Archive for category Link Roundup

Prepare Yourself For Chanukah Shopping!

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on November 7, 2010

I know it’s crazy, but there are only about three shopping weeks left before Chanukah is upon us. The holiday begins on December 1st, so this year buying all your presents on Black Friday indicates some serious procrastination on your part. I don’t recommend it.

Personally, I’m a big fan of online shopping. I think we all have our shortlist of standby stores and websites for last minute shopping, but that doesn’t answer the question of what to buy. Googling such a question tends to lead me to lists of hot new gadgets I can’t afford. I love Dad too much to buy him a heated ice scraper, anyway. So what to buy?

Looking back, it may be more appropriate to call this post, “Rachel is hungry and wants book and t-shirts for Chanukah,” but I hope I gave you an idea or two. If not, comment with the gifts you’re planning on buying, or hoping to get!

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Beware Of The October Blahs!

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on October 20, 2010

You’ve probably heard of the sophomore slump, but are you familiar with the October Blahs?

The holidays are over, we’ve had a couple weeks to exhale, and the kids have settled into a routine at school. For us college students, midterms aren’t an issue yet (they will be soon, but I like to live in the present) and even the tiny taste of freedom called Thanksgiving Break seems miles away.

There are several ways to deal with this October ennui, and for me they all involve either reading books or staring at screens. Here’s some stuff to get excited about, or at least mildly interested in.

Take heart, reader: Thanksgiving will be here before you know it. Then it’s time to start watching Love Actually and shopping for Chanukah presents.

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Jewish Book Carnival!

Posted by Alx in Jewish Books, Jewish Knowledge, JPS Books, Link Roundup on September 15, 2010

This month, to start the New Year off with a bang, we are hosting the Jewish Book Carnival! Started by Heidi Estrin and Marie Cloutier to build strength in the Jewish-book-blogosphere, JPS has collected a series of links to share with you:

JBooks: The Jewish Manuscript Project: “Poem in the Prophetic Manner.”

LibrarysCat: Life in Biblical Israel

rhapsodyinbooks: Sunday Salon – Review of “The Yiddish Policeman’s Union,”

Beliefnet: Baxter, the Pig Who Wanted to Be Kosher and Tashlich at Turtle Rock

Jewish Boston: Book Review: Broken Birds and Book Review: Queering the Text

Laurel Snyder: The Art of Beginning… Again. Renewel

Erika Dreifus: A Conversation with Allison Amend

Sylvia & Jeff Rouss: A Circle of Smiles for Beit Issie Shapiro

Sheryl Stahl: That one special High Holiday tune

The Fourth Musketeer:Top of FormBottom of Form Book Review: Annexed, by Sharon Dogar

She is Too Fond of Books: Children’s Book Review: *Baxter, the Pig Who Wanted to Be Kosher*

Jew Wishes: They Dared Return, Lest Innocent Blood be Shed, and Austerlitz, by W.G. Sebald

Jewish Book Council: High Holiday Reading

The Whole Megillah?”: Tashlich at Turtle Rock and Say Hello, Lily

The Book of Life: Book Expo 2010: Kids & Teens

AJL Blog: Recent Books about the Fall Holidays

AJL Podcast: What’s Hot in Israeli Literature?

Also, don’t forget to check out the Jewish Book Carnival Goodreads page

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Shanah Tova!

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on September 13, 2010

Shanah Tova! Happy new year. I hope you had a great long weekend! The east coast heat wave is over just in time for Rosh Hashanah, and it’s starting to feel like it just might be fall. Once the High Holidays are over, we’ve got to make it all the way to Thanksgiving. Or Columbus Day, if you’re in grade school.

How are you celebrating? Here at school, I get to see the full-range of observance… from “Uh, excuse me, but we just had a long weekend for Labor Day and I’d like to actually go to class once or twice before the midterm, but can I have some of your apple? Please?”, to students actually flying home and back to go to services with their families. Whatever your plans are for the day, here are some links to help you out:

Wherever you are and whatever you’re doing, try to appreciate this special day. Go forth and reflect!

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Have a Case of the Hump Day Slump?

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on August 4, 2010

The Office

I’ve come to realize that not everyone is bombarded with funny images andvideos all day (it’s not my fault that my friends think of me whenever they see anything adorable), but I remain a firm believer in midday pick-me-ups. Here are some fun links to give you that thirty second smile break you didn’t know you were missing.

