First week 2014

Sunrise over the City

The asthma attacks after becoming worse these few nights. In fact it goes on 24 hours. Cannot breathe at all. But I don't want to use prednesone yet even though I know I must. It drains every bit of life ... hardly sleeping 2 hours a day. What a way to start the New Year.  The weather is still very cold despite the sun shining. The sunrises and sunsets are spectacular ... but not even that is helping my asthma.

Violence is growing by the day ... mainly by extremists on both sides of the political and racial world: jews and arabs attacking each other ... but we all know it's just positioning in the face of Peace Talks brokered by the US. Each side is trying to take the upper hand ... but as leaders of both sides agree ... violence will not lead to anything.

Exams are in the air. Students are slogging and the libraries suddenly are full of hardworking students who have never entered the library the past 6 months.

Christmas greetings are being exchanged formally between the various Church denominations - the Orthodox having just celebrated the feast a few days ago. This year the Armenians and Greeks didn't fight over the cleaning of the Nativity basilica in Bethlehem. That's probably because UNESCO has stepped in to restore the broken down basilica hence both denominations have suspended their traditional cleaning.