I splurged on blueberries this week because it feels like summer and to me, that means cobbler

This week felt really long. Sunday was our last day of frenzied cleaning. I succeeded in slicing my finger open on the glass window panes in the bathroom (and not even the one that I dropped and shattered all over the floor!) and then went through a long spout of cursing when I picked up something that was covered with some mysterious cleaning solution that made my hand burn like hell. Luckily, it all got washed off during my water fight with Boris and Chezi. Chezi's method of cleaning the bathroom is: 

1) cover everything with soap and mysterious burning chemical. 

2) Scrub the walls with a broom and everything else with the toilet brush (ew). 

3) Pour water all over everything. 

4) Squeegee it out.

Boris unfortunatly got on the wrong side of Chezi, and as I know whose side to take in these things, I got on the right side of Chezi and together we drenched Boris. 

Anyway, after all that balagan (craziness), we finally had our visit from the Base Commander on Monday. He walked into each room, gave a cursory glance, and walked out again while we were left standing with our mouths hanging open and our bandaged wounds. He did however, stop and chat with everyone, ask their complaints etc. There was an awkward moment where he asked me what I do and I turned to my commander for help, despite the seeming simplicity of this answer. My commander, and his commander (who I met a few weeks ago) both launched into the ridiculous story that is my life and assured their commander that they were taking care of it. They all agreed that my Hebrew is perfectly fine and have apparently come up with a plan to let me teach. 

The higher forces have decided that I am going to teach Level 3 english to the salaried officers on base. They have even agreed to send me to a teaching course, just not the english teaching course, because we still cant tell them that I am teaching english. In the meantime I am supposed to be working on a lesson plan for a level of english that no one but the head of the english teaching department teaches. So after perusing the Job Guides and picking out all the hardest words (apparently a clevis is U-shaped or forked metal connector within which another part can be fastened by means of a bolt or pin passing through the ends of the connector), going through Level 1 and Level 2 to try to figure out the differences, I finally convinced Lihi to go into the database and print up the Level 3 Master Workbook which she is not supposed to have access to. Oh, and they have also told me that the way everyone else teaches english is boring so I should figure out some ways to make it more exciting. And that all of my students, though they are supposed to be ready for Level 3, probably wont be. So Im kind of nervous about this whole thing and not as excited about getting a job as I was hoping to be. 

In other news, I had a very nice week of non-army things. I started running home from the Central Bus Station which is nice because the weather is awesome and because my body is becoming restless with unexpressed emotion. It is not so nice because I have to do it with a backpack and I cant get my headphones to stay in my ears, but I'll figure something out. I also went to a shiur (class) this week with my chavruta, Ophra and my friend Avital. It was given by this young British guy and we delved into the different sides of the Akeida (the sacrifice of Isaac). We went through traditional sources and then he brought in Kierkgaard and Elie Wiesel and there were lots of opinions as to what our forefathers were thinking and feeling and how this even affected their relationships with each other and with Hashem. It was really interesting and we have decided to go next month as well.

Okay this is now getting as long as my week felt, so Im going to say Shabbat Shalom and wish you all a wonderful week!

Some thoughts that Im sure will piss off my brother

My dad and uncle have been having a conversation about some recent issues in orthodox judaism and invited me to add my two cents. As it was a topic about women, I of course got riled up and have decided to share it with all of you as well:

It started with this article:

Avi Weiss: No more rabbas

By Ami Eden · March 5, 2010

Rabbi Avi Weiss sparked plenty of controversy with his announcement in January that his student Sara Hurwitz would now be known as rabba -- a feminized version of rabbi, replacing her previous title of “maharat.” He declared in a statement that the name change “makes it clear that Sara Hurwitz is a full member of our rabbinic staff” at the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, a Modern Orthodox synagogue in the Bronx where he is the spiritual leader.

The Agudath Israel of America declared that by taking such a step and insisting it was tantamount to rabbic ordination, Weiss had placed himself outside the bounds of Orthodoxy. More importantly -- at least from the perspective of Weiss and the students at his Yeshivat Chovevei Torah rabbinical school -- The New York Jewish Week recently reported that the Rabbinical Council of America was considering expelling Weiss.

Our sources say such a step was never under consideration -- though some were pushing for a clear declaration that Weiss had crossed the line.

Either way, the RCA and Weiss have reached an agreement of sorts. Weiss will not be handing out the title to anyone else. And, we're hearing, it's not even clear if Hurwitz will keep the title (or if Weiss will continue to insist that she is essentially a woman rabbi). The buzz is that he will address the issue this Shabbos.

