North of Brooklyn

random "complaints"

2011-12-06T23:20:00.005-05:00

doesn't every yeshiva kid learn that we aren't supposed to kneel?

from whence came this trend of these frum guys proposing on one knee? it's like, so goyish. blech.

and I am really "fed up" with the misuse of quotation marks on "store" signs.

for example:
please give your "key tags" to the cashier at the register.
Specials: "turkey" salad, "chicken" salad.

and my favorite:
mazel tov to Yanky on his new baby "boy".

yawn

2010-03-02T16:00:00.001-05:00

creative juices have run out.

all future posts will be on my other blog, daughtersintheparsha.blogspot.com

so long dear followers

He Picks the Good Ones

2010-01-14T18:13:00.003-05:00

A special human being passed away last night.

He was someone my family admired and cared for greatly. He was a wonderful, kind person with a joy for life that was infectious.

This man was Jewish but not religious. He was good to my family.

I believe that G-d puts people in this world for us to learn from.

But He picks the good ones and takes them back too soon.

Paying for what??

2009-12-31T19:45:00.004-05:00

(If you know anything about this and can elucidate or correct me, please do so)

So I just heard about a kollel incentive: a young kollel member will get paid a certain stipend if he remains in Yeshiva for a full week. This is in a particular kollel somewhere in the United States.

Pause.

For a long, long, time, so all of you can actually digest what I just wrote.

Need I comment? But I will, anyway.

Clearly, taking off to fly to Chicago for a sibling's wedding is okay.
Coming in late because your wife had a baby is also acceptable.

But apparently, maybe just in this kollel, too many young men are not there for a full week at a time.

So wouldn't it make sense for the Yeshiva, instead of soliciting MORE funds from the community to pay for this incentive, to gently tell this kollel member that perhaps it is time for him to go out and get a job?

Because he will then learn that there are only so many times your boss will allow you to take off, or to take long breaks. After that, it is find another job.

And does this appear, to anyone else besides me, as a very junior high school type of incentive?
With the extra money, do they get raffle tickets for a donut?

THERE IS NO PRICE CAP ON WORDS OF TORAH

2009-11-12T18:09:00.005-05:00

And that is not said sarcastically, I really mean it. But do you have any idea how much certain speakers charge to speak? Alot. A very lot.

How much do you think is reasonable? Do you think that since it is their parnossa they are entitled to the equivalent of a day or week's salary?

I attended a (non-jewish) workshop which encourages people to give back to the community by speaking about what they learned at the workshop. The stipend sometimes provided is $20-$50. Okay, that's quite low. But some speakers in our community- speaking about hashkofa-receive anywhere from $750-$3000. yup, people, didn't add extra zeros by mistake!! three thousand buckaroos for a one hour speech.Does their spittle spews solid gold bars?

I would like to know who are the organizers of these speeches- that when they call to arrange a speaker, and the speaker names his/her price, the organizer doesn't just snort and hang up.

Remember the Emperor's New Clothes? We need a little boy, in adult form, to shout out the truth.

this is nuts! A one hour speech about maisalach or hashkafa should earn as much as $2500- which is 1/4 of one child's tuition! One month of a Rebbi's salary! Shabbos meals for loads of poor families.

If your response is, hey, this is how they pay THEIR tuition, by THEIR shabbos food, I say, so what. It bothers me.

Cost of hiring an inspiring speaker: $2500
Cost of printing, ads, mailings $1000
Cost of sound system $800
Cost of refreshments: $100

Cost of spiritual development and creating better jews: Priceless, of course. Which means the speakers should all charge so much less price (was that really cheesy?)

Mommas Shopping in Rockland Kosher

2009-11-04T22:36:00.005-05:00

Rockland Kosher is in what my kids call the Kosher Mall- an indoor mall. But not one with arcades and bars and shops you run past when you go with your teenage sons. It has a shoe store, shoe repair, cell phone store, linen, health food, window coverings, kids clothes, jewelry, nice jewish businesses. And a catering hall.

So often, when a Simcha is over, or winding down, you will see well dressed couples shopping for cereal, bread, milk, and snacks. At 10:00 at night. Which is what I was doing when I saw three such couples. Let me explain that on Thursday nights, this store is filled mainly with men. Almost all Chassidish. That is the bulk of their clientele. But of course everyone is welcome to shop there. (though there is a sign posted requesting appropriate dress; sleeves, no shorts, etc). I am cool with that, they can have their standards. Not all mine, but so what!

But I have a problem with the Hot Mommas who come in after a simcha, wearing their "zonah" shoes with heels that could impale a human being and bleed him to death. And please tell me when the covering your knee standard disappeared? Hello, these are people from the parts of Monsey that are NOT modern orthodox! Whose husbands wear hats and whose kids go to the regular yeshivos here! Whose Bais Medrash boys go to right wing Batei Medrashim! (or will when they are old enough). Maybe I am biased (or do I mean jealous) because if I wore shoes that high I would fall on my face. And my knees aren't my best feature, so I like to keep them neatly covered. It also disturbs me because some of these women are nearing 40! I don't begrudge 40 year old women who look terrific and know how to dress well, not at all! Kol Hakovod! But this is too much a teen age look. For how many years can you STILL be lashing out against your Bais Yaakov Teachers??

I felt sad, more than anything else. I recognized some of the women. and I am pretty sure that a few years ago, their knees were covered. And they didn't wear sleazy shoes.

Obnoxious People

2009-11-03T23:40:00.002-05:00

There are some people who are just born, and remain obnoxious all their lives.

They ALWAYS have to make a nasty comment. Or point out something mean, even if everyone knows it and sees it and is aware of it. Count on the petty nasty person to feel the need to express it, verbalize it. This kind of individual probably has a sense of humor, lots of friends, and isn't overtly mean. Just the "shtuching" type.

Like when you are in elementary school, and she announces to the class, "I want to give the Bigmouth Award of the year to XXXX because she clearly wins it in this class!" ha ha ho ho. Let's embarrass someone and see if they laugh at being the butt of your jokes.

But sometimes as this person grows up, they become more subtle. You know the type, don't you? Like, they see you when you are 6 months pregnant and showing, and they say (at a bus stop or on line at PTA), "hey, mazel tov! Now I understand why your daughter told us every Sunday in carpool that you vomit every morning! B'sha'a Tova!". The truth is, people don't know how to react to this.

They enjoy pointing out embarrassing situations, minor faults in your children, etc. etc.

And thankfully, for every stupid person like this, there are handsful of polite, nice, thoughtful individuals who may THINK "about time she put on maternity, she's been green and gagging for four months" but they just focus on the positive and say, Abigezunt!

But perhaps it is healthy to meet up with a person like this every now and then. Because you walk away thinking more carefully about how to talk to people. And thinking about what NOT to say to someone.

The Problem is You Think You Have to Entertain Them...

2009-08-30T22:02:00.003-04:00

All those who send their kids away for the summer, or go away to summer homes, are now back and whining and complaining.

"I have to entertain my children for another week! How many perks do these rebbis and moros need? If THEY had to work a regular full time job, THEY wouldn't want their kids home! Why do our children have to have another week of vacation? Just 'cuz the rest of the world (not to be confused with "the oilom") start after Labor Day, WE have to?"

Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah. Quite whining. You sound ridiculous:
1. They are YOUR children. This 10 week summer vacation did not start with your kids when tey entered elementary school. Remember? You loved all that vacation time when you were a child, now it is their turn!

2. Stop using the word "entertain". It clearly shows the way you are raising your children. Start thinking about this when they are infants, toddlers, little children. Teach them how to have fun without you orchestrating and controlling every minute. Let them see the joy of being content with being by themselves for a little bit. Allow your children to find fun in mundane things, and teach them WHEN THEY ARE YOUNG that you are not a camp director, and it is okay if they have a few days without running to the mall, having pizza for all meals, spending a free whole day at an amusement park, etc.

3. You know in June that when end of August comes around, you will have to make some plans for your children. Call other moms and make arrangements. It is likely your friends are in the same situation as you are. If not, this is the time to pull out games they haven't played in a while, have them bake for yomtov, or, Gasp! Let them organize ball games, trips to the park, or if older, trips to other places with a parent or two to volunteer to drive them.

4. Let your bigger kids organize a pre- school camp for different ages. Or if you are an entrepreneur, YOU be the camp director and arrange activities and trips for those kids of your friends who are falling apart and have nothing to do with their kids!

and really, stop complaining about the "perks" of teaching. If you aren't in chinuch, you get perks, too. Like every legal holiday off. Like health insurance. Like yearly bonuses or raises.

And if you are in a job that doesn't have those perks, so, you don't have them! Guess what?! Not everyone has it easy! Not everyone has the good life! Not everyone has perks!

Really, it is so tiresome to hear this every year. Make plans in advance.

Vinnews.com has a GREAT sense of humor!!

2009-08-23T20:54:00.004-04:00

This is just such a great joke!

I mean, it has to be a joke. otherwise it is just to stupid to even explain.

Vinnews.com, known in Eli's Bagels and Mechel's as Vosizneias, has an article about how two AP photographers took pictures of chareidi women at a separate beach in Tel Aviv.
The outrage!
The lack of Privacy!
The Lack of Sensitivity to the Orthodox Chareidi Woman (sorry, Lady)!!
The Rudeness!
The Trickery!

So of course I had to look at the picture to see if it's some Ortho Babe from Bnei Brak.
Maybe it would even be a relative or someone I'd recognize! Hey, Israel ain't that big.
The article pointed out that the faces were "edited out". Oh well, still worth a look.

GUESS WHAT??!!

