Pissing contest

The Bush Administration sends up "emergency" legislation. The Republican presidential candidate "suspends" his campaign to push for a bipartisan compromise. 2/3 of the Republican House members vote against it.

The Democratic Speaker and Presidential candidate favor the bill. 40% of the Democrats in the House vote against it.

In terms of bad, the Republicans should come off worse in this debate, but not by much.

I am reminded of one of my favorite Spellman quotes: "Pissing contests are no fun; both sides get wet."

Going off the grid

For the next two days I'll be in Fujairah at the beach and snorkeling.

I wish they made SPF 100 sunscreen...

I will be back to see the Vice Presidential debates which airs here at 5 AM Friday morning.

Bernanke - In the long run we're dead.

What was Chairman Bernanke's field of study prior to becoming the Fed Chair? The Great Depression.

I think he should give a speech explaining what we are in for in the next decade. How credit markets freezing up means loans will dry up. Those loans drying up will lead to businesses cutting investment and laying off workers. Citizens, those who still have jobs, will not be able to get loans for cars or homes. Never mind paying a high interest rate, the money simply won't be available. House prices will plummet. Unemployment will skyrocket. We'll likely see bank runs reminiscent of the 1930's.

The free market ostriches will say, "The market will clear itself."

Sure we'll work our way through this in the long run but (quoting Keynes) "In the long run we're dead."

Bailout

I live in a bubble over here. From my perspective the House vote should have been an easy one.
As I wrote to a friend last night:
If I were in congress this wouldn't have been a tough vote. "We take $700 Billion of assets that have already been written down 30-40%. After liquidity gets back into the market we sell them. At the very worse we sell them for $550-600 Billion... meaning the cost of the bailout is $100-150 Billion. It's more likely we will be able to sell them for full face value or more."

Essentially 40% of Congressional Democrats and 67% of Congressional Republicans are willing to risk a depression. And to think that 12 Republicans switched their vote because of Pelosi's speech? Please! Imagine that in another context, "The bombing of Pearl Harbor was bad. I should vote for war but Franklin Roosevelt wasn't nice to me..."

Happy Eid!

Ramadan is over!

No more sneaking into the bathroom to sip water. Restaurants can actually be open during the day.

I have never been so happy to NOT see the moon.

$1.30 per gallon

That's the price of gas.
I spent most of the afternoon driving around Al Ain. Driving and getting directions is very, very different here. Imagine getting directions by neighborhood and roundabout. "Go to the fountain roundabout in Jimi, go towards municipality and take your second left." Newsflash to Google maps: There are no numbered streets for the main boulevards in this city. I can't believe Google has let me down.
Anyhow, I want to get to know my new home... and fortunately, it won't cost me much.

Ramadan

As Ramadan comes to a close consider this:

I have been told that Ramadan moves up 11 days every year (because it is based on the lunar calendar).  What does that mean?  Today's 20 something Muslims have never experienced a summer Ramadan.  It takes approximately 33 years to go around the calendar. 

Imagine living with temperatures over 110 every day.  The days are 14 hours long.  You cannot eat or drink anything.

That's much different than living with highs of 80 and a day that lasts 10 hours.  A few years ago that's what Ramadan was like here.  Sadly, it will only get harder and harder for at least the next 10 years.

One of my Muslim colleagues used to live in Finland.  When Ramadan falls over the winter the fasting would last one hour.  Gee, I could do that!  When Ramadan is in the summer they would be restricted to only an hour or two in which they could eat or drink.  "But that's not hard because the weather was cool," he explained. 

If I were Muslim I would be seriously looking at jobs in Australia.

Quote of the day

Living in the middle east I can't get the non-stop cable news networks but I can get plenty of the websites. Back home I'd be listening to Fox News today to see how they'd spin last night's debate. Here I like going to the conservative websites. Most, not surprisingly, list it as a slam dunk win for McCain.
In reading through Redstate I found this quote. I love it.
"The fundemental difference between modern liberalism and conservatism is that liberals are driven by emotion, while we use rational thought to analyze a course of action."
Yep. I'm a modern liberal driven by emotion rather than rational thought.
But I also know how to spell "fundamental".
You can read the quote source here.

Now that's an ATM!

