Discovering Indian Classical Music

Ever since I was a child, music has played an integral part of my life. I never compartmentalized myself to liking a specific genre or language of music. I always immersed myself in different genres; be it alternative, reggae, rap, rock, pop, R&B, Hindi, Arabic, or even Tamil/Telugu (yes my early A.R Rahman days). Being that music was very important in my life, I joined the school choir. I just loved singing and listening to music. Here I was exploring/listening to different types of music but still not finding a home; a genre that I could completely identify myself with. Until one day, my father took me to Pandit ShivKumar Sharma’s concert—I think I was 8 or9 then. I was mesmerized! Indian classical music was completely new to me in the sense that I never sat down and listened to it unless it was being played in the background during one of our parties but then at that age, I was busy playing the Rainbow Brite game that we kids made up. I was always envious of the kids who actually took private singing lessons…SA NI DHA PA was cool but I don’t really know why I never got my parents to enroll me in such things. Hmm…

Since this concert, I was always intrigued by this genre but never really gave much attention to it until one day, way into college, a few friends of mine told me that I should take singing seriously. I always considered myself a fantastic bathroom singer because I’d sing the best in my shower…the vibrations, the water running made everything sound perfect. When my friends told me that I should really think of it seriously, I actually kept it in the back of mind that when I finish the semester, I’m going to start taking lessons. Of course that never came about until one day my mother had gone to someone’s house and had met a lady who teaches Indian classical music in WESTCHESTER!!! My total dream was coming true.

A few days later, I met the lady and believe it or not, not only did she have an amazing voice, she’s is one of Pandit Jasraj’s disciples, one of my favorite and extremely famous Indian classical vocalists!! Not only was I excited to be able to fulfill one of my wishes of training in Indian classical music, but also to learn and be a part of the same gharana (school) that my guru was part of! I will never forget the night I met my guru in person for the very first time. Not only was he humble and funny, this 70 year old man didn’t treat me any different from his immediate students, his disciples. According to the school the relation between him and me was now established as me being his grand-daughter. Pandit Jasraj-ji was now my GURU NANA! How awesome and sweet is that! As I train by the day, I feel that I am finally connecting to a genre that not only is guiding me to develop a wide vocal range, but is also helping me to musically connect myself to different moods.

All I’d like to say is that I’m truly grateful to my parents for having them introduce me to this genre of music and in a way introduce me to myself.

Online Quarrels

So I read this blog the other day and I had to share! How can anyone resist! Read on and enjoy

Supposing ... There's only one thing worth debating online

Charlie Brooker
Friday June 2, 2006
The Guardian

Last week I wrote a load of nonsense about flags and idiocy; as well as appearing in print, it also turned up on the Guardian's "Comment is Free" blog-o-site, where passersby are encouraged to scrawl their own responses beneath the original article.

Some people disagreed with the piece, some agreed; some found it funny, some didn't. For half a nanosecond I was tempted to join in the discussion. And then I remembered that all internet debates, without exception, are entirely futile. So I didn't.

There's no point debating anything online. You might as well hurl shoes in the air to knock clouds from the sky. The internet's perfect for all manner of things, but productive discussion ain't one of them. It provides scant room for debate and infinite opportunities for fruitless point-scoring: the heady combination of perceived anonymity, gestated responses, random heckling and a notional "live audience" quickly conspire to create a "perfect storm" of perpetual bickering.

Stumble in, take umbrage with someone, trade a few blows, and within about two or three exchanges, the subject itself goes out the window. Suddenly you're simply arguing about arguing. Eventually, one side gets bored, comes to its senses, or dies, and the row fizzles out: just another needless belch in the swirling online guffstorm.

But not for long, because online quarrelling is also addictive, in precisely the same way Tetris is addictive. It appeals to the "lab rat" part of your brain; the annoying, irrepressible part that adores repetitive pointlessness and would gleefully make you pop bubblewrap till Doomsday if it ever got its way. An unfortunate few, hooked on the futile thrill of online debate, devote their lives to its cause. They roam the internet, actively seeking out viewpoints they disagree with, or squat on messageboards, whining, needling, sneering, over-analysing each new proclamation - joylessly fiddling, like unhappy gorillas doomed to pick lice from one another's fur for all eternity.

Still, it's not all moan moan moan in NetLand. There's also the occasional puerile splutter to liven things up.

In the debate sparked by my gibberish outpouring, it wasn't long before rival posters began speculating about the size of their opponent's dicks. It led me to wonder - has the world of science ever investigated a casual link between penis size and male political leaning?

I'd theorise that, on the whole, rightwing penises are short and stubby, hence their owners' constant fury. Lefties, on the other hand, are spoiled for length, yet boast no girth whatsoever - which explains their pained confusion. I flit from one camp to the other, of course, which is why mine's so massive it's got a full-size human knee in the middle. And a back. A big man's back.

Anyway, if we must debate things online, we might as well debate that. It's not like we'll ever resolve any of that other bullshit, is it?

Click. Mine's bigger than yours. Click. No it isn't. Click. Yes it is. Click. Refresh, repost, repeat to fade.

Ustad Sultan Khan's Leja Leja

Recently, I came across a song by Ustad Sultan Khan called Leja Leja, sung by both him and Shreya Ghosal.