Here's the coordinated statements that they are releasing today (with an intro from two important RCA members):

Please see the statements below, which are the result of quiet efforts over the past few weeks, as approved by the RCA Officers.

They will be shared shortly with the RCA membership, and thereafter with the media.

These statements represent a first major step in bringing this matter to closure in a fashion which avoids a damaging battle in the public arena.

We expect continued discussion to resolve other outstanding issues.


Moshe Kletenik and Shmuel Goldin
________________

Over the course of the last several weeks, at the request and initiative of Rabbi Avi Weiss, the leadership of Rabbinical Council of America and Rabbi Avi Weiss have engaged in discussions concerning the issue of ordaining women as rabbis. We are gratified that during the course of these conversations Rabbi Weiss concluded that neither he nor Yeshivat Maharat would ordain women as rabbis and that Yeshivat Maharat will not confer the title of “Rabba” on graduates of their program.

We are delighted that we have been able to resolve this matter in adherence with Torah principles and in a spirit of cooperation for the sake of peace and unity within our community. We are confident that continued dialogue of this type will enable us to resolve other important issues facing the Jewish community today.

The RCA reaffirms its commitment to women's Torah education and scholarship at the highest levels, and to the assumption of appropriate leadership roles within the Jewish community. We strongly maintain that any innovations that impact the community as a whole should be done only with the broad support of the Orthodox rabbinate and a firm grounding in the eternal mesorah of the Jewish people.

______________

Letter from Rabbi Avi Weiss to RCA President Rabbi Moshe Kletenik

Dear Rabbi Kletenik,

This has been a most challenging time. The change in title from “Maharat” to “Rabba” has precipitated a level of controversy in the Orthodox community that was neither expected nor intended.  In light of the tension caused to our greater community and my commitment to the principle of gadol hashalom, I share the following:

It is not my intention or the intention of Yeshivat Maharat to confer the title of “Rabba” upon its graduates.  Yeshivat Maharat prepares women for positions of religious leadership in the Orthodox community. Each student who completes its course of study in Tanakh, Talmud, Halakha and Jewish Thought, and is deemed fit by her faith, knowledge of our Mesoret, ethical integrity and temperament to assume positions of religious leadership in Orthodox institutions will be confirmed as manhigah hilkhatit, ruhanit, toranit (Maharat).

They will have been prepared to provide varied forms of communal and synagogue leadership in accordance with halakha.  They will also have been trained in pastoral counseling, as well as having the ability to answer questions of halakha to those who seek them out, as has been recognized and well established in both classical and contemporary halakhic sources.

I hope that good will emerge from all of this, and that some of the meaningful conversation and communication that has taken place these past few weeks between myself and yourself as the President of the Rabbinical Council of America, might continue.  I thank you for your candor and your receptiveness.

In the prayer that we all continue to work for the betterment of Am Yisrael--

Biydidut,

Avi

 And I then added in my two cents:

The Maharat program is one of the first to train women to be religious leaders. He came up with the term Maharat because he knew what a ruckus it would cause to say these women are rabbis. But the truth is, they are receiving much of the same training and in my opinion its about freaking time. 

Ten years ago, Nishmat (the seminary I went to in Jerusalem) started a Yoetzet Halacha program. It is a program especially designed to train women in issues of family purity. Rabbanit Heinken (the title is due to the fact that she is married to a Rabbi), saw that there was a need for a female authority on the matter as so many women felt uncomfortable asking male Rabbis halachic questions about their periods, birth control, and the issues of niddah. It is a four year program that trains women to answer halachic questions on the matter, although they still do not say that they can posken without checking with a Rabbi. These women go on to be leaders in communities or help with a hotline that Nishmat has started to answer questions about family purity. It is a step towards making female religious leaders, but as Rabbanit Heinken continuously insists, she is not trying to make female rabbis (check out this [abridged bc jpost archives suck] article for more-http://www.jpost.com/Cooperations/Archives/ ).

The Maharat program was created to expand these same ideas. There is a need for female religious leaders. In a world where orthodox women are becoming more learned and more active in their communities it is not only unfair, but unpractical that there be no leadership roles for them to fill. Classically, the female leader in a community was the Rabbi's wife, but how can that woman be more qualified than one trained for this very purpose? There are many issues that women face in Judaism that they may not feel comfortable discussing with a male Rabbi and issues that men simply may not understand.

