National Anthem Day!

Mood:


This celebrates the day President Hoover signed a bill, in 1931, that designated the 'Star-Spangled Banner' the official national anthem of the US. It was written by Francis Scott Key in 1814. It's quite a song.It's also International Sister Cities Day, and Hina Matsuri or Doll Festival in Japan. (Sometimes called Girl's Festival.) 


It was slightly cooler than yesterday. But, I'll take that over what it was last week.I managed to make the rice balls this morning! Yay!I made 4, some tamagoyaki (rolled omelet), and cut up an apple. I used hummus, umeboshi (pickled plum) paste, bits of turkey pastrami, and craisins. I love trying new things and experimenting with them. (First time using hummus and pastrami for it.) The tamagoyaki, surprisingly, came out better than last time. It actually looked more like a uniformed roll. I made a little too much food, so I'll have the rest tomorrow. Out of what I had, it was very good.


I got a funny email last night. It told me that my Birthright group was planning a reunion in May. And it will be for one day in New York. Ummm...That's kind of hard to get to, and you want me to be there for only a day?!They said we're sorry to the west coast, Canada, south west, the south, etc. people but.... That was pretty lame. And, I'm sorry, but I don't suddenly become best buds with someone in just 10 days.Plus, it's only 3 months after. It just all sounds bogus to me.
Wrote more of chapter 13. I'm up to 100 pages in Word! Wahoo!I didn't know I'd be throwing in another interesting plot twist today. These things just come to me, and I try to roll with it.It fits the story, too. Played some more Mozart. Wasn't as good as last time, but again, it's been a while. Tried some of the hardest tunes in the book. It wasn't too bad.


Tokyo Dogs was a bit more intense than usual. They still managed to throw in a healthy dose of humor.Yuki's starting to remember more things. They managed to stop someone who was going to put cyanide in a popular brand of bread. Maejima actually had more of a role this time. So, that was interesting. I like when they develop characters more. Yuki's also in deep trouble. She never made it back after her shift at the restaurant. And, that suspicious waiter asked her to go out to dinner with him. Doesn't look good.Someone keeps scamming Sou's mother. 

In Naruto Shippuden, it was even more emotional than last time. Still, not much action. Although, it looks like that will change soon. You can almost feel what the characters are going through. Sakura now knows how Naruto feels about her. Sasuke's team was about to ambush the kages, but Zetsu popped up at of no where and told them he was there. Zetsu's kind of creepy. Madara or 'Tobi', suddenly appears next to Naruto while he's feeling depressed. And, says he wants to have a talk. (Zetsu and Tobi are in the pic looking at the building where the kages are having their summit.) 


deviantART fave: APH-Cup Collab Seborga I did not make this! Another cup collab for the Hetalia version. It's Seborga in Vanilla Italian Soda. Kind of nicely done. I haven't seen Seborga yet, so I'm not sure if it's an oc. But, I haven't gotten around to too many of them in the manga. The anime has been pretty slow at introducing other countries. 


Youtube:
This one's a bit creepy, yet kind of addicting. It's Remote Controller sung by Len and Rin:

National Gumdrop Day!

Mood:


It was actually yesterday, but I love gumdrops!So, it's a nice day to appreciate them. I read that no one knows who invented them. But, they were invented in the 1800's. It's older than I thought.


I've been feeling even crummier the last couple of days.Hence, why I didn't post yesterday. Every morning since I came back from Israel, I feel so nauseous. It got pretty intense yesterday and today. I have a hard time eating breakfast now.Mom suggested it may be from jet lag. Makes some sense. I guess it just doesn't want to leave. Hopefully, it will soon.


Posted chapter 12 of Alliance yesterday.Here's the link: Chapter 12 If you would like to read from the beginning it's here. It's been a long time since I posted a chapter.Kind of surprised me. But, oh well. It's there at least. I still have so many ideas for it!It's like a never ending story. I kind of like that, though. It's continuing/sticking to the plot, and to me at least, seems to be getting even better. So, I guess it may turn into a series. But, I have to finish the first book first.


I played TinierMe's fishing game. Last time I tried to play, it was really weird and I couldn't catch anything. Now, it's kind of addicting. (I guess they fixed it?) Made it to Hobby Fisher. Yay!

I watched the last episode of I've Been Married to Hell! or Erai Tokoro ni Totsuide Shimatta! Kimiko and her mother-in-law finally understand each other. After, she found out how Kimiko really felt. She became depressed, but later they resolved it. And, Kimiko won the title of the best bride of the town, by the women's social group. Kind of funny, considering what she started saying in front of the everyone.There was still a lot of really hilarious moments mixed in with this semi-more serious episode. Really good series throughout. Another one I'll miss.It was really fun to watch, too. The music fit the mood perfectly every time. It was a good ending. 


Posted a pic on dA: The Knesset. It's already got a fave! The first of many on dA. I'll get ready for my next batch of my Israel pics on FB. I'm doing it slower on dA, because I don't want to bombard people who watch me, or groups I might submit them to. 


