Warnings and Misteps

October 5, 2001-Dangers Lurk

We’ve been warned that our trip to Cairns is at the height of the box jellyfish season. They’re also called blue bottles here. They’re not a problem out at the Reef, but many beaches are closed to swimming when they appear. Saltwater crocodile know no season. They’re a protected species and are thriving. Looks like it will be the pool for us. Someone did offer a solution to the jellyfish-stinging problem. If you wear pantyhose, the tentacles can’t wrap around you and do their worst damage. I asked David if he wanted to try some on, but he declined. That’s another Australian fashion statement you can add to your list…pantyhose under a bather, swimmie, or swimming costume, as they call them.

There was a comparative list in the newspaper the other day. It was an overview of beaches regarding the number of “drownings, stings, and nibbles.” It’s a school holiday now and the article went with the usual warning to swim in a guarded area between the green flags. Every morning the surf lifesavers groom the beaches with huge sifting machines. The sand is really kept in pristine condition.

It took twice as long to get our mail from home this time. I guess it’s because there are less planes flying. It was sent Global Priority and took 2 weeks. Airmail cards and letters have taken from one week to the record of over three weeks.

Keeping The Faith

While eating lunch al fresco, again, and looking at the clear blue sky and sand dunes, David’s phone rang. It was the musician who will be playing at the bar mitzvah he’s doing this week end in Byron Bay. The person on the phone didn’t know the tune to one of the songs and asked David to hum a few bars. It was really funny. He got up from the table, walked to an unoccupied part of the restaurant’s patio, and began singing into the phone.

The bar mitzvah is really a psuedo event. It will be on a Sunday in the backyard of the boy’s parent’s home. He will read his Torah portion, but it will be from a book, not the scrolls. I guess they’re pretty isolated down there and it was just what they could do. Their family is coming in from New York. The ceremony was going to be on Massada in Israel about a month ago but……..9/11.

Fairies and Being PC

David has been discovered. His speaking ability is known out there. He got a call from a Mormon church in Brisbane asking him to speak at an evening event. He hasn’t accepted yet, but the topic is one he can hardly resist. They want him to speak on Family Values. They don’t even know about the GLBT (gay,lesbian,bi-sexual,transgender) connection. Did I mention our daughter is a lesbian? I think he should speak just to shake them up, rattle their cage, and open their eyes a bit. I would hope Mormons might be a little more open minded about alternative families given their history. I know they’re not very accepting on the GLBT issue.

Speaking of fairies, do any of you like fairy floss? I bet you do. It would bring back warm memories of county fairs and sunny afternoons at the park. I prefer the pink kind, but lately, it's been showing up in all the colors of the rainbow. Some of you may have even rented machines to make the stuff at a home party. Although it’s sticky, it usually doesn’t cause any lasting damage to what it might come in contact with. There are different techniques used to eat the stuff. Some people lick at it taking swipes with their tongues. Others dive in face first and wear what they don’t swallow. I kind of like to pull off the gossamer pieces and plop them into my mouth. That way I can lick my fingers clean too. What’s fairy floss? We call it cotton candy.

October 6, 2001-More Info

As we left to go to services last night, there was a large gathering of our Falun Gong neighbors. I’ve mentioned that they have a meeting place on our street. They were dressed in yellow robes and seated in circles on the ground. There were police guarding the site. We were in a hurry so couldn’t stop to get a photo. It’s the first activity of any kind we’ve seen there. I haven’t seen anything about it in the paper today.

The secret’s out. I called a member of the congregation this morning (it’s Saturday) to RSVP to an Aussie BBQ at her house. She was surprised that I wasn’t at services. I didn’t point out that she wasn’t either. I restrained myself from saying that attendance is only in David’s contract. I just said I don’t do Saturday morning. My cover is blown. I know David wouldn’t be there on Saturday morning either if he didn’t have to. He likes going to pray, but work is a different thing.

I have more information on the woman we had breakfast with yesterday. Her “accident” occurred when she was quite young. She was in the Israeli army and was injured by a grenade. She was in a coma for four weeks. No one expected her to be able to speak or function normally. She’s a strong person.

Same, Same, Whoops

Prime Minister, John Howard, has called for an election. It will be held in a month. Only a month of campaigning and political ads to watch. That’s one thing we can learn from the land of OZ. Don’t you wish?

We had Shabbat dinner at the home of the couple who are trying to get pregnant. They also are the hosts of Hiroko, the chopped liver and challah loving Japanese exchange student. There was an interesting moment of tension as an American-Australian cultural clash unfolded. The host, asked for the cucumbers to be passed to him. Everyone sat mutely around the table but no one moved to pass the cucumbers. I looked at the food within my reach and saw no cucumbers. David did the same. In fact, we saw no cucumbers on the table at all. The silence lengthened. Who would be so rude as to ignore a request for food to be passed? Then the host pointedly asked David to pass the cucumbers. Looking at the table in front of him, David saw his own place setting, challah, diet cola, egg mince (egg salad), salt, pepper, smoked salmon (they don’t call it lox), and pickles. The light dawned. David said, “Oh, you mean the pickles?” There was a confused exclamation of, “Pickles?” Then they realized that David was referring to what they call cucumbers. They thought it odd that we named a vegetable by what had been done to it and not what it was. They claimed that “pickle” is a verb and we had made it into a noun. We provided a great deal of amusement for everyone. It’s a tale that will be re-told for generations. They’ll say, “Remember that rude rabbi from America and his wife who wouldn’t even pass the cucumbers at Shabbat dinner? Well, they really weren’t rude, they were just stupid.” Once again, we are separated by a common language.

Toby