Beg, Borrow Or Steal

Two longstanding budget problems were resolved today that impact my life, and as usual I'll weigh in on each. First of all, the senior university faculty here in Israel ended their 90 day strike, reaching an agreement with the government that will provide 16.8% compensation for salary erosion due to inflation over the past decade. The compromise was drafted by the head of Israel's uber powerful Histadrut labor union. Needless to say, I am relieved that the academic year will not be canceled, as that would have had catastrophic effects on the country in the following years. As it stands, the beginning of next fall's semester will likely need to be pushed back to accommodate the start of the semester at a time when it was supposed to be ending. Nor will there be a break between the semesters to come. However, a greater disaster has been averted.

Meanwhile back home in Chicago, the RTA will receive the money necessary to avoid the so called "doomsday scenario", which would have involved huge fare increases, service cuts and layoffs. That would have meant job loss all over the city, and it would have been a death knell for public transportation in Chicago. I am something of an advocate for public transit, and I don't really think the bill goes far enough in addressing the problems. It doesn't provide any money for capital projects, so maintenance and development will continue to sit on the back burner. Even so, service cuts will not go into effect, which was crucial for the health of the city.

Attempted Suicide

Er.... Sort of. Actually, I wanted to take this time to tell you about my adopted cat. For those who don't know, I am allergic to cats. Very allergic. Some might say "deathly" allergic to cats. So it doesn't really seem like sound policy that I should have a cat. Allow me to explain: This cat chose me. It is a small (but growing) stray kitten which lives on my floor in the area of my dorm. It is very shy around most people, but for some reason took a shine to me early on. He follows me around, mewing, looking to be petted and played with. I didn't at first, but I do love animals, and eventually I broke and started to play with him a little when I saw him.

Me and my kitten. Should I name him?

For those of you who would worry about these things, know that every time I do stop to play with the kitten, I immediately wash my hands and change out of any clothing he may have come into contact with. I'm not stupid. I even took a benadryl this afternoon after taking these photos, just in case. I do pity the poor thing. It is still bitterly cold outside and he doesn't get the chance to come inside to warm up like I do. I took some of my older, rattier undershirts and made a little bed out front for him. I think I will get a small box to put them in, as it would be warmer than lying on the stone, and it would provide some wind protection. I am such a sucker for pets.

He is playful and energetic. Reminds me of Sparky when he was a puppy.

I guess he is more interested in me than in the camera.

Boy this is not a good idea.

Poker Night

My buddy Omri recently got a nice set of poker chips, and last night we broke it out for an evening of Texas Hold 'Em. Partly because I don't like to gamble (as many of my friends back home already know), and partly because I had to teach the game to more than half the people at the table, we decided no money would exchange hands.

Learning the game.

Omri and I knew poker the best coming in, but I had an additional challenge. Being the only non Israeli at the table, I quickly had to learn poker table talk in Hebrew. I picked up a handful of useful terms, like לערבב (to shuffle), קלפים (playing cards), נסיך (Jack), and that Israelis pronounce the game "Po-care." I was a little better at keeping up with the chatter unrelated to the game. We played two seperate games, going for about 3 hours. We had 8 people playing at one point, which made the game much more interesting.

Nimrod celebrates with his winnings.

I ended up heading home around 1 A.M. I won the first game outright, but went out pretty quickly the second time around, so I guess this just reinforces that I'm not good enough at gambling to make it a profession. Speaking of professional news, I am excited to tell you all that I have now been accepted to both the Loyola University Chicago and Depaul University law schools! I'm going to have some difficult decisions to make once I have heard back from all the schools I applied to.

Katja smiles while Omri grimaces.

Today is a "get back to work" kind of day for me. Yesterday afternoon I got the books I needed to research my final paper for "Arab-Israeli Relations." Today I need to begin culling all that information so I can put it into print. I also did two full loads of laundry, I had lunch with Menachem, I'm going to the gym this afternoon, and I've got my cooking club as usual this evening. For those of you who know Menachem, he is smiling and feeling more comfortable after have dental implants put in last week. Send him an email or something to wish him well!

Record Lows

We are in the teeth of a cold snap in Israel that has many of my Israeli friends remarking that they "can't remember a time when it was this cold here." Surprise! I guess the joke is on me - I was under the impression that I wouldn't have to put up with a real winter this year. The temperature has routinely dropped into the thirties at night up at the university. Tonight will be no different. Thank God I'm in Haifa too, as it is colder elsewhere. Safed had a frost last night, while it fell to around 16 degrees fahrenheit at the Hermon mountain in the very northern part of the Golan Heights last night.

Of course the weather won't keep me indoors. I went out to a pub last night with Omri to watch the Maccabi Haifa - Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer match, which Haifa won handily, 3-1. This morning I got up and went to the market to buy some produce. I must say, the shuk is a different place on Monday than it is on Friday. It was so much less crowded than I'm used to, so things went quicker and the service was better. Plus, with no one pressing up against you in a crowd, you don't worry about being pick pocketed the whole time.

Because it's been a while, I'd like to give a quick update regarding two important political processes ongoing in Israel right now. First, the faculty strike at the universities continued through its 85th day today, after an attempt by the university Presidents to garner a court injunction against the professors forcing them to break the strike failed. This leaves few options to prevent the cancellation of the semester. In fact, the Presidents had promised to cancel the semester, and possibly the whole academic year today if the courts did not force the faculty back to work. They have since backtracked from that, but I'm betting it's only a few days before they reach the inescapable conclusion that this semester is irreparably damaged and needs to be canceled. The exams for these classes would have been held next week, had the semester begun on time.

