So I’m pretty much without things to blog about. I started reading this book about Cambodia called “The Lost Executioner” at Barnes & Noble tonight, and got about 50 pages in before I had to leave the bookstore.

There are SO MANY books I want to read. *sigh*

Posted in Thoughts | Comments (2)

stutter and gasp as I speak
these words
these words will not come out
shine shine on
and my heart rests on fragile strings
negate my devotion

lines running back through time
there are parts of me that never left
hold on
did you think I never wanted forever.

The words said
the accusation
have broken me into pieces.

I never left. I promise you.

I never left.

But these are my words now
and this is judgement.

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I HAVE A PHONE AGAIN!

All is well with the world. Back in Chicago, party on Friday.

Ok, now go and do something productive. This blog is definitely a waste of time.

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1. Does anyone has an old Verizon phone that they don’t want? I might not be able to get a replacement.

2. There is STILL a room open in my house, and if you have a friend that is looking for a place, please let me know.

Also, don’t forget about the Halloween Party this Friday night! Last party that I’m throwing before I leave for Haifa!!

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Dear friends and family,

There was a freak incident this morning involving my phone and Carmen’s tea. I watched in horror as my phone skidded on the carpet, hit a bump, and flipped (while on a phone call) straight into a large mug of green tea. Needless to say, I’m without a phone for the next few days. You can call Carmen if you desperately need to reach me, or just email me.

This is similar to the Great Burrito Incident except that I didn’t do anything stupid on purpose. Truly. This was just a confluence of unfortunate circumstances.

There is hope, however: I may have a friend who has a phone I can use to activate. And my obsession with organization paid off: 3 weeks ago I put all of the phone numbers in my phone onto a Gmail spreadsheet. So I didn’t lose anything.

much love,
Sholeh

Posted in Humor | Comments (7)

I am in Los Angeles right now (so warm!!!) but I’m posting some pictures from Minnesota last weekend. We grilled outside in 34 degree F weather. Now in LA it is going to be in the 70s.

The assembly line to make the kabob. We formed the ground beef onto flat skewers, propped it on the boards while we waited for the braziers to heat.

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Its funny. I’ve known since September 4th (my birthday) that I would be moving, but actually putting it into words and posting about it was another matter entirely.

I guess I can talk about it now, since I recently stopped working and I have a better idea of my plan from now on.

Sometime in the first week of December I will go to Haifa, Israel to serve at the Baha’i World Centre. EDIT: FOR 18 MONTHS!

My job can best be described as a project assistant, and I will be doing what I tend to fall into naturally: event planning and project management. It is going to be a lot of work, of course, but I can’t even put into words how excited I am.

And I just found out yesterday that Mojan and her husband will be coming! There are so many amazing people I know that are already serving in Haifa, and more coming soon…happiness abounds.

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Coming to Minnesota is mostly about family & food. My grandparents, two aunts (and their families), and my uncle (and his family) all live in the same neighborhood. So when guests are in town, it turns into an extravaganza of Persian cooking & music, mehmooni (dinner parties), and a jabber of people speaking a mix of Persian and English. Quite fabulous, really. I’m taking pictures and will post them as soon as I get back.

In the last 36 hours I have eaten:
-Chicken & rice.
-Cereal.
-Rice snacks from Japan that are now my newest obsession.
-An amazing kabob dinner that consisted of ground beef kabobs, chicken kabobs, grilled tomatoes, yogurt & cucumber salad, doogh (yogurt & club soda drink), pickles, rice, and cake.
-A ridiculous amount of Persian tea.
-Eggs w/cheese, ham, and rice (breakfast).
-Ice cream and truffles for breakfast.
-Dolmeh (stuffed grape leaves) with homemade yogurt.

whew. And it isn’t over yet…

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This is great! I’m driving to Minnesota tomorrow morning (Thursday) to visit my extended family there. I’ll get back on Sunday, probably. Then next Wednesday night I fly to Los Angeles, will be there for 5 days.

Friday, October 27th: Halloween Party at my house, 8 pm. Costumes required. You know the drill. Surprises in store. woohoo!

I want to write more, wish I could just let myself write but I don’t have the time and I have not yet gotten back into the world of the living. I’ve kind of been on a hiatus in regards to people in general, and I’m just now slowly coming out of it. Forgive me if I’ve not been around much, I have been very busy.

Posted in Travel | Comments (3)

I am not a good pet owner.

The other night I took out our gerbil, Sushi, from his cage and put him in his exercise ball to run around the living room.

I promptly forgot about him. One of my roommates (not sure who) rescued him and placed him back in his cage. *sigh* I felt very bad.

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If you haven’t seen the new Weird Al video, White and Nerdy, you really must. For all of us nerds, geeks, and brains, this is especially poignant. When I was in middle school my group of friends was obsessed with Weird Al. We had one tape that we would pass around the group, taking turns listening to it.

Explains a bit about me, huh?

Posted in Humor | Comments (5)

I ran through the thick droplets
the thunder in my bones
the lightning in my eyes and my hair
I would scream out at the sky
but under city lights it is futile
a waste of breath in the clattering crowds
this is joy!
life breathed in the storm
coalesced in flashes
moving against each individual form
we’ll listen to music
in the silence between.

Write madly in the flickering candle nights
there are secrets here
whispered against our obscure smiles
sweet in the way you say it
tragic in the way I know life will be
from now.

We’re keeping the darkness at bay
with lights lit in the secret corners
of our hearts
with sighs and prayer
and maybe even the smallest amount
of song.

Posted in Poetry | Comments (4)

I’ve had the opportunity to be a bit of a tourist in my own town recently. I normally have a really hard time with tourists…they block sidewalks, gape at perfectly normal things (like the man painted silver on Michigan Avenue), and cut me off in traffic in completely unexpected ways. Resident Chicagoans are crazy drivers sometimes, but highly predictable.

ANYWAYS…I am really trying to take advantage of living here for as long as I can.

The train to HELL. As I like to call it…

oooh shiny…

Chess= AWESOME (by Millenium Park)

Relief by the river on Michigan Avenue

Lighthouse on Lake Michigan (taken by me on J’s camera)

The Cloud Gate, of course.

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