Ashamed to Admit
Are you ashamed to admit you're not across the big issues and events affecting Jews in Australia, Israel and around the Jewish world?
In this new podcast from online publication The Jewish Independent, Your Third Cousin Tami Sussman and TJI's Dashiel Lawrence tackle the week's 'Chewiest and Jewiest' topics.
Ashamed to Admit
Magpies to Missiles: With Aussie Actor Jakey Parry
Tami and Dash are joined by Aussie actor and influencer Jakey Parry, who now serves in the IDF and has garnered a large following from his funny, insightful and moving videos about being a new immigrant and learning Hebrew in Israel.
Take the TJI Quiz
https://thejewishindependent.com.au/quiz/tji-quiz-55
More from Jakey on TJI
https://thejewishindependent.com.au/i-have-learned-orthodox-actor-is-not-an-oxymoron
Jakey's Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/jakey_parry/
Tami and Dash on Instagram: tami_sussman_bits and dashiel_and_pascoe
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Do you need a break from the heavy news cycle?
Speaker 2:Have you ever tried learning a new language which has its own script with 22 letters, all consonants, no capital letters, and it's written right to left. The verbs change for tense, gender, number and person with completely different forms.
Speaker 1:If you answered yes to one or both of those questions, then you've come to the right place.
Speaker 2:I'm Dash Lawrence from the Jewish Independent, and in today's episode, your third cousin, tammy Sussman, and I will be chatting with an Aussie actor and influencer living in Israel who has garnered a large following for his videos about Hebrew language learning faux pas.
Speaker 1:Who knows if he'll be ashamed to admit anything. It's season three of this Jewish Independent podcast and we seem to be dropping our shame a little bit. Some of us more than others and we seem to be dropping our shame a little bit. Some of us, more than others, come along for the ride as we have a go at cutting through some seriously chewy and dewy topics.
Speaker 2:Welcome to this week's episode of A Shame to Admit. Hello everyone, I'm Dash Lawrence, Executive Director here at the Jewish Independent.
Speaker 1:And I'm Tammy celebrity lookalike Amy Winehouse Sussman, Do you see it?
Speaker 2:Mmm, not quite.
Speaker 1:I think it's pretty strange that two people in one week, who don't know each other, said hey, you look a lot like Amy Winehouse. I told them that they were racist.
Speaker 2:You look too healthy to be Amy Winehouse.
Speaker 1:I was going to say maybe I look like her when you know she was papped outside of rehab.
Speaker 2:Oh no, no, you don't look like Amy Winehouse.
Speaker 1:What other celebrity do you think I could pass for?
Speaker 2:Alyssa Milano.
Speaker 1:That's retro. Maybe, you just threw that name out there Alyssa Milano. Why is Alyssa Milano on your mind?
Speaker 2:Well, she's not on my mind, but I'm looking at you right now and I'm trying to conjure up a celebrity and for some reason she came to mind.
Speaker 1:I reckon if I'd had the teenage nose job, I could be an Alyssa Milano impersonator. Who do you get told you look like?
Speaker 2:I don't know. Fill in the blank bald middle-aged man. No one tells me. Oh jeez, you look like Bruce.
Speaker 1:Willis.
Speaker 2:No one tells me I look like Bruce Willis.
Speaker 1:Who would you choose to play?
Speaker 2:Dash Lawrence in a biopic? Ooh, he's got too good of a head of hair, but it's okay. Jesse Eisenberg, I think. I think he could channel me really well.
Speaker 1:He is so anxious and neurotic.
Speaker 2:He is, but I think he could maybe dial it down a little bit but still chap into some underlying neuroses that I might have.
Speaker 1:Okay, they could put a cap on him and make him bald. Who else?
Speaker 2:Well, if we're thinking Australian actors, he's too old now, but Ben Mendelsohn I would have quite liked Ben Mendelsohn to have played me.
Speaker 1:Well, he could play you in the future because your biopic would have child actor, middle-aged and then future actor. Interesting that you've chosen jewish actors. You identify as a jew. That's cute, by the way. If you can hear my keyboard tapping, it's because I'm doing the most jewish thing ever and that's googling. Is ben mendelsohn jewish? I just assumed he was because of his surname. I know some jews with the surname Mendelsohn Jewish. I just assumed he was because of his surname. I know some Jews with the surname Mendelsohn and because he looks Jewish. But I know that a lot of our listeners are fact checkers, so yeah, I'm not sure that he is.
Speaker 1:No, he went on the series who Do you Think you Are? And they traced his paternal grandfather, oscar, to a Jewish family in Prussia. I reckon Eric Banner is your guy.
Speaker 2:Far too handsome to be me.
