Pidgeon and Pigeons in Ashkelon

I love this place! It's 2:30 p.m. on Erev Shabbos and Pidgeon and I are relaxing in the fabulous AC and looking at the glorious beach view. We are here celebrating our 1 year anniversary. And, even though technically it's not until the 19th, we're spending this entire weekend in celebration. Which means that the next 3 days will just speed by, faster than ever! Why does that always happen? When you're happy, life just goes by so fast. But, when you're sad, life just drags on? Curious.

So, yesterday, we woke up at 8:15 to give my dry cleaning to the cleaners. We use the same guys who saved my behind during the great mold debacle of January 2008. They were able to literally clean ever since moldy item in my wardrobe, so I'm now a loyal member of Yaniv's dry cleaning in Meah Shearim. And, since they pick up and drop off for free, it's perfect. After Pidgeon gave them all of my Shabbos maternity clothing to dry clean, we went back to sleep and didn't get out of bed until 11:30! Meanwhile, I had a lot of USA Men's Olympic swimming to catch up on and cooking and packing to do. So, I sat down and wrote my packing list and put up the quinoa. 

By the time we left Jerusalem, at 4:30 p.m., I managed to make the quinoa, pick out CD's and DVD's for the trip, pack myself, help organize Pidgeon who packed himself, and tidied up the apartment. We traveled light for us - which means one overnight bag each, a cooler full of quinoa, fresh cooked corn, roasted broccoli, 2 challot from Pe'er, 2 frozen bottles of Mei Eden water and the meatloaf, a small bag with snacks for the car and my purse. I was impressed with us - since we're not planning on returning until late Sunday night.

We ended up making incredible time, even with hitting the post-Thursday rush hour traffic right outside of the City. Even with a pit stop at Shaar Hagay gas station for some lunch - tuna sandwiches and shoko (for me) and diet ice tea (for Pidgeon) - we still managed to get to Kibbutz Yavneh before 7:00 p.m.! We both were afraid we were going to be really late meeting with Pidgeon's favorite teacher from High School - Avraham Stein - but we were right on time. We chatted with him and his lovely wife for over an hour and then it was back on the road and heading to Ashkelon. We were a little surprised to hit such bad traffic but then we realized it was all cars trying to get into one lane to turn off into Ashdod. Once we were able to bypass that lane, we managed to hit a bit more Ashkelon traffic and then pulled into the car parking garage by 9:00 p.m. We got the keys from my in-laws neighbors and then we were here!

Unfortunately, Pidgeon was starving and like my Cousin Neil tends to do when he's hungry, was having a bit of a hunger attack. So, we quickly dropped our stuff, plugged in our computers to charge, put my shots in the fridge and called the restaurant for directions. Somehow, the restaurant doesn't appear on Pidgeon's GPS, but we managed to "use the force" and made it there with an hour to go before they closed. The food was great! We ordered two skewers of entrecote steak (well done for me, medium rare for Pidgeon) and that came with a million types of salatim, some hummus and french fries. The pitot were also fresh and hot from the over, and absolutely delicious! Pidgeon and I devoured our food - I hadn't realized I too was hungry - and then we decided to order 4 pargiot for Shabbat lunch. The owners were really nice and they also packed us up some extra salatim to go. Satisfied and bloated, we returned home so I could do my shot and we could make the bed. I was so tired though that I started to get a bit cranky with Pidgeon, and being the amazing and patient man that he is, he helped me make the bed and tried his best to get me to sleep STAT. 

We woke to a beautiful, hot, sunny day this morning. Well, I should amend that, I woke to a beautiful, hot, sunny day this morning. I asked Pidgeon to set his alarm for 9:30 and he quickly shut it off and went back to sleep. I logged on and relaxed and let him sleep for 30 more minutes before I started to get ansy. We had a schedule today and I am determined to keep to it! While he slept, I noticed that the windowsill outside of our bedroom is covered in bird poo and the Ashkelon Pigeons have made this their home. At one point, there were 4 lined up and one even pecked at the window! I felt like I was back in Manhattan, with all the pigeons lined up in a row waiting for an unsuspecting resident to scurry beneath before they let their droppings fly and hit their bullseye down below. So, I woke Pidgeon up and told him that the pigeons were here to greet him. He smiled and I managed to get him up and out of bed.

