The Best Day EVER....followed directly by a shitty mood....

who would have thunk it... Matthew McCaunaghy in Doha!!!! Ahh to be 24 again.....

talk about two different worlds colliding...

nice guy...(he was the police overseeing the function)

outside of the zoo... again...worlds colliding...(bad pic of me though....)

hi Mama

me and alan.....zoom in on the pic... people everywhere... regardless of country or religion, enjoy much the same things... spending time outside with family... surrounded by nature...

now THAT'S a face....

nope...that is!!!!

BEST PICTURE EVER!!!!

pretty face

the entrance to the Doha Zoo...and the round thing is one of the monkey cages

this is Rick's...just turn your computer on the side so you can see it

Alan and Paul...a brit, an aussie and a small town american diner in Doha

Why does that always happen? They say you need evil to know good, you can't have light without dark, so I guess that follows suit with having the best day in a new country followed by the worst mood ever the next day.

Ok so yesterday...THE BEST DAY EVER. Woke up late... YEAH

went to RICK'S KOUNTRY KITCHEN....OMG!!! just a like a small town diner-ette. I FINALLY had a real breakfast... blueberry pancakes, eggs, grits!!!!(ok, the grits sucked but you can't have it all right) with two great fellas... Allan you already know about... and now Paul... cool kid. 27 from Australia...(man thay make 'em hot down under)

nice guy, loves his gf... even if he did leave her in Aussie land, totally into fitness. We were talking about kite surfing and he is willing to help me out with the learning process. He even went so far as to check online for a beginner kite for me. Keep your fingers crosses I don't kill myself... lol

So after a hearty meal the three of us traipse down to the Doha Zoo....

I was worried about going... I thought I was going to want to set all the animals free, cry about their inhumane "care" or otherwise just be disgusted... I was none of these things. Although I have to admit I am not a big fan of zoos at all, I wasn't horrified by the state of this one. I was concerned about the overcrowding in some of the areas, like the monkeys or the deer, and for the most part the enclosures were too small for the occupants, but that's the way most zoos are... even the ones in the States. There was proof, despite this, that the animals were feeling pretty good though...AHHH SPRING WAS IN THE AIR!!!lol

yup... oh irony. Here we are in the middle of a muslim country where even a light kiss on the lips between the sexes is editied out of movies in the theater, many many randy animals were putting on their own little porno shows. There should be a few baby panthers, lions, chimps and more than a few monkeys in the coming months.....I have to say, we were incredibly lucky to see the animals so active and...so close!! No where in the states would they have the lion cage just inches from you. I was getting a kiss from the giraffe... The elephant could have touched me with his trunk. It was truly amazing to be soooo close to these guys!

So, after that wonderful display of love, and the three of us "adults" behaving like silly 3rd grade children with the giggling and pic taking, off we go... and I went to the Texas A&M Boot Scoot!!!

Jeans, boots and my cowboy hat!!! A little two stepping and throw in Matthew McCaunaghy for an appetizer and I was one HAPPY GIRL last night!!!!

So why am I so DAMN GRUMPY today??????

Sorry I haven't written in a while. My camera finally gave up the ghost and i had to go get a new one. I love it!! It's the Olympus 1060. Great pics...

It's starting to heat up here...ugh

Oh.. so here is something fun and exciting!!! I am going to host a country night and a swing night at a restraunt in the Marriot!!!! I am so f'n excited to see if I can get this off the ground!!!!

They have given me two nights per month to promote and if I can give them 50+ people I might get more nights or a bigger venue.

I really think this could be something that is needed here. There is a HUGE community of people here from Texas, Oregon, Oklahoma, etc... who have no outlet. As well as a large group of 40+ ers who don't want to go to the clubs, and the bars are just not what they want. So for them 50's swing... Any ideas or thoughts on this? Let me know!!!!

Miss you all and thanks for keeping up with me.

For such a slow pace everything moves so fast here....

look very closely at the pic above... can you see who is driving???

me and Diane

and John

melissa, cheryl and me...(melissa is on your right and cheryl on your left)

So I have just experienced my first Doha loss.... and it is dawning on me that this is just the first of many...

Living in an expat community bonds are formed, tight and deep, very fast. I think this is for a couple of reasons. One, everyone is in the same boat...far from home, family and friends. Far from everything familiar and safe. So in order to regain some feeling of home and safety you reach out to people who "remind you" of people you have known. Gather around each other... safety in numbers. And if you feel close to those around you you feel protective as well as protected. More so than even at home with the best of friends.

And two...the knowledge that time here is finite. People come here for work and when the contract is up, or some before, they pack up and head home or to the next destination.

It seems I came in just as most contracts are coming due. I have quite a few people whom I have come to think of as my support system here who are reviewing their options...to renew or to go...

One left the other day. And as I have only known him a short time we became good friends. The other friends I have here I have known even longer(in my whole two and 1/2 months)...and as this is my first goodbye here it is hard...and I can only imagine that the next few will be even harder. Strange really. I have alway been able to just pick up and go...knowing that I can always go back, so the goodbyes don't sting as much. But living the expat life...when you say goodbye you never know if you are going to see that person again....although I hope that the friendships I have made here so far and have yet to make will not only be lifelong in thought but also in practice. But you never know. It's tough to have friends located all over the world and get a chance to see them...

I started to think about my time in Nepal the other day. I had made a friend by the name of Sharad Thapta. We met at JFK heading for New Dehli. He was on the plane with us and we offered him free passage through to Nepal if he would be willing to translate for us and generally be our guide. He and I became very close friends very fast...as only teenagers can do.

We left him in DillyBazzar...heading towards an unknown future, an angry family and an unwanted bride. He left me with his blue striped shirt as a token of our friendship.

We never spoke again...a letter did find me many many years later...I tried to reply but am almost sure he never got the letters I sent him. I still have that shirt. In fact it's here in Doha with me.

Although he and I never spoke again his friendship has shaped a part of who I am. It is lifelong. Even if not in practice.

pics that go the the blog below...

sorry kids my computer took a nose dive for the past few weeks... so here are some pics... the one above is in a dune buggy... zipping up a huge sand mountain in the dark...

the gauges on the buggy....

this owuld be the tent we errr "camped" in

sheesha and sofas... best way to rough it

Simone... going Quatari

the girls on NYE... the one in the middle is Melissa...and my redheaded sister in training is on the left....

the desert at sunrise... yup...that's where we "camped"

me in the buggy...after i decided i was tired of eating sand....

NYE....Cheryl, Ray, Me and Mel.....

this is me and Diane... the lady in red....

this is what i would look like with a kid.... did you all fall off your chairs?????

NYE showing some leg.....

yup cat's and kitten's this is me... in the middle east... at Garveys......on Jonny Cash night....