A Day of Shopping

Posted on July 1, 2014 by TheJessicaness
labeled light on base

labeled light on base

Caleb took Sparky out because he was up, and with Piggy still asleep we left. I opened my door and Caleb leaned in with lips puckered, “We can’t kiss outside.” He said it will be nice to be stationed anywhere else where we can kiss and hold hands again in public. He waits by the roundabout for the duty van as I go to the Freedom Souq to read for an hour and drink an apple/mango smoothie for $3.75 before getting cold and going to wait outside of housing for them to open.

Some of Caleb’s guys show up and ask me about all the places we turned down – like the one with the pool in the living room – because it was small, in an apartment, and the owner didn’t want dogs. “Do they bark?” Well, they don’t meow, I thought. I got called back and they are not able to get me another pre-contract. I will try again this afternoon before picking up Caleb, otherwise I have to go back tomorrow – and either way, I’m making the trip to base.

the cute, but too small, shirt

the cute, but too small, shirt

I find a short-sleeve shiny red shirt for Caleb on sale and a light blue long-sleeve one. Upstairs I try on a dressing room full of shirts and dresses and come out with one each. I look for more shirts and pants for Caleb, but they’re either too big or too pricey – $100 or more. I look for bras and they have two for $10, but none in my size, so I settle for a handful of panties. These two items are sweat collectors and need lots of washing.

That took up a good hour and a half of my day and I went downstairs to buy dog food, hair conditioner, and something to mix with the vodka that Caleb bought. Booze has to be in a black bag, but I can then put it in the one I brought – clear or book bag – don’t understand that at all, but I will be sure to bring the black one back next time.

sign in the liquor store

sign in the liquor store

I knew by now the dogs would have swollen bladders and empty stomachs. I walked and fed them, and ate some leftover cheese and crackers from last night. I checked the NEX receipt and noticed that I was given the wrong discount on the shirt I bought. I should’ve noticed something when 30% was less than 25% so I will have to go back for the $3.00 difference.

I went to Alosra for water and something to flavor it with. I was surprised when I shouldn’t have been about the vacant deli – all the machines and food taken out and off of everything. I walked up and down every aisle. I got cheese, canned veggies, and soup, bananas, tea bags, two carbonated drinks to try, guacamole, mini-loaf of bread (to fit in the fridge so it won’t mold so quickly), and treats for the dogs. It’s nice knowing that I will have fruit, veggies, beans, boiled eggs, and pastries in the morning. It’s less that I have to shop for and fresh food here costs so much more than I’m used to .

non-caloric chocolate is as real as unicorns that don't poo rainbows

non-caloric chocolate is as real as unicorns that don’t poo rainbows

I was making my way to the register when I saw the guy stocking water and realized I missed the most important item I had come for, but then couldn’t remember where the bulk water was. He pointed it out to me – between the dog treats and carbonated drinks. Thanks. I helped bag my own groceries so I could reuse the bags I brought with me. We’ve thrown so many away, yet there are still lots under the sink. I use some of the bigger ones to bring our plastic bottles to the base to recycle.

IMG_1852

Caleb in the chair

 

IMG_1854

still looks handsome though

 

I relax at home for an hour or two and then Caleb texts me. I go by the NEX to fix the discount situation and it gets explained to me that I was given two discounts – that’s one expensive shirt. I meet Caleb upstairs so he can het his hair cut. The guy doesn’t do a good job, physically or aesthetically. We go downstairs to the ITT office to ask about the banner for WooW Expo I saw outside of the base, but they know nothing about it. Luckily, there isn’t too much traffic behind us and I have time to snap a photo so I can look up the event happening the 3rd-5th at the Convention Center.

240oz tea is $6.38, soda is $4.57

240oz tea is $6.38, soda is $4.57

We sit at the table, after walking and playing with dogs, ready to blog and read, but I have a headache so we make dinner – cheese tortellini with hot salsa and watch Every Which Way but Loose. I make a vodka, Kahlua, and coconut milk drink, but that doesn’t seem to help either. I’m probably dehydrated and alcohol is not the answer. I look up the event, the WooW Expo for women, as Caleb tries on the shirts I bought him. Of course, the red one is too small. I try sitting at the table again, but end up going to bed – it’s 8:30.

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A Day Out with Kim

Posted on June 30, 2014 by TheJessicaness
escort badge for NSA Bahrain

escort badge for Naval Support Activity Bahrain

I might’ve gone to sleep late last night, but I wasn’t going to let that stop me from the new schedule I’m trying to keep. I didn’t have to worry about sleeping through my alarm. I woke up three minutes before it. And I was excited. I realised the ‘it takes two weeks to make a habit’ thing is true. Even though we went through jet lag I set my alarm for the same time every morning and am now waking up on my own.

