The month of fasting, Ramadan, is going on right now (started on the night of the 2nd and will end with the evening of the next new moon). At the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holiday of Eid (pronounced Eed) is celebrated. People visit each other and feast on a humongous variety of foods. Bangladesh is definitely a food culture nation and according to several sources, people live to eat rather than eat to live.
During Ramadan, I fast everyday, from half an hour or so before sunup to sundown. Not allowed to eat or drink during this time, I eat at sundown (this meal’s called iftaar) and drink to my heart’s content. Then I get up early morning an hour or so before sunup to fill up for the day (this meal’s called sehri). It’s going ok so far, though when the days get hotter and more humid, my thirst becomes worse, and the last couple of days have been hot, hot, hot!
Before going to sleep though, I snack on fruits and milk just so I can get through the night and in case I can’t sleep. A nine and half hour gap between the iftaar and sehri is just too much for me to handle, despite the nearly 14 hour fasting time!
After iftaar Tuesday night, Rafiba picked me up to go to Chandni Chowk to buy material for our Eid clothes. These would be gifts from my mom and my aunt Lily. I decided on a pretty pink Pakistani cotton three-piece salwar kameez set with colorful threadwork and a peridot green salwar kameez set with white and silver-gray beadwork. Neither of these sets is completely finished and need to be taken to a tailor to get them finished.
My mom’s sister, my aunt Ruba, or Ruba aunti as I call her, visited us for iftaar Wednesday night along with Nusaiba, Rafiba and Zaheen who forgot my flash drive again. I’m not sure whether to clobber him on the head or wait patiently some more. :-P
Ruba auntie said she’d take the materials to the tailor. She just needed to bring to the tailor a kameez that fit me well so that the new ones would be made to its specifications. I’m looking forward to seeing what they look like when finished, and being able to wear them for Eid! I already know I’d like to wear the peridot green for the occasion.
While Ruba aunti was at our house, Rafiba and I decided to go out shopping again because Eid clothes hadn’t been bought yet for Sadia, Ehsan uncle’s daughter. Sadia’s brother, Zul (pronounced Jewel) and Zaheen decided to come with us. So the four of us piled up in Ruba aunti’s van and her driver took us to Rapa Plaza. A mix of rock music was playing in the van and that’s when I kicked myself for not bringing my copy of Grave Dancer’s Union. I’d been talking to Zaheen and Zul about Soul Asylum and Zaheen had mentioned that he’d heard of but hadn’t heard Runaway Train. Missed opportunity but I’ll take the next one.
I had a great time, although I can’t make the claim for the others. Zaheen and Zul were at a cd and dvd store looking at movies, music, and games, while Rafiba and I window-shopped. Since bargaining is a must, I left the price-warring to Rafiba. We went through several stores before finding a nice salwar kameez set for Sadia that was also within our budget. Soon, though bored out of their minds, the boys came to find us. Zaheen is a great kidder so he kept us entertained while I occasionally joined in the jokes and Rafiba kept bargaining. Then, at one point, Zaheen started playfully but insistently demanding Coke. I want Coke...Coke...Coke...I want Coke, now. It was hilarious! Meanwhile, Zul was standing back and enjoying the show. We had so many laughs that night that it will definitely be a memory for keeps. :-D
Friday, September 12, 2008
Back on the news floor.
Last Saturday, Mr. Sobhan contacted me to ask if I could meet with Mr. Anam on Tuesday, the 9th. We agreed and set up a time in the afternoon. In my meeting with him, he made the same inquiry that Mr. Sobhan had to start my interview: tell me a little bit about yourself. I gave them both a short-cut version of my life and ended with and now, I’m back in Dhaka to build up my career. That version, coupled with my resume impressed Mr. Anam and he warmly welcomed me to the Daily Star.
Things started going downhill when he made his baseline salary offer. It was so much lower than I’d hoped for and lower than I can ever agree to that though Mr. Sobhan debated on my behalf, Mr. Anam wouldn’t budge. However, we did agree to meet the next day for me to come in and make my case.
I fell sick with a bad headache the next day and was unable to make it. The meeting was rescheduled for the following day, Thursday the 11th. Despite my case, he won’t budge, though he says that they need me. I’m going to make one final offer tomorrow and if he can’t meet it, then I’ll walk. Too bad if he doesn’t, but as he said, the Daily Star needs me more than I need them, though he hopes I need them as much. I don’t, and I’m worth more than he offers. I don’t know what his response will be but whatever it is, I’ll mention it when I learn of it.
Things started going downhill when he made his baseline salary offer. It was so much lower than I’d hoped for and lower than I can ever agree to that though Mr. Sobhan debated on my behalf, Mr. Anam wouldn’t budge. However, we did agree to meet the next day for me to come in and make my case.
I fell sick with a bad headache the next day and was unable to make it. The meeting was rescheduled for the following day, Thursday the 11th. Despite my case, he won’t budge, though he says that they need me. I’m going to make one final offer tomorrow and if he can’t meet it, then I’ll walk. Too bad if he doesn’t, but as he said, the Daily Star needs me more than I need them, though he hopes I need them as much. I don’t, and I’m worth more than he offers. I don’t know what his response will be but whatever it is, I’ll mention it when I learn of it.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
On the news floor...
