Facebook Games Replacing TV Leisure

Many people are no longer coming home, turning on the TV, and flipping channels to see what’s on. Instead, they sit down in front of the computer.

Even before checking email, many people now go to Facebook, just to see if anything is new on their home page, or to see which of their friends might be on line. Next, a few minutes is spent commenting on friends’ posts, or taking fun quizzes that their friends have taken.

Next, they check in to their games. In some games, money arrives every hour, and they want to get it to the bank before someone steals it. In other games, they want to buy items, and they only have an opportunity to earn money every six hours. If they already have enough money, they may now be going shopping (in their online game) to relax after work.

There are games for all ages, from kids to grandparents (such as World War II).  Some whole extended families play on line at the same time, from different locations.  One of the things I enjoy persoanlly is meeting people from all over the world who are playing these interactive games at the same time.

I’ve noticed a transformation in myself taking place since I’ve started playing these games, and since I’ve been using Facebook regularly. 

I write six blogs on completely different topics, and I’ve noticed my blogging has really suffered because Facebook is using up all my computer time! What are other people finding?
Just when I thought I’d finally get back to blogging, today I discovered Spy Wars and found that looks pretty interesting……..HELP!!!

–Madame Monet

Try Dr. Oz’s Quick Personality Test!

Dr. Oz (Oprah’s friend)

Dr. Oz, famous for appearing on the Oprah Winfrey Show as a regular guest, has come up with a very short, yet very accurate personality quiz!

I came out as an “Explorer,” which I do think is accurate for myself (introvert, stable, open).

Try it, and have some fun!

Madame Monet

My Daughter’s Clothes Caught on Fire in the Kitchen

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The sweatshirt that caught on fire

Friday morning we had a terrible accident in our home, although fortunately all ended well.  Each morning my daughter (age 15) and I prepare our breakfast and lunch before heading off to school.  As usual my daughter had put on a pan of boiling water to use in filling our thermoses and (we hoped) for making some spaghetti to take to school.

In Morocco, we have no central heating, and now the winter cold has arrived.  My daugher was standing at the stove (alone in the kitchen) WARMING HER HANDS OVER THE BOILING WATER.  We have only gas stoves with open flames here.  I told her MANY times not to do this, as well as telling her many times NEVER TO WEAR LONG, LOOSE SLEEVES the the kitchen or OTHER LOOSE CLOTHING such as bulky jackets.  The safety reasons have been explained to her many times. Yet, she still disobeys me!

She told me that while her hands were warming over the steam from the boiling water, her eyes started to hurt (but she didn’t recognize it was from the burning sweatshirt).  So she put the lid on the pan, but still the smell and burning eyes continued for a moment before she realized she was on fire.  She lay down on the floor (tile), but the fire did not go out (she’s very skinny, but I now also think the material on the sweatshirt didn’t go out easily, more on this in a minute).  So she stood back up and ran to the next room, screaming.  I yelled at her to sotp running that I was coming.  I got there about five or six seconds later, to find her whole stomach area on fire with flames coming out a good two inches.  I told her to lie down again.  it STILL did not go out (I didn’t realize until she told me later that she had already tried that.)

There were no buttons on the front of the shirts, so at that point all I could do was to try to rip it off over her head.  I got it off and dropped it onto the tile floor.  I found her third shirt had not been burned (because it’s cold we have to wear three or four layers in Morocco in winter).  She told me her skin hurt (probably from the heat), but it was not red or blistered.  Luckily, her hair did not catch on fire (it’s below shoulder length).

My daughter told me later that she first thought of putting salt on it, but she didn’t know right away where the salt was (we had talked in the past about putting salt on electrical fires or grease fires).  It didn’t occur to her to go to the sink (right next to her) and turn on the water to splash all over the fire (my husband asked why she hadn’t done this).  She also said that she’d seen a lot of movies where when they put water on the fire, it explodes and spreads around quickly (oddly, my third-graders, age 8, mentioned the same thing to me later at school).

Burned turtleneck, which was underneath the sweatshirt

Five minutes later, I returned to the clothes which we’d dropped onto a tile floor, and they were STILL smoking heavily!  I brought them back to the kitchen and put water on them.  Then I decided instead of throwing them away immediately, I would take them to school and show the various elementary classes for a quick reminder about fire safety.

When I visited the classes, I asked how many other kids were warming their hands over the fire.  The majority of kids raised their hands (especially age 9 and up).  I asked how many kids had been asked by their parents NOT to do that, and about the same number raised their hands again.  Then I held up my daughter’s clothes, and showed them, “This is why.”  I find most kids don’t listen to their parents as well as they should (because they get warnings from their own parents all the time, and discount the warnings); yet they are often willing to listen better to another adult, even if that adult tells them the same things as their parents do.

