This Shabbat I went with Orr to her family's house in Reut. It's right next to Modi'in in between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. It felt good to get out of the village and take my mind off my work. Shoko came too. Maya, Orr's little sister, told her she wasn't allowed to come home without him. Shoko didn't really like the trip all the way up there so much but when he got there he had a great time. I was a little worried about him since he had never been in a real house before, but he behaved himself.
Orr's family reminded me of other Sephardi families I've met before. I had barely been inside for 2 minutes before I was forced to sit down and eat something. And not a snack. A full on meal or rice, meatballs, artichokes and some other things I couldn't identify. Of course it was all delicious and made me a little homesick for one of my own Mom-cooked meals. Orr's mom quickly went into hostess mode and asked me all sorts of questions about my Shabbat observance to make sure she didn't do anything that would make me uncomfortable. After lots assurances that whatever she did on Shabbat wouldn't offend me, that I was the guest in their house, she stopped asking, but was still very careful about what she did.
I went to shul with Orr and Maya before dinner. The shul is half Ashkenazi and half Sephardi with two main sanctuaries. I went to the Sephardi side with them. It was beautiful with all sort of gold and silver artwork on the walls. When I got there, the Rabbi was giving a sermon so I waited before sitting down. But then someone told me that it was alright to go inside. The only seat open was in the front row and when I got there, I asked the man on the end if I could sit down. But he was asleep. So I nudged by him and he woke up quickly. It was pretty funny. Apparently shul is the same everywhere.
I played Orr's father in Shesh-Besh (backgammon) and beat him. He wasn't happy and said he we'd play again after dinner after my American luck wore off. We then went back to Orr's for dinner. It was delicious. But I didn't end up getting to replay her dad. Next time.
The next day we both slept through shul and Maya played with Shoko after I went back to sleep after taking him out. Orr then took me and Shoko on a tour of the town and Modi'in. Shoko met some nice dogs and Orr showed me where former Army Chief of Staff and current Likud Minister Boogie Ayalon lives. It was pretty cool. When we got back, Orr took a nap and I hung out and read the newspaper. I don't understand every word, but I'm almost there and I understood most of the articles. Go Ulpan!
Today was less fun. Studying and tutoring. These kids are driving me crazy. I teach them the same grammar rules over and over. I try to think of ways to make it more interesting, but it just doesn't seem to be getting through. It was nice that at the end of class, some of the girls told me that they really liked my class and hoped I would teach them again next semester. I just wish they would let me teach them. Now it's back to work!
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Tu BiShvat
I'm afraid my posts aren't going to be so exciting for a while since I'm mostly doing work. Yesterday I was doing more research. Fun!
Today, in addition to research, I had English teaching. It's going well but after a while the kids can drive me a little nuts. It was nice though because at the end, I was left with one student who was actually interested in learning. So we just talked in English a little, which I think was a huge help for him.
Then I had my regular volunteering with other students at the school. I helped them with some math. I was a little worried about that since I haven't done math in a while. It's good to know I haven't forgotten it.
After math we brought the kids back to the village for a Tu BiShvat project. They looked for clues all over and then we all planted flowers and a few trees. Shoko was so happy to have so many kids to play with. He also tried to help with the planting, but I made him give back the flower he was trying to eat.
Today, in addition to research, I had English teaching. It's going well but after a while the kids can drive me a little nuts. It was nice though because at the end, I was left with one student who was actually interested in learning. So we just talked in English a little, which I think was a huge help for him.
Then I had my regular volunteering with other students at the school. I helped them with some math. I was a little worried about that since I haven't done math in a while. It's good to know I haven't forgotten it.
After math we brought the kids back to the village for a Tu BiShvat project. They looked for clues all over and then we all planted flowers and a few trees. Shoko was so happy to have so many kids to play with. He also tried to help with the planting, but I made him give back the flower he was trying to eat.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
I Miss Bobst
Today I woke up extra early to catch our bus to campus so I could hit the library. We got to campus before the library opened. Unbelievable! I don't get how the library closes at all. I remember many nights at Bobst, when I left after the sun had already come up. But I guess since this is on campus they'd need to keep the campus open all night as well. But still.
Anyway, I spent my morning going through the library and going over more books for my paper on the Basij. I had thought I was going to be examining how the Basij transformed from a paramilitary force of little boys, into a major government organization used to quell domestic disturbances. However, as I do more research it seems that the politicization of the Basij is merely one aspect of the changes the Revolutionary Government enacted over time. The government was able to use the Basij and Revolutionary Guards to keep the army in check and later mold them into tools of the right-wing of the regime that had to be increasingly relied upon as the moderate and liberal elements in Iranian society began to question the government more and more. Very interesting stuff. I just hope I have enough time to do it justice.
On a lighter note, he's Shoko taking a nap.
