Yo Mista!

Up until my early twenties, I spent every other summer in Karachi , Pakistan. I've grown to love the city, but it wasn't always like that. I hated going there when I was younger, when my mom had to drag me there by force. Of course, as an unworldly seven-year old, I wanted to spend my summer vacation playing Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo. Don't get me wrong, I loved my extended family. I just didn't consider bonding with them in over 100 degree weather and rolling blackouts "fun." My mother often took my reluctance into consideration, but I knew she'd never let me win. She would buy our plane tickets anyway and tell me to shut the hell up because, "This is the only time I get to see my family. This is the only time I get to be away from your father. Cry all you want, we're going." Touché mom. After what seemed like a week-long flight, we'd finally land in Karachi and make our way to the baggage claim. Since my dad never came with us, ...

Growing up, my mother would drag me to Pakistan every other year for the summer. A large chunk of my mother's family resides in Karachi, so we generally stayed with them for three months at a time, switching up which aunt or uncle we stayed with every so often. I used to hate going there, but as I got older, I grew to love it. And eventually I developed deeper friendships with my cousins, which was nice. We would get to Pakistan in early June and leave late August, so I was able to observe my cousins end and begin their school years. Most of my cousins considered school to be a privilege and a way out (generalizing here, I know). I couldn't relate to the former, but I definitely agreed it was a way out: a way to get options. In Pakistan, I have family at all class levels: lower, middle and upper class (although right now it seems there isn't a middle-class left anymore). My cousins, not by any means wealthy, took school very seriously - sometimes memorizing entire chapt...

Here's the thing: it's 31 degrees outside and snowing non-stop. If today were a Friday, I would expect no more than a 30% attendance rate. The only thing is, today is not a Friday, it's Wednesday during New York State Regents Examinations Week (I previously wrote about these exams here ). "Don't beat yourself up." That's what I'm secretly telling myself right now. Today, all NYC algebra students take the Regents Examination at 1:15 PM. They have opportunities to take this exam in January, June and August. The exam is thirty-nine questions long and covers approximately a year and a half's worth of material. It's actually not that difficult - especially since you really only need to answer thirteen questions correctly to score a passing score of 65%. You don't need to be a math teacher to figure out that's one hell of a curve! And yes, that's what she said. I sent about sixteen text messages this morning to students reminding the...

I've been visiting Karachi every other year since I was six months old. My parents were both born there. The bulk of my extended family still lives there. It's strange how my perspective and investment in the country has changed over the years. I hated going to Pakistan when I was younger. My mother dragged me there for two, sometimes three months at a time over the summer. The heat was miserable and the humidity was unbearable. My family wasn't well off, so it's not like I was in a huge mansion of sorts living in the tropics, eating cold mangoes. That would've been nice. The only things I enjoyed were the company of my cousins, the food and the taste of Coca-Cola made from real sugar. Besides that, I really never did anything else. I was pretty quiet: my aunts would compliment me on my lack of communication. Heh. It was not until I was a teenager that I truly began to appreciate my experiences in Pakistan. I started engaging in the family functions, weddings an...

Like many other bloggers, I use Google analytics to gauge this blog's readership. That is, when I actually have the time. Google analytics allows me to see how hits received, where readers are in the world, and how they ended up on the blog to begin with (referrals). One of the features I recently set up provides me a summary e-mail of all the key words people have typed into search engines to arrive at this blog. Generally, people who use a search engine to come here usually type one of the following phrases: Yo mista! Yo mista.com Yo mista blog Yesterday, I received an e-mail from Google summarizing last week's search results. Everything seemed normal except for the very last result: "I need quality education for my kids in karachi" There it is, honest and bold. A father's desperate attempt to learn how to give his children access to education? Maybe, maybe not. Whoever this person was, they obviously didn't find what they were looking for on this bl...

