First Lesson: Progress Takes Patience

One of the things I really took for granted in the states is routine. Most of you know that I never have a set routine and I'm completely flexible when it comes to spontaneous plans. The one thing that was out of my control is when the sun set and when the sun rose. Because of this, my internal clock always had me go to sleep within a 2 to 3 hour window which always made me wake up at a certain time. I always prided myself in being able to stay up late and not requiring much sleep to be functional the next day. If my routine was a little off, it hardly phased me.

I keep joking about how jet lag is a weird thing and that I sleep at random times because of my internal clock. It's beginning to be a bit of an inconvenience. Two nights ago (actually early Wednesday morning) I stayed up until about 7am. That would be about 11pm in Texas. I couldn't sleep at all. Since I stayed up so late, according to Kuwait time, I made myself wake up around 12pm to make sure I could sleep when it became a decent hour to go to bed. I woke up, did some unpacking, went to this random little shop and bought an alarm clock, came home and ordered pizza with a couple of the other teachers and was in bed by 10:30pm or so. I woke up around 2:30am and laid there for about an hour before I just got up. I've never had a problem sleeping straight through the night so this is new to me. In so many ways I feel like an infant. Not only are they so many new stimuli around me which are constantly helping me figure out my new world, but I also praise myself for sleeping one more hour when it's bed time. I've heard that it takes one day for every hour of difference there is in time change. That means that it will take me 8 days to completely sleep through the night and feel like my internal clock matches up with the Kuwaiti sun's clock. I'm totally buying me a cake on day 8.

Patience is definitely not one of my strong points. In some areas, I have a ton of patience. I typically have zero patience with the situations that are out of my control, such as getting use to a different time zone. One major one back in the states is dealing with Sprint customer service. It gets me going every time and I probably end up causing the service to be worse because of the way I react. When I decided to come over here, I first asked God for a peace about my decision. I definitely wanted to go, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't going for selfish reasons. The second thing I prayed for is as many learning experiences as possible to mold me into the person He meant for me to be. I got in a huge rut living in Dallas. It was a fun rut and I wouldn't take a second of it back, but it wasn't a good rut for growth. I'm beginning to think patience is lesson number one. Waking up at 2:30 this morning solidified that for me. I initially wanted to get frustrated, walk down to the bakala (convenient store about the size of my living room located on the corner across the street/alley) and buy some benadryl or something. That'd solve my problem short-term, but I'd probably be pretty miserable around 7am when my alarm goes off. After I laid there, I decided to get up. It's all a learning experience.

In hindsight, there was more than just the jetlag that helped me with this. Here's a few:

- The entire visa process

- Working with the people at the airport in Istanbul took patience to deal with the language barrier.

- Trying to locate my bag at the airport at 1:30am while also dealing with a language barrier

- Leaving the airport not knowing if I'll ever see my clothes again took a little faith and some patience.

- Getting to my apartment and realizing I had no adapter in to plug anything in to call or email people back home. My phone and laptop were completely dead.

- Going back to the airport 24 hours later to only be greeted with "maybe its on the next flight"

- My Ipod freezing (believe me, I tried to unfreeze it by holding down buttons for 10 seconds). I think its a gonner.

- Pandora radio not being an option in Kuwait.

All of these are completely out of my control. I can't change the rotation of the sun, go search every airplane that comes through, change the outlets in Kuwait, or magically fix my Ipod. These things are also short-term. It's all going to work out and I'll look back and laugh at how trivial it all was. I'm not freaking out by any means and I'm not losing my patience. I think that's what I'm supposed to get out of all of this. I definitely think I'm going to experience several other obstacles that will make me step back, assess the situation, and react accordingly. The past few days have taught me exactly how to do just that.

With all that said, I am absolutely enjoying Kuwait. It's such an awesome place. The majority of the people are nice. We have a cab driver that we can call anytime. His name is Wahid and he takes good care of us. He said he's been helping people at this complex for 9 years. When we asked him about alarm clocks, he took us to this store, walked us in, took us to the right counter and translated for us. It was great! He also told us if we ever get in a cab and the driver doesn't speak english, we can call him and he'll talk to the driver to translate. He's from a small village in Syria.

