a thank you note

This is a thank you note to all those who have helped me not only survive and eat three times a day, but keep my sanity and actually move forward in such a short period of time.
Just think of this as a long shout-out in a rock album.

• Colin Trees, for being the best landlord in Dubai. For sharing and genuinely caring for Fifi and me, and making my birthday a special one in a place where it could have been one of those forgettable and extremely hot summer days.
• Ayadh, who was a spiritual mentor and an angel to both of us. He was essentially one of the main reasons I didn’t give up trying to look for something better, and I will forever be grateful for his trust and concern.
• Haroon, for being nice and well, nice.
• Mike, for being a cool housemate. He was a little too frank to us, but it all worked out for the best. Hope he’s fine and keeping the faith.
• My former officemates, who never let go of my hand when I was down in the dumps. I hit rock bottom, but it didn’t hurt like hell because they were literally there to catch me, and they were there whenever I needed them.
• Karen, for showing us around and being very helpful. It’s nice to have someone from my high school.
• Richard Hall, for spending some time with me when I hated my job and I needed good company .
• Amir, who has been a big nuisance, but has managed to be there for me in the middle of the night when I need someone to talk to. A nice conversation that doesn’t need brains.
• Peter, who cooked for me and gave me one of the best evenings in my life.
• Friends of friends who have become part of me. Obet’s Mye and Arvin, Jen’s Khashif and Khashif’s Fahad, and so on and so forth.
• The Filipinos I encountered --- the ladies who shared their food with us in Oman, the coffee shop manager who gave us free lattes on our first day in the country, the waitress who gave us more than enough wifi stubs so we could surf to the death, the stranger who showed us how to get to the bus station, and all the other nameless faces who have helped us in one way or another.
• Craig and Yolanda, for being wonderful housemates, and making me feel like a part of a family. They’re a lovely couple and I can’t wait to see them again.
• My present officemates --- Khadijah, Renee, Lorna etc etc for making me feel at home and comfortable in the company and for sharing with me a wonderful work experience that I only dreamed of in the past.
• Of course, my UP friends. Eve, Obet, Jennyn, Sherry and all those who never gave up like me. We have seen the worst, all at the same time, and we were all drowning in a large pool of quicksand. But we managed to pull each other up until every one of us was ok again. More than OK, in fact. More than stable. What’s that word again? Happy. Yes, happy.