Just testing this old blog

Like I said just a test.

I delivered.

Communication one, two, one, two!

What do you answer a baby girl aged 5 when she asks you what are you doing in the bathroom? You answer to her level by saying "#2 baby"

That was easy, what follows is the real question. “Why are you doing a #2?"

I personally replied: " Because baby" which got me no where, so I studied this awkward situation and thought about relating my #2 with whatever we both relate to, Donuts!

“Because I ate donuts baby" Bull’s-eye! She left me alone in my private peace sanctuary. But I guess the new Krispy Creme joint will not appreciate my choice of words and being associated with my #2.

Its communication at its best.

feel good recipes

This is a several part idea of how to make your day a cool, feel good day. The methods I use are not new to many, yet some people drowning in their misery and negative vibes might feel this information valuable.

My first way of making sure I get a good start to the day is with my perfume/cologne or aftershave as some may prefer.

Now there are a lot of brands and smells out there that anyone can find his ultimate desire. Taking you from the champ elyses of Paris to the Monto Napelioni of Milan and as far as the Jamaican islands. Scents are very important to the human being one of the vital 5 senses we all enjoy.

Back to my point, first the pointers on Perfumery for all sexes;

1- Never wear a night time perfume that you love to death and bascically swim in it, during day time.
2- Avoid scents that continue to have the same strong scent for ever.
3- Avoid scents that only you, yourself, enjoy as no one ever commented positivley on it.
4- Never mix scents thinking you are Yves Saint Laurant.
5- Get the good stuff never imitation or unknown brands.
6- Always take a shower before switching scents.
7- Get to know what works with your skin type.

Here are my choices for that great start of a day;

#1 FRESH by Dunhill
#2 Black XS Paco Rabanne
#3 CK 1 by Calvin Clein

For the night that's for another coloumn. Guys give the above a try and tell me how you feel that morning ;-)

Where did all the good girls go?

So it has been said over the years that men and boys are the scum of the earth. Over 10 or 15 years ago my uncle who I don't actualy take guidance from shared some meanigful insight with me. He said the time of the man has gone, it is now the time of ladies to prosper and take the reigns of power.

Elaborating he said the time will come when girls will be the hunters and they too will be dumping the guys. Please remember this talk took place in Saudi Arabia, a very closed environment only known to dwellers in society.

When I look around now, I see a new formation of society being formed. One that does not care about what people think, its what I want and only that. If I am wrong I want to prove it my way, even if t has to be marriage!

Now here is the irony, the girls get married for the wrong reasons, the guys will get married when they have had their fun and have a stable job and feel secure enough to make a family.

So the girl gets married, they kinda fall in love, soon problems start rising, a bit of financial problems, WHAM, BAM, THANK YOU MAM! I want a divorce she screams, he fights it a bit, then the family comes running, then they do what their daughter wants and they get a divorce.

After divorce, she is basically free. She roams and rolls the country and party scene like no other, he does the same but this time with no good intentions like marriage.

Now back to the subject, where did the all good girls go?

The married lady today wants to compete with the teenager who has more options and society is more forgiving to her because she is young! So the married lady starts going out every day, meeting new freinds in all age groups all the way down to 17, even though she is appraoching 40!

She does not know what she wants? does she want her children from her husband or does she want freedom? eventually the husband comes around to his rightful thinking and divorces the bitch( excuse my french).

She wonders off into the wilderness armed with several years of marriage and children, she only needs that. What she did not think of is the wonderful things a normal man would look for in any woman, simply going back to basics;

1- Loving tender arms when he arrives and a good time with his soul mate.
2- Caring for his problems so he too can care for you.
3- Sincere feelings with no hidden agendas, because he too can find out what's beneath the hugs, kisses, and sudden sex drive.
4- He is a goldmine for his family, be his family and don't be a visitor.
5- Get dressed and glamorous for him just like when you go to your midnight parties.
6- Ask him for a night out, be the change you want to see in him, men like that, they are actually suckers for that!
7- Love him to death, for sure he will try and beat you in that attempt!

