The Pick Sisters

There's a very successful 70 year old  israeli singer and composer of polish descent, that happens to live in my hometown.
Last year, he got a massive stroke while on the plane that was to bring  him back home from a tour abroad. The pilot changed the route so that he could get him to the closest hospital. The musician was saved. After a long and difficult recovery period, he's now back in business. Happy End.

However, he and family are still heavily on the radar of the Media, due to his daughter's Daniella marriage to the famous american filmmaker and  director Quentin Tarantino.

I used to see this daughter of his hanging around with her sister. The two girls were rather plain looking, but seemed to have inherited their father's musical aptitudes. They set up a musical duo, The 'Pick Girls', and for a while had quite a big success (I personally liked them enormously; there was something very refreshing about them).

The 'engine' behind the sisters was their mother(divorced from their father, the musician). The mother works  in the lyrics business - writes the lyrics of songs and musicals, which eventually become great hits. She's a talented, charismatic woman; her late mother was a well-known , sharp journalist for one of the major newspapers in the country.



The duo, however, was short -lived, as one of them, Sharona, got married and started a family. The other one, Daniella  was left behind with no real purpose in life.

Then, one day Daniella was invited to a party and there, she was introduced to the guest of honor , Quentin Tarantino. Their affair lasted several years with ups and downs and at the end of last year they finalized it by getting married. Now, they're expecting a baby. Happy End again in the Pick family. (I do like stories with a happy end).

I once overheard someone commenting on the fact that she got  to Hollywood and the Red carpet without her being a known actress/singer/model...just the spouse of....
So what??
Anyway, she wouldn't be the first to get there on such a 'ticket'. 

In and Out Design

I was to pick up a small parcel from Amazon. The carrier had delivered it to the wrong address, which made me mad, of course. It was on the outskirts of the town, at a petrol station shop.

After I left the service station with my parcel, I got rewarded by the sight of a very special store nearby. In fact it was more like a long shaped warehouse. The sign read  "In and Out Design".  It shared the vast open space on which it was set up with an adjacent big cat and dog shelter .   A bit further - a strawberry field .   The whole space used to be one big strawberry field, now only a marginal part of it is allocated to the growing of the delicious fruit (Agriculture, like many other good things in this country, is rapidly deterioratng).

warehouse look

narrow entrance

I was attracted by the bamboo pieces of furniture outside. I love bamboo - so light and yet so solid!  Ideal furniture material for all ages , especially for young  and elderly people ; for all spots - interior or exterior. It's rather expensive as it's mostly imported stuff.

When I entered the place , I felt like floating in the the world of the arabian nights : all magic around - a multitude of lights and colours , furniture, plants, light fixtures, some statues and statuettes -  new and vintage - all collected by the owner from all over the world. 
The store also offers design advice by architects and other professionals.

bamboo items

lightfixtures

plants

plants

'You'll have to come back during the day hours to have a better look', I said to myself.  I doubt it , though, whether I'll buy anything; not only because of the high prices, but also because I'm in the phase of minimalism and simplicity. Here, it seems they've managed to turn even the simplest natural bamboo stick into some sophisticated item.

sign in hebrew indicating the cats & dogs shelter

On Fridays between 11:00 and 14:00,  adoption of cats and dogs takes place in the area near the design store. Big event for both the adopters and the adoptees!

I remember asking a neighbor of mine how much she paid for her puppy. 3 -  was her hesitant reply. 3 hundred? No, 3 thousand came her answer. Well, why pay so much, when you can get one for free at this gorgeous adoption center:)

Father and Son

Bnei- Brak - waiting for the green light

I usually see them on a Thursday,  if and when I happen to be at the supermarket adjacent to the ultra-orthodox city of Bnei-Brak. Father and son ; the son has Down Syndrome (condition caused by an extra chromosome). The two are shopping for the upcoming Sabbath.

The father is moving around picking groceries, while the son watches over the shopping cart. Sometimes the later gets bored or impatient and starts screaming to get his father's attention. I've also seen him turning the cart upside down while in a fit of anger.  

People in the store stop to look at the "show". They pity the father. I pity him too, of course, but I pity the son even more; how sad to be born in this world just to evoke feelings of pity, and rejection! 
The father  shows him affection , talks to him in a very soft voice and calms him down... till next time.

Bnei-Brak  -chatting under the tree

It looks like the shopping on Thursday is a treat for the boy - he gets to be with his father for more than an hour, and probably feels as his right hand, his helper. They seem close to each other, and I feel very bad  about my thoughts on the issues of prenatal tests and pregnancy termination.

orthodox father and his two girls

usual sight in Bnei-Brak; mother,  kids and baby in the carriage

Anyway,  in orthodox circles abortion is unacceptable unless the mother's life is in danger. It is considered murder of a potential life.

youngsters in Bnei-Brak

Sunrise, Sunset

Daylight

I must wait for the sunrise

I must think of a new life

And I mustn't give in

When the dawn comes

Tonight will be a memory

And a new day will too begin

(Lyrics - 'Memory' song from 'Cats' musical)

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Masada  sunrise (near the Dead Sea )  - web picture

I seldom get to watch the sunrise as I'm not an early riser, but I've seen a lot of sunsets ; they are a source of endless fascination to me.

I like the symbolism of these two nature phenomena : sunrise symbolizes the beginning (of day, of life), sunset  symbolizes the end (of day, of life).  I also like the many wise lyrics, and quotes on the subject.
As for superstitions, there are quite a few, but usually associated with sunsets. especially with their red color - as a sign of storm, blood and war.

In the center of my hometown, there used to be a ballroom dancing school named Arthur Murray (after the dance instructor who opened  dance studios all over the world). It's closed now and the place serves as a youth center for smart kids. 

I sometimes happened to be near the school, in the evening hours while dance lessons were going on, and the sun was gradually setting behind the structure. Music, dance, sunset - what an uplifting sight and feeling that was! (The facade had big windows enabling passersby to watch the dancing couples).

sunset behind ballroom dancing school

The distant blue strip of the religiously famous Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret) and a spectacular sunset -  are the usual noteworthy sights on the road going down from uphill holly city Safed (Tzefat) to the little pittoresque town of Rosh Pina lying at its foot.

blue strip of Lake Kinneret

sunset on the road down to Rosh-Pina

I was coming home from a commemoration ceremony near Jerusalem, and along the road from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv  I couldn't keep my eyes off the stunning sunset seen through the bus window.

sunset seen through bus window on the road Jerusalem-Tel Aviv

And here's the Mediterranean  Tel Aviv Promenade with an amazing sunset reflected in the water!

sunset at the Tel Aviv promenade

Nothing, however, compares with the  sunsets at the Marina of Herzlyia city; the orange and red colors are mind-blowing.

sunset at the Marina of Herzlyia town

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sunrise, sunset

sunrise, sunset

swiftly fly the years

one season following another

laden with happiness and tears

(Lyrics - "Fiddler on the roof" musical)