25 Boxes Unpacked

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

This has been a whirlwind of a month filled with a flurry of happy activity with one notable, and horrific, exception. We returned home from a week of helping Ari get set up in his new dream house only to find a home phone message that our good friends’ five-week-old grandson had died of S.I.D.S. just before Shavuot. In the shock and horror of losing a new baby and having to make funeral and shiva arrangements, they had misplaced our cell phone numbers and we returned home unaware of the suffering that had taken place in our short absence.

In contrast, everything leading up to the settlement on Ari’s new house went well, the appraisal value was even higher than we had hoped, and all the paperwork was accomplished in record time, from April 27, when Ari signed the final agreement, to settlement on May 12. Saul and I and Ari’s realtor, Jeff, who had spent a year with Ari looking at every property in the neighborhood, did a walk-through of the house, and noted that almost all of the little details on the punch sheet had been finished, and then we attended the settlement, first going to the wrong branch office of the title company. Returning to the new home with bread and salt (a Jewish tradition) and a bottle of Veuve Clicquot that Jeff provided along with champagne flutes, we popped the cork and toasted Ari’s successful move into ownership of his dream house as twilight began to fall.

Since a very full month has gone by since I last posted, I would like to remember some of the highlights of this lovely month, especially since a few days ago was the 46th anniversary of our first date where we attended Olney High School’s Kix and Kapers musical production, doubling with our friends, Wayne and Nadine.

Our first Friday of the month had been long anticipated—a May Day celebration, replete with an intricate may pole dance performed by Sami’s class, at her Waldorf school. We left well before dawn on our two-hour drive with plenty of time to spare, and stopped for breakfast at a Cracker Barrel, not anticipating the severity of morning traffic on the beltway. The last 20 miles took us over an hour. We arrived only a bit late on the quintessential, sunny, and temperate day for such a celebration. We had a brief orientation in Sami’s classroom, where the students presented their individual animal shadow boxes. Sami had studied the giant panda and her shoebox was decorated inside and out with real little bamboo shoots that had been gleaned from a neighbor’s property. She also had a very large cane which she held upright for display like an umbrella. We then toured the school, meeting the teachers, learning a bit of Spanish, enjoying a layered guacamole with nachos made by the Spanish teacher, and impressed especially by the well-stocked craft room and woodworking room. After that, Jessica joined us, and all the guests filed across the street to the strains of a bagpipe played by one of the students, to another building where amidst plays and musical numbers performed by the students, the king and queen of May were crowned—parents of some of the students. This accomplished, we filed outside to an open grassy field for the May pole dance, performed by fourth grade girls in pinafores and boys in tunics to music performed by high schoolers on their wooden recorders. The intricate weaving of the brightly-colored banners on the pole was a sight to behold, and we were equally impressed by the un-weaving, which could have gone very badly had anyone made a mistake. We opted to have lunch with Sami at a kosher restaurant, Accents, near Izzy’s public school rather than partake of the school’s stall food, for we were expected at her grandparents’ day celebration the same afternoon.

Jess went back to work after lunch, and we arrived late for an absolutely excellent storyteller in the auditorium as Jess had been off in her timing by half an hour. The theme of the day was conveying your ethnic heritage through storytelling, and Saul had been booked ahead of time to tell his “Shmuel” stories to Izzy’s class. Many of the children were dressed in garb native to their grandparents’ countries and there were several Asian children that were spectacular in their intricate costumes. Saul, in his usual way, had the class rapt as he told stories from his childhood in Israel and the time he damaged his father’s bicycle trying a stupid trick, a bicycle which was his father’s only means of transportation to work, and how he worked cleaning up a machine shop for a week in exchange for the owner fixing the bike so that his father would not find out. When we returned to Jess and Alex’s house, Alex had prepared a Shabbat dinner of grilled chicken and rice. Ari joined us and we drove home in our Prius after dinner leaving Ari’s Mercedes for Alex to bring late Saturday night. Jessica joined us earlier on Saturday with the girls and we had a terrible dinner experience, along with Beth and Brenna, at a nearby pizzeria, Franconi’s. With three children and a baby, the nine of us sat for over an hour waiting for our food with not even a roll to stave off hunger while everyone else in the restaurant was served before us. Saul eventually got up and went into kitchen himself to get a straight answer and found that our waitress had forgotten to put in our order. When the food actually was served, the waitress accidentally dripped a whole mess of red sauce off of one of the plates into Jessica’s open handbag and just continued on like nothing had happened. For the first time ever, we decided not to leave any tip at all. The restaurant, apologetically, charged us for only half the dinner and gave us a coupon for $20 off the next time we come. Needless to say, we will probably never eat there again. The children were troopers through it all and behaved beautifully through the entire experience.

We spent several hours with Ari looking at furniture at expensive stores. After that, at Beth’s suggestion, we went to The Dump and bought almost the same Natuzzi leather furniture suite we had seen at the more expensive stores for much less, along with hotel-style mattresses and a leather sleeper sofa and ottoman that opens into a twin bed. The movers delivered the furniture two days after settlement and unfortunately dropped the sofa and made a small hole in the leather. The store is supposed to be replacing it in about a month. Ari was able to get his wonderful Great Scott movers to deliver his old furniture the next day after settlement. Most of it went into the rental unit so that he can rent it as a furnished apartment. We spent the first night in the new house sleeping in the garden level rental unit. Once the new furniture and beds were delivered, we spent the second night after settlement in the house itself.

On Mother’s Day, we hosted a brunch and celebrated Yona’s first birthday. The weather turned very windy and chilly and we were stuck indoors, but at least it didn’t rain. After lunch and the party, Jess and Alex drove home together in their SUV. We made a second trip to The Dump in the afternoon to check out some furniture with our cousin, Ann, and Beth decided to buy two sofas. That evening, Ann picked up her son, Ben, and we had a delicious dinner together with Ari at Jasmine in Glenside. The next day, Ari did another training session for the law firm in downtown Philadelphia and drove his own car home.

The day after that, Tuesday, we drove to DC and we offered a ride to one of Saul’s star students from Chestnut Hill College who was applying for an entry-level job at Ari’s firm. She was offered the job and took it to everyone’s delight. Saul met her parent’s, who have a winery in Sonoma, at commencement and they were absolutely thrilled and gave him a very special bottle of wine as a thank you.

Saul and I returned home from helping Ari to make settlement and move in so that Saul could attend Chestnut Hill’s commencement and I could undergo a routine colonoscopy the following Monday morning. This time, they did find a small polyp which was removed, but now I need to go for a follow-up in three years. The next day, we were on our way to Baltimore to pick up Izzy at noon from her sample half-day at Waldorf School. Jess and Alex have been so pleased with Sami’s education, that they are hoping to send Izzy next year as well. We met Jess at her job at Pearlstone Center and loaded up her SUV with leftover plants from the EcoRide that we purchased there. Then, Saul, Jess, Izzy and I had bean burritos at a Qdoba. After that, Jess and I went food shopping, while Saul went back to Waldorf with Izzy to pick up Sami. We had a wonderful fish dinner, prepared by Alex, Erev Shavuot and then drove to DC. We attended services both days of Shavuot at Chizuk Amuno. The first day, after services, Jess and I baked gingerbread men and women with Sami, Izzy, Jacob, and Lilly in preparation for Abby’s wedding celebrations. We are hoping to get them decorated as brides and grooms this week.

Saul and I did a lot of gardening work at Ari’s house last week, but needed to come home again on Sunday so that I could meet with my sleep doctor as a followup to a sleep study I had done earlier in the month. My apnea has not changed, but I finally got a new mask that is more comfortable and a much smaller and lighter CPAP machine.

The last week of May was spent catching up with housework and gardening at home. Saul had meetings at school to prepare for next year as department chairman while he is relieving the current chairman while she takes her sabbatical. Faith got a new car, a Mazda 3 with all the bells and whistles. We spent an evening with her, had a wonderful dinner at Max and David’s together, and helped her program her new GPS with her kids’ addresses. We also drove up to our vacation home in the Poconos on the spur of the moment to meet with a realtor about putting that home back on the market. We are looking forward to spending Memorial Day weekend with the kids.

