December 4, 2013
Killed it Dead
Two boys were quarreling about whose father was the stronger.
First boy: "Well, you know the Atlantic Ocean? My father's the one who dug the hole for it."
Second boy: "Ah, that's nothing. You know the Dead Sea? My father's the one who killed it."
Lisa Robbins -- Massachusetts
November 13, 2013
Have you read?
I have--had, red, reed, ridded, has been ridding.
See, not to hard to conjugate verbs in English.
But some people seem to have difficulty.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3U22rkkWsk&feature=youtu.be
See, not to hard to conjugate verbs in English.
But some people seem to have difficulty.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3U22rkkWsk&feature=youtu.be
November 7, 2013
Coffee Pots
The coffee tasted a little off one day. After a couple sips I realized that I had left the coffee-cleaner solution in the pot and made coffee with it. Al drank a whole cup of it!
No after-effects were noticed.
No after-effects were noticed.
Cook
Today I got hit with an urge to cook something different.
I frequently see interesting recipes I would like to try if I had the patience, but I don't, so I don't. So this time I looked soup recipes and ended making the simplest soup without following a recipe--tomato paste, water, green peppers, onions, salt--warmed it up and ate it while the vegetables were still crunchy. Nothing exciting, but it would be a good warmer-upper on a winter day.
Then I made some pancakes, again no recipe -- white flour, rice flour, egg, oil, water, lots of thyme, a speck of paprika, salt, baking soda. Not bad I guess.
I frequently see interesting recipes I would like to try if I had the patience, but I don't, so I don't. So this time I looked soup recipes and ended making the simplest soup without following a recipe--tomato paste, water, green peppers, onions, salt--warmed it up and ate it while the vegetables were still crunchy. Nothing exciting, but it would be a good warmer-upper on a winter day.
Then I made some pancakes, again no recipe -- white flour, rice flour, egg, oil, water, lots of thyme, a speck of paprika, salt, baking soda. Not bad I guess.
November 5, 2013
Romanian
I love everything Romanian. After listening to a little Romanian gospel music, I'm starting to revive.
The past few weeks have been very depressing, due to my foot condition getting suddenly much worse. I tried to drown out depression by burying myself in studying Greek. It worked for a while. But at the back of my mind has been the feeling that I really need to do something else. I wish someone would hit me on the head and make me stop studying Greek and do something more useful. Like maybe sew or write some music -- which means I have to face reality, both the good and the bad. The bad is trying to drown me, but really it's a matter of perspective, and soon I hope I'll regain the right perspective.
So I checked a link to some Romanian music someone sent me, and immediately started getting ideas for tunes. I resisted most of them, because I really am too disorganized at present to do it right, but that's the direction I'm headed, anyway.
Ioan 3:30 Trebuie ca El să crească, iar eu să mă micşorez.
He must increase, but I must decrease.
Iona 1:14 ...Căci, Tu, Doamne, faci ce vrei!
...Thou, O LORD, hast done as it please thee.
The past few weeks have been very depressing, due to my foot condition getting suddenly much worse. I tried to drown out depression by burying myself in studying Greek. It worked for a while. But at the back of my mind has been the feeling that I really need to do something else. I wish someone would hit me on the head and make me stop studying Greek and do something more useful. Like maybe sew or write some music -- which means I have to face reality, both the good and the bad. The bad is trying to drown me, but really it's a matter of perspective, and soon I hope I'll regain the right perspective.
So I checked a link to some Romanian music someone sent me, and immediately started getting ideas for tunes. I resisted most of them, because I really am too disorganized at present to do it right, but that's the direction I'm headed, anyway.
Ioan 3:30 Trebuie ca El să crească, iar eu să mă micşorez.
He must increase, but I must decrease.
Iona 1:14 ...Căci, Tu, Doamne, faci ce vrei!
...Thou, O LORD, hast done as it please thee.
Depression
How do you fight depression? There are many tips you can probably find somewhere but here are some of mine. First of all, don't try to be logical. There's already something messed up with your logic, so it isn't going to work. Instead, do something stupid or creative.
One way I get by is by writing stupid poetry. I mean as stupid as I can think of. I could probably win a prize for stupid poetry. Here comes one right now.
Conversation:
Me: I am a bird but birds don't like me.
Him: "I'm a real bird, and humans affright me."
Me: I'm not a human, I'm flying, see?
Him: "You're not! and it looks like you're grounded to me."
Me: But you don't understand, no one ever does.
Him: "You don't have feathers, just a little head-fuzz."
Me: But I have wings and I'm way up high.
Him: "Then the world's upside down and the grass is the sky."
Me: I'm going someplace, I'm free, I'm wild!
Him: "Tch, tch! My poor little, poor little child!"
One way I get by is by writing stupid poetry. I mean as stupid as I can think of. I could probably win a prize for stupid poetry. Here comes one right now.
Conversation:
Me: I am a bird but birds don't like me.
Him: "I'm a real bird, and humans affright me."
Me: I'm not a human, I'm flying, see?
Him: "You're not! and it looks like you're grounded to me."
Me: But you don't understand, no one ever does.
Him: "You don't have feathers, just a little head-fuzz."
Me: But I have wings and I'm way up high.
Him: "Then the world's upside down and the grass is the sky."
Me: I'm going someplace, I'm free, I'm wild!
Him: "Tch, tch! My poor little, poor little child!"
Marigolds. And Petunias.
I feel like writing about marigolds today.
Everybody knows what marigolds are. They come in large medium and small, yeah i know i left out a comma, and in various red orange yellow and gold. S. One year I planted a nice patch of small orange ones in the garden next to the beets. When they were in full bloom, our black cat would stroll through them, (do you prefer semi-colons?) and the black-orange-green made a pretty sight.
