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Sunday In The Park 08.29.05
Been working all weekend at the East Village HOWL festival- a week long benefit to support the neighborhood's artists, musicians, writers who have sadly been replaced by dull uptown yuppies (that should've never left 63rd Street). It's quite shocking how rarely I venture north of 14th Street. The only reasons to head uptown are Barny Greengrass for the greatest Jewish lox + bagel breakfast in the entire world and Central Park, on occasion. As I passed out free copies of BUST and ran a raffle to support the Federation Of East Village Artists, I was approached by two juvenile delinquents- arrested for trespassing and beating up some guys in a bar. Punishment came in the form of three weeks community service- picking up trash in Tompkins Square Park. Now usually when I get approached with the typical "Aww... yoo soo beautiiiful baby, gimme yr digits," I smirk and walk away. But I must admit, their little pick-up act worked like a charm, and by 2 pm, Joey- 24, half black, half Puerto Rican, and Mike- 26, half Spanish, half Irish were workin' the BUST booth with me- selling raffle tickets, watching my stuff during tea breaks, and keeping me well entertained. Joey was asking for advice on how to cross into white girl territory. Mike kept insisting that I give younger boys a chance ("We have more energy! More stamina!")! So cute. They promised to be my bodyguards from now on- I can call on them whenever someone messes with me. How awesome! And even more awesome than that..... I'm DJing two back-to-back nites with Saint Etienne's Bob Stanley this labor day weekend. SMASHED BLOCKED! MISSHAPES Come out come out wherever you are! Sheila Posted by Sheila at 01:14 AM china angel 08.24.05
I'm an expert at keeping myself occupied. Since January it's been trips to Texas, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong, Le One Night Stand parties, DJing, the start of my job at BUST. And finally when I have a moment to stop and think, I realize that I'm keeping my life so jam-packed so that I don't have time to deal with life. Classic Woody Allen-style New York neurosis. My 8-year-old cousin was in town from San Francisco this past week, and he's like, "Sheila, calm down! Relax. Take some time off!" I never imagined that a little kid would be telling me to chill out. Oh, the irony. Part of this self-analysis comes after a 3-hour dinner with my dad, who sees right through my 24-7 lifestyle and puts everything in deep, psychological terms, often comparing me to world-famous nutcases. Lovely. But the conversation did eventually turn to movies- specifically 2046, which I finally saw this weekend. Oh my lord is Zhang Ziyi GORGEOUS. I think I'm in love. I've been listening to a lot of dreamy doo-wop lately- The Skyliners "Since I Don't Have You," Flamingos "I Only Have Eyes For You," the Penguins "Earth Angel." All hits. Perfect for the end of summer. Sheila Posted by Sheila at 11:46 PM Puffy party tonite! 08.18.05
NYC party people! Come out to Beauty Bar tonite @ 10 pm for J-pop duo Puffy Ami Yumi's after-party. Deets are..... LE ONE NIGHT STAND PUFFY AMI YUMI after-party! +Puffy Ami Yumi gift bags for the first 150 guests courtesy of Epic Records and BUST magazine+ Go-Go Girls + DJs spinning international pop + rock n'roll: Timo Ellis (Cibo Matto, Sean Lennon) Hosted by: Amylu + Andy Shaw (Shaw Promotion), Sheila B. (Cha Cha Charming), + Melody Nelson (Atomique) Visit Le One Night Stand @ My Space: http://www.myspace.com/leonenightstand. See you later on. Sheila Posted by Sheila at 01:01 PM Boys, don't cry 08.15.05
I just realized that I complete forgot to report on the sexy BUST "Men We Love" party that I helped organize at the Delancey on August 4th. Lines wrapped around the block, friends bitched about not being able to get in, the open bar was swarming with thirsty alcoholics- all signs of a swingin' partay. I stayed sober surprisingly enough, due to technical difficulties at the DJ booth (always lick your needles DJs- it's the answer to most problems!) and bouncers who verbally abused everyone trying to get in. Total bastards. Check out hot party shots at BUST.com. Speaking of BUST, I came upon this BRILLIANT femme humor book (written by two men- surprise surprise) on my first day of work. It's called You Say I'm A Bitch Like It's A Bad Thing by Ed Polish and Darren Wotz, and it amuses me to no end. Enjoy ladies! xo-Sheila Posted by Sheila at 05:55 PM iran story 08.12.05
For the final exam in my "History Of The Modern Middle East" class at NYU, I had to write a detailed essay explaining why the Ayatollah Khomeini was good for Iran- a painful, nearly impossible task for someone whose family was completely turned upside down by Khomeini and the Iranian Revolution of 1979. I remember as a child always being told never to wish death upon anyone.... well, expect for Khomeini of course. For those unfamiliar with Iran's history, before there was Khomeini and radical Islam and headscarves and oppression, there was the Shah- the King Of Iran. Although he has been severely criticized for denying many political freedoms, under the Shah there was little promotion of radical Islam, women had rights, and Iran was basically heading towards becoming a fully Westernized society. At the time, my grandfather was the head of a major corporation that manufactured vegetable oil, soap, detergent, the basic necessities. Life was all sweetness and light for my family back then; they lived like Kings- my mom and her siblings were all educated abroad, they owned houses on the Caspian Sea, in Tehran, in New York. My grandma and my mom and her sister had their dresses custom made in Paris. Well, you get it. Life was dreamy. While Khomeini's return to Iran and the start of the revolution concerned my family, they didn't have any political ties to the Shah (my grandfather was adamantly against involving himself in politics) so they saw no signs of danger. Until July 1979. On the way to work, my grandfather and his driver were shot- the driver in the stomach, my grandfather in the arm. Had the bullet struck one millimeter to left, my grandfather would've been dead. To this day, parts of the bullet remain in his arm. It was the first and final wake-up call. My family gathered what they could and fled Iran, some through Pakistan, some via flights out to New York. I don't think any one member of my family left Iran thinking they would never return, but that's what happened. The houses, clothes, factories, offices, everything single thing that my family owned was left behind, confiscated by the new government. All they had was their house in New York, where we lived- 14 of us- for nearly three years. It blows my mind to think that I was born in the midst of such chaos. Had there not been a revolution I might still be living in Iran. So these are some photos I found of my grandma from Iran. Splitting image of Gina Lollobrigida, dontcha think? I'll be updating my diary a lot this week, I promise. Sheila Posted by Sheila at 10:18 AM |
