Even more Local wildlife

A goat in hand is worth two (or three) on the ground

And so the Gate Guard comes to work this time with 11 kids. Why!? you might be wondering .... and you'll just have to keep on wondering because I haven't yet figured it out myself. So far I get the feeling that he's hoping the other rig hands might want to buy them .... to eat maybe? But they are so tiny.. and so cute ... and all this on a drilling rig - My drilling rig.

I just love animals - especially when they're babies. I love (human) babies too, but they grow up to become animals.

Some more local wildlife (of Oman)

Up until now, I always thought Praying Mantis'....er... Mantisses .... whatever, were green till I came upon this little fellow - as brown as an Indian. This I suppose so that he (she?) can blend right into the predominant colour of the Oman Interior.

A Birthday In The Fields

"Ah!", you must be thinking, "Dinesh is celebrating his birthday in a field" and you are probably conjuring up images of a green grassy field with flowers and the like. One might even picture a fenced enclosure and cows grazing without a care in the world, or even an image of a bull in one corner of the 'field' eying the cows with a wicked eye.

But sadly, this is not true as the fields in question are the OIL fields of Oman. Yes this is the third birthday (that I can remember) spent in the oilfield. And here are pictures of the cake and the guys who stood around me and attempted to sing 'Happy Birthday' with total abandon and absolutely devoid of any recognizable tune whatsoever.

The BBQ in the sand and viceversa

And here's a picture taken at the BBQ. This was taken in the period of the calm before the storm. The first round of lamb was tasty. And the second round developed a lovely crunchiness to it (after the wind began to blow the sand all over) which helped to grind down the teeth a wee bit.



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Local Wildlife

Was out at a BBQ on the sand dunes of Lekhwair last night and This is what we spotted in the dune running around catching insects (that we didn't know were there). Had to get pretty close up to get this picture.

Now,is there anone who still thinks that I am afraid of lizards?

The Mad Hatter Rain-Dance

We had our second rain dance while I was home last time and talk about wrong timing because we had no rain during the entire party..........And now it's coming down with a vengeance.

The Hard Hat

We had a good time though, especially Jacqui who'd had one too many. The theme was "Mad hatter" and here are pics of some of the hats. You will notice that I have on a hard hat. And if you're not too shy, you may openly gaze at the hard body under the hard hat.

The others all had hats but have long since taken them off.

The Bridegroom Hat

The shisha smoking cowboy

The nesting Hat

The Aeroplane Hat - Dennison's invention

The Aussie Outback Fly scarer-off hat

The Shisha smoking Ghati

A little secret - I'm drunk after a very sandy BBQ out in the desert and I have to sleep now. So bye folks and good night.

Bahrain

Visited Dhiraj & Lynda in Bahrain last hitch and loved the place. What was interesting about Bahrain is that you turn off from one of the very mordern looking highways and all of a sudden you are transported into what looks like an old fishing village in Daman. All very quaint.

Also right next door to the villa was the swimming pool. Behind the pool was a large green field - it was all very beautiful. I was in the pool mornings and evenings for the duration of my stay there. The girls swim wonderfully and I had a great time with them. And on the last day I insisted on a swim in the evening and ended up reaching the airport for the 1930 flight at 1930 hrs.

Oh yes I did manage to get on the next flight which was half an hour later.

I'll post pictures later as they are not with me at the moment

I'm Back

It has been a while since the last time I posted anything here. That's because I work in Oman, and this seriously affects the availability of good internet connections. And speaking of internet connections I was pleasantly surprised when I turned on my computer at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International airport of Bombay and found that there was free wireless internet. Hurrah for India & Hurrah for the Indians (that are fortunate enough to posess a laptop).

Words of Wisdom

Prior to my assuming this position as a Rig Manager I was really nervous and unsure. So I asked Marvin Findlater (the guy I was taking over from) to tell me how he planned his day. But he wouldn't tell me a thing. Then on the day before he left left he handed me this note. Note the last bit of advice - very important for people assuming a manager's position.

