Choices: You're Too Young

We all like having choices, even me, who has a lot of trouble making decisions. I am that "typical" woman who cannot decide where she wants to eat when her husband asks her, "What do you want for dinner?" Isn't that the worst question ever?! Trying to choose a movie to watch on Netflix or on an airplane is agonizing. I probably spend more time choosing a movie then I do actually watching the movie.

But, I have the choice, and having or not having a choice is the reason I'm writing this. With the recent developments in Alabama, Georgia, Ohio, Kentucky, and Mississippi, I started thinking about the choices I have in my life. And while I've been very fortunate to have many choices in my life, one of the most important choices I tried to make for myself, as a woman, was denied time and time again.

I was older than 18 years old and married. As a husband and wife, we, together, made the decision to not have children. However, when I asked medical professionals in the United States to perform a tubal ligation, I was denied. DENIED?! I was an adult. I was married (which shouldn't matter one way or another). Yet, when I wanted to make an informed decision about my body, I was told that I was a little young and that I might change my mind, and therefore I could not have the procedure. But when my husband, who was the same age, asked to have a vasectomy, the only question he was asked was what date suited him to do the procedure.

I was very fortunate to finally find a doctor who listened to what I had to say, and agreed to perform the procedure. You can read all about it here. Five years later, and I - no, WE - have not changed our minds.

While I am very much pro-choice when it comes to abortions, I am also very much pro-choice when it comes to preventing an unwanted pregnancy to begin with. And for a doctor to say that a woman cannot choose to permanently prevent a pregnancy, and the law to say that the same woman cannot terminate an unwanted pregnancy, just blows my mind. So, I can't choose to have an abortion, but I also can't choose to prevent a pregnancy in the first place? You're damned if you do; you're damned if you don't. 

Trip to Sri Lanka

Zach and I were very adamant about not traveling this school year in order to save up for all the work we need/have to do on the cabin. However, staying in Qatar during winter break really depressed us. We needed to get out - not because we hate it here, but because we needed to experience something new. So, during our week-long break in February, we joined three other friends and rented an Airbnb in Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka. Hikkaduwa is a coastal city in the country's southwest side.

I can't tell you much about Hikkaduwa, because Zach and I only went into town twice: once to have dinner (it was dark) and the other was to go diving (we were in the water). Other than that, we stayed at the Airbnb, relaxing, drinking, sleeping, and more relaxing. I don't have much to write, because we literally did nothing. But, I can show you some pretty awesome pictures. Oh, one great thing about our Airbnb: we had a personal cleaner (did all of our dishes, etc.) and a personal chef. And, if we needed someone to go to the store for us (for say...beer), all we had to do was give them money, and they would get it for us! Win!

View from our porch

Joe hanging out in his hammock

 

Sign at the dive shop

 

Sam doing a lot of relaxing

Zach doing a lot of relaxing

Glamping: Beach on the Arabian Gulf

Way back in the beginning of October, a group of us went glamping (glamorous camping). Instead of writing much about it, I will just share photos and videos. It was a great time with great friends, and I definitely plan on going back!

 

 

 

 

Brunch: The All-You-Can-Eat and Drink Madness

Ah, winter break! I thought this would be a fantastic time to go back and update all of you on our time in Doha. Little did I realize that would be a tall order! I haven't blogged since September, and it's the only post about our time in Qatar. So, what better way to introduce you to Qatar than talk about brunch?!

I bet you're thinking, "Brunch. Big deal." Well, that's exactly what it is - a big deal! However, when I first heard about it, I thought the exact same thing as you, especially after I heard the price! Let me explain. There is one store in the entire country - ONE STORE - that sells alcohol and pork. There are hotels and bars where you can get alcohol, but that one store (the QDC) is the only place to buy for personal consumption. When you go out to a hotel/bar, you will spend about 50 Qr on a beer (~$14). Happy Hour is about 35 Qr (~$10).

So, back to brunch. Brunch is an all-you-can-eat and drink (alcohol) affair which will cost about 300-500 Qr (~$80-$140) per person. Now, I know brunch is not specific to Doha, but it's the first time I've ever heard of it, and I was blown away by the cost. However, if you break it down, it's actually a pretty great deal. Brunches usually last 3.5-4 hours. Again, it's all-you-can-eat and drink. If you have two drinks per hour, you've already gotten your money out of it. (But who just sticks to two drinks per hour when it's a never-ending flow??!) Most brunches are on Fridays from 12pm-4pm.

I've been to two brunches, but they've both been at the same hotel, so I can only vouch for the one, but it was really good! Here are some pictures of our brunch days!

Fancy Food

All. The. Drinks.

Sam's birthday celebration

 

 

Our Apartment in Doha, Qatar

Here's the video of our apartment in Doha, Qatar.

