Your face says it.

I don't have much of a poker face.  My reactions just come right on out.  That said, I'm pretty perceptive of other peoples' reactions to me also.  Sharing the news of our upcoming around-the-world move has garnered some interesting reactions to be sure.  We currently live in Indiana, which is not the most global place, so when people hear Qatar, their faces contort in all kinds of funny ways. 

There's the cautious excitement:

I was in Auto Zone the other day to get the battery replaced in our van.  A few weeks back I spent a week in Michigan caring for my nieces (one of whom had a tonsilectomy).  We were pretty much snowed in all week and I didn't think to start the van.  Apparently, that kills a battery pretty easily.  In any case, it had to be jump a couple of times to start and we decided just to replace the battery vs going to the dealership for service..  So I stopped into Auto Zone.

There was a nice older gentleman who waited on me, he kind of reminded me of my dad.  After a quick consult and battery test, he concurred that it was indeed the battery and set about gathering the parts to fix it.  In conversation, it came out that we wanted to keep the van in excellent shape because we were going to be selling our vehicles in the summer. 

"You're selling both your vehicles, what will you drive?"
"Oh, we're moving overseas, so we won't be needing two vehicles here."



His sweet face broke into a sort of cautious excitement.

"Is is for a job?"
"Yes.  My husband and I are teachers."
"Oh, wow.. that sounds like quite an adventure."
"We're hoping so."

We went on chatting about it and he knew about the indoor ski resort in Doha because he is an avid skier.  The younger gentleman behind the counter overheard our exchange and chimed in:

"Uh.. where are you going?"
"Doha.  It's in Qatar."
"Is that it Africa?"
"Um, nope.  Middle East, just off the coast of Saudi."
"Oh, cool, that should be a fun trip."
"No, we're moving there."
"Forever?????"

Enter the blank stare.

As the older gentleman and I walked out to the car (after finishing the conversation with the young [confused] man): 
"Hey sorry about that.  I didn't mean to create a spectacle of your moving.."
"Oh, no problem.  I guess it is kind of odd that we are moving over seas.  We do get that reaction a lot."
"Yeah, some people (like him), don't get why anyone would want to move away, but I had an opportunity like you have a while back..  Wish I'd have taken it."

I tried to give him a tip or buy him lunch for putting in the battery, but he just said:
"Hey, no tips ma'am..  And none needed on this one, have a good day and enjoy your adventure."

I liked him. 
Here are a few other reactions I've had:

Total Confusion

#1 - total confusion

Person:  So, are you moving there to run away from someone?  Because if you are, there are other ways of dealing with the person..

Me:  Um... no.

Mind Blown

#2 - mind blown

Person:  You're moving WHERE???
Me:  Um.. Doha, it's a city in the country of Qatar.
Person:  Gah  Mah... What??  Why would you do that???
Me:  Well, we like living abroad, and we
Person:  Wait.. Isn't that like in the desert?
Me:  Yes it is.  Nice and warm. (since this has been the worse winter since '82, I thought he go for it.. um no)
Person:  BUT, it gets REALLY cold at night.
Me:  Well, normally the coldest it ever gets is around 50 degrees. 
Person:  (clearly not listening to me)  Well, my uncle was in 'Nam and he said that when he was over there.. it was SOOO cold in the desert at night.
Me:  (realizing this wasn't going to rebound)  Hmmm is that so?  Ok, well have a great evening then."
Person: You too.  Hey, and I'll take my snow ANY day of the week over that..
Me:  Ok, you enjoy your shoveling then.  ;)


In fairness, there are times that I find myself in disbelief that we are actually going to be in Qatar next year.  It's an amazing opportunity for an amazing adventure and there are many answers to the inevitable question:  WHY?

Here are a few:

A and I have wanted to be back overseas for 6+ years.
We want to raise P and M with a world view that they experience (not that we try to teach). 
We just really like other cultures and learning about them. 
We like the slower pace of life that a lot of other places provide.
We like to travel.
We like hearing other languages and learning to understand them.
We like meeting new people that are TOTALLY different and then finding out that we have a lot in common.
We like the emphasis that many cultures put on education and how much they esteem educators.

The time we spent overseas was the single most profound learning experience to date and we LOVE to learn.