No Other Words: a Lynching

   Last night a foreign worker was mistaken for a terrorist and was basically lynched .  I remember how in a previous terrorist attack a sephardic Jew was also killed when mistaken for a terrorist.

   And here comes the rub: quick reaction to terror is needed to prevent further casualties. Yet caution is needed to avoid mistakes.

   HOWEVER, the foreign worker who died yesterday was killed not just because of being shot, but due to the subsequent lynching.  ONCE A TERRORIST has been unarmed, there can be no excuse for a lynching. We are allowed to defend ourselves, but we should never descend to the level of our enemies.

The Simple Truth

   There is a lot of accusations flying around about the video showing the Arab youth bleeding while passer-by curse him.  First, let it be clear that the youth is alive.
   I saw the video, and yes it appears at first glance to be shocking. HOWEVER let us look at the simple truth:

Every culture has people who get excited and curse during conflict.Yes, there is someone cursing him. That someone is being kept away from the youth by the police.

  But the way our societies view these hotheads is VERY different:

    I would add that if a Jewish extremist were actively involved in a terror attack, and would not stop, he would also be shot by responding police or soldiers.

   And yes, the ambulance passed the Arab in the video. Does he really deserve to be treated BEFORE his victims?!???!???!  Eventually he was taken to the hospital, where he receives the same care as any Jewish patient. (Although he IS handcuffed, so that he can not carry out any further attempts to hurt others.)  [And he is in better condition than his victim..........]

SHAME on NBC!

   I saw a post on the NBC news site today. While I am used to a lot of slanted reporting, I must say that NBC outdid themselves.

Some samples:

1)
NBC:  "So far, 23 Palestinians and four Israelis have been killed. Around 20 Israelis and more than 500 Palestinians have been injured."

NO mention that the Israelis killed and injured were all hurt /killed as victims of terror attacks. Many were innocent civilians just minding their own business,  NO mentiion that almost all the Arabs killed and injured were hurt/killed while they were either committing a terror attack or engaged in VIOLENT demonstrations, doing acts which can be lethal to others.. 

2)
NBC: "On Thursday night a right-wing mob marched toward the Old City in East Jerusalem, many of them chanting "Death to Arabs" and with the stated intention of looking for Arabs to attack.

"They chant 'Death to Arabs' and nothing happens to them," says a Palestinian man from East Jerusalem who asked not to be named. "If I said 'Death to Jews' I would be killed."

REALLY?  The Arab clerics and media are full of incitement, urging arabs to kill Jews.  In the few cases were Jews attacked Arabs, they were stopped by other Israelis, and these acts were roundly condemned by Netanyahu, and the IDF. (Israeli army). 

3) The piece is full about Arabs being afraid to walk the streets. I guess we Jews are not afraid; we are used to to getting stabbed outside of the local shopping mall.


Note: since I wrote this, the article has been changed a bit.and is a bit more balanced. RE the  stabbing attack in Pisgat Zeevthe  13 year old victim is  barely hanging on to life. He was BIKING home, and on the way stabbed 25 times!

On Terror, Life, and Prudence

 Yesterday (Wednesday)  a terrorist stabbed a man at the bus stop (in Petach Tikva)next to a mall that I occasionally go to. Also buses in Jaffa got stoned (I travel by bus on that street to go to Rina's grave, and often I walk in Jaffa).  (And as I write this, I hear of another attack, noontime today (Thursday). A yeshiva student is stabbed in Jerusalem. I pray that it is not my grandson. Or a friend of his.  Or the son of a friend of mine.)

   While I always know in theory that terror can happen anywhere, and that no one is guaranteed immunity, the sheer number of attacks yesterday (and this week), along with the proximity of the attack in Petach Tikva, drove home the gut-wrenching realization of “There, but for the grace of G-d, goes I”.  Just two days before I had called my “ultra-Orthodox” son and daughter-in-law in Jerusalem, who do not listen to radio news, to be sure that they aware of the escalating violence and atmosphere.  Luckily, the word-of-mouth-news  network works quite well in their neighborhood, and they knew of the need to be extra vigilant when outside.

   Later on Wednesday, my husband informed me that I need to be more careful when out “walking”.  Knowing that any belittling of the danger would only increase his anxiety, I agreed with him. But, realistically, I thought to myself, I am much more likely to be hit by a SMS-messaging car driver than to be killed by a terrorist.

