Celebrating Six 6!

The other day my daughter finally got to make her six year old a birthday party. When the actual birthday is during the super busy Jewish Holiday Season, celebrations get postponed. But since the princess got to "plan" the party, which included all that she wanted, she didn't care that it was actually over a month after the date.

Being just the grandmother, I had no real role other than glorified "gofer" and photographer, which meant that I could just enjoy myself and kvell. I especially enjoyed seeing my older granddaughters take over all sorts of important roles and responsibilities, very much like their mother did when she was their ages.

I even set the table! As you can see, the birthday girl likes pink.

The gorgeous cake was baked and decorated by the family, meaning that a few of us, including the birthday girl, took part.

Thank Gd a good time was had by all, Baruch Hashem, ken yirbu; may there be many more smachot, happy occasions for all the family.

"Masculinity" for 52Frames

Each week there's a different theme for those participating in 52Frames. Sometimes it's more technical, how you take the picture or even edit it, and sometimes it's the subject matter, like this one, "Masculinity." I ended up taking a few photos as I walked in Jerusalem last Wednesday morning towards Matan.

Here they are. Did I submit the best one, or should I have sent in a different one? I'd love your opinion, thanks.

"Strolling"
Walking in Jerusalem the other morning, I spotted this guy ahead of me, snuck up and shot him.

This was the runner-up

Simple Avocado Salad

The other day, I grabbed an avocado to take with me for lunch. OK, that is a pretty dumb thing to do, since avocados are awfully messy. That's not a problem when you're home, since avocados make great face (and no doubt neck) cream. So, it's no surprise that I didn't have lunch when I was out. But the minute I got in I quickly assembled a nice colorful salad with the avocado, a tomato and a mushroom.

I love the colors. And I also like how it looks on the newspaper. I was getting tired of photographing food on the same tablecloths all the time. On black and white the colors of the tomato and avocado really stand out. Yes, that's how red and yummy the tomato was, and you can see that the avocado was also perfectly ripe and ready to be eaten.

This salad took me just a couple of minutes to prepare and not much more to eat it.

Jerusalem Garden Library

There's an amazing little library in Jerusalem near the "old Hamashbir," on King George Street, by the "Horse Park," Across from Ben-Yehuda and Hillel Streets.

To the Honored Public!!!
This Park Library is open for all residents of Jerusalem.
The books are to be read and looked at here only.
Besides that, donations of books are blessed.
The library is for your pleasure!!!

Blessings,
Library Administration,
Office Telephone 5456894

It seems to be there, open all the time, because I saw it also early  one morning. looking the same.

Is there anything similar anyplace else?

Reflecting on a Strange Self-Portrait

This morning, when I was about to pour my second mug of coffee, I noticed my face staring at myself from the top of the French Press. So, being the coffee-crazed, overtired, amateur photographer I am, I tucked my hair in a bit better and went running for my camera.

Am I nuts?

Today we live in a world of selfies, twitter, Facebook, video-talking/calls etc. I'm in touch with a whole bunch of people via Facebook about my coffee drinking. Some of them I really know in real life and are even relatives, or relatives of relatives whom I've known f2f my entire life. But there are others who live in different parts of the world whom I've met through blogging and Facebook. And there are those I could pass in the street and haven't a clue that we are great buddies in the world of Facebook or they know me "well" because of my blogs.

Over the years, and I've been blogging for well over a decade, more like a decade and a half, people have stopped me at various venues asking if I'm that blogger they read.

I'm old enough to remember the days when phone calls were a luxury. Each call was billed, and if you called out of your immediate district, you were charged even more. Today I have a phone deal (Golan) on my cellphone which allows me to call all over the world, and it's covered by my monthly fee. I don't take advantage of it all that much, but since it also has an option that allows people to call me as if I'm in either the USA or England, (the choices I made from the many foreign countries on the list) family and friends can call me as if I'm in New York or London. To me this is like Science Fiction. I haven't a clue as to how these things work. I'm still trying to figure out how a "photocopy" turns up in a different location aka a fax.

