Summer Reading

Two books that I read over the summer, and highly recommend:

Last Child in the Woods:  Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder, by Richard Louv

Changing Planet, Changing Health:  How the Climate Crisis Threatens Our Health and What We Can Do about It, by Paul Epstein and Dan Ferber

I have run out of free reading time outside course assignments at this point, but I will try to share interesting course readings this year as well.  There have been some great ones already in the first four weeks - in Environmental Economics, Ethics, and Corporate Environmental Strategy. 

Lots to think about, and maybe even to build a career around....

It's the 1960's in Tel Aviv

The tents have not disappeared. They have multiplied. And the movement has too. Last night hundreds of thousands of Israeli's peacefully gathered to speak out for a more balanced dispersal of country resources. It seems Israeli's have caught the Arab spring fever. 

We have been out to see the tents, but have not attended a rally. We have heard from our cousin that the rallys have been inspiring and motivational gatherings. And they have captured the nation's attention.

Much of what the Israeli's are looking for from their government can be broadly translated to the needs of the American people right now. Some of the particular issues are different (the USA would benefit from a national healthcare plan, while Israel could benefit from a reset in housing pricing). But the general concept of a government that serves the people, not just the rich and the corporations, resonates. What would it take to get Americans out in protest like this?

National upheaval: More than 300,000 protestors hit streets - Israel News, Ynetnews

First world, third world, and toilet paper

I used to think I lived in a first world country, in the U.S.  I was told I was moving to a first world country, surrounded by third world countries, when I moved to Israel.

I'm not sure either is accurate.  The third world is certainly more obvious in Israel, when things like this occur - a donkey drawn cart heading north, a block up from our street.

But a lot of what goes on in the U.S. doesn't seem very first world to me either (like millions of Americans without access to proper healthcare).  The terms are really just a differentiator for GDP, not quality of life.  As Einstein said, "Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted."

On a slightly lighter note, I miss U.S. toilet paper.  For a first world country (and Israel is in the same category as most of Europe in this case), they suck at producing decent toilet paper.  The stuff here reminds me of visiting my dad in Bolivia.  As I begin to run out of the little things that remind me of home, I realize I am not yet adjusted to this new place.  My apartment feels like home, but the country does not.

Fits and Starts

It's called Holmes Place.  It's a bit too mainstream for my tastes, but it is conveniently located 2 blocks from home.  I had tried to find something like my Jazzercise studio in Royal Oak, MI here, but they don't have fitness center's dedicated to aerobic dance.  They have dance studios (I found one that had a lot of class options, but it's a 40 minute walk from home, most of the classes were after 8pm, and they wanted about $15 per 1 hour class, which at 3x/week gets expensive).  The alternative I found in Tel Aviv is aerobic dance classes offered at some of the gyms, like Holmes Place.  So zumba and energy dance at the gym it is for me.  Since I have the membership now, I'm planning to try out other classes too, just for balance and curiosity, like yoga, pilates, and maybe belly dancing.  When in the middle east, right? 

Getting my membership began with the usual thinly veiled hard sell from a gym rep.  They called relentlessly to follow up.  And I hmm'd and haa'd over it until I got them to eliminate the registration fee (about $100), lower the early cancellation fee (from $100 to about $50), and take my payments in two installments (whereby I gave them a temporary limited credit card # on the first payment, so I'm really not locked into the one year contract if I don't want to be).  Now they call me regularly but don't leave messages.  And they text me in Hebrew (which I can read about 1/10th of - I thought that was pretty impressive).  However, I discovered the hard way, when I showed up for my "free" nutritionist appointment earlier this week (that unbenounced to me, was cancelled), that the rep who sold me the membership forgot to write "English" on my file, which explains some of the miscommunication. 

As with everything around here, I don't fit the mold, so anything new comes in fits and starts. 

What's wrong with education as we know it?

An engaging perspective on the situation of education.... 

All cities should have this

Bicycle sharing.  It's like ZipCar for bicycles (with a much lower cost of entry).  Except that you don't have to return your bike to the same location.  You can pick up and drop off at any of the stations around town.  So no more worries about your bike being stolen. 

We fell in love with the system in Paris (I took the top picture here of Dan and my mom, Charolette, last September).  Dan has used bike-sharing in Montreal.  And now it is coming to Tel Aviv!  According to the bike-sharing blog, Vancouver, Canada and Seattle, WA are studying the possibility of adding a system.  Portland, OR is implementing a plan.  And Denver, CO already has it.  Washington, D.C. does as well, and Boston, MA was supposed to get it last year (not sure if it is operational).

Just one more reason you should come visit us here (besides the fact that I planted my tomato seeds outside this afternoon, in shorts and a tank top.)

35,000 feet in the air

This is it.  We're on the plane from Los Angeles to Atlanta, then on to Tel Aviv tonight.  I can't believe it has been six weeks already.  I haven't spent more than a two week visit in Washington State since the summer of 1997.  While I would have much preferred for this visit to have taken place in August (thereby experiencing the best weather of the Pacific Northwest while avoiding the worst of Israel), it was a great visit. 

