Holiday time

Well it’s been a few weeks since I've posted but I felt it’s time to post once more.  Since I last posted I have celebrated the Jewish Festivals of Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and Simchat Torah.  Now for the time being the Jewish Festivals are over and well short weeks are gone, 5 day working weeks for me again LOL.  Still it’s been fun, I spent Rosh Hashana and the Shabbat that followed on with good friends and it was nice to get away from Tel Aviv for a few days.  I spent the rest of the Festivals here in Tel Aviv and I had fun, at group dinners and a barbecue as well.

During that I had a 10 day holiday from work as my company closes for the period of Sukkot, so I needed to find things to do as I really didn't want to spend my holiday at home with nothing to do.  Fortunately I ended up being very busy and on this Saturday afternoon with work once more beckoning tomorrow I am pleased with my holiday and what I have done with the time.  While my Sunday was filled with stuff I needed to do and so was Monday Morning, after that it’s been fun, I've seen friends and gone to a festival by the beach, stopped off in Haifa to see a friend and her little one.  And generally I've managed to relax, if not sleep as much as I wanted too.  Suppose there is always one downside of a holiday hehe.  

Apart from the Festivals and the things I've done during my holiday, it’s been pretty quiet, I've puppy sat and looked after my roommates puppy for 10 days which even though I had offered I was nervous about, but I shouldn't have worried as the little devil was pretty well behaved :-).  I think my nerves where about a lack of confidence in doing something I hadn't done before and I think that applies with other stuff in my life, people see I have the ability to do things and I just sometimes don't seem to see what they see in me and I allow it to make me doubt myself and worry about things.  Still I feel like things are changing for me at the moment and as I approach 3 years in Israel I hope that only good things are coming my way.  

For now that's all I have to write up, I will be back with a blog for next week about my 3 years in Israel.

I'm Back

Hey everyone I know it’s been a long time since I last posted... July 21st to be exact since my last blog.  I'm not entirely sure why I've not posted, possibly there hasn't been much to tell, it’s also I feel like I'm writing for myself and if that is the case why do I need to write a blog.  Anyway I'm posting again, bring you up-to-date with everything that has gone since I last posted.

When I last posted there were rockets coming from Gaza and Israel had gone into destroy the tunnels that Hamas used and remove their ability to cause harm to the residents of the South of Israel.  It’s been a strange time, many people prior to me coming here said it wasn't safe, something bad could happen and that is true and yet here I am, living through all this time of strife.  Though the rockets have ceased to come over and the sirens have stopped, I am still not sure what has changed, the fact remains is Hamas is still in power and still demanding what they want and not willing to give Israel anything that they would like to enable a peaceful region.  The media in the Western world has vilified Israel and anti-Semitism is on the rise in Europe.  So what have the actions of both sides achieved really?  Is there a permanent peace, have both sides realised talking is the solution...no even though they are talking there can never be permanent peace, not as long as Hamas continue to exist, I have no doubt as soon as they are able they will begin firing again and Israel will respond and the world media will undoubtedly respond that Israel attacked Gaza, not mentioning the rockets that started it all.

Okay got to get off that subject, I know more trouble is inevitable, but I just don't want to think about it any longer.  So cheery subjects, work continues to be busy, which is good as I've had days when I'm sat more or less twiddling my thumbs and I prefer to be busy.  I am looking for a job closer to Tel Aviv as while I don't mind the travel I would prefer to be closer to home, for social life reasons of course :-).

Socially I've spent time with friends, even managed a beach party for my birthday last month so that was very good to happen.  Visited for a party the Golan Heights Winery a couple of weeks ago, not a bad night out, wine, women and song :-).  Otherwise more of the usual spending time with friends. I've also started to walk to the beach once a week in my on-going quest to get fit/lose weight.  Watch this space I am determined to lose some weight :-).

Apart from that all, it’s pretty quiet, nothing much to tell.  Getting ready for Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur as always and a week off in October from work during Sukkot.  For now that is all from me, I hope you'll read and comment, but bye for now

The Situation continued

So in the week since I last posted, there have been more rockets fired into Israel by Hamas and finally on Thursday after this constant barrage the Israel Defence Force (IDF) went into Gaza with the intention of taking out Hamas ability to fire rockets and there have been casualties on the side of the IDF as well as a growing number of Palestinian Casualties.  And the press seem to care more about one side of this conflict than the other.

