October 1

Ok, so it has been a while since I told you what has been going on. I have been preparing a 16 hour leadership class for these guys which is both fun and challenging. My first day of teaching was today and they seemed to like my teaching style. I hope that I get through to them. They did not like that I had a pre-test, but Pittsburgh requires it so we can show progress, and I think it is a good thing.

So I told you a little about the Iftar dinner, and it was awesome. Every type of food, many types of drinks. (nothing alcoholic). The band and the atmosphere were amazing. The room was decorated like a traditional Arabic tent. It was something to behold. If you ever get a chance to do that, make sure you do.

So, I have been dealing with Satellite issues the last week. On Sunday, my satellite stopped working except for CNN. I thought it was just a signal so I waited until Tuesday to call. After being on the phone for a while the guy told me I needed to send a copy of my credit card to him and they could restore my service. Not wanting to send my credit info over a fax or email to someone I didn’t know I asked for directions to their location in Doha. When I showed up, they had no idea what was wrong with my account. So after about 30 minutes with some guy on the phone (probably with the same people I talked to) he hung up and said that he needed a copy of my credit card. No crap, that is why I came in today. He got a copy and then said they would be calling me tomorrow to confirm and my satellite should be hooked up. So, the lady called me the next day asked if this was the credit card I wanted to charge my account on I said yes…and POOF my TV came back on. Are you kidding me? Apparently, this all stemmed from my initial sign up of satellite. They called to confirm and it was a Dubai number. Every time I answered, no one would talk. After about 2 weeks of this, I just blocked the number. I guess that was the confirmation people calling to see if I wanted to confirm that account. So after a few weeks they just cancelled my subscription. This country…

So, I didn’t think I was going to do it, but I think I am going to get the boys from the Ritz to clean my place weekly. They are pretty cheap, and this place is too big and I am never in a cleaning mood when I am off work. Plus the two things I hate to do…dust and windows are everywhere…and the dust here is crazy. It is nice coming home from work to a really clean house….that part I do enjoy.

So, the A/C in my office broke, twice. The first time the guys showed up they went to my circuit panel and reset the breaker. That worked for a bit but about an hour later it broke again. They never went and looked at the unit the first time they were here. So, they had to come back again and this time get on the roof. The guy came to me for a pitcher of water and soon after they left. It has worked ever since…hmmmSo, in the big news…we had an ambulance get smacked the other day. The guys were making a leading green left hand turn. These two ladies in a car the size of the one I drive over here hit the side door of the patient compartment so hard that it flipped the ambulance. The side door had a wheelchair lift on it, so I think that is where some of the impact was absorbed. These guys stuff all kinds of extra stuff under the seat, including extra O2 bottles. Well, since they are not secured they fell out and cracked the other compartment. What a great teaching aide. I hope to have more pictures and video soon, but it was too big to email to me. The guy is supposed to be bringing it tomorrow. I will talk to you again soon. Cheers!