Israeli Men

It is time for a minute to bitch alittle bit. I don't get what the problem is with Israeli men. It seems to me they are pretty much crazy, possibly psycho, definatly weird.

Why? Why? Why?

And it is not just me. Almost every girl I know has the same problems.

I guess I had this strange fantasy in my head that coming to Israel would make the whole dating-finding-the-right-one-getting-married-at-some-point easier. After all consider this: If you are a Jewish single girl and feel that it is important to marry a Jewish guy, what better place than to find him in Israel. Chances are almost every guy you come in contact with will be Jewish. And that is one big pressure taken off right there.

Problem is, they (Israeli men) are sooooo weird. I have not meet one guy who I would consider a "normal guy" they are either playing the field, interested but not that interested, so good looking and they act like they know it, feaky and you want at least 3 meters between you two, or I don't know what.

Very agrivating. As for the date that I went out on. Eventhough he said he would like to see me again, he seems to be avoiding me like the plague. Why not say, "I'm just not interested", if you aren't interested. Why lie. It won't hurt my feelings that much.

What the heck is going on here? I feel like I am living in an episode of Sex And The City!

Trip to the US in pictures

Here you will see, some of my pictures from the US. The first picture is of my teacher in Ulpan, Eyela, me and a friends from Colombia, Stephanie. That was on our last day, we went to a really nice middle eastern restaurant.

The next ones are from NYC. I guess I felt a bit like Borat from Ali G!!! Stupid me I didn't take a picture with my friend Daniel, after we had not seen each other for 3 years!!!





The next ones are from Cato. Beautiful sunsets, family and friends, I had a wonderful time.






Now we travel in on picture to my 5 hour lay-over in Chicago (such a cool city) and on to a place that I still can not spell Minneapolis, Minnesota (I had to look it up). You find Ben and I in Ikea goofing around, a beautiful sunset from my parents new house and a little look at Hugh's new store.









We went one evening for a really nice drive to the boarder of Minnesota and Wisconsin for a dinner on Still Water. Although there was a big storm and the water was not very still. It was a rerally nice time.






Next Jonathan and his girl Diane came. The first picture was from the night they arrived and Jonathan was very tired. The next day we went to Mall Of America. I am glad we only stayed for a few hours, because it felt very overwhenlming to me. While everyone else went and saw a fish and shark show, Mom and I went to Barnes and Noble and looked at books! At least it was quite there.




And Jonathan and Diane have become avid bowlers so one night just the kids went out bowling, once Nancy had arrived. It was her first time.




And we did go on a lot of nature walks around all the many lakes.


Now the goodbye's began. This was the day that Jonathan and Diane departed back to Arizona.




And then I had a few days with Nancy. We went into the city and took a trolly tour of the city that was very intersting and had great views. Our tour guide (and I can't remember her name and she said it all the time) was very crazy lady. By the end we were the omly ones on the bus.
This city used to me the flour capital of the world. On the lakes you still see today, signs for Pilsbury and other less famous companies.


This is a famous view in MN from the sculpture garden.





We went on a drive to the Laura Ingles Wilder "Little House On The Prarie" house in Wisconsin. It was not the actual house, but it was the actual sight, of the house with a house similar to what people in those days lived in. We sat for so long just taking in the breeze and view. I have never had such a feeling of calm and peace. I could have sat there all day.





We also had a really nice meal on the water near there. I just ate off of everyone elses dishes because I wasn't very hungry. The food in MN is suprisingly funky and wonderful. They mixed a lot of flavors. I thought it would be very sinple country food, but it wasn't at all.

And this is bored Elizabeth, sitting in JFK for hours and my view!!

And when I returned to the kibbutz, the mommy cat, Ziggy had had a baby!



The End.

Boy,it has been a long time since I wrote anything of substance. And unfortunately right now won't really be the moment as I have 10 minutes before I begin work.

But life here has been pretty good to me in this last week or two. I went and saw the kibbutz I will be living on while in the army. It is called En Harod. It is 30 minutes drive east of my current kibbutz. It was really beautiful. It looks out over mount Gilboa. My room is amazing. Aftr so long of sharing a room the thought of having my own space is just thrilling. I have my own shower, toilet, little kitchen area, a good size sitting eating area and then a bedroom. What more do I need? It is so exciting, a place of my own.

So I have about a week and half more of work and then I will go move in and start the army. Oh my God. Reality sets in a bit.

Work is so enjoyable and fun. I should have taken this job a long time before. Most of the people are so friendly and joking all the time. The boss is like a big kid. There is this guy names Sadia, who has been working there for like 30 years and is the biggest joker and like a monkey, he is always into everything. My friend Gani spends all day making fun of everyone and talking, which really makes the time pass. It is a stupid job, putting screws into boxes, real monkeys could do it. But if it weren't for the people it would be pretty hellish.

