Interesting set off toys found in a silver pan tray.
A couple of dogs, some Play-Doh, a crayon, and a fighter plane.
Off to the side (not pictured) are the Legos.
Interesting with what competes with video games and phone apps these days.
(Note: 85% of the world’s toys are now made in China!)
Frankly, there is still a lot to be said for the creative play of yesteryear. 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
So I was asked do you spell week with a “W” or a “V.”
I guess sometimes it does sound like we say veek.
Someone else told me that they are divorced and that person is still a “dark force” in their life.
They said they have to pay child support but can’t afford it.
It’s not like I still earn $55,000 like I used to.
But if they don’t pay…
Well my ex will just refuse to let me see my son!
People have tough lives.
So when you think about your week, hopefully in context, you can resolutely say that you had a good veek.
Shabbat Shalom! 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Great song: David and Shaul from Ehud Banay’s third album, ”The Third/Hashlishi”
The song is about the “bipolar” feelings of King Saul toward David (then the next king of Israel).
Here are the lyrics:
כולם מזמן הלכו לישון
רק שאול ער, קודר
מרים לדוד טלפון
A late-night hour
Everyone is long gone to sleep
Only Shaul is awake, cheerless
He calls David up over the phone
אולי תקפוץ אלי, יא דוד
נפשי אגם שחור
תביא איתך את הגיטרה
כי באצבעותיך אור
Maybe you should stop by, Ya David
My soul is a black lake
Bring the guitar with you
For you have light in your fingers
דוד בא מיד רגוע,
מתיישב ומכוון
את המלאכה היטב יודע
עוצם עיניים, מנגן
David comes right away and he is calm
Sit down and tunes (the guitar)
The job he well knows
Closes his eyes, he plays
עשר אצבעות לדוד
קצה כל אצבע – קרן אור
כשהוא פורט על המיתר
הזמן זורם לו לאחור
Ten fingers David has
The tip of each one – a ray of light
When he port on the string
The time is flowing backwards
שאול מבפנים קרוע
קרבות בתוך בטנו
אוהב-שונא, ומקנא
מכור לחברו
Shaul is torn inside
Battles in his stomach he has
Love-hate, and jealous he is
Addicted to his friend
דבר מה אפל נופל
השד חוזר להשתולל
סכין נזרקת באוויר
פתאום יש בין השנים קיר
Something dark falls
The demon is back to a rage
A knife is thrown in the air
Suddenly there is a wall between the two
דוד מתחמק משאול
אבל שאול לא מוותר
דוד שוכח וסולח
כששאול מתקשר
David is avoiding Shaul
But Shaul is not giving up
David forget and forgives
When Shaul call up
בוא שוב לנגן לי דוד
קח אותי לכוכבים
בוא שוב לנגן הלילה
שיר געגועים
Come again to play to me David
Take me to the stars
Come again to play tonight
A song of longing
בוא שוב לנגן הלילה…
Come again and play tonight..
בוא שוב לנגן הלילה
שיר געגועים…
Come again and play tonight..
A song of longing..
(Kudos to my Ulpan teacher, Rivka D. for sending me the video and to Izchak, my wonderful son-in-law, for providing the Hebrew/English lyrics)
This is one incredible parody video of what robotic warriors of the future will be able to do.
The robot takes an incredible beating and never misses a shot!
They even hit him numerous times with a battering ram for Pete’s sake.
Also, amazed that none of the actors in this video ended up taking a bullet or two.
Wow, the future is going to be amazing. 😉
(Thank you to my wonderful son-in-law for sending this to me)
There is just something so crazy funny about this Simpsons’ painting.
Homer is mad as h*ll and has Bart by throat!
Bart is screaming for help.
It so funny how art imitates life.
Where people drive others $%#&^*)* crazy.
And the other person just wants to wring their freakin’ neck.
Yeah, this never really happens. 😉
(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
In honor of the amazing (2nd to last) episode last night of Game of Thrones…
I am posting this artistic Dragon.
That dragon last night sure was able to do a lot of damage.
It was a very dramatic and sad episode.
I won’t give it away.
But an air force of dragons can certainly do quite well.
Dropping some serious firepower is what they do. 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
Our nation is increasingly polarized with little to no tolerance of others wants, thinking, or actions.
– First under Obama.
– Then with the election between Hillary and Trump.
– And now over Judge Kavanaugh.
The result has been some of the worst behaviors seen since the Civil War–with not only disrespect, restrictions on freedom of expression, but even threats and actual violence!
This nation is no longer the UNITED States, but much more like the DIVIDED States.
And that just plays into our enemies hands and could lead us to eventually lose our very democracy to totalitarianism, dictatorship, and tyranny.
So now may be a good time to review for yourself how many biases are driving your thought processes and behaviors and creating dangerous fundamentalists and extremists all around us instead of thoughtful dialogue, negotiation, and compromise.
Here are 20 biases that may be affecting you more than you realize:
– Do you overestimate the importance of the information you have or feel good about (Anchoring, Availability, and Choice-Supportive Biases)?
