Living in the Middle East, Again!

Hey!  I am going through my list of blogs that I have not completed.  Each one reminds me of a moment where I thought of something great to write, but then lost steam and abandoned the ideas. Sometimes I had only a title written.  At other times the first sentence points to what I was thinking. This particular blog post was started in a moment of "gasp- here I am in the Middle East again!"

After two years in Egypt (September 2008-June 2010) we thought we would never return to the warm, sandy, dry and always interesting area of the world. However, we were wrong. When teaching intermediate geography I was always curious about emigration and immigration and the factors that cause people to move.

Of course everyone's circumstances are different, but it boils down to two concepts- Push Factors and Pull Factors.  That is, what pushes us away from our present place and/or what pulls us to an new place in the world.

For me the push factors and the pull factors were one and the same.  Work!  I love teaching.  After a change in school boards in Ontario, there were no teaching jobs for me in Ontario.  I applied for work in other provinces, but again, not successfully. I finally I realized that if I wanted to work I would have to relocate.  There were teaching jobs abroad.  So there you have it, simply stated I am doing it for the satisfaction of having an enjoyable job.

My 42 kids on Day One

Self Portraits- 2B

Self Portraits- 2A

2A - Silliness on Free Dress Day

2B - How cute are they?

And yes!  I am enjoying the lifestyle in this warm place.  As the weeks turn in to months I have been assured that the daily 45 C temperatures will moderate and the winter will be quite pleasant; some say even cool!  I am looking forward to that.  And school is over in mid-June so I will have the opportunity to return home in time for my favourite Canadian season, summer,

In the meantime I will keep you up to date on the latest developments in the Middle East.

Until next time,


Bee Rich

Blog Number 3 from Kuwait!

It is the Eid break, a time that I have looked forward to for the past five weeks.  One month ago today I arrived in Kuwait and have so far survived the heat, humidity, dust, uneven sidewalks and regular call to prayer at 4:00 a.m.

In case you didn't read my first post from Kuwait, I will revisit my adventure...

On August 21 my husband and I flew to Vancouver, B.C. to begin an Alaskan cruise that truly was a trip of a lifetime.  I am still marveling at the photos taken while aboard the ship, Radiance of the Seas, the trains and the buses while touring the biggest state in the USA.  One of the highlights for me was a visit with my American cousin and his wife, who live in Ketchikan, Alaska. We had a wonderful day visiting with them touring the area and seeing where they have been living for over ten years.  I will never forget their kindness and hospitality.

My cousin and his wife

We traveled the inside channel from Ketchikan to Seward on the cruise ship, enjoying the all the amenities of our first ever big ship cruise plus the stops along the way.  It was enjoyable and very relaxing.  Upon our arrival in Seward we boarded a bus to Anchorage where we checked in to a hotel before I took off on another adventure- a teaching job in Kuwait. After 8 flights (Anchorage-Seattle-Chicago-Philadelphia-Ottawa and then Ottawa-Toronto-Istanbul-Kuwait) I arrived at 2 am on September 2, just in time to grab a few hours of sleep before teaching grade 2 children on their first day of school.

Kuwait- small green country just east of Iraq and north of Saudi Arabia

Thanks to a friend from teaching days in Egypt I enjoyed a nice packed lunch, an Internet connection after school and delivered food.  Em lives in the building next door and has been an inspiration and support person as I made the transition back into teaching.  Our weekly jaunts to the Avenues, an amazing mall here in Kuwait, have been an enjoyable way to spend Friday mornings.

Em and me at Tim Horton's

The Grand Avenues where the ceiling changes colour, right before your very eyes!

School is just like any other school.  The children are precious, smart and resilient.  There are eight sections of each grade level and I am part of a lovely team of teachers.  Each morning at 7:15 the children line up for the "morning routine" which involves greeting the deputy deputy principal in Arabic, reciting part of the Quran, singing the national anthem, raising the flag, greeting the principal in English and listening to announcements.  There is a band (drums and accordions) that accompanies the ceremony and the Boy Scouts march in and lead the entire grade 1-3 section (24 classes X 21 students) in cheers in celebration of Kuwait, the emir and the Arabian countries.

Morning routine at the school- Free Dress Day

Following morning routine the children walk in straight lines to their classrooms for the first of eight 40 minute classes a day. It is a rigorous and very busy schedule with the children taking classes in English, Science, Mathematics, Art (all in English) and PE, Music, Civics, Arabic and Religion) in Arabic.

By the end of the day students are teachers are happy to make their way home for a little rest, relaxation and sustenance before it all starts again the next day.

I must say that I am enjoying being in a classroom.  At first I was a little overwhelmed but by the second or third week I began to feel normal again and look forward to each new day.

