OLD TIME RABBIS ON MODERN ORTHODOXY

I met an old Rabbi recently, a nice guy who taught in a yeshiva somewhere (I don't remember where) very friendly. We talked for a little after Maariv. He seemed to have a world of wisdom in the form of stories for just about every topic, as only an old timer could.

Somewhere along the conversation we hit the topic of orthodoxy/yeshivas. He told me that there is a difference between a good boy in a "yeshivishe" yeshiva and one in a modern orthodox one. He went onto explain that in a yeshivishe yeshiva a good boy is one that learns at any given moment he has and has respect for his elders. I was wondering exactly what he was going to say for a good modern orthodox boy, but I had no idea he was going to say what he said. He said that in a modern orthodox yeshiva a good boy is (take a sip of a drink near you and hold) one who doesn't watch TV on shabbos (now spit the drink out real quickly) .

I was taken aback for a minute, like I said last paragraph I wasnt ready for this kind of answer. I didnt know what to say, do I tell him youre wrong? do I bring honestly frum over? he obviously has the wrong perception about modern orthodox. Modern Orthodoxy is far from watching TV on shabbos, I dont know where he could have came to think this. I figured he just doesnt know what modern orthodox is, he probably meant reform (which wouldnt fit into a good reform kid not watching TV on shabbos because the "good" think its okay to a lot of things, but either way).

I am just posing a question out there, do you think all old rabbis think this way or its just a mistake or a fluke in this one rabbi? Comment what you think or we will never know.

I GOT NOTHING DONE

This past Friday was the infamous black Friday, I think it deserves its own holiday. The day were things are supposed to sell for pretty cheap and crazy sales that start at 5 in the morning. People line up for days before they open, camping in tents on frigid nights, all for a camera that's 75% off. The sales are amazing, one year they were selling flash drives for a dollar.

This year I really wanted to get in on the action, not just the pushing and shoving. I was trying to find a place were I don't have to wake up so early, and still get the sale. I thought about Best buy, then I heard they were sold out in 10 minutes or something like that, good thing I didn't waste my time there. I wanted to buy some good electronics and I couldn't find any place that would have any good sales by the time I got there. B and H in Manhattan wouldn't do, and staples was also a long shot by the time I would get there. I felt very disappointed that I walked away from black Friday with nothing new in my hands, I even put a post on facebook and I got no responses, saving the sales for yourself I guess.

But all is not lost, thank g-d for cyber Monday. Anybody got good sites I can buy from?

Frummie Love Story part V: Shadchan Detective

The time Chana needed to get over her mothers harmful words had hardly passed. The pain was there, but she decided that it wasn worth it if she let that get in her way of meeting this bochur, she had to move on though it still hurt her. What if her mother was right and she would become a spinster ran across her mind, flashing every time the subject would come up. Nevertheless she stuffed that thought in the corner. She realized what she had to do find a way to get that bochur into her life.


She talked it out with her BFF Rifky, they came up with a plan that will enable them to find out where he at least lives and then a chance at getting a name. Chana prayed for it to work, she even gave some money to kupat ha'ir and read the whole tehillim. Everything she had wished and believed in were on this last attempt including proving her mother wrong in a sense. If this didn't work she might not be able to emotionally handle the consequences it would come with, so it had to go through.

That Friday Chana went back to the same overgrown mini market at the same time she did last week, everything had to be the same for this to work. Unlike last time where she was daydreaming through the aisles, this time she's keeping her eyes peeled, although she couldn't remember his face, she would know its him from the jolt of life she would get when she sees him. Her friend Rifky waited in a car for the text message from Chana and things would go into place.

Chana saw someone with a hat and jacket turning a corner, her heart skipped a beat she felt a step closer to "it". She quickly went around the other way dodging carts and old women with baskets, she realized she isn't the typical Bais Yaakov girl now. As she turned on the other side her balloon of excitement deflated it wasn't him, she made a 180 and was about to start moving when in front of her was THE BOCHUR.

She could have fainted if she wasn't so embarrassed to, she said her sorry though she felt like saying thank you. The bochur on the other hand had a sweet smile on his face and said "isn't this the second time? I beginning to enjoy these occurrences" as Chana blushed. Instantly a big smile jumped on her face, it was him, somehow they met again, and he didn't seem afraid of weird occurrences he was able to keep his cool. Chana was just ecstatic. She waited around till she saw he would leave, then she texted Rifky when he did. Rifky who was waiting in the car, saw him and followed him from there till he went into a car, she took down the license plate number and texted chana it was done. Soon they were going to find out who owned this car and with that a name and everything else that come with it.

That shabbos Chana had a new feeling besides that awesome one she had last week, she felt accomplishment, this would override the bad feeling her mother gave her, who Chana tried to avoid now. At this rate who knows maybe in a week she might actually go out on a date with him.

CELEBRATE OR I ALWAYS DO

Thanksgiving is a holiday that everyone in America is proud to celebrate. They share it with family, with friends, it's a very joyous time of year and marks the beginning of the crazy shopping season. Movies and TV shows all depict this time of year as the one were we gather together.

