Epitaphs

Another Day

2010-04-06T15:14:00.000-07:00

We had a supply guy at the office. The guy's duty was not defined I guess. He was everywhere. Ordering supplies., checking the floor shop parts, answering the phone for others, customer service,...
Every afternoon at 3:30 while he was leaving he used to say: "Humm, another day"! and everyday I was wondering how time was passing by with a mixed feeling of regret and happiness of leaving work soon! Hours, days, month, years,.. they pass faster and faster everyday. I can't believe I'm 30 years old now. I don't feel like it. Anyhow, this is the truth.
Happy birthday.

P.S. The cake was delicious however I couldn't eat more and I got many messages from friends on FB. I like getting birthday greeting even if I am 30 years old!

There is Something a Man Should know

2010-04-02T08:07:00.001-07:00

Someone hit a girl with his car. For some reason he witnessed the accident. He helped the driver to take the girl to the hospital. The doctor checked her and said she was alright. They walked down the hall to take the elevator and leave the hospital. The elevator door opened. There were two old women and one man in the cabin. Three of them went in and the door closed. The girl broke the silence. She hugged the driver. “We are going to marry” she said. Everyone looked back. The old man looked at the driver and said “Go get a tattoo”. One of the old women said “There is something a man should know”. The old man fixed his purple tie and said “There is something a man should know”.

Fates Warning Concert, A Waste of Money

2010-03-26T10:02:00.000-07:00

I like Jim Matheos for his great work in OSI with Kevin Moore. Both of them are ex-Dream Theater Black musicians which by default is a great credit for them. Mike Portnoy, the drummer is still playing in Dream Theatre though (he left OSI after recoding their second album "Free"). The music of OSI is mostly based on Jim and Kevin Moore’s creativity. Some say OSI is the hard rock/heavy metal version of Kevin’s own solo band Chroma Key because of his dominant programming in all OSI songs over all the instruments.

Jim Matheos plays great in OSI. Beautiful minimalist music with great riffs. OSI has worked with many good musicians like Steven Wilson (No-Man/Porcupine Tree), Gavin Harrison (King Crimson/Porcupine Tree), Mikael Åkerfeldt (Opeth), Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater), Sean Malone (Cynic) and Tim Bowness (No-Man) but the main members are still Jim and Kevin. Unfortunately, OSI like Chroma key doesn’t look like a real band but more of an experimental project. It seems like both members are so involved in their own work that don’t bother promoting their albums seriously or put some shows here and there.

When I heard Jim Matheos’ band Fates Warning was going to play at Avalon, Hollywood, I thought I gave it a shot. At least I could see Jim Matheos work.

Less than half of the theatre was empty. Mostly lousy bands played for about two hours before they came up. It was a total boredom. The singer, Ray Alder tried to give some energy to the crowd. Poor guy tried his best but it seemed like the rest of the band were trying to work against him. All of them were standing right in their positions not moving at all. Jim Matheos only played three solos in the whole show. He looked like he just woke up from a deep sleep and was dragged into the show. After a while even those enthusiastic fans in front of the stage stopped cheering. In the end, people applauded like they were forced to have them come up again and play a couple of more songs. What a shame. This time, they tried to give some energy to the crowd like they knew they bored everyone and wanted to make up for it!

Four people standing on stage playing with their least interest is not called a show. If you can’t or not willing to be responsive to the people who came to see you, you better don’t put any shows at all. Both Avalon's sound system and their sound engineer were awful too.

I’m going to see Cold next week. Let’s see what those guys do.

My name is "Advantage"

2010-03-23T09:44:00.000-07:00

It was sometime around 1AM. He was deeply asleep. The cell phone rang suddenly and woke him up . He was so sleepy that he couldn't remember where he was for a few seconds. “Who’s this?” he answered. A man’s voice said “This is advantage.” “Who?“he asked. “Advantage” the voice answered louder. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Advantage? What the fuck? It’s early in the morning and someone calls with a strange name with an unusual Indian accent with a strange name?” he said to himself. He got scared a little. He repeated “Who?” pretending he didn’t hear the name and hoping to hear a usual one this time. The voice stop for a couple of seconds like it knew what was going on. It answered”mmm… This is Oliver”

“OK. How can I help you?” he answered with more confidence now.

“I’m calling about the plan?” the voice said.

“What plan?”

“The plan” the voice answered louder.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He hung up and looked back at the window. There was a red light flashing probably from across the street. It looked like one of those Neon lights of convenience stores but there wasn’t any store around his place. The closes one was one block down the street. As the red light was becoming stronger sleep overcame his thoughts.

Norooz and Death

2010-03-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

Lots of death of my dearest ones have happened around Nowrooz. It’s like the angel (!) of death has this long list due by the end of the year! This is so fucked up. I really hate to say I am scared of Norooz now. Call me superstitious. My grandma, my uncle, my cousin and now one of my best friends father all died in the end of the year or during Nowrooz.

God bless him.

I always think people who die of sudden causes like heart strokes or accidents are very lucky. They don't suffer much pain like a person with cancer or any mortal disease that eats you up gradually. I hope I become one of these people but I don't want to die in Norooz.

I'm Sweet

2010-03-14T01:09:00.001-08:00

It's 1AM. I really feel like writing something. I want to note this date as another damn anniversary beside April 5th. I'm overwhelmed but I can't write.
Let it be. Life is too short. Take it easy and all those crap to calm you down!
May be I read some Khayyam or something!

Flow of Life

2010-03-03T08:03:00.000-08:00

There are not a lot of decisions we can make to change the flow of our lives. There are some pre-existing factors that define this flow. While we are riding on it, there are few chances of really changing direction. Otherwise, life goes; faster and faster.

How many success or failures stories do you hear about people that turned their lives around? Not a lot. Maybe there is something behind the scene. I don't know. I'm not saying there is a written destiny for each of us, but there are not a lot of things under our controls either.

People give up when they come to know their stories. That's when they say this is who I am and it is my life. This is as far as I can go.

When the clock goes off at 6AM everyday, I open my eyes and ask myself what I am doing. Is it really what I wanted to be? Am I happy or sad? and I can't find the answer.

Average People

2010-02-20T20:44:00.001-08:00

Hi, may I have a regular coffee?

Sure, What size?

Medium

Hi, Do you have medium size of this shirt?

Let me see,...mm, there it is.

I thought it was on sale!

No, 'casue it's medium. We sale the items when we run out of their mediums.

Can I have the pepper steak, please?

Sure, how do you wanted?

Medium please.

How tall are you sir?

Average,mmm... somewhere around 5'9"

I see....

What's up man? how are things going?

Nothing much, just daily stuff...

What kind of music do you like?

Not too loud, not too slow, something in between, you know....

How much money do you make?

Mmmm, not too much. Something around average.

What kind of car do you like?

Not too big, no too small, not too pricey, not too cheap....

I never want to become and average person.

Halloween and Iranians

2009-11-13T12:49:00.000-08:00

This is an old post but still worth posting!

Have you ever noticed how Iranians like Halloween? It's like it is their own tradition! Some Iranians here don't care about Norouz as much as they care about Halloween.
I have never gone out on Halloweens. Seeing how drunk people try disparately to scare you is not very attractive for me. Plus, I have to come up with a costume too; a pain in ass!!
Anyways, I think I will try it next year just for the sake of it!

Curb your enthusiasm> Ultimate sarcasm!

2009-11-13T11:38:00.001-08:00

Since I watched Whatever Works movie (you can find its post right below this one) I have been obsessed with sarcastic character of Larry David. Recently I came to know that he is the main character of a HBO TV series called "Curb your enthusiasm".
The show is all about his everyday life as a writer and comedian very similar to the famous Seinfeld show in which he was the main writer too.
I love this show. I just can't get enough of it. Apart from all, I think I am picking up his way of thinking too!
Highly suggested!

Whatever Works: A Reaction to the Randomness of Our Worthless Lives

2009-07-24T09:46:00.001-07:00

Whatever works is about a man (Boris Yellnikoff) who believes in randomness in life. Whatever works right now is what to be embraced without thinking about the consequences. For this reason, he wants to get rid of his life in which everything should be planned ahead of time. Movie starts with a scene where he explains his wife about his intuition of life and complaining how their successful marriage and careers are against his ideology. In the end, while her wife is shocked by the reasoning, he jumps out of the window! Not being lucky enough, he doesn’t die but gets a chance to start the life he wants with no strings attached. No family, no job, not a single responsibility! He goes with the flow of life without any resistance.
Like most Woody Allen’s movies, the story has a narrator who is Boris himself. He even talks to the camera which I didn’t like that much. Overall, it’s a funny movie especially with extremely sarcastic remarks of Boris explaining his ideas to everyone who has an ear to listen whether it’s a child or an adult.
I think the movie is on a limited number of theaters in Los Angeles. I had to go to a small crappy theater where I had to knock on the entrance door to get in! Independence doesn’t pay, let’s hollywoodize ourselves!