IT IS A BUNCH OF WOMEN SITTING IN THEIR HOUSECOATS!
It is just so untzniusdik to see women in their shapeless housedresses and stockings. And turbans. Those AP photographers should be ashamed that they photographed women at a separate beach dressed as if they were going shopping or watching their kids in the park.

An outrage. Time to throw diapers and burn cars

http://www.vosizneias.com/37140/2009/08/23/jerusalem-yedioth-ahronoth-publishes-photos-of-charedi-women-at-separate-beaches/

Each One of You Are Special- But Why Are You Different?

2009-08-21T16:45:00.002-04:00

Yes, that confusing title is the message being sent to our children today. Mainly the girls, but the boys as well. I love it when there is a "theme" of the year, such as
"Bishvili Nivra Ha'olam" (someone help me figure out how to insert hebrew letters here),
or "Our Individuality Is What Makes Us Special"
or "Hashem Loves All Of Us, Even If We Are Not Perfect",
or the best, "You Don't Have To Impress Other People To Be Accepted".

What a load of malicious duplicity we are inflicting on our children!!

OF COURSE we don't want them to be individuals! They must all dress the same way. A girl who loves bright colors cannot wear anything too colorful, since there are rules (here in Monsey, anyway) about shoe color, tights color, earring color, probably coat color. You know those cute Claire's earrings, that are in the shape of a flip-flop or a banana? Ossur. To0 "rechovi".

The twelfth grade in my daughters' high school wanted to order sweatshirts. They were told they couldn't get hoodies, or sweaters/sweatshirts with zippers. Not a refined look. Guess what, Menahalos! Some people like to dress casual. Dare I say it? Even shlumpy! Sloppy! Not intentionally, but that is their preferred mode of dress. Blazers and formal clothes are not exactly appealing to the average 15 year old! So when did "refined" become the only way to dress tzniusdikly?

And I think that the reason so many girls push the limits regarding clothing is because they see the message they are getting with all these "themes" and Yomei Iyun is that, they aren't REALLy allowed to be individuals. They must conform to a set a rules defined more and more by the chassidish world, and being viewed everywhere as the only way to be a true right wing frum person.

Read the article in last week's Mishpacha Magazine (which I love every week, btw). About people being drawn to the chassidish world and it's effect on them and their relationships with family. There is very little vocal opposition to the masses being enthralled by everything chassidish.

And our principals and moros and teachers and rebbeim need to stop panicking that if someone wants to be a little out of the box, different, creative, it means they are on the road to decadence and immorality.

The Lights Are On, But Nobody's Home

2009-07-28T23:11:00.005-04:00

Thank you G6 for your creative and amusing title. It has been put to good use.

what's with flashing or honking friends as you drive by? I was at an intersection off of 306 this afternoon when I heard wild honking. I whipped my head around and shrieked to my kids, "what?! what is it? Do I have a flat? Did I run over a streimel? was it a streimel on a head? Is there a cop honking me? who is it? who is it?"

My kids stopped talking and just stared at me. I had a wild look and my whipping around flipped my shaitel into my mouth, and the ends got caught on my sunglasses. I was frightful looking.

Thank you to my friend who doesn't call me but feels the need to honk like a meshugana when she sees me.

OR...
flashing someone from behind them. I was waiting to turn a corner, when a minivan pulled up behind me, like really, really close behind me. then she started flashing her headlights. First I thought, "Are my lights on but they shouldn't be? Are my lights off when they should be on? Did I go through a red light? Was I suppose to turn?"
then I got annoyed and thought, no way is that female flashing her brights because I didn't make the left turn when there was a five second break between the 18 wheeler and the school bus. She must be kidding! I was really irked and distracted, then my youngest shouted, "Hey Ma! It's your friend _____!!"

when I drive, I drive. I flash my brights if it is 8:45 and getting dark and oncoming traffic doesn't have their lights on.

And I honk when someone is walking with their back to the traffic three feet off the shoulder. Or when I pull into a driveway to pick someone up.

You want to talk to me? great! CALL ME ON THE PHONE!!

now come up with a title for this post

I saw a couple today

2009-07-24T17:34:00.004-04:00

today as I pulled into a parking lot I saw a couple getting out of a Camry.
The car looked well maintained, and they looked young, so I assumed they are a relatively new young couple. The guy came out first. He was not too tall, but well built. The latest in (what looked to me) cool athletic footwear. He had strong features, beautiful blue eyes (we got out of our car almost at the same time, and I notice blue eyes), and said something to his wife that made him smile- and it was a great smile.
He quickly stepped around the back of the car to get his wife, who was coming out of her side. She had beautiful auburn hair (the two inches of it I could see) and he said something to her that made her laugh- the classic tinkling sweet laugh you read about in Victorian novels and wait to hear. That was her laugh. He took her hand and they went into the store. I thought about how happy they looked. They have their whole future ahead of them, prime of their youth, a lifetime of raising kids, building relationships, enjoying life together. I sighed and thought how fast those 23 years have gone for me, since I was first married. Happy times, but gone by so quickly.

Later I saw an older couple getting out of a Toyota Camry. Actually, an old couple. The man was short and gave the appearance of having once been well built. He was wearing what was probably the latest is comfortable orthotic footwear, solid and comfortable. He had blue eyes which looked alert but he blinked a lot and rubbed his eyes. He leaned into the car and said something to his wife- and smiled a smile that probably still thrills her. He slowly made his way around the back of the car, holding onto the trunk for support, and pausing at least once. When he got to his wife to help her out, I could see her hair was dyed auburn - probably trying to keep the color it once had been in her youth. He said something to her that made her laugh, a slow, trembling, delicate laugh, low timbre. Her hand shook a bit as she gave him her hand, and together they slowly shuffled towards the store. I thought of how they had probably been a lifetime together, raising a family, seeing happy times and hardships, going through their prime years and now their golden years. They were now as they had been when they were first married, just older, more comfortable with each other, more entwined.
I hope those years will be so wonderful for me. I didn't think the first 23 would go by so quickly, and I hope the next decades are filled with happiness and contentment. Like I saw on the faces of both couples.

I Saw A Woman Today

2009-07-15T00:52:00.003-04:00

I saw a woman today whom I used to sit behind in shul.
She was always dressed beautifully.
Her hats always matched her dresses.
Her daughter was slim, pretty, very with it, popular with the crowd of young people hanging around outside of shul.
Her husband was a "macher" in the shul- loud, outspoken, rich and influential in shul politics.
She seemed, back then, bigger than life.

I saw her today and almost didn't recognize her.
I haven't grown much in the past 20 years. She must have shrunk a little.
Her hair wasn't "done".
As she pushed the shopping cart she was shuffling along. In her practical orthopedic shoes and a long denim skirt. She looked so old. And frail. And smaller.

I saw a woman today whom I knew when I was young and she was my mother's contemporary.

what happened?

20 years passed by. Life has continued. She is a great grandmother.

The things that I noticed that seemed important 20 years ago are not so important now.
She didn't know who I was.

and here's another one...

2009-06-24T15:35:00.003-04:00

a teacher in one of the bais yaakov schools told her class how she was very inspired by something she heard while passing the Bais Rochel elementary school (Bais Rochel is super right wing/yeshivish/no denim out of school/a step away from chassidish).

The girls were playing machanayim and shouting, "The ball is not alive! It's a not alive ball!"

The BY teacher told her class, "I thought it was so refined and inspiring, a much nicer word than dead!"

huh??

I think it just proves they have a limited English vocabulary and make poor word choices.

Ma, there is a not alive bug on my pillow. The interior light was left on and now my car battery is not alive. Gentlemen, that idea is not alive in the water.

I get it. We are different. Saying to a person, "you touch that, buddy, and you are dead meat" is not the most polite or mentchlach way to talk. Speech is very important to us, choice of words are a reflection of how we live and what is meaningful to us. No arguement there. But what is wrong with saying dead?
This is Monsey. We revel in not using the correct words. for example:

A member of the armed forces? an army man
paper towels are called towel paper (like toilet paper) amongst the Rockland Kosher crowd.

I don't want to go with you but.

My mother she doesn't let me go.

and there is a difference between limited vocabulary and yinglish.

sheesh.

SIGH...

2009-06-24T14:54:00.002-04:00

I couldn't make this up. This is one that even if I wanted to show how insane some schools are, I wouldn't have thought of this:
Bais Yaakov of Monsey will not be having dances in their concerts anymore.
Instead, there will be hand movements coordinating with the music. Which is already quite filtered and limited.
Because dancing is unTzniyusdik.

What, exactly, did Miriam do at the Yam Suf?
She stood there in her pleated skirt and buttoned up heavy cotton blouse two sizes too big and waved her hands. While off to the side, probably hiding under a sand dune, other women banged out a tune. With their almost stationary feet. And of course Miriam and the other women did NOT raise their hands over their head. Because their blouses may have become untucked. Or the movement of had raising would cause the blouse to ride up slightly over their female bodies.

Of course, since no other body part was moving, it didn't matter that they weren't wearing dangly jingling earrings. Little pearl studs don't move.

but this is actually not too surprising. for those of you who have attended these concert/plays (which take as long as speeches in the kremlin) this is the logical eventual outcome of a lot of rules and regulations.
1. most of the plays have seriously cut down on the number of male characters. Those that remain are either priests, rabbis, or fathers with zero personality and horrid dialogue
2.any scene that does have a male in it is short, and if there is a female, they stand further apart that a chassidish couple on their first "bshow"
3. since you can't have men wear pleated skirts, and still be considered a male character, all pants are loose concoctions with the crotch sewn in at the knees. sort of like pants falling down, but the waistband sits on the waist. and the jackets, usually procurred from older brothers who are 6'3" and weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 175 lbs., come down to that crotch at the knees. add to that a banged up hat covering half the face, and ALWAYS a girl with the longest hair in school, and they don't look like men. they look like fugitive migdets with speech impediments (they all mumble).

