My Blog

Hallah Moustafa haute couture designer costume for sale.

milena_dance — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 04:58:53 GMT

Looking a special something for Christmas? Hallah Moustafa haute couture costume for sale. Hallah designs haute couture works-of-art for some of the top names in bellydance. This costume has gone unused, and therefore is in new condition. It deserves a stage! Photos are posted here: www.flickr.com/photos/14638127@N04/ This gorgeous ensemble is hard to capture in photos. It is luscious shades of red mixed w/ islands of purple, & tinges of reddish-orange. Designer sturdy lycra has a light sheen to it. Costume is heavily sequined & beaded and generously decorated with tassles & rhinestones. There are loads of red and clear rhinestones on the bra, upper skirt and accessories (headband and 2 armbands). Bra -11 tassles, skirt 60+. Tassles are 8 inches length. Bra is padded for pushup, B/C size, 30.5 ribcage (underbust), hook closures w/ velcro reinforcement, lined w/ soft red velvet. Halter straps currently measure 18.5" from cup to cup. Hooks can easily be resewn for adjustment. Skirt is 41" at longest scallop. Front panel w/ large scallops is an approx 70"; back panel w/ softer scallops measures an amazing 82"width. Red chiffon spans 65 inches from back slit under the skirt (acting as liner & loft). Purple chiffon (slightly darker than photos) spans 85" from back skit to across front scalloped front (as liner & loft). Back slit is 31 inches in length. Elastic waist stretches from 30 to 36 inches. Skirt has sewn-in underwear for no-ride up the hips. $700 + S, INS. Will ship to overseas. Money order, cashier's check, paypal. Costume was completely hand-crafted in Cairo, Egypt. Absolutely one-of-a-kind.

Dina - childhood photos

milena_dance — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 03:23:48 GMT

Dina on a TV program, commenting on childhood photos. Very sweet. (Very brief translation in the comments below). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKaWkUHRYyc

Kiva

milena_dance — Sat, 25 Aug 2007 02:44:27 GMT

I am feeling warm inside tonight. I gave up some money yesterday.... I feel it's going to a good cause -- a farmer I read about in Togo. It all started after I read an article about a non-profit organization of a different sort. It's called Kiva (means "unite" in Swahili). They don't ask you to donate... they ask you to LEND. The loans go to people in impoverished countries who, with just a small monetary nudge, are able to get ahead. Amazingly, the loan repayback success is excellent. The loans are interest free. So I'm giving it a try. I feel as though I've planted a seed and am thrilled to now watch it grow. And... I did donate a portion... to Kiva, to keep their organization going.... More from Kiva's website, www.kiva.org : "Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world. By choosing a business on Kiva.org, you can "sponsor a business" and help the world's working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the business you've sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back. Kiva partners with existing microfinance institutions. In doing so, we gain access to outstanding entrepreneurs from impoverished communities world-wide. Our partners are experts in choosing qualified borrowers. That said, they are usually short on funds. Through Kiva.org, our partners upload their borrower profiles directly to the site so you can lend to them. Kiva provides a data-rich, transparent lending platform for the poor. We are constantly working to make the system more transparent to show how money flows throughout the entire cycle."

you know...

milena_dance — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 18:30:21 GMT

... I enjoy reading the blogs of friends although I don't have that much time to do so and therefore don't read that many. BUT when a person, who is not someone I know personally, has overwhelmed and dominated the number of entries with complaining about their life and how everyone else is wretched as well as uses nasty foul language, entry after entry, I can't help feeling spammed by a energy vampire. I don't need that kind of negative energy in my life, much less from someone I DON"T KNOW. So I had to delete a "friend" (tribe's term) today... and it's a welcome relief.

Hagia Sophia petition

milena_dance — Sat, 28 Apr 2007 17:49:31 GMT

I received an email about this. There is a movement and petition to have the beautiful Hagia Sophia reverted back to being a church (instead of just a tourist attraction). More here (and voting too): www.hagiasophiablog.com

nice story, Shada Hassoon

milena_dance — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 05:37:51 GMT

Wow, some GOOD international news for once. Shada Hassoon, a young Iraqi lady, singer, and hopeful in a Lebanese singing TV contest is an inspiration: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/03/28/iraq.star.academy/index.html Also, here is a link to one of her highly artistic performances. She has a lovely smokey voice, similar to Diana Haddad (Lebanon) who, BTW, got her start in the same fashion. (Diana was the winner of a LebaneseTV singing contest). http://www.leechvideo.com/video/view2481100.html Shada is gorgeous! I'll be waiting hopefully, watching for her star to rise... higher.

