31 July 2012

I slept well last night and woke up a little late this morning. But I still had time to walk over to the gym, to go on a couple of machines, to do my stretches, and to walk back home. I even had time to pet Fluffy in both directions!

I only taught 2 individual students today for a total of 4 units, so it was a light Berlitz day.

We ate lunch at Café Café in the mall again today. David has fettucine with mushroom cream sauce, and I had Italian-style shakshuka. We both treated ourselves to ice-café (basically, a coffee-flavored slurpy).

I also ran the dishwasher and took 37 empty plastic bottles to the recycle bin up the street.

Other than those things, I tried to sit and keep my feet up much of the day, since my left ankle is still quite swollen. Walking on it is good, but standing on it or sitting too long with my feet down is not.

30 July 2012

I got out fairly early again this morning and took a nice walk. It was similar to my walk on Shabbat morning except that I cut up through the "Canada Gardens" area. The name comes from the fact that communities in various cities in Canada got together and provided funds for the infrastructure of the area.

I taught 8 units today, although for the first class (2 units) no one showed up, and so I was free to go after waiting an hour for them. I still get paid for the units, of course.

This afternoon, we went to the mall to a store called "Disc Club" and I bought a cable that allows us to listen to music on our iPhones through the car stereo system. This will be SO much easier than burning playlists to CDs as we have been doing. We tested it out on the way home, and it works beautifully.

I'll end for today with a little blatant self-promotion. I have 9 albums of organ music available for sale on CD Baby. This is nothing new at all -- but from today through August 3, I (and all other CD Baby artists as well, of course) get 100% of the proceeds from all digital downloads sales there (this does NOT include purchases of physical CDs). So, check it out; there's a lot of different music to choose from. I have CDs of classical organ repertoire, of old English organ music, and of my own arrangements of a wide variety of tunes, from Jewish and Christian melodies to American and Israeli favorites, all played on a real pipe organ. Click here to go to my artist page.

29 July 2012

I was up and out there first thing this morning. I walked to the gym, had a good workout and good stretches, and then walked back home. I spent a little time both directions with Fluffy, who's alway happy to see me. This morning I also spent a little time with Mielo, a peaches-and-cream young male cat whom I sometimes see (like this morning) near the corner of Harim Street and our street. He has short hair and is small and muscular. He walks very proudly and also seems to relish my company.

Later this morning, we did the short loop drive again, but this time we took a side trip to Shakharut, and tiny desert community absolutely in the middle of nowhere! To get there, we followed the road that goes off from highway 12 to Camp Uvda (a military airbase, although it is also a civilian airport that is accessed from the other side, just off of highway 12). When we got to the place where the road goes onto the base, we took another, smaller road to the left. It goes along the side of the base for a while and then follows a lonely, desolate valley for several kilometers up to the settlement. At that point, we were only a hundred meters or so from the escarpment that marks the edge of the Arava in that area, near Yotvata. This is just about as remote as it gets in Israel. At least they do have a paved (though narrow) road out there!

We ate lunch at home today (since I had read that all the restaurants would be closed for Tisha B'Av, a fast day). We had breaded vegetarian shnitzel, baby peas, and iced decaf.

Late this afternoon, I did the weekly grocery shopping, and, this evening, David and I went for a short walk around the neighborhood.

28 July 2012

Today was quite a slow day for us. I got up early and took a fairly long walk around town. I went on Ein Akev to Ein Mor and then down to Sheshet HaYamim, which I followed across the bridge over the wash, past the high school, and all the way to Argaman. There, I turned left and went up Argaman all the way to Harim, where I turned left and headed home the usual way. I went past the gym without stopping, but I did stop to do stretches in the park beside the big traffic circle (where highway 12 begins and heads out of town). Between Ein Mor and the green strip, I stop to pet and spend some time with one of my favorite faithful friends, Fluffy, the big yellow-orange cat who is almost always relaxing in that area early in the morning. He walked with me over to the edge of the green strip.

