Lashana Tova!!!

This is my last post until after Shabbat, as this year we are lucky enough to get a tree day Yom Tov. So I wanted to just put up a few fun Rosh Hashanah theme things!

Because who doesn't love white Jewish boys attempting rap?

Stupid but the little boy is really cute and has the sweetest voice ever.

Or a ram.

Hope you enjoyed. Lashana Tova Ometukah!!

Wordless Whenever: Painted Car

This has nothing to do with anything except me REALLY wanting to share it. I was at Panera's and I saw this in the parking lot and could not resist the urge to post so ENJOY!

Friendship Circle

Every Wednesday I get an opportunity to spend time with an amazing 3-year-old, Jo Jo. She has gorgeous blond hair that is almost always pulled back in little french braids. She loves Elmo and all his friends. One of her other favorite activities is assaulting her 2-year-old brother, Teddy, with some sort of book.

Always full of life Jo Jo has a ballad of songs she is always ready to share ranging from Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to the ABCs. Her most recent accomplishment is potty training which she is still working on.

Sounds like any other 3-year-old right? Well almost, Jo Jo is extra special, because she has an extra 21st chromosome, otherwise known as Down Syndrome.

I am lucky enough to get to know her, and many other teens get to have a similar opportunity as me because of an organization called Friendship Circle. FC runs many programs ranging from Hebrew School for children with special needs to a winter camp for them. All these programs are free of charge, and to help support the programs they host a walk once a year.

It is a chance to help change the lives many kids if you could just donate a few dollars to this fantastic organization by clicking here.

Update on Israel

The UN vote has been postponed till Friday. I ask that everyone reading this now goes online does research on the UN bid for Palestine and DON'T just listen to someone else's opinion.

GO OUT AND FORM YOUR OWN OPINION!!!!

I am not telling you what to believe but PLEASE believe in something. THIS IS YOUR CALL TO ACTION!!!

Please share the opinions you form!! Anyone who writes an e-mail to joan@fanwick.com with the subject 'UN Israel Vote' will get the contents of the e-mail(if deemed relevant) published here.

Israel?

Tomorrow as I am sure many of you know is the UN's vote on Israel borders. Israel is very close to mine as I am sure many of your hearts. I have only been there once, it was an amazing experience. I hope to be going again really soon.

One of the trips I am heavily considering is March of the Living. This trip is two weeks long. The first week is in Poland where you go to visit concentration camps and go on the march through the camps on Yom HaShoah. The second week is spent in Israel for Yom HaZikaron and Yom HaAtzmeuts. Last Wednesday I was at a meeting for all of the kids from my Hebrew High School thinking about going on the trip together. During this meeting someone commented "Yeah, if there still even is an Israel."

What is that supposed to mean. Of course it will still be a country. The thing that might change is the lines that outline Israel. They have change before and they will again, Israel is a strong nation that reaches far beyond its own border's in a way no other country or state ever could.

The best way to fight this is not to JUST protest, but to research what will happen tomorrow. I don't care where you stand on this issue, JUST STAND SOMEWHERE!!!! Being informed is the best way to fight for what ever your opinion is.

Wordless Whenever: PB 'n J Advetures

Like many night I just got back from babysitting, and for dinner the kids had PB 'n J.

The Master Piece

The Sue Chef Arin(10 in 2 days) with her Creation

After a Lip Reduction Performed by a 4-year-old

Happy Coby(4) Eating His Sandwich

The Middle Child, Noa(7), with her Heart Shaped Sandwich

Evening well spent? I thing so.

Also I would like to thank everyone who applied to RGB!!!

Charity Poker

Today was my chapters kickoff event, it was relaxing not being in charge. I also had to keep my mouth shut at times when I felt I would of done something different. This was a really good event, and I am really proud of the chapter board. I was also very impressed with the turn out and I am glad to see some more freshman get involve with the chapter.

The event started with everyone chilling and eating.

Sydney's Cup(Left) and My Cup(right)

Somehow I ended up with a preschool cup while everyone else had normal cups:(  At least it is cute.

Next on to some poker. We played Texas Hold'em which I had never played before.

My Poker Chips

Surprisingly I actually won at my table. Micah chalks it up to beginner's luck, I think it was because no one else knew what they were doing either.

My Sister Playing Poker

I was trying to take a picture of people playing poker. My sister realized this and tried to block it but was too late, so I HAD to post it.

In the end all the money that was charged for admission is going to our SA/TO Fund!

Wordless Whenever: Hanefesh Sweatshirt

So one of the things that will probably be featured most on Wordless Wednesdays is ....REGALIA!!!!

Region: Hanefesh
Type: Sweatshirt

Words Written: Hanefesh (Hebrew and English) USY

When it was Debuted: Spring Convention '11

When Purchased:  Spring Convention '11

Status: Soldout 

You Have A Mission

Tonight I am giving you all missions. Apply for Regional General Board!!!!

