I'm already ready for next Shabbat. I don't know why, but this Shabbat I just didn't feel rested; my attempts at an afternoon nap just didn't pan out. I spent my afternoon rereading texts for my final graduate exam, mulling over Hebrew flashcards, and being anxious about the upcoming weeks of sitting, doing nothing, and then moving like mad into our apartment in Teaneck.
Next Shabbat, we're taking part in this awesome Mystery Shabbat thing in Teaneck (the aim being to pair people up at a mystery house, so the hosts don't know who is coming and the guests don't know whose house at which they're eating), and I'm eager to get situated in the new 'hood with new people, a new shul, and, essentially, to officially start our married life. I never thought New Jersey would hold the fruits of my future, but here we are.
Because of my current limbo, I really don't have much to post on. I guarantee that when I start working on my grad exam I'll have an abundance of interesting quips to share, and I also just downloaded The Invisible Bridge onto my nook, so that should provide me with some material about which to blog about. It's new, it was featured in The New York Times Book Review, so I'm sold. It will be the first official book I've read on my nook, so I'm stoked.
Until I come up with something interesting to blog about, enjoy some of the other blogs out that update religiously with interesting and fascinating goodies. Like who? Check out the following.
I've decided that -- henceforth! -- whenever there's a divisive or potentially hazardous topic to be posted about, I'll be video blogging it. Why? Well, I think that my tone is missed in a lot of my writing. Where I mean to come off as joking, it comes off as hurtful. When I mean to be compassionate, it comes off as hateful. Not sure how it happens, but we all read ourselves into a text, which is probably why I don't see much of what others see in my words -- I see myself in the words, and me is kind, compassionate, articulate, and most of all, hopeful.
Intertubes!
For today, however, I just wanted to share some links to reads and websites of interest. Enjoy, folks. Browse the internet through your own lens.
While searching for a text known as Magen Avraham -- a commentary by an 18th century rabbi on the Shulchan Aruch, which supposedly contains the standard for the four hour wait between meat and milk -- I was sent in the direction of two excellent resources. The first, the Halacha Brura and Birur Halacha Institute, does rare book searches and retrievals for scholars. I anticipate this coming in handy in my pursuits, and they are super fast on the response time, too. The other, the not-for-profit HebrewBooks.org, is a total masterpiece for researchers like myself. This site is actually where I ended up finding the Magen Avraham text (albeit b'ivrit). You can search texts from seforim, haggadot, and more in English and Hebrew.
Shimshonit makes a beautiful observation about women in Judaism -- we may be in a holding pattern, but it allows us to look forward.
In my Google News Alert today, I came across a blog called Blogospherical Musings. The author's post that appeared in the alert is one on "Redefining Jewish Identity in 21st Century America." The author has some interesting points about how, by becoming more focused on Judaism as strictly revolving around religious practices, we risk assimilation, as we become like every other thread of American identity that revolves around religion as the be-all, end-all. Definitely an interesting read!
PopJudaica's blog posted a video explaining how Leonard Nimoy (of Star Trek fame) borrowed his Vulcan hand signs from the ancient rights of the Kohanim!
There's a new search engine out there called WolframAlpha.com, and I don't really get it. Does anyone else? Something about computational knowledge ...
In other news, I started reading "Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible" by Jonathan Goldstein (I also picked up "People of the Book," by Geraldine Brooks), and I'm kind of surprised that it isn't as hilarious as I thought it would be. Essentially Goldstein is expanding upon the Bible stories that are sort of washed over. We hear more about the relationship between Cain and Abel, the builders of the Tower of Babel and more details on the classics. Sometimes the narrative is simply witty in its humor, but other times it presents realistic truths and observations that aren't funny, but sobering. Either way, it's a really quick and fascinating read. I can't wait to get to Brooks' book, however. It looks absolutely fascinating.
Yes, you, the viewing/reading audience will be able to watch the entire, painful process of me planning my future, someday, maybe wedding. I promise I won't be a bridezilla.
But since the Omer Count is in full swing, you won't be seeing any engagements any time soon.
No pressure, Tuvia. (Insert winky face here!) I bet your mom and other relatives who are reading this are wondering why on Earth I am blogging about this. Well, the infinitely talented Sara over at PopJudaica recently started the Jewish Wedding Network site and I think it's absolutely MARVELOUS. It's a resource, a blog, a place to find vendors, and more. Now I just have to hook up my girls at Quite Like It -- a stellar invitation/card/etc. start-up -- with the Jewish Wedding Network.
Go check out both sites, but defiitely the JWN since there are giveaways this week! Be sure to enter by Sunday night!
Welcome, one and all, to Haveil Havelim #208, The Lingering Post-Purim Hangover Edition! This is my first time hosting HH, and I couldn't be more excited!
Founded by Soccer Dad, Haveil Havalim is a carnival of Jewish blogs — a weekly collection of Jewish & Israeli blog highlights, tidbits and points of interest collected from blogs all around the world. It’s hosted by different bloggers each week and coordinated by Jack. The term "Haveil Havalim," which means “Vanity of Vanities,” is from Qoheleth, (Ecclesiastes) which was written by King Solomon. King Solomon built the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and later on got all bogged down in materialism and other "excesses" and realized that it was nothing but "hevel," or in English, "vanity."