Anyway, I spent my morning going through the library and going over more books for my paper on the Basij. I had thought I was going to be examining how the Basij transformed from a paramilitary force of little boys, into a major government organization used to quell domestic disturbances. However, as I do more research it seems that the politicization of the Basij is merely one aspect of the changes the Revolutionary Government enacted over time. The government was able to use the Basij and Revolutionary Guards to keep the army in check and later mold them into tools of the right-wing of the regime that had to be increasingly relied upon as the moderate and liberal elements in Iranian society began to question the government more and more. Very interesting stuff. I just hope I have enough time to do it justice.
On a lighter note, he's Shoko taking a nap.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Recap
I missed a few days so here goes.
Friday I went over to Andrea's for Shabbat. It was just me, her, Roi (her boyfriend), Sinan (her Turkish friend), Yishai and Loren. Nice and small. It was a lot of fun. I beat Sinan in Israeli Guess Who? and he beat me in shesh-besh. After a while everyone left and Sinan and I stayed up talking about life and politics. It was a good night.
The next day I headed over to the dorms and hung out with Ian for the rest of Shabbat. After Shabbat, we went upstairs and made eggs with some of the new girls, but then I had to head home to get work done.
Yesterday I worked on my paper for my Iran class. But in the middle of the day I walked over to the high school to teach english and was then told they didn't need me. Great communication.
Today is cold and rainy, but that doesn't matter much since I'm spending most of my time inside working. Tutoring today was trying. No one in the class ever wants to sit still or listen. I try being nice and I try being mean. There are brief windows when I get through, but the rest of the time, it feels a lot like I'm talking to a wall. They don't listen and then get frustrated when they don't understand the worksheets. Oy. At least there are a few kids who genuinely seem to want to learn.
Now it's back to work for me while Shoko sleeps in the corner. I wouldn't mind switching lives with him for a little while. Eat, sleep, play, repeat.
Friday I went over to Andrea's for Shabbat. It was just me, her, Roi (her boyfriend), Sinan (her Turkish friend), Yishai and Loren. Nice and small. It was a lot of fun. I beat Sinan in Israeli Guess Who? and he beat me in shesh-besh. After a while everyone left and Sinan and I stayed up talking about life and politics. It was a good night.
The next day I headed over to the dorms and hung out with Ian for the rest of Shabbat. After Shabbat, we went upstairs and made eggs with some of the new girls, but then I had to head home to get work done.
Yesterday I worked on my paper for my Iran class. But in the middle of the day I walked over to the high school to teach english and was then told they didn't need me. Great communication.
Today is cold and rainy, but that doesn't matter much since I'm spending most of my time inside working. Tutoring today was trying. No one in the class ever wants to sit still or listen. I try being nice and I try being mean. There are brief windows when I get through, but the rest of the time, it feels a lot like I'm talking to a wall. They don't listen and then get frustrated when they don't understand the worksheets. Oy. At least there are a few kids who genuinely seem to want to learn.
Now it's back to work for me while Shoko sleeps in the corner. I wouldn't mind switching lives with him for a little while. Eat, sleep, play, repeat.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Hannah and Ian's visit plus some awful tutoring
Yesterday, Hannah and Ian finally came to the village. I probably should I have told them not to come since I should have done work, but I figured it was alright. Of course they came during the week when it has been raining, so I didn't really get to show them around much, but we had a good time anyway.
I made schnitzel, we drank tea, smoke hookah, played some shesh-besh and Hannah taught us how to play lokchot. Overall it was a pretty great day. Shoko was happy to have visitors too.
Today was less fun. I was teaching at the local school again. The first 2 hours went well. I was tutoring this one kid one-on-one and it was difficult for him, but he was clearly trying to learn. But the second half was awful. I was teaching two girls and they just wouldn't listen to anything. Finally one started doing her work but the other one must have a major case of ADD because she couldn't focus on anything. It took an hour to read 6 3-word sentences. It was just that it took so long, she wouldn't let me help her understand the mistakes she was making. She just wanted to keep going even though she clearly had no idea what was going on. Eventually I erupted at her when she complained she didn't understand and said, I'm sitting here trying to help you and you won't listen to word I'm saying! Of course you don't understand! Ugh. That scared her into sitting still for about 5 minutes.
Hooray, not I can focus on my own work. What fun!
I made schnitzel, we drank tea, smoke hookah, played some shesh-besh and Hannah taught us how to play lokchot. Overall it was a pretty great day. Shoko was happy to have visitors too.
Today was less fun. I was teaching at the local school again. The first 2 hours went well. I was tutoring this one kid one-on-one and it was difficult for him, but he was clearly trying to learn. But the second half was awful. I was teaching two girls and they just wouldn't listen to anything. Finally one started doing her work but the other one must have a major case of ADD because she couldn't focus on anything. It took an hour to read 6 3-word sentences. It was just that it took so long, she wouldn't let me help her understand the mistakes she was making. She just wanted to keep going even though she clearly had no idea what was going on. Eventually I erupted at her when she complained she didn't understand and said, I'm sitting here trying to help you and you won't listen to word I'm saying! Of course you don't understand! Ugh. That scared her into sitting still for about 5 minutes.
Hooray, not I can focus on my own work. What fun!
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
IDF Archives
Loooooooooooooooong day.
