Tell Me Why I Don't Like Mondays

it is nearly noon time in the holy city of safed.  I should be on my way to work but I am very tired.  it has been raining non stop for a few weeks.  it is a huge blessing for the land but a drag to navigate in.  I went to Hadera on Thursday for the festive meal after the thirty day mourning period.  my daughter-in-law's grandmother passed and I wasn't able to make it to the funeral.  I was going to join my son and his wife for the meal after the official shiva ended but they ended up going the day earlier and I then went to Jerusalem for the rest of chanuka to take care of the grandkids.  I felt very guilty that I hadn't consoled my in-law on his mother's passing.  I didn't make a phone call because it was awkward talking on the phone in Hebrew.

on Thursday, we had monsoon like rainstorms. I rushed to finish my meals at the yeshiva in order to be able to travel. by car this trip is less than two hours but I wasn't going by car.  I waited  forty minutes for a bus that ended up not going to Hadera.  I jumped on a bus to Carmiel to catch the train.  I hate trains.  I can't stomach the smell.  I am a bus person.  the trip to Carmiel took an hour. it travelled through every Arab village and neighborhood along the way.  I felt a panic attack coming on.

I had a minute to climb the stairs to the platform to catch the train.  it took an hour to reach Hadera.  I called my daughter-in-law to ask her for directions to the meal.  I thought it was close by.  she informed me to go to Pardes Chana.  I was in the wrong town.  I was on an express train.  I needed to go back a stop. the only problem was that I only had a minute to catch the next train.  I told her that I would catch a taxi and meet her at Pardes Chana.  it was pretty much a twenty minute ride. I never meant for her to have to pick me up.  she had just driven from Jerusalem.  I wasn't even sure that she had gone.

I couldn't reach her or her mother in the morning.  my son made it seem like she wasn't sure about travelling in the rain storm and he told her that I wasn't coming.  we relied on him and that was a huge mistake.  she and her sister travelled to Hadera to pick me up.  her mother and father were extremely grateful that I made the effort to come.  I had to wait until after 9:00 p.m. to catch the bus back to safed. it arrived at 10:30 p.m.  I was driven to another town to catch the bus.  a man stopped to offer me a ride.  he was going to Rosh Pina which is about ten minutes from safed.  I felt very blessed.  but then I felt very scared driving off with a male stranger at that hour.  I was also afraid of being stranded at Rosh Pina without a cab.

I declined the ride and waited another half an hour for the bus to show up.  I was afraid that the driver might not see me.  I also assumed that it would be crowded.  the bus was completely empty.  I was relieved to get in and get a seat.  he made a rest stop and I was able to get small bills for a taxi.  he left me off at the taxi stand in safed at 12:30 a.m. and I got home safely.  he was a very nice man and very good driver.  I had planned to go back to Jerusalem with the kids after the meal but in the end, I didn't prepare an over night bag.  I couldn't reach my friend to come over and watch the dog, either.

I thought about going out on Friday to buy underwear, a toothbrush and a change of clothes at the second hand store in Jerusalem.  I just couldn't leave the dog alone overnight.  the grandkids were very disappointed that I didn't go back with them.  I felt really conflicted.  I had an awful Shabbat alone.  I ran to the local supermarket to buy challah.  I ended up buying prepared gefilte fish and root vegetables to make a chicken soup. I didn't make it out for services.  i slept most of the day.  i was pretty miserable.

i should be at work already.  i don't have time to shower.  i will call a cab.

Another Friday Afternoon

it is 11:00 a.m. in the holy city of safed.  the sun came out for a bit.  I have been thinking about getting to the local supermarket since 7:00 a.m.  my dog wakes me up every morning at this time to go out.  it has been raining for a couple of weeks.  we are truly blessed to have the rain.  I have been cabbing it home form work lately.  I keep on missing the bus and have no strength to wait a half an hour for another.  I have been getting home at 7:30 p.m. and I'm totally beat.  by the end of a 6 hour day, my hip starts to hurt and it is difficult to walk.