I miss Sahara Dance...

milena_dance — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 03:57:35 GMT

I miss Sahara Dance -- the first place (almost) where I got started bellydancing. I miss Rachel K and Saphira and watching these videos just made me miss them all that much more.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D6vSz3-Tfkw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7Iqv1s4cwc They're just so beautiful!

What to do about a very trollish comment on a video of mine.

milena_dance — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 16:34:19 GMT

So about six months ago, someone who saw my side-to-side bellyroll on youtube REALLY wanted me to me make a video to the song Trust in Me from the Jungle Book. Not my first choice of songs but they wanted to make the point that you can bellydance to just about any song. Finally I did and the way I interpreted the song was to dance as if to "hypnotize", like Ka the snake did, only using the belly mostly, instead of the eyes. In fact, I thought about painting my belly like a snake's face with eyes but it was too much work. I improvised the dance and to be honest I was still very tired from taking a trip overseas. But I got 'er done. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJp272jjYrU Mostly, other viewers have left good feedback. But the other day, one very trollish comment appeared & from another *supposed* dancer. She wrote, "Did I miss something? I don't insult my shimmy sisters but you did not complete one movement in the whole choreography." Normally, I don't delete comments positive or negative and rarely do I respond to trollish comments. I can't help but feel like asking, OK, what's YOUR definition of a "move"? because it wasn't like I just stood there and did nothing in front of the camera. Or I don't know if I should just delete the comment, or just leave it and ignore it as everyone's entitled to their own opinion. In truth, I just feel like yanking the whole video so I don't have to deal with trolls or ignoramus's any longer. I usually dance Egyptian style anyway.

the blues...

milena_dance — Sat, 13 Jan 2007 23:03:41 GMT

I hate politics at work, and lately the politics have been getting knee deep. I dislike the cold and right now we're in the midst of an arctic blast. I usually get seasonal affective disorder every year, and I can't remember when's the last time I saw the sun lately. It's been THAT overcast. Sigh. I wish I could be on the beach somewhere warm... anywhere but here and now.

what drugs will do...

milena_dance — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 05:30:44 GMT

what drugs will do to spiders... http://www.flurl.com/item/Spiders_on_Drugs_u_217347 LOL!

Windstorm disaster

milena_dance — Sun, 17 Dec 2006 23:47:58 GMT

Finally after the horrific Pacific NW windstorm and 3 1/2 days, we are back home with the power on. We've spent the past several days in motels and with family. It is still very cold outside and tree debris is everywhere. Many areas are still without power. Here is a photoshow our neighborhood and backyard... (the music is cool, credits are at the end) http://photoshow.comcast.net/watch/zd3zz3Cq or <object width="240" height="205"><param name="movie" value="http://www.photoshow.net/publish/zd3zz3Cq.swf?w=240" /><embed src="http://www.photoshow.net/publish/zd3zz3Cq.swf?w=240" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="240" height="205"></embed></object>

Made a video...

milena_dance — Fri, 03 Nov 2006 08:34:40 GMT

I made a video. I didn't know how a week ago. But I took up a cause and after many hours and frustration its done now. I sure hope youtube doesn't delete it now, dammit. By the way, thank you P for the tip. Here it is... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF1kiu37s1o

Beware, this really happened...

