Choosing Good Over Evil

    Watching this brings tears to my eyes. What a good person. It just goes to show you that even as it seems that evil has taken over the world there are still who choose to be kind and uphold justice. Of course we have to have faith in Hashem that good will prevail, but it is also heart warming to see that there are still those on earth who are kind and are doing the right thing. What a hero. 

Gooey goodness in Jerusalem

     This looks so amazing. I would love to go visit this bakery or have someone I know go on a trip to Israel and bring me back some rugalach from this bakery.

The Grass is Always Greener

     We always want what we can't or should not have. This adage could not be more true with regards to dating. If I had a nickel for every time a friend male or female has said to me that dating goyim is so much better than dating a Jew I would be rich. The story always goes that whatever it is that they dislike about Jewish men or Jewish women , a gentile man or woman is always kinder and more appreciative of them. I find it a shame that they feel that someone of their own religion would appreciate them more. My feeling has always been is that there are lovely people of every religion but if you want to lead a Jewish life , marry a Jewish spouse. It is sad though that I have heard so many Jewish men criticise  Jewish women so much that it makes me feel that the only people that I hear extolling the virtues of Jewish women are non-Jewish men. The world is really upside down. I work with a lot of non-Jewish women. Some are nice and some are not.
      Sometimes stereotypes ring true, but not always. If you want an excuse to do the opposite of what one should one can always find a loophole. In the end we are all people and sometimes what someone thinks they don't like about Jewish men or Jewish women is what they don't like about women or men in general, but they are too busy kvetching to realize it.

Happy Birthday

      Its not my birthday today, but I thought I would write about birthdays in general. It is true that birthdays can be limiting in many ways but in other ways they make me wonder "now what?" When I reach a dreaded age I realize that its not really that different than being the age I was the day before and that there are still things to do and experience regardless of age. There may be things that I cannot do because of my age, but there are lots of things that I can do and I would prefer to focus on the positives. I  enjoy not having to worry about taking the SAT ever again, not wondering how tall I won't end up being as an adult and not wondering about so many firsts in life. Its exciting to do things for the first time but its also nice to have experienced life a little bit  and know what I like and dislike due to life experiences. Then again, , no matter how much in life one has already experienced there is always so much more to accomplish. 

Snow

          The other day when I exited a store much  to my chagrin I spied some flurries and said to the teenager leaving the store, "That's not snow is it ? " and the teen said to me " I wish!" Not the response I was expecting. I thought for a moment and then I realized it really was snow. Then I said, no , that's snow. At that point the teen jumped for joy. She had never seen snow before in her life and she ran to tell whoever else it was she was with. I felt so jaded. All I could think about was how much I wished

it wasn't snowing and anticipated a nasty commute home. There was a time when I found snow exciting. I remember the joy of a snow day off of school , of sledding and building snowmen. Sadly that life seems so long ago now that I work full time and snow has become more of a nuisance than a wonder.

The Accidental Mentor

     I have  always admired people who mentor kids from less fortunate backgrounds but I never had the drive to do so myself. Over time I have realized that there is all sorts of mentoring. You can be an example to others without going out of one's way to do so. I work with younger people of diverse backgrounds. Work is sometimes the only thing that I really have in common with them, but somehow we all get along. By now I am old enough to realize that there is no need to pretend to be ultra -hip  just because I am of a different generation than some of my co-workers. No one expects me to be. I am comfortable being myself. I also do not really want to be part of their ridiculous shenanigans. We can all coexist quite harmoniously despite our differences. I can also be a beacon of nerdy normalcy for those who hail from more colorful backgrounds. I have not achieved many of my goals in life, but I am still a good example of a stable adult that some of my young co-workers do not always have in their lives. I can be an example by being their friend . This is not a responsibility that I have ever asked for but one that I know is important to try to do. Just because some people hail from weird home situations it does not mean that they can't change their luck and become boring respectable people.

Mini Times Square in the Bloomingdale's window

Happy 2015 from the windows at Bloomingdales in Manhattan.