McDonald's Double Cheeseburger, but I am a confirmed pescatarian, so I wouldn't eat that anymore. Tough Love or Soft Love?

Happy Birthday Bob, may your special day be filled with spontaneous bursts of laughter and butterflies and candy and uneasy yet intimate talks with family and healthy re-evaluation of your life and lots of affordable happiness. Oh yeah and may you never find yourself glued to a chair by the office bully. Have a good one.

Happy (belated) Birthday Psycho Sue, hope you had a good one. And no one should be allowed to deduct years from their age until they're well over 40.

I'm going to be there too

^^Yeah, it does seem too good to be true. I just hope it doesn't get worse. I truly hope Diamante gets better and that those who committed this crime are brought to justice, in this life and the hereafter. God, I hope she's okay.

I spend way too much money on magazines. Sometimes I live on bread and water just to afford these magazines. These are the ones I read every month/week: - New Statesman - Time - Empire - Total Film - Cosmo - Company - .Net And I sometimes buy Glamour and Vanity Fair. I used to buy Empire for about £7 when I'm on holiday (I think it's even more expensive in Dubai)

Alhamdu lillah that most of you are are okay. I was on my way to central london to go shopping when I was delayed by some family matter. I feel positively nauseous at the idea of someone doing this in the name of Islam. I just hope not many children were hurt. I do fear a backlash against muslims now. More from the general public than the government/police. I especially fear for those muslims who live in areas with large amount of BNP voters like Barking. I dare not imagine the effect this will have on the number of BNP memberships. I live in an area tbat's currently infested with chavs and yobs who always had a thing against muslims, and there are many Somali/muslim businesses here who could be vunerable to attacks and abuse. Though I pray for the innocent muslims and non-muslims caught in these horrendous attacks, I am also worried for the Somali community and the danger they might face. Guys, I truly blv Ilaahay is on my side. I missed getting on the piccadilly line by mere minutes (I was running late...imagine getting stuck there). I took a cab instead thinking it was my station only Athena masha allah you're so lucky for missing train. I can imagine all the people who were cursing the buses for not getting them to the station on time are now secretly thanking the shoddy london bus service. For those still stuck in central london, I pray for your safe journey.

Originally posted by Nomadic_Princess: Wow someone else who knows Athlete. P.S Dont u just love Joel Potts voice. Wow, that's what I was thinking! None of my friends like them, most of them haven't even heard of Athlete (weird, considering their success). Yeah, he does have a great voice and the first album was brilliant. Gosh, maybe we could all go one day and see them live or something.

Originally posted by Athena: ^ I know its bad pic and even unclear.... but.... He is just a beautiful man. I dont think I heard or understood or even if it really mattered what he said. The fact that he was there was good enough. Oooh, how lucky you are to breathe the same air as Brad Pitt. I bet the trees in Hyde Park looked a little prettier after basking in his presence.

On a different note, Live 8 must have been the greatest concert ever, I seriously envy all those who managed to get there, you lucky buggers. I was listening to Live 8 on tv and radio while at work, and it sounded awesome. I have to admit I wasn't too bothered about Live 8, I thought it would have a line-up of those typical lousy popstars who degraded their way up the charts through tv talent-contests. Boy how wrong I was, what a line-up, it only every band I ever liked. How amazing was U2??????!!! I got goosebumps just listening to that. And Razorlight, my current favorite new band, they were awesome. I can't believe I didn't make any effort to get the tickets, if I had known who would be performing, I would have gladly robbed a bank to get my hands on a £600 ticket.

I'm not really sure a concert will move the world leaders to commit to any drastic policy change. Take the example of the Iraqi war, they held the biggest anti-war demonstration in Britain's history and the world's opposition to this war was overwhelming. Yet it took a single meeting to override the wishes of millions of people. Those demonstrations across the world didn't affect anything, it didn't alter a single item on Blair's agenda. In the past, not many leaders in a democracy would oppose their own people for fear repraisals at the next election, Often they were criticised for caring too much about public opinion. However, after it was announced that Britain and US would go to war against Iraq, I realised we live in a world where public opinion doesn't matter, and that today's leaders are confident that we are powerless to stop them. You know why? Because as passionate as we are about fad subjects, we also have a very short memory span. That's why world leaders will never commit any serious effort to help Africa, because they know we won't care in a couple of months. So they'll look sad at the pictures of starving children, add a little more to the paltry aid already given to dictators and wait this fad out. Bush already said that he would always put US interests first (as if he ever did anything else), and therefor we'll never get anything done in Africa. To eradicate poverty is NOT in US interests, because the efforts demanded of US economic policy would be much more than the financial rewards. So this will never happen. I think Africa is on its own, but I also do think that Africa can build the foundations to get rid of poverty, it is within their power, but do we have any leaders who will take that responsibility and put their country first?

