Extravagant Weddings and Bar Mitzvahs Humiliate the Jewish Community

This is an excellent article by Rabbi Shmuley - well worth a read.  It could be said of so many religions, not just Judiasm. 




Extravagant Weddings and Bar Mitzvahs Humiliate the Jewish Community

If that does not work, click on the label down below and you should get the article.  Well worth the effort!

Too hot today to go outside

Oh my, I had to cancel my plan to go with a friend to Pier 8 this afternoon.  It would have been too much for both of us to be down there as there are very few trees.  At night it will be better.

I was there last night with Rosie and we bumped into two friends, Traudl and Hans and had a jolly good time together. 

It was so great to have spent time with them.

Rosie and I always have a good time.

Instead of going out, I started on the food  cupboard and looked for expiry dates.  Some of them are so small! 

I had better start using a few of those packages up soon as the expiry date is coming in 2011.

It is a great time to straighten things up in the food cupboard as well and prepare for the long winter ahead!

I also cooked the vegetables from the Farmer's Market and so will have some of them this week over ride or noodles and a little bit of meat.

All in all, a good day in spite of being housebound!

Farmer's Market and Pier 8

<>

Pier 8 - Hamilton's waterfront at sunset

What a blessing friendship is.  My friend Mohammed and I went to the Farmer's Market together yesterday and we both did our separate shopping.  I had my walker with me and it was easier for both parties to put groceries on it.

On the way back, I took a dizzy spell for some reason and Mohammed insisted on a restaurant break so that I could rest and take some juice.  It helped alot.  I was going to try and make it home but it was a wise decision on his part, as I really was feeling poorly.

I had finally been able to introduce him to Riad, at Ray's Middle Eastern stall in the market.  We have been chatting for the last seven years and I have met his sister as well.  The two men really got along very well and talked and talked like long lost brothers.  I was so happy to see that.  I had never heard Mohammed speak Arabic before.  Riad is from Lebanon and Mohammed is from Egypt.  What a grand occasion to see two strangers embrace like long lost brothers. It showed me a side of Mohammed which I have seen so many times from my friends from the Middle East and Pakistan/India.  In North America we miss so much but oftentimes don't know it.  After we left his stall, Riad came running after us and gave us some pears from his own supplies as a gesture of friendship.  We were both touched. This is truly the Middle Eastern way and made me very happy.

He sat in the park while I took the groceries up to my place and rested a little bit.  There was a Chirstian Revival meeting going on since Friday night at Gore Park and  there were a fair amount of people there.  It was and still is as I am writing this, a trifle too loud as I can hear it way up here on the 9th floor.  Thankfully, it should end by tonight.

Police were there in case of trouble but I only saw one man who became very upset and called the group a bunch of liars. 

We bumped into Andrew and Rahell who were listening to them. 

Mohammed and I took the Shuttlebus down to Pier 8 and had a wonderful time.  We bumped into Carol and her daughter Rachel and I was able to take a lovely picture of the two of them.  I sent it to them and Carol was so pleased.

I also used the "scene" section on the camera and I think I like it better for the sunset pictures.  We took the last bus up to downtown at 9 p.m. and had a jolly good time.  It is usually the same people coming back on the last bus so we have now gotten to talking together which is lovely.

He forgot he had some groceries at my place but fortunately, I remembered and he got them and took them home.  All in all, a lovely afternoon and evening, especially sharing that lovely waffle at William's Pub!

He is very good company and I am glad that we are good friends.

Mother Teresa's Anyway Poem

Mother Teresa's Anyway Poem


People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;

Forgive them anyway.



If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;

...Be kind anyway.



If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;

Succeed anyway.



If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;

Be honest and frank anyway.



What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;

Build anyway.



If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;

Be happy anyway.



The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;

Do good anyway.



Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;

Give the world the best you've got anyway.



You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;

It was never between you and them anyway.

By Mother Teresa.
============================================================================

I had the pleasure of watching the whole two episodes about Mother Teresa last night and mentioned seeing it on my facebook comment section.  A friend of mine, Stephannie, was kind enough to send me the above poem which I have posted .

In my view, it is a marvelous poem because of its sentiments and facts. 

I was very moved by what she did with her life and how she was a pure soul, not taking glory for herself, but rather giving glory to the Creator.

I am most greatful to my friend Stephannie for passing this poem on to me to share with you, my readers.  May it bless you.

Mother Teresa is an example to all people.

A few days in Toronto visiting another set of friends.

Etta

Bernie, Norma's husband

I haven't seen these friends for more than seven years in the case of the ladies, and at least ten years in the case of a male friend.

It was great to see the ladies and we had a jolly time together. We ordered in from Swiss Chalet and we all enjoyed that.

My ninety-five year old friend was my hostess and the group met at her place. The last time this group saw each other was a farewell dinner for me when I moved to Hamilton which is over 7 years ago! It was so great to see them all again. We have known each other since middle 1970's.

