The past few weeks at MEET

I wanted to write a little bit about my students and cultural things that I've learned while chillin. First, I'd like to introduce to the best recitation on earth, recitation 1:


From left to right is Rand, Dana, Dror, Issa, Zahi, Mais, Rachel, and Ghadeer. Missing from the picture is Amir. We got both animations to work in the lightning project, did all of the Outdoor Training Day (ODT) challenges, including a zip line, rappelling, and 8 queens problem (the only group to do it), and invisible stones problem. and got fastest time in the touch all the numbers without talking game. You could say that we swept gold at the Recitation Olympics. You could say that.

For some photos of our ODT escapades:
http://people.csail.mit.edu/bps/7:18:07/

We're the best.

Now onto stories.

First, for those who think that the kids are somehow different and crazier than American kids and if you put israeli's and palestinians together they'll kill each other, let's go over last night visiting them for dinner at sbarro's, and seeing where the out-of-town kids live at the YMCA. First at dinner, when I get there, they've already found the huge thing of straws, so spit balls are flying everywhere. After awhile a group of them gets bored, which leads to an arm wrestling contest (I did not compete and was called a chicken. Yes, they did the arm thing too.), and an old lady yelling at us for being too loud.

Next we went to the YMCA, which is by far the nicest YMCA I have ever seen, it's more like an above average hotel, and better than the apartment where we stay. In one room was the pillow fight room. I was told to enter at my own risk. In it were a bunch of sweating guys (they were all palestinian) beating the crap out of each other with pillow. Apparently they do this every night. I watching this for awhile, and laughed at them.

In the other room was of course, truth or dare. Well, kind of. And also spin the bottle. They spin a bottle to find out who has to do the truth or dare, and who has to give give them the truth or dare. Durring this I found out how well a student can dance to a Pussycat Dolls song, which female instructor was the best looking, and which year 1 female a student would save if on a sinking ship. Oh, and a guy put a lamp shade over his head and then everyone hit him.

All in all, if I were 15 and living with 25 kids my age in a hotel, I would be acting in the EXACT same way, except I would have been too afraid to dance to the Pussycat Dolls.

Next Story

You know how when you're in an airport you have to keep your bags by you at the same time, otherwise they treat it like a bomb? Well, in israel, it's like that in any public place, anywhere. you never leave your bag anywhere, or they will call a bomb squad in and blow up your bag. Seriously. And you never leave your name in your bag in any way, because if they blow it up and then find your name, they find you and make you pay for the bomb squad comming to blow up your bag, which is a real double whammy. Israel is serious about security. Have I mentioned that you have to go through a metal detector to get into hebrew university and that the guards have machine guns? Well, now I have.

Next Story

We watched Ocean's 13 with the YMCA kids last week, and there is a part where there is a strike in mexico and they throw molitov cocktails. A palestinian student noted "I remember when we used to throw those at the soldiers." After further prodding he admitted that he was too young and it was the older kids that through them, but that he had seen them throw them. Yikes!

Next Story

When the YMCA kids come from out of town they have to go through checkpoints in the west bank. Their bags got held up there and they went through so that they could make it to our 9 am start. Zahi, one of my students made a sarcastic comment that, "it's my fault, I left all my bombs in my bag." I acted a little surprised and he said again, "but seriously, I always forget to take them out of my bag." I thought this sarcasm was really hilarious and well above the maturity of a 15 year old to make a joke like that. Some might be offended by a comment like that, but I am a sarcastic ass so I got a good chuckle.

Next Story

Hummus and pita is completely delicious and I have so much of it I can't really explain it well. I'm definitely starting to gain weight and it'll be a good thing for my health that I leave in 10 days or so.

Next Story

I developed this breakfast sandwich that is a version of my roomate Ted's ramrod special. I call my sandwich the "Brennan Sherry Special Middle Eastern Breakfast Ramrod Sandwich". Now admittedly you don't have to use a ramrod (any utensil to push ingredients into a pita), but no matter. I'm still putting it in the same family. It's 2 hard boiled eggs, hummus, cheese, and chopped up cucumber in a toasted pita. It's completely delicious, nutritious, and makes me happy sitting on my patio watching the sun come up.

Next Story

Living with 8 people who I did not know beforehand and working together with them so that for pretty much every waking moment we are together makes me understand that Real World is actually pretty damn realistic.

Next Story

I can't find a god damn apartment in the palo alto area. If anyone has any place they know of please let me know. This isn't actually a story, and I'm ending with it.