So time is going quickly.  I look forward to the next nine days of a little bit of school work, a trip to Romania to visit my daughter and several workouts at the gym and pool.

All in all, life is good!

Until next time,

Bee Rich

Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

Two weeks ago today I wrote my first blog post from Kuwait and the time has certainly gone by quickly! I am pleased to say that all is well and I am now into an enjoyable daily routine. A typical day looks like this:

• 4:30 am- Up and going, pack lunch, make breakfast, drink coffee
• 5:30 am- Often walk to work, which takes 20-30 minutes
• 6:30 am- When walking is not possible, due to snoozing, ride the bus just 10 minutes to work
• 6:45 am- (or 6:00 am on walking days)- Sign in, check the schedule (as it changes daily!), and prepare for the day 
• 7:00 am- Head outside for duty or to meet the children
• 7:15 am- "Morning Routine" which includes prayers, singing the anthem, flag raising and listening to announcements, all while keeping 21 children in a straight line
• 7:30 am- Proceed to homeroom where 21 children then prepare for their day of 8 classes and two 20 minute recess breaks
• 7:40-8:20 am- Period 1 class
• 8:25-9:05 am- Period 2 class
• 9:10-9:30 am- Lunch and recess
• 9:35-10:15 am- Period 3 class
• 10:20-11:00 am- Period 4 class
• 11:05-11:45 am- Period 5 class
• 11:50-12:10- Snack and recess
• 12:15-12:55 pm- Period 6 class
• 1:00-1:40 pm- Period 7 class
• 1:45-2:25 pm- Period 8 class
• 2:30 pm- Dismissal
• 3:00 pm- Extra activities at school and/or a visit to the local Champions gym for a workout and swim. 

Although the timetable looks pretty straight forward it is very busy and keeps everyone on their toes. Some teachers move from room to room and children always seem to be on the move. I am fortunate to have all of my classes in one location. Like I stated before, no two days are the same, so some of the children carry their timetables on a little card around their neck!

I am truly enjoying teaching again.  The students are sweet, my co-workers are amazing and even our Back to School Night this past week was enjoyable. It has taken a little longer to settle in this year, mainly because I arrived later than most teachers, but I now believe that everything is going to be just fine.

A couple of different expectations at the school surprised me, but I understand why they have been implemented.  The first is that every teacher must "volunteer" for a minimum of 20 hours per year. Attending extracurricular activities, coaching and providing activities for the children are all counted.

The second is that all teachers are required to earn 50 points towards professional development per school year. Attending conferences, publishing articles, reading books and articles or watching peers teach are just some of the options.

The culture here is also very interesting.  Only about one-third of the population are Kuwaiti citizens. The rest of the people here are from all over the world, working in various service industries. I have met people from Egypt, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Jordan, Palestine, to name only a few.  The Kuwaiti people dress either in fancy western clothes or in the traditional Kuwaiti clothing. At school the children usually wear their uniforms, but yesterday was a "free dress" day, and I enjoyed seeing the various outfits!

I am looking forward to National Dress Day in late February when everyone dresses in traditional Kuwaiti clothing.

Until next time,

Bee Rich

Sometimes the woman's face is completely covered,
except for her eyes.

Blogging from Kuwait

     It has been almost three months since my last post.  It has been three very interesting months of job searching, course taking, Alaskan cruising and travelling!  And now I find myself gainfully employed once again teaching at an international school. 

     This blog will highlight some of the events leading up to my decision to return to teaching for the next two years.
     In May 2014 I left a job I loved which was relatively close to home. That particular situation just did not work for me, so I  immediately began the search for new employment. Like most unemployed people of a certain age, it is quite difficult to find professional work in Ontario, especially as a teacher.  I applied for several locally advertised positions from the paper, but to no avail. I decided that I really wanted to stay in Canada.

A fine place to shop and people watch- The Avenues, Kuwait City

     A friend of mine from Egypt days was teaching in north west British Columbia on a First Nations reserve.  She sounded so optimistic that I thought, "Hey why not?" and applied for several positions.  In the meantime I thought I would take an additional qualification course called Teaching First Nations, Metis and Inuit Children.  Although quite interesting and really relevant to teaching Aboriginal children in Ontario. Despite being interviewed by one school, I was not hired. By this time I was getting pretty discouraged and my husband suggested applying for overseas teaching.
     This is where my story digresses.  Everything always works out for the best because in the meantime, my husband and I were planning a celebration of our 35 years of marriage.  On July 12 we hosted approximately 50 people, family and friends for a delicious dinner. It was but one of the highlights of this past summer!

