Kleine Siegen

This week's small victories are brought to you by perseverance, for without it, 95% of things would never get done...

1. After six weeks of cold showers, not shaving, and boiling water to do my dishes, I finally have a new hot water heater! I may have slightly burned my back in the shower while trying to adjust to the new temp adjustments, but it now doesn't take me nearly an hour to do dishes!

2. Employees (both security and clerks) are SUPER friendly at the American Consulate in Dhahran. What I thought was going to be an agonizing 90-minute wait turned out to be a quick 30-minute visit. Also, a loose cotton hijab provides good air conditioning while standing under a sun shield with hot wind at one's back (it was 43 degrees C in the shade!). Clearly, this weather is not for white folks from the Midwest.

3. Return of the pool! Now that the weather is averaging upper low 40s during the day and mid to upper 30s at night, it's time for night swimming. My new swim cap from Sand and Sun works very well. The kickboard that I bought months ago has held superbly, even in storage. Thanks to Lonely Island's "I'm on a Boat" song, all I can think of when I get ready for swimming is the lyric line, "I got my flippy floppies!"

4. Despite horrid sandstorms this week, I'm grateful that my students, colleagues, and I have been able to keep safe on the roads. Thank you, vigilant drivers!