It is funny what you discover when you start doing work on a home. It starts with paint, then with the floors being replaced, then the closet doors (I have 6 closets!). As we painted, we discovered that who ever painted before didn’t bother covering the electrical outlets and switches, so they were caked with paint and kind of dangerous.
I managed to give myself a minorshock a few weeks ago when plugging in my hairdryer. My friend’s dad came over on Sunday to show how to change the electrical outlets, which was really nice of him. Electricity + Sholeh = Not Good.
I feel like I haven’t really been home enough to do everything I want to do. The last month has been super busy, and it doesn’t look like things are going to slow down anytime soon. I sometimes wish I could just shut everything off for a week and hide out like a hermit in my cozy home. At least I have internet now!
Part of the reason that I still haven’t posted photos is that I feel like it isn’t done yet. I want to get the scraps out of my living room, install doors, and put the finishing touches on. I promise it will be soon! Thanks to my parents, it is furnished, which is a huge relief.
Have you ever had home improvement projects go terribly wrong, or have something hilarious happen? Tell me about it in the comments, I love hearing about other people’s experiences.
What?! Yeah, well, I’m nearly as surprised as everyone else, trust me. 6 months ago I was all about leaving Chicago. Then, as time went on, I realized that I love Chicago, my job is amazing (almost as much fun as I had working in Israel!), and my family and friends are here. This is home.
It is also a really great time to buy, especially with the homebuyer’s tax credit and the low housing prices. So I bought a one bedroom condo a few miles away from the Baha’i House of Worship and Lake Michigan.
It feels good to be an independent adult. I am so happy that I have the freedom and ability to do something like this at such a young age.
I’m currently painting, and have already run into some minor problems, but in the grand scheme of things it isn’t too bad. Part of the process, right? When I have some more work done I’ll put up photos. Right now it looks a little disastrous, and is a maze of ladders, paint cans, and random tools. We managed to get the ceilings done, however, thanks to my amazing friends who came to help this weekend. (Y’all are the best.)
If anyone wants to come by in the evenings this week to help paint the walls, I’m happy to have assistance! I’ll buy you dinner. Seriously. There are even homemade cupcakes available. (I’m totally ok with bribing people!)
It will be wonderful to finally have a place of my own, move in, and be home. And no, it hasn’t quite sunk in yet.
“Verily, I pray God to make thy home a center for the radiation of light and the glowing of His love in the hearts of His people. Know that in every home when God is praised and prayed to, and His Kingdom proclaimed, that home is a garden of God and a paradise of His happiness.”
This Gregorian year was full of changes, travel, friends, family, and many good things. I’ve been avoiding most of the “end of the year” lists that take over our media at this time of the year, but of course I couldn’t help it…so I’m doing a kind of “year in review”. It is by no means comprehensive, as it would be ridiculous to get into too much detail
January & February were mostly cold and mostly uneventful. I celebrated New Year’s Eve Persian style. I was working a part-time retail job, looking for work. I went sledding for the first time in years.
In March I celebrated Naw Ruz (the Baha’i New Year), traveled to New York City to stay with my cousin and attend an amazing wedding. Fell in love with NYC all over again.
April got more exciting, since I was asked to work at the Baha’i House of Worship as the assistant to the choir director, in order to organize the choir festival (with over 2,000 attendees). I volunteered at the Baha’i National Convention, which is when the national governing body of the Baha’is in the United States is elected. I’ve always loved attending Convention.
I spent a lot of time in May with my family, and of course most of my time was spent coordinating the choir festival. I was also sleeping on my friends’ couch, two lovely ladies who saved me from a horrendous commute from my parents’ house.
June was the celebration of a childhood friend’s wedding in Chicago and the start of a new job. I moved down the street from the Baha’i House of Worship to the Baha’i National Center to my current job, and found an apartment near my office.
Then there was was the 3rd of July BNC staff picnic on the shores of Lake Michigan, going to the beach, and the start of something wonderful. The middle of summer is always blissful for me!
I mostly remember August in a blur of travel, packing and unpacking. I went to Nashville, LA, and Seattle for work trips and then to Greenlake Baha’i Conference in Wisconsin. I started off the month with another wedding, and missed a different wedding while I was out of town (count that, we’re up to 4 weddings!). I also moved to my second apartment for the year.
