Rosh Hashana in a nutshell

I was by shluchim in New Jersey for Rosh Hashana. When the shlucha, Goldie Azimov, found out that I'm a 'journalist', she made a joke about how she would've been on her best behavior if she knew that I was gonna write about her. I wasn't even planning on it, but now that she mentioned it...

I had a very nice yom tov, thank G-d. I watched some kids, thankfully there weren't too many. I even had time to go into shul and daven. Now here is the part where I would lie to you and say, 'Wow, I had such a spiritual Rosh Hashana, I felt like I really connected to G-d, and I'm so refreshed and ready for a new year!' But I was never a good liar.

I didn't feel that spiritual. I actually felt quite sick. My allergies kicked in pretty bad, maybe from all that clear country air that I am not used to, being polluted with city air all the time. With each sneeze and blow of my nose, I felt like I was dying a little more. May that be all the punishment that G-d gives me this year.

I davened as much as I was able, said the tehillim twice, heard the shofer, did  tashlich, oh, and ya, we ate some.

Here's where my 'journalism' skills come in. Goldie was amazing. The first night we had a big meal, all the people that came to shul were invited to stay for the seudah. And both days there was a kiddush. The food just kept on appearing. I seriously peeked into the fridge to see where there was space for all that food, and it remained a mystery to me until I heard the magic words: bring this to the garage please. Aaah, the secret stash. A good lesson for home makers: always have a secret stash ready, whether in your basement, or garage. It'll keep food hidden that you want to remain hidden, and keep guests marveling at your organizational talents.

Goldie's kids are of course, gorgeous. I now have 6 new best friends. One of the little girls, Mussie, was confused when I said I was leaving after yom tov, as if she expected me to stay forever. I had a great time, and I was invited back for Shabbos. I just might make good on that offer.

I can't say that I'm looking forward to Yom Kipper. I wish we could skip it and go straight to the festivities of Sukkos. I wish I could invoke in myself more spiritual feelings then I have at the moment. Right now, I'm just thinking about the fast tomorrow, and what I'm gonna do to keep busy.

Well that's all for now folks. So, how was your Rosh Hashana?