http://mosista.co/alwiese

http://mosista.co/alwiese

This is my serious mustache face! Today is the last day of MOVEMBER and thus, the last mustache picture!! If you have enjoyed them and want to help support men's health! Please donate now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the incredible Pardes mustache growing team! They are SO amazing, so far they have raised over $3,000!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

You can still be a part of this cause!! Donate here: http://mosista.co/alwiese

Second to last day of MOVEMBER!!

Second to last day of Movember!! Don’t miss out helping and being a part of this amazing event!

http://us.movember.com/mospace/961732

A very thankful update!

I know you were all hoping to see a mustache picture, but here is one clean shaven picture! Donations at school for mustaches are going well and I am proud of the money we have raised as a team. This last week we will need to make a pretty big push to finish strong! 

Tonight I am refereeing another football game, and I am pretty sure it's not going to rain, so I am really excited about that! Yesterday I made chicken noodle soup for me and Roi (he is coming to see the game and then staying for the weekend) and today I made pumpkin pie (bought vanilla ice cream) and also made my first challah in Israel! I haven't eaten any of it yet, but everything looks and smells delicious!! The house smelled GREAT today! I am so grateful to be able to share these things with Roi...and I am grateful to have the means to have such nice things surrounding me.  I am grateful that I am studying at an incredible institution that is not only expanding my mind, but also my heart.  I finally feel like I am studying something that is making me a better person, not just a means to an end. 

And most importantly, I am grateful for my family. These are the days that living for from home is nearly torture. Not that I necessarily mess the food (although it's yummy) but I miss being with the whole family and then when everyone leaves, my mom and sister and I sit down with all the leftover desserts (even though we swore an hour before we could never eat another bite) and retell the funny stories of the day and laugh about all the crazy things that happened.  These are by far the best times and these are things that can't be replaced  by someone else. 

I hope you are all having a wonderful meal of abundance and surrounded by people who's love is overflowing. Happy Thanksgiving!! 

IFL Mustache!

For those of you that don’t know. I am a referee for the IFL (Israeli Football League) and last night was the season opener at Kraft Family Stadium! It was great and I think the teams were really intimated with my mustache!

Super cute mustache!

http://mosista.co/alwiese It's already more than half way through Movember!!! Please donate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Also, I think this mustache is awesome! Just sayin'

Pardes Mustaches!

First week: 

Second week! 

More people and more mustaches!! Way to go Pardes!! We are raising money for Movember!! Donate to our incredible team here: http://mosista.co/alwiese 

Mustache Shekel Wars!!

Hey mustache lovers!!!! 

 

We are starting shekel wars (originally penny wars) at Pardes! Put your agarot in the containers on the cabinet in the hallway of your learning level.

 

All-new Shekel Wars jars next to Pardes HappyGrams box

The containers say:

 

•  רמת א Level alef
• רמת ב Level bet
• רמת ג Level gimmel
• רמת ד Level dalet
• רמת ה Level hey
• כולל Kolel

 

If you are a “split” learner, please go with the level of your 3-a-week class.

 

You should put all the shekel coins and agarot in your level – whoever has the most shekels at the end of the month will win!!! But there is one catch! If you put shekel bills (paper shekels) into a different level, it will be counted as negative!! For example, say level alef is kicking butt and they have SO many shekels, so someone in level hey says, what are we going to do about this?? We can put a 20 shekel bill in level alef and it will deduct 20 shekels off of their score. 

 

What can a level win, you ask?? Well, first and formost, pride in your level and school for raising so much money for men’s health and for supporing Movember. Secondly, on Thursday December 1st, your class will get freshly baked chocolate chip cookies (and maybe milk)!

 

If you have any questions, please see someone with a mustache…or me!

 

Love, Andrea 

http://us.movember.com/mospace/2037454/ Donate here if you don't go to Pardes!! 

Soul patch!

I know you're digging the soul patch! So have a soul and dig a dollar deep into your wallet and donate!! http://us.movember.com/mospace/2037454/ All the healthy men in your life will thank you!! And so will I!! =)

In case you were going through mustache withdrawal

http://us.movember.com/mospace/2037454/ Please donate a $1 (or more) to help support research from prostate cancer and to help men's health!!! I know that you're all loving these mustache photos, so just $1!! Read about where your money will go...http://us.movember.com/about/ 

Thanks in advance!!