I celebrated my birthday with a week-long spree in September, starting with a surprise trip to the Chicago Botanical Gardens, then to the Friends of the Persian Culture Conference with many friends and family, and finally with a party at a friend’s house that included delicious food and fire-spinning.
We went apple-picking in October, went to a college friend’s wedding, I dressed as Mary Poppins for Halloween, and attended an amazing seminar on Baha’i administration in Chicago.
I moved to my third apartment in November, got the sickest I’ve been in a long time, and had a lovely Thanksgiving.
December was cold. I started trying to figure out where I am going to live. A trip to Pittsburgh over Christmas break started the holiday season (it was really nice to get out of town!), and a wonderful New Year’s Party finished off the year. It has been 3 years since I left to serve in Haifa in December 2006. I can’t believe it has been that long.
It was a good year. I’m grateful and lucky to be surrounded by such beautiful family, friends, and coworkers. I am looking forward to 2010…who knows what is next!
I took ten photos with my camera on my tripod from a hillside overlooking the city of Pittsburgh. With the help of Photoshop, the photos were stitched together. (view large)
A small group of us drove up to Wisconsin a few weeks ago to go apple picking. I spent more time taking photos than picking apples, but I still had a great time.
For Halloween I had a lot of fun dressing up as a classic character, who I identify greatly with…
Poor Milo. I put wings on him for Halloween, and he hated it.
I love autumn. Or these parts of it, anyway. I’m starting to settle into a routine, both in my personal and work life, and gearing up for winter (yikes).
A few weeks ago, my friend Melissa Diep asked a few other ladies and myself to be models for a “Trash the Dress” photoshoot with about 20 photographers. First we went to a location under the railroad tracks in downtown Chicago. It is hard to tell in this picture, but I was clambering up onto concrete, walking barefoot on railroad tracks, and dragging the poor dress all over some very dirty ground.
(photo by Ny Brown)
After a few hours of shooting, it started to rain, so we drove up to Foster Beach to get some shots in and near Lake Michigan. I was the first one in the water.
That’s right, I went into the lake. With a wedding dress on. In September.
I had a great time, the other models and the photographers were really fun to work with. I also learned a lot about photography, since the photographers were giving each other advice and directing the models.
Today can only be called the Day of Ridiculous. It really started last night, when I was baking and cooking up a storm, and set off the smoke alarm at 9:30 pm. My neighbors must LOVE me.
This morning I slept through my alarm, but managed to wake up in time to get ready and out the door. I even packed my breakfast & lunch in a large brown bag.
I grabbed the brown bag and the bag of trash by my back door and headed down to my car. With the bags in my right hand and my keys in my left, I swung the garbage into the dumpster.
I had a fairly decent grip on my lunch in the brown bag, but the handle ripped and the bag toppled into the dumpster with the trash. Unfortunately, the dumpster had been emptied yesterday, so everything went into the very bottom. Into dumpster juice and assorted nastiness.
Gross. Luckily, it was all still in the brown bag, mostly protected.
I wasn’t going to abandon my lunch, however. Anyone who has spent time with me knows my relationship with food. I couldn’t reach the bottom of the dumpster. I looked around, and saw a desktop printer that someone had put by the dumpster, dragged it over, and stood on it. Still couldn’t reach.
I grabbed the picnic blanket out of the trunk of my car, draped it over the side of the dumpster, and stuck half my body into the dumpster to retrieve my bag.
(artist’s rendition of the morning’s events.)
After that debacle, I got to work, nearly fell on my face when I tripped going up the stairs, and realized that while I had my lunch, I’d forgotten my breakfast on the kitchen counter.
I haven’t really been home for 6 weeks. I stop here to sleep, do laundry, refill my suitcase, and off I go again! Travels are over for the time being, life continues to be busy but I’m glad it is slowing down a bit.
Lots of friends have come through town recently, and of course there is the usual revolving door of people moving into Chicago and leaving, visiting and stopping through, with the attached greetings and farewells.
