One of our friends back home in Montreal lived the expat life for several years: first in remote northern Guinea, where her husband worked on a bauxite project, and then in Warsaw, where he managed the construction of apartment buildings in the Polish capital during the post-communist building boom. When Karen found out that my family was planning our own adventure living in the UAE, her first piece of advice - after being satisfied that we were indeed serious about the move - was to insist that we take our home furnishings with us.
"You'll appreciate coming back to your apartment after work or vacation, or when things are really rough," she said. "It'll feel like home."
And indeed, our three-bedroom flat in Abu Dhabi does feel like home. Just about everything in the apartment came with us: from beds to bookcases, artwork to tchotchkes. The only items my wife, Denise, and I bought here were of necessity. Because I came seven months before they did, I needed a bed to sleep on, a table to eat off and an easy chair to relax in after work. These were all bought new and inexpensively at Ikea; kitchen appliances were bought new at Lulu; cookery items and utensils I bought here and there, in the Mina Zayed outdoor souq, Nefertiti's used-goods store, Home Centre.
As much as we would have liked to have brought all our household possessions with us, there was too much to fit into the apartment. We sold some items, including many books and music, in a yard sale. We gave other things away, such as our television sets, love seat and chair, and our elliptical trainer, to friends. We kept very few items in storage, nor did it make sense to leave them in the house we were planning to rent; mostly this was out of necessity: to have non-resident status for tax purposes, we needed to make clear to the Canadian government we had no significant ties back home. I assumed that to mean, besides family members, healthcare card and a driver's licence, no hammocks.
We also left behind a few pieces of original artwork that we thought might not make it through customs inspections. We had been warned that nudes were frowned on and could be confiscated. As it turned out, our boxes were never inspected. We could have brought the paintings with us, though we knew it was best to be safe than sorry. Two of the pieces were hugely sentimental and worth a decent amount of money because they were the original art for the covers of Denise's short story collections. We stored one and a friend has hung the other.
Our friend Karen, as it turned out, was absolutely right. Our flat feels like home in a city and country that in many ways isn't and won't or can't ever be.
In the living room behind an Ikea lounge chair, we placed an easel upon which rests an original painting by John Pohl, a Montreal painter with a colourful palette and unique sense of humour. The title of the painting is Still Life with Manifesto. When it hung in our house back in Montreal, it was in a hallway near the kitchen and at the foot of the stairs from the second floor. It wasn't the first thing I saw every morning, but pretty close. Now, it's the first thing I see upon return from work each night. It's the same painting, seen at a different time of the day, but it speaks "home" every time I see it.
The easel on which it sits was actually in the garage back home, tucked behind a set of garden tools and a lawn mower (with the exception of my bicycle, everything else in the garage remained so tenants could maintain the house and garden). We brought the easel with us thinking that Denise might get back to painting, or I might take it up. But that hasn't happened. When our belongings arrived and I began unpacking, I tucked the easel behind the chair. I put the Pohl still life on top to keep it from getting damaged while I thought of where best it would hang, but we liked the way it looked and it stayed.
That's one of the good things about having moved with so many of our possessions. Back home, everything pretty much stays where you put it, or gets lost in the muddle of the accumulated effects and gear of life. Here, we were able to rethink rooms and the placement of our stuff within them. Same notes, new song.
A what a melody. It's not exactly CSNY's Our House (we have the two cats, but no yard), but it works for us. I have perhaps half of my compact discs and a third of my vinyl LPs, so there's plenty to listen to. We hadn't had many DVDs to bring with us, so we brought what we had, have added more, and along with the videotapes (yes, videos), there's always something to watch when we need to relax or when we need distraction while working out on the elliptical (one I bought out of necessity my first summer here).
We have many books as well, a collection we're always adding to since we're both writers and readers, and subtracting from because we don't mind sharing. Luckily enough, we must have picked well which books to bring with us because, in three years, I believe I can count the number of times I've asked the question "Where is so and so's ..." only to remember it's in storage.
