Mood:
It's the 3rd day! It's going fast. I won't be going to the potluck for it tonight, but will be there on Saturday for lunch. So, I'll get a 'taste' of it, at least. It seems like our congregation's trying to go earlier and earlier for potlucks. It's a bit weird.
One of the reasons why I won't be going today.
Yesterday and today, has felt much cooler than what it's been the past week or so. In the low 60s, instead of high 70s. Quite a difference there. It was warmer than usual, but it didn't slowly cool down, so we could adjust more. It was very windy last night, too.
I managed to get my hair perfect yesterday!
Found a couple of products that were a fifth of the price of the salon stuff combined. Didn't know that they'd actually work better than the pricey stuff. Even after sleeping on it, it still looks great today. One of the things was a calming/smoothing cream. It helps with the volume of my hair, the frizz, and relaxing the curls overall. The other thing was a 'curl-activating' mousse. It's to help style it, also helps with frizz, and gives some shine. (I'm not really looking for 'shine', but it's a nice plus.) It's also alcohol free, so it doesn't feel funny once it dries. Holds far better than the mousse from the salon. I guess it's good I found some really good inexpensive products for it. The only downside with the mousse, is that it smells a bit like incense.
But, that goes away after a bit, so I'll just have to bare with that. (The cream smells awesome though!)
Posted a filled in writing meme featuring 5 of my newest characters from my story, Alliance. I tried to stay 'in character' for each one. They seemed to have a couple of questions that were repeated, but just worded differently. So, it was a bit weird. But, the rest of it was interesting. Already had 3 people fave it!
The kanji for yesterday was: 通 or つう、かよ.う、とお.し、とお.す、とお.り、とお.る、－どお.し、－どお.り (Tsuu, kayo.u, too.shi, too.su, too.ri, too.ru, -doo.shi, -doo.ri). It means: avenue, commute, counter for letters, notes, documents, etc., pass through, traffic. There's actually many more meanings. So many that I filled out a page and a half just on it. I didn't know about most of these meanings the first time I went over this. So, it's good that I went over it again. Also went over a lesson from my Japanese book. Got everything correct! So, I'm still on the right track.
For dinner last night, I tried making pappardelle pasta, with canned roasted garlic pasta sauce. It's an interesting pasta. Very big, and they are shaped into 'nests' when they're in the package. They unwind as they cook. They said the pasta would inevitably stick to the pot, and to scrape it off (and stir) with a wooden spoon. It was almost impossible to get it off with a wooden spoon!
Anyways, it was very good. Yet, very messy with the sauce. I love trying new pastas! It's fun!
After dinner, we went to Dad's support group. She's supposed to be the facilitator of it, but it almost seemed like another person was trying to take over. There was 17 people. Not a bad turn out to the first meeting, I think. Someone said it was also a group for me, since I have to 'deal with' (her words, not mine) a trans parent. Plus, I show other members that family can be allies as well. That someone accepts them for who they are. And, that, according to her, is very empowering to the other members. There were 2 other 'allies' there, too. One a sister, and another a wife/partner. They were thinking of calling us FAPs instead of SOFAs. I'd rather be referred to as a 'piece of furniture' than a FAP, honestly. It disturbs me.
Cartoon KAT-TUN had an ex-boxer turned sports announcer as a main guest. He was quite a character. They gave a present to Ne-Yo at the end of the episode. (Ne-Yo's an American R&B singer/songwriter, dancer, and actor.) It was custom made sneakers, made by one of the band members who's a huge fan. Ne-Yo liked them so much, he wore them to the MTV music video awards that year. He seemed like a nice guy. The band members tried out their English on him, and they weren't too bad. It's a few years later currently since this episode, and their English has improved greatly. I've heard them speak English in a couple of recent dramas, and the one who writes most of their songs, uses a lot of English now. It's like they're all fascinated by it. Which is cool. Ne-Yo gave them custom T-shirts and his new CD. The band member who's a huge fan, went crazy. He was so happy.
Fairy Tail was action packed! They realized that if they cut the chains connecting the clock to the ground, it will lose its power more quickly. 'Michelle' or Imitatia turned out to really be just a doll. When Lucy was little she called it her sister and always carried it around with her. When Imitatia was brought to life, all she wanted was to spend 'eternity' with Lucy. She found out what would happen if Lucy's absorbed by the clock, and went crazy. Brain II immediately turned her back into a doll. Lucy could see and hear everything, but couldn't move. She managed to let a few tears out though.
In Anagle Mole, Luchiru and Kyosuke have a new party member, named Arulu. She was a childhood friend of Luchiru. She has some crazy mood swings. After testing to make sure Luchiru was telling the truth, she agreed to not turn them in. And, since Kyousuke offered, she agreed to go with them as well. She seems much more scary than the people they've fought with so far. Probably because she's a bit unstable.
Played my clarinet. Haven't done it in a while. Did a bunch of Irish tunes. When I went to the cafe today, like usual, they had a new employee. She seems pretty nice. I got some hot chocolate this time. Practiced writing out kanji, reading You Maga, transposed a tune, went over a couple of lessons from my Japanese book, practiced making sentences with the newer kanji, and did some crosswords while I was there.
deviantART fave: The things are after you I did not make this! A cool painting that an artist I watch did. I like the way the sky looks like it has a certain texture to it.
Mood:
It started last night, and will go until the night of the 7th. Sadly, we don't have our sukkah up this year.
A sukkah means a booth in Hebrew. (Sukkot is plural.) It's an outdoor temporary structure. It's one of the harvest festivals. Usually, it's made out of natural materials. Our main structure is wooden, with some wooden lattice for walls. Tree boughs drape over the top for a 'roof'. It's also fun to decorate.
