Guess Who Stinks at Blogging?! (AKA, Time to Make the Goals Public)

Meeeeeeee!   I can't decide what my problem is either.  Mostly I wrestle with how my thoughts will sound in writing, whether or not what I have to say is of any interest at all, and whether or not my opinions and observations have any truth to them.  All of these things add up to me not posting.  For two months.  Of the ten months that I am here . . . sigh.

I had to remind myself of why I wanted this blog in the first place -  I want to remember our time here and I want something to refresh the thoughts, feelings, and experiences that we are having while we are here.  So far, I have gotten all caught up in the "right" things to post or the "fun" things to post and I have let the perfectionist in me keep me from posting.  No more.  This year is about getting over some of my hangups, some of the things that keep me from doing things that I really want to do.

I'll get back to a lot of the experiences that we have had thus far, including travels and touring our new country.  For now, I need a (public) place to keep track of my goals while I am here.  You'll see why in a minute.  Note: I wrote these goals well before we got to Bahrain without any idea of their feasibility.  Let's see how how this is all going so far . . .  

1 - BLOG about our time here.  There.  There's why I need the public accountability.  It's freaking goal number one and I stink at it so far.  Accountability will keep me on it, and thank you to Dana B, Dana N, Lynnie, and Justin for asking about it so far.   Your asking has kept it in the forefront of my mind, even when I wanted to run away.

2 - GRAD SCHOOL decision before Christmas.  Since my junior year of college, I have known that I would like to attend grad school - I just knew that I could learn more and do more with further education.  But what degree? And where?  And WHEN?  Timing and family and a million other excuses have gotten in the way, but the desire remains.

3 - VOLUNTEER somewhere in Bahrain.  My days have the potential to consist of: open mornings, remote work for my org in D.C. in the afternoons, and family time in the evenings.  I need those mornings to be more than a free-for-all and I need a social aspect to life while I am here.  Still working on this one.

4 - Learn basics of ARABIC.  Unless I sign up for an Arabic class, this one is going down the tubes.  Everyone here speaks English, and if they don't it's probably because they speak Indian or Filipino. This may morph more into "Learn about Islam" because being here and experiencing life in an Islamic State, especially as a Christian, is fascinating.

My Google Sign-in might be in Arabic, but that does NOT mean I know what it says!

5 - EXERCISE every day, including learning Yoga and running, with a goal of the Army 10-miler in D.C. when I get home.  THERE, I SAID IT.  These are big goals for me.  I have been gifted three extra hours per day (no commute = +2 hours, and no lunch break = +1 hour.  PER DAY.).  The "I don't have time to exercise" excuse has officially been wiped off the board this year.  The goal has changed to working out every weekday and it's going okay so far!  I just started the Yoga piece; I have always wanted to learn.  So far I have been jogging (I think it's pronounced with a soft "j" especially at the pace I go) in our gym in the apartment building because it's still so hot outside.  I can do better.  I need to push myself out of the comfort zone on this one.  

6 - Learn GUITAR.  Love music.  Love a portable instrument.  Had a guitar shipped ALL THE WAY to Bahrain, so I better learn!

7 - Learn to make MOZZARELLA.  Because - cheese.

8 - WATCH The Wire.  You know - The HBO tv show based in Baltimore?  So many people have told me how great it is.  I thought this would be a great goal for when we had to stay in Saudi for almost a month to get our residency.  Luckily for me (but not for this goal), Saudi changed their processes and our stay there was a mere four days.   Sooo . . . this one may get trashed.  But I still want to watch that show.

9 - Finish the HARRY POTTER series and watch the movies.  Dork alert!  I never finished the books.  Got halfway through book 4 (I know, I know . . . that's when they start getting really good!) and I refuse to see the movies until I have read all of the books because I like my imagination to do the work of creating the scenes.  Such a dork.  This is one thing that I am doing well on because I got them all loaded in my Kindle, I have mornings free, and I have a pool that is quiet and delightful in the morning.  :)

See - you'd be reading a lot too if this was waiting for you.

10 - Pick up the PHONE more often and connect with friends and family.  I hate to end with a fail so far, but . . . FAIL.  In my defense, the time difference is not helping anything here.  But in all honesty, there are no worthy excuses on this one.  I love each and every one of my family members a TON and I have some friends that I love as dearly as family and the fact of the matter is that I do not tell them often enough just how much I love them and just how much they (YOU) each mean to me.  Somehow I think this should be moved to goal number one.

First Impressions

What a great first few days we've had here!  So far (and mind you, we are three days in at this point), this transition has been wildly easy.  This is almost entirely due to the fact that my wonderful Rocky has been in Bahrain for months already and has done a wonderful job setting everything up, easing so many of my worries leading up to the move and making my first days here QUITE relaxing.  :) So THANK YOU, my dear Rocky.  <3

Our travel was easy.  Long, but easy.  Good flights, one layover in Turkey (during which I did NOT get to experience the amazing Turkish Airlines lounge (but thanks for the recommendation, Jeremy and Hilary!)), babies crying the whole way from Istanbul to Bahrain, but whatever.  I was almost too tired to care.  Almost. Derek gave step by step directions for what to expect in the Bahrain airport, so we were all set.  We met Derek outside of arrivals and stepped out into the sauna that is my new home.

For 2:00 a.m. and 21 hours of travel, I say not bad.  ;)

Let's document and discuss my first impressions of Bahrain, then.  I'm curious to see how these impressions will be validated or dismissed over time.  Basically, the three items that I have talked about leading up to this trip were the weather, culture, and safety.  