Since we didn't know the address to the main shopping complex, we once again "used the force" and somehow managed to make it to our destination. At that point, I was so hungry, I told Pidgeon I was going to knaw on his fingers if he didn't get some food into me. We parked and jogged to the Aroma and Pidgeon ordered me the Aruchat Boker which comes with 2 scrambled eggs, some chopped salad, 4 olives, 5% feta and cream cheese and 6 slices of whole wheat bread. I also got an ice coffee cause I was in the mood, which Pidgeon had a Chai with 1% milk and an omlete sandwich. It was nice to eat although it was a bit uncomfortable in our booth. The chair was too far back from the table, but the table and chairs were bolted to the floor, so unless I sat at the edge of the booth I was too far away from my plate.

Which brings me to a phenomenon I notice in pregnant women. It's called the eating all over yourself phenomenon. When you see a pregnant lady and she's got a big stain somewhere on her shirt or skirt, chances are she has no idea how that happened nor does she even realize that it's there. I've been finding stains on my stomach hours after they happen, and I'm constantly wondering how the heck it got there. Well, sure enough, about 5 minutes into eating my food I managed to drop a big bite of salad all over myself. And, since the dressing was green, I was now sporting a huge stain right in the middle of my chest.  Pidgeon tried to make me feel like less of a pig by saying that it could be a logo for the Greek Islands - but I wasn't biting. So, with my big stain, we wrapped up at Aroma and went next door to the SuperSol Big to buy our food.

Food in Ashkelon is so much cheaper than in Jerusalem, it's insane. For less than 350 shekel, we managed to buy: a pound of potatoes cooked, a pound of noodles, one large challah, 6 nectarine, 10 small plums, a small pineapple, sorbet, a can of cocktail olives, a can of hearts of palm, a can of baby corn, a bag of lettuce, 5% creamy italian dressing, a box of Telma bran flakes, 1% skim milk, this roasted onion salatim that Pidgeon wanted, 3 bottles of hand soap, silver foil, plastic ziplock baggies, 2 bottles of diet lemonade, 1 bottle of green tea ice tea, 1 big bottle of grape juice, and 1 package of duracell AA batteries. That would have cost us at least 100 shekel more in Jerusalem. I told Pidgeon we should take advantage and do our weekly grocery shopping in Ashkelon, even with the price of gas it would probably be worth it. 

We also bought 3 green shopping bags as we're trying to save the world by cutting down on plastic baggies. With our booty, we made our way back to the car, turned on the GPS and managed to get home in no time at all. Unfortunately, it was too much time for our sorbet, and when we got to the apartment we discovered it had melted and leaked ALL over all the stuff in that green bag. At first, I thought we cracked the dressing bottle, and was relieved to see it was just the sorbet leaking. That's how hot it is here people! I quickly washed everything, including the bag, and Pidgeon put the wet ones out on the balcony to dry so we could use them to pack some stuff up when we leave on Sunday.

Meanwhile, I was so distracted, that as I was unpacking the bags I pulled out this strange package and it took me a minute to realize what it was. It was a Trivial Pursuit mini game gossip edition. I gasped when I saw it and asked Pidgeon if he knew how it got there. He said he had no idea and I though, my g-d, I stole this from the Supermarket and I didn't even realize I had packed it into the bag! My mind started racing, I needed to go back and pay the Supermarket or return it! I've never stolen anything from a Supermarket before and I felt awful.

Suddenly, Pidgeon smiled, and wished me a Happy Aliyah and wedding Anniversary! He put it in the bag AND he bought it for me months ago as a surprise. I was soo shocked and surprised! I had no idea when he even did that, and then everything started clicking into place. He insisted when we got to the car that I go and put on the AC rather than help him load the bags into the trunk. I wasn't happy that he didn't let me help him but I did it because I thought he was really hot, little did I know that he had hidden the game in the trunk and wanted to slip it into one of the bags without me seeing. Plus, when we got to the apartment, he didn't really help me unpack the bags which is very unlike him. I was wondering why he wasn't helping, and only when I found the gift did I realize what went into getting me the whole present and keeping it a surprise! Apparently, Pidgeon bought this game online and shipped it to his brother in London, who brought it with him when he was visiting in July. Pidgeon then hid it in the house - somewhere - and waited until the time was right to give it to me.