I'm pretty sure this edition title applies to many of you, but unfortunately it doesn't apply to me! I was in transit from Chicago this Purim, so I missed a lot of the stellar parties and nifty outfits. Luckily, plenty of bloggers out there offered up pictures of themselves in their RIDICULOUS outfits, so I'm going to pepper this HH with those dashing photos. There were a LOT of submissions, including a lot of folks who, well, sent me more than double the suggested (demanded?) submission amount, so if you don't see something you sent here? Well, I'm anti-Spam and all about brevity. ENJOY!
I can't even begin this edition of HH officially without devoting some space to a hearty MAZEL TOV to the one, the only Mottel of the Letters of Thought Blog. Yes, folks, Mottel is officially engaged and his kallah, Chana Langman, is a beautiful, intelligent gal from Chicago. I had the pleasure of schlepping down to Crown Heights to attend the L'Chaim, and several other bloggers were there. Many have written about the whole announcement, and Mottel did us well to do a round-up! Everyone head on over and give him your mazels, mmk?
Now for Purim!I hope everyone took time during Purim to boycott Starbucks. According to an Egyptian Cleric (and thanks to Aliza Hausman for filling us in), Queen Esther is in the logo! The Basement Bloggers, blogging on the Crown Heights underground, filled us in with a PSA for Purim, while The Real Shliach took time to share his Purim experiences in West Hartford, Connecticut (though he couldn't take a moment to stop by and say hello!? He was in my stomping ground!). Meanwhile, Esser Agaroth let's us know about Purim in Hevron, and thanks to the Rebbetzin's Husband, I now know way more than I wanted to about the Vatican celebrating Purim (who knew?!), and Our Shiputzim gives us another installment of the Heblish-English Dictionary -- I might have to start saying "dress up to," just to be down! And speaking of dressing up ... My Right Word shares a posted flier in Israel of an invitation to a Purim Drag Party. Sounds interesting ...
Susanne gives us a couple of videos that ran during the digital shorts portion of the Purim Spiel at her shul in Washington Heights. One even stars her hubby! Batya poses a question to her readers, who dutifully respond, in an effort to figure out the real point of Purim. I'm on par with Lady Light, who points out that it's a little curious that we celebrate our deliverance from an evil Persian, while Israel discovers that modern-day Persia (Iran) has nuclear capabilities. It is with this that we get a Purim Demise, a Purim Reprise! Rahel over at Elms in the Yard shares the Jewish/Purim connection in the old American folk song "The Cat Came Back," and Sign of the Times posits that the nutrition-label makers of a certain product might have sat down to write it up on Purim. Oy, the editing mistakes! This reminds me of when I was in Israel ... I wonder if the government needs a full-time English editor? I'm prime for the job! Finally, Lionden Landing shares with us some menu planning and mishlach manos goodies and Baila talks about hamantaschen (yum!) and mothering (fun!).
Moving along to Anti-Semitism(with a humorous twist), Barbara's Tchatzkahs gives us some Salty Anti-Semitism, which, for those who haven't heard, features the brand new, holier-than-thou Christian Salt! It hit the market recently. Get your's today! Lady Light shares with us the popular video on how to boycott Israel (I've watched this a dozen times and it STILL makes me giggle with utter delight).
Although a lot of the Humor posts got eaten up by Purim, there are still a few worth mentioning in the "general" humor category! Benji over at What War Zone??? tries to explain American slang to an Israeli, while also musing at American's dealing with the concept of the roundabout. Though, I have to say, this isn't new. Roundabouts have been in the U.S. FOREVER -- just look at Boston and D.C. Moving on, though, we have The Talmudist with a fictional account of two 20-something former yeshiva guys who accidentally rendezvous in a gay bar. Yes, you read that right.
And now we plod along to Israel, everyone's favorite Jewish state! We begin with Jacob, who reports on a salary survey for computer jobs in Eretz Yisrael. Rickismom of Beneath the Wings shares an unfortunate story about the intellectually impaired, as well as a cute quip in "Mommy, You're Different." Over on Religion and State in Israel, we have not one, but two roundups of media coverage on issues involving religion and the state in Israel. The Judeopundit goes all out with foreign policy disasters, progressive insights into the Zionist entity and more! Quite the accomplished blogger, Yisrael Medad's post on "The Green Line" coming and going has landed him among the Jerusalem Post blogs, but he also has a pretty interesting conversation (assault!) with Hillary Clinton on My Right Word. Finally, I throw some money at Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces as I begin my crusade effort to give tzedakah every day.
Judaism. It's the bee's knees, the big kahuna, the big cheese, the next area of the feature! Cynthia at Don't Gel Too Soon writes about attending a party for the presentation of a youngun's first siddur -- a truly moving event, while The Rebbetzin's Husband writes "Rabbi, give me a berachah (blessing)." Meanwhile, the Recovery Rabbi writes about unmasking ourselves from the darkness around us, a really beautiful idea. The Chabad.org Insider gives up a heads-up on Chabad's new mobile simulator to help acquaint users to the mobile interface, which, as a Blackberry user, I'm pretty stoked about! One of my favorite blogs, A Simple Jew, posted a conversation based on emails between "The Vegetarian Activist & The Vegetarian Chassid," but it's just part one, so stay tuned? The one and only Schvach takes us back to the favorite argument (or not?) on Darwin vs. G-d, while Bar Kochba gives the harrowing numbers on the Vanishing Diaspora Jew. Shiloh Musings reflects on Shabbat Zachor and remembering ...
