Sleepless in Istanbul

The call to Farj (pre-dawn) prayers just finished. Oddly, it's become one of my favourite moments in Istanbul, as I sit here in the dark typing away on my laptop and listening to the serene verses from the Qur'an that I don't understand. I'm sleepless in Istanbul again, and I've come to realize that this whole sleeplessness thing happens to me quite often. Conventional wisdom would attribute it to jetlag, but I think there's something more deeply rooted than that. There's so much clarity in these moments when I'm sitting and organizing my thoughts, either on couch here or on a beach in Malaysia. There's a sense of comfort and serenity that can't be explained. There's a lot I'm battling in my mind these days...surgery, relationships, and to some extent, even the upcoming holidays...it's as though too many things are happening at once, and yet, not happening quite soon enough.

I guess it's these sleepless moments that are the actual "getting away from it all" parts of my getaways, and for that reason, I don't really bemoan the loss of sleep or eventual fatigue that will come tomorrow. We spend so much of our time searching for answers, relief, and confirmation that it's hard to really step away -- so I've learned to treasure moments like this where you basically don't need or want anything. It's like an odd vortex of time / space / reality.

Anyway, at this point, I might be thinking too much about it, which would take away from the whole 'clarity' thing I mentioned earlier. I better get back to being sleepless...

Istanbul insights...

The sounds of call to prayer (Farj, or pre-dawn) are echoing outside. There's a calm yet eerie quality to it, especially since it's still dark outside. I'm in Istanbul, and contrary to the title, this post has nothing to do with any insights I've gathered about Istanbul.

It's 6am in Istanbul and I'm jetlagged. I've just spent the last hour surfing the web, where I came up on a blog written by someone I met recently. Given my line of work, my philosophy on the internet has always been, if it's on there, it's free game. But reading through this particular blog felt strange somehow, like I was intruding on someone's privacy. It made me quickly peruse my own and try to imagine how I'd feel if some near-stranger that had just met me read through it.

I decided that I'd be ok with it...I mean, thoughts are thoughts, and in many senses, blogs are a cathartic way to share your thoughts without having to say them out loud, or to anyone in particular. We're so tied to media and information these days that we don't tell *people* things anymore. It's just easier to blog/tweet/facebook everything. The cool thing is that there's a time-stamped permanent record that allows you to go back and relive the good or the bad. The bad thing is that there's a time-stamped permanent record. Maybe it's our generation's way of coping with the slow disintegration of humanity. Or maybe people are just too lazy to pick up the phone and call, or pick up a pen and write. I guess the jury's still out on that.

As for me, I'm sleepless in Istanbul. Apparently that happens to me quite often.

And as for G: if you ever read this, I'm sorry I read your blog without you knowing. It all makes more sense now.

Turkey on Turkey 2008

And so it begins...another Turkey Day outside the US, and this time I'm headed to, well, Turkey. (the country not the fowl) Regina's already on her gloriously direct flight to Istanbul, and I'll be there in, oh, 20 hours or so. Trip's off to a bumpy start: forcibly checked-in carry-on bag, delayed flight to Frankfurt...all in a day's travel, I suppose. Stay tuned to our adventures in our joint travel blog -- http://reginaviv.blogspot.com/

Görüşmek üzere
(That's "See you later" in Turkish)

:)

Fashion does exist in SF

Old friends, hot fashion, and a sexy new store...makes for a perfect opening party for the fabulous new Gucci digs on Union Square. :)

That was *so* 2006

Wow -- so well put, if I do say so myself. ;) Can't believe that was two years ago. Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose, I suppose.

No plane tickets this time...well, not that many anyway. Time to stay put and actually begin life anew.

Congrats to Mendel and Derek

Just got home from Mendel and Derek's wedding in Boston. I have to say it was probably one of the most relaxing and fun weddings I've been to in a long time, even though I was in the wedding party and all. M&D have such an awesome ease with each other, and their wedding reflected their personalities, quirkiness, and general desire to just be chill and have fun. It was also great to catch up with some familiar faces that I haven't seen in a while. Going to the wedding also gave me a little boost of reassurance that love and romance is still alive in this world -- all the best to you both for a life filled with joy and much love.

Photos can now be found here.