About the blog
I'm writing a book of memoir essays. Sometimes I imagine this photo as the cover. --->
I like how it resembles an old painting even though it was just a selfie I took while playing dress up in my closet. The eyes follow you like the Mona Lisa. I look back at my past, and my past returns the gaze. We lock eyes, even through the veil of time. Yes, this is creepy. And also: This is memoir.
You will find some stories from the book here, especially those I publish in newspapers or magazines. The rest of the blog is a giant warehouse for observational humor. If you wander around, you must be able to lift 50 pounds and every so often a box will fall on your head.
About Nasreen Yazdani
I am a writer based in San Diego, California, USA. My work has appeared in the New York Times and a few other publications. I used to identify as a comedy writer, and that title is not wrong, but my style has evolved in the past few years. At this point, I'm a storyteller.
I grew up in Southern California. My perspective is rooted in the royally casual subculture of wet suits and fish tacos. Other influences have also made their mark: My father is ethnically Persian, born and raised in Pakistan. He immigrated to the United States to study engineering in the early 1970's when he was almost 30. A few years later, someone convinced him to get married in bell bottoms. For all he knew, that was the traditional American wedding costume.
My mother is a free spirit from Massachusetts. We figure she is some distant descendant of the Pilgrims. She wore ballet slippers under her wedding dress, for no particular reason, and acquired late-onset dolphin enthusiasm in her 60's. For every American cultural practice that my father misunderstands, there is one that my mother willfully defies, again, for no particular reason.
This strange concoction of parents gave me an affinity for absurdity, contradiction, and all the aspects of life that get charmingly lost in translation when two cultures coexist. And beyond that, I take full responsibility for the strangeness of my own life.
My essays reflect periods when I was involved in subversive activities like:
- Dancing Argentine tango
- Training on aerial silks circus apparatus
- Performing improvisational acting/comedy
- Developing intense relationships with my neighbors' pets
My parents had nothing to do with this.
Anyway, if you're curious about me, this is the most important thing for you to know: I adore my readers. I am speaking to your highest intelligence, even in moments that seem decidedly lowbrow, and I'm always after your heart. I feel a close connection to you because we've gone on the same adventures-- we've laughed and cried together-- and we've never even met.
Welcome to my nest. If you're reading this, you're basically right here with me. You can have the pink chair. I'll go get us a snack.
See also: Allow me to introduce myself
See also: Allow me to introduce myself