Summer and Company: April 2008

Thursday, April 24, 2008

I'm happy to say I will soon start writing for the venerable magazine Tarpaulin Sky. Links to follow.

In other news, one of my Foghorn pieces will be published in Monkeybicycle, an excellent comedy magazine that features writing by comedian like Sarah Silverman and David Cross (from TV's "Mr. Show").

Thursday, April 17, 2008

It's Official!

Dev and Summer are moving back to the U.S. permanently on May 23!

We'll be flying into San Francisco, staying a few days to see my family and gather up our things, and then heading down to L.A. to see Mina and James and to move into our new apartment.

We'll update you on our new address soon.

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Congratulations to frequent Foghorn contributor Ritija Gupta! Chicago's Metromix voted her one-act comedy "Engaging" as a top pick this week.

If you live near Chicago, check it out at Gorilla Tango Theater's night of one acts, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Through April 30. $15. Tickets: gorillatango.com

See more here.

Tuesday, April 08, 2008

Summer runs her first 5K run on June 1

I'm excited to say that I've just entered my first 5k race, sponsored by Los Angeles' Temple Beth Hillel and taking place on June 1. Recently I've been working on a 5k training program to improve my speed and endurance, and this will my first chance to test the effects of the program. As a kid, I couldn't run even the required one mile for gym class, so running a 5k in decent time is a big accomplishment for me.

If you are interested in sponsoring me and donating to the Temple Beth Hillel charities, please contact me. Proceeds from the run will go to a package of relief programs, including the Yachad Program for children with special needs, the Moses Program for those with disabilities, the Community Crisis & Counseling Center, and my favorite, the North Hollywood Interfaith Food Pantry, where I have volunteered in the past.

And yes, bagels will be served after the race. Seriously.

Sunday, April 06, 2008

Congratulations, Dev!

An advertising agency contacted Dev this week to use one of his photos for an upcoming internet ad campaign for Qualcomm. Great news! We'll link to the advertisement when it appears.

Congratulations to my friend Linara Washington for her film "Kings of the Evening," which will be featured in the Atlanta Film Festival this month.

Read more about the film here and here, and if you live in the Atlanta area, make sure to see "Kings of the Evening," screening April 17th & 18th.

Trip to Yiwu

Yesterday Dev and I took a three-and-a-half hour train trip to Yiwu, Zhejiang Province, about two hundred miles south of Shanghai. Yiwu is the capital of China's export market. Our hotel was next door to the International Trade City, a ten-million-square-foot center with more than 30,000 stalls displaying wholesale trade samples of almost every imaginable consumer good. The Trade City, in turn, anchors a wider selection of smaller markets and stalls, plus freight companies, customs consults, and other affiliated businesses. This is the place to find Indian mehndi (henna tattoo) patterns, scissors, inflatable novelty hammers, flashlights, plastic back braces, statues of the Virgin Mary, rain coats, LED signs, push brooms, Native American handicrafts, fake flowers, and children's backpacks. Yes, and more.

We even found a chicken-shaped cooking timer I had years ago in college. I was heartbroken when it was destroyed, only to find it five years later in China. They wouldn't sell it to us, though, in quantities less than 500 pieces. We seriously considered it.

The trading centers are filled with businessmen from all over the world, including representatives from South America, Africa, Eastern Europe, India and the Middle East. After the markets close in the evening, you can find those same businessmen in one of the city's many Middle Eastern restaurants or nargileh (hookah) bars.

We also visited the night market (with four or five different tattoo stalls, for some reason). Then we spent a romantic Saturday night at the Aegean Sea Bar in the lobby of the Best Western Hotel in Yiwu, China. Classy.

I'll post our favorite photos now. For more, check out our Flickr site.