Some quotes:
"My story is, whatever works as long as you don't hurt anybody. Any way you can filtch a little joy in this cruel and pointless life, that's my story."
"I happen to hate New Years celebrations. Everybody's desperate to have fun trying to celebrate in some pathetic little way. Celebrate what? a step closer to the grave? That's why I can't say enough times, whatever love you can get and give, whatever happiness you can filtch or provide, every temporary measure of grace -- whatever works! Don't kid yourself, it is by no means up to your human ingenuity, a bigger part of your existence is luck. Christ, you know the odds of your father's one sperm from the billions finding the single egg that made you? Don't think about it or you'll have a panic attack!"

Epitaphs

2009-06-11T08:50:00.000-07:00

Searching clues for the future without grasping the past
wasting the present, though it's running by fast;
but the rivers flow
to join the seas forever

Frank Bornemann

Leonard Cohen Concert, Los Angeles

2009-05-21T14:17:00.000-07:00

There are not a lot of concerts which you can really enjoy these days but this one was an exception. Leonard Cohen's performance with his full orchestra was flawless. He sang almost all of his famous songs. From the 60's to recently released. Blue rain coat, lover lover lover, Take this waltz, Dance me to the end of love, I'm your man, ....
He has high respects for his musicians. He sits on his knees when the Spanish guitar player, plays a solo or bends briefly to each musician while introducing him/er.
Nokia Theater was packed although tickets were expensive. Those that were in the very end of the balcony were 84$ and from there, size of the whole stage is about 3 inches!
Leonard Cohen is having a worldwide concert tour this year. Don't miss it!

Jane's music

2009-04-27T13:14:00.000-07:00

There are some songs that are like old friends. When I return to them after a while, they bring up the old memories as they go.
Some of these songs are composed by a German rock band named “Jane”. They are pretty famous in Iran for 70's rock savvies but not very well-known in the world of rock.
Guitar of Klaus Hess, keyboard of Manfred Wieczorke,... No pointless solos...“Together”, “Spain”, “Fire, water, earth, and air”, “Lord love”, “Expectation”, "meadow",...
Hmmmm!, Good old days!
This post is just a brief tribute to Jane. In the end, we were close friends for about a year or two. Besides, we still meet each other every now and then!
To read about the band and listen to the song “Spain” follow the link below:
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=175
The music is usually categorized as Space Rock but I don’t like to compare it with that of Pink Floyd's. Personally, I believe music of Pink Floyd has had an incredible influence on many musicians but it’s not a scale to weigh other's music.

Great Nation Who Live In the Past

2009-04-24T07:29:00.000-07:00

This year a group of Iranians celebrated the Persian new year (Nowrouz) in Pasargad were Cyrus the great is buried.
There is a nostalgic tendency among Persians/Iranians to look back to their nation’s prosperous past, 2500 years ago. The era when Persian Empire was the greatest power in the world and possessed a rich culture. For example, Cyrus Cylinder is considered the first human rights charter in history; Persepolis was built with paid labor,...
The question is:
Why are we trying so hard to prove to the world that we had a rich culture thousands of years ago?What will the world think about us? That we have lost such power, culture and even dignity permanently from 2500 years ago up to now?
Past is gone. Let’s live in present and try building the future.

Anniversary Against Anniversary

2009-04-06T08:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Monday!

I am at work and waiting for my birthday cake for another 45 minutes. My boss is not here and it means someone else has bought it which is not a good sign. I just hope it is a chocolate cake!

Each year I have two anniversaries in a row in this month. First One is on the 5th that is the anniversary of the worst day of my life till now. Second one is my birthday on the 6th.
Never mind. Life is too short. So, happy birthday to me!

By the way, There are only five days left to the weekend and you are already in the middle of the first one. So, be strong!

Take care,

Pooya

How to Choose an Alarm Clock

2009-03-25T15:06:00.000-07:00

Whether you like it or not, there are times that you must be an early bird. I have to wake up between 5 to 6 in the morning everyday to go to work, so for me it’s a must. There are things you need to know about waking up especially early. You need to have proper tools, mental and physical preparation. One of the most important tool is alarm clock. A good alarm clock is essential for you. You don’t want to be late every once in a while because your clock didn't go off. You better save your vacation days/sick leaves for better causes!
• You need to buy a reliable alarm clock that -as a matter of fact- should be digital. Forget about your grand Pa’s antique mechanical clock. Yes, it reminds you of him but when it doesn’t go off on time you will hate it and/or probably him for the rest of your life!
• A good alarm clock needs to have minimum buttons. Be careful: there are clocks with two or three buttons. if you mistakenly push the wrong one, the settings may change. Imagine you wake up earlier than you suppose to and want to check the time but push the set instead of the light button. Setting the clock back in the middle of the night is the biggest disaster for must-be-early-birds!
• There are nights when you simply cannot sleep well. At these times you develop series of obsessive-compulsive episodes! One of them is being extremely sensitive to the light of clock’s LCD. To avoid this, try to find a clock with adjustable LCD light and take off wall clock's batteries before going to bed (you know why)!
• Being dual powered is highly recommended especially if you do not have enough plug holes in the bedroom. One day you plug the clock off during the day to charge your dead-battery cell and forget to put it back again. In such cases, most people become aware of their mistake after 9 o’clock in the next morning!
• If you are a heavy sleeper or someone who always desires to sleep a little more, you need a snooze bottom too. Snooze helps you shut off the alarm for a short time so that you sleep a little more. However, snoozing only makes you more disappointed about waking up while doesn’t reduce your sleepiness at all.

There are fancy clocks in the market that while going off, spread scents, run or even fly. These are usually expensive for their unusual features but sometimes these features don’t work as you imagine or there are technical problems with their designs. So, be smart and spend your money on a quality product rather than a fancy one!

Happy Nowrooz and My New Year's Resolution

2009-03-19T12:55:00.000-07:00

People usually do things better if they repeat them more and more. For me, it’s vice versa! I do things better the first time for some reason. This is the first time I am making new year’s resolutions! So I think I will try to make them happen better than the year after! Since, it is a good idea to announce your goals to others I will do so:
Define what I want from my life
Change my job
Work much more on music
Try to have a healthy life
Increase the number of my friends
Be less frank
Take it easy! (Yes, this is a resolution too and it’s not easy for me to accomplish)

Hang in there and see if I can do them or not. I bet I can.

Wake Up For Good

2009-03-11T14:55:00.001-07:00

You may suddenly wake up in the middle of the night to:

drink water
eat
take off batteries from the annoying wall clock
become a groom

Vampires Are Better Than Humen

2009-02-27T10:26:00.001-08:00

You probably know vampires. Those mysterious human-like creatures who live on people's blood.
- The way to keep them away from you is to hang lots of garlic cloves in your house. It shows how classy vampires are. Do you want to smell like garlic?No; neither do vampires.
-If you see a vampire you need to expose a bible or a cross to him/her. This stops the vampire to get closer to you. It shows how vampires are respectful toward people’s religious beliefs although they don't believe in God.
-If you want to kill a vampire you need to hammer a wooden knife into his/her heart. It shows how soft their hearts are that a wooden knife can tear them.
-Transylvania has been home to many vampires for thousand of years. It shows how they value their family, relatives and friends that they want to live close to them.
-A vampire never buys a new house or mansion. They don't want to by houses while they don’t make any money. So, they don't contribute in increasing the number of toxic assets. They prefer to live in their predecessor’s mansions from thousands of years ago. Do you know any human who can live in such old mansions with least construction standards? No internet or even electricity? Can you imagine that you cannot check your facebook ten times a day? additionally, you have to repair your old broken mansion every weekend. Painting and repairing corroded plumbing system to name a few. But vampires do all these. You know why? Because they are hard-working creatures.
What does people do to vampires? they kill them because they suck their blood. About a century ago, people even used to buy Vampire Killing Kits including garlic, wooden knives, some crosses and a bible. Some of these kits had pistol too just in case. You know how much the kit above costs now? 14,850$.
It’s worth mentioning that vampires are not ugly. It's how corporate media picture them to serve companies producing vampires killing kits and related products. Below is a sexy vampire for your consideration. No plastic surgery or fake boobes. Entirely natural!
My question is:
For vampires, human blood is tied into their very existence. In a world where we kill each other for less convincing reasons, Why should we hate vampires? Besides, have you ever heard a vampire commits homicide?

About This Blog

2009-02-26T10:30:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends,
I am not trying to use unusual subjects to attract more readers, they come naturally! I am usually frank and speak my mind even if it is bitter or too controversial. If you know me, you know what I am talking about! Sometimes, I am too happy, angry, extreme,... That's how I feel every once in a while like all other people. Are your behavior or way of thinking/observing always the same every single day?___ neither does mine! The probable difference between me and you is that I express my feelings in writing sometimes.
(fill the above blank with a "No")!
So, to all few readers of this blog: I apologize for whatever post that hurts your feelings . Please leave a comment if you like to, so that I can be aware of them but instead of apology, prepare yourself for a full-blown debate!