Also, I was raised when we used film for photography, and I was constantly threatened by my parents that they'd take away my camera if I wasted film on bad pictures. The developing and printing was so expensive then.

I guess I'm a bit insane as I try to keep up with the 21st century and all of the changes from my childhood, adolescence, early adulthood and even middle-age. Am I that old?

Walking hasn't gotten the Weight Off, but Pictures are Nice

I have been losing the losing battle of late. Three kilos, almost seven pounds have invaded my body and refuse to leave! Sometimes it seems like I've gotten one off, and before I know it, the creep is back. I've been trying to exercise more, eat a bit less, but after almost ten years of dieting...  Yep, I must admit that it's a drag.

I started eating more fruit, citrus, pomegranate and others with lots of Vitamin C. I think that added more sugars, too, which brought back the kilo, yet again.

At least with my new job, which I must blog about, instead of leaving you in suspense, I do get to walk a bit more. And I no longer get hyped up late at night after working night shift and not be able to sleep.

Here are some photos:

Pishers' Guide to Jerusalem #9, Watch Out for Peep Holes!

This is a continuation in my ongoing series about public toilets in Jerusalem. See #8, #7,  #6,  #5, Saved by The First Station aka #4a, #4, #3, #2and #1 

I'm sure I'm not the only one who rushes into a cubicle in a public toilet with barely enough time to close the door, not even checking if there's a minimal supply of toilet-paper. Right? Recently, once seated of course, I've noticed that some are not very private.

This one is on King George Street near the Horse/Menorah Park. It has good hours and a great location. But besides the hole in the door it also has a fan in the upper wall of the handicapped stall which can also give a view. You can see it in the photo. I've been to other public toilets where the original lock has been removed and there's a big empty hole. They have a different gadget for locking.

So, I suggest being as modest as possible when utilizing public facilities, since one never knows how private they really are.

If you've noticed peep holes in others, please report, thanks.

PS the last time I was there I saw that they had repaired the doorway and stuffed up the holes. I don't know if someone in the department saw my blog post or were there other complaints.

An Advantage of Having to Get Up Early-Gorgeous Sun!

OK, when today I could have slept as late as I needed my body decided that two days of waking up just after 4am weren't enough. So I've been up since long before dawn. Gd willing, I'll sleep later, to a more normal time, tomorrow.

Yesterday I had to catch either a ride or the earliest bus, just after 6am, to Jerusalem. When I was waiting at the main bus stop, I was mesmerized watching the sun rise to its early morning glory. Here are a few photos of it.

Just before the bus came to the stop I caught a ride. Even though we ended up in an awful traffic jam, since I had left early enough, I still had time to walk most of the way to Matan from where I had gotten off in the Center of Jerusalem.

Swooping Down for 52Frames

"Swooping Down"
This small department store in downtown Jerusalem has the most amazing escalators.

For this week's photo challenge, 52Frames had us take a Birds-Eye View. Above is the photo I chose, but here are a few others I took. What do you think? Did I choose correctly?

Sign of Winter

Here in Israel there's a plant that flowers when winter is beginning. Even though it has hardly rained and only from today, the 7th of Cheshvan, do we say the full prayer for rain, I noticed the flower over Shabbat.

As much as we need the rain, I wish it would only rain when I don't need to go out or hang laundry. There are years that the rain really gets me down. Traveling is so much harder in the rain. We don't have a car, and getting to work in the rain is much more complicated.

It is said that the rain is an extra blessing when it falls at night, when people are home snug in bed. Gd willing, we'll have that sort of winter.

An Advantage of Being Old

Here in Shiloh we have some great "senior citizen" activities that I've never really managed to take advantage of when I was working at Yafiz. Occasionally I'd get to one of the lectures to translate, but I had never gotten to the various crafts workshops which really appeal to me. That is until today.

On Sunday morning there are three different activities, ulpan, exercise and crafts. Thank Gd I don't need the ulpan, but I certainly can use the exercise which is led by an amazing professional who had been a fitness trainer to the stars in her former life. Of course the class is geared to those even less fit than yours truly, but it's an hour long and has great value.

