Hello Hello to everyone!
Long time no blog! Hope you are all doing well. I haven’t written in some time, not because I completely forgot about the blog (on the contrary - I kept telling myself that *this* Shabbat I’ll write an entry) – but somehow I just never felt like I had anything significant to write. It’s not that my life is boring here, it’s just that I’ve finally settled down a bit. It took about 5 months or so, but I’ve got a little routine going. I work full time, have started running again (am running a 10k race in 6 days), am taking Hebrew lessons twice a week, going to our weekly seminars, and trying to have fun here and there when I can. It isn’t that exciting, but it’s funny how you really do acclimate to your surroundings after some time. I can get around town, am understanding just a *tad* bit more Hebrew, know a couple good spots to eat, and have even cooked Shabbat lunch.
I deal with problems when they come, know where to get cheap groceries, and officially can’t eat a meal without hummus.
It doesn’t seem like much, but I distinctly remember saying out loud how I can’t imagine ever feeling settled in any way. And here I am, 6 months later, sustaining an independent life in Israel. Pretty wild! Given the extremely minimal hardships which I’ve encountered while being here, I can’t help but think how unbelievably difficult it must have been for my parents to immigrate. It’s terrifying to come to a completely foreign place and have to build your life from scratch (never mind having children to feed and a family to somehow maintain and support). If my experience bears even the slightest resemblance to what they went through, I simply don’t have any words sufficient enough to describe my amazement and gratitude for everything that they went through. Makes me think twice when I want to complain about lack of friends or American comforts.
However, there is a price to pay for finally reaching a state of equilibrium and comfort in this environment. Because I have a daily routine and am keeping busy with day–to-day activities, I feel like I’m a bit out of synch with Israel. I used to be acutely aware of the fact that I was in Jerusalem – the holiest city there in the world. I felt the magic in the air and smiled when I would see someone praying on the bus – because that’s normal here. Jaffa oranges were that much better because they are grown in Eretz Israel. And going to a club and seeing guys in kippas dance was somewhat of a small miracle to me! These days, it’s not that I’m less aware of these things, or don’t think they are special – I just have to remind myself – and that’s really upsetting to me. I don’t ever want to take this country for granted, and I’m scared that that might be a natural side-effect of spending so much time here.
But don’t worry dear reader(s) - I do have new and legitimate adventures to write about, with pictures and everything. But I guess I just wanted to provide a little background as to what my life has been like in general. So no complaints. Hakol Beseder
Lots of Love from Jerusalem
בלה
Friday, March 12, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
שלום
Shalom lekulam!
Hope everyone is doing well. Almost the end of January 2010! Unbelievable how quickly time passes no? I haven't written for a while because not a whole lot has been going on. Still working at MEMRI and am really enjoying it. Most of my time is split between two things: doing transcripts/clips in English with MEMRI-TV and researching Jihad in the Caucasus (for the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor).
For those of you who are not so familiar with the Caucus region (I sure as hell wasn't before MEMRI) - it is comprised of a various republics which are technically part of Russia and are not independent (i.e. Dagestan, Chechnya, Ingushetia, Ossetia, and so on). Sounds crazy? that's because it is! Most people have never really heard of these places, much less considered that there are Muslims there, or even radical Islam and terrorism! It's a total mess over in that part of the world, there is not a whole lot of scholarly writting about it --- and it's MY job to figure out what the hell is going on! Along with researching the historical context of the situation, I am also reading daily the Caucus-Jihadi websites (in Russian) and trying to figure out if there is any relevent/interesting information that MEMRI might be helpful to MEMRI. I never thought my my Russian skills would be put to such use ahha! But it's great, I am learning a lot, and it is pretty interesting (as long as you're a safe distance away) ;-)
I have also decided to move out of my apartment and move in with my friend Karen and her two flatmates. Despite giving up a wonderful apartment, having to share a room, living in a smaller space, and moving (which is always a pain in the ass) - I really think it's going to make me happier and (hopefully) bring my experience full circle. I love my flat, but the honest truth is that it's not my home , it's just a place where I sleep. I still feel pretty isolated and lonely at the end of the day. It's just not worth it for me to be paying so much and not feeling fulfilled. So, instead I'll be living with 3 really great girls, who will be speaking Hebrew, and are sweet and caring. if worst comes to worst - it's only for 4 months. I'll survive :)
In other news - I've kind of started running again. It's time for my fat lazy ass to make an attempt at getting into (some kind of) shape. Probably not the best time to be doing so, seeing as how its FREEZING here right now! There were serious thunder/lightning storms for a couple of days too. But I'm trying to make it out as long as there isn't any rain. brrrr
Oh, and one other thing - I'm starting private Hebrew lessons!!! YAY! I know it sounds really lame and ridiculous that I haven't really learned any hebrew - but jerusalem really isn't the 'all immersion' environment you would expect. everyone speaks english, many speak russian, and meeting israeli's isn't as easy as one would think. (that is - getting hit on/picked up on isn't a problem - it's actually making israeli friends that's a bit more challenging) haha oi! so hopefully these lessons will help me develop my Hebrew. better late than never right?! ;-)
that's really the most of it folks. nothing too exciting. don't have any adventures to really write about - it's simply been too cold to do anything extremely interesting! hopefully that will change soon
Lots of Love!