Classical music, Pandora Radio, Valentine's Day

2009-02-13T10:25:00.000-08:00

I have started switching to classical music again. I had been longing for Chopin Nocturnes for a long time. Thanks to Pandora Radio, I found a Chopin Nocturnes radio. How awesome...Flow of music and tonality... Now when I look back to my casual music archive (in oppose to classical music (I just didn’t find any other word to describe them)) I find many sad and nostalgic songs. It’s so depressing. Why do I listen to these kinds of music? I’m not sure; probably because other styles are so cheesy. Anyhow, it’s better to listen to classical music than sad songs.
Pandora is exceptional. They are turning people’s hapit from illegal music downloads to listening to customized radio stations matching their musical tastes. The only thing I don’t understand is: how they make money out of it with only commercials on the background of each page? (update: they are making a little more money by increasing the adds)
Oh, wait! Happy Valentine’s Day! Don’t forget that Teddy Bear for your loved one because it's the most self-explanatory symbol of love (especially if you give it to a guy)!

How Many "Men" Are Being Killed In Gaza?!

2009-01-14T07:36:00.000-08:00

Yes, a lot of people are being killed in Gaza. Why everyone is worried about the number of women being killed rather that men? Aren't men countable? Many Palestinian men are sacrificing themselves- much more than women- to protect their family and no one counts them in the statistics?!! or we don't count them because we think men are not as important as women? and so many other questions that come to my mind!
I know this is not the right time to bring up this subject but think about it after the cease-fire!

Reza says: They don't count Palestinian men because they think they are all terrorists!
Azadeh says: Killing of women is more important than men because they have the reproduction ability so this statistics represents the level of genocide.
Nili says: I cannot see any real men in this world!!!

Life Death

2009-01-07T12:32:00.001-08:00

Imagine you realize you have a deadly cancer today. What would you do? I know you have heard many stories about this situation. You may say: “Well, I’m gonna enjoy the rest of my life no matter how long it is” or some other crap!
Think twice: Are you really ready for it today?
I am not and I bet you aren’t either.
Whenever I think about death I go read some Khayyam poems! Such a cool guy!
I need to remind m self every once in a while that:
Life is too short. Take it easy and enjoy every moment. You don’t know when it ends.
This post is so cliché. Sorry

Hello There!

2009-01-06T06:52:00.000-08:00

Hello there,
I know you missed me a lot. I was away on a trip to Iran for three weeks. I have a lot to say but it's all personal and I bet you wouldn't be interested in it. This trip was fun and full of love and hope.
Now, after a long vacation it's really hard to get back on track!
I don't have many topics to talk about but:
Stop the war in Gaza. It's really sick. People are fighting to stop death penalty while there are still deadly wars going on every year! Doesn't their fight look stupid? I think it does.
The good thing about this war for both sides is the increase in oil price for sure. Besides non of them will benefit from peace.

Post secrets

2008-12-08T10:50:00.000-08:00

Post secrets is a community serving people who like to share their secrets anonymously. I check its blog every. You need to check it out too. See the favorite blogs in the sidebar on the left.
This is an email apparently by a homosexual, taken from Post Secrets blog this week:
I hate how everyone thinks that all homosexuals are wonderful, strong human beings, and that's why we're fighting for their rights. The truth is that we're assholes and drug addicts and charity workers and Sunday school teachers just like the rest of you.

Funny, ha?! :)

U.S. economy and Government's Nostradamus agency!

2008-12-08T09:36:00.000-08:00

U.S is in serious economical trouble. The problem doesn’t seem to solve in a year or two because the beloved Obama is not a magician! He can’t even bring the troops home as he promised. What he does is making peace with politician who even hurt his image during the election. There was this article published by NIA (national intelligence agency or something like that) predicting changes in the world till 2025. It emphasized that the is based research and is not a Nostradamus prophecy!

The article mentioned interesting points:

· America’s power in the world will decline due to its own internal problems.

· Global warming results in exploring more oil in the North Pole which is great for Russia and Canada.

· Russia will become more powerful but the corruption in its government doesn’t let the power to spread that much.

· If Iranian regime gives up its autocracy it will become the more powerful in the region (surprisingly!!)

My Concern is mostly about the economy. When I see gas prices decrease everyday I become more frightened. It shows how awful the economy is. Manufacturing industry itself has lost 600,000 jobs last year!

Sometimes I think people like me who have just started their career in the U.S are very unlucky. Then I think recent graduates are more unlucky that we are. Then I think people who have established lives i.e. family, house, etc. are suffering more. Imagine, you have bought a house for 400,000 three years ago. Now, your house worth 300,000 and you are still paying mortgage based on the initial price. Add to this the fear of losing your job.

Then I feel a little lucky again, Amen!!

Iranian Audience Inteligence

2008-11-26T08:02:00.000-08:00

I'm sure you have realized how annoying and stupid most Iranians are in concerts. They like to cheer seconds before the song ends. I have seen people make their hands ready for clapping whenever they feel the song is ending; And since most of them are not even familiar with the music being performed they cheer as soon as there is a cadence in the song! and if they are lucky, it's the ending, no embarrassment! Another annoying thing is laughing or cheering with any excuse. Watch this song By Mohsen Namjoo, named "Daheye Shast". You may have heard it before but this clip clearly shows how stupid the crowd is. When you see the Audience in the waiting area, they all look like art aficionados and almost all of them are highly educated. But as I always say: Being shallow is a state of the mind and doesn't depend on education or culture.
So, here is the story: This guy, Mohsen, sings a very sad song about how miserable Iranian Children were during the 80's. He makes points about small unachievable desires of a little child like having a 7up; or learning to suffer unfairness in the society, etc. During the song as he usually do, there is a bitter humor too, not to make laugh but to make the lyrics more influential. Like " Vaghti ke reed bar to dokhtare hamsaye, Veghati ke dareed pedarat ra keshvare hamsaye!". See how people laugh and cheer loudly for the first sentence that they miss the next one. Whenever I listen to this song, It makes me almost cry. I don't know how these people laugh at misery. Come on people! It's not Andy's concert for God's sake!

Narenj's Cheese Burger

2008-11-26T07:09:00.001-08:00

The phenomenon above is Called Narenj's cheese burger.
Recipe:
Large beef burger, 1
Large hamburger bread, 1
Cheese, Huge amount
Large potato, 1
Mayonnaise, Huge ammount
Instructions:
Grill the burger. Pour cheese on all surfaces of the bread (in and out). Put the grilled burger in it and place the burger in oven. Wait till the cheese on the outer surface of the bread melts completely and become grilled a little.
Chop potatoes in large pieces (as large as you can!). Fry the potatoes and leave them aside. Make a small salad with lutes, tomatoes, and cucumber.
Bring a plate. Cut the burger in half and put them on top of each other on the plate. Put the fries and salad beside the it. Bring a huge amount of mayo and pour it on the whole thing. Use some ketchup on top of mayo if you want.
Or
Start you car engine. Drive to north Patrice Lumumba street. Ask for Narenj Burger place/restaurant. Go in and order a cheese burger and don't mind their cold behavior! It really worths it. It you want, you can order their everything-in(!) soup too. Delicious :)

Enigma Variations, Eric-Emanuel Schmitt

2008-11-18T19:45:00.000-08:00

It's a scrip. You may ask why I read a theater script? Well, I didn't want too, It was all Saint Tooka's fault! He wrote about it on his blog and apparently he was not impressed that much; But it's actually good. At least I liked it. First of all it's a script, so it's short which I love. Second it has a very surprising flow. You never know how it's going to end. There are at least three surprises which is too many for a short story.
As Saint Tooka said, It also has so many controversial phrases about Love.
It's suggested by Epiman too, so go for it!!! Find it on amazon.com (I'm too lazy to link you, sorry)

I missed the old James Bonds

2008-11-14T08:21:00.000-08:00

I’m not a fan of James Bond movies but I have almost watched all of them! Why? Because watching James Bond is better than chick movies when you don’t have more options.
Have you seen the new Bond? The main difference between this guy and other Bonds is his soft feelings! After all these years, James Bond has become a shy guy who doesn’t want to have sex with every woman in the movie. He is even capable of falling in love with them! And to me, he doesn't seem to be very smart either.
I think this Bond is the only one who might go to heaven!

Never Forgive

2008-11-07T15:00:00.000-08:00

These technicians are defusing land mines in south west of Iran. The battle ground of the war between Iraq and Iran about 25 years ago. When Iraqis under Saddam's leadership invaded Iran with the aim of occupancy. These are American and European mines that killed thousands of people so that almost every street of Iran is named after them.
Lots of those Iraqi soldiers are still alive and no one even blames them. They say it was all Saddam's fault. They say we have suffered enough.
Did Saddam invaded my country himself? Did he place hundred thousands of these land mines alone? Land mines that are still hungry for blood and death after twenty five years?
I remember the nights of bombardments. When the warning alarm from TV and Radio was echoing the voice of angel of death. When you were waiting for your time to come in the darkness of the basement. When every window had a crossed tape on it so that the sounds of explosions don’t break the glass inside. When soldiers were sacrificing themselves by lying down on these mines to make a route for the troop behind.
God bless all of them and remember: There are things that can not be forgiven ever.

