DEPARTED FROM
Amman, Jordan
ARRIVED IN
Seattle, Washington
YEAR
1974
AGE
18
NOW LIVES IN
Seattle, Washington
TRANSCRIPT
Transcriber: Julia Tanenbaum
MZ: My first year is 74. October 24, 1974. It was the middle of winter. It was freezing cold, which I’m not used to. I came, I was going to go back home. You know what I did the first day? I was starved, freaking starving. My cousin took me to Harveys restaurant and he bought me a hamburger, and I looked at it and said, “you know the hell this one is going to bring me.”
Actually, it was a fun month. I got to meet a lot of international students cause’ I had three cousins and a brother here in the states. But it was fun meeting all those international students, not to mention my brother’s friends, American friends. You know?
Everybody wanted to know something about the middle east, you know, how it is. And especially most of the ignorant people who never knew anything about the middle east. Ah, do you grow your own tomatoes? Like we are living in a no man land or something. I say yeah, we grow everything you’re growing here you guys. You know, what’s the difference? So I took summer school and then continued at the University of Washington. So I got in the [inaudible] like you guys. And I was so good. I was, really, so they asked me to keep working all summer, but I got a full time job in 1978 in December, actually. That's when, eh, my wife got pregnant and I had to have a full time job. [laughs]
So when it comes to my culture I have very little change, but I stick with my middle eastern culture, but I live my life the way I feel like it, I say. I always did, to be honest with you, whether it's here or there. I always live my life my way.