   Yet, despite the clear calculation just mentioned, I was much more alert on my walk to and from the swimming pool last night.  It was not a disabling fear, but an extra awareness of my surroundings.  “Why,” I wondered to myself, “am I apparently more afraid of the miniscule risk of terror, than the possibility of a car accident, or of having a heart attack in the pool, both of which are statistically much more likely to occur?”

   The answer, I believe, is that with accidents and health concerns, we feel that at least to a certain extent, that we can take precautions.  If we eat healthy, exercise regularly, don’t text-and-drive, and cross the street carefully, we have a fairly decent chance of reaching 80 or 90. With terror (whether in Israel or elsewhere) we are much less in control. Yes, there are things we can do as a country perhaps to decrease these incidents, but when a fanatical or deranged individual goes on the rampage,  only chance, or by G-d’s grace, are we not among  the victims. Realizing that vulnerability can be quite unsettling.

      Then today, a friend sent me this link:  This is a Ted-Talk about a dance group of “senior citizens” the “Hip Op-eration Crew”( and the philosophy behind it). The organizer was asked (seriously!) “What if one of them dies (ie. dancing, or on the plane)?”   And the response of the organizer (“Well, what if they did?”)was correct. After all, if we let fear of dying stop us from living, what worth is living then?

    Yes, as countries we need to work on security, mental health, and combat terrorism.

    But as individuals, in our private lives, the reaction can only be one:

MAKE TODAY COUNT. We don’t know-ever- how long we have to remain on this globe.   

[As religious believers, we can try and “curry favor” with G-d, by doing good deeds. These activities may perhaps affect things in a spiritual sphere. But we should not kid ourselves that those deeds will guarantee our safety. Sometimes G-d feels the best thing   for us is to experience suffering.]

The un-News

    Just out of curiosity, I went to NBC’s news page to see what they would write about the incident. Seeing nothing at all, I went to the “world” page. There it mentioned the Palestinian flag having flown at the UN, but the story I was looking for had not been mentioned.

    You can be SURE that if an Israeli soldier had killed two Palestinians at point-blank range, with no provocation, the news would have been explosive.

   But the fact that a young Jewish couple were gunned down and murdered in front of their 4 under-age ten children last night is not news.

   May their families be comforted. 

 Photo: The murdered couple, Eitam and Neama Henkin

Note and Update:
    I rechecked the NBC news page Saturday night (Israeli time). The video about the Palestinian flag at the UN is still up. The Henkins still don't matter it seems. And the  murder today of two Israelis (and the critical wounding of another, and the attack on a baby) are apparently not news either. Now I know some will say "Not every murder gets told on NBC." But as I said before, you can be SURE that if Israelis were randomly killing Arabs, it would definitely "make the grade".....
Further update: Is now on NBC site, and the headline is actually OK

G-d Save us From the Idiots

   Today I saw a lovely video on facebook (see HERE), of an Israeli hula-hoop artist, Tal Fransky . She is very extremely  talented.

    What got me riled up (enough to sit down at 10 AM to type this up) were the numerous people who felt it absolutely imperative to note in the comments that the performer was on the plus-size side.

   Tell me, do these idiots really believe that the other viewers could not see this? Did they imagine for a moment that the performer herself is not aware that she is overweight?!??? And of course, what the (*&^%^$#& does her weight have to do with her wonderfully talented performance?

    Do people who make comments like this REALLY think that by making these comments that they will increase the chances of ANYONE losing weight?

   Shaming people does not lead to weight loss. NO ONE who has lost a considerable amount of weight has done so due to self-hate.  Weight –loss comes when you love yourself enough to stop overeating. It comes when you can figure out what is causing you to over- eat (when you KNOW that it is not good for you, but you do it anyway…), and finding other ways to deal with those “triggers”.

       I was extremely overweight for most of my life. I knew I was, I wanted to change, but it took me MANY long years to figure out HOW to do it! But all those years, my mother, while letting me know that my weight was not healthy, did NOT bring it up constantly. (Although I confess to giving my overweight kids a nudge every once in a blue moon, I bite my tongue 95% of the time.) And she would certainly not have done this publically, for example in a store while buying clothing. [Thanks, Mom!]

    Just yesterday I saw a man who was our guest shaming his wife for her weight. I felt so terrible for the lady, and wondered if he really thought that this was the way to effect a change in her.  (I finally told him point blank why he was doing things wrongly. But I doubt that it will help.)

