December 12,2019
where to begin? every day is a revolution. in politics, in the social world -from the highest positions to the lowest. people can lose their positions in a moment and never manage to return.. I'm just a poor wayfaring stranger just traveling through this world of woe. i keep hearing that line in my head.
but i am pleased to find my husband responding with sanity to all these critical situations we confront daily. and was pleased to sneak away from the world to the movie, the good liar
half an hour of ads punctuated by trailers before the movie started at 10 p.m. No wonder the theater was half empty. who can bear the stupid ads at volume 11? And there were so many holes in the plot, so much hasty editing. But lies are the very substance of our conversation today, and identity is critically fragile. As we left the theater, the announcement came on the radio that the knesset voted to dismiss itself.
December 12, 2019
My first venture out today was to pick up my arches in the hi-tech district of Ramat Hahayal this afternoon. Last time i went there it was a Friday morning and the roads were empty and my waze directed me perfectly. But today was incredibly crowded and my waze suddenly conked out. i drove around and around in traffic jams until i decided to park a few blocks away and walk. As I walked in, the door was slammed shut by a sudden storm, and i finished my appointment in the middle of it. it turns out my jackets and my shoes are not waterproof and i didn't have a hood much less an umbrella. so i stood at the traffic light with the rain drenching me to the skin. And then i had to remember exactly where my car was. i was right, but i was on the wrong floor in the parking garage because the way i exited was an exit only so i had to go down a different way and got vertically disoriented. that meant by the time i got to my car i had been soaked for almost an hour.. Now it is time to dry off and watch the news.
But there is a problem. The rain screws up our tv service and we are left with pff and pn views of Bibi, the history of his corruption, and the willingness to forgive it in the face of his achievements
December 13, 2019
I may have put this up before but i suddenly remembered it and felt a bit of longing.
not that things have gotten worse. Today we listen to a former newscaster - Alon Ben David - explain the situation in Israel as one of quiet between wars. right now we're holding our own, he said, and we're not going to get wiped out by rockets - even if they fall. what a strange thing - to be happy about not getting wiped out in the near future.
This fascinating lecture followed that of the financial advisor who noted that we're really doing well financially in this country (even though many people don't earn enough to live on)The hall hosted at least 350 people, and everyone left with something of a smile.
I'm not sure we've got much else besides a sense of humor and an ability to adapt to what we think is going to happen. Look at the chapter of the week, for example. genesis 32. Jacob hears the brother he has screwed out of his father's blessing is coming with 400 men so he does all kinds of things to protect himself. And Esau turns out to be a better man then he expected and just hugs him. Who's the better brother? And how does this fit in with the way we're treating the population of Gaza?
Definding nothingcember 14, 2019
Okay, I became obsessed. it's true. i wanted to know more about Leib Rubinlicht who left a fund for a prize for other writers. There seemed to be nothing online but i kept looking. And then an entire book appeared in yiddish and i looked through it. and i began translating. Here's a draft:
Snow in Auschwitz
Last night a downy snow fell
And covered the site with a veil of white
Through the barred barrack windows
We stare at its whiteness by the glare of the fire
The Auschwitz chimneys spew out their flames
To faraway heavens in the quiet of night
The red and snow-white colors mingle together
And shimmer in the pastoral symphonic cover.
Now the symphony from that wintery night,
When flames from the crematorium united
With heaven-sent white snowy glory —
Making Ashmedai ponder adding to the agony.
I may be wrong, especially about the last line, and i can't rhyme the second and fourth line in the verses, but it seems incredibly powerful to me. As if I owe it to him and his audience,
December 15, 2019
Do you know how the Labor party in England has changed for me? I was sad at Corbyn's defeat, and sad for the reasons. when i was born the Jewish Labor party congratulated my parents, who were - evidently - hard workers for the party.
Here's the letter.: