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So, we got some snow. Ok, maybe a lot of snow. Navead got a snow day from work and braved rather treacherous roads to come up and play some scrabble, take a nap, and make gingerbread cookies. We tried to play in the snow, but I got stuck in four foot drift and decided I had amassed the appropriate amount of snow in boots to call it a day. Apparently, the rest of the state felt similarly, because by 5pm nearly every big road on this side of Colorado was closed; only seven miles of I-25 remained open in the entire state. Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and an alarming number of holiday travels are stuck in the airport. The governor has actually asked people to stay home. This storm is certainly frustrating a lot of people's plans, but tucked in safe at home I'm really enjoying it. We've got food and hot cocoa, games, movies, and yoga mats for a little morning exercise. Yeah for the Holiday Blizzard!

Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing... I don't remember much of Chris after middle school. We were friends in those awkward years before either of us was particularly certain about where we meant to go with our lives. The Gulf War was over and there was no indication that twelve years later, on an ordinary day when I would go to work, study for class, and kiss my sweetie goodnight, he would die trying to save lives in an ill-advised war. ...where have all the flowers gone, long time ago... I didn't know that he had joined the Navy until I heard he'd been killed; I probably hadn't thought of him in years. But his death has stuck with me. It made the war personal in a way I hadn't felt before. Thousands of Americans and thousands more Iraqis have been killed for a purpose that is still not clear. Are we fighting for justice or vengeance or oil or democracy? Or are we fighting because we just don't know what else to do? Either way, I hate to think o...

A prayer for those who have taken the next step... O my God! O Thou forgiver of sins, bestower of gifts, dispeller of afflictions! Verily, I beseech thee to forgive the sins of such as have abandoned the physical garment and have ascended to the spiritual world. O my Lord! Purify them from trespasses, dispel their sorrows, and change their darkness into light. Cause them to enter the garden of happiness, cleanse them with the most pure water, and grant them to behold Thy splendors on the loftiest mount. -'Abdu'l-Baha

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays because it means good food and spending time with family and friends. You just can't go wrong. And this year was exceptional, even for such an awesome holiday, because my family and Navead's family celebrated together, complete with three year old nephew and two Persian aunts. Even better, it included Abra who came out from Seattle to be with us. It was fantastic! To make it even better, Navead's aunts Fari and Simin cooked a spectacular day-after-thanksgiving meal which included loobya-polow, fezenjan, qormeh-sabzi, ash, kotlet, and fresh pomegranate for dessert. It was spectacular, in spite of some hesitancy regarding the ash ( pronounced "osh" which is the noodley bean soup in the small bowls). And it was fun getting to spend time with his family. Most of his aunts and cousins live in other cities, so they were some of the first extended family members I got to meet. Of course, the week was doubly blesse...

Anybody want to buy a truck?

Navead and I went back to California this weekend for a couple's retreat at Bosch. The theme of the workshop was "Pure Gold Marriage" and it was largely about communication and character development as parts of healthy, functioning relationships. The emphasized idea is that marriage is not just about being in love and maybe having a family, it is about the personal growth. In the Baha'i Faith as well as in other religious traditions, developing virtues or character qualities such as trustworthiness, justice, patience, kindness, generosity, compassion, forgiveness, truthfulness, self-discipline and so on is one of the primary purposes of life. Naturally, marriage is one of the most intense forums for developing such qualities because it is difficult to live so intimately with another person and experience all the ups and downs with them. However, if a couple can manage to practice those character qualities with each other and look first at their own shortcomings, they ...

This is how I feel. Is there ever a break? Thanks Abra for finding these pics .

I went rock climbing (indoor) for the first time this weekend and it rocked. I wish I had a picture. I climbed a 5.8 route all the way to the top and only panicked a little about dangling from a rope three stories off the ground. I can't wait to go again!

My current reading list... Blink by Malcolm Gladwell The Marketing Plan by William Cohen The Complete Idiot's Guide to Marketing by Sarah White Purple Cow by Seth Godin Strategic Marketing for Nonprofit Organizations by Kotler and Andreasen The Brand Mindset by Duane Knapp and The Absorbant Mind by Maria Montessori Anybody want to hazard a guess what I'm doing this semester?

A little back story... Navead proposed in June on a swing set where I had once told him that I would likely marry him in response to a question that was meant to determine whether I would like to try and swing in unison. We walked right up to that same swing set, the night after we had talked about getting married, and I still didn't see it coming. I even stepped on his line in referring to our previous puny conversation, but he managed to ask anyway, and I said yes. In the Baha'i Faith, however, a couple needs to obtain consent from all living parents before they get married. This has proved a stumbling block because his father, noting that we had only been dating seven months at the time, told us that he wanted us to take more time so that he could get to know us and so that we could continue improving our knowledge of each other. I would be lying if I said that I was happy about this response at the time or that abiding by it has been easy, but there was wisdom in it. When I...

It's funny how life can change in a year, and how we change with it. This time last year I was still holding my breath for the Peace Corps and wondering if it would be little more than a two year gap between me and the same question of "now what?"It was this time last year that I really began asking myself where I was going. I was five months out of college, deeply uncertain about the future, and struggling with isolation. But in the midst of it, I began to suspect that I wasn't really waiting for my life to begin, as I had believed, but that I was already living it. A year later I work for the woman who reaffirmed my belief that human beings can rise above their difficulties to become better people. I am working with young children who once made me so uneasy and who now inspire me to really think about the value of every moment. I am a graduate student in a program that is giving me real skills instead of theories. And I am engaged to a man who makes me excited abou...