Clayton is 4th from the left.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Jim and I did our round in the USA in June & July. Jim flew into Washington, DC and I into Houston in early June. I met Jim in Washington DC and we spent a lovely week in Williamsburg, VA. Then, we went to Minnesota to visit my brother, John and family. They had a nice celebration for their youngest son, Clayton who just graduated from high school. My mom flew from New Orleans to Minnesota for the celebration also. We continued on our way to Texas and visited doctors, dentists, friends & relatives. The boys are doing just fine. Mike continues to work for Denim Group in San Antonio. Craig is working this summer as a server at a retirement home in San Antonio. (Hopefully saving money for his trip to The Netherlands for New Years.) Craig will continue on with his studies at Trinity at the end of this month. He is changing his major to English! Finally!
At the end of June, Jim and I went back to Washington, DC for Jim to receive a Citation for Service Award for sharing of his knowledge and expertise in artificial lift (Gas Lift) and dedication to the American Petroleum Institute (API). A lot of hours were spent organizing different events for API. It was a very nice luncheon and award ceremony. We had the pleasure to meet the President of API and there was another Shell person there whom was also receiving an award.
July 1st, Jim flew back to Doha, and I flew back to TX. I went to Louisiana to visit my family and friends. I also went to San Antonio, TX and visited the boys again, and more family and friends. I returned back to Doha the end of July. It is very HOT and Humid.
I get up very early in the morning (5-6 AM) to get in 2 hours in the garden before it gets really HOT. It's 100F and 99.9% humidity at 5 AM! The highs are around 120-140F with 99.9% humidity. It's just like stepping out into a steam bath. But the nice thing about this place, is that we know that the weather will begin to start cooling very slowly starting in Sept. By November it will be back in the mid 70s to low 80s. It will be nice until about mid May. It's pretty much a trade off.
I will post a few photos from the summer.
At the end of June, Jim and I went back to Washington, DC for Jim to receive a Citation for Service Award for sharing of his knowledge and expertise in artificial lift (Gas Lift) and dedication to the American Petroleum Institute (API). A lot of hours were spent organizing different events for API. It was a very nice luncheon and award ceremony. We had the pleasure to meet the President of API and there was another Shell person there whom was also receiving an award.
July 1st, Jim flew back to Doha, and I flew back to TX. I went to Louisiana to visit my family and friends. I also went to San Antonio, TX and visited the boys again, and more family and friends. I returned back to Doha the end of July. It is very HOT and Humid.
I get up very early in the morning (5-6 AM) to get in 2 hours in the garden before it gets really HOT. It's 100F and 99.9% humidity at 5 AM! The highs are around 120-140F with 99.9% humidity. It's just like stepping out into a steam bath. But the nice thing about this place, is that we know that the weather will begin to start cooling very slowly starting in Sept. By November it will be back in the mid 70s to low 80s. It will be nice until about mid May. It's pretty much a trade off.
I will post a few photos from the summer.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Baby, the cat
The pregnant cat had her babies last Thursday. She had four baby kittens. I went to see them when they were 4 days old. They are so cute! Baby is a very good mom, and the people at the Cat Farm are taking very good care of her.
It's been a very busy week for me. Yoga class on Monday and Thursday mornings. Tuesday Ladies Group meets at the Ramada Hotel and they always have nice speakers. This past Tuesday was an expat artist. It was an interesting talk about her art. I met some new people, which most of them live in our compound and I had never seen them before.
I don't remember how often or if I have spoken about the Land Cruisers on the road here, but they think that they own it! They would never bump my bumper in traffic because I have a trailer hitch (which I have no intention of using!) that sticks about a foot on the back of the truck. If they bumped into it, it would damage their SUV and it would be their fault. For the most part, they respect me on the road because my vehicle is bigger than theirs. They don't stay in their lanes and they do not obey the traffic laws, unless their is a traffic camera around. The following is something I found on one of the expat sites. The stuff in parenthesis are my comments! I think it is hilarious!
Arabian Automotive Association: Rules of the Road
Ten Top Tips for driving in the Gulf.
1. Keep to your lane! (ha, ha, they never do that!)
Land Cruisers, BMWs and Mercedes may use the fast lane.