Bernie and Norma picked up Etta on the way to Anne's which was kind of them.  As most males, he disappeared for a few hours and left us to chat together and to remember common experiences.  However, at 4 p.m. he came back to pick up the ladies and stayed for quite awhile and we were glad for that.

My friend Anne's daughter Pam and her husband came the next day and it was so great to see both of them again.


All those people are getting on, two of them are now 80 and my hostess is 95 so it is very unlikely that we will ever see each other again! We have been great friends all through these years and, naturally, we will keep in touch via phone.

I hardly go into Toronto anymore as I find it very tiring and noisy. I managed to get Wheeltrans in spite of the fact there no longer is a dedicated line for out of towners to call. It makes it much more difficult to get a ride. I had to stay on the long distance for over an hour to get my booking to go.

I needed a multiple booking for the next afternoon, and I had to call from here as well. I was fortunate though that I finally got through and got the bookings.

On my way back to the Go Transit, I went to see a Turkish gentleman friend. I was shocked when I saw him. I would not have recognized him, he had gotten so much smaller and older. He had been knocked over in the Eaton's Center in the Revolving doors and had been in St. Mike's Hospital for three days, then a rehab hospital for one month. Now he is home but not doing very well at all.

I went specifically to see him as he had been in the accident and also to try and set up his internet for him.

He had a laptop and it was a really different programme from what I had. I was only able to get the Google Home page for him and find all the Turkish newspapers which are on line. At least I was able to do that for him.

He wanted to order Swiss Chalet but I did not have time, so I suggested we go outside for a little walk and he then suggested we stop for pizza on St. Clair at Vaughan. A five minute walk took half an hour, as he has the kind of walker that you have to lift up.

Poor man,we only had a few minutes left before my ride, so I had to walk ahead of him. I saw the Wheeltrans van and he turned in the driveway and I was just fortunate that we got back in time.

Hayati was by then at his apartment building so it worked out all right.

I have to say that that particular visit has made me very sad, as I see that he is not coping well. He needs more care, although he does get meals on wheels and a bath but his little apartment is a disaster area and very cluttered and I am worried that he may fall in there.

I will keep in touch by phone. He was very good to the children and I when they were young and I don't forget things like that.

I still feel very "down" about Hayati, poor fellow is all alone.  Never married and thus, is now totally alone.

Literary Artshare at Artword Artbar August 18,2010

Unfortunately, my blog programme no longer lets me put comments beside each photo for some reason. In fact, I only get computer language for the photos now.

I wish I knew how to change it but I don't. Performers are below and if you would care to "google" some of the names, you will see lots of material about them on the internet.

The two headliners were Norma West Linder (in the pink outfit) and Sir Robert Lima of the United States.

The featured musician for this event was Peter Tichelaar who entertained the crowd with his melodious voice and his fabulous playing of the ukulele. He will be featured in the Fall at this same venue.

Others who read from their work were:

Becky Alexander
James Deahl - Master of Ceremonies
Andres Gripp
Omaha RisinG
Jeff Seffinga
Stan White

All the above are accomplished poets whose words touched the hearts of those present.

















What a grand evening it was; not only because of the delightful weather outside, but also the warmth and ambiance of ArtWord Artbar, and its welcome to writers and other artists.

For those not familiar with this location, it is on Colbourne, right down from the Anglican Cathedral. James and Colbourne are the cross streets.

Last night was no exception with the two headliners coming far to read here - Norma West Linder from Sarnia, Ontario and Sir Robert Lima from the United States.

Not only were we so fortunate to attract such wonderful artists from so far, we also had guest readers from Preston, London, Cambridge and Toronto.

Each artist was unique in their presentation and words which made it a very enjoyable evening.

I was asked to bring my camera and take pictures so here they are. James saved me a seat near the front so I could get good shots.

It was a very late evening, 11:30 by the time I got dropped off at home, but well worth the time spent there.

There will be another Artshare next month - check the Artword/Artbar website for the date.

Cool Fool Book Launch at Artword/Artbar

What a lovely time we all had last night. The band was very good although it was too loud for such a small place but they played extremely well. They also showed slides of the 1960's in Hamilton, Ontario which I found very interesting.

The place was so packed, it was unbelievable! People standing even on the landing.

I was so delighted to see my friend Maureen again. She had come in from her small town and sat with us. I met her former next door neighbour and found her a very nice lady as well.

We had a nice time chatting in between the music and the readings. Slim Volumes is a terrific reader!

It was a nice trip down memory lane for me, although I lived in Toronto in those days, I could still relate to many of the things from Hamilton.

All in all, a lovely evening spent with compatible friends.

A sad event

A gentleman I have known since I was about 33, has had an accident after somebody pushed a glass door at the Eaton's Center and knocked him down. He was taken to St. Mike's in Toronto, kept there for three days, then sent to a convalescent hospital for a month. A community support worker comes in for an hour to help him and he gets Meals on Wheels.