How did you spend your Halloween this year?

2008-11-03T11:14:00.000-08:00

Halloween is one of those days that I don’t know what to do. I don’t like to wear silly costumes or even come up with something simple on my own. It just doesn’t attract me! On the other hand, staying at home while everyone is partying doesn’t feel good either. So, here comes the dilemma. I ask myself every year: Does it worth going out with a bunch of crazy strangers shouting on streets? , Or, do I want to stay home and enjoy a relaxing time without all Halloween headaches?
For me Halloween is like “chahar shanbe souri” night in Iran. I had the same problem there but I had no choice but to go out. Why? Because in Iran people have fun by exploding sound bombs on streets! And every year, lots of injuries happen. So, even if you choose to stay at home there is no relaxing time. Every minute the sound of loud explosions disturb you. So, there are two choices available: Going out in the crowd and try to enjoy your night because you can’t stay home, or, go out of town to a quiet suburb which, by the way, I never had the opportunity to do so.
Since Halloween is much friendlier than Iran’s “Chahar shanbe souri”es, I have always chosen to stay home! It feels so good when I watch the news about how people went crazy on Halloween, how many were arrested, huge traffic and anxiety over finding a good parking spot,….
It’s too much headache for such a silly night. So, whenever you want to go out for Halloween ask yourself: Does having fun just for one night with all these headaches really worth it? Be honest and don’t feel embarrassed if you choose to stay home! You are not getting old, you are getting more mature :)
P.S. I don't know while woman's costumes are always nice and sexy, all man's costumes are ugly. This can be another reason for ugly people like me to avoid Halloween!

The Notwist Concert, Los Angeles

2008-10-31T14:48:00.001-07:00

Picture courtesy of Dr. Ali Ayazi

Finally I went to a concert after more than two months. It's such shame that you live close to Los Angeles and don't enjoy many good performances! However, my good excuse is most concerts are on weekdays and those that aren't are so expensive. Anyways, on Wednesday, I went to The Notwist performance at Fonda, Hollywood.
The Notwist is a german Electronic/Indie Rock band. They started with alternative rock first and after a while switched to a more complex progressive music. They have an awesome skill in using different and sometimes weird electronic instruments. The band's background in rock mixed with progressive electronic music make their style unique.
Now I understand why O.S.I’s Kevin Moore asked Console, Notwist’s main keyboarder and programmer, to remix the song “Go” for their new LP. Console,the second guy from left in the picture, was using two remote controllers to change the flow of music coming out of the magic box infront of him!

Let go

2008-10-24T10:19:00.000-07:00

“Sometimes being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence. A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their own destiny. And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it's all over.”
Gloria Naylor.

Camel, Rajaz

2008-10-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

I have been away and was looking for a good funny post subject but nothing seems funny these days. Politics and economy have fed people up including me. Anyways, yesterday I was looking into my music archive where I found Camel’s 1999 album named “Rajaz”. Rajaz is an Arabic noun meaning cry out desperately as a result of misery (That's why I shouldn't be a translator!)
Camel’s music is all about nostalgia with great guitar, keyboards and Indian Flute solos. No trash technical solo, like that of Dream theater (They look at their instrument as a finger exercise machine!) but soft and melodic like nostalgia itself. Even the names of the albums are nostalgic: Stationary Traveler, Dust and dreams, Mirage, Harbor of tears and Moonmadness.
Rajaz , my favorite album, can be considered as Andy Latimer, the singer and guitarist, solo album rather than a Camel project. There are less colorful keyboards and more minimalism involved.
Unfortunately, Andy is being treated for cancer but the good news is that he is doing well. I hope he goes back on stage again so that I can see Camel once in my life.
I don't know what the heck this video is all about. Just ignore the family pictures and listen to the song itself! Beautiful lyrics and melodies. Enjoy :)

Morcheeba - Enjoy the ride

2008-10-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

When you see someone's profile on the net, e.g. on facebook, what do you look for first? of course after digging into the pictures! Info page? Education? Interests?
I go for info page and the first thing I look at is the music and movies. I think people's interests represent their state of mind. So, a nice person who listens to Britney Spears and likes chick movies doesn't impress me that much even she/he is very well educated. Remember: Superficiality is a state of mind. it's not a function of education, culture, etc.
The first time my cousin, who is almost completely American, added me to his friend list on facebook I found Morcheeba. There are only few female artists including Portishead's singer Beth Gibbons that I like. However, I had to share this song with you. Good stuff :)

Plans for the weekend?! Yes, I'm going hiking with some friends in San Jacinto State Park

American Dad new episode: a funny version of Mulholland drive and Lost highway

2008-10-08T15:03:00.000-07:00

After Family Guy, my most favorite TV show is American Dad. It's about Steve, a C.I.A employee who is a typical shallow American dad with lots of patriotism and stupidity. His wife is a typical dumb blond woman. Their daughter is a hippy-like girl who is always fighting with her family over liberalistic issues. Son is a geek who suffers from lack of social skills. Additionally, they have a alien living with them who was found by Steve in a C.I.A. lab accidentally, and a gold fish with thick German accent.
My favorite character is the alien named Roger. He is so mean, self-centered, and always looking for ways to hurt people. He is also very passionate about being a movie star. Moreover since he should be at home most of the times so that C.I.A doesn't find him, he has developed a drinking problem to overcome his boredom.
In this episode, Roger finds himself having two characters. The scenes and the story is a mock copy of Mulholland drive and Lost highway of David Lynch. Very funny :).

P.S. 1) If you live out of united states, you can't watch this video here but you can check http://www.veoh.com/search.html?type=v&searchId=751116770802543423&search=american+dad for American Dad episodes.
P.S 2) As a matter of fact, I did not generalize American men or Blonds or Geeks. These adjectives apply to the characters of this particular show.

Iran's Winters, Dirty Sandwich Nostalgia and Mayer's Special Ice-smelting Recipe

2008-10-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

Last time I went to Iran, I missed California for some reason. Especially its nice weather, sunshine, and cleanness. Have you realized how grey Iranians are? We like to wear grey clothes, buy grey cars. I think grey is the second most luxurious color for Persians after black. Now, imagine I went to Iran after three years during the coldest winter ever. Tehran's international airport (Imam) was covered with snow. There was only one lane open. The city was all dirty grey in addition to the cars and clothes for the snow. Every where I looked I saw filth and dirt. Tehran is only beautiful on the very first day of snow shower. Everywhere is white, a rare color on the streets of Tehran. Just a day after snow, everything is covered with dirt with a grain of engine oil and asphalt residues. The second you leave the carwash other cars take care of yours with some new grim. Add huge amount of salt the municipality uses to melt down the snow to the grim. Actually it's not salt; it's some snow-smelting recipe I suppose the Mayer found himself. No one knows what it is exactly! It’s like a mixture of dirt, sand, small stones with a grain of salt. He thinks salt is only for the taste of the mix! One year I remember they ran out of salt so they added some waste ground plastics and lots of needles to the mix!
Iran’s winters are the best time to eat. Especially when you're on vacation. Everything tastes great. The favorite part of my trip was what I call the nostalgic dirty sandwiches included but not limited to (!) "Ferry"'s royal and "Seeb", "Baharan"'s "Morgh-o-Maghz”, cold-cuts by "Hayda", "Tochal"'s "Vizheye steak", "Khaneh Kabab"'s roasbeef*, "Narenj"'s cheeseburger with lots of mayinaise on all of them. Don't forget Persian style pizza and pasta, “deezy”, momy’s special macaroni and “Loobia polo” :)
My advice: Before you plan your trip, see your primary physician to make sure you are in good health condition. Also, try to lose some extra weight to make room for the new fat :)

*Before I came to the U.S. I always thought roast beef was some kind of well-cooked beef marinated in garlic and onions and shredded on a piece of bread with lots of mayonnaise. The first time I ordered roast beef here in America, it disillusioned me big time. I still prefer “Khaneh Kabab” or “Park Sandwich” make my roast beef rather than Frank’s!

Forgetfulness

2008-10-05T19:46:00.000-07:00

My memory goes back to the past where I barely remember the details. The more I think the less I recall. Images seem to be fading everyday. Nostalgia is the sorrow of forgetfulness. It does not depend on where you live. Whether you are an immigrant or living in your own county. Nostalgia is all about forgetfulness.

V.P. debate

2008-10-03T14:29:00.001-07:00

Everyone knows how NBC corporate media, that people are doomed to watch because it's free and most good TV shows in America are first premiered on it, has close ties to the Republican party.
After the debate, NBC started to adore Palin using it's paid experts(!). There was a Peggy something lady who started her review right after the debate with "She(Palin) killed tonight"!
There was only one person from NPR radio who criticized Palin and her interview was followed by 3 reviews in support of Palin. One of them was even hoping Saturday night live would not mock Palin anymore!
Actually, what these paid experts pointed out was all about Palin's surprising performance after all the dumb interviews with NBC starting from a week before! You really need to watch those.