I'm totally in love with this song not only because of its mesmerizing melodious tune but for reasons that have far more of deeper meaning than just the tune touching your heart. Ever since I was a child, I have always been fascinated by Indian Classical Music and wanted to take lessons but never got around to until now. Just by the mere sound of a sitar or a santoor can develop different emotions and let’s not forget how different these emotions can be at different times. My passion for Indian Classical Music deserves a post on its own, so I'm going to get back to discussing why I like the song soo much.

First and foremost, I feel that ICM is a dying passion or almost as close to non-existent in the "younger" generation (I'm referring to Gen X and younger). Not that many appreciate its beauty, I feel. Maybe because I’m surrounded by people who question me as to why I like it; "it’s too old-fashioned". What’s wrong with Old Fashion...Doesn’t [Fashion] always repeat itself? Well I guess in relevance to this song, I like how he uses ICM and gives it a different cover that gives listeners today to both appreciate its classic feel and yet at the same time be something that’s fresh… Could we call it fusion of some sort or just a Remix? Calling it a remix I feel would be insulting the song and genre for sure...so fusion it is, or maybe New Age.

Connecting to a song when the words touch your heart is as if you wrote the song based on your own experiences. Whatever we write is a direct reflection of how we are feeling right at that moment of time. So what am I feeling as I listen to this song? The beauty of this song is that it takes you through a journey of woman searching for true love in her life via the different moods she feels, ranging from being sad to ecstatic. We, my friends and I, are all in that stage in our lives where we feel the need of a companion. Something to "complete [us]". It's not about finding a man or a woman that we want to marry and have kids with. Well that’s part of the equation but more like sharing experiences, or even as little as a cup of coffee. I know the latter u can share with a friend but I guess what I'm trying to say is getting the chance to feel a deeper connection with someone that shares and understands you on a higher level that maybe some friends might not just understand. And NO, Not just as a venting pillow, there is a profession that takes care of that; it's called psychiatry (or Blogging...ha-ha).

Alright back to life. Hope you enjoy this song as much as I do! Down Below are the lyrics to the song!

Leja Leja
Singers: Shreya Ghosal and Ustad Sultan Khan
Album: Ustad and the Divas

Shreya: leja leja re...haay haay leja

Ustad: li muiye..ni muiye..ni muiye...

Shreya:
Leja leja re mehki raat mein churake saare rang leja
raati raati main bheegun saath mein tu aisi mulakaat deja
Leja leja re mehki raat mein churake saare rang leja
raati raati main bheegun saath mein tu aisi mulakaat deja

Ustad:
ni muiye maila mann mera, kya karna aisa rang gora, jo piya na rijhaye

Shreya:
ni muiye mann maila, mann maila kya karna, hai aisa..
na bhaye piya ko, tann gora kya karna, hai aisa..
leja leja.. churake saare rang leja..
raati raati main bheegun saath mein tu aisi mulakaat deja..

Ustad:
leja leja.. leja leja re.. leja leja haan re..

Shreya:
chahoon paas paas aana, koi dhoondh ke bahana, tumhe apna maana
chahe ruthe ye zamana, chahe maare jag taana, tumko hai pana

Ustad:
ni muiye saari raaton ki, kahani koi to hogi..
jo jaage taare raaton ko, ya jaage jogi..

Shreya:
hoo.. ni muiye.. haay..
ni muiye hoti hai, kucch batein hoti hai, raaton mein
jo jaage hai jogi ya taare jage hai, raaton mein..
leja leja re mehki raat mein churake saare rang leja
raati raati main bheegun ...

ni muiye.. ni muiye... leja leja re..
bheegun re.. haai
ni muiye.. ni muiye.. ni muiye..
leja leja aa.. Re

P.S: Those who want literal translations to the song...umm send in a request and i'll try my best!

Most of you have been asking what Ni Muiye means. it translates to oh lovely girl.

Salman Khan: Phat or Fat!?!?!

This past weekend, I had died 'n gone to heaven but then managed to revive back to reality. It was a TOTAL Salman Khan fest weekend. First, I saw Jaan-e-mann, again. I swear, this man even at 41 years of age (turning 41 on December 27th) STILL looks DASHINGLY HANDSOME! Not only can he pull off any color with pizazz, he looks like a total rockstar! There are certain looks that only he can pull off. Those of you who have seen the movie will agree to the fact that when Salman Khan wears jeans, t-shirt and a leather jacket he looks like a heartthrob. But when Akshay Kumar pulls the same outfit, he looks like a fob trying to be cool. This is not a biased opinion of mine but a genuine remark. I will admit that Akshay Kumar is cute in his own way and really looks better in suits and that's it!

Then on Friday then went to see his newest release, Baabul with other hotties like Amitabh Bachchan and John Abraham. Now is it just me or does John Abraham always have one eye open. Notice in the videos, his right eye is always squinting. OK onto the movie. Overall, it was OK. I would say that it is an interesting concept and that many widows do face the consequences of being secluded from living a "happy" life. The problem with the movie was that it was very choppy. Whoever was the editor, should return all the money for doing such a poor job. There were characters that had no reason to be there. It was sort of like writing a paper without any evidence to back up your theories. Everyone looked okay i would say. the Jewelry was i will admit gorgeous but everyone's look was just off. Except for the two oldies. Salman, instead of looking his beefy self, he looked fat. Yes girls, he looked fat and not phat. There were scenes in the movie where he did blow me away with his good looks but even then was limited to a max of 3 mins. Quite depressing I tell you! On the whole, all i can say about this movie is, "Yaar dil nahi bhara!"

