When Winter Wind Wears Desert Boots

It’s exciting putting out a new book. It’s hard to describe. It all begins with an idea, a small seed, which slowly grows and creates constant turmoil in my mind. The seed becomes a story – and then the story begins to write itself. It is then that I know that a book is inside […]

Can beautiful people really feel the Blues?

I first saw the movie, Bagdad Café, long before coming to live in the desert, but even then its haunting sound teased me with dark promises as to where a desert road might lead. When I first listened to the Blues, I felt very much the same way. I wasn’t there yet, but it touched me in […]

The Mystery Behind the Mask

People seem to love to have a reason to wear a costume. A few weeks ago, our High School for Environmental Studies held its annual Purim parade. Students dressed up in costumes and built floats out of recycled material. Thousands of people made it down to this small oasis in the desert to cheer them on. Purim is […]

Does sunshine on your shoulder really make you happy?

It is the middle of November and I am still in short-sleeves and sandal mode.28 degrees Celsius. Isn’t that a little ridiculous for this time of year? Not that I am complaining… well, maybe just a little. You see, there comes a point when sunshine may be just a tad too much. “Too much?! My dear, […]

When the clock strikes midnight

“We are surrounded!” I wrote, fearing communication would be cut soon.“Get out of there, fast!” my wife SMSed back.I had visions of striking workers approaching with chains and burning tires.“Close the windows, lock the doors from the inside and turn off the lights,” I shouted to the other workers holed up in the building. “If […]

And now the book: Why I May Still Be Canadian

A few months ago, I was approached by a publisher to turn my blog – Why I May Still Be Canadian – into a book (paperback).“Turn a blog into a book?” I asked myself. “Isn’t that going in the opposite direction?”For blogs seem to be almost an antithesis to the printed word. One rests in […]

And where are you from, laddie?

“Where are you from?” is a question I was often asked in Scotland.How do I answer that? Canada? Israel? Does it really matter what I choose? For so long, my only  travelling was short visits to Canada and back, where both Canada and Israel stake their claim to who I am. But here, in Scotland, […]

Walking among the ibex

“Where have all the flowers gone?” my wife asked. “Flowers?” I suddenly remembered the image of an ibex walking past me the day before on my way back home from work, white petals sticking out of the side of his mouth. “Yes the flowers in the garden. All of them. Suddenly gone.” What had struck […]

Pardon me while I check if I exist

I don’t know about you, but I enjoy my privacy … that is, if I really have a choice between being alone or being with others. Isn’t that what it is all about … choices? Last night there was a power blackout in our small community down here in the desert. Started in the evening […]

Why Guinness always tastes better in Tel Aviv

How far would you go for a good pint of Guinness? A 5 minute drive? 20 minutes? How about two and a half hours? There is a quaint little pub in the heart of Tel Aviv, neatly tucked away opposite the Dan Hotel, close to the American Embassy, and just a stone’s throw away from […]