A Filler

This one is a sort of filler while I gather everything I want to tell you guys about Krishna in Cali (more thoroughly than last time).
This was a letter I wrote that was originally intended for my lovely friend Hana L, but never quite made it out of my journal. It's a bit out dated, but completely relevant.
*please excuse my language...based on context*

" Yo, F*%& Chucks.

I just spent a whole, gray, rainy, super windy day in Tel Aviv, by myself, in Chucks. I would say I was lost approximately 50% of the time. I literally walked from 10 am until 1 pm when I got to my destination an hour late and was told to come back at 5. So what did I do? I went back out walking, looking for shoes to replace my merciless Converses which have inflicted gory blisters that bled into my socks and squished my toes beyond recognition. I'm lying I haven't looked at my toes yet, but they hurt like a b%$ch.

It's true that I'm sitting at a bus stop alone next to a highway. It's cold and raining still, and my clothes are wet, BUT at least I know I'm at the right bus stop. I know because my bus pulled away just in time for me to see the number on the back from across the street.

I'm not even trying to be sarcastic, knowing for sure that the bus I need is going to be here in 40 minutes or so is the most reassuring thing that's happened all day. Look! I've relaxed enough to write you a letter.

Here's what I know: I could never live in a place where grayness is a common state of the weather. I would be one of those poor souls who either goes crazy or forgets how to smile. The best way to think is that the rain is good, it's necessary, it's wonderful - but it's hard to remember when it's raining and dark and you're late and alone...

The thing is though, this whole day has never happened to me before! It's so new that I can't even say it was a bad day. I'm just Wiped. Out.
I'm gonna eat my orange, I'll finish this later."

That was in late December sometime, while still bumming around Israel.

Now I'm in Berkeley for a bit, on my brother's couch, and I'm headed to Santa Cruz to climb some trees with Liz, a buddy from Eisner. (Jew camp for those of you who don't know) Not sure yet where I'm off to after that...hopefully some wwoofing in south Cali . (what's wwoofing?! World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. It's an organization that once you become a member of they give you contact information for farmers all over the country you've signed up for. It's in your hands to make arrangements with the farmers, but the the deal is that you work a certain amount of hours in exchange for food and a place to sleep. The only expense is transportation. This is how I ended up at the meditation center that past few weeks. Um, check it out because it's awesome)
peace, leeza

Cali and Krishna

Hey Everyone!
This is a blog postcard. I'm using a computer at the Fair Oaks Library in Carmichael, California. I'm staying at a meditation center for two weeks, that was all I knew about it before I got there and discovered that it's community more like my own home than I would have imagined, you know, a house with a big family, random people wandering through all the time, people renting rooms, someone always in the kitchen...The surprise? This is a community that practices Bakti Yoga, their lord is Krishna and the main mode of communicating with him is chanting. Wow, there's so much more, but those are the fundamentals, the super basics. It's been fascinating.
So my new buddy Hillary, whose from Australia, set out on borrowed bikes to find the library and use the internet, pretty simple right? It was almost as bad as Israel! Everyone pointed us in different directions, the streets are looooooooong and lined with dentists offices, law firms, fabric stores, 'Carmichael Neck and Back', and halfway down Sunrise Ave (wich intersects with Sunset Blvd) the chain on Hillary's bike broke. It didn't fall off, it broke. So we made it 40 minutes later, and now we're typing fast, sharing a computer, because you can't get a library card without a parent if you're under 18...? We have to get back to the center soon for dinner and chanting! More when I can, Love From the WEST COAST!
leeza