Woody Allen said, “80 percent of success is showing up.” I guess that means my Mitzpeh column has been a success. I have shown up in this space 18 times, 16 of those as part of “Stamm v….” I lived the dream — I showed up.

The number 18 represents Chai — the number representing life. It’s the amount of money given to Bar Mitzvah boys—a way of saying goodbye to childhood. Now it’s my way of saying goodbye to Maryland, and to the paper I care about dearly.

Throughout this column, I have dealt with issues affecting Jews at Maryland: the joys, the letdowns, the humors. I hope that each of our readers, which seem to have grown from 37 to 289, continue to support this paper and fight for equality. The fight starts with personal Jewish pride.

You will grow if you live your own Jewish life. I’m not saying you have to be observant; you must find your own way to be Jewish. For me, occasionally, I go to services, but I find it more important to see Shabbat as a time of rest: I try not to get a haircut or mow the lawn. Two simple acts like that can put separation into the week; the key is an awareness of your own Judaism.

I don’t mean to sound evangelical here because religion isn’t the focus; community is. There are more than 6,000 Jewish Terps, but how many of you participate in a single Jewish event on campus? Not all, that’s for sure. Be it services at Hillel, Jewish heritage programs or the Holocaust remembrance ceremony, there is something for every Jew. Yet, some don’t take advantage, many times due to disturbing self-indifference.

My personal involvement was with this paper and occasional other events or Shabbat services. Each of these was a success in my college rearing, if only for only the fact that I showed up.

That brings me back to this column.

This month, I have realized the influence I’ve had after receiving my first angry e-mail. The dream of any columnist: to piss someone off so much that they lash out at your opinion and demand a retraction of a factual statement. Thanks, former TerPAC board member Marc Schlesinger, for being a reader. Though I horribly disagree with your naive opinion, I am glad that you began a discussion of the issues.

I saw an issue this past month when I arrived at the Israel Shuk yearning for a falafel, only to find no falafel or no vendors.

What happened? We still had the camel, hookah and Masada, but what about our vendors? It turns out the university recently passed a rule that prevents outside vendors from peddling goods on campus for profit. This is hypocrisy-— c’mon, we’re the whore of Pepsi, Chik-Fil-A and Taco Bell already. Do they mean to tell me they aren’t making a profit on this campus? Will there continue to be vendors at Art Attack?

What I’m begging of each of you is to ask questions and act if needed. Equal treatement of Jews has not always been afforded.

I have hope, though, for the future of Jewish life in College Park — we are getting a kosher deli!

A few thank yous before I finish. Thank you, Noodles and Co. for serving as editors’ food on numerous weekends. Thanks, Andrea Cohen, for getting me this gig and letting me run my own opinion show. Thanks, Gab, for being a supportive future wife. Thanks, Adam Lewis, for righting the ship: I am elated to know Mitzpeh is being left in such capable hands.

And these thanks in no particular order: Von Hayes; Kaplan; caffeine; beer; any local bar deal involving drinks under $2; Any girl I’ve ever kissed (you know who you are); friends; the Stamms; the work of Edvard Munch; Mr. Rogers; Mr. T; Punk; Prince and most importantly, my readers.

Dr. Seuss eloquently wrote: “I meant what I said, and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful, one hundred percent.” Thanks for being my elephant.

“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”

One year ago, I was about to graduate and wrote my last “Stamm v. Stamm” column about my excitement over what lay ahead. Today, working as an account executive for Steve Madden in New York, the feeling of excitement is still there.

But this year, I have grown and realized that, while I had dreams of what I wanted to do after graduation, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do or how I was going to do it.

I threw myself into work two weeks after graduation. My peers immediately accepted me, but the one thing that did set me apart from them was how my religion plays such an important role in my life. Being a Jew in the working world can pose many challenges.

How many times have I taken my buyers out to eat, only to eat hardly anything myself? How many times have I been told of a sales meeting that I need to attend, only to find out it is on Shabbat? And how many times has the company had to put me on different flights than everyone else, so I won’t be flying on Shabbat?

I went to a private Orthodox school growing up and never really thought of all the challenges I might face as a Jew. Then I came to Maryland and had to miss classes and tests for holidays. The school administration and teachers try to be accommodating, but they can do only so much.

And the same is true for the people in the working world. My friends, if I can impart some of my insight from the “real world,” it is that people can only do so much. While all my friends know that I work extremely hard for hours on end, Steve Madden has been wonderful to me. I am very lucky that my boss doesn’t make me take a vacation day if I need to take off for a holiday and doesn’t complain that I leave early on Friday for sundown. At the same time, though, I know she wishes I could fly on Saturday with her and not miss so many days for Jewish holidays.

I am surrounded by Jewish people at work: Whether it’s the people in my office, the factories or the buyers — I seem to be the most observant of them, and I know they respect me for my faith and dedication. For example, when I traveled to Las Vegas for a shoe convention, I didn’t join everyone for lunch over the chicken salad. Instead, I pulled out my sandwich and simply sat at the table with them. While at first, people were concerned that I wasn’t eating with them, now people are impressed that one year later, I have stuck with my beliefs. I am now asked questions about Judaism, and before Passover, the president even gave me a box of matzah for my family to enjoy.

I can’t change who I am in order to fit in more with the rest of society and the rest of my company. The working world is an exciting place full of opportunities. It used to be that people had to choose between losing their jobs and working on Shabbat. We are fortunate that we don't have to do that anymore. Even though sometimes it is challenging, that is when we show just how important and how strong our beliefs are. Being Jewish isn’t a hindrance but a challenge that should push us to succeed.

I want to thank Andrea and Dan for asking me to write this article and bringing me back into the Mitzpeh world. I also want to wish good luck to everyone in school who is taking finals and/ or graduating. For anyone who read my articles last year, I always managed to throw a little tidbit about my roommate in, so in my last opportunity to say something in print, I must mention her. No matter how tough studying for a test is or writing a paper is, the working world is doubly hard. But if you have good friends who you can relax with and laugh with, then there is nothing you can’t do.