My visit to the Egel Nest

(Pictured: Back Row - Bradley Egel, his brother-in-law, Tom;

Middle Row: Bradley's Beautiful Wife, his Sister Sue, ME!;

Front Row: Sammy Egel, and Bradley's nephew, Zach)

Those of you who have visited Bradley Egel's blog, "The Egel Nest," have gotten to know him, the Beautiful Wife, and their WONDERFUL son, Sammy. (And if you haven't visited yet, please be sure to drop by - it's one of the most entertaining blogs out there!).

Well, it turns out that Bradley is an old OSRUI camp friend of mine, and I was able to visit him and his family while I was in Chicago. Bradley's sister, Sue, is also an old camp friend, and she wound up marrying a high school friend of mine (such a small world!!). They have a baby, Zach, and the seven of us had a blast.

You can visit his post about our visit (titled "Marci...Boku," isn't that great?!?!) and also take some time to tour his blog.

(As a P.S., I really wanted to visit another friend, in the real world and blog world, Phyllis, but she was out of town at a camp retreat at OSRUI, with my brother. Next time, Phyllis!)

Wordless Wednesday

Photo from my recent trip home:

The Rose Garden at Chicago Botanic Gardens

You can find more Wordless Wednesday posts, and learn how to participate, here!

Missed you all!

Well, it has been a long time since my last post, and there are lots to catch up on. I will try my best, over my next few posts, to bring you up to date. A few highlights:

- Vacation! I took a fantastic trip to Arizona (you may remember my trip last year at this same time) and then home, to Chicago.

- Move to Queens! Yes, this Jersey girl is now a resident of the five boroughs once again. NYC, how I missed you!

- High Holy Day prep! Yes, the superbowl of the Jewish calendar, the High Holy Days, are coming up at the end of September. And our staff preparations have already begun. Wow!

More to come :) Hope all is well with you!!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Where Should Divas Live? Why, Queens, Of Course!

Just an update - gonna be leaving Jersey, and moving back into NYC. A number of events have precipitated this decision, and all signs seem to be pointing to ---> GO!

How exciting is that? I will be moving back in with my sister, which will be SO MUCH FUN! We'll save so much money in the process, and be New York girls once again (though, NOT Manhattan - phew!).

Of course, the number one item on the list? Register to vote - we MUST be a part of the November election!!!

A few weeks remain before the move, so I will keep you up to date on my whereabouts. Also, I get to take a nice vacation beforehand.

Sore Today....

Hi, guys! Just taking a moment to admit that I am feeling achy today. I totally know why, but it is still annoying. I am SO READY to be feeling all better, and thus, it can get a little depressing when I am not back to 100%.

The beds at the retreat (at Franklin Pierce) were SO AWFUL. I hadn't thought ahead about sleeping arrangements, so I didn't anticipate it being a problem. However, it was the worst that college beds can be, and my sensitive, post-surgery back couldn't take it. I slept, at most, 4 hours a night. I am still tired, and that only makes the ache worse.

Also, I drove 4.5 hours each way. Yes, I stopped a few times along the way, but my body is not quite at the point where it doesn't react to that amount of sitting in one place.

Finally, I have total PMS right now, and I have learned over the past few months that my pain gets worse at this time of the month.

Thanks for listening. I'm off to take some ibuprofen and ponder getting a massage a little later this evening. Hope all is well with you!!!

Life's Simple Pleasures

Hello from beautiful Rindge, NH! I am currently at Franklin Pierce University, and it is glorious here. I was asked to be on faculty for a national Jewish adult learning retreat, thus I am surrounded by enthusiastic, intelligent adults who have an excitement for Jewish learning, exploring and studying.

But, between classes (I am teaching "Guided Jewish Meditation" and "Israeli Women Poets"), I have been enjoying the nature that is ever-present here.


The lake on campus was an incredible blue yesterday - can you believe how vivid it is??



One of my most favorite joys in life? Waiting on the road while a family of geese walks slowly by. I love being able to take my time, watching their slow meandering, appreciating the pace at which the geese must live.



Some of the woods near the townhouse I am staying in.... the parallel lines calm me....