Month: August 2021

My email inbox is full. It’s always full, but lately it’s been flooded with emails from Redfin, Trulia and Zillow as I’ve been house hunting and they keep prompting me to “take the next step on 3467 Cactus Drive!” or “214 Mountain View Ave may sell soon!” Yeah, I know. The real estate market is on fire everywhere you turn.

This summer we did a lot of house looking — drive-bys, google map street view searches, and narrowing down locations. We thought we’d settled on Phoenix as a good compromise between house prices and location. Close enough to drive to Southern California or an easy flight to Northern CA, but affordable enough to purchase a house that we could live in for only a few months of the year, whenever we were home on vacation. After this past summer, I need a home base. Caleb is looking to go to college in Phoenix so it would be local to him. And you know we don’t mind the desert so . . . why not Phoenix?

But then we come back here and the same old Covid grind (which I’m not going to complain about, but really, this city is ridiculous) got us thinking that maybe it’s time to move back to the US permanently. So I’ve shifted my search to Texas, a likely location for a job transfer. And if it’s a permanent move I can look for my dream house, not just a temporary house.

I lie. I don’t have a dream house, I have a dream yard/property. 1/2 acre or bigger with some trees, garden space, ability to have chickens, room for dogs to run . . . green. The house is secondary. I skip lots of the inside photos to get to the ones of the yard and then google street view to see what it really looks like from the outside. I also troll reddit forums for various cities and neighborhoods to figure out which areas I want to focus my search based on traffic/school districts/crime/taxes/etc. It’s just like my research for planning a trip, but a more expensive and permanent one.

It’s not for sure. But for the first time, we are looking at options back in the US. We’ll see what job opportunities open up, where they are, and how things change here as we make a decision. :Starts singing: coming to America . . .[Neil Diamond version]

This morning, since it’s the 20th of August, I had to pull out my phone and show my vaccine/PCR status to enter the mall. From now on, we’ll have to show it to enter anywhere except a pharmacy or a small grocery store (who knows what is meant by “small” — the baqala I guess?) Then I had to pull out my phone again on the 3rd floor of the mall to enter the movie theater where we go to church. They had to scan my QR codes proving I had reserved seats for the 8:30 service (and to have a record in case contact tracing needs to be done after the fact).

All of this “safety” protocol is about to do my head in and I was thinking what a hassle it is going to be to fumble with our phones when we’re out and about and wondering how long we will have to keep this up . . . but then I walked into church and saw that we can now sit in every row of seats and only have to have one empty seat between groups. YAY!! The government gives and takes away. . .

Yes it was a hassle that trampled all over my personal freedoms, but in exchange I got a little bit of normal back. Sad that I’m excited about small things, like being super happy that we can now sit at a table of 10 people in a restaurant (up from 4), but that just shows how restrictive life has been for the past 18 months.

I’ve been telling one of my children that instead of grumping and complaining about how hard everything is, try refocusing and having an attitude of thankfulness. I think I need to take my own advice.

I’m thankful that:

Josh has a job that pays well (even if it sucks the life out of him and takes up all of his time)

Oops, let’s try that again:

I’m thankful for a healthy body, to be free from fear, for my children and that they all know and love Jesus, for my future daughter in law who I love already, that Josh is coming home tomorrow, that I have the day off today and can go to the pool if I want or stay home and laze around all day marathoning tv shows, that I get to meet with my Open Lounge/Home Group IN PERSON this week, that it looks like the kids will get to go to school full time this year and have school sports, that I get to work out daily with my son who both laughs at me and encourages me, for the ability to work part time hours and still have hours in the day to pursue my own interests, for Amy who puts my house back in order every day, for Ropik who turns the sand in my yard into a vibrant garden, for a husband who thinks about me and does everything with my best interests in mind, for a phone and data plan that allows me to show my vaccine status to security any time I need to, for modern medicine that allows my brain to function properly with SSRIs, for medical insurance that pays for it all . . . and on and on and so much more.

I know this kid will never read my blog, but I hope he listens to me and takes my advice. There’s no better way to stop feeling sorry for yourself than to start listing all your “haves” rather than focusing on your “have nots.”

*** There is no prayer for July as I was on vacation and didn’t participate.

Lord, I continue to pray for the leaders of this country and that they would make wise decisions about each Emirate. I specifically pray for the leaders of AD — that they would be able to work with other leaders to create a unified and cohesive plan that is applicable to the entire country. Please give wisdom to the decision makers, that they would find a balance between caution and freedom that allows for people to regain normal life activities.