    And another point: As this video shows quite aptly, weight need not be an impediment to exercise. I weighed MUCH more than Ms. Fransky  when I started my weight-loss journey. I started with walks of 20-30 minutes. From there I gradually built up to an hour or more daily. When hiking in the Rocky mountains, I took TONS of photos, using those moments to catch my breath, and  hoping that  my mother would not notice HOW out of breath I was! (On that first trip, nearly EVERYONE on the trail said “Good for you!” as they passed me. I felt a bit like a circus elephant clambering up the trail.) SO if you are overweight, try and find some exercise that you enjoy, whether it is walking, swimming, hula hooping, biking, dancing......because you will be healthier and feel better for it (even if you don’t lose a gram!).

   And by the way, hula-hooping is great exercise. It is excellent to do when watching a movie, or inside on a broiling HOT or RAINY day.  All you need is a few meters of open space, and an adult-sized hoop. (It should reach to about your waist).  For example:

2 Funerals

    The street corner by our house was black, full for the second time in less than 24 hours, with men dressed in black  suits and hats, returning from a funeral.

    Yesterday evening of course, the crowds were much more massive. Rav (Rabbi) Vozner had died, and the Jewish world came to mourn his passing. Unfortunately, the funeral ended in tragedy when someone was trampled to death in the pushing and shoving. This was a mere two blocks from my house.  This afternoon the casualty was buried, and people apparently felt a need to say with their presence at HIS funeral that “This should never have happened.”

   I am sure that Rav Vozner would agree. Indeed, I am positive, as my son told me this story this morning:

   Several years ago, on the eve of the Passover holiday, my son went to watch Rav Vozner (and other Rabbis) drawing water to bake matzot with, at the city well near our house. Suddenly there was a lot of shoving as people strived to get closer for a better look. Rabbi Vozner stopped in his tracks, refusing to continue until the pushing stopped.

Unfortunately, he was not able, at his funeral, to protest the unruly behavior…..

The Doctor with the One Earing.....

Years ago, I was at the ear doctor with Ricki. A  rather eccentric fellow (he had a large earing in one ear) He had been highly recommended to me as the “really good ear doctor familiar with patients with Down syndrome”.  And indeed he was very nice , and explained things quite thoroughly… in short, very professional.

    Ricki was quite young at that time-about 5  years old, and had as-up-to-then-undiagnosed-ADHD in addition to her Down syndrome. And Mr. Ear doctor shared office space with his gynecologist wife. In short, while there Ricki managed, among other cute tricks, to spill some lubricating fluid in an open container next to the gynocologist’s exam table ALL OVER the carpet. I was embarrassed as could be, but the slightly  unconventional doctor waved his hand as if to say ”It’s OK”. I was still mortified.

   Leaving from his office I schlepped (that’s Yiddish for “dragged myself”-remember, I was still very overweight then) the three or four blocks to the main road, and then several additional streets to the bus stop I needed. (I must have turned the wrong way on the main road….). Then the bus took FOREVER to arrive. And all this time, Ricki had been acting absolutely atrociously. I was tired, and really in a black mood.

   Finally, on the bus, I sat down, and pulled out the letter the doctor had written. The first line was the diagnosis: “cute little girl with Down syndrome”

   That one line reminded me what she REALLY was (“cute”), and made the remainder of the day SO much better. I mentioned that to the doctor the next time I went and he was flabbergasted…. He had never dreamt that this one sentence would have such an impact on me.

  Often we do not realize the effects of our actions. Sometimes a small tiny action we do for someone else can have a much larger effect than we could ever imagine.  Those tiny little things we can do for others, in a moment, can have lasting effects. We have all heard of people who inspired others with a single act or a few words.

    Who has inspired YOU, or effected you, with a kind action, or a wise sentence? Please share !!!

Our Hidden Enemy: Perfectionism

     Very early on in my weight-loss journey, I realized that one of my biggest “triggers” to overeating was lack of sleep. And that the reason I didn’t get enough sleep was because I had to “manage” to do “everything”. I had to be perfect.  I tried to be perfect.

       It just didn’t work.

       And I have seen this tendency in many other women as well.

