Quilting

Today a friend suggested that we check out a quilting exhibit. It was interesting, but I'm sure that I was not able to appreciate the art because I don't really understand all the hard work that undoubtedly went into each piece.

For me, quilting was always just about using pieces of scrap to make blankets. I had a quilt that my grandmother made that I used until it wore out. I loved that quilt. The quilts that were on exhibit were really impressive but they were a little too high class for my taste. I can't imagine using them on my bed.

University Club Day

Our university had a Club Day. Oddly enough, the clubs were mostly ethnic (i.e. Palestinian Club, Saudi Club, Somali Club). Still most of the students seemed to have a good time and a little cross-cultural mixing is always good.

Makkoli

A couple of weeks ago, I went to the Barracuda to pick up some alcohol. By chance, I came across a little Korean alcohol. I've always liked makkoli, especially the rough homemade variety, so I thought I would give it a try. At Dh25 or about Won 7,800, it was a little expensive. It was okay but a little too refined.

Dubai

Last week, I went to a musical in Dubai at the Madinat Jumeirah. I'm not sure what I expected, perhaps a lot of laughter, some singing, and dancing. Well...Blood Brothers was interesting and I'm glad that I saw it, but it was very sad. At the end, both I and my friend thought, "Oh." The actors (I'm not sure if that's the correct term) had incredibly beautiful voices. They were awesome. It's always nice to dress up a little and sit with somewhat cultured people, but perhaps something a little more uplifting next time.

The Madinat Jumeirah was a place that I had never been, but it was very pleasant to sit outside in cool but pleasant temperatures and eat a nice Italian dinner, drink a glass of Italian wine, and watch abras (well, touristy abras) putt by. The wind towers and the traditional setting was worth the visit. The whole complex is nicely done.






The next day, I was at the Dubai Mall, and I always regret not taking a proper camera. One weekend, they had a young man trying to break the Guinness Book of Records for keeping a football in the air (I don't know how that ended.). Another time they had foosball tables set up for some kind of tournament. Last weekend, they had a judo tournament in one area, and, in another area, they had the most opulent car display (Ferrari, Mercedes, BMW) I've ever seen - including a car I've dreamed about for years. I had mixed feelings. The cars were awesome. I would have loved to sit in one, or, better yet, take one for a spin. Yet...to spend so much money on what is essentially just a car seems unconscionable when the world is full of people who are suffering. By strange coincidence, after drooling over the cars for a bit, I went up to the 3rd floor and sat in Caribou Coffee, had a soy latte, and read a book called Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom by Joseph Goldstein. One of the first lines I came across was "If a practice does not cool the fires of greed, aversion, and ignorance, it is worthless." I could have cried. This is such a strange place.

Evening walks

My Garmin 405 Forerunner has been a cool addition to my walks. It is inspirational to keep track. I go for my walks and then I just sit down by my computer and the data uploads automatically.

Tonight I hit 100.9 kilometers in my evening walks (about 6 kms X 18 - I added an extra turn around the roundabout when I realized the I was only doing 5.8kms door to door). I had a plan at the end of November to walk 100 kilometers every month. Well, this first hundred took me a little over two months. I'm not very good at math, but I should have been able to figure out that I would have to go out 17 times a month to do that. That's just about every second day!!! I may try to do that through February, but I might also just add another 15 minutes to my walks from time to time. However, if I don't go out that often, I may just change my goal.

Still...it has been quite enjoyable most of the time. Tonight I was listening to Eckhart Tolle's The Power of Now. I think that will keep me company for a couple of weeks. I'll have to listen to it several times I think.