I don't normally make my dating or personal life public. I wanted to quickly address the dating situation I encountered here in Israel. In Israel most guys our age group 21-25 range into a couple of different categories .
The kibbutznik - (a guy from a kibbutz) now from previous experiences the kibbutznik will show up to pick you up in a car wearing sandles (shoresh or tevas) a ripped up shirt and maybe shorts shorter then yours. He probably has never been south past Ber Sheva. But is a quality guy. Served maybe in the paratrooper unit or something of the sort. His hair is short and you can tell he just ran on the beach or met up with his friends. (all of which are other kibbutznikim) He will take you hiking even when you are not dressed for it and when he told you , you are going out for coffee he did not mean a cafe'. He means you will hike for about 5K and then he will whip out from his bag a coffee maker and small glass cups and some sugar. (this is a very Israeli of making coffee in the army. ) You are expected to not sweat after this huge hike and not complain that the hour long makeup procedure is now smeared all over your face. .... damn Israeli humidity.
The Televavian- (a guy who lives in Tel Aviv) maybe you met this guy at a bar or club with your friends. He thinks that there is no life past Tel Aviv. He will probably show up to your date wearing jeans he spent too much money on and a button down that is wrinkled ( well it's the thought that counted. And even though he probably is from small town, now that he has finished the Army and left this town, he can't remember life before 2 am supermarkets. He is probably in the process of applying to some unis, but mostly can hold an intellectual conversation about how rudimentary everywhere else is besides Tel Aviv. This guy probably works as a waiter and even though he is totally unique - he accepts tips from the national burger chain restaurant where he works.
The Katzin- (an Officer) this guy is your age 23-24. You met him in the Army. He has served plenty of time and his job is making others under him miserable. He is on an ego trip. The more time the bigger the ego. He takes his job very seriously and when he meets you he tries to impress you by making his soldiers do stupid chores or run. He also spews out lies about how much harder he had it and tries to be very manly. You can not consider dating this type of man even though after teasing you about your accent all week and trying to ask you out, you pretend to not understand Hebrew. Also once you see him on the street in normal clothes and not uniform you can't help but laugh at his goldstar t-shirt.
The stoner- this is not based off my experience but a friend's. This guy got out of the army about 2 years ago. Went to Ti land and that is where his mind stayed. In a cloud of smoke. He does nothing with his spare time besides blaze. He also forgets to call you because let's face it - where did he put that phone? He has dreads and wears clothes made out of hemp. He might teach a yoga class but mostly lives with his parents.
The college student- now the college student you meet on the bus - does not even closely resemble anything you ever encountered in the states. There is no beer pong, late night parties, Sunday morning hangover slacking in this guy's future. He is very serious and on the train or bus will be reading some ethical code of conduct. When you make a joke that you read this for fun he will say that that is what he is doing. He will probably frown a lot and pretend he is very knowledgeable. He will probably major in statistics and globalization. He will insist on speaking to you in English. He will use sentences like " I understand the matter with the economy in the United States but if Obama would just put forth a plan to tax more things would be settled. " - in a very thick Israeli accent. You will try to look past the fact that he has not showered in several days and his seriousness to find that at the end of your date even the coffee is bored.
The perfect man- this man does not exist in straight form. Though walking around Tel Aviv you will see many wonderful men that apply into this criteria. Mostly men that love other men.
To summarize. I am taking a break from dating for awhile. At least it makes for some funny stories. Lots of love,
Michali
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
hey world
These past two weeks were incredibly difficult for the entire state of Israel. I am going to not get into specifics since some of the information I heard should not be shared over the internet or out loud. Israel got into a semi- war with Hamas. A terrorist organization in Gaza. Every day for more then a week rockets and bombs went off everywhere from the south of Israel to even Tel - Aviv and J-town. A bus was hit, and also many houses reduced to rubble. There is a technology known as an iron cap. It intercepts rockets as they rain down on Israel. It doesn't look like a cap at all but it saved many lives of both civilians and soldiers. These past two weeks I lived in constant tension. While my friends in America went on with their lives - shopping , tweeting , working, complaining about drama that really in the scheme of things doesn't matter. Israel constantly heard sirens, my friends were preparing to inch towards the boarders and it felt like the whole country held it's breath.
