I guess that this is as close to spring as we'll get here. Sometimes it seems to go from cold to hot in a day or less. This year we've had some pleasant times. It's not cold, and it's still not hot. Just perfect. Only allergy sufferers are complaining.
I'm exhausted, but go to bed early; had a great time in the pool.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Baruch Dayan HaEmet and Refuah Shleimah
2 killed, 14 injured, in road accident near Eli
Two people were killed and 14 injured late Tuesday night in a head on collision between two vehicles between Tapuah Juction and Eli.
Rescue helicopters were called to the scene to assist emergency services with hauling the trapped casualties from the wreckage.
Two people were killed and 14 injured late Tuesday night in a head on collision between two vehicles between Tapuah Juction and Eli.
Rescue helicopters were called to the scene to assist emergency services with hauling the trapped casualties from the wreckage.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
What are you cooking?
Are you?
What do you like to cook?
What do you like to eat?
Where do you like to eat?
Blog it, as long as it's kosher, of course. And then send me to link to include in the 6th edition of the Kosher Cooking Carnival!
G-d willing it will be posted before Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, so if you have a recipe or story about Jerusalem Kugel or Jerusalem artichokes, we'd love to read about it or anything else, as long as it's kosher!
Please send to shilohmuse at yahoo dot com or via blog carnival , where you also submit links to other carnivals, like Carnival of the Mundane, which isn't mundane at all, or Havel Havelim, which isn't norishkeit. And there are lots more!
What do you like to cook?
What do you like to eat?
Where do you like to eat?
Blog it, as long as it's kosher, of course. And then send me to link to include in the 6th edition of the Kosher Cooking Carnival!
G-d willing it will be posted before Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, so if you have a recipe or story about Jerusalem Kugel or Jerusalem artichokes, we'd love to read about it or anything else, as long as it's kosher!
Please send to shilohmuse at yahoo dot com or via blog carnival , where you also submit links to other carnivals, like Carnival of the Mundane, which isn't mundane at all, or Havel Havelim, which isn't norishkeit. And there are lots more!
Best school?
I'm a graduate of Great Neck North, on Great Neck, Long Island, New York. According to the listing in Newsweek, it's the #23 top school in the U. S. A. Of course, as any of my fellow alumni would confirm, the most important thing is that it's ranked higher than Great Neck South, which is only #31. Actually it's the top ranking Long Island high school, which is good for my parents' home's property value.
Honestly, I must admit that I did not enjoy my studies there. We moved from Bayside, NY the summer before the 8th grade. Actually, I was supposed to enter the 9th grade, second year of the "Two Year S.P.," "Special Progress" was the official name, I think. It was a two year program to complete the three years of junior high school. Great Neck didn't recognize it, leaving me back and not even assigning me to any "advanced" classes. To put it mildly, I was bored out of my mind, since the first year of the Two Year SP included two-thirds of the 8th grade curriculum. I got off track and lost the art of studying. Yes, it still hurts all these decades later, and as an educator, I think it was a big mistake not to challenge me.
Great Neck was also very elitist and competitive, in addition to the upper-class snobbiness. There were various "crowds" according to religion and color, which was strange for me, since my Bayside neighborhood and childhood in Bell Park Gardens was so different. BPG was a new post-WWII housing development populated exclusively by young struggling families, mostly Jewish, just like us.
Suddenly I was thrust into a very different world, for which I wasn't prepared. Of course, those were the sorts of challenges and difficulties which made me the person I am today, for better or for worse.
Among my classmates were people who turned out quite differently, such as, Andy Kaufman and Jon Avnet (though the birth year seems wrong). Yes, we were a large, strange and diverse class. As far as I know, even though a couple hundred were also Jewish, I'm the only one living in Israel, making me one of the strangest of all.
