Category: Summaries & Notes

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Statistics about Lebanon

I found this information on the internet, if you find inaccuracies, let me know please.

Statistical facts

  1. Lebanon has 18 religious communities
  2. It has 40 daily newspapers
  3. It has 42 universities
  4. It has over 100 banks (that is banks and not branches of a bank)
  5. 70% of the students are in private schools
  6. Many of the Lebanese people are Christians (The highest percent in all the Arab countries)
  7. There’s 1 doctor per 10 people in Lebanon (In Europe & America , there’s 1 doctor per 100 people)
  8. The name LEBANON appears 75 times in the Old Testament
  9. The name CEDAR ( Lebanon ‘s tree) appears 75 times too in the Old Testament!!
  10. Beirut was destroyed and rebuilt 9 times (this is why it’s compared to The Phoenix).
  11. There’s 3.5 Million Lebanese in Lebanon
  12. There’s around 15 Million Lebanese outside Lebanon !!!
Other interesting facts:
  1. Lebanon , the country, was occupied by over 16 countries:
    (Egyptians-Hittites-Assyrians- Babylonians- Persians- Alexander the greats Army- the Roman Empire Byzantine- the Arabian Peninsula-The Crusaders- the Ottoman Empire- Britain-France- Israel- Syria)
  2. Byblos (city in Lebanon ) is the oldest, continuously living city in the world.
  3. Lebanon ‘s name has been around for 4,000 yrs non- stop (it’s the oldest country/ nation’s name in the world!)
  4. Lebanon is the only Asian/African country that doesn’t have a desert.
  5. There are 15 rivers in Lebanon (all of them coming from its own mountains)
  6. Lebanon is one of the most populated countries in its archeological sites, in the world!!!
  7. The first alphabet was created in Byblos (city in Lebanon )
  8. The only remaining temple of Jupiter (the main Roman god) is in Baalbeck ,Lebanon (The City of the Sun)
  9. The name of BYBLOS comes from the BIBLE!!!
  10. Lebanon is the country that has the most books written about it.
  11. Lebanon is the only non-dictatorial country in the Arab world (Yes, we do have a President!)
  12. Jesus Christ made his 1st miracle in Lebanon , in Qana (The miracle of Turning water into wine).
  13. The Phoenicians (Original People of Lebanon) built the 1st boat, and they were the first to sail ever!
  14. Phoenicians also reached America long before Christopher Columbus did.
  15. The 1st law school in the world was built in Lebanon , in Downtown Beirut.
  16. People say that the cedars were planted by God’s own hands (This is why they’re called ‘The Cedars of God’, and this is why Lebanon is called ‘God’s Country on Earth.’

I love Lebanon ….. may God bless my homeland forever….

First trip to Lebanon
First time To Lebanon? The Untold tips and tricks

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All must fulfill their three debts

I was watching the Mahabharata and they spoke about the 3 kinds of debts that one has to fulfill in his/her lifetime: God’s debt, Sage’s debt, Ancestral debt.

All must fulfill their debts three,
God’s, Sage’s, Ancestral surely,
Before death and leaving body,
Else life itself is insulted sadly.
These debts not ordinary do be,
God’s debt – Lord Vishnu’s be,
Sage’s debt – Lord Shiv’s be,
Ancestral debt – Brahma’s be.
God’s debt by charity fulfilled be,
Sage’s by acquiring, giving be,
But of the knowledge definitely,
Ancestral debt by having progeny.

God’s debt can be fulfilled by doing charity work. I am not surprised by that. It is known in many esoteric circles that charity is a very important deed. The Bible and Masonic literature talk a lot about charity.

Sage’s debt can be fulfilled by learning, acquiring wisdom and imparting knowledge to others.

And it goes without saying that ancestral debt can be fulfilled by procreating and continuing our ancestral lineage. That is not to say that one should procreate mindlessly but instead procreate with high morality and spiritual standards. One has to bring children to the world so they help improve the world and not “pollute” the world and be like parasites.


