Blast from the Past

I got this picture today from our cousins Meytal and Sylvia Wasserman in Netanya, who had gotten it from our other cousin David Moscovits in Chicago. None of us is actually sure exactly how David came into possession of this picture, other than that his two brothers are in it.

It was taken during our first family visit to Israel in the Summer of 1985, likely almost exactly 23 years ago to the month, since we were there from mid-June through mid-August.
By Sylvia's recollection, it was taken during a lunch picnic while visiting the model of Second-Temple era Jerusalem at the Holyland Hotel. Interestingly enough, the model was moved to the Israel Museum in 2005 and has been on exhibition with a nifty video and everything since 2006.

From Left to Right are:
Meytal Wasserman, Sylvia Wasserman, Ari, Jessica, Willy Moscovits, Israel (Sruli) Moscovits, Marilyn, Saul, and Moshe Wasserman

I made some edits in Flickr to the original scanned image, and I like this version a lot better than the one I got in the email, which was overwhelmingly orange.

And the Good News Is…

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When I finished writing this morning's blog, I went into Mom's room yet another time to see how she was doing. She was in the bathroom and told me that she was feeling much better. I began cooking some quick oatmeal for her while I brought some orange juice to her room. My conversation with her woke the girls at about 6:30 a.m. and they wanted breakfast, so I went with them to the kitchen, allowed them to turn on the t.v., toasted and sliced a bagel for them to share, poured them orange juice and milk, sliced some strawberries, washed some blueberries, put out a bowl of cherries and made a pot of old-fashioned oatmeal for Saul. I asked Mom if she wanted the oatmeal in her room and was pleased to hear that she was coming to the kitchen to eat it. Then, I went back to bed. Saul awoke about 7:30 a.m. and covered for me. I awoke to the sound of the telephone which no one answered (Saul had gone outside to water the pots on the deck and Mom rarely answers these days). I missed the first call and was able to pick up the next one which was Roxy. While I was speaking to her, Ken called and I related all my concerns and a rundown of everything that had occurred since Mom had come home. He made suggestions as to how to proceed to get in touch with the doctors. Then I spoke with Adele. The first caller had been Eric, the visiting nurse, who was verifying that he would be arriving between 10 and 11 a.m. I was ecstatic that he was not calling to arrange a visit, but was actually visiting! He arrived at 10:20 a.m. and answered all the really troubling questions that had haunted me a few hours earlier. In the course of examining Mom, he determined that she was no longer in afib and that all her numbers were good. I was even more ecstatic! But his answers still left questions about why none of us had been contacted to discuss the decision to send Mom home in afib.

Adele had tried to reach Mom's general physician and was waiting for a call. While I was deciding who to call next, Aunt Ruth called and we spoke for quite a while. She suggested that finding and questioning the discharging doctor might not be as helpful as contacting her cardiologist, who had probably put in the order in the first place to have Mom released. I called the hospital and obtained the number of his practice. I explained to the receptionist my concerns about Mom's release and she said she would have someone from the practice return my call. We also made an appointment for Mom in a week's time. Right after I hung up, her physician called and, although he had not yet received a report from the hospital, was able to allay my fears about the conditions of her release and discuss the new medication she had been prescribed. He assured me that in no way was her condition dire and recommended that I speak with the cardiologist about the plan for her treatment. Right after I finished that conversation, the cardiologist's assistant returned my call and further assured me that they planned to actively monitor her condition and in no way had written her off.

By 1:00 p.m., I was finally able to get dressed and eat some breakfast. I was relaxed and happy enough to accompany Saul and the girls to Beachcombers so I could be there for Izzy's first swimming lesson. Sami passed the deep water swimming test yesterday which entitles her to access any area of the pool without an accompanying adult. She was beside herself with joy at her accomplishment. The girls began with art projects in the grove before joining us in the pool area. After Izzy's excellent lesson, before heading home, the girls had their faces painted--Sami as a bunny, and Izzy as a butterfly.

Mom had warmed up some of the Trader Joe's soup in the microwave before we arrived home and she ate two bowls of it for dinner. Saul had gone and picked up her new medication and after dinner, she allowed him to check to make sure she was taking the correct dosages according to the new plan (a milestone in an ongoing struggle we have had to monitor her medication). During dinner, I spoke with Ari, who called to relay helpful and hopeful information about Mom's condition that he had researched on the Internet. After showering and putting the girls to bed, I spoke to my cousin Bob, who called to find out how Mom was doing. Then, Saul and I put in a few hours on my computer work. I think I will be able to get a good night's sleep now.