More of subcategory of Judaism than anything, we now have our Torah posts! Any regular readers of the blog will note my obsession with this week's parshah, Ki Tisa, so I can't help but start off with some d'varim! The Velveteen Rabbi leads us with "Re-Entry," a nice poem about the Golden Calf narrative, while I give some thoughts on my recent paper on Exodus 32, not to mention some thoughts about Tzedakah.
Of course there has to be at least one Politics posts, so why not get it out there now, eh? MyPanim writes about Australia and Nazis in "Atonement for Past Injustices." Well, that was uneventful and brief. Where are all the politics posts!?
Personal posts are always fun, but there aren't that many of them. Luckily, we have some saving graces! Shorty parallels the renewal of the covenant in this week's parshah to her own renewal with HaShem, and Batya writes about her ADHD rearing its ugly head during Megillah readings (darn those toy guns!). Tuvia over at Following My Judaism talks about his first time in Chicago for Shabbat, but also his first time being Shomer Shabbos while traveling. Lastly, the ever-hilarious FrumSatire talks about the toils and fun of having stalkers on Facebook (if only I were so lucky?).
I hate to conclude this week's HH with anything foreboding, but I just can't help it! People are already in full-swing with Pesach blogging, so I have to include Mrs. S's Our Shiputzim "Theory of Pesach Cleaning." I'm *this close* to blogging on Passover, especially after my schlep out to Waldbaum's in West Hartford motzei Shabbos. This place is seriously stacked with Kosher l'Pesach goods. It was hard to walk out without buying up the whole place, but rumor has it I might be heading to Monsey next weekend for some Pesach shopping. Now THAT will be an experience.
So, until then, folks, be sure to check out last week's Haveil Havalim at The Real Shliach, stay tuned for next week's over at What War Zone??? and be sure to stick around my blog and, you know, become a friend and reader! I promise in the next day or so to give you a fun and exciting view of the Shabbos table at my rabbi's place. I've always found it amusing when Jews sit down and talk finances at the Shabbos dinner ... investment advice, anyone!?
Oh, and in case you missed the stellar How Do You Say Shabbat Shalom video put together by the National Jewish Outreach Project, give it a go here. How many bloggers and e-people do YOU know?
Having an excess amount of free time while at work (because it's far too difficult to do homework at work, it seems), I have stumbled across some really interesting links on blogs and websites that I think are worth taking a gander. It's like a "mini carnival" if you will. Enjoy!
Over on Hirhurim Musings, Rabbi Ari Enkin explains the significance of women and Rosh Chodesh. His explanation explores the connection of women having Rosh Chodesh (for a woman is like the moon, renewing each month as she dips in the mikvah) being related to the sin of the golden calf. There's also a tradition of women not doing certain types of work on Rosh Chodesh. Fascinating stuff. Give it a look!
The deadline approaches for the Better Than Your Bubby's Chicken Soup Challenge, sponsored by the National Jewish Outreach Program. The judges are some notables, including Jeff Nathan, Jamie Geller and more. Jamie Geller, of "Quick and Kosher" also has a really delicious-sounding Butternut Squash recipe on her website. How about you make me some and send it out, eh? PS: Deadline for the challenge is March 2!
A Simple Jew discusses in brief the importance of taking the time to sit down when you eat and drink. I didn't know there was a precedence for it, but it turns out there is. I loathe the days where I'd stand and eat or drink in the kitchen when I was in a hurry. For one, it's not healthy. For two, it doesn't allow your body to recognize that what you're doing is nourishing the body, confusing it and resulting in hunger but minutes later. For three? Well, it's just not right!
A potty-training urinal? Seriously? Zinc Plate Press's blog gives us a glimpse into this ... interesting ... tool for potty training your little Timmy.
Oh, and don't forget to SIGN UP for the Purim Basket giveaway below! FREE stuff is good. Especially when it's chocolate and kosher :)
I can't help but make my titles something with "Haveil Havalim is up, ______ is down!" Why? Well, the first time it was an unconscious nod to the rabbi who uses this play on words with the eruv and a current event (this week the eruv was up, Tzipi Livni was down).
But the newest edition, Number 205: From Down Under , is up over on Sarah's blog. I've never been to Sarah's blog, so it's nice to see someone unfamiliar doing this week's blog carnival. In a few weeks, it'll be my turn as the Blog Carnival Compiler. Look out!
I think I have found the Holy Grail of awesomeness in regards to being an Orthodox Jew.
