constantinople

I've neglected to recount tales of fairy book wedding adventures, fried eggs, a new house mate, and the most recent developments that have turned into a 7:45 AM departure tomorrow to Istanbul! I am very excited to see Turkey. I've always wanted to visit but wasn't quite sure when I'd get a chance. I'll be going for work but staying the long weekend for fun. Today marks a very special holiday on the Islamic calendar that I will share more details about when I return. Just wanted to share the update and promise to post pictures and stories when I return.

To recap on the last 10 days or so:

I attended a very traditional UAE wedding that lasted about 3 days. Pictures to follow, but here's a peek at the stage that the bride hangs out on the entire night before her husband arrives around midnight to claim her and sweep her away...
It reached over 125 degrees outside on Saturday and I was bored so here's how I killed time - note that this picture was taken on our courtyard patio 30 minutes after the eggs were cracked.

Moments later this guy angry fellow crashed into the side of my house. I have now claimed it as my pet. If you know anything about helmeted guineafowls besides what's on the internet, feel free to share. I'm still trying to decide on a name...

these bastards

By visiting These Bastards you waive your right to petition its creators for return of the time you will inevitably squander reading their bullshit invective."From the maker of WitSL comes a new breed of broken, lowbrow news with perhaps a splash or two of whiskey and gin in between keystrokes... Consider this the delicious "cigarette break" of my recently dwindling appetite for (American) political commentary.

now would be a good time to insert tongue firmly in cheek before they do

too cool for a lame blog post title

In 2006 I went to Seattle for the first time and had a chance to check out Bumbershoot, which was an awesome lineup of musicians from all over the country, including one of my favorites who ended up headlining the last night, Zero7. I looked for footage of that performance soon after but all I could find were a few amateur clips including this one during the show when some random guy got up on stage and started dancing with Sia. I figured it was part of her Somersault line dancing routine, but apparently I was mistaken...


Our friend on stage was up to much bigger things than a simple 30 seconds of fame


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

if you like pina coladas...

Although The Sun may put out some wildly outrageous and over exaggerated news, it can sure tell a hell of a story.

Stealing headlines for the last week has been a story about two British expats that had a little too much fun at Friday brunch and ended up getting caught during a late night romp on the shores of the Jumeirah beach. The story has gotten pretty ugly and they could be facing up to 6 years in jail if convicted.

Let me add that Friday brunch is nothing like Sunday brunch in New York. Although people often plan ahead, organize friends, call and make reservations, this is no eggs benedict and pancake with whipped cream affair - Friday brunch involves a hefty down payment of usually around $40 to $100 of all you can eat and drink deliciousness. The higher end of the bargain can land you in a 5 start hotel with pink champagne, bottomless pitchers of mojitos, sangria, and more, with everything you would ever want to wrap your tastebuds around from Belgian waffles, whose roomy squares can accommodate the meatiest pieces of lobster and filet mignon, and unlimited fat belly tuna sushi picked fresh from the hotels private aquarium... Let's just say it's tasty but very dangerous if you don't plan your drinks right.

We had our own little brunch at Double Decker on Friday, which may not have been as fancy, but the rowdy UK expats made up for the lack of quality entertainment, as you'll soon be able to understand after clicking on the photo below for the full "michelle palmer" saga:

Team America

Team America

So maybe we missed out on face painting, and sunny parades, marching bands, baton throwers, sparklers, and red white and blue rice crispy treats, but we still managed to pull together some festive colors, potato salad, (pork!) ribs, and neil young.

hands off!

One of the most difficult things about transitioning into Middle Eastern culture was learning how to draw the line at a hand shake. Coming from a family that expresses itself through physical affection, you can imagine how disturbed I was after learning that kissing, "inappropriate" hugging, and spooning on the beach in the UAE can land you in jail or even get you deported. In fact, two women were arrested a few weeks ago for cuddling on the beach! I've always loved this picture, but if it had been taken in Sharjah, there would have been police officers waiting in the wings to handuff that filthy sailor and send him away!

Here's an article from The National with the latest updates on the government's "crackdown".

i pity the fool!

My good friend Paul is a journalist with Dubai's "free" paper that publishes sensational news and can be found just about everywhere in the UAE. Today he did a story covering the latest rumors that "A-team" is going to be filming in Dubai. I really enjoyed this, although you kind of need to have lived or visited the city to get all the tongue in cheek references made. If you aren't smiling the whole way through, consider it another reason to come and visit! Click on Mr. T to read the full article.

yondergrrrl

Early to bed, early to rise today. Not sure if it was the excitement of lady liberty's much anticipated and celebrated birthday or just the need for a good night's sleep. I've spent the morning catching up on emails, lacing up for a nice run, and in just a few moments I'll be preparing my mom's famous corn bread recipe and a tray of brownies for the 4th of July bash we are throwing. Thinking of other staple goodies, I'm going to head to the store in search of ranch dip and ruffled chips, doritos, and rice crispies.

I've been enjoying the likes of Yonderboi, The Dining Rooms, and classic Samba music from my youth. Yonderboi's Shallow and Profound album is a fabulous twist of low-fi, acid jazz with a dose of Edit Piaf-esque vocals and Hungarian flare. I've shared it with a few friends who've enjoyed it as well. Click on his picture below for a listen...