Remember when we were happy? Back in the corona-free days… It feels like a lifetime ago! Or is it just me?
Covid-19 turned the world upside down, so if you’re a citizen of this planet, your life has probably been on hold for the past year or so (if not, then lucky you!). Life as we knew it is long gone and we’re all trying to cope with the new reality.
There are so many things we miss from back in the days, so I asked around and gathered my favorite answers from life before corona:

1- Hugging

“I was never a touchy-feely person before corona but I plan on hugging all the people I love as soon as I get my vaccine shot.” – Nadine, 23

I feel you Nadine! We all plan on doing the same.

2- Maskless outings

“Not wearing a mask before heading out. This one is number one for me.” – Philippe, 12

This one’s number one for everybody Philippe!

3- Happy hours!

“Do you remember the time we used to sip from each other’s drinks in soirées? Simpler times… Although sometimes I wonder how we used to be so unhygienic sharing our drinks with our friends all the time.” – Mayssam, 23

4- Wearing lipstick

“I haven’t put on lipstick since 2019. I can’t wait for maskless life to be back so I can go back to wearing bold lipstick colors like I used to.” – Sarah, 24

I feel you girl!! I hope brands go overboard with their post-covid lipstick collections because we definitely need it!

5- The energy!!

We used to have so much energy before, even after a busy day. Now I’m just a potato couch trying to find the energy to get through the day… I miss having this energy!” – Karim, 24

6- Going to school

“Let’s be real, we miss school! We were excited to skip a few days, weeks or even months for some of us, but now it’s too much. I never thought I’d say this, but I can’t wait to be back to school! Hopefully in September!” – Gabriel, 17

7- Meeting new people

“I miss socializing in real-life. It’s not the same behind a screen.” – Aya, 16

8- Going to the gym

“I’m literally the biggest procrastinator when it comes to exercising but I miss actually having the option of hitting the gym if I feel like it.” – Nour, 18

9- Travelling

“I know we’re technically allowed to travel but my corona-anxiety won’t allow me to. I can’t wait to be on a plane! Destination anywhere!” – Mariam, 22

10- Going to the hairdresser

“Yes, really. I haven’t been taking any risks corona-wise but the first thing I’m doing after this whole thing dims down is going back to my hairdressing routine.” – Karma, 22

We didn’t know we were living the good life until it was gone. So tell us… What do you miss the most?

Self-love will literally solve all your problems. Honest. It is a journey, not a destination. Sometimes the roads are bumpier than others and that’s okay. What you need to remember is that self-love starts with just your thoughts. You live inside your head, and you are what you think, so might as well train your mind to be kind to you. Let the self-loving thoughts swarm, and self-esteem and self-confidence will follow! If I asked you to name all the things that you love, how long would it take for you to name yourself?

You can start by reminding yourself (and your friends!) with this:

1- Exercise is a celebration of what your body can do, not a punishment for what you ate

2-For every flaw you see in yourself, name on thing you actually like about yourself

3- Your vacation doesn’t have to end with a “detox”. There’s no such thing as “getting back on track”

4- You are allowed to skip the workout because you’re tired

5- You are also allowed to nourish your body with a wide variety of food groups, free of restriction, and without feeling guilty

6- Don’t think the fashion industry doesn’t belong to you just because you keep seeing images of bodies that don’t look like yours on Instagram and TV

7- This poem by Erin Hanson

NOT

You are not your age,
Nor the size of clothes you wear,
You are not a weight,
Or the colour of your hair.
You are not your name,
Or the dimples in your cheeks,
You are all the books you read,
And all the words you speak,
You are your croaky morning voice,
And the smiles you try to hide,
You’re the sweetness in your laughter,
And every tear you’ve cried,
You’re the songs you sing so loudly,
When you know you’re all alone,
You’re the places that you’ve been to,
And the one that you call home,
You’re the things that you believe in,
And the people that you love,
You’re the photos in your bedroom,
And the future you dream of,
You’re made of so much beauty,
But it seems that you forgot,
When you decided that you were defined,
By all the things you’re not.

8- Let go of socially constructed ideas of beauty

9- Let go of other people’s expectations

10- You do you

They say if you’re still up at 4 AM, you’re either lonely or in love. Nope! I’m just an architecture student with a tight deadline trying to survive (and make it in life!) despite being overloaded and sleep deprived all the time. Architecture students don’t have time for loneliness or love, and to be completely honest, I’m personally starting to think I bit off more than I can chew. Thankfully, I’m not alone in this. Architecture students are all in this together. Misery does love company.

So to make myself feel better, I drafted 8 things architecture students have in common:

1- Their Instagram page is filled with buildings and landscapes

2- They spend way too many years in university

3- They live on coffee and cigarettes

4- They consider 3 AM an early night

And say things like “It’s midnight, I have plenty of time to finish”.

5- Yet, they secretly love the rush of pulling an all-nighter

Architecture students claim being more sleep deprived than others, so whenever someone complains about lack of sleep, they swoop in with their timetable thinking it’s a competition.

6- They are still single

Because they don’t have time for real life…

7- They get annoyed when people in less intense majors complain about their workload

8- More importantly, they are looking for exposure

If you’re an architecture student or design, landscape or urban planning enthusiast looking for exposure, how about you get published on Banque Libano-Française architecture blog?

Many renowned national and international experts such as Georges Arbid, Director of Arab Center for Architecture in Beirut, and Daniel Berlin from Snøhetta, have already contributed to it. Oh and FYI, in 2018 only, the Blog was visited 32k times, reached 940k people on Facebook and 25k people on Instagram!

