And another thing!

And the beat goes on...

Late last night (early morning actually) I received an urgent email from the U.S. Embassy saying that a couple missiles or drones had been shot down near Riyadh. Not very close to Jeddah but then there are a couple potential targets not too far away. Probably a good idea to step up the old SA.

And today, we received word that KSA has "quarantined" Jeddah now. No traffic allowed into or out of the city. Also starting today the curfew has been extended to start at 3:00 p.m. until 6:00 a.m. Working hours have also been reduced to start at 7:00-7:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. Of course that is for essential workers only. I am one such even though I'm on a half on/half off schedule for the foreseeable future. Fortunately I have a couple work related things to keep me a little occupied.

However, it's getting to the point where I really need a haircut and barbershops are not essential so they are all closed. I also am not able to go out and pick up a pair of safety-toed shoes for work that I really do need to have, just not this week obviously.

So, work on my tan down by the pool, set my timer so I know when to turn. There is a couple here who were glad to learn that I played cribbage. My last four games with them (two each) ended up with me winning and skunking each of them once. They may not be so happy to play against me any more. My father taught me well in that regard at least.

A few quarantine 'funnies':

• Facebook has been so crowded lately with all the people online at home that I had to park on Instagram and walk over there.
• I have been diligently washing my hands all this time now. When will it be time to take a shower?
• If people are really not touching their faces as the CDC recommends then there are probably a whole bunch of dirty faces out there right now.
• Beauty parlors, manicure salons, and make-up counters are all closed - it's going to get ugly out there real soon.

I swear I'm jinxed...

Okay, when I thought things couldn't get weirder, Karma takes it as a challenge.

As I had said, at work we were split into two groups and given a one-day-on/one-day-off alternating schedule. On Thursday (our 'Friday') we were informed that things have changed once again. Now we are one-week-off/one-week-on starting this week. So, 9 days without anything to do. I need a haircut and everything is closed. Apparently pharmacies and grocery stores are still open, I'll have to check on the laundry but that won't be any problem until the end of the week.

Also, got another email from the U.S. Embassy that they were in talks with KSA to allow some commercial flights to repatriate U.S. citizens. I'm not really sure whether it is safer here or back in the states. In any case there would be no return until this was all over. To date KSA had a bit over 1000 cases and 3 deaths. The U.S. has taken the top spot with over 100K cases. Some sources seem to be implying that there are some places in the U.S. that are experiencing rioting and looting (emphasis on the looting). Is this factual? IDK

In all, I don't really come into contact with many people and almost never random people so I believe my chances aren't all that bad. Even if I was 'lucky' enough to get it I am likely healthy enough to survive. We don't shake hands any more, just elbow bumps.

This was posted a couple weeks ago. 

I've searched some of the more reputable sources and it would seem that the mortality rate for this disease is highly skewed and most likely not a reliable indicator of the actual rate. However, just because 'they' may quickly come up with a vaccine I will NOT be jumping on that bandwagon. I survived the original Swine Flu in 1976-77. Remember that? There was massive media hype over it and you MUST get the shot. I did and was very sick for over a month. Numerous people were killed by the vaccine and there were a whole bunch of lawsuits. We were all fed a bunch of mis-information then and now I am very skeptical of any quick-fix. Heck, I didn't even get another flu shot for almost 40 years, didn't kill me.

As Alfred E. Neuman would express:

Just when you thought it couldn't get more weird...

More restrictions in KSA starting tomorrow (direct from the U.S. Embassy): 
1. Travel between regions of the country is prohibited; 2. Travel into or out of the cities of Riyadh, Mecca, and Medina is prohibited; 3. For the cities of Riyadh, Mecca, and Medina, the previously announced curfew of 7 PM to 6 AM has been revised to a 3 PM to 6 AM curfew, with very limited exceptions involving life and safety.  This new curfew will begin tomorrow, March 26, 2020, and will extend until April 14, 2020.  The 7 PM to 6 AM remains in effect for other parts of the country. 

Yesterday the guard where I work took my temperature on my way in. He said 'wulla' so that means I was OK.

