FarQuest Fariha's Quest: Finding an answer to the question "Why can’t Utopia be a reality?" Wish to add some colors of Utopia to this world because I dare to dream and strive to turn my dreams into reality!
I devoted most of my free time today in attempting to TBTT….yes to “Take Back The Tech!” and it’s going to be so at least till the next 16 days. Wondering what “Take Back the Tech” is all about? It’s a 16 day campaign which attempts to use technology to fight female harassment and specially forms of it that involve technology for e.g. cyber bullying, mobile phone harassment etc. According to the TakeBackTheTech Website :
” “Take Back The Tech!” is initiated and organised by the Association for Progressive Communications, Women’s Networking Support Programme (APC WNSP)
We are a global network of women who support women networking for social change and women’s empowerment, through the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs).
We promote gender equality in the design, development, implementation, access to and use of ICTs, and in the policy decisions and frameworks that regulate them.
Our network numbers over 100 women from more than 35 countries……….”
We here in Pakistan have planned to run the local TBTT Campaign. So far, some of the active TBTT campaign members are Jehan Ara, Talha Izhar, Ammar Yasir,, Jamash, Bina Shah, Furrukh Ahmed, Rabia Garib and counting…
We have laid down a basic day to day activities plan as well that we will follow mainly to create awareness about female harassment issues and sharing tips on how to fight back this menace.
You can join the TakeBackTheTech-Pakistan Cause on Facebook and to stay updated about all the TBTT campaigns being run in different parts of the world, join the TakeBackTheTech Facebook group and/or follow it on Twitter here.
If you want to support this campaign to make this world a safe place for all the beautiful women in your life, drop a comment suggesting ideas on the areas we should primarily focus on, any tips, stories about any female harassment cases you witnessed etc. or simply Ka-Blog with us! [In Filipino slang, “ka-BLOG” means someone you blog with.]
PS: Just in case you have not noticed, what I like the most about Take Back the Tech campaign is that every year it starts on Nov 25- International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and ends on Dec 10- International Human Rights Day!
It is rightly said that creativity has no bounds! While we get to see creativity in various forms, one of the things that always pleases me is how different people/organizations are using it to help and support those in need of help. I attended the lovely P@SHA ICT Awards 2009 event on 14th of October, 2009 and was lucky enough to get a goodies bag as well. Amongst many things in that bag, one thing that I liked the most is this hand embroidered Mobile Phone pouch.
While at the first glance you don’t find anything special about it, when you turn it, you find a very nice example of Social Marketing. See yourself how!
This mobile pouch was provided by DIDXchange This way they did not just manage to market themselves well by creating a positive impression in the minds of people who encourage those doing good for community at large but also helped the local handicraft industry.
If we start thinking there are many ways we can help those less privileged than us and this is just one of them. Another could be less eat-outs and more charity. I don’t know if it is a good thing or a bad, the habit of eating out has increased tremendously in people for the past few years. No matter what the occasion is, all we want is go out and have lunch/dinner at some good place. While eating out with family and friends occasionally may be a good idea, but trust me it is the worst thing if you are doing it regularly, you will just end up being obese, having high levels of cholesterol and an unhealthy lifestyle overall. You really think all this is worth thousands that you spend on every eat-out? :S
I have been getting fits of nostalgia for the past few days ever since I have watched the Olpers ad for Ramazan. We used to read this naat during our school days and I had al most forgotten it but watching the Olpers ad brought back all the lovely school life memories This naat was originally presented by Mehdi Zaheer in 70’s I guess when the OIC’s Islamic Summit was held in Pakistan. Lovely piece that gives a strong feeling of unity and solidarity calling the entire Muslim nation “Mustafavi” i.e. followers of Mustafa (Muhammad Peace be upon him).
Original Version by Mehdi Zaheer is this:
PS: I’m confused as to whether call it Naat or Milli Naghma or something else :S
So, Mr. Richard Lee Armitage wanted to bomb us back to Stone Age and here we are in the Stone Age. No electricity, no water, no communication link (cells and land line phones both have gone dead) for the past 36 hours and counting. I’m not going to point fingers on the poor state governance and corrupt bureaucratic system because I know it’s us people who are responsible for the entire situation. In a population of 170 million approx, if 20 million people are corrupt, why can’t the rest 150 million fight back?? Majority rather joins them in looting this country and making it worst day by day. Probably because we strongly believe in “Behti ganga main kyoon na hum bhi haath dho lain” …and I’m no mood to translate it, apologies but u can always Google for translation
PS: Despite all this i still love my country Pakistan. Pakistan Zindabad!
