art

Getting my money’s worth

Here are some more of my “masterpieces” from my Figure Drawing class. My patience was wearing a little thin this week with beginning every work with contour drawing (ie, outlining the figure). Plus, the teacher kept trying to coerce me to make up fantastical landscapes in the back of the figure instead of leaving the… Continue reading Getting my money’s worth

culture/multiculturalism · Hispanics/Latinos · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · New York

Representing…

Bess Greenberg/New York TimesYosef Abrahamson, 16, right, with his mother, Dinah, and his sister, Sarah, near their home in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. An recent article, “A Young Man From Omaha, Who May Perfectly Represent Brooklyn,” by Susan Dominus for the New York Times Big City section portrays an interesting picture of some Jews of Color… Continue reading Representing…

art · chronic pain/fibromyalgia · medications · rabbi · writing

Naked People

I’m taking a Figure Drawing class out here in what my rabbi calls, “La la land.” I’ll admit that it’s strange to be classmates with George Clooney’s landscaper. Plus, I learned in my writing class that when people say they’re “in the industry,” they mean Hollywood. The class, which is held at a local community… Continue reading Naked People

art · Beverly Hills · garden · Los Angeles · writing

Where Does Your Garden Grow

I was whisked away to a garden in a Beverly Hills backyard yesterday. It’s part of my Los Angeles education program, which so far includes writing classes, art classes, driving lessons and garden-hopping. Above is a collage of the photos that nearly took out my Blackberry when I tried to email them to friends! The… Continue reading Where Does Your Garden Grow

babies and pregnancy · birthday · culture/multiculturalism · depression · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · marriage

Making a baby?

Inspired by a line from Juno where the main character, a pregnant teen, refers to herself as a “cautionary whale.” Available at http://teewit.com. Motherhood is hard. And I don’t just mean raising the babies. I mean having them. I mean trying to have them. And yes, raising them is hard, too. After finishing up a… Continue reading Making a baby?

chronic pain/fibromyalgia · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news · rabbi

Deaf need not apply?

An article published on YNET, a couple of weeks ago, disclosed that a rabbi on the Chief Rabbinical court once ruled that deaf people are ineligible for conversion to Judaism. No matter what the rabbi’s views may be, the whole matter comes off as a matter of discrimination against those with disabilities. And worst, this… Continue reading Deaf need not apply?

funny · Israel · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · New York · news

Circumcise me

Circumcise Me: The Comedy of Yisrael Cambpell will make its debut this month on The Jewish Channel. The film features ultra-Orthodox Jewish comedian Yisrael Campbell, formerly Chris Campbell, doing his hilarious stand-up comedy routine and discussing his journey to Judaism as well as his life in Israel since converting to Judaism (three times no less).… Continue reading Circumcise me

birthday · culture/multiculturalism · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · marriage · New York · news · prayer

Getting my virginity back

Red Canna by Georgia O’Keeffe An article in today’s New York Times, In Europe, Debate Over Islam and Virginity, explores a debate over Islam and virginity that has broken out in Europe recently. In France, a Muslim man asked to have his marriage annulled when it came to light on his wedding night that his… Continue reading Getting my virginity back

babies and pregnancy · chronic pain/fibromyalgia · depression · rabbi

The Wrong Place @ the Wrong Time

My husband’s yeshiva is studying “The Rabbi and People with Disabilities” in various different lectures throughout the week. The topic of people with disabilities obviously interests us because I struggle daily with fibromyalgia and all the wonders of living with chronic pain and the ensuing ferocious battle against depression. To say that I am a… Continue reading The Wrong Place @ the Wrong Time

movies · writing

The Iron Man Review

The movie website I was hoping would quickly post my Iron Man review seems to be experiencing technical difficulties so below is the text of that review. It’s not my best review yet but I’m just getting my feet wet again. Hopefully, writing movie reviews is like riding a bicycle! Update 6/10/02:My Iron Man review… Continue reading The Iron Man Review