I have been obsessed by Apple lately ... mostly due to the WWDC keynote address and that mac vs pc commercial with the funky Justin Long
My present laptop has been with me since 3 years now ... its a Toshiba Satellite ... but now I need some change ... People need change .. may be I should contact Obama .... Surfing thru some blogs forums etc. I found that there are very few distributors of Apple products who are selling at a very high profit margin ... like if I order from Amazon it will save me 700 to 1000 SAR (i am talking about macbooks) .... plus when u seek their technical assistance they are of little help, if any ...
The operating system "Leopard" ... i think is more fun more secure and as this site quotes "So aesthetically pleasing that it distracts users from countless technical gaffes" .. The book itself is sleek and light .... no wonder its called Macbook Air ... its so possessable ...
Now the iPhone ... this I will surely get .. when? ... I dont know ... its a whole different world man .... and I am not in it ... this site is really helpful especially for those who are living in Saudia ...
Tuesday 24 November 2009
Thursday 12 November 2009
Communication Skills
"Communication Skills" ... Lets just say I have none of it ... be it a one-one conversation or one-many ...
Mr Shahid was our English teacher in 9th and 10th grade ... I was his favourite student ...upon his insistence I participated in a speech competition ... it was the first time I was taking part in any extra curricular activity . I had been up on the stage many times but not as a speaker .... Surprisingly, I started well without any hesitation but soon my memory got the good of me ... after a 5 sec pause the audience (which mostly consisted of ill-mannered final year students waiting for you to make the smallest mistake) started clapping .... I remembered the next sentence and completed without any further hitch ...
1st semester in university... there was a subject called Communication Skills ... I was dreading it already ... One day our instructor (jinhain pyar say goofy kehtay thay) distributed us into groups and gave each one a topic and 15 minutes to prepare for a brief monologue .... my turn came. Again ... in the middle, I screwed up .. a long pause ... which felt like ages ... it was so bad that on a scale of 1 to 3 I had to be scored -1 ... it was awful ...
These were examples of one-many communication ... I suck at one-one communication too .... You know when people argue even when they are not sure .... I dont do that ... I dont even argue when I am right ... Just yesterday, a colleague showed me an email which contained this picture of the Buggati Veyron-16
I explained that 1001 refers to the hp NOT the top speed .. but he was adamant ... " I have seen a video in which this car races with an aircraft " he said. " I have seen it too ... but it does not come even close to 1000 kph ... its highest speed is 407 kph " was my reply .... " No No No you must be mistaken its around 930 something ... " .... "Really? (sarcasm)... " and I left ...
... and the list goes on
Monday 2 November 2009
Chalta Phirta Bank
During my university life, which was not that long ago, I used to lend money to whoever needed my help ... from large sums to small amounts ... my debtors included hostelites, class fellows, batch mates etc ... Matlab meray dar say koi khali hath nahe jata tha :)
The reasons varied from fee payment, project, fuel, tires, NERC etc.. But the transaction I vividly remember is with a friend (not so much :S) who needed some money for a cousin's wedding ... I believed him and gave him the money ... which he promised to return as soon as he is back ... then the rumours started pouring in ... one of them was that he borrowed a handsome amount from his uncle and then got rid of his sim card to avoid any kind of contact with him .... this guy was the most notorious monetarily .... drowned in fines and debts ... WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME THIS BEFORE !!
Although I was having this fear of ...... I tried to take things calmly .... requesting repeatedly .... he had a new excuse in store for me daily .... I have to give him 10/10 for his superb convincing skills and acting ... once he proposed to give me his cell phone (I should have taken it) ... then one morning I went to his door and started banging the door to get him off his sleeping ass and demanded the money right away ... he got up .. took the keys to a borrowed bike and said Come On ...
We went to the nearby bank .... to make the story short ... I didnt get the money but was convinced ... the exams started ... I went to him for I thought would be my last demand ... That SOB skipped his last paper and left .... that day I promised not to lend anyone any money ...
I came here to Jeddah ... got a job .... made friends with the co-workers .... especially with this Indian guy .... before going to vacation he asked for 1000 SR ... He had been so nice to me and his reasons seemed genuine so I lent him the money ... he came back a little late and found out that he had been terminated due to his over stay .... Oh Crap ... He was out of job and the next expected salary was cancelled due to his termination ..... Why Me ??!!
You dont need to be dragged into the pathetic story (I think I already have ) .. all you need to know is that he paid me in two long and painful installments ...
The reasons varied from fee payment, project, fuel, tires, NERC etc.. But the transaction I vividly remember is with a friend (not so much :S) who needed some money for a cousin's wedding ... I believed him and gave him the money ... which he promised to return as soon as he is back ... then the rumours started pouring in ... one of them was that he borrowed a handsome amount from his uncle and then got rid of his sim card to avoid any kind of contact with him .... this guy was the most notorious monetarily .... drowned in fines and debts ... WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME THIS BEFORE !!
Although I was having this fear of ...... I tried to take things calmly .... requesting repeatedly .... he had a new excuse in store for me daily .... I have to give him 10/10 for his superb convincing skills and acting ... once he proposed to give me his cell phone (I should have taken it) ... then one morning I went to his door and started banging the door to get him off his sleeping ass and demanded the money right away ... he got up .. took the keys to a borrowed bike and said Come On ...
We went to the nearby bank .... to make the story short ... I didnt get the money but was convinced ... the exams started ... I went to him for I thought would be my last demand ... That SOB skipped his last paper and left .... that day I promised not to lend anyone any money ...
I came here to Jeddah ... got a job .... made friends with the co-workers .... especially with this Indian guy .... before going to vacation he asked for 1000 SR ... He had been so nice to me and his reasons seemed genuine so I lent him the money ... he came back a little late and found out that he had been terminated due to his over stay .... Oh Crap ... He was out of job and the next expected salary was cancelled due to his termination ..... Why Me ??!!
You dont need to be dragged into the pathetic story (I think I already have ) .. all you need to know is that he paid me in two long and painful installments ...
Friday 30 October 2009
Borders of Shariah
Our project is in the closing stages ... Professors, students, administration staff etc have already started settling in ... the Campus area has been handed over to the proponent ... only some residential buildings are remaining ....
For those of you who dont know, "project" refers to King Abdullah University of Sciences and Technology (KAUST), a multi million dollar project near Jeddah .. at the shore of the Red Sea ...
Its a well known fact that Saudi Arabia is the only country, where strict Shariah Laws are applied ... the shops close during prayers, women have to wear hijab when in public, they are not allowed to drive (I dont know if its according to Shariah or not), the punishment for adultery or involvement in narcotics, in any way , is ultimately .. death.
But lets focus on the women and hijab part ... these rules do not apply inside the premises of KAUST ... and did I mention that it is the first co-ed institution in the Kingdom ... women can drive ... dress as they like ... it's a funny spectacle when a girl goes out for her morning jog in her shorts ... and the workers leave their work .. all gawking at her ...
Getting back to the subject .... this royal decree of "freedom" has created unrest in the clerical faction ... one of the clerics who openly opposed against co-ed has been relieved of his duties ...
I, like many others believe that soon a time will come when Saudia will be as open as (why go far) ... say UAE and this is just the beginning ...
For those of you who dont know, "project" refers to King Abdullah University of Sciences and Technology (KAUST), a multi million dollar project near Jeddah .. at the shore of the Red Sea ...
