The Brody Bunch

two more things

2010-08-30T12:27:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention that on my vacation, we also went to the Safari in Ramat Gan. THat was really cool, as we got to drive through the safari, and then go to the zoo in the middle. It was a really good day, and Avidan came too. At the zoo, we got a cart, so my parents didn't have to do so much walking, as the heat was intense. As we drove out, one of the animals walked right up to the car, as if he was saying hello. We also got to drive through the Lions, which was like driving through Jurassic Park.

The week after my vacation, we dog sat for a family that lives on Shimon, near Glen and Gila. THe dog's name was Chetzi. We had a really good time, especially Ilan. Gali was a little afraid at first, but then warmed up to her. Tiki was very afraid if the dog came to her, but if she came to the dog, she was fine. Eitan just kept saying dog all the time. I definitely see a dog in our future.

My boss is away in England this week, so work is a lot more bearable. Rumor is she is picking out apartments. LEt's home the rumor are true.

One Year Anniversary

2010-08-26T11:36:00.000-07:00

It has been one year since we arrived in Israel. It's hard to believe that it's been that long. Since our last update, All the kids finished school in the end of June, although Ilan, Tiki and Eitan continued going to the same place in July. We had a vist in mid June from Uncle Joe and Auntie Erica, which was great. The kids got very attached to them very quickly, and it was a good opportunity for Uncle Joe and Antie Erica to get a glimpse of our daily life. The following Friday, me Caryn, Jonny and Diane went to Kibbutz Gezer to celebrate Uncle Joe and Auntie Erica's 18 year anniversary. It was a wonderful party and a very enjoyable afternoon. I also had the pleasure of driving them back to Jerusalem, so I got to spend extra time with them, which was nice.

In July, the kids went to school/camp, although the school was more camp oriented (except for Eitan, as when you are a baby, everything is camp oriented). Gali also went to camp in July, that was heavy in the arts and crafts ,and so much on physical activity, which suited her fine. Overall, the kids seemed to enjoy it, and they were all home by 1:30 and didn't have camp on Friday, so it was a more relaxing month for them.
July was also a more relaxing month for me, as I banged my head walking into a bomb shelter on July 4th, and since it is reinforced with concrete, I essentially walked into concrete. Not my finest hour, as there was a low clearance and I was reading my newspaper, and not paying attention. Ironically, I was on my way to Daven (pray) Mincha. In any case, the next morning I was throwing up, with dizziness and headaches. I got my first taste of an Israeli emergency room, which was quite an experience (although one I hope not to repeat). I ended up taking two weeks off of work, while I was recuperating. It was not an easy month for Caryn, as I was useless lying in bed, and the kids were home all afternoon. Somehow, she survived. We also celebrated TIsha B'Av, which was the last of the Jewish Holidays that we celebrated for the first time in Israel. Although fasting for 25 hours doesn't really count as much of a holiday, I did get the day off from work, so it was worth not eating or drinking. July seemed pretty hot, but it was nothing compared to August.
On August 1st, we had a one day retreat at work, which was a lot better than working, although I sprained my thumb and had 3 blisters on my fingers. The day after started my two week vacation, which was great. My parents came in, along with my niece Ariana. Most of Jonny's family was spending the summer in the states, so his house was empty. As a result, my parents and Ariana slept there for most of the time. It was really nice to spend so much time together, with my wife, kids, parents and Ariana for two weeks. I had planned a lot of activities, although it was a daily struggle to get everyone out of bed and dressed. We did manage to go to the beach, amusement park, several jumping places, plenty of playgrounds, plenty of malls, bagels, slushys, and I got to play basketball again, since I had given that up as I was now working on Friday or out with a concussion. I also discovered a Beit SHemesh poker game, which has become a weekly occurrence for me.
It was difficult to say goodbye to my parents and Ariana, and then also go back to work. I am just about now completely settled back into work, and back to the daily grime. This week, there is no train service, as they are doing maintenance on the tracks, so I have had to drive in, which has been a pretty positive experience as the roads are a lot less crowded, since half the country is on vacation.
The kids start school next week, and Caryn registers for Ulpan again. The Chagim (holidays) are almost here, so the kids get to ease in to school, with only half days or vacation days the first month. Ilan is going into first grade and has been acting out a bit, as he is nervous. He had his orientation today, and seemed to be pretty excited about it. Gali is repeating Kindergarten, as she was the youngest one in her class, and not ready for first grade. Tiki is going into the state run preschool, where she will learn Hebrew, so that should be an experience. EItan is going to a new private gan for one-two year-olds.
Overall, we have accomplished a lot this first year, but we have had our difficulties as well. Most people tell us it takes at least two years to fully adjust, although we'll see about that. Our plan is still to move to Modiin, some time in the first 6 months of next year.

We wish everyone a sweet, happy and healthy new year.
Kol Tuv,
Zumi

Update from June 14th that I never finished

2010-07-11T01:09:00.000-07:00

I was rereading the last update and noticed all of the spelling and grammar mistakes. I guess being around Israelis who don't use prepositions is starting to impact me. Unfortunately, my Hebrew does not seem to be getting that much better, so it's only having a limited impact. The good news is that my job is starting to improve, as I adjust to my new surroundings. I am getting used to what is expected of me, and although I still am pretty far removed from the day to day operations of the Units that I manage, I am learning to adjust to not being in the thick of things. The big thing was I finally decided that I was going to do what I thought best regarding my development here, instead of what my boss thinks. Overall, a definite improvement since last month. I also have a really good friend at work, Noam, who helped me get this job, which makes the environment a lot better, as we each have someone that we can confide it about all the craziness in the Israeli-Citi environment. But enough about me.
We had a 10 day streak of no one being sick, which unfortunately came to a messy halt this morning with Gali throwing up all over her bed. On the [plus side, Gali is very happy about staying home from school, and does not appear to be really sick. Eitan was getting sick every other week, so hopefully we can go this week without him getting sick again. Speaking of Eitan, he is up and about and walking all over the place. He is still at that stage where he walks with a wobble, which is really cute. The other kids seem a little more interested in him, now that he can walk.

Update # 9

2010-05-18T06:32:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone,

It doesn't seem that long since the last update, but almost a month has passed. Amazingly, we have been in Israel now for almost nine months. It seems like a lot longer. I am continuing to adjust to my new work environment. It is going slowly, but I'm sure that sooner or later I will adjust. The thrill of taking the train every day has worn off, and the 1 and half hour commute each way is starting to annoy me. On the plus side, in a few months I will be changing my work schedule to Monday through Friday for at least a few months, so I am looking forward to that. Caryn is taking a hiatus from Ulpan for a little while. She has also been sick the last three weeks, but is on antibiotics now and hopefully will be better soon. I forgot to mention in my last update that we got our permanent car, which is a 7 seater call Citroen. It takes some getting used to, but it's a nice car or Minivan or SUV. Not really sure what it is. IN any case, we can all drive together now, so that is nice.

Caryn and I met with Ilan's teachers last week and got a good report. While he was initially very resistant to learning Hebrew, he is a lot more motivated now, and making good progress. He is starting to read in Hebrew and doing pretty well. He has also entered into a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Phase, so our lives have been revolving around that. Gali has followed Ilan, and is also enjoying the Turtles, and even Tiki sings the theme song continually, which I have to admit is catchy. Besides that, Gali is also doing well, although we never hear her speak Hebrew, but she has a few friends who only speak Hebrew, and she can communicate just fine. Tiki is very cute and very engaging, which can be a lot of fun and also be very tiring, as she is like the Energizer Bunny. She is also generally the last of our children to fall asleep and often pays us several visits in the middle of the night (unless I am too tired, then she just pays us one visit and ends up staying). Eitan had Strep throat a few weeks ago, and after having a runny nose for two months, was like a new baby after taking antibiotics for a couple of days. He stopped being clingy, and was happy and playful most of the time. He also continues to be a good eater, eating everything in sight. We think he might have been a dog in a previous life, as he likes to fetch, eat food off of the floor, and chew on socks. Unfortunately, he is not housebroken.

Caryn and I spent the last Shabbat in April in Modiin. We had a really nice time, and we davened in a small minyan (prayer quorum), that was housed inside a school. It was a very kid friendly environment, which we really liked. On the down side, it is not financially feasible for us to by anything in Modiin at this time, so it does not appear we will be moving there this summer. Ilan has also expressed some reservations about moving out of Beit Shemesh, so we will likely stay in Beit Shemesh, although we may decide to move within Beit Shemesh.

