Category: what a country
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Workshop in Advanced Citizenship
There’s nothing to make you feel more a part of a society’s special mosaic than to find yourself arriving at the sealed entrance of the Unemployment Office, joining a small mob of people across all of Israeli demographics, all staring at the printout sloppily taped to the heavy doors… …that the ministry is on strike.
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Snow in Tzur Hadassah: Who said this isn’t Switzerland? [PHOTOS]
There’s this inside joke here… sometime a couple years ago they started hanging hopeful signs around garbage points in Tzur Hadassah: If no one made it dirty, this could be like Switzerland. After four days of heavy snow, warm clothes, sledding, and beautiful views… Well, I’d have to say we came pretty freakin close for…
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Tzur Hadassah under snow part 2: OMG ISRAEL SNOWPOCALYPSE 2013 edition
TWO memorable snowstorms in one year? Welcome to the Jerusalem Hills! It started on Thursday morning at around 7am… All eyes on Neve Daniel… When news arrives from Gush Etzion that snow has arrived, we know it’s only a matter of time. So no gan Thursday and it was quickly canceled in advance for Friday.…
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Life in Israel: boys will be boys in flower crowns
Israeli kindergartens love crowns. This is the first year I’ve been personally exposed to the Israeli flower garland thing. In Hebrew, זר. Kids in gan and early elementary school wear these pixie crowns for birthdays, celebrations, ceremonies. Naturally, the Shavuot chagiga in gan is one of them, and between his gan birthday and this, Koala’s now…
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Israeli “Who’s on First”
“יש לי חנות.” “מה יש בחנות?” “פיצה וקוסקוס. מה את רוצה?” “פיצה.” “אין לי.” “אבל אמרת שיש פיצה?? אוקי אז קוסקוס.” “אין לי.” “אז מה יש??” “כלום.” “אז אני רוצה כלום.” “אין לי!” “אבל אמרת שיש כלום!” Little does he realize this is EXACTLY how it happens here. #sabrakids Loose translation: “I have a store.”…
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Because this is Israel and my neighbor is President Obama’s tow truck service
Like I said… The truck that towed visiting President Obama’s limo today – the one accidentally filled with the wrong fuel and then broke down – happens to be the tow truck that calls its home my street, where my kid and his friends stand totally in awe of an enormous truck right before their eyes. Way…
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We thought we saw it all, Bnei Brak. Then you do this.
Kashrut enthusiasts! Kosher-keeping container collectors, gather round! You’ve seen the blue Dairy stickers… You’ve used the red Meat stickers… You’ve stuck on green Pareve stickers… You’ve dusted off the purple Passover stickers… And now, for a limited time only, you have the stunning option of adorning your most chametzidik dishware with the one, the only… …’Sold…
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“It’s a wonderful country.” Did you vote in Israel today?
On this beautiful Israel election day, in our eretz nehederet, let’s take a moment to appreciate the fact that we get to choose who screws us over. It’s actually amazing. Did you feel it today? Did you feel the country, divided, coming together? Did you feel we were united, at the very least, in feeling…
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Israeli snow 2013: Tzur Hadassah makes for an adorable snow town.
If you don’t live in or near the greater Jerusalem area, if you don’t follow a resident of aforementioned region on some sort of social media channel, then you’re one of the very few who didn’t hear that today was a two-decade record for snowfall and a very active snow day (across the Middle East,…
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When a rocket reaches Tel Aviv.
Almost nothing should stop a Jew from making a chatan and kallah happy on their wedding day… Which is why, despite how difficult today was, I was determined to join the celebration in Petah Tikvah tonight. Started the car, radio came on. ‘And a siren was just heard in Tel Aviv…’ Oh. Started driving out…
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Israel Air Force by proxy: swearing-in ceremony, sabras, and planting roots.
It’s a little surreal reading up on your country’s military air strike operations in real time as you drive back from your brother’s air force swear-in ceremony. But then again, it’s often surreal living here. We made the three-hour trek down to the Ovda Israel Airforce Base to see my brother’s טקס השבעה or swearing-in…