<3
Hope everyone is doing well. Almost the end of January 2010! Unbelievable how quickly time passes no? I haven't written for a while because not a whole lot has been going on. Still working at MEMRI and am really enjoying it. Most of my time is split between two things: doing transcripts/clips in English with MEMRI-TV and researching Jihad in the Caucasus (for the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor).
For those of you who are not so familiar with the Caucus region (I sure as hell wasn't before MEMRI) - it is comprised of a various republics which are technically part of Russia and are not independent (i.e. Dagestan, Chechnya, Ingushetia, Ossetia, and so on). Sounds crazy? that's because it is! Most people have never really heard of these places, much less considered that there are Muslims there, or even radical Islam and terrorism! It's a total mess over in that part of the world, there is not a whole lot of scholarly writting about it --- and it's MY job to figure out what the hell is going on! Along with researching the historical context of the situation, I am also reading daily the Caucus-Jihadi websites (in Russian) and trying to figure out if there is any relevent/interesting information that MEMRI might be helpful to MEMRI. I never thought my my Russian skills would be put to such use ahha! But it's great, I am learning a lot, and it is pretty interesting (as long as you're a safe distance away) ;-)
I have also decided to move out of my apartment and move in with my friend Karen and her two flatmates. Despite giving up a wonderful apartment, having to share a room, living in a smaller space, and moving (which is always a pain in the ass) - I really think it's going to make me happier and (hopefully) bring my experience full circle. I love my flat, but the honest truth is that it's not my home , it's just a place where I sleep. I still feel pretty isolated and lonely at the end of the day. It's just not worth it for me to be paying so much and not feeling fulfilled. So, instead I'll be living with 3 really great girls, who will be speaking Hebrew, and are sweet and caring. if worst comes to worst - it's only for 4 months. I'll survive :)
In other news - I've kind of started running again. It's time for my fat lazy ass to make an attempt at getting into (some kind of) shape. Probably not the best time to be doing so, seeing as how its FREEZING here right now! There were serious thunder/lightning storms for a couple of days too. But I'm trying to make it out as long as there isn't any rain. brrrr
Oh, and one other thing - I'm starting private Hebrew lessons!!! YAY! I know it sounds really lame and ridiculous that I haven't really learned any hebrew - but jerusalem really isn't the 'all immersion' environment you would expect. everyone speaks english, many speak russian, and meeting israeli's isn't as easy as one would think. (that is - getting hit on/picked up on isn't a problem - it's actually making israeli friends that's a bit more challenging) haha oi! so hopefully these lessons will help me develop my Hebrew. better late than never right?! ;-)
that's really the most of it folks. nothing too exciting. don't have any adventures to really write about - it's simply been too cold to do anything extremely interesting! hopefully that will change soon
Lots of Love!
<3
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Who Knew Anti-Semitism Could be so Fun!?!
Hello All!
Just wanted to give you a quick update on what I am doing, that I am at working at MEMRI. I get into the office about 8:30am and leave around 5 or 5:30pm. The people here are so sweet, constantly bringing in food and pasteries (I am going to gain so much weight), and there is plenty of work for me to do! Also, every day, Yigal gives me some kind of article or political analysis to read. How cool right?
Okay, so as far as my what I actually spend my time doing (aside from stuffing my face with bureka's and croissants). I am compiling a huge list of contact information of all the influental newspapers, media outlets, professors, private orgs, and military personal - IN RUSSIA! Yes, it's a massive job, but the good thing about is, is that I am doing a lot of reading in Russian. This is in the office which handles the Arab press.
In addition, I am splitting my time with the office (across the street) which handles Arab television (http://www.memritv.org/). Though I am not doing direct translations (since I don't speak Arabic or Farsi), I am writing all of the transcripts which accompany each video. Also, some videos are all in English. In these cases, I transcribe the clips AND insert all of the subtitles using this special software.
May I just point out, that when you watch one of these 2 minute clips, you can't help but be stunned by the speakers and horrifyed by the messages. But what you *don't* think about, is how much time and work it takes to actually translate, transcribe, and insert subtitles for these little clips. It is SOOOO MUCH WORK!!! Seriously!!! A 10 minute clip can easily take about 3 hours to complete!!!! It's really incredible. I can't tell you how much my appreciate for this organization has grown, that I understand the work people are doing here. wow!