If you haven't watched TV or read the news lately, Pakistan has been suffering from extreme flooding. 1,500 people have died thus far and another 13.8 million people have been affected. The government is struggling to get aid to the victims due to heavy infrastructure damage.  Please help by donating as much as you can. A mere $5 will go a long way. Here are some links: UNICEF Global Giving The UN Refugee Agency

I've been thinking about how to write this post for a while because it was such an eye-opening experience. I need to put some things into context first: I've been to Karachi almost every other year of my life. I'm in my mid-twenties now, so I've actually been there quite a lot for an American-born Pakistani. But then again, I don't really consider myself the typical American-Pakistani plagued with identity issues. I'm sure that makes me much less annoying (you're welcome). In the past, I used to stay with my extended family: aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. (who ranged anywhere from lower-middle class to simply middle class). So prior to this trip, I had an incomplete idea about what the state of education was like in Pakistan. I mean, I knew there was a system in place, but I didn't know how useless it really was. I remember my cousins spent a lot time with private tutors getting additional help. In fact, a lot of them would cut classes or school al...

I'm on vacation right now in Karachi and I shouldn't blog, but I have to. I left for vacation the day my Algebra students took their New York State Regents Examinations. I would be lying if I said I wasn't curious as to how they did. Actually, it's been a dull hunger that goes away with just the right amount of entertainment, but comes right back the second I'm not in the moment with something. I mean for fuck's sake, they're my students, I ought to know how they did. When I logged in for the first time yesterday and saw the summary of results, I felt a variety of things. Pride wasn't one of them. The initial numbers were quite disappointing.  Fuck man, there were a lot of failures. There were success stories too, and a few very surprising success stories (and I mean very surprising - which makes me question a lot of other things). I let my emotions get the best of me because I immediately closed the spreadsheet and put my fist to my mouth. Is it...

On Saturday, May 1st, 2010, Faisal Shahzad allegedly left a SUV packed with propane gas tanks, firecrackers, and fertilizer in Times Square with the intent to blow things up. Fortunately, the vehicle was spotted smoking and authorities were able to dismantle the explosives just in time. When I first heard the suspect's name was Faisal Shahzad, I thought, "Shit, that name sounds Pakistani." When his background was revealed over the past week, I thought, "Fuck." It appears Faisal Shahzad is not only Pakistani, but he's also an American citizen. He's married, he worked in finance and has ties to the city of Karachi, Pakistan. That's... me (and a shit ton of other people I know). Apparently, I wasn't the only one who made this connection: "Yo Mista, that terrorist look just like you. Ain't you say you was from Pakistan too? AND you was in finance, right? So did you know him or something?" Yeah, all Pakistanis know each other and ...

My mother stopped talking to me after I told her I was in love and wanted to get married. It's easy to assume I was a dumb kid acting on my emotions, but we dated for years before I told my mom. I had to know that what we had was the real deal before growing a pair and telling her I was dead serious. Why were my panties in a bundle over this? Well, here are some reasons... My significant other does not come from a family that practices the same sect of Islam as my mother does. This matters because my mother has grown extremely conservative since moving to the United States. I suppose it might have a little to do with her friends and her missing home in Pakistan. She blames marrying an alcoholic (Hi Dad!) on the premise of, "I was young and in love, so I didn't know any better." As a result, "You won't get married to anyone unless I approve" was something I heard on a daily basis. All sons have close relationships with their mothers, especially the...

I finally got a chance to see this . Overall, I thought this piece was very interesting, informative and well... depressing. I have plans to move to Pakistan in a few years. They're not finalized just yet, but they are plans none-the-less. Do notice how I didn't say "move back to Pakistan..." I wasn't born there but for some reason I still feel attached to the country. Perhaps it's because I used to visit often during the summer. Or maybe it's because most of my closest friends are South Asian and they remind me of how great the culture of friendship is there. Whatever it is, I don't think I could ever forget the place. If I end up there and things don't get better, I might just decide to stay in education. Call me crazy, but just thinking about doing something good over there (regardless of how little of an impact I might have) gets me excited. I feel motivated. I want experience so I can help in any way possible. I have a lot to learn, ...