We ate lunch at Pastory, an Italian restaurant in the hotels area. Both of us had Fettucine Verdura. The sauce is particularly nice, with artichoke hearts and asparagus that is cooked just right.

This afternoon, I added new posts to my blog about Israel and her neighbors (click here to read) and to my mom's blog, posting a letter she wrote on June 7, 1951 (click here to read it).

Other than those things, I tried to spend as much time as I could sitting in my comfortable IKEA chair with my feet up on a pillow on the matching foot rest. My left foot is still somewhat swollen from being turned Thursday morning (and yesterday's long drive in the car probably didn't help much -- too much sitting withOUT the foot being up). It generally does NOT hurt, though, unless I try to bend it too far.

27 July 2012

I got up early this morning, feeling very good. I headed off for the gym, and my ankle gave me very little trouble. I did avoid the knee extension machine because it would require to much flexing of the ankle. There was a somewhat unreliable breeze, but it blew enough of the time to keep me from overheating. The flies (we have LOTS of them here, and they are quite annoying) were fascinated with the scab on my knee. I guess they were probably eating bits of the dried blood, although none really seemed to be gone. I've observed this behavior before, as well.

The one class that had been scheduled for me to teach today (2 units) was canceled yesterday evening. Because of the time, it was considered a "late cancellation" which means that I get paid for the lesson anyway (and the students simply lose those 2 units).

Since I had nothing scheduled for today, we decided to drive up to Be'er Sheva. We left around 9:30 and got there around 12:30. We went to the mall, ate pizza, and looked around a bit. David was tired and feeling a bit unstable on his feet, so eventually he just sat on a bench while I continued exploring the mall. We had been in it before 2 or 3 times, but we had never really checked it out thoroughly. It's a fairly typical Israeli mall (and not that much different from U.S. malls, either) with the usual chain stores. I did find a little kiosk where I got my watch band replaced.

A bit after 2:00 p.m., we got back in the car and headed home, getting here just after 5:00. It was nice to get out, but the mall, although larger than the one here in Eilat, is really not much better.

26 July 2012

I woke up quite early this morning and pulled myself out of bed without too much difficulty. I decided to walk in the hills instead of in town, so I put on my athletic shoes (instead of my sandals, which collect sand and gravel MUCH too easily!), got in the car, and drove to a spot a short distance up highway 12. From there, there is a bicycle trail that goes nearly level through a couple of passes and then descends gently into Nakhal Shakhamon. Then there is a gravel road that follows a buried pipeline  along the base of White Mountain. I followed that until turning left onto the trail that goes to the top of White Mountain. I only went on this trail until it where it started to ascend steeply. I decided NOT to go to the top of White Mountain today, and instead I continued following the little canyon. It doesn't go much further, but I had never gone that way before, and it was quite interesting to see.

At that point, I turned around and headed back for the car. As I was walking along the pipeline road, I was enjoying the beautiful scenery and not paying really close attention to where I was stepping since the road is fairly smooth (I think I could even drive my car on it in that area, though I never actually have). Suddenly, I must have stepped wrong on a small rock or some other irregularity in the road and turned my ankle. I instinctively and without even thinking tried to correct by shifting weight to the other foot, but, instead, I lost my balance and fell down forwards all the way to the ground!

The net result of all this was a turned ankle (which I was still able to walk on, though with a bit of a limp); a skinned knee (the right one) that oozed a little blood; a couple of minor scrapes on my arms, my left knee, and my belly (I was shirtless); and a broken piece on my watch band (the little loop that keeps its loose end held against the other part of the band). That last thing is the only part that won't fix itself and will cost me actual money. Of course, I was in some pain, and, worse yet, I was quite angry at myself for not being more careful! I got over it, though, so I'll be fine.

We ate lunch at home today, having yellow string beans, vegetarian grilled breasts (that's technically the correct English translation of what it says in Hebrew on the package, but somehow it just doesn't sound quite right in English!), and iced coffee.

