Willow Tree

If You Believe As I Do

That the disengagement is destructive and harmful to Israel and the Jewish people,
then read here for some good ideas on what to do.
Thank you Yoel!

I still feel prayer is essential; but I also believe that G-d answers are prayers of action--- words alone aren't sufficient.

Those who are "chutz l'aretz" outside of the land, please, Judeinrein is not the way to go. Speak out; call your representatives, advocate for the right of Jews to live on their own land. Find out the facts; know that the land of Gush Katif was not inhabited, that no Arabs were forced from their villages, that the land was barren till the Jews came, and not expected to become the green vistas it is now, and that the Jews bought the land with their own money.

Please help.

Quiz Time!

Because I'm feeling rather powerless to change things, and have decided that turning to man in the current situation, any human being, whether Sharon or Bush is not likely to achieve a whole lot, and my prayers are going to G-d. But I can't shake the scary this is really bad feeling. I just wish I could blink it all away.
So here's a stick my head in the sand quiz, via Pax Nortona whom I am guessing, quite possibly feels the disengagement is good, and he is probably one of the few people I could disagree with rationally. (Of course he may agree with my position, in which case I apologize.)

You scored as Ariel. Your alter ego is Ariel, the little mermaid! You are a dreamer, and you often want what you can't have. You can be rebellious and sometimes disobey your parents to get what you want. Goofy 75% Ariel 75% Cinderella 75% Peter Pan 75% The Beast 63% Donald Duck 56% Sleeping Beauty 50% Pinocchio 38% Snow White 19% Cruella De Ville 0% Which Disney Character is your Alter Ego? created with QuizFarm.com

Oh THOSE Conversations

Walking home with my daughter, The Artist, from school. Conversing about this and that. She glances over to the side, past me, into a neighbors yard.

"Oh, Ima. Cats!"
I glance over. *gulp*. Yes, I say brightly.
"Are they getting married."
That did about sum the situation up.
"Exactly!" I chirp. We did just cover this section in a conversation not a few nights before.
"I'm glad I'm not a cat!" She replies. "Though I guess a cat likes it. But I'm glad I'm human."

Knowing what the cat goes through, me too kiddo.

Stop The Disengagement

Highly respected Rabbis are calling upon Jews from around the globe to protest the disengagement. These are men who lead communties. They are not a small band of extremist; but heads of long lasting, centuries old communities. Included among their number are the former Sephardic Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu, the Bostoner Rav and Rabbi Me'ir Mazuz head of the Kisei Rachamim Yeshiva of B'nei Brak.

The Rabbis state at one point

"Just as Jews cannot accept payment for stopping to put on tefillin or for stopping to keep the Sabbath, Jews cannot accept payment for giving up homes in Eretz Yisrael," the rabbis say.

How Udderly Ridiculous

I guess she forgot her bank-book.

Cow walks into bank February 6, 2004 — The tellers at a German bank must have been shocked to look up and see a cow walk through the door.

The security cameras caught the whole thing.

Paula, the cow, walked in, made what's described as an 'elegant' turn and then walked out.

As strange as this sounds, Paula was actually on her way to a wedding when she got away and wandered into the bank. In parts of Germany, when a farmer marries, his bride milks a cow to prove she'll be helpful around the farm.

At least she will have something to contribute to the bride and groom.

Who the Hell Do You Think You Bloggers Are?

Jim answered Franks questions, and I thought maybe so should I. Maybe so should you. I don't know; I just post here.

THE "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?" BLOGGER QUIZ
(BTW this is the origin of the questions. From IMAO)

The mainstream media is pretty convinced we bloggers are an unruly, vicious sort. Why, as spacemonkey pointed out, even Ted Rall is questioning whether we're informed enough to have opinions of our own. And, when a piss-poor cartoonist is questioning your qualification to have opinions on political matters, you know you're in trouble.

1. Who the hell do you think you are?
I thought I was Rachel Ann, mom to five, Orthodox Jew, married 25 years to the only man who would tolerate me for more than a week. Am I wrong?

2. So, other than blogging, what's your job? Do you work at some fast food joint, dumbass?
I'm actually an alien here to take over the world. But thats a secret. I'm a teacher of Enlgish on the Yishuv/

3. Do you have like any experience in journalism, idiot?
I'm a mild mannered reporter...oh wait, that was Superman. I sometimes mix these things up.

4. Do you even read newspapers?
Yeah. Sometimes. Don't you?

5. Do you watch any other news than FOX News propaganda, you ignorant fool?
Don't tell anyone, but sometimes CNN.

6. I bet you're some moron talk radio listener too, huh?
Well, sometimes.

7. So, do you get a fax from the GOP each day for what to say, you @#$% Republican parrot?
No. From my leader. S/he is telling me what to say right now. (It really is s/he on my planet.)

8. Why do you and your blogger friends want to silence and fire everyone who disagrees with you, fascist?
I want to rule t he world? Why else?

9. Are you completely ignorant of other countries, or do you actually own a passport?
Hey, I"m a citizen of TWO countries.

10. Have you even been to another country, you dumb hick?
Um, yep.

11. If you're so keen on the war, why haven't you signed up, chickenhawk?
It's not my fault I'm 47. I tried to stay young forever.

12. Do you have any idea of the horrors of war? Have you ever reached into a pile of goo that was your best friend's face?
Nope.

13. Have you ever reached into any pile of goo?
Not with my bare hands!

14. Once again, who the hell do you think you are?!
Do you have a reading comprehension problem? Besides, I never answer more than 13 questions. 13 is my lucky number.

* * * *

Were It Not For Text Messaging

I would never have received this message from the Agent:

CAUTION: Caesar poop on sidewalk.

Yes folks, my life has been greatly enhanched by technology.

Would You All Consider me Incrediably Grasping

If I were to put up a paypal thingee on my sidebar?
How do you feel about those paypal thingees up on sidebars? Do you even notice them?

This ins't mama needs a vacation money, it is pay the bills, get thee to a dentist and eye doctor money. That stuff. The nitty gritty.
My dh thought it was worth a shot.

I don't know.

What's your opnion?

White Goes With Everything

My daughters outfit today:

Green tights with bunnies and hearts.
A red and blue polo-shirt with a white collar.
A pink and white sundress, with a watermelon for a collar.

White she informs me goes with everything.
And that is exactly what hse is wearing.
Everything.

I'm quite certain she would be willing to help each and everyone one of you choose the perfect outfit if you would just ask.

Any Dog Lovers out there?

Especially living in the Alanta area of the USA. Jesspea of Flaptrap is seeking a good home for a sweet, lovable pooch. Take a gander at the pics, and read the post about him, and contact Jesspea if you can help.

He looks like he would make a good family dog with a bit of training and lots of love.

Winter Has Left the Building

It is so yummy outside today! Warm, sweet scented, cool breezes, flowers popping up everywhere, birds cheering the day on.

It was such a wonderful, wonderful day.

The nights are still chilly, but the days, oh they are grand!

This my dear friends, is a wonderful time to visit Israel. Pack along some cool weather gear for nights and just in case (we most likely will get one more cool snap) but oh, you will not regret visiting now!

I'm Not Doing It

I know I should, but the last two times I did this something broke.
I CAN NOT AFFORD TO LOSE ANYMORE SHELVES!

Oh, but it looks so horrible in there.

Okay, tomorrow. I'll do it tomorrow.

And you know the old saying; tomorrow never comes! ;-)

Hell and Hot Water

This just makes me sick. This is not democracy; it is tyranny, plain and simple. I have learned (in an e-mail)that those who are recruited to fill these position are from Russia, Turkey, Urkraine, Egypt as well as local Arabs. Hmm...all those terrorist being released. While I doubt it, it still makes one think, doesn't it?

BTW, the hell and hot water? What I can get into from posting this. One is just not allowed to voice discontent with Sharon's policies.

But I'm terrible at doublespeak.

Quiz What ?? Which Natural Wonder Or Disaster Are You ??"

So go find out if you are naturally wonderful or a disaster!
(ARGH!!! I know that was terrible. But it is a fun quiz. So take it and enjoy!)

Waterfall


?? Which Natural Wonder Or Disaster Are You ??
brought to you by Quizilla

Choose a Gate

The Christo Gates is a hot topic on one of my e-mail lists. Since I hadn't the foggiest idea of what they were and didn't really care, I stayed out of the discussion. Until I saw a link. I like links. It makes life so much easier on one. This link took me to the Somerville Gates.

The Somerville Gates are free, and I could see it from the comfort of my home. Plus there was that cute cat at the end. Guess who gets my vote.

(Rachel Ann however could never do this. She would have to clean for three weeks before letting anyone see the condition of her floors. Rachel Ann has toy gates, which are randomnly strewn across the floor along with paper and who knows what else. )

Well

We signed the lease for this house so its ours for another 6 mns; but we can't by yet, which really has me down.

I know I should be thankful for what we have, but I really wanted to buy.

G-d willing soon; dh just needs to get a slightly better job.

Playing Hooky

We just felt it. In our bones. The need NOT to get up at 6:30 and get the kids out the door. The need to sleep in and have no where to go for hours. The need to just not do.

Bum around, laze about. At least until my dh had to go to work.

So we declared a day off. The Artist had a friend sleepover, and they actually got to bed at a semi-decent hour. I woke at 6 and realized I could get back to bed for a couple of hours. I had a leisurly cup of coffee. I read blogs of friends and blogs that I haven't been to before.

I needed this break.

Dh just woke up; it is 10:20 here now.

Sweet day!

Yipeee!!!!

B'sha Tova Linda!!!!
(may it be a good hour, literally, meaning---may all be well)

Macrame!

All joking aside, if I can learn to Macrame I have at least one job offer! Who knows.

Off to study and play with yarn!

Yeah, I know, I know. I'm not giving up my day job; just maybe hopefully finding a way to add to it.....

Announcing my New Profession

I finally found what I am more than good at, what I am in fact superb at, and I cannot allow this opportunity pass. We need the money, and I've the talent so.....

Rachel Ann's Professional Worry Service is officially opening its doors.

I can worry for you, if the price is right, about anything.
Gettting a job, keeping a job, finding the right job/house/man/woman.
Whether it is just a cold.
Why the sky is blue.
You name it, I'll worry it!

I'll worry while eating, while walking to work, while soaking in the bathtub.
I'll wake up in the middle of the night and obsess over anything you want me to.

I will turn each molehill into a mountain, each minor crisis into one of international magnitude, all so you don't have to.

I am that good.

No worry is too large or too small. My head can fit it all. I can worry about innumerable things simultaneously and never mix them up.

Do not worry, all your worries are safe with me.

Please send check or moeny order to:
Rachel Ann
WORRY INC
SOMEPLACE IN ISRAEL

and then have a good nights sleep.

Wifely Lesson #982/How to Share Late Night Thoughts

Now this is an important lesson to learn early in marriage. One will use this lesson quite a number of times over the years, it is necessary to get the technique down correctly.

First one must establish a worry. This is a worry which will wake/keep one up at night, become more and more serious as time goes on. Say, for instance, a child flunks a quiz. This of course occurs during the day, and seems relatively minor event. By 2am however, one can fairly well determine that not only has the child flunked the test but said child will in fact flunk the course, then then year, then school, then become a drop out, become a bum unable to support himself or the sudden appearance of 15 dependence. Logic and math have no place in this scenario and resorts to logic should be summarily dismissed.
Completely ignore the fact that the child is 6.

Now that you have your worry firmly fixed in the mind it is necessary to establish fault. That's easy, it is the husbands fault. That is just life. It is always the husbands fault or the children's fault or the dogs fault if it comes to that, but it is not your fault. I am aware that husbands feel a bit differently.

Now we come to the heart of the lesson. You know your child is headed for a life of destruction based on the results of one test at age 6, but your husband is not so priveleged. You need to inform him. NOW. Yes it is 2 a.m. but would it really be right to spare him till morning when everyone is so busy and you might not be able to inform him of this dreadful fact? OF COURSE NOT! However, it is also important not to wake him directly.

That would be rude.

But wake him you must. There are several methods to take.

The first is to wait a bit. People naturally wake at night. Since your awake you can watch for him to be awake and as soon as he wakes ask in a concerned voice "Can't sleep?" Which will of course arouse him and the answer will be no.

"Neither can I" you must then sigh dramatically. Not with this problem we have with Johnny!"

However, it is possible said husband will not be so considerate as to wake quickly enough for your needs. You must then wake him. But how?

1. You may call him, quietly. If he answers, then he was awake all that time really, and you need merely launch into your "Oh Johnny!"
2. Shake the bed slightly. See above.
3. Grab off all the blankets. Works only if it is cool in the room.
4. Moan or call out as you were having a bad dream. This one requires a slight change in the above. When he wakes you in concern you must moan "Bad dream about Johnny!"

In any case, you now have your dh awake, and the problem out. He already knows it is going to be awhile before he can sleep again, so you are okay.

You must now put all your effort into describing the worst possible outcome to the tragedy. Not only will Johnny become a bum, towing all 15 dependents, but he will also become an axe murder wiping out all but 20 people from the state of Wisconsin; 12 jurors, 1 defense attorney, 1 prosecuting attorney, 1 reporter, 1 judge, 1 jailer/executioner, and 3 people who didn't see anything.

Do not let reason enter into this scenario. It is counterproductive. No matter what sensible argument your dh has it is wrong. It is now 3am and you are exhausted and you are right.

Allow another 1/2hr to pass. Finally allow your dh to persuade you that most likely the worst that will happen is that Johny will need to study a bit harder for the next quiz or test. Since this is what the teacher said accept it and go to bed, care-free.

Sleep until the alarm goes off; it might be the last chance you get. Your dh is probably thinking of ways to kill you.

(Extreme exaggeration of the events, which, btw did not pertain to Johnny, but to something else altogether, merely reflect my husbands perception of the events, and he has the right to be slightly pissed at me.)

Mercy

And I vote for letting rapist and murderers and thieves go in every country in the world if they agree to play nice and share their toys. Of course some people think we aren't giving enough. EU is urging Israel to do more! (Haven't heard them urging the Palestinians to do more.)

But of course! I forget. For allowing terrorist to return home we get peace....right?

Oh wait. That's right. They are from Gush Katif; not human beings. I forgot. (Yeah, that's heavy duty sarcasm). And though my settlement may not yet be on the chopping block, I learned historys lessons real well. But even if I had a crystal ball and knew my community would be safe I would still be protesting the disengagement as one of the most unintelligent moves on the part of Israel that it could possibly make.

Speaking of the disengagement, Sharon, oh democratic deceiver leader. Your subjects public is requesting this

Wake Me In Two Years

At least that is how I'm feeling now. Better than yesterday when I felt like being woken in about 6 years. Nasty thing this, but I think I remember being sick like this last year as well.

So I apologize to everyone whose blog I haven't been reading. I really am finding most things taxing and that includes reading blogs. My days have sort of been spent on do what I absolute must and then fall into bed.

I wish I could schedule sicknesses. Wouldn't that be great? Imagine if you were told you had X amount of sick days during your lifetime and you could schedule them according to your wishes; take a year off from life when you were ten for instance, or a week or two every year. I'll take these two Monday-Wednesday please! coordinating them with my husband so that we can cater to each other.

I'd freeze food ahead of time so I could spend the whole day in bed and wouldn't have to watch the world spin as I cleaned chicken. Make sure that all the laundry was folded and put away ahead of time, lay in a stock of fresh tissues and tea, call all my friends and let them know not to ask me to go with them those days "sorry, I'll be sick in bed. Can't do it."

Work would become rather interesting I expect "boss, I've every other Tuesday this month and next schduled for illness. Better not have that client come from Japan those days."

Or teacher to students "and if any of you is schduled for an illness next Wednesday, change it; that's the day of the big test."

I just have visions of everyone flipping open their calendars and checking out the big red Xs "You can't have that week in July!!! Its Dad's birthday remember????"
Or "GREAT!!! Next Wednesday is Tanya's birthday and I was due to have a cold! Where can I fit that danged cold in?"

Okay, this is rather deranged thinking, if it can be called thinking at all.

Can we just blame it on my illness and leave it at that?

Off to read people who are making more sense!

In Lieu of a Regular Post

Read here.

Hey, I'm still sick; however. I had to teach; oh those obligations, and I'm still achy and all from the flu. My mind is not outputting enough to make too many coherent statements.

BUT! I did want to mention how proud I was of the girls today. They finished their first book! And all of a sudden their reading has improved considerably. They weren't reading perfectly, but they were stumbling a lot less and were getting the vowels right more than they were getting them wrong.

Checking out again for a bit. I got to lie down
(Almost wrote lay down. Now, how would that be for an English teacher!!!)

Also, I saw a link to a petition in the comments of one of Freunds posts: I cannot sign. Only those who are living in the USA are able to do so. So go read, and sign if you agree.

I'm Sick

Still have to work though.
And my ds is coming home from the army.
Blog when I can.

Great Expectations

There sits Miss Haversham, always a bride, forever virginal, living a life devoid of life because she can't get over her betrayal; she can not change her plans.

Me: Great expectations. My girls in my English class where going to read. All of them would be at or beyond third grade level by the time we ended the term.
Reality. It ain't gonna happen.

I've had to downsize my expectations to meet reality, not because the girls I work with are unintelligent, obstinate, or lazy, but because their environment has, in part, honed their abilities and talents, and one thing their environment has been telling them to do since they could read Hebrew was; ignore the vowels. Learn the words by site. The vowels aren't there.

This learning is both subtle and overt; a stated goal in school, an obvious goal when books read to them contain things (nikoodot, equivalent to vowels) that big people's books don't have.

But English is somewhat vowel dependent. Yes, I cn rd ths. But is this word I mt hm met or meet? English holds its vowels tight, and English, unlike Hebrew, has words that don't even seem related which in fact are; went and go. And why is it goes anyway for she/he/it but not for anyone else? Why is it FISH and not fishes?
Slept but not sleeped, kept, but not keeped, but bleeped and seeped?

Culture has inoculated those of us who have grown up in an English-speaking world, so that even if we err, it is easier for us to learn to do it correctly because we have heard it correctly, numerous times, without our awareness. Movies, radio, books read to us, conversations that take place around us, teachers and parents correcting us: it is KEPT, not KEEPED, you WENT, not goed.
Hear the correction and the correct way; hear it in our sleep.

If I'm the main source of this information, if I am the main one who will say "That's a (short A) sound not e(short e ) sound, it will take much longer to learn.

Even if their parents do correct, and the girls in my class have conscientious parents so I'm sure they do, they can't do it all the time, and I wouldn't want all their English conversations to become heavily bogged down in a lesson. Better to speak English at least some of the time, even poorly, than never at all.

So I am reviewing the situation (again with the Dickens) and revising my expectations downward, to, hopefully a proper level.

It feels a bit like giving up, but in reality I know it is the opposite; it is moving forward.

