Anorexia Campaign

This is a controversial new ad campaign aimed at stirring awareness around anorexia. What do you think?

American Woman

Compliments of my friend Karin

Atone for Misrepresentation

I'm put off.

I was primed for a new snazzy cellphone upgrade to my outdated model via a promo deal I had worked out with a mobile phone company rep on the phone. We verbally agreed to the terms and the cost, I wrote it all down and even asked: Now, there's nothing hidden here? No fees I'm gonna get hit with later? Naturally, she reassured that there weren't.

So the cellphone company rep showed up this evening and pulled out the new model and displayed its bells and whistles. While I'm playing with the functions and he's preparing to box my older model he pulls out the paperwork. And the grand total shown on their typed up invoice is double the amount I had agreed to less than twenty-four hours prior. I protested.

"Oh this happens about 70-80% of the time," chuckles the delivery person. "But if you sign here and here, it says in the small print you have 48 hours to think things over. Don't worry. The company will come around to the price you agreed on."

And I'm thinking: Do you live on 'Asinine Alley'? Surely you don't expect me to sign the inflated priced contract and then just hop on down to the Cellcom store to spend hours of my time and pounds of frustration and stress on getting my $ back. Nossiree Bob.

I sent Mr. Cellcom a'packin'. Take it and leave. You're wasting my time. When you can show me paperwork that reflects what I agreed to, I'll sign.

This style of "doing business" (sic) is not new in these parts nor is the mentality. And it is trying, wearing and probably THE least attractive aspect of living in this country. The "I'll try and get one over on you and see if you notice" attitude.

The problem is that yes, people notice. They notice when Israelis travel and try this stuff out on foreign terraine, they notice when they come to the country to visit as tourists and get ripped off by the locals and they notice when they live here and haven't grown up with this kind of outright misrepresentation and scandal on a broad and blatant scale.

But as the Cellcom people are banking on, probably 30-40% don't balk. And that's a whole 'lotta profit to be made. Yessiree Bob.

Israel Underwear

A family member recently underwent some pretty serious surgery that involved a pretty serious incision through her abdominal wall.

She's now recovering, thanks for asking. During the recent Rosh Ha'Shana (Jewish New Year) family get-together, I sat next to her during the festive meal.

She wasn't eating very much and she didn't seem to be able to assume a comfortable position. Not surprising. Abdominal surgery is a very painful way of finding out how much you actually use the muscles in that area.

We chatted about her procedure and recovery and between "Pass the baked chicken with tzimmes" and "Allow me to get that for you" my cousin - an Israeli who falls into the "hottie" category - remarked:

I hate having to wear this Golda Underwear.

This was a new one for me. But I knew EXACTLY what she was talking about and snorted so loudly my relatives at the other end of the expansive table urged: "Drink something and it'll go down!"

I know you know the style of undies too if you know who Golda was.

I guess that over here in Mid-East land, that kind of HUGE underwear like Pee Wee used to keep around the playhouse for laughs is termed Golda Underwear after the former Prime Minister.

I'm pretty sure Golda didn't go around flaunting her underthings. But isn't it, like, obvious she wore that style?

I could write that she's turning in her grave just about now but somehow I doubt it. She'd probably remark: "So? What of it?"

I'm The Mom

My five year old stuck his tongue out and loudly uttered noises of great disgust after viewing this one over my shoulder.

THANK YOU! to my cousin Peggy...

On Returning & Holidays

I stopped blogging on a regular basis over the summer because a "lurker" on the site was causing some concern and I just didn't want to be bothered (with the lurker). If you're a blogger, you know what that means. Or maybe not.

Lurker aka someone who loiters on your site - i.e. following what you're writing, commenting regularly, even blogging on THEIR blog about you and creating a general pain in the toochas presence. It's the modern day equivalent of a stalker. Sorta.

"My lurker" is still around but sometimes you just gotta say: W-H-A-T-E-V-E-R.

W-H-A-T-E-V-E-R.

In the interim, here in Holy Land Central (HLC) we're smack dab midway through celebratin' the Jewish calendar New Year. Which means a lot of visiting with relatives, lavish gifts (think Christmas without the eggnog or blinking lights), vacation travel, long days that sometimes include afternoon naps - mercy! - praying for those inclined to pray and the general feel of new beginnings.

I don't pray and I'm not religious. At all. Ironic since here I am in Holy Land Central - er, Israel for those not familiar with the HLC term.

I prefer to think of my being here as calculated. I'm here in HLC because I'm not religious. I like my heritage and the customs that go along with it but I'm not motivated in the "go to synagogue" or perform routine rituals sorta way.

So in floods the logic: If I live here in HLC, I don't have to do anything and... Voila! I still get my heritage thing on because there's no way a person can AVOID the holidays when the entire country shuts down to celebrate them. Pretty darned clever, eh?

Religious minded folk out there might beg to differ but that's exactly why they're going to the house of worship and I'm not. (While you're there, mind putting in a few good words for my heathen soul? Much obliged. Thanks).

NEXT!

See ya soon. Time for a nap.