Sand Babies

Tom

2009-11-18T15:21:00.001+04:00

For Lyra. A story for me and you.

This is a butterfly his name is Tom. Tom has no family he is sad because he has no family and friends. Then Tom saw a butterfly. He made a friend with the butterfly. Tom is happy now :-). The butterfly is a girl. The name is Arora.

Screaming Like a Little Girl

2009-11-17T12:01:00.004+04:00

Yesterday at dinner, Lyra related a story from the playground

L: Yesterday, I almost did the splits when I was playing on the gymnasium.
Me: What happened
L: Well, I was stepping across to the spiral thing and when I stepped my foot started to go down the spiral. I was standing there almost in the splits. I screamed and Dromo and Faisal laughed at me
Me: Why did they laugh? Were they being mean ?
L: No, they thought it was funny because I screamed I sounded like a little girl.
Russ: How apropos.

While out in the desert Saturday night a creepy crawly creature approached our bonfire. It was a Camel Spider. Jack, the neighbor boy, discovered it. Poor Jack, he was quite distraught afterward. Quite a bit of a shock to the system. At first we all thought it might be a scorpion, but upon closer inspection it was determined to be a Camel Spider. We rounded it up into a cup to bring home. Lyra now has it in her "Creature Keeper" which is a small terrarium she got with a goldfish one time. We're keeping it until Aunt Amy and Mary come.

Yesterday, I did a little research on Camel Spiders so we'd know what to feed it. Seems like most bugs or other creepy crawlies will do. Russell's been trying to catch some flies - but I think it needs a bit more sustenance. Maybe a cricket or two.

Here's a picture of a camel spider that most looks like the one we found.

Actually, a camel spider is NOT a spider. It is actually a member of the arachnid family, but is a completely separate species. It is called a Solifugae - which means it tries to get away from the sun. Although completely creepy, it is quite innocuous for humans. It has no venom and is mostly docile.

But that doesn't stop me from wanting to scream like a little girl when I see it. Ugggh, yuck.

For a few more facts on camel spiders, here's a good link: http://jimmeads.blogspot.com/2008/11/arachophobia-camel-spiders-sarah-called.html

Car Naps

2009-11-04T08:35:00.001+04:00

How does she stand having her head back like that?

Last week, Lyra had to bring a national food from home to the school for the other kids to taste. By coincidence, Russell had some golabki (Polish cabbage roles) that she could bring. She had to prepare a little sign that was submitted with her food. It asked things like "What country is it from?" or "When do you eat it?" - I think meaning is it a special holiday food. Lyra's answer was "3 o'clock". Which cracked me up.

Also, we've lost our ability for secret spelling. Today I was asking Russ if we would carve the P-U-M-P-K-I-N-S tonight and she turned to me, "Pumpkins?" uh oh - on to a new era. I wonder if she knows Pig Latin.

I met a Sheikh

2009-10-27T19:23:00.002+04:00

So, today we had a bunch of business meetings and I was invited to present to the Board of Directors for our JV in Saudi Arabia. Our JV partner there is a Sheikh. Whenever I go to our offices in Jeddah, I always use his office. But he's never been in the office at the same time as me. So, in all these years we've never met.

What's a Sheikh like? Pretty nice and down to earth actually. I'm not sure what he's Sheikh of though. Not exactly sure how that works in Saudi. Does he have a little Sheikhdom in Saudi Arabia or is it just a title? He's from a pretty influential family and he has a lot of interactions with the royal family there, but I'm pretty sure that Sheikh's are not rulers in Saudi Arabia the way they are here in the Emirates.

Hmm, something to google.

It's Snowing!

2009-10-21T10:23:00.001+04:00

More old videos of Lyra. We'll be excited to come back to snow. Not so excited about the cold though.

She Reads

2009-10-18T18:06:00.002+04:00

Here and there throughout the summer, Russell and I would remember to bring out Lyra's reading lists. We'd review a few lists to see if she remembered her words. For the most part she did, but no huge gains in progress. But as soon as school started - something must have clicked. The first time she had Library Day, she came home with a chapter book called Rainbow Fairies. I found her sitting on the steps or curled up on the couch reading it. How fun to see her enjoying books and looking so grown up all of a sudden.

They're Baaaaaack

2009-10-12T10:50:00.002+04:00

About March or April, this town started to empty. People were getting laid off and leaving the country. Where there used to be long stretches of traffic for miles - now it was free flowing and easy. The rumors were running rampant! 1,000 cars a day were abandoned at the airport, holes for new building foundations were being filled in, cranes were being dismantled, the only projects left would be high visibility government projects like the Metro and Burj Dubai.

Everyone was sure that come the end of the school year, thousands more would leave and never come back. Slowly but surely the city seemed more and more empty. I returned in July and it seemed like I was one of just a few people here. Parking was easy, restaurant reservations were available, HUGE sales were on enticing folks to buy. But no one was here. And we all wondered if folks would return.

It's normal for the city to empty in the summer. Kids go home with one of the parents, lots of people here take 4 or 5 week vacations back in their homelands, and the only folks left are those who have to be. But this year, it seemed different - it REALLY was empty. And no one was sure if people would come back.

Ramadan started in the middle of August - and a lot of schools decided to delay the first day of school until after the end of Ramadan. Our school returned for about 3 weeks and then we had a 1 - week break. All during Ramadan, everyone would wonder how many people were really coming back.

And so, for 3 weeks now, we've been back. Ramadan is over. Swine flu delays are over. The hot weather is finishing. And . . . they're back. Traffic hasn't recovered to pre-meltdown days. But certainly we're back to the traffic levels of March/April. It took me an hour to get into work today - and earlier this summer it was taking 20 minutes. Oh well - it was nice to have the place to ourselves for a little while.

She's so cute

2009-10-12T10:33:00.002+04:00

Thinking Required

2009-10-01T14:53:00.003+04:00

This is a picture of the driveway that goes past the entrance to my building. It is a one-way drive for dropping off passengers and then loops back to join the main road. Right now, there's road construction going on at the end of the drive and so you can't rejoin the main road. So, they've closed the driveway. But look where they've put the pylons - not up toward the drive entrance (where you see that woman walking), but here at the door. It's been like this for weeks.

I guess they think that this allows drivers to pull in for passenger drop off. But once the passenger is out, the driver has to reverse back up the drive and reverse into traffic on the main road to get out. I see things like this and shake my head. Yesterday there was a little traffic jam as a car and 2 taxis had pulled in for drop off. The rear-most taxi couldn't see that the road was blocked and kept honking and wondering why the front car wasn't moving along. Meanwhile a van pulls up behind the rear taxi - but is still in traffic and the traffic starts to build up behind him. As I walked in the door, everyone was busily honking their horns (of course that is the miraculous cure for all traffic jams) and no one was getting out to explain that everyone needed to reverse about 30 yards to let the first car out.

I wandered in wondering if this traffic snarl might finally convince building security to put the blockade down closer to the main road. But as you can see - nothing has changed.

Birthday Bash

2009-10-01T14:31:00.002+04:00

So, your daughter's turning 1? You and your wife decide to celebrate this important occasion with friends and family. But maybe you're not sure how to go about it.

1. Plan the event on a school night at 8pm.
2. Be sure everyone knows to bring their kids - especially the ones that have school in the morning.
3. When everyone arrives, arrange for some friendly chit chat for an hour. No, make that two.
4. At 10pm, bring out the cake and candle.
5. While everyone is singing Happy Birthday, start bringing in the dinner. Make sure that you've put on a huge spread.
6. At 10:45, say good-bye to your guests and their nearly catatonic children.

One of the guys on my team followed this plan to the letter. Although the timing was unusual, it was a nice evening. I didn't read the invitations very well and failed to notice that the start time had moved from 7pm to 8pm. So, I rushed over after all my meetings hoping that my arrival at 7:45 wasn't too late. Needless to say, I was the first to arrive.

It was me and his father-in-law, who is an extremely friendly man, alone in a big party room for about 20 minutes. I enjoyed talking to him, even though I felt embarassed about arriving so early. I'm really bad at chitter chatter - but he kept up his end of the conversation nicely. Within 5 minutes I had an invitation to stay with him and his wife at their home in Bombay. He's thrilled to offer us a personalize insider tour. If I ever get there, I'm definitely going to look him up. I can tell he's one of those sorts that knows every nook and cranny of a place.

Numerous times during the evening I was asked where Lyra and Russell were. I explained that she was in bed and really it was past her bedtime. Earlier in the week, I had thought they could come and then maybe organize a quick get away. But looking back I can see that there is no way a get away would have been possible unless someone in the family started throwing up or otherwise indicating serious illness. People here are SO hospitable that they really can't understand that you wouldn't want to visit for hours and hours. They really were almost hurt that I didn't bring Lyra and Russell for a visit - but it would have been a nightmare scenario this morning at 6am alarm clock.

I Can't Hear You

2009-09-30T15:58:00.003+04:00

Lately, I can't hear the morning call to prayer and I wonder why. It's particularly odd since the timing right now is about 10 minutes before my alarm goes off. And usually, I'm in a semi-alert state by then anyway. This morning - I could hear a faint sound if I strained my ears. What's up with that?

I wonder if I've just become "immune" to it. You know, like living with a cuckcoo clock - after a while you just don't hear the sound any more. But I would have thought that if I was actively straining to hear the call that I would be able to. And this morning I could barely hear them.

Maybe it's the A/C fan that is on in the room. It's still hot enough here for the A/C to be running 24 hours a day - and even at 5:20am it's running. It is pretty loud - enough to mask most sounds. But when we first moved in (almost exactly 2 years ago) I could hear the call as plain as day each morning. And we had the A/C running non-stop then, too.

The only other thing I can think of is that the mosque-guys have turned down the volume. I'd be surprised by that - really. The whole purpose of the call is to wake up the neighborhood. Turning down the volume seems counter productive to that objective.

So, it's a mystery.

What to Wear?

2009-09-27T10:09:00.002+04:00

Amygirl asked "do you find yourself buying and wearing different styles than you would have in the past?" (thanks for the question).

Actually, I think my clothing changes are due more to climate differences than because of accommodations for the culture here.

These days, flip flops are standard daily attire. I throw them on when heading out for yoga, slip them on to walk the dog, or wear them at the grocery store. There's hardly a day that goes by that I don't wear flip flops. And at work, I never wear socks or nylons anymore. The thought of encasing my feet and legs in warm fabric is seems suffocating. Back in the US, I was pretty conservative about my work dress and there's rarely a day that I didn't weare socks or tights - especially with heels. So, I guess my footwear has changed pretty dramatically.

I do try and keep my shoulders and thighs covered if I'm out. I try not to wear sleeveless tops or shorts. But I think my shift away from shorts has more to do with being in my mid-40s than with being here. I don't like the spider veins on my legs - and I was already getting a bit uncomfortable in shorts that didn't cover most of my thighs. And with the sleeveless tops - I'm probably about 50-60% of the time. Just yesterday I was out with a tank top on. But I was at our Mirdif mall where a lot of westerners go - so I don't feel awkward. But if I were down in the older part of town near the souks, I'd definitely have my shoulders covered.

A few weeks ago, I was going through my closet trying to clear out a few things. I usually have a rule that if I haven't worn it in a year then it should go out. But it was harder to apply this rule with so many of my cold weather clothes. There are suits and trousers here that I've never worn. And I think that I'll wear them again when we're back in cooler climate. But sometimes I wonder if they'll look dated by then. So, I did toss quite a few things - but still kept a lot. It's hard when the outside temps are near 110C to really look at lined wool trousers and feel like you'll ever want to put them on (ugh).

So that's it really. I don't need to cover my head or wear an abaya in Dubai. I have that for visits to Saudi - where it's only necessary for me to wear the abaya. We have a friend who just recently moved to Yemen - and she wears both a head cover and an abaya - but she still looks like a "brazen westerner" since she allows some of her hair to be seen and she doesn't cover her entire face (which most Yemeni women are fully covered except the eyes).

Home for 3 Hours

2009-09-17T23:14:00.003+04:00

I just got in from my business trip to Brussels and now we're packed and heading out the door for a short break to Thailand. About 10 years ago, Russell and I had a trip to Thailand nearly booked. We were on our way to make the reservations and then something came up at work - I can't even remember now what it was. But so, Thailand has been in the back of our minds for a while.

Ramadan should be finished on Sunday. And we'll have a 2-day break. Lyra is off all week. And with our time here coming to an end, we feel like we have to take every opportunity to head out and do something. Amazingly, Thailand is a 6 hour flight away (closer than Brussels!) and only 3 hours time difference. So, with some recent price incentives to get tourists back there it felt like the right thing to do.

We're only there for 4 days, so we've decided to spend all our time on Phuket - an island on the southern end of Thailand. Russell will go scuba diving. Lyra is really excited to try and snorkle. So, hopefully she and I can tag along with the scuba boat and see some exciting fish and coral. Other than a few boat trips, I'll be hitting the sun beds and lounging by the pool/beach. I can't wait.

If you're looking for me, I'll be here.

Sorry, I'm Swamped

2009-09-17T00:19:00.002+04:00

I can feel you all looking at me - whoever's left browsing this blog. You come and check for something and there's nothing updated.

I'm sorry. My work life has been crazy and I'm just feeling totally uncreative when I get home.

But, I think of you often. And I wonder what I should be telling you. And the longer I let my writer's break go, the more I felt that my first post should be fantastic - and the more intimidated I felt.

So, here's my first post after a long break. It says nothing, but at least maybe now I'll get myself back into the blogging grove again.

During my break, in my desperate attempt to find something stellar to say, I've realized how difficult it is to see things in Dubai with a fresh set of eyes. So much is familiar to me - I forget to notice it anymore. And then I'm not reminded to blog it. Do you have any questions? Anything to help me get started?

Lyra started school about 3 weeks ago. After her first day at school she told me, "I think I'm too little for first grade." When I queried a bit she commented that there aren't any toys in the classroom. Ahhh, yes - well those playing days are behind you. My friend Karen was telling me how amazing first grade was for her daughter; that the transformation is incredible.

Already, in 3 short weeks, Lyra has gone from struggling her way to reading word lists - to now checking out chapter books in the library. Somewhere along the line, she's learned to read. Russell and I have been working a bit with her, but certainly it hasn't been a huge focus. Now and again, we'd quiz her on a word here or there - or pull out her assignments from K5 and see if she remembered her words. And it seemed like she was maintaining over the summer, but no huge gains. And then school started and it's like BANG, she can read.

The other morning, she was sitting on the steps waiting for Russell and I. She had her book from the library and was reading it. Seemed like such a grown up thing for her to be doing. I'm glad. Reading is such a joy for me. So, I'm glad to see her on the way to immersing herself in books.

Next week is a vacation (already) for the end of Ramadan. We'll be going to Thailand. Can't wait to sample the great curries.

Working From Home

2009-08-12T08:04:00.002+04:00

So, today I'm working from home. Why? Because we have no power in our building. We had a call from the electric company on Monday that they would be shutting power in our building from 7am to 2pm. Isn't there a way to do these works during the night? or on the weekend? Sooner or later, when living here, you learn not to ask these questions.

So, it's not just our business - I work in a 30-story office tower. So, everyone is home today from all these businesses. And I just wonder how that would go down in the US if the electric company just started announcing power outages during business hours.

It's the same with the telephone company, too. We recently experienced several issues with the telephone lines running to one of our offices. We worked for MONTHS (yes, months) to get the telephone company to help us understand what the problem was. It was unbelievable. And then, when we finally decided that we needed to run a new line - they would only schedule the works during the day. There working hours are 8 to 3 (yep, 3pm). Nevermind that this was our Customer Service hub and that all our customers would be unable to contact us for a day.

And speaking of services. I'm on my third try to get the repairmen to come here and fix the A/C in Lyra's room. Saturday - no show. Frustrating thing is when you call them they say, "Oh yeah, we couldn't come." No hint of an idea that maybe they could have called you. Sunday I came home early from work - again, no show. So today when working from home I will hopefully have success. I called yesterday and asked them to come. They told me, call us tomorrow and see if we can come. Aggghhh, can't you just schedule me in for tomorrow? I'm calling you now - I don't want to call tomorrow.

If you remember last year's stresses with the refrigerator repair - I think this year I'm more prepared. I know not to fight it. You only end up getting yourself all tied up into knots and it doesn't change anything. Believe me, I've tried. I've called the supervisor. I've called the manager. I've called the Director. Nothing changes.

One HOT Mama

2009-08-05T15:09:00.002+04:00

So, after our dust storms, I was getting used to the reduced heat in the city. The dust was doing its job to keep us all a bit cooler (like closer to 105 than 115). But today, walking at lunch time, it's back to hot and sweltering. In fact, hot would be the wrong term. Hot is a summer day in Milwaukee. This is roasting or sizzling. Definitely hot would be an understatement.

Although my walk was only 200m, I was peeling off my blazer when I got back to the office - aaaah the chill of air conditioning. Why was I wearing my blazer? Because I have on a sleeveless shirt and I'm a bit sensitive to showing my arms here. I'm always torn between being culturally sensitive or being comfortable. Actually, the blazer helps a bit - keeps some of the sun off and in a way helps keep me cool - but once I heat up, then it's really roasting.