Today when I came back on the compound, the guard at our gate took my temperature. It was 36.4°C, since normal body temperature is supposed to be 37°C does that mean I have a cold?

Got an email update from our compound security office that any resident entering with a temperature greater than 37.5°C would be instructed to go straight to their residence and the medical office would check on them to determine next steps. Better keep my apartment clean, lol. Any one else with a temperature would not be allowed on the compound.

New Day One

Yesterday I went in to work after having a 3-day weekend (recall we were split into two groups, one on & one off each day) and less than half the office showed up. We did have two soldiers in the office next to mine. No shared breakfast today which is really no biggie (pun intended) since I wasn't seeming to be able to lose any weight lately due to too much food in the a.m. Dark cloud, silver lining.

Another sight I don't ever recall seeing in all my days in KSA is a cleaning crew coming in and actually mopping down the rest rooms with something smelling of bleach no less. Wow, and the toilets were cleaned as well. We will see tomorrow (today is my off day) if this has become a daily 'thing'. However, here's where there may be a little room for improvement - they neglected to clean the door knobs to the rest rooms and they are not the push-open sort. Latest research I've read suggests that this virus stays detectable in air for about 3 hours, 4 hours on copper, 24 hours on cardboard, 2 days on stainless steel (i.e. the aforementioned door knobs), and 3 days on plastic.

New Day, New Rules...
Just received notification that KSA has instituted a curfew from 7:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. starting today and lasting for 21 days. So, no going out to the bars, still. I guess they will allow some essential travel but we're essentially locked in during those hours. Glad I went grocery shopping yesterday after work.

Day, what, three?

"May you live in interesting times." (not exactly a Chinese 'curse' but there are parallels.)

Things are certainly odd here in the Magic Kingdom of late. Late Tuesday evening I received a phone call from the director in the building where I work. He said, rather cryptically I might add, that I was to be in 'group 2' without any real explanation other than I'd find out Wednesday when I came in to work. Interesting. As it turned out, I am in 'group 1'. Our office is going on a one day on, one day off, schedule for the next two weeks. w00t! It meant that I started out with a 3-day weekend. (Some of the other buildings have apparently gone on the same 1/2 time schedule.) Side note: with reports that the virus may remain viable in the air for 3 hours, can 'survive' 2 days on stainless steel and 3 days on plastic, my feeling is that this schedule is of somewhat dubious value. But hey, if it helps keep people from panicking then it is probably worthwhile.

Of interesting note - one of the soldiers in our building *might* have been exposed to COVID-19 but the test has not come back yet. Yet a little more interesting - the office the soldiers are in is right beside my office with the two doors adjacent. Just my luck - I used up all my good luck when I married my wife, there is none left.

On Wednesday I also read the announcement that all mosques (except the primary ones in Mecca & Medina) in the kingdom are closed for the next two weeks. People are still required to pray, just do it at home. That is some serious business right there. From what I have read, KSA seems to be taking this situation very seriously indeed.

Today I got an email from the U.S. Embassy in KSA that since the U.S. is going to 'level 4' that all U.S. citizens should consider getting back to the U.S. if at all possible. That advice is a little late, KSA shut down all international travel, in or out, last Saturday. I'm sure all the diplomats and their families got enough warning and are safely home with their families. When I spoke with my stateside supervisor last week I was told that at this point the company has no plan to evacuate any expats. 

Things can't get worse can they? Hold my beer ... All the facilities for exercise & entertainment on the compound are now truly closed. Nothing to do at all. The little Oasis restaurant is closed except for delivery & take out. The small convenience store is still open but who knows how much longer.

Now I read (and 1 hour later got a notice from the U.S. embassy) that KSA is stopping all domestic flights AND all trains, buses, and taxis (including Uber & Kareem) - all public transportation - for two weeks starting 6:00 a.m. tomorrow, Saturday. Of course the price of gas has not dropped here like it has in the U.S. 

On the plus side, since most people don't use it, there seems to be no toilet paper shortage.