Lauren did some fire spinning for my birthday on the roof of our friends’ apartment building. It was amazing.
The opportunities for using my camera have been endless. Especially since I’ve made a habit of carrying my camera with me everywhere. More photos on flickr…
I have been unable to write very much…no time or inspiration. I felt the slow stirrings of the writing bug today, though, so maybe it is coming back.
On sunset, there is a shadowed promise of the night
my favorite time
and I held my breath
we closed our eyes
there was everything surrounding in the stillness of the light.
Today is my birthday. It really feels more like a birthday week, what with the celebrating starting early with an evening at the Chicago Botanic Gardens, and concluding on Monday with more celebration. Everything is wonderful.
1. Gluten-free sugar cookies dipped in chocolate pudding are heavenly.
2. Aprons never fit me correctly. I always have to adjust them, which makes me ignore them altogether. But I really like the idea of an apron.
3. Driving a car means fixing it when parts wear out. Which means that my bank account complains to me of abuse. It also means that I have to deal with mechanics, which is always a funny experience because I really don’t know anything about cars.
4. An advantage to living in Chicago: there are always visitors coming through. It helps alleviate the missing-of-friends that happens when you are part of a community that is always moving across the world.
5. Really looking forward to the weekend. Work picnic, family, home. I desperately needed a 3 day break, and was kidding myself that I am not tired. I’m exhausted.
6. I had a few friends over the other night to help me finish off a tray of lasagna that I made. I highly recommend having a lasagna party, and close it out with ice cream or pudding if you can.
7. I really missed seeing live music over the last few years. It had been such a long time. Going to Summerfest and seeing Stevie Wonder & John Legend in concert was absolutely fantastic, and I need to take advantage of these opportunities.
8. I’m on my 6th wedding invitation of the year, and we’re only halfway through! Whew…
It is two places now, where I am and where I was. It is pieces of memories that float to the surface with no warning and leave me gasping for breath.
It is silence in the Mother Temple when I close my eyes and pretend that I am in the Shrines, or standing on the sea wall, or walking down broken stone paths. I am still near the water, but instead of a warm sea I swim in the cold lake, instead of gardens I am stand in concrete city landscapes.
One year.
So much and so little has changed. There is a little more knowledge behind my eyes, a little more heaviness in my sighs, more smiles and more quiet. There is less need to be here and there and everywhere at once.
Work happens every day from 8 am-5 pm, Monday through Friday, just like I prayed for. Last night I signed a short lease for a place to rest my head at night, and a closet for my clothes. Resigned and happy.
I miss you and you and you and you and you and most especially you.
In between places and time are the photographs, the Saturday morning brunches, the days upon days at Bahji, the Friday afternoon soccer matches, Thursday nights that were never-ending, Monday’s game night and dinner, Tuesday farewells to the pilgrims, and praying my way down the mountain.
Home is a jumbled mess of prairie grass, the call to prayer, the flat roads, the mountain stairs, a million flowers, snow, sand, sky and no starlight. Haifa and Chicago.
These last few weeks have really done a number on me. I finished up my work helping organize the 3rd Annual Baha’i Choral Festival at the Baha’i House of Worship. The Festival was wonderful, you can read about it here, and watch the hour-long performance here. (There were readings as well, but had to be cut out of the DVD.) Then I moved over into another job, which is quite fun and keeps me very busy. I’m only 4 days into it, and already feeling a bit like I did a year ago, right before International Convention.
I live out of suitcases and my car, my friends’ couch and my parent’s home. My work is so far from home that commuting is painful. But I get to see my friends a lot more now, and being in the city is wonderful.
On the continuing theme of my clumsiness, I knocked over a glass last weekend, and promptly sliced my finger open as I tried to rescue it. Luckily it wasn’t too bad, and thank God for medication.
I went to a lovely wedding this past weekend. That, combined with several friends visiting from out of town and the usual weekend festivities, created the deadly combination of no sleep, crazy meal schedules, and getting nothing done on my to-do list. My poor to-do list is feeling quite neglected.
Twitter was sending me into a spiral of distraction, so 9 days ago I took a break. I don’t really miss it, and I’ve stopped thinking in terms of tweets. Maybe when things settle back down I’ll get into it again, but right now I’m enjoying the silence.