I had 6 units today (although I haven't yet taught the last 2 -- that lesson starts in 5 minutes, and I'm actually already in the electronic classroom).

25 July 2012

I got up good and early this morning. There was a wonderful breeze out, which made my walk and my work-out very nice.

We ate lunch at home today, having vege-meat, Brussel sprouts, and cheese.

I talked 8 units (6 hours) today, but the first class wasn't until 1:00. The last class ended at 8:30.

24 July 2012

This morning I had a bit of a headache and I didn't get up early at all. So I didn't go out for a walk, either. I mustn't let this happen too often!

I did get busy and clean the bathroom pretty thoroughly this morning, something it had been needing to have done for a while. It looks much better now, I think.

I had only one student today, a level 3 French student from 11:00 to 12:30.

We went to lunch at Café Café in the mall again. I had Italian Shakshuka, and David had pizza. I made the mistake of eating the loaf of delicious bread that comes with it instead of bringing it home for later, and that was really too much. I regretted it all afternoon! Still, it WAS a good meal.

We drove the loop in the opposite direction after that, going up highway 12 to highway 40, then down to highway 90 and back home that way.

This evening, we went together for a short walk. It was hot and windy, so it was actually quite nice. While we were sitting on the bench up at the end of the green strip, three of our Anglo neighbors came by, walking their respective dogs.

23 July 2012

I got out slightly late this morning, but there was a great breeze, and I had an excellent work-out.

This morning, Berlitz called me at about 8:30 to see if I could substitute from 9:00 to 10:30 for a teacher who was sick. Luckily, I was able to do so and thus got a couple extra units of work today. Altogether, that gave me 10 units (7.5 hours) of work for today.

Our landlord got the motor replaced in the central A/C unit this evening, so now we can once again cool the whole house. We had managed fairly well by just running the bedroom and office units, but it did get a bit hot in the living room and kitchen, though really not unbearable.

22 July 2012

I got a fairly early start today, and there was a nice breeze out, so everything was set for a good day. However, things got slightly disrupted. When I got to the big kikar (the traffic circle where highway 12 goes out of town and up the mountains), the peripheral road (Harim Road) beyond it was closed by the police. At first, I thought I wasn't going to be able to get through to the gym at all, but then I saw that I could walk on the other side of the street. They were obviously investigating something VERY carefully, but I couldn't tell what.

I continued on to the gym, had a good workout, and started back. The street was still completely closed to motor vehicles in BOTH directions, but I was able to walk back on the other side again. I asked the cop what had happened and whether it was an accident. His only answer was "no".

Later in the day, I read this article in the Times of Israel (which, by the way, I HIGHLY recommend!), which tells what had happened. Apparently a guy had robbed a restaurant, the police were pursuing him, and, at some point, they shot him dead! I presume he must have done something quite threatening for THAT. In any case, that explained the long, detailed investigation they were doing. In fact, the road was STILL closed 3 hours later when we were going to go that way to go to the market.

When we came back from the market (coming a different way, of course), we found that the central air-conditioning in our apartment was not working. I unloaded the groceries and put them away, and then tried turning it off and on again, but it still wasn't producing any cool air. So I immediately called our landlord, who promised to come over before 2:00, which he did. When he checked it out (he's a professional A/C repairman, which is his business), he said that the motor was the problem and that he'd have to check if he had one. Even if he didn't he said he'd be able to come back and fix it tomorrow. Thank goodness that we have the room air conditioners in both the office and the bedroom! It was still rather hot in the living room and the kitchen by afternoon, but not completely unbearable as it would have been with NO A/C at all!

This evening, we took a drive just to get away from the house for a bit. We went up the Arava on highway 90 (stopping at Yotvata to get another kilo of their delicious dates), turned left onto highway 40 at the Ketura Junction, and then turned left again onto highway 12 at the Shizafon Junction. From there, we continued home along the Egyptian border just as the sun was disappearing behind a distance ridge in the Sinai.