There is another kind of marigold that I once planted. They were weaker, delicate plants and had single flowers, about 1/4" across, and lots of lacy green leaves between the flowers. I like the idea of nice greenery in between flowers, rather than the exaggerated blossoms of recent creation that don't leave any room for leaves.
Speaking of exaggerated, it's crazy what they have done to petunias (let's don't get into those monstrous deformed tulips!). In the beginning they (the petunias) came in limited colors and grew on trailing weedy plants. Then they started making them with deeper colors and more compact plants. Then they had to recover the trailing-ness, without losing the concentration of fat bright flowers.
But if you start with the original old-fashioned petunias, and care for them right, they do quite well. I had one super-petunia plant one time and without a comma I'll tell you how I made it super. I started with one small plant, with light lavendar blossoms (as I found out later, since it wasn't blooming at the time), and planted it early in the spring in rich but heavy clay soil. Maybe without the comma I should say "rich-but-heavy". Or maybe it was "heavy-but-rich." As it grew, I pinched it off every so often, and I mean I really pinched it--not just an inch or two here and there, but a foot at a time. The more I pinched it, [important comma] the more it grew. I ended up with a mound of flowers 6 feet in
diameter! comma or something, with loads of flowers and just the right amount of greenery in between.
I really miss growing things, bad place for a comma, not meaning things that grow, but the activity of trying to get them to grow--and sometimes succeeding. I really miss Indiana--Comma, dot dot dot.
Everybody knows what marigolds are. They come in large medium and small, yeah i know i left out a comma, and in various red orange yellow and gold. S. One year I planted a nice patch of small orange ones in the garden next to the beets. When they were in full bloom, our black cat would stroll through them, (do you prefer semi-colons?) and the black-orange-green made a pretty sight.
There is another kind of marigold that I once planted. They were weaker, delicate plants and had single flowers, about 1/4" across, and lots of lacy green leaves between the flowers. I like the idea of nice greenery in between flowers, rather than the exaggerated blossoms of recent creation that don't leave any room for leaves.
Speaking of exaggerated, it's crazy what they have done to petunias (let's don't get into those monstrous deformed tulips!). In the beginning they (the petunias) came in limited colors and grew on trailing weedy plants. Then they started making them with deeper colors and more compact plants. Then they had to recover the trailing-ness, without losing the concentration of fat bright flowers.
But if you start with the original old-fashioned petunias, and care for them right, they do quite well. I had one super-petunia plant one time and without a comma I'll tell you how I made it super. I started with one small plant, with light lavendar blossoms (as I found out later, since it wasn't blooming at the time), and planted it early in the spring in rich but heavy clay soil. Maybe without the comma I should say "rich-but-heavy". Or maybe it was "heavy-but-rich." As it grew, I pinched it off every so often, and I mean I really pinched it--not just an inch or two here and there, but a foot at a time. The more I pinched it, [important comma] the more it grew. I ended up with a mound of flowers 6 feet in
diameter! comma or something, with loads of flowers and just the right amount of greenery in between.
I really miss growing things, bad place for a comma, not meaning things that grow, but the activity of trying to get them to grow--and sometimes succeeding. I really miss Indiana--Comma, dot dot dot.
Hummingbirds
I feel like writing about hummingbirds today.
There are hummingbirds--or at least some kind of sapsuckers--here in Israel, but they don't hum. They can hover over a flower to suck nectar, but I don't know if they can fly backwards. They are pretty little birds, black with iridescent shoulders and long curved beaks, and you often see them on the red flowers of bottle-brush trees.
The kind I am used to, however, is the ruby-throated hummingbird. It is green with a ruby throat that looks red only if you see it at the right angle, and disappears when you look from another angle. They fly in any direction, and sometimes do a little dance that's as if they're on a swing.
Hummingbirds are almost like large bumblebees, both because of their size and because of the buzzing noise their wings make. Once I thought I heard the distant sound of a chain saw in the woods behind us, and then realized it was a hummingbird right near my head!
We kept hummingbird feeders on our porch, and you could get a pretty close-up view of them when they came to feed. One feeder had red plastic flowers on it, and the other had yellow plastic flowers. The hummingbirds definitely preferred the yellow ones.
Once I had a hummingbird follow me while I was carrying a tray of petunias I was getting ready to plant. Another time one hovered right in front of my face, perhaps attracted by the glint of my glasses. They like all kinds of flowers, including daylilies and beebalm. I don't imagine they like marigolds.
There are hummingbirds--or at least some kind of sapsuckers--here in Israel, but they don't hum. They can hover over a flower to suck nectar, but I don't know if they can fly backwards. They are pretty little birds, black with iridescent shoulders and long curved beaks, and you often see them on the red flowers of bottle-brush trees.
The kind I am used to, however, is the ruby-throated hummingbird. It is green with a ruby throat that looks red only if you see it at the right angle, and disappears when you look from another angle. They fly in any direction, and sometimes do a little dance that's as if they're on a swing.
Hummingbirds are almost like large bumblebees, both because of their size and because of the buzzing noise their wings make. Once I thought I heard the distant sound of a chain saw in the woods behind us, and then realized it was a hummingbird right near my head!
We kept hummingbird feeders on our porch, and you could get a pretty close-up view of them when they came to feed. One feeder had red plastic flowers on it, and the other had yellow plastic flowers. The hummingbirds definitely preferred the yellow ones.
Once I had a hummingbird follow me while I was carrying a tray of petunias I was getting ready to plant. Another time one hovered right in front of my face, perhaps attracted by the glint of my glasses. They like all kinds of flowers, including daylilies and beebalm. I don't imagine they like marigolds.
August 30, 2013
Cypress Tree
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Most cypress trees aren't much to look at, but this one has interesting colors in its peeling bark.
