The Afghani Ertter

Just a quick update...

2010-01-26T13:24:00.000-08:00

I'll have a longer post on the last part of our Amsterdam trip up soon... right now I am sitting at Washington DC's Dulles airport waiting on my last plane to take off... headed straight for Greenville this time. Oddly, it was actually cheaper to fly direct to Greenville rather than Charlotte... and it worked out because my Jeep is currently in storage in Greenville. That way, I can pick up my Blue Baby without inconveniencing my folks.

Anyways, I'll throw down a few pictures if this internet connection will let me... For right now, I just gotta say that it is nice to be back in the states. A big part of me is really missing life in the states, because when I'm here I have so many opportunities to see the people that are closest to me. Sure, I have gained a lot of advantages from working overseas, but I long for the day that I will be able to actually enjoy the fruits of my toil for longer than a week or two here at home.

Anyways, PICTURES....!

Amsterdammers ice skating near the I Amsterdam sign/Van Gogh Museum.

Shrum outside the Van Gogh Museum...

Predictable? Maybe... ME outside the VGM...

LIZARD ATTACK! This might look familiar to those who have been following my blog since my last trip to Amsterdam back in March, 2009...

Aight, that's enough for now... plane is about to start boarding. Hopefully I will have a little bit of down time in the next day or two to put up a proper post regarding our last couple days in Amsterdam, or what I can remember of it anyways.

Thanks to everyone who follows my blog! Hopefully I'll be seeing you VERY soon!

-Ertter

Just another day in Amsterdam

2010-01-23T12:32:00.000-08:00

Some pictures from today...

Jeremy drinking his Heineken. An excellent example of photography. It's got angles, it's got perspective...

Then, there's this picture. Bad light. Bad colors. Guess who too which picture? I will give Shrum points for what is over my shoulder, though.

In the end, we're both just documenting the experience, the mystery that is drinking copious amounts of Heineken during the day.

Seriously though, we are having a good time. We've just stopped in for a couple hours to warm up. It started snowing/sleeting at about 11 am, right when we were in the middle of the Jordaan. My sister knows that I somehow always manage to get caught outside in inclement weather without the proper equipment. Just ask her about our first day in London.

We found a place that looked like a pub and ended up ordering a couple of pizzas. Sure, we probably had a few Heinekens in 1/2 litre increments. So what? We're on vacation. We're lookin forward to some touristy stuff tomorrow... Luckily Shrum wants to see all the same places that I managed to miss during my last visit to the city back in March, when I was traveling with Christa.

Anyways, I've got a bottle of Johnny Walker Black callin to me from the refrigerator... That actually brings up a funny story. We managed to get a bag of ice delivered with our Thai food the other night... don't ask me how I convinced someone that doesn't speak very good English that we needed a bag of ice, but I did. Our fridge doesn't have a freezer, so we utilized the cold, austere exterior to store our bag of ice and keep it at the proper temperature.

Turns out somebody ganked our bag of ice. Granted, it was in an old grocery bag, but if someone finds ice outside in a bag, and that person knows there isn't a freezer in the boat, why would they throw away the ice?

Anyways. Yeah. Creepy, someone threw out our ice. So that means we're drinkin it straight up. Thanks for stealing our ice, buddy.

First pics from Amsterdam (the sequel) and some notes...

2010-01-21T21:40:00.000-08:00

Well, Jeremy and I both made in to Amsterdam safely and on time... two days before I left Afghanistan, Frankfurt airport was experiencing 'severe' delays of up to 5 hours, so I was nervous that I was going to be really late and Jeremy was going to get to Amsterdam on time, leaving him to fend for himself until I arrived. Luckily, the day of my flight the weather was cold but clear in Frankfurt and in Afghanistan... well, clear in the sense that there wasn't any precipitation anyways.

We met inside the airport at the giant checkered column that serves as the meeting area and after changing some cash to Euros, we were out front hailing a cab. The cab got us right where we needed to go, at which point we met our houst, Kaya. Kaya is a tall, extremely attractive young dutch girl. She's a student and lives in the houseboat next door... maybe we'll be able to convince her to come hang out with us while we're here, who knows?

Anyways, the houseboat did NOT disappoint. It is very comfortable, and decorated well. Everything we need is right here; we've got a fully equipped kitchen, comfortable beds, music is wired throughout the boat which is especially useful when you're taking a shower because there is music piped into the bathroom. There's also a TV, DVD player, comfortable couches, dining room, and three total bedrooms. One of those is in the wheelhouse, though, so it lacks a little bit of privacy. Underneath that, though is the Skipper's old bedroom, which is where Jeremy would have slept last night if he could have made it up the ladder to the wheelhouse, and back down another ladder into the Skipper's bedroom. We didn't make it out into Amsterdam too much yesterday... both Jeremy and I had been awake nearly 40 hours by the time we got situated in the houseboat, so we weren't up for too much sightseeing... so you might notice that some of the photos below are from inside the houseboat. We're back up at 5am here, having breakfast and about to start our day. I think we're going to go find Dam Square and the Jordaan today, then circle back through the Red Light District before heading back to the boat tonight. We're going to try to hit the Anne Frank house today and maybe the Rijksmuseum.

We'll see how much we actually get to... but after today I suspect we're going to be on a more Amsterdam-friendly schedule. Oh well, here are the pictures:

Here's Jeremy standing in our living room right after we arrived.

This is my bedroom. The mattress is uber-comfy, but really, after sleeping on a cot surrounded by a couple hundred other dudes for the last 4 months, any room with a door would be a luxury.

Jeremy laid up on the couch after a quick jaunt to the Red Light District.

We had some Earl Grey to top off the evening... well, we had a bunch of wine and scotch before this, but who's really paying attention?

Jeremy enjoying a nice breakfast of Earl Grey, chicken flavored ramen noodles, and a PB&J.

I had a similar breakfast, but I prefer coffee in the mornings...

Trying to look surly and grumpy at breakfast.

OK kids, that's all for now... obviously today should be a much more exciting day. Let's see what the day holds for us...

10 random songs Afghani-style...

2009-12-23T02:27:00.000-08:00

No, I'm not gonna put up 10 songs from Afghanistan, just 10 randoms from what I've been listening to over here... So here we go!

1) Jay-Z, The Black Album - December 4th
2) Nada Surf, The Weight Is A Gift - Always Love
3) Rage Against The Machine, The Battle of Los Angeles - Born of a Broken Man
4) The Strokes, Is This It? - Is This It
5) Modest Mouse, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank - We've Got Everything
6) Pharrel, In My Mind - Stay With Me (Instrumental)
7) LCD Soundsystem, LCD Soundsystem - Daft Punk Is Playing At My House
8) The Decemberists, Castaways and Cutouts - Cocoon
9) Wagon Christ, Musipal - Thick Stew
10) Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds, Live At Radio City Music Hall - Cornbread

There ya go, folks! More pics and sundries to come soon, I hope...

I know it's been awhile...

