A Star from Mosul

An Iraqi female studying for her PhD degree needs some Americans to answer a survery of about 13 questions. You only have to answer 5 questions though.

I wouldn't have published it if she wasn't so serious and needed help. And I would appreciate it if some of you would take the time to answer the questions.

The questions are about life in America. For anyone who wants to correct our ideas about life in America, or wants to help an Iraqi, please e-mail her at this address so she can send you the questions: dr.huda@yahoo.com

Please, I offered her my help, I would pretty much be embarrassed if she doesn't get any ;)

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to invite lovely persons like you to fill in this questionnnaire.

I am an Ph.D.student tackling a linguistic area.I do believe that your responses will lead me to the fruitful findings am dreaming of.
Please,try to stick to the instructions given there.

Here you are the conditions under which you would kindly fill up the questionnaire:

1.White American native speakers are only included in my study ;since their language is standard in U.S.A.
2.Children and teenagers are excluded.Old, middle-aged and young People are included .
3.Both sexes are included following (2) above.
4.people of different occupations are included.

I DO believe that you'll provide me with the data am after for my project...Last month,I got some copies from your citizens...Really ,they were so much kind to spend time in filling the copies up...Still,please try to notice that some questions were skipped,or may be forgotten ...No details in appropriate places...and the like.This causes a serious problem concerning my investigation.So ,please try to :
1.read the instructions carefully,
2.answer part -1- in detail,
3.give your responses in parts-2- &-3-without
skipping any;and
4.try to stick to the note in part-1-.
I know that am bothering you 'cause of the long questions.But,please try to know that this is the only means I have to pursue my study.Without your help,believe me everything is down...Um..Would you kindly be patient with a drowning person like me?Time flies and few months are left for me...

Am waiting for magical responses from you

BEST WISHES,
The Researcher

Another update from the researcher:

NO MATTER WHETHER BLACK OR WHITE;
WHAT MATTERS IS THE HEART AND
THE MIND
The Re searcher's Slogan

JUST A NOTE:
Hey...Well,I've heard some whispers here and there which really made me sad!!! No,never think in this way.Guys,am completely against racialism .The matter is simply that am tackling one linguistic aspect of the American culture ,and am after the standard English there.Since American populations is flavored with different nationalities and races ,this causes problems for me to verify my hypotheses .So, I have to stick to one group excluding others even white immigrants ...This is the whole story no more no less ....
The Researcher

I got my marks yesterday.. I was depressed, anxious and sick of waiting for 3 days for the long-awaited marks when I got the call. They didn't publish the results online as we were promised, I got them through a relative's neighbor.

My mobile didn't stop ringing last night. I had asked the girl who got me my marks to e-mail me our whole school's marks, and I made sure everyone I could contact knew their marks.

It was a big relief to get that call. What are my grades? I can't tell, it would be easy to track them down to my name once the pdf files get published online. But I can tell you that it is as good as I hoped, better than most of my friends too. It's around 97 (More or less, I 'm not telling), without adding French and the two extra marks that students who haven't failed last year at the final exams get.
I am happy and excited. I couldn't sleep last night (Thinking of one of my friend's grades and other stuff - BTW, N. If you're reading this, please SMS me and tell me you're Okay).

I heard dad's alarm clock ringing at 4:30 and I went and woke my parents up for the prayer (Which is a first, I'm usually dragged from bed to the prayer. This time however I wasn't asleep to be awakened), I was so energic.

After the prayer, I got to sleep for few minutes until I heard mom ululating; my cousin finally succeeded in his forth attempt. I could tell that mom was happier for him that for me, but why not, he finally did it.

In about 3 hours, mom woke me up to go to school to get my marks, written, from school, but I couldn't move.. not until I got a call from a classmate who wanted her grades. Then I SMSed our neighbor who rushed into the house ululating.. I was messed up, and I still can't believe I have been seen this messy! But she didn't seem to care, she was too happy to care.

Now dad and my older sister are trying to make sure that I do not want to go to Pharmacy college, by pushing me over and over :) My brother-in-law is desperately trying to change my mind into Pharmacy too.
My friends still can't believe I do not want to be a doctor, and so do most of the relatives.

Mom is scared that I'd follow my friends' steps and go to Medicine college like my older sister.. With all the pushing, I am starting to seriously think of considering other choices - other than engineering, but an engineer is all I wanted to be ever since I was convinced I couldn't be an astronaut, or that I can not win a Noble price unless I specialize in something.

I will pray that prayer my brother-in-law recommended hoping I'd come back to my senses.. It's supposed to lead my heart to the right choice (Pharmacy, my brother-in-law, my sister and my dad hope.. Engineering, mom hopes.. or Medicine, other relatives hope)..

But after all, the choice is mine.

I'm no sixth grader anymore! I DID IT.