What I see is a dumb politician being presentable as VP candidate because she made a debate that was expected from everyone except her!
Poor America

I really need to google something

2008-10-02T10:31:00.000-07:00

Today is one of those days. One of thoooosseeee days!
I am sitting in my cubicle by the computer.
I finished my assigned project yesterday and my boss doesn't expect me to submit it to him today. There is really no point in early submissions or taking that extra mile these days because no promotion is coming in the near future!
I have played well enough with other models and analysis I have from previous projects.
My desk is as clean and arranged as it can be.
I checked all my emails from YAHOO, Gmail, and my UD account.
I sent a reminder message to my advisor about that journal paper that I bet he hasn't looked at it yet.
Nothing is going on facebook, YAHOO360 or Orkut. Probably because it's Thursday and everyone is fed up with this week and waiting for their dear Friday to come tomorrow.
I have even spent my shopping budget for this week on some clothes and a pretty nice wireless audio station so that I transfer music wirelessly from my laptop or MP3 player to the audio receiver at home (look how lazy I am, BTW!).
I have also read all the online newspapers and blogs that I like and it's just 10:43AM!

So the only thing that can cheer me up is to google something interesting. BTW, it's really hard to find one. I have done pretty nasty searches in my spare time before that you can't think of!

Mohsen Namjoo's Solo Concert, San Diego

2008-09-28T18:09:00.000-07:00

Mohsen Namjoo was having a solo concert tour in the states and by states I mean California. I went to the San Diego concert last Friday. Mohsen is a true artist. I mean, he is smart and knows what his strengths are and what people want from him. He is a fun guy too, apparently, and makes sarcastic jokes.
I'm not a traditional music expert of course and even if his 3-tar goes a little out of tune I may not realized it. But what I see is a controversial artist who doesn't mind breaking the rules and traditions if it's necessary. Most Iranian artists don't like to digress or jump from one poem to another one but he mixes poems of Shamlou with Sa'adi and adds some of his own words to the who thing if it feels good. He screams, shouts or changes his tone to a girlish voice and doesn't mind people laughing at him. Growing up in Iran during the last thirty years, Mohsen Namjoo owes his fame to a society of double standards, pretentiousnesses, confusions, disappointments, and superfacialities. His art is to put all his feelings about this society in lyrics and songs.
I don't know if you like this guy or hate him (I haven't seen any one who doesn't mind him, it's either love or hate!) but he is a good artist who was missing from our generation for a while. He is not a pretender nor wants to make a revolution in the persian music; he is just himself and that's sometimes all people want from an artist.
If you go to his concert next time, make sure you buy his CDs at the door. They say the whole revenue of the sales goes to his pocket and not to the greedy entertainment companies.

Epiman's new job search

2008-09-24T14:40:00.000-07:00

Since I started working for my current employer, I started looking for a new job! Literally! They are very very nice people but I feel I have more to offer but they are not willing to take. So, like many others struggling in this recession, I accepted this job offer about four months ago mostly to pay my bills. I mean, I like the company and I’m not being underpaid that much but I miss those challenging projects at school. Here, projects are time consuming but not challenging. So, I’m looking for a new job preferably in a big corporation. Of course, I am pickier now and don’t sell myself for a low price. I really look into the job descriptions and talk to the recruiters over the benefits and the working environment. It’s actually very pleasant to have a job as a back up and look for what you want freely. You have this peace of mind of having enough money to pay your bills and you are building up your reputation gradually too. Hence, you can take your time, negotiate with greedy recruiters and can have the upper hand in negotiations. Vey pleasant, very,....
As a result, I am more confident during interviews too. I start talking about my background sometimes before they ask about it. I direct the conversation to what I want and even make jokes! They all come naturally. I don’t even “try” to be relaxed anymore. There was this guy at school who used to say it’s easier to find a new girl friend while you already have one!
P.S. I was away for a week after the Richard Wright’s death. No, I was not mourning for him! I was sick and didn’t want to do anything but to rest. Hope you don’t ever be sick my friend, it’s a very bad thing even when you take some sick days off of work. I am willing to trade off part of my life for a sudden death. I mean, if I suppose to die in 184 years, from one year of disease, I like to trade five years of my life with a sudden death in the 179th year. Theoretical? yes, Possible? hopefully, Realistic? Neiiii!!!

Richard Wright, Pink Floyd's Keyboardist, died at the age of 65

2008-09-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

Richard Wright,one of the founding members of Pink Floyd died yesterday after a battle with cancer. He was the keyboard player of the band "6 Sigma" with Roger Waters and Nick Mason which eventually became Pink Floyd. As an experimental instrumentalist, he played keyboards, synthsizer and organ. His most amazing works appeared in early Pink Floyd albums when Pink Floyd members were equally sharing their ideas. After "The Wall" album he left the band and rejoined it later with David Gilmour. He was a contributor vocalist of Pink Floyd over years too. His special voice brought a more psychedelic feeling to many songs including "Us and them", "Comfortably numb" and "Wearing the inside out".
We lost a legendary musician yesterday who affected many people in this world. Condolences to his fans and the global musicians community.
Here is the song "Comfortably Numb" sang by Richard Wright and David Gilmour in Gilmour's concert two years ago:

A tribute to Richard Wright on Youtube.com with the song "Wish you were here":

And my favorite song by Richard Wright/David Gilmour in the last Pink Floyd's album, " Wearing the Inside Out" which, I think, reflects his introverted personality:

Saturday Night Live: Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton's debate, very funny

2008-09-15T20:31:00.000-07:00

SNL made a very good point about Hillary Clinton's candidency and the sexism issue of the on going presidential election in its last week opening. Very funny too, especially Palin's poses for the camera :)

To be special or not to be at all

2008-09-15T07:32:00.000-07:00

O.K, it’s about Creep, presumably the most famous song of the British rock band, Radiohead. I’m not going to talk about the song per se. What I want to say is about the concept of being special in our lives which I think is related to our greed to be perfect. For instance, how many people go to gyms to have a healthy exercise? I say less than 5%. What about that 95%? Well, they either go to lose some weight or to have more muscles. What is wrong with it? Nothing, but most of them go on unhealthy diets, use proteins or fat burners to gain better results in a small period. Why? Because they want to look good as fast as possible.
Think about how society looks at unaccomplished people. People who don't fit in the standard sucess frame. The industry defines a standard over being a successful person for its own benefits. This covers everyone no matter how different they are. Everything is labeled from the clothes and cars, to ideas and social manners. You follow a certain path and you will be considered homosexual, intelligent, rich, etc. We mock these standards too like in movies and shows but we never ignore them. Remember that comedy show where the star changed his manner to pretend to be rich by talking intelligently and driving that luxury car for the first date.
What if someone misses the ride toward making his/her own predefined frame? What if I’m not smart enough- or simply don't want- to have a good job, body, manners, etc. I think that is where the lack of being special kicks in.

Epiman's Half Marathon

2008-09-12T14:08:00.000-07:00

I recently started practicing for a half marathon. There are several marathons for charity in October that I hope to make one of them. Wednesday I ran seven miles as a part of my half marathon program I got somewhere on the internet. I used to run while I living in Ohio; but since Ohio was almost always so cold or so hot I had to do it at the University of Dayton's gym which was not so much fun. The thing was that I couldn't stand running in the same gym every day and seeing the same walls and windows and- after a while- the same people. It was a very beautiful gym though. Anyhow, I gave up running after a while and just did lifting.

But things are different in Southern California. Everyday is sunny and the weather is awesome. Neither getting cold in the winter nor very hot in the summer makes it a perfect place for outdoor sports. For a lazy man like me running is the least excusable one! You just can’t find any reason to escape it. The only thing you need is to do is to decide when to go and you are on your way in 2 minutes. There is also a good biking route close to where I live. It passes by a small water canal and people use it for walking or running too. It’s very nice especially in the evenings when people go out for exercise. Everyone does his/her best. Some walk, some jog, some run so fast and can’t help breathing, some take it easy and let their feet run them, some ride fancy bikes, some cycle really seriously and some just go to have their dogs toilet and go back home ASAP so that they don’t miss the early evenings TV shows!
So, I started this marathon program about a month ago and now I am half way through it. In less than a month- hopefully- I will finish a half marathon and go for a race. If you see me somewhere in Long beach, LA or Newport beach marathon races, make sure to shake your hands for me or at least make a smile. I will be wearing a running short and shoes with a T-shirt. See you there :)

DRUGS R US

2008-09-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

A while back, I ran into this blog. The author tries to say drugs are not bad; and in fact, some of them are good or their advantages are more than their harmfulness . Don’t get me wrong. I’m not a fan of drugs at all but the author’s controversial view was interesting to me.
I remember a classmate of mine who used to tell me that he was looking for a book which proved God’s inexistence. He wanted to see what the God’s unbelievers say and judge the validity of their reasoning himself.
So, if you are someone who has the potential to go for drugs, this blog is a good source for you to show the other extreme of the case. You can see why people enjoy drugs and what they say about their experience. Judge it yourself especially if you are an unbeliever too.

