September 8th, 2005 by elie
intense!
Answers.com:
pros: flexible, good pay, good benefits, less time, friendly relaxed atmosphere, anglo/israeli atmosphere, next to the mall (convenience), 15 min bus ride, potential for moving up within a few months, stay in jerusalem (live), can concentrate on school better
cons: not as ambitious, but still ambitious (marketing skills, people skills, management skills)
Peres Center for Peace:
pros: ambitious, good pay, connections for later on
cons: not flexible, hectic, israeli atmosphere (cold), lower position, not much potential for a while, commiting to a lefty ideology for awhile, travel will be crazy, might be too much with school for conflict management
thats my breakdown. im leaning towards Answers… thats my gut…
September 7th, 2005 by elie
friend: “you’re always scared of commitment, but of course you can quit, but you’ve never ever been afraid of working hard at a job.”
September 7th, 2005 by elie
get this sequence:
2 weeks ago, fed up with emailing 10 times a day to different employers i am not qualified to work for, i post my details on some israeli listserves and invite employers to ask for my cv if they are interested.
a week and a half ago, dvora bitcover, some freelance writer emails me, wants my freelance writing services for long term - part time job, not much pay, but a side thing, good for grad school.
the next day, i get an email from Gurunet that they are looking for a young, creative marketing associate, and i get the job after an interview and meeting with the ceo. great pay, 3/4th hours, good people skills expierence to look forward to.
today, after telling Gurunet when ill begin next week and dvora that i wont be working for her, i get a call: Peres Institute for Peace - an NGO, think tank, non profit organization for creating peace and conflict management between Arabs and Israelis in Israel and Palestinians… exactly what my degree is about, right?
so im going to an interview with them tomorrow. they want me to be an assistant to the director of International Relations, who mainly fundraises and deals with philanthropists - not too glamorous, but makes connections within the organization for me later on, right? eh, i dunno, i’m mainly going to the interview to make them fall in love with me so after i turn them down, they still remember me for later on… i dont wanna commit to such a lefty organization so early on in my mediation career. also id like to make some money right now and working for Gurunet will give me communication and people skills, like selling, that i will need for conflict management also.
amazing, right? when it rains it pours, right? my life is coming together out of nowhere, all of a sudden. i get back here with no place to live, no job prospects, scared of school… and here i am apartment, new friends and old friends who have proved themselves, job offers, grad school in 7 weeks, rebuilding some piece of myself from a time when i felt on top of the world, confident and brilliant…
so i’m feeling good these days.
September 7th, 2005 by elie
apartment: moved in to a cute 3 bedroom apt in the beginning of baka/talpiot with 2 girls, loving the atmosphere but i’m only subletting so ill be out by december looking for something else… again.
job: after getting a freelance job for a freelance writer, being a freelance writer, i received an even better offer from a company with a set salary and hours, flexible enough to go to school. i’m a marketing associate… pssh.
school: registered for Bar Ilan, starting oct 30, getting my classes sept 29.
so life is beginning to settle down and i’m scared to hell. the novelty of making aliyah is just about wearing out and i’m feeling the fact that it’s time to build a more settled type of life. but i dont feel so ready to settle. but i know i never will. it’s just hitting me hard i guess. i like my freedom. now i have a job with 15 paid vacation days. that’s it: 15 days to play for the next year. office life. rent. coworkers. electric bills. except, it’s not just for a summer or winter break this time. life isn’t measured in ’semesters’ anymore. maybe this is coming to me really late, maybe everyone else is going through the same thing, maybe i’m not meant to be tied down or maybe this is how it starts, the rest of your life - but i’m - gasp - committing to something.
but for now, i’m busy and so i’m happy.