Riddle: What Jewish holiday is represented by the number 40,320?Answer:Shemini Atzeret. Atzeret is the Hebrew word for the mathematical term factorial.Shemini Atzeret = 8! (eight factorial) = 8 x 7 x 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 40,320 … [Read more...]
Mnemonic for Noachide Laws
October 28, 2008 by
Ilana-Davita posted about the seven Noachide laws. According to Jewish tradition, these commandments are also binding on non-Jews. Here's a mnemonic for remembering them:Aleph-Bet-Gimel-Dalet and the Big Three? Aleph--Ever min hachai, the prohibition against eating a limb from a living animal? … [Read more...]
Popular Israeli Baby Names for Boys
October 27, 2008 by
So that no one will complain (again) that males are second-class citizens on this blog, please list popular boys’ names in the comments. The top ten names for boys in 2006 were Itai, Uri/Ori (spelled identically), Noam, Daniel, David, Ido, Moshe, Yosef, Yehonatan, and Amit. When I was pregnant … [Read more...]
Popular Israeli Baby Names for Girls
October 27, 2008 by
See also: 20 Popular Israeli Names for Girls, 2010 Alison left the following comment: I am an American Jew and I am trying to find popular Israeli girl names. We are due in April with a girl and we'd like to give her a Hebrew name (her older brother is named Avishai Navon). Both my husband … [Read more...]
Cultural Differences
October 26, 2008 by
The responses to my post about the unfriendly woman in shul ranged from "She's shy" to "She's a snot." I think the answer lies elsewhere. First let me give an update.One day in September while I waited for the gan to let out, she did come and sit next to me. She asked how I was, and I asked her what … [Read more...]
Simchat Torah Suggestions
October 24, 2008 by
Now that we're through kvetching about our Yom Kippur experiences, we can start analyzing Simchat Torah.Simchat Torah is a difficult holiday for Orthodox women. It seems like the men are having the fun, while the women are sitting around waiting, watching, and mostly talking. I don't mind sitting … [Read more...]
Every Family Needs at Least One
October 23, 2008 by
My son, A., spent half an hour early this morning searching for his wallet. Finally I gave him money for a new bus ticket. After lunch I asked my 4-year-old whether she knew where his wallet was. "Yes!" she answered. "But it's in a place where I can't reach it." She skips into my bedroom and … [Read more...]
Sukkot in the ER
October 23, 2008 by
When we last met, I was injured at the bottom of a hill near Peduel. At this point I was pretty sure I would recover, so we went to our friends' house in the community of Revava. I sat and nursed my wounds while others prepared the delicious dinner. During the meal, the wrist on the hand that I used … [Read more...]
Holiday riddles
October 22, 2008 by
You must know Hebrew, and math, fairly well to get this one:How is the number 40,320 associated with a Jewish holiday?Hint: Reduce to prime factors. This isn't really a riddle, but my son said that Isru Chag Sukkot (the day after Sukkot, and the last day of vacation) is also known as Yom Hacharisha … [Read more...]
In Which I Fall Head Over Heels. . .
October 22, 2008 by
into the rocks of a mountain in the Shomron, that is. On the first day of Chol Hamoed (the intermediate days of the Sukkot holiday), we went with friends on an organized hike through Nachal Shiloh. We hesitated about the security, the length (four hours!) and the possibility of rain, but decided to … [Read more...]
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