Sheldon

Howard Wolowitz: You're giving me a couch cushion?
Sheldon Cooper: No, the cushion is merely symbolic. I'm giving you my spot on the couch.
Sheldon Cooper: But you love that spot.
Howard Wolowitz: No. I love my mother. My feelings for my spot are much greater. It is the singular location in space around which revolves my entire universe. And now it's yours.

[last lines]

Howard Wolowitz: I gotta tell you, Sheldon, I understand why you chose this spot. I mean: the temperature is good but there's no draft, I can see the television but I can still talk th...
Sheldon Cooper: I changed my mind; get out of my spot!
Penny: How long?
Leonard Hofstadter: Ninety-four seconds.

 

On Friday morning we opened our hearts, our home and our couch to Sheldon Cooper, cat. At about two and a half years old, he's a large, beautiful long haired cat that we adopted from the "Cat Lovers Association" in Haifa. We brought him home and spoiled him with the largest scratching post we could find, lots of toys, a deluxe litter box and Royal Canine cat food. Only the best for my ball of fur. 

It's been less than a week since Sheldon joined us and we're learning to live together. He has yet to learn how to use his litter box, but I'm patient. I took him to the vet who looked him over and gave him his shots as well as some ear drops for the mites that cause him to scratch his ears incessantly. She said that with his appearance, large size and easy going demeanor, he's probably got a lot of Maine Coon in him.  

The thing that amazes me most is how much love I have for the little guy. Like I said, he's been with us for just a few days, yet I am absolutely crazy about him. I love him and just want to hold him, pet him, play with him and guard him from the outside world. I could spend hours just lying on the floor next to him, listening to him purr as I pet him. 

Tell me this isn't the most adorable cat you've ever seen... :)

"Wow, that's really retro!"

They tried to kill us, we survived, let's eat. This time, it's humentashen, or triangle shaped cookies with various fruit fillings in them. Unfortunately, whenever I bite into one of these cookies, despite what the box may say, it seems my cookie is always filled with poppy seeds. Yuck. Bad cookies aside, this is probably one of my favorite holidays, mostly because you're supposed to get dressed up and drink 'till you're tipsy. Gotta love tradition!

Ok, so Purim isn't coming until Sunday, but as many of my coworkers will be out of the office on Sunday, spending the day with their kids, who will be off of school for the holiday, we've decided that we'll be celebrating today. Come to work in costume, bring a gift basket for the grab bag.

Grab bag gift - check.
Costume... eh... Busy as I've been lately, I haven't had time to put anything really grand together, but I did want to do something. So, last night, ten minutes before the fabric stores closed, I frantically searched for inspiration among bolts of polyester fabrics in hideous patterns. I pinterested "adult costumes" and came across some interesting ideas. Now I just needed to narrow them down to things I could pull together in a few hours or less, especially if I was planning on sleeping...
I saw a great Gameboy dress which made me smile in nostalgia for my childhood back in the 90's. I quickly purchased grey fabric and headed home. (Ok, I stopped at the gym first...) Within three hours I'd created a respectable looking costume and honestly felt that it looked good. Tired, but satisfied, I joined hubby in bed for a few hours of shut eye before work this morning.

Today, dressed in my Gameboy dress, colorful stockings depicting cassettes and other 80's and 90's stuff and All Star shoes, I drank my coffee in our office's kitchen. People started coming in, some in costume, some not. A few of them thought I was a calculator... or some kind of a console controller... Very few actually recognized what I was right off the bat and a few had that "ah" moment after I told them... Then Dean, our new QA guy says to me, "Wow, that's really retro! That was ages ago!" I was four when Gameboy was released and old enough to have actually had one. And at 28, I'm not that old... I'm one of the younger people at this office!!! When did I become old and retro?! :)

That said, it was still a great day and I had fun, even if most people didn't recognize what I was... Their loss.

The Perfect Divorce

I got married in August of last summer. It was a beautiful, small wedding at a local restaurant that hubby and I really like, with a few select friends and family members and no clergy. I wore flowers in my hair and we danced the night away.
I'm getting carried away... This post isn't about my wedding, or my marriage.

I, like hubby and millions of others, am from a broken home. My parents divorced when I was ten and we've been raised primarily by my mother. My father was an anecdote through much of my teenage years. These past few years, we've grown closer, mostly due to Skype and cheap long distance rates. We talk on the phone almost daily.
Amazingly, through all these years and despite the ocean between them, my parents have grown closer, remembering and rekindling their friendship. Despite the fact that their marriage may have not worked out for the best, "till death do us part" and all that, they are still the friends they were years ago. And they share two kids and years of history.