I was told that I didn't prepare enough food to break the fast on Tuesday.  I think they received another 3 students and of course, I wasn't notified.  as a jewish mother and grandmother, and not professional chef; it hurts me very much to think that someone went hungry.  I work in a small kitchen and it takes me 5-6 hours or more to make two meals for 25 guys.  I only have a large built in oven to work with.  it takes 2 hours or longer to make stuffed peppers and frozen French fries.  I do cook on 4 burners but even soup takes about 2 hours.

the pantry at the yeshiva is depleted and I am at the mercy of the manager to provide me with enough legumes, grains and pasta on a daily basis.  I really should come to work before 12:00 p.m. but I can't seem to get my act together in the morning.  I linger on the net for hours while I sip my chai tea.  one student complained about my serving beans all the time.  I make a vegetarian chili every couple of weeks.  it takes forever to cook beans from scratch.  I have been serving lentils about three times a week to accommodate the two vegetarian students.  I think i'll have to reevaluate my menus.  how much pasta can I serve these guys?? I have limited oven space, to boot.

my rice is nothing to write home about.  I use two cups of water to every cup of rice and it is pretty mushy. I try making bulgur and couscous but lately my couscous flops.  yesterday, I made two pans of turkey meatloaf.  I threw 5 pounds of minced turkey into a pot of leftover cooked oatmeal from breakfast.  I added some spices and a lot of eggs and covered it in the leftover juice from the broiled tomatoes, I served at lunch. I figured it would be a disaster but it actually came out great.  I was very tempted to taste it but I didn't want to have to wait 6 hours before I could eat dairy. I like my chai tea with milk.

 I had to leave the guys some pasta for their lunch today and I made a sweet noodle kugel for their supper.  I  also made split pea soup.  at the last moment, I cooked up a tray of rice so the vegan would have something besides soup.  I hope it was enough food. one of the students asked me if I could make the buckwheat groats, aka, kasha, a bit wetter. the guys leave the food on the electric platter for hours, until everything is like shoe leather.  I cannot live at the yeshiva and oversee everything.  I would love to don a hairnet and spoon out the food, cafeteria style but alas, I need to get home to my empty house and dog, Tiny.

I do not feel like making food for Shabbat.  I am having about 15 people sleep downstairs for Shabbat.  an old family friend asked to rent the place for a shabbaton.  her son got married this week. the Sephardim make a festive meal on Shabbat for the groom and family.  askanazim do a Kiddush on the Shabbat before the weeding.  anyway, I didn't accept any money.  I once lived at her parents' home many years ago, when I first came to safed.  I didn't have the strength to wash all of the apartment downstairs.  I did manage to sweep and clean the bathroom.  I think it is presentable. I put heaters in every bedroom and set up the electric water urn.

while I ran up and down the stairs, putting toilet paper in all of the bathrooms and turning on lights, I managed to do some plastering in the master bedroom on my floor and on the upstairs wall which supports the hand rail.  it was quite loose and had a gaping hole the size of a tennis ball. I filled it in and now it doesn't move.

I am pretty tired.  I keep on saying that I do not know how much longer I can keep working at the yeshiva.  I do enjoy having some extra cash; especially when I visit Jerusalem.  I really have to get down to the supermarket now.  I don't feel like getting out of my warm pajamas but I must.  I wish everyone a good Shabbos!

After thought:  2:00 p.m. I am having a snack before Shabbat.  I bought some chicken bottoms, goat cheese, pitas, cottage cheese, greek yogurt, strawberries, bananas, and 4 cartons of tea. (earl grey and jasmin).  the strawberries were on sale but still quite pricey.  I paid $10.  my bill was over $70.  oh well....  I put up some fish and veggies, hard cooked eggs and chicken bottoms and string beans.  I may be alone but why not eat well.  in a little while I will go downstairs and put on heaters.

ran into my neighbor.  tiny, may have knocked up her dog.  I am expected to take the puppies and she actually asked if I wanted to take her 10 year old dog, too. really???

