And my Inbox would never be the same!

Where to start? How to start? My first post, my first translation, my first encounter? So many things to tell ..

So in a way this post is a recollection of events not necessarily related with one another
I apologize is the [post is so disorganized and chaotic.. but then so its me in real life :)

I know it was a pure coincidence.
Before GV, I used to be more connected in Forums, local ones, but then I faced some real-life problems because of these forums and I swore never to have anything to do with Social networking again.

But then, I had previously taken an online Mook about Religion Journalism and one of my online classmates Sasa Milosevic… used to be a former GV contributor and would often links to his posts.

At that time as well, I was really bored at my previous job, i wasnt learning anything and I was looking desperatly for opportunities to change …
But I dont know what happened to the thousands of CVs i sent …

It was early Feb 2011
So I clicked on Sasa article and didnt even bother reading the article … rather immediately looked down where the jobs/ career/ contribute
Damn no paid jobs ! only calls to translate or write articles !
But then, for some reason, I just applied ! I think i was in a way attracted by the multilingual aspect ..
And as almost 70 % of Lebanese are polyglot … it was quite naturlich that I apply to both French & Arabic lingua :)
Claire was the first GVer to respond
and my translations were non-English posts or posts who werent yet translated into English
Back then, not only i wasnt familiar with Social media, blogging and Tweets (embedding and liking ohh my God the horror movie) … but my inbox as well used to be quite plain and dead as plain and dull as my days in my former job :)

And so i started with Updates now known as Quick Reads … In french i would do about 15 a day :) so we started joking about it and called it ”Brevite” i.e. the Updates disease :)

After that, I moved i started translating French into English, but also Spanish into English (to a lesser degree), Arabic to English …where undeliberately most posts happened to be about Mauritania …

Without knowing how, I also started with Rising Voices ! and then as GV author .. writing about (ironically) any country but Lebanon ! India, Algeria, Syria …

Claire however wasnt the first GV'er I met live …it was Gohary or Jewel like I call him when he came to Leb in July 2011

In October i also got to go to Tunis to the Arab Bloggers conference and there I met Claire …
little did I know when she first subjected me to the first mini-translation test , that she will become like a second mom to me… talkin to her on a daily basis even more than I contact some friends who only live one street away

And so little by little, I was added to these mailing lists or GV groups and my inbox started filling with interesting discussions, with live ones… with people who arent just a fake nick name, but folks who i can trust,
people who as soon as I know I am travelling to any destination … its enough for me to send: Any Gver in ???? and there will be one .. who you might meet for the first time yet feel as if you've known him for all your life :)

Now I have so many profiles on GV that I dont know which one to choose :)

By that time … few months after … i managed to change my job and to land a really interesting position with some travel
When Eddie approached me with a would you like to do GV meetup in Beirut …I was like No No No No

I am not the type who likes to be really committed or to hold responsibilities … and I dont want to decieve anyone ! or anyone more !
I make more noise in the group than actions … I wish I can write and translate as much posts as I answer the community emails !
NO NO NO NO
Eddie said ok but then he returned and said, in a way you have no choice …we want someone we can trust :)
That meant a lot to me … I dont trust my ownself Eddie
I hope I will be up to that trust
A bit less than one month …so lets see
I dont know what to add more :)

See that photo ? it's me and one another GVer …:) Can you guess who's who ?
Striking no :)

Who's Who :)

Who's Who :)

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