Its a well known fact that Saudi Arabia is the only country, where strict Shariah Laws are applied ... the shops close during prayers, women have to wear hijab when in public, they are not allowed to drive (I dont know if its according to Shariah or not), the punishment for adultery or involvement in narcotics, in any way , is ultimately .. death.
But lets focus on the women and hijab part ... these rules do not apply inside the premises of KAUST ... and did I mention that it is the first co-ed institution in the Kingdom ... women can drive ... dress as they like ... it's a funny spectacle when a girl goes out for her morning jog in her shorts ... and the workers leave their work .. all gawking at her ...
Getting back to the subject .... this royal decree of "freedom" has created unrest in the clerical faction ... one of the clerics who openly opposed against co-ed has been relieved of his duties ...
I, like many others believe that soon a time will come when Saudia will be as open as (why go far) ... say UAE and this is just the beginning ...
Tuesday 27 October 2009
An Interesting Conversation
There is this driver from Eritrea in our office, I had a chat with. He speaks good English, is well mannered, dresses smartly ... a clear contrast to the other drivers who cant speak a word of English ... heres a gist of the conversation ...
I dont recall how we started but along the way he told me where he was from and that he and his family had to flee due to some political problems ... and hadn't returned to his home country for 25 years .... My curiousity led me to ask him, how he was able to speak such good English ... it was a simple answer ... "from school" ... he had passed high school and then due to financial reasons he had to quit further studies ...
Somehow he got into the field of "Hydro-Meteorology" ... I was like "What??!!" ... "It means the study of ...." .... " I know what it means (but you) " ... Then he started explaining how the water conditions of the rivers have to be considered while constructing bridges ... so eloquently .... and I was thinking about our Egyptian Construction Manager who cant pronounce "Library" :S
But when he came to saudia ... the first thing in his mind was not to chase that career but to feed his family ... after several jobs which included being a cashier, salesman, waiter etc he came here as a driver ... and still searching ...
I was really moved
I dont recall how we started but along the way he told me where he was from and that he and his family had to flee due to some political problems ... and hadn't returned to his home country for 25 years .... My curiousity led me to ask him, how he was able to speak such good English ... it was a simple answer ... "from school" ... he had passed high school and then due to financial reasons he had to quit further studies ...
Somehow he got into the field of "Hydro-Meteorology" ... I was like "What??!!" ... "It means the study of ...." .... " I know what it means (but you) " ... Then he started explaining how the water conditions of the rivers have to be considered while constructing bridges ... so eloquently .... and I was thinking about our Egyptian Construction Manager who cant pronounce "Library" :S
But when he came to saudia ... the first thing in his mind was not to chase that career but to feed his family ... after several jobs which included being a cashier, salesman, waiter etc he came here as a driver ... and still searching ...
I was really moved
Saturday 24 October 2009
5 Minutes
It seems this is my first post since June. May be this is because nothing worth posting had happened until now -
I hadn't been to Madinah for two years .. it was long over due. On the eve of our trip, I and dad went out for a vehicle safety check. The tires had to be changed. There were two types available at our trusted Shell puncture shop .. an unknown brand and the other one TOYO - Made in Japan ... We obviously went for the later .. 270 SR each
Dad had to transfer credit ... to save time and avoid traffic we parked our car across the street in front of a small hotel ... There were two Yemenites sitting beside the entrance ... as soon as we got out, one of them asked "will you be long?" ... " just 5 minutes!" , i replied
There, I met one of my colleagues who had transferred to another department and we had to do some catching on .... it went on for more than "5 Minutes" .. When we returned back ... there was a group of people beside our car .... one of those Yemenites had gone berserq ... had a pair of scissors in his hand and was trying to deflate the tires through the air nozzle ... "WTF are you doing?" I shouted and tried to drag him away from the car ... "You said 5 minutes .... no ... You said 5 minutes" ... I tried to calm him down by apologizing but that MF was persistent on deflating all 4 tires .... "No I'm sorry ... I want all 4 of them" trembling as he spoke ...
During this scene of chaos ... one of them told me to get in the car and start the engine .... Meanwhile ... the maniac was done with the front tire and moved to the rear ... dad tried to threaten him by calling the police ...but nothing was working .... I got in the car and was about to close the door when he jumped up and blocked the door ... dad on seeing this got in also ... it took 4 people to pull him away from the door ... as soon as he was out of the way ... I got out of there like I was escaping convict ... Phew!
I hadn't been to Madinah for two years .. it was long over due. On the eve of our trip, I and dad went out for a vehicle safety check. The tires had to be changed. There were two types available at our trusted Shell puncture shop .. an unknown brand and the other one TOYO - Made in Japan ... We obviously went for the later .. 270 SR each
Dad had to transfer credit ... to save time and avoid traffic we parked our car across the street in front of a small hotel ... There were two Yemenites sitting beside the entrance ... as soon as we got out, one of them asked "will you be long?" ... " just 5 minutes!" , i replied
There, I met one of my colleagues who had transferred to another department and we had to do some catching on .... it went on for more than "5 Minutes" .. When we returned back ... there was a group of people beside our car .... one of those Yemenites had gone berserq ... had a pair of scissors in his hand and was trying to deflate the tires through the air nozzle ... "WTF are you doing?" I shouted and tried to drag him away from the car ... "You said 5 minutes .... no ... You said 5 minutes" ... I tried to calm him down by apologizing but that MF was persistent on deflating all 4 tires .... "No I'm sorry ... I want all 4 of them" trembling as he spoke ...
During this scene of chaos ... one of them told me to get in the car and start the engine .... Meanwhile ... the maniac was done with the front tire and moved to the rear ... dad tried to threaten him by calling the police ...but nothing was working .... I got in the car and was about to close the door when he jumped up and blocked the door ... dad on seeing this got in also ... it took 4 people to pull him away from the door ... as soon as he was out of the way ... I got out of there like I was escaping convict ... Phew!
Wednesday 20 May 2009
Meet an Ex-Con
Yesterday morning, I was driving to work with my two of my friends (and co-workers). We were a little late so I was hard on the gas. The first traffic signal on our way is at the junction of two major roads of Jeddah thus the wait is very long. It was green and I had made up my mind that I will cross it ... well I tried ...
First of all, my car was not in a favorable speed ... secondly I was on the service road which was closest to the next signal ... The first three cars advanced a few feet but stopped on seeing my car ... alas the last one got me ... got me real good .... there was little damage to my car .... but the other pakistani Baray Mian's car bonnet was shattered ....
The Baray Mian explained the incident to the cop who came to the spot in no time ... and I just stood there nodding in confession .... The other car was winched and dragged to the police station, I followed. It was a clear violation but I didnt know that it was a serious one too .... I was thinking that I will have to pay the damages to the other person plus the traffic violation fine and that will be it ..... Those lovely gentlemen locked me up !!
At first I was like WHOA!! Am I really in jail with all these criminals .... It turned out all of them were in only for the traffic violations .... and the first thing I noticed in there was that we Pakistanis were in huge majority .... Five carpeted rooms with ACs, cushions and blankets and pillows .... and lots of friendly looking cockroaches .... and healthy bed bugs roaming around ....
