Tuesday, April 30, 2013
...I went to the mall looking for a...
Today I did something people in the US don't do. I went to pick up a gas mask. It is so Israeli that even though everyone, in theory, should have a gas mask, finding information about obtaining one, and then finding the place from which to obtain it, are the most complicated things. There is out of date information, irrelevant information, pick-up times only at certain hours, restricted pick-up dates (only one month in Jerusalem), and limited pick-up locations. Once I tracked down the one location in Jerusalem, in the mall, I had to get there and find the distribution point. It is poorly marked, and nobody knows about it. I heard from a friend (thanks Rachel!!) that it was down some creepy stairs, and after asking a few security guards, going down some abandoned corridors, and working my leg muscles on quite a few stair cases, I finally found the distribution site, a large storage room in a big basement. Below is a picture of what I received. Hopefully, though, I will never need to use it.
Monday, April 22, 2013
...we had our third annual Yom HaAtzmaut BBQ
I will start this post on a topic other than storks and the Golan, but I cannot promise that it will stay there.
Sometimes I feel like I am still a new olah (a new immigrant), but other times, I feel like my first five months in ulpan, my summer in Kiryat Gat, and even my time working in preschool are ancient history. I have been in my lab for over a year. I have made so many new friends too. A year ago, the vast majority of my friends were "ulpan friends," friends I met at Ulpan Etzion when I should have be learning Hebrew. Thankfully, I made those strong friendships in ulpan; those friends are probably the reason I stayed in Israel. But as time goes on, I can now say that the majority of my friends are not "ulpan friends." I have friends from school and the lab, from other ulpans, from friends of "ulpan friends," and from friends of friends of "ulpan friends." I am so glad to have such a strong friend group, they are all I have here--the people I celebrate with, study with, and do silly things with.
Our first year in Israel, we had a lovely Yom HaAztmaut BBQ in the park, and our second year in Israel we had another lovely BBQ in the park. This year, we also had a lovely BBQ in the park. It almost wasn't lovely, though. The weather was gray and dreary, showers were forecast, and it was cold! Over the years (3 now!!) we have learned to plan a good BBQ. Sign-ups for food, requests of picnic blankets and sports equipment, bringing garbage bags, tongs, etc. We never had to change the weather though. We had a few back up option for varying amounts of rain, and at 11am we made the decision: we were doing int in the park, the way the holiday was supposed to be celebrated.
The national showing this year at the park was much less than in the past, but that was good for us, because we have more friends now than in the past. It was easy to find a spot and there were room for all of us. And although it was cold and cloudy, there weren't more than 17 rain drops. And I even managed to get sun burnt.
This year, the BBQ was different than the other two in that it was only about half "ulpan friends." The other half were friends of friends of friends. There were even people there that I didn't know and I organized it. It is an ulpan/olim BBQ though, and as the year goes on, I know the group celebrating will fluctuate each year, but as one friend said (and I really hope it's true), we've made it three years, that means we have to do it forever, and in however many years, we're all going to be sitting around and our kids are going to be here barbecuing for us. What a great wish for the future!
Everyone who came met new people, caught up with old friends (we have those now) they hadn't seen in a while, and left with a full tummy. One of my (non-ulpan) friends made a video of the festivities (Thanks Eliyahu!!). I have a sideways sitting part at about 32 seconds. Enjoy. (No storks this time. We'll see about the next post...)
Sometimes I feel like I am still a new olah (a new immigrant), but other times, I feel like my first five months in ulpan, my summer in Kiryat Gat, and even my time working in preschool are ancient history. I have been in my lab for over a year. I have made so many new friends too. A year ago, the vast majority of my friends were "ulpan friends," friends I met at Ulpan Etzion when I should have be learning Hebrew. Thankfully, I made those strong friendships in ulpan; those friends are probably the reason I stayed in Israel. But as time goes on, I can now say that the majority of my friends are not "ulpan friends." I have friends from school and the lab, from other ulpans, from friends of "ulpan friends," and from friends of friends of "ulpan friends." I am so glad to have such a strong friend group, they are all I have here--the people I celebrate with, study with, and do silly things with.Our first year in Israel, we had a lovely Yom HaAztmaut BBQ in the park, and our second year in Israel we had another lovely BBQ in the park. This year, we also had a lovely BBQ in the park. It almost wasn't lovely, though. The weather was gray and dreary, showers were forecast, and it was cold! Over the years (3 now!!) we have learned to plan a good BBQ. Sign-ups for food, requests of picnic blankets and sports equipment, bringing garbage bags, tongs, etc. We never had to change the weather though. We had a few back up option for varying amounts of rain, and at 11am we made the decision: we were doing int in the park, the way the holiday was supposed to be celebrated.
