a silent jam

You've seen one flake you've seen em all

2007-07-08T06:02:00.000-07:00

Israel has decided to release 250 Palestinian prisoners! There has been a ton of talk of some type of prisoner exchange in the past year ever since Shaleet was captured. Do we release the prisoners and in return get our soldier back or refuse and hold our ground that we don’t deal with terrorists? Tough decisions!

I don’t know exactly who these prisoners are but I don’t think any of them would make good baby sitters for my children. You don’t go to prison for walking old ladies across the street! What ever they did they will now return to society changed men! They learned their lessons in prison. They all of course realize that peace is the only option and will now stand against those in the way that prevent real peace.

Oooh one small detail that I forgot to mention in this exchane. Its not really an exchange. There will be no soldiers coming home, no information gained on Ron Arad or the many others that have disappeared across the line. We will be releasing these 250 prisoners as a good gesture. That’s right, a good gesture!!!

We are to show our support of Abbas and the Fatah movement. Ok Abbas denies the Holocaust ever happened and also heads/funds many of the smaller off shoot terror cells. So what!!! the past is the past. With the release of these 250 now law abiding changed men Abbas will show a new face towards Israel.

They say in Alaska there are over 100 names for snow! There is flaky snow, round hard snow, slushy snow, big flaky snow, etc, etc. They get a lot of snow in Alaska, you would have to really like snow to live there. To the common person he probably wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between most of the types, just variations of frozen water!!

Hamas, Fatah, Al Aqsa, Tanzim, PPFLP, etc, etc, To the common person there is not much a difference between each of these groups. Our current government seems to see a difference. I wonder if they would be able to see the difference between the various types of snow??? I suggest putting them all on a one way Jet trip for a long term research project to find out.

3 point turn gone bad

2007-05-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

I knew the moment that she said lets go back to the station that I had failed the test, I didn’t realize how bad it was until I saw my moms face after coming back from the explanation from the driving instructor.

Driving on the wrong side of the road is not one of those things that driving instructors are too lienant on. All that work and time that my parents put into teaching me how to drive down the drain. That was a long ride back home!!

The key to the 3 point turn is actually ending up on the right side of the road when you are done with the 3rd point. In my case the first 2 points went quite well, I than proceeded down the street driving down the wrong lane. I did think it was a little strange when I was waiting to make a left turn when I noticed an oncoming car swerving out of the way expecting to drive down the lane where I was sitting. At the time I was thinking “wow what a crazy driver.” Little did I know at the time that I was sitting in his lane. I was really careful about the blinker and the speed limit though. Real smooth!

I was very surprised when she than instructed me to drive straight back to the station. Why was she acting so nervous all of a sudden? Why the sweat on her forehead?? It was in the winter after all. What about parallel parking and all the other good stuff??

I guess I wasn’t quite ready for my license yet because the following week while working with my dad and brother I almost ran over my dad. I never knew my father could jump like that! He was parallel to the ground about 5 feet in the air and disappeared into the tall weeds. It was quite impressive! Luckily there was a big rock that broke the speed of the truck. I didn’t get to drive home that day.

Those free moments that make us rich

2006-12-11T04:41:00.000-08:00

There are those moments in life in which everything makes sense. Those fractions of a second that makes everything worth while. We try to hold onto them as long as possible but life always has its way with casting a new wave... Making us focus on the new tasks at hand. More important matters.

These are a few of those moments that I have been fortunate enough to experience.

Have you ever seen a sunset that you can feel in your heart?

Have you ever had such a good laugh that your stomach hurt?

Have you ever heard a baby laugh?

Have you ever felt a slight drizzle on a summer day?

Have you ever seen a double complete rainbow?

Have you ever experienced real love?

Have you ever seen a flock of high flying birds flying north for the winter?

Have you ever seen a flower where the colors clash? impossible!!

Have you ever heard a piece of music that touches your soul and sends a huge smile across your face and tingles down to your toes?

Have you ever smelled the scent of the first rain in the forest?

Have you ever seen the birth of the sun through a cold dark dawn sky?

Have you ever felt the power of lightning?

Have you ever followed an ant on its long path back to its nest?

Have you ever seen a baby smile?

Have you ever laid down deep in the woods at night and steered up at Star filled sky?

Have you ever felt the security of knowing that finally you have met your second half?

Have you ever felt the cool wind on your face at night after a long summer day?

Have you ever had that feeling that you made the right decision when it really mattered most?

Have you ever experienced the feeling of being a parent.. hearing your kids call you "Dad"?

Have you ever looked back at it all and have the clarity to see the hand of G-d guiding you to exactly where you needed to be?

The most precious moments seem to come when we least expect them. The moments that if we're not careful will fly on by into oblivion, un-noticed. I give us all a blessing that we have the clarity and vision to never let any of these moments pass when sent our way and to cherish them as long as humanly possible when we do happen to capture them.

Did you vote for this guy???

2006-12-11T03:56:00.000-08:00

"Israeli policy in the West Bank represented instances of apartheid worse even that those that once held sway in South Africa." Our good friend Jimmy Carter has dedicated a book to the cause of the Palestinian people. He discusses his opinions on the correct path to peace in Israel.

His finger clearly points to those big nosed bullies.

I wonder if Jimmy's opinions would have been swayed if he could have heard what went on behind closed doors this week with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Probably not!

They both had similar goals towards peace though. "Israel will never have peace until they agree to withdraw [from the territories]." Jimmy states that this is the real answer to real peace in the region. I'm not sure if Ismail and Mahmoud agree though.

When Ismail and Mahmoud came out of this closed meeting they made a few things pretty clear. Israel still does not exist and we will continue to kill their innocent woman and children as we always have done before.

Jimmy do you think behind those doors they discussed a particular border in which they would truly recognize us? Did they discuss any peaceful remedy to the situation? Or maybe did they bless each other and wish each other success on their similar plot of wiping out this nation once and for all?

I guess I wouldn't be so surprised of the ignorance of the leader of the KKK. I also wouldn't be surprised at such anti-Semitism from certain leaders in Europe. How could the previous President of The United States come to these conclusions with all the information at his hands?

Makes you think! Maybe those big nosed bullies are really the aggressors? Maybe our cousins in the West Bank and Azza really are looking for peaceful solutions? Maybe if we let down all the fences and borders they would come running at us with roses, and not knives and bombs? It’s all out of frustration of their current situation? Deep down they want to live side by side in peace for future generations? Maybe, Why not? Jimmy says so!

Post chess game feedback

2006-11-24T01:44:00.000-08:00

Any talk of the latest war against the Hezbollah guerillas is usually pretty negative. How the once mighty Israel army was defeated. The mistakes made from top Israeli Officials, the mistakes made from the reservists, the mistakes made by the nation as a whole.

I'm far from a history buff but from my limited knowledge of history I can't recall any nation ever defeating any type of guerilla organization. Israel, USA, England, China, and all the other major nations fighting together would not be able to defeat Hezbollah and its guerillas.

Who's the bad guy? The lady walking her dog? The nice man taking his kids to school? The old man with the cane? The youth playing soccer in the field? Guerillas have a funny way of disguising themselves to look like the good guys. The only way you really know is when you feel the knife in your back.

Therefore the only temporary victory would be an utter annihilation of the nation of Lebabanon including all of its people. No moral nation in the world would do that! Therefore Israel lost this war before shooting its first missile.

Ro'i Klein a reservist left his two sons and wife to do his part as he always did before. Ro'i would do what ever it took to defend his homeland.

Amichai Merchavyah, a fellow reservist was captured by Hezbollah terrorists deep within Lebanon. Ro'i and his fellow soldiers went in pursuit of these terrorists trying to rescue him. They found themselves surrounded in a dead end alley by terrorists who threw a grenade at them.

Ro'i yelled out his final prayer "Shmah Israel" and leaped on top of the grenade. He sparred the lives of his fellow reservists.

The lucky that never had to go to Lebanon have the luxury of pointing fingers. The Top officials who made the decisions from afar now get to pass the buck. Now that the dust has settled the rest of the nations can take out their red markers and cross faces. Ro'i's name will never come up.

Ro'i never made it out of Lebanon to return to his wife and two sons. Ro'i gave his life for his country. Ro'i now is added to the long list of martyr's that have defended its land and history.

As a special gift for Roi's widow Sarah and their two son's the government lead by "peace now" has made a motion to kick them out of their home and land and give it to Palestinians that have never lived there before. Sarah and the many Jew's of Eli are trying to fight against this decision in court.

In these dark times Ro'i has shed light to the eternal victory of the Jew and its Nation.

marching on holy ground

2006-11-11T08:16:00.000-08:00

"A total of over 3,000 police were set to man event on Friday, and a further 2,500 policemen were due to be deployed in east Jerusalem, the Old City and around the Temple Mount out of concern that Palestinians would riot following Wednesday's shelling in Beit Hanun that killed twenty Gazan civilians."

The Jerusalem gay parade ended Friday in relative quiet.

"This test was one of the most complex that the Jerusalem Police, and the Police in general have ever been forced to face."

I have always wondered about these types of parades and marches in general. What are they supposed to accomplish?

Those sitting on the fence, did they decide to turn to a new type of life? Do the Jews in Jerusalem now have a new respect for the gay choice of life? I really don't think so.

Would those that marched in this parade support a "Klu Klu Klan" march in Jerusalem? Would they support a "dedicate your babies to the fires of Molech" parade? After all who draws the lines for freedom of speech?

I've never heard of a case in which salt in an open wound heals. 100 times out of 100 when a small child with an ice cream sticks his tongue out at his foe without and screeches "nah nah nah nah nahhhhh I've got ice cream and youuuuuuuuu don't" that child will have an adverse reaction.

I'm not here to preach about anti- or pro- gay rights. My only point is that methods of Provocation only yield losers on both sides.

The Jerusalem police had more than their hands full with the anticipated reactions from the Arabs surrounding Jerusalem. Was this so important as to endanger the lives of innocent civilians in an event of an Arab attack?

The pitfalls of building blocks without the blocks

2006-11-04T11:47:00.000-08:00

I don't know how many times I've had the old switch aroo played on me. People I speak to on the phone or have been in contact though the internet. They just never are the same people that I've created them to be in my head!

Maybe its one of the pitfalls of having a vivid imagination. But how can I always be so far off???? OK maybe you can't see the wings and tail of a dragon on the phone or through an email, but a sensitive people person like myself should be somewhere in the ball park.

Something that takes 2 minutes in person I don't think could be accomplished through a life time of phone conversations and email contact.

It's that person to person connection. There is something that takes place immediately that you know whether you want to see this person again. It's a very powerful thing and I don't think that anyone can really explain it.

It can't be picked up though phone lines, cable, or even ADSL high speed internet! I'm not talking about physical attraction or love at first sight! It's something on a much higher plane that maybe only our souls understand.

There are so many facets to a person. The human being is the most complex ball of atoms on the face of this planet. Before meeting with someone in person only a fool like myself would try imagining who that person really is.

I hope I have learned my lesson to let them build their own foundation stones in my head rather than me build them for them. It's too painful of a process to see so many buildings fall in an instance.

The lessons learned from driving 80 in a 20 mile per hour zone

2006-10-30T11:07:00.002-08:00

In those fractions of a second you ask yourself the serious questions!! You wonder how serious your life is going to change!! Will I make it! Why? How bad is this going to hurt?

My car was spinning out of control heading right towards a busy intersection. I remember seeing the traffic light flying vertical in the air and the cars and pedestrians frantically moving out of the way.

My car finally came to a stop. All of my windows were shattered from the traffic light now dangling from the top of my car. My friend and I were in shock as we sat in silence. We somehow managed to escape without a scratch.

What's the mechanics and how does it work? How many times are we able to cash out on our merit bank? What if it's empty? What if we come up just short?

I remember feeling alive that night. It felt good to be able to walk, to be able to breathe that cold night air. I can't say I was very religious at the time, but I sure thanked G-d. I was in the palm of his hands, I was loved.

Than just like that.... it was gone.

I now had to deal with all the hardships. The insurance, buying a new traffic light, all the paper work and questions, having to deal without a car for a month. Why me? What did I do? Why do I have to go through all these troubles?

I was reminded of this incident when I heard that my brother fell off his ladder from two stories high. It doesn't take to long to reach the ground from two stories high. Gravity will always have its way and the ground will eventually break the fall. However the number of scenarios from point x to point y are numerous.

A sore ankle falls on the far right side of favorable outcomes on the bell curve. I'm sure he thanked Hashem and went in and kissed his two kids and wife and told them how much he loved them.

When someone does something extra special for us we want to express our thanks and gratitude. We feel something extra special towards that person. G-d doesn't need our thanks or praise! When we are put in these situations they are really gifts in disguise enabling us to connect to him. That's that feeling of being alive!!

May all our wake up calls be gentle

The progression of modern day weapons

2006-10-25T04:19:00.000-07:00

They must have been pretty bad back then. There was no choice other than total flooding!! Only Noah and his crew were worthy of surviving.

How far are we today from them on moral grounds? Is our generation worthy of dry land under our feet?

"A woman used her 4-week-old baby as a weapon in a domestic dispute, swinging the infant through the air and striking her boyfriend with the child, authorities said."