I met my nephew, Ernest, in his NICU room, then watched him come home and grow from barely 5 pounds to over 7.  I visited over a dozen family members all across the state including all my grandparents.  My good friend Erin, from Wellesley, came up from Santa Rosa, CA to visit for a weekend in Seattle.  I had a crazy night out with my best friend from high school, Leigh, and was asked by my best friend from elementary school, Stacy, to stand up in her wedding in July.  It is exciting to be going home, knowing I will be back again this summer to see more friends and family whom I missed on this trip.  It is amazing how quickly days can pass when a member of the house is on a 3-hour eat, sleep, and diaper cycle.  I spent many mornings and afternoons cooking, and many evenings babysitting.  And I wouldn't have had it any other way. 

I took full advantage of the exceptional local seafood - oysters, clams, and salmon.  And realized how much I miss access to raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, and all the local native versions like salmonberries and huckleberries.  Unfortunately the local varieties are only available in August, so I will miss them this year.  I will also miss the tulips and daffodils that will sprout up all over the Skagit Valley in a month.

Dan joined me for my last few days in Seattle, and we wrapped up our visit with a weekend in Los Angeles for his cousin Ariel's wedding.  This provided a bit of easing back into my new reality in Hebrew.  I have a bit of trepidation about the inevitably confounding struggle to communicate that I will face upon my return home.  But it does feel like I am returning home, and that's a nice feeling. 

I am looking forward to stocking up on fresh produce from the shuk, and not layering my clothes to keep warm anymore.  And I am excited to see Israel in springtime.   

Non-kosher

Willapa Bay baked oysters, raw oyster shots, Discovery Bay clams in a lemon broth, Dungeness crab cakes, and shrimp.  Just a few of the delicious locally produced shellfish I have been enjoying while home in Washington. 

You won't see this in Israel

Driving up I-5 through Mt. Vernon, toward Bellingham, WA yesterday, I saw this on this lane in front of me.  For my Israeli readers who may have never seen this before, it's a logging truck.  They are so common in my mind, from my 18 years in Washington, that I wouldn't have given this a single thought before.  But having had conversations in Tel Aviv about the complete lack of such an industry (understandably given the environment), it caught my attention this time. 

Being away from the natural resources and beauty of the Pacific Northwest has made me acutely aware of how rich this area is.  Sure, it has rained about 50% of the days I've been here so far, but it's that rain that brings the forests, the snow on the mountain tops, and all the blueberries I can eat!

Back in the U.S.A.

On my way to the U.S.A., I stopped in Prague for a night to visit my in-laws with my husband.  The first thing I noticed in their apartment (ok, maybe I am strange), was that the light switches were located inside the bathrooms.  They don't do this in Israel.  Imagine, you could be in there, and anyone can come along and shut the light off on you.  That's Israel.  Its really just one of those tiny annoyances that you notice when you go in, and realize you have to go back out to turn on the light.

Returning to the States, everyone's first question to me is, "Wow, how is it there?"  This is a hard question to answer.  It's all the little things like light switch locations that wouldn't normally even hit one's radar, that create the sense that you are in a foreign place (until they become the norm - and suddenly I am finding myself searching for light switches outside of US bathrooms).   

But there are also fundamental differences in human behavior, such as culturally accepted boundaries and expectations for type and quantity of interaction.  I couldn't have traveled between further opposites in this regard.  I am being reminded of the stark differences in parenting styles and family expectations.  Israel has a very traditional culture.  The northwest United States has gathered all the people who purposefully left traditional cultures over the last 200 years (with the exception of the Native Americans here, I suppose).   

It's nice not to have to think so hard about daily activities again.  But I'm already missing all the fresh fruits and vegetables from the shuk. 

Ugly America

It's not all sunshine and roses here in Israel (ok, maybe sunshine), but recent dealings with U.S. lawyers and healthcare insurers have reminded me just how pathetic some American social systems are. 

The lawyers
We have assistance from lawyers as part of our relocation to ensure that we can be in a foreign country legally.  The work is outsourced to an American firm, which acts as a third party liason between corporate and the local country lawyers, who actually do the work here.  The American firm (ask me if you want to know which one so you can avoid them, although I have little faith that they are an exception to the rule), has done nothing but worry the local firm about the scope of help they can provide.  AND, they are now bullying the local firm against working with us directly (at our own expense) so that THEY can upcharge and take their piece of the pie.  Behavior like this should be criminal. 

Health insurers
Our plan offers 15 visits of accupuncture per calendar year, per person.  I have asked at least 6 phone agents since we got here whether there are any restrictions or special "medical necessity" paperwork required.  I have been told as many different answers.  Reading between the lines (or piecing together the bits of information they have let slip), there seems to be an internal list of which diagnoses they will actually approve in the claims processing department.  However, this list is not printed in any materials that they make public.  I have been able to get phone agents to rattle off parts of the list - coverage for pain, but not for carpel tunnel syndrome, for instance.  All I can say is, if you're going to provide coverage, do it.  If you're going to restrict it, put it in writing, and arm your customer service agents with the same information you give your claims processing agents.  Don't tell me that "acupuncture is covered, no pre-approval needed," and then reject a claim because the diagnosis was on your secret do-not-fly list.