well, I just realized tonight, with the help of an observant friend, that I usually go out after 9:00 p.m. I mean it just happens that most of my plans somehow end up being late night plans! What do you think is going on? Have I indulged myself in the rotten Western culture or what?
Read the rest...Ok, so since some of you have shown interest in my drunken posts, here's one for you... except that I had my last drink more than two hours ago... so this might not be as interesting!
Following our unlucky chain of events, Nazi and I decided to do a magical trick (Jadoo va Jambal, if you will)... therefore, during an extremely superstitious act, we actually burned (or heated or whatever you may call it) some "Espand"! We did it the old fashioned way... circling it around our heads and moving it around the house and everything! Even our moms would be surprised. Don't judge us though, we'd never have done it if it wasn't for Nazi's injured knee... I mean, THAT was too much! I couldn't just sit there and wait for my hand to be cut off by some unfortunate accident now, could I? So yeah, I openly announce here that I am a "proud" superstitious after all, and so is my roommate, I guess!
Have you ever noticed how bad things happen all at once? So you know, by reading my previous post, that our toilet was clogged! Well, at exactly the same time we found out about that, our kitchen sink just happened to start leaking! While we were trying to call the manager and get someone to take a look at it - which BTW hasn't happened yet! - our kitchen lamps died on us, all of them! And last but not the least... our futon's wooden frame suddenly started to squeak. After careful inspections, I realized it was a loose screw and fixed it (or at least I think so!). Well, I think it's about time that our ceiling falls on us or something in that order!
Honestly, do you think we haven't been paying enough attention to our house? maybe it's feeling neglected and is trying to tell us something! Whatever it is dear house, we've heard it! You can stop what you're doing now...please?!
I watched Downfall (Der Untergang) last night. (spoiler notice: this post may reveal some points in the movie plot!) A movie about the final days of the Nazi regime in Germany. It was a bit disturbing, seeing how people can be blinded by ideas, which in Hitler's case turned out to be very wrong. A long movie, but far from boring. It was the first movie I had seen that showed a more human side of Adolf Hitler. It showed some of the people in his circle of friends that actually liked and admired the guy, even when he was extremely close to the end of his reign/life. Some of them turned to extreme solutions when they saw their ideal future (i.e. a Germany with National socialism) going down the drain... This one couple actually KILLED their own children, because a world without their ideals wasn't an appropriate place for kids to grow up in! How sick is that? All on all, It's definitely one of the best WWII movies I've ever watched, so give it a try if you're interested in the topic; you won't regret it.
Ok, obviously I don't have anything else to do, so I'm here to write about the new Pride and Prejudice - which I have just finished watching. This is a story that has been told/made-to-movie in every imaginable way and yet, surprisingly, I didn't get bored at all while watching the new remake! I think the director did a wonderful job in this new adaptation. Of course, as some reviews have mentioned, Elizabeth Bennet is too pretty to resemble the original character created by Austen herself; oh well, it's Hollywood after all! It just doesn't make sense when people keep talking about how beautiful Jane is ...you look at Kiera Knightly and are like: "what the ...?"... anyway, that aside, I thought it was a very good remake. The actor who played Mr. Darcy was indeed very agreeable! Beautiful country landscape and good music... Oh, yeah, and you know, there are these movies in which people keep making out and making love and stuff and try to convince you of the affection between the characters... and then, there are some other movies that will carry you till the very end only to find the main characters have their first/last kiss on the final scene. This was one of those movies... another one that I can remember was proof of life, which by the way was an interesting movie... I guess sometimes less can be more enjoyable!
1. Everybody has their own weird sense of humor; just accept it!
2. Today, this little girl on the bus - who thought I couldn't understand Farsi - told her mom "the lady who's sitting behind us is very pretty!"...yayyyyyy! a six year old thinks I'm pretty... making progress here!
