Search: “cop”

Last month I was contacted by Bazaar for an in depth interview for their May issue. That issue is out now and if you’ve ever wanted to know more about me or my personal views on the whole blogging thing, check it out either by picking up a copy from one of their many locations (like Starbucks) or read it online [Here]

First I need to make a confession, I haven’t been in a Ferrari since my dad had one back in the mid 80s. It was a gorgeous silver Ferrari 308 but I was too young to appreciate the car back then, I just remember it was loud and it looked like the one on Magnum P.I. Strangely I hadn’t been in a Ferrari ever since which is weird because Ferraris are pretty common in Kuwait. A few months ago when I went to test drive the Jaguar F-Type I found out the same dealer (Zayani) had a Ferrari 458 Spider to test drive as well. I started harassing them to loan me the car for the weekend to test drive until last week I finally got the phone call telling me I could pass by and pick up the car but I would have it only from 10AM to 5PM. After a bit of negotiation I was able to extend that from 9AM to 7PM. It wasn’t the weekend I had wanted, but a full day with the Spider was still going to be a great day.

Sunday morning I got up early and headed to the dealership where after giving me a short tour of the showroom I was taken to the car which was waiting for me in a large pristine white room. The car was in silver blue (Grigio Alloy) fitted with a custom two tone leather and suede interior. I got in the car and the salesman showed me where everything was and how to work them. It’s not complicated to say, it’s just that majority of the options are not in their usual place (spoiler: they’re all on the steering wheel). For example, the turn signals are located on the steering wheel as well as the wipers, high beam switch, the cars start/stop button, the “bumpy road” button, the horn and most importantly the Manettino dial which allows you to control the cars settings with a flick of a switch. I’m not sure why they haven’t adapted this idea to all cars yet but after spending a day with the 458 I started wishing all my FJ’s controls were on the steering wheel, it just makes a lot more sense than having all these nobs spread out behind it.

Once he was done showing me all the controls we drove out of the dealership for a ride around the block just so I could get a feel for the car before heading out. I then dropped him back off to the dealership and headed out on my own… without a chaperon. There I was sitting in a brand new Ferrari 458 Spider all on my own, free to do with it whatever I pleased. First thing I did was send the mandatory snapchat to my friends and then I decided to head out to the desert where I had previously shot the Porsche Cayman. I figured the roads would be empty there and I wanted to get rid of the photography so I could enjoy the car the rest of the day.

Driving the car was a lot easier than I was expecting it to be even though the car produces 570hp out of its mid-mounted naturally-aspirated 4.5l V8 engine. I spent the first 20 minutes of the drive keeping my eye out on the speedometer since the car just wanted to speed and in the end I couldn’t resist the urge not to and just gave up and started keeping my eye out for cops and speed traps instead. When I finally got to my destination I realized it might not have been the best day to be out in the open desert since there was a pretty nasty dusty storm. But since it took me 40 minutes to get there I was not going to turn back now and kept on going even though at some points I could barely see the road because it was covered with sand. Finally I arrived to the location and got out of the car to snap my photos. It was really windy and I ended up getting sand in every crevice of my body but I also ended up with two fantastic photos especially once I converted them to black and white. I packed up my gear and headed back to the city but not before making a quick stop at home to shower and change.

As I mentioned the car is really easy to drive and can actually be very civil if you keep it in sport mode (Ferrari’s version of “comfort”) and aren’t heavy on the peddle. On the other hand if you’re a hooligan you’re also gonna love this car. Once I was back in the city I realized I could still have a lot of fun without breaking any laws (kinda) just by accelerating at full speed out of traffic lights, drifting slightly around corners and roundabouts and down shifting to second gear when going under bridges. Actually by switching the cars gearbox from auto to manual made a world of a difference because I could keep the gears low and have the car scream its beautiful loud Ferrari tones without even trying. But the car isn’t loud unless you want it to be and the interior can be pretty quiet while cruising at normal speeds. Speaking of the interior I was pretty surprised at how spacious it was. I LOVE the center console layout, it’s basically non existent with just AC controls and nothing else. In an age where center consoles are filled with large screens and buttons beyond buttons, it was great to see they kept the interior to a bare minimum.