      Why in the world do we push ourselves past the point of what sanity would dictate?  And even if we can answer that question (which I was able to do after a LOT of thought and reflection), to relearn that feeling that I have to do it “all” is SO hard to beat! (Jewish sages say that it takes 70 years of work to undo a bad habit, and quite frankly, I don’t have seventy years! LOL).

    I think the key is:

1)      Practicing here and there NOT being perfect

2)      Positive affirmations when we are NOT able to do it all (Mine is: “G-d created you as an imperfect being. My task is to grow/progress, not to be perfect.”)

3)      Learning to love ourselves as we are

Are YOU a perfectionist? Can you share an affirmation that helps you?

 I WOULD HAVE LIKED to add in here a cute photo, but it is almost time for me to leave for swimming....... So you will get this  sans a picture; the post will be imperfect, and that is OK!

The Rio Tramway and Making a Plan!

    Jutting out of the Atlantic ocean waters in  Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, are several large granite-like pillars. By far the  most famous of them is “Sugarloaf mountain”. Rising 396 meters (1,299 ft) above Guanabara Bay, on a peninsula that sticks out into the Atlantic, Sugarloaf attracts some 2,500 visitors daily. From the top of this granite pillar one sees an impressive panoramic view of Rio de Janeiro.

[image: Panoramic view of Rio de Janeiro from Sugarloaf mountain.]

    When I went to Brazil in 2013, for a short one week visit, Sugarloaf was the first item on my list of things which I wanted to see. I knew that the tramway had existed in the50’s & 60’s; I remember seeing pictures of it when I was in grade school. However, I was surprised when I learned just how long ago the original tramway was built. In 1907, Brazilian engineer  Augusto Ferreira Ramos had the idea to build the cable car. The first section was finished in 1912, and the second stretch in early 1913. And how were the materials carried to the top? By hundreds of  workers climbing the rock face, dragging ropes,  which were then used to haul up heavier items. This  Sugarloaf cable car system was the first in Brazil and the third in the world, and it was longer than the previous two. It was truly a technological feat in its time.

[image: Two of my sons (who are so different yet so similar to each other), horsing around in one of the original tram cars.]

    Now can you imagine that Mr. Ramos built this structure without a plan? Surely not. He had a plan, and he carried it out.  Because without a plan, things just don’t get done!

[image: Mountain scene with the caption: "A goal without a plan is just a wish."]

    Often people who are not overweight look at people who are, and wonder why we don’t just decide to lose. What they do not realize is that deciding is not enough. We need a plan. A plan to deal with all those little things that get in the way of weight loss and maintenance.

    Once I had a friend who told me how TERRIBLE she was; the day before she had overeaten. She had rushed out to her job, forgetting to pack her nutritious lunch, and at 13:00 discovered that the only edibles around were some high calorie pastries, so that is what she had eaten. Then as an afterthought, she added: “Today I made SURE to pack my sandwich.”

    Her inner voice was telling her that she was terrible… and unsuccessful. But in actuality, she had run into a problem… and developed a plan to correct it. To me that is PROGRESS!

   Can you train your inner critic to note what you are doing RIGHT?

trip to Beit Guvrein

The area of Beit Guvrein, which is about halfway between Beit Shemesh and Hebron, is unique due to the many caves carved out by those living in the area. The limestone stone in the area has a hard upper crust (called "Naari"),. This harder stone gave support to allow the digging out of caves in the softer limestone beneath the Naari.

 The first several photos here are of a family burial cave , apparently of a Hellenized Edomite family. The original drawings had been vandalized, but luckily the first archaeologists there had made extensive drawings of the originals, and from those drawings these replicas were made.

The next photo is of a small columbarium (dove-house), located under a house, essentially a small family fertilizer business.

An oil press:

Entrance to a water cistern located beneath a house.: 

An enormous Columbarium:

The  most famous site in Beit Guvrein are the Bell Caves.  A small hole was made in the Naari sone above, and then the stone below was quarried out. These caves are from the late Byzantine/ Early Islamic periods.

The original entryway to the quarry:

Windy Day at the ocean

After the Holiday; A Letter to a Friend

You tell me that you “blew it” over Channukah!

1) First, I hope that you had a lovely holiday! If you had extra food, at least I hope that you enjoyed it, and that the whole day (week!) was GREAT!  I hope that your kids also enjoyed the holiday.  Holidays give us the break, the inspiration, and the happiness that helps us navigate life .Even if you overate, holidays are meant to be enjoyed.