I am not a marriage councelor, yet a fine example of a marriage going south, and one that has been married twice. Problems could be all mine, I am sure to find some that belong to my other half as they put it!

Ladies, get back to reality, get back to the simple things in life. Here is my bet to you, when was the last time you gave flowers as a gift and saw her eys light up? get my point.

Evn if I decided to get married again, would I want her from my country? the world is closer than you think. choices for the businessman are more than the lonesome, homesome, person that never leaves his hometown. When I travel the world, I never stop wondering when I see great women full of life and energy, what would it marriage be like with her?

why I worte this? It's because I see allot of guys falling like flies to girls who wanna take em for a ride! enjoy the ride.

"He hit me and cried, made it to the teacher and told on me"

Would it not be amazing to catch all these blood suckers that imitate for a living? that wait for you to start and thrive then pounce on you with cheaper useless imitations.

The real irony is why do they copy? could it be real that these souls have no imagination? no idea what to do in life? no kind of thinking hats? ok let's say that's true, then how about that other thing in business called "profits"?

So if someone copies your idea,program,watch,car,business..etc. for the sake of making it in china or elsewhere but cheaper, how does he know what kind of profits you are making, if you are making anything at all.

Did these poor blood suckers think that was all there was to it? what about the sink in years of the idea, what about breakeven, what about marketing, what about customer base, what about segmentation, what about human capital,creativity,change...the list goes on an on.

All that being said, I could never quite get these rascals? they just sit tere like hyenas, actually sick hyenas and wait for you to turn your back and go for it!

I am honestly trying to figure out how to make them pay double by finding a kind of net to catch them all in one big net and make a nice bbq with their pirate invested money, maybe give it to charity, a fake charity, one that runs away with their money and never comes back. Then all they can do is make up a story for the papers, so society will feel sorry for the suckers.

We have a sying in the arab world; " He hit me and cried, he beat me to the teacher and told on me"

Inflation confusion in the Arab World

If you ever wanted to know what a financial shock treatment in your life is, get through an inflation period while barely hanging on.

The irony of the matter is those ininflationary times, which one of its indicators is surplus money here and there, and not so much there. It is times like these that start you thinking
” maybe I should have taken that lousy boring economic class after all!”

You read in the papers that commodity prices are sky high, gas prices all over the world are soaring like an eagle, and real estate prices in one part of the world are rising 30-50% per annum and vice versa in other parts. You ask the barber about inflation and from what he gathers; it’s a sign of the times.

Lets take Saudi Arabia and the Gulf area as an example only because I live there, you take your normal way to your friends house which is off a famous street in Jeddah and all you see are phantoms, ferrari’s, lambo’s, mercedes benzes and bimmers are like flies. You think to yourself, how could this be? And people are complaining about the price of rice and bread? Well many answers to that question;

1- We are changing in the Middle East in the financial markets drastically over the last five years. It is a positive economic movement sparked by the new financial laws that actually are saving the banks monies by placing many a rigid credit and credibility screening across the kingdom. To name a good example, SAMA, this is like your credit history in the states.

2- The split banking infrastucture of conventional & Islamic banking products that enable everyone, regardless of how religious he or she is to get a car loan, ridiculousley over priced house loan, or money to reinvest.

3- Collection agencies are more powerful than before.

4- Competition amongst Saudi Banks and the rollout of older wiser international financial institutions coming to share the corporate lending pie. Ofcourse that being said, the local banks are now trying harder than ever to attract residents at the retail level for their more cut throat lending rates.

5- New leasing programs make it easier than ever to drive your dream car, or close to dream car based upon your budget and maximum lending stretch.

