Soft Sunrise 4 Nov 08
It’s a soft sunrise this morning, still cloudy but not so intensely so as yesterday. It looks like we could still get some rain. At the same time, it is lighter, the atmosphere not so heavy . . . it may turn out to be a gorgeous day.
Have a good day, Kuwait.
Rosy Rainfall in Kuwait
It’s been a long day, a productive day, and at last I can take a deep breath. My friend tells me it is cold out, but I have had the oven on much of the day, and our place is warm and cozy. I would love some fresh air, so I quietly close the door to the kitchen and step out on the balcony.
It is beyond fresh. It is fresh, and raining, and off in the distance, the sun is setting and the muezzin is calling everyone to prayer and it is purely a beautiful moment.
We didn’t have rain like this last year, or the year before. We had some rain two years ago, in December mostly, but still – not like this. This has been a wonderful, continuous, soaking rain, blessing Kuwait and preparing us for an amazing winter growing season. I would love to be able to see the flowers people tell me are blooming in the desert when it rains.
In Saudi Arabia, we spent a whole day travelling to see the tiny irises that would bloom in Tumayr. Here, there are still places you can’t go, because there are explosives left over from the Gulf War, and now and then a shepherd loses a leg by stepping in the wrong place.
No Sunrise in Kuwait
You will not find me complaining about the rain. I am imagining what a difference this steady downpour is going to make in very short time. People who think of “desert” have no idea of the life in the desert waiting to spring forth at the slightest sign of moisture. It doesn’t take much – and I believe we are going to see some amazing things soon in Kuwait.
I was up for the sunrise this morning . . . no sunrise appeared. This is about the best I could do:
I thought the heavy downpour last week had washed my windows clean, but I think some dust must have come and stuck to the wet windows. Or else the rain is not so clean . . . 😦 Please pardon my streaked windows!
Life interrupts blogging. We had an emergency that had us out on highway 40 to help out a friend in Eqaila. We was a terrible accident on 40; truck jacknifed and hit two cars. Traffic was totally gridlocked waiting for the ambulances and police to arrive. Folks, please be careful out there.
And please, mothers, fathers, protect your children. Anyone who doesn’t need to be on the roads should be at home. These kids, riding on the slick highways, barely visible, are taking a huge risk:
GQSSC – Hot on Her Heels – Q8Dutchie!
I don’t know why I find these photos so moving . . . so poignant . . . but I do! New contestant Q8Dutchie is close on the heels of our first entrant, Ansam, with these great sand and surf photos:
What I don’t understand, and what I marvel at, is why when we know the footprints are indented, do they look the opposite, as if they are coming out of the sand? It must be a trick of the shadows. Woo Hooo, Q8Dutchie!
Great Kuwait Sand and Surf Challenge – Our First Entry: Ansam
Mere minutes after the Great Kuwait Sand and Surf Challenge was launched, we had an entry.
Wooo HOOOO, Ansam, our very first entrant! And what a day at the beach this was. Can you guess my very favorite?
Ansam, you truly capture the joy of a day in sand and surf! (I LOVE the first photo!)
November 2, 2008 Sunrise
Finally – a day at home. I crave these days, I need these days. Introverts need quiet, reflective time to recharge, to find their inner balance. I plan a day of work, but work I love. I’ve cleaned and organized my workroom, and I yearn to get busy with my day’s goals.
Sunset was weird this morning – it had to get beyond the thick bands of cloud on the horizon before it could show – more like 6:20 than 6’ish.
Are those November colors, or what?
Here is the weather at 0800:
And here is the five day forecast (For those of you not living here, this is heaven in Kuwait):
Have a great day, Kuwait! 🙂
The Great Kuwait Sand and Surf Challenge
OK, so here it is, the new photo challenge. You will have three weeks. All your photos must be in to me or posted on your blog and linked to me by Saturday, November 22. The poll will go up then, and voting will continue to November 29, when the polls will close and new winners will be announced.
Sand and Surf can be anything related to beach activities – tidal pools, boating . . . this contest is open to Kuwaitis, residents of Kuwait, and people who have an attachment to Kuwait. We don’t require that the scene be recognizably Kuwait, because well, sand is sand and surf is surf. The photos do not have to be Kuwait, but we want them to be entered by someone remotely Kuwait-related.
Ready on the right!
Ready on the left!
Photographers, take your target!
Fire!
Off topic but related – on the top floor of the Al Rayya Shopping Center (attached to the Marriott Hotel near Dasman Circle) is a really intriguing photo exhibit. It looks to me like all Kuwaiti, and some of the photos are purely spectacular. Some are very moving. I don’t want to give too much away, but if you enjoy photography, this exhibit is worth a visit.
All Saints Sunrise
Good Morning, Kuwait, and a gorgeous day it is out there. It is a mere 59°F / 15°C out there early this morning, and the high today is only expected to get to:
Truly, sweater weather on this the first day of November. 😉
I had those anxiety dreams this morning, that got me out of bed early on a day when I have a lot to do, and need to be places at certain times. One dream kept recurring – I was supposed to be flying somewhere, and I kept packing my suitcase – leisurely – when I should have been leaving for the drive to the airport. The phone rings and it is the airport asking if I am planning on making the flight, and I say “yes!” even though the flight is supposed to leave in 35 minutes and the drive to the airport is about 30 minutes and I am not packed!
Think I am feeling unprepared about something? Think I am maybe worried about my relaxed attitude when I have obligations to meet?
Here is the drama of the sky just before dawn this morning – no, it wasn’t all that early, dawn is coming earlier and earlier every day:
Those lights are one of the big freighters heading south.
Here is the sunrise:
Just look at those autumn colors! WOW. Not a cloud in the sky, barely a wisp of haze on the horizon – this is going to be another of those gorgeous days in Kuwait that we have all been dreaming of during the hot, steamy days of summer. Gooood Morning, Kuwait!
Halloween Sunrise
Boooooooooooooooooo! Good Morning, Kuwait, and a chilly autumn Halloween morning it is:
How COOOOOOOOOL is that? Sweater weather?
The sun rose all golden and smokey looking this morning, there are strings of fishing dhows on the horizon and life is sweet:
Have a great day, Kuwait.
Heading for the Desert
Every now and then I wish I were a man. When I was a little kid, our dads would all head out on a big boat, going hunting. Mostly, women stayed home. Some women hunted, but it is hard work, and, I think, maybe men don’t always want women along when they go out hunting, they want to (in Alaska) drink and party and play cards and talk crude and don’t want anyone around reminding them to mind their manners.
The truth is I don’t know what they do. I can only imagine, based on things I’ve heard, movies, my imagination.
Today, my neighbors are headed out to hunt. How do I know? They have their falcon with them. It is perfect weather – clear, relatively cool, the heat has definitely broken, it is wonderful to be able to drive without any air conditioning. . . .
I know, I know, there is still this kid in my heart that thinks that going hunting with a FALCON is very very cool.
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