3 a.m. Panic Attacks

Instead of calming my fears by telling me why I am being irrational at this hour as he usually does within a few minutes and goes back to sleep, Saul has quickly run out of arguments as to why I shouldn't be having a panic attack. Yesterday morning when I called Mom, she sounded terrible. She said she had spent the night standing at her hospital room door listening to some sort of argument that was going on between the nurse and a patient in another room. She was distraught because her morning nurse had told her that she had gone into afibrillation during the night and that the evening nurse had told her so. She insisted to me that she had not been told and she did not know whether to believe the nurse. As we were speaking, the morning nurse came in and I asked to speak with her. She told me that Mom had indeed gone into afibrillation during the night and was currently in a state of afib. I had intended to bring Mom home and that was now up in the air depending on what the doctors said. I asked the nurse to have the doctors phone me to let me know what they intended to do and when Mom was likely to be coming home. She verified my phone numbers. I told Mom to speak to the doctors and that I would let her know what they said to me. A moment or two later, Mom hung up because a doctor and his assistant had come in to see her. When I offered to call her back in a few minutes to see what they had to say, she told me to wait an hour or two because she was very tired and wanted to sleep for a while after they left.

I spent the next two hours on the phone with Adele and Ken and a number of other people. Saul and I needed to shop to buy supplies after our vacation, especially if Mom was coming home, and it was 11 a.m. before I was able to get myself and the girls together for a trip to Costco. I tried to call Mom before I left and no one answered the phone. A few minutes after arriving at Costco, my cell rang, but I wasn't able to answer it in time. I could tell from the number that the call had originated from Abington Hospital. When I tried to return the call, I reached a general number and the person at the other end put me on endless hold while she tried to figure out who had called me. In the meantime, a message registered and the call was from Abington Home Health Care Services. A woman named Ginny was letting me know that whenever Mom was released, they would call the following day to arrange for health care services and that Mom had refused the part of the service that provided a health care worker to help her bathe and change her bedding, etc. I reached a machine and left a terse message when I called back to say that I wanted all the services that they could provide. Ginny returned my call a few minutes later to say that she had no problem adding that part back into the package. She told me that she had not heard yet when Mom would be coming home. I told her I was waiting to hear from the doctors. I called Adele to tell her what was happening.

We finished shopping and had lunch at Costco. When Larry came home, Adele made arrangements with me to pick me up to go to visit Mom so that Saul could take the girls in the SUV to the swim club. Saul left with the girls at 1:45 p.m. and Adele arrived around 2:30 p.m. When we arrived at the hospital at about 3:15 p.m., Mom was fully dressed, sitting on the bed and pulling on her second sock. She said that they had just told her that she was being released. When I went out to check with the nurse, she said she had just finished the paper work and was bringing it in for Mom to sign. I called my friend, Laura, who was supposed to meet me with some computer work while I was visiting and she immediately came over and helped Adele and me to get Mom from the wheelchair to the car. Considering how wonderful Mom had been for the last two days, I was appalled at how she looked and sounded. She couldn't wait for the half hour ride to be over and was barely able to make the short journey from the car to her bed. We tucked her in fully clothed at her insistence. Adele ate some leftovers for dinner while I napped for an hour before Saul returned with the girls. Both Adele and I were too exhausted and too overwhelmed to start the process of trying to reach doctors who had never contacted us to tell us what to expect when Mom came home and what was the reason for releasing her so hastily.