Another fun little sidenote: I was walking through one of the little shops where Wahid took us and I was looking for a grill lighter. I've almost burned my hand off a few times trying to light my stove. This boy, probably no older than 10, came up to me and mumbled something. I asked him to repeat it and I kind of heard something that resembled "where" and "from" mixed in the somewhere. I told him I'm from America and he smiled. I asked him where he's from and he said "Syria" in the coolest accent ever! His dad immediately called him over to keep working. I loved that little moment! I haven't been able to interact with any kids yet and I love kids, so it was refreshing.

Here are a few pictures from yesterday. I still don't know what's acceptable as far as picture taking goes, so I've just started snapping ones to see how people react. I think they're ok with it. They stare, but they stare when I don't have my camera, so I'm not too concerned.

This was a random little find not far from where we are staying. It's definitely not anything like the Targe we have in the states, but it was nice to see the sign.

My friend Alex back home always has these bags of rice in his apartment. The first time I saw it I laughed and asked where he found a bag of rice like that. He told me he gets it at an Asian market. Turns out he can just get it at the local Target here in Kuwait!

I was walking around my complex trying to find this pool and gym they keep talking about. I found both. We have two pools. I also found a little baskeball court! Totally wearing this thing out.

One of the teachers here found this in a little store that had absolutely no familiar American brands, but they had kid clothes with her college on it. Random!

These are the coffee mugs they gave me for my apartment. I was wondering why they were shaped weird, then I poured a cup of coffee and saw the shape! I love it!

Destination Reached

To say that the last two days have been exciting yet hectic would be an extreme understatement. As always, I have so many things to blog about, but when I finally get the chance to sit and reflect, I hardly remember a thing. I need to start a little tablet of things to help me remember stories. I'll do my best this time. Bare with me...it might be a long one with very few pictures.

I had so many things planned to do the weekend before I headed out of the country. Friday I went to one last Wylie football game to see some students that insisted on me going. I got to see a few of them, but not nearly as many as I wanted to see. After that, I headed to improv where I was called up on stage and they did a 30 minute improv of my life. It included Tom Bean, cowboys, grimlins, Full House, Kuwait and who knows what else. It was quite entertaining! As soon as I get the video, I'll share it with you guys. Saturday I enjoyed one last brunch and headed off to a birthday party. I had so many other plans Saturday and Sunday before I headed out, but instead I took a nap after the party and slept until Sunday morning around 9. I normally don't allow sleep to ruin plans, but this time it was completely out of my control. I had officially overworked myself. I ended up waking up only to get food and finish packing up. I headed to the airport around 1:30 for my flight at 4.

When I got to the airport, my parents were there to help me get everything in the airport and checked in. I ended up having to move a few things around to make one of my bags under 50lbs. I sat and visited with my parents for a bit before I had to go through security to get this trip started. I boarded the plane for my flight to Chicago. When I got there, I had a 4 hour layover. I spent most of it trying to get in as much internet/call time as possible before I left the states for 10 months. I had no idea what my situation would be when I got to Kuwait, so I wanted to take advantage of the time I had.

For those of you who know me, you know that being nervous, worried and scared are things that seldomly happen to me. I'll tell you that when I boarded the Turkish Airlines plane in Chicago, I unknowingly was at least the first two. It was one of those planes with a middle row and I was smack dab in the middle of two very much grown men who had not yet discovered deodorant, or at least failed to acknowledge that they were in need of some. I started wondering if this middle eastern world was really for me. I have a perfect life in Dallas - great friends, close to family, something to do any minute of the day, a comfortable life that I'm use to and a currency that I relate to. A part of me wanted to take the money I set aside for this trip and buy a return flight back. Instead I took the complimentary eye covers, put them over my eyes and cranked up my "home" playlist on my Ipod. I fell asleep off and on for the first 8 hours of the flight. The last two and a half were spent nibbling on breakfast that was served (I didn't have much of an appetite at this point), and watching the movie 127 Days on the screen on the back of the seat in front of me. It was really cool. It had about 50 movies you could choose from, music, email, texting, video games and more. It even had a map that you look at to track the flight, and a video camera to watch from the cockpit. That was new to me. I watched us land from the screen. When I landed in Istanbul, there were no tunnels for the planes to pull up to. Instead they bring a ladder to the back door and you get out and jump on an overpacked bus which took you to a terminal after dodging a few luggage cars driving on the tarmac. My ticket for Kuwait didn't have a gate number on it and I wasn't completely sure if I needed to get my passport stamped if I was just flying through, so after a few conversations with major language barriers, I had my questions answered. I had another 4 hour layover, but this time I was in a country to which I had never been. I ventured off to some duty free shops, sat down at a starbucks, checked some emails and of course updated my facebook.

