Blogs

As I was getting my kids into the bath last night, I heard a helicopter fly by close over our house. And I didn’t jump or startle. I must be getting used to Israel. When we first moved here, I jumped at every little sound: Not just the military… Read more »

Even though it’s officially more than a year since we made Aliyah, I just now feel as if one full cycle is complete. My first real memory of our first real family experience  here in Israel (one that didn’t involve a government agency) is of Tu B’Shevat. A week… Read more »

Before I lived in Israel, I was a tourist to Israel. I visited Israel three times as a program participant between the years 1992 and 2000, and twice independently with family. Each time, there were outright rules and admonitions from tour guides, concerned locals, or experienced travelers to Israel… Read more »

In retrospect, I’m glad we made Aliyah at the end of a calendar year. At the time, moving during the first of New Jersey’s many blizzards and dealing with holiday travel didn’t seem like such a good idea. But now, as I reflect on the year that we’ve been… Read more »

Despite years of being a Jew in a Jewish family, Jewish tradition and, more specifically, Jewish practice often feel very alien to me. Shabbat meals, Shabbat services, Jewish prayers and rituals.  And despite being a bat mitzvah and many years a student in Hebrew school, there is little that… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele:  My ex and I broke up a few months ago, and now I’ve met someone else. I’ve moved on, but she can’t seem to. How do I deal with this situation? –Movin’ on Dear Movin’: Relationships end because one person is done with the situation,… Read more »

When I first started blogging about my Aliyah experience, about two weeks into our new life here, a friend in Israel (also an oleh from the States) told me he had also started a blog when he first made Aliyah. But he soon found he “didn’t have much to… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: My wife and I have been married for more than 10 years. We both know we were meant for each other and I adore my wife. The problem is that we seem to be going through the motions and we’ve lost a lot of the… Read more »

I have no idea what it’s like to send your son off to the army. And before I moved to Israel, I didn’t much think about it. Of course, my oldest child is not even 9, but still, any mother will tell you that time passes quickly when you are… Read more »

Last night, underneath a full moon, within the sacred space of our kibbutz mikveh, ten women gathered to acknowledge our friend who will be bringing a new life into our community in a few short weeks. Debbie’s due at the end of August and it’s become somewhat of a… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: I’d like to go out with a girl I work with. She’s great and we enjoy the time we’ve spent together. Is this a good idea? -Workin’ it at Work   Dear Workin’ It: Yes and no. Your work may have a policy about company dating, which is… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: I’m a 24 year-old woman who recently had a troublesome dating experience. An older guy I met at a recent Jewish young adult happy hour asked me for my number. He called me a few days later and asked me to go out with him… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: My girlfriend and I have been dating for 9 months and have begun discussing taking a vacation together. I’m overdue for a getaway, but not sure I’m prepared to travel with her. How do I know if we’re ready for this big step? – Got… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: I met a guy at a New Year’s Eve party who seemed pretty into me. We went out a few times and had good time. He puts his arm around me when we go out, gives me kisses goodnight and holds my hand. In short,… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: A guy I really like took me out on a second date. He was a gentleman and offered to pay for the meal. However, I had leftovers and instead of letting me take them home, he insisted on eating them at the restaurant. His rationale?… Read more »

Dear Avi and Adele: I’m a 26 year-old female with an odd problem. I’m having a hard time juggling my very, very active dating life and have already begun to make blunders between the different dates I am having. For example, I was out with one guy for the… Read more »

(Originally posted on The Jerusalem Post blogs on July 22, 2011. I ask you to please pass on to your Israeli friends.)) Yesterday, while swimming at the pool with my kids, my friend Daniella called me over to ask me if I heard about the girl who died from… Read more »

I’m sick today (Aug. 2) with yet another cold in a series of countless colds since I moved here. I am not exaggerating when I say that I’ve been ill more times these last eight months than I have in total in the past five years. Countless people have… Read more »

Last night, underneath a full moon, within the sacred space of our kibbutz mikveh, ten women gathered to acknowledge our friend who will be bringing a new life into our community in a few short weeks. Debbie’s due at the end of August and it’s become somewhat of a… Read more »

It’s almost 6 months since we moved to Israel…and I’ll soon compose a contemplative look back at our transition to life here. But in the meantime, I’m doing eight loads of laundry in a crappy stackable washer/dryer set that’s shoved in too tight into our bathroom and it got… Read more »