Rosh Hashanah

Rosh Hashanah Recap

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We’ve just about caught our breath from Rosh Hashanah, so that must mean Yom Kippur is almost upon us. I can’t say I look forward to Yom Kippur in the same way I looked forward to Rosh Hashanah or Sukkot (which follows on the heels of Yom Kippur — autumn’s a crazy season when it comes to Jewish holidays). Fasting is not my favorite way to spend a day; they ought to call it “slowing.” (Dear self: That is probably the point of the exercise.) Oh well, I won’t dwell on it for now, as we still have some time until our last big glass of water before sundown on Friday.

Round Braided Challah

My very first round braided challah was not an abject failure!

Last week, we welcomed 5774 together with friends and family. Our table was full (as were our bellies, in due time) and our home rang with laughter and conversation. The food was pretty tasty, too, if I do say so myself. I’m particularly pleased to note that my first-ever round braided challah came out looking far better than my bread fail a few weeks back. One of our fellow Jewish military families included an eleven-month-old boy who made me feel like a culinary genius by completely devouring my homemade hummus. Of course, I’m still finding places where he smeared it as he ran around trying to steal our coasters, but that just makes me smile while — let’s be real — I reach for the disinfecting wipes.

Erev Rosh Hashanah Table Setting

My husband snapped a quick picture of our (mostly) set table.

Overall, it was a wonderful experience. After everyone went home and the dishes were… well, at least started, Sampson and I started talking about the next time we could do something like this. For a couple of introverts like us, that kind of excitement is no small emotional leap. Rabbi Ruth Adar, the “Coffee Shop Rabbi,” has dared us to embrace the mitzvah of hospitality. I think we’re off to a good start this year. Here’s to keeping up our commitment even after this season of fresh starts is behind us.

G’mar chatima tova — may you be sealed in the Book of Life for a good year!

Catching Up on the First of the Month

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Happy November! The last few months have seen me slacking in the online documentation of my oh-so-fascinating life, but the autumnal coolness in the air following Hurricane Sandy’s passage last week has me motivated to catch up on previously mislaid hobbies — knitting and blogging, chiefly. I’m lusting after gorgeous, squishable yarn and raring to write things more interesting than utilitarian emails. This month is shaping up to include some travel to visit family and some projects to ready the house for tenants when we move early next year, so it may be wishful thinking on my part to suppose I will have time for everything. If nothing else, tapping out a blog post now and again could provide a pleasant respite from the pre-PCS freak-out I’m already beginning to feel creeping in around the edges.

Autumn Holidays

Sampson and I have not had much time to breathe this fall. We made it through the mad rush of the Jewish holidays; Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, and Shemini Atzeret/Simchat Torah all pop up in remarkably quick succession. As has been the case in years past, the craziness factor in Sampson’s squadron seemed to ramp up at the same time. Mighty inconvenient, that. His chain of command does try to be accommodating of his religious observance, but the unrelenting requirements of the flight schedule were not amenable to Sampson’s taking off any more time than the bare minimum for the High Holidays. We missed out on building our own sukkah this year; I had neither the heart nor the handiness to tackle the job on my own, so our observance was rather lacking. Next year, wherever we may wind up, I want to make sure we do not let that joyful time pass us by again.

Stormy Weather

Hurricane Sandy passed our house by, leaving nothing more in the way of clean-up than a few downed branches and a ton of leaves scattered across the yard. We were very lucky. I spent most of this past weekend holed up alone in the house, watching the rain, listening to the wind, and wishing in most uncouth terms that the Navy hadn’t played its customary “Forget the woman and children; save the airplanes!” card, sending Sampson and several of his squadronmates on a “HURREVACation” to sunny Florida. Not gonna lie, the injustice of it all rankled a little bit. (Okay, it rankled a lot.) But, he’s home now, and we were extremely fortunate with the storm’s minimal impact on ourselves and our loved ones in Northern Virginia. I sincerely hope that was the last gasp of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season.

Candyween

Halloween saw a moderate number (for our neighborhood) of trick-or-treaters on our doorstep. Even though we parceled out generous handfuls to each child, we still wound up with leftovers from our single bowl of candy. My favorite kid this year was the adorable, tiny witch who had not yet mastered the trick-or-treating procedure: she tried to walk right in when I opened the door. Cute as she was, I’m not sure she tops last year’s favorite, a little boy who caught a whiff of the beef stew simmering away on the stove and announced, “Mmm, y’all are cooking something good in here; I can smell it!” This year, our chicken soup was already eaten and the leftovers put away before the doorbell started ringing, so no word on whether my cooking still meets with youthful approval.

How is your November shaping up? Got any fun stuff on tap for chillier days and lengthening nights?

Never Did Find a Pair of Hiking Boots

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My non-specialized footwear served me all right this time, though. Our Lake Tahoe vacation was glorious and relaxing and full of hiking and just what we needed.

Lake Tahoe

It’s practically unfair for water to be this blue, or for the weather to be this gorgeous.

We’re now in the midst of the Jewish High Holy Day season, which tends to boggle me with the apparent speed of its annual return. Our Rosh Hashanah wound up being quieter than we’d anticipated; Sampson’s folks were supposed to come spend the Jewish New Year with us, but my father-in-law’s golf injury necessitated a last-minute cancellation of their trip. We were sad not to be able to spend the holiday with them, but healing absolutely takes priority. Sampson and I still managed a feast of brisket, risotto, and plenty of apples and honey for a sweet new year.

