Your lungs are crying.

Last night we had a “girls night” at Manga and I ended up chatting with this guy named Dor (he introduced himself as “it’s like closing a door”). About 5 minutes into our conversation, he lit up a cigarette.
Israel, much like many European countries (or so I’ve heard), has a major cigarette problem. Everyone, literally everyone, smokes here. I didn’t appreciate his little gesture, despite the fact that it is apparently a sign that a guy likes you if he puffs a load of smoke in your face. I asked him if he might refrain from smoking in my presence, but when he resisted I moved onto Nerdy Shana inquiring into the sociological factors behind the practice of smoking in Israel. Dor justified his choice by saying that Americans simply don’t understand because we don’t have as much stress about war and terrorism here, which I found interesting. As his story goes, he was a casual smoker in high school but turned pro while in the IDF. He noted that it was seen as “cool” to chill in the shade next to the barracks while casually dangling a cigarette from one’s lips. It is also apparently a successful pick up line to approach a hot chick and ask if she has a light.
In other news, I NEED to study. I already feel somewhat lost in Hebrew class, because it doesn’t work to think in grammatical terms as we are learning a number of phrases that just don’t have verbs in them. For example: Moshe and Ruthy always at school in morning. And another one: You teacher ulpan? No, me no teacher in ulpan, me student in ulpan. It’s really a lovely language, with all the grace and romance of a garbage disposal chewing up a shot glass.
Today was my first day at one of my totally awesome volunteer activities. We had about 9 or 10 options to choose from, mostly dealing with the elderly, children, or the disabled, and we all know I don’t like any of that garbage; instead, I elected to volunteer at the local animal shelter! You’re all probably surprised at this decision, considering a) dogs tend to be incredibly dirty and smelly, and there’s a reason people call me Shanal; b) I don’t like feet touching me, and dogs tend to have 4 feet all coated in their own crap that they love rubbing all over people; and c) I am allergic to cats as well as opposed to their general existence. However, I’m pretty much convinced that this is the best volunteer job ever. My main duty is taking the adorable puppies out of their cages and playing with them until one of them pees and it’s time to trade it in for another cuddly creature. When I run out of puppies I move onto the grownup dogs, which tend to be just as whorish for attention and soft to the touch. Although I was kind of hoping for a job that would challenge me to use my Hebrew skillz, I figured that my one relevant phrase, “boiy, kelev” (come, dog) will serve me well in this experience. I may also end up talking to the dogs about the fact that I am student in ulpan and they are not good doctor in hospital.