Loving the research :)

Did you know, the oldest standing mosque in this country is in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and the oldest was in Ross, North Dakota? This was in the late 20s and 30s. What were they doing there? It makes me wonder http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother_Mosque_of_America

Their records were destroying in a flood, which is a shame because we lost a bit of American history as well as Muslim history

How were the greeted? How were they treated? Why did they go where they did?

I love research
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The other thing I've been up to, since the new book will be centered in NYC, is, I've been shopping at all the Middle Eastern stores in the neighborhood. Interesting places. Nice people. My favorite is owned by Two Romanians and a Turk, the meat department is run by Lebanese men, and the guy behind the register is a Jew from Israel.

The Indian spice store is run by a lady from Bangladesh, and the people who work there are Turkish and Romanian

Their products are excellent, half the price of supermarkets, and they're against genetically modified foods. They believe (as I do) that it's a sin to mess with the gifts we've been given.

Their bread tastes like bread, their butter tastes like butter, and their coffee and tea taste like that :)

When the store owners saw our interest in food, and we asked questions, they were very nice. They're not used to white people coming around asking for masoor dal or urad. Maybe, in the sparkly Middle Eastern stores on Queens Boulevard, but not the small neighborhood stores.

Every smoke shop, or 99 cent store around here is owned by Indian people for some reason, and in all of them, there's a corner, or aisle, dedicated to food from their country. I have rice and grains from all over the world. Got a quart of cold pressed extra virgin olive oil from Beirut today for $6. It's the same quality as the $25 organic :)

Life is good. Research keeps me learning, and loving

Oh, yeah, the wife is convinced I'm going to leave her for a Muslim woman :D

She does this with every book

In fairness, I have to look at people as my main character would. He falls in love with a Indian Muslim woman. It's not hard to see the beauty in people who treat you nicely, so, I've fallen in love a dozen times this week :)

I found an article about a Muslim woman who opened a clinic in North Carolina because it was her life's dream to treat women who couldn't qualify for health insurance. http://www.onislam.net/english/news/americas/454952-muslim-opens-free-clinic-for-carolina-poor.htmlCool lady

I sent chapter one to my favorite beta reader today, and she wants more :)

Life is good