Check, check, check it out.

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.

A couple o'links!

A few links worth mentioning!

1) Thanks to DovBear/Rafi G for posting up the newest list of Newsweek's 50 Influential Rabbis. Once again, not too many Orthodox rabbis on the list, but that's to be expected, I think. Yasher koach to all the rabbis out there on the list! If that's not a good enough article for you, then, you know, there's always the Third Annual "Hottest Rabbi" list ... yikes.

2) The newest Haveil Havalim is up over on Ima on the Bima! Give it a look, mmk?

EDIT: Also from DovBear: The Dirty Little Truth about the Sun Blessing (Birchat HaChamah). My bubble is burst. But I suspected there was something fishy about it. I mean, seriously. How can we calculate such things!?

And since it's making its way around the intertubes:

A Mini-Link Roundup.

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 :)

A few links for the thirsty.

In case you missed it, I wrote a review of Tabatchnick Chicken Broth with Noodles and Dumplings (read: matzo balls) for HeatEatReview.com. Be sure to check it out -- the soup is delish, I promise! (Oh, and it's kosher, as well.)

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?

Links 'R Us

So I thought I'd do a quick list here of some links that either have been pointed in my general election or just links that I think are useful, entertaining and/or worth checking out. Of course, the people I'm reading over there to the right are most definitely all worth checking out, so click around and get your read on!

Kosher Academic mentioned a few sites to me, including the Drisha Institute and JOFA, that I thought were worth a mention. The former is in New York and is dedicated to empowering Jewish women to become scholars and educators, running full-time, part-time and summer programs, among other activities. The latter is the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance, and their tag states that the group "works to expand the spiritual, ritual, intellectual and political opportunities for women within the framework of halakha." JOFA is a great site for resources whether you're exploring becoming ba'alai teshuvah or those just seeking to become more observant or those just curious about what it means to be an observant Jewish woman in the context of halakha.

Have you or do you intend on applying for graduate school? A useful site for you in the future will be The Grad Cafe. It's a site dedicated to the rejections and acceptances of future graduate students. Click on the "results" page to check out the snarky remarks of those rejected or accepted by their favorite institutions. Likewise, if you're looking for a program/school that supports Judaic studies as a degree, you can visit the Association for Judaic Studies for public school listings in the "resources" section of the page.

Of course I have to mention and recommend everyone hit up Jewsbychoice.org, where I actually posted today. My post talks about all things Jewish -- including the people -- becoming popular in the U.S., and what the implications for this are. In a 2006 Gallup poll, a random sample of Americans were asked how they felt about a variety of spiritual groups/religions in the U.S. Compared to 60 years ago, the results were astonishing. Jews were ranked THE HIGHEST, and Scientoligists were ranked the lowest (below athiests, even). Interesting how that works out.

If you're in a major metropolitan area, I cannot stress enough the importance of a site like Yelp.com. Now, I know plenty of my readers are observant and so the site might seem devoid of significance, seeing as it is seemingly a restaurant review site, but it is so much more. You can review all sorts of businesses, not to mention network and use the Talk forums to meet people. Likewise, I think it would be beneficial to have some kosher voices on the site! Anyhow, it's just an awesome site that I have become horribly addicted to :)

This might be silly, but when I'm looking for certain Torah stuff, I hit up Navigating the Bible II: Online Bar/Bat Mitzvah tutor. It's a really easy-to-use interface and it includes the Hebrew, English, Transliteration, chanting sound bites, blessings, and so much more.

For Jews in Chicago, I must recommend heading over to JewishMeetup.com. It's a slowly growing site that a super nice fella has setup, and it needs bodies! There are a couple of upcoming events, and there are often Hebrew nights, food nights, and a variety of other outings. So head over, sign up, and say hello! On that note, if you're Jewish and in Chicago, be sure to go over to Leah's blog to read about the upcoming Jewish Discovery Shabbat camp for Jews who have converted, are interested in converting, etc. It sounds like a good time ... I might just sign up :)

Is there a question you have about something Jewish that you just can't find an answer to? Head over to AskMoses.com and pose your question to one of the waiting and willing scholars and/or rabbis.

For people with kids, or those who prefer a kid-friendly style site where they can learn bits and pieces about Judaism, pay a visit to this site. It's Social Studies for Kids!

For an online keyboard of Hebrew, you can visit Mikledet, the Hebrew Virtual Keyboard. The great thing is you can type, then copy and paste elsewhere with no difficulty!

All right, I think those are all the links that are fit to print for now. Like I said, check out the blogs to the right and get some good reads on. Michael is a good read for a good read; he's keen on reviewing books, so if you're in the neighborhood for a new read, hit up Michael's blog. If you're an educator or are interested in the topic of education and/or Judaism, I recommend visiting Tamara's or Lift Up Your Head, Child blogs; it's a big bad world out there and I admire both of them for dedicating themselves to the field of education.