| I know it's been a while and I'm sorry and I don't even have an excuse cause I've been on strike. Lots has happened so here are some highlights:
AVENUE Q!!!!! It was sooo amazing! It was really professional and even better than the Broadway stuff on YouTube. I guess I'm more Israeli than American 'cause I thought the Israeli version of most of it was funnier.
Tiyul shnati to the Judean desert. I had a really good time even though I'd done everything we did before. The first day we went through the water tunnels in Jerusalem. It was really fun cause we sang the whole way. Hanukka songs, hassidic songs, israeli music - everything. (I was very hoarse by the time we came home) Another memorable maslul was Masada which we did on the third day. We also went into the ma'ayan at Ein Bokek which was really fun and hilarious. My teacher stripped down to pants and a t-shirt and shoved us all in the water before diving in herself and water wrestling with everyone. Another memorable event was watching both Ice Ages on the bus home. I was in such a wacky mood that EVERYTHING was funny, even the jokes that weren't THAT funny. I was also hoarse which made my cackle a bit more freaky sounding than usual.
My teacher gave us this really great shiur chinuch for hanukka. We turned out all the lights and put black posters on the windows. We all sat on the floor with candles and each person had to tell something good about life before lighting the next persons candle. There were things people said that were so amazing and by the end most of us were crying. Now I'm not always into those kinds of things but there was something so real and not kitchy at all about the things that people said that it turned out really amazing.
(now this is where I get into long philisophical ramblings..............)
I've just been thinking about life and us and people in general and it just kind of came to me recently how amazing it all is. Humans, people, the things we do and the things we have done and can do and the unbelievable nature of life. How everything's always changing and how we have the ability to learn from our mistakes and our experiences and how much capacity for emotion and thought and creativity we have. How unbelievable technology is, music, literature, science, and amazingly enough - math. How brilliant humans are and how much potential we have.
And equally how sad it is that there are people who don't take advantage of the fact that they were born with such amazing abilities, who take such things for granted. We are all such...such... humans but that's so special. We can think, understand, FEEL and it's all so much and we just don't see it sometimes but it's true. And we hurt and we cry and we get up and we move on and we create and we lead and follow but we ARE and we try to be the best we can be and that's the most amazing thing of all.
And you look at all this and you wonder what an amazing entity G-d must be in order to create all this. How mind blowing WE are how much more so must He be????
I love my G-d so much, and my people and my land and my country and all of life in general, and there's so much love in me and in everyone in general that sometimes I'm surprised that I can breathe.
Here ends the crazy ramblings of a fifteen year old.
Rose | comments: 4 comments or Leave a comment   |
| Hey guys!
Wow, life's been busy. Good, but busy. I made it through my first five yechidot math class, and finished all the homework. *yay*
I just thought that today should get special mention because it's August thirty first, 2007, exactly ten years after Princess Diana's death. Here's an interesting documentary on Diana run by the NBC a few years ago:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZhU2eS-bg4&mode=related&search=
Of course there are two sides to every story, but I found this very interesting.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rose | | comments: Leave a comment |
| | Tags: | school | | Time: | 05:25 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/ecstatic.gif) sebaba |
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| So I was at Vivi's for shabbas which was reeeeeaaaaally fun especially cause I haven't seen her in a while. On motzash her parents drove us into Modi'in where we saw The Simpsons Movie which was sooooooooo funny! Naomi and Ariela kept on calling me in the middle of the movie which made everyone else pull out their knives and pitchforks. *headesk*
Sunady I woke up early with Vivi (cause she had school), took the bus to J-lem with her and then a bus home. Went out to lunch with my familly, including Jake who got out last minute from the army.
On Monday I went shopping with Dee for wedding clothes. Spent three and a half hours going back and forth between stores, on Hertzel and in the mall.
I was exhausted by the end, and I had a headache but now that I've seen how gorgeous she looks it was all worth it.
My whole life I've never been able to fall asleep the night before the first day of school. Monday night I was exhausted from lack of sleep and shopping but even that wouldn't help. So I asked my Mother for something to knock me out...and I actually slept on the night before the first day of school for the first time in my life!!!
(this is very exciting)
So first day of school was interesting. I had a great time seeing everybody, including some of my really close friends that I haven't seen all summer. I love the atmosphere.
It was comforting to know that I wasn't the only one in denial about being a tenth grader. In fact, my entire class is. We are not in tenth grade and That-Scary-Word that we all refuse to say is now to only be reffered to as The B Word.
Speaking of The B Word, I just found out that I'm taking 05 this year. I was shocked. I thought that at least this year I wouldn't be tortured with Math but I guess I was wrong. :(
Anyway I've got some really great teachers, but my hours suck. Three hours of math first thing Monday morning, Monday also being our longest day.
*headesk*
It's gonna be an interesting year.
Love ya,
Rose | | comments: 1 comment or Leave a comment |
| So last Saturday night I went over to Shareen's to watch a movie with her. It turned out to be a really freaky traumatizing movie (Stepford Wives) that left me quite disturbed.
Afterwards two of her friend's from Beit Shemesh came over and we all went out to Aroma where we stayed for at least three hours the last hour of which we were joined by Ariela who had just got off the train from Ra'anana.
