Forty Degrees and Rising

Summer is here. Forty degrees and rising.

The sweltering heat of the sun is becoming unbearable. Heatstrokes, again, will be a common occurrence at the site. Bulletins, tool box meetings and safety messages will be the forums to convey and make everyone aware of the precautions on heatstrokes. I am not worried though, as our ever-judicious ESH department will be on top of the issue and will again lead the campaign on heatstrokes awareness.

The tap water is getting hotter. Two weeks from now I would need to stock water in a pail at night for my morning “shower” otherwise I cannot stand the water straight from the shower.

I will be shifting back my grocery schedule at night. It is somewhat cooler at night. I hope it won’t be that crowded at night as everyone would be going to the hypemart for the same reason. And I bet, the road traffic jam would be a nightmare.

Extra water intake would be nice to last the day. Oppss!! Turning the aircon full blast will cool down your head not only your temper.

As the mercury is rising, nothing much you can do but to prepare for the long haul. Sunglasses, sunblocks and “sandos” (undershirts) will be your buddies for the coming months.

Forty degrees and rising.

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Should I Stay or Should I Go

Everyone’s idea was to take your annual leave now and be back just in time the project critical stage has kicked in and no turning back up to the handing over of the project. Should I stay or should I go.

Logical it may seem, and our Project Manager is in chorus with the rest of the staff. And so, more than fifty percent of the project staff has filed their vacation leave, one or two weeks between each other so as not to totally affect the day to day operation of the project. Should I stay or should I go.

Three weeks into the vacation frenzy, as others are anxiously waiting for their turn to leave for vacation and the others are sorting out their itineraries for a country hopping grand vacations, the Project Director just turned off the party’s music, changed the music and raises the tempo. Break your back before you take a break.

He just issued a memo informing everyone that there will be no more vacations until the project is completed.

Lucky are those who had and had just left, they are now enjoying their well deserved vacations. For those who were caught up by the emperor’s order, it looks like it hit them with an ice cold tsunami with their sand castles washed on the shore.

The country hopping plans has to be put on hold and make the most for a desk-hopping, pencil-pushing and paper-sorting frenzy in the meantime.

Some has managed to salvage and bargain for a shorter break by making their own personal alibis that only them can tell if it is a legitimate excuse or not.

As for me at the time of the new memo, I just started to decide for at least two weeks break. In any case, I was not that worried about the new memo as I have a “godfather” to sort out things for me.

I filed my leave when my immediate superior was in town for his bi-monthly visits and explained to him the current moratorium on vacations. I also explained to him the urgency of my leave as I am trying to catch up with my kids during their school holidays, which ends by the first week of June. My leave request was signed. As an assurance my boss told me, “just let me know whoever rejects your leave request”. One down, two more to go.

The Project Manager rejected my leave request and refers me to the Project Director’s memo. I did not contest, as I was not still sure if I should stay or should I go. The financial aspect is what’s holding me back, as I am still repaying my loan from the company, proceeding with my plans may complicate matters for the worst.

Two days after I failed the second hurdle, I decided to go for the approval of my leave request, I will decide later if I should stay or should I go.

Serendipity works on my side, the same day when I decided for the kill, the Project Director visits our site and at the same time I received a bank notice informing us a payment has just been credited to our account which amounts to more than QAR 6,000,000. The opportunity had just presents itself.

I took one transparent envelop, put in the bank notice on the facing page, the second page is my leave form. I knocked at the Project Director’s office and in I go. I handed over to him the envelop I was just holding and told him we just received two notices. He examined the paper, and then his face starts to glow like a boy drooling at the sight of a freshly opened ice cream. He smiles from ear to ear.

Turning to the next page expecting the second “notice” to be much better, still his face glued with his wicked smile, he tried to comprehend why the “notice” looks different. I told him, “that’s my leave application, seven (7) days would be enough”. Too late for him, he cannot shrug off the smile on his face no matter how he tried he said, “Ok I’ll give you ten (10) days”.

Trying to recover from his weakness, he said, “But subject to the finalization of the variations at Diwan Emiri project”. I said, “It’s a deal and consider it done”.
Mission accomplished in regard to my leave approval. But I am still in a dilemma, should I stay or should I go.