Ann bought my car.  Well, she loaned me the money to buy my car.  Now that we've been paid I am taking money out to pay her back.  Banks carry odd hours during Ramadan (like 8PM to midnight).  So I've resorted to using the ATM.

The daily limit?  4000 dirhams... which is about $1100.

For my former students...

On the first day of the Political Economics class I told my students, "There are three items on every test:  Define fiscal policy, monetary policy and know the name of the chair of the Federal Reserve.  If you leave a class in political economy without knowing these I have failed you.  Again, it will be on every test..." By the time I repeat myself students usually pick up a pencil and start writing.
In last night's debate Senator McCain twice referred to the "fiscal crisis".  He either misspoke or he does not understand the definition of the term. 
All-in-all I thought the debate was pretty good for both sides.  I often wonder how the world would be different if Al Gore had been president.  When I see McCain I wonder how the world would have different if he had received the nomination in 2000. 

Housing

Keeping in mind that this is a public blog here's what I can say about the villa I tried to get.

I have spoken with two officials of the administration.  Each laid out similar ground rules on how to go about getting a place to live.  I followed their guidelines. 

Lower level housing people refused.

Now the university is shut down for a week and in that time I need to write a diplomatic e-mail to the top college officials explaining what is going on.

Go cart racing

Mike, two friends of his and me went Go cart racing. The most I had ever done was a tiny lame lap at Chapman's fun world many years ago. This track had a dozen turns and was very tricky. (At least that's the excuse I'm using for my performance)
Great safety helmet, gripping gloves to better hold the steering wheel, and a protection suit. What's missing? A roll cage and a seat belt. Do 60 MPH down a straight away making a sharp turn with no roll cage and no seat belt!

I know, I know, I'm a little pussy.
In the four man competition I didn't place in the top three.

Housewarming

The couple on the left escaped the Hilton a couple of weeks ago. They threw a housewarming party. While many people attended it was us Hilton people who stayed late. The alternative was spending more time in the Hilton.

Ending the blog suspension

I am trying to remember why I suspended the blog in the first place:

• bad poll numbers
• runningmate had a terrible interview
• forgot to take metamucil
• internet down

Anyhow, the internet is working for at least a couple of hours per day so I should have time to get up a few posts.

Ann: "Steven this is the nicest car you've ever had!"

Yeah, like that was a hard bar to get over...

Suspending the blog

This blog is being suspended to allow me more time to deal with the housing crisis. Once my poll numbers rise the internet is back up I will return to blogging.

I'd rather lose a few blog readers than lose a nice villa.

Internet

My lack of posting was not intentional; the internet at the Hilton went down. It's now back up and I'll be posting more in the next couple of days because... because I have 10 days off!

On the negative side, I didn't get the villa. The excuse used was very lame and makes me question other "promises" that have been made.

Times article

Today's NY Times has an interesting article on life in Dubai.  It's worth a read if you have time.  As you read it remember, I live in Al Ain.  The "rules" here are much more conservative. 

Link to the story: Generation Faithful

***********

Unrelated:  Today was supposed to be the big day.  Do I get the great villa or not?  The decision was put off a day.  I know I realistically have a 10% chance, but it's hard not to get excited.  This place is sweet.

I did get my car.  I have come to appreciate bureaucracy in the United States.  Relatively routine activities (like getting your car registered) take on a life of their own here.  I have colleagues with spouses that are on the verge of becoming "illegal" because they can't get the visa approved... and they've been working on it since we arrived in the middle of August.

Somehow, the DMV station in Marion doesn't seem as bad anymore.

Somebody thought this was a good idea

I have visited 25-30 places in the quest to find a home. At least half had a bathroom that looked something like this.

Monday September 22

It's a big day for me. I pick up my car. Which, for me means freedom. Ann and Mike have been very helpful taking me where I need to go but there's nothing like the freedom of having your own car!

Even bigger news is the possibility of getting a great place to live. I have not been using this blog to describe the emotional roller coaster/soap opera of our housing situation. The national newspaper even did a story about the UAEU faculty who are still homeless.

Let's just say that I have a chance at a wonderful place. Tomorrow I find out if I get it. Even though hopes have been dashed so many times in the past six weeks it is hard not to feel excited. I'm definitely taking Ambien tonight.