On Saturday night,May 1st, we celebrated our first Lag Ba'omer in Israel. This was quite an experience, as this does not really exist as a holiday for the most part in the states. I still had to work on Sunday, but the kids were off from school, so it definitely was not a holiday for Caryn. Anyway, from the second night of Passover, we count every night for seven weeks, until he holiday of Shavuot (Pentecost). On the 33rd day, there is a mini holiday, as our tradition recalls that a plague that had killed 24,000 students of Rabbi Akiva ended on that day. I won't get into the historical aspects of this, but suffice it to say, there is more to the story than that. In any case, this holidays is the pyromaniac's dream. Everywhere throughout the country, people are lighting bonfires. Some of them are actually quite large, and they are all over the place. In a mile radius from our house, I would say we saw about 40-50 separate bonfires. The whole city smelled like smoke. I'm not really sure why we light bonfires, and I would not let my kids participate, only watch, as it seems really dangerous, as some of these fires are 10 feet or more high. From nearby by Ramat Beit Shemesh, where the Charedim (Ultra-Orthodox) live, you could say an orange glow emanating from the area. While it was cool to see, it was also a little disturbing as the smell of the air reminded me of NY after 9/11.

Besides that, we celebrated our niece, Amalya's birthday. Actually, her family celebrated and we crashed the party, but they didn't seem to mind. Since we missed so many of our nieces and nephews birthdays over the years, we try to wish them happy birthday in person. Amalya was effusive with her praise for every present, and I remarked how she was the anti Uncle David (family joke). Amalya's birthday coincided with Yom Yerushalayim, were we celebrate the liberation and reunification of Jerusalem that occurred in 1967. I have to say that the country seems very confused over the day, with most of the non-religious outside of Jerusalem not celebrating. Apparently in 1998, the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) made it a nation holiday, yet if that's the case, I can't really figure out why I had to go to work, along with everyone else. To be it's not really a holiday if you have to work. Overall, I was a little disappointed with it, as the day passed very quietly. I will definitely need to take off one year and be in Jerusalem for the holiday. Speaking of holidays, Shavuot starts in 5 hours, so I need to wrap this up. I got to work half a day today, which is still exciting, and tomorrow I am off. I hope every one is well, and if you are Jewish, have a Chag Sameach.

Kol Tuv,
Zumi

Column: One Nation "Peace or Piece of Paper"

2010-05-17T13:04:00.000-07:00

This is the first of what I hope will be a monthly column on various issue affecting Israel and the Jewish People. I have chosen to name my column, One Nation, as the unity of the Jewish People is primarily what guides my beliefs, be they religious or political. While I have my own beliefs on many different issues, the consensus of those Jews committed to the Jewish People on any given issue will heavily effect my viewpoints. In Israel, I consider the overwhelming majority of Jews to be committed to the Jewish People, regardless of their political or religious beliefs.
Since the birth of the State of Israel, there have always been foreign powers who have placed varying degrees of pressure on Israel to follow their dictates or the will of the International Community. In some cases Israel withstood this pressure, while in other cases Israel has agreed to follow a course of action that it did not perceive to be in its best interest, I.E. the withdrawal from Sinai after Sinai Campaign in 1956. Over the past year, Israel has faced pressure from America and the International Community over the peace process in general, and specifically on the continued building in what the International Community refers to as the Occupied Territories.
As a result of this pressure, last November the Netanyahu Government agreed to a 10 month building moratorium in Judea and Samaria, also known as the West Bank. The moratorium did not include any part of Jerusalem, which according to Israeli law is part of the sovereign State of Israel, as opposed to West Bank, which has never been formally annexed to Israel by any Israeli Government. Recently, there has been speculation that Netanyahu has agreed temporarily to halt building in East Jerusalem, although no official statement has been made to that effect.
Since taking office, the Obama Administration has tried to get the moribund Peace Process between the Israelis and Palestinians restarted. Recently, there has been some cautious optimism, as apparently both parties have agreed to “proximity talks”, even though there is no agreement on what exactly those talks entail. It is fairly obvious to most that these talks will go nowhere, but at least having the talks gives the appearance that things are moving in the direction of peace. Forgetting for a moment Palestinian demands, there is a fundamental difference between the views of the Obama Administration and the Netanyahu Government as to the final result of the peace process.
The Obama Administration, like those before it, sees peace between the Israelis and Palestinians as one between representatives of those two Peoples. They see Palestinian leaders, like P.A. Prime Minister Salaam Fayyad, who appear to be reasonable, and will to work towards a two state solution. As a result, the efforts of this and previous administrations has been to work out a political deal that would be acceptable to the Palestinian and Israeli leadership. While I’m sure the Obama Administration sees this as a difficult task, it does not believe it to be impossible.
However, for the current Israeli Government, this is not the final peace they envision. They envision a true peace among the Israeli and Palestinian People, where a Jew can live in Palestinian controlled territory in safety and not have to fear for their life. It is obvious that the world would never accept a situation in which Israel expelled its Arab Citizens. If that is the case, why is it then assumed that for Peace to occur between Palestinians and Israelis, Settlements would need to be removed? If Arabs can be citizens of Israel, like they should be, then why couldn't Jews be citizens in a Palestinian State or have dual Israeli/Palestinian Citizenship?
When viewed from this perspective, the Settlements are suddenly removed as the obstacle to peace. Unfortunately, what is left is the realization that Jews would likely not be safe at this point in time, living in a Palestinian State. Until the Palestinian People are educated for peaceful co-existence with the Jewish State of Israel, this type of peace will not be possible. It is for this reason, that we often hear from the Israeli side that they have no partner for peace. While Fayyad may be more pragmatic than his predecessors, he has not demonstrated the leadership required for true peace to occur.
This leaves the Netanyahu Government in a difficult position. On the one hand, it does not foresee any peace agreement in the immediate future that would guarantee its long term security interests, but on the other hand its closest ally will be pushing for a different type of peace, which may compromise Israel's long term security. I believe the following analysis provides the best advice to the Israeli Government: “Israel is dependent on the U.S. as no other country is on a friendly power. Increasingly, Washington is the sole capital to stand by Israel in international forums.…..It takes a special brand of heroism to turn total dependence into defiance, to insist on support as a matter of right rather than as a favor; to turn every American deviation from an Israeli cabinet consensus into a betrayal to be punished rather than a disagreement to be negotiated. And yet Israel’s obstinacy, maddening as it can be, serves the purpose of both our countries best. A subservient client would soon face an accumulation of ever-growing pressures. It would tempt Israel’s neighbors to escalate their demands. It would saddle us with opprobrium for every deadlock.”
These words, as quoted by Yehuda Avner in his new book, “The Prime Ministers: An Intimate Narrative of Israeli Leadership”, were written forty years ago by then US National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger. Amazingly, those words are as true today as they were back then. If Israel is to have true peace some day, it must hold firm to those positions which it knows to be correct, and not sacrifice them for an elusive piece of paper that will not will not bring true peace.

Israel Update #8

2010-04-23T05:37:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

It has been an eventful month, and I should have sent an update a long time ago, but things are hectic as usual. I am continuing to adjust to working at Citi again. The most difficult part for me is the hours, as I am away from the house from about 7 AM till about 7:15 PM (on a good day), and that doesn't leave much time for the family. Besides that, things at work are going pretty well (although I can't find a good pizza place). My boss told me this week that she wants me to go to India at the end of the year or the beginning of next year. I am not too excited about that, but I guess I'll deal with it and bring a lot of captain crunch in order to survive. Caryn has been continuing her studies at Ulpan, but I think she is nearing the end. She enjoys it (to some extent), but she has no free time, so she will probably make a change. Ilan and Gali's Hebrew continues to improve, and Ilan is insisting he speaks better than me. Tiki seems to have reverted back to the terrible twos, as she has been very mischievous lately. Eitan is almost walking, but is very attached to me and Caryn, and is quite fussy when we're around. He is very cute though.

