888 Montgomery

On the subject mentalblog.com: Utopia called 888. 7fatcow.com: Utopia 888. (hey cows, can’t you make your own titles?)

קאָקאָנוס טאָרט

אין מױל ארײן: פּסחדיק שאָקאָלאַד־קאָקאָנוס טאָרט

Calling on the descendants of Zvi Heikin

A reader writes from London in reference to Zvi Heikin mentioned in relationship with the story of Alter Rebbe son Moshe. Specially in reference to these quotes in the post there: mentalblog.com: Rabbi Moshe the son of RASHAZ Caught in the Thicket:

"A Russian Jewish historian Shaul Ginzburg wrote an article about this subject in 1931 in the NY Yiddish newspaper Zkukumft. In the article he quotes letters from Chabadnick Zvi Heikin (1876) as a first documented version of the Lubavitcher agaddta about mysterious wondered who was seen in Ukraine, in Ostropol and Fastov who revealed his identity before he died as R. Moshe ben Schneur Zalman of Liadi".

And also:

"In 1922 Rayatz wrote a letter to one of the descendants of Zvi Heikin. In the letter there is R. Moshe's dispute with Christian Theologians (a first mention of this by anybody). R. Moshe is then imprisoned, his cellmate suddenly dies and in the confusion R. Moshe escapes to go in the above mentioned Golus in Volyn area."

The reader from London asks: "I’m assuming that this is Zvi Heikin (also written Chaikin) ben Yoel who had a son called Yoel Meir. Yoel Meir Heikin was my great great grandfather. I know that Yoel Meir had good connections with the Chabad Rebbes (4th / 5th). Both Zvi Heikin and Yoel Meir moved to Israel. Zvi Heikin moved there in 1881 and died in 1883 (I think) while Yoel Meir made Aliyah in 1886 with the majority of his family and died in 1899. I have no other confirmed descendents of Zvi Heikin other than Yoel Meir and his descendants who made Aliyah – although we know that some members of the family remained in the Ukraine.

I’m trying to find out more about this Zvi Heikin. I’ve tried to find copies of the letters in 770 E Parkway in New York when I visited there a year ago, but found nothing. I believe that Zvi Heikin was an ancestor of mine, and I’m particularly interested in who the descendent was that received the letter from the Rayatz. If you have any more information on this I’d be grateful if you could send it to me".

Young and Old Israel of New Heaven

Zalman New Heaven commenting to mentalblog.com: bikur cholim is air conditioned: The name of the shuls. BCSA is Bikkur Cholim Sheves Achim. The shul is a merger of two shuls, Bikkur Cholim and Sheves Achim Anshei Lubavitch. As a result of that merger Nusach Ari (Tehilas Hashem siddur) is the official Nusach of the Shul. Westville is the Westville Synagogue, the biggest Shul in New Haven (i.e. the most members, Chabad has the largest Shabbos minyan).

BCSA being housed in Church. Indeed the current building was purchased from a Church, but so what? There are many Shuls that were purchased from churches, but more to the point what does this have to do with the flavor of the shul.

I did grow up in Miami Beach, and Ocean Drive as well as Collings Ave. used to be full of little shuls and shtieblach. For years Satmar would vacation in Miami Beach and during the winter South Beach was packed with Chassidishe Yidden.

Funds of the sale. Hmm.. I was wondering about that myself. Why was a tiny little shul demanding an exorbitant amount of money from a ...Yeshiva (!!) for their building? What are they planning of doing with all that money? I guess something things we'll just have to wait to find out.

Mr. Rubin. It is people like Mr. Rubin, and the other special Jews who daven there, who I have in mind when I say that BSCA reminds me of the shuls of my youth. BCSA houses quite a few of these unique individuals, who all contribute to the special feel of the shul.