Last night I went salsa dancing for the first time in nearly 3 years. I couldn’t believe it has been that long.
And then I stepped out on the dance floor, and it was painfully obvious that not only was I very rusty, but woefully untutored. Thankfully, the majority of the people that I danced with were very good, gave me lots of tips, and were quite patient. I learned more last night than I have in years.
However, one individual was particularly self-involved. Sporting a suit and greased-back hair, he thought that he was an exceptional dancer. No interest in being a good dance partner, he really just wanted to show off. Unfortunately, he got a little enthusiastic, and ended up kicking my leg. Very, very painful.
As I hobbled away, I found my friends, who are regulars on the salsa scene. When I told them what had happened, they started laughing. Apparently this guy is rather…infamous. haha. Well, I’ve been initiated, I guess!
Outside of that rather amusing incident, it was fun and I’m glad I went. Even though I’m limping today.
I read books like they are the last pieces of driftwood and I am drowning. They are my lifeline, inspiration, education, and friends. I learned to read before I went to school, my parents forming letters and words, using the Baha’i Writings and endless books to teach me. I learned to write much more sloppily. But this is not about writing, it is about reading.
I have read so many books that I forget if I’ve read something before, sometimes. Half of my high school library collection was devoured in the four years that I was there. I think I was voted “Most likely to become a librarian” in an informal class poll.
One of my favorite passages from a fictional book comes from The History of Love:
“Even now, all possible feelings do not yet exist. There are still those that lie beyond our capacity and our imagination. From time to time, when a piece of music no one has ever written, or a painting no one has ever painted, or something else impossible to predict, fathom, or yet describe takes place, a new feeling enters the world. And then, for the millionth time in the history of feeling, the heart surges, and absorbs the impact.”
I decided to change a few minor things on my blog, the most noticeable of which is the addition of a second sidebar, where I have linked to a number of blogs of friends of mine. I cleaned up a lot of old links, and if you haven’t updated your blog in 3 or 4 months, I probably took it off of the list. Blogging is about interacting and posting! If you’re blogging…keep up the good work! If you think I might not know about your blog, please send me an email or comment to let me know. I like to keep up with everyone.
NYLON PARLA, the photoblogging project that I am a part of, has started up again after a short hiatus. Link to it and spread the word!
During the Baha’i Fast (which starts today), the photoblog nineteen days will be featuring a guest photographer each day, with a contribution from all of us on Naw Ruz. I’m so excited about being a part of it, and can’t wait to see what everyone contributes.
Speaking of the Fast, this is the first time that I’ve fasted at home since I was in high school (except for the occasional weekend home from university), and I’m really looking forward to it. As usual, I am awake at a very late hour and hope that waking up at 5:45 am won’t hurt too much.
I now have a giant bruise on my leg that hurts every time I walk. I didn’t get this bruise from hitting the ground too hard after skydiving, or from fending off a vicious bear. I didn’t get it from a sword fight while saving the kingdom from evil, or from rescuing a child from a burning building.
I walked into a table. Again. With eyewitnesses, who winced at my pain but also laughed at me. Thanks, guys.
There are times when I am graceful, and times when I am decidedly not.
Also, the other day I poured milk into my bowl of rice and stew, instead of into my coffee where it belonged.
I made a flan for my mother’s birthday the night before…and of course, forgot to put it out for her birthday.
Today was one of those days. I was woken by a call from a dear friend who I haven’t spoken to in years. She and I laughed and talked and agreed to meet this week for lunch. While we talked I made rice, pot roast, and coffee.
Mom came home and insisted on going for a walk, since it was 61 degrees F outside (16 degrees C). For February in Chicago, this is unheard of. So of course we enjoyed the sunlight and I felt my spirits pick up. Winter really does number on me.
I hung paintings around the house this afternoon, which is a bit of an ongoing project for me for several reasons. First, we have lots of wall space. Second, we have a lot of paintings, as my paternal grandparents were artists. Finally, I tend to have a short attention span when it comes to decorating. Sometimes I rotate paintings in the house for fun. There is something satisfying about hammering nails into the framing boards of the paintings.
