The Story of Oregon

Shalom from Portland, Oregon!

The Story of Oregon begins in Seattle. We went to an underground tour and we were informed (by a strung-out grungy tour guide man who was clearly high at 8:30 am and also clearly brilliant) all about the inner workings of 19th century drunken loggers and their syphilis-infested interactions with suicidal crack whores. It was a lot.

From the bowels of Seattle, we were off to the beautiful mountains of Oregon. We stopped at an Alpaca farm on the way to Portland which was a big hit all around and everyone from home who knows I am "scared" of dogs would have never guessed because there was a big fluffy doggy named Maggie and I was playing with her and we were having so much fun. I fed Alpacas and all the kids love love loved it.

Then we had a yummy dinner at the hotel and headed off to my very own personal heaven: Powell's City of Books, one city block squared worth of new and used books. I was overwhelmed at first and then settled into the Judaism/Israel section and found two great books. So happy!

Now we are having a staff meeting and since I'm not in charge of any meals and we're doing restocking orders, I have time to write this on a hotel pad, even though I really just want to shower, read my books, call Meir, and go to sleep on my broken sleep number bed in my room that reeks of smoke.

Laila tov!

Nativ

Shalom from Seattle, Washington!

Today we saw a really pretty snowy mountain, forest and fog that looked like Forks from Twilight, went to the top of the Space Needle, made a music video and jammed at the Experience Music Project, walked around downtown Seattle and Pike Place public market, ate at a vegetarian/Kosher Chinese restaurant, pooped our brains out because of the food at the vegetarian/Kosher Chinese restaurant, had some free time, and davened.

Thennnnnn BECKY CAME TO VISIT ME! It was glorious. She smelled like Becky and she brought Bamba and she was wearing a shirt from Miri and she talked about all the girls we lived with in Yerucham and we reminisced for an hour and a half. I love her. It was so hard to say good bye. I miss Nativ/Yerucham/Rumps Ringa/Israel/Jerusalem/Beit Nativ/everyone so much.

Everything Happened

Shalom from Spokane, Washington, Capital of Bus C Catastrophes.

Today was Yom Superhero. We dressed in really cool outfits I made the night before and were all five Power Rangers. We drove through Idaho, picked cherries on a beautiful farm in Washington, went to Carr's One of A Kind in the World Museum where everything was one of a kind and you could touch it (we sat in the front seat of one of Elvis's cars and hugged a stuffed version of the largest black bear). Then we went to the Riverfront Park in Spokane where Tali and I got baby ice cream cones, someone yelled "GO GO" to us as we walked by in our Power Rangers outfits, and we played on a giant red wagon.

We got to the hotel. We unloaded the suitcases. An SUV pulled up to the suitcases, pulled one into the car, and drove off. Andrew remembered the license plate number, but when he called the po, it didn't match with the vehicle description. Then we found out that it happened to the best mannered kid on the bus, and he was super chill about it, thank God. Everyone else was so spun up you have no idea.

Then a girls' room flooded. I mean, it REALLY flooded. I don't know what they were trying to flush, I don't want to know, I just know it flooded.

The hotel didn't grasp the urgency of the situation. A clerk even admitted those words later, as we were all laughing deliriously about the bad luck.

Then the flood leaked into the boys' room directly below it. The dirty toilet water. Flooding from the ceiling. Dear lord.

Then we realized tomorrow begins the new Jewish month of Av, so services would have to be about an extra hour, give or take. I can't wait to wake up at 5:30 am.

Then we sent our kids to bed. Most of the girls were dealing with boy drama and some were crying. Most of the boys were in trouble for not wearing kippot or talking or other shenanigans I can't even believe I'm dealing with.

Now Tali and I are showering/ritually cleansing ourselves to prepare for the day to come. Can't wait for Seattle!

PS. Last night, I went to clean up our dining room and found a hotel worker modeling a yellow lacy bra (written on the cups in purple: LAKERS and KOBE, given as a Shabbat gift to someone mourning LeBron's move to Miami or something like that) over his shirt and wearing a red cowboy hat that we left on one of the tables. It was amazing.

Al Kol Eileh

Shabbat made me miss everything. I missed my Wheels bus, I missed Pilgrimage, I missed high school, I missed skating, I missed Rochester, I missed my car, I missed my family, I missed my pets, I missed Israel and Nativ more than I can describe.

Every song a memory. It killed me to sing the slow Shabbat songs, but it was so beautiful and the kids look so angelic when they sing them too.

It was a long, hard day. Except for those few moments when the kids were singing the slow and calm songs, they were little demons. Tali and I let loose by crashing a wedding at the hotel and then we made Power Rangers outfits for Yom Super which is happening tomorrow. Woohoo!

Laila tov.

Bless the sting and bless the honey
Bless the bitter and the sweet.

Where the Deer and the Antelope Play

Shalom from Missoula, Montana!

