Not Anonymous

Okay, Mel, do not freak out.
Tomorrow you're going on your own (with Tami) on Holiday - To England and Ireland.
Your Dream Country.
Calm down, calm, dawn, calm down!

How the hell can I calm down when I'm so excited!

All the places and things that needed booking, are booked.
Now I need to get off my ass and get all the last minute things done.

Okay, Mel, do not freak out.

*squeeeeeeeeee*

*coughcoughcough* Sorry, but my hands are literally shaking and I still don't know what book to bring with to read on the plane!
Fuck I still need to actually pack all the clothes I'm going to bring with me (though that is always left for last minute in this family, I mean I still need to wear clothes, right?).

In addition, the genocide in Darfur must be stopped.

וכמו כן, צריך לעצור את רצח העם בדרפור.

Slowly my bleeding heart is entering the consciousness of my household.

Daddy, of his own volition, mentioned that we should stop drinking coffee at home. I quickly shook my head in the negative, stating that coffee is an essential part of my diet and that my quality of life and of everyone else living with me would suffer. He told me that he read an article about the conditioned of the coffee bean pickers and the how Nestle (among others) was exploiting people in South America, Africa etc.

I mentioned that if he feels bad for the people being exploited in coffee industry we should stop buying chocolate, for the conditions are very similar and I mentioned various other consumer products that are known for exploitation.

He asked seeing as i know so much about it what it is we can do. I mentioned that there are free trade products available in Israel (outside of Tel Aviv) and that they almost the same price as "regular" products and that if he's serious about we can start buying free trade coffee and begin making this household much more Earth Friendly.
Mummy rolled her eyes, but said it wasn't a bas idea.

"Yay" for raising awareness!

In addition, the genocide in Darfur must be stopped.

וכמו כן, צריך לעצור את רצח העם בדרפור.

It's raining in May.
And not even nice cool rain, but warm sweat like rain, that's making everything dusty.
Yeah, Spring is dust storms and dirty rain.
Ugh.
Hopefully the rain will stop by the Rally this evening, if there's one things that puts a damper (heh) on a good civil demonstration, it's unexpected rain.

And you can bet the religious supporters of this *spit* administration, will say that GD is showing his disapproval over the demonstrators.

"There were thunderbolts and lightning, very, very frightening"

In addition, the genocide in Darfur must be stopped.

וכמו כן, צריך לעצור את רצח העם בדרפור.

Edited:
Internet discussions have a way of getting out of hand.
Each side cannot really "hear" what the other is saying so the language has to be very concise and accurate and so often each side comes off quite aggressive and patronising.

In an odd turn of events I found myself defending Israel in a way I never had to before.
It was strange, since I'm not really sure how it came to that since all I did was agree with someone, but that's what you get for forsaking your anonymity on-line.

It really bothers me, it shouldn't since it's just a discussion, but it bothers me that instead of hearing, well reading, what I have to say I'm attacked ad hominem for saying something that the other side doesn't agree on.

It's fine that people don't agree, that's what liberty and freedom of speech is about, disagreeing and, like Voltaire, I will die for that right, but it's not okay to tell someone, who is living in the middle of all the shit that goes on here, that they have no idea what's going on here.
It's a total brush off and disregard to the fact that yes Israelis suffer here too.

The Palestinians have it bad on every single front, yes they do. They're in the shit because of Israel, because of Fatah, because of Hamas, because of many, many reasons.
And yes Israel does horrible things (the Wall, the siege on Gaza, the Settlers in Hebron, the "check points") and they are all humiliating and degrading and dehumanizing.
But Hamas launches quasam rockets on Sderot everyday, children in Palestine are taught not to try and do better than their previous generation, but that their deaths will be glorious.

To those living outside Israel it seems easy, just give back the land and have the borders of 67'. Man do I wish and hope we'll come to that, but the current leaders of the Palestinian Authority aren't interested in those borders, they want more, perhaps all. *shrug* at this point it's moot because the West Bank is scattered with settlements I'd be happy to see gone, because that land really isn't Israel's.

I guess what I'm trying to say is the situation ain't black and white and it's not west vs. east and it's not Muslims vs. Jews.
It's about two entities with a river of blood between them and the fact that in a discussion where I said everybody suffered I was told that I don't understand the conflict I've been living in my entire life.

I was very sad to realise that the people abroad with whom I should be aligned with politically, feel I have nothing to offer in a discussion of that kind simply because I showed a different perspective.
But then again it's as the saying goes: "Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do".
You go in a certain direction for too long and you'll eventually get to the other side.

