Baha'is in Egypt fight for recognition as people - washingtonpost.com

Baha'is in Egypt fight for recognition as people - washingtonpost.com

Had I written this story, I would have gone with the same lede. Ask my friend Vafa, I said so yesterday before I read it!

Mapping our tracks and treks

This map, courtesy of Michelin Tires and besides being great decor, helps keep count of the number of countries my flatmates and I have visited.


Current tally:
Ginous 10
Corinne 9
Katherine 8


Central America gets credit for boosting me into the lead.
Kathy has a strong showing in Europe.







And Corinne's travels to China and Singapore let us represent the Far East.

Ladies' Night

For a photo essay on the great time we had at ladies' night yesterday, go to my flickr site. I think the photos uploaded backwards, and since the chronological order is important for many of them, try to go in reverse!

Yes, the fondue tasted as good as it looked :) and yes, we were that cliche to paint our nails!

My Huqúqu’lláh study class

This photo was taken after our most recent class on Huqúqu’lláh, "the Right of God", with Dr. Allan Waters. Much like the law of Huqúq itself, rather than talking about money, we center the discussions more on love, our attitude and a world in which the extremes of poverty and wealth will be eliminated.

I never thought about it before, but Huqúqu’lláh actually IS the spiritual solution to economic problems that we always talk about! It's not just an idea that sounds nice!!

Speaking of incredible cakes

Neda made this unbelievable football cake

for her Super Bowl party.

How are she and I related?

I made a birthday cake for my friend Maryam last night--a normal, square cake-- and I couldn't even keep that from losing it's shape?!

or keep the frosting from peeling off the lop layer of the cake as I spread it on!?

My friends appreciate the effort,

but they have yet to find out they got the wrong sister :)

Neda's version of the cake

Just so I don't shame my sister and her tres leches recipe, this is what the cake looks like when a professional makes it. Neda building my birthday cake in November:)
Ruha guarding my birthday cake.

Birthday cake for Ruha (and Vafa)

On Friday, 2 Feb., I made my sister Neda's recipe for a tres leches cake for my youngest sister Ruha (happy 18th birthday, my little groundhog!), which most people thought was strange seeing as how she's not here in Haifa. So, since it was my friend and coworker Vafa Akhtar-Khavari's birthday the next day, we celebrated him with the cake, and he blew out the candle on behalf of both of them:)

Dinner was hosted by another friend and coworker Vivian Argueta and her flatmate Melody. Vivian cooked food from Paraguay and Melody made my favorite Persian dish, fessenjoon, but the sabor latina won the flavor contest for the night with the tres leches finale!!
Latinos were out in full force that night. My flatmate Katherine, left, is from Chile and Ana, right, is Mexican. Lucas was my brother from another mother! Another half-Persian born in a Latin American country:) If anyone is keeping count, we had three full Persians, four halvsies, three pura latinas and two white boys!

Katherine plays guitar and sings just like Shakira. It's uncanny. Zoha, left, sings beautifully, too, and they serenaded us. Kent (see previous post) also entertained us with Red Grammar songs, Live, Damien Rice, and others.