nyc is called the city that never sleeps. well... maybe manahttan is the city that never sleeps, but brooklyn, one of the five boroughs of nyc, is a borough that sleeps, or more specifically , midwood , brooklyn sleeps. when i get home late from work on say a monday,i can only get take out or junk food . all the grocery stores near me close before 8 pm. in fact i dont even know when they close on a monday night because im never home early enough to find out. if not for shabbos, the grocery stores would not even be open late on a Thursday night.
i know i really need to look in to ordering groceries from fresh direct. according to their website they have alot of kosher products, even chicken. of course , the hardest part of ordering from a place that delivers groceries is that i will have to be home when they arrive . i do think that i may actually explore this venue. i really need to keep away from the junk food.
sometimes i actually go food shopping before i leave the city if i know im low on food. but of course, i have to be in the mood to shlep the stuff home on the train.
we as jews love to eat, but apparently the jewish grocery store owners in my neighborhood arent too worried if anyone eats on monday unless its earlier in the day . perhaps they are trying to discourage night eating? is weight watchers paying them off? i have noticed alot of their products in the local stores.
i know that the brooklyn groceries think that everyone is eating shabbos leftovers on mondays so they can close early, but what about us singles? im busy all weekend, and usually run out of food at the end of the weekend and am starving for real food on mondays!
i need to change my work schedule and get out a little earlier on mondays so i dont starve!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
sunscreen queen
in the days before sun protection consciousness, when i was fourteen, i got one of the worst sunburns of my young life. the kind that blisters and peels. it was a nightmare. it itched, it hurt, it looked contagious. shortly after i became the sunscreen queen.
though it was a slightly before the days of global sunblock awareness, there still was sunblock and sunscreen. yes, even then. my dad is a pharmacist and he would get tons of sun protection samples. i was the only fourteen year old around slapping on the stuff. at school and at summer camp everyone would mock me. they'd say"dont you want to tan" and of course id say" no, i just dont want to burn." and i would also say, " trust me, i will still tan, i just wont burn. "
and so it would go. i went women's day at the separate beach in tel aviv and put on tons of sunblock. my friends donned baby oil. they couldnt believe i wanted to block the sun. i said my mantra" trust me, i will still tan, i just wont burn." and burn they did. i had a slight tan. they were scratching their sunburns. i was not.
what really strengthened my resolve to wear sunblock was something that happened to my friend leora. leora fell asleep on the beach. when she got home her body was burnt and swollen. it was scary looking. it looked quite painful and worthwhile to avoid such an experience.
my mom, who is not as fair skinned as i am shuns the sun as well. she doesnt want wrinkles.
though skin cancer may be more prevalent amongst fair skinned snow whites, darker complected individuals need to be careful of the sun. when they have skin cancer sometimes it is only caught in the later stages because it was harder to see on their skin.
in short, we all need to be careful to wear sun block, and wear protective clothing. this is where ultra tznius clothing come in handy...
my favorite sunblocks are clinique spf 50 and neutragena heathy defense daily moisturizer with heliplex spf 45. neutragena has several higher spfs but i find them a little too chalky.
its also important to wear sunglasses in the sun because doing so can prevent cataracts.
go ahead, become a sun shunner like me. you will still have fun in the sun, just fewer sunburns , wrinkles and age spots.
though it was a slightly before the days of global sunblock awareness, there still was sunblock and sunscreen. yes, even then. my dad is a pharmacist and he would get tons of sun protection samples. i was the only fourteen year old around slapping on the stuff. at school and at summer camp everyone would mock me. they'd say"dont you want to tan" and of course id say" no, i just dont want to burn." and i would also say, " trust me, i will still tan, i just wont burn. "
and so it would go. i went women's day at the separate beach in tel aviv and put on tons of sunblock. my friends donned baby oil. they couldnt believe i wanted to block the sun. i said my mantra" trust me, i will still tan, i just wont burn." and burn they did. i had a slight tan. they were scratching their sunburns. i was not.
what really strengthened my resolve to wear sunblock was something that happened to my friend leora. leora fell asleep on the beach. when she got home her body was burnt and swollen. it was scary looking. it looked quite painful and worthwhile to avoid such an experience.
