Fire!

It was bad enough when the water stopped running right before the Sabbath.  I was about to put on the slow cooker a dish called Hamin, which takes overnight to cook, and consists of everything basically - meat, chicken, beans, potatoes, stuffing, barley, and seasoned either sweet or salty or middle eastern.  The water shut off just as I was about to wash a bunch of scallions.  I was horrified.  I ended up washing the scallions in a pot full of water that had cooked the artichokes.  I felt good.  I was recycling.  The neighbors kept on going onto the roof to see if they could fix the water thing (whatever it's called), while the rain was pouring down at the same time.  For a few minutes they were successful and then --- no water from the taps.  Again.  We thought of a weekend with toilets full of shit and family members in sore need of a shower.

"I have my PERIOD!!" shouted one of my daughters during the meal.

"What's a period?" asked my bright 18 year old son.  He had no idea what that word meant in English.

"YOU tell him" I ordered my son-in-law.

But before our meal, while this water shortage thing was going on, I had smelled smoke coming from the air vents.  I panicked because Hubby was over at my married daughter's house in Jerusalem and called the fire department.  Two men came into the house, looking like professional ...ghostbusters or whatever.  Oxygen tanks on their backs, contraptions which measure or find the source of the smoke.  The odor was quite strong.  They were with me in the apartment for a good 20 minutes.  Then I lift up one of my pots that was on the stove and see a little rattan coaster sticking to the bottom of the pot.  It was burnt to a crisp.  I found the culprit and I felt so stupid. 

The firemen looked at me and smiled.  They must go through this often, I thought (perhaps others would be as mindless as myself).

Meanwhile, Hubby returned as the men were leaving.  He didn't care if the house was burning - he was just thrilled to be able to eat on paper plates, as his dishwashing duties was temporarily suspended.