August 28, 2013
Psalm 80
Here's a good recording of Psalm 80 in Romanian.
When they go up high at about 1:40 and others is when they're singing "Turn us again, oh God, cause thy face to shine, and we will be saved."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpPSdmZBZE4
When they go up high at about 1:40 and others is when they're singing "Turn us again, oh God, cause thy face to shine, and we will be saved."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpPSdmZBZE4
Psalm 91
Here is an amateur singer singing Psalm 91 in Romanian. As far as I can tell, the words are fairly close to the original. It's a wonderful Psalm, and it sounds wonderful in Romanian, too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMAUcYKSOSk
I found and downloaded a book from the internet that happened to contain the music and words to it, along with some man-made hymns.
After considerable research, I also found a book of all the psalms with tunes, which I would like to buy if I can figure out how to get the website to work. I can pay for it in either lei or ron, whatever those are.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMAUcYKSOSk
I found and downloaded a book from the internet that happened to contain the music and words to it, along with some man-made hymns.
After considerable research, I also found a book of all the psalms with tunes, which I would like to buy if I can figure out how to get the website to work. I can pay for it in either lei or ron, whatever those are.
August 27, 2013
Unbelievable
There are so many ways to get a headache. Eat wrong, sleep wrong, exercise too little--or too much on a hot day, read too much or in bad light, cry too much, wear earphones too long, and now I've got another one--comb your hair the wrong way. After two hours I guess I need some aspirin.
Is As Pi Rip Sin Sip Sir Sap Rain Air Pin Snip Sprain Raisin Spin Spar Rap Asp Spa Pain -- That's what you can get out of the word "aspirin."
Only here they call it Acamol -- Am Cola Coal Clam Alamo Cam
Is As Pi Rip Sin Sip Sir Sap Rain Air Pin Snip Sprain Raisin Spin Spar Rap Asp Spa Pain -- That's what you can get out of the word "aspirin."
Only here they call it Acamol -- Am Cola Coal Clam Alamo Cam
Psalm 61
A beautiful and moving version of Psalm 61 in Romanian. I wish I could write beautiful songs like this. Someday, maybe I'll even go to Romania and get a blessing.
Note: women wearing head-coverings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzrp5UgRJYw
Note: women wearing head-coverings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzrp5UgRJYw
August 26, 2013
Psalms In Romanian
This is all of Psalm 116 in Romanian.
http://www.tezaur-oasteadomnului.ro/index.php/cantari-tezaur/corul-fratilor-ostasi/368-psalmul-116
http://www.tezaur-oasteadomnului.ro/index.php/cantari-tezaur/corul-fratilor-ostasi/368-psalmul-116
August 14, 2013
Don't Hesitate
On the plains of hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions who, at the dawn of victory, sat down to wait, and waiting died.
George W. Cecil
Or, as my father would say it, "He who hesitates is lost."
On the other hand, "He who hesitates...may be right."
August 9, 2013
Rollin'
I get a few stares when I ride my scooter, usually from little kids, who like the neat colors, and don't know or care that scooters aren't usually ridden by grandmas. Older people are too polite too stare--usually. A funny guy was very obviously staring at me the other day, and when I rode by he asked, "How old are you? Seventy? Eighty?" I said, "No, sixty, and why not?"
I'm actually getting some enjoyable exercise. It's even a little bit addicting. I see a hill and I want to go down it. Of course I also have to get back up the hill, but let's worry about that later.
I'm actually getting some enjoyable exercise. It's even a little bit addicting. I see a hill and I want to go down it. Of course I also have to get back up the hill, but let's worry about that later.
August 2, 2013
Do you like color?
This is not typical, by any means--but there are a few people who know how to make something beautiful.
And these hollyhocks know how to be beautiful without any help from anyone.
And these hollyhocks know how to be beautiful without any help from anyone.
Maale Adumim
Back in July we had a barbecue.
This dog wanted to attend.
Pictures taken in or near Maale Adumim:
July 22, 2013
Scooter
This is the part of the year that I like best. It's hot, but usually not too hot. It cools off in the evening. I drink iced tea without the ice, and no sugar either, and it's actually sort of refreshing. I don't feel guilty if I move a little slow.
But now I can move a little faster -- with wheels!
My new scooter:
I can coast downhill to the store and walk/scoot back. Or I can walk uphill to another store and coast back down. I can't believe how much time and energy it saves. It'll be even more fun after I build up a little strength.
Walking to the store and back on a hot day deserves an ice cream bar. Scootering doesn't. I haven't tried a cola-flavored popsicle yet. Must be time for a walk.
July 19, 2013
Survey
If you go through Israel and ask random Israeli's what they believe, you will get a wide variety of answers. Some are religious, and that includes a wide range of religiosity. Some are secular but still keep traditional holidays. Some are Messianic, and that includes a wide range of truth and error, and is likely a mixture of Christianity and Judaism. A few are Christian, which includes Roman Catholic and different degrees of Arminians. Besides that there are JW's and LDS and Adventists. Some say Jesus is Messiah but not divine, or divine but not the Son of David. Then there are Buddhists, atheists, etc. etc. etc.
Why does an atheistic Jew fast on Yom Kippur? "Just in case." Ask people that don't believe in heaven and hell, "If there is a heaven and hell, where will you end up? "Gehinnom." Are we all sinners? Do we need an atonement? "Yes." How will we get this atonement? "I don't know." Do we need God's mercy? "God shows mercy on whom he will. But we can earn mercy by acts of repentance." [Earn mercy?]
It would be interesting to carry out the same sort of survey in the U.S. and see what you get. Many people who call themselves Christians don't go to church, and don't seem any different from non-Christians--they get drunk, they get divorced, they crave more fun and more money, they live for this world alone.
