"As we mark the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, we must remember that this Supreme Court decision not only protects a woman’s health and reproductive freedom, but also affirms a broader principle: that government should not intrude on private family matters. I remain committed to protecting a woman’s right to choose and this fundamental constitutional right. While this is a sensitive and often divisive issue—no matter what our views, we must stay united in our determination to prevent unintended pregnancies, support pregnant woman and mothers, reduce the need for abortion, encourage healthy relationships, and promote adoption. And as we remember this historic anniversary, we must also continue our efforts to ensure that our daughters have the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities as our sons to fulfill their dreams."

— President Obama’s statement on the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade (via barackobama)

(Source: theamericanprospect, via angelawublog)

5:38 pm  •  22 January 2012  •  5,736 notes

"If you’re twenty-two, physically fit, hungry to learn and be better, I urge you to travel— as far and as widely as possible. Sleep on floors if you have to. Find out how other people live and eat and cook. Learn from them— wherever you go."

— Anthony Bourdain (via natwongalong)

(Source: emotional-algebra, via kelseywong)

1:53 pm  •  18 January 2012  •  5,995 notes

i’ve got a little less than two days to prepare myself for a selection exam — four and a half hours consisting of writing, reading and listening comprehension. if i make it past the paper exam then i am to receive a call in a couple of weeks, during which the speaking portion will commence. if i make it past that too then i’d be presented with a golden opportunity: to move back to cairo and to (supposedly) perfect my arabic skills for one whole year — all expenses paid.

my professors believe in my potential; i know because they wrote what i’m sure were convincing letters on my behalf. at the risk of sounding conceited, i know i have potential too. yes yes it’d be a shame not to try my best for this, but as the date of the exam creeps closer and closer, i find myself filled with uncertainty. what if i don’t want to pick up and move again for another year? i’ll always want to travel but is it so strange to want to stay put for awhile? is it so banal of me to want to just grow up for a little bit?

what kind of rut is this and when will it end? or am i genuinely reverting back to a different type of life?

5:17 pm  •  16 January 2012

Happy Birthday to a man who not only changed America, but revolutionized our country with all good intentions.

“Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.“  -Martin Luther King, Jr.

(Source: congosquarebiz, via nosemittens)

3:18 pm  •  16 January 2012  •  16,527 notes

friendly correspondence reminds me that exactly one year ago i was roaming around beirut by myself, most usually in the rain but the majority of which spent inside coffeehouses and or on the corniche anywho. i just remembered this song, written by a canadian expat we had met randomly on the street. for some reason our standards of what’s socially acceptable and socially creepy are skewed when we are abroad, at least for myself — one night we went to his flat, where he showed us this song he had just written for new years 2011. one year later i’m thinking a lot of my time in beirut and this song.

well i am sick of this meaningless spending of my nights
2012 is here today
it’s amazing what comes to mind when you’re going to die
and i hope that you feel the same
hold my hand as we blow away
dress to impress and drink the night away

11:40 pm  •  6 January 2012  •  1 note

demented

6:27 pm  •  2 January 2012

happy new years eve! i love lavender.

6:14 pm  •  1 January 2012

i’m always wakin up
with something in my head
it’s six a.m.
and i’m in someone else’s bed

oh how i wish he was you

7:51 pm  •  27 December 2011

life is fantastic at the moment! :)

8:49 am  •  18 December 2011  •  1 note

nearly finished packing up my belongings — home in a little less than two days. seeing my room so bare made me wonder about all the times i’ve packed up and left in the past year. is this normal? going home scares me in that i always fear that i’ll get stuck there; true i’m probably still not a huge fan of morocco but it’s a very real fear of mine.

yesterday i went to the old souq in rabat to buy some things, and i suddenly felt all of the things that i first felt in cairo. for awhile i really thought that perhaps i had grown bored of the middle east or maybe just of traveling in general, but one year later i realized that i still love it all: the people, colors, cacophony of sounds, sights and smells. i like all of the inside jokes that i have with the teenager who works at the tiny grocery store beneath my flat, the fact that i can count five people named mohamed at just my school, the pointless chats with taxi drivers in my ridiculously formal classical arabic, so on and so forth. despite all of the feelings of being an alien sometimes, i can’t imagine not living the expatriate life in my near future.

it’s dumb that spent so much time counting down the days, but i’m glad i’m leaving on a positive (albeit a bit sad) note. don’t know when but i’ll be back — maybe not morocco but definitely somewhere in the arab world.

12:01 pm  •  3 December 2011