Schneur Zalman of NY commenting to mentalblog.com: bikur cholim is air conditioned: Re the previous comments there is a concept called Sacred Space. Would one contemplate the Beth Hamikdash using the former building purchased from an idol worshipping cult like the Molach? A shul is a MIkdash Me"at. There is also something in Judaism called halacha and a search about the halacha in this case would be in order. Frankly I wonder if the leadership of the shul asked a shaayleh by a competent More horeah prior to the purchase.

But as I said reality speaks louder than the abstract and I guess the facts are on the ground. The history of the shul is fairly accurate with I think a bit of forgetfulness. Although Nusach Ari was in force in this congregation for many years, at the same time the congregation in its old place of worship had separate seating but no mehitzah of any sort for many years (over 20 years) and no erliche Yid would willingly daven there.

As far as the Young Israel is concerned, the building was far from tiny and was worth at least the 800,000 they received from Chabad. And no one forced Chabad to buy it and furthermore the D family that runs Lubavitz in NH has the money to pay YI for the beautiful building if they wanted it for a shul, yeshiva and community center. Thats not the issue, the issue is where's the money and how will it be used. There was a total lack of transparency in the sale of the shul, meetings were held in a stealth manner, officers were forced out , elections were held in a stealth manner. In recent months the rabbi (Rabbi Cypess) was fired in an undignified manner. At the very least some transparency is called for. The "death" of this shul is a serious blow to the state of orthodoxy in NH. The YI was bulwark of Orthodoxy in NH for many years.

Finally since the YI, Westville, Lubavitch and BCSE have all been mentioned, may I also mention the Yeshiva of NH directed by Rabbi Daniel Greer. They have daily minyonnim, a Shabbaes minyon a daily daf Yomi shiur and other shiurim, They run a small high school, and day school.

Although small in numbers the yeshiva and its affilaited shul has serious learning on a daily basis, a fine davening and is full service. It is a worthy successor to the 1st yeshiva gedola outside of New York and Chicago administered by Rav Yehuda Levenbergin New Haven and later in Cleveland.

Olmert steps down

My suggestion he should give the job back where it belongs, with Ariel Sharon. Arik L'Olam Voed! Arik will live forever. Ynetnews: Olmert announces will step down after Kadima primaries.

John McCain Web Ad

What’s with all the galactic crap, is he going for the geek vote?

Can one pack more cliches into this, with girls running in the flowers, a reference to the soviet nuclear era ad? Nice to see Roosevelt and Churchill though. And where is Ronnie?

Daily Life in Belarus

Rizen without Jews. The Big Picture - Boston.com: Daily Life in Belarus.

does the history end?

The last century in Russia was dominated by the psychic epidemic that the history is about to end. There is finality to the long road. The technical differences between brothers Schneerson are just that, Trotskyist or Meshichist, well details. But the important similarity is the urgent anticipation that the end is near. To a certain degree all cultures have that but Russia was obsesses about the cathartic climax. Do we live in time when there is an end to the anticipation of the end. Perhaps it is healthier that way.

lord take me higher

Dinner in the Sky 08, originally uploaded by photosapience.

Nice place to farbreng. Throwing up (or down?) should be fun. The Boston Globe: 180 feet up, "dinner amongst the clouds" is served.

bikur cholim is air conditioned

Sarah Rachel commenting to mentalblog.com: United States of Lubavitch in New Haven, CT: It's three years since the last post and I need to tell everyone that Bikur Cholim is air conditioned -- and has been for several years. And while we have the mechitza on the main floor of the sanctuary, the women's balcony affords a nice option for sitting above the fray. Its a good place to nurse an infant or instruct a child. During the High Holiday evening services the view of the lighted Bima is so beautiful it really does enhance kavanah. Though BCSA is small, it has one foot in the old world and one in the new, making for a solid stance in a rocky world. Now all we need is a day school...

