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Recently I went on a blender hunt since I wanted to replace my Philips blender which started to struggle making my smoothies. I started checking out the two best blender brands, VitaMix and Blendtec. Just like the great SNES vs Genesis battle there is a similar one between VitaMix and Blendtec. You have to choose sides, it’s either VitaMix or Blendtec and you can’t have both. Both brands have excellent blenders and no matter which one you choose you can’t go wrong. After watching countless videos on YouTube of people comparing the two blenders and basically just watching people blend stuff, I came to the conclusion that both blend extremely well but I was choosing Blendtec. Why?

• I liked the way Blendtec blenders looked like compared to the VitaMix blenders. Looks aren’t everything but if I was going to spend so much on a blender and bond with it then I wanted to like everything about it including looks. For people with low kitchen cabinets the VitaMix might not fit underneath because the VitaMix jars are tall and thin while the Blendtec jars are wide and short. The Blendtec blenders also look like modern kitchen appliances while the VitaMix have an old school look which is probably why they’re so popular with hipsters.

• I’m a huge a fan of the Blendtec informercial series “Will it blend?“. In the show the company founder tries to blend random objects in their blenders and he’s blended everything from iPhones and iPads to glow sticks and McDonalds meals. If it can blend an iPhone, it can blend my smoothie.

• The local Blendtec dealer is Mabrook, the same dealer as KitchenAid and I’m already a customer there.

There really weren’t that many models to choose from at the VitaMix and Blendtec dealers and both of them carried only the business range. The Blendtec dealer had only three models, the Blendtec Xpress, the Q-Series which was their midrange unit and the Chef which was their top of the line model. I ended up going with the Q-Series because I loved the size of the unit, the way it looked and the soundproofing features. The fact that Starbucks also uses the same blender didn’t hurt either.

The blender came in a huge unmarked brown box with just a small label on the side describing the contents. Inside the large box was the blender, two jars, some manuals and a CD. Setting up the blender was as simple as plugging it in and turning it on. It works right out of the box just like a regular blender. The “Q” in the “Q-Series” stands for quiet since the unit has sound proofing inside the case around the motor as well as a noise preventing cover that closes down over your jar. It’s meant for coffee shops and juice bars where they have to keep the noise level down as low as possible so as not to annoy the customers. The controls are fairly basic at first glance, 6 touch buttons on the top and a large power switch on the front but the 6 buttons on top are all customizable and programmable. The blender has 9 blending speeds and 30 pre-programmed blend cycles. Using the supplied “Cycle Chart” you can set up any of the 30 available pre-sets to any of the buttons on the blender and if there is a specific custom cycle you want you can take the blender to the dealer and they will program it into the blender.

I use one of the factory set smoothie cycles that is just 23 seconds long and consists of the following cycle: Starts off at speed 3 then goes to 5,1,3,5,3,6 and finally ends at speed 7. During the blending process the units LCD display will show you what speed the blender is on and how many seconds left for the blending process to be completed. The same blue LCD screen also displays a smoothie counter, kinda like how your car has the odometer, the Blendtec blender has a lifetime counter. As of this post I have made 95 smoothies in the two weeks I’ve had my blender.

There is literally nothing this blender can’t blend and no matter what I’ve thrown at it the blender has never even given the slightest sign of a struggle. My Q-Series blender has a 3.8hp motor and I haven’t used anything higher than a speed 7 even though it goes up to speed 9. I really didn’t realize how much my older blender used to struggle when making smoothies until I tried it again a week after getting my Blendtec. Not only did my old blender struggle but it also used to take around a minute to blend a smoothie. On the other hand I had a smoothie party last week and I was blending smoothies left and right flipping between two jars like a pro and blending nearly 3 smoothies a minute. I love this blender.