I do believe we have a problem with too many of our beautiful bnos yisroel pushing the limits with hemlines and tight tops. Especially if they are from homes that disapprove of such dress. But don't these principals and champions of tzniyus realize that their ridiculous rules and limits are contributing to our girls rebelliousness?

I think this same school had allowed a G.O. several years ago to plan a school trip which included a ropes course. The girls were all psyched- and then the ruling was issued, as I heard it from a G.O. member : "the ropes course is cancelled, Pas Nisht for bais yaakov girls to be swinging from trees".

I think these people are nuts. And you wonder why you see a BYM graduate 8 years later, married, with a shaitel down to her lower body, tight skirts, zona shoes, and empty 65" high def t.v. boxes on their driveway??

not every bais yaakov in monsey thinks like this one does

the straws is not a new thing. it doesn't look refined. The only reason this rule didn't exist 15 years ago is because water bottles weren't a way to drink. we used fountains. or little cans of shoprite juice.

I think the rabbonim and female principals worry every time there is a new trend. They are so scared of technology or changes in our society, that their knee-jerk reaction is to find a reason to assur it.

Jewish Snopes

2009-06-19T01:11:00.003-04:00

It is time for the Jewish Snopes website.

Topics include:
Hashgacha Pratis Stories. I of course believe in Hashgacha Pratis, I just don't believe that all the stories actually happened the way they are told.

Miracles in Israel. Most include animals or Gilguls.

Shidduchim questions. NEVER once have I been asked about plastic/real dishes or types of underwear worn by boy/girl

add some of your own, please!

My Bubbie Survived Auchwitz, My Dad Helps at Tomchei Shabbos, I Am Glad I Have Feet

2009-06-16T00:13:00.004-04:00

What do those seemingly random titles have in common?
They were all put in a Cantata at a girls' graduation.

Instead of the usual boring and long cantata, written by a teacher where every other sentence ends in a verb, this year the school culled one line from each of the 90 graduates' yearbook contribution.
What, you exclaim? How can you take one sentence from each paragraph and make them all sound cohesive?

Guess what! You can't.

AND every other sentence ended in a verb:
My father that morning did to Slichos go,
and so he did miss that burning in-fer-no.
(about 9/11)

My grandma the camps did survive,
and b'chasdei hashem to her health she does thrive
(I would have written "b'chasdai hashem she still does survive" but that sounds a bit too good)

Then there were three lines in a row:
The Kedoshim of Mumbai
My father volunteers at Tomchei Shabbos
I appreciate the gift of sight or some other one of the five senses.

It was really awful.
I am sure the original paragraphs written by the graduates were wonderful. But who had the idea to combine sentences? And then why didn't anyone scream about how ridiculous this sounds?

Okay, this is like the Emperor's New WARDROBE.

Move over, slaughtered Bobov cow, you ain't got nothin' over MY Bar Mitzvah!

2009-06-12T01:36:00.003-04:00

At first I really thought it was the newest fad in themed bar mitzvahs. Have it in a jail. Play Jail House (Schlock) Rock. Eat Key Lime Pie. Give out handcuffs to the kids (uh, maybe not).

Hosting his son's bar mitzvah (and because it was such a success, his daughter's vort a few months later) while in prison. Complete with dancing in the prison gym, a kosher caterer, 60 invited guests, including rabbis, and a Famous Jewish Singer.

okay, I am not one to forgo a business deal, but didn't the caterer, the singer, or the guests have any SHAME AT ALL??? Or like, maybe the wife? or, the convict himself?

This isn't like he was in a hospital bed with a broken hip. Maybe Schwekey thought it was a mitzvah concert, like singers some times do (very generously), when visiting kids l/a in the hospital.
When the prisoner called the caterer, and said to him,

Fraudster:"I am calling from the detention center"
caterer: "never heard of that hall, where in boro park are you?"
F:" Actually I am downtown, bottom of a building, and I want you should cater a small simcha, 60 people"
caterer: "No problem, let's talk menu"
F:" .... and only spoons and forks, because, hold on, what? I CAN have knives? thanks, rabbi! thanks, warden! You fellas are mamesh mentchen. You know how to help sooth the pain and discomfort of being in prison!

did the caterer think to say, "I am not sure I am available on that date"?

What rabbi, singer, or guest would actually attend such an event?

Who would want to say to his children and wife, "guess where I went last night, kinderlach?? A PRISON! That's a building where there are lots and lots of CRIMINALS and people who have broken the LAW!! Some of them have even been running away from the POLICE for almost 20 years! They usually have a law that you aren't allowed to bring in knives, cuz, you know, CRIMINALS and PRISONERS might try to escape by knifing or stabbing a guard!!! Hee Hee!! But I went to a SIMCHA there, and there were TONS of knives, but everyone was smiling and singing and eating, it was so beautiful. IT WAS A KIDDUSH HASHEM!

And if appearances are so important that you have to dress a certain way to make sure people know you are from a particular community, why aren't appearances important so people can see you are from a particular community?

Some of us need to think more about how our actions are being viewed across this country and the world. We are the center of everything, let's act in a way that behooves that reputation.

Meshane Shaim, Meshane Mazel

2009-06-09T21:34:00.003-04:00

I actually don't think I need different Mazel, and I sort of made up the whole Meshane Shaim part, but I changed the name of this blog because when type in Brooklyn North, you get something from an NYPD squad room. They haven't been too active since 2003, but I figured I'll rename mine. Since I can't really call the squad room of the 77th precinct and ask them to relinquish their name...

I noticed something today when I drove by Yeshiva of Spring Valley, the largest and most mainstream boys' yeshiva here North of Brooklyn. Many of the 8th graders were wearing white shirts. I know it isn't Rosh Chodesh, D-Day, or Yom Ha'atzmaut. Just a plain ol' Tuesday.

So are we becoming more influenced by the rules from the southern New Jersey Torah community??

2009-05-13T22:05:00.003-04:00

I am really concerned about the articles the Journal News publish regarding events and happenings in the Monsey community. None of them make us look good. I think I could live with the offensive reporting (it's actually offensive material to begin with) but I am really disturbed by the hateful comments posted after every article in the on-line Journal News.

The commenters are certainly not the most erudite and sophisticated writers, but they probably represent the average citizen. And those citizens think we have no regard whatsoever for any laws. They think some of our customs are archaic and barbaric.

I can ramble on and on via blogging. But I don't write letters very well. It annoys me that local Rabbonim and Askanim who have good writing skills have not written to defend the beautiful and caring customs that we have in our lives.

But really, what WAS Bobov thinking?

Yummm, Fresh Steak

2009-05-05T23:09:00.002-04:00

Bobov slaughtered a cow in their back yard yesterday.

Or so the Journal News reported today. Other reports seem to indicate that the cow was already dead, and some bochrim learning Shechita were "practicing". Though how a dead cow walked out of a van and remained standing and tied to a tree, I don't know.

Gives new meaning to the (I think silly) expression of "so fresh it's still moooving" (sorry, couldn't resist)

But I AM disturbed by the hateful comments of readers on the Journal News website following the article. This is why I think our Monsey community must think hard before doing anything that might break laws, besides the illegality of it, of course.

http://www.lohud.com/article/2009905050411

Community Ransom Notes

2009-05-04T21:12:00.002-04:00

There are weekly booklets that are mailed or given out in stores with ads in them.

The ads look like ransom notes.

Every line is another font and font size.

Almost never consistent in genre.

I just lose sight of what the ad is, I am both distracted and fascinated by the many fonts.

And little bubbles and stars with information.

And let's not forget the angles of the sentences!

The center headline might be shadowed, arched, and rainbow colors, advertising, say, robes.

Underneath, in gothic style scripts, the brand names of the robes. None, I might add, are gothic style robes.

In a little bubble, comic sans for the store hours (location is rarely printed, only phone numbers).

and of course, at least one grammatical error, or even a spelling one, missed by a spell check because it is "their" for "there"

I don't know why I like living here, I get annoyed about something every day

Shake My Hand

2009-05-03T22:17:00.004-04:00

So here is how the whole Black & White Ritual went down:

I brought them to the school. My son came downstairs, then came up to me and hissed,
" You were supposed to have them call me down on the loudspeaker!"
Me: Well, you're here now, so give them out!
Son: Now?? There is no one out in the halls! It's way too early! And you were supposed to have them call me out!
Me: Well, You're here now, so give them out!
Son: NOW??

You get the picture. We finally got past the fact that he missed the announcement part of this routine.

When he got home, he was still wearing his davening jacket. I asked him why he hadn't taken it off.
Me: You wore your jacket all day?
Tefillin Boy: Duh!! That's how everyone knows I put on the Tefillin!
Me: How'd the giving out of the Black & Whites go? What happens, you just hand them out, one at a time?
Tefillin Boy: No way! I don't give them out! That was Chaim's job!
Me: Woah! Aren't they yours to give out?
Horrified Tefillin Boy: I need to keep my hands free to shake! People shake my hand and say Mazel Tov!
Me: Ah. So If you were walking around accepting congratulations, and Chaim gave out the danishes, then what was Yehuda doing?
Tefillin Boy: His job was to keep away people who don't get a B & W, like kids who don't really know me.
Me: the bouncer!