One more month of sizzling heat. Then come September we'll start seeing things get back to just plain ol' hot.

It's Dusty

2009-08-02T12:23:00.002+04:00

No need to adjust your screens. This photo - although the quality is poor - is trying to show you how dusty it is. We've had dust storms since last Wednesday. Ugh.

I can hear down the corridors and halls everyone coughing in the office. I haven't bothered to cover my mouth outside - only because I'm barely outside. Best just to stay in and wait till it clears. Only good thing is that the temps have dropped quite a bit. Most days, temps are barely up to 100. And I saw that we may actually get overnight lows in to the 80s tonight.

I was glancing down at the constructions sites to see if any of the workmen are wearing face masks. Many of them have rigged up a bandana around their face, but most are working without one. This certainly has to be taking years off their life.

Oh, by the way, that long white building that you see closest to you is a new hall being added to our convention center. Supposedly there is a royal wedding booked for October in that building. I'll believe it when I see it.

Getting the Car Washed

2009-07-30T11:31:00.003+04:00

People here are fanatical about a clean car. Most in the office will have their cars washed every day. A car wash guy or the house maid will clean the car in the morning before they leave for work. If you don't have a car wash guy, then all of the shopping centers have guys that patrol the parking lots and will wash your car while you shop. Given the dustiness of this place - definitely a regular car wash is needed. We get ours done weekly - and sometimes by the end of the week my car can look like an abandoned vehicle at the DMV.

Just after we moved in a man came by the house and offered to wash our cars. We knew he needed the money and it was a way to help him with a little cash. At first he was coming by on Friday morning - very early before the heat of the day. He'd was our two cars and the neighbors'. He was a real sweet guy. For two years he always came. Very reliable and charged a reasonable price.

One Thursday evening in June, he was washing the cars and he disappeared. He left behind his bicycle (a precious possession) and all the car wash gear was left out. None of us saw what happened. Juliette, our neighbor, stored his bicycle in their garage and we waited for his return. Unfortunately, he's never come back. We speculate that maybe the police stopped and he was detained for not having the right visa. I'm pretty sure we'll never know. We never did know his name. He'll forever be Car Wash Guy to us.

So, the entire time that we were back in the states, the cars remained unwashed. Believe me, they accumulated a lot of dust in those 4 weeks. So, last weekend, I brought out the hose and readied myself to wash the cars. Really - you would not believe what a fuss I raised with the house men nearby. It was more than they could bear - and also an opportunity for a little extra cash. So while I was washing, the house man from across the road came over to offer to wash the car. I told him he could come once a week. But I don't think he understood.

On Wednesday, Linda told me that he had been coming by each day to wash the car - but I had forgotten to tell her that I'd made this arrangement. She had been sending him away, but finally she relented and let him was the car yesterday. This morning, the doorbell rang at 6am. When I mumbled through the intercom, "Madam - wash car" was the response. When I got downstairs, I tried to communicate that he only needed to come 1 time per week - but he wasn't really understanding. So, he called his brother to come over who spoke much better English. I tried to negotiate the same rate that we had with our previous Car Wash Guy - but no deal. He wanted 200 Dhs.

Well, I've come into the office since and consulted with the guys on my team. They tell me that 200 Dhs is too much - unless he's doing it every day. But rather than re-negotiate myself, I'm going to wait until Russell gets back and have him do it. They'll listen to him better then me. One of my team members is from Pakistan and I told him I may call him and have him speak to them in Urdu. I'm sure to get a better deal this way.

In the meantime, our cars are clean. At least for now.

Summer Ghost Town

2009-07-29T11:16:00.002+04:00

It's normal for Dubai to feel empty in the summer. There's nothing to do here. The days are too hot and sunny. The kids go mad with boredom. You can only visit a mall so many times before you're stir crazy. So, most families will pack up and head home for a few weeks (or months).

This year, with the economic downturn, the streets are empty. Traffic jams that used to cause me 30 to 40 minutes of queing are now free-flowing without any back up. Hmmm. Partly this is because it's summer. But also, I think a lot of people are just gone. Everyone here is waiting to see what happens after Ramadan (which ends around Sept 20 this year). Will people be back?

I think it will be years until we see the peak levels that occurred sometime around Sept/Oct last year. But even to see things back to pre-summer levels would be encouraging.

Part of the reason so many people have gone is because if you lose your job here - then you lose your visa. They've extended the rules to give people about 6 months to find another job, but if you remain unemployed after that, then you have to leave. Also, if you find that you can't pay your bills while your unemployed - you go to jail. Yep - go to jail. So, people get scared if they think that they're going to miss a car payment or bounce a rent check and they just scram.

Seems a bit counterproductive to put someone in jail for bouncing a check. Doesn't really seem to help them stay on their feet for a while until they can sort something out. But that's the way it is. And I'm pretty sure once those folks leave they better stay away because they're on some sort of police list or something. I know I wouldn't chance it.

Anyway - now I've sold you on the idea of coming here. Don't worry - you're a tourist. Actually, because of the slow summer - there are great bargains everywhere. I was just reviewing this website (http://www.timeoutdubai.com/hotels/features/9569-best-summer-hotel-deals-in-dubai) for hotel deals in the city. If you've ever wanted a super luxurious holiday - now's the time to come to Dubai. We've actually taken advantage of one of these deals and we're going to the Palm Atlantis at the end of August for a last splash (literally) before school starts. About $225/night gets us a hotel room AND free entrance to their water park. Meals are not included - and I'm sure they'll try to make up for the freebies with high prices on the dinners. I'm sure we'll find a way to have some snacks/drinks in the room to help defer those costs.

Which Way Do I Go?

2009-07-26T17:50:00.000+04:00

Only in Dubai.

I'm Back

2009-07-25T12:22:00.007+04:00

Oh what a trip it was. As usual, a blast to be back home to see friends and family. Makes it difficult to come back here. Russell & Lyra will be back in mid-August and then school starts on August 30.

Our trip to the US started with a visit to good friends Pam & Jerry in Michigan. Their daughter, Ellia, and Lyra have been mates since they were tiny babies in China. One day, we ditched the girls and summer camp, rented scooters and headed off to tour the beautiful area around their home city, St. Joseph, MI. Russell and I both enjoyed seeing Lake Michigan on the other side. Lot of great family things to do over there if you're looking for a quick getaway.

The beaches were beautiful and the water temps great for splashing. Of course the girls got in and had a blast jumping into the waves and playing in the sand.

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Lyra enjoyed holding this lizard on her lap and Ellia bravely stood nearby.

Random Photos

2009-06-29T19:52:00.012+04:00

Isn't this cool? I can't remember what it it's called. A leaf something. We saw it at the aqaurium in the Dubai Mall a couple of monts ago. I was totally fascinated watching it float around.

Updated: A leaf seahorse. Thanks, Mimi :-)

Here's Lyra with Mrs. Nasser, her KG2 (which is 5-year old KG) teacher. We liked Mrs. Nasser.

I like the timing of these two shots (see the one below). The three of them must be looking at the same thing.

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Here's the Burj Dubai. Now that the window are on, it looks beautiful in the sunshine. Supposedly there will be an opening on September 9. But they're still putting on windows - so that "opening" won't really mean the building is done.

Note: That "small" building to the right is a 50-story hotel called The Address.

Food Chains

2009-06-18T12:40:00.001+04:00

If there's one way that America is spreading it's culture, it's through food chains. Of course everyone expects McDonald's, Burger King, and Starbucks. No doubt - they're here. But I was surprised to see how common Baskin & Robins (called B&R here), KFC and Dunkin Donuts is outside of the US. If anything, these restaurants are MORE prevalent than back home. You cannot go anywhere in Dubai without having a B&R nearby.

TGI Fridays is also everywhere. And Chili's, Pizza Hut, Applebees. I've never been to any of them here. Nothing against them, just feel a bit like I should be focusing on local food rather than stuff I can get at home.

The ones that really surprise me however are the chains that barely exist back home. Fudruckers, Gloria Jeans Coffee, and Tony Roma's for example. They must be focusing more on their international expansion. And Caribou Coffee - it's huge here and back home I just think of it as a Minnesota chain.

And where are the Taco Bells (one just opened) - they have definitely missed out on an expansion opportunity. Too busy selling the Beef-a-quita-rito to the masses in America, I guess.

Last week I was in Qatar. Across the road from my hotel was an Arby's, TCBY and Dairy Queen. That's the first I've seen any of those.

It's not all American chains - there are lots of local places, too. But Americans feel right at home here when it comes to junk food.

Cultural Differences

2009-06-17T08:24:00.003+04:00

Moving here - there were obvious cultural differences that we expected to encounter. We had some minimal cultural education - and read a lot about arab and muslim cultures. No matter how much education there was, there are some surprising differences that I just wasn't expecting. Like:

1. How to "nod" your head. In India, they have a little head "bobble". Kind of side to side. At first, I interpreted this to mean "whatever" or "if you insist" - instead it means "Yes." I still find this a little confusing in a conversation and have to remind myself that it means "yes."

2. What to do with toilet paper. In many of the older buildings with traditional plumbing - you are expected to throw your used toilet paper in a bin and not into the toilet. There are no signs instructing you to do this - it is just expected that you will. If you forget - you run the risk of serious plumbing clog. New buildings and plumbing are now built to handle toilet paper - but if in doubt, best to not flush.

3. Using a toothpick without covering your mouth is considered extremely rude and disgusting. You might as well be cleaning the toe jam from between your toes as far as people here are concerned.

4. Honking your car horn is a subtle message that means, "Hey, just to let you know I'm here." Even though I know it's not meant to be rude I still cannot stop myself from responding with ire. "YES - can you not wait 10 seconds for me to get out of my taxi?!?"

5. When we moved to England, I discovered that Baked Beans was a common pizza topping. For that matter, so was sweet corn. Hmmm - just had never really considered ordering a baked bean pizza. Here, pizza toppings are limited to non-pork options (for obvious reason). So, really difficult to order Pepperoni or Sausage - and if you do it's some sort of beef pepperoni or sausage which just doesn't have the same flavor.

6. You would think that answering the telephone and saying good-bye would be the same around the world. I mean, you can pick up your phone and call anyone in the world, so why don't we have the same telephone curtesies. In the UK, at the end of a telephone conversation, I never figured out what I was doing wrong, but it always felt like I'd say good-bye and then they'd say good-bye, and then rather than hang up - they'd hang on the line. Finally, I learned to say "Cheers, bye" at the end of the call - and that seemed to work, they'd hang up. Here, when people answer the telephone they always say, "Tell me, Julie". If they can see me on caller ID, that's how they answer the telephone - not even Hello. Or if after they say hello and I identify myself, then they will say "Tell me, Julie".

7. Tassels on men's dress shoes is 100% American. I cannot think of one single culture where the men have tassels on their dress shoes. If you see a man anywhere in the world with tassels on his dress shoes, you don't even have to ask - he's an American.

5.

Lyra's First Piano Recital

2009-06-16T08:53:00.000+04:00

Lyra's piano teacher, Miss Elena, is from the Ukraine. She is one of the most soft spoken people. But I noticed at the recital that all of her students had been taught how to come in and bow before taking their seat (I missed that in Lyra's entry) and then to bow again when leaving.

She has infinite patience with Lyra. Every lesson, she reviews the positioning of the fingers, keeping her knuckles soft, positiong her hands as if they were holding a tennis ball. Every lesson.

For the recital, this was the first time Lyra had played a grand piano. Up until now, she has been practicing on our Yamaha Clavinova (and the Clavinova they have in her practice cubicle at the music school).

Miss Elena came up to me afterward and said, "I jahst lahve Lyra. She is so beautiful wiss her white dress and zee blahck piano."

Going to Get Beer

2009-06-12T12:21:00.002+04:00

You can drink alcohol in the UAE, but you need a drinking license. In Dubai, if you have a resident permit, you need a license to purchase or consume alcohol. Visitors and vacationers can drink alcohol, but only on hotel properties. Technically, if you're staying with friends at their home, you're not allowed to drink on their property unless you have a license.

There are liquor stores in Dubai, but they charge about 30% duty on everything. So, usually we purchase our alcohol when we go through duty free or we go to Umm al Quwain, a nearby emirate. In UAQ, there's a store called the Baracuda where you can get booze without a liquor license and without paying duty. So, every few months or so, we head over there. It's about an hour drive.

It is hilarious to see people coming out of the shop with their shopping trolleys FULL - as they can barely steer the thing to their car. BIG smiles are on everyone's face. This time, we didn't need too much. Picked up some wine for the neighbors and also stocked up for Ramadan (which comes around August 22 this year). And since Russell & Lyra will just be getting back from the US the weekend before that, this way we don't have to rush over there - as they close for the entire month of Ramadan.

On the way, there is a stretch of road with free-range camels. Almost every time we see some on the road. So, I had my camera out and ready for some photos.

Praying

2009-06-05T18:43:00.000+04:00

In Islam, followers are required to pray 5 times a day. The praying times are based upon the sun rising and setting. First prayer is before sunrise and the last prayer is after sunset - and the rest are spaced pretty evenly throughout the day.

As a result, prayer is a common part of life here. In the US, where we're used to religion and praying being mostly a private thing - we can get uncomfortable with people expressing their religion in public. Especially praying - for the most part we view that as a very private moment.

Most commonly, people here will pray at mosques or prayer rooms. Almost all public buildings and offices will offer a prayer room. But if they don't, it's not unusual to see someone in the corner of a room praying, or in their office, or in the case of my photo below - on the roadside.

Hello, President Obama

2009-06-04T11:55:00.003+04:00

Welcome to my neck of the woods.

There's lots of buzz around having Obama here in the Arab world. People are excited that he's here and are looking forward to hearing what he has to say. Today, Obama is in Saudi and tomorrow he travels to Egypt.

There's a bit of controversy around the choice of Egypt for his "speech to the Muslim world". Many Egyptians are upset that it seems to validate Mubarek's dictatorship. Ah well, you can't please everyone.

I would have like to see Obama come here to Dubai - if only to compare the security to last year's totalitarian lock-down during Bush's visit.

Booking a Taxi

2009-06-03T16:41:00.002+04:00

On the back of every taxi in Dubai it says: Call Center 800 90 90 90.

You might think that if you'd like to book a taxi you should call this number. Nope. Don't ask me what they do - maybe they take complaints about the fact that the number on taxis is not the number used for booking taxis.

No, it is a totally different number that you call to book taxis. And the only way I know to find out that number for booking taxis is to call the above number, pretend to try and book a taxi, and then have them give you the other number you need to call. I deliberately say "pretend to try and book a taxi". Because if you call them and try to explain that you know they're not the booking number, but would like to get the booking number - you'll just confuse them and maybe they'll transfer you to another department which also can't book a taxi for you. So, better to just play dumb.

This is SO Dubai.

Obviously, I've now got the booking number stored in my Blackberry.

Igor (eee-gor)

2009-06-02T13:11:00.002+04:00

Lyra rented this movie yesterday. It's another one of those animation films with famous actors doing the voice-over. I'd never heard of it. When I got home last night - she was about 30 minutes from the end of the movie. I sat with her to watch the last bit - but mostly I was concentrating on eating my soup while sitting on the stairs and not spilling it on my work clothes.

When she was getting ready for bed, I asked her what the movie was about. Here's her synopsis:

Well a monster makes another monster. She's really really big and she doesn't know how to say anything. She talks like she's a baby. And another monster tells all the monsters that they need to be evil and that it should be dark all the time. But he was wrong. And so the big monster is trying to destroy everything, but the other monster - the one who made her - tells her that she doesn't need to be evil. And so, she was destroying every thing and then she stopped. It wasn't magic or anything, she just stopped. I don't really know how that happened.

I'm always fascinated by the details that she picks up on. Sometimes she will ask me, "Remember that movie where the dog was wearing the red collar?" - or something equally obscure. If I ask for more details, she'll sometimes be able to give a better clue. But often it will be something like, "You know, the one where the red collar was shiny and the dog was wearing it." If I'm still stumped, she pulls out the pre-teen angst - "You JUST DON'T GET IT!"

The other day - I overheard a similar dialogue with Russell and he responded with, "Don't get sassy with me - I'm trying to understand what you're saying." Tears ensued.

Lyra's especially emotional when she's going through a growth spurt. She ate three bowls of last night's soup and then a large breakfast this morning. Let this be a warning to us. Eggshell alert.

They're Moving the Road

2009-05-27T17:16:00.002+04:00

They're moving the street outside my office 6 feet to the left. It's hard to may be see it in the picture. It's a one-way frontage road along one of the main arteries of Dubai, Sheikh Zayed Road. On the right of the red & white barriers is where the current street runs. On the left is where the new road will go.

Why? All is a mystery.

Surrounded by Poverty

2009-05-27T09:50:00.000+04:00

An ironic thing about living in Dubai (and anywhere in the Middle East) is the amount of poverty that surronds you. Especially in Dubai - where the mad pursuit of luxury is the key them around here - it was a surprise to me to see the levels of poverty all around me.