I have to give a GIGANTIC tip of the hat to Aliza over at Memoir of a Jewminicana for posting these videos, and an even bigger hat tip to the Jew in the City herself, Allison. The videos and blogs over at Jew in the City are devoted to smushing all the crazy rumors about what it means to be an Orthodox Jew. The author was raised Conservative, and now is proudly an Orthodox Jewish woman living in the city. There is a blog, videos, a Q&A section, and even the option of leaving your number so that maybe, just maybe, Allison will field one of your questions. I really think this is an amazing thing she's doing, and I hope the videos persist. Here are a few of them on questions that we ALL field regularly -- what makes things kosher and, really, you have sex through a hole in the sheet, right?
So, prepare yourself for a hodge-podge post. Start your engines!
Evan and I are going back to the Conservative shul we went to a few weeks ago in West Hartford. We're hoping that we can talk the rabbi into sneaking us in to Yom Kippur services on Thursday. So cross your magen Davids and hope for the best. It's a nice shul, and I'm guessing more people will be there this Shabbat since it's between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Alternatively, it could have a reverse affect and no one will be there. Either way, I'm stoked for more real-shul time.
Then there is the debate talk. I don't even want to get very far into the Palin-Biden debate, but let's just say that the only reason Palin did "well" is because the bar for her was set so low it would have been impossible for her to have tripped over it. That being said, I'm pretty offended at her constant use of the quip "Never Again" to refer to the Wall Street fiasco -- can someone please let her know that that phrase is relegated to events of, oh, you know, Holocausts? To take such a significant set of words and throw it on a financial crisis that isn't really that big of a deal relative to past financial crises is offensive. And thanks to my friend Heather, this link has provided me with the Sarah Palin debate flow chart!
If you can't wait for Haveil Havalim on Sunday, Ilana-Davita did a good job of rounding up some posts from the week for your viewing pleasure. Just click here .
For those of you out there of the Jewish Mother persuasion, there's a new Blog Carnival on the block. You can head over to the In the Pink blog to check out how to register.
To close up the random round-up, everyone should head over to Mottel's blog for his Rosh Hashanah in Peru. Yes, despite our absolute differences in opinion about the election and politics, Mottel still takes some amazing photographs and has a lot of fascinating things to share about his worldly travels. And he's an all-around great person :)
Oh, and one more thing: I'm so stoked about the paper I'm going to write for my bible class about the Golden Calf incident. Nachmanides is my homeboy for this one, and unfortunately I disagree with Rashi and most other scholars regarding the purpose of the Golden Calf. I'm being crazy radical! Stay tuned for more!
Strangely, rather, very strangely, everything is done. I had my big gigantic 1/3-of-your-grade exam today that, well, I feel pretty lame about but I feel that way after every test so we'll see. I studied for tomorrow's Hebrew quiz, AND did the homework for class, too. I also did laundry (which happened to be free for some reason), and I managed to eat and get to work and do all the other activities of the day, not to mention watching the newest episodes of a few of my favorite TV shows on YouTube and Hulu.com. What I'm wondering is, how did this happen? Did the world slow to a halt today? I even lallygagged at work, chatting with a classmate about our observance and class and Jewish UConn and everything in between. So, really, seriously, how did this happen? I guess I shouldn't complain because it gives me time to write a quick blog post, go through the flashcards one more time, and hit the sack. Oh, and it also gives me time to pack.
Pack for what you say? Well, because I just didn't get enough NYC last week, I'm heading back this weekend, thanks to the kindly Susanne , who is putting me up for Shabbos. I was originally going to be bunking up at another friend's place, but it fell through, so Susanne is a huge, insane, holy lifesaver. There's no particular reason I'm going to NYC, I just want to be there. Well, I guess it is my pre-birthday weekend, so I'm hoping to get some of my Twitter friends together for a drink or two or three. If anything, I imagine I'll have plenty to say at the end of the weekend. Now, in preparation for my Shabbos, I anticipated not being able to use the showering facilities on Saturday morning. This, as I've mentioned in the past, is one of my biggest hang-ups about being shomer Shabbos, and I know it's incredibly stupid. But my options are: Look like Frankenstein (this hair gets all sortsa crazy in the course of an evening of sleep) or look like a happily married frummie. To be honest, I'd rather hit up the latter, so I figured out -- in one shot -- how to tie a scarf so that I can cover my messy hair. I'm pretty proud of myself. Was I meant to be a hair-covering guru? I also found the most amazing site on the planet CoverYourHair.com, from which I purchased a couple nifty headbands/scarves for the express purpose of covering my messy-arse hair on Shabbos morning.
Is it really that big of a deal if I cover my hair? I mean, plenty of people wear scarves. Does it have to mean what people will think it means!? Will they see no ring on my finger and gush with "oy gevalts" ...? Feh.
Anyhow, that's where I'll be this weekend, so if you are also in New York, let me know and maybe we can bump into each other. Other than my big weekend trip, nothing huge is going on. I got notice from the Birthright group I signed up through that acceptance notices will go out in three weeks (oy, the waiting, I can't do it anymore) and that phone interviews would start late "this week." Well, it's pretty much Friday and no one has called me. Is this a bad sign? Sigh. I just want to go to Israel. What's so big about it?