There are some downsides though. First is the fact the blender came with the regular 4-side jars and not the newer 5-side WildSide+ jar which is supposed to blend even quicker. The other negative is the fact the lid of the jar leaks when I clean the jar. To clean the jar all you do is fill it up with a bit of water and add a drop of soap. You then mount the jar on the the blender and use the “Pulse” button until the jar is clean. Only issue is unless I’m really holding down on the lid really hard it ends up leaking water from the top. I haven’t had any issue when blending my smoothies just when cleaning the jar but still, it’s annoying to have to keep wiping my blender down after cleaning a jar. The last issue is the price.

Before I mention the price I have to say, this blender is not for everyone in the same way Subzero fridges and Viking ranges aren’t for everyone. If you want a really good blender at a great price then I highly recommend the Philips which I previously had. But the Blendtec is one of the best blenders you can buy period and it’s commercial grade which is why it costs a staggering KD375. Even the Blendtec Xpress which is the entry level blender at the local dealer is still KD193. But good blenders cost a lot of money and it’s not just Blendtec or blenders, commercial grade appliances be it a fridge or a toaster will cost considerably more than regular plastic appliances. The VitaMix blenders I checked out locally were expensive as well with their entry level Drink Machine Two-Speed going for KD260 while their Vita Prep 3 is for KD359.

I love my blender.

Update: So my Blendtec sadly died on me 7 years later. No biggie except for the fact that they discontinued the parts for it and to fix my issue (which is the motherboard), I need to swap out the whole blender innards for a cost of KD128. So not worth it obviously since I can get a new Vitamix for that price.

Gia, my favorite little cafe in Salmiya with all the quinoa salads is going to be expanding by taking over the space next door. They’re going to close down over Ramadan and use that time for the renovation. Currently the place is always packed in the evenings so the expansion should reduce the chance of not finding a place to sit. Check them on out on instagram @giakwt

With the advent insta-twitter* there is a whole community of MD’s (and even more MD’s), pharmacist, dieticians and dentists giving advice on there on a daily basis through videos and pictures. This isn’t a bad thing, it’s actually a miracle if you work in healthcare in Kuwait because never in a million years would I have expected such a healthcare awareness campaign to actually work and be successful! I also love seeing old friends gain confidence I always knew they had as they reach out to more people.

But like the start of the internet, this trend poses alot of very interesting ethical and legal questions that I simply can’t find the answer to.

Instadocs is an interesting article written by a Kuwaiti doctor on the the local social media scene and how some doctors are using it to dish out advice. Check it out [Here]

Post by Amy Freeman

So I spent the last week in Korea as I was part of a team that made it to the Crossfit Games Asia Regionals. It was a fantastic experience to be a part of something as huge as that and to top it of, my very good friend ended up winning 1st place in the female individual category.

As some of you might know, Crossfit is a mix of disciplines and to be good at it, you have to be the strongest, the fittest and the fastest at many different exercises including, conditioning work, olympic lifting and gymnastics.

While I watched my friend enter the second to last event, she looked very calm and you could tell that she had a strategy in mind. So there I was thinking man this is insane, not only does she have to be the best at everything but she also has to think about her strategy and not get caught up in everything else that is going on around her. Plus, this was day 3 of the competition and her body was nailed, more than nailed her body was totally broken. Now that’s an athlete.

Long story short she won that event and went on to take out 1st place overall.

As I reflected on the 3 days of watching these world-class athletes, especially my friend who I had watched prepare for this day, I gave myself a metaphorical kick up the ass and I have been taking the inspiration from watching these amazing people into my workouts and my approach to training in general.

You know what its like when you have been training for a while and you workout most days and you try to keep yourself honest but you let a few things slide every now and then? Maybe not sticking to your rest time, maybe changing an exercise that you don’t like for one you do like or maybe doing 6 sets of sprints instead of 8, the list goes on and it doesn’t make you a bad person but sometimes you have to be honest with yourself when this is happening and go get inspired so that you can set some goals and achieve some greatness.