I don't want to go into all the other hideous things going on during these times. I think this one alone speaks louder than words and I feel that the types of crimes in a generation are signs of where that generation is holding. Can we point to this one lady and say she is crazy, an exception, evil, insane, not like us!!

Most of us would probably like to think so and would never even imagine committing such a hideous crime. But where did she come from? Who spit her out?

She is part of our generation. She's part of the team. The Torah teaches that in every generation there is a possible Mashiach. In every generation there is a chance of building the 3rd temple and if it's not built during our days we only have ourselves to blame.

How can Mashiach be here with this lady acting in such a way?? How can the temple be rebuilt with crimes such as these occurring at its doorsteps??

OOOH maybe there's a way out. She was definitely not Jewish!! A Jew would never do such a thing, no way!!! It's them that are bad!!! They are way off track!!

Unfortunately though we know from history and our sages that the world and its occurrences are just mirror images of what is happening with and within the Jewish people. We are to be priests to the nations and to teach the world morality, it appears the message is not being delivered properly.

the painful unknowing

2006-06-27T12:53:00.000-07:00

Tonight I will go to sleep in my comfortable bed. I will hopefully fall asleep with warm thoughts about my beautiful children and loving family abroad. I will be in the safety of my familiar 4 walls. I will look forward to tomorrow and hope to come that much closer to my dreams.

Gilad Shalit will not have any of these luxuries. He knows the chances of him ever seeing his family again are very very low. He is surrounded by monsters that impatiently wait for the go to have at him. There is no one to tend to his wounds.

His dreams exploded with the artillery shell that hit his tank on his base just outside the Gaza Strip. If he falls asleep tonight he realizes that it could be his last night. He will fall asleep with horrible thoughts of various scenarios on how they will finish him off.

Gilad's parent's home is not a home anymore. There is a hole so deep that will keep its foundation shaky forever. There is no peace. Every hopeful thought is wiped away quickly by stomach pains that speak the truth. They would give anything just to have their son back. There is nothing they can do now!

I pray for a miracle that Gilad returns from the hell that he is in now. I pray for his parents that they will be able to hold him once again. I pray that the people holding him will grow a conscious and do the right thing.

to be rich at such a young age

2006-06-12T10:58:00.000-07:00

"shay atah teheay semach" (that you should be happy) The child sits in front of the class and each kid comes up and gives the birthday boy/girl some type of blessing. It's a great custom that they have at this school that my children go to.

One of the first things that most people comment on Y, my 3 year old, is that he is just so happy!! I hear it from other parents, his teacher, the people that run the school, and just about everyone that has any type of interaction with him.

Y can lighten up anyone's day. He usually walks around with a bit of a skip. He sings a lot! He loves to give hugs! He does this really cute thing in most public places. Its a march/skip type thing. He takes about 20 steps in the space he would normally take one. The result is a very loud squeeching noise. I don't know why but it always finishes with him waving his hand in the air.

At home he is so much fun to have around. He loves to help me do things. I have yet to pick any of my fruit from my trees without him being there putting them in the bucket. He loves to take little bites out of the fruit as we pick them to make sure they are good. He also loves to help me cook! He loves putting the stuff in the pots. He insists on being there when I cut onions even though the results are the same every time.

No matter what the plan is, he always gives the same reaction. He first asks, or I tell him, what we are doing, than he gives off this big "yehhhhhhhhhhhhh." In a recent trip to America we told him we were going to the county dump!! Same reaction!

Every time I'm with him he has a different favorite thing he likes to hold in his hand. It's never something normal, or something you would expect. Yesterday it was five hard black beans. Today it was the plastic top of a water bottle, the part you normally throw away. Anywhere we go they have to go with him. He sleeps with them too! I spent five minutes this morning tearing the bed apart looking for the fifth bean! It's very cute. Even YO, my 6 year old, says it's so cute.

When I drop him off at Gan it's always the same routine. I give him some type of little treat. He gives me a kiss on each cheek and runs to this little bench that lets him peek out the window. He waits there patiently till I finish dropping off Yo to his classroom and make my way out of the building. He than proceeds to blow me about five kisses and tells me he loves me. That goodbye stays with me the whole day.

The teacher said it was just so fitting for Y to give this birthday kid that blessing. This is one of the many special gifts that he has been blessed with. I hope and pray that he will always be this happy.

a momentary lapse of memory

2006-06-07T22:45:00.000-07:00

There are those commercials that will remain in my head forever. There are songs that I learned as a kid that I will never forget. Phone numbers of friends that I had when I was in grade school are still engraved in my memory. 822-6440 Matt Munger, 822-4221 Kerry Winterrowd, 821-6548 Susie Ridenhour.

I can sing just about every Christmas song backwards and forwards and I'm Jewish!!! Those commercials "my bologna has a first name its....," "I'm a pepper your a pepper wouldn't you like to be a pepper too...," and the various McDonalds ones, I got them all down.

Who can't remember the theme song to the Brady Bunch? Gilligan's Island??? I can still remember the "Pledge of Allegiance" I haven't had to say it for over 25 years!!

So why is it when it comes to important things I can't remember them for the life of me. I haven't remembered my parents birthday's for years!! I'm always a week late for Mother's and Father's day. Two years ago I didn't realize it was my own birthday till I went to sleep that night. I always get confused whenever I try and remember my social security number. I can't remember people's names a second after they tell me!!

In Israel practically everything that you do here you have to use your ID number. If you were to offer me a million dollars for that nine digit number I couldn't do it. OOOH But if you want my buddy Matt's number that I haven't called in 20 years, no problem!

Here's the kicker of all kickers!! A few years ago I had to take my ex-wife's mother back to the airport to go home. No, we don't speak a common language. At the security check point they thought this was a little suspicious. Why would I be taking her to the airport when I can't even speak her language? As a final security question they asked me my kids names. I drew a complete blank!! I forgot my kids names!! It took me a few minutes to decollate their names. By that time I don't think the security lady was too convinced. In short her mom had to go through the ringer!! She didn't understand why she was cornered out!!! I shrugged my shoulders as if I didn't know why either. How do you describe to someone that you just forgot your kids names even in your own language??

In learning Torah, we work so hard to figure it out. If you don't review it a few hundred times you lose it almost as if you never had it in the first place. But those commercials, Christmas songs, and old phone numbers, I got them down cold!!! What's up with that??

red #40, delectosinphybite, yellow #345, rhybotheibsameine,etc, etc

2006-06-05T12:36:00.000-07:00

I am the first to admit it, I love candy!! I don't think there is a day in my life where I didn't have at least one piece of candy. As long as it has sugar in it and a majority of ingredients that I can't pronounce I'm a big fan. There are too many favorites to be able to pick just one.

On camping trips my grandma would always give each kid a red rope licorice. It was good on its own, but there was one little trick to make it even that much better. Rubbing dirt all over it, leaving a fine dust, gave it just the right taste. The trick is to make sure the licorice is dry before dunking it in the dirt, than you have to shake off any big chunks.

On a long road trip with my parents and brother one of my fondest memories were two little Jolly Rancher candies, watermelon and green apple. The flavor just explodes in your mouth and it lasts till the last drop. That's the bonus of Jolly Rancher candies they are awesome from beginning to end. Unlike most gum where the good flavor only lasts for a short while.

That same grandma would also give us money for "Dales," (basically 7-11). 50 cents per child would usually get you: one starburst, one pack of sweet tarts, and a small pack of gum. I don't think I ever made it back to Grandma's house with anything left.

I was introduced to gummy bears through my cousin Ryan, he received a package for his birthday from some German friends. Wow! the harder the better. Red and white ones are the best.

Swedish Fish also rank up there among the best. They have to be the originals though. All of the counterfeit ones are garbage. Its such a let down every time you think you got the right one and than find out it's an imposter. My good friend MC Aryeah drove for over an hour, passing over at least 4 bridges just to send me a package of the real ones. That's a care package!!

Nabisco has let me down big time with Sweet tarts. They were the longest running favorite in my books. For some reason they can't make these guys Kosher. All the types were great: giant tarts, chewy, and the classic roll. I remember having a hurt tongue the day after licking the giant tarts.

I can't remember the name but there were these bottle cap type candies. They had about 10 silver dollar size candies in a clear long wrapper. Green apple and watermelon were the best. Banana was a bit of a gig.

I don't know if they still exist but they were pretty tasty. The first few minutes were good but than you were just left with a big ball of wax. The good old fashioned liquid flavored wax sticks!!

Now you say, ok where's the chocolate!! I hear it! There is no doubt about it I love Chocolate and have eaten my fair share. I could mention malt balls but there is always the down side to them. After about 20 to 25 you feel sick to your stomach and they don't taste that good anymore. Also every 5 to 6 of them you get a dud, it's kind of chewy rather than malt bally.

Every time I go to a dentist I get such good marks. "Wow you take pretty good care of your teeth hah? No cavities!!!!" "Do you floss?" no, not really "do you brush after every meal?" what? There are people that brush more than once a day??? "Do you get them checked every year or two?" I thought you are supposed to get them checked once every 8 years!!!! Most will argue it's because of good genes. I will let you in on a little secret to healthy teeth: lots of candies and lots of nail biting!!

Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom.....

2006-05-25T23:58:00.000-07:00

I have been camping throughout Israel at a number of different spots. I love camping. My parents introduced me to it before I was even born. Camping was a big part of my life growing up. Its hard for me to describe what I love about it.

I love the smell in the morning of breakfast being cooked by fellow campers. I love relaxing by the campfire. The taste of a marshmallow that are lightly browned, right off the stick. Shmores! Family, friends, and even the interesting people you meet that are camping around you. Being surrounded by nature. Being dirty and disgusting and not being bothered about it. The utter silence!

Well things are a little different here in Israel. There is always one thing you can almost always expect no matter where or when you go camping here. Most people that know me claim that I like to exadurate. That's true, but my kids are proof that what I am about to tell you is correct.

As I said I have been camping in Israel many times and 9 times out of 10 my camping experience was accompanied by loud thumping dance club music. All day and all night long!!!
Now you would think that the two don't go together. Well at least I don't see it. My kids are already used to it, they can even sleep through the night. Its a part of the experience for them. They have come to expect it every time.

At our last camping experience in Ashkelon there was actually a camping music tug-a-war between three different campsites. From three corners of the camping area each was trying to prove that their stereo was louder. It was a close fight. At about 3:30 in the morning one of them threw in the towel, or his car battery gave way. At about 6:00 in the morning the remaining contestant's sound systems were thumping away at full volume. We didn't hear any birds that morning. We didn't go to sleep to the sounds of waves breaking, not far from where we were sleeping. I woke up with a bit of a headache.

The time before that, we went camping in a small campground on the shores of the Kinneret. One camper equipped with an external electric supply to power his many sets of 20 inch woofers got the trophy with no competition. It wasn't even close! There was an elder Russian man who tried putting up a fight with his acoustic guitar. He quit early on due to the fact that he couldn't hear if his guitar was in tune or not.

I spoke to others about this as well. I am not alone on this one. I still don't get it though, it blows me away. The funny thing is that they do everything else though. They roast hot dogs, marshmallows, campfires, take walks, and swim. We're talking full fledged camping here. They just add this little extra element to have a complete camping Israeli experience.

Does it come to mind that maybe somebody else might not like "Dance Baby Dance" at full volume at 4:00 in the morning? If we have trouble conversing with each other at our campsite, can they hear each other at all? How long does it take to prepare a 24 hour straight set, song after song, no commercials, BASE inclined disc?

Maybe I'm outdated?? Maybe I'm missing the point? Maybe next time I go camping I should bring a stereo and pump some "Grateful Dead" back at them?

a nation that has run out of toes to shoot

2006-04-01T22:39:00.000-08:00

Its funny to see what some people do with the power that they obtain. Most people use it to better themselves and their friends and family. When it comes to countries, history has shown they tend to flex their muscles and bully around a few neighbors and maybe take over an extra country or two. Its just the nature of power and its always been that way!! Have I got a story for you though!

There's this little dot of a country that has only been around for a very short while. Since its existence its neighbors and the majority of the world has been trying to wipe it off the face of the earth. Even within its borders there exists a nation that's main goal is to wipe it out. Miraculously this little country the size of Rhode Island has become one of the super powers military wise. It has the power to wipe out countries a hundred times its size at a push of a button.

The people of this country have suffered immensely for thousands and thousands of years. They have been expelled from every country they have dwelled. They are a people that are used to being kicked out of their homes. In our life times they have been kicked out of their homes and led to death camps. A little less than a year ago a new trend has begun! A very sick trend that should blow your minds.

As missiles by our enemies fell onto our holy soils our own government decided to kick our own people out of their homes. Jews that have come straight from the death camps of the Holocaust to build their homes are now being evacuated by a Jewish government. The majority of this nation has voted for a government that's main platform is to evacuate more Jews from their homes.

Its leaders have discussed various borders. They have stated they would push for an evacuation till the 67 borders, 48 borders, or 56 borders. This is still unclear, they are still uncertain of how many thousands of Jews will be kicked out of their homes. Its enemies are certain of its borders. There has really never been much debate on the matter. The border they aim for is very clear!! It is not attached to any date but rather to the moon. Its fluctuation is very faint, in the morning, low tide and in the evenings, high tide.

