this very interesting article that put into words most of what’s been lurking in my mind these past two weeks and the negative feelings I’ve been forming about corporate culture and the slavery to the corporation!!

I have only started my internship two weeks ago, so may be with time some of my opinions and feelings would change, but I just don’t see that right now… and I want to document it before I fall into a rut and start seeing it from the conventional angle!!

First of all, and I guess I’ve said this before… how come if you graduate, the only natural thing to do is to either start a job or be looking for one??? Why is it we’re made to feel that having a job is the natural flow of life?? Now of course expecting otherwise is too Utopian… I know I wouldn’t say No to a part-time job right now for example!!! But let me tell you, nothing is as beautiful as freelancing, as doing your own thing, as starting out a small business that could possibly grow to medium, full stop.

Yes I am just beginning to comprehend the practical meaning of the words, Establishment-free, creative break…

We are designed, weaned, trained from Day 1 to be productive members of society. And we are heavily guilted into believing that must involve some sort of droning repetitive pod-like dress-coded work for a larger corporate cause, a consumerist mechanism, a nice happy conglomerate.

Let me tell you a few of the things I hate about the corporation:
- I hate access cards… I hate how you have to use them to enter and how they don’t open all the departments because you’re not supposed to be where you’re not supposed to be!!

- I hate how the company has a proxy server blocking any web-based mail and any entertainment website because you’re not supposed to be wasting any second of precious work time!!

- I do not understand why those engineers stay at work till 10 or 11 PM, sometimes more, even though they’re not paid overtime!!! Yes they are dedicated hard workers, but why should they do this?? Don’t they have a life??? What about family, friends, other interests??

- I would love to have a more flexible and fluid schedule that this 8 to 5 work day? (not to mention that leaving at 5 is considered early, tsuk tsuk tsuk!!)

- I hate the desks, you know, the cubicles… it just feels sad when you enter any department and see those bright young minds glued behind desks in front of computers, stacked next to each other… like tiny moving parts in one big machine!!!

- I HATE THE ROUTINE!!!!

I guess these are my pre-mature, judgmental observations!! But do read the article, it is very well-written and thought provoking! I was tempted to quote so many paragraphs from it in here, but ended up wanting to just copy the whole thing… so check it out for yourself!!

‘Arabizi’… the phenomenon in Amman???

The screening at the RFC on Sunday was really great, a lot of people showed up, the weather was great, the films were quite interesting… and I personally had a wonderful time! One of the films was a documentary called “Arabizi” by Dalia Al-Kury, which explores the ‘phenomenon in Amman’ of young people using English with Arabic the whole time, and which poses a question on the future of Arabic as we once knew it! Most of the people watching related to it a lot… well I know I did, and it left me thinking seriously!!

I have talked about this before, but it’s troubling me again so I can’t help but repeat myself! One of the questions in ‘Arabizi’ was WHY? Why do some young people find it easier to express themselves in English?? Some said it’s a more versatile modern language compared to Arabic which is too dramatic and poetic… some said it’s part of the cultural and economic invasion of globalization (the over-used cliché, blame it on globalization, or the great conspiracy)! One old man condemned the fact that sciences are taught in English at our universities, and professors explain in Arabic, so this creates the duality in use of language!!

A young Jordanian who writes in the English-language magazine “Jordan Business” said that she doesn’t do it on purpose, and it’s not a matter of identity for her… but it was just that she had a choice of what language to use and English turned out to be more practical! She said she was never interested in reading Arabic books and that she read English stuff the whole time…

Ok so a lot of points were raised in this documentary, but the last conclusion was that as long as there are difficult economic conditions, as long as there is poverty around here, there would be no need to worry about pure Arabic language… because as one person put it, Arabizi would remain a small phenomenon among the affluent! Now I don’t quite agree with that… because the way you see it, young people everywhere are inserting English words in their sentences, regardless of where they hang out, what car they drive, or in what part of town they live… but of course there are different extents and perhaps in West Amman it’s more prevailing!!