Many people ask, including myself, how you can watch these videos - day in and day out, over and over again. People talking about the slaughter of Jews, the glory of martyrdom, the evilness of America and the West. It's astounding and incredibly disturbing. I'll admit that the first time I transcribed one of these clips, I couldn't believe that my own fingers were typing these terrible things. It's a legitimate feeling. But the truth is - you get over it, treat the words and words, and even laugh off some of the more ridiculous statements crazy people make. There are people here who have been dealing with this for years, and have just learned to dissasociate themselves. Pretty nuts though.
Anymmoo - that's about it for now. I actually have to run. I am going to be working with Proffessor Menahem (who gave us the lecture on our first visit to MEMRI) - and then we (IGF) have a lecture with Prof. Irwin Cotler (who is AMAZING!).
Hope everyone's week is going well!
:) בלה
Just wanted to give you a quick update on what I am doing, that I am at working at MEMRI. I get into the office about 8:30am and leave around 5 or 5:30pm. The people here are so sweet, constantly bringing in food and pasteries (I am going to gain so much weight), and there is plenty of work for me to do! Also, every day, Yigal gives me some kind of article or political analysis to read. How cool right?
Okay, so as far as my what I actually spend my time doing (aside from stuffing my face with bureka's and croissants). I am compiling a huge list of contact information of all the influental newspapers, media outlets, professors, private orgs, and military personal - IN RUSSIA! Yes, it's a massive job, but the good thing about is, is that I am doing a lot of reading in Russian. This is in the office which handles the Arab press.
In addition, I am splitting my time with the office (across the street) which handles Arab television (http://www.memritv.org/). Though I am not doing direct translations (since I don't speak Arabic or Farsi), I am writing all of the transcripts which accompany each video. Also, some videos are all in English. In these cases, I transcribe the clips AND insert all of the subtitles using this special software.
May I just point out, that when you watch one of these 2 minute clips, you can't help but be stunned by the speakers and horrifyed by the messages. But what you *don't* think about, is how much time and work it takes to actually translate, transcribe, and insert subtitles for these little clips. It is SOOOO MUCH WORK!!! Seriously!!! A 10 minute clip can easily take about 3 hours to complete!!!! It's really incredible. I can't tell you how much my appreciate for this organization has grown, that I understand the work people are doing here. wow!
Many people ask, including myself, how you can watch these videos - day in and day out, over and over again. People talking about the slaughter of Jews, the glory of martyrdom, the evilness of America and the West. It's astounding and incredibly disturbing. I'll admit that the first time I transcribed one of these clips, I couldn't believe that my own fingers were typing these terrible things. It's a legitimate feeling. But the truth is - you get over it, treat the words and words, and even laugh off some of the more ridiculous statements crazy people make. There are people here who have been dealing with this for years, and have just learned to dissasociate themselves. Pretty nuts though.
Anymmoo - that's about it for now. I actually have to run. I am going to be working with Proffessor Menahem (who gave us the lecture on our first visit to MEMRI) - and then we (IGF) have a lecture with Prof. Irwin Cotler (who is AMAZING!).
Hope everyone's week is going well!
:) בלה
Saturday, January 2, 2010
A New Start in a New Decade!
HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYBODY!!!!
Hard to believe that it is already 2010! I figured we would have been zipping around in space-pods by now and taking lunar vacation (Maybe next year?). I hope everyone had a wonderful NYE celebration. I ended up meeting the new decade with my program director (Tamar) and some IGF alumni. It was actually pretty good. Nothing too crazy, and no, I didn't get completely wasted. But, I was with good people and 10 minutes walking from my apartment - what more could you want?! ;-)
Well - I have some great big news!
........It has to do with work.......
...................I have a new job..............
.
..
...
....
.....
......
.....
....
...
..
.
**drum roll please**
.
..
...
....
.....
......
.....
....
...
..
.
I AM OFFICIALLY WORKING AT MEMRI!!!!!!!
That's right ladies and gentlemen - I am finally in an environment which is condusive to hard work but is still pleasant and enjoyable! I am in the company of very intelligent and diligent individuals! I am already improving my Russian language skills. And to top it all off - LUNCH IS PAID FOR!!!! Holy crap, I think I just died and went to (unpaid) work heaven! hahaha. To put it bluntly - I'm thrilled! This should be good and will hopefully prove to be a really great and meaningful experience.
As far as the MOT (ministry of timewasting...i mean tourism) is concerned, I am going to go in tomorrow for a little bit to tie up any loose ends, grab any remaining items, and say goodbye to Noga. Tamar is going to try and find a different option for me in another government position, but to be honest, I've kind of lost faith in the government and would rather just enjoy MEMRI to the fullest. We'll see how it goes.
In any case - 2010 seems to be off to a very good start! :-D
On that note, I am off to have a drink!
Happy New Years everyone!
