à la carte spirit by ilona fried
ilona fried
Cents and Sensible Shoes
The horrifying collapse of the building in Bangladesh was on my mind when I went on another shoe expedition this weekend. With Denver temperatures reaching the 80s, I wondered if I’d have to imprison my toes all summer in lace-ups that accommodate my boat-sized, white orthotics. Since Colorado might as well be called Flip-flopistan (some … Continue reading
Knitting Ain’t for Sissies…or Bullies
I just finished a keyhole scarf I started knitting a few months ago. I’m exhausted, not exhilarated. After several frustrating beginnings, described here, I hit a groove. Or so I thought. More than halfway through the project, I surveyed my work and discovered many glaring mistakes. Not only that, the design I modified to accommodate … Continue reading
I am a Bostonian
If one believes that birth city determines identity, then I am a Bostonian. The Boston Marathon seems to have always had a large local footprint. Even in suburbs far from the start or the finish line, runners and joggers were as common as spring crocuses. In the hilly Lexington neighborhood where I grew up decades … Continue reading
Ponderings: Passover in Two Places
I spent Passover’s first half in Israel. The day of the Seder, I traveled by bus to Jerusalem’s Malcha Mall with my oldest niece. She was meeting a friend, and I was on the hunt for comfortable shoes. At the entrance we went our separate ways. While I failed to find footwear, I wandered around, … Continue reading
Jerusalem from the Inside of a Pool
My Zen teacher likes to say, “How we do anything is how we do everything.” If the same can be said of a society, would the workings of a single pool reflect the culture at large? Last week I loosely considered this question while swimming almost every day at the Jerusalem Pool (it was closed … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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