Before she went to sleep, Mom spoke on the phone briefly with Ken and then with Randi. We had spoken with Aunt Ruth to tell her we were bringing Mom home and I asked her to wait until morning to speak with Mom to give her a chance to rest. Mom slept for a few hours and after we had given the girls dinner and I was cleaning up, Saul went in and woke her to give her a yogurt smoothie (which she drank eagerly) and made sure she took the proper medication. She immediately went back to sleep and each time I checked on her, she was asleep. After we put the girls to bed and I spoke to Ari for a while, I worked on the computer for a few hours. Then I checked Mom at 12:30 a.m. when I quit work for the evening and she was asleep. Then, I checked again at 1:30. I awoke in a state of panic at 3:30 and checked again. She insisted that Saul leave a light on in her room, so at least I can see that she is breathing and comfortable. Now, I blog because I was not able to go back to sleep this last time. Writing about my day has calmed me a bit, but I am very concerned that the reason this all played out the way it did was that the doctor's have decided under the circumstances of her age that there is no more they can do for her and are sending her home to be comfortable in her own surroundings until the end. If that is the case, I wish we could have discussed it with someone before we brought her home so that I have a better idea of how to deal with her exhaustion and what kind of time frame we are likely to be facing. Perhaps that will come today.

Changes Coming

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I hope blogging is becoming a good addiction, like exercising or eating healthy foods, because here I find myself at 2 a.m. on Monday morning in front of my computer. At least I don't have to struggle to find bandwidth on borrowed wifi.

Friday morning in Ocean City was bittersweet. We had decided to eat breakfast out to avoid the fuss while packing. With a combination of listings in the local paper and the internet we were able to locate a gem of a breakfast restaurant called Uncle Bill's Pancake House at 21st and Asbury, a mere five blocks from our home. Jess and I walked there, while Saul drove the girls over and got a table right before a camp bus arrived with 40 teenagers who, luckily, had a private room. The place was homey and spotless, decorated with scenes from Ocean City and old time beaches on the walls. The waitress was friendly and efficient, and our food came out exceptionally quickly and exceptionally delicious, eggs poached just right and pancakes large, light and fluffy. Because of the hubbub in the kitchen, one of the kitchen staff happened to come through the restaurant and was wearing a blue tee shirt that said "Got Pancakes?" Jess has a collection of "Got" tee shirts and had just been commenting that this was the first vacation where a new one had not presented itself. She was able to purchase a new one for $10 that they keep on hand to outfit only the kitchen staff. The shirt says "Uncle Bill's Pancakes" on the back and "Staff" on the sleeve.

We had left Alex packing because he usually only has French-press coffee for breakfast, and coupled with an hour and a half of all of us rushing around after breakfast, we were able to lock up and head home by 11 a.m., fully three hours before the 2 p.m. deadline I had anticipated. I was happy to be on the road so early because Adele had called and spoken to Saul. Mom had been feeling weak and dizzy and her doctor had recommended that Adele take her to the emergency room. She evidently resisted for several hours, but by the time we arrived home, Adele had prevailed, and we learned that it was her heart that was causing the problem. The doctors wanted to keep her overnight to monitor her on some new medication for her heart and she was finally persuaded to comply.

Shabbat dinner at Larry's was wonderful! He and Susan had made a special trip to Heller's Seafood in Warrington and purchased incredibly fresh tuna and salmon. We had soup from Trader Joe's, salad, slices of seared tuna loin with a ginger sauce and poached salmon, tortellini with butter, and fresh local white corn on the cob. I brought homemade challah from the freezer, and for dessert an assorted-flavors pie from David's Cookies that I had purchased at the Costco in Manahawkin and leftover chocolate chip cookies. Susan prepared a spectacular tea! She presented me with a special teapot when we arrived so that I can make my own. The process involves this beautiful glass teapot into which is dropped a specially arranged and compressed dried flower and herb ball. As you watch, the ball gradually opens in the boiling water into a beautiful flower arrangement and steeps into tea. I was amazed to see a ring of delicate white jasmine flowers as the petals opened. Knowing how much Sami likes art glass, she and Ted also presented the girls with artist-made glass pendant necklaces, and Ted gave them cubes of white Post-It Notes on which to draw.

The next day, while Saul took the girls swimming, Adele came over and we went to visit Mom in the new Lenfest wing of Abington Hospital. She was sitting in a chair in a private room, bundled in blankets, when we arrived, but her face looked better than it has in a year. She said she had just returned from a long walk around the hospital floor with her nurse. She told us cheerfully that she was feeling better and that everyone had been commenting about the fact that she doesn't look anywhere near 86 years old. Now that her healthy coloring has returned and the pinched look of anxiety about how she was feeling has disappeared, she really does look much younger. When we returned from the hospital, Adele joined us and we went to the King Buffet in Plymouth Meeting. Adele loves Chinese food and the girls love the miso soup and sushi there. We all felt very good that apparently the doctors have pinpointed what has been plaguing Mom and that the medication is apparently working. The girls are happy that G.G. is feeling better and will be coming home soon. I am also happy at the prospect of havng a visiting nurse checking on her.

