What I'm doing this summer- Officially

That's right. Last week I hiked in the Carmel forest up north. This summer I'll be in Carmel again, but as the Unit Head at the URJ's Camp Harlam in lovely Kunkletown, PA. Yayyyy. Seriously, I'm grinning ear to ear. I had gotten then thumbs up about a month ago, but got the "official" call today. Again, Yayyyy.

Summer #6 at Harlam...103 days and counting!

Any Harlam-ites out there reading?

Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee

When I die of biblial grammar, which will be very soon.

Please write on my tombstone:

HERE LIES KAREN.

SHE DIED OF TASHLUM DAGESH.

AND NOT BEING ABLE TO IDENTIFY IT.

AND FORGETTING WHEN ALEPH GETS ONE AND WHEN CHET GETS ONE.

(a little joke for the Rabbinic students out there)

I'm on the wireless internet at school- life is wonderful. Gym, home for a bit, back to school for rehersal and cast meeting...3 days and counting!

Tiyul pic/ short update

Until I find some time to write my "official" tiyul post, check out my friend Mel's blog to see pictures of Rachel, Mel and myself in front of the Syrian and Lebanese borders as well as hiking in the beautiful Golan mountains.

Shabbat was wonderfully restful- now it's time to begin the first of three social engagements this evening.

What's going on this week?
Monday: Vagina Monologues rehersal
Wednesday: Vagina Monologues dress rehersal
Thursday: Vagina Monologues opening night! and post-show wine and cheese reception
Saturday: Vagina Monologues closing night

Oh yeah, and some classes here and there.

If you're in Jerusalem this weekend and want a ticket to the show, send an email to: mailto:hucvagina@gmail.com and let us know! See you on the stage!

Pre-Shabbat Pictures/Update

Shabbat is a'coming here, so I have to be quick.

First of all, I'm home from the tiyul. It was great. More to come including lots of pictures from the Golan (where it was sunny and about 65 all week!)

To hold you over, enjoy a few pictures from Debra's wedding shower last friday...it was fabulous and a complete surprise for Deb who thought she was just having brunch at Timol with some friends. Ha! share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AaNWTlq2bOXiQ

Shabbat plans:
-dinner at Matt and Lindy's
-chanting Torah in the morning at HUC
-lunch in the park with Asher (ok, fine...and Rena too)
-seeing Scott and Aviva in the afternoon
-Motzei Shabbat dinner with a surprise guest
-post Motzei Shabbat drinks for Howie's birthday

And they call it the day of rest. We'll see about that.

Love to all- restful and wonderful Shabbats and weekends to everyone.

A few days away

With everything going on, I totally forgot to mention that we're going on tiyul (a class trip) tomorrow. We'll be in the north, visiting the Golan and Galilee, drinking some great wine at the Golan wineries and taking a jeep ride in the Galilee!

Back on Thursday night with pictures and stories!

Happy President's Day if you're celebrating!

We Rock.

Why will the HUC-JIR Jerusalem production of the Vagina Monologues rock??

1. We have a STAGE! Rachamim, our savior, found us a stage in the garage. Now all we need is lots of black fabric and some twinkle lights.

2. We sold 14 tickets roday (of 160) and made over 1000 NIS.

3. We have an amazing cast and crew that are working like crazy to make everything come together.

And last, but certainly not least...

4. We are the ONLY (yes, you read that right) performance in the ENTIRE STATE OF ISRAEL.

Yep, thats right, we rock.

Oh, one more thing- our Saturday night performance will be videographed by Sean, our director's husband.

So so excited.

"This too is Torah" -Talmud

Happy Birthday to ME!

I know it's been almost a week since my birthday, but better late than never. Right.

First and foremost, here are the pics- enjoy! share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AaNWTlq2bOXdg

Recap of the weekend:

Thursday night I had dinner with my camp director Frank and my camp friends Matt and Jen- after dinner we made our way over to Mike's Place on Yoel Solomon- perhaps the most "American" bar in all of J'lem. I hadn't planned on drinking quite so much, but after a few birthday shots and drinks, the night got a lot better and I was dragged home by Rena, Rachel, Robyn and Edie. Quote of the night (by me, of course) [to Rena] "I want you to buy me a black velvet kippah."

