Happy Halloween

Today's the night of all nights. Disguised as Captain Hook, Yair proceeded from house to house. Trick-or-treating. In the end, his pumpkin was full to the brim, his fingers sticky from all the lollipops he had had to test-lick, and his head so heavy and tired that he fell asleep on daddy's shoulder on the way back home. It was nice but not spooky. Pictures will follow.

The first jolt

... and I missed it.

Shortly after 8 p.m., my student calls, all excited. "Did you feel the earthquake?" Which earthquake? No idea. What is he talking about? I was getting the little man ready for bed. Stunned, my student shouts: "What do you mean, you didn't feel it? The whole building was shaking!" Really?

A few minutes later, a chat message pops up on my computer screen. Anke from around the corner. "Hi Jeanne! Was this your first earthquake in the Bay Area?" Well... maybe I did miss something?

I switch on the television. KRON TV is broadcasting a special news program. About an earthquake in the Bay Area. Magnitude: 5.6. Now that convinces me something was going on beyond my perception. But honestly -- I don't mind having missed it.

May earthquakes always pass us by unnoticed...

Job-hunting at Halloween

Today I plunged head over heals into job-hunting. Bought a file for my portfolio, cotton fiber paper to print my resume on, business card paper to print the business cards I designed. My resume is polished, my cover letter more or less in order. And in the afternoon, at a birthday party Yair was invited to, I made my first attempt at networking my way to a job, after learning that only about 20% of all open positions are actually advertised. One of the mothers turned out to be a Harvard-graduate who, for years, has been working for a consulting company in San Francisco. This company, it turns out, also gets requests for technical writing contracts. Now I am to enter my profile into their system and let the girl's mother know when I am done. She is Senior Vice President and General Manager. One of them. That's one step forward then, isn't it?

I do miss the easy, simple way of sending out your resume to a bunch of companies within 15 minutes, the way it is done in Israel. Here, finding a job is real work. It could be a full-time occupation if you wanted to. It is strongly recommended that you call up the companies after sending your application to affirm your interest in the position and improve your chances of your resume at least getting looked at. Better yet, before sending your application, call the company and find out who is the hiring manager. Then address your cover letter to him (or her). And call again afterwards to make sure it went through.

All the while, Shai is supposedly enjoying himself at his first Halloween party in San Francisco. Don't ask how he left the house. He put on one of my pajamas. Did I mention it's his first Halloween party? I tried to tell him that Halloween is different from Purim, in a sense. Aren't you supposed to wear something scary, or spooky, or extramundane? But for lack of a real costume, he wanted to be creative... I, for one, would have skipped the party.

For all those poor people

out there who are wasting hours to get the abc player and Fox on Demand player (both based on move networks software) run properly in Firefox on Windows Vista: The problem is that the player is not compatible with Firefox 2.0.0.8 for Vista. Here's the solution (so simple, really!):

1. Browse to your \Program Files\Mozilla Firefox folder.
2. Right-click the file firefox.exe and select Properties.
3. In the Properties window, on the Compatibility tab, select the Run this program in compatibility mode for check box, and then select Windows XP (Service Pack 2) from the list.
4. Click OK and restart Firefox.

Oh, and don't forget to pause Internet security protection at least for the time the data is loading. It works like a dream.

Now that I wasted a whole day on solving this issue (as if I didn't have anything else to do), I can retreat to the realm of dreams. I guess that's the technical writer in me. I should really go look for a job.

Yosemite impressions

As promised...

Pajama party?

Two weeks ago, Back-to-School Night was on. Because Shai had a long day at University, we decided to test if Yair was ready for his first pajama party at Yuval's house. And while Yuval's mother and I mingled with the other parents at school (who probably had more convenient babysitting arrangements), Yuval's dad was left in charge of the kids. If he did a good job? See for yourself.

English lesson

Before I forget, I need to document Yair's progress in English. This morning, while romping through our room, he shouted: "Ima, there's a pig!" (There was none!) And later today, when doing the dishes (one of his favorites lately), he handed me a clean bowl saying "This one is ready." I think that was the first time he used English intentionally and in the right context. I'm impressed.

Scenic weekend

We got back from Yosemite all exhausted, but we had a great time although we didn't get to see any black bears, mountain lions, or snakes. And the only scary spider that crossed my way was pinned to the wall in the Cafe of the lodge we were staying at. That one really freaked me out though -- it looked exactly (well, for me) like a tarantula, and I wasn't aware until then that this kind of species is native in this region. I was told it is not poisonous and that the ones to look out for are the black widows. "If you can't see where you put your hand, then don't put it," someone told me. He added that he hadn't seen any in the dorms or cabins yet. That was to comfort me. Nice try.

The first day we walked the 5 miles around Mirror Lake, which had completely dried up over the summer. That's called a seasonal lake. It's not that we had expected a lot of water; we knew that fall is not the best season to visit if your mind is set to torrents and waterfalls. But a bit. A tiny bit. Well, not here. Instead, we encouraged Yair to dig a whole in the remaining sandbox, but he didn't feel like it.

The second day we set out to climb all the way up to Vernal Falls. This time, we were prepared to see only a very thin, very modest waterfall, and that's what we got. But beautiful nonetheless. The Muir Trail was closed for maintenance, so we had to follow a detour, which took us disproportionately longer than we had expected. Which is why we left Yosemite much later than we had planned. Which is why we got home much later than intended. Which is why Shai had to spend the rest of the night preparing for the first day of the new semester. But then, that's nothing new to us. We never manage to leave on time. We are always late. And we had a great time, so why complain?