25 Boxes

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

I could not attend Faith’s class last Thursday because I had to wait around for the service guy from a company called Bill Vandegrift Inc., which was supposed to repair my ice maker, and which could only come that day precisely when I had to be in class. The freezer was intermittently buzzing as well, so I asked the service guy to take a look at that also. After about 15 minutes on the floor, he claimed he had fixed the buzz and told me that I would need a new ice maker as the gears were stripped and I would have to wait for them to order the part. He then presented me with a bill for $121.90. Within an hour of the time he left, the freezer began buzzing again, and when I called, I was told he would fix it in a few days when he returned with the ice maker. When we returned home after our stay in DC this past weekend, there was a phone message that we would need a new compressor to get rid of the buzz and that it would run between $1,200 and $1,500. This was on top of the cost of $129.00 for a new ice maker, and with additional labor costs to be determined (in addition to the original $121.90 for nothing). I had paid them over $350 just six weeks ago to fix a small part on my stove, replace the gasket on my Sub-Zero refrigerator, and touch up some paint on the bottom. I had asked him to check at that time and was told that the freezer seemed to be just fine. We called Sub-Zero to find out if this was the normal cost of repair and were told warily by one of their experts that this seemed a little high. I called Vandegrift, cancelled everything, and booked another company who will replace the compressor tomorrow afternoon, both parts and labor, for $850, sight unseen, and will determine whether the ice-maker can be repaired and if not, replace it for less than Vandegrift quoted. I checked with Sub-Zero about replacing these built-in units with new ones (over $5,000 each) and was told that the new ones are taller, which would necessitate my completely renovating and rebuilding my entire kitchen. I spoke with my cousin, Anne, this afternoon about my frustration, and we traded stories about “planned obsolescence” because she had encountered some frustrations of her own when she had to spend a fortune to replace plumbing pipes because Maytag had decided to widen the hoses on its washing machines ten years ago. She suggested I write a blog post titled “Planned Obsolescence,” and just print everyone’s horror stories so that we could all commiserate. If you have one you would like to share, please feel free to either email it to me, or post it in the comments.

On Friday, we packed our bags for our final weekend in Ari’s condo in DC. I waited, playing games on my iPhone, in Saul’s office at Chestnut Hill College while he attended a lunch meeting. He brought me back some lunch, which I quickly downed in his office, and then we set off for Baltimore at about 2:30 p.m. My pet allergies were really acting up immediately when we reached Jess and Alex’s house, so I spent a pleasant hour, in the beautiful spring weather, ensconced with two of my granddaughters in the hammock on the beautiful deck that Alex built last summer, reading a delightful children’s book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, to them. What could be better?! After a while, Alex’s sister, Naomi, arrived. We lit the Shabbat candles, and had challah with honey, matzoh ball soup, grilled chicken, salad, and rice. By the time Ari was able to get out of the office, we told him not to bother making the long drive. We packed up some food for him and headed off to DC. That night, I broke a plastic fitting on my CPAP, so I did not sleep very well the rest of the weekend.

We had dim sum twice during the weekend, and I fear that Hollywood East Café, in its new location inside Westfield Mall, is more visible and is being discovered, or rediscovered, by the masses. We dropped off an entire carload of Ari’s stuff at a huge Goodwill distribution center. Ari was expecting the movers at 9:00 a.m. on Monday morning and everything had to be in boxes and ready to go by that time. By 8:30 p.m. Saturday, we were exhausted, but decided to drag ourselves out for a quick dinner of pho at Pho 14 a Vietnamese restaurant with vegetarian options in nearby Columbia Heights. We were really impressed seeing the renaissance taking place there in the very slick, upscale, urban center that is rapidly developing on 14th Street around the renovated and re-purposed Tivoli Theater. In between organizing and putting things into boxes, we made runs to the corporate apartment where Ari will be staying in the absence of settling on a house. On Sunday, we made plans to stop by an open house on Otis Place so that Ari could further negotiate in person a written offer that he had made earlier that had been rejected. The house is one to which we had looked when trying to decide what could be done with some shells of houses that Ari had bid on and had been rejected on in favor of cash buyers. Originally, he believed he could not afford it. We were very gratified when we discovered that they were anxious to continue negotiations.

As soon as we finished with the open house, we stopped at Ari’s apartment to pick up our car and drove both cars to Jess and Alex’s where Ari had agreed to babysit in a pinch while Jess and Alex attended an honoree dinner at the synagogue. As it turned out, over the weekend Ari had been asked to do a presentation and demo of a software called “Relativity” on Tuesday for a law firm in Philadelphia. That, in turn, allowed me to stay in DC on Monday to help Ari with the actual move and provide moral support. Saul drove home alone from Baltimore because he had to teach a class on Monday morning, stopping for dinner at The Cheesecake Factory in King of Prussia Mall. Ari and I had leftovers for dinner with the girls. I had the pleasure of giving Yona a bottle and rocking her to sleep in the same chair I had used to rock Jess and Ari to sleep. On our way back to DC, Ari and I encountered a thunderstorm with such teeming rain as I had never before seen north of the Carolinas. When we finally arrived in DC, we discovered that it had not even rained there.

On Monday morning, we were both up bright and early to strip the beds, finish the last of the laundry, and pack up the last of the boxes for the movers. Ari had contracted with a firm called “Great Scott Moving” and had discussed the contents of his condo. During the course of the conversation about what the move was likely to cost, he was asked to estimate the number of boxes he would need to move. The cost they quoted was based on 25 boxes. We were indeed able to pack all his stuff into 25 boxes, and when we had finished, I was a bit jealous. I told Ari that when I move, I would dearly love to be able to pack all my stuff into 25 boxes. I am from a family of savers, some to a pathological degree, and have spent what I am sure is months of my life accumulating, sorting, packing, cleaning, rearranging, and otherwise caring for an assortment of pure “stuff” belonging to me and many other members of my family that was totally irrelevant and unnecessary for my well-being (or anyone else’s for that matter). I have reached a stage of my life where I desire to live a very zen existence surrounded only by those items that contribute to my well-being. I don’t want to worry about keepsakes accumulating dust, or taking up space in drawers and closets. I don’t want clothes in my closet or drawers that I haven’t worn in years. I only want enough food-related items to prepare and graciously serve beautiful, healthy food to my friends and family. I would like a really comfy mattress with fine linen, nice clothes made of natural materials and a place to stow them, my electronic gear that enables me to read, learn, and make contact with the whole world, my favorite artwork, and a nice, light, airy place with a great sofa or chair to which I can retire. If I really work at it, I think I might be able to fit those items, excluding the furniture, into 25 boxes, or at least less than 50. Ari did it.

The movers called to say that they were going to be delayed because of heavy DC morning traffic. They arrived only about 15 minutes late. They were extremely pleasant and efficient. They completely wrapped all the furniture in plastic sheeting. Ari had leased a 10 by 10 storage unit in a U-Store-It just a block away. They finished loading the truck within two hours as anticipated and spent about an hour unloading at the storage unit, fitting everything together like a puzzle so that it just fit into the space. While they were unloading, a heavy rain began, and we drove a couple of blocks to Yes Organic Market to pick up some sandwiches, drove back to the storage unit, and ate in the car while we watched them finish unloading. Ari paid them the amount agreed upon with a generous tip, hoping that they will be moving him again in the very near future. Everyone left happy, and that is as good as a move can get! We drove to the corporate apartment, Ari dropped me off, and was at work by 1:30 p.m. I made up his bed, tidied up a bit, and spent the afternoon on my laptop.