We experienced a lot of holidays over the past month. For Passover, we were in a hotel in Acco in northern Israel for the entire 7 days. I as able to get off from work, so we got to spend quality family time. Even better was that my parents, all my brothers and sister in laws, and all their children were there, so it was truly a magical week. Our extended family numbers 22 people, and it was great to be together for an extended period of time. They came the week before Passover, and they each did their own things for the first week. On the Friday before Passover, some of us went on a family trip to Jerusalem, and it was really nice guiding my brothers around and telling them which buses to take, where to get off, etc. It was one of those moments where I was excited to be living here. On Shabbat, we were all in Beit Shemesh, and we got to spend some time together, which was nice.
On Monday, the day before Passover, work was only a half day (another perk living in Israel), so I was able to leave the office at 1 Pm and take a train up to Acco. It was a nice train ride mostly up the coast of Israel. That night, we had a private room for the Seder, where all 22 of us celebrated together. It was a great night, and all the kids really contributed (especially Raphael). Our pace was a little slow, compared to the rest of the Israelis and we finished about 1 AM, which by Israeli standards is quite long (not that short by American standards either).
The first day of Passover, was nice and relaxing, although it was difficult to get up for Shul in the morning. The food was pretty good also. In the afternoon, I got a small nap, and the family hung out, talked, threw the football around, and spent quality time together.
The hotel we were staying, Palm Beach, is located on the beach, so we relaxed and went to the beach on the first day of Chol Hamoed (the intermediate days of Passover when you are allowed to work, use electricity, etc.) The kids also went swimming in the pool, and it was a generally relaxing day. I drove around Acco in the morning with Eitan looking for a newspaper (I didn't find one). In the evening, i took my nieces, Eliana and Ariana, and Ilan on a shopping expedition. I have not been shopping with teenage girls before. Suffice it to say, I plan on letting Caryn to the shopping when Gali and Tiki become teenagers. Wednesday night we had a family soccer game, which was a lot of fun and very entertaining. Just about everyone got hurt at one point, but nothing too serious. The best moment was when my nephew Raphael was playing goalie and my brother Bobby kicked the ball high in the air towards his direction. His reaction was to scream and duck, which caused everyone to laugh hysterically.
On Thursday, the whole extended drove to Maalot to go paddle and row boating. That was mostly enjoyable, but not without it's share of whining. Around the lake was like a carnival atmosphere, except that almost all of the food was not Kosher for Passover, so that was a little disappointing, especially for Gali who really wanted cotton candy. The kids also got to jump on some inflatable jumpy things, which they enjoyed. On the way back we stopped at a mall in Nahariya, which was also nice. We had the best meal of the trip Thursday night, as they had barbecued food, with steaks, so I was in heaven. On Thursday night, I convinced my parents to watch Eitan and Tiki, and we went with Ilan Gali, and about 10 other family members for a family bowling trip in Haifa. We all had a lot of fun, although our bowling skills could use some improvement.

On Friday, Me Eitan, Tiki, my parents, David and Michelle and their kids all drove to Nahariya to walk around the City. It was a very pleasant afternoon. Shabbat was very nice, but I was already starting to think about how the vacation was going to be over soon. On Sunday, we went back to the beach and swimming pool, and Monday we celebrated the last day of Passover. Overall, it was a truly magical Passover, and one that we will remember for ever. Naturally, we are all very grateful to my parents for bringing us all together.

It was difficult to say goodbye to everyone, but it was a little easier because my brother David and his family were staying through Saturday night, so we got to spend another few days and Shabbat with them. It was really nice to spend that extra time together.
The following week on Sunday night was Yom Hashoah U’Gevura, which is the annual Holocaust Remembrance day in Israel. Even though the Holocaust ended 65 years ago, it is still a very emotional day for all of Israel, and it was especially meaningful to be here on this day. There are approximately 220,000 survivors of the Holocaust still living in Israel, so it is especially important to hear their stories first hand, while we still have the opportunity. There was an emotional candle lighting ceremony, and in the most moving part of the evening, a survivor of the concentration camp Auschwitz, movingly retold her story while lighting the second candle. This was right after a moving reading from Elie Weisel’s book Night, regarding his experiences at Auschwitz. She spoke how everything that wzas just read was true, as she had personally experienced it. This was not planned and she spoke from the heart. It was very emotional for everyone, especially when she concluded by saying that she had 22 grandchildren and that was her revenge on the Nazis. She concluded with the words Am Yisrael Chai (the nation of Israel lives), and those words never meant more to me than they did on that night. We concluded with the singing of Hatikva (Israel’s National Anthem), and it was again an extremely moving moment for me, both because it is song of triumph that we survived the horrors of the Holocaust, and moved to Israel to rebuild the Jewish People. It was also the first time that I had heard Hatikva sung publicly since we made Aliyah. The following day, there was a siren throughout the country at 10 AM, and no matter what everyone is doing, they stop for two minutes, and stand quietly at attention. Even on all the highways, all of the cars and buses stop, and people get out of their cars and stand at attention. I got to witness this looking out my window on a busy Tel Aviv street.
The week after that, was Yom Hazicaron (Memorial day for fallen soldiers, security forces, and victims of terror). That was also on Sunday night, and I went again with Jonny and his children to the ceremony for the City of Beit Shemesh. There was even a government minister there, and a member of Knesset (Nachman Shai). It was a moving ceremony as well, although not like Yom Hashoah. During the ceremony, they show every single person who was from Beit Shemesh that we are commemorating. That makes it a lot more personal. This ceremony was entirely in Hebrew, so it was a little harder to follow. We again concluded with Hatikva, which no matter how many times I hear and sing it, always moves me when it’s sung publicly.
The next day, on Monday, was a half day at work. There was another siren at 11 AM, which coincides with ceremonies at all the military cemeteries across the country. It was also a moving event. Amazingly, in the evening, the country shifts from mourning to celebration, as at night Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel Independence Day) begins. I went to ceremony where the first part still deals with memorializing those who have fallen in defense of Israel, and the second part of the ceremony celebrating Israel’s rebirth. It is amazing how Israelis can switch emotions so quickly.
Tuesday was a day off, and like America, everyone barbecues on Independence day. We went to Jonny’s for a very tasty barbecue, and we all enjoyed the one day of the year where everyone has off, and there are no extra religious requirements. Essentially, it’s our only Sunday of the year. It was really nice just spending time with the family.

That’s about if for now. Caryn, I and Eitan are going to Modiin for Shabbat, while the older three kids are going to Jonny’s for Shabbat. Hopefully it will be very nice. I hope everyone is well and I look forward to hearing from you. I apologize if I do not respond timely or ever, but I will try.