So on Sunday, I was hoping to see the old Salman again, the heartthrob that i know of him being at the GIFA Awards Ceremony. Little did i know that i would be so let down. Where is my super fit salman? Not only was he looking chubby, that is only face down (thank god), he looked tired and was about to fall faint. What's happening to my fitness inspiration? I guess this is the test of really liking someone...thru thick and thin till death do us apart. Salman I still LOVE YOU even with your newfound love handles!



A video that shows how obsessed some ppl can be of salman. Poor guy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCt2StmQwyI&NR

Choo Mantar Choo, Abracadabra Doo!!

A Post that I have been meaning to write for the longest time. I always started the entry but always managed to make it disappear!?! Quelle Irony! Well here goes...

Prior to visiting London for a dear friend's wedding this September, I was joking around with my friends that I thought that someone had done black magic on my family and me. This was because in the past months, well actually for almost a year, many bad things have been happening in my family. Our kitchen had undergone a freak accident where it got caught on fire, my mother, a super healthy women fell ill, so much so that we had to take her to the hospital a few times—and still don’t have the cure for her; my father had multiple hypoglycemic attacks, even with his regimented medication intake; I myself had fell ill quite a few times, I think you can figure that out with my blog entries, and the list goes on and on… You know when just a string of bad luck keeps on happening, you tend to stop and wonder, “What the hell is going on?” So like I said, I was joking around with my friends that something was up and it probably was black magic, because not only was my family and I in awe, but so were my friends. Little did I know that a mere joke that we were making was actually true.

So when I went to London, I met up with another one of my friends who had mentioned long time ago that one of his old friends, now his roommate, was into astrology and that now that I was in town, I should get him to read my hand. He, my friend, was telling me of all the predictions that his roommate had made that came true, which not only freaked everyone (including me) out but also the expert astrologer himself. (People, don’t ask me for his number or email because he’s very anal about it especially since he stopped reading hands after the last predictions coming true!—I was just lucky because I had my friend hound him for 3 yrs)

Now I’m the type of person who doesn’t really believe in this stuff but hey, wouldn’t you be curious to know. Curiosity kills the cat I know…BITE ME! It’s fun, right? Right. So like any other GIRL, I ask him when am I getting married and about my career and health etc…He first tells me about my mental status and what I had been going through, which was right on the money. At first, I was slightly apprehensive because, you know, he is my friend’s roommate, easy access to info right there. However, there were certain things he mentioned to me that I had never discussed with anyone, not even my best friend, so I guess that’s when I realized that he was the real deal. He then starts answering my questions i.e. when I’m going to find my significant other: By June 2007 and he’s going to be someone from my friend circle; What about my career: Going to be famous due to my super intelligent and creative mind; Health: no long term illnesses but will get gastritis and will have it all my life, and other stuff...yadiyadiyada…he then becomes very quiet. As he studies my hand and his reading materials, he remains very, very quiet. After a 5-minute silent moment, this is what happens…

Astrologer friend: Zee, do you believe in magic?
Me: depends
Astrologer friend: Ok, do you believe in people being capable of doing black magic on people?
Me: Yes…… (pause) why?
Astrologer friend: Because someone has done black magic on u and is preventing you and your family to move on. It is out of envy; they really don’t want you to succeed in anything and is causing a lot of harm and bad luck on u.

Flashback…Are you serious? Jokes were actually the truth?

Me: Do you know who it is?
Astrologer Friend: No but it’s someone nearby you and you know them very well. I suggest you get a very good hajji and get rid of this magic…

Okay now at this point, I am thoroughly freaked out. I have suspected a few people who can be the culprit but then I think, “Could this be true?” Could Black magic really be done? So after all this talk, I decided to do a little research on black magic. Of course, I then logged on to my favorite site, Wikipedia and this is what I found.

Black magic or dark magick is the branch of magic that is used to perform evil acts or that draws on malevolent powers. In the Inquisition, Christians were afraid of witches and warlocks practicing evil black magic. In modern times, people who identify as witches and warlocks will use the term to describe the bad magic that they do not do in contrast with the good white magic that they do profess to practice. Black magic would be invoked to kill, injure, or cause destruction, or for personal gain without regard to harmful consequences to others. As a term, "black magic" is normally used to describe a form of ritual that some group or person does not approve of. Not everything that is called black magic truly has malevolent intentions behind it.

If you want to know a little bit more on Black magic, log on to the site, it discusses various other theories of Black magic. However this paragraph alone is freaky. Why would anyone want bad will for others? Why the jealousy? If one is doing well for themselves, shouldn’t others be proud of it? Instances and people who believe in doing this stuff really bother me!

Now if someone told you that a person has done black magic on you, do you just take it with a grain of salt and move on or do you actually act upon it? I’ve just spoken to a peer who thinks has given us some remedies and let’s see if this works…

But if you were in my shoes, What would you do?