Oh, I've moved offices. Today my department chair asked if I'd be willing to move to the main building. I said, "Sure..." My new office is right across from his. Apparently, the woman currently there wants a quieter office. I said, "Does she know where my office is? Are you sure she would want it?" I was told yes. By the time I got back from class everything (which was not much) was moved from my old office to my new office. I now have a normal window looking out on the courtyard. It's great!

Not a coincidence

I didn't make the connection in the two posts, but the driver's license and the face whitening posts are linked.

The markets are in chaos...

... and I'm not talking about Wall Street. I'm sure you've heard enough about that.
I'm talking about Russia. Remember the Russia ad posted below? My interpretation was, "Please bring back foreign investment."
At the beginning of the week nobody listened.

The Russian stock market had to close twice because there simply were no buyers.

Like other markets around the world, it recovered at the end of the week.

Story here

I'm a giant!

For reasons that escape me there are many doors in this country that are designed for those under 5 feet. I need to be more observant. I have hit my head three times since I arrived.

I have no idea where I learned to tie a tie.

33 days since I left...

... and I still miss Gus.

Driver's license

If I am ever charged with a crime I'm sure this is the picture they'll use.

Whitening cream!

The other night Ann, Mike, and I were walking through a store when they ran into friends. As we were standing in the aisle I was stunned by the products in front of me: Shelf after shelf of creams guaranteed to "lighten" and "whiten" the skin.

This story about using products to have a "Natural Glow" is really about how to make yourself look more white.

I don't spend much time in cosmetic aisles. Do we even sell these products in America?

Addiction

My name is Steve and I am an addict.

Hi, Steve!

I spent three hours this morning catching up on political news. "Catching up" because I only spent an hour per day over the past week.

What's a political junkie? Someone who reads about the last absentee ballots coming in the Alaska primary or who knows the name every competitive senatorial candidate, and of course the latest poll data on each race.

My addiction is not new. It started when I was 14 and convinced my parents to go to the Iowa caucus so I could go too.

OK, so what's new now?

Starting Thursday I have ten days of vacation. Ann and I are planning to take a trip to Sri Lanka. You know, wonderfully peaceful and serene Sri Lanka... a vacation unencumbered by technology.

Last night I started to hyperventilate at the prospect of ten days with no political news.

And the next item up for bid is a 2005 Sunny!

I'm hearing the Price is Right theme playing in the background. The price is 32,000 but let's make a deal for Mike's friend Steve and give it to him for 31,000.

Oh, a Sunny is the same as the Nissan Sentra in the states. And the price above is not in dollars, but Dirhams. That's about $8400. It's in the ballpark of some others I was looking at. I could have gone cheaper... BUT buying it from someone who I know stand behind the car if I have problems is worth something to me. Thanks to the Bank of Ann and Mike I will get it paid of in 8 months.
***************
Tonight was the first time I have been behind the wheel since August 16th. I haven't gone that long since I was 14!

I'll get pics up on Sunday after I do the paperwork.

Drink beer and support a good cause!

Those of you living in eastern Iowa should attend the brewfest this weekend in Coralville. I've gone for several years. You buy tickets to drink about a champaign flute worth of beer. It gives you a chance to try many, many different beers. All of the proceeds go to the American Heart Association.

Here's the Gazette story:

http://gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080917/NEWS/709179992/1006/news

If you go take a camera and send me a pic or two. I'd like to see what I'm missing!

I'll bet you didn't see this in an American newspaper!

Since it's written by the Russians I'll translate:

"When we invaded Georgia we knew the west would be too weak to stop us or even impose sanctions. We had no idea foreign capital would fly out of here. We want all of our foreign investor friends to know that we only invaded to preserve the peace.

Love,
Putin

P.S. Please bring your money back."

Birthday

Gwen, Mike, Ann and I had a very nice dinner at an Indian restaurant. Afterwards I asked for a picture of us to commemorate my birthday. They felt the need to try to embarrass me.

Oh, to be old and wise and above such juvenile behavior.

Selling Coke

Buy a six pack of Coke get two bags of noodles for free!

I don't see this promotion working too well in the US.

