Haivrit-She was 20

What an awful way to start the weekend. When I first heard that there was a fire in the Carmel I felt sad because the Carmel is (or more exactly was) one of my favorite places to hike. Especially in the area near the university which was called "Little Switzerland". Not to mention my fond horseback memories from Beit Oren. But I also thought that this was just an unfortunate fire, like the one that was in Ramat HaGolan a few months ago. I sadly learned that wasn't just a small fire that got a bit out of hand- it was much much worse. We are such a small country that no doubt that even people in Eilat feel complete sympathy for the citizens in the North. It seems that we are all praying for some kind of Hannukah miracle and for the rain, which has decided to appear more than fashionably late this year, to suddenly come pouring down. One of my friends posted on facebook that he remembers how two years ago his unit made a tee shirt (they have a habit of making tee shirts for almost any occasion) after Oferet which read "the menorah wasn't the only thing on fire last Hannukah". Sadly, this is very true, in a very different way, this year. Last night I went to a friend's birthday party and we had a great time. Because no matter how sad things seem to be, life has to go on. We learned that when we were teens during the second Intifadah. Actually we probably learned it much earlier from our parents. Of course, we talked about the fire. You can't ignore what happens. But we made jokes, in our own cynical way. For example, we joked that like neighboring countries are helping out by bringing water (even Turkey, much to our shock), Iran will probably come with helicopters pouring oil. Silly stuff like that. Which brings me to this week's song. HaIvrit (the Hebrew) is an alternative rock band that mainly achieved success from their single "Mesibat Cita" (Class Party). Although they have other really good songs they didn't quite make the galgaltz playlist like Mesibat Cita. I personally felt that the band had a great sound which was so refreshing considering what else was out there. Now they have a new album and released the first single off it "She was 20". This a great song-fluffy in its contents with the main emphasize on the music. It also seems to me to be a very Tel Avivish song although I can't exactly explain how. Perfect for a bit of escapism from nonstop news about deaths and fires and possible intention and all that stuff. We 20ish year olds need this escapism to just hear a song with good music -nothing too sad or thoughtful -and be able to enjoy it. Of course I'm still devasted about the fire and no doubt will check on updates from the news, and more importantly from friends and family in the north, but it doesn't hurt to "chill" for 3 minutes listening to this song.

The girl you knew/I already tried to hide
I delayed in the office/ carpets from wall to wall
I didn’t intend to meet you/the door is locked
The sounds you heard there/are not because of her

How could I tell you
How could I tell you

When we drove to Zichron/I wanted to come back
And I thought on the way/of the trick with the tongue
She was only 20
I felt like a soldier/staying at the base with the weapon in his hand

How could I tell you
How could I tell you

http://www.myspace.com/haivrit

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/12/03/israel.forest.fires/index.html