<3 Love <3
Hard to believe that it is already 2010! I figured we would have been zipping around in space-pods by now and taking lunar vacation (Maybe next year?). I hope everyone had a wonderful NYE celebration. I ended up meeting the new decade with my program director (Tamar) and some IGF alumni. It was actually pretty good. Nothing too crazy, and no, I didn't get completely wasted. But, I was with good people and 10 minutes walking from my apartment - what more could you want?! ;-)
Well - I have some great big news!
........It has to do with work.......
...................I have a new job..............
.
..
...
....
.....
......
.....
....
...
..
.
**drum roll please**
.
..
...
....
.....
......
.....
....
...
..
.
I AM OFFICIALLY WORKING AT MEMRI!!!!!!!
That's right ladies and gentlemen - I am finally in an environment which is condusive to hard work but is still pleasant and enjoyable! I am in the company of very intelligent and diligent individuals! I am already improving my Russian language skills. And to top it all off - LUNCH IS PAID FOR!!!! Holy crap, I think I just died and went to (unpaid) work heaven! hahaha. To put it bluntly - I'm thrilled! This should be good and will hopefully prove to be a really great and meaningful experience.
As far as the MOT (ministry of timewasting...i mean tourism) is concerned, I am going to go in tomorrow for a little bit to tie up any loose ends, grab any remaining items, and say goodbye to Noga. Tamar is going to try and find a different option for me in another government position, but to be honest, I've kind of lost faith in the government and would rather just enjoy MEMRI to the fullest. We'll see how it goes.
In any case - 2010 seems to be off to a very good start! :-D
On that note, I am off to have a drink!
Happy New Years everyone!
<3 Love <3
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Sitting on Babies and Holding My Breath...
Two bits of information to report for today (that's a big deal in my world haha).
Firstly - I had my first experience babysitting in Israel. There is a website called www.janglo.net (which stands for Jerusalem Anglos) which is more or less a crappier version of craigslist for Jerusalem.
Anymoo, last week when I was bored&frustrated at work, I was scrolling through the 'jobs' section and came across a post of a mom looking for a helper on Sunday December 27th. Her name is Tanya and she has three kids (all boys): Oldest is 6 years, middle is 4 (I think), and youngest is 2 months!
So I met her and the kids the other week, and just as soon as the door opened, I had a 4 year old jump into my arms and the 6 year old gave me a hug, grabbed me by the hand, and started pulling me inside....I guess they liked me! :o) Tanya called me later on to tell me that the kids loved me (whew) and that she would love my help today. It was only for about 3 hours (4:30-7:30) and she was home (which was very nice) and to top it all off --- KESEF!!! (That means *money*)
That's right ladies and gentlemen - I got PAID!!!! (25 NIS/hr) I completely forgot what it's like to get money for working! hahaha. Oh man. Ofcourse, that money was shortly spent on groceries, but never the less, it didn't come directly out of my pocket! EXCELLENT. Hopefully this gig will continue from time to time and I asked her to pass my name along to any other mom's in need of some babysitting.
The second bit that I'm really excited about (though I shouldn't count my chickens before they hatch) is in regards to MEMRI. Remember that institute that I offered to volunteer at and sent my resume to?....well I got a call from a man named Yegal Carmen today asking if we could meet tomorrow!! EEEEEEEEE.
This is really great! Hopefully I will blow him away with...err....something...haha and will manage to do some volunteer work for the organization! I'm trying not to amp myself up about it too much, but just the thought of contributing to such a great organization gets me a little jumpy. I would *love* to put that on my resume.
Hopefully I will have some really great news to write about in this blog tomorrow :)
That's it. I'm going to go out and celebrate with a drink
BTW - did you know that it's almost 2010!?!?!?!?! WTF?!?!?! when did that happen?!?!
*oi-va-voy*
talk to you soon
<3
Firstly - I had my first experience babysitting in Israel. There is a website called www.janglo.net (which stands for Jerusalem Anglos) which is more or less a crappier version of craigslist for Jerusalem.
Anymoo, last week when I was bored&frustrated at work, I was scrolling through the 'jobs' section and came across a post of a mom looking for a helper on Sunday December 27th. Her name is Tanya and she has three kids (all boys): Oldest is 6 years, middle is 4 (I think), and youngest is 2 months!
So I met her and the kids the other week, and just as soon as the door opened, I had a 4 year old jump into my arms and the 6 year old gave me a hug, grabbed me by the hand, and started pulling me inside....I guess they liked me! :o) Tanya called me later on to tell me that the kids loved me (whew) and that she would love my help today. It was only for about 3 hours (4:30-7:30) and she was home (which was very nice) and to top it all off --- KESEF!!! (That means *money*)
That's right ladies and gentlemen - I got PAID!!!! (25 NIS/hr) I completely forgot what it's like to get money for working! hahaha. Oh man. Ofcourse, that money was shortly spent on groceries, but never the less, it didn't come directly out of my pocket! EXCELLENT. Hopefully this gig will continue from time to time and I asked her to pass my name along to any other mom's in need of some babysitting.