21 July 2012

I got up a bit late this morning, so I only took a short walk and did a few stretches.

We decided to go up to the west side of Massada today, where we had never been before. We left the house before 9:00 and stopped to fill up the car with gas and get Pepsi Max to drink. We were out of town and on our way up the Arava not long after 9:00.

We drove up highway 31 from near the Dead Sea where the hotels are up to Arad. From there, we took a road whose only purpose, basically, is to go to the west side of Massada. The view is really interesting from that side, and quite different from the view on the east side, where people usually visit.

You can check out my blog post about it and see some of the pictures I took by clicking here.

We got back home before 4:30, so I had some time to work on my various blogs.

To read my blog post about Israel and its neighbors, with links to various interesting articles on the subject, click here.

To read a letter from my mom to her parents, dated May 30, 1951, click here.

20 July 2012

I woke up early this morning, feeling good. So I got up and headed over to the gym. I had already been working out for some time when the sun came up over the mountains of Jordan, at 6:10. It was a good work-out.

I had only one class today, but it was for 3 units (9:00 - 11:15). It's one of my favorites, too, consisting of just two students, both Germans with Ph.D.'s in science who work for a pharmaceutical company.

We had lunch today at Il Pentolino. I had fettucine, and David had penne, both with a nice sauteed vegetable sauce.

This evening, we made Shabbat early at home and then headed up to check out Kabbalat Shabbat services at Kibbutz Yahel. It's a Reform kibbutz a little less than an hour north of here up the Arava. There was a small but nice group of people, and they welcomed us warmly. It was nice to have a new experience.

19 July 2012

This morning I woke up with a bit of a sinus or dehydration headache, and I didn't get up until a little later than usual. I did go for a walk, though not all the way to the gym. It was hot, but there was a good breeze so it was quite pleasant. I stopped in the shady park next to the tall buildings (20-story apartment buildings) to do my stretches, and then I headed back home.

I have only one lesson today, with is still more than 30 minutes from now. So, this morning we decided to take a drive, and we did the "big" loop: we drove up the Arava on highway 90 to the Menucha Junction. We actually drove slightly past the junction, to a large "pundok" that is located there. According to my Hebrew-English dictionary this word means "inn" or "tavern", but based on the usage here I'd say it's more like a commercial rest area where travelers can refresh themselves. NONE of the 3 pundoks that we went by today have any kind of bar or place to spend the night. Anyway, we stopped, got more Pepsi Max, and then head west on highway 13. It's only a short distance to the Tzikhor Junction, where highway 40 comes in from the right.

We continued south on highway 40, past the Ashram in the Desert (at a place called Shittim, which means "acacias") and Camp Shizafon (pronounced like "she's a phone"), an army training base. Shortly after that is the Shizafon Junction, where we turned right and took highway 12 from there back to Eilat, passing for some distance right along the border with Egypt and then descending dramatically at the last minute down to the city. The highway reaches town at a big kikar (traffic circle) right by where I did my stretched this morning.

We had falafel for lunch today at the shop in the mall. Just after I parked the car and headed towards the mall, a jet plane came in to land at the airport. This approach is VERY dramatic because the plane flies so low and almost directly over the mall that you thinks it's surely going to crash into either the mall or the cars and people on the road right next to it! It lands on the runway which begins only a short distance north of there, across a road that goes to the hotel district. The mall was so busy in the food court that we almost couldn't get a table to sit at. When some people got up and left, we grabbed their table before the workers even cleaned it!

After lunch, we returned home. The predicted high for today was also 45˚C (113˚F), and so it was VERY hot and dry out. But it's been very nice and comfortable all afternoon in the house, thanks to the good air-conditioning!  :-)

18 July 2012

This morning I got myself out of bed at about 6:00, walked over to the outdoor gym, did a short work-out, and walked back. It was hot, but there was a breeze most of the time, and so it was quite bearable. I felt good.

