Crazy Cabo

Have you ever traveled to a place where every person from the moment you land in the airport looks you in the eyes and lies to you? Well, welcome to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico! A place that thrives off of tourism and timeshares, and offers beautiful beachfront resort vacations for incredibly low prices. (And we all know I'm the number one fan of the ocean)

As soon as you pass customs at the airport, dozens of people approach you in trying to sign you up for a timeshare presentation. Here, they will offer all kinds of activities at no charge in an effort to sign you up. From this moment on, be aware that every person you talk to until your last day will be telling you a different story, to the point where you don't know who works for who or who to believe anymore, including your hotel staff. The vouchers for the activities will be given to you, but the timeshare presentations are ruthless. Just keep in mind that it will take at least 3-4 hours of your day. 

However, once you pass all that your vacation will be amazing. You can indulge in unlimited exhilarating water activities or just relax by the ocean and enjoy the magnificent views. From jet skis to parasailing to banana boats...this is the place for it! 

All in all, Cabo is a great place for a quick getaway. It has beautiful beaches and nice all-inclusive resorts for great prices.

But, be careful because unfortunately too much fun can lead to this...

Until next time...Safe Travels! 

Happy New Year!

May the new year bring lots of love, peace and happiness to all. We all have so much to be grateful for. Time passes by so quickly that we should embrace every moment. So laugh often, give lots of love, breathe deep, practice peace, see the beauty in all situations, don't worry about the little things, and stop comparing. But if you must compare, compare your life to those who have less than you, rather than those who have more. Maya Angelou once said, "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." So, make your new years resolution to bring a smile to someone's face everyday. Wishing everyone a prosperous and healthy new year!

Where do we draw the line?

In the wake of the horrific act that occurred in Connecticut two days ago, words are beyond any explanation or grievance. How someone can do that is beyond fathom. What the parents of those innocent children who were killed are going through right now is something that no one should ever feel. Condolences and words will never suffice. May God give them strength and patience to survive each and every passing second, minute, hour, day. 

The reason I'm posting here today is because I read a something that intrigued me. It was a statement that some say Morgan Freeman made, while others say it was just a hoax and not really made by him. Regardless, I think it had some very important points. The statement tells people to turn off the news and remember the innocent lives lost. It criticizes the way the media outlets have been reporting the news. And that the shooter, and all other mass shooters, are treated like celebrities. Their name goes down and their picture goes up for making history, only to prompt the next person to top their act. It says, "Disturbed people who would otherwise just off themselves in their basements see the news and want to top it by doing something worse, and going out in a memorable way. Why a grade school? Why children? Because he'll be remembered as a horrible monster, instead of a sad nobody." 

It makes a lot of sense. We will always remember the Batman theater shooter because he kept being compared to Joker, giving him exactly what he wanted. Studying and working in media, this statement really affected me. I have always been intrigued with word usage in media and the the immense power it has. When a Muslim commits a horrific act, it's always labeled as "terrorism." But, when the same horrifying acts are committed by others, why is it that it always leads to a psychological disorder? We all know of the power of media, do we know the responsibility that comes with these little things like word usage and choosing what to report? 

The statement ends with, "You can help by forgetting you ever read this man's name, and remembering the name of at least one victim. You can help by donating to mental health research instead of pointing to gun control as the problem. You can help by turning off the news." Would that solve the problem? I don't think so. Turning off the news isn't the solution. However, I believe in changing the way news is delivered. Which is something that is more possible today than ever before, with digital journalism taking over mainstream news outlets. 

Inspirational Quote

"Talking with quiet confidence will always beat screaming with obvious insecurity." I don't know the source of this quote, but as soon as I read it, it touched my heart. It has so much meaning. I loved it and had to share it. Please reflect on it and share any thoughts...

Far out into the Ocean

Every time I see the beautiful Pacific Ocean in Malibu, my heart smiles. No matter what I'm feeling, no matter how hectic my day has been, no matter what my worries may be, I look at the ocean and I'm in awe.

Is there anything more beautiful? I think about the incredible world underneath, about the even more incredible world on the other side of the ocean, and suddenly I have the same feeling I get when I'm looking out my window in an airplane at all the little houses and lights. The feeling of how small my worries are in such a vast world.

If you've been following the news, something unimaginable happened in Ontario, Canada that has captivated so many. And quite a few people have asked me about it, so I decided to address it here. I'm talking about the honor killings that three members of an Afghan family were found guilty of for killing four female family members. I won't talk about the specific case, since it's available through any news site.

When I first heard about this story, I had the same reaction as everyone else, how is it humanly possible for someone to be able to commit such disgusting acts. I was horrified and in disbelief. I come from an Afghan family and have never come across any other Afghans that behave remotely close to these people. I am one of the happiest people on Earth.

The only message I would like to convey is that human beings are human beings. Put religion, race, gender, and all other forms of identification aside. In the end, we are all human beings. There are good human beings and bad human beings. One specific case, one horrifying story, does not represent the whole. We have to remember that news stories usually encompass the most dramatic cases. While the remaining 95% are not covered.

I remember the day in college when I chose to major in Journalism. Below is an excerpt from my thesis about that day, it's written in story form and it's a small part of a much larger memoir.

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October 7, 2001, the day when the United States officially invaded Afghanistan. I was a student at California State University, Northridge, at the time, majoring in computer science. One day I was sitting in Math class when a student next to me asked me where I was from.

“Afghanistan.”

Her eyes shot wide open as her eyebrows rose.

“But I was born here,” I said.

“Do you have family living in Afghanistan?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“Did they know ahead of time that 9/11 was going to happen?” she asked.

“What?” I responded. “What do you mean?” I didn’t know if I heard her correctly.

“Did they know that they were going to attack the United States?” she asked.

“No,” I told her. “They probably still don’t even know about it. In fact, they are wondering right now why airstrikes are killing them.”

I really thought a lot about why she asked a question like that. Where was she getting her information?

I have been asked a lot of questions about Afghanistan and Muslims my whole life, but this question did something to me. Something must be done, I thought to myself.

And only one answer came to mind: The news media.

That’s when I decided to change my major to journalism.

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One person, one act, one story cannot represent the whole picture. But, by learning from one another, by interacting with our community, we can slowly broaden the horizon.

Look far out into the Ocean...and your heart will smile.