Of course I made him thoroughly wash his hands after all that handshaking. He went to every rebbi he had from Pre 1-A up to this year. And the principals.

He had his moment in the sun, his hour of glory.

What a great tradition!

Tefilin, Donuts, and the Coveted Box- for the Donuts

2009-04-30T23:30:00.002-04:00

There is a ritual that takes place in my son's yeshiva that is well known to all bar mitvah boys, but hitherto unknown to me. And, I suspect, to many parents out there.

It is the Ritual of The Giving Out of Donuts, and more important, The Holding Of The Box.

My son is putting on Tefillin this week. We were discussing it on Shabbos.
Older son: So who is holding The Box?
almost Bar Mitzva son: Not sure yet. I held Chaim's box last week, maybe he'll hold mine.

The rest of us sat at the Shabbos table completely clueless about this topic. So we asked, what box? what are you two talking about?

Younger son: The Box! The Box with The Donuts!! You give out donuts (but I don't want donuts) the day you put on Tefillin, and you go to all your classmates, and then some rebbeim. I need 40, since I am giving to every rebbi I have had since Pre 1-A.

Older Son: with A Flap? A Cover Flap?
Younger Son: of course!! that's part of the whole shtick!

Part of this ritual is the Tefillin boy walks around the school, giving out donuts to classmates, neighborhood friends, and various rebbeim. The Friend chosen to help is almost knighted, and the best kind of Box to carry is the One With the Cover That Has A Flap. Part of the ritual is opening and closing the box.

So Younger Son told us he wants Black & Whites, not donuts. Too much arguing about custard, jelly, icing, etc. This way everyone will get the same cookie.
Husband: Great!! You can get one or two boxes of those cute little black & white cookies from Costco. Cost efficient. And the plastic box has a cover that flips over.
Younger Son: (Nearly apoplectic) WHAT?? Those black & whites are tiny! I need you to order them from Zisha's! Individuals that I can Give Out From The Box!!

Older Son: (sigh) you are so lucky. I got gyped, I didn't get to do the Whole Box Thing. I put on Tefillin in camp!
Me: We gave your whole bunk donuts!
Older Son: It just wasn't the same thing.

So I ordered 42 from Zisha's.

What we do for our children....

Traffic Travels in Herds

2009-04-23T21:19:00.003-04:00

I ran out of gas on the Palisades today.

While waiting to fill up, I observed the traffic zooming by Northbound.

Have you ever seen herds stampede, or even just run?

I saw this when I was in Wyoming- a single buffalo will amble, shuffle, barely move.

When they travel together, they charge! Dust flying, nostrils flaring, a very noisy and swift event. And they all run really close to each other. So if one would stop to nibble a dandelion, or cough, he would be rear ended by the rest of the herd, and a pile-up would occur out on the plains.

That is what I thought of as I watched the cars zooming by. There were big gaps between groups of cars. Occasionally a single car would drive by.

Then, suddenly, there would be 7 or 8 or 12 cars all driving very fast and very close to each other. It looked like a herd hurtling down the highway. A herd of blue Camry and Corollas. I just kept thinking, what if one of the drivers decided to switch lanes to get a sandwich at the gas station??

The buffalo were way more interesting. But smellier.

Why I Love Costco

2009-04-20T22:39:00.002-04:00

I feel like I am feeding my family very healthy stuff when I walk out of Costco with $85 worth of fruits and vegetables. Huge boxes of strawberries, bright green aspargi, oversized pineapples, and large boxes of grape tomatoes. And the six heads of Romaine lettuce (a bit too buggy, I think I might buy a light box).

But my favorite part of Costco?

When you go there in the rain, the little guy standing at the door gives you a paper towel to wipe down the bar of the wagon.

Such a thoughtful touch.

They could run a chinese action!

And on the last (or first) page, where all the thank yous and kvelling is listed:

And a big big huge Yasher Koach to Mike, without whom our hands would be wet and slimy and our wagons cold and wet! Your thoughtful touch is what made a mediocre shopping trip into something magnificent and truly amazing!! May you be Zoche to always be available to help the Klal with the small things that mean SO MUCH!!!!!!!

The Man With The Truck

2009-04-01T20:45:00.002-04:00

Not a title for a children's book.

The Man With The Truck is a Monsey fixture on Wednesdays, at the Vishnitz School on Ashel Lane. Though I remember when he would come and park in a parking lot with his truck, and you practically went into his truck to buy the merchandise. Back then he didn't come every week, and you were notified by a flier in your milk box. Or Heimish grocery store bags. Like Klein's supermarket. Or maybe even Nagel's Grocery. But I digress. My point now being my experience shopping at the Man With The Truck.

I went there to by some boys' shirts for yomtov. I get on line, in back of a young girl who can barely balance the heavy towel, two tablecloths, and four pairs of pants in slimy slippery plastic that her mother asked her to hold while she continued shopping. This is an amazing sight to see. There is a line of people, mainly young, timid, girls, holding onto, or rather, practically grabbing their younger siblings, to keep them in line. In their hands they hold one or two objects. THEN when it is their turn to pay, in swoops the mother (or waddles, half the women shopping there are about to give birth) loaded with more merchandise. And she just walks right up to the Man who is the Man With The Truck and she pays.

So I have learned to live with this, annoying and rude as it may be. Hey, everyone in this town has become annoying and rude. So I am standing there, slowly moving up in the line, and as it becomes my turn, two young girls sidle into the line in front of me, behind the woman who swooped in to rescue her daughter who was collapsing under the weight of the damask tablecloths. So I said to the two girls, excuse me, were you both on line? And they answer, or mumble, yes, we just let people go in front of us. Okay, I see where this is going. THEIR mother didn't even pretend, she just parked them on line and then did her shopping, and each time is was their turn, since they had nothing to pay for, they let the next person go.

And of course, as their turn came, here comes the mother. But it wasn't the mother! Twas a relative or neighbor, because the girls said to the woman, is my mother buying shells, too? So then bigmouth me with the heart pounding and blogging paragraphs forming in my head, said,
"excuse me, it's one thing to be here for your mother, but not for a few people or relatives, I also have a lot of pesach work to do at home". They stared at me. All of them. Hello, am I the one doing something inappropriate here?

So when the woman in front was done, I swooped around them (I don't waddle) and said,
"I only have four things, I'm going before you" and I didn't make eye contact and I said it rudely and I acted like the ladies there all act.....and I felt awful.

Oh, and if you want a great Chol Hamoed Activity, the driveway there is one of the worst potholed, loose graveled, deeply cratered ones in Monsey. Drive really fast up and down the driveway with all the kids. Tell them it's like jeeping or ATV ing in the woods.

Hey Out There- Who Are You?

2009-04-01T10:46:00.002-04:00

This is not a Pesach post.

Do you wonder about whom the other blogmeisters are? Of the blogs you read?

I know only 4.

Most I don't really care- either I enjoy reading their posts or I don't. Who they are doesn't make much of a difference. Though it would be amusing if my neighbor turned out to be Mike in Midwood. which is actually not possible because Brooklyn North isn't actually in Brooklyn. But who knows, maybe Mike isn't really in Midwood. But I think he really is in Brooklyn. Aren't you, Mike?

But every now and then a commenter makes a comment that makes me wonder- does he/she know who I am?
Or do I know who he/she is?

Like one of Sporadic Intelligence's comments on my post...

how odd is odd

2009-03-31T11:46:00.001-04:00

NPR has newscasters with the oddest names.
Sitirius, or Soterios Johnson (Greek and what?)
Corey Flintoff (but when he says his name he sounds like flintock)

my all time favorite, and I have no clue how to spell this:
Uedora Udohgi

phonetically, it's: Udora (not YOUdora) Udogi (YOU-doe-gee)

fascinating.

thanks!

2009-03-30T20:48:00.002-04:00

thanks, sporadic, super, and sally. you're words are encouraging.

so...
how do you balance cleaning out the house of all food that is chometz, while providing enough food for the huge appetites of everyone who is home from school and yeshiva? And in my house, the girls eat, too!

I do NOT want to be like the women I meet in the isles of Wesley Kosher who kvetch and sigh VERY loudly,
"OY! all my bochrim are home! Actually, I barely see them (hee hee). They roll out of bed for the late minyan, and then boruch hashem have a learning seder, and after that they raid the fridge! I am glad they are home but OY!! They ate a whole cake and kugel that I already made for Pesach!"

Everyone's in the same boat, lady. Boil up lots of noodles.

The well has run dry

2009-03-24T00:36:00.002-04:00

I'm done. blogging.

I'm not such an interesting writer.

too many family members who are good writers have better blogs.

I had good intentions, but didn't want to always rant and scream.

that's how boring and dull Brooklyn North is- I've run out of things to complain about.

perhaps one day I shall resume, until then,

arrivederci. sayonara. adios. Giga-waabamin-

bye

empty shelves

2009-03-01T21:56:00.002-05:00

Wesley Kosher had 3 containers of milk left at 6:30 p.m. That is it. 3.

There were no more 5 pound bags of sugar. Not one.

10 inches is a lot of snow.

And Purim is next week.

So I guess everyone is thankful for the snowday to catch up on their Purim baking.

But here in Brooklyn North, by the afternoon the roads are usually clear.

So who is betting that it'll only be 4 inches? Or wet snow?

It's now 10 p.m. and nary a flake in sight.

I hope there is a snow day- I don't have any snacks for the kids to take to school.

And if it is a snow day, this household will be awoken at dawn, as one child gallops into the kitchen, and listens to the school automated message on Speaker. So those of us still sleeping can wake up at 6 a.m. to be told we don't have to wake up early. How does he do that?