Can we find the answers to these things, or do we just say, "Everything will be right when Messiah comes?" What if he comes in anger and judgment, slaying his enemies with the breath of his mouth? What if we die before he comes? If he is going to slay his enemies, don't we need to make sure we are his friends? How can we be his friends? Keep the commandments? How can we keep the commandments? How well do we have to do? 51%? 90%? Or is the justice of God absolute? Does the Bible--the Torah, Writings, Prophets, New Testament--give us any clues? Would it do any good to read it?
July 15, 2013
Nice Big Boom
During the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast from food and drink during daylight hours. Religious Muslims take it seriously, and nominal Muslims suddenly become religious. If you are in the center of the city you will hear a loud cannon blast at the end of every day's fast. It's a pretty impressive sound. They have an actual cannon at the site, but what they fire is actually some sort of sound bomb from a black box with steel tubes.
July 12, 2013
Murphy
One important fact about Murphy's Law was that it was not actually coined by Murphy, but by another man of the same name.
Seamstress Law
As ye sew, so shall ye rip. (And that's quite a problem now that I've lost both my rippers.)
What happens when Donald Duck flies upside down? He quacks up.
Toddler Laws
If I like it, it is mine;
if I think it is mine, it is;
if I saw it first, it's mine;
if I had it then put it down, it is still mine;
if you had it and then put it down, it is now mine.
A workaholic should have two wives--then he will neglect each one only half as much.
Work smarder, not harder (and watch your speling). -- I have a bottle of cleaner that says on it "More Fider Power!"
If you are not thoroughly confused, you have not been thoroughly informed.
July 11, 2013
Two wrongs don't make a right
Two wrongs don't make a right; three lefts do.
Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.
Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.
I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me.
Hospitality is making your guests feel like they're at home, even if you wish they were.
Two thirds of Americans can't do fractions. The other half, just don't care.
The sooner you fall behind the more time you'll have to catch up.
I'm supposed to respect my elders, but it's getting harder and harder to find one.
July 8, 2013
Gloomy and Weird
Somewhere between Cheery and Natural and Gloomy and Weird is probably where we'll end up. But there isn't really much time to worry about it. What happens, happens. Cheery and Natural hasn't called back with anything definite.
It was hot today and now that the sun is down I'm looking forward to a walk in the cool air. Then maybe I'll cook some apples.
A sewing project has been staring me in the face for several days. Sometimes I get this sick feeling like it's not going to work. Yet, bit by bit, it's looking better. If nothing goes terribly wrong, it should be acceptable when it's finished. At least the colors are good, and maybe no one will notice that I can't sew a straight line.
It was hot today and now that the sun is down I'm looking forward to a walk in the cool air. Then maybe I'll cook some apples.
A sewing project has been staring me in the face for several days. Sometimes I get this sick feeling like it's not going to work. Yet, bit by bit, it's looking better. If nothing goes terribly wrong, it should be acceptable when it's finished. At least the colors are good, and maybe no one will notice that I can't sew a straight line.
July 6, 2013
Tunnels and Caves
There's no shortage of apartments to look at. But there's a major shortage of all the things I want. Space, beauty, low price, right location, a bathtub, light, not too many stairs.
We looked at a decent-sized place shaped like a tunnel. The walls were covered with very nice wood, and it included furniture and appliances. But I can't live in a tunnel. Maybe a tunnel with a sunny courtyard, but not a pure tunnel.
Another place we looked at had more light, and a stony sort of charm, but would be hard to heat. I might have considered it, but the owner confessed that he lives next door and plays loud guitar late at night. That might be a problem.
Then we went on a long trek to find an apartment on a street called Madregot, or Stairs. Someone told us that it was on the other side of the main drag, but when we got there we saw only unmarked alleys, and someone else told us it was on the other, other side of the main drag.
So we went to the other side and kept going until we apparently passed the street, since it had a different name at that point, so we had to back-track. "Go to the street just past the dumpster." Which dumpster? About the third one. It's called a street, but you can't drive down it or ride a bike either, because it's a steep hill, all stone stairs.
Buildings are roughly numbered in order, so #5 should be somewhere in the vicinity of 3, 4, 6 and 7, shouldn't it? (Numbers changed to protect the guilty.) Actually it's not. First you turn left, go down some stairs, then you turn right, go down some stairs. At the bottom is the number 5 clearly marked on the front of the cave--er, excuse me, apartment. It does have a small courtyard filled with plants and trees, but I doubt if a speck of sunlight ever gets through. And it's a bit small, and by the time we go back up all the stairs I've decided that deep holes, wells, caves and tunnels are just not my style.
Which is fine. We'll just stay where we are. Our present apartment has only one real flaw--it needs more electrical outlets. But even if it had them, that wouldn't solve the wire mess you get with computers.
In the back of my mind has continually been an apartment we looked at some time back that I nicknamed "Cheery and Natural." It wasn't clear to me at the time, but now I realize it had my name written all over it. Too late now. But if it ever comes up for rent again, we should grab it.
Wuh-hunh?..... No, can't be. No way! ... It is! Cheery and Natural is for rent again! Fantastic!
Will it still be there Monday morning? I'll be up at 6:01 a.m. Monday morning hopping on one foot and then the other.
We looked at a decent-sized place shaped like a tunnel. The walls were covered with very nice wood, and it included furniture and appliances. But I can't live in a tunnel. Maybe a tunnel with a sunny courtyard, but not a pure tunnel.
Another place we looked at had more light, and a stony sort of charm, but would be hard to heat. I might have considered it, but the owner confessed that he lives next door and plays loud guitar late at night. That might be a problem.
Then we went on a long trek to find an apartment on a street called Madregot, or Stairs. Someone told us that it was on the other side of the main drag, but when we got there we saw only unmarked alleys, and someone else told us it was on the other, other side of the main drag.