milena_dance — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 01:14:41 GMT

Now this really happened to me so beware... Most of you have read the scare-mail about the person whose kidneys were stolen while he was passed out. Well, read on. While the kidney story was an urban legend, this one is not. It's happening every day. My thighs were stolen from me during the night a few years ago. It was just that quick. I went to sleep in my body and woke up with someone else's thighs. The new ones had the texture of cooked oatmeal. Who would have done such a cruel thing to legs that had been mine for years? Whose thighs were these and what happened to mine? I spent the entire summer looking for my thighs. Finally, hurt and angry, I resigned myself to living out my life in jeans and Sheer Energy pantyhose. Then, just when my guard was down, the thieves struck again. My ass was next. I knew it wa s the same gang, because they took pains to match my new rear end to the thighs they stuck me with earlier. I couldn't believe that my new ass was attached at least three inches lower than my original. Now, my rear complemented my legs, lump for lump. Frantic, I prayed that long skirts would stay in fashion. It was two years ago when I realized my arms had been switched. One morning I was fixing my hair and I watched horrified but fascinated as the flesh of my upper arms swung to and fro with the motion of the hairbrush. This was really getting scary. My body was being replaced one section at a time. How clever and fiendish. Age? Age had nothing to do with it. Age is supposed to creep up, unnoticed, something like maturity. NO, I was being attacked repeatedly and without warning. In despair, I gave up my T-shirts. What could they do to me next? My poor neck suddenly disappeared faster than the Thanksgiving turkey it now resembles. That's why I decided to tell my story. I can't take on the medical profession by myself. Women of the world, wake up and smell the coffee. That really isn't plastic that those surgeons are using. You KNOW where they are getting those replacement parts, don't you? The next time you suspect someone has had a face "lifted", look again. Was it lifted from you? I think I finally found my thighs - and I hope that Jessica Simpson paid a really good price for them! This is not a hoax. This is happening to women in every town every night. WARN YOUR FRIENDS! P.S. I must say that last year I thought someone had stolen my breasts. I was lying in bed and they were gone! As I jumped out of bed, I was relieved to see that they had just been hiding in my arm pits as I slept. Now I keep them hidden in my waistband.

from one of those e-mails about what kids say...

milena_dance — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 00:19:42 GMT

from one of those e-mails about what kids say... "No person really decides before they grow up who they're going to marry. God decides it all way before, and you get to find out later who you're stuck with." Too funny!

A patient of mine pens an article...

milena_dance — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 14:59:40 GMT

I helped take care of this patient when I was at Walter Reed: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1538592,00.html My commander was Lt Col Paul Pasquina and I worked closely with Mr Nick, Maj LaFrancois, and Katie Yancosek. I helped take care of James Fair, who incidently, was hospitalized at the same time as Ryan Young, RIP (see my blog following this one), Health Calhoun, and many, many others on Ward 57. It was amazingly rewarding work (although heartbreaking at times). The article brought back a flood of memories. I so glad to see Mr Weisskopf doing well. I am going to write him!

remembering...

milena_dance — Mon, 29 May 2006 06:11:59 GMT

Photo is of the late SGT Ryan C. Young... I fretted over so many little things today... trying to organize my life, plan better, communicate better. But tonight I just needed to stop... and let the things that have been gnawing away at me go. Life is such a beautiful thing and sometimes one's just got to stop and smell the roses. Tomorrow is a day of reflection and the Iraq war has changed me forever. The four years I spent at Walter Reed and the time I spent taking care of the war's amputees and wounded were intense. I was at Walter Reed the day the WTC towers and the Pentagon (just 10 miles away) were hit. Everyone knew then that life would never be the same. While my time at Walter Reed was the most rewarding thing I've ever done, it was also one of the most heartbreaking things as well. In Rehab we got the soldiers who were hit the hardest, not just the amputees, but the spinal cord injured, the brain injured, the burned and maimed. It was not easy to stomach. Strangely, I might not be bellydancing today if I hadn't hit a real low in Dec 2003 when a young soldier I had gotten to know died unexpectedly. That was SGT Ryan C. Young who was badly injured -- about as bad as it gets: spinal cord injury, burns, missing eye, multiple chest tubes for punctured lungs. But over the course of about three weeks, he was improving and I got to know him, his mother, his grandparents. He also had a pretty, sweet wife. And then one day he was gone, his life snuffed out by a massive blood clot to the lungs. He was only 21 years old.... I cried for almost two days and sometimes still do. The low I hit after that is hard to describe but "down in a pit" comes close. I did not find bellydancing. It somehow found me, and I still don't know how exactly. It brought me up and out of that dark hole. It's kept me out of it or falling back into it, too. As hard as things get sometimes, I am just so grateful to be on this side of the grave. I am so grateful for my family and to be raising my girls, and hopefully to be making some small difference for the better in this world. I'm so honored to have known SGT Young. Rest in Peace Ryan. Rest in Peace Pat Tillman, Andy Bedard (from my hometown), and the remainder of America's late brothers and sisters of the Armed Forces. I say a prayer for you.