Here's to wishing for lotsa snow!

Purim Collecting

2009-02-25T23:42:00.002-05:00

see my poll.

my seventh grader came home saying his class is organizing groups to go collecting. The rebbi will pay for the car service to drive them around Monsey.

the group already decided they would send home any boy who drinks.

hunh? what adult would give a seventh grader anything but soda?

anyway, this is for a tzedaka that is a pet project of the rebbi.

Am I wrong to be horrified by this?

Encouraging our boys to be shnorrers and yentas?

because here in Monsey, the fun is not just the running around, or being driven around, and dancing in a sweaty furry costume.

it is about talking about the houses they've gone to, how big they are, how long the line is to get in to the house, what a G'vir the homeowner is, etc.

there is a discussion, either amongst the little collectors, or the person who organizes the group, about the people they are collecting from.

maybe I am extremely negative and jealous. maybe I am looking for the worst element of Purim. but my boys have had teachers and rebbeim who talk about these G'virim of the community, and will tell the boys,
"he just landed a great real estate deal"
"he started off with nothing straight out of kollel and look at him now"
"his father in law owns half the real estate on 5th avenue"
"his father supports all of Lakewood/Mir/Ponevich"

THIS is what we are teaching our children to revere?

please tell me your thoughts, maybe I need to be straightened out

and I welcome a better name for this post

It's not normal how much we eat

2009-02-15T20:20:00.002-05:00

At an all day lecture.

Begins about 8:30.

The crinkling bags begin at 8:35.

Cut up peppers, baby carrots (VERY noisy if chewed with mouth open), rice cakes.

Rice cakes with cream cheese.

The whole cream cheese container, conveniently with a knife. No wonder women walk in to these lectures with carry on bags like they're going to Israel.

That is in the first 15 minutes.

Then the break, when we all run to get another coffee and oversized overcaloried margerine laden muffin. Really just cake in a muffin paper holder. Very difficult to eat gracefully, once you've bitten off the top, since they are usually quite crumbly. Trust me, I've sampled them all.

Ten minutes after the break is over, new crinkling bags emerge from the shopping bag wrapped in the Macy's bag in the carry on bag. Out comes little strips of cheese (I can spot a South Beach Dieter anywhere) in baggies, then whole wheat flat breads with a small homemade portable container made out of a plastic cup cut in half with saran wrap on it. And chummus in the cup. THIS IS A PROBLEM. Baby carrots and pepper strips and cheese do not smell. Chummus does. And it must have come from a fresh container because it REALLY smells. Garlicy chummus on flat breads, wafting across the auditorium.

What this non jewish presenter thinks of all this wrapping and unwrapping of bags within bags and leftover pickle containers with big salads and crunchy noisy food in silver foil and whole packages and containers of cheeses and spreads and fruit wedges I do not know.

And this was all before 10:30 a.m.

Separate Seating in the Cemetery

2009-02-11T15:30:00.002-05:00

Puppa has separate burial areas in their cemetery, so I heard at a vishnitz shiva. Yup, men in one section, women in the other. Tell me if you know otherwise

I am speechless

The Stomach Virus Diet

2009-02-05T11:14:00.003-05:00

have you heard of this?

tapeworm eggs to lose body mass.

Okay, I admit it. Twas in my spam mail. junk mail. Fake ads. Get rich quick/lose weight quick/change your life quick.

But you gotta admit, someone out there is making fun and probably making money, too.

I know someone who doesn't complain if she gets a stomach virus. It jump starts her winter diet. Appetite is nil, looking at food makes the stomach roil, and after a week, you have that healthy gaunt look.

What's your original way to lose weight?

Reb Shlomo

2009-01-31T22:25:00.004-05:00

I attended a Carlebach Shabbos this week. To be frank, it was a little disappointing. The actual Carlebach tunes were of course beautiful and sung well by the chazzon, a singer brought in for the occasion. But it was only about Kabbalas Shabbos. And the after dinner tisch/kumsitz/sing- a- long. Shabbos morning, his big singing was Kedusha in Musaf. But it was nice to go to shul on Friday night (admission! I am female!) .This is a shul where most of the people are 50+. There are a few with young kids, but many people have moved away, and the neighborhood is not one that has a lot of young people with growing families moving in.

What was disappointing? When I think of Carlebach of my younger days, like when he was alive, the people who danced at his concerts or get togethers were, um, well, odd. Groupies, hippies, lost souls, or probably people like myself and husband, regular frum who felt an emotional tug and appeal to the rather bohemian side of life, but always as observers, and not active participants. Part of the enthrallment and electricity in the air was waiting to see who all was close to Reb Shlomo, and who his followers were, and what the crowd was like. And there was probably a faint sickly sweet smell wafting over the audience, but I was clueless about that.

I attended a "private" performance when I was in high school. Carlebach played at a local nursing home. I went with a friend and two siblings. And a lot of people snoring in wheelchairs.

I won free tickets to a Shlomo Carlebach concert Tanis Esther, 1988. How do I remember the date?
1. I could not find a babysitter because it was Ta'anis Esther night
2. I had one child, and I wheeled her, in her portable crib, up to my neighbor, via elevator.

(too, many, commas, I , know. Whatever,?!")

We got to the concert.
1. Carlebach was late.

2. extremely late

3. Someone had to run and get his guitar

4. He apologized for having a slight cold

5. He sang one song for 45 minutes

6. He asked the audience to come down and move closer and come on stage, and

7. Someone in a clown costume did, and spend most of the 45 minutes doing wobbly handstands and waving his feet in the air. Blocking my view of the hoarse Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach playing and singing five words (Dovid Melech Yisroel Chai Vekayom) on his bad guitar.

THAT was a Carlebach experience.

So no fault of the congregants of this shul who grew up with Carlebach and love his music and wanted to enjoy the intense spiritual nature of his songs, in the comfort of their shul, with their families, on a cold Friday night. And it WAS warm and beautiful and haunting tunes. And it WAS nice when the men all joined hands and danced around the Bima for a while.

But it just wasn't as authentic as when Reb Shlomo would sing and women with wild hair and colorful skirts and no socks, and men who looked not quite like men and had lost looks in their eyes and seemed gaunt or starved would shuffle around or break into a spontaneous foot maneuvers. And I felt sad because we seem old. And I don't think anyone under 30 really enjoys the Carlebach weekends.

And also, I am so irked that Carlebach is now accepted and played and almost revered by right wing musicians, when he was practically ignored by the mainstream when he was alive. I am an elitist and a snob. A purist. And I loved Carlebach music when it was played and sung by Carlebach.

And I am not so bohemian. And I do a lot of mainstream things. And that is probably the real reason why I enjoyed but also felt sad singing along with the Carlebach shabbos.

Chinese Auctions meet the Emperor's New Clothes

2009-01-08T21:34:00.005-05:00

You may think winter has arrived because of the ice and snow and weekly school closings. Uh Uh.

Check your mailboxes- this is how we know it's winter:

Chinese Auctions. aka Legal Frum Gambling. aka The Great Black Hole of Gashmius.

I have really been content with my old yellow gold jewelry, but I feel I am just not part of this millenium and the Sophisticated and Classy set from Brooklyn- because I don't have a SINGLE piece of jewelry from David Rudy. and by the way, do they include a bright halogen light bulb with the diamonds? On a miner's hat, so every time you bend your head it can sparkle and shine?

I would love to meet Ben Barber. Does he know how inadequate my own sheets feel? (yes I meant that the way I wrote it). And by the way, does Mr. Barber ever make any money selling anything? Or is it all donated to all the auctions? And any sheet less than 350 count, or from some mid east country besides Egypt, forget it. Who really wants 180 thread count from Damascus?

I have no problem with the Israel tickets- though nothing can compete with the Bais Yakov in Chicago which now offers 10 tickets, hotel stay for ten days, full breakfast AND lulav and esrog mehudar Is that because only big families can usually afford to go to Israel for Succos, so that's who the tickets are catering to? Oh, no! It's to give the poor families a chance to do what every neighbor is doing, so why should they feel left out? But really, about trips to Israel? Always worth buying a raffle.

We next have the electronics package: GPS, Camcorder, Computers. I don't know why they refuse to offer a DVD player. Everyone is obviously watching movies. Or maybe not! The movies they take on the camcorder are home movies. And the computers all have DVD players, so that's covered. And besides, we are only watching camp reunions, high school plays, and Aguda Convention Keynote Speakers. ha ha

Around the Year: this can mean a few things: sterling silver for all Yomim Tovim: Esrog box, Seder Plate, Megilla Case, Menorah.

Or spend yomtov in...Eretz Yisrael for Succos, Lakewood for Shevuos (why is that appealing?)Hotel for Pesach, Hotel for summer vacation.

I like this new and novel one: A Mitzvah That Has Been Around for Quite a While But Someone Discovered it Anew: Shmitta. Own Karka in Eretz Yisrael to do this mitzva. Which by itself is a great idea, but somehow, seeing it in a Chinese Auction booklet demeans the beauty of the mitzva.

Don't forget the second tier jewelry- less diamonds, smaller pictures, therefore, obviously, for a teen.

WHAT IS WITH THE EBEL WATCH???

and hello kitty! stuff? how tacky.

It wouldn't have that ehrlech and refined taste if the auctions didn't include a painting, lithograph, or visit to a rav or rebba.

I have some ideas for new additions:
1. A housekeeper to go with all the silver. Takes a long time to polish a 13 branch candelabra.

2. A Sefer Torah. Why dance with the shul Sefer Torah for only one Hakafa on Simchas Torah? Have your own and dance whenever you want!

