Miscellaneous...and goodbye, home.

Sorry about that last post (for goodness' sake, I hope that I won't have to start off every post with an apology). But I do despise whining, especially from those who have nothing to whine about. And I don't.
This will probably be my last post until I'm back in New York (sigh...I can't help but count down the minutes, even though my father is not completely well yet. He's still not back at work, which, at least, has given me a great deal of quality time with him this week before I leave.)
So to end my string of I'm-trapped-at-home-in-the-California-suburbs-and-don't-know-what-to-do rants, I'll tell you that I'm reading an amazing book right now: The Ghost of Hannah Mendes, by Naomi Ragen. I am LOVING it, and saving the juiciest parts for Shabbos reading. It centers around a Jewish family from Spain who was extremely prominent and wealthy before the expulsion, and much of the book takes place during that period, which I find fascinating. I don't know why it hasn't gotten more press, but thanks to my Nana's best friend - whom you'll probably hear about again; she's the most considerate person I've ever met - I'll be adding anything else by this author to my Amazon wish list.
I'll share one more thing with you, in the spirit of Elul. Last year, even though I'm not nearly ready for shidduch dating, I ended up in touch with a boy by e-mail who, at first, I seemed to have quite a bit in common with. After realizing that it would never come to anything, our correspondences slowly faded away and I nearly forgot about it altogether. But just recently, I got an e-mail from him apologizing if he'd ever offended me or done anything to provoke me to stop responding. Now, this might not seem like anything, but being that I didn't grow up religious, I was so incredibly touched. I immediately apologized to him for not clarifying my feelings at the time, and could not have felt more liberated and at peace. In fact, I couldn't wait to ask for forgiveness from my family and friends this month. So, on that note, I encourage all of you to take the apologies you make in Elul very seriously and never underestimate how much meaning they may have for the receiver. You may just be the person who encourages them to apologize to someone they might never have thought of otherwise.

Goodbye, until New York!