2003-09-12 - 12:06 p.m.

I was going to start with a little entry about John Ritter's untimely passing, but my blog-friend marmelade.ca put it so well, there is no point writing anything else, just read her entry.

I have a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach after reading an email I just got. LEt me explain:

My hubby and I are hosting a Rosh Hashana lunch in a couple of weeks (jewsih new year). Since I don't have many jewish friends, the majority of people invited are my husband's friends. however, I consider them my friends too, and I wanted to pay special attention to their wifes, girlfirends, significant others, who usually just get invited by default. So I send each a personal email.

We have this one friend in particular who is a very funny guy. His humor is a bit rough around the edges, he'll call and speak to me for a while and when I ask if he called for my husband, he'll say something like: "why would I want to speak to that f***er when I can speak to you?". When he invites us to something, he'll say my husband is invited and I can come to, seing as I married him and all.

So when I wrote his girlfiend an email (I would consider her a friend. definately more than an aquaintance), I made an allusion to having heard about the lunch from "your better half (although I don't think we can call him that, seing as you are clearly the better half in this couple)". I gave her the details of the lunch and then closed the email by writing "I wanted to invite you personally so Mr. X doesn't get the idea he's the only one we want to see." looking forward to seing you, etc, hugs, V.

So I got her reply today, explaining she can't come because she will be spending time with her family, which I actually had expected. But then this took my breath away:

"In the future, please lose the (Mr. X) "put downs". Although you may find it funny, its not the type of humour I appreciate, especially about someone who is close to me."

I really, really didn't mean to offend anyone here. I know for a fact he would not have been offended at all, and what is really surprising me is that after several years of dating this guy, she hasn't come to expect people to tease him a little, after all, he gives it much more than he ever gets it back. But obviously, I touched a nerve, and now I don't know what to do.

I did send an apology email right away. But I can't get it out of my mind (hence this entry). Will it be weird when I see her? Will I have to mind what I say everytime she is around? I know for a fact the guy in question will never stop teasing me or my husband, but now I feel like I won't be able to reciprocate. Should I say something to him? HHHEEEEELLLLPPPPPP!

Anything to add? 1

2003-09-11 - 11:04 a.m.

I haven't read anyone's blogs today, I just want to write my own and then read other people's....

Two years ago today, the world changed. That's what everyone is saying. I think that 2 years ago today, the north american world changed. Because let's face it, in other parts of the world, they have been faced with tragedy and terrorism for a long time. This time, it was in our backyard.

Grant it, no event of such magnitude had occured, anywhere, before. But as a jew, who closely follows the monthly, weekly, and even daily attacks in Israel, as an educated person who follows world politic and is aware of the atrocities of war in Kosovo, Ruwanda, and many, many more, I was not surprised by 9/11.

Shocked, yes, absolutely. Surprised, no. How can that be, you ask. Well, I think that people in North America (I'm trying to include Canada in part, but I'm mostely pointing at the USA) are very insulated from the realities of the world. Most people have no idea how bad it really is out there, and that is was only a matter of time is crossed borders and happened at home.

That morning, I was coming home from an early morning hypnosis session (a wasted attempt at weight loss), when I saw a police officer get out of his car on the off ramp of the highway and signal to people to turn on the radio. A block later, I heard about the first plane. I called my future-husband at home to make sure he was watching. That's when he told me he had just watched the 2nd plane hit, live. He didn't understand what he was seing, he thought they we re-running the first attack.

I drove straight home and canceled my hair appointment. Even my hoity-toity salon didn't blink an eye when I canceled less than 2 hours before my apointment. Normally, this would banish me back to a junior stylist, but even they understood. Ironically, my judaism-conversion class was not cancelled that night. I didn't go though, I just couldn't pull myself away from the coverage.

Ironically, we had just signed the lease on the premises that would turn into our store 6 weeks later. It seemed very, very wrong to be working on starting a business when so many people had been brutally murdered. Never mind the poor business sense of starting a business at the exact onset of a recession, there was a moral and ethical question there. In the end, we went ahead and thank G-d, we've made it. But every year when the anniversary of 9/11 rolls around, it will be a very good reminder for us of how truly fortunate we are.

If you want to do something today to honor those who died, why not try to learn a little bit about life in another country, about the horrors of war on the other side of the world. With better understanding of the world we live in, hopefully, we can prevent such events from happening again, here and abroad.

Anything to add? 0

2003-09-10 - 1:04 p.m.

not so long ago, I would refer to myself as a linguist. After all, my mother tongue is French, I'm prefectly bilingual in English, I have a university degree in German and Spanish (which I speak, read, understand and write), I dabbled in Russian and I can read and somewhat understand Hebrew. Or so I thought....

I had my first Hebrew conversation class on Monday night. Holy crap, I suck! While I can read perfectly well in the prayer book, ask me what my name is, what we are doing, where we are, and who is the teacher and I might as well be in a Greek class!!!

I'm one of those people who needs to write stuff down to take it in, but this class is purely conversational, she didn't say one word of English, and I was totally lost!

There was one guy who was even more lost than me, but the 10 other people have obviously been in touch with Hebrew before. Ithink most of those people should have been in the intermediate class, but for some reason, there are not. Or, I'm just dumb... we'll see after the second week, meanwhile, I'm going to spend the weekend practicing like a madwoman!

Anything to add? 0

2003-09-08 - 3:54 p.m.

it has just been a crazy, crazy last few days..... We had our semin annual sidewalk sale at the store, but it was much more of a street festival this time, and as president of the merchant's association, I has a LOT to do, including decorating the whole street with helium-blown baloons. I was at work at 6:00 am 2 days in a row...

The weather was great, we had lots of sales and lots of visitors. But we also had an engagement party AND a wedding on Sunday, so I can barely keep my eyes open right now.

My Hebrew conversation classes start tonight, but I'm not too sure I can make it... I might not be able to stay awake, even with the double lattes and extra sugar I've been ingesting.

I spent the morning on the couch resting and watching back to back episodes of Sell this House and Makeover Mamas... Good shows, but there is no way in hell I would ever let my mother and my mother-in-law redo any room in my house!!!!

Anything to add? 0

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