Then again, the price of $1.25 for the six pack and noodles, is also something I can't imagine in the US.

14 down, 14 to go!

I have never appreciated a full moon more than tonight. It means Ramadan is half over. Two weeks of sneaking into the men's room to take a sip of water... shoving an entire banana down my throat at mid-day to recoup some blood sugar...

The heat saps energy quickly. To be thirsty, hungry and tired is not fun. I am very sympathetic to my students who are attempting to go all day in this weather without any food or water.

I don't believe in fasting. There's nothing medical I've read that shows that it "cleanses the body". (A common belief here.) I will be happy when I can return to caffeine and sugar throughout the day!

Living in the heart of OPEC

I read the newspaper every day. Sometimes, it is hard to believe I'm living on a country that is (at least partially) dependent on oil revenue. This recent front page is a good example. One story laments the high oil prices impacting the Emirates Airlines profits. A second is easy to read: Dubai's Transports to Go Hybrid by 2012. The third story (at the bottom) talks about how man made global warming is causing the Himalayan glaciers to disappear.

Various notes

• I know it is common to believe that you have a bad driver's license picture.  I can claim to have the world's worse driver's license photo.  I hope I can get it scanned to post on the blog.  Want a mental picture?  Think Herman Munster meets Jeffrey Dahmer.
  
• It appears the efforts to avoid moving into a tiny apartment have been futile. 
  
• I have no birthday plans.  I have decided that my birthday is not September 16th, but September 17th.  (Here's some insight into how my mind works.) I was born at 5:30 PM in Iowa on September 16.  That is well past midnight here in the middle east.  Soooo, to borrow lyrics from John Cougar Mellencamp, "I'm hold(ing) on to 16 39 as long as I can..." 
  
  In reality, Wednesday is the end of my work week.  It makes more sense to celebrate(?) on Wednesday night.

105 vs. 113

What's the difference between 105 degrees and 113?  More than I would have expected.  Late last week the highs dropped to a moderate 105.  We dared to ask, "Is fall here?"

The respite was short lived.  It's back up to 113 today.  Thanks to the lack of humidity 105 is bearable in the shade.  113 is hot no matter where you are.

Now this I could get used to,,,

Laundry service delivers the clothes neatly pressed and folded!

Baseball! (and other sports)

I watch very little baseball back home.

Tonight we got to catch the Cubs vs. Cardinals live. I was enthralled. I like both teams, but my heart is with the Cubs. They won, aided by what appeared to be a bad call against the Cardinals in the bottom of the ninth.

The point is that if I had been flipping through channels back home I probably wouldn't have watched the game. The fact we were able to watch it live (with no sound) was exciting.

Rumor has it that one of the stations carries Monday Night football live. I don't know if it is worth getting up at 4 AM to watch that.

********

For two weeks the front page sports story was the US Open and two pages on the inside was on the Open. Wow. I don't think there's a single paper in the US that covers it that closely.

Now that the Open is over they've gone back to coverage of Cricket... a sport I still don't understand.

Please, please let me tip you!

I know I've written about this before.  I simply cannot get over service workers refusing a tip.  OK, I get the notion that a 15-20% tip in the US simply doesn't happen here.
But can't I tip 5 dirhams on a 50 dirham bill?  In dollars, that's like a buck twenty five on a on twelve dollar bill. 
I paid the bill, with tip, and I had to reiterate that the excess money was for him to keep. 
Is tipping that much of an American thing?

Size

I have mistakenly told people I live in country "about the size of Iowa."  Wrong.

Iowa is 56,000 square miles.  The UAE is 32,000 square miles.  Population is just under 3 mil in Iowa vs. 4.5 mil in the UAE. 

The real difference is how many in Iowa are Iowans compared to how many are natives here.  Prior to coming here I read the ex-pat population was 81%.  Since I've been here I've read the real number is over 90% ex-pat.  I think that's more realistic.

Even though it may be half the size of Iowa one of my students boards a plane every Thursday to fly home to the western part of the country.  On Saturday she flies back.  Each and every week.  Covered by the university.

Phone answers

There is one area where I miss how things are done in the states: Answers by phone.  Yes, I know in the states you often have to hear a computerized voice for 15 minutes before getting to a human being.  Here you get to the human being right away.  But what good is talking to a human being if the answers you get are wrong?

