The War on Christmas

Hey!  Did you hear?  There's a WAR ON CHRISTMAS!  And all Christians are being persecuted in this war.  Who's waging this war?  Those who tell me, a Christian, that saying Merry Christmas is offensive.  Those who say Happy Holidays to make everyone feel included in the festivities.  Don't they know, that after Thanksgiving, Happy Holidays is no longer a valid greeting?  Especially this year, since Hanukkah was over so quickly?  So, what holiday do they mean?  They just have no idea.  And it's WAR! 

Well, folks.  I have to say... I have never ever met any one or seen anyone on television who actually says saying Merry Christmas is offensive.  But I sure have seen people say that people are saying it. I\m on Facebook, you know. 

I know that some retailers tell their employees to wish Happy Holidays so as not to be offensive, but I do not know anyone who has said it is, indeed, offensive.  It's business.  Simply put, a business doesn't want to offend a shopper so they go out of their way to be inclusive in the hopes of raising their bottom line. 

Also, I may be wrong, but I thought Happy Holidays referred to Christmas and New Year's Day, not Hanukah, Kwanza, or Diwali.  But maybe it should! 

 Folks have been saying Happy Holidays for decades.  Even OJ says it!

Having said all that, I want to tell you what I have seen this holiday season.  There are lights all around me.  The streets are lit up and the malls are decorated.  Our Ace Hardware and the Japanese Dollar Store were set up for Christmas before Thanksgiving, as usual. 

The malls have put up the 25 foot trees and people are stopping to take their family portraits in front of them.  The Christmas music is blaring through the speakers in all the malls.  And ribbons are hung.

  The stores are having Christmas pricing and some even remind me how many shopping days I have left until December 25.  We are out of school for three weeks this year!  Davis wants a bike and I can't wait to shop for Camryn.  Last night we went to a tree-lighting party at a local hotel where the kids played games and Santa gave Camryn a goodie bag.  There were gingerbread houses and candy canes.  I am too far away from family this year to cook so we plan to attend a Christmas dinner at our golf club.  And since we are new in town, I will be looking for a Christmas Eve service that won't be too crowded or too late for Camryn.  There's a beautiful Catholic church near us.  Maybe we'll try that.

Doesn't feel like much of a war to me. 

Oh, did I forget to tell you, I live in the UAE?  Not the USA, the UAE.  The United Arab Emirates.  I live in a Muslim country.  Those Muslims who hate Christians and want Jihad on America?  Those Muslims who wish death to infidels? 

Those very people who so many Americans misunderstand know that there are many Christians in their country and they allow us, nay, encourage us, to celebrate our holy holiday.  In fact, many of them participate in the secular parts of the celebrations!  There is high demand in the UAE for a bilingual Santa Claus! 

In this Muslim country, I can celebrate the birth of my Savior with no fear of persecution and without fear of offending because the people here value the fact that I am religious at all.  They would like me to be Muslim, but they know that I follow God.  And they don't try to get in the way of that.  So, in a country where there actually COULD be a war on Christmas, there isn't.  It's celebrated!

So, can we get past the WAR and start celebrating the whole season?  Not just the birth of Christ, but the rededication of the temple, the celebration of values, the victory of light over darkness, and the coming of the New Year.

Happy Holidays, y'all!

Driving Emirati Style

Well, I have survived two days of driving in the UAE and let me tell you... It is scary, but I can handle it.  Here's what I have learned.

Roundabouts are scary as hell.  Yield and look to your left for any glint of light shining through the space between two cars.  That's where you will fit in.  While you are rounding about, people will cut across several lanes to exit.  they may or may not exit into their own lane.  If you aren't exiting immediately then you have to go across two other lanes to get into that small sliver of space.  After you are in that tiny nook, you will immediately be trying to get out of that wee spot so that you can again cross two lanes to exit the roundabout. Upon your exit, you yourself will cut off two lanes who are entering. And you may or may not remember what lane you need to exit to!  When you are exited, you will breathe a small sigh of relief, but it will be short-lived as you see their is another roundabout right in front of you.  