RSVP Ettiquette

When a person invites you and asks you to R.S.V.P, what do you do? Like Normal people, you tell the host(ess) that either you can make it or you can't in a timely fashion. But recently, I have been noticing a new trend of RSVP'ing...

When You Don't RSVP at all:
(1) Show up anyway
(2) Don't bother about the invite or the host(ess) and disregard the act of making a courtesy call to let the host(ess) know what your plans are
(3) Don't RSVP but tell others that you are going and not the host(ess).
(4) Check the Evite everyday for updates and still not respond...Note to lurkers: we can see you checking the evite...it shows up when u "last viewed" it
(5) Disregard Multiple invites completely and when one does not invite you for one party, have the audacity to charge host(ess) for not inviting you.

When You Do RSVP:
(1) you say yes, and you don't show up last minute(i.e. day of or 2 hrs before party) because you just remembered that you had a million other things to do
(2) you say no, and show up, and you are the one with the dietary restrictions (i.e. allergies or just plain difficult)
(3) make a fuss with maybes

Now I will admit that I have committed crime #3 of when you do R.S.V.P. and have been a victim of all the above. My rule is I always rsvp immediately! Whether if I can make it or not, I make it a point to tell my host(ess) whether if I will be able to make it or not, not only because I know how it feels to not know how many people to cook for but plainly because it's just rude, rude, rude!!!!
When I'm not sure whether if I can make it or not, I ALWAYS call the day before of the party or for any other reasons warn my host(ess) that I will be running late. Now I'm the type of person who likes to plan ahead of time. So to me it's not rocket science to look into my mini-planner (aka Google Calendar) and figure out if I am free or not. I usually know the 3 days in advance if I would be able to attend or not because I plan everything...it just makes life much easier. Neurotic? OCD? Maybe but at least I don’t seem or am inconsiderate of others feelings. For those who commit the crimes of RSVP-ing listed above, I highly suggest you correct your ways because it’s really annoying and creates added tension that is not necessary. It doesn’t take long to say, “Hey I don’t think I can make it” or “yes I’m in what should I bring?”

Note to Readers: This blog has been inspired from an article I was reading and well the irresponsibility of my guests who have been invited to a recent bash. Please don't get offended if any of you do this...I'm only sharing my frustrations as a hostess that loves all her company!

Funny Pictures

In an attempt to bring back some of my posts from my original blog, here is one....(I figured i'll bring the easy ones back first.)

I swear, I didn't get him to do this....

Not my high school but what fond memories!

Comments that were posted on this:

Nowal: Oh Dear God!!!!
Anonymous: Lord!!! Haha!

Grey's Anatomy Does Not Represent THE COMMON E.R.!

At least, that's what most doctors, residents, interns and nurses say...Yeah well I love the show because I can now refer to a doctor as McDreamy or McSteamy and honestly, I don't even remotely feel mcguilty for it. Those of you who haven't figured out the "Mc" stuff, well it either means that you are a. oblivious to the world or b. McSlow...Mc comes from McDonalds and their advertising campaigns. Ok never mind...Back to the show... Come on...which female in their right mind wouldn't want a guy like Patrick Dempsey or Eric Dane to be their "boss" or doctor! There is more eye candy in that one show than any show on TV, period! Even for guys....Who wouldn't want her as their intern? Ok, I should be less shallow and admit that doctors or medical professionals, if you will, need to be more than just looks. They actually need to know "their shit"... (Couldn't think of a better way to say it.)

So the other day, I had to go to the E.R., yes again...Now I know you're wondering as to why do I end up in the ER so often...Honestly, if only I knew, life would be so much easier... A little background as to why I had to go in this time around... I was just being my clumsy self and managed to sprain my mid-foot area. Well to be exact...In the morning, I was rushing to go to a birthday lunch party for a 1 yr old, and naturally I was running late... I ran to get my hair dryer (of course with wet feet) and slipped on the rug...flat on my behind. Honestly, it didn't hurt then, so I just pretended like nothing happened, got ready, wore my 4 inch heels and was off to celebrate. I come with a slight pinch on my mid foot area but still thought I was WonderWoman and was off to watch Daniel Craig in Casino Royale... I think it was when I saw Daniel's Belly in the nude scene that just triggered the foot. I was in pain but managed to not scream. I came back home (after the movie of course) with a slight swollen foot. 5 mins later I could not move at all and was in excruciating pain. I've now been waiting at the ER for 2 hrs in pain with my cousin and father filling out a ridiculous amount of registration forms and of course the x-ray reports. I finally meet my doctor...HELLO DOCTOR!!!! Yes he was cute and yes he was young.... But as much as I and my cousin would have liked to flirt with him, I was more concerned of getting rid of this pain.... He on the other hand was busy looking down my cleavage than my foot or the x-ray reports. Now what does that say? Granted I probably shouldn't have worn such a low-cut t-shirt but when you're in pain, does all that matter really? So basically what's the point of this thread? Well the point is that regardless if we are medical professionals or not, we are still human and we act upon our human instincts regardless of where we are. I as a patient will still check out my doctors; Doctors are still going to look down cleavages, regardless if they have seen numerous naked bodies; People can still be attracted to their co-workers and make it a point to act on it than just sit and think WHAT IF? It's human nature....So those of you medical professionals who think that Grey's Anatomy is wrong....Look around, I’m pretty sure that if you haven't been dating your colleague, I'm sure you've been thinking someone around you is HOT! This so-called life is Normal...and if you think I'm wrong...then who are you kidding?