I woke up at 6 today so I could get to the IDF Archives up in Tel HaShomer (near Tel Aviv) early and check out all the stuff I need. But I got to Be'er Sheva about 3 minutes after my train left. So I had to take the bus, which doesn't take much longer, but it meant I had to wait another half hour. I finally got to Tel Aviv and then wandered around the bus station looking for the right bus. I finally find it and when I comes, the driver tells me I need to cross the street and catch the one going the other direction. Great. So I crossed the street and waited for the next bus. I got on and took it all the way to the last stop and was finally at the archives. It was 11:30.
I met Doron, my contact there and he showed me how to get started. It was a little intimidating, I mean it was all in Hebrew, in pre-State Hebrew when Israelis still used Hebrew words for things that have since been replaced with English ones, with grammar that no one really uses anymore and of course the quality isn't the best. For many of the pages I felt like I must need glasses. But despite all that, I was able to read most of what I saw, if slowly and was able to search through hundreds of pages of documents to find the things I need. It was really cool!
The best part was when I found a document written right after Haifa fell to the Zionists. It spoke about how the city was finally "in our hands" and it ended with "לחיים! לחרות! לעצמאות!" "To life! To Freedom! To Independence!" and it was signed "צבא ההגנה לארץ ישראל" or the Land of Israel Defense Force. Since it was pre-state, it looks like that was the official name of the Haganah. I never knew that before. So awesome!
After a few hours pouring over documents it was time to leave. I was the last one there. Doron said he would mail me the docs I selected and hopefully I'll get them next week. I then grabbed a bus back to Tel Aviv to meet up with Peninah from USY. She made Aliyah a few years ago and got out of the army in September. I hadn't seen her since she made Aliyah so it was really great to hang out with her. We talked a lot and caught up. Last time I spoke with her she was on her way to the airport to go to Morocco. I was very jealous and we talked about her plans to travel the world this summer. I had never really thought about it, but I've been to a huge number of countries all over the place. She talked about how she wanted to go to Cuba and South America, so I was able to help her out a little bit there. We weren't able to hang out for too long because she had to head back home for a roommate meeting. But it was still really great to see her.
We went to this new kosher place on Rabin Square and the first table there had a chair with a sign on it saying "Reserved for Gilad Shalit." When was that last time any major American news network broadcast a story about Bowe Bergdahl, the American soldier still held by the Taliban? When was the last time you heard or saw regular people talk or protest for his release? He seems to have been forgotten. That's not the case here. A common bumper sticker to see here is one with Gilad's face and the phrase "I was drafted too." In my Iran class when we were discussing the protests, Loren lamented the fact that Americans don't take to the streets anymore. I was critical of him and said it was a sign of democracy that anger is taken out in polling booths not streets. But now I'm inclined to agree with him. We don't protest over a lack of government action for Bergdahl and we don't protest the fact that the Pentagon spend billions on new fighter planes for use in yesteryear's wars while soldiers are driving around in Humvees without armor in the wars of today. It's interesting how seeing one small sign can change the way you look at the world.
Anyway, Peninah told me which bus to take back to the station and then I waited for the train and eventually made my way back to Dimona at around 10:30. Phew! Shoko is already sleeping on the bed. I think he has the right idea.
I woke up at 6 today so I could get to the IDF Archives up in Tel HaShomer (near Tel Aviv) early and check out all the stuff I need. But I got to Be'er Sheva about 3 minutes after my train left. So I had to take the bus, which doesn't take much longer, but it meant I had to wait another half hour. I finally got to Tel Aviv and then wandered around the bus station looking for the right bus. I finally find it and when I comes, the driver tells me I need to cross the street and catch the one going the other direction. Great. So I crossed the street and waited for the next bus. I got on and took it all the way to the last stop and was finally at the archives. It was 11:30.
I met Doron, my contact there and he showed me how to get started. It was a little intimidating, I mean it was all in Hebrew, in pre-State Hebrew when Israelis still used Hebrew words for things that have since been replaced with English ones, with grammar that no one really uses anymore and of course the quality isn't the best. For many of the pages I felt like I must need glasses. But despite all that, I was able to read most of what I saw, if slowly and was able to search through hundreds of pages of documents to find the things I need. It was really cool!
The best part was when I found a document written right after Haifa fell to the Zionists. It spoke about how the city was finally "in our hands" and it ended with "לחיים! לחרות! לעצמאות!" "To life! To Freedom! To Independence!" and it was signed "צבא ההגנה לארץ ישראל" or the Land of Israel Defense Force. Since it was pre-state, it looks like that was the official name of the Haganah. I never knew that before. So awesome!
After a few hours pouring over documents it was time to leave. I was the last one there. Doron said he would mail me the docs I selected and hopefully I'll get them next week. I then grabbed a bus back to Tel Aviv to meet up with Peninah from USY. She made Aliyah a few years ago and got out of the army in September. I hadn't seen her since she made Aliyah so it was really great to hang out with her. We talked a lot and caught up. Last time I spoke with her she was on her way to the airport to go to Morocco. I was very jealous and we talked about her plans to travel the world this summer. I had never really thought about it, but I've been to a huge number of countries all over the place. She talked about how she wanted to go to Cuba and South America, so I was able to help her out a little bit there. We weren't able to hang out for too long because she had to head back home for a roommate meeting. But it was still really great to see her.
