Don't fall off your stool or anything
I haven't died or been abducted by aliens. I have however been relatively busy of late.
What a lot has happened since I last felt the irresistable compulsion to have a "dear diary" moment. I had a birthday (the not-so-big-30) and a party, but that's not important right now. At book group on my birthday (yes, I live the high life) the rabbi said he thought that three of us would be ready to "go" in July. Obviously I looked around to see who else he could have been pointing at when he mistakenly waved in my direction, but he definitely meant me.
So I spent the rest of my 30th birthday in a state of orange-alert. My birthday is the back end of April, for those that didn't know, so I will have had roughly 2.5 months to prepare myself by the time the big day arrives. When I stoppped running around like the proverbial chicken sans head, I actually felt rather proud of myself. I know pride isn't good, but July is a while before my wedding - enough in advance that I can properly prepare and enjoy both the conversion and the wedding as separate events. Hopefuly for others too, the events will not run together and forever be associated the one with the other.
Now I have to write an essay for my conversion, it has to be read by the Beth Din (rabbinical court of three rabbis who examine you) before you turn up for the examination/ interview. It is only 1,500 - 2,000 words long, which seems absurdly short. I don't think I've ever written an essay that short before in my life.
I am writing my essay on Jewish eschatology and have found it to be an incredibly interesting and (dammit) widely written-on topic. I wrote some essays on death at undergraduate level, so I know I like researching the subject. The thing is, through the conversion process you never actually learn about death. It's not seen as important; or at least not as important as living this life well. So I'm going to write my essay on something that I've not studied before. Go, me.
And have you guessed why I'm blogging today, oh reader dearest? Well, I procrastinate. At university I had my inter-galactic colours, and represented the Milky Way (second team only, I had a headache during the trials), I was that good at it. I spent months not writing essays, then weeks doing nothing but. I'm serious here - no sleeping, no eating.... Anyway, you would have thought that I'd learn from the experience, but I'm nothing if not stubborn. And pig-headed (or is that the same thing?). And competitive.
But I digress. Anyway, at law school I managed to procrastinate so well that at the end of the course (two years) I had appled for about six training contracts. I know it was six because I can remember the firms I applied to. Those with the shortest appplication forms. Even having a boyfriend who was a trainee at a top ten firm, sat on the trainee solicitors' group, and shared a room with a training partner (and who would occasionally call me with some good answers to questions that he'd found in the pile of applications on his boss's desk) didn't induce me to apply to his firm. I spent two years doing anything but securing my future.
This time, however, this time, it will be different (to misquote). My essay is due 1 July. I go before the Beth Din in mid July. I did all of the reading for my essay (well, all I'm going to do) ahead of schedule, and want to have the first draft of the beast ready to go on Sunday. I'll then ignore it until Thursday. At that point I'll pull it out, tweak it a bit and send it over on Friday (can't send it Saturday - it's Shabbat!). I will then become a picture of serenity, inner-poise and calm as I look forward to my meeting with the Beth Din.
Sorted. Now if you'll excuse my I've got to go paint my fingernails, my toenails, pluck my eyebrows, go to waitrose, nip to Selfridges, cook lunch, and then I might just have time to do some of this essay before Shabbat comes in. Or not. Who knows. I, the Procrastinatrix, have struck again.
What a lot has happened since I last felt the irresistable compulsion to have a "dear diary" moment. I had a birthday (the not-so-big-30) and a party, but that's not important right now. At book group on my birthday (yes, I live the high life) the rabbi said he thought that three of us would be ready to "go" in July. Obviously I looked around to see who else he could have been pointing at when he mistakenly waved in my direction, but he definitely meant me.
So I spent the rest of my 30th birthday in a state of orange-alert. My birthday is the back end of April, for those that didn't know, so I will have had roughly 2.5 months to prepare myself by the time the big day arrives. When I stoppped running around like the proverbial chicken sans head, I actually felt rather proud of myself. I know pride isn't good, but July is a while before my wedding - enough in advance that I can properly prepare and enjoy both the conversion and the wedding as separate events. Hopefuly for others too, the events will not run together and forever be associated the one with the other.
Now I have to write an essay for my conversion, it has to be read by the Beth Din (rabbinical court of three rabbis who examine you) before you turn up for the examination/ interview. It is only 1,500 - 2,000 words long, which seems absurdly short. I don't think I've ever written an essay that short before in my life.
I am writing my essay on Jewish eschatology and have found it to be an incredibly interesting and (dammit) widely written-on topic. I wrote some essays on death at undergraduate level, so I know I like researching the subject. The thing is, through the conversion process you never actually learn about death. It's not seen as important; or at least not as important as living this life well. So I'm going to write my essay on something that I've not studied before. Go, me.
And have you guessed why I'm blogging today, oh reader dearest? Well, I procrastinate. At university I had my inter-galactic colours, and represented the Milky Way (second team only, I had a headache during the trials), I was that good at it. I spent months not writing essays, then weeks doing nothing but. I'm serious here - no sleeping, no eating.... Anyway, you would have thought that I'd learn from the experience, but I'm nothing if not stubborn. And pig-headed (or is that the same thing?). And competitive.
But I digress. Anyway, at law school I managed to procrastinate so well that at the end of the course (two years) I had appled for about six training contracts. I know it was six because I can remember the firms I applied to. Those with the shortest appplication forms. Even having a boyfriend who was a trainee at a top ten firm, sat on the trainee solicitors' group, and shared a room with a training partner (and who would occasionally call me with some good answers to questions that he'd found in the pile of applications on his boss's desk) didn't induce me to apply to his firm. I spent two years doing anything but securing my future.
This time, however, this time, it will be different (to misquote). My essay is due 1 July. I go before the Beth Din in mid July. I did all of the reading for my essay (well, all I'm going to do) ahead of schedule, and want to have the first draft of the beast ready to go on Sunday. I'll then ignore it until Thursday. At that point I'll pull it out, tweak it a bit and send it over on Friday (can't send it Saturday - it's Shabbat!). I will then become a picture of serenity, inner-poise and calm as I look forward to my meeting with the Beth Din.
Sorted. Now if you'll excuse my I've got to go paint my fingernails, my toenails, pluck my eyebrows, go to waitrose, nip to Selfridges, cook lunch, and then I might just have time to do some of this essay before Shabbat comes in. Or not. Who knows. I, the Procrastinatrix, have struck again.
posted by Chaya at 2:08 pm
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