Kol Tuv,
Zumi

Update # 7 Out of Debt

2010-03-13T12:04:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

I am happy to report that I got the job at Citibank and have left the world of Debt Collection behind. I have completed my first week of work and overall things are going well. About a week and half after I sent the last update, they scheduled a meeting to make me an offer, which I happily accepted. The position is a management position, and I actually manage directly 4 other officers, who all supervise smaller staffs. It is exciting to be working again, and especially exciting to be working in Tel Aviv surrounded by Israelis speaking Hebrew. The job is essentially in English, which is a requirement, but I told my staff that I wanted to speak to them in Hebrew and have them correct me, which they were happy to do in the staff meeting. My direct boss, was there on my first day, but then away for the rest of the week, so that made it a little easier. I hear she is very demanding, but being a veteran at Citi, I'm not too worried about that.
I had a lot of meetings this week with other department heads, and was very warmly received. There are about 130 people working for Citi here, on 4 floors in two different buildings that are side by side. I am on the 13th floor in my building, and actually have a real office, with walls and everything. Having said that, a closed door means nothing to Israelis so they barge in whenever they feel like it, which I have already gotten used to. Also, everyone always answers their cell phone, regardless of what else is going on. But the really cool thing is that it is a corner office, not that it is huge, but I have two different view points of Tel Aviv, one to the Southwest, where I can see the Mediterranean, and one to the Southeast, which overlooks Tel-Aviv. The other cool thing is that there is an unlimited supply of Coca Cola, which I found out after I brought a bottle in and after half a day it was gone. Another perk to the job.
Speaking of perks, the position does come with a car, which is on order and we should get in about a month. In the meantime, they have rented me a car, a Volvo, which is really nice, although a little to small to fit our family, even though it is a pretty big car. My office is about 7 minutes and 24 seconds (if I make the light) from the train station, and since I prefer the train (you can see DBF has influenced me), I am happy to leave the car in Beit Shemesh, so Caryn's life can be a little easier. Of course since I am out of the house from about 6:51 AM until about 7:12 PM, that makes Caryn's life more difficult, but we both knew that sooner or later that would happen. The really hard part for me is that Eitan wakes up after I leave and goes to bed before I get home, so I don't see him at all. That would mean on a normal week, I would go from Saturday night until Friday morning without seeing him.
A few things we may do to rectify that is to move his bedtime back a little, which is more difficult to Caryn. That could be a short term solution. In the long term, Caryn and I have started looking for a new place closer to Tel Aviv. At this point, our most likely place is Modiin, which is a relatively new City in Israel, and only 30 minutes from Tel Aviv by train. It is also only about 23 minutes by car to Beit Shemesh, so we would still be relatively close to our extended family. We drove through Modiin this past Friday, and even looked at a house (although it was way too small). While Modiin looks really nice, and is a planned City (which is unusual for Israel, as Israelis don't seem to understand the planning concept), it is somewhat pricey so we still need to see if it is doable. If it is feasible, we would probably try to move during the summer, before the next school year.
Speaking of the train, the train rides to and from work, are uniquely Israeli). In the morning, morning services are held in the last car, so I am able to daven(pray) with a minyan(prayer quorum), without going anywhere. It was strange at first, but I am getting used to it now, plus it is quite a time saver, since I don't have to daven before I leave for work, and we are never short of a minyan. On the way home, midway through the train ride, in the same car, we daven Maariv (evening Services). That is really cool too, and I am enjoying that aspect, although it is way too crowded. For Mincha, they daven in the bomb shelter of my building at 2PM, but it is done in the Sephardic (I don't have enough energy to explain that right now) way, so it takes twice as long. I had to miss that half the time this week, not that I missed it. The times that I missed it, I davened in my office and locked the door. The funny thing was that after I finished, I instinctively went to take my Kippa off, and had to stop myself realizing a was no longer working in a non-Jewish environment.
Most of the people in the office, and all of my staff, are not ritually observant, so when I showed up, all the observant people got very excited. On the one hand, I can understand that, but part of that really bothered me, as I don't want to be stereotyped into a specific group and separate myself from everyone else. I will have to work on that, not just in the office, but the whole country.
Clearly I am rambling, so I will wrap up now. Caryn has instituted a points system for good behavior, which the kids to varying degrees respond to. Obviously, this will be difficult on everyone in the beginning. On the plus side, Passover is in a little more than two weeks, so I will have some time off, plus my parents, and both my brothers and their families from the states are coming, so that should be really great.
I wish everyone Chag Kasher V'Sameach and just remember. If Passover seems too long, make Aliyah and you can shorten it by a day.

Kol Tuv,
Zumi

Update #6 2/17/10

2010-03-13T12:03:00.000-08:00

It's 4 in the morning, and boy am I tired. I am still working at the debt collection agency, but things are looking up. I had an interview this past Sunday with Citibank, and it looks very promising. It is for a management position, and would be normal hours and probably include a car. The job is in Tel Aviv, 5 minutes from the train station. I have 2 more interviews at Citi, tentatively scheduled for March 1st, but they are trying to move up. I am excited by the possibility of a real job, as I am pretty much exhausted all the time with the debt collection job, and I am way too customer service oriented for this type of work. On the plus side, I taught some debtors how to file OCC complaints. In any case, regardless of whether I get the job at Citi, I doubt I will continue into March.

Caryn has her big Hebrew test next week, which I am sure she will ace. In theory, I also have the same test, but I'm not sure if I'm going or not. Caryn also got a charger for her camera, so now she can post cute little videos of our kids again on YouTube (search the thebrodybunch1 or go to the blog). It has been a difficult adjustment for Caryn and the kids without me around, but they are starting to get used to it. Ilan and I have switched beds, and Tiki usually joins Ilan and Caryn in the middle of the night. Gali gets bribed with junk food, so she stays in her bed.

Ilan's bike was stolen from our front porch, which was very upsetting for all of us. Fortunately, it was cold and rainy for four days after it was stolen, so it took a while for him to notice. My brother Jonny, had an old kids bike in the attic, so Ilan was still able to ride, and we got a new bike lock. Gali is continuing to sing in Hebrew all the time, and seems to be muttering under her breath in Hebrew too. Ilan and Gali still yell at each other in Hebrew. Tiki turns 3 on Friday, and is naturally very excited about it. Every day she wakes up and goes, it's my birthday today? She is really a cutie. Eitan has been a little fussy lately as he has had a runny nose for two weeks, and fever on and off. He is also getting cuter by the day and is cruising away. Ilan and Tiki both had strep this week, but Tiki is happily taking her medicine, as it comes with a cookie or a taffy. Ilan was able to take a pill in applesauce, so the medicine has been a piece of cake. Gali was quite disappointed that she remained healthy, as everyone else got to take off some time from school.

Caryn and I spent out first Shabbat alone together since we had kids two weeks ago. We were in a hotel in Jerusalem and really enjoyed the piece and quiet (I slept for 11 hours). The following Shabbat Jonny and Diane went away for Shabbat and their two youngest, Itiel and Shai-El stayed with us. The older 3 came for lunch so we got a glimpse of what it was like to be in an Ultra-Orthodox family with 9 kids. My parents are coming this Thursday and we are all very excited. I guess I should get to work now. Hope everyone is well.

Kol Tuv,
Zumi

A perfect Shabbat

2010-02-09T17:36:00.000-08:00

Last Weekend, Caryn and I went away together alone for the first time since we had kids. We went to the Jerusalem Gate Hotel which is right by the entrance to Jerusalem (hence the name). Gali cried once in the lead up to our departure, and Ilan cried twice, especially right when Uncle Jonny was picking them up. Fortunately, lollipops helped ease the pain. Tiki on the other hand was very quickly out the door, excited to go, and happily waving bye-bye to us. Every day since, she has talked about going back to Uncle Jonny's house. Once the kids were gone, Caryn and I got a bus at about 2:15 to Jerusalem. We got to the hotel a little after three and had about an hour and a half before Shabbat to relax. We unfortunately went down for service way too early, and once they statred, they were way too long as it was Sephardic. We had dinner at about 6 and ate quickly, doing the whole meal in about 30 minutes. The food was not bad, but nothing to write home about (or blog about). We got back to the room about 7 and played Scrabble, which was a lot of fun and something we have not done in a long time. The score was 328-308. We went to bed around 9 PM and got 11 hours of sleep, which is more than we get in 2 nights sometimes. The next morning, I went down to daven (pray), and for some reason decided to have coffee. Boy was that good, and it made me hyper!!! Shacharit was a little crazy, as it was Sephardic, but they certainly know how to have fun. It seemed like the entire Torah reading they were throwing candy. After davening, I went back to the room and we relaxed for about an hour before going down to lunch. Lunch was not good, but I had brought cookies from home, so I was prepared. We had a very relaxing afternoon, talked, went for a walk over the new bridge, and just generally relaxed and enjoyed ourselves. We difinitely need to do this again.

15 Years

2010-02-07T15:02:00.001-08:00

It was 15 years ago today that my life was threatened by a perforated intestine. I generally don't think about it much, not that I was tramatized by it, but it ending up being a very positive turning point in my life. I think my family and friends would agree, that generally speaking, everyone else around me was more traumatized by what was going on than I was. My mother still can't talk about it.

I probably would have let the day pass without marking it, if not for what was going on with David. There are many things we can all learn drom David, and the way he handles adversity. The most obvious lesson, is never to take your health for granted. I genreally do not, but there are times when I do forget what my life was like before I had surgery. The second thing is to thank G-d for my continued good health. How many of us said two months ago, why did this have to happen to David, what did he do deserve this, where is the justice in the world? It is very natural to blame G-d when something bad happens to you or someone close to you. Even though we are sometimes quick to question G-d, we sometimes take a lot longer to thank G-d for seeing us through s very difficult time in our lives. If we are lucky, we may be able to see how something bad that happened, ending up serving a greater purpose in the long run. I often think of David’s first bout with cancer and how that changed him into the man he is today, and the wonderful husband and father he has become. This is not to say that he wouldn’t have been wonderful if had not had cancer, but it certainly gave him an extra devotion to his family that I can only hope to aspire to.