  • I absolutely love this collection of letterheads used by famous Jews. My favorites are the stark, strikingly simple ones, like Spielberg’s and Einstein’s. I guess that with a name like that you don’t need much else.
  • There’s tons of stuff online about last weekend’s big wedding, but this Jewcy post about the writer’s childhood crush on Chelsea Clinton brought back memories of a simpler time.
  • And here I thought I knew the New York subway pretty well. Heeb Magazine has a Subway map for Jews that made me chuckle. It reminds me of Abstract City, Cristoph Niemann’s cartoon blog for the New York Times.
  • It seems like he’s in pretty much every comedy I see these days, but it turns out Paul Rudd used to work the bar mitzvah circuit as a DJ. Oh, the early 90’s hair on him! Not to mention the bright yellow blazer/black dress shorts combo. It’s too good.

Whether you find yourself falling into mid-week, mid-day, or mid-hour slumps, I hope these help!

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Summer Nostalgia

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on July 30, 2010

Image: Jessica Giles

There’s something very nostalgic about this time of summer. Maybe it’s because of what those late July, early August days mean to most kids. Everyone runs around trying to enjoy themselves while increasingly frequent glances at the calendar remind them that school is looming in the near future. Of course, for me school is looming in the near future, but you get what I mean.

Here are some articles about summer fun, past and present.

  • So many people are writing about Jewish summer camp! It makes me wish I’d gone…I was too busy spending my summers at nerd camp studying Latin. (Can we pretend that I’m kidding?) Like all things, the concept of Jewish summer camp has changed a lot from one generation to the next (though Israeli dancing has remained a favorite activity among campers). Now there’s even an eco-friendly camp, called Eden Village Camp, that focuses on teaching campers to be environmentally friendly! Crazy kids.
  • There’s a new fad taking over Jewish summer camps everywhere: Jewish-themed Silly Bandz! The popular rubber bracelets are now available in the shape of various Jewish symbols, ritual objects, Hebrew letters, etc.
  • A lot of boomers, Jewish and not, have fond memories of summer days at Coney Island. Astroland closed a couple of years ago, and its heyday had arguably passed a long time before. Now Luna Park, its replacement, is making new memories for Coney Island veterans and their kids (and grandkids)!
  • Alright, so there isn’t really anything nostalgic about this article: It’s just about a hip ice cream place in the city. I argue, however, that the very idea of ice cream itself should make you nostalgic…or at least very hungry.

School is starting up in just a little more than a month! Let’s make the rest of the summer count.

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Hugs, Kisses, and JDate Disasters: Happy Tu B’Av!

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on July 22, 2010

flickr.com/thinmints137

Happy Tu B’Av! This may not be an official holiday anymore, but why missout?  The question is how does one celebrate Tu B’Av?

Originally, unmarried women marked the holiday by dressing in borrowed white clothing (so as to diminish distinctions between the rich and the poor) and dancing together. The unmarried men of the city could pick brides from among them, and were urged through traditional songs to pick based on the family and piety of the girl.

Dancing around in white probably isn’t the best way to find a date these days. We do have a similar forum, though. It’s called the internet. Of course, the whole process has gotten a lot more complicated in the past couple of centuries.

  • Or maybe not. This New York Times article describes some new dating websites that seem to be more similar to the old Tu B’Av way of meeting singles than JDate or eHarmony.
  • Fifty First (J) Dates is one woman’s witty accounts of her experience using the popular Jewish dating website. Read it for her dating advice, keep reading for the laughs. If her stories sound painfully familiar, you can share your own online dating experiences on JDaters Anonymous.
  • Speaking of laughs, have you heard about Geri Brin, the woman who started a dating site that caters to parents trying to find a match for their kids? (Don’t even think about it, Mom.)
  • Need tips on how to woo a date before your Mom feels she needs to get involved? Check out this fun Tu B’Av video from Alef NEXT.
  • If you’d rather spend the day wallowing (hey, I’m not judging), head over to this Tablet Magazine article  with some of the best break-up songs written by Jews. You probably shouldn’t listen to them all in one go unless you have a ready supply of chocolate.

“But wait!” You say, “I’ve already got a boyfriend/girlfriend/fiancé/spouse/bubbala!”  In that case, celebrating Tu B’Av will be easy. There’s a reason they call it the Jewish Valentine’s day, after all. You can’t go wrong with roses and a box of chocolates, assuming your S.O. doesn’t have any major pollen or dairy issues. I’m sure you’ll think of something by Monday.

So, one more time: Happy Tu B’Av. Have a great one.

