HOLA MANOLA

Paaaaaaarev!, time passed away... I am back again, after a long February and a disordered March. Here in Argentina we are waiting for a change. The dollar reached to 4 argentinean pesos last week but now it seems that the economical sea is calming down. The first cold and strong winds are welcoming a long autumm. Meanwhile, armenians here are preparing a super festival for April 24th. This year program will include something weird and new. AN APRIL 24TH WITHOUT CLAIM...It seems stupid but here the young organizations prefered not to put a message of claim this year because of the siituation of the local country (the crisis, etc). The fact is that if you are showing to hundreds people an international crime that had been never recognized in some way you are claiming for its restoration...n e v e r m i n d...
Yesterday, Avak Hinkshaptí after lunch i went to see whats was going on with the famous VODENLEVÁ...I don´t know if you remember that the VODENLEVÁ means when in the bible Jesus cleaned the feet of their dasne-ergu ashagerdner...
Is good to see how the priest washes the kids feet, (a unique piece of cristian humility of the armenian clero).
On the other hand, a pair of weeks ago HAMAZKAIN preapered the 1551th anniversary of the VARTANANTZ (The dead of Vartanig Mamigonian) and the lutirgical chorus called MESROB MASHDOTZ performered great sharagan hits.
A friend of mine here in Buenos Aires wants to investigate about a curious and maybe comic topic: the relation between armenians and gypsies in the anatolia (Gesaria, Akn, Kharpert,etc). I beg for your opinions about this mystic topic.

Salutes to Barón Kojian, Diguin Zabel, Lena , Aramig and all my partner loggers in this honourable page. A big Bachik to all of you,
Juan Abadjian

Alright, after my return to LA, I have had some time to review the recent logs posted by my fellow loggers.. WOW! A lot has been going on! So naturally, I will put my 2 cents (or drams) in..... (sorry if I repeat stuff people have already said...)

If you ask me why there is such apathy among a majority of Armenian in regards to Armenia.... I will have ONE VERY SIMPLE ANSWER! My answer comes from working with young Armenians, young diasporan Armenians, also having numerous discussions with elders. The ONE simple answer is..... "lack of education". Yes, education. I don't just mean learning things in a classroom kind of education, but the kind of knowledge you acquire by learning about different things. By reading, by researching, by looking at pictures, watching movies, etc. To me, it is ENTIRELY incomrehensible for an Armenian to "not care" if they are fully aware or knowledgable about the situation. I'll start with a very simple example... As a youth group leader, I've talked about the Genocide maybe 50 times....to the same kids (plus or minus a few)... and every time, I've received the same response/feedback - they understand it, and know that it's not over. But last week we tried something NEW. We showed them a portion of a play in which Siamanto's "Kheghtamahuh" was being recited and acted out. Although we had to watch it twice for them to get a general idea....when I stopped the video, only 1 or 2 of the kids actually knew what it was about. After explaining the story of Siamanto's poem, the children's faces changed entirely. The 11 year old boys who are ALWAYS more concerned about what their shoe laces are doing, or doing something to the hair of the person in front of them....they had such, well I don't even know how to describe it. It's as though they were enlightened and touched. And they started asking questions, and worrying about the fate of the other people.... the point being = they finally got it!

It's my opinion, that if Armenians are HONESTLY informed and like Ara said...they DO read Groong on a daily basis, maybe even subscribe to AIM Magazine, or receive a weekly Armenian newspaper (of course to read more than just the Calendars section)... then it would be VERY difficult to be so apathetic. (of course there would be exceptions....cause cold-hearted people DO exist in this world). I don't know, maybe this is a naieve opinion or way of thinking....but my experience has brought me to this conclusion. Anytime I have met an Armenian who is not too involved in being Armenian, they look at me as if they envy me for my "Armenian" lifestyle. And I always think...but WHY? I just do what I FEEL.... I WANTTTTT to know Armenian and speak it and read it and learn about Armenian issues and do something about them...etc.... I don't do it because someone made me feel guilty (by saying that I should donate $$ cause I can afford to eat the Cheesecake Factory while someone in Armenia can't afford bread for the day). NO! The "guilt method" will only go so far. You have to actually WANTTTTTTTT to do something about it. It's as simple as that. And in my opinion, the only time someone will have that initiative is when they are informed of the situation....in a way that they reach a COMPLETE understanding. When that happens, action is inevitable!