Got home at two thirty to find my twenty three year old brother playing my nine year old brother's computer game. *headesk*
Woke up early the next morning to go up north with my Mother, Yoni and my Savta. Had a very good time just hanging out. The first thing we dd when we setlled in was go out hunting for something to eat. We went to this really good steak house burried in some hole in the mountains where I had the best steak of my life, and got a second degree burn on the tip of my finger from the steak plate.
After dinner, we went to this lake that my Savta remembered from thirty years ago. It was really very beautiful.
The next morning we went to Tel Dan, the most beautiful place on earth in my opinion. My savta walked to the end of the wooden boardwalk before turning back but Yoni and I continued until the pool at the end, which was gloriously freezing!
Afterwards we went to Na'ot Mordechai where we bought shoes before going back to the hotel and spending the afternoon in the pool before going out to a different steak house.
That night I watched 'Fame' for the first time. I remember not liking it while I was watching it but looking back on it, it really is an extremely well made movie. I guess I was disappointed because it didn't have that much dancing and it was pretty boring...
The next morning we drive home, only stopping to buy liquor from kibbutz Amiad.
IMPACT Graduation was on Thursday, and even though I had a great time I'm glad it's over. It was a long proccess but I had the best time.
Love ya!
Rose | | comments: 3 comments or Leave a comment |
| Two weeks ago on Thursday I went to Superland with Yoni and my parents. It was my first time there and I'm pleased to say I had a very good time. I rode the swings six times because I loved them so much. Though not as fun as the ones in Kennywood they were enjoyable. Yoni is the biggest scardy-cat ever and I had to fight tooth and nail to get him on the swings, and as it was it was the only ride he went on that was for kids over the age of three.
Anyway after I finally convinced him to get on (after promising to watch him play a whole soccer game on Fifa) he loved it and went on another FOUR times and would've gone on more but we had to leave.
I dragged my Dad to the smaller coaster which was very fun. It had a couple of good drops and a small loop, but the highlight of the day was going on the HUGE new coaster:"The Kumba". (yeah dumb name, I know)
The Kumba is one of those rollercoasters that you sit with your feet dangling. It was sooooooo fast and seemed to be made up only of on-stop corkscrews, drops, and loops. My poor Dad had to go through all of this with me but he was very amusing. The coaster begins with this huge uphill climb and right as we reached the top, before this huge record breaking drop, where you can see all the trrifying things they're gonna do to you, my Dad goes "Oh, this isn't so bad."
Then, as we were going through the corkscrews and you felt as if you're stomach was gonna come outta you're ears he says "Do you think it's too late to back out now?"
I love my Daddy.
Anyway, that evening we had a cookout on the beach which was very fun, even though I think they're gonna give me a fine for taking half the beach home with me in my bathing suit... ;)
The past two weeks I've been dealing with IMPACT. I still feel like I'm not doing enough, and sometimes I feel like I make really stupid mistakes that my other staff members have to cover up for, but every time I leave I feel like I'm doing something important, something special, so I guess that makes up for it.
I went to see Hairspray the other night with Ariela and Tammy. Had a very good time even though I may need to see a therapist for the rest of my life in order to get over the trauma of seeing John travolta in a dress. ;)
Love ya!
Rose
P.S
Tammy - James Marsden, who played Corny Collins, played Glenn Foy from Ally McBeal! But you probably knew that already... I probably recognized him from The Notebook rather than Ally McBeal but now that you mentioned it it's definitely coming back... | | comments: 1 comment or Leave a comment |
| | Current Music: | Breathe by Michelle Branch | | Time: | 11:07 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/hyper.gif) sebaba |
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| Wow, I'm getting realy good at this whole updating thing. Someone should buy me a present.
*sees skeptical looks* O-o-or not....
So lots and lots has hapenned. Last Thursday my parents, Jake, Yoni, and I drove to Jerusalem. We went to the old city where we just kinda wandered around. We had no destination in mind and there were times we had no idea where we were but we knew enough between us all about enough places that we were our own tour guides (that's what happens when you have so many history nerds in one family). We hapenned to end up at the Kotel, but it was too crowded to get near so we just watched some very cool Bar-Mitzvas.
We then walked up to the upper city where we went to the burnt house (where I cried like a moron at the computerized image of the burning Temple) followed by a nice lunch.
We piled back in the car and drove to the Biblical zoo which was awesome. It was very pleasantly shaded though that didn't help that much with the sweltering heat. Afterwards my parents drove Jake and I to the IMPACT graduation where I helped Abi with assisting (which turned out to be good 'cause she was feeling pretty crappy).
On motsei shabbat I went to see the fifth Harry Potter. Wasn't that excited at the beginning but once I got there I kinda got into things. Must admit they did a GREAT job with the movie. The main actors' acting was crap as usual but the directing was phoenomenal and the other actors did a fantastic job.
Got home at around quarter to one Saturday night and my Mom tells me that we're going away for two days up north. We were originally supposed to be away all of this week but I had IMPACT so my parents cancelled our reservations. But since my Dad was off work anyway we decided... sorry, THEY decided to go away for Sunday-Monday and drop me off at ElHalev Tel Aviv for IMPACT on Monday afternoon.
So Sunday we drove up north. Stopped at Ma'ayan Harod where we walked up to the mini museum at the top of this mountain. Museum was closed. Crap.