What differentiates the Ferrari 458 Spider from the regular Ferrari 458 is the fact it’s a hard top convertible. With just a press of the button the roof folds away into the trunk and thats what I did once the sun started setting. Driving the car with the roof down is a whole different experiencing, if you really want to hear the engine sound that’s the best way of experiencing it. As the sun set I knew I would have to drive the car back to the dealer and I think it was the first time where I was both happy and sad to return a car. I was sad because I was obviously returning the Ferrari but also happy because at the end of the day I was driving an KD80,000 Ferrari and I was just relieved to be handing it back in one piece.

So what didn’t I like about the car? Not a lot honestly. The trunk is practically non existent if you opt to have a spare tire, like you might be able to fit one or two grocery bags there and thats it. The sound system also wouldn’t let me stream music over bluetooth which sucks although it did have iPod connectivity via USB. Finally I thought the gas pedal was too close to the brake pedal and so my sneakers kept getting clipped every time I was moving from one pedal to the other to the point I thought my sneakers might get ruined. But by the end of the day I got used to it and just shifted my foot far right so that wouldn’t keep happening. Even though I wasn’t expecting the car to be a disappointment it did surprise me in a lot of ways. I wasn’t expecting it to be such a drivable car and one which could be so civil. I didn’t even have issues going over speed bumps or parallel parking (thank you rear view camera) so I could totally drive this car every day if Ferrari agree on that 90% discount I asked for (pretty please).

The Ferrari 458 Spider starts at KD81,900 and is available at the dealers Zayani.

Thursday
Remal Sand Sculpting Festival
The Palestinian Culture Exhibition
Paragliding Festival
Sesame Street Live: Elmo Makes Music
Rainbow at the Amricani Cultural Centre
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: George Washington
Open Mic Show: Let it Out

Friday
Remal Sand Sculpting Festival
Paragliding Festival
Sesame Street Live: Elmo Makes Music
Shakshooka Nomadic Farmers Market
Gulf Jazz Festival: A Dutch Jazz Night

Saturday
Remal Sand Sculpting Festival
Paragliding Festival
Sesame Street Live: Elmo Makes Music
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: Certified Copy

The Remal Sand Sculpting Festival is ending this weekend so if you haven’t checked it out yet this is your last chance. Also, check out the Events page for more upcoming events. [Link]

It has been three years since Zahed Sultan released his debut album and after playing live in various countries around the world, Zahed is finally going to perform in Kuwait for one night only. On April 30th 2014, Zahed will be debuting a one of a kind audio-visual performance in 3D to coincide with the release of his second full-length album ‘Eye Am Sound.’ Zahed’s audio-visual performance will include a roster of international and local artists who will be announced in the days to come. You can learn more about Zahed’s upcoming performance on my Events page [Here]

248AM has teamed up with Zahed to giveaway the following for one lucky winner:
– 2 tickets for Zahed Sultan’s debut performance in Kuwait on April 30th
– 1 limited edition ‘Eye Am Sound’ t-shirt
– 1 copy of the limited edition ‘Eye Am Sound’ coffee table book that also includes a digital download card for the new album

To participate, all you need to do is answer the following question as a comment below this post:

‘What was the name of Zahed Sultan’s first album?’

I will stop accepting entries in the comments section by Wednesday at midnight and then randomly choose one winner and notify you via email.

Rules: Only one entry per person and please make sure you use a working email since the winner will be contacted by email. If winner doesn’t respond, another winner will be randomly chosen.

Update: According to random.org the winner is #63, Jhonybravo.

Below is this months schedule for Cinemagics rooftop movie nights. If you’ve never been to them before, they’re held twice a week, every Thursday and Saturday on top of the building that has Xcite in old Salmiya. I’ll also be listing the movies individually in the Events section to make it easier to track on a weekly basis. This will most likely be the last month of rooftop movies since the weather is getting hotter. I would highly recommend watching Close Encounters of the Third Kind, it’s a classic and one of my all time favorites.

Thursday, April 3rd 2014 at 7:30PM
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
Considered one of Speilberg’s most essential films, Close Encounters of the 3rd Kind is a film that needs no introduction. Winner of countless awards, it has earned its place as one of the masterpieces of American Cinema. Ray Bradbury declared it “the greatest science fiction film ever made.” Jean Renoir compared the storytelling to Jules Verne and George Melies. Francois Truffaut loved the script so much he agreed to be cast in an essential role. A film that has inspired endless incarnations, and carrying one of the most iconic scores of all time by the great John Williams, Close Encounters continues to be an event film even today, almost 40 years after its original release.