Is your living room safe than?? Are there a number of homes that will satisfy them? Maybe now that we are kicking ourselves out of our homes that will appease them?

This is just stage one!!! Next up.. The story of a nation that first evacuated its own people from their homes and now moves to use its vast military strategies against itself. Grab a chair and a big tub of popcorn and watch as they destroy themselves as its enemies watch in amazement

A brief history of bar fights

2006-03-26T08:42:00.000-08:00

Where do you think you are going to meet her, in a bar????? This question is asked by many, to the single folk out there. It's always asked with a bit of sarcasm. Of course you are not going to meet your perfect mate in a bar, right??? Well maybe let's not be so quick to judge here!!!!!

The wise always say we should look into our past to learn how we should conduct ourselves in the present and future. Let's take a look at our forefathers and the greats of our Jewish Heritage. Two of the three of our forefathers/matriarchs met at a bar, sort of speak. O.K, they didn't serve Guinness on draft, whiskey shots, and fine vodka, but they did serve the freshest drink in town, as much as you can drink.

Isaac found his wife Rivka at a well. She was judged at how she conducted herself there. She passed with flying colors!! She not only gave the whole caravan of foreigners to drink, but also all their camels!! That's a lot of trips to the bar. I don't know if you ever saw a camel drink water, well me neither, but I hear they drink an awful lot.

Jacob also found his soul mate at a well. There are all different types of competitions that take place in bars. I am sure you've seen arm wrestling in bars. I am sure you have probably seen a bar fight or two. What happened on this particular day takes the cake though. There was this huge stone that covered up the well, it takes a group of people to even budge it. Jacob walks up to this thing, takes a deep breath and rolls this thing right off. End of story, Jacob waters Rachel's flock and she immediately falls for him.

Moses met his wife Zipporah also at a watering hole. There were a whole bunch of Shepard's that apparently drank a little too much that day and were getting a little out of hand. The daughters of the priest of Median just wanted to get some water for themselves and their flocks, these bullies wouldn't let them get anywhere near the well. Moses had finally seen enough and knew it was time to take action. He stood up and took out all of the Shepard's single handedly, he drove them all away. He than watered all of her flocks and won her heart immediately.

These are but a few of the instances of love and well's in our vast history. Time magazine in 2005 came out with an article on professions of woman from around the world. Don't get angry with me, I didn't publish this thing. The number one profession of woman in the world is 'water carrying.'

Now, there has to be something to all this right?? Should I slip into my disco shoes and head out to the nearest watering hole? Should I work out the best lines I can think of "hey, what's a girl like you doing in a place like this??" I guess times have changed a bit. The watering holes just aren't the same as they used to be.

Alfred, is this what you had in mind???

2006-03-07T10:20:00.000-08:00

It must have been a terrible year in 1994. Was this the best they could come up with? How did they arrive at such a decision? I imagine the procedure went something like this:

Welcome everyone, tonight is a very important night where we gather to appoint the winner of the Noble peace prize. Are there any suggestions? A few murmurs are heard throughout the crowd... "How about Mother Teresa??" Crowd gives a sigh of approval. Sorry folks we already gave her one, the rules state we can't give anyone two!! "Gandhi!" crowd cheers!! Come on folks he's been dead for quite some time, the rules state we can't award any dead people. "E.T.!!" crowd gives off a deep huummmmmm! Alrighty we're getting out of hand here people, we can't give it to E.T.!!!!

The suggestions continue. "Rosa Parks!" "Pope John Paul II" "Joan Biaz!" The crowd is out of control, they are proud of their suggestions! I think we are getting closer now, you're on the right track. Than one boldly stands up and silents the crowd "Yasser Arafat!" The crowd bolts out in laughter. The mediator gives a motion of silence and lets him speak regarding his suggestion.

"Alrighty now hear me out people. Yasser and his killing machines have murdered 10% less innocent woman and children in the year 1994 as opposed to 1993." Crowd gives off a deep hummmm. "Although he tells his own people he wants to wipe Israel off the map, he did mention to us that he has peaceful intentions." Crowd starts to clap!! "Although he did keep 90 percent of the money given to the Palestinian people for himself, he did give some to his people" the crowd starts to clap and cheer!! "There are still two people left in the world that could possibly be bigger scum bags than him! Sadam Hussein and Bin Laden" the crowd now on their feet out of control. "He also has lots of medals on the coat he wears, and a really cool turban" the crowd starts jumping all over each other in excitement!! The mediator barely able to speak due to his own excitement, so I think we have a winner here, we don't even need to vote!!!

A unanimous decision on Yasser Arafat being awarded the coveted Noble Peace prize. I'm sure Alfred Noble would have been proud!!

triple diamond extravaganza

2006-02-28T07:49:00.000-08:00

"Are we there yet?" I was so excited to get there. My parents explained to me what it is and all the fun things you could do with it. Some things though you have to experience on your own.

I couldn't wait to park the car, I just wanted to get out there to experience "snow." The car finally came to a stop. I was so excited, I didn't know what to do first. Should I start to make a snowman? Throw a snowball at my brother? Make an angel imprint? Go sledding? Make a snow cone? Build an igloo? Make yellow snow???? It was a major overload experience!!

The door flew open, I go running out of the car with a big red circular slay in hand ready to take on the mountain. Now you have to understand a few things here. The best runs usually aren't next to the places where you park the car, you usually have to walk a bit to the proper sledding areas. Secondly, those circular disks don't have the best steering capabilities. Thirdly, the steeper the slope the faster you will go. Fourthly, if you are moving at a high speed on a disc that you can't control that well, on a steep slope, in an area next to where you parked the car, a large tree is the worst method of slowing down.

Before anyone else was even able to exit the car, in record time I miraculously managed to sprain my arm. Now I have a few questions here. How was I able to get out of the car with a disc two times bigger than me so quickly? Was I driving up there with it on my lap? I don't think so! Did I not see the Forest of billions of trees about 10 feet from the start of my chosen run that would inevitable be my finish line? Most ski areas have different runs marked by signs like: Blue circle=easy, red square=intermediate, blue diamond=advanced , black diamond=hairy, double black diamond=insane, triple black diamond=death. Did I feel I was up for a triple black diamond run on my first red disc experience?

My parents and brother got out of the car like normal people and were now faced with a crying ball of snow. I'm not sure if they even saw what happened. After all it did occur within one minute of parking the car. All I can remember is the pain. I don't remember the joy of those three seconds of ultra high speed. I was moving though! I don't think I ever got the chance to make a snowball that day or even make an angel imprint.

The rest of that day was spent at the hospital. It could have been much worse, I left with a semi-broken arm and a big sticker for being a good sport. I will never forget my first "snow" experienc though! I still dislike those round discs. No matter what you do, you always end up going down the hill backwards.

If this horse had eyes!

2006-02-23T08:08:00.000-08:00

Last night I had a bit of a deja vu. I knew I had been at that exact spot before, I felt all the same feelings. There was the butterflies, the anticipation, the 'what if's', the excitement of the unknown. There was one major difference though.

There's this big iron horse that sits at the top of Ben Yehudah Street. It's pretty hideous actually, I don't know why its still there. It's always a good point of reference for meeting. After you go through all the other points of meeting that you know and you don't succeed, there's always the horse. Meet you at the hideous iron horse at 8:00!!

I'll tell you, it was a little strange to sit under that horse again last night. As I waited to meet S I had a little re-acquaintance with that old horse. I told him all about the previous 8 years and what transpired since our first meeting. I told him about my two angels, about N and where it went from after meeting here, and why we got divorced. He gave me an iron neighhh of approval and now I was ready to start my search once again.

Yes it was a deja vu to be standing there again, but this time things were different. Or were they? How much did I change in those 8 years? Did I become a better person? Do I have more Torah knowledge? Do I have a better grasp on life? Have my long term goals changed?

I realized that in some of these areas I have changed tremendously, yet in others I remained very much the same. What I was looking for in a wife back than and what I am looking for today are very similar. Its something from within that knows exactly what it needs. It drives to find that which will perfect itself.

Call me a dreamer if you will but I am a firm believer. The Torah states, "30 days before you are brought into this world you meet your second half (basherit)." Your soul yearns to meet her in order to bring them both to perfection. There are those that argue with this! I have seen with my own eyes this joyful union. B"H I have seen it with close friends, I have seen it in my own parents, my brother, and a number of Rabbeum. Why is it so difficult for some to re-join and why do some have to try a few times?

I haven't met anyone yet who told me that life was easy. There was no form that I signed when coming into this world that everything would go my way. We are meant to work here! We are supposed to give our 100 percent. Generally the things that we acquire for little or no effort aren't our most precious things. It isn't any wonder that my most valued treasures in life are those I had I had to work extremely hard for.

Therefore I am ready to work hard for one of the biggest decisions in life. I am ready to climb any mountain, or cross any sea or desert to find my second half. I won't settle for anything less than the woman who will bring us both to perfection. I give myself and my many good friends out there who are single a blessing: May we find the right zivug before
Rosh Hashanah 5767!!!!

Hey, Why are we the only ones laughing here?

2006-02-18T13:47:00.000-08:00

There's that moment of no return. It's that point where there is nothing you could possibly do to stop it. It's that look we get on our faces that lasts for about 5 seconds. After that, it's all over! The next and last step is usually my brother running first out of the situation. I don't know why, but I stay there for a minute or so looking like a fool laughing uncontrollably before my exit.

My parents for some reason bought front row tickets to go see this play at a fairly large auditorium. We're talking front row center! Right behind the orchestra. When everything went silent and the curtains opened we gave each other the look. Not intentional I might add! We tried to turn away and not look at each other, it didn't help. In dead silence before the first actor opened his mouth, the audience of a few thousand people witnessed my brother running at full speed up the aisle laughing hysterically trying to get to the lobby. I hunched down in my seat as low as I could. My mom gave me that look. I lasted for about a minute maximum before my dash to the lobby. We never returned to our seats. My parents never bought front row seats again.

My parents thought it was a good idea for some reason to bring over a priest from the Seven Day Adventist cult for dinner. They knew that the two of us didn't like the idea, but they never thought we would disrespect him or anything like that. We of course also had no intention of disrespecting him. The priest didn't realize that we don't really have free choice in these types of matters. We sat down at the table and got introduced. We didn't even start eating yet! The priest starts to give my brother some type of parve blessing. He looks over at me! We skipped the 5 second hold-out period and went straight into uncontrollable laughter. Again he runs from the table and I stay there for about half a minute to get the look from my mom. Upstairs are two young adults laughing historically. My parents had to eat the meal alone with the priest. You see, we couldn't go back down stairs. We knew from past experiences that any type of return to the scene would result in similar results. We never got the blessing from the priest that night.

A distant cousin of ours that we hardly ever see came to visit us at my grandparent's house. We had tons of family there at the time. They were all so excited about getting the distant cousins together. This one particular cousin is "retarded." He had a talent of remembering all types of baseball statistics. You could ask him anything. His latest kick was punk rock bands. My brother didn't really like punk rock bands. When he gave my brother the phone number as a gift (in front of about 20 family members) he made the mistake of looking over at my face. This was one of those cases where we tried as hard as we possibly could, honestly! But after the first "phif" out of my tightly closed lips, it was all over. In this case for some reason there was no where to run. We stood there like idiots laughing while 20 family members looked on with looks of complete disbelief. My mom had that look of course. We carried on, there was nothing we could do. I'm pretty sure that's the last time that side of the family ever came to visit us.

The longest one ever recorded was the time it takes to play 2 golf holes. An older fellow we were playing with decided to take a rather risky shot on an uphill slope away from the pond. The nicely dressed man proceeded to chunk the shot and ended up taking an unintentional dive into that merky pond. It was a cold day! He didn't think it was funny a bit. He also didn't think it was funny that we continued laughing continuously through the two remaining holes. There was that time when my grandmother introduced her new boyfriend to us. There was also that time my parents decided to take us to a very expensive restaurant. There are many more!

Unfortunately I don't get to see my brother all that often. But I have no doubt in my mind that if the opportunity arises we would be quick to dig ourselves back into the hole that we've found ourselves in so many times.

Happy T'B Shvaut to a very special 1000 trees.

2006-02-15T07:56:00.000-08:00

"What do you mean I have no connection to Israel??? I planted a TREE there and have a little paper to prove it." Over 75 percent of the Jews in the world have never stepped foot on this holy land yet most have had a TREE planted in their name here. What's so special about a TREE?

My parents moved from one of the biggest armpits of America, Los Angeles, to the middle of nowhere. It was a decision based on where it would be best to raise two boys. Hell on earth, or on the top of this mountain on 42 acres surrounded by billions of TREES, streams, ponds, and even an occasional bear appearance. I commend them on one of the many good decisions they made in life.

One thing this particular piece of property was not lacking was TREES! There were lots of TREES. NO! You don't understand, were talking woodpecker heaven. When the box came in the mail from the forest service with 1000 saplings I don't think anybody understood what my father was thinking. "Dad, I think we have enough TREES already!!!"

