Blog/June 2008/Jun 13th - Revision history

Ron at 11:28, 20 June 2008

2008-06-20T11:28:46Z

Ron at 14:40, 13 June 2008

2008-06-13T14:40:06Z

Ron at 14:17, 13 June 2008

2008-06-13T14:17:47Z

Ron at 14:17, 13 June 2008

2008-06-13T14:17:34Z

Ron at 14:17, 13 June 2008

2008-06-13T14:17:11Z

Ron at 14:16, 13 June 2008

2008-06-13T14:16:41Z

Ron: New page: {{:subst :Blog/Latest}}

2008-06-13T14:15:29Z

New page: {{:subst :Blog/Latest}}

New page

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-{{bheader|June 6th|Devar/5768/Naso}}
+{{bheader|June 13th|Devar/5768/Behaalotcha}}
 Hi again!
-What a week!  We enjoyed having our friend Ilana staying with us on shabbat. As we told her, she's welcome back any time.  After shabbat we all went to the {{wiki|Hebrew Book Week}} fair, in Jerusalem's old train station.  This was Daniela's brainchild, actually; I didn't know it was going on.  Esther got some cookbooks, Daniela got some books she was looking for, and I did as well.  It was actually a lot of fun, though I didn't think the prices were anything special.
+This week was very busy, but not a lot to report.  First, it was a short week: Sunday was ''erev shavuot'', so we had to get ready for yom-tov immediately after shabbat.  The yom-tov itself was very quiet; especially since we didn't hear my alarm in the morning, and so missed going to shul for ''shacharit'' services.  Unusual, that; I almost always wake up early in the morning even without an alarm -- I guess we needed the sleep.
-Then in the morning we got the keys to the (new) house!  We immediately gave a copy to the ''kablan'' (contractor) who is doing the major work, and then we spent an hour and a half with the former owner, calling the various utilities and making sure we had everything properly transfered to our name.  Now we truly own a house in Israel!  Unfortunately, it is now unlivable due to the work being done... but the ''kablan'' is determined to get us in at the end of June as he has promised.  [[Media:Kitchen-before.jpg|This is the kitchen]] before the contractor started.  Now look at the [[Media:Kitchen-day2.jpg|same room]] after the second day -- no more cabinets or floor.  On the [[Media:Kitchen-day4.jpg|fourth day]] the electrical and plumbing work has mostly been completed.  Next week is the holiday of {{wiki|Shavuot}}, so we'll lose a day and a half or two days of work time; but by the end of the week, the floors should be in place downstairs.
+Because of the yom-tov, our contractors didn't work the first two days of the week; nevertheless, the floor tiles are mostly in place on the first floor.  The contractor informs me the kitchen will arrive next week (that is, the kitchen cabinets) and he might have the downstairs "done" end of next week.  That would be nice, indeed, as we are moving the end of June no matter whether or not they've finished all the work.
-Later on Sunday, the [http://www.gov.state.md.us/ Governor of Maryland] came to our company - he was leading a group of investors, and they infused some cash into our company.  I shook his hand, welcoming him to Israel -- and he told me to call him "Martin".  So now I'm on a first-name basis with the Gov. of Maryland... but more importantly, he had the merit to meet me!  I was fascinated to read in the paper that my boss announced [http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/06/02/daily5.html we were moving our headquarters to Maryland].  I was at that meeting, and he said no such thing.  [http://wjz.com/seenon/martin.omalley.israel.2.737908.html This paper] has a more factually correct story.
+We also have been looking for clothes closets for a while; and because they're expensive and because we knew we were moving, we never took the plunge and bought any.  So we've been living out of our moving boxes (literally) since last August.  But no more!  This week we ordered closets from [http://raamltd.co.il/ Ra`am] and in a few weeks (at most a month) we'll have proper closets in which to hang up our clothes.  The closets from Ra`am are cheaper and nicer than most of the other ones we've seen, and they even do custom sizes if necessary.
-Our dear daughter Sarah, who has been uprooted from her native country and put into a school where the teaching is in Hebrew; and who up until now didn't learn very much math, scored a perfect 100 on her math ''bagrut'' preparatory tests.  Not only was she dreading the tests per se, but she was convinced she was going to do ''really'' poorly.  So we are understandably proud and pleased that she was able to prove her opinion of herself wrong.  We hope and pray she will continue to do so.
+In preparation for my upcoming trip to India, I took a few immunizations (Hepatitis A and B, Tetanus) and got prophylactic drugs against malaria.  Sounds like fun, doesn't it?!?  I also need to get a visa to enter India, and as it turns out, it's considerably less expensive for me to use my Israeli passport than it is to use my American one!  I guess they assume all Americans are rich.  In any case, filling out the forms is an exercise in patience -- all this time, I thought ''Israeli'' bureaucracy was bad!  The Indians are even worse than we are...
-Daniela is winding down the year at {{wiki|Midreshet Lindenbaum}}, and is packing up her stuff.  She came with exactly three suitcases, but somehow they multiplied and she has six -- each one heavier than the others.  I wonder how she plans on getting them to Stern in the fall?
+Daniela's done with school now (Sarah's done next week), so she's staying at home (finally, yeah!).  We look forward to hearing her divrey torah now that she's had a year's education at seminary.  But mostly we look forward to engaging in mutually beneficial discourse with the fruits of our first successful procreative venture.  She knows what I mean...
-''Seen in Maale Adummim:'' an elderly man, religious; wearing a T-shirt which said, "There's more to life than news, sports and porn".   I am virtually certain that if he had a clue what the shirt said, he wouldn't have worn it. There's a lesson in that, people: please (!) if you don't understand what it says, don't wear it!  This one was extremely mild; some of the ones I've seen were literally pornographic.  I wonder at the parents who let their young daughters wear clothing which proclaims their readiness to engage in carnal relations!  Seriously, it's disturbing.  Just as bad as the people who get tattoos in cool-looking Chinese characters only to find out the symbols mean "monkey's ass" or something.
+Shabbat shalom!
-Shabbat shalom, and Chag Sameach!!
+{{nav|Blog|Blog|Blog/June 2008/Jun 6th|Jun 6th||}}