HomeAgain

it is 7:30 p.m. in the holy city of safed.  I just got home from work.  the yeshiva had another chabad holiday and I needed to make another holiday feast for 25.  I didn't cook as much as I did the last time.  I was pretty tired.  I arrived back to safed on Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. and went straight to work. I was in Jerusalem for 7 days. I worked very hard to leave meals for last Wednesday and Thursday and left on tuesday evening on the 6:00 p.m. bus to Jerusalem.  I usually make three courses for each meal. it can be rice, lentils and meatloaf or carrot kugel, mashed potatoes and meat patties.  I usually serve soup at lunch time.  today, I made a very thick pea soup, baked potatoes, garlic bread with leftover rolls and an Israeli salad.

yesterday I made a sweet noodle kugel and a carrot kugel for tonight.  it's pretty much a carrot cake only you mash cooked carrots instead of grating them.  the consistency is different from cake. I never have noodles at the yeshiva so I use spaghetti and break it into small pieces.  I made a zucchini kugel today and spent a lot of time squeezing the liquid out of the veggies.  I also made rice, carrot and sweet potato tsimmes, coleslaw, Israeli salad, Chinese meatballs, oatmeal kugel and string beans in tomato sauce.  we had a lot of oatmeal left over from breakfast so I added soy milk and a ton of eggs and some flour and made a kugel. I made a sweet and sour meat sauce using a lot of soy sauce, ginger, garlic and tomato paste and vinegar.  I rolled small balls of chopped meat into the sauce.  I didn't add any filler. 

I was planning on making an eggless chocolate cake but I ran out of steam.  It took so long to do the washing up and cleaning the counters and stove top.  I sifted 2 kilos of flour and it took forever.  the flour was embedded into the counter top. I was covered in flour, too.  I forgot to put out the chumus.  perhaps, someone will remember and get it.  I was so tired and I just wanted to get home. I also had to cook up a ton of macaroni for tomorrow's lunch.  if there isn't enough food, there is plenty of nosh and store bought cakes to eat.  I did all I could.

I stopped off at the bank before I went to work.  I went through all of my money in Jerusalem on the kids. I took cabs everywhere. I  took them to the movies and the jamboree.  I bought small toys everywhere we went and spent a fortune in a second hand clothes shop on chatchkas for them. I also spent a fortune at the local food shop.  I couldn't make it to a supermarket.  each trip cost me over $100 dollars.  we bought pizza a couple of times and plenty of candy each day.

 I also stopped off at the post office in town.  before I left for Jerusalem, I mailed a hand made cruelled bedspread to my niece.  my mother made it over 40 years ago.  I bought the kit at the museum in new York.  it was a bicentennial replica.  well, it never made it to my niece.  it cost about $50 to send it.  I think it was sent back to Israel.  my niece moved to a new house and it wasn't forwarded to her.  I am planning on going to the post office up here tomorrow morning to see if it is there.  I was heartbroken thinking it was lost forever.  I really hate to spend the additional money to send it back again.  what can I do?? the package included a prayer book from world war two that my mother used.  she was a sergeant in the WACS.

the kids are coming to safed for Shabbat but will stay at the Sephardi family.  I am totally beat.  I was alone with the kids for a week and had to get them to Chanukah day camp and also take care of the new cat.  I had to clean out the cat box which was simply awful as well as feed the creature.  I had to get the kids showered and referee their fights.  I had to cook and make Shabbat meals for us.  it was not really a vacation for me.  it was hard work.  I also had to keep the house clean.  I didn't do laundry because I don't know how to use their machine.  I didn't have access to internet the entire time I was away.  anyhow, I made it through and came back to work.  and now I am free until Sunday.  whoopee!

Oh Chanukah

it is 5:00 p.m. in the holy city of safed.  it is the third night of Chanukah.  it is the 10th anniversary of my mom's passing.  I am going to Jerusalem on the 6:00 p.m. bus.  I just got back from work.  I was hoping to leave earlier but I still had to sort out some meals for Wednesday and Thursday.  I have been cooking since sunday to cover these days.  today, I made falafel and chips, salads and fried eggplant.  I sometimes make soup, too, but today I was busy cooking white bean chili, rice, mashed potatoes, green lentils, spaghetti and organizing the meals.  I hope it will all work out.

I was supposed to stop in hadera to make a shiva call but I was too tired to travel.  I didn't sleep a wink last night.  I was so worried about organizing the house, and the meals for the yeshiva that I kept running items in my head.  I gave the local chabad shul $100 to do a Kiddush for my mom and I spent about 100 shekels on cakes for the yeshiva. I just lit a memorial candle for her and I lit the chanukiah.  I won't be able to visit her graveside until after Chanukah ends.  I'm sure my sister went to the grave already.

I guess it's time to get ready to leave.  I just had to run outside and get my very male dog unstuck out of another dog. can it get any weirder??