3. A Succah room addition. Although the Lakewood Chinese Auction was stopped in its tracks, their booklet showed how much nicer our homes could look, with new moldings, railings, and windows. This would be a great way to include some of their great ideas, but through a mitzva like Succos, so no one feels they are spending money frivolously. And if you have a Simchas Beis Hashoeva or Parlor meeting in this Succah room, then everyone will say, "...but they do so much chesed".

And now to my title of this particular blog entry:

The biggest coup, the smartest move, t h e m o s t c l e v e r idea for a chinese auction ever, the brilliant concept, goes to ...

"The winner of this entry gains the knowledge that they have given soley for the mitzva". Didn't get that? This entry wins nothing. At least nothing tangible, that can be worn, sat on, slept on, looked at, shown off, talked about,talked on, played with, listened to, brushed, cleaned, polished, inserted in your car, your phone, your computer, your home, your home office, your library. You just get the reward of the mitzva.

WHAT A CONCEPT FOR GIVING TZEDAKA!

and I assume you all get the connection to the title now...

Can you pay for my trip to the mall? Cuz I don't want to. Thanks

2008-12-22T10:43:00.002-05:00

Some newly graduated college guy from Texas or California is biking to Washington to be there for the incredible inauguration in a few weeks. He is biking because he doesn't have the money for a plane ticket. How he can afford to stay and eat where ever he will be staying and eating for the weeks it takes him to traverse the country, I don't know. And how much cheaper can that be than finding a ticket from L.A. to Washington with a few stopovers to save money, I don't know, either.

But wait! He doesn't have to worry about his expenses! He is shnorring from the general public, in the form of a website www.bikingforobama.com

I don't get this kind of stuff. Perhaps this is like the Israelis who go to Tibet after finishing the army, or other Americans who travel when graduating college before going out into the working world. Okay, something we in the BY/Seminary/Yeshiva world tend not to do, because, I am not sure why. Whatever. But what does wanting to ride bike across America (which sounds very appealing, by the way) have to do with Barak Obama? If McCain had won, it wouldn't have been a challenge? Because we will now have our first ever black president, riding our bike shows how open minded Americans are? Sorry, Ryan. All the people who will open their homes, barns, restaurants, gas stations (for air) swimming pools and showers, BBQ grills and refridgerators, would do so regardless of why you are biking across America. Americans admire that kind of energy and outdoorsmanship.

I don't know why I listen to NPR, I always get annoyed about something.

So here is my new website: www.shoppingformyself.payforme.Iloveamericanswhohelpme.com

Every time you donate $10 I will shout, as I spend it, "Americans love free enterprise! America loves to see people buy whatever they want! Look at me being able to go shopping in the middle of the day and America smiles fondly and proudly! Watch me do what I want and spend what I want without having to work to pay for it!"

I love America.

;-)

Snow, Night, Chanuka Lights

2008-12-22T10:32:00.002-05:00

Okay, not trying to write a bad Hanukkah song to be sung by some Hollywood grade B actor who remembers he is Jewish in December. But the combination...
We had a lot of snow this past weekend. And it is beautiful, clean, soft, silent, dreamy, celestial. And I went out for a few minutes on Friday night. Very, Very quiet. I could hear the tinkling of frozen branches brushing against each other, and the soft plops of snow falling gently from high points down to lower branches. I understood authors like Chekhov who would write about crisp, biting cold air. It was truly magnificent.
And of course coming home to a warm house with lots of people crowded on the couches reading old TinTin's and Mishpacha magazines.

But Sunday night, that was really beautiful. From outside looking in, the warmth of a home diffused by the candles and oil flames was heartwarming and comforting. Hopefully all children inside, for the first night of Chanuka, anyway, set aside differences and disputes and arguments and friendly (or not so friendly) disagreements and sat huddled together on the couch singing Maoz Tzur and dancing to Al Hanisim (tradition in our home).

And remembering that Chanuka is not about our gifts and parties but about the miracles Hashem constantly performs for us.

Enjoy.

You Jews and Your Smelly Chickens

2008-12-17T19:11:00.002-05:00

Kapparos in Monsey is more than just about atonement for sins committed. It is a chance for us to show we don't care one whit about what the non jewish people (or non frum) think about us. It is a wonderful oppportunity for some in our community to make a Chillul Hashem big time.

read this article. http://www.lohud.com/article/20081217/NEWS03/812170426/1019

Then read the comments.

Why would the organizer leave the site a stinking, filthy mess, and then have the audacity to say
"This year I don't think I should be fined even one cent."?? Compared to last year, when he left the site a stinking filthy mess? The comments last year, after Kapparos, when the newspaper described the stench, filth, and disorder, were hateful comments. And I am NOT one who cries anitsemitism every time jews do something wrong and it is pointed out by other people. But perhaps the time has come for everyone to just go to Brooklyn (where they all came from, anyway) or New Square or Monroe to wave their chickens. Because the guy who runs this business doesn't make any effort to think about going out of his way to clean up the site. At All. And this just incites the residents of Rockland County. Seriously, I cringe whenever there is an article that features a frum Jew in it. And the worst? When they quote him and his English is awful. Like when there was a bear running around on some street, and the more the police asked people to step back, the more family members came out. And threw objects at the bear. And got closer to videotape him. And shouted. How embarrassing.

We have so much we can be proud of. We do so many things that could make a Kiddush Hashem. That's what we need to think of every time something happens here in Brooklyn North.

Tis not too early in the season, tralalalala, lalalala

2008-12-16T17:15:00.004-05:00

Camp applications are in the air, and early bird discounts will expire soon!

Overnight camp fees for half a summer are almost $2000. Yes, we are in tough times, and everything goes up. But you know what? I don't think that's why overnight camp costs so much. Here is the REAL reason:
You have a camp rebbi. He teaches boys in the morning for about 3 hours. The rest of the day he is free to walk, learn, engage in other summer pursuits not available to someone who lives in "the city" and teaches 6 hours a day. (what about those amongst us who work 9 to 10 hours a day and also don't have summer vacations? Or off for yomtov? And reduced tuition at schools?But that is another post).
Here is where your $2000 for four weeks comes in(and check out the dates, it isn't even a full four weeks).
The rebbi comes to camp with his wife and seven children. Three boys go to the camp where he works, the two girls go to the sister camp, the two little ones go to staff day camp, they all eat, use utilities, and enjoy the grounds, night entertainment, and camp trips. And for all these amenities they pay?.......NOTHING! ZERO! NADA! ZILCH!

Now how about the camp director, or Director of Learning, or Director of Directors, or Head Sports, or Head Waterfront, or head/director of anything?? Usually the title goes to someone of a more mature age. Meaning he has married children, who are always invited with their brood to come spend a shabbos!

So there can be 20 staff members, each with one wife, at least three kids, maybe 9 kids, some married kids- oh!-who by the way may also be given a job, like Chief Key Sargeant or Coordinator of Buying Paper Goods, or Maintenance Supervisor. They have a job that requires at least 1-2 hours a day of serious labor. And they get paid for that, too.

And I know you don't have to send your kids to camp, it's a choice, blah blah blah. Pick a better way to refute what I am saying!

Is this cynism? I really don't think so. If you know anyone who goes to camp, go visit them on visiting day. And check this out. Tell me I'm wrong.
Then I'll post instead about how seminaries in Israel are cash cows for people who learned for years then had 6 kids and zero means of support so they decided to open a seminary.

Milk us dry

and I don't think the title of this post really has anything to do with the content herein, but I kind of meandered. Oh well, blogging license!!

I got to her first! I am her bestest friend!

2008-12-14T20:20:00.002-05:00

Hey, I know I am cynical, but what's with this new trend of running up to the mother of a chosson or a bar mitvah boy right after he has gotten his aliya? And then all those women standing on line to give the beaming mom a big kiss? Which you aren't supposed to do in shul, anyway, but apparently only I and a friend know that. So when has this become the new way of showing how good a friend of the family you are? What's wrong with waiting until after davening? I don't get it.

But to be honest, I don't get the whole oifruf thing altogether. I know it's something to do with almonds and sweetness ( like prunes, or some old yiddish song in every movie about the lower East Side). But why pelt men who may not even know the chosson and his family? I hate it. And for the rest of davening there are out of control little sticky people running up and down the isle smacking into eachother while their mothers look on fondly (see my post on Tzemach Tzedach, different Simcha, same concept). Or are those moms secretly thinking " I cannot believe these out of control dirty monsters are my offspring, I was a size 4 glamour gal- what the hey happened?"

Caged dogs

2008-12-12T10:24:00.002-05:00

Even if you hate animals, a story in our local paper this week makes you want to cuddle with a puppy or other fluffy animal.
http://www.lohud.com/article/2008812120397

An elderly woman had more than 20 dogs caged and living in their own feces.
Does she go to jail? Pay a fine? Did she really not know that she was abusing these animals and not caring for them properly? She had once been a breeder of champion dogs, fell on hard times, was reclusive, you get the picture.
So what happens when we get old and we don't realize that the things we used to do well we are now failing at?

The singer who used to hit high notes and now his voice cracks when he gets to the mid note
The energetic grandparent who was full of life and now falls asleep at the table while talking
The academic who loved an argument and now shows a lack of interest in most conversations.

The dog breeder who loves her animals and can't care for them anymore and doesn't realize that she is harming those she used to spend her life caring for.