Well that's my opinion.... and as Ara said.... corruption, bribery, lying, stealing, etc ---- ahhhhhhhh minor details! ZERO TOLERANCE is my motto too.

TEBI YERGIR! ....tsuh! :)

Time passes sooooo fast when you're soooo busy! First of all, YESSSSS I'm alive and well! :) Second... midterms week is finally over, and actually... Spring Break is almost over too (which isn't too great of a thing). After exams were over, I flew on over to San Francisco to visit my sister. I've been heren for 5 days already, and having done all the regular running around to this place and that place.... I'm finally taking a day to relax and do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! :) In the past few days we've been to N.Beach, Fisherman's Wharf, Union Square, Oakland, Walnut Creek, Hate & Ashbury, .....etc... PLUSSSS we went to church for Dzaghgazart! wow...the community here is soooo different! It was really nice! :)

In between preparing for exams and writing papers, I finalized my summer travel plans! yayyyyy Notice I say..."travel"... THAT alone took HOURS of being on the telephone and emailing people back and forth. I was finally able to find a decent priced ticket..and now on May 31st I'll be on my way to the east coast....and I'll arive in Yerevan on June 9th! YAYYYYYYYYYYY So obviously my countdown on ALL my calendars has started.... :) To add to this excitement... the Armenian Studies Program at my university (Cal State Northridge) was able to get clearance to take students to Armenia this summer for a 3 week course! DOUBLE YAY! So I'm kinda busy helping plan the "big trip".

I guess that's my little update for everyone... I'll be back home in a couple of days, and I promise to write a log with a bit more substance and detail. :) hehehe
TSUH! (for now)

(how cool that our emails are up top!) :)
p.s. - CONGRATS to Rhoda! right on!! So maybe we'll meet in August when u come to Armenia!? And Raffi.... WOW... I never knew that stuff about Canada and Armenians - VERY interesting! I shall invest in that book ASAP!

HI everyone. I've been recently in Armenia for a week and had a great time there with my old and new friends. Now, from Moscow, I would like to thank again Raffi, Zabel, Haik, Lena, Jason, Hakob and those whom I've met for the first time - Shant, Maryam, Zaven for that splendid time which I've spent with you in Yerevan. Special thanks to Arto Tuncboyadjian and Armenian Navy Band. I've been on his concert both on Friday and Saturday. We also had a great time in Our Village and Subway (Jazz-club). pitty I had no time to go to the regions, being only in Yerevan and Tsakhkadzor for business. Hope that I will have a chance to travel to Armenia in the neariest future and to see you all there. I still want to visit many places both in Armenia and Artsakh ...

OK, my news is VERY good news! I'm going to be swopping logs for at least one year....to the repatriate log...as a member of the Armenian Volunteer corps and I start in the middle of August (late start due to graduation and a family wedding)!! Obviously I am absolutely delighted at this, and hope it will be a very rewarding year for both parties. And now I have to stop sending out millions of e-mails and get on with some work here, exams in a months time.....

Another great week in Montreal. Art exhibition (Aslanian) and book reading/ conference.
Last night I attended Dr. Lorne Chirinian’s book reading of “Quest for Closure”. This book deals with the issue of the Armenian Genocide and the Canadian government. It starts with some stats from the early 1900’s until more recent times. He has identified the first Armenian in Canada to be --- in 1896. Something interesting I learned yesterday was how Armenians were considered Asians and therefor confined to a legislation that restricted Asian immigration to Canada. This is one of Canada’s ugly chapters that most Canadians today are ashamed of. Some of you may know the situation of the Asian men who came to Canada to build the railroad tracks and were poorly treated by the Canadians and the government. Well, to keep it short, Armenians weren’t welcome to Canada during 1915-18 because of this legislation. Another interesting fact: although today’s government will not recognize the event as a Genocide (I won’t go into details as to why), in 19-- the government of the same country allocated up to 300 000$ to the refugees from Van, --- and –. They considered their status as exiled refugees from Turkey’s extermination of their people.
Lorne is a great personality. His forte is in literature but he also tackles socio-political issues and issues that deal with cultural identity. I’ve met Dr. Chirinian during the Generations Genocide colloquium I had organised in 2000 at Concordia University, commemorating the 85th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. He is a professor in Ontario. One of the most interesting and genuinely nice people I have met.
Weather: March 20, we had the pleasure of welcoming spring with an extra 15 cm of snow. Over one week, we received about 35 cm of snow in Montreal… finally, winter!
My squash has definitely improved. However, I am not Olympics material yet. Come to think of it, why isn’t squash an Olympic game? After all if “curling” is a qualified then I think squash should be too!
PS: Someone write back and informed me that Roupen Hakhvertian is coming up with a new CD. Can’t wait.
nkarts@hotmail.com