Yesterday, while Adele and Ken and Aunt Ruth were visiting Mom, Beth brought Brenna over here so that the girls could play at Beachcomber's together. I packed lunch for all of us, but by the time we arrived there, gray clouds had gathered. We wheeled our stuff down to the pavilion and ate lunch on one of the picnic tables there. By the time we finished eating, the weather had turned really ugly and they had cleared the pool at the sound of thunder. We decided to leave and were pulling out of the parking lot just as high winds and teeming rain began. By the time we reached home ten minutes later, it was beginning to hail. The girls climbed into our bed and watched "Rugrats in Paris," a DVD that Sami had borrowed from Larry, while I took a nap on the sofa. After that, Beth sat at the kitchen table and helped the girls make beaded jewelry from kits she had bought them. While she worked with them, Saul and I did some research on the Internet regarding the 2008 Beijing Olympics for Sami's party theme. Unfortunately, the party store circuit has not produced anything appropriate, so we will have to do our own thing. The rain stopped, but the temperature dropped to 67 degrees F, too cold to go swimming. Then, we discovered that we had lost Brenna's bag. Saul and Beth drove back to the swim club, but couldn't find it. The bag contained not only her clothes, but expensive specially-made earplugs. We have our work cut out for us today trying to figure out what happened to the bag. There was a large family there at the same time we were having lunch setting up for a birthday party.

Ken called to say that Mom had been equally good as yesterday and likely would be coming home today. We took the girls to Franconi's Pizza for dinner and then Beth drove Brenna home. Sami and Izzy climbed into my bed and we watched "Ella Enchanted" before I tucked them into bed for the evening. Ken has been crazy busy because his partner, Jeff, has been laid up with a bad back, and in a troublesome phone call from Ari, apparently he also did something screwy to his back while taking out the trash. He was managing to move around on three Motrins, and I am hoping the damage is minor.

In a few more hours, my computer work will begin anew, Mom will return from the hospital, and I will have party preparations and a birthday cake to prepare. So far, the coming week after vacation appears to be manageable, but any number of misfortunes could be looming that could throw a monkey wrench into my life. So far, so good, though. You never really know what changes could be around the corner.

Ocean City, NJ, Part 8

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Today was our last full day here and it was very full. When we awoke at 8 a.m., it was pouring hard. We immediately went into rainy-day-at-the-beach mindset, but by 8:45 when we finished breakfast, the rain had stopped and the puddles were beginning to disappear from the brisk breeze that was blowing through town. At 9:15 a.m., I decided to take my chances biking and Jessica said she and the girls would join me once they dressed. Then, Alex and Jessica presented Sami, Izzy, Saul and me with gifts they had specially prepared for us yesterday, red embroidered tee shirt coverups that said Camp Bubbie and Saba Camper and Camp Bubbie and Saba Staff. We posed in them for photos on the porch and we can’t wait to wear them to Beachcombers when we return home. At 10 a.m., as we were preparing to leave, we heard distant thunder and Jess told the girls to change into bathing suits to go to the indoor pool at the gym. Saul and I decided we would take a drive into Atlantic City and check out the Borgata Casino, which we had not yet seen. We changed into nicer clothes and Saul sat down to wind up the computer work he had begun, thinking we were going biking, and finished up I.M.ing with Ari. By then, it was past 10:30 a.m. and, lo and behold, the weather had changed yet again into a bright, cool, windy, sunny day. I couldn’t bear the thought of wasting our last nice beach day sitting in a dark casino and I was annoyed that every plan had been thwarted by everyone’s indecision about what to do until almost the whole morning had disappeared. I changed out of my nice clothes into a bathing suit and cover up and headed to the beach by myself. I figured whoever wanted to join me would get their act together, and eventually, everyone did find their way down. Jessica couldn’t believe that it turned out to be one of the best beach days of all. The breeze was so strong that both kites went up without the slightest effort. We also sculpted sand around the girls and photographed them as mermaids.