The heat was unbelievable so we drove to the anciet synagogue at Bet Alpha which was all indoors. Afterwards we went to the Australian park where we ate before walking around. We saw quala bears sleeping (which they do for something like twenty hours a day) and actually got to pet kangaroos! It was soooooooooo awesome!
Afterwards we went to the Youth Hostel where we were staying and went swimming! :) For dinner we went to this really good meat resturaunt where we stuffed our faces. :)
The next morning my Dad and I did all of the ruins of Bet Sha'an (because I'd never seen them before) while my Mom and Yoni went swimming. Eventually we joined them because we were drenched with sweat because the scorching heat hadn't given in yet.
We had lunch at McDonalds (first time in my life!) before driving back to Tel Aviv to drop me off at IMPACT. We got there an hour and a half early but that was okay because I had stuff to do. I walked to the Azrieli (also first time ever!) to buy masking tape and a bottle of water for IMPACT. I also finished "The Gift of Asher Lev" on a bench there before walking back to El Halev to copy some documentation before the staff meeting.
First class went really well. I felt as though I didn't DO enough though. I'm used to having to run around non-stop as an assistant and this time I didn't have to which made me think that I wasn't doing something I was supposed to be doing... :/
There. That was a nice long post, no?
Love ya!
Rose | | comments: 10 comments or Leave a comment |
| P/N: NO, I repeat NO spoilers for HP.
It was nice to read Ariela's post and realize that I'm not the only one suffering from Nine Days withdrawl syndrome. I'd like to say that I hate the nine days but I realized something this year: I was sitting next to my sister on the floor at shul and all of the sudden I remembered on which floor I'd sat next to her last year. We were at my cousin's shul because we missed an orthodox enviorment and he's our only observant cousin. I remember feeling incredibly homesick having been away for a month. I remember that the Rabbi gave a very moving talk about the war, and I remember two girls sitting next to us talking and giggling during Eicha. It made me really appreciate Israel even more than before, and yearn for the time when our connection with G-d will be renewed and all of us can appreciate Israel together.
On a happier note, I spent the day with my family (never thought I'd be saying that). Me, my parents, Yoni, Jake and my Savta went to see Shrek 3 in the theater. I'd already seen it (illegally ;).) but it was still fun with the whole family. Then we went out to lunch and then I ran off to volunteer.
When I was done my parents, Jake, and Yoni picked my up and we went to the beach where we had a cook-out. Jake and I missed karate but seeing as Ella was the only one who came to class Sensei (Jill) took her and drove to the beach where Ella, Sensei, Jake, and I did kata in the ocean. It's hard doing a jump-kick in the water.... ;)
So now I'm home, exhausted yet happy.
Love ya!
Rose
P.S
I finished HP on Sunday night. I cried like a dork for the last four chapters. But I must admit that it was a work of genius. | | comments: 3 comments or Leave a comment |
| My whole life is about to change.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is lying on my bed. I didn't order it. I wasn't even planning to read it anytime soon. But Jake was in the mall, saw the book in the window, knew that I'd love to read it, and bought it for me.
My brother can be really thoughtful sometimes.
Okay, so my whole life isn't about to change. Maybe just a chunk of it. I'm about to finish a journey I started eight and a half years ago...
When I was seven my cousins sent me a chanukah gift: the first three books in a series I'd never heard of before. They had enjoyed them immensley and thought that I would as well.
My parents read them to me at first. I remember nights I would beg them for just one more chapter and they would read it to me because even though their eyes were closing after a long day they were also caught up in the magical world of Harry Potter.
It was a good year or so before people really started talking about it. They would ask me if I've heard about this series and would go on about how wonderful it was and I felt like saying "Well I read it first."
By the time the fourth one came out Harry Potter was no longer the special personal series I'd shared with my parents all those cozy sleepless nights. It seemed like the longest wait of my life. But still, I felt better when my Mom brought it into the house and began reading the first chapter to me.
We finished it together my Mom and me. But by the time the fifth one was out it was already years later and I'd changed, gotten older. The fifth one was the first Harry Potter book I read on my own.
So the years have gone by, and even though I try to convince myself that Harry Potter is not that integrated in my life, I don't even reread them as much as I used to. But when I think about my addiction to (high quality) fanfiction and how many hours in the past three years I've spent on Ashwinder (believe me, you don't want to know), it occurs to me that I am just as caught up in her net as anyone else. Her world was rich enough and special enough for me to spend many hours in my day immersed in it.
And now it's going to be over. | | comments: 10 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Tags: | patch adams | | Current Music: | NONE! *sniff* | | Time: | 02:07 pm | | Current Mood: | chipper |
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| This following post is dedicated to Abi C. Levite.
I just watched Patch Adams! I'm pretty sure I've seen it before but there were big parts of it I didn't remember and it was so pretty!!!
That's really all I have to say. But I wouldn't have said it if Abi hadn't prompted me to, so there ya go.
Love ya!
Rose | | comments: 7 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Tags: | mashatzim | | Current Music: | les miz | | Time: | 09:03 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/whonky.gif) crazy |
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| AHHHH! SHE'S POSTING! RUN FOR YOUR LIIIIIIVES!
Ahem. Sorry about that. I'm in a bit of a strange mood.
I know, I know it's been a while but this time I have an excuse! I was quite obviously unable to reach a computer and therefore physically prevented from updating.
There, that sounded good didn't it? Much better than the "Allright so I'm a lazy bum" excuse dontcha think?