So we went to the other side and kept going until we apparently passed the street, since it had a different name at that point, so we had to back-track. "Go to the street just past the dumpster." Which dumpster? About the third one. It's called a street, but you can't drive down it or ride a bike either, because it's a steep hill, all stone stairs.
Buildings are roughly numbered in order, so #5 should be somewhere in the vicinity of 3, 4, 6 and 7, shouldn't it? (Numbers changed to protect the guilty.) Actually it's not. First you turn left, go down some stairs, then you turn right, go down some stairs. At the bottom is the number 5 clearly marked on the front of the cave--er, excuse me, apartment. It does have a small courtyard filled with plants and trees, but I doubt if a speck of sunlight ever gets through. And it's a bit small, and by the time we go back up all the stairs I've decided that deep holes, wells, caves and tunnels are just not my style.
Which is fine. We'll just stay where we are. Our present apartment has only one real flaw--it needs more electrical outlets. But even if it had them, that wouldn't solve the wire mess you get with computers.
In the back of my mind has continually been an apartment we looked at some time back that I nicknamed "Cheery and Natural." It wasn't clear to me at the time, but now I realize it had my name written all over it. Too late now. But if it ever comes up for rent again, we should grab it.
Wuh-hunh?..... No, can't be. No way! ... It is! Cheery and Natural is for rent again! Fantastic!
Will it still be there Monday morning? I'll be up at 6:01 a.m. Monday morning hopping on one foot and then the other.
June 6, 2013
Ravioli and Klbustur and Words
Ravioli
Etymology -- little turnips? More like little pillows. Anyway, I usually think of them as being filled with meat or cheese. Here, they can be filled with sweet potato, mushrooms, or eggplant.
I haven't tasted them, just seen them advertised. I wish I were free to eat out and try different foods. Not that I need to eat pasta, but a little variety would be nice.
Lately I have seen fliers tacked up on telephone poles that say something like Klbustur. What could that possibly be? Kalabooster? Cluvoster? Finally it dawned on me--it's Col Bo Store. "Col bo" means something like "everything in it." "Store" is not a Hebrew word at all. I can't think of a good term in English. It's a small store with a little bit of everything, but not food. Kind of like a hardware store, but with more things that women like.
If I were organized I'd make lists of words in English and Hebrew that sound similar or have the same consonants. Sometimes the similarity is coincidental, other times the words are actually related. Either way, it helps you to remember them.
שבר or Shbr or Shvr (compare: shivers, as in "broken to shivers")
לשבור to break
שֶׁבֶר fragment or fracture
מַשְׁבֵּר crisis -- at the breaking point
מִשְבָּר wave, breaker
לחנוק to choke, strangle, suffocate
חנק "chet" for "hang," "nun-quf" for "neck"
The noun form applies to the choke on a car; however, not knowing much about motors, I don't have any idea what is being choked.
Wadi -- When it rains it runs fast and floods. When there's no rain, it dries up and you can't even wade in it.
Miqlahat -- How do you remember the word for "shower?" Well, what do you do when you take a shower? The shower head looks like a mike, and you sing "la-la-la" in the hot water.
Etymology -- little turnips? More like little pillows. Anyway, I usually think of them as being filled with meat or cheese. Here, they can be filled with sweet potato, mushrooms, or eggplant.
I haven't tasted them, just seen them advertised. I wish I were free to eat out and try different foods. Not that I need to eat pasta, but a little variety would be nice.
Lately I have seen fliers tacked up on telephone poles that say something like Klbustur. What could that possibly be? Kalabooster? Cluvoster? Finally it dawned on me--it's Col Bo Store. "Col bo" means something like "everything in it." "Store" is not a Hebrew word at all. I can't think of a good term in English. It's a small store with a little bit of everything, but not food. Kind of like a hardware store, but with more things that women like.
If I were organized I'd make lists of words in English and Hebrew that sound similar or have the same consonants. Sometimes the similarity is coincidental, other times the words are actually related. Either way, it helps you to remember them.
שבר or Shbr or Shvr (compare: shivers, as in "broken to shivers")
לשבור to break
שֶׁבֶר fragment or fracture
מַשְׁבֵּר crisis -- at the breaking point
מִשְבָּר wave, breaker
לחנוק to choke, strangle, suffocate
חנק "chet" for "hang," "nun-quf" for "neck"
The noun form applies to the choke on a car; however, not knowing much about motors, I don't have any idea what is being choked.
Wadi -- When it rains it runs fast and floods. When there's no rain, it dries up and you can't even wade in it.
Miqlahat -- How do you remember the word for "shower?" Well, what do you do when you take a shower? The shower head looks like a mike, and you sing "la-la-la" in the hot water.
May 25, 2013
Just Looking for a Home
The first time I saw the boll-weevil
He was standin' in the square
The next time I saw the boll-weevil
He had his whole fam'ly there
Just lookin' for a home,
Just lookin' for a home.
The boll-weevil said to the farmer
You'd better leave me alone
I done et up all your cotton,
And now I'll start on your corn.
Just lookin' for a home,
Just lookin' for a home.
Sounds like this guy would have made a wise farmer:
I hear that crazy ants are displacing fire ants. They don't sting like fire ants, but they will be harder to control.
But really what I was about to post was about apartment-hunting. We looked at one that was well laid out and nice and sunny and in a good location, but it had several drawbacks, including not enough space. I smile every time I think about how cheery it was and how natural it felt.
Then we looked at another one that had a totally perfect bathroom and a totally perfect kitchen. But it also had several drawbacks, that even the totally perfect bathroom and a totally perfect kitchen didn't make up for. I could about cry, though, for that bathroom and kitchen.