Alex went back a little early and prepared a delicious tofu and veggie curry over couscous for lunch which we followed with our leftover ice cream sandwiches. After this late lunch, Saul and I decided to spend a couple of hours at the Borgata anyway. The drive was very enjoyable on such a beautiful day. We parked in their $5 garage, circumnavigated and checked out all the restaurants that surround the casino floor and viewed all the Chihuly glass that adorns the place. Then we lost about $15 in the nickel slot machines. The slot machines kept rejecting our dollar bills until we figured out that they only took denominations above $5. We missed the sound of actual coins falling into the metal trays. The hi-tech electronic machines are wickedly complicated and take all the excitement out of winning as far as we were concerned. But, casinos would all go out of business if they depended on people like us to stay in business.

At 6 p.m. we left the casino and at 6:30 we pulled into the parking lot of The Crab Trap thinking we would put our names in for a table and wait for the kids to join us. When we saw the crowds waiting outside for a table, we immediately headed over the 9th Street Bridge (which was open this time) to make other plans for dinner. Jess and Alex had promised the girls that they would take them up on the boardwalk this last evening to let them select non-living (no hermit crabs) souvenirs of their vacation here this summer. We eventually had dinner at Ma France Creperie again, which proved to be satisfyingly consistent. The owner greeted us warmly and seated us at the satin-pillow-lined banquette in the window again. During dinner, Larry Shipper called and invited us to his home for Shabbat dinner tomorrow evening. This eliminates the worry of how to get everything packed up and unpacked tomorrow and still get dinner on the table. We are also excited about the rare prospect of spending the evening with Larry’s sister Susan and her husband Ted. They vacationed with us in Hawaii last summer and the girls still remember Ted’s pocket kite and magic tricks at Sunday brunch at the Princeville Hotel on Kauai.

After dinner, Jess and Alex walked with the girls up to the boardwalk, while Saul and I drove home. I can’t wait to see what they chose as their souvenirs of this summer’s vacation.

Ocean City, NJ, Part 7

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I think this may actually be a short entry tonight. We went biking early today with Jessica using Saul's bike. He decided to let his knees recover a bit and get some work done learning the new upgrade for his course for the fall. He also has spent quite a few pleasant hours organizing and preparing the photos and videos we have taken. He would have had a grueling ride today as the wind was quite strong which makes peddling difficult and hard on the muscles and joints, like peddling uphill in one direction and coasting down in the other. The weather was gray and misty when we left and I was sure we would have rain pouring down at any minute, but by the home stretch, the sun was breaking through.

When we returned, the girls were happy to just play quietly with each other and with their toys and watch t.v. Alex went to the gym and Jessica went for a walk while Saul and I just relaxed. I boiled some frozen tortellini for lunch to accompany what few leftovers we still have. When we finished lunch, we drove over to Gillian's Wonderland where they have a special deal on Wednesdays from 1 to 4 p.m. For $20 per girl, they each received a bracelet that allowed them to ride any ride in the park as much as they wanted. In three hours time, I think they covered 90% of the rides available, some twice. Izzy has a problem being "under the line" that allows taller, older kids on the wilder rides. Sami doesn't like the really wild rides, but worked up to some of them little by little. Even Alex, who shuns the rides, went on the log flume today. I was delighted to find that Gillian's still uses their apparatus for catching rings at the merry-go-round (see blog of Thursday, May 15 titled "I Never Caught the Brass Ring), although they don't begin using it until after 6 p.m. After three hours, we returned, showered the girls and, after resting for a while, drove down to a tiny Greek restaurant we had noticed on 9th Street called Katina's. We only needed to wait about 15 minutes for a table. The food was classic Greek fare, spanakopita, dolmades, gyros, kabob's, salads etc., all prepared competently with fresh ingredients. The ambience was small taverna. The service was pleasant and friendly--again, a rather successful evening.

We drove over to Jake's Water Ice just in time for the Disney trivia contest this evening. Again, we came in third behind the other two groups to whom we usually lose. We only missed two of the 20 questions. The winners, again, had a perfect score. Ice cream is our consolation. Tomorrow is our last full day here as we have decided to head for home on Friday afternoon so that we can observe Shabbat and avoid the Saturday traffic jam. We are already feeling nostalgic.

