Slumming it. every once in a while a guy’s gotta…

Slumming it.


every once in a while a guy’s gotta do what a guy’s gotta do.

its natures calling, pure and simple.

every once in a while we get all Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr and need to either destroy or build something.

having been responsible for my fair share of destruction in my day, i decided to settle with the latter, which incidentally came in especially handy since we’re moving into a new office which needs refurbishing

so up at the crack of dawn!
(8am, hey, market opens at nine and it only takes me 30 mins to shit, shower and shave in between sips of coffee and news feeds)

on go the jeans!
(which umm isnt really special cos thats what i wear everyday anyhow,…. although i did put on an incredibly old t-shirt cos i knew i was gonna get dirty)

on go the boots!
(umm again,…. normal everyday footwear, for some reason i like knowing i got support around my ankles which you only get with boots,….. even tho i dont actually do the laces up , still got a bit of the early 90’s grunge kid in me apparently)

spend 5 minutes hooking tape measure to belt,…… i looked like a dog chasing its tail if you can mold that image with trying to clip a tape measure on your belt.

loaded up with notepad and pens i felt all architectyish again. well more than architectyish,….builderish, which i’ve always prefered.

out the door and into the lift.

checkin myself out in the lift mirror,…

“Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr, today, i build because i own a pair of testicles and wish to scratch them when they get sweaty after a hard days work!”





there is a certain level of comfort you get when you downshift what you do and what you look like, and subsequently what other people think you do.

let me clarify,… i can walk out of the stock exchange in jeans and a t-shirt, and some people who see me there everyday will know i’m an investor there. others will think i work for some old kuwaiti dude, but then theyre just morons and would think the same if they saw warren buffet sittng on the exchange floor.

now if i were to dive head first into a bin to collect coke cans ( you know you can actually get money for those things these days), the i’d probably draw odd looks.

however, dress down enough, and you can get away with virtually anything

now i’m not actually doing the work cos i know fuck all about timber and carpentry, but theres a carpenter that we hire as a freelancer. so he picked stuff out and i help carry shit too and fro after agreeing on finishings etc.

i’m Grrrrrrrring today remember, so i’m hauling these huge sheets of timber from the shop, cross the road, and into the sawmill,…. going Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!

i unload, and turn to get another big ass sheet,….

when i see the carpenter, who is half my height and width, skipping down the road with THREE massive sheets hoisted on his shoulder!

disheartened, i reverted to designer/supervisor mode,….

and scratched my balls, ….. cos it was a warm day.

but back to my point about slumming it, dress appropriately and you really can get away with murder!

looking like a day labourer, i did the following:

- carrying some tools, i pushed ahead of the que to get into an office lift,… hahaha, i was sweaty and stinky so had it almost all to myself and no one even yelled

- one medium sized peice of timber and me and the carpenter in a lift,… could easliy fit another 3 people, but every floor that it stopped on i put my hand out to stop them coming on and said “sorry we’re full ” with a smile. lol not a word!

- the best is when youre carrying something, not even big, but it should look heavy,….. and you need a door opened, JUST YELL!!!

HEY YOU OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!!!

HOLD THE GODDAMN LIFT!!!

ARE YOU FUCKING BLIND, CANT YOU SEE I GOT SOMETHING HEAVY HERE?!?!!?!

YEAH YOU DAMN WELL BETTER HOLD THE DOOR!!!

and the do it!

lol had it been me i would simply slam the door if some moron yelled at me like that.

on the otherhand, its surprising how some people are obviously sooooo important and busy ( read mendoub, bum, tea boy, accountants from certain countries that think theyre the shit) that holding the door open for someone luggin something would take too much of their precious time.

the only guy that did open a door without my yelling said ‘your welcome’ in an american accent after i said thanks in my trans-atlantic accent. he was an arab in case youre wondering, which says alot, but is something for another post perhaps.

after sorting everything out, we took a break for a few minutes.

then we capped the day off with a lunch at a small pakistani restaraunt frequented by day labour in mirqab. thats where carpenter dude said he normally eats lunch.

slumming it has its advantages, the best being a big ass chicken biriyani, with half a chicken, some chickpea sauce, salad and a laban type thing for KD0.550 per person!!! and yes it did taste great, and no its been 4 hours and i havent had to go to the loo.


oh and no building took place today, just moving material

tomorrow i build!

well the carpenter will build,….

for tomorrow i shall supervise!

and maybe scratch a bit here and there.