Sickness brings in the New Year, YIKES

I have been sick since New Year's. Wanting to be more optimistic and positive about the situation is my attitude every morning I wake up and following every large splash of vomit that creases the first layer of the toilet water. What a depressing way to start the year...so here are some quick highlights of the last week of nastiness I have been unfortunate to go through. But if I wasn't sick maybe it would be you writing this not so fun posting? I guess all those times I said, "better him than me" finally has caught up to me.
Bathing in warm water has been a godsend, so long as our 100 year old house continues to pump out the heat. The whole bathing thing has been really my only area of relief during the last several days. Food, my usual first comfort relief has no business being in this posting because I have eaten only a couple bowls of rice and some bananas in the last week. Sports, although i love to watch and talk and play them have provided no sense of satisfaction lately. My roomates, though they are both great, can only shuttle me to and from the hospital and ask me every hour or so how am feeling, which I simply respond with an eye roll and a deep breath. So the constants of food, sports, and friends have done nothing to help me through this shitty situation.

So for most people baths are a welcome sense of relief after a long day of work or activity. However, for this sick kid, bathing has become a science. Five minutes before I get in, I sit on the toilet with my head in my hands and sulk, rub my stomach, contemplate inserting another suppository, drink a full glass glass of water, undress and begin running my hands under the warm water. At this point, the tub is about a quarter full and I step in and it feels fucking great. I stand in the tub while shower water splashes my face and I feel at ease for the first time since I have gotten out of the shower/bath last.
Second step is for me to warm up a bit in the shower stream, and then take the euphoric step of sitting down in the shower and letting the water splash onto my face and stomach and chest, while my legs are fully extended and the tub continues to fill up. (Although this has been a shitty feeling/hangover cure of mine since high school, just recently I have learned there are a number of us shower-bathers out there, though like all nomenclatures, we are few and far between, but are fully committed to our practices, and have been known to espouse of them in public.) So at this point, the water has been running for roughly 12 minutes, I am feeling sooooo much better, and the tub is quickly filling up. I like to stay on the hydration train and try to be sure I have taken in at least half a cup of water by this point. After a full 16 minutes the tub is full and it is time to turn the water off, for the first time.
Relaxation station is in full effect as I close my eyes, crack the window in the bathroom and concentrate on thinking about getting healthy. 10 minutes go by and I suddenly wake up realizing I had fallen asleep in the tub, which for a 6 month baby is bad news, but for me it is just a little startling. Very aware the water temperature has dropped anywhere between 5 and 15 degrees, it is time to drain the tub halfway, while a new flow of very warm, though not hot water, begins to fill my palace again. As I learned early on, there are a few variables that can effect how enjoyable the second half of the bath goes. First, there is the matter of timing. If too much water is released from the tub while the shower is filling it back up, there will not be enough warm water to repeat the empty and fill method a third time. Secondly, temperature is key. If the bath water gets too warm too quick it will make the bathroom super moist and tropical, thus dehydrating me further and continuing this cycle. Since we have no fan in our bathroom, this condensation must be realesed somehow, which means it is time to open the outside window a little further. Not only does this not work very effectively, gettting out of an hour long bath and drying off and stepping naked into a bathroom with endless cold air blowing into it is terrible. Third is attitude. Am I really trying to kick it in the shower for another 20 minutes while it seems to me everyone else in Berkeley is doing something productive, even though we know that is far from the case ever here in Berkeley. And as has been the case time and again this week, the answer has always been, hell yeah I am staying in, and I am even looking forward to getting back in in a couple of hours.

Couple of hours? Is this grown man of 24 years really that down on his luck that he needs to sulk away his pain and discomfort through a series of over abundant water usage? Yes, this is precisely the case. Although I have only had three shower/baths today, and it is 1 pm, what about the sleepless nights you might ask yourself. Unfortunately for some people, when they get sick, rather than sleep like they are supposed to, they stay awake and count the minutes and listen to AM radio. I have counted lots of minutes this week. With sleepless nights so prevalent and the relief of the shower just a few steps away, why deny myself the pleasure when nothing else is going good for me right now? Five days of sickness, 4-8 showers a day, 30 minutes of water running each time doesn't make me feel good about our next month's water bill. I'm pretty sure there is no drought in California right now, but if there is a blip on the radar in Berkeley, I know whose house the authorities are going to come knocking on first.
So I am now in my 5th day of sickness and fortunately have not puked in almost 48 hours, however with no appetite and no real desire to begin eating anytime soon, the road to recovery is still a couple of days away....
Here's to a Happy New Year for all the happy and healthy folks out there, and I too will be back on that team soon, so long as the water bureau does not cut me off.
Sorry to bring down anyone's spirit who took the time to read all the way through this, but why lie when there is so much excitement to share sometimes. I wish everyone in the Moishe Community and abroad good health and even better luck in 2007!
be the change you want to see in your community and spread the message of peace,
Danny

Just another Moishe Monday

I wish it was Sunday....whoa whoa...