But I'd like to take the rest of this happy little blog space to throw out some links and causes worth thinking about. First? Please click HERE and vote for "Evelyn" -- though, it's really a vote for Evelyn's daughter, Leah, who created a magazine for Jewish girls called Yaldah. Seriously, this girl created this magazine when she was 13 years old. THAT, folks, is making a dream happen. Next up, I want all my happy travelers out there (I'm looking at Mottel for sure) to checkout YeahThatsKosher.com -- the blog for the kosher traveler. It's really a pretty unique idea and the website is just downright handy and well-designed. Thirdly, WebYeshiva.org is offering free classes on Sunday on Rosh HaShanah ! If I wasn't going to be traveling, I would be online and sitting in on those lessons. It's a really great and neat idea, and I encourage everyone to take advantage. Fourthly, if you're in the mood for a little hilarity, my friend has put up a comical parody of the Rabbis for Obama group. Yes, there is now "Rabies for Obama ." Just click on the link. It's beautifully designed!
And lastly, I recommend you ALL watch this video by Sarah Silverman. Now, I know a lot of people don't like Sarah Silverman and she can be a little raunchy and obnoxious, but this video promotes everyone getting their zeyde and bubby out to vote for Obama, and I think it's hilarious and marvelous.
So until we meet again on Sunday or Monday, I issue a little bit of an oy vey for the approaching holidays. Still? Quite unprepared. Thus, on my lengthy bus trek to New York, I'll be delving into some items from the interwebs, things friends and other bloggers have posted. I need to get into the season, to really feel my heart. So with that, Shabbat Shalom!
If not for the annual day of judgment, the world's sins would continue to accumulate, until it would reach the stage where it would have to be destroyed. This is why Rosh Hashana is a yom tov, a day of celebration. (Sefer HaChinuch)
A couple interesting things to write about/share. Some news, some not, but all educationally fascinating.
+ I think I'll leave any and all comments on the new GLBT siddur that is in the works to the write-up FrumSatire did over on his blog . I'll be honest: I'm incredibly liberal, but some of the new prayers in the siddur make ME uncomfortable. Just check out the blog. Prayers for unexpected intimacy? You'll catch my drift.
+ I have failed miserably at preparing anything coherent to share about the upcoming new year -- Rosh Hashanah -- leading us into 5769. Luckily, other people are way ahead of me on this. Who, you ask? Well, Ilana-Davita posted up some information last week that you can find here , and she also linked to Leora's blog , which also has some outstanding information about various food symbols for the new year, not to mention a beautiful piece of art. Then there is Jew Wishes who has one heckuva comprehensive list of websites for the High Holy Days, not to mention a suggested list of books to pick up. But I promise to have something. I need to have something. I am starting off 5769 as a graduate student, with a boyfriend, in a new state, far away from just about everything I was and knew at this point last year. I have sort of become a new person. I'm miles away from my hashkafah of a year ago, not to mention miles physically and emotionally away from who I was. It will be an interesting start, I think.
+ Over the weekend Evan and I were debating the details of kashrut and why chicken is considered meat and fish isn't. To be honest, I'd never thought about the whole issue of why fish is parve, but he got me thinking. I've been doing the vegetarian thing (okay, I faltered on Sunday ONCE and had some buffalo chicken wing/ball things while watching the Patriots game), mostly because I'm torn about the whole kashurt and interpretation of the meat/milk law as being ALL dairy and ALL meat (except fish, you know, since it's parve). Being a vegetarian is my effort to move in that direction, though there are a boatload of other reasons why, and I'll post more on that after I collect my thoughts and do some reading (hat tip to A Simple Jew for some thoughtful links). So back to the point: Fish is parve, which means it's neither dairy nor meat, so it can be eaten with anything and this makes Jews stoked because it opens up the options for protein with a dairy meal. Thus, after some exhaustive searching on my Blackberry, I came across the website for Beth Tzedec (a Toronto congregation) with an interesting and thoughtful discussion of the issue. The question posed was: "The Torah tells us not to seethe the kid in its mother's milk. A chicken does not have mother's milk. Why isn't chicken parve like fish?" And the answer by Rav Roy Tanenbaum:
The answer to your question illustrates how laypeople help to determine the scope of Jewish law. The Talmudic sages were of course aware of the fact that chickens do not have mothers' milk. But before establishing the category of chicken, they wanted to know how the average person in the street uses language. So they [asked] ... the following questions: "If you sent a servant to the market to buy meat and he came back with fish, what would your reaction be? Alternatively, if he came back with chicken, what would your reaction be?"
The scholars learned that most people of the time included chicken in their normal understandaing of the word "meat" whereas they did not include fish. This is still true today as illustrated in the fact that when we wish to exclude chicken we have to use the term "red meat."
So to avoid confusion among the masses of people, the sages incorporated chicken under the halakha of meat.
So what can I say? It comes back to making things easier and less confusing, but at least I now have an explanation.
