Super Bowl 2K7

I know I'm about a month and a half late, but I would just like take a moment to thank Greg and A-Train Alexander for hosting my face at this year's annual Super Bowl @ The Ale House Sh*t Show. For obvious reasons, I was not able to attend this year's event in Miami, but my semblance did. And it apparently made quite a splash on the eclectic clientele at the Ale House. Next year...no excuses. Write it down: Super Bowl 2K8: The Return of Tommy.

*Thanks also to Ryan, Prince, Joe, and the rest of the Miami crew for being so disturbingly weird and making me feel like I was missed!



Who in the BLUE hell are these two guys?



The Fabulous GA. Feeding me. Weird.



Disturbing to the point of tears.

THIS is child abuse

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=24792_Death_Cult_Family_Moments_from_Hamas_TV&only

Next time you hear about how Israel "violates" human rights and tramples on the lives of Palestinians and how Israeli political leaders are "war criminals," keep this video in mind.

People who know me and read this blog regularly know that I'm a pretty happy-go lucky guy and tend to enjoy the brighter elements of life. But after seeing this this video, I was ashamed to be a human being. THIS is child abuse. These poor kids made me cry. They have no future, no goals, and they dream only of death...because of what their own people are telling them and teaching them.

Next time ANYONE dares tell you that Israel is to blame for robbing Palestinian children of their future...send them this link. It's a horrid, despicable, vile example of what Palestinian leaders are doing to their own people. And I've never been so proud to be in Israel...a country where children are celebrated and cherished, not manipulated and abused for political gain by f'n cowards.

-E

Purim 2K7

There aren't many places in the world where getting "out-of-your-mind, where exactly was I last night" drunk is considered a mitzvah, or "good deed." But then again, there aren't a lot places in the world like Israel. The holiday of Purim came and went this past weekend, and from what I remember, it was off the chain. I'm not gonna get into the actual story of Purim, except to say that it follows the predictable pattern of most Jewish holidays: "They tried to kill us, we whooped their asses instead...let's eat." (Editor's note: For Purim, replace the word "eat" with "drink alcohol.")

Of course I'm oversimplifying, but for non-religious Jews in Israel (which means most Israelis), Purim is basically a four-day long costume party where drinking...lots of drinking...is encouraged. The idea is to drink enough so that you can't tell the difference between the "good guy" and the "bad guy." Imagine a sort of Jewish Mardi-Gras.

So, knowing the general interests and tendencies of this blog's audience, I will recount only the beer-fueled festivities from the last week.

First, the Kfar HaStudentim (or Student Village, the apartment/dorm complex where I live), organized a huge party, complete with a costume contest, free booze, and dancing. The irony of the situation is that I had to wait until Senior Celebration to get a free glass of wine from Syracuse University. At Hebrew University, they're requesting I get drunk on their shekel. What a country!



Pink definitely works on you. And you too, Ms. Playboy Bunny.



Capacity crowd on hand to see...



The Return of Ron Jeremy! Or, that may be my friend Tony.
I'm not quite sure.



Edward Scissorhands. This was a big crowd-pleaser.



My roommate Ilan, as some kind of Greco-Roman geek,
acknowledging his "subjects."



Me and Big Eddy. He didn't need a bottle opener.



Ilan, blowing a kiss to our friend Yoann. He was really into the whole
"Roman bathhouse" motif.



Bryce, Ariel, Cammie, and me. We dressed up ourselves.



Two days, and one hangover, later...we were back at it again. This time we went to a huge soiree at a kibbutz called Ramat Rachel. Tons of costumes, lots of smoke, too much drinking, and way too many Israelis trying to rap along with Nas and Biggie. Still, a great time. Although I have to admit that by about 2:30, the music had shifted to house/trans which meant Levis had to exit stage left.



Smoke machines are fun.



Barney meets The Incredible Hulk. Or something.



Ilan, getting groped by Zoro.



My friend Rose, her boyfriend, and me. I went as a soccer player.
Stupid costume, I know. I definitely dropped the ball this year with my selection.
Fortunately, since I was a soccer player for the night, I quickly picked up
that ball and scored a goal and was deemed Hero of Purim!



Best costumes of the night. Imagine the potential
lines these dudes could have used: "So...wanna ride my ostrich?"



Me, Ilan and our Korean friend Moshe. Yea, that's right, his name
is Moshe. As in "Moses" in Hebrew. That's just how he rolls.



Good times.

So that pretty much sums up Purim 2K7. If you need me, I'll be the one in line at the local liver transplant center.

-E

Back (from the U.S./the dead/sabbatical)

So...yea. Anyone who reads this pathetic excuse for an "on-going" blog has probably noticed that I haven't exactly kept my end of the bargain lately. Last post: January 4th. Ooops. Ok, in my defense a lot has been going on. Namely, end of semester final exams and term papers, the local internet company completely screwing us with access in our apartment, and general day-to-day inconveniences. For those who have chastised me for my lack of postings, thanks for keeping me on my toes (that means you, Leora). It's actually nice to know that someone is actually reading this thing!

Ok on to business. Some of you may know that I was actually back home in the States for three weeks in February. It was great seeing everyone I managed to see, and I suck for not being able to catch up with the people I didn't see. See what I mean? To recap: For two weeks I gorged myself on my mom's cooking, took a one-day road trip to Philly, and went to more basketball games than any human being should be able to attend. And I have the pics to prove it:


The Levis Clan at a Wizards game.


Ariel, me, and our friend Jaime at a Maryland game. I'm wearing
a headband cause headbands are cool. Right?



Me and Ariel in Philly at the Temple/UMass game. Ariel, you might
recall that the Minutemen got blown out of the building that day.
Just a thought. Anyways, this game was particularly notable because of this...






Hooter (love the name), one of the two Temple mascots, was celebrating
his birthday the day of the Temple/UMass game. So, at halftime, he
had a b-day party and invited basically every professional,
semi-professional, amateur, and boys and girls club mascot in Philly.
The result was the most bizarre spectacle I have ever seen.
A "basketball" game broke out where the "players" were
giant pigs, ducks, some kind of superhero-ish freak, and everything else
a disturbed human mind can create. Ariel and I just kinda watched
the whole thing unfold, hoping we were on crack....cause that was one WEIRD scene.


After two weeks in Maryland, I rolled to New York for a quick visit. As promised I made two visits to Dinosaur BBQ in a five day span, which is nothing short of revolting. But it was a promise to myself I needed to keep. I subsequently put on approximately 45 pounds and I now bleed bbq sauce. Whatever it was worth it. FYI...the garlic-chipotle bbq wings are great hang-over remedies. Just ask Gideon.



I got pride.



Sunday brunch/weight gaining session at the 'Saur.



Craig and Kenny making me proud. Amazingly, Craig actually
finished everything on his plate. And everything on Kenny's.


Hangover, out. Garlic chipotle, in.


Ariel talking sh*t to his plate.

So thanks to everyone who showed up and hung out in NY...good times. Those few days really made me realize how much I miss the City. I am definitely having a blast in Israel, but it's a great feeling to know you can come back home and not miss a beat. Anyways, I'll leave it at that 'cause this blog, after all, is not about New York. I'm back in Jerusalem now and our second semester is officially underway. So thanks for being patient with the lack of entries and stay tuned for an update on Purim...4 of the wackiest days you're liable to be a part of in Israel!

-E