"Are you open this afternoon?"
"Yes, yes we will be open."
I go in the afternoon and it's closed.

"Is my work visa in?
"No, no, it is not here."
Stop by an hour later and it's sitting in a filing cabinet.

When I commented on the inaccurate phone communication the long termers  laughed.  Apparently it's part of the learning curve:  Do nothing by phone.  Go in person.

Comment away!

So the smart voters gave us Bush?

September 11th

In the picture below three of the people were living in NYC on 9-11-2001. Duane was two blocks away from the WTC as the second plane hit. Andrew and Maura were in Brooklyn. Not once did the anniversary come up in conversation tonight.

Unrelated: I've always thought the notion of the attack happening on 9-11 being somehow related to 911 as, well, suspect at best. Living here I have come to believe there is NO connection possible. Every date stamp here is day, month, year. On August 20th my phone read "2008 2008" To the hijackers they were doing the deed on 11-09.

Hilton Family

Doris, Duane, Andrew, Maura and Gwen have become my Hilton family. This picture was taken tonight at Doris' farewell party. She and her family are moving to a villa this weekend. It's an odd experience to see friends move out. I'm happy for them because they found a nice place. I'm jealous of them because they found a nice place and the university is willing to pay for it. I'm sad because it is like watching a community shrink.

Earthquake

I have received a number of e-mails asking if I felt the Iranian quake.  I was on teaching on the third floor at the time and didn't feel anything.  A number of people did notice a rattling. 

Sorry, no excitement here.

Tuesday

I woke up early from a very vivid dream that Gwen and I had been fired. We were sitting at the airport waiting to be flown home. It was so vivid that as I awoke, I said aloud, "But I'm still at the Hilton!"

The meeting with the college president went very well. (If it didn't go well in her eyes, well, I didn't get her my last name...) I think I've established the fact that I don't suck up to college administration. With that credential in my pocket I can say that I really like this person. She took our concerns, was surprised by the size of the apartments as I described them, and promised to work on the issues. And contrary to my dream, I'm not sitting in the Dubai airport waiting to fly out.

Blowing smoke is what administrators do. I didn't get that sense from her. I hope I'm not proven wrong.

********

Yahoo phone and texting is up! Sort of...

I signed up for yahoo phone. In 30 plus attempts it worked once in a call to home. Ann signed on my account from her villa and it worked immediately. That means: I won't be able to call much while I'm still in this hotel. The internet connection here is not good. Once I'm on my own and can pay for a good internet connection it should work fine. The one call I did get through sounded amazing clear... like I was talking to mom in the room with me.

Mother calls name mix-up of son 'weird'

That's a headline in today's Cedar Rapids Gazette. A young man was in an accident carrying the ID of 22 year old Brian Rose. The police reported the name and the real Brian Rose and family were flooded with calls to see if he was OK. But the guy in the accident was not Brian Rose.

Hmmm... Now why would a young man (of the same approximate, height, weight, and hair color) be carrying his 22 year old friends ID?

I agree with Brian's Mom. That's just weird.

Update: I am too cynical! It turns out it wasn't a case of carrying a fake driver's license. They really did mess up Brian Rose the 22 year old from one town with Brian Rose the 26 year old from another town.

Umm

Wish me luck.  Tomorrow I am joining two colleagues to meet with the equivalent of the college president.  I don't want to go; I like my job and I promised I would follow a low profile here. 

Well, that lasted three weeks.

I am only going because the ring leader is a friend.  She's the extrovert I wrote about from the first week.  There's also a large part of me that would like to see the response first hand. 

Soup of the Day: Veal's feet

It was accurately described; it did taste like feet.

One of the advantages of living in the Hilton this month is that we have an opportunity to try all the foods of the Iftar.  Iftar is the meal that breaks the fasting Muslims do from sunrise to sunset.  The Iftar is quite a spread.  I have not acquired a taste for much of what I've tried, but I'm glad to have the chance to try it. 

Many locals rave about the sweets that are available during Iftar.  They're OK, but if I had to choose these sweets or a German chocolate cake with a scoop of ice cream... well...

Why do I torture myself thinking of foods I can't have?