When it came time to board the plane, we had to all go through security. I had never seen individual security stations at every gate, so that was new. We boarded at 10:30pm and it was only a 3 hour flight. I sat next to two pretty interesting people. One guy was from Iraq but has lived in Los Angeles for the last 20 years and was going to Kuwait to visit friends, then go to Iraq to visit family. The other guy was from Columbia and decided to try to work overseas as an engineer about 30 years ago and has been doing so ever since. He has worked in several places, but to name a few - Malaysia, Singapore, Korea, France, Egypt, Dubai, Venezuela and now Kuwait. He was on his way back from a month vacation in Spain and Greece with his son who goes to Baylor! He gave me his card and told me to contact him if I ever need anything. He gave me some pointers and showed me a map to help me understand how to get around Kuwait. We both got a glass of wine on the plane in honor of not being able to have any over here at all. It's funny how you end up by the most interesting people. Never pass up an opportunity to meet someone. You never know who they are.

When we landed in Kuwait, I helped my new friend with some luggage and headed to the baggage claim area. There were 3 other teachers on the plane with me, so we stuck together when we landed. I started loading up my things on a cart, but couldn't find one of my bags. Like I've said before, I don't worry much. I was calm, probably mostly due to 27 hours of traveling, and walked to the counter to declare my lost luggage. It was nowhere to be found, so I just went through customs and headed out. My uncle was there to greet me along with some people from the school. It was great to see a familiar face in such an unfamiliar place. After we all introduced ourselves, we loaded up on our bus and headed to our apartment. When I got to mine, it was stocked with some food and water to last a few days. I took these pictures the next morning to give you guys an idea of my living quarters for the next 10 months.

I woke up this morning and cooked some eggs and toast. My stove runs on a propane tank, so I have to light it every time I use it. I prefer gas stoves, so I'm ok with it. I just have to remember to turn off the tank when I'm done. :)

I made eggs and toast. I had poorly  planned and failed to realize that my kitchen was not equiped with a spatula or a toaster. I flipped these eggs with a large spoon and a fork.

I cooked the toast in the pan... It didn't turn out too shabby considering the circumstances.

This is the most uncomfortable bed I've ever encountered. It's definitely going to need some work. It's a pretty small room, but it works.

This is a view from the corner. I went to buy hangers today and they're so expensive! I'll be folding a lot of my clothes.

My apartment is on the 9th of 10 floors in my apartment building. Notice there's not a window in the way here. I can open it up all the way without a screen. It freaked me out at first.

You can see hwy 40 here. I was really impressed on how nice the roads are. On that note, the bus filled up on the way to the airport to get my lost bag and he paid 4.500KD (approximately $14) for 74 liters. Now we know why they're all rich here. They're totally banking on America's demand for their oil.

My humble kitchen. Pay attention to the detail. I have marble countertops. There's a water filter on the wall and a key on the refrigerator...just in case I want to lock it up. It's ridiculously small also.

This is a view from my kitchen looking at my dining room and part of my living room.

These are the outlets here. The first thing I bought at the mall today was a converter. You also have to flip a switch on all the outlets for them to work.

...and this is my living room. This is before I went to the basement and rummaged. I got a little laptop stand to use while sitting on my couch. In fact, I'm using it now.