6- The fact that more corporations are expanding through IPOs and easier than ever laons from banks, employment which still has its negatives, is at a thriving level as the fight for quality and sometimes rubbish talent continues between companies. Please do not forget that it is almost impossible to get foreign aid due to saudi-I-zation of jobs at all levels, even the ones they suck at!
7- Last but not least the picture is not so rosy on the macro level however on a micro level it seems to balance out, especially in advanced cities like the 3 major cities; Riyadh, Jeddah, Khobar.

You see, people will always buy new cars, buy clothes, new perfumes and accessories all in the name of important to have. They tend to fudge it not budget. They tend to fall for the massive marketing campaigns of " buy this car for $10 a month" forgetting how many months.

People will always look at what if scenarios, if I delay payment of this and that i can get that. They will always forget the small stuff till they shop for home or eat out.

Here they will fret over spilt milk, why has my bowl of rice increased a dollar? and why is my shopping cart bill increasing every month? then they compain and whine for a few weeks, but when payday comes and its time to make up my mind on that new BMW that is only a 100 times out of my league, but hey! there is that smart invention called leasing!

Sign me up will ya, you only live once. So yes you will see many, many luxomania mobiles driving around town, ask the driver for the car registration and you will know what I'm talking about. I guess that's why police men know the rich from the wanna-be's.

My insight is that of an individual consumer and proffesional business & financial investor, maybe that’s what’s causing my confusion?

The SECRET reversed

Everybody these days has an idea about the famous book & DVD "The Secret". What people don't actually mind thinking about is the negative side effects the secret can have on someone.

Let's say the critical insight in the secret is to start the law of attraction in your favour. So if you want something really bad, you think about it day and night and things fall into place, thus enabling you to get what you want.

On the other hand, if you don't want something bad to happen to you and continue thinking about that one thing most of your waking hours, sometimes also in your sleep, you get what you don't want. How? well due to your focus on that one thing you are creating a force in your subconcious level so strong it is acting like a magnet, you being the magnet and the thing you don't want being the peice of metal.

On a recent occasion me and one of my close freinds took a long trip together. Through my observations on this close freind, i found him to be waiting for bad things to happen. Well to give you a simple example, when we approach the customs desk, he seemed to jump from one to the other, each time finding as he approaches it fills up with people! this he is working on.

On another occasion, we reached our destination, waiting for our luggage( I had 2 pcs. he had one) his did not arrive! he panicked and started cussing, getting angry and so forth. He had major problems on the way back to the city, one that caused us 2 hours delays at the airport, a continuation of his previous experience which he did not let out of system.

Why? because he is always looking at the worst that can happen, as murphy puts it, it will all happen, and then some more.

On my side, i tend to be a happy go lucky individual, what will happen will happen, enjoy the ride! Good things are in store for you.

Are you an Ass kisser?

What if I gave you a technique that would identify you as an Ass kisser, or not? I am sure this blog will get people fired up in the name of NETWORKING lol.

When you meet someone, let's say a Richie Rich kid, one that has made the money the easy way and not done anything about it, but spend it, to be clear.

1- Do you greet him with extreme warmth and make it a point to be seen shaking his hand and hope he doesn't flip you like one of his flip flops in less than 2 minutes, to meet someone more important than you?

2- Do you fake your smile and laughter at his dumb sick jokes?

3- Do you praise his intelect even though you know he is no more than a newspaper headline eduacted jerk?

4- Do you through names of these people to show that you are in the loop, even though he does not know you exist!?

5- When approached by this same individual you spark up and seem alive like your first date even though you had a sick day at the office?

6-When this Richie Rich hits you with a social blow that affects your self esteem in public do you smile back accordingly?

7- If this person had no money, or less than you would you treat him or her the same way?


Sorry if you answered yes to any of the above, you could be a newbie Ass Kisser or an advanced Ass Kisser.

Don't get me wrong,this has nothing to do with networking or being people savvy, this is exactly what it means..ASS KISSER.

Oh and yes! it takes one to know one ;-) I was for a good part of my life, remember I worked in a bank.