I spent the rest of the evening in the library, which is pretty much like heaven for me. I think that the only thing that would make it better would be to attach an ice cream shop, and perhaps add a swimming pool…haha, well, in any case, I was very productive and that made me happy.
Finally, I want to share with you this quotation:
If a small number of people gather lovingly together, with absolute purity and sanctity, with their hearts free of the world, experiencing the emotions of the Kingdom and the powerful magnetic forces of the Divine, and being at one in their happy fellowship, that gathering will exert its influence over all the earth. The nature of that band of people, the words they speak, the deeds they do, will unleash the bestowals of Heaven, and provide a foretaste of eternal bliss. The hosts of the Company on high will defend them, and the angels of the Abha Paradise, in continuous succession, will come down to their aid.
The illustrious Sarah Lonning has a presence on the web. Be impressed.
Navid shares music, often with commentary. Brilliant. I’ve been enjoying it very much.
That odd fellow known as David Precht launched his site a while ago, and it is as lovely and strange as he is.
Genius Dog is now The Doghouse Diaries, so adjust your links. And they’re doing a fantastic job. Keep it up, guys.
There is a carousel at the mall that reminds me of this gorgeous photo by Shahriar. As the children go around, their faces light up and they live completely in that moment. I love that.
Lauren uploaded these photos from her trip to Nepal a while back but I forgot to blog about how much I loved them.
The streets of Chicago are still snow-covered, and we are trying to stay warm. Do me a favor…if you live in a warm climate, please go outside for a moment and enjoy it for me. It is horrible to admit that I am getting acclimated…yesterday I traipsed around in the snow in our yard for a while, just because I had snow boots on and I could. And last weekend I went sledding with my sister. I had some bruises and aches afterward, but it was totally worth it.
It has been 9 months since leaders of the Baha’i Faith in Iran were arrested on 14 May 2008. They are still in prison, along with other Baha’is who have been arrested merely because of their beliefs.
From a Baha’i World News Service story: “We deny in the strongest possible terms the suggestion that Baha’is in Iran have engaged in any subversive activity,” said Bani Dugal, principal representative of the Baha’i International Community to the United Nations. “The Baha’i community is not involved in political affairs. Their only ‘crime’ is the practice of their religion.”
“The seriousness of the allegations makes us fear for the lives of these seven individuals,” she said.
The Baha’is in Iran, in addition to being imprisoned, are also harassed, denied the right to education, dismissed from jobs or refused hire, cemeteries destroyed…the list goes on. They are not the only minority in Iran to suffer, but are certainly targeted heavily.
Although I am half Persian, I was born in the USA and have never been able to visit Iran. I would love to go there someday, but the situation is not to be taken lightly, especially being a Baha’i. It is sad to me, because my entire life I have been exposed to aspects of the culture, heard stories, and seen pictures of Iran. It is a strange feeling having such a strong connection to a place that I have never been. As a Baha’i, I know that the entire world is my home, and every country and person united (even thought it is sometimes difficult to see with the situation of the world being what it is).
Perhaps today you can say a prayer for them, and for the sufferers of injustice anywhere in the world.
He is the Compassionate, the All-Bountiful! O God, my God! Thou seest me, Thou knowest me; Thou art my Haven and my Refuge. None have I sought nor any will I seek save Thee; no path have I trodden nor any will I tread but the path of Thy love. In the darksome night of despair, my eye turneth expectant and full of hope to the morn of Thy boundless favor and at the hour of dawn my drooping soul is refreshed and strengthened in remembrance of Thy beauty and perfection. He whom the grace of Thy mercy aideth, though he be but a drop, shall become the boundless ocean, and the merest atom which the outpouring of Thy loving-kindness assisteth, shall shine even as the radiant star.
Shelter under Thy protection, O Thou Spirit of purity, Thou Whom art the All-Bountiful Provider, this enthralled, enkindled servant of Thine. Aid him in this world of being to remain steadfast and firm in Thy love and grant that this broken-winged bird attain a refuge and shelter in Thy divine nest that abideth upon the celestial tree.
There are even homemade cupcakes available. (I’m totally ok with bribing people!)
