Chanukah Tunes

I don't know about you, but for me, Chanukah always brings with it those melodies that evoke memories of past and present. You know the like- like the golden oldies your grandparents sang (the old tune of Maoz Tzur, for example) to the hip hop rock the newest CD's transform Al Hanissim into.

There's the classic 'Sivvivon, Sov Sov Sov' or the 'I had a little dreidel...'. There's 'Chanukah (or Hannukah, depending on your generation and ideology) Oh Chanukah', and the english Maoz Tzur- Rock of Ages.

Somehow, my family can never get a proper tune going for Haneiros Hallalu- no matter which one we try, someone ends up forgetting it in the middle, and by the end, we're making up our own tunes.

And, it's a total blast to watch NBD on Mr. NMF's shoulders as he dances to 'Yevanim, Yevanim Nikb'tzu Alay...'. My family is joining us for this holiday, and it's a pleasure to hear my father and my husband join their voices together in these wonderful tunes.

I heard that Maoz Tzur is a German folk tune, also used by the Protestant church.
Well, in any case, it's been rumored that R' Moshe Feinstein had his own tune for it, since he didn't want to use a non-Jewish tune for this special song. It didn't really catch on though. Anyone know it?

Well, I'm back to frying latkes. Here's a link for the continuing verses of "I had a little dreidel." My favorites were:

'I have a little dreidel, I made it out of pasta; it got all tangled in my hair, and now they call me 'rasta''

'I have a little dreidle, I made it out of pot, and when it started spinning, I just sat and stared at it a lot. '

'I have a little dreidel, I made it out of shmaltz; it don't make healthy eatin' but, that dreidel sure can waltz !'

'I made a little dreidel in virtual reality. If you wear the right headgear, it's there for you to see.'

'I had a little dreidel, I made it out of clay; said a Kabbalistic blessing, and it got up and walked away.'

Season of Strawberries and Sufganiyot

Mmm- Chanukah is in the very air- as all the bakeries are churning out sufganiyot by the dozens, menorahs grace the store walls, and everyone is debating about boxes versus lighting indoors. I love this season- complete with rainfall, umbrellas, and cups of steaming hot chocolate.

This season also has brought with it a new fruit- strawberries. I saw these in my local grocery last week, and was highly tempted. But, then I remembered that strawberries were found out to be infested with thrips. Were they still infested? I wasn't sure.

Then, Yechiel Spero posted that he asked R' Moshe Vaye about strawberries, and found out that they were still infested and impossible to clean. Guess it's the frozen strawberries for me.

Here's an interesting site he linked to- all about thrips and strawberries. I'll include the short preview of the video, which shows thrips- which I had never seen before- which was kind of cool (And the kids in the background are cute!).
Enjoy!


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Gichon Nightmare Part Three

So, here's the final installment- slightly anticlimactic, but some interesting things happened along the way.

To recap, I headed out to meet my Israeli neighbor in Geulah area, and from there, we would take a bus to the water company in order to sort out our various problems.

I left my house, on time, but rather late in the day- at around 4:30. The Gichon actually closes at 6:00, but I remembered from an earlier visit there that the place is still functioning, even at late hours.

I met my friend, and by the time we actually met up, it was around 5:00. We started to get nervous. After all, to take a cab would cost money, but we would probably make it on time. If we waited for a bus, we might not make it on time, but we would save money.

We started to search for a cab, but the only ones without passengers had no company sign on them. Now, I have my own policy not to take a cab without a sign, because it is possible they are an Arab- and as 2 women alone, I wouldn't want to take a taxi who wasn't Jewish. That's just my personal position on the matter.

As we were searching on the street corner, a bus with a number I recognized pulled up.

"Quick, " I yelled to my friend, "Let's get on this bus. It heads to the Gichon."

We jumped on the bus, and barely made it. And, immediately, I started to worry.
What if we didn't get there on time- all the effort for nothing.

As if the bus heard me- we had Kvitzas HaDerech- a miraculous shortening of the way. We sped through traffic, hit every single green light, and picked up minimal passengers- so by the time we got to the Gichon, it was only 5:10. Miraculous, no?

We headed inside, past the beautiful waterfall sculpture, and up to the top floor to take a number and wait.

There was practically no one there- and I started to get nervous. What if we were the only ones there, and they would close, because two people aren't enough to justify being open?
Just then, 3 families, complete with kids, walked through the door, and started taking the numbers after ours.

I went to go feed NBD, while my neighbor waited for the next available person.
When I returned, she was at the desk, and I waited patiently next to her for her case to be concluded, assuming the same person would take care of both of us.

Just then, the head of the entire office looked around, and saw me waiting.
"Come," he said, "I'll take care of you personally." When I protested that I don't know Hebrew well enough- that's why I brought along my friend- he answered with a smile. "I speak all languages- Kol Safot."