I'll put up a few pictures tomorrow.

Something to write about

This post is dedicated to those of you who complain that posting only once a week is unacceptable. From now on, I'll do my best to stop by once a day. But I can't promise. Tomorrow, for example, we're driving down to Yosemite for the weekend, so don't expect anything until, most probably, Monday. But then at least I'll have something to write about.

Yair dropped another English line today: "Wash your hands!" He usually connects phrases with specific situations at school. When I ask him "What does 'wash your hands' mean?", he wouldn't know. But when I inquire about when Elaine/Nicole/Lilly uses this sentence, he responds: "When we need to wash our hands." Curious, how the brain works. I'm completely fascinated by the way kids acquire languages.

Catching up

Again time is running and I can't find the time to write. Even without a job, work is piling up on my desk and the list of errands to run is getting longer each day. Sometimes I'm rushing around all day long, without even sitting down for a cup of coffee. This way, I passed my written driving exam yesterday with excellence. Now I have another three weeks to go until the behind-the-wheel road test. I'm quite optimistic I'll pass that one, too. It's my third driving test, after all. Germany. Israel. United States. I am convinced though that this is going to be my last one.

Meanwhile, Yair's English is catching up. "What's your name? What's your name?" he kept asking me today. "What does that mean?" I asked back. He didn't seem to know. The other day at lunch, he asked me: "You want to eat?" This time, he knew the meaning. According to Elaine, his class's head teacher, he already understands quite a lot.

Besides, I am suspecting he has fallen in love for the first time. He is in denial, but he keeps talking about Rachel, with a real American accent. "Ima, you are Rachel!" he tells me, sometimes the first thing in the morning. Rachel is a sweet little girl with special charm. Her mother is from Cambodia.

Oh, and Yair has started to skip his lunch-time nap. It's on and off. If he falls asleep in the car on the way back home from school -- fine. Otherwise, there's no way I can get him to nap at home. I don't really mind because that way, he's sound asleep by 7:45 at night. Like today. That's why I'm off now to enjoy my evening.

Surprise

in my mail box. Unsuspecting, I open the inconspicuous, white envelope addressed to me. Probably they need more documents. Proof of expenses. Maybe an appointment for fingerprinting, like my French friend received.

Then my fingers feel a thin, rectangular card the size of a credit card. I hold my breath. It can't be, impossible. Only a month has passed since I sent in the application! Now impatient, I unfold the single sheet of paper -- and there it is: my work authorization!

Happy as I am, now I no longer have any excuses to stay at home. Or have I?

Over the last few weeks, I have already sent out a few applications. I have even gotten in touch with a friend of the father of one of the kids at Yair's school, who is a technical writer and willing to get me in touch with people who may be able to help me track down some work. But now I should gear up and get more serious about finding a job. I should. I will.

At my own pace.

Perfect day

Time is passing by quickly now. How could I ever think I would get bored within a few weeks' time (those of you who told me I wouldn't, you were so right!)?

Autumn is here, and the nights are getting chilly. The mornings, too. The trees, though not as pretty as in New England or Germany at this time of the year, are slowly changing their color.

Today, Shai took a break from school, books, and studying, and we left early, heading north for wine tastings in Napa Valley.
Spotless blue sky.
Beautiful scenery.
Delicious wine.
Sweet laughter.
Nothing to add but pictures.



When Yair fell asleep by himself at night, waiving me good-bye when I left his room, after a few rounds of tight hugs and wet kisses, it was the perfect ending of a perfect day. No more impatiently lying or sitting beside him waiting for him to fall asleep. An unexpected but much hoped for present: I've got my nights back without trading in closeness and confidence. Thank you!

As a treat, here's last week's favorite picture, taken in Fairyland, Oakland.

Bookworm

Oh, the pleasures of a SAHM (stay-at-home mom) are many. Lately, I have found back to my biggest passion, my dearest hobby, my driving force: Words. Reading. Within two months, I have consumed more books than all of last year. I don't really have much more spare time for indulging in reading (why is this, I hear you wondering, you're a SAHM now!), but I don't care pushing off bed time because I don't need to get up for work. I do need to get up -- to get Yair ready for school, to argue over the Spider-Man outfit to wear, the breakfast to eat. Even the diaper is an issue now. Mick Mouse and Minny Mouse are accepted, Pluto is out, refused. Taken off. Thrown away. He'd rather wet his pants. Don't ask me how we ever get out of the house in the mornings, but we do. Eventually, we show up at school, a few minutes late only, nothing to speak of. Spider-Man enters the room, throws me a kiss, waves good-bye -- and off he goes, ready to play. While I need a strong cup of coffee because last night's book was all too captivating, the hours of sleep spare. You see, there is no pressure to function a hundred percent because there is a project to finish, a deadline to meet. It's just life. I read my book and retreat to bed when my eyes refuse to remain open any longer. I don't have the time, but I don't care about the consequences. So I'll go about the day with weary eyes, a dull head. Who cares? I read Elizabeth George's "What Came Before He Shot Her," Irene Dische's "Grossmama packt aus," and Khaled Hosseini's "A Thousand Splendid Suns." The latter I just stashed away, determined to get "The Kite Runner" as soon as I get the chance. My next reading, however, will be Harry Potter. The last one. I have the feeling I'll need tissues (again).