The majority of the immigrant population here are laborers. Laborers are here by the millions - and queues continually forming for more to come. They work in the massive construction sites, are factory workers, are housemaids or nannies, take care of the gardens, work the fast food restaurants, deliver your dinner. Pretty much the same list of jobs you'd take as a high school or university summer job. Labor immigrants come primarily from the Sub-Continent (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh) or the South Pacific (Phillipines or Indonesia).

In both of these areas, the standard of living is like nothing we live with in the US. It is quite normal for a family of 10 or more (parents, grandparents, and children) to live in small one-room homes. During the night, sleep rolls are spread out as bedding for everyone. People sleep with arms and legs twined about each other through the night. Come morning, the beds are rolled up and the room becomes kitchen/sitting room for the rest of the day. And this is the working class not the poor. Usually people aren't starving (unless some natural disaster has occurred). But meals are simple (rice, fish or veg) and do not vary much from day to day.

For those laborers that come to Dubai, they come for the opportunity to send money back home to help take care of the grandparents and children. There is no minimum wage in Dubai, but there are laws about what an employer must provide for someone coming here to work for them. According to the law, employers must provide housing, transportation, clean water, food, and medical care - in addition to their salary. Their salary is anywhere from $200 - $500/month - depending upon job.

For many laborers, they are provided with a communal room/apartment. The room usually has 3 to 5 bunkbeds (depending upon size). Often there is a little cooker/kitchen area, a shower and bath room on each floor, and sometimes a TV or social room. Of course there is story after story of how this is not the case, it is true that people can be treated inhumanely. But these employers are breaking the law and as with everything there are horror stories. And when you consider what many of these people came from - we might find it overcrowded and lacking privacy whereas they may find it to be comfortable.

If the laborer is working in a household, they often will have their own small room with private bathroom located in the house (or just outside the front or back door). When you see these little small rooms for the first time, you wonder how could anyone live in these rooms. Our maid's quarters would qualify as a bedroom in the US. You can comfortably fit a single bed in there, but a double bed would fill the room. There is a private bath with shower off to the side. Up until now, it has been our basement/gararge storage area. And although it's perhaps more spacious, I wonder if it's a bit lonely.

And when you're surronded by this - and you hear what are the circumstances of people back home, it feels like you can do just a little bit to help them by "hiring" chores done. From the beginning, we've had someone coming over to clean the house. At first it was a couple days a week - and then we went to daily. We pay her about $220/month for a few hours cleaning each day. She nearly doubles her salary - and then we find out that she has to give this to her employer to re-imburse him. Although I wonder if he keeps only part of it - otherwise why would she do this? And when she works for us on Friday (her off day) - she gets to keep the money. We also have a man who comes by on Thursdays to wash the cars (and boy do they get dusty in one week). He washes both of ours and the neighbor's next door, too. We each pay him about $40/month. Really, he's a poor car washer, but we can't stand to fire him because we know he needs the money - and it's a way for us to help. And we have pool service come by twice per week, but I don't know what he's paid since we pay a fee to the pool company (but probably he earns $200 -$300/month).

Recently our housekeeper approached us about an alternative situation. She had a neighboring friend who was losing her place to live (the family were headed back to Lebanon). And her friend really wants to stay - since she has to support her son back home. And would we be willing to take on this woman as our maid to live in our maid's quarters? And with all the families moving out - she really worried about finding a new place. And even though we like Myla, she is unpredictable and can go for several days or weeks without showing up if something is going on at her own house. So, we said yes. And now we're getting a live in maid.

It feels odd. But I do feel I have a different perspective on live-in help than I might have had when we first moved here. It feels a bit like we have the means to help - and she needs to work - so we should.

Carry Me Back to Old Virginny

2009-05-20T16:34:00.002+04:00

A Ride on a Pirates' Ship

2009-05-19T15:25:00.002+04:00

Last Thursday, Lyra and I went out to eat while Russell had Guys' Night Out. We sat outside at the marina and watche a parade of pedestrians on the sidewalk. It was a pleasant evening to be out. As it got darker, we noticed the lights of an amusement area that was set up on the other side of the marina.

Lyra wondered how far away it was. Is it 20 meters? No. 20 Blocks? No, somewhere in between there - maybe 2 blocks. I could tell it was her way of hinting that maybe we could head over there after dinner. I told her we could and asked her what ride she'd like to go on if we went.

"The Boat," she answered without hesitation. I could tell this was a ride I could probably stomach - so agreed that we could go on after dinner. "If it makes your stomach upset, I could go by myself," she volunteered. As we continued to watch in the distance Lyra queried, "I wonder if I could scream as loud as they can." I assured her she could - but to please not try it now.

When we wandered over to the amusements, we checked with the ride monitor if he'd allow Lyra on. He nodded and we went to go get our tokens. I'm sure you've seen these rides at the carnival before. They look like a boat with about 5 or 6 rows of seats on each end facing toward the center. When the ride gets going it rocks back and forth - like a big swing. If you're lucky to be positioned on the far outer seats, you end up looking straight down during the upswing of your end. Our boat was a pirates' ship complete with crows nest.

Lyra and I were the only ones to get tokens, so we had full choice of where to sit. We positioned ourselves toward the middle. I was feeling a bit nervous that the full-on downward tilt from the end seats would be overly scary. But she seemed in a wild mood and was ready for the thrill. As the boat started swinging - I got nervous all of a sudden that Lyra would be flying out of the ride - so I grabbed her around the shoulders. And then she started screaming - and she was just as loud as the others.

Gradually, we picked up height and Lyra yelled, "I feel like I'm going to pee my pants. Every time I look down, it feels like I need to pee. Do you feel like you need to pee?" The next few swings were hilarious as she screamed each time, "Oh no, I'm going to pee my pants." Then she told me, "Just don't look. Close your eyes. It's much better that way." But of course, she couldn't keep her eyes closed and continued screaming and having a ball.

As we got off, we both were laughing and looking for another thrill ride. She wanted to go on the swings which are on a chain and then spin around in a circle, but I was too nervous that she'd slip out. We checked on a few other rides, but the other monitors wouldn't let her on. So, in the end, she went on a kiddie roller coaster. She looked at it and wistfully said, "I just wish it was going a bit faster." Yes! Another coaster rider in the family.

Things I Like

2009-05-13T09:11:00.002+04:00

OK, so not to be a total crumudeon. Here are things I like. Let's see if I surprise Russell with any of these.

1. Curling up in bed with Lyra when she can't fall asleep.
2. Peanut Butter
3. Russell waking up early to visit with me before I leave for work.
4. Drivers who give a friendly wave when I've just let them merge in front of me.
5. Discovering a book that just makes me want to read and read and read until I'm done.
6. A really great salad (cottage cheese, blue cheese sprinkles, a little ham, some pickled beets, chick peas, and a sprinkle of chow mein noodles).
7. My little red sports car.
8. Finding a parking space right by the door.
9. Kids with good manners.
10. The ring of the bell during yoga meditation.
11. Basil's cute little pink tongue sticking out while he sleeps.
12. Sticky, gooey cinnamon rolls.
13. Changing into lounging clothes after a day at work.
14. The trumpet (or trombone) flourish to signify All Things Considered is on.
15. Laying on the couch at Dad & Susie's with nothing to do.
16. Brandy Manhattan at DiMarini's on a dark winter Friday evening.
17. Scoring a baseball game.
18. Having a housekeeper.
19. Thunderstorms with lots of big giant cracks of thunder.
20. Watching Lyra and Russell when they don't know I'm there.

Things I Don't Like

2009-05-12T14:15:00.003+04:00

Want to pull my chain? I admit I'm probably arming all of you with dangerous information.

I Don't Like:
1. Dishes put away so that the big item is teetering on top of the smaller one(s).
2. Same dish falling out of the cupboard onto my head or foot.
3. Getting downstairs and realizing that I left something in my bedroom (up on the 3rd floor).
4. People who won't hold the lift when they can hear you walking toward the open door.
5. The same people who hit the "close door" button as you are getting off so that the doors slam onto you as you exit.
6. Drivers who "dash around" in rush hour traffic just to get ahead of one car.
7. Someone who's willing to do a half-assed job and let down the members of their team.
8. People who stir up hate and fear.
9. Mint/Menthol lip balm.
10. Cars that don't allow you to adjust the shoulder belt height (cutting across my neck).
11. When someone believes that others are beneath them or less deserving than them.
12. Cough drops.
13. Waking up before my alarm and not getting back to sleep.
14. Even worse, falling back to sleep and oversleeping my alarm.
15. Filling my car with gas.
16. Putting folded laundry away.
17. Answering the phone.
18. Clutter.
19. Saying good-bye to visitors.
20. Watching medical dramas.

Flamingos

2009-05-08T00:48:00.001+04:00

The UAE sits in the migratory path of flamingos as they are traveling from Iran & Iraq toward East Africa. Prior to the massive expansion seen in Dubai, there used to be a bird sanctuary (Ras al Khor) that sat on the outskirts of town. Now, the sanctuary is still there, but it's no longer on the outskirts of town. It's in the middle of town.

On a clear day (which today is NOT) I can see from my office over to the sactuary that is on the horizon. Today, the horizon is a beigey haze of dust (have I ever mentioned how dusty this place gets?) As Dubai has expanded, the limits of the sanctuary have been redrawn (smaller of course). Now they're planning some housing development called Flamingos. And wouldn't you know it will border right onto the water. But still - a fairly generous plot of mud and salt flats have been set aside for them.

We regularly travel past the bird sanctuary. There are a few byways where you can pull off to stop and then go out to these "hides" that have been built out into the mud flats. We've always said, "next time we'll need to stop and see." And finally - a few weeks ago - we did! It was lovely. We were able to get quite close to the birds as they were standing there eating. Every once in a while a small group would head off and with their long spindly legs it looked very much like they were marching in unison. A few would take off or soar by our hide and then land nearby. The feathers on their underwings have really stunning colors.

The hides that were built use a traditional Arabic building style called wind tunnels. In the days before A/C, these were built to help cool the houses and buildings. They look like super fat chimneys sticking up above the rooftop levels. As winds go by, they have cross-walls that catch the breeze and direct it down into the building. We were amazed to find how effective they were at keeping the bird observation buildings a super comfortable temperature on a hot day. We're anxious to go back now that the super sweltering days of summer have set in to see what it's like on a 40 degree day.

Turkey

2009-05-06T11:54:00.000+04:00

Our first day in Turkey. I forgot the charger to my camera so was only able to get a few shots from the first day.

We were surprised to see this sticker on the wall of the first place we stopped for lunch.

Sultanahmet Mosque

Tradition states that if you put your thumb into the hole of this column - if it comes out wet then you will be healed.
Old stones and columns used to build the underground cistern that stored water for the city. The rumor is that this stone was a piece of rubbish that was used. It is the face of Medusa and it was installed on its side to indicate that the new Christians in the city did not believe in her anymore.
On the ferry to Prince's Island where we took a phaeton ride and stopped for yummy fish.

Easter

2009-05-04T11:26:00.000+04:00

For Easter, we had a couple of friend over for egg dying and easter hunt the next morning. The girls had fun coloring eggs, the moms had fun hiding them, and the dads jumped in the pool (sorry any neighbors who may have been woken at midnight).

Russell grilled racks of lamb - his new speciality! Yum. Coming to a cook out near you - that will be an oft-repeated dish.

Liz showed the girls how to color on their eggs with crayons and leave decorations on the eggs after they were dipped in dye.

Plenty of eggs for each of the girls to dye. Lyra was a bit worried that the Easter Bunny would hide her eggs and then the other girls would find them. So, we had to make sure that she put her name on the 3 or 4 that she'd like to make sure she kept.
Peter always enjoys being part of the action. Here he is curled up near the step up into the dining room area.
Jim & Liza
Kyle & Liz
And us! Unfortunately, no pictures of the egg hunt. At 6am, I was woefully unprepared for pictures. Needless to say the girls were running everywhere in search of their goodies.

Later, when everyone went home, I know that some didn't take their fair share of the eggs. We made two batches of egg salad plus several mornings and lunches with boiled eggs. I'm sure we had at least 2 dozen eggs from the morning.

Swimming

2009-04-28T16:16:00.010+04:00

Not surprisingly, since we've moved here we swim a lot more often. As a result, Lyra's pretty comfortable in the water. I've always felt that swimming lessons were one of those must-do things every parent should enroll their kids into. And I still feel that way - but so far, we haven't had Lyra in any lessons (other than about 3 lessons we went to when she was 1-year old, but the pool water was only 75 degrees and that was just too cold for both of us). Since moving here, we have a pool in back and a pool at the health club, plus practically everywhere you go here there is a pool. So far, Lyra has been learning by just horsing around in the water - with a few tips and pointers thrown in here and there.

Last year, Lyra made the leap from needing a swimming vest to being comfortable swimming around without one. She still didn't venture too far away from the side of the pool, but was willing to swim about 5-10 yards toward us. And for the most part, she still needed to be in water that wasn't over her head.

This year, it looks like Lyra will learn to be a lot more comfortable swimming down into the deeper areas of the pool. She's been able to tread water a little bit and is feeling more and more comfortable with diving for pool toys down into the deep. Sooner or later, I still want her to get some swimming lessons, but for now - I'm just glad that she's getting a lot of opportunities to swim and get comfortable in the water.

Over the winter, we've had a bit of a break in swimming. Our pool out back doesn't have a heater - and I was surprised how many months of the year it's really out of commission. Part of it is that it doesn't really get a full day of sunshine until mid-April and that's about when it's warm enough for me. Russ got into it sometime in late March I think. Then in about late September or mid-October it's again too cold. So a good portion of the year where we really don't use it. We've thought about getting a heater - would cost about $1,400 or something like that. But never did it - and now there's only one more winter left in our stay here.

The pool at the health club is temp controlled - so we can use that a bit more. But after about November and until the end of January it's too chilly for swimming - at least for me it is. So, we do have a couple months of the year where we don't swim that much.

Sorry for the recent pause in blogging. I've had a few issues getting pictures to post onto my entries. And rather than figure it out, I've been a bit lazy.

Cats and Dogs

2009-04-21T22:26:00.000+04:00

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

View from my chair

2009-04-21T18:28:00.002+04:00

Here's what I look at every day from the chair at my desk.

This is one of the stations for the Dubai Metro. A couple months ago, the Dubai Metro put all their station names up for sale. So, companies, individuals, or anyone who wanted could put in a bid to have the naming rights for different stations. I haven't heard who won - so couldn't tell you what the name of this station will be. But just like everything around here - they probably will never go by their official name.

Our street is 23b Street. No one, not even taxi drivers seem to know the name of our street. Well, maybe some of the taxi drivers, but not all of them. So, how do we tell people where we live? We start from a commonly known landmark and then give directions. Our street is "from the Spinney's roundabout take the road to the t-junction, turn left and our street is the second left".

So, this station will probably be known as "the station opposite the Fairmont hotel".

These Are NOT Some of Her Favorite Things

2009-04-15T09:27:00.002+04:00

Last night at bedtime, Lyra came up to my room while I was changing into some PJs to lounge around. When she came in my room, I was already changed and she said to me:

Lyra: Wow, that was quick. Have you already brushed your teeth?
Me: No, I'll do that later. (Thinking of the glass of wine I was going to have after her bedtime.)
L: I always like to do the hardest things first.
M: What are the hardest things?
L: Well, not really hard, but the things I don't like. Like brushing my teeth and brushing my hair. I don't really like to do that, so I do that first.
M: What about putting on your pajamas?
L: That's easy. But I don't like putting my pajama top over my head. That makes me feel weird.
M: Well, if you don't want to wear a pajama top, that's ok, too. (Knowing that there's no way Lyra would go for that - she likes to have her PJs on.)
L: No, I can put them on quickly or sometimes they can unbutton.

As we were in my room, I was getting my clothes out for work the next day and sorting through my sports bag to get fresh clothes for yoga. When we were done getting everything ready for the morning, I said to Lyra:

M: I'm glad that's sorted! That's one of my least favorite things to do.
L: Why?
M: I just don't like to have to put away all my clothes that I wore today and then figure out what I'm going to wear tomorrow. I'm glad to have that done and ready for the morning.
L: I like choosing clothes. But I don't like putting clothes away, do you?
M: No, not really. But I like having my room tidy, so I try to put them away.
L: I don't like folding. That's why I like to wear dresses. Because it's only one thing and then when you take it off, you only have to fold one thing.
M: (hmm, interesting insight - I didn't know this) Well what if you have to wear bloomers or shorts with your dress? Then you need to fold two things.
L: Well, I guess that's the thing about nature.
M: (not exactly sure, but thinking she means - well, that's how it is sometimes). You're very good at folding. I'm surprised you don't like it - usually we like things that we're very good at.
L: Yeah, but I don't like it. But Baba does. He likes folding.
M: (nearly laughing) Hmmm, I don't think so. He does it because we have a lot of laundry, but I don't think he really likes it.
L: I think he does. And so does Myla (the woman that come to clean the house).
M: Well, Myla probably doesn't like it either. Not many people do.

Lyra LOVES this

2009-04-13T20:11:00.000+04:00

It's Raining Mud!

