Day One and Desperate Plea

Today was our first "real day of work" as loosely defined as that is. We fought the jetlag to stay in bed past 6am, got up, unpacked a little and got ready. A driver picked us up at 10 and off we went to Yesod for a meeting with the folks at Hillel there. They have asked us to present a day-long (!!) training session to 15 Hillel directors across the FSU on Wednesday. So much for a slow adjustment period -- we are jumping right into the thick of it. I guess they think that we are capable enough! We spent nearly two hours discussing what areas they'd like us to cover and what to expect. Then, after touring the Yesod building, we walked back to our apartment (about 20-25 minutes away), stopping briefly en route to pick up a few groceries. We spent most of the afternoon working on an outline and attack strategy for Wednesday's seminar. We've also managed to spend a good deal of time unpacking from China and getting settled in a bit more. Our appointment with a handyman fell through -- apparently he got tied up in traffic, or something ridiculous like that. The JDC security policy requires that we have our locks replaced. And while he was coming, I asked to have him look at our oven that is, in the traditional Russian way, "ne rabotet," i.e. not working. One quick aside on the Yesod building. It's spectacularly beautiful. Modern, clean, well organized into communal space and individual space for shops and Jewish community organizations. It struck us how empty the building was -- but we were told repeatedly that it's because it's summertime and most everyone is still on vacation. I guess we'll see in a few short weeks just how utilized the building actually is. On a happy note, it was in the mid-70's here today!

Anyway, here's the real reason I'm writing...we miss you all! We have our new contact info, so just shoot one of us an email to get it. (We are not posting it here for obvious security/privacy reasons, as I'm sure you can understand.) Please send us emails, call us, send us letters, etc. At minimum, please post comments to our blog. And definitely get Skype and let us know when you want to talk!