You. You would put your children in a boat too, if that^^ was your reality. After all, they’re not bombing the sea. Let’s play a horrifying game of “Would You Rather”. Which would you prefer: watching your toddler drown in the ocean or listening to them scream in fear before being shredded to death by a bomb? It reminds me of another haunting, heartbreaking question, one we considered 14 years ago. Would you have stayed... Continue reading

Something a bit disturbing happened to me today; I was running an errand, picking up contacts for G when I was suddenly overwhelmed by this...all-consuming exhaustion. It made no sense. I've done no heavy labor. I haven't been sleeping well lately, but this was something different. It was 2pm and I wanted, no, needed to lie down. Almost immediately. While I was driving down Connecticut avenue. Nicht gut. Nicht gut at all. I ended up... Continue reading

So in my last post, I bemoaned my apparent inability to participate in Lent. I felt truly awful about myself and that feeling has persisted over the last three weeks-- hence no posting. I don't know how the two got connected in my mind, but they did. Ugh. Today I realized that the only thing stopping me from "starting" Lent was myself. Sure, we're 20 days in, but who gives a shit? What if I... Continue reading

So...lent started yesterday and...I'm still eating. And swearing. And watching crap on TV (my mom thinks fasting from this is more important). Sigh. I have failed at Lent and we are only one day in. I know that's a defeatist attitude, but that's how I feel, damn it. I don't understand myself, either...I had every intention of doing Lent this year. Last year, it was a period of reflection and significant weight loss. Yeah, I... Continue reading

Okay, so I just picked up the Frenchie and she is out of it, but otherwise in excellent shape. Whew. She has sutures in her little nose (my dog had a nose job!) and a new scar where her womb used to be, but everything else is the way it was 48 hours ago. I'm so relieved she's been spayed. I wish I could have done it earlier but there were a few issues preventing... Continue reading

This is a post intended to symbolize the gap between February 2012 and January 2014. Older (way older) posts below. Continue reading

Today is my birthday. It started in the loveliest way: with my favorite brunch. I had TWO bruleed grapefruits and four mini-deserts. I starved myself before going so I could eat everything, and that's exactly what I did. Then, the plan was to go to a movie with our respective food babies. There's a theater across from Farmers, Fishers, and Bakers in Georgetown, so this would be logical and convenient. A chill way to spend... Continue reading

It's January 1 and I just finished a gluttonous, epic brunch at my FAVORITE restaurant: Farmers, Fishers, and Bakers in Georgetown. I like their AYCE brunch so much, I'm planning on going back in three days to celebrate my birthday with it! See, they have these bruleed grapefruits and... First time blogging here since November of 2008 and I'm already digressing. Bet you didn't miss THAT, did you? I was famous for it. That and... Continue reading

Perhaps it's because my birthday just passed, but today my thoughts turned to shiny, sparkly, pretty things...like gems. No, I'm not engaged or even close to it (despite what will be six years of togetherness this April), I was pondering an old pair of earrings I had misplaced and recently found. They're enormous, heart-shaped CZs I purchased immediately after watching "Legally Blonde", a movie that was about MY sorority (Delta Nu is Delta Gamma, duh),... Continue reading

So I know I'm several months tardy to the Kiwi party, but I just listened to Pure Heroine in its entirety and I like it. A lot. It all started with NPR, I can't remember which program, but one of them played part of "Team" and I thought, "oh. this is what the hype is about...". It piqued my interest enough that I did something I never do-- I searched for her album on YouTube... Continue reading

In five (sure to be sleepless) hours, I will drop off my beloved little bat-frog-pig-dog for a triple set of surgeries. She is getting spayed and while they do that, they're fixing her nares (nostrils) and soft palate, too. I know these are routine procedures for bulldogs, but I am anxious about all the things that could go wrong. What if there's a problem with anesthesia because of her flat face? What if I picked... Continue reading

Suits: A Woman on Wall Street by Nina Godiwalla My rating: 2 of 5 stars I wanted to like this book, I really did. A Parsi-American female I-Banker struggling with her priorities and obligations? Sold! Except...I wasn't. Not once I started reading. I feel awful disclosing this, but it took me four attempts to get through this relatively brief, easy-to-consume book. And it's not because life got in the way or I temporarily forgot how... Continue reading

The phone vibrates gently but insistently in my pocket, rousing me from the almost impenetrable reverie that consumes me whenever I'm scanning Pinterest, gazing at food, frocks and fine ideas for home decor. It's a new text message. From you. "They need an attorney to remain in DC for a bit longer, until they can justify hiring more. I told them I'd be willing to stay here, so...eeeeeek! PRAY that I get it, please. :)"... Continue reading

An 81-year old, blue-eyed Kappa Alpha Psi merrily hit on me at Whole Foods as he was getting out of his car in the parking garage. Next to him, a Lena Horne-look alike in enormous black sunglasses made the passenger seat look like a royal throne. "I'm finna dump her and take you instead! I like your car better!", he winked. "Says the man whose car is nicer than mine", I retorted. His obviously long-suffering... Continue reading

Mangalam Ramakrishnan Srinivasan stood at the edge of the kitchen, head bowed, unsure of what to do. Her husband was shouting at her. While he only did it rarely, when he did do it, it was horrifying. His eyes bulged. His neck separated in to several cables, straining to amplify the hate spewing from his mouth. His face contorted until he looked like the demons she had seen in the Amar Chitra Katha comics she... Continue reading

I look for you everywhere. Every time I see an older, brown-skinned man, if his face is round and his hair is silver, if his lips are plum-colored and golden wires frame his eyes, I look for you. I saw you, just now. It took me a moment, perhaps because it was extra dark, maybe because I had waited on 15th street for too many minutes in the cold, right hand raised, cursing rush hour... Continue reading

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Police believe they may have found the body of Tyler Clementi, the Rutgers student who jumped to his death after a roommate spied on him having gay sex. Meanwhile, some Rutgers students are saying Clementi's roommate's actions were misinterpreted. Tyler's roommate, Dharun Ravi, turned on his computer's webcam and apparently spied on Clementi while he was hooking up with another man. After Clementi found out, he ended up throwing himself off the George Washington bridge.... Continue reading

Note: It's been a while since I updated this, my personal blog. A lot has changed in the last few months-- most notably, my job. I left the Washington Post in August and immediately commenced my dream-opportunity at WAMU 88.5, the NPR affiliate here in D.C. You may be familiar with its public radio stars Kojo Nnamdi and Diane Rehm. I was hired to be a blogger/online reporter at the station and we just launched... Continue reading