Never be predictable

What do you do when you are on your last 100 euros?

You spend it all on a 3-month subscription at the gym of a local five star hotel, including access to the pool and spa.

Well, that’s what I did anyway.

As my yoga teacher in Sydney used to tell me: ‘Never be predictable, always do what is least expected. It will open up new opportunities.’

You wouldn't expect someone who can barely afford a falafel to be hanging out in the jacuzzi of a five star hotel, now would you? 

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to wait for new opportunities in the sauna of my new gym. 

Teaching in Egypt (2) – On doing business in the Middle East

One of my classes insisted one of our discussion topics for the course would be business. That sounded awfully boring to me, so I decided to spice things up a little by presenting them with an article on the cultural differences one might come across when doing business with the Middle East.

I found this article online with a few fairly offensive comments in it.

‘Many Westerners that have lived or worked in the Middle East might use the words chaotic, disorganised and frustrating when discussing doing business there. Although this is a matter of perception, it is true that business runs on very different tracks to business in the West.’

[…]

‘The Middle Eastern culture places more value on someone's word as opposed to a written agreement. A person's word is connected to their honour. Contracts are viewed as memorandums of understanding rather than binding, fixed agreements. Be sure to promise only things you can deliver. Failure to do so will result in loss of honour.’

[…]

‘Meetings can be chaotic. Always be prepared to exercise patience. Phone calls are taken during meetings and people may enter the meeting room unannounced and proceed to discuss their own agendas.’

One could broadly interpret the above statements as ‘Arab are chaotic, always late, very proud and can be very rude’. Kind of insulting, no?

Picture post (7): the graffiti on Mohammed Mahmoud street

Graffiti on Mohammed Mahmoud street in Cairo, a set on Flickr.

Poker night

That was a great night, I really needed that.
How do you say 'I have a hangover' in Arabic?

What I saw today (2): The excellent Egyptian brain?

Found on Midan Falaki in down-town Cairo. 

Book update (1): Hard at work

These past couple of days (or, more precisely, nights) I have been diligently typing away at my masterpiece debut novel like a little monkey on crack.

It’s going well, but the best gems seem to be in the chapter titles. So far I've got fourteen super amazing mind-blowingly great ones.

Back in journalism school, they taught us: ‘A great title is half the work. People will read the most trite nonsense, as long as you reel them in with a great headline.’ 

I wonder if that rule works for books too... 

Stephen King doesn't like adverbs

The adverb is not your friend.