As mentioned sadly the IDF has suffered casualties and I’m sure there are people who are saying who cares they’re monsters anyway and that saddens me, because regardless of belief, religion, colour, everyone involved in this conflict is a human being, someone’s Father, Mother, Son or Daughter and from reading comments about it, it feels like people have forgotten that and put labels upon each side and that is wrong, I don’t hate the Palestinians for what is going on, I feel if it were not for Hamas there would be peace.  Some people are just blinded by hatred for Israel for no real reason and only see that Israel is the aggressor, the bad guy.  I’ve seen people suggesting boycotting Israeli goods and it’s actually makes me laugh when there is so much Israel has contributed in terms of modern technology.  I want to ask people if they will give up their electronic devices because it was created in Israel and they are boycotting Israeli goods, I think the answer would be no to that. 

For me I can’t understand the hatred towards Israel for what it is doing, as a small nation it has a right to defend itself, if Scotland started lobbing rockets over into England, wouldn’t the people want the army to defend themselves or would they sit there and take it meekly?  I am not a fan of war or violence but as I said to someone, perhaps peace can only be achieved by war and that is something I don’t want to truly believe.  I wish everyone could come to the table and talk, but we’ve seen 3 ceasefires all violated by Hamas and that should tell you it all, they don’t want to talk and what is left when talking isn’t possible.

Since this all began, I’ve been asked why don’t I go back to England as I have the passport, I could get the hell out of Dodge if I wanted too and the truth is I don’t want too.  Yes it’s a serious situation, scary in some ways as I said in my previous post, this time feels different than 2012 and one friend has said I should come home and I appreciate the concern.  However as I said to him, I’m writing this here now, I am home; if I wanted to be in England I would never have made aliyah in 2011.  I knew that coming here the situation was always tense, a powder keg that could blow at anytime, I just didn’t want to live on regrets that I changed my mind because I was afraid that something like this might happen.  Because it was always going to happen eventually and there are Israelis and people who have been here long enough that are living their lives and trying to keep the day to day routine going and how can I do any less.  We learn from doing and from example and I’m proud to be here in this country, yes a little worried and troubled by the situation, but I’m not going to let it run my life, I will not live in fear and I will continue to build and enjoy my life as much as possible

Situation

I have been thinking long and hard about posting something on my blog, especially in view of the current situation.  Normally I'm not lost for words but I suppose in this case, for everyone living abroad you have seen the news.  The tensions between Israel and Hamas has erupted and it all started with the disappearance of 3 Israeli teens in the West Bank and the search for them, which sadly led to the discovery of their bodies nearly 3 weeks later only served to raise tensions.

What has followed has been the sad killing of three Israeli teens led to the death of Palestinian teenager, which 3 Israelis were arrested and confessed that it was for revenge and from there things have escalated on a level I've not seen since I've lived here in Israel.  I was here in November 2012 when there were rockets flying over, but this time it seems a lot more serious than then.  So from the odd rocket in the south in Ashkelon and Ashdod, Hamas have started an almost steady stream of rockets into the South, including Beersheva, Sderot.  And rockets aimed at Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Rehovot as well.  Its seems there is very few places that Hamas cannot reach with their rockets.

Fortunately there is the Iron Dome protecting the civilians of Israel from the rockets.  The Iron Dome is an all weather defence system, which intercepts the rockets before they can land.  So I'm very grateful for its invention for it being here because with the amount of sirens going off and it wasn't here things could be so much worse.

Since last week there have been sirens in Tel Aviv where I live pretty much every day and the normal procedure for the siren is to go to the Safe Room in your apartment if you have one or to the Shelter if you have one or into the stairwell.  Where I live now we have a shelter on the floor below so when the sirens have gone it is a case of grabs keys and move quickly to the shelter until after the siren has ended and the boom is heard.  At least by going into the shelter, its one good way to get to know your neighbours LOL.  Still it’s quite a frightening situation to be in, but so far I think I've managed to remain calm for the most part, though having been on a bus and in the middle of the street for two sirens I've managed to keep my wits about me to find a place of safety along with other.  Even though it’s been a crisis I've found some humour in hearing stories of friends or other people having to head for the shelter in just a towel or sleepwear, if it weren't a so serious situation and these were just normal day’s hearing that would be hysterically funny.

I want to say I'm not scared and people who have seen my posts on Facebook and Twitter, probably assume I am not, but I am scared because as I said above this feels different than last time and I don't see it ending quickly, especially since a ceasefire which was accepted by Israel, led to more rockets from Hamas who refused it.  All I know is I want to live my life as normal as possible, sadly I'm sure Hamas don't want that.

