Cloudy With a Chance of Shtuyot!

I took a deep breath and slowly opened the front door.  A very distinct yet comforting musk blazed my sinuses as I entered my new apartment.  I stepped in, put down my bags, looked around, and started surveying the space. To the right was the kitchen, fully equipped with a fridge and microwave.  To the left was the living room with two couches and a flat-screen TV. Two steps forward were the shower/sink room.  One more step to the left was the private toilet area. Then with one more stride forward I opened the tinted glass door to the “master” bedroom.  I reached to my right and turned on the hanging light.   I looked around satisfied by my surroundings and slowly closed my eyes to take a deep breath.  I finally had my own space.  No more living on the couch.  No more showering in communal space.  No more fighting over bedtime because my bedroom was the living room.  I was home.  The deep breath consumed me.  I was in my element.  Then reality showed its ironic face.  I opened my eyes and saw a giant cockroach crawling across my new bed.  Welcome, home buddy.

The past two weeks have been yet another unique chapter in this neverendingshitshowofanadventureintoprofessionalbasketball™.  Notice the official trademark on that bad boy. The fact that I have an apartment actually blows my mind.  When I signed my contract I was told I would have an apartment in 1-2 weeks.  It took 6.  Every couple of days I would ask one of the 4 team managers if they had found anything for me.  I received the standard Shtuyot (bullshit or nonsense) every time, “Tomorrow…  We will find something tomorrow.” Israeli’s must think “tomorrow” means “sometime in the future”.  It literally became a running joke to me and a few of my teammates. We couldn’t figure out if it was a cultural thing that it was being done so slowly, a money thing, or if they were flat out lying to my face.  I came to the conclusion that it was a combination of all three. 

Nonetheless, it was beyond annoying.  I was told something, then it didn’t happen, and when I asked why it didn’t happen, I was told it would happen tomorrow.   I mean, I’m a pretty optimistic guy…Tomorrow is fine… Tomorrow is exciting… I’m even eager about whatever tomorrow brings… The only issue was that this tomorrow turned into 28 more tomorrows. 

This has actually been a good learning experience for me about how to run (or not run) an organization or business.  The issue here is that there are 4 owners/managers. All of which have their own businesses.  Our basketball team is basically their hobby.  We are literally their real-life video game.  Some people play NBA2K; these guys play IsraeliBasketball2S - Shekel Edition.  Because we are their leisure pursuit, things aren’t made a priority.  There are countless times when we need something taken care of and we are told to ask someone else.  There is no direct chain of command.  It is a great way for them to not have to take responsibility.  They are very smart and it seems every move is calculated. 

I would go into greater detail of the apartment episode but I’m trying to keep my blood pressure down.  Not really, but it’s been quite possibly the weirdest and most annoying situation I’ve ever been in.  I guess I’ve been spoiled by the east coast fast-paced “get shit done” attitude for so long, I forgot what it is like to deal with procrastinators.

We are currently 7-1 and in first place in the league.  Last week we beat Hapoel Tel-Aviv, the former undefeated league power.   Hapoel’s budget is probably twice the size of ours so it was a huge deal that we beat them.  Our squad is pretty solid from top to bottom so I’m not surprised we won.  Basketball wise, I’m in a very weird and different situation then I’m used to.  I will go into it more detail in my next blog once things settle down here.  That will make sense in a few weeks… 

The most surprising thing to me after being here for a few months is how much free time I have. 

I expected basketball to be a FULL-TIME job.  It’s not even close.  We practice for 2 hrs a day, have 1 game a week, and 2 days off a week.  The time commitment is like playing in a recreation league back home.  With all the free time and little income, I knew I had to work on something to keep my sanity. It turns out another Iowan lives about 20 minutes from here.  He and his wife also happen to be insanely talented web designers.  During a casual hang out we decided to start working on a few projects together.  Since then I have been spending most of my free time helping develop LivingWinter.com and SabraJewelry.com (not done yet… but will be amazing!).  Hopefully, we can get these rocking so I can focus solely on basketball and not worry about how much tomato basil hummus costs. So, buy something already!  Think of it as a hummus or falafel donation.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my experiences here and what it means to me now as opposed to what it will mean to me in 20 years.  Obviously, I’m super proud of the fact that I accomplished this goal I set for myself but I’m a bit confused why I don’t feel overwhelmingly satisfied by the achievement.   I was talking to my dad the other day and I was explaining my frustration with my experience here.  The frustration is solely based on the basketball aspect of the trip.  Basically, I am not performing the way I expected myself to.  He asked me if I was ready to come home or if I still needed to prove myself.  My initial reaction was defensive “NO I’m not done yet.  I haven’t accomplished my goal”.  I started thinking about goal setting and what it actually means.  In general, if a person sets a goal and then accomplishes the goal, he or she should be satisfied, right?  When looking at myself and my goals, I found an obvious flaw in this equation.  Nowhere during the goal-setting process did I ever mention “I want to be successful”.  I guess I just assumed I would be.  To bring it even further, I came to realize how self-defined success actually is.  Personally, I don’t feel I’ve succeeded in my goal yet because I am not currently “successful” in what I’m doing.  Luckily, it’s early in the season and I have plenty of time to perform up to my own standards. 

I love this Mark Twain quote:

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.”

So, twenty years from now what will I think about this experience? I have no idea.  I do know I am doing something I love.  I know I am pushing my limits every day in order to accomplish my goals.  I know I need to continue to set additional goals.  I know my experiences here will make me a stronger person.  I know the success of this journey doesn’t define who I am.  I know that tomorrow my beautiful girlfriend gets here.  I know that I somehow still love hummus.  I know that management will do something shady within a few weeks.  I know that I need to lighten up and enjoy the process.  I know I need to stretch more.  I know you will buy something from my websites.

And finally… I know I think way, way too much!  I hope everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving!  Happy Birthday, Daddio!