And I went out on a date. I think after not being on a date for a year and a half it went pretty well. We went and drank coffee in Tivon. He seems like are really nice guy, very quite and shy. His name is Inon and he is 25. He just got back recently from a year traveling alone in India and Thailand, Cambodia, Laios, and I think one other country. So we shall see where it goes.

Anyway other that the high heat and humidity, fresh sabras and pomagrantes, everything is same old same old.

Hey all. I don't have a lot of time to write right now but just wanted to direct you to some great and extremely interesting pictures of the war. Go to www.jpost.com and there is link pretty close to the top of the page that says: this week in pictures. Something like this. They may give a different pespective of the war.

All my love and blessings....peace out.

I am sorry I haven't written for a few days. A lot has happened here and I should share spme of it. We now are going on the thrird day of a cease-fire. First of all understand that cease-fire doesn't mean the war or the fighting is over, it just means (not just, it is a big deal) that there are no rockets being thrown from Lebanon into Israel and visa versa. But the troops on the group are still fighting.

2 days before the cease-fire: 60 rockets landed in Israel.
Day before: 250 rockets landed in Israel.

On the kibbutz we had 2 alarms. Two people said they could actually see the rockets fall and then smoke clouds rise. A friend who was in the army tried to assure me that they are not targeting something around us. But they are targeting an airforce base near Tivon (a 15 minute drive). Of course there could be a mistake, but they are not trying to hit us with those longer range rockets.

The first day of the cease-fire a lot of families from the north left.Yesterday even more left. I would be scared to go back so soon, but they want to be home and anyone can understand that.

I was eating dinner in the dinning room the 2 nights ago and noticed this young guy completely turned in his chair staring at me. For a while. It was very uncofortable. When I went ot clear my dishes he asked me in Hebrew if I spoke English. I said yes and he asked if I had been on Julis base 2 years ago.

That was the army base I was on when I did the volunteer program. I couldn't believe it because I didn't remember him, but he remembered me! He was a guest from the north and was leaving that night. It was so weird, I wonder how many other people I will meet because of that time on the base!!!

I have all these picture ready to put on this silly blog, but I am too lazy to do it. They are really nice pictures from my trip to Los Estados Unidos. Maybe in a few days.

Well, had a really nice Shabbat. One boy from my Ulpan wanted to light the candles and say some prayers. It was so nice. I lit the candles he did the wine and the bread. There were just 4 of us there, but we all desided it was really nice and should be repeated next week.

I had a delicous dinner in the dinning room of a stuffed bell pepper. I hung out with Irit for a while and then we went to the pub. I got a call from Roie, who has been in the reserves since Sunday. He was coming home for a 24 hour break and was in the area. I wanted him to come to the pub, but he couldn't. All the guys I see going to the reserves are just wearing (get this image) boxers, undershirt, and gun!! So anyway he was embarassed to come to the pub like that, eventhough I don't think anyone would care. So we went to the ulpan area and sat around and talked for an hour.

It was great to see him and hear what he could tell. He said he is sick of this country and as soon as the war is over and he finishes his contract at his job he wants to leave. He has been up in Ramat Ha Golan, which is the border with Syria. He is a medic in the army. And he said that the army provided then with almost no medical supplies. And that they dated back to like, the Yom Kippur war. He said that he saw the army taking the tanks and weapons out of huge bags, because that is how they have been stored and once a year someone checks them to make sure they work. He said if it were not for the people he is with he would try to get out of it, but that they are really great. He said he is learning how to fire bombs and training on the ground in case he is needed. But he feels that all it is about is Israel saying, "look at how many people we are killing" and not taking reponsiblity for the soldiers lives.

It is an intersting perspective to hear. In my opion Israel cares more than most armies in the world. But I told him, if the medical equiptment is so old, then it is amazing that more people have not died.

I asked him how it was to come into normal society. I think it would be really hard, but he said it is nice to see that everything is normal.

Can you image geting a call on Saturday night at midnight that you need to report to the army on Sunday morning at 8am? That would be crazy!

After he left I had a hard time just going back to the pub, I need to process everything he said. It was a lot to take in.

dReaM iN DeJA vU

You know my second day at work I had deja vu. Well it was more dream deja vu, but if you figure that you dream about a place and a time that is in the future then that mist be deja vu. Actually even more weird, both places that I worked here in Israel I have had it.

Well, the world is a crazy and fucked up place. Sometimes it is hard to find any goodness in the world. Look at what happened in London. It isn't just Israel.

Just a thought:
If Hizballah put down its weapons the war would be over. If Israel put down its weapons, Israel would be over.

A boy my age from my first kibbutz died in Lebanon. I don't know him, but can you imagine. It was horrifying to hear. It is horrible to watch the news here. All images of funerals.

But, people are hopeful that we are getting closer to a cease fire. And there is a party tonight on another kibbutz, so as you can see, life does go on.

I talked with a guy from the army yesterday, and he told me that I will not know what I will do in the army till I am in the army ulpan. So at least now I can stop wondering.

Shabat Shalom to everyone. Have a great weekend.