Will she now be caged herself

There is No Black in Nature

2008-12-10T14:34:00.003-05:00

I discovered this shocking piece of information when I went camping this past summer in Wyoming. I saw magnificent shades of green, yellow, orange, red, even blues and purples, in the foliage, flowers, rock sediments, and rainbows created by waterfalls and sunlight. But I did not notice any black. At all. I didn't even see a bear, and they are black and supposedly roaming the woods throughout the state parks. I also didn't see any frum women AT ALL, and of course I would have spotted them from far away, because they only wear black! I am sure somewhere some non jewish people think it is a religious thing.
Okay, I know black is slimming. And I also know that thanks to Donna Karan it is actually considered a color. But look at your wedding pictures, or your parents' albums- every guest is wearing color! The dullest color is the bride's gown! Colored clothing has become very
out of town- like they are behind of fashion
nebby- like you got your clothes from Caldor or Walmart
fat enhancing- okay, I do agree with this. Black is slimming. But not slimming enough to change a shapeless salami body from a 14 to a 4. Come on.

I try to add color to my wardrobe. Very pinkish lipstick. Dangly sparkly earrings. A colored pocketbook. Perhaps a belt or funky necklace. But when you wear color, especially here in Brooklyn North, you get the Look from the black only I-look-like-I-came-from-a-funeral- women. Whose faces look like they came from a funeral. I think you have to look very intent and focused on your pomegranite seeds or Panko bread crumbs when shopping in black clothing.

I also think it comes from the middle of the road Judaism trying to move to the right and thinking every behavior and habit of the extreme right wing/chassidim must be better and right. So since that side tends to dress in very drab colors- black, navy, grey, and brown, the new black- we have slowly adopted that.

My fifteen year old revolted. She bought a red Shabbos coat.

Color is alive, energetic, inspiring, mood enhancing, enthusiastic.

But black? Like my pal Annie sez: it's an obsession.

A first experience

2008-11-17T18:53:00.002-05:00

So this weekend we overslept and had to go to a late late minyan. Of which there aren't too many close by. We went to Tzemach Tzedek, the Lubavitch minyan about a 20 minute walk from our house. Starts at 9:30. Ish.

THIS was an experience. First of all, the newly renovated building is lovely on the outside and probably beautiful inside when it is cleaned up. And clean.

I asked a socializing man for a non Tehilas Hashem siddur and he brought me a good old Artscroll. But of course I neglected to ask for a nusach Ashkenaz, so my davening took a little longer than usual. I stumbled over the extra words in Shemona Esrai.

Anyway, the tunes were really beautiful. Haunting and lovely as everyone in the shul joins in. They are the very old Lubavitch tunes and they tug at your soul. At least I felt tugged.

There was a Bar Mitzva and the family must have had a lot of relatives either from France or from Brooklyn who spoke a lot of French. They spoke it out loud. Loudly, to eachother, across the room. Hey, that's what's great about Lubavitch, they don't tell anyone what to do, or what not to do.
The bar mitzva boy's little siblings or relatives were dashing in and out of the ladies' section, and repeatedly stuck their their sticky hands which had minute pieces of fruit gems and lint stuck to the nails, through the mechitza. One of the cuties almost stuck to my shoulder because he must have finished the entire handful of candy he was prepared to throw at his brother (this was still during Shacharis). As this was going on, his mother kept admonishing him to STOP IT in a very audible voice which he evidently has mastered ignoring. The door kept banging open and shut. When one of the boys actually lifted a chair and aimed the feet at the glass mechitza, a lethargic congregant was motivated to react. I flinched because I was near enough to the mechitza to be showered with shattered glass, should the inspired activist be successful. Which thankfully he was not. I couldn't move that much because I was practically stuck to the mechitza because of my sticky encounter with the little chair thrower. The chair was removed and the mother finally took her kids into the hallway.
In the meantime, another young relative was playing under one of the narrow tables holding numerous oversized Seforim and sandpaper tissue boxes. I heard a little clinking noise, but I guessed, like the men above her hiding place, that a child who manages to entertain herself is best left alone. Unless she has discovered how to slide that ring that holds the hinge of the table in place, and realizes if she pushed on the hinge, the table will now be a superb slide to play on. Especially with a slimy tablecloth. Just in the nick of time one of the men at said table yanked her out and tightened the hinge.

The heat must have been on, and as it was quite warm and muggy, the whole atmostphere in the shul was of "varmfkeit". The gabbai's announcement of a fabrengin was met which cheers, but at that point I was overwhelmed with the experience and decided to skip the kiddush.

For all I know the chair thrower and table collapser conspired to throw the chulent sternos at their brother.

Should I Zoom??

2008-11-09T17:40:00.004-05:00

It is time to talk about the nightmares that occur daily at intersections throughout our lovely hamlet here south of Labrador City.

So you are waiting at a traffic light, inching and inching out into the intersection, causing all oncoming traffic to swerve into the shoulder. Ladies (as we say here in Monsey, look for a post on this later) you are not helping the sterotype of women being awful drivers with no ability to think ahead!! Finally the light turns yellow but you still can't go. So it turns red. And you are smack in the middle of the intersection.

So you should just VERY quickly make a left turn, right? Right! Left! And so the unsure driver who was sticking out way too far in the first place decided to go for it! Zooming around the intersection into the proper lane, leaving a trail of furious drivers honking hysterically and cursing the idiot who caused their coffee to spill in their laps and on their blackberry keypads. Usually one Escalade comes tearing and screeching around on two wheels, scaring the daylights out of a midget old man driving a banged up Buick Riviera.

Of course this little drama unfolding at the corner of 306 and Kearsing Parkway or Viola and 306 is not yet over. The second on line at the red light decides, "hey, I've been waiting here also! Why should I wait for the light to turn green? I'm zoomin', too!" and so the person behind the red light runner follows bumper to bumper, nose to tail, and turns as well. Usually the waiting vehicles who experience this exciting activity numerous times a day are prepared and although they go ahead when they have a green light, honking furiously (see above) and whipping around, they expect it from one car. Lately they've had to prepare for two. It is mind boggling to watch. I sit there and scream. This happens daily.

I kid you not, this is standard driving lately in our humble little enclave of people who have escaped the city and wish to live in quiet suburbia. Where people are relaxed and thoughtful. Ha

Invasion of the Body Snatchers meets the Emperor's New Clothes

2008-11-08T23:44:00.001-05:00

That's how I feel about the new government.

First they take over in the White House, and everywhere we turn we find another one of "them".

And now they they are in power, there is nothing there.

It's actually not a fairy tale or a horror movie. It's worse.

The Obamanation with no explanation for how he'll govern with no experience-ation

2008-11-04T22:29:00.003-05:00

"Experience is clearly overrated," said Natalie Davis, a political scientist at Birmingham-Southern University in Alabama.

more examples of erudite insights and political savvy from brilliant citizens who made a thoughtful choice when voting today:

(yahoo news)

Curt Babura, a 31-year-old cook in Cleveland who had never voted before. On Tuesday, he did, making his way to the polls on a silver, 10-speed bike. "I'm really kind of fed up with what's been going on in the country today," he said. "I wanted to make a difference this time. I think a lot of younger people are starting to realize the errors of our ways."

Or listen to Joann Scherk, voting in Waterbury, Vt., and, seemingly, looking to find a hero. "It's gotten to the point where you don't really vote for someone as much as you vote against someone else," she said. "I wish it wasn't that way."

And who did Scherk vote for — or, at least, against? Asked, she just wouldn't say.

okay folks, she wouldn't say because maybe after she left the polling booth she forgot who she voted for. Or she didn't want to be put on the spot because she had no clue what his platform was. And the cook, who is fed up - what HAS been going on in the country?

And have you heard the people interviewed who are excited- they won't have to pay their mortgage anymore! Obama'll help them!

Mood Music

2008-11-01T21:15:00.004-04:00

Music definitely affects your mood.

I think they need more upbeat music in the Verizon store. I was there to purchase a new phone and the six men behind the counter were all morose and somber looking. They seemed well groomed, all were wearing ties, and collectively I counted 11 noticable facial piercings (including in mouth, one of them let out a gargantuan gaping yawn). They were all helpful to their customers, even their over 30 (really over alot) customers who wanted cool phones but didn't know which ones were cool.

But the music in the store was pounding headache migraine insanity producing music, and I think it had a negative effect on the morale and mood of everyone in the store. I, for one, couldn't wait to leave. Okay, I had to make chicken for shabbos and didn't have much time.

The elderly couple next to me starting leaning too much on the counter, and their skin tone began to blend with the grey countertop.
The woman who looked 45ish and dressed 15ish who wanted the cool chocolate crave phone (they explained it was a chocolate or a craze phone) quickly decided and furrowed her eyebrows. You may say it was because of the decision, I think it was because of the music.

Or, maybe, it was that loud and unpleasant to coerce or encourage people to make a decision quickly and then leave? That way when they get home and some significant person in the house says, "you spent WHAT on that phone? Why do you need all those features?" The buyer will answer, "maybe I made a mistake but there is no way I am going back into that store, I have a horrid headache".

And then they will wait to update, and go through the same process again.

I would much rather have Karen Carpenter or EVEN..... Barry Manilow with his six sets of octave switching- till- he's- shrieking- music. Maybe it's an age thing, ya think??

Mechitza Pizza and Blah Black

2008-10-30T15:46:00.006-04:00

Not sure if my kids coined the phrase, but it is vintage Monsey. The pizza store has a mechitza with separate seating.
housed in Shopper's Haven, known in our house as.....the Kosher Mall.

I think we have become more radical than parts of Brooklyn.

It is the chassidish influence , and the taliban is slowly creeping it's way into our lives here in Brooklyn North.

Teachers telling high school girls to think before buying their winter coats, so they aren't too flashy.
Meaning, make sure they are black, gray, navy, boring, dull, and like ABSOLUTELY EVERYONE ELSE.