I'm just waiting for all the 'wailing and moaning and gnashing of teeth'. Weren't we promised zombies during the apocalypse? They are probably on back order just like the flying cars. I spent part of the afternoon utilizing the all-natural UV sanitizing process that seems endless over here (AKA tanning). (And NO, I did not mean 'au naturel'.)

Ode to a virus

All schools, universities, etc. have been closed in KSA for well over a week. Silver lining: less traffic near schools especially around the time I get out of work (which seems to coincide with when schools let out.) Dark cloud: more kids out and about especially in stores and malls.

KSA was one of the first to ban international travel going as far as forcing the cancellation of all Umrah pilgrims worldwide - really put a squeeze on the clearing houses/travel agents that set these things up. Then KSA closed the borders and banned international flights not only to the obvious places like Italy and China but local countries as well. Last week the cancelled all flights to the EU & Switzerland (this left the UK as one of the only flight options.) Yesterday all international travel to or from KSA has been stopped. Yup, we're quarantined. 

They have also closed all gyms, movie theaters (yup, there are a few), no major gatherings. I think even some malls have been closed but I haven't been able to verify that. There were quite a few people (much more than usual) in the local Danube grocery store but all the shelves were well stocked. However, they did not have dill pickles nor dry roast peanuts, harrumph.

Yesterday at work the Major met with all of us that were in the office and basically told everyone (in Arabic) that if anyone had the C-19 symptoms they would be given 2 weeks off that wouldn't count against their vacation. w00t! Always the pragmatist, yours truly, suspects that if even one person on our compound tests positive that we will be put under mandatory quarantine. How much you want to make a one riyal bet?

On the compound, all gatherings and events have been canceled. The gym, cardio & weight rooms have been closed. Our main company is mandating that all whose jobs can be done remotely (with supervisor approval) must be done remotely, i.e. from home. The immediate effect this has directly had on me is that when my boss's boss held an "urgent all-hands" meeting at 8:30 a.m. PDT via Skype that I could not log in since all the VPN lines were tied up by everyone else in the U.S. using those same lines. Managed to phone it in using my work cell phone but still...

Looking on the bright side, I've booked my flights back for a two week visit during the last half of May. That was a bit of a pain since my card got declined twice and I had to call USAA and get them to clear the charge. It was difficult but not insurmountable - phone call, confirmation code via text to my phone, resubmit via the web, wade through the confirmation through the USAA app on my phone, finally (notwithstanding the additional emotional stress and complexity) success. Beer and bacon here I come. (I hope Tony's is still open, since the owner died recently.)

Latest struggles of the First Pancake

You may not know (and there is really no reason you should) that KSA requires that all companies employing expats, yours truly among them, must be paid within the country. This means direct deposit usually which is once a month. The company I work for has paid every two weeks. The one detail is that one first must have an iqama (national identity card). So, that's the highest priority to apply for that in the first few days in-country.

I received mine over two months ago. Since it wasn't to my advantage I waited for HR to notify me that I had to set up a bank account and promptly forgot about it. A couple weeks ago I asked our differently-helpful local American HR guy when I was going to get info about setting up a bank account. He was flustered and said I was supposed to have already done that. But first, I had to have a KSA address on the national system. Surprise! It didn't work when the Saudi HR guy tried to set my address via the online system. After two tries I suggested he let me know when he got it figured out. About 4-5 days later I got an email with the address information. First step down, haba-haba. So, I stop in at HR for the 'letter' to the bank (wrong start date and not my preferred bank - np.) I go to my preferred bank and try to get either my old account reopened (not possible since it was closed) or to open a new account. This is Tuesday afternoon. No go, need my passport & a photo for some reason, hmmm. OK, I want to hammer this all out and I do know that there are built-in days in the contract for just such purposes. So I arrange with the Colonel to take Thursday off to complete my bank details. I get there a little while after they open and there is still some problem, the helpful guy at the bank suggested that I try to apply for an account online (to me, this is code to 'go away and stop bothering me') since he was having no luck. I told him that I had tried the other evening and there was something I was unaware of called Absher which I was not familiar with. This is apparently the national clearing house for traffic tickets, visas, etc. where you can pay fines, get exit/reentry visas, etc. OK, I go back to my apartment and try to set this up online. I manage to enter the account set-up information and the 'helpful' website says to fill in the conformation code but they neglect to say whether it was sent to my email or my cell phone. OK, I check both, then I check my work email on the off chance that is where this is headed, no luck. 

