This weekend!
on saturday: we had the synagogue ceremony at 9am and that went on for a good two hours (sssssssleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepppppp) and then we drove the Hyatt which is an upscale hotel in Toronto.
you're probably wondering; how did she get to the Hyatt from the synagogue?
actually, no you're probably not. but you'll wanna hear this anyway, maybe.
it was arranged that a stretch limo come and pick up the "kids" at the synagogue and bring them over to the hotel. after much hesitation and uncertainty, my mother managed to convince me to go in the limo with the 5 year old children. how very embarassing haha.
my second cousins came with me (aged 16 and 13) so it wasn't like i was lame all by myself, which helped. inside the limo it was pretty cramped, what with the children lounging with their DS' and chocolate milk, but i got to see the sites a little bit. there was a photographer in the limo too and i felt really bad when she took a few shots of me in and out of the limo, because i barely know the bar mitzvah boy and he'll look back at the pics later and be like who in FUCK is that in my limo?!
so we got to the Hyatt and had like hors d'oeuvres and crap for about an hour before heading to the rooftop for lunch. a really late lunch. it ended at around 4-5. so exhausting. i was sat with my mom and my uncle jimmy and his wife, but they made me move because jimmy's daughter wasnt feeling well so i gave up my spot so she could sit with her parents and i sat with my cousin michael at the table with the bar mitzvah boy's dad's COLLEAGUES.
honestly, the conversation went something like this...
me: so :) how are you guys related to the bar mitzvah boy?
one fo the couples at the table: oh, we work with Billy. i think all of us at this table have worked with him at some point or another :)
me: oh, hah, yeah.. nah i haven't
couple: ahahaha! good one
me: yeah.. ha...... ..
it was a fun day though, it's just that it dragged on for SO LONG! usually it's like a morning ceremony, we go home, and then there's dancing at nightbut this thing was weird we ended up being invited for drinks at the rooftop bar or whatever at the end of the lunch, but i was like falling asleep at my table, so i said screw it and went home with my great aunt and uncle, shirley and bob. they're the best people ever.
we got home and my other great aunt, norma, invited me over to her apartment for coffee. i went. its across the street from shirley's so it wasnt hard to get to her.
thing is, norma and my grandmother -- who was also there --, smoke like it's going out of style.
...which it is ;)
so when i lay down on her couch and subsequently fell asleep, i woke up with a massive headache and dry eyes from my contacts. good. times.
then my cousin erica called and invited me to hang out with her and her friends which was really nice!
we see each other maybe once every two years if there's ever a bar mitzvah in town haha
so i was nervous because we're obviously not that close and i didnt know her friends.
i decided to go despite my insaane fatigue
so i got changed and wet my contacts and bob gave me the keys to his house in case we came home late, and then i got picked up by erica and her friends.
i expected to be out on the town, maybe try to get into a few bars. i didnt know what to expect
but we ended up just going to her house and watching Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist with pumpkin ice-cream, haha!
they asked me a lot about my school system and asked me if it was true that anybody could get into clubs in montreal. it was a nice night.
on sunday: me and my mom were invited to a fancy brunch somewhere as a continuation of the bar mitzvah festivities.
then we went down to an LCBO (ontario liquor commission) with my great aunts to protest against people boycotting Isreali wine.
it was so crazy. there were so many people around the store with Isreali and Canadian flags, waving them around and singing. and then me and the aunties ran into the store in a frantic search for the section where they were selling the wine.
shirley got to it first and managed to get the two last reasonably priced bottles of isreali wine before it sold out. SOLD OUT.
see, what had happened was that apparently the rabbis at everyone's synagogues all over toronto had told their congregations about the boycott of isreali wine and asked everyone to go out to the LCBO on Yonge street and buy as many bottles as they could
so we sold out the store! and then after that, everyone was all leaving the store and i could overhear people going "omg they sold out? they sold OUT? thats amazing!" "i know right?! this is bringing a tear to my eye, i cant believe everyone just came together like this" it was cool.
so eventually there were more protestors than boycotters and the police had to escort the boycotters out of the area because they were being overpowered (everyone was shouting SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!).
as they were being led out of the parking lot, me and every other jew who was for Isreal started singing "NAH NAH NAH NAH, NAH NAH NAH NAH, HEY HEY HEY GOODBYE."
i had a good time :)
but then my auntie norma had to explain to me what the hell the boycott was about when we got in the car, because i had no idea what had just happened hahah
on the train home, there was a little girl (about 6 years old) sitting in the seat in front of me and my mom. i'd fallen asleep about 2 minutes after the train started moving.
when i awoke, my mom told me the little girl had turned to see me and said "is that your daughter? she's so pretty.. how old is she?"
mom: she's seventeen :)
girl: wow, a teenager!
i can't believe that happened. i was both flattered and amazed by her mature manner.
so i got home after, had mcd's for supper, got an e-mail from schryschry saying that i was no longer Uzbekistan in the UN and i would be co-head delegate of the US with Jesse D., and then i went to schleeeeeeep.
what an interesting turn of events in UN matters...
i foresee much stress and pain in the coming weeks.
GD TIMESS!!!