my mom, who is not as fair skinned as i am shuns the sun as well. she doesnt want wrinkles.
though skin cancer may be more prevalent amongst fair skinned snow whites, darker complected individuals need to be careful of the sun. when they have skin cancer sometimes it is only caught in the later stages because it was harder to see on their skin.
in short, we all need to be careful to wear sun block, and wear protective clothing. this is where ultra tznius clothing come in handy...
my favorite sunblocks are clinique spf 50 and neutragena heathy defense daily moisturizer with heliplex spf 45. neutragena has several higher spfs but i find them a little too chalky.
its also important to wear sunglasses in the sun because doing so can prevent cataracts.
go ahead, become a sun shunner like me. you will still have fun in the sun, just fewer sunburns , wrinkles and age spots.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
beloved memories
my grandmother passed away seven years ago. as im writing this, i can barely believe it. its been seven years. seven years since ive seen my grandmother.
my grandmother was an amazing person. as a senior citizen she used to organize trips for seniors. she took them all over the united states.
grandma got married at 29 which in those days was like 39. she also travelled in her single days . my mom has an incredible photo album with photos from those trips . my favorite photos are of her and her friends in niagra falls on the maid of the mist. instead of those plastic cheapo raincoats they use now, they wore real raincoats . of course i really love these photos because i went to niagra falls with a group of my friends.
i miss the unconditional love that only a grandparent can bestow. i mourn the passing on of a generation. i miss my grandmother's hearty laugh.
because my grandmother was single and then a young widow, she worked various jobs whereas my mom never worked. grandma was a great person to commiserate with about work issues.
of course , i remember how when i was small grandma would sit on the floor and play kiddy games with me.
grandma didnt have the simplest life, but she always had a good attitude. though she was old you could speak to her about anything.
though my grandmother lives on in my memories, i miss not being able to see her in real life. i cant believe its been seven years
my grandmother was an amazing person. as a senior citizen she used to organize trips for seniors. she took them all over the united states.
grandma got married at 29 which in those days was like 39. she also travelled in her single days . my mom has an incredible photo album with photos from those trips . my favorite photos are of her and her friends in niagra falls on the maid of the mist. instead of those plastic cheapo raincoats they use now, they wore real raincoats . of course i really love these photos because i went to niagra falls with a group of my friends.
i miss the unconditional love that only a grandparent can bestow. i mourn the passing on of a generation. i miss my grandmother's hearty laugh.
because my grandmother was single and then a young widow, she worked various jobs whereas my mom never worked. grandma was a great person to commiserate with about work issues.
of course , i remember how when i was small grandma would sit on the floor and play kiddy games with me.
grandma didnt have the simplest life, but she always had a good attitude. though she was old you could speak to her about anything.
though my grandmother lives on in my memories, i miss not being able to see her in real life. i cant believe its been seven years
mama mia!!
as a kid i was a huge abba fan. i loved the song dancing queen. a few years ago i even saw fake abba at the brighton beach summer music series.
i saw the musical mama mia on broadway about a year ago. the plot was weak,very my two dads , but i loved seeing the abba songs live. it was like the soundtrack was the lead cast member.
when i saw ads for the musical being turned in to a movie i was skeptical . though i enjoyed the movie i had a right to be skeptical. the island the movie was filmed on didnt match the plot. the play was very white bread, but the movie was very ethnic.in the play, the sets werent that great but the music took over. in the movie the music played a supporting role.
if one has seen the play its fun to see the movie even though it is a cheap imitation of the play.
i saw the musical mama mia on broadway about a year ago. the plot was weak,very my two dads , but i loved seeing the abba songs live. it was like the soundtrack was the lead cast member.
when i saw ads for the musical being turned in to a movie i was skeptical . though i enjoyed the movie i had a right to be skeptical. the island the movie was filmed on didnt match the plot. the play was very white bread, but the movie was very ethnic.in the play, the sets werent that great but the music took over. in the movie the music played a supporting role.
if one has seen the play its fun to see the movie even though it is a cheap imitation of the play.