Good Evening

This is a test.

This is what it started out as because I couldn't get the darn page to refresh and show me the last post that was published. After much muddling around and checking of settings etc. the page refreshed and the newly published post was visible. Hurrah!! Though why it happenned in the first place is a mystery ........one that I might never solve ever.....!!

Good Friday & Good Parents

Tomorrow is Good Friday and we Riggers are not prone to fasting. But this year I strongly feel the need to fast. This could have, I fear, something to do with my upbringing?

During our childhood we were constantly reminded that we needed to fast but my parents didn't force it upon us. Mum's contribution to imposing Good Friday on us was that she never cooked meat. Good Friday meals were a simple fare - Generally Pulse Broth (learned that from my kid) commonly known as Dal, with white rice and a vegetable.

Later on as we grew into young adults, we had to choose whether we wanted to fast or not. If memory serves me right, I mostly chose not to. But this year I feel the need to, and this need I know stems from the good upbringing that my parents imparted on me.

Thank You Folks!! you've done a great job on me and I suppose Dhiraj too.

The Fast and the Futile

......And so, I set my mind to fasting on Good Friday. I had alerted the cook to make me only a vegetable sandwich for breakfast, and Rice and Dal for lunch just in case the rigors of my work environment warrant a meal . The day started well and I went about my business with an empty stomach. All was going well.

It was when Istvan came in with a special sandwich containing homemade pork sausage and fresh paprika that my resolve broke and I caved in. I immediately sent him away with this temptation and I hurriedly ate the vegetable sandwiches earlier prepared to circumvent this prospect. And so I managed to stay away from meat for the day. I have also not had lunch and will not be having dinner. All is not lost !!

And I thought I was the only man on this rig who's fasting. Later I found out that Istvan (muttering under his breath) took the pork sandwich and offered it to Mihaly who also turned it down.

Maybe next year I'll make it through the day.

Sheep of God

Yesterday while veiwing some content on the internet (with the Hungarian Mud Engineer, Mihaly Kalapos) about Debrecen, which is his city in Hungary, He showed me the city's Crest and excitedly pointed out to the lamb in the crest, "This is the sheep........" he said. I said that I knew because it looked like one, to which he replied, "No! No!.. This is the SHEEP OF GOD" ...... And then it dawned on me - The Sheep of God who takest away the sins of the world.

.....SPARE US O LORD !!

Hungarian Goulash Day

Yesterday was Hungarian Goulash day. Not in the same sense as "Labour day" or "Republic Day" . But simply because yesterday Istvan the chief Mechanic prepared a large vessel of very tasty Hungarian Goulash. He single handedly prepared the dish right from cutting of the veggies and the lamb, the cooking, the preparation of the Hungarian pasta the and eventually dishing it out to us in bowls. It was a fantastic meal. This meal was washed down by the home brewed Palinka which is so much like the Goan Feni.

Incidentally, I jogged most of the 7.5 kms to base camp for this meal, which made me very thirsty and so a couple of Palinka pre-wash drinks were required. Istvan in the pic with the remaining goulash today - My dinner.

Fitness and Me ---- 2

I have worked in the oilfield for 18 years. During the early years I was subjected to a lot of manual labour and was able to maintain some semblance of shape. When I was promoted to Night Tool Pusher, all I had to do was supervise - and that's not good for a guy (me ) who's constitution requires that I do some manual work just to keep from putting on weight.

It was then that I met Yves Slagmulder who suggested that we start running together. Now Yves was fairly portly when I first met him but he was very committed to losing weight. So he chalked out a plan to go running every evening and dragged along Mihaly Kalapos (who used to be a long distance runner - if what he says is true) and Me, who couldn't run 50 mtrs without panting like a dog on heat. Well to cut a long story short I relented, and today I can jog more than 3 kms at a go and have acquired a more streamlined facade. This streamlined facade I will develop, and one day when I step out of the surf (at the beach in Goa) people will ohh! and ahh! thinking that I am the next James Bond. A big shout out to Yves Slagmulder who helped make this possible !!!!!

Cricket and Idiots

Tonight is the night that (almost) all Indians will be glued to to their television sets to watch the World Cup match between Sri Lanka & India. I say 'almost' because I know with absolute certainty that my wife will be one of the few Indians who will be fast asleep. I too will be sleeping (can't be bothered to lose sleep over cricket). But I will wake up tomorrow morning and switch on the news to find out whether India has gone thru to the super eights OR whether there have been acts of vandalism directed towards the homes of the players.

...........An ugly business this cricket! It's not a simple 'win or lose' situation anymore, it has now evolved into a 'do or die' culture. Take Pakistan for instance - they didn't 'do' and so their coach was killed. When the Indians lost the match against Bangladesh, some of the players' families were terrorized. I pity the poor sods who will have to perform today under this sort of pressure. I tell you I glad that I am not talented enough to be a cricketeer!!

Fitness and Me ---- 1

I have been a bit of a fitness aficionado ever since the ''Youth Movement' days. There I met guys like Kennedy, Sabby and Michael 'Bandy' who fuelled this yearning for fitness. Very soon I came to be known as "TARZAN". And secretely I was pleased even though it was invariably always preceeded by "PAPER". In due course of time, when the workout began to show, I was upgraded to "CARDBOARD TARZAN". After a few years my interest in fitness waned and a smallish stomach began to show and I earned the nickname of "PAITLIA". And even today there are still a few members of that YM group that still (fondly) remember me as "PAITS". Not anymore guys !!!!!! But that's another story.

New Tailor - New Suits - Old Men

Had to stitch a new suit for the FHC. Jacqui insisted that I get myself a new one. In her words exactly, delivered with finality, "You will not to wear this suit" (talking about the one I got myself in December for the Ruby Anniversary). And so... I took Richie - our neighbour and very close friend - and we went suit shopping. After stopping in at three outlets and finding nothing to our satisfaction we decided to buy material and stitch suits. So we went into the Raymonds shop at Elco Arcade and settled on the material and even decided to stitch there. Didn't know they stitched but apparently they have been for a very long time so we decided to chance it. Went for a fitting a couple of days later and was pleasantly surprised at the fit - the best I've had yet. Raymonds Zindabad!! Elco Arcade too!! (from where all Bandraites have or will purchase something at some time in their lives).

Oman and the Omanis

Have been working in Oman for nine years. Love the place and the people. Muscat is one of the most beautiful places I have seen. It's like a a bunch of tiny towns in the mountains connected by highways. Salalah I've heard is even more beautiful.

The people here are so much like Indians and initially I was surprised to hear that so many of them even speak Hindi. What I like about the Omanis is that they are a humble and friendly people.

Now, the oilfield work environment here in Oman is a whole different ball game altogether. I have seen a few class idiots during my time spent in the oilfield in India, but here in Oman the sheer numbers of class idiots that come out of the woodwork is staggering. How I wish I had my old crew from 'Miss Kitty' working for me here and now !!

Who am I.....??

I am for most purposes, a Husband, a Father, a cook (very occasionally), a wannabe DIY enthusiast, a mad hatter (most of the time) and a LOVER...
....of animals

My Daughter, My Wife - My Family

What a fantastic kid she is. I'd like to think that she's a bit like I was when I was her age. She is currently in class four and scores extremely well in all her subjects . I remember quite clearly that my grades were dropping after class two and so the theory that she might be like me is slowly going out the window.

Yes ! Now that I think about it, she is without doubt so much better than I was (at her age) !! Quite clearly Jacqui is doing a fantastic job with her. I see them together and I know that there is no way in hell that I could even do a fraction what Jacqui does. And now while on the subject of Jacqui, let me say that I am blessed indeed to have Jacqui on my side. Why? Simply because I have seen what happens to those who are not on the same side that she is on.

I shudder (not unlike what vehicles do when they 'judder') to think what my life might be without Jacqui and Rithika. My Family - I love them !