Thursday is Persian New Year, or Nowruz, which marks first day of spring. The ancient tradition originates with the Zoroastrians of Persia, but is now a secular holiday uniformly celebrated by Iranians and their cultural cousins around the world.
The heart of the occasion is a festive table set with the symbols of spring — fresh flowers, colored eggs, the goldfish in its bowl — and an arrangement of seven symbolic items known whose names start with the letter "s" in Farsi.
And Lili Ghazian, an Iranian-American entrepreneur in San Jose, is working to make sure anyone who wants to partake in the celebration, which dates back to at least 1700 B.C., can have all the necessary ingredients dropped at their doorstep.