Social Life
When I returned to the U.S. after six weeks in Israel, it took me about a week to get over the shock. Everything seemed sterile, and I was painfully aware of our “low class” stereotypes - 20 lb overweight 30-year-old women in spandex smoking cigarettes, dandling babies, and gossiping about deadbeat Dads. It all felt surreal.
Given this, I might have expected to feel equally displaced when I came back here, but instead I felt as though I had come home. I am sure it helped tremendously that everything feels familiar now - from Ben Gurion to the Merdien, from Intel to Carmel Center, I know the sights and the smells. The only jarring difference was how much earlier the sun sets now; I never leave work with it still in the sky anymore. But the days are still pleasantly warm, and full of smoggy sunshine. Even when the heat gets a bit cloying, a subtle breeze wafts through my flat, where I’ve thrown open all of the windows to take advantage of the fresh air.
I have been busy and welcomed from my first step out of customs, with Julien waiting with smiles and helping hands, assisting in spite of his own arrival less than 12 hours ahead of me.
Monday night I had already received an invitation out - Lilach and Leeor had Julien and I over for a homemade dinner. The two of them were adorable in their interactions: helpful, bantering, tender, and caring all at once and in the midst of trying to cooperate as our hosts. They had prepared a fresh salad, the best homemade pasta I’ve ever tasted, and a picture-perfect quiche, complete with oven-fresh crust and artfully arranged cherry tomatoes. The pasta featured yams, and it wasn’t until talk turned to kosher rules that I realized the meal was vegetarian - since Lilach had chosen to use dairy, she had to forgo meat. We all had a little red wine, courtesy of Julien, and we talked and laughed, catching up and just enjoying the society. For dessert they prepared a chocolate mousse in three layers. The mousse part had not quite set properly, as I was exhausted and so begged my excuses for a relatively early leave. Nevertheless, the taste was to die for, and we all helped ourselves to seconds. I made but a token protest when Lilach insisted on shuffling me home with the leftovers.
Tuesday I attempted to catch up on some household chores, unpacking, doing Pilates, and the like. Julien invited me over to watch the first episode of “Heroes” which he had, bizarrely, legally downloaded. Here, it’s not illegal to take music or videos off Bit Torrent. As usual, it tantalized more than satisfied, but it will be fun for us to watch the series together as it progresses.
Wednesday, Jared, Evgeni, Omer, and Julien invited me to the Irish House for “the Bean game”. I was unenthusiastic, expecting some sort of sporting even on T.V., so you can imagine my delight when it turned out to be a card game similar in spirit to Puerto Rico. It was a close game, which made it all the more fun, and I had a cherry beer which I had tried there once before. It is perfect for a one-drink night, and I walked home feeling cheerful. I hadn’t exercised, and the boys all agreed it would be safe for me (it was only 11 by the time I reached my door). To my surprise, it was only 20 minutes to walk up to the Dan, up Wedgwood, along Moria, to Kababir, Raanan, and finally Hakeshet. They had explained to me that my street name means “the bow”, which also clarified the penultimate accent. In Hebrew “ha” is the definite article.
Thursday I spent with Julien as well. We went for a run around my neighborhood, and in 30 minutes managed to make it to the cannon on Louis Promenade and back. There’s nothing like a run to make me realize how small and close everything really is. I have to conclude that, in spite of the hill, there is really no excuse for me to drive if I’m just going about the Carmel, and I followed through on this resolution when I stopped by the pet store this afternoon to stock up on supplies (including a real litter box) for Mayhem. Lilach stopped by just as we were returning, and joined us for a few bites of our dinner before leaving around 10 to pick up Leeor, who was still slaving in the office and was returning only because he is now able to work from home. Ah, how I don’t miss the student life!
This morning Julien volunteered to take me shopping, and it was really very handy to have him around to recommend salad brands and the like. I stocked up with about six bags of foods and forgotten toiletries, and arrived at home feeling wealthier than a queen. I was especially grateful to Julien because I think that, without him, I would not be so good about trying new, Mediterranean foods. However, the pita, hummus, dates, and Druze food has been so far my favorite for snacks and light meals.
Anyway, the point of this entry was not so much to be an outline of all of my activities (though I suppose that’s what it has become) as an indicator of how warmly welcomed I feel here. Not only am I kept busy enough with social invitations to never feel lonely, but I can scarcely scrape together enough spare moments to spend enough time with Mayhem, and to call home, and to do laundry, and such. I have returned to life here so seamlessly, it is as though I never left. I miss the specific people at home, of course, and I look forward and back fondly at Portland amenities, but I truly feel at home here, in every way possible.
The other relocatees say that it usually takes some weeks before the excitement of everything new wears off and homesickness sets in, so I will have to wait and see how I truly adjust, but life is so perfect here that I cannot help but constantly think how fortunate I am. It seems so astounding to me that with just a little bit of luck in having a family who prepared me for the world, I would reach this point, at not even 25, where I have at my fingertips everything that I could ever dream of. I don’t mean this to brag, but simply to remind myself of how wonderful the world is, and how fortunate I am to have won, through little enough effort of my own, such an enviable place in it.