We went to this new kosher place on Rabin Square and the first table there had a chair with a sign on it saying "Reserved for Gilad Shalit." When was that last time any major American news network broadcast a story about Bowe Bergdahl, the American soldier still held by the Taliban? When was the last time you heard or saw regular people talk or protest for his release? He seems to have been forgotten. That's not the case here. A common bumper sticker to see here is one with Gilad's face and the phrase "I was drafted too." In my Iran class when we were discussing the protests, Loren lamented the fact that Americans don't take to the streets anymore. I was critical of him and said it was a sign of democracy that anger is taken out in polling booths not streets. But now I'm inclined to agree with him. We don't protest over a lack of government action for Bergdahl and we don't protest the fact that the Pentagon spend billions on new fighter planes for use in yesteryear's wars while soldiers are driving around in Humvees without armor in the wars of today. It's interesting how seeing one small sign can change the way you look at the world.
Anyway, Peninah told me which bus to take back to the station and then I waited for the train and eventually made my way back to Dimona at around 10:30. Phew! Shoko is already sleeping on the bed. I think he has the right idea.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Storm
Yesterday began my weeks of all work and no play. Not so much fun. I did get to take a break from studying and writing to teach English though. It's going pretty well, though after 2 hours yesterday, my students were not interested in a third hour, so I let them out early. Two of the girls in the class clearly have crushes on me. It's pretty adorable. Now if I could only get girls my own age to be interested, I'd be set.
Before I got down to work, I decided to go shopping and get some food for the week. I also stopped off at the pet store and got some things for Shoko. A new leash, treats, a bigger water bowl and a flea collar. I also got him a muzzle so I can take him on the bus. He's too big now for me to get away with pulling the puppy card. I don't think he likes it though.
Last night it began to rain really hard. Not typical desert weather. Shoko was a little afraid of the thunder at first but then he calmed down and took a nap. Of course it started to rain on the day that I did my laundry so instead of drying in the sun, I need to keep everything inside.
Today is another study day. Usually Shoko is outside during the day, but I let him inside because of all the rain. He's taking a nap on the carpet in the living room. Dog's life. Back to Arabic for me.
Before I got down to work, I decided to go shopping and get some food for the week. I also stopped off at the pet store and got some things for Shoko. A new leash, treats, a bigger water bowl and a flea collar. I also got him a muzzle so I can take him on the bus. He's too big now for me to get away with pulling the puppy card. I don't think he likes it though.
Last night it began to rain really hard. Not typical desert weather. Shoko was a little afraid of the thunder at first but then he calmed down and took a nap. Of course it started to rain on the day that I did my laundry so instead of drying in the sun, I need to keep everything inside.
Today is another study day. Usually Shoko is outside during the day, but I let him inside because of all the rain. He's taking a nap on the carpet in the living room. Dog's life. Back to Arabic for me.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Shabbat in Dimona
I was going to go with Orr to her family in Reut, but they were going up to Kiryat Shmona and we weren't so excited about making the 4 hour journey all the way up north. Plus, Shoko would not have been able to handle such a long trip. So instead we stayed in the village.
After shul, we all ate dinner together in the Moadon, which was really nice, that is after we cleaned up the fully-set table that collapsed. Shoko found a nice spot on a mattress and took a nap. We hung out for a while, played Yaniv (shout out Josh) and called it a night.
Today I went on a short hike in the desert with Shani, Dina, Dina's friend and Shoko. I love that I can just walk a few feet and be hiking in the desert. It's pretty cool. When we got back, Shoko and I drank some water and relaxed before lunch.
Since we had such good weather today, we ate lunch together outside, while Shoko played with Katanchik. Apparently, the other day, another dog was playing to rough with Shoko, and Katanchik saved him.
After lunch, I brought Shoko inside and tried to teach him some tricks. Nothing huge, just sit and lay down. He's getting the hang of it. He clearly know how, I just need to get him to a point where he does it when I want him to, not just when he wants to. Shoko got a little tired of all the sitting and laying down, so he decided to take a nap while I got some reading done. Then Mor and Orr came over for Havdalah.
Tonight should be a lot of fun. I'm going to stay in a try to write my Historiography final! I can't wait!
After shul, we all ate dinner together in the Moadon, which was really nice, that is after we cleaned up the fully-set table that collapsed. Shoko found a nice spot on a mattress and took a nap. We hung out for a while, played Yaniv (shout out Josh) and called it a night.
Today I went on a short hike in the desert with Shani, Dina, Dina's friend and Shoko. I love that I can just walk a few feet and be hiking in the desert. It's pretty cool. When we got back, Shoko and I drank some water and relaxed before lunch.