I 'may' have some very good news on Monday, if so, it'll be posted on this blog that day.
The weather is beautiful and sunny, surprisingly warm and maybe we get to start punting in a few weeks time. For those of you with no clue about punting, it's a long boat-like thing which one steers with a pole, pushing the pole to the bottom of the riverbed to set the boat off, and then using it like a rudder to steer the punt.....it's the traditional thing to do in Oxford and Cambridge, and usually involves a lot of laughing - generally at the people who are trying to 'punt' . In the summer people like to get together and drink champagne and strawberries whilst punting along - all sounds quite decadent, very civilised and is very 'english', but a great thing to do after very stressful exams, particularly with a good lot of friends....main aim is to not fall in, particularly if you're with a bunch of engineers who've just finished exams- boys are more prone to wanting to fall in the river, which is quite strange really!

Two hours ago, I walked into my office from our spring like weather. I just opened the blinds of my office window to be astonished by a snow storm... I just heard on the radio that we will have 10 cm of the white stuff.... finally, winter!

thought you'd like to hear about the weather.

What a week in Montreal! We had the pleasure of hosting 2 media professionals. One from Turkish-Armenian newspaper/electronic “Agos”, Hrand Dink and the other from “Armeniaweek.com” & “AIM”, John Hughes. Since I am a communications guy, I made a point of attending both events. The first was held by the “Bolsahay” (Armenians from Istanbul) association. It was supposed to start at 8… the guy walked in at 9p.m. to a full room (about 130) of mostly seniors and about 20 youth. To my dumbfounded surprise, he received a standing ovation as he walked in. I couldn’t help but laugh. I mean, I went with a very hopeful and open mind, but this was ridiculous. I told myself that I would give the guy a chance and hear what he had to say.
Here is a quick summary. Mr. Dink started with a statement that threw me off. He stated that Turkish Armenians are afraid to stand up for what they believe and to pronounce proudly what they know in their hearts… I was amazed! Finally an “insider” telling it like it is. He continued to talk about how Armenians usually make statement either based on their hearts (feeling) or based on their minds (logic). He insisted that in order to be more objective and true, one had to find a balance between these to approaches… not bad. I was more and more impressed by this 47 year old father of 3. Then, he started to talk about issues, the real stuff. Here is where I had trouble with his ideas. At first, he said that it is in vain that the Diaspora is putting so much effort to get the governments like France, USA and Italy to recognize the Genocide. He thought that “we”, the Diaspora, were using our ancestors’ lives as a means of negotiations between Turkey and other nations… His explanation was that Jacques Chirac wrote a letter (that was published in the Turkish newspapers) saying how upset he was that Turkey decided to cancel a helicopter deal with a French company… So, I ask you, who is making this into an economic issue? Is it not Turkey? Should we be threatened by that? Or use it for the purposed of Hay Tad?
Then he went to say that the corridors should start opening between Armenia and Turkey. Although I agree with this statement, I think that we should learn from our history and do this carefully. We should be able to negotiate the terms of this exchange and flow of goods. Otherwise we will once again be backstabbed and lose out.
Then, he insisted that we, the Diaspora, should help Turkey become democratic and join the EU… is he nuts? Strategically, we have a good deal going for us here. The Turks (or a good majority) want to join, then shouldn’t this be the right time to put forth some conditions for Turkey? He thinks that it was a mistake on behalf of the EU to have put the Armenian genocide as a pre-condition. In his opinion, it would be wiser to have Turkey part of this Union where they will have no choice but to follow certain guidelines.
OK, #1) Turkey is part of NATO (a so-called democratic and peaceful alliance) it is also part of the U.S.-Israel-Turkey military deal… have they followed any guidelines to get rid of their atrocious human rights deeds?
#2) the more they are faced with human rights violations, the more Armenians will be able to point their fingers and say…” look, they still haven’t learned their lesson. What they did to Armenians on their land almost a century ago is still being done today to Kurds, Christians and other minorities…”
All in all, I applaud this man for his courage to speak about issues that have been taboo for the past decades in Turkey. He and many others are finally speaking out against their government’s ignorant and harmful policies, something that the rest of the Diaspora has learned to do since the ‘70s.

