Last Friday, while riding home in the car with Jim, I said, "Do you have one of those toothpick-floss sticks? I've got to get the camel out of my teeth."
Truly.
So, here's the backstory. We spent a few hours at a private, walled beach spot. The importance of the two adjectives "private" and "walled" can not be over emphasized because they mean "abaya-free-zone!" We were with a local guy who works with Jim. This guy and his friend are fixing up this plot of land and we got to enjoy a few hours in his tent by the beach. Of course, this tent is a modernized bedouin tent, complete with windows and air conditioning units!
This is the second time we've spent extended time with this man. I value these times so much because he's really the only male from this country with whom I've had a conversation. He's a very open-minded-patriotic-and-proud kind of guy ... very devoted to the religion but not devout. Does that make sense? He supports and believes in his country and his religion but he thinks the rules have gone too far. So it's great fun to pick his brain and get into discussions on a full range of topics. Because he's single, the topic of women comes up fairly regularly! Jim's trying to impress upon him the joys and benefits of being a one-woman-guy for life. Jim is not succeeding.
While we were there, two significant things happened. Number One: the king made a speech. It was quite a privilege to hear the speech with someone who could translate it and explain it at the same time. The nuances were enlightening. I'm impressed with how this king, as opposed to the one next door, knows his people and tries to take care of them. Yes, he wants his family to remain in power (what leader doesn't like the power, actually!?), but he truly wants to make his country the best it can be. It is, after all, the only country in the world that bears the name of the ruling family. So, I guess you could say that his name is truly at stake!
You've probably all read the news about what the king's speech involved but here it is in a nutshell -- huge pay raises for all government employees (which affects the majority of the population), a significant raise in minimum wage (from 2,000 to 3,000/month ... bringing it to about $800), money to the unemployed (I think that's a first), massive numbers of free land and homes, ... The most brilliant of all items listed was this: anyone who inflates prices to take advantage of this boom in the housing market, etc. will have their name posted on TV, etc. ... pretty clever, aye?
The second significant thing that happened? I'll let the photos do the talking ...
My first moments of meeting dear Sage!
