Islam is a great religion. Some Muslims are misunderstanding what this great religion is all about.

Some people here in Riyadh think they are practicing Islam in the correct way. I think they are extremists. They don’t know that, they know and deny it; I don’t care.

They think you are a true Muslim if you just do things their way. They will tell you to put on a short thobe and grow a long beard, because they think a Muslim should looks this way. What I know is that Islam is about what’s in your heart, and what you believe in. Islam never tells you to judge people by their clothes.

Here in Riyadh, you will be forced to pray, and all shops are forced to close their doors during the prayer time, whether you like it or not, and no matter you are Muslim or not. When prayer time comes, everybody should disappears. What I know, the Holy Quran says the good things are clear, and the bad things are clear, and there is no obligation in this religion.

What harm could occur if shops remain open during prayer time? They think nobody will pray! Can you believe this?! Let me just say a true Muslim would pray no matter what happens.

I know I’ve been pretty harsh on Saudis in the past months. This is just because I want Saudi Arabia to become a better country. So, believe me when I say I will pay credit when credit is due. After all, it is good to see anything good, besides oil, comes out of this country.

Two Saudi brothers started a company that uses the SMS technology to provide other companies with feedback from their customers. The idea sparkled in the minds of the Halwani brothers after a horrible service they got by a lazy waiter at a restaurant and there was nobody to complain to (I suppose they wrote it down on a piece of tissue!).

This new service will ensure the customer’s voice is reaching the customer service managers directly. In addition, the companies will be able to get rid of the suggestions boxes and all the works related to them (collecting, filtering, etc.).

When the STC offered the SMS for the first time here, it was HOT! HOT! HOT! Now, I rarely receive any fuNy or QT msgs! And as usual, we are years behind others. Saudi Arabia is one of the few countries left with no MMS services available. I can hear someone says “Why would you need MMS when camera phones are banned?” I know, and please don’t ask me about Wi-Fi spots… “What? Why-Fi? What the hell are you talking about?!”

I promised to review some books I’ve ordered, and here it comes. I finished reading The Weblog Handbook by Rebecca Blood few weeks ago, and I don’t know why it took me all that time to write this.

If you’ve been blogging for awhile (say six months), this book may not be the right choice for you. It is an ideal book for beginners and those who plan to start a blog but don’t know what to do and how to do it. For people like me who learned blogging by trial and error, this book could also be useful, but not as much as it could be for new bloggers.

It was a good reading, though. Rebecca Blood has a good style of writing and you won’t feel bored while you read this short book. I think this book could be a good gift for someone you think have the gift of writing and could make a good blogger.

I’m reading We’ve Got Blog now. I’ll write about it later.

The Book Fair, or The 10th Riyadh International Book Fair according to the university posters, will start on Tuesday. This is good news for reading maniacs like me, especially if I could get some banned books such as Turki Al-Hamad‘s triology “Atiaf Al-Azikka Al-Mahjoora.”

There is one problem. I don’t have enough money to buy books. After the summer vacation, all I have can hardly cover life basic (food, transportation…etc.). They always choose the worst timing for this event, and to add insult to injury, the fair will be much smaller than the last one.

I will try to manage this money thing, so don’t worry about me. But if anyone of you will be on Riyadh during this time, it will be a good idea to come and take a look. I’ll be there and maybe we could meet.

The Book Fair will be on 22/09-01/10/2004. The visit times will be from 0900-1400 and 1630-2200. The place: KSU main campus.

My uncle buried in the holy city of Qum, Iran, however, the real funeral was taking place here in Hassa. In fact, it was a great funeral for a great man. I was trying very hard not to cry in front of my cousin who lost his father. I almost done that, but when I saw my grandmother, I could not help it and cried on her shoulder. I cried. I’m exhausted mentally, emotionally and physically.

Because my dad was not fully recovered, as he just went out of hospital couple of days ago, I was in charge for many positions. I was mainly responsible for the logistic side of the funeral like food, drinks and transportation. In addition to that, I had other little jobs to help making everything goes smoothly.

Thank God, it went well. I’m back to Riyadh now to start my second week of school. I was lucky to be the last one who took photos of my uncle. He suggested the family should gather every once in awhile, so we went on a picnic and I took these photos, and it was the last time I saw him. Maybe they look dark and unclear, but for me, they are priceless.

I just knew my uncle died while he is in Iran. I won’t be blogging for couple of days. I’m sorry.

It took me more than four hours, and more than five kilometers of walking on my thin feet to make a little change on my holy schedule.

When it comes to registration system and use of technology, KSU is living in pre-historic time. While KFUPM students do all the dirty work without even get their hands dirty using the internet, we, KSU students, have to sink in mud to do anything.

And don’t be fooled that the KFUPM website dosen’t look fancy, because under this ugly interface a powerful, useful system helps the students to do the work easily and early.

I’m pissed, I’m frustrated, I’m tired, and I can’t feel my legs anymore.