2009-12-22T08:05:00.000-08:00

Hell, I haven't posted since I left Saudi I don't think... Anyways, here's a quick update:

I've now been in Afghanistan for about 3 months. I've been to several different FOBs, some small and picturesque, some large and, well... muddy. Currently, I am leading the largest recruiting effort (in terms of the number of incumbent employees) that we have undertaken to date. Well, I guess Bagram is bigger, obviously, but we're doing that in phases... My team is here at Phoenix right now and we are slammed.

Here's a pic of the team after we did our Secret Santa the other night...

Most of us are Fluor, but there's a couple ITT folks mixed in there. Since we all travelled together, we did a big Secret Santa for all of us. Since we're all going to be stranded out in the middle of nowhere in a war zone for Christmas, I thought it would be nice to generate a little Holiday Cheer among our team. It seemed to have worked, as everyone was laughing and enjoying the process of opening our gifts.

I guess at this point, I've got about 29 days until I head out on R&R... I can NOT wait. I'm headed to Amsterdam/Rotterdam with Jeremy, and we've rented a houseboat to stay in while we're there. I'm really excited about finally getting to the Rijksmuseum, since my sis and I missed it the last time I was in the Netherlands. It should be a fun trip, and I'll do my best to take some good pictures.

I have a few more pics that you guys might be interested in...

Check back soon for (hopefully) another entry...

I know it's been like 6 months...

2009-09-20T13:24:00.000-07:00

... so here's a quick update on what's been happening...

After I got back from my R&R (you know, the Europe trip) I just kept trucking along until my assignment was completed at the end of August. I was sent home to start training for my new assignment in Afghanistan. I was home for a couple weeks before my training started, but I then started a week of training in Greenville. Training was from 7am to 530 every day, and it was difficult to sit through a lot of it... but I got through it. Now, however, I have to check in ever M-F at 730 am, but I'm then free to do pretty much whatever I like for the rest of the day. It does kind of keep me stuck in Greenville during the week, though, because I am waiting for them to tell me when I am going to fly.

They might not give me much notice, either... I literally might find out the morning of my flight that I have to leave that day. Anyways, I've been all over the place trying to see as many friends as possible every weekend, and of course I've been to two Gamecocks game in the meantime... I will try to get some pics up of all of this craziness tonight...

So anyways, my point is this: I'm going to Afghanistan and I will try to keep this blog updated from now on...

Thanks for all you who have been following me all along!

-J

Amsterdam Exploration

2009-03-25T10:37:00.001-07:00

So, I think I mentioned earlier that Amsterdam sort of slapped us in the face when we got there by pestering us with a bitter wind and horizontal rain needles in our faces.

I did not feel welcome.

As you can see from the pics posted previously, Amsterdam is a city with attractions for lots of different types of people. There is a definite lack of inhibitions that you can sense from the city... sort of a wanton sense of personal freedom just throbbing through the streets. This is a city that thousands of college students and adults alike come to specifically to cut loose, after all.

Our hostel was on Warmoestraat, a road that ran parallel to the Damrak. The Damrak was a road that ran directly from Centraal Station to Dam Square, and it was lined with souvenir shops, restaurants, bars and department stores. We later found a free 'visitor's guide' to Amsterdam that referenced the Red Light District. In reading the description of the area, we found a quick description of why they call it the Red Light District (which we had already personally experienced at that point) and that you should be sure to visit Warmoestraat, also known as the 'Hardcore leather neighborhood.' Wow. No wonder there was a gay bar called Cockring about two blocks from our hostel.

Like I said in a previous post, Dam Square was pretty much our starting point for all the journeys we took. Let me tell you, we did a LOT of walking those few days in Amsterdam. It was a completely different experience than travelling with my Dad, as I did the following week. He moved slowly and had to stop to rest every hundred yards or so. It meant that we couldn't see as much in one day as my sister, Christa, and I managed to do.

Let me take this opportunity to say that it would be very hard to find a better travelling companion than my sis. She has such a great attitude about everything - she's open to going just about anywhere, and to spending the day in any way you can think of, from just relaxing at a coffee shop (ahem!) to walking for 8 hours straight around the Jordaan. I can't thank her enough for coming with me on this trip, especially considering the circumstances she had to manage to get free to go.

So, thanks, Christa.

Anyways, our first day was spent getting oriented with the city, more or less. We had to wait a significant portion of the day to check into the room, so we found some coffee to warm up and some food to re-energize. We ate at a little cafe in a shopping center and had our first experience with mayonnaise-drenched french fries. Actually, it's not that bad. I thought it would make me vomit, but it was pretty good, especially when you mix ketchup and mayo together... something magical happens between those two condiments when you dip fries in there.

After that we decided to walk back to the other side of Dam Square towards the Red Light District. We were both so awe-struck by actually being in Amsterdam that even the most generic souvenir stores held a magnificent fascination for us. We walked by all kinds of restaurants, especially Argentinian Steakhouses. Those seem to be really popular over there. There were lots of coffee shops, too, of course... fry vendors on the streets, tiny stores with snacks and drinks, all kinds of clothing stores, stores that sold 'coffee accessories,' and cool little cafes. The city had a really charming feel to it, and everyone on the street seemed to be really happy, or at least mellow enough to tolerate everyone else.

That brings to mind another observation: the Dutch like their bicycles, man. Everywhere we went there were hundreds of bikes tethered there. Anything that was bolted to something else had a bike bolted to it: handrails, bridges, even other bikes! It was craziness, but I guess their tendancy to ride bikes everywhere at least partially accounts for the vast number of hot Dutch girls that I saw while I was there.

That's all for now... more as I find the time...

Random ten songs as a prelude to another Europe Trip post...

2009-03-25T10:13:00.000-07:00

I know you all feed on the top 10 lists... Let's see what the ol' randomizer has in store this week...

1) Phish, Billy Breathes - Taste
2) Sonic Youth, Experimental Jet Set, Trash and No Star - Self-Obsessed and Sexy
3) T-Pain, Epiphany - Put It Down
4) Astrud Gilberto and Stanley Turrentine, Astrud Gilberto With Stanley Turrentine- Wanting Things
5) Ryan Adams and the Cardinals, Cardinology - Fix It
6) The Fareed Haque Group, Live at the Boom-Boom Room 3-19-2004 - Title Unknown
7) Sasha, Wipeout 3 Soundtrack- Goteki 45
8) Ween, Craters of the Sac - How High Can You Fly?
9) The Eels, Live at Town Hall - Trouble With Dreams
10) The Parliament Funkadelic, Live 1976-1993 - Put Your Hands Together

Hmmmm... which one am I more embarassed about...? The T-Pain or the Astrud Gilberto...? That's a tough one...

More pics with short descriptions because I'm too lazy to write a full entry...

2009-03-16T14:17:00.000-07:00

A beautiful canal in Amsterdam.

Yes, that is a Tickle Me Freud doll and Yiddish fridge magnets. Please note that on the box of Yiddish fridge magnets, the sample phrase is, "Oy vey, we never schmooze anymore." Wow.