To My Fellow Abu Dhabians

Don't deny it....It's all soo true....Especially the ones I've written in bold.


You know you're from Abu-Dhabi when...

1) You won't accept riding in less than a BMW. MERCEDES OR RANGE ROVER. And when you do ride in a HASHKALL taxi you're wearing your sunglasses and you're going to the beach.

2)Dinner time is at 11pm and lunch is at 5pm

3)When you step foot inside the mall and/or a club and happen to know everyone... and if not then you know someone who knows someone who knows you.

4) Your parents get mad when your friends call the house phone.

5) When you expect good service, living in the lap of luxury and spas to be your daily routine.

6) You refer to your phone as a MOBILE not a CELL and have at least 3 or 4 of the latest ones.

7) You change your mobile every year because it becomes outdated.

8) You walk in the mall (for a woman) and get picked up like this: 55763837

9) You walk into a club and just STARE at everyone STARING at you. It's you looking at them looking at you looking at someone else.

10) Your idea of a night out is going to Dubai, staying at a hotel and eating at Chocho's or Trader Vics.

11) You refer to losers as hashkalls. (And that's not even the real correct term for it loll!!).

12) You expect the confirmation of everything to end with Inshallah.

13) You get hit on at least five times a day. (For women)

14) You NEVER get hit on unless its a Russian prostitute (For men)

15) The mall is considered a hangout. Cafe's are a daily routine.

16) You don't have proper street addresses. You refer to your house as the one near KFC opposite Dana Plaza.

17) You drive at least 100km on the main streets and highways and think its normal.

18) You think everyone's last name begins with Al.

19) Your idea of housework is leaving a list for the houseboy or maid.

20) You think a picnic is pulling over to the side of SPECIAL and having shisha with chai.

21) You think WASTA (connections) outdates any kind of education.

22) You wear a jacket inside and take it off outside.

23) You can judge a perfect 10 by her eyes.

24) You understand that wadi bashing is not a criminal act.

25) It's considered normal that your parents and their friends parents work for oil industries and get a severance package of 100k per year.

26) You think Bebsi is better than Coke

27) Paying 10dhs in a hashkall taxi is BULLSHIT! And you argue until you end up paying 5 only.

28) You U turn when it pleases you.

29) Having a gathering means inviting more than 30 people and then paying for all of them.

30) You think hanging out at Abu Dhabi mall is cooler than hanging out at Hamdan center.

Iranian-American Student Abused By UCLA UCPD With Tazer GUN

THIS IS A TOTAL OUTRAGE.....PLEASE READ DOWN BELOW



"An Iranian-American, Mostafa Tabatabainejad, UCLA student was shot by UCLA'S UCPD November 14th 2006, because he could not show his Student ID. He was shot 5 times with a taser gun. Police threatened to shoot students who got too close. The Student yelled out that he had a medical condition, but the cops kept shooting. Don't let the UCPD get away with attempted murder!"

WATCH THIS:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3GstYOIc0I

UCPD officers shot a student several times with a Taser inside the Powell Library CLICC computer lab late Tuesday night before taking him into custody.

No university police officers were available to comment further about the incident as of 3 a.m. Wednesday, and no Community Service Officers who were on duty at the time could be reached.

At around 11:30 p.m., CSOs asked a male student using a computer in the back of the room to leave when he was unable to produce a BruinCard during a random check. The student did not exit the building immediately.

The CSOs left, returning minutes later, and police officers arrived to escort the student out. By this time the student had begun to walk toward the door with his backpack when an officer approached him and grabbed his arm, at which point the student told the officer to let him go. A second officer then approached the student as well.

The student began to yell "get off me," repeating himself several times.

It was at this point that the officers shot the student with a Taser for the first time, causing him to fall to the floor and cry out in pain. The student also told the officers he had a medical condition.

UCPD officers confirmed that the man involved in the incident was a student, but did not give a name or any additional information about his identity.

Video shot from a student's camera phone captured the student yelling, "Here's your Patriot Act, here's your ****ing abuse of power," while he struggled with the officers.

As the student was screaming, UCPD officers repeatedly told him to stand up and said "stop fighting us." The student did not stand up as the officers requested and they shot him with the Taser at least once more.

"It was the most disgusting and vile act I had ever seen in my life," said David Remesnitsky, a 2006 UCLA alumnus who witnessed the incident.

As the student and the officers were struggling, bystanders repeatedly asked the police officers to stop, and at one point officers told the gathered crowd to stand back and threatened to use a Taser on anyone who got too close.

Laila Gordy, a fourth-year economics student who was present in the library during the incident, said police officers threatened to shoot her with a Taser when she asked an officer for his name and his badge number.

Gordy was visibly upset by the incident and said other students were also disturbed.

"It's a shock that something like this can happen at UCLA," she said. "It was unnecessary what they did."

