The Fast Is Over

it's 10:00 p.m. in the holy city of zefat and we just finished eating after fasting for 24 hours. you have to be very careful not to eat too much. it's best to have cake and coffee to start.

i had a whole wheat bagel roll with two slices of cheese, several slices of cantolope, a sliver of rye flour pound cake, a cup of coffee and a bowl of minestone soup. i feel very heady but my stomach is fine.

yesterday, sahar was with the clan so i got to wash the floors, bake a pound cake, and cook the pre fast meal. i made a minestrone soup with the remaining cans of chick peas and string beans from shabbat, some cherry tomatoes, a few stalks of celery, a small section of a white cabbage, a can of tomato paste, and some frozen navy beans. i think i threw in an onion.

i also made some st. peter fish fillets with fresh lemons and a spot of teriyaki sauce and threw in the remaining white rice from shabbat. i made a small pot of red lentils for me and a vat of elbow macaroni for the kids. i knew we needed a bit of protein and a lot of complex carbs. i bought a lovely dark wole grain rye bread made without sugar. my son, surprisingly, wolfed it down. he even had a slice of the rye flour pound cake before the fast.

i went alone to hear the recitation of "lamentations" at the local bomb shelter/ chabad synagogue. i sat on the floor on a pillow. my son went off with his brother in law to a breslov sephardi rabbi who really puts on a show.

gal had to go to work this morning so i got sahar at 7:30 a.m. and boy, did i ever need a cup of coffee! i resorted to putting on the television and we both went back to sleep for a couple of hours. i kept him well stuffed with bambas and baby cereal and lots of gerber fruit sauce. he was fine. gal came home at 3:00 p.m. and took him upstairs.

i got up and got dressed and took the local bus to the supermarket and bought a bunch of pastries, berakas and rolls, to break the fast. i was lucky and caught a ride home. zvi brought sahar back down at 4:00 p.m. so i gave him yogurt and gerber and tahina and gerber and more bambas. he played nicely in the playpen while i got the meal in order.

zvi came back from shul and we ate. i'm exhausted! in a moment, i will have another coffee. i know i should drink some water but i don't have the will to do so. i put on about ten pounds and am really looking full figured again. i will start my diet regimen tomorrow. in the meantime, i continue going to aroebics and yoga. i think i'll nix the paletes right now. so that's two yoga classes and two aroebics a week. and if it ever cools down, i'll start walking again.