Anyway I have to tell you all about Mashatzim! The first day wasn't that great. We didn't do that much and we were still meeting everyone. There was also the issue that we were still getting used to the atmosphere and stuff. And there wasn't enough food for everyone which majorly sucked...
Second day woke up at four. Went to bathroom behind a clump of trees. Very miserable. Found out we had to be at the morning 'misdar' at four thirty with our tents and sleeping bags all rolled up. Found out that 'wake up call' was the head of the course playing all his ringtones on his cellphone over loudspeaker, especially old Israeli bouncy music which we all hated (mostly because it was the first thing we heard in the morning). ;)
Went up and then down Har Meiron (again), ate and then went on a fairly annoying hike that was all flat with no shade. We were forced to stop after eleven and technically not allowed to begin walking till four thirty (because of the heat) but the girls in my group are all ADHD and pressured my madrich to stat walking. I think it was when that started running around themselves and climbing up trees that he finally gave in. We went down the ridge of mountains through a river canal which was very very fun but hard. We then waiting at Rashb"i's grave for six hours because the the other groups HAD waited till four thirty to start walking. *headesk*
Slept in the parking lot at Nachal Amud. Ate much better food: uncooked (crunchy) rice and over cooked meat. Went to bed with splitting headache.
Woke up at five thirty. Did Nachal Amud (beautiful trail) and then piled into buses to head off towards Andartat Hanachal (Nachal memorial site). That's were we spent the second part of our week camping. Upside: SHOWERS!!! and building a camp which I love. Downside: UNBELIEVABLE HEAT AND HUMIDITY LEADING TO MADNESS!!!!!!
Ahem. I am composed.
So we spent the next three days there building the camp, running a 'fun day' for retarded (what?! that IS the technical term) grown ups, and trying to survive the heat.
Friday we did navigation. They dropped us off in the middle of nowhere with a map and a compass. It didn't work so well but it wasn't our fault. Honest.
Came home for shabbas. Went back Sunday. Did this whole trail leading up to and including the sataf. Slept at the Castel where I did my pe'ilut at like ten thirty and everyone was half a sleep but they said I did a really good job which made me hapy because I'd worked really hard on it.
Did short hike the next morning and then drove to Giv'at Hatachmoshet where we started getting ready for the graduation ceremony. They asked everyone to try and write something about Mashatzim so that they could choose something to read at the ceremony. Mine was chosen out of FOUR courses who were there. I was shocked needless to say but was mostly embarassed that I had to read it in front of about a thousand people if not more.
Very traumatised.
Anyway I'm glad to be home. I've started working on some projects that were given for the summer. Trying to be productive and all that crap... ;)
Allright, no I haven't forgotten I've been tagged, as much as I would like to have.
Instructions: Each player starts with 7 random habits/facts about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. At the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged & list their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged.
1) I hate my cellphone. When I first got my original cellphone I couldn't stand it. But then one time it went through the washing machine and it survived and the spunky defiance of that redeemed it mildly.
2) The only scars I have are from over-scratched mosquito bites.
3)I've fallen in love with three men in my lifetime: None are from the last century, none are Jewish, and all are fictional characters. *headesk*
4) I hate shopping, therefor: I almost never buy my own clothes, only shabbas clothes. My mother has bought me all my shirts and four of my six everyday skirts not to mention all my socks and underwear.
Sad huh?
5) My biggest fear is of becoming a bad person and more often than I'd like to admit I look at myself and think I've become just that.
6) I am the biggest Daddy's little girl that has ever been.
7) A few years ago I went through a period when I was completely obssesed with Russel Crow, it was around the same time he got married. I cut out a really good picture of him from a magazine but he was posing with his wife................so I tore out her face and put the picture up like that. ;)
Love ya!
Rose
P.S
I tag anyone reading this who hasn't done it yet! | | comments: 28 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Tags: | seminar, yoni 9 b-day | | Current Music: | heart without a home westlife | | Time: | 11:51 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/content.gif) content |
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| Hello beautiful people!
Okay, I know I haven't updated in a while so I have a lot to tell.
Shavu'ot was incredibly fun! I only started staying up all night when I was twelve and this year was definitely the best since. Besides for the fact that I was miserably sick... Blah! Ariela darling, you were very much missed. ;)
School has been a complete and utter waste of my valuable time (your cue to roll your eyes). We actually went to 'Dialogue in the Dark' today which was unbelievably awesome! It's this exhibit that's supposed to get you to understand blindness. You go through this series of rooms in groups of ten with a guide. Okay, you're all waiting for the catch: it was pitch black. I'm serious, at one point I wasn't sure whether my eyes were open or closed. I have never been somewhere so dark before.
So you go through these rooms and you have to feel your way around. There was a forest with small waterfalls and trees, a bridge, a "house" with a bed, table, cutlery, chairs. There was a "boat" that only sailed when you sang where the air smelled like salt, the wind was blowing the sea spray in our faces, and the sounds of seagulls and waves played in our ears. They had a music room where you just sat and listened to music. They had a street with a car, pay phone, shop windows, mail boxes. A shuk with stalls with real fruits and vegetables, a bicycle, and the sounds of people bargaining and arguing and gossiping.
It was unbelievable.
So I was at this leadership seminar that my school sent me to. It was really great, besides for a couple groups of girls. My instructor was such a sweetheart and the girls I was with were mostly really nice.