Since morning, i wanted to jump up and down while singing “Hakuna Matata” and probably this is why I also ended up falling down on staircase at office On my way back to home, the reason behind my happiness just popped up in my mind (yes i was happy all day without realizing the reason, why do we always need a REASON for everything neway? ) and tun taraannnn…it feels wonderful to know it’s the 2nd Anniversary today!
and no no no I’m not going to keep my mouth shut this time like I did last time. The reason being simple, i don’t want people coming to me and/or calling me to ask who’s that lucky person in my life, whom ‘am committed to and argg a few even went on to say “hope u get engaged soon”..Arrggg arrggg…people I’m a free birdie who would love to lead the life of singleton for as long as she can and end up being a philanthropist…a friend just told me a few days ago what is it exactly called to be what I want to be and ahem ahem as always I DIGRESS!! So, the good news is, it my 2nd JoBoVERSIRAY today!!
Yesh, I have been working as a full-time resource for exact 2 years now Alhamdulilah and despite the ups and downs, the good and not so good career choices, the hinderances in accepting a dream job offer despite it being almost there for me, I’m HAPPY, I’m SATISFIED and love being at the place I’m now a days! I believe this is all that matters at the end of the day, PEACE of MIND and not to forget a steady income
I’m glad to have worked at places, where I have not just learned a lot technically but from business and management perspectives as well. I have had and still have TLs and Managers who are a role model and tell u what….my management style is very much inspired by theirs i.e. “No Sahib culture”! Now, before I start boasting again, I better write down a list that I feel might help other young professionals to learn something from my experience. During these two years, I have been on both sides of the table. Stop thinking about dining table, tennis table and all other such sort of tables. Be professional, I’m talking abt the Interview Table! I have got a chance to not just take a lottt in fact A LOT of interviews but give a few as well so, the list below which btw is in no particular order includes interview table experiences as well.
1. Be flexible but don’t be let anyone walk over you.
2. Never be too rigid, exceptions can always be there in whatever you do, keep room for them.
3. Be courteous and be accessible. Be nice to ppl, help them, support them when they need it and you will very often end up getting the favor back when u need it the most.
4. One thing that one of my teachers told me and that has helped me a lot: Make friends and not foes.
5. Develop patience and tolerance (in case u don’t already have much of it). Working with say 50 people is like working with 50 minds. Each mind has it own likes/dislikes, preferences, principles etc etc and they may no necessarily be in agreement with what is inside ur upper chamber.
6. Be honest and be sincere to your profession. As I always say in urdu, “Mujhe apni kamai halal karni hoti hai” and that always requires one’s sincere efforts in everything he/she does. Trust me if u do, u’ll always get the due rewards too.
7. Keep a balance between work and home life. Both require ur quality time so avoid late sittings. U can complete all ur assigned tasks in lesser time if u stay away from personal IM chats, facebooking and random browsing during work hours.
8. The previous point doesn’t mean “all work and no play”, play to freshen up but don’t let that disturb ur schedule.
9. Dress immaculately, dressing well will give u a new energy and make u feel active…don’t take my word for it, try it out urself!
10. When u r going to take an interview PLEASE don’t forget to clip ur nails. The sight of dirt filled nails of one of the guys I got a chance to interview still haunts
11. As they always say, prepare before taking an interview but I would say prepare before giving an interview as well. Smart people seldom like to work for a dumb *** who hasn’t even given their CV a single look.
12. Be confident but don’t be over-confident, don’t try to be-little the interviewer/supervisor/customer with ur attitude.
13. Learn the tricks of negotiating salary else u’ll curse urself later.
14. Develop a team spirit when working in a team and come out of “I” mode - read “7 Habits of highly effective people” and see what WIN-WIN means.
15. Research well before joining any organization. Gather info about the kind of work they do and the environment they have. I’m sure you’d never want to develop games when u don’t even like playing games. So, understanding the domain an organization works in IS important.
16. Be like a sponge and absorb whatever comes ur way when u start ur career and LATER too i.e. always be ready to learn new things.
17. If you plan to support your family then make sure u join a stable organization which ensures timely disbursement of salaries. No, u can’t expect any of ur interviewers to tell u that you won’t be paid on time or the company can shut down anytime, but u can always get insiders from the existing employees.
18. Start-ups offer exciting opportunities, an opportunity to quickly climb the corporate ladder getting nice titles but titles don’t matter much. It is the work that matters the MOST. So, if u plan to join any start up, first figure out what are the ideas they are working on and join only if u think u are passionate about working on those ideas else it’s better for both you and them to stay away.
19. One of the identifiers of a good organization is its management.Always try to gather info about the management before joining any company. If the management is experienced and has a good rapport, the chances of ur job experience being a good learning experience go up automatically.
20. A senior colleague once recommended, keep the ego outside the room you are working in with say 2 more people or perhaps even more and I say, in addition to that, keep the work-stress outside the place you live in with two or more people i.e. keep ego outside when u step in office and keep work stress outside when u step in home. Life will be beautiful!