Found out one of the vids I uploaded to Youtube (with permission from the owner), was taken off because of copyright infringement. They say if they take off 3 vids for the same reason, you're account will be deleted. Yay!So, even though I have permission to use the others, I took down everything but my fountain vid. Just to be safe.I've started seeing a lot of accounts being deleted. Kind of weird that they're 'cracking down' on it all of a sudden. Probably making even more people pissed off. They already made most of the users angry when they switched to the new user homepage. They're petitioning to have an option of reverting the page to the old version. I agree with this!Since the change, it's been cluttered, and they did something weird with my recommendation section. Before, there was a link to have a whole page of suggestions. Now, it's like 10 videos shown on the same page as the rest of the stuff. Plus, the vids they come up with for it, aren't as good. So, it's a bit weird.I'm not pissed, I just would like that option to revert back. 


There's a Hadassah meeting tonight. It's a potluck, and then a Rabbi will speak. I might bring my camera to show some people pics of the trip.Found out another guy from that Anime Forum wants to see my travel journal and pics. Seems like everybody does.Interesting. I'm still in the process of writing entries for my online travel journal. I might post what I've done so far tomorrow or something. It doesn't look like much at the moment, though. 

Israel

Mood:


Yay! I'm back from my trip to Israel.Actually, got back Sunday afternoon. I'm still a little jet-lagged and sick.Got sick like the day I left. Everybody apparently got sick. (We dubbed it the Jew Flu.It's not the flu, by the way.) Just starting to feel more normal.


Had a horrendous start to the trip.But, for the most part, the rest of it was amazing. First, my flight that would have taken me directly to JFK airport was cancelled. So, I rescheduled a flight that would take me to Chicago and then to La Guardia airport. It was the last plane that was headed to NYC. I didn't realize how bad the weather was going to be over there.So, I told one of our American staff about the change, and we thought I could get a taxi or someone can pick me up, etc. after I landed in that airport. So, it was mildly annoying, but seemed doable. I was a little late in arriving to La Guardia. And, as soon as I got my luggage, was told that I couldn't go on the trip and they were already getting on the plane.They proceeded to tell me I'd have first priority for the next trip. 


I panicked for a minute, and then broke down in tears.But, I called my mother about the whole thing. I was not going to give up on such an important trip to me.She talked to a guy I was in contact with through Birthright named Jesse. And, Jesse talked to the organization. There was a lot of going back and forth. Finally, Jesse told me Birthright's willing to work something out, I would just have to call Delta to figure out the planes. I called, and they said I couldn't re-book over the phone. Then, I tried searching for the Delta ticket counter. Meanwhile, it's getting really late, and no one's around. I finally noticed it wasn't even in that terminal.So, I caught the last bus, and found the right terminal. (They were about to cancel bus service, because of the weather. It was that bad.)


I went to the ticket counter, and no one was there. Just a couple of janitors, 1 security guard, 1 guy working a cafe, and 2 or 3 people sleeping next to the counter.I was told that they probably wouldn't open it until 6:15AM. So, I stayed the night. (Didn't get much sleep.) 


The counter was actually open at 4AM. So, that was a plus for me. I booked the flight, but she said it would leave from JFK. La Guardia's apparently not an international airport. There's only one flight a day that leaves for Israel through Delta. And, that's at 9PM. So, I thought, ok I have to find my way over somehow and I can leisurely wait for it.


They had stopped all taxi service to the terminal, and most of the shuttles. I luckily found a shuttle about an hour after waiting for one. Went to the main terminal, and then grabbed something for breakfast. Luckily, taxi service wasn't shut down at the main terminal, and I hailed one. It apparently was the only way out of there.


When I got to the ticket counter at JFK, they told me I couldn't get my luggage checked and/or get my ticket earlier than 6 hours before my flight. So, I waited. It was a little boring, but at least I was there. 


The plane to Israel was actually very nice. Had a huge flat screen TV, big chairs (well, big in comparison with other flights), more leg space, blankets and pillows, complimentary meals, only half the seats were filled up, and larger overhead bins. I guess it has to be nice, since it's about an 11 or 12 hour flight.The food wasn't too bad. I had their kosher meals. There was a nice lady in front of me, who said if I had any questions about Israel, I should ask her. Her friend only knew Hebrew, so whatever I said she would translate to her friend. It was interesting. 


Once I landed, I was supposed to find a place called Smiily for my taxi driver that will take me to the hotel where the group was staying. I couldn't find it, so I did what most people would do. Ask the info center.They apparently called them for me, and said my driver will pick me up shortly from the info center. So, I waited for 45 minutes. Finally, I made them call again, and told them the group number again. They said someone will be down soon. 2 people come down, ask who I am, check me off their list, and brought me to my driver about a half hour later. Who was sitting on the other side of the airport, holding up his sign the entire time.I felt so bad, but he understood after I told him. Said it wasn't a big deal. 