So we'll have to keep looking until we find something that has an imperfect bathroom and an imperfect kitchen in a somewhat acceptable location with a somewhat acceptable layout with almost enough space and not quite totally dark.
Unless I change my mind about cheery-and-natural-with-drawbacks and totally-perfect-with drawbacks. Can't have everything. But how do you choose? Guess I'll worry about it next week.
He was standin' in the square
The next time I saw the boll-weevil
He had his whole fam'ly there
Just lookin' for a home,
Just lookin' for a home.
The boll-weevil said to the farmer
You'd better leave me alone
I done et up all your cotton,
And now I'll start on your corn.
Just lookin' for a home,
Just lookin' for a home.
Sounds like this guy would have made a wise farmer:
"I knows why that boll weevil done come. They say he come from Mexico, but I think he always been here. Away back yonder a spider live in the country, 'specially in the bottoms. He live on the cotton leaves and stalks, but he don't hurt it. These spiders kept the insects eat up. They plow deep then, and plants cotton in February, so it made 'fore the insects git bad."
"Then they gits to plowing deep, and it am colder ‘cause the trees all cut, and they plows up all the spiders and the cold kill them. They plants later, and there ain't no spiders left to eat up the boll weevil."
I hear that crazy ants are displacing fire ants. They don't sting like fire ants, but they will be harder to control.
But really what I was about to post was about apartment-hunting. We looked at one that was well laid out and nice and sunny and in a good location, but it had several drawbacks, including not enough space. I smile every time I think about how cheery it was and how natural it felt.
Then we looked at another one that had a totally perfect bathroom and a totally perfect kitchen. But it also had several drawbacks, that even the totally perfect bathroom and a totally perfect kitchen didn't make up for. I could about cry, though, for that bathroom and kitchen.
So we'll have to keep looking until we find something that has an imperfect bathroom and an imperfect kitchen in a somewhat acceptable location with a somewhat acceptable layout with almost enough space and not quite totally dark.
Unless I change my mind about cheery-and-natural-with-drawbacks and totally-perfect-with drawbacks. Can't have everything. But how do you choose? Guess I'll worry about it next week.
May 10, 2013
Transportation
There must be some way to get around better and do more. I'm not interested in driving a car in Jerusalem, and I can't walk far enough to really have a life, so I am considering options. Maybe I could get a skateboard. That would be good for coasting downhill.
Going uphill would take a motor. Maybe an electric skateboard? It has a remote control that you hold in your hand while you ride. I don't need to go fast. This would enable me to get there in fewer steps.
Maybe some sort of scooter.
Or a personal transporter.
Or a scooter with a seat.
Better yet an electric tricycle. Something I've dreamed of for a long time.
Or I could get a puppy.
And train it to pull me.
At the end of long, exciting day,
I could relax on the couch.
Going uphill would take a motor. Maybe an electric skateboard? It has a remote control that you hold in your hand while you ride. I don't need to go fast. This would enable me to get there in fewer steps.
Maybe some sort of scooter.
Or a personal transporter.
Or a scooter with a seat.
Better yet an electric tricycle. Something I've dreamed of for a long time.
Or I could get a puppy.
And train it to pull me.
At the end of long, exciting day,
I could relax on the couch.
That's my plan, anyway. Now I just have to carry it out.
Where Is My Home?
Looking for an apartment is always a time consuming venture, but we need to find a place closer to the University.
I saw the most perfect apartment several months ago, but the location wasn't right.
Then we looked at a well-lighted and aired apartment in a central location, but it was too small.
After that we saw a very large apartment with a garden, but it was a little too expensive. The location was good, in that Al could get to school fairly quickly.
For me, no location will be as good as the present one, where I can reach several shops or parks without too much trouble. To be able to get to the store and buy some fresh cucumbers, and another day to another one to buy some good yogurt, gives me a little freedom and the satisfaction that I can do a little something for myself. If we were to live in a more spread out area, I would be able to do nothing at all unless I buy some sort of electric vehicle that you can drive on the sidewalk.
The best looking apartment, well-lighted, good price, good location, fresh warm-color paint, nice wood-look floor, was on the fifth floor. But going up one flight of stairs to get into the building, and 5 more to get to the apartment, would probably ensure that once there I would just stay. I would never get outside and I would get really depressed. The ground floor was surrounded by senseless arches. It might look nice from a distance, but after you go through the arches you are in a neglected basement-like place, with open floor good for nothing but crawling area for roaches or lizards--not secure enough for storing things in, or comfortable enough to lounge in.
The last apartment we saw at night, so I can't be sure what it would be like in the daytime. The living room might be nice, but the rest of it wasn't impressive. The clothesline got no sunshine at all. If you walk down a long parking lot and up a couple long ramps with high cement walls on both sides, there are some dingy but handy shops. I don't know what the purpose of all that cement is.
To be in contact with the ground or within a few steps of nature seems to me to be most important. Even in the city, near dusty and noisy streets, it seems right to be on the ground. Walking outside on warm cement, or on the same ground that trees gladly grow in, is what it takes for me to feel that I am not stuck on a shelf or in a cage or prison.
I am sure that when I see the right place, I will know it. If I can't find the right place, I will just have to pick one and make it the right place. That would mean painting it a nice color and arranging it just right. And buying all the necessary furniture and things. It could be sort of fun, or it could be a huge hassle. Probably a little of both.
May 9, 2013
Take a Ride
Wednesday was Jerusalem Day. Wednesday evening I tried to get to church by bus. Some streets were closed off for parades, so the buses had to take different routes. (The route changes are published on the bus website, but I don't think the drivers or the passengers take much note of them.)
