Judaica
This winter, Chanukah is going to be joyous no matter what. :)
Since I've been seeing all kinds of Christmas stuff out since before Halloween and I can't take three steps in the supermarket without running into giant animatronic Santas (that would have scared the CRAP out of me when I was a kid, I'm just saying), I've decided to get an early start on this year's early Chanukah (starts the night of 12/7, if you're keeping track).
Hence my icon. I loved those colorful little things even though I didn't care for the chocolate inside. I started collecting dreidls a couple of years ago - much cheaper than menorahs and infinitely easier to store in the off-season - and am looking forward to pulling them out the Saturday after Thanksgiving. There are menorahs to be polished, cards to be (bought and then) sent, a cool star-of-David card holder for any incoming cards of any denomination, candles to be counted and/or replaced. Oh, and then there'll be the food: latkes with applesauce, noodle kugels, and sufaniyot (jelly donuts!).
If Christmas stuff can start 2 months early, then I can start Chanukah 2 weeks early. So there, neener. :)
***
This morning's Torah study got way off track and we ended up talking about the increasing pressure to make aliyah - to actually MOVE to Israel, not just visit. In the 19th century Reform Judaism had opposed to Zionism, saying that it had found "a new Zion" right where it was, thank you very much. Three guesses and the first two don't count what country they were talking about. :( Anyway, there's been a lot of talk lately - between increasing acts of anti-Semitism in Canada and France, plus the current evangelical situation here in the U.S. - about how everyone should make aliyah. Those of us who aren't comfortable with the idea of plunking ourselves down in the middle of a war, or who don't believe that it's right to run away from societal problems, got rather itchy.
Then we got the voice of reason in the form of a retired rabbi, Rabbi S., who comes to Torah study and is so incredibly learned and articulate that I wish he gave private lessons. Anyway, Rabbi S. begged to differ with the (mostly elderly) people who were all ready to pack up their belongings and flee. "The Diaspora is relevant today. It's important today. Suppose all the Jews in the world moved to Israel - you think someone wouldn't drop a bomb and wipe us all out? As long as we're spread all over the world, there will always be the "remnant" the prophets spoke of, the remnant that God promised would survive adversity and grow."
Rabbi P. was relieved, because he's not a fan of MOVING to Israel even though he, like the rest of us, support its right to exist. (Hey, I don't like OUR government much - setting up the most affordable health plan for federal workers as one that denies coverage for any form of birth control is just the tip of the iceberg, my friends - but I hardly think that the U.S. should just be wiped off the face of the earth.) Even the staunchest aliyah supporters, the ones who really DO plan to move in the spring, had to stop and think.
***
I bumped into Cantor right after Torah study as he was heading for the morning's Bar Mitzvah. He nudged my arm with his and whispered in my ear, "I'm going to be catty."
"Sit down and let me get you some cream," I replied.
He said that there had been an audition during the Family Service last night (I went to the Early Service, so I hadn't been there). Yes, Opera!Girl sat in the back, singing so loudly that Cantor couldn't hear himself. He imitated how she sang "V'Shameru," swiveling her head from side to side to make sure people knew it was HER, singing. "People came up to me afterwards and asked if she was auditioning for my job."
I said that the last time I'd subbed for him and O!G had been there, she hadn't been singing with me but rather AT me. "Anything you can sing, I can sing--"
"--louder," he agreed. Then, when I told him that she'd made a crack that night about my "obviously untrained" voice, he turned beet red and put his arms around me. "She has a problem. SHE has a problem."
No kidding. What a flake.
***
Larry's going to play for Lisa Loeb again tonight and I'm going to get enough cabinet and fridge space to make it through Thanksgiving.
Since I've been seeing all kinds of Christmas stuff out since before Halloween and I can't take three steps in the supermarket without running into giant animatronic Santas (that would have scared the CRAP out of me when I was a kid, I'm just saying), I've decided to get an early start on this year's early Chanukah (starts the night of 12/7, if you're keeping track).
Hence my icon. I loved those colorful little things even though I didn't care for the chocolate inside. I started collecting dreidls a couple of years ago - much cheaper than menorahs and infinitely easier to store in the off-season - and am looking forward to pulling them out the Saturday after Thanksgiving. There are menorahs to be polished, cards to be (bought and then) sent, a cool star-of-David card holder for any incoming cards of any denomination, candles to be counted and/or replaced. Oh, and then there'll be the food: latkes with applesauce, noodle kugels, and sufaniyot (jelly donuts!).
If Christmas stuff can start 2 months early, then I can start Chanukah 2 weeks early. So there, neener. :)
***
This morning's Torah study got way off track and we ended up talking about the increasing pressure to make aliyah - to actually MOVE to Israel, not just visit. In the 19th century Reform Judaism had opposed to Zionism, saying that it had found "a new Zion" right where it was, thank you very much. Three guesses and the first two don't count what country they were talking about. :( Anyway, there's been a lot of talk lately - between increasing acts of anti-Semitism in Canada and France, plus the current evangelical situation here in the U.S. - about how everyone should make aliyah. Those of us who aren't comfortable with the idea of plunking ourselves down in the middle of a war, or who don't believe that it's right to run away from societal problems, got rather itchy.
Then we got the voice of reason in the form of a retired rabbi, Rabbi S., who comes to Torah study and is so incredibly learned and articulate that I wish he gave private lessons. Anyway, Rabbi S. begged to differ with the (mostly elderly) people who were all ready to pack up their belongings and flee. "The Diaspora is relevant today. It's important today. Suppose all the Jews in the world moved to Israel - you think someone wouldn't drop a bomb and wipe us all out? As long as we're spread all over the world, there will always be the "remnant" the prophets spoke of, the remnant that God promised would survive adversity and grow."
Rabbi P. was relieved, because he's not a fan of MOVING to Israel even though he, like the rest of us, support its right to exist. (Hey, I don't like OUR government much - setting up the most affordable health plan for federal workers as one that denies coverage for any form of birth control is just the tip of the iceberg, my friends - but I hardly think that the U.S. should just be wiped off the face of the earth.) Even the staunchest aliyah supporters, the ones who really DO plan to move in the spring, had to stop and think.
***
I bumped into Cantor right after Torah study as he was heading for the morning's Bar Mitzvah. He nudged my arm with his and whispered in my ear, "I'm going to be catty."
"Sit down and let me get you some cream," I replied.
He said that there had been an audition during the Family Service last night (I went to the Early Service, so I hadn't been there). Yes, Opera!Girl sat in the back, singing so loudly that Cantor couldn't hear himself. He imitated how she sang "V'Shameru," swiveling her head from side to side to make sure people knew it was HER, singing. "People came up to me afterwards and asked if she was auditioning for my job."
I said that the last time I'd subbed for him and O!G had been there, she hadn't been singing with me but rather AT me. "Anything you can sing, I can sing--"
"--louder," he agreed. Then, when I told him that she'd made a crack that night about my "obviously untrained" voice, he turned beet red and put his arms around me. "She has a problem. SHE has a problem."
No kidding. What a flake.
***
Larry's going to play for Lisa Loeb again tonight and I'm going to get enough cabinet and fridge space to make it through Thanksgiving.