Now, we had agreed on no presents this anniversary - but both of us are  big fat liars. Pidgeon's present is on its way and I can't write what I got him here since he sometimes reads my blog and I want it to be a big surprise too. But, boy am I happy that I got him something! Whew.

Well, I'm off to change into my bathing suit and get ready for the pool! I can't wait to take a nice, long swim in the cool waters. 

Shabbat Shalom from Ashkelon!

Philosophy Countdown

In about 15 hours, I'll be in the middle of the Medieval Philosophy final. Yikes! I needed a break, so I decided to update my blog before going back to my study notes. I've been at it since 11:30 a.m. and it's tiring! My head is swimming from the 4 proofs of Creation, the proofs of Providence, types of Commandments, types of Laws, etc. I'm hoping I'll be able to keep everyone straight, but it's confusing trying to keep up with the beliefs of Maimonides and Saadia Gaon and Joseph Albo, etc.  Plus, the exam format is multiple choice, and I am a lousy multiple choice test taker. I'm a brilliant essay test taker (I can BS my way through just about anything) and same with fill in answers. But hand me a multiple choice exam and I just have the hardest time, especially when the instructor tries to hand me trick questions. I always end up second guessing myself and inevitably scratch in the wrong answer. Now, Professor Harvey is a good guy, so I'm praying he did very few trick questions and everything else is just straight forward. At this point, I'm not even looking to ace the test, I just need to pass it so I can get a passing grade in the course and move on to my thesis. 

Here's hoping!

Well, Pidgeon and I had a long, busy day yesterday. I had another Holocaust literature class after my usually scheduled Tuesday class, and the conversation was fascinating. I am a huge Melvin Jules Bukiet fan, as of yesterday, since he is an absolutely brilliant writer. His short story The Library of Moloch was really, really riveting. I highly recommend it as a must read! By the time Pidgeon finished his own course, near the Azrielli mall in Tel Aviv, I was walking towards the Aroma off campus for a nice, tall drink of ice decaf coffee. It was stinking, stinking hot though, and sitting outside was torture. When I got into the car, Pidgeon was able to see his own reflection in the sheen of my face. Gross! I washed my face as soon as we walked through the door.

I'm really looking forward to this weekend. We are planning on doing absolutely nothing. I froze some leftovers from last Shabbos, so I don't have to make any of the chicken, and am planning on cooking super light for the rest of the weekend. All I want to do is sleep and catch up on my reading. I have to get at least another book started and finished before the weekend is over, so that I can keep on top of my school work. 

I can't believe that June is practically over. I'm not that upset, mind you, as I absolutely hate this hot weather. I'm a Fall person and am looking forward to the crisp, cool weather of October. Granted, I have no maternity clothing for cooler weather, but I can always find an oversized sweatshirt and just layer up. 

Recently, I decided to try to change up our eating habits. I figured, since we're most active during the day, we should have our heavier meal for lunch and a lighter meal for dinner. So, this week, I've experimented and served Pidgeon meat for lunch and light/dairy for dinner. I don't know if he likes it so much, but I'm really enjoying it. It's nice to go to sleep without this huge meal to digest. Granted, I want to take a nap right after lunch is over, but at least I have plenty to do to distract me so I don't just crawl into bed as soon as I finish off the corned beef. I'm hoping this will help me keep my weight down, and with another Dr.'s appointment looming, I'm nervous. I'd really prefer not getting yelled at by my GYNO, it was not a pleasant experience.

Well, I think I should log off and get back to my notes. I'm still not straight on the purpose of Averroes/Ibn Rushd Decisive Treatise and I just know that's going to be a question. 

Erev Tov from Baka!

Food is Love

I grew up in a household where food = love. You know the type, when you were 6 and you broke your wrist and the Dr. had to twist it back in - without anesthesia - to set it and you screamed your head off and almost fainted in pain, your Dad took you straight to Baskin and Robbins for a double scoop treat. Or, when you scored really high on the GRE, you parents decided to take the whole family out to a big celebratory dinner at your favorite kosher restaurant. And, you ordered everything you ever wanted from the menu. What about when you were feeling down about the crappy dates you'd be out on lately, and your Mom looked the other way when you reached for a box of chocolate donuts and then handed you a pint of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough ice cream to instantly make you feel better. Or that first Shabbos back home from the awful Zionistic sleep over summer camp and your Mom cooked you your absolute favorite Shabbos foods and then Grandma popped over with her famous potato kugel that she only makes on special occasions.