Because Denise bakes and I cook, it was important we bring cookbooks with us also. We sold or gave away many before we left, but are suitably stocked to cook from a range of cuisines, from French and Italian to Mexican and Georgian, and since arriving have added Indian and Middle Eastern to the mix.
Recipes on how to make fateh or dal makhani are not all we've added, of course. After all, we've been here three years and we have travelled a bit. So there are Afghan rugs, bought from a friend who'd visited Kabul; embroidered Kashmiri pillowcases, wall hangings and tissue-box covers from Rashdi in Khalidiya Mall; a small Turkish rug bought in the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul; an incense burner from the Muttrah souq in Muscat; mosaics from Lawrence Arts and Crafts in Madaba, Jordan; and hand block-printed duvets and bed covers from Jaipur, India.
Perhaps the most personal, couldn't-live-without items in our flat are the photographs. Shelves throughout the apartment are replete with framed memories of family members and friends. This isn't just because we're living abroad: our home in Montreal was similarly cast in a Kodak glow.
Our reasons for bringing our goods with us were a combination of the sentimental and the practical. Wherever we stop next on our adventure, the reasons for taking our belongings with us will be overwhelmingly sentimental. After all this time living with our new books, music, art and furniture, they are a part of our life.
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'Outclassed in Kuwait'
Taleb Alrefai,
HBKU Press
The biog
Name: Fareed Lafta
Age: 40
From: Baghdad, Iraq
Mission: Promote world peace
Favourite poet: Al Mutanabbi
Role models: His parents
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
RACECARD
6pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (PA) $50,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
6.35pm: Festival City Stakes – Conditions (TB) $60,000 (D) 1,200m
7.10pm: Dubai Racing Club Classic – Listed (TB) $100,000 (Turf) 2,410m
7.45pm: Jumeirah Classic Trial – Conditions (TB) $150,000 (T) 1,400m
8.20pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (D) 1,600m
8.55pm: Cape Verdi – Group 2 (TB) $180,000 (T) 1,600m
9.30pm: Dubai Dash – Listed (TB) $100,000 (T) 1,000m
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
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Ferrari
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Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Signs%20of%20%20%20%20%20%20%20heat%20stroke
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Juliot Vinolia’s checklist for adopting alternate-day fasting
- Don’t do it more than once in three days
- Don’t go under 700 calories on fasting days
- Ensure there is sufficient water intake, as the body can go in dehydration mode
- Ensure there is enough roughage (fibre) in the food on fasting days as well
- Do not binge on processed or fatty foods on non-fasting days
- Complement fasting with plant-based foods, fruits, vegetables, seafood. Cut out processed meats and processed carbohydrates
- Manage your sleep
- People with existing gastric or mental health issues should avoid fasting
- Do not fast for prolonged periods without supervision by a qualified expert
Student Of The Year 2
Director: Punit Malhotra
Stars: Tiger Shroff, Tara Sutaria, Ananya Pandey, Aditya Seal
1.5 stars
How to come clean about financial infidelity
- Be honest and transparent: It is always better to own up than be found out. Tell your partner everything they want to know. Show remorse. Inform them of the extent of the situation so they know what they are dealing with.
- Work on yourself: Be honest with yourself and your partner and figure out why you did it. Don’t be ashamed to ask for professional help.
- Give it time: Like any breach of trust, it requires time to rebuild. So be consistent, communicate often and be patient with your partner and yourself.
- Discuss your financial situation regularly: Ensure your spouse is involved in financial matters and decisions. Your ability to consistently follow through with what you say you are going to do when it comes to money can make all the difference in your partner’s willingness to trust you again.
- Work on a plan to resolve the problem together: If there is a lot of debt, for example, create a budget and financial plan together and ensure your partner is fully informed, involved and supported.
Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
57%20Seconds
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1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List
James Mustich, Workman
Maestro
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
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