I've been sick for a few days now. Multiple symptoms which actually feel like 3 distinct illnesses that just happen to be at the same time. The trifecta of sick. I mean, if I had to get sick, at least let it be now BEFORE we get to USA for the wedding!

Rory has been away in Turkey all week so I'm looking forward to his return this evening :)

That's all.

Finally getting to take my Eid break this week! Technically we were out of the office last week but I was still on duty. I had a doozie of a call Friday night. It almost makes me laugh because it sounds so rediculous to us as westerners, to say I had to show up and spend 2.5 hours investigating and interviewing students who decided to mix gender in one of the apartments. Over here it's such a serious offense and people are freaked out about getting deported. I'm thinking, then was it actually worth risking deportation just to hang out? I mean yes, it blows big fat goats that we can't be 'who we are' over here - but we are guests of another country, and like it or not we need to abide by their laws. I guess I traded regular alcohol infractions for major cultural clashes. At least (I don't THINK) Qatar does not participate in stoning women for 'tainting' themselves by being the presence of guys without a chaperon. Having grown up with freedom it makes it hard to enforce things like this, I almost feel like a brainwashed Nazi. This is one of the hardest parts of being an expat - when your core values are judged and infringed upon on a regular basis by a school of thought that you simply cannot identify with.

SO...got lots of wedding stuff done while Rory was also off last week. Namely settling the ceremony. I think we found the right words that 'sound like us', and the music as well. Not traditional, but not so far off it would scare the older generations. :)

At last, Ramadan is officially over with tomorrow's dawn. My students will start sleeping better, eating better, and we'll all not suffer from dehydration is this desert heat. Most exciting of all, it's Eid break. A free week off work to catch up on a massive list of 'to do's' at home and a myriad of wedding details. It couldn't have come at a better time really.

I attended a program by one of my CDAs to celebrate the arrival of Eid and had 2 of my students henna my hands. We're thinking about having a henna artist at the wedding as a tribute to where we met.

Have a good one peeps!

!HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
I hope it's full of surprises! Wish I could be there to help celebrate.

I'm curious for a little input. If you were planning a party...and at this party you wanted certain things..and those certain things cost money...and you're willing to pay that money because you want to be happy...and you invite people to your party because you want them to join you in your happiness...

1. Would you get a little upset if someone said, "I'm not coming to the pre-party event but I'll pop by the party for a little bit as long as I can also bring my kid" (who was not invited).

2. How would you respond to such a statement?

Miss Qatar 2009

The biggest lesson Rory and I are learning about planning a wedding...if you make a great team, you won't have any stress - it's the family that adds unnecessary stress to just about everything.

It would help if people stopped saying things like, "that's so far", "i don't like that colour", and "that's not my style" and started saying things like, "i'm so happy for you", "can i do anything to help", and "i can't wait to celebrate with you".

Otherwise, I can't wait for October 31st to be here!

I can't get enough of this guy!

I'm still alive. Been super, super, super busy with work. We've had lots of changes which included my direct supervisor quitting and dumping a shitload of her work onto me. It set me pretty far behind on my own tasks, so I've been doing non-stop long hours since I got back from the states. FINALLY, all the training is over and I can begin to relax for 1 week until school starts, and Ramadan begins, and all the conduct and fire alarms begin.

Oh, we also had a trainee that was supposed to join us and supervise the new female hall, but then she decided the package wasn't good enough for her. Yah, someone with a BA applying to get trained for a job that requires a MA decided she should get paid just as much as we do. FYI, what she was offered is what the average hall director makes in the US WITH the MA. Anyway, I get another hall to look after, because I'm not busy enough trying to keep up with new expectations and still finalize wedding plans with 3 receptions on 3 continents. Seriously, Rory and I should win some kind of award for that.

Oh top of that, I just found out our director has decided to leave too, effective October. So Lord only knows what's going to happen now.

I'm behind on loads of photos, but thought I'd force myself to at least get a smattering of some posted today. I'll sleep better tonight!

an old photo from my trip to seattle in march:




my knitting class in may:

results after lesson 1




results from lesson 2




product after lesson 3




product after lesson 4




product after lesson 5




snapshots from the short trip home:

my nephew ryan really took to rory, whatever rory did, ryan wanted to do too - adorable teeth brushing session






me and my mom




my precious bambi




my youngest nephew, fox




freezing our asses off during 'summer' at shakespeare in the park




photos from the shower:

a game rory and I had to play answering questions about each other, each wrong answer equaled another marshmallow in the mouth. I lost.






another game where teams had to place their roll of TP onto a teammates plunger....








end of the night bonfire, it was a perfect day




quick trip to italy:

rome, with a view of vatican city (dome)




rory and his mate lawrence viewing the ruins




a look inside the colleseum




being romantic by trevi fountain
(we saw 2 engagements in less than 15 minutes)




a pit stop in capri




the streets of pompeii




pretending to be security guards with our tourist radios




hillside of pompeii




recovered bodies in pompeii; you can actually see their expressions!












the end

So happy it's Thursday. Been a long week of people making we wake up waaaaaaay earlier than I normally do, which has totally messed with my body clock. It's like I have been living in mist and nothing is really clear. I even shocked Rory by being very, very sleepy one night and it was only 11pm! Unheard of.

Anyhoo...I finished the baby booties last night and despite a few oopsies here and there, they look like big fluffly baby socks! I can't believe it. So starting from zero knowledge or skill in knitting 5 weeks ago, I've now made 2 hats and a set of booties! Exciting! I'm working on another hat (they are obviously easier to make) to finish by my last class on Tuesday. All the hats and booties we make are going to be donated to babies in Palestine. I'll post photos after my last class.

Now I'm confident with some of the basics, I'm going to attempt making a shrug for my wedding. I also found a shirt I really want that has a ball of yarn with some knitting needles yelling, "I'm the Shiz-Knit". Seriously, who knew this 'old lady' stereotype activity was so much freaking fun!?