How to be famous in the Persian artists community out of Iran

2008-09-09T10:18:00.001-07:00

Per your request!, here is my instruction in how to become famous in the Persian artists community. With the help of this instruction you can beat anyone regardless of how dumb you are.

Find anyone around you who has connections to famous or semi-famous artists. Remember, this is the first and the most important step toward your goal. Be as picky as you can and find people who you want to be alike. Being cool is very important and the group you hang out with defines your level of coolness.
Go to all arts events. Try to take as many pictures as you can with famous artists even if someone else is taking the picture. Put your pics up in your facebook page and the other pics will pop up from someone else's blog or profile.
Make comments on your pictures as soon as you publish them on facebook so that even friends of your friends can see them.
Add as many artists you know to your facebook profile. Don’t worry, they will confirm your friend request. They want to be famous as much as you do.
When you see the same artist that you took that picture with a while back, go to him/her and try to make a conversation. Don’t bother if they can’t remember you in the first place. In fact, lots of them recall you but it’s so uncool to recognize you right away.
Try to hang out with them in the second time as much as you can. Be creative. Buy them drinks, invite them to an after-party, ask them to attend that other art show, etc.
Always have some ideas about the show or event you are attending. It doesn’t matter how dumb your view is because almost nothing makes sense in arts. Just throw the words out using vague descriptions and ask them about their opinion too.
Try to make friends with reporters from Radiozamaaneh, RadioFarda, VOA and BBC Persian. Avoid talking to Guardian or New York Times people. They are fair.
Start being an artist yourself. Do you know how to play the piano? Good! It doesn’t matter if you barely finished Beyer ten years ago. Go find a piece of music that no one has ever heard of and read everything about it from the composition structure to the composer’s biography. Memorize the piece and have it always handy to play especially in private parties. If you are so dumb, you can always write. So, start a blog and with the help of your friends in Radiozamaaneh, Radio Farda or BBC you can establish your fame in no time.
Try to make a circle of friends. Always adore their works of art religiously. Think of it as a trade-in business. You adore their work, they adore your work and everyone is happy. On the other hand, when there is an opportunity, even if you are not qualified to take it, don't recommend your friends for it. Do you want your friends to be more famous than you? No!, never! they better be dead!
The last step is to keep up with the community. You don’t need to show up in every event anymore. Actually it’s not cool at all. But when you show up, try to be late and hang out in the waiting room or at the bar more than where the main even is going on. You need to provide other people an opportunity to meet you and continue their own dumb path of becoming famous.

See how smart this plan is. So, give up trying to be a true artist to fit in this community my friend. It doesn’t work that way.

Be an Epitaphs Follower now and enjoy no benefits at all

2008-09-07T14:34:00.000-07:00

Department of Social Relationships (D.S.R)
Epitaphs Blog
Irvine, CA, U.S.A

Dear Reader,

We have added the new Blogger feature, the Blog Follower, to this page on the first side bar section under the same name as of this topic. Now, you can enjoy being a follower of this blog by adding your name and probably your blog address to this section. We have not even bothered checking how it works but it seems like something cool. We are glad to offer you no benefits at all by being a follower. Your support makes us feel like being famous instead. Therefore, this feature is absolutely pointless and we strongly suggest you using it.

Thanks for your all time support,

Sincerely,

Head of Epitaphs Social Relationships Department
September/ 7th/ 2008

Why did Eric Clapton write Leila?

2008-09-03T09:13:00.000-07:00

Do you remember the song “Leila” of Eric Clapton? Or I’m too old?
If you’re Persian you may remember it even if you’ve listened to it once. It was ten years ago when I first heard it. The Unplugged version of MTV. It’s a very nice song and no Iranian can ignore the word Leila in it. Leila is a girl’s name in Farsi and is famous for a very old Persian love story where the beloved’s name was Leili or Leila. Again, like most Iranian I was wondering how Eric Clapton found this name. So, after ten years, I made a small Google search.
Apparently, Eric was in love with Pattie Boyd who was married to his friend George Harrison , drummer of The Beatles. While Eric was in love, like many other desperate lovers he turned to love story when he found the story of "Leili and Majnoun" by "Nezami" . He found himself in the same situation as “Majnoun”( Leili’s lover) who was in love with Leili , a beautiful unavailable woman to him. So he decided to picture his feelings in this song and named it Leila. When the album released, he played the song to Pattie and expressed his love. They had a brief affair but Pattie broke it off and refused to leave her husband.
Eric was not very passionate about that love like Majnoun. Although he married her several years later they divorced unhappily.
This post doesn’t have strong references but if you want, you can find more information about the song yourself. I swear I didn’t make up the story!
P.S. The story is written in the form of verse (poem) by the famous Iranian poet "Nezami". Some people say, Nezami was from Azerbaijan to give the credit to them. It's like saying Rumi was from Turkey or Afghanistan despite the fact that his entire books are in Farsi and he was born in Persia- which included both of these countries back then and its remains is known as Iran- and descendants of Shams, his mentor, were from Tabriz (a city in the north west of Iran).

To read more articles about music on this blog click here

I love fast food

2008-09-02T08:40:00.000-07:00

Image taken from: http://calorielab.com/news/2007/04/26/your-kids-dont-let-them-eat-fake-food/

I really like fast food although I don’t have it a lot. The good thing about it is that you don’t need to prepare anything ahead of time. You just have to decide and you’ll have it in less than 10 minutes, thanks to its growing business all around the world. And if you get it while you are going back home using the drive-through, it’s even better. Why? ‘Cause you don’t even have to stop your car and go to the restaurant. You just sit in your car; order what you want through the microphone without looking at the nice smiley tired face of the cashier. Then you slowly drive towards the pick-up window, pay and wait for a minute or two to get your meal in a “paper bag”. Your order is usually prepared more quickly than in-house guests. They don’t want too many cars waiting in the drive-through so that lazy people like me pass by their restaurant in search for a less-crowded fast food place. They don’t even bother you with asking to sign your credit card bill! And every card is accepted. Even your mean American Express which no business likes to deal with!
Have you got your food just now and you are starving? It’s O.K too. You can start having some of the handy parts of it, like the fries, while you’re reaching your destination.
Remember when you cook for an hour or more and after you prepare everything there’s a big mess in the kitchen? Three dishes, some cookware and spices residue all over the place? Well, there’s no such a thing when you have fast food. Just have your food wrapped in a paper or in a paper box and use the napkins and single-served sauces with it. No need to reach that cold sauce in the fridge or look for the salt shaker that only God knows where you left it last time. Are you enjoying it? good, keep on. You know what? Turn on that TV and watch some 80's comedy shows and laugh as laud as you can with the recorded laughing sounds! :)

After having your food with no strings attached, you drop all the trash in your food bag again. See how smart it is? You use the same bag as your garbage bag. You don’t have to use a dish or pick up the dirty napkins, the paper wrap and… separately and throw them into the garbage bin. Just put everything in the same food bag and throw it out. Now, look at your watch, it just took you thirty minutes at most from the decision making part till finishing the task!
So, next time, before you decide to cook yourself, think about it. Does it worth the try? How many dirty dishes and cookware you’re going to have? How long is it gonna take? Can you throw out the whole garbage at once?! And if you are a kind of person who becomes stuffed while cooking only by smelling the food, you really really need to quit cooking and start fastfooding.
Consider fast food seriously my friend. Oh, .. Are you worried about your weight and blood cholesterol? It’s not the fast food's fault, it’s because you don’t want to exercise. But if you have fast food, you save time for exercise too. O,.. wait, don’t forget that you’re being green by using paper bags and not turning on your inefficient oven. So, you’re making the world a better place for the children!

The IT Guy: I am big

2008-08-29T09:32:00.000-07:00

Taken from http://www.iso.org/iso/iso_cafe_information_technology.htm

We have this IT guy in our company who thinks he is the best! I don't want to generalize IT people but some of them really make a big deal out of themselves. They always complain about the old systems and hardware while they can't solve lots of small problems and since everyone needs them they are always over-respected.

Some of their expressions and their hidden meanings:

" This printer is too old, no one knows how it works, the company only manufactured four of 'em and they all have this problem"= I don't know how to fix the printer's problem and I don't want to look desperate. So, please call the manufacturer's customer service to send a technician.

"How old is this system? it can't handle this many software. Do you have any backups?"= You computer is crashed and I don't know what the root cause is so I'm gonna reset everything and delete all your files like an IT intern.

"It's not a big deal, just go to the setting-control panel-...-...-...,... and click on this and that and that and uncheck this box and you'll be fine. If you couldn't fix it make sure to call me"= I am too lazy and don't want to go to your desk and fix your system.