The national showing this year at the park was much less than in the past, but that was good for us, because we have more friends now than in the past. It was easy to find a spot and there were room for all of us. And although it was cold and cloudy, there weren't more than 17 rain drops. And I even managed to get sun burnt.This year, the BBQ was different than the other two in that it was only about half "ulpan friends." The other half were friends of friends of friends. There were even people there that I didn't know and I organized it. It is an ulpan/olim BBQ though, and as the year goes on, I know the group celebrating will fluctuate each year, but as one friend said (and I really hope it's true), we've made it three years, that means we have to do it forever, and in however many years, we're all going to be sitting around and our kids are going to be here barbecuing for us. What a great wish for the future!
Everyone who came met new people, caught up with old friends (we have those now) they hadn't seen in a while, and left with a full tummy. One of my (non-ulpan) friends made a video of the festivities (Thanks Eliyahu!!). I have a sideways sitting part at about 32 seconds. Enjoy. (No storks this time. We'll see about the next post...)
Friday, April 19, 2013
...I came up with a full lunch and was rewarded with coffee(s), dessert, and even a few places to live.
On the one hand, I have one of the longest drives in our lab, but on the other hand, it's a beautiful drive without much traffic. I also meet extremely nice people like Ichyeh, for example. He isn't the only helpful, nice, kindhearted person I've met, though. The list goes on an on. It is so Israeli that the families who live and work near the nests are always offering coffee, a bathroom, invaluable information about the storks, and even cheese cake(!). Security officials in the community are very supportive of the project thus making the internal permissions process relatively easy. And owners of the land and farms on which the storks are found allow us free access and tons of advice. Also people walking by are always interested in what I am doing, ask and answer a few questions, show genuine interest, and at times even offer a place to live.
Luckily, I did not have to take up the offer of the kind man who offered me a room in his "big house where he lives alone," though. I found another apartment with a really sweet roommate in a town about twenty minutes from the nests. I will be there a few nights a week, and I must admit that I am quite excited for a change in scenery. The greenery, hills, and open space are a much welcomed change from the monotonous Jerusalem stone, filth and crowdedness of the city, tourists, and sound and light pollution. It seems like it will be a great storking season in the Golan. Hopefully it doesn't become too boring of a blog topic. I do apologize in advance!
Friday, April 5, 2013
...the pharmacy was in a fight with the supplier...
The ankle saga continues...
Last week, I tried to buy an air cast, prescribed to me by the doctor from Terem, the emergency clinic. In America, you don't need a prescription for an air cast. You can pick one up at a store like Target for about $50. I mistakenly thought it would be easy to acquire here too.
I had been staying with friends in Nachlaot for a few days (THANKS Rach and Ben!!) and they live near the pharmacy run by my health insurance, so I decided to stop by. I didn't have the piece of paper the doctor had given me because (1) I hadn't anticipated staying so long in Nachlaot and didn't think I needed to bring it with me to seder and (2) I didn't know that it was an actual prescription but rather simply a summary of my visit with recommendations for recovery. When I got to my pharmacy, it didn't really matter, though, that I didn't have the prescription because they were all out of air casts and had been for several months. I asked what I was supposed to do and was told that there are a few specialty orthotic stores across the street that should carry air casts. I was also told that they would not be open for all of Pesach as they were owned by religious Jews who didn't work during the holiday. Thank you, Israel. Two stores right nearby, both closed for the whole holiday even though Passover, when people travel, hike, and camp, is a time of high injury making a store like this quite important.
Considering that I wasn't supposed to walk without an air cast and that I only needed to be on crutches for three to four days, waiting until the end of Pesach wasn't really an appealing option, so I asked the pharmacist if he could order an air cast for me and then when I came back, I would bring my prescription and everything would be honky dory. It was so Israeli when he said that the pharmacy "wasn't speaking" with the supplier and would therefore be unable to order me an air cast. The pettiness of it shocked me. I was more shocked when he tried to offer me a much less supportive ankle brace that would cost over 600₪ ($165) without a prescription. It looked like a $20 nothing that could have been bought at Walgreen's. I kindly thanked him and waited patiently for Passover to end so I could track down the real deal from the specialty store.
Finally, over a week and a half after my injury, the time had come. I hobbled to the orthotics store (I was already crutch-free on the recommendation of a physiotherapist friend...THANKS girl!!) with my prescription and gold-plus insurance card in hand ready to make a highly anticipated purchase. And to my pleasure it was a very easy process. I chatted for a bit with the very nice store owner about my ankle, my knees, and all of my other aches and pains. He got me what I needed, asked me about aliyah, and had an overall good demeanor. It was quite funny, though, when he asked why I had waited so long after the sprain to get an air cast. I kindly reminded him that he had been closed all of Pesach (love me this so Israeli country), and we laughed a few seconds about it together. He sent me on my way with a receipt to take to my health insurance company and a good feeling about kind, talkative, helpful Israelis (which is one of the reasons I fell in love with the country). He had clearly explained to me the whole refund process and said that I should double check a few things to make sure I would have no problems (e.g. my referral for the air cast was from an emergency doctor and not an orthopedic specialist) and that if I did, he would write me a new receipt with a date after a proper referral. He knew his stuff and was very helpful.