And then when I got home Yoni had his ninth b-day party at Burger Ranch and his friends were so cute. He only wanted two there but they're my favorite. So I sat there with them and let my parents take a break.
It went something like this:
Me: So Yoni, you know I showed all my friends your picture and they think you're really cute! They wanted your number so...
Yoni's friends: *gasp* *gigglegiggle*
Yoni: *astonishment* Whaaa....*blushes*... No they didn't.
Me: (turning to Friend num. 1) But then I showed them YOUR picture and they though you were just so adorable so they had to have YOUR number too...
Y+Friend no. 2: *snigger* *giggle*
Me: (to friend No. 2) And then they saw YOUR picture and they thought that you were so much cutter than anyone else they'd ever seen and they begged my for your address and I couldn't beat them off, even with the stick...
Friend no. 2: *shuts up with shocked expression* *blushes+grins*
Y'+F1: *gaaaaaaasp* *gigglegiggle* *snortpointsnort*
I had such a good time.
Am completely swamped now but am slowly crossing things off my list...
Love ya! (and shabbat shalom!)
Rose | | comments: 6 comments or Leave a comment |
| Hey guys! I'm warning you: this might be long but very important things hapenned and you can't miss it! No really! Okay stop giving me tht look....
Spent last shabbas at Vivis. I had a great time even though I was in constant state of paranoia that I might see my English teacher. Okay maybe not constant, but definitely frequent. Am now torn between Chaim Potok's 'My Name is Asher Lev' and Gaston Leroux's PotO and it's all Vivi's fault.
Actually it's completely my fault but it's so much more fun blaming Vivi... ;)
Skipped school on Tuesday (Naomi - don't give me that look!) for a very good cause - OtSBH (shehayavin yavin) shopping with my Mother. Had much succeess and lots of fun with my Savta who flew to the States for five weeks very early this morning.
Now Wednesday was very special but in order to fully understand why I have to start from the beginning:
Sometimes I feel like I would have rather lived as an Israeli decades ago instead of now. I mean that sounds silly! Now we have cities and cars and friggin paper products that we didn't used to have. But sometimes I feel as if there was something existing back in the dawn of the 'New Jew' that no longer exists. Where are the teenage farmers who lied about their ages and fought in the sad excuse for an army not even knowing how to shoot a gun? Where is the Israeli spirit that takes pride in itself instead of trying to immitate Western culture? Where are the miracles, the blatant obvious miracles that G-d gave us in every war? I feel sometimes that these things are gone, and that we've forgotten the beauty of a land that we payed for with blood, sweat, and tears.
So Wednesday morning I went to school for the first two hours. They had this Rabbi come talk to us and he was telling us about the way Israel changed after the Six Day War. He was a paratrooper that fought in Jerusalem in 1967 and his story was very interesting.
At 3:10 Abi, Yael and I were waiting at Sharona to catch a bus to Jerusalem. We didn't manage to get on because it was so stuffed. The driver literally closed to door on someone so that she was pressed up against the door of the bus when he closed it.
So we thought that if it was going to be that crazy that maybe it wasn't worth it but we started walking towards the mall anyway hoping to catch the four twenty before it filled up too much. On the way we stopped at the Bnei Akiva sniff (to check and see whether their bus, by some miracle, hadn't left yet), and the library to check the internet about other things we could do outside of Jerusalem.
My legs were tired by the time we reached the mall.
We were afraid we weren't going to make it and we weren't sure we wanted to go anyway. We made a deal that if we caught the bus we'd go and if not, we wouldn't. We got to the station and the bus was seconds from leaving.
We caught it.
I was so worried. I mean I'm the kind of person that would stay home and go davka when it wasn't crowded but I took a leap of faith and got on that bus.
I stood on my aching feet the whole way there.
But Shareen was there so at least I wasn't bored... ;)
We got off at the Main Bus Station in J-lem! The joy! We grabbed some food before setting off on the twenty minute walk to where the dancing was.
We first saw it from afar and it was amazing. Thousands of people crammed into this one street and most waving these huge flags back and forth. Music blasted from huge speakers mounted on trucks.
Abi, Yael and I wandered around for a while trying to find Ariela. It took us a while but eventually we succeeded. We then spent an hour and a half dancing down Jaffa street after which everyone started walking to the Wailing Wall. We knew we had to start back at around eight in order to make the nine thirty bus, plus we all had to pee so we never actually made it to the Kotel but we saw it from afar and it was packed! I'd never seen so many people there at one.
(we were comforted with the knowledge that when the Meshiach came, there'd be room... lol)
On our way to the Kotel we were walking through these narrow passageways and we saw a sign that said "Our dear brothers and sisters! You our joyfully invited to our house for food drink and use of our facilities!" We were in desperate need of the latter so we went up to their apartment. In the end the line was too long so we went to Ariela's cousins' house but we stopped to have a drink.
It was there, on this man's couch - someone who I'd never met before, who greeted us so warmly and who waved our thanks away with the biggest smile - that I felt that this thing that I sometimes feel we're missing, isn't really gone. It's just hidden under the surface. Kind of like Israelis who they call sabras - prickly on the outside, sweet on the inside.
I was so happy I decided to go. I felt very comforted that the Israeli feeling is still alive.