My daughter was most upset about this being her new sweatshirt, just purchased the day before.  She had planned to wear it to school that day.  i told her maybe we can go back to the store and see if there are any more.  I told her not to worry about  the shirt, and that she should be really glad she didn’t end up in the hospital!

The burned clothes

We managed to keep calm, but later in the day I found myself feeling quite upset, I think it was a delayed reaction.  My daughter seemed to deal amazingly well with the rest of her day.  I asked her if she told her friends.  She told her best friend, but her best friend obviously did not recognize the seriousness of what happened because her friend was just upset that my daughter forgot to bring her three DVD’s she wanted to borrow from us to watch!

I am just so thankful that my daughter came thorugh this without getting hurt.

Madame Monet

Coffee Cups for Musicians

I found these last year on line, but no longer have any idea where I got them from.  So I can’t help anyone with where to find them other than googling “musical coffee cups,” in photos.

Bassoon Mug for Musicians

Saxophone Mug for Musicians

Music Mugs

Music Teacher Mug

Treble Clef Coffee Mug

Treble Clef Coffe Mug 2

Treble Clef Coffe Mug in White

Posted by Madame Monet

Are People Following Feng Shui Where You Live?

Feng Shui is an idea I first heard about perhaps eight years ago, and the first time I heard about it, it just seemed like a bunch of Chinese superstition.

Over a period of several years, I have come to believe there is something to it, and that perhaps whatever is behind it is something yet to be discovered scientifically (such as no one until recent times believing in germs because they couldn’t be seen).

Anyway, it seems as though people everywhere now know about Feng Shui.  Is it the same where all of you live?  Are any of you studying or using Feng Shui ideas?  What do people here think about it?

I’m just curious.

Madame Monet

The Madrid Plane Crash

Miki and Kevin,

I’m so sorry to hear about this plane crash in Madrid. I hope no one you knew was on the flight?

My own mother died in the Egypt Air plane crash October 31, 1999, the one that was ruled pilot suicide as it headed out over the Atlantic from New York.

Best regards,

Madame Monet

Madame Monet’s Easy Chai

A cup of chai--Image by Eshwa, at http://www.afghanforums.com/showthread.php?p=453156

I first drank Chai at an Indian restaurant in Vancouver (about 25 years ago). I must have had ten cups, I thought it was so good.

The next place I found it was in Kenya. I stayed a long time in Nairobi in a very cheap hotel, where we went out to eat breakfast in the street. You can buy bread (maybe fried?) and chai. I think they’ve had a lot of Indian workers and shopkeepers who have gone to Kenya, which is probably how chai got to be popular there.

My easy recipe:

Mix a mug half full of hot whole milk, and half full of black tea. Add ground cardomom, and some sugar to taste.

Delicious!

Madame Monet

Drinking Water in Almeria?

Last month Miki said, “We have decided to definitively move here, where we are now, in Turre, Provincia de Almeria.”

So today, I got out my atlas and looked this up.  It’s the province in the lowest southeastern portion of Spain.  The small town wasn’t marked on my atlas, but at least I found the region.

So my first thought upon seeing the location was, “Is this place going to have enough water?”  I keep hearing about how Spain may run out of water, how there isn’t enough to keep water on all day in Southern Spain (I gather along the Gold Coast), how drinking water may have to be shipped in by tanker to Barcelona this summer (heard that on BBC about four months ago), etc.  So, Miki and Kevin, what IS the situation there?

I’m glad to see how much closer you are to Morocco.  It encourages me that maybe we will meet some day!

Madame Monet

Sharing Photos of Modern Marrakesh – My City

Above is the new Marrakech Plaza, next to McDonald’s, and across from the main post office.

Below is a photo of people in the Plaza (taken from across the Plaza with telephoto lens):

Moroccans Enjoying the Weather in Marrakech Plaza, June 2008

Zara – The First Department Store in Marrakech (photo taken through sidewalk display window)

Madame Monet

Kev, a Musical Problem!

Kev,

I’ve been trying to upload a 2-3 minute video of a Moroccan rock concert for you, but haven’t been able to get it uploaded here or on YouTube in three weeks of trying. I thought you, and viewers here, might like to see it.

Then I read on the internet that certain countries (Morocco most likely being one of them) have now blocked any uploading of videos from their countries to websites like YouTube. This is due to several embarrassing videos that were uploaded. Last year, there were some Moroccan videos showing up close of the police taking bribes. They were uploaded to YouTube and put on various bloggers’ websites.

So my last thought is to try sending you an email and seeing if I can attach this file. At any rate, I will try.

Best regards,

Madame Monet