Schneur Zalman of NY commenting:

"I find this post "unbelievable"! The blogger praises the balcony, the bima etc in this sanctuary and the other commentator claims this shul reminds him of the sins of his youth in Miami(??) (Perhaps he attended church as a youth) all the while failing to mention that this edifice was built as and used for years as Episcopalian Church! I have never walked inside but the outside of the building remains almost exactly the same as before. Perhaps one ought to check what Reb Moshe Feinstein wrote in Igros Moshe about davening in such a sanctuary.

The Satmarer Rebbe once told Rabbi Meir Amsel who asked him if he could daven in a shul that was a church that "its fine if you wish to stand next to JC" My point is not to prohibit this shul - reality is reality - but to wax nostalgic about the building and its aura is nonsensical.

Any serious comment on New Haven ought to mention the "strange death" of the Young Israel and where the proceeds of its sale are located. Also any serious comment on BCHSA should mention the death several weeks ago of its Baal Kore of over 50 years Mr. Norman Rubin A"H."

высоцкий - кони привиредливые

высоцкий - За нашей спиною

За нашей спиною остались паденья, закаты,
Ну, хоть бы ничтожный, ну, хоть бы невидимый взлет.
Мне хочется верить, что черные наши бушлаты
Дадут мне возможность сегодня увидеть восход.
Сегодня на людях сказали: "Умрите геройски!"
Попробуем, ладно, увидим какой оборот.
Я только подумал, чужие куря папироски:
"Тут кто как умеет, мне важно увидеть восход".
Особая рота - особый почет для сапера,
Не прыгайте с финкой на спину мою из ветвей.
Напрасно стараться, я и с перерезанным горлом
Сегодня увижу восход до развязки своей.
Прошли по тылам, держась, чтоб не резать их сонных,
И вдруг я заметил, когда прокусили проход,
Еще несмышленный зеленый но чуткий подсолнух
Уже повернулся верхушкой своей на восход.
За нашей спиною 6.30 Остались, я знаю,
Не только паденья, закаты, но взлет и восход.
Два провода голых, зубами скрипя, зачищаю,
Восхода не видел, но понял: вот-вот и взойдет.
Уходит обратно на нас поредевшая рота,
Что было - неважно, а важен лишь взорванный порт.
Мне хочется верить, что грубая наша работа
Вам дарит возможность беспошлинно видеть восход.

mentalblog visitor stats

Browsers:
1. Internet Explorer 48.86%
2. Firefox 42.11%
3. Safari 6.67%
4. Opera 1.42%
I still don't understand why would anyone use IE, unless you have to at work. It's like why are you driving Chevy if you have a free Ferrari in your garage? Inertia is a positive trait in this culture I guess.

Connections:
Cable 36.26%
DSL 26.75%
Unknown 23.16%
T1 9.81%
Dialup 2.76%
I am surprised by the high DSL numbers. May be it is the Israeli thing? Or NY thing? Is FiOS classified as DSL? You have to ask yourself these questions. If I read the Internet why am not using Firefox? If I read blogs why am not using RSS or specifically Google Reader?

Ronen Levi Yitzchak Segal, the son of Israel and Nechama Etty

Ronnen comments to mentalblog.com: Suicide hot line got calls from 22,000 veterans: "Tzemach Atlas - did you not realize that the Rebbe's eternal kingdom is here and that you will actually have to answer the Rebbe about every thing you wrote and why you are so bitter? Good luck pal and may you and all of your readers burn in a physical fire on earth and then a spiritual fire in hell. Ronen Levi Yitzchak Segal, the son of Israel and Nechama Etty."

Ronen Segal emails:
ronensegal@hotmail.com
emails:I hope you burn in hell because of all the slander you spread about the Rebbe and the Chassidim.

Suicide hot line got calls from 22,000 veterans

Yahoo! News: Suicide hot line got calls from 22,000 veterans.

"More than 22,000 veterans have sought help from a special suicide hot line in its first year, and 1,221 suicides have been averted, the government say.

