Zionism

The Step-Motherland

September 9, 2009

I’m back from the motherland!  Well, not really the motherland, because I technically wasn’t born there.  But it’s like a motherland to me because Israel is the Jewish homeland or whatever.  So I guess you could say Israel is like the step-motherland because Israel gets custody of me every couple of years.  And only on the weekends. Anyway, the reason that I went this time is because A)I was in desperate need of vacation to the point  where I was ...

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Book Review: Shush! Growing up Jewish Under Stalin

June 16, 2009

Have you ever read any books that perfectly articulate how you see the world?  Books that you can show to your friends when you don’t feel like explaining your life view and say, “Here, read this, and you will understand me?”  Shush, A Memoir-Growing up Jewish under Stalin by Emil Draitser, is such a book for me. There are a couple of books that really explain what being Russian/Jewish is all about:  From Lenin to Lennon, Sashenka, and  The Russian ...

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I have a love/hate relationship with A.B. Yehoshua

April 20, 2009

Last night, Mr. B and I went to go see A.B. Yehoshua at Sixth and I.  I can’t believe how much they’ve completely renovated what was a stale building and community somewhere on the outskirts of Chinatown to a vibrant focal meeting point for all kinds of DC Jews and at the caliber of speakers they tend to garner.  I am constantly impressed at the amount of work they do on their brand, especially to engage people in their 20s-30s ...

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Turtle quandary and the fight between Hebrew and Yiddish

February 17, 2009

I’ve been all around with clients, caught up in Valetine’s Day, and generally thinking of other good excuses to slack. For today, I have two deep questions to ponder. The first, is shown below: What the heck do I do with this turtle? I bought it at Target at their after-Valentine’s-Day sale, and thought it might be useful as a serving dish, as well as possibly a change collector, a wall decoration, an impromptu plate, and possibly a planter, although ...

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Movie Review: Waltz with Bashir (ואלס עם בשיר)

February 2, 2009

Ever since I heard about this movie on NPR, I couldn’t wait to see it. The movie, shot in haunting, dark cartoon style , is about the narrator, Ari Folman, and his experiences during and after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982. EDIT: Thanks to Matt for pointing out that it was NOT rotoscoping, as I initially thought, but REAL animation, not taken from live shots, which is even more amazing. It begins as he meets with a friend ...

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