You can share articles, photos, architectural plans… or even your end-of-year project (which will be subject to review by the Bank blog team of course). You probably spent countless all-nighters coming up with the right concept, and drafting and tuning the project to the last detail. You deserve to show it to the world!

Lebanese moms have the characteristics of what the French call a “maman poule”: extremely overprotective. They’re anxious over nothing and worry about everything. Go figure.  Lebanese moms manage to take the “maman poule” thing to a whole new level. So if you were raised by a Lebanese mom, whether in Lebanon or abroad, you’ll probably relate to most of this list.

So here are 10 things Lebanese moms have in common:

1- They ask too many questions

2- They’re a bit overdramatic

3- Especially when you don’t answer the phone

4- They have their own body language

They usually use this gesture when you say something inapropriate in front of someone. Translation: “halla2 bfarjik”.

5- They start rhyming when they don’t like what you said

Credits to @Lebanesememes for this one 🙂

6- “Khod panadol” is their answer to everything

You have a cold? Fever? Stomach ache? Tuberculosis? Eh Khod panadol!

7- They turn into maniacs when they have a “3azimé”

And cook meals that last 3 days because they always overdo it.

8- They don’t understand memes

Whenever I show my mom a funny meme/video she asks “who is that?” I don’t know mom! Just laugh and give me my phone back.

9- They type like this

*Mom typing*

*Mom typing*

*Mom typing*

*Mom typing*

*Mom typing*

*3 min later*

“Ok”

10- “Khod jacket”

Every. Single. Day.

If I missed out on some other funny thing Lebanese moms have in common, feel free to share it in the comment section below. The more the merrier! Make the world laugh 🙂

So, who else HATES “Back to School” commercials? When I was still in school, I used to get anxiety whenever the “Back to School” commercials of schoolbags, copybooks and pens started being displayed as of end of August. But the thing is, I’m in university now and I STILL get anxious whenever I see a back to school sign. And I swear each year it feels like they’re being posted sooner than the year before. Is it just me?

Back to school anxiety is real. So I made a list of happy things to think of in order to tackle and overcome this feeling:

1- You’ll reunite with old friends

You probably hung out with your closest friends during summer but catching up with the rest of your class will feel nice.

2- It’s the beginning of fall

Goodbye August heat! Hello gentle September breeze, autumn warm colors and pumpkin spice lattes!

3- New year, new goals

If you’re a kid at heart you know September is the beginning of the year –not Jan. And you know… new year, new goals, new ambitions.

4- You can still go to the beach

As long as the sun’s shining you can still go to the beach on the weekends. If you’re a true sea lover you know beach season starts in March and ends in October.

5- The positive side of routine

End of summer means the end of sleepless nights, parties, overeating and overdrinking. You’re back to your healthy routine and god knows you need it. Helloooo highly-needed detox!

6- You could meet the love of your life this year!

They say everyone has a soulmate… I think mine got hit by a bus or something so I guess that’s not gonna happen.

7- Maybe you’ll even get good grades this year!

Just kidding, you know that’s not gonna happen either right? Old habits die hard 😉

8- Or at least get better at Math for a change

Nah I know you’ve probably given up on math a long time ago but that’s okay 🙂 You’re still gonna make it in life just like everyone will!

And a Happy September to you!

Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio has announced that Earth Alliance, an environmental group co-founded by him, will donate $5 million to reduce Amazon rainforest fires and save the Amazon. As you probably already know, the Amazon rainforest in Brazil has been on fire for nearly three weeks, with little to no media coverage. Why is it so important to stop the fire and save the Amazon, you ask?

1- It is the home of 30 million people who live and work there

2- It is also the home of 3 million species

3- The Amazon rainforest is known as the “lungs of the planet”; it is therefore very important to the health of the planet

4- The Amazon rainforest is the greatest reservoir of fresh water and biodiversity on the planet

5- The destruction of the Amazon rainforest means less oxygen and rain as well as warmer temperature

According to Earth Alliance, the Amazon rainforest is “one of the planet’s best defenses against the climate crisis”. So let us all be the change we want to see in the world by donating money if we can, or by simply spreading awareness around.

When it comes to emotional maturity, age is only a number. I’ve known young people who are mature beyond their years, and older people who are childish, and not in a good way. Being mature doesn’t mean letting go of your inner child and acting all serious all the time. It’s deeper than this. You can be a kid at heart and emotionally mature at the same time.

So what makes you emotionally mature?

1- Small talk no longer excites you

Former First Lady of the United States Eleanor Roosevelt once said: “Great minds discuss ideas. Average minds discuss events. Small minds discuss people.”

2- You respect differences and don’t judge people

You’re more open-minded.

3- Sleep is better than a Friday night out

You don’t have anything to prove to anyone anymore. If you feel like chilling at home, you just chill.

4- You don’t force love

You know better. You’ve already learned your lesson, perhaps the hard way.

5- You take care of your mental health

You know how much it matters too well by now.

6- You are supportive of others

You lift people up whenever you can.

7- You know how to ask for help when you need it

And you know it’s okay to do so. As the song says, “We all need somebody to lean on”.

8- You feel your feelings

And you embrace them instead of bottling them up or running away from them.

9- You don’t cling to materialist things

10- You know your worth

You’re no longer unkind to yourself.

11- Your happiness doesn’t depend on people but on your inner self

You’ve reached inner peace and it feels so goooood.