I was welcomed in the Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi room .... there was one room with Arabs ... one with Phillipinos etc ... Of course the first thing they ask "What traffic rule did u break?" .... "O koi nae ... bas 24 ghantay ki baat hai .... ao Sutta lagao " Anyway ... I had some interesting conversations with all the ppl there ... one of them is worth mentioning ...
it was an indian guy ... who had entered saudia on Umrah Visa .... and then made a fake Bangladeshi Passport and was living here since 15 years .... of those 15 years he had spent 3 yrs in the biggest jail in the Western Province for "accidentally" running down a cop ... he said the cop bugged him a lot so " Socha us ko Ura Doon" .... he had a metal cutting business in which the saudi partner robbed him off 2 lakh SR ..... he filed a case on him ... and they are still doing business .... in fact that saudi called him for a 2 million SR deal ... and I was listening .... He had escaped from this prison twice in the last week but had to come back as his documents were with the police ....
If it wasnt for my dad who toiled from 8 till 5 with the Baray Mian I would have certainly have to spent the night there ... I stayed there for 9 hours .... In the end I say Alhamdulillah for saving everybody from anykind of physical injury and our lives ...
First of all, my car was not in a favorable speed ... secondly I was on the service road which was closest to the next signal ... The first three cars advanced a few feet but stopped on seeing my car ... alas the last one got me ... got me real good .... there was little damage to my car .... but the other pakistani Baray Mian's car bonnet was shattered ....
The Baray Mian explained the incident to the cop who came to the spot in no time ... and I just stood there nodding in confession .... The other car was winched and dragged to the police station, I followed. It was a clear violation but I didnt know that it was a serious one too .... I was thinking that I will have to pay the damages to the other person plus the traffic violation fine and that will be it ..... Those lovely gentlemen locked me up !!
At first I was like WHOA!! Am I really in jail with all these criminals .... It turned out all of them were in only for the traffic violations .... and the first thing I noticed in there was that we Pakistanis were in huge majority .... Five carpeted rooms with ACs, cushions and blankets and pillows .... and lots of friendly looking cockroaches .... and healthy bed bugs roaming around ....
I was welcomed in the Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi room .... there was one room with Arabs ... one with Phillipinos etc ... Of course the first thing they ask "What traffic rule did u break?" .... "O koi nae ... bas 24 ghantay ki baat hai .... ao Sutta lagao " Anyway ... I had some interesting conversations with all the ppl there ... one of them is worth mentioning ...
it was an indian guy ... who had entered saudia on Umrah Visa .... and then made a fake Bangladeshi Passport and was living here since 15 years .... of those 15 years he had spent 3 yrs in the biggest jail in the Western Province for "accidentally" running down a cop ... he said the cop bugged him a lot so " Socha us ko Ura Doon" .... he had a metal cutting business in which the saudi partner robbed him off 2 lakh SR ..... he filed a case on him ... and they are still doing business .... in fact that saudi called him for a 2 million SR deal ... and I was listening .... He had escaped from this prison twice in the last week but had to come back as his documents were with the police ....
If it wasnt for my dad who toiled from 8 till 5 with the Baray Mian I would have certainly have to spent the night there ... I stayed there for 9 hours .... In the end I say Alhamdulillah for saving everybody from anykind of physical injury and our lives ...
Friday 24 April 2009
Choose Your Words Carefully
Here are some of the words which mean differently in Arabic ....
1.) BANDAR ..... its a popular name in Saudi Arabia meaning "Beautiful" .... We even have a Prince Bandar Bin Talal ... lol
2.) GADA ..... it means "A Respectful Person" ... See how things could get messed up ...
3.) GANDOOR ....... its also a name ... a last name .... u can go "Hey Gandoo" and no one will frown or kill u :)
4.) KHASM ..... it means "To Discount or To Reduce" ... with us it means Spouse right!!
5.) NEK ..... First lets look at its Urdu meaning "A Virtuous Person" ... in arabic it means "To F***"
Yup .... so choose ur words carefully here ... I will add more of these ...
1.) BANDAR ..... its a popular name in Saudi Arabia meaning "Beautiful" .... We even have a Prince Bandar Bin Talal ... lol
2.) GADA ..... it means "A Respectful Person" ... See how things could get messed up ...
3.) GANDOOR ....... its also a name ... a last name .... u can go "Hey Gandoo" and no one will frown or kill u :)
4.) KHASM ..... it means "To Discount or To Reduce" ... with us it means Spouse right!!
5.) NEK ..... First lets look at its Urdu meaning "A Virtuous Person" ... in arabic it means "To F***"
Yup .... so choose ur words carefully here ... I will add more of these ...
My Company Contact
I have a problem with my cell number ... my company contact ... if u will ..
In the beginning, for almost a month I used my personal mobile for work purposes .... I had put a request for a laptop and a company mobile ... I didn't get the laptop :(
A guy quit from our department and his cell was handed to me ... I was relieved cuz it was actually costing me quite a bit to make those official calls ... I turned on the cell and a shower of sms came pouring in ... most of them were ads of malls, mobile companies etc. but then i started receiving calls from banks Saudi British Bank, Saudi Fransi Bank, Saudi American Bank .... and those stupid Saudis .... they cant speak English ... so every single time the conversation goes like this:
Him: asalamualaium
Me: walaikum assalam
Him: ustaz muhammad (Sir Muhammad)
Me: muhammad min? (Muhammad Who?)
Him: muhammad talha kan (its Khan actually)
Me: indak rakam ghalat (You have the wrong number)
Him: ana asif (I Am Sorry)
Now you would be thinking why dont I explain the complete thing to them ... well I have ... I have tried myself and my Arab friends have also tried .... but I dont know they have like a 15 minutes conversation and the next day that same stupid voice ... I dont pick up most of the time ... I have even talked to the guy "Talha" and asked him to please spare me of this misery ...
But then one day I received a call from England and a lady with the sweetest voice was asking for Muhammad Talha Khan ... at first i thought i should say "Yes Speaking" but I enquired what was it about ... it was work so I deemed better not meddle with it. I explained everything and offered if she wanted his new number ... " That would be very nice of you, Sir" ... ufff ...
Then one day i received a call from Dubai ... it was a Hilton Hotel rep ... so I took full advantage ... You know how these reps work ... Chamme Style .. She was like a robot ... You can have this membership .. you can have that suite ... you can have a special honeymoon package ... and I was just playing along ... "Yeah my wife is quite a moody person and we already have had our honeymoon" " Where?" "Switzerland" .... I even got her cell number ... and promised to call her right away when I and my wife come to Dubai next time ... huh!!
Another day I was coming back from work and was in a bad mood ... and this unknown number was bugging me ... maybe its someone i know ... so i answered .... and he went
Him:"Kaisa hai bay!!"
Me:"Kaun?"
Him:"Acha ab hamain bhi bhool gaya"
Me:"Kis say baat karni hai aap ko?"
Him:"Talha ?"
Me:"Main Talha nahe hoon"
Him: "Yar Talha mazak mat kar"
Me: "Meray tone say aap ko lag raha hai keh main mazak kar raha hoon?"
Now I am so relieved that my company number is blocked because of my over-the-limit usage.
In the beginning, for almost a month I used my personal mobile for work purposes .... I had put a request for a laptop and a company mobile ... I didn't get the laptop :(
A guy quit from our department and his cell was handed to me ... I was relieved cuz it was actually costing me quite a bit to make those official calls ... I turned on the cell and a shower of sms came pouring in ... most of them were ads of malls, mobile companies etc. but then i started receiving calls from banks Saudi British Bank, Saudi Fransi Bank, Saudi American Bank .... and those stupid Saudis .... they cant speak English ... so every single time the conversation goes like this:
Him: asalamualaium
Me: walaikum assalam
Him: ustaz muhammad (Sir Muhammad)
Me: muhammad min? (Muhammad Who?)