He tried to improve his English while we were heading over to the hotel. Had a very nice and interesting conversation. He gave me half an orange, because he felt sorry for me. (Which was really tasty!) Then, his wife called, and he put her on speakerphone. She sounded so angry.He later told me, that he was going to be late for Shabbat at home. I felt even worse, because with the time change and everything, I didn't realize it was Shabbat in only a couple of hours.


When I got to the hotel, I grabbed my room key and waited in the room until everyone from the group got back. Apparently, they already had Shabbat services.So, I went to dinner and an icebreaker activity with them. I missed going to the Western Wall. It was one of the places I really wanted to go to.


I was ripped off the next night when I tried to buy something in downtown Jerusalem. But, that was pretty much the last really horrible bit to the trip. I really would have liked it if there had been more of a 'religious' feel to the group.Most people didn't know very much about Judaism, and it opened their eyes. Which is great, but I needed something more.Most people were smokers, drinkers, had lots of tattoos, and bitchy.There was only a few who seemed 'normal' to me. (Although, I did make friends with others, that stuff just isn't my thing.) Kind of disappointing on that front too. 


Also, Gill, our tour guide, kept rushing us everywhere we went. It felt like he was a drill sergeant or something.We barely had time to take pics. Now, I do realize they're trying to show most of the country in only 10 days. But, it seemed pretty ridiculous at times. I think we could have cut half the things out, and enjoyed things a bit more.


I loved seeing the Bedouins.We rode the camels, went to their Hospitality thing, and ate an awesome dinner. The tent we stayed in wasn't too bad. The only problem I had was, it was a little hard to change when there were guys sleeping scattered throughout the group. Maybe nicer if we had like guys on one side, girls on the other, and a giant curtain separating us. Just a thought.It would've been more comfortable. 


The views on top of Masada were great. Getting there, was not so great.I loved the town of Tsfat. (Safed, Tzfat, Zefat, etc. Many ways to spell it in English.) It was awesome.The architecture, people, shops, artists' colony, the birthplace of Kabbalah, food, and other stuff. I got a Havdalah candle from an awesome candle shop.


Also liked visiting an olive press on a kibbutz. Got to try their olive soap scrub. It's made from the stuff that's left over after making olive oil. (Like the pits, skins, etc.) Felt and looked nasty at first. Then, once washed off, it felt and smelled amazing. My hands were so soft.Then, they let us taste-test 6 different olive oils. 3 were aged differently. 3 were different flavors. (Like garlic, kumquat, and lemon.) All were very good.Then, we got a chance to look around. I got a black olive tapenade. Tried it a couple of days ago. It was good, but probably better after we chill it. 


There were many other awesome things we went to/did. I'm thinking of making an online trip journal.It will have all the places I went to, what I ate, what I did, maybe map the route, etc. I can't possibly put everything on here. So, when I have it up, I'll put up a link on here so people can see. I'll put some pics up on there too. But, I'll put most of those on FB and dA. 


There's apparently lots of stuff that I can go to, now that I've gone on the trip. Lots of socials mainly. There's some in Seattle. If I go to those it won't have anybody from my group, but I'll get to share stories and meet some more Jews my age. Sounds cool.


Yesterday, I went to my therapist appointment. She was fascinated by the trip. Found out that she's expecting a grandchild soon. So, I'm not exactly sure how 'with it' she was. But, it was nice to get things out there.


Rosie has turned into a real mouser. She killed one (or maybe 2?), but apparently dragged it all over the house.There was blood everywhere. The biggest pool of blood was on the dining room table. Another couple of pools were on my bathtub. And, another on the middle section of the banister. There's a little blood on the wall underneath that area too. And, apparently there was some blood on the first step of our stairs leading up to the second floor. She may have finally dug a mouse out of that stair. They hear them all the time, but never actually got one from there. We think the pool on the banister was her trying to give the mouse as a gift to Tasha. Kind of like a peace offering.But, I don't think that worked. They're still fighting.


deviantART faves: Chocolate Chip Truffle Bunny SushiDo World x Costumes x Hetalia Cookie and Cream Truffle Bunny High Definition Scribble 6 Cherry Chocolate Truffle Bunny Strawberry and Cream Bunny Character Reference Sheet APH: America and Mochimerica APH: Latvia Strawberry Kefir PLZ Account MEME -Blank- Features Meme New ID I did not make these! First, fourth, sixth,  and seventh, are all the truffle bunnies an artist I watch made sort of like a countdown to the Chinese New Year. Second, a pic of donuts shaped into various sushi. This was at a donut shop in Thailand. Kind of funny, but looks good at the same time. Third, countries (from Hetalia) represented by their traditional costumes, supposedly inspired by the World Cup. Kind of interesting. Fifth, a cute drawing by an artist I watch. I've always liked his style. Eighth, eleventh, and twelfth, are some really good looking memes that will help me improve my oc's. Ninth, a cute drawing of chibi America, sitting on his mochi form. The colors are interesting too. Tenth, cute drawing of Latvia, from Hetalia, about to fall into one of his national drinks. Apparently inspired by that same drink meme I saw a while back. Interesting to see what people do with it. Thirteenth, a nicely drawn ID by another artist I watch.