2)   Learning HOW to navigate the holidays without destroying your eating/exercise program completely takes time. You are pretty new at this; hopefully you will be better on the next holiday, and better next Chanukah as well.

#3) I used to think that making a firm resolution to

"eat within reason" at holiday time would get me through "OK".IT WASN'T. I learned that I MUST track (even if just keeping a running tally mentally), EVEN IF OVEREATING. Being honest about HOW MUCH I was eating (even if deciding to allow myself some "extra" ) helps me stay within reason (or half reason)

4) Rather than moan about the fact that you went overboard, turn this around to a "learning experience". Evaluate:

a) Where did I go wrong? When? What were the biggest temptations, the biggest triggers? Who was I with? How was I feeling?

b) were there other factors involved? Did I get enough sleep? (THAT is probably pretty hard for a young mom like you!) Was I under stress due to ______

    Then after you evaluate , make a PLAN how to decrease the "other factors", and how to cope with the temptations. WRITE this plan in your calendar for the next holiday (Tu B’Svat? Purim?) .  [And turn to a middle page  of ELUL (last month of the Calendar) and write there: “Write in next year’s calendar my pre-Chanukah plan.”] After the next time evaluate HOW it went, and fine tune. Consider giving yourself some type of prize for success.

Here’s a personal example of how I did this as regards Passover:

2011:

The First Step in the “twelve steps” is admitting that we are out of control.

Before Passover, knowing full well the family “custom” to (over)eat chocolate during the pre-Pesach (pre-Passover) days and during the holiday itself, I bought several bars of the finest Swiss type with trepidation. I knew that these bars of “instant energy” were a potential diet bombshell, especially as I was running at that time on about 4 hours of sleep nightly.

The question was, why should I buy at all?

Well, Orthodox Jews take seriously the command not to eat leaven over the holiday (unfortunately the command to guard one’s health seems less critical at this juncture), and the types of food available with a really good kosher certification (for Passover) are somewhat limited. (Especially for those who also do not consume legumes over the week.) I wanted to have good treats to give the grandchildren, and my husband might very well see non-purchase of an essential like chocolate to be grounds (almost) for divorce…..

So I ate some before Passover, and although I was eating much less than once, it was surely enough to cause a dent in my plans not to gain over the month. I realized that sleep-deprivation and stress were factors in play, and consoled myself that once the holiday entered, these factors would fall by the wayside, and I would be able to get my eating under control. After all, salads and vegetable soups are great Passover foods, not just matzah with butter.

So the holiday has started, I have returned to having time for aerobic walking, and I discovered to my horror, that my consumption of fattening foods has stayed out of control.

Finally last night I admitted to myself step number one: I am powerless over the Swiss bars. So I passed them on to someone else to distribute to the grandchildren.

This does not mean that I am perfectly in control already. The lack of many of my regular diet “substitutions” has still made dieting this week very difficult, but I am beginning to get a semblance of normal intake.

2012:

For those readers uninitiated to Pesach (Passover) cleaning, the words “spring cleaning” is a mere whiff of what I do before Passover. We are enjoined not to eat, own, or use “chometz” (leavened products) during Passover. And while there are easier ways to clean for the holiday, basically one needs to rid the house of every crumb of bread/cake/etc. And after that, the kitchen counters, stove, etc need to be covered before being used for the preparation of scrumptuous holiday repasts…. So Passover cleaning tends to be a LOT of work. And as much as I try and plan ahead, and to work by a schedule, I invariably fall behind, have less time for walking, and get too little sleep. The usual outcome for me is overeating and weight gain.