I look at myself and I wonder when and how English became the language of my thoughts! Look at this blog, it never occurred to me before to have an Arabic blog… I could say the reason is that I love being able to communicate in a universal language, especially that I don’t have a pre-defined target audience and I love being able to reach out to different people in different places!! But it’s not just that!! I write in On Campus magazine, an English-language magazine by and for Jordanian youth… or at least a segment of Jordanian youth!!! I look at all the publications around, how many meaningful Arabic magazines of interest to youth are there??? (Layalina doesn’t count!!) There are more local magazines in English than in Arabic; “JO”, “Jordan Business”, “Living Well” (uuggghhh!!), “Couple’s Life” (bigger UUUUGGGGGHHH!!!), “Luxury”, “Eye”, “On Campus”… hmmmm, there’s probably more but those are the main ones!! I’m not gonna put all of them in the same category but some do seem to be targeting a certain style of people (obviously), and it’s probably those people who’d rather read it in English than Arabic!!

Uffff I don’t know… how many Jordanian blogs are there in Arabic??!! (I came across 2) not that there are that many Jordanian blogs to begin with (close to 40, not bad I guess )

I have been delaying the writing of this post because I knew that when I do, my next decision would be to start another blog in Arabic… I really have no idea how this would work!! I don’t know if I can really do such a thing “y3ni ma b3raf iza ana gadha” but I want to give it a go… if not for anyone, just for myself, because I’m confused, I’m embarrassed, and I don’t want to blame it on everyone and everything else… I don’t care if my Arabic writing doesn’t come out very expressive, this is an experiment I want to try!

None of this would change the energy and thoughts I put into this blog nor my plans for it, again, because I love the idea of crossing borders and overcoming the language barriers!! It’s just that Arabizi disturbed me a lot!! In the film two kids from the New English School in Amman said: “English Rocks!! Burn the Arabic Books!!!” The ‘Jordan Business’ writer said that if Arabic language materialized in front of her as a woman, she would give her a hug of sympathy, of pity… and tell her “ya maskeeneh!!!”
Sad isn’t it??

I wish I was 12!!

When was the last time I had a real decent 3-month summer holiday?? Well, right before I started university… 4 years ago!!! Since then, the longest holiday I had was the one month in September… I’m not sure it was a wise decision to always take summer semesters, I mean, sometimes you just want a couple of months offwhen you can have nothing to worry about and have all the time to read, swim, hang out, watch movies, develop your hobbies, perhaps get a fun part-time job… the list could go on and on!!

This summer I’m doing my internship (which every UJ engineering student has to do before graduation upon completion of 115 credit hours out of 150)! I started last week, in a telecom company (let’s not list names since I feel like talking about the work environment and stuff)!! I really related to Eman’s latest post, because with an 8 till 5 work day, there’s very little time and energy left to do all the things I was planning to do! I guess I should save all this talk for another post dedicated to my newly found opinions on corporate culture and slavery to the corporation!!!

So back to the main issue… a friend of mine who’s working with the Greater Amman Municipality on this kids summer camp sent me this poster, and I couldn’t help really admiring what they’re doing!! I mean, yes summer camps (day camps where kids do activities and then go back home) have become quite a trend and most schools have them… but this one from the Amaneh stands out with the spirit it’s attempting to instil in young kids! Just look at all those activities packed in 9 days; traditional baking, pottery, folkoric music… trips to Aqaba, the Dead Sea, Petra, Wadi Rum… visits to the Automobile exhibition, the Aviation Academy, the Police and Civil Defense, Royal Stables, the Parliament, Parachuting, and meeting the national football team!!! Now I cannot think of a more fun camp for children and a better way to introduce them to their country, their culture, and their heritage and make them proud of it…

Sometimes I miss the school summers when time meant very little since we had an abundance of it… it’s difficult to recall how it was spent exactly, but let me tell you; I don’t wish I could be 12 to have that again, I just wish I was 12 for this camp… wouldn’t you agree?

Jordan Magic (Part I)

During my last 5 years at school I used to spend 4 amazing days of every summer at a youth camp in a wonderful place called Jil3ad in Salt. It is absolutely gorgeous, I hadn’t been there in quite a long time, but on Friday we went to visit my little sister at camp, and I just remembered how much I love the peace and beauty of the place!

The road to Salt is beautiful; with lots of greenery and flower trees (I don’t know the name of that pink flower). The view of the mountains is breathtaking.

