Saturday, September 2, 2023
I’ve been to innumerable Jewish synagogue services over the centuries. Usually, I come away with a list of dislikes. Last night’s service at Temple Israel Natick, part of the weekend’s celebration of grandson Noam’s Bar Mitzvah, left me with a strong positive — Rabbi Raysh Weiss, new to the congregation. Previously, in conjunction with her husband, Rabbi Jonah Rank, she served at a synagogue in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where the lox comes from. Originally from Skokie, Illinois, he from Livingston, New Jersey, they spent three years in an area that was well less than 1% Jewish. That had to be a considerable challenge to their rabbinic skill set. To my mind, they came through it with their spiritual values and sense of humor intact.
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If I were a Republican, I would never apologize, but I’m not, so I will. Last week, I intended to punctuate my comment on attending the March on Washington 60 years ago with this photograph taken there by a reporter from the Ithaca Journal. Technical problems intervened, which I could have avoided. So, 60 years and one week later, here I am.
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Back to synagogue this morning, where Noam chanted prayers and read Torah in flawless Hebrew, loudly and clearly. The entire second and third generations participated actively as well, with the added bonus of the matriarch chanting a section of the Torah reading. In all, the day was a huge success.
Sunday, September 3, 2023
A phrase that you don't hear much anymore is "Two can live as cheaply as one." This study shows how cheaply one can live as one. https://www.
And, it seems that in some places it might take two to earn enough for one. For instance, a living wage in Hawaii amounts to $112,411, that is to "pay for necessities and a few nice-to-have purchases, and stash money into savings." On the other hand, $45,906 is a living wage in Mississippi, if you call that living. 50 weeks at 40 hours each would require an hourly wage of $22.95 there, while Mississippi's minimum wage is $7.25. That leaves an annual shortfall of $31,400 in order to enjoy the Magnolia State.
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We parted from children, grandchildren, brother and sister-in-law, nieces and nephews, machatunim (ask Stony Brook Steve to explain), ex-relatives, friends and acquaintances for a pleasant drive home.
Monday, September 3, 2023
If you're a neat freak, you'll pay attention to this "analysis of 12.3 million sanitation-related 311 complaints placed over the last 365 days to reveal the dirtiest cities in America."
While Baltimore takes the schmutzig award, I'm quite surprised that the Holy Land only ranks 17th. Even to my overly myopic eyes, things are hardly neat and clean around here and my fellow citizens are not the type to remain stumm in the face of unpleasant conditions.
Tuesday, September 4, 2023
The wit and wisdom of Justice Clarence Thomas. "Thomas also acknowledged he’d 'inadvertently omitted' bank accounts now valued at more than $100,000 from his annual financial disclosures dating back to 2017, due to what he called 'a misinterpretation of the rules.'"
Wednesday, September 5, 2023
The Boyz Club changed direction today and went uptown to lunch at Moon Kee, 2642 Broadway (100th Street), the local branch of a successful Hong Kong operation. Except, it hasn't opened yet, we discovered as we stood on the hot sidewalk at midday. Fortunately, there was a nearby alternative, Dim Sum Bloom, 2596 Broadway, the origin of the name somewhat a mystery. Unlike the typical neighborhood Chinese restaurant, it offers an extensive choice of dim sum. In fact, it has two groups of lunch specials, 19 regular dishes with choice of soup and side dish (spring roll, edamame or kim chee) ($14.95-16.95) or any three dim sum plus soup ($14.95), a big bargain considering that the 28 dim sum items cost $9.95 or more individually.
Our ordering turned out to be a bit chaotic, some choosing regular entrees, some picking dim sum, resulting in an uneven flow of food over a 20 minute period. We started in an orderly fashion, two orders of Cold Noodle with Sesame Paste for the five of us ($11.95 each), nothing special. With the random arrival of food, I had some of mine, some of his, duck dumpling, shrimp dumpling, Jing Chong Baked Vegetable Bun, truffle shrimp shumai, honey roast pork bun, scallion pancake, vegetable dumpling, all good when they eventually hit the table.
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Mammas, Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Lawyers. In the FTX bankruptcy proceeding, Sullivan & Cromwell is charging up to $595 for paralegals and $2,165 for partners. https://www.
Thursday, September 6, 2023
Thinking about it, those Sullivan & Cromwell lawyers must be awfully good. Imagine what they could accomplish for Tennessee’s Indigent Defense Fund.
They would have to work fast though, because they would reach the statutory billing rate in under 84 seconds.
Glad you enjoyed our neighborhood
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