    Wednesday (ALL day) and Thursday morning I cleaned my kitchen for Passover. For the last few years I have “done” the kitchen before the living room, where we continue to eat non-Passover foods. I prefer to do the heavier work at least a week before the holiday, so as not to arrive to the holiday “seder table” exhausted. In former years I have used “cleaning the kitchen” as an excuse to consume “instant energy”, in the form of fine Swiss chocolate. Even last year, well down the “diet road”, I succumbed to temptation (albeit much less than in previous years), and this year I hoped to do much better. The chocolate I had purchased for holiday baking use I placed along with other groceries for the holiday in sealed boxes. And for several days, even though I was VERY hungry (blame habit and lack of sleep), I was doing GREAT. Then, when emptying out some of the closets in the kitchen on Monday afternoon, I found a stashed-away half bar of chocolate. And as the evening progressed, I slowly and surely polished off the entire 90 grams of creamy smoothness…. Having given in to temptation once, on the marrow I was craving chocolate with my whole soul. But, determined not to gain too much over the holiday season, I decided to allow myself on Tuesday a few high calorie items, but not chocolate. Then on Wednesday, I allowed myself extra calories, but not sweet items. The idea was to allow myself a bit of leeway, but to progress back gradually to a normal eating plan. Now why did I do this? BECAUSE WHEN I FOUND MYSELF NOT FOLLOWING MY EATING PLAN, I TOOK NOTE, AND ANALYZED THE SITUATION, AND DEVELOPED A PLAN FOR ACTION. If we want to redeem ourselves from our bad habits, we need to Think and PLAN. The redemption for Egypt was quick, and given as a gift. Redemption from our evil inclination is not going to be that easy.

2013:

After cleaning our house, we need to store away our regular dishes, cover all counter tops, and get out the Passover dishes. And while doing this, we need to feed our families without the benefit of kitchen facilities. (For example, imagine making a salad where to rinse each vegetable you need to run to the other side of the house to a water source.) And if you are overworked and tired, the temptation to reach into a cupboard for some luscious Passover chocolate (read "easy instant energy fix") can be pretty great. Then, you start cooking holiday meals, hopefully festive ones, which generally are NOT that low in calories. So it is no surprise that each year I gain over Passover, and I am skeptical of my ability to withstand the temptations that are impending.

   And, as I indicated in the previous post, wishful thinking about "doing better this year" is just not enough. If I want to emerge on the other side of March without a gain, I need to take some concrete action. Here's my plan:

1)      I will buy the chocolate for cooking (and the grandkids) ONLY after the kitchen is ready for Passover and fully functional. When I am able to cook up a pot of vegetable soup, the lure of the sweet "fix" should be more manageable. Yes, it will cost more in the local grocery than the supermarket, but that's OK. (And if my husband insists on having the tan temptation, he will have to buy and hide for himself.)

2)      Plan menus which are easier and less time consuming for the holiday. There is no need to cook gourmet that leftovers are "a pity" to dispose of. There are lots of pretty, healthy, and easy menus out there.

3)      Work on getting at least 6 hours of sleep a night. Even if that means less spring cleaning and less time online.

4)      Try to maintain a minimum of "walking" (exercise) time (even if only half an hour). I know that walking not only keeps my metabolism going, but it decreases my appetite, and busts away stress.

  And then, for the holiday of redemption, I hope to celebrate redemption from my former bad eating habits.

2014:

   I bought the fancy chocolate only at the last minute.

I had a six week plan before the holiday, where I recorded exercise (TNT at least once a week, aerobic at least half an hour 5X weekly, staying on trackcalorie wise, and tracking sleep

I had a prize for myself (EXPENSIVE jewelry) that I would  only wear on the holiday if I kept in line (90% or better) with my plan.

This plan worked. I gained a smidgen over the holiday, but in general I was OK. I can live with that smidgen, I think it was pretty darn good!

2015:  (YES! I am already planning how to get through Passover in one piece this year!)

I have already bought my prize for “plan compliance” for this year’s Passover holiday! (It’s GORGEOUS! My best friend doesn’t know HOW I can resist wearing it NOW. I explained that my fear of going back to being fat overrides everything else! And I KNOW that I need a prize that I REALLY want!

The “Shawl” Girls

Preface:

     In the Orthodox Jewish community there is a dress code.  Women are expected to dress within certain standards of modesty, specifically long sleeves, skirts below the knees, and if married, some type of hair covering (scarf, wig).   Now there are variations in what is considered “best” or appropriate, but there is certainly a certain amount of leave way to find your own style within the bounds of modest dress.

    Now some small groups have taken upon themselves extra strictures, dressing in loose capes and almost always black.  [There is a cult-like group that dresses almost like the “Taliban”, I am not talking about them.] And even if one does not agree with this type of dress (especially when people dress their little girls this way), I suspect that their intentions are generally very good. Most of the women wearing these shawls are normal women trying to be extra modest. [I admit that when I personally see little girls dressed like this, I feel that this is really taking things to“overkill”.]