Some years ago we were visiting one of my sisters there and on our way back after dark we got lost. In the middle of the road there were two or three old men taking a night walk, and I loved how when we asked them for directions, they gave us a full description and then insisted that we drop by for a cup of tea. It was such a genuine invitation, and it reminded me of one of the things I adore about Jordan… the generosity, helpfulness and warmth of the people!

Hope you’ll enjoy the pics:

Note: I know that is no Lurpak cow, but I just loved the site of it

"Crossroads" Screening this Sunday!

Finally, our short film “Crossroads” is going to be screened at the Royal Film Commission this Sunday July 17th along with 4 other Jordanian shorts screened for the first time! I have to re-emphasize that the RFC’s terrace is an absolutely amazing place in Jabal Amman with a gorgeous view of the old town! You’ll get to enjoy Amman’s summer night weather along with free popcorn and ice-cream… and meet some of the filmmakers – Suhad Khatib, Mohammad Hushki, and Dalia Al-Kury! Unfortunately Amin is not here, so they’ve asked yours truly to say a few words and respond to potential questions as script writer!!!

The films to be screened are:

Beit ou Shajara (A House and a Tree) (2005): Suhad Khatib (9 minutes)

A little girl writes a letter to God about her experience with divorce. Suhad wrote this film after reading somewhere a couple of years ago that the divorce rate in Jordan is around 49%.

Arabizi (2005): Dalia Al Kury (25 minutes), documentary

“Arabizi” is the pop word for the language that consists of Arabic and English mixed together. With Arabizi becoming a more visible phenomenon amongst young affluent people in Jordan, the purity of the Arabic language is at stake. Latent tension and controversy between the various opinions is causing a few concerned heads to pause at the question: do we start to worry about preserving our language, and why?

Life…temporarily (2004): Mohammad Hushki (12 minutes) docu-drama

A young Jordanian goes to America. When he comes back his life goes into ‘temporary mode’ while he waits for another chance to go again to the ‘Land of Dreams. He came back, but his dreams stayed there.

Crossroads (2005): Amin Matalqa (11 minutes), drama

Shot in two days while Amin was visiting Jordan, Crossroads comes straight out of real life. It is about an upper class college student who tries to change the life of a poor boy who sells gum and tissues on the streets.

Suffi Suffi (Park the Car!) (2005): Amin Matalqa (7 minutes), comedy

An improvised comedy based on something that happens to every female in Amman: random guys (“zo3ran”) from the street volunteering to help show her how to park the car. The only problem, as the saying goes, is that too many cooks can burn the broth.

‘Crossroads’ and ‘Suffi Suffi’ were wonderfully edited by fellow blogger Laith Majali, so you can also check out his posts about that

I hope that those of you who are interested and in Amman will be able to make it!

Coffee Time, & an Interesting Blog I Found!

Today Roba and I finally went for our long-awaited cup of coffee at Coffee Time in Jabal Amman – my favorite part of town. “Coffee ‘n News” is the real name, but we’ll call it Coffee Time a very very nice place, cozy, with delicious coffee (we had a café Latte flavored with Chocolate mint, Yum!)

We talked and talked for like, two and a half hours… about society, culture, books, Jordan Planet, blogging, Amman, how much we hate negativity, siblings… you name it!!

One of the things that we brought up was the fact that the group of Jordanian bloggers is not really representative of Jordan! Most of us have similar social backgrounds, and though we have different opinions, we sort of represent the smaller segment of Jordan’s people!!

So tonight it was a very interesting coincidence for me to come across the blog of an American Peace Corps volunteer called Ryan who’s been living in Jordan for over a year now. Her blog is called “Journeys in Jordan” and it offers a completely different perspective on life here… one that most of us don’t really know!! She is stationed in a village near Wadi Mousa, and posts whenever she can get to an internet café. I spent the past two hours going through her archives and it was a different kind of read for me, a peak into the Jordan outside of city life… the way her Landlord acts as if he’s her father and probes and questions her whereabouts, the gender segregation, how people constantly want her to eat, how she can’t swim except with pants and a shirt, adapting to the culture… the way she views the local weddings, how she’s learning a lot about Islam and trying to explain to Americans that muslims are not responsible for the terror attacks and the whole 9/11 affair! During winter she freezes because there’s no central heating and there’s only one ‘Sobba’ which broke down.