I can't say those are the best memories I have growing up, me and my brother watering those trees a couple times a week. Some could be reached by attaching the 4 fifty yard hoses together, but a good number had to be watered by bucket. That means filling it up at the stream and hiking to each TREE!! My brother reminds my father of this every time he sees him. "Dad what's up with those TREE'S??? 2 billion TREES weren't enough???"

Sometimes it's hard for a parent to notice the physical growth of their children. Others who haven't seen them for a month or so well say "wow he grew so fast." Growing up amongst these TREES, I hardly noticed their growth. I didn't even pay attention that new TREE'S were even sprouting up from these TREES.

My father never explained himself. He is a very humble wise man, one of the wisest I have ever met. He knew one day we would learn on our own. Some things just can't be taught with words. If you were to go there today, it would be hard to differentiate between the ones we planted and the original ones that inhabited the land before. We changed the natural habitat of a mountain. We created new homes for millions of species of animals. We increased the oxygen supply on the planet. We made a difference!!!

Rav Orlowek in one of his lectures stated "a great man is one that plants a TREE in his lifetime with the intention of its fruits to be eaten by the generations that follow" There is a lot to be said about that, take from it what you may. These TREE'S that he planted make a long term positive change on this earth. Just because there are billions of TREES here doesn't mean that you don't have to plant one. If you don't, you missed one of the most important lessons of life. "YOU!!!!!!" have to do your efforts to make a long-term positive change in this world.

Unfortunately for many, their claim to a positive impact on this earth is in the form of a 3 by 3 card with JNF written on it. Others will plant their TREE themselves here and even have a picture to prove it. In extremely rare occasions you will find people like my father who will create a whole forest and change this world for the good in more ways than they will ever know.

If you believe in Fairies... than clap your hands

2006-02-11T13:28:00.000-08:00

Something is a little strange here. There comes a time in everyone's life where they realize that it was really their parents who put the money under the pillow, and not the tooth fairy. At some point we find out that the Bogey man doesn't really exist. At a certain age we find out the true facts about that fat guy with the red and white costume who keeps showing up all over the place with the flying deer and slay. Most people find out about these things at a very young age.

If you would find an adult who still believed in these things, probably you would have him committed. How about huge groups of people? Countries? Well... Ready for a whopper?

Now I'm not sure which is worse, so I will present both sides. Israel is very upset, hurt, and downright angry!! "We demand that you recognize us!!" She proclaims to the disbelievers out there. She may not have a slay, wand, or any flying deer, but she can bring lots of proof of her existence. She even has a flag. She can present all types of various food wrappers that say right on the package 'made in Israel.' She can present to you all types of maps that show all her roads and places of interest. There are even millions of people that will even stand up for her to state that they live there, they even have special cards that they carry with them at all times, with the name "Israel" written on them. It's just not fair! How can they not believe in me?

Now I've never been to the North Pole, but neither has Santa. Now maybe I'm a little naive but I do believe in the North Pole, but not in Santa. Israel??? Give me proff. If you look at all their maps and all their websites you will find that Israel really doesn't exist. With all the technology today who's to say that really Israel only exists in a Hollywood studio in California? OK it doesn't go that far you say, fine! Is it any worse than stating that you don't accept the scientific proofs that the world is round? How could such a large group of people and even countries still hold as part of their official charters that Israel does not exist?

Maybe if we beg hard enough, give them more land, release more prisoners with blood on their hands, give them more guns, more money, more training, than maybe, just maybe they will believe in us one day.

I spent all that money on this!!!

2006-02-08T10:52:00.000-08:00

Now you shouldn't anticipate something too special in this post because there is no way it could possibly meet your anticipation level. Come to think of it, anything that is finite by definition would fall short of the highest expectations.

The greatest part of any vacation is that moment from locking the house, to the walk to the car. "This trip is going to be awesome, I can't wait!!!" Once in the car a child starts to scream. The temperature is too hot. It's pretty uncomfortable with all this baggage. Than start the worries. "Did I forget anything," "Are we going to make it there on time," What if this.. what if that." Even a great trip where everything went perfect, you still can't wait to get home. That's till you get home.

The greatest part of going to the movies is either the previews or the first few seconds of the film before the introductions take place. In some cases even the purchase of the tickets can be the climax. Sequels hardly ever are a success because you already wrote and directed the film before stepping into the theatre. It's very rare that they ever follow your script, therefore the film fails.

The greatest part of going to a fancy restaurant is everything leading up to the food. The walk from the car to the restaurant is usually the climax. By the time the plate thumps down on the table thoughts are running through your head "maybe we should have went to....??" By the second bite you might has well went to a fast food joint.

The greatest part of going on a blind date is the time preparing yourself at home. During the drive to go meet her you are already preparing yourself for the worst. This is the most unfair one of all. There is no way anyone on the face of this earth could possibly measrure up to the person you built up in your mind at home.

The greatest part of a new item of clothing, is that moment you decide to buy it in the store. The high here can even last sometimes past the checkout counter and even sometimes till you get home. Thats the trick with the fancy bags they put it in. Once you try it on though, you are convinced that there was some type of mixup at the counter.

The greatest part of buying a new car is that walk from when they put the keys in your hands, till you use it for the first time to open the door. Once inside, out of the fancy lighted showcases, it goes downhill from there. The next day when you see another one in a different color, the sweating sets in. Shortly after when the XLS Turbo "II " comes out, you might as well donate this pile of junk to a scarp metal yard.

The greatest part of a job is that moment they inform you that you got the job. After day one, the boss and all the workers weren't quite as you expected. All the millions of little things that weren't discussed during the interview start to rear their ugly heads.

There all tons of examples of anticipation downers and I could go on and on but.... being that I already shot down your level of anticipation I will stop here. I will leave you with one exception to the rule that I have found. The greatest part of bringing a child into this world is now, tomorrow, and the next day, and the next. B"H my two boys have blown way beyond my highest expectations.

May the Almighty grant them peace

2006-02-05T10:54:00.000-08:00

I knew that this day would come some time. I dreaded it. I wasn't sure what I would do when the moment arises. They say time heals, but in some cases I'm not so sure. Some craters are just too deep to fill.

The neighbor across the street left for work that day like he always did. He said goodbye to his wife and baby (6 months), he sent two of his older boys (5 and 8) to gan, and headed out in the heavy rain. The weather already claimed two accidents that same week in our small community of 35 families. 5 days earlier I was very upset at my personal tragedy of totaling my car!!! . Today I am still so upset with myself for those feelings I had. I left that intersection on my feet without a scratch!!! My neighbor and his family lost everything.

I was at the car rental agency when I got the phone call. I, like everybody else who knew them went numb. What can one possible say to something like this. What do you tell the children? How could she possibly go on? I realized driving back home that the agency had given me the exact same car and color as the one that he had. I debated whether I should return it and exchange it for another make or color. Three days later I regretted not making the right decision.

I forgot something in the house that day, I don't remember what. I left my car on the street running. I got back in my car and for some reason looked in my rear-view window. The 8 year old was standing with a few other kids waiting for the bus. He took a few steps out of the bus stop towards my car with a wide curious look upon his face. He suddenly got this big smile on his face and started running towards my car. I didn't know what to do!!! I knew exactly what he was thinking. "I knew they were all wrong, I knew he would come home" My heart and stomach were on the floor, I was crying. I hit the gas and drove away like a coward. I wish I would have stayed and taken him in my arms and promised him everything would be ok, but I couldn't, I just couldn't!!

I had to drive around in that rental car for another month. Every time I would pass them on the street, or they would just see it parked there, would be a reminder. I hated that car!

I don't know how, but for 1 1/2 years I never ran into her on the street or at the Shul or in any situation where you would have to have some kind of response. What can you possibly say to someone in that situation? Yesterday I was walking on the street and that moment occurred. "mashlo mech?" How are you? spewed out of my mouth!!! How are you? Its times like these where you want to find the person, group, or country that established this as a way of greeting someone you don't know that well. She gave this smile that said it all!! "How do you think I am? A mother of three small children alone in the world and nobody can possibly understand how I feel"

Young, Gifted, and Black

2006-02-01T08:44:00.000-08:00

My first introduction to music came to me in the start of my 3rd grade, from a rare find in the garbage bins of the town dump area. Upon throwing our bags of goodies in, my parents noticed a rather large box of record albums. They were in perfect condition! Who would do such a thing? We of course took them, and I was thus introduced to the world of music.

There were The Doors, The Beetles, The Mama's and The Papa's, Steely Dan, Barbara Streisand, Barry Manilow, and much much more. My first go was on a Beetle's album. I still remember the green apple on the record going around and around. I was't too impressed though. I did like the song about an Octupus and his garden. I don't know if I liked the music per se, I just felt that it was such a cool idea to sing about an Octupus. I tried a few more albums, but none of them really did it for me.

Than I experienced the Doors 'Waiting For The Sun.' Hello I love you.... Love Street... Wow! I played it over and over again for weeks. I was moved! I felt what music was.

At school that week all the kids were talking about their favorite bands. Everyone of course said "Kiss." I agreed!! I mean who ever heard of The Doors. I had to find out who "Kiss" was though. I begged my parents. "Why do you need more albums, we have a whole chest full upstairs." I did finally get a Kiss album for my birthday. I listened to the whole thing, I wasn't too impressed. After all it wasn't The Doors!!!

Later in life most of my music influences came from my brother. He introduced me to Pink Floyd by convincing me the only way to listen to this one particular song was by laying on your back and placing two rather large speakers on both sides of your head. After that I was hooked!! That is until he introduced me to The Grateful Dead. All the other bands now fell by the wayside. Lets just say I saw a few shows, the best of course were with my brother.

I am trying to limit though my children's exposure to secular music somewhat. I do make mistakes though from time to time. On the way home from school yesterday I played this really groovy blues song called "to be young, gifted and black." They only heard it once. All day today Y1, my 6 year old was walking around the house singing "young, GRIFTY and black.. and thats a fact." Y2 my 3 year old was singing "young, GREASY and black.. thats a fact." Now there are so many reasons why thats just plain wrong.

I think the only reason why one would throw such a fine collection out is because of religious reasons. I myself don't see it. Music has only drawn me closer to Hashem. I love going into shabbat after listening to a nice piece of music. Music has helped my kavanah (spiritul intentions) before prair. I sure hope that person is a much better soul for what he did, I thank him all the same.

All for the sake of peace

2006-01-26T23:27:00.000-08:00

An entire people have diplomatically voted in support of the murder of innocent woman and children. An entire people cheer in support of a landslide victory that's major basis of existence is for the ultimate destruction of Israel. Not just the leaders now, but the people as a whole have shown the world their true colors.

The initial response by Israel and the world is "we will not deal with a Hamas run government." Wow that sounds pretty stark! I don't buy it for a minute. My question than is... How long will it take till we start to supply them with arms? How long will it be till we start to train them on how to better take out our soldiers? How long will it be till we aid them in bettering their suicide mission activities? Lastly, how long will it take for this monster that we created be capable of carrying out its ultimate mission ????

It's always so interesting how quick people forget things. My prediction is in about 1 to 2 weeks the world will be condemning Israel on its lack of acceptance of a government established in a diplomatic manner. Soon after Israel will of course bow down and kiss the feet of what ever beast comes out as its leader.

Again we will try to "talk" with them. We will sit with them in nicely decorated rooms drinking fine teas. Their leaders will be invited maybe to Camp David, Washington, and even a personal tour of the newly improved Pentagon. All this in return for promises they will keep their hands to themselves.

Upon return to their fine homes built with Israeli money and designed by Western Architects, they will place their rewards and ribbons of promises of peace on their polished shelves. They will slip into a costume that fits much better to them, it will be laid with drops of blood from the thousands of innocent people that have been slayed, murdered, and lynched. They will step out to the crowd who are waiting impatiently, saliva drooling from their mouths, and announce to them that they are one step closer.

Drinks on me!

2006-01-25T10:56:00.000-08:00

I woke up at about 6am and upon stepping out of my parents bed I almost stepped on someone. What a headache I had! I stepped over a few more people and saw in the next room a rather large girl with my parent's comforter wrapped around her. The place reeked of beer. As I looked down from the banister from upstairs to the scene below I realized there was no way I was going to get away with this one.

They were going to be coming back in a few days from a week long trip in China. They trusted me enough to leave me alone! They knew of course I would have a few friends over one of the nights, but this!!! The whole town somehow ended up at my house that night and the majority decided to stay the night.

I counted about 8 people scattered in the living room, 6 upstairs, and 5 others in the downstairs rooms. There were about 50 empty beer cans still laying on the table. There was a mote of beer on the carpet surrounding the table. Stuff was everywhere!! Not pretty. I woke everyone up and kindly told them to get out now!! I had a lot of work to do.

The problem with where I lived, it wasn't really near to anything. The nearest friend was at least a 15 minute drive away. After a drink or two they realized that the treacherous road back home had a good chance of getting the best of them.

This wasn't the first party at our house, my parents went on a vacation at least once a year. My brother already broke the house in a bit, he was a little smarter I guess. I think to this day they believe he just had a few friends over. I think my brother stayed somewhat sober to make sure things didn't get too out of hand. Like many times in my life as my parents claim I sometimes don't' think before I do things. I passed out I think just when the party was starting to get rolling, that was the mistake.