     The challenge of overseas teaching, I found out, is that school usually starts in early to mid-August. The latest that most schools start their year is in early September.  My biggest obstacle to getting hired was that we had planned an anniversary Alaskan cruise between August 22-29, compliments of our daughter.  I could not cancel that trip so I had to preface every application with, "I would like to teach at your school; however, I am not available until September 2."  That did not go over very well with most Directors.
      Fortunately, there were three schools who were open to entertaining the idea of a tardy teacher. Two were in Kuwait and one was in Taiwan.
      One day in August I read a Facebook message from a friend who teaches in Kuwait.  The school was looking for an elementary English teacher. The Director was in Canada for a holiday and looking for new staff.  I was advised to send my resume and less than a week later I was offered a position, despite my anticipated late arrival. The school paid for my flight from Anchorage, Alaska (the final Alaskan destination) to Ottawa on August 30 so that I could get home, repack suitcases and leave Ottawa on August 31. After 48 hours of travel and 9 different airports I arrived at midnight on the morning of the first day of school, September 2, which was, by the way, my husband's birthday.
      So here I am, once again in the Middle East. However, this time my husband is back home in Canada until the end of October.
      To say that the past ten days has been a blur is an understatement.  In fact I really don't know where the time has gone.  I have been learning the 42 Arabic names for the children in my classes.  I am getting used to a new culture.  I have spent extra hours at the school preparing my classroom and preparing English, Science and Art lessons.  I am one of four Grade 2 English teachers and each one of us have two classes for which we are responsible.
      And so, another school year begins.  I am thinking there will be at least one more, maybe two. I am very fortunate to have employment at this point in my life, and for that I am so very thankful.

Until next time,


Bee Rich

The Avenues, an amazing mall in Kuwait...

Another section of The Avenues...

Coffee at Tim Hortons...

With one of my favourite people!

Home sweet home away from home

One Step Forward

It is summer!  Yippee! Triathlon season is upon us. World Cup Soccer is on the television. It is the season to swim and sail and snorkel...my favourite time of year.  But I haven't been feeling that peppy lately.

On Tuesday morning this past week I decided that I HAD to get more ACTIVITY in my life.  I had purchased a good pair of Nikes when visiting my Aunt in late May and yes they called to me. "Bee Bee Bee, put us on!"  So I did and then the magic happened.

I stepped outside at 7 a.m. and walked 200 steps- not so bad I thought to myself.  I wondered if I could jog 200 steps.  And yes- I did it, thanks to those new Nikes! This pattern continued for another many sets of 200 steps walk, 200 steps jog for the next four and a half kilometers.  I was thrilled and surprisingly, not too sore the next day.

On Wednesday I forced myself to jump in the lake. Much to my surprise the water was actually quite pleasant.  I took several strokes towards the neighbour's dock and it felt not too bad.  Late June and already the water is up to 72 degrees F!

By Thursday I was able once again to walk and jog but tried a 200 step walk followed by a 500 step jog.  Not easy but I did it!

Friday came and went with a lot of outside work and another swim. Believe it or not the water felt even warmer than on Wednesday.

Saturday was spent mostly in the car driving to and from a birthday party, about two and a half hours east of here.  I started the day with a brisk 30 minute walk with the dog before being picked up by my husband.

So that brings me to today, Sunday.  There was lots of work to be done down the lake at our daughter's cottage so I happily swam down, hopped out and changed to work and then happy swam back-  It was a little tougher coming back because of the prevailing winds, but all in all a nice and relaxing way to end the week.

My goal is to gradually increase activity on a daily basis.  If I can do one aerobic type of activity every day, I am sure I will begin to feel better overall.  The ads for Nike say, Just Do It!  I hope to end each day in the coming week with a Just Did It!

Until next time,

Bee Rich

Just Do It we are admonished!

Making Progress!

I started this blog entry several weeks ago when I wasn't feeling very happy about the job situation.  I was moaning and groaning and feeling tremendous pressure to get out and get a job. The school year was (and still is) quickly coming to an end and because I left my supply teaching job in September, I was (and still am) really missing teaching and all the satisfaction of having spent a year with a specific group of children.

Adding to the unhappiness was the fact that my hubby was traveling to visit our daughter in Europe for two weeks. I had decided not to accompany him but stay home and catch up on some much needed house cleaning, job searching and down time. He will be returning this week and today I can say that I am glad I stayed home and accomplished several important jobs on my list: 

• Painting new trim- we have an almost completely finished "mudroom" entry way off the side of our house.  One of the items on the list was to fill the nail holes and seams and then paint the trim as well as paint the set of double doors for the closet. 