John Hughes was great, I enjoyed his readings and his book… he is worth a full log at a later date.

nkarts@hotmail.com

I've been quite busy with work and generally not providing much info for this site, although I have just figured out how to do websites simply, but properly, rather than my previously awful one!
My website

#38.....
Why does this number all of a sudden have a significance..SO much that I decided to begin my log with it? Well, my friends, this is a very good question. Those of you who already know... (shhhhhhhhh)...everyone else, keep reading! ------> On Sunday March 3, Los Angeles held its 17th annual Marathon! Once again, this year a Pyunic member from Armenia arrived to participate in this annual tradition. Who is she? She is a 16 year old young girl from Gyumri, Armenia. But guess what....she didn't run or walk the marathon.... she was one of the 45 wheelers that morning.

When I first met her, I didn't really know what to expect. Having spent A LOT of time with last year's and the year before's athletes who were here for the Marathon, I knew how dedicated these representatives were.... The effort they put in to train throughout the year is incredible! Greta came into the room, and after seeing her smile, I forgot my own nervousness. She's a quiet, modest, yet funny and intelligent young female... yet her life has been anything BUT funny and quiet. When the earthquake hit Gyumri in 1988, Greta was the only survivor in her family. It was Greta's grandmother who dug up Greta's little 2 yr old body from the rubble... this being the reason why Greta lost both her legs. I couldn't help but imagine what life must've been like growing up in those hard times, and to come out AHEAD of all those more privelaged than you (physically, emotionally and financially)..... THAT for me is respectable and admirable. Not to mention to represent your country and be the only 16 year old to pariticpate in Sunday's Marathon as a wheeler.... Greta continued, even when she SOOO wanted to stop. Her determination and will power is a reminder that, no matter what... WE MUST GO ON!!!! (I wanted to post pictures along with this log, but I don't know how to do that - Ara......can i get a quick tutorial? :) So, we're very excited to have Greta here, and on March 22nd, we will have a nice big celebration with all of the paralympic participants at the Roccocco in Old Town Pasadena. (If anyone is interested, e-mail me!)

As for everything else, I'm quite busy with school.... we were just able to get our summer trip to Armenia approved with administration!!! YAY! So now 20 students will go to Armenia this summer and take part in courses at the Yerevan Bedagan Hamalsaran... it should be a great experience! Oh ya, and mid-terms are coming! ahhhhhhhh! This is the time where I deeply regret having so many classes, but when it's all over, very thankful that I was able to pull it off. :) Spring break should be a GREAT opportunity to wind down and take a breather. I will be going up to San Francisco with my cousin to visit my sister up there for 5 days....something to look forward to in the next couple of weeks!

This Sunday, there's going to be a "Youth Forum" in our community. This is the first event in this particular community (La Canada, La Crescenta, Montrose, Tujunga, Sunland).... we're going to be discussing issues that concern the youth here - meaning ----> all things TABOO! It will be a great opportunity to actually meet the different youth who live in the SAME area, and establish contacts, so that when things like "fights at school" or "discrimination" occurs (which they do on a daily basis) we can have a place to discuss it, but more importantly, a group to DO something about it. Together, we can help the Armenian youth realize that drugs aren't the answer, car racing is extremely dangerous and that Armenians really aren't that much better than anyone else out there - so we can get down from that high horse and treat others how we'd like to be treated! I'll definitely let you know how this goes.... but in the meantime, if you're someone who lives in the immediate area - PLEASE JOIN US!!! (email me for time/place info)

Ok, I shall go start Friday.... I have mixed feelings about the weekends. I used to LOVE them, cause it meant, no driving to northridge! But now I'm not too sure... it ends up being so hectic ANYWAY!
TSUH!!!! :)

