Tomorrow’s the First Night of Hanukkah!

At sundown tomorrow night Jews around the world will be lighting their first Hanukkah Candles.  I’ll be lighting mine with my conversion class before speeding off to a work Holiday Party but in the spirit of those 8 Crazy Nights, some Hanukkah Videos and songs. I can’t get this one to load on my page [...]

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Is a Hanukkah List too much like a Christmas List?

There are 2 nights until we light our first Hanukkah candles.  I’m testing-driving my Hanukkah party music, 1/3 Hanukkah songs by the LeeVees, Barenaked Ladies, and some amazing Hanukkah swing music if you can believe it.   1/3 Christmas Carols that don’t mention Christ, Jesus, Babies, Angels, or Miracles.  1/3 really great jams by Lauren Hill, Jill Scott, [...]

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3 Days Until Hanukkah

I’m planning a Hanukkah party with Mirs for the 3rd night of Hanukkah.  I’ve not quite settled on my menu, although I know that it will have very strong Middle Eastern influences.  My two Jewish cookbooks are Sephardic and I’ve always been a fan of Middle Eastern flavors, so it seems appropriate.  The third night [...]

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Turkey Day!

Today is Thanksgiving.  There’s nothing particularly Jewish about it.  It’s definitely one of only a few secular Holidays on the Calendar that most people, in the United States celebrate.  Whether you’re a Jew, Christian, or Muslim if you’re American or a displaced American in another land you are going to belly up to a large [...]

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Resources for LGBTQ Jews

It’s almost been a month since I gave my talk at Be’chol Lashon.  We’re scheduled to meet next week, the first day of Hanukkah, a day that I’m booked three ways in the evening.  It’s my last day of my conversion class for this trimester.  It’s my “office” party, and it’s the Be’Chol Lashon Hanukkah party/meeting.  I have [...]

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Another “new” Black Orthodox Jew to add to the Fold and What I got from Amazon Today

According to the BBC News the rapper Shyne, from P-Diddy nightclub shooting fame has emerged from his 10 year jail sentence as a Chasidic Jew.  Born of an Ethiopian Jewish mother in Belize, Shyne, or Moshe ben David-his Hebrew name, decided to put down the guns and pick up the Torah while in prison.  I’ll be honest, I have [...]

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Challah and Matzo Balls

Two things that are synonymous with Jews and Kosher-style Delis.  Every Friday night we make our way to Avenue J(ew) to buy our Shabbat supplies; Challah and wine.  This week we added one Kosher Chicken, a bunch of herbs, and a menorah and Hanukkah candles.  The Chicken and herbs are for the Matzo Ball Soup recipe that [...]

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The Jewish Funeral and other things I learned in Conversion Class tonight

If you haven’t gathered, the first trimester of my conversion class was all about the Jewish Life Cycles.  We learned about birth, baby naming, brit, bar/bat mitzvah ( I missed that day but just so you know you become a bar/bat mitzvah, you don’t have one), wedding, and today-Death.  Dum-dum.  Not only is it the [...]

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The Case for Christmas

Yesterday Mirs and I had an intense and impassioned discussion about Christmas.  I’m not sure how the topic was brought up while we enjoyed brunch after hours of spending money to help improve NYC’s economy in SoHo (shopping).  We sat down at a cute brunch location on Elizabeth street and ordered food.  By the time [...]

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I am Noah Aronson’s #1 Fan

Hi Noah. I suppose it’s only right to explain the title for this blog.  If you’ve not heard of Noah Aronson then you must be living under a rock, you’re not Jewish, or you really like your traditional Jewish music.  Noah is a composer of both Jewish and secular music and is currently in Canada, if I’m not [...]

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