I pray for an end to PCR testing for people who are not sick and for there to be an end in sight for all of this. Please bring wisdom and a clear, logical path forward to those on the Crisis and Disasters Committee for AD. I pray for August 20th, that the plan for required vaccines for all would be dismissed and set aside. That whatever infrastructure is needed to digitally track everyone would fail and as a result would have to be scrapped. I pray that case numbers and hospitalizations would drop and that there would be less anxiety and angst regarding public health.

I pray for schools and administrations as they prepare for students and staff to return. I pray that this school year would not be disrupted. That kids would be able to go back to the classroom fully and without restriction. That school sports and activities would be able to resume and that kids can be relieved from the pressure and stress of not knowing if school will be cancelled each week. I pray for the governing body of AD schools, that they would have a logical framework that gives schools autonomy to make decisions that best serve their own communities. I pray for less intrusion and inspection and that the teachers would be free from the pressure and stress that the past 2 years have brought to the classroom.

I pray for plenty of face to face interactions, for contact with people, for relationships to grow and for people to be able to freely communicate with each other. I pray that those who have been cut off and are lonely due to this time of isolation would find ways to connect with others and would be filled up relationally.

I pray for the work environment here in AD. That companies would be free to reopen and conduct business without fear of penalties and other restrictions due to Covid. That people would be able to go back to work and into their offices. That in person meeting would become normal once again and that zoom calls would be infrequent and the less desirable option for conducting business.

As Expo 2020 begins, please help it be a time of success and prosperity for the entire country and I pray that AD wouldn’t be cut off from the rest of the country due to the influx of tourists. I pray that tourism would continue and be safe and that there is no increase in cases as a result. I pray specifically for AD and its tourism. That a shift would happen allowing freedom of movement between the emirates and that the cruise ship industry would be revived.

Please be with our churches. I pray for freedom to worship and meet without restriction. Please give church leaders the wisdom to know when to push forward and when hold the line. I pray for church growth and that with a return to in person ministry, that people would feel compelled and drawn to meeting in person. Lord please push through the approval process for christian churches in AD. I pray that many would be approved and able to meet legally. Let nothing stand in the way of your church growing and thriving in this country. I pray that those that know you would be a light to those who don’t. That as churches thrive, the country would as well.

Finally, I pray for the media. That reporting would be honest and truthful. That outlets wouldn’t use fear to drive viewership and that people would be discerning consumers of news. Please strike out fear from the hearts of people. Let them know that you are in control and that nothing happens in this world that surprises you. I thank you that you are in charge of all of it, including what we do not understand. I pray that you give us grace and peace to continue even when we feel lost and confused. Amen.

My friend was asking why I haven’t been writing lately and I explained that all my thoughts were interwoven with Covid problems: quarantines, vaccines, curfews, case numbers, vaccine passports, masks, restrictions, and Covid detecting facial scanners (yeah, that’s a thing) and none of it was healthy to write about. 

Since I couldn’t write anything funny or entertaining that wouldn’t send me into a rage I decided I couldn’t write at all. I could spin a funny tale of my experience getting Covid and my prison tracking bracelet (yes, a real one — that’s not hyperbole), but no. Too much of my day to day is wrapped in Covid and I have nothing left to give. 

My friend responded, “Aw, Covid ruined your writing? It’s taken everything from us! I laughed and laughed. Yes, throw one more thing on the bonfire.

It feels like that, doesn’t it? So much of what we loved about living overseas has been lost. America this summer felt like a literal Land of the Free (even in CA) in comparison, but I know there’s been a huge loss of normal everywhere. 

I’m hoping we can reclaim some of that this year. Not that it’s up to us — my wish is that those people of influence move in a direction that gives more freedom. This year will be the deal breaker. If we continue to go backwards I’ll be pulling up my tent stakes and moving to a home of my own in a state where I can have friends over to my house (yeah that’s been illegal for over a year now) and have a lot more self determination. 

So far the school year looks more promising. We’ll be allowed to have PE again and lunch at school and possibly even school sports. But all that is subject to change at a moment’s notice so I’m not getting excited about it yet. 

Bye bye America. I’m off to the land of masks, quarantines and PCR tests. We’ll each have to get 3 this coming week after we return home, then probably every 10 days for school.  The freedom here has been a wonderful reprieve. Can’t wait for December when we’ll be back! 

*** I made it home and am losing the war against jet lag. And, in fine Middle Eastern fashion, we were woken up by our dogs howling and barking at 4:30am. When I went downstairs to let Micah out, he flushed out a stray cat who had pooped in my kitchen and was lounging under my dining room table like I was running a Holiday Inn. Yep, I’m home.