I was just debating this with my roommate, and we think one of the big issues here is fear of innovation, or rather the best way to do it. Over the course of history halacha has had to adapt to new ideas and new ways of thinking and I think we are facing one of those moments again. Feminism and human rights have changed the world we live in and I think the orthodox world is having trouble adapting. Judaism is so fractured and so afraid that change is not welcomed but shunned. Orthodoxy refuses to discuss female rabbis because they dont want to get too close to Conservative Judaism. Programs like Nishmat's are creating change but very slowly and making sure to get "permission" for each slow step they make. They have to continuously declare that they are not making rabbis and even then they are not widely accepted. Rabbi Weiss and Sara Hurwitz are ready for bigger changes, and so are alot of women in Orthodoxy. But how far to push the envelope? Rabbi Weiss is dangerously close to being expelled, and once out of the Orthodox fold he will no longer be an innovative Orthodox rabbi, he will be disgraced and dismissed, as will his ideas and his students. We do need to keep a greater peace, and as the RCA states changes this big can only be made with the support of the greater orthodox community. 

The truth is, this is a real and present issue, and it is only through actions like this that the orthodox community begins to look at itself and discuss. Because, really, why not? Why cant we have female religious leaders? Why cant the women in our religion have someone they can turn to for guidance? We have already established time and again that women are as capable as men, can learn just as well. So why cant they lead?

Israelis think "hamantaschen" is a really funny word

Hey all! Sorry Im late this week, as has become so customary in my life, I went on a random adventure Friday morning, ended up changing my Shabbat plans around noon, and then had to pack and get out of my house before I had time to write an email. But we'll get back to that.

This week was awesome. Mainly, because it started with Purim, but there were other highlights as well. I spent Shabbat with my brother-in-law's mother's best friend who lives right outside Jerusalem proper. I went with my roommate and friend and had a really nice (though very wet and hail-y) shabbat. We then had to hurry back to Jerusalem Saturday night so we wouldnt have to keep two Purims. The way Purim works is that there is Purim proper, which is celebrated by most of the world, and then the next day is Shushan Purim, which is only celebrated by those who live within a walled city (like Jerusalem). If I had wanted to, I could have kept two Purims, all you have to do is sleep outside of Jerusalem the first night and then inside Jerusalem the second night. But that also means you have to do everything twice and I didnt have the strength for that. Also, when I tried to keep two days last year I got a little bit too drunk and didnt make it back to Jerusalem for Shushan Purim. So Sunday I sat at home and prepared Mishloach Manot (food packages for friends- one of the awesomer parts of Purim) and hid in my house all day as it was hailing again. It felt weird to not be keeping Purim at the same time as everyone else, but that night our Jerusalem festivities began. I went to hear Megillah (the story of Esther- which we must hear twice on Purim) at a neighbors with some friends, and then entertained a train of friends that came by my apartment allowing me to socialize without dealing with the weather :) I even got serenaded by some Fine-Skverskys.

Monday morning, my roommate Mia hosted a women's Megillah reading in our apartment. We had about 15 women over and four different readers. My friend Shira even did voices! It was a big success and it was really nice to get to hear my friends read. I really want to learn how to do it myself, so heres to hoping I get around to learning how by next year! Anyways, we then kicked everyone out of our apartment and started cleaning and cooking for the Seudah (festive meal) we were hosting that afternoon. We were expecting about 25 people, and in typical Jewish-mother fashion, I was terrified we wouldnt have enough food and made everyone double everything. We are still trying to finish the leftovers. The meal was awesome, lots of food, lots of wine, and lots of friends :) I marbimed b'simcha (was really happy) all evening and fell asleep with a smile on my face.

Tuesday morning I reported back to the army (a little late as I misplaced my ID in the wreck of our post-seudah apartment) and was immediately put to work, which for me, is especially exciting. We have an inspection this coming Monday, and spent the entire week tearing apart our building and cleaning EVERYTHING. I mean we took the windows out and cleaned the runners, we emptied every closet, desk and drawer, I uncovered piles and piles of dust, vacuumed every chair in the building, removed and cleaned four rooms worth of windows and painted two hallways and a storage closet. I thought our apartment was a mess when I came home Tuesday night and saw how much we had to clean up, but by Thursday our entire building looked like it had been turned inside out and covered with dust and dirt. We all stayed late Thursday night trying to put everything back in its (now clean) place. In typical Israeli mopping fashion, there was a giant lake of dirt and trash in the hallway we then had to shovel and squeegee out the back. When I finally got home at about 8pm my hands were red and filthy, my back was sore, and my feet were killing me. But at least I was busy all week. And, since we were all doing it together, and I work with a bunch of five-year olds, our hard worked was interspersed with alot of water fights and fake poop pranks. (Thank god I have years of dog-pooping-on-floor experience and can spot a fake poop from a mile away).

