Blog Obit

Well folks, the time has come to call time on the FrenchamFamily blog.  It has been great fun and over the five and half years and seventy seven blogs we hope you have all enjoyed keeping up with us as much as we have enjoyed sharing our journey.  However as Sarah and Alexander have grown and other forms of social media have emerged the blog now has become less and less relevant (and as one of the FrenchamFamily commented: "there is no point blogging a dead horse").

For those of you who aren't in regular telephone contact then you will find Sarah, Melissa and Tony out there on Facebook (Alexander is still thinking about it).

So long and thanks for all the fish!

Your Blogmeister.

Missing (but very much) In Action

Greetings readers.  It's been a long time between drinks (as we say in Australia) however the FrenchamFamily have been a lot busier than normal.  Hopefully many of you have kept up via telephone and the individual Facebook accounts, but in any event here is a roundup of what May and June looked like for us.

Melissa has thrown herself into her new job (see March blog) and is very much enjoying it.  Together with her last year of study for her Bachelor or Behavioural Science degree she has been a busy little camper.  To make things more hectic, Tony had one of his heaviest travel periods (more on that later).

Sarah & Alexander completed Years 9 and 7 respectively at school and brought home excellent reports that they are justifiably very happy with.  Sarah also passed her ABRFM Level 5 Piano Theory exam and kept herself busy as a Teacher's Assistant at her Drama School.  Meanwhile Alexander completed two of his school Community Service activities, with Dad in tow, at the Dubai Cares charity walk and Terry Fox Run (Ack getting his groove on here in preparation for the charity walk).

As mentioned, Tony was busier than usual as he and his teams drove to complete a number of critical deals to meet both the Financing of the Sadara JV and the impending end of his secondment there.  It took him to a ridiculous number of places including Brussels three times

in May and hence the "tourist" snaps here.  He also was a guest lecturer on International Negotiations at the Dubai campus of Hult International Business School.

From August Tony will return to Dow and be responsible for ensuring Dow is ready to market the product from the Sadara JV when it starts up in 2015-16.  For at least the coming year that should keep us in Dubai and hopefully mean a lot less travel for him (have we heard that before?).

As we write this we are into the long northern summer school vacation period and the FrenchamFamily have de-camped to Melbourne to enjoy the cooler climes and to catch up with family and friends.  More on that in the next blog.

The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Those of you conversant with your theatrical musicals (or perhaps fans of Johnny Depp -- but who isn't?) will know the Post title as the tag-line to Sweeney Todd which was the "musical thriller" that Sarah was a cast member of this year.  Regular FrenchamFamily blog readers will recall that each year the leading theatre in Dubai stages a production with the leading roles filled by West End or Broadway actors and the supporting roles and ensemble from the Dubai drama community (e.g., see CATS in July 2012; West Side Story in July 2011; and Hairspray in July 2010 past blogs). 

Sarah is in the cast photo at left in the top right as the Bird-seller.  The show was staged in April so as to not clash with Ramadan which this year falls in July.  In many ways it is a dark musical but very enjoyable and the audience was certainly entertained by both the intriguing story and the wonderful performances.  If you haven't yet seen the musical or the Johnny Depp movie then check out this link (Sweeney Todd) to see what you have been missing.

A special guest this year was Sarah's Nannie (Melissa's Mum) who visited Dubai in April and was able to join us for the opening and closing nights of Sweeney Todd.  It was great to see her but there is a 2000 piece jigsaw puzzle story that won't be published here.

Meanwhile this is a busy time in Dubai for visiting acts / shows / sporting events as the spring weather here is wonderful and the northern hemisphere's are variable (actually I think awful was a better description this year).  Melissa and Sarah saw Train in concert and think they had a great time, but Tony and Alexander are sure they had more fun at the Red Bull X-Fighters World Motocross Championship (pictured at left).

Well that's all for now.  Cheers.

Camps, Jobs & Poems

February was school camp time for both Alexander and Sarah with each off on different occasions to Dibba, and interesting city on the Arabian Sea that is actually partially located in the Fujairah and Sharjah emirates of the UAE as well as in Oman (where the school camp was).  Plenty of hiking, kayaking and rock climbing as you can see here with Alexander.

Okay, we promised you "some surprising news about Melissa" in the last blog and we can't keep you waiting any longer.  Melissa is back in the professional work force (yes, yes, she was already working in her unpaid Executive Vice President of Home Affairs for so long in so many locations for so few...).  However the call came from the plastics and chemical industry of her past and she is now the part-time Communication & Committees Coordinator for the Gulf Petrochemicals & Chemicals Association (www.gpca.org.ae).  Has fitted seemlessly back into the corporate world and by all reports is having a great time.

Speaking of jobs, Tony has been as busy as ever with his negotiations on behalf of the Sadara JV with a lot of travel.  However the planned completion of this work by mid-2013 seems to be on track and so it seems likely that his secondment will end then and he will be returning to Dow in a new role.  Stay tuned for more on this in the coming months.