LEO sez.... Happy New Year everybody. This past New Year celebration was two-fold. Not only did we usher in 2007, but MoisheHouse DC turned 3 months old. This toddler is thinking about taking its first steps. At three months, I am proud to say, Moishe has made his impact. As a group, the four MHDC members have combined forces to create...Moishe DC. The enigmatic Moishe DC is rarely seen, but he responds frequently to emails. Of the four housemates, David, Adam, Chris and Leo, each brings his own quality. We are having special Mem rings made to effectively combine our powers. Adam brings dry wit and intellect (let’s call it wind); Chris forever the passionate one brings heat and humor (fire), David the bestest most friendliestest one of the bunch (heart—he can talk to animals), and me, Leo. What do I throw in the mix…( I often wonder this myself) the answer of course heavy metal (earth).

It’s a new year, new time, new blogs and more fun. I am looking forward to intense moishe powwows, moishe meetings and moishe men (that’s you C. Musa Silver). I am looking forward to all the cool new people I will get to meet, the places I will go, and things I might do. But don’t take life too seriously….all we are, is dust in the wind: Dust, Wind, Dude. L’chaim, to life, peace, out.

Sitting by the fire

Here I am. I'm laying down in fornt of a fire with my dog at my side. Ahhh, how sweet life is. As I begin this new year I think about my life and where I am. Just a year ago I was almost killed in a car accident so it's especially interesting to reflect on the past year. I have somehow managed to raise myself into one hell of a life. I live in a beautiful house with an adorable dog and slightly less adorable roommates. I have a great job that allows me to get paid to try and make the world a better place. My parents are both healthy and a part of my life. I have wonderful friends who even if they are not all close by, there's always the cell. Life is good.
So why do I feel like shit so much of the time.
It's not that I feel bad all the time, but more than I would expect considering the life I just described. I've been thinking about this a lot in the last month or so and I think I've found an answer. Of course not THE answer, who knows what that is but at least something to work on. I have done a really good job at growing a life around me that is great. But when was the last time that I put the same amount of energy that I put into my friends/family, job, house, into myself. I think it's been a while. It's been a while since I've taken action to learn something new. It's been ages since I practiced my Ukulele. I used to do scukpture and ceramics but now that seems to be a thing of the past. I'm 12 pages into writing the next great American Novel, but I haven't writen in months. The answer is to take in it inward.
Step one.
NO TV!!!!!!
TV sucks me away from anything productive and fulfilling. I'm setting stern rules for myself on tv usage. TV only when the sun is down. If the sun is up, there are better things to be doing.
Step Two.
NO POT!!!!
Kinda. It's just too easy to come home a take a hit to relax. This single act is not a bad thing at all but when it starts happening everyday... productivity goes way down. At the retreat I had a great talk with Margie about Shabbat. I was trying to understand why she observed Shabbat o the extent that she did. Although i had no interest in following her in the way she does Shabbat her points on keeping a day seperate and sacred really hit home. Where am I going with this? POT ONLY ON THE SHABBAS. Sacreligious? Maybe... Bradilicious? Definitely! I've been doing it for a few weeks and it's great! Gives me a solid reason to say no when an offer is made during the week (It's true I can be weak to peer presure) and it makes it a special, even spiritual experience on my typically lazy Saturday.
Step Three.
LEARN!!!
Just because I'm not in school doesn't give me the excuse to stop learning. Whenever anyone says, "what's up?" I want to be able to say, "I just learned about..." or "I'm checking out this new poet who..." or "Holla!" The latter I say quite often but the others are rare. I'm gonna start small just to make sure I actually do it. Monday-Wednesday I have Brady School for one hour a day. I can learn about anything. the point is just that I am putting time aside to learn and doing it. It'll be like a learning free write. In a free write you can write about anything. The only rule is that your pencil can't leave the page. Same thing only my brain can't leave the facts.
Step Four.
GET BETTER AT STUFF
I don't have the timing worked out yet but I need some hours devoted to getting better at stuff. Wether it's ukulele, writing, tennis, whatever... it don't matter. The point is to feel better as a human being so anything will do the trick.
Step Five.
EXERCISE
I get winded if I sprint for one city block... gross.
Step Six.
TALK ABOUT IT
Ah ha! you are all part of this very important step! It's easy to let yourself off the hook. To forget the promises you made to yourself. But it's a whole different thing when you're letting other people down too. I'm telling you all what my plans are so that I can have the fear of being called on my shit to help me live these steps out. When you talk to me I don't want you to ask me about this and have to admit that i totally failed at it and am watching tv all the time and doing nothing. This will help keep me on track.