The second bit that I'm really excited about (though I shouldn't count my chickens before they hatch) is in regards to MEMRI. Remember that institute that I offered to volunteer at and sent my resume to?....well I got a call from a man named Yegal Carmen today asking if we could meet tomorrow!! EEEEEEEEE.
This is really great! Hopefully I will blow him away with...err....something...haha and will manage to do some volunteer work for the organization! I'm trying not to amp myself up about it too much, but just the thought of contributing to such a great organization gets me a little jumpy. I would *love* to put that on my resume.
Hopefully I will have some really great news to write about in this blog tomorrow :)
That's it. I'm going to go out and celebrate with a drink
BTW - did you know that it's almost 2010!?!?!?!?! WTF?!?!?! when did that happen?!?!
*oi-va-voy*
talk to you soon
<3
Friday, December 25, 2009
MEMRI and Natan Sharansky
Shalom Lekulam!
This week, though slow to start and not necessarily a glamorous week, had some notibale highlights.
To begin with - I have *officially* established that my boss does not have any work for me. On the one hand, this is incredibly unfortunately. The department which I was placed in seemed like a match made in heaven. I have the skills for marketing, some previous work experience, and large amounts of enthusiasm. However, the reality of the situation is that nobody within the New Media Marketing department knows what they are doing. That is to say, that they are not trained marketing professionals. Of course, it's not like I graduated with some fancy shmancy business degree, however a lot of things (esepcially in marketing) are common sense. Yet, the people in my department don't seem to have this kind of knowledge. Whether it's cultural differences, lack of qualifications, or beurocracy, the bottom line is that there isn't any meaningful or legitimate work for me to do.
The good thing about this news, is that at least it has finally been fully and openly established. I would like to think that I did everything I could before comming to this conclusion. I don't necessarily want to leave my ministry (since I have already committed 3 months there), but I simply can't handle wasting any more of my time (or my parents money) doing nothing. Sure, I could sit in the office and study Hebrew or prepare for the GRE, but I don't need to be in Israel to do that. I busted my ass to get into this program, and I am going to try and get everything that I deserve and was promised out of it! So, once my program director gets back from vacation (December 30th), we will start looking at other internship options for me. I am asking everyone to start praying and crossing their fingers/toes so that I don't end up in yet another shitty situation. I need all the good universe vibes I can get right now! Of course, I will let you all know how this whole situation develops and where I end up.
Now, Thursday is really when all the interesting stuff happened. Every Thursday, instead of working, we have an IGF seminar day. This usually consists of lectures, meeting various political figures/heads of organizations, and other educational activities. This week we got to do a couple of interesting things.
Firstly, we got to visit MEMRI = The Middle East Media Research Institute (http://www.memri.org/content/en/main.htm). You know all those YouTube videos that are online - of the Hamas religious leader giving a sermon about 'death to America', or the infamous clip of the children't program teaching little Muslim kids that Jews are descendants of 'apes and pigs'. (If you haven't seen them, here are some links:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjbJnZUJTYU&feature=PlayList&p=F6A416AF9D7CD1E1&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=53). In any case, these videos are an example of what MEMRI does. They translate and analyze numerous media sources (t.v., newspapers, websites) generated from various Middle East countries. They don't only monitor the content for anti-semitic/anti-israel/anti-american statements, they also give voice to the moderates and those who try speak out against their governments. I personally believe that the work they are doing is not only incredibly fascinating, but also incredibly important. I got really excited after our lecture, so I came up to the professor who gave us the lecture and asked him if they ever need interns or volunteers. I'll admit - I don't know a word in Arabic, don't really know any Hebrew either, but hey, it never hurts to ask. He took my contact information and wouldn't you know it - I recieved an email that very day asking for my resume!!! eeee! we'll see how it goes . If they do decide to take me on to do some work, that would be *really* amazing!!! Oi!
Later we got to meet with.....*drum roll please*.... NATAN SHARANSKY!!! That's right, Mr. Sharansky came to meet all of this year's IGF'ers. A local media source (called Arutz Sheva) got wind of his appearance, so they decided to come to the Begin Center and do a little piece about the IGF program. Guess who was asked to be interviewed on camera?! Here is the link to the webpage where you can watch the 5 minute piece on the IGF program, and get to hear some of my collegues:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/135192
After our little session with Mr. Sharansky, we took a group picture with him, and he literally sat right next to me for the photo. Yes, I was completely star struck! But don't be fooled by his small stature - Mr. Sharansky is a very fascinating man with a great sense of humor, sharp wit, and a genuine concern for the future of Jews around the world. Hopefully IGF will email that picture to all of us, in which case I will be sure to put it up on the blog.