So I head back to our 'differently-helpful' HR guy and was immediately told that I had already been told to register in Absher (I had not) and that I was in the system if I had my driver's license (also not the case since my license was a transfer.) So the Saudi HR guy tried to set me up online with Absher, he got exactly the same results that I got. So he gave me his cell number and told me to have the bank guy call him. Back to the bank and a 1+ hour wait (it is 'Friday' after all.) The bank guy spoke with our Saudi HR guy after not being able to set up my account. Then the bank guy called the Saudi Post office and verified that my name, iqama number, phone number, etc. was all correctly entered, it was all correct. (This is kind of important since often, and in my case, mobile numbers are recycled frequently - mine belonged to a former employee named Dave.) Therefore the problem lies within the Absher system itself. I showed him the number I had tried to call (but didn't get any useful response) and his reaction was that the name that showed was 'Police Station'. But since he kindly looked up the number on the Absher website and it matched he called it anyway and tried his best to get through - no luck, stuck in HLHP (Help Line Hold Purgatory). I call our Saudi HR guy back and the upshot is that they will have to use up another of my workdays to take me to the Ministry of Magic, no, it's some other ministry, to sort this all out. I told him to let me know when it is all arranged. I am no longer tracking this mess.

I get out to my car and there is a thin film of fine sand all over the car. I had started to notice earlier this day that my car was making an odd noise and it seemed the cooling fan was running a little loudly when I shut the car off. Since there's an active sand storm I've got the windows up and the AC on. Heading back to the compound it is rather alarming to see the engine temp head way up, fortunately I'm only about 5-10 minutes from HAFH. The dash shows a '145' code which stays on, not a good sign but fitting considering how the rest of my day is going. I go right to the motor pool and everyone is gone (it's 3:45 p.m.) bummer. I visit the operator and he calls the back up guy to come back so I can get a car for the weekend at least. On the plus side, it's a newer car with much lower mileage.

Oh, did I mention that a local hospital which is about a half mile from where I work had at least one patient with the COVID-19 diagnosis? There are 10 or more cases in Jeddah now. No worries. Friday the 13th issue of Arab News newspaper - front page story - KSA is banning flights to and from the EU & Switzerland for the time being. IMHO Heathrow beats CDG any day, that's the extent of any silver lining.

Wash your hands.

More on the weather and other stuff

I was listening to the weather report on the radio the other day and, no joke, the announcer read: 
"Sunday, hot, sunny and humid with zero percent chance of precipitation; 
Monday, hot, sunny and humid with zero percent chance of precipitation; 
Tuesday, hot, sunny and humid with zero percent chance of precipitation; 
Wednesday, hot, sunny and humid with zero percent chance of precipitation; 
Thursday, hot, sunny and humid with zero percent chance of precipitation; 
and for the weekend, hot, sunny and humid with zero percent chance of precipitation." 

Yes, he read those last 6 words for each day, I can't make this stuff up.

This past Tuesday I was checking the weather on my phone app and the report was 34°C (93°F) with winds of 24 mph, wind chill was 40°C (104°F). Hmmm, I always thought the wind chill lowered the temperature.

Yesterday, Thursday, we where in the midst of a sand storm, not all that big, and visibility was about 1/4 of a mile. I was in the bank for about an hour and a half and went from a clean car to one covered by dust.

The wind picked up over the evening and night so the sky was completely shut out. The absolute worst thing is that the wind was from the south, which apparently is rather rare here, that meant that in my bedroom, on the south side of the building, got the distinct whiff of the compound sewage treatment plant. Yuck, not all that pleasant a bedtime odor, I believe lavender is better to help one get to sleep.

