Noodles

 Last post I said I should be going to my medical appointment ... but with my memory ... it was scheduled 3 days ago and I forgot. Now I'll have to request another appointment and wait for a month or so. 

Wonton soup noodles

A friend - a visiting researcher from Italy who once studied at my school - came to visit me today. He's a medical doctor who's now researching on tumours. He said my lapses of memory and other reactions are the result of the prednisone that I'm still taking once every 3 days. I wish I could stop taking it but my breathing is in bad shape. Anyway we had a few hours of catching up, had a chinese meal at Mandarin's where I have not been for a long time. I asked for wonton soup noodles which is not on the menu, and Ah Ling the owner obliged. It was good to eat a bowl of hot noodles again.

I'm just feeling generally unwell with this strange illness, and people are asking me to rest and stop work. Maybe I should. And retire altogether.

Needs

Food packs

My cough is not over ... after 2 months. I might just have to start a course of antibiotics. But maybe I should see my doctor first. I think I'm scheduled for my bi-monthly consultation next week. I sprained my upper back yesterday because my backpack was too heavy. There's a dull pain on my back and right side. I can't lift my right arm. And I'm getting headaches and nausea all day. I don't know how careful I must be nowadays to avoid getting injured. It's not something you think about when you're young.

That means also buying a new pair of shoes. The change of weather means wet ground caused by dew. It's very slippery and I slipped twice already on my way to work as I'm wearing only a pair of loafers. It's scary especially when I have to carry heavy bags. The filipino community gave me a new pair when they saw my walking shoes had holes in them. However I gave both pairs away to needy persons. So now I'll have to get a new pair. Looking for sponsors.

Feeding displaced and
injured people

Our friars in Lebanon are providing food packs, hot meals and medicine to thousands of displaced people during this war. Our own friars in the south are displaced. Both churches and friaries are damaged and abandoned. The 65 families that we care for have moved up north with our friars, sheltering in our other friaries. Please do something meaningful this Christmas and share your blessings with our unfortunate catholics in our care. As M. Teresa said "Do something beautiful for God"

All Souls

Fr. Joel helping me

I went to the cemetery this morning to clean and bless the tombs of friends.  The place is on the southern slopes of the City, with lots of stairs that I find difficult to climb. Just walking there 1km away tires mw. I can't bend to clean the tombs, though I brought a bottle of water and a brush with me.

Luckily Fr. Joel one of or PhD students offered to join me, like he did last year. He washed the tomb of our Chinese friend buried there and I laid out flowers. Then we went through the cemetery blessing the tombs of Armenian catholics. I used an umbrella to help me walk and climb the steep stairs and I was very tired after 2 hours. 

Schindler's tomb

Oscar Schindler's tomb is still there with many memorial stones placed by Jews. Some are descendants of the Jews he saved. I blessed the tomb and sprinkled holy water on it.

On the way home we stopped at the Anglican coffee shop to rest. I'm not sure if next year I'll be able to do this again. My legs are all jelly and my back hurts a lot. And I'm nauseous from the strain. We'll see about next year ....

Rexy

Rexy trimmed

My cold doesn't seem to be going away. I'm getting fainting spells each time I cough ... just like the onset of angina that I've experienced many times before. The whole body wobbles, the head is spinning and like a deep sleep I close my eyes and blackout. It's very calming though. There's total silence. Everything around doesn't exist. I wonder if death is like this.

Anyway everyone is worried about me going out alone because I might blackout and hurt myself or I might lose my memory and get lost. Everyone tells me to call back when I reach my destination so they'll be assured. I'm lucky to have people who care for me.

After my disclaimer last Sunday, viewership dropped  from 1800 to 40 ... which is normal. 

Doberman on walk

There's an article about our friars and nuns in Galilee who've decided to stay in their churches and with their local communities while missiles from Lebanon continue to rain down on them. It's a nice read about the daily heroism and commitment to their mission.  https://www.custodia.org/en/news/galilee-the-fraternity-that-defeats-fear/

Rexy the Pomeranian came for an afternoon last Saturday. It's always good to have him around ... he just wants to play till he's tired. High energy. Some mornings on my way to work I meet a doberman on his morning walk. He's about 3-4 years old. Docked tail and cropped ears ... not what many people nowadays agree ... but here we're decades behind the animal rights scene. I miss my dogs Rex and Regis. It's almost 15 years since they died.