"We don't have any thing better than what you already have"= There are so many better hardware out there that are compatible with your system but I made a big mistake and bought a bunch of cheap products and you are doomed to live with them till we run out of them and I make a new purchase for a better hardware.

Again, I'm not generalizing IT people but I have seen such IT guys before. So, if you are a Good IT guy who's always honest and really tries to solve employer's problems, I am not talking about you. So, just chill out buddy ;D

Friday love affairs

2008-08-21T08:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I saw a quote in the end of an email saying: “Thanks!, Plan for the weekend? Have a great weekend!” You know where it was? Right in the end where people usually put their contact info. The sender didn’t even bother putting her name in the end. It was kind of odd and refreshing. There is also a colleague of mine who’s always counting days to Friday starting from Monday! Everyday our first and sometimes the only conversation is like:
“Two days to Friday!”
“It’s almost Friday!” (On a Thursday)
“Friday!” (On a Friday)
“Today is my Birthday!” (On a Friday)
“Only one hour” (means there is one our left to leave the company on Friday)
And yesterday when the manufacturing chief engineer asked her what day it was, she answered Friday! (It was Tuesday actually). And while leaving work on Fridays she always advises me not to drink too much. It makes me feel like I’ve been imprisoned for five days and now it's time to drink and celebrate the two and half days of freedom. So imagine how compulsive you would be if you had such a person right beside your cubical.
Since then I’m appreciating weekends much more. I’ve realized how important- or sometimescrucial- it can be for some people, so I try to enjoy them as much as I can too.

Thanks! Plans for weekend? Have a great weekend! :D

Epiman's mornings

2008-08-19T12:59:00.000-07:00

Nothing much is going on these days. It’s just the routine. Everyday I wake up exactly at 5:00AM. Massage my eyes and wish I could wake up just an hour later. While keeping my eyes barely opened I walk to the bathroom,…[you don't need an explanation for this part!] , touch my face and hoping I don’t need to shave (but I do it almost everyday anyways). While shaving, I try to remember if I have anything for lunch or I need to go to the Quiznoz again. Now, I am almost awake or at least force myself to be. Then I walk to the kitchen, open the fridge, take the food, put it in the lunch box and look at my new lunch box which I haven’t been ready to use yet ‘cause it's too many different compartments but all of them are too small (I got it as a gift, so I don’t mind not using it!). Then I check the freezer to see if there is still some frozen breakfast in it. I put the plate and the breakfast in the bag and read the clock. If it is 5:15 I have to leave, if it’s not I turn on the TV to check the traffic. Have you ever seen the early morning news? People look ridiculously fresh! At least they look fresh to me. I mean, at 5:10AM you don’t expect seeing people wearing suites and made their hair by a stylist. I feel pity for them. They probably have to be at work at least 2 hours a head of their show to be prepared. So they have to go to sleep around 8 or even earlier. I hate going to sleep early at night more than waking up early in the morning. See, For me to have a normal sleep, I have to go to bed around 10PM. That is exactly when I want to relax a little and watch some TV or waste my time on the internet.
Anyway, I don’t wanna distract you from my very important morning routine story! I have 30 miles to work so I need to make it quick or I'll be late if I stuck in unexpected traffic jams. It’s still completely dark and again I feel pity for myself. The only good thing about waking up this early is that you avoid the crazy traffic in 405. It gradually becomes a moving parking lot till 8AM.
I turn on the car stereo which is usually on the CD player from yesterday evening. I quickly turn it to NPR radio station. Who wants to listen to some progressive rock CD this time of the night? NPR is the only radio able to keep me up now. They talk about politics mostly, with some short news. I find NPR more interesting at this time of the night rather than any other time for some reason. In 5 minutes I enter 405-north and set the cruise controller on 75. Every morning there is someone in 405 who deserves my curses for his/her driving. When I find him/her, I generously send my worst curses and pass by. In 30 minutes I am at the parking door of the company. I open the door, park my car, pick up the food bag and enter the plant. Everyone is working here. I take a look at the closest person I see, make a smile and say good morning. I clock in and feel pity for these people who started to work at 4:00AM or even 2:00AM! The smell of fresh coffee made by my boss for the engineering people wakes me up again. So, let’s see what’s going on today :)
Good morning to you too :)

Leonard Cohen Chelsea Hotel #2 Live

2008-08-15T19:52:00.001-07:00

Leonard Cohen and his little love story. His story may look personal to you but the feeling behind it, the humor, and noting all the small details are great

2008-08-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

This is a short film by Mark Osborne in collaboration with Despair Inc. You might have seen it before since it was release in 1998 but it still worth posting. I was really amazed by the idea and the music. You can buy the the special edition DVD directly from from "HappyProduct".

Increasing success by lowering expectations (a review on Dispair Inc.)

2008-08-13T08:56:00.000-07:00

I think you remember Adidas's' famous ad a couple of years ago titled: "Impossible is nothing". I consider it very inspirational.
Today, I was browsing http://www.woot.com/ in the morning while I was having an early email check in the office (around 6AM) as usual. BTW, I should tell you more about woot later. There was a link on today's woot for http://despair.com/index.html website which its sole purpose is demotivation. It's goal is so disturbed and cynical but sometimes so true as well. The creator tries to sell you things that, as he mentions on the website, disillusion you from motivational motos which multi-billion-dollar industry forces you to believe. Look at a quotation from the demotivators page by E.L. Kersten:

"AT DESPAIR, INC., we believe motivational products create unrealistic expectations, raising hopes only to dash them. That's why we created our soul-crushingly depressing Demotivators® designs, so you can skip the delusions that motivational products induce and head straight for the disappointments that follow!"

Actually, impossible is something I think. It depends on what we believe success is. I don't agree with either Adidas or Despair. I remember the time I used to be a big fan of Anthony Robbins. His ideas was very close to the impossible is nothing concept. Whenever I was reading his words about nothing is not unachievable and humen are capable of doing anything I use to become so inspired. He has this magical energy through repetitive examples of unusual success stories that makes you ask yourself: What do I have less than these losers? Why are they so successful and I'm not? He goes on and on in his books to force you believe in yourself and set your goals higher and higher. Of course, there are lots of criticism about his work which are true sometimes. Anyway, I personally believe in my ability to do many thing but not everything.

Process of Being Californicated

2008-08-08T12:11:00.000-07:00

You know I live in California right now. The shallowest state in the U.S. Even the governor is an actor (not a very talented one though). Recently, I figured out that this is the atmosphere which forces people to become shallow. I mean, for example, imagine you go to a mall close by to buy an , say, Old Navy hoodie (OK, I'm a turtle!). While you're walking in the mall you see so many people are wearing nice clothes(including hoodies!).You're a human being, right?(at least I assume you are) so you become attracted to these beauties and if you have some extra money in your pocket you may change you mind from Old Navy to ,say, Banana Republic. But you're an amature, you are still sticking to your principles and opposing you being ranked by your clothes brands. But after a while you see more and more beautiful clothes around and want to have them. So you switch to more expensive brands and end up spending even five times more on your hoodies!
This is how you set the first step to your Californication (as Red hot chili peppers say) process. Luckily I am, I had been to California back and forth for the last 3 years. So, before I completely moved here I knew what I was going to encounter and tried to avoid these things as much as I could but I still can't resist buying my jeans from Diesel! ... I wish I could stick to my principles more!
Anyway, there are lots of great thing about California like being diverse, cosmopolitan, foreigner friendly, one of the greatest art centers in the world, having the best public school system and home to many important businesses, industries and universities in the world and don't forget the very beautiful beaches.

King Crimson's Concert in Chicago and a desparate fan in Irvine, CA

2008-08-04T01:06:00.000-07:00

Rober Fripp of King Crimson, Picture courtesy of Thomas G. Smith, from www.DGMlive.com
Direct link: http://www.dgmlive.com/vision.htm?artist=5&id=2734

Tonight I had way too many coffees and I decided not to go to work tomorrow (Jee, It's already tomorrow!), So I'm gonna write something here and you need to bear with me on this one (I'll probably delete the whole post by tomorrow!)
By the way, I went out with these very very nice friends for wine tasting today. Not that we were wine experts but it was fun and I had a great time.
You have no idea how much I want to go to King Crimson's concert in Chicago this weekend but I can't. The airfare is too high and I need to take two days off for it (Thursday and Friday) because the concert starts at 7PM Friday which is too early to catch a flight on Friday and still be able to make it to the concert. So I have to take Thursday off too which I can't, thanks to the busy employer of mine. So, I just sit by my computer and check out the DMG live blog to see if they put up some parts of the Friday's concert. The more it becomes closer to the concert the more I check Robert Fripp's Weblog. It's very nice actually, from the artistic point of view (it looks like comic strips), but I check it just for the matter of missing the concert.
Hopefully they don't play Epitaph and Starless or Fallen Angel 'cause it really makes me mad. I don't know how come these people don't like to perform in the west coast. It could be a blast. Or may be they are like those up-tight east coast intellectuals who think people here are dumb and shallow by default!
Anyway, I'm going to sleep. You take care, see you later

Portishead's new album

2008-08-02T19:42:00.000-07:00

Portishead's new album isn't good at all. What is the deal with all these diminished or inharmonic Chords. They are great musicians but it's not what I was expecting from a minimalistic band. It's so full of pads and drums. They are either running out of ideas or they want to make another progressive change in the trip-hop music.
Every famous musician has made just few influential pieces which is fairly enough so does Portishead.