The last thing I learned from David is that it is important to appreciate one’s health. It is one thing not to take your health for granted, but quite another to actually appreciate it. I never had recovery parties or celebrated the fact that I did recover. Maybe I should have. I originally thought that David’s recovery/superbowl parties were overdoing it a bit, but I realize now how wrong I was. Each year David celebrated his health, and shared that celebration with those closes to him. We all joked about it at one point or anther, but now I think we all have a new appreciation of just how special those parties were. We started taking the parties for granted, but not David.
So this Superbowl Sunday, I thank G-d for my recovery. I thank G-d for 15 years of good health, and G-d willing many more years of continued good health. I thank G-d for taking a huge step in returning my brother David to good health. More than anything though, I thank G-d for the strength to get me through my illness and the strength to help me help those closest to me get through their most difficult moments in life.

So, as you watch the Superbowl, take a second to appreciate everything you have, and not to take life for granted. I will have my own little Superbowl party with Jonny, and together, we will have our own little celebration.

J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets

2010-01-24T09:02:00.000-08:00

It ahs been thrilling watching the Jets these past weeks. It is even more fun, since for the first time in 8 years, I am able to watch the games with one of my brothers. Last week, a headache suddenly came on at 10:30 PM, so I was able to get home in time to watch the Jets- San Diego game. THis week, there was no way of doing it again, so the headache began before I went to work, and I called in sick.
Beating Cincinnati was exciting, but nothing like beating San Diego. Jonny and I were jumping up and down last week like little kids, when we realized the Jets were going to win. We are really excited for the game tonight, although Jonny will likely be a little late. Hopefully, I will have a follow-up blog on the jets, as I have never witnessed the Jets in the Superbowl. I was going to put a note in the wall, but I thought that might be overdoing it.

A Month on the Job

2010-01-24T08:47:00.001-08:00

It has been almost a month on the job, and it has been an interesting experience. One thing that I learned is that I definitely can't work from 3-11 PM as it is too difficult on Caryn and the kids. On February 1st, my hours move to 11PM- 7 AM. We'll See how that works. The job is not really that challenging, so I'm not sure how long I will do it for. Th big questions remain, can I make decent money on the job, and can I adjust to working in the middle of the night. IF the answer is yes to both of those questions, then I will likely stick with it for awhile. I should have a clearer picture of how things stand at the end of February. Debt collection is pretty straight forward. Most people don't pay, and you can "scare" a few people into paying that didn't have plans on paying. For the most part, it is just getting lucky and finding someone in a good mood with money. Not a thrilling job, but I am enjoying working in Jerusalem. I also work for an individual who is good at collecting debt, but knows nothing about managing. I got spoiled in my last job having a boss I could continually learn from, both in doing my job and becoming a better manager. That is quite frustrating, as I can deal with a bad manager, but I see how she is destroying the environment for some people who really have talent, but will likely quit. In any case, I am pretty flexible and starting in February, I will be on my own as the manager works in the afternoon. That's about it, as far as the job goes. I miss my wife and kids terribly, and no job is worth that.

Pizza in the Genes

2010-01-24T08:47:00.000-08:00

Tonight, we ordered pizza. We have just outgrown one pie, as Eitan has started eating pizza. I decided to cook a piece of frozen pizza, so that when the pizza was delivered, I could give the store bought pizza to Eitan. HE may be only 10 months old, but as soon as he saw the pizza we ordered he stopped eating the frozen pizza, and threw a temper tantrum until we gave him the good pizza. That's my boy.

Update #5

2010-01-15T06:10:00.000-08:00

A quick update before Shabbat starts. I got a job in debt collection working for a company that collects debt from people in the United States. Hopefully I will not be speaking to any of you in that capacity. I have been on the job for 2 1/2 weeks and it has its us and downs. The location is great in the center of Jerusalem, but the hours are bad, from 3-11 PM. After January (assuming I survive that long), the hours should improve, and I should be working from about 10 Pm to 6 AM. Me not being around in the afternoon and evening has been very hard on Caryn and the kids, but it's only for another two more weeks. We'll see how we all do when I work the night shift. I think it will e much better for all of them, but it will be a difficult transition for me. I also need to see how much many can actually be made on this job, as the base salary is small, but there is potential for huge commissions. We'll see how it goes.

Caryn, Ilan and Gali are continuing to learn Hebrew. Ilan and Gali both understand Hebrew for the most part, nad we even get to hear a few spoken words of Hebrew every now and then. We met with Ilan's teachers, and they said he is doing very well in many areas, but he is resistant in learning Hebrew. We are finding the same thing at home, as he does not want to watch TV in Hebrew, where Gali and Tiki are happy to watch TV in Hebrew. However, they have noticed recently that Ilan as a strong desire to learn how to read Hebrew, so he may be able to improve his Hebrew by learning to read. Gali's teachers and Caryn and I were all in agreement that Gali should repeat Kindergarten next year, which Gali is happy to do, since she loves her teachers. Tiki is getting cuter by the day, and has a full complement of words now. A very cute thing that she does is when she wants someone to be quiet, she says be shush, instead of be quiet. Eitan is crawling all over the place, and eating like a horse. He has recently started pulling himself up, so we are probably only a few months away from walking, although he is a Brody so it could be awhile. Eitan is crying now, so I have to go. Shabbat Shalom and Kol Tuv,
Zumi

PS for more info log onto WWW.Zumibrody.blogspot.com

Crazy kids! by Caryn

2010-01-10T11:11:00.000-08:00

Eitan crawls everywhere now. Usually after me. If I leave a room he cries and then comes and finds me. He is a little bit attached to me! We have these Thomas the Tank trains that you pull back to wind up and then let them go and they go across the room. Eitan gets so excited everytime he sees the train moving. He leaps forward and crawls really fast to catch this train. I must get this on video it is hilarious. (currently my camera battery charger isn't working too well). Also, I was on the phone tonight with my mother and Eitan grabbed the phone, I positioned it to his ear properly, about 2 seconds later he was listening intently to the phone. I had to pry the phone from him and he threw a temper tantrum!!! I found out my mother was singing a song to him over the phone and he was just simply mezmorized!

Each night when we put the kids to bed, they say "Shema". We then bless everyone in the family. Typically it goes like this.. "May G-D bless Mommy, Abba, Ilan, Gali, Tiki, Eitan....."
Tonight, this is what Tiki said "May G-D bless Mommy, Abba, Tiki, Mezuza" I said "what??" because she mumbled it. She said "mezuza" and then pointed to the door frame, then she continued "Gali, Eitan, Ilan and Cheryl". It was quite cute. By the way, Cheryl is her preschool/Gan teacher whom she loves!!

An hour before the kids went to bed, all the kids were playing nicely; Gali was watching tv quietly, Tiki and Ilan were playing with the train set, and I was holding Eitan in my lap as he listened to my mother singing him a song on the phone. All was relatively peacfull....All of a sudden, Ilan is screaming at Tiki and then they are fighting and hitting each other with the train tracks. Tiki is crying, then Ilan goes over to where Gali is sitting and starts kicking her with his shoes, at the same time Eitan is grabbing my finger and biting me! What in the world happened??? Who really knows.... The next 30 minutes I was screaming at them to get their pjs on and get into bed because they were all in trouble. Each time I tried to put Eitan down to go to sleep, Ilan would be doing something to Tiki and she would be screaming. Gali was under the desk with her blanket and Ilan was slamming doors. AHHH!!! I got Eitan to sleep, Went to the other bedroom and asked Glai why she was under the desk "My bed isn't made so I can't get in it" (she had lined up 10 stuffed animals across the top of her pillow but her blankets were on the floor. I got her into bed and covered her up. She thanked me, said "I love you" and then asked if she was good tonight. Then I went to Ilan (he was in my room in my bed looking at the Harry Potter book I've been reading to him at night) I said for him to get his pjs on and brush teeth and left and I went downstairs. About 10 minutes later he comes down, completely calm and sweet (with out pjs or teeth brushed). So I asked him again, please go get your pjs on and brush teetch. He actually listened and came back down stairs. He said " I am sorry for being crazy" I gave him a big hug and told him how much I loved him and then I asked him why after behaving so wonderfully all day long did he have to go crazy with hitting and screaming tonight. He said "because we have too many kids in our family". We then spent the next 20 minutes looking on the internet at the Duggar Family. I explained that they had 18 kids and they learn at home all day, they pray, play musical instruments and the older kids are buddys to the younger kids in the family and help them bathe, get dressed, and learn to read, and none of them yell or hit each other and that they are all best friends. We looked at some pictures of them in their house (from their website) and Ilan was amazed that they lived in such a big house. He then asked me two questions: 1. When can we go to their house (he wanted to go down their slide that they have inside the house and play in their playroom)? 2. How old do you think the giant is? WHAT??? He was talking about Harry Potter. Here I was thinking we were spending a wonderful moment bonding and talking and he was thinking about the troll in the book.