Speaker 1:Oh, don't say that, dash, we've had plenty of guests. And my mum say that you have a cute face.
Speaker 2:I don't have part German, part Croatian, outer suburban Melbourne masculinity that you know, sort of strong, strong features.
Speaker 1:How do you know so much about Eric Banner's ancestry? That's what I want to know.
Speaker 2:The things I keep stored away. They're back, the recesses of my mind.
Speaker 1:Caught you out, like I can totally see you. I don't know, maybe you had the flu and you're like. Oh, you just like ended up in this rabbit hole of Eric Banner's ancestry. That's cute, dash. I love what we're doing here. We very rarely get a chance to just chew the fat about like celebs and pop culture, but I thought we could start off this week's episode with a bit of that, just to boost morale. The news cycle is heavy. The stuff out there on social media is bad. It's pretty bleak. I know that you've deleted Instagram from your phone. Good decision, one that I should consider. So I thought we'd start off today's episode with a bit of a pop culture quiz, because the list of nominees for the Emmys have come out and the Emmys are in September.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:And so what that means for Jewish news outlets is that they've done what they do every year, and they compile a list of Jews who are nominated.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:Jews don't like being on a list, unless it's a list of nominations for prestigious awards in arts. This is a multiple choice quiz. I'm the quizzer, you're the quizzie. Okay, I know that TJI has a weekly quiz, so we'll leave a link to that in the show notes, but there's a really narrow focus for this quiz. It's a pop culture quiz. In each of these multiple choice questions, there's going to be one celeb who has been nominated for an Emmy.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:Which of the following Jennys have been nominated for an Emmy? Is it A Jenny Slate, b Jenny Schechter, c Jenny from the block or D Jenny Coat?
Speaker 2:Jenny Schechter.
Speaker 1:Do you know who Jenny Schechter is?
Speaker 2:Not really.
Speaker 1:She's a.
Speaker 2:Jewish actor.
Speaker 1:No, she's actually a character from the original L Word. She was a controversial character, so she's not even a real person.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:You didn't think it was Jenny from the block.
Speaker 2:No, who's that?
Speaker 1:Jenny from the block J-Lo.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Do you know who Jenny Coate is?
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:She writes books based on Bible stories. It's Jenny Slate. Jenny Slate is a comedian, a writer and an actor. Do you want to know what I love about her?
Speaker 2:What do you love about her?
Speaker 1:I love that she's talented, but I also love that she still has her original nose and it's a big one and it's sexy.
Speaker 2:She is nominated for her role in Dying for Sex. Outstanding Supporting Actress in Unlimited Series or Movie.
Speaker 1:Okay. Which of the following Bens has been nominated for an Emmy and extra points if you can tell me. Which ones are Jewish? Okay, which ones are Jewish? Okay. Is it A Ben Stiller, b Ben Affleck, c Ben Kingsley or D Ben Franklin?
Speaker 2:I think Ben Kingsley and Ben Stiller are Jewish, but I don't think they've been nominated for an Emmy Ben Franklin at the end.
Speaker 1:Do you know who Ben Franklin is?
Speaker 2:No, benjamin Franklin. Thank you for clarifying that. Maybe it was Ben Stiller.
Speaker 1:It is, and he's been nominated for Outstanding Director. Do you know that he directed Severance?
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:It's very good, ben Kingsley.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You identified him as a Jew. Why did you do that?
Speaker 2:I think he is, isn't he?
Speaker 1:He does have some Jewish ancestry.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he's certainly played Jewish characters in the past. He played one of the I can't remember his name from Schindler's List.
Speaker 1:It's Huckstern, it's Huckstern, it's Huckstern.
Speaker 2:He's the one that has his golden tooth melted down and turned into a ring as a gift for Oscar Schindler.
Speaker 1:Do you know that he was born Krishna Pandit Bungie?
Speaker 2:Oh, yes, that's right, I did know that.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:He is.
Speaker 2:He's Indian. Yeah, yeah, he is.
Speaker 1:He's Indian, yeah, born to an English mother and an Indian, gujarati father.
Speaker 2:Mm-hmm.
Speaker 1:So he copped a lot of slack for playing Gandhi. People didn't realise he actually is.
Speaker 2:Indian.
Speaker 1:Indian.
Speaker 2:Ben Affleck's not Jewish, is he no?
Speaker 1:In 1994, Kingsley stated I'm not Jewish, and though there might be some Russian Jewish heritage way back on my mother's side, the thread is so fine. There's no real evidence that will not stop the Jews from claiming him as their own. All right, we're moving through this list. Which of the following Jewish Zoes has been nominated for an Emmy Zoe Deschanel, Zoe Saldana, Zoe Kumsma or Zoe Kravitz?