Everything is perfect for anyone in America around this time of year, except for us frum folk. Nope, we have something against weird little poems about pilgrims coming across the pond and eating turkey with Indians. We have a problem with celebrating the giving of thanks on a special day for some reason, some of us say "Why should I make a holiday to give thanks when I give thanks all the time", believe me the ones saying this don't give thanks all the time. Others say that we shouldn't celebrate it because its a goyish holiday, which it isn't its American, and you are allowed to add holidays to the Jewish calendar for those of you who think we can't. Many of us decide that we don't want any of that warm family and friendly feeling on the last Thursday of November, we don't want to realize all that we have around us to be thankful for, that we live in a country were we are free to practice are religion, free to have Israeli day parades, to have protection for us on our high holidays (that's right cops do protect us) and all other littler reasons that pertain to each of us.

Last year I put out 10 things I am thankful for, maybe if frum Jews would write a list they would have more appreciation for thanksgiving, instead of just shrugging it off as another goyish holiday.

Frummie Love Story part IV: Mother Trouble

Warning: if you are an older single be prepared to cry.

Chana could hardly believe that she couldn't find this bochur despite all the shadchanim she went through, even though she could hardly give a description. The odds were against her, he might not even be the one she was looking for, and yet she still hung on to the thinnest of threads just to make it happen, she had this women's intuition that told her to keep pushing for it. Chana decided that she is going to find this bochur and track him down, she will learn everything about him, from where he learns to how many hours of sleep he gets in a week, it will all be known.

Meanwhile, Chana's mother Penina was very worried, her daughters 22nd birthday was in a few weeks and she didn't see any new prospects for her daughter in the forecast. She decided to have a talk with her daughter, maybe she could convince her daughter, somehow, to find a match already. As Penina walked into Chana's room, she found Chana in serious thought, which she normally didn't see on her face. Penina wasn't the best at convincing anyone, so the conversation turned into more of a misunderstood one with her daughter.

Penina: "Chana I think that you... are..... waiting to long for you to settle down with someone, I mean you don't want to live all alone when you're older, right? you want to give me grandchildren, right?", Chana upon hearing this instantly was taken aback, why was her mother not supporting her and what is she thinking of me, went through her mind. She didn't want to say the truth that she was scouting out a boy, because no aidel maidel does that. So instead our Chana replied "I don't want to stay alone my whole life, I'm just.... (looking for something to say) different", she then regretted saying that because her mothers expression was not one thats desired to see. Penina was worried, what did her daughter mean by different? Penina answered back feeling even worse than before "Is that why the boys don't like you, you're different?" as Chana rolls her eyes "If that's the problem then our neighbors the Silberbergs have a wonderful boy who would be perfect for you (Chana never liked the Silberbergs boy, he was a little weird) he's nice, he's a torah observant Jew and he has much in common with-". Chana: "-stop stop", in a sudden outburst "you don't understand!......... just let me breathe right now!".

Penina walked out seeing she didn't really help. Chana was left there tear filled eyes and all. She knew her mother was right which was hard to swallow because she really didn't want her to be, she didn't want to be set up with this Silberberg boy, she just wanted her mother to either understand her or better yet, just leave her alone and not send her on this guilt trip and making obscure assumptions about her. Chana felt as miserable now as she felt joyous on the shabbos before, she felt that at this moment only time can heal the pain and time wasn't moving fast enough. All she could do for now is let her pillow soak up the tears streaming down her soft face.

Frummie Love Story part III: On The Move

Chana came home after her erev shabbos shopping with the biggest smile ever, ear to ear. She was lost in the most amazing feeling you can think of. Not only did she think her dream of that special bochur could come true, but the fact that she met that potential one made her heart give this weird turned on its side sensation that could only be expressed with a smile. It was a smile that could not be broken no matter what happened, because one way or another she would find whatever it was to be good in some way, even when she burned her hand while making chulent she couldn't resist smiling.

That shabbos was to her what a shabbos should be, but as great as it was she knew it was missing exactly what was making her happy, this potential bochur she met that Friday. She had to do something to make it true, to make it happen. That Sunday she went to the shadchan searching for this boy, being that she didn't have anything to submit to the shadchan about him, i.e. name, yeshiva, where he lives. So she basically described to the shadchan what she thinks the boy's personality was, and how he looked, which was hard to do because she couldn't visualize his facial features all she could say is he had a hat and jacket, and since many boys have hats and jackets its hard to find one specific bochur.

All week attempt after attempt failed and she desperately wanted to get somewhere and maybe go out on a shidduch date to see if he was perfect. It looked like the conventional way wasn't gonna do it, detective shadchan is in the house.

MIKE TONIGHT (cross out tonight, insert..) VIN

Recently I posted about Obama and the conspiracies that everyone had about him, and why its been a year since frummies have gone nuts and predicted Obama making another holocaust and how nothing has happened and there should be nothing to fear, remember?. Well when I wrote it I thought that it was just another post where I say whats in the minds of the people of our community, since I am from New York of course I don't mean the people "out of town" when I say community. What I didn't realize is that VIN, and other people, are examining my posts. Ill prove it.

Just today I found an article about how many people are afraid of Obama and have conspiracies about him, this is all over the country they say, little did they realize frum Jews live all around the country. Now I just said a paragraph before I wrote about this recently, now they copy my post and add the ADL (something I didn't do) to prove it true.

Second case. I wrote about making non Jewish books kosher, you know those books that don't were tzitzis on their four cornered plastic covers, yeah those non Jewish books. I had the idea to make a book called Chaim Snyder which would be the Jewish version of Harry Potter, with kabaalah and kishuf instead of magic and even the evil pope Vladimir. So later on I found out they were making a kosher version Sherlocke Holmes, someone obviously took my idea and used it.

(Paranoidly) Someone out there is observing my posts and putting it out there for real , its a conspiracy to get me...... and Obama.