The Laughlins

My friend, Sara, had her birthday last week. We went to a good Latin restaurant called La Boca in the German Colony. Here is what the owner and chef has to say about the cuisine: "We have collected the leading local delicacies from every country in Latin America and adapted them to suit the Israeli palate. For example 'Sabiche,' the national dish in Peru, is less sour at La Boca than in the streets of Lima and Cuzco. Indeed, this dish has been getting compliments since the day we opened."

So there you have it. I got a chicken fajita, and Mark got a chicken salad. Luke and Sarah (the only married couple our age here) came (baseball cap boy and cream jacket girl), Philip (has every class with Mark - Russian imigrant to America: gray shirt), David and Ambrey (cute couple in black looking at their camera), Sara (the star of the night in the maroon sweater), and John and his wife (ah...I forgot her name right now! John is an elder at our church with an Australian accent...older couple at the table). Anyways, we had a good time, however I ended up with bizarre hives that itched like crazy by the time I got home. I must have been allergic to something! I found an anti-histamine, and it took about 36 hours for the rash to go away, so hopefully it is gone for good now.

In other news, Mark has been doing well in his classes. He has been in his M.A. classes for almost a month now. He is taking Biblical Hebrew, Aramaic, Modern Hebrew, Archaeology of Jerusalem (with Barkay), Jeremiah, and an every other week Bibliography class. He is enjoying all of the classes, although the Modern Hebrew requirement can feel more like a nuisance when you have the other core classes for your degree that you really want to invest time in. He keeps office hours at the library and definitely feels like this is the program for him.

I am taking Modern Hebrew twice a week though a city ulpan class and enjoying it as well. After such an intense summer, I feel like this ulpan is at a snail's pace, but that just means I have to work more at home to challenge myself. I have class on my birthday this Wednesday, but I am still going :) My teacher is 27 too :)

I just "interviewed" yesterday for a private English tutoring job for a high school girl. It will be three days a week, and she seems like a very nice girl :) I am also tutoring a Korean lady from our church once a week for an hour, so a little here and a little there.

I am coordinating a Thanksgiving party right now for 20-30 college-aged students, so everyone is excited about that. Mark is going to do the turkey :) It should be a lot of fun - we are planning on a lot of fun anyways. It will be hosted at another family's house (because they have more space than us).

That's it for now. I am working hard on a "secret project" for Christmas as well, so I am staying busy.