That brings us onto our final subject of Poems -- one each from Sarah and Alexander from recent school assignments.  Perhaps we'll let the readers guess which poem is from whom.

BLOOD WORLD

If every drop of blood could be seen

The world would be red, with a fiery sheen

Blood from animals

Blood from men, alive and dead

All this taken, from red seeping wounds

Would stain the world red, not blue

Blood in the ground, blood in the sky

All this blood as red as wine

Blood on the hands of people, young and old

Making their hearts as hard as stone

All this blood spilt, in pointless battles for land and for sea

Severing souls from red bodies

Think of this and ask youself:

What would it be if the blood was seen?

AFTER DARK
The lights are turned off; a key clicks in the lock
“The library is now closed”, everything has stopped
Amongst all the bookshelves, everything is dark
From day to night the contrast is stark
But out from the darkness shapes take mould
As all of the characters come out from their folds

Long John Silver is swaggering around
His boots make a menacing clicking sound
Up comes Harry Potter who’s left Ron
And strikes up a conversation with Long John
“I believe you owe me money” says he
“Alice got lost again” He smiles with glee

Meanwhile in the corner, all the princesses stand,
Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and the rest of the band
Waiting for Prince Charming to come to the rescue
Unfortunately he’s had to go to the loo
“Look,” He cries is utter dismay
“You’re gonna have to save yourselves today!”

Peter Pan is on the ceiling fan again
Eating bread he stole from the Little Red Hen
“Peter there are crumbs all over the floor”
“Wendy you sweep them up, I find that a bore”
Wendy replies with a glare and a frown
So fierce that it scared a nearby circus clown

Then we hear a scream from over the shelf
“Shirr Khan has got me! Help! Help!”
Everyone rushes over to see
It’s the little girl from The BFG
“Now Shirr Khan, You need to stop doing that!”
Scolds the man with the many hats

Meanwhile, Ariel’s sitting in a corner, she’s shy
She never seems to talk, no one knows why
Sherlock Holmes is on a very hot trail
To find out what happened to Jack and Jill’s pail
And Thomas and The little engine that could
Are having a debate on the best kinds of wood

George Washington has left his biography
To watch a game that’s happening, of rugby league
It’s the monsters versus the fairies tonight
And Frankenstein’s monster has put us a good fight
The evil witches are cheering, though we’re not quite sure for who
Tinkerbelle is tackled, “That’s a foul!” shouts Baloo

But soon sun begins to rise
And the characters to back to their books, alphabetised
“See you tomorrow,” whispers Dr Watson
Smiling at one of the girls from Jane Austen
As all the characters go back to their beds
To plant all their stories in people’s heads

Missing in Action

Apologies folks but the FrenchamFamily Blog Meister has been missing in action since 2012 despite (or because of) having plenty to write about.  It's been a busy time for all of us.

Of course we took the traditional trip Downunder for Christmas-New Year with family and friends.  The weather was very kind this year, albeit once we left the seemingly annual bushfires afflicted much of south-eastern Australia and of course the post-cyclonic floods in Queensland were devastating.

As always our thanks to all the family and friends who make the long trip so enjoyable.  Of course there was the occasional over-indulgence of food and beverage, and all those wonderful presents.  We especially liked our cricket gnomes (pictured here) from Jenny, Stuart and the boys which now have pride of place on our backyard deck.

Tony got away to the MCG for Boxing Day with his mates whilst Sarah and Alexander headed down to the beach at Nan's (and Melissa got in some post-Christmas relaxation).

We were especially excited to catch up with Colleen and Bernie to share the excitement of their blessed pregnancy and to see them before their lives change forever! (almost entirely for the better).

We also took in the hilarious "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum" with a stellar Aussie cast including the incredible Geoffrey Rush (whom we didn't appreciate has been awarded the very rare "Acting Triple Crown" being an Academy, an Emmy, and a Tony).  What a performer (is he really 61?) and what a great night for the FrenchamFamily.

As you can see from this happy summer photo, Alexander has shot up and has passed his sister and is closing in on his Mum, despite only being twelve.  Certainly funny to watch as his pants and shoes have to be replaced because their quickly too small rather than because they have been worn thru boy style.

Well we are back to Dubai now and the next instalment will include lots of activities and some surprising news about Melissa -- stay tuned!

Closing out 2012

Well we've all been busy in the lead up to the end of the year (or is that the end of civilization according to some guys that aren't around anymore -- go figure?).  Anyway, the FrenchamFamily has been enjoying the temperate weather in Dubai (we don't call it Autumn/Fall since it sort of doesn't work in the desert) and it is a time to get outside and benefit from the endless sunshine here (more about that later).