Friday I woke up in the afternoon in time to nurse my hangover, shower and get ready for Shabbat. We had services at school, dinner with the class and then a dessert oneg for my friend Bekah's birthday. Got to sleep early- an early birthday present.

Saturday I relaxed and did some homework as I knew that I wouldn't have time to do it after Shabbat. I had been told earlier in the month that I would be expected on Saturday night- 8pm, "dressed up" and not expecting to be home early.

At 8pm on the dot Rena knocked on my door with a Hershey kiss and a chocolate martini. We walked to Rachel's apartment. When I walked into her apartment there were little tea lights everywhere, tables covered in pink tablecloths, a corner with martini recipes taped to the wall, sex and the city DVDs hanging from the ceiling and Sex and the City playing on the TV...it was a Sex and the City party for me!

And of course, everyone who is anyone was there...Rena, Rachel and Robyn,Claire and Neil, Matt and Jen, Esther and Mel, Sandi and Jill, David and Julia, David Segal, Jen, Deb, Michael Edie, Lauren, Alon and Rose- everyone had brought or made something for the event including mini-pizzas, spinach-artichoke dip in a breadbowl, guacamole, tofu pigs in a blanket, veges and hummus, olives, all kinds of cheeses and crackers. On the other side of the room was a table featuring all sorts of drinks and the equipment to make all kinds of martinis including choclotinis, appletinis and my personal favorite, flirtinis (vodka, pineapple juice and champagne). Yumm.

And of course there was dessert! Rena had made me a special strawberry shortcake birthday cake (see the pics) and everyone sang. Other than the singing, we all ate a lot of food, drank as much as we thought we could (for a school night!), talked, laughed, took pictures, and generally enjoyed the night. I got home around 11pm (an hour before my birthday began) and slept my way into my mid-twenties.

Sunday I had four classes and a voice lesson, but afterwards Rachel met me at Cafe Hillel for coffee before dinner. Then we met up with Edie, Rena and Rena's mom, Marcie who's visiting. We ate at Olive, my *favorite* place and I got the Thai Chicken- my favorite dish. I got home, talked to my whole family, did some homework and went to sleep with a smile on my face.

I was so touched that so many people, most of whom I hadn't even met 7 months ago, put so much time and effort into a party for me. It was probably the best birthday party I can remember-- I'm so so lucky and blessed to have the most wonderful friends here (R & R take the cake).

AND I have the most wonderful friends all over the world who sent me birthday emails, text messages, IMs, and called me on my special day. I love you all- thank you so much.

So now I'm in my mid-twenties. I look pretty good, no? Happy weekend- love to everyone!

I'll Cry If I Want To

It was my birthday.

I'm 24 now.

I had a fabulous birthday weekend.

Once Rachel sends me the pictures, I'll upload them for your enjoyment.

I hope to write a long birthday post tomrorow.

For now, I must return to the land of hebrew verbs and Bible translation.

Love to all.

Talking to the People

Today, at my weekly Wednesday Israel Seminar, our assignment was simple: walk around Jerusalem for three hours and talk to people on the street or in stores and restaurants. Ask them questions about life in Israel, the upcoming elections, Jewish holidays and observances and who should be put on the 1000 sheckel bill. Report back with answers and insights. Go and Learn.

My group consisted of Rachel, Mel, Jen, Edie, Sandi and myself- the six of us began at the top of Ben Yehuda street and decided that coffee was needed to gain energy and confidence for the task ahead. We ended up stopping in a makoloet (little mini-grocery store a la 7-11) and speaking to Chanina who owns the shop and has worked there for 20 years along with her husband David.

Jen knows Chanina b/c her grandmother loves Chanina's ice cream. We asked what she thought the biggest challenge facing Israel's society is and she responded that she thinks that young people should all get jobs instead of relaying upon the government or charities. She's probably going to vote (Kadima), she used to send her kids to Dati schools, but recently switched them to secular schools. When we asked her which holidays were more important, Israeli or Jewish, she answered that they are "gam v'gam"- one in the same- for her, being Jewish and being Israeli are two parts of the same identity. She also told us that to be Israeli is "to be a human being...Human beings don't send their children to blow up buses...Christian and Jewish mothers would never do that...Moslem mothers on the other hand...We know the facts." Wow.