We usually put up a string of pine cones, flowers, gourds, plastic fruit, etc. Every year seems to be a little different with it. Last time we had it up, someone brought a ton of lavender from their garden. So, we put it all over the place. (I don't particularly like lavender, but the gesture was nice.) We also usually put out a big lantern, so if we're in it at night, we can still see things. During the week we would have all our meals out there. It's a really nice experience. Sometimes, we'd invite people over to eat in it. Most of the time those people weren't Jewish, so it was interesting to see what they thought about it.
The synagogue has their's up. And, said if anybody wanted to, during the week, they could use it. There's also a potluck in their sukkah on Wednesday. And, a luncheon there after a Bat Mitzvah on Saturday. So, there's at least 2 opportunities for me to eat under a sukkah. Yay!
Simchat Torah is on the 9th, and that marks the end and beginning of the Torah readings. It's one of the holidays where we're commanded to be 'joyous' and happy. It's pretty fun. There's dancing, singing, 'marching' with the Torah (some bring family Torah scrolls from home, like we have a very small one we could bring), candy, adults usually have some schnapps, and we unscroll the entire Torah. It's really quite an event.
This is my wallpaper for the month. It's Scotland from Hetalia. Actually, it's not his official design. The mangaka only mentions him a couple of times, but never shows him. (Same with Ireland, sadly. Maybe that'll change soon?) So, this seems to be what the fans have agreed on for his design. I kind of like it. Since I'm part Scottish, I thought it was a nice wallpaper for me. (I didn't make it by the way. I've never made one before...
) There aren't very many good Ireland designs, and people haven't overwhelmingly agreed to one, like Scotland.
My herb calendar just has a bunch of variations for poppy seeds. The flower, seeds, pods, etc. Plus, some bread that's covered in it, and some jam. I don't really like poppy seeds. My dad kind of scared me enough to stay away from them when I was little, and once I realized that a little is ok, I still hated them.
She would tell me you could get high off of them. I've always had a little phobia of drugs. Particularly, recreational ones. So, telling me that as a kid, was not the best idea for me. Yes, if you have A LOT of them there is a very small possibility of getting high, but eaten regularly, no. I've actually read that it's pretty rare to get high off the stuff. The other components of the plant, do have the ability to get you high. Specifically, opium poppies do. Hence, related to the Opium Wars in China in 1839 and 1858.
My Jewish calendar has 3 different pics of Torah rimmonim or finials. They're 'crowns' or ornaments placed on the Torah rollers that hold it together. Since their shape is spherical and looks a bit fruit-like, the Sephardic Jews (from Spain, and around the Mediterranean) called it tappuach or apple, and the Ashkenazic Jews (from Germany, and eastern Europe) called it rimmon (singular for rimmonim) or pomegranate. Some can get very fancy looking. Anyways, all the ones in the pics are from the Netherlands. Ranging from 1717 to 1768. And they're silver. Kind of cool. Very fitting for the month, too.
These are the month-long holidays: National Apple Month, Bat Appreciation Month, Emotional Wellness Month, LGBT History Month, German-American Heritage Month, Italian-American Heritage Month, National Caramel Month, National Chili Month, National Cookbook Month, Pear and Pineapple Month, Polish-American Heritage Month, Positive Attitude Month, Rhubarb Month, Sausage Month, Spinach Lovers Month, National Dessert Month, National Pasta Month, National Pretzel Month. Some are important causes, some are to make you appreciate things you may take for granted, and some are just for fun. I love apples, caramel, chili, pears, sausages, spinach, desserts, pastas, and pretzels. So, I guess it's kind of my month, food-wise. I'm also part German, so that applies to me, too. I think it's always good to have a positive attitude.
I may go to Dad's new support group on Tuesday. I guess just to give her support, and to show someone (specifically a family member) accepts her for who she is. Might help others feel like they belong.I went with her to get the key code to the building on Friday night, and they were having a huge party for the teens of the center. It's a center for the LGBT community, and seems to be the only sort of place in the area. There's some places on the other side of the water, but that's not 'local' to us. So, it's a good place. The facilitator for the teen group that was there said I looked like another teen. I don't get why some people think I still look like a teenager. When people try to guess my age, it ranges from 14 to 19. It's a bit funny to me.
No one guesses in the 20s. That can be a good thing, I guess...
Went to services Saturday morning. Haven't gone to it in a long time. Our cantor couldn't make it, and so the rabbi tried to make do with his own singing. It was kind of cute. His voice is not horrible at all, but it's not of a professional singer either. Sometimes, that can be the best.
Anyways, we had more people than we expected to show up. I went up for an aliyah again this time. Not many people wanted to do it. The portion's interesting, because it's in a poem form. The Hebrew is written interestingly in the Torah. So, I'm glad I was able to see it. I think I remember someone said that there's only a couple of portions that are written out like that.
Managed to find a lot more cool songs yesterday. So, look forward to those!
We cleaned out the refrigerator/freezer. Haven't done that in a very long time. A lot of the stuff we threw out was either Mom's, really old, things we were hoping to use at some point, etc. There seems to be a lot more room now. Even after restocking from the grocery store later during that day. That's good.
deviantART fave: Hyouka I did not make this! A cool drawing of Oreki from Hyouka, by an artist I watch. I grew tired of watching that, and dropped it recently. But, the art was cool. So, it makes for some interesting fanart out there. Also, dropped Baka to Test. Seemed pointless, and started to lose its appeal.