+ I'm adding several books to my Amazon Wish List (feel free to shower me with gifts at any time), though mostly as a reminder to read them at some point, not necessarily to procur, considering my reading list is quite heavy as is. The first is a new book by Brandeis Professor Jonathan Sarna (yes, you guessed it, his father is Nahum Sarna, whose books I have been reading for class) about the American Jewish experience, but more importantly about renewing the Jewish experience both ritually and religiously. The book is "A Time to Every Purpose: Letters to a Young Jew ," and you'll note that the title is taken from Qohelet! I'm also throwing on David Sears' "The Vision of Eden: Animal Welfare and Vegetarianism in Jewish Law and Mysticism ." And lastly, thanks to Jew Wishes , I'm throwing on Elie Wiesel's "Legends of Our Time ."
Books. We all have them (or at least we should) and most of us have way too many of them. Academics in particular tend to collect them -- even ones they have and may never read. I've moved around a lot in the past 2.5 years and this has resulted in a lot of book purging. Luckily, I've kept a massive list that's off to the right there of all books I've owned or once owned and for the most part what I've read. Of course, this list compilation started just last year, so anything I owned before that and sold or donated or passed along is unfortunately not there. My policy is that, the books I chuck or donate I can just buy again. Books, you see, are going nowhere.And, might I add, as an Academic, I intend to hoard them.
So no matter what way you paint it, books are our lifeblood. The great books -- the Torah (or Bible), War and Peace, Catcher in the Rye, The Great Gatsby, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (note: there's no THE in the actual title), The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter? -- are known, if only by title, to just about everyone. And we know books by the way they feel and smell and the cover(s) that adorn them. We don't know books by their .pdf incarnation via the Sony Readers or Kindles (though, you know, I really want one). We crave the hard copy, the beautiful, physical page-turning experience that is the book.
I currently have three Tanakhs and two chumashes. It was pointed out that all of the books I brought to school with me are Judaica (and they are, except for one Vonnegut), and most of the books I have back home are Judaica, with the exception of Salinger, Diamant, Vonnegut, Joyce, and others. In the past two weeks at school, I have recalled one book from a different campus, in addition to checking out three other books -- one required and the other two simply books I picked up while perusing the stacks (one on Shabbos stories and the other by an author who broke down the Documentary Hypothesis and essentially recomposed Torah). You see, I can't leave the library without picking up a new book. Even if I never get to it, books -- I must be surrounded by books.
I recently finished Chaim Potok's "Davita's Harp," while also spending plenty of time reading "Cool Jew," while also starting and finishing (and needing to review) "The Search Committee" by Rabbi Marc D. Angel, in addition to (yes, this is the last one), starting and almost finishing Nahum Sarna's book on "Genesis" (the Torah book, not the band).
You see, I am a bookworm in anticipation of becoming a bibliophile.
So I take with great comfort the calming words I recently wrote to a friend who is applying to graduate school for a library sciences degree about the future of books (no, they're not going anywhere). I also was excited to hear that my good friend Jon finally decided to start a blog on what he calls "Fringe-Lit," the books that you wouldn't hear about outside of a college classroom or a university or small press. His blog, Up the Broken Trail, is now live and in his first post he explains how it is that he discoveres new, interesting authors that might not otherwise break the big Borders wall of awesome (read: Stephen King, ugh) books. By the way, I have to add that Jon, a brilliant writer and an amazing person and friend, has already written his own book (it's on Nebraska football, if you're interested), which I think is pretty impressive.
And then there's another blog that I have to pass along as a lover of books, and that's the Jew Wishes blog. Jew Wishes is "an avid first edition book collector," who reads anywhere between three and five books a week, along with newspapers and periodicals. Essentially, Jew Wishes is well read and provides readers with a rundown of the books getting the read-through. The most recent post by Jew Wishes is about the book "The Talmud and the Internet" by Jonathan Rosen -- a book I've been meaning to pick up for some time now.
I'm sure there are loads of other book-friendly blogs out there, but these are the two on my radar that I think YOU should most definitely check out. As for me, I still have a book review of "The Search Committee," which just came out officially on September 1, and that will likely come Saturday, so stay tuned. Until then?
Well, you see, I'm finishing up the book on "Genesis," starting Sarna's other book "Exploring Exodus," and I've already started reading the book that sort of resorts out the Torah, and the Shabbos stories book will probably be a reference more than a read. What else? Well, there's also all that other class reading ... I have about four books on Qohelet that I need to pore over, not to mention regular Torah study and ...
Books. They're what's for dinner. And breakfast, lunch, long walks to the dining hall, bus rides, plane rides, short bathroom visits ...
Note: There is a difference between a bookworm and a bibliophile! As your editor in residence, I want to clarify the difference. A bookworm is a lover of books for their content and loves reading in general. A bibliophile, on the other hand, is more of a lover of books who strives to collect books and appreciates them for their format and purpose. I'm a little bit of both, but since my collection isn't so fast (what with all the movie and such), I'm more of just a bookworm for now.
Also, if you attended (or maybe you didn't?) the Nefesh B'Nefesh international bloggers conference in person or online, the list is up of all the bloggers who registered. It's seriously a list of who's who in the J-Blogosphere. Even I managed to weasel my way in!
Though, there is some debate whether there really *is* a community of Jewish bloggers. Take part in the debate, will you?
So I just wanted to shout out a few blogs here, because, well, I think it's important for Bloggers to support other Bloggers (or, you know, those people who use Wordpress or some other FAR INFERIOR version of Blogger ... I kid, I kid).
