The Battle of Roach Chodesh Continues...

I hope you had a wonderful Fourth of July festooned with flags, barbecues, fireworks, and more. Here in Jerusalem, my roommates and I invited several friends to share a red, white, and blue potluck Shabbat dinner; we decorated our coffee table with a red- and blue-Sharpied American flag, and we were ready to go. We kicked off the meal with red and blue m&m's (the other colors are in a baggie in the freezer) and a few words about blessings that reflected what Robin and I learned in Talmud last week. The evening lasted into the (early end of the) wee hours, as we reflected on our experiences here, shared stories from the past week, and got to know each other better. A good time was had by all, even our new friend, David, who is British and therefore wasn't sure whether he should partake in our festivities.

Today was quite relaxing. I stayed in for much of the day, gently encouraging my ankle to regain its strength. Early this evening, we took a short stroll to the Tayelet, the Haas Promenade from which one can get a great view of the city, in order to see the sunset. We had been there for about five minutes when I recognized an eight-year-old child. It was Liora, who I have not seen since leaving Boston three years ago! (Yes, her parents, Abby (from Hornstein) and Mark, were there too, along with Liora's younger brother and sister.) We had a great time reminiscing.

I forgot to mention yesterday that I also bumped into a family from school just outside Machaneh Yehuda. (Laura--that would be your cousins.) Isn't it great how you can travel 6000 miles to the other side of the world and still see the people you know from Chicago and elsewhere?

Perhaps you are wondering about the title of today's journal. One of our Shabbat guests was creative enough to dub Rosh Chodesh (the new month) Roach Chodesh in honor of our adventures with our little friends. This came on the heels of my explanation of how Raid works, in a manner appropriate for the day. You see, the scent of the Raid is appealing to the cockroaches. One might even call it a ריח ניחח, a pleasing odor for them.

I am sorry to say that the Battle of Roach Chodesh continues. Upon my return from the Tayelet tonight, I saw a (not so) LF meandering across the floor. I got the Raid, but he had already scampered away. I sprayed anyway, but he did not emerge. Soon, however, the ריח ניחח trick worked, and within five minutes, I had taken out two cockroaches and a spider. Upon my roommates' return, we sprayed our baseboards, and we've had one casualty so far. Maybe this will mark the end for our LFs, but I fear it may only be the end of the beginning. Apologies to Winston Churchill for poorly adapting his famous line...

I'm off to bed; the second week of classes begins early Sunday morning. Have a wonderful weekend.

We'll talk soon...
Caroline