During my one year at the University of New Hampshire, my roommate and I made friends with Rebecca Lolicata. She lived 2 doors down from our dorm room and had an infectious laugh and ginormous curly black hair. She had won the Miss Manchester pageant and one of the prizes was a little bit of [...]

As last year, and 2 years before that, there are no festivities planned for my 37th year today. I am noticing a trend and that trend is: I am having no fun in my 30’s. So, I am asking the nanny to babysit Saturday so I can go somewhere and have a cocktail. The year in [...]

I have known my friend Cassandra for over 10 years. She is generous, thoughtful and selfless. She has always made time for me. She’s had barbeques, wine and cheese parties and opened her door to me for the moments that I needed to just GET OUT OF THE HOUSE. She is a fantastically gifted photographer [...]

My employer has been burying me and the rest of my group with more work than we’ve ever had. Really. Ever. They freely admit it. So, busy busy busy. I also bought a sewing machine. Ha! Didn’t see that one coming, did you? I don’t know how to sew so it seemed like the right thing [...]

“Life lists” and “bucket lists” have become very popular these days. I don’t have one. There are a few things I’d like to do and some are still possible (Australia! Motorcycle license!) and a few that have probably faded with youth (Drums! Waterskiing – tried and failed! Over and over and over…) Here are some things [...]

My father came for a Christmas visit and wondered what the weather would be like during his stay. ‘Another beautiful day in Tel Aviv’ is often the joke, as the days all blend into one another with sunny 70 F weather day after day. We have the occassional torrential downpour with sudden stops and starts [...]

Clean the office (so dad has a place to sleep!) Clean the dining room (so we have a place to eat!) Get the empty boxes out of the garage Make 3 beaded ornaments that arrived in the post a month late Amelia’s Christmas Show (at 2 years old!) Elise’s 3 month check-up How many people are coming for Christmas dinner What the [...]

I have a penpal via this project by A Bun Can Dance. Her name is Jus and she lives here in New Zealand. Jealous? I know I am. She sent me a letter and some neat things that I need to take photos of and talk about. I sent her a letter and a couple of [...]

I had to go to the market up the street to buy milk and bread which I was only prompted to do because we are completely out of both and they are universally accepted as bare staple items. The entire trip took 20 minutes. That sucking sound you hear is the air rushing into the [...]

Today is my birthday. I do not share the same magic number as the aforementioned folks, but at 36 I am now officially in my mid-to-late 30’s. There are no planned birthday festivities. I will be flying home with Thing 1 on Friday/Saturday in preparation for Thing 2. My first stop before even getting to [...]

Today is CS’s birthday! Although he can’t participate in any of the usual partays we have at home, we try and make the best of it. We spent a little time this morning at the American Rec Center pool and we had teh place to ourselves. Amelia was very behaved and didn’t even fuss when it [...]

Me: This pregnancy is really making my feet swell. Look at how puffy they are. CS: Doesn’t that just make them more comfortable to walk on? Like puffy marshmallows? …. You’re going to put this on the internet, aren’t you?

Well, Passover is finally finished with and thank Bejebus for that. I have it on good authority that God doesn’t care if you eat bread. Or bacon. In fact, if you are looking for proof of God, look no further than bacon ON bread. Now I can go to the grocery store and rejoice that all [...]

I have some great things coming in the mail, most of them courtesy of my brother. Sometimes it takes a few days for things to get here but sometimes it takes weeks. I can bear the weeks because I eventually forget I have that package coming and it’s like a big present I anonymously sent [...]

We are finally getting some rain in our part of the world. While they desperately need it, I’ve heard it’s supposed to rain right through the weekend and CS is away for work. The Little Dictator isn’t napping and she can’t go outside all weekend, so this ought to be super. We went away to Eilat [...]

Hi all - a little creative business opportunity for anyone who wants it. I need a logo for http://www.mackerelly.com as soon as possible. I’ll be using it on the mackerelly site and as a logo on a family cookbook I’m printing out. I don’t have a bunch of cash, but this is not a beg. I [...]

Moving to a place not entirely of my choosing has brought some interesting personal problems into my life. The language barrier is sometimes frustrating for all parties involved, but I get things done to a certain degree, if not the fastest and most complete way. Hebrew is difficult to learn and I’m finding I cannot [...]

You may have stopped by for the Great Big Life In Israel Update. It’s not written yet, so some other time maybe. However, I do have 3 haikus that were lovingly drunkenly written on bar napkins for me at The Local at our Goodbye Beerfest. I have been carrying them around in my purse for well [...]