I turned the tv on this morning and 30 Rock was on. It was in English with Arabic subtitles. It made me laugh.

 After breakfast and a little nap, I met up with a few other teachers to go to the mall to get a few things. We took a cab to the Avenue Mall. Side note: if you're a female and ever cab it in Kuwait, never get in the front seat. It's not allowed. My Uncle David met us at the mall and was a ton of help! He helped us with questions about internet, where to find the cheapest groceries, what to do about cell service, and he gave us a ride back to our apartment. He also met me at the airport with a cell phone, which helped so much. He's been such a blessing these first couple of hours in Kuwait. Thanks Uncle David! We got hungry while we were shopping, so where did we eat? Yeah, that's right...Applebees. 90% of the restaurants at the mall were American. I also got some much needed Starbucks at one of the six that are at the mall.

We were leaving a grocery store in the mall and my Uncle David told us to take the carts down this escalator flat ramp thing. We eventually trusted him when he said the wheels would lock in the ramp and the cart won't move. It was awesome! In the back is a couple I met today, Krystal and Nick. Alexis is pushing our cart. We have been talking on facebook for a few weeks, so it was good to finally meet and put a face to the name. Getting off the ramp was kind of like getting off an escalator for the first time...kind of awkward. The ramp led right into the parking lot, and off we went!

As soon as I got home, I immediately plugged my computer in and connected to the world. It's great to be back! I skyped with my mom for a while. If you have a skype name, add me! My skype name is on facebook. After that, I went downstairs to meet up with the welcoming committee to hitch a ride back to the airport to get down to the bottom of the lost bag situation. On our way to the airport we hit some really bad traffic. A city bus had been severely rear-ended by an SUV. The entire engine was gone from the SUV and the back of the bus was pretty smashed. The culture shock for me was that there was nobody directing traffic. There were about 4 cop cars that were surrounding the scene and the cops, who had to be no older than 18-20 were all standing around. Everyone just had to find their own way around it. As soon as they did, they were going 120mph to make up for lost time. The people on the bus told me that they always just push the cars to the side and let them sit there for a while to serve as a lesson to everyone in Kuwait. Nobody drives with caution here and wrecks always are fatal.

One conversation that I had with the welcoming committee is if we had sports at the school. I just happened to be asking the athletic director and I am officially coaching track next year! It's not as intense as track in America. I train them for a month and there is one track meet. It will be a great experience. She also wants me to start up a running club for the kids, which would be fun. I'll keep you guys up to date on all of it!

As soon as I got to the airport, I went to the baggage services desk. Luckily, the guy remembered me from the day before and he was super helpful. I was able to leave with luggage in hand! I also left with some leftovers from a chinese stand. It made me laugh when I was eating it. He asked if I'd like it spicy, and I said yes. It had absolutely no kick to it at all. Coming from Texas, I love spice, and I'm learning that that is a relative term.

That brings me up to date. Its past 7am here, the sun is up and I'm hardly tired. I think I'll sleep a few hours and try to deprive myself of sleep tomorrow to try to get over this jet lag. It's not a problem now as I have nothing going on during the day, but as soon as we start all of the orientation stuff on Thursday, I'm going to be wishing I didn't have jet lag.

It's been great so far. I've had so many new experiences. Some have been challenging, some have been absolutely awesome, but all of them have forced me out of my comfort zone and served as a lesson. I am so glad I decided to tough it out between the smelly men and catch my flight to Kuwait. I can't wait to see what God has in store the next several months!

I'm going to miss these moments...

I can't believe that when someone asks me how much time I have before I leave, I answer with, "A week and a half." The whole moving to Kuwait for a year has been more of a dream than a reality up until about a week ago when my travel agent asked me what I would like for dinner on the plane. Just this week I have really started getting serious about packing and getting rid of things. Everything's on craigslist, my parents are the new owners of my tv and my dog, goodwill got a ton of clothes, and my visa is on its way back from the embassy. It should be in my hands tomorrow morning!