Shabbat mustache!

Roi joined me today for men's health awareness!!! I hope you like our mustaches!!! Shabbat shalom...and after Shabbat donate here!! https://www.movember.com/us/donate/your-details/member_id/2037454

Mustache 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think this one is sexy!

 That's why I'm winking!!

https://www.movember.com/us/donate/your-details/member_id/2037454 Donate, donate, donate!! =) Thank you!!!!!!!! 

Hole in my heart...

I just received this article about bagel shops in Chicago (Kaufmans, our favorite, taking the number one stop) from my mother in the mail yesterday. She is always sending me little things, articles, stickers, pictures, whatever she can to let me know she is thinking of me. But even though she sent me this because it was a cute article about a place to love to visit together. The true message of what she is saying every time she sends me something was way too obvious this time. I love living and studying in Israel...but I know it's not easy for my family and especially my mom, we are best friends, and I know it's not easy for them (my family) to always be so supportive of me when I go away because I know it is a truly painful thing for them that I don't live close to home.  And I hope they know that I appreciate their support and love even when it is such a hard thing for them to do. I love you and I can't wait to see you in March! 

My Movember

I think I am the only girl at my school doing Movember to help raise money and awareness for men's health. But I think it's so important for society, I think men's health is something that people over look, especially cancer in men. And let's face it, there are a lot of important men in my life who's health I really care about! So here is my mustache, check back everyday to see a new mustache picture until the end of MOVEMBER! Donate here: https://www.movember.com/us/donate/your-details/member_id/2037454 

Shabbat shalom! שבת שלום!!!

My table is ready! Tomorrow for lunch we're having a vegan Shabbat at my house! I made vegan chili. quinoa (a grain) with pomegranate and apple, and everyone else is bringing the other things! It'll be lovely. =)

I have a great story from the week for Shabbat! I was in my Humash class and we were learning the gemertria, and my teacher told us to add the number of the letters of our name..Andrea אנדריאה is 270...if you write 270 in the simplest form it is רע which is "bad" in Hebrew! I was SO sad! My name means bad?!?! (In Hebrew they actually write 270 as ער instead so no word can mean bad.) I was really upset and my teacher was like, really? What's your Hebrew name? And I said דורית Dorit, and he said, that's not 270..that's 620 and 620 is a great number in Hebrew, and I almost yelled, "and 620 is my birthday!!!!!!!!" (June 20th) and he said WOW!! gemertria in action!! (Because gemertria is suppose to be somewhat mystic.) 620 is also significant in Judaism because there are 613 commandments given in the Torah and seven rabbinic commandments instituted later for a total of 620!! Needless to say, I felt pretty awesome! 

Shabbat shalom!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

MOvember!

Movember is a changing the face of men's health! Men all over the US and world are growing mustaches in order to raise money to help fight prostate cancer!! You can read all about it at their website here. 

Pardes has a team led by Evan Remer, the guy in the picture with the big handle bar mustache. He has gotten other students and faculty to join him in raising awareness for this cause! 

The link to donate to the Pardes team is here! 

Check back here in two weeks and then again at the end of the month to see picture updates of these fine men's progress!! 

I also joined the Pardes team despite my lack of mustache, you can donate directly under my name if you click here!! =) Thanks in advance! 

Alef bet

So....today I learned the alef bet! Although I should have learned it a long long time ago, and despite that I "speak" Hebrew...I had never learned the order of the letters. Today, I thought, enough, it's time. And Roi helped me learn the letters in order. It's awesome! Have you ever felt like there is something that you really should know, but you should have learned it when you were so young, that you just never learned it on your own...that's how I felt about the alef bet. Today is a big day! I am very proud of myself =)

Also, for a class, I have to learn gematria which is assigning numeric value to Hebrew letters, and it's very difficult to learn if I don't know the alef bet. I will also have to learn the Hebrew months soon, something else I have never learned!   

