I shall not reveal everything. There are significant and rather sudden changes in some of the circumstances of my life. I will supply you with a few details. My life has changed from a good life to a stupendous life. First of all let us define stupendous. It is extremely impressive. The synonyms sing: amazing, , astonishing, staggering, surprising, breathtaking, striking, impressive, bewildering, stunning, stupefying; unnerving, unsettling,; awe-inspiring, remarkable, notable, noteworthy, extraordinary, outstanding, incredible, unbelievable, phenomenal, uncommon, unheard of; mind-boggling, mind-blowing, hard to swallow, amazeballs
In the midst of writing this blog I am texting a young woman met at the Abu Dhabi Premier Inn. She is from India now attending nursing school in Vancouver and working part time as a manicurist. We have bonded like crazy, have had some ups and downs but enjoy our correspondence with one another. I find her fascinating. She, of course has a nickname. It is JJ Nails, Information about her nickname will be revealed.
Me: I am suffering from culture shock. I am laughing at myself.
She: It’s okay. Try normalizing it. Maybe that works.
Me: Dear, this is a normal life at the moment except for me being a Muslim. I got adjusted to life in Abu Dhabi. This is so different.
She: Ya I get it.
Me: Before, in the good old days. got my identity from being a lawyer. An atheist lawyer with many ex-husbands and hordes of women friends. Many of them my age.
She: Okay
Me: Now I get my identity from being a blogger and a Muslim. Both of those things are, to say the least unusual And then to make matters worse a Muslim man who is extremely wealthy seems very interested in me. OMG
She: (Many laughing emojis) I get that. It must have been weird to you.
Me: Exactly!! It makes me feel so good that you got that!! A UAE taxi driver told me that I was not ordinary but extraordinary. That is a huge compliment but also very, shall we say, unusual. He said I was his bad language teacher., it was funny. But, of course, he is left behind, probably I shall never see him again. We had great fun together at one time So things have been a bit transitory for me. I am back here settling down to a more normal life, but can I?
She: Ya u definitely can.
Me: I love you! Blogged about our conversation together. I will have to think of a nickname for you. What about JJ
She: Haha That’s great. JJNails. I named that for my nail thing too.
Me: Okay. I love it. You will be JJNails on my blog and be famous the world over. Haha🤪
Some things do remain the same. I was living in a hotel in Abu Dhabi, for the last five months because I could not get an Emerati ID and without one it is impossible to rent an apartment. I am living in a hotel in Edmonton, but my goodness there is no resemblance whatsoever between the two hotels. Reservations have been made to stay in the Hotel MacDonald until the end of May, staying on the Gold Floor. I am not sure of what my activities shall be so not sure where I will want to live. This location is perfect as it is downtown and there is public transportation to the University of Alberta, my alma mater. I may just consider getting a long tern rate here – I shall see how it goes. I was immensely popular at the Premier Inn – was loved by pretty well everyone,. The staff, most were young came from different countries – India Pakistan Nepal the Philippines. Most called me mother, others called me Sheikha Fatimah, they loved my happiness and strove to keep me that way. I wish I could have lifted up the Premier Inn and all of its staff and plucked it in Edmonton. Practically everyone thought that would be a great idea. But even with all of my drive and charisma I was not able to do that.😻
What is charisma? It is compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others.
The synonyms are rather jolly as well: charm, presence, aura, personality, force of personality, strength of character, individuality; magnetism, animal magnetism, drawing power, attractiveness, appeal, allure, pull; magic, spell, mystique, glamour. In all modesty I do not think I have animal magnetism, allure or modesty but I do have a forceful personality, strength of character and individuality.
My London Lover (a nickname obviously) said this of me.
He: Alexis you are like Marmite. People either love you or hate you.
Me: What camp are you in?
I know for certain that jealous women and gay men hate me, but there is not much to be done about that because jealous women are not fond of themselves either and may I suggest that those women could do as I do and get positive attention rather than sneering and complaining about me? They are toxic and who wants to be around toxicity? Speaking about gay men is dangerous as they are a ‘protected class’ – but why is that? They are protected because they dislike women, does that make sense? Misogyny ifs defined as a feeling, showing, or characterized by hatred of or prejudice against women. And gay men are terrified of Muslims as Allah does not approve of homosexuality. He created a world that contained a man and a woman to complement one another, to make one, a whole. Sexuality is worshipped within the proper boundaries. – the proper boundaries is marriage, a commitment to one another to support one another. A gay man can go to Jannah if he does not bugger other men. But such practices do exist. Rich Arab men merely go abroad, pay little boys. I actually stayed at a London hotel where it happens frequently, on the second floor. Middle East Royalty go to there and indulge, That is a fact, a sad and horrible fact. They are protected in this life because of their money and power but they shall not be happy in the next life because they are going to the hot place. I could scarcely talk about this when living in the UAE but now I am living in Canada and protected. .
I am in Canada where same sex marriage was allowed years before it was in the USA. Certainly I have no objection to same sex marriage as it allows commitment and respect between two people recognizing a bond between two people. I watch Grace and Frankie on my iPad Netflix and howl in laughter. The union between two people is respected – Grace and Frankie are not lesbians but their bond is respected just as much as their former husband’s union is. It is a great show where everyone is treated equally and with respect. I have a little bit of both Grace and Frankie in me. I am kooky like Frankie but I have the resolve of Grace. Mess with me and out comes Grace. One is to remember my days in Vancouver at the Trump Hotel and Tower, where early on the staff realized and said DNEFWMMcB. My Islamic Faith protects me as I just walk away from Evil, from the Satans. One can never change or effect a Satan – once a Satan, always a Satan. Revenge is left to Allah, not to be exacted by me. I can surround myself with people that like me, enjoy me, who appreciate me and I them. I love being back in Canada at the Hotel MacDonald on the Gold Floor where I get breakfast in the morning and canapés in the evening and my very own concierge. I am in Jannah already.
Photograph is taken from the air, the descent into Edmonton showing the farmland that surrounds the city. The Air Canada jet was nearing Edmonton, and from my 1-A window seat I looked at the farmland that surrounds Edmonton and found it fascinating – it is laid our on a grid, individual tracts of land with roads providing access. The tracts of land are owned by families often passed down generation after generation. There is an order to it, there is continuity in it, there is hope in it.
Contrast that to the landing fields in the United Arab Emeritus. There is a vast difference, totally diametrically opposite. Layers and layers of sand with new construction popping up everywhere. Not individual homes but so-called planned communities. There are advertisements everywhere on anything, particularly Instagram telling people that they can own a freehold. But it is an absolute lie a monstrous fabrication. Land is owned by Royalty – even the developers of the property only get what is called a remainder. More about that in a subsequent blog. I am in safety and can now speak of my experiences. I could not when there because of censorship and goodness knows what else might happen to me.
S.A.S.S. at the Premier Inn promised to keep me safe, as did most of the staff. They did and here I am safe in Canada. Not going back to the UAE that is for sure. But the UAE is only a small portion of the UAE – I have an invitation to go to neighboring Oman given to me by a man from Oman along with a hat and perfume. I met him at the Premium Inn. What a nice man – but he has two wives and does not need another one. Hahaha I am wearing the hat, clutching my bear, (as yet unnamed) with S.A.S.S. He is from the Philippines and is stuck there in the UAE. I think I could rescue him but he is embedded with other family members, his son and nephews and they need him. Canada is a haven for people from the Philippines, already met many working at this hotel I will tell the story of their lives and the lives of other people from the Philippines imprisoned in the UAE in a subsequent blog.