Speaker 2:Oof, I think it was Zoe Deschanel.
Speaker 1:Zoe Deschanel, she's not Jewish.
Speaker 2:Yes, she is.
Speaker 1:No, she's not. Yeah, her paternal grandmother comes from a Quaker family.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:Quaker, which, I'm ashamed to admit, I didn't know was a religious society until quite late in life. I did think it was just a brand of oats.
Speaker 2:Tammy. Yeah, zoe Deschanel converted to Judaism when In 2018.
Speaker 1:Why.
Speaker 2:Her husband is Jewish. Ah, that's right Told you.
Speaker 1:Well, there you go.
Speaker 2:Her former husband Jacob Peshanik.
Speaker 1:All right. So I reckon her and Isla Fisher have a WhatsApp group where they shit talk their ex-Jewish husbands and they're like complaining about you know what I did for him? Do you know how hard it was to convert for him and what do I get in return? Great, this conversation is so Jewish. It's peak Shabbat dinner.
Speaker 2:So okay. So if it's not her, then Zoe Kravitz.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is, it's Zoe Kravitz.
Speaker 2:Lenny's daughter.
Speaker 1:Lenny's daughter. She's been nominated in the Outstanding Guest Actress Dinner Comedy Series. Okay, final question which one of these Jewish Seths has been nominated for an Emmy? Is it Seth Rogen, seth Green, seth MacFarlane, seth Meyers or Seth Cohen?
Speaker 2:Seth Rogen.
Speaker 1:You're right, seth Meyers. Do you know who Seth Meyers is?
Speaker 3:Seth Meyers. Do you know who Seth?
Speaker 1:Meyers is Former Saturday Night Live cast member, has his own talk show. Good friends with. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. He often jokes that like it's confusing to everyone that he's not Jewish.
Speaker 2:Oh, he's not Jewish. No, wow, he's got such a Jewish name.
Speaker 1:He's got such a Jewish name and all of his friends are Jewish, but he's not Jewish. No, wow, he's got such a Jewish name. He's got such a Jewish name and all of his friends are Jewish, but he's not.
Speaker 2:And his wife is Jewish. That's confusing.
Speaker 1:That's how a lot of people feel about you, Dash.
Speaker 2:I'm just confirming that Not sure she's.
Speaker 1:Do you know what?
Speaker 2:What.
Speaker 1:I guarantee you that one of our listeners now is looking it up for us.
Speaker 2:Yeah, can't confirm.
Speaker 1:I love our listeners. I love the fact that they're there to correct our pronunciation and to let us know when we've given incorrect information about a celebrity's Jewish ancestry. I also love our listeners who send us content or ideas for episodes. Now one of our listeners who listens from Madrid, I should add who sent us a video that a young man, an Aussie Jewish man who is doing his military service in Israel, made about his experience there.
Speaker 1:And I watched this content creator's opus and I thought he is hilarious and we need to interview him on this show. And what we discovered Dash is not only is he hilarious, but he's also quite thoughtful and empathetic and has so much to say, so much insight to provide about his experience doing army service and learning Hebrew and just living in a completely new Jewish community. And this person is Jakey Parry. Jakey Parry is an actor, content creator and Hebrew teacher, despite not speaking Hebrew fluently. He moved to Israel a few months before October 7th and decided to stay and draft to the army. He currently serves in the RDF spokesperson unit while side hustling a social media following of over 35,000 people himself.
Speaker 2:And just to timestamp this one, Tammy and I recorded this interview shortly after Israel's war with Iran was called to a halt.
Speaker 1:And it's important that you mention that Dash, because at some point in the interview we do have to pause and there was concern that there was a siren or that he was called into work. So that's just a little bit of context to, I guess, the energy or the atmosphere that was kind of the backdrop of this interview. We know that you are going to love our conversation with Jakey Jakey Parry. Thank you so much for joining us in the Ashamed to Admit studio.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much for having me for my podcast debut. It's very exciting.
Speaker 1:Wow, what an honour. So I came across you and your stuff when a loyal listener of this show, he sent me your magpie video where you tell viewers that lethal, swooping Australian magpies prepared you for the rocket and missiles fired from Iran. We'll get to that video soon, but let's start at the beginning. Jakey, tell us about your birth.
Speaker 3:Okay, so I was actually born in. I'm joking. Okay, I was happily to tell you that.
Speaker 1:No, your origin story, yeah, go ahead.
Speaker 3:For sure, for sure.
Speaker 2:And can we just call out the fact, before you do that, jakey, that you are our first ever guest who can lay claim to the Perth Jewish community being their home, first Perth Jew represent. So give us some insight into your little community as well, because I'm actually a Sydney boy.
