israeli politics

You should have been there.  The municipal library was more than generous in its sponsoring of this evening and the staff was amazing.  I had worked for days on a very complex powerpoint and the first thing I did was to drop the clicker I had brought and break it.   The guys there went searching through the offices for another one and at the last minute came through with a substitute.  

But I had other things to busy myself with.  For example, the hall, down in the basement, had a very large anteroom where the books and refreshments were set up.  All that needed arranging.  There was an enormous amount of food, vegetables, cakes, breads, wine, etc. but with all the recent recalls of canned and frozen goods because of parts of animals and bugs, as well as a story about a family that got high on storebought mushrooms, I demanded that the staff taste everything five minutes before the evening began.   You see how careful we were about keeping the lovers of literature happy.

 

my literary evening tonight – August 25, 2022 Read Post »

israeli politics

This came out today and I haven’t really looked at it yet, because I had to get the stuff ready for Thursday and it was all too much.  After all, it’s been a while since I’ve given a live reading and the fact that it is multilingual complicated things immeasurably.  I haven’t even seen my kids.

so don’t think I’m ignoring you.  I’m just bad at organizing and a bit embarrassed that this is all about me.  But most of all, I’m learning an awful lot about my own poetry and my own life.  And most of all I’m learning about who my friends are.  I don’t mean who is helping me out, or who is reading tomorrow, but who is supporting me emotionally, even though I’m got my head up my ass right now.  

I mean just think what else I am ignoring. I always take Nasrallah’s threats seriously, because he usually means what he says.  And I haven’t checked the shelter or made sure the key is on the door.  I haven’t even watched most of the news.  Clearly my head is where I said I was hiding it.

focussed – august 23, 2022 Read Post »

israeli politics

Our informed discussion on Hedy Lamarr last night left me totally confused about identity.  Jewish identity, public identity, private identity, identity as a quantity, etc.

who gets to define Jewish identity, for example?   The Rabbi?  Hitler? The individual?  I may be certain about my Jewish identity but completely confused about my religion when I wander around Bnai Brak or Dubai.

and I still haven’t put away the last tureen, so the last word has not been said.  I shall return soon and update.

 

Did you Miss me? -august 22, 2022 Read Post »

israeli politics

sometimes I’m very sad that our only vacation this year was marred by Covid and we never had a real change of atmosphere.  But when we go out in Tel Aviv I feel we’re on vacation anyway.  Today, for instance, we had lunch at Manta Rei on the beach.  When I came home to a zoom with poet friends in Canada I felt we’d all been on vacation.  Everyone had great things planned for the weekend. But my vacation was the most fun.  There is nothing like the beach.  

Tomorrow my book club is going to be talking about one of the many contradictory books about Hedy Lamarr, so I’m making a dinner as much in the Austro-Hungarian empire mood as possible.  Cold cherry soup, gevetch, szekeley goulash, tshipetke, and Hungarian applesauce cake.  After years of catering primarily to shnitzel-driven grandchildren, I feel like I’m getting me cooking mojo back, and I’m even considering writing a cook book.  It begins with “wear good shoes” and ends with “get someone else to clean up.”

   

tel Aviv heaven – august 20, 2022 Read Post »

israeli politics

He’s another guy in my thoughts all day.  I keep looking for a site that updates his situation – is he getting better?  Will he be able to write again?  The Fatwa was on for so many years I thought it wouldn’t happen.  We took it as a joke.  It was just like with Rabin.  Extremists mean business.  

Salman Rushdie – August 19, 2022 Read Post »

israeli politics

I know I wrote something about his death a few days ago, but it keeps coming back to me – that he was so single-minded about singing that he didn’t seem to notice the time passing.  That he was a broken old man and still wanted to be a rock singer.  When I too was going that route, he was making a comeback with The High Hats, and everyone thought it was a joke.  But he did it, he did it straight and he did it well.   Maybe that’s why he stays in my mind.

 

zvika pik – august 19, 2022 Read Post »