Saturday, April 5th 2014 at 7:30PM
THE HOUSEMAID (Martin Scorsese’s World Cinema Project)
Every month, we’ll be playing a film from the World Cinema Project. Established by Martin Scorsese in 2007, the World Cinema Project expands the horizons of moviegoers everywhere. The mission of the WCP is to preserve and present marginalized and infrequently screened films from regions generally ill equipped to preserve their own cinema history. This month’s film is The Housemaid. A torrent of sexual obsession, revenge, and betrayal is unleashed under one roof in this venomous melodrama from South Korean master Kim Ki-young. Considered to be one of the top 3 korean films of all time by koreanfilm.org.

Thursday, April 10th 2014 at 7:30PM
THE KILLING OF A CHINESE BOOKIE
The fourth in our Cassavetes series, where we’ll be showing a film every month by acclaimed legendary independent filmmaker John Cassavetes, who is known as the father of independent American cinema. A proud strip club owner is forced to come to terms with himself as a man, when his gambling addiction gets him in hot water with the mob, who offer him only one alternative. Ben Gazzara brilliantly portrays the gentleman’s club owner, Cosmo Vitelli, desperately committed to maintaining a facade of suave gentility despite the seediness of his environment.

Saturday, April 12th 2014 at 7:30PM
PLAYTIME
Jacques Tati’s visual masterpiece, shot in glorious 70mm and inspiring an entire generation of filmmakers (most notably Peter Sellers) who tried to emulate his subtly, comedic timing, and visual style, Playtime is structured in six sequences, linked by two characters who repeatedly encounter one another in the course of a day: Barbara, a young American tourist visiting Paris with a group composed primarily of middle-aged American women, and Monsieur Hulot, a befuddled Frenchman lost in the new modernity of Paris. Surreal, magical, and not to be missed.

Thursday, April 17th 2014 at 7:30PM
SURPRISE MOVIE OF THE MONTH
Every month we’ll be playing a surprise film, where you won’t know what you’re watching until just a minute before the film begins. One thing is for sure, every month the surprise film will be either my favourite film of the list, or the most unique in one way or the other. This month’s film is an enigmatic piece of poetry, highlighted by a beautifully nuanced lead performance (which won many Best Actress awards worldwide) and a goosebump inducing score. Shot masterfully by acclaimed cinematographer Slawomir Idziak, this film is unlike anything you’ve seen before, and will last with you far after you leave the screening.

Saturday, April 19th 2014 at 7:30PM
EASTERN PROMISES
Winner of the audience prize at the Toronto Film Festival, featured on over 20 top ten lists of its year, and nominated for countless awards, most notably for Viggo Mortensen’s mesmerizing lead performance, Eastern Promises begins as a typical gangster story before flipping the entire genre on its head. Uniquely paced, with a not so typical central struggle on hand, this was the film to solidify Cronenberg’s return to form (after his comeback with A History of Violence). A Russian teenager living in London dies during childbirth leaving clues to a midwife in her journal that could tie her child to a rape involving a violent Russian mob family. Her investigation into uncovers layers that challenges the audience’s expectations.

Thursday, April 24th 2014 at 7:30PM
GEORGE WASHINGTON
One of the best reviewed films of 2000, and the film responsible for launching David Gordon Green’s flowering career (who after a dip in the quality of films returned this year with the two critically acclaimed films Prince Avalanche and Joe), George Washington tells the story of A group of children, in a depressed small town, who band together to cover up a tragic mistake one summer.

Saturday, April 26th 2014 at 7:30PM
CERTIFIED COPY
Iranian cinematic master Abbas Kiarostami’s first foray outside of his native Iran and into French Cinema, Certified Copy takes place in Tuscany, where to promote his latest book, a middle-aged British writer meets a French woman who leads him to the village of Lucignano. While there, a chance question reveals something deeper. Through a wonderful performance by the always magical Julliette Binoche (for which she won the Best Actress prize at the Cannes Film Festival), Abbas Kiarostami achieves a universal film, between levity and drama, about the feelings that are diluted over time.