Friday, July 18, 2008
bar/bat mitzvah
a few years ago there was an article in new york magazine about the extravagance of bar and bat mitzvah parties. my favorite line in the article was a marriage can end in divorce but a bar/bat mitzvah is forever. wow.
i think that the idea of a bar/bat mitzvah is profound. you take a girl or boy at 12 or 13 when they are reaching puberty and their teen years and you make them bar/bat mitzvah and tell them they are now adults and a full part of our community. im not saying that this keeps a kid in the fold , but the sentiment is awesome.
i think that the idea of a bar/bat mitzvah is profound. you take a girl or boy at 12 or 13 when they are reaching puberty and their teen years and you make them bar/bat mitzvah and tell them they are now adults and a full part of our community. im not saying that this keeps a kid in the fold , but the sentiment is awesome.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
that little itch...
psoriasis is no fun. as far as afflictions go, its not the worst one to have, but its no bed of roses either. apparently, the word psoriasis comes from the hebrew word tzara'as which means leprosy. it also gives one alot of tzar.
i have a mild case, mostly concentrated in my scalp. when it acts up it itches beyond belief. luckily, after many years of incompetent dermatologists i found an excellent one to whom i am eternally grateful. now its under control.
there are alot of morons out there as well. once i got my hair cut and the stylist tried to tell me i had head lice. which i did not. it was just a bad case of psoriasis. apparently she knew nothing about scalps.
an afflicted scalp can be quite embarrassing, as well as humbling. whenever i see people with a sprinkling of snowflakes on their shoulders, i feel bad for them. its not bad hygiene. they really cant help it. ive been there. it takes alot of work and patience to get rid of it.
ive been told psoriasis is stress related. thats probably true. i know that whenever i have a flare up i must slow down.
ive heard that fish oil and flax seed oil help keep psoriasis in check. it helped me for a little while, until it didnt.
im afraid to cover my hair when i get married. im afraid it will increase my psoriasis symptoms.
my friends tell me that they dont notice my psoriasis , even when i have a bad flare up. im not always sure if they are just trying to be nice or if this is really what they think.
i have a mild case, mostly concentrated in my scalp. when it acts up it itches beyond belief. luckily, after many years of incompetent dermatologists i found an excellent one to whom i am eternally grateful. now its under control.
there are alot of morons out there as well. once i got my hair cut and the stylist tried to tell me i had head lice. which i did not. it was just a bad case of psoriasis. apparently she knew nothing about scalps.
an afflicted scalp can be quite embarrassing, as well as humbling. whenever i see people with a sprinkling of snowflakes on their shoulders, i feel bad for them. its not bad hygiene. they really cant help it. ive been there. it takes alot of work and patience to get rid of it.
ive been told psoriasis is stress related. thats probably true. i know that whenever i have a flare up i must slow down.
ive heard that fish oil and flax seed oil help keep psoriasis in check. it helped me for a little while, until it didnt.
im afraid to cover my hair when i get married. im afraid it will increase my psoriasis symptoms.
my friends tell me that they dont notice my psoriasis , even when i have a bad flare up. im not always sure if they are just trying to be nice or if this is really what they think.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
the three weeks
im really not looking forward to the three weeks. not that anyone in their right mind would be. although, i suppose it would be quite lofty to say that i was looking forward to uplifting myself spirtually during the three weeks. but im not that good.
the worst part of shivah assar betamuz is knowing that tisha bav is only three weeks away.
blah!!
the three weeks always have a foreboding aura. kind of like feeling spooked. the suffocating summer heat adds to the oppressive ambiance.
the three weeks always come right when im starting to enjoy the summer. as if to say, dont enjoy your summer so much. just like sefirah starts when spring is in the air. i guess its trying to say, enjoy life, but also remember life has a purpose and we must remember the worst of times to enhance appreciation of the good times.
the worst part of shivah assar betamuz is knowing that tisha bav is only three weeks away.
blah!!
the three weeks always have a foreboding aura. kind of like feeling spooked. the suffocating summer heat adds to the oppressive ambiance.
the three weeks always come right when im starting to enjoy the summer. as if to say, dont enjoy your summer so much. just like sefirah starts when spring is in the air. i guess its trying to say, enjoy life, but also remember life has a purpose and we must remember the worst of times to enhance appreciation of the good times.
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