Friday I headed up north with my adopted family for their son Shlomo's army ceremony. He is a paratrooper and has just finished his like, 9 months of training. (I swear that kid is in a whole different army then the one I serve in). Anyway, it was great to see him, we all beamed at his new pin, and I ended up going back to Efrat with them for Shabbat. As always, it was fun and comfortable and filled with delicious food.

Anyway, its back to work early tomorrow morning, so until next week, (feel free to respond in the interim)

Shavua Tov!!

Love, Kfi

Ah, how the army loves to send me home

So, as I told you last week, we had an exercise on my base this week and were all told that we would be sleeping on base all week. In preparation for this I spent Saturday night packing, making cookies with my friend Dov, and then going out and staying up way too late. I lugged my big bag to base (which was mostly full of bedding) and tried to mentally prepare myself for five solid days with the underwear kids. Well first thing I found out was that Roi (with the red undies) was sick and going to be out all week. This is kind of a bummer because he is one of the funnier guys and kind of relaxes everyone. Almog (who likes to dance in his underwear) had class that night so he also would not be sleeping there, and Lihi (the other english teacher) and I were beginning to worry that it would be just the two of us and Boris. 

Luckily, our commander came in at around 5 and told us that the two of us could go home for the night and would spend the rest of the week on base. 

Well, this luck continued through the rest of the week and I ended up not spending a single night on base. Which just improved an already good week. The good part about being in the middle of an exercise was that, aside from the occasional alarm that sent us into the bomb shelter (which is also my office), nobody really had much to do this week. Lihi was bored out of her mind and couldnt understand how I do this every day. Boris slowly grew creepier as the week went on and kept walking into whatever room I would be sitting in and winking at me. Chezi (one of the older religious officers) spent the week playing Adar pranks on Shimon (another older religious officer), which got Ofer started, and he kept walking into rooms and making his phone play a farting noise. For grown men, they all have the sense of humor of five year old boys.

Aside from all that, we just spent alot of time talking. I learned all about Lupo's stepdaughter, Shimon gave us a long lecture on why kosher meat is healthier, and Shachaf and I had a long debate about belief in God and religion. We discussed homosexuality in Judaism, the crappy food in the cafeteria, and college drinking habits. 

We also finally undertook the video project they have been talking about for months and four of us headed out to the F-16 hangar and filmed a short movie about the importance of technicians following their instructions precisely. Lihi starred as our airheaded technician and I got to play with the videocamera. And I got to touch the airplanes, which just always makes me happy. 

There was also alot of talk about my non-jobness, and by the end of the week the whole office had sort of pulled together to make me a job. Its stuff we have been talking about for awhile, but they are going to train me to be a teacher and then they are going to help me make up a syllabus to help older officers improve their english. I will still be teaching in hebrew, but they are going to start me with small classes and we'll mainly be working on word review.

It is not really what I wanted to be doing, but at this point I know I am not going to be switched anywhere, and as Lupo told me, there are not many places in the army like our office. The environment their is pretty unique and we have a really good group of people that I have become friends with. Plus, I have gotten pretty used to coming home every day, I like my base, and I am branching out and making more friends there. So the army is not what I expected and sometimes it is a challenge to see that this isn't quite what I wanted. But I know it is helping me in so many ways, in my hebrew, in my understanding of Israelis, and in my understanding of myself. I am more confident, more assertive, and I am more ready. I am ready to choose a career, I am ready to find a school, and I am no longer scared of changing, and of putting myself out there, and of taking control of things myself.

Anyway, I have a super long weekend ahead of me, as they gave me off for Purim on Sunday, and then I took off for Shushan Purim on Monday. My roommate has planned a women's megillah reading in our apartment for Monday morning, and then we are having about 20 people over for a big festive meal that afternoon. We have to do a ton of cooking and Im a little worried we wont have enough chairs, but Im really excited to have all my friends over eating and drinking and looking ridiculous. I love Purim! I hope you all have a great one and please send me pictures of your costumes!!

Shabbat Shalom and Chag Sameach!!!