Israeli Driving License!

Although I passed the driving test in June, I just received my license in the mail yesterday!! I feel like this is a great achievement in becoming "Israeli" and I feel like I had to work harder for this than just becoming an Israeli citizen!! It was worth the wait!! 

Expedition America

I was recently told that an educational program that I hold very near my heart has been canceled. Expedition America (or EA) was a program at Highland High School in Indiana, that took high school students on a summer trip to hike in the mountains (somewhere in the US) for 3 and then spent the next 5 or 6 days visiting historical sites.  I was a chaperon with the founder, Robert Blumenthal, for two years. I had also participated in the same program, but of a different name, Trail Bound, when I was a student at Chesterton High School.

I had originally signed up because I loved history, but I quickly came to love the challenge of backpacking as well.  I also loved the camaraderie of being with my classmates or later, the students. It was/is an incredible form of learning and bounds that the trail/hiking can create between people is like no other. I would not be the person I am today without these experiences in my life.

Rob sent out a letter to EA alumni announce the cancellation and in the letter he beautifully wrote, "I want you to remember always the challenges you overcame and trials you endured along the trail. Always remember that the very best things in life are earned and are never handed to you or are easy. You earned a place on EA by being the very best among your class at HHS; you endured the trail because you fought for every footstep and succeeded there because each of you possesses the tenacity to keep pushing when so many of your peers never would have had the temerity to lace up their boots. I know that you will face hardships in the years to come, but I have also seen every one of you struggle and overcome very surmounting odds. Do not forget this early success. The best is still to come."

EA 2009 - Vermont - The Green Mountains 

Me, of course, in the Green Mountains

Rob and me!! Whale watching off the coast of Boston

I definitely could not have said it better. Rob is truly a role model to me and I know he will only go on to do even bigger and better things, although it is hard to imagine something better than EA.  Thanks Rob, it was a blast. 

Shabbat Halakha

Today in Halakha (Jewish law) class, we started learning the laws of keeping Shabbat.  There are "honor" כבוד laws, about preparing oneself for Shabbat and there are "pleasure" עונג laws about preparing your surroundings. I never knew there were actual laws written that you should have a nice meal, and wash yourself, clean the house, and wear nice clothes.  I just thought it was traditions, but the rabbis actually wrote that we are suppose to do that. All in preparation for Shabbat.  I think last year I would have thought these things were silly, but now that I am semi-keeping Shabbat, I think these things are really important. After I clean the whole house, to shopping, prepare a beautiful meal, set the table with the "nice" dishes, get really pretty, and wear a cute dress...I really want the time to be special. I really do feel like it's a spiritual time that I'm not worrying, that I'm not thinking about homework, I'm not worried about politics. It's a time for friends and family, a time to pray, and a time to be grateful.

Also, I liked that the rabbis really do acknowledge that it takes effort to prepare for Shabbat, it really is a task to get ready for something so special, but because we invest that time and make it nice and even "holy"...the time of Shabbat is that much more meaningful. So come Thursday and Friday when I'm cleaning and getting ready, I will be that much more appreciative when Shabbat actually arrives. 

Welcome Home Gilad

Today is an amazing day for Israel and Israelis. Gilad Shalit who was was imprisoned in Gaza by Hamas for over five years, 1,941 days, was freed this morning after long negotiations in a prisoner exchange. 1,027 prisoners were released from Israel for Gilad's return.

These posters were hung all over Jerusalem says "How good is your coming home." 

Gilad hugging his father. 

Ynet article about Gilad

Many people are upset about the exchange, saying how could Israel release these murders for one life. But as a sister, daughter, and hopefully one day a mother, I believe Israel did the right thing. I am really proud to be an Israeli today. A good friend and rabbi said this, "Israel is like no another country. People may say that because we value life so much and care about each other so much -it is our greatest weakness, but it is actually our greatest strength." I am happy to live in a country and be a citizen of a country that so greatly values life and sticks to its word. I really understand people's concerns with releasing so many terrorists, but we don't know what the future will bring. And so today we must rejoice that Israel saved a life and reunited a family.