Dubai is pronounced, Dubai.

Before I start writing, I'd like to point out how the Fantasies Album by Metric is currently the soundtrack to my life.

Now seems like as good a time as ever to write a blog.

So I'm currently in the city of Al Ain in the UAE. I've been here a week today. Its going pretty swell. can't really complain about nothing.

Oh I told yall about my place right. Lack of tv and internet? ya that kinda sucked. I've since moved in with my coach Rusto. He's from Slovakia. He's been around the block as a player and a coach so he knows the drill; the challenges, ups and downs of getting to a new place disoriented and without a helping hand. Not to take anything away from the club at all, they've been cool, I just mean on a personal level. (side bar, my coach is solid, we live together and chum around, yet he still requires me to call him coach, obviously during working hours, but ALSO at home. haha, I giggle to myself a bit about that. I don't mind, he's a good guy and a straight shooter.)

so my first day I slept till 1 then bummed around the surrounding blocks of my place, and read all my books. I was told that I'd be picked up to go to the club to take care of administrative stuff. This didn't quite happen, what did happen is a man would show up at my door ever 5 hours to tell me he'd be back later to take me to the club. kind of weird sitting at home waiting when you've just got off a 15 hours flight. aaaanyways, the next day I went to the gym to sign stuff or whatever and I was taken by the driver into the weight room where a few players and the coach were working out. I said hi, they were all polite, then I was taken to the doctor to continue the procedures they needed me to complete. What I didn't know is when I left the weight room, my coach asked the two players, "hey guys who was that?" The Algerian fellow playing on the team gave the coach a puzzled look and said "coach that is your new player, the Canadian..."

I need to break for a moment here to point out that I actually just saw my first camel. It was in the back of a truck on the high way. Moving on.

I can only assume at that point my coach did a cartoony double take at the door like “wha wha whaaat?”

Anyways, we met soon after. The club hadn’t informed him of my arrival, or apparently who I was or what I might look like. So that was something. Long story short, the coach and I decided it made more sense to just stay at his place for the duration of my stay in the country. He’s got a big place with tv and internet and rooms and working showers n stuff all set up already anyways, and to be honest its nice for both of us to have a little company.

By the by, when Changing after a shower in your team room in an Arab country, make sure not to expose your… inner most personal regions. Especially when some of your arab teamates are catching up on their worship that they missed during practice. As it turns out, its extremely offensive. I’m lucky enough to be playing with cool enough dudes to have one mention this to me after my 4^th or 5^th infraction away from the team room. And really its just common sense, would you want a dudes rig wafting around while you pray at the supper table? Know what I have some friends who just shouldn’t answer that. Forget I even asked… At any rate, the next time the team was together I apologized just in case I offended anyone and everyone got a kick out of it, so, as they say in places where people struggle to pronounce all their words, isalgud bra.

In closing, when I left Canada it was -22ish’C, here its an average 29’C. just food for thought, whatever that is. Aaand I just saw the highest building in the world. So that happened.

p.s.

to answer homeboys question, I'm playing for the Al Ain Sport and Cultural club. and yes this summer the canadian team will have a shot at qualifying for the world league in 2012. here's hoping. ya and basically I left Turkey because I was warn out and completely unmotivated and bad, at life. so I figured it was time to make a change. and change is scary, but pretty much always good. if you want a more in depth explanation, fire me an email or give me a call. PEACE

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