She describes the total lack of respect for scheduling, marriage and women issues, shopping at the flea market and buying shirts for half a JD, how an American would think half the population here is gay because they have no problem holding hands and cuddling…

It’s interesting because there are no Jordanian bloggers writing from other parts of Jordan… most of us are either living in Amman or ex-pats (mostly in the US of A) -please correct me if I’m wrong! I guess it’s very eye-opening to have someone reflect on a completely different way of living… even more so as seen by a foreigner! “Journeys in Jordan” is definitely becoming a permanent link on my sidebar!

Oh, and let me tell you what’s even more interesting, I’ve wanted to write about Peace Corps volunteers and the great work they do for quite a while, since I met two of them last September when I was participating in a youth leadership program. They were being introduced to local NGO’s, I told them about our program and we had an interesting conversation throughout. I stayed in touch with one of them – Gilbert – since then. Turns out I had met Ryan with Gilbert over lunch a few months ago… what were the chances that I would accidentally come across her blog now???

I will still write that post about PC volunteers sometime in the near future, hopefully when the plan to go visit the youth center in Bal3ama works out!!

Say Cheeeeeese!!

I absolutely hate that stupid saying “al-da7ek bila sabab, min qillat el adab!!” (laughing for no reason is rudeness) How can they teach us that as kids?? How is the frown considered more dignified???!!

And they say people in Jordan don’t smile!! Look at this guy… at 11:30 PM, he’s doing his job most cheerfully with a radiating warm smile!

Hmmmm…to be honest, I don’t think he’s Jordanian!! But seriously now, are we a nation that doesn’t smile?! Are we ‘nikdeen’ like we’re labeled? Sometimes I think there’s some truth to that… look at all the places you go, the passports unit, the post office, the supermarket, or in the classroom…how often does the person in charge greet you with a smile?? A genuine smile?

My own personal explanation for it besides the general disrespect for laughter is that people are dissatisfied with their lives, and that they are very tied down trying to conform to society… many young people don’t get to study what they want at university, so they’re stuck with a major they’re not passionate about… and what happens afterwards? They get a job that they’re not really passionate about either, but they stick with it, and it becomes another thing that they HAVE to do rather than want to do! They wake up in the morning grumpy and barely dragging themselves out of bed… they count the hours till 5:00 and they count the days till Friday!! Then when the time comes to make a decision about their life partner, many young people are influenced by external factors and pressures, and in many cases this leads to them settling for something they’re not sure they want…

Quite often, we’re not honest about our feelings, we’re scared of going for what we want because it is a risky gamble and you don’t want someone telling you when you lose the bet “I told you so!!!” The voice of social norms rings louder than our personal gut feeling and instinct… and we just go with the flow, we convince ourselves with society’s ‘logic’, but in the end that leaves us bitter!!!

We had a great professor who once said “I want to see the sparkle in your eyes!” You have that sparkle in your eyes, and that big happy smile with which you greet every morning, when you have passion!! Don’t let anyone condemn passion and talk you through reason!!! I’m sure that everyone has something that makes them tick, sometimes it just takes them a little extra time and effort to discover it…

My mom would probably have a different interpretation for the smiling issue, she’d say it has something to do with the nature around us, like people in Lebanon – in her opinion – are more easy-going and cheerful because they live by the sea and have beautiful green nature and mountains!!!

I guess I could track other reasons for people’s cranky attitudes… but it would probably get down to the same root; people here live more for others than for themselves!! They spend more money on social obligations than treating themselves right – as an example!
(Now listen to me say ‘They’ like I’m an observer from a distant planet!!!)

I don’t claim to know why that falafel guy was smiling? But I can sure tell you he seemed to enjoy what he does, and I can also tell you that one way for people to loosen up is when they do something they really want to do!!

May be this whole thing about passion and social norms has nothing to do with smiling… may be it was just my excuse to bring up the topic!! Or may be I just wanted to post the dude’s pic because I love it… I don’t know! But from now on, I will be on the look out for cheerful smiling people in different walks of life, and I will try to figure out the explanation… NO! Hold on!! Why should there be an explanation?? Can’t a person just smile? Come on people, smile and laugh with all your hearts, laugh at the small things and the silly jokes, laugh at yourself… it’s good for your heart, and no it doesn’t cause wrinkles on your face!!! And IT SURE IS NOT “illet 2adab”!!!