This has to be a short post because I don't have much time to prepare for Shabbat, but here's the story:

After I last wrote, we went to the Corn Palace (it's hard to explain..), Badlands National Park to play for a bit, Wall Drug (a really funny town made up mainly of Western souvenir stores), and Mount Rushmore (cool and beautiful, smaller than you'd expect). We spent a night in Rapid City, South Dakota, which was nice, and I got some swim time in which was really important for my physical/mental health. We got up SO early because we were driving to Yellowstone National Park, in Wyoming, and on the way there we watched The Laramie Project, about a brutal hate crime in Laramie, Wyoming. It was an amazing movie, and the scenery in it was just like what was outside the bus windows, but it kind of made me hate Wyoming a little bit.

Anyway, Yellowstone is AMAZING!!!! Bison are EVERYWHERE!!! The hot springs/geysers/Old Faithful are AWESOME! And the smell of sulfur doesn't bother me (in fact it kind of reminds me of Israel, which is great/sad) so it was really cool. We saw deer and elk too! I was in indigenous fauna heaven. I love that stuff. We stayed there for two nights in nice little cabins, did a really great bonding program with the group about obstacles, and prayed in nature. We also had discussion groups and I talked with my group about Theodicy, and it was a deep and intense discussion.

Today, we drove out of Yellowstone and here we are in Montana. It's so beautiful here. Every moment on Wheels makes me miss my group of friends from Bus D 2007, and I wish so badly they were with me on this Shabbat. I love you girls.

Shabbat Shalom!

Amurrica

Shalom from Sioux Falls, South Dakota!

Today, we rose early, davened at Camp Chi, ate a delicious breakfast there, slept soundly on the bus for several hours, went to the Spam Museum in Minnesota, and then finally arrived in Sioux Falls, where we did laundry and improv games.

It was a fun day, and I got a lot of much needed rest on the bus. The kids were loud, but it's always good when they're having fun. They are coupling off by this point and it's very interesting to see, like a social experiment. So far it's pretty light, which is nice for staff members.

Other than that, all I can say is that I'm enjoying myself a lot, trying to eat healthy and stay clean, hanging with my co counselors and starting to get very close with some of the kids. We have a good bunch!

Laila tov!

Wisconsin!

Shalom from Wisconsin!!

Today was a super fun and exhausting day, starting with an early wake up, a drive from Chicago, a fun time at a Water/Theme Park with an Ancient Greece Theme (Tali and I had the time of our lives on the underground Hades roller coaster), a barbecue at Camp Chi, and some bonding around a campfire.

After Pittsburgh last week, we were off to Cleveland where we played by a giant rubber stamp, hung out in the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame, visited a host synagogue, dropped our kids off with host families, and celebrated staff independence at a really nice hotel!

From Cleveland, we went straight to Chicago where we toured Navy Pier, ate at Ken's Diner, and had a Bus C Bar Mitzvah at our host synagogue. After the Wheelniks were dropped off with their hosts, staff had a party at Jake's house in Chicago and I read a book because I was tired and the book was good. Also we met Jake's two dogs, frog named Jules, turtle named Toady, and his whole family. Then we were very exhausted, especially me, and we went to our really nice hotel to sleep.

On Friday, we had one of the coolest days ever. We went to the bean in Millenium Park in Chicago for pictures, then we went to the Jewish Council for Urban Affairs to learn about worker injustice in the hotels in Chicago. Then the kids made signs and made up chants. We heard stories from hotel workers who have been on strike for SEVEN YEARS trying to get a fair living wage and health care. Their stories were incredibly powerful. The kids were really moved and got really into it. Finally, it was time to get in the picket line!!! They sang loud and proud about justice and it was AWESOME. Then everyone stood on corners and handed our fliers with information on them about the strike to passersby, and it was so amazing to see. I was so proud. Every person got into it in their own way, even those kids who don't usually participate in programs. I was soooo happy!

Then we prepared for Shabbat by grocery shopping (which is RIDIC when you're shopping for 51 people and making sure every single thing is certified kosher), washing, dressing, decorating, and finally it was time for services. Shabbat services were nice but we have a long way to go. I was proud of the people who stepped up to lead but at the same time, I was disappointed in the people who said they didn't know enough to lead and then did not even pay attention to try to learn more.

On Saturday, I led my first discussion with a group of 12 kids about God and Theology. They got so into it! We lost track of time and were 20 minutes late to lunch. I learned so much from them.

The most notable moment of Saturday, however, has to be the Girls' Bonding program on Saturday night. It's kind of a circle-of-trust thing, though, so I can't tell you what we did or what was said. I will just say this: everyone has a story, everyone has pain, and everyone has so much beauty inside them. The girls got so close in just one hour, and it was really moving. Tali did a beautiful job leading it with me as well, and I was so glad she was there. All the girls were truly inspiring.

This is what makes it worth it. I love bus C!