For me last week I got inspired and since then you bet my workouts are the toughest they have been in a few months. I’m lifting with purpose in EVERY set, my tempo is on point in EVERY set, my technique is flawless in EVERY set, today was so hot outside but I ran anyway and the biggest one for me; doing the exercises I absolutely suck at. I might be able to bench 80kg, but my body weight, gymnastics and ring work sucks ass and that embarrasses me.

When you get inspired, you’re able to clearly pin point what is important to you and the next step is then to set goals, create a plan and achieve what you want. Sometimes internal motivation is enough but sometimes you may need the support of a friend, trainer or coach and that’s ok. You just have to figure out what you want, what you need and then create a plan.

When setting goals make them SMART:
SPECIFIC – Make sure you know exactly what your goal is in every last detail. For example. I want to Deadlift 2 x body weight for 1 rep.
MEASUREABLE – You need a way to measure your progress, like body fat or maybe a one repetition maximum.
ATTAINABLE – You should put steps in place such as mini goals that all help towards achieving the big goal. This could be like making sure you prepare food every Saturday afternoon for the following week so you don’t get hungry and fall off the wagon. Minimize risk!
REALISTIC – Make sure you seek expert advice so you know your goal is achievable for you. For example, if getting strong is your goal, talk to a trainer about a realistic goal for you. If fatloss is your goal then going from 100kg and 30% bodyfat to 60kg and 16% bodyfat in a month isn’t realistic, so seek expert advice if you are unsure.
TIMELY – Set a specific date for your goal and stick to it. Don’t make it ‘sometime in August’. Make it the 20th August, for example.

Happy Training Kuwait.

Post by Amy Freeman, a Strength and Conditioning Coach from New Zealand and currently a Personal Trainer at Inspire Pure Fitness in Kuwait.

I was able to get a hold of two tickets for ‘The Wanted’ music event that is being held by Ooredoo this coming Saturday night and I’m going to give them away to one of my readers. Although some of you might not recognize the band’s name you’ve most likely heard one of their songs before. They are an English-Irish boy band and their two most popular songs are “Chasing The Sun” and “Glad You Came” which you can hear below.

[YouTube]

So if you want to win these two tickets, all you need to do is leave a comment below with the name of your favorite song by them. You’ll only have until midnight tonight to leave a comment since after that I will be using random.org to choose one winner who will get the two tickets. Good luck!

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 within 12 hours of receiving the email, another winner will be randomly chosen.

Update: I closed the post for comments last night and using random.org this morning the winner was chosen which is comment #177 (Tareq). If Tareq doesn’t respond to my email in the next 12 hours a second draw will take place. Thanks for participating everyone and sorry you couldn’t all win.

Update2: The original winner didn’t respond to my email after 12 hours so using random.org I drew another number and the second time the winner was #209 (Ozair).

Thursday
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: Thief
SHREK The Musical
Exhibition: 50 Years of Printmaking
Exhibition: Once Removed – Kevork Mourad
Exhibition: The Tour – Barry Iverson

Friday
Kuwait Scapes
SHREK The Musical
Wayans Brothers Comedy Show

Saturday
Shakshooka Nomadic Farmers Market
SHREK The Musical
Cinemagics Rooftop Movie: The Great Beauty

If you’d like to share an event on the blog [Email Me]

Wataniya Ooredoo are bringing the music group ‘The Wanted’ to perform live this coming Saturday at an invite only event that’s going to be held at their Red Dome near 360 Mall.

I’m not a fan of ‘The Wanted’ but I’m curious to why they can bring big bands to Kuwait and no one else can? A couple of years back they brought the musician ‘Ne-Yo’ and now this.

A few months back I posted a collection of old Kuwaiti postcards which I had found by mistake on eBay while searching for something else. This time around I found a larger collection of old Kuwaiti postcards but I was deliberately looking for them.