Looking back it is a weird type of phenominon that I underwent. I used to really care about shopping and worked in Tiffany's, was worried about my weekend plans and was very self centered. I am not saying that all Americans are like this at all. So do not take what I am writing out of contex. It is just hard to hear that while my world was turned upside down, I moved from base to base training reserves and different soldiers, my friends in the states still had the same worries and were so out of touch with the realities of the world. I can't blame them. They didn't live this . I wanted to scream "wake the f*** up!" to articles on line written by ivy leagued americans that declared Israel as an imperalistic state and scorened it for protecting itself. Israel is in no way perfect. That is not what I am saying or arguing. There are many palestinians that had to move their lives, were effected and were hurt not only this time but over the past 65 years of conflict. These are good people. There are the extremists that powered by terror are educated that they will receive their rightful place if they act according to the plan.
So before you point your fingers. I want you to stop . time yourself. you have 15 seconds to run to the nearest bomb shelter. wait ? you don't have one? is that because you are lucky enough to live in a country that not only does not undergo this type of conflict but also when under attack strikes back with massive force and is not critisized for it?
I sound bitter. Maybe I am . Maybe each day as people were injured on both sides I thought of how uneducated and unaware I was of this conflict and how even though I considered myself Israeli the last time I underwent this was as a baby.
It didn't effect me. Now that my best friends are combat soldiers and are the ones protecting this land, the realities come to light.
I am not pointing fingers at anyone nor am I trying to cause trouble but I just wanted it to be stated that this was my wakeup call. To be an Israeli is more then just Hummas and Pita and nice beaches and Tel Aviv clubs. It means sleeping in tents in cold nights, training massive amounts of soldiers and realizing that the world does not revolve around you. I have never been prouder to be an Israeli and will or have regreted my move and enlistment. I just want you to "wake the f*** up"
Going to jog,
Michali
Looking back it is a weird type of phenominon that I underwent. I used to really care about shopping and worked in Tiffany's, was worried about my weekend plans and was very self centered. I am not saying that all Americans are like this at all. So do not take what I am writing out of contex. It is just hard to hear that while my world was turned upside down, I moved from base to base training reserves and different soldiers, my friends in the states still had the same worries and were so out of touch with the realities of the world. I can't blame them. They didn't live this . I wanted to scream "wake the f*** up!" to articles on line written by ivy leagued americans that declared Israel as an imperalistic state and scorened it for protecting itself. Israel is in no way perfect. That is not what I am saying or arguing. There are many palestinians that had to move their lives, were effected and were hurt not only this time but over the past 65 years of conflict. These are good people. There are the extremists that powered by terror are educated that they will receive their rightful place if they act according to the plan.
So before you point your fingers. I want you to stop . time yourself. you have 15 seconds to run to the nearest bomb shelter. wait ? you don't have one? is that because you are lucky enough to live in a country that not only does not undergo this type of conflict but also when under attack strikes back with massive force and is not critisized for it?
I sound bitter. Maybe I am . Maybe each day as people were injured on both sides I thought of how uneducated and unaware I was of this conflict and how even though I considered myself Israeli the last time I underwent this was as a baby.
It didn't effect me. Now that my best friends are combat soldiers and are the ones protecting this land, the realities come to light.
I am not pointing fingers at anyone nor am I trying to cause trouble but I just wanted it to be stated that this was my wakeup call. To be an Israeli is more then just Hummas and Pita and nice beaches and Tel Aviv clubs. It means sleeping in tents in cold nights, training massive amounts of soldiers and realizing that the world does not revolve around you. I have never been prouder to be an Israeli and will or have regreted my move and enlistment. I just want you to "wake the f*** up"
Going to jog,
Michali
Saturday, November 3, 2012
mmm sweet november
It is Saturday morning here at Regba. We all woke up gradually this morning, most hungover from the night before. We all go sit upstairs. The boys lounge around in boxers. The kind that still have stripes and awkward patterns on them. We make some coffee and start to recap the night before. People slowly trickle out of the room . Outside is beautiful. An autumn day in Israel. Which looks more like spring. Some of the guys do the weekly haircutting. And I think to myself how lucky I am to think of these people as my family. Also thank god no one here is judging us because we are not a good looking crew in the mornings. haha.
Throughout this year more stories and weekly "fadichot" have been shared over hair trimming then I can remember. Some good some not so good. The guys will sit there and say things like "yea that sucks man" or " we had that same tirgul" And there is a familiarity in it all. A kind of knowing that our garin is sticking together. A type of knowing that even though the guys go through so much hard crap each week it is ok for a good laugh the weekends they do come home. On that Saturday morning.