A statue of some guy in Amsterdam. I totally forgot who it is.

Dam Square memorial. Note the naked guy on the right that is flexing.

Nope, you're not quick enough, Christa.

The Badass himself.

Ummmmmm Baby Dump. Yeah. The catchphrase for the 21st century. What exactly do you do here? Just drop off unwanted babies? Hmmmmm.... I think it's probably a language barrier thing. I hope so, at least...

The Heineken Brewery. Me and my sister. Nuff said.

These lizards were guarding tulip gardens. They were pretty effin scary.

I amsterdam. Damn riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight....

Time for a Europe Trip Update...

2009-03-15T14:35:00.000-07:00

So obviously I haven't been able to do the daily blog reports that I thought I was going to be doing while on this trip. I tell you what... Internet connectivity was spotty while we were in Amsterdam, but now that I'm back in London for the duration, I will try to start keeping up better...

So today, I will cover the trip and the first day of our Amsterdam trip... It all started aboard the Stena Line Hollandica (that's a ferry that makes overnight trips from Harwich, England to Hoek von Holland, Netherlands).

Here's Christa inside the lounge of the boat.

...and here is a view of the lifeboats. I never did get a shot of the whole ship, but it was basically a cruise ship. It was really nice...

Here's my bunk. Christa had a double bed that was just out of frame on the left side.

The boat was a lot of fun, and we met a pretty big group of fellow Americans on the train to the port where we were to board the ferry. I think they all went to Rutgers or some other Jersey college they said, but they were from all over the US - LA, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, etc. We had a nice chat on the train, and discovered that we were all staying at the same hostel, too. I thought we would have a group to hang out with for a few days while we were there, but alas, the age difference must've been too much for them to handle because only one of them spoke to us the whole time we were there despite the fact that we ran into them all over the city.

Anyways, we had a few drinks on the boat (we both drank double Jameson's and coke, yummy) did a little gambling and checked out the gift shop. You could tell from the products they were selling that the boat was headed for the Netherlands.

The posing pouch. Sadly this is not my first encounter with this device manufactured from candy, but it may be the single worst idea relating to edible items and genitals. Jimmy, you know what I'm talkin about.

Really? A tiny bat that is to be used to pummel innocuous erections? That is just plain scary.

OK, so we made it to Amsterdam via train and were greeted with the kind of rain that is not heavy, but actually pretty light yet somehow propelled to the speed of light by the wind so it blows perfectly horizontal, and directly into your face. We had to haul all our shit on our backs all the way to the hotel, but since it was only about a 10 minute walk, it wasn't too bad. We weren't allowed to check in until 2pm, so we ditched our big bags in the 'luggage' room (which was quite sketchy) and hoofed it over to Dam Square. We didn't know it yet, but Dam Square was going to be our navigational landmark for most of our excursions...

Well, I don't want to make these individual posts too long, so that is all for now... I'll be back soon with a summary and some more pictures from our adventures in Amsterdam... and no, there are no pictures of the professionals from the Red Light District - apparently they're very serious about not allowing any pictures to be taken.

Be back soon!

A new random 10 songs...

2009-03-12T15:12:00.000-07:00

Not pulling any punches here, just straight up 10 random songs from my collection. No time for posting pictures now... I have what seems like thousands and I've still got ten days before I head back to Saudi. Will try to get another blog entry done tomorrow on the ferry back to the UK but I need time to sort through the pictures and I just can't justify taking vacation time to properly do that, so... for now, suffice it to say that Amsterdam is interesting...

So, on to the songs with Artist, Album - Title format...

1) Pearl Jam, Ten - Wash
2) Red Hot Chili Peppers, Stadium Arcadium - Death of a Martian
3) Fiona Apple, Extraordinary Machine - Oh Well
4) Sarah McLachlan, Unknown Album - Wait (Acoustic)
5) The Thievery Corporation, The Outernational Sound - Cramp Your Style
6) Charlie Rouse, Blue Note Trip Compilation: Lookin - Meci Bon Dieu
7) Royksopp, Royksopp's Night Out - Go With The Flow
8) Talib Kweli, Kweli Confidential - Temperature
9) Jamiroquai, Travelling Without Moving - Didjerama
10) The Beatles, White Album Disc 2 - Long, Long, Long

An Ertter in Europe... Days 1-4

2009-03-11T09:42:00.000-07:00

Will fill in the interesting parts later... For now, here are some pics for your enjoyment!

My sister on the road outside our hotel in Kensington.

We ate at the Hand and Flower the first night we were there... had tapas and some Jack Daniels.
This was the first alcohol that I had when I got outside Saudi. Jack on ice and a Stella Artois.
I don't know what this building is called, but it's in Bahrain and it's pretty famous. Those big windmills in the middle help power the building.

Look, kids - Big Ben, Parliament...
Trafalgar Square.
The obligatory Underground sign picture.

Camden Lock. They had a great shopping area actually...
Christa outside the Camden Lock.

My bunk on the Ferry

This was for sale at the shop on the ferry. Yes, it is a small bear fucking a vacuum apparently. The view from the side of the boat.

Our cabin.

This is the bar area on the ferry

Canal shots. Get used to these.

Like I said...

Uh-huh.

Our room at the Winston...

You're not crazy. There actually is a robot coming out of the wall. It really just gets in the way and doesn't do anything useful like fetch us coffee. .

Hopefully, the first of many...

2009-02-26T10:26:00.000-08:00

Well, I've got a pretty heinous music collection... it's actually something that I pride myself on, because I've been working for a long time to put it together. It's finally getting to the point where I can just put it on random and I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to get. Anyone that knows me knows that I am always looking to add something new to my collection, so I figured I'd give something back to all the people that have shared their love of music with me.

My plan is to just hit the random button in my Zune software (my username is ertman420 if anybody else out there uses Zune) and see what pops up. That doesn't mean that everything that comes up will be obscure, new, or even all that special. I'll simply post the first 10 songs that Zune plays for me, and whether it's new or old, I hope you enjoy it!

1) The Police - Every Breath You Take
2) Billy Joel - Piano Man
3) Smokey Robinson - Tears of a Clown (uh, random)
4) James Taylor - Something In the Way She Moves
5) Incubus - Anna Molly
6) Alison Krauss and Union Station - The Lucky One
7) The Presidents of the United States of America - Supermodel
8) The Prodigy - Charly (Alley Cat Remix)
9) Wu Tang Clan - Weak Spot
10) The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun

OK, I'll try to make this a regular feature... not too much exciting, and I'll have to find a way to put samples of the songs on here, as long as that's not violating any copyrights... Oh, and don't forget that my Europe trip is coming up a week from Saturday, or March 7th if you don't know what day of the week it is.

You know, because some people can get easily confused.

Further clarification...

2009-02-26T09:56:00.000-08:00

In a previous blog entry, I may have unintentionally given you guys the impression that I was planning on leaving my job in a period of approximately ten years. If I gave you that impression, I apologize.

