Casanostra a' la Greengrass

At long last, in a stunning 1 min 11 sec shot, a tour of our home. It's dark outside, and the lights are all off in the bathrooms, and I didn't show you the back "yard," but you'll get the general. Remember that the camera adds back the 10 pounds I've lost, and the angle doesn't help. No comments about the cheeks.



So that's that. New topic:

Service with a Smile

The underlings (and I'm one) around here are generally very assiduous. Yes, sometimes they are motivated by the desire for a tip, but in general they are simply conscientious. Examples: we had our first oil change this week, at a chain of gas stations called "Adnoc." The bays are spotless, as is the equipment. There is zero grease transfer, and they blow the dust out the engine and clean up any spilled oil off the engine block before they close the trunk. Always polite, of course--"Yes sir!" or "81 dirhams, please." not "Hey man. That'll be 50 bucks."--and always deferential.

Car washes are available everywhere, but when they say car wash they mean the whole enchilada. You go through the wash itself (at Adnoc), which is a scientifically calibrated precision deal, and then you drive over to a vacuum bay, where up to 6 men in impeccable uniforms descend upon the vehicle like a swarm of bees, only without the buzzing and the stinging, but with buffing cloths, air hoses, special cleaning solutions, and vacuum nozzles and give it the once over outside . . . and in. They actually polish inside the windows and the dash, etc. They insist on this. Won't take no for an answer. Then they'll check tire pressure and send you along all for under $10.

You can also get your car washed while you shop--valet style, if you're trusting, or via portable wash station: a "trolley" loaded with soapy water, rinse water, and towels. This makes homeless twenty-somethings with beards spitting on your windshield look even more pathetic than it is (though of course I sympathize). And, again, withe the uniforms and consistently cheery dispositions.

At grocery stores, especially the smaller ones, you should never expect to bag, haul, or load your own groceries. Somebody inevitably shows up who's willing to carry them halfway to Dubai, if that's where you parked. Do they expect a tip? No. Would they like one? Not always, actually. There have been times when I've perceived that they didn't want one, thank you very much: a human dignity thing. But they are always very gracious and grateful if you offer. Good folk all around.

News

Wendy is now a legal driver. Yikes. Actually, I insisted she drive home from the dmv (in the mrv) and she accepted gamely without too much cajoling. She's a Cahoon, after all: dive in first, get instructions later. Did just fine. Will wander out in gradually wider circles and at gradually more manic times of the day in the future. She is woman, hear her roar.

Boys had their first actual rugby games last Saturday: two-day tournament, but they have boycotted Sabbath games and haven't looked back. Anyway, Riley got a couple of minutes on the field (it was "sevens," meaning teams of seven playing for seven minutes) despite the fact that his team was mis-managed, poorly coached, and stacked with newcomers at the last minute. Christopher played the whole game for his team and finally got into it. At one point he was bottom man in a massive ruck--every bit as rough as it sounds, named as it is for the clawing movement of cleated feet. Kids were stepping on his head and kneeling on his solar plexus, but he hopped right up and got back in the game. I was very proud.

I'm finally almost caught up at work sort of. No more all-nighters or wake-up juice. Getting too old for this.

Q&A

We finally have some good questions. From my mater familias, the following:

Is your night-time schedule the same as always, or has that changed?

Good q. This is a night-time culture, like the Spanish: siesta mid-afternoon, out late shopping. During the summer months and into Ramadan, things are often open later than midnight, with government office open until 9 or 10, depending. We hear kids out in the complex after 11, but we generally still get the chilluns off to sleep by 10. It doesn't always happen, but we're trying to maintain some modicum of reasonableness.

What is the regular food shopping like, and are you having or choosing to change the way you eat?

I think we talked about groceries once, but you can generally find what you need, though not always what you want. This is a sugar-crazy culture (and it shows in the kids' behavior), so sugary cereals and snacks are cheap and ubiquitous. Ground beef is minced, and of course pork must be hunted out like the dog it is. So we don't bother. Breads are tasty, but all refined. So we try to be careful: lots of fruit and veggies, protein-rich entrees, and keeping a lid on eating out. But it ain't easy. Exercise is mandatory.

Does the weather change things for you? does it get dark early enough, etc?

Being almost equatorial means that daylight hours do change with the seasons. Right now we get sunrise at around 6:30 a.m. and sunset at shortly after 6:00. We're down to a chilly 31 degrees right now during the day, and a positively frigid 23 overnight. It will get cool, apparently, but, I mean, c'mon.

Do you know how you're handling Christmas this year? What will you do and not do?

No. But Wendy has some ideas: ski trip in Dubai, or maybe if we can find a cheap overseas flight to Indonesia or Singapore, we'll give that a go. I'm actually working Christmas day, so that's a bummer. But the kids are off for a bit around Christmas, so we'll do something. As for Christmas trappings, apparently that happens here, and the Emiratis kinda get into it. We were in a grocery store last night and I kept hearing "What Child is This?" Another time the muslim grocery clerk was whistling "Jingle Bells." So that's weird. But hey: who doesn't love a good party? or a reason to shop?


And these from "granola," who can only be Savannah, considering that her children are the only non-immunized hippie kids we know:

[W]ould our unimmunized [sic] kids be ok cruising the exotic aisles of ikea with you?

Do you mean while you and Adam go off on an Omani holiday? Or were you planning to be at Ikea with us? Cuz if it's the first . . . . Actually, I don't know. Check with your local health authority and the Foreign Affairs travel office. Then report back. Other inquiring hippies want to know.

More above: just realized the other questions are for the kids.

Next time: whatever.