01 April 2008 -- Ad Lo Yada

March came in like a lion, but not necessarily in terms of weather. KIPP's co-founder (and my former boss) Mike Feinberg visited Israel on behalf of Leo Baeck's KIPP-inspired educational initiative. It was odd to see him here, but I suppose no more so than it was to see my parents here in January. Despite the exotic setting, Mike worked his usual magic, enchanting Israeli educators, politicians, and philanthropists in a whirlwind week that was exhausting even for such a seasoned PR man. His visit was a definite catalyst for our project, and I see some wheels turning with promising momentum. I just wish we'd gotten this train out of the station earlier.

Encouraged by the seeming success of Mike's visit, Dani and Eran (my current bosses) made the somewhat audacious and rather bewildering move of offering me the principalship of the first KIPP-inspired school in Israel. While I am certainly flattered, I'm afraid they're on the wrong track. First, my expertise is in high school, and the plan here is to start with K-3. Moreover, my Hebrew may have come a long way, but I'm not equipped linguistically to lead a faculty -- and I doubt I could be even by the time the school is set to open (September 2009). Most importantly, though, I don't like working here! They know that. This is going to be a hard job for anyone, so the right person will have to be thoroughly and joyfully committed to the institution. I'm not.

That said, I still haven't decided what I will be doing next year. My two current options are:
- associate principal of a growing school (which would probably be similar to my job last year); and
- program director for a start-up study-abroad/leadership program for minority students (which would be very unlike most of what I've done before).
The first possibility is attractive in its familiarity, and it would be a logical career step. The latter is riskier, but it has one incredibly attractive feature that I've never enjoyed before: flexibility! I'd work from home on my own schedule. I could travel and cook and play music and basically do all the things that most of my peers were doing in their 20s while I was busy trying to manage my various (consecutive, not simultaneous) marriages to different jobs. Perhaps a forthcoming interview will clarify things. I'll keep y'all posted.

The only other March news is holiday-related. Purim is a festival that commemorates the Jews' deliverance from the threat of annihilation by the King of Persia. It's a merry occasion whose modern observance looks quite a bit like America's version of Halloween. People dress up in silly costumes and throw parties and exchange gifts (usually involving candy). Of course, classes are cancelled. If a butterfly flaps its wings in Brazil, classes get cancelled in Israel. Anyway, one Purim custom is to drink alcohol ad lo yada (until you can't distinguish between good and evil). While I'm no boozehound, I do feel as though this month has presented me with some tough choices. I just hope that I come up with a better way to deal with them than dressing up as SpongeBob and getting mind-numbingly plastered.

At a Purim street celebration in Haifa, a rather sketchy clown entertains a diminutive pirate. I foresee imminent plank-walking!

The traditional treat for this holiday is oznei Haman (Haman's ears). Haman is the villain in the Purim story. How do we rub our victory in his face? By eating triangle-shaped cookies supposedly resembling his ears. Take that, Haman!

Some kids are pretty creative with their costumes. Liad is Facebook. See, it's a book...with a face. If you didn't get it, he wrote it at the bottom. Liad caters to all learning styles!

Other people just decided to be colorful.

I was a G. Of course, I'm always a G, so I didn't really have to dress up. Soufwest $cReWsToN in da hizzouse!