Feel good music

Is it me or is the whole world moving towards peace and love again. It seems they have had enough.

When your in a night spot and they are playin some groovy music from the seventies or early eightees and the 18 year old's are dancing and humming along, alarming is when they know the lyrics and you don't!

I have never stopped listening to music, its easy when you like most of the popular music being created around you. Anything from 80's to ear deafening acid rock I will give it a try, and every thing in between. My favourites are of course R&B, Reggae for the deep meaning behind the smooth rythms, contemp and much more. My son get's shocked when im listening to his newly released Cyclone hit or Low, and it really get's interesting when me and him get down to some lately released hit ;-)

Back to my subject, feel good music; anything that makes you smile, feel it in a positive way, brings back a good memory, increases the beauty of the moment a takes you to your favourite spot in 3 minutes.

Trust me on this, check your music selection and tell me if it does affect you? people with those 24/7 love songs...gimme a break, that's not what I mean. Check out the old and famous hits like : Move on up, by curtis mayfield.What a wonderful world by Louis armstrong,Music & You, room 5( taken from the old days), like a star, dramatics...etc. get my drift?

Dance to the music!

Saudi Labour( workers)

Believe it or not! We offered some Saudi guys in the ages of 20-30 the opportunity to work as car washers and end up after 6 months owning their own car wash and found zilch! zero! sifr! nothin!

I thought that many people work as employees for years to save and eventually save enough money to won a business and become self employed? How wrong could I be? VERY.

Here are some of the things I personally handle to make sure no one was trying to scare off the Saudis ( conspiracy theory amongst Saudis);
1- Advertised in major newspapers to draw the attention of prospects, only to find the very few came to think it was a push button operation with no labour involved.

2- Talked to the Major social players to get us hooked up with some Saudi youth, no luck there.

3- Advertised some more, this time no one even called!

4- Talked to young guys at the car wash to send in their friends for job interviews, no luck they all wanted to be Supervisors( as if they knew what the @#$% they were doing in the first place!)

5- I even hired a Saudi who appeared on TV in a large country campaign for labour work, he ripped me off from day one by asking for an advance of Sr5000- USD1300- never to be seen again or heard of!

6- We put the word on the street that we were hiring by word of mouth in a " work to won program" failed again.

7- Finally the franchises we operated and sold started to close due to tough Saudi laws on labour and visa requirements and still no Saudis.

It is so funny that these very Saudi guys whine all day and complain about not finding jobs, and companies not treating them right! get a life you idiots.

If someone was to come to me and say would you let your son work as a car washer, YES! and he would. If someone asked me would I do it? YES! been there done that, after being a Private banker at a leading Saudi bank, and a 14 year banking career. I am not showing off, I'm actually pissed off! excuse my french.

Every country in the world has a labour force from the natives, except the gold fed Saudi youth. If I knew they were dumb, stupid, uneducated,morons,with no ambitions, I would relax and rest my case. They are actually the opposite.

Why do we give it to them when we find someone working as a barber, mechanic, painter, plumber, chef,washer...enough of the kiss their ass cause they did it and ignore them, if they want it bad enough, really bad enough they will fight for it.

It's time we changed our strategy as a country, and ignore them. Job or no job, our government has stretched out on a limb to help them, they even gave them money to start work, they take the money and travel or just spend it!

We should have ads in newspapers making fun of them, not showing that they are cool when they work! make jokes about the subject, wake up and smell the coffee.

If you have anything to add on the subject I'm all ears.

Pampering service standards

Ever wonder where all the good service outlets went? Ever wonder where all the smiles and sincere greetings disappeared? Have you seen how the STARBUCKS standards have fallen below average in the past few years in KSA? well I know where they are brewing, in ASIA.