Since we had such good weather today, we ate lunch together outside, while Shoko played with Katanchik. Apparently, the other day, another dog was playing to rough with Shoko, and Katanchik saved him.
After lunch, I brought Shoko inside and tried to teach him some tricks. Nothing huge, just sit and lay down. He's getting the hang of it. He clearly know how, I just need to get him to a point where he does it when I want him to, not just when he wants to. Shoko got a little tired of all the sitting and laying down, so he decided to take a nap while I got some reading done. Then Mor and Orr came over for Havdalah.
Tonight should be a lot of fun. I'm going to stay in a try to write my Historiography final! I can't wait!
Friday, January 15, 2010
Thursday Night
Last night there was a party for all the MAPMES students and their MAP-mates (Israeli students paired up with them) at a hookah place called Diwan Hani, in Beer Sheva. I got to impress some of the MAP-mates with my Hebrew and we spoke Arabic with Hani, who gave free tea. Good times were had by all.
Since it was pretty late by the time we were done, instead of going back to Dimona, Amir invited me to stay on his couch. This was very nice of him, until his roommate's dog decided to bite me on the leg. That was less fun, but I'm fine. This morning when I came back home, Shoko made it all better.
Time to get ready for Shabbat.
Shoko looking dashing in his new blue collar that Ian got him for Hanukkah.
Chowing down.
Playing fetch with his Kofi
Since it was pretty late by the time we were done, instead of going back to Dimona, Amir invited me to stay on his couch. This was very nice of him, until his roommate's dog decided to bite me on the leg. That was less fun, but I'm fine. This morning when I came back home, Shoko made it all better.
Time to get ready for Shabbat.
Shoko looking dashing in his new blue collar that Ian got him for Hanukkah.
Chowing down.
Playing fetch with his Kofi
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Big Day
Today I had my last Arabic class of the semester. We went over some of the texts we read and the professor posted the format of the exam online. Now I just need to study like crazy until next Thursday. Thankfully, Orr is also in my class and I'm going to study with her and some of her friends from the class. Also, one of the guys in class is going on the Spain trip and spoke to me about the few students going who are Shomer Shabbat. Since we're supposed to go from Toledo to Madrid on Shabbat, we're going to stay behind and take a bus after Shabbat is over. Should be fun.
After class, I grabbed a quick bite to eat and then came back to Dimona to teach some English. It was a rough start, no one wanted to sit still or be quiet. But after a while they settled down and listened. Instead of moving on to new stuff, I did a review of the vocab, which went over pretty well. Now let's see if they review for Sunday.
I just made my appointment at the IDF Archives for next Tuesday. A little late, but I'm really excited to go. I have to take a train to Tel Aviv and then a bus to Tel HaShomer. Hopefully I won't get too lost on the way.
Now it's time to do some work because I need to go back to campus later today for the big MAPMATES end of semester thing.
After class, I grabbed a quick bite to eat and then came back to Dimona to teach some English. It was a rough start, no one wanted to sit still or be quiet. But after a while they settled down and listened. Instead of moving on to new stuff, I did a review of the vocab, which went over pretty well. Now let's see if they review for Sunday.
I just made my appointment at the IDF Archives for next Tuesday. A little late, but I'm really excited to go. I have to take a train to Tel Aviv and then a bus to Tel HaShomer. Hopefully I won't get too lost on the way.
Now it's time to do some work because I need to go back to campus later today for the big MAPMATES end of semester thing.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
End of Classes
Yesterday I had my last class with Benny Morris and my last Iranian Revolution class. We spoke more about the Palestinian refugees and watched a documentary about them staring Benny Morris. In Iran we watched Persepolis and talked more about the film we saw last week about sex change operations in Iran.
Then Yoni and I went over to Hannah's and met a bunch of the new OSP kids. They seem pretty nice and one of them was picking my brain about Ayalim. I wasn't able to stay long because I had to catch my bus back to Dimona where we had a big Ayalim meeting. We went over our schedule for the next few months, which is important, but then we broke off into groups and discussed different questions about the idea of community and things like that. I think that can be a good thing to do, but not for 3 hours on the last week of classes. I got back home at around 11:30.
Today I have tutoring again and then I have to head to campus for my last Historiography class. Woo!
Then Yoni and I went over to Hannah's and met a bunch of the new OSP kids. They seem pretty nice and one of them was picking my brain about Ayalim. I wasn't able to stay long because I had to catch my bus back to Dimona where we had a big Ayalim meeting. We went over our schedule for the next few months, which is important, but then we broke off into groups and discussed different questions about the idea of community and things like that. I think that can be a good thing to do, but not for 3 hours on the last week of classes. I got back home at around 11:30.
Today I have tutoring again and then I have to head to campus for my last Historiography class. Woo!
Monday, January 11, 2010
More Tutoring
I'm getting pretty annoyed with the tutoring program I'm working with in Dimona. It's not nearly as organized as it should be. Yesterday I was told I would be teaching math and ended up teaching English. Today I thought we would be doing group building activities and we ended up teaching math. It's very unprofessional and prevents us from actually preparing for the lessons. It's not like I need to prepare a lot for the lessons - they're pretty basic, especially English - but it would be nice to have some idea of what I am going to be teaching before I get to the school, especially since I don't have so much experience teaching.