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What is the Macrobiotic diet? By Mariam Nour [Arabic Edition] – تعريــــــف المايكروبيوتيك

 
    هنالك العديد من الأفكار الخاطئة عن ماهية المايكروبيوتيك.
    بدون الفهم الصحيح لهذا العلم, فإن كثير من الناس سيجدون تعلمه وتطبيقه عبء يصعب عليهم تحمله ومع مرور الوقت فإنهم سينجرفون وراء النزعة الداخلية التي سترفضه وأيضا تعيبه كعلم.
    لقد شككت في صحة هذا العلم مرات عديدة قبل أن أصل إلى المعنى الحقيقي للحياة نفسها.
    الآن أنا أؤمن أن المايكروبيوتيك والحياة هما شئ واحد, فهما الدعامة لاستمرار الحياة.
    في محاولتي لتعريف المايكروبيوتيك, توصلت أن نظرة كل شخص و تفهمه للمايكروبيوتيك والحياة يعكس لنا أي مستوى من التحكيم الذي يحكم به على مجريات الأمور قد توصل إليه ذلك الشخص.
 

مستويات جورج أوشاوا السبعة للتحكيم

جورج أوشاوا, مولد علم المايكروبيوتيك الحديث, وصف سبع مستويات للتطور الإنساني و أسماها مستويات التحكيم السبع. هذا الترتيب عبارة عن أداة رائعة تساعد على معرفة ماهية المايكروبيوتيك الحقيقية.
هذه المستويات السبع هي كالتالي:
  • 1-   الميكانيكي
  • 2-     الحسي
  • 3-     الوجداني
  • 4-     العقلاني
  • 5-     الاجتماعي
  • 6-     التصوري
  • 7-     السمو
هنالك قصة قديمة من الهند تجسد لنا الصعوبة في محاولة تعريف أي شئ ومهما كانت المحاولة فإن التعريف سيكون شخصي أو غير موضوعي و ناقص.
يقال أنه طلب من ثلاث رجال كفيفي البصر تعريف الفيل .
الأول تحسس خرطوم الفيل ووصفه على أنه يشبه الحية, أما الآخر فقد تحسس جانب الفيل وقال أنه يشبه الحائط, و الأخير تحسس ذيل الفيل ومن ثم قال إنه يشبه الفرشاة.
أيهما أدلى بالوصف الصحيح؟

Continue reading “What is the Macrobiotic diet? By Mariam Nour [Arabic Edition] – تعريــــــف المايكروبيوتيك”

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The A-B-C-D Model – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

I am not a psychologist, but recently I learned about an interesting tool that can help one enhance their cognitive behavior. It is called the “A-B-C-D Model” or simply the “ABC cognitive model”.

It is developed by one of the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) founders: Albert Ellis, PhD. This model can help one think and act more rationally, thus lead a stress free life.

The moment I learned about this model and understood how to apply it, it became an important tool in my daily life. Continue reading “The A-B-C-D Model – Cognitive Behavioral Therapy”

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Takeaways from the “California Driver Handbook 2017”

In this article, I share with you my notes from the “California Driver Handbook 2017“. Perhaps it will come in handy when you are preparing for the driving test in California:

Notes:

  • Speed limit
    • The maximum speed limit on most California highways is 65 mph. You may drive 70 mph where posted. Unless otherwise posted, the maximum speed limit is 55 mph on a two-lane undivided highway and for vehicles towing trailers.
    • California has a “Basic Speed Law.” This law means that you may never drive faster than is safe for current conditions. For example, if you are driving 45 mph in a 55 mph speed zone during a dense fog, you may be cited for driving “too fast for conditions.”
    • The speed limit in any alley is 15 mph.
    • Business or Residential Districts: The speed limit is 25 mph, unless otherwise posted.
  • Stopping and safe distance
    • At 55mph, it takes about 400 feet to react and bring the vehicle to a complete stop, and at 35mph, it takes about 210 feet.
  • Pedestrians, bicyclists
    • Pedestrians, bicyclists, or other vehicles alongside you may experience sudden strong winds when passing or being passed. Slow down and pass safely, and pass only at a safe distance (typically 3 feet or more for bicyclists).
  • Blind Intersections
      The speed limit for a blind intersection is 15 mph. An intersection is considered “blind” if there are no stop signs at any corner and you cannot see for 100 feet in either direction during the last 100 feet before crossing.
  • Near animals
    • If you see a stray animal in your path, slow down or stop if it’s safe. Do not swerve as you may lose control of your vehicle and cause an accident.