Shira on Tribe!

milena_dance — Sat, 27 May 2006 18:40:50 GMT

Shira is here on tribe and has started her own tribe! Yes, the same Shira as www.shira.net -- one can get their start in bellydance education by going to and reading her site. I heart Shira! The link: http://tribes.tribe.net/shira

Save Nazanin...

milena_dance — Wed, 24 May 2006 23:15:21 GMT

I saw this on another thread and it has touched my heart. I hope people will feel the same and consider signing this on-line petition in hopes of saving the life of this young Iranian girl. save.nazanin.googlepages.com/home From the website: At January 3, 2006, Nazanin was sentenced to death for murder by a criminal court. The Court of Appeal will review her sentence, and if upheld there, it must be confirmed by the Supreme Court, before she can be executed. According to the Iranian daily Etemaad, then 17-year-old Nazanin and her niece had been spending some time in a park west of Tehran with their boyfriends, when three men started harassing them. The girls` boyfriends fled from the scene, leaving them helpless behind. The men pushed Nazanin and her niece down on the ground and tried to rape them, and to protect herself, she took out a knife from her pocket and stabbed one of the men in the hand. The girls tried to escape, but the men overtook them, and at this point, Nazanin stabbed one of the other men in the chest, which eventually killed him. According to the newspaper, she broke down in tears when she told the court: "I wanted to defend myself and my niece. I did not want to kill that boy. At the heat of the moment I did not know what to do because no one came to our help." Nevertheless, the court sentenced her to death by hanging. In a western country Nazanin would probably be acquitted or at most receive a short prison sentence, as she obviously acted in self-defense. Furthermore, since she was only 17 years old, she would be treated as a minor. In Iran however, the minimum age for the death penalty is 15 years for males, and 9, yes nine years for females. Although there is no record of girls that young being executed, the fact that the law opens for this speaks clearly about what kind regime Iran is. Another point worth noticing, is that if Nazanin had let the men rape her, she could in the worst case have been arrested for extra-martial sex, which carries a maximum penalty of 100 lashes.

I 'tubed again....

milena_dance — Thu, 11 May 2006 05:16:41 GMT

I got home from work and decided to blow off some steam by doing some bellywork... rolls, flutters, side to side, all improvised... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKEZo1sfmk8

my side to side bellyroll

milena_dance — Sun, 30 Apr 2006 17:37:39 GMT

My side to side bellyroll... www.youtube.com/watch *disclaimer, my belly is not as defined as Fahtiem's and I just put this together in a few minutes also, goofing around with a side to side at the end, background noises courtesy of my 3 yr old... www.youtube.com/watch

river crossing mindteaser w/ solution

milena_dance — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 01:27:08 GMT

http://freeweb.siol.net/danej/riverIQGame.swf To start click on the big blue circle on the right; To move the people click on them; To move the raft, click on the red poletop on the opposite side of the river. RULES: Everybody has to cross the river; Maximum 2 persons on the raft at a time; The father can not stay with any of the daughters without their mother's presence; The mother can not stay with any of the sons without their father's presence; The thief (striped shirt) can not stay with any family member if the Policeman is not there; Only the Father, the Mother and the Policeman know how to operate the raft; This was an IQ test given to job applicants in Japan. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ One solution below... {P=policeman, C=convcit, D=daughter, M=mother, F=Father, S=son} P + C over P back P + D over P + C back M + D over M back M + F over F back P + C over M back M + F over F back F + S over P + C back P + S over P back P + C over

Can't we all just get along?

