Wonders 1 and 2: Good Morning America
Yesterday I posted a photo of the skywalk, featured on Good Morning America’s 7 Wonders of the U.S. series and people wondered what the first two are.
The first wonder selected was the National Mall and National Park in Washington DC, a celebration of Democracy, “where American voices are heard.”
The second – and by far my favorite – was the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve, a brutal place where there are still huge herds of caribou, shaggy buffalo, polar bear . . . and where George Bush tells us we wouldn’t be paying so much for gas if we would only give him and the oil companies the go-ahead to go in and exploit the oil resources there. (See #1 George Bush – the American people raised their voices and said “NO!”)
The Grand Canyon was the third wonder announced.
There are still four more wonders to be announced. Good Morning America comes on America Plus Monday – Friday in the afternoon, maybe two or three in the afternoon, in case you want to catch the rest, or you can just click on the blue hypertext above where it says Good Morning America, and you will go to the ABC website for the Seven Wonders.
Quiet Morning Sunrise May 8, 2008
It wasn’t the Qatteri Cat ready for some fun and excitement. It wasn’t AdventureMan “purring.” I woke with a start, thinking “I have to remember to get an appointment for a teeth cleaning!” and once that adrenaline was running through my veins, I knew I wasn’t going to be able to get back to sleep. It was early, but not WAY early. The sun was just up, and it was a beautiful and quiet time of the day.
Who knows why we are wired the way we are wired? I love the holiness of the earliest hours of the day. AdventureMan and QC are still sleeping, I have my coffee, the sun is rising. Alhamd’allah, life is serene and sweet.
It is only 79°F / 26°C, but it is also only 5:45 ayem.
Sky Walk – I Couldn’t Do it
Today on Good Morning America, they hit the 3rd of America’s Seven Natural Wonders. It is the Grand Canyon, and they broadcast from the new skywalk that they built cantilevered out over the Canyon. It has a glass floor, and you walk out 4,000 feet above the bottom of the canyon.
I almost threw up.
Just looking at it makes my blood pressure jump; my heart is beating fast and my palms start to sweat.
I have a mild case of fear-of-heights. (Acrophobia) I feel unbalanced looking down, I feel like I could fall right over.
AdventureMan, thank God, has the same sensitivity, so he doesn’t tease me. I know we will visit this skywalk one day, and I wonder if he will be able to force himself to walk out on it. I already know I won’t be doing it. It’s just too stressful for me. . . . Even watching it on Good Morning America, I feel all stressed out!
LOL Cat for Today
This one had me howling – it even looks like the Qatteri Cat, who thinks he wants to be outside . . . probably for the same reason. Poor QC vaguely remembers a time when he lived outside. He doesn’t remember the bad parts. 😦
Kuwait isn’t a good place for a cat who lives outside.
more cat pictures
NYT: In Democracy Kuwait Trusts, but Not Much
The New York Times had a full length article on the upcoming Kuwait election yesterday:
KUWAIT — In a vast, high-ceilinged tent, Ali al-Rashed sounded an anguished note as he delivered the first speech of his campaign for Parliament.
“Kuwait used to be No. 1 in the economy, in politics, in sports, in culture, in everything,” he said, his voice floating out in the warm evening air to hundreds of potential voters seated on white damask-lined chairs. “What happened?”
It is a question many people are asking as this tiny, oil-rich nation of 2.6 million people approaches its latest round of elections. And the unlikely answer being whispered around, both here and in neighboring countries on the Persian Gulf: too much democracy.
In a region where autocracy is the rule, Kuwait is a remarkable exception, with a powerful and truculent elected Parliament that sets the emir’s salary and is the nation’s sole source of legislation. Women gained the right to vote and run for office two years ago, and a popular movement won further electoral changes.
Despite those gains, Kuwait has been overshadowed by its dynamic neighbors — Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar — where economies are booming under absolute monarchies. Efforts to overhaul Kuwait’s sclerotic welfare state have stalled in its fractious and divided Parliament, and scandals led the emir to dissolve the chamber last month for the second time in less than two years, forcing new elections.