..and pheww…it’s quite late now, i better go and hit the sack while u my reader listen to this
…and no I’m not planning be an adakaara not because I don’t want to be but because I already ‘am…ask my ama about how well I can act being sick when I don’t want to go anywhere and shoo why do I always start bragging? :S The purpose of this post is to talk about Katha Theater’s humorous play “Main Adakaara Banoongi” which has been organized by Rotary Club and is being played at the Arts Council Auditorium since 6th June, 09 everyday from 8:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. (in fact make it 11:00 p.m. ) I got a chance to to visit theater for the first time yesterday to watch this play and it was an absolutely wonderful and thrilling experience. Don’t have much time at the moment to write in detail about my experience but ‘am putting together this post to let you all know that if you want to spend some fun time away from the worries we are regularly surrounded by then you MUST go and watch this play. Another positive thing about this play is that, all its proceeds will go to different charitable projects of Rotary, at the top of which is the “Artificial Limb Project”. So, you will get a chance to get entertainment and contribute for a noble cause at the same time. It’s the last day of the play today so, please spread the word.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed,it’s the only thing that ever has” - Margaret Mead
I read this quote that I completely believe in, while reading a short interview of Dallas Jessup here who’s a 17 year young girl but a CEO, founder & spokesperson of/for “Just Yell Fire” and has made a difference in the lives of a million girls already.
Just Yell Fire’s message as their site says is:
“…. that girls and young women have the right to live their lives without fear of assault or abduction. The Just Yell Fire mission is to put predators out of business…”
They go to educational institutions and train girls the essential tactics of self-defense so that they can fight back if/when being sexually assaulted. I remember that this is exactly the idea that my ex-colleague E and I had in mind about 2 years ago and we kept dreaming about it but couldn’t turn it into reality and today when Jamash shared the link about “Just Yell Fire” with me, I felt my dream has come true. Being a female myself, I very well realize what one has to face when you are out of the comfy shelter and the protective shields that your family has created for you. It feels worst, when you can’t do anything but live with a continuous fear all the time. However, non-profitable organizations like “Just Yell Fire” appear to be a ray of light, a hope for all the females across the world. I so wish, they come to Pakistan as well and train a group here that can in return train more girls.
People might have heard me speaking against Female Harassment at various places and at different occasions and ‘am proud to say that I’m a feminist (please don’t confuse feminist with female chauvinist); but a lot might have probably thought of me working to launch yet another *NGO* which fights for female rights. If you are also one of them, then let me explain that it is not so, all I want is to change the mindsets of some people of our society, make them realize how torturous it is for women to listen to your lewd comments, see you staring and a lot more that merely is fun for you but can very qualify as female harassment as this unwanted attention is extremely disturbing for females. My primary objective will be to focus on the forms of females harassment that are given least importance yet they are the most common ones and for this I need not launch yet another NGO but rather contribute in my own little way through blogging online or otherwise by carrying out discussions/sessions that can trigger the changing of mindsets; because unless we change the way people think, nothing will work.
Flipping TV channels in the evening today, I came across the program "Awam ki Awaz" on CNBC Pakistan and the topic for the episode was "Prejudice towards Hijras" (Hijra is an urdu word for members from the third gender). While the host interviewed different people from this community, asking them why they don’t choose to go for professions like others(men and women) do, most of them said, "..because of the attitude of these men and women" i.e. because of us, the so called normal people. One of them told that she had studied till intermediate and wanted to study even further to become a doctor but had to quit because of the attitude of society towards them. According to them, people often end up making their life miserable and force them to go for the conventional "hijra" get up and activities even if they are not willing to.
As I watched the program, I realized how majority usually treats them with disgust and then various questions flooded my mind. Why don’t we let them lead their lives as we do? Get education and go for careers as we do, being what they really are? Why do we expect them to conceal their gender before they could work/study with us? Why the "Eww" feeling even when some of them actually make it big being famous designers/make up artists, we proudly wear what they design and pay thousands to get a makeover done from their salons?
Why can’t we simply accept them as they are and enable them to contribute to the society in more positive ways. No wonder one of them might end up doing something to make us and this country feel proud of! So, is this prejudice ever going to end?
"Am I still alive? " I guess so because internet hasn’t yet been made accessible at hell I believe (or even heaven if I’m lucky enough to land there ) The purpose of this mindless post is to get me back to some serious blogging again …a lot is happening in life…attending a lot of events, discussions, meet ups but havn’t been able to blog about most of them since was facing some major internet disruptions for the past few weeks and power outages to add to my suffering! So, in the little time I get to come online …I wud use twitter to make quick updates about the various happenings
Feb 18th marked the 2nd anniversary of my bloggy baby and makes me realize that now when I have been into blogging for more than 2 years (yes more than 2 years because before FarQuest I used to blog on MSN Live spaces) I should start some serious blogging. Till date I have mostly used this space for venting out my feelings about whatever I come across in my day to day life but now I guess it’s time to do something more than that.
I’m bored of the current theme of my blog…started smartifying 2 WP themes to convert them into Blogsome themes but left both in middle…don’t know when will I be able to complete one of them…or I might get my own domain!!
On my way back to home, the reason behind my happiness just popped up in my mind (yes i was happy all day without realizing the reason, why do we always need a REASON for everything neway? 
