Owlspotting

For the first time in more than three years I was home for my mother’s birthday. I am only posting about this because I needed the excuse to showcase my brilliant artistry. Among the gifts me and my brother gave her was a cup that I drew on with a white porcelain marker. It’s a […]

There is something about my Fridays in Targu Mures. They are odd, conflicting, almost schizophrenic. Last night fit the bill perfectly. Things kicked off around 6 PM when I decided to attend a photo exhibit opening coupled with a poetry book launch. This local artist had traveled to India and she was displaying some photos […]

That’s the question of an opinion piece of mine that just ran this Friday in The New Republic. Unfortunately, you have to pay for TNR Online content, so I copied and pasted the article here. Is Romania really ready for the EU? Country Bumpkin Next week, the European Union’s executive body, a beast that thrives […]

The latest issue of Dilema Veche, the Romanian magazine I write for, had the Internet and the citizens’ interaction with the medium (“Cetateni pe Internet”) as its central theme. It’s a great discussion to have in Romania, where political and social opinion currents born online are just beginning to take shape. Back in March I […]

There was one piece of furniture I never wanted to see in my Bucharest studio—a bed. I had one when I moved in, but it had a thin metal frame and at the first party I threw about 10 people sat on it for a picture and quickly turned into a hammock. This gave me […]

On Friday morning, my brother and I drove towards Bacau for a story I’m working on. We chose the Targu Mures-Sovata-Gheorgheni-Piatra Neamt route. We talked some, but we mostly let the car stereo do its thing. My brother is into electronic music (drum n bass), while these days I’m into softer indie rock stuff. It’s […]

I was at a wake for a distant relative last night and I realized how different my life has been from that of generations past. The wake was about an hour drive from Targu-Mures on the less traveled roads, where potholes reign supreme and both lanes take on the appearance of an exploded minefield. A […]

One thing has constantly topped my list of things to do since I came home: throw a party. I used to ask my friends every week: “so, anyone found a basement yet?” I talked so much about this possibility that we filled our time coming up with party themes: Bucegi party, reading party, underwear party […]

Last night felt surreal for a few hours. Before me and my friends settled in the smoke-infested joint that has become our second home, we experienced Romanian Gothic and Romanian Joy in rapid succession. We kicked off the night with a movie. We thought Romanian cinema might need a few extra lei so we decided […]

I have a dear friend who has embarked on a fun quest to save the world. While I’m currently doing my part by watching movies until 4 AM while nursing a bottle of Romanian wine (thus making life better for countless people who don’t have to deal with me), she struggles for a better world […]