All this has left many Kuwaitis deeply disenchanted with their 50-member elected legislature. The collapse of the Bush administration’s efforts to promote democracy in the region and the continuing chaos in Iraq, just to the north — once heralded as the birthplace of a new democratic model — have also contributed to a popular suspicion that democracy itself is one Western import that has not lived up to its advertising.
“People say democracy is just slowing us down, and that we’d be better off if we were more like Dubai,” said Waleed al-Sager, 24, who is advising his father’s campaign for Parliament.
Like many Kuwaitis, Mr. Sager quickly distanced himself from that view. But as the May 17 parliamentary elections approach, with near-constant coverage in a dozen new newspapers and on satellite television stations, candidates refer again and again to a “halat ihbaat” — state of frustration. His father, Mohammed al-Sager, a longtime member of Parliament, delivered his own opening campaign speech shortly after Mr. Rashed two weeks ago, and spent much of it urgently reminding his listeners of the need for an elected assembly.
“Some people have called for a permanent dissolution of Parliament,” he said, his face telecast on an enormous screen to a thick overflow crowd outside the tent. “But everywhere in the world — in Africa, in Palestine, in the old Soviet Union — people have turned to elections to solve their problems, not away from them. Whatever problems we have in our Parliament, we must remember that it is much better than no Parliament at all.”
One source of frustration has been the failure to reform Kuwait’s state-controlled economy. After the 2006 elections, many Kuwaitis were hoping for changes to cumbersome government rules that allow land to be allocated for business projects. Instead, the effort was blocked in Parliament. The slow pace of efforts to privatize the national airline and parts of the oil sector has also caused disappointment.
Many Kuwaitis also complain about government neglect of public hospitals and schools. Problems with the power grid caused brownouts last summer.
Although parts of Kuwait City were rebuilt after the Iraqi invasion of 1990, much of it looks faded and tatty, a striking contrast with the gleaming hyper-modernity of Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.
The current political malaise is especially striking because most Kuwaitis take pride in their nation’s relatively democratic traditions. The ruling Sabah family acquired its position not through conquest, but with an agreement among the coastal traders of the region in the mid-18th century. After Kuwait gained independence from the British in 1961, the emir approved a written Constitution that sharply limited his power in relation to Parliament.
The article is long – you can read the rest HERE.
Indistinct Sunrise
The sunrise this morning is so pale that while you can see colors, they are all pale and impressionistic, hazy an indistinct:
From the Animal Friends League Newsletter
These people do such amazing work with limited resources and limitless hearts. If you can help them out in any way, please give them a call.
ANIMAL FRIENDS LEAGUE OF KUWAIT
SHELTER NEWSLETTER
5 May, 2008
+965-700-1622 (Tel) info@animalfriendskuwait.org +965-244-3859(Fax)
http://www.animalfriendskuwait.org
SHELTER UPDATE
Well it is that time of year. People are leaving for
the summer and animals are getting dumped left,
right and center. Our intake is very high right now
with 15 dogs and 17 cats in just over the last two
days. With the holidays under way, it also means
our adoptions have come to a grinding halt. We will
be holding a few adoption fairs over the next
couple months in town to make it a little easier for
people to access us and our animals.
The good news is, things are still under control.
Although we are bursting at the seams, with the
hard work of our precious kennel staff and the
help of our volunteers and the coordination of our
shelter manager, Stephanie Wriede, every animal
continues to get the highest quality care both
physically and mentally.
If you have time over the summer and want to
volunteer, please contact us as we do lose a lot of
our volunteers over the summer.
GOLF COURSE DOG PARK
We were recently contacted by a gentleman that is
managing the construction of a golf course on the way to
Wafra. The desert camp-grounds dismantled and many
people left their dogs behind.
Now a large number of dogs have moved onto the golf course seeking out the
cool grass and refreshing lakes. We visited the site and
counted over thirty dogs in broad daylight. The Harris
says it rises to well over fifty at night and of course
there are puppies galore! Although the manager loves
dogs, the invasion has caused a lot of problems with the
construction and they need to be moved out. Due to the
fact that there is no animal control in Kuwait, we have
to take on yet another massive project that is well
above and beyond our means.
