The "How You First Met" Meme

AbbaGav has tagged me with this meme, which originated with WestBankMama and was inspired by Treppenwitz.

There are a number of things I learned as a result of dating the girl I would marry, some of which I will happily share with you.

Rule #1: It's very important to have a good chevrusa: you never know, years later, how it may pay off.

I was teaching while living in Washington Heights in NY. One day I got a phone call from a friend--a former chevrusa from YU--who was now a Rabbi in a shul in Ohio. There was a girl in his shul that he wanted to set me up with. It sounded like an idea.

Rule #2: Learning Gemarah on the first date is a great ice breaker.

On our first phone date--the first of many by which we would help Bell Atlantic finance their merger with GTE--we learned together the sugya that I was teaching my students. As I remember it, things went rather well, although on subsequent phone dates we did crossword puzzles. One time while visiting friends, I tried to include her in a game of Trivial Pursuit--but that fell through and we just talked on the phone for hours.

Rule #3: No, they don't shoot horses--but that's no reason to ride them.

Finally came the time to meet. I flew out to Ohio in December during Chanukah. What stands out most in my mind is that we went horseback riding together.

The horses were so broken in that they knew exactly where the trail led and exactly where they wanted to go. They didn't care where we wanted to go, and effectively ignored anything we did to convince them otherwise: an effective warning of what married life should not be like.

Rule #4: Stay out of Harlem

When she flew to New York, it was her first time in the Big Apple. She arrived at night and I picked her up to bring her over to friends where she would be staying. She thought New York City looked beautiful at night, what with all the lights shining all around the city as the plane landed.

On the way back to Washington Heights I got lost--in Harlem--and New York City prompted lost a lot of its charm.

Oops.

Rule #5: Rabbis wearing clown noses lose a degree of believability

Months later I proposed to my wife on Purim while visiting again in Ohio--since her sense of direction was better than mine, it seemed safer to visit on her home turf. We then went to the Purim seudah, which was at her shul. I told the Rabbi--my former chevrusah--that we were engaged. He announced it: and everybody laughed. Since he was wearing a clown nose and Mickey Mouse ears, people just assumed he was kidding.

He had to announce it a second time in shul on Shabbos so that people would take him seriously.

My friend, the Chevrusah, was the Mesader Kiddushin. We go back to Ohio at least once a year to visit family--and to visit my friend, who kept his Chevrusah in mind.

I'm passing this meme on to Psycho Toddler

Technorati Tag: Memes.

Watch --The Meme

Soccer Dad tagged me with the watch meme: what watch do I wear.

I don't wear a watch.

Its not for biological or health reasons--my wrist does not react badly to leather or metal wristbands.

Its not for mechanical reasons--the watches I've had did not break easily or mysteriously.

At some point I just got out of the habit of wearing a watch.
When I really need to know the time, I just take a look at my cellphone.

I've also developed the habit that when I need to know what time it is, I first try to guess the time--and then look at my cellphone or a nearby clock or the computer.

I'm usually right within 10-15 minutes, which is as accurate as I need.

It's a talent.

Like now.

Some sixth sense tells me its time to end this post.

Uncanny.

I'm tagging:

Herut
I'm Haaretz, Ph.D.
Le Mont De Sisyphe
Psycho Toddler

Late Lag B'Omer Mini-Meme

I just found out this morning that I had been tagged by SerandEz with this meme.
The first song I listened to on Lag B'Omer was:

Sing, Dance, and Play.
Followed by The Alphabet Song and Happy and You Know It.

My daughter commandeers the CD player in the morning, and these were the first 3 songs on the CD.

In self-defense, we gave her a pair of headphones and showed her how to plug them in--

She's also into Schlock Rock.

Israel Meme Roundup

Based on a thought that came to me during Shabbos, I had an idea for an Israel Meme. After passing it on to a few people, I tried to track down all the people who took it upon themselves to take part in it. I don't know if I got everybody--please email me if you did and I somehow missed you--but here are the posts that I tracked down who took part in the meme...and some others who just have great posts on Israel:


SerandEz writes about a hitch & a prayer

Soccer Dad writes cisterns and the uniqueness of Israel

Sweet Rose writes about a moving experience Friday night at the Kotel

Ezer K'Negdo writes about her experiences in Nachla'ot

The Hashmonean shares his experience Sabra Picking

Perspectives of a Nomad writes on learning about Har Gilboa

Ocean Guy writes about some of his experiences in Israel in his helicopter

My World: writes about a moment during Succos 2003

Search for Emes, who has never been to Israel, relates his imaginary trip to Israel

Erica's Blog writes about Shabbat at the Kotel

My Obiter Dicta: has a link to Israel's former ambassador to Great Britain and his account of how he heard about Israel's establishment- while waiting for Iraqi troops to attack

Random Thoughts writes about his experience as a 16-year old living in Israel for the summer

ConservaJew writes about her experience visting Israel as a 17-year old

SerandEz also links to some other great posts:

I'm Haaretz PhD has an excellent post which also has the recording of Israel taking over the Old City of Jerusalem, which is incredibly moving... and BeyondBT linked to a heart-wrenching story on Aish titled "The Rabbi & The Professor".

JoeSettler asks the tough question about why more people aren't moving to Israel en masse... a sharp, excellent post...

And Rafi G discusses the juxtaposition of Yom HaZikaron & Yom Ha'atzma'ut.

Technorati tag: Israel and Yom Haatzmaut and Israel Independence Day.

