Out of the Ordinary!

It is that time of the semester again; the time of missing notes, headaches, reading chunks of articles, scattered paper all over, empty toners, sick cats,...

One of my papers is due next week. That is the earliest. I hope to finish it by weekend. Don’t want to have much on my hands on December. But the research goes slowly. I feel like I am trapped in a loop. It is really not my style. I will be miserable until I find a way out of the loop.

I should fix BibiHureyh. I have already made an appointment to get an estimate for the repair of the monitor. Without the appointment it will get them 2 days to just give an estimate. I don't know how long it gets in other computer shops, I expected Apple to be faster.

My recent article for Peyk, Art & Healing; One step into Flutter, an exhibition by Connie Arismendi, is available on pdf (English section, Peyk 124). I haven’t got the copy of the magazine yet. That makes me wonder which side is not doing the job well, the sender or the post office in Austin.

But more important than my ordinary updates, is FRONTLINE report on Neda Agha Soltan’s death in Tehran. A Death in Tehran was aired last night, Nov.17th 2009, on PBS. Please watch it and share it with others. It's worth your time. (Introduction)

Bereket Music Group:

This semester Bereket, the UT Middle Eastern Ensemble, is working on traditional Arabic music. I have been playing with Bereket since spring 2009. This semester I am playing Daff. I originally play Santur. Our director for this program is Roberto Riggio. If you are in Austin join us for a night of Tarab, the ultimate musical joy in Arabic musical tradition. The admission is free. The performance will be this Thursday, Nov.12th at 7:30pm at Bates Recital Hall.

What is going on in Austin?

Art History-wise this is an energetic November:

Today is the first day of the Transnational Latin American Art Conference (the 1st International Research Forum for Graduate Students and Emerging Scholars.) It will be a 3-day conference with concentration of talks and panels on Saturday and Sunday. The papers will cover the trio continental connections in Latin American art (US, Europe, Latin America.)

Domestic-wise there is not so much energy left after too many energy-sucking issues; Zeitoon, my fat ginger cat, having heart problem was the breaking point of them all.

A Priceless Escape!

Escaping from lost dreams, vanishing wishes and hurtful memories, I hid myself in the most comfortable spot I could find in this house.

I am enjoying the warmth of my MacBook in a cold October night and thinking that the poor laptop deserves more care. Last week one of the pals in the Middle Eastern ensemble spilled a cup of hot sweet tea on BibiHuryeh. It functions but there are some casualties; the screen is damaged; there are some problems with saving files and receiving/replying emails. (Unhappy accident!)

This semester I am doing some work on Jean Dubuffet. I was trying to make sense of a couple of his letters (in French) when I came across a strange phrase. I was not quite sure what it meant. But I guessed it must be a satirical sentence; so I checked with my French teacher and I was right. Guessing of this kind is a considerable step in internalizing a new language. Everyday I feel more comfortable with my French. (Satisfying guess!)

Zeitoon is purring at my feet, his sweet face is calm, but his noble ears reacts excitedly to the sound of my fingers on the sticky keyboard. This is the calmest moment of my week. (Priceless!)

La Maison aux deux Chemins, Jean Dubuffet

Letters to Rilke - Number 1

Dear R ,

Did you really know it
or was it a poetic guess?

For me it has never been so clear.

And when it became as apparent as the truth should be,
then...

But before then,

Do you have any idea how apparent the truth should be?

Have you ever felt
its coldness,
its crispiness,
its sharpness,
when it falls on you like rain on an autumn night?


You must have had it right there!

It hit me in the eyes;
my eyes burned.

And I had always assumed it would hurt the heart the most,

But no,
One should never assume about the truth; for it is not assumable.

And I was wrong about the heart,
It is the eyes that the truth hunts!

Letters to Rilke is a new sequence I am working on these days. Each piece have a parallel component from Rilke's Elegies.

Rainer Maria Rilke,
Duino Elegies,
Fragments of the First Elegy:

" But sing, when you must,
of great lovers:
their fame
has a long way to go
before it is really immortal.
...

Think of it:
the hero survives.

Even his ruin
is only another excuse to continue
a final birth.

But nature, exhausted
takes lovers
back into herself
as if she couldn't accomplish
that kind of vitality twice."