I've also been following media coverage from abroad and I'm very disappointed if not surprised that it all seems to point the finger at Israel, reading comments from people after news articles, they are decidedly anti-Israel and I've found myself leaving the page and not replying so I don't say/write something I regret.  I wish I could say something to make people change their view or open their eyes to the full situation, but sadly I can't.  I want to say there can be peace in the Middle East, today though it seems even further away than before.  To my friends here in Israel stay safe and stay in touch and to my friends abroad, keeping reading.

The Month that was June

So it’s been over a month since I properly posted, apart from the post earlier this week about the 3 Israeli Teens.  So I thought I would catch everyone up on what I have been up too.

Work has been pretty busy so that’s been keeping me busy the working week.  In just under two weeks though it will be 1 year since I started working there and that is pretty cool for me.  As most people know I've had more than a few jobs since I made aliyah, so having had this job for nearly a year feels like an achievement to me.

Socially I've been pretty busy the past month, plenty of fun with my friends.  A trip to Beersheva as well as attending a Nefesh B'Nefesh event the Negev Music Celebration in Arad which was a lot of fun, good music and good company.  I mean what more can you ask for on a weekend.  Also had the visit of friends from England which is always nice as I don't get to see many people from back home and it was great to see them and hang out and enjoy a nice weekend with good friends.  Managed to also get to Haifa to hang out with a good friend who I haven't seen in almost 9 months so that was good to have a nice catch up, hoping it’s not another 9 months before that happens.

Also spent more time exercising, mostly a lot of walking, but also started to do push-ups, squats as well as bits and pieces.  Back doing Yoga after a nearly a month off, though found it very hard both times I've been since I went back, but I'm determined to keep doing it as I enjoy it a lot.  Finally also attended the wedding of my friends Laura and Jeiro and it was a good night as I got to see good friends married and to see some friends from my Ulpan whom I've not seen for a while.

Also its the World Cup, but I not talking about England or their laughable performance... nope not doing it... okay they were horrible and I think a pub team could have played with more pride and passion than they did, but still you got to be in the tournament and it’s been a good one really, interesting to watch and I still not sure who will win, but I would love to Netherlands do it, having beaten Spain in impressive fashion in the 1st game.

Well that’s all from me, don't be strangers, let me know how things are with you, what's new?  And I will speak with you all soon.

Can there ever be peace?

Originally I was going to post about the 3 missing Israeli teens and the hope that they would be found and safely returned to their families.  Sadly tonight as we found out, they have found 3 bodies.  Three teenage boys lives cut short by terrorism, hatred or just plain evil.

I'm not even sure what I can really say, to think that the lives of teenagers were snuffed out for no reason, just because they believe differently.  It is beyond belief that we cannot get along, after all this is the 21st Century, not the Dark ages.  We make leaps and bounds in technology and yet we cannot overcome hatred of other because they are different, because their religious beliefs do not match their own.

I don't want to hate the people who did this, I don't want to hate anyone, it is all so senseless to hate.  But in some ways there is no end to this, after all how can you reason with people who do not seem to value life.  I want to believe that peaceful co-existence will happen one day, I have to believe, but every day I fear it grows more distant.

Can Peace in the Middle-East ever be achieved?  It will take someone far smarter than me to answer that question, if there is.

A week on from the important game

Well it’s been a week and it seems to have flown by, but Hull City played in the FA Cup Final and despite a valiant effort and 9 minutes of domination which saw City take a 2 goal lead, Arsenal came back won.  But we weren't expected to win and though I am disappointed, I am very proud of a team that most people had written off as Relegation Candidates at the beginning of the season.  For me Hull City’s future is bright and I can only hope it’s onto bigger and better things.  Next stop Europe.

Okay enough about Hull City.  For me this week has been pretty ordinary, though the coming week will be a challenging week as after Sunday my colleague will be away for the rest of the week and I will be essentially responsible for looking after everything in the office, from dealing with people calling to all the requests.  It’s actually quite scary, but I am trying to focus on it and not let myself get overwhelmed by it all.  Hopefully the week will be quiet and everything will go to plan.

Apart from the work stuff, it’s been a quiet week, mostly chilled out though went to a party Thursday night and yesterday a barbecue and then cinema, so gotten myself out and met new people.  Its definitely an ongoing process this building a life for myself here in Israel, but I think I am getting there, slowly but surely, step by step.  For now this is me saying Shalom and I'm out of here.