For all of you that enjoy a good laugh you will know that one of the funniest sitcoms of all time is Fawlty Towers, albeit there were only twelve golden episodes made.  Well some very clever actors now have a touring show entitled "Fawlty Towers The Dining Experience" and the FrenchamFamily went along for a hilarious evening.  The show only included Basil, Sybil and Manuel (pictured) but they hit all of the high points from the television series.  From the pre-dinner drinks when Manuel started taking the guests sight glasses because he'd been told to "collect the glasses" (drink) it was madness and mayhem right through until the dessert.  And aside from being great actors, there was a lot of audience participation and wonderful ad libbing in character.  If this show is ever in your town then we highly recommend it.

The international Rugby Sevens tournament came through Dubai as it does around this time each year and this time the FrenchamFamily decided to attend and enjoy the huge party atmosphere (and to cheer for the Aussie team as well).  On the day Melissa stayed home due to a severe head cold and what a brilliant decision that turned out to be!

The day was unusually cool and a light drizzle was falling which was essentially the first rain of the year in Dubai, but since it nevers lasts long Tony, Sarah and Alexander pressed on in typical light clothing (you can see where this is going).  Inevitably it turned out to be a REAL rugby weather day, with wind and rain the likes of are rarely seen in Dubai.  The pictured stadium appears to have roofing towards the back of each stand but we found out that in fact it is simply shade cloth for the other 364 days of sun and so the rain came straight through!  Anyway, we soldiered on and enjoyed the rugby (nothing good to be written about the Aussie performance) and the wonderful crowd that treat the event as a fancy dress party and many barely notice the rugby at all.  We got smart and bailed just before a second bout of heavy rain, but we'll certainly be back next year.

As we write this we are heading off to Australia for our vacation with family and friends.  From the FrenchamFamily to all of you and yours, Merry Christmas and our very best wishes for a wonderful 2013.

Tidal changes

It's been some time since we posted but it is the time of year where we are mostly heads down and the rest up focusing on school, work, study and transitioning through the seasons.  Still, let's see if we can summarize a couple of months and a very interesting end of October.

Aside from his very busy work, Tony finds this an emotional time of year as most of his sports (Aussie Rules Football, Formula One, southern hemisphere Rugby Union, and U.S. Baseball) all transpire during this period and he likes to think all his teams will win.  This year was not unkind to Tony, but it was certainly not triumphant by any means (all excuses have been expunged from what would otherwise be a 2000 word summary):
- Collingwood made the finals but never really threatened;
- Red Bull will win the championship but Mark Webber has fallen away again;
- the Aussies may have to be re-named the Wobbalies (and need to send their Kiwi coach home); and
- the Yanks blew a great season and fizzled out like a team worth a fifth of their salary.

Sarah & Alexander are now immersed at school, and Sarah has started as a teachers assistant for her Drama School.  Melissa is wrapping up her assignments for her Bachelor of Behavioural Science with only one more part-time year to go out of six (how time flies).  The summer heat is now dropping away and the evenings and mornings are very pleasant -- the tidal change from exhausting summer to enjoyable spring is being dramatically embraced and outdoor dinners are now looked forward to every evening.

We had two more visitors through on the "Visit Dubai 2012" program with Tony's cousins Robin and Martin and their partners stopping by.  Tony was disorganized enough to be absent for business on both of their visits (however it was not at all clear whether that was a negative or a positive).

The Harlem Globetrotters visited the UAE for the first time and brought their well known but equally loved brand of entertainment to the outdoor arena where the Dubai Tennis Classic is held.  Lot's of fun for Sarah, Alexander and Tony as Special K and the team delivered the goods and managed to "just" beat the opposing team with seconds to spare.

The Eid-al-Adha holiday fell at the end of October and the FrenchamFamily decided to spend the week in Venice despite the fact it is towards the colder months (but that meant there were less tourists which we prefer).  What we didn't count on was the seasonally high tides which, with a full moon and some global warming added, meant the popular tourist locations were under water once or twice a day.  That first morning that we stepped out of our hotel and found that the sea had come to greet us was certainly unexpected, but Melissa made a dash for a nearby store that sold gumboots and after that we were back in business.  It might seem that a flooded city cannot operate, but Venice knows how to make this work (our last night in Venice had a 1.4m tide peak which was the highest since 2010 and 80% of Venice was under water, but life goes on).


The food of course was fantastic and we decided to never eat in the same cafe or restaurant twice.  Inevitably this was not a perfect experience as three of the four FrenchamFamily members went down with gastro one day but all was forgiven by the end of the trip with a wonderful final evening at Luna Sentada restaurant which we highly recommend to anyone visiting Venice (say ciao to Ermanno for us).

It was a pleasure to be in a city with so much history and with the only sounds being those of the people and the water -- NO CARS!  One can (and did) walk for days and every twist and turn delivered new pleasures.  Cathedrals, palaces, eateries and so, so many shops.

We also took a water taxi to Murano where the Venetian glass artisans work their magic and then onto Burano which is known for it's colored villas and lace industry (which seemed to get Sarah excited above).

Arrivederci Venice.  Mille Grazie.