Sof Sof which means… At Last

Posted by: ann on: 4 March 2008

• In: books | israel | thoughts | vincent and verse | wedding
• 28 Comments

For the V-Vixens who blog every single day, unlike some of us who not only don’t get to other blogs, they don’t even get to their own.  

   

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I was getting daily calls saying, “We’ve decided.”   Great, I think, now we can move ahead.  Then she says, “… but we just wanna sleep on it.”  The next day another call.  “We’ve definitely decided.”  Great, I think again, but this time it’s the other venue.   In a space of two days we travelled the length and breadth (well there’s not much breadth) of Israel and narrowed the possible venues down to two; a sea location near Caesarea and beautiful magical gardens with strutting peacocks in Herzliya.  My daughter is not known for indecision, but I think she’s very concerned that her beloved is happy with their decision.   We have a date set; the beginning of September; the one date that both venues were available.  It is barely six months away and still to be organised is the music; they want simcha music (Israeli dancing) and then a DJ playing into the wee small hours.  Also caterers do not include booze, so we have to employ a bar company in addition to the caterer.  Then most venues are plain and devoid of decor, so a designer has to be brought in to give it the WOW factor… and then of course we have to organise flights and accommodation, etc etc etc.  One thing that’s booked so far is the photographer!

I came back from Israel last week totally pooped.  Thank G-d Bridgitte, my daughter-in-law is now well, but I promise you, women in their 50’s who want to be first (or even second or third or fourth) time mothers need their heads examining or have a bulging bank balance to employ staff, lotsa staff.    The children were absolutely wonderful, I cannot complain about them, but being nursemaid, chief cook and bottlewasher and babyminder was hard work.   I love them all, but there must have been kryptonite around because superbooba’s powers were fading fast and drained on a daily basis.  

However, I was able to leave my duties and meet with Rachel and Daniel and the wedding planner because where Jon lives they were snowed in again which meant he couldn’t do his daily commute to Tel Aviv so  by default he would be at home… I bid a hasty exit the day before the snows arrived and promptly booked into a hotel in Tel Aviv… ah peace and quiet!    Wow the weather was  horrendous; I have never experienced such a wild storm there before; yes in Bournemouth in February, but not in Tel Aviv… and England wasn’t the only place to be hit by an earthquake; there was a similar size one in Israel whilst I was there.

The next day

Halleluyah… they have decided on the beautiful gardens called Derech Eretz in Herzliya; the venue is stunning and my personal ab fab fav… I do hope we’ve made the right choice! 

In the meantime I had a mega surprise on Sunday which was Mother’s Day in this country.   Mothering Sunday is really a Christian tradition, so it’s not one we’ve ever particularly celebrated, but Jamie was insistent my old ma and I went to him and Lucy for lunch.   I was about to facilitate myself of their facilities but he made me wait to open the door to Rachel.   Standing there in a ‘tra-la’ pose was Jonathan.   He’d only left me at Ben Gurion Airport a few days earlier.   Everyone here and everyone there knew he was making a fleeting trip on business, but were sworn to secrecy.     I haven’t had all my children together in the same room since Jamie and Lucy’s wedding last July; it was fantastic.

Tonight is book club yet again.   Someone chose The Song of Names by Norman Lebrecht.  I won’t go into much detail about the book because it was the debut (well so far the sole) novel of a well known Jewish journalist and music critic; it was merely okay.   It reminded me somewhat of Interpretation of Murder where the writer knows a subject and makes sure it’s injected all over the story.   Next month is Barbara Kingsolver’s The Poisonwood Bible… another one in the genre I call doom and gloom or o me misera.   Next year I think we should find quality writing yet light fluffy and happy confections to entertain us and bring smiles to our faces; does anyone have any suggestions?  

Lately I’ve gone back to the quick fix read of Faye and Jonathan Kellerman and Jeffrey Deaver; perfect airport and flight material.   Erm, and on that subject I’m gonna try and visit each and every one of you and even leave a comment before I go away.   Yes I’m going away.   Booba’s on her travels… again, and this time she’ll be stepping out at a different airport.  

After coming back from Israel overwrung and overwhelmed and feeling definitely overstressed, on a whim I did something terribly naughty.  I found this lonely single flight, that had my name on it, that will take me to Florida in a couple of weeks time.

Annie is going on a real holiday.  

I shall be a lady of leisure.   Brian and Diane found me a lovely hotel near where they live somewhere in the middle of Florida (I really don’t have a clue exactly where they live) and I am going to put myself in their capable caring hands.  I have no agenda other than relaxation and fun… aren’t I awful? 

I can’t log off from here without a mention of that other thing, you know the one, that’s either caused me heartache and grief, or has me rolling round in stitches.   The internet dating game.  I am still talking to the guy who cannot marry me for religious reasons.  He said he’s afraid to meet me in case he falls in love with me and that bothers him.  I suggested that could work two ways and he said he hadn’t thought of that.  I’m prepared to take that risk but I now see on his profile he is looking just for a ‘friend’ when earlier he was looking for ‘marriage’ but he also writes that he wants to meet single or widowed women; obviously not divorced.   So it seems there is still a stigma to divorce in some parts.    I met someone else who was just leaving for a holiday and he seems keen (perhaps too keen) to meet me.   Refreshingly he didn’t ask any rude questions, but he is looking for a wife and that terrifies me.  In a way the first guy sounds perfect to me because 1) he can’t marry me and 2) I’m not looking for hubby No.2.   It is all so complicated.    Maybe I should take bromide!

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5 March

P.S. If any of you live in Florida or will be going to Disney around that time  and want to meet up, please email me; the addy’s above where it says ’email’  …  that would be sooooooooo coooooooool 

 

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