Honestly, I must admit that I did not enjoy my studies there. We moved from Bayside, NY the summer before the 8th grade. Actually, I was supposed to enter the 9th grade, second year of the "Two Year S.P.," "Special Progress" was the official name, I think. It was a two year program to complete the three years of junior high school. Great Neck didn't recognize it, leaving me back and not even assigning me to any "advanced" classes. To put it mildly, I was bored out of my mind, since the first year of the Two Year SP included two-thirds of the 8th grade curriculum. I got off track and lost the art of studying. Yes, it still hurts all these decades later, and as an educator, I think it was a big mistake not to challenge me.
Great Neck was also very elitist and competitive, in addition to the upper-class snobbiness. There were various "crowds" according to religion and color, which was strange for me, since my Bayside neighborhood and childhood in Bell Park Gardens was so different. BPG was a new post-WWII housing development populated exclusively by young struggling families, mostly Jewish, just like us.
Suddenly I was thrust into a very different world, for which I wasn't prepared. Of course, those were the sorts of challenges and difficulties which made me the person I am today, for better or for worse.
Among my classmates were people who turned out quite differently, such as, Andy Kaufman and Jon Avnet (though the birth year seems wrong). Yes, we were a large, strange and diverse class. As far as I know, even though a couple hundred were also Jewish, I'm the only one living in Israel, making me one of the strangest of all.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Relaxing and sleeping well
A few months ago I became a regular at the monthly ladies' night at the Chamei Yoav Spa. For various reasons, I didn't make it there in March and April, and I don't know if I'll go again that soon. First of all, to make things clear, I really did enjoy it. It is wonderful, but I discovered that now that I play basketball Sunday evenings, I am experiencing some of the same feelings of relaxation. That's right. By running and walking around the basketball court, reaching for balls, throwing and passing and catching, I experience a feeling very similar to the one I would get in those pools and waterfalls at the spa.
Don't think that I'm some sort of "jock." I wasn't an athlete decades ago, and I'm not one now either. I just like to be physically active, OK, when I'm not sitting like a lump typing on the computer.
I've also discovered that my nights of insomnia usually follow a few days of physical inactivity. I need some sort of exercise to fall asleep easily, otherwise I'm just not tired enough.
Unlike the visit to the spa, the basketball game is free, and it's near my house. It's usually just a half dozen of us, with me as the eldest (always), and a basketball. Some of the young women are even younger than my youngest kids, and they were born when I was over thirty. The game, which we don't keep score, is relatively non competitive. It lasts less than an hour. One other thing is that we work up a sweat, which is healthy.
After the game, as soon as I get home I put up my dinner and then take a nice shower and shampoo. And by the time I finish eating I feel as relaxed as when I leave the spa. Hard to believe, but it's true.
Don't think that I'm some sort of "jock." I wasn't an athlete decades ago, and I'm not one now either. I just like to be physically active, OK, when I'm not sitting like a lump typing on the computer.
I've also discovered that my nights of insomnia usually follow a few days of physical inactivity. I need some sort of exercise to fall asleep easily, otherwise I'm just not tired enough.
Unlike the visit to the spa, the basketball game is free, and it's near my house. It's usually just a half dozen of us, with me as the eldest (always), and a basketball. Some of the young women are even younger than my youngest kids, and they were born when I was over thirty. The game, which we don't keep score, is relatively non competitive. It lasts less than an hour. One other thing is that we work up a sweat, which is healthy.
After the game, as soon as I get home I put up my dinner and then take a nice shower and shampoo. And by the time I finish eating I feel as relaxed as when I leave the spa. Hard to believe, but it's true.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
word verification
I figured out a technique for some of those very tough word verifications. Those are the ones dark grey letters and numbers on slightly lighter grey. Sometimes I have to try more than six times to get my comments accepted, and my eyes were recently tested, and they're the same they were 3 years ago.
So after trying four times to get my message approved, I copied the grey smudges onto work, and then I changed the contrast from 50% to 100%. And yes, I copied the letters correctly.