True Ancestor discusses being "bageled." I, as it turns out, was just bageled by another student ... check out my comment on his very interesting blog post.
Then there's Rachel, who just started up her Shavua Tov! blog this month, and I have to say it's worth a read. She's been writing about Yiddish and loading up on texts to get her rolling in her conversion process. Give her a read and say hello!
Get busy reading ... the J-blogosphere is large and needs some love!
So I won't really be blogging much probably until late next week, if not beyond that, mostly because I'm en route (as my last blog mentioned) and as such I don't have easy access to internet, nor do I really have the energy necessary to dish out meaningful and relevant posts. Please keep me in mind, though, as I travel. I can use all the helpful prayers I can get.
In the meantime, here is a thought that I hope to blog on at some point in the not-so-distant future: Torah as given to Moses and the Israelites by G-d versus Torah being taught by G-d to Moses and subsequently the Israelites. Is the wordage necessarily different? Significant? Important? I think so, yes.
Until then ... Iowa from the road (circa August 13) says hello.
Thanks to all of those who pointed out the errors on my blog. Turns out the host of the images exceeded his bandwith and everything went to pot, so I'm now hosting the images myself so I don't have to worry about the site imploding and people not seeing dates/the comments field. They were always there, just blended in with the background. So phew!
Comment away and let's hope Google doesn't implode (googlepages is hosting my images!).
In case you were worried about me having enough to do as I get ready to start grad school (which means loads of free time, right?), I've taken on another blogging duty! Yes, folks, I'm now helping the blog effort over on Pop Judaica's blog. The Pop Judaica website sells all sorts of kitschy cool things for hip and worldly Jews (from tots to your bubbe) -- I've even blogged on some of the neat-o merchandise in past pots.
The blog will keep you up to date on a variety of happenings, including a Bar Mitzvah in China, which I just blogged on! Stay tuned for more Pop Judaica blog tidbits, and spread the word. Chavi is taking on the interwebs by storm! Join the revolution :)
If you're looking for me elsewhere on the net, well, I'm over at Jewsbychoice.org and HeatEatReview.com, not to mention on Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, BrightKite, Flickr, and more. Yes, I'm everywhere.
And also, I'll be taking part in First International Jewish Bloggers Convention via the web on August 20 (assuming I'm settled in by then). To register, check out the site here. Frum Satire will be doing his schtick and there will be a bounty of well-known J-Bloggers on site for panel discussions, including Treppenwitz, Jewlicious, IsraelMatzav and Hirhurim, and the beautiful J-Blogging moderator, Esther K.
I spent today juggling dozens of tasks, among them phone calls with Sara from PopJudaica and Avi from Jews By Choice in addition to my regular at-work work. Of course I was also checking up on Facebook, Twittering, and sending emails to various lucky parties. Oh, did I mention I was also holding down a conversation on Pidgin with my far-away friend Cesar?
But all the while, I managed to make use my office's scanner, since tomorrow is my last day, copying pages I'd taken notes on and flagged in A Heart of Many Rooms: Celebrating the Many Voices within Judaism by David Hartman (a book that Avi had suggested to me, actually). Although I can't say that I read every last page of the book, I did read about seven-eighths of it, and I have to say it was an outstanding read. Of course, I have 26 pages with various notes and comments that -- at some point -- I will collect into one (hopefully) coherent thought. Until, then, though, I wanted to offer a few snippets from the text.
This first one is where the title of the book comes from, and I think the ideas within this block of quoted text essentially define for me what is necessary to be a Jew today:
There is a beautiful metaphor in the Tosefta that describes the kind of religious sensibility the Talmud tried to nurture: "Make yourself a heart of many rooms and bring into it the words of the House of Shammai and the words of the House of Hillel, the words of those who declare unclean and the words of those who declare clean" (Sotah 7:12). In other words, become a person whom different opinions can reside together in the very depths of your soul. Become a religious person who can live with ambiguity, who can feel religious conviction and passion without the need for simplicity and absolute certainty. In this type of interpretive tradition, awareness of the validity of contrary positions enhances, rather than diminishes, the vitality and enthusiasm of religious commitment.
All too often we think it's our way or the highway; but these differing positions -- be it on Torah or who is a Jew or on what is Kosher enough -- should enhance the Jewish experience. After all, probably the most quoted line about the Jewish people is the old "two Jews, three opinions" line.
The second little snippet I wanted to share was one of those things I read and smiled and nodded my head in approval:
Let the Torah never be for you an antiquated decree, but rather like a decree freshly issued, no more than two or three days old. ... But Ben Azzai said: Not even as old as a decree issued two or three days ago, but as a decree issued this very day. (Pesikta de-Rab Kahana, piska 12:12)
The thing I love about studying Torah is that every time I read a portion, even though I've read it before (and yes, it is a full year later), it is like reading it for the first time. I notice a strange translation, a peculiar word choice, an interesting repitition, a contradiction, a unique instance of an idea or thought. Though I have only been studying Torah for a few years, and many begin studying from a very early age and continue throughout life, this concept seems so natural to me. You can read a text every day your entire life, and there will be instances of complete realization -- it is inevitable that you will discover something you missed before. The verbage, the choice of punctuation, the tone of the text, the scenery.