Cinemagics is organizing these events as part of its efforts to contribute to the development of an internationally competitive Kuwaiti audio-visual production industry, partly by bringing the filmmakers and audiences together and by increasing the public’s interest in – and appreciation for – the art of film-making. Cinemagics movies are screened in the old Salmiya, on the rooftop of Xcite and LG [Map]. There is no entrance fee. Here is a link to their Facebook group [Link]

The new QX series cameras from Sony are part of their new range of mobile phone cameras.Sony realized that camera phones in general are pretty limited with the majority for example lacking any kind of optical zoom. Phone cameras also have really tiny sensors so the photos aren’t very sharp or detailed neither do they do so well in dimly lit situations. Thats why Sony came up with the idea to create a new line of cameras that would clip onto your current phone giving it a big boost. I picked up both the Sony QX10 and the slightly larger QX100 from the Sony dealer for this review.

Both the QX10 and QX100 follow the same principle, they both don’t have any screens and other than the power, shoot and zoom buttons, both cameras don’t have any other controls. The Sony QX10 is the smaller and cheaper of the two, it has a sensor delivering 18MP and it has a 10x optical zoom. The QX100 on the other hand has a large size sensor that delivers 20MP as well as an added bonus of having a bright F/1.8 lens. On the downside, the QX100 has only 3.6x optical zoom, it’s double the size of the QX10 and it’s also a lot more expensive.

Lets get something out of the way. Both these cameras perform much better than your mobile phone cameras. Between the two cameras the QX100 was obviously and clearly the better of the two because of the larger sensor and better lens optics. Because of the fact both these cameras easily out perform camera phones I decided this post wouldn’t focus on the quality of the photos but instead I’m going to focus on the practicality of the cameras.

Because these two cameras lack a screen you need to connect them to your phone. That’s a fairly easy process, you turn on the cameras and then you connect your phone to the cameras wifi. You then need to download the Sony app “PlayMemories” which will allow you to control the camera and take photos. Every time you want to use the camera, you launch the PlayMemories app and turn the camera on and wait for the two to connect. This is where I start having issues.

When it comes to capturing a quick moment both cameras fail miserably. If the camera isn’t already on and connected to your phone then you’ll most likely miss your shot because turning it on and then connecting it to your phone is a process that can easily take over 10 seconds. By then whatever moment you were trying to capture is long gone.

My biggest issue is that fact the cameras really aren’t that compact.Between the two the QX10 fits into my pocket but it’s still thick enough to create a bulge, a similar bulge to one I would have if I had a slim full featured point and shoot camera in my pocket. Actually the Sony DSC-TX30 is even slimmer so I would have less of a bulge with that. The QX100 on the other hand won’t even fit into my jeans pocket.

Now both these cameras do have one very cool feature that no regular point and shoot can compete with. The QX series cameras don’t have to be attached to your phone to work. If you’re at a concert you can hold the camera in your hand way above your head and while checking and taking photos from your phone at your eye level like a periscope. You can also set up the camera on a table in front of you and then use the phones screen to setup your selfie. You could even setup the camera in one room while taking photos from another and the reason you can do all this because the cameras work over WiFi. This I think is the coolest thing about these two cameras.

Which brings me to a question, who would prefer these two cameras over Sony’s other cameras? I honestly don’t know, I guess it’s for people who would take advantage of the fact you don’t have to have the camera connected to your phone. Price wise, both cost nearly the same price as Amazon with the QX10 costing KD69.9 and the the QX100 KD147.9 at the Sony dealer. If I was to choose between the two I would go with the QX10, its cheaper, its smaller and it has the added benefit of a 10X optical zoom.

It frustrates me when I hear stories of cops impounding cars because of a small stickers on the rear window but then I see scenes like the one above where a cop completely ignored a much more dangerous situation. The ATV above obviously isn’t street legal hence the lack of a license plate or any indicator lights but if that wasn’t enough the rider was texting on his phone when the cop just drove past him like nothing was wrong.

This happened a couple of hours ago, a car crashed into a bakery at Al-Rumaithiya Coop. Check out the video below. Both photo and video are from @alihassan80

Best Electronics currently have a special promotion on Hurom juicers. They were previously selling them for KD99 but they’ve now dropped the price down to KD74 which is cheaper than Amazon. Slow juicers supposedly retain more nutrients during the juicing process when compared with conventional juicers. I personally love my “conventional” juicer and wouldn’t trade it in for any other juicer, but if you’re a fan of slow juicing then this should be of interest to you. [Link]

Note: You need to add to cart and check out to see discounted price.

