Haha. I was searching the net for a movement shirt (the shirt I wear as a leader of my youth movement), thinking perhaps if I ordered it myself from Israel it would be cheaper, and came across an advert for בלוגים- transliterated to 'blogim'- which when I clicked on appeared to be a whole load of Hebrew blogs. Oh I do love how they use an English word (not even a proper word! A shortened word!) and then add the Israeli ending. Haha. :) *muses* I wonder what the plural of telephone and fax are in Hebrew. Hm. Anyone know? And how do they know if the word is masculine or feminine if it is stolen from another language?
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Saturday, September 25, 2004
New year, in more ways than one.
Not only have we just begun a new school year, but the Jewish year 5765 started 10 days ago, which translates into much missed school for Naomi and a 25 hour fast today. Funnnnn. The missing school aspect of Jewish festivals is definitely the con, due to the large amounts of catching up of work that needs to be done. It wouldn't be so bad, had I not chosen to go on a Spectroscopy day at UCL on Tuesday as well, and the fact that many classmates conveniently forgot to bring in their notes from the days when I was away, despite having 'phoned them the night before to remind them to bring them in. Ah well. I think I have notes to try to digest from all my missed lessons now. I even understand some of them. Now that's something.
Today was good. I even managed to refrain from reading anything secular for 25 hours this year, which is quite an achievement, I thought. I stuck to reading R' Aryeh Kaplan (z"l) last night before I went to sleep, and another of his books during the services, when admittedly I should have been praying, but there's so much, I mean, it's all day. I arrived at shul this morning at 9.30, and didn't leave the building 'til 8pm. And I didn't eat or drink. And anyway, reading some Aryeh Kaplan is better than reading say, 'Lord of the Rings', when you are supposed to be focusing on religion and getting close to God and stuff all day. Especially when the book is about finding God, and why He created the world, and why everything we do is for Him.
I went to the Rabbi's question and answer session during the break (our services don't quite take all day, so we had about an hour's break. It was supposed to be longer, but the services overran a bit) and there was the annual "why don't we wear leather shoes on Yom Kippur? And can we wear leather on any other part of our body?" question, along with a few other questions, including one about "Shabbat lifts" whereby there are some hotels (or high rise buildings) which have lifts that either (i) go up and down on their own, stopping at every floor, or (ii) have someone inside pressing the button, and is it okay to use them? (For anyone who doesn't know, we are not supposed to use electricity on Shabbat, and that includes pressing the button in the lift.)
Hmm. Well, I'm tired, so I'm heading bed-wards. Night. x
Today was good. I even managed to refrain from reading anything secular for 25 hours this year, which is quite an achievement, I thought. I stuck to reading R' Aryeh Kaplan (z"l) last night before I went to sleep, and another of his books during the services, when admittedly I should have been praying, but there's so much, I mean, it's all day. I arrived at shul this morning at 9.30, and didn't leave the building 'til 8pm. And I didn't eat or drink. And anyway, reading some Aryeh Kaplan is better than reading say, 'Lord of the Rings', when you are supposed to be focusing on religion and getting close to God and stuff all day. Especially when the book is about finding God, and why He created the world, and why everything we do is for Him.
I went to the Rabbi's question and answer session during the break (our services don't quite take all day, so we had about an hour's break. It was supposed to be longer, but the services overran a bit) and there was the annual "why don't we wear leather shoes on Yom Kippur? And can we wear leather on any other part of our body?" question, along with a few other questions, including one about "Shabbat lifts" whereby there are some hotels (or high rise buildings) which have lifts that either (i) go up and down on their own, stopping at every floor, or (ii) have someone inside pressing the button, and is it okay to use them? (For anyone who doesn't know, we are not supposed to use electricity on Shabbat, and that includes pressing the button in the lift.)
Hmm. Well, I'm tired, so I'm heading bed-wards. Night. x
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Woo! Home early. :)
General studies this afternoon is only for those who chose to do UAP last year, which meant I could leave at 10.20. :D Had a rather surprised Shirley at the door just now, who couldn't understand why I was home. (Haha. Her boys went to Habs, and apparently they weren't allowed home if they finished early, which I think is cruel.) She delivered some very nice flowers for my parents though. :) It's their pearl wedding anniversary tomorrow. And my dad retires (for the first time, as he keeps saying) today, so we are having a kiddush on Shabbat, which should be nice, if not just because my brother and sister-in-law are coming to Kenton for Shabbat, and so I can see them. :)
Anyway, off to enjoy my unexpected freedom for the rest of the day (it's sunnyyyyy).