Speaker 3:I was born in Sydney, sydney baby. I left when I was nine months old. A lot of my family is still from Sydney. Perth's an awesome, awesome place. It's like we've got a very small, huge Jewish community. I think there's some like debates whether it's like us or Brisbane who are number three, but we're definitely number three in terms of like population, and we have one Jewish school. It's a really, really cute Jewish school. It's like because there's one Jewish school, it's like religious, not religious. Everyone's together. It's like this like really cute, tight-knit community where everyone knows everyone. If there's drama, everyone hears about it. If there's it's a schedule, it's it's a schedule. Yeah, that's.
Speaker 2:That's a very good way of putting a dash can we just also let tammy in on some bit of trivia? Tammy, amazingly, perth has a suburb named after its Jewish community. There is a very small suburb called Menorah. Really, I believe, in celebration of the Jews of Perth.
Speaker 1:Okay, we've lost Jakey and I'm wondering if maybe there's been an alert and he has to go into a bomb shelter.
Speaker 3:Guys, I'm back with you. Can you guys hear me? Yes, cool, cool, cool. It was crazy a week ago and like suddenly everything is totally normal.
Speaker 1:Dash just informed me that there is a suburb called Menorah in Perth. Can you verify that? Yeah?
Speaker 3:it's a bit of a wild fact. As Dash said, we're really really in a shadow, to the point where, like, there's streets called Menorah it's a bit wild. There's like a proper radius of Jews and I'm curious what other people think when they walk through our area on a Shabbat, like why are all these random Australian people wearing these button shirts in the 40 degree heat? It's a really funny, funny little community. But yeah, I loved it.
Speaker 3:I loved growing up in Perth because it's such a small community. You really have the ability to like get your name out there. Everyone's willing to listen to you, almost like a small town kind of vibe. But we're all really close. We all have, like this Perth pride, like to the point where, like now that I'm in Israel, like we have a group chat with all the people who moved from Perth to Israel and we often like do reunions and things together. We all obviously think we're better than Melbourne and Sydney, even though we know we're not. And yeah, I wouldn't change it for the world. Yeah, shout out, shout out. Carmel School where I went to school the only Jewish school in Perth and yeah, it was so much fun.
Speaker 1:I'm sure they're very proud of you now. So you grew up in Perth in quite an observant or orthodox family. How would you describe?
Speaker 3:Because we're so small. There was only two real youth movements or directions to go. There was Bina Kiva and there was Habo Dror. I went to Bina. It's modern orthodox, so religious, but also not crazy religious like at all. Very understanding.
Speaker 1:And you were also a theatre kid. Was that at school?
Speaker 3:Big, big theatre kid. I was a few different leads throughout high school I was a cowardly lion in the Wizard of Oz and Uncle Fester in the Addams Family A lot of fun roles. Like I said, it was like the whole community came to these musicals and they're growing and growing and growing and I'm so jealous when I see videos online of what they're doing. It's funny that I'm the first person from Perth you guys are having, because I'm definitely not the first famous Jew in Perth. I've got a fair few. The first Jewish celebrity story that I can tell you is obviously Troye Sivan was a Perth boy who came to our school it was in my sister's year Never met him, definitely has no idea who I am, but that's one thing.
Speaker 3:And also a few years ago I think he might Maybe, maybe We'll shoot him a message. The other thing was a few years ago. For Rosh Hashanah in our small Jewish community we had Sasha Baron Cohen was married. Unfortunately, I don't think they're still married, but was married to a Perth girl they're not Isla Fisher.
Speaker 3:Um, that's unfortunate. So he will not be returning to my community, unfortunately, but he did at some point. And there was this whole because I told you, like a small community where like rumors flow, and like it's, our principal sent the most ambiguous, suspicious message to the whole, like like kids, and like hey, there are some rumors going around that a certain celebrity is coming for a certain event. We just want everyone to know that everyone needs to stay calm, not to to. I was like that is not the right thing to do when a celebrity is coming to our small community. In short, his kids went to our school for a few weeks.
Speaker 3:He was with at michael and dianella shout out for russia, shana, um. And it was the most absurd thing. It was like you were just because you're just praying, and there's sasha baron cohen, and it's not only that, he's got like this, he's a celebrity. He has this domineering figure and this presence and this voice as well. Like when he did kaddish, it was like, oh my God. The other thing I'll say about that is I am a Levite, he is a Kohen. So part of that during Chagim is like the Levites will wash the Kohanim's hands, and I was about to wash his hands when, I kid you not, a fellow Levite who was older than me pushed in front to wash Sacha Baron Cohen's hands. So, yeah, I was stripped of that.