All other cars should keep to the middle or ‘slow’ lanes.
2. On entering a round-about, remember God (Allah) preserves the Pure in Heart.
Just drive straight in and He will protect you. (Allah would have to protect them because what other imbecile would protect these idiots!)
3. The right lane of a round-about is reserved for taxis to drop off passengers. (Taxi's are maniac drivers.)
4. Double parking on a round-about is only permitted if vendors are selling National Flags or watermelons. (ha, ha this is true.)
5. Take the right hand lane if you are turning left, and vice versa. (That way it keeps the roundabouts unpredictable!)
6. If ‘other’ types of car use the fast lane, flash your headlights and they will get out of the way. (They do this, but it does not always get them what they want.)
Failing this, a gentle nudge to the bumper will do the trick. (ha, ha, it doesn't work when I am involved.)
7. Red traffic lights mean Stop! Green means Go!
* [Land Cruisers and pickups are exempt from this rule.]
8. Always stay back at least ten inches from the car in front of you.
* [Land Cruisers and pickups are exempt from this rule.] (I love it when they tail a "Gas Vehicle" filled with propane tanks. Brilliant!)
9. Children sitting on the driver’s lap need not use a safety belt. (Actually, none of the kids are taught to wear seat belts. However, they will put those little dumb signs in the back of their vehicle that says "Caution: Children Aboard". LOL!!)
10. Use your horn frequently to signal “Have a Nice Day, Brothers!” (The more traffic, the more horns you hear.)
I am so glad that it is the Weekend!
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there on Sunday!
It's been a very busy week for me. Yoga class on Monday and Thursday mornings. Tuesday Ladies Group meets at the Ramada Hotel and they always have nice speakers. This past Tuesday was an expat artist. It was an interesting talk about her art. I met some new people, which most of them live in our compound and I had never seen them before.
I don't remember how often or if I have spoken about the Land Cruisers on the road here, but they think that they own it! They would never bump my bumper in traffic because I have a trailer hitch (which I have no intention of using!) that sticks about a foot on the back of the truck. If they bumped into it, it would damage their SUV and it would be their fault. For the most part, they respect me on the road because my vehicle is bigger than theirs. They don't stay in their lanes and they do not obey the traffic laws, unless their is a traffic camera around. The following is something I found on one of the expat sites. The stuff in parenthesis are my comments! I think it is hilarious!
Arabian Automotive Association: Rules of the Road
Ten Top Tips for driving in the Gulf.
1. Keep to your lane! (ha, ha, they never do that!)
Land Cruisers, BMWs and Mercedes may use the fast lane.
All other cars should keep to the middle or ‘slow’ lanes.
2. On entering a round-about, remember God (Allah) preserves the Pure in Heart.
Just drive straight in and He will protect you. (Allah would have to protect them because what other imbecile would protect these idiots!)
3. The right lane of a round-about is reserved for taxis to drop off passengers. (Taxi's are maniac drivers.)
4. Double parking on a round-about is only permitted if vendors are selling National Flags or watermelons. (ha, ha this is true.)
5. Take the right hand lane if you are turning left, and vice versa. (That way it keeps the roundabouts unpredictable!)
6. If ‘other’ types of car use the fast lane, flash your headlights and they will get out of the way. (They do this, but it does not always get them what they want.)
Failing this, a gentle nudge to the bumper will do the trick. (ha, ha, it doesn't work when I am involved.)
7. Red traffic lights mean Stop! Green means Go!
* [Land Cruisers and pickups are exempt from this rule.]
8. Always stay back at least ten inches from the car in front of you.
* [Land Cruisers and pickups are exempt from this rule.] (I love it when they tail a "Gas Vehicle" filled with propane tanks. Brilliant!)
9. Children sitting on the driver’s lap need not use a safety belt. (Actually, none of the kids are taught to wear seat belts. However, they will put those little dumb signs in the back of their vehicle that says "Caution: Children Aboard". LOL!!)
10. Use your horn frequently to signal “Have a Nice Day, Brothers!” (The more traffic, the more horns you hear.)
I am so glad that it is the Weekend!
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there on Sunday!
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