But honestly, I think it's a lot of nerve to have something so difficult to see.
So after trying four times to get my message approved, I copied the grey smudges onto work, and then I changed the contrast from 50% to 100%. And yes, I copied the letters correctly.
But honestly, I think it's a lot of nerve to have something so difficult to see.
the 68th HH
Crossing the Rubicon's Havel Havelim is GEVALTIK! That means "something super spectacular!" Take a gander!
Rubber gloves
I have lots of pairs of rubber gloves around my house, since I wash the dishes with them and use them for all sorts of cleaning. Also, I don't use the same for all the purposes. Since my kitchen is kosher (the Jewish laws separating meat and milk), I have different gloves for the different kitchen utensils. I usually keep another pair for other cleaning, since I don't like to mix them with the food.
Because I use rubber gloves, I can wash the dishes with very hot water, getting everything cleaner.
It took a while to adjust, but now I feel the grease, even though my hands are protected by the gloves. If you're still doing your scrubbing bare-handed, I sincerely suggest that you get used to rubber gloves.
Because I use rubber gloves, I can wash the dishes with very hot water, getting everything cleaner.
It took a while to adjust, but now I feel the grease, even though my hands are protected by the gloves. If you're still doing your scrubbing bare-handed, I sincerely suggest that you get used to rubber gloves.
Saturday, May 06, 2006
Take out the hankies
Here's a beautiful article about a special ballet class in Bayside, NY.
It tells of a physical therapist who teaches ballet to little girls with CP and what progress they make.
Since the New York Times takes articles off after a few weeks, it's also available here.
It tells of a physical therapist who teaches ballet to little girls with CP and what progress they make.
Since the New York Times takes articles off after a few weeks, it's also available here.
Friday, May 05, 2006
Extra busy before Shabbat
I'm extra busy today, since from 1-4pm. I'm joining my neighbors to say T'hilim, Psalms, for a neighbor who's very ill.
We'll be asking for a Refuah Shleimah, a full recovery, for
Shmuel Muli Alexander ben Yehoshav'at
All voices for his Refuah Shleimah are appreciated by his family and friends, so please add him to your prayers.
We'll be asking for a Refuah Shleimah, a full recovery, for
Shmuel Muli Alexander ben Yehoshav'at
All voices for his Refuah Shleimah are appreciated by his family and friends, so please add him to your prayers.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
Rising without yeast
I'm on a food list, and there's a slight controversy about "sourdough."
A- asked for bread ideas for someone who can't eat yeast.
I suggested matzah, which has none at all; it's just flour and water, baked very quickly, no time to rise.
B- mocked my answer, saying that, flour and water left alone will ferment and rise, becoming yeast.
I decided to check it out on the internet!
The first site I found was a quest to make "real" San Francisco Sourdough Bread. According to his instructions you need a "special sourdough yeast starter." It's different from regular baking yeast.
In this site I found a more scientific explanation of the various yeasts and how they thrive. Sourdough does have yeast. I understand that some people can digest that bread more easily than the regular type. But it's incorrect to think that it is yeastless.
Yeastless, no, but yeastless, yes. Now I guess that doesn't make sense at first. Simply, you don't need yeast to make yeast, but it takes more than the time the matzah dough is sitting. Here are some simple instructions how to make your own sourdough yeast starter. The secret is that there is yeast in the "air," and if you leave the dough to sit under the right conditions, it will ferment, and you will have yeast. Also, you have to give yourself at least a week until you have sourdough starter for baking. After that you can become more spontaneous.
But Passover matzah doesn't have yeast, since it's prepared too quickly.
A- asked for bread ideas for someone who can't eat yeast.
I suggested matzah, which has none at all; it's just flour and water, baked very quickly, no time to rise.
B- mocked my answer, saying that, flour and water left alone will ferment and rise, becoming yeast.
I decided to check it out on the internet!
