Blog/July 2009/Jul 24th

July 24th (See this week's devar torah)
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Hi again!

Last week I was rushed and rushing, because we had guests for shabbat we hadn't really counted on; two very nice girls from the "Keshet" educational tours program. It was a last-minute thing -- our neighbor's son is a group leader, and wondered if we could host two girls. Of course we agreed, and I'm pretty sure we didn't scare them too badly.

Sarah underwent oral surgery this week to have one of her (impacted and infected) wisdom teeth removed. Her mouth was sore for a couple of days, but B"H she's ok now and (I'm sure) looking forward to her mother's delicious shabbat food.

Esther did her doula work again; mother and baby are fine. In other medically-related news, I'm done with the "diabetes workshop". Now I just have to put their advice into practice. I also lost 5 kilos, according to the "official" numbers -- though I don't feel like I have.

Daniela worked on her knitting and crocheting. We're floating in a sea of caps and scarves. Unfortunately, as we enter Av we realize she's going to be leaving soon to go back to Stern, and that increases our sadness (משייכנס אב, ממעטין בשמחה).

As a last installment of the class, we went for a "checkup" at the clinic -- where we had our blood-pressure and other vitals taken, as well as blood workup and a foot examination. This last is because one of the more unfortunate side-effects of diabetes is impaired circulation in the extremities which leads to nerve damage (my medical-profession readers can correct me if I'm wrong). Anyway, the nurse had me get on the examining table and take of my shoes and socks. She look at my feet and said, "איזה רגליים! חבל על הזמן!" ("what legs! amazing!"). It seems that most people who come in for an exam have dirty feet or some nasty fungal growths or something -- because believe me, there's nothing amazing about my legs.

We are now the sort-of owners of a new car, a Nissan Tiida (aka the "Versa" in the US and Canada). We're leasing, which is why we're not really owners; though we have the option to buy at the end of the leasing period. So far, we like the car better than the Optra "More" we were renting. We'll let you know if it works out or not. Anyway, we were supposed to get the car two weeks after signing the leasing agreement, which would have been this past Thursday. On Sunday I called the leasing company, asking when the car would be ready, to which they replied "next week". I told them that we had to have a car by Wednesday next week (because my father-in-law is coming to visit, though I didn't tell them that), to which they replied "by next Wednesday you'll have the car three times already". I didn't really know what that was supposed to mean, but I assumed we might not get possession as quickly as I had hoped. Anyway, on Wednesday (this week) the guy calls me and asks, "When did we agree to deliver the car?". I told him, "by next Wednesday". To which he responded, "Is today ok?". A real wise-guy... The Arabs don't like the Tiida, though.

But then, the Arabs don't even like Daniel Barenboim, may the name of the wicked rot. Of course, the Jordanians hate the Fakestinians and are working to remove their citizenship. Imagine the public uproar if Israel did that to any of the Arab interlopers who currently have Israeli citizenship? The UN, the EU, the State Department... wow, it would be a red-letter day for Israel-bashing! But when an Arab country does it, well that's just not news, is it? That's why we really do have to use secret weapons against the Arabs. These are the same "partners for peace" who say there is no difference between Maaleh Adummim and Gilo. Which is true; all of it is Erets Yisra'el -- but I don't think that's their point.

Our dear Uncle Sam is trying to squeeze us into ghettos. The very same Uncle who doesn't recognize our sovereignty. How ironic that it's an African-American who doesn't like them uppity niggers in the Middle East! That same man's calculations about how Israelis would side with him are dead wrong. Israelis (excepting the owner of "Pizza Obama", perhaps) don't trust Obama any more than they do good 'ol Jimmy Carter, who unfortunately is still numbered among the living. In fact, the inappropriate and inexcusable US pressure has had quite the opposite effect from what was probably intended.

I was going to have a tilt at British hypocrisy, but the American kind riles me up more. Almost to the point where I'm ready to rescind my citizenship -- I feel less and less like I have any connection with the US (excepting friends and family), and am more and more disenchanted with the leadership of the land of my birth. The US is entering a gelded age (sic) -- may it come through it without too much trauma.

For this week's shabbat Esther had me barbecue a chicken, and she made her classic stuffed vegetables. A bit of a problem, since this coming week contains Tisha B'Av (which falls on Thursday), therefore we cannot eat our meaty leftovers until next Friday -- so if there are any, we'll have to freeze them. I'm sure our shabbat guests will oblige us in helping ensure there are none. I also made green tehina and the usual (by now) Hilbe. As usual, Esther made everything else, which is probably for the best ...

Until next week,
Shabbat shalom!

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