Artivism, Thanks to the Moishe House

One year ago, my mentor asked what the Jewish community could do to support young Jewish artists. Today, we have created an answer: Moishe House LA. As a filmmaker, I am thirsty to be around other creative, passionate people. By living in the Moishe House LA, I live with people I admire and who can envision a Jewish community that is diverse, welcoming, inclusive, and fun. And, because of the subsidized rent, I am able to devote real time to my filmmaking. For example, last month I was asked to produce a video art installation - my first! Only because of my living situation, I was able to come up with a concept, interview people in the Mo House community, and spend time and energy editing without worrying about how I was going to pay next month's rent. We seek to reach out and support local artists and activists (we also had our first art gallery opening), including ourselves!

Here's the video piece, a look at 4 laws that limited marriage. I could only have produced this in such a short amount of time because of living in a Moishe House, so let me know your thoughts!

MHSeattle, Neal Schindler, 1/1/2009

In the last few weeks alone, I've been impressed by how many different kinds of people find their way to Moishe House Seattle, and how many ways there are to end up here. One person found us on Facebook and decided to stop by after giving Jconnect (an organization connected to Hillel and targeted at a similar post-college, pre-family demographic) the old college try; my impression is that she won't stop attending Jconnect events but simply wants an alternative for times when Jconnect isn't serving all her Jewish social needs. MH Seattle also seems to have enough staying power in people's minds that they come back to us, even if they've been out of town for months. What others enjoy about our community is fairly simple: unforced fellowship, genuine warmth, and the kind of rich, stable home environment that can be hard to find between college and marriage. It's not that any of this is news, just that I start 2009 with renewed appreciation for it all. As my life begins to change in certain ways -- a likely new job, a return to (the terrifying and exciting world of) dating -- I'm grateful for a home that supports and nurtures my development, personal and professional. And of course for my housemates, who are worth more than their weight in gold, or latkes. (Speaking of which: I think I've had about enough latkes.)

Our calendar for January offers the triumphant return of "Jews on Ice," albeit this time at a proper rink rather than the rinky-dink specimen we found last month at Seattle Center. (Though the sight of little kids skating with "walkers" -- don't worry, they weren't actually disabled, just unsure of themselves on the ice -- amused us all, I think it's safe to say.) We'll also be bringing back the Havdalah-and-Spicebox combo event that Snow-mageddon '08 managed to spoil in December (Spicebox is a belly-dancing event that a number of MH Seattle regulars are into). There'll also be a couple of Shabbatot, including our signature Russian Shabbat, and I'll be leading an excursion to Town Hall Seattle's "Jewish in America" series -- specifically, to an event on Jewish film and music that will include live performances and the screening of four short movies. With the new year come changes, but MH Seattle's certifiable awesomeness remains delightfully intact.