The American dream had almost turned into a nightmare by the time I migrated back to the UAE.
California's economy was one of the hardest hit by the financial crisis, which put it in its worst fiscal shape since the Great Depression.
Job opportunities were dwindling and already high rates of unemployment were rising.
The recession's effects on public sector budgets hit home as my state university cut services, classes, office hours and forced professors to take mandatory time off.
In contrast, the little news I received of Abu Dhabi's financial circumstances on the distant west coast was positive.
"What are you doing here?" remarked a Brazilian acquaintance after learning I hailed from the Emirati capital. "All the opportunities are over there, that's the place to be."
After his and numerous other glowing fiscal reports, I naturally had high expectations for decent and prompt employment on my return to the UAE.
This was not to be the case. After a year of endless waiting hours outside offices and countless CV submissions, I learnt that landing a job in the UAE as a citizen was not an easy proposition.
After a couple of false hopes for employment, I realised I was in the unfortunate position of not being fluent enough in Arabic for most government jobs and being too, well, Emirati for most private sector jobs.
Although many of the sought-after public sector jobs required a good level of English, they expected a UAE national, at the very least, to be able to communicate in his native tongue.
On the other hand, many of the private companies enjoyed my proficiency in English but seemed to be turned off by my nationality.
They may have felt obliged to offer me higher wages than an expatriate and would find it hard to fire me if they wished to let me go, which made me a less appealing candidate.
Whatever the reason, I continued to remain a part of the 13 per cent of unemployed Emiratis.
As many of these citizens have learnt, are learning, or will learn - as I did - finding a job in the UAE is something not to be taken for granted. Yet expectations of employment, as well as of landing a well-paid job, are still rampant among the Emirati youth.
A recent poll conducted by two UAE university professors showed 30 per cent of Emirati students surveyed expected a starting salary of Dh25,000 per month, while 10 per cent expected up to Dh50,000.
These figures show the continued sense of entitlement among young Emiratis, even before they have gained experience and proved their worth.
The fact that these expectations were being met realistically only in the realm of the public sector should be worrisome for a nation that employs 90 per cent of its citizens' workforce in the government.
An increase in Emiratis in the UAE private sector, a decrease in the Emirati unemployment rate and a reduction of Emirati job dissatisfaction could all be helped by further educating local youth on the realities of the job market in the UAE, providing them with realistic, rather than raised, expectations.
The specs: 2018 Harley-Davidson Fat Boy
Price, base / as tested Dh97,600
Engine 1,745cc Milwaukee-Eight v-twin engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 78hp @ 5,250rpm
Torque 145Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.0L / 100km (estimate)
BIO
Favourite holiday destination: Turkey - because the government look after animals so well there.
Favourite film: I love scary movies. I have so many favourites but The Ring stands out.
Favourite book: The Lord of the Rings. I didn’t like the movies but I loved the books.
Favourite colour: Black.
Favourite music: Hard rock. I actually also perform as a rock DJ in Dubai.
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
About Krews
Founder: Ahmed Al Qubaisi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: January 2019
Number of employees: 10
Sector: Technology/Social media
Funding to date: Estimated $300,000 from Hub71 in-kind support
Spare
Profile
Company name: Spare
Started: March 2018
Co-founders: Dalal Alrayes and Saurabh Shah
Based: UAE
Sector: FinTech
Investment: Own savings. Going for first round of fund-raising in March 2019
The Case For Trump
By Victor Davis Hanson
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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