4:09 am--The alarm rings again. I get up and change clothes, then head downstairs. If the dogs aren't up by the time I take my daily pills and potions (it's 50-50 whether they are or not), I go upstairs and roust them out of bed. I have had to actually pick Mimi up and put her on the floor--she's a real slug-a-bed. I take them outside for a quick pee. Harry doesn't need to be leashed anymore for these short trips but I always put Mimi in her halter and leash. Back inside for breakfast for everybody.
4:30 am--We set off for our morning constitutional. It's a short walk, 15-20 minutes, but it wakes everybody up. It is completely dark except for a few street lights (some parts of camp are flood lit 24/7 but they are farther from the residential areas). The first day's call to prayer happens during our walk.
5:10 am--I jump into the shower.
5:50 am--Dressed and ready for work, I take the dogs for another quick walk, this time to a large grassy area across the street. Mimi and Harry both are now on the routine and take this opportunity to pee. I linger for a few minutes and let them eat sticks and sniff around.
6:22 am--The dogs each get a treat (we are currently working on sit stays). I walk outside to catch the bus which stops right in front of my building. The majority of Aramco employees do not take the bus despite the convenience. I understand this completely--it is impossible to get a taxi during the day, even for an internal camp trip, unless you have reserved it in advance. There are so-called circuit buses but they do not run very often, perhaps every couple of hours. If I know that I will need to run an errand during or after the work day, I drive in. Either way, I am in my office by 6:40 at the latest.
7 am--The work day officially begins. I'm still sorting out how best to describe what I do, mainly because I'm still sorting out what exactly I am doing. But I've been busy since I started work at the beginning of November. I am enjoying the work and find every day brings challenges.
11 am--Upul comes to the house to walk the dogs.
11:15 am--There are little food kiosks/coffee vendors tucked into every stairwell and unused corner on just about every floor of the buildings where I work. I stop by one regularly and pick up some lunch which I eat at my desk. I've been to the camp dining hall a couple of times and I've eaten at the dining hall beneath the Exploration building once. They are noisy and very crowded. The food is decent, far better than you might expect for the cafeteria-style setting, and the prices are heavily subsidized. You can eat yourself into a stupor for less than USD 5. After I eat, I do some personal web surfing. Officially, lunch is from 11:30 to 12:30.
3:58 pm--I log off my computer, think about cleaning up my desk then decide to leave that for tomorrow (there is always a tomorrow), and head for the bus which leaves promptly at 4:15 pm. There is a fairly regular group that rides the bus most days, including my friend Martin the geologist, so we chat about our day.
4:35 pm--I am greeted by this view every work day as I enter my porch:
Shelob at the window.4:50 pm--I try to get in a rousing game of baby with the dogs after I change clothes. I usually play until both of their tongues are dragging! I might spend a few minutes cleaning up around the house but we usually head out for our daily long walk by 5:30 at the latest. We walk for an hour, doing an out-and-back. The loop around the golf course also takes an hour but about half of the path is adjacent to busy roads. Mimi doesn't like car traffic so I stick to the half that is nicer. These walks are entirely for the dogs so I stop as often as they want.
6:30 pm--Dinner time for puppies. None of my dogs are picky eaters so this task is completed in just a couple of minutes, including measuring food, eating food, and cleaning the bowls! I'll then eat my own dinner. I'll watch TV for a while then read until bed time. I've got one dog draped on top of me at all times if I'm sitting down. It's a rule.
The 4:30 to 7 pm routine gets compressed if I am going to the gym or planning to attend some meeting or other event. The biggest change is that they get a shorter version of their daily long walk but no matter what, they still get a walk after they eat.
And sometimes I work in another game of baby before bed, usually only if I know my next door neighbor is out for the evening because there is a tremendous amount of thumping and bumping as they leap around chasing down their toys.
9 pm--Sad to say, this is when I go to bed. Rather, this is when I brush my teeth, put on my sleeping clothes, and get settled in bed. I usually read for another half an hour or so but nearly always fall asleep and either whack Harry or whack myself in the head with my book.
4 am--It starts all over again.
Yes, those are long days at work (I'm gone from home a full 10 hours) but there is plenty of leisure time remaining in each day because of the minute commute. I think the routine helps the dogs feel settled. I've done some spot checking on them and they aren't barking and howling during the day which is a huge relief.
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