Also those of who don't know the The Euston Manifesto should read it ASAP. To quote it: "It is vitally important for the future of progressive politics that people of liberal, egalitarian and internationalist outlook should now speak clearly."

Purim and the lunar eclipse got me thinking... again!

I've said this before, but I think it's wroth mentioning, but one of the beautiful things about Judaism is the fact that it is a living religion and that it is based on questioning authority and interpreting things in your own view.
Of course this is the ideal and not the way it actually is, a shame, in my humble opinion. ( A little long, so cut for your convenience )

I was walking home from the bus station and got drenched with rain.
I looked up and the rain went into my eyes, nose, mouth, everywhere.
It ruined my spiked and the puddles wet my socks, but I felt good, really good.
I dunno, I think I was thinking about yesterday's post.

It was beautiful and I felt beautiful as I got drenched.

Went to the Irish Festival in Tel Aviv today as the venue to Shira's birthday party, it was very nice, we were a bunch of people sitting in the Cinemateque listening to the Reels and the Jigs and there were people drinking Murphy's all around. Personally, if I'm drinking stout, I prefer Guiness, but since I'm not much of a beer drinker and it being Festival time they were charging expensively so I stuck with the coffee.

After we had a little laugh we went out for lunch at a restaurants near by, unfortunately I didn't notice how slippery the marble floor was on the outside of the Cinemateque and as I went down the stairs small stairs of the entrance to the Cinema I had a real slapstick moment of falling on my ass abd then bouncing down the rest of stairs while I sat there in shock while my umbrella was still in my hand over my head.

I'm giggling as I write this... it was really funny :)

So while I could see that my friends were both worries and trying really hard not to laugh at the expense of my pain, I got up and my with a sore ass and back managed to start walking towards the restaurants and I promptly start giggling at the fact that I fell on my ass in the rain.

I'm really surprised that I laughed, because a few years ago I would have been really upset at falling and being laughed at, now it was like, hey it's just a case of something sad happening to me that would have been funny if it wasn't me, so why not laugh about the fact that I did something ridiculous.

We then went to have some Japanese food and we sat there for about four hours, GD so much talking and food.
And I'm probably meeting some of them later this evening.

All in all a very nice day, not to mention that all my from the old Desktop is now comfortably of Frida thanks to Robbie :)

And I have to drive in this downpour in order to pick up Mummy from the airport.

I'm really happy she's home, I swear, every time she goes I forget how hard she works, because I take over the majority of the chores she does, like the washing, ugh, I hate doing the washing.
It sucks.

But now she's home and we'll be able to watch TV together and spend some time telling me about the Babies she visited in the States. Plus, ya know, prezzies :).

I hope I did everything okay while she was gone, apparently I was very bossy towards Daddy and Robbie over the week Mmummy was away and was pretty bad tempered too.
I don't really mean to, but sometimes they're so annoying!

But oh well, it's a new year tomorrow, which really carries little significance other than a change in the dates, but maybe I'll mellow out this year.

Maybe.

How much I enjoy Israeli winter which in the centre of the country is quite mild, but full storms that can have quite heavy rain, hail, thunder and lightning.

There are no actual seasons in this area, it's mostly hot, hotter, hot like hell, less hellish, warm, cool, a little cold, cook again, hot and that's the way the year looks to me, especially since I spent a real winter (with snow and sub-zero weather) in America, it's very pleasant to have your home in a tempered weather, though it can be little silly at times.
Like today, it was quite warm, with the clouds a little dense, you could smell the rain coming, but it just started raining now and I can hear the pitter-patter of drops outside the window and it's going really well with my chick music mix I'm listening to right now.
Nothing like a little melancholy to give you a little boost of good cheer.

I don't know if saying that I'm feeling better than I did yesterday means I'm actually feeling better or if I'm just trying to pull myself out of the little hole I'm keeping myself in.

Chicken and egg I suppose.

Enjoy the rain.

BTW I'm sitting in a tank top and jeans while the rain outside is getting stronger an stronger, any minute now there will be a crash of thunder and the power will probably blow again.

I'm so stuffed!

Just had lunch which was leftovers from last night, GD Rosh Ha'Shana is one heavy meal after another, it's just endless amounts of food, and not the healthy kind; it's mainly brisket, potatoes, kreplach, lots and lots of starch!

All the weight I've lost in the past year... gonna gain it again over the next month, don't you just love the High Holidays :)