I had 3 classes today, each 2 units, for a total of 6 units of teaching. One class has 3 students, although only 2 were present today, and the others were individual students. The teaching went quite well.

For lunch today, we had beans and weenies (vegetarian, of course!). We had to eat a little early since I had a student at 1:00.

This evening, David and I went for a short walk in our neighborhood a while before sunset. We couldn't go later because I had to teach from 7:00 to 8:30. It was VERY hot out, but, again, quite bearable because of the dryness and the breezes. Almost all of our route was in the shade, too, which made a big difference. The high temperature for today was predicted to be 45˚C (that's 113˚F), but I'm sure it had cooled off somewhat from that by 6:00, when we were out. I did NOT go out of the apartment at all during the heat of the day today!

17 July 2012

I slept really well last night and felt a lot better this morning. But I didn't get up early at all. I had already told Berlitz that I'd be out today, so that was a relief.

By early afternoon, I was feeling MUCH better, but I still hadn't eaten anything except some plain yogurt. So we decided to go to Café Café in the mall. I ordered an omelet sandwich, which I had never had before, and it was very good. I ate the small salad that came with it and half of the sandwich, but I brought the other half home. I also ate some of David's "Italian" shakshuka (really, a Middle Eastern dish of eggs cooked in a tomato sauce and served in the shallow kettle they're cooked in), and it was very delicious.

I had gotten an appointment with my doctor at 5:00 because I needed a letter for Berlitz. After that, I went to Shufersal and did the week's grocery shopping. I hadn't done it on Sunday because of the refrigerator problem.

This evening, David and I went for a walk around the neighborhood. It was very hot out, probably at least 39˚C (over 100˚F), but also very pleasant because it's so dry. Even in the middle of July, we LOVE living in Eilat!

16 July 2012

Well, today was rather a surprise. Last night, I went to bed feeling quite well. But during the night I had a lot of trouble with sinus drainage (not so unusual for me) but, more importantly, with a stomachache. By morning there was no doubt that I had some kind of gastrointestinal bug, including some pretty bad diarrhea. I felt a little better when I got up, but still not good, so I contacted Berlitz and took a sick day.

In the middle of the day I felt a little better and even ate a bowl of bran flakes. But as the afternoon wore on I was back to feeling rather bad. So I wrote to Berlitz and told them I'd be out tomorrow, as well.

Tomorrow, unless I feel REALLY terrible I'll also need to go to the doctor so I can get that all-important doctor's note for Berlitz. It's a little strange -- if I feel well enough to go OUT, then I probably could teach my lessons, which only involve sitting at home. But without the letter, Berlitz is sure that people are not really sick, I guess.

15 July 2012

Today was a bit of a bust.

I woke up a little late and just couldn't quite drag myself out for even a walk.

Our refrigerator was acting up again. The freezer part was working, but not as well, and the refrigerator part wasn't cooling significantly at all. Our landlord, whose business is A/C and cooling, had come 2 or 3 weeks ago when it did the same thing before, had done a temporary fix, and had ordered parts. But he had never returned. This morning I called him, and he said he'd come "after 3:00". He didn't actually GET here until after 8:00, and even that was after a couple more calls to see what was happening. He did replace the faulty part, and it SEEMS to be working okay now, but only time will really tell. In the mean time, we have spoiled cottage cheese and probably spoiled milk, as well.

I made an appointment with our doctor for 11:00 this morning because the pharmacy was only giving David 2 boxes of strips a month for his glucometer, and he really needs to have 3 so that he can test frequently and keep his blood sugar under control. It was very busy at the clinic, so we didn't get in to see the doctor until more than an hour after our appointment. But it was fine anyway, and we got the prescription for 3 boxes. The more times we meet this doctor, then better we like him. We found out today that he was originally from Paris! I had thought he was native Israeli! In fact, there are MANY French people living here in Eilat, and I've overheard more conversations in French since I've been here than in my whole life before, I think (and I studied French in school, too!).