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Just Another Day In Lulu

I make my groceries once every week. I normally buy necessities like water, vegetables, fish and meat. Sometimes I also need to buy some personal stuff and small treats like one or two corn chips.

Last Friday I went to Lulu Hypermart to buy my groceries. I made my usual round shopping for my week’s provision.

My first stop is the fish section. There were quite a lot of customers by the fish counter. Everyone is trying to get the assistant’s attention, pare, my friend, bai, every friendly word you might think of. I was standing there for about 10 minutes but no luck. When I noticed on my left side, a churchmate of mine was also trying to get some service. Then another churchmate came by. One of mine churchmate came with an idea to have a quick service and 100% sure that the assistant will get you noticed. He said, “My friend, give me a kilo of this fish without cleaning”. As quick as the flash my churchmate got his fish. Me and the other churchmate employ the same strategy and we end up buying the same fish.

My second stop is the vegetable section. The downside of the vegetable section is the weighing scale. It is always a very busy section. You would be thankful if you manage to queue before an Indian expats. Indian’s likes vegetables, more often than not, their shopping cart is half full of vegetables.

My third stop is the bakery section for a bread, cakes or cookies.

My fourth stop is the various goods aisles to take some water, softdrink, canned food, condiments, small treats, etc.

My last stop is the meat and poultry section. You got it right, for a chicken, a mutton or beef.

And then to the cashier.

As the cashier was scanning my groceries, I grab my wallet from my back pocket to ready my payment. Surprisingly, my card was not in my wallet. I later found out that it was in my shirt’s pocket as I was hanging my laundry to dry. I ended up paying cash. As the cashier hand over my change, he gave a bar of candy.

“What is this?”, I asked.

“Your change” he replied.

“Yes I know it is my change, what is this candy bar for?”, I inquire.

“Your change, I don’t have 50 dirhams”, he arrogantly replied.

I responded, “I want my 50 dirhams, you want me to pay you with candies?”, he keeps quiet and gave me my 50 dirhams.

I don’t buy into this supermarket tactics. If I want candies, I will buy candies. They don’t have the right to force me to pay for a candy. If they give candies or gums as change, then they should accept their customer to pay with candies or gums. I just can’t imagine how a candy register looks like.

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The Prodigals

It’s been five month since I was with my wife and a year since I was with my children. Our children are now with my wife in Singapore spending their summer vacation and will be back to school again in June.

I’ve been through rough times and have fallen out from my wife and my kids, with each of their own issues. And during my solitude in the quietness of my room, I took a step back and have a different perspective of the situation. In any case, the fact remains that I miss my family, their presence, their showing of affections, their voices first hand and their laughters.

My issues with my wife are more of a “family matters”. As much as we don’t want to say or act anything that is hurtful, we end up doing so. Though we know that such were just said at the heat of the moment, we patch up thing in a day or two. Our misunderstandings were due to stress in managing our “family matters”.

Our children issues are more disappointing and uninspiring.

Our son has failed 5 out of his 7 subjects in his studies in the university. What more can I say. And still he has the nerve to say “It’s good that I did not fail 7 subjects”. So, we should be thankful that he passed 2 out of 7 subjects? If he is just trying to be smart I don’t buy it. I was furiously mad at him when he said that to me. The good thing was that we were on “chatting” when he said that, otherwise I would have been shouting on top of my lungs.

After I have calmed down about my son's issues, I thought may be he was not trying to be smart afterall but he was looking at his situation in a positive way. Just like when you are looking at a half-filled glass of water. It’s either you look at it as half-filled or half-empty.

Our son not only failed his subject but most unfortunately, he failed us. Me and my wife who have taken all the sacrifices, enduring the heavy hearts being away from them, missing their childhood and not being around to watch them grow up, just to give them a brighter future. All these sacrifices had gone to the drain.

Our son has failed to be the role model of his generation. Our son is the eldest grandchild from both sides, paternally and maternally. He should have taken this fact as a big responsibility. Maybe he can still be the role model, but I hate to say, for the wrong reason.

Our eldest daughter has the brain, but she cheats, she lies but not steal. She has the brain but she is not using it. She chooses the wrong company, she copies the wrong image among youths, and she has all the wrong priorities.

