The Chronicles of Narineh

Today is Veteran's Day. It is also my grandfather, Ashot Papa's birthday. It would have been his 94th. He passed away this June. He had a long, and except maybe for the last year or so, a very good life. He told great stories and he was a kid at heart. He would seldom miss an opportunity to make a joke. I miss him. It's been a sad summer - too many deaths. Ashot Papa died, two of my college roommates lost their fathers. My great-aunt's brother passed away. My friend's brother died unexpectedly at age 34. Each death was another reminder to not take any one for granted and to milk every moment of every day. So here's to that. On the day we celebrate our Veterans, and I celebrate my grandfather, let's also celebrate life remember to make the most of it.

Goodbye Metsmam. thank you for being a cool grandma when I was little. you let me stay up late when i'd come spend the night at your place on Fridays. i didn't like going over to your place after pre-school because I preferred to drink my juice with my lunch, and for some reason your policy was that we would get our beverage at the end of the meal. i actually complained to mom and dad about this. of course, over the years I've come to prefer drinking after my meal, or at least towards the end. i remember how happy you were when you found out I'd started my period. It was like a big deal for you. i was mortified that you knew. i didn't understand why you were happy. i'm sorry i didn't give you any great-grandchildren. One of the last times you were hospitalized you asked me 'when are you going to have a baby?' I'm sorry. i hope you knew I love you. I know I wasn't the best at showing it.

Tie #4 Originally uploaded by The Chronicles of Narineh Every year my Mom, aunt and cousins and I get together to color eggs. In addition to the usual store-bought coloring kits, we use silk. We mostly use old silk ties. Husbands and fathers donate the ones that they don't want anymore, and we also find some at thrift stores. One year, I donated a silk skirt of mine that I'd worn so much it was falling apart. It was made of dozens of silk rectangles. All with different patterns. Some of the skirt pieces were still around for this year and I have a great specimen of one of them in my flickr set. We tightly wrap an uncooked egg in a piece of silk, sewing the ends & edges closed. Then we steam cook them by the dozens in big pots. The pattern transfers to the egg, and voila, the coolest looking eggs ever! This one is my favorite from this year. I don't know who's tie it is from, but it looks like a Miro or Picasso to me. The white finger-like patterns on the bottom of

Downtown LA with Griffith Observatory Originally uploaded by The Chronicles of Narineh There's a peak on Mt. Lee that a single tree sticks out from. This tree is visible from the street. From my apartment. From many places in Burbank. I have had my eye on this tree for a long time. I wanted to hike up and picnic under this tree. So when I found out that there was a trail on Mt. Lee, I was esctatic. I was certain it would lead me to this tree because the descriptions of the trail all said it goes all the way to the top. I decided that my birthday would be the perfect day for this hike. We got a late start, so I didn't pack a picnic, just some snacks and lots of water and we were off! The name of the trail is the Hollyridge Trail. I learned about it from a book called Day HIkes Around Los Angeles . It was a beautiful day for a hike, we had a break in the rain and the air was crisp and the skies were clear, so we had gorgeous views of the city, all the way to the ocean, and of th

Please enjoy a photo of our President's home state of Hawaii and reflect on the wonder that is today. This photo was taken on August 28, 2008 on Kauai, Hawaii. The sun was setting as we walked along Ha'ena Beach towards Ke'e Beach on Kauai's North shore.