Within minutes, he understood the gist of my problem, and told me I didn't have to pay a thing- it was all a mistake. He typed the entire problem up, recorded it, stamped t, and asked me to not pay a thing until an updated and correct bill came.

I couldn't stop thanking him- he shrugged it all off. "This is my job," he said. "I'm happy to help."
I went to go check on my friend- who wasn't so lucky. She failed to negotiate a plan, and decided to come back another day.

I pointed her to the head of the office who had helped me: Efraim, and recommended she should go to him when she would come back. She agreed.

We left- and thus ends my adventure with the Gichon. Bus ride home took a nice half hour, showing that Hashem was doing miracles for me all along. After all- we only have to open our eyes to see, that everything- especially the wonderful rainfall we've been getting lately- is all from Hashem.

Gichon Nightmare Part Two

So, I'm sure you are all eagerly awaiting this next installment (I mean, who wouldn't want to know about my water problems?! :D) of the Gichon Saga. Here goes:

I called up my Israeli-American friend, and asked her what she recommended to do about my 1,450 shekel bill for 10 days of water usage. (Gulp.)

Considering that an average bill is anywhere from 90-200 shekel for 2 months, that bill was way over my head. She mentioned to me that she had a problem with her water meter as well.

You see, my wonderful friend has 7 children. And, she is Israeli-American, and uses water, well, if not frugally, but not wastefully. She had recently moved into her brand new apartment 5 years ago, and was pleased as punch. (Anyone knows where that expression comes from?)

Yet one day, this year, she got hit with a gigantic (much more gigantic than mine) bill from the Gichon, with no explanation.

She called them up, and they told her this story. You see, when the apartment was built 5 years ago, her water meter number and her neighbor's water meter number, got mixed up. So for 5 years, her neighbor has been paying her water bill, and she's been paying her neighbors. When one month, the neighbor's (that's really my friend's bill) got too high, the neighbor called up the Gichon. And, the Gichon investigated, and found out about the switcheroo.

So, they were billing my friend for 5 years of extra payments. In one lump sum. Gulp is right.

She offered to me to join me in my trip to the Gichon, to not only help me out with explaining my problem, but to try to work out some sort of payment plan for the money she owes them as well.

We agreed to go in the late afternoon, as the Gichon is open at 6.

To be continued....

Gichon Nightmare Part One

Excitedly, I pulled out from my mailbox my first ever Gichon (water company) bill, with my name on it, in our new apartment.

I saved the special news for my husband, and greeted him with it at the door.

"Open it", I cried, waiting for the news about how much water cost us this month.

He peeled open the familiar blue and green envelope, interestingly made like all Israeli envelopes are, and looked at the name.

So far, so good- it was my name. That's thanks to heading all the way down to the Gichon offices in order to switch the name on the bill to our name, as we moved into our new apartment.

Then came the actual amount.

Let's be nice. I don't use that much water in 6 months, let alone in 10 days. And, with that wonderful old water tax added on for Machir 3 (The water in Israel is billed in a specific way. I will try to explain in another post.) we were in interplanetary orbit with the sum listed on our bill.

It must be some mistake. I was in shock. Husband was too. At this rate- oil, and for that matter, silver, would be less expensive than water.

We resolved, first thing, to call the water company the next morning, and try to resolve the bill.

Well, after 45 minutes of waiting on the phone line, I finally got them to admit it was a mistake.

After all, how could a young couple, with one child, use 40 cubes of water in 10 days! (See how severe that bill was!)

Now, I have to head down there and prove that it was a mistake.

Wish me luck- I'll keep you updated on this saga.

Bird Sighting

It was a magical moment.

We had just finished Shabbos lunch, and contrary to my usual plan of heading straight into my bed and not coming out till it was time to make Shalosh Seudah, I decided that the whole family could do for a walk.

So we headed out, and walked down our block, Mr. NMF pushing the stroller with NBD inside. Our block is covered with olive and pomegranate trees, and we amused ourselves by pointing out the various new and old foliage all around us.

We walked into a pretty block, with shade and gorgeous flowers, when I stopped short.

"Is that a hummingbird?" I said. "I've never seen a real hummingbird outside of the zoo before."

There in front of us, flitting around, was a gorgeous iridescent hummingbird, with blue and green plumage, trying to suck out nectar from some pink flowers.

A compatriot, in dark colors of brown and black, joined him, and we just stood there mesmerized, watching the two of them flit back and forth. It was a sight to see.

What a perfect Shabbos afternoon.

Skipping Stones

This Thursday night, I was getting supper on the table, when my husband called me over. "NBD is crawling," he said with a smile. I ignored him, as she couldn't possibly be crawling. She's been getting all over the house lately in many other ways, but according to her doctor, since she's been standing for a while already, it was more probable that she would walk before she crawled.

But Friday, NBD proved me wrong, as she crawled towards the garbage can as I was making Shabbos, pulled herself up, and started to pick out yummy things to eat from it.