Ari had been planning to work only until 6:00 p.m., but his boss called him into a meeting for another hour and he was not able to leave work until 7:15 p.m. Arriving at the corporate apartment, he packed a suit and a few things for the Philadelphia trip, and we headed back to his empty condo to do some last-minute sweeping and wiping of surfaces and to set his Roomba to pick up any remaining crumbs before the buyer does her walk-through today. We didn’t leave DC until almost 9 p.m. Driving through a light rain the whole time, we decided to stop for dinner at Exit 80 off of I-95. The Cracker Barrel was closing in three minutes when we arrived a little before 10 p.m., but the Ruby Tuesday across the road was open until 11 p.m. and we had a decent meal there before we hit the road again, finally arriving home about 12:30 p.m. Needless to say, we hit the sack as quickly as we could. Saul had picked up a new CPAP mask for me, the wrong size because of the store’s mistake, but I was happy to have it, anyway.

Ari had received word on our drive home that an agreement had been hammered out by the agents involved in the sale of his dream house and that it would be waiting for his signature as soon as he could get to a computer to print it out. He was up and working from my office at home by 9:00 a.m., signed the agreement first thing, and faxed it back. We spent a little time together excitedly figuring out how he might arrange his furniture. The presentation downtown went well and he coincidentally met his co-worker who arrived by cab via a train from Baltimore just as he reached the front of the building where they were to do their presentation. On his way back to DC, he learned, delightedly, that the agreement on the sale of the house had been ratified by the other party. Now, there is just a matter of FHA approvals, appraisals, and lender agreements which, hopefully, will go smoothly and as planned, leading up to settlement in mid-May.

Last night, Saul and I and Faith were invited to our friends, Terry and Gene’s, home for dinner, along with Gene’s sister, Louise, and her husband, David. They are all weathering a terrible storm in their lives. Last August, while we were in Florida, and just before Mom died, Louise and David’s two sons and a grandson were killed when their private plane and a helicopter carrying Italian tourists collided over the Hudson River. David is one of the strongest men I know. As a very young man, he left a cushy job in the navy to enlist in the Marine Corps on the eve of WWII.
He saw much heavy action, was at Iwo Jima, and was severely injured, almost losing a leg during the war. Gene was a pilot, flying many missions. Yesterday, when I asked him if he kept in touch with his military group, as my father did, all through these years, he told me that he is the only one alive. Initially, I thought that he meant they had all expired over the years, but later he explained how, during the bombing missions, experienced groups would take on newbies so that there would never be a whole combat team of newbies at the same time. Groups were rotated, and the rest of his group was shot down at a time when he happened to be on the ground. Twice during the story-telling, Terry said that she had always felt that God had saved him for her because God knew what beautiful children they would someday have together. They are now the proud great-grandparents of twins. David is a consummate pilot, flew angel flights for many years, and was lamenting the fact that he has not flown his plane in three years due to problems with his health. They are all counting their many blessings, thankful for their other surviving children and grandchildren, and thankful for having each other into old age, but clearly, a terrible cloud has darkened their sunny outlooks. Terry is a devoted and excellent, if self-deprecating, cook, and prepared a lovely meal for us of tossed salad with blue cheese, walnuts, and vinaigrette; cheese manicotti; roasted asparagus; and glazed beets. For dessert, we had rich, chocolate chip, coconut, and nut studded brownie squares with a wonderful fruit compote.

Today, I had been psyched up to work outside on the garden, but when I went out to water the flower boxes, I found the windy weather unbearably chilly. It even snowed in northern New York and parts of New England today, so I postponed my forays into the great outdoors until the weather warms up again, supposedly at the end of the week. The necessary paperwork on Ari’s new house has begun to flow today, and he is trying to hold down his excitement because he has been disappointed so many times this year in his search and in his ability to sell his condo. Settlement on his condo takes place tomorrow, and with luck, by this time next month he will be living with his furniture and his 25 boxes of stuff in his new dream house.

P.S.: This is blog post #200.

Keep Calm and Carry On

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

Yesterday turned out to be a tremendously enlightening, laughter-filled, gratifying day. Everything that happened was because we were open to making last-minute, impulsive decisions that changed our plans.

The adventure started with a mid-afternoon phone call on Tuesday from Mom’s hospice volunteer and now our family friend, Marianne, who lives in a Quaker retirement community nearby. Her daughter-in-law, Maira Kalman, was coming into Philadelphia from New York to speak at the Institute of Contemporary Art of the University of Pennsylvania at 6:30 p.m. yesterday. Marianne was scheduled to take a 10:00 a.m. bus trip to the Philadelphia Art Museum with members of her community to view the Picasso exhibit that is featured at the museum right now. The bus was returning at 2:30 p.m., so Marianne was planning to take a cab over to the Institute, meet a gentleman friend, Cliff, at 5:00 p.m. and the problem was how the two of them would get back home when the program was over. Maira was expected at a reception in her honor after the program, and was staying over downtown so that she could attend a morning meeting before catching a train back to New York. I checked with Saul and found that he could meet us at the art museum by 4:00 p.m. after school, and was very happy to chauffeur us, after we viewed the Picasso exhibit, to attend Maira’s presentation and bring us all back home.

The past weekend, and the earlier part of this week was spent attending to the spring details of getting the house ready to go up for sale again. Deep cleaning, shopping for flowers and refilling the flower pots, overseeing landscaping work, having the ice-maker in the freezer fixed, readying the garden for planting, and de-cluttering in general have filled the last few days. On Saturday, we attended services, had a light lunch at the synagogue, and stayed for a program by Kurt Herman, who was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1929. He entered the U.S. thanks to the efforts of Brit Shalom and a far-sighted and philanthropic couple, by way of a Kindertransport in May, 1939, along with 49 other children to escape persecution by the Nazis. He grew up in Allentown, graduating from Allentown High School in 1947, and attended Muhlenberg College for two years, then transferred to Penn State, where he graduated in 1951, then served in the U.S. military from 1951 to 1954. He has been interviewed by Steven Spielberg’s SHOA Foundation, detailing his experience to be used as an educational tool in schools. His interesting tale of how he and many of his family members survived was an amazing amalgam of chutzpah, luck, and empathy. Afterward, our friend Larry accompanied us to visit Saul’s mom at the Alzheimer’s unit of Lion’s Gate in New Jersey. There was a marked difference in her mental state this time, as she just barely appeared to recognize us, did not know our names, and Saul felt he had to clue her in that he was her son. She still professes to be very happy with her circumstances. Her hair was cut neatly, dyed her preferred shade of blonde, and her nails had been polished red and manicured nicely, but she looked as though she had not washed her hair in quite some time, and her behavior and conversation were a bit erratic. Saul showed her movies of Yona on his iPhone which delighted her, but twice, she questioned Saul about the baby’s identity.

Late that evening, we picked up Faith and had dinner at a new pizzeria in Dresher, Anthony’s Coal-Fired Pizza, where we polished off a large traditional pie with caramelized onions. Faith knew Saul would love the “well done” somewhat blackened crispy thin crust. After that, we stopped at a Cumberland Farms to pick up Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, whipped cream, and hot fudge, which we ate with relish at Faith’s table while Saul checked out her new laptop, and while we had long, thought-provoking conversations into the late hours. All around us were Faith’s massive collection of whimsical dolls which did a great job of providing a cheery atmosphere, despite the downers earlier in the day.

All these concerns and responsibilities, coupled with the fact that Ari is moving on Monday to a corporate apartment because he has not yet found a home, had conspired to make me fretful and uneasy. On Monday, in an attempt to dispel some of the gloom, I arranged for us to meet Ken and Randi to celebrate Ken’s birthday, which had been on Sunday. We treated them to a delightful and economical dinner at P.F. Chang’s, which has drinks and appetizers half price from 5 to 6 p.m. every day at the bar during “happy hour.” I had a huge blue-green-colored cocktail in a fancy glass, made with coconut liqueur and blue Curaçao, among other things. As they began to bring us our small plates of appetizers, we ran out of room on the table to put them down and had to keep rearranging the plates, like a puzzle, to make everything fit. We even shared an extremely rich chocolate dessert that Ken chose. We had a blast, but during the night, my thoughts (and perhaps even the food) came back to haunt me as I contemplated the events of the Holocaust, the uncertainty of our futures, and death itself. Which all brings me back to Marianne’s phone call on Tuesday afternoon.

