Reflections of WE

We had not planned ahead for the last few months of turbulence and trauma, but then, how can one plan?
We find that we revisit the details because the devil is there... but so is G-d.
We is one of the most important words I will ever know.
I love you, EW.

It must’ve been a boy…

who had wanted to be an astronaut, because it was lost in space and forgot to ask for directions. Truth is I feel grateful for the whole experience. I discovered so much about myself; body and soul.
Over the course of the last 5 days: I watched “free” cable TV albeit without a remote. I broke a 26 hour fast with a cup of hot sweet tea that tasted like nectar of the gods. I cried while listening to my soulful journey MP3 with shuffle option. I originally burned the 187 song compilation for my September trip to the US but at the time of its creation I had no idea of just how valuable the mix would be a few months later. I pondered. I sobbed. I prayed. I dreamt. Hallucinations, meditations, revelations…
But most importantly, I learned more Hebrew in those 5 days than in my 5 years of living here. And that is only a slight exaggeration.

Thank you Devra, for being my sister.

Thank you Abba and Mom Wanetik, for understanding the gravity of the situation and then giving up quality Ezra time.
Thank you Mom, for being available at any and all times of the day and night to talk, share, and ask me if you could call me back so I would save money on the long distance.
Thank you to the ‘patient’ ones on the outside, who called and offered support and allowed the story to unfold in its own time.
Thank you Shira, for your inquisitive mind, your cheery disposition and your bubbly laughter.
Thank you Tina and Sarah, for your lyrics and melodies that could not have been more appropriate.

Thank you Judy Brodt, for giving me Aliza’s number.
Thank you Geula, for calling me back and then checking in again later that night.
Thank you Lisa and Alex, for allowing me to have a normal evening at home in the middle of a most surreal week.

Thank you Purple Parrot, for your cuddles, our momentary SMS misunderstanding and at the moment of clarity, dropping everything and coming to visit.
Thank you Len, for providing me with valuable information on pharmaceuticals.
Thank you Yonah, for asking minimal questions and trusting me when I said that the work will all get done.
Thank you Dad, for your practicality and optimism.
Thank you J.R., for being Joe.
Thank you Grandma, for passing on your quick recovery genes.

Thank you Erica, for the markers (that btw all work beautifully) and the designs for me to color.
Thank you Ari, for the pudding.
Thank you Shalom Leib, for reclaiming your most prized material possession out of our living room.
Thank you Gestetner family, for preparing and cooking yummy Shabbat food for Ezra and me.

Thank you Liz, for being the spiritual healer that you are.
Thank you Alys and Jeremy, for getting married in NJ so that I can recuperate with cable on a comfortable couch in T.A. with Bernard.

Thank you Rebecca, for listening to all the details by phone.
Thank you to the doctors, surgeons, nurses and all other staff at Maccabi and Bikur Cholim hospital.
Thank you Sharon W., for making us an orange welcome home soup and garlic bread.

And of course thank you Ezra, for knowing from my first smile that I would be his wife.

Thank you all for your prayers, your friendship, and your love.
It takes a village to raise a child and a community to help send a spirit back to its source with peace, love and light.

Don't Mess with my Toos-toos

toos-toos - moped, scooter, generally for intracity use only

Those who drive on mopeds seem to think that they own the road; but then again, everyone here thinks that.
The toos-toos drivers are known to weave in and out of traffic, ride on the dividing line, and generally not follow any of the safety rules. Yesterday I saw one "go through a red light," by way of the islands, crossing 4 lanes of traffic, just before the light turned green. We, who drive defensively, have had 2 run-ins with mopeds; both of which were them running into us!

Anew

A new start.

We are moving at the end of the week, down two floors across the hall. There will not be as much sunlight or the spectacular view of the sun setting but we will be okay. There will not be fourth-floor weather reports in which I see snow flurries outside the window, knowing that by the time they descend 2 floors they will have become rain. This too is okay. There will not be intense negative energy or the smell of sewage from an exposed pipe or a "skylight" that is really a crack in the wall of the enclosed porch. Those details will not be missed.

I look forward to new beginnings and hope that my readership will visit us soon in #33.

Music MEME

The rules:

1. Turn on your mp3 player.
2. Hit shuffle.
3. Put the first fifteen songs that come up in a post. No matter how embarassing. No cheating!