It takes you by surprise when you visit an Asian destination of choice and see what service is all about. It should be forced upon all layers of management to visit hotels, coffee shops, shopping malls and retail outlets during their job, frequently. Did I forget the airlines? have you travelled SAUDIA lately, even after word that its going for IPO? did things change? or do they have a great job at finding the worst living souls and plug them in service seats at the airport and stick a phone to their skull and demand they answer the phone?

I honestly think they give bad service a new meaning. So back to my original subject at hand, service in Asia. Ahhh, what can I say. Ideas flow, pains and stress are all relieved and released, smiles are in the air, you feel humble once again, sometimes you say to yourself enough " I could get used to this", only problem there is when you get back home and get the smiles from immigration and try to find your luggage alongside 20,000 other pilgrims and frequent flyer's.

Trying to be better is a given in KSA, its the walking the talk that sucks. When was the last time you saw an airport official greet you with a smile? when did you get served? when was the last time you had a fully confirmed booking stay that way, not lost to someone else? when was the last tim you had a good meal at the airport, not from a useless franchise operator who monopolized the airports with overpriced, tasteless food and coffee? when was the last time you saw a good food joint in the airport?

Did you compare the lounges at King Abdulaziz Airport and the much smaller Bahrain airport? At Bahrain you get meals on demand, cooked to your taste and liking, in Jeddah you get cheese sandwiches which look like they came out of someones underarm!

Do I see an awakening in the Arab world, one that wants to prove it Can DELIVER, or am I dreaming? I think we can, I hope my son gets to enjoy it!

The Filipino culture and its products

It is an experience to see how countries change and update their status to accomadate change in this ever changing world.

If it was what you heard that meant everything to you, you end up in a tight contained tupperware area defined by what you heard than what you see. I have taken it upon myself to actually be the informer and not the informed.

I travel for business and pleasure, and try to get a grasp of the true essence of the culture by wondering around CBW. This way you try to have a free flow of whatever it is the culture is conveying to you. You will be harrassed, and caught in the local taxi cons,the concierge who takes you for face value and sends you to the local tourist traps. But in the end its an experience.

When travelling with friends, watch out not to get caught in their travelling rituals and prefernces, have your own style and do it your way.

Manila is a city that translates into what they want to be. People are so amazing and loving. They lack the financial freedom that many countres have, but boy do they know how to max out on life!

They will take care of everything they come accross with delicate hands and treatment, even you will be pampered in their yes sir, yes maam attitude. To get an immediate feel for the difference in cultures, just go to the airport and see the way they treat you at customs, compare to the US of A. I mean where on earth do you have a smiley on the immigration officers window that boasts" immigration with a smile!"?

Trust me on this one, Middle Easterners, Learn from the best and forget the money part. It starts at an aearly stage and continues to manefest into the surroundings. Filipinos are a service culture, they are a beautiful masterpiece in the making.

My only concern is the PMS that affects them from time to time( male & female) I think it happens when they are faced with a situation that they have no direct answer for, otherwise enjoy your time and learn!

In our Arab culture we tend to look down on this amazing race tht has made governments fight to have their manpower and nursing workforce at bargain prices. Well guess what, whatch out cause prices are rising and they are refusing to move out without the correct form of pay, what they deserve. In my humble opinion, any filipino is a steal at these rates if you are looking for longterm growth and productivity ;-)

Success in a Saudi Bank

To succeed in any of the banks in Saudi Arabia here a re a few pointers for people starting out. Start out first by knowing what you really want to do for the bank, don't just walk in to an interview and say anything will do, you might end up as a janitor with a master degree!

• Know what the bank is doing in terms of services and growth, you can know this by simply following their advertising. What area are they calling out for? like SAMBA today is reigniting the Gold platform( people with Sr100,000 to Sr500,000- in Non interest bearing accounts) here you would position yourself as a person who has conections with people who have this kind of money, usually players,tarvellers,show offs, relators who keep some money in the account for emergency puchases.