So early Wednesday morning, I was up, preparing to escape for the day (from at least the housekeeping part of my responsibilities) by immersing myself in the world of art. During the bus ride, and over lunch, Marianne fascinated me with stories from her long and most unusual life. Her eclectic and ecumenical experiences during the Holocaust were absorbing and I greatly admire her perspective on life which has been colored and enriched by these experiences in a good way. She is an attentive listener as well, perhaps a skill that she picked up in her years as a hospice volunteer. I spent several hours at the museum, almost the entire time, viewing the Picasso exhibit, which was set up with major works by other cubist artists as well, to give the viewer a sense of the development, history, and context of the whole cubist movement. Thinking about the passion of these artists, their willingness to devote their lives in pursuit of an elusive standard of honest expression, breaking new ground against the accepted art standards of their time, I was struck by how my own petty common concerns can sap my creative energy, indeed, sometimes all my energy.

When Saul met us, we drove over to the Institute of Contemporary Art and found a parking meter alongside the restaurant, Pod, just down the street from the Institute. We greeted Maira, who was going over the media aspect of her presentation with some of the people from the Institute. Marianne’s friend, Cliff, joined us at precisely 5:00 p.m. as expected. Marianne, Cliff, Saul and I set out to have dinner at La Famiglia, just a few miles away, but after less than a mile in rush hour traffic, we realized we would not make it back in time if we continued. We turned around and returned to another meter, and had a lovely, light and quick dinner at Pod (compliments of Cliff and Marianne), a unique restaurant which I believe was designed to mirror the contemporary style and ambiance of the Institute’s exhibits. Sushi and Asian cuisine are the largest component of the menu, and besides the white tables with their modern white chairs lit by luminescent, color-changing florescent lamps, there is a sushi bar with a narrow, industrial-style, stainless steel, conveyor belt from which to choose small dishes of sushi. Marianne and Cliff told us that the restaurant was a refreshing experience for them, quite different from their usual experience at the albeit lovely restaurant at their retirement home.

A light drizzle rained down on us as we strolled up the street to the Institute for Maira’s presentation. The room was packed with people. All the chairs were taken, except for two rows in the front reserved for VIPs of the Institute. People were lined up and standing along the walls. We followed Marianne to the reserved seating and sat down to the glares of both the standing people and the Art Institute people, who knew we were not of their ranks and who began to protest. A moment later, when Maira came in, she immediately noticed us, introduced us as family, and insisted that we move to the first row. Then, she invited those standing to come forward to sit on the floor in front, if they desired, as no more chairs were available. She began by posing the question, “If you had to choose between thinking and feeling, which would you choose?” Having just visited Saul’s mom in the Alzheimer’s unit, I knew immediately what my answer would be and was shocked when Maira said that, for her, there would be no question that it would be feeling. Her stream-of-consciousness monologue was flecked with humor and had no traces of the pretension that is sometimes prevalent in the art world. She joked about how thinking too much gets her into trouble all the time, and that her inspiration comes from going with her feelings, which can be very random and unpredictable. It struck me like a bolt of lightening that my fretful thoughts and worries are counterproductive, as life is as unpredictable as the subjects of Maira’s art. The thoughts and opinions of others (over which I agonize way too much) should be irrelevant to an artist truly following her muse. I believe Maira is much admired for her ability to freely explore and honestly represent that which interests her, and she does it in a way that is unique to her, and yet universal in its appeal. She does all this with warmth and unaffected humor.

During her presentation, Maira put up a slide of her painting of Marianne and her twin sister, done from an old photo, as girls wearing what Marianne told me later were what she considered to be the ugliest sister dresses they had ever owned—yellow dresses with a black stripe. Marianne was flattered and became an instant celebrity to the crowd when Maira introduced her as one of the subjects of the painting.

After the presentation, the crowd lined up at a long table where Maira signed books, and a cake in honor of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday was sliced and consumed. Her original speaking engagement on his birthday had to be rescheduled because of the snow, and those in charge, with tongue in cheek, felt it would be fitting to remember him at this late date anyway. For sale at the Institute during the signing, were tote bags and tee shirts printed with the historic poster of the motto that titles this post. Having heard Maira speak, and despite the double entendre of a tote bag having the motto to “carry on,” I plan to strive to adopt this motto into my life as much as I can muster. Sixty years of perfectionism and agonizing over every little thing will not go away easily.

Our evening ended in a breathtaking townhouse on Delancey Place in the home of two patrons of the Institute who provided a catered repast for the selected guests, us among them, as Maira had invited us to join them. Marianne was extremely moved when one of the guests lifted his sleeve to reveal that he has been wearing the quirky wristwatch that her deceased son, Tibor, Maira’s husband, designed and produced many years ago.

We drove Marianne and Cliff home, all of us thrilled with our serendipitous day. I feel a lot happier now, inspired by Maira, not to think (and agonize) so much over how my life will play out. I will try to respond to life as it unfolds with the motto, “Keep Calm and Carry On.”

On the Road, Again

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

Having spent just two full days at home after Passover, we again packed our bags on Friday morning and headed off to Baltimore and DC to take Sami home, help Ari pack, continue to check out real estate in the triangle of DC neighborhood where Ari would ideally like to live (Petworth, Columbia Heights), and retrieve all the stuff we had left behind that didn’t fit into the car. Again, Ari was informed that the bank had decided to sell the shell of a house on which he had vastly overbid to a cash buyer. He also was rebuffed by the seller on his offer for the renovated one which was overpriced by at least $100,000.00. Needless to say, he is greatly discouraged as he must move out of his condo by April 28. Luckily, his company came through and is allowing him to use a corporate-owned apartment temporarily while he searches for new digs.

On our way to Baltimore, we took leisurely Route 1 and stopped at Bahama Breeze in King of Prussia for lunch with Sami and to use a $10 coupon they had sent. After lunch, we crossed the parking lot and browsed a bit at Nordstrum Rack. By the time we arrived in Baltimore, everything was ready for Shabbat dinner. Alex had made miso soup, and tons of beautiful sushi, so much, that try as we might, we couldn’t eat it all, and some of the fish ones had to be thrown away. Dessert was assorted homemade cookies that had continued to linger in my freezer. Ari was able to leave work in time to join us, and we were also joined by Abby, Alex’s friend and assistant from work. Whenever Abby comes to dinner, we laugh until our sides hurt. This time was no exception. I guess it is a combination of the chemistry, the wine and beer, her personality, and the fact that we have not known each other long enough to have heard all of each other’s funny stories. We had a great time!

We spent the weekend in Ari’s neighborhood, checking out every house for sale that could be a possibility. In between, we packed up most of his stuff to go into a storage unit down the street from his condo, in case the search takes a while. On Saturday night, Jess met us for dinner at a Thai restaurant called “Little Spice” that we chose from the Internet, near the Arundel Mills Outlet Mall. We were very pleased with our choice, finding many tasty vegetarian dishes, and plan to visit there again. Afterward, we caught a late movie, Date Night, at the Egyptian Theater in the mall. We all liked this lightweight movie which had quite a few laughs, and was reminiscent of “True Lies,” but then we are all Tina Fey fans. We were also pleased to find that our favorite dim sum restaurant, Hollywood East Café, has finally reopened after a year in its new space inside Wheaton Mall. By coincidence, we had dim sum there the very first day that they were serving dim sum and it was just as good as last year.

When we returned home, I had almost missed seeing my dormant amaryllis open up. I had almost thrown the apparently empty pot away, thinking that the bulb had shriveled, but kept watering periodically anyway. My faith was rewarded this week as I made it home just in time to catch the tail end of the spectacular bloom. This week was relatively quiet for me, although Saul is constantly on the computer checking up on his students’ work and grading papers. Meetings after school have kept him late a few days a week, but he is enjoying his classes immensely. Monday evening, we arranged to meet Ken and Randi, who had just returned home from Kauai, at Bonefish Grill to hear some more of their vacation stories. Wednesday, Adele, Roxy and I met for lunch at Wegman’s and spent a few hours chatting.