I did get the house in decent shape. The carpets were cleaned! Drapes were re-hung, broken things were replaced, broken railing were nailed back, various places got re-painted, etc etc... But the broken antique rocking chair, there was nothing I could do about that.

They came in and gave me a big hug, put down their things and were happy to be home. I was in the clear. My mom went up stairs to take a shower, that's the first thing most people want to do when they get off a long airplane ride. "J what the heck happened here?" I had no idea what she was talking about, I took care of everything. I even had a little blanket that the cat played with, laying over the broken rocking chair leg. I went upstairs and what nailed me was a 'dented in' metal towel holder. How did anyone manage to dent a towel holder?

A few days later my dad also questioned what all these little dents were in the antique wooden dining table. My parents aren't stupid! I'm not sure if they knew what the game 'quarters' was, but they knew exactly what went on that week. Its funny with these types of things, you always think you can get things past your parents. 999,999,999 out of 1,000,000,000 you don't!!!!

Superman never died why should I?

2006-01-24T12:26:00.000-08:00

I remember my Aunt telling us that she was gone forever. I asked her "what do you mean she will be gone forever, does that mean a really long time?" "no! she is not going to come back EVER!!!" my aunt said. That really hit me hard!

I was maybe about 7 at the time. I have no clue as to who passed away! I think it must have been a great aunt or something. Also I don't know why they chose my Aunt K to stay with us. She must have felt that a bunch of 6 to 11 year olds were ready to hear her opinion on what happens after you die.

It was a very new and strange concept to me, something that could only happen to people that I don't know very well and certainly not to anyone in my immediate family. Did she choose to die? Did she get any type of warning? Why her? where did she go?

At the age of 7 the thought of me possibly dying was out of the question, impossible!! Growing up and having life sometimes show its darker side, the personal question of "when is my time??" pops up from time to time. In grade school and even high school I was invincible. I was to live to be 120 and most likely way beyond. College life has passed and I'm now in my late 30's. Although I've walked close to the line a few times I still never really felt that is a real possibility. At what age does one really feel the knock is about ready to hit the door? 70? late 80,s?119? or never???

Hershey's or Osem?

2006-01-21T11:00:00.000-08:00

There was a sale in a certain store in Beit Shemesh this week on Kedem grape juice. People seemed to be buying it up like crazy. There was all this talk about how the American grape juice is just so much better than the stuff you get here. It was a big hit!

I don't claim to be a scientist, heck, I don't even claim to know that much about science, but it is a fact that about every seven years every cell in your body is completely reproduced. That means every 7 years I'm physically a completely different person than who I was before. Big deal you say! OOOOH it's a very big deal. I was counting the years in anticipation, to the day. Yes that's right on September 13, 2001 I became 100% Israeli to the bone!

Excluding a few short trips to the states to visit family since 94, every cell was born and prepared within the borders of Eretz Israel. This brings new meaning to the saying that "even the air here has a positive affect on you." Sure a visit to Israel once a year or so may give you a few holy cells. But why go for the finger nail when you can go for the whole Shabang?

I'm not sure if the sale of Israeli grape juice over there would be such a big hit, my guess is probably not. I don't think the affect would be the same anyway. Once you pull off the cap all that Chotz Le Aretz air would seep in there and spoil it a bit.

We know from all the kosher laws in the Torah that what we put in our mouths is a very big deal. It has an affect on us spiritually. What we eat has a big affect on who we are. I'm not saying that breathing non-Israel air or drinking non-Israel water is unkosher but when you look at it in this light, it can make you think twice about which grape juice to say Kiddush over.

and just like that...there were nine!

2006-01-16T21:34:00.000-08:00

"If I ever see you flipping anyone off I will rip off your finger." I don't remember how old I was at the time, maybe 12 or so. The fear that my mom put in me that day stays with me to this moment. I can safely say that I still have the middle finger on both of my hands. I have been tempted many times to use them though, but the risk of course is way to great!!

Its funny how certain lessons are learned. I know I have sat with my sons and tried discussing certain issues. They seem to be paying attention, but maybe its the unplanned lessons that stay with them forever. The lessons learned on how to deal with other drivers when they pull out in front of you. The lessons learned on how to react to a large vessel slamming down on your small toe, and which words to use to relive the immediate pain. The lessons learned to how to react when fine china takes a flight off the table and lands on the soft Israeli floors. These I believe are the ones that stick in their heads!!

When my mom picked us up from school that day, one of the bad kids opted on using his finger to describe how he felt about his friend at the time. That's when she gave us that lesson. I remember walking to the car and imagining my finger being ripped off, the blood gushing everywhere, the pain! That stuck.

Even after leaving home, in my college days, the lesson stayed with me. In those moments of desire or need to use it, there was always that fear that my mother was right around the corner ready to rip it off. Even in the car driving alone, the moment would arise, I would always hold back. You see mothers have special powers. There is always that possibility that she could be there, even when you don't see her. Worse yet, she would see it from a distance or hear about it from a friend, and just like that, without any warning, off with the finger!!!

Albeit I am far from perfect, but in those similar situations I try to teach the best lesson possible. When they pull out in front of you almost knocking you off the road, I yell out a "what the heeeeeeelcccck are you doing! you not so nice person!" and when that vessel falls on my toe "fuuuuuuuuuuuucggggee" and the flying china "nnnnnnnnnnoooaazel tov." Those are those true tests in life to see how you react as a parent and what type of lesson you teach.

The tale of the dragon and the queen

2006-01-14T08:40:00.000-08:00

There is a midrash that compares Jerusalem to a beautiful queen and a horrifying fire breathing dragon. The queen is of utmost beauty inside and out. The dragon is horrific in every way.

I worked in the Heritage House right in the old city of Jerusalem for about 5 years. I met all different types of people from all over the world. I met the Messiah twice, King David himself, prophets, missionaries, human shields for the Palestinian people, a member of the Russian mafia, 1 rock star, and other various combinations of the former mentioned. Oh, there were some normal people who also stayed there, but not too many!

What was interesting is the way many of these people viewed Jerusalem and especially the old city. There were those that saw the beautiful queen and of course there were those that saw the flying fire breathing beast. How is it possible for two people to walk down from the Heritage House to The Kotel (wall) about a 10 minute walk, and see two completely different things?

A replied "It was beautiful, the stone walkways take you right back to the temple periods. In the Jewish Quarter there were children running with their parents fulfilling the words of the prophets that stated we would one day return. Upon seeing The Kotel for the first time I felt like crying for what if represents. Touching and praying at The Kotel was so intense, I realized I was part of something so much bigger."

B replied "It was awful, the stone walkways were so slippery I almost fell on my face twice. The trash was everywhere, are there no trashcans here? There were Arabs walking around everywhere, I felt so unsafe. When I finally got there it was so upsetting to see that it was separated between men and women. The Kotel was totally over-rated, just a bunch of rocks. There were people begging for money every step I took and when I finally got to the wall itself, a bird pooped on my shoulder."

This midrash can be related not just to Jerusalem but to Israel as a whole. I have met so many people who react to this land so differently. It makes me sad to hear about this dragon that people see. I have yet to see its ugly face, I don't even believe that it exists. It belongs under the bed, in closets, or in story books about make believe lands. The lesson that is clear from this midrash is that there only exists a most beautiful queen, that's what's real!! The dragon is an invention of man.

Can I open them now??????

2006-01-10T11:59:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrated the birthday of my 6 year old! All of his best friends came. He had a blast!! He was king for one day. It was perfect.

These are the years where birthdays really mean something. A birthday means: somebody loves me, I get all my favorite desserts at one sitting, I have friends that love to play with me, birthday gifts, everyone sings to me today, I get served first, special plates and cups with cool cartoon characters on them, the teacher pays extra attention to me today, I run a little faster today, the sun shines all day long even if its a clowdy day, I'm really going to have to do something really really bad to get punished today, its ok if I dirty up my clothes today, every where I have to go I go there in skip mode, I'm the most important person on the planet, this day was created just for me!!!!!

He really shined today! I am so proud of him. I really wish he could stay this pure and innocent forever. I wonder, at what age does life start to peel off the wings of an angel. Is it 7? 8? 10? ??

Circus Circus "all you can eat" and more!

2006-01-06T06:05:00.001-08:00

I will never forget my first visit to Las Vegas. Its the only time in my life I have ever passed out. Its another world entirely over there. I was used to a life where the nearest neighbor is one mile away. For a 10 year old just out of the woods for the first time I went through a sensory mental overload.

I've been to Los Angeles and other cities on the west coast but this was something different. We went to the all you can eat breakfast buffet at Circus Circus at $1.99 per person. There was a long line getting in to this place, but not to worry, it moves very quickly due to the well greased machine I was about to see.

The walls and carpets were loud! The lights were blinking all over the place, all different types of colors. There were sounds of coins hitting the metal plates of slot machines from all directions. There were people everywhere! I was getting sick to my stomach.

We paid the cashier and got in line to one of about 20 rows of endless food bars. The lights and sounds were just as intense inside the restaurant. My head was starting to spin. I looked down the row to see how far this thing went..... I didn't see an end! I looked to the left and right! I was surrounded by heaps and heaps of Circus Circus $1.99 food and Circus Circus $1.99 customers.

There were millions of people in there! I saw a pile of bacon that would cover a small truck. There were piles of sausage! Heaps of eggs, all kinds! Hash browns, French toast, pancakes, cereals, ham, more meat, stuff I never saw in my life before, tons of it! I wanted to run but I couldn't, I was surrounded by food and people.

I somehow made it out of there, I ran to the bathroom! The blinking lights and heaps of bacon were running after me! It was a race and I knew I was losing.

I woke up in a daze lying on the floor of the Circus Circus bathroom looking up at my father. He looked a bit concerned! He led me back into that monster of a place with his arm around me. We sat at one of the 10,000 tables of the Circus Circus $1.99 Buffet extravaganza; I didn't manage to eat anything of its tasty treats that morning.

Anything for a laugh

2006-01-06T00:46:00.000-08:00

A good laugh does the body and soul good! Some of the best laughs that I ever had were ones where I was the only one in on the joke. Here are 10 suggestions that always seem to work, best done not in your home town.

1. Go to any international airport and randomly greet people that look like nobody is going to come and meet them. A full fledge run with your arms out accompanied by high pitched scream is recommended.

2. Pick up people that are hitch-hiking with a slight twist. As soon as they get in the car stall it at least once. Have a hard time starting it again, accidentally turning on the wipers and hazard lights. Appear loose in your limbs and randomly moan out deep words that are not of any particular language. If coast is clear slowly veer into opposite lane. People seem to love this!

3. Run down to the garbage men as they haul away your bins. Give them a tip and tell them what a great job they are doing. Best if done at 4:00 in the morning!

4. While shopping randomly stick things in other people's carts.

5. In a crowded area outside: Stop! Look up! Through your hands in the air in a flapping motion and scream as loud as you can "nooooooooooooooooooooooo" People really enjoy this one too.

6. Wait by the door quietly... and when you hear it fall, run and throw the daily paper back at him. Best if you score a direct hit and dive behind some shrubs so he doesn't know where it came from.

7. Find the thermostat of a large business and change it from A/C to Heat or vice versa.

8. Travel to a minyan where you don't know anyone! Blurt out "Amen" at all the wrong times! The fellow daveners seem to enjoy this tremendously.

9. If you have a mean landlord or boss, give him a nice little gift underneath the latch of the door handle of his car. When he comes to open his door he will get a big surprise. A month old cottage cheese works well.

10. Go to the tallest building you can find. Wait to board the elevator until it's filled to the rim. Proceed to push every button for every floor. Wait for the first reactions and comments!

O.K. maybe I'm a little sick! No serious harm done to anyone here except maybe your own reputation. I feel its worth it, a good laugh carries you a long long way!

One foot in the slammer!!!

2006-01-01T03:08:00.000-08:00

I will never forget that day when the big candy shakedown took place. I must have been about nine years old. My brother and I learned a big lesson that day. Something changed! I can't exactly put my finger on it though. Maybe the realities of right and wrong, the consequences of the choices we make, or maybe the guidelines to choosing good friends.

In Bear Valley there is one small convenient store that carries just about everything. I only remember the candy section, the rest is a bit of a blur. Next to the store is a big gymnasium that hosted dances, sporting events, and all types of activities. It was the place to be, everyone hung out there. We spent a lot of time there growing up in that small town.

We were to be picked up by my grandparents that day. My parents were away on some type of vacation. We hooked up with a couple of our friends who had this great plan. I don't remember exactly how we got sucked into this thing but the next thing I knew we were part of this shakedown. There were about 8 to 12 kids in total. We all went in for the first hit.

I remember an older lady behind the counter, she wasn't really paying much attention to us. We all started stuffing our pockets and shirts with as much candy as we could. I think one of the kids bought like a nickel candy so at least we bought something. We brought the stash to the top of this hill and made a big pile. We were proud! It was time for the second hit.

The lady this time was on the phone speaking to someone, no big deal!! Or so we thought. We filled up again, this time we didn't even go for the decoy of buying even a nickel candy. We headed back up to the hill and poured our spoils onto the now Mt. Everest of candy. At that moment the fun stopped and reality hit us like a freight train in the form of a big police jeep that pulled in right next to the store.