Also in the news, Israel and the Palestinian Authority began "Final Status" negotiations this morning at a Jerusalem hotel. For those unfamiliar with the concept, I will give a brief explanation: Final Status negotiations are intended to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, create a Palestinian state on land currently occupied by Israel, and guarantee Israel's security. Personally, I think this is a terrible decision that will eventually lead to more violence. There are a host of reasons why the time is not ripe for these negotiations, but perhaps most important is that the Palestinian Authority has no control over what happens in the Gaza Strip, which is envisioned as an inseperable part of a future Palestine. Israel cannot and will not negotiate with Hamas, the terrorist organization that controls the territory, so Gaza would not truly be included even if a peace treaty was signed by the two parties. I hope I'm wrong, but I am certain that these discussions are doomed to fail.

Exciting News On A Droll Day

Not much happening today, as the campus is pretty much deserted. I'd like to go out tonight, but I don't know with whom. In the meantime, I have some very exciting news: Last night my parents called to tell me that I have been accepted to the UW - Madison Law School for the Fall 2008 semester! Now I have an option for next year. Of course I still look forward to hearing from the other schools I applied to. More updates on that to come.

Shut Out

Today is the Islamic New Year, called Muharram. I certainly wish I had known about that two days ago, as I could have avoided a whole lot of crap. As you all know, my trip to Jordan was supposed to begin this morning at the Arava Desert border crossing between Eilat and Aqaba, Jordan. I am still in Israel, back in Haifa in fact.

Lina can barely contain her enthusiasm for Jordan.

We were cold but excited when we arrived to Eilat this morning. Our bus got in around 5:15 in the morning after driving all night. I must have slept because I don't remember any of the desert on the way down, but it wasn't good sleep. Even so, everyone was ready to roll, so we started walking. Unfortunately, we didn't exactly know where to go either. After about 45 minutes of walking (where we nearly walked onto an army base), we hailed cabs to take us to the border crossing. At the time I was thrilled, because the ride was cheap and crossing is way outside the city, and not an easy walk on a cold, windy day. The cabs took off and we made for the closed crossing, assuming it just hadn't opened for the day yet. Then I read this:


I think I had to read it three times to truly take it in. The first time, I was simply confused and nonplussed, while the second time through I think I didn't comprehend what it meant because I didn't want to. However, on yet another inspection, the message was completely fucking clear. Nowhere was this printed, announced or advertised except on this small plaque hanging on the gates of the border crossing. The cabbies didn't know about it, and when we asked about the holiday at the information booth back in the city, they didn't know about it either. In fact, here is a link to the Israel Airports Authority website: There is no mention of it anywhere. We could not have planned for this if we tried.

We might have been stranded, but God damn it, this was a photo op!

The trek back to town was not fun. It was still before regular business hours so no one was really out, and we were plenty far removed from the city center, so no taxis to hail. We had to climb back over several steep hills and cut through an agricultural plant before finding the highway, and then climbed out of a ravine up to the road where we finally found a gas station to wait in until a cab came by. It was about as windy a morning as I can remember, the kind that just cuts through your clothing. We discussed sticking around in Eilat for the day and then going back tomorrow to head on to Petra, but if you can't be outside, there isn't much to do in Eilat. It is a resort city with nice beaches, and not a whole lot else. Besides, half of us had to be back in Israel by tomorrow morning anyway. We made the decision to come back north, on what would turn out to be a 7 hour bus ride. I suppose I will find this funny in a few days, but right now not so much.

Shit.

Government Disservices

Allow me to be forthcoming for a moment. The fact that I have not had a student visa up to this point has been mostly my fault, and I don't run from my own responsibility. I had the opportunity to handle it over the summer, but was preoccupied and didn't get it done. I should have been more pushy at the international office in October, when I asked for an appointment and they told me to come back in a month when they would be less busy. And there was that business two weeks ago while my family was visiting. For those who haven't already heard, I now feel comfortable telling the whole story.

Two Sunday's ago I had another appointment with the interior ministry, at 10:40 in the morning. As I was staying at my parents hotel in Mercaz HaCarmel, Richard and I simply hopped on the Carmelit in the morning and rode the train all the way downtown. Quick, easy and painless. I got to the office with my letter from the University and my passport photos and began to fill out the application. Soon after asking for my name, address, nationality etc... the form asked for my passport number. It was at this moment that I realized my passport was not with me, rather it was in my desk at my dorm room.

Richard and I raced out of there and hopped back on the subway, with my parents and Bubbie Ruth simultaneously getting in the car to come get us at the top. We had to hurry, the wonderful government offices closed at noon that day. We got back to the top by 11:10, and up to the university by 11:30. I really thought we were going to make it. Then we got stuck in a miserable (but not surprising) traffic jam on the coastal road around Haifa, and that was it. We got back to the ministry at 12:10, and they wouldn't even let me in the front door.

I had no intention of letting another episode like that happen this morning. I needed that visa today, for two reasons. For one, my tourist visa expires today. After that, I would have been in Israel illegally. Second of all, I needed to be able to leave and re-enter the country ASAP, as tomorrow morning I am crossing the border into Jordan for a few days touring. This will be my first time in an Arab country, so it should be an interesting experience. I'll be bringing my Arabic-English dictionary along of course.

In the end I got my visa, though it was no picnic. I arrived a half hour before the office I needed was scheduled to open - they made me and a dozen other people wait outside in the cold until 8 A.M. Once I got upstairs it was smooth sailing though. I sat down at the desk, had a curt interview in Hebrew with one of the employees, paid for the service, and 15 minutes later I was walking out the door with my brand new student visa! Now that I have it, it's time to explore outside Israel. I leave for the Eilat border crossing on the midnight bus from Haifa tonight, and should be in Petra by this time tomorrow. I'll hopefully have lots of pictures and stories forthcoming!