أنا أول من تنبأ بالثورة يا ولاد ال...!!!

I just got this message from a teacher at my school:


"Mona, I haven't seen you for soooo! long but you have been in my thoughts often. During the revolution I remembered that you predicted it would happen in your book review of "A Tale of Two Cities". I always felt that you would make a difference in the world and it looks like you are on the way to do so, Kindest regards, Susan."


I honestly had no recollection of that whatsoever! :D So I dug the report out, here's what the closing paragraph turned out to be:


"I think that at the rate Egypt is moving now, in a matter of less than a century, a revolution could evolve. And not only Egypt; the economic crisis has affected all other countries in the world. If no real, rapid major reforms are made now to the entire economic and political system/body, then I believe we are heading towards another revolution. I advise everyone to read this book, for it may be –in any way- an alarm of a glimpse to the future. And hopefully, they would be urged to do something, anything. After all, history does repeat itself."


Note: Ms. Susan was never my teacher; she just liked reading my essays, and I got an A+ for this report :)

مؤامرة وزارة التعليم العالي ضد طلبة الشهادات المعادلة

Found this article yesterday; I had written it last year... Tele3t kwayesa aho :D

توجهت لدفع رسوم الكلية (المصاريف)، ففوجئت بمدام نادية تطالبني ب3000 جنيه غير ال(177,5) جنيه الرسوم الأساسية. سألتها فردت "ما انتي شهادة معادلة!" و كان هذا قرار مجلس الجامعة رقم (373) المنعقد بتاريخ 27/4/2010 "بشأن تحصيل رسوم إلتحاق الطلاب الحاصلين على الشهادات المعادلة (الأجنبية-العربية) بواقع (3000) جنيه للطلاب الملتحقين بالكليات العملية، (1500) للطلاب الملتحقين بالكليات النظرية على أن تخصص هذه المبالغ لتطوير العملية التعليمية و تحصل لحساب صندوق رفع كفاءة الخدمات التعليمية بدءاً من العام الدراسي 2009/2010". نعم؟؟ لدي أربعة أسئلة: 1- ليست هذه السنة الأولى لي بالكلية; أليس بالأحرى  أن تحصل "رسوم الإتحاق" من الطلبة المتقدمين للإتحاق؟ أم أنهم رأوا أن 5% (و هي النسبة المسموح بها لطلبة الشهاهدات المعادلة من إجمالي عدد الطلبة) من طلبة سنة الفراغ ليسوا كافيين لإشباع نهمهم؟ 2- لماذا تحصل "الرسوم" من طلبة الشهادات المعادلة فقط؟ هل سنطور نحن فقط" العملية التعليمية التي لا يسمح لنا إلا بالمشاركة بها بنسبة 5%؟! 3- لماذا تحصل أصلاً "رسوم تطوير العملية التعليمية" من الطلبة؟ فلينظروا للمليارات التي أهدرها رئيس المجلس الحكومي على خططه الذكية، أو إلى الضرائب المحصلة من كل فئات الشعب التي يهدرها نوابه على عمليات شفط الدهون و تقليم الحواجب، أو ال58.7 مليار جنيه دخول و أرباح العام الماضي من الضرائب التي عاد أكثر من نصفها إلى هيئة البترول و الشريك الأجنبي معها*؟ 4- فلتحدد وزارة التعليم العالي موقفها: هل التعليم مجاني ولا لأ؟

*(الأرقام عن جريدة الدستور عدد 1 أكتوبر 2010)

SCAF Sex Call

    I have many phone stalkers. I found the best way to deal with them is to answer the call and just leave the phone. This way they'll technically be paying you to ignore them :) Sometimes when I'm bored I'm curious to listen to what they're saying: sometimes they're dirty-mouthed sick freaks, but mostly they just blabber empty-mouthed desperate words. Sometimes they say they threaten me saying they're state security, sometimes they play recorded music or songs. Sometimes they actually sing! And I remember one actually reading me poetry...

    It's just this morning that I related: we're yelling our lungs out in vacuum. They can let us chant with their toppling, demonstrate against their torture, blog and curse at their monstrosities, make songs and movies that we imagine will expose them, sit in fasting in June in the middle of Tahrir square... But they don't even care to sometimes listen to what we have to say, as opposed to me. فاتحين السكة وسايبيننا نبؤ.

Ahmed Abou El Ela

        If you only know one thing about me, it would probably be that I hate kids. All of them. Ever since my first sit-in- the Shafik sit-in (25 Feb - 9 March) street children have been sitting-in with us. I first met Ahmed Abou El Ela during this sit-in. After it was dispersed I honestly didn't even think of him, was surprised to actually meet him at the #Jul8 sit-in. Nazly had started #TahrirSchool at the square and Ahmed was a student there. Ahmed likes to draw. One day during this last sit-in, he drew a line down the middle of the paper, and drew some stick people with a house behind them on one side. On the other side he drew a female stick person with a house behind her, and a male stick person with a house behind him. He explained that the male and female stick people were married and that the few stick people on the other side were their children. I asked him: "Shouldn't the parents and kids be living together?" He said: "No." I hated every last inconsiderate bit of myself. Ahmed took my phone and took a photo of the couple. Ever since I had developed a non-hate relationship with Ahmed. According to Ahmed, his father is a shoe-wiper at Kobri El Khashab and his mother sells vegetables. Ahmed's been missing since the sit-in was dispersed on Monday, August 1st. 

Ahmed with Leil, Lobna and Rasha in front of tent, by Lilian Wagdy

He wrote his name in my notebook

 

23 May 2011 يوم نقد المجلس الأعلى للقوات المسلحة #NoSCAF

This is my first Vlog. I had done it hurriedly as a contribution to the 23rd, thought I had to do something!  I wasn't exactly proud of it; until the demo in front of C28 on the 26th of May when Ganzeer, Kuta & Nadim got arrested and a stranger came up to me and asked "What's your name?" and I paused puzzled, then said "Mona El Sabbahy...?" Then he said "انتي بتاعة الفيديو؟" And so I was like "... Yeah...?" which was when he smiled and said "Ana Loai ******. Well done, well done, WELL done." And shook my hand :)

My First Steps Into The Ugly World Of Grown-Ups

Today I was physically sexually harassed for the first time. I did not do anything. At first I didn't even notice. I hadn't once thought that it would happen to me. Then I thought it was my fault. Then I decided I won't tell anyone, because I was ashamed. I was angry. Now I was angry with myself. And him and all the other people on the bus. Then I thought. When I got off the bus I decided I won't be angry. I will tell everyone. I will tell everyone that it happened to me and that I didn't do anything. But I will also tell them that next time it won't go unnoticed. علشان أنا بتاعة نفسي مش بتاعة حد.

"Welcome to the ugly world of grown ups.."

                              -Hala Omar, my godmother

Cairo, 2009

Saturday March 19th

I am 18 years old. Geddo is 84 years old. Today we both voted for the first time ever.