2009-04-13T08:22:00.002+04:00

We've been having quite a bit of rain lately. Well, quite a bit by Dubai standards. According to the weather service, the storm patterns off the Indian Ocean are coming in further north than they normally do - and so we're getting more rain. And it's quite nice, actually. It's been keeping the weather a bit cooler and vastly more pleasant this spring than last (can you really call it "spring" when your temps are in the 90s and near 100?) On the east coast of Dubai, it's much more common to have rain - and there are actually some cities there that are quite green and lush. But the Hajar mountains run down from north to south and usually all the rain falls before the storms can get over here to us on the west.

I heard the rain around 3am this morning as I was in bed. Usually, when it rains here, the rain lasts for about 15 - 20 minutes. Long enough for the rain to pick up all the sand and dust in the air and rain mud all over everything outside. It's not the cleansing soaking rain that we're used to in the mid-west. But today, it rained for several hours - a slow steady rain. And by the time I was up this morning there was enough wetness to actually start to feel like things were getting cleaned off a bit.

Yesterday, there was a small sand storm, so everything (EVERYTHING) was coated in a fine dusting of fine powder. So, at first, the rain was just creating little mud puddles on everything. When I got into my car and switched on the windshield wipers the sand was whipped up and smeared all over the windsheild. However, as I drove in, the rain got heavier and did a nice job of washing off the front and top of the car - the sides are still in need of some serious washing down.

When I look out over the gulf, there look to be some huge storm clouds out there. I'm not exactly sure which direction they're moving, but if it's coming this way, we're going to have a doozy of a thunderstorm today. I missed the last one when I was traveling - so it would be great to see huge booming thunder & lightning.

Is Yoga a Cold Prevention Remedy?

2009-04-08T11:05:00.007+04:00

For the past couple years, I've barely had a cold. I've been feeling clever thinking that my yoga routine has been keeping the colds at bay. Many yoga practitioners swear by the benefits of yoga for preventing simple diseases (like colds) - and even in helping to alleviate more complex things like asthma. When I'm not traveling, I try to go to yoga 4 times a week.

But then last week, I started getting a cold. Since I've been travelling, I haven't been going to yoga as regularly as I normally do, so I'm left wondering if my drop off in yoga left me more vulnerable or if it was just my imagination that yoga was keeping the colds at bay. Certainly, since I've returned home and re-started my yoga routine, I seem to be doing better again (that is until yesterday when I felt the full-on return of aches). That could also be because I went to the water park on Friday in brisk windy 70 degrees. Who's to know.

There are two poses that are supposed to be particularly good at helping your immunity.

The shoulder stand (no, this is not a picture of me) is called the "queen of poses". As you do this pose, you are tucking your chin into your chest and massaging your thyroid gland. This is supposed to help release a lot of toxins from your thyroid - which can only be good, right? When I first started doing this pose, I'd actually get a bit claustrophobic because having my chin tucked in so far made it more difficult to breathe. So, you do have to figure out how to breathe a bit differently, which forces air into new parts of your lungs - also helping to clear areas of your lungs that don't normally get much air.

If you're good at this pose, you should hold it for 1-3 minutes. Usually, I end up holding it for about 1 minute in my classes (or some variation of the pose).
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One word of warning, this pose requires some warm up - so don't just try it - first do some full-body stretches beforehand..
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The headstand is another great pose for helping your immunity. Yoga theory holds that there's great benefit in being upside down (inverted). It helps to direct blood into different parts of your body and forces different breathing (as in the shoulder stand). The headstand is particularly great for helping to deliver blood to your head - specifically to your pituitary gland. This gland helps regulate several hormones in your body and can be a great source of benefit for many different symptoms. But specifically for colds, it helps to clear your chest of congestion and directs a different pressure onto your diaphram to breathing into different areas of your lungs.

This pose doesn't require much warm up - but you may want to do it against a wall if you're worried about falling over.

So, the next time you feel a cold coming on, give these two poses a try for a couple of days and see if they help.

Enough About the G20 Wives

2009-04-05T13:40:00.002+04:00

I don't know why, but all the news feeds I get seem to dwell on the G20 wives (and now the NATO meeting wives). They keep lamenting Mr. Angela Merkel - he being the only non-wife at many of the spouse events.

Last night, I dreamt I was on a business trip in Cairo with all the management team in the Middle East. And like the G20, there were spouses along for the trip. Somewhere in my dream, I realized I had been given the itinerary for all the spouse events. And by the time I realized this, the meetings were nearly over. Being a dream and all - of course it made sense that I didn't realize this until later.

Once I realized, I was in a huge panic trying to find the meeting rooms where the business meetings were going on. And I kept being pulled back into the spouse meetings because for some reason Lyra had come along with me and not Russell. So, of course someone needed to watch her - and there was no time for my meetings or finding my meetings or even understanding what was going on. And I kept saying to myself, next time I really can't bring Lyra on a business trip.

Turns out all the spouse events were being held in my hotel room and the bell hop kept warning me that someone was running up a huge telephone bill by making international calls from my room. Plus, they kept trying to delivery someone else's laundry to the room but I wouldn't sign for it or accept the charges. Needless to say, the laundry service was fairly miffed and kept bringing around other spouses to tell me that I should take the trousers. But really, they were red flannel with matching red fez and I could see no way that I would actually use them.

In the end, a giant snowball the size of a small car flew across the sky and hit a radio tower which fell across the hotel and we all fled as a fire ensued.

I Guess It's Been Raining

2009-04-02T15:41:00.002+04:00

So, we left for Turkey last week on Wednesday. Evidently, it started raining and didn't stop until we returned on this Wednesday. We missed quite the storm I'm told. One of the women in the office relates that she and her husband were driving in their Hummer when thunder went off right overhead so low and so loudly that it shook the car. I love a good thunderstorm and I'm a bit sad to have missed it.

Others in our building reported that they could feel the building sway in the gusts of wind. Hmmm, we're only on the 19th floor - I'm not so sure about that, but I'm no physicist or building engineer so maybe it's possible. I can only imagine the swaying that was going on in the Burj Dubai. Our crews are working on the 14oth through 150th floors of that building. I'd like to hear the stories they have to tell. Another reason why I'm thinking I wouldn't like to live in that building.

My number one reason for not wanting to live on the 150th floor of the Burj Dubai - the elevators. I cannot imagine how totally boring it would be to ride up and down those elevators every day. Even if they have some special high speed lift - it can't be high speed enough. Can you imagine getting to the underground parking and realizing you left something up in the flat - and having to go ALLLL the way up again to get it. Aggggh - I don't have the patience. Living there would eventually drive me batty.

Turkey was fantastic - as usual. I'll say it again - Istanbul is one of the world's best cities. We were glad to have some cool weather and rain just as a break from hot and sunny Dubai (little did we know how much we were missing back home). The first day or so were quite gloomy, but after that the weather got pretty good. In Cappadocia, we were surprised to find nearly 3-4 inches of snow. It certainly made the landscape beautiful - and if possible even more magical. But we weren't ready for snow and hadn't really packed for that kind of weather. That didn't stop us from getting out to tour and even taking a couple of hikes. The last 2 days were stunning. We took a hot air balloon ride (a first for all of us) and then a nice long hike on the last day to put an exclamation point on a fantastic visit. Pictures are coming.

Tasmanian Devil

2009-04-01T02:05:00.001+04:00

Russell finds an amazing amount of information on You Tube.

Recently he was searching for Tasmanian Devils (don't ask me why). The adults are pretty fierce, but the babies are so cute! Click here.

Editors Note: April Fools, you've been Rick Rolled. Yes, amygirl, trying to share my pain. Not such a clever April Fools joke, but I tried.

Planting Lettuce

2009-03-24T11:36:00.003+04:00

Russell came up with a great idea to plant some lettuce in one of our pots out front. As he put it, I'm tired of throwing out manky lettuce. So, Lyra and I took one of our larger pots and divided it into 3rd - each third has a slightly different variety of lettuce growing. So far, we're having positive results. She enjoys watering each day and checking on the progress. Lettuce is nice in that it offers instant rewards when looking for sprouts. She was particularly interesting in seeing that the little seed pod stayed on the top of the plant for a day or two until the leaves popped it off. Lyra's very excited to eat the lettuce - which is part of what growing veg is all about. So, in 2-3 weeks, we should be eating salads from our little garden.

When we move back to the US, I'm hoping that Russell and I can transform the Eastern side of our house into a veg garden. We've got the massive rhubarb back there and enjoy harvesting that for pies or ice cream. We've had the prairie going on there, but I love the idea of getting some veg planted. It's not the most sunny side of the house, but I'm sure we can get a few things to grow. We may have to plant a few tomato plants on the other side of the house - which we've done once or twice with good success.

I read about the Obamas planting a vegetable garden at the White House. This is the first vegetable garden since Eleanor Roosevelt's Victory Garden. I don't know why, but I'm surprised by that. Surely the chefs would have appreciated access to some things fresh from the garden. The plans that I saw on line are quite extensive.

My grandparents would have given their eye teeth for this much space for a garden. I can just imagine now the days and days devoted to putting up vegetables for the winter.

Of course the Obamas didn't mention anything about canning. I wonder if they'll now start a new canning trend along with their gardening trend.

A Little Nachtmusik

2009-03-18T22:27:00.002+04:00

Last night I decided to head into the center of Brussels. My hotel is out by the airport and all the times I've come here for meetings, I haven't been into town. I perused the "What's On" listings and found a concert of modern chamber music. It's probably not the thing I would normally choose, but I'm always up for a bit of something different.

I'm not a musician, so probably don't appreciate contemporary music for its technical qualities. I'm not able to appreciate how the composer switched from 6/8 time to 7/12 time and then to 3/4 time in the space of 5 measures. But I do think it's cool that modern composers find the most obscure instruments and try to "play"them in unusal ways that experiment with their sounds and qualities. And I can at least appreciate that for one evening.

The first piece, contemporary vocal solo. In German. 'nuf said.

Second was a duet for Alto Flute and Violin. I don't think I've ever heard an alto flute being played. The piece started out with a lot of plucking of violin strings, dragging the bow loosely across strings, and hitting the strings with the bow. The flautist was "spitting" into the flute. Actually it was more lie a dry "THOOT". She also blew straight into the hole - producing very little sounds and drew her breath inward on high pitched whistles. I was left wondering, what is the musical notation for "THOOT" and blow.

The next piece was for trombone and clarinet. It started out with a bunch of long held notes where the clarinet bell was held into the horn of the trombone and creating this interesting resonance. The trombonist had about 6 or 7 different mutes (is that what you call them? mutes). You know, those things that turn a trombone sound from BLAAT into a BWAAH. I never knew there were this many different styles of mute. Again, lots of long held notes using different mutes and experimenting with sounds.

There were a few more pieces with more interesting instruments. A pianist who played standing up so he could pluck the piano strings. A bass oboe and bass clarinet. More vocal solos - this time in French. As I said, I can appreciate something like this purely for the novelty factor. But the audience seemed to be filled with affiionados and in the lobby there was lots of swag and CDs for sale. Alas, my jet lag was overpowering and I felt myself dozing off. So, during the second interlude, I left.

As I left the venue, I spotted a street vendor selling Belgian Frite. My non-existent french got me through ordering "petit frite avec sauce tomate." "Ketchup?" he asked. "Yes, ketchup," I was a little deflated to respond. On the late night train back to my hotel, I checked my calendar for my first meeting of the following day. 6am - agggh - I'd totally forgotten about that conference call. But of course, I'm still jet lagged so 3:30 feels like a lie in to me.

I sure miss having access to things like this. In Milwaukee we're rich for choices on what to do each night. And of course we have Chicago close enough for anything we'd like to do. It's fun to be able to peruse the listings and think, "hmmm, what to do? what to do?"

Fundraiser for Charity

2009-03-18T22:10:00.001+04:00

Last weekend, Russell and I went to a charity dinner with the neighbors. We went last year and enjoyed the opportunity to go out for a nice evening. Plus, it gives us an opportunity to get dressed to the nines.

Here are our neighbors, Juliette and Neil, looking mighty fine!
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And another fine looking couple here.
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I went to one of my favorite shops, Patrizia Pepe for my dress. The shop assistants told me, "Yes, Madam. It's a dress." After trying it on, I knew I'd need to wear it with trousers. When you're closer to 50 than to 20, it's not the time to be wearing super short mini-skirts. Yes, I lack adventure when it comes to fashion.
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I had a henna tattoo - as one does.

Crabby Cabby

2009-03-16T21:27:00.005+04:00

I flew to Brussels this morning. I flew on Lufthansa. Was wondering if the plane would be nearly empty, but it seemed nearly 80% full.

Earlier this year, Emirates Airlines opened up a HUGE and spacious new Terminal 3. This has left Terminal 1 for the use of all the other airlines. So, even without economic collapse, there would have been a LOT less passengers in Terminal 1 than I am used to. Often times, its like a dodge-em cars as I try to manage my way through the Duty Free and toward my gate.

This morning the place seemed relatively deserted. As I made my way to breakfast, I was accosted by a friendly cafe owner who was nearly begging to make me a toasted cheese sandwich. I asked for it with ham (turkey ham) and tomato - plus a cup of latte. Nice not to have to push my way through a crowd to find a table.

We boarded at about 8am. The plane, not surprisingly, was full of Germans. I was seated near a group of about 20 women that seemed to be finishing a holiday in the sun. When the drinks trolley came by, I ordered a cup of coffee. They ordered beer. It was warm beer - I'm not a beer fan even when it's icy cold. So, warm Warsteiner at 8am totally didn't appeal. After beer, they moved to warm champagne. The woman across the aisle from me drank 2 splits. When the drinks trolley came again, she ordered a scotch and got a nice big generous pour along with another beer.

I was glancing across the aisle and thinking, "it's not hard to see where Milwaukee gets its drinking culture." And then, in front of my eyes I saw her nudge the bottle off her tray. In slow motion it fell onto the floor and sloshed beer all over my trousers and shoes. Not a drop on her. She apologised profusely. Luckily it was only beer and I was relatively unscathed.

When I arrived in Brussels, I made my way to the hotel van pick up area. I read the schedule and discovered that they don't start running until 5pm (and it was 3:30). I remember that I did this the last time I was in Brussels - in fact, I've done this the last TWO times I was in Brussels. I got a taxi and the cab driver was really miffed to find that I was going to a hotel only 5 km away. He probably spent all afternoon waiting for his fare. I could understand a bit - but c'est la vie. I was feeling sympathetic until he started getting all crabby about having to give me change for a 50 (in fairness to me the fare was 12 euro, so not like I was asking for a huge amount of change).

Now, I'm checked into my hotel. It's one of those modern euro-style hotels. Lots of cool ergonomic stuff and perks that are well thought out - but still pretty affordable. One of my favorite things is the "women's wing" - where all the rooms are reserved for traveling business women. I just like the fact that some strange man isn't following me down the hall to my room. Only problem so far is I can't seem to get the heat on, and believe me it's chilly in here!

But the best thing about my hotel room - BBC1 and BBC2. Yes, real live BBC television - the best! Just got through watching "A Move to the Country" - a property show where people are moving into the English countryside and are shown 3 properties and need to decide which they like best. I always wonder if anyone actually purchases one of these properties they are shown. Now, I'm watching BBC News - London. I just love hearing the music interludes - brings me back to the days of living in London. Next, "Best of Antiques Roadshow" - ahhh.

Jon is Missing

2009-03-10T19:49:00.005+04:00

Jon, a bald eagle, was last seen Saturday at a bird show here in Dubai. He was here with his owners, Sandra Stuckenbruck and Zoltan Loerentei from Germany. (Zoltan - now that is the COOLEST name ever. Russell and I were just commenting that Sultan would be a cool name for a pet, but Zoltan is even better!)

He was performing with 24 other birds in a show called Birds of Prey when he was startled by an agressive Raven. The raven chased him off and he hasn't been seen since. With the hot summer approaching, he needs to be found fast - or else he may not survive the heat.

So, we're keeping our eyes out for a bald eagle named Jon.

Update: Evidently, after the story was published in the papers many people have called to report that they have seen him. So far, no one's called to say "I see him right now. Please come get him."

Update: Still no sign. The local newspaper says, "He is black with a distinctive white head and tail." Here I was looking for a black & white bird with a red head and distinctive ivory bill pecking against the trunk of a tree. OK, well maybe there are some who don't know what a bald eagle looks like.

Update: Almost a month after the eight-year-old bird, named Jon, flew away during a Birds of Prey show they staged, the German couple, Sandra Stuckenbruck and Zoltan Loerentei, who live in Dubai, have no clues as to where he might be.

Life's a Beach

2009-03-08T14:30:00.007+04:00

Sometimes I forget that people come here for vacations for a reason. Russell and I have been known to ask one another, "Why do they come here?" It's hard at times to get beyond the day-to-day dusty, sandy environment. And in the summer it's so oppressively hot. And we're not really shopping or mall people. And I guess it's not uncommon for you to forget about the appeal of the place where you live.

The beaches here are beautiful and people arrive here by the thousands to spend a week or weekend here. Or 13 days in the case of the couple checking in to our hotel. And as you saw in my post from a couple of weeks ago, the mountains are stunning. And the desert also has it's own beauty.

