quickie quirkies

i can't seem to wrap my mind around some things...

when i went for my driver's license transfer i had to take an eye exam. forget about the sweat stench in the waiting area...or the doorless men's bathroom that has never been cleaned since the building was built...the guy wouldn't let me put my glasses on to read the projection. i read all the numbers and at the end realized that the projection had all been lines of letters...the guy said "don't vury, i rite u no need glasses". made me feel really safe about all the other drivers who get a pass like i did.

got invited to a birthday party for a colleague. i was the only non-lebanese. those who know me, know how much i don't love kareoke.......i was subjected to three hours of it. only it was all old arabic songs. felt so out of place. where are the REAL expats in this country? those here on a professional stop, on their way to better CVs and interesting career paths who aren't desperate for money?

i made a friend...i think!!?? she came in for an interview. we found her, but the job wasn't worth for her to make the move i don't think...we ended up finding someone else. during the interview she admitted she was having issues meeting people like herself and i totally identified. i called her after we finalized our hire, so there was no conflict of interest as far as work was concerned. she was on her way to dubai for work. i was supposed to call her back, but she called this week!! :) so we should be getting together this weekend. i'm starting to get hopeful.

Ramadan Kareem?

thought i'd share the following with you...it was issued by the american embassy explaining ramadan rules in qatar. please pay close attention to the word "illegal". i feel like a hostage.

Muslims are required to fast from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan. As such, it is illegal in Qatar to eat, drink (even water), or smoke in public during fasting hours, i.e., approximately 5:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. Approximate times for sunrise and sunset will be announced in local newspapers. If Muslims are present in the work place, they expect non-Muslims to respect their fasting and not eat, drink, or smoke in front of them, even in motor vehicles, or to prepare food that they can smell or see. As it is illegal to serve food or drink during fasting hours, restaurants will be closed during daylight hours, with the exception of a few hotel restaurants that serve non-Muslims only. Restaurants will begin serving food at sundown, but expect them to be crowded, especially during Iftar, the first meal immediately after sunset. If you are in a hotel, and they do not serve a meal at a time you require, you will find that room service is normally available or the dining room will have an isolated area where non-Muslims are served.

and yes...by illegal it means you risk some form of punishment. i remember ramadan in cairo. granted, egypt is not a muslim nation but at least you had the freedom of choice during this period and religion wasn't forced down your throat even if you don't practice it.

so work hours are now 8am to 2pm. malls have funky morning hours, close most of the day and open again from 8pm til midnight or 1am. what i'm not looking forward to is everyones bad breath. i thought this month would be somewhat similar to my previous ramadan experiences...looks like it's gonna be one hell of a ride.

the old and the homesick

there was a time when i was in my early twenties...galavanting around egypt without a care in the world. work was work, illness lasted a few days and the future was unknown and exciting. days were led without much care, weekends harbored excitement and surprise and friendships, no matter how fleeting, were great to have. months brought me back to canada leaving me with the fondest memories. much like warm summer days during childhood years...only these are adult memories. the worst remembrances from that period of my life equal the band-aid removals we all endured as children.

fast forward a few years.

now is a time when i'm pushing thirty. when getting sick actually involves hospital visits, treatment and several days bed rest. when the future seems closer and preparing for it seems more necessary. when days have a purpose, weekends are used to ponder the week that just passed and to wonder how to embrace the coming days. a time in life when fleeting friendships aren't worth my compromise. a time when you remember a few years back and wonder how things were so easy not so long ago.

but then again...being homesick and SICK brings out that sort of melancholic thought. it's been exactly one month since my last post. i haven't gotten less cynical. so lets recap...

work: my boss changed his mind about 23 billion times about the magazine deadlines. hopefully we're sticking to the current plan of putting out the business mag in mid-november and the fashion mag in the spring. it is crazy seeing myself put it all together. i don't know how i'm doing it considering the only staff we have so far is a graphic designer and our department head...but somehow it's all coming together. i've got the content down for november and three months after that. we're working on layout now and it's all looking great.

wedding planning: it's getting scary...the amount of money that people want. it's coming out of everywhere. the price to pay for a dream wedding. sometimes i wonder if i should be cutting corners...and then i picture my day without certain elements and i can't do it. so i've decided to bite the bullet and go all out. i don't want to regret anything and i ESPECIALLY don't want go the rest of my life wishing i'd invested a couple extra grand.

social life: i'm feeling guilty for not answering everyone's emails. it's overwhelming sometimes and i feel horrid about it. as for making new friends...you discover quickly who they are when you fall sick. so i had 39C fever last week. there are people i couldn't have done without. let me tell you how horrid it is to feel helpless and feel like no one cares. i was lucky to not be alone...but i was also lucky to see early on the true colors of some i thought i could count on. to be honest...i'm trying but i can't find anyone who has my mentality. i can't become close to girls who wear pancake make-up and line their lips like it's the early 90's and who think eating yogurt for one week and not going to the bathroom is a REAL diet. i also can't get along with bigots who believe that people "chose" to be gay and anyone who admits to homosexuality should be "immediately brought to a psychiatrist". i'm not joking.

so far this country has done nothing but turn me off. a tax-free and wealthy existence is treating me fine...but it will never compare to a highly-taxed canadian one.