Life Unplanned-- VICTORY Prayer Haikus #5

I've been writing haikus on Facebook every morning for years and have posted a variety on both my blogs, Shiloh Musings and this one. I label my haikus Morning Coffee Haikus, and you can use that title for searching. 

IMHO haikus are a fantastic writing medium, because of its restricting the writer to express a thought in just seventeen 17 syllables. Enjoy my haikus and try writing your own. Which is your favorite? Please let me know in the comments, thanks.

Passover countdown

adds to pressure during war

trying to stay sane

strange... seasons confused

raindrops greeted me at door

blessings, Gd willing

rainy dark morning

strange, cold pre-Pesach weather

still rain prayers, OK

Gd only saves us

when we follow His commands

We're not just puppets

can't lie, yes, worried

no peace without victory

next battles much worse

optimistic dawn

but sans VICTORY no peace

deals don't bring true PEACE

evil enemies

must be totally destroyed

deals total farces

war's far from over

Iran's a lot better armed

last spring we were conned

can't fall back to sleep

Iran bombed long before dawn

but thank Gd unharmed

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Winter Blues...

I love sunrises. They cheer me up. Way back when... I remember sitting by a view of the sunrise nursing my first children. Our Jerusalem apartment's bedroom faced east looking over most of Jerusalem. It was spellbinding.

A few years later when we moved to Shiloh, I picked a building plot on the eastern side of the neighborhood. We have enormous windows in the living room and dining room facing east. Stunning sunrises greet me spring and summer when I get up.

But now we're mid-winter. It's so hard to get up to darkness. Gd willing soon the days will be longer, and morning will start earlier. In the meantime...

Orange Season, Now's The Time to Eat Them

Our tree's oranges are already bright orange

Perfect catch for "Orange" challenge, 52Frames

After almost a half a century in Israel, a unique country that is simultaneously agricultural/nature oriented and high tech, I religiously buy my fruit and some of the vegetables seasonally.

Years (decades) ago I read that fruits and vegetables are healthiest in the season they ripen. And as I remember the article stated that if you try to get around it, cheat, by eating imported fruit from a country in the opposite hemisphere, it won't have the same benefit.

Way back when, when one of my summer babies was a few weeks old, we got oranges very cheaply, so I ate a lot of them. Oranges are a winter fruit. Here in Israel I've learned not to buy them until a couple of weeks after the first rains, so they'll be sweet. The oranges were sweet, since they had been stored well. Suddenly I noticed that my baby had a terrible rash. None of older children had ever had a rash like that. Since the baby was fully nursing, I guessed that something I was eating must have been triggering the rash.

I experimented by cutting out oranges from my diet. Like magic the rash cleared!

In addition, we don't drink juices, even fresh juice. And I certainly don't drink orange juice. One of the last times I drank orange juice was a summer when visiting New York. I had orange juice in the break fast meal after the 25 hour fast of Tisha B'Av. I felt such awful burning in my mouth that since then I'm unable to have raw fruit when breaking a fast. But that's another story and the reason I try to make a good vegetable soup...

AC Care Tips for Dummies Like Us

I still have no doubt that we're among the very last in Israel's cold mountainous region to have gone modern and gotten an airconditioner for heating. Since we never replace anything while they still function, even poorly, it took us a pretty long time to make the splurge. This is the first full winter we've had it.

On the whole I really love heating the livingroom, plus kitchen and dining area with this airconditioner. The big bonus is that I can set up the folding clothes driers and get the clothes perfectly dry, too.

We hardly used it in the summer for cooling. One reason is that the heat doesn't bother me all that much, and the other is that we renovated the kitchen and had the fridge plugged into that socket, while the work was done.

We've tried to remember to clean the filters, though it's hard to know just how often...

A few weeks ago, I began to notice that periodically the AC would stop, and the little screen would say "HI." After it didn't go back on, within what I considered soon enough, I did an "experiment." I pulled out the plug and then after a couple of minutes, plugged it in and it worked. Then that happened on Shabbat when it's forbidden to play with the plug. So, I waited and eventually it went back on.