I have something on the other kids, so I must put in something about Gali. But, there are waaaayyy too many Gali stories, it is hard to pick. I could talk about her interesting outfit choices she wears to school each day, or the fact that no matter what we say to her, she completely ignores us and does what ever she wants to do, the temper tantrums she throws each day because we tell her no or how she sucks her thumb and at the same time twirls her hair tightly around her finger....so tightly that I have to cut her hair so we can get her finger free. No, I will say that for all the headaches and crazyness she puts me through each day, in the end, Gali will come up to me and give me a big hug and say "I love you mommy" and then kiss me on the nose and giggle. Not because she wants something from me, just because she loves me.

And with that I must say good night, and apoligize for any spelling mistakes. Oh and one final word. I put a little slide show up on this blog but for some reason it has some pictures that are not of our family. I don't know who they are or how it is connected to my photo slide show, but it is there anyway and I have no idea why or how to get rid of it! So enjoy all the pics of our family and of someone else's too! :)

Day # 3 on the job- Jerusalem

2009-12-31T13:35:00.000-08:00

Today was awesome. Since I had gotten to work way to early the previous two days, I decided not to rush out of the house after I picked up Tiki and Eitan from Gan and babysitting. It was a lot nicer not rushing and the bus came 1 minute after I got there, so I ended up getting to the Central Bus station at 2:15, 45 minutes early. Since it was a nice day, I decided to walk to work, instead of taking a bus from the Central Bus Station. I was going to take the back way and Walk down Agrippas, which would take me right by Machane Yehudah (Shuk-the large open air market). This is one of my favorite places in Israel, and I love going there, even if I don't need anything (although gumballs are so ridiculously cheap there, I almost always buy some). I called Caryn and asked if she needed anything, and she gave me a list of fruits and vegetables to buy, since they are dirt cheap at the Shuk. I walked around for a little bit, and finally bought what I needed. As I was walking out, it dawned on me that I was actually living in Israel, working in Jerusalem, going to the SHuk, not as a tourist, but as a resident, and I could go back whenever I wanted. It was a vary exciting moment. The fact that I was listening to Israeli songs on my Ipod also probably helped.

At work, which I was still early for, we listed to some sample debt collection calls, and it was very encouraging, as the person we were supposed to model ourselves after, was definitely someone I can be (or at least fake being). As my father always says, be sincere whether you mean it or not. Essentially, the entire job is about bluffing the debtor into paying money that they owe. I left feeling confident that I could do it.

What was even better, was my analysis of the pizza situation for lunch. I was explaining to my colleagues, that the price of pizza per slice in the states is cheaper than in Israel. However, the cost of a pie, is usually equivalent to the cost of anywhere between 6 and 7 slices. In Israel, while the cost of a slice is more, the cost of a pie is only the equivalent of 5 to 6 slices, thereby making a pie much more cost effective. Naturally, I backed up my thesis which actual facts. At SBarros, the cost of a slice is an astounding 14 shekel per slice (approximately $3.68). However, the cost of a pie is only 65 shekel ($17.10). Therefore, the cost of a pie is actually less than the cost of 5 slices, which is really unusual. Since we are in a heavily touristy area, I'm sure the prices are jacked up. In any case, my arguments were convincing, and we went out for dinner and ordered a pie. I also had a drink analysis, but I think they were tuning me out at that point (suffice it to say, I got a 16oz bottle coke for less than 2 shekel by the time I was done). You may be thinking I have too much time on my hands to come up with all of this, but actually, these kinds of things come to me rather quickly. We got to leave early for New Years Eve, and I was home at 11 PM, which was nice. Overall, a great work day.

I hope everyone has a happy and healthy new year, even through we don't really care about this holiday in Israel, as our new year was 3 months ago.

Day 2 on the Job

2009-12-30T13:34:00.000-08:00

Not as good as day 1. It is interesting that I have no idea if I am going to be good at this job or not. It does not really fit my personality, as you have to be a real jerk on the phone and continually very aggressive. It is also highly confrontational, and high pressure. If I can do it, it will really help me in the future, as this is probably one of my weaknesses, as I sometimes do anything I can to avoid confrontation.

In any case, if you are not doing a good job, they fire you pretty quickly, so I will either do well, or three months from now be looking for another job.

I got a job

2009-12-29T13:46:00.000-08:00

I went on my first interview last Wednesday, which i thought went well. On Sunday they called me letting me know I got the job, and I just finished my first day. I will be working American hours, which means that my hours could vary anywhere from 3PM to 7 AM. While at first I was not to happy about that, I now think this may be a good thing, as if I can get my schedule to be 10 PM to 6 AM, then I will be able to see my kids as much as I did when I was unemployed. In any case, it's a job, and I am happy about that. i am working for a debt collection agency. It seems to be a really cut throat industry, so I will either succeed and make a decent living, or I will realize that this industry is not for me. The fact that I like to talk definitely helps.
For the first 30 days of training, my hours are 3-11 PM. After that is completed, they will likely shift to a later time. The location is great, in Jerusalem, at the intersection of King George and Ben Yehudah (which means I will be eating a lot at Melech Hafalafel (at least while I'm working in the afternoon)).
Overall, I am relived to be working, as another major milestone on our Aliyah journey has been accomplished. Next on the list is converting my American driver's license to an Israeli one. After that, the next big step will be getting a car, but for now, I'm just happy to be working.

Update #4

2009-12-21T12:21:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I hope everyone is doing well, and enjoying their December. For the Brodys in Israel, all I can say is there is nothing like a 70 degree Chanukkah. We recently completed our first Hanukkah here in Israel, and we all enjoyed the holiday. If you would like to read more about the Brody Hanukkah experiences, you can go to our blog at http://www.zumibrody.blogspot.com/. The whole family is continuing to learn Hebrew (except Eitan). Ilan actually yelled at Tiki in Hebrew, which was very exciting (except that he used masculine instead of feminine, but it was exciting nonetheless). Gali is singing Hebrew songs to herself, and Tiki is also singing some Hebrew. I also believe Gali is starting to get a greater comprehension of what her teachers are telling her. Eitan is crawling around like crazy, and now has six teeth. Ilan has two big teeth coming in (not straight unfortunately), and Gali is eating so much sugar that I'm sure it won't be long before her teeth fall out as well. The kids jsut returned back to school from their Hannukah break, so we are all trying to adjust back to the school routine. The Jets continue to disappoint, which is not really an Israel update, but I am just as frustrated with them from Israel as I was in America.

Besides that, we are doing fine.

Please feel free to keep in touch by phone, e-mail, facebook, smoke signals, whatever works for you.

Kol Tuv,
Zumi

Peace in Israel

2009-12-20T09:44:00.000-08:00

Now that I am officially an Israeli, I wanted to share some of my insights on the country from an insiders point of view. For the most part, my insights on the country have not changed since I have moved here. I always used to tell people back in the states that the news that people around the world hear about Israel, is not what the overwhelming majority of Israelis experience on a day-to-day basis. After living here for four months, I see how true that is.
The press coverage outside of Israel focuses almost exclusively on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Even within Israel, the Arab/Iranian-Israeli conflict receives most of the major headlines. As many of you know, last month the Government of Israel decided to place a 10 month moratorium on any "new" building with Judea and Samaria (West Bank). Supposedly, this was done to try and jump start the stalled Israeli-Palestinian "peace process". However, it seems quite apparent that this was done to try to gain favor with the American administration. Whether this was done in order to get some kind of agreement on how to proceed with the Iranian Nuclear threat is unknown. However, it appears that the diplomatic benefit to Israel for this settlement freeze is marginal at best. I do not want to go into detail as that is not the focus of this blog.
What is likely not reported or under-reported in the foreign press is how divisive the settlement freeze is becoming. An overwhelming majority of Israelis who live in Judea and Samaria have been forced to put their lives on hold for no apparent reason. More importantly, the move is creating a crisis of faith in the government and army for many of those Israelis who have been extremely loyal to these institutions. It is dividing the Jewish People, which I am inherently opposed to.
It is the unity of the Jewish People that should really be the focus of our peace process. I live across the street on two sides from Haredim (Ultra-Orthodox Jews). As a friend of mine, who I greatly respect, recently said to me, it is like they are from another religion. This is coming from someone who would be labeled as a very religious person from a non-religious point of view. I had a heard time disagreeing with him, which is really a shame. 8-9% of Jewish Israelis are Haredim and their numbers are growing. This is a community that continues to set themselves apart from the rest of the Israeli population, and this problem will only get worse. If the other 90% of Jewish Israelis does not address this issue, it will become a major issue for the Israeli people int he not too distant future.
If our government can devote so much time and energy to our external adversaries, then surely it can begin to address the problem of our internal adversaries. The fate of the Jewish People just may depend on it.

