Author: Mark

I’m not a big fan of True Value (I prefer Ace) but I was there over the weekend looking for something when I found two interesting items.

The first is this fire safe/waterproof external hard drive. The idea is that you back your stuff onto it and in case your apartment catches on fire your data would be safe. Price was expensive at around KD180. It costs KD113 on Amazon without shipping and the thing is heavy but I doubt that shipping with Aramex would cost more than KD30 or KD40.

The second interesting thing I found were Daisy brand air rifles. They had the Daisy 840 Grizzly rifle for KD39 (KD12 on Amazon) and the Daisy 880 with Scope for KD49 (KD16 on Amazon). They looked pretty nice.

The gas station on the Gulf Road right next to Shaab Park in Salmiya is nearly done. I passed by tonight and they had the lights on and everything looks pretty cool. I think there will also be a small mini market at this gas station which should prove to be very popular since it’s right on the Gulf Road. This used to be the gas station I passed by the most since it’s on my way back from work so I’m glad it’s finally opening up again.

[YouTube]

I don’t know how many people remember Abdullah Al-Moussawi or know who he is but two years ago a video popped up on YouTube of this young charismatic Kuwaiti 9 year old playing football against older kids and outplaying them. He had long curly hair and people were saying he was the next Maradonna and watching the video above you could understand why. Well anyway a reader emailed me a story about Abdullah he wanted to share, it’s kinda long but it’s interesting to read.

[YouTube]

The story talks about how a talent scout in Holland saw Abdullah’s video on YouTube and came to Kuwait to watch him live. Abdullah was then given an opportunity to go to Holland and compete in a few trials where he proved to be extremely talented and one of the top young players they had ever seen. He was then accepted into one of the best football academy’s on a scholarship without any binding contracts or strings attached. Problem was Abdullah couldn’t move to Holland without his family so they asked for help from Kuwaiti officials who agreed which prompted the family to move with Abdullah to Holland so he could attend school there and join the football academy. They even made a documentary about Abdullah which was broadcasted on Dutch TV and also screened in the Gulf Film Festival held in Dubai last year (promo clip above). Problem is Kuwait never ended up helping out and so the parents were forced to move back to Kuwait after 2 months with Abdullah ending what could have been an incredible experience for him.

That’s basically a quick summary but I recommend you read the full story. It’s very sad how Abdullah was extremely popular and big in the Dutch media while no one gave him any attention locally. It’s also sad how things turned out in the end and I wonder how Abdullah is doing right now. Check the full story below.

Can anyone pleeeeaaaassseeee hook me up with the Humvee simulation. Even the counter terrorist driving at the end looks like a lot of fun. [YouTube]

As most of you already know by now I’ve been enrolled with Core Fitness since January. When I first started I was going twice a week for 20 intense minutes each time. My diet was fairly close to what I used to have before joining Core but it was just a bit healthier. Then I moved up to 3 sessions a week and a stricter diet and after that I moved up to 4 sessions a week with even a more stricter diet. It’s been a gradual increase which I’ve realized now was a great thing since it helped me ease into this new lifestyle. I went from an unhealthy couch potato to being obsessed with fitness and health in under a year.

So anyway starting today I started taking their 1 hour sessions. They just introduced them for people who want to take things even further and I have to say it’s just crazy. I’ve already posted about how intense the 20 minute sessions are and anyone who’s actually tried a session will know what I am talking about, well their 1 hour session is literally their 20 minute sessions x3. Half way through I couldn’t believe I still had another 30 minutes to go! I had a Jujitsu class an hour later and when I got to that class I was already too exhausted to go through the warm up and stretching session. I’ve now actually gone ahead and scheduled my Jujitsu classes to days where I don’t have gym.

