It is that time of the year that I start whining about how hot and humid the weather is here in the Dubai, UAE. Instead am going to leave the temperature and leave it at that. How is it for personal growth?
Okay, it is not much. But it is only because I have something else to share about the country that I call my home, at least for now.
The nation’s President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed passed away on Friday 13 May 2022 at the age of 73. He was the 2nd President of this nation of the UAE, and the ruler of Abu Dhabi. And he was absolutely beloved by locals and expats alike. The nation is officially mourning for 40 days and the work suspended for 3 days till tomorrow, Monday.
On Saturday, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan the-then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and brother of the late Sheikh Khalifa became the ruler of Abu Dhabi de facto and then was elected by the Supreme Council as the new President of the nation. That was a mouthful, wasn’t it?
So that is what is happening in this side of the world. What are the national and local events that you wanna share with us today?
What I read this week
I have been reading rather slowly this week. But I did finish reading Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert, technically very late this morning. And I am too groggy to say coherently how much I enjoyed it. Maybe I will put up a review – soon!
Last week I also had the chance to read As a Man Thinketh by James Allen, a century old self help book. It is freely available to read online.
What I watched this week
I had a blast watching the latest Marvel movie Dr Strange: Madness of Multiverse in IMAX last week and I loved it, a very biased opinion here I confess.
I also watched Fairfax on Prime, which I surprisingly enjoyed. Don’t ask me why I was surprised though.
Oh, last night we finished binging on the latest Netflix series released, Lincoln Lawyer. It was okay, not good nor gripping and better suited for one of those mindless consumption period.
On my blog
Can I tempt you with an offer to come back to blog?
I am hoping to do that! Fingers crossed, everyone.
We are all geared up for this year’s Emirates Literature fest 2022, and as per my annual ritual I have signed up to volunteer. It has been a long while since I met my fellow volunteers and I am excited. This week we had a few Zoom sessions to discuss procedures and other orientation with the Literature festival organizer team.
The festival is happening from 3rd Feb to 13 February 2022. Check this out for more details. It has got some interesting author line up.
In the home front, another week of unpacking and trying to find a place for everything. We also had to order some miscellaneous pieces of furniture for the house. I am not sure how we will go back to an one BHK in a year, after living in this spacious apartment.
My favorite season is here and this year I get to experience it from the top floor. I love watching the early morning fog settle and I guess next week is going to be extra foggy.
I will be linking today’s post with Caffeinated reviewer’s Sunday post Meme. Last week has been so hectic that I have not been visiting many blogs, but I will be correcting that this week.
What I read this week
I finished The Hunting party by Lucy Foley this week.
I am currently reading Mackenzi Lee’s The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue. And I am really loving it. I have the entire series with me, ready to be picked up next.
What I watched this week
I just stumbled upon “Back to the Rafters” on Amazon, which brought out a lot of nostalgia. While I have not watched the entire series ”Packed to the Rafters”, I have warm memories of watching the 1-2 seasons long ago in 2008-09 with a couple of friends.
Anyway I went on a binge fest and watched the new series in a single day.
I also enjoyed watching this cute shirt film based on Hotel Transylvania, called Monster Pets.
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Let us chat
How has your week been? Are you keeping up with your reading and watching goals? What was your last favorite book you read? Let’s talk.
Today I am reporting from our new apartment. Yes, we have moved and looks like we are almost settled. There are a few more boxes to be unpacked but they can stay for now. We do have to make some purchases soon.
As for the new house, I am delighted by the amount of sunshine it gets all through the day. And we chose a high rise building and now we can see both the sunrise and sunset from our balcony, well almost. Of course we still have to wait and see how hot it is in summer. But for now, we will enjoy it.
How does our view look?
What was your week like? Do you enjoy gazing at the sunset/sunrise? What are you reading currently? Let us talk.
What I read this week
With all the rush and chaos, I forgot that I was reading These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong. And started reading The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley.
I will have to finish them both, if and when I get sometime to take a break. Fingers crossed.
What I watched this week
I caught up a few episodes of The Office but the show kinda lost it charm after Steve Carell, don’t you agree?
During the days before shifted the television and got it running, I was obsessively watching silent vlogs on Youtube. Here are some that I really enjoyed.
It has been a busy few days on the home front. We are planning to move houses soon, so went on a massive decluttering drive last week. Discarding things is a difficult thing for me, my Indian-ness wants to reuse or repurpose things that I have never seen in a year or two.
But I powered through and got it done. Everything has been sorted and classified and discarded, ready for the movers who will be coming later this week. Except for the bookshelf, which will move without any declutter.
I have not found much time and I am still reading These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong, but I am enjoying it.
I also started Tiny Habits by BJ Fogg this week, which I am liking too. If you enjoyed Atomic Habits by James Clear, you will enjoy this one too, I suppose.
What I watched this week
Every time I had a break from the house chores, I slumped on the couch to watch the Office (US) re-runs on Amazon. Nothing else.
On my blog
In case you missed the posts from my blog, last week.
It has been a while since I did a Sunday post or even blogged. How have you been? Is the New Year treating you alright? Well, it has been almost ten days and I am here online, so you are right that I have some of those “new year, new me” vibes sticking to me.
But it is 2022, and let me not forget that I barely survived got through the last few two years, so I am going to keep everything as light as possible, and not have huge plans or overhauls. Basically all I am going to start with is doing the bare minimum on my blog and stick to flexi-schedule, and see how it goes.
How about you, guys? What did I miss in the blogging world?
I had to scramble to finish my last year’s Goodreads reading challenge, but I did it finally. And that is why I want to pace myself by reading a book a week, for my 52 books goal for 2022. Of course, I will be a bit flexible with it. So fingers crossed.
So last week, I read The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe and currently reading These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong.
I will let you know how they were soon, okay?
What I watched this week
Did anyone watched the Netflix adaptation of Anxious People?
I loved the book, as I have mentioned earlier as well, but I was left disappointed with the adaptation. I think it missed the whole “feel good” factor that Beckman’s books are known for.
The official voting is out and 2021 was a shit show. But of everything that happened, I loved how consistent I was in blogging here and writing in few other places, for more than eight months in 2021.
Of course all good things have to come to an end. Or so it seemed, when I hit that dreaded burn out or crash that lasted almost since September. And it took quite an effort to get out of it, but here I am.
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Let us chat
What was your 2021 like? How many books did you read and how many are you planning to read? What did I miss in the blogging world? Let us talk.
Well, we are feeling it already, even though it is barely summer, which is usually around July – August. And even though the temperature says 35- 40C, the feel like has been 48-52C.
Thankfully I live in an apartment that has about 7-8 large trees around, so we don’t feel it all the time. But we have started switching on our air-cons during the day as well.
On other news, as I mentioned in my previous post I have been going on walks in the nights. And I have been posting on photos of my walks on Instagram stories. Do check them out if you want to have a glimpse of my city.
What I read this week
I have been The Cousins by Karen M McManus this week. And it is my last desperate attempt to kick away the reader’s slump. I can see barely working, though.
Fingers crossed.
What I watched this week
We caught up two new movies at the Cinemas this week and it has been almost a year since we went to such close and confined spaces.
But fortunately, the social distancing restrictions were pretty much well maintained and my nervousness eased up quickly.
Conjuring – 3 – it was a bit of disappointment when you compare it with the other movies in the franchise.
A quiet place 2 – I liked it. And it was more of a thriller than the Conjuring 3 movie.
On my blog
In case you missed the posts from my blog, last week.