Cold

Sunrise colours

Friday night was the coldest on record for October in 33 years ... down to about 12 degrees. I had to wear a pullover and had my duvet tightly wrapped around me. Last night too was chilly but not as cold. We're just hoping it'll rain as we need water very much in a very dry year. Daytime is a nice 26 degrees and very sunny, and there's a cool breeze that require people to wear a light jacket or hoodie.

There were 1791 viewers yesterday and 1400+ the day before. Scary. There're no political intentions in my blog. I simply record a chronicle of happenings here for people who used to live here, or those interested in what's happening in a normal day here; a chronicle of my journey - footsteps. It's a way to keep in contact. Disclaimer.

Early morning tram

Back to chronicling. The sunrise colours in the sky are incredible. Hues of purple, pink and yellow. Evenings are less spectacular. These signal the change of the seasons. And like every change, virus abound. I'm still down with oral blisters and sores, a runny nose, fever, sore throat ... and I've met many people with the same illness. There's nothing much we can do. Just ride it out.

My memory is not getting better. The sisters of Ivrea gave me a big bag of assorted cheese which I ate some for breakfast yesterday. But this morning I cannot find it. Vanished ... at least from my memory.

Memory lost

Morning 

 I'm down with a severe cold, with fever and cold sores and tiredness. But worst is the phlegm that chokes the entire nasal and lung passages. And I'm not the only one. Many others have it too. People are saying there's a virus in the air. Perhaps. But I can't see the doctor these days because it's the end of the Jewish feast of Sukkot. That means offices are closed, in fact everything closes like on Sabbath. When they reopen tomorrow, it's the muslim Friday so my clinic in the arab side of the City will also be closed. After that is the Jewish Sabbath and then the christian Sunday. I'll only be able to see the doctor next Monday.

As it's a national feast day, the borders are also closed so our workers from the Territories cannot to Israel to work. That means I have to stay in the office to make sure work continues. Being sick at the same time makes work a little more difficult. 

Morning tram

My memory has been worse lately. On Monday I came to work but forgot to carry my backpack with me. It's over 3 kg. After half a day in the office, I realised I didn't have my backpack with all my documents, medicines and telephone. After frantically searching for it, I called home and was told I left it on the terrace when I went out to water the flowers early in the morning. The next day I went home but forgot my wallet in the office. Yesterday I went to the pharmacy but forgot why I went there. And when I got home, to my horror, I realised I locked JJ and Dudu in the toilet all day without water or food. I forgot to let them out when I left for work in the morning. The poor birds were very quiet but hungry and thirsty after 12 hours. Poor things ate a lot when they came out, and both slept with me all night as they didn't want to leave me. This is getting serious. I must see the doctor about it. It may be the start of dementia.

Weekend

Seemingly calm Tel Aviv

The clouds of war still loom over us. Fighter jets roared over our house at 3.30am last week, shaking our windows and waking us up. Tel Aviv looks calm, with beach-goers taking up the last warm sunshine before winter comes. But there is no denying that the residents in this iconic care-free city are nervous of another drone or terrorist attack. I saw videos from our northern churches, of missiles flying overhead and surrounding fields and lands bombed and on fire.

It's still taking time for the demise of our friends last week to sink in. It's so easy to preach about getting over and moving on, but the reality is a lot harder. 

I'm down with a cold or an infection that's making me cough, chest pains and fever. I was caught in a cold draft while walking home 3 nights ago, wearing only a T shirt. Since then I've had a runny nose and all the symptoms above. Lost my voice too. I'll see my doctor tomorrow if it continues. 

Netanya community

Despite my illness, I went to Tel Aviv yesterday for the Chinese Mass, then to Netanya for the Filipino Mass in the evening. It's well over a 100km away and with the traffic, the traveling time was lengthened to almost 2 hours each way. I came home only at 10.30pm and was totally exhausted. The medicine for cold makes me very drowsy. Anyway it's been many years since I last celebrated Mass for the filipino community in Netanya. Many old faces are no longer there. It's a relatively new community of migrant workers. But the choir master is still the same. We spent some time catching up. It was good.