Sometimes you have to climb down a bit to get up the mountain.

Legally Crazy

So how many of you have read this story?

Durango - Two teenage girls decided one summer's evening to skip a dance where there might be cursing and drinking to stay home and bake cookies for their neighbors.

Big mistake.

They were sued, successfully, for an unauthorized cookie drop on one porch.

It turns out that one of the neighbors had an ANXIETY attack, thought she was having a heart attack and THE NEXT DAY went into the hospital.

Look, I'm sorry she had an anxiety attack; sorry she thought it was robbers knocking at her door, or some neighbors who were bothering her. But she called the police who determined nothing was wrong. Get over it!!! What if the person knocking on her door had just gone to the wrong house? Or was someone who was looking for their lost cat and, when they didn't get an answer, left, or whatever. The girls left this lady COOKIES, when they could have been whooping it up and causing trouble. If she was afraid they could have tossed them in the trash.

A suit? And she won it?

The woman, Wanita Renea Young, stated

"....I just hope the girls learned a lesson."

What lesson would that be? Not to do random acts of kindness? To check the anxiety level of someone before knocking on their door?

How about praising the girls for their thoughtfulness, for their obedience to their parents (they baked the cookies after doing their chores) for making the world a little better?

We need some new judges.

(another blog take on this)

I Hate it when I goof up!

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know everyone does, but can't I just hold a pity party for myself? Have to go undo the mistake I met.
Briefly.
I thought I was giving my girls in my English class a good grade. Think again! I misunderstood the grading system (based on 6 levels rather than five!). I am so embarrased! And I"ll be blushing like crazy tomorrow when I try and explain it all to the principal!!!

Hope I still have a job tomorrow!

Big B Little B what begins with B?

Bragging 'bout my baat (daughter!)!

Allright, that was terrible, but her report card wasn't. She received mostly tov+ (tov means good.) except in sports. In sports she received a tov- . That is because she actively avoids trying to play sports. If there were a grade for actively avoiding aports she would get a mitzoyan (excellent) but there is no such option.

Anyway, I'm proud of her.
Would have been proud of her no matter her grades, but I'm proud of her schoolwork as well.

Dear Moms

Please tell me that you too have picked out the chunky bits from the peanut butter because your child only likes creamy and you were out of her kind.

Cease Fire

Well, I'll believe it when I see it but with the most recent attacks, I'm more willing to lay my money down to buy that bridge.

What is the Meaning

What is the meaning of the disasters we have had of late around the world. Some feel we have reached the End of Days. I do not necessarily agree with the opinion expressed by this particular blogger, though I do respect him. My husband and I are in agreement regarding this issue; we need to change ourselves, we need to treat one another morally. That brings the Moshiach. But it is his opinion and worth hearing him out. It is important to read the whole of his post and not skim or stop halfway through; you will have done yourself and him a disservice.

A Good Question

Spiced Sass links to two articles asks a good question; why does the West so cavalierly dismiss the actions of a significant portion of the Muslim population as being an aberration? I don't claim that every Muslim is evil or seeking to kill, crush, destroy, enslave the rest of the world, but too many preach hatred.

Part of the problem is the dismissal of their actions by those of the left. Those who would speak against the evil are not given voice, are intimidated into silence. For them to have the courage to speak they need to know that the world will not remain silent, and those who perpetuate such crimes will be held accountable.

Houseghosts

There are, I am convinced, ghosts dwelling in my house. They are the pesky variety, given to using our clothes, but never cleaning them or putting them back where they belong, using our dishes, but they simply leave them lie where they were used. Never have these shades thought to even clear them away, not to mention wash and dry and place them, neatly stacked on the shelves.

These ghosts leave scraps of paper about, knock books from shelves and have the audacity to use my children's toys without their permission or knowledge.

At least, that is the only thing I can conclude from a glance at the hamper, a scan of the sink and an examination of the floor.

What else could I conclude????