You see, I was in fact pondering my own mortality due to the fact that I recently turned 30. I thought about all the things that I could potentially be missing out on while I was at work, and I also contemplated living a life outside the corporate world. This was not meant to represent my actual plan for the rest of my life. In fact, being over here in Saudi all the time has made me truly realize all of the opportunities for new experiences that working with this company has given me. I know that if I continue my career, it will put me in a position to have a family, own a home, and finally achieve all the things that have been important to me my entire life. It's unbearable to think about all of those experiences that I would miss out on were I to choose to end my career prematurely.

So, in summation, I am not planning on quitting my job in five years, as I may have incorrectly represented in earlier entries. I am, in fact, planning on developing my career over the next few decades, becoming a talented HR generalist (or perhaps concentrating my efforts in one area of expertise), and becoming an integral part of the company where I can make a more definitive contribution. I truly believe that this will give me the best opportunity to experience all of the things that I want to experience, both on my own and, perhaps more importantly, with the family that I plan to start in the very near future. In fact, I hope that I can retire someday with my good friend Allen, both of us having risen through the ranks of the company and eventually earning high-ranking positions. I can't think of a better person to work with for the next 30 or 40 years, actually, and maybe I'll eventually get to the point that I can keep up with him on the golf course. Nah, probably not.

I am serious about starting a family, though... that's been my biggest dream/goal since I was a little kid.

Funny thing about starting a family, though... it sort of requires at least one more person to qualify as a 'family.' I guess I've still got some more work to do...

Another week has gone by...

2009-02-23T10:15:00.000-08:00

I know, I haven't been writing as much as I should be. I do have a good reason though: not a whole lot happens in the 3-4 hours I have every day to myself. I mean, I am at work from 6 am until 6pm, including the time it takes to drive each way. That just doesn't leave a whole lot of time in the day for interesting stuff like pondering cultural differences, discovering new foods or experiencing new books and music.

That does bring up a good point, though... I've found another band or two for your listening pleasure. The first one is called Nostalgia 77 Octet. They've also got a MySpace page with some of their music on it. They're a pretty diverse jazz ensemble, almost like a Theivery Corporation of the jazz world. They're pretty great, and with a catchphrase like 'jazz jihad' you know they're going to be challenging people's preconceptions about jazz. They really mix in some crazy styles, and they've done some great covers. If you can get your hands on their version of the White Stripes' 'Seven Nation Army' you should do it at all costs.

Another band I really like some of you may have already heard of... but I'll mention them anyways, because as far as I can tell, they're still pretty obscure. The credit goes to John Dice for turning me on to The New Deal. This is a hellaciously talented group. A lot of their music sounds like some pretty heavy techno, but this band plays it all live with actual instruments! Imagine what would happen if Daft Punk had a bastard child and that bastard child somehow procreated with the offspring that is the result of the extreme musical talent of the members of String Cheese and the wild imaginatory orchestrations of Phish... and what you've got is The New Deal. If you like techno or jam music, you will love them.

So, I went to the grocery store and bought a shitload of meat the other day. I bought a whole strip loin and had the guy cut it into steaks for me. I also made a roast the same day...

Start with some fresh ingredients... fresh dill is my absolute FAVORITE herb. You'll also notice a white onion, carrots, and a few garlic cloves. Garlic is good for your heart, but no so good for your breath.

As you can see, I just put a rough chop on the veggies, but I also stuffed some dill and garlic into little slits I cut in the meat. The next pic has a close up.

Oooooooh! Meat close-up! See that little nub of garlic poking out?

...and voila! The roast is ready to be cooked. I just bake mine at a low temperature for a while. Usually, I use this old 1960's pressure cooker that my mom gave me, but that thing is in storage back in Greenville... no way was I going to haul it all the way to Saudi Arabia. The oven is not my first choice (pressure cooker) or my second choice (crock pot) but it'll get the job done.

Other than the roast, I've been making a lot of steaks. It was filet tonight, strip last night. There are a lot of high-quality, very fresh vegetables here in Saudi. I've been really surprised at the consisten quality of the produce here, and it's all REALLY CHEAP.

I guess I'll just throw out a couple more pics... I recently hung my South Carolina flag up in my room:

If only the light on this tree was garnet...

This is a pretty bad picture of the recent dust storm we had. It's been pretty hazy here the last week or so. The sun is in the sky during the day, but you can't see it - it's like a fog made out of really fine sand.

So, that's it from Saudi for today. I do want to say one more thing... to a friend of mine, you know who you are, dude. You said that I helped encourage you to make your life better, and that what I wrote here and the changes I've made in my own life have maybe made you think about the choices you're making in your own life. Thanks for letting me be your friend, man, and if I can ever do anything for you, just let me know. You've got limitless potential. All you've got to do is make some sacrifices and some different choices, and I know your life will be going in the right direction soon enough. That also makes me want to say thanks to someone who has influenced my own life, Graymane himself, Allen Latty. He encouraged me to go back to college way back when I was 25 and just out of a very serious but very dysfunctional relationship. That choice that he encouraged me to make has put my life on an entirely new course, so I have him to thank for a lot that I have going on for me now.

It just goes to show that doing one little thing to help someone out can really have a major effect on their lives. Thanks again, Allen... Hope to see everyone soon!

I know, I know...

2009-02-13T08:27:00.000-08:00

It's been more than a week since I posted.

Get over it :)

I just wanted to put in some pictures of the plant that I work at. I can't take photography credit for these; you have to have a permit to take pictures in Saudi and especially on the site, so I had a buddy give me some pics that he snapped. I don't even really know what most of the stuff in these pics is, but it's still fascinating to me to see the absolute complexity of this place.

Check em out...

We did have a dust storm... it was like a weird fog, and my roommate left the patio door open so EVERYTHING in the house got coated with a layer of dust. It was pretty nasty, everything felt really dry and kinda grated on my skin.

Anyways, I went downtown and had Thai with some of the Filipino guys that I work with. We had a good time, and some good food. We got a spicy chicken soup with lemongrass and thai basil, a huge plate of fried rice, spring rolls, and then we each got an individual dish: I had chicken with coconut milk and chili paste (by far the hottest dish of all of us), and the other guys shared chicken in oyster sauce (which does NOT taste like oysters, thankfully) shrimp tempura and chicken with celery.

I am just glad that I am eating well over here. I have quit smoking (still have the occasional cigarette, though I've gotten to the stage where they really taste disgusting and I can't stand to smoke but about half or less of each one) but I have yet to really start on a good exercise routine. I have a king-sized bed in my room right now, and I'm having that switched out for a double tomorrow while I am at work. My plan is to get an exercise bike, row machine or at least some weights in there so I can do some physical activity on a regular basis. It's just not good for me to be sitting in a chair all day doing zero physical activity. At least when I was waiting tables, I was moving around a lot and working up a sweat. Now the most activity I do is walking to the car in the morning. It sucks and I can really tell that I am in probably the worst shape of my life.