The University of Mosul was founded on April 1, 1967 upon law No. 14 of that year, but the first steps of the University return to 1959 by establishing the College of Medicine, under the Ministry of Health

The University was founded to be a distinguished academic center of higher education in Mosul city and Iraq by graduating qualified people capable of meeting the needs of the country’s ambitious development plans, and assuming the leadership roles by providing them with up-to-date knowledge and advanced skills

Presently it offers accredited Bachelor, Master and Doctorate degrees in more than 100 scientific specializations. Above 80,000 students were graduated since the University was established to enter the professional world and effectively serve Iraq

Since its foundation, the University has always given a very high priority to the development of academic programs and curricula, responding to the needs of the society and keeping pace with international academic developments and trends while preserving the values, policies and strategies of the country.
Source: University of Mosul

Mom took me to the university yesterday, my cousin came with us to guide us through the college of Electronic engineering (Aka: The 2nd college of Engineering).

The college was founded in 2002, the building is therefore new. And I had a very good first impression. I certainly didn't feel like I was in Mosul. I wish I had a camera with me.

After taking a look at some of the classes, we visited the dean.
The dean is a good friend of my uncle, and he and the other professors who were at his room knew mom. We sat and I got to ask him some questions about what I shall study. I was very nervous and anxious, I really hope those professors would have forgotten me when they see me next time :)

I am hesitated on whether I should study Computer Engineering or Communication engineering. My heart wants Computer engineering, while my brain wants Communication. And I'm guessing the brain will win.

The exam results haven't been released yet, and I'm going crazy from waiting..

Technorati Tags: Mosul, Iraq, university

Hope things won't get worse for them.. Read about the Lebanese situation from the Lebanese bloggers themselves:

• http://lebanesebloggers.blogspot.com/
• http://www.lebanonheartblogs.blogspot.com/
• http://blog.itoot.net/archives/lebanese-crisis
• http://www.beirutbeltway.com/
• http://lebop.blogspot.com/
  

In her attempt to teach house managing, mom has decided to make me work for 2 hours a day. She usually makes me work less though.

I was supposed to clean some two dirty doors of our outside small kitchen (Which mom uses for frying and such) yesterday, it has a window at the top. When cleaning such things I spend ages to make the object look as new, so I decided to do a door today and the other tomorrow. The cleaning took a lot of time and I decided to clean the window from both sides of the door before continuing. I put a little table and stood on it, it was a good table, never broke even when dad stood on it. But, as soon as I put both my feet on it, it moved a bit, fell off the door step, broke, and left me aching. Head on the step, chest on the broken table and the rest on the kitchen's floor.

I shouted for mom, told her that I think I've broken something, but after getting some help, I managed to stand up. I broke nothing, fortunately, and the fall wasn't on my back or else it would've been much worse since I'm still recovering from the chair fall..
My chin hurts much, I could barely eat yesterday. I got a new scratch on my forehead (This'll make them 4), a scratch on my elbow, and my thigh hurts a lot when I lay on it. My glasses barely made it.

Dad wouldn't let me whine, saying it could've been much worse, being in a kitchen full of sharp instruments.

I woke up early today to go with mom to the Suq to buy me glasses, and a black purse for the university. The bridges were closed and so we came back.. I'm still dressed, waiting for the bridge to open. I can no longer be seen in public with these glasses.

I gave HNK her first 6th class Arabic lesson yesterday, took about 2 hours. I gave her grammar and literature homework, she also has an exam tomorrow. I'm a tough teacher :)

The final exams results haven't been announced yet, I'm still waiting.

This is my really small nephew, Ayman.

Ayman is crying, my older sister (Who ordered me to let him cry as he wants) is sleeping, Aya is watching cartoon and I'm working on my laptop.. We're all in the same room.

I'm going crazy..

I used to study hard, eat, watch TV and work a bit on the Internet (That is before the exams started and I stopped doing anything but study). In short, I was busy. I could barely see Aya and Ayman when they came and in the few minutes I spent on TV, I rarely watched any news.

Now, all of a sudden, I have nothing to do, two babies make me crazy all the time, and mom left me and went to Baghdad to say good bye to her sister (Raghda's mom), and I have so much time to think of the messy situation.

I wake up with a bad headache every morning, because of both the hot weather and Ayman's crying.

I am reading the hobbit (The very necessary beginning of the Lord of the rings), that's the only thing that I planned for and actually did. I need to do some sport, I have gained about 3 kiols during the exams, and I'm afraid I'm gonna lose control over it. But I can't do sports. I've fallen with my chair backwords the morning of the mathematics exam and I'm still not completely recovered. I want to improve my use of Visual Basic, and there's also this new Iraqi computer magazine that I am beginnig to like. But, I can not really leave my sister with the babies and go read.

Now I really want to go upstairs and get my room cleaned up, which is something I haven't done for ages, but I can't leave Aya here since last time I left her here, she really messed up.

Now who wants to be me?

I can't wait for the results, then choosing the university, then going to university. I admit, I have many things to look for this year.. But my headache is not allowing me to dream much.

Okay, now my sister is awake, and Aya is falling asleep.. I guess it's my chance to go clean up my room, and maybe sleep a bit too.. Bye

Sooo.. What do you think? Any suggestions?

Next move is to edit and spell-check some of the old posts.