חנוכה Chanukka 2009

2009-12-19T10:49:00.000-08:00

In Hebrew, there is only one way to spell Chanukah, as opposed to English which has many different variations. Just one more advantage to living in Israel. We have just concluded our first Chanukah here in Israel. The kids were off of school the whole week, so we had a bit of a vacation (sort of). We tried to tone down the presents this year, and fortunately the kids didn’t seem to notice for the most part. I lit an oil channukia for the first time, which was kind of cool, although it kept going out. It was kind of like a reverse Chanukah miracle; I put enough oil in there to last 2 hours and it went out after 5 minutes. Hopefully I’ll figure it out before next year. Since the fist night of Chanukah was Shabbat, and it is our Tradition not to give presents when Chanukah coincides with Shabbat, we gave the kids large cardboard dreidels filled with candy. They were all pretty happy about that, although Ilan was the only one who actually saved some of it for later on. The kids all lit their own Channukias (except for Eitan) and they even said the brachot (blessings) before hand. Ilan said both and the girls did one. Tiki kind of scared us with her lighting, but fortunately she did not burn anything or anyone. For the most part, the kids were happy with their presents. There were a few disappointments initially, like when Ilan got an Incredibles costume and said that he wanted that for Purim not Chanukah. (he obviously felt that a present for Purim should not count as one of his Chanukah presents). However, by the next night, he was wearing the costume to a little Chanukah party that we had at my bother Jonny’s house. Jonny even made the latkes. Fortunately, Diane made the pizza. We all had a really nice time, and it was very special to light Chanukah candles in Israel with the other Brody family.

We ate a ton of greasy, oily, fried foods. Really unhealthy, but really good. Caryn made latkes, Sufganiyot (jelly donuts (although in our case without the jelly)), cookies, more cookies, pizza (of course), and lots of other yummy food. We all were feeling a bit sick to our stomachs. Gali informed us on Tuesday that she would be throwing up the next day, and sure enough on Wednesday evening she kept her promise.

We also took a few day trips during the holiday. On Sunday, Jonny took Caryn and the older three kids to some caves. They seemed to like it. On Monday, the whole family took the train to Tel Aviv. We went to the Azrielli Towers, which has a mall at the bottom. It was fun, but way too exhausting. I’m not sure why I thought it would be fun to go to a mall with four small kids. Anyway, we went to the top of the towers (49 stories), which was very cool, as we could see all of Tel Aviv. On Tuesday, we took the train to Jerusalem to the Biblical Zoo. It was a beautiful day, and we got a 50% discount for being new immigrants. Plus, the zoo train only costs 2 shekel a piece( about 53 cents). We had a lot of fun and stayed at the zoo for almost 5 hours. After the zoo, we walked to the Malcha mall, about 1 mile and a half away, up a hill (it looked a lot close on the map). We met the Zimands there, which is always a treat for us.
On Wednesday, Tiki had a fever, so I went with Ilan to the Old City of Jerusalem. I took him to the Western Wall, which he really liked, and we walked around the Old City walls, which was a lot of fun. We then went to Machane Yehudah (the open air market), and bought tons of candy and more Sufganiyot. We had a great father-son day.

Overall, it was a very nice Chanukah, and once again it was very special to be celebrating the Jewish holidays in Israel.

First visitor from the states

2009-12-07T03:37:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, we had our first visitor from the states come to our apartment, and it was our old friend Marcy. We had a great day with her (especially Gali, who really seems to love Marcy, and CAryn who got to go shopping without the kids). It was a really great visit, and it was wonderful to see her. While Marci was our first visitor to our place, Lori Tesser (happy birthday by the way, was the first visitor we saw from the states back in October. However, that was only ZUmi and Tiki and we met Lori (and the Zimands) in Yerushalayim. THat was also a lot of fun. The honor for the first visitor to sleep over is still up for grabs.

By the way, Caryn wanted me to tell everyone that we got vitamins for our kids, that look a lot like chocolate coins. Leave it to us to find a vitamin in chocolate form. One problem, Ilan actually thought it was candy and sharedit with his friend. At least his heart is int he right place.

Shabbat

2009-12-05T11:34:00.000-08:00

Shabbat was mostly uneventful. We went to the Dukers for lunch (Ilan's best friend's family). The kids had a good time, and any time there is food for me to eat, I'm happy.

Good day today

2009-12-04T04:38:00.001-08:00

I was supposed to wake up at 3:15 this morning to watch the Jets play the Bills. I must have ignored my alarm, as at 3:45 my cell phone rang. It was my brother Jonny, who was waiting at my front door, so we could watch the game together. Unfortunately, the phone startled me and I kind of crushed Caryn's leg in the process, and woke her up. I then tripped on her again on my way out of the bed. Fortunately, she didn't remember this in the morning. We enjoyed watching the game, as the Jets came out on top 19-13.

On Friday Mornings, I usually play basketball with Jonny, and some other guys around Bet Shemesh. It rained a little overnight, so it appeared we wouldn't play, which was quite a dissappointment. However, at 9:15 I got a call from jonny, saying the game was on and we were playing inside a gym. It was a lot of fun to play inside, and I am fianlly in good shape,a s my stamina has dramtically improved. My basketball playing has also improved over the past few weeks, so I am happy about that too. I have been riding my bike a lot lately, and I often carry a trailer on the bike with one or two kids inside. It is tough work, but it is getting me into good shape. Also, everyone who we pass stares at us, since no one in Israel has seen this. THe kids ahve a great time riding, and it is great excercise for me. THank you to Bobby, Shana and Ariana for buying for us when Tiki was born. THat's all for now. Shabbat SHalom.

Fun facts and funny occurrences

2009-12-04T04:28:00.000-08:00

I thought I would share some odd things about Israel as they occur to me. In doing my CV (resume), I was advised that it must contain my birthday, so the potential employer will know my age, my family status (i.e. married and how many children I have).

I finally got my health insurance this past Sunday. There was one clerk to handle all of the people calling and coming in to ask questions or register. The phone was ringing off the hook, so she had a clever way of resolving the constant ringing. She turned the ringer volume down, so it could barely be heard. I got quite a laugh from that. Just another example of the exemplary customer service attitude that exists in Israel.

November 21, 2009 Update

2009-12-03T23:02:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I hope everyone is doing well. We have been here almost 3 months already. The holidays have been over for more than a month, so everyone is settling into their normal routines. I am happy to report that I have officially been recognized as a new immigrant from the Absorption Ministry. The bad news is that just because one part of the Government recognizes that, doesn't mean that other Governmental ministries or offices recognize that. As a result, I am still waiting on the National Insurance Office (Bituach Leumi), to recognize my status in order to get health care. I suspect I will continue to experience some surprises in the future regarding my status, but for the most part, I think that is behind me. I have begun to look for work and I am continuing to learn Hebrew.

Caryn is doing well, and is also continuing learning Hebrew. I think she is enjoying it more than me, as she generally stays awake during class, and I am not always successful. The kids are all adjusting well. Ilan has lost his first tooth, which was very exciting. He was disappointed in the morning, when he thought he didn't get any money from the tooth fairy. After looking for 20 minutes for the money we knew the tooth fairy put under his pillow, Ilan indicated that the only thing he found under his pillow was this piece of paper. The piece of paper happened to be 20 Shekel, which Ilan did not realize was the money in Israel. Once we told him it was worth more than 5 dollars, he was happy. Gali is continuing to make friends, and seems to be enjoying school more. Tiki is as crazy as ever, and Eitan gets cuter by the day. He has two little teeth now, and has started crawling, which always keeps life interesting.

