Kory Stamper’s “True Color” in my hot little hand…

May have *slightly* scared the librarian with my Gollum-like growling…

So… Rush’s “Spirit of Radio,” then?

Just for the record, I absolutely did NOT start whistling the opening of Scorpions’ “Wind of Change.” Nope, didn’t happen…

Welp, that aged pretty well…

👏👏👏👏👏

Email from the New York Public Library notifying me that Kory Stamper’s new book, “True Color,” is available for pickup. I’m very excited about this, and if you have a local public library, you should use & support it!

Ohboyohboyohboyohboy:
@korystamper.bsky.social

The rabbit hole of 4’33” covers on YouTube is a generally delightful one, even often including the comments sections. Highly recommended…

LET’S GET READY TO RUMMMPLE!

Brisket searing in a pan

thinly sliced onion sweating down in a pan

Sauce (onions, tomatoes, and red wine) reducing in the pan

brisket, now in a ceramic roaster pan, covered in sauce, ready to be braised.

Not now, existential crises; I’ve got a brisket to prepare…

I was, and remain, highly skeptical
of his ability to make significant positive change and of the policies he’s proposed. I am, however, amazed that he is apparently the first person in NYC governance who thinks that the government is fundamentally good, helpful, and worthy of celebration.

The Kid Inside (Is There Life After High School?)
Twenty Million People (My Favorite Year)

The whole album is just astonishing; it’s a tribute to her husband who died of ALS, and each song is just superbly realized. I’m much more team Harry Chapin than I am team Croce, but this just had me in full 🤯 mode…

Season 2 Episode 4 | The Repair Shop (Full Episode) YouTube video by The Repair Shop

Periodic reminder that you can always watch an episode of “The Repair Shop” and feel better about humanity for a little bit.

m.youtube.com/watch?v=-8Wq...

Time in a Bottle YouTube video by Nnenna Freelon - Topic

Most recent time I can remember; literally had to pull the car over to the side of the road weeping…

m.youtube.com/watch?v=IDid...

סאלח שבתי - משיח הזקן YouTube video by קולנוע ישראלי

Fr’instance (and the first time I encountered it), see the Chaim Topol’s “Mashiach Hazaken” from “Sallah Shabati:”

m.youtube.com/watch?v=OUQ-...

That, combined with my whole analysis of Levon Kipnis’s “Chad Gadya” (“Al Geva Ram”) as socialist subversion-turned-religious-Zionist trope, and it’s nothing short of a miracle that she’s still here 25 years later…

We never heard of sound effects in Chad Gadya in my house until The Lovely Wife(tm) joined the family. Her first seder by my parents, she lets out a “baa” and a “cha-ching” at the first verse and gets the entire table staring at her…

My shul rabbi was a hospital
chaplain for decades. There are few more nobler callings, and only a few more difficult (prison chaplain being one of ‘em)…

For those looking for subtle distinctions in this field, the similar verb ראה has a wide range of possible meanings in the prepositional form (compare & contrast Gen. 21:16 & Ps. 118:7 for different nuances in אראה ב-, for instance…)

A nice d’rash, although I’m not sure it’s semantically sound. The construct vs prepositional forms of verbs is a pretty subtle distinction. This particular construction appears in at least two other places (Num. 16:15 and Sam I 25:34)* and that reading doesn’t make sense there…

* Hirsch commentary

The Jonathan Sacks Haggadah; Essays, The Sages in Benei Brak 19 | Sefaria Library It is against this background that a key figure emerges, Rabban Gamliel the second. Tradition tells us that Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakkai, in secret negotiations...

For a fascinating speculative
analysis as to why these five were in Bnei Brak, see Rabbi Sacks’s essay:

www.sefaria.org/The_Jonathan...

Only tangential to my general interests, but looks like a terrific overview to the subject for those looking to dive in…

I’m an Old Grump, but I semi-agree with the original. Using cursive in my journals and permanent notes seems to keep the brain engaged for me. I can’t draw worth a lick, and lack the environment for regular music practice; writing conscientiously is something I’d like my kids to be able to do.

"Whoever Is Hungry, Come and Eat"? From the Babylonian Poor to the Ashkenazi Elijah - Jewish Review of Books Whydowebegin the seder by inviting “whoever is hungry” to come and eat? Aren’t the guests already at the table? And why do we do it in Aramaic? It has something to do with Babylonian magic bowls . . .

A bit of academia from @simchagross.bsky.social :

jewishreviewofbooks.com/jewish-histo...

Today’s minute cryptic:

Baby shower starts by unwrapping mother’s presents (4)

Dang, that’s good…

Possibly the best military satire since Catch-22, yet probably not in my top
five Discworlds…

I’m still very much a skeptic, but it really is remarkable how little effort it seems to take him to present himself as relatable, and to wonder why that’s so hard for others to pull off.

Joyfully sharing your passions is why we have an internet. Everything else is a distraction. Genuine horror has always been there, and there are few things more noble than giving curious people a new way to see things.

Promises, Promises - "She Likes Basketball" on the Tony Awards (Sung by Jerry Orbach) YouTube video by Mr. Egerman

m.youtube.com/watch?v=Pvq6...