On Thursday, I attended Faith’s class where we read, and summarized for each other, excerpts from a book about the history and circumstances surrounding the Jewish community in Europe during the time of the crusades. Spending an hour that way is extremely disheartening and makes one wonder about the perverted susceptibility of the human race to the teachings of hate, especially with Holocaust Memorial Day right around the corner, and the resurrection of the horrors of Timothy McVeigh in the news because of the anniversary of the bombing and the chilling tapes of his testimony that have just been released. To lift my spirits, Saul did manage to leave directly after class and we had lunch together at an Indian buffet, Sultan, in a shopping center nearby. Our favorite Indian place, in the same shopping center, Greater India, is now under new ownership and no longer belongs to our friend, Gale. Sultan had a much larger variety of offerings, and the food was good, but it was not presented as beautifully, and the place was nowhere near as clean and neat as Greater India had been.

On Friday, Saul was facilitating a U.N.-sponsored, all-day program at Chestnut Hill College, attended by students from at least a dozen local colleges. When he returned home, about 4:00 p.m. he helped me finish preparing our Shabbat dinner attended by Beth and Larry. We had homemade challah, avocado and cod salad with nachos, homemade smoked turkey split pea soup, which had been hanging around in my freezer since last Pesach, fresh ginger marinated cucumber salad, chicken cutlets with satay sauce, rice with lentils, and kasha knishes that Larry had brought from a local bakery. For dessert, we had leftover cookies again, and I am finally making some progress on emptying the freezer of miscellaneous holdovers. “The iceman cometh” this week to repair my broken ice-maker and the loud buzzing in my Sub-Zero freezer.

Next weekend, we are off to Baltimore/DC again to help Ari with the final packing in preparation for his move on Monday—his stuff to a storage unit, and himself to a corporate apartment until he finds that house out there that was meant for him.

Passover 2010 and Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

When Ari, Saul and I arrived at Jess and Alex’s home for the first seder, we were greeted by a sweet vision of sugar-plum fairies in the form of Yona and Izzy wearing the frothy sister gowns that I had nabbed on sale at Talbot’s Kids that Sami and Izzy had worn to Erica’s wedding. Everyone was just putting the finishing touches on the beautiful table setting and we sat down right on schedule to begin our child-friendly, but traditional, service using Alex’s custom-designed, full-color haggadot which had been imaginatively illustrated by Izzy. As always, not only the service, but the food was truly amazing. Our karpas was a vast array of unique vegetable dishes, all prepared by Alex. In addition to the usual crudité, there was homemade guacamole, salsa, baba ganoush, boiled potatoes, hard-boiled eggs and onions, home-cured pickles, Bloody Marys, olives, etc. Alex spurns the usual gefilte fish in favor of an artfully garnished salmon and sea bass appetizer with individually prepared sauces. The horseradish we had picked in our garden was the hottest ever this year! The theme of this year’s seder was a discussion of the contrasts of the different practices and order of the services from those which took place during the Middle Ages.

In attendance the first night were Jess, Alex, Sami, Izzy and Yona; Saul, Ari and me; Elaine and Maury; Aaron, Stacy, Jacob, Lily and Zach; Arnold and Susan; Anne, Aunt Ruth, Max and a girlfriend, Tamara. The second night, Max and Tamara were not in attendance, but we were joined by Larry; Elaine S.; Naomi and Matt, Peter and Nina, and Matt’s friend, Jeff. Larry and Elaine slept over at the house; Anne and Aunt Ruth stayed in a nearby suite hotel in Whitemarsh for two nights; Saul and I stayed at Brookshire Suites across from the Inner Harbor in Baltimore for two nights, and Ari drove home each night. The room rate was very reasonable with a deal from Groupon.com, but we were dismayed to find that the parking was by valet only and was $30.00. Our photos of the seder are very limited as Jess and Alex preferred that there be no photography during the hag (the first two and last two days of the holiday).

For dinner, Alex had also prepared three different soups (very usual for him), traditional chicken soup, lamb, and a beef and cabbage borsht, all delicious. We added his superlative matzoh balls, and my homemade Passover noodles. For dinner, we had roasted turkey, grilled chicken, lamb, beef, a sweet and a savory quinoa pilaf, mashed potatoes with cauliflower, sweet potatoes, asparagus, and my Passover potato knishes. For dessert, we had mocha mousse crepes with strawberry sauce, chocolate almond bars, nine flavors of sorbet, and macaroons and fresh fruit salad brought by Stacy and Aaron.

During our time in Baltimore/DC, we took the opportunity to visit the new Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian, which is on the grounds of Dulles Airport, with Anne who suggested it. The experience was beyond our imagination as every type of aircraft, from the tiniest ultralight, to the space shuttle, to a full-size SST, were artfully displayed within the gigantic gleaming hangars that house the collection. The only disappointment was that the airplane on which Saul worked when he was in the navy back in the 1960s, the RA-5C (Vigilante), was not among the hundreds on display according to a docent, who helpfully looked it up in a catalog at his fingertips. I was absolutely wowed by the scale of the space shuttle, Enterprise, (under which I posed) because on a television screen, it looks like a normal-sized aircraft.

During the week, we were informed that Saul’s aunt, Hannah, had died suddenly. We decided to attend the funeral, which was on Thursday afternoon at Goldstein’s in Southhampton, PA, with interment at King David Cemetery in Neshaminy. We spent the day driving the three hours each way from DC. We decided not to attend the gathering at Saul’s cousin’s Elaine’s home following the interment as we would have been too tired for the long drive afterward. There is no shiva during Passover, but the family decided to sit shiva from Tuesday evening through Monday morning following Passover.

On Friday evening, for Shabbat Pesach, Alex prepared, in addition to all the leftovers which were copious, three different types of shawarma (lamb, chicken, and spicy chicken) and a tossed salad with his homemade dressing. I added to the mix of desserts a large matzoh cake meal crumb-topped apple pie that I prepared in a rectangular Pyrex dish at Ari’s house and lemon-curd-filled matzoh cake meal cream puffs. To fill in among Alex’s leftovers during the rest of the week, I made a vegetable soup, topped with additional noodles that I prepared again, a few more batches of Passover rolls, scrambled eggs, and several batches of matzoh brei. Ari went shopping during chol hamoed in Rockville at a glatt kosher Passover store, and picked up additional supplies, such as Israeli chocolate spread, tea, chocolates, and sweet potato cake.

Saul and I left Ari’s house early on Sunday morning so that he could teach a session on the Middle East at the Pearlstone Center where Jessica is the programming director. We had breakfast together with the guests in the sunny dining hall before going off to the sessions. Saul’s session went so well, despite some vehement disagreements between “hawks” and “doves,” that a number of the participants would not let him leave, and the session ran overtime by almost an hour. Then it continued with a few of the guests in the lobby while we waited for lunch to be served. While he taught his session, I picked up some pointers at a chess class that I decided to attend. After lunch, we met Ari in DC just in time to tour an open house that he wanted us to see. As of this writing, Ari has been on tenterhooks, waiting to hear if an offer has been accepted on a shell of house that needs to be gutted and refurbished, and negotiating for a vastly overpriced restoration that he truly loves.

Alex’s sister, Naomi, won four tickets in a lottery to be a guest at the White House Easter festivities, so Jessica brought Sami and Izzy and their other grandmother, Elaine, down to DC for the day. We had decided to visit the zoo first, but the weather was gorgeous and the zoo was so packed that all the parking lots were full and we spent 45 minutes in a line of traffic weaving through the zoo that was eventually turned around and filtered out of the park. Instead, we took the girls to a playground near Ari’s house and had our Passover picnic there. Elaine said that the White House fair was incredible, with tons of activities for the children, including craft projects, and face painting, lots of beautiful food, including fresh fruit, of which they could partake during Pesach.

