Last Saturday, while I was volunteering at a painting competition at the art center and drawing henna designs on little kids’ hands, the father of one of the children leaned over and asked curiously, “Where were you born?” I smiled sweetly and answered, “Berkeley.” And while it was the truth, it was quite obvious that […]

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Yesterday, I:
One. Used the “PowerPoint elastomeric acrylic latex caulk with silicone” caulking gun to grout the cracks along the living room walls and ceiling. Doesn’t that make me sound smart? Hi, my name is Bob Villa. Actually, no, I’d much rather be MacGuyver instead. Anyway, I finally understand what all the hype about being tall […]

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rocker boy extraordinaire
I know everyone gets all excited (you do! just admit it!) whenever I talk about my brother’s hair. So this is just to let you know that the spiky orange mohawk is back. You read that right. And, yes, you know you wish you had a spiky orange mohawk, too. You do! Just […]

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the earth is his canvas
it’s a jungle out there.
but look what you get out of it: tomatoes, jalapenos, and basil.
someone needs to make pasta, and soon.

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It’s 9 a.m. on Wednesday morning and the brother and I are sitting in his dentist’s office. I’m poring through National Geographic and Sports Illustrated, shivering from time to time because I’m sitting right beneath the air-conditioning vent. (Who in their right freakin’ mind turns on the AC at 9 a.m.?) He’s sitting next to […]

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you let me change lanes/while i was driving in my car
Things that made my day:
One: Getting a road trip mix CD in the mail from Baji, who’s over there in DC, all the way across the country. I swear I don’t recognize half these artist names, but that doesn’t mean I’m enjoying the CD any […]

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Less than two weeks ago, we drove up to Sacramento to visit our relatives when we heard the news of our bhabi’s sister’s death.
Towards the afternoon, I took the opportunity to escape the endless crying and sad, drawn faces by ushering my niece, three-year-old Zaynam, and her one-year-old sister – my cousin and bhabi’s […]

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Daddy-o: Yasminay, you want to see a rainbow?Yasmine: Sure. Where’s it at?Daddy-o: Look in that direction, over by that tree. ::sprays the hose so that the water catches the sunlight:: Do you see it??Yasmine: aww, that’s beautiful, Daddy. Thank you.Daddy-o: You’re very welcome. ::sniffs:: Why do you smell like cigarettes?Yasmine: Uhh, I was smoking it […]

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conversations with (and documented by) my brother the artist
post-its are the funniest way to document a conversation, really.
DISCLAIMER, AGAIN: Please note that I am not as shallow as this exchange makes me out to be. But, really, look at the heavy-duty bags under that first guy’s eyes. Workaholics or drug-addicts need not apply. It’s all […]

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i’m free/free fallin’
Tonight I will be up the entire night, fighting sleep and the usual distractions (AIM, weblogs, and midnight snacks), and tomorrow I need to make sure I make it on time to my 8:30 a.m. class. Tomorrow I also need to go in to see one of my professors during her office hours. […]

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nothing witty, urbane, erudite, or even coherent – just a disjointed attempt to put my typing skills back in practice
On my bed is a thick knitted blanket. It’s just over five feet long, and narrow, the perfect length and width for my 5′1″ frame. My mother knitted it during the first year after I was […]

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I was talking to Bushra on AIM several nights ago, and right before I signed off, she said, “You know, you never write about your mother.” On this weblog, she meant. Which is true, I know. Over the past year of blogging, I’ve made many, many references to my father, sharing stories about his quirky […]

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one for me, one for you
I figured my mother needed a change of scenery, so last Friday I drove her up to Sacramento to visit the psycho soap-opera-drama familia, also affectionately known as the relatives. After all, there’s only so many times one can wander around the yard and talk to the rose bushes and […]

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Tonight, I have here at my elbow:
- One canister of Pringles
- Two bottles of cranberry-apple-raspberry juice
- Five assorted candy bars
Now let’s see if that’ll be enough to get me through the night.
Tomorrow, I have a midterm exam and a paper due, both of which I forgot about ’til now, because I’m oh-so-smart like that. […]

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We’ve just spent an hour of our lecture time watching a film called Real Women Have Curves, and another hour discussing our reactions to this movie about a Mexican family in Los Angeles, about a teenaged girl moving between two worlds. As usual, I throw out a few thoughts about identity as fluid and impermanent, […]

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