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:17, 13 June 2008
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−	{{~~subst~~ :Blog/~~June~~ 2008/~~Jun 6th~~}}	+	<!-- vim: spell :
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		+	{{blog}}
		+	{{bheader\|June 6th\|Devar/5768/Naso}}
		+
		+	Hi again!
		+
		+	What a week! We enjoyed having our friend Ilana staying with us on shabbat. As we told her, she's welcome back any time. After shabbat we all went to the {{wiki\|Hebrew Book Week}} fair, in Jerusalem's old train station. This was Daniela's brainchild, actually; I didn't know it was going on. Esther got some cookbooks, Daniela got some books she was looking for, and I did as well. It was actually a lot of fun, though I didn't think the prices were anything special.
		+
		+	Then in the morning we got the keys to the (new) house! We immediately gave a copy to the ''kablan'' (contractor) who is doing the major work, and then we spent an hour and a half with the former owner, calling the various utilities and making sure we had everything properly transfered to our name. Now we truly own a house in Israel! Unfortunately, it is now unlivable due to the work being done... but the ''kablan'' is determined to get us in at the end of June as he has promised. [[Media:Kitchen-before.jpg\|This is the kitchen]] before the contractor started. Now look at the [[Media:Kitchen-day2.jpg\|same room]] after the second day -- no more cabinets or floor. On the [[Media:Kitchen-day4.jpg\|fourth day]] the electrical and plumbing work has mostly been completed. Next week is the holiday of {{wiki\|Shavuot}}, so we'll lose a day and a half or two days of work time; but by the end of the week, the floors should be in place downstairs.
		+
		+	Later on Sunday, the [http://www.gov.state.md.us/ Governor of Maryland] came to our company - he was leading a group of investors, and they infused some cash into our company. I shook his hand, welcoming him to Israel -- and he told me to call him "Martin". So now I'm on a first-name basis with the Gov. of Maryland... but more importantly, he had the merit to meet me! I was fascinated to read in the paper that my boss announced [http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/stories/2008/06/02/daily5.html we were moving our headquarters to Maryland]. I was at that meeting, and he said no such thing. [http://wjz.com/seenon/martin.omalley.israel.2.737908.html This paper] has a more factually correct story.
		+
		+	Our dear daughter Sarah, who has been uprooted from her native country and put into a school where the teaching is in Hebrew; and who up until now didn't learn very much math, scored a perfect 100 on her math ''bagrut'' preparatory tests. Not only was she dreading the tests per se, but she was convinced she was going to do ''really'' poorly. So we are understandably proud and pleased that she was able to prove her opinion of herself wrong. We hope and pray she will continue to do so.
		+
		+	Daniela is winding down the year at {{wiki\|Midreshet Lindenbaum}}, and is packing up her stuff. She came with exactly three suitcases, but somehow they multiplied and she has six -- each one heavier than the others. I wonder how she plans on getting them to Stern in the fall?
		+
		+	Speaking of international travel, my company is sending me to {{wiki\|India}} sometime in July. I'll be helping to bring on new staff for our company, as well as train them, and meet with our clients there. So this week I'm going to try to get my vaccinations so they take effect before I go. I hope I don't have to wear a suit - the only one I have is wool (and I haven't worn it since we moved here).
		+
		+	''Seen in Maale Adummim:'' an elderly man, religious; wearing a T-shirt which said, "There's more to life than news, sports and porn". I am virtually certain that if he had a clue what the shirt said, he wouldn't have worn it. There's a lesson in that, people: please (!) if you don't understand what it says, don't wear it! This one was extremely mild; some of the ones I've seen were literally pornographic. I wonder at the parents who let their young daughters wear clothing which proclaims their readiness to engage in carnal relations! Seriously, it's disturbing. Just as bad as the people who get tattoos in cool-looking Chinese characters only to find out the symbols mean "monkey's ass" or something.
		+
		+	Well, I've got to do some packing and get ready for Shabbat, so...
		+
		+	Shabbat shalom, and Chag Sameach!!
		+
		+
		+	{{nav\|Blog\|Blog\|Blog/May 2008/May 30th\|May 30th\|\|}}

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