Speaker 1:He cut your lunch.
Speaker 3:He cut the lunch in half. Oh my God. But yeah, it was a wild time. It was so such like, it was just wild. It was like, yeah, like going to shake hugs my mouth with sasha baron, um.
Speaker 2:So what I'm trying to say is perth does have its history of um celebrities jakey, what you're describing is such a like comfortable, secure, idyllic community, a place where there were a sufficient number of jews around you to feel like you had a community, you had peers, you had shuls, you had a network, but small enough to really feel very, very comfortable. So why, then, the call to make Aliyah to Israel?
Speaker 3:I think, like all Jewish communities, especially in Australia, we all have that comfort. We all have that Like I was so comfortable in my community. But I think, like all things, change is important and I think like, when I say like small, I think like I knew every single Jewish girl who was around my age, to the point where, like I knew which is a weird thing to say at like 18 years old, but like I knew I'm not going to marry any of these girls in in five, six, seven, eight years time, which is wild. But that's part of growing up in a small Jewish community. Um, like, I loved everyone, but I knew that this isn't where my future was.
Speaker 3:I was originally like, because of the acting world, like I was originally looking at like different options.
Speaker 3:I'd gotten into a really like good acting school in Perth and I thought I was going to continue with that and there was really a way for my life to just move to that direction.
Speaker 3:But at the end of the day, like I'm a Zionist, I like grew up with Zionist Israel education and I knew like as also a religious Jew. It's a small thing, but it's like I go to I don't know what's an Australian supermarket at Coles and I'm wearing my kippah and like it's not that I like I'm so scared to wear my kippah, it's just like I feel a bit different and I think I was just ready to not feel so different and ready to be with I don't know everyone. Like that exciting, like change was really appealing to me and it also helped that I have three older sisters who made Aliyah similar path to me and I also knew that my parents were towards retirement age and their plan was also headed towards Israel. Yeah, it wasn't easy. I really could have taken a more comfortable path here in Perth. But yeah, I really do believe everything happens for a reason and there's a reason I'm here and there's a reason why I said no to university and said yes to drafting into a military.
Speaker 1:That was going to be my next question, because when most young people think about their gap year, they think about maybe some Contiki tours or just getting really drunk or high in Europe. They're not really thinking about army service. So do you want to talk us through that?
Speaker 3:For sure, for sure. The former thing that you said definitely appeals to me more than army service. That was not what I was thinking about at all. I was also like a really fun year. That was not what I was thinking about at all. I was also like a really fun year.
Speaker 3:I did go to yeshiva, so like that was. That was the difference, but more like liberal fun, like yeshiva as opposed to to the other, like strict ones, and I really had the best year like living in Jerusalem, made a lot of mates, but I think I just, like so many people, I really did just fall in love with the country and I realized that this is where I want to be. And then, after I decided this is where I want to be, like I was like, what is the next step? The army wasn't even an option, because I just associated army with like shooting a gun and going into battle and that is so, so far from me. I think I am the first person in basic training to not hit one target, so there is a reason why I'm not on the battlefields.
Speaker 3:But when I found out that there are other options in the army and you don't just have to be a fighter and there are what I'm in, which I'll tell you guys about later is a really niche, creative, awesome job in the army. Once I learned about that I was like, okay, maybe there is a future here and because I was coming in as a 20 year old, there's no real other alternative. Because, like, it's mandatory, you can get around the system, but it's also a bit hard because you're not going to officially make Aliyah, you're not officially going to get your citizenship here. Like I told you, I have three older sisters who had done a similar process to me and they kind of were like, if you really want to feel Israeli, if you really want to integrate, you should do the army. Yeah, so that's kind of why.
Speaker 1:I imagine there's maybe taboo around people not serving in the army as well, or it's frowned upon. Am I right to assume that?
Speaker 3:No, definitely to the point where, like it, even like nowadays, it's like political discussions and there's protests of people who don't want to serve and want to serve. For me, that wasn't even part of it. It was more just like a personal thing about integrating, feeling Israeli, I'm a proud Zionist and I want to contribute the best way I can. Thank God, I think finally I found a way to do that.
Speaker 2:But you're also a thespian, jakey. But you're also a thespian, jakey, and for those who haven't seen your TikTok or Instagram videos and reels, check them out. You'll get a real flavour for the brilliance of your theatrical style. Jake, you're only 21, but you have already cultivated a very distinctive voice. Your performances through social media are terrific, very funny, very entertaining. You mentioned before that you had to forego that opportunity of doing theatre in Australia and starting to become an actor. You moved to Israel, as you're saying, moved into the IDF, so I'm fascinated to learn about this particular niche area of the IDF. Is there like an entertaining unit? Is that what we're talking about?