For lunch, we had Pad Thai (or "patai", as they call it here) in the mall. There were a LOT of people there today, but we found a place to sit with no problem and enjoyed our lunch.

14 July 2012

This morning I woke up quite early. Since I had gone to the gym yesterday, I had planned to only walk today. I decided to go down our street to Sheshet HaYamim ("The Six Days") Street and walk towards town. I went as far as Los Angeles Street which changes to HaSportaim ("The Athletes") Street at that point. Then I went towards the mountains until I got to Harim ("Hills" or "Mountains") Street and came back that way, pausing to go on one machine at the gym (which was right on the way).

We spend most of our time at home, and, even when we do go out, it's usually just to go into town for something. And sometimes, David doesn't go with me on those errand trips. So, on Shabbat, when I'm always free, we often like to get out of town. In Eilat, that means going somewhere north.

Today, we drove up highway 40 through Makhtesh Ramon, up to and through Mitzpe Ramon, and on to Avdat, where we stopped and ate at the Aroma restaurant there. Then we continue past Sde Boker, through Yerokham, through the Large Makhtesh, on to highway 25, down highway 25 to near the Dead Sea (where it reaches highway 90), and south towards home on highway 90 (through the Arava). It was a nice drive, and it's always good to get out and about.

When I got back, I finally started my mom's blog. "And what is that?" you may ask. I have most of the letters that my mom wrote to her parents during the 1950s. I had already begun entering them into my computer, so I decided to start a blog to which I will post them. So far, I have posted 2 entries: my introduction to the project, including some background about my mom's situation at that time; and the first letter my mom wrote to them, just 2 weeks after she and my dad got married. Click here to check out this new blog, entitled "That 50's Blog -- Lois Ruth's letters to her parents".

13 July 2012

Well, I missed posting here yesterday, mostly because I had a class from 7:30 to 9:00 in the evening, and then I just headed for bed. I should have planned better and posted BEFORE that class.

Yesterday was actually a very light Berlitz day -- I only had 2 classes (both individual students) for a total of 4 units (3 hours). Really, though, it was even shorter than that because the student scheduled for 2:00 - 3:30 never showed up. I had to wait out a full hour at my computer, though. However, I still get paid for 2 units (1.5 hours), so it's fine for me.

I managed to run a few errands that needed to be done yesterday, including visits to the post office, the gas company (to pay our bill), and the pharmacy. Other than that, though, it was a rather slow day.

Today (Friday, 13 July 2012) I woke up early, walked over to the outdoor gym, and had a good workout. It was quite warm out, but there was a good breeze most of the time, so that made it noticeably more comfortable.

I only had one student for 2 units, from 9:00 to 10:30 in the morning. This was a level 3 student that I had not taught before. He was quite good, and so the lesson went well.

I made my regular Friday walk near the middle of the day to buy challah for Shabbat. There is a nice bakery only two and a half short blocks from here. Each week, I buy 2 small challot, which are more than enough for us.

We ate lunch today at Il Pentolino, an Italian restaurant in town. David had mushroom ravioli in a nice cream sauce, and I had tri-color fettucine with a fried vegetable sauce that was VERY delicious!

This afternoon, I wrote the first entry for another new blog that I just started. It's entitled "Israel and its neighbors -- a political review of the week", and I intend to publish it weekly on Friday or Shabbat with links to articles related to the topic that I have discovered during the week. Click here to read it.

11 July 2012

This morning I got up a bit later than usual and only took a somewhat truncated walk. It was again hot with only a slight breeze.

I had a busy Berlitz day today, teaching 10 units (7.5 hours). The lessons all went well.

We ate lunch at home again, having another yam, some Brussel sprouts, and another kind of vegetarian shnitzel.