So today I was helping students with Algebra. Great idea. Get Matt to help kids with math. I haven't done algebra in a while, but thankfully I remember it. It was very discouraging to sit down with kids in the 9th grade who took out their calculators to do such simple math. But it was even more discouraging when the main teacher told me that they were allowed to use them. I yelled at him and told him that if they don't know what 5x6 is without a calculator, they won't learn anything. But apparently there are very low expectations of these kids. They don't come from the best home situations and the fact that they are still in school seems to be the main achievement here. I'm just glad I was able to keep my student focused while his classmates ran around, spilled ink on the floor and while one of them actually tried to light his desk on fire (or at least just melt it a little).
Now in addition to this group on Mondays and my class from the other day, I'm supposed to tutor some of these kids in English. I wouldn't mind it so much, but I'm just not sure when I'm supposed to fit this all in, especially now that my classes are ending and I'm supposed to be focusing on my research papers. Oh well. It'll all work out in the end.
So today I was helping students with Algebra. Great idea. Get Matt to help kids with math. I haven't done algebra in a while, but thankfully I remember it. It was very discouraging to sit down with kids in the 9th grade who took out their calculators to do such simple math. But it was even more discouraging when the main teacher told me that they were allowed to use them. I yelled at him and told him that if they don't know what 5x6 is without a calculator, they won't learn anything. But apparently there are very low expectations of these kids. They don't come from the best home situations and the fact that they are still in school seems to be the main achievement here. I'm just glad I was able to keep my student focused while his classmates ran around, spilled ink on the floor and while one of them actually tried to light his desk on fire (or at least just melt it a little).
Now in addition to this group on Mondays and my class from the other day, I'm supposed to tutor some of these kids in English. I wouldn't mind it so much, but I'm just not sure when I'm supposed to fit this all in, especially now that my classes are ending and I'm supposed to be focusing on my research papers. Oh well. It'll all work out in the end.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Tutoring
Today I began tutoring at the local high school. I thought I was going to be teaching math (I know, who that that was a good idea) but I ended up teaching English. It went really well, most of the kids really wanted to learn. During the breaks, they asked me questions about America and various celebrities (they all were excited to show me they had American music on their cell phones). They also all seem to think that America is magical and that everything that happens there is exciting and fun. I told them that growing up in America, kids think the same thing, that the town they live in is boring and it must be more fun in another one. Usually when I tell Israeli kids that, they don't really believe me, but seemed like they did this time. My Hebrew has really improved; I'm pretty impressed with myself I was able to teach a class in Hebrew by myself.
Now Shoko and I are heading to campus to say goodbye to Rebecca who is going home this week.
Now Shoko and I are heading to campus to say goodbye to Rebecca who is going home this week.
Miryam
Here are some pictures from Miryam's visit
Us on the BGU campus
Miryam trying to figure out what is wrong with this secretary
Me with the robot secretary
Me making Eliad jealous
Miryam making friends with a cactus
Me with one of the many cacti in Beer Sheva
Me with Ben, Gali and Nara on the beach
Me playing with Nara
Me making Eliad jealous, yet again.
Us on the BGU campus
Miryam trying to figure out what is wrong with this secretary
Me with the robot secretary
Me making Eliad jealous
Miryam making friends with a cactus
Me with one of the many cacti in Beer Sheva
Me with Ben, Gali and Nara on the beach
Me playing with Nara
Me making Eliad jealous, yet again.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Shabbat in Herzliyya Pituach
This Shabbat, I went up north to visit Miryam and her family in Herzliyya Pituach. I took the train up to Tel-Aviv and Miryam and her cousin Gali picked me up and drove me to H"P. It's a really beautiful town and the weather was great so we went to the beach with Miryam's brother, sister and Gali's dog Nara. The water was too cold to go in (at least for me) but it was still a lot of fun. I guess 80 degree winters are the price of global warming, a pity.
Today we hung out at Miryam's and had a great lunch with lots of her family. It was nice to get a few home cooked meals in. Gali and I wanted to play Risk, but no one else did, so we walked around looking for some of her friends. None of them were home, so we came back and by then Ben, Debbie and Yoni were interested in playing. So we played for an hour and a half and on one turn, it was taking Debbie and her cousin forever to decide what to do. So I took a break to daven Maariv. When I got back, they were cleaning up the game. Quitters.
I was then trying to figure out when to head back down south when I got a call from Boaz, who was looking after Shoko. He said that Shoko had followed him to shul in the morning and when he came out, Shoko was gone! I was so scared and angry. So I rushed to catch the next train back to Dimona and luckily, as soon as I got to Beer Sheva, Boaz gave me a call saying he found him. Phew!
Time to chill with the puppy.