Lanes are simply guidelines and are not often strictly adhered to.  Cars, usually very large ones of the Range Rover type, are often seen drifting between lines and off onto the shoulders. Usually this behavior gets you labeled a drunk driver. In the UAE, this is very unlikely.  These people just don't care to stay between the lines.  This is also true when Emiratis park.  

Speed limits do not matter unless you drive a Volkswagen.  Here's why.  The highest speed limit used to be 120km. So at 120km ALL cars start dinging to alert you to your speed.  In Eric's rental, the alarm stops after a few dings.  "You are speeding; now you know it.  I shall stop dinging and leave you be."  However, the Volkswagen I rented for two days does not stop dinging.  Even when the speed limit is 140, I have to go 119 or listen to ding ding ding.  And since there are no English radio stations in Al Ain, I can't even drown out the noise.  I am dropping it off today.  Toot sweet. 

Speaking of speed....just like in the US...you will get passed like you are crawling if you do the speed limit.  Even though speed is monitored by radar and tickets are expensive, the drivers here like to go fast.  If you aren't going fast enough, they will let you know by passive aggressively passing too close to you and sliding over right in front of you.  So closely, in fact, you could not so passive aggressively high-five their faces with a fist if you simply reached out your driver's side window. 

I guess that's about it for my driving adventures!  More later!  Including a road sign I don't quite understand.  

Being flexible

Well, Eric and I are nothing if not flexible.  Last week we decided we would live in Abu Dhabi.  If I were placed in Al Ain, I would ask for a transfer.  We found a spectacular apartment near Yas island, a school for Davis, and a nanny for Camryn. All was right in the world.  

Then, I got my placement.  As predicted, it was Al Ain. So I talked to school operations and was all prepared to switch placements.  Then, the department chair contacted me.  And another teacher at the school offered to drive me around.  Finally, a third teacher friended me.  Seriously?  How could I switch from that kind of environment?  I have heard horror stories of EMTs feeling very isolated and miserable. 

Eric and I talked and realized how much smarter it would be for us to live in Al Ain. School is cheaper.  Houses are MUCH cheaper, and the golf course is 1/3 the cost!  So, I asked my nanny if she would come.  She said it was too far.  Sad face.  So I focused on finding a school for Davis.  At least I was successful there. He has a place at the first school we looked at when we first started this adventure. It's less than half the Abu Dhabi school!  Now, we have our realtor showing us villas in Al Ain. We'll probably have a place by Friday. Until then, we are going to be in another hotel.  Ugh. 

Last was trying to find a school or new nanny for Cam.  I was calling places and very worried because I didn't think I could get Cam at a place before I started school.  But, then a miracle happened.  Our nanny called back. She realized that we were too wonderful a family to pass up.  She called and agreed to come to Al Ain with us.  Yippee! 

So, all is well in our world.  Hopefully we will be in our villa next week and we can send pictures. 

I LOVE Skype

So I just got off of Skype talking to the boys. It is so fun. Davis gave me a video tour of their hotel room. Since its 9pm there I got to see all the lights. There is a tennis court and two pools there. 

Eric has met some people who work at his school and he got to go into his school but he's only seen the auditorium. The school gave each teacher an iPad. It's a 2 but they've been promised 3s!  And he got his accommodation allowance already!  

This week he will be looking at apartments and nurseries (in case we decide to do that instead of a nanny). Then Davis has to sit for assessments at some schools we are interested in.  

They have only eaten at American restaurants. Friday's, Subway, Wendy's. I hope they get more adventurous when I get there!  I am jealous that they are already there!

