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About Me
I’m a California girl, wanderer and sociable nerd. My education has been eclectic — a traditional, Victorian girls’ school, an alternative, egalitarian school in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury and a massive Los Angeles university. Now, I’m taking “the road less traveled”: I’m moving to Istanbul. Yup, I bought a one-way ticket. No, I don’t have a job lined up. And, no, I don’t speak the language. Yes, I am probably completely freakin’ crazy.But I’m an eternal optimist, despite my cynicism. And, corny as it sounds, I believe in the power of the individual — not necessarily to solve world hunger but to save oneself. So, yes, I’m taking a leap of faith. I’ll probably be frustrated, disorientated and damn near ready to quit. But I’m giving this adventure an honest try. Why? Um, just to see if I can overcome myself and really live out Horace’s poetry: Carpe diem quam minime credula postero – “Seize the day, trusting as little as possible in the future.”
Not to get lofty of anything! On a milder note, I also hope to meet cool people. And eat *truly* epic food.
You can learn more about Istanbul on my separate Istanbul page. But, to be brief, it’s a mega-city, situated between Europe and Asia, with a population between 15-18 million people. Interestingly, it’s the only city in the world on two continents! And Turkey is the only secular Muslim state in the Middle East region.
So, please join me on my journey. I’m absolutely determined to make this blog REAL. There will be no vanilla, bourgeois accounts of nibbling bread in Tuscany. No college-girl-fantasy of idling in Parisian cafes and pretending to be Anna Karina. No, this will be the day-to-day, real-life stuff! It ain’t as glamorous, perhaps. But I think it’s a hell of a lot more entertaining.
Thanks for reading this far! If you have, you are also a blessed nerd (or a member of my family). Feel free to find me on Twitter: @lostblogger.
6 responses to “About Me” 
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Lans, you are inspiring and I will miss you beyond your vast comprehensive capabilities. I already do. Maybe every time you see the necklace, you can try to sign on to Skype to chat with me.
Love, Taya Peed
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Ilana!!
Wonderful to see that you’re having some adventures abroad, exploring and writing! I enjoyed read your witty and entertaining entries this foggy East Bay afternoon and I’ll return to read your updates. I hope you are well and keep up the great work! Thanks for shairng! -
Estelle August 28th, 2010 at 19:41
Hi Lani,
This is GREAT! I love it. So glad you’re doing well. When can I come visit?
Love, me -
Hello, you’ve been to BG. Great Sofia, etc. photos. Keep globe-trotting. You interested in history. Go to Greece. You will love it.
Elena from BG
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Hi Elena,
I visited Greece last summer and loved it. I definitely plan to go back soon, hopefully to Crete. Thanks for checking out my blog.
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Since power is something perceived, whom better than the individual to know one’s own power the best. We can only know power by knowing how much power we have. Any act of observing power automatically makes one reflect on how much power one has. As an eternal optimist, you either believe everything will turn out alrite or that by overcoming an inherent barrier (a combination of both physical and mental barriers) you could overcome most problems and struggles.
But is a struggle one all encompassing struggle that defines our lives? or is struggle broken down into small struggles. Maybe that’s why life is a journey and not a race..
The individual can only empower themselves and those around them. Despite the popularity of social networks to amplify the number of people you can know, most people are not in the position to influence too many people. For that reason, if we are to give advice to others, we should tell them to empower themselves and be the best human they can be. By focusing on the microcosm, or the part, we can optimize the whole. Instead of the individual struggling to end poverty, they should end poverty in the locale around them.
But the question then becomes.. do we empower ourselves first (by acquiring money, influence, etc.) first or do we jump right into empowering others?
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Chuch June 2nd, 2010 at 05:28