Which reminds me, last night as I was laying there trying to go to sleep, I was thinking about my own mortality again... specifically thinking about what it would feel like and what I would perceive when I reached the actual moment of my death. I couldn't help but think of the absolute finality of it, and how I would never be able to experience anything again, good OR bad. Don't go freaking out like I am obsessing over death or anything - it actually made me kind of wake up to the fact that I am actually going to die one day. It really made me want to make the most out of every moment that I have from now on, and that is just additional motivation to stop smoking - really anything that I can do to stay alive even a little bit longer will be worth it. Life is all we have... without it, we have no loved ones, no great memories, no good times, no walking on the beach, smelling wildflowers, feeling the breeze blow across your face, earth-shatteringly good music... nothing.

So yeah, everybody that reads this, please take some time to think about everything that you have. Most people I think don't ever appreciate the very simple experiences that we all have every day. Even something as benign as driving a car and listening to good music would be missed if we were unable to have ANY more experiences, right? So go home and do something special for someone that you love. Take 30 minutes to devote to something that you've always wanted to do; read a particular book, walk in a special park, listen to some music that reminds you of some fantastic memory or someone special. Just do a little something every day to remind yourself that our time on this Earth is extremely precious and precariously short.

OK, the lecture is over now. I miss everyone, and hope to see you soon!

Oh yeah, the Europe trip is ON LIKE DONKEY KONG!!! So look for photos and trip details coming soon, I depart for London three weeks from tomorrow!

-Ertter

Another day off...

2009-02-05T22:19:00.000-08:00

...another week is gone. Only four more until I go on leave.

Speaking of going on leave, my plan was for Megan to fly over and hang out with me for a week until my Dad arrived... unfortunately Megan told me yesterday that her parents won't let her come. That, my friend, is total bullshit.

So, does anyone want to come to London/Amsterdam for a week with me? Let me know soon! More than likely my sister, Christa, is going to come with, but she may not be able to get off of work.

Other than that bit of bad news, and the preceding post of course, things are still going pretty well. It's about 9am here, and the sun is shining, the air has just a tinge of cool breeziness to it while the sun keeps your skin feeling warm. It's a great day for being outdoors, and that's exactly what I plan to do. Right now, Uwe (my roommate) and I are about to go do some quick grocery shopping for the week, I'm going to get a haircut, and then we're going to come back to the compound and go to a BBQ at a colleague's house. There should be lots of people, tons of food, and a few ultra-competitive games of pool today.

After the BBQ a bunch of the Filipino guys that I work with are going to come and pick me up. We're going to go to downtown Jubail, do some shopping and then go out to eat at this Thai restaurant that is supposed to be fantastic. I've been in need of a new watch for awhile now, and I might get an unlocked GSM cellphone while I'm out, too. Those cell phones are great because no matter where you go, you can just buy a SIM Card, throw it in the back of the phone and you're talking. I'd like to have a cell phone available while I'm at work, and especially while I'm in Europe, just in case of emergency but also to assist with booking trains, ferries, etc. when needed. All in all, I think I can get the Seiko kinetic watch I want (I think it's called an Arctura) and a cell phone that will work both here and in Europe for about 1,000 Riyals, or about $275.

Just a note on the Filipinos in the office: These people are very eager to please, hardworking, and have strong morals. I haven't met a single guy from the Phillipines on this project that isn't exceedingly polite, good at their jobs, and optimistic. It's also amazing to me that some of my coworkers are in their mid-40's or 50's yet they look like they're in their 20's. Maybe they have a fountain of youth in the Phillipines or something, I don't know. What I do know is that there's four or five guys over here that all have a great sense of humor and I think will become great friends to me. I'm going to try to find out some more about what it's like to live in the Phillipines while I'm out with them later today. I know it will be fun; we crack up while we're at work and have a great working relationship. Really, I couldn't ask for better guys to have on my team at the office.

OK, I'm off to the grocery store. I'll try to take some pics while I'm at the BBQ so you guys can see what one of the villas here at the compound looks like. The villas are all 3 or 4 bedrooms, have second story balconies looking out over the oceans, large terraces and gigantic common rooms. I want to get some pictures of the people that I'm working with and the beautiful environment that we live in, but rarely get to see in the light of day.

Well, one final thought I guess. I find it ironic that I am currently existing in such a beautiful setting (this place really feels like a relaxed beach resort in Charleston or maybe Boca Grande) but you know it's not right, because there's nothing to drink and there's no women. I mean, it's like a twisted version of paradise; like someone just served you a bowl of salsa with no tortilla chips, a bun with no burger, or gumbo with no andouille sausage (that one's for you, Andy). It almost destroys everything good about the place actually, but on the other hand, if you close your eyes and just concentrate on the warmth of the sun beating down on you, the sound of the birds chirping and singing in the trees, the palm fronds rustling against each other and the breeze brushing up against your face, you can almost convince yourself that you actually are in some semblance of paradise like Charleston or Boca.

Oh well, I will get back to those places soon enough. Besides, I heard it's effin COLD in South Cackalackey right now.

Ertter out.

2009-01-30T11:04:00.000-08:00

Well, it's Friday, so that means another day off. I'm telling you, when you work six days a week, your one day off becomes pretty precious. It's getting harder and harder for me to motivate myself to do anything other than vegetate. However, I did have a pretty fulfilling day.

I slept in til about 9am, which on my schedule is pretty late these days. I don't think I will ever know the joy of sleeping til noon again. Ahhhhh, those were the days... Of course some of you I've been talking to lately have been sleeping in a lot. One person in particular has slept 14 hours consecutively in recent days... that's is something I envy, believe it or not.

Anyways, as soon as I woke up I went out to the store here on the compound to get some greasy food. I was feeling pretty worn out after hanging out with my good friend Johnnie Walker last night, if you catch my drift... so all I really wanted was something fried. I picked up some chicken nuggets and some fries, as well as a few things for the dinner I was planning and hiked back to the apartment.

It only took about 15 minutes to fry up the nuggets and the fries, and I made pretty quick work of them while I chatted with Ali-cat on Skype. After that I really just felt like lounging around, so I opened up all the windows in the living room, the door to the patio and the floor to ceiling windows in my bedroom so there was a nice breeze blowing through the whole place. Oh yeah, did I mention I had floor to celing windows in my room? They're pretty badass:

So anyways, it was about 70 degrees and windy today, so it was a nice environment just to chill. I watched Gran Torino with Clint Eastwood, checked on a couple flights for my R&R in March. My friend Megan (most of those who read this should know her, and there's a pic of her on one of my other blog entries) is actually going to come to London to meet me for the first half of my trip. I can't tell you how awesome that is - I know I put on a big front about how I like to be alone, and while I truly do cherish my Ertter Time, being alone for a week or more in Europe was a daunting thought. So now, my R&R looks a lot more promising: I'll fly into London on the 7th of March, and Megan should arrive at Heathrow about the same time. We'll go to a hostel, or maybe to get a pint, depending on what time it is and how tired we are. Then, we'll do a little sightseeing or whatever in London for a day or two before catching a train to Amsterdam. I've, uh, heard the, uh, canals are really cool, and there's like a Van Gogh museum there or something. Yeah, that's why I want to go there. Seriously. So after a few days there we'll take another train to Germany. Since Megan speaks German fluently and is very familiar with the country (she spent a semester or two over there) I'm going to let her be my guide, and we'll hang out with some of her friends for a couple days before we take another trian back to London. Megan should fly out the same day as my Dad flies in, so I'll probably just hang out at Heathrow all day.