Continue reading “Takeaways from the “California Driver Handbook 2017””

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Quotes for the last Sunday of April 2017

  • The generous is courageous from the heart and the stingy is courageous by the looks
  • He who did not make personal efforts to learn on his young age will not make efforts to learn at his older age
  • He who defies his parents will get the same treatment from his own children
  • The fool stands upfront in the line so people can see him and the wise stands behind the crowd so he can see the people
  • Don’t flatter the day before it sets and don’t flatter the woman before she dies
  • Only in the hard times that true friends are known
  • Nice words open doors of steel
  • God only thanks those who thank the common people
  • You can fool all the people some of the times, or you can fool some people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time
  • Never trust a friend without experiencing his true friendship and never underestimate an enemy until you test his/her strength

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Take aways from the Defensive Driving Course

Recently, I took the 6 session defensive driving course. The following are some of the notes I extracted from the course that I would like to share with my you:

There were lots of information in the course, I highly recommend taking it! You can download the notes as a single PDF file from here:

(The PDF was created using the free Pic2Pdf tool)

The defensive driving formula


Continue reading “Take aways from the Defensive Driving Course”

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unPHILtered: The Way I See It – book review

Hello,

I don’t watch TV but I came to learn about Phil Robertson when I was traveling to Anchorage/Alaska from Seattle during the labor’s day weekend (in 2014). When the plane landed in Anchorage airport, people were swarming around two bearded men. My friend and I were wondering: “Who are these people?”

When I asked who they were, I learned that these guys (Phil and Jase) where from the Robertson family and that they have their TV show “The Duck Dynasty” on A&E.

I did my research about Phil and I was happy to learn that he’s into spirituality and a moral way of life. I was intrigued and wanted to know more about Phil’s point of view of life and morality so I bought his book “unPHILtered: The Way I See It”.

unPhiltered - book cover Continue reading “unPHILtered: The Way I See It – book review”

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Why the low-carbohydrates diet?

  1. Introduction
  2. What is the “glycemic index”
  3. The role of different hormones
  4. Putting it all together
  5. References

Introduction

In this article, we will be covering important aspects and facets as to why a low-carb diet is considered, nowadays, a much more healthy diet that promotes weight loss, energetic life and most importantly a long-term healthy life.
We will introduce the concept of glycemic index, different hormones roles, and finish by citing different low-carb diets.

The misconception is that we’ve always thought that a calorie is just a calorie and we only gain weight by eating food items that are high in calories, such as fat. Continue reading “Why the low-carbohydrates diet?”

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Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – In Brief

What is OCD?

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, OCD in short, is a mental illness that causes people to have unwanted thoughts and to repeat a certain pattern of behavior over and over again.
Sometimes it is compared to a mental hiccup, where the ill person have an involuntary urge to do a certain action.

In OCD’s terms, the unwanted thoughts, images, feelings that occur over and over are known as “Obsessions” whereas the act of doing a certain action in order to dismiss a certain obsession is coined as “Compulsions”.

OCD is not a mental disease caused by the individual him/herself (for example due to weak personality or will power), instead it is a physical/medical brain disorder that causes problems in processing the information.

Though the person with OCD knows that his obsessions or compulsions make no sense, s/he, most of the times cannot control his/her urges to stop the thoughts. Continue reading “Obsessive Compulsive Disorder – In Brief”