We attended services, including yizkor, at Chizuk Amuno on Tuesday and joined Jess and Alex for lunch as we prepared to return Alex’s parents to their home in New Jersey, and ourselves back to the northwestern suburb of Philadelphia where we live. During lunch, we were surprised when Jess mentioned that Sami was on vacation from school for the whole week and, on the spur of the moment, we decided to bring her home with us. By leaving a lot of our stuff behind, we were able to cram ourselves into the Prius for the long ride home. After unloading our car, we broke Pesach with a late meal of sushi at a new nearby restaurant, Ooka, for which I had a Restaurant.com coupon.

On Wednesday, while Saul was at school, Sami and I went shopping. We had a mission of finding her new sneakers for school as there were gaping holes in the ones she was wearing. We replenished our post-Pesach food supplies at Costco and had lunch there. Then we tried Marshall’s and several stores at Montgomery Mall. We found her great sneakers and Crocs at Famous Footwear and I even got a pair of cute flats half price as a result of a two-fer deal, and some nice solid plain cotton tee shirts at Gap Kids. When we returned, I helped Sami make a sour cream pound cake to take to the shiva at Saul’s cousin Bobby’s house in Warrington. Their lovely home was filled with people. The cousins invited Saul to lead the service at the suggestion of their rabbi, who was Orthodox from Chabad, and feared that he would have to contend with women and non-Jews at the service. Sami had a chance to meet many of Saul’s relatives, most of whom she rarely sees, and some of whom she had never met, including quite a few children with whom she played. We returned the following night with Sami, and Saul led the service once again.

Getting Ready for Pesach 2010

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

The last week and a half has not been as dismal as I thought it would be. Returning from a land of exotic flower-scented breezes and temperate sunshine, I thought I would be incredibly depressed by the chilly, damp, and gray Philadelphia weather, but lo and behold, spring arrived almost immediately upon our return. All traces of snow had melted away, and within a few days, crocuses, daffodils, cherry blossoms, forsythia, and all the other harbingers of spring native to our area had exploded into a riotous kaleidoscope of color that reminded me of all the reasons I love this area as well. We spent the first few days in jet-lagged stupor trying to catch up with work, laundry and mail. I hated to put away our vacation-washed, summer-type clothes because they smell like Kauai and the next time they go through the laundry, that fragrance will be gone.

Our refrigerator remained empty for the first few days until we had a chance to shop. Only Larry and Beth joined us for Shabbat dinner that Friday, and most of the dinner came out of our freezer to make room for the Passover items that needed to be prepared the following week. We had homemade challah, homemade chicken soup with the last of Saul’s dumplings, a salad of red-leaf lettuce with craisins and nuts, spicy Moroccan sausages, chicken paprikash, mushroom and apple bread stuffing, potato latkes with applesauce, fresh-steamed asparagus, and leftover cake from the freezer. On Saturday, Saul slept as late as I have ever seen him sleep, not arising until almost 11 a.m. I stayed in bed also, dozing on and off and watching t.v. for a while. We had thought by then that we would be over the jet lag, but apparently, mornings of awaking at 6:00 a.m. had taken their toll. On Saturday evening, we began the process of cleaning and readying the house for Pesach.

Our cousin Anne with her son, Ben, joined us on Sunday afternoon and we were supposed to have dinner out together, but Ben had forgotten our plans and had invited some friends over for a barbecue. We took Ben’s new cell phone over to Best Buy to be treated with an Invisible Shield and then to Costco to buy supplies and charcoal for the barbecue. Then Anne drove him home and rejoined us for dinner at Pho Thai Nam, where we shared a delicious meal of Thai specialties. For dessert, we ordered their taro cake, which looks very homely, but which we think is a delight of creamy textures and complex flavors. When we asked the owner what goes into it, she explained to us that she has tried to duplicate it in her restaurant many times, but that she finally gave up and imports what she considers to be the best example of it from Thailand for her restaurant.

On Monday, before and after a visit to my doctor for a yearly checkup, I began preparing the dishes for our seder that Jessica and Alex requested, mostly the desserts for which Alex does not have time. During the week, Saul and I made nine different types of fresh fruit sorbets, strawberry, banana, papaya, guava (we found fresh ones at Assi Market), tangerine, Meyer lemon, grapefruit, pineapple, and mango. I made 75 mocha mousse crepes, two batches of chocolate almond bars, 120 passover potato knishes, and 2 dozen eggs-worth of passover noodles for the soup. The Meyer lemons were so beautiful that I did not want the zest to be thrown away. I improvised a new and easier way to produce delicious candied peel. I also, because the mashed potato dough was too fluffy this year, figured out a way to produce the knishes that was twice as fast and even more delicious than in the past. Necessity is truly the mother of invention, or perhaps desperation is. Instead of forming the dough around the fried onions and patting it delicately with oiled hands, I used a standard ice cream scoop to release uniform mounds of dough onto the oiled jelly-roll pan. Then, I used an oiled finger to make a well in the center, scooped the fried onions with a mini scoop into the center, topped that with a mini-scoop of mashed potato dough, and flattened and blended the dough into the appropriate shape with an oiled finger again. It worked like a charm!

On Wednesday, in honor of my birthday, I met my good friend, Roxy, who treated me to lunch at the exemplary vegetarian restaurant, Blue Sage at 11:30 a.m. We had a delicious lunch, but after a while the restaurant grew crowded and we needed to vacate the table. We engaged in a conversation for a while outside the restaurant. The weather was beautiful, so we decided to sit on a bench in front of the restaurant to gab for a while. Eventually, we were interrupted by a cell phone call from Saul, who was on his way home from a meeting after school. When he told us the time, we were both completely shocked to discover that we had been sitting on that bench, talking, until 4:00 p.m. If he hadn’t called, I think we might be sitting there still :-).

At our Talmud study class on Thursday, several of the members had met the previous day to prepare a post-class, surprise, light luncheon in honor of Faith’s 70th birthday. When Saul arrived from school on Thursday, we went to Costco once again to buy snacks for a seminar with which he was assisting at Chestnut Hill College on Friday morning to encourage women to enter the field of computer science. When we returned, we both fell asleep immediately, still jet-lagged I suppose, and awoke only in time to have a very late, light dinner at Chili’s. While Saul was off at the seminar, I finished up the Passover cooking, cleaned up, and began packing for Baltimore. In the afternoon, both Faith and Adele stopped in, Faith to pick up some of the goodies I had been preparing for her family’s seder, and Adele, to drop off some clothing that was passing from Brenna to Sami. The light rain that morning had given way to sunshine, and we all went out to the garden together to dig up fresh horseradish root that had just begun sending out feathery crowns of green leaves. The pungent fragrance of the main root, as it inevitably breaks off from its deep slender branching roots, is quintessentially the odor I most associate with this holiday.

Our friend Larry, as he has for many years, hosted us for the last Shabbat dinner before Pesach. I brought my challahs from the freezer, and we had tossed salad, broiled flounder, kasha and potato knishes, and pesto tortellini with butter. For dessert, we had cinnamon buns, and rice pudding.

During his sermon at services on Shabbat morning, Rabbi Addison posed the question “Why do we eat matzah, the bread of affliction, during a feast that is meant to be an expression and celebration of our freedom?” As with Sukkot, at the times of our most joyous celebrations, instead of reveling in our prosperity, we are reminded of the austerity endured by our ancestors. We move out of our comfy houses into purposely cobbled-together booths. Our celebrations are joyous, nevertheless, and we are reminded how few material possessions are really necessary to truly enjoy life and the blessings that God has bestowed on us.

Saturday evening, Faith’s children hosted a dessert party in honor of her birthday, and we were able to catch up with many of our old friends whom we had seen just recently at Marilyn’s funeral, but only for a few moments before we left for Hawaii. The party was a warm and inviting way to spend the evening and we enjoyed the camaraderie with those people and their families with whom we had spent almost 25 years teaching.