Thursday afternoon Jake finished basic training and we went to his swearing in ceremony in Latroon. I cried so much... Especially when they all stood there swearing loyalty to the State of Israel even at the price of death. I kept on thinking that as much as I get so blindingly mad at Jake, I'd never be able to be happy again without him. I'd never be able to go on with my life. So I was crying enough even before they sang Hatikva, and I cry when I hear it played at soccer games, and here were these Israeli soldiers and their commanders saluting... I think my Mother and I cried enough for everybody there.
Afterwards we went out to eat and poor Jake couldn't eat enough. The last week of basic training is called the Week of War - in Jake's case they were out in the field pretending we were at war with Syria. He was half starved. He got home had a steak, a big shnitzel, a chocolate soufle, five bowls of cereal, a big bowl of baked potatos, french fries, salads with pita and more. I always said that boy was a bottomless pit... ;)
These are our soldiers...! :)
Am yisrael chai!
Love ya'll and have a good Shabbas,
Rose | | comments: 12 comments or Leave a comment |
| Can I tell you all that I'm SICK of Yom Tovs?!?!?!
Ahem. Thank you. I am composed.
So our trip down south for Chol Hamo'ed was really fun! We went to a place called Nitzanna which is about five minutes from the Egyptian-Israeli border. We went to a tell there that wasn't that big but it was very cool. The main part of it (where the rich people of the city lived) has yet to be excavated because of lack of funds.
Go figure.
Anyway we also went to a lot of private farms in the area. We went to see the greenhouses where they grow the genetically altered cherry tomatos that are watered with brakish water and yet grow to be very very sweet. We got to try some and they were really good. We also visited a bee farm, a non-kosher winery (which was not so fun), and another farm/factory where they make really good jams.
At night we went star gazing and it was absolutely gorgeous! Our guide took us out to the middle of nowhere (there's a lot of that in the Negev..) and the moon hadn't risen yet so you could really see the stars. (I tried to get a picture for you, Lela, but the stars didn't show up on camera...:()
Friday morning we went to Shivta (the tell, not the army base) and we saw this Nabatean-Roman city that was unbelievably well perserved! It was huge and a lot of the houses and churches were almost completely intact. When I get pictures sent to me by my cousins I'll try to post them.
So Shabbas was nice and quiet, even though I'm sooo sick of Yom Tovs. It's like every other day we're stuck in the kitchen cooking for twenty people. Thank G-d I have my own room or I'd go crazy. I feel bad for my Orthodox cousins who have to keep two days. Bad, but not too bad... ;)
I'm being such a good girl today! I finished my homework, did all the grilling for Yom Tov, AND updated my LJ.
I am so going to heaven. ;)
Love ya!
Rose | | comments: 4 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Time: | 04:32 pm | | Current Mood: | *coughcough* |
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| Hey all!
Took a break between breathing in dust and cleaning the house to brighten up your day!
So lots and lots has happened:
Had a great time on Purim! Spent the day making and delivering Mishloach Manot. I totally think my sister and I should open a factory. She could make the salad and I could make the Hamantashen! We'd be unstoppable!
Just kidding.
So Vivi's family came over for Purim se'uda after which she showed me scenes from lotr musical (am caught between being completely freaked out and rolling on the floor with laughter) and I made her watch House. Am not sure which one of us suffered more from the others sense of humor. ;)
So we went back to her house where she spent two hours blow drying and straightening my hair. I am taking this opportunity to declare that I will never do anything like that ever again! Though I can understand why people do it. Straight hair is infinitely easier to deal with than thick curly mops.
So anyway the morning of Shushan Purim Vivi and I met Ariela in Jerusalem where we had a great time eating fresh bread with cream cheese and lox and nearly dying of ecstasy worshiping Ariela's decadent chocolate thingies. Am most definitely in love but don't get me started or I won't finish.
I got stung by a bee for the first time in my life since I was three or something which was very unsettling but was okay in the end because of the frozen lox Vivi brought which felt heavenly (no, I'm not cheating on Ariela's decadent chocolate thingies). The lengths people will go to just to get attention! Honestly...! ;)
Other than that it was really fun! Especially when I got back to Rehovot and walked home with people staring at me because I still had my face painted green. I had completely forgotten about it and in J-lem it was still Purim so everyone was dressed up but it wasn't until I got home and caught a look at my green self in the mirror did I understand why people were looking at me strangely. *sheepish grin*
So then we went back to school which was cool. Had almost all of our tests pushed off till after Pessach because of some national test we had to do. Our school really wanted us to do well so they put off most of our tests which means that after Pessach we'll be having about three tests a week till June. Fun.
Other than that nothing much has been happening. I started cleaning my room on Sunday and am just about finished. Ariela and I spent five hours in my room yesterday sorting through books and dusting off shelves. I am so proud of myself: I got rid of about two thirds of my books! It was so hard putting a book in the 'not-wanted' pile, even if it was a book I really had no interest in. It reminded me of the time when I was reading The Source and I found a mess-up in the printing. My Mom bought me another one but I just couldn't throw the old one out. I think my Mom threw it out when I wasn't looking but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Books are so much more than pages and letters...
Okay before I get all Buddha moment on you I want to wish you all a very happy, clean, and kosher Pessach and may we all manage to understand to true meaning behind the holiday and appreciate the beauty of our renewing our national connection with G-d even though the food sucks! (okay so I got all spiritual on ya anyway, so sue me!)