Boys Leaving Tomorrow

Well, it's almost here. Tomorrow, Sunday, August 11, the boys leave for Abu Dhabi. It's been a very trying time, but as I have learned Insallah. Insallah means "God willing." It can also mean, "I don't want to deal with this particular issue so I will blame it on God's will" when used by Arabs. I hope I don't have to face that too much, but I am a realist, so I know I probably will. Here's what I have said Insallah to... Our recruiting company has been telling us ADEC, our employer, encourages us to leave our children at home, but will bring them over if we have a special circumstance such as an infant or a single mother. Well, I do have Camryn! And since Eric is coming over a week earlier, I assumed I was a special circumstance. Apparently 90% of future EMTs (English Medium Teachers) think we are special circumstances. So, ADEC put the kibosh on adding children to the flights. I was able to beg and get Camryn added as a lap rider to my ticket. Won't that be a fun flight?!?! And Eric's company, ADVETI, easily added Davis to Eric's flight. His company pays for one dependent. However, he was warned the cost of the flight would be docked from his pay later if it is found we double dipped on the benefits, using my company's dependent coverage, as well. Wouldn't that be a neat trick? To have Davis fly over twice? :) So, to summarize, Eric and the boys are leaving tomorrow at 2pm. Camryn and I are leaving Aug 19 in the evening. Our adventure is about to begin. And if you want to know how Davis is feeling about the move....he and his friends are all going incognito so he can stay.
 

The house

Well, we are all ready to keep the house. We love our neighborhood, and love our circle even more. Mom would stay in our house and we would have a place to come home to. Our place. Our home. The only home Camryn has ever known and that Davis really remembers. And then, the house four doors down from us just sold in five days. And for over $100/square foot. And it's the same builder as ours. Wow. So, we have made the tough decision to fix up the house and put it on the market. We are setting up Mom in a nice apartment on Westheimer and Mason. We will get her a two-bedroom so we have a place to stay when we return. We are excited and we ask for your prayers and support along the way! And if you know how to patch a hole in sheetrock, give me a call.

The Low Down

Hi friends and family, Well, as you have heard, Eric and I, and the kids, are moving to Abu Dhabi to teach English. I thought it would be nice to start a blog about this experience. This first entry explains why in the world we are doing what we are doing. So, here goes. A few years ago, Eric and I heard that teachers who work for Saudi Aramco make boucoup bucks so we tried to get in. We have interviewed several times, but for one reason or another, we never got in. But, that's a good thing because Saudi Arabia, is Saudi Arabia, after all. And, you all know me.... no drinking, no driving, covering my face, that ain't me. So we realized God was blessing us with an opportunity by not blessing us with THIS opportunity. About a year later, I was doing some internet browsing and I came across a recruiting company called TeachAway. They were recruiting for several countries, but the one that interested me the most was in the United Arab Emirates. I applied with them and immediately had a phone interview. It went well. I was invited to the in-person interview. Woo hoo! I'd have to pay for my own trip, but thanks to my generous mother-in-law, I had a free room in New York City. I think the NYC trip and interview will be a separate post.... So, why did I want to get myself all mixed up in all of this? Well, The Abu Dhabi Education Council is in the middle of a huge paradigm shift in their educational system. They want all their Arab children to be bilingual and be prepared for American and other foreign universities. So, they are bringing in English Medium Teachers from English-speaking countries to modernize their curriculum. For elementary children that means they will have English teachers with them in addition to Arab-speaking teachers. For secondary students, they will have daily English instruction and ALL math and science courses will be taught in English, by native speakers. What an adventure! Why did this matter to me? Well, in case you haven't noticed, teachers don't get paid a whole lot. For my two master's degrees and 64 hours of PhD work, I don't bring home enough to really live on. And you know, Eric is also a teacher. With his stipend as a coach, he actually makes more money than I do. (And I have taught for 13 years!) So, teaching in a foreign country appealed to me for that reason. THERE IS NO INCOME TAX! The company pays for our housing and our health insurance, as well. However, all the money in the world isn't enough to make me leave Texas. There are other reasons. Davis and Camryn. Imagine the opportunities that will now be open to them. The places we can go. The people we can meet. The things they will learn. I am so excited about all of the possibilities. So, what about Eric? Well, he applied too. My company didn't call him when he applied as there were no math positions open, but he did hear from the vo-tech branch. They have offered him a position teaching math and physics to high school boys. So, we leave in August. We are nervous and excited. We hope you will follow us on our journey!