This morning I picked my dad up from the airport. He's on a two week visit to Israel and it's great to see him. And while most people wouldn't come near their ex-es with a stick, my dad's first stop is my mom's house (and the falafel place down the street from her!). We just got back home from a wonderful dinner at a restaurant together - the four of us - my mom, dad, brother and myself. They laughed and bantered throughout dinner, joking about how many years they'd be married if... (31) and how many years they've been divorced (18). As we were about to order coffee and dessert my mom asks my dad what flavor ice cream. "37 years of marriage and you still have to ask?!" he teased her.
"Nu...(c'mon!) Aren't you going to put sugar in your coffee?" she asks as he takes a sip sans sugar.
"No. No more sugar in my coffee."
"See, things change." she retaliates.
"Not ice cream. Chocolate. Always chocolate." He replies with a laugh.

As we sat at that table for over three hours, laughing, joking and talking, at one point my brother turned to me and said, "We may not have been given a good example of a happy, successful marriage, but we sure learned how to do the divorce right!" Grrr... gotta love my brother. Hit the nail on the head. Seriously, with today's divorce rates, while I wish everyone a truly happy marriage, if that doesn't work out, I can at least wish you a wonderful divorce - just like my parents'!

The 2cm Dilema

You thought that... I didn't say it... 

But, anyway. Remember that about a month and a bit, we moved into a new apartment? Well, it's really starting to become a home, except for one not so tiny issue we still can't get around. Our washing machine, which we meticulously measured to make sure it would fit in the bathroom, won't fit through the door of the bathroom. Because we obviously didn't notice how narrow the door is. So, for the past month and a half we've had our washing machine sit in the middle of our living room, barely 2 centimeters wider than our bathroom doorway. All of this while the pile of laundry continues to grow and we're nearing the end of our pile of socks and underwear... 

At first, we tried to remove the bulky door. Ok, 4 cm less but we still needed to lose a bit more. We removed the pipes coming out of the back of the washing machine and gave it another try. Then we tried tilting it on it's side and bringing it in on a slight angle. I couldn't help but remember the episode of "Friends" in which Ross and Rachel take their new couch home, climbing up the stairs as Ross yells "Pivot! Pivot!" That's kinda what this felt like. Only heavier than a couch. 

Almost three hours of frustration and we finally returned the washing machine to the living room. We're down to two options - cutting part of the door frame or buying a new machine. I'm partial to the second option so in the meantime I've advertised ours, hoping at least to make up some of the cost of a new machine. 

In the spirit of learning from our mistakes, I've learned that it isn't enough to measure that a piece of furniture fits into a spot - you've also got to make sure you can fit it through the doorway! And with life too short to make all the mistakes on our own, I encourage you to learn from mine... 

Adventures in Cooking - Fried Rice Without Rice

It seems like everyone these days is on some sort of dietary craze - be it for the weight loss, the health benefits or just because they are curious to try something new out.

Hubby and I are both hi-tech workers, meaning that we spend most of our day on our butt and lunch is usually take out from one of many local greasy spoons or cafeterias in the area. Not the best diet. So, at home, at least, I try to get us to eat a bit healthier. Last night's dinner was quite successful and much better received than I expected. Also, cheap, quick and really easy to make.

Rice was replaced by thinly grated cauliflower. I bought a medium sized head and chopped it up in my Swizz Pro. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Swizz Pro, it's basically a mini, hand operated blender. Probably one the best purchases I've ever made. It's only got three pieces - the bowl, the blade and the lid - so it's really easy to clean, store and use.

Anyway, one head finely chopped cauliflower, some diced up veggies - I used a bell pepper, zucchini, an onion and two carrots. Add a sausage for some protein, soy sauce to taste and you've got yourself a really good meal in no time.

I tossed the cauliflower separately from the veggies, although if I wanted to skimp on doing dishes, I could have done it all in one large wok. If you do decide to do this in one pan, I'd leave the cauliflower for last, as it cooked super fast due to it's large surface area to volume ratio.

The dish was surprisingly well received by hubby, who helped himself to seconds. I was happily surprised as he's usually big on carbs and doesn't consider something a satisfying meal without it. This will definitely be gracing our palates again!

The Wedding Dress Handover

Sewing one's own wedding dress is a big endeavor, stressful and frightening. That's nothing compared to sewing someone else's wedding dress. Throw in the opportunity to deal with Bridezillas and you'll quickly understand why I never wanted to be a professional seamstress.