• Get your friends to introduce to one of the people that work in the bank, any department as long as it has to do with sales. Then forge a good relationship/friendship and see where they hang out. Usually bankers flock together to talk about the same subject:The Bank.


• Visit their website and see if this culture is ok for you?


• Ask the bankers you deal with how they like or dislike their jobs? sometimes if you get the same negative reactions from people you know are good in what they do, it's a bad idea to join this bank.


• Visit their regional offices, see what it's like? walk around if you can. When you are invited to visit someone open a conversation with the person sitting next to you, you never know what you can find out.


• When you go to an interview always be prepaired, and do not get annoyed by the time they let you wait, it is an old strategy used by losers to see how you ract to this kind of ego stabbing.


• Check when you visit the bank if the person stands up and welcomes you, does he stand up and sit beisde you? or does he hide behind his big office?


• Do not take personal insults in interviews, these are common ground in ego centric managers, trying and old trick of the interview book can actually hurt them if word gets out.


• Be on time every time for the rest of your working life.


• Dress the part, they like sharp looking people. Be yourself in the interview, they actually like street smart individuals.


• Know the persons background you are meeting, Bankers lives are not a mystery, ask and you shall be told. Ask at least 10 people about him, and you can enter into exciting out of the box interviews.


• Personnel department has no say in hiring you. It's the branches, managers, friends helping friends and regional managers pets( the regional managers ass kissers and close friends outside the bank)

The Secret

What's the new book out on the street these days after appearing on Oprah? Yes, The secret.

The book and the DVD are a great investment that can actually help you out in life. I think that the DVD will not appear for religious reasons or something else, get it from Amazon( trust me). In the DVD you get a whole lot more, like the commentary section on the show.

Once you watch the The secret you will be surprised at the impact it leaves on you in minutes through watching it. I know of families that have taken it to the bank to change their ways in life to a more fruitful outcome. I will now try to give you a brief of the book/DVD and the investment decision is yours to make.

Basically it flows around the idea of the Law of attraction; Whatever you occupy your mind with will be attracted to you and vice versa.

Here are a few examples; When you want to buy that BMW all you see is bimmers! When you want that new mobile from Nokia, all you concentrate is the NOKIA. When you have your mind on building a house, guess what? how about the bad things that you think about? like the debt on your credit cards and the loan that is late... the more you concentrate on the problem the more it grows, you should concentrate on the solution rather the problem.

Ideas like;

• I am a magnet. Like attracts like, make it absolutely clear.


• 3 simple words; Thoughts become Things!


• Thoughts and feelings create my future.


• You create your own future as you go along.Sir Winston Churchill.

1. The creative process: Ask yourself what you really want write it in present tense, I own and drive a Ferrari.


2. Believe it s already yours" you only know it can happen" like starting a business.


3. Receive: Begin to feel wonderful, as it has already happened.


4. Speed: Take action fast! Jump in and do not delay, hold the images and feelings.


5. The process: What are you grateful for? list them.


6. Visualize: Really see it, hold it ( the test drive at the car dealer, the checking out of a fancy couch, the playing with the new PS3) feel the joy and happiness.

On Money: Set a goal so BIG! it would blow your mind. Everyday visualize having it, the lifestyle and all else related to obtaining it. and actually say how you want it?

Health: Happier thoughts make a healthy life.

Here is one of my favourites: Don't walk away from negative people, RUN!

Advertising agencies in Saudi Arabia

When you seek out an agency in Saudi Arabia you will be in for a very nice ride. If you are not known for your big advertising dollars, then just sit back relax and forget about it.

This is a very secluded area with the known players and non players who have their niche. You have many of them poping up and attempting to outsmart or take a stake in the Billions of riyals that are up for grabs. These will include international firms, affiliates and Saudi/semi Saudi firms that promise you a local agency with international talent, one word: whatever!

Let's look at the time I went to a big agency here and asked about a launch for one of our unique products. The General manager actually had the nerve to tell me that after we spend your money we might not be able to prove that 50% of it was useful? Guess what I already know that that's why I'm hiring you smart ass.