I never ran so fast!! We ran in all different directions. My brother and I and a few others headed for the gym. We grabbed a ball, threw off our shoes and started playing any old game. My heart was pumping very hard. "Wrong" "bad" "evil" "guilt" filled me to the rim. I wanted to cry but I knew I couldn't. The police chief opened the door to the gym and looked around with peering eyes. The gym for some reason was more crowed on this day than any other day in the 20 years that we lived there, thank G-d!!

He stayed there for about a minute or two! I thought for sure he had us. We were done!! What would our parents do? What would the town think of us now? We were known as the good kids!! We were good kids!! What had we become? And just like that, he left!!!! We were free!! We made it!! Or did we??

My brother and I never got to eat even one of those candies from that stash. The older kids said that the animals got to them. I believed it! I remember trying to go to sleep that night. It wasn't easy. I knew I did bad!! I was a thief! With such a great upbringing! All the morals that were driven into me. How did I do such a thing?

I am not sure about the other kids, but I know that's the last thing my brother and I ever stole. It haunted us for many many years to follow. There is still a pocket of guilt deep inside us that wishes we never partook in such a scandal. To this day I think we are both to ashamed to tell our parents. Maybe they can still punish us at the ages of 37 and 39!!

In a strange kind of way this whole shakedown made us into better people. We chose our friends more wisely. We learned that there are consequences to our actions and the choices we make. It was a wake up call!! It was quite heavy for a 9 and 11 year old.

Surrounded By Angels

2005-12-31T09:49:00.000-08:00

It's hard to imagine that one day they won't want to cuddle. One day they will no longer long to hug me. It just won't be right to pinch them anymore. They won't fight to who gets to sit on my lap. They won't run and jump up on me when I haven't seen them for half a day. They will be embarrassed when I try to kiss them in front of their friends. You see, they will be too old for all that!!

I've heard so many times from so many people: "the years just fly by.. And you wake up and your little one is now a teenager" I have made a pledge to myself to fight that the best that I can. I refuse to let them just fly by. I will cherish each moment with them.

Every night when I put my now 3 and 6 year old boys to sleep we go through a certain ritual. Each one lies down on a shoulder and my arms wrap around them as much as I possibly can. They snuggle and try to get as close as possible. I tell them stories, we talk about the Parsha, and than we play 'imagine if.' Every night they seem to get more and more creative. After the opening imagine if... they can say whatever comes to their minds. Tonight's: Yishiah (3)( "imagine if the heater went downstairs went outside, walked to the park, went on the swings, came home, walked upstairs, and turned back into a heater." Yonah (6) "imagine if the refrigerator turned into a stove, took some chicken, cooked the chicken, called us to eat the chicken, and than turned back into a refrigerator."

I know there are those that argue that it's best to lay them down, give them a kiss and get on with your business. I hear it!! But I would not trade those moments for anything in the world. There is no where I would rather be. In those moments the world is a perfect place. Every problem that I have fades away. A deep smile covers my face and fills me up.

We say the Shemah! I give them kisses, they give me hugs, and they fade away into sleep land. They are angels!! In these moments they are perfect in everyway. I thank G-d for the gift of two beautiful healthy boys.

Those priceless moments are more precious than any mortal pleasure. I promise myself never to forget those moments, never to let the time just pass by.

On Eagles Wings

2005-12-22T23:41:00.000-08:00

Once again I slipped into my army uniform, wrapped my dog tags around my neck, and was given an m-16. Being that I'm now 37, and talk is going around that most units won't have to do any more melueem (yearly army duty) plus my release date getting nearer and nearer, this could be my last!!! It was only four days!!! I won't forget them.

Day two:
We were transferred on busses deep within the Negev Desert not far from the Egyptian border. They didn't tell us what we would be doing that day. Even the officers said they weren't sure. It was just a practice army duty, so we knew we weren't going in for any serious operations.

The bus dropped us off in the middle of nowhere. No cars, no houses, nothing!!! We than hiked in formation with full gear on our backs (two full water canteens, 5 full cartridges, helmet, gun, and backpack) for 7 kilometers. The main officer told us all to get down and explained to us what we were really doing out there.

In five minutes our unit (90 people) were to be transferred by Helicopter to a certain spot and we were to carry out a practice operation. Yes that's right helicopter!! We are talking huge army helicopter. I was very excited, I always wanted to go into a real army helicopter. He explained to us the formation we would be in, how to enter, how to exit, and where to be when we leave the helecopter. I was in the unit that was to board the first helecopter, second in line behind my officer.

It was just like a scene from Apocalypse now!! The first helicopter appeared. It bellowed out a deep sound that you could feel. Behind it were more. They came in fast. They were huge!!!! The power.....

Our's landed and an officer from within motioned to us to make our move. We started running to it in formation. This was very intense. You have to realize that this is in the middle of the desert, that means lots of sand!! When she landed it created a huge circular wall of sand that slowly makes its way away from the helicopter. It appeared kind of like the pictures you see of the reaction of an atomic bomb after detonation. When this wall hits you, it feels very similar to an ocean wave, it knocks you back! It was absolutely beautiful.

I made my way through the wall of sand and bent my head down a bit and ran towards the entrance. It's hard to believe how big these things are, we later found out that they are able to even carry an arm jeep. The blades above make such a powerful sound that you feel it within your bones. I made it to my spot and looked out the window to the others making their way to their Helicopters. It was such a beautiful scene, its hard for me to explain. It must sound strange to use the word beautiful with objects of war. I was moved deeply I felt like crying!!! I will never forget those moments.

It blasted off!! The power.... We shot up to a thousand feet in seconds. The ride was pretty intense. It blows away any rollercoaster ride. It dropped us off deeper within the desert. We ran to our positions and waited for the rest of the unit and continued the exercise.

There are those momens when you feel so great to be a Jew!! So Proud. This was one of the many that I had. I feel so proud to do my part in the Israel army. When I wear that uniform, when I am with Jews from all over the world, I realize it's a much bigger picture. We are here to protect this precious land and the beautiful people within it. That helicopter with its power blew me away. I think part of the reason I felt like crying out there is because it makes you realize there is even a bigger power, much more powerful than this machine that watches over Israel and its people.

My next blog will be on day four!! A night that made the news!

The barrel and the waterfall

2005-12-15T11:58:00.000-08:00

As half of my body hung out of the plane at 3000 feet I was thinking to myself what the ...... am I doing up here and how did I get talked into it. The flight instructor told us "its important to keep your leg close to the plane, any space can cause a suction and whip you from the plane before you're ready" I was thinking at this point "I don't think I'm ready and I don't think I will ever be ready, I want to go back down to the safe ground down there" At this point though, there was no turning back. What would my friends say if I chickened out? How would I be able to live with myself if I backed down now?

When you think at all logically, most would find it a bit strange to jump from a plane from 3000 feet when you really don't have to. What drives us to do such stupid things like this?

Most people don't like heights all that much. There's this feeling that you get deep within when looking over the edge. It's very uncomfortable!!! It's a small voice inside you that says "jump." Of course you know you're not going to jump, but there's this pull. "Maybe I really can fly?" "Maybe I will land on something reallllllly soft?" At any rate you are happy when you slowly back away and take the safe route down.

I don't think I will ever forget those 5 to 7 seconds of free fall after leaping from the plane. The freezing cold wind smashing against my body, every limb on my body attempting to grasp anything stable, the clouds surrounding me, the sound of my scream, and of course the joy of an intact parachute protecting me from the not so soft ground below me. In those few seconds I felt alive more than ever.

I was introduced for the first time in my life "real fear." I think up until that time I still believed I was invincible. Sure most people die after 120 or so years, but that didn't apply to me. I realized at that point why people do such stupid things like this. It feels great to be alive!!! Sometimes you have to walk the thin line to make yourself feel alive.

I learned my lesson though. Never again was I going to put my life on the line for such a cheap thrill. I'm glad I did it, but never again.

One year later I went to a Jimmy Buffet concert with a friend. They had this crane there, attached to it was a big rubber band. What's the chance of that thing breaking?? It looked pretty official. They even took credit cards. The crowd made the count down for us. 10...9...8...,
Boooingggg!!! That was a fun experience.

After that though I learned my lesson. I'm older now. I have learned a lot from life. Israel and Judaism has taught me new ways to get that same high. There is no way I would do anything like that anymore, no way!!! Well!!!!!!! I'm pretty sure!

You pointing your finger at me????

2005-12-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

I wonder what the Israelites were thinking when they were battling the Yehubisties for the possession of Jerusalem. "If it weren't for these dang Yehubisites everything would be just fine" When we were being plagued by the nasty Philistines was the national attitude. "Let's just get rid of all these Philistines than everything will be just fine?" Was there ever a time in history when we weren't bothered by anyone? We were just left to our own devices and everything was just fine??

Today we are surrounded by nations that would love to see us wiped off the face of the earth. Within our borders we have a people that celebrate when ever one of them succeeds in killing and maiming our people. There is a feeling within many, "if only we could get rid of all these people than everything would be just fine." I wonder if that would be so.

If the Babylonians took their book of the law of the Hammerubi and skedaddled, if the Egyptians took their papyrus's and boogied out of here, if the Turks took their bathhouses and booked out, if the Roman's took their pillars and high tailed out, if the Greeks took their god's and departed, if the Persian's, Byzantines, etc, etc, left us alone, would we have been just fine?????

When I was in grade school there was a small group of kids that claimed to be part of the KKK. I don't think they were, but they were big fans. They used to make my life hell on occasions. "Hey Jew boy!!!" "Hey big nose!!!" They didn't like me too much!! They constantly reminded me that I was Jewish, just in case I might forget. Today I owe these hoodlums a huge thanks. If I am going to get hassled over being a Jew than at least I better find out what it means to be a Jew. They kept me in check, they wouldn't let me forget about who I am and what my purpose is in life is. I could have focused on how I could manage to take off their heads, how much I hate them, how to avoid them, or revenge. I would have missed the point.

These KKK wanabee's, the Yehubasites, Greeks, Turks, Egyptians, Babylonians, and all the other ....ians are just tools trying to guide us into doing our jobs here on this earth. One doesn't have to be a rocket scientist to see that every time we sway from our path there is always one of these peoples like a guard rail on the side of a road guiding us back. It seems that every time we try to alleviate the problem we focus on them!!! They try to remind us in all sorts of ways that, that's not the problem. We try new techniques! We think of the greatest solutions!! NOTHING SEEMS TO WORK!! On paper and theory they looked great, why didn't they work out?

The ONLY solution to "everything to be just fine," is to look at the real problem, US!!! Until we, as a Jewish Nation get our act together, we are in for some serious reminding by our good friends around the world.

One week off!! Disneyland or Israel?

2005-12-07T10:56:00.000-08:00

To many Jews in the world relate to Israel like they do Disneyland. Once every year or two they make the visit. They go to the Kotel (ride the Mattehorn). They go to the Kinneret (Splash Mountain). They give a little Sadakah in the cool boxes and random people (throw the coins in the fountains and random water displays) They have a few taxi rides (Thunder Mountain). They even go visit Mea Sharim for the experience (Pirates of the Caribbean). They leave with tons of pictures, red strings on there wrists, and lots of souvenirs (the little handheld picture viewer that you get when they take your picture when you enter, and even the glow in the dark fancy necklaces). Upon exiting they say goodbye and hope to visit again in the next few years, they had a great time!!!!

If Disneyland closed for some reason indefinitely or was wiped out by an earthquake, many would be disappointed. People would probably be bummed out about it for a while, a few days, maybe even a week. A destruction of Israel G-d forbid, people of course would be more devastated. But what does Israel really mean to the masses of Jews out there?

Its this place that exists over there. They send money to it on occasions. They read about it on the news and on-line at least once a day. They love to give their opinions on the political situation over there. Even some will go to rallies for, and against it. Some go to have there Bar/Bat Mitsphas there. The majority of Jews in the world though have never stepped foot on its soil.

So how important is Israel really than? Maybe the Jews of the world would be better off if it didn't exist. Why should people lash out at them when Israel does something that the world feels unjust? Maybe there are plenty of other places in the world that Jews would be better off! Why put yourself in a dangerous situation by living there, or visiting there for that matter? Do we really need Israel??

OK!! So there were expulsions in practically every country that the Jews lived from the beginning of time. This is 2005, the world is a civilized place now. From what happened 60 years ago the world has come a long way. What happened in the past to us could never happen again!!! Certainly not in America, we helped build it up to what it is today.

This week there was a Suicide Bomber that blew himself up trying to go into a mall in Netanya. Who was Lotfi Abu Saada after? The people he killed, were they his target? Was he going for particular names, certain ages of people, babies, woman, soldiers, elders, handicapped, who?? His target was YOU!! ME!! If you call yourself a Jew than you just made his list. His motive?? Peace?? Revenge??