Now he can only walk with a walker and is housebound.

This gentleman was so good to the children and I when they were small. I was a guest of his mother and sister in Turkey for a month many years ago and this memory is very vivid in my mind to this day. I was so well treated by the whole family and accepted even though I was a foreigner to them. I will try and go and see him in Toronto.

Speaking of Toronto, our little visit of my work friends has been postponed for another week at least. I am somewhat disappointed.

Playing around with different colour backgrounds

It was great fun and I have to agree that it is nicer without the flash. Kevin said there is plenty of light in here to take pictures during the day without the flash. I think things are better now.



a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSzJlinzeZqm1xxS6zeT7JI9Gp-y3lqCOnQVXWM48xDiU2orGbSHmwzkqZEOpRoBJXoIrXVtAzvk7VbWVlPE6MqpB9pdaXni4Yf1ustQTZdQqhVT9UGXr5ceABmYN4plh5XyAZnia8-MQ/s1600/Kev's+shots+023.jpg">






My friend Kevin came over and he is an excellent photographer. He showed me how to block out the flash and put different coloured backgrounds and now my pictures are much better.

Here is a sample of some of them.

A sad day for my friend

Today it has been a grey day and one which brought some very sad news my way via e-mail from a Toronto friend.

Her beloved cat had to be put to sleep and she wants to talk to me tonight when she gets home from work. I will call her.

I know how much she and Karim have loved this cat. Karim and his Mom used to come and visit me on Gulliver and we used to spend quite a lot of time together. Both he and his Mom loved my 3 cats and even "borrowed" one for the weekend, if I am remembering correctly.

So many years have passed, I have moved away but we still remain friends and I am touched that in her time of need, she would reach out to me.

Parveen has visited me here in Hamilton as well.

I will call her brother Ikram and see if we can arrange for the three of them to come up here, even for the day. It may be a comfort to them.

I really feel their pain.

Birthday visit - Marg, Sonia and Rene 2010

In spite of the fact that the Caribana parade slowed their arrival a great deal, it turned out to be a good time after all.

We had planned to have a picnic at Bayfront Park but those plans had to be changed as the parade was heading down there.

Instead, we drove over to Gage Park and had coffee and cake there while the Festival of Friends was going on.

There were tons of people there, and I bumped into Anita and some of the gals who told me that they saw Jeff on the other side of the park.

Sonia and I looked at the stalls and she was very taken with the whole park. Margaret and Rene sat and visited while we did this.

They had to be back in Toronto by 5 p.m. so our time together was limited. We ended up at Swiss Chalet and we all enjoyed that very much!

It was 4:30 by the time they dropped me off at home so I doubt that they arrived in Toronto by 5 p.m.

Asma's visit August 5,2010

The picture with the drink was at Jackson's Square. The rest are at Pier 8.








What a wonderful time we had together. We have known each other since 1995 and have always gotten along so well. We are like sisters and her children are like my children. When I was still in Toronto, we used to get together quite often but now I live over an hour away.

I am so excited for her, she is going to make Hajj in November. She and two other members of her family are going together.

We went to the mall, went window shopping basically, then ate at the Afghani place in the Old Eaton's Center. Their food is always good and it is halal. They are such a lovely family and I have enjoyed their food ever since I came here. I wish them well as they are hard working people and most pleasant to deal with.

We had fun just looking around and then went on the shuffle bus down to Pier 8 where we had an ice cream cone and walked around abit.

The heat was too much so we sat in the shade and just chatted. We always seem to find things to chat about which is nice. Unfortunately, there is not a lot of shade at Pier 8 so it is difficult to stay down there for too long unless you bring your own chair and sit under a tree.

All in all, a lovely day.

A poem I wrote which was published recently

It was on the occasion of the Grand River Boat Tour, that I was moved to write a short poem. I really enjoyed the event. I wrote up the event for St. John's newsletter and included this poem. Hope it gives you the feel of that most enjoyable day on the Grand....



Flat boat glides along calm river
Gentle waves slap sides
Muddy brown water under bow
Flows by tree lined banks

Water lilies float on surface
Turtles sun on rocks exposed
Fish jump, making circles
On placid waterway

Roast beef dinner served
Home made bread & pie
Strolling fiddle player
Music while we dine

Farms and trailer parks
Dot the river banks
As the cruise boat
Moves along the Grand

The journey finally over
Well fed, contented people
Disembark and go their way
Back to where they came from.

Copyright(C)WilmaSeville 2010

Time Spent at Williams Pub - Pier 8

Rosie invited me for a birthday lunch at William Pub. Their food is really good there and not too expensive.

We sat on the patio and enjoyed ourselves, chit chatting and people watching. After that, we went walking and sat at various benches and tables as we went along.

A very lovely day spent with a good friend.