• Cleaning the house- after the construction the entire house was covered in a layer of fine drywall dust. This combined with an abundance of debris from not having cleaned for at least a month left our home looking pretty well dusty and dirty and ready for a clean sweep. I combined the cleaning with the purging of used items that were no longer necessary.   

• Painting the bathroom- a fresh coat of paint in the master bathroom kept me busy for one entire day.  How can such a small room take up so much time?  Perhaps it was because I was painting with a lighter colour and the walls required several coats of fresh paint.

• Cleaning up the cabin- my daughter has a log cabin just down the road from us which required a spring cleaning job.  Two half days of washing and sweeping and vacuuming has that job well under control. Did I mention that there were several families of mice living in the kitchen cupboards and in a Kleenex box?

• Visiting- It is always nice to step outside and have a visit with neighbours on our road who enjoy coffee in the morning and wine in the afternoon. We catch up on the latest news and views, swap recipes and gardening tips and enjoy said beverages. Sometimes we even share a meal together. Even more fun was the trip I took to visit with the grandchildren last weekend.  

• Writing job applications- I have applied to several local job advertisements as well as some international and Canadian teaching websites. I even got an email from an Egyptian school that may be interested in hiring me for the upcoming school year. 

• Cutting the grass- Usually I rely on my husband to start the gas lawn mower but the grass was getting much too thick so I was able to complete the job.  

• Refinishing dining room table- this is in process and would take an entire blog to explain some of the challenges.  Hoping that it turns out okay. 

• Weeding the flower beds- Just came inside from a warm afternoon in the flowers, pulling the alien plants. I love getting my hands dirty and it always looks better when it is done! 

• Laundry- It is amazing how little laundry gets dirty when there is only one of me at home.  I am sure I will have plenty to do when my husband comes home after two weeks away. 

• Cooking- not my favourite past time, but since I still have to eat, I have been trying out some new recipes.  Today is chicken soup with rice. Earlier this week I baked a banana bread and yesterday hosted a barbecue. Unfortunately the barbecue ran out of gas even before the burgers were on.  I guess I hosted a broil! 

We look forward to two events this summer. To celebrate our upcoming anniversary we are hosting a party in mid-July. I just know the next few weeks will be full just getting ready for that. In August we are flying to Vancouver as a first stop on our Alaskan cruise. This is one trip that we have looked forward to for many years. I am thankful to our daughter who has given such a wonderful gift.  Before you know it it will be school time again and hopefully by then I will be once again teaching.   

There are no pictures to document my jobs from the past two weeks because my husband has our camera.  Hopefully next time I will include some good shots!

Until next time,


Bee Rich

PS  I am passing on this blessing to readers everywhere...

Taking it Easy...

On May 20, 2014 I was dismissed without cause from a job that I truly loved. Since that date I have gone through the stages of grieving...

Sometimes it just takes time

Not sure if I really had a chance for denial.  It was what it was and I suspected it was coming so my denial, if it happened at all, was very brief.

However, I do remember my immediate feeling of anger.  I was angry at myself and the situation. To be quite honest I sometimes still feel angry, especially at myself for allowing the situation to become as complicated as it became.

I bargained for awhile, thinking that I should get another chance, a better severance or at least a going away party....

Then it was the depression...the feelings of hopelessness, serious self-doubt, self-pity, despair....

But finally, now almost three weeks later, I am beginning the final stage of grief, that is acceptance. Ah yes the old These things happen for a reason reasoning. While I haven't yet discovered the reason for this thing happening I have been able to experience the consequences of not working 40 or 50 or even 60 hours a week and there are many.

Things to Do Instead of Working

1. Spend a few days with my aunt in upstate New York and meet up with cousins, cousin-in-law and cousins once removed
2. Apply for a new passport
3. Help build a new deck with my husband
4. Spend a few days at my son's home and visit with my two adorable grandchildren
5. Garden
6. Shop for paint and painting equipment
7. Paint the walls in our new mudroom
8. Shop for running shoes and clothing
9. Go for a run
10. Spend time with my brother
11. Take my sister out for dinner on her birthday
12. Apply for new jobs
13. Attend a job fair
14. Email former colleagues and administrators
15. Shop for flooring for our new mudroom
16. Help install flooring in our new mudroom
17. Play with the dog
18. Swim in the lake
19. Love who I am with and what I am presently doing
20. Forgive- life is too short to hold a grudge

My lovely Aunt and cousin!

The pictures are ones that I have taken over the course of the past two weeks. They represent just some of the wonderful memories I am making during this time of transition.

Until next time,

Bee Rich

The Fountain outside my aunt's home

My Sis and her Son

My granddaughter and daughter-in-law

He shoots and scores- my grandson