Stacked.

Now that we have confirmed that we are living within our means, we have splurged on gym memberships to round out my twice-shabbat runs. Twice a week we are getting up to go to the gym: The Chicken to the stair-master where he ironically climbs his way down to the seventh level of hell, and me to the pool.

The demographic at the pool at 7:30 am is an odd one. Apparently students can't afford gym memberships at the University so the patrons are mostly over the age of forty and many over sixty. Indeed, at the advanced age of thirty, I feel like a sprightly young thing next to the potato shaped women in floral bathing suits and hot pink latex swim caps. Their dedication to fitness is commendable and I look forward to swimming until I need two canes to get to the pool.

The reason for all this exercise is because since I came to Israel, I have gained a whopping 15 pounds. It is the pita I tell you! Curse it. And the Rugelach: this evil addictive croissante pastry thing that comes still warm from the bakeries oozing sweet warm chocolate.....

Although my butt keeps getting bigger, I sadly still look like a green bean that has spent too long on the plant: long, thin, with odd bumps. If I am going to gain weight from Israeli food, I want to have the benefits of an Israeli body: Israeli women are stacked. I am not really a connoisseur, and even I have noticed the large number of high quality racks around here. I bet you that if I went into the bra store, the only ones I would find in my size would have Disney characters on them. These are a genetically blessed people.

Even The Chicken has commented on this, not to be mean ('cause commenting on other women is a death trap for hubbies) but because it is hard not to notice. "Unfortunately," he noted "what comes up must come down. " Which brings me back to the potato shaped women in the gym... =)