We continued down BY street and stopped in a bookstore on Yaffo. There we spoke to the store owner and his friend who told us that "I'm right...he's left...but we used to go to school together." The friend spoke to Rachel and me for a while about why he isn't voting in next month's elections- He said that he would never vote for Olmeret because "Olmeret wasn't so good when he was the mayor of Jerusalem...why would we elect him to run our country?" He also told us that his favorite holidays were Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur because it was "time with me and my G-d." fascinating.

After our conversations, we rewarded ourselves by having brunch at Timol Shilshom, a very cool bookstore/restaurant off Yoel Solomon street. I got the shakshuka which was excellent. I also got some nice catch-up time with five of my favorite people that I don't get to hang out with as much as I'd like to (outside of school)

We went back to school for a debrief of our mornings with our classmates- I really really liked the conversation we had and I loved hearing the viewpoints that we got- Rachel pointed something out though- most of us only got the viewpoint of a very small sect of Jerusalemite- one who is out on the street in the middle of the work day, one who owns a store or shop, or one who works in a restaurant. We didn't talk to people who live in surrounding neighborhoods or who might be working in the middle of the day. David Segal also pointed out that this is the type of exercise that we can do anytime- we all interact with Israelis everyday and we should ask them questions- I'm especially excited to talk to my guy at Zigmunds (home of the best shakshuka in the country!), Avi, my laundry guy and Yitzchak and Avram who own the fruit stand up the street from my apartment.

Living in this country never ceases to amaze me...you never know what you're going to learn...

Hellllllo Mid Twenties

Rachel and me, late in the night Robyn winking at me

So last night began my 24th birthday celebration. Even though the actual day isn't until Sunday, my amazingly wonderful and generous friends wanted to start celebrating as soon as possible. Last night we went to Mike's Place a popular bar for the English speakers where I was showered with lots of hugs and a few too many free drinks...including a "3 wise men" shot that I had a little too early in the night.

Lots of Love to everyone who came out...Matt, Jen, Billy, Josh, Neil, Claire, Rachel, Robyn, Edie, Deb, Rena, Jill, Sandi, Mel, Esther, Jen, Lev, Miriam, Vincent, Rebekah, Sean, Rollin, David Segal, and every one else who contributed to my super-fun night.

Tomorrow night continues the celebration...I'll post when I have more pics and stories. Happy early birthday to me!

Blog Lovin'

Mindy says that there hasn't been any blog lovin lately- and she's right. Rabbinical school sure keeps a girl busy. But I can repent, right? Here's a very long post about the last week-

Monday morning I led my "official" Shacharit (morning) service for our Reform Liturgy Workshop. I worked with Claire, one of my classmates and friends and Maria, a very cool cantorial student. We had hoped to not make the huge deal of services that some of our classmates have made, but we wanted it to be clean and enjoyable. Since this week is Shabbat Shirah (when we read the song at the sea that the Israelites sang after crossing through the Red Sea), we used Shirat HaYam (the song at the sea) as a theme- I wrote a kavanah (what once would have been called a "creative reading" in my NFTY days) about the irony between a Midrash I found and the sinking of a ship in the Red Sea last Friday. We also used a popular tune for a line in Shirat HaYam as a niggun (song without words) at the beginning and the end. I hadn't felt nervous at all, and then suddenly, when services were about to begin, I did feel nervous! I tried to calm myself down and finally felt better a few minutes in. The toughest part about service leading is the post-service review. Everyone who participates-- the service leaders, the person who gives the dvar Torah, the three Torah readers and anyone else who wants to come have a lunch meeting with several members of the faculty for a review of the service. I've been to two already, but I was still a little anxious. It turned out to be fine, I got some constructive criticism about my Hebrew pronunciation and Tamar called me "intervally challenged," but all in all it was a pretty good experience and I'm really happy that it's over!