My weekly schedule now is:
Saturday – Monday – Wednesday = Core Fitness
Sunday – Tuesday = Sidekick Academy

I’ve got an activity scheduled everyday of the week except now for Thursday and Friday which are my days off. If you don’t do any activities then you should consider adding some since there are tons to choose from and the body really needs it. Finally for those of you who didn’t know, Fahad now has his own health and fitness blog up called Trying to be Fahad. You can check it out [Here]

It seems the ministry has banned the use of DSLR cameras (pictured above) in public places, streets and malls. You can take pictures with regular camera’s and camera phones but not with DSLR’s? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard.

I mean seriously whats the difference between a DSLR and Point & Shoot? Both can take pictures and both can have zoom lenses. Why ban the use of DSLR’s in public and not Point & Shoot cameras? I am not saying they should ban P&S cameras I’m just trying to highlight how ridiculous this new law is.

Maybe if someone from the ministry takes a few moments to go to flickr.com and search for the word Kuwait they can see exactly the kind of talented work they will be killing with this law. Maybe then they will realize how big a mistake this is.

You can read more about this on Kuwait Times [Here]

Some great photos. [Link]

I think they did a much better job when compared to the Caribou staff but McDonalds are still winning this contest. [YouTube]

Note: Video really kicks in at the 3:20 mark

This sounds like an interesting and different event to go to:

“Winter Story From The Land Of Northern Lights” by a Finnish Puppet Theater

This performance tells a story of a girl and a reindeer who were both born on the night of the shooting star. This story is about friendship and courage. The performance is mostly without words and accompanied by beautiful music.

To find out what happened to the girl and the reindeer, who they met and what they experienced, get your tickets now at Radisson Blu Hotel – Viking Club reception.

For booking call 25673888 or 65718000
The ticket price is KD6
The shows will be on the 25th, 26th and 27th of November from 7:00pm to 8:00pm.

For more details head to the Radisson Blu Kuwait Facebook page. [Link]

Bu Ziyad from q80economics emailed me to tell me that foreign magazines are currently banned from being imported into Kuwait. It seems a magazine slipped in with a revealing photo and so the sole distributor for foreign magazines in Kuwait is being punished by banning them from importing magazines. By punishing them everyone in Kuwait is getting punished as well. They are now hoping they will be allowed to resume the import of magazines again after Eid.

Personally I’m glad I have an iPad and the Zinio app so I don’t have to deal with issues like this.

The blog Q8geeks spotted the above job opening. I really don’t want to know what this job involves… [Link]

After releasing the iPhone and iPad application the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have launched the BlackBerry version. You can download it for free by visiting their website [Here]

According to KUNA an Android version is in the works. [Link]

A reader shared a link to pictures of the making of the Kiswah (the cloth that covers the Kaaba) which I hadn’t seen before. You can check out those pictures by clicking [Here]

Here is also bit of info I found on Wikipedia on the Kiswah:

Every year the old Kiswa is removed, cut into small pieces and gifted to certain individuals, visiting foreign Muslim dignitaries and organizations. Some of them sell their share as souvenirs of Haj. Earlier Umar bin al-Khattab would cut it in to pieces and distribute them among the pilgrims who used them as shelter from the heat of Makkah. The present cost of making the kiswa amounts to SR 17 million [U.S. dollar = 3.75 riyals]. The cover is 658 sq. metres long and is made of 670 kgs of pure silk. For embroidery 15 kilos of gold threads are used. It consists of 47 pieces of cloth and each piece is 14 Mts. long and 101 cms broad. The kiswa is wrapped around the Kaaba and fixed to the ground with copper rings. [Source]

Thanks t-num

CNN has an article up on adventurer Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje who back in 1885 took pictures and sound recordings of Mecca. Thats 125 years ago! The photos and sound clips are currently being exhibited in Dubai until December 6th so if you’re there or planning to visit Dubai soon this is a great exhibition to check out. For now though you can check out some pictures and a sound clipping on the CNN website [Here]

Update: The Buz Fairy posted a video made up of pictures taken back in 1953. You can check those out by clicking [Here]

Last month I posted about how Americana is bringing Red Lobster to Kuwait. Well I just found out the first location is scheduled to open up in April 2011. No word on when Oliver Garden will be opening up yet.