Him: muhammad talha kan (its Khan actually)
Me: indak rakam ghalat (You have the wrong number)
Him: ana asif (I Am Sorry)
Now you would be thinking why dont I explain the complete thing to them ... well I have ... I have tried myself and my Arab friends have also tried .... but I dont know they have like a 15 minutes conversation and the next day that same stupid voice ... I dont pick up most of the time ... I have even talked to the guy "Talha" and asked him to please spare me of this misery ...
But then one day I received a call from England and a lady with the sweetest voice was asking for Muhammad Talha Khan ... at first i thought i should say "Yes Speaking" but I enquired what was it about ... it was work so I deemed better not meddle with it. I explained everything and offered if she wanted his new number ... " That would be very nice of you, Sir" ... ufff ...
Then one day i received a call from Dubai ... it was a Hilton Hotel rep ... so I took full advantage ... You know how these reps work ... Chamme Style .. She was like a robot ... You can have this membership .. you can have that suite ... you can have a special honeymoon package ... and I was just playing along ... "Yeah my wife is quite a moody person and we already have had our honeymoon" " Where?" "Switzerland" .... I even got her cell number ... and promised to call her right away when I and my wife come to Dubai next time ... huh!!
Another day I was coming back from work and was in a bad mood ... and this unknown number was bugging me ... maybe its someone i know ... so i answered .... and he went
Him:"Kaisa hai bay!!"
Me:"Kaun?"
Him:"Acha ab hamain bhi bhool gaya"
Me:"Kis say baat karni hai aap ko?"
Him:"Talha ?"
Me:"Main Talha nahe hoon"
Him: "Yar Talha mazak mat kar"
Me: "Meray tone say aap ko lag raha hai keh main mazak kar raha hoon?"
Now I am so relieved that my company number is blocked because of my over-the-limit usage.
Friday 3 April 2009
The 1st Week Alone!
My parents have left for Pakistan and I am all alone in the house. For most part of the day, I dont feel any change as I am at work and everything is routine. But when I get home, the first thing which pops up is "What am I going to eat?" My mom has left some curries in the freezer ... but nooo... I have to go out or order something... all this week has passed this way...
Before leaving they advised me of many things .... dont leave the window open , check the stove, turn off any electrical appliance before leaving the house , take care of the keys etc ... and I was like .... mom dad this is not the first time I am living alone .. I am not a baby .... I can handle it ....
So, the second day ... I was leaving for work ... got my wallet .. got my cell ... flash drive (so very very important) ... lets go ...the moment i stepped out ... i realized i had left the keys inside ... both the apartment and the car ... and my mom's words came back to me "I will give the spare keys to Bushra Auntie just in case or keep a spare key in your wallet or anywhere else" and I said there is no need for any of it ... I can take care of everything!!
I knew she hadn't given the keys to anyone but to make sure I texted my dad " Have you or mom given any spare key to any of our neighbours?" He called right away " Tumhara Dimagh to Nahe Kharab ho gaya? ..... ....... ....... ....." I could not deal with it that time so I called a friend to pick me up ... When I got back I had two ideas ..... bring a ladder long enough to reach upto the kitchen window but I wasnt sure it is open so I had to go to the locksmith .... he broke the old one and fixed a new one ....
This is just one example ... one night I went out to bring dinner ... it was grilled chicken with rice its called "Ruz Bukhari" .... when I came back ... there was no chicken in the bag .... I ate that rice with hot dogs .... the apartment is a mess ... i sleep in all the rooms .. the TV is on all night .... glasses with pepsi in it ... i have to do something about this situation!
Before leaving they advised me of many things .... dont leave the window open , check the stove, turn off any electrical appliance before leaving the house , take care of the keys etc ... and I was like .... mom dad this is not the first time I am living alone .. I am not a baby .... I can handle it ....
So, the second day ... I was leaving for work ... got my wallet .. got my cell ... flash drive (so very very important) ... lets go ...the moment i stepped out ... i realized i had left the keys inside ... both the apartment and the car ... and my mom's words came back to me "I will give the spare keys to Bushra Auntie just in case or keep a spare key in your wallet or anywhere else" and I said there is no need for any of it ... I can take care of everything!!
I knew she hadn't given the keys to anyone but to make sure I texted my dad " Have you or mom given any spare key to any of our neighbours?" He called right away " Tumhara Dimagh to Nahe Kharab ho gaya? ..... ....... ....... ....." I could not deal with it that time so I called a friend to pick me up ... When I got back I had two ideas ..... bring a ladder long enough to reach upto the kitchen window but I wasnt sure it is open so I had to go to the locksmith .... he broke the old one and fixed a new one ....
This is just one example ... one night I went out to bring dinner ... it was grilled chicken with rice its called "Ruz Bukhari" .... when I came back ... there was no chicken in the bag .... I ate that rice with hot dogs .... the apartment is a mess ... i sleep in all the rooms .. the TV is on all night .... glasses with pepsi in it ... i have to do something about this situation!
Monday 23 March 2009
How Arabs Eat
Have you ever seen an Arab eating rice ... ofcourse u haven't ...
Having worked among Arabs Egyptians, Saudis, Yemenis, Palestinians etc. for almost a year now i have gone for lunch with them many a times ... and i found their way of eating, rice in particular, very strange .. we all know its according to the Sunnah to eat with your right hand and there is one Hadith which says to eat in small bites, if i am not wrong ..
They are ok with the first part but small bites ... no ... either i am wrong or they havent heard of this Hadith ... they dont eat using their fingers .. they use the whole palm of their hand... what we eat in three bites .. is one bite for them ... and the strangest thing is , its common in all Arabs
I went out with a Saudi guy, he had studied in London and spoke English fluently, which is very rare here, and he dressed nicely and evrything ... but when he started eating.. it was like he is eating for the last time .. i mean .. it was totally barbaric ...
Having worked among Arabs Egyptians, Saudis, Yemenis, Palestinians etc. for almost a year now i have gone for lunch with them many a times ... and i found their way of eating, rice in particular, very strange .. we all know its according to the Sunnah to eat with your right hand and there is one Hadith which says to eat in small bites, if i am not wrong ..
They are ok with the first part but small bites ... no ... either i am wrong or they havent heard of this Hadith ... they dont eat using their fingers .. they use the whole palm of their hand... what we eat in three bites .. is one bite for them ... and the strangest thing is , its common in all Arabs
I went out with a Saudi guy, he had studied in London and spoke English fluently, which is very rare here, and he dressed nicely and evrything ... but when he started eating.. it was like he is eating for the last time .. i mean .. it was totally barbaric ...
Monday 16 March 2009
Real Time World Statistics
It says on this site that it is "managed by an international team of developers, researchers, and volunteers with the goal of making world statistics available in a thought-provoking and time relevant format to a wide audience around the world. "
"Sources are carefully selected to include only data published by the most reputable organizations and statistical offices in the world."
