Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news

Redefining Rebbetzin says: "Save Conversion and Jewry as we know it"

My hands (and heart) hurt too much to go into great detail over this latest conversion debacle which is why I haven’t blogged about it though I have mentioned it on my fan page. Lucky for me “Redefining Rebbetzin” put together a great blog about it. If you’ve been living under a nice little rock… Continue reading Redefining Rebbetzin says: "Save Conversion and Jewry as we know it"

chronic pain/fibromyalgia · news

Patient #6 aka Aliza Hausman Talks Fibromyalgia to the NY Times

In the NY Times piece, “Patient Voices: Fibromyalgia”, six men and women speak about living with fibromyalgia. And guess what? Patient #6 is me!!!! For more information on fibromyalgia and to support fibromyalgia awareness, check out: National Fibromyalgia Association. You can get the shirt above and other amusing fibromyalgia t-shirts at Zazzle. I’m also a… Continue reading Patient #6 aka Aliza Hausman Talks Fibromyalgia to the NY Times

Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news

Take that, wise guy!

Lest anyone think that most Jews agree with Rabbi Yitzchak Schochet’s insensitive (and downright nasty) opinion piece in The Jewish Chronicle calling for fellow Orthodox rabbis to stop performing conversions, Miriam Shaviv, the foreign editor at the paper, responds with a piece called “An offensive conversion ‘solution.’” In the piece, she defends converts (and Judaism… Continue reading Take that, wise guy!

Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news

Oh no, he didn’t! "Why Orthodox Rabbis Must Stop Conversions"

A prospective convert appears before a rabbinical court in Israel. Photo Credit: Jewish Chronicle In “Why Orthodox Rabbis Must Stop Conversions,” (Jewish Chronicle of London, 2/4/10), as the title notes, Rabbi Yitzchak Schochet tells Orthodox rabbis that they need to stop converting people “for the foreseeable future (except perhaps in special circumstances such as adoptions).”… Continue reading Oh no, he didn’t! "Why Orthodox Rabbis Must Stop Conversions"

Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news · rabbi

Jewish Here, Not Jewish There

It’s articles like these “Jewish in Tel Aviv, Gentile in Ashkelon” (2/3/10, The Jewish Daily Forward) that led to the following joke I make in one of my speeches: “In America, I am Dominican but in the Dominican Republic, I am American and in Israel, whatever I am depends on a couple of angry rabbis.”… Continue reading Jewish Here, Not Jewish There

Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news · Sukkot

It’s a TEFILLIN BOMB!

Only if you’re living under a rock have you missed the news that a plane was diverted because a flight attendant mistook a White Plains Jewish teen putting on tefillin for a terrorist. Yes, they thought it was a (tefillin) bomb. No, this is not part of my stand-up routine but it will be. Read:… Continue reading It’s a TEFILLIN BOMB!

chronic pain/fibromyalgia · gym · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news · speaking · vlogging

Update! This was almost a video blog.

I just finished up getting interviewed and photographed (a two-hour process) for an upcoming piece on fibromyalgia. Can’t wait to see the finished product. As with any interview, there’s that anxiety that some of what you’ve said will be misinterpreted (as happened with my interview on Christmas and conversion with the NY Times). Plus, what… Continue reading Update! This was almost a video blog.

art · books and reading · gym · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · money · movies · news · vacation · vampires · writing

To blog or not to blog

Here is the list of things I’d like to be blogging about right now: Last week’s wave of Facebook updates where women posted the color of their bras in an effort to raise breast cancer awareness Writer’s block (other people’s, not mine) Prospective converts who rabbis (and the current Orthodox conversion climate) scare off Yoga… Continue reading To blog or not to blog

haiti · Hispanics/Latinos · Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news

Earthquakes and Jewish Art

Haiti: If I wasn’t entirely too exhausted to blog, I would write something deep and heartfelt about the recent devastating earthquake in Haiti. (Please check out my fan page and Twitter feed for links about the earthquake and how you can help the people of Haiti.) The capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince, is far enough from… Continue reading Earthquakes and Jewish Art

Jews/Jewish/Judaism/Orthodox Judaism · news · rabbi

Naked at the Airport

Great so though I’m covered head to toe in all but a burqa, the security dudes at the airport (will soon) get to see me naked anyway? Yeah, yeah, terrorism, I hear you, but I’m feeling quite the little prude right now. I’m not sure what’s worse, that those dudes (and dudettes) get to check… Continue reading Naked at the Airport