The Xbox One is now available in Kuwait and surprisingly it’s priced KD20 cheaper than when the PS4 was available on the first day even though the PS4 is actually a cheaper console. The price is also slightly more consistent across the store with the Xbox One selling for KD260 at Rihab Complex and Blink while Digumz is selling it for KD270. This is the PAL version that includes a digital copy of FIFA 2014 as well as the Kinect sensor.

Like the PS4, the prices should drop considerably once the console becomes more readily available.

Three Kuwaiti drug addicts and their massive dog were in their car heading out of their capital when a police patrol waved them to stop after suspecting their behavior.

The three quickly put the narcotics in a plastic bag and hid it under the dog before asking it to lie on the bag and stay there.

When the cops told them to get out to search the car, one of them warned the police not to come near the dog on the grounds it is savage and could be easily irritated.

“But the police insisted on searching the car…they were surprised to find that the dog is very calm and obedient…when they led the dog out of the car, they found the bag which contained hashish and other drugs,” Alanba daily said. [Source]

I thought this was funny to share.

Those of you who’ve been following my blog for awhile will remember the story about the old photographer in Kuwait City. If you don’t this old post of mine has links to all the previous posts on him [Link]

On my way to the original Kuwait Bookshop last night I decided to pass by and see if the old photographer was still there. I tried passing by a few times over the years but the store was always closed when I did. Last night he was there. I walked into the store and said hello, right away he made me sit down in the one chair in the store while he stood next t ome. The store was a mess with papers, photos and boxes lying around everywhere. The store was no longer functioning, he wasn’t developing photos or doing photocopies, or selling anything for that matter. He asked me who I was, I wasn’t expecting him to remember me since he’s 92 years old and he as expected he didn’t. I asked him what had happened to his collection of old cameras and he told me they were stolen awhile back. He then proceeded to tell me about how he was robbed of KD15 as well. I was having difficulty trying to understand what he was saying since he was kind of all over the place. While sitting in the chair I noticed some old black and white photos of a fire in the city taken back in what could be the 60s. He had previously told me he had sold all his photos but I guess there must be some random ones lying around the place.

I couldn’t stay long and had to leave but I asked him if he needed anything and he told me if I knew of someone decent who could come and clean up the store for him. Someone who wouldn’t steal from him. I told him I’d get it sorted and come by next week.

I figured I could go to the store with some volunteers and just tidy the place up and throw out the garbage. I wouldn’t want someone else to do it since they might end up throwing out his old photos which I think should be preserved. Now I’m not good at organizing cleanups, I’ve never actually organized anything before (I think) but if anyone wants to come and help me clean up and tidy his store next Sunday or Tuesday evening then [Email Me]

On a side note I have no idea what else can be done to help him out. He clearly needs someone to take care of him and he has no one…

The majority of the emails I get are regarding employment rights or should I say the lack of. I completely understand why I am getting all these questions. I am personally tired of how every time I walk into a store and ask an employee how long their shift is I get ridiculous answers like 8AM to midnight!

I realize how tough it is to go and speak out to your employer about a violation since I’ve been in that situation before. I also realize how bad Kuwait’s reputation has been over the years because of the way employees are being treated.

Recently I was hired by a company to help with some employee issues. The owner of the company stated that he didn’t know how he was supposed to treat his employees so I made an easy to read table with all the obligations of an employer as well as the rights of the employees. The full version of the law is hard-to-read and long so I rewrote it into a more direct and easy to understand language and placed them in a table for you below.

The law articles are mentioned in brackets for easy reference and the full version of the law is available [Here]. Click on the link below to view the rest of the post that includes the easy-to-read the table.

It’s about time.

Thanks Patrick

Bel Jerm El Machhoud is a Lebanese TV series similar to the US show COPS. Its a reality show that follows the Lebanese Internal Security Forces behind the scenes and in their recent episode they foil a kidnapping attempt of a Kuwaiti citizen. It’s not one of their most exciting episodes but it’s still worth watching. [YouTube]

Action starts at the 15:20 mark if you want to skip it all.

Thanks Camil