Fortunately, I did bring Dad's popcorn.  Popping it Ann's last week was like being home.  For a few seconds, at least.

Testing...

Chad Z. suggested I try Windows Live blogger for my posts.  I'm willing to give anything a try.

Unrelated:  I've received e-mails from people saying they had trouble posting comments.  I hope it works for you.  I like reading comments and now that I don't have to sit in the hotel's atrium to use the 'net I will respond. 

Apparently one poster had his comments deleted by xxx.  Someone can delete another person's post?  If that's the case, can I shut this off?

Al Ain at night

New faculty were taken to the top of Jebel Hafeet (the mountain that is in a picture from an earlier post). There's a hotel up there and we were given a feast. At 4000 feet the evening temperatures were quite comfortable.

Coke promotes recycling!

Recycling is not a high priority here. I cringe every time I throw away a glass Coke bottle. I have no idea how they keep making Coke in NEW glass bottles and still only charge a dirham (25 cents).
I saw this recycling canister in Dubai. Note the "sponsores by Coca-Cola"

Pork

For those who feared I wouldn't be able to enjoy a pork chop in the middle east... They have stores with an entire section dedicated to pork products. Because this nation caters to people from all over the world they have pork products I've never seen before (like whatever Ann is holding below).

Office

This is the view from the door to my office.

Here's the rest of the office. Note how high the windows are. If I stand on my desk I can see outside.

Movin' on up...

After yet another day of fruitless apartment hunting I returned to the hotel for good news. I have a new room that's much larger than my last one AND I now have internet in the room. Every post you've read below was written in the courtyard of the hotel. To be able to blog from my own room will be much better!

$11 bowl of cereal

After an omelet a day for two weeks I can't look at eggs anymore. In the first week I tried a little of everything at the great breakfast buffet.

This week I switched to a boring bowl of cereal with a banana sliced in. And for that my university is getting charged $11 each day.

It's no wonder they can't afford to spend more on housing...

The sun'll come out tomorrow...

Yes, I've reached a point of singing Annie.

I've spent the past two days looking at housing. David Sedaris would find a way to make the experience funny. After I find a decent place I might be able to as well.

But I do have hope for tomorrow. At the very least I know I'll be moving to a better hotel room. I got stuck in a tiny room while most of my colleagues are in quite nice rooms. I was told that a nice one would be available soon. I kept checking back. Nada. Then I was told I would not be able to move. I wrote a letter to the hotel manager this morning. This afternoon I was greeted with a spread of fruits from room service, a bottle of wine and a message that I'd be moved to a better room tomorrow. Since this will be my home for at least the next month, Yippee!

We are going apartment hunting again tomorrow. I'd ask you to say a prayer for me but I think we've got it covered. Between the Muslims, Hindus, and Christians we are pretty well represented.

Miscellaneous

I am feeling better. The relapse of the effects of food poisoning are gone, thanks again to Cipro. I took all of my remaining supply and I hope it finally killed whatever was inside of me! The withdrawal from caffeine was almost as bad. For the past two weeks I'd sit at breakfast, read the newspaper and drink two pots of coffee. Since getting caffeine will not be easy to get this month I've decided to just give it up.

I'm headed out shortly to continue the apartment hunt. It's probably a futile attempt but I have to believe there is a better place than the one they've picked for us.

Bad day

Here's a timeline:

Friday: Eat a buffet in Shelbyville. Sick hours later. Ann and Mike get me Cipro. It works quickly.

Saturday: I spend early morning to night in Abu Dhabi on a photo shoot. I don't feel great but I'm OK.

Sunday: The first day of class. Not bad. Ann and I hit a KFC buffet. It had been 48 hours without food. We went to town with chicken, coleslaw, and french fries flying everywhere...

Monday: I wake up at 3AM and it seems the food poisoning is back. I have to be out of the hotel by 7 to make it to my first class. It's the start of Ramadan and I miss my coffee.

The combination of frequent trips to the bathroom and caffeine withdraw have me absolutely drained. I screwed up on Saturday and stopped taking the Cipro. I'm taking it now and if this will finally leave me I will be a good boy and take the rest like I should.

Sorry, but I can't even make the story of sneaking into the men's room to drink bottled water funny tonight.