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Three Weeks Round-Up

Posted by Rachel Feltman in Link Roundup on July 1, 2010

Destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem, by Francesco Hayez

Bein ha-Metzarim, also called The Three Weeks, began on Tuesday. This period, which is meant to be observed as one of mourning, begins with Shiv’ah Asar B’Tammuz, also known as the 17th of Tammuz, and culminateswith Tisha B’Av. Tisha B’Av is the saddest day on the Jewish calendar. While it primarily commemorates the destruction of  both the First Temple and Second Temple in Jerusalem (which occurred 656 years apart on the same day of the Jewish calendar), it has become a day on which we reflect upon any and all calamities that have befallen the Jewish people throughout history.

Here are some resources for finding out more about Bein ha-Metzarim:

  1. Tablet Magazine has posted a thorough, easy to read FAQ on the Three Weeks.
  2. Wikipedia might not be a source you want to cite in your next research paper, but they do have a great article on the The Three Weeks (which of course links you to many related topics).
  3. Last but not least, last year we wrote a blog post on the JPS Blog with tons of information on Tisha B’Av.

Unlike some other holidays and fasts, The Three Weeks and Tisha B’Av aren’t often observed by more secular members of the Jewish community. Even if you don’t plan on making any changes to your routine in the next few weeks, you can still keep the spirit in mind. Take some time to learn about the events we’re meant to mourn this month. If nothing else, you’ll gain a new appreciation for the resilience and strength of spirit of the Jewish people.

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Online Jewish Ethics Resources

Posted by admin in Jewish Knowledge, Link Roundup on June 15, 2010

Last month, we launched Jewishchoices.org, a new interactive community dedicated to open discussion of the ethical issues facing all of us in the Jewish community – and in the world at large. The website sprang from the content in our Jewish Choices, Jewish Voices book series.  The site allows users to participate in forums and in live chat opportunities, and to read blog posts from contributors to our ethics books and other interested readers, as they regularly discuss today’s hot topics.

Turns out, Jewishchoices.org is one of a growing number of online resources where you can go to discuss Jewish ethics. Check out some of these noteworthy sites, and keep coming back to Jewishchoices.org to participate in our evolving community!

1.  Jspot.org: Sponsored by Jewish Funds for Justice, Jspot.org is an online hub for netroots action. In addition to providing educational resources, the site’s blog includes a wide variety of Jewish perspectives on contemporary issues of social and economic justice.

2. Jewish Values Online: At Jewish Values Online, a panel of Conservative, Orthodox and Reform rabbis offers their perspectives on your questions about Jewish ethics. The site includes a database of existing questions, but also allows you to submit your own.

3. Repair the World: Repair the World is an organization that works to encourage Jews to participate and find meaning in service opportunities. Besides the blog, a great feature on the site is the Knowledgebase, which provides information about Jewish perspectives regarding critical issues, biographies on Jewish social justice heroes, and links further reading.

4. Pursue: Pursue is a project of American Jewish World Service and AVODAH: The Jewish Service Corps that engage Jews in their 20s and 30s in social justice activities by integrating their Jewish and social justice values. The site includes a blog that covers different issues and how we can help.

Check out these sites and share in the conversation! If you know of any other Jewish ethics sites worth mentioning, let us know in the comment section.

-Jill Finkelstein

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Summer Reading Roundup

Posted by admin in Jewish Books, Link Roundup, Publishing on June 11, 2010

School may be out for summer, but don’t underestimate the fun of curling up in the warm weather with a good book. We’ve rounded up the best of the web to get you excited about summer reading!

1.     Joanne Meier blogs about the benefits of reading during the summer on Reading Rockets’ Sound It Out blog. According to a new study, simply giving kids books may actually be as effective as summer school. Summer reading also helps kids retain what they’ve learned throughout the school year.

2.     Many book stores are offering incentives to kids for reading. This summer, with through Barnes & Noble’s Passport to Summer Reading program, when kids read 8 books, they can earn a free book of their choice. The program also offers downloadable activity kits for parents and educators. At Borders, kids under 12 can earn a free book when they read 10 books through their ‘10 Summer Double Dog Dare reading program.

3.     Know of any good books? Now you can share your summer reading recommendations or search for the perfect title on Twitter by using the hashtag #sumread10.

4.     Participate in a summer reading program! Visit http://www.cslpreads.org for a list of reading resources (for children and adults) and find out if your local library is part of the Collaborative Summer Library Program.

5.     E-readers are great for tossing into your beach bag, but if you’re thinking about buying one, check out this article from The New York Times to find out which one best suits you.

If you know of any other great reading programs or summer reading recommendations you would like to share with other readers, let us know in the comment section. Happy reading!

-Jill Finkelstein

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