Today, Friday, it is actually raining for a little bit. Thankfully cooler (28°C) but still a 14 mph wind.

Odds & ends

Gee, where to begin...

Today is March 6th already, been almost 3 months here in the wilds of Jeddah. The company still has not provided me the tools to do my job so I'm using my own computer and advanced CAD/FEA software. Still don't have my security clearance, not even interim (which, according to the job description, is required.) You may well ask why I use my personal property to do my job? It's because I don't like being set up to fail and I will do (almost) anything to get the job done. Other than that, I'll keep pushing. On a good note, they did finally get me a printer at work.

Driving is still crazy. Over here they seem to close roads randomly for "construction" and rarely offer detours and absolutely zero notice. The good thing is that I'm learning my way around and can find work-arounds and shortcuts. Did I mention that occasionally the cops block the U-turns on the main road so you'd have to head about 2 miles south just to find a way to head north? And there are still many drivers who think they are playing Pac-Man - easily identified by their driving to 'gobble up' the dots on the roads - either that or their AI driving program is set to follow the dotted line instead of staying between two of them. I wish I had a go-pro to video my usual drive, it would be excellent to show for driver's training on what not to do.

Found a new (to me) and bigger grocery store that is easy to get to after work and then a relatively quick & easy drive to HafH. As usual though, I still cannot fathom the thought process behind the product placement and aisles. For some unknown reason, condiments are placed over the frozen food (low not upright) locations, far away from seasonings and spices. Cashews & pistachios are placed with beans, jar of dry-roast peanuts with snacks, both no where near all the other types of nuts. I was finally able to find a soap dish, $2.13, for the bathtub (the store is kind of a bigger Meijers, both groceries and everything else.) 

Had a bit of a rain storm with a lot of wind the other day. Quite the storm surge across both lanes on the Corniche. Traffic headed south was backed way up with water halfway up to the rocker panels on the cars. Usually there is almost no traffic on this road which is why I like to take this one home. Most people avoid this since there are pedestrian crossings which are rather massive speed bumps and you really have to slow down or risk tearing out the suspension. Peaceful and scenic drive after a long (relatively) day at work with the bonus that it avoids most of the traffic jams.

I don't think I've described much about my work day schedule. Basically I have to punch in (finger print scan) before 7:00 a.m. The Saudi staff slide in by 7:30 a.m. or so. Then we all have breakfast together in the 'buffet' room, just a mini kitchen area. Someone brings in typical Saudi food and other times my company co-worker brings Subway or McDonald's. Micky D's has a really good breakfast thingy here that consists of a fried/scrambled egg, a hash brown and what passes for sausage wrapped in a flat bread (not gyro/pita/tortilla). Put some hot sauce on that and nom-nom. (Ahmed, my office mate, told me that I'm the first American he has known that likes the local hot sauce on stuff.) Then we 'start' work about 8:15-8:30. Things come to a halt all over again at prayer time for about 20 minutes or so about mid day. Then at about 1:45 p.m. all the Saudis leave and I punch out at/after 2:00 p.m. for the fun drive back to the compound. Sounds easy doesn't it? However, please remember that I am still basically in a prison with walls all around and barbed wire all up the outside and a long security entrance to check vehicles, etc. just to get in. Kind of a country club prison but secured none the less.

*Warning* (skip this paragraph if you don't like sensitive topics)
I saw something the other day which was rather disturbing but is most likely not all that uncommon here in KSA. I was parked at a light and happened to look to my left at the row of parked cars along the other lane. Here's this big Saudi man (yes, it is simple to distinguish between men and women here b/c of how they dress) who had some sort of stick about 2-3' long and he was hitting a much smaller woman who was in the back seat of the SUV. Not just once but several times. Light changed and I drove along, you do not interfere in 'family matters' wherever they happen here. Unfortunately I have seen similar if not as violent behavior in the U.S. in stores and even once at a county clerk's office. It seems that human nature can be the same everywhere.

I'll sign off for now and try to update on a more regular basis.