I didn't know whether to just stand there laughing, or get her out of the dustbin before she ate something nasty.

I called my grandmother, hoping to share the news. She was happy for us- but spent her conversation reminiscing.

"They grow up so fast, " she said. "This is the best time of your life- enjoying the babyhood and toddlerhood of your kids. Take advantage, don't miss a minute. Every milestone, every step, it's something that kids do, and just as they don't miss it, you shouldn't either. Rejoice with every stone met, and cherish every second. Because all too quickly they're all grown up."

It's true, you know. The time flies so fast- she was a newborn so recently. Looking at her, makes me feel old, because she's achieved so much in such a short period of time.

It's like that with all of our lives. When we are little, we can't wait to be big. When we're big, we can't wait to be grown up. When we're grown up, we can't wait to get married. When we get married, we want to start a family.

All these milestones, they pass us by so quickly. I guess like all of us, I have to learn to step back, and really watch for them, and enjoy them. Because like my grandmother said, all too quickly, she'll be grown up, and those stones will have flown by, as quick as skipping rocks on a pond.

Rewind and Review

I thought today might be a nice day to review some of my really old post from way back when. After all- BOSD is celebrating her 1st birthday- go on over and wish her a mazel tov- so I figured that I'll bring up some lost treasures that my readers (if I still have readers, given how sporadically I've been posting lately) might enjoy.

Creepy Crawlies- What to do when your food starts looking back at you, Israel style.

Go Fight Egged- How the bus company has taken over the world, literally.

Sundays- That day of the week that has taken on new meaning in the Holy Land.

Hechsherim- I'm a religious fanatic (just kidding), and as such, I have a stamp on my product saying so.

Shabbos and Neighborhoods- Kind of like Mr. Rogers, just he's American and I'm Israeli.

Tis The Season- A bit of a Chanukah backtrack- after all, it is the season now yet again!!

Hope you enjoy!

Arrgh. Y'Hiyeh B'Seder

Man. I wish there was an American equivalent of Y'hiyeh B'Seder. Because, heavens above, we need it. I mean, is there a colloquial English word or words that express that utter nonchalance and relaxation that Israelis exude when saying those words?

It's like nothing can ever go wrong, ever. I mean- it'll all be okay. Always okay, all the time. That should be the new Israeli radio station. "Always Okay, all the time. Y'hiyeh B'Seder."

"Geveret, no worry. It will be there on time, y'hiyeh b'seder."
"Geveret, no worry. The bomb shelter is only four blocks away. Y'hiyeh B'Seder."
"Geveret, Y'hiyeh B'Seder. I know that there is a nuclear missile heading towards us, but no worry. We will be fine."

Just today I had a contractor- who I've called an estimation of about 300 times- that's a rough estimation, not an exaggeration, and told about my deadline- November 30th- say to me, "Don't worry Geveret. Y'hiyeh B'Seder. All will be done before Chanukah."

When informed that Chanukah comes after November 30th, I got a "Don't worry. Y'hiyeh B'Seder."

Traffic? Y'hiyeh B'Seder. Terrorist attacks? Same response. How about international relations? "They all crazy. Y'hiyeh B'Seder."

I'm telling you- either I'm nuts, or they are. But one thing's for sure. Not everything is Y'hiyeh B'Seder.

OII #19- Of Bus Drivers and Brissim

So, this past Friday, I had the privilege of attending a very good friend of mine's son's bris. She lives in my neighborhood, but the bris took place in the center of town, the better to accommodate her relatives that were arriving from all over Israel.

As required, I prepared Shabbos ahead of time, and left my house to take the bus to the center of town to make it in time for the bris. The simcha was lovely, the joy heartfelt, and the main participant wailed his way into the covenant of Avraham Avinu.

I waited till a neighbor was ready to leave as well, and we walked to what we thought was the correct bus stop. After watching our bus pass us by, we realized that with all the changes Egged has instituted, changing the route and stops of our bus was one of them, and we walked to the next bus stop to wait yet again.

We hopped on the bus, and it started heading towards Geulah area. Now for those who know, Geulah on Erev Shabbos is one of those places that can literally be called a madhouse. People are dashing everywhere, cars are honking, buses are swerving...in essence, I was glad I was on a bus already rather than being outside.

So we headed towards Yechezekel, and passed by the edge of Nechama Bakery. We were stuck in literally bumper to bumper traffic. Our bus driver stops, opens his window, and yells out to a worker standing outside the bakery. Quicker than our eyes can see, the guy runs into the bakery, pulls out an already wrapped challah, and runs across the traffic to give the challah to our bus driver. The driver counts out the correct payment, hands it to the bakery worker, and resumes driving (that is, if you can call traffic driving). All this so our bus driver and his family can have challah for Shabbos.

Now how's that for Only In Israel!