I survived Dallas!

Hey there guys!! It has been a while since I posted, but I'm back! As most of you know I went to Dallas for a couple weeks between phases of work and it was a trip very much needed indeed. Things at work had gotten a little stressful and truth be known, I had gotten 'senioritis' the last week I was in Dubai. There is something about knowing you're going home after 2 months, anticipating the hugs and kisses from your dog, the pleasure and comfort of your own bed and bath - not to mention, being able to drive your own car (btw, have I mentioned that I LOVE LOVE LOVE my truck???) that makes everything else seem so unimportant and downright miserable.

And so it went. My flight back to Dallas started at 2:55am Thursday morning and I was flying British Airways & American Airlines via London and Chicago. The flight home was pretty uneventful. I will say, however, that I quickly learned that American Airlines has really lost it's touch. OH - and as I had mentioned previously, flying Business or First is definitely the only way to go because Coach SUCKS!!!!!!!!! Not too bad in British Airways, but American - holy cow. It really makes you miss the days of 'More Room in Coach'...sheesh.

I was met at the airport by my BFFs Dennis and Christopher and then met at my house by Oscar with Armand. I really can't explain the feeling of being home. It was so comforting and really felt like I hadn't missed a beat, though I'd been gone for 2 months.

So, the first major event was the St. Patrick's Day parade that Saturday. Some friends organized for us to enter a float in the parade. My friend Michelle (a.k.a Nancy K.) orchestrated the who affair. This is her in the middle of our float.

Bascially we draped a trailer, armed it with hooks for our beads, loaded the keg and DJ and prepared ourselves for a great time! and it was a blast!! Let me tell you, though, it is HARD WORK tossing beads to people. Especially since the parade wasn't moving all that slow and being the kinda guy I am, I wanted to make sure as many people got beads as possible. By the end of the route, my arm was exhausted and my arms and hands were inked from the paint on the beads. Nasty. There were definitely some good lessons learned from this experience. 1) Sunscreen is a must. 2) We need bigger speakers for the DJ. 3) Hand sanitizer or some other method of cleansing is needed. 4) MORE BEADS!!

Hear are Chritopher, Dennis and me at the beginning of the parade.

and this is what happens if you take a man's boa that was gifted to him by a drunk chick...That was right after the parade ended and we headed down to Greenville Ave for the block party. That's about where the pictures stopped. It was time for drinking green beer and catching up with friends.

So, all is fun the first few days - then it turns. Not too horrible, but I began to understand why it is so important to have a 'repatriazation' plan for yourself. Though I was gone for two short months, the truth was that I was gone and living in a different country halfway across the earth. If I experienced culture shock upon arriving in the UAE, there was definitely a culture shock in returning to the US. Hard to explain what I went through for a couple of days, but it was almost like I was lost in some limbo. I knew that I was home, but I also knew I was going to be leaving soon. So, I threw myself a little pitty part for about a day, then shook it off. Oh well, just another day in the life of my emotional rollercoasters.

The next big event during my holiday in Dallas was my buddy Jeff's birthday dinner. His wife, Leslie, organized a very elaborate surprise sit down dinner at their house with celebrity chef Tre Wilcox. If you're a fan of Top Chef, he was a cast member on that show. People from Dallas might recognize him as a chef at Abacus. While planning it, Leslie thought why stop at a seven course sit down dinner when Tre can teach us a few things about cooking. So, a cooking class was added. What an amazing evening. We watched on as Tre taught us about cooking an Aged New York Strip and some Scallops. Yummy food, and even better were some key tips on cooking steak and seafood. The dinner itself was amazing. 7 courses, all paired with wine. I can't remember everything, but the menu included things like Lobster, Skatewing (which is part of a stingray) Rabbit (not a fan), Ostrich and sealed with Pana Cotta. Truly a treat and so fun to have a 5 star restaurant quality meal prepared in the comfort of a friend's house! Here are Tre and myself at the end of the evening. Stylish as he is, he opted out of the white chef's coat and sported a clever tee.

My trip home was filled with quality time with loved ones and new friends. Unfortunately, my family could not make it up to Dallas because of a horrible storm.

So, now back in Dubai and trying to settle into a routin again. I did not work out a single day the two weeks I was in Dallas and it shows. Therefore, my butt has been in the gym and I have bought a few sessions with a trainer here at the hotel. Let's see if I can get back to the shape I was in before coming out here to this desert wonderland.

Until then, I hope to conitnue my postings on a regular basis - so check back with me. Oh and LEAVE A FREAKIN' MESSAGE IF YOU'RE HERE!!! It's nice to hear from people. :)

Take care of yourself and each other!!

Low key....phew

Hey guys!!! Sorry I am a bit late with the post this week - it's been kinda crazy from work perspective. We are close to closing out the first phase of work and in a mad scramble to produce everything we need to, while managing client expectations AND sell our next phase of work so I can come back out here at the end of March. It has been a very interesting and challenging experience.

If you have ever taken a leadership course or read up on Organizational Change Management or teambuilding - you may know there are phases to building a team. I'm not gonna go into too much detail, but the phases pretty much explain themselves.... Forming -> Storming -> Norming -> Performing. While we are starting to develop plans for our client to understand these phases and manage appropriate...our internal team is experiencing the same. Quite an experience to be implementing something you are trying to manage yourself. Luckily, we all recognize the challenge and react appropriately. In case you're wondering, we are in the Storming phase. :)

A friend told me, before coming out here, that I needed to be aware of the fourth week. That I would have to keep an eye out for my team at around that time because it's when the stress from being far from home sets in. Luckily, my team went home at the end of week 4 for a short break. Now, it was the 5th week that did ME in. Last week was a little rough for me in the transition from being away from home. I suppose the novelty of being in 'DUBAI' wore off and I started feeling the growing pains of settling in to a new way of life. While I am living in this amazing hotel, it's not home. While I've met new people, they're still not 'friends'. Let's not even talk about the dating. Thankfully, I was able to push through the rough week and am feeling alot better now!!

Anyhoo.....after five weeks of sightseeing and taking in the city, I really wanted to just relax and be a little braindead this weekend. Somewhat accomplished that goal. Co-workers and I went back to Bhari Bar on Thursday and stayed entirely too late!! That made Friday a bit of a lost day. However, that eveing we went out to the Dubai Jazz Festival to see David Gray. Altough, I wasn't too familiar with his music for the exception of 'Babylon' it was a pretty good concert! He has AMAZING energy during his performance. Unfortunately, we got there a little too late and had to stand in the aisle. There was this fuckwit of a couple standing right in front of me that were quite cocktailed and had no concept of space. They kept bumping into me - it was quite annoying! Despite that, it was a good time.

It took place in the outdoor venue at Media City. It was a beautiful evening, though a little windy and cool.

Camel statue. Apparently, lots of major cities have these. Dallas has unicorns, Chicago has cows (I think), Dubai has camels. :)

The crowd at the concert....

Pretty poor quality photo - but there's David! I would totally see him in concert again....in a seat....away from fuckwit drunks......or at least a little cocktailed myself!!

Alright kiddos! Until next time....