Nightmares are probably the strangest sign that you’ve really cast your lot with the Jewish people. But they seem to be universal: everyone begins to have nightmares about Nazis, the Holocaust, or other anti-Semitism. [I don’t think anyone dreams about the Cossacks.] It seems unavoidable. Interestingly (and in my totally unscientific opinion), I believe it’s one of […]
Signs You’ve Made It: Nightmares Read Post »
Today, just a funny quote from a singles event that was advertised on Facebook: “This is a Machmir event for Machmir Singles, Ages: Guys 24-32 and Girls 23-28, FREE for Full time learners & Rabbinical Students.” Who knew I lost Ladies’ Night privileges when I became all machmir? Also, can it really be that machmir
Adventures in Machmir Dating Read Post »
Just as there are many baalei teshuva who read this blog, there are many conversion candidates reading Beyond Teshuva, a blog created for BTs. [Grammar note: notice that the plural of BTs is not BT’s. That’s your dose of my crazy for the day.] Last week, Beyond Teshuva had a great breakdown of the kinds
Do You Have an Adequate Support System? Read Post »
Spend some time with the people who make you happy!
Happy Thanksgiving! Read Post »
Thanks to the ever-helpful Lifehacker blog, I came across this Psychology Today article: Are You Teaching People to Treat You Badly? Essentially, a psychological theory says that if you don’t “punish” people who treat you badly, they become conditioned to treating you badly. They think it’s ok to treat you badly. As a dog trainer, this is
Does the Squeaky Wheel Get the Grease? Read Post »
Do you feel inferior because you can’t read Hebrew at the speed of light like your congregation? No need to feel that way. A) It’ll come. Really. Just keep slogging through it. Lest you think I’m being dismissive, I assure you I’m right there with you, struggling to read at a non-embarrassing speed. I spend
Feel Bad About Your Hebrew? Don’t! Read Post »
On another occasion it happened that a certain conversion candidate came before a rabbi and said to him, “Make me tznius in a New York City winter, on condition that you teach me all your fashion secrets while I stand on one foot.” Thereupon he repulsed her with the builder’s cubit which was in his
Tznius Women and Winter Weather Read Post »
I’m happy to report that I’ve passed both the New York and New Jersey bar exams! Next on the list is the California bar exam in July 2012! However, I remain an unlicensed attorney while the bureaucrats go through the paperwork. So don’t send me your legal questions 😛 Unfortunately, the job hunt continues.
Management Update: Bar Exams Read Post »
This is an interesting issue that came up in a comment, and I thought it deserved its own post. Why can’t you finish a conversion so long as you live a significant walking distance from shul? To start, what distance ARE they looking for? Typically, you are alright if you are living “within the eruv,”
Why Batei Din Are Opposed to You Living Long Distances from Synagogue Read Post »
There is a lesson that many conversion candidates and newly religious Jews are not told until they’ve made a fool of themselves: There are different interpretations of halacha, and it’s possible for all these interpretations to be halachically valid and accepted. In other words, the modern orthodox, the “just plain orthodox,” the chassidim, and the
Lessons from Hillel: There Is Generally No One “Right” Way in Halacha Read Post »