Sampson’s work schedule has been pretty wacky over the last week or so, with a lot more late-night stuff than we’re used to interspersed with some early wake-ups. That kind of sleep-shifting always plays merry hell with my internal clock, so I’m glad today is shaping up to be more “normal.” I’ve got a Civil Air Patrol meeting tonight, during which I hope to get a few things back on track with the cadet side of our public affairs program. Cookies may be required to soften the blow of any tasking I have to hand out; baked goods always make work more palatable, right? I’m thinking my basic chocolate chunk recipe will do nicely.

I guess that means I’m off to bake and to further enjoy the hint of autumnal coolness on the breeze blowing through my open windows. Hope your day is going equally well!

MilSpouse Friday Fill-In #61

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The discussion continues on my latest SpouseBUZZ post: “Military Women and Military Wives: Enemies or Allies?” The comments section hasn’t completely generated into name-calling, which I’ll call a success, but I’m still far more interested in hearing possible solutions than more excuses for why two groups of adult women can’t be civil to one another. Got something to say? I’d love to see your voice added to the conversation.

All right, with “shameless plug” checked off my to-do list, it’s time for the…

A word that always makes me laugh is SCUBA. But that’s likely attributable to watching too much Venture Brothers.

If you looked in my refrigerator right now, the oldest thing you’d find would be mustard, probably.

CAP 70th AnniversaryIf I were written about in the newspaper today, on the front page, the headline would say “Local Civil Air Patrol Squadron Plans 70th Anniversary Gala.” But that would be an exaggeration; what with budgetary constraints and all, it’ll probably be more of a squadron pot-luck than an actual gala.  Still, it just dawned on me that I’ve got less than seven weeks to help put some plans together. Meep.

The last movie I saw was The Lion King 3D. Yes, I dragged Sampson, patient soul that he is, to a theater full of kids to relive my own childhood love of one of the few animated Disney films with no frilly princesses. Afterwards, I rewarded his indulgence of my desire by bursting into “Be Prepared” or “Hakuna Matata” at opportune moments throughout the next week. (You’re welcome, sweetheart!)

As we were getting into the car after the movie, I mentioned that I didn’t think that 3D added much to the movie. Sampson immediately responded, “Of course it did! It added three bucks to each ticket.” I stand corrected.

The best thing that happened to me in the last few weeks was getting to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, in Annapolis with my husband, his folks, and a congregation full of other Jews who are connected to the military. There aren’t that many of us, so we often feel like a minority within a minority: Sampson is always one of the only Jews in his Navy squadron, and we’re one of the few military families at our local synagogue. It is as refreshing as a crisp autumn breeze to spend time with people who understand both Yiddishkeit and the military life.

Are you a military spouse/fiancée/fiancé/girlfriend/boyfriend? Hie thee to LTJG Wifey’s blog, snag the questions, and add yourself to the Mr. Linky for this week’s MilSpouse Friday Fill-In!

September Snuck Up

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September’s arrival brought with it a refreshing drop in temperature, a breath of autumn that puts me in mind of new school supplies and apple-picking with Hillel.  Alas, I neither have need of new school supplies, nor am I any longer a member of Hillel’s target demographic.  (For the goyim, Hillel is an organization for Jewish college students; I was heavily involved in my college’s chapter back in the day.)  The lifting of summer’s lethargy that comes with the cooler weather is welcome even in my post-academic life, though, and I’m getting excited about the coming fall.

Rosh Hashanah is coming up, with its promises of apples and honey in hopes of a sweet new year.  In fact, friend of mine from college just sent me a link to a delectable-sounding apple and honey challah that might have to find its way into my baking rotation for the holiday.  It would be more fun, of course, if I could look forward to the annual apple-picking trip with a Jewish community of my peers, but we haven’t found a group in our area that evokes the same sort of camaraderie.  Part of it is that we’re stuck between ages or phases of life that have strong support groups.   Having graduated years ago, we’re too old for Hillel.  We’re married, so Jewish singles groups are out.  We don’t have children yet, so we aren’t networking with parents taking their kids to Hebrew school, either.  I know some synagogues have “Young Professionals” groups that cater to those in our situation, but our shul isn’t one of them.

Oh well.  It’s not like we’re stationed someplace with no Jewish community whatsoever, which could easily become the case if we wind up in Japan.  I just get a little sad thinking that for as long as we’re moving at least every three, we will perpetually be “the new couple” at whatever synagogue we attend (let’s face it: there are some shuls where you can be “the new couple” for ten years or more).  It would be nice to meet some local folks our age with whom we could exchange Shabbat dinner invitations from time to time.  It’s tough–some would say impossible–to be a Jew in a vacuum, but we don’t have the luxury of putting down roots in one community and letting relationships develop slowly over many years.  Couple that with the fact that both my husband and I are inclined towards introversion, and we’ve got ourselves a problem for which we haven’t yet found a solution.  But who knows?  Maybe the upcoming year 5770 holds some fresh insights for us.

Ah well, social maunderings can’t detract too much from my overall anticipation of the new season.  My baby (!) brother is turning twenty-one, my college roommate is getting married to my husband’s college roommate (sounds like a sit-com, huh?), and we are lucky enough to be spending this autumn in a part of the country filled with deciduous trees that will soon be turning glorious colors.  Life is good.