Salaam Ilhaam...been a while. How u doing? I think 'Pepples' means that she logged on to SOL and found the Pepples nick already signed in...so she made use of it, the unscrupulous minx. 'Pebbles': Yes, what u did is treacherous...u should be hanged for your crime. :cool:

LoL...Just saw the other thread..thought I as seeing double for a mo.

To be a published author at that age is a fantastic feat. Manshallah. I hope more kids follow her example.

I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Flying still/caakifah on her recent marriage. May you have a long, prosperous marriage and lots of beautiful kids Insha'Allah. Hugs and kisses...luv ya! Someone bring out the xalwad n shaah!

Originally posted by Khayr: Salaamz, Most of you have put up Education as #1 and some of you indicated that by finishing university/college that you would be a role model for you siblings (family, brothers/sisters etc.) Thats very interesting! Now suppose you have a brother/sister and they don't pray or don't care too much for anything but money. You are trying to set an example for them, so you show them that the best way for them to go is to finish University/College ABOVE ALL ELSE. This point is drilled to them over and over again and ofcourse you pull out the hadith about 'seeking knowledge is obligatory'. Ofcourse, you don't ask what kind of KNOWLEDGE is OBLIGATORY and what isn't OBLIGATORY. LoL...cajaayib. You know what dear? I dont think that merits a response. I'm not even sure if I am capable of responding to it in a civilised manner, markaa I'll leave you to your campaign. Cawo...Thanx darling Raxmah, Idil, X-quizit... Tell you what...I think your all lovely. I'm glad to see so many of us experience the same things. Keep your heads up girls. Miz-U, LoL...Thanx hun. It feels good to know you appreciate ur older sisters' efforts and sacrifices.

Alla dadkanaa...haven't you heard of 'curiousity kills'? Oh, damn....ok then...I might as well take pity on u saddos. Both scenarios are too imbalanced...they dont work for me. I'm of the same mind as Sophist..I want 'mutual adoration' not a one-sided affair. There you go... Sure tweety...I'm up for a cuppa anytime I'A. Cawo...I will get you back.

No kiss n tell. I'm keeping my gob shut.

Ahem, Baashi...no, no objections from my side if I meet your criteria...throw any cute cuzs my way. For marriage it was adviced by Prophet SAW to get married at young age at the hadiith where he addressed the shabaab so If anyone wants to wait around till they are old and grey cant enjoy or contribute positively to any potential marriage romance then that is their perogative but I dont think the market looks kindly at old folks for verily the likelihood of conceiving children decreases with age and why do you people marry except to have children. Mujahid, You are right Mujahid. Marriage is very important and some ppl are very lucky in finding a partner they want to marry and settling down at a young age. I think this is something every girl dreams about secretly from when she turns 18 (or maybe even younger, I dont know). Laakiin walaalo, not everyone is that lucky. It takes a while for most ppl to find their intended partners, so what should a girl do in the meantime? Twiddle her thumbs and dream about cute, cuddly babies? or try to do something worthwile and meaningful in that time (whatever that may be)? Life doesnt wait around for anyone. Who knows how long it will take for you to find your calaf? At any one time, each of us has a hundred different things to do. So I ask, is it right to waste that time? Moreover, the idea that marriage and going to college/university are not compatible is just rubbish. Education and marriage are not mutually exclusive. Most of our mums completed their education while being both wives and mothers. Who says this generation cant do the same? Especially since cirmstances in the west make it a 100x easier than those in Somalia did decades ago. Moving on, some of us would like nothing better than to laze around at home and do nothing. Really, I would luv to have the opportunity to do that, but it doesn't exist for me and I'm sure its the same for a lot of other sistas. Some of us have the responsibility of setting an example for our younger siblings. Others may be the sole means of support for needy parents/siblings/relatives. Not many ppl have a choice when it comes to pursuing higher education. Their situations may not permit it. So, when a girl has the means and opportunity to do that, I think she should be encouraged rather than derailed. Personally, I didnt have the choice of not getting a degree, because if I didnt make the effort, my sisters definitely wouldnt. And that would be squarely on my head. Not only that but I have to work 5 times as hard just to smoothen the road for them and to make sure they follow. Two of my little sisters are in uni now (alxamdulilaah)...so the next step for me is to take up further study and keep going until I've reached my limits. Which isnt a problem because I know they have the potential to surpass my achievements, bless them. Thats what drives me, and thats why marriage isnt on my mind at the present. Anyways, what I'm trying to say is that each individual's situation is different and probably more complex than we imagine. It's not just a simple matter of getting married. All sorts of things come into it, therefore, I dont think it's fair to look down on or belittle the sistas who are working for more than one goal. But u know, at the end of the day, despite what choices we make or what routes we take, we'll only get whats destined for us by Allah...whether it exceeds or falls short of our aspirations. Look what you made me do now...I feel like crying.

I think the absolute worst is behind us, which is a good thing in my eyes. From this point on, Somalia can only improve. [EDIT] I had forgotten about the AIDS concern...that can definitely return us to hell in a short period of time. Ilaahay ha inaga qabto.