The hot line receives up to 250 calls per day — double the average number calling when it began. Kemp said callers are divided evenly between veterans from the Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam wars. Richard McKeon, public health adviser for SAMHSA, said 10 to 20 of the 1,575 calls received each week have to be rerouted to high-volume backup call centers throughout the country.

The VA estimates that every year 6,500 veterans take their own lives. The mental health director for the VA, Ira Katz, said in an e-mail last December that of the 18 veterans who commit suicide each day, four to five of them are under VA care, and 12,000 veterans under VA care are attempting suicide each year."

something from nothing

Every second of our lives we create God, yesh meayin, something from nothing. In heroic flight of imagination we create his wisdom, his understanding, his knowledge, his generosity, his hierarchy, his beauty, his eternal glory and the foundation of his dominion. We imagine his need for us humans, his emotional dependence on our actions. There is no attribute that we deny him; we are so magnificent that we don’t even deny him the ability to create us out of nothing.

Home sales in Mass. hit 15-year low

Boston Business Journal: Home sales in Mass. hit 15-year low.

There is no country like this anywhere in the world

Globes: Israel business news - Fishman decries excessive construction regulation.

"Globes" editor-in-chief asked Fishman whether the US real estate crisis had bottomed out. He replied, "Prices for energy and raw materials have gone up. Real estate is iron and cement, and what is left is land and labor. Real estate prices will continue to fall, but they will then rise fast. I won't begin to buy for another two years. You won't see any cranes today because no one is building."

As for Israel, Fishman said, "There are no cranes in Israel because there's no one to build for. In terms of real estate, Israel has everything. We're building 20,000 housing units a year, the same number that I'm building alone overseas. I have nothing to look for here and share with others."

Ray Charles - Yesterday

Soul of the Holy Land August 1973 concert in Tel Aviv:

הרב אריה לוין בכותל המערבי

הרב אריה לוין בכותל המערבי, originally uploaded by wayupnorthtonowhere.

חכם יעאיש יוחנן

הרב יוחנן יעאיש שליט''א, originally uploaded by wayupnorthtonowhere.

ideas as brands

"My Brand" exhibition IMGA0034, originally uploaded by dadawan.

I was walking in the woods the other day and was thinking that we define every idea that ever existed as a brand. Brand is something that takes up residence in our brain. But not only brain of course. The tremendous advancements of the advertisement industry in America demonstrated that a brand is not just a piece of code or a formula but the music, the art, the emotions, the madness.

A brand might have a direct relationship with a product or an experience. The taste of yogurt evokes emotional sensation of pleasure reinforcing and building the brand. But sometimes the connection between the reality feedback and a brand is not as strong. Or brand could be purely philosophical. Political party is a brand, religion is a brand and even God is a brand.

Sometimes companies have to invest billions in maintaining a brand, sometimes a product “sells itself”. Brand could also act like a squatter; it just moves in into your head and announces that it is not going anywhere. The best brands not only promote themselves but they know your weak or strong points and they managed to involve your own energy in the promotion. They send invisible messengers to your soul to tap into your own power. (This is subconscious interpretation of the green revolution, the desire to be self sufficient, the fear of being reduced to slaves, the terror of others living off our life’s energy. [Insert the analogy here]).

But let me bring it down so you can feel it. Imagine you are in a 5th grade and you fell in love with a girl in your class. She never noticed you; she is not going to notice you. But you start working up the brand, imagining her beauty, convincing yourself that she is sending you some secret signals, interpreting her random words as if addressed to you. This is the best brad there is. Incidentally this is how God became a brand. In fact God is the ultimate brand, because with no effort on his part he can completely posses every fiber of your being. You can start hallucinating, imagining secret nods from the beloved, finding coded messages behind the 2nd row desk. Heck one day you will write a book and convince yourself it is all because of the muse, her words flowing from your pen.

