Car + Internet + Furniture = Happy Garren

I wrote this the other day, but today, I have a borrowed Land Rover Disco, all my furniture (assembled) and the Internet!!! I am so happy and so much more relaxed and settled in, it's great.

Prior to my bed arriving…I received a package from Jen the other day. One of the best things that I have ever received. There was a CD she burned for me. Lots of good beats, good lyrics, good feelings. iTunes just picked one of the songs randomly, I know every song, forever ingrained in my psyche. There have been a lot of moments like that over the last 30+ days. The moments in time that you will undoubtedly remember forever. Equal parts memory that I will most likely forget. Like this past weekend where I was basically immobilized from frustration. Patience, again, is not one of my virtues, whereas I have turned those moments into laughter, albeit quiet frustrated laughter, but laughter nonetheless.

Moments, like when I called my father on Fathers Day, it made his and my family’s day. I tear up as I even write that. My family has/is very important to me, granted it may not seem that way, but they have been a huge comfort over the years. Knowing they are always there and will always help, even when I don’t ask – that’s family. I really look forward to seeing them in December and when they come to visit. I’ve also thought a lot about my Grandpa Parker (rest in peace). It’s funny how the memories, the thoughts of the past creep in as you search for familiarity in a foreign place. He was the best, as I know my father will be to my kids and so on down the line.

I was, rather still am despite the tears, in a great mood as my bed and TV bench arrived from IKEA today. I also got the Land Rover Disco from a colleague to borrow until my R32 arrives. The Indians that assembled my bed and TV bench were good people, got in and out real fast, some good work. I’m so stoked to have a bed and not a blow up mattress…

I started writing this during halftime of the Spain v. Italy quarterfinal game of Euro 2008 and have continued on since the second half started. I watched Turkey and Croatia the other night til sometime after 2am… Lots of OJ and Absolute Mandarin later, the game was still on…went to penalty kicks for those not following. The Croatians choked, missing the goal twice and getting saved once to lose…

I also learned today that when you go faster than 120kph, a beeper goes off in your car as you have reached the speed limit on most highways, but in a VW…it never goes off…that’s not going to work for me driving to Dubai on a regular basis. I need to be going 140-160kph or else the drive becomes crazy boring. VAG-COM software should be able to cure it, just need to find someone who has one. I found a local VW group, I’ll post the question and get it resolved.

I should start the next paragraph with and I… my English teacher in high school would be proud!!! I, there I go again, have to say that when the low is 30 (80ish) degrees, its not really low. Jen has tracked the lows here and the highs in PDX and they finally meet the other day. How fucking crazy is that?

Apple TV, anyone have one? I’m thinking I will order one so I can get HDish resolution for my high zoot 1080p TV I bought. Stupid, prolly, but whatever. It’s the Abu Dhabi way to do it in excess. There are HD satellite stations, but I don’t think I have a dish that will get those. I just want English really. I saw The Hulk the other day, it was good, but even better was the fact that I heard English for two hours straight. Undeniably, the best thing about the movie. Only appreciated in a foreign country. It’s not that Arabic and Indian and Pakistani is annoying, its just not my native tongue or in my language packet (Spanish and English). Shit, I would like to get a Spanish channel even! Again, I am stretching for anything remotely familiar.

At any rate, my flat is becoming familiar, and my borrow Rover will do wonders for my freedom. I plan to get a membership at the Officers Club and start swimming. Maybe even start running again and some biking.

Man, the Spaniards are a bunch of mariposas…diving all over the place in the game. Especially David Sevilla, skirt boy. Fabregas has not been a factor either.

I’ve been without internet for over a week now, not liking the discounted feeling. It’s be one thing if work allowed more access to gmail, etc, but it doesn’t, it crashes a lot and I don’t get a whole lot done before it does.