So, on the other day, in the midst of the cold stormy weather, when my husband reported that it had stopped and showed "HI," I told him not to worry, even though the AC had been making lots of noise, sounding like a hovering helicopter. Then he reported that only cold air was coming out. So I told him to pull the plug, and he turned it off. A bit later, we cleaned the filter. It was the filthiest I had ever found it. Actually, for the first time it really looked like it needed a cleaning. But I was afraid to turn the AC back on.

The following morning, since we had paid for extra  service, I called Tadiran and told the woman who answered about what had transpired.

"Did you clean the filter?"
"Yes, we just did."
"So, turn it on."
"Really? I had been afraid to."
"No need to be afraid. Tell me if it heats up. It may take a few minutes. And don't worry about the HI. It just means that the AC is defrosting itself."

That's it, thank Gd. Now I know two new things about our AC.

1. HI means the air-conditioner's defrosting, so allow it to continue.
2. If the motor begins making a lot of noise, turn it off and clean the filter.

I hope that helps others. I'd hate to think that we're the dumbest of all.

Snow, Just a Puff of Wishful Thinking

For the past few days, the Israeli media was full of supposed "pre-snow" warnings. You'd think we were in for a major blizzard. The "snowplow" workers, salters, media yappers etc were all put on "snow alert" at who know how many times their normal salary to be ready for the deluge of white to blanket the roads, lawns and more.

last night's hail on the steps to my house

To my experienced, though untrained mind, the forecasts weren't predicting snow, just winds and hail. And to be perfectly honest, that's what we really got. The round little ice balls you can see in the picture on the right are hail, not snow. For snow the temperature must be an actual freezing minus, not a few degrees more, or just "wind chill factor" or "feels like."

It's that "chaos" of winds, when it feels much colder than it actually is, that cause/form hail. Hail, like you can see in the photo, are ice balls. Yes, those ice balls on roads can be very dangerous, more dangerous than dry snowflakes, which if not piled high, quickly melt under hot moving cars and their wide tires.

Between the strong winds and hail, being on the roads last night wasn't a good idea for small cars especially. And I ended up missing my granddaughter's performance in Ofra, which had me very upset and disappointed.

late last night

early this morning

This year's winter isn't over yet, and considering that some of our deepest and most long-lasting snows have fallen in the month of Adar, even around Purim, we still have a chance. Not that I want it to snow. I'd rather continue with rainy nights and sunny days.

Elvis in Zion Square, Evening in Jerusalem

Now that we're no longer on Daylight Savings Time, and winter has finally arrived here in the Holy Land, afternoons quickly turn to nighttime. The day, full of light, is so short and sometimes non-existent, since Gd has been blessing us with rain.

A couple of days ago, I had an appointment near Zion Square, which decades ago had been the social and commercial hub of Jerusalem. I was happy to see it full of people. The people were mostly foreign students from the various yeshivot and seminaries. And best of all, there was music, Elvis Presley of all people. Listen.



A minute's walk away was this shop selling drums and other musical instruments. I miss the sound of real drums, Ringo Starr, and the energy he and others added. Nowadays too many bands and "instrumentals" that "accompany" singing and dancing substitute computerized banging for a real human drummer. I can hear the difference. There's an excitement/emotion in human drumming, which does not exist in the machine ones.

Today's music is too artificial/electric.

And no modern, weatherproof mall is as much fun as real streets and stores. What do you think?

Pull Out The Candles, Winter With a Bang

We've been waiting a long time for the rain. It's not even a matter of the chronic drought that has plagued the Land of Israel in recent years. Our neighborhood's sidewalks had been been dug up, replaced, recovered for "upgrading" which caused a definite deterioration in the air quality. For half a year, the entire dry season or longer, we've suffered from the resulting sand and dust. It has been so bad, that not only are our houses full of sandy dust, but I couldn't even eat my grapes straight from the vine.

Last night the blessed rains began, and electricity for miles around stopped. Periodically we had a much weaker version; only the new Led lights in the kitchen and the television worked well. Then it was black again, with the exception of the full moon. I lit candles and ended up sleeping in the living room.