I made an mp3 for my recent trip to the US entitled Rachel's journey. Here are the MEME results:

1. You Learn -Alanis Morissette
2. Once in a Lifetime - from the World Music Mix
3. Sweet Jane - Velvet Underground
4. Relaxation Spa Treatment- from the Wired CD (Wired Magazine)
5. Rain - Corrs
6. Your Song - Elton John
7. Right Through You - Alanis Morissette
8. The Memory of Trees - Enya
9. not the same- Ben Folds Five
10. Boadicea - Enya
11. Corner of the Sky (Pippin) - Jackson 5
12. fred jones Part 2 -Ben Folds Five
13. Into the Great Wide Open - Tom Petty and the HB
14. Im Ze Ha Sof - David Broza
15. One's Man Dream - Yanni

She is NOT Daisy

I found some not so helpful hints on 18Tricks2TeachUrBody, (whose link is now MIA, but that may be for the best.) It said that if I have to use the bathroom really badly, I should think about sex to alleviate the pressure. More specifically they recommended I think about Jessica Simpson. Now, not only do I have to urge to micturate, I also feel like throwing up.

Classic Moments in Shoedom Part 1

This morning on the bus the driver was playing a classical music CD. What a refreshing change from news I only generally understand and the same music "hits" played over and over again.

On the way home on the bus I thought of shoes I have owned. The painting bolted to the outer walls of the construction site on King George and the women who crossed the street wearing the skater sneakers inspired this stream of consciousness. I remember shopping for shoes with my Grandma at Buster Brown for each new school year. I recall giving away sturdy brown shoes to my friend Karen because I simply did not like them. Having owned many pairs over the past 25+ years (there were shoeless years too!), I feel grateful.

The MEME

7 Things I Can Do:
Procrastinate.
Cartweels.
Make challah (traditional Sabbath bread) and other breads/dough/pasta from scratch.
Mid-week crossword puzzles from the NYTimes.
Be efficient in my work, both time and production.
Spell.
Trouser Friendly Kisses.

7 Things I Can't Do (Can't is a strong contraction, don't or won't is preferred):
Don't :
Brush my hair.
Mop the floors.
Sing the traditional Ashkenazi Shalom Aleichem and Eishet Chayil on Friday nights. (The Wanetik Way pamphlet will be available soon)
Won't:
Take ANY medications unless I absolutely have to.
Throw trash on the ground especially when there is a garbage container 2 steps away!
Can't:
Drive a stick shift car.
Believe I should be shopping at the market now and instead find myself sitting here writing this MEME!

7 Things I Constantly Say:
I love you.
Sure/Okay.
No problem.
I love you.
When's Maariv? (Summer of 2003)
No Mom, I have a good calling plan and there is no need to call me back.
I love you.


7 Things I'd like to do in my Lifetime:
Have children.
Get my p'tor (exemption) from Hebrew and thus my MA in Religious Studies.
Buy a living space- apartment, house, etc.
Have a successful Healing Practice.
Write a few children's books and earn some money at it.
Make an artistic photo wedding album of our wedding!
Sew a T-Shirt Quilt.

Passing it on...

The Guinea Fowl and the Skirt

You may have heard that we were in South Africa for the wedding of friends. 'Twas true. We have returned.
and now a few words about international trade and how one never needs to leave home...

I bought a bordeaux (bordo) skirt in Capetown only to discover that it was manufactured in Bat Yam.
I bought a small model of a guinea fowl (the national bird and NOT Jerusalem Revealed's favorite) from a native artist only to find the same one decorating the window display of the bead store on the main street.

Though I have not yet conducted price comparisons, the skirt is probably cheaper over there and the same for the speckled fowl.

Stop by for your sample nougat and rooibos tea while supplies last.

The Nose Knows

This country has an obsession with bubble gum. Its scent is used for bathroom cleaner, hand soap, play dough and of all things, bubble gum! The fact that those items range from poisonous to edible is what throws me.
Ah, whatever. Just keep your tongue out of the W.C.

What's Ur Name?

Well, we have come full circle, haven't we? Not a reference to the holidays rather to email accounts. So many of us are jumping on the Gmail bandwagon and lo and behold we are using our own names in our addresses. First we were just numbers on Compuserve. Then, we came up with multiple creative screen names that revealed our secret selves to faceless internet buddies and hid our really secret selves behind other email identities. Some of us personalized our domains and put our real names on the internet map. And now we are being true...using our first and last names, and even middle initials on our own account. (PI)
So three cheers for you being you!
Unless of course you stole someone else's identity making it virtually impossible to forgive yourself, cuz who are you, really?