"The counters that display the real-time numbers are based on Worldometers’ algorithm that processes the latest and most accurate statistical data available together with its estimated progression to compute the current millisecond number to be displayed on each counter based on the specific time set on each visitor’s computer clock. "
Cool stuff huh! You can suggest a statistic for the next month. My suggestion was "Amount of food wasted every day".
Wednesday 11 March 2009
Holy Crap!!
Once in a while I visit this place called Old Airport Area .... its mostly empty .... only a bunch of people here and there ... having huqqa , taking a walk etc. Its very peaceful there ....
It was very hectic today at work .... I had to go there .... so I was listening to the radio and just reclining in the seat and relaxing in the light breeze .... when I felt need for a smoke .... but I didnt have a lighter neither does my car lighter work .....
Seeing a car at a driving distance, I thought why not ask its owner .... It was a little dark there .... so I couldnt see clearly .... only a person squatting near the hood ..... I very slowly drove close to his car ... the man was staring at me all this time .. motionless .... then he flinched and did something with his hands in a quick motion .. . what was he doing? the guy was taking a shit!!
I moved onwithout coming to a complete stop.
It was very hectic today at work .... I had to go there .... so I was listening to the radio and just reclining in the seat and relaxing in the light breeze .... when I felt need for a smoke .... but I didnt have a lighter neither does my car lighter work .....
Seeing a car at a driving distance, I thought why not ask its owner .... It was a little dark there .... so I couldnt see clearly .... only a person squatting near the hood ..... I very slowly drove close to his car ... the man was staring at me all this time .. motionless .... then he flinched and did something with his hands in a quick motion .. . what was he doing? the guy was taking a shit!!
I moved onwithout coming to a complete stop.
Tuesday 3 March 2009
Tere Bin
I was coming to work today in a friend's car and he was playing all of Atif's songs ... Tere Bin , Ham Kis Gali Ja Rahay Hain etc. and instantly I remembered a memorable trip we had in our University.
We planned to go to some Water Sport Park which was outside Karachi and Uzair said he knew the route very well. We rented a car on a Sunday morning and everyone was ready in no time. Awais and Ubaid were on Ubaid's bike.
The trip was long and with "Ham Kis Gali Ja Rahain Hain" playing it seemed longer. We had an incident with the Tullas where the driver did not have licence ... but our Navy cards saved the day ....
We kept driving and Uzair kept saying "Just a little bit more ... I know the place like the back of my hand" and after driving like this for at least 2 hours we reached a place where the urdu alphabets were not used ... ok i am being too dramatic ... it was Sindhi but it was weird ... we had reached Thatta ... damn you Syed Uzair Rafat!!
Anyway we decided to eat something .... what could we get to satisy our hunger without wasting much time .. fruit, biscuits and stuff ... there for the first time in my life I saw fake money being used .. ON US! ... ok .. after filling ourselves drive back to that Mystery Land ....
Half way back we found that Park ... and someone had pointed out that this is it but Uzair ....
But we were glad that we finally made it ... Little did we know what was in store for us ..... we got down ... got ready... "The Park is closed till April" were the first words of the guard ...
All in all .. a great trip and I have Atif Aslam to thank for making it so memorable.
We planned to go to some Water Sport Park which was outside Karachi and Uzair said he knew the route very well. We rented a car on a Sunday morning and everyone was ready in no time. Awais and Ubaid were on Ubaid's bike.
The trip was long and with "Ham Kis Gali Ja Rahain Hain" playing it seemed longer. We had an incident with the Tullas where the driver did not have licence ... but our Navy cards saved the day ....
We kept driving and Uzair kept saying "Just a little bit more ... I know the place like the back of my hand" and after driving like this for at least 2 hours we reached a place where the urdu alphabets were not used ... ok i am being too dramatic ... it was Sindhi but it was weird ... we had reached Thatta ... damn you Syed Uzair Rafat!!
Anyway we decided to eat something .... what could we get to satisy our hunger without wasting much time .. fruit, biscuits and stuff ... there for the first time in my life I saw fake money being used .. ON US! ... ok .. after filling ourselves drive back to that Mystery Land ....
Half way back we found that Park ... and someone had pointed out that this is it but Uzair ....
But we were glad that we finally made it ... Little did we know what was in store for us ..... we got down ... got ready... "The Park is closed till April" were the first words of the guard ...
All in all .. a great trip and I have Atif Aslam to thank for making it so memorable.
Thursday 26 February 2009
I Was Right
The Oscar night has passed and we all know the winners. As predicted all the main BAFTA winners took home the Oscar too except Sean Penn.
Sean Penn won for Milk which is based on a true story of California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk. He has also won an Oscar for Mystic River. I have watched both of them, Milk only recently .. and even though Mickey Rourke (for The Wrestler)was the favourite, having won the BAFTA and Golden Globe, I knew Sean would win.
I would recommend everyone to watch it ... And NO I'M NOT GAY!!
Sean Penn won for Milk which is based on a true story of California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk. He has also won an Oscar for Mystic River. I have watched both of them, Milk only recently .. and even though Mickey Rourke (for The Wrestler)was the favourite, having won the BAFTA and Golden Globe, I knew Sean would win.
I would recommend everyone to watch it ... And NO I'M NOT GAY!!
Wrong Place at the Wrong Time
I witnessed something the other day which is a perfect example of the title.
There are two phases of our project. Phase I and Phase II. Both are totally separate from each other and no one from this phase has any relation with the other phase. There is this Indian guy who is QA/QC Engineer in Binladin for Phase II. He visits our office almost daily. Our office seats site managers for both Phases.
So this guy came to see someone from Phase II. He did not find him, but he found one of our site engineers from Phase II in the office of Phase I Site Manager (Nael Narouz). He went in and sat on Nael's seat rather awkwardly. "Krich" sound of something breaking. The back of the chair was towards the PC and there was a USB plugged in.
"Oh I'm soooo sorry.. I did'nt see the USB" ... "Ekhrib Baitak ... This wasn't my flash ... what am i going to tell him" The arabic part means ... tera satsyanas ho
Then they tried to make it work ... pluggin in and removing repeatedly .. nothin' it wasn't detected ... it was a disaster already ... when, that clumsy dude hit a cup of coffee and spilled it all over the table with important paperwork on it ...
His face went red and Nael's too but for different reasons !! Nael became mad ... he started throwing all the papers on the floor like crazy. and I .. I couldn't stop laughing ... while they were trying to soak up the coffee with tissues ...
I told the guy to leave.. he was reassuring that he will bring a new flash drive ... I said " Leave now before u fumble something else" ... "How much worse can it get?" ... "You could kill someone!!"
There are two phases of our project. Phase I and Phase II. Both are totally separate from each other and no one from this phase has any relation with the other phase. There is this Indian guy who is QA/QC Engineer in Binladin for Phase II. He visits our office almost daily. Our office seats site managers for both Phases.
So this guy came to see someone from Phase II. He did not find him, but he found one of our site engineers from Phase II in the office of Phase I Site Manager (Nael Narouz). He went in and sat on Nael's seat rather awkwardly. "Krich" sound of something breaking. The back of the chair was towards the PC and there was a USB plugged in.
"Oh I'm soooo sorry.. I did'nt see the USB" ... "Ekhrib Baitak ... This wasn't my flash ... what am i going to tell him" The arabic part means ... tera satsyanas ho
Then they tried to make it work ... pluggin in and removing repeatedly .. nothin' it wasn't detected ... it was a disaster already ... when, that clumsy dude hit a cup of coffee and spilled it all over the table with important paperwork on it ...