I will have some Cheerios to keep my stomach from yelling at me while I publish another post and finish labelling the pictures from earlier in the trip. Done with that I can shower, talk with Linda (woman living in villa we are looking at), go to breakfast, and write about Ramadan and culture while waiting on Kim to show up.

She introduces me to her friend in the front seat and I sit in the back with Bailey (her grandson from her first marriage). He loves the heat and swimming versus back home in Missouri. We drive to base. I go to housing and they go to the NEX. I turn in my unwanted pre-contract and am told to come back tomorrow; they need 24 hours for processing. I meet them at a table drinking coffees. I’m bought a water for 25 cents and a bean burrito from Taco Bell and have two chocolate chip cookies while we chat.

cool effect on the sunset ride home

cool effect on the sunset ride home

Kim and I check our mail around the corner. I have three slips in my box and she has none. One of the boxes isn’t mine and it makes carrying the other two easier. They are light which helps too. I take a picture of one of the escort badges as we walk back to the car. At the house, at 1:30, I open the boxes to find a steering wheel cover (don’t know what happened to my rainbow one) for our car that isn’t here yet, a shaving brush holder that Caleb has needed since Christmas, and a Kindle – so that Caleb can read Dr. Seuss and Sherlock Holmes.

Caleb texts me at 3:50 that he’s getting off work, but I don’t see him until 4:30 – after waiting in the car in the shade near base and then waiting in the roundabout. We were going to buy dog food, but got invited for surprise pizza with Kim. I thought it was the name of the place, but it’s a menu item at Al Mudeef, a little corner restaurant, near Lulu’s in Hidd. There’s a place that sells juice and sandwiches next door, a grocery store, and men selling fish across the street.

I thought we were going to eat there, but the one table was taken. They sell pizza, salad, desserts – like a Middle Eastern Papa John’s. Our order didn’t take long and I thought we were on our way to Kim’s, but she wanted some grandma/grandson time before the kid left back to the States. I don’t blame her and thank her for inviting us to try something new.

Al Mudeef surprise pizza

Al Mudeef surprise pizza

She drops us off at the hotel and I go to the front desk to ask for a DVD player so we can watch Slumdog Millionaire when Kim brings the movie by. I wonder if this is the service people pay for in other fancy hotels (the ones we usually can’t afford). Twenty minutes later a DVD player is brought to our room and the man hooks it up for us and doesn’t leave until he’s sure it and the remote work.

Kim has two copies and it’s what her and Bailey, who’s never seen it, will also be watching during dinner. The lesson I gained from the movie is that we are all born immature, and regardless of where we were raised or the traumas we experienced, it is still up to us to do the right thing when given the chance – which in this film is love, learn, and share.

The pizza is more of a pastry, like two calzones together, with sesame seeds on top. It’s pre-cut and I can see cheese, green vegetables, and brown chunks. I figure it’s meat – the surprise is to guess what kind, but my first bite makes me think of mushrooms, so I keep eating. Then I start to taste the meat, and amongst all that dead flesh, I find a delicious tomato piece and all hope is not lost. I will eat more slices chasing the taste of that red vegetable that I don’t find.

Afterward dinner and the movie I was going to order food for dogs, but got sidetracked downloading books to Caleb’s Kindle so he can have some reading material. I stopped after I realised I was adding things I would like to read, though the Kindle doesn’t have to be just for underways and duty days; it can be for travel days too.

Some lyrics I found online:

I like big books and I cannot lie. You other readers can’t deny; when a book walks in with a good plot base and a big spine in your face you get sprung! Wanna get out your notepads ’cause you noticed that book was dense.

Deep in the book I’m reading, I’m hooked and I can’t stop speeding, through Baby I wanna get that literature, and Instagram that picture. My teachers try to train me but that book you’ve got makes me so brainy!

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My Thoughts on Ramadan

Posted on June 30, 2014 by TheJessicaness

Ramadan was the hottest month in Islāmic history. It was a time of less food and water, so during their fasting it’s not just for starving or dehydration, it’s a time of contemplation and reflection, of spiritual growth, and commitment. It’s also a time for a lot of prayers, plenty of reading, and perhaps some long naps to last the day. This Ramadan has 14 hours of daylight so that time can be spent sleeping, reading the Quran (I have one translated into English), and exploring the country in its more quiet state.

