Interview Meme, this round courtesy of Mr. Guthrie.
Mr. Guthrie (suburbfabulous) wrote,
1. Is there an eruv at Bryn Mawr?
On campus? No. In the town? Not that I know of, which doesn't mean there isn't one, but since I don't think Bryn Mawr has a very observant Jewish population, I think the closest one is in Wynnewood four towns over, which is of precious little use to me.
2. If you could only ONE food for a whole day, and you had to eat all three meals, and it could be ANYthing, what would it be? Also, the deli where we ate lunch is closed. As in permanently, Caldor-closed.
Potatoes. Duh. Because not only are they my favorite food, they're very versatile. Also, although they don't provide perfect nutrition, it's pretty close for a single food. It really doesn't hurt that I love potatoes even more than I love say, ice cream, or like, fleish.
3. Why don't you ever comment any more?
I read your posts, I really do! I just mostly don't know what to say.
4. Are you afraid of spiders?
Depends on the spider. I don't like big ones or ones where you can see all their eyes, I find them creepy. I got bitten by a Brown Recluse when I was in middle school and I almost lost my right hand. I'm not afraid of small common spiders so long as I don't get surprised by them, though.
5. What's the name of that scroll thingy by the door? Are there any rules concerning them, or can you just put up any old scroll thingy?
So, the "scroll thingy" has two components: the bayit ("house"), and the mezuzah ("doorpost"). It's collectively called a mezuzah, but a lot of people mistakenly refer to just the bayit as the mezuzah. (Many people argue this is a legitimate use of the word, but it's not really a mezuzah if it has no scroll in it.) So, the bayit is the pretty outside thingie that holds the scroll. The mezuzah is technically the scroll itself.
There are pretty much no rules regarding the bayit except that it should protect the scroll. I mean, obviously it should not have images of foreign gods, or like, planets, or other objects of worship. And the purpose of the bayit is to hold and protect the scroll, so it should probably do that.
There are some other rules concerning the mezuzah. One of them is the scroll should be a kosher one, which in this context means that the scroll is written by a competent, G-d fearing scribe on parchment. Those paper photocopies most stores give you when you buy a bayit? Not at all kosher. The scrolls are supposed to be checked once every seven years to make sure they're still in good shape.
The mezuzah should be put up in any permanent residence in which a Jew lives, at the very least on the outside doorpost, and if possible, on every other doorpost except those to bathrooms and closets. When you put up a mezuzah, you say a blessing and you nail it to the upper third of the doorpost titled toward the inside of the room.
Why the upper third? Probably so that it's above you. I often see in public places that the accessible door has it at a lower height so that people using a wheelchair can reach to kiss it. Often in a house with children, the kids' bedrooms have either one at their height or two, one at their height and one at the parents' height.
Why tilted inward? Because the Sages had an argument about whether it should be horizontal or vertical and they compromised. (This is my favorite explanation, but by no means the only one.)
Why on the doorpost? Because in the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9), it says so. Verses 6-9 are as follows:
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be upon thy heart; and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thy hand, and they shall be for frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the doorposts of thy house, and upon thy gates.
(I got this translation from Mechon Mamre, so it's a tad archaic.)