And finally, after that intro, here is the blog:

    I begin by recounting my “sin” of yesterday: After a lovely healthy breakfast, I went to the health-fund to take care of some paper work.   And on exiting the building I suddenly had a good desire for a butterscotch Hanukah doughnut. Now I allow myself a doughnut each year on Hanukah, but I had HAD one small one already, at the family get-together last week.  But each year I buy myself a butterscotch doughnut, and I decided that yes I would buy one. However, there is a condition to this purchase: The day I treat myself to the doughnut, I have to go on a LONG walk, to walk off the extra calories. And at about 400 calories in a doughnut “bomb”, that means a LONG walk.

        Now I had already been planning to take a walk… and even to grab a new geocache in our area on the way. And then, at noon, when I looked at the geocaching site I noticed that there were even a few MORE new caches. PERFECT! If I would walk to all of them, the extraneous calories would be taken care of. So I set out. 

       The first two caches were in an area that while not too close to my house, at about 30-40 minutes away, they were certainly not too far . The other two were on the other side of the national park in Ramat Gan, which is itself about an hours walk away. However, being at the first two caches, I was already most of the way there.  So I crossed the big highway and set out for the third and fourth caches.

    Then I saw them: three young girls, dressed in shawls, the oldest being about ten years old.  They were obviously headed back to my town from the national park. I was shocked to the core. There were no adults with them.

    WHAT IN THE WORLD IS WRONG WITH THESE PARENTS? You are worried about modesty and you let your little girls out alone?!!? You let your little ones be supervised by a ten year old?

       About ten minutes later, I regretted not having turned around and escorting (or following) them home.   -To see that they would arrive safely, and to give the mother an education about how dangerous this is. Also I realized later, that maybe the ten year old had done this “outing” on her own, and the mother would be more than pleased to hear where her little darlings had disappeared to.

PARENTS: The period children have vacation from school is not a vacation for you. Kids need to be entertained. And not by their ten year old sibling. Keep them busy. And keep them safe

The 32 Colored Yogurts

    The middle-aged lady next to me in the grocery was dressed in a typical housedress. She plunked three packages of colored fruit yogurts onto the counter, and asked the owner “Don’t you have more of this flavor tucked away somewhere?”

   “Aren’t there any more in the fridge?”

   “No….”

    “Well, then, that’s what we have. Why not buy another flavor for the rest?”    

     She shook her head, and I understood perfectly.

    “ You have to understand,” I chipped in, “She’s got a slew of grandkids coming for Hanukkah, and she HAS to buy the same flavor for all, or there will be squabbling over who gets which flavor.”

     The lady nodded in agreement, adding, “So I’ll just have to get the rest somewhere else….” 

Finally, some photos from My Last Trip

Two weeks ago I took a trip to the Maaleh Adumim area.  Located between Jerusalem and Jericho, it has its name ("Red Assents") because in the downward trip from Jerusalem to Jericho and the Dead Sea, it is the only ascent, and a lot of the stones in the area are reddish.
    Also located in this area is a museum of Mosaics, all from the area, mostly from the Byzantine period.
    So here are a few photos:

[image:an intermittent spring  in the Judean desert, Wadi Kelt.]

[image: Canyon walls at Wadi Kelt.]

[image: Me at Wadi Kelt.]

[image: view of the Maaleh Adumim area, from inside ruins of a small fort.]

[image: Windows, Byzantine period.]

[image: small part of Mosaic synagogue floor, from Gaza, Byzantine period.]

Jewerly: First Try

A few years ago I bought several jewelry-making supplies but never (except for fixing some broken pieces) used them. When I mentioned this to Mom during my last visit she told me that DAD had also bought a lot of stuff for jewelry. I looked through it and took some of the stuff. (That REALLY weighed down the suitcase on the way home; I BETTER use the stuff!!)  Tonight I decided to try and make a bracelet to match an outfit I have. The beads are from Dad's supplies, the stones and glass from mine. But I think I need to take a good course......maybe after Passover. But not too bad for a first try.

[image: bracelet of beige and rust-colored beads and stones]

Showing Their True Faces

    The Arabs have all sorts of excuses for killing/maiming Jews. They are “settlers”, “soldiers”, or “people profaning the Temple Mount”. Another excuse is that they were “enraged” after some type of provocation. This morning they showed their true face.