This morning, after a couple of tries, bli eyin haraa, not to tempt the "evil eye," we're all lit up again. The flora, bricks, concrete and pavements are starting to shine. And now we'll discover whether or not the new white stone "covering" of the path is dangerously slippery or not.

Although the forecasts had been for daytime rain, we were blessed with a nighttime deluge. I say "blessed," because the first rain is a hazardous time to be on the roads here. The buildup of months of oil and sand combine dangerously with the rain contributing to serious car accidents. At least at night fewer people are on the roads.

Gd willing none of our or anyone else's electric appliances had been damaged/destroyed by the on/off power. As I write this I can see the clouds shrinking and the blue sky emerging. Tree branches are swaying like hyperactive dancers. Do you think I can do some laundry?

Season Change: Hot Coffee

I'm back to drinking my morning coffee hot. No more cold brew for the next few months or so from my French Press. I also deleted the nightly reminder on my cell phone/smartphone to remind me "Make Coffee."

back to hot coffee
no longer drink ice water
winter approaching
#morningcoffeehaiku

At the same time, I found myself drinking my water with lemon sans ice.

Nights are getting colder and longer. The water is coming out of the faucets much colder than just a couple of weeks ago.

I also set up the house's hot water boiler to go on for about an hour before we wake up. The very dusty solar panels aren't heating the water sufficiently anymore. Since it doesn't rain here in the summer, and I don't have anyone to climb on the roof to hose down the panels, it's just easier to use a bit of electricity. I just have to remember to turn off the automatic timer before Shabbat each week.

It's funny that the hot coffee, which didn't taste right a month ago, now tastes just perfect. I guess we, too, change with the seasons.

Muddy Night Walk

After a nice amount of rain even the mud seemed to sparkle.

Enjoying The AC/Heater

It's almost a year since we got a couple of AC/Heaters installed in the house. We're about the very last people to get them. One big advantage is that they aren't on the floor. Another is that they both heat and cool, although we rarely need them in the summer, especially the one in the bedroom. 

Unlike previous years, our house is rarely cold. I haven't let it get to that super-freezing state which made me suffer terribly. As long as there's electricity, bli eyin haraa, I can turn the AC/Heater on. It has a thermostat, of course, which keeps the temperature even and turns it "off" when necessary. Most of the house is now much warmer than it had ever been in the winter because of the AC/Heater. I still have a small heater going on in the den.

As you can see in the photo, I can also hang laundry in the living room on rainy days or overnight. It dries pretty quickly. Yes, I understand that's a sign of very dry air. We drink water, besides coffee. 

I'm very happy we finally have the AC/Heater. Better late than never. Life has sure changed, thank Gd.

Being Prepared for Electricity Problems

I gave up pretty quickly this past week when looking for Shabbat guests. It only took a couple of "negatives" to stop me in my tracks. The weather forecast was for winds, and everyone was told to prepare for "power outages," aka being without electricity. Considering that we only have electric heaters and electricity for cooking, I figured that possible guests wouldn't be very happy if the house and food were cold, plus dark and dingy.

We stocked up on "yartzeit candles" that claimed 48 and 72 hours of light. I lit two in the kitchen where I work and two by the Shabbat candles. And when I lit the Shabbat ones, I lit a lot more than usual, so in case the electricity went out while we were eating, there'd be some light.

This photo was taken after Shabbat before I put out the 48 hour candles

And now to tell you that it was just a regular rainy winter Shabbat, no drama. We had electricity, thank Gd. It was drizzling when I walked out to take a walk, so I just walked back in.  A "lazy Shabbat" is allowed on occasion. I did make it to shul and to my usual shiur, class.

Shavua Tov

Have a Wonderful Week

Baile Rochel Going "Modern"

That's in centigrade

Toasting the toasty room, even before
the pictures were rehung. 

OK, maybe for some of you, this is very 20th century deja vu, but here we are in the middle of the second decade of the 21st century and this family, OK more accurately an alte kakker couple, just got its very first modern "airconditioner," which unlike the ones of the mid-20th century heats as well as cools.