ALL the cool kids are applying.

Current offers from board members to apply-

Penina- 2 cookies to apply for Rel/Ed RGB, and 1 cookie to apply for any other RGB.

Micah- Cookies to apply for Rel/Ed RGB.

Joan(me)- Candy if you apply to Mem/Kad RGB

Rachel and Jacob have not offered anything yet but I bet if you bug them enough they will too.

APPLY HERE!!!!

If you have any questions PLEASE contact me.

Wordless Whenever: Coming Back From Fall Boards

Some blogs have wordless Wednesdays. This means ever Wednesday they have a picture with only a couple words explaining it as their post. For those of you who know me well I am not to good at planning so instead of wordless Wednesdays I am going to create Wordless Whenever! (but not completely wordless)

"We broke the train!!"

The Hanefesh and NERUSY Boards minus the SA/TOs and Presidents plus one Emtza board member all took the train home together. So what happens when you put eight USYers on a train together? Refer to the picture above for an answer.

Flashback: 9/11/01

I was 5 when the twin towers fell, I had just started first grade. My grandparents were living with us at the time because they had just sold their house and were about to move to Florida full time.

I remember my teacher talk to the class, we sat on the carpet and she sat on the big orange chair that faced it. We were sitting in the way we would while she read us a story, but she wasn't about to read us a story. She was about to tell us of something we could not fathom. She started talking "Don't talk to other kids about what I am about to tell you I do not know if their teachers have talk to them yet..." At this point I knew something was wrong, this wasn't a tone my teacher had ever used before, something really bad had happened. She continued to tell us about the event of that morning but I did not grasp what had just happened yet.

After school I was with my Poppy and Grandma Sara in the kitchen having an after school snack. My Grandma turned on the news...and there it was the plane going strait in to one of the twin towers.

 How could it happen? Why didn't someone stop it? Was it a mistake? After all no one could have killed so many people on purpose? ...RIGHT? 

But it was no mistake. At five I could barely understand that, in my innocence I wanted to believe it wasn't so. This plan crash shattered my perfect world, in perfect wolds people don't just crash planes in to buildings. These are things that just don't happen in perfect worlds, therefore the world I live in must not be perfect. For most people this is something that is a concept that is developed over time, helped along by small evils not a concept that comes to light all at once. For me and many children around my age at the time we did learn that concept all at once, we do not live in a perfect world.

Even today I struggle with that fact that someone wanted to crash a plane in to a building. A person knowingly killed hundreds of people. People who have friends and family, spouse and children. Our country is still at war. We are still healing from the attacks of 9/11. It will take time and we probably never will be completely healed, always bearing a scare.

This post is for all the victims of 9/11, their children and families, its for all the first respondes that help save lives that day.

Encampment 2011!!

Since I am clearly too lazy and busy to write about encampment I am instead going to post videos made be Will the creator of USY Facts, if you like this you should check out the USY Facts Facebook page.

Chest Crossed

They say half the fun of any trip is the journey, in our case this is a very true statement. The way to Fall Boards weekend seemed fairly uneventful, that is until we got to Newark Airport. From there we were taking a hotel shuttle. Because of traffic it was late to the airport which means more people were waiting than would have been 10 minutes earlier, all USYers. When it finally did come it was about half the size of the other shuttles but the driver was determined to make us all fit.

I was one of the first people to go inside, but no where near the last. Soon people were piling in and there was at least three people on each seat for two, plus people sitting on the ground where ever they could. 31 people in all were piled in to a shuttle designed for around 10. 

The driver gets in looks around and says "I usually don't do this." And for a finishing touch while all the USYer are looking at him he crosses his chest.

Board Conversations

As we discovered on the way to encampment all conversations between the five of us (and Tammi) go roughly the same way. They contain the following things:

Ramah Palmer - THIS is what ALL our conversations lead back to...ALWAYS(I feel like I know some of the kids they talk about them so much). Rachel and Micah could spend hours talking about Ramah. In the background Penina and I will be trying to make it stop, while Jacob is reading on his Nook.

Hook Ups-  This is almost always about Ramah people so it practically goes in the first category.

Our "Comm."- If you have been paying attention I have never mention our comm. because we don't have one. That is unless you ask Penina in which case we do have one just know one knows.

Cousins- As we can all tell you Jacob has 23 first cousins, and he talks about everyone one of them which drives Micah crazy. Jacob is also very defensive about his family.

2nd Hand Stories ONLY!!!!- This is a rule that applies when Tammi is around. She will say "I have very nice opinions of everyone of you and I don't want them to get ruined." So we can not share stories about ourselves just other people.

Board Picture at Encampment(Jacob is missing)