Moving on...Monday night we had our second meeting of the Vagina Monologues cast- and afterwards, we got an email from Rena, a 2nd yr. Rabbinical student who is organizing the show on our LA campus. She, and another student Sara went to Eve Ensler's performance of her new show The Good Body and afterwards they had a minute to speak to Eve and tell her about what we're doing. Here's an excerpt from Rena's email:

After the performance, Eve did a special session with V-Day organizers.
Just some question and answer time. Her message was simple and
profound - Stop giving in to the obsession about our bodies. Stop letting it
distract and derail us. Realize that we all do it. (Even EVE, the
crazy incredible ultra-liberal feminist). And then put all that time
and effort into changing "the fucking world."Before we left, I decided that
Sara and I needed to tell Eve about HUC. I invited her to see the show
on any of the three campuses of our Jewish Seminary (don't worry! i told her
we train future rabbis,cantors, educators and jewish communal service
pros!!!) and honestly, she was a bit in awe. Not just that Sara and I are
studying to be rabbis (in a religion that I'm sure she thinks of as
patriarchal...cause it is...) but just the idea that this was happening in
the "tribe". I can't tell you how often I forget how incredible and
radical what we are doing is. I can't tell you how often I get bogged
down in the details of trying to make it all perfect. I can't tell you
how often it doesn't occur to me that when my father was in HUC there were
like 3 women there. Seeing Eve Ensler, the true Vagina Queen and
ultimate Vagina Warrior be taken aback by us, by our production...well, it was
certainly a reminder. Who knew that this could be so big. It wasn't until
I finished the show last year that I realized we had changed the Jewish world
forever. And it wasn't until tonight that I realized how much the more so we are
doing that this year. -Rena P

That was pretty powerful. On the production side of things, we are starting to get busy- right now we're figuring out where the performance will be and lots and lots of details like costumes, building or constructing a set, creating music for the intermission and on and on...March 2nd will be here before I know it...that's all for now...a b-day update will be up soon! Love to all! (especially you Mind!)

First of Many: Rosh Chodesh and V Day

I know I know I know. I get busy, I forget my blog. I piss off my family and friends.

Ok, so here's the first update.

Monday night was our first meeting of the cast of the HUC 2006 production of The Vagina Monologues. It was also Rosh Chodesh Shvat (the first of the Hebrew month of Shvat). The 19 of us met in Tamuz's apartment (the director of the show) and had wine, chocolate and a short Rosh Chodesh ceremony where we talked about our female ancestors (our moms, grandmothers, aunts etc.) and then spoke about women who inspire, motivate and make us think. I spoke about my favorite professor from Maryland, Max Grossman, who is, G-d willing, expecting a baby very soon. She is such a huge role model of mine (not to mention one of the reasons I'm here- she wrote my recommendation letter!)

Afterwards we talked about why each of us decided to audition for the show. Some people told stories, others shared painful memories, and all us listened. It was very powerful. Personally, I auditioned when I was in college and hadn't been cast. For lots of reasons, which I won't get into, I was really hurt that I hadn't been cast. I had sort of figured that I would never get to be in the show, which I had reluctantly accepted. And yet, here I am, acting and producing the show! I guess there's some truth to the saying "Everything works out in the end, and if it hasn't worked out, then it isn't the end." Looks like this is the end of this for me.

Oh, did I mention that? I am one of the producers of the show, along with my friend Jess, a cantorial student. We are in charge of all of the logistical details of the show, including the location, set, lighting, costumes, music and anything else that might need to be done to ensure a smooth and successful production. It's going to be a lot of work, but I'm up for the challenge. We only have four weeks to put together the whole show- it's going to be a busy month!

The show is Thursday, March 2nd at HUC. The cool part about being part of a show like this is that I know there are productions going on all of the country and world (1115 communities in 54 countries). HUC is also putting on productions on our Los Angeles and New York campuses.

For more info on the Monologues and V Day 2006, check out www.vday.org

Update #2 on it's way...Shavuah Tov...Love to everyone reading!