Israel Meme

With Yom Haatzmaut just hours away, I wanted to start a meme--an Israel meme.
I thought it would be a good opportunity to share together experiences we have had in Israel or stories we have heard.

The first time I visited Israel was when I was a Junior at Columbia University. I took a year off and as part of a special third year program I attended Hebrew University.

I arrived during the summer and attended an Ulpan. I was dorming on the Givat Ram campus in Shichunai HaElef--fondly referred to as Shichunei HaKelev. I arrived late and found that the room-mate I was assigned to was a Seventh Day Adventist; I travelled half way around the world to come to Eretz Yisrael to room with a Seventh Day Adventist. We once had an argument about curse words. He claimed that the optimum word to use was "Fah" which was in itself not dirty but conveyed the same thought as actual curse words. For my part, I claimed that "Fah" would never do because any decent curse word ends in a hard consonant. Oh to be young again..

At the start of the school year, the group of college students I was with was moved to the Har HaTzofim campus. Again I was among the last, and assigned to a separate floor away from my group. As a result of a conflict with the room-mate I ended up with, I asked to be moved, and because there was no other place for me in that dorm, I was assigned to another set of dorm/apartments used by New Olim.

It was amazing to be among Jews from Spain, France, Portugal, South Africa--and Sabras--all together. There was a tremendous sense of Chevra. I was invited to a Sheva Brachas of a newly married French couple I had never met. My Hebrew was marginally bettter than my French. Someone taught me to say "Je ne comprapa l'francais" ("I don't know French"). I spent most of that evening saying "Mazal Tov...Je ne comprapa l'francais!"

We would go on tiyulim, have all kinds of discussions, and share Shabbos meals with each other.
More frum, less frum; Sephardi, Ashkenazi--and political views that ran the gamut.
It was a great Chevra.

It was a great year.

Oh to be young again.
And in Israel.

See also links to those who participated at Israel Meme Roundup

I tag SerandEz, Soccer Dad, Meryl Yourish, and Jack's Shack.

The A-Z Meme

The A-Z Meme

Soccer Dad, passed on this meme to me...

Accent:
Joisey. (with a faint hint of Brooklyn--so dey telz me.)

Booze.
For the 4 kosos--JoyVin red and white. But I miss the Manischewitz Malaga

Chore I Hate:
I can choose only one? How about cleaning for Pesach?

Dogs/Cats:
None now, but as a kid we had both:

o Friskey (cat; he predated the cat food)
o GG Mittens Tranquility (cat; my mother named her. GG for Gorgeous Girl. Mittens, because she was a mutant with 6 toes on one front paw and 7 on the other. Tranquility, because she was born in 1969 on the day they landed on the moon)
o Champ Muttel Kelev Klugge-Kup (dog)

All things considered, I got off pretty lucky.

Essential Electronics:
My alarm clock--so I can keep my job that pays for this computer.

Favorite Perfume/Cologne:
The sweet smell of success

Gold & Silver:
Nope. Haven't won the bronze either.

Hometown:
Born in Brooklyn

Insomnia:
Blogging is the cure...and the cause.

Job Title:
Webmaster

Kids:
one so far.

Living Arrangements:
we're married, thank you.

Most Admired Trait
They're all recessive

Number of Sexual Partners:
Monogamist, thank you.

Overnight Hospital Stays:
Well, there's the day I was born...

Phobia:
Having overcome my fear of baby diapers, there is nothing else that makes my skin crawl.

Quote:
Incongruity is the springboard of laughter (Peter's Quotations)

Religion:
Jewish.

Siblings:
2 cats and one dog (see Dogs/Cats above)

Time I Usually Wake Up:
10 minutes after the alarm goes off; 5 minutes after my wife asks me "didn't you hear the alarm?".

Unusual Talent:
sleeping through everything: storms, my daughter crying in my arms, and other things that I can't tell you since I slept through them.

I have also fallen asleep while listening to: an alarm clock, my room mate playing his trumpet, and the suicide scene in the opera Madame Butterfly.

Vegetable I Refuse To Eat:
Okra (does anyone really eat it?)

Worst Habit:
Not answering questions directly

X-Rays:
No, my eyes don't emit anything of the sort. You must have me confused with someone else.

Yummy Foods I Make:
Plain omelets.
Cheese omelets.
Mushroom omelets.
Cheese and mushroom omelets.
Onion omelets
Cheese and onion omelets
(you get the picture)

Zodiac Sign:
Aries.

...and I will pass it on to WestBankBlog, I'm Haaretz, Ph.D., Life-Of-Rubin, Psycho Toddler.

I Confess Meme

Soccer Dad has tagged me

I confess...to an addiction to Israeli style tuna salad

I confess...to developing an addition to imitation crab (What is surimi anyway?)

I confess...to being the last to leave after-school when I pick up my daughter because I'm too buy watching the latest movie they are running for the kids

I confess...that after listening to Torah tapes in my car for 2 years (often 3-4 times each) I am constantly amazed at how much I have...forgotten.

I confess...to being the one who finished off the Marshmallow Fluff

I confess...I miss watching Laurel and Hardy in The March of the Wooden Soldiers on Thanksgiving

I confess...I have still not finished writing thank-you notes for my Bar-Mitzvah gifts

I confess...to having run out of things to confess...for now

Now tagged with this exercise: Random Thoughts, Mere Rhetoric, and A Whispering Soul