The Wander Island

The Wander Island or Jazire-ye Sargardani is a fiction by Dr. Simin Daneshvar. Yes, the book is in Farsi/Persian, I know. I don’t know who reads this blog.

I finished this book very rapidly because I just liked the story very much. Granted it did not end the way I wanted it to, rather the ending was in such opposition to my ideals that it left a really bitter taste in my mouth. However, up until the last 20 pages I was very much drawn into this story. The storyline used a lot of real events with a lot of real influences and names in it, which made the story all the more believable and relatable. Granted not everyone my age, even Iranians born in Iran, knows about these names and events. Thanks to a previous paper and research I was familiar with them and things made sense.

The writing was fluid and easy to read as well. There were some old words and phrases and slangs that I did not get, but aside from that, it was quite a modern script. This book was written not so long ago, however, I as shocked by the editing. The way lines and paragraphs were edited, confused me at times.

Overall I liked this book very much. This was the first book of the infamous Daneshvar that I read, and not I am going to read more of her works. I recommend it to whoever understands Farsi

Mountains Beyond Mountains

Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder is the life story of Dr. Paul Farmer. This book was the “common book” of UW my freshman year. I picked it up, read the first chapter–as it was not very intriguing–I never picked it up again until 3 weeks ago.

Now that I have read it, I can see that it means more to me now than it would have two years ago. I have to admit life of Paul Farmer is quite…something…something so unbelievable that I would not have believed it, if it was not for the search I did on him. Still I have to say that I did not like the writing very much. I understand that this work is a non-fiction, but Farmer’s life has more events than any ordinary fiction can offer. Thus, the displacement of climaxes and the boring manner in which chapters were devised ruined a good story in my opinion! Furthermore, Kidder insists on the continual use of the Creole terms–even those that have English equivalent–which he only translates once 100 pages before the next use! (and he does not provide a glossary!) At least that is my beef with the writing!

On a personal level, I do not know if I can ever be like Farmer. There are many goals that I have that I “think” I need to achieve, and helping the poor is only one of them. I do not know if I am ready to devote my life completely, and I mean completely to that cause! Then again Farmer went through a similar phase, and also he does not, ever, advise anyone to do things the way he has (he knows how insane he is!). So we will see. First, I need to actually be a doctor, or do I?!

At the end, what do I recommend? Read it, maybe with another book on the side.

Monsoon!

This part of Arizona does not get much rain throughout the year (under an inch for the most part) and the weather is scorchingly dry! However, from about mid June to late July the monsoon season starts and it lasts through August, causing flash floods.

The rain drops are so very big around here, that when they hit your bare skin, they almost hurt!!! Rain has another unique feature around here: Often when you look ahead, say when you are driving, you can see a cylinder or a giant hour glass, which is the only area that rain is pouring, and it is pouring really hard! It is crazy. It is as if cut open a hole in the clouds and gallons of water are being dumped.

Last but not least, the thunderstorms at nights during this season are just magnificent. They are the best kind of fireworks anyone can ask for.

Mt. Lemmon

Yesterday I went to Mt. Lemmon for the first time. I was completely awestruck by the beauty of this place. A popular natural site for the people in Tucson, it is also a very tough biking route for the triathletes and the avid riders around here–L. Armstrong used to do hill-training here. Mt. Lemmon is in the Santa Catalina mountains located in the Coronado National Forest. It is 9,157 feet above sea-level, and receives approximately 180 inches of snow annually. It was named in honor of botanist Sarah Lemmon, who trekked to the top of the mountain with Native American guides by mule and foot in 1881.

Up at elevation 2000 you can get the best panoramic of Tucson. But do not stop, because it just gets better! You can see the vegetation change every feet you go higher. You start with saguaros at the base of the mountain and at 8000 you end up with pine and fir! At about this elevation you get to a small town called Summerhaven, which includes many cabins, some occupied only part of the year. There are also quite bit of bed and breakfast places up there. This place is near Ski Valley which is the southernmost ski destination in the continental United States.

At the base the temperature was 100-105. At 8000, the temperature was around 70 with a very nice and cool breeze. On the way back down, it started pouring, and then hailing so very hard. The temperature instantly dropped to 59! It was frightful how hard it was raining and hailing.

The trip was quite amazing. The scenery was gorgeous. And the clouds, the clouds just fantastic–nothing like the gray depressing clouds of Seattle! The combination of cumulus clouds, great lighting by the sun, and a gorgeous sky blue background made for an invigorating scenery.

P.S. Pink Floyd is THE appropriate music for these kind of trips!