She lies. How many times she was caught lying? I lost count. She’ll say that she is with her friend A doing their project so and so. But if you call her friend, she is not there.

She cheats. She never keeps her promise. Even just as an act of respect to us. She disregarded the promises she made.

But if anyone asks me, my son’s and daughter’s predicament had something to do with their forsaking of their church duties. They were choir members, since they’ve gone cold with their primary duty to attend worship services, their membership with the choir was compromised. Since then, they run into troubles. They are both intelligent, but they can’t perform in their studies.

If only they know their priorities, they would not be in these undesirable circumstances.

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The Breeze Before Summer

Last week and a week before, the weather was quite nice, rainy, windy and breezy. The breeze before summer, the blossoming of the dates trees aligning the center islands of the main thoroughfares throughout Doha, frequent dust storm and high winds, signals the start of the hot season.

Scorching heat, sweltering sun and full blast aircons are in the offing. It is time to put back those jackets, blazers, sweaters and cardigans into the closet for a job well done. But of course, they will be called back on duty after six months or so.

The week before last week was the wettest week I ever experienced here in Doha. It rained in the afternoon, into the night and the following mornings. For a few days it continues to rain. If it ever stopped, a very slight drizzle was there just to remind us that the rain is still around.

I like most, the day the raining stopped. The very fresh breeze after the rain, the air is so fresh and so clean. It reminds me of my childhood and taking me back in time.

Thirty years ago…

During rainy season when were small boys, my cousins and friends always play in the rain. We love the monsoon rain, running around the house, to our school, to the town plaza, by the river, to our friends’ and classmates’ houses. Frolicking in the rain is very fun. We change turns standing below the roof gutters to have a load of rain water. We race paper boats on the swelling surface drains. We make fun of our school bell by making a challenge amongst ourselves who can ring it the loudest. Be it monsoon rain, storm or typhoon we were there to play, never mind if our parents scold us after our little adventures in the rain. We have of course one simple rule, “don’t play in the rain if there is thunderstorm”.

Rain during thunderstorm doesn’t spoil the fun. Though we cannot go out and play, our grandmother cooks a cassava / tapioca in coconut milk for everyone. It was our favorite snack during rainy season. After the rain is a lot more fun, we go out and gather beetles by shaking them off from every standing tree in town. Once we gathered enough beetles, we cook them by frying and eat them over chats and laughter.

Fast-forward Thirty years….

I missed the monsoon rain, the storms and the typhoons. Since I left my homeland in 1995, I have never experience a really heavy rain. Though I go back for vacations, it was always summer and so I was never “re-united” with my childhood’s fun.

Last-last week’s weather, though it was rainy, it never comes close to what I real miss. The high and strong cool wind, which almost resembles an incoming typhoon, is what reminds me of my childhood.

Hmmmm…Haaaaa….. I better enjoy now the cool breeze before summer kicks in.

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One Chicken - One Duck

Working in a multi-national environment which comprises a number of nationalities is quite a challenge. Specially so, if you are at “ground zero” where day to day you are face to face with the workers that are not conversant with the common language, English, or understands at all. As if, one chicken and one duck trying to understand each other.

Unfortunately, I have quite a number of misadventures with the one chicken and one duck syndrome in the workplace. One of which, just happened last Monday as I was at the other Project assisting in the tender exercise.

I reported at the tower project that day, as I was going through with my works I realized that I left something at my place. I thought of redoing it but it would certainly take me an hour or so to re-do my work. But if I go and take my work at my place it would only take me half an hour the most.

So I decided to call the transport foreman to arrange a driver for me, remember that I haven’t got my license to now. No thanks, to the traffic police examiner for always failing me in my driving test.

The transport foreman asked me to wait at the gate and he will send me a driver, of course with a car, in ten minute. Fifteen minutes past and the driver never came. As I about to call the transport foreman, I receive his call. “Where are you” said the man at the other line.

“I am here at the gate”, I replied.

“I cannot see you”, protests the man.

“I am standing here and I don’t see any driver”. Then I realized maybe he is looking for me at the other project at P99 and I am at P89.