On Sunday, after packing all our Passover paraphernalia and food, we headed off to Baltimore/DC for the week of the holiday. After attending a number of open houses in search of a house for Ari, we decided to take advantage of one of my Restaurant.com coupons to have a large brunch at a nearby restaurant, just around the corner, called Domku. The restaurant was uncharacteristically crowded and the service was extremely slow, taking over an hour and a half before our food was presented, but the food was delicious. That evening, Ari was so involved in meeting a deadline for a huge court-ordered document production that he went into the office at 10:30 p.m. and did not return until 11:30 a.m. Upon returning, he completed the form to make an offer on the shell of a house he was interested in purchasing, and went off to bed to try to get as much sleep as possible before it was time to leave for the first seder in Baltimore. We found out, within 24 hours, that although he had offered $35,000 more than the asking price, the house had been sold by the foreclosing bank to a cash buyer for an undisclosed sum.

Our Final Days in Paradise

If you are reading this on Facebook, slideshows and videos are often attached. Click on this live link to my blog: http://www.marilyfe.blogspot.com/ if you would like to get the full experience.
If you are reading this at Blogspot.com already, just ignore.

On Friday morning, we again had breakfast in the condo. I made banana taro pancakes napped with the local coconut syrup and we feasted on a plate of the remaining assorted tropical fruit we had purchased at the farmers’ markets. Randi made omelets and we lingered over breakfast, spent the morning catching up with work, organizing photos, blogging, telephoning family, and Skyping with Andy, Jessica and the girls. Eventually, Larry headed over to the beautiful pool and lava rock hot tub for a few hours. The rest of us took a drive to Costco to purchase supplies for Shabbat dinner. On the way, in Puhio, we stopped at Mark’s Place, a local take-out joint hidden in an industrial complex, about which there were many raves on the Net. We shared two luncheon combination plates among the five of us while soaking up the sun at one of their outdoor picnic tables. The food was as good as billed and with very ample and reasonable portions. They had very limited hours and are closed on weekends, so we felt very lucky to have had the opportunity to get there before the end of our vacation.

In addition to the dinner items at Costco, we also picked up some souvenir items like macadamia nut assortments and a beautiful Hawaiian-print, 100%-cotton shirt for Saul. Costco supports the local economy by featuring locally-made products. In addition to a beautiful selection of shirts, there was a kiosk featuring high-end, handmade Hawaiian-print quilts. The fish selection includes a smoked tuna poké which is “to die for.” There are many other examples. We stopped at K-Mart also, to try to find a Pyrex baking dish so that I could bake coconut tapioca pudding for Ken. He had been paying $3.50 for a tiny cup of it at a local grocery store. I had forgotten how expensive these glass items can be on the island and finally resorted to buying some large aluminum foil pans.

The Friday farmers’ market at Lihue which was supposed to begin at 3:00 p.m. looked as though it had been in full swing for a while when we arrived. Most important, Saul found the vendor with the pink guavas, who had been looking for him at the other traveling farmers’ markets on the island. He was instantly transported back 50 years to his childhood when he bit into one of the ripe guavas we purchased from her. We also picked up wonderful fresh baby greens and arugula for a salad, red scallions, yellow cherry tomatoes, ripe red tomatoes, and fresh-picked jicama. One of the big treats which we always share at these markets is a young coconut. The vendor hacks off a chunk which allows us to sip the coconut water with a straw. When the liquid has been consumed, we return to the vendor, who hacks the whole thing into a few large pieces so that we can consume the gelatinous young coconut meat with a spoon. Yum!

Returning to our condo, we prepared Shabbat dinner, lighting candles and immediately watching the final rays of a beautiful sunset over the ocean from our front balcony. We successfully baked the coconut tapioca pudding, and prepared a refreshing salad with a calamansi vinaigrette. Ken roasted eggplant on the grill, followed by calamansi/mustard-marinated racks of lamb, burgers, and hot dogs. I sauteéd shiitake mushrooms, grated carrots, and the red scallions to make a warm soba dish sauced with soy and sesame. Our breads were a roasted garlic bread and a multi-grain loaf that were still warm from the oven when we purchased them at Costco. For dessert, we had locally-made haupia ice cream and lilikoi sorbet, augmented with chocolate macadamia nut candies from Ari’s souvenir packages. We finally managed to stay awake for a while after dinner to socialize and reminisce before heading off to bed.

Saturday was as close to perfection as one can get on Kauai. After a torrential downpour in the wee hours of the morning, we arose in time to see vibrant double rainbows from the balcony outside Ken and Randi’s bedroom. The morning dawned bright with sunshine, mild temperatures, and just enough of the delicious trade wind breezes to keep mosquitoes from alighting. We left without breakfast and drove a short distance to a parking area near Spouting Horn. Then, we hiked about a half mile along an ocean-side cove, arboretum, and multi-million dollar properties to the tiny public park that provides an unparalleled view of Spouting Horn. Never in my life have I seen a calmer, bluer, or more inviting ocean. The only white caps were those created as the water lapped against the dark rock formation whose tunneled configuration causes the Spouting Horn phenomenon. Handsome feral roosters were providing a raucous cacophony that was a counterpoint to the hissing water sprays. Overhead, for a few minutes, we were treated to the unique sight of two ultra-light airplanes cruising through the calm skies sightseeing over the still, turquoise-blue water. Then, we reluctantly pulled ourselves away, beginning to feel the first pangs of hunger.

We had pre-arranged breakfast at Yum Cha, the golf course clubhouse of the Grand Hyatt. Seated before a huge wall of windows, we soaked in the glorious, meticulously-groomed tropical landscape of the golf course as we dined on perfectly-poached eggs napped with unctuous Hollandaise, and the most tasty trio of pancakes ever—one with bananas, one with mango, and one with blueberries. Each fresh blueberry sprinkled on top looked like it had been hand-picked for its jewel-like qualities. The staff was superlative, warm and friendly, and extremely attentive to every detail. After our walk, many of us ordered iced tea, which came garnished not only with the usual lemon wedge, but with a thin baton of raw sugar cane. Again, Saul was transported back to his childhood, when he used to chew on raw sugar cane from nearby fields. The waiter overheard him and, unbidden, brought him a plate with extra sticks of it. Sadly, the clubhouse will close on March 31 for a complete overhaul of the décor. It will be closed for at least six months.

Back at the condo, we changed into bathing suits and headed over to Poipu Beach. We had the most perfect beach day! The sky was blue with just enough of the fluffy white clouds to provide occasional relief from the sun’s burning rays. The water was just the right temperature—refreshingly cool, but not enough to cause distress on first going into it. The waves were gentle swells in the protected beach area, and abundant, splendidly-hued, phosphorescent, tropical fish could be viewed through the crystal-clear water without even the need for a snorkel. Silky sand had magically returned to the rocky bottom so that water shoes were optional to protect from the occasional projecting rock. I spent almost the entire day in the water, not realizing that the sun’s rays can penetrate not only 50-SPF sunblock, but clear ocean-water as well. Even water-challenged Randi (who is a non-swimmer) ventured into the ocean for a time, so calm and inviting was the water. Saul and I met a young woman, Leah, in the water, who had just arrived from Minnesota and who could not, at first, believe her senses. She questioned us about whether she should be worried about sharks or jellyfish in the water. Once we reassured her, Saul offered her his snorkel and showed her how to use it so that she could view the scene underwater more clearly. Returning it gratefully, she was soon joined by her boyfriend, Josh, also newly-arrived from Minnesota, and they blissfully swam off together to join other friends a short distance away. We were treated to a kaleidoscope of indescribable fishy shapes and colors when a woman, standing nearby, decided to feed the fish from two empty soda cans filled with Grape Nuts cereal. Luckily, Saul was ready for what ensued with Larry’s underwater camera. The photos and videos which I have included in these blog posts are a compendium of the best of all of our photos and videos, taken with various cameras and iPhones. Larry spent a lot of time during this vacation, not only photographing, but editing in iMovie and iPhoto on his laptop. He also proffered an amazing and touching gesture. He has been wearing his parents’ wedding rings on a chain around his neck for several years since they both died within a year of each other. When Saul lost his wedding ring at Baby Beach next to Poipu, shortly afterward, Larry removed his father’s wedding band from the chain and offered it to Saul as a replacement for his loss, which brought tears to the eyes of both of us. The ring, surprisingly, almost fit Saul’s Brobdingnagian finger, but, in the end, we all decided it should be re-sized just a little larger.

