Counting from 0 to 100 years in Hebrew. It all goes so quickly!

     Watching this is  quite an event . One hundred people count from zero to one hundred . The number each person  says corresponds to his or her age. At first it is  fun to watch,  but as the numbers increase I felt a little tense. Would the people seem more depressing as they aged? I think that I felt more tense watching the people who were counting become older people counting. They however were not depressed. I find this video quite beautiful as it is beautiful to hear people counting in Hebrew. It would be nice if they would have been able to have had enough people to count to one hundred and twenty. Perhaps someday soon.  In any event the man who uttered one hundred makes 100 an age to look forward to . 

Happy Accidents

    So often when things don't go according to the plan I am quite disappointed. In this case I was more fortunate. I forgot that I was on the number 1 train and ended up getting off the the train at Penn Station instead of Herald Square and was able to take these cool photos..... Enjoy!

Taking My Own advice

      I always hate forums of men and women complaining about dating together. In my mind there are always issues men will have with women and issues women will have with men whether they are real or imagined. Usually I try to keep my mouth shut and try to change the subject when these issues appear.  Not this Shabbos. I realized that even when someone (male)  is just complaining about dating in a non- gender specific rant it still bothers me. I suppose its my issue to let this bother me . None of this conversation had anything to do with me or even my dating standards.  I have to really remember to take my own advice and opt out of the conversation and just tune out like its a sports convention. 

Holy Stories

         As a kid I remember hearing a story in school about how one married woman was so pious that she never uncovered her hair. The four walls of her home never saw her hair. There also was a rav who did not marry because he felt his love for Hashem was so great that he could not love  a woman as much as he loved Hashem. There were also some rabbis who had very little sleep because they were so immersed in Torah study. Rabbi Akiva's wife spent many years alone while her husband was in yeshiva. I always thought that these stories were to be inspiring but they all seemed so superhuman that I did not think that anyone was expected to emulated them. Sometimes I feel some of the chumrahs that have been imposed are unrealistic. Its like someone has listened to these stories that are meant to inspire and they made them requirements. Not everyone is capable of such stringency. One can still be frum without being superhuman. Keeping the 613 mitzvos keeps us busy enough.

Belief

      Part of being a grown up is deciding what it is you believe in. Some people end up changing everything they believe in but forget that just because they have changed not everyone around them wants to change. I think a person needs to come to terms with the fact that though one's convictions are good for one's self other people will be less evolved than you are and thats just how it is. It really should not matter what others do if you are truly comfortable with your beliefs.

How a Jew Fills Out a College Application

    I love this.  There are those who say Jews aren't white even if they are light skinned because they are Jewish. I never quite understood that when I first heard this, but now I do. I know Latinos who look like they are black but they identify as Latino, not black. Due to anti-semitism we do not reap all the benefits of having lighter skin if we are Jews from European countries. We are a different kind of other. 

Jewish Community Watch

      http://youtu.be/wffN3mYWCCw.  I think this video speaks for itself. I am so sad that any child would have to endure sexual abuse in the frum community. What a brave young woman. I applaud the work of JCW.