The first site I found was a quest to make "real" San Francisco Sourdough Bread. According to his instructions you need a "special sourdough yeast starter." It's different from regular baking yeast.
In this site I found a more scientific explanation of the various yeasts and how they thrive. Sourdough does have yeast. I understand that some people can digest that bread more easily than the regular type. But it's incorrect to think that it is yeastless.
Yeastless, no, but yeastless, yes. Now I guess that doesn't make sense at first. Simply, you don't need yeast to make yeast, but it takes more than the time the matzah dough is sitting. Here are some simple instructions how to make your own sourdough yeast starter. The secret is that there is yeast in the "air," and if you leave the dough to sit under the right conditions, it will ferment, and you will have yeast. Also, you have to give yourself at least a week until you have sourdough starter for baking. After that you can become more spontaneous.
But Passover matzah doesn't have yeast, since it's prepared too quickly.
One of those very "Israeli things"
It's very common in Israel that communities are named after murdered (and dead by natural means) Israelis and Jews. From my livingroom windows I see Shvut Rachel, a vibrant yishuv, community of young families, which was established hours after Rachella Druk's murder. All of the first caravans were transported on a path which began from my neighborhood, near my house eastwards.
At first I had trouble looking at it, since it was such a permanent reminder that Rachella was no longer alive.
There's also Givat Asaf, the T-junction to Beit El, named after Asaf Hershkowitz. I wait there for rides to Beit El. Many kibbutzim are also named after the dead and murdered. But this isn't a geography-history lesson.
Last night, after our traditional Yom Ha'atzma'ut, Independence Day Barbque at my cousin's in Neve Ne'eman (Hod Hasharon), they drove us to Ariel, where we continued home by "tremping," hitching. A couple of minutes after we were let off, a young couple pulled up going to "Tzomet Shiloh," the Shiloh junction, which I realized meant Givat Harel. The road to Givat Harel is across from our road.
Givat Harel was established after Arab terrorists murdered Harel Bin Nun, middle son, of our Rabbi Elchanan and his wife, Malka. Harel had been living in Yitzhar, in the Shomron. He and Shlomo Leibman were doing a security patrol there, when they were brutally attacked and murdered by Arab terrorists. His older brothers established Givat Harel, in his memory, after the murder.
There was something I was very tempted to say to the young couple, though I controlled myself, since I wasn't sure if they really wanted to know: Our daughter was Harel's Bnai Akiva madricha, youth leader. So for us, he was one of the local kids. For that couple, he was probably a legendary figure, and I figured that I shouldn't tamper with that.
At first I had trouble looking at it, since it was such a permanent reminder that Rachella was no longer alive.
There's also Givat Asaf, the T-junction to Beit El, named after Asaf Hershkowitz. I wait there for rides to Beit El. Many kibbutzim are also named after the dead and murdered. But this isn't a geography-history lesson.
Last night, after our traditional Yom Ha'atzma'ut, Independence Day Barbque at my cousin's in Neve Ne'eman (Hod Hasharon), they drove us to Ariel, where we continued home by "tremping," hitching. A couple of minutes after we were let off, a young couple pulled up going to "Tzomet Shiloh," the Shiloh junction, which I realized meant Givat Harel. The road to Givat Harel is across from our road.
Givat Harel was established after Arab terrorists murdered Harel Bin Nun, middle son, of our Rabbi Elchanan and his wife, Malka. Harel had been living in Yitzhar, in the Shomron. He and Shlomo Leibman were doing a security patrol there, when they were brutally attacked and murdered by Arab terrorists. His older brothers established Givat Harel, in his memory, after the murder.
There was something I was very tempted to say to the young couple, though I controlled myself, since I wasn't sure if they really wanted to know: Our daughter was Harel's Bnai Akiva madricha, youth leader. So for us, he was one of the local kids. For that couple, he was probably a legendary figure, and I figured that I shouldn't tamper with that.