These are the wet dreams of the Madison Avenue fantasist. I mean if you need a product that sells itself you might need a Honda with a century worth of manufacturing expertise but the ultimate brand is where you need nothing, just the fallible human imagination. From that point on the job of the Madison Avenue priests is easy. They come in and tell you that they have a secret direct connection to the girl you love. And she surreptitiously revealed to the priests that she is not ready to show her love. But she certainly will and if you demonstrate respect and obedience to the priests, they shall deliver to you a secret letter the girl wrote just for you. But we digress.

What I was trying to inscribe here is that everything in our heads is branded. The emotions we feel about a trip to Jamaica, people around us are brands, cola, etc. The best way to lessen the hold of a brand on our heads is to accumulate enough resources to purchase the objects of the brand desire, to go on that trip, to buy that girl, even to buy the priest. Don’t let brands poses you, poses the brands.

The accumulation of wealth is the only noble pursuit in this world. It sets you free.

Avi Shafran confused yet again

XGH: Existential Angstnostick: Shafran: Confused yet again.

Eggplant with Herbed Walnut Sauce

אין מױל ארײן: Eggplant with Herbed Walnut Sauce in Memory of Sher.

5th anniversary of aliyah

Chayyei Sarah: 5 Stages in 5 Years.

etymology of sod

Balashon - Hebrew Language Detective: sod.

In Memory of Osher Sosonkin

Rebijn Rebbe 14-7-2008 70x90, originally uploaded by egbert_egd.

He was dieing from the yener machale in his gut. He got really drunk on Shabbos and was screaming his heart out in the middle farbrengen on Shabbos. Yoel Kahan was gesturing for him to come down mipnei kovod haTeyre. And the Rebbe waved his hand, telling Yoelish to shut up. I remember this as it was yesterday.

The Young Women of the F.L.D.S.

Stephanie Sinclair/VII Network, for The New York Times: Inside the lives of some of the Yearning for Zion Ranch’s exiles.

Digg stood up by Google

Silicon alley insider: Why Google Isn't Spending $200 Million On Digg.

The Appeal of the Heel

The Times’s Bill Cunningham on the revival of high heels and gladiator-style sandals this summer in New York: AUDIO SLIDE SHOW.

the closet

7fatcow.com: skeletons in the closet. shitalphin writes:

"i, myself remember when reb shneur kotler's son aharon was running around like a vilder yung. who knows what he did back then and who knows about it. and who really cares about somebody's chat'as n'urim except when it causes these "leaders of klal yisroel" to remain mum about predators and rotzchim."

NY Times comes down on Rubashkin show in Iowa

Following a raid at an Iowa meatpacking plant, immigrants have described pervasive labor violations that experts say could result in criminal charges. JULIA PRESTON: After Iowa Raid, Immigrants Fuel Labor Inquiries.

An elephant foot left in a parking garage in Worcester, MA

Elephant Feet, originally uploaded by shesnuckinfuts.

They say the foot is not a fake; the foot was actually cut off an animal recently. The detectives are working on the case. Hmm…I was not aware of any unaccountable herds of wild elephants in Massachusetts??? May be it’s some threat or a signal from the republican mafia? Worcester Telegram & Gazette: Foot raises elephantine questions.

Ray Charles - The Long and Winding Road

Soul of the Holy Land August 1973 concert in Tel Aviv:

mosaic clown made of stone

Rebbe, originally uploaded by Deca_Bannitz.

Jewish girl Felicja Braun with her hands clasped in prayer

Studio portrait of a Jewish girl in hiding wearing her first communion dress kneeling on a bench with her hands clasped in prayer, originally uploaded by ~~*♥♥♥Michelle♥♥♥*~~~.