Ha! And I was going to write about my trip to Cambodia. Well I guess this is what needed to come out. You all are great and I hope we get to have another retreat soon.
Fun is Fun
Brady
East bay

Hannah's Blog

Dear Rog,

This week I learned that my masters enjoy it when I hump them. So maybe, other humans will like it too. This moment of clarity was preceded by Master Nate’s Chanukah gift to Master Lee: a T-shirt for the 4th Annual Humpin’ Hannah’s Softball Championships. I took this as a sign from Hashem. My new year’s resolution is to get as many hannah humping human pictures as I can.

My masters took me with them to the snowy mountains this weekend to celebrate my New Year’s resolution. I played with my uncles Benny and Kramer who are bigger, much hairier and younger than I am. Kramer humped Benny. I humped Master Lee and his girlfriend, my arch nemesis, Erin. Benny and Kramer eat different food than me. It smelled yummy so I tasted some when no one was looking. I went sledding and running in the snow. I made a lot of doodies in the snow and painted the snow yellow. I had fun this weekend but I am excited to go home, where I am the center of attention and can sleep in everyone’s beds.

I rove you rog,
Hannah

Current mood: horny and frustrated

MH Seattle ushers in a new year

Hey, all. Stephen writing here, just reflecting on the last month and this new solar-based year. It has been pretty crazy lately, as I started a new, full-time job at a counseling center at the beginning of December. Throw in all of the end o' year craziness and you have a recipe for minimal sleep and maximum festivities.

I really enjoyed our erev xmas brunch; we had a busy kitchen and many satisfied tummies. We had an excellent french toaster preparer and many lively conversations. It was a nice chance to relax after all the food was prepared and enjoy the weekend.

We are looking forward to this next year and some winter wonderment and new programming ideas.

Stephen Singer

A Crush and A Salon

I recently developed a crush on one of my housemates. Let's just say he's the tall one and we call him Moishe. I've tried to fight it. I've even joined a church but when he puts on that Forest Foundation t-shirt and talks about future events, I can barely contain myself. Let's just say I wish I was phanfare and he'd log onto me.

All jokes aside, we recently met with a woman from Nextbook (http://www.nextbook.org/), a Jewish cultural and literary organization. We, the Moishehousenikim (Moishehouseoon in Arabic), have struggled with where and when to add content to our events. Is a Dvar Torah too much for a Shabbat dinner? Is circumcision for men and women going too far? Again, the point is, we struggle. When we met with the woman from Nextbook we decided to partner up on a series of salons that we (MHDC) would host. I'm excited for the content of the salons but also for what they could potentially produce. Will we start something here at MHDC that goes well beyond what we could have ever envisioned? I hope so.

C. Musa Silver

Can I Get More Yuletide Over Here, Waiter?

Christmas Eve is generally a lonely event for me. During the rest of the year, using a delicate combination of cunning, forethought, antibiotics and make-up, I can hide with admirable success my large nose, my overbearing mother, my frail immune system and all else that publicly marks me as a Jew. But, come the yuletide (what exactly is yuletide, anyways?), sitting in the middle of an empty movie theatre, watching, no doubt, a bad movie about the wacky antics of a rebel raindeer and burping up the rancid smells of those last four potstickers that I really knew I shouldn't have had, my Jewishness takes on a weight that not even beer or Woody Allen can unload. It becomes something beyond my strange dietary restrictions and chest hair and self-depricating wit, beyond all those things I can hide or somehow sublimate into a secular and therefore more socially acceptible form. It becomes calendrical--which is a pretty big deal for me as I still have trouble remembering which are the months with only thirty days.

So imagine my joy when, on Christmas Eve, after the obligatory Chinese feast, the boys of Moishe House DC and their distinguished guests marched down to Dupont Circle to join 1,496 other calendrical rebels in a violent and revolutionary celebration of difference, or, as others might call it, a sort-of cool dance party in a big club. And imagine my joy, too, when I noticed that all of my fellow revelers were, like me, genetically disinclined to obey beats and rythms, everyone coasting awkwardly about with lowered but happy heads like at middle school dances where the girls hop up and down and the boys drink punch. Yes! Such joy! A thousand and a half Jews waging war against Christmas with overpriced well drinks and rap music and bad judgement! The People of the Book marking their difference from the world, on the day during which they are most different, by acting just like everyone else. Yes! Joy! Drinks! Dance!

I can't wait untiil next year.

Adam in DC