Currently Reading:
It’s pretty good so far, and I find myself saying “so true” to practically every point. What I like about it, is that the book is written by a husband and a wife. So it’s definitely not biased, or putting down one sex and favoring the other. It’s a sequel to “Why Men Don’t Listen and Women Can’t Read Maps”, which I will pick up after I’m done with this book. I wish I could sit with my husband and go through it together, just for fun, but I don’t think that would interest him. :(
I will just randomly write excerpts from there, as a topic starter.
Men ask directly for what they want. Women, in their evolved role as the peacemaker, shy away from saying exactly what they want, when they want it.
This is very true, especially in my case - one thing I hate about myself, I will never say exactly what I want. I won’t come out and say, let’s do this…..let’s go here to eat, I want to watch this. I always sit back and let others choose what they want to do, I let them make the decisions. I will change this about myself, because at the end of the day, I end up not enjoying myself - when I could have, if I had just spoken up.
Same as in relationships, I assume my husband will know what I want, and will get frustrated when he doesn’t. (obviously, he is not a mind reader) but we, women believe that our husbands should be able to read us and know what’s going on in our minds.
Currently Reading:
Kabul Beauty School.
So far, pretty interesting!
Synopsis:
Soon after the fall of the Taliban, in 2001, Deborah Rodriguez went to Afghanistan as part of a group offering humanitarian aid to this war-torn nation. Surrounded by men and women whose skills–as doctors, nurses, and therapists–seemed eminently more practical than her own, Rodriguez, a hairdresser and mother of two from Michigan, despaired of being of any real use. Yet she soon found she had a gift for befriending Afghans, and once her profession became known she was eagerly sought out by Westerners desperate for a good haircut and by Afghan women, who have a long and proud tradition of running their own beauty salons. Thus an idea was born.
With the help of corporate and international sponsors, the Kabul Beauty School welcomed its first class in 2003. Well meaning but sometimes brazen, Rodriguez stumbled through language barriers, overstepped cultural customs, and constantly juggled the challenges of a postwar nation even as she learned how to empower her students to become their families’ breadwinners by learning the fundamentals of coloring techniques, haircutting, and makeup.
Yet within the small haven of the beauty school, the line between teacher and student quickly blurred as these vibrant women shared with Rodriguez their stories and their hearts: the newlywed who faked her virginity on her wedding night, the twelve-year-old bride sold into marriage to pay her family’s debts, the Taliban member’s wife who pursued her training despite her husband’s constant beatings. Through these and other stories, Rodriguez found the strength to leave her own unhealthy marriage and allow herself to love again, Afghan style.
With warmth and humor, Rodriguez details the lushness of a seemingly desolate region and reveals the magnificence behind the burqa. Kabul Beauty School is a remarkable tale of an extraordinary community of women who come together and learn the arts of perms, friendship, and freedom.