Felicja Braun (now Felicia Bryn) is the daughter of Dawid Braun and Bluma Gliksman Braun. She was born as on August 22, 1937 in Warsaw where her father was a physician. Originally from Kalisz, Dawid's grandfather was a well-known rabbi. Felicja's mother, Bluma Gliksman Braun (b. 1915 in Wielun) was a daughter of Rabbi Fajwel Gliksman, an Agudah Israel activist. Felicja's younger brother, Jurek (Jakub) was born in 1939. In September 1939 the family escaped the German bombardment of Warsaw to join the Braun family in Kalisz. On November 20, 1939, in order to make room for Baltic Volksdeutsche, the Germans evicted Jewish families and deported them to the Lublin district of the General Government. Following the deportation, several thousand additional Jews managed to escape from Kalisz and dispersed over many parts of Poland; the Brauns were among nearly 7,000 who found refuge in the Warsaw ghetto. Bluma's sister, Frajdla Frania Gliksman joined them there. On December 22, 1941 Bluma Braun died of typhus and was buried in at the Jewish cemetery on Okopowa Street. Dawid married his sister-in-law, Frania, soon after Bluma's death but lived on false papers on the Aryan side of Warsaw. Posing as Zygmunt Bakowski, he traded in the black market to bring extra food to his starving family in the ghetto. During one of the round-ups in the ghetto, Frania shoved Felicja and her three-year-old brother, Jurek, into a coal box. She pushed the coal box under the table and put a bucket with water on top. All the residents of the building were ordered out, and Frania hid in a bunker, leaving the children behind. Jurek cried desperately, but Felicja shoved her fist into his mouth and Jurek quieted down. The German soldiers searched the apartment, but did not discover them. Dr. Dawid Braun obtained false papers for his daughter, under the name of Felicja Garbarczyk. In the summer of 1942, Frania dressed Felicja in a new, light blue dress and told her that she was going to her grandmother. Felicja questioned this, knowing that her maternal grandmother lived in Grzeska, a large farm near Wielun. Aunt Frania told her to be an actress like Shirley Temple and lie about her real identity. Felicja left the Warsaw ghetto via the courthouse on Leszno Street, while a bribed guard looked the other way. She followed her aunt's instructions and arrived in a strange apartment led by a strange man. Her father arrived in the evening, and the next day he took her to an elderly woman, with whom Felicja stayed for a few weeks. During that time she learned the Catholic prayers. The strange man, who led her out of the ghetto accompanied Felicja on a to the village of Legionowo, near Warsaw. Dawid, Frania, and Jurek Braun hid in the forest nearby. A few weeks later, Felicja went to Chelm, near Lublin. During the journey German soldiers with dogs searched the train for Jews. Felicja laughed together with other passengers at the sight of attacked Jews, pretending that she was Shirley Temple. From Chelm, Felicja walked together with her strange guardian until they met Kazimierz Sroka on a bicycle, and he took her to Pogranicze village. Kazimierz and his wife, Leokadia, were a middle-aged childless couple. Dawid Braun arranged for this hiding place, promising Mr. Sroka a property and financial reward from an American relative. He gave the address of Nusyn Gliksman in the U.S. to Mr. Sroka, who in turn made Felicja memorize it. Once, Kazimierz's sister-in-law Pela threatened to denounce the family to the Gestapo for harboring a Jewish child. Felicja always remembered this scene and never talked to Pela again, even when the events were long forgotten by the family. As a result of this quarrel, the Srokas moved with Felicja to the village of Deniska. Kazimierz Sroka was strict with Felicja, but at the same time taught her to read and took good care of her. He even invited Krysia, a niece of his wife, to stay with them so that Felicja would have company. On Christmas 1942 Felicja's father, disguised as uncle Zygmunt, appeared in the Sroka household. He brought gifts for both girls, but made sure to bring nicer gifts for Krysia. On the last day of the visit, Dawid told his daughter to be a good Christian, and then sang a popular song for her: "This is the last Sunday. Today we part forever." In 1945, after liberation, the Srokas returned to their native village, Gowarzewo near Poznan, from which the Germans evicted them in 1939. Felicja maintained her Catholic identity. After the war, Felicja's maternal uncle, Nusyn Gliksman, corresponded with Kazimierz Sroka and requested that Mr. Sroka transfer Felicja to the auspices of the Central Jewish Committee, but Mr. Sroka refused to give Felicja up. In 1957, an Israeli diplomat acting on the behest of the Gliksman family approached him, but Felicja was already 19 years old. Felicja decided to immigrate to Israel but arrived still wearing her gold cross. Felicja felt that she was a Catholic and found it very difficult to adapt to a new life in a Jewish state, as a Jew. In 1959 Felicja met and married Nathan Bryn, a survivor of the Stalowa Wola concentration camp. After liberation Nathan studied opera and cantorial singing in the Salzburg Music School. The young couple moved to New York, where Nathan studied to become a rabbi, and Felicja adopted the Orthodox Jewish life style. Courtesy of www.ushmm.org

