Best of Dubai in 2007: Tough Decisions and Random Comments

So, it must seem a little Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to read my blog, or e-mails or talk to me on the phone. One day things are great and I'm never leaving and the next I'm complaining dramatically about this being the most awful third world country filled with completely incompetent people. Well, that's pretty much because that's the way it is over here. High highs, low lows and hardly any in between, but really, what fun would it be if things just went as planned.

Some random thoughts to start the New Year; this morning I had to choose between making toast (in a Foreman Grill by the way) or keeping my coffee warm and it got me thinking I've had to make some tough choices this year...

• Should I buy a Ford Focus or a Honda Citi? (What's that you ask? Honda makes a Citi? I have no idea, apparently)
  
• Should I ask them to fix my leaky washer or use it as an opportunity to mop my kitchen?
• Watch the "guest workers" swinging from the cranes or pirated DVD's?
  
• Spend $100 (again) to call Washington Mutual to try to resolve the "card used round the world" problem or just let it go...(something I'm really good at)
• Buy a new phone or continue to shove folded up paper to keep the sim card flush to the battery?
  
• Call the Internet people and have mine fixed or continue to steal from the neighbors? I mean, is it really stealing if I'm paying for it too?
• How big of a deal is the bird flu? Should I eat the eggs or not?

In addition to some tough decisions... I thought you all might appreciate some things we've said over here...

• When I got off the bus with 7 Canadians I thought, this is going to be a long year.
• I don't care if you use your own clothes, but somebody has to get up there and clean my floor!
• So, tell me what you don't like about her... "Well, first of all, I don't like her accent."
• I just got a new house boy, but I don't think he's going to work out...
• When referring to guest workers... "they are human after all"
• Most Christians celebrate Christmas on December 25th
• Roots Canada
• You do realize your baby from Ethiopia will be black, don't you?
• After stealing a taxi from the front of a very, very long line "I guess they haven't lived in Dubai long enough"

Now... just a few from work

• I don't know that word because my sister printed my report off the Internet and I just copied it.
• Well, I don't think his vision is affecting his academics because he can see his video games just fine.
• We just figure he'll send his nanny out of his room when he reaches puberty.

Now, back to my busy day... goals for today include:

• Check dubizzle for the eight zillionth time for cars 
• Grocery store (but not too many things, I have to be able to carry it home)
• Wait for the calls from home to start flooding in...
• Continue the 3 month long debate about hiring a maid (I had to fire the last one, I think she just came in my apartment and sat here for two hours, it never looked any different) or mopping my floors myself
• Check to see if the prices from Dubai, to Seattle, to Rome to Dubai for this summer have changed at all since I checked last (approximately 37 seconds ago...)  or if any new direct flights have been added

As you can see, life in Dubai is very exciting.