My legs are sore from drawing smilies all over the streets of Jlem

Keeping it short and sweet this week. In a burst of unprecedented energy, I called the last of my army contacts, wrote a four page letter (in hebrew!) to the Base Commander, and even managed to get a meeting with the commander right under him. He's an incredibly busy man, but very nice, and took 15 minutes to hear about my "situation" (we had a meeting for a half hour, but he was on the phone for a good portion of it). Anyway he has promised me I will have a job within the next two weeks. Still a little unclear what that job will be, but he seems to really want me to be an english teacher, as they were without one for about 6 months and have alot of catch-up to do.

In order to sort of prep for this, I have been sitting in on the english class, learning all the hebrew and watching how Lihi (the real teacher) teaches. On Wednesday Lihi actually forced me to the front of the class and made me teach for an hour. It was mainly reviewing words and then translating text. The first part was fine, as I had a list, and aside from a few mispronunciations I did okay. Translating the text was harder, as I wasnt entirely sure whether they were getting it right. I can get all the words down but I havent quite gotten the hang of the tenses so I wont notice if they say "hold" instead of "tighten" as it is the same root in hebrew (le'hachzik or lechazek). But it was good to just get up there and do it. I do think now that if they give mea  curriculum, this is something I could do. I might not be great at first, but I think I would get the hang of it. And while it isnt what I originally wanted, it would mean I could stay on my base and in my office which would be really nice. I dont think I want to have to start all over again somewhere else. 

Anyway, we'll see what happens. I am closed (sleeping on) base next week as were having some sort of exercise. Im a little nervous about spending a solid week living with the underwear boys, but it should be fun. Hopefully theyll behave themselves. Ill let you all know how it goes next week!

Oh, and I almost forgot- HAPPY ADAR!!! Some friends and I went out Sunday night to carry on a UMD tradition of chalking the streets in celebration of the new month. We were joined by a buttload of Israelis and had a wonderful night. I attached some pics. מי שנכנס אדר מרבים בשמחה!!

This week wreaked havoc on my mood ring

I have a confession. Nothing exciting happened to me this week. I dont even have one good story that I can expand upon for a few paragraphs to fill the page. But, I dont want to disappoint my adoring fans (thats you), so I am bringing back the good old days of random lists. And to make it more fun. I am color coding

Good things that happened to me this week are this color

Bad things that happened to me this week are this color

As-yet-undetermined-whether-good-or-bad things that happened to me this week are this color.

• I got to talk to my parents, my brothers, and a few friends in America because they were all stuck home in the snow and had nothing better to do.
• There was no snow in Jerusalem. In fact, by the end of the week, it was quite hot outside.
• Boris caused an unnecessary amount of teenage drama in my office and pulled me down with it, so I had to spend way too long trying to extricate myself from them mess he made.
• I then yelled at him alot. 
• Which meant I got to practice my Hebrew. 
• The girls in synagogue are multiplying. On Thursday, Lihi, the english teacher I work with, joined Chen and I at Mincha.
• As a result, they actually made an announcement in synagogue about getting the shiur (class) to end early and get out of the women's section on time.
• I had a religious man on base ask me to please stop causing a ruckus in synagogue
• I hung out with a friend from the army out-of-base. Motti, my bus friend, joined me and Avital when we went to see Avatar (which, actually was pretty awesome).
• The adorable soldier that works with the Rabbi (Ariel) very excitedly presented me with a book "for women" that he found in the synagogue.
• This book "for women" was all about modesty- to the extreme. It included things like 

1. Women shouldnt wear red.
2. Men should not look at women, talk to women, walk between two women, or ask them how they are doing.
3. Women should NEVER under ANY circumstance, join the army.

• Ariel and I are going to have a chat next week about the literature he decides to give to women. Especially since the ones that come with me are not religious and could not tell the difference between legitimate halacha and this crap.
• I was told that my job options extend to secretary or canteen worker. The reliability of this information has yet to be determined. Still upset me alot.
• Being upset led me to painting, which I hadnt done in too long.
• I took a mental health day and went to Walla-je with a group where I met a Palestinian farmer and learned alot about the other side of the "conflict", as everyone calls it. I also learned alot about Arab life. Said, one of the farmers I met, continuously said things that reminded me of Sephardi men. He showed the same sort of shocked-awe as all the men in my base's synagogue when I went and prayed. 
• I heard quite a few stories about army-brutality. I have heard these before from leftists and even from former soldiers, but it is something else entirely to hear it from the man who was stripped down to his underwear, tied to a tree, and beaten with a stick.
• Not only did getting to this farm involve hiking through this beautiful country, but Said and Ahmed were really nice, made excellent tea, expressed a love of this land that I can definitely relate to, and most importantly at the time, took my mind off of my personal problems and reminded me of the greater dilemmas our world is facing. And through all that, they still extended a hand of friendship and kindness towards us.

