Unpacked: A Walker Returns Home

It recently occurred to me: What unites us most as humans, is that we read in the bathroom.

I’ll explain:

I was watching our cat, Seamus, go to the bathroom the other day (His litter box is in our bathroom and we were going together).

Watching and pondering as one may do in that intimate space, it hit me: Seamus does not read in the bathroom.

Now I know what your thinking: He does read in the bathroom, just not in front of me.

But I have never seen any magazines- “Life as a Pet,” “Jerusalem Cat,” or “MouseHunter,”- or how-to books like “How to get the most out of your master” or “Who Says they’re the Owners” left beside Seamus’s litter box. So if he does read, he never leaves any evidence behind.

Others might argue that what makes us human is language or making tools. But other animals do that stuff. As far as I know, though, we are the only species to look for entertainment during our performance of such a basic bodily need.

It is amazing how badly we want to utilize every second of the day- to make the best of a few quiet minutes. We’re so determined to use this time in the bathroom to acquire knowledge, extra factoids, to be entertained. We’re a species with a real distaste for wasted time.

I know that when I am hard at work, I am very excited to go to the bathroom. In the bathroom, I have completed numerous non-fiction works, handfulls of issues of Backpacker Magazine and more. Sometimes, I find myself drinking coffee not to wake up, but to ensure that I am granted that hearty five minutes of quality reading time.

I remember when we were in the backcountry of the Pacific Crest Trail, spending three months in the wilderness and relieving ourselves outside everyday, that I would get very excited for those nights we’d spend in town, when I could go to the bathroom and read.

Perhaps we even say, “Go to the bathroom,” because we’re invested in the whole experience of the bathroom- the excretory one and the library one.

I guess it is a bit disturbing that we can’t just be happy with letting our body do its thing. Maybe we’re not just a species with a distaste for wasted time- maybe we have a distaste for quiet time by ourselves. In theory, I should really be okay without being entertained for a few minutes. Seamus, after all, is perfectly happy to go and be done with it.

I think it would be a healthy exercise for me, every once in a while, to go to the bathroom, and just “be.” Maybe I’ll meditate upon my body’s awareness of how to take care of itself. There’s definitely what to be said about savoring everything we do, even at the expense of accomplishing more.

In any case, I think we’re cool. Cool and interesting. Probably pretty funny to our colleagues in the animal kingdom.

I wonder sometimes what Seamus must think of us and the way we live. Maybe he’s an anthropologist in disguise?

But human anthropologist or just plain cat who thinks we people are a bit off, I am sure that when we leave for work, Seamus gets right up here to the computer, and writes for his award-winning blog for house pets, “The Oddities of my Human Roommates.”

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I live in an amazing place.

Israel is a whole to do. But when it comes down to it, it’s just an amazing place.

I imagine that over the course of the year, as they watch us stumble and bumble along, six million souls can’t help but look down at us here in Israel and ask each other sheepishly, “Is this is the best we can do?”

And like our ancestors in heaven, many of us six million souls still living and residing in Israel can’t help but ask, “Is this the best we can do?” Read the rest of this entry »

Picture this:

You walk to the gym to do some exercise. You go to ride the stationary bikes.

You arrive at your favorite bicycle, and gracefully empty your laundry into the washing machine to which your bike is hooked up.

Your peddling, see, is powering the machine.

Sound crazy?

It most definitely is not. Clever mavens of energy-efficiency have been making manual bicycle laundry machines for years.

So welcome to the future- where energy not only does not pollute- it cleans! (Just remember to remove your clean laundry after you’ve showered.) Read the rest of this entry »

Passover Time!- Spring, Green, Freedom!

And how do I celebrate my freedom? Or better phrased- how does my freedom manifest itself?

I realize that it’s my job to search out the crumbs in my house, and not in yours. Read the rest of this entry »

Just one more Reserve Duty thought to unpack:

Well, more a story than a thought.

It goes like this…

Over the course of the month, we shared a guard-duty post with soldiers training to become officers. They were in their regular army service, mostly 19 years old or so. We’d stand guard with these young folk, three hours at a time.

One such time, I was talking with the young officer to be, while listening to music he had on his cell phone. Read the rest of this entry »

There are a handful of jobs out there in which the exchange “Have a nice day”- “Thank You” take place, hundreds of times per day.

Markets, toll booths, drug stores- When we talk about “Have a nice day”- “Thank You,” we are, I think, talking about places and moments in which this world might actually be perfect. Read the rest of this entry »

An hour and a gas station’s chip-aisle, and I realize what I will miss most about the army: Following Orders. Read the rest of this entry »

Guest Blogger- Simcha Frischling

Tonight, we begin the Jewish holiday of Purim. Beyond the external aspects of the holiday the costumes, the parties, and mad drunkenness, I would like to delve into the deeper meaning of the holiday as an experience to deeper our relationship to G-d and all of the relationships in our lives. I think it would be most appropriate to start at the beginning, the creation of mankind. Read the rest of this entry »

Guest Blogger- Simcha Frischling

Hello everyone. Thank you, Yannai, for offering me the opportunity to share on your space. I’ve never done this before so for me it’s like taking a car out for a bit of a test drive. We’ll see how it goes. Read the rest of this entry »

Hi Everyone,

Like I wrote in my previous post, Here to Be us, I’m leaving on Sunday (3/16) for a month of Miluim, reserve duty in the Israeli Army.

I will therefore be taking a month’s break from Unpacked.

For a special treat, I’ve invited a very special teacher of mine, Rabbi Simcha Frischling, founder and director of Call of the Shofar to write guest posts for Unpacked while I’m away.

Call of the Shofar is an organization that offers workshops and weekly follow-up groups which explore Torah principles of relationship which, when applied, encourage individual wellbeing, relational health, and experiences of the greater symphony we are all a part of.

I’m very honored to have Simcha write for Unpacked. I have been involved with “Shofar” for over a year now, and my life- My relationships, my approach to being Jewish, my approach to myself, my approach really to everything, has been impacted in such a powerful and positive way. So much of what I have written on Unpacked has been in some way inspired by my experience with Shofar. If I’ve had a conversation with you in the past year and a half, chances are that a good chance of what I said- I learned from Shofar.

I feel so much thanks towards Simcha, to Benzion and the rest of the Shofar family. I hope you enjoy! (I know I can’t wait to read Simcha’s posts when I come home).

I feel very fortunate to have written for Unpacked for the last two and a half months and I thank all of you very much for unpacking with me. The army’s an intense thing- I’m sure I’ll have tons to Unpack with when I come home.

For now, enjoy the month, and enjoy Simcha’s writing. I can’t wait to return!

Thanks again,

Yannai