The size of the movement is often expanded to reflect its impact. In Modernity and the Milennium Cole wrote: "[The Babi] movement spread like wildfire through Iran, and by 1849 one European observer estimated that there were one hundred thousand Babis (in a population of about six million Iranians). This estimate, however, is little more than a guess and may be exaggerated." Cole is describing a "wildfire" that burns one tree out of a hundred, more of a controlled burn.

My birthday is Sunday. Usually I love it (holiday of meeeeee!), but I don't have high expectations this year. Probably just dinner with whoever wants to go out on a school-night/can find a wrangler for their baby. The holidays in general just seem tiresome to me. I used to really enjoy them, so I hate that I've turned into one of those people for whom the holidays are difficult emotionally.

Not particularly emotional one way or the other about turning 28. Am emotional about running into the 25 year old double doctor (MD+ PhD) I know today. In typical Israeli fashion she was all "Why aren't you done yet?" Thanks doll, I already feel terrible about myself. Now you know why I don't go to beer night often!

My Dad continues to become more and more enmeshed in Lynn's life. He drives her kids around and goes to their school concerts and has weekly dinners with her family. I can't do anything to stop it, so I'm just trying to detach from the situation. This is the one thing that disturbs me about my plan to move to DC when I come back to the states. It would be easier to not care if I'm remote and not having this crap shoved in my face constantly.

I thought I would always be someone who was close to her family. Turns out that's just another thing that sucks about my mom dying. Plenty of people aren't close to their families. At least I have good friends.