Once my dad arrives, we'll check into our hotel in the Docklands and probably let him recover from the jet lag before heading out to relive some of the trips we took when I was growing up. He used to take me to the UK every year at Spring Break and Thanksgiving Break, so we have been quite a few places together, but I think it will be a great experience reliving all of that now that I am an adult. I mean, I think I've changed a lot since I was a little kid (doesn't everybody?) and I know that I will see things with a renewed sense of wonder. In addition, I'll have a chance to get to know my Dad as an adult. We haven't really spent much quality time together since I moved out to go to USC back in 1997, and I want to know who he really is. No matter where we go, I know it will be a great bonding experience, and my relationship with my Dad will grow... it's like we're already father and son, and I think after this trip, we'll be good friends too. So anyways, our plan is to go to Bath, Brighton, Stonehenge, etc. just like we did when I was little. We'll sightsee for a week or so before he flies back and I'll fly back to Saudi for more work.

So, enough about the future, let's finish talking about today! I cooked a badass meal tonight, as usual. I started with some boneless, skinless chicken breasts, which cost about seven Riyal per pack. Yeah, that's less than $2. You can't beat that with a stick - I mean, produce and meats especially are WAY cheaper here than in the States, and the quality is just as good. So, I cubed the chicken breasts and put them in a dish with the following homemade marinade:

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup worcestershire
1/4 teaspoon diced ginger
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 lemons, split and juiced (with 1/2 of one lemon reserved for lemon slices)

I let the chicken marinade from lunchtime til about 6pm, when I started getting the charcoal ready on the grill. Next, I skewered the chicken on my brand new kabobs:

This is the chicken as I was putting it on the skewers. So, after I got the grill ready and the chicken all skewered up, I started in on my rice. It's just typical Basmati rice. You cook it in a ratio of 1 cup of rice for every 2 cups of water. I also mixed in a few onions, some garlic and a little ginger so that the rice would complement the flavor of the chicken. Here's the rice:

The rice puffed up a lot more than I thought it would, but I had enough leftovers for lunch tomorrow. Here's the chicken after I took it off the grill:

That shit was delicious.

So, after dinner, I just relaxed a good bit. I watched another movie and just laid around until it got dark, and then I started getting sentimental. I want to go to Charleston, walk around on the beach at sunset, drive a Wrangler around with the doors off while the wind blows over my whole body, and listen to some really good music at an obscene volume. Maybe it's homesickness, maybe it's just my version of heaven on Earth. Call it what you will, but walking around on the beach tonight gave me a little taste of what I've been imagining:

Ok, this fuckin video doesn't want to upload. The internet connection here is spotty at best sometimes, and the upload speed is horrible. I'll either upload it tomorrow or try to film a shorter video of the beach. Let's just say it was beautiful; the waves were lapping up against the shore and I was tempted to sleep right there in one of the beach chairs. Hopefully I'll get to Charleston this summer, or maybe to Boca Grande with the Hill family so that I can live that moment with some of the people I love the most. So yeah, sorry, no video.

So while you're (supposed to be) downloading the video above, take a look at some of these bands:

The Stills
The Editors
Sparta
Minus the Bear
Be Your Own Pet

That's about it for me... I just had a long conversation with Ali about being single/her being married, and now I'm chattin with Cundiff for a few minutes. The rest of you really need to get Skype. I mean, it's your duty to keep me company while I'm over here in the Middle East, don't you think?!?!?

_Ertter_

Just a quick music review...

2009-01-26T09:57:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to give you guys a heads up on a pretty decent band that I found recently:

The Helio Sequence

...and a video too

More new music coming soon!

As you may or may not know...

2009-01-26T09:11:00.000-08:00

I turned 30 last friday. That's right - tack on another decade to the length of my lifetime. So, go ahead and get yourselves prepared for a meandering, pointless, introspective tour de force.

It's really odd... half the time I'm not even thinking about my age, or much of anything else, and I just exist inside myself completely. This happens a lot when I am writing, listening to music, reading, and sometimes even when I'm doing work. I've probably told some of you about my whole 'Two Brains' theory where I have one brain controlling my conscious thought, and another one that exists solely to keep the first brain entertained/distracted while I complete tasks. I just get lost in whatever I'm doing... but the rest of the time I seem to almost perceive myself from outside, and it's these times that I'm aware of my age, which naturally leads me to think of my limited time here on Earth.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those morbid people that thinks about death all the time; in fact, I like to think that I'm one of the most positive people around. But turning 30, hell, eclipsing ANY decade mark in your life inevitably summons thoughts about your mortality.

So there I was today, riding home from the worksite in a Mazda with a 50-something engineer, listening to a brief summation of his life experiences and the lessons that he's learned, when it hit me: I'm not so sure that I want to spend the majority of my life sitting in a cubicle. I am very conscious of the fact that I am extremely blessed to have the opportunities that I've had, especially the one that landed me this job. My current career path will afford me many luxuries; being able to support my parents if they continue to have financial trouble, comfortably raising a family of my own, helping my sisters put my neice and nephew through college, having a high level of stability in my life, and especially being able to make a difference in people's lives everyday.

Yet despite all of the benefits, there I was thinking about being free, wandering the country camping, hiking, working when I saw fit... but it's not like my job is holding me back or destroying any kind of sense of self. Hell, my job isn't even really difficult if you have a basic knowledge of policy and a great deal of patience. Nevertheless, I am still not doing what it is that I really want to do. Hell, I still don't know what it is I want to do, I just know that when I think about the actual moment that my soul slips free of this body, I don't want to be there on my back regretting the choices that I've made. The days are passing faster and faster as I get older, picking up momentum and blurring together into one never-ending ribbon of predictability. The phrase 'stop and smell the roses' suddenly has new meaning: the thought that we have a very short amount of time to be alive is becoming a much more common companion throughout my recent days.

I don't know where all these thoughts are going; I know I'm not even close to considering leaving my job anytime in the next 5 years or so. I also know that I eventually want to have a daily existence that is more flexible, more spiritual (not more religious) and filled with music, laughter, and warm sunshine. I want to sleep late. I want to wake up every day and decide what to do right then, spur of the moment. I want to see different places. I want to meet different people. I want to do things I haven't done before (except eat fish, that's just not for me). I want to wake up next to someone that I love, trust and makes me feel complete. I want to make music. I want to write a story that is significant to people. I want to be the most important person in someone's life. I want... well, I want a lot of things that I don't have right now. I don't know where to find all of that, and I doubt that is all that I am truly looking for. All I do know is that this part of my life is just another opportunity to learn something about myself; just another way for me to grow as a person, and I'm grateful for it. The rest can always come later, right? I guess the problem is that every day that passes now makes that time that's supposed to come after shorter and shorter.

