A bouquet of flowers has been a traditional gift since time immemorial but over the years individual flowers have acquired meanings of their own. It is important that you should have at least a nodding acquaintance with the language of flowers to ensure that your gift does not convey an unintended message. To complicate matters […]
Why a Gift Of Flowers May Have Unintended Consequences
If you love gardening but just don’t have the time for traditional gardening practices, a rock garden might be for you. Rock gardens cut down on water usage and make for a great enhancement in areas where nothing can grow anyways. This is an excellent way to add a beautiful feature to your yard while […]
How to Practice Xeriscaping with a Rock Garden
PaPa. My maternal grandfather. We were on one of our rambles when “Prop Me Up Beside The Jukebox When I Die” came on the radio. He laughed and said, “I want this song played at my funeral.”
Well, PaPa, I wasn’t allowed in on the planning of your funeral, since I’m the black sheep of the family, but every time I hear it, I smile and think of you. I’m writing about our escapades, PaPa. I’ll see you all again. Until then, tell me bout the good ole days.
Study nature, love nature, stay close to nature, it will never fail you.
Thoughtful Thursday
Good morning everyone, I’m back on the rightly scheduled blog day! Hope you’re all doing ok, I sadly can’t say the same for my family and I, as the cream I was given to help my ankle caused a reaction to my skin and made my foot go weird, so I’m going to have to […]
Hot Cross Buns
Has your writing ever blindsided you? Have your characters ever caught you off guard by saying or doing something clever or revealing a bit…
Do You Blindside Yourself With Your Writing? If Not, Why Not?
My family lived in Dubai in the 1970’s, when employees willing to move there received an additional wage called “hardship pay.”
Sheikh Rashid Bin Said Al Makhtoum was the benevolent ruler who only had one wife, by choice. He was wise in his dealings and generous to our Girl Scout Troop, allowing us to ride horses from his stables.
Jumeirah Beach was a lovely stretch of beach where our company hosted “seafood bawls,” a Louisiana cuisine staple. Shrimp, crabs, potatoes, onions and corn on the cob were boiled in huge pots. Newspaper was spread on makeshift tables made from planks of plywood on sawhorses, and the feast was piled on the newspaper.
We, the “younguns” would venture away from the lights around the tables to explore abandoned buildings, now only foundations. We heard nothing but the wind and waves as they lapped the beach. Oh, and our laughter, filled the night as we played.
New Dubai is a parody, a facade, truly castles and industries built on the sands of an artificial playground. Nothing left of the once beautiful and old world charm. It saddens me, because I see behind the mask.
If you read the news, you know how even wives and daughters of the rulers of Dubai are treated. How those of the servant class are treated, virtually slaves. Glamor on display, but squalor and degradation behind the glitz and glamor.
I mourn the “hardship” of my Dubai. It was home to me and this new Dubai is a transient place with a false face.
Khawaga Kid 