I really cherish that about our makeshift family.
We fight we argue we insult each other, we run to the laundry before someone else can take it. In the end of the day I would rather argue with these people then be in agreeance with anyone else.
God I sound like a cliche. But it's ok.
On another note there are elections in Israel and America. In America it was clear to me who to vote for. In Israel it is a totally different story. There are tons different parties and each one seems more corrupt then the next. But I guess that is politics as a whole. I will be looking more into the political candidates today and will update you with my thoughts.
Wishing you a sweet November and soon it will be December when my mother comes to visit Yahhhhhhhhahahahayayayayayay!!!!
Lots of Love,
Hugs and haircuts,
Michali
Throughout this year more stories and weekly "fadichot" have been shared over hair trimming then I can remember. Some good some not so good. The guys will sit there and say things like "yea that sucks man" or " we had that same tirgul" And there is a familiarity in it all. A kind of knowing that our garin is sticking together. A type of knowing that even though the guys go through so much hard crap each week it is ok for a good laugh the weekends they do come home. On that Saturday morning.
I really cherish that about our makeshift family.
We fight we argue we insult each other, we run to the laundry before someone else can take it. In the end of the day I would rather argue with these people then be in agreeance with anyone else.
God I sound like a cliche. But it's ok.
On another note there are elections in Israel and America. In America it was clear to me who to vote for. In Israel it is a totally different story. There are tons different parties and each one seems more corrupt then the next. But I guess that is politics as a whole. I will be looking more into the political candidates today and will update you with my thoughts.
Wishing you a sweet November and soon it will be December when my mother comes to visit Yahhhhhhhhahahahayayayayayay!!!!
Lots of Love,
Hugs and haircuts,
Michali
Sunday, October 21, 2012
This is Halloween.... Sorta
It's been awhile since I've written . It has been hard without a computer. A lot has passed since I've last written . I had a month vacation and went on a weekend away with my host family and have been on a permanent base for the past three weeks. Lately things have been getting a little hard for all of us in the garin. I think we are all feeling some anxieties living in small spaces with 19other brothers and sisters and recently some of us myself included have been feeling really homesick. I guess it's not called homesick but really America sick . Cuz this is our new home and in both places we feel a missing for the other. I mainly miss autumn in ny. The smell of the fall. Stepping on leaves and hear them crunch. Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes, jackets and cute boots, hot apple cider and pumpkin picking and carving pumpkins and Halloween . This year like last we will be having our own garin tsabar Halloween party. Which is really an American experience in Israel. I won't write a long spiel but if anybody reads this know that I miss you guys and have a hot coco for me,
Love,
Michali
Love,
Michali
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
yom kippur.
It's about to be Yom Kippur. One of the holiest days of the Jewish calender. It represents the time where you ask for forgivness from others but mostly from yourself and if you have a connection with G-d. then from G-d as well. Its a time to mend and open up any tentions or connections you have.
On this Yom Kippur I want to bring up an incident that has been all over the news and in papers this week. I normally don't comment on any political news but this event struck me.
This past week there was a encounter with Terrorists. The combat soldiers in the unit of Karkal, which is composed of both men and women faced the terrorists by storming and killing three terrorists. One terrorists was killed by a woman combat soldier. Another female soldier of the bregade hid behind a rock. After 15 mins the fighting was done and the soldiers started looking for the soldier that hid behidn the rock, fearing that she was kidnapped. Now that all the evidence is on the table. She told reporters that she didn't storm because she had "no chance against them".
She is now being put on trail for not following orders and storming.
Ok- breathe.
I am still conflicted about how I feel about this. We all want to say that men and women and equal . We would all like to ignore the fact that physically the two genders are not built the same. I am from a very liberal household- went to a hippy artsy college and truly believe that both genders should be treated equally and with respect. Then the issue at hand comes to play. If this had been a man combat soldier that did not follow orders and hid while his fellow soldiers put their lives at risk , society would have no objection but to look down at him with little to no pity and let him go straight to trail. Now that this is a woman that serves in the IDF's unit where men and women are expected to fight along side -undergo same training and are treated the same for every step of the way- then why do we suddenly have compassion and understanding.