I had really been looking forward to the crafts, which were mosaics yesterday. I had done one a few years ago and found it great fun. I doubt that you'd be surprised to hear that my "work of art" ended up very different from all the others. That large blue piece was my inspiration, and the rest of the picture just somehow followed.

Everyone else did realist types of pictures or very repetitive, symmetric patterns. All the other works of art look pretty, but they are just not me.

As a kid I was never considered "good at art," because I couldn't draw realistically. That's one of the reasons that photography is a great medium for me.

Nu, so what do you think of my mosaic?

More #morningcoffeehaiku

Please ignore my nails. Don't let them distract you from the great coffee and sunny morning. 

As you must know, I've been haikuing on facebook most mornings about coffee. See #morningcoffeehaiku. These haikus are sometimes illustrated by my coffee, but these photos are from today and were taken for this blog post.

Since I have a nice stock of American coffee, I've been making my coffee in a French Press. And since it has gotten colder, I've ceased making Cold Press coffee. When I have no American stock, or I'm just in a certain mood, I use my Israeli Elite Turkish Coffee for perking in a very classic stove top percolator.

Here are some of my more recent haikus. I hope they warm you and wake you. Enjoy!

a lovely morning
when water is followed by...
coffee, sugar, milk

first sip of coffee 
makes the day really begin
enjoy every drop

coffee and laundry
today's menu is simple
first drink my coffee

Why up so early?
So I can drink my coffee!
Will it rain today?

slept strange dreams last night
water and coffee to clear
now to start the day

hot Friday coffee
made it strong in the French Press
good sipping slowly

perked coffee calling
strong and hot to hit the spot
good morning to all

up very early
drank my water, now coffee
starting new today

Tweaking My Fanstastic Vegetable Soup

The other day when I had a hankering for some vegetable soup, I made a few changes. I added lots of fresh ginger and some real pepper, as you can see from the photo. Then when it was almost ready, I also put in some chunks of pumpkin. That's because the pumpkin cooks very quickly. 

That's besides the usual:

• split peas, which are in the pot first with boiling water, covered and left for at least 40 minutes. 
• onion
• fresh garlic
• carrots, this time no squash

It was all cooked up with some oil and boiling water (to save time,) until the carrots were soft. Then, since it was already getting pretty late at night, I had a bowl of it very hot and left it to cool. In the morning there was hardly any liquid, as you can see. You should always calculate for food to continue cooking after the flame/heating element is off. Just keep the pot or pan covered, even put a towel on top if there is no flame on. Or put it on a surface that keeps the heat. Flavors get stronger this way and no burning.

Then I put it away in the fridge. Later in the day I heated some up, and it was much better than the night before.

I'm getting temped to get one of those blender sticks to make these soups blended and creamy-like. It would be a nice little present for winter soups.

Newly Renovated Matan, Better than Ever!

This week classes resumed in Matan, where I have been studying Tanach/Bible for years. There are lots of other types of courses, too, but I don't have the time to study more.

At first glance when we walked in the downstairs lobby looked unchanged, but when we walked upstairs to see if the office was open and we could pay, we were very pleasantly surprised by the changes!

Besides lectures, I'm part of a study group, and we used to study in the Beit Medrash (Study Hall.) A couple of years ago, it became too crowded and noisy so we studied downstairs, but this upstairs sitting area looks even nicer.

Beit Medrash (Study Hall)

We had a productive learning session and finished the Book of Job in the Al Haperek program. Now we are looking forward to studying Mishlei-Proverbs together and having a final siyum as the program ends.

Afterward we went down to the auditorium to hear Dr. Yael Ziegler lecture on `Kings, Prophets and Hurban`. The room was packed, and as usual she gave an amazing and informative and comprehensible talk. You do not have to be an expert in the Bible to follow, since she weaves in enough background information to make it understandable and interesting for those on all levels. Yes, that's quite a feat.

I am very much looking forward to this year's learning and thank Gd that it fits into my new working schedule. Honestly, I would not have accepted my new job if it hadn't!