Former Expat Teacher Acclimating to the American Way!

I had plans to be the girl with the prettiest, most colorful abayas. I mean, its so easy to buy material and find a good taylor, right? Well, that never happened and I ended up wearing everything from abayas to the frumpiest of lulu skirts/dresses. Year one: a mix between lulu's tube top dresses, some of which didnt hold up, skirts from carrefour and lulus, which always ended up coming apart at the seams, and abayas that I got for a "good" price but didnt dry clean so each of them finally came to an early demise (mostly through being burnt by yours truly with the iron). Year two: I was tired of layering and burning up in clothes that were too close to my skin. I bought jalabiyas and wore them every day. They were easy enough to wear and got good reviews from the Arabic teachers. I grew tired of wearing them and started again to sometimes wear dresses and skirts- broken up with the occasional pants under long shirts or dresses. . .but tired of buying clothes to wear...

By definition: A person who has had long experience in a particular field, esp. military service. I left the last part bc some may feel they are in combat zones,lol. I have no problem talking to people about working here, the pros and cons, answering questions, filling in the blanks...whatever.But I dont mention how long Ive worked here unless asked. Im just uncomforable with the term. And sometimes the attitude that comes along with it. I dont know everything about what goes on here. I dont think any of us do.And because things change so rapidly, sometimes I wonder if just how much of my experience I should tell you about-even if I preface it with a warning that this is MY experience and yours can and probably will be different. Im sure that part will be forgotten, or lost along the way once it passes to the third or fourth set of ears.  Im just thinking out loud I suppose. I hope people dont hold their noses up in the air. I just imagine a hierachy of newbies vs vetera...

"OH MY GOSH!!!" I said this quite a few times. I found myself getting loud on the phone, getting loud in the shop...I just couldnt help myself! This was the third time my car had been in for AC issues. Nevermind the fact that its under warranty. After getting the entire system replaced, I felt like I shouldnt have been in there at all. I dropped the car off before leaving and told them Id pick it up in two weeks. Upon return he told me theyd done the regular service and that nothing was wrong with the AC. That the car was low on gas and that was why it wasnt cooling. They took out the gas and replaced it and it was ok. "WHAT?!?!?!?" Once there,we continued this conversation. One that I thought would surely make my head explode. I asked him to listen to me and not speak because he wasnt getting what I was saying. "I know the gas was low when I turned the car in but it has nothing to do with the AC...you put gas in the car and now my AC is working???...t...

Going home is always good for the soul. You see people you love and get to spend time with them. You get enough hugs and kisses to last you until you see them again.You eat until you feel disgusted with yourself. You sometimes leave wishing you'd done more or spent less. I enjoyed every moment of being home and 2 weeks was a good amount of time. Its good to be able to have 2 home sweet homes, because there are good (and bad) things about being in both. And it helps that my family is happy for me and support our decision to live abroad. And now to the tedious task of unpacking, cleaning up (again), and cleansing myself of all the toxins I indugled in while at home.

Sometimes people don't realize how their answers sound. I try my best to answer questions in a way that doesn't come off as a know it all or a "duh,how stupid are you for asking this question!" type of way. I hope that I am successful in that endeavor. If not, please feel free to let me know. A question was asked about working in a particular region. Those answering were being nice by answering a list of questions and that was very much appreciated. I was just taken aback by an answer to one question regarding health care and how copays work. The person's answer was: "This is (insert country), not America. There is certainly more than one country that has copays. including the one I am currently in. There were a couple of answers from a couple of people that came off that way but it is what it is. Mini rant over.

Let me preface this by saying that I grew up in the South and before moving here I lived in the low country cities of Charleston and Savannah for a total of 5 years (2/3 split). Its not humid here...at least not during the day. And for most of the year, not at night either.But you will only feel this way if you are from the above mentioned area (the south) or an area with similar climates. HOWEVER, here comes the caveat,the tides start to turn the closer you get to August! Its almost like a reversal of being back at home where it is hot and humid during the day but gets better at night. Here, it is fine (by my standards) during the day but as the sun goes down, it gets HUMID! like the worst of low country humidity. So during this time I do my best to make sure I do what I intend to do while the sun is still out.And I prefer it this way-for it to be humid at night rather than in the day. Besides, unless youre going to Iftar, there isnt much for you to be doing out during the mont...