ShooshigAvakian@hotmail.com

Last week was quite exciting for me and the Armenian community in Montreal. On Wednesday, Yeghisapet from ANCA Washington D.C. was in town and spoke about Hay Tad actions in the USA and the new strategies for this year. I really enjoyed the talk, because it was proactive and farsighted. I don’t know if you are aware, but the Canadian ANC doesn’t have a permanent office and no full or part time staff. The use of its grass roots is limited to the April 24th demonstration. We don’t have the same political system as the USA so for the past years the ANC has used this as an excuse not to run aggressive large-scale campaigns with its local MP’s. As you probably read between the lines, I think otherwise. I believe that the number of citizens that speak up can influence decisions. However, it must fit in an organised campaign where a majority will be repeating the same message. Culturally, lobbying does not exist in Canada as it does in the States. In Yeghso’s message, I heard her imply that this culture must be taught to the community and then applied. So, why not try it? What do we have to lose?

That same week, System of a Down was in town. They gave a concert on Friday and Saturday. They were fabulous. I enjoyed their simplicity and have become a greater fan. I especially enjoy the lyrics of their songs. The music is also amazing. It must be really difficult to change beat and rhythm 4-6 times in the same song… they’ve mastered this and play it so smoothly. I really enjoy the songs “toxicity”, “Chop Suey” and the pogo stick song!

Talking about music, when will Roupen Haghvertian release another album? I really like his stuff.

Squash is good… I am definitely improving!
Baby is doing well… I hope it’s a girl! but I woudn't mind either way... as long as it is a healthy and smart baby.

nkarts@hotmail.com

It's been a few days since I've returned from a two week trip to Armenia. Lots to talk about but little time right now to do so. I will make sure and write a general overview of the trip which included a sold out Gor Mkhitarian concert with Lav Eli opening for him at the Rock Club on Pushkin Street. Also, the Hover Chamber Choir CD is just about ready to go to the manufacturer. The CD is filled with 21 pieces. Some of the members of the choir contributed to the soundtrack to the upcoming movie "Ararat" by Atom Egoyan. It sounds incredible. Gor's second CD is coming along nicely as is the Lav Eli CD project. Also, I just signed Armenia's greatest violin duo- the Jenterejian Brothers- to a contract for an upcoming CD. All in all a very successful trip with some great Khorovads to boot. Tough to leave Armenia, but I will be back soon. More to come...

I am crossing over from the repatriate log to post this message. I just got this in my e-mail and think it is a very cool thing that is being done and want to share it with everyone!

Dear Compatriots,

Let me begin by inviting you all to the next Kotayk Night which will take place this Friday, March 1st at 7 PM. It will be held at the Blue Jug in the Glendale Marketplace between Brand Blvd. and Maryland Avenue. Blue Jug is the latest of the Glendale institutions serving our beloved Kotayk and Kilikia (K2) beers. Check out www.kotayknights for pictures form our last K-Night where over 45 kotaykers were present (LETS TOP THAT NUMBER THIS TIME!!). The management at Blue Jug has also offered to provide our group with discounts on Kotyak as well as dinner.

But our work is not done. We must strive till we see the day when a bar is not a bar if it does not serve Kotayk. The day when Kotayk is written on race cars in the Indi 500. The day when we turn on MSNBC and see the green KOT ticker sign run across our TV screens. Ok, I guess we need to start a little smaller than that.

We have recently spoken to the management at Ichiban sushi (in Glendale) and Clancy’s Crab Broiler to begin serving K2. According to them if enough interest is shown they will take all steps in acquiring it. So your job is not only to part take in the consumption of Kotayk but also to take the active role of encouraging these guys to serve it as well. Please take a moment to make a phone call and let your voice be heard, or even better if you happen to be eating dinner there ask if they serve it and make sure the manager knows you would like it.

The Kotayk Knight


Blue Jug TV Sport Bar
Glendale Marketplace
118 South Brand Blvd
Glendale, CA 91204
818-242-4266


Ichiban Japanese Restaurant
120 S. Brand Blvd.
Glendale, CA 91204
818-242-9966

www.Kotayknights.com

OK, I've figured out that the webspace they give me is free because you can only put images on it.....
www.boomspeed.com/rhoda is a list of my images, which I created as a website but set-up as jpegs for the moment.
There is a psuedo home page....albeit with no links!
I have millions more amazing photos but need to scan them all in, hope you all enjoy the few that are there!