Love ya!
Rose | | comments: 14 comments or Leave a comment |
| Hey all!
Aren't you so glad I had school off, giving me time off to add a bit of life to your friends page? :P
So what's been up with me? Thanks for asking that's so sweet. Well we had the 'Pestipelech' where each grade had to make up a song and a dance with the subject 'The Heir'. Since our principle is leaving next year each class had to choose someone to replace her (the subject also gave them the oppertunity to make jokes at the TV show 'The Heir' in which this really freaky magician dude who's famous for bending spoons and stopping watches and stuff picks his 'Heir'). We chose Mary Poppins and kinda made up some form of song and dance. We didn't win but we had a great time anyway... ;)
That was on Thursday we had only Sunday to prepare for the Thing we were supposed to throw for the seventh and eighth graders on Monday. We decided to have the subject be 'Movies' so we had stations like "Finding Nemo" where people had to stick their heads into a tub of water with bunch of things in it in order to find this little nemo doll. Well I had the biggest part in the opening play "Who Let the Dogs Out?!" in which James Bond (me) interrogates a bunch of characters (Donkey, the Cowardly Lion, Dorry, Fiona, Timon and Pumba, Sid from Ice Age, the Six Dwarves [the joke was that we didn't have a big enough budget for the seventh one], Jack Sparrow, Jafar, Barby, Mushu etc.) in an attempt to find out who let the dogs out. It was hilarious...I had such a hard time keeping a straight face! I also didn't know my part at all which means I had a very official looking binder with some very official looking 'papers' in it which I kept on looking at... *sheepish grin*
On Tuesday I went with my class to the old age home we're volunteering at to throw all the old foggies a Purim party. I love them so much! They're so funny and they'e always so happy to see us! So that was fun besides for the fact that I had my face painted a million different colores which DIDN'T COME OFF!
Got back to school to take two tests one in Physics (which I'll be very mad about if I don't get 100 on) and one in the halachas of Purim. The latter was with the source book open so it didn't really count but it still sounds better to say I had TWO whole tests. Shock. Horror. ;)
Tuesday night I had a jazz performance (kudos if you've made it to here without falling asleep)which was only slightly problamatic considering I still had GREEN EYEBROWS! That face paint stuff sucks! But it was okay. Our group was really out of place! All the other groups were little little kids besides for one group which was our age but was the 'beginners'. So all of these mothers came to see their little girls stand on stage and dance halfheartedly and then we came on. Now, we're not great dancers. In fact as far as real dancing goes we're terrible but at least we danced terribly with energy and confidence. So nobody cheered for us because none of our mothers came to see their itsy bitsy perfect little babies dance and during all the other dances WE were the ones cheeering - not the Mothers.
But it was sooo fun anyway.
So Wednesday night (yes I know it's been a long week. You're tired of reading it, I had to actually go through it!) the eleventh grade Theater girls had a presentation of their monologues and dialogues for the bagrut. I went to see Keren and she was soooo good. She made me cry! Most of them were pretty good in my opinion, especially the first two.
So now it's Thursday again and I can't wait for Purim! I'm trying to take this fast seriously but it's so hard with the excitement of Purim just around the corner. I woke up at one (all week the most hours of sleep I got a night was six which is about half of what I need so I had the right). I then watched three episodes of my newfound obssesion: House. It's genious! I'm seriously addicted. I took a break and went downstaires which was a mistake because then I saw the kitchen and the chocolate my Mom bought for Mishloach Manot and now I can't stop thinking about food. So I decided to update in order to get away from the kitchen. ;P
Love ya'll mucho mucho!
Rose | | comments: 3 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Time: | 05:31 pm | | Current Mood: | chipper |
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| Okay,
Who else other than me has to repress their gag reflex when opening LJ? One, two, five, twenty...okay hands down, thank you everybody.
Call me unromantic but who decided that valentine's day should be celebrated by decorating everything in pink and red hearts? Whoever it was needs to be fired, and fast.
Sorry. Just had to get that off my chest.
Anyway life's been busy and it's only going to get busier. I had my tiyul shnati this week. It was my first time going on a three day trip but I actually had a really good time! Our guide was really cute and creative and enthusiastic and she was practically radiating energy. I was really grateful that they didn't try to shove too many hikes in one day because last year they did that ('cause we only had two days) but this year not only were the hikes really fun, they also weren't too hard or long.
At night my friends dragged me around rooms and forced me to sociolize. One of my friends was so determined I wasn't willing to risk life and limb resisting so I ended up being dragged around most of night. Must have gained SO much weight from all the food people shoved down my throat but all in all I was happy. ;)
The next couple of weeks are gonna be really crazy so in case I don't get to it:
Rachel I luff you SOOOOOOOOOO much! Thanks so much for the song! The ecard didn't get through though. I'm gonna try it on my computer to see if it works better but thank you!
Vivi! What's up with your Mom? Is everything okay???
Love ya'll!
Rose | | comments: 8 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Time: | 02:20 pm | | Current Mood: | relaxed |
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| I was wondering whether or not to apologize for my recent virtual silence but I'm sure that from the amount of times that I've done that you guys can get the picture.
Well nothing much has been happening lately. I mean, life has been happening but that's not very interesting. Really.