When we finally tore ourselves away from Poipu and went home to shower, we began to realize just how sunburned some of us had become, despite our frequent spraying of sunblock. This did not deter us from meeting our scheduled reservations at The Plantation Gardens Restaurant to enjoy our last dinner on our last full day on Kauai. The Plantation Gardens is surrounded by an unsurpassed orchid garden where dozens of multi-hued, multi-patterned, and multi-shaped, flower varieties grow lavishly in a sensational, naturally-landscaped setting of meandering walkways, lava rock formations, grassy lawns, water features, frog-inhabited lily ponds, and old, gnarly, exotic trees. I could not help thinking that this is what the best exhibits at the world-renowned Philadelphia Flower Show are trying to emulate. Our meal at the center table on the veranda overlooking the gardens began with beautiful tropical cocktails and a delightful assortment of appetizers which we shared. Ari had a very unusual cucumber mojito, presented in a Kerr mason jar, with the paper thin cucumber slices arranged to look like a delicate flower. Saul and I shared an entrée of mahi-mahi stir-fried with veggies and pasta in a ginger sauce, and Saul had a beautiful tomato salad with a baked, crusted round of goat cheese. We lingered over dinner as long as we could in this other-worldly setting. Back at the condo, the sunburn and exertions of the day beginning to get the better of me, I wandered off to bed without sharing with the others in our coconut and lilikoi ice creams, coconut tapioca, chocolate macadamias, and other Hawaiian delights.

For our last day on the island, we had scheduled a special buffet brunch at Gaylord’s relatively early in the morning at 10:15 a.m. The plan was to skip lunch, go to the beach or pool, shower, finish packing and cleaning, and have an early dinner at a favorite, low-key, inexpensive, locally-favored restaurant in Lihue, Garden Island Barbecue and Chinese Restaurant, before dropping off our leased car in the airport parking lot to catch our plane. As it turned out, we could barely move after our irresistible last breakfast on Kauai, which included, among the many other selections, a warm purple yam salad, home fries, French toast and banana pancakes with coconut syrup, perfect poached egg dishes and omelets cooked to order, soup, mushroom pasta, sweet buttery slices of assorted loaf cakes, seafood “sliders” on taro buns, Danish, scones, sliced fresh tropical fruit, warm bread pudding with creme Anglaise, orange and guava juices, and an assortment of mini cakes which included dense, dark, flourless chocolate, and rich, chewy fresh coconut on buttery shortbread. Also available, at an additional charge, was a Bloody Mary bar, which, had we not hopelessly indulged the night before, would have been a great temptation. We were seated in one wing of a u-shaped, brick-pillared, covered patio. In the case of passing showers, which we encountered that day, rolled up clear tarpaulins were unfurled to protect the diners without obstructing the view of the expansive garden. After brunch, we stepped off the patio and crossed the lawn to a clay studio to view the items for sale there. The Gaylord is a tourist mecca that is surrounded by quirky, high-end shops, a restored, picturesque railroad train that takes tourists for jaunts around the grounds, and pastures in which donkeys calmly graze. Saul went into a shop that specialized in rum and did a tasting. In an adjacent shop, I added to my collection of honey from around the world with a boxed trio of exotic organic single-flower varieties, wilelaiki blossom, ohi’a blossom, and macadamia nut blossom. Randi and I spent some time talking to the shopkeeper they knew where Haley had chosen her unique, artist-created raku wish-keeper, that had been a major element of her shower and wedding. The shop was readying to move to larger quarters within the month. With all of our gung-ho plans for making the most of our final day in paradise, we spent the afternoon in various stages of repose, laying on the couch drinking in the fragrant breezes and digesting our huge meal, reading, recovering from slightly stinging sunburns, wrapping up photographic downloads, packing, cleaning, and lazily watching a classic beach movie on t.v.—Where the Boys Are. Ari, Saul, and I went into Koloa Town so that I could purchase additional taro pancake mix, Kauai honey, and local tea to take home with me. In the end, as much as we had wanted to revisit our fondly-remembered Lihue restaurant, none of us had any appetite left, nor did we want to take a chance on upsetting our stomachs before our long flight home. We did not even want to nibble the great leftovers in the refrigerator. We kissed and hugged Ken and Randi many times as we said farewell on the parking lot of their condo, not wanting that parting moment ever to arrive. Ari and I shared a small bowl of ramen at the airport just to have something comforting in our stomachs in the hour before our red-eye departure at 8:45 p.m. Ben Stiller was on our airplane, returning to Los Angeles from his home on Kauai, but we only got to catch a glimpse of him as he waited to exit from first class. Before we had to turn off our phones for take-off, Randi e-mailed us an iPhone video of the sunset we had just missed.

Our flight left on time and having taking my Ativan this time, I was able to sleep for a part of the four-and-a-half hour flight to L.A. The movie we watched, Everybody’s Fine, was a welcome diversion also, but pretty mediocre overall considering the stellar actors involved. Arriving with minimal turbulence in L.A., a bit ahead of schedule, we said goodbye to Larry, who was flying to Denver and then on to Philadelphia. We waited about 10 minutes for the Red Carpet Club to open at 6:00 a.m. and quickly fortified ourselves with coffee, juice, toast, and bowls of cereal before boarding our on-time flight to Dulles. Since we had all already seen, and hated, the movie, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Ari bought a splitter from a Best Buy vending machine at LAX and we all watched episodes of Modern Family that he had downloaded with our headphones attached to his laptop. All of us were able to catch a little more sleep on that leg of the flight as well, which was also about four-and-a-half hours long and not tremendously turbulent.

Arriving at Dulles right on schedule, we learned that Larry’s flight from Denver had been delayed for an hour due to high winds in Philadelphia. We had just missed a horrible weather day at home with torrential downpours and 60 m.p.h. wind gusts that took down many trees and wreaked havoc with power lines. By the time we landed at Dulles, we were ravenous. While Ari retrieved our Prius from the long-term parking lot, and while we collected our luggage from baggage claim, Saul availed himself of a free H1N1 vaccination available from a team of medical people at a table just a few feet from the baggage claim area. I chickened out. We decided to have late lunch/early dinner at Café Asia near Ari’s office in Rosslyn, Virginia, before picking up his car which he had left in the adjacent parking lot. It was a good choice. The varied pan-Asian menu provided us with tasty and comforting selections before our three-hour ride home. We stopped at Ari’s condo briefly to use the bathroom and retrieve a few items of clothing and were on our way home by 5:45 p.m. Daylight Saving time the previous day had shortened our day, but given us more sunlight for the journey. The last two hours of our drive were in light rain and were extremely tiring. In the end, we arrived home only two hours later than Larry, about 9:00 p.m. I was greeted with a bad, fishy sort of smell when I opened the door. Beth had considerately stocked our refrigerator with milk and homemade vegetable soup and had gone crazy looking for the source of the smell, but couldn’t find anything. Saul, after a little searching, discovered that I had inadvertently left steamed cauliflower in the microwave oven for the entire 10 days. The smell wasn’t as bad as I would have thought it would be, and I think it is gone now.

We were asleep and mostly unpacked by 10:00 p.m. I awoke about 1:30 a.m. and could not get back to sleep until about 4:30 a.m. Saul slept through the night. When the alarm went off at 6:00 a.m. I got up as usual to make us tea and cook oatmeal for Saul before he leaves for school. I thought I would not be jet lagged, but I spent most of the day sleeping and am now just completing this blog post at 4:00 a.m. on Wednesday. I think I had better try getting to sleep for the next two hours before the alarm goes off at 6:00 a.m. again.