Last night Seattlest went to Town Hall to hear Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini read from his new novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns. Hosseini's first novel, The Kite Runner was in many ways a phenomenal achievement and by all accounts, the new book has surpassed even the most hopeful of expectations.

Hosseini was well spoken, thought provoking. He not only read from his novel but also spoke about his work with the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) and about the Darfur crisis. It was a truly inspiring evening.

But this post isn't about that. This is about some very basic rules for attending an event such as this.

1. Turn off your fucking cell phone.

2. When you hear someone else's cell phone ring or sing or play "My Humps" it's a good time to check to see if you, yourself have turned off your fucking cell phone.

3. During the Q&A, do not keep saying "One more question." You had your question. We're sure you absolutely love to hear yourself speak, but guess what? There are other people in this world besides you.

4. Just because you can't articulate a proper question, doesn't give you the right to yell from the back of the room about what you meant by the question blah blah blah... Shut up. Shut up. Shut up. Again, there are other people in this world besides you. Shut up.

5. For the love of God, Jah, Allah, Yahweh, do not ask Khaled Hosseini where Osama Bin Laden is. You're not funny, you twit.