Surprisingly, so were the people at my health insurance company. I went the next morning to work out the refund. When I got to the office, there were a few people in front of me. It was so Israeli when one woman, who hadn't been waiting much longer than me (from what I gathered from people sitting around me) started screaming at every single person who walked by about how it was unacceptable that only two people were working instead of four and that the wait is too long for people who work and that the customers in front of her shouldn't be allowed to ask questions because it takes too long and wastes other customers time. While I agreed with some of her complaints, the last one really made me laugh. After a good ten minutes of screaming, though, someone came out to help with the morning rush. It turns out that the person who came to help could only take one type of customer, customers who needed refunds, and I was the only one who needed that service. So I was next. My paperwork was fine, and I was in and out of the office in three minutes.
If all goes as planned, I will get an 83% discount on my air cast. The air cast cost 400₪ ($110) at the orthotic store (less than the lesser ankle brace the pharmacy wanted me to buy), and because I have gold-plus insurance, it should only end up costing me 68₪ ($18), much less than the $50 from Target.
(The orthotic guy in Israel said he also pays about $50 for the air cast...and then marks it up 200%.) Thank you Israel for being the slightly backwards country with which I am so in love.
I had been staying with friends in Nachlaot for a few days (THANKS Rach and Ben!!) and they live near the pharmacy run by my health insurance, so I decided to stop by. I didn't have the piece of paper the doctor had given me because (1) I hadn't anticipated staying so long in Nachlaot and didn't think I needed to bring it with me to seder and (2) I didn't know that it was an actual prescription but rather simply a summary of my visit with recommendations for recovery. When I got to my pharmacy, it didn't really matter, though, that I didn't have the prescription because they were all out of air casts and had been for several months. I asked what I was supposed to do and was told that there are a few specialty orthotic stores across the street that should carry air casts. I was also told that they would not be open for all of Pesach as they were owned by religious Jews who didn't work during the holiday. Thank you, Israel. Two stores right nearby, both closed for the whole holiday even though Passover, when people travel, hike, and camp, is a time of high injury making a store like this quite important.
Considering that I wasn't supposed to walk without an air cast and that I only needed to be on crutches for three to four days, waiting until the end of Pesach wasn't really an appealing option, so I asked the pharmacist if he could order an air cast for me and then when I came back, I would bring my prescription and everything would be honky dory. It was so Israeli when he said that the pharmacy "wasn't speaking" with the supplier and would therefore be unable to order me an air cast. The pettiness of it shocked me. I was more shocked when he tried to offer me a much less supportive ankle brace that would cost over 600₪ ($165) without a prescription. It looked like a $20 nothing that could have been bought at Walgreen's. I kindly thanked him and waited patiently for Passover to end so I could track down the real deal from the specialty store.
Finally, over a week and a half after my injury, the time had come. I hobbled to the orthotics store (I was already crutch-free on the recommendation of a physiotherapist friend...THANKS girl!!) with my prescription and gold-plus insurance card in hand ready to make a highly anticipated purchase. And to my pleasure it was a very easy process. I chatted for a bit with the very nice store owner about my ankle, my knees, and all of my other aches and pains. He got me what I needed, asked me about aliyah, and had an overall good demeanor. It was quite funny, though, when he asked why I had waited so long after the sprain to get an air cast. I kindly reminded him that he had been closed all of Pesach (love me this so Israeli country), and we laughed a few seconds about it together. He sent me on my way with a receipt to take to my health insurance company and a good feeling about kind, talkative, helpful Israelis (which is one of the reasons I fell in love with the country). He had clearly explained to me the whole refund process and said that I should double check a few things to make sure I would have no problems (e.g. my referral for the air cast was from an emergency doctor and not an orthopedic specialist) and that if I did, he would write me a new receipt with a date after a proper referral. He knew his stuff and was very helpful.
If all goes as planned, I will get an 83% discount on my air cast. The air cast cost 400₪ ($110) at the orthotic store (less than the lesser ankle brace the pharmacy wanted me to buy), and because I have gold-plus insurance, it should only end up costing me 68₪ ($18), much less than the $50 from Target.
(The orthotic guy in Israel said he also pays about $50 for the air cast...and then marks it up 200%.) Thank you Israel for being the slightly backwards country with which I am so in love.
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