Sleepless Dreamer > Recent Status Updates

“The central portion of the Western Wall, considered one of Judaism’s holiest sites, does not have a section where Reform and Conservative Jews may worship with men and women together, as they do in their home synagogues.”

This is false- there is an egalitarian wall section and has been for years. The problem is that it's practically hidden and that there aren't any non-Orthodox representatives in the Wall committee

Work Adventures:
-I was meant to help people with English but I ended up sharing way too much about my failed love life and discussing the meaning of life with Ecuadorians. This job is perfect for me.

-I'm beginning to believe all Egyptians are just fantastic people. I've yet to meet an Egyptian who wasn't a delightful person.

-So many inappropriate jokes, I just adore international spaces.

“A recent analysis of US census data showed that the highest-earning 10 percent of philosophy majors will make an average of $3.5 million over the course of their careers, even more than the highest-earning 10 percent of computer science majors."

This is exactly the kind of research that makes me feel better about my life choices.

“This country needs and values the talents of every American,” Obama said in his first address to Congress, in February 2009. “By 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world. That is a goal we can meet.”

As of 2019, Canada, Israel and South Korea have a higher percent of university students.

“The courses are rigorous and demanding, and many students fail, and even among those who pass, many do so poorly that they abandon the sciences altogether. This is seen by many in the field as a feature, not a bug. It’s a good thing to cull the herd.”

This is what happens in Econ as well and it's disgusting.

“I’m sorry, Oliver.” Peter gazed at him with mock contrition. “But you should have stuck at being our only gay friend. Trying to be our only vegetarian friend as well is frankly pushing it.”

This is the relatable content I'm here for, being the gay vegetarian friend is truly an intersectional struggle.

I must reconcile with the fact that I'm basically my workplace's Alex.

“British news reported in October 2019 that girls whose school bathrooms had turned coed were skipping school to avoid the shame of using those facilities during menses. The horror of handling a period, even in a closed stall, was too much when next to a boy.”

Okay but this isn't a good thing- we should work on changing the shame that accompanies women's bodies.

Her: Want to go to Poland for a seminar next week with people from Jordan, Georgia and Italy?

Me, considering coronavirus, financial concerns, Jewish holidays, and my job: Sure, let's do this! When should I buy tickets?

“Lately, I’ve been feeling betrayed by names:
the king cobra isn’t a cobra, the electric
eel isn’t an eel, and it turns out my anger
was fear all along.”

At 12:00 an Israeli shares a joke about horny Palestinians and heaven with virgins. Everyone but one Palestinian laughs.
At 12:20 we are all shouting at each other and an Israeli is vividly describing what Israel could do to Gaza while a Palestinian claims they will die before they leave their homes.
And then, at 12:40 we are all sobbing and hugging each other. I've never cried like that.

This seminar is wild.

Top Three quotes from today:
-"Why do Jews always turn on the AC and open the windows at the same time?"
- "You see, [hiding your Israeli identity in order to feel safe in Arab spaces] is just like Cinderella! She hid her identity to find the prince!"
-"Fuck this flag, fuck Hebrew, fuck the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

I just love this seminar.

My birthday two years ago was spent roaming around a Slovakian forest. My birthday last year was spent mostly by drinking coffee alone in New Orleans. My birthday this year started with a long and absolutely incredible discussion about inequality in Arab communites and identity in conflict. I feel like I'm finally making better decisions this year.

“I like my breasts, nothing can be killed by them. Hand, foot, tongue, gaze, all weapons from which nothing is safe. But not my breasts. With my round breasts, I’m okay. Still okay."

“I’m not trying to argue with you on this.”

Arthur nodded. “Of course not. Because if we were arguing, it would mean that we were both so set in our ways, we weren’t amenable to seeing it from another side. And I know I’m not that stubborn.”

“Then, without even thinking, he said, “Kant, Arthur? Seriously? Of all the things.”
Mr. Parnassus’s eyes sparkled in the failing sunlight. “He had his fallacies.”
“Oh, that’s an understatement if I ever heard one. Schopenhauer said—”
“Schopenhauer? I take back every nice thing I’ve ever said about you, Linus. You are banished from the island. Leave immediately.”

I just adore this book.

“That’s not how things work in the real world, Mr. Parnassus,” Linus said. “Everything has an explanation. There is a reason for all things..."
Mr. Parnassus arched an eyebrow. “The world is a weird and wonderful place. Why must we try and explain it all away? For our personal satisfaction?”

How people imagine Ravenclaws vs how they actually are.

Me: Wow, that exam was so easy!
Everyone else: The exam was so hard!

I'm just going to spend the next two weeks panicking about this. This is a great beginning to my vacation.

Work Adventures:
- I messed up more times today than ever before but you know, that's just the learning process.
- I think I might be witnessing the beginning of a Brazilian-Israeli romance and I am so here for that, like heck yeah, don't let the time zones control you!
- I spent 80% of the evening doing nothing and 20% panicking.
- Best compliment tonight: "You looked like you knew what you were doing."

“This is the true challenge of a religiously inspired life. Not to head for the quickest exit in a cloud of fire and smoke. The moral life is to be lived through thick or thin, in easy circumstances and the most difficult. In fact, the moral life makes most sense when we are faced with the challenges that threaten to tear apart our societies—poverty, anonymity, fear, hopelessness."

Reading the chapter about marketing while also thinking about the amount of information companies can easily learn about us through the internet is making me want to move into a cave.

"The marketer's magic is at work when they transform a previously low-involvement product into a high-involvement one. Athletic shoes are a prime example. Once just functional shoes for gym class, sport shoes have become a status symbol for young people and even the cause of murder on inner-city streets."

Is this really what we're striving for here?

Seminar form: tell us a fun fact about yourself.
Me: hmm, saying I'm nonbinary counts both as a fun fact and as a painless way to come out to people who should know, right?

"'The will for peace, in the interpretation of NPA, could only come if either a “hurting stalemate” is experienced by both sides, or a decisive victory is achieved by one,’ Norway’s Foreign Ministry wrote."

That's a succinct way to put it, really this is what every war is, isn't it?

“Alice had told me that the consumption of media would change quite a bit in the next decade; she was waiting for certain companies to form so she could invest in them."

Okay that's a cute touch.

It feels like I've been reading this book forever and ever but I'm only halfway done, what is this

Two Conclusions from Israeli-Palestinian meet-up:

1. We may not agree on much but we all agree that Trump's peace plan is terrible.

2. After reading so much about Africa, it's becoming very hard for me to embrace Europeans discussing peace. Like, dude, solve your own problems first. Europe may be a stable continent but that's a result of destabilizing everyone else.

"Bella never wore makeup, nor should she. The cosmetics industry made billions of dollars a year from women who were trying to attain skin like hers."

Ugh.

"I put in a CD of violent music, and then turned it up until it drowned out other voices."

What music does Edward Cullen consider violent? Is he listening to angry arias from 18th century operas? Brahms? Heavy metal? Punk? The people need to know.

Ah yes, 662 pages of Edward Cullen discussing "the monster within" and making fun of the petty thoughts of humans, as if his were any better. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to finish this book.