His face went red and Nael's too but for different reasons !! Nael became mad ... he started throwing all the papers on the floor like crazy. and I .. I couldn't stop laughing ... while they were trying to soak up the coffee with tissues ...
I told the guy to leave.. he was reassuring that he will bring a new flash drive ... I said " Leave now before u fumble something else" ... "How much worse can it get?" ... "You could kill someone!!"
Thursday 12 February 2009
Taliban of Saudi Arabia
I met a friend yesterday after a month or so... I dont see a lot of him as his job requires him to travel to different cities ... Riyadh, Makkah, Madinah, Unaizah, Jizan and QASEEM.
When I asked him about his last trip to Qaseem, his first words to me were "I must have commited a big sin in my life .. thats why i was sent to Qaseem". Here's his story...
He is an RTU Commissioning Engineer and obviously it requires a lot of physical work and mental stress.. so at the end of the day he relaxes himself by "chic hunting".
First let me make it clear what "chic hunting" means here ... it just means to see a woman's head uncovered and to appreciate her curves that is if u find one ... thats all ... So the first day after work he went out for his sacred duty ... and what he finds ... first of all there werent many to look at ... among those who were in the market not a single woman's face was uncovered .... the only "skin" he saw was the thin line of uncovered eyes.
Then one day, he was driving around with a little music playing ... and Mutawas (religious police) stopped him and started searching his car ... he was told that Sound Systems weren't allowed ... he didnt have one as it was a company car.
Then one evening he tried to enter Geant Shopping Centre ... and he was denied entrance .. In Jeddah, singles arent allowed only on Fridays "Families Only" day. But in his case it was a normal working day.
Anyway, he is very relieved to return to Jeddah and now he is posted to the same project where I am.
Qaseem is known for its Radicalism.. Most of the Imams here are from this area ... and u r sure if an Imam is Qaseemi he will make long Duas against US and Israel not only in Friday prayers but also normal days in Fajr and Maghrib prayers ... just like they did during these recent Israel aggressions ... I am not against the Duas ... just to give u a clear picture..
When I asked him about his last trip to Qaseem, his first words to me were "I must have commited a big sin in my life .. thats why i was sent to Qaseem". Here's his story...
He is an RTU Commissioning Engineer and obviously it requires a lot of physical work and mental stress.. so at the end of the day he relaxes himself by "chic hunting".
First let me make it clear what "chic hunting" means here ... it just means to see a woman's head uncovered and to appreciate her curves that is if u find one ... thats all ... So the first day after work he went out for his sacred duty ... and what he finds ... first of all there werent many to look at ... among those who were in the market not a single woman's face was uncovered .... the only "skin" he saw was the thin line of uncovered eyes.
Then one day, he was driving around with a little music playing ... and Mutawas (religious police) stopped him and started searching his car ... he was told that Sound Systems weren't allowed ... he didnt have one as it was a company car.
Then one evening he tried to enter Geant Shopping Centre ... and he was denied entrance .. In Jeddah, singles arent allowed only on Fridays "Families Only" day. But in his case it was a normal working day.
Anyway, he is very relieved to return to Jeddah and now he is posted to the same project where I am.
Qaseem is known for its Radicalism.. Most of the Imams here are from this area ... and u r sure if an Imam is Qaseemi he will make long Duas against US and Israel not only in Friday prayers but also normal days in Fajr and Maghrib prayers ... just like they did during these recent Israel aggressions ... I am not against the Duas ... just to give u a clear picture..
Tuesday 3 February 2009
Coldplay - Life in Technicolor ii
I watched this music video the other day ... u gotto see this ... the song is great and the video makes it even better ..
I loved Coldplay's Viva La Vida ... which was recommended by an ardent music lover, and my dear friend Talha ... in fact that's how I came to know of this band.
I loved Coldplay's Viva La Vida ... which was recommended by an ardent music lover, and my dear friend Talha ... in fact that's how I came to know of this band.
Saturday 31 January 2009
Another Mix-Up
Last Wednesday night, I and my dad went to my brother's prize distribution function in our beloved Pakistan International School Jeddah ... The invitation had come to my dad to attend this function and collect the prize ....
I didn't want to go as I would meet my former teachers ... I didnt want to confront any of them ... My dad gave me his piece of mind when I said that ... so I agreed to go ...
Here's what happened ... Dads of many of the students were there to collect their sons' prizes ... What those idiot volunteers should have done ... they should have conformed before the function, whose dads or brothers are present and whose are not ... If the dad wasnt there ... they were sending proxies instead ....
It was a hilarious situation when a dad went on the stage and the prize was already given to a proxy ... lol .... this happened thrice ... so to avoid this mishap I informed them beforehand that I will be collecting the prize for Muhammad Muzammil Mukhtar ....
I was sitting among aged persons ... some of them bald ... the rest grey haired ... and obviously I was uncomfortable ... Anyway .... after a long wait which included the Principal's lame speech and some boring Qaumi Naghmay ... my turn came ...
"For Overall 1st Position in 2nd Year Pre-Eng. .... Muhammad Muzammil Mukhtar .... His father Sheikh Mukhtar Hussain will come to collect the prize" ... U dumb MFs ... I got up the stage and the chief guest had a surprised look on his face ... I said in a low voice " I am his brother " and he was relieved.
I didn't want to go as I would meet my former teachers ... I didnt want to confront any of them ... My dad gave me his piece of mind when I said that ... so I agreed to go ...
Here's what happened ... Dads of many of the students were there to collect their sons' prizes ... What those idiot volunteers should have done ... they should have conformed before the function, whose dads or brothers are present and whose are not ... If the dad wasnt there ... they were sending proxies instead ....
It was a hilarious situation when a dad went on the stage and the prize was already given to a proxy ... lol .... this happened thrice ... so to avoid this mishap I informed them beforehand that I will be collecting the prize for Muhammad Muzammil Mukhtar ....
I was sitting among aged persons ... some of them bald ... the rest grey haired ... and obviously I was uncomfortable ... Anyway .... after a long wait which included the Principal's lame speech and some boring Qaumi Naghmay ... my turn came ...
"For Overall 1st Position in 2nd Year Pre-Eng. .... Muhammad Muzammil Mukhtar .... His father Sheikh Mukhtar Hussain will come to collect the prize" ... U dumb MFs ... I got up the stage and the chief guest had a surprised look on his face ... I said in a low voice " I am his brother " and he was relieved.
Thursday 29 January 2009
What Bad Economy Deprives You Of?
Aren't these ladies gorgeous? indeed .... But their boyfriends and husbands are so hung up due to the economic crisis surrounding them ... that they have lost interest in them ...
Read the whole story
Sunday 25 January 2009
The Problem with my Name
Its a trend in India and Pakistan to name a kid with Mohammad in the beginning.... like mine Mohammad Mustafa ... I dont know the reasons behind it... and i dont want to get into them... but i have been through a lot of troubles due to this ...
When i applied for a driver's licence i thought it will be an easy process... first i had to get a letter from my sponsor ... my dad... who is under the sponsorship of his company. It took a week. Then attach a copy of your Passport, Iqama (Resident Permit) with this document... and if u have a license of any other country attach that too.