P.S. Son of Felicja, Rabbi Dovid Bryn Zal.

Death will be Breslov

Cimetière du Père-Lachaise, originally uploaded by Tribe.

I don’t think I ever met a Brelsover who is on balance an admirable human being (except Shlomo Aaaron perhaps). They all are so strung up on shtick that it is hard to find any remnants of humanity in them. The resultant monstrosity is an Uman bound graveyard of humor, desire and wit. Darkness animated by the rave of hisbodedus. A terminus of life. I dislike them intensely.

abandon these people forever

I have primitive social skills. But this dilemma presents itself again and again. I never hold a grudge and my instinct is always to approach people in hope of staring anew from a clean page. Inevitably the same unfortunate dynamic develops. Perhaps I am even the source of this dynamic but the resulting negative interaction leaves me no choice but to go away for good, to abandon these people forever.

The Beatles - The Long and Winding Road

Might be the best song ever written. Sir James Paul McCartney take on kol dodi dofek.

50-year-old Nancy Lieberman to play in WNBA

Dallas Morning News: WNBA's Shock signs 50-year-old Nancy Lieberman.

Forward to Shmarya

Forward.com: Blogger Focuses on Orthodox Foibles.
Forward.com: Public Relations Firm Criticized.

Massachusetts woman kills self before foreclosure

The Boston Globe: Facing foreclosure, Taunton woman commits suicide.
"... a suicide note found next to Balderrama told her husband, John, and 24-year-old son to "take the (life) insurance money and pay for the house." TIME: Woman Kills Self Before Foreclosure.

baal shem tov

, originally uploaded by Tribe.

red on yellow

GIGO, originally uploaded by baboon™.

kannoim not as they used to be?

Tzemach Tzedek said that "kannoy is a shlechter mentch" but humorless Hungarians are still perfecting the art. Life in Israel: kannoim of today compared to those of yesteryear.

Adriano Celentano - Aria... non sei più tu

Dennis Hopper and Chris Walken in True Romance

Remembering Rabbi Groner

ZoroIslamoYid commenting to mentalblog.com: Rabbi Yitzchok Dovid Groner & to further beatify the saint, let us not forget how he would spew words like "Fuck," and "Shit," and the like; how he would assiduously devour the New York Daily News like any good NY sports fan: right-to-left; how he would show off his bare fat stomach to anyone interested or not; and of course, how he would famously embarrass his wife nee Konikov in public (legendary havdalah story...), berate her, etc. etc.
ah, amolike gdoylim...

einikel of a masmid commenting to mentalblog.com: Groners - live as caricature, die as caricature: The day I became a feminist... I was 10 years old. Rabbi Groner from Australia came to our suburb to farbreng. My father took me along. Women were there too. Yes, as usual confined to the top floor, peeking down. They were talking. Groner stopped to farbreng and made a remark about the veiberz. Didn't understand it, but from the laughter of the chasidim to this remark, I understood it was cruel and cynical. I didn't laugh...

The disappointment of being a Jew

Social fabric is broken; instead of a