Immediately after the incident, several students began to contact local news outlets, informing them of the incident, and Remesnitsky wrote an e-mail to Interim Chancellor Norman Abrams.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3GstYOIc0I


-UPDATE-
UCLA's released something:
http://www.ucpd.ucla.edu/ucpd/zippdf/2006/Taser%2011-15-06.pdf
http://dailybruin.com/news/articles.asp?id=38958

Check it out. It's not even correct, as we can see from the YouTube video, Mostafa Tabatabainejad did not "encourage library patrons to join his resistance".
We really need to take action. He's going to court, so those present at the incident can testify against the UCPD and portray what really happened at the scene of the crime.


Contact the UCLA Police Department and express your disapproval of how the situation was immorally handled:
http://www.ucpd.ucla.edu/

Contact UCLA Acting Chancellor Norman Abrams About Incident at Powell Library:

Dr. Norman Abrams (Interim Chancellor) - chancellor@conet.ucla.edu
Dr. Daniel Neuman (Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost) - evc@conet.ucla.edu
Dr. Maryann Jacobi Gray (Assistant Provost) - mgray@conet.ucla.edu
Dr. Robert J. Naples (Assistant Vice Chancellor and Dean of Students) - dean@saonet.ucla.edu

PS. Don't be rash and it would help if the curses sent were on the low-key.

Circulate this video to the masses.
So that we may hold those responsible accountable for their actions.

For more information:
http://www.nbc4.tv/news/10325914/detail.html
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=local&id=4763689
http://newsroom.ucla.edu/page.asp?RelNum=7513

SIGN THE PETITION:
http://www.petitiononline.com/uclaucpd/petition.html

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Before I go ahead and give a full review of this movie, I have to say to all my readers that this is a movie that one should not miss. It is one of the funniest movies that has hit the silver screen in a very long time and I can't seem to even think of one movie that could come close for comparison.

So what's all this hype about?

A little about the movie....

Borat Sagdiyev is a Kazakhstani TV personality who travels to America to make a documentary record of his exploration of the American culture. He is accompanied by his producer, Azamat. Once in New York City, Borat navigates the hurdles of settling into his hotel room then discovers Baywatch on late-night TV. He is immediately enamored by Pamela Anderson and decides to take a road trip to California to meet her. This journey takes him to various cities and then finally out to Los Angeles. Along the way, he meets characters who are stranger than he is, adopts a pet bear, and gets into a nude wrestling match with his colleague.

What I loved about Borat....

1. Sacha's ability to use a novel way of discussing every hot and taboo topic in America. His use of over the top Sarcastic Humor for political incorrectness was soo shocking that one can't help but laugh.

2. The infamous Fight between him and his colleague, Azamat. This fight alone is worth the 10 bucks in the theater. Not only was the entire theater audience rolling all over the floor laughing, it is a scene beyond belief. You keep on wondering how did these 2 fellows even go through with it in a straight face? (This video is available on Youtube.com if you're curious and haven't seen the movie.)

3. He showed how ignorant majority of the people in America are about everything out there in the world... It shows that most people living in the states like to live in their own bubble and would prefer to not know about anything else beyond their immediate vicinity. I think a movie like this will finally open eyes to most Americans that it is time to stop being so ignorant and actually take charge and stand up for what is right. Instead of being yet another couch potato.

There were definitely unforgettable moments in this movie, and honestly, I would like all of you to watch it first and then possibly discuss it after.

As Roger and Ebert used to say, "IT'S TWO THUMBS UP WAYY UP!!!"


Enjoy the first 4 minutes of the movie.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-qO8Oywpas

Let's Play The Love Game

Many say that love is overrated. A majority of the rest say love is profound and only those who are lucky get to experience it at least once if not only once. Don’t worry I haven’t forgotten about those who have no clue about love. But the main question remains unanswered, WHAT IS LOVE? Is there a specific definition of this word or is it just as obscure a concept as the moment a person will die? Robert Frost once said, “Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.” Ever since I heard this quote, which was roughly in freshman year of college, I thought it was possibly the most accurate, but never questioned it... Love is a desire, we all want love, to be in love and when asked a person about love, they don’t know how to describe what love is? So far the only answer I’ve gotten was love is love. BUT WHAT IS LOVE? Should we be desiring something we are unsure of….

Let’s see what Wikipedia has to say about it…

Love is a profound feeling of tender affection for or intense attraction to another. People in love are often considered to have "good" interpersonal chemistry. Love is described as a deep, ineffable feeling shared in passionate or intimate interpersonal relationships. In different contexts, however, the word love has a variety of related but distinct meanings: in addition to romantic love, which is characterized by a mix of emotional and sexual desire, other forms include platonic love, religious love, familial love, and the more casual application of the term to anyone or anything that one considers strongly pleasurable, enjoyable, or desirable, including activities and foods. This diverse range of meanings in a single word is commonly contrasted with the plurality of Greek words for Love, reflecting the word's versatility and complexity.

Does this make sense? Ok, so what do we do when “Love” gets complicated? Let’s take the following situation as an example. If we were in these people’s shoes, what would we do? I’ll ask the questions after…

This story involves a girl and 2 boys. Yes, a love triangle if you will. To make it less confusing I’ll give some names. The girl’s name is Mary and the two boys’ names are Adam and Steve.

