July 25

Friday afternoon

Tel Aviv

Last night’s optimism has diminished. Search for tunnels continues under fire. 42 so far. How many more are there? 33 dead soldiers, the latest a reservist, married, father of 3. How many more will there be? There are 8 gravely wounded reported today. A friend’s nephew was sent back to Tel Aviv with a torn ligament, which happened when he was operating a Caterpillar earth mover. Bet he never thought he'd do that in the army. Soldiers meld with the Army Corps of Engineers in this war. Today’s injuries happened in a tunnel dug deep inside a private house that was itself half built under ground to accommodate it. A private house.

Bombs been bounding over central and southern Israel since daylight. Man was wounded in the middle of Tel Aviv, as Hamas, alias Lucky Strikes, still hopes to hit a jackpot. Meanwhile the IDF instructs combat soldiers, and deploys  its “Iron Chief,” to contain civilian damage, on both sides. If it is a lopsided war, it is in this sense mostly.

Israeli Homeland Security goes over Red Alert Siren protocol on the radio. Signs pointing out shelters have proliferated. Electronic traffic scrolls over highways reporting traffic jams have added an extra scroll to remind drivers what to do if (when…) a siren sounds while you are driving. If an incoming bomb screeches toward you from the sky, being in a car feels the most vulnerable, trapped in a tin can, and being at the beach gives you the best view of both the rocket and the (hopefully) Iron Chief intercept, but beaches always have the best views.‘Where were you when the siren went off’ is a running source of jokes by now, joined by a widely shared video skit of a terrorist who pops out of a tunnel to ask a Jew for directions and is told to dig a U-turn and make a right. This has been going on long enough to make war humor video skits.

Bought 2 loaf cakes and a sleeve of macaroons from Rolladin Bakery to bring to Shabbat dinner. Still have to make a fruit salad. Hey, you gotta eat.