3. I've totally lost my voice for no reason, sound like a Zombie right now!
4. The End.
I used to be a big fan of Judie Foster a few years ago... when she came back with Flight Plan last year, I was really disappointed I couldn't find a chance to watch it in a theater. However, after watching it last night, I'm kind of glad it didn't happen. It wasn't horribly bad, but still, it could be a lot better. I honestly didn't think that the final 3-4 minutes were really necessary and fading out into the white light was just too cheesy. Other than that, it was an ok movie and I think anyone can enjoy it as a rental DVD.
And while I was flying to Toronto last week, they actually showed "Memoirs of a Geisha" during the flight... I have to say I was impressed. I absolutely loved the movie and the soundtrack. It was a very well made movie. Apparently if you've read the book before, you might not enjoy it as much. I haven't read the book so I can't comment on that really. The acting was very good and the main actress was really really cute! 
I have also started reading "Freakonomics" for my book club this month and so far (midway through the second chapter) have liked it a lot. There has been a lot said about it recently and I always wondered what it could be. Apparently, it's a new way of looking at the "hidden side of everything" as the authors put it. It's not about economics, but more on how to use it to explore different aspects of day to day life. I'll let you know how it turns out to be when I'm done reading it.
It was a lovely day and I can't believe I had to stay at school for a stupid invigilation instead of joining my friends on a trip to Victoria! I spent the last five hours (of a Friday evening, by the way!) marking the final exams of an economics course! ...LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSEEEEER!
Got back today from Toronto... looks like I've had enough time to catch a cold after all.
I was really impressed when I first arrived at Toronto... huge highways and nice buildings in downtown area... however, it only took me a day to realize not everything is desirable about this city. People actually honked in the streets for no reason, something you almost NEVER see here in Vancouver. Asphalt on the street was all cracked and uneven, there was traffic on the highway on a long weekend, most trees had no leaves yet and the whole landscape looked kind of brownish...and driving... don't even get me started on it!... Toronto reminded me of Tehran in more than just one way.
You can not go to Toronto and not visit Niagara falls, so that's what I did... definitely an amazing experience... then, of course, was U of T that I just had to visit. A mix of new and old buildings in the middle of downtown Toronto... More importantly, I got to meet some friends I hadn't seen in a couple of years.
hmmm, oh yeah... another cool experience in Toronto: after a night of wondering around the city streets, my friends and I went to "Darband" restaurant and had "KALE-PACHE"!!!!!!! DELICIOUS!
However, as lively and interesting this city is, right now I just can't choose Toronto over Vancouver... but if there was a situation where I had to move, I'd be happy to go there for sure.
...but I have to come out clean to you... I've been shamelessly watching the 6th season of America's Next Top Model... didn't want to admit it, but it looks like I'm shallower than I thought. 
I'm not a total retard and know it's just a show and everything is set up and so on. but why oh why did they have to kick out Mollie Sue and Leslie? I mean they were like my two favorite girls...I don't even know why i keep watching the show. Tyra Banks is SOOOOOOOOO on my nerves and the "reality" part of the show (i.e. when the girls are in the house fighting over the phone!) is just too "fake". Anyway, I'll watch the rest of the season I guess and then will quit... I swear!
I'm going away to Toronto tomorrow for the Easter weekend. Should be fun, and hopefully not too cold. That said, have to go start packing.
I just realized that my profile block looks weird in Internet Explorer. Should figure out a way to fix it (I'm not that good with html after all!), or ask everyone to use Mozilla Firefox instead!
Read the rest..."Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta."
-from Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov (beginning paragraph)
I have always believed in the importance of beginnings. You can tell right away if a book is worth reading by looking at the beginning paragraph. So when I started reading Lolita, I knew it was going to be a great experience... (I don't think when a novel is this well-known you actually need to worry about the starting paragraph, but anyway...). I was deeply and truly sorry that sometimes I couldn't fully drown in reading, because I needed to go look up a word in the dictionary! This is when it truly sucks not to be super-fluent in English. Especially when you know that Nabokov, himself, wrote this in English as his second language! (I think I should be sent to jail for, even remotely, comparing myself to Nabokov in any way)
I don't need to say much about this book, just find it, read it, and see for yourself. (watch out for the content though, I'm not taking any responsibility if you happen to hate the whole idea behind the story!)