When my bus took an unexpected turn to get around the parade area, I decided I had better get off as soon as possible--but the driver didn't stop--he just kept going and going. So I waited it out, thinking he would probably eventually circle around closer to my destination. If worse came to worse, I could get off the bus and take a taxi. Meanwhile a grouchy-looking man was yelling what seemed to be complaints at the driver, but then he went up and had a friendly conversation with him. By that time several of the passengers were asking where we were going and some of them were trying to tell the driver where to turn. I don't know if he took their advice or not. At one point he turned right onto a street that was bumper-to-bumper, so he backed out of it and turned left instead. Eventually we came to a stop, not because the driver was interested in stopping, but because several passengers insisted on it.
I got on another bus and asked if it would take me to the train, and the driver gave me the barest nod, so I got on hoping that it really would. Whenever we stopped to pick up more passengers, they were all asking where the bus was going and can we get there from here, which implied they were being forced to take whatever bus they could get, instead of their usual bus, or they wouldn't have been asking so many questions. (Not tourists, either, but Jerusalemites, several of whom I recognized from the other end of town.) We passed several crowded bustops where people were trying to stop any bus they could get, but most of the buses just passed them up. When we finally reached the train area, a police car was blocking the road, so what does the bus driver do? He starts honking at the policeman, over and over. The policeman wouldn't give in, so the bus driver took another unexpected turn, and again the passengers had to demand to be let out. Those who wanted the train were disappointed because the train had shut down.
I got off about three blocks from my destination. I was almost an hour late, but I could only laugh. In other large cities, I would be very anxious going through unfamiliar neighborhoods, and shocked by people honking at the police, but this is Jerusalem. I'm glad I didn't take a taxi, because they will charge double on special occasions, or more if they can get away with it. Come to think of it, one of those buses was a free ride, because the meter wasn't working.
When my bus took an unexpected turn to get around the parade area, I decided I had better get off as soon as possible--but the driver didn't stop--he just kept going and going. So I waited it out, thinking he would probably eventually circle around closer to my destination. If worse came to worse, I could get off the bus and take a taxi. Meanwhile a grouchy-looking man was yelling what seemed to be complaints at the driver, but then he went up and had a friendly conversation with him. By that time several of the passengers were asking where we were going and some of them were trying to tell the driver where to turn. I don't know if he took their advice or not. At one point he turned right onto a street that was bumper-to-bumper, so he backed out of it and turned left instead. Eventually we came to a stop, not because the driver was interested in stopping, but because several passengers insisted on it.
I got on another bus and asked if it would take me to the train, and the driver gave me the barest nod, so I got on hoping that it really would. Whenever we stopped to pick up more passengers, they were all asking where the bus was going and can we get there from here, which implied they were being forced to take whatever bus they could get, instead of their usual bus, or they wouldn't have been asking so many questions. (Not tourists, either, but Jerusalemites, several of whom I recognized from the other end of town.) We passed several crowded bustops where people were trying to stop any bus they could get, but most of the buses just passed them up. When we finally reached the train area, a police car was blocking the road, so what does the bus driver do? He starts honking at the policeman, over and over. The policeman wouldn't give in, so the bus driver took another unexpected turn, and again the passengers had to demand to be let out. Those who wanted the train were disappointed because the train had shut down.
I got off about three blocks from my destination. I was almost an hour late, but I could only laugh. In other large cities, I would be very anxious going through unfamiliar neighborhoods, and shocked by people honking at the police, but this is Jerusalem. I'm glad I didn't take a taxi, because they will charge double on special occasions, or more if they can get away with it. Come to think of it, one of those buses was a free ride, because the meter wasn't working.
April 12, 2013
April 2013
Church here is different but interesting. The sermon the other night was preached in English and translated into Russian, while a woman behind me was translating for her husband into some other language. Some days the power goes out every so often, but we just sit patiently in the dark till it goes on again.
Basic truths like the resurrection, particular atonement, and eternal punishment are known and accepted by the regular members, but there are often visitors of all types, usually tourists, from various church backgrounds, and this results in many interesting discussions after church.
Songs are in English or Hebrew or sometimes Russian, or sometimes two languages simultaneously or consecutively. There isn't a regular hymnbook. For a while we used a projector of the kind where you print the songs on plastic. Now we use a computer projector with power point slides. Most of the Hebrew songs are transliterated into English and Russian. Some people prefer to read Hebrew in Hebrew, understandably, so one slide often contains three versions of the same verse.
We meet in a small lower room under a bigger church. It is not pretty, but it works well, and we don't need a sound system. Someone from another group would occasionally stick a small wooden cross on the wall, but a couple of us kept taking it down and eventually it disappeared for good. The only symbols we need are the bread and the wine. I have heard that the church above us is full of idols, so I am glad we have a plainer place.
Basic truths like the resurrection, particular atonement, and eternal punishment are known and accepted by the regular members, but there are often visitors of all types, usually tourists, from various church backgrounds, and this results in many interesting discussions after church.
Songs are in English or Hebrew or sometimes Russian, or sometimes two languages simultaneously or consecutively. There isn't a regular hymnbook. For a while we used a projector of the kind where you print the songs on plastic. Now we use a computer projector with power point slides. Most of the Hebrew songs are transliterated into English and Russian. Some people prefer to read Hebrew in Hebrew, understandably, so one slide often contains three versions of the same verse.
We meet in a small lower room under a bigger church. It is not pretty, but it works well, and we don't need a sound system. Someone from another group would occasionally stick a small wooden cross on the wall, but a couple of us kept taking it down and eventually it disappeared for good. The only symbols we need are the bread and the wine. I have heard that the church above us is full of idols, so I am glad we have a plainer place.
Trip to Galilee
A full day just relaxing. Not totally relaxing, since it involved a short hike, but relaxing by not planning, worrying, or studying.
I find this hilarious. Doesn't the sign need to be a little closer to the tunnel?