I've compiled a list of videos of all of the apartments we have lived in while abroad. Which is your favorite??

Iksan, South Korea - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEbW44_CnxE
1st apartment in Busan, South Korea - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFwmSeGiwDU
2nd apartment in Busan, South Korea - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUjSn-BGzJ8
1st apartment in Cairo, Egypt - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWPAJghkZEQ&t=291s
2nd apartment in Cairo, Egypt - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irO9UtwjbD8

No Clinically Significant Variants Detected

It's been a couple of months since I last posted. We have made it to Qatar and are in the middle of orientation. Everything is going well! But, I will write another post about that in the next few days. I wanted to keep you all updated on something I did during the summer.

In the middle of July, I took the step to get genetically tested for "the" cancer gene. Why? For those who don't know my family history... My maternal grandmother had breast cancer when she was in her 50's. My mother passed away from breast cancer when she was 39. Learning from the geneticist, I found out that having cancer at a young age could be due to a mutation in the genes. Now, we will never know if mom had a mutation, but I wanted to find out if I did.

I DON'T. Two days before moving to Qatar, I found out that I don't have a cancer gene. Good news, right?! Well, it's a mixed bag. Yes, I am extremely thankful that I don't have the gene. However, that does not really mean what you think it might. I will try to break this down how I understand it.
**You cannot take what I say to be gospel. If you are concerned about yourself, please seek genetic counseling yourself.**

The average person is at an 11% risk of developing cancer. Since I have a family history, and mom was so young when she got it, that bumped me up to a 32-34% chance of developing cancer. With that, I am supposed to get yearly mammograms and MRI's, and I should have been doing that since the age of 30. I'll be 32 in November. Every gynecologist I've been to has said that I'm too young for that. Thankfully, the geneticist is prepared to fight for me, and will issue a letter from her office to any gynecologist who refuses to give me an exam, discussing my risks. That's good news for me. If I had the gene, that would put me at an 80% risk of developing cancer. At that point, we would have had to discuss possible surgical procedures to prevent the likelihood of getting cancer.

Now, the reason it's a "mixed bag". Just because the genetic test came back negative does not really mean that I don't have a cancer gene. There are thousands of genes in humans. I was only tested for 17. Not even 1% of my genes were tested. So, potentially, I could have a mutation in a gene that has not yet been linked to cancer or was not tested. Or, I could have a mutation in the genes tested that cannot be found with current testing methods.

This means that I will have on-going communication (every few years) with the geneticist to see if there have been any updates or findings within the scientific community about genetic testing.

This might sound like I am not excited about the outcome. I am excited that my chances of getting cancer have not gone up. I am also excited that I will have proper testing going forward. However, the geneticist kept going back to the fact that mom had it at such an early age. Sure, it could have been environmental. Maybe she had a mutated gene that was not passed on to me. We'll never know. And, that's the scary part. I guess none of us really know, and that's scary to me.

Anyway, I wanted to keep you all updated. Zach and I will continue to live our lives to the fullest. We will continue to explore different places, and we'll continue to take you along for the ride.

Qatar updates to be posted soon - I hope! 😉

The Holy Month of Ramadan

The entry-way to our apartment building

It's that time of year again. In fact, it's nearing the end of that time of year - Ramadan. Ramadan is the most holy month of the Islamic year. I very much equate it to the season of Lent in Catholicism. It lasts from new moon to new moon, which is approximately 29-30 days.

Ramadan is a month of fasting, repentance, donating to charity, and getting closer to God. Fasting typically means no food, drink, smoking, or intimacy from sunrise to sunset. It is also a time of abstaining from sinful thoughts and actions.

What does all of that mean in regards to someone who lives in that culture, but does not share in the faith? It means being respectful and supportive. For us, the school day is shortened so that families can be together during the sunset feast. Iftar is the breaking of the fast in the evening. Think Thanksgiving feast every night for one month.

As a 6th grade teacher, I have students who are fasting for the first time. I've been told that the students leave school at 2 pm and immediately go home to nap. Then, they wake up in time for Iftar. They may stay awake or go back to sleep for a little while. Then, right before the sunrise prayer, they will wake up to eat for the last time before sunset. This cycle continues for a whole month.

As a teacher and as someone who lives in the community, it is up to me to be respectful and empathetic of those who are celebrating Ramadan. I should not eat or drink in public, unless it's at a restaurant or another place where food is served. I should be a little more conservative with my clothing. Most importantly, as a teacher, I need to be aware that my students are tired, hungry, and a little crabby - which can be super hard when it's the last month of school, AND it's Ramadan!

I'm sure I could go into more detail about this 30-day holy month. But, these are the basics. As an outsider, I have so many emotions about Ramadan. I respect those who participate. I am dumbfounded at why anyone would put themselves through it. And, I am super happy that it's almost over!

Ramadan Kareem