Then go down a bit and seek the locals, here you will get into the Saudi trap of forgotten appointments, useless deadlines, fake promises and the works. If the last sentence caused you some irritation, relax. What you should do for a start-up is to hire your own and save money and time, trust me you will still get better results.

And one thing we found from so called know it all marketing and advertising agencies; they promise you a rehearsal or some kind of review before you accept the final work( on Saudi talent of course, cause that's what they promise) and have it done at an international firm, but charge you 4 times the amount! save your time and go to a good source like; www.logoworks.com in the US with international talent.

Remember to ask about the long term relationship that they can deliver, and always, always ask 3 agencies to give you a brief. If your budget is less than Sr500,000- never let them know, they will not consider you as a prime target.

I cannot recommend one company, if you know one let me know, we have our own in house ad agency!

Saudi Hollandi Bank

If I could name one bank in Saudi Arabia that has no idea of it's direction or actual strategy then it would be Saudi Hollandi Bank. This bank was and is still buying star performers from other local banks with 100% package increases to try and play catch up with competition.

Being one of the people pulled into the bank some time back( I no longer work there) I can say that the management team in the western region ( maybe central also) are not up to standards and still play to serious politics to cover up their defaults.

One man handles the region with all it's people like puppets. If you speak you are an enemy. Here is what I don't get; you are pulled in to handle something and make it happen, you are suddenly told that Mr.Nawaf ghunaim is your new boss( which was not in the contract) and you decline, you are shifted to another area, and still they pull the strings to get you out.

I can say one thing I had the best 1 year paid vacation from a bank that honestly is run by a bunch of morons. Now excuse my harsh language and unprofessional attitude towards a bank that paid me for relaxing and doing low priority work so I don't outshine my so-called boss who barely speaks English! and barely knows how to handle himself let alone his department.

What really got them by surprise was the fact that at SAMBA we are taught how to manage and think, take decisions and fight for our ideas. They are a culture of yes Sayers, ass kissers, and followers to a man who in many peoples opinion has some serious ego issues! I mean the guy had his office renovated for SR450,000- while the building was falling apart, and they would move in a year!!

Now, if you suspect I am saying this to cover any defaults, think again. The 2 people who were begging me to join the bank( the head hunters) left the bank. Not only that, if I was to ask you to go and talk to the head of private banking and come back with any information worth USD$20- then send me your account number I will transfer the funds gladly.

One last thing before I check out, my department( Van Gogh Private Banking) was asked to increase funds by around USD200 Million in one year, cool stuff. Lets talk basics, a business plan of course, new hires, systems and training. The answer to my request was the weirdest ever;" first get the funds, then we will look at the business plan?!?" that man no longer works there either.

SHOWTIME

Is it me or is showtime losing it's touch? I can't remember the last time someone told me to resubscribe to our pastime favourite!

Films get lousy and reruns run forever. I mean when a free channel like Dubai One, MBC Action, MBC 2 take us by surprise and catch our attention while at home, shisha place, friends house, barber then SHOWTIME needs to change it's old ways and come up with some new material to get us back, then keep us.

From the speed they are at now, I can tell you they will not be getting any funding from me.

Saudi Telecom Company

All of us living in KSA for the last 25 years or so know what the telcommunications was like.We remember days when a person needed to pay Sr100,000- USD$27,000- for a car phone,Wait 2-3 years to get a land line in your new home,Pay $USD1000- for a pager number,Pa SR10,000- and wait a year for a mobile, need real good connections with people you hate to get your phone issues in place!

Well, I can say the wait is over. Here's an example, I forgot to pay the office number and th eline was cut on the outbound calls. I needed the customer number to pay through the phone, so I called the operator at the 907# and asked for it. He replied to my shock" why don't I reactivate your number so you don't lose time till you pay!" need I say more?

I give them a two thumbs up!