First Wiener Pigs Post

Hello,

I'm new to blogging. My husband and I just received our invitation to make a Baha'i Pilgrimage to Haifa, Israel. After nearly thirty years married previously [until the end of 2004] to a gentleman who was not a Baha'i, not interested in it, and fairly controlling of the purse strings, this is my first opportunity to get on the waiting list to go on Pilgrimage. One of the first things I did the year we divorced was to sign up. [The first thing Allan said to initiate the "I'm leaving you" conversation was to say, "I don't want to go to Haifa, I don't want to give money to the Baha'is, I don't want to be a Baha'i . . . " and I'm saying, "Hokaaay."] Best thing I did this time was marry a Baha'i, a stubborn Iranian vegetarian, or, is it, vegetarian Iranian. So the way this works is that in a few years, in this case, about three or four years, your name comes up and they offer you a set of multiple dates. The one you choose is the one for which they invite you. "They" being the office of Pilgrimage at the Baha'i World Center in Haifa, Israel.

So, Panic. I had a multitude of questions: where to stay, how long does it take to fly there, how much does it cost, will they let me have the time off of work. I assumed that they would present a list of dates about a year from now, but the first dates were in December 2008. So we picked February 2 to 10, 2009: the time includes my birthday. I can't think of a better time or way to spend my birthday.

There are a lot of people that don't actually celebrate their birthdays, on the theory that they aren't all that important as individuals. I like to, as long as I don't get spanked.

Making airline reservations puts me in high stress. I'm afraid I'll goof up. Last year I got the idea of signing up for a tour of the temple in Wilmette, and bought a ticket from American Airlines. The tour was canceled and I got stuck for the price of the ticket. Anyhow, we just made reservations last night, phoning the outfit on the Web after making a lot of flight comparisons and wrangling about how much time to spend fooling around in Israel prior to arriving in Haifa for the Pilgrimage. The Office of Pilgrimage does not wish us to visit Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Jericho, the West Bank, for reasons of safety. So far my Christian acquaintances are dismayed I won't be visiting the places Christ walked [unless He walked around the Haifa or Carmel area.]

I will, however, be visiting the places where Baha'u'llah walked, which is the point.

I guess this is probably about the right length for an entry. Leave 'em wanting more. Also, it smells as if the lentil soup is about done.