Speaker 3:that's not specifically what I'm doing. There is an army theater which is wild and I'd love to know what they do day to day. My social media I'd like to say I'm known as a micro influencer because I have a niche and it's a really niche and people do love it, but it's really I guess it comes from my, my birth in me like to find these niche, small little groups. But yeah, so my social media is. I kind of started it at the start of my army service, actually when I didn't quite get into the unit that I wanted to and I wasn't having the best time, and the unit that I did want to was the social media unit, the spokesperson digital unit. So my social media actually started as like, kind of like a response, like almost like an F? You for not taking me, look what I can do online. And it was kind of like my external way to like project my frustrations with the country, funny things I noticed in this country, and then also a platform to like, which eventually became my niche, to start teaching slash, learning Hebrew as I'm learning it throughout.
Speaker 3:And yeah, it comes from my theatrical side, like I realized, if I'm going to have to stop theater for a few years, which ironically didn't happen, because I'm still doing theater in the middle of the army, which is also a bit strange. Why is it strange? It's not strange, it's more just like I'm grateful, grateful, like a lot of people in the army don't have the luxuries that I have, like a day job where they're able to do things on the side and, thank god, I have lovely commanders. I'm going from base to rehearsals, which is it's a wild. I I honestly don't know how many soldiers in israel can say they do that. Um, in fact, I might be the only one I'd like to say I'm kind of like the Israeli version of Troy Bolton, like when he goes from basketball training to theater, but instead of basketball training I'm going to the army.
Speaker 1:But let's go back to your videos, because some of our listeners may not be familiar with them. Your most popular videos, or the ones that you describe as the most niche, are you poking fun at your mistakes? Basically, that you're making as you're learning Hebrew.
Speaker 3:Yeah, a hundred percent. So I kind of realized that there is not a voice for the Olim Karashim, for the new immigrants who were trying to speak Hebrew. But unfortunately, there are a lot of what in Hebrew are called fedichot, like embarrassing moments that happen, because there's unfortunately there's like a lot of when we're trying to speak our English, literally in Hebrew, it sounds really bad, can give you a lot of examples, but also you can find a lot of them in my Instagram and it's like it's really bad, can give you a lot of examples, but also you can find a lot of them in my Instagram and it's like it's a voice to that Oleh Hadash, because, honestly, that voice isn't represented. No one really says it because they're too embarrassed to say the embarrassing moments they had. So I guess I'm that voice. I'm like full openness.
Speaker 3:And then what's really amazing is once I got my first video out about the first Hebrew mistake I made, um, which I think was when, literally just talking about the literal English translations, I asked a friend what they thought about my pin, like as in a badge on my army uniform, but in Hebrew pin is a penis, so that was really awkward. Um, yeah, so I guess I am that voice for embarrassing Hebrew moments. And then the the comments I had was all like this, like relatability and like, oh my god, I did this, I did this, which was even worse than what you did, and and yeah, like from then, like we just kept on doing more.
Speaker 1:It is very relatable and your videos are being enjoyed by not just English speakers learning Hebrew, but native speakers as well.
Speaker 3:For sure, like even lately. Like it's like random Israeli people coming up to me on the streets and saying, ah, you're a geeky from TikTok, and I'm like, yeah, it's a bit wild.
Speaker 2:And even some Arab citizens of Israel as well.
Speaker 3:Yes, that that was really, really, really cool. It was like right by my place here in Jaffa and it's it's wild. It's wild Like how your voice can connect to so many people and that's, I think, things that I'm starting to learn now that I have, like, my audience is growing, the power of an audience and the power of a voice, and I think eventually I'd love to not necessarily just like do funny videos. I'm also like I feel like I'd love to be a storyteller, and also my army unit at the moment, which I can tell you guys about a bit later, it's like being in the spokesperson unit. I can get to it.
Speaker 1:I was gonna say why don't you just tell us now?
Speaker 3:so, like I said, I started off my social media as like a response for not getting into my dream unit and as a culmination of a lot of things a lot of me fighting, a lot of my videos, a lot of people helping me I eventually got into that unit, the social media digital unit. I'm in the spokesperson unit and it's been so lovely. It's been so much, so much fun. I love like the creative attribute of it and putting it together with, like my values of Zionism, of Jewish pride, and it all just kind of culminates into a job that I love going to every single day and I'm super grateful and, like I said, I really do believe everything happens for a reason. There was a reason why I was in the old job and from that it kind of leapfrogged my social media, which got me eventually here and made me make all these amazing friends, and I moved to Tel Aviv and it's all baruch Hashem falling into place there's one video that I'd like to direct our listeners to, and that is not one of your, your funny ones.