I would say always follow your mind, your heart is a useless traiterous thing. Your heart doesn't have your best interests in mind, your heart doesn't care about your well-being, the only thing your heart wants is instant gratification of whatever useless desire it holds. Hearts are like spoilt petulant children: I want I want I want I want and damn the consequences, damn my long-term happiness, damn my well-being, damn all. Listening to your heart is like listening to the junkie inside of you who wants a quick fix. It will tell you anything you want to hear, as long as it gets its endorphin fix. Your mind is your real friend, because it tells what need to hear but don't want to.

I would say get married, because if it doesn't work out, you're still young enough to try again and the bitter lesson won't take too much out of you. Like Ofleh said, your stock will still trading high. You might want to put off having kids until you are stable and able to provide for them. NEVER sacrifice your education for anything though, if necessary, put it in your marriage-contract so your education cannot be compromised.

I'd like to know if there is a contact address or money transfer agency where I can send money. Also, what will the money be spent on (fare, medical costs etc?), how much is needed (minimum) and what plans are there to move the child to another country/hospital? I want to tell some people about this and it helps if I have more information.

Originally posted by mizz_S.lander: that does not mean that we have the right to say all killers are bad and they should all be punished , it is not our place or duty to do so, Mizz_S.lander I agree with you mostly. A justice system needs to be backed up by a solid government, one without the other leaves too much room for vigilantes. However, most of us live in countries with stable governments and laws which must be adhered to. I think the point most people here were making is that these 'killers' should not walk around freely and more importantly that we should not keep silent when we see one, as we cannot ignore the laws of the country. You are right to say we shouldn't judge people randomly, but though the final and most valid judgement lies with Allah SWT alone, we can make provisions in this world to safeguard our societies and set an example for everyone to follow. That's why we use trials, judges, juries, evidence, lawyers etc., and anyone suspected of murder (based on valid evidence) should be put through a trial. If convicted, they should be punished. Sure we don't know the circumstances under which someone was compelled to kill, but that doesn't mean we as a society don't have the right to question a person about these circumstances. I suppose the real problem is we cannot ever be certain if someone commited crimes during the war, because in the mad chaos of war much evidence (i.e witnesses) could be lost.

You know, to be honest, most Somalis I know are racist. I have seen pious educated people who know on a superficial level that all people are created equally and should therefor be respected equally. But every so often, they will be prompted to display these deep-rooted irrationally racist beliefs which are contrary to the principles - I know - they adhere to. My aunt is an educated progressive woman, but when faced with Chinese people, she will refer back to the belief of her generation that the Chinese are a people of witchcraft and who patiently wait for an opportunity to stuff poisenous snakes and dogs' testictles down your throat. Also people constantly refer to black African people as adoon, which pisses me off to no end. I mean, whose adoon do they suggest they are? Aren't we all adoons, to Allah SWT anyway? To their credit, when I correct them, Somali people tend to agree with me and they will acknowledge that racism has no place in Islam. The problem is that they tend revert back to the racist beliefs instilled in them by their parents and society, whenever their Islamic principles become less guarded.

Those are really great images Ma'Xamed, I never use vectors for anything other than abstract design stuff. Amazing what you can do with them. I'm still getting to grips with the vector functionality in Photoshop, they are more complicated than the simple ones in Paint Shop Pro. I'm planning on getting Illustrator soon (and a Wacom tablet while am at it), does anyone know if it is any more difficult to learn than Photoshop?

Originally posted by Siciid-yare: Salam I thought i was the only soul on this planet who's annoyed to death by all those flashing and sliding. I now give you the grand all-somali-pages-design-template : code: <table> <tr> <td>mio. of links</td> <td>some content</td> <td>mio. of flashing stuff</td> Copyright (1990) All rights reserved </tr> </table and thats universal all the way :rolleyes: LOL, that's so true. It does seem about filling the spaces. It seems a lot of webmasters subscribe to the mid-90s theory that people will be so mesmerised by flashing gifs that they will be too blinded to go to another site. It seems that a lot of Somali sites have good content, even if they don't archive them. But they're somewhat lacking when it comes to design. The more simple the layout, the longer I tend to stay. Look at this. SomaliNet Of all the sites listed here, this one is the easiest on the eyes. Even though I don't like to scroll down so far to find the main section links. Also, numerous links tend to put me off. There's also this tendency to put most of the content on the front page, when a simple link redirecting them to a different section would do. That's what sub-menus are for after all. I believe the front page should be as simple as possible, with no more than five different sections (usually images and a little text leading to a different section) and a menu on the right side (or top). Anyway, it would be great if we could have a webdesign contest.