Yeah, that's the home I grew up in. Well, as I got older and my waistline expanded, I realized that maybe I didn't have the best relationship with food. So, I decided to try to get control and ask for hugs instead of bags of Hershey hugs when I needed emotional comfort. Its been working well, thankfully, and I'm doing my best not to perpetuate what I learned at home into our new home. That being said, I'm not always successful. We joke about how food=love, especially when Pidgeon comes home from a long day and I immediately ask him what I can give him for dinner. I give him a hug first, so he recognizes the difference, and then I make him a fantastic meal. But, on Friday, I realized that Pidgeon needed more of a pick me up than my wimpy little arms could provide. And so, I decided to bake him a surprise batch of vegan brownies.

But wait, you might be asking, since when are you vegan? We're not. I could never be a vegan or a vegetarian. I love meat. But, we are on a big time budget and when I rummaged through the fridge looking for the 2 eggs needed for my brownie recipe, I discovered a lone egg and no applesauce to substitute. So, I hit the internet and found a recipe for vegan brownies that called for maple syrup instead of eggs. I decided, since we had a huge bottle of maple syrup that I wasn't planning on using any time soon (no pancakes for this preggo), to try out the recipe. I shooed Pidgeon out of the kitchen and told him I was making him a surprise for Shabbos kiddush. He was curious and excited and happily went to his room to do some work. By the time the brownies were baking, the fabulous scent drew Pidgeon out of his room and into the kitchen. He was thrilled and the brownies were delicious! I warned him that this was a pick-me-up that I won't constantly resort to, but I knew that he would really enjoy his treat. He really did.

Sometimes, folks, a brownie is exactly what the Dr. ordered for some much needed mood elevation.

Shabbos was very quiet and relaxing. We ate Friday night dinner at Pidgeon's parents home and for the first time, I had to give myself the shot away from our apartment (well, except when we were at my parents, but that doesn't count). It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, especially since everyone was lingering over dessert and we were able to slip downstairs to his bedroom quite easily. We walked home around Midnight and the streets were much more crowded that usual, which really means that the summer is here, and it was nice to get home and not have to do a shot before going to bed. With the AC humming softly, we both fell into a nice sleep.

Shabbos day we were home by ourselves, which is exactly how I like it sometimes. I still don't understand how we manage to have 2 1/2 hour lunches, but it was a lot of fun. I had to read Abraham Cahan's Yekl for class this week and, since I'm a huge Cahan fan, I really enjoyed the story. After a quick nap, we decided to escape the artificial air and sit on the back porch.

It was so nostalgic for me. In Queens, on a long Shabbos afternoon, I would wake up from my nap and join my Mom on the front porch to read, gossip, watch the people going up the block to the two shul's in our vicinity, and just relax. We wouldn't go inside until dusk and the bugs started to bite, or if our stomachs growled for some Shalosh Seudot. Pidgeon didn't grow up sitting on the front porch Shabbos afternoon, he was usually fast asleep with the latest SciFi thrilled next to his pillow, although his parents do have a beautiful garden that they entertain in.  I think he enjoyed the hour and a half we spent outdoors, if for no other reason than there was a fantastic breeze and the fabulous scent of fresh flowers growing in the air. When Shabbos was over, I was a little sad since it had been so enjoyable, but was looking forward to the start of a new week.

We also decided, as our Saturday night activity, not to see Sex and the City but the head over to the Mamilla mall which is right outside the Old City walls. We hadn't been there yet, but the buzz is strong and positive, and we thought it would be a fun evening. Little did we know that the rest of Jerusalem thought the same way! It took 30 minutes to just drive down the block and into the parking lot. I was shocked by the lines of cars, in both directions, that seemed to stretch for miles. We also had an alternative reason for going to the Mall; I had a 300 shekel gift card to Mac that I wanted to redeem and figured now was as good a time as any to get me some fun stuff. 

We parked and quickly made our way to the shopping center. We hadn't realized that the Mall was basically an outdoor one, and on such a beautiful evening, it was perfect! We passed restaurants that had long waits and were bursting at the seams! We saw a Rolodin, Aroma, Cafe Cafe and a Cafe Rimon. For some reason, the line at Cafe Cafe was the longest. We noted upscale retailers like Tommy Hillfiger, Bebe, and H Stern and of course the requisite Michal Negrin store. The shopping was a tourists dream! Imagine, you could go to the kotel, walk back through the Old City, and stop at the Mamilla mall to get anything you would have gotten in the center of Town. Pretty soon, Ben Yehuda might become obsolete! 

