A chessboard awaits potential players in an Oakland park, originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
“Are you happy, Yasminay?” asked HijabMan the other day through GMail chat [apparently the best/only way to get ahold of me these days - since I suck at returning people’s phone calls and replying to their emails and I can’t be bothered […]

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Sprinkles are for happy kids, originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
Back in the summer, when I first started working where I do now, my new colleague A watched me shovel cold apple pie into my mouth and asked, “Is that your breakfast?”
“Yes.”
She rolled her eyes, and I asked, “What? What’s wrong with eating apple pie for breakfast?”
“There […]

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Pencil in that patriotic profundity, originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
I forgot to share with you all a rocking weblog I came across during Ramadan: MUSLIM FOR A MONTH.
And - hey look, kids, you were supposed to be nominating submissions for the annual Brass Crescent awards! The deadline is Friday, November 17, 2006 (yes, tomorrow). Obviously, if […]

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Raindrops keep fallin’ on my head, originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
The heat wasn’t working at the office today, which means I spent most of the day being aggravated about the cold and - of course - engaging in monologues with God about how much I disapprove of this winter business.
“It’s all in your head, Yasminay,” […]

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Having ordered and paid for a caramel pecan cream pie at Baker’s Square last week, I was idly checking out the tattoos on the young man named Brian who was boxing up and bagging my purchase. Suddenly, Brian glanced at me across the counter and asked, “Do you know what sundar means?”
“Sorry, what was that?”
“Sundar. […]

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Originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
[Three beautiful things from October 15, 2006]
- Wearing my favorite red t-shirt - I call it my “sell-out” shirt - and realizing it still smells like the Clinique perfume I spritzed on at Macy’s, four days ago. [The shirt reads “Coca-Cola” in Urdu/Arabic script, read right to left.] I have to […]

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Blurry San Francisco, originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
Beautiful things:Bumper stickers I’ve noticed lately, which have made me laugh -
OUTTA MY WAY. I GOTTA PEE.
EAT BEEF. The West wasn’t won on salad.
I LOVE AIRPLANE NOISE.
And my personal favorite - NIRWANA - which reminded me of when my favorite crackhead, Somayya, first moved from Pakistan to the U.S. […]

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Originally uploaded by yaznotjaz.
I first got an inkling that Halloween this year was going to generate funny conversations when my buddy Z IMed me at the beginning of October with, “I’m gonna go as Ahmedinejad for Halloween.” Seriously, I didn’t even have a comeback to compete with that. In true Yasmine fashion, I believe my […]

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