I don't like to speak about politics to much because it bums me out!! When I read most papers it depresses me. When I see fellow Jews that are more Pro-Palestinian than Pro-Jewish it blows a hole right through me. Unfortunately there are tons of them. It seems that a majority of Jews feel it would be best to give up more land for a so called "peace." My question to them is "Who are we supposed to have peace with?" The only side that I have heard of a real peace comes from the mouths of the Leftist Jew. It seems that the words, and actions of the Palestinian people and their leaders have no affect on their stance. "OK so its still part of the Official Palestinian Covenant that the final goal is to wipe out Israel, they don't really mean it!!!!"

Is it worth the risk to give up more of our land. Why is it such an assumed factor that we are to give back parts of Eretz Israel??? What other country in the world has ever done such a thing??? Give me one sign that the people on the other side really want peace??? What's the price if you're wrong???

When the world condemns us for building a wall to protect our woman and children from being blown up by people like Lotfi Abu Saada something has to click in your head!!! Something's not right here!! When the government is more concerned about the rights and survival of a people that tried to destroy you, more than themselves, something has got to click!! When the majority of Israelis are in favor of giving up more land, and the majority of those people you are giving the land too want to destroy you, something has got to click!!

The number of Arab countries in the world is around 19!! The last time I counted the number of Jewish countries in the world was 1! That's all we got! 1!! For the past 2000 years that number was 0!!! So if something happens to Disneyland, you always have 6 flags, Kings Canyon, Knott's Berry Farm, and a whole slew of other Amusement Adventure Parks. If something, again G-d forbid, happens to our 1 country, where will we turn in time of need??? America??? What happens if overnight they don't want us over there anymore?? France? back to Germany?? Where??

Israeli Brand "Service"

2005-12-03T10:20:00.000-08:00

"The customer is always right" Here in Israel, that's not always the case. It seems that most things in a matter of time that are west based eventually make it over to Israel: music, hair styles, clothing, art styles, practically everything!! "Sherut" loosely translated as Service, somehow never made it across the sea, or if it did it was turned away at customs.

To admit that the customer is right means you somehow were wrong!! That doesn't go over so well. That's like letting a car go first at a four way stop sign just because he got there first. Here it's assumed that you do have to stop at the stop sign, but who says you have to wait for someone else. There is a lot of pride on the line with these things, and in most cases your pride comes first.

My first introduction to Israel service was on my first trip to Israel over 15 years ago. I was part of a group and we finally got a day free to do whatever we wanted. We were in the Old Bus Station in Tel Aviv and went to the first sandwich shop that we found. All the sandwiches were pre-wrapped! I asked for a sandwich without tomatoes. He said "ok that's 8.50" I said wait the price says 8 shekels. He said "yes but if there are any changes there is a .50 service charge" I said "wait a minute I don't want extra tomatoes, I just want you to take the ones off that are on my sandwich, use them on the next one." "Sorry sir any changes there is a .50 service charge" another friend of mine who wasn't listening to our conversation asked for just a half of sandwich. He of course answered "that will be 8.50" I said "come on she only wants half a sandwich, keep the other half and sell it or something" "I am sorry any changes there is a .50 service charge." I refused to buy a sandwich there of course and wouldn't let anyone else buy one from there either. I was in shock!!

If he were to give in on the .50 service charge that means he loses. Even if he were at the brink of closure due to lack of sales, he would never give in on the .50 service charge. His pride is on the line, it's not about making money. This of course transfers on the road as well.

Practically every day you almost get in an accident here!! The most common case is as follows: you are driving down the road minding your own business and than whaaaaaaaaaaaaaam! Someone that was just parked on the side of the road pulls right out in front of you without looking at all. When you honk at this guy and empty out all the foul vocabulary words that you can think of, he sticks his arm out the window and motions "what's the problem???"

Most traffic jams here in Israel are because of the following: Moshe sees his friend walking on the sidewalk and decides to stop in the middle of the road to have a conversation with him. Yes, there is a parking spot that he could have pulled in right next to his friend. Yes, there are at least 10 cars behind him. The kicker, he talks to the guy for about 5 minutes while everyone is honking their horns like mad. When he finally does start to move again his arm goes out the window of his car and he gestures to the line of 80 to 100 cars like "what's the problem???" Now you have to understand something very crucial here, he really doesn't think that he did anything wrong at all here.

Lines!! That's the best. In Israel the concept of lines does not exist. When the bus comes you better be ready! When that door opens its a mad rush, a space that normally allows room for one person to enter is now filled with at least two people, an extra arm, and at least one foot. I've seen more action getting on busses than fighting to get to the front at a heavy mettle concert.

I don't think I have ever been to the bank where at least one person by- passes the line of 10 people and heads right up to the teller. Her look on her face is "who the heck are you people and why the heck are you waiting in line" She really wonders what they are doing! I mean she has to use the bank services after all, why are you getting in her way??

The commonality here is: "I am the only person on the face of this planet and I want what I want now" The customer can't be right because that means I'm wrong and my world would be destroyed. The road belongs to me and me only, what these other people are doing on the road and where they came from is a mystery. Why would I wait in line when what I want is up there?

Now of course I can't leave you off with a negative impression of these people. I love this place and the people more than anyone on this planet. They are called "sabras" (cactus fruit) for a reason. Out of the cars, away from business, not in lines, they are a one of a kind people. NO WHERE in the world would its people do so much for each other in times of need. The Heart is pure, the hand is giving, and the love is real. For an occasional near miss at the wheel, an elbow in the jaw when getting on the bus, and being laughed at when you return the curdled milk that you just bought the same day, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

Ronald, Leave me alone!!!

2005-12-01T11:52:00.000-08:00

I remember enjoying going to Taco Bell, Burger King, McDonalds, KFC, and all the other grease joints. For 5 dollars you really got yourself a lot of food! There was so much food to choose from, it was awesome. It was so convenient and quick, within minutes you got your food exactly the way you wanted it. On the way back to the car though, you didn't feel so good! There was that heavy feeling, those burps! You just wanted to get out of there, until you return for dinner at least.

Now that these foods have become forbidden to me I desire them more than ever before. Just driving past one of these places is painful. Its billboards taunt me "2 cheeseburgers for 99cents." If I happen to be walking to close, the smell, its hypnotic, it just draws me in. I know that it didn't have the same affect on me when I was able to eat there, so what's up with that now?? Why something that is now forbidden seems so much more appealing?

I was recently in America visiting some friends on a camping trip, they decided to make a stop at In' and 'out Burger on the way up. I tried to fill myself up before going in, I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It was the worse peanut butter and jelly sandwich I ever had. My poor sandwich, how was it supposed to live up to the world famous In' and Out Burger?

They ordered the double double with fries and shake combo. They were given numbers in which they would call you up when your fantasy burger was ready. The anticipation was killing me! I seemed to be much more excited about the whole experience than they were, I guess the peanut butter sandwich did not do its job. Many thoughts rushed through my mind. Maybe if I just had one little bite and spit it out, that would be ok! What is the minimum amount before violating any kind of Torah commandment?

The feast arrived!! It was piping hot, it was just like they had ordered, it was perfect!! I thought it looked better than it did on the pictures on the menu board. They dug in!! As I watched them down these things, they didn't seem to be enjoying them all that much, neither did the rest of the crowd! How could that be? This was In' and Out Burger!!!! I did manage of course to leave that beastful place without tasting any of its magical treats. Walking back to the car though I felt it laughing at me! As if it won or something! That's right, the building itself!! with its bright colors and neon signs!! Like "I knew I could get you in here...hahahahahahhahahah"

Here in Israel you do have the kosher "Burger King," and even a "McDonalds," but its not the same. I am allowed to go in these places, they don't taunt me like the other ones. I can walk by them with no problem. It probably even tastes pretty much the same, minus the cheese of course. I sometimes go to the internet sites of these places, push on menu and gaze at these amazing imagines. You see I like food, but this is something different.

I wonder if Ronald and the rest of his crew would have the same affect on me if suddenly tomorrow it were allowed. I don't think so!!

I've got one, do you??

2005-11-25T00:40:00.000-08:00

If you don't have it than don't talk to me!! Yes, we were all given a name at birth, but the real name comes much later. We wear it on our shirts affixed to a nice plastic tag, we keep it in our wallets on magnetic cards that go on refrigerators, we hang it up on our walls under a piece of glass surrounded by a fancy frame. You need to have some type of verification, something, anything, which shows that you're real. Without it, it just won't do! The longer the name the better. If you can manage to get some type of stamp on it, than the world is now yours.

Don't even attempt to look at my pipes unless you have the 'master's county public board certificate of plumbers.' If you want to remove the fleas from my dog, stay your distance unless you can prove you have a certificate from the 'American Association of Veterinary Practices.' If you want to vacuum up my years of excrement from my clogged sewage system, than you better show proof of your' Federal Sewage Treatment System Certificate Of Compliance," and the stamps better be current or get your mega vacuum sucker off my land.

Get your hands off my hands if you are not a 'Certified Astrological Professional' and can show proof you have been accepted by 'The International Society for Astrological Research' If you want to remove the extra dirt from my land you better be licensed and bonded by 'U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)' if not, hands off my mud.

You see, you can't give yourself a name, it has to be given by someone else. Someone has to verify that you're real. It doesn't really matter if anybody has heard of that somebody, as long as that somebody is bigger than you and also has a name. It helps if that somebody has a name in all caps or has a stamp of somebody else that has all caps. If not all cap's than it better be a long name with at least the beginning of each word in caps.

Once you got one, you're all set. All doors are open to you. You can walk with your head up high! You can now go to parties, conferences, and banquets for special people with names just like you. Only those with the same or similar type names are allowed in. As you compare your tags and certificates it gives you a warm feeling. Now you are finally real, you can be accepted by others. If you don't have one, you are shun by those with. Some won't talk to you, they won't sit with you on the bus, they won't eat with you, and certainly they won't invite you to their functions. Family will make excuses for you saying "oooh he is working on getting one."

So don't waste time, get with the program! Soon you will not be allowed to be a part of society without one. You will not be allowed to do the most basic of things; grocery shopping, post office needs, public bathrooms needs, restaurants, public parks, inter-county streets and freeways, public utilities, recycling centers, use of sidewalks, and specialty gift shops.

The technological blues jam

2005-11-24T22:09:00.000-08:00

I wonder how they survived back then. What did they do? You see back than there was no electricity, no TV's, no internet, no video games, no phones, no air conditioning, not even refrigerators or washing machines, nothing!!! The kids must have been bored all day long, nothing to do! The Adults must have been miserable without all the luxuries we have today. We are so lucky. We've got it all.

Most of them lived in dark houses made of stone or wood and the floors were not more than the earth itself. We live in solid homes with the highest quality of construction, we choose between wood, tile, or carpet floors. We can now even put heating under our floors to warm our cold feet. They used to escape the heat by finding the shade of a tree; we click a button on our multi-system air-conditioning systems.

In order to eat they would have to go out in groups to hunt down their meals. The Villagers would than gather together to finish off the prize, you see they didn't have fridges to keep the leftovers. We can order the finest of cuisines from the touch of a few buttons on our internet. Today we can even buy meals that come in boxes that can last on the shelf for years, within moments our electro-neuron microwaves give us a hot tasty meal.

The kids back than had to make up games to play, mostly out of sticks and various size stones. They didn't have Milton-Bradley, Game boys, or even Atari!!!!!! We now have the choice of thousands of board games, but why even use them when all the games and entertainment one could possibly imagine are on the internet. They had to deal with all the pains of playing with one another, sharing, and having to be nice to each other. Our kids can play against the computer. The computer never complains, you don't have to share with it, and most of the time it behaves just fine. All in the comfort of our cozy homes!!!

Back than they had to deal with living amongst all of the family. I mean everyone: aunts, cousins, grand-parents, second cousins even! You see they didn't have transportation back than like we do. Where ever they were born, they usually lived their whole lives there. To go on any type of trip was a big deal, the whole town knew about it. We very rarely live in the same town or state as our parents. Families are spread out across the world. To visit one another we hop in a big metal vessel that flies across the skies to where ever we want to go in no time. We can speak to them when ever we want on the telephone, email, instant messenger, or even by teleconferencing. Our warm words and thoughts are rushed at an ever high speed through small wires to loved ones around the globe.

Most problems they had turned out to be everyone's problems. The village had to figure out a solution. They had to work together! We have specialists for practically every problem that could possibly arise. They come right to our own home to take care of it, the neighbors don't even have to find out about it. For those that choose they can even take care of the problem themselves with the many 'self help' on line guides.

There wasn't much privacy back than! family, friends, and neighbors were in your hair all the time. The only escape was to find a secluded spot outside the village. We can sometimes manage to go days without speaking to anyone if we want. We have balconies and nice yards to go relax, but there is always the risk of seeing a neighbor or peer, or even worse having to speak to them. Today we use our balconies and yards only when we buy and sell our homes. We have everything we could ever want within the four walls of our homes, we don't ever have to leave.

Can you imagine what they had to go through to make a loaf of bread? We push a button on our electronic bread makers. They had to comfort each other with any back or neck pains, we click the 'ultra mega sonic message cycle' on our automatic electric message chairs. They had to cheer up their peers when they were down, we have books and cds to tell us how great we are. If that doesn't help we have special engineered pills that make us feel great!! The choice of foods they had to eat were very limited, we choose between fine meats, vegetarian delights, micro-biotic, raw food diets, and pill supplements that fill any gap.