A website suggests that if you read 20 pages a day, of the 604, you should just about finish during the month. I’ve got two smaller introductory books that I’m going to read – Quran: A Short Journey, and The Man in the Red Underpants. I will use this time to learn more about this culture that I’ve been invited to stay in. There was an article about the Ramadan brief given at Indoc on base and it turned into a total racist comment party, so I quit reading. I would like to say that Bahrain allows us to stay here and so it’s kind of us to follow some simple rules while we are guests.

If we want the same thing in the States than we should close our borders, pick a religion (since we were based on freedom of), become fluent in two languages (most Americans I know are monolingual), and commit to something besides hatred and hamburgers. I agree that we shouldn’t have to stop saying Under God or Merry Christmas, those are our traditions, but when you travel and see a melting pot of people who each follow something different it makes it difficult to keep up with which holiday it may be for them. It seems it would be easier to say Happy Holidays.

While in Bahrain during the holiday month it is kind to wish everyone here, celebrating or not, a “Ramadan Kareem” for they too are not eating, drinking, smoking, playing music, or having sex during the daylight hours – at least not where their neighbors can hear. They too are putting up with the extreme heat and the shortened work hours when trying to get settled into a country or keep a business running.

These people live differently here. That’s what makes them unique and worth getting to know. Let’s not forget that as we take our country for granted – the land of the free to make decisions (preferably to stop hating – not just in the Gatorade gangster sense, but in every meaning of the word) and supposedly the home of the brave (where other countries citizens escape to make something of themselves) while the locals sit behind their football, Budweiser, and Oprah and hope that all the foreigners will go away – thanks, Obama!

But what people fail to realize is that they too were once foreigners – Africans, Jews, Germans, Chinese – and some were held in prisoner camps against their will by other white people. Racism isn’t just a color issue, it’s a lack of education and a willingness to learn. I know if the Earth’s time was scaled down to 24 hours we are in the last 12 seconds of development. We have a long way to go towards equal rights for work, gay marriages, women’s rights around the world. Other countries are starving, don’t have clean water, and don’t enforce safety regulations. I know the readers of my blog aren’t of this mindset, but I want to put this out there for the chance that someone might read it and get inspired to share it, be inspired by it, and maybe even act on it.

You don’t have to leave the States to learn this. You don’t even have to leave your state, but you do need to leave your hometown. You need to find a memorial, a tree, a mountain, a desert, a museum, artefacts in your neighbor’s field (with their permission) and you need to learn about the people who lived there – as far back as history will allow. You need to realize that there were Indians, Africans, Spaniards, Russians, explorers, scientists, pioneers, homesteaders, and people rushing for gold on that land. It doesn’t look the same anymore. Time changes all things and I hope to gain some knowledge and insight into this culture by learning some of their language and ways of life while I’m here.

Posted in Books, Education, History, Holidays, Inspiration, Media, People, Places, Things, Travel | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Good Morning Ramadan

Posted on June 29, 2014 by TheJessicaness
Good morning, Ramadan!

Good morning, Ramadan!

I set my alarm for 4am and then 15 minutes later I was turning the second one off as I made my way outside. The sky went from black to midnight blue. I went down to the beach in Caleb’s old flip-flops that give his feet blisters. I walked around some feeling the soft sand under my feet after I had traversed over shells and sharp rocks. I sat on a rock near the shore that felt like fossilised oysters and watched the fish swim in the water – the big one pacing back and forth past me eating the little ones that looked like rain drops until they jumped out of the water and away from being food.

a car wrapped in bows, Ramadan Kareem!

a car wrapped in bows, Ramadan Kareem!

The sky continued to brighten, but at 4:48 (when the website said the sun would rise) the sky was still a dark shade of purple on the horizon, with a layer of orange on top of that, and the whitening of the blue clouds higher up and more spaced out now. At 4:51, I saw the tip of the sun break through the clouds and it was minutes before it went from a dark multi-orange ball that I could look at to a bright yellow burning ball of flames that began to hurt my eyes and whiten my photos.

4:46 am

4:46 am

I made it back inside, after walking dogs, by 5:30 and decided to go back to sleep until 7am. If I woke any sooner I would be restless and tired later on. I went to breakfast at 9:30, wondering along the way whether they would be open or not for non-fasting guests as some places offer take-away only so they don’t have to witness you chowing down in public. I can respect that. I had a quick breakfast at ‘our’ table by the window and on the way to the car passed four guys, one using obscene language. I told him to watch his mouth as I climbed in the car and then left for base.

4:57 am

4:57 am

I was enjoying the slow morning, but it was about to get even slower. I had a guy tailgating me in his SUV when traffic stopped on the road. He honked when I braked, so I flashed my hazards for a moment and then stopped. Traffic rolled along and plenty of cars were taking the shoulder. I forgot about the false turn before the right across from the checkered towers, so I cut over just to have to get back over. Luckily a truck was nice enough to let me in. I did use my blinker.

