Samanabastich

My cell phone has been ringing off the hook the past few days with harassing phone calls. I don’t speak Arabic, and there’s no man around to put the fear into whoever is calling, but it’s probably like what happened in Pakistan. Some random guy finds a number where an English-speaking woman answers (Lord only knows how they find them, apparently people have a lot of time on their hands, or it’s just a lucky discovery for them). Then the phone calls start, and they continue. I’ve gotten close to 15 or more calls since the day before yesterday, and have stopped answering the phone when I see a number that isn’t someone I know, or I’ll pick up and set the phone down without saying anything, figuring that if they want to waste their money talking to air, that’s their business. At one point, I picked up, said “hello?” because I wasn’t thinking, and heard “Hello?” followed by something in Arabic, and “I love you!” I hung up when he was partway through those three magic words. (Funny, it’s not quite so magical when it’s coming from some freak who spends his evenings harassing you.) I also got a text message from said freak that said “What are you from?” He should know right off the bat that it’s never going to work if he insists on insulting my mother… Anyway, I actually talked to Mom about it yesterday and she was, as always, good to talk to. But this is not an auspicious way to begin my two months here, and if it continues, I’m getting my cell number changed. I don’t think that it’s someone who is specifically focused on me, personally – I don’t think he has a clue who I actually am, I’m just the unlucky voice on the other end of the phone, so it’s just as likely to happen with a new cell number. That doesn’t, however, make it any better.

Wow, I wish I could spend all my time here, forever and ever.

On a different note, something that I’ve noticed in hotel rooms in the Middle East (as a general rule, not that I’ve had a wide sample), is that they all come equipped with a little sticker somewhere in the room, that has an arrow on it pointing toward Mecca. I suppose that makes sense for a Muslim country, since people are supposed to pray five times per day, always facing Mecca, but it’s interesting, nonetheless. It actually took me a while to figure out what the sticker was, I don’t think it occurred to me last time I was here.

It’s Friday, so it’s my day off, although I’ve got a lot of work to do. I’m going to hit the ladies’ gym later today to get some time out of my room and some time off my rear end. However, this is why I don’t mind working 6 days per week – my time off is basically time staring at the four walls of my hotel room. It’s one thing to be a slug by choice, which is something I occasionally aspire to and rarely have time for at home, but it’s a whole other thing to be a slug because it’s your only option. Okay, that’s enough self-pity for one day – I’m going to either read a book, work, or workout. Or maybe watch one of my DVDs. Because E! has been re-running “The Top 101 Sexiest Celebrity Bodies” since I was here last time, and watching it once was more than enough – so not so much with the TV today.