Anyway, off to enjoy my unexpected freedom for the rest of the day (it's sunnyyyyy).
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
School
We've been back at school now for... *goes to find diary so can count the days*... 5 days, with 2 being pointless time-wasters, one of which I could have spent much more productively making chicken soup and banana crumble (don't ask. Just never put cinnamon in, it ruins it) for 50 peopleand 3 days were lesson filled.
In true HBS style, they've been decorating and refurbishing through the holidays and have managed to not finish by the time everybody returns for the new term. Oh, I do love my school. Having said that, the drama department is now the bright zingy yellow that I wanted for my bedroom and was never allowed, and now having seen it on walls, it only confirms in my mind that that was the colour I wanted in my room. I would be able to jump out of bed in the morning with the strength of a lion (Shulchan Aruch) and would not be able to remain depressed for long. Also, yellow has that positive energy thing. You know, the thing which is shown through the fact that football teams that have a yellow strip often do well. (Not all though, I think. I'm not much of a football expert, I just remember reading the yellow thing somewhere and that being used as an example. I think Brazil are an example of this.) The common room (sorry, the blue room in the loft) is a lovely blue colour, a bit nicer than the one in the room I'm sitting in now. (The 'study' or Daniel's old room, as it is otherwise known.) Further examples of typical HBS-isms are the way in which some rooms now have interactive whiteboards. Which would be great, were there the electric sockets for them to be plugged in and a working computer system would help too. All forms of electronic registration are apparently down, and so we have had to resort to signing in to little blue books.
Work-wise Naomi is feeling alright at the moment. I actually did the English summer work over the summer, and so don't have to rush to finish it in time now (I finished all of my thingies, as opposed to just the first one, which is what we had to have finished) and so far we haven't been set any more, which is rather nice. (Although of course reading is going on... just no set written work or anything.) Maths hasn't been too bad: we've been given work to do, but not too much, which is always kind on the body. Further maths felt really intense: we had just three of us in the class- almost like a private school! Chemistry has become rather scary with quite a bit of work (or in comparison to my other subjects, anyway ;)), with a big table of ions to learn (although I know lots of them already :)) and a whole chapter worth of questions (which is quite a bit, as you have to bother to read the chapter to be able to do the questions).
Anyway, to bed with me. I'm leaving my personal statement for the day.
In true HBS style, they've been decorating and refurbishing through the holidays and have managed to not finish by the time everybody returns for the new term. Oh, I do love my school. Having said that, the drama department is now the bright zingy yellow that I wanted for my bedroom and was never allowed, and now having seen it on walls, it only confirms in my mind that that was the colour I wanted in my room. I would be able to jump out of bed in the morning with the strength of a lion (Shulchan Aruch) and would not be able to remain depressed for long. Also, yellow has that positive energy thing. You know, the thing which is shown through the fact that football teams that have a yellow strip often do well. (Not all though, I think. I'm not much of a football expert, I just remember reading the yellow thing somewhere and that being used as an example. I think Brazil are an example of this.) The common room (sorry, the blue room in the loft) is a lovely blue colour, a bit nicer than the one in the room I'm sitting in now. (The 'study' or Daniel's old room, as it is otherwise known.) Further examples of typical HBS-isms are the way in which some rooms now have interactive whiteboards. Which would be great, were there the electric sockets for them to be plugged in and a working computer system would help too. All forms of electronic registration are apparently down, and so we have had to resort to signing in to little blue books.
Work-wise Naomi is feeling alright at the moment. I actually did the English summer work over the summer, and so don't have to rush to finish it in time now (I finished all of my thingies, as opposed to just the first one, which is what we had to have finished) and so far we haven't been set any more, which is rather nice. (Although of course reading is going on... just no set written work or anything.) Maths hasn't been too bad: we've been given work to do, but not too much, which is always kind on the body. Further maths felt really intense: we had just three of us in the class- almost like a private school! Chemistry has become rather scary with quite a bit of work (or in comparison to my other subjects, anyway ;)), with a big table of ions to learn (although I know lots of them already :)) and a whole chapter worth of questions (which is quite a bit, as you have to bother to read the chapter to be able to do the questions).
Anyway, to bed with me. I'm leaving my personal statement for the day.
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