Sports

It hardly matters where you go in Qatar at the moment you are pretty well bound to see some sign telling of the bid for the 2016 Olympics. The charming lady archer and driver is heavily involved and is role model for Arabic girls to get involved in sports. One hopes that they will follow in her footsteps.
Mind you I understand that the level of women's football is somewhat outdated athough personally, and looking at, and thinking about, UK footballers, I tend to find that a good thing.
Whether there is the capability to contest in other spheres is debatable, after all the training in other forms of shooting, that our American lady cousins get as girls, is missing.
As for me I am very tempted by the climbing up, over and down the unsupported ladder event. This was a regular event in the bar as the Nigerian Rock or Cameroonian Star beer took effect so strongly back in my days in Africa. Personally I never succeeded but am convinced that, like wine, as I age I improve.
Unfortunately all who know me are convinced that this is not the sport at which I would excel and I have been very clearly informed that neverthless they feel that I do have a particular affinity for one race. I am not sure that I agree, though.

Chill still

We still look out of our windows at a bleak and chilly world, and the population of the mall seems a shade strange compared to what we are used to seeing.
But we always try and stick by our motto and make the best of it, for there is always something good to be found in every situation, with the possible exception of diarrhoea. Which struck me recently and left me with low bloodpressure such as to make me dizzy and fall over. Most unususal since normally I must take pills to lower my BP. I am not sure if it was the way my brain was affected but I could almost swear that one of the many camels came to visit and was rather more seductive than the norm, as can be seen here.
But perhaps I was rather more under the weather than I thought, certainly Alice even phoned BUPA back in the UK to see if I should go to hospital. Something I was against since I was unable to stand and rather wanted to avoid any chance of being considered drunk.
But shortly the BP rose again and I returned to as near normal as I ever get. More than ever convinced that . . .

Cold and wet

While here in a desert land one tends to forget that it can get pretty damn cold, as apparently did the SAS in the first Gulf War. But I recently had to buy a bodywarmer and a coat for use in the offices in spite of the fairly useless electric radiators installed there. We are not, of course, talking about cold levels as seen in Jenny Cockburn's picture here but still we are suffering!
And now the rain, Qatar is supposed to have about 75mm annually according to their Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Agriculture website. It seems it has all fallen in the last two days! The roundabouts have required attention from pumps, causing traffic delays to increase even more. But at least we have rather more amusement, especially if camera vigilance is maintained, in scanning the roads at the moment.
But no matter how carefully and regularly I may look, with camera in hand, always seeking worthwhile records or amusing incidents, I am still unable to get that special record of a lady enjoying the warm rain that others have been able to find in Asia, I guess I am just hoping for too much!

A New Beginning

As we get further into the new year I am somewhat torn as my guardian angels fire differing ideas into my mind. How difficult it is to tread the moderate path in life and how little help we are given as we make our simple efforts to avoid excess and take the middle way. Especially when we are surrounded by others making suggestions hard to resist.



It's all made even worse by striving to stand out from the crowd, not as easy as it may seem at first glance although some of my amphibian friends seem to manage without excessive effort; but I suspect that my glasses would fall off. And to be unable to see the reactions to my individuality would not be useful.
And I really do not want to go to the extent of the lady shown here, not least because I do not really have enough hair to make it viable. I have attached the odd balloon to my ear while carrying Alistair as a kid but it was more for convenience really. And I should hate to be taken for one just left a McDonalds' party or something equally proletarian.
So I suppose I must fall back on my old faithful, the hobby of the oddity, or as my youngest son says "being a plonker and embarrassing" him. Why do our parents always embarass us? Conformity is perhaps the main aspect of youth, I guess.

That Time of Year

I have been thinking of Alice and I having our 17th wedding anniversary tomorrow but feel I should also pass on the usual annual greetings as above.

Indeed I trust you all had a good feed on that most prolific of animals, far more useful to the world than merely ridding it of another turkey. I took the day off work, its after all an Islamic country that we are presently in and we went out for the feed, quite enjoyable if a shade commercial.
We also had a few friends drop by for New Year, as I trust you did also, it's a good time to see old buddies or at least contact them. Skype must have had a bonanza day yesterday if our place was any indicator.
But enough, I should try and catch up on the work delayed by Eid, Christmas and new year, in fact my colleague Vic made a major mistake by taking leave as he will have booked a considerable number of days which he would have had off outside his leave period if he had stayed in Qatar, still it isn't the most enthralling place in reality. But, turning back to typing, I need to keep the faith and show the world: -