When we planned and built this house over thirty years ago, we tried to be as modern and clever as possible. I had read of "passive solar heating" and hoped that our large eastern and southern windows, plus specially constructed double walls, would make expensive heating almost unnecessary. The idea was that the free solar-from the sun- heat would enter the house and stay on sunny days. Even though our winters are the only season it rains, and even snows some years, most winter days are sunny. Of course, clever me ignored the simple reality that the summer sun would bake us...

Somehow we did survive those early winters by using a simple kerosene heater in the winter, a few small blow-heaters and the heat a large family plus guests add to a house. In the summer, we'd leave the windows open and pretend that it wasn't all that hot. But as these magic heat/cool airconditioners became more and more common, our bodies just wouldn't cooperate with the "con." Having a fan blowing the hot air in the summer just made the house like a giant convection oven. And in the winter I went around in half my sweater wardrobe and multiple socks each day.

Finally, after muttering for years that "we must get an airconditioner," I assigned the job of choosing a technician to my savvy son-in-law. We ended up hiring a young man who had been a student of mine. I wasn't all that happy about having a former student see the mess my bedroom is, but I was tired of needing to sleep with a hot water bottle, dressed heavy pajamas, socks and gloves most winter nights. And one of the reasons why our room stays a mess is that it is too cold to enter to clean. It was more like a giant walk-in freezer, and it's impossible to straighten up wearing heavy thermal gloves made for arctic winters.

For years I'd been saying that I only function a few weeks a year, spring and fall, since it's generally either too hot or too cold.

Well, my student was happy for the business and sent a couple of young neighbors, his cheerful technicians, to do the job. I had tutored one of them a number of years ago, too.


My husband was home that day and had the chore of clearing out things from our room and the living room near where the airconditioners would be. I still have lots of things to put back in place. Though I'm mulling over the idea of actually getting rid of many... Yes, I know that the trick to a clean and orderly house is to "purge" or "declutter" unneeded THINGS. The big problem is the definition of "unneeded."

The mess and the big decision of what can really be thrown out must wait until after Shabbat...

And of course you want to know how much better we feel now that there are airconditioners here in the house to keep us warm. I think for that answer, we'll have to wait until next winter, since Israel is now experiencing an "early spring." That's no surprise, since Ol' Murphy rules...

Powerful Apology

Add this to the many stories in my, and others', tremping sagas. Yes, this is how we survive, get around without a car, even when having to travel routes not served by public transportation.

Rainy day. Remember that even when it looks the stormiest,
the sun is actually shining, just hidden by the clouds, thunder
and lightening. 

Thank Gd this week it has been raining. Here in the HolyLand, rain in the winter is a blessing, meaning that a day like the one pictured here is a beautiful day in Shvat/February. Without rain, the land will revert to desert. Desalination is not a full substitute for rain.

Granted rain can be even more daunting than simple discomfort or inconvenience, especially when you don't have the use of a car and are dependent on siyata d'Shmaya and the goodness of others.

Yesterday, when I finished work in Kochav Hashachar I had a ride in my direction from some other teachers who make a point of helping me out. The only way I was able to accept my job in Yeshiva High School Ahavat Chaim was because the staff offers rides, and there are enough who live nearby or pass Shiloh. Without that, the twenty minute ride through Shvut Rachel to the Alon Road would be a minimum hour with totally miraculous bus connections at Sha'ar Binyamin.

Frequently the teachers bring me either home or by the local supermarket, but yesterday when the engine was started it was discovered that the gas tank was almost empty. It was obvious that we were at risk of getting stuck on the way to the closest gas station between Shiloh and Eli, so I knew that they would just drop me off at the junction of Shiloh and Shvut Rachel. As close as it is to home, it's sometimes the most ignored by drivers. But I answered "perfectly understood," when they apologized for having to leave me there.

As I got out of the car, another pulled up immediately. I didn't recognize the driver, but she said that she's going "up the hill" in Shiloh and named a family that lives right near me. All I could think of was that the apology I had received from my fellow teachers was powerful enough for Gd to arrange this ride on that chilly, rainy evening.

