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Things I Like on a Winter Day

On this wintry day in New Jersey, when looking out at our car with the snow concealing all its flaws, I have to admit it. I love to be indoors on a snowy day. I don’t want to be on the ski slopes or the frozen ponds. I don’t want to be the one entrusted with the shovels to scrape the driveway clean. I don’t want the bulky clothes and heavy boots that the weather demands. I like being just where I am, a good book at my side,  my husband downstairs puttering, and Netflix available whenever I choose, with the very best in Israeli shows like the one we can’t stop watching now When Heroes Fly.  

I like a fresh pot of chicken soup, laden with vegetables and some fluffy kneidlach.  Soup is winter’s most delicious accompaniment and I’ve got some simmering away.

I like a cozy blanket and a comfy couch, my preferred place to hibernate when the outdoors are frigid. On a balmy day a nap feels decadent. But not on a day like today. No guilt whatsoever.

When we are in Herzliya we actually miss days like this.  The heavy rains are not as addictive, and not nearly as beautiful, as the carpet of snow. We do our outdoor chores because rain is a minor deterrent.  It doesn’t yell STOP like a serious snowfall.

But, then again, conversely, that’s strangely one of the things I love about Israel, especially Herzliya.  It’s an all weather country.  There are hardly ever days when you must stay in.  Even now, when our winter prayers for mashiv ha ruach o yorid ha geshem are answered in the affirmative so often, we rejoice in the needed rain and go about our business. Summer is another story! Hot but air conditioned.

And so we go and do our scheduled events in Herzliya. Who would miss the 10 NIS movie price on Tuesday (at least 10 NIS for the ancients like us) because of some rain and wind. Not I. And these recent years movies in Israel are multiplexes showing the same flicks as in New Jersey.  Welcome to the 21st century.

The pot of soup is less tempting in Israel, reserved for Erev Shabbat.  Eating out beckons even on the rainiest of days. That’s what we like to do on a wintry day.  Our favorite dining spot is Kibbutz Glil Yam, less than 5 minutes from our home,  in central Herzliya,  where the rustic decor and enormous  amounts of  delicious cheap kosher food make us feel like kibbutzniks, minus the clearing of malarial swamps.  It’s strictly self serve and self cleanup but the masterful cooking is generated by  the staff and they know very well what to do.  Visit on a Friday morning and you will believe that all of Israel is there shopping for take-out.  Hordes or mobs or crowds, whichever word you prefer. The weekday hours are lunch only so if you’ve never been, give it a try.  Just don’t put on any fancy duds!

But now we are recovering from jetlag in snowy New Jersey and I like to think that I like where I am, wherever I am. I like a snowy day in New Jersey! Or a rainy day in Israel!

About the Author
Rosanne Skopp is a wife, mother of four, grandmother of fourteen, and great-grandmother of three. She is a graduate of Rutgers University and travels back and forth between homes in New Jersey and Israel. She is currently writing a family history.