TEUDAT ZEHUT: I WANT ONE

We are in this weird status in Israel.

We aren't tourists.  And we aren't olim chadashim (new immigrants).  We are going through all the hardships of olim chadashim, without the resources.   People have no idea what to make of us.

 In Israel, people get really excited about people moving to their country.  So we are generally greeted quite favorably when we tell them we just arrived from America.  Welcome! Good luck! May your transition go well! Kol HaKavod!  When we tell them we are only here for a year, we are usually told "so far" "maybe you'll stay longer" "you should move here".

It's a funny dynamic that probably doesn't exist in other countries.

But the challenges of this lack of clear status makes this difficult.  For example, I do not have a teudat zehut.  What is a teudat zehut?  It's an Israeli ID card.  Every Israeli has a number and this card that you have to, by law carry, everywhere.

So, you want to register for schools? Where's your teudat zehut?  

uh, I don't have one.  

"oh, um....hold on let me call someone".   (add about 20 minutes to any bureaucratic matter)

Do you want to get a supermarket loyalty card to save money?  You need a teudat zehut.  

Do you want to buy a car? Well you might need a teudat zehut.  

Do you want to be a member of our store and get discounts?  You need a teudat zehut!  (Wait! We can use your passport). I feel like I have to carry my passport everywhere.  I mean, really?  

Given our latest supermarket trips, I'm pretty convinced I never want to walk in a Supersol again.  (Too bad I just bought a mattress cover instead of a comforter so have to head back there.)  

So, I was excited to test out ONLINE shopping!  Everyone has been talking about it.  Hell, they gave us the address at the Fulbright orientation (supermarket.co.il).

I loaded my cart last night, but guess what?  I couldn't register for this because I needed a Teudat zehut.  I put in my passport number.  No go.  I put in my passport number minus a couple digits.  No go.

I have decided I need to get one of these teudat zehuts.  I wonder if they have Fake ID business here in Israel... (JUST JOKING!!! )

On another note, I fell in love with my kids' teachers.  The secretary of the school and sivan's teacher have already texted with me.  And we met Matan's teacher today who was just perfect.  Sivan played again with our neighbor and shines when she's being extroverted.  I am trying to make sure we do one kid-friendly activity a day (something that doesn't just involve waiting in line). Tonight, we took the kids to a park and played tag with them (with our neighbor kid).  It was great to play a game with no language barrier.

I can't believe my kids are going to a school of about 600 kids in K-6.  And they all have recess at the same time outside.  (where interestingly there is no playground).

School supply shopping was....well, when it was over, I was ready for a nap.  The store was so crowded and there are so many details.  I basically handed the list to a woman who told me exactly what I needed.  She was a savior.  There have been many saviors to help us--we are so grateful to all of them.  They use these little notebooks for first grade (anyone who went to hebrew school and learned to write Hebrew in them will remember), but they have different notebooks for math (grid paper) than they do for language.  I had to bag them separately, because I never would have been able to remember what was what and I would have mixed up Sivan and Matan's.  Interestingly, Matan chose a very boring grey backpack.  Apparently cool characters on backpack are babyish now?  I would LOVE a batman backpack personally.  I think Matan is aiming for not attracting attention.