Wednesday, May 03, 2006
more carnivals this week
Another carnival update for your browsing pleasure, or surfing...
We're in the very practical Festival of Frugality this week.
and if you're afraid that wherever you are, nobody's schools are like yours, then you really ought to look at Carnival of Education!
We're in the very practical Festival of Frugality this week.
and if you're afraid that wherever you are, nobody's schools are like yours, then you really ought to look at Carnival of Education!
Addiction
I have something to admit; I'm an addict. Thank G-d, not to drugs or alcohol, or any of the really dangerous things. I'm a freecell addict. If I'm near a computer that has the game, I just can't control myself.
Of course, I always say: "Just one or two games." And then, suddenly I look up, and a long time has passed. What a waste!
For quite a while, I've hardly played, which is enough. My only access was at my daughter's while babysitting, and as you can imagine, the one-year-old keeps me too busy to play more than a game and a half.
When we had this computer upgraded I made of point of not looking for games, since it's much too accessible, and I waste enough time with email, blogging etc. We have this other computer, a laptop, rarely used. It had freecell and spider solitaire, another great game. For various reasons, it's rarely on and usually in the kids rooms. But recently my husband set it up in the dining room to work on some university papers. And I can't stay away! So the laundry hasn't been sorted and folded; my crocheting projects are gathering dust.
The last time I spent too much time on freecell, I was imagining moves wherever I was, like a chess player going over games.
They had better get that computer away, real fast!
Of course, I always say: "Just one or two games." And then, suddenly I look up, and a long time has passed. What a waste!
For quite a while, I've hardly played, which is enough. My only access was at my daughter's while babysitting, and as you can imagine, the one-year-old keeps me too busy to play more than a game and a half.
When we had this computer upgraded I made of point of not looking for games, since it's much too accessible, and I waste enough time with email, blogging etc. We have this other computer, a laptop, rarely used. It had freecell and spider solitaire, another great game. For various reasons, it's rarely on and usually in the kids rooms. But recently my husband set it up in the dining room to work on some university papers. And I can't stay away! So the laundry hasn't been sorted and folded; my crocheting projects are gathering dust.
The last time I spent too much time on freecell, I was imagining moves wherever I was, like a chess player going over games.
They had better get that computer away, real fast!
Start Stirring
Yes, it's time to start stirring the pot for the 6th Kosher Cooking Carnival!
The first recipes (links) are already in, and in another three weeks, G-d willing, it will be served to one and all.
The first recipes (links) are already in, and in another three weeks, G-d willing, it will be served to one and all.
- recipes
- food traditions and stories
- cookbook and restaurant reviews
- as long as they're kosher
Since it will be Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem Day, how about posts about Jerusalem artichokes or "Jerusalem Kugel."
- Do you have any stories or recipes about those two or any other foods named for Jerusalem?
- What about picnics in Jerusalem?
- or menus served at Jerusalem Day or Israeli Independence Day events?
- How about pictures of cakes decorated in those themes?
Please send me your posts or suitable posts you've read in other blogs. The 6th KCC, will G-d willing, appear after the third Thursday in May. Please send your links either to shilohmuse at yahoo dot com or via Conservative Cat's handy form or the blog carnival one, and at the same time you may discover other carnivals to visit and enter...
Thanks and Chag Atzma'ut Sameach!
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
The Power of the Blog
There are blogs with readership that compete with magazines and newspapers. OK, I admit that none of mine are in that mega status.
Even The New York Times wrote about it. They, along with other large--mega--mainstream media, even "track" their articles and list the blogs which link them(mention them using the access link). When I write about an article (including its link of course for easy reference) from the Times or Newsweek, I frequently find those elite publications listed as "referrers." That means, that when I check how many, who and how people have "visited" my blogs, I can see that they were referred by The New York Times, for example.
The Jerusalem Post and other newspapers even have a blog section in its internet edition. A few favored bloggers are considered as honored columnists. I presume that this is going on in newspapers all over the world.
