Lately.

There have been so many things I wanted to write about but I really haven't had much energy left over after trying to live my life this last month to write about it. So, here's a quick update:

A month ago I started a new job, 

so Itzik and I decided that it was time to start looking for a new place to live.

Both of these things sound exciting, but turned out to be real trials for our relationship.

The bad news is that it caused so many arguments I wasn't sure we'd make it to a new place.

The good news is that we found a place, and moved this weekend.

We made it.

Beach Season

Maggy and Kurt came to Tel Aviv to celebrate their anniversary a couple of weeks ago, 

and we spent an afternoon on the beach together. 

Their visit coincided with a 'heat wave' which marked the beginning of summer (it was 90 degrees all week), and it felt so good to swim in the sea and relax in the hot sun (...under an umbrella with lots of SPF). 

Summer here makes me feel simultaneously excited and terrified. The weather now is so beautiful- 85 during the day, 70 at night) but come June/July/August it will be too hot to function. It's almost like winter, in that you don't leave the comfort of temperature controlled indoors unless you are going from A to B...or to the beach. In any case...I'm bathing in sunscreen these days.

Moving

Balagan.

It's no secret that moving is one of the most stressful life events there is.

Add to that the language barrier (not being able to read online apt postings, needing a translator at the bank, feeling generally useless and making your partner feel totally burdened...) 

well...you can imagine how fun the process has been. 

Itzik has been incredible, and done so much work to find a new home for us.

I've done as much as possible, and tried to be patient and understanding when he felt (understandably) overwhelmed.

Now that I'm not living there anymore, I can say openly how wretched our old place was.

It was Itzik's bachelor pad, and I felt like I was squatting there for the last 8 months.

The landlord was a jerk, the plumbing backed up into our bathroom, there were bugs, loud neighbors, zero storage, less space, one window, and was far from where we both work and play. 

We had no elbow room, felt claustrophobic, and it was not good for either of us as individuals or a couple.

But now we have a much bigger place, in the middle of Tel Aviv, with a real kitchen, a huge living room, big windows, and landlords who are friends of Itzik's family.  And I can walk to work in less than 15 minutes.

I really feel like this is the beginning of a new phase for us.

I'll post pictures after we've really unpacked...

This is the first time I ever had movers (cause I never had much furniture before...)

and it was the best ever. These two dudes came in at 6:30am on Friday (Itzik and I pulled an all-nighter on Thursday after work) and in less than two hours had moved ALL of our stuff out of the old place, onto a truck, and into the new place. Amazing. 

They did the heavy lifting, and I was still exhausted, but my back wasn't destroyed and it was so quick!

These guys were amazing, but truly, that must be the worst job ever.

To celebrate the move we went out for dinner on Friday night.

We happen to live a block from the only Pizza Hut in Tel Aviv, and I could not have been happier.

We stuffed ourselves and fell asleep fat and happy amidst a pile of boxes...a perfect shabbat.

Catching up...and other news.

How often do you feel like you're playing catch-up? Lately, I feel like that most of the time.

Today, I'm catching up on blogging.

I logged on and realized I haven't posted since Christmas? Oy. My apologies.

I was going to post awesome pics of the New Year's party that Itzik and I had tickets for, but then I caught strep throat, missed the party...and almost two weeks of my life. Now I'm playing catch up at that (life), too. So, let me catch you up a little bit about the goings-on in my corner of the world:

At some point (after the penicillin kicked in, methinks) I realized that I needed to make some serious changes, restore my health and officially move from the nomadic, transient head-space I've been inhabiting  since I graduated from TAU (yes, thats right, I actually finished my MA! Baruch HaShem!)

But which changes? First and foremost- yoga. Yoga is an expensive habit I picked up in Boston. Only, in Boston I was volunteering at a studio and was getting my fix for free. When I left for an adventure in the Middle East I let my student-budget put my practice on hold. However, I am no longer a student, I've been sick all winter, I've put on a few lbs, my face has been breaking out for four months, and in general I haven't been feeling at my physical peak. So, this week, I made the executive decision that yoga can no longer be classified as a 'want' rather than a 'need,' and I forked over the cash for a membership at a studio. I've been to several classes, and I can already feel myself returning. My skin is clearing, my thoughts are clearing, and my muscles are shouting at me for more. I have found great value in a habit which works my body, and lets my mind rest for a few hours every week.

Sometimes I go to the beach in the morning to do a little yoga. 
It could be worse.

Until I receive my working visa, my employment options are a bit limited,
so I've been babysitting (what any recent MA grad wants to do) and enjoying the opportunities to get outside, play with children, and walk around Tel Aviv.
Every day I fall more in love with this place. Ellie (the 1-yr-old I pass the time with) and I have been on a mission to find the best playground in Tel Aviv. It's grueling work. We both really hate it.

Also, I experienced my first Israeli election this week. Did you hear about it in the news? If you don't live here, it's likely that you didn't hear much. The outcomes were, politically, a bit unexpected, and interesting (at least to me). But what I want to highlight about Israeli elections, what surprised and delighted me, was the incredible sense of unity and community that comes with an election here. The population is small, and voter turnout was at an all-time high - around 65%. That's a big deal.

One difference between elections in the US and here is that in Israel, Election Day is a bank holiday. Everything is closed. Public transportation runs, but by making Election Day a holiday, the election itself becomes something that you can't ignore. Parents take their children, who see that citizenship is something important and worthwhile. Families spend time together. And it felt to me like everyone had a stake in what was happening that day.

Itzik and I visited his mother outside of Tel Aviv so he could vote, and on the way there it seemed that all of Israel was out and about. We actually cut through the market on foot cause it was faster than sitting on a bus in traffic (I, of course, took the opportunity to grab a smoothie and a donut).

Yes, moving through this crowd was faster than the bus.

Love the shuk. It's never dull.

Itzik's brothers and sister all joined us at their mom's place, and we all walked over to their old elementary school so they could vote. I kept high-fiving Itzik (which he hates) and shouting "citizenship!". I wasn't even voting, but I felt like I was a part of something important.

Afterwards, his mom rewarded me by showing us old family photos.
It would be a shame not to share these:

Itzik (the baby) is now the spitting image of his father (the adult)

Playing dress-up for Purim

In other news...
I've also been making a concerted effort to catch-up with friends and family from back home. My old boss from The David Project, Charles, and his family were in Israel last month and the opportunity was seized to have a DP reunion!

Charles, Libbie, and I

CJ trying to Skype someone in from back home

One of the best parts of the evening was welcoming Maggy and Kurt back to Israel.for good!

They flew in a couple of days prior, and I am LOVING having so many people from home around these days.
More on Maggy's return in a later post.

Okay, I think this is a pretty good catch-up for the time being. We have covered a lot of ground. What do you think? Have any thoughts about the election? Want more pics of Ellie? Into the street art?
Hit me with some feedback, I'd love your thoughts.

It is my solemn vow to you, dear reader, that I won't let so much time pass anymore between posts, so that they are not as jam-packed moving forward.