“I am here at P89, EIGHTY-NINE”, I said very slowly.

“Sir, I thought you’re here at P99. I am sorry sir, I will send the driver now to you”, he said apologetically.

So, I waited another ten minutes.

When the driver arrived, he looks new to me. I asked him if he know my place. He just looks at me. This guy doesn’t speak English. A scenario of a chicken and a duck inside a car. Obviously, he doesn’t know where I live. So I asked him if he knows how to go to Najma, because my place in near there. He simply replied “Yes”. He speaks English at least.

As we are traveling on the road, I noticed the road directions going to D-ring road, which is actually my place. I told the driver to go to that road. He said, “No”. Pointing the direction I told him he said “No Najma”, and pointing the direction of the car, “Yes Najma”.

I don’t want to start a chicken and a duck argument, so I just sit still and thought the driver must know then where he is going. When we reached Najma near my place, I assisted him with the direction and we reached my place after fifteen minutes.

I took my things I need then jump back into the car and ask the driver to go back to P89. He quietly obliged and off the chicken and the duck.

At the first round-about, instead of going straight, the driver U-turn. “Where are we going?” I asked the driver. “P89”, he said but looking puzzled. “Sir, you, good road, good driving” I thought he is trying to say we are taking a short cut.

After traveling for about five minutes, I noticed the road signs and directions that we are traveling towards the opposite direction. So, I reminded the driver, we are going back to P89. He responded “Yes”. I said to myself, ok, maybe he knew a short cut.

Then I saw Villagio, the mall I planned to go and visit but I never had the time. Villagio is far south of City Center where our site is located. Then it occurred to me the driver is lost. I started getting furious, scolding the driver. I was telling him to go back, but it seems that he doesn’t understand. He continues to drive south.

Then we were already at the Industrial round-about and then it is the end of the road, literally end of the road. The asphalt road has ended. But still he continues to drive south. If not for the blockage at the end of the road, this guy would not U-turn, we might have reached Saudi Arabia.

I called the transport foreman to tell his driver is lost and asked him to tell the driver to follow my direction. I was fuming but what can I do, even if I scold him left, right and center, he doesn’t understand me.

After one and a half hour we reached our site, at least, safely. I wanted to save 30 minutes of my work but end up losing more than two hours.

Moral lesson of the story,

A chicken and a duck do not understand each other.
Next time bring a turkey to make it more fun.

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118 Days To Go

Three weeks had swiftly passed since I last posted in my blog. Nothing much has been happening except the usual chores of making it to the completion date of our project.

Since the day we started counting down the days to completion, everyday seems to be more and more tensed than the previous days. So tensed that everyone seems to be easily irritated that sometime escalates to shouting. Everyday you will find more arguments than agreements, more deficiencies than accuracies and miscalculations than perfections.

All the staffs are so work up that sometimes works against our common goal, to finish on time.

I had my fair share of bickering and shouting against my colleagues. Since the 139th day, I had raised my voice twice to TH, once to LM, twice to MI, once to BG and once to KLK. Not that I am hot tempered, I raised my voice in retaliation to a raised voice. Sometimes it is just misunderstandings, or just the heat of the moment due to work pressures. Some are also personal, when someone gets personal of course.

Fortunately though, most of these incidences are legitimately “work related”. I mean you argue to resolve an issue, no personal grudge attached. And tomorrow you will be discussing another issue. Of course with a fresh smile on your face and a fully charged larynx for another shouting spree.

By the way, my teams share in achieving a step closer to completion is that our target to deliver our IFC BOQ’s by end of March was achieved and take note, we did not slip this time. Thanks to the team and to IV who, as always, is readily available to resolve issues pending our deliverables.

I have not set new targets for my team for this current month. I am now very disorganized due to my involvement with the tendering team. I definitely need to set up our new targets before the week ends.

As the day gets closer and closer, the more had been convinced that we are not able to make it. Contrary to what we intends to make everyone believes, we are yet to see a beacon of light to inspire everyone to work hard for our common goal.

As for me, I still believe that we are able to make it. It is just a matter of turning one big boulder off the snow covered mountain and it will snowball just before it will reach the foot of the mountain. It doesn’t matter if it is 118 days or 18 days to go.

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