Mary and Adam meet and instantly become good friends. Slowly Adam becomes attracted to Mary and Mary notices the shift in Adam’s behavior. Mary is not romantically interested in Adam and is dating David. Adam tells Mary that he is interested and wants to date Mary. Mary believes she’s in love with David and therefore breaks friendship with Adam and stops talking to him. A year later, Mary and David mutually breakup and agree that they are in different mindsets. Months after the breakup, Mary and Adam meet again and decide to restart the friendship. Adam introduces Mary to his friends, which includes Steve. Mary is instantly attracted to Steve and it seems that Steve shows equal interest in her but gives mixed signals. This confuses Mary. When Mary was being introduced to Adam’s friend, she sensed that Adam probably still likes her, so she herself decided to be a little reserved towards Steve. So what should happen now?

Current Situation: Adam still likes Mary. Mary Likes Steve. Steve really likes Mary but is the best of friends with Adam and knows how Mary broke Adam’s heart.

Should Steve confront Adam about him liking Mary?

How does Mary approach Adam about Steve?

Should Mary and Steve continue talking and flirting in front of Adam?

What would you if you were in either one of these characters’ shoes?

Just so that people are aware, this story or situation has nothing to do with me. It's just another hindi movie in the making and a past Friends' episode. I just thought it would be a great discussion idea. Nonetheless, I was reading my "Love Horoscope for the day" and it was interesting to me that this is what it said.

Dear Dazzlingsitar,

Here is your single's love horoscope for Tuesday, November 14:

Someone wants to know what they have to do to get with you. The truth is they'd have to be another person entirely -- they're just not the one for you. Be gentle yet firm when you tell them this isn't it.

Stuffed Vegetables with Rice and Sour Cherries

From time to time, I've decided that I'm going to share some recipes that I've tried and tasted and have ABSOLUTELY LOVED. Here is one.....

This is a Base Recipe – Alter measurements when cooking for more or less.

Ingredients:

4 Large Beef Steak tomatoes

4 Large Peppers

2 tbsp butter ghee or clarified butter

2 garlic cloves, chopped

2 onions, chopped

8oz minced lamb

2 cinnamon sticks

2oz dried cherries or cranberries

.5 cup of bulgur

3 cups of lamb or chicken stock

.5 cup rice

.5 tsp salt

2 tsp dried mint or 2 tbsp of fresh mint

1 tsp of turmeric powder

1 tsp of cumin

1 tsp of cracked black pepper

1 tsp soumak (optional)

Preparation:

1. Roast tomatoes and peppers for 10 mins at 400 F- empty insides of vegetables
2. Sautee Garlic, onions, lamb, cinnamon, turmeric, cumin, black pepper and soumak on high for 5 to 6 mins
3. Add the tomato pulp from tomatoes that are roasting, dried fruit, rice, bulgur, 2.5 cups of stock. Season with salt.
4. Return to boil and cover
5. Simmer for 10 mins.
6. Cover dish with foil and bake again 350F for 40-45 mins until the rice is plump and liquid has absorbed
7. Stuff veggies with rice
8. Garnish with labne (middle eastern yogurt) and mint

P.S- This picture is a similar picture of what it should look like...couldn't be bothered to scan from the book.

BhaloBasha

Musings on Love in Bangla Literature

Love is both universal and local. Just like Language, Love exists in all human societies yet varies in its shapes and forms. Love inhabits a central place in the Bengali imagination.

The Network of Young Bangladeshi American Professionals (NYBAP) is pleased to invite you to an evening of selected readings from Bangla literature celebrating Love.

The event will showcase poetry by Rabindranath Tagore, Kazi Nazrul Islam and Sunil Gangopadhyay as well as excerpts of novels by Manik Bondhopaddhay, Humayun Ahmed and Ahmad Mostafa Kamal.

Refreshments to follow the readings.

Tickets: $10

Space is limited; please RSVP at www.nybap.org

Thursday, November 30th
6:30pm - 8:30pm

TamarindArt
142 East 39th St (btwn Lex & 3rd Aves)
New York, NY 10016
Phone: 212.990.9000
web: http://www.tamarindart.com
Directions: 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / S @ Grand Central - 42nd Street

If you have questions, please contact:

The Events Committee
Network of Young Bangladeshi American Professionals
web: http://www.nybap.org | email: events@nybap.org | phone: 718.514.2124

Connect. Inspire. Succeed.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

About NYBAP

The Network of Young Bangladeshi American Professionals (NYBAP) is a new organization targeted at young professionals in the beginning and middle stages of their careers. NYBAP's founders saw the need for a network uniting young professionals from all walks of life to exchange professional experience and foster career development. Currently, NYBAP members represent a wide variety of industries including Finance, Law, Marketing, Consulting and Medicine.

Ummm....Doc, Do You Realize I'm STILL SICK?

So it's been a week from the first time I felt all the symptoms and I still don't know what I have. I've already been to the doctors 3 times already, done numerous tests. Everything seems to come out negative and normal. However, I still have a fever, the upper abdominal pains and occasional ribcage aches. The only good thing is that I'm not vomiting anymore. Vivid details...I know and I'm sorry...But I just cant help it. I guess it's just my frustration coming out. I've been recommended to see a gastro who initially gave me an appointment 3 weeks from today. But the fact that I've threatened the receptionist to murder if this pain does not subside or be gotten rid of asap, I've managed to get the appointment TOMORROW! Yayy! So lets see how it goes...Hopefully I will have some answers soon....

Ummah Films!

