There are only a few places a blogger person can afford. We don’t really go to restaurants because we work for ourselves and therefore have no expense account. I know one very high profile blogger who vows never to pay for food. He eats at parties and things and manages just fine. As for me, I have a bed and breakfast, so one meal is taken care of.
But for the day, you’ll more than likely be buying little sandwiches at the Panini trucks. Cheap, hot and filling, that is the blogger meal of choice.
So it was with great relief and enthusiasm that Guy Lodge and I were invited to a very big party in the Abu Dhabi pavilion. Jeff Wells, Pete Hammond, Sharon Waxman, Anne Thompson — all in attendance.¬† Great food, great wine, a warm place to sit. One felt physically “normal,” as opposed to the usual state of bleary-eyed fatigue, constant hunger, and work work work.
It was either a mirage or the real deal. We decided to pretend it was real and we had ourselves a grand old time.
Meanwhile, I had some trouble with my wifi and thus, I was stuck at a desk for about three hours trying to fix it. I got up, as we sometimes do, and leave our work stations. But if your computer is there, people won’t take it. In a panic I had gotten up and asked the front desk for help. I was there maybe fifteen minutes when a photographer had taken the seat, even though all of my stuff – bag, camera, wires, etc. were there. And I told him as much but he wouldn’t move. Not only did he not move but he and his seatmate were saying things under their breath. This one photographer said “you were gone for one hour.” I corrected him, getting more annoyed by the minute.
I’d been warned about the rudeness of the photographers here. A few had been nice and so I was blindsided. That same guy had to repeat, “I guess next time you’ll have to wait two hours to make sure no one is sitting there.” It didn’t make the other guy laugh the first time and the second time he was trying to make sure I heard his unimaginative one-liner. A whole day without a meal, just a few hours of sleep and running on little coffees made me not the person to mess with however. This is why I’m posting his picture so all can see.
And I’m doing it because I can.
He’ll never stumble onto this site and see his self-satisfied mug, though I surely wish he would.
These two bozos aside, 99% of the people here have been helpful, full of good humor and kind in general.
And now, my eyes are literally closing as I write this. The Wifi Cafe closes at 11pm and I’m just about there. I still have to walk back to my little quiet room and crash. Tomorrow morning, it all starts over again.
Left and right. Stupid dangling bow-tie. MEAN.
But you know, hell, it’s a small price to pay for being here. It is such a beautiful place. You can always look out and see this.
And this:
