The Scribbler

Those of you who have been following Jonathan's progress on his blog , which is the best place to go for all details will no doubt know that Thank G-d, things are looking much better and the surgery appears to have been a total success. I felt however that it was only right to add an update here, to keep you abreast of the situation, since I did write about it on a number of occasions over the last few weeks. Please do visit his blog to get full details: http://jonathanshoham.spaces.live.com/

You sit there and look at your newborn baby daughter, blink, blink again and when you look she's celebrating her fifth birthday! My wonderful Shira is five on this very day. My baby is growing up! What can I tell you about Shira that can't be described in these six words: I want to eat her up. She has cuteness down to a tee and she knows it, but the charm that oozes out of her every pore, the intelligence that she brims with every look and utterance is utterly captivating. I know I shouldn't melt, but she makes everyone around her just about do the same thing whenever they lay their eyes on her. In three words: Shira is gorgeous. That's not to say that her sisters are any less so, but today, my eyes are firmly fixed on her adorable little cheeks. If you know Shira, I hope you'll agree and if you don't, take my word for it, she's quite something! Happy birthday my darling and don't lose a single iota of your delightful personality. I hope the next 365 day...

Yet again, I have to rub my eyes in wonder and enquire as to what monster swallowed the last eight years. My Michali, gentle, sweet, ever-smiling has hit this monumental birthday (granted the special place it holds in our family) and is thoroughly enjoying her well-deserved birthday treat. I don't want to spoil this post by describing the events of the day (which weren't particularly enjoyable) but choose instead to marvel at how another of my little princesses has come of age in such a graceful manner. I'm definitely a little prouder than I was twenty-four hours ago.

It’s been an emotional day. We drove to Antwerp, the city where both my parents were born and made our way to the Jewish cemetery in Putte, Holland, where I was able to go to the graves of my grandfather, great grandfather (after whom I am named) and great-grandmother, who shares her name with my mother. I’d last visited in 1993 and fifteen years flows by incredibly quickly. We came back to Antwerp and I had a need to revisit the park of my youth, the “Cholent” Park as we call it, which lies in the centre of the city. As a small child, my mother used to take me to Antwerp about every three months and I virtually grew up in the park. I can’t even innumerate the number of times, we crossed the road from my grandparents flat at 16 Rubenslei and entered the park, past the grand statue to the duck pond, which is long gone. At the pond, I used to meet my friends as they came out of Shul (Synagogue) on Shabbat mornings. So many memories. I’m glad to say that the park hasn’t changed much in 30...

We celebrated my father’s 80th birthday on the 26th August and I would have loved to post a blog on the day, but not being able to access the internet at the time did have it’s limitations in this department. What can I tell you about my dad? Knowing him, he’d probably deny any praise that I’d give him, because he is one of the most modest people I know. Maybe that’s the most appropriate adjective I can use. Modesty. Well, stuff that! We are talking about a highly gifted individual who draws beautifully, has an encyclopaedic knowledge of just about everything and has an innate kindness that he doesn’t like to admit to. He likes to portray himself as a tough nut, but this is just a Venetian mask. A few inches below the surface, he’s a total softie! It took a while for me to appreciate him, not least because there is a world that separates us, 39 years of catching up to do. I guess I had to be that much older to realise what a special individual he is, but it was the worth the wait, to f...

Many of the Flemish people boast a proud history of hating both the Jews and the French Language in equal measure. During the Second World War, they or their dear anscestors delighted in collaborating with the Nazis and this particular admiration for my brethren has continued into the present day, with the nationalistic Vlaams Belang party only the latest incarnation of the Flemish desire to gain idependence from Belgium and rid itself of non aryans. It's a grubby little party, made of up grubby little Flems. You can therefore understand my sheer delight in going around the seaside resort we're staying in, on the Flemish coast of course, wearing my Kippah (skullcup) and talking French to any Flemish speaking person I could find. It was a lot of fun pissing them off, whilst noting the looks of disgust I received, particularly from the older folk, whom I am in no doubt, probably collaborated with the Nazis. That said, Michal and I had a lot of fun in the heated swimming pool as I...

I want to start by confirming something that many of you already knew. I don't do boats. I really don't do them. My parents, being the wonderful people that they are (and I write this in all sincerity) insisted on crossing the English Channel by boat. I tried my best to convince them to go by Eurostar, but I was never going to present an argument that could come anywhere near to the validity of using the ferry (it's cheaper). Since I'm a guest, I can't really argue, but I still want it to be known that I don't do boats. I now have the motion sickness wristbands to prove it. We reached the port of Dover early enough to catch the 11:05 ferry, despite being booked on the 12:15 one. It was a relatively calm crossing but the 90 minutes couldn't roll by fast enough as I longed to walk on a surface that didn't undulate. From Calais, We made our way to the hotel in Belgium, which is very nice thank you and since we've arrived, I haven't done much else, a...

These were posted on an Australian Tourism Website and the answers are the actual responses by the website officials, who obviously have a sense of humor __________________________________________________ Q: Does it ever get windy in Australia ? I have never seen it rain on TV, how do the plants grow? ( UK ). A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die. __________________________________________________ Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street? ( USA ) A: Depends how much you've been drinking. __________________________________________________ Q: I want to walk from Perth to Sydney - can I follow the railroad tracks? ( Sweden ) A: Sure, it's only three thousand miles, take lots of water. __________________________________________________ Q: Are there any ATMs (cash machines) in Australia ? Can you send me a list of them in Brisbane , Cairns ,Townsville and HerveyBay ? ( UK ) A: What did your last slave die of? _________________________...

Those of you who have been reading this blog for a while will be aware of the special treat that is bestowed upon my girls, from my parents, when they reach their eighth birthday. Dassi got to spend a week in New York. Tali hit Eilat and Michal, who reaches her milestone on Thursday will be visiting Belgium for the very first time in her life. I like these holidays, not least because I get to tag along, which is not something you will hear me complaining about. This trip, however, is very special as I have Belgian blood flowing through my veins. OK , maybe that didn't sound as good as it did when I thought it up, but since both my parents are Antwerp born (or in the general neighbourhood of the city), this is tantamount to my returning to my roots. I spent a lot of time in Antwerp as a kid, since my mother used to take me there on a regular basis to visit my grandmother. I wouldn't say that I grew up in Antwerp, but damn near enough to feel particularly excited about sharin...

I positively had to see this film at the IMAX, although I was under the impression that it had been entirely filmed in this process. That said, the opening and closing scenes, as well as all the aerial shots were absolutely eye-popping to behold and this made the exorbitant entry fee (a gift from my wife) worth it. The film is very very dark and unrelenting. Heath Ledger's performance is in one word, unforgettable. He not only chews up the scenery, he spits it out with a venom that even the world's deadliest snake could not muster. Maybe you feel it more because he's not around to repeat it. His joker is a nasty piece of work, with no sense of humour. Ok, maybe a little bit, but not the kind that we would laugh at. The story is grim but magnetic and I didn't feel the generous length at any time. This might have been due to the fact that I was gawping at the IMAX effect. I must tell you that when you see Batman flying through the air peering at the ground, zillions of f...

I was hoping that this blog would have been written up by my two eldest daughters, but it looks like this is not going to happen, as they don't seem to be as keen as I am to share their experiences of my adopted city. My mother, Dassi, Tali and I went up to the city on Sunday. If you recall, I had promised Tali that she would go to Chester Zoo, accompanied by her oldest sister and grandmother...oh yes, and me. The journey north didn't start too well as I managed to forget the free entry vouchers at home. A quick call to the zoo from the service station sorted the problem out. I would pay the full price and they would reimburse me the cost of two children's tickets. I suppose it was cheaper than turning around and going back home. We staggered our way to the city and headed straight for the Liverpool John Lennon Airport as I wanted to show them the Yellow Submarine as well as see the terminal building for myself. I had seen the submarine when I visited two years ago, but had...

This letter written by someone with no vested interest in either side really nails it. Please take the time to read it, and if you agree with its importance perhaps you will consider distributing it to your e-mail distribution lists. It is important for people to know the truth....... " If you are so sure that Palestine, the country, goes back through most of recorded history I expect you to be able to answer a few basic questions about that country: When was it founded and by whom? What were its borders? What was its capital? What were its major cities? What constituted the basis of its economy? What was its form of government? Can you name at least one Palestinian leader before Arafat? Was Palestine ever recognized by a country whose existence, at that time or now, leaves no room for interpretation? What was the language of the country of Palestine? What was the prevalent religion of the country of Palestine? What was the name of its curr...

We're into the second week of August, which can only mean one thing... My annual Liverpool trip. Discounting my recent excursion to the city, which for all intents and purposes was severely curtailed by the pressures of work, I will be revisiting my adopted city for the third year running. This year's trip takes on some very special guest stars, namely my mom, Dassi and Tali. I can't wait to share the city with them and create some great new memories. This trip, though shorter than the last two, has been some months in the planning and although we're only going to be there for three days, only one will be spent in the city itself. On Tuesday, we will be visiting Chester and giving Tali her Afikomen present, albeit four months late. The weather might be interesting, but even if it pours, I can't wait to share my love of Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields and the like with my family. As wonderful as it was to visit the places with friends, nothing can compare taking my d...

It is 1939 and I'm sitting in my house, reading a letter that informs me of the rejection of my visa by the United States. I've already tried getting into numerous countries but nobody wants to grant me access. The stateless Jew. What will happen to me? What will become of my parents, wife, children? Who will help me? Who will save me from the Nazis, Poles, Ukrainians, Lithuanians? It is 2008 and I'm sitting in my house, looking at a gentlemen, an emissary of the Israeli Government who tells me to pack my bags as soon as possible. Gather my parents, wife and children. Meet him by the car in 15 minutes. Because In 24 hours, we will all be in Israel. Safe. And some anti-semitic/zionist bastard has the nerve to tell me that there is no justification for the existence of the State of Israel?

Those of you who know me well (and there aren't that many of you about) are probably aware that beneath my sunny, modern exterior, there lies an intensely religious individual. I can't help who I am. I can joke, tease and have fun, but, take a moment to look behind the smile and you may be surprised at what you find. I write all of this because I've just come out of a twenty-five hour fast and I'm probably hallucinating on an unhealthily sugar rush. After all, this is only time (i.e. after a fast) when I'm not ill that I bother to drink tea. Two cups noch . So where is all this coming from? Why the philosophy? Why the thoughts? I should just take it easy, enjoy the novelty of feeding and watering myself and let things lie. It has been a long emotional and exhausting day, as I wrote in my last post. Relax Mr Scribbler. Relax! But I can't do that because my Deeply Religious Insides ( TM ) are bursting to let forth and I now feel the need to explain my behaviour o...

I've made it through most of the day. The fast finishes in just over three hours and it's been quite an emotional ride through the history of our suffering, which was compensated somewhat by being part of a group of friends who ran special activities for kids in our local Synagogue. That said, spending most of the day in Shul (syngaogue) has its benefits. not least because I don't have to keep on looking at my watch, waiting for the fast to end. That's the fun kind of thing I can do now that I am back at home. Did I mention that it's just over three hours until I can eat?.......

I can pinpoint the moment when I became fascinated with China. It was about a quarter of the way through watching The Last Emperor in a small cinema in Antwerp, Belgium. I used to go to the city with my mother every now and again when she wanted to visit old friends and go to the my grandfather's grave in Putte , Holland. This was around April, 1987, just a few months before I was due to leave high school. I remember feeling uneasy at the time, not least because I didn't quite know what awaited me, both before and after the upcoming 'A' Level exams. The film managed to do something that very few movies have achieved either before or since. It took me far away from the cinema and transported my entire body and soul into the bowels of the Forbidden City. In hindsight, I wonder if I ever entirely came back, because my fascination with China has endured longer than the film's generous running time. I have yet to visit the country (physically). That's why I find mys...

There is still a debate as to whether or not the bombing of Hiroshima on 6 th August 1945 is justifiable. In our home, we fall into two camps. Dana holds the view that there can be no reason whatsoever to kill innocent people (an argument that I can't disagree with), whilst I believe that dropping the bomb was an act that had to take place to end the war. What we both agree on, is that the bombing of Nagasaki should not have taken place. From reading some respectable research on the Internet, I see that we are not the only two people in the world who hold this view. Appropriately, historians are divided into two similar camps. I base my arguments on the notion of what might/would have happened if the atomic bomb had not been deployed over the skies of Japan. How would history have evolved had the atomic bomb stayed at home? We know that, as a result of Hiroshima, the world was plunged head first into the Atomic Age. The Soviet Union and The United States embarked on the Cold War ...

The Syrian general who organized the consignment of plutonium for the nuclear reactor (from the North Koreans) has been shot dead. He was also Assad's communication channel with Iran as well as acting as a Assad's contact with Hizbullah. What a guy. I know that he will be sorely missed. Particularly by any self respecting terrorist.

I'm angry to report that the doctor who was examining my friend Jonathan's results - made a mistake and as result, the news is not as positive as we had all been led to believe. I won't go into the details because I urge you to read them on Jonathan's blog. I know that this mistake was not at all intentional, but I wonder if this man gave his action a second thought before he put down the X-ray, realised that he'd not divulged the full facts and looked at the next client's results. There's an old joke about differentiating surgeons from G-d. The punchline goes along the lines of "well, at least G-d doesn't think he's a surgeon". Jonathan is more than an x-ray and he really doesn't deserve to be dealt with in such a cruel manner, irrespective of whether or not this was a mistake. Is this the first time that this has happened? No. Will it be the last? No - and that's what I am so angry about. Please read his blog, which you can find h...

I couldn't help but smile pretty smugly when I read that Fatah's Palestinians had rushed over to Israel to escape Hamas's Palestinians. If that wasn't enough, CNN had the chutzpah to criticize Israel for sending 30 of them back. How cruel we Jews must be to carry out such an inhumane act....repatriating Palestinians to Gaza! That Israel allowed these bloodthirsty terrorists to enter her borders and then provide them with free hospital treatment for wounds inflicted by their brethren - before sending some back to their Gazan homes - obviously wasn't acceptable enough in the jaded eyes of the world's media. A farce indeed.

In effort to syndicate my blog to a wider audience, I've joined a great blogging ring called Jewish Blogging . If you've got a few moments, have a look at the site and you'll find some pretty cool stuff.

I have a genuine love for most things American, which is probably due to my dad being a citizen of that amazing country. However, one cannot but deny that some of his fellow compatriots aren't exactly the sharpest cards in the pack. If you've seen the Borat movie, you'll know exactly where I'm coming from. Here are some "idiot sightings" as they've been referred to in the email I was sent. They literally bought tears to my eyes and I'm not kidding. We had to have the garage door repaired. The Sears repairman told us that one of our problems was that we did not have a "large" enough motor on the opener. I thought for a minute, and said that we had the largest one Sears made at that time, a 1/2 horsepower. He shook his head and said, "Lady, you need a 1/4 horsepower." I responded that 1/2 was larger than 1/4. He said, "NO, it's not." Four is larger than two.." We haven't used Sears repair since. ...

It gives me immense pleasure to share with you the knowledge that my friend Jonathan has received the results of his biopsy and they are negative. I'm sure that his feet haven't quite touched the ground. I wonder if the power of blogging had any impact (albeit minuscule ) on the outcome?!