Ok upon reaching the department who deals with this stuff "Dallah" the first thing was to fill out a form IN ARABIC .... which was taken care of by some guys for a low price. The building is huge and the cabins are marked with numbers. So number 1 was for checking that all the documents are complete and put a stamp. Number 2 was for Translating Your License i.e. if its not in Arabic and the nice guy who thought he was Justin Timberlake cuz he could speak English took 100 Riyals for this job.
Number 3 was for Medical ... I got my eyesight checked and nothing else... Thank God.. and the so called doctor wrote Mafrood Addasa meaning Glasses Necessary. Number 4 was Registration and Fee .... for first timers the fee was around 350 ... that was done.... the last window was Number 5 behind which smartly clad Shurtas (Cops) were sitting ...
My turn came ... i submitted the documents ... and just after a few moments that bearded guy murmered something... what?... Ta'deel Ism ... Change your Name ... WTF!! ... why? .... the names on your passport and iqama dont match ... my name on my iqama was starting with Mustafa .... It was those crazy Saudis own fault .... deep sigh ..
I told my dad what the problem was ... and he knew right away there is no easy solution to this...there is a position in every company here for these sort of jobs... its called Mandoob ... Its his job to get exit and re-entry visas ... renew iqamas etc. Until not long ago ... i thought "Mnadoob" was the person's name ... silly me...
so this guy called me and took me to the Jawazat (Iqama Dept), then the Investigation Dept for my Fingerprints ... then after two months of waiting the papers arrived from Ministry of Interior in Riyadh ... still there was something left to be done .. we had to give an ad in a local newspaper that I have changed my name ... for 100 riyals again .... I know these are government rules but some of them are plain rubbish.
Anyway, the papers got accepted and I went for a first try ... it was a Camry... huh... piece a' cake .. i thought ... i did everything right .... but that AH gave be "B" .... which meant i had to take 5 days classes .... which is whole another story ... i passed the final test comfortably ... and I was given a date to come and collect my license.
I complied ... it was like surmounting an Everest ... and i was glad its over .... when i received my licence it read (read carefully):
Name: MUHAMMAD MUSTAF MUKHTAR HUSSAIN
Friday 23 January 2009
Wednesday 14 January 2009
An Easy Way to Get $ 250,000 !!
All you have to do is find a prime number with 1 billion digits. Piece of cake isn't it...
The prime number mystery has had many scientists and mathematicians scratching their heads for a long time now. The largest known prime number today is 243,112,609-1 with nearly 13 million digits. Printing out all 13 million digits in 12-point type would create a number 30 miles long!! It makes the number of atoms in the known universe seem negligible, a mere 80 digits!!
The Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search, or GIMPS, a computing project that uses volunteers’ computers to hunt for primes, found the prime. It has claimed a $100,000 prize from the Electronic Frontier Foundation for being the first to find a prime number that has more than 10 million digits.
Its really weird no that till now the greatest minds in the world have not figured out a way how the prime numbers are distributed or an effective way to find the primality of any given number. The most obvious way to go about identifying any prime number is to try factoring it. First, try dividing by 3, then 5, then 7, etc., and if none of them work, you’ve got a prime. But the last time a new prime was identified this way was in 1588, because as the numbers get bigger, the division takes longer and longer. So mathematicians have developed clever tests for primeness that are simpler to compute. The best one of all, called the Lucas-Lehmer test, only works for Mersenne primes. Remarkably, the method requires no division at all, making it extremely quick. The reason being the simple expression of Mersenne numbers .... 2n-1.
One thing is for sure the efforts for finding the largest prime number is creating new prospects in the field of cooperative, distributed computing. The only way to find these humongous numbers is by linking multiple computers together and using their combined processing power. Just to get a hint of it .... testing a billion-digit number on a single desktop computer would take it more than 500 years.
Whats the point of these endeavors ... well the most obvious contribution can be in Cryptography... so this research is of great value to secret service agencies ..... " A Beautiful Mind" flashback
Just wiki "Prime Numbers"....
The prime number mystery has had many scientists and mathematicians scratching their heads for a long time now. The largest known prime number today is 243,112,609-1 with nearly 13 million digits. Printing out all 13 million digits in 12-point type would create a number 30 miles long!! It makes the number of atoms in the known universe seem negligible, a mere 80 digits!!
The Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search, or GIMPS, a computing project that uses volunteers’ computers to hunt for primes, found the prime. It has claimed a $100,000 prize from the Electronic Frontier Foundation for being the first to find a prime number that has more than 10 million digits.
Its really weird no that till now the greatest minds in the world have not figured out a way how the prime numbers are distributed or an effective way to find the primality of any given number. The most obvious way to go about identifying any prime number is to try factoring it. First, try dividing by 3, then 5, then 7, etc., and if none of them work, you’ve got a prime. But the last time a new prime was identified this way was in 1588, because as the numbers get bigger, the division takes longer and longer. So mathematicians have developed clever tests for primeness that are simpler to compute. The best one of all, called the Lucas-Lehmer test, only works for Mersenne primes. Remarkably, the method requires no division at all, making it extremely quick. The reason being the simple expression of Mersenne numbers .... 2n-1.
One thing is for sure the efforts for finding the largest prime number is creating new prospects in the field of cooperative, distributed computing. The only way to find these humongous numbers is by linking multiple computers together and using their combined processing power. Just to get a hint of it .... testing a billion-digit number on a single desktop computer would take it more than 500 years.
Whats the point of these endeavors ... well the most obvious contribution can be in Cryptography... so this research is of great value to secret service agencies ..... " A Beautiful Mind" flashback
Just wiki "Prime Numbers"....
Sunday 11 January 2009
Click and Clack ...The Tappet Brothers
I have been trying to add a podcast on my blog for this great radio show... its called Cartalk and it airs on the american station National Public Radio... without any success yet.The hosts are two brothers from Boston ... Tom and Ray Magliozzi ... they just crack me up ... its not always about laughs ... u learn a lot too but the problem is ...you can only listen to their weekly show ... check it out..
Enjoy.. and if someone can tell me how to add the podcast ... i'll be really grateful.
It says to copy and paste this URL into a podcasting tool: http://www.npr.org/rss/podcast.php?id=510208 .. do i need a widget or sumthin .. i dont know ... new to this stuff..
Wednesday 7 January 2009
'AL BAIK' Naam hi Kafi Hai !
1 extra thoom (garlic sauce) please .....
This is my line whenever I receive my take-out order, u just cant get enough of it. If you are dining in you can have as many as you want. And now they have introduced a cocktail sauce for shrimp orders ... have u tried it yet? its awesome..
Of the major cities in Saudi Arabia only Jeddah has been blessed with this gift. Sometimes I wonder what have we (the Jeddans) done, to deserve it.... and the CEO of this food chain company Mr Rami Abu Ghazaleh does not intend to launch any branch other than these few Western Region cities... its gives me a strange joy to know this....
I can say with utmost certainty that Al Baik serves the best (yet economical) spicy fried chicken in the world. You will see the elite class and the labor class standing in a single line for the order.
and the kids... its normal to see few tables occupied by 5 to 12 year olds ... how often do you see that .... The price is only one of the allurements which Al Baik provides....
For instance... well... the omnipresence !.... you cannot drive in the city for .. i would say 10 minutes ... without glancing at one of its outlets. There is one on Tahlia St, beside which there is a KFC .... and u can prominently see the difference ... I have seen hardly more than two people there whenever I have passed by.... why is KFC even operating in Jeddah !!