I sometimes read back through my own work and will often think "I wrote that? I wonder why I chose that word. I really punctuated my thought that way?" And this, of course, is the beauty of the written word. It is what I live and breathe, and really drinking it all in allows me to thrive.
So it is with that, that I leave you. I find myself anxious about the approaching Tisha B'av. I feel horribly unprepared and not in the proper state of mind because of the changing winds of my present situation (on Wednesday I leave for Nebraska, and on August 18 I start on my drive to Connecticut). But somehow, everything always seems to fall into place.
It's Ruby Tuesday (that means it's Tuesday and it's time to post a photo with some red in it), and me being the in-awe person that I am, I'm actually posting a photo taken by someone that is NOT me. This photo was actually taken by the blogger Mottel, and like all of his photos, it is outstandingly brilliant. I find myself wanting to crawl into each of his pictures for a mere moment to smell the aromas and feel the breeze or stillness of a room. At any rate, I hope you enjoy this photo, because by golly I know I do.
EDIT: Okay, okay. I feel bad. The rules are that it has to be one of my own ... so ... in addition to Mottel's beautiful photo with some ruby in it, here's one of mine. These are rows and rows of red chairs at the Pritzker Auditorium in Chicago, IL.
Yes, it's that time again. Haveil Havalim #176-- The Dirty Laundry Edition -- is up over at Frumhouse. Give it a go and check out the delicious tastings of the Jewish blogosphere.
I stumbled upon a post by Jack yesterday while browsing my Google Reader feeds, and it got me thinking: Should I have guest bloggers? Do interviews of other bloggers? Says Jack: "Do you find yourself racking your brain or scouring the web for that one perfect topic to blog about? Do you find yourself cursing out loud because you discoved that the topic you wish to discuss has already been covered by 6,354 other bloggers, and at least six of them did a better job than you." And oddly enough, my answer to this is sometimes (perhaps once a week) YES!
You see, for some reason my page views and hits have gone up, nearly tripled in the past month. I credit this to having branched out in my blog viewing, tossing on such big names as Frum Satire, a psuedo superstar of the Jewish blogging world. (Note: If you get a big WARNING when you click on that link, it's because he got hacked and Google hasn't rekindled its love for Frum Satire just yet; don't worry, it's safe.) I've found that, if I comment elsewhere, or end up on the Blog Roll of some e-Jew superstar, I'm more likely to get hits. But it feels really self-serving and almost, well, dirty.
But with new frequent readers and commenters, I find myself, as Jack said, racking my brain for the perfect topic to post on. I mean, I have about a dozen posts in the works -- that is, in my head, but not finding their way to my fingers fast enough -- but I feel like I need to blog at least once a day (hence the random, and pointless Wordle yesterday).
With this mindset, though, comes the question of quality versus quantity. I could post something every day and never get a comment, and it would be a waste of my time and that of the reader. I want to have a blog where every post ends up like my Torah blog post the other day -- where there is conversation, questioning, discussion, and thought.
I suppose it's all about balance, but I think Jack brings up an interesting issue. And it's got me thinking. I read so many other blogs, many of them by people who have a mass e-following and some who have even made a career out of blogging (which, in all honesty, I'd kill to do). So in the not-so-distant future, you might find me interviewing someone of significant importance, perhaps on how they got so big, how being Jewish has affected their blog output, etc. I'm intrigued, and though I'm no reporter (read: I'm a trained copy editor who just likes to write), I think I'm pretty sound with the questioning.
So what do you think? Do you ever toy with guest posters on your blog like A Simple Jew often does? Or are you happy with how your blog is going? Do you seek blog satisfaction? Or is it an afterthought?
Well. The truth is often a hard pill to swallow, and this has been one of the hardest. Nay, most frustrating. Nay, most infuriating. This bl...
On Jews
He has made a marvellous fight in this world, in all the ages; and has done it with his hands tied behind him. He could be vain of himself, and be excused for it. The Egyptian, the Babylonian, and the Persian rose, filled the planet with sound and splendor, then faded to dream-stuff and passed away; the Greek and the Roman followed, and made a vast noise, and they are gone; other peoples have sprung up and held their torch high for a time, but it burned out, and they sit in twilight now, or have vanished.
The Jew saw them all, beat them all, and is now what he always was, exhibiting no decadence, no infirmities of age, no weakening of his parts, no slowing of his energies, no dulling of his alert and aggressive mind. All things are mortal but the Jew; all other forces pass, but he remains. What is the secret of his immortality?
Next Shabbat, we're taking part in this awesome Mystery Shabbat thing in Teaneck (the aim being to pair people up at a mystery house, so the hosts don't know who is coming and the guests don't know whose house at which they're eating), and I'm eager to get situated in the new 'hood with new people, a new shul, and, essentially, to officially start our married life. I never thought New Jersey would hold the fruits of my future, but here we are.
onto my nook, so that should provide me with some material about which to blog about. It's new, it was featured in The New York Times Book Review, so I'm sold. It will be the first official book I've read on my nook, so I'm stoked.
