This is my baby Joy on a Bus. She is so damn cute that I just want to fly back to Chicago to give her a great big hug. Thanks Virginia for sending the pic.
Baby on a Bus
Hey Sarah Palin
A friend of mine, Lindsey from Fickle Little Machine fame, posted a funny as hell little song about Sarah Palin. She is good at finding fun things on the internwebs, so check out her site if you haven’t already.
Thought that I would share the video:
Bread Snob
Don’t know where it happened, but somewhere between the Chicago and Doha I became a bread snob. In the states I would eat what ever white bread that was available. I usually went for some low carb stuff but it really didn’t matter. It all taste the same to me. Don’t know if it happened on the flight, where I was given some great breads for each meal, or if it was the delicious bread that was here in my apartment when I got over her. Connie, the HR person, was kind enough to pick up some groceries for me to have when I arrived. She got some delicious multi-cereal bread from the Family Foods grocery store. They have a bakery right in the store. I loved it. I had been shopping at the local big superstore and picking up the white bread, but I just couldn’t stand it anymore. I broke out the map and hunted down the Family Foods so that I could buy some good bread. I love it. Don’t know how I got along without good bread before. So there it is, I am now a bread snob.
Death and Taxes
Went to the health center to get my medical stuff for my residency permit. There were a lot of people there, but it seemed to go smoothly. I don’t have any idea what was being said most of the time, but they guy who was guiding us pointed us in the right direction. Got blood checked, basic physical and an X-Ray. Learned that I can see, I have a blood pressure (not too high), I am 184cm tall, and weigh 128Kg.
When I got back to work, I had an appointment with a tax guy. He is hired by the university to do our taxes for us. Things are a little more complicated with the foreign tax credit, so it is nice to have a little bit of help with it. Didn’t know that the US is one of the few countries that taxes their citizens even when they are working in a foreign country. I gave him my numbers today, and will find out tomorrow how much I am going to have to anti up. I am starting to feel jealous of my European co-workers who aren’t paying any income tax what so ever. Don’t think that I am ready to give up my citizenship yet (but we’ll see how the election goes).
I am hoping for good health and low taxes, but if I can’t have both, I’ll pay some taxes.
Gas, Work and Good Equipment
I got gas for my car today. Wasn’t sure of the process here so I asked before I went. Full service only, and gas is cheap as hell. I pulled up and the guy asked me which kind and how much and then filled it up for me. I have to say that I really like full service. The car was near empty so I needed a full tank, price came to 26QR, tipped 4QR so a total of 30QR for a tank of gas. That comes to about $8.25. Wow. In the states I was filling up for $70-75. Only snag is that they only take cash, but when it is that cheap, I can always find it.
My not watching TV pledge came at a good time. I have had tons of work to do. I am putting together some of the equipment that we will be buying for our new studio. It is a good list with some nice equipment. I am sure that the students will find it to their liking. Back to work now. Boss has to have the rest of the list done for tomorrow.
TV or Poetry
I have been watching some TV since I have been over here. There are a couple of channels with American movies, and one with sitcoms, then some news channels. The lack of choice means that it hasn’t overwhelmed my life like in the states.
Tonight, Dead Poets Society was on. I have always loved the movie, and it inspires me to get back to writing. I know that I am a writer, but I seem to get away from that a lot in my life. I have been debating about what I am going to do over here in Qatar. Whether I should stick to myself and just work on getting healthy, writing, learning, and/or make some films, or should I try to get to know everyone out here and just have fun. I guess that I have come to realize that neither, by itself, is a good choice. I am in a new place and I have to get out and experience it, but I need to stay in and write. If I get rid of the TV watching, I should have enough time for both. When I was younger, I gave up TV for awhile. It was one of the best times in my life, I guess that it is time to do that again.
First Week of Work
Finished up my first week of work today. I still have trouble with the Sun-Thur work week. Well the first one is down, and I’d have to say it went really well. I got a lot of paperwork and stuff done for employment. Got a little better idea of the equipment that they will be buying, and I am getting a little idea of what my job is going to be. I am really excited about working with the digital cinema. It is a different way of working that what I am used to. At WILL, I was working with others on Documentaries and studio based broadcast programs. The film style shooting is a little different than what I am used to, but I am learning what I can to help support the different systems.
Second, I am loving driving. That was the one thing that I was worried about, but it turns out to be my favorite part. I am doing well on the roundabouts and learning the city a little. There is a lot more to explore, but I have time to get it done. I think that I am just going to rest up this weekend though.
Just an update on my last post. I said that I bought soured milk, but actually it wasn’t milk at all. Turns out it was a yogurt drink that is popular over here. Looked like milk to me. I was a little more careful when I went back and made sure that I got milk.
We don’t need no stinking Badges.
Met with Tim, my boss today. He was back from Holiday and wanted to welcome me to Doha, and talk a little about what I would be doing in the next couple of weeks. There is a lot to be done, and I am excited to get started. He and a few other co-workers went out for a little welcome lunch. It was a nice way to start things off.
Got my id badge/keycard today. It allows me to get into the parking garage and all of the rooms that I need to get into. Turns out that I really do need a badge if I want to get around. Since my badge is working, I will be able to drive myself to work tomorrow. I am sure Ivana is happy that she doesn’t have to drive me to work now.
Went to the grocery store after work and picked up some much needed food. I didn’t do much experimenting, just stuck to the basics. I just wanted to get started. I got home and found out that my milk was spoiled. That was nasty. Glad that I have stuff to eat again. It wasn’t that bad getting there either. Ivana showed me an easy way to get in through the back roads. Map was a little off on this one though. The city is growing so quickly that the maps aren’t able to keep up.
First Day at Work, Car, Keys
Went into work today and got an orientation from the HR people. Got some pictures taken and saw some of the facilities of education city. Went to lunch with some of the IT guys, and then went to get some cables for some of their equipment. I got a tour of the progress of the building. Most of the people were in their new offices. Ivana and I are still in temp offices until they finish up the new ones. They have some finishing and painting to do. I even get my own office. I haven’t ever had one of those before. Tomorrow I have an early meeting with my boss and then more paperwork for my residency stuff.
After work I picked up a rental car to have for the first month or two. It took forever, but was able to get something. It is a Lancer (the cheapest car they had.) I have been wanting to get a vehicle so that I could get around. I need to do some shopping tomorrow.
There was a full day last week when I didn’t have keys. That is such a freeing moment in life. Now the keys are starting to come back. First it was the house key. There are keys to every door in the house but I will get to that in a later post. Today I added a car key. Soon I will get a employee badge that will let me in the parking garage and work building. Not really a key but close. It doesn’t feel too bad yet. I hope that I can keep my life as simple as possible.
Bad Cubs
They were swept by the Dodgers in the first round. Another year, another disappointment.