Have you peeps since this Muslim brotha's videos? Hilarious is an understatement of what his videos are like. He's all over You Tube right now. should check him out. Apparently he has 10 episodes out there. I've only seen 2 and that's only because I haven't clicked on the others yet. Check him out...

Clip #1

Tips to Finding your spouse online: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgRFVDc7z48

Distractions during Salaat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTwh6p1kyRQ
(In this video, watch out for the "head-to-butt collision"

http://maps.google.com

Man is this site soo f-ing awesome! I typed in my address, clicked on hybrid/Satellite and i can actually see my house. ofcourse they were pointing at the wrong direction but i can see my house! and my car in the driveway. it is sooo coool!!!

ok i knew of it earlier but its really fun finding these things while drugged!

Doctor, Doctor, Where is my diagnosis?

Thursday morning, I woke up to feeling emptiness in my stomach as if I was hungry for a couple of weeks, sore throat and weak. Initially I thought it was a light fever and just by eating something it would be okay. The day continued like any other day and all of a sudden my stomach area was cringing up. Flashback to when I was 8 yrs old: On my way back to Dhaka from Rangpur, I felt the same pain. Couldn’t move from the bed and was in seriously excruciating pain, so much so, it could have been equivalent to labor pains. But this time it wasn't as excruciating. However, for some reason, it reminded me of that time. I didn't think much of it afterwards and had a glass of milk...The pain was gone.

The night came along, it was 3:30am, I woke up to tasting bitterness in my mouth and moments later I'm vomiting the world out; this continues to 6 in the morning. Finally, I do the home remedy my grandmother taught me...putting a cold and wet towel over stomach which gives instant relief. It did and I finally slept... I wake up to see my mother looking very concerned. I now have rashes all over my new tomato-red face and my dark brown eye-color has turned grayish...Freaky? You have no idea.

My mom thinks it’s ER worthy...I think she's overreacting...little to say, I myself was freaking out. She finally convinces me that I need to at least see a doctor...Fine 3:45pm on Friday was my appointment. Of course the doctor didn't see me until it was 4:30 or maybe it was 4:45..cant remember...she comes in, asks me a few questions and then tells me, "I think its a stomach virus...but to be honest...I'm not really sure...I need to do some blood work and I want you to come back on Monday so I can see the results and tell u what it is." Of course, my naive self is asking for medications...You know how it is, you go to a doctor when sick, u get yourself checked out and then sent home with prescriptions for cure. Whereas, I went to the doctor, came out not knowing what I have, and with no prescriptions for cure...What do I do? She then tells me that if I felt any worse, I should check myself into the ER. OK...If that was the case...why did I waste my time here? I could have just gone straight to the ER, HEARD my mother, who manages to ALWAYS BE RIGHT......

So it’s Saturday night, bored out of my mind, blogging about my health and feeling worse because I can’t laugh, cough or move much because it hurts the ribcage. What to do? Do I just stop being a baby and admit myself to the ER or just wait till MONDAY? Qu'est ce que je dois faire?

Mr. President, Can you memorize a sentence?

Earlier today, I was watching the Presidential Speech on Iraq and was amazed and well slightly embarrassed to see him be the president of this so-called Land of the Free. What really amazed me was that he couldn't really say one word forget a sentence without looking at his cheat sheet. Not a SINGLE WORD!!!! All this while, I never really paid attention at the way he conducted his speech because honestly, I really didn't care for him and just listening to him was sheer entertainment. But this was far superior! One thing that really alarmed me was the way he smirked every single time he mentioned the following words..."Terrorists", and "dead Iraqis". Seriously, is this some freakin' joke that I'm unaware of? Since when did they make u the messiah of good deeds? And what was worse was that during Q&A he couldn't answer a single question with anything concrete. Is this the type of President that Americans should be proud of? I mean what really good has he done? How is his administration any different from lets say a terrorist group? You're going to a country where first of all you're not welcome and then you're trying to take over and say you're helping them by doing what...killing more of not only Iraqis but also your own civilians. This is not a game where you're out to win? Win What? I would say its more like taking control of Iraqi oil more like it so you can also get a piece of that money that most Arabs flaunt. oh well...I guess we have to wait 2 more years to see what else is going to happen to this country...

Im Back!

Hi Guys and Gals!

Sorry for keeping away from you for such a long time. Besides the fact that I've been travelling the past few months, I come home to find that Blogger has successfully erased my blog. I've numerously emailed them to bring my blog back more so for your intelligent remarks and accolades rather than what I wrote in itself.

I guess this is one of those instances when your professor keeps on telling u to SAVE YOUR WORK and you just keep on going because u think the world wont collapse on you and once it does...your out to screw the world! Ok maybe my case isn't soo severe but even then...I WANT MY BLOG BACK!

Needless to say, a couple of days ago I came into terms with the fact that i wont get it back and that it was time for me to start a fresh. So I surfed the web to find my old blog template and guess what...THAT WAS GONE TOO!!!! WHAT THE HELL? Is this a conspiracy out to get me!?! I refuse to be like everyone else and just stick with this black background. No offense to others...Really!!

So until I find THE TEMPLATE for my blog, hope you enjoy my return and i will try to recover as much as i can.

With lots of love
Me

The Dazzlingsitar!