I love dance-related movies, especially if they are about hip hop... tonight I watched Honey and totally enjoyed it. As predictable as these movies are, I cannot help but enjoy the nice choreography and well, Jessica Alba being so unbelievably cute just made it a lot more interesting. Keep it on your list of movies for times you don't feel like watching anything serious.
Quote from a friend of mine:
"...you know how they say : "you don't steal a car, so don't download music"...well, if stealing cars was as easy as downloading music... f***, I'd do it!..."
(You have to excuse the f word, my friend is not the politest!)
I'm sure every one of you has one melody...one song...one poem that just brings you back the warmest, most enjoyable feelings from a memorable time of your life. Well, for me it's not "A" song, it's AN ALBUM! City of Angels Soundtrack is definitely the soundtrack of my life, for I lived most of my time listening to it when I was seventeen. And you all know how it's like to be seventeen... except if you're not seventeen yet - in which case you shouldn't be reading this blog in the first place! where are your parents?
There's just so much in this soundtrack. I dare you to listen to "I grieve" by Peter Gabriel and not like it! Or "Feelin Love" by Paula Cole... There's U2, Jude, Goo Goo Dolls, Jimi Hendrix, John Lee Hooker, Sara McLaughlin, Alanis Morissette... you name it! It's such a great great album... I STRONGLY recommend it to all of you. Except if you only listen to N'Sync and Jessica Simpson in which case I have to say, again, where are your parents?
...Ok, that was the filthiest, most disgusting joke anyone could ever come up with, and it was HILARIOUS the way the movie, the aristocrats, approached it! This documentary is about a classic joke - which is like a "secret handshake" between comedians - being told in so many different ways by various comedians. It took me about half an hour to actually get the joke and after that it started to get really funny. There are some pretty lame people on it, but still there are some really great ones that just shock you with the amount of foul and disgusting stuff they can come up with! DO NOT WATCH IT if you get easily upset by sexually offensive language.
It is finally Sizdeh-be-dar; eid is officially over!...I went out for just a little while, tied up a knot using the grass, and enjoyed the marvelous view and the great weather. 
I'm reading Life of Pi now, a novel by Yann Martel and winner of the 2002 Man Booker Prize. So far, it's been more than just interesting... it's supposed to be "a story that makes you believe in God". And I have to admit, it's written in a very captive manner; you just sink in and don't want to leave it aside until it's finished. I'm NOT saying that it would definitely change your belief system, but it certainly has a very refreshing point of view towards religion and God. There's this one chapter that's just HILARIOUS; three wise men from different religions (Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity) start this super-funny argument in defense of their respective religions. I had tears in my eyes, reading what stupid reasons they were coming up with to prove their points. Anyway, you should definitely read this book, whether you are a strong believer, an extremist atheist, or still undecided! I can guarantee that you'll get at least, if nothing else, a good laugh out of it. (By the way, I haven't finished the book yet; I know the story turns more serious later...so, don't expect a comic book!)
And here's a small section from the book that I liked:
" I can well imagine an atheist's last words:"White, white! L-L-Love! My God!" - and the deathbed leap of faith. Whereas the agnostic, if he stays true to his reasonable self, if he stays beholden to dry, yeastless factuality, might try to explain the warm light bathing him by saying, "Possibly a f-f-failing oxygenation of the b-b-brain," and, to the very end, lack imagination and miss the better story."
-Yann Martel , Life of Pi
So, I watched another documentary about the one and only Bob Dylan yesterday. I had watched "No Direction Home" by Scorsese last summer and had absolutely loved it. However, that was more of a biography/ career history, whereas this movie, Don't Look Back, was a visual diary of a three week tour Dylan had in England in 1965, his last tour as a solo acoustic performer. 
I liked the movie ... anything related to 60's music affects me in a weird-but-enjoyable kind of way. The scene where Bob Dylan was typing song lyrics while Joan Baez was singing "Percy's Song" in the background was my favorite... they were literally making history (music-wise, at least!) and there was a camera there to capture it! It's a very good documentary I think, showing the genius Dylan without covering up his jerk-ish side!!!