My feelings towards men this week: quite warm. Unlike the weather.

So I still dont have a job, but I have  been getting called back by alot of my friends and friends friends with supposed interest in switching me into their units. Stay tuned for further progress.

In the meantime, I am trying to make the most of my time where I am. I am attacking this problem on three fronts. First, I have been bringing my Hebrew textbooks to work with me and trying to do at least an hour of grammar work. I have also been reading my way through alot of Jewish philosophy/thought books and trying to learn in all the spare time I have. 

Secondly, I have been making an effort to hang out and chat with more people. Chen, a girl I met on one of the other bases has just been switched to mine, so I have been eating lunch with her and meeting alot of the people that she works with as well. I also made friends with Motti who takes the same bus as me every day. Motti is 24 and married with a kid. He lives in Beitar, and is ex-chareidi (ultra-orthodox). His parents are both American so he speaks excellent english which makes it much easier to become friends with him. We talk alot about being older than everyone else and not quite fitting into other people's definition of "religious". Which brings me to number three.

My experiences with being religious in the army have been somewhat varied. The Israeli Army amazingly functions in a way that all observant Jews can be a part of it quite easily. The food is all kosher, they do not require you to do anything that will break Shabbat (unless you are in a fighting unit, in which case it is okay anyway), the uniforms are designed in accordance with the laws of modesty, and they are required by law to give you time to pray. All of these arrangements were made for the religious men that wanted to serve. There are many units of all religious men, even some ultra-orthodox units. Every base has a synagogue and a Rabbi and they hold services three times a day as well as various classes/shiurim throughout the day. This all makes it very easy to be a religious man in the army.

It is a little different for religious women. We can, of course, request a skirt if we want one, and all the synagogues have some sort of women's section for us to pray. But most religious women in Israel elect to do national service (work in schools and hospitals etc) instead of joining the army. Those that do join the army are in varying levels of observance and few, if not none of them pray in the synagogue every day. Because of this, on pretty much every base I have been in, the women's section of the synagogue tends to be small, unkempt, and frequently filled with men.

In Haifa they merely used the women's section to sleep, but on my base here, the visiting Rabbi's use it to hold shiurim (Torah or Talmud classes). The first two times I went to pray there I had to ask men to leave and the third time I went, they told me they were in the middle and I would have to talk to the Rabbi and find somewhere else to pray. Well this kind of pissed me off. I understand the importance of learning Torah, and I even get that there were more of them that needed to use that room then women that wanted to pray. And Im relatively sure I was the first woman to show up in synagogue in years, given the looks I was given when I walked in. But every synagogue should be open to anyone that comes in and wants to pray, regardless of gender.

Well this week, I finally managed to show up in time for Mincha, the afternoon prayer. (My office is on the other side of base, and I had just been praying on my own in one of the empty offices). When I showed up on Sunday, there was a shiur in session and they asked me to wait. They came out after the men had already started the service and I had to hurry to catch up with them. This also meant that I was left standing outside the woman's section (and incidentally in the men's section) while the men were praying. Well this was still going on by Tuesday, and I was getting kind of annoyed as I figured they should have gotten used to me showing up by now. But, in defense of the Orthodox men, apparently I wasnt the only one that thought this situation was less than okay. I had four or five different men tell me that they had spoken to the Rabbi about it and by Wednesday, the men were clearing out on time.

I started the week annoyed with men for not understanding that women also have an obligation to pray. And, to be honest, I was annoyed with everyone for thinking Im not religious just because I wear pants. But by the end of the week, I was really impressed with how so many of the men went out of their way to try to make me comfortable there, and, well congratulated me (for lack of a better word) for showing up to pray. So then I started to get annoyed at religious women for their absence from synagogue and what that says about us. I understand that the synagogue is a very male-oriented place, but that is never going to change unless those of us strong enough to brave the looks show up and make it our place too.

By the end of the week, I not only had the men used to my presence, but my friend Chen was coming to Mincha with me, despite the fact that she is not religious.

All in all, it made me feel quite accomplished this week. While I may not be making a clear and definable difference, I feel like the time I am spending here is having a positive effect, on myself and others.

As a final note. I am cold. No, we dont have the like 3 feet of snow forecasted for all you east-coasters, but I have fully acclimated to living in the Middle East and these almost freezing temperatures are too low for me.