    For those of you who do not live in Israel, let me describe to you where this morning’s terrorist attack took place. Har Nof is a quiet residential neighborhood, NOT in east Jerusalem. The population there is “chareidi”, which means that the occupation of a large percentage of the men is to study G-d’s law.  This is not a community of “settlers” or “soldiers”. [NOT THAT I CONDONE THE KILLING OF SETTLERS AND SOLDIERS; MURDER IS MURDER. I AM JUST MAKING A POINT HERE.]

[image: a street in Har Nof]

     In addition, the terrorists knew what hour to come to the synagogue, and they came well armed. This was not a spontaneous “in the heat of the moment” attack. It was planned in advance, as the Jewish leaders were trying their best to return quiet and calm to the area.

    These terrorists entered a house of prayer, attacking unarmed people. People who were praying, amongst other things, for peace.

    It is time for the western countries, and the media to wake up and realize that as long as the Arab population continues to incite terror, and educate their children to terror, there will be no end to this. People often dream that if we only give a bit more, peace will materialize. They do not understand that the mentality of our foes is not a Western mindset. They should stop believing the lies, and realize that just as the Arabs have escalated their attacks from the “territories” to a quiet neighborhood in central Jerusalem….. the rest of the world is not immune.

Update: In addition to the four worshipers who died in the attack, the Druse policeman who was the first to arrive on the scene has died. May his family be comforted. 

Haveil Havalim, The Chaye Sarah Edition

A blog carnival is a round-up of blog posts, sort of an internet magazine.  Haveil Havalim is the most veteran of the Jewish blogger carnivals and probably one of the longest running blog carnivals there is

Haveil Havalim, the international Jewish blog carnival, was established by Soccer Dad,

and was then run by Jack.

Now it is run via the HH facebook page. Anyone interested in contributing to Haveil Havavalim should join the group.

[The term “Haveil Havalim” is from Kohelet, Ecclesiastes, which was written by King Solomon. It means “Vanity of Vanities”.]

    I have always been hesitant about hosting “Haveil Havalim”, as I may be asked to give publicity to blogs which I disagree with. Please note that  I DO NOT NECESSARILY AGREE WITH ALL THE BLOGS PRESENTED  HERE!

   [By the way, simple gratitude means that if  posts of yours are included here,you should try and visit several of the blogs listed here (at LEAST 2- posts).  And try to leave a note that you came by way of Haveil Havalim.]

So here goes:

Torah Thoughts:

   Ben-Tzion,  of ben-tzion.com, talks about the main topic of this week’s Parsha (Torah reading), Match-making, in “AfternoonMatchmaking”

Politics / Terror  

The ever-prolific Batya  (has “ever prolific” become your middle name, Batya??) of Shiloh Musings

     and Me-ander is an avid political/security commentator and she gives us a post, with some interesting pictures added, about the security situation on the Temple Mount, written by Batya

Another  post, also from Shiloh Musings, is about the attack at Kafr Kanna.

Dalia Lemkos, h"yd

   Ester, of It’s All From HaShem , gives us a post about the murder of Dalia Lemkos h”yd,  but even more, about our response to living under the shadow of terror.

Romi Sussman  (of Sussmans b'Aretz), also shares her reactions after Dalia’s death,  poignantly sharing in Talking about Terror, Tefillin and More about the effort to raise healthy children in a world touched by terror.

Life In Israel

Ruti Mizrachi , in her blog Never Ruthless, gives us a cute post, There's a girl messing with my little boy's head, which I can easily identify with. It is on the interesting things that happen to our grown children (and ourselves!) when those sons become parents.

        Batya gives us an account of how several people contributed to a deed of kindness, in “That Chessed חסד Kindness MitzvahBonus”

      She also gives us a glimpse of what her transportation difficulties and solutions are in Travel,Tremping and Public Transportation, a "Typical" Day.

Tzivia, of ALIYAHLAND, tells us of  an unexpected urban oasis in the middle of Haifa,
............ and also talks about naming Jewish babies!

   Rickismom (that’s me) writes about how dieting need not be a prison, in “Dancing and Diet”.

    And to end on a definitely light note,  any beer lovers here should enjoy Doug Greener’s ( Israel Brews and Views)  tale of his experience with a  Porter BeerTasting Panel   

That’s it for this edition!

    Heidi Estrin of the Association of Jewish Libraries asked me to include the link to this, the guidelines for submittingto the Jewish Book Carnival.

Next week’s Haveil Havalim will be presented by the ever-dependable Batya of ShilohMusings.