deniz is sea

tracing our hands on the paper in the sun, on the grass in the park. 
photo by julven balkan

drumming with dialogue

my introduction to ‘design with dialogue‘ started at this drum circle session. i had no idea what to expect. i simply had a good feeling. this happened last year, around the same time, and ever since i’ve been to 6 or 7 other dwd sessions and participated in different forms of dialogue and workshops.

terri segal from ‘rhythmic by nature‘ guided this adventurous workshop.

 

emily and her fish

zahra is my curly friend. she has 27 bouncy curls. she is exactly 7 cookie tall and 2 cookie wide. we like to jump, crawl and roll down the hill. i like her hugs the most. she laughs hahaha i laugh he..hehe. one day zahra decided to make emily out of napkin and she used clay and styrofoam to make her fish.

so this is a story of emily and her fish

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

story : zahra saleki
Photo edit: amir oveis honarmand

birdy

why birds do it, i sometimes think to myself

hoda wanders with her cloud of thought right above her bun. she likes stories. she tells stories. hoda is a girl. she is my best friend since we had bushy eyebrows. she lives with her roommate. on a good day he calls her hoda. hoda feels. she then draws. and then colours. she just sent me some of her recent works at 11:10 a.m. today to pick one as a blog-header.

i still don’t know why birds do it, and i may never know

illustrated by hoda zarbaf

i was a lightkeeper

 

the past few days i lived in my dreams.

i showered in the lake and dried up on warm flat stones.
i pumped the water from the lake to the house.
i slept watching the starts and listening to the calming sounds of the waves.
i woke up with the morning breeze and the sun shining on my face.
i drew things.
i read my book.
i helped with the sales at the giftshop.
i drank strawberry house wine.
i explored caves.
i got lost in the forest.
i cleaned the compost toilet after visitors left the island.
i stored food in the basement.
i watered the plants using pails from the lake.
i filtered my drinking water.
i danced in the sun and sang by the water.
i washed my clothes in the lake and let them air dry.
i talked to strangers and listened to their stories.
i watched grasshoppers bouncing around.
i waved to the passing boats.
i was a lightkeepr.

birds do it

ella fitzgerald sings it well 

 

birds do it, bees do it
even educated fleas do it
let’s do it, let’s fall in love

in Spain, the best upper sets do it

lithuanians and Letts do it
let’s do it, let’s fall in love

the Dutch in old Amsterdam do it
not to mention the Fins
folks in Siam do it – think of Siamese twins

some Argentines, without means, do it
people say in Boston even beans do it
let’s do it, let’s fall in love

romantic sponges, they say, do it
oysters down in oyster bay do it
let’s do it, let’s fall in love

cold Cape Cod clams, ‘gainst their wish, do it
even lazy jellyfish, do it
let’s do it, let’s fall in love

electric eels I might add do it
though it shocks em I know
why ask if shad do it – waiter bring me
“shad roe”

in shallow shoals English soles do it
goldfish in the privacy of bowls do it
let’s do it, let’s fall in love

piecing together

on the bus to banff street on eglinton st. east, the woman says ‘the next stop is redpath avenue’! i have a friend with that name, tyler g. redpath! last summer emilie, tyler and i strolled around the beaches along the lake shore and that same afternoon, on our way to get our hair cut (all 3 of us) we passed by the redpath sugar factory. tyler then said ‘can you smell the sugar?’ i always associated that fishy smell with ‘john’s harbour boat restaurant’ but as soon as he mentioned ‘sugar’, the smell turned into this sweet pleasant aroma. ever since i hear or smell any of those memories, it connects the rest of the pieces together. tyler to redpath to sugar to that smell to group haircut to captain john’s boat restaurant. and now, redpath avenue all the way up on eglinton st.!!! i decided to draw a line on the map from ‘redpath factory on queens quey east’ to ‘redpath avenue on eglinton st. east’. and yes they are in continuation!