That's all the official stuff. I do have a cute little story though that happened to me later that evening. I went down to Emek Refaim to the book store. I had some time to kill and figured I could just treat myself to a book and then go sit in the next door coffee shop to read for a bit. (I am making an effort to push myself out of my house and out into the world of Jerusalem). As I was standing in the shop, debating if I should get Alan Dershowitz's book "The case against Israel's enemies" - I see there is a guy standing next to me leafing through an English book. I asked him if he has read Dershowitz's book, he says no, and we end up having a small chat about various authors and what not. I find out that his name is Wayne, he's originally from South Africa, he lived in Israel for some time, but has moved back to S.A. and just on a visit in IL for a friends wedding. He recommended some authors to me, and in particular, this one book called 'the lion's honey'. bla bla - i say thanks, enjoy your night, go to pay for my book, and take a seat in the coffee shop as originally planned. 10 minutes later, Wayne comes up to me, and says "here, I got you this - because I like to do crazy things and I really think you will enjoy this book" - and he hands me 'the lion's honey' which he previously mentioned to me in the bookshop!
I was totally stunned and tried to offer him a coffe, but he kindly refused and said that he was actually meeting up with friends and had to run. Don't get the wrong impression here guys, this wasn't skeezy or a pick up line or anything like that. It was just an honest gesture of kindness and thoughtfulness for no reason other than being nice! I can't say that anything like that has ever really happened to me (at least not as far as I can remember) but it's really refreshing to come across a genuinely kind person. Especially when everything else around you seems to be more on the crappier side. I guess it was just a reminder that there really still are some decent people in the world and it was nice that it happened in Israel. hehe. I'm about a third of the way through the book (it's really short) and so far Wayne has kept his promise - the book is great! :-D
Well - that's the most of it for the week. Could be better, but also could be a lot worse. The sun has been shining during the day, I am in Ashdod with family (and my cousin who is here from Lithuania), got a stomach bursting from delicious food, good books, and a hopeful outlook :)
with that said - time for me to go to bed! (HA - i'm a poet and I don't even know it). Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate! Merry chinese food and movie day to all those that don't!
Hope everyone is doing well!
Lots of Love!
<3
This week, though slow to start and not necessarily a glamorous week, had some notibale highlights.
To begin with - I have *officially* established that my boss does not have any work for me. On the one hand, this is incredibly unfortunately. The department which I was placed in seemed like a match made in heaven. I have the skills for marketing, some previous work experience, and large amounts of enthusiasm. However, the reality of the situation is that nobody within the New Media Marketing department knows what they are doing. That is to say, that they are not trained marketing professionals. Of course, it's not like I graduated with some fancy shmancy business degree, however a lot of things (esepcially in marketing) are common sense. Yet, the people in my department don't seem to have this kind of knowledge. Whether it's cultural differences, lack of qualifications, or beurocracy, the bottom line is that there isn't any meaningful or legitimate work for me to do.
The good thing about this news, is that at least it has finally been fully and openly established. I would like to think that I did everything I could before comming to this conclusion. I don't necessarily want to leave my ministry (since I have already committed 3 months there), but I simply can't handle wasting any more of my time (or my parents money) doing nothing. Sure, I could sit in the office and study Hebrew or prepare for the GRE, but I don't need to be in Israel to do that. I busted my ass to get into this program, and I am going to try and get everything that I deserve and was promised out of it! So, once my program director gets back from vacation (December 30th), we will start looking at other internship options for me. I am asking everyone to start praying and crossing their fingers/toes so that I don't end up in yet another shitty situation. I need all the good universe vibes I can get right now! Of course, I will let you all know how this whole situation develops and where I end up.
Now, Thursday is really when all the interesting stuff happened. Every Thursday, instead of working, we have an IGF seminar day. This usually consists of lectures, meeting various political figures/heads of organizations, and other educational activities. This week we got to do a couple of interesting things.
Firstly, we got to visit MEMRI = The Middle East Media Research Institute (http://www.memri.org/content/en/main.htm). You know all those YouTube videos that are online - of the Hamas religious leader giving a sermon about 'death to America', or the infamous clip of the children't program teaching little Muslim kids that Jews are descendants of 'apes and pigs'. (If you haven't seen them, here are some links:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjbJnZUJTYU&feature=PlayList&p=F6A416AF9D7CD1E1&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=53). In any case, these videos are an example of what MEMRI does. They translate and analyze numerous media sources (t.v., newspapers, websites) generated from various Middle East countries. They don't only monitor the content for anti-semitic/anti-israel/anti-american statements, they also give voice to the moderates and those who try speak out against their governments. I personally believe that the work they are doing is not only incredibly fascinating, but also incredibly important. I got really excited after our lecture, so I came up to the professor who gave us the lecture and asked him if they ever need interns or volunteers. I'll admit - I don't know a word in Arabic, don't really know any Hebrew either, but hey, it never hurts to ask. He took my contact information and wouldn't you know it - I recieved an email that very day asking for my resume!!! eeee! we'll see how it goes . If they do decide to take me on to do some work, that would be *really* amazing!!! Oi!