This weekend, for the first time, we were tourists in the UAE. We went to an Emirate north of here called Ras al Khaimah and stayed at a resort on the Persian Gulf. The scenery was stunning. The skies were clear and blue. The sun was comfortably warm. It was lovely - and now I want to go back!

We dubbed this little fellow "The Captain". With his Thomas the Tank Engine speedos, captain's hat, and bling-bling gold chain around his neck it was hard not to be transported back to the 70's. Cue the sythesizer and Toni Tenille singing "Love Will Keep Us Together".

Dubai Hot Babies

2009-03-05T20:28:00.001+04:00

Hello all you seekers of Dubai Hot Babies. Well, all 1 of you.

My analytics page told me that someone recently visited my blog by typing "Dubai Hot Babies" into a search engine (like google). Other recent hits have come from searches for "Dubai Open", "Bubble Yum", and "cockroach how many legs".

Hmmm - it's amazing the things people look for on the web. The Hot Babies - I'm thinkin' the guy meant Hot Babes and was going to be disappointed unless he changed his search criteria.

So, for all you google engine searchers who have landed here completely by mistake - "Hello!"

We've Been Robbed

2009-03-04T20:33:00.001+04:00

Monday is supposed to be a holiday. It was on the calendar as a day off to celebrate the Prophet's (pbuh) birthday. Lyra actually has a four day weekend because it seems a bit silly to go to school on Sunday and then have Monday off and then go back to school on Tuesday.

My office wasn't quite so accommodating. If I wanted a four day weekend, I was going to have to take a vacation day for Sunday.

That is until the recent announcement this week that the Prophet's birthday will actually be celebrated on SATURDAY. No such thing as moving a holiday that falls on a weekend to the closest workday. Nope. If it falls on a Saturday, then you are SOL. No holiday for you.

So, I should have started my post by saying, "Monday was supposed to be a holiday." I was looking forward to a lazy Monday - even if it was kind of weird to have a day off right in the middle of the week.

I continue to be baffled about how holidays come and go around here.

On a Lighter Note

2009-03-03T15:45:00.003+04:00

Here's Lyra performing "Funny Faces" for you.

Mom Kills Baby

2009-03-02T19:27:00.003+04:00

I was watching Oprah last night. I was kind of enjoying the irony of being in Saudi - but watching Oprah. I rarely have time to catch Oprah, well especially since we don't own a TV.

The episode was one that was probably recently aired in the US. A mother came on to tell her story about accidentally leaving her baby in the car when she went in to work. It was August and 100 degrees. She didn't normally have the responsibility to drop the kids at day care and just forgot. As a principle, it was the first day back at school. She was busy and in the rush to get to school she forgot the baby was in the car. And she didn't realize until the end of the school day what had happened. By then it was too late, the baby had died. After a few minutes I had to turn off the show.

It's any parents worst nightmare. I'm sure we can all imagine doing it. I feel no sense of judgement about what happened It's very very sad. But why is she on Oprah telling everyone about this? Hopefully it is cathartic and helps her deal with what must be unimagineable thoughts of "what if". Maybe I can see that she wanted a chance to tell the world what happened so that she can somehow alleviate her guilt.

But why does Oprah have this on her show - other than for the thrill factor of watching someone else's grief? She tried to sell it as a public service. Pay attention! Don't be so busy! Slow down and appreciate your life. All good messages - yes! But I don't really get that this woman's situation was a call to heed this good advice. It struck me that these messages were just an excuse to have her on and get the ratings.

And now I can't get her out of my mind. I hate the side-show effect that daytime television goes for. I've never been able to watch it. Jerry Springer would literally make my hands sweat. And my stomach continues to flip thinking about the moment this poor mother realized what had happened. I can't stop thinking about her.

This is why I don't watch TV. It gets in my head and I can't shut it off.

Camping

2009-02-24T16:59:00.009+04:00

We went camping this weekend. Dubai is pretty full of outdoorsey types. People really enjoy getting out into the desert. The camping season is quickly coming to an end and we hadn't yet been out this season. So, we took a one day trip up into the mountain areas of the east coast.

First we drove through some wadis (dry river beds) up into the mountains. At one point, we had some fancy maneouvering to get across some large boulders. All along the way, we had an eye out for a spot where we could get two tents set up without having to sleep on large rocks.

Basil always enjoys camping. He quickly settled into the only shade in our campsite and made himself at home sniffing the campsite for dried donkey dung that seemed to be everywhere.

After setting up camp, it was time for a quick rest in the shade before heading out for our "hike". The hike was really a short climb up to the nearest peak to see what we could see. Just like the bear.

I was remembering the first time that Lyra went camping. It was the summer after we came home with her. She was about 18 months old. I remember her little diapered bum toddling up and down the roads within the campsite. There was a swing set down at the end of the camp area and she spent many hours that trip being pushed on the swings by Grammy or Grumpy or Auntie Amy.

The view from the top was spectacular. It was a little hazy or else we'd be able to see 20km away to the Indian Ocean.

Valder-rah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.

You're NOT Welcome to Dubai

2009-02-16T13:02:00.003+04:00

The UAE works very hard to be one of the most open Muslim countries in the world. They try to demonstrate that they're ready to participate in the broader cultures outside of Arabia. But sometimes, the traditions and religious laws here are still stronger than the modernization. In the news this week, we've had two cases highlighting this conflict.

First, the Dubai Tennis Championship is this week. The Ladies' tournament started yesterday. One of the qualifying players, Shahar Pe'er, is an Israeli woman who qualified to play. But she has been denied an entry visa by the UAE. For a little while, it looked like the Women's Tennis Association would cancel the tournament. But instead, they've elected to go on - but are examing whether to have the tournament next year. This violates the WTA rules for hosting a tournament that state all players should be allowed entry if they have qualified to play.

Second, the Emirates Literary Festival is coming in two weeks. I'm quite excited to go actually. It will be the first Literary Festival in the Middle East. One of the invited authors has now just been Un-invited. She has written a book set here in the Middle East. One of the characters in her book (a minor character) is gay. Actually, he's a gay sheikh. And so it was felt that debuting her book here would be too controversal. And so, she's been uninvited and her book has been banned. I wonder - actually - if there's more concern that the character is gay - because of course there are TONS of books in the bookstores here that have gay characters. Or is it because it is a gay sheikh. Unofficially, one of the brothers or cousins of Sheikh Kalifa (ruler of AbuDhabi) is gay. He is actually facing criminal prosecution in Switzerland for beating up a gay prostitute. So, maybe that's the sensitivity. One of the Festival organizers commented, "Banning books is not usually the way you'd launch a Literary Festival." Hmmm - now that's an understatement.

Usually, I think that Dubai would go ahead and have these people come. But with the recent economic situation Dubai is now having to look for support from Abu Dhabi - the neighboring emirate who has almost 80% of the UAE's oil revenue. Abu Dhabi is vastly more traditional than Dubai - and now they are using the financial dependence to try and exert more influence onto what was seen as their brash newfangled cousin to the north. And I think Dubai is forced to rein in their "progress" as they continue to look for financial support from Abu Dhabi.

Updated to add: Since I wrote this, the WTA has fined the Dubai tournament US $300,000. I believe they have also instructed the tournament to pay Ms. Peer US $48,000 which is her average earnings at tournaments over the last year. No word about whether next year's tournament is cancelled.

The Djinn in our Building

2009-02-12T14:44:00.008+04:00

The djinn have invaded our buildings. Djinn are spirits that inhabit the world - according to Muslim belief. Djinn - pronounced jinn - are the origin of the English word for genie.

And how do I know they have invaded our building? I can hear them screaming. I walked into the building and at first I thought it was the alarm system. But the shifting of tone and the wail and howl made me realize that actually - it was the wind. The wind screamed through the elevators shafts at just the right velocity to create a constant wail and howling that traveled through all 30 floors of our building. It sounds just like the screaming of a spirit in the building.

Needless to say, we're having a huge wind storm. Winds are blowing in from Iran across the sea and into Dubai. The winds carry with them sand and grit from the deserts of Iran which has blown for 100's of km across the sea. The marine forecast is for 10ft. waves. The sea has cooled the gales and we're experience much colder temps today. Just yesterday we were showing signs that daytime temps were ready to get into the 30s C.

As I walked down to get my lunch, I felt a spray of water hitting my face. I glanced around to see what may be the cause. Window washers? Rain, even? No, it was the sprinklers from 30 yards away that were blowing across the lawn and courtyard onto the pavement where I was walking. I squinted as bits of grit and sand pelted my face and was glad for my sunglasses protecting my eyes. I made sure to keep my mouth closed because grains of sand were lodging onto the surface of my teeth.

Some say the winds will bring a shift in the weather. But will that be a shift to cooler weather for a few weeks or a shift to the warmer weather of summer? No one seems to know. I'd be happy for a few more weeks of cool.

Summer v. Winter

2009-02-08T13:37:00.004+04:00

What's worse, a Dubai Summer or a Wisconsin Winter?

Normally, I'd prefer a blazing hot summer day over a brutal cold winter day any time. But when your talking about a whole season, I'd have to say that Wisconsin Winter is preferable to Dubai Summer. Especially when you start hearing about the wonderful warm up that Milwaukee has been having the last days. There's nothing to make the heart feel happy like a warm sunny winter day.

Here in Dubai, we never have cool summer days. We never have cool summer nights either. I think that's what makes it so unbearable. Once the heat arrives, it's here to stay. Occassionally, the temps will drop near 100 - that's our version of a cool off. This is when the cabin fever starts to set in. The dog can't walk on the broiling hot pavement, the kids all move to indoor play areas (ugh malls), and even the pool isn't inviting if you can't get into the shade.

But, having said that - our winters are pretty nice! There are about 6 weeks in the winter when it's downright cool (I won't say cold). When wearing socks and shoes sound nice. When having long sleeves is comfortable - even a light sweater or jacket wouldn't go amiss. It's too cool for shorts or bare legs. I've even worn tights with my dresses and skirts. Those days are pretty much at an end now. Daytime temps are getting into the upper 20s (low 80s) and it's nice to be in the shade. But we're still enjoying lovely cool evenings.

On average, each month warms up by 5C. So, now we're having 25's (upper 70s), by the beginning of March it will be 30's (mid-80s), by April 35s (mid-90s), by May 40s (low 100s) - and then it just starts to get silly until September when we're back down into the 40s. Having a break back home is essential to the sanity. Never mind a break from the heat, it's nice to see greenery and blue sky. And a nice good soaking rain is heaven!

But, when we're back in Milwaukee, I WILL miss being able to wear my flip flops all year round. I'll complain about the slosh and snow when we're back. And I'm sure a bitter cold wind on a -20 day will make me dream of the sun and heat. And who knows, maybe that artic blast will have me changing my tune. But a nice warm winter day will soon have me singing the praises of a Wisconsin Winter over a Dubai Summer.

What do you think? Long unrelenting blazing heat of summer or long bitter cold mixed with pleasant days of winter?

Do you remember when . . .

2009-02-03T16:49:00.003+04:00

1. It used to be socially acceptable to decline giving someone a piece of gum "because it's Bubble Yum".

2. You were allowed to leave your school grounds during the lunch hour.

3. Girls and boys were separated for PE. I even had deportment classes, but I won't ask how many of you had that. I think my school was a little old-school in that regard.

4. You used to spend hours with your curling iron to get the feathering to meet perfectly in the back of your head.

5. Love's Baby Soft perfume was the only scent you'd wear.

6. Having your ears pierced was considered racy. And having 2 piercings was downright slutty.

7. You got your first clock radio and stayed up late on Sunday listening to American Top 40.

8. You had to do the Presidential Physical Fitness test each year. Do kids still do this?

9. Macramed pot hangers contributed to a stylish decor.

10. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups was a new candy.

25 Random Things About Me

2009-01-30T14:29:00.000+04:00

Apologies to any FB people who have already read this.

1. I carry in my purse a copy of the poem I read at my mother's funeral.
2. I keep my handbag very well organized
3. I have copies of all my drivers license dating back to when I moved from MN to WI
4. I don't like lip moisturizers with mint oil or menthol. Right now my favorite is Burt's Bees Honey Lip Balm.
5. I never balance my checkbook
6. I have 10 different currencies in my wallet right now.
7. I carry a camera wherever I go but rarely remember to "capture the moment".
8. I wish I was as groovy as my sunglasses would tell you I am.
9. I pay off the full balance of all my credit cards every month (a discipline I got from Russell).
10. I always carry an umbrella (and it has come in handy even in Dubai).
11. Even though I had Lasik surgery, I still wear glasses for night driving.
12. I love the breakfast burrito at the Mexican restaurant in Houston's airport.
13. My keychain has a bottle opener on it but I don't drink beer.
14. I have a lip liner that I've carried in my make up pouch that I haven't used since the 90s.
15. My blackberry has a nazar (evil eye) charm (just in case they work).
16. I carry Coach handbags and briefcases
17. I'm super anal about keeping my BB contact info up to date.
18. I lost my Mont Blanc pen about 6 months ago and I look suspiciously at my work collegues who have one wondering if they found it.
19. I like showing my passport for ID when I'm in the US - it always throws them off.
20. The first year I was married, I thought I would change my name. I lazily went about changing a few items of ID, but realized about a year in that I really would rather keep my maiden name. Last year, I finally finished changing my name on the last piece of identification BACK to Ragland.
21. The "just in case" tampons I carry around are old and in a barely usuable condition. Good thing there's not a "use by" date on them.
22. I have a Macy's credit card that I still can't get used to being used at Dayton's - which was for a while Marshall Field's.
23. After months of driving the same car nearly every day I still have to look at my key fob to know what button unlocks the doors.
24. At 16, I passed my US driving test on the first try. At 35, I had to take the UK test 4 times - picky buggers.
25. I modeled all these items on a theme - can you guess?

Where Have All the People Gone?

2009-01-29T11:30:00.002+04:00

Dubai feels like a ghost town these days. It's like it's summer holidays all the time.

I first started noticing right after Christmas as I was making the school run to drop off Lyra. The traffic queues used to back up right to the entrance into Mirdif. But in the past week, I've been able to run Lyra all the way to school with barely a traffic slow down. I'm not traffic expert, but certainly it seems as if there are about 30% less cars on the road. Feels like even less, but I know that even a 10% reduction results in lots less congestion. The odd thing is that the school isn't really reporting a huge reduction in the number of students. And certainly the playground seems as busy as always.

Since people are here on work visas - if they get laid off, then they have to leave. The news has been reporting the shut down or slow down of projects and many companies have been announcing lay offs. So, unless these folks have new prospects, then most of them have had to leave the UAE (no work, no visa). Since nothing is ever made official here, the rumor mill has been running rife. Some have said that over 250 cars a week are abandoned at the Dubai Airport. Others have reported 45,000 work visa cancellations last month.

But on the other hand, a villa went up for rent around the corner from us and within a couple days, the "To Let" signs were down. I can only imagine the place was rented. And the new villas across the street all seem to be filling up.

Down in the Marina area, where over 100 high rise towers are all being constructed at one time, there seem to be a lot of empty buildings. I've heard it's a combination of no water service or electricity service (someone forgot to plan some essential items). Or also just that there is an oversupply in the market. Last summer, I heard a report that over 140,000 new dwellings (houses, townhouses, or apartments) were going to be completed in this year. Even with a booming economy, one wonders how 140,000 new homes are going to be filled. And now, the population is shrinking.

Certainly, the big worry here is the real estate market. Some areas have seen 40% drops in values (mostly apartments in the high rise areas). But even in the upper end of the market there are 10-20% drops. And suddenly so many people are willing to negotiate their price - whereas before they were asking for premium. This market was full of speculators. People who expected to buy a property before it was built - own it for about 6 months or until it's close to being lived in - and then sell it on for massive profits. This is what was feeding the huge boom in prices here. Now, they're sitting on properties they never meant to own, can't sell them on, and are unable to make the payments to the bank. Hmmmm- sound familiar.

What will be interesting is to see how much the population drops. Lots of folks are predicting a huge drop when schools are finished. They're saying that people will go home for the summer and not come back. Perhaps they're right. I wonder if the schools will then stop jacking up their fees so much.

In the meantime, I'm enjoying the relative free flow of traffic (and now I've jinxed myself for the drive home.)

Plasma Car Pro

2009-01-25T18:27:00.000+04:00

Dim Sum for the Girls

2009-01-23T17:58:00.004+04:00

Today, Lyra and I went for Dim Sum. An early celebration of the Chinese New Year (Gong Hai Fat Choi). We went with a family that just moved here from Florida. Grace joined Lyra's class after the Christmas break. Lyra came home on that first Tuesday back and said, "I have a new friend I want to invite to my birthday. Her name is Grace." We have to call her new-Grace to differentiate from neighbor-Grace next door.

I asked Lyra how she had become friends so quickly with Grace. She said, "Well, when she came to school she didn't know anyone. So, when I was in the toilet I saw her and I said, 'Do you want to be my friend?' and she said she would." That was one of my proudest moments as a parent - to hear her be so empathetic.