We have started the work and moved the first five dogs on Friday. We will continue
to move the dogs in small groups until we gain control of
the situation. If you would be willing to help us with this
effort please let us know as it is a big one!
Today’s Grin
You may have seen these before, but they never fail to crack me up – things people have actually said in the courtrooms:_
___________________________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Are you sexually active?
WITNESS: No, I just lie there.
____________________________________________________________
ATTORNEY: What gear were you in at the moment of the impact?
WITNESS: Gucci sweats and Reeboks.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: This myasthenia gravis, does it affect your memory at all?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And in what ways does it affect your memory?
WITNESS: I forget.
ATTORNEY: You forget? Can you give us an example of something you
forgot?
_____________________________________
ATTORNEY: What was the first thing your husband said to you that
morning?
WITNESS: He said, ‘Where am I, Cathy?’
ATTORNEY: And why did that upset you?
WITNESS: My name is Susan!
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Do you know if your daughter has ever been involved in
voodoo?
WITNESS: We both do.
ATTORNEY: Voodoo?
WITNESS: We do.
ATTORNEY: You do?
WITNESS: Yes, voodoo.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn’t it true that when a person dies in his
sleep,
he doesn’t know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
____________________________________
ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the twenty-one-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: Uh, he’s twenty-one.
________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Were you present when your picture was taken?
WITNESS: Are you shitt’in me?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: So the date of conception (of the baby) was August 8th?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: And what were you doing at that time?
WITNESS: Uh…. I was gett’in laid!
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: She had three children, right?
WITNESS: Yes.
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None.
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS: Are you kidding? Your Honor, I think I need a different
attorney. Can I get a new attorney?
_____________________________________
ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death.
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
WITNESS: Now, whose death do you suppose terminated it?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Can you describe the individual?
WITNESS: He was about medium height and had a beard.
ATTORNEY: Was this a male or a female?
WITNESS: Guess.
_____________________________________
ATTORNEY: Is your appearance here this morning pursuant to a
deposition
notice which I sent to your attorney?
WITNESS: No, this is how I dress when I go to work.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Doctor, how many of your autopsies have you performed on
dead
people?
WITNESS: All my autopsies are performed on dead people. Would you
like to rephrase that?
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK?
What school did you go to?
WITNESS: Oral.
______________________________________
ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.
ATTORNEY: And Mr. Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: No, he was sitting on the table, wondering why I was doing
an
autopsy on him!
____________________________________________
ATTORNEY: Are you qualified to give a urine sample?
WITNESS: Huh….are you qualified to ask that question?
______________________________________
— And the best for last: —
ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for
a pulse?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you
began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No.
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.
ATTORNEY: I see, but could the patient have still been alive,
nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and
practicing law.
Kuwait Blue Sky
On our way downtown the other day, I glumly told my friends I miss the true-blue skies we see in Kuwait in the winter time. All we get these days is this white haze, or at best, a light blue haze. I shot a few photos – and to my surprise, when I uploaded them, we had a genuine blue sky in the background!
Here is one of the renovated minarets – have you noticed a lot of the historical locations are getting a facelift?
For my friends who think we live in tents and drive our camels to work, a nice shot of downtown Kuwait:
Graceful shoppers exiting the Manshar Mall in Fehaheel:
The Grand Mosque in downtown Kuwait:
A saucer-topped building (and the sky is indeed blue):
Last, but not least, a boat on the gulf – and no horizon, no delineation between sea and sky:
Jewaira Sunrise
When I saw the sunrise this morning, I thought of Jewaira, another blogger who in her own way and in her own head is also here, there and everywhere. She loves silvery sunrises, and oh man, this is one shimmering, silvery sunrise:
It must be the haze that exaggerates the size of the sun so – and makes it appear to throb, even in the photo.
It is 79°F / 26°C at 0630 with dust expected today according to Q8weather.com.
Recent Comments
ExpatAlien on What Country am I Living … intlxpatr on Yellowstone: Old Faithful to C… Michelle on Yellowstone: Old Faithful to C… Cathy on No Grown-Ups in Charge intlxpatr on Waiting for Snow Wikipedia Donate Button
Amazina
Early Voting in Florida
Here There and Everywhere 