Well, we went to Mac and it turned out that my card expired in February. I was a little upset, as that gave me only 4 months from my birthday to redeem the card and I was told I had a year. The woman was very helpful and got on the phone with HQ to see what they could do. We decided to check out the other shops while she was on the phone and we stopped into the Body Shop so I could buy myself some nice bubble bath. I hope it does what I'm looking for, because sometimes you just want to spend a few hours soaking in a hot tub, with a glass of apple juice, some scented candles and your Nora Jones CD. Afterwards, the hunger bug struck and we hopped into Aroma for some take out sandwiches. We were fighting the clock as I had to be home for the 11:00 a.m. shot and it was getting precariously close to the time we needed to leave. We stopped back at Mac and the woman told us that I could redeem the card but could spend no less than 300 shekel. I ended up getting a palette of 4 eyeshadows, a pencil sharpener and 2 sponges for 316. Fortunately, the extra 16 shekel didn't break the bank. We then quickly stopped into the Steimatzky, which was GORGEOUS, and didn't find the book Pidgeon is desperately looking for. Anyone who knows where we can buy a Brandon Sanderson novel in Israel, please let me know! It would make Pidgeon so happy to have!

We made it home with 2 minutes to spare and then, after the shot, enjoyed a lovely midnight snack with some CSI: Miami.

Today, Pidgeon is off helping his Uncle move offices and I'm home working on one of my thesis stories. I hope to get the bulk of it down today so I can have at least something else written that I can edit into shape. 

If you're in America, here's hoping you're spending the day at The Salute to Israel Day Parade. Show your pride and wear blue and white! We here in Baka appreciate it!

Yom Tov!

You Pay Now!

Yesterday was take your husband to school day and so Pidgeon woke up bright and early, got dressed, packing a snack and his sketch pad, and we hit the road. We were really lucky that the traffic towards Bar Ilan from Jerusalem wasn't that bad, and we made it just in time for class! We spent the entire day focused on Emerson's Self-Reliance and the conversation about individualism and conformity was pretty interesting. Class went by pretty fast and Pidgeon really liked the topic. Plus, he got in some solid sketch time, which worked well for both of us.

After class, we went over to Schar Limmud to find out where the check was. To backtrack a bit, I am a Minhal Hastudentim student, which means that they pay for my tuition. Last year, by the time I finished up with Minhal Hastudentim, I was owed the full tuition I paid back since the agency now covered me. As soon as I put in my paperwork, I got a check a couple weeks later. This year, with the strike and everything, I paid the initial bill and then worked everything out with Minhal Hastudentim. I had to show them my transcript but one Professor, who taught two of my classes, hadn't gotten around to giving me a grade until November. Nevertheless, about 6 weeks ago, I went to Schar Limmud with the paperwork and we have been checking the mailbox ever since. 