Several weeks ago, she asked me "Mama, do I have any gifts?" I asked her if she meant like "talents" and she said yes. "Of course you do, you have many gifts." And ever since then I've been trying to help her see what talents and gifts she has. I pointed out to her - you have a terrific gift of being able to see how other people feel. That's a terribly important gift.

Grace, her sister, Mae, and mother, Liza joined us at the China Club for Dim Sum. Their dad is also out of town for a couple weeks. So all us girls had fun stuffing ourselves on little steamed buns and dumplings. Lyra ate about a half-dozen dumplings. They're always her favorite.

Tomorrow is a school day. It's a make up day on a Saturday to help recover from the extra holidays we had earlier in the school year. I'm going to have my hair done and go to yoga while she's in school.

No Train Songs in Arabic

2009-01-21T17:00:00.001+04:00

The other night, I was laying in bed and was hearing this long wail of a horn in the distance. In my half conscious state, I thought "it's a train". But the wailing continued and eventually I woke enough to realize it was someone leaning on the horn of their car at about 4am. Who knows why they felt this was necessary. At least it was off in the distance. And I was able to float in and out of a doze. Each time that I fell asleep, I kept thinking it was a train - only to wake enough to realize it was a car.

As I lay there pondering during one of my wakeful moments I had a realization: They have NO TRAINS here. Don't ask me why it took 18 months for me to realize. No WONDER the semi trucks are lined up along the freeways like freight trains. They ARE the freight trains.

Boy, it made me realize what a logistical nightmare has been created by their lack of freight trains. Try to imagine if each and every car on a freight train was instead a semi truck on the freeway. Every. Single. freight car. Think of how dangerous it would be to have the entire right lane (or right 2 lanes on extra wide freeways) dedicated to freight trucks. Think of how tricky it would be to figure out how to cut into a queue of slow-moving trucks to find your exit. Or to enter into a freeway to a slow moving lane and try to zip quickly into the lane for cars so you can speed up. Think of how much this would clog up all traffic.

You have now imagined traffic on the main freeways of Dubai. They've actually made laws that limit the hours truck can drive on the freeway (during the week it's only during nighttime hours). They've actually built a huge by-pass WAYYY out in the sand that trucks can use during the daytime hours. Why don't they build railroads? It makes so much sense.

Islands for Sale or Rent

2009-01-20T16:37:00.004+04:00

Recently, it was announced that the island of Great Britain on The World Dubai has been sold. The World is a grouping of man made islands that are being built off the coast of Dubai. I can see them from my office. Well not from MY office - but when I walk around to the other side of the building I can see them.

How much does an island cost? Well, according to the fellows that bought Great Britain, they paid about 250 Million Dirhams for about 100,000 sq. feet. That is for what is essentially a small piece of sand in the ocean. No electricity, no sewage (not that the rest of Dubai has that sorted either), no water, no plants, no buildings. They were pretty vague on the radio describing what they're going to do with this island. Possibly sounded like luxury holiday homes or hotel villas or something like that.

Rumor has it that Brangelina have bought Ethiopia. And maybe that Vijay Singh bought Fiji? Who knows, they're very hush hush about these things here.

You can see them on Google Satellite images. I wonder which on is Great Britain.

View Larger Map

"Being a Single Parent"-Nerves

2009-01-19T13:21:00.005+04:00

Starting Wednesday, I'm going to be a single parent for a week. And for some reason, I'm pretty nervous about it. I asked Russell to make sure that we had enough easy food for dinners so that I don't have to worry about what we'll eat. He's got us well stocked:

1. 3 Gallons of 3-bean soup (which I tasted this morning and is delicious)
2. 5 lb Pot Roast - along with roasted vegetables
3. 3 Frozen Pizzas
4. 12 Veggie Patties
5. A roasted Chicken

I told him maybe we're set and the roasted chicken isn't necessary. He said that he's already thawed it, so he'll go ahead and make it. Well, that's one worry that's definitely sorted.

I also worry about leaving work early enough for school pick-up. I need to leave by 2:30 (at the latest) to make sure I'm at the school on time. I know how things go at work - and leaving by 2:30 could be difficult. There's bound to be one person who wants to talk to me for "just a second". Because of the time difference with the US, the busiest part of my day is usually the evenings. I've already warned my team members they may hear odd background noises if I'm on a conference call.

In the mornings, I'm used to rushing off for yoga. This week, I'll be giving up the yoga for the am routine of feeding the kid, walking the dog, fixing lunch boxes, and making sure we're out the door by 7:25. And then after school I'll be running around for ballet, theater, and piano lessons. I'm wiped out just thinking about it.

Under normal circumstances, I'm always in awe of single parents - it's a tough job. Now that I'm getting a taste of it, I'm even more impressed.

Edited to add:
Last night Lyra announced that the 3-bean soup Russell made was the best thing he's EVER made in his WHOLE LIFE. So, definitely my girl is going to be happy with the dinners Russell has prepared. Good thing we have nearly 5-gallons - although the three of us put a dent in that for last night's dinner.

"I'm Glad I'm Human"

2009-01-16T11:06:00.002+04:00

Lyra said to me the other day. "But sometimes it's a good thing and a bad thing."

"Oh, what's bad about it?" I asked.

"Vomiting. I hate vomiting," she said.

"And what's good about it?"

"Having friends. Playing with your friends," she said.

"Anything else that is good?"

"Having pals and friends at school. That's what's good."

"Is there anything else that is bad about being human?" I wondered.

"No. Just vomiting. It's disgusting."

Gaza

2009-01-14T10:56:00.001+04:00

I hesitate to write about this. I'm sure it will be controversial, no matter what I say. But I think it's important for those living outside this region to know how this is being reported here.

The press here is more willing to display photographs of bloody bodies, body parts in the street, dead children crushed by buildings, parents wailing over the inert bodies of their children, and all the other horros of war. These pictures are daily on the cover of newspapers, on the television, and in magazines. So, we get a much more realistic perspective on how horrible this is. And as a result the war is connecting in a very emotional and visceral way with people here - both Arab and non-Arab.

Recent reports are that the death toll has reached 970 with 40% of casualties being women and children. There are reports that bombs are aimed at UN safe havens, at schools, and hospitals. UN Humanitarian aid workers report bodies being burned with white phosphorus and usage of other chemicals against Hague convention. I have no way to know what is or isn't slanted toward the Hamas perspective - but there's no doubt that this war and it's conduct is creating huge anti-Israeli and anti-American sentiment.

There is little perspective or reporting on any sense of outrage within the American population. The reporting focuses exclusively on the official American response which is deemed to be 100% in support of Israel. If there are any protests or sentiments in America that denounce these actions, none of that is making the news here. So, where it might have been "cool" to be an American for a few weeks after Obama's elections - there's now a re-emergence of anti-American emotion and sentiment.

All I know is it's horrible. There's no way that this war is achieving a positive outcome. We've got to start participating in a constructive way in this region to bring compromise and peace. There are peace-seeking countries and leaders here. There is a way to peace - but it's not through war.

The awareness that we are all human beings together has become lost in war. - Albert Schweitzer

Now We Are Six

2009-01-09T18:23:00.005+04:00

Lyra turned six today. I always planned to buy her A.A. Milne's "Now We Are Six", but I forgot. Luckily for me, I have at least a year to get it. We also have plans to measure her against her bookshelf. She loves to see how much taller she's become. I eyeballed her height against last year's birthday and she's at least 2 inches taller.

This year, we went to the park and had a magician. Lyra decided that she's done with bowling for a while. But we informed her that when we get back to Milwaukee, it's back to Bay View Bowl. It's just too perfect. The kids get to bowl a few games and the parents get to have Bloody Mary's with a chaser.

This year's turn out was far better than last. We were unfortunate enough to plan Lyra's party on a day the city's traffic was paralyzed by a huge rainstorm that had most of the roads flooded. In the end, only 2 brave families made it. We had one family call us to tell us they were turning around after 3 hours on the road - and the kid was asleep in back of the car. This year, we were blessed with beautiful weather. Cool in the shade, warm in the sun. Hooray!

Russell did most of the running around, catering and organizing. I did the fretting. I'm not sure who of us was the most exhausted at the end of the day.

Pedestrians Keep Right

2009-01-08T14:38:00.001+04:00

I'm a firm believer that pedestrian "rules of the road" should mimic those of driving. So, when in a country that drives on the left, I'm ready to modify a lifetime of walking habits and also keep left. It's much harder to modify your pedestrian habits than driving habits. I wonder why. Maybe it's because you've been walking since before you can remember and these "rules" are embedded in a deeper part of your brain. Or maybe it's because we're more apt to go into a daze when walking and function on auto pilot. But for whatever reason, modifying your walking habits is pretty hard.

The folks in London know this and have actually painted onto the kerbside "Look Right" at pedestrian crossings. Too many tourists from Europe and the Americas were getting mowed down by busses or taxis as they blithely stepped into flowing traffic while looking the wrong direction. Russell even witnessed such a tragedy.

Here in Dubai, we drive on the right. So, as a pedestrian I follow the same rules. And about 70% of Dubai-ians agree with me. Thing is, there are so many expats from Britain, India, South Africa, and other left-driving countries that there is a huge population whose natural inclination is to walk on the left.

Walking down the sidewalk here is like playing chicken. Who will veer first? I try try try to stay right. But no matter what I do, there is always someone who is more determined to stay left. And short of a dodge 'em cars smash up on the pavement, I give way. It's especially irritating when it is a whole group heading my way staying to their left and requiring me to nearly leap to the other side of the sidewalk.

I wonder if they're just unaware that pedestrian courtesies are to walk on the right. After all, many people here don't have a license. So, they haven't had to make the shift in driving habits and maybe it just hasn't occurred to them to shift their walking habits.

There also seems to be a similar difference in the "rules" about whether to go clockwise or anti-clockwise when ice skating (or roller skating or horse racing). I don't know about you, but if I were to step onto a deserted ice rink and start doing some laps, I'd instinctively head to my right and start skating in an anti-clockwise direction. At the rink, there were an amazing number of people who seemed determine to head clockwise. Really, this was an exercise in frustration on their part. There was a wave of people all heading straight toward them. Even if your natural inclination would be to head off clockwise, wouldn't you modify this when you saw hundreds of skaters coming at you?

I really wonder what was going through their mind. "Hmmm - all these people are headed in the wrong direction. I wonder what has possessed them to adopt these strange practices. I will skate upstream against the crowd and see if I can convince everyone to turn around. Never mind that there are three foot high arrows pointing me in the anti-clockwise direction. Those sign painters were obviously confused."

Hello, I'm Senator Franken

2009-01-06T13:44:00.002+04:00

Because I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and gosh darn it, people like me!!!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/05/franken-officially-wins-e_n_155367.html

I refer to Minnesota as my home state - even though I haven't lived there in 20 years. It's where I grew up (well, mostly) and my family is still there and when I go visit I say I'm going "home". You gotta love a state that has had Jesse Ventura as Governor and now Al Franken as Senator-elect (as declared today by the state canvassing board).

Jesse's term was spotty at best. He made some bold moves - and sometimes bold moves can be seen as bold gutsy but other times as bold stupid. And in the end, I think the bold stupid prevailed. But it's because of him that Minneapolis has their mass transit system - that is much more popular than projected.

Franken's got a lot to live up to. He'll be filling the seat Paul Wellstone left after he was killed in an airplane accident. Paul Wellstone is up there with the big-JC in the mind of some Minnesotans. I've even seen bumper stickers saying, "What would Wellstone do?" Let's hope he is the same champion for peace as Senator Wellstone. These days, we need it!

Day of Mourning

2009-01-04T17:32:00.002+04:00

They say, "Bad news comes in three's". Well, we've had our three. First, my grandma died and then in 24 hours we got news of two of Russell's auties dying. Now we're trying to figure out how Russell can head back to the US for some time to help sort his aunt's possessions. He probably doesn't need to head out there for about 30 to 40 days, so that gives us some time. Preferably, we'll figure out how to keep Lyra here and in school even though she's out before my work-day ends.

Since November 27, she's had 4 days of school. That's all that was scheduled. First, we had an extended break because of Eid al Fitr and then the UAE National Day. Then she went back for four days and has now been off since December 18th for Christmas/Winter break. She was supposed to go back today - but there has been a national day of mourning declared in the UAE.

The ruler of Umm al Quwain, a neighboring emirate, died on Friday. My first clue that something was up was driving Lyra to a birthday party. There was nothing on any radio station except for classical music. Evidently, as a show of mourning, radio stations are not to broadcast their regular programming. This happened a few months ago when some cousin of a Sheikh was killed in an accident. So, I knew that someone must have died. Then they announced that it would be 3 days of mourning starting on Saturday.

They even cancelled the celebrations for Sheikh Mohammed who's anniversary for becoming the Ruler of Dubai was yesterday. All the government offices are closed and some private companies. But not mine - oh well. Whenever the government offices close, then schools are required to also be closed. So, late last night we got a text message from the school announcing they were closed. Gotta love text messaging - they use it for so much here that we would never think of. Not sure about tomorrow. If it's supposed to be 3 days of mourning starting Saturday, then we've only had 2 so far. So, are they also closed tomorrow? We'll find out later I guess.

Basil LOVES Carrots

2009-01-04T15:23:00.000+04:00

He goes mad for them! Watch as he tries every trick in his book to get me to feed him a tidbit of carrot. Every dog trick he has learned has been taught with the promise of carrot rewards. Some dogs want liver sausage, but Baz is a carrot fanatic.

Do you prefer . . .

2009-01-03T15:10:00.000+04:00

Lyra and I play a game called "What Do You Prefer". It goes like this.

I will say, "Do you prefer gummi bears or M&Ms?" and then she'll answer. If she answers M&Ms, I'll then ask "Do you prefer M&Ms or candy canes?" If she answers candy canes, I'll then ask "Do you prefer candy canes or licorice?" We can play this game about candy, animals, any other foods, you name it. We were playing in the car last night and she told me that now she'd like to play it where she asks the questions. OK, sounds good.

"Do you prefer sweaters or bacon?" she asked. I giggled. "Umm, I guess I prefer bacon." "Why?" "Well, bacon is so good."

"Do you prefer an ant to crawl on your hand or a cockroach to crawl on your leg?" was next. "An ant," I said. "Why?" "Well, they're smaller than a cockroach so I won't feel it as much." "Yes, but you can pet a cockroach." True, very true. I had not considered that.

"Do you prefer a cockroach crawling on your leg or a spider crawling on your leg?" I went with the choice that had fewer legs (the more legs, the more a thing will creep me out). "Cockroach." "Why?" she asked. "Because they have fewer legs." "Yes, but it's only a little tickle." She definitely doesn't have the bug phobias I have. "True, but I'd rather have a cockroach tickle than a spider." Truly the thought of either puts chills up my leg (a tribute to Chris Wallace there).

"Do you prefer a cockroach that I point out is behind you and startles you or a lion living in the house?" "A cockroach behind me that startles me." "Why wouldn't you want a lion?" "Well, having a lion in the house would be very dangerous. So, even though I'd be startled, I'd prefer a cockroach."

It's a much more interesting game when she asks the questions.

Getting Directions

2009-01-01T10:03:00.001+04:00

Boy, I miss how the Brits give fantastically accurate directions. They are always precise and correct. "At the first roundabout, take the third exit signposted to Henley. Follow the dual carriageway for a mile and after you go over a little rise, you'll see the entry for the Fox & Grapes pub on your left. Just after this entry is a small gravel drive on the left." The amazing thing is that they will do this from memory.

Here, never ask directions from a stranger. I repeat, NEVER ask directions from a stranger. More than half the time they have no idea what you're talking about or where you want to go. Nevermind that they probably don't understand your American English accent. But it is considered rude to say "I don't know". So, they make something up. They'll give a vague gesture in a direction and mutter something like "Yes, that way, madam."

Yesterday, I was going to a shop I hadn't visited before. I asked the store clerk how to get there. She was giving me very good directions and I knew the area the store was in. She got to a point where she said, "When you get to the stoplight at Lulu's call me and I'll give you the rest of the directions." I know there is a lot of construction in that area, so I imagined that she'd want to be on the phone to help me look for a possibly difficult to find driveway or parking entrance. So, as I was nearing the Lulu's hypermarket, I called. She proceeded to tell me, "Turn right at the stop light. Go until you see the next stop light and turn right. Go past the first right and at the second turning take a right. You'll come to the first round about. Go straight. At the second roundabout, turn left. Our shop is on the right side."

Now, what about these directions could not be given to me when I was sitting in my office with a piece of paper to write them down? Now that she's rattling them off and I'm driving through heavy traffic I'm trying desparately to stuff them into my memory in the right order so that I don't get lost in the maze of this neighborhood. There was nothing tricky - no hidden driveway - no manouvering around construction detours. Just plain ol' directions. I have no idea why she felt she couldn't give these to me when I called the first time.

I made it! A victory for me and my desperately unreliable 40+ year old memory.

Happy New Year!! Oh wait . . . CANCELLED!