So, like I said, no real point to the rant above, and if you read all the way through it, I commend you. I guess I just find myself regretting the choices I have already made, yet thankful for what I perceive as mistakes because I am definitely wiser and more in tune with who I truly am because of them.

And I know I want to own a Jeep Wrangler again.

So to close, I'll throw out a few pictures from the past three decades... no good ones from when I was little, but there are some oldies mixed in there. Enjoy!

Shrum, Sir Lattimus the Grey, Dice and myself at Skunkfest 06, I think...

Ali Cat, Audra, Skinny Michelle and I sometime around my 27th birthday in 2006. Actually, looking closer at the picture it was apparently St. Patrick's Day. We were at Bar None in 5 Points.

Me n Meg after the Widespread concert in North Charleston. Needless to say, we rocked the Embassy Suites.

The Cundiffs and I at our Toga Party sometime in the summer of 2005. I'm not exactly sure what we're doing with our tongues there...

That would be me, Dice and Yimmy Yames on July 4th, 2005. We were at a party at Matt and Jen C's place in Forest Acres. Much drunkenness ensued. Yimmy looks like he's 16.

Jen C. and Matt at the same party referenced above. Note Matt's state of extreme drunkenness. Plus, he's wearing a wifebeater. Classic.

This is what I look like when I'm in decent shape. At the house I shared with Yimmy and Andy on John Francis in Forest Acres.

Me and Emerald from way back in like 2004 I think. This was some New Year's where we all went to Greenville and I randomly ran into Emerald working at O'Connels (or whatever it's called) at 2 in the morning.

Amy and I at the beach in IOP. This was a long time ago, before 95% of the drama.

So that's it, folks. If you read this expecting more about Saudi, tough luck. I've got another post about work/life in Saudi coming soon, and I think maybe I will start adding some political commentary/music reviews and suggestions/movie reviews, etc. on here too, just to keep it interesting.

Much love.

-J

The beach

2009-01-16T05:38:00.000-08:00

Can't wait til it gets warm... here are some pics of the beach that I took when I went for a walk this morning... and a cactus.

Here are a couple of the pool area too... it sucks that it's still cold, but I guess 120+ degrees isn't much better...

Kofta aspirations...

2009-01-16T05:17:00.000-08:00

Most of you probably know that I love to cook... hell, you can tell just by looking at me that I love to eat! I've been experimenting with some local foods - most recently I decided to try my hand at cooking some kofta. Kofta is basically just seasoned meat; often it is a mixture of ground beef and lamb, but most of what I've found is entirely made of lamb and surprisingly spicy. I bought a new grill the other night at the SACO (the American equivalent is an Ace Hardware) so I decided to make some kofta patties. If any of you have ever eaten at the Mediterranean Tea Room on Devine St. in Columbia, you'll understand why I paired this with rice and a salad. I don't think I took any pictures of the salad, but the rice and kofta are pictured below.

The rice is also a local variety. I don't know what kind it is, because it's labeled entirely in Arabic, but it looks different than what I consider 'normal' white rice. Here's the bag:

I added some chopped vegetables; chives, onions, and some fresh garlic.

Next, I sauteed the vegetables and the rice in some butter before adding the water and setting it to simmer for 20 minutes.

Don't be too disappointed in me, but I bought the kofta already made at the store. Hey, I've got to take advantage of things like that being available... when's the last time you saw kofta or kebobs of lamb already made up and just waiting to be put on the grill? Oh, that's right... my new grill:

So yeah... the rest was pretty easy. I let the rice simmer and grilled up my kofta patties. Here they are right before I put them on the grill:

...and your final product, folks:

Looks pretty delicious, doesn't it?

Curiosities and Memories

2009-01-13T08:35:00.000-08:00

So, I admittedly didn't spend a lot of time planning today's entry, but I have been making little notes in my head as I go along. Mostly I try to remember things that are new to me, things that I found to be odd, and the memories that keep me grounded. So, today I bring you a little of each.

First, some things that are new to me. There are a lot of Phillipino guys that work on our project. One of them works directly with me, and we interact pretty much all day long. He speaks excellent english, and since he was my predecessor's right-hand-man, he's been teaching me a lot since I got here. Recently, one of his close friends that also works on the project went home on leave and returned with some snacks from their home country, the Phillipines. He had a whole assortment of different foods that he offered to let me try, so here are some of them:

These are dried mangoes. They were actually really good, not too sweet.

Ding Dongs. Not what we think of why Ding Dongs in America, but a mixture of dried nuts and crispy peas. I know it probably sounds gross, but it was pretty good. Something I would snack on with beer actually.

Squash seeds. Yeah, not very good.

Just more mixed nuts. I was 'happy' because they were pretty good.

No, that's not cat poop wrapped in plastic, it's homemade candy. Ever had a Mary Jane or a Sugar Daddy? This is sort of a cross between the two.

Ok, now on to the curiosities portion. The bathroom - usually not a mysterious place. However, I have had some encounters with certain equipment both in my personal bathroom here at my apartment, and at the office. I'm pretty sure I know how to use most of it, I just can't understand their practicality. Here's a picture of my bathroom:

As you can see, I have what Americans would consider a 'normal' toilet, what I think is a bidet (or something very similar) and in between, a sprayer to spray off my dishes with. No wait, I guess that's supposed to be used to spray my ass off. That's where I get lost. Don't get me wrong, I understand the concept of washing one's ass... what I don't get is how you're supposed to execute that without some overspray happening. I mean, the last thing I want to do in the middle of the day is spray down the inside of my pants with a hose. This would be fine if I were nake every time I had to poop, but usually I am wearing pants, boxers, hell sometimes even socks and shoes. I just don't see how this could work with out some water getting out where it's not supposed to be. If anybody has any suggestions and/or instructions, please feel free to leave them in the comments. Here's a close-up of the nozzle:

Well, now that we've covered dried peas and pooping, let's move on to the final section: memories. Anybody that's reading this probably knows how I feel about my friends and family. You guys are what sustain me, support me and make me who I am. So of course I'm thinking about some of the crazy times we've had together in the past to get me through some of my downtime over here. I don't want to just tell a story though, I want to just put some little snippets out there for some people, and hopefully when you read them you'll realize it's for you. So here we go:

- Getting sun poisoning my first day at the beach.

- Driving down Johnson's Marina Rd. with Prodigy going full blast.

- Losing my mind on an old logging rd. next to some train tracks.

- Two shots of patron chilled, one jack coke and a blue moon at Speakeasy.