Speaker 2:It's a very thoughtful, very considered video where you start by sharing your childhood love of stickers and your sticker collection and then you superimpose those memories and those early videos of you with your stickers over you today and your response to the sort of sea of stickers of what I can only assume are dead Israeli IDF soldiers. And that's something that you encounter day to day, and obviously that experience has taken you back to your earlier life collecting stickers. So listeners really should watch it themselves. But can you just give us some idea of where that video came from?
Speaker 3:should watch it themselves, but can you just give us some idea of where that video came from? Yeah, so that's definitely one of the videos I'm most proud about. Thank you so much for mentioning it. So I think it comes back from, like I was saying, even though the funny Hebrew experiences I have from the point of view of the Oleh Hadash that's just another example of a video from the point of view of the Oleh Hadash, the new immigrant.
Speaker 3:It's something that Israelis don't think about because their nature is like war. Okay, it's sad, let's move it on. And that comes from the concept when a soldier falls, like, their family often makes a sticker. And if you guys ever come to Israel and come to our train stations, the train stations are full with like hundreds, thousands of stickers of fallen soldiers and for an Israeli, that's what is part of their day-to-day life.
Speaker 3:And as an Oleh Hadash, as a new immigrant, I was genuinely like what the F? Like? How is this just normal? How do we walk through this? Every single day? We see these thousands of stickers and no one, no one, takes a step back. So I think part of and this is eventually what I want to use my voice for part of being a new immigrant or having a different perspective is stepping back, and that's what that video came from and, I think, being this micro influencer like so many people when when I posted that video, were like, oh my God, I never thought about it like that and I really appreciate your perspective that's really one of my most proud videos and it's genuinely something that I want to keep doing. I love the fact that I can use my social media for positivity and spread laughs and stuff like that, but I'd also yeah, I think there's so many things that Israelis don't think about that we do think about as Jews from Hul that we can really do some lovely discussions of learning something from each other.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and what you're really touching on is the absurdity of life in Israel at the moment, and I think that's why so many Australians in particular would have resonated with your magpie video, which I referred to earlier in this episode. So in this episode bit that you created and you said it was an idea that your sisters brought to you because, as content creators, we just love it when people bring their ideas to us, and one in 20 ideas are actually good.
Speaker 3:So talk us through this one that your sisters gifted you yeah, so it was friday night dinner, all of us together, like we're having a friday night dinner. It was like the first time we're all together since the start of Iran attacks. I was in the army for the past two weeks so it was like all very intense and, yeah, I guess just our Australian-ness kind of came together and we were like, wow, iran attacks are bad, but we survived. Magpies, like what, really can beat us, like there was nothing. I don't know how it is in Melbourne and Sydney, but it is genuinely enough to kill, to make a grown man cry when you walk through.
Speaker 3:For us it was Breckler or Yokine Park on a Shabbat afternoon. It's genuine, like you, like I remember, like I would take, before I entered the park, I would like take a breath, even say a word to Hashem upstairs and like, just like, genuinely like hope that I wouldn't die. Like they were wild, they are lethal, beyond lethal. Like it's like you go, you're in your car and you see like this silhouette of just a grown man running away from a magpie. It's genuinely absurd. So, yeah, like I think only Australians can relate to that and I was like you know what? Let's really test my micro-influencedness, let's just. Let's just post it. And what I saw in that video was it has a lot of shares. I think it has like over 500 shares, so it's like that is 500 Australians who are sharing it to each other.
Speaker 1:And that's brilliant. That's why I'm doing it. Were you concerned about tone? Was there a discussion about like is this too soon to be posting something like that? This stuff always fascinates me because this is a conversation I have in my head every day.
Speaker 3:For sure. I was very, very careful to like do it in a way that's like funny without being too hard. Really, I think I posted it right in the middle of what was going on. So I did it with a sense of balance. I think I had to do a bit of editing because I think I went a bit too far for a second, and then power of editing.
Speaker 1:I'm always a big believer that it's never too soon this comes up time and time again with our creative interviewees that we use humour as a coping mechanism, so I'm sure a lot of Australians were in their safe rooms. What's the Hebrew word for a safe room?
Speaker 3:So a safe room is a mamad and the bigger ones, which is wild. That we have two different words for a safe room is like if you have the underground ones, which are more safe, that's a miklat.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Miklat.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, I'm sure there were many Australians in there. Mama Dim, Mama Dot, what's the plural?
Speaker 3:I assume Mama Dim, but I could also be totally wrong.