It always helps to have a really good friend you can take it out on and who will understand you don't really mean it. Also, I find playing Grand Theft Auto very helpful in releasing my anger in a harmless and legal way. You get to kill (mostly) unarmed pensioners and armed cops with chainsaws, machetes, knives or get to run them over with your sports car. If that doesn't help, nothing can.

Excellent topic Hibo. I'll also leave a list here anyway, on the off chance someone does qualify. Let's see, this is a small list of things that would get me really interested: - Geeks! I love them, the more awkward the better - Glasses are a plus! - I prefer science geeks over literature/art geeks (they are less pretentious). - Must love comic books. - Must like rock music (or rather, all kinds of music) - Must have (a little) chest hair. - But no back hair! - Must believe the aliens will come to get us one day. - Big hands are a plus! - Must know how to wink properly. - Ability to whistle a big big plus! - Videogame lover, but not too much. Must not be intimidated by life outside the television. - Ben & Jerry lover, and someone who is more than generous in his B&J gifts to me. - Must like his job, I wouldn't get along with someone who didn't love his job. Passion in the workplace is a plus. (but not towards co-workers). - A willingness to read books by Neil Gaiman. - Ability NOT to get jealous if I decide to run away with Neil Gaiman if the opportunity presents itself. - Must like foreign films, especially Hong Kong cinema. - Must be able to feel confident making silly noises and speaking in funny accents. - Ability to ignore any embarrassing mistakes I make, even if they involve a shopping center, unflattering positions and a banana peel. - Must like cats (or at least have the ability to pretend to like them to impress me). - Must NOT be fashion-concious! - Must NOT know the difference between a conditioner and a shampoo. - Must NEVER EVER wear tight shirts and must have the irrational fear that wearing a tight shirt will make one automatically GAY. - A healthy hate of all things gym-related is a plus. - Must refuse to dance, except when put under pressure by me. In such a situation, he must NEVER under any circumstances enjoy it. - Must include me in his budget, but it's okay if budget is really small. - Must know enough about computers to help me out. - Large DVD collection is a big plus! - Guys who insist on buying me roses/writing me serious poetry/serenading me are a big NO NO! - However, writing me really bad poetry is a big plus. (It has to rhyme though). - Restaurant = bad. Cooking for me = Good. - Must know the difference between you're and your. - Must believe in ghosts and be terrified by them. - Must enjoy running into walls for fun. - And finally, my dream-guy MUST have a healthy relationship with their shower.

You can't fault them for that WL, bandwidth theft is a serious problem. They end up paying for something that doesn't benefit their site at all. It is just a matter of respect. I've had people link directly to images from my page to a busy site, which caused my site to shut down. If everybody did that to avatarity, they too might have problems keeping up the servers. There are plenty of sites that allow you to direct link images. www.photobucket.com www.imageshack.us

This poll is ridiculous, I don't care about his age. I'm more interested in his height. Or the age he was when he first started walking. . . . . . . . . . . . It is these things that keep me awake at night. :eek:

I love knowing that should I ever find myself stranded somewhere late at night, I'd feel safe accepting help from a Somali person, even if he/she is a stranger. I love that Somali people would do anything in their power to help out a fellow Somali without expecting anything in return. I've seen this being done for those of clans the person usually hates. I like that all these tribal issues mean nothing to the individual when humanity is truly needed. I like that you can go to any Somali house at 3am and someone will whip up dinner with pleasure. Somali people have some truly great faults, but of all the people I have known or heard of, they are by far the most generous and no one understands the community spirit better than the Somali people. (Quruxleey, your post greatly overwhelmed me with patriotic sentiments ...must...recover...cynicism..ah..)

Originally posted by Pacifist: Am a big fan unfortunately haven't had time to see The revenge of the sith.... Looking forward to young Skywalker..... Damn you Xu you already confirmed my fear of Anakin's darkside.... :mad: Funny, you would have thought that Anakin being Darth Vader and all, would be all the confirmation you needed.

I thought it was great. I was a bit bothered by the silly dialogue, but then I remembered the dialogue in A New Hope, and then it felt easier to suspend my belief and just enjoy the film. ROTS was definitely superior to the other prequels, I was a little disappointed by Anakin's move to the dark side. I just thought it would take a lot more to turn him, but it happened so quickly. And the opening battle scene, HOW COOL WAS THAT???? I'm just glad it's all over, it was a fitting transistion to Episode I and it does nicely tie up the series.