Later we got to meet with.....*drum roll please*.... NATAN SHARANSKY!!! That's right, Mr. Sharansky came to meet all of this year's IGF'ers. A local media source (called Arutz Sheva) got wind of his appearance, so they decided to come to the Begin Center and do a little piece about the IGF program. Guess who was asked to be interviewed on camera?! Here is the link to the webpage where you can watch the 5 minute piece on the IGF program, and get to hear some of my collegues:
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/135192
After our little session with Mr. Sharansky, we took a group picture with him, and he literally sat right next to me for the photo. Yes, I was completely star struck! But don't be fooled by his small stature - Mr. Sharansky is a very fascinating man with a great sense of humor, sharp wit, and a genuine concern for the future of Jews around the world. Hopefully IGF will email that picture to all of us, in which case I will be sure to put it up on the blog.
That's all the official stuff. I do have a cute little story though that happened to me later that evening. I went down to Emek Refaim to the book store. I had some time to kill and figured I could just treat myself to a book and then go sit in the next door coffee shop to read for a bit. (I am making an effort to push myself out of my house and out into the world of Jerusalem). As I was standing in the shop, debating if I should get Alan Dershowitz's book "The case against Israel's enemies" - I see there is a guy standing next to me leafing through an English book. I asked him if he has read Dershowitz's book, he says no, and we end up having a small chat about various authors and what not. I find out that his name is Wayne, he's originally from South Africa, he lived in Israel for some time, but has moved back to S.A. and just on a visit in IL for a friends wedding. He recommended some authors to me, and in particular, this one book called 'the lion's honey'. bla bla - i say thanks, enjoy your night, go to pay for my book, and take a seat in the coffee shop as originally planned. 10 minutes later, Wayne comes up to me, and says "here, I got you this - because I like to do crazy things and I really think you will enjoy this book" - and he hands me 'the lion's honey' which he previously mentioned to me in the bookshop!
I was totally stunned and tried to offer him a coffe, but he kindly refused and said that he was actually meeting up with friends and had to run. Don't get the wrong impression here guys, this wasn't skeezy or a pick up line or anything like that. It was just an honest gesture of kindness and thoughtfulness for no reason other than being nice! I can't say that anything like that has ever really happened to me (at least not as far as I can remember) but it's really refreshing to come across a genuinely kind person. Especially when everything else around you seems to be more on the crappier side. I guess it was just a reminder that there really still are some decent people in the world and it was nice that it happened in Israel. hehe. I'm about a third of the way through the book (it's really short) and so far Wayne has kept his promise - the book is great! :-D
Well - that's the most of it for the week. Could be better, but also could be a lot worse. The sun has been shining during the day, I am in Ashdod with family (and my cousin who is here from Lithuania), got a stomach bursting from delicious food, good books, and a hopeful outlook :)
with that said - time for me to go to bed! (HA - i'm a poet and I don't even know it). Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate! Merry chinese food and movie day to all those that don't!
Hope everyone is doing well!
Lots of Love!
<3
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Israel: Round II
Okay, it has definitely been a little while since my last post. My sincere apologize for that. Basically what happened is that things dramatically slowed down, in terms of work, IGF, social life, etc. Here is a brief breakdown-
Work: literally had no work, was just sitting in the office needlessly loosing my mind. You can imagine how frustrating this is when you/your parents are paying so much money for a supposedly unique experience.....right. The reason for this is a combination of things. My boss, although extremely sweet and caring aboutme, does not have enough time/idea of what to do with me. The beurocracy of the government doesn't help either, as there is a lot of discord and lack of unified vision between departments. After much consulation with Tamar (IGF director) and my parents, and with enough insistence on my part- hopefully this will change. Keep your fingers crossed
IGF: well, I guess when the internship aspect isn't going so well, its easy enough to get disenchanted with the program as a whole. I'm not giving up yet though!
Social Life: mmm...this aspect is still in the works. To anyone wondering - no - i am not close with anyone from my program. It's also a bit challenging because I haven't really found a community to be part of. For example, while i was studying in Oxford, I came upon the Chabad - which is how I ended up meeting some really great people, participating in events, and so on. Here, I haven't been able to find anything of the sort. So, either I get lucky and meet a great group of people, or keep sticking my nose in places it may or may not belong. It's really a matter of continuing to put myself out there. Granted, it's a bit harder to do when the weather is crap and all you want to do is stay under the covers. But persistence is the name of the game when it comes to Israel.