Today we hung out at Miryam's and had a great lunch with lots of her family. It was nice to get a few home cooked meals in. Gali and I wanted to play Risk, but no one else did, so we walked around looking for some of her friends. None of them were home, so we came back and by then Ben, Debbie and Yoni were interested in playing. So we played for an hour and a half and on one turn, it was taking Debbie and her cousin forever to decide what to do. So I took a break to daven Maariv. When I got back, they were cleaning up the game. Quitters.
I was then trying to figure out when to head back down south when I got a call from Boaz, who was looking after Shoko. He said that Shoko had followed him to shul in the morning and when he came out, Shoko was gone! I was so scared and angry. So I rushed to catch the next train back to Dimona and luckily, as soon as I got to Beer Sheva, Boaz gave me a call saying he found him. Phew!
Time to chill with the puppy.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Shoko at School
Today I decided to bring Shoko to campus. I didn't realize how big he had gotten. I used to put him in my BGU bag and carry him on the bus, but now he doesn't even fit. It wasn't a problem bringing him on campus before because he would just hide in the bag, but today he walked in and security stopped us. I told them he was a seeing-eye-dog in training and I just forgot his vest. Luckily the security guard didn't know how to check if this was true and just let us in. Andrea looked after him while I was in Arabic and then we brought him to the OSP office to hang out and wait for the new study abroad students to arrive. Well, really we were waiting for the free pizza that was being served for lunch. But who's keeping track?
The new kids seem nice. I didn't really get to hang out with anyone specific because there were about 30 people crammed in the office together. Too many. But at least there was a whole lot of pizza. Too much in fact. Shoko played around with Nala, Tamar's seeing-eye-dog in training and wore himself out. He slept through most of lunch.
I then left to meet with David Newman and discuss the conference. It's going well, but since I just sent out emails to over 40 people, my inbox is crowded and I have a lot to keep track of.
After the meeting I went back to the OSP office and hung out with Andrea. We were bored so we decided to make Shoko a facebook profile. He's famous, whenever I walk with him on campus, people always say, "Hey, it's Shoko!" It's almost like he's a mini celebrity.
Shoko with Andrea's boyfriend, Roi.
Shoko and Nala
The new kids seem nice. I didn't really get to hang out with anyone specific because there were about 30 people crammed in the office together. Too many. But at least there was a whole lot of pizza. Too much in fact. Shoko played around with Nala, Tamar's seeing-eye-dog in training and wore himself out. He slept through most of lunch.
I then left to meet with David Newman and discuss the conference. It's going well, but since I just sent out emails to over 40 people, my inbox is crowded and I have a lot to keep track of.
After the meeting I went back to the OSP office and hung out with Andrea. We were bored so we decided to make Shoko a facebook profile. He's famous, whenever I walk with him on campus, people always say, "Hey, it's Shoko!" It's almost like he's a mini celebrity.
Shoko with Andrea's boyfriend, Roi.
Shoko and Nala
Just a Note about Hospitality
Last night, I went next door to ask Orr a question about Arabic class, but before she would answer my question, I was forced to sit down and eat an entire second dinner. I ended up hanging out with her and bunch of her friends for a good two hours before I remembered why I had initially come over. Good Night
Also, Boaz showed me that the bushes growing around our caravan aren't just bushes, they're different kinds of tea. So I've been busy trying all the different kinds of my tea.
Also, Boaz showed me that the bushes growing around our caravan aren't just bushes, they're different kinds of tea. So I've been busy trying all the different kinds of my tea.
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Second Post in 2 days?
I was supposed to start tutoring a small group of high schoolers in math this afternoon. So I decided to get some much needed grocery shopping done in the morning so I wouldn't show up to my first day teaching hungry. But while shopping I got a call letting me know that I would actually start teaching on Sunday instead. So I was able to eat a leisurely lunch and do some homework before heading to campus for class.
In my Historiography class today we, we were discussing labeling different organizations as Terrorist Organizations. It was certainly lively. The author of the chapter we read talked about how current definitions of terrorism pretty much exclude State Terror. This lead to a point in which pretty much every militant organization and national government was classified as a terrorist organization, and if everyone is a terrorist, then no one is. But the main point was that the label "terrorist" prevents proper study of the organization because it has already had a black label attached to it and makes it nearly impossible for any government to negotiate with it. This is true to an extent but when dealing with terrorist organizations, their intent is very important when discussing negotiations. The British Government was finally able to negotiate a peace (however shaky) with the IRA and Sinn Fein once they were willing to compromise and negotiate (and once the British government got past their stigma as terrorists and was willing to negotiate with them). Israel was only able to negotiate with the PLO once is rejected violence and accepted negotiations as the path to their goals (at least publicly). However, before they did so, they were committed to Israel's destruction, in 1964 when the PLO was founded, they would never have negotiated with Israel because their main goal was to destroy Israel. While negotiating with "terrorist organizations" like the IRA and ANC has become an accepted position among the Left, it is often forgotten that groups like Hamas and Hizbullah are themselves uninterested in negotiations. It may be that one day they will change their tune (however unlikely) but until then, comparing them to other reformed groups is inappropriate and wrong.