2008-12-31T08:53:00.005+04:00

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has ordered the cancellation of all forms of celebrations marking the New Year in Dubai emirate, as an act of solidarity with the Palestinian people.

http://www.gulfnews.com/nation/Government/10271287.html

Hotels are NOT going to be happy about this. They're already complaining that the financial crisis has brought a 25% reduction in their occupancy rates. Mind you - this means that occupancy has gone from 90% fill rate to 70% fill rate. Hotels in the US would give their eye teeth for 70% fill rate.

I only heard by accident as I was walking into the office. I'm sure there will be lots of people who show up tonight at the hotels all dolled up for the evening out only to find that their evening has been cancelled. I can't WAIT to read the letters section of our local paper. This is bound to stir up the debate.

Russell and I had nothing planned - so little impact on us. We'll quietly raise a glass in toast at the stroke of midnight. That is, if we're still awake.

Update:
Turns out that the "cancellations" applied to outdoor events. Hotels and other indoor venues were allowed to continue their parties, but we asked to hold a more subdued event. I don't know exactly what subdued means. I think that all live music was cancelled - but maybe DJs were allowed. We ended up going over to the neighbors and had a great time. Lyra stayed up until midnight and was thrilled to see in the new year.

Christmas in Dubai

2008-12-30T10:31:00.006+04:00

I think that this was the first year EVER in my entire life that I didn't go anywhere for Christmas. Usually, I travel to my parents' or my grandmother's or last year we went on a trip. But this year, we stayed home. And boy, was it relaxing and nice. I slept a ton - trying to work off the jet lag and end-of-year exhaustion. Had lots of energy - as evidenced by the morning I got up, walked Basil for a long walkie, washed my car, mopped down the garage door (I think I've mentioned how dusty things get here), fiddled with the washing machine (which is not fixed, but at least we know how to use it so that the clothes aren't soaking wet when they come out), and futzed with the hosepipe (which due to the mystery shut-off valve we cannot find is still not fixed). And then it was 1pm.

What with the vacation to Africa and my unexpected trip to the US for my grandmother's funeral, we forgot to pick up an Advent calendar. Without that, Lyra was pretty unaware of the impending arrival of Father Christmas when I got back from the US on the 23rd. As I put her to bed, she asked me, "When will Santa come?"

"Tomorrow night," I said.

"Are you joking?" she asked.

"Nope, I'm serious. He's coming tomorrow night."

"But I haven't told him what I want, yet." (see previous post about missing Santa).

"Well, we can write him a letter."

So, on Christmas Eve, to hype it up a bit we had a very nice dinner. Surf & Turf for the adults. Russell made steak en croute (ribeye covered with pate in a puff pastry shell) and broiled lobster tails. Yummy! Lyra had a veggie cutlet with Gruyere cheese. Neither surf nor turf are on her list of favorites. After dinner, we all got into our jammies to watch the Grinch that Stole Christmas. I forgot that I now have Charlie Brown Christmas on DVD - it will be on next year's movie list. Then we read Twas the Night Before Christmas (a year-round favorite for Lyra).

Christmas morning - Lyra slept until 9. At her age, I could never have slept that long. She discovered her Plasma Car hidden by Santa behind the Christmas tree. "I didn't tell him what I wanted. How did he know I wanted a Plasma Car?" "Well, Santa knows. He knows if you've been bad or good and he knows what you want for Chirstmas." She worried a bit that maybe it was someone else's Plasma Car. Soon, she was demonstrating her expertise by driving the car around the living room and weaving in and out of the furniture.

After our morning gift openings, we got ready for Christmas lunch with the next door neighbors. We had reservations at a local hotel for their buffet. When we arrived, we were seated in the Tepanyaki area of the Bennihana's. Turned out to be a perfect location for us. For most of the time, it was just us in the back area. Nice and quiet. All of the hotel restaurants were participating in the buffet. So, we had Japanese, Thai, Lebanese, traditional English, Arabic, cold seafood buffet, Italian (and a smattering of Mexican). There was a special kids buffet with fish and chicken fingers, fries, cookies, etc. And everywhere were dessert tables with chocolate fountains, Christmas puddings, Um Ali, Ice Cream buffet (like Cold Stone Creamy). WOW - a real feast. At first I thought it was amusing to see so many locals at the buffet. But then I thought - well hey, we go to their Iftar buffets - so, I'm sure they enjoy experiencing our holiday traditions, too.

The next day, we went to the new mall that opened. Aptly named The Dubai Mall. They have an ice skating rink and an aquarium. I still can't get used to going to the malls for entertainment. But that's what you do here - especially in the summer. Lyra has wanted to try ice skating for ages and I even tried to take her during Ramadan - only to find that the rink we went to was closed. We paid for 2 hours, but I knew after putting on those horrible skates there would be no way I'd make it that long. But, we did skate for over an hour - and she improved tremendously during that time. In the first 15 minutes, she was ready to quit. But she kept with it and was doing pretty well by the end. Now she wants lessons, but I'm not sure if we can fit that into her busy schedule without giving up either theatre or ballet.

On Saturday, a trip out into the desert to build a campfire. There are sand dunes about 2 miles from our place that are fun for a bit of dune bashing. And then we set up a fire - one match is all it takes for the wood that has been drying in our garage. Basil becomes obsessed with trying to dig the tennis ball out of the sand and will dig a cavern the entire time we're there. We were once again accompanied by the neighbors. The kids had a blast! Next time, we'll bring the fixin's for s'mores.

A Year Without Santa Claus

2008-12-24T14:04:00.002+04:00

What's up with Dubai this year? No Santas anywhere. Last year, there were Santa's a-plenty. But this year, the pickin's are few.

While I was in the US, Russell took Lyra to two separate malls to find Santa. The first was the mall where we went last year. Last year, they had a fantastic Christmas set up following the theme of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. You even entered Santa's grotto by opening up the wardrobe doors and going in past a set of hanging coats. Very magical! But this year - no sign of Santa there.

They did find a Santa at a nearby mall, but you had to pay entrance fee to the cheezy indoor amusement area in order to gain access to Santa. Now, that's taking Christmas commercialization a bit too far.

So, today I called a couple of the malls focusing on those in the "expat" areas - no luck. No Santa. Hmmmm. How grinch-ey is that?!? I guess she'll have to write Santa a letter. Russell says that's not even necessary - "Santa knows". Yes, he does know. So, perhaps we'll explain it that way. Lyra doesn't seem too concerned about it.

At least she saw Santa last week at school. He came by to say hello to the children on the last day before winter break. Lyra told me, "Mr. Dolesch (her principal) came by our classroom dressed like Santa Claus. I knew he wasn't the real Santa." I asked her, "How did you know?" "Well, the only real Santa is the one that comes to your house. The others aren't the real Santa." OK - well I'm glad we got that sticky question out of the way.

And I know it's a bit late, but if you don't know about the NORAD website - this is great fun for tracking Santa's arrival tonight.

Lenoir June Ragland

2008-12-19T18:01:00.002+04:00

I'm back in the US for a short visit. My grandmother died and the funeral was yesterday.

She lived a long full life. She was 95 and there were several times over the past 5 years when we thought she wasn't going to make it. I'm looking forward to the times with family over the next couple of days to remember her. She was a strong woman and it was a lot of fun to be her granddaughter.

When I was about 8 (I was the oldest grandchild), my grandparents started taking all us grandchildren to a family church camp for a week. The first year there were 5 of us: me, Amy, Ron, and my cousins Tom and Mike. A couple years later, my younger cousins Brad and Sam also came. We stayed at a lake in Missouri. The bullfrogs were voluminous! The boys did tons of fishing and frog hunting. We all got lots of chiggers, poison ivy, and mosquito bites and spent as much time as possible swimming. Every year until I was 16 or 17, my grandparents took us. Afer a couple of the first years, they built a lodge and we were able to stay in air conditioned rooms. So, it was 7 grandkids for a week at summer camp with my grandparents. These are some great memories.

My grandma was always a baker. Each holiday visit we'd arrive to find tubs and tubs of our favorite cookies filling the house. Then for the meal, there'd be at least a couple of varieties of pie. Ron's favorite was pumpkin, so there were always at least a couple pumpkin pies and then maybe a pecan pie to go with it. For a few years, she was making cinnamon rolls for everyone. Her rolls were always rolled out so that the layers of bread between gooey cinnamon sugar were nice and thin. She'd buy some special sweetened flour from the donut shop to make her bread and rolls. I don't know what was in that flour, but it made the bread extra sweet and soft.

One of my favorite memories of Lyra with my grandma was of preparing pie crusts for Christmas pies. She worked with grandma to help get the crusts into the tins and crimp the edges. For us adults, it was great to see them working together. But I asked her, and its not something she remembers. It's funny how the memories for kids and adults are significant in different ways. Grandma always had lots of patience with her and enjoyed when Lyra would climb into her lap for a ride in the wheel chair from the car into the restaurant.

Grandma loved to have the house full, there was no such thing as too many people in the house. At family gatherings you'd find people in the living room, dining room, kitchen, breezeway, basement and spilling out into the back yard where there was a trampoline to entertain us kids. She had 4 spare beds in the old house that were often full with visiting family or friends. For her, life was meant to be shared with as many people as possible.

Let's Throw a Shoe at Him

2008-12-16T14:35:00.003+04:00

Kudos to the Iraqi journalist who threw a shoe at President Bush. I can't tell you how much his recent words and the tone of his visit made me wince - as if I'd just taken a swig of pure lemon juice. Does the man have no sense of the reality that has been created under his leadership?!?!
Mr. Bush - couldn't you just go quietly instead of stirring up again all the anti-American sentiment in this region. Gee!

Well, now the people in the Arab world have a hero. Someone who expressed their feelings exactly. If Arab courtesies allowed them to say "F*ck you" then that's what throwing a shoe would be accompanied by. Who knew that such a simple act would awaken a huge sentiment within the communities here. Support is springing up everywhere. At a recent march, protestors took off their shoes and marched with them on the end of poles. The network for this journalist has been showing his picture in the upper right corner as a support for his actions. Everywhere people are calling in to congratulate his action.

Now I hear this journalist is in custody. But of course thousands are protesting for his right to freedom of expression. Which I agree with. Anyway, he should be let go and hopefully he soon will be - otherwise a different type of sentiment may develop. A Lybian group has just awarded him with a medal of courage. His actions have come to symbolize what so many have wanted to say to Mr. Bush and his failed policies for so long.

Hopefully, with the exit of Bush and arrival of Obama the folks of this region will be willing to give us (the US) another chance to show that we're not as tone-deaf to the sentiments of the world as our actions the last 8 years have shown.

Back from our Trip

2008-12-12T19:31:00.009+04:00

So, just arrived yesterday from our trip to Kenya and Zanzibar. Wow, definitely a place to go back to.

We spent the first night in Nairobi. Right away, as we left the airport, a few in our group saw some giraffes that were in a nearby field. A taste of what was to come. Our hotel was near a neighborhood where we walked to find a local supermarket. We stocked up on water and a few other nibbles for our upcoming trip to the parks. It was much cheaper to buy the water when in Nairobi than to purchase it in the parks where it's priced at tourist prices.

Our fisrt trip was to Mt. Kenya. Given the elevation, the place was quite cool. Actually, Nairobi was also pleasantly temperate for being so close to the equator. We arrived in time for lunch and then a forest nature walk through the rain. Fur us Dubai-ites, the rain was a pleasant change. The hotel we stayed at was on the rim of a hill that overlooked a watering hole. We were able to go up to the observation level to watch animals strolling in for a drink. A large herd of cape buffalo made themselves at home for much of the afternoon and evening. A couple of warthogs also nosed around a bit. And otherwise, it was mostly deer, antelope, birds, and monkeys. In the evening, some of our group saw a gennet (small cat) and mongoose. But I was having a massage so missed that. We were able to register at the front desk for a wake up call if any exciting animals (like leopards) approached the hole. But, we had an undisdurbed night of sleep cuddled up with the hot water bottles that were placed in our beds for added warmth - nice!

From Mt. Kenya, we drove to Samburu National Park. We spent two days here safari-ing through the park. The park we stayed in is right next to a second park, Buffalo Springs. The two of them are around 75,000 acres. We had 2 safari drives each day. One in the evening, from 4 to 6:30 and the second in the morning from 6:30 to 9. It's hard to identify the biggest thrills. Every moment driving through the parks was fun. We were able drive up to a large family of elephants. They seemed very comfortable with us being there. Almost on cue when Russell said, "I wish they would trumpet" one of them did. And a young bull gave a fake-charge to our car. It was great to just stand and watch them. Also, we spotted a lioness right by the side of the road on our last day leaving the park. She was probably 2 feet from us on the side of the road.

After Samburu, we travelled to Sweetwaters Tented Camp. This park is actually a private conservancy. The park is smaller and they have introduced rhinos. We were able to see huge herds of zebras, cape buffalo, and giraffes. The park also has a special chimpanzee park for rescue chimps that are found in homes and markets and other areas. This is another park where the camp overlooks a watering hole. It was a bit surreal to walk up to the check-in desk and see giraffes walking about behind the building. Russell and I decided to join the night safari while there. We saw many of the same animals as during the daytime, but also were able to see a hyena, jackals, and cheetah. It was cool to drive the park during the stillness of night and try to spot the glowing eyes of animals out in the night.

From Sweetwaters, we travelled to Zanzibar, an island off the coast of Tanzania. Our first stay was at a resort on the north end of the island. Russell was able to make a scuba dive - and I tagged along for snorkeling. Saw TONS of cool fish, sea snakes, eels, coral - and got a horrible sun burn on my back. WOW - finally I'm recovering. The sand on the north end of the island was so beautiful and white. It was nearly the consistency of talcum powder. Lyra spent many many hours digging nests and having fun in the sand. She loves sand! From there, we went down to Zanzibar Town and stayed at a hotel in the historic district. We were able to wander the streets and shop at a few places.

Then a quick trip back to Nairobi for one night before heading back home to Dubai.

And now, I'm sick. Bug, flu, something I ate? Who knows. But I'm glad to be home. Everone else made it fine, so not sure why me. Hoping to feel better tomorrow so that I can enjoy my sister's last day of her visit.

School's Off

2008-11-28T09:56:00.002+04:00

We received a letter from Lyra's school last week. The Ministry of Education has declared that the week of December 7 is a holiday and all schools are required to be closed. The reason for this is a Muslim holiday coming up, Eid al Adha. The school had already planned 2 days into the calendar for the Eid holiday, but in the last week, the Ministry has decided that the full week should be off. They did this at the beginning of the school year too, during Eid al Fitr.

So, now the school has had 2 unexpected week-long breaks in the calendar. At Lyra's age, this isn't any big deal. But for the high schoolers who are prepping for exams this is now interfering with the exam schedule. So, to make up for the days, the school now has 3 Saturdays scheduled as make up days. My first thought was "Wooo-hooo!" I'm already excited about having some days to goof off with Russell.

I was imagining how this would go down in the US. The schools write you a note that in two weeks, the school will be closed for a week. My dad was once on the school board and I can tell you that his phone would have been ringing non-stop for a week with complaints from parents. Here, you just have to go with the flow. No use getting up tight about it. If you called to complain, you'd have very little sympathy.

The call would go something like this:

Julie: I'm calling regarding the recent changes to the school calendar.
MoE: Yes, madam.
Julie: This is a huge inconvenience to our family.
Moe: Yes, madam.
Julie: Why would you have waited until the last minute to make this announcement?
MoE: No, madam.
Julie: No. WHY would you wait until the LAST minute to make this announcement?
MoE: No, madam.
Julie: How am I supposed to arrange for last minute child care?
MoE: Yes, madam.
Julie: No. HOW am I supposed to arrange for LAST MINUTE childe care?
MoE: Yes, madam.
Julie: AGGGGHHH - never mind.
MoE: Yes, madam.

I'd end up even more frustrated than when I started. Not that little old me is going to influence the Ministry anyway. And besides, I'm psyched about the days with Russell.

Turn off your TV

2008-11-23T10:01:00.002+04:00

Happy people watch less television: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/20/health/research/20happy.html?em

The study doesn't say if watching television makes you more unhappy or if being unhappy makes you watch television. But I say, give it a go - turn off your TV - see if you aren't more happy. I think you'll find that there's so many other things to do. Life is certainly more interesting without TV.

When we moved here, we didn't get ourselves signed up for television. We thought we'd try it out for a while and see how it goes. Now, nearly 18 months later, we have no desire to get it. We have set up a flat screen so that we can watch DVDs. And we do watch a few shows on-line. And of course, there's Russell's addiction to YouTube (which is kind of like watching TV). And we like it that way. Life seems so much more relaxing.

By coincidence, we live next door to probably the only other family in Dubai without television. Juliette was telling me that other school mums always say to her, "Oh, I wish we didn't have TV." Hmmm - that's not so difficult. If you don't want it, unplug it.

Try it for a month, you'll be amazed. You'll have games nights, you'll read, you'll make a nice dinner, you'll spend more time with the kids at bed time, you'll have a glass of wine with your spouse - it's liberating.

Turkey Day

2008-11-21T22:07:00.002+04:00

I'm thinking about Thanksgiving. My sister and aunt are coming again - YEAH. They'll arrive late on Thursday - actually, they'll probably arrive into our house in the early hours of Friday morning. It will be a small gathering. Probably just the five of us.