Weren't there colors (from nature) in the Mishkan? Didn't the Kohain Godol's clothes have color in them?

I wish Jonathan Rosebloom or Rabbi Yaakov Horowitz would write a column about this.

But it isn't as inspiring or life threatening as their usual topics.

Or is it???

Let's make a real Kiddush for Hashem

2008-10-29T22:02:00.006-04:00

I shouldn't admit I look at YWN, but I am a furtive lurker like many others.

The story of the man who got lost in Williamsburg because he had a "Lechayim or two" is sad.

Never mind the fact that this yentish website disseminates gossip and idiotic tidbits claiming to be news.
Never mind the fact that when a woman - usually a rebbitzin- dies they briefly mention her name, and then continue on with her husband's great lineage and yeshiva history.

Ha, Ha, Hee, Hee, he had a little too much to drink! He was Fraylich! OH!! AND he was doing a mitzvah! He was being mesamayach a chusun and kallah. It was for a L'chayim, mammash a mitzva!

If this "news" website wants to be helpful to the "oilam", they should say it like it is.

"A man in Williamsburg got lost last night after sousing himself in the middle of the week and acting like a goyish pig, drinking at a wedding like it was an Irish wake. He wandered the streets of Brooklyn, and wonderful volunteers who don't pass judgement (ahem...) spent the entire night searching for this selfish and out of control adult. "

I am sure his family are so proud of his behavior. A real Kiddush Hashem. (a kiddush? for Hashem? bring out the Grey Goose).

Of course it has to be McCain

2008-10-29T00:09:00.002-04:00

I do not understand any person that is seriously considering voting for someone with no experience and known association with extreme liberal politicians and activists. I don't care about Obama sitting on a board with someone who forty years ago was an urban terrorist. I care about a President who clearly sympathizes with evil people who espouse destruction and annihilation of specific groups.

I don't usually vote for anyone based on their opinion or support of Israel. The fate of that country is in the hands of G-d, and He is the one who controls everything that happens. I cannot understand people who will vote for an American President based on Israel politics. The president we elect will effect us much closer to home - taxes, jobs, etc.

But in this case, Barak Obama's political stance is to me, not just about Israel, but about supporting democracy vs. accomodating terrorists and evil people. It is about being on the side of friends vs. being on the side of people who hate everything American and Western.

America just doesn't get it. You cannot befriend Iran and Syria. You cannot negotiate or peacefully come to any conclusion with them. They hate us and will not change their mindset or opinions. Ever.

I like to eat but I need Spiritual Nourishment, too.

2008-10-20T01:01:00.003-04:00

I don't like to spend the month of Tishrei talking non stop about the cooking and the shopping. I'd like to spend it talking about Teshuva, about renewal, about spiritual growth. I'd like to share insights and thoughts of Gedolim and Meforshim, not recipes by Susie Fishbein. I'd like to spend the weeks after the kids go back to school talking about the new seforim I have read, not the new way to use shallots or the great find from Loehmann's.
But we have eat, we have to be clothed, the house needs to be in order.

So I go shopping and see the cashiers more than I see my parents. I replenish the kirbies and peppers and brown rice and sweet potatoes and diet drinks from Israel. I peruse my cookbooks and use up our yearly quota of red meat within three weeks of meals.

But I hurry through the isles at the grocery stores, and try not to chat about the contents of my shopping cart.

And I think- I am providing an environment for my family where Yomtov is special, it is exciting to prepare for, we do (or eat) special things, but the focus is not the food- it is growth, introspection, development of middos.
I hope my children take that away from the Yomtov table.

Did Sarah, Rivka, Rachel, and Leah have faces??

2008-09-23T23:25:00.003-04:00

Tzipi Livni's face will not be shown in the Chareidi Israeli newspapers. Doubtful she will be shown in the Yated, Hamodia, or the Jewish Observer (wait, they don't do Israeli politics at all). Probably Mishpacha, although more open minded, won't show her face, either (they only showed Susie Fishbien's kitchen utensils and fingertips).

We all the know the story of Avram and Sarai going to Egypt, and Avram suddenly realizing how beautiful his wife was. Or Yakov not realizing who was under the chuppah. So perhaps there is biblical precedence for hiding women's faces.

But wouldn't the rabbonim of past generations know that? Wouldn't they have forbidden pictures of women?

For those who only read jewish newspapers, if Sarah Palin wins, we will have four years with no pictures of our vice president.

Why do we attribute the basest of human behaviors to every single frum male??

I Knew There Was Something Missing

2008-09-23T23:11:00.001-04:00

When did chulent or potato kugel worm its way into fine cuisine? Have our standards for wedding food been diminished?

I enjoy the visual feast presented at an elegant wedding. The newest (observed at August and September weddings) is individual porcelain bowls (yes, they resemble the more familiar porcelain bowls) filled with a controlled portion of vegetables.

The creative wooden Viking ship with sushi.

A forbidden red meat in glutinous sweet sauce.

The inimitable carving station, with too many overweight men standing on line for pastrami.

And the crème de la crème, the ultimate crowning glory of every Jewish food fest, the pinnacle of culinary delights, the nocturnal dreams of yeshiva bochrim globally, POTATO KUGEL.

Potato kugel was probably a staple of European diets. Potatoes are cheap, mix with flour or any grain meal, and you have a warm and filling food. It was looked forward to on Erev Shabbos, was baked through overnight in a chulent, and possibly warmed up for Melave Malka or Sunday eve leftovers. Who was the caterer who thought that it was missing from wedding and bar mitzvah smorgasbords?

It's like wearing a tichel with a satin gown.

or putting hot dogs on fine china.

fill in your own analogy.

Dads need not attend

2008-09-20T23:24:00.003-04:00

Is this Monsey madness, Bais Yaakovs in general, or the chumra clubs newest essential rule?

Dads are not invited to attend school orientations. The female teachers are uncomfortable speaking in front of men. Never mind that most of the men gave up a shiur, came home early, rescheduled a meeting to show interest in their daughter's education. Every man is attributed with the worst possible thoughts, and women are unable speak in front of them.

How many men have you ever seen at an orientation? A classroom full, standing room only? Or every little desk filled with men cramming their knees uncomfortably under a shelf? I've only seen (in the years before the ban) men who do the homework with their children, men who are in charge, fathers who care about their daughters' education.

How stupid of the teachers and principals to continue to develop rules and regulations that alienate parents.

totally random

2008-09-18T00:31:00.002-04:00

would you like to join my chumra club?

you have to think of something so foolish and idiotic and then make it into a new cause. Sounds insipid, but isn't that what is happening around us?

I have one:

I think that the whole process of the "badekin" at a wedding is extremely untzniusdik. All those men marching between two rows of women (like dogs!). I think a one way mirror should be set up, with all the women behind it. The Kallah should already have the deck teichel on, because all those single friends are staring at her as she gets bentched by the fathers. A one way mirror will let the women still look at the men (I mean, their brothers and husbands).

Any zealots out there who'd like to start this one?

you're not from brooklyn

2008-09-15T23:33:00.002-04:00

I was in Brooklyn and looking for a store, so I stopped a blond wigged woman and asked her if she knew where it was. She turned to me and smiled as I said "excuse me, " (huh? she smiled?) and posed my query. She laughed and said, "Oh, I am not from Brooklyn, I'm from Cleveland, I don't know where anything is". end of story.

Observation: She had color in her outfit, she smiled at me, and she maintained eye contact. Her eyes didn't disdainfully roam over my outfit, I didn't get the "I can barely tolerate breathing near you" look.

You know what? I knew she was from out of town. She was friendly.

Do the people on the streets of Boro Park think it is classy and sophisticated to ignore people while staring at them? This is not a new topic, but it slams you in the face like a door swiftly shut by a fuming teenager.

I was glad to get home north, even if many of them are moving up here. Perhaps the fresh air will mitigate the unpleasant atmosphere surrounding the rude people who live in brooklyn.

victims or heroes?

2008-09-13T23:00:00.001-04:00

What do you call the murdered innocents of September 11th, 2001? Victims? Or heroes? I am not sure about the "hero" label. They were innocent and just doing their jobs. Their murderers were violent, hateful people, energized by a madman with a vendetta against jews and democracy and America and everything that isn't his brand of his religion. The murderers didn't know their victims, didn't engage in a battle, didn't give fair warning. So why are they heroes?

Did the press, or whomever referred to them first at heroes (Guliani) think that "victim" was too lame, too passive, not strong enough to incite the masses in fury and revenge?

In the end it probably doesn't matter, it is the label we have used for seven years and will continue to use. But I wonder. Just semantics? Or clever manipulation of words to wake us all up and remind us of those who fell in a battle they never had time to join.

No bikes in the shtetl

2008-09-13T22:19:00.002-04:00

Williamsburg residents have been protesting the construction of bike lanes on some of the major streets in their community. They don't like the way the bikers (read: women) dress when biking.
More bike lanes means more immodestly dressed women in their neighborhood. And the local population want Williamsburg to remain a shtetl. I think they will get what they want out of the local government. It probably depends upon how organized the bike riders and non frum of the community can be to counter protest.
Would it be so bad if they get what they want? Isn't that what elected officials are for? To enact laws and fullfill the wishes of the people who voted for them? Other minority communities know how to protest and stand up for what they want, why should this group be different?

9/11

2008-09-11T14:06:00.001-04:00

It happened. It was horrible. We move on. We won't forget.

North

2008-09-11T01:31:00.000-04:00

North of Brooklyn, south of Labrador City. Somewhere in between. Guess.