That's the general idea. In other news, as some of you may already know, yesterday I got back to Israel after a week long trip back home to CA. Oh my goodness, I can't even tell you how wonderful it was to be home. In my bed, driving around familiar neighborhoods, hot showers, family, friends, and genuine hugs and kisses. It was a much needed trip. The only bad part about the trip was that it ended all too quickly. Part of me couldn't help but dabble with the idea of staying home and forfeiting this whole IGF project. Yet, my friends empathized and encouraged me to continue and my family suggested a number of possible steps I can take to ensure that my experience here reaches its full potential (and doesn't become another waste of time/money). So, here I am, back in the Holy Land trying to keep that positive energy flowing.
In fact, I was ready to return to Israel with a 'go-getter' attitude, but of course, things don't always work out as planned. During my 4 hour stop over in London Heathrow Airport, my stomach really began hurting, and continued throughout the 4.5 hour flight to IL. To make a long story short - I ended up at a 24 hour emergency clinic in Jerusalem (suitecase and all)with the diagnosis of a stomach virus and an IV in my arm. oi! I got home in the middle of the night, exhausted and pretty demoralized. There was also a Tiyul which started today which I skipped. I may/may not miss the remainder of the Tiyul as well. UGH!!! Maybe this is the country's way of rejecting my presence. Maybe, it's just another challenge that is meant to help me grow and become that much better of a person. In any case - it kind of sucks (but makes for interesting blog writting) haha. I swear, I only attract the most ridiculous situations (especially when in Israel)!
So that pretty much covers everything. We'll see how things go from this point forward. In short, I'm going to give this whole thing another go- be aggressive, demanding, and outgoing. If, after all of that, things STILL don't work out - then I can say that I gave it a fair shot and come home. I need to make up some kind of mantra to keep me going. Maybe something like "Israel Israel, it's a balagan, but I am determined to make it fun" haha.
Israel round two: here i come!
Work: literally had no work, was just sitting in the office needlessly loosing my mind. You can imagine how frustrating this is when you/your parents are paying so much money for a supposedly unique experience.....right. The reason for this is a combination of things. My boss, although extremely sweet and caring aboutme, does not have enough time/idea of what to do with me. The beurocracy of the government doesn't help either, as there is a lot of discord and lack of unified vision between departments. After much consulation with Tamar (IGF director) and my parents, and with enough insistence on my part- hopefully this will change. Keep your fingers crossed
IGF: well, I guess when the internship aspect isn't going so well, its easy enough to get disenchanted with the program as a whole. I'm not giving up yet though!
Social Life: mmm...this aspect is still in the works. To anyone wondering - no - i am not close with anyone from my program. It's also a bit challenging because I haven't really found a community to be part of. For example, while i was studying in Oxford, I came upon the Chabad - which is how I ended up meeting some really great people, participating in events, and so on. Here, I haven't been able to find anything of the sort. So, either I get lucky and meet a great group of people, or keep sticking my nose in places it may or may not belong. It's really a matter of continuing to put myself out there. Granted, it's a bit harder to do when the weather is crap and all you want to do is stay under the covers. But persistence is the name of the game when it comes to Israel.
That's the general idea. In other news, as some of you may already know, yesterday I got back to Israel after a week long trip back home to CA. Oh my goodness, I can't even tell you how wonderful it was to be home. In my bed, driving around familiar neighborhoods, hot showers, family, friends, and genuine hugs and kisses. It was a much needed trip. The only bad part about the trip was that it ended all too quickly. Part of me couldn't help but dabble with the idea of staying home and forfeiting this whole IGF project. Yet, my friends empathized and encouraged me to continue and my family suggested a number of possible steps I can take to ensure that my experience here reaches its full potential (and doesn't become another waste of time/money). So, here I am, back in the Holy Land trying to keep that positive energy flowing.
In fact, I was ready to return to Israel with a 'go-getter' attitude, but of course, things don't always work out as planned. During my 4 hour stop over in London Heathrow Airport, my stomach really began hurting, and continued throughout the 4.5 hour flight to IL. To make a long story short - I ended up at a 24 hour emergency clinic in Jerusalem (suitecase and all)with the diagnosis of a stomach virus and an IV in my arm. oi! I got home in the middle of the night, exhausted and pretty demoralized. There was also a Tiyul which started today which I skipped. I may/may not miss the remainder of the Tiyul as well. UGH!!! Maybe this is the country's way of rejecting my presence. Maybe, it's just another challenge that is meant to help me grow and become that much better of a person. In any case - it kind of sucks (but makes for interesting blog writting) haha. I swear, I only attract the most ridiculous situations (especially when in Israel)!
So that pretty much covers everything. We'll see how things go from this point forward. In short, I'm going to give this whole thing another go- be aggressive, demanding, and outgoing. If, after all of that, things STILL don't work out - then I can say that I gave it a fair shot and come home. I need to make up some kind of mantra to keep me going. Maybe something like "Israel Israel, it's a balagan, but I am determined to make it fun" haha.
Israel round two: here i come!
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