Fish Ponds
Farms
Lookout
Lookout over Valley of Megiddo
City on a Hill
Mount Tabor and part of Nazareth
March 16, 2013
WEATHER
Our record-breaking winter storm in December was quite an event. Eight inches of snow. Several episodes of hail and snow pellets. It took till the end of February before the piles of tree branches along every street were picked up. Our nice bottle-brush tree got broken, and so did the biggest rubber-tree I have ever seen. The leaning trees in the park had to be cut down, for which I am not sorry. But I don't understand why they left four-foot tall stumps, too high and slanted to sit on.
The last few days have been truly warm. I can actually take off my coat and sometimes my sweater indoors.
The cycle of spring flowers begins. I wish I were organized enough to make a flower diary with pictures. Mustard, poppies, anemone, oxalis, and various others probably bloom at very exact times, partly overlapping each other. My favorite rose bush this year has only two big beautiful deep pink-streaked flowers, instead of several small lighter-colored ones. White, lavendar and purple alyssum are blooming where planted. A hollyhock is coming up in the sidewalk. One year it had beautiful blossoms. The next year it go cut down before it bloomed. It doesn't know that it actually doesn't, according to some people, belong in the sidewalk. Judas trees are blooming, yellow puff trees are starting to bloom.
Anchusa, which has small deep blue flowers, is blooming. It's actually kind of a weed, but the flowers are nice. One year, back in the early 70's, I planted the garden variety, which looks about the same but without the thorns. The next year I didn't want them, but they were hard to get rid of. Every piece of tuberous root would start a new plant.
Every time I see a spectacular flower display, I look for the same thing to happen the next year. But it never happens again at the same place. But there are new ones. This week I saw some well trimmed pittosporum with lots of light-green new growth.
But the brick sidewalk near our flat hasn't been swept in over three years. The row of 20 or more big flower tubs gets no care at all, except for an automatic watering system, which is in need of maintenance. What grows in them is what grows easily, including a few persistent flowers and lots of weeds. The nicest flower displays are often half overtaken with some weed. Or there are several nice plants but they are much too crowded. I can appreciate a sort of wild look, but the dirt and dust and neglected look never cease to bother me.
The last few days have been truly warm. I can actually take off my coat and sometimes my sweater indoors.
The cycle of spring flowers begins. I wish I were organized enough to make a flower diary with pictures. Mustard, poppies, anemone, oxalis, and various others probably bloom at very exact times, partly overlapping each other. My favorite rose bush this year has only two big beautiful deep pink-streaked flowers, instead of several small lighter-colored ones. White, lavendar and purple alyssum are blooming where planted. A hollyhock is coming up in the sidewalk. One year it had beautiful blossoms. The next year it go cut down before it bloomed. It doesn't know that it actually doesn't, according to some people, belong in the sidewalk. Judas trees are blooming, yellow puff trees are starting to bloom.
Anchusa, which has small deep blue flowers, is blooming. It's actually kind of a weed, but the flowers are nice. One year, back in the early 70's, I planted the garden variety, which looks about the same but without the thorns. The next year I didn't want them, but they were hard to get rid of. Every piece of tuberous root would start a new plant.
Every time I see a spectacular flower display, I look for the same thing to happen the next year. But it never happens again at the same place. But there are new ones. This week I saw some well trimmed pittosporum with lots of light-green new growth.
But the brick sidewalk near our flat hasn't been swept in over three years. The row of 20 or more big flower tubs gets no care at all, except for an automatic watering system, which is in need of maintenance. What grows in them is what grows easily, including a few persistent flowers and lots of weeds. The nicest flower displays are often half overtaken with some weed. Or there are several nice plants but they are much too crowded. I can appreciate a sort of wild look, but the dirt and dust and neglected look never cease to bother me.
January 3, 2013
Fresh Water
If weeding your garden gets the weeds out, does salting the ocean get the salt out?
גנן גידל דגן בגן, דגן גדול גדל בגן׃ Or you could say, Ganan gidel dagan bagan; dagan gadol gadal bagan. Meaning, the gardener grew grain in the garden; large grain grew in the garden.
Anyway it's nice to have my computer working correctly again. They removed 12 gig of junk that windows had added over the last several months. 12 Gig!!! And there was a lot of dust inside and some spyware that AVG missed. So it's really nice to know a good computer guy. And I got my computer back in one day. Now it works like a charm. And it's quiet.
גנן גידל דגן בגן, דגן גדול גדל בגן׃ Or you could say, Ganan gidel dagan bagan; dagan gadol gadal bagan. Meaning, the gardener grew grain in the garden; large grain grew in the garden.
Anyway it's nice to have my computer working correctly again. They removed 12 gig of junk that windows had added over the last several months. 12 Gig!!! And there was a lot of dust inside and some spyware that AVG missed. So it's really nice to know a good computer guy. And I got my computer back in one day. Now it works like a charm. And it's quiet.
January 1, 2013
The Lord's Day
I wish I could find some short articles on the Christian Sabbath. There are hardly any Christian Sabbatarians in Israel, and I'm not even being fussy about whether you keep it on Saturday or Sunday. One in seven, just like God did in the beginning. Simple enough, and so helpful.
Ring out the Old
It's gone. It wasn't bad. In fact, it was everything it was supposed to be.
But now is time for resolutions. Number one, go to bed on time.
I have gotten myself into a horrible rut of too little sleep, always stressing out (making stress out of even the most enjoyable things). Leads to heartburn, dizzy spells, etc.
Well, at least I'm not depressed!
But now is time for resolutions. Number one, go to bed on time.
I have gotten myself into a horrible rut of too little sleep, always stressing out (making stress out of even the most enjoyable things). Leads to heartburn, dizzy spells, etc.
Well, at least I'm not depressed!
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