tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80853640424616785792024-03-18T19:31:40.251+02:00PlacesPeopleStuff with CharacterPlacesPeopleStuffDUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.comBlogger517125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-5240978825136078242024-03-09T18:38:00.000+02:002024-03-09T18:38:53.379+02:00B.B.Yesterday (8.3.2024), on International Woman's Day, I found myself thinking about Brigitte Bardot (B.B.) - former french movie actress, dancer, singer , model. In my much younger days she was a 'hot' name, considered one of the most beautiful and sexy women in the world. Her exciting appearances in movies, her marriages ( to Roger Vadim, Jaques Charrier ..), andDUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com56tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-18389387259041988522024-03-02T19:55:00.001+02:002024-03-02T22:10:28.940+02:00ZAKA A few days ago, a shooting attack at a gas station, left two fatalities on the spot: a teenager, and a 57 year old man, father of three, long time member of the Zaka volunteer organization. (RIP).Zaka (search, rescue and identification) has been formally established in 1995 by israeli ultra orthodox people with the main purpose of dealing respectfully with the dead DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com64tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-90789437133107052412024-02-26T21:33:00.000+02:002024-02-26T21:33:22.025+02:00 The Coldest Winter is definitely not my season. I feel bad in cold weather. Luckily, in my neck of the woods, it's usually a short and mild season.However, this year , our February has been quite cold and rainy, making me often think of the survival of people in those many places where temperatures drop much below zero. It requires special resilience and DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com56tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-12817419603477268642024-02-19T12:37:00.001+02:002024-02-25T00:39:59.119+02:00Clown Care I've been familiar with the term 'medical clown' for quite a while. The son of a good friend of mine, always looking for volunteering , found his vocation in clowning for entertaining hospitalized children (that was before he started his own family and became a busy chemistry teacher in high school).To become a 'medical clown', he had to attend a special course and get a DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com56tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-27311422578886203772024-02-12T11:03:00.000+02:002024-02-12T11:03:57.849+02:00Manuals Recently, my eyes fell on a rather intriguing title : "A manual for being human", by Dr. Sophie Mort .A Sunday Times bestseller, the manual is defined as a self-help book based on various principles of personality and psychology. The main message of the book, (according to reviews and comments), is that we, humans, are not raised to understand ourselves, DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com49tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-87857972807657646272024-02-06T15:01:00.002+02:002024-02-13T00:58:17.226+02:00Removable Or Not - that's the question. Whenever something works well for me, it gradually disappears from the market - gets discontinued, as they say.My android smarthphone is 7 years old. Lately, its battery has been showing signs of 'getting south' : the phone is slower, sometimes it shuts down unexpectedly, things like that. It's a removable kind of battery, and this is how I like it, as it gives me control over DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-23976269568297667082024-02-01T15:31:00.000+02:002024-02-01T15:31:27.704+02:00I Wish I Could... Sometimes, teachers would encourage a pupil by telling him he's got potential, and can achieve anything he puts his mind to, provided he works hard on it. Well, I'm afraid that's not always true. We have our inborn limitations that can seldom be much improved by self-will and/or teaching.I've recently been reflecting on things I wished I could do, but I haven't got the right aptitude DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com50tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-71211786191168816062024-01-26T20:14:00.000+02:002024-01-26T20:14:27.442+02:00The Unknown storm damageAfter many debates on global...warming, we're ironically facing now freezing cold weather. DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com44tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-73496229100393875682024-01-22T13:53:00.000+02:002024-01-22T13:53:07.328+02:00Help, I Need Somebody (The Beatles) I sometimes go with the trash bag to the collecting waste bin in the evening hours. Beware! - someone said to me, You might get attacked at this hour ,even though you carry no purse. I have news for you, was my reply, I might get attacked during the day hours as well, with nobody coming to my rescue. They are all seatted in front of TV and computer screens. No desperate DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com59tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-91863482333174096182024-01-17T17:43:00.000+02:002024-01-17T17:43:07.820+02:00Beauty, Drama, and Destruction A dormant volcano near Reykjavik, Iceland, has recently come back to life after nearly 800 years. What happened ? Has Climate Change awakened it? No casualties so far, but evacuations of people from the surrounding areas.(On the web, there are lots of stunning pictures of lava flow from that volcano and people gathering to watch it). &DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com58tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-46363249131060672852024-01-12T21:15:00.002+02:002024-01-14T21:34:12.731+02:00RetirementWhen I retired from work (civil service - government office) years ago, I wrote a farewell speech which ended with ' I did it my way' (line taken from Frank Sinatra's famous song). Well, I should have written, perhaps: 'Despite the corruption, boss incompetence, women discrimination, bureaucracy ...I did it my way' or, 'managed to do it my way'. But I lacked DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com75tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-42021796834058062342024-01-07T22:20:00.000+02:002024-01-07T22:20:48.892+02:00IMTM (international mediteranean tourism market)Before Covid-19 hit us, I used to go, more or less, regularly to the International Tourism Fair, held once a year for two days, at the Expo Center (Rokah Gardens), in Tel-Aviv. It was quite the event!main entrance to the Expo CenterThe mornings of the two days were for the tourism professionals from the participating countries to connect, establish contactDUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com52tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-70547811553005023922024-01-03T14:15:00.012+02:002024-01-03T14:43:12.015+02:00RegretsThere are people who claim they have no regrets whatsoever. They'll tell you