Ocean City, NJ, Part 6

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Getting online has been very difficult here and we have had to resort to using the available wifi bandwidth either late at night or early in the morning. Some of the choice photos and videos I had intended to post will have to repose in Picasa and my IPhoto Library for the time being.

Yesterday morning we biked to Goofy Golf on the boardwalk and played a round of miniature golf with the girls. It was extremely hot and sunny even at 9:30 a.m. when we began. After we biked home and rested, we changed and went to the beach for a few hours while Alex went to the gym. This time, because of the later hour, we packed a picnic lunch and ate at the beach. After napping we had intended to have dinner at The Crab Trap in Somers Point, which is right over the Ninth Street Bridge. The bridge was closed to traffic when we arrived and we used our trusty navigator to negotiate another route which took us over a bridge at about 34th Street. When we arrived at the restaurant at around 7:30 p.m. we were told to check back with the receptionist in 20 minutes for a beeper and that once we received one, the wait would be about an hour and 15 minutes. Back in the car again with our trusty navigator, we programmed in "nearest available Japanese restaurant" to locate a sushi restaurant in Margate that Ari had researched for us a few days ago. It was only 5 miles away and had a table for six available. Within 20 minutes, we found ourselves seated around a hibachi table in a lovely Japanese restaurant named Mikado. We had edamame, miso soup, seaweed salad and iced green tea. Then, the chef came and performed the usual hibachi tricks such as the "egg in the pocket," "flaming onion volcano," knife juggling, etc. while preparing a teriyaki salmon with rice and veggies for us. I have embedded a YouTube video for those of you who have never experienced this type of restaurant. The chef in this video is a champion and has quite a bag of tricks. We never thought to video our own experience.

Then we were presented with a huge wooden boat artfully arranged with the sushi we had ordered (including lots of bubbles, salmon caviar, for Izzy). Dessert was warm banana tempura with scoops of red bean and vanilla ice cream. The bill was incredibly reasonable compared to our usual sushi feasts at home. Ari always says we have great travel karma. Apparently, the karma is there even when Ari is not. May it always be so! The restaurant was just down the street from Lucy, the elephant-shaped hotel where we used to go to the beach when I was a child. Of course, we took the kids to see it. It has been restored beautifully and looked much nicer than it did in my childhood.

Today, we biked early and went to the beach early. Lunch was cleaning up various leftovers in preparation for the end of our vacation. While Saul, the girls and I napped, Jess and Alex went for a walk and picked up new sunglasses for Izzy who has outgrown last year's pair. They also went to Jake's, answered the trivia question and had water ice. Tonight, we were determined to have dinner early before the crowds. We awoke, dressed, and Saul drove us over to Ma France Creperie on 9th Street next to the Chatterbox. We have severely taxed his knees with all the biking and walking. Again, our travel karma held. The restaurant was quaint and attractive and we were seated at a banquette in the window where the girls reclined on plush pillows. The kitchen was open and we were invited in with the girls to watch the owner prepare our dinners. As it turned out, the owner was born and raised in France and lived in Israel for many years, so she spoke both languages fluently. In the course of the conversation, it also turned out that her French-speaking cousin lives right across the street from the Wellwood International Elementary School that Sami attends in Pikesville, where they are always looking for French-speaking substitutes. Jessica had a phone conversation in the kitchen on the owner's phone with the owner's cousin. Among the dishes we ordered and loved were a vegetarian-based French onion soup; mushroom and swiss cheese buckwheat crepes; apple, fig and brie buckwheat crepes drizzled with honey; mont blanc (chestnut puree) crepes with house-made whipped cream; and caramelized banana crepes with ice cream. The salads were huge and the iced coffee delicious. We guessed at the Israeli connection from the beginning because they had a mint-flavored lemonade called "lemonana." Nana is the Hebrew word for spearmint and is commonly served as a tea infusion in Israel.

We walked a few blocks down to Pirate's Cove while Saul drove and parked right next to the amusement park and joined us. On the way, we finally saw Mr. Peanut, for whom we had been looking all week, and the girls posed for a picture with him. We used up our remaining ride tickets to the girls' delight on the ferris wheel, tilt-a-whirl, roller coasters, etc. Alex spent some money at an arcade to win a stuffed car toy for Izzy and a Kung Fu Panda for Sami. Saul drove us home and after tucking the girl's into bed, we babysat while Jess and Alex went out for the rest of the evening.