Originally posted by commonsense: Hi all, How about we get real and tell it like it is these days. 1. Oops get pregnant 2. Rush in getting married before belly gets big 3. Educating yourself how to navigate throught Welfare system 4. Make a career out of attending weddings, soo dhaweyn, sii dhoofid, shaash saar, kur, alla bari, afartan bax.... and any other excuse for party imaginable. Age 40+ Hehehehe... good to hav you back gal! My priorities 4 the next 1-3 yrs Insha'Allah: - Getting my frigging driving license...finally - Learning frigging french (its been my luck that every single job I've been interested in so far requires fluency in a European lang :mad: ) - Completing postgrad degree - Gaining relevant work exp. - Getting my TEFL certificate - Bagging THAT job - Paying off my loan What? None of the above are part of the options? Too bad, coz God willing, the next few years are all about my personal and professional development. Mind you, should Allah (SWT) in His graciousness throw a cute faarax my way, I shant complain. Age: NOYDB! (None of your damn business!)

OH MY GOD!!!!!!! Tana yaa soo qoday? Cawo...qumayo waaxid! Why couldn't you let sleeping dogs lie? :mad: Tahliil, caramel, Walaalayaal, this thread is from a long, long, looong time ago....and altho the situation may be a familiar one to many (who may want to discuss it further), it is ancient history for me personally.

N*Star...angry? who's angry? I'm not angry...just mildly vexed. :mad: :mad: Dawaco, ila soo gaadh the prozac pls...I've ran out of my stash n am suffering! Shaqsii... LoL..hardly.

Originally posted by somealien: i was watching a special yesterday that kind of refute your data on morocco. im saying though, its not equivalent to south africa, but its a growing concern there everyday... Of course....those figures in my previous post are only a snapshot of the estimated HIV/AIDS prevalence in Muslim countries at the end of 2001. The figures are probably very different today >> who knows, 2 years in pandemic terms could mean numbers tripling or quadrupling... Unfortunately, I wasnt able to find more recent continental figures for comparison...just a few here and there. I'll post (soon I'A) some more of the 2001 figures for sub-saharan and European countries for comparisons of the problem at that time. PS: Interestingly enough there were no available statistics on most Arab countries (S-Arabia, Syria, Libya, UAE). I'm not sure why.

Bulo & Qori xabaalan, Thanks girls. That cleared things up for me nicely.

^^ Thats a terrible thing to say dear. I'm with Liqaaye here. I'm not sure how a monetary value could be placed on centuries of hardship and suffering. Any figure would probably be too little, which makes the idea highly impracticle (no govt is going to cough up a lot of money). If however, the A-A community believes a few million/billion will repay the white-man's debt to them, well then its up to them.

Allah...thats not too nice. You should offer Gediid the cookies if he doesn't have them! "tell me as a woman, do women ever get it ????" Sometimes we do, most times we just dont give a damn.

Apologies for the delay... Eid mubarak to you all too. Libaax, LoL...Suspicious, aint ya? I had actually included Somali men with Muslim men, ok? By qolooyinka kale, I was refering to gaalada. Mujahid, No Ferero Roches for me?

You can find more statistics here to compare with the above countries. www.aidsandafrica.com

AIDS Statistics Estimated Number of Adults and Children living with HIV/AIDS, end of 2001 These estimates include all people with HIV, whether or not they have developed symptoms of AIDS, alive at the end of 2001. Jordan Adults & Children: <1000 Adults: 1000 Women: 150 Children : N/A Adult rate (%): <0.1 Libya Adults & Children: 7,000 Adults: 7,000 Women: 1,100 Children : N/S Adult rate (%): 0.2 YEMEN Adults & Children: 9,900 Adults: 9,900 Women: 1,500 Children : N/A Adult rate(%): 0.1 MOROCCO Adults & Children: 13,000 Adults: 13,000 Women: 2000 Children : N/A Adult rate (%): 0.1 SENEGAL Adults & Children: 27,000 Adults: 24,000 Women: 14,000 Children : 2,900 Adult rate (%): 0.5 MALAYSIA Adults & Children: 42,000 Adults: 41,000 Women: 11,000 Children : 770 Adult rate (%): 0.4 SOMALIA Adults & Children: 43,000 Adults: 43,000 Women: N/A Children : N/A Adult rate(%): 0.1 PAKISTAN Adults & Children: 78,000 Adults: 76,000 Women: 16,000 Children : 2,200 Adult rate (%): 0.1 MALI Adults & Children: 110,000 Adults: 100,000 Women: 54,000 Children : 13,000 Adult rate (%): 1.7 SUDAN Adults & Children:450,000 Adults: 410,000 Women: 230,000 Children : 30,000 Adult rate(%): 2.6 http://www.unaids.org/en/default.asp

Hibo, Thanx for the info...

I want nothing. Yes, you heard right...absolutely nothing. :mad:

Tweety...lovely poem. Lakkad...its about Muslim men and their difference compared to >>> qolooyinka kale. Geddit?

^^ yep...you are all too spoiled.

^^ and I bet it looks beautiful on ya. Flying...u gotta send me a pic once you do. :cool:

Hehehe...more like too many cuppas! Eid mubarak to you too Sue. And yes I had a lovely Eid, thanx for asking.