something like "if I had to live my life again I'll make the same mistakes, take the same decisions, change nothing". Well, I belong to the opposite category. I do have regrets on things done / said, or on things not done at all (inaction). I usuallyDUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com62tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-7271406294893671392023-12-29T17:06:00.001+02:002023-12-29T17:08:56.611+02:00The Unsolved Mystery *Web pictureNine years ago, on March 2014, the Malaysian plane MH370 disappeared while flying from Kuala Lumpur DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com50tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-48173462415186495972023-12-22T00:51:00.000+02:002023-12-22T00:51:20.384+02:00Red Sea Crossing The Red Sea , located between Asia and Africa continents, is in the news. Cargo ships are being attacked by the Houthis, yemenite rebels (at least 17 incidents from November). This could disrupt global supply, leading to economic chaos and shortage of products.The news take us back to the well-known Bible story in Exodus chapters 14, 15, about the spectacular miracle of parting DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com68tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-73300917974750203662023-12-16T23:14:00.000+02:002023-12-16T23:14:30.958+02:00Open-air ArtThere's a pedestrian street, part of a road running paralel to our municipality building, which hosts a constant display of art works created by local artists. The place also has benches, trees, flower beds and grass, for people to sit and enjoy art in nature.I am not always free to stop and contemplate these works of art. Pity, as they get replaced by new ones, from time DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com56tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-13902356705200675502023-12-12T21:16:00.008+02:002023-12-12T23:32:46.541+02:00Hanukah (7 Dec. - 15 Dec.) Hanukah is supposed to be a happy holiday. Apparently, not this year.With a massacre in the background and a war still going on, there's no joy on faces and in the hearts of people here. There's sorrow, sadness, and fear of upcoming events.Things associated with Hanukah (lighting of candles in the menorah candle holder, dreidel spinning game , eating of favoriteDUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com59tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-27095027061444673512023-12-07T11:42:00.002+02:002023-12-07T18:25:40.879+02:00Pigeons The other day, I happened to be in one of the main squares of Petach- Tikva city ( The "founders square"). I was totally stunned by the sight of about a hundred dark pigeons flocked there. It looked rather ominous.Usually, pigeons are attracted by food, but no food here as there's a big white sign (see in the picture below) that forbids feeding them. Perhaps, it's the DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com56tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-88213195499461468502023-12-02T21:06:00.000+02:002023-12-02T21:06:02.347+02:00Till 120 ?! Longevity is advancing slowly but steadily. Hentry Kissinger (RIP) has recently died at 100. Many people in the world (especially in Japan) died at a similar age, even a few years beyond that.According to science, the average person's DNA is programmed to about 120 years.The Bible mentions 120 in Genesis 6:3. In Hebrew there's a blessing which says " May you live DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com60tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-30484126706197800072023-11-24T17:03:00.002+02:002023-11-24T17:03:57.559+02:00Lucky Bamboo ( Dracaena Sanderiana )I've mentioned the above indoor plant in some previous posts. I must confess, I'm greatly attached to it as I believe it kind of protects me. When one of its leaves gets yellow, I panic. "Here goes my protection" I say to myself. No kidding.I've discovered this plant while reading and trying to learn about Feng Shui - chinese tradition of creating a balanced, harmonious DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com58tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-36932656959107956012023-11-17T14:51:00.001+02:002023-11-17T14:51:49.029+02:00Autumn Leaves A lot has been written in blogs and elsewhere about Autumn ( Sept 1 - Nov.30). There's description of change in color, falling leaves, drop in temperature, animals preparing for winter hibernation, migration of birds in search of food, autumn holidays etc..Autumn always reminds me of the famous song the 'Falling Leaves' (in french the 'Dead Leaves'), DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com65tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-19408536787766824252023-11-12T00:33:00.002+02:002023-11-12T00:39:59.890+02:00Globalization - the world interacting together1. We asked for it (globalization), and we got it. What happens in one corner of the world, affects life in the remaining corners.Ukraine, Gaza, and other places, are daily 'on the table' everywhere in the world through protests, violence, rise in prices, danger of nuclear war , etc... To all those who roll their eyes up and mention 'innocent' people - DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com60tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-70803449528731085292023-11-04T15:34:00.001+02:002023-11-04T16:47:23.722+02:00Rhodium It seems people (not me) are back to investments in gold and other precious metals to minimize the risks of inflation, and for other various reasons. I've recently learnt, about a very rare and expensive metal - rhodium. Its symbol on the periodic table of elements is Rh and its atomic number 45. It is used in industry primarily as an DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com63tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-78922922062764506762023-10-29T14:06:00.000+02:002023-10-29T14:06:43.549+02:00'Optician Puzzle' Whenever in the neighbouring town, I used to pass by a small optical shop and peep inside. The guy there, was a familiar face from childhood. I went to the same school class with his elder brother, so I hoped perhaps to see the brother there one day, or enter to ask about his whereabouts. Neither of it has happened.During the last two years I noticed the complete DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com62tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8085364042461678579.post-79564865519869367102023-10-24T21:05:00.001+03:002023-10-24T21:05:36.268+03:00Mementos When I visit a new country, one of my favorite types of shopping is buying, some piece of clothing with the name , map , or some icon of the place , printed on it. I have no intention of wearing the piece, just keep it as a memento.From Moscow, (visited in 2015), I've got three cotton shirts . Two of them (one black, one blue) have the map of the Metro in the middle, under DUTAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12979375799258978432noreply@blogger.com46