People speak English. Kids wear GAP sweatshirts. Infant car seats have colorful mobiles dangling from them. But upon closer inspection it is not quite the same.
Moms drive with their infant car seats in the front seat of their car. Not just one or two moms. A lot of moms.
People run here. That’s the same. The hills of Efrat on a Saturday night are as busy as Ocean Parkway on a Sunday morning. My friend is running a 10K this week as part of an international marathon around the Kineret.
I asked her if there was a runners club. No. A process for signing up for the marathon – qualifying races, lotteries, a waiting list, etc. No. If you want to run you sign up and run. Did I mention they are running around the Kineret?
I started walking today. In the hopes of soon stepping it up to running. Will I measure my runs in kilometers? Is that more satisfying than miles? Hmmm. I walked 3 miles. Okay. I walked 4.8 kilometers. Wow – how totally satisfying!
Will losing weight be easier in kilograms? 4½ kilos sounds so much more manageable than 10 pounds. And 9 kilos doesn’t sound like a fantasy the way 20 pounds does…
I’m working on a birthday party for Barbara. There are websites dedicated to party ideas for 10 year olds. But not all of the party ideas will work for me here. For example, ideas that waste precious resources. Like the Foil Makeover game – make crazy outfits out of aluminum foil. Not a chance. And the Mummy Game – wrap each other in toilet paper (HA!). There are ideas that require unattainable resources. Like the M&M challenge (I haven’t seen an M&M in 6 months). And then there are ideas that, in my estimation, could lead to the transference of lice. Games like Telephone. And the Hoola Hoopla game – hold hands and try to get a hoola hoop from one end of the line to the other. Yeah.
On the other hand, there seems to be no such thing as an ‘over the top’ party here. Pass the present is played at all parties. Projects are the favors. And the very presence of Sour Sticks at a party seems to boost its overall approval rating. The pressure is off and the kids are happy. That works for me.
Moms drive with their infant car seats in the front seat of their car. Not just one or two moms. A lot of moms.
People run here. That’s the same. The hills of Efrat on a Saturday night are as busy as Ocean Parkway on a Sunday morning. My friend is running a 10K this week as part of an international marathon around the Kineret.
I asked her if there was a runners club. No. A process for signing up for the marathon – qualifying races, lotteries, a waiting list, etc. No. If you want to run you sign up and run. Did I mention they are running around the Kineret?
I started walking today. In the hopes of soon stepping it up to running. Will I measure my runs in kilometers? Is that more satisfying than miles? Hmmm. I walked 3 miles. Okay. I walked 4.8 kilometers. Wow – how totally satisfying!
Will losing weight be easier in kilograms? 4½ kilos sounds so much more manageable than 10 pounds. And 9 kilos doesn’t sound like a fantasy the way 20 pounds does…
I’m working on a birthday party for Barbara. There are websites dedicated to party ideas for 10 year olds. But not all of the party ideas will work for me here. For example, ideas that waste precious resources. Like the Foil Makeover game – make crazy outfits out of aluminum foil. Not a chance. And the Mummy Game – wrap each other in toilet paper (HA!). There are ideas that require unattainable resources. Like the M&M challenge (I haven’t seen an M&M in 6 months). And then there are ideas that, in my estimation, could lead to the transference of lice. Games like Telephone. And the Hoola Hoopla game – hold hands and try to get a hoola hoop from one end of the line to the other. Yeah.
On the other hand, there seems to be no such thing as an ‘over the top’ party here. Pass the present is played at all parties. Projects are the favors. And the very presence of Sour Sticks at a party seems to boost its overall approval rating. The pressure is off and the kids are happy. That works for me.
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