So much craziness and chaos has occurred during the past month, it’s hard to believe. I’m not just talking about 4 Jewish holidays, back-to-back, although that certainly was part of it. I mean additional stuff that was not anticipated and caused me to take a week off from blogging that definitely wasn’t planned.
In no particular order, here are a few recent happenings:
Water Loss:
I briefly discussed how we lost it after a water main broke. That was fixed…sort of. On two more occasions, we have lost if for an hour and have experienced very low pressure intermittently. This has required numerous calls to resolve and has caused a ton of aggravation.
Surgery:
An elderly relative from my extended family slipped on a wet sidewalk and required immediate ankle surgery. We had to travel to her (very long drive) and spent 5 days helping with the recovery. Thankfully, she seems to be on the mend.
Sinus Infection:
Yours truly is on a second course of antibiotics for a stubborn sickness that refuses to end. I started to feel ill the day after Rosh Hashanah. There were a ton of people in services that were coughing and sneezing, so I’m certain it was caught there. I tend to have low resistance when stressed and overtired anyway.
This has caused considerable pain, nausea, and dizziness, which has left me unable to properly function and affected my mood very negatively. I have been so tired and irritable!
Housing Woes:
We have been trying to sell our home and move to a new one for quite a while. Recently, we had two offers fall apart at the last minute, both due to financing, and the property we wanted was taken off the market abruptly with no reason. I’m guessing we’ll be here over the winter and will try again in the Spring.
Temple Closure:
My childhood temple, that 4 generations of my family attended, is officially gone. Oh, how I have cried over this sad—and totally unnecessary—event. The closure was 100% preventable and caused by bad choices that involved an outrageously unaffordable new building, a truly terrible Board, changing Rabbis, and a decline in membership. Because of the bad direction, we stopped attending there quite a while ago, but I am still heartbroken to see what happened.
So many memories, lifecycle events, Hebrew school, the people, what the temple itself represented in both the Jewish community and greater community as a whole—it’s just devastating to think that it’s no more.
They had to sell the building and merge with a neighboring temple. Because one was Reform and the other Conservative, there are a lot of angry people. I see big problems ahead, lots of in-fighting, and suspect many folks will simply unaffiliate.
Pet Problems:
We had two foster babies leave and three more take their place. Of course, none of them got along, and one had behavioral issues so extreme that he had to go back after only 23 hours. (Biting, scratching, fighting, and property destruction.) These critters are a delight…most of the time. When it’s bad, it’s really bad.
On the plus side, I had numerous readers reach out to me, asking why I wasn’t posting and wanting to know if I was ok. I want to thank you so much! I really appreciate how much you care and it’s always nice to be missed.
Fingers crossed, I’ll be back to blogging regularly, provided nothing else happens on the crazy side.
I love you guys and thanks again for bearing with me when real life gets in the way.
I am so sorry to hear of all your troubles, especially your illness and the closure of your temple. That is very sad. I hope things get better for you soon and that everyone who has left the temple finds a new and sustaining one soon.
I really appreciate the well wishes. It’s been a rollercoaster for sure. Hope your life is going ok right now!
Thank you. Still dealing with losing my Mom, but I’m trying to focus on the good memories and not the hole in my heart and my world. It’s funny. My father is Jewish but my Mother wasn’t yet she is the one who instilled in me an appreciation of my Jewish heritage. She had grown up in largely Jewish neighborhoods in Chicago and had a deep love of Judaism. At the end of her life, she spoke of converting, but she never got the chance.
I have the utmost respect for any lady that chooses to be part of the Jewish community, coming from another background. Conversion is important, but it’s not the most important thing. The way someone lives their life and raises their child is a much bigger indicator. Your mother sounds like an amazing woman! Of course, she raised an amazing daughter so that’s a given. Please know I am praying for your heart to heal. Grief can last a very, very long time, but our loved ones want us to keep living and be happy.
I’m Catholic and we joke that Midnight Mass should be called “Flu Mass” because every Christmas, like clockwork, the whole family gets sick from the germs in January.
OMG, yes, I understand exactly what you mean. All the people sharing all the germs in a confined space.