Berries and Summer Showers

As the case often is, when someone moves to a new place, they are asked what they miss from the old place. Well, I miss fresh berries (that are less expensive than 25 cents each), autumn leaves, and late summer thunderstorms. It is too early for foliage in NJ but 2 out of 3 ain't bad. My cleansing journey has been productive. So far I have sold some old costume jewelry for $30, rid my collection of hardly played CDs, and recycled 5 boxes (!) of old papers. I found 1 out of 4 yearbooks, my sticker collection from the early years, and 2 blue knit sweaters that will become part of my winter wardrobe. I have had some heart-to-hearts with family members and good friends. Next week I hope to continue the quest for some belongings. But no matter what gets sold, recycled, or packed in the suitcase - when I board the plane I will take the Bacon Bros. advice and I won't look back.

People I See

There are these people that you see all the time. For me it is 2 specific older women. I do not think they know each other or realize that I notice them all of the time - on the bus, walking on the main street, sitting on a park bench. One of the women has curly gray hair, the other a potentially chic cut of salt and pepper. Both are abit eccentric on the outside and since I feel a bit eccentric on the inside at times...the reflection makes perfect sense.

Smokin'

Robin William's character in Dead Again, said. "You are either a smoker or not. Find out which one you are and be that."
Today I saw a "smoker" and she so wasn't. I had a sense I should tell her. I didn't. I mean how would that pan out.
"Excuse me, you are not a smoker."
"&$@! off!"
I am not a smoker. But I can tell if someone is. I think this "gift" started after I saw the movie. Whatever.

Da Moon

Sometimes the moon really does look like it is smiling. I could be projecting but today I think it looks shocked. Its mouth is open and its eyes are astonished. The moon is not yet full; two and a half days until that monthly event. But what will the full moon bring? What will come to fruition by the shining moment of 3 stars on Saturday night? I hope it will be peace. Not of the worldly variety and more expansive than the inner kind, but peace nonetheless.

Torn

I used to work as a bartendress. At a certain point during that venture, I encountered a wedding guest who had brought his own G&T mug to the event. After maybe the 5th drink I realized I was in the wrong business. Why was I, a Pisces, employed in a job that supported addictions? We all have our vices. Mine are mostly food-related but I think they are under control. Either way I now find myself in a similar predicament.
I have a creative writing gig in which I must boost the ratings of internet sites that promote another popular addiction for some, a mere pastime for others.

Both last night’s repeat episode of CSI and a brief advertisement on Fashion TV (AKA the boob channel) are making me rethink my role in this field. On the other hand, creativity is what is driving me and maybe these stories will inspire me to write children’s books.

A class I took over 5 years ago, spoke of animal symbolism. When you see a certain animal/insect/bird/dare I say person, you should think about their qualities and why the universe allowed this interaction at this time. The spider has often made itself present at specific times in my life where my creativity was not being fully realized. The beautiful creature from yesterday met an unfortunate end; squashed inadvertently in the bathroom. She was not quite as large as Aragog but very much as dead. Do I read into this course of events as a sign that this brand of creativity should also be squashed? Or am I merely in the desert where spiders abound and TV has temporarily overrun my mind?

And why is a man narrating a tampon commercial?

The desert

Here we are at Mashabei-Sadeh enjoying the desert heat. I of course find myself inside the air-conditioned guest room (not quite like the hotel room of the US) watching TV on 50 channels in oh so many languages, creatively writing my short works (ask me offline and I will send you my best story yet) and calling Turkey of all places to interview someone for the August Livnot program. VH1 has by far been the most entertaining with 80's hits all the time. Why the TV obsession you ask? Because at home, we don't have a TV. In this country, there is something known as the TV tax. To a North American it is a completely ridiculous concept; paying the government for television in addition to cable fees??? That tax was just one of the reasons.
So now I have it on until the sun sets when yes, it's true, I will begin to read the infamous Book #6. A favorite joke of ours is of course a pun of sorts so I will close with it here in a slightly modified form...Why has it taken me so long to begin reading the book? Well, it is about patience. I wasn't rushing to read it, I'm Lithuanian.

nOWS yOUR cHANCE

oK. nOWS yOUR cHANCE. Please comment here on any or all of the blog posts. I know someone is reading them...

Thank you.

Grammar

Jew is not a verb. I resolve to take "gyp" out of my lexicon because it too is not a verb.
May we all emerge as non-judgmental butterflies...

Berries of blue

Fresh blueberries are here in Jerusalem! This is the first summer I have seen them for sale. For each berry, only 50 agurot (12 cents) What a deal! :(