When I got home today I submitted my final applications for Ph.D. programs. Huge load off my mind! Now I just have to sit back, relax and wait for the responses. Not nerve-wracking at all! I went outside and ran around with Shoko for a while just to clear my head.
In my Historiography class today we, we were discussing labeling different organizations as Terrorist Organizations. It was certainly lively. The author of the chapter we read talked about how current definitions of terrorism pretty much exclude State Terror. This lead to a point in which pretty much every militant organization and national government was classified as a terrorist organization, and if everyone is a terrorist, then no one is. But the main point was that the label "terrorist" prevents proper study of the organization because it has already had a black label attached to it and makes it nearly impossible for any government to negotiate with it. This is true to an extent but when dealing with terrorist organizations, their intent is very important when discussing negotiations. The British Government was finally able to negotiate a peace (however shaky) with the IRA and Sinn Fein once they were willing to compromise and negotiate (and once the British government got past their stigma as terrorists and was willing to negotiate with them). Israel was only able to negotiate with the PLO once is rejected violence and accepted negotiations as the path to their goals (at least publicly). However, before they did so, they were committed to Israel's destruction, in 1964 when the PLO was founded, they would never have negotiated with Israel because their main goal was to destroy Israel. While negotiating with "terrorist organizations" like the IRA and ANC has become an accepted position among the Left, it is often forgotten that groups like Hamas and Hizbullah are themselves uninterested in negotiations. It may be that one day they will change their tune (however unlikely) but until then, comparing them to other reformed groups is inappropriate and wrong.
When I got home today I submitted my final applications for Ph.D. programs. Huge load off my mind! Now I just have to sit back, relax and wait for the responses. Not nerve-wracking at all! I went outside and ran around with Shoko for a while just to clear my head.
New Years and Miryam
Since I was unable to go to any of the raging parties back home, be they down in DC or at Schliss' house, I decided to check out the "Hebrew" Party my village was having on New Years. In Israel, NYE is called "Sylvester" and the best answer I've gotten as to why that is, is that it's probably named after St. Sylvester. Since most Christian saints weren't so great to the Jews, we were having a "Hebrew " party instead, and it just happened to be on the same day. It was a lot of fun. There was a bar inside and an outside tikibar next to the huge dance-floor.
Only a few people stayed in the village for Shabbat, so Boaz and I hosted everyone Friday night and for Shabbat lunch. So Friday Boaz cooked and I watched. I'm actually starting to learn some things in the kitchen. Not so much how to cook big things, but at least now I know what to do with garlic and other cooking stuff.
On Monday Miryam came down to Beer Sheva to hang out. It was really great seeing her and getting to catch up with a friend from home face to face. We grabbed lunch at Aroma and then she waited for a little bit while I met with Joel Peters who is working with David Newman on the book I'm helping him with. I took Miryam around campus, discussed how annoying grad school applications are and she was able to fill me in on all the latest gossip from home. I was going to bring her back to Dimona so she could see the village and Shoko, but we didn't have enough time. So instead I'm going to visit her for Shabbat. Should be fun.
Today in Benny Morris' class we had a guest speaker who fought in the War of Independence and has done extensive research on the conflict and collective memory. It was really cool.
Tonight we had a party in the village for everyone volunteering through Azrieli (that includes me). Everyone was supposed to make a type of food from a different country, but since Boaz and I both got back from campus just beforehand, we decided to throw something together from the two of us. So Boaz cooked and I handed him ingredients. We ended up making carrot and potato latkes that were really delicious. It must have been the way I cracked open the eggs. The party was a lot of fun and the food was delicious. We also played some improv games and everyone actually really got into it.
Now the Shoko Show:
Only a few people stayed in the village for Shabbat, so Boaz and I hosted everyone Friday night and for Shabbat lunch. So Friday Boaz cooked and I watched. I'm actually starting to learn some things in the kitchen. Not so much how to cook big things, but at least now I know what to do with garlic and other cooking stuff.
On Monday Miryam came down to Beer Sheva to hang out. It was really great seeing her and getting to catch up with a friend from home face to face. We grabbed lunch at Aroma and then she waited for a little bit while I met with Joel Peters who is working with David Newman on the book I'm helping him with. I took Miryam around campus, discussed how annoying grad school applications are and she was able to fill me in on all the latest gossip from home. I was going to bring her back to Dimona so she could see the village and Shoko, but we didn't have enough time. So instead I'm going to visit her for Shabbat. Should be fun.
Today in Benny Morris' class we had a guest speaker who fought in the War of Independence and has done extensive research on the conflict and collective memory. It was really cool.
Tonight we had a party in the village for everyone volunteering through Azrieli (that includes me). Everyone was supposed to make a type of food from a different country, but since Boaz and I both got back from campus just beforehand, we decided to throw something together from the two of us. So Boaz cooked and I handed him ingredients. We ended up making carrot and potato latkes that were really delicious. It must have been the way I cracked open the eggs. The party was a lot of fun and the food was delicious. We also played some improv games and everyone actually really got into it.
Now the Shoko Show:
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