Our big trip the past month was to the mall in Jerusalem, which we took the train to. We ate Pizza Hut, and everyone had a good time and had fun. We are planning another trip this Tuesday to buy Channukah presents.

That's about it for now. Please keep in touch and you can always feel free to call us at 646-875-4073. If you are worried about calling at an inappropriate time, don't worry about it, as the line will only ring if the computer is on. I hope everyone is well.

Kol Tuv,
Zumi

October 16, 2009 Update

2009-12-03T22:59:00.001-08:00

Hi Everyone,

I hope everyone enjoyed the chagim (holidays). We enjoyed them a lot, especially Succot. We are just getting back to regular life now, as the lids have restarted school this week, after being off for more than a week for Succot. The house is staring to get organized, and Caryn has already moved the furniture around 3 or 4 times, but I think we are close to final setup. I’m sill waiting for them to decide on my immigrant status, but they told me today that I would have an answer on Sunday, so I will hope for the best.

For Rosh Hashana (Jewish New Year), I davened (prayed) at my brother Jonny’s Shul, which was very nice. Ilan came with me too, although he spent most of the time playing outside. On the first day, we had lunch at Jonny and Diane’s which was very nice. On the second day, we got invited over to a family who lives on the same street as Jonny and Diane. The mother of the family, Haley, is in class with Caryn and we like both her and her husband Gavin. They are British, not that that is important, but I like the accents. They have been very helpful to us, giving us a lot of lifts and just generally helping out. Overall Rosh HaShana was very nice, although I was quite nauseous the second day, and didn’t eat much. On the plus side, they skip a whole bunch of stuff in the davening, so we got out at about 12:15 both days.

The week between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur (day of atonement) was uneventful. The kids were off on the day before Yom Kippur, so we didn’t have Sunday free to ourselves. I also davened by Jonny on Yom Kippur, which was really nice, although both me and Jonny agreed that we miss David Ritholtz on Yom Kippur night. I was able to find a Succa (difficult to translate, but basically a little hut or booth that we eat all our meals in for a week) including everythingfor NIS 500, which is only about $135, quite cheap by American standards. It was very easy to put up, although when I put it up, it came crashing down. It was very easy to put up a second time by Caryn, and it was much more stable as well. I have to remember to leave all handy work to Caryn. On Erev Succot (the day before the holiday of Succot), I went with Jonny, my nephew Itiel, and Ilan to Yerushalayim ( Jerusalem ) to by Arba Minim (4 species that you need to own on Succot, See Leviticus CH 23). We went to Machaneh Yehuda, which is a huge open air market. It was lot of fun, and we got a whole set for NIS 35(about $9).

The first day of Succot, we went to Jonny and Diane’s again, which was really nice. I also davened by them and I inadvertently got a really good nap during the reading of Kohellet (Ecclesiastes). Since there is only one day of Yom Tov (days which we are forbidden to do work), we did not actually bring the Arba Minim on Yom Tov, which was quite weird. On Sunday, we went on a hike up the mountain behind were Jonny lives to the Monestary, Bet Gemal. We had done that nine years ago, and there was ice cream at the top of the mountain in the monestary, so the kids were expecting it. All of my kids went, and Jonny, Avidan, Amalya and Shai-El went. It was a fun hike, although there was a fair amount of whining on the way up, although most of it was not from my kids. Ilan loved hiking. Unfortunately, when we got to the top, it seemed deserted, so the ice cream place was not open. After sulking for about 15 minutes, someone came and opened up the ice cream place, so everything worked out.

On Monday, we rented a car and went to the beach on Rishon Lezion with Avidan. We had a great time and we got to see the sun set over Mediterranean , which was beautiful. After the beach, we went to the mal in Mevaserret Zion to eat at the kosher Mcdonalds. The kids all got ahppy meals and there was a succa outside for us to eat out, which also had a beautiful view of the hills outside of Yerushalayim. We enjoyed the meal, but I think the whole concept of McDonalds being cheap is lost on Israelis, as the meal was not cheap by any standards.

On Teusday, we went on a Tiyul (trip) with my bother and his whole family. We went to some caves in Gush Etzion, that you can hike in water, but it was freezing, so we decided not go in once we got there. Freezing by the way, was in the sixties. We decided instead to go to Herodian, which is a mountain fortress where king Herod built a castle inside the mountain. The inside of the mountain was really cool, but the outside was ridiculously windy. That site got mixed reviews. We then went to pizza in Efrat, which was great, as you can tell this pizza was clearly made by Americans, which is the first time we had good old fashion American pizza. We then went to a sandal factory, and then home.

On Wednesday, we took a bus to Yerushalayim ( Jerusalem ) to see Rabbi Zimand and Esther. We had a wonderful afternoon with them, and we found this great playground in Gan Hapa’amon, which the kids really enjoyed. It was wonderful top see them and catch up. The Zimands took us to dinner, which is always a challenge with the kids. Fortunately, the restaurant was empty, so that helped. It was quite a tasty dinner, and we had a great day with the Zimands.

On Thursday we went to a farm just outside of Beit Shemesh. We stayed there for three hours, and the kids had a great time. We also got cotton candy, so me and Gali were happy. The rest of the day we went home and relaxed, as it was an exhausting week.

On Friday, I woke up at 4AM , and went to the Kotel (Western Wall), with Jonny, Avidan and Itiel. It was a unique experience and it was very cool to see the sunrise over the Kotel. There was also tons of Minyanim (prayer services of 10 men or more), so it was really cool to see and hear everybody daving at the same time. We were near a Carlebach minyan, so we got our own nice quick davening, while being able to listen to a loud long Carelbach davening. They were hopping and dancing around like crazy and one of them had like a 6 or 7 foot lulav. Jonny then treated us to American bagels, which was also really good. On Friday afternoon, Jonny, Itiel and Shai-El, took me Ilan, Gali, and Tiki to some caves. They enjoyed it, but I am little to old and big for these caves, so it was quite a challenge.

Shmini Atzeret /Simchat Torah was a lot of fun. Ilan and Gali went with me to shul, and got lots of candy. The services Saturday morning took forever, actually longer then Rosh HaShana. We got invited over to another person’s house who is also in Caryn’s class. They have a really nice house, and we had a nice time. The kids were also reasonably behaved.

This week, we are back to regular life. Gali got sick and missed two days of school, which she was quite happy about. We are getting ready for Shabbat, and even though we have all day to get ready, things are still hectic. I hope everyone is well.

Kol Tuv (all the best),
Zumi

September 18, 2009 Update

2009-12-03T22:54:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone,

I would like to wish everyone a happy and healthy new year, a Shana Tova U'metukah. If you are not Jewish, then hold on this e-mail until December 31st. We have been in Israel for a little over 3 weeks now, and are starting to settle in. Before we left America, we had very nice visits in Memphis and New York. Our flight was ok, although Gali and I did not sleep at all. The Star Trek Movie was on, so I was happy about that. The day before I left, I found out that the Israeli Government has a record of me living in the country as a baby, so I may not be considered a new immigrant, but a returning minor. If that is the case, I would lose some of my new immigrant benefits. At the moment, it is still to be determined by the ministry of absorbtion. Besides that, we had no other major surprizes. We arrived in Israel a little after 8 AM on Wednesday August 26th. We had some processing to got hrough at the airport, and by the time everything was done, we got back to our townhouse at about 1 PM. We were all exhausted, but we managed to survive the first day. THe next day, the kids got to see their cousins and Aunt and Uncle, so that was exciting for them. We had a very nice first Shabbat with Jonny and Diane. It was a very special and meaningful Shabbat.

The kids started school the following Teusday. Ilan is adjusting better than Gali, but after the first week, they went to school without any major hysterics. Caryn and I started Ulpan (Hebrew Language class), and we even found a neighbor who drives us back and forth each day. We are slowly getting used to life here, and little by little figuring things out. Some things we just ask Jonny and Diane to translate, like when the kids bring home something from school. Overall, we see a lot of potential here, and after a few months, I think we will all be very happy here.

I hope all of you are well. I'll try to send an update a t least one a month.

Kol Tuv (all the best),
Zumi (which by the way is now my official first name)