[img]96|left|||no_popup[/img]Dateline Jerusalem — It is said that if you want to get something done, ask a busy person. That is absolutely true, especially if you live in Israel, where everything is closed on your day off.
Between working and travel time to work (13-14 hours/day devoted to just that), because here the work day is longer and the daily commute often includes both trains and/or buses, I had little time to myself.
However, I managed to shop for food ( first at the butcher, then at the fruit and vegetable store, and then at the supermarket), stand in lines at the post office and pharmacy, do several loads of laundry, cook Shabbat dinner and lunch for many of my friends, clean my apartment, write my newspaper column, keep up-to-date with emails that number over 100 per day, run miscellaneous errands, and, of course, engage in prayer.
Okay, I rarely slept. But I did seem to get things accomplished.
I was known as a multi-tasker, a zombie.
Since losing my job, I can't seem to do anything.
My Routine
I still awaken early, get on my computer only to play sudoku, word games, free cell, spider solitaire, and to check out my emails. The TV is on 24 hours a day with shows from all over the world and subtitles in Hebrew, Arabic and/or Russian.
I channel surf between strokes on my computer.
A week has now gone by, and the laundry is piled high.
The tiled floors of my apartment need mopping (so much harder than just vacuuming a carpet), my bed has not been made (which seems unnecessary since I am still in it), and instead of meals, I tend to graze on snacks all day long.
Of course that has become my daily exercise — walking back and forth to the kitchen.
For days I do not leave the apartment, even to go downstairs to check my mailbox.
I have been invited out by friends and turn down invitations because I no longer have the energy to get dressed. Yet in spite of it all, I do not worry about my unemployment. I am enjoying this relaxed life style. Israel has such a calming effect on me.
At first, I attributed my lethargy to the heat and humidity. August has the reputation of being the worst month in Israel. My air conditioners are old and noisy. Either they strain to keep the rooms cool or get so cold I have to turn them off. Then the heat wave begins anew, and I must get off the bed to turn the air conditioner back on or I get nauseous and feel faint from the hot thick air.
After This, I Will Need a Vacation
I shower. But the towel does not dry me off. It is too hot to exercise, too hot to clean, too hot to shop, too hot to do anything but think about the heat as the perspiration drips down my face.
Oh, how I miss the arid deserts of California and their 100-plus degree weather. Believe it or not, the dry heat there was cooler and more comfortable than this 90-degree steam bath that I now call home.
Just two weeks ago I complained that I had no time to travel throughout Israel or get my driver’s license converted to an Israeli one. How nice it would be to have a day off to get things done. Ha!!
Be careful what you wish for. And never say it out aloud. Did I jinx myself into unemployment?
But now that I have time to do whatever I please, I have yet to travel this beautiful country, get my driver’s license, or get anything accomplished.
I sent out resumes, spoke with prospective employers, networked with friends, and job searched the entire week while doing nothing else of any consequence.
I learned that I am one of too many people in Israel and the U.S. who have lost their jobs to downsizing or layoffs. I guess working for a U.S. firm in Israel is a double whammy.
Now that I have taken off a week to do absolutely nothing, I realize that doing nothing is very tiring.
I am looking forward to filling my days with no time to do anything but complain about needing a vacation go get things done.
L'hitraot. Shachar
Shachar is the Hebrew name of a California-based attorney and former Los Angeles County deputy sheriff who moved to Israel two years ago.