I don't think I've appreciated quality time enough in the past. These past few weeks I've really started doing just that. I've always taken for granted that I can call my friends up and in 15 minutes we're sitting at the dinner table together talking about random moments of our day. I know that I'll meet new friends when I move there, but they can't replace the ones I have here. Each one of them is unique and all together they make the best group of friends anyone can ask for! I'll definitely be keeping in touch with them, but its the tangible time that can't be replaced.

A few weeks ago I made one last trip to Chicago (excluding my 4 hour layover I have there next Sunday). My friends had two gigs in one night and it was insane! Mike picked me up at the airport around 5:30 and we got to the venue when the band before them was singing their final song. Talk about cutting it close! Then after that, we had to rush home, get their gear for a full set, since the first one was only acoustic (amazing), and we headed off to the next place with just enough time for them to come up with a set list. Here are a few pictures I took of them:

This is Ballroom Boxer, and they're awesome! If you're ever in Chicago, let me know and I'll tell you where you can find them. :)

Dave and I fight like brother and sister...and he hates my guacamole.

Mike's legit...and crazy, but I still like him! Him and Dave are brothers, and if I'm ever telling you stories of my Chicago adventures, chances are Mike was right beside me.

I've been to Chicago several times, but the one thing I did this time that I haven't done before is go to the beach. It was so awesome! It's not like it is here. We don't have a lake that freezes in the winter, so halfway through the summer, our lakes are practically bathwater. Lake Michigan was FREEZING!! It was refreshing! It's also nice to lay out with a cool breeze instead of it feeling like a sauna like it is in Dallas. I definitely fell asleep on the sand.

This is a picture of part of downtown as we crossed over the highway on the bridge going from Lincoln Park to North Ave Beach.

I was surprised at the amount of people out on the beach on a Monday afternoon! I think the majority of them were high school kids on summer vacation. :)

It's crazy that this awesome beach is right in the city. I'm telling you, Chicago is an all-in-one city. Love it.



The last night I was there, I cooked for Mike and Dave. They always let me crash at their place when I am in town, so I decided to appreciate them a little bit with some fajitas! After dinner, Mike and I spontaneously decided to go watch the fireworks that they do on the  Navy Pier every Wednesday and Saturday. There was no way we were making it to the pier in 15 minutes so we watched them from the beach instead. We ran through the park, over the bridge and down the beach and got there just in time! It was awesome! Then we walked back along the beach. It was peaceful.

Fajitas! I had to bring some good tex-mex to Chicago.

I can't believe they do this twice a week! It wasn't a lame show either.

Love this skyline.

It was so peaceful standing out on the pier looking at the city.

Seriously the best city ever!

Chicago will always be a city I'll visit every summer. I still would love to live there one day!

Last weekend we had a going away extravaganza! Fifteen of my closest friends all went to Hibashi for amazing food! It was good to see everyone. After that, more people met us out for arcade games and lifesize Jenga and Connect Four. It was a blast! Sunday, more people came out to my favorite pool in Dallas and we ended it with amazing pizza and shuffle board at Bryan Street Tavern. I'm seriously going to miss my friends.

The chef tossed some rice in Alex's pocket, so he had to get it out.

He was a great chef!

Christi!

I had to catch up with my Tom Bean crowd!

Alex was awesome and made the reservations for me. I'm going to miss this guy.

Molli and I had the same major in college and lived in the same complex. We never see each other anymore so I was glad her and Drew were able to come out!

Shawn tried to toss the egg. The first time was a bust, but he caught on very quickly!

They have awesome sushi! We didnt want to fill up on a ton of rice and sushi before our main course, so we got the cucumber wrap and it was tasty!

Such a great group of friends!

I love that they have these signs. It really can be dangerous when they all fall down.

I worked with Brian for 3 years. We started teaching at the same time and we went to a teacher retreat together. He bought me some Airborne for the flight. Thanks to him I'll be nice and healthy when I arrive in Kuwait!

 I was more about the Jenga, but they loved the Connect Four!



I really am excited about this new adventure, but like I said before, these guys are irreplaceable. I'm going to miss them so much! I'll come see you next summer, so get ready! Now its time to get busy packing and selling my furniture!