Pickles n' Tickles by JJ

We're back from the sandpit. One fine day in July last year, the husband woke up and said, 'Let's do it'. Boom, the resignation went in by the month end, and just like that we found ourselves with only three months in the sandpit. I didn't know what to make of it. Happy? I wanted a change, yes. Whether it's a change of location for us or perhaps another appointment for the husband, I was good either way. At that point, one thing seemed certain; there were no plans, and the open-ended nature of it thrilled me to no end. Where were we going to go, the whats, hows and whos. I liked not having any answers to the million curious, worried, concerned and just nosy questions directed at us. In November, bags packed, goodbyes said, we left Qatar.  Five months later, here we are, still in Malaysia. After a nice, long break of doing absolutely nothing but sipping coffees, going on small holidays and sorting out the home, the husband has accepted a job here in Kuala Lum...

TWO weeks ago, we took part in a dragonboat festival: Qatar's First Dragonboat Festival. Our training had started t wo weeks before that,   and I felt fabulous for many reasons. One, I was able to enjoy and take part in sporting activities despite my ear and hearing issues. Two, it's a water sport. It's a team, water sport in the pristine waters of the Qatari coastline. Thirdly, I've been in an international dragonboat festival in 2011 and therefore, to be part of a second event in a different country is an exciting prospect.  First week training was excellent. I was made the front pacer along with our team captain. Our job was to set the pace for our team of 20 paddlers. Paddling came naturally to me although when spelling it out on a paper, it always came out as peddling. I think people just went with it because they didn't want to embarrass the writer.  In the second week, we were trained harder by a new coach. The wind and waves doubled the intensity of...

My late grandad was the strongest man I've known. I'm talking about six packs and sculpted calves and all.  Imagine a man who still climbed three-storey high, straight up coconut trees at almost 80.  He did a lot of manual work around the house and cycled to wherever he went, near and far. At the end of a day, he relaxed with his feet soaked in a basin of hot, salted water. My grandma also sometimes used salt-in-a-sock for pain relief.   Grandpa used a British-made bicycle that looked like this.  I was given a mini version of it, also British made.  Climbing a coconut tree. I don't know why I've never thought of using salt like that but recently I've been turning to saltwater more often and loving the incredible healing effects it has on me. I come back from beaches with an uplifted spirit, relieved of physical pain (my legs). It has to be the salty ocean and breeze.  A beautiful beach here in Qatar.  Qatar has some lovel...

"HOW   prominent is your fever?" Seriously? Prominent? Can't you see that I'm prominently dying here. Idiot .  "I don't know. Why don't you check."  My temperature read 38.1 degrees. Every joint in my body ached as if there were little men with tiny hammers, going about hammering on my bones unrhythmically. The left side of head and face hurt especially more and the ears felt pressured. My eye balls were individually hurting in their sockets. With great effort,  I rolled my eyes away from the doctor who didn't quite know what she was dealing with and eyed the husband with a sense of irritation. What the hell is she doing ??? Urrrgggghhhh.   " How long have you been feeling this way?" Didn't I just tell you like a second ago? Talking hurts my entire E.N.T network! " Three days. The left side pain has been intense and I've been on Advil the whole time". By then, I think I'd told her about th...