Monthly Archives: March 2012

Say Peynir!

From a spot in Gülhane park, there is a clear view of people posing with the Atatürkstatue. A bronze figure on a stone base, he is a prime spot for visitors to pay their respects with a flash. Many people … Continue reading

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Scrawling On…

An author’s fondest dream is to turn the reader into a spectator. -Vladimir Nabokov. Despair.

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Welcome Home

Long blonde ponytailed twentysomething balanced on her wedges and tugged her jacket over her leggings and looked as angry as she was in the excessively hot airplane. She waited for her ride at the airport arrivals curb. The minutes grew … Continue reading

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Why Read?

Nothing better protects a human being against the stupidity of prejudice, racism, religious or political sectarianism, and exclusivist nationalism than this truth that invariably appears in great literature: that men and women of all nations and places are essentially equal. … Continue reading

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En Route

It’s a travel back the the States day, a “get on the bus to the airport at 8:30 am Istanbul time and hope to catch the shuttle home at 9:30 pm Colorado time” day. As one incapable of sleeping on … Continue reading

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Hand-Holding, Skeletons and Snacks

Whenever I remember that I have a skeleton, I get a wave of anxious queasiness. In science classrooms, I would cringe at the bleached construction of what allegedly resided under my skin. It is a place my mind does not … Continue reading

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Underline.

Read sparingly but ardently. That way you’ll look far more knowledgeable than those who read a great deal but enjoy nothing. -Orhan Pamuk. The Black Book. (One might even trade the word “travel” for “read” to discover something lovely.)

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