Back to that NY Times article, they feel that it was the power of the blogging which helped convince the publisher, Little, Brown, to recall Kaavya Viswanathan's controversial book "How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life" because of plagiarism.
It's hard to keep a secret nowadays.
Even The New York Times wrote about it. They, along with other large--mega--mainstream media, even "track" their articles and list the blogs which link them(mention them using the access link). When I write about an article (including its link of course for easy reference) from the Times or Newsweek, I frequently find those elite publications listed as "referrers." That means, that when I check how many, who and how people have "visited" my blogs, I can see that they were referred by The New York Times, for example.
The Jerusalem Post and other newspapers even have a blog section in its internet edition. A few favored bloggers are considered as honored columnists. I presume that this is going on in newspapers all over the world.
Back to that NY Times article, they feel that it was the power of the blogging which helped convince the publisher, Little, Brown, to recall Kaavya Viswanathan's controversial book "How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life" because of plagiarism.
It's hard to keep a secret nowadays.
Monday, May 01, 2006
Oatmeal
Let's count, or list the ways of making oatmeal.
I used to think that there was one way, in a pot. Add some oats to water or milk, bring to a boil, cover, turn off heat and let cook from the heat in the pot.
Then I discovered the microwave. Take your bowl and add the oats and water, or some milk, turn on and pray that it doesn't boil over.
And if you don't mind a slightly undercooked taste, very simply put some oats into a mug or heat-retaining bowl, then add some boiling water, cover for awhile.
After any and all of those cooking methods, add some honey or brown sugar and some milk, and it's one of the "comfort foods" or just perfect when you can't sleep at night--the carbs do it! And the doctors say that the roughage is great for your health.
I used to think that there was one way, in a pot. Add some oats to water or milk, bring to a boil, cover, turn off heat and let cook from the heat in the pot.
Then I discovered the microwave. Take your bowl and add the oats and water, or some milk, turn on and pray that it doesn't boil over.
And if you don't mind a slightly undercooked taste, very simply put some oats into a mug or heat-retaining bowl, then add some boiling water, cover for awhile.
After any and all of those cooking methods, add some honey or brown sugar and some milk, and it's one of the "comfort foods" or just perfect when you can't sleep at night--the carbs do it! And the doctors say that the roughage is great for your health.
This Week's Carnival Update
Take a cup of coffee, tea, some nice cool water or whatever's your favorite; it's carnival time! There's plenty to read in this week's BOMS, Carnival of the Rant, Carnival of the Mundane and last but not least, or acharon, acharon chaviv--as we say in Hebrew, Havel Havelim.
"peanuts and crackerjacks"
Ok, so I just served old-fashioned, pan-popped popcorn for my sons and some friends when they watched the game. And the game was the European Basketball Championships, and we lost.
My son predicted it before it actually started, from the overconfident tone of the broadcasters, but the popcorn was a hit and the house still smells from it.
Use a good, stainless steel pot, heavy bottom and cover. Cover the bottom of the pan with kernals, just a layer--they expand. Then some soy oil. Cover and cook on high until you hear them pop. Give it a gentle shake, until it pops again, then lower the flame, very low. The minute it stops popping turn it off. Wait a couple of minutes, then open and pour into a very large bowl. Add salt and serve!
And I hope that your team wins! Also good for TV, movies, etc.
My son predicted it before it actually started, from the overconfident tone of the broadcasters, but the popcorn was a hit and the house still smells from it.
Use a good, stainless steel pot, heavy bottom and cover. Cover the bottom of the pan with kernals, just a layer--they expand. Then some soy oil. Cover and cook on high until you hear them pop. Give it a gentle shake, until it pops again, then lower the flame, very low. The minute it stops popping turn it off. Wait a couple of minutes, then open and pour into a very large bowl. Add salt and serve!
And I hope that your team wins! Also good for TV, movies, etc.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)