Before Hubbie and I got hitched, our rabbi had us read a book by Maurice Lamm, The Jewish Way in Love & Marriage. I had already read books on taharat mispacha, the Jewish laws of family purity, and the laws and the mindset behind tzniut, the laws of modesty, and shomer negia, observing the rules… Continue reading It’s in his kiss
I didn’t grow up hearing many stereotypes about Jews, I just knew that we (Dominicans) didn’t like them. The focus was more on the fact that Jews didn’t believe in Jesus and therefore, wouldn’t be saved. No Jesus, no free pass to heaven. At least, that was more of the focus than say the stereotype… Continue reading When Dominicans Haggle…
Ellen Page was robbed! ROOOOBBBBBEEEEDDDD! Why wasn’t Amy Adams singing all her songs from Enchanted? (And why weren’t songs with less hilarious lyrics chosen this year?) And is Javier Bardem Latino because he’s a Spaniard? Yes! (Well, Wikipedia says so.) Spanish white boys are Latinos, too! Damn I should have seen that French film. Seriously,… Continue reading Oscars Recap Numero Uno
Part of Aliza’s Series on Race Relations! See previous: White People Sensititivy Training According to Latina magazine, there’s a new show on Broadway called “In The Heights” which looks at “three generations of Latinos as they struggle to forge an identity in a community on the brink of gentrification.” Gentrification? According to Google: The process… Continue reading Attack of the White People
I identify with a lot of people. I identify with the handicapped, Hispanics, women, and now, of course, Orthodox Jews. I used to overlook the handicapped and the Jews since these pieces weren’t always part of my identity. And now, I sit here, while I should be doing yoga, heading to the shower and getting… Continue reading The World in Frum-Colored Glasses
Somehow, the publisher whose contract I have yet to return has decided that my book is tentatively called: Black. Latino. Jewish: Choosing to be Jewish. People, help! Vote on something. Make up your own. Help. They obviously want to work in the multicultural angle. American. Dominican. Jewish.: Becoming Jewish in a Multicultural World BEFORE &… Continue reading Judge a book by its cover
I guess I survived the interview process if he’s sending me a contract. Hubbie thinks the publisher is underestimating my writing ability, I think Hubbie is overestimating. Now, a case of nerves. I am exhausted. Jetlagged from flying to Berkeley and back for an extended weekend, exhausted from one too many fibromyalgia flare-ups, underexercised and… Continue reading He’s sending me a contract
Notes from The Ten Commandments According to Mom: Ah, so I’m dying to submit my writing for this; THINGS I’D NEVER Tell My Mother. Seeking first-person, nonfiction essays exploring actions, thoughts, or feelings you would never share with your mother. Can be from childhood, adolescence, or adulthood. Humorous to heartbreaking. We especially need humor writing… Continue reading The Ten Commandments According to Mom
“White people sensitivity training” was a subject that came up in conversation the other day amongst my friends. We were really discussing how people from disparate cultures, classes and backgrounds can react in a “peculiar” way to different situations. Sometimes, the disconnect between two groups of people is so unsurmountable that they might need “(insert… Continue reading White People Sensitivity Training
I thought growing up that I was depressed. Life was pretty depressing between the psychotic mom, the deadbeat dad, the suicidal siblings and the pooping/screaming baby half-sister whose pseudo-mom I had become as soon as she popped out. (Hold on while I yell at my husband. Dammit, yes, I ate all the chocolates, yes, I… Continue reading The Blues
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 