5:02 am

5:02 am

I saw one police car, but nothing else and thought whatever had slowed us down must have been cleared, but as soon as we all got back up to speed we were hitting the brakes again. This time I stayed in my lane until getting over the bridge when I get right to take the exit to Juffair. It was then that I saw the truck with the driver compartment flipped on its face. I slowed down for the 30km/h turn and noticed a white car with a smashed in front. I don’t know what happened here.

a thirsty beach deserves some good fruit drink

a thirsty beach deserves some good fruit drink

There was plenty of parking in the dirt lot, but I had already parked across the street. Coming through security I asked what was on their scanner and the guard showed me – a picture that matched my ID, “Thanks, have a good day.” The first time it has to upload your information and every time after that it’s just recalling.

every water scene deserves a good reflection

every water scene deserves a good reflection

I stood in line for 8 minutes at the CPR/passport office. I was handed our official passports and told to go to the other guy beside him for our CPRs. I handed him our passports (the ones we just got back) along with a credit card. He gave me the card back and a receipt and told me to come back in a week. I suppose it’s a good thing I came in today instead of waiting until tomorrow. We’ll have these taken care of one day sooner. While I was in there, I noticed a paper about visas to the UAE. It’s a big hassle if you want to get it done with the official passport, but as a tourist I will have no problem getting a 30 day visa upon entry to any of their airports – hello Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

5:07 am

5:07 am

I head over to the housing office and there is a sign on the door. Their system is down, so no pre-contract or terminations can be done. Inside I’m told the system might be up at noon and maybe not until tomorrow. I was told I should come on the 30th anyways, so I will just come back then and hope to take care of all of it in one day, but if not, I still have to take Caleb back and forth and can pass my time on base each day while I wait.

attendant creating dust art in the dirt lot while he waits

attendant creating dust art in the dirt lot while he waits

It’s then that I remember I forgot the rental agreement for the car so that I could get a copy made. Leaving base I pass a couple – a man in ankle-length pants and long sleeve shirt, and a woman in traditional dress. The guard looks at her eyes and then at her ID and says, “No”. I don’t know why but they were turned around as I pass a lady flaunting a huge bottle of icy water.

It's official! I can live in Bahrain for a year.

It’s official! I can live in Bahrain for a year.

I make Ramen with jalapeño stuffed black olives (don’t like them), sun-dried tomatoes, and Gouda. I take the dogs to the beach and the water is hot, having baked on the dark rocks in the sun all afternoon, making it less tolerable to be outside, so I walk them in the grass to dry their feet and then get changed so I can swim in the pool. I have it to myself, but after 15 minutes of swimming laps I’m already feeling sluggish.

where I walk the dogs

where I walk the dogs

I sit down to finish another post and end up on Skype with Uncle Ed for a while. The quality of the video was great – until I tried to show him the den. We seem to lose signal there when trying to show our dads around too. Ed told me I should label my photos so that my readers know where they were taken, especially when they don’t line up with the text. I totally agree, so I set to doing that and then got sidetracked by a TED Talk from Beau Lotto: Optical illusions show how we see (or possibly what we’re missing). I talked to Caleb a while on duty while on watch at 11:30… it’s late and I need to go to bed.

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First Underway Kind of Day

Posted on June 28, 2014 by TheJessicaness
empty coffee cup

empty coffee cup

Caleb wakes me at 4:45 and three minutes later we are in the car on our way to base when I notice the biggest and brightest sun sitting over the water and want to stare at it while driving. I get Caleb to work and the next thing I remember is waking up in time for breakfast. Caleb got picked up late because the duty van got there early.

I have cereal in the room and sit down to get posting, but end up going through Caleb’s photos and posting 24 of them to Facebook while drinking a cup of NesCafe coffee. I have a late lunch of Ramen with a carrot, green beans, and balsamic. I would’ve had some Rotel in it but didn’t feel like bothering room service and then waiting on them for a can opener – the one in their kitchen. For dessert – some coconut chocolate and minty gum. I finish a post while eating Gouda with pepper Triscuits.

full snack cup

full snack cup

By the time I looked up the sunrise/sunset schedule it was already getting dark out. I have plans to wake in the morning and watch the sun brighten the day, do some posting, and then watch the sun lower in the sky. Then the next time I watch can be after looking up the best place to do so for both on the island. This is the quietest it has been since we moved in. I can hear the neighbour’s TV through the wall.

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