I feel like a lot of time has passed since I last wrote. I haven't been able to drag my lazy bones out of bed to write. Because of so many people using the computers, the mornings are the only time I have to write. I also haven't been sleeping very well, so that makes it much harder to move in the AM.

Well, a few people told me that my blog wasn't as exciting as Jonathan's China blog. But now, they will change there tune, because what could be more exciting than war. Just kidding.

In all seriousness, here it has been more quiet. On Sunday we had two more sirens. Once at work. And that was kind of bad because there is not bomb shelter. And we all met in an office room with lots of windows! Who plans that room as our pretend bomb shelter!!!

Yesterday I went over to this old ladies house to eat dinner with her. We watched to news while you could here the booms over head. It was so sad. They showed some of the funerals of the soldiers that have died. When I left I just started to cry. It is such a shit situation. No one wins.

I found out too yesterday that my friend that I went to Holland with, Roie is in the reserves and is up north in the Golan. Everyone I know, knows at least 4-6 people that are in the reserves fighting. My friend Craig is going in in about a week. There are few men here. And can you imagine the mothers of small, small children whose husbands are away at war.

But anyway on a brighter note, my work is good. My first factory job! It is easy work. Basically the thing we do is take screws from one big box or container and put them into smaller boxes and containers. We fold boxes. Or do quality control by checking all the screws. The people seem pretty nice. The work atmosphere is really good too. I eat breakfast in the factory. And we have good music playing loud all day. Believe it or not eventhough it is an 8 hour work day it goes very fast.

A Calm Day

Yesterday was a good day. No sirens. Only booms in the distance and airplanes over head.

It is amazing. you sit and listen to the boom. Boom is what it is called in Hebrew. And it is a strange sound. Of in the distance. Sometimes louder, sometimes more quiet.

I slept in, went to the pool. It was so relaxing and refreshing. And then at night I went with my friend Irit and her boyfriend to Ikea, because she had to buy things for her new room. BTW Irit is the girl I wrote about before who was adopted and trying to get her Israeli citizenship. Well after 2 years she got it! It is probably because of people like my cousins, fighting the laws and system here that she recieved it.

It was so funny at Ikea, which was only open on Saturday from 9-11 at night, it was so crowded. So many people. You would never think there was a war on. It was fun. We bought Swedish food and she got to remember food in Sweden.

-When I was in Sweden I missed Bamba (peanut snack food). Now I miss Swedish food.

After Ikea we went to this pancake resturant down the road. it is open 24/7. And the pancakes were so good, just like in America. I had mine with coconut on them. Yummy. I want to go there for my birthday next year.

I have to go start my first day of work in the factory. I will tell you how it is....



After Ikea

Liviing In A Time Of War

Yesterday I couldn't get my blog running so I sent out a quick email to all my family and close friends letting them know I am alive and well.

I spent my first two days back with my friend Lerone (really in Lerone's bed sleeping off jetlag) In Tel Aviv you can look for signs of war, but really there are none. Life is moving in the same pace as before. It is another world there. I hope it stays that way.

Yesterday I returned to my Kibbutz in the north. En HaShofet is beautiful right now. All the plants are blooming and beautiful colors. I got to see some friends and there aren't many new people. I got a new room with a girl named Noa (same name as my old roommate) But I just met her as she was in a hurry to leave for the weekend. I will be working for this month in Mevrag, the screw factory. I am sure it will not be the most fun experience, 8 hours a day packing screws, but it is something to do.

So oddly enough, yesterday was not one my first air raid siren experience, but also the first of the Kibbutz. There were two. One at about 2 in the afternoon and the other at dinner time. It was a really wierd experience to go down in a bomb shelter. The first one, no one really knew what to do. Irit and were just standing there.

-what do we do? I ask
-oh god run! Irit said

Later in the shelter she told me that that was the first one (air raid) on the kibbutz. And the bomb shelter was full of water!! There must have been some water leak. By the dinner time siren we were all better at it. Although I was shocked to see how small the shelter is in the dinningroom. Because it has to accomidate for all the people in the dinningroom and the pool and the pub. It is a huge radius and not that much room. Thank god there was no trampling, as may old people and children were trying to get down.

That night I sat out drinking coffee with some friends. One kibbutznik has two children under the age of 3 and her husband is away in Lebanon. She looks like a scared lady that is really trying to be brave. My heart goes out to her.

We heard some booms off in the distance and then saw on the news that they fell in Hadera. Irit and I marvelled that rockets were flying over our heads. She and I sat outside lookng at the stars for a while and then figured the best thing to do would be go to the pub. We had some beer talked with friends and then went to bed.

In the Ulpan and volunteer area of the kibbutz there are so many people from the north. It is really sad to see whole families crammed into our tiny rooms. Some people that work in the kibbutz after the army have almost 10 family members living in their studio size apartments.

But life goes on here. Today I will go to the pool. In some ways it is weird to see how quickly people resume life. Children playing ball almost minutes after a siren. People eating thir cold Shabbat food after we came up. But what can you do. If you stop living then they won.