Thanksgiving dinner is always traditional for me. With Christmas dinner, I'm willing to experiment with the menu a little. But not with Thanksgiving. I've got to have some dressing (sage & onion), must have cranberry relish, mashed potatoes, gravy and of course the turkey. Last year, we had so many left overs, we were eating it for days afterward. So, I'm thinking about how to cut down a little. But I don't want to leave out anything critical from the menu.

The local Organics store had fresh turkeys last year. Maybe Russ can take a trip down there this week while I'm in Saudi. One year, when we were in London, we paid GBP 40 for a turkey. That's about US$60. Whew - we weren't expecting that when we picked it up from the butcher. The same butcher that Russell saw a customer pay US$100 for a crown roast. That year we told everyone we had a "40 pound turkey" - heh, heh. I'm sure the fresh organic turkey will be a bit pricey, but none of the shops have a 29 cent/pound special on the Butterballs. My mom used to stock up on the turkeys during those specials. She'd buy two extra and have the butcher saw them in half. A couple of times a year, she'd pull out half for our dinner. So, if you have a deep freeze, get a couple extra turkeys!

We can pretty much get anything we need for the traditional dinner. Even cranberry jelly - but I think we have a can of that left over. Actually, I prefer a relish made from fresh. Last year, Amy packed a bag in her luggage. Canned pumpkin is also available here - it's popular for a lot of Indian curries and soups.

Sounds like some shopping is in order tomorrow to see what we can pick up.

Iskender

2008-11-20T16:33:00.003+04:00

It is Turkish for Alexander.

It also is a great dish made of spiced lamb grilled and served with a big dollop of yogurt on a freshly baked pita (or pide as they spell it in Turkish). In Istanbul, it was garnished with a generous portion of still bubbling melted butter poured over the top. On the side: baba ganoush, tabbouleh, hummous, and moutabel (a great mixture of roasted eggplant and tahini) scooped onto oven fresh pita. Yum!

Russell's plotting how he can open an Iskender shop in Bay View. Menu options would be Small, Medium, or Large. Well, since it's Bay View - he'd probably need to offer some sort of meatless Iskender, too. But the Istanbullers will be rolling in their graves at the thought of their home dish being tainted with meatless spiced-lamb.

I say he parks a cart on the corner of KK and Lincoln from 11:30pm to 2:30am. He'll make a killing.

Expressway Sightings

2008-11-18T21:55:00.003+04:00

I no longer find these sightings odd or startling:

1. A man riding his bicycle against traffic up the freeway.

2. A group of men perched on the edge of the expressway waiting for an opportunity to dash across 12 lanes of high speed traffic. Often they are pushing their bicycles.

3. Impatient drivers working their way past a traffic back up by trying to straddle the paint lines and drive in between the lanes of cars.

4. Cars flying up behind me, flashing their lights from more than 200 yards away, coming up on my rear so closely that I can no longer see their headlights or number plate.

5. Impatient cars taking off from the lanes of traffic to head through the sand trying to find some possible cut off into the neighborhood.

6. The same car 5 minutes later driving along the highway in the sand trying to pass up the traffic queue.

7. The same car 5 minues later forcing his way into the front of the queue to get back into traffic before his exit.

8. Buses parked in the right hand lane (no, not on the shoulder) to let off or pick up their passengers - this is the right hand lane of the FREEWAY!!

9. Cars backing up to try and get over to an exit that they missed.

10. Men sweeping the freeway with a broom. Another man watching the sweeper. And another man watching the watcher.

Edited to add:

11. Drivers driving with a toddler or baby in their lap.

12. Kids with their heads poking out the sun roof as the car roars past at 140kph.

Fairies Come Out at Night

2008-11-17T16:38:00.000+04:00

Yesterday's conversation with Lyra.

Lyra: Mama, you know Raven (a friend back home) had sparkles on her. And she showed me her sparkles and said it was from her fairy. But I don't think it was a fairy. I think it was just sparkles.

Me: Hmmm. . . you don't think it was her fairy?

L: No, it was just regular sparkles. Because fairies aren't real. Only the Sandman, the Toothfairy, and Santa are real. Just those special fairies are real. Other fairies aren't real.

M: Why don't you think fairies are real?

L: Well, because there aren't any unicorns. . . or . . . or . . . other things that aren't real, so there can't be any fairies.

M: [can't really argue with that logic] Maybe you're right.

L: [backing off a little] Well, if there are fairies, then they only will come out at night. Because they're shy and they don't want you to see them.

M: Yeah, maybe they only come at night.

Splish Splash

2008-11-16T09:27:00.003+04:00

This morning, as I neared the time that my alarm would go off, I was having vivid dreams that I was sleeping in my bed in Milwaukee. My dreams included a rainstorm accompanied by thunder and lightning. Back home, my bed is in the attic and the sound of rain falling onto the roof can be clearly heard overhead. The gentle sound of water running down the gutters and the swish of car tires driving down a wet street are sounds I don't hear any more. In my dream, I heard the gentle roll of thunder and the lashings of rain against the window.

It was so vivid that I was jolted to reality when my alarm went off and I awoke shocked to find that I was back here in Dubai. But the feeling of being in my bedroom in Milwaukee stayed with me all morning as I got ready for work. I was pining for home and the sounds of a cold rainy autumn morning. In my imagination, I enjoyed leaping over rivulets streaming down the street and curbsides filled with soggy unraked leaves. I imagined the twinge of wetness as my shoes landed in a puddle while running to my car. But alas, I am living in dry arid Dubai.

Imagine my pleased surprise (and total disorientation) when I went out to the car - and it was raining. I dodged the rain on my way to the car and laughed at myself as I struggled to unlock the gate and get into the car without drenching my clothes and hair. I had a brief flash of curiosity about what might be hanging on the clothes line in back. But, too late to do anything about it then.

It wasn't a dream after all - or was it?

Rememberance Day

2008-11-13T23:58:00.002+04:00

Tuesday was Remembrance Day. I looked at my watch at 9:50am, but forgot to look again until after 12:00. So, I missed it.

At home, Veterans' Day has lost some of its significance. There are still many gatherings of Veterans. But mostly it is Veterans remembering one another. Fellow soldiers taking a moment to honor their buddies lost in battle. A few people pick up a poppy to wear on their lapel from the local American Legion or VFW post. I can't say that I've ever been to any Veterans' Day event. It's sad really. Somewhere along the line, although we respect our soldiers in America, I think we've forgotten to honor them.

In the UK, Remembrance Day is a big deal. All public officials and television personalities proudly display their poppies in their lapels. Kind of like the recent US Flag lapel symbolism, it would seem unpatriotic to not have a poppy on your lapel.

The national events are televised live on all the channels. The Queen hosts visitors from all the Commonwealth countries. Wreaths of poppies are laid at the Cenotaph - a memorial to all servicemen and women who have died in the war. And at the 11th Hour of the 11th Day of the 11th Month, there is an observation of 2 minutes of silence. Even in the office, they would interrupt the day to have everyone observe the silence. You would never believe the complete stillness that decends upon London - and across the country - during those two minutes. It's pretty impressive that they've been honoring their soldiers in this way for 90 years.

I was always drawn to watch the television broadcasts of Remembrance Day. Appropriately, November 11th always seemed to be a drizzly, dreary day. I was humbled by the enormity of the honor that the UK continues to bestow upon their soldiers. It is quite a contrast to what I grew up with.

Things and Such

2008-11-10T21:16:00.002+04:00

During my break in blogging - much has happened.

First of all - what a relief that the election is over. And how totally awesome that Obama won. So, Russell and I can stop talking about a pending move to Canada or Mexico in order to escape the madness. And now we're missing all the excitement at home. I'm catching a bit of the hype on-line, but that doesn't really give a real sense of how people are feeling. We caught our plane home to Dubai on election day at 9pm. The results from early states were just starting to come in, but the suspense hadn't started to build. By the time we were landing in Dubai, the TV announcements of his victory had long-ago been made and his victory speech in Chicago was over. We had a brief announcement from the flight attendant as we neared for landing.

Everyone in the office is excited as well. Many of them watched Obama's speech in Chicago and were really moved by what he said. For most outside of the US, although they have heard of Obama, they have never really listened to one of his speeches. So, it was a real introduction for them to the person that the US elected.

Although people are hopeful that there will be a change in tone with regard to US and Middle East relations - they are mostly realistic. There's a long way to go until there are real changes in policies. But certainly a negotiation or meeting where the US recognizes that it's not as black and white as has been portrayed for the last 7 years would be a good starting point. So, my news obsessions have abated, but I'm still following closely. Thanks to on-line versions of The New York Times, Washington Post and MSNBC - I keep up.

Enough about politics.

While we were in Florida, we attended our neice's wedding. Lyra was the flower girl. She totally grooved on being a part of the wedding party. If Jaclyn and Brian thought this day was about them - they forgot the cute-factor of a very sociable flower girl to divert attention. She was just perfect. Since she was flower girl at my brother's wedding 3 years ago, she was pretty sure that she knew what she was doing. So, very few nerves on her part. It also helped that the Matron of Honor was a former babysitter who lived a couple blocks down the street from us in Milwaukee. So, a bit of a reunion for Lyra and Nicole (or "Micole" as she says).

As the preparations were occurring, the petals that she was to sprinkle on the aisle came out. "Where's the basket?" Lyra asked. The wedding assistant went off to find something and came back with a basket shaped something like a church collection plate or bread basket. "That's not what I was picturing," Lyra said. "I'm thinking it needs to have a handle - kind of like an Easter basket but not the same colors as an Easter basket." Of course she was right. And luckily Jaclyn had a cute little basket for her to carry.

From there, we went to visit some friends in Weston (about 40 minutes away). We had met Chip and Karen when we were in India earlier this year. We totally hit it off with them and they said, "If you're ever in Florida. . ." We told them, "Actually, we'll be there this November for a wedding." So, we hooked up. They live on the eastern edge of the Everglades. We went out for an airboat ride - which was totally interesting. Saw 4 fairly sizeable aligators, some turtles, and lots of sawgrass. But for Lyra, the highlight of our stay with them was feeding the ducks that are in their back yard. She continuously would ask for pieces of bread so that she could go out to call them in from the lake and toss bread to them. Surely, at least one loaf of bread was fed to those birds in the day that we were there.

So, now we're home. I was brutally reminded of the fact yesterday when a construction crane fell into the road just a block or so down from my office. It blocked traffic for nearly 12 hours. Luckily, no one was hurt. I'm sure we'll never know or hear why the crane fell. Traffic was horrible for tons of folks. Many in our office reported more than 4 hour commutes in the morning. Luckily, I avoided this - well since I commute in at 6am I rarely run into nasty traffic.

It's the Little Things

2008-11-01T01:41:00.002+04:00

I was just home in Milwaukee for a couple of days. It was nice to be home and nice to get in a little bit of autumn weather. It's the little things that make a place feel like home!

Driving home from work, I instinctively avoided the potholes and road patches on Bay Street. I was impressed that my body remembered they were there when my brain didn't.

It was great to see the huge piles of leaves as big as two cars forming outside on the curb. There hasn't been much rain in Milwaukee, so all the leaves are still crunchy and blowing about. I love walking down the sidewalk and hearing a satisfying crunch as leaves disintegrate under my shoes. I'm inordinately disappointed when a leaf turns out to be wimpy or soggy. What a waste of stomping energy!

I remembered to bring some jackets and scarves to keep myself warm outside. However, I forgot how cold it gets inside. How did I forget this? I should have brought some slippers and a robe or house coat.

I missed the Halloween excitement. Milwaukee had Trick or Treating last Saturday. Milwaukee has always been a bit odd that way - scheduling Trick or Treat on a Saturday or Sunday. I always love seeing the costumes. Hopefully, Lyra will get in a little Trick or Treating here in Florida tonight. We're supposed to go to the rehearsal dinner for my niece's wedding, but hoping to sneak in a little trip down one street before we go over there. I'll soon be posting pictures of our little cocoon.

Lyra's already plotting her costume for next year. She had considered caterpillar to complete the triumvirate of cocoon, butterfly, caterpillar. But now she's reconsidering. I've told her she has plenty of time to make up her mind.

Honey - Please Shut Up

2008-10-30T02:32:00.003+04:00

An interesting story in the news here.

A woman has been charged with the attempted murder of her husband. She tied his arms and legs to the bedposts, wrapped his head in Saran wrap, and proceeded to hit him over the head with a dumbbell.

He thought she was initiating some fun kinky sex.

She said, "I just wanted him to shut up."

Well, I guess that's one way to go about it.

Home

2008-10-25T13:57:00.002+04:00

I've come home to the US for a business trip - and then a family wedding on the back end.

Right now, I'm dealing with the early morning wake ups if jet lag. Don't know why - even though I wake up at 3am, I'm still more awake here than I am when I have jet lag back in Dubai.

I've been reading a book, Shantaram, that has been keeping me occupied in the early hours. Luckily it's over 900 pages - so even though I have hours to kill, I'm just barely half way through the book. Another huge tome about India. Evidently, I can only read books set in India if they reach the 1,000 page mark. But again, totally enjoyable. And now I really really want to go to Bombay.

Before I left Dubai, we worked on Lyra's Halloween costume. She decided she wants to be a cocoon this year. The challenge was how to make a costume without it looking like a turd. Russell found an image of what I think is a monarch butterfly cocoon. Anyway, she used the image as inspiration. We had found a paper lantern to act as the "body" of the costume and then she painted the decorations. She's very proud of her results. I'm sure we'll get a few "And what are you?" questions.

Smelly Place - Part 2

2008-10-21T10:35:00.003+04:00

Russell was telling me that maybe I should edit my previous posting to explain that the smelliness isn't that common. That mostly Dubai doesn't smell. That usually you cannot detect the aroma of sewage. Perhaps I'm chasing away any interested visitors by overstating the smelliness. And, coming from Bay View where we are within "whiffing distance" of the Milwaukee water treatment plant, I can vouch that Milwaukee has it's occasional smelliness too. I agreed that maybe I should tone it down a bit.

But what headline should greet me this morning? Pools of sewage forming around buildings in nearby labor camps. Essentially, a "labor camp" is an area where there are hundreds of apartment buildings (2 or 3 stories) clustered together housing 6-10 men to a room. The men sleep and eat dinner at the camps and then are picked up in buses to be transported back and forth to their work sites. The tanker trucks that are supposed to come take away the sewage in the collection tanks have not been arriving with enough regularity. Hence the overflow into sewage ponds collecting in the labor areas. The laborers have been calling the city for weeks without any response. Luckily for them, the press have picked up on their situation and maybe now they can get someone to pay attention.

What did they think - a few cholera outbreaks here and there wouldn't do any harm?

This Country Smells

2008-10-16T11:35:00.003+04:00

One of the "3rd World" aspects about Dubai is that occasionally it smells like sh*t. Literally.

When we first moved into the house - some of the bathrooms had a rank odor emanating from the toilets. We put it down to having air in the pipes. So, we flushed and ran some water down the pipes to clear out the smell. And that helps - usually. But sometimes - for some reason - the odors are able to come up into the house. It's especially noticeable if you leave the bathroom door closed for a while and then go in and "whew" - it's a bit ripe in there.

There are times, when walking down the street that you "catch a whiff". It can be in the poshest shopping mall. It can be getting out of the car in our driveway. I wrinkled my nose walking into Lyra's school the other day. I don't know why, but sometimes Dubai smells like poo.

All over the city, sewage is stored in huge tanks that are scattered around neighborhoods. In our neighborhood, the closest one is about 2 miles down the road. If the wind is right - oooh baby. I cannot imagine living in the villas that are right next to that lot. I've taken a walk down that way - and you can smell it coming. Tanker trucks drive by daily to take the sewage to the treatment plant that is about 10 miles from our place.

Every day, 10,000 tankers head to the same sewage plant. And as the city has grown and as the neighborhoods have been built and the population has sored, the number of tankers queuing up outside the sewage plant has grown. Every day, there are hundreds of trucks stretched in both directions waiting to deliver their load of raw sewage. Truckers can be in line for 18 hours awaiting their turn.

So, what have these truckers started doing? They're dumping their sewage into the storm drains. Yep. Tons and tons of raw sewage is being dumped into the storm drains to the point that they've had to close the beaches here. Imagine the horror of tourists as they find out that their "vacation in paradise" has become a paddle in the local toilet. A scene from Caddyshack comes to mind.

The municipality has started to crack down hard on the drivers and their companies. 50,000 Dhs fines have been levied. And they've started to weld shut the manhole covers. And they're keeping a close eye to catch all violators. So, does this stop them? Of course not. Now there are reports that truckers are opening their drain valves as they drive along the roads - leaving sewage strewn across streets. Or they're heading out into the desert and dumping in the sand.

I'm sure this dumping has been going on for months or years. It's just that recently they had to close beaches and of course now the public knows what is going on. It's a big problem - and I have no idea when there's another sewage treatment plant planned. In the meantime, the queues just keep getting bigger and bigger - and crafty truck drivers are going to try and find a way to avoid them.