One side of me believes that since this was a volunteery position in which this woman signed up for, knowing the type of situations she would get herself into - then she should be judged harshly and accordence with the law. This is the equal rights bit , no?
The other side of me says, if it was me standing on the boarder of Egypt with a Tavor in my hand against three terrorists could I put everything aside and swarm in on them with my friends? I probably could not. Another side of me thinks that this is an 18 year old girl that just finished high school, probably thought of her family and friends and did the logical thing in a fight or flight situation.
Coming to Israel I had hopes and dreams of being in a combat unit such as this one. I have the highest respect for the combat soldiers in the IDF , the ones I train, live with and meet daily. Both men and women. I am lucky to have recieved the honor of training them with their weapons and am also lucky that I have not had to make such a choice or use the instinct of fight or flight like this woman did.
I am not sure what the right thing would be to say or do in a situation such as this. I hope that this Yom Kippur, when everyone is going to Shuel that this combat soldier finds a peace within herself and that what ever trial she recieves it is one that is fitting and she can live with. I wish everyone an easy fast, a compassionate week and a Mar Chatima Tova,
Michali.
On this Yom Kippur I want to bring up an incident that has been all over the news and in papers this week. I normally don't comment on any political news but this event struck me.
This past week there was a encounter with Terrorists. The combat soldiers in the unit of Karkal, which is composed of both men and women faced the terrorists by storming and killing three terrorists. One terrorists was killed by a woman combat soldier. Another female soldier of the bregade hid behind a rock. After 15 mins the fighting was done and the soldiers started looking for the soldier that hid behidn the rock, fearing that she was kidnapped. Now that all the evidence is on the table. She told reporters that she didn't storm because she had "no chance against them".
She is now being put on trail for not following orders and storming.
Ok- breathe.
I am still conflicted about how I feel about this. We all want to say that men and women and equal . We would all like to ignore the fact that physically the two genders are not built the same. I am from a very liberal household- went to a hippy artsy college and truly believe that both genders should be treated equally and with respect. Then the issue at hand comes to play. If this had been a man combat soldier that did not follow orders and hid while his fellow soldiers put their lives at risk , society would have no objection but to look down at him with little to no pity and let him go straight to trail. Now that this is a woman that serves in the IDF's unit where men and women are expected to fight along side -undergo same training and are treated the same for every step of the way- then why do we suddenly have compassion and understanding.
One side of me believes that since this was a volunteery position in which this woman signed up for, knowing the type of situations she would get herself into - then she should be judged harshly and accordence with the law. This is the equal rights bit , no?
The other side of me says, if it was me standing on the boarder of Egypt with a Tavor in my hand against three terrorists could I put everything aside and swarm in on them with my friends? I probably could not. Another side of me thinks that this is an 18 year old girl that just finished high school, probably thought of her family and friends and did the logical thing in a fight or flight situation.
Coming to Israel I had hopes and dreams of being in a combat unit such as this one. I have the highest respect for the combat soldiers in the IDF , the ones I train, live with and meet daily. Both men and women. I am lucky to have recieved the honor of training them with their weapons and am also lucky that I have not had to make such a choice or use the instinct of fight or flight like this woman did.
I am not sure what the right thing would be to say or do in a situation such as this. I hope that this Yom Kippur, when everyone is going to Shuel that this combat soldier finds a peace within herself and that what ever trial she recieves it is one that is fitting and she can live with. I wish everyone an easy fast, a compassionate week and a Mar Chatima Tova,
Michali.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Shanah Tova-Happy New Year
What a kick ass way to kick out the Jewish New Year. Yesturday my roomate and i decided to go for a beer at our local pub. When we got to the Para we were not allwoed to go in. The bouncer said there was a performance and to come back at eleven. SO we were disgruntled and decided to go to the beach instead. We chatted for awhile and then heard the music playing from the beach. Before going on this beer mission I had mentioned to my roomie that I would love to see Mosh Ben Ari ( a really wonderful Israeli singer) in concert since we had been jamming to his stuff all afternoon. Hearing the music from the beach I reconized the song. "Hey that is either Mosh Ben Ari or a really good cover of him." we looked up the performance on line on their website and dashed towards the bar. We sneaked in through the back entrance. We ended up seeing him perform two of my favorite songs as his last songs and stood only a few feet from the stage.