How could one possibly make it through the day without all the goodies we have today! We have to feel sorry for them and the hell they must have gone through!! How un-happy they must have been. So we say thank you to technology and smile as we sip our espresso from our very own automatic 'in-home' espresso machines.

Outhouse in the middle of nowhere

2005-11-24T11:06:00.000-08:00

"What are you talking about!!! I used to have to walk 2 hours in the freezing cold of winter through 5 feet of snow to get to school." It seems every parent has one of these trump cards up their sleeve to lay on a child when in need. I've got my trump card.. Do you?

When we moved to the mountains to build our house in the middle of nowhere, my parents thought it was a good idea to buy a small trailer to live in while my father finished the house. When I say the middle of nowhere, I mean it. One hour to the nearest store, one hour to school, one hour to the nearest hospital, and our nearest neighbor was more than a mile away!!

Our trailer had no electricity or water. We had to go with buckets to the stream every morning to fill up the small water tank, which was just enough to wash the dishes. My father built an outhouse about 20 steps away from the trailer. I still remember the fear I had going in that thing at night, the monsters that lived deep within that pit. At night we had a kerosene lamp that gave us light and warmth.

We of course spent as much time as we could outside, there was always something to do. When it got dark though, the four of us would make our way inside our humble abode. There wasn't much room to move around. I remember counting about five 11 year old steps from one side to the other.

We lived there for about 8 months until moving into our home. I will never forget those 8 months! For me it was 8 months of camping, and I love camping!! I remember a feeling of excitement over moving into my own new room, which was of course bigger than the whole camper. I also remember a feeling of sadness though, leaving that small womb that helped us bond so much as a family. I will never forget the sound of the kerosene lamp burning, the smell of breakfast being cooked a few feet from my head, the feel of the ice cold water from the snow runoff, but most of all, the family all being together.

The trailer does mostly bring back good memories, but a trump card is a trump card!! When my little ones complain about their living quarters or the like I always got this one up my sleeve.

What you didn't learn in Ulpan

2005-11-21T11:26:00.000-08:00

"Is it possible for me to order checks from this branch even though my account is at another branch?" she answers "ani lo betucha!" loosely translated as I'm not certain, but really the translation is far off, really far off!!! There are quite a few terms that you really don't learn from Ulpan and just have to learn on your own. It took me a while to learn that lo (no) ken (yes) and a slew of other terms really mean something quite different.

You see things work quite different here in Israel. Let me tell you what she meant. "ani lo betucha" means of course it's possible, but it's a lot of work and I'd rather you take it as a no and get the heck out of here. If she were to tell me "b shom ofen lo" (certainly not) this means: it's a pretty good chance that it can be done, you just need to speak to someone different.

If she were to say "ma pe tom" (what are you talking about, are you crazy) this means maybe yes, maybe no, she has no idea whether it can be done or not. Now in a case where she just lays down a flat out "lo" (no): This actually can be a sign that you can't do it, but you never can be sure. It would still be best to try to speak to someone else to see if it really is possible.

Sometimes you will get a "ain davar cazeh" (there is nothing like this, impossible) In rare occasions it does mean no and that what you are asking is crazy. But in most cases if you ask the person next to her or the manager you will find that its no problem and people do it all the time. She will than give you this strange look like (wow I never heard that before!!), this look is usually accompanied by a low groan haaaaaaaa.

What you really have to be careful of is the quick yes!!! The results will almost always be different than that what you requested, like getting a debit card sent to you instead of checks or worse yet, you leaving thinking you accomplished your goal and later finding out that what you really wanted was impossible in the first place. So Yes, a ken (yes) really mean no a lot of the times. Another red light is "ain beyah" (no problem) what it really means is take off the "ain"(no) and that's what you are going to get, the "beyah"(problem)

Now you may think that all these people are out to get you, the taxi driver is trying to rip you off, the bank teller is just trying to get out of doing her job, the post office guy really meant to sent your urgent letter by ocean, on purpose, the sale items in the store are never entered into the computer(therefore the cashier has to go get one of these cards to swipe in order to ok that item, that's right one card!!! Its usually on the other side of the store and every 30 seconds a different cashier needs it), no matter how many papers you bring to them they always need you to come back and bring something else(interior ministry), you decide to purchase the extra insurance just in case the thing breaks and find out that it covers everything else except that!

For the new immigrant it can be frustrating at times and can even drive some to threaten to take the next plane back. With patience, an open mind, and a sense of humor these sometimes apparently backwards events can turn into positive experiences, and only strengthen our love for this greatest place on earth, Israel!!!!!

What type of hug do you give?

2005-11-19T10:19:00.000-08:00

So you just get introduced to your 58 year old Aunt who doesn't know the first thing about Judaism and she makes a move towards you. Her arms start going up for either an all out hug, or possibly a shaking of the hand. As someone stops her and explains that you are not able to touch her because it may lead to something more serious, you give her a half Chinese bow, a nod of your head and feel like a complete idiot. Now don't get me wrong this is not about some type of revolution or anything, its just a thought. I've read "the magic touch" and a few others like it and have even recommended them to people. I just think maybe the world might be a better place if maybe we could just hug a little bit more.

You can learn an awful lot about people by the way they hug! There are many different types of hugs and people are usually pretty consistent on the type of hugs they give. I will name a few of the hugs that I have encountered and give each a name and description.

The dead fish hug: The name says it all. You get ready to lay into a full fledged hug, you wrap your arms around them and get nothing in return. Their arms are usually laying down vertical to their body. The return hug is about as much as you would get from a tree. It will most likely be the last time you ever give that person a hug again, you feel a bit insulted.

the stiff neck hug: you give it your all and it feels as though you just hugged a side of a cow, fresh out of the freezer. You may get some type of hug in return but usually its very quick and very cold.

the hugaphoebic hug: you give them a hug and you get one of those tapping of the hand on your back reactions from them. They want to end this thing as quick as possible; they are not sure what to do in the meantime so they decide to have a little drum session on your back in the meantime. Sometimes they feel guys shouldn't hug guys, or just they don't like giving hugs in the first place.

the Leaning Tower of Pisa hug: you go for the hug and get stuck with their shoulders ramming into yours with the bottom half of them as far away as possible. Its usually accompanied by either a one handed tapping on the back and every once in a while, a double hand pounding to the back. Its probably a little worse than the hugaphoebic hug!

the dog licking hug: This is a rare one, but everyone has had it happen at least once, especially if you have been to the Middle East. You attempt to hug them, immediately they grab you by the shoulders and lay a kiss on each cheek alternating from cheek to cheek four to six times. It can sometimes end there, but most of the time it leads to a full hug accompanied by some serious heavy duty hand tapping to the back. In extremely rare occasions they will release you for a second and go in for a second hug.

the bear hug: you lay into a strong hug and get one right back. Usually it's pretty strong. If its too strong this could really be a hugaphoebic hug in disguise. The nervous reaction is to put all his/her strength into it!! Sometimes there is difficulty in breathing, that's not a good sign.

the blind bear hug: you lay into a strong hug and get one right back. its not too strong, it lasts for a while and usually the eyes will be closed. If done right one could want to maintain this for a while.

Just imagine that every time you met someone new, and every time you run into someone you know, you had to give them a hug. Regardless of sex!! People would be hugging all over the place. Fines would be imposed on those who refused to hug or accidentally forgot to give a hug to someone. Kind of like getting a ticket because you forgot to put on your seatbelt. There would be special schools and mandatory courses to learn how to hug properly.

There would be no jealousy by seeing loved ones being hugged by someone else because it would be understood what a hug really is. The mitzvah to love every Jew would be made so much easier! Its hard to leave a hug and not feel some type of warm feeling towards the other. Even in tough times, you get in a small fender bender with someone, the first thing that you have to do is give each other a hug, after all it is the law!

Crazy! Absurd! you say. I guess your right but I don't think anyone can tell me that it wouldn't be a much happier and warmer place to be if it were possible..

a flash of death, a flash of life

2005-11-16T10:56:00.000-08:00

Whenever I get into my army uniform for my yearly tour of duty I somehow feel like someone made a mistake of some type. Should they really be giving me an m-16! Should I really be standing at a post at which anything could happen at any time! Where exactly was that button that changes it to automatic, semi-automatic, and safety! At any rate we were sent to the beautiful town of Ramallah for a 28 day stunt. I asked our MM (commander) that maybe I was sent to the wrong unit being that most of these guys were in para-trooper units and the like. His response was short and all too familiar. "yehayae basder" That means just get out of my hair, you'll do just fine.

My second day is the one in which I would like to share with you. I was on duty from 12:30 to 6:30 in the morning. We were in two jeeps touring around the Ramallah area making sure the roads were free of hoodlums. I was in the back of the jeep with my friend Yossi from Spain. Yossi quite the opposite of me loved action, and would seek it out at every opportunity. We got a call at about 1:00 from some unit sitting on top of one of the hills with some high tech radar equipment. They told our commanding officer that there was movement in one of the wadi's moving towards a Jewish settlement. Somebody had to check it out!

I was informed that our two jeeps from our unit were chosen to go and see what was going on there. The radar picked up four people moving on foot on the bottom of the wadi. Now I understood that I was in one of those two jeeps, but they couldn't possible mean that I would be taking place in this outing.

The two jeeps went as far as they could go, the steep cliffs would not allow them to go further. The plan was as follows: our jeep was on one side of the valley and the other jeep was on the other side of the valley. Each commander had a radio and night vision goggles. Along with the commander would be three soldiers. We would meet up on the bottom of the valley taking these four unknown characters by surprise by both sides.

This particular night was one of the darkest nights that I can ever remember. I couldn't see a thing. We started making our way down this steep cliff. What made the trek even more difficult was the weight. I had a helmet, bullet proof vest, five full cartridges of bullets, plus my m-16, no water!! yes I forgot to fill my two now empty bottles in my pack. After 15 minutes of sliding down the side of this cliff we got word from our commander that one of the soldiers from the other side of the valley had slipped and seriously injured himself. That leaves now two commanders and four and a half soldiers heading down the valley to face the unknown. The injured guy was brought back up the hill by two medics.

We continued our decent. More than an hour has passed! The people with radar informed the commander that we were about a football field's distance from the four deadly terrorists who were ready, waiting for us. Yossi was very excited! I wasn't sure if I should cry, run, or just pull a Rambo and run straight forward leading the pack with my finger on the trigger yelling all types of foul words. I choose to keep trekking forward following the orders of the commander.

We were now within a half football distance from them. The two commanders informed each other that they each saw nothing, no sign of anyone! The commander gathered us all together and said " alrighty I want you to load your weapons! I was hoping that they were going to be Bedouins, but being that there are no dogs or any type of animals around I've rulled that out." At this moment I knew things were looking pretty serious!

We moved closer! still nothing! The commander told the other unit to come around the side and join us. This would take another 20 minutes! He was worried that since we didn't know where they were, the chance of friendly fire was high. We had to stay perfectly still in the meanwhile.

As I was sitting there with my finger on the trigger a lot of thoughts ran through my mind. I could die here! I might have to kill someone here! I saw headlines on tomorrows papers! I pictured these four guys with two machine guns in each hand, hand grenades around their necks, rocket launchers on their shoulders, fire coming out of their mouths! You see ,you always have to expect the worst. All of a sudden I felt confident, proud, ready to defend my country! I was in Israel, I was defending Jews, I was right where I needed to be!! I felt great, I was ready for anything.

We were given our orders, we were told where to walk, where to aim. We continued on. we were now 20 yards away and still nothing. The radar unit assured us we were right on top of them. They saw us, and they saw them! We though still didn't see anything. The commander decided to send a flare missile to light up the area. He gave the unit on top of the valley the coordinates and told them to wait for his word. One thing for sure, when this flare goes off its going to wake up everything and everyone within many miles.

He gave the word, they fired the flare!! BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! the boom echoed off the valley walls. The coordinates were off, the flare went off about a kilometer behind us! Now everything behind us, including us were totally lit up. Everything in front of us, total darkness!!! not good!!!! This was a very stressful time, it seemed like hours!! Within seconds he gave new coordinates, and a new flare exploded in the right spot. Everything was lit up!

We saw a rock cave in front of us about 15 yards, we surrounded it! We knew they were up! We knew they knew we were out there. My heart was pounding so hard, I knew they heard it from within the cave. One of the soldiers knew Arabic. He yelled for them to come out. No movement. A million thoughts rushed through my head. They were preparing for a mad rush out of the cave with all they had. All of a sudden one guy comes running out of the cave with his hands in the air "beseder beseder" He was a big guy! our soldier yells to him "where are the other three" He motioned with his hands "ain" (none) like there was no more. He didn't know we had some guys with radar miles away that told us there were three of them, not one. Finally the other three came out with their hands in the air.

They claimed to be picking grapes in the vineyards, we checked their id's they were clean! They were sent back to Ramallah. We were send back up the canyon, a three hour hike. It turned out we all forgot to fill up our water bottles. Not good!!

no blood, no killing, I was alive! I was more than alive! I saved Jews, I defended Israel! At least I was ready to. I was faced with those difficult questions: What are you living for? What would you be willing to die for?