Given this, I might have expected to feel equally displaced when I came back here, but instead I felt as though I had come home. I am sure it helped tremendously that everything feels familiar now - from Ben Gurion to the Merdien, from Intel to Carmel Center, I know the sights and the smells. The only jarring difference was how much earlier the sun sets now; I never leave work with it still in the sky anymore. But the days are still pleasantly warm, and full of smoggy sunshine. Even when the heat gets a bit cloying, a subtle breeze wafts through my flat, where I’ve thrown open all of the windows to take advantage of the fresh air.
I have been busy and welcomed from my first step out of customs, with Julien waiting with smiles and helping hands, assisting in spite of his own arrival less than 12 hours ahead of me.
Monday night I had already received an invitation out - Lilach and Leeor had Julien and I over for a homemade dinner. The two of them were adorable in their interactions: helpful, bantering, tender, and caring all at once and in the midst of trying to cooperate as our hosts. They had prepared a fresh salad, the best homemade pasta I’ve ever tasted, and a picture-perfect quiche, complete with oven-fresh crust and artfully arranged cherry tomatoes. The pasta featured yams, and it wasn’t until talk turned to kosher rules that I realized the meal was vegetarian - since Lilach had chosen to use dairy, she had to forgo meat. We all had a little red wine, courtesy of Julien, and we talked and laughed, catching up and just enjoying the society. For dessert they prepared a chocolate mousse in three layers. The mousse part had not quite set properly, as I was exhausted and so begged my excuses for a relatively early leave. Nevertheless, the taste was to die for, and we all helped ourselves to seconds. I made but a token protest when Lilach insisted on shuffling me home with the leftovers.
Tuesday I attempted to catch up on some household chores, unpacking, doing Pilates, and the like. Julien invited me over to watch the first episode of “Heroes” which he had, bizarrely, legally downloaded. Here, it’s not illegal to take music or videos off Bit Torrent. As usual, it tantalized more than satisfied, but it will be fun for us to watch the series together as it progresses.
Wednesday, Jared, Evgeni, Omer, and Julien invited me to the Irish House for “the Bean game”. I was unenthusiastic, expecting some sort of sporting even on T.V., so you can imagine my delight when it turned out to be a card game similar in spirit to Puerto Rico. It was a close game, which made it all the more fun, and I had a cherry beer which I had tried there once before. It is perfect for a one-drink night, and I walked home feeling cheerful. I hadn’t exercised, and the boys all agreed it would be safe for me (it was only 11 by the time I reached my door). To my surprise, it was only 20 minutes to walk up to the Dan, up Wedgwood, along Moria, to Kababir, Raanan, and finally Hakeshet. They had explained to me that my street name means “the bow”, which also clarified the penultimate accent. In Hebrew “ha” is the definite article.
Thursday I spent with Julien as well. We went for a run around my neighborhood, and in 30 minutes managed to make it to the cannon on Louis Promenade and back. There’s nothing like a run to make me realize how small and close everything really is. I have to conclude that, in spite of the hill, there is really no excuse for me to drive if I’m just going about the Carmel, and I followed through on this resolution when I stopped by the pet store this afternoon to stock up on supplies (including a real litter box) for Mayhem. Lilach stopped by just as we were returning, and joined us for a few bites of our dinner before leaving around 10 to pick up Leeor, who was still slaving in the office and was returning only because he is now able to work from home. Ah, how I don’t miss the student life!
This morning Julien volunteered to take me shopping, and it was really very handy to have him around to recommend salad brands and the like. I stocked up with about six bags of foods and forgotten toiletries, and arrived at home feeling wealthier than a queen. I was especially grateful to Julien because I think that, without him, I would not be so good about trying new, Mediterranean foods. However, the pita, hummus, dates, and Druze food has been so far my favorite for snacks and light meals.
Anyway, the point of this entry was not so much to be an outline of all of my activities (though I suppose that’s what it has become) as an indicator of how warmly welcomed I feel here. Not only am I kept busy enough with social invitations to never feel lonely, but I can scarcely scrape together enough spare moments to spend enough time with Mayhem, and to call home, and to do laundry, and such. I have returned to life here so seamlessly, it is as though I never left. I miss the specific people at home, of course, and I look forward and back fondly at Portland amenities, but I truly feel at home here, in every way possible.
The other relocatees say that it usually takes some weeks before the excitement of everything new wears off and homesickness sets in, so I will have to wait and see how I truly adjust, but life is so perfect here that I cannot help but constantly think how fortunate I am. It seems so astounding to me that with just a little bit of luck in having a family who prepared me for the world, I would reach this point, at not even 25, where I have at my fingertips everything that I could ever dream of. I don’t mean this to brag, but simply to remind myself of how wonderful the world is, and how fortunate I am to have won, through little enough effort of my own, such an enviable place in it.