milena_dance — Mon, 24 Apr 2006 03:45:31 GMT

I am not always a patient or nice person, but I do try to learn from mistakes and to be a better person. The problems we have as individuals... quarrels, cruelty, insults and bickering, and the problems in our world... war, poverty, famine, and crime, make me so deeply sad. Where are we all headed? We must all share our planet. Why can't we love our Earth and one another more? I feel it's most unfortunate that we all fight so much and often times over little things. It just hurts my soul. Sometimes I wonder if the real fight lies in fighting ignorance -- and that our efforts should lie in promoting tolerance and education. And yet, how can we hope to promote tolerance, for example in Iraq, by sending in our unwelcome military? I remember Rodney King, a man who was beaten mercilessly by the LA Police, who said during the LA riots (after the officers were acquitted), "Can't we all just get along?" Although he'd been wronged in a hideous way, he still hoped for peace. I feel peace and love when I dance. I feel I'm a better human being, wife, and mother for it. I somehow wish I could do more to spread peace and love in this world. But I am no one great or in a position to do so. I only have my little corner of the world, and sometimes it feels very bare. Sometimes other dancers can say things or behave in the cruelest of ways. Can we learn to forgive, otherwise, how can we hope to be forgiven by others? I am still touched by the story of Robert Rule. He's a man with a snowy white beard and flowing white hair who plays Santa Claus every year at the Everett Mall. This helps him cope with his loss. He's the father of a 1982 Green River killer victim, Linda Rule who was only 16 years old when she was murdered. At the Green River killer's sentencing hearing, most victim's families said how much they hated the man responsible, Gary Ridgway. Instead Mr Rule, in a gentle voice said this: "Mr. Ridgway, there are people here who hate you, I'm not one of them. I forgive you for what you've done. You've made it difficult to live up to what I believe, and that is what God says to do, and that is forgive, and he doesn't say to forgive just certain people, he says to forgive them all. So... you are forgiven, sir." [At this way, Ridgway burst into tears, then quickly wiped them away.] "The job I have one month a year is to love children. I'm very fortunate in that respect right now because it's Christmas time again. I pity you, sir, because you won't have a Christmas. You won't have the love around you that everyone needs at Christmas time. And I hope some day when you stand in front of God, He can make it a little easier for you, and you can say you're sorry to Him for what you did because what you did was take a life, took all these different lives. But you didn't take just their lives. All the people that were involved with each person's life, you took. It adds up. It just multiplied. So, that's one of the reason's I feel sorry for you. You hurt more than just 48 people, you hurt all their families, their extended families, and I know there's even people in my family who would rather see you dead. I myself would rather see you executed than to live out a whole life in prison, spending money, the state's money, to keep you alive, in my opinion that's wrong. But I appreciate that you said that you killed our daughter... There is definitely closure when you know who did it and you did, and I'm sorry for you. All I wish for now is peace." Could I have forgiven Gary Ridgway, such a monster of a man? I don't know, I honestly doubt it. Seriously, I hope to God that I will never have to face that situation. I have two daughters myself and cannot bear the thought of any harm befalling them. And what of 9-11 and the acts of Osama bin Laden? I shudder at the thought. I know I can still work on learning forgiveness, beginning with the small things in life, and working toward the larger things. I can work on showing tolerance and promoting education in order to instill these lessons in my daughters and others. I can still believe in peace and love. I can still have hope, not only in my little corner but for the rest of the world, too. (Image - Lisa Lee)

at long last...

milena_dance — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 02:48:51 GMT

While we're still getting spring showers, it seems that our long, cold, rainy and overcast winter is over. It was bad, very dreary. I'm very excited for sunshine and warmer temperatures. I just love the summertime. I plan to take the girls swimming and watch them continue to grow into little ladies. I look forward to performing with Shahdaroba again this season as well. We are working on a khaleegy routine and some new material. I have to sew a dress -- let's hope I don't screw it up!

work getting me down

milena_dance — Fri, 24 Mar 2006 06:48:15 GMT

Lately, my work has been frustrating to say the least. It just seems like some people don't want to get better no matter what you try to do for them. I don't mean to sound so negative. I've just gotten burned a lot lately -- I've been lied to and taken advantage of by more people than I care to mention. It makes me not want to be nice or helpful. To make matters worse our hospital administrators are making everyone's life miserable by forcing a new, inefficient computer system on us. It's horrid and as expected... its merely a tool to "count beans." It makes me feel like all I boil down to is a just a number or statistic and that's all they care about. It's a most unrewarding situation and sometimes I think about leaving and trying to go elsewhere. I just don't know where I'd go.

love is...

milena_dance — Sun, 19 Mar 2006 07:41:25 GMT

I love my daughters. They are such good girls, so full of life and laughter. I am fortunate to have a good, loving husband and father, too. They are my everything.