Speaker 1:I'm sure that there were many Australians in there having a giggle, a well-deserved giggle, some resp from, I hope so, the horrors of war for sure.
Speaker 3:I'll just say, like, I think like, if anything, that's like one thing that I really want to give to everyone, like, and that that was the purpose of that video, like spread a laugh, spread some joy, because it really it is. Like you said the word it's, it's absurd times we're living through and the classic israeli response is to like, as we say, alhamshif ala, to continue forward. But, yeah, sometimes it's worth taking a step back and to laugh about the absurdities of things, or even to cry about the absurdities of things, because we're literally living through history and it's like, even in the past two weeks, to be in the army during this iranian conflict. It's an honor to be here through history and that's, I guess, why, like my obsession with taking videos and like I was also like this throughout school, like I studied media and analysis and I was the one who was always taking photos and recording moments, I'm a big believer in that taking a step back, taking a breath and living in the moment.
Speaker 2:So a lot of people have misconceptions about Israel. Even Australian Jewish people have misconceptions about what Israel is actually like to live in and, ditto, about the IDF as well. They have a very narrow lens about what they think the IDF is like and what it might be like to live in Israel. What's something surprising that you've learned since you've been drafted in the army that you think people outside of Israel may not realize and appreciate about it?
Speaker 3:The first thing that I didn't realize. I really thought that the army was all about combat and, like every system, there is so much to make the system what it is and there's all these different like there's a job out there for every single person who wants to draft then again it also is an army at the end of the day. So some of the funnier, absurd things that for Israelis are normal, that I find absurd, like even the fact that we need to like salute and like what we call Tekasim and like where, like, they put on the really cringy military music and I'm like what the hell is going on? Why is no one laughing except me? And I think for me, I don't know, I've always been a bit of a, even in Australia, during all those like army related ceremonies.
Speaker 3:My secret shame is I find the minute of silence really hard not to laugh at and times that in a military, like when you're actually in the military, it's like times a hundred, it's like everything is so formal, like we put on the funniest little clothes. So at the end of the day, it is a military and it is an army and I feel like that's something that people forget. So that's something that people forget, so that's something that I didn't really expect.
Speaker 1:That's because you're a satirist and funny satirical, ironic People find it hard to be sincere and earnest.
Speaker 3:Those were all the words I was looking for, by the way. Thank you, they escaped my mouth.
Speaker 2:My pleasure.
Speaker 3:And the final thing I'll say about the army is kind of what I was alluding to Like before. We're all just lovely, sweet people and we all have a core value of Zionism and we love Israel and it doesn't matter where you come from, if you're Australian, if you're Israeli, if you're a new recruit. We all have this common goal together. It doesn't matter if you're in a combat, non-combat, if you're like me making videos for the IDF Instagram. We all have a common value of Zionism, pride and Judaism.
Speaker 1:So what does the future look like for you, Jakey? If you have a magic wand, what would your day to day look like?
Speaker 3:Wow, that is wild to think about.
Speaker 1:You didn't know you were going to be in for a bit of career counselling.
Speaker 3:For now, I definitely see my Bizarra Hashem in the entertainment industry in one way or another, whether it's acting or filmmaking or something like that. Like that hasn't changed since I was 17. The network and environment may have changed, given that I'm not in Australia, but I think I want to keep on using, like I was saying before, like it's wild how one can use their platform and I've used my platform nine out of 10 times for spreading light and positivity, but there's also that one out of 10 chance that I can also use it to send deeper messages, to tell stories, and that's what I'd love to do in the future.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for joining us today on Ashamed to Admit. We would usually ask our guests to share something they're ashamed to admit, but you already did.
Speaker 3:If you guys want to see what I'm ashamed to admit, just check out my Instagram. That's a lot of shameful to admit moments. Thank you guys so much for having me. It was so much fun.
Speaker 1:Our pleasure.
Speaker 2:Shabbat shalom, jakey. Take care, shabbat shalom guys. That was Jakey Parry and you can find him on Instagram at Jakey J-A-K-E-Y, underscore Parry P-A-R-R-Y. We'll leave that link in today's show notes.
Speaker 1:You've been listening to. A Shame to Admit with me, Tammy Sussman.
Speaker 2:And me, Dash Lawrence.
Speaker 1:This episode was mixed and edited by Nick King, with theme music by Donovan Jenks.
Speaker 2:If you like the podcast, forward it to a mate. Tell them it's even more enjoyable.
Speaker 1:Tell them it's even more enjoyable than a deep dive into Eric Banner when you're snuggling under your doona and you've got a little man cold.
Speaker 2:As always. Thanks for your support and look out for Tammy. Next week I'm heading off to Bali. See you soon.
Speaker 1:No need to rub it in.