So yeah - the heat.  It's not pleasant here in the summer.  My pale German/Irish skin feels like it is frying when exposed to the sun, so I try not to do that at all.  I just cover up when it's sunny, and it is always sunny.  Right now it's in the noon hour and the temps are 100 F, with a heat index of 131 F with the humidity.  They say humidity, but if you have felt Washington, DC, humidity at all, this is not humid.  This pales in comparison.  The heat index does tell the true story, though, that this is not a dry heat.  There is definitely humidity that keeps this place feeling somewhere between a sauna and a steam room.  WHEW!

I say it's not as humid as DC, but this is the temp at 10:30 p.m.  I may eat my words.

Culturally, I think that Bahrain is unique as compared with other Middle Eastern countries.  It really is an island of half Bahrani people, half ex-patriots from Britain, India, and the US.  When taken into consideration, then, I am immediately different from half of the women here in that I do not wear an abaya or hijab (I found this article most helpful in understanding Muslim women's wear).  But I do not stand out as compared to the other half of the population.  It probably helps that we live near the US Naval Base and consulate, too, so my first impressions have a heavy dose of Western culture taken into consideration. 

 Al-Fateh Grand Mosque (near our home)

View of Manama from our neighborhood

Which brings us to the safety in Bahrain.  I feel totally fine here.  It's an urban area, so I have my city-girl wits about me, but besides that, I do not feel concerned for my/our safety at all.  When we first arrived, it was 2:00 a.m. on a weekend night, so there was a large police presence on the streets; again - no different than any urban area.  In all of my reading ahead of arriving, crime rates were reportedly low and I believe that.  We'll see how more experiences shape this belief, as we have not yet been out and about much, but I am (of course!) optimistic.  

First impression remains the same as my attitude coming into this: we're going to learn a lot, sweat a lot, and have one amazing year.  

A Year in Bahrain

Our flight leaves today.  TODAY. Ashton and I will join Derek in Bahrain for one year. I didn't even *really* know where Bahrain was before this. Middle East? Yes. It's small? Sure. Anything more than that? Nope. Not a chance. 

I've learned so much since we made the decision in March. Really, my learning started when Derek was offered the job one year ago. A two year work assignment in Saudi Arabia (SA). 

It took from August to November in 2014 to prep everything for Derek to move, during which we learned that he could live in Bahrain and commute to Saudi Arabia each day. (Fact #1 - Bahrain is an island that connects to Saudi Arabia via a 16-mile-long bridge called the King Fahd Causeway.) The more we learned about Bahrain and the differences between it and SA, the more we knew that Ashton and I would want to spend some time there. Some time was originally a summer, though. Until we learned Fact #2 - Bahrain feels like 120 F AND is humid all summer long. Not an ideal time to visit. As they do, circumstances and life kept changing, and in March, Derek and I came to the same conclusion at one. We should change our timeline to visit, and it should be a whole school year, shouldn't it?

And thus, my free time vanished. Two things needed to happen: I needed to visit as many people as possible - saying yes to each experience I was offered, and I needed to find a therapist to help me process the change and transition while solo-parenting (lest I lose my freaking mind). Both happened, and I am very proud of this. I did not hide in my house and obsess over everything going perfectly (it never does anyway). I calmed down and worked each day toward the move. Craigslist, packing, dinners with local friends, Goodwill donations, travels to see family and friends, therapy, and more packing all became regular, weekly things from April until move-out-of-DC-day on August 6. 

And here I am. We leave Chicago today. I have a list of goals for the next year. A great list - if you ask me. Ashton thinks it is way too long and unrealistic. He's probably right. I am, as the blog title indicates and as described by a former boss - unfailingly upbeat. I will always see the silver lining. I will always search for the positives and ways to grow and learn in a situation. Even the worst of situations. So the long list of goals stays. And the learning begins.

One of the goals is this blog. I hope to post something for each day that I am in Bahrain - August 2015 through June 2016. Maybe a picture, maybe a thought, maybe a quote, maybe a full out, detailed grapple with life. I'm doing this mostly for me. I so want to make the most of this experience, but at the same time, I am worried about how I will handle being away from home so long and being in a completely different culture than I have ever experienced. I want to continue to be as open and adventurous as I have lately, and I see this blog as a way to do that and process it all in a healthy way.  

I also want to have a record of our journey, both for me and for Derek and Ashton to remember too. Kid is going to college in four years. This is our family's chance to bond like crazy; we'll have this trip - just the three of us - for the rest of our lives. I love this and I want to soak up each minute. 

There's also a part of me that wants to teach others what I learn. I never thought I would end up living in the Middle East, never thought I would be immersed in a Muslim culture. But it's coming - it's pretty much here. I've had to fight and question quite a few assumptions already. I'd love it if my experiences and learning could help counter some assumptions that others have (and there are plenty of US assumptions about the Middle East and vice versa). If you're reading because you are in a place to learn along with me, I think that would be awesome.  If you're reading out of curiosity and to hear about some crazy Roberts family journeys, I think that's awesome too.  If you just check in every once in a while, I'm equally as thankful for that.  :)  Basically, if you're reading this - thank you.  I hope you enjoy, and I hope that we can keep in touch in additional ways also.

For now - I'm going to go try to stop freaking out.  Less than 12 hours until take off!