The minor problem No.2 : Home sweet home

2008-08-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

I don't want to post all the minor problems at once but this one has been flowing in my mind for a while:
Sometimes when I am at a very crowded fun party, between all the friends and beautiful strangers, even while having good conversations I want to go home right away! Even if I had been waiting for the event for a long time the home sweet home calls me. Is it because I like to be alone? I don't think so, I like partying and hanging out and I look forward to them from the beginning of each week. But when it happens and in the heat of the event I feel like leaving everything and going home. What do you think? Am I depressed? Tooka once told me she had the same feeling sometimes. I think it all goes back to the convenience of home. It's natural to miss home more often when we make it more and more comfortable everyday.

The minor problem No. 1

2008-07-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

Did I tell you I go running almost four times a week?
There is always this problem: You know when you are walking or running and someone comes to you from the opposite direction and you want to be nice and say hi or just give her/him a smile but you don't know when is the right time? It's been a problem for me since my childhood.
I just can't find the exact time to do this. Sometimes I don't look at all but it's mean and I don't like it. Sometimes I look at the person so early that she/he can't recognize my hi or smile. Sometimes, I do it so late when the person has already looked away!
It's a weird, I don't know how to deal with this situation.

Shaken, and Dilbert

2008-07-29T19:42:00.001-07:00

I was shaken today! Don't get me wrong, it was an earthquake. It reminded me of Iran's earthquakes, where people were not even trained to deal with them. So many people would die if a 5.4 earthquake would happen in Iran. But here, no one got heart, I mean no one, really.
By the way, I attended the rehearsal of the rock band I told you before, but they were no good for me. I was surprised to be the youngest person in the band. They were good players though. I don't like to cover other people's work. Even if you try your best, you would be a cover band that can play as good as the records. There is no creativity. The good thing was that I didn't know I did't like cover bands because I sometimes play the songs that I like on the piano and enjoy them. I find the chords (usually from the internet, 'cause I'm too lazy to do find them myself) and arrange the song for the piano or some vintage sounds like Hammond or electronic piano. Anyways, it was a good experience. Hope they find a good keyboardist.
There was this hippie-like guy who was playing the rhythm guitar and wearing some middle eastern type shirt and necklace. He went in Bahrain, Dubai and Egypt few month ago. I amaze how some people are interested in other cultures. He also wanted to visit Persepolis and asked me about how to get Iran's visa. As usual, I said there is almost no chance he could get a visa!
Another thing I saw in this band was the extreme messiness! They did not have any sheets of music or even a chord arrangement of their songs. They all memorized the songs and were comfortable with it. The drummer had some problem with the beginnings and the endings in almost every song but he didn't even bother writing a note so that he wouldn't hear complains from his fellow band members again. And as a matter of fact, they did not give me any thing for the songs. They just started playing and expected me to follow them or improvise for them. So, imagine how hard a new member can fit in this band. While I was speaking with the Basist he mentioned that lots of people call him to play keyboards with them but I was the only one who really decided to attend a rehearsal. I would say, they were smarter than me!
3 years ago me and three of my friends formed a rock band in Tehran and I thought we were so messy but these guys toped us by all means. This messiness is very usual between musicians, may be this is a way to creativity. I don't know but what I know is that the more I am organized the more I can be creative because I'm an engineer!
Now that I mentioned engineer listen to this: if you are an engineer like me and you feel you're a geek who's always stock in his cubical in front of a computer, you need to check Dilbert comics. There is also a TV show based on it. It's so funny but you need to be an engineer or have engineers around you to really enjoy it. My favorite character is Waly. He is a disinterested engineer who used to be a geek but now he just doesn't care about his job. He likes to work at his company because he likes the coffee there. One of the ambitions of Dilbert himself is to have an office rather that a cubical! He also has this mean dog who always manipulates Dilbert for his own good because in Dilbert's world there is no room to utilize his ideas for his own advantage.
You can go to www.hulu.com to watch it for free with few commercial interruptions (no illegal downloads or torrent search necessary!)
OK, sorry for the long post!

The music project

2008-07-26T10:05:00.001-07:00

I've been working on a new song for a while. I have the lyrics and the idea but they don't match. Whatever I do doesn't matter. I change the drums, massage the lyrics to make it more rock-like but it doesn't work. I even left it for a while to see if anything new came along, a new idea, a new ingredient , something that made the whole project different. The song is good right now but I expect more.
Sometime I think that's because I listen to so many kinds of music. It makes a chaos of your musical ideas. That's all because I love to listen to music and since I have listened to all songs that I really loved, I've started listening to some new styles. Take trip-hop for instance. Two weeks ago I picked up a free music magazine from a boutique in Costa Mesa. I was waiting for my sister to try on some clothes that the magazine's cover caught my eyes. There was a picture of the band "Portishead"(pronounce" Portis-head", it took me a Google search to find the right pronunciation!). I didn't actually read their interview which was the main part of the magazine but their unique look remained in my head. After a week I ran into their name in one of my friend's profile in facebook. So, I became curious. Since the curiosity was not that high I decided to find more about them at work to waste while I'm sneakingly surf the net.
And again the same old story. I liked the music, I listened to their songs for about a week permanently and the chaos happened again. Now, I can't make music anymore. I'm fascinated with their style which is far from my taste. 'Guess I need to give my mind a time-out to get rid of the impression. I even arranged this new song in a trip-hop-like style but I don't like it either. Anyways, I need to stop for now. But don't forget: their music is goooo0d!
By the way, I found some new bands here. I'm gonna see them tomorrow. Hopefully I find a good band these days to jam with. It's really hard to compose on your own. There's always something missing or unsatisfying.
You know what I'm gonna do now? I'm going to leave this music project and read the new book I bought recently. I'm gonna sit out side that coffee shop and enjoy the California's sunshine while I'm reading. You think I'm spoiled, O.K, I'm spoiled, so what?
P.S. the book is an engineering textbook!

Life Browser

2008-07-17T19:51:00.000-07:00

As I stand in the middle of the road

I look back and browse the past

Remember when I had the highest hopes

The dreams were so doable and close

As the years pass by,

The reality calms down the desires

And corrode the ambitions

Like the water cooling down the fire

Your heart becomes quiet

And you want to be happy with what you have

But there are times when you look back

And see the vague lights of your hopes

Still dreaming and hunting for them

remember when you sold them to the world

To do a living it wants from you

To suck up the blood of your dreams

Now that you feel empty inside

Your time’s passed long time ago

Didn’t give you a chance to think twice

On what you have to enjoy the ride

What has become of you, you know

Did you think you’d end up like this?

And there’s a voice deep inside

Still knocking at your cranium

You were the one who wanted to win

Your small hands wanted to catch the sun

And now all you do is to run

To have what you have to win what you won

2008-06-28T21:27:00.000-07:00

Mark Knopfler's Concert, Los Angeles

2008-06-28T01:38:00.000-07:00

Tonight I went to Mark Knopfler's concert. The main guy of the band "Dire Straits". I remember the first time I got their album's cassette from my cousin when I was 14 years old. Those were generous times of course, and I had a lot of enthusiasm towards music. Most of my classmates used to listen to 90's heavy metal especially that of Metallica those days. Anyways, after a while I became a hardcore fan of Dire Straits for a while which was not very unexpected from a teenage boy like me. You know, you are young and you want to be different and what is better than being a big fan of a band that non of your friends knows of (does it make you different, I say no, but those days I would say yes). As a result, my bigest wish became seeing Mark Knopfler live in concert and tonight it happened.
Mark Knopfler is much different from what I was expected. Glad that I didn't see him while I was a big fan of his skillful solos and agile hands. This guy was so average tonight. Of course he still has a lot of things to say but you can see the aging in his new songs and his boredom while singing his old hits from Dire Straits.
He didn't even tried to make the crowd a little excited by playing his all time hits like "Money for nothing"! It was so mean. You come to his concert and he plays his goofy new songs that don't really have much new material to offer and he doesn't even bother playing his fans favorite songs.
It's unbelievable how life can change us.
Sorry , this post is too long and I just want to post it without any spell check.

First

2008-06-26T21:51:00.000-07:00

Hello,

I never thought about creating a blog before. It was a 5-minute decision occurred while I was reading the blog of a friend of my mine. I suggest you to take a look at my profile to get an idea about me.
Now that I am writing this post I am frightened a little. Is it a good idea to share your thought with strangers? what if my friends find me a stupid or shallow person?...
There are lots of what ifs there.
I just give it a shot. Let's see what happens.
Cheers,
Pooya