– Do you seek out and perceive information that simply validates your preconceptions (Information,
Confirmation, and Selective Perception Bias)?
– Do you overemphasize information that is more recent or recognizable (Recency and Salience Biases)?
– Are you ignoring information that doesn’t “fit your script” (Ostrich Effect/Omission and Conservatism Bias)?
– Are you tied up in the groupthink of your peers (Bandwagon Effect)?
– Do you see patterns in random events or conspiracies that don’t exist (Clustering Illusion)?
– Are you overconfident in your thought process and conclusions (Overconfidence Bias)?
– Do you tend to overvalue the usefulness or success of something, but not recognize its limitations or failures (Pro-Innovation and Survivorship Bias)?
– Do you fail to take risks because you prefer certainty (Zero-Risk Bias)?
– Does your thinking something will happen actually cause it to happen (Placebo Effect)?
– Do you use the ends to justify the means (Outcome Bias)?
– Do you judge people by their race, class, gender, religion, sexual preferences, or national origin (Stereotyping)?
– Do you fail to recognize your own biases (Blind-Spot Bias)?
Perhaps if more people would open their minds to information and engage in genuine thinking and critical thinking, rather than a lot of fake news and hype, we would be a far better and stronger nation. 😉
(Source Graphic: Business Insider)
So many synagogues have this important saying at the top of the Holy Ark where the Torahs are kept in front of the shul.
It says, translated into English:
“Know before who you are standing (i.e. G-d).”
The idea is to remember when you are in the holy place of worship that you are standing and praying before G-d and should conduct yourself appropriately and with respect and reverence.
While certainly there are times when people forget themselves in the synagogue and say or do something not completely appropriate (e.g. socializing, talking, or even telling jokes to their neighbors during the service), usually it is not intended to be disrespectful, but rather to be friendly with their neighbors and community.
However, this past Shabbat I witnessed behavior in the synagogue (name withheld) that was truly a chillul Hashem (desecration of G-d).
Out of respect for the Rabbi (and Rabbabite), I will neither mention their names or go into the details about what happened except to say that it involved the politics surrounding the end of the Rabbi’s 3-year term and the inability for him and the board to come to terms on a new agreement (even though one had apparently been signed and reneged on).
This did not belong in the synagogue on the holy Shabbat, period.
Those embracing and kissing the Rabbi in his support and going against the President and the board that is elected to represent the congregation was disgraceful.
Further, while I support the Rabbi saying his farewells, demanding to speak without the permission of the President and the board, and even before the President gave his regular announcements was inexcusable.
And when the fighting between the Rabbi and President brought yelling and fighting to the congregants, this should have been a sign for that behavior to immediately cease.
The desecration of the “peace” of the Shabbat with the politics, money, and contract issues and the ensuing fighting (almost civil war between those supporting the Rabbi and those the President and the board) before the Holy Ark filled with the Torahs was reprehensible.
For the spiritual leadership to behave in such a crude and disrespectful fashion was a mark of utter disgrace in the synagogue before G-d.
I have never seen anything like this before and hope never to have to witness anything so irreverent again.
This was a most traumatic event for the community and I hope we will recover in time and have a complete healing.
Moreover, I pray that G-d forgives the behavior that happened and has mercy on this congregation because things got out of control and I think they forgot before whom they were standing. 😉
(Source Photo and not of the synagogue under discussion: Andy Blumenthal)
So the scariest people in the world are the sadistic ones.
They are the ones without empathy.
They get pleasure from hurting others.
Yes, we all hurt other people sometimes.
But it’s different when we do it by accident or when we feel bad about our wrongful actions.
Sadistic people don’t just not feel bad or regret…
Instead, they actually savor watching others suffer and squirm.
Other people’s pain and misfortune are what gives them their energy and happiness.
Rather than working on themselves, they rather put down others.
“I’m better, because your worse or because I kick your a*s!”
What types of people are these?
They are not really human.
They are lacking genes for empathy.
They are lacking a holy soul.
They are cold, calculated, and hateful.
While it wonderful to see some people seek love and peace.
It is disturbing to see those that run after hate and harm.
Your loss is their gain.
Your pain is their pleasure.
Your tears are their springs.
Your cries are their laughter.
Why did G-d put these sub-humans in this world?
Perhaps to test us humans.
Can we maintain dignity, integrity, and humanity among the beasts of hell?
We can, but like others that have gone before us, we bear the mark of fighting with the devil.
The devils live among us, but we must still strive to be angels before man and G-d. 😉
(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)
This couple is arguing loudly in front of everyone on the Metro in Washington, D.C.
She claims the coming baby is his, and that he needs to take a paternity test.
He says it’s impossible that it’s his because she’s 3 months pregnant and they haven’t had sex in 5 months!
This goes on and on in a most hilarious and boisterous way, and they even try and involve some of the innocent bystanders on the train.
Always a show in this crazy town and it’s not just the politics! 😉
(Source Video: Andy Blumenthal)
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