10 July 2012

This morning it felt even hotter than yesterday morning. I walked to the outdoor gym and worked out a little anyway. Just before I got there, there was a group of soldiers, many of them wearing nothing but their skivvies. When I got to the gym, there were 2 soldiers there (fully dressed in uniform) who were guarding all the other soldiers' things. Shortly, they all came over and gradually began to put their uniforms back on. After that, they all went back across the street, got into their military vehicles, and headed up highway 12, presumably returning to their base up that way. Yes, it was a hot morning!  ;-)

We went to the library in the late morning to take back the 2 books David had borrowed a month ago. He then picked out 2 more to borrow. He also found another one by the same author (Clive Cusler) that was for sale (for 5 shekels). I found something even cooler for sale: a whole 16-volume geographic encyclopedia (in Hebrew, of course) for only 30 shekels!

We ate lunch again at Café Café in the mall. I had a nice Mediterranean salad. It was very good, although it was a little on the salty side because of all the feta cheese and the olives that were in it.

I had only 1 student today, for 2 units (from 2:00 to 3:30).

This evening, we took a drive up to Kibbutz Yotvata (a little of half an hour's drive north of here, in the Arava. David bought a hat that says "Eilat" on it (3 shekels MORE than the similar ones that say "Israel" on them -- that's how much more panache Eilat has, I guess!), and I bought some nice but inexpensive flip-flops (I'm trying to remember to use that term instead of "thongs", which was what we called them when I was a kid but which is now used for something QUITE different!). We also had some delicious ice cream. Mine was fig-flavored. Yum!

A while after we came home from our drive, we took a short walk around the neighborhood. There was a slight breeze some of the time, which was barely enough to keep us from being too hot. I wore only my short pants and my flip-flops (my old ones).

9 July 2012

This morning I took a walk up Nakhal Shakhamon instead of going to the gym. It was quite hot and felt hotter because there was almost no breeze. There was some actual water running further up in the nakhal, but it obviously was NOT natural. I didn't have time to go up and find its source (must have been a leaking water line), however. The water just soaked into the ground before it came down very far. When I got back to town, I stopped by the little park by the tallest buildings to do my stretches, and then I headed home.

I taught 8 units (6 hours) today, and all of that went quite well.

We had a big yam (split between us) and vegetarian shnitzels for lunch today.

This evening, David went for a walk all by himself. But he missed our street on his way back and continued too far on Harim Road. I went out when my lesson was finished and found him without any problem.

8 July 2012

Welcome to my new blog! I plan this to be a sort of online diary, with a little info about my day posted each day.

I worked out at the outdoor gym first thing this morning, something I generally do at least every other day.

I did my usual weekly grocery shopping at the big ShuferSal in town. Today, my 5-shekel coin got stuck in my shopping cart, somethings which has never happened before. When the security guard was also unable to get it out (normally one does this by attaching the cart to another cart), we went to the customer service desk where they gave me 5 shekels so I could go home and let THEM worry about getting the darn coin out!

Today I posted a couple of videos of my hike yesterday in Nakhal Yoash. Click here to check out that post.

We ate lunch today at Café Café in the local mall, one of our favorite places to eat out. David ordered penne in a rosé sauce, but when it came, it was spicy hot and he did NOT like it. We complained to the waiters, and they graciously allowed him to order it with a different sauce and only charged us for one of them. Proper customer service DOES exist here!

I continued my project of entering my mom's letters to her parents in the 1950s. Today, I learned that they finally were to receive the paltry settlement sum of $1000 for her accident, a collision with a tanker truck in the desert in which 2 people (my mom's sister, who was driving, and my dad's first wife) were killed and 2 others (my mom and another woman) were seriously injured (both of my mom's legs were broken, and she spent many months in the hospital). Now you know why insurance is so much more expensive these days compared to then!

Well, I think that's more than enough for today. Some days, I'm sure the posts will be much shorter because of time limitations. See you tomorrow!