We got report cards and we have three days off now in between semesters and that's a michayeh (-a relief, for those of you whose grandparents don't speak yiddish).
I went shopping with my Mom and bought a bunch of birthday presents, most of which are very belated but who has the time y'know? I also got shoes which were very sorely needed.
My couisn and my uncle are coming in on Tuesday for a week so that'll be interestng though I doubt that they'll be spending a lot of time here. My uncle's wife will never come here and he's the only one who's ever been in our house and that was once for my Bat Mitzvah. So I think it's important for them to see Israel for the one or two times that they'll be in it. We're trying to find a tour guide for them who has a car and who lives nearby so if anyone of you guys knows anybody please let us know.
See? Life is boring. It's fun to be living it but it's not very interesting.
*sticks out tongue*
Love ya'll,
Rose | | comments: 1 comment or Leave a comment |
| | Time: | 03:21 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/giggly.gif) amused |
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| Okay, really quick update about my birthday. It's such a relief to have it over with. The day before I was going between depressed and extatically happy. But my birthday was fun anyway.
I woke up to my mother dumping a package on my bed saying "Good morning happy birthday." She bought me two really gorgeous skirts. They're by this Israeli artist and they're the perfect combination of intricate and pretty yet not too fancy. *is happy*
So I get to school and my friends had bought me a poster of a Van Gogh painting and I was touched that they remembered that he's my favorite artist. They also bought me a little statuette of a dog and another one of this guy doing karate with sunglasses on :p It was cute.
Abi and Naomi gave me ballons with all these things written on them and that was really sweet.
After school I was walking to the buses and I see this familiar figure in the distance but it took me a while to figure out who it was because the school backround didn't fit it. But when I saw who it was there's was no way anyone was gonna stop me from crushing. Which is what I did. *satisfied grin* If Ariela looks a bit thinner on Shabbas I may be the cause. The bummer was that I had a thing with my class and I couldn't spend time with her. :( But we had enough time to go to my house so I could give her back her copy of Avenue Q and for her to give me my present (my own copy of Avenue Q).
After that Ariela and her Mom gave me a ride to where my class was. It was really fun and we ate too much and played all these games.
The only downside was that I got home at like eight fifteen and my family had dinner waiting. So we had pizza and my favorite dessert (the chocolate de la paix cake with the chocolate fudge spikes). When I went upstairs and went into my room I met Percy. Percy is my new computer. Percy is sleek and black and doesn't have internet yet. But oh, he will.
*grins* So it's been good.
Have a good shabbas!
Love,
Rose | | comments: 4 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Time: | 08:28 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/stupid.gif) contemplative |
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| Hey all...
Well today was the last day I could say I'm fourteen. And everyone kept on saying that to me. It's a conspiracy! They've all agreed to try and ruin my birthday! Just kidding...
It's just freaky to me because the older I get the more people expect me to have this formed personality and to actually be a well rounded person. I'm not sure I should be fifteen yet. Maybe they should send me back to first grade when I wasn't expected to have principles or opinions. I'm not sure I'm cut out for this whole adulthood stuff.
I know, fifteen isn't really "adulthood" but it's getting closer. On a more positive note, fourteen sucked. Fourteen really sucked. And the end of one thing is always the beginning of another, right?
Well I don't have that much time because I have Sharon Litvan stuff to do (I don't know how but she always tricks me into writing stuff for her. Didn't I swear that I'd never do that?). I just wanted to have this entry to look back on when I think "I wonder what I thought about when I was fourteen". I think the answer is: the same things I thought when I was thirteen and fifteen, and ten. But I just need evidence to prove it to myself, see? ;)
I hope that fifteen will be a good year, a year of happinness, of friendship, a year that will contribute to me becoming that good well rounded adult I'm so scared of never becoming.
Love ya'll!
Rose (the fourteen year old) | | comments: 10 comments or Leave a comment |
| | Time: | 10:40 pm | | Current Mood: | ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/purplelemon/sassips/accomplished.gif) accomplished |
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| Hello all! I am here to light up your friends page!
Life has been really crazy this week and I didn't even have any tests. Teachers have been heaping on the home work so that they have enough stuff to test us on in like two weeks (*waves flag* Wipee).
As a result of my time crunch this week I handed in a mediocre piece to Sharon and I felt bad because I know she deserves so much better than that. If it were up to me I'd drop the stupid English homework like book reports in which I have to save one character from a sinking ship, or draw a comic strip, or write diary entries for the characters. If they had wanted a diary they would have written it themselves! Honestly...
I'm really looking forward to this weekend. I really need a break. I'm reading two classics simultaneously for school so I don't even have the time for bathroom books which, as artless as they may be make me laugh and relax. As much as I love good ol' James Joyce...
So I've been working my butt off to get my monologue going. I did it on Monday and it sucked (even if nobody will admit it) and so I'm working much harder. I've even found an Alma sweater. It's this huge multi-colored thingy that I'm gonna wear with my gray little-boy-shorts. I really hope it goes better this time.
Anyway, enough. I've been complaining long enough. It feels good but it's gotta stop eventually.
My cousin and his wife are here! They'll be leaving for Jerusalem (to go to the apartment that they'll be staying in for five months while she learns) next week but they'll be here for Shabbas.
Five days till my birthday!
Love,
Rose | | comments: 2 comments or Leave a comment |
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