Talk about fast food .... Your number will come within 15 minutes even if there are 40 people ahead of you .. 38 to be precise ... so on average 2.53 customers get served per minute.... isn't that something .... its just a great spectacle to watch those Bengalis maneuver their hands and arms so fast at work .. it reminds you of those kids building cup pyramids in a flash.
Then there is the aroma.... you can just fall in love with it... it will seduce you like a sensuous evil lady... I call it evil cuz .... u have to admit it ... it does not save you from getting obese ... its all cholestrol man! ...
It is one of those things you will severely miss when you're abroad, honestly. I can go on and on.... but I should stop here lest you take me for a marketing rep of Al Baik, not that it needs any.
This is my line whenever I receive my take-out order, u just cant get enough of it. If you are dining in you can have as many as you want. And now they have introduced a cocktail sauce for shrimp orders ... have u tried it yet? its awesome..
Of the major cities in Saudi Arabia only Jeddah has been blessed with this gift. Sometimes I wonder what have we (the Jeddans) done, to deserve it.... and the CEO of this food chain company Mr Rami Abu Ghazaleh does not intend to launch any branch other than these few Western Region cities... its gives me a strange joy to know this....
I can say with utmost certainty that Al Baik serves the best (yet economical) spicy fried chicken in the world. You will see the elite class and the labor class standing in a single line for the order.
and the kids... its normal to see few tables occupied by 5 to 12 year olds ... how often do you see that .... The price is only one of the allurements which Al Baik provides....
For instance... well... the omnipresence !.... you cannot drive in the city for .. i would say 10 minutes ... without glancing at one of its outlets. There is one on Tahlia St, beside which there is a KFC .... and u can prominently see the difference ... I have seen hardly more than two people there whenever I have passed by.... why is KFC even operating in Jeddah !!
Talk about fast food .... Your number will come within 15 minutes even if there are 40 people ahead of you .. 38 to be precise ... so on average 2.53 customers get served per minute.... isn't that something .... its just a great spectacle to watch those Bengalis maneuver their hands and arms so fast at work .. it reminds you of those kids building cup pyramids in a flash.
Then there is the aroma.... you can just fall in love with it... it will seduce you like a sensuous evil lady... I call it evil cuz .... u have to admit it ... it does not save you from getting obese ... its all cholestrol man! ...
It is one of those things you will severely miss when you're abroad, honestly. I can go on and on.... but I should stop here lest you take me for a marketing rep of Al Baik, not that it needs any.
Sunday 4 January 2009
Bitch of a Commute !!!
The title says it all! ...... Today while returning from work a thought hit me "I have been traveling a lot since i got employed" .... after a few moments of pondering and with the help of my mobile calculator I realized, I have traveled the same distance (in the last 8.5 months) as the length of the Equator.
Yeah, thats right ..... but "Equator" is not supposed to raise your eyebrows.... as most of us have covered this distance by now..... point to be noted is.... the period of 8.5 months. You can see for yourself:
a.) Its 100 km from Jeddah to Thuwal (the project site). I have referred to this fact in both my posts.
b.) We have one day as a weekend.
c.) I started this project work in April. Take out two weeks of Eid Holidays which were officially only 4 days in total, 2 days each.
Do the Math!
and btw the equator measures 40,075 km.
Yeah, thats right ..... but "Equator" is not supposed to raise your eyebrows.... as most of us have covered this distance by now..... point to be noted is.... the period of 8.5 months. You can see for yourself:
a.) Its 100 km from Jeddah to Thuwal (the project site). I have referred to this fact in both my posts.
b.) We have one day as a weekend.
c.) I started this project work in April. Take out two weeks of Eid Holidays which were officially only 4 days in total, 2 days each.
Do the Math!
and btw the equator measures 40,075 km.
Saturday 3 January 2009
Her Name is Jameela
Jameela is arabic for Beautiful, but trust me the name does not do justice to her grandeur.
On my first day at work, I met this girl. She was in the same department and she helped me in the administrative issues during the initial stages.... she and that eye candy from HR. In fact I was surprised to see two females in the office at the same time... and I thought .. wow this place is filled with chics. It turns out they were the ONLY two in that whole building. If you are a Saudi resident, you will precisely know my feelings.
So, Jameela was different from the majority of Saudi girls, not at all conservative, very amiable with everyone. She used to come my desk to chat and sometimes joke about the Indian colleagues.. I always took her side.. We came to know each other very well and started sharing a lot together...by a lot i mean our thoughts and her candies... man i loved them.... as u all know i am not an ace in interacting with females... hell i am not even close to being an ace...but this was going fine.
Then after a month I started to visit the project site and I would go back and forth b/w the main office in Jeddah and the site 100 km from Jeddah.. and now I am permanently assigned for the site. This was during June . It was during one of these sultry days.... I had come from the site and reported to my head but I had not realized something which I was about to... Chutti time and I got into the elevator and guess who comes in after me .... yes
and now we were the only two persons in the elevator heading to the ground floor. The doors closed and I was about to start a conversation when she said: "You Look Miserable". Those were her exact words. It was like a slap on the face ... only more painful. She continued: "Is it the Site?" then I understood her tone, it was out of sympathy. I slowly nodded my head. It was hot as hell that day, the scorching sunlight and the sandstorm at the site had completely disfigured me. I hadn't had a single moment for myself .. didn't even have lunch and the long journey .... just sum that all up and the picture will paint itself.
Anyway, the endless journey from 3rd floor to the ground floor ended and we got out . " See ya" "Bye" and she got into her Mercedes with her Sri Lankan driver (lucky bastard).
Moral: Have a mirror with you at all times.
On my first day at work, I met this girl. She was in the same department and she helped me in the administrative issues during the initial stages.... she and that eye candy from HR. In fact I was surprised to see two females in the office at the same time... and I thought .. wow this place is filled with chics. It turns out they were the ONLY two in that whole building. If you are a Saudi resident, you will precisely know my feelings.
So, Jameela was different from the majority of Saudi girls, not at all conservative, very amiable with everyone. She used to come my desk to chat and sometimes joke about the Indian colleagues.. I always took her side.. We came to know each other very well and started sharing a lot together...by a lot i mean our thoughts and her candies... man i loved them.... as u all know i am not an ace in interacting with females... hell i am not even close to being an ace...but this was going fine.
Then after a month I started to visit the project site and I would go back and forth b/w the main office in Jeddah and the site 100 km from Jeddah.. and now I am permanently assigned for the site. This was during June . It was during one of these sultry days.... I had come from the site and reported to my head but I had not realized something which I was about to... Chutti time and I got into the elevator and guess who comes in after me .... yes
and now we were the only two persons in the elevator heading to the ground floor. The doors closed and I was about to start a conversation when she said: "You Look Miserable". Those were her exact words. It was like a slap on the face ... only more painful. She continued: "Is it the Site?" then I understood her tone, it was out of sympathy. I slowly nodded my head. It was hot as hell that day, the scorching sunlight and the sandstorm at the site had completely disfigured me. I hadn't had a single moment for myself .. didn't even have lunch and the long journey .... just sum that all up and the picture will paint itself.
Anyway, the endless journey from 3rd floor to the ground floor ended and we got out . " See ya" "Bye" and she got into her Mercedes with her Sri Lankan driver (lucky bastard).
Moral: Have a mirror with you at all times.
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