After the crowd cleared out a bit after the performance we sat down to order dinner and beer and saw him outside. We dashed outside and asked to take a picture with him. I asked him if we could buy him a beer . I guess it was the fact that both of us look like we are 12 and an older man with dred locks doesn't normally sit with 12 year old fans at a bar - he said he wasn't feeling well but wished us a happy new year.
Even though i was rejected it was the perfect way to start this year. I also have three weeks off from the Army. I already have so many plans. For this holdiay I am with my host family and for the next I will be celebrating with two friends at Kibbutz Saad.
Right now I should reflect the last year. Pretty soon in another month it will be exactly a year since I joined the Army. I think about all the progress, growth, and amazing transformation I have gone through as well as all the amazing people I have met and live with. This certainly was not an easy year. It was filled with frustration- homesickness- and not the best health but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I found my place in this world. (No, not in the Army) but standing up for what I believe and following the path I set up for myself. Israel is really the home I longed to set up and live in. Coming home from Ber Sheva I saw a Bedouine woman covered up from head to toe with only her eyes showing. The soldier sitting a couple of rows in front of me on the bus got up for her and continued to listen to his whiny girlfriend complaining on the phone. I thought to myself will all the effed up things Israel does - the value for human life is truly remarkable. I am sure next time I get pushed or some guy cuts me in line I will get back to you all and curse their existance - but for now everything is good : )
Oh , another really cool thing that happened to me this past week was that I finally got to train soldiers in English. It was such a turn and a fun perk. The Green Barretts came to train on my base and I was picked to train them. What a rewarding and wonderful thing. Not only to see how a different Army shoots so differently then we do but to see the massive respect they had for us as trainers and as women doing this job and also as an Army. One of them told me that of all the Armys they have seen around the world our is most impressive and most professional. Yay
Anyways I have to go run, My new years revolution is to get into better shape- origional I know,
Love,
Happy and Sweet New Year,
Michali
After the crowd cleared out a bit after the performance we sat down to order dinner and beer and saw him outside. We dashed outside and asked to take a picture with him. I asked him if we could buy him a beer . I guess it was the fact that both of us look like we are 12 and an older man with dred locks doesn't normally sit with 12 year old fans at a bar - he said he wasn't feeling well but wished us a happy new year.
Even though i was rejected it was the perfect way to start this year. I also have three weeks off from the Army. I already have so many plans. For this holdiay I am with my host family and for the next I will be celebrating with two friends at Kibbutz Saad.
Right now I should reflect the last year. Pretty soon in another month it will be exactly a year since I joined the Army. I think about all the progress, growth, and amazing transformation I have gone through as well as all the amazing people I have met and live with. This certainly was not an easy year. It was filled with frustration- homesickness- and not the best health but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I found my place in this world. (No, not in the Army) but standing up for what I believe and following the path I set up for myself. Israel is really the home I longed to set up and live in. Coming home from Ber Sheva I saw a Bedouine woman covered up from head to toe with only her eyes showing. The soldier sitting a couple of rows in front of me on the bus got up for her and continued to listen to his whiny girlfriend complaining on the phone. I thought to myself will all the effed up things Israel does - the value for human life is truly remarkable. I am sure next time I get pushed or some guy cuts me in line I will get back to you all and curse their existance - but for now everything is good : )
Oh , another really cool thing that happened to me this past week was that I finally got to train soldiers in English. It was such a turn and a fun perk. The Green Barretts came to train on my base and I was picked to train them. What a rewarding and wonderful thing. Not only to see how a different Army shoots so differently then we do but to see the massive respect they had for us as trainers and as women doing this job and also as an Army. One of them told me that of all the Armys they have seen around the world our is most impressive and most professional. Yay
Anyways I have to go run, My new years revolution is to get into better shape- origional I know,
Love,
Happy and Sweet New Year,
Michali
Saturday, August 11, 2012
yikes
I have always been a more sensative person . But lately I have been very awake to the reality that my friends and living companions are in some serious situations. I always knew that they would be combat soldiers. This weekend one of the guys came home talking about hte activities he had in his tank and how they stopped boarder crossers. This is very scary to me and I just wish they could gaurd tel aviv or something. I know i am simple minded and niave and that this is what they came to do. but i am scared and wish that the state of israel didnt require my best friends risking their lives on the boarders of Gaza, West Bank, Egypt and Jordan.
Love.
Michali
Love.
Michali
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