What I find fascinating about these old postcards is the fact they highlight important locations and buildings of that era, ones that are forgotten about or don’t even exist today. That’s why for this post I’ve highlighted these two specific postcards, one of the Carlton Hotel and the other of the Phoenicia Hotel. According to this old scan from a 1966 magazine, Phoenicia was the a beautiful place where you could experience the most beautiful days of your life. Good times, check out all the postcards below.

To purchase any of these postcards visit this [Link]

Yarmouk became the first healthy city in Kuwait this month by fulfilling the requirements of the World Health Organization (WHO). Some of the requirements they fulfilled included:

– Fighting against obesity
– Having a walk marathon
– Beautification and cleaning of the city
– Setting up a well-equipped walking track
– Planted trees
– Saved power and water
– Washed streets with water and soap
– Organized exhibitions for young entrepreneurs a
– Established an environment-friendly park
– Organized cultural, social, educational and health symposiums and lectures
– Urged people to donate blood
– Combatted smoking
– Fighting swine flu

I think thats really great now if only the same formula could be applied to my area or other areas around Kuwait. Checkout the article on KUNA [Here]

Photo by Samira

As part of the blogs expansion I’ve added a bunch of new sections to the blog and because I know it can be annoying to keep clicking every section to see if there is anything new, I decided to solve that issue by updating the middle column. After playing around with it for awhile now I’m finally comfortable with the way it looks and the function it provides.

If you take a look to the right side of this post you’ll find “More from 248AM”. These are posts that aren’t on the main blog page but instead posts that have been published in one of the other sections. So if you’re looking for more content to read, keep your eye out for articles that pop up over there.

I’ve gone through a whole bunch of sports mixers over the last few years and really wasn’t happy with any of them. The majority would either start falling apart after awhile, not mix my drink properly or worst of all, start leaking. Sports mixers are used to mix protein shakes, energy drinks or nutrition supplements and are pretty common with gym goers. Recently I noticed one of the protein stores I frequent (Health Planet) started carrying the Blender Bottle brand. I purchased a small bottle and I’m in love with it, by far the best sports mixer I’ve ever used. It’s really well made, looks great, does a great job of mixing because of the wire ball wisk inside and most importantly, it hasn’t leaked on me yet. There are two sizes of the sports mixer, 20oz and 28oz. The one I got which is pictured above is 20oz which is the perfect size for me. The price for both sizes are similar coming in at KD6.750 and KD6.950. So if you want to pick one they’re available at Health Planet.

Hello everyone, although I haven’t posted here in a while, I have been reading your questions and emails. Over and over there is one question that is constantly being asked so I have decided to post the answer here, so you can all benefit.

“How can I get a release from my company?”

This question is not as simple as it seems, the answer depends on a few things (I am assuming you work in the private sector and Kuwait Labor Law 6/2010 applies to you):
1) If you have passed the 100 day probation period or not
2) The type of contract you have (specified or not specified)
3) Whether your employer was providing you with your rights as per Kuwait Labor Law

So therefore I tried to simplify the answer in a flow chart below:

I really don’t like how some employers are keeping foreigners here against their will by using a specified contract, putting travel bans against them and doing other manipulative things. This isn’t a perception I have but stories I keep hearing EVERY SINGLE DAY! So my advice to you is, if you want to leave and they won’t let you go, email your boss with all the things they are doing that are against the law or your contract, for example withholding your passport, not paying you on time, not paying you over time, working more than 8 hours a day and so on (Read your rights here)

Also I would like to take some cases pro-bono with a help of lawyer friends, so please email you if you feel your employer is not being rightful!

As for company’s please read this link that has employee rights, you have no excuse to treat foreigners this way.

If you have any further questions please write them below, I will try to answer you here.

Post by Fajer Ahmed – Legal Counsel
The legal opinions expressed in this post are those of the author Fajer. Opinions expressed by Mark or any other writer on mark248am1.wpenginepowered.com are those of the individual’s and in no way reflect Fajer’s opinion.