GD IS TRULY GREAT!!

Winter has Returned

I must admit that I enjoyed the few warm days we had last week. It was almost like being on vacation... I certainly needed a break from the cold. And it was so nice to turn off the heater and open up doors and windows. But we do need rain, and the rainy winter weather has returned!

At work we hear the rain pounding on the roof, which can be quite unnerving. And while the weather is wintery outside, at work we're busy unpacking summer clothes...

Raining Mud

Those of us in the mountainous parts of Israel had been warned about another snowstorm for last night and today. I had received numerous emails and phone calls begging me to change the day of the local elections scheduled for last night, but I kept on refusing.

"If it's snowing by 5:30pm, then we'll think about it," I kept telling everyone.

And to the comments about "stormy weather," as the evening progressed, I was incredulous.

"What storm? It's just a bit windy."
"Isn't it raining?"
"No."

The closest thing to a "storm" was the mud rain I found myself out in when trying to make my way home. Because of another RavKav (bus/train card) foul-up I had missed the 3:15 and 3:30 buses home. So I tremped, but it was one of my least pleasant attempts to tremp. I ended up waiting a long time in the nasty weather. There wasn't all that much rain, and whatever came down was mixed with sand, turning it into a "mud rain."

I'll have to launder my coat. I'm glad I don't wash windows. Car washes should be doing good business as soon as the weather clears.

Mid-Winter Beauty

We're now in the Jewish Month of Sh'vat or Shevat or however you want to spell it. There should be another two months plus of rain, G-d willing. So far we've had a decent amount of rain and even some snow.

Here are a few photos I've taken the past few weeks around Shiloh and traveling to Jerusalem. You can see the rich vegetation and glorious colors in the sky at dawn. In Israel we only get winter rains, so we do need a wet one.

the "early" shkaidia, almond tree in bloom

Cheap, Easy and Comfy Way to "Thermalize" and "Waterproof" Boots

Last week, when it was cold and threatening rain I had been wearing some warm, though not waterproof old boots in the house. They are very old and look awful, and I use them as slippers on cold winter days. It wasn't until I was out of the house and on my way to the bus-stop that I realized that I hadn't changed into my good heavy rain-boots.

My job requires me to be outdoors some of the time, even if it's just going from the main part of the store to the shoe store, which is in a different building. So when I got to work, I decided to take preventative measures. I took off the boots and added plastic bags between them and my socks/tights. Then I put the boots back on.

My feet, so highly and uncomfortably sensitive to the cold stayed warmer than on a summer's day. For me that is a great pleasure and very rare. I suffer from chilblains, which can be described as a form of frostbite. After my feet get too cold and then reheat, they can swell, especially the toes. The same thing happens to my fingers.

Back to Ordinary Winter Weather

As awfully, wind chill factor  cold it has been since yesterday, the snow has been melting. It was its most beautiful Friday night and Shabbat morning when I woke up, but sorry no photos.

The local plumbers were busy repairing broken pipes and popped solar water heaters. Thank G-d we didn't have that problem, but our electricity suddenly went. Can't complain, honestly, since it happened after Shabbat. Our wonderful electrician changed into his work-clothes and came up the hill to figure out the problem. Luckily it was the outlet the washing-machine is plugged into. And add another Baruch Hashem that the nearby dryer outlet is, bli eyin haraa, (don't tempt the evil eye) OK. He'll, G-d willing, replace it when he had time, plus do a small repair that has been waiting for a long time. It didn't seem worthwhile  to call just for that. I had been waiting for a more serious or other repairs to make a "package" for the basic house-call.

This morning there's still some snow left, and the weather forecast is for what is called "occasional or local rain." I don't know if we'll benefit from sunshine in between, but G-d willing there will be some tomorrow. Please don't think I'm downplaying the value of rain/precipitation for us, but we do need both, and we have had lots of snow and rain that now needs some sun to give the Land the best benefit.

Here are some photos I just took.

May this be a very blessed winter, even though I'm not sure the Jewish People deserve such a gift from G-d.