So when a friend called me up, crying that her e-bay ordered dress had arrived and it was *sob* hideously *sob* ugly *sniff*... I couldn't let her keep crying like that. I offered to come by and see how horrible it really was. And it was. The fabrics were cheap costume fabrics, stiff and not at all flowing like in the original images she showed me. The cut and fit were awful, enveloping her thin waist line in layers of tulle that stiffly stood out, making her appear much heavier than her petite frame really is. She looked at me hopefully as she asked if there was anything I could do to help, make it better. I told her it would probably be easier to start over and I'd be happy to help. Seconds after the words tumbled out of my mouth I realized that I probably shouldn't have said that. Her eyes lit up and I knew I had offered more than I had bargained for. 

Over the past two months, while in the midst of packing up one home and creating another, I diligently worked on her dress during my nights and weekends. We did fittings, redesigns and more fittings before she started to look happy about the dress. On Saturday evening I painfully hand stitched the lining of the dress and the back closure, putting on the final details. A quarter to midnight, I called her up to tell her the dress was finally done and ready for her. She was ecstatic and I could hear it in her voice. 

I'm sure that her Sunday was longer than mine as she waited for me to finish work and the gym. On my way home, I picked her up, bringing her to my house to see the finished dress. Still shy in front of me, she quickly changed into the dress. I zipped her up, tied the sash around her waist and pointed her towards the mirror. It felt great just to see her face light up like that. She looked radiant and beautiful in a form fitting dress that accented her petite figure, elegantly elongating her. 

As she walked into our living room, my hubby smiled, complimenting her on how beautiful she looked. She blushed and I have to admit, it felt good to see her so happy. I gently packed the dress so she could take it home in preparation of the upcoming wedding.

This morning, I woke up to a sweet text from her - "Good morning. Wanted to thank you for all the work you did. The dress is wonderful! I couldn't have asked for anything more beautiful!" It made me feel all warm inside and happy that I agreed to do this for her. Her smile, happiness and appreciation are the best payment. 

(I promise to post pictures of her in the dress after her wedding at the end of the month!)

On Keeping An Old Friend

I met Sara when I was in my freshman year at university. Distraught over having failed my calculus 101 midterm, she was there to help me through the emotional aspect of failing at something for the first time. (She was just as bad at calculus as I was, if not worse. That was the second time she was taking the course.) She and I clicked and became instant best friends. We started doing everything together - studying, shopping, gossiping... We fought like sisters but could never hold a grudge and we grew to know, understand and accept each other's strengths and faults. I learned how to deal with her tendency to be late. She learned to deal with my hunger based mood swings.

She taught me a lot, including patience. I stood by her when she dropped out of the Technion. I introduced her to the man who would later become her husband. When she got married a few years ago, I was her rock, helping wherever she needed it. I threw her the batchelorette party of her dreams.

Over the past year or so, our relationship has been really hard on me. When I got married last summer, she volunteered to take care of my bachelorette party, but ended up dumping most of the work on others, myself included. I can forgive the fact that she was stressed with her own life - at the time she was working on her final project for her degree and trying to get pregnant (she's still trying to get pregnant), and I thought that after my wedding and her graduation, things would go back to normal... But they didn't.

She's started working two part time jobs, less than 30 hours a week, compared to the 45-50 hours I give at the office. And despite the fact that she doesn't work full time, she never seems to have time for me. And honestly, I could forgive her that, as well. What I can't forgive is how she's become very egocentric. Her world revolves around her and she doesn't see others.

Last Sunday, I called Sara up to see how her weekend had gone. She didn't answer and didn't return my call. I got a hold of her on Monday, when she barely had a minute to talk. She told me she was stressed and wanted to talk and how about we get together on Tuesday, as she gets off work early that day. Ok, it's been a fortnight since I saw her and beyond the tones of distress in her voice, she said she needed to talk. I told hubby to cancel our double date at the movies with another couple so that I could meet her after work. The clock had barely struck 6 pm on Tuesday evening when she called to cancel - less than half an hour before our appointed meeting time. She claimed to have a headache and needed to rest.

The next evening, I called her up after work to see how she was feeling. Sounds of laughter and partying drifted through her phone as she said in a rushed voice "can't speak, will call you later" and hung up. Needless to say, she didn't call me later that day or since.

These past few months, this scene has replayed itself, over and over - she and I arrange to meet and moments before, she ends up cancelling, thinking I'll understand because she doesn't feel good and I can't blame her. But the moment she needs a shopping buddy, or wants someone to foot the bill for sushi, I'm the one she calls. What about those days when I want someone to talk to...? She's hard to get a hold of and when I finally do, it's all about her and her needs.

It's not the first time I've considered ending our friendship, but then I keep thinking back to all our good years together - all the happy times we've shared, the sad times where we supported each other, the things we've taught each other. Is this the best thing to do? Should I tell her how I feel and put a cold end to it or just actively let things drift apart, leaving room for rekindling in the future?