- Stone Temple Pilots in North Charleston.

- Widespread Panic in North Charleston.

- The cabin outside of Asheville.

- Trying to catch a fish with a net... unsuccessfully.

- Working at the Bloody Mary Bar on charity night.

- Setting up BarterTown for the first time.

- Firemares can travel 300 leagues in a day.

- Liloo Dalls, multipass.

- Smashing Pumpkins with Garbage at the Township.

OK... that's it for now. Next entry in another day or two! Miss you guys!

_Ertter_

Not much to report as of yet...

2009-01-08T07:35:00.001-08:00

I have gotten through my first few days of work pretty well... my duties aren't very stringent at the moment because the project is almost entirely staffed up. We only have a few open positions, and some of those are proving difficult to fill. However, most of them aren't vital to the project so we've basically determined that if they aren't filled by the end of January, we aren't going to worry about them anymore.

I continue to be fascinated by the depth of the culture here. Most recently, I spoke with another of the Saudis at length today about one of his favorite hobbies, falconry. He had about ten videos on his cell phone that demonstrated how he hunted with his falcon, which happens to be a peregrine falcon. His falcon was adept at hunting both birds and ground-based animals like rabbits. The videos were pretty awesome, actually - I saw one where his falcon was working with two hunting dogs (they looked similar to greyhounds) to catch a rabbit. The dogs were chasing the rabbit while his falcon repeatedly dove at the rabbit, knocking it over and clawing at it with his talons. It was amazing to see this demonstration of skill and speed, and it was obvious that the bird was well-trained. Falconry is one of the world's oldest traditions, and I have to say that I am absolutely fascinated by it.

I really don't have a lot of time to do much outside of work - I'm forced to go in early because my roommate and I don't have a car of our own yet. That won't happen for a few weeks when I get my Iqama and subsequently my Saudi driver's license. Anyways, I have to ride in with one of my neighbors that for some reason likes to go in at least an hour early. Since I typically ride home with my boss, who likes to stay an hour or two late by the way, I end up working from 5:30am until about 6:30 or 7 at night. It's not too bad, but I would like to have that extra couple of hours to relax and separate myself from the workday. I am confident that I can endure the extra work hours without much of a problem, and I know that when I start collecting the big paychecks I won't even think about it.

Sorry but no new pictures as of yet; you must have a permit to take pictures in public here in Saudi. I'd like to try to capture some of the beautiful sunsets here at the compound where I am allowed to use my camera at will, but I've been getting home every night well after dark. I promise that I will get some more pictures posted at some point. For now, I must be content with the few pictures that I have of my apartment.

I miss everybody - I hope many of you are reading the blog so that you know how I am doing. I'm looking forward to my first leave already. It looks like I'll be going out around March 7th or so. I'm still trying to decide what I'll do with my time off... I think I will be able to afford to come home AND go to Europe somewhere, but I'll have to fly coach across the Atlantic twice, and that's not a very inspiring prospect. Anyways, I'll get it figured out, and I guess a lot of my decision will depend on just how homesick I am when March rolls around.

Not much to report as of yet...

2009-01-07T10:24:00.000-08:00

My first day in Saudi...

2009-01-04T18:15:00.000-08:00

Well folks, I finally made it to Saudi Arabia. I had a great flight over on Qatar Airlines; the company paid for business class on the way over, and I enjoyed some great food and a seat that folded flat on the way over. The vast majority of the flight went without incident and most of the time, it didn't even feel like I was on an airplane.

I moved into my new place at the Murjan Village compound once my driver dropped me off. I didn't arrive until after midnight local time, so I was pretty wiped out. At the same time, however, I was still on EST so I couldn't fall asleep until well after 3am. Since I had to report to work first thing in the morning (at 7am) I had a hard time making it through the day. Once 3pm rolled around, I started nodding off at my desk, but a quick cup of coffee got me through the rest of the day.

Everyone I've met here has been really great so far. One of the Saudi nationals took me to the hospital for my medical checkup, which is required to get an Iqama. The Iqama is basically an ID that allows you to travel freely withing the Kingdom, and it is required for me to get a Saudi driver's license. We were at the hospital for several hours, but once I actually got in to see the doctors, they were very efficient and quick. Overall, the medical checkup took most of the morning, but the gentleman that accompanied me to the hospital was with me the entire time. We just sat in the waiting room and talked for most of the morning; he told me about his family (he has TEN siblings!!!) and I told him about mine. It was really great just getting to know someone from this culture.

There is a definite difference between the Sunnis and the Shi'ites, though it is mostly manifested in the way they dress. The Sunnis tend to dress more conservatively, in the floorlenght Thobe and headdress, while the Shi'ites tend to dress in what might be considered a more 'western' way. I found all of them to be very welcoming, kind and well-spoken.

I woke up very early this morning, obviously it's going to take me awhile to adjust to the difference in time... I don't normally wake up at 4am, but I just couldn't sleep any more this morning. I made some tea and went out on the balcony to look out over the compound, and I heard the day's first call to prayer. It was somewhat profound getting to experience the dedication the Islamic faith that these people have. Every day, five times a day, the call to prayer goes out, and all the shops, restaurants, etc. must close for about a half an hour. I really believe that the strong faith that these people have is one of their greatest assets.

Well, it's almost time for me to start getting ready for work, and my new roommate (a German) arrived late last night while I was sleeping... I think I hear him walking around in the kitchen, so I'm going to go introduce myself, but first I will post some pictures of the compound and my apartment. By the way, if I didn't mention it already, the security at the compound is very tight. They have concrete barriers at the gate, a large concrete fence around the whole compound and several guards stationed all around the perimeter. Any illusions I had about a lack of security have been eliminated and I feel very safe here.

Here are the pictures:

Another delay...

2008-12-28T17:20:00.000-08:00

Well, here it is December 29th and I am still in the States. The decision makers at my job decided that since I had already completed the physical for a work visas (which is MUCH more extensive and intrusive than a regular physical) that I should go ahead and get a work visa rather than coming over on a short-term business trip visa.

Anyways, what all that means is that I won't be leaving until after New Year's. So, for now, there's not a whole lot to write, since I'm not actually IN Saudi yet.

Until then...

I'm headed for Saudi...

2008-12-07T19:27:00.000-08:00

...and I plan on using this blog to document my assignment, and my adventures in between. I'm 29 years old, single, and I work for one of the world's largest engineering, procurement and construction companies. I work in field HR services...

All that is about to change, however...

I'll be working at one of the world's largest industrial projects as an HR Supervisor. Basically, I'll be processing our workers to and from the project, helping them find housing, get adjusted to living on-site in Jubail, Saudi Arabia, and answering their questions about compensation, benefits, etc. This is my first international assignment, but hopefully one of many.

Though I've traveled extensively in my youth, I've never been out of the States for this period of time. I won't be shipping out until after Christmas, so you probably won't see much from me until then, but once I go, I will strive to make posts daily, if not weekly.

Thanks for reading!

-Jason