We waited patiently in line and then went inside to meet with the kindest worker Bar Ilan has on staff. I told him that Pidgeon was my Hebrew and we started out meeting. That's when it got all comical. He told me there was a problem with my paperwork. He said that, Minhal Hastudentim last year covered me 111% out of 200% that they can cover for a second degree. He said that the percentage is determined based on hours on campus. Now, since I am only taking 2 courses this year, I am only up to 89% and Minhal Hastudentim were only covering me for 50% and so I actually owe them more money. I was very confused and first started on the percentage issue. He said that 4% is from the Jewish studies requirement. I told him that I was exempt from the second Jewish studies requirement because of my seminary year 12 years ago. He them said that while I am academically not required to take the second Jewish studies course, I still am financially required to. So I was surprised that they would going to charge me to pay for credits on a course that I was told I didn't have to take. That, to me, seemed really lousy for a University to do. Make me pay for not having taken the course? I might as well take the course then if I have to pay for it. It seemed a bit ridiculous to have me pay for something they told me I didn't have to take. So then the nice man told us we had to go to Talam on campus and ask them if I am financially required to pay for something I was academically not required to do. But, I countered, and said that I am 100% covered by Minhal Hastudentim, so should that we covered by them regardless? He told me that the computer showed that I was only covered 50% but he would double check. He walked back with a big folder with the paperwork and took 5 minutes to find my name. And, voila, there it was in black and white. I was covered by them this year 100%. OK great, we said, when can we expect our check. Well, the nice man met with a few of his superiors in the office and came back all smiles and said that of course he has to pay us our money, etc. I was happy that Pidgeon was there to translate because the whole situation was confusing and really made no sense. He checked his computer, frowned, and then told me that there was another small problem. They hadn't charged me for the Shmirah for the year. Basically, each Bar Ilan student has to pay 240 shekel (add 4 shekel to that for bank processing fees) a year for campus security. So, Pidgeon asked if I paid last year, and the man said that I had. I am more than happy to pay the security fee, especially since I think it's a necessary service, so we asked him what we do next. He printed out a 240 shekel bill, told me that I had to pay it by Friday, and then said that the check would be in the mail around March 20th. Believe me, we will be checking, as we can really use that cash back. Now, I decided not to be a pain about this, but if Minhal Hastudentim are covering me 100% this year, and I'm only in school for 89% of the 100%, what happens to the remaining 11%? I'm sure that's more than 240 shekels, couldn't they have deducted that fee from the money the Minhal Hastudentim were giving them? Again, they are giving the school 100% of the money, even though I'm only using 89% of it. When it comes to security though, I decided to just pay it. But, I think someone in the Bar Ilan administration is pocketing my 11%. I hope they buy themselves something pretty with my money.

Side point, but had we not gone and asked about the money status, we never would have known there was a problem. I hate that they do that, and I honestly believe the University does it on purpose. When it comes to money, they will not run to return a cent even if it's not legally there's. Had I not been hyper-vigilant about this, I never would have know about the problem and we would still be waiting for the check that was supposed to be "in the mail" weeks ago! I lost a lot of respect for the Bar Ilan administration yesterday and didn't ask him why no one bothered to tell me about the issue in the first place because, as I've experience dealing with money issues in Israel before,  I know I wouldn't have gotten a satisfactory answer. 

To celebrate sorting out this issue, we decided to grab some lunch at the Aroma off campus. We sat in the outdoor area and had tuna salads and tuna sandwiches and enjoyed the nice Spring like weather. In a few weeks, it will be just so swealtering that I doubt I'll be able to sit outside like that. I'm not looking forward to the really hot weather, although it will be nice to shlep less stuff during the day. After lunch, we decided not to do our Tel Aviv errands, and came back to Jerusalem.

I was supposed to start my Mishloach Manot baking yesterday but, since I woke up at 6:00 a.m., was too wiped to start. Instead, we spent the rest of the afternoon watching some TV, and then when Pidgeon went for a haircut, I made dinner. We had a really nice, relaxing, dinner and then I decided to try to fix my shaytels before Shabbos. With it being Parshat Zachor this weekend, I have not choice but have to get myself to shul on Shabbos day. I like to have options to wear a wig, in case I don't want to wear a hat, so I needed to make sure they were both in decent condition. It was not easy wielding a hot iron and working on my wigs, but it was worth it and they both look really great. I was pleased that I saved a lot of money! It would have cost me 140 shekel each to have someone in Har Nof wash and blow dry my wigs, this way I was able to do it at home for free!

We went to bed fairly early and I was up at 9:00 to call the Dr. I've been dealing with blood test after blood test for the past few months regarding a potential blood clotting issue. I found Dr. Varon, who is apparently "the best" hematologist in Jerusalem, and have been waiting for my test results so I can follow up with him. The results take a month to get and when we finally picked them up on the 9th, I immediately called to speak with him. He told us to fax over the results and then asked me to call him this morning to discuss. At 9:00 am on the dot, I called him and he basically told me that These results cannot be discussed over the telephone, you must come in and meet with me. Not something I wanted to hear, and so I've basically been in a panic all morning. He told us to call him after 3:00 p.m. so he could let us know if he can squeeze us into his schedule. 

Well, I certainly hope he can see us today because now I'm pretty frantic. What could this mean? 

Anyway, I'm going to go and bake a batch of chocolate cakes for Purim now and hope that will easy the tension a bit.  If not, I'm sure the gym later today will make me feel better. 

Yom Tov from Baka!