This Sunday was the World Wide Wrap, when Men's Clubs in Conservative synagogues around the world take a day to emphasize the mitzvah of t'fillin.  At the synagogue where I work, the program director was in charge of this day for the past X years, but he has moved on to a new job and the Men's Club was putting the thing together themselves.  I was ( Read more... )

This week, I looked at my schedule and was struck by the number of extracurriculars it contained, and how much it resembled the schedule of a bored housewife.  I was also impressed that I could fit so much in, given that my work schedule is a bit idiosyncratic ( Read more... )

 From http://www.nps.gov/rocr/faqs.htm -

9. Can I pick plants, berries, mushrooms, take animals home or remove historical items I find in the park?

No, no one may take anything out of the park, unless he or she is a professor or a professional (USGS, Smithsonian, etc.) with a permit (for ( Read more... )

I led an extremely ambitious (and very successful!) family education program this Sunday for K/1 families.  The theme was "Joseph and the Colors of Me."  There were 7 colored stations, each connected to a part of Joseph's life and containing an activity to help children and families to know themselves.

The Yellow Table was connected to Joseph's ( Read more... )

I'm back from a week in SF.  It was a week of solid, satisfying eating.  Here are some of the highlights.

• Ideologically vegan Chinese.  We doubted the place because every surface area went on at length about how not eating animals could save the world, but the food rose above the hokum wonderfully.
• Kirin Rose Life Afternoon Tea!
• Adzuki-stuffed dango
• ( Read more... )

My car is trying to become the stereotypical Jewish mother that I never had.  It worries about many things and makes sure I am aware of potential mistakes I might make in the future.  Sometimes this is helpful, like on the few occasions I've had to manually turn on the headlights and it has reminded me to turn them off.  Usually though, the car ( Read more... )

I set foot in a Bath & Body Works the other day.  I'm looking for smelly hand lotion, which drug stores don't seem to sell, but which is staggeringly expensive at the nice places.  I figured that B&BW, being geared to a  younger (and therefore slightly less affluent) crowd, would have a reasonably priced bottle of something that smells like vanilla ( Read more... )

My vagabond, near-homeless lifestyle right now means that I do not have regular access to refrigeration or  to a heat source.  As one might imagine, my typical lunch fare has been affected by this development.

The pudding snack pack I am currently eating advertises three exciting things on the outside cover.

• Needs no refrigeration
• No preservatives
• Made ( Read more... )

 "Yes I know, I know.  He marries Ginny. They live happily ever after.  There's literally no way to move forward from this point." ~ Lucius Malfoy, A Very Potter Sequel

Fine, so I'm still on act one scene one, but it's out!  So excited to watch while cooking and packing!  

1) The song "YMCA" is about the gay lifestyle.

2) Almonds are not tree nuts.  They are the pits of fuzzy green "almond fruit."