While I was staying with Rafiba, I received a phone call from The Daily Star, the premier English-language newspaper in Bangladesh. Incidentally, the assistant editor with whom I spoke was a friend of Adina’s. So through this network, he came to know that I had an English background, editing experience, and that I was looking for a job. He contacted me for an interview on Wednesday the 27th, and I went. It went well, but to sell me better to his Editor, Mahfuz Anam, he asked me to come by the next day with a more marketable resume and to be ready to take an editing test. Wednesday night, my uncle and aunt came back from Singapore, and the night was spent unpacking luggage, recounting stories, and resting.
With a more marketable resume and my portfolio in tow, I headed back to the Daily Star that Thursday. After pronouncing the resume as “Now this is what I was talking about!” he gave me an article, a particularly long and badly written article to edit. It took me much longer than I expected and my interviewer had to leave. He told me he’d be in touch and get back to me on Saturday. I finished editing it soon after he left, and headed back to my aunt’s house. On the 29th, a Friday, I returned back to Dhanmondi, and back to my job searches.
The computer at Rafiba’s house had stopped working so I was left without a computer and the internet. I came to realize that week just how dependent I’ve become on both. The world stops for me if I can’t use either. Because Adina had said I could use her laptop while I was at her house, I failed to bring my laptop with me. Oh well. It was a lesson well-learned and a realization hit home.
The next week, on Monday, September 1, my interviewer, Mr. Sobhan, who heads the Point-Counterpoint page (the equivalent of the Op - Ed page in the states), called me back asking if I’d seen that day’s issue and to turn to the Point-Counterpoint page. My mom and Ehsan uncle (my mom’s youngest brother) subscribe to the Daily Star so I was able to pick it up and turn to it. What a surprise! The article I’d edited for the test, with a few further changes and clarifications, was printed on that page! They were that impressed with my work and made me an offer! For your perusal, it’s located at http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=52677
Mr. Sobhan further stated that he’d like me to come in and meet with his Editor that week and added that he’d get back to me quickly. Thinking I might most likely meet Mr. Anam on Thursday that week, it being the last weekday, and needing transportation and an escort to get there, I went back to my aunt’s house that Wednesday evening. Lina was already there. Meanwhile Rafiba had gone with her grandmother (paternal) to Calcutta.
Due to his being extremely busy that week, he was unable to get back to me until that weekend. By then, I’d come back to Dhanmondi. While I’d waited for his call, I spent time with Lina and Nusaiba, with my aunt and uncle, and Zaheen when he dropped by. I’d asked my sister to copy as many of my audio cds as possible to my flash drive and gave her a second drive when she ran out of space. The first drive also contained my personal and professional files. When I’d tried to play the songs she’d copied, I was unable to play them, they being m4a files.
So, while I was at Bonani the first time, I gave Zaheen the drive with just the music files, and asked him to see what he could do. After coming back to Dhanmondi, and after talking to my sister while in Dhanmondi, I figured out that I could easily play my songs with iTunes. After that, when Zaheen and I met again at my aunt’s, I told him what I found out and he informed me that he was also able to play them with Nokia music player. He told me he’d bring it by and return it before I left. It hasn’t happened yet. :-P
With a more marketable resume and my portfolio in tow, I headed back to the Daily Star that Thursday. After pronouncing the resume as “Now this is what I was talking about!” he gave me an article, a particularly long and badly written article to edit. It took me much longer than I expected and my interviewer had to leave. He told me he’d be in touch and get back to me on Saturday. I finished editing it soon after he left, and headed back to my aunt’s house. On the 29th, a Friday, I returned back to Dhanmondi, and back to my job searches.
The computer at Rafiba’s house had stopped working so I was left without a computer and the internet. I came to realize that week just how dependent I’ve become on both. The world stops for me if I can’t use either. Because Adina had said I could use her laptop while I was at her house, I failed to bring my laptop with me. Oh well. It was a lesson well-learned and a realization hit home.
The next week, on Monday, September 1, my interviewer, Mr. Sobhan, who heads the Point-Counterpoint page (the equivalent of the Op - Ed page in the states), called me back asking if I’d seen that day’s issue and to turn to the Point-Counterpoint page. My mom and Ehsan uncle (my mom’s youngest brother) subscribe to the Daily Star so I was able to pick it up and turn to it. What a surprise! The article I’d edited for the test, with a few further changes and clarifications, was printed on that page! They were that impressed with my work and made me an offer! For your perusal, it’s located at http://www.thedailystar.net/story.php?nid=52677
Mr. Sobhan further stated that he’d like me to come in and meet with his Editor that week and added that he’d get back to me quickly. Thinking I might most likely meet Mr. Anam on Thursday that week, it being the last weekday, and needing transportation and an escort to get there, I went back to my aunt’s house that Wednesday evening. Lina was already there. Meanwhile Rafiba had gone with her grandmother (paternal) to Calcutta.
Due to his being extremely busy that week, he was unable to get back to me until that weekend. By then, I’d come back to Dhanmondi. While I’d waited for his call, I spent time with Lina and Nusaiba, with my aunt and uncle, and Zaheen when he dropped by. I’d asked my sister to copy as many of my audio cds as possible to my flash drive and gave her a second drive when she ran out of space. The first drive also contained my personal and professional files. When I’d tried to play the songs she’d copied, I was unable to play them, they being m4a files.
So, while I was at Bonani the first time, I gave Zaheen the drive with just the music files, and asked him to see what he could do. After coming back to Dhanmondi, and after talking to my sister while in Dhanmondi, I figured out that I could easily play my songs with iTunes. After that, when Zaheen and I met again at my aunt’s, I told him what I found out and he informed me that he was also able to play them with Nokia music player. He told me he’d bring it by and return it before I left. It hasn’t happened yet. :-P
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