K’S PATH, the local non-profit animal welfare and environmental protection organization needs your help:

You can make a difference to the lives of 232 shelter animals this summer by supporting our Summer Fundraising Campaign! Help us raise six months worth of food – which totals KD10,000 – by 31st May 2014 for our dogs, cats, horses, donkeys, goats, sheep, ducks, tortoises, turtles, rabbits, ferret and baboons. Your generosity will enable us to continue providing our animals the nutrition they need to be happy and healthy. Please do spread the word and give us a call at 67001622 or email [email protected] to make a donation. Thank you!

Out of the KD10,000 they need, as of this post they’ve raised around KD9,500 which means only KD500 is left. So contact them if you can help them reach their goal.

I have no idea whats going on with the emergency lane situation in Kuwait but there seriously seems to be some major confusion. The other day an article in the Arab Times said the following:

Jail, 3-Mth Vehicle Seizure For Emergency Lane Violators
Director of Public Relations and Moral Guidance Department and Acting Director of Security Media Department, Brigadier Adel Al-Hashash has announced the activation of a traffic law which punishes motorists who use the emergency lanes, reports Al-Shahed daily.

Al-Hashash explained those who drive in the emergency lanes will be detained at police stations for between 24 and 48 hours and the Al-Anba daily added their vehicles will be impounded for three months. He denied motorists were allowed to use the emergency lanes because of traffic congestion. He added, the Interior Ministry’s media department had earlier issued a statement in this regard. He said the law was activated on May 19 and the security authorities will implement this law in its strict sense.[Source]

First of all it seems no one gives a crap about that new law because over the weekend during heavy traffic on the Fahaheel Expressway not only were people using both the left and right emergency lanes, they were using it even when there was a police car in front of them (pictured above). No one was afraid of getting stopped, fined or punished. But then again, I’ve seen people run red lights in front of cops with no reaction from the cops so don’t know why I was surprised by this.

If that wasn’t bad enough, today there is another article in the Arab Times but this one contradicts the statement I highlighted in bold and italics in the article above. I’ve copy pasted this new article below:

Move To Reduce Congestion
Ministry of Interior has permitted the use of safety lanes on certain roads at specific times to reduce congestion.

In a statement, the ministry indicated roads specified for this purpose include King Faisal Expressway from the Sixth Ring Road, King Abdul-Aziz Road from the Sixth Ring Road to First Ring Road, and Al- Maghrib Highway from King Fahad Road to the First Ring Road.

The permitted timings are 6:00am-9:00am and 12:30pm-3:30pm, noting the times specified are the busiest in the country because Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti employees and students leave and return from the schools, institutes and universities during the period.

The statement added the decision was based on directives from the Interior Minister and Acting Minister of Awqaf Sheikh Mohammad Al-Khaled Al-Sabah and the Undersecretary Lieutenant General Suleiman Fahad Al-Fahad.

The road users can only use the safety lanes during the specific period and at specified locations to follow regulations, reiterating the lane is originally for ambulances, fire engines, police cars and civil defense but other vehicles can use it now, as instructed, and the speed limit is 45 km/h. [Source]

So a few days after one person issues a statement saying that no one is allowed to use the emergency lane not even during rush hour, another person releases another statement contradicting the the first person. Talk about lack of communication and confusion on this subject.

Kuwait is tied in 11th place in the latest report from Gallup on the happiest countries in the world. I guess the Happy Kuwait video did Kuwait a lot of good.

Survey Methods
Results are based on telephone and face-to-face interviews with approximately 1,000 adults in each country, aged 15 and older, conducted in 2013 in 138 countries and areas. For results based on the total global sample, the margin of sampling error is less than ±1 percentage point at the 95% confidence level. For results based on country-level samples, the margin of error ranges from a low of ±2.1 to a high of ±5.3. The margin of error reflects the influence of data weighting. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.

Check out the full report [Here]

Thanks BeeJay