The wife and I have managed to complete nine months here in Dubai. We are not hating it, but there are certainly a lot of things that we miss from the US. Less than 120 degree days in August is only one part. It is amazing how the heat takes all of your energy, even with air conditioning.

We splurged and got two unlocked iPhone 4S's. We use them to Facetime with family back in the US. I also use mine to listen to podcasts while I'm driving. I just downloaded iTunesU and have grabbed some course lectures that I hope are interesting. I won't say what the courses cover, but there's a large selection for anyone else who considers himself a life-long learner. There's a lot of fluff there, too, so wade carefully if you go to download anything; there are even some personal finance courses there.

Our financial goal posts are getting closer. We hope that only one more year will put us where we want to be for retirement. Worst case, we promised ourselves no more than 8 years over here before returning. If we stay that long, it will be to retire immediately upon return, which is not in me. I'm sure I'll continue working until I die.

Actually, I've known quite a few men who have died within 6 months of retiring. I wonder how many of them would have lived a lot longer had they never retired? I believe at least one of them died because he went from powerful, respected, and fulfilled to "retired" with no wind